Buttermilk Biscuits with Homemade Whipped Butter

If you are looking for small little biscuits, this is not going to be your cup of tea, BUUUUT, if you are looking for tall, fluffy biscuits that might just remind you of a birthday cake minus the fluffy, sweet frosting, you are not going to want to leave quite, yet!

How the perfect biscuit is to taste is a HUGE debate...maybe as big of a deal as if cornbread should have sugar in in t or not, but thanks to the internet and a bit o' searching, you will most likely be able to find exactly what you are looking for.

I prefer the BOB biscuits {BIG OL'BISCUITS} They have to be big and they have to be fluffy and flakey, soft, golden, warm and able to be smothered with homemade whipped butter. That is one tall order. ANNNDDD, they need to look as pretty as a birthday cake.

Thanks to BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS...the biscuit recipe meets every single criteria. I have had biscuits that I am sure would hold up on any ice rink as hockey pucks and those may be fine for dunking in soup, but these biscuits are AMAZING!

{This is another recipe I always always always double!}


BUTTERMILK BISCUITS
Adapted a tad from BH&G

2 cups flour

1 TBSP. baking powder

2 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/2 cup butter, softened

2/3 cup buttermilk {If you don't have buttermilk on hand simply put a bit of lemon juice or vinegar in the bottom of your measuring cup and add milk to the 2/3 cup line. Let it sit for a minute to sour the milk.}

Preheat oven to 450*

Directions:


*In a bowl stir together dry ingredients.

*Using flat beater for Kitchen Aid, add in butter

*Add in buttermilk and stir until dough comes together.

*On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out to about 1" thickness. I used my Grammy's three inch biscuit cutter to cut out the biscuits.

*Place biscuits on to a SILPAT or to a baking sheet.

*Brush tops of biscuits with a bit of whipping cream and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

NOTE: You could re-roll and cut and re-roll and cut using up all of the dough until the moo cows come home. resist the temptation and bake up the scraps to snack on. The more you work the dough, the tougher it gets. REMEMBER< THESE ARE TALL BIRTHDAY-CAKE-TYPE BISCUITS! Also, you will not want to over bake them, so keep an eye on them. HOMEMADE BUTTER Take one cup of cold heavy whipping cream and a cold bowl. You could set them in the freezer for a few minutes if you like. Shared with: picket fence, comfy in the kitchen

Beat the whipping cream until it gets solid and you are past the soft peak stage. Add a dash of salt and enjoy.

Want to know how I first made butter? I forgot about it in my kitchen Aid as I was changing a diaper! Never underestimate the power of a Kitchen AID! They are power tools in their own right. It happened on more than one occasion. Even after setting the kitchen timer...I churned my own butter. Maybe that's why my hubby bought me a fancy schmancy whipping cream maker??? There is no making butter with those whipper machine babies. NO SIR-EE!

We served these biscuits on Diana's handmade bread boards. We use them all of the time and are they are such a treat to share with our company! People love having their very own authentic bread boards. They are quite the topic of conversation! Best of all, they will always remind me of our 21st wedding anniversary picnic! Be sure to visit her beautiful blog!


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Valentine Packaging

Well, hello little lovelies! Hope you are all enjoying the start to your new week!

I have been trying to lay a bit low on the heavy-laden sweets and confections, but when VALENTINES rolls around, it is a hard habit to break...so, to keep the flour from dusting the countertops and the batches and batches of cookies and sweet treats to a minimum, I thought I might share a few packaging ideas instead. What do you think?

RE-packing is a really fun thing to do and requires very little time if you decide on one Valentine project.

I bought a package of cookies {yes, it almost KILLLED me!}, a package of dark chocolate covered almonds from Trader Joe's and the last package of candy cane Joe's OREO cookies I specifically bought to save for Valentines. The baby pink filling is the perfect addition of color and TASTE...or so I have been told by my family.

The best part about this project is that you package it up, seal it and give them away so that temptation does not start to lurk under your work space! It is just a little sweet treat to let your sweetie pies know that they are being thought of and are LOVED!

So here are a few ideas: {My favorite is the mini "paint can" from my bff! She gave it to me with a bracelt in it! I decided to call it my prayer bracelet, because I wore it during an MRI... and I took comfort in knowing she and others were praying for me!}

These chocolate covered graham crackers were stacked into groupings of three, wrapped with doilie paper punched with a punch and embelished:

I used a straight-sided jar and punched out a white and pink striped piece of paper to line the bottom and to add a bit of color. Four little OREO cookies fit perfectly and then DIVINE TWINE in PINK just had to be added along with a Valentiney heart.

These would be great little favors to add to your dinner place settings or perfect to bag up and deliver!


THIS AND THAT:

ADORABLE doggie hand-stitched napkins we will be using on Valentines {My Christmas gift from my bff! You have no idea how special these are since she is not exactly on "speaking terms" with our baby!} :}

Saturday Date in our favorite part of town: My hubby knew exactly what the DR. ordered...

Before going home we went into Trader Joe's and my hubby bought me the most beautiful bouquet of champagne=colored tulips that are now opened, drooping and beauteeFULL!

Thank YOU, honey for still dating me after 23 years and for making me feel like I am the most special girl in the world. Holding hands and kissing in the rain and always believing that everything "will be okay" and praying for me all.of.the.time are amongst the miliions of memories I will never tire of! You are simply THE BEST! I love you MOSTEST!

Happy TUESDAY!

Next POST: The EASIEST beef stew ever, TALL buttermilk biscuits and HOMEMADE butter!





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Raspberry Shortbread Bars

Happy Happy Friday!

Do you ever remember taking a short-cut on the way home only to find out that the short-cut actually took longer?

Well, these little raspberry bars should be called short-cut bars, but if you are looking for a super fast cookie-type bar thingy, these little short-cut bars are just for YOU! This is going to take way less time than cookies because they are all made at one time. No waiting for the batches to finish unless you double or triple the recipe!

The directions sound way longer, but once you make 'em once, they will most likely be a go-to quickie.

Don't you think they are just so pretty for VALENTINES?

Now, if taking short-cuts in real life really were shorter...even the ones we think just.might.be!


Raspberry Short-cut Bars

1/3 cup sugar

5 Tbsp. butter, softened

1 1/2 tsp. almond extract...the PURE kind

1 egg white

1 cup flour

2 TBSP. cornstarch

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/3 cup YUMMY RASPBERRY JAM


{GLAZE}

1/2 cup pwd. sugar

2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1/4 tsp. pure almond extract

Combine all ingredients and stir until drizzly.


{Directions}

Preheat oven to 375*

*Beat sugar and butter with a mixer until well-blended
*Add 1 1/2 tsp. almond extract and egg white and beat well.

*Combine dry ingredients and add to sugar mixture and mix until well-blended. This dough will be a bit stiff.

*Divide dough in half and roll each portion into a 12-inch log.
*Place logs on to prepared baking sheet or onto SILPAT.


*Using your hand, make a dent down the middle of each log and spoon jam into identation.

*Bake at 375* for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

*Drizzle glaze onto warm bars and cut each log diagonally into 8 bars. Let cool and then seperate and move.

ENJOY!

*

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The HOPE Chest {of Verses}

{Verse HOPE CHEST re-gifted from my bff!}



The month of December, as we all know, can get a bit hectic...so, when we were thinking about attending Sunday night service at our Church, I honestly was thinking about all of the other things I could get done at home in that time slot.

As we sat through the service I knew that this was exactly where God wanted me to be. The sermon title was "How Can A Good God Permit Evil and Suffering". The pastor started off answering the question by "I'm not sure." As he listed those who suffered in the Bible...he made it quite clear that we can rest assured because God is in control. BUUUT, if you are like me, it doesn't hurt to see and hear real examples from real people who have hope despite the worst of circumstances...

At the end of the sermon, a video interview was played of a wife who takes care of her husband.
She and her husband used to attend church, but as his body weakened, they were no longer able to come.
She shared with such JOY and HOPE that I kept waiting for the tears to start, and maybe a bit of resentment hidden in the shadows of her words. But as I kept listening…I was reassured that IT IS indeed possible to live out a life with gratitude despite unbelievable pain and suffering!

As she finished her story and told of her husband’s faith and how he encouraged her…she smiled as she expressed his love to pray. As he ended the interview with prayer, I started to sob. I was so moved to tears that there are those who have so little to be happy for and yet they are the ones who seem to have a well of encouragement for others that never goes dry. I am sure they have those days, but it was evident that they live a life that is overflowing with gratefulness.

It is truly a life of gratitude that we strive to live. We want to instill in our children that despite life’s evil and suffering… GOD IS GOOD!

That night I could not stop thinking about what an amazing legacy these parents are leaving for their children and for grandchildren.

As I had started a list of what I wanted to include in our children’s HOPE CHESTS…I knew that what really offered them HOPE needed to be included FIRST.


They need verses to go to when life is tough.

Verses to cling to in time of fear.

Verses to offer friends who are hurting and who feel like giving up.

These handwritten and sometimes typed-out verses are something my momma made for me. Though the stickers and stamps are no longer “in” and the country rose color from one of my favorites has faded…it is still on my fridge and has offered such comfort to me over the years!

Sooo, as much as I look forward to icluding charts, recipes, bird bowls, linens, dishes and baby clothes…I am cherishing writing down verses that will outlast any earthly possession, so that when life’s storms roll in, they will be able to live a life of JOY and HOPE.

{Thank YOU SANDERS FAMILY for sharing your life of GRATITUDE!}

Hope Chest details to come!

Shared with: Titus Tuesday, WLW, raising homemakers

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THE GROCERY LIST

Yes. It is that important that it deserves its very own post and all caps at that!

We had an itemized grocery list for ions and once WINCO re-arraged it's floor plan and messed up our little system...it no longer worked. It took forever to scribble down our new store route, listing the major aisles according to what aisle housed what.

Do you have a store route? I think most people do, but everybody does it differently. I have friends who start with pre-packaged and end with the freezer/refrigerated section. We just start at one end and zig zag back to the front of the store!! ANYHOO, however you do it...it might be helpful for you to make out a list of aisles and make up a list accordingly. Just be pretty specific so that every item fits well into a category. It will take much less time to figure out where to list the items.

Our grocery list hangs on a clear clip board {I can't handle the wood look against my white cabinets!!!} on the inside of our kitchen cabinets where it is super easy to access when an ingredient needs to be replaced. There are a few things I keep stocked, so even if I still have a few left, I will add it to the grocery list so that I don't run out!

How many times have you run out of an important ingredient...thinking full well that you will "remember" what it is next time you are at the grocery store...because it is ridiculously obvious that it is needed? Well, it may still work great for you, but my brain is shot and I need as many helps along the way as possible. This is why THE GROCERY LIST needs to be in a convenient spot, so as to write it down right then and there. The work is half done before you start your grocery list for the week.

You may want to think of a couple of dinner menus that you keep on hand at all times. One for company and one for a "MOMMY CRISIS NIGHT". It could be a loaf of bread in the freezer for PB and J or Kraft Mac-n-Cheese. Just be sure you have it where it can be substituted for the cordon bleu you were planning on making before the crisis. ALTHOUGH, POUNDING out the meat may still be a great idea!


EVEN if you are a lucky little ducky and are fortunate enough to have your groceries delivered to your front door {KRISTIN, I know you are stalking our bloggy!!! :} }...a grocery list will certainly help you only have to enter the ingredients all at one time.

We have a bunch of extra grocery list copies printed up at once, so that they are easy to access. It takes very little time to push "print" so that you are well-prepared for months at a time.

If you are planning on making your own, I would suggest allowing space to write down the menu for the week and a section for notes. Sometimes I don't necessarily need something, but I like to look ahead and if something is on sale and will still be good when it is needed, I will go ahead and purchase it. Also, if I see something that is on sale, I will write a note to myself on the "NOTES" section and include it on the menu for the following week. I have saved so much money doing it this way WITHOUT COUPONS! I don't clip coupons anymore and I only buy things our family really loves and will use. I do stock-pile toilet paper and paper towels and a few other things, but our house will not be the first house on our block being raided in case of a national disaster. I have a son that is a complete survivalist. So, it will be up to him to gather the wild edibles and convert rain water {ANOTHER BENEFIT TO LIVING IN THE NORTHWEST!} into drinking water for us!

Okay. I think that just about covers it.

I hope this idea sparks some interest in YOU and that it will take alot of the work and dread out of grocery shopping and menu planning.

Using this system has saved us so much money and has allowed us to be able to bless others with the savings!

Maybe you already have a system in place, if you do, I would love to hear about it. I love getting new ideas from how YOU do things.

HAPPY THURSDAY!!







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Entertaining Children

I know this is going to be a bit controversial...but it is something I have had on my heart for a long time, so here it goes.

We are not talking about entertaining our children: Playing cruise director as we peruse family friendly blogs and magazine articles on how to entertain our children with the latest and greatest projects and field trips, family games to occupy "dead" time while developing fine motor skills and brain memory...

We are talking about teaching our childen the blessing of entertaining! Teaching the
m the value of having people into their home is an honor! Teaching them at a very young age is best! It is easy to ask them who they might like to have over for a snack or for dinner! Go over manners and what their job will be while friends are over. Our children were taught to offer something to drink. That is it. Easy peasy...one little job that will be simple enough for them to remember.

Our children were encouraged to invite friends over...even if it meant more mouths to feed. It was worth a hgher grocery bill and less spending in other areas to have them learn how to entertain.

Years ago, while my hubby and I were dating in college, I remember Scott calling his momma after a basketball game ...alerting his parents that he was bringing about 20 friends home in "about a half hour". This was normal. She never once said "NO!" She welcomed every single friend which meant that their night at home alone was shot and the clean house would shortly be filled with sweaty bodies, backpacks, shoes and hungry basketball guys. To some this would be looked upon as ridiculous. "RUDE" might be another adjective to describe a child to expect his mom to drop her plans for the night. Maybe even selfish for a child to assume that he could show up with the crew to just hang out and entertain his friends at his parent's home.

Guess what? It was modeled and encouraged from a very young age...and I feel very blessed that he encouraged our children to do the same.

Several weeks ago, both Caleb and Laurissa were having their Biblestudies here at home in the same week...they usually alternate...anyhoo, I helped just a bit to get them ready and then went to my room. I heard them welcome their guests. A few of the children had shown up right after sports practice and they were offered a drink! They were asked about their day. I took a deep breath and whispered to myself..."it was worth it!". It was worth and is worth all of the noisy nights, messy kitchens, sticky floors, extra laundry from the overnighters,and the list goes on. I certainly do not do all the clean-up, but I do like to help them as it offers some great talk time!


There were times I felt like we needed a bigger home to entertain, a bonus room for sleepovers, a bigger dining room for dinner parties, and so much more, but how many priceless moments would we have robbed our children of experiencing had I insisted on waiting until__________?

I ran across a picture the other day of friends working on a craft project outside on the picnic table while our home was completely torn up. I had to smile...because the thought of our children entertainig in the middle of sheer and utter chaos was not even something that was considered an inconvenience!

It is these children that have been taught the blessing of entertaining that WILL be asking us as parents into their homes as they get older and have their own homes and families. It is these children that will not take notice of walkers or wheelchairs and the inconvenience of extra mouths to feed. They will know without a shadow of doubt that it has nothing to do with a perfect, large home but they will know the blessing of having had friends or even strangers into their home...and Lord willing they will know that their time with these dear ones will have encouraged them in ways they may never know!

Happy Wednesday!



Shared with: Titus Tuesday, women living well

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Scott's Dump and Run Creamy Mexi Chicken

Scott's Firehouse recipes are tried and true...pretty much flop-proof. I figure if they are tasty enough to serve the firefighters and are requested by chiefs, and by his friends who call on their days off requesting "THE DINNER YOU MADE THE OTHER NIGHT", they are perfect for families on the go. Perfect for mommas who are nursing a baby and feeding a toodler while answering the phone and folding laundry! We need recipes that don't take alot of brain juice and that will turn out delicious no matter what our days have looked like!



My momma always makes her Creamy Chicken for our family gatherings, as it is loved by all the grandkiddies, but this one is a step up in heat...but kids still enjoy it!


I know that you will LOVE this recipe!


Scott's Dump and Run Creamy Mexi Chicken

6 frozen chicken breasts

1 bag Trader Joe's fire roasted corn {I have also seen this recipe use 1 can of corn}

1 can of ROTEL tomatoes {mexi blend}

1 can of pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 8oz. package of cream cheese {FULL FAT!!!} ****WHY NOT EVEN 33% less fat cream cheese? As tempted as some of you may be to save a few calories...this is not the place to skimp! ANYTHING LESS THAN FULL FAT CREAM CHEESE will leave you with this dilema..."Lisa, I HAD to taste the DUMP CHICKEN when I got home at 3:30 pm. BOY,oh boy, it is wonderful. Finger lickin' good. Only you have to add something to the recipe directions for people with a personality problem just like mine...we do stuff anyway if we don't know the reason not to. I just can't stop asking why! If I don't see an answer and none is provided, then many, many times I go ahead with what I think would work anyway. And get in trouble:>} So, you know that part about using FULL FAT cream cheese? Being me, I thought, 'Huh, I really prefer the 33% less fat kind. I'm just gonna use it.' Not knowing that the 33% less fat cheese doesn't melt nicely. It turns into weird little gobs of white. You think a recipe is simple AND foolproof, and then some idiot tries to make it. Yes, you can laugh at me." from a bloggy reader :}
SO, that is WHY you need FULL FAT CREAM CHEESE!



COOKED JASMINE RICE

{Directions:}

*Place frozen chicken in crockpot {At home, we let it soak overnight in salt water and rinse until water runs clear!}

*Dump the rest of the ingredients in to the crockpot.

*Let cook for about 8 hours and stir every once in awhile.

Serve over Jasmine rice and embellish away...like with sour cream, cilantro and avacado. Hubby serves this with a salad and LEMONADE!

Shared with:  comfy in the kitchen

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