Flaky Biscuits

I just love flaky biscuits but who doesn't?  The trouble with flaky biscuits is that you must work with very cold ingredients and work fast.  Hot fresh biscuits on a cold Beaty's Creek morning is a warm and a great way to start any day.  You can make your dough ahead and have it waiting for you in the morning or better yet, make them and then freeze them so all you have to do is pop them in a preheated oven.  This is What's Cookin on  Beaty's Creek this morning.  By the way, how many weeks until morel season???


Needed:


1 3/4 cups flour 1 T sugar 
2 1/2 T Rumsford baking powder 
1 t salt 
1/2 t baking soda 
8 T very cold butter-cut into small pieces
3/4 cup buttermilk 

Mix all dry ingredients with a wire whisk.  Now coat butter with flour mixture, (this really helps to get your flaky biscuits).
Blend butter into your dry ingredients by hand or with your Kitchen Aid Mixer  until you have very small pieces of flour coated butter.  Now add in your buttermilk and stir until flour will hold together when mashed in your hand.

Now sprinkle flour over your board.  I used a granite slab and I LOVE IT! I will be writing more on the wonders of granite when I do a new pie crust recipe in a few posts to come. Anyway plop your dough out on your board and roll out to about a inch.  Now fold over dough onto itself until you have three layers. Now roll those three layers out into an inch slab again.  Repeat this process two times and then roll a final time so your dough is 1 inch thick. Now cut out your biscuits. I continue to make biscuits with the left over dough until I have only small pieces left and Raven eats those, she loves dough.
Once cut out,  place in a greased cast iron skillet ( I use bacon grease for mine). Bake at 450' for 12 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve as soon as they are out of the oven!  So good with gravy or butter and honey!


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Pumpkin Carob Chip Granola Bars

Raven likes a healthy breakfast so I am always trying new things for her. She loves soft granola bars but hates all of the additives that are in the store bought ones. I messed around with this recipe a bit until I arrived at something acceptable for everyone. She loved them and even Ransome ate several so I call it a success. It has been super cold on Beaty's Creek and I have kept my oven going just to feel a little more warmth. It was -27 degrees one week ago with 27 inches of snow on the ground. Today, the snow is gone and it is 70 degrees, can you believe that??? Crazy Oklahoma weather that I love, Oh yeah! Fix these granola bars for your family and don't bother telling them that they are healthy either. This is What's Cookin on Beaty's Creek today.

Needed:

3 1/4 cups old fashioned oats
1 t cinnamon
1 t salt
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup honey
1 cup carob chips



In a large bowl mix oats, cinnamon, and salt together. Now add in brown sugar, pumpkin, applesauce, and honey. Mix until soft. Now add in your chips and stir. Press into a well greased 8x8 pan and bake at 350' for 30 minutes. You want to take them out when they are still a little soft. They will firm more as they cool. With a sharp knife cut into bars after 5 minutes of cooling.

Cowboy Beans

I have made this dish since Sean and I were first married. It is a family pleaser for sure! The weather on Beaty's Creek has been down right COLD! We've had record breaking cold temps of -15 and try 16+ inches of snow in 2 days! The need for hot comfort foods are a must! This recipe is not too sweet but just sweet enough, but you can make it as sweet as you like. This is What's Cookin on Beaty's Creek today.

Needed:

2 cans canned corn
2 cans tomato sauce
6 cups pinto beans-cooked
3 pound ground beef
1 large onion-chopped
1 t cumin
2 t salt
8 T chili powder
1 cup brown sugar

Brown ground beef with onion. When cooked drain any fat and then add in chili powder, cumin, and salt. Stir until combined. Now add in your tomato sauce, beans, corn, and brown sugar. Stir well and let simmer over medium heat for 2 hours. Stir every 30 minutes. Serve with cornbread and shredded cheese.
*I always make Cowboy Beans the day after we have beans for dinner, good way to use up your leftovers.

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

I like a rich tasting bread pudding and occasionally a sweet one also. Who would have thought I would want something sweet and rich. I read a recipe for pumpkin bread pudding in an old Everyday Food magazine the other day and thought, why in the world have I not ever made a pumpkin bread pudding before????? Self did not know why and this recipe was born. This is What's Cookin on Beaty's Creek today.




Needed:

1 can pumpkin puree
1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 eggs-lightly beaten
1 cup brown sugar
1 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1 baguette that is a day old-cut into 2 inch cubes
1/2 cup pecans-chopped


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 2-quart baking dish. In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, milk, cream, eggs, brown sugar, salt, vanilla, cinnamon, and anise seed. Arrange bread in dish. Pour custard over bread and top with pecans. Bake until custard is set, 45 minutes. Let cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Side note this recipe is being featured on http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/2011/02/sweets-for-saturday-3.html Check it out!

Super Bowl Cheese Dip

The folks at Foodbuzz were nice enough to send me some Pace Picante Sauce to use for a recipe. The first thing that came to my mind was my cheese dip. I have always used Pace when I have made this dip so this was a no brainer. This dip would be super at your Super Bowl Party this year. I am a Cowboys fan, and it saddens me to think the Cowboys will not be playing in this Super Bowl on their home field. Oh well it just gives me more time to cook for the game. Give this a try and you are sure to make your guests happy! This is What's Cookin on Beaty's Creek today.

Needed:

1 2 lb. box of Velveeta-chopped into inch cubes
1 can golden mushroom soup
1 pound ground beef-browned
1 pound pork sausage-browned
1  medium sized jar Pace Picante Sauce

Place all of the ingredients into a Crock-Pot and heat on low until all has melted and come together. Serve with tortilla chips. This is so good! I like it with fresh veggies too.

Flour Tortillas

We eat our fair share of tortillas around here and I just love them when they are freshly made. I must say that if you've never had a freshly made tortilla with butter, you are missing out. It took several failed attempts to figure them out but I eventually got 'em right. My recipe calls for lard, I know it's scary but it really does make a difference. I tried Crisco, canola oil, and even butter but the lard won out. The other trick to making these is to have a cast iron griddle. My husband Sean bought the griddle that I used to make these tortillas with when we were first married and I love it. Invest in good cast iron because it will last a lifetime. Give this recipe a try the next time you are wanting burritos or just some tortillas to eat with butter and salt. This is What's Cookin on Beaty's Creek this cold day.

Needed:

5 cups all purpose flour
1 cup lard
1 t salt
2 cups very hot water
5 t baking powder

Mix your dry ingredients together, I use a whisk and it sifts everything very well. Now add your lard and mix until crumbly looking. Now add in the water and stir until dough forms a smooth ball. It is a little sticky but that is fine. Cover and let rest for 1 hour. Now break off pieces of dough and roll into balls the size of a golf ball. Heat up your griddle. I heat mine on a medium heat on an electric range. Meanwhile roll your tortillas out. Sean likes his thin and I like mine a little thicker. It is up to you how you roll yours out. Place on heated griddle and cook just until golden and turn and cook the reverse side the same. Cover with a towel until ready to eat.

Chocolate Filled Cupcakes

This delicious recipe comes from the Taste of Home Magazine. This magazine has great recipes and I am proud to be one of their Field Editors from Oklahoma. Each issue has at least 4 recipes that I want to make, this being just one of them from the current issue. The kiddos thought cream filled cupcakes from home were the bomb, to say the least as they want to make them again and again. I did enjoy my cupcake with a very strong cup of coffee. This would be so good for a Valentine's treat for that special someone or for your kiddo's class party. This is What's Cookin on Beaty's Creek today.

Needed:

3 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 baking cocoa
2 t baking soda
1 t salt
2 cups cold water
3/4 cup canola oil
1 egg
2 T white vinegar
2 t vanilla




Filling:

4 oz. cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 t salt
4 T beaten egg
1/2 t vanilla
3/4 chocolate chips
Powdered sugar

In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. In another bowl combine the wet. Stir the wet into the dry and stir just until moistened.

For filling, beat the cream cheese, sugar, and salt until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Fold in chips.

Fill 20 paper-lined cupcake cups half full with batter. Drop one tablespoon of cream filling into batter and then top with batter. Bake at 350' for 25 minutes. Cool completely and then dust with powdered sugar. My kiddos wanted icing on their cupcakes, guess that were not sweet enough. Here is the recipe I used for the icing just in case you want the extra sweet variety.

Icing:
1 stick butter-softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup baking cocoa
4 T milk

Cream butter and sugar until creamy. Slowly add in cocoa and milk. Mix until creamy. Top each cupcake with icing.