Dinner recipes again

I've been searching for a good buttermilk cornbread recipe and found one that is better than the one we have in the cookbook. It is based on a recipe from the book, Ultimate Bread. Sorry I don't have photos. We ate all the chili and only have a few pieces of cornbread left.

Buttermilk cornbread

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 Tb. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs, beaten
2/3 cup buttermilk
2/3 cup milk (powdered milk works fine)
2 Tb. butter, melted

Mix the dry ingredients and add the liquids. Don't stir the batter too much. Pour into a 9x9 pan and cook for 20-25 minutes in a 400-degree oven. You can grease the pan and put it in the oven for about 10 minutes to get hot before you pour in the batter. This makes a nice crust on the edge of the cornbread--nice unless your children don't eat any crusts.

Dinner recipes

Here is another recipe we tried this week. It was a bit spicy, but would work well if I hadn't put in all four chipotle peppers.

Beef chili

1 lb. ground beef
1 cup chopped onion (1 large)
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14-oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (15-oz) can kidney beans, well rinsed
1 (8-oz) can tomato sauce
2 Tb. brown sugar
1/2 Tb. chili powder (depending on taste)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1-2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, seeded and minced (optional)

Brown the beef and sauté the onion. Either add the rest of the ingredients and cook for about 15-20 minutes, or put all the ingredients in a greased slow cooker and cook on low for 5 hours or so.

Oven fritatta

Here's another dinner recipe, based on a recipe from one of the Moosewood cookbooks.

Oven fritatta

1-2 cups cooked rice or cooked diced potatoes
1 cup sauteed onions
2-4 cups steamed vegetables
1-2 cups shredded cheese
6 eggs
4 oz. cream cheese
1-1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp. salt
Pepper to taste
Other spices as desired

Grease or oil a baking dish. Layer the rice or potatoes, onions, vegetables, and cheese. Mix the eggs, cream cheese, milk, salt, and spices in a blender. Pour the egg mixture over the vegetables and cheese and bake in a 350-degree oven for 45 minutes. You can improvise with various vegetables you have around the house. I used a head of that funny green cauliflower when I made it last week.

Buttermilk biscuits

[Thanks to Cactus Gal, we have a new buttermilk biscuit recipe.]

Buttermilk Biscuits

5 cups sifted unbleached all-purpose flour (measured after sifting)
1 1/2 Tb. baking powder
1 Tb. kosher flake salt (or 2 1/2 tsp. table salt)
½ cup plus 2 Tb. packed shortening or butter, chilled
2 cups chilled buttermilk
3 Tb. unsalted butter, melted (optional)

Heat oven to 500 F. Sift flour and measure out 5 cups of sifted flour. In large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add shortening or butter, coating in flour. Cut the butter or shortening into the flour until about half is coarsely blended and half remains in large pieces, about ¾ inch. Make a well in center of flour mixture. Add buttermilk all at once. With a large spoon or fork, stir mixture quickly, just until it is blended and begins to form a sticky dough. If dough appears dry, add up to 1/4 cup more buttermilk.

Turn dough onto generously floured surface. Using floured hands, knead briskly 8 to 10 times just until a cohesive ball of dough forms. Don't handle the dough too much. Gently flatten dough with hands to even thickness. Using floured rolling pin, lightly roll dough to one inch thickness. Using a fork dipped in flour, pierce dough completely through at ½-inch intervals, like you would with a pie crust. Flour a 2 ½- or 3-inch biscuit cutter. Cut biscuits without twisting the cutter, and arrange biscuits just barely touching each other on a baking sheet. You can gather the scraps and roll them out again, but the second batch of cutouts will be slightly tougher.

Place baking sheet on rack in upper third of oven. Bake at 500 F for 8 to 12 minutes until crusty and golden brown. Remove. Brush with melted butter (optional). Serve hot.

Notes:
There are several things to keep in mind to get perfect biscuits.

• You have to sift the flour before measuring. I have a regular sifter, and my hand gets too tired to do five cups of flour, so I use a strainer to sift the flour. It's much faster and works just as well. (See picture)
• You have to incorporate the baking powder and salt into the flour very well, which is why I suggest a whisk to mix them up.
• The reason you need more kosher salt is that the flaked salt has more space between the crystals, so there is less salt per tablespoon, compared to regular salt. I usually use regular salt, but if you use a Tb. of regular salt, it'll be too salty.
• Another trick is to keep large pieces of shortening or butter in the mixture, and not cut the pieces in too finely. I usually use half a cup of shortening and 2 Tb. of butter so I don't have to measure out 2 Tb. of shortening. I have made these with all butter, and they're really good. I'm sure lard would make even better biscuits, but I'm not about to start using lard to cook.
• The butter you brush on the tops after baking softens the top and makes them really yummy, but I usually skip this part just to cut down on the fat.
• This recipe makes enough biscuits for our family if I gather together the scraps and make all the dough into biscuits, although I can tell the difference between the re-rolled biscuits: they're a bit tougher, but still great. A half batch makes about 8 biscuits.

Slow cooker tip

(Note: I'm sure everyone knows this, but I must have missed the class/email/blog post/etc. where it was published.)

Before you put any of the ingredients into your slow cooker (crock pot), lightly spray the inside with a cooking spray, such as Pam. Then, when you are done with cooking and have removed the leftovers, the slow cooker will come clean with minimal effort.

I have cooked food in it all day, served the meal, let the dirty dish sit on the counter for at least three hours without any rinsing or soaking, and then washed it completely clean with some hot, soapy water and a dishcloth and plastic scrubber. Before I discovered this, I dreaded having to scrub and soak and scrub the slow cooker. I often would let it sit all night filled with soapy water with the hope that it would somehow magically come clean the next day: it wouldn't and I was back to more scrubbing.

Monthly menu recipes

It appears that I'm not the only person suffering through menu "block." So, over the next few weeks I'll try and post some recipes that I have tried and that worked for us. Some of them may come from the cookbook and have just been rediscovered. Here's the first one:

Pulled pork sandwiches
3 lbs. boneless pork loin or boneless pork chops (about 6 thick chops)
1 package McCormick slow cooker "pulled pork" seasoning

Follow the instructions on the seasoning package to cook the meat (it involves mixing cider vinegar, ketchup, brown sugar, and the seasoning). I started with frozen pork chops and cooked the meat in the slow cooker for about 8 hours. After the meat is cooked, pull out any fat that hadn't already been cut off the meat previously. Shred the meat using two forks. Mix back in with the sauce, adding about 1/2 cup of water if necessary. Serve on buns. I used the Hamburger Bun recipe since I had some time while I was waiting for the electrician and the drywall guy. I will probably see if I can find another source or recipe for a seasoning (Penzey's?) so I don't have to rely on a package.

Hamburger Buns
1 Tb. yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup milk, scalded and cooled (or 1/3 cup powdered milk and hot water to make 1 cup)
1/2 cup margarine or butter, melted
2 Tb. sugar
2 tsp. salt
2 eggs, slightly beaten
4-3/4 cups flour (can use 1 cup whole wheat flour)
Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup warm water. Combine milk, butter, sugar, salt, eggs, and half of flour. Beat for 2 minutes. Beat in remaining flour and knead until smooth and elastic. Cover and rise to double in bulk. Punch down and form 2-inch balls. Place on greased cookie sheets. Press flat with hand. Let rise almost double (30 minutes). You can brush the tops with 1 egg and 1 tsp. water (or egg yolk and milk) combined to make a wash. Sprinkle with sesame, celery, caraway, poppy seeds, or dried onion flakes. Bake 15 minutes at 375°. Cool about 5 minutes and turn out on rack. Can freeze finished buns.

Monthly menu

I'm still working on the menu for the month of May and have a few gaps that need to be filled. I need some new ideas for main dishes for dinner. Do you have a recipe you discovered in the last year that you now make almost every month or so? Please help.