I raved in the previous post about these Buttermilk Biscuits. Southern Living shared four variations of the Buttermilk Biscuits and here is one of them. These Cinnamon-Raisin Biscuits quoting GI Joe ” are vacation good!” Before jumping in the kitchen to prepare them take the time to read the post on Buttermilk biscuits and make the following changes. You’ll have a breakfast hit on your hands.
Tag Archives: cooking
Cinnamon-Raisin Biscuits and Vote!
Filed under Biscuits, Cinnamon Rolls, quick, Recipes
Chocolate Magic Bars
It is way beyond me that something this easy is so good! And for the life of me I should not keep any of these ingredients on hand. I honestly could eat the entire pan by myself and almost did last night but GI Joe saved the day and he ate the other half!
Yesterday was one of those days that you just want to stay curled up in a blanket by the fire. It was quite cold and rainy. I just wanted to stay home, but I had shopping to do. My niece, that is in pharmacy school, is getting married in June and next Saturday she is having her first wedding shower in Savannah. We picked up her gift and wouldn’t you know it they had Lenox Butler’s Pantry on sale. I have wanted it since the first day I set my eyes on it. Yes, I bought eight place settings and three serving pieces. Now if you know someone who wants Vintage Vine in beige, please let me know. I really need to unload it! GI Joe said,”Well, Happy Anniversary, Valentine’s Day and Birthday!” It is so worth it though.
Since having a light dinner last night, I really wanted to go to downtown Villa Rica to Gabe’s. Their Bread Pudding is the best. Not wanting to venture out in the rain and cold, I stood in front of the pantry with the door open and all I saw was sweetened condensed milk and semisweet chocolate pieces. I told myself not to make those bad Chocolate Magic Bars, but myself did not listen.
Cheese Drop Biscuits with Garlic Butter
If you are in a hurry and are craving homemade bread this recipe is for you! The Athlete loves these drop biscuits and and I have been known to put them together at the last minute because I saw a look of disappointment on his face. They only take about 10 minutes to put together so it is hard to say no. So just get in the kitchen and whip these little drops of cheesey goodness into shape and wait for the compliments to come your way! Recipe and how to photographs can be found at the end of the post.
Deviating from the usual muffin lab that I do for the first lab of the semester was quite interesting. Why change something that works you might ask? Well, having all of the ingredients for a recipe helps. My pantry had several boxes of Bisquick and the drop biscuits put it to good use.
I gave the demonstration yesterday. With new cooks their knowledge is very limited so they ask me lots of questions or they just watch and try to soak it all in. It is as if they are learning a new language. For some of them it is very difficult and for others it comes very easy.I’ve never done these drop biscuits as a lab before, therefore have nothing to compare it to. All the biscuits were edible! That is always good. Everyone enjoyed themselves.
I have to say this about tasting what each group prepared. Some groups will not start eating until I come to their table and taste their food. They all sit there speechless waiting for me to let them know how it taste. Even the slight hesitation as I am talking will scare them. My approval is a very powerful tool. Sometimes it is a little scary. I don’t want to say the wrong thing and discourage a student. I know you are all are wondering what I might say if the food is bad. And yes, I have had the pleasure of tasting bad food !! I always try to remember what a good friend of mine told me. She saw a friend’s new baby for the first time and it was NOT a pretty baby. She said, ” Oh my goodness, what a pretty blanket.” Focus on the positive!
As a sideline here, one of the department heads observed me yesterday and an administrator today. It is the first time anyone has ever observed the first lab of the semester. All kinds of things can go wrong during the first lab. You can have students that hate each other working together. Then you might have a group that every member is scared to do anything so nothing gets done. This list goes on, but all went well! Thank goodness.
Cheesy Drop Biscuits with Garlic Butter
From Betty Crocker
- 2 cups of original Bisquick
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese
- 2 Tablespoons margarine or butter melted
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a medium bowl mix Biquick and shredded cheese together. Add milk. Stir with fork until soft dough forms. On a cookie sheet, drop dough by 10 to 12 spoonfuls about 2 inches apart. I like to used parchment paper to line the baking sheet . If you do not use the paper I would lightly grease the baking sheet because the cheese will cause the biscuits to stick.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. In small bowl, stir butter and garlic powder until well mixed: brush on warm biscuits before removing from cookie sheet. Serve warm.
Here are photos to show the steps:
2 cups of Bisquick and 1 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese
Mix Bisquick and cheese . Then add milk and stir until a soft dough forms
Place on baking pan and bake at 450 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.
Mix 2 Tablespoons of melted butter with 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder
Brush butter and garlic powder on warm biscuits
Enjoy!
Happy cooking,
The Teacher Cooks
Cornbread Muffins with Cheese and Chilies- another Paula Deen recipe
Today was a great day at school! Especially after yesterday. I was not sure I wanted to return. But, alas I did and have to say it was a fulfilling day at that. There are a few little projects needing some work, if you know what I mean. What would teachers do if every student was perfect? Some of my fellow teachers might say , “A lot!” But in the end it might be quite boring.
We visited the media center today to explore the world of blogging and how it related to Nutrition and Wellness class. As I monitored the class work, I glanced at the computer screen next to me and asked, ” How did you do that?” It really amazes me the computer skills that my students have. Now I am in the other seat. The slow learner!!! The student is so encouraging, ” Oh, Mrs. L let me show you how to do it. It is just a click here and that is it.” Now I am the student and he is the teacher. I feel excited about learning something new and it gave this kid a big smile.
Throughout the semester my class will be commenting on many of the posts. The instructions are different each time but always they are to use good writing skills. If you read the comments you will see that some are very good. Some on the other hand could use improvement.
Let’s get to the baby corn muffins. This is Paula Dean’s recipe. I just kicked it up a bit with some jalepeno peppers. They are quite easy to put together. I can’t lie and tell you that they are healthy, but it is all about the size of the portion. These are extremely small, just don’t eat twelve!
Depending what size pans you use you could possibly make 48. Don’t worry they freeze really well. To reheat just wrap in foil and place in the oven for about 10 minutes. They can be reheated in the microwave wrapped in paper towel.
Here’s how you make them. Enjoy!
Gather all the ingredients
1 1/4 cups of cornmeal and 2 teaspoons baking powder
Add 1/2 teaspoon salt
Then add 1 cup of sharp grated cheese, 1 8 oz. can of creamed corn, 1 cup sour cream, 1 4 oz. can chopped green chilies and I added 1 chopped jalapeno to add some heat.
Chilies, sour cream, corn and cheddar cheese are added then mix lightly.
Beat slightly 2 eggs and 1/2 canola oil and stir until combined. Do not overmix.
Put in greased mini muffin pan
Bake for 18 to 20 minutes. Just a note here about filling the pans. The ones above are filled just a little too much. It makes it very hard to get out of the pan. At first I thought that I should put oil around the tops of the pan. No!! This did not help. I did find that filling the pans 1/2 instead of 2/3 was the answer. It just did not look as if it would be enough batter, but it will work making them much easier to remove.
Enjoy!
Green Chili Corn Muffins
- 1 1/4 cups cornmeal
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
- 8 oz. can cream-style corn
- 1 cup sour cream
- 4 oz. chopped green chilies
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2 eggs slightly beaten
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease miniature muffin tins wih vegetable oil or cooking spray.
In a small bowl combine the cornmeal, salt, and baking powder. Add the cheese, corn, sour cream, and chilies. ( I stirred in minced jalapeno). Stir until lightly combined. Add the oil and eggs and stir until eveything is just combined. Do not overmix. The batter will be very stiff. Place about 1/2 tablespoon of batter into each muffin cup. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.
Make 48 miniature muffins
Happy Cooking,
The Teacher Cooks
Chili in 30 minutes served with Macaroni
With all of this cold weather we have been having it calls for a big bowl of hot chili. I have chosen a quick and easy recipe that you can put together in about 30 minutes especially if you have some browned ground meat in the freezer. If not it is still quick. The recipe came from the AJC. So if you are in a big hurry for chili and don’t want to wait around for 2 or 3 hours for the usual chili then this is for you.
Rinse with cold water a 15 1/2 oz. can of red kidney beans
You need 3/4 cup of chopped onion
Saute onion in tablespoon of butter
Since I am using browned ground beef that I had in the freezer I am sauteing onion in a little butter. When browning the ground meat you can cook the onion at the same time and drain on paper towel.
1 lb of browned ground beef
Add 10 oz. can of rotel tomatoes and small can of tomato sauce
Add 1 teaspoon of cumin
Sorry blurry picture.
Add 2 teaspoons of chili powder
Add 1 can of drained and rinsed red kidney beans
Let this simmer for about 30 minutes. You may have to adjust the liquid by adding 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water. While the chili is simmering then cook macaroni according to directions on the package. Serve chili on top of the macaroni and top with cheddar cheese.
Dig in!!!
Here is the recipe for you to enjoy!
Macaroni Chili
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 3/4 cup chopped onion
- 1 15 1/2 oz. red kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 1 8 oz. tomato sauce
- 1 10 oz. can stewed tomatoes or Rotel tomatoes
- 3/4 c. of macaroni (cook according to directions)
- 1/4 cup of water
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheese
Brown ground meat and onion. Stir in all ingredients except macaroni and cheese. Simmer for 30 minutes. Serve over cooked macaroni and top with cheese.
Serves 4
Happy cooking,
The Teacher Cooks
Pull-Apart Parmesan Dill Bread or Cinnamon Bread
This was the second day of the new semester and I decided to mix it up a little bit. Why not have a demo right off the bat? Make it more interesting . We don’t have to do the same old stuff. Show the students what the class is really about. Have some fun. Eat some food. And that is what we did!
It was a great day in the classroom. I felt like a move star. All eyes were on me. You could hear a pin drop. I am serious!!! You could tell that they were soaking in every word that I was saying. That is what I live for as a teacher. You just know at that moment that you are doing the right thing. Now mind you it may not happen this way for a long time, but today it did. I could feel the excitement. The comments that the students made about the class– it was music to my ears.
I did not make anything spectacular. I just used a can of refrigerated biscuits and made something a little different. The recipe came out of a textbook we used a few years ago. It is not that healthy, but it is quick and good. I made two variations. One savory Pull-apart Parmesan Dill Bread and the other sweet Pull-apart cinnamon and sugar bread. They both are very good.
So here is what we cooked up today in my class. I hope that you will try these and enjoy!
12 oz. can of refrigerated biscuits cut into quarters
Using a pair of kitchen shears cut 12 oz. of refrigerated biscuits into quarters.
Mix 2 Tablespoons of Parmesan Cheese and 1/2 teaspoon of dill
2 Tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Or if you are making the sweet side of the bread mix together 2 Tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.
Melt 1 1/2 Tablespoons of butter and coat the biscuits
Melt about 1 1/2 Tablespoons of butter or margarine in a small bowl. Coat the quartered biscuits in the butter. I found that you can only put a few in at the time. The butter will help the cheese or sugar to stick to the biscuits.
Put seasonings in a bag and coat the biscuits
This is another thing that I love about teaching. Students see things that teachers don’t see at the time. When I am giving a demo I am really concentrating on following the recipe, cleaning up and being ready for the next class. In other words my thinking is really one tracked. Thank goodness for students that think outside of all of that.
That is what happened this morning. The recipe did not call for you to put the seasonings in a bag and shake to cover, but to put them in a small bowl . WRONG! Putting them in a bag was much more efficient. So thanks to a young gentleman in my first block we changed the recipe to be much more efficient.
Grease an 8 inch cake pan
Parmesan and dill bread ready to cook
Cinnamon and sugar bread ready to cook
Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown. Turn upside down on a serving plate. Pull apart to serve, or cook for 5 minutes before cutting into 8 wedges.
Bake for 12- 14 minutes at 400 degrees
This is the Parmesan Dill pull apart bread!
- Here is the Cinnamon sugar Pull apart Bread
I feel good about today. Here’s hoping that you had a great day,too! Here you go with the recipe. Enjoy!
Pull-Apart Parmesan Dill Bread
- 2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 package (12oz) refrigerated biscuits
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons Margarine or butter, melted
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease 8-in round cake pan. In a small bowl, stir cheese and dill until combined. Cut biscuits in quarters. Add a few biscuits at a time to margarine, separating pieces with fingers. Add cheese mixture and toss with fingers untill all pieces ar coated. ( I put everything in a bag and shook until all the biscuits were coated.) Arrange in one layer in prepared pan. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown.
Bad News: 70 calories per serving, 2 g. protein, 9 g carbohydrate, 3 g fat, 215 mg sodium, 0 g fiber
Happy Cooking,
The Teacher Cooks
Filed under Biscuits, Bread, Cinnamon Rolls, Cooking, Recipes, using refrigerated biscuits
Bran Muffins Dianne’s Style
It is the start of a new year, a new semester, new students and new excitement in my classroom. With all this newness I still have to be organized and ready to go. I have one day of professional learning and a work day before the new invasion. This weekend I made my favorite Bran muffins to freeze and have ready for breakfast. These are great muffins and they make a lot! I mean a lot! One of my very dear friends and her daughter brought food over when my daddy died 3 1/2 years ago. JHM made the best meatloaf and these muffins. Of course I had to have the recipe. It came from her Aunt Dianne. I have added a little to it, but here it is for you to enjoy. By the way the batter will keep for up to six weeks in the refrigerator. I always get rave reviews when I have guests for breakfast and bring these things out of the freezer and pop them in the microwave. YUMMY!
Start with 3 cups of all-bran cereal
5 cups of bran flakes
Add 1 quart of buttermilk to the cereals and let it sit for about 30 min.
Mix together 5 cups of plain flour, 5 teaspoons soda, 2 teaspoons salt and 3 cups sugar
whisk together 4 eggs and 1 cup of oil
Add eggs and oil to cereal and buttermilk mixture. Stir!!
Add dry ingredients and stir!!!
I usually put cereal and buttermilk in a huge Tupperware bowl, then measure dry ingredients in a separate bowl, and eggs and oil in a measuring cup. I do all the mixing in the Tupperware bowl. Store the mixture in the Tupperware bowl for up to six weeks. Because I was taking photos just look at all the bowls I used and my dishwasher was already full!
Too many bowls and not enough washers!
Here is where I changed Dianne’s recipe a little. Really I just added a few goodies. As an afterthought I wish that I had added a little cinnamon with the apples and raisins. These muffins are almost like apple cake without the frosting!
I took out some of the batter,enough to make 24 muffins. I didn’t measure it, but I am guessing it to be about 6 cups. My medium mixing bowl was about half full.
Added about 1/2 cup of raisins
1 medium apple diced
Fill muffin tins and ready to bake for 15-20 min. at 400 degrees
Ready to eat or freeze for later!
Here is the recipe ready for you to make and enjoy!
Bran Muffins
- 5 cups bran flakes
- 2 cups All bran
- 5 cups plain flour
- 5 teaspoons soda
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 quart buttermilk
- 1 cup oil
Soak cereal in buttermilk for about 30 minutes. Add eggs and oil. Stir in flour, sugar, soda and salt. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 -20 minutes. Mix can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6 weeks.
Happy cooking,
The Teacher Cooks
Hummingbird Cake
The first time I encountered this wonderful cake was on a romantic dinner with GI Joe!!! He took me to Dailey’s for dinner before a show at the Fox. The night was what can I say other than just plain great! Sorry to say that Dailey’s closed this year so we can no longer experience their wonderful desserts. But we can treat ourselves to the delicious cake that they served. After that night we took the Athlete there before seeing the Christmas Carol and to this day it is his favorite dessert! So here is a family favorite for many reasons. I hope that you can enjoy as much as we have.
This is not your normal cake where you cream butter and sugar and then add flour alternately with liquid. It is made by the muffin method of mixing. In other words it is just plain easy!!!
Filed under Cake, cream cheese, cream cheese frosting, easy, frosting, Hummingbird cake
Candied Fruit Magic Bars
We all have favorites that we love to eat and make during the holidays. This is one of my all time favorites. It is great tasting and very easy to put together. Just what we all need this time of the year. There is one problem. It is very hard just to eat one square!! I made these last night and found myself having a cup of coffee with two of these sweet morsels.
Looking at the recipe last night I could not believe how long I had been making them. I got the recipe one Thanksgiving at my Dad’s. My step mother always made them for Christmas. On the back of the recipe I had written sizes of my nephews 2T and size 8 so that I could pick them up a couple of things for Christmas. They are both young men now. One in his last year of residency and the other is running a farm! Time flies!!!
Sour Dough Bread
This is good stuff!
There is nothing better than fresh bread cooking in the oven. The aroma will drive you crazy. I love making this sour dough bread. It taste great and makes your kitchen smell so good. The first time I made it I also baked a ham . When I took this bread out of the oven I could not resist putting mayonnaise on the fresh hot bread along with a piece of baked ham. It was heaven. I ate the whole loaf!!!
I have been making this for years. But it is addictive so I can’t make it every week like I did when The Athlete was in high school. It’s one of those foods that goes straight to your hips. Now it only shows up for special occasions . Make this and give it to your friends. They are going to love you!!!
Sour Dough Starter
- 1 cup warm water
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 pkg. yeast
- 3 T of potato flakes (level spoon)
Place the starter in a glass jar. Do not use metal and stir with a wooden spoon. Leave the mixture on the counter for 3 days. Feed the starter and let it sit on the counter for another 8 hours. It is going to bubble. Below is the food for the starter. After 8 hours refrigerate for 3-5 days. Now you are ready to feed again and make bread.
In the morning take out the starter and feed it and sit on the counter. You will be ready to make your bread in the evening. Here’s what you add each time you feed this hungry little thing. This starter can be fed every day, but has to be fed at least once every 10 days to keep it from dying. Another note : Don’t keep alot of starter. It will be too weak to rise. Only keep 2-3 cups and give the other away to friends or pour it out.
Food for the starter:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 T potato flakes
- 1 cup warm water
In the evening make the dough and let it rise overnight. I have halved the original recipe so that I could use my bread machine . The next morning I knead the dough, put it in pans to rise and bake it that evening. Feel free to double it and make three large loaves of bread.
Here is the recipe for the dough:
- 3 1/2 cups bread flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 t salt
- 1/2 starter ( stir it up to get some of the potato flakes)
- 1/4 cup oil
- 3/4 cup warm water
Sometimes I will cheat and add 1/2 t of yeast. Why? The starter is ornery. Sometimes it does not act right. If the temperature is too cool it will not rise like it should. In the summer it does much better.
liquid in first then dry ingredients
I use the dough cycle on my machine and let it knead for 5-8 min. Let it rise 4 – 8 hours until double in size. Punch down dough. Knead lightly for about 5 minutes on a floured board. You will have to add in extra flour. Dough will be sticky.
This is after about 8 minutes in the bread machine.
Overnight it has doubled
Knead dough for about 4 minutes
Divided dough into four equal pieces
Place into 4 greased pans
Dough in pans
Doubled in size
Divide the dough into four pieces. Place in small greased bread pans. Let the dough rise in the pans until doubled. I use the proofing cycle on my oven and it will take about 4-5 hours.
Bake at 325 degrees for about 20 – 25 minutes. Butter the top and cool on a cooling rack. This bread freezes well. But with bread this good mine rarely gets to the freezer.
Happy cooking,
The Teacher Cooks
Filed under Bread, Cooking, Recipes, Sour Dough Starter
The Teacher Cooks 