Buttermilk Biscuits & "Sausage" Gravy

Whew, these last few months have been a blur of work, airports, travel and changes...or at least an attempt to change. I recently returned from a trip to Vegas! It was a wonderful crazy adventure but I'll save that for another post, this one is all about some killer biscuits and gravy!

Being from the south, you'd think I'd be a biscuit making beast by now but I realized I haven't actually made homemade biscuits since culinary school! I think people get intimidated at the thought of getting some dough on their hands but using a food processor makes this process super easy and even fun!

As for the gravy, you might be questioning my vegetarian ways but I think this can stand up to standard sausage gravy. I think the addition of mushrooms is vital just because it adds that savory, earthy quality that makes it more "meaty" even if you're not a mushroom fan I think you should still try it - being diced into tiny pieces I promise you, you're not even gonna notice. I tried my best to portray the right amount of measurements, when I am creating something in the kitchen sometimes I get a little carried away and just start adding things without measuring but it's always good to taste as you go and add more spice or saltiness depending on your personal preference.

Buttermilk Biscuits

makes 12

3 cups all purpose flour
2 TBS sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup (1 1/2sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup buttermilk

Directions:

1.Preheat oven to 425°F.

2.In food processor, pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda to blend (be careful some flour might escape). Add pieces of butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Slowly pour in buttermilk while pulsing until evenly moistened.

3.Dump dough unto a lightly floured surface and dust top with flour and gently fold dough over on itself 5 or 6 times. Press into a 1-inch thick round. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch cutter, being sure to push straight down through the dough. Place biscuits on baking sheet so that they just touch. Reform scrap dough, working it as little as possible and continue cutting. (Biscuits from the second pass will not be quite as light as those from the first, but hey, that's life.)

4.I like to brush additional buttermilk on top of each biscuit but that's optional. Bake until biscuits are golden brown on top, about 15 minutes. Cool slightly. Serve warm.

For the Gravy

1 and 1/2 cups of vegetarian "Meat" crumbles, I like THIS brand
4-5 button mushrooms, washed and diced small
1 medium sized onion, diced small
1-2 stalks celery, diced small
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp savory herb blend
salt and pepper
4 TBS butter (divided)
1/4 cup flour
1 cup milk
1/4 cup half and half
1-2 splashes of hot sauce (optional)

1.In a large sauce pan melt 1 TBS of butter, add onion, mushroom, and celery and cook on medium low heat until onions are translucent. Add meatless crumbles and spices (you may need to add 1 or 2 TBS of water if the mix becomes too dry). Cook until "meat" begins to brown.

2.Empty the meat and veggie mixture into a bowl and set aside. Using the same pan, melt 3 TBS of butter then slowly add flour, making a roux. Add milk/cream and whisk until smooth and it begins to thicken.

3.Add meat and veggie mix into the cream and mix thoroughly - add additional salt and pepper if needed (I used quite a bit of pepper)

I froze both the leftover gravy and biscuits and they kept nicely for a week wrapped up in the freezer.

Sauerbraten with Spätzle and Braised Cabbage

Behold our German feast!! I was in the mood for trying something new the other day, it all started with spätzle (pronounced shp-eh-tzle), I always thought it looked delicious but I had never tried it before so while I was looking for a recipe, I saw that it was typically served with this freaky dish called Sauerbraten.

Sauerbraten literally means "sour roast" usually pertaining to beef but you could also use venison, lamb, or pork. It's it served with a "gravy" made from the cooking juices with crushed gingersnaps to thicken it - sounds weird I know but it creates a really unique flavor and texture.

Unlike the traditional American roast beef, Sauerbraten has a slight sour taste from the vinegars but with the gingersnaps and the sweetness from the sugar as well as the cabbage, it all goes together perfectly. Since this was my first time EVER hearing of the dish, let alone making it, I decided to follow Alton Brown's recipe directly (for the most part). I marinated the beef for about two and half days and decided to cook mine in the crock pot rather than the oven. I started off cooking it on low for 2 hours then I switched it to the high heat setting for three additional hours.

Sauerbraten

serves 3-4

recipe from Alton Brown

Ingredients
2 cups water
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup red wine vinegar
1 medium onion, chopped
1 TBS plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, additional for seasoning meat
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
6 whole cloves
12 juniper berries
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 (3 1/2 to 4-pound) bottom round
1 TBS vegetable oil
4-5 carrots peeled and chopped
2 cups red potatoes
1/3 cup sugar
18 dark old-fashioned gingersnaps (about 5 ounces), crushed I used Anna's Ginger Swedish Thins (don't worry if you have some big lumps left, they'll melt down)
1/2 cup seedless raisins, optional

Directions

1.In a large saucepan over high heat combine the water, cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, onion, salt, pepper, bay leaves, cloves, juniper, and mustard seeds. Cover and bring this to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

2.Pat the bottom round dry and rub with vegetable oil and salt on all sides. Heat a large saute pan over high heat; add the meat and brown on all sides, approximately 2 to 3 minutes per side.

3.When the marinade has cooled to a point where you can stick your finger in it and not be burned, place the meat in a non-reactive vessel and pour over the marinade. Place into the refrigerator for 2-3 days. If the meat is not completely submerged in the liquid, turn it over once a day.

4.After 2-3 days place cut carrots and potatoes on the bottom of the crock pot and place the meat on top. Strain the marinade and add the 1/3 cup sugar. Pour marinade over meat and veggies. Cover and cook on high for four hours.

Remove the meat from the vessel and keep warm. Strain the liquid to remove the solids. Return the liquid to the pan and place over medium-high heat. Whisk in the gingersnaps and cook until thickened, stirring occasionally. Strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve if needed to remove any lumps. Add the raisins if desired. Slice the meat and serve with the sauce.

For the braised cabbage recipe, click HERE

Spätzle recipe is HERE

English Fish Pie

So I'm convinced anything in pie form is gonna be delicious...

This recipe actually all started when we were checking out restaurants one evening (yes, I am a major restaurant creeper - I am a total Yelp and Urbanspoon junkie) and we came across this British Pub called The Black Labrador. Usually pub food is pretty predicable - Fish and Chips, Bangers and Mash all the usual suspects but this menu was very diverse and offered some semi freaky items like Scotched Beef, Sole in it's Coffin, annnnd English Fish Pie!

One thing I appreciated about this pie is you don't have to fuss with a crust and instead use mash potatoes, so it's sort of like a seafood version of Shepard's Pie...

I looked around at a couple of recipes online and all of them poached the fish pre-bake which I didn't think was necessary considering that fish only takes about 5 minutes to cook. Instead, I just heated the milk and poured it over the diced fish and veggies and the heat from the milk pretty much cooked the fish halfway, and then it finished out cooking in the oven.

This recipe is also very versatile, I happen to utilize all the leftover bits in my fridge and it turned out really delicious but you can use any type of white fish or vegetables you have on hand (spinach, parsnips, tomatoes, or shrimp might be a nice addition).

English Fish Pie

serves 4-5

Recipe adapted from Jamie Oliver

4-5 medium large potatoes, washed, diced small and boiled until tender (you could peel them if you don't like the skins)
2-3 carrots, peeled and diced
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 cup unsalted canned corn
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 TBS olive oil
2 large white fish fillets such as Swai, cut into bite sized chunks
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cups full fat milk (or I mixed half and half with 1%)
1 TBS flour
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. After you boil the potatoes in salted water, drain and mash in a bowl adding olive oil, salt & pepper and milk as needed. Set aside.

2.In a large sauce pan add olive oil and saute onions for 4-5 min. on medium heat. Add garlic and cook until translucent (about 3-4 more min)

3.Add carrots and celery and saute for 5-10 more minuets (you may need to add more oil at this time) until carrots begin to soften. Add salt, pepper, herbs (except bay leaf) and corn and mix thoroughly. Remove and place in mixing bowl. Place raw fish chunks on top.

4.In the same sauce pan you used for the veggies, add milk. Heat on medium low heat, stirring regularly. Add bay leaf. Once milk has reached a warm temp, add flour and stir then add cheese and mix until melted. Carefully remove bay leaf. Pour milk over chopped fish and veggies. Mix well.

5.To assemble, in a large baking pan, layer fish and veg mix then top with potatoes. Bake for 30-40 min. or until potatoes turn slightly brown on top.

This pie was so comforting and delicious! It had all the flavors of a classic chicken pot pie.

We'll probably check out The Black Labrador soon and see how their pie hold up - stay tuned for a restaurant review!

Grownup "Hamburger Helper" (key to getting a perfect cheese sauce)

So I learned something the other day about my dear husband of mine...he LIKES Hamburger Helper...
*facepalm

Now, if I'm being totally honest I can't judge something I have personally never tried, I just have this vision in my head of melted powdered Velveeta over semi-bland beef. As his wife/friend/cook I strive to make dishes we like and enjoy, but as I was standing in the canned food isle, overwhelmed by the presence of this confounded mystery, I just couldn't do it, the culinarian in me just wouldn't allow it. So in order to recreate this nostalgic meal, I decided to make my own version. This is miles above the boxed brand (so I've been told), I subbed out beef for lean turkey, added some white wine to cut the richness of the cheddar (and because all fine things involve wine) and then some fresh peas for color. The result? High praises from the boy who grew up on this stuff annnnddd I thought it was pretty darn tasty myself.

Grownup Hamburger Helper

serves 4-6

1 (12oz.) box of pasta
1 pound lean ground turkey
1 small onion, diced small
1 TBS olive oil (I used garlic infused olive oil)
1 tsp paprika
2 tsp ground yellow mustard
salt and pepper
1/4 cup white wine, such as Riesling
3 TBS butter
1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 cups milk, not cold (really cold milk might cause your sauce to turn lumpy)
2 cups room temperature shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup green sweet peas (I used leftover cooked peas but those individual steam bags would work well in a pinch)

Directions:

1.In a soup pan, boil salted water for the pasta. Cook 5-7 min, then drain - set aside.

2.In a large sauce pan, heat oil on medium heat, add onion and cook until translucent (5-10 min), add spices and ground turkey. Cook turkey until no pink is showing, when meat is done deglaze pan with white wine, cooking for 5 min. to burn off some of the alcohol.

3.Empty meat mix unto a plate and set aside, you'll now work on the sauce. Melt butter, then slowly add flour to make a roux, add milk slowly, making sure to whisk constantly to prevent lumps. Once sauce is done, add meat mixture, peas, and noodles. I scooped individual potions into ramekins and topped each with more shredded cheese and baked in the oven for 5 min. but it is up to you.

The key to making a smooth and creamy cheese sauce:

-Make sure your cheese is finely shredded and room temperature.
-Try to incorporate some acid (in this case it's wine) this prevent the cheese from getting chunky
-Having a roux always helps to thicken the sauce and it doesn't have a strong starchy taste like cornstarch
-Make sure when you add the milk that it is room temperature, otherwise your sauce might be lumpy.