Buttery Homemade Biscuits

We love these biscuits for breakfast or with soups and stews. My children break them open and eat them with honey. They are flaky and light and delicious.

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
5 tbs. shortening
3 tbs cold salted butter
2/3 to 2/4 cups cold milk

Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in the shortening and butter with two knives or a pastry blender until the mixture has lumps the size of peas. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in 1/2 cup milk. Mix it in quickly with a fork, distributing the liquid to as much of the mixture as possible. Gradually add more milk as you mix until the dough will just start to hold together. Turn the dough onto a floured pastry cloth or board and knead, very gently, only 6-8 times. Roll out the dough to 1/2 inch thick and cut biscuits into desired shape. Try to get them all the same height and size for even cooking. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, no more than 1/2 inch apart. Bake 12-14 minutes, until they are golden-brown. Serve hot.

Enjoy!

Homemade Blueberry Syrup

I love making syrup from blueberries in season. It is delicious on pancakes or Saturday French Toast (see recipe below). This is an easy recipe for the children to help with, too.

Ingredients:

1 pint fresh blueberries
¼ cup sugar
2 tbs. Water

Wash the blueberries thoroughly and remove stems. Place in small saucepan with sugar and water. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally. After 10 minutes, mash gently with a potato masher. Continue to cook, uncovered, until desired consistency is reached. Serve warm.

Enjoy!

Saturday French Toast

Saturday is our only true morning with no commitments to the outside world. We celebrate by having what my children call a “Daddy Home Breakfast”. Daddy has chosen this breakfast the last four Saturdays in a row. The addition of sugar and cream give this French Toast a wonderful, glossy, golden look. We serve it with maple or homemade blueberry syrup (see recipe above).

Ingredients:

For the French Toast,
4 eggs
½ tsp salt
1 tbs. Sugar
¼ cup heavy cream
2 cups milk
1 loaf thickly sliced white bread

In a deep, square container (I use Rubbermaid Take-Alongs -- they are the perfect size for the bread) break four eggs. Add salt and sugar and beat with a fork until the egg white is thoroughly broken up. Add cream and milk and beat again, until mixture is thin and pale yellow. Heat non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. One slice at a time, submerge bread in egg mixture for 2-3 seconds, giving custard a chance to penetrate into the bread but removing before the bread gets too soggy to handle. Brown on both sides to a nice golden brown. Remove from pan and place on a plate in a slightly warm oven. Once all French toast is browned, bring the plate to the table and serve piping hot.

Enjoy!

Julia's Sausage and Egg Casserole

Almost everyone I know has a recipe for this casserole. NanaJane cooks it in a deep bowl or souffle, so the inside remains quite soft. Grandma cooks it in a 9x13 glass baking dish, serving it in squares, and the texture is quite firm. I like to think mine is a happy medium, cooked in a loaf pan, turned out onto a platter, and sliced. But any way you serve it up, the best thing about this dish is that it offers up a lot of flavor... (but, shhh! it doesn't take a lot of work!) You can even make it the night before, which makes it a winner for special occasions.

Ingredients:

6 eggs
2 cups milk
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 lb. pork sausage (We use "Old Folks" brand, but choose your favorite.)

3-4 slices white bread, cut in 1 inch cubes

1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs. Add milk, salt, and mustard, mix thoroughly and set aside. In large frying pan, brown sausage and drain. Set aside. In ungreased standard-size loaf pan, layer bread cubes. Top with sausage, and pour egg mixture over all. Sprinkle with shredded cheese and bake at 35o degrees for 40-50 minutes. Cool 10 minutes and turn out onto platter. Slice to serve.

Enjoy!