Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits



http://www.food.com/recipeprint.do?rid=26110

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits

By P4 on April 22, 2002
Photo

Photo by KC_Cooker

442 Reviews
  • timer
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Total Time: 22 mins
  • Yield: 10 biscuits

About This Recipe

"These buttermilk biscuits are authentic. This recipe came from my great-great-grandmother, and was handed down to all the women in my family, and we are all Southern. I am the first one to commit the sin of using a food processor (lol) but I find it works very well. I would put these biscuits up against anyone's - they are perfect in every single way. I hope you all enjoy them."

Ingredients

    • 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the board ( if you can get White Lily flour, your biscuits will be even better)
    • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1 tablespoon baking powder ( use one without aluminum)
    • 1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1 teaspoon salt
    • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, very cold
    • 1 cup buttermilk ( approx)

Directions

  1. Preheat your oven to 450°F.
  2. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, or in the bowl of a food processor.
  3. Cut the butter into chunks and cut into the flour until it resembles course meal.
  4. If using a food processor, just pulse a few times until this consistency is achieved.
  5. Add the buttermilk and mix JUST until combined.
  6. If it appears on the dry side, add a bit more buttermilk. It should be very wet.
  7. Turn the dough out onto a floured board.
  8. Gently, gently PAT (do NOT roll with a rolling pin) the dough out until it's about 1/2" thick. Fold the dough about 5 times, gently press the dough down to a 1 inch thick.
  9. Use a round cutter to cut into rounds.
  10. You can gently knead the scraps together and make a few more, but they will not be anywhere near as good as the first ones.
  11. Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet- if you like soft sides, put them touching each other.
  12. If you like"crusty" sides, put them about 1 inch apart- these will not rise as high as the biscuits put close together.
  13. Bake for about 10-12 minutes- the biscuits will be a beautiful light golden brown on top and bottom.

Directions

  1. Do not overbake.
  2. Note: The key to real biscuits is not in the ingredients, but in the handling of the dough.
  3. The dough must be handled as little as possible or you will have tough biscuits.
  4. I have found that a food processor produces superior biscuits, because the ingredients stay colder and there's less chance of overmixing.
  5. You also must pat the dough out with your hands, lightly.
  6. Rolling with a rolling pin is a guaranteed way to overstimulate the gluten, resulting in a tougher biscuit.
  7. Note 2: You can make these biscuits, cut them, put them on cookie sheets and freeze them for up to a month.
  8. When you want fresh biscuits, simply place them frozen on the cookie sheet and bake at 450°F for about 20 minutes.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Easy Bangkok-style "Drunken Noodles" Recipe



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5 Star Rating(1 Reviewwrite a review

By , About.com Guide

Bangkok Drunkard's Noodles
Easy Bangkok-style Drunken Noodles
D.Schmidt
Fatigued and hungry revelers in Bangkok who seek a middle-of-the-night meal are given this spicy noodle dish (the hot chilies are meant to wake you up). But even milder versions are delicious, so if your spice-o-meter tends to stay near mild, not to worry - this noodle recipe is delicious with or without chilies. And it can be made vegetarian or with shrimp or chicken, according to your taste. As a bonus, the addition of lots of vegetables means these noodles are healthy as well as delicious.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yield: SERVES 2-3 as a Main Entree

Ingredients:

  • 8-10 oz. dried Chinese-style wheat noodles
  • 2 kaffir lime leaves, sliced very thinly, or cut into thin strips with scissors (remove stem)
  • 2 shallots, thinly sliced and diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 piece galangal (or ginger), sliced thinly
  • 1 red chilli, sliced finely (and de-seeded if milder noodles are desired)
  • 1/2 pkg. firm tofu (if non-vegetarian, you can substitute shrimp or bite-size pieces of chicken)
  • 3 tomatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
  • 1 head broccoli, cut into florets, OR 1 cup bok choy or other Chinese-type cabbage
  • 1-2 cups bean sprouts
  • 1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves
  • handful fresh basil, roughly chopped if leaves are large
  • vegetable oil for stir-frying
  • STIR-FRY SAUCE:
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp. ground bean sauce (also called "yellow bean" - actually a soy bean sauce found in Asian food stores)
  • 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar (or substitute white vinegar)
  • 1 Tbsp. fish sauce OR 1+1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp. lime juice
  • 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
  • Optional: 1/2 to 1 tsp. Thai chili sauce (see below for homemade recipe), OR 1-2 fresh red chilies, minced

Preparation:

  1. Place noodles in a pot of boiling water over medium-high heat and stir to separate. When cooked "al dente" (chewy - not too soft), drain and rinse with cold water to prevent sticking. Set aside.
  2. Place all sauce ingredients in a cup and stir well. Do a taste test (Note: this stir-fry sauce will be very strong at this point, but will be diluted later when added to the noodles). If too sour, add a little more sugar. If not salty enough, add more fish sauce.
  3. In a wok or large frying pan over medium to high heat, add a few Tbsp. oil plus the lime leaves, shallots, garlic, galangal (or ginger), red chili, and tofu. If you are using chicken or shrimp, add them at this point as well. Stir-fry 1 minute, or until fragrant. Stir-frying tip:When wok/pan becomes too dry, add a little water, white wine or sherry (or cooking wine), or broth 1 Tbsp. at a time (instead of more oil).
  4. Add the broccoli and stir-fry another 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until broccoli has turned bright green. Then add the stir-fry sauce plus the noodles and tomatoes. Stir-fry for 1-2 minutes, turning the noodles as you fry in order to incorporate sauce.
  5. Remove from heat and add the bean sprouts and coriander leaves. Toss in the wok to combine. Do a taste test for salt, adding more fish sauce (instead of salt) if needed. If too salty for your taste, add another squeeze of lime juice. Sprinkle with fresh basil and serve with Thai chili sauce. Enjoy!







Drunken Noodles

Bangkok Style Drunken Noodles

Fatigued and hungry revelers in Bangkok who seek a middle-of-the-night meal are given this spicy noodle dish (the hot chilies are meant to wake you up). But even milder versions are delicious, so if your spice-o-meter tends to stay near mild, not to worry - this noodle recipe is delicious with or without chilies. And it can be made vegetarian (as in this recipe), or with shrimp or chicken, according to your taste. As a bonus, the addition of lots of vegetables means these noodles are healthy as well as delicious. So party on!

INGREDIENTS:
8-10 oz. dried wheat or egg noodles, OR instant-type noodles (SERVES 3-4)
2 kaffir lime leaves, sliced very thinly, or cut into thin strips with scissors (remove stem)
2 shallots, thinly sliced and diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 piece galangal (or ginger), sliced thinly 
1 red chilli, sliced finely (and de-seeded if milder noodles are desired)
1/2 pkg. firm tofu (if non-vegetarian, you can substitute shrimp or bite-size pieces of chicken)
3 tomatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
1 head broccoli, cut into florets, OR 1 cup bok choy or other Chinese-type cabbage
approx. 1 cup bean sprouts
approx. 1 cup fresh coriander leaves
handful of basil leaves, roughly chopped if large
oil for stir-frying
STIR-FRY SAUCE:
1 1/2 Tbsp. ground bean sauce (also called "yellow bean" - it is actually a soy bean sauce found in Asian groceries)
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar (or substitute white vinegar)
1 Tbsp. vegetarian fish sauce (or regular fish sauce) - available at Chinese/Vietnamese/Asian food stores
1 1/2 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tbsp. brown sugar 
Optional: 1/2 to 1 tsp. Thai chili sauce (see below for homemade recipe), OR 1-2 fresh red chilies, minced 
PREPARATION:
Place noodles in a pot of boiling water over medium-high heat. Stir until noodles have separated. When cooked "al dente" (chewy - not too soft), drain and rinse with cold water (to prevent sticking).

To make the stir-fry sauce, place all sauce ingredients in a cup and stir well. Do a taste test (note that the sauce will be very strong at this point - it will be diluted later when added to the noodles). If too sour, add a little more sugar. If not salty enough, add more fish sauce. 
In a wok or large/deep frying pan over medium to high heat, add a few Tbsp. oil plus the lime leaves, shallots, garlic, galangal (or ginger), red chili, and tofu. (If you are using chicken or shrimp, add them at this point as well.) Stir-fry 1 minute, or until fragrant.
Stir-frying tip: When wok/pan becomes too dry, add a little water, white wine or sherry (or cooking wine), or broth 1 Tbsp. at a time (instead of adding more oil). This will save you calories and added fat. 

Add the broccoli and stir-fry another 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until broccoli has turned bright green. 
Add the stir-fry sauce plus the noodles and tomatoes. Stir-fry for 1-2 minutes, turning the noodles as you fry in order to incorporate sauce. 
Remove from heat and add the bean sprouts and coriander leaves. Toss in the wok to combine. 
Do a taste test for salt, adding more fish sauce (instead of salt) if needed. If too salty for your taste, add another squeeze of lime juice. If the noodles don't have enough heat, add more fresh chili or chili sauce (see below for recipe link). 
Sprinkle with fresh basil and serve with Thai chili sauce, either store-bought or my own homemade Nam Prik Pao Chili Sauce Recipe. This dish goes especially well with a cold lager (or a glass of chilled white wine). Enjoy!

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Nachos and Guac

Nachos
1 bag of tortilla chips
shredded pepperjack cheese
1 red or yellow pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 can refried beans
nacho style jalapenos- handful
salsa
oil
handful cilantro

Guacamole
1 avocado
1 lime (optional)
salt and pepper

Saute peppers and onions until cooked through.  Cover 2 baking sheets with tin foil.  Spread tortilla chips in a single layer.  Heat refried beans in the microwave, and add water to thin the consistency to almost pourable.  With a spoon or spatula, spread the beans over the nacho chips.  Sprinkle cheese on top, then pepper and onion mix, tomatoes, jalapenos, and a little salsa.

Broil on "hi" heat for 5-10 mins.  Watch closely and remove when chips and cheese start to brown.  Sprinkle cilantro on top.  Serve with guac and salsa.