Sourdough Biscuits

I'm getting my Sourdough Starter going again, and since part of the process is pouring some out so there's room to add more, I've been looking for things to do with the part I need to pour out.  I decided to try some biscuits, and this recipe was the first on the search list.  So, I tried it.  Well, not exactly - I did not mix it up on the counter; it was just too messy for that.  But I mixed them up, rolled them out - skipped the bacon fat part, let them sit/rise in a warm oven, and baked them.  They kind of spread out - I had to use a cookie sheet because there were too many to fit in the 9" pan the recipe called for.  They tasted OK, but they were kind of tough and chewy and nothing special.  Not bad warmed up a bit with some butter and honey, so I've been eating them for breakfast, and as snacks.

But I didn't really plan to make them again - and then I read through all the comments and the last one pointed out something that should have been obvious, considering I've been baking with sourdough starter for several years now, but I was thinking biscuits which usually means quick, instead of thinking sourdough, which means it takes time - "This recipe, and several others like it on the internet, leave out a critical step – what to do with the milk. I finally found one that had that step. First critical step is: The night before mix starter, milk, and 1 cup of flour. Cover and let stand at room temp." So, of course I had to try them again!

I mixed the starter and milk with a cup of flour and let it sit on the counter overnight.  This morning it was nice and bubbly and ready to use.  I continued with the recipe, mixing the remaining ingredients in the bowl and then kneading lightly before rolling out on the counter.  I rolled them just a bit thicker this time and didn't even try using my biscuit cutter - I just cut them into squares.  This time I rolled them in melted butter - instead of the bacon grease, and I didn't roll them in anything last time, just brushed the tops with butter when they came out of the oven.  So there were some slight differences, but the main one was letting the starter, milk and flour work overnight.  It changed the whole feel and texture of the dough, and this time it worked!

Sourdough Biscuits

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sourdough starter
• 1 cup milk
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• melted butter for dipping (or bacon fat, if you want)

Directions:

1. Mix starter, milk and 1 cup flour; cover and let sit overnight.
2. The next day, when dough is nice and bubbly, mix sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda into 1 cup flour and stir it in.  Mix in as much of remaining 1/2 cup flour as you can; turn out onto floured surface and knead lightly.  Knead just till the dough is mixed. Do not over knead. 
3. Roll out the dough to a 1/2 inch thickness.  Cut out biscuits.
4. Dip the cut biscuits into the melted butter on both sides and place into a baking dish - 13"x9" would probably work best. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1/2 an hour. 
5. Bake in a 375°F oven for 30 -35 minutes.

  What a difference that one little step makes!

Crockpot Chicken Fajitas

I found this recipe on Pinterest, and it looked so good and so easy that I just had to try it.  Plus I had a couple red peppers and a green pepper that needed used...  I added some garlic and used fresh lime juice, but otherwise followed the recipe.  Here's mine with those slight changes:

Crockpot Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 3 sweet peppers, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 1lb. boneless chicken breast or thighs
• ½ cup chicken broth
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 1 ½ tablespoons chili powder
• Juice of 1 lime

Directions:

1. Combine sliced onion, peppers and garlic in the bottom of a crockpot. Lay chicken on top of veggies. Pour chicken broth over top. Sprinkle everything with cumin, salt, and chili powder. Squirt the lime juice over the top. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. 
2. When meat is done, shred with two forks and stir back into juices. Serve on tortillas with your choice of fixings.

Fixings:

• shredded cheese
• salsa
• sour cream
• cilantro
• sliced green onions
• other (whatever you like on your fajitas or tacos)

Seasonings on top

Let me just say that these are amazing!  A-MAZING!  They are so easy, and they taste so good.  I'm not completely sure I'd call them fajitas, but they do have the sliced onions and peppers that are traditionally in fajitas, so we'll just go with it - and that's what the original recipe was called.  I served them with some Cilantro Lime Rice - stir chopped cilantro, lime juice, and a drizzle of olive oil into cooked rice - and they were perfect!
 

After the chicken has been shredded

Then I stirred the leftover chicken mixture into the leftover rice, and we had that a couple days later - again wrapped up in tortillas with all the fixings.  Oh, and I stirred some black beans in - perfection!!

I will definitely be making these again.  YUM!!

Caramel Rolls

I was looking through some old pictures today - searching for something completely different - when I came across some pictures and a link to this recipe.  I can't believe I never posted it here!  Of course, it is really pretty on tabblo, see for yourself - Caramel Rolls.  I wish I could embed it full-size here, but I'll just copy and paste the recipe, and if you want to see the completely illustrated version, just click the link.

Caramel Rolls

Ingredients:

• 1 cup pecans
• 1 loaf frozen sweet bread dough (cut into pieces)
• 1 pkg. butterscotch pudding (not instant)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/2 cup melted butter

Directions:

1. Grease large Bundt pan.  Mix together pudding, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg; set aside.   Put pecans in bottom of the pan, then the pieces of dough.  Sprinkle pudding mixture over the top and drizzle with the melted butter.
2. Leave it on the counter overnight (uncovered)
3. The next morning, preheat the oven to 350° and bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and invert onto large platter.  Serve at once. 

I've never bought the frozen sweet bread dough, though that's certainly an option.  I just make the sweet roll dough I use for my Cinnamon Rolls and freeze it in zipper bags.  When I want to make these rolls, I pull it out and let it sit for a few minutes, to soften it enough to cut into pieces then follow the rest of the recipe.

These are easy and yummy!  Try them for yourself and let me know what you think.

Potato Pancakes w/ Spinach & Cottage Cheese

I made these for lunch the other day. They were so good, I'm thinking of mashing some potatoes just so I'll have leftovers!

Potato Pancakes

Ingredients:

• Leftover mashed potatoes (1-1/2 to 2 cups)
• 1 egg
• Chopped onion
• Chopped spinach
• Cottage cheese
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• Flour

Directions:

1. Mix mashed potatoes, egg, onion, spinach, and cottage cheese well - no measurements, just whatever sounds, looks, feels good to you.  Season with salt & pepper.
2. Add enough flour so that you can handle the mixture and form into patties.  It will be very messy, and you will want to coat your hands with flour so it doesn't stick too much.
3. Heat a little oil in frying pan; add patties and fry on first side until browned, flip and cook the other side until browned and heated through.  Serve on a bed of fresh spinach.

 Enjoy!

I made a couple for me and let my daughter taste them so she wanted some too.  I added a little extra flour before making the rest into patties, and while it handled better, the flavor wasn't as good.  You want to use as little flour as possible for the best taste.