Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Oh Suh-weet Biscuits!




So this recipe is a throwback from a post I found from about a year ago. It had been left all alone in my blog-draft attic, getting dusty and lonely. But now, it's coming back out into the world!  Make lots of friends little recipe, I know you can do it!

The Tale of Sweet Biscuits

I had to search high and low for a sweet biscuit recipe so y'all better appreciate this one. Apparently they're a southern thing cause I couldn't find any websites with recipes... except for one! They turned out really well, it was my first time making homemade biscuits... and it will not be my last!!

PLUS David and I made this and our delicious Black Bean Quesadillas while building a dresser. I know, we're beasts. Just look at those sweet biscuits.

Beasts.

David actually made these while I made a quesadilla casserole, so do not be alarmed by the manly hands in the photos. It's just David!

Ingredients

1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup cold butter
1 eggs
3/4 cup milk



Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
Mix sugar, flour, and salt in large bowl. Cube butter and add to mixture. Stir in mixer until the ingredients become grainy. 



Crack and whisk the eggs in a bowl. Add to dry ingredients along with milk.

Stir and mash with hands until mixture forms a flaky dough. Knead three times and roll out onto floured surface so that dough is 1/2 to 1in thick.
Using a cookie cutter or jar, cut circles out of dough and place on greased cookie sheet.















Bake for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and bask in their thick, flaky deliciousness.










This is David with his ginormous biscuit. Feel free to make one of your own if you wish, but leave it in the oven for a bit longer. It was so delicious - at least the small part that I was able to steal was delicious.

Oh, but we didn't stop there. You see, this adventure began when I received some berries from the leftover sangria at my work. YES. They were about to throw away perfectly delicious, juice and alcohol-soaked berries. Well, I put a stop to that.

Sooo, we decided to make sweet biscuits to serve them with!!

Heres the situation. I just heated the berries and a little bit of their juice over medium high on a nonstick skillet until they simmered. I added a bit of sugar and let them cook for about 5 more minutes to thicken up. Finally, we poured all the delicious goodness along with some local honey over the warm biscuits. It was a night to remember. However, David and I aren't really drinkers, so we ended up ditching the berries and opting for peanut butter and honey as toppings as well.

Nevertheless, it was delightful to make, and it looks really pretty!





Thursday, August 22, 2013

Kale Pesto

Hello all! 

I think it goes without saying that it's been some time since I've posted. Thaaats not because I've renounced cooking and the blogging world all together. I would never do that to you. Its actually because I graduated, got married and moved into a new house. 

The good news is I also got a new job! So I'll be able to make some money, learn about food, and spend time with the people (and food) I love - you being included in that. 

So my husband and I compiled a cooking adventures list where we listed out all the grand, exotic, and strange things we wanted to try to cook. Needless to say, its quite exhaustive. 

Here is one of our first adventures into the vast gastronomic universe: Kale Pesto. 


That's right. This recipe was inspired by 
1. Our disturbing love for pesto
2. The equally disturbing amount of kale I end up purchasing from the farmers market each weekend. 





So this recipe is adapted from one by the ever-lovely Giada DeLaurentiis. I doubled it and added kale. Then after I realized I was out of olive oil, I substituted some leftover pasta water - it still had all that starchy goodness bubbling inside it. 



Ingredients:

1/2 cup pine nuts
1 clove of garlic
1/2 cup basil (loosely (packed)
2 1/2 cups kale leaves (loosely packed)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 and 1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup pasta noodles

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spread out pine nuts on baking sheet. 

2. Fill a medium pot with water and set on oven to boil.

3. When oven has heated up, toast pine nuts for approx 5 mins or until slightly golden. Set aside to cool.

4. When water has boiled, add in 1 cup dried pasta (I used shells cause they're awesome and make me feel like a little kid!). Reduce heat and let cook for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

5. Place a small bowl under colander in your sink. drain pasta through colander, collecting some of the pasta water in the small bowl. Place drained noodles back in pot. 

6. Place garlic, basil, kale, pine nuts, salt and pepper in food processor and pulse until finely chopped. DO NOT simply hold down the blend button. Pulsing helps to ensure that the veggies don't get too overheated and loose their pretty green color. 
7. While pulsing, slowly add in the olive oil then 1/3-2/3 cup pasta water. You want a smooth, creamy consistency. 

8. Add 1/2 cup grated parmesan and pesto to noodles. Stir until the cheese melts. 




Now you're ready to serve! Dish it up and top with remaining parmesan cheese for a lovely display. 
Have a lovely afternoon! Take kale!