Blueberry Biscuits

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into chunks

1 cup blueberries, patted dry

1 to 1 1/3 cup buttermilk

Instructions:

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.  Cut in butter using a pastry blender, two knives, or your fingers, until mixture resembles wet sand.  Stir in blueberries, making sure they get coated with flour mixture.  Stir in 1 cup buttermilk, taking care to incorporate the dry ingredients well while not crushing the blueberries. Add more buttermilk as needed to form into a cohesive dough.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a 1/2 inch thick rectangle. Fold once, pat again, and fold again. Repeat as needed for dough to look smooth but not be overworked.  Pat into a rectangle or circle and cut out biscuits. Reshape as needed to cut out remaining dough.

Place biscuits on a baking sheet, slightly separated, and freeze while preheating the oven to 425°F.

Once the oven is ready, bake for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Serve warm with butter or with sweet biscuit icing drizzled over the top.

YIELD: 12 SERVING 

SWEET BISCUIT ICING 

yield: 1/2 CUP  

ingredients

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 to 2 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

instructions

In a small bowl, whisk together sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, and vanilla. Add extra milk as desired for preferred consistency.  Drizzle or spread icing onto cooled baked goods.

NOTES  

You can use wild blueberries in this recipe. Because they are smaller, the berries get more dispersed and are less likely to crush to bits when shaping.  If you can’t find wild blueberries, you can use regular blueberries. Take care when mixing to keep them as intact as possible.

   Frozen berries that are thawed work well. Thawing is key in order to remove any excess liquid that might come out during baking, which can affect the biscuits.

Be sure to dry the blueberries as best you can before mixing into the dough. Pat them dry with paper towels after letting them drain in a colander.

Adding the blueberries before the buttermilk will also help preserve their shape. Stir them gently to coat with a layer of flour before stirring in the liquid.

   Biscuits benefit from being worked as little as possible. You don’t want to develop the gluten too much, which can make them chewy, but you also want layers!

When you dump the dough out onto your floured surface, carefully bring it together into one lump with your hands.  Pat the dough into a rectangle, then fold, pat down again, and fold again. You can use a rolling pin if you don’t want to use your hands.

   If you want square biscuits, pat the dough into a rectangle, using a bench scraper (if you have one) to square off edges. Then simply cut to the desired size.

   For round biscuits, you can typically use a 2-inch or 2 ½ inch cutter. Pat the dough to between ¼ and ½ inch high, then cut out biscuits.

Cutting the biscuits as close together as possible will reduce re-shaping work, so take some time to choose your placement! 

Gather up the scraps and push them together to form one piece again, then fold and pat down to cutting thickness. Repeat until you’ve used as much dough as possible.

You usually end up with one “mini” biscuit from the last scraps!

Recipe from stetted .com

Healthier Homemade Crunchwrap Supreme

Healthier Homemade Crunchwrap Supreme

Ingredients:

Taco Meat: 

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

• 1 pound ground chicken, beef, or turkey

• 1 yellow onion, chopped

• 2-3 teaspoons chipotle chili powder use to your taste

• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika

• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper use to your taste

• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

For Assembling: 

• 6 corn tortillas

• extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

• 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

• 1/2 cup cubed Monterey Jack cheese

• 1 poblano or jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped

• 6 large (burrito size) whole wheat or gluten-free tortillas

• 6 mini taco size whole wheat or gluten free tortillas

• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

• 2 cups shredded romaine lettuce

• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, chopped

• fresh cilantro, limes, avocado, and hot sauce, for serving

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 400° F.

• In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the ground meat and onion. Cook, breaking up the meat as it cooks, until the chicken is browned, about 5 minutes. Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, and salt. Add 3/4 cup water. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly around the chicken, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.

• Meanwhile, make the tostadas. Line the corn tortillas up on a sheet pan and rub lightly with olive oil. Transfer to the oven and bake 6 minutes. Flip, and bake another 4-5 minutes, until crisped. While warm, sprinkle with sea salt and lime zest or the "Doritos" seasoning blend (recipe in notes) for extra flavor.

• To assemble, warm a large tortilla for 20 seconds in the microwave, then brush with water to dampen. Lay flat on a surface. In the center, layer the meat, a sprinkle of cheddar, a few cubes of Monterey Jack, and a sprinkle of peppers. Add 1 tostada on top, spread with yogurt, hot sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, and cilantro. Place 1 small tortilla on top, brush with water, then fold the edges of the large tortilla in, pressing to seal (see above photos). Repeat with the remaining wraps.

• Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a skillet, add 1 crunchwrap and cook 2-3 minutes per side until crisp and golden brown. Serve warm with any amount of desired toppings, avocado, hot sauce, yogurt, cilantro, salsa, whatever you love!

Chicken Avocado + Egg Salad – A QUICK Lunch Idea

Chicken Avocado + Egg Salad – A QUICK Lunch Idea

INGREDIENTS :

1 lb. cooked chicken breast, shredded

OR 1 lb. grilled chicken breast, sliced

3-4 hard-boiled eggs, quartered

1 avocado, sliced

4 medium tomatoes, sliced

2 hearts of romaine, rinsed and separated

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp organic cider vinegar

sea salt & freshly cracked pepper, to your taste

Fresh lemon wedges for serving.

DIRECTIONS:

Arrange all the salad ingredients on a large platter. Add a sprinkle of sea salt and freshly cracked pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and and apple cider vinegar. Serve with fresh lemon wedges.

Bourdain's Macao Style Pork Chop Sandwich

 I started by pounding the pork chop and marinating it in the fridge before dredging it in flour, egg, and bread crumbs. Then I heated peanut oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and fried the pork until it turned golden brown. 

Bourdain's recipe replaced the traditional, thicker bun with white sandwich bread, which I think brought more focus to the delicious pork but Rye Bread could work too.

While the pork was cooking, I toasted the white bread and topped it with a spicy aioli made from sriracha and mayonnaise.

I fried the pork chop until it was golden brown. Kaila Yu for Insider

Next, I took the pork chop directly from the frying pan and plopped it onto the toasted bread.

The final product was totally irresistible. 

The meat was tender and crispy, and the aioli added a bit of heat and tang to the bite. 

Pork Spareribs With Peppers, Onions, Sage + Honey + Onions

 Ingredients

1 pound boneless country-style pork spareribs, trimmed and cut into 1-inch chinks

Kosher salt and ground black pepper

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil , plus more to serve

2 bell peppers (red, orange or yellow), stemmed, seeded and cut into ½-inch strips 

1 medium red onion, halved and sliced ½-inch thick

1 cup dry white wine 

2 tablespoons honey, plus more to serve

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage 

Yield

Serves: 4

Preparation

Season the pork with ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper. In a 12-inch skillet over medium-high, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the pork in an even layer and cook without stirring until lightly browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a medium bowl and set aside.  

To the fat remaining in the skillet, add the bell peppers, onion, ½ teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Cook over medium-high, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened and browned, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the wine, honey and sage, scraping up any browned bits.

Return the pork to the skillet along with any accumulated juices, then bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until the pork is no longer pink at the center and the sauce clings lightly, 5 to 7 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve drizzled with additional oil and honey. 

Sweet & Spicy Roasted Chicken Legs

 Sweet & Spicy Roasted Chicken Legs

Found https://www.mrshappyhomemaker.com/sweet-spicy-roasted-chicken-legs/

Ingredients

2 pounds skinless chicken legs

½ cup olive oil

4 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1.5 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon paprika

½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Make sure you remove the skin from your chicken legs if you haven't already done so. Make 3 scores on the meaty section of each chicken leg, & place in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Whisk together the olive oil along with the brown sugar & all the spices. Pour the mixture on top of the chicken in the resealable plastic bag.

Marinate for at least 30 minutes. Place the chicken legs in a 9x13 casserole dish, scores facing up. Bake for 40 minutes.

Veggie Soup

 3 Tablespoon olive oil

1 cup chopped sweet organic onion

2-1/2 Cups (3/4" cubed-peeled) Yukon potatoes

2-1/2 Cups (3/4" cubed-peeled) rutabaga

2 Cups (3/4" cubed-peeled) organic carrots

1-1/4 Cups (3/4" chopped-peeled) organic celery

3 Tablespoon chopped organic garlic

1 teaspoon of dried rosemary

1 Tablespoon of dried parsley flakes

3 Cups organic vegetable broth, or organic chicken broth, or beef broth

1 Cup filtered water

13.6 ounce can - Coconut cream, unsweetened coconut milk, or heavy whipping cream or half and half.

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, to taste-may need more or less

1/4 teaspoon sea salt, to taste-may need more or less

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or pot that you can cover, over medium heat.

Add the 1 cup of onions to your pan and cook until they are tender and golden brown. Be sure to occasionally stir, so the onions do not burn.

When the onions are golden brown, add the following:

2-1/2 cups of Yukon potatoes,

2-1/2 cups rutabaga,

2 cups organic carrots,

1-1/4 cup organic celery,

3 tablespoons organic garlic,

1 teaspoon of dried rosemary,

1 Tablespoon of dried parsley flakes,

3 cups organic broth of your choice,

1 cup filtered water

stir to combine, cover the pot and lower the heat to obtain a rapid simmer, continue to stir occasionally.

keep the pot covered until vegetables are fork-tender, this usually takes a good 20 minutes.

When the vegetables are fork-tender add the coconut cream, coconut milk, whipping cream, or the half and half, stir to combine.

Add salt and pepper to obtain your desired taste.

At this time you could thicken the liquid with a cornstarch slurry or you could blend a portion using a stick blender, or you could eat it as is.