Quick Breads and Biscuits - Double-Post Tuesday

Besides being Taco Tuesday, it's also Double-Post Tuesday. Today's double post deals with Quick Breads and Biscuits, always something appreciated any time of year, but especially at the holidays. Check out the Basic Rolls, the Spicy Skillet Cornbread, or any of the other yummy recipes in today's post. Enjoy!

BAKING POWDER BISCUITS

This is from the July/August 2004 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 45. It begins, "If you want to make your own baking powder, the formula is very simple: Combine 1/4 cup cream of tartar with 2 tablespoons baking soda, and sift the two together three times. Store the powder in a tightly sealed container away from sunlight. When cutting out biscuits, don’t twist cutter; cut straight through dough to work surface. This recipe makes 8 biscuits."

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/baking-powder-biscuits/.

Ingredients

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 Tbs. baking powder, preferably homemade (see above)

1 tsp. salt

4 Tbs. cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

3/4 cup heavy cream

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and set aside.

Put flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl, and whisk to mix. Using fingers or 2 forks, quickly work butter into flour until it is the texture of oatmeal with some larger lumps remaining. Make a well in center of flour, and pour in cream. Stir just until blended.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead briefly but strongly, for 6 or 7 strokes. Roll out dough to a thickness of 1/2 inch. Using a floured fork, prick surface of dough all over at 1-inch intervals, taking care that fork goes through dough.

Using a 3-inch biscuit cutter, stamp out dough. Place biscuits close together on baking sheet.

Bake in center of oven for 8 to 12 minutes, or until biscuits are crusty and are a rich golden brown. Remove from oven, and serve.

BASIC ROLLS

This was from Fr. Dominic Garramone (aka The Bread Monk). I first ran across his show, Breaking Bread with Fr. Dominic, years ago on PBS. The show has since left television (at least, as far as I can tell), but you can still check out his recipes and books on his website (above).

This recipe makes about 30 rolls.

Ingredients

1 package FLEISCHMANN's Active Dry Yeast

1/4 cup warm water

2 cups whole milk

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 teaspoons salt

2 eggs, beaten

5 to 5 1/2 cups bread flour or all-purpose flour, divided

Directions

Sprinkle yeast over warm water in small bowl; stir to dissolve. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes, or until foamy.

Heat milk in a saucepan until lukewarm; do not boil. Add butter, sugar and milk; mix well.

Combine milk mixture, yeast mixture and eggs in large bowl of electric mixer fitted with dough hook. Add 2 cups of the flour; mix with dough hook until blended. Add 2 cups flour and mix until blended. Add 1 cup flour and mix on medium speed 2 minutes.

Remove dough from mixing bowl and place on a floured surface. Knead, adding as much of the remaining 1/2 cup flour as needed to form a smooth, elastic dough. Place dough in a greased bowl and turn to coat. Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free place 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until doubled.

Punch down dough. Knead 2 minutes to work out air bubbles. Let dough rest 10 minutes. Shape dough into desired rolls. (For shape variations, visit Tips & Techniques.) Place on lightly greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise about 30 minutes, or until doubled.

When dough is nearly finished rising, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bake rolls 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

SPICY SKILLET CORNBREAD

This is from the October 2007 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 62. It begins, "Diced bell pepper and a cheesy topping mean you can skip the butter when serving this colorful cornbread. Baking it in a preheated skillet or pan gives it a crunchy-chewy crust. No buttermilk on hand? Simply stir 1-1/2 Tbs. vinegar into 1-2/3 cups low-fat milk."

Makes 12 servings in 30 minutes or less

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/spicy-skillet-cornbread/.

Ingredients

1-1/3 cups yellow cornmeal

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1-2/3 cups low-fat buttermilk

4 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup diced bell pepper

1 1/2 cups shredded manchego cheese

Preparation

Butter 10-inch cast iron skillet or round cake pan, and place in oven. Preheat oven to 425˚F.

Stir together cornmeal, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and cayenne pepper in large bowl. Whisk buttermilk and melted butter into eggs in separate bowl. Fold egg mixture into cornmeal mixture until combined. Stir in bell pepper.

Pour batter into hot skillet, and bake 10 minutes. Sprinkle cheese over top, and bake 5 minutes more, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven, and cool 10 minutes, or until set. Cut into wedges, and serve in pan or on serving plate.

CINNAMON SWIRL BREAD

This was also from Fr. Dominic Garramone (aka The Bread Monk). I first ran across his show, Breaking Bread with Fr. Dominic, years ago on PBS. The show has since left television (at least, as far as I can tell), but you can still check out his recipes and books on his website (above).

This recipe makes about 2 loaves.

Ingredients

Dough:

1 cup milk

1 cup sour cream

3 tablespoons solid vegetable shortening or butter

5 1/2 to 6 cups all-purpose flour, divided

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 packages FLEISCHMANN's Active Dry Yeast

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3 eggs, beaten

Filling:

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Pinch ground nutmeg

Directions

Combine milk, sour cream and shortening in a saucepan over low heat; stir occasionally until sour cream and shortening are melted and mixed in. Remove from heat. Let cool to lukewarm.

Combine 2 cups of the flour, sugar, yeast and salt in a large bowl; mix well. Blend milk mixture, vanilla and eggs into flour mixture; beat about 3 minutes. Add enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough that pulls away from the side of the bowl.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead 5 minutes, adding flour as needed to make a smooth and elastic dough. Lightly grease the surface of the dough; place dough in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free place about 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until doubled in bulk.

Punch down dough. Knead 2 minutes to work out the air bubbles. Divide dough into 2 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface or pastry cloth, roll each piece of dough into a rectangle about 14 by 7 inches. Spread softened butter on dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge. Combine sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg; sprinkle over butter. Starting with the short edge, tightly roll up dough; seal the edges. Place in greased 9x5x3-inch loaf pans. Cover with a clean towel and let rise 45 to 60 minutes, or until nearly doubled.

About 15 minutes before end of rising time, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake bread 40 to 45 minutes, or until top is golden and bread sounds hollow when tapped.

Remove from pans and let cool on a wire rack. If desired, while loaves are still hot, brush the tops with additional butter and sprinkle with additional cinnamon sugar.

Note:

Be careful not to add too much flour, either in mixing or kneading, or the dough will be too stiff to roll out. It's better for the dough to be a bit too soft than too stiff. When sealing the edges of the loaf, brush the edge of the dough with a little milk if you have trouble getting it to stick.

I like to make this recipe in circular glass tube pans. Corning used to produce them, but I'm not sure if they're still available. I got mine at a rummage sale. They make a perfectly round slice of bread with a spiral of cinnamon in the center.

SPRING TWISTS

Years ago, when my better half and I first got cable, I was channel-surfing, something most of us have done occasionally. I ran across a baking show on PBS called Breaking Bread with Fr. Dominic, featuring Fr. Dominic Garramone. I fell in love with the show, and watched it almost every time it was on. (Unfortunately, it only ran from 1999 to 2001.)

Anywho, this recipe was featured on his show; you might even find it in one of his many cookbooks (and yes, I’m planning to pick up a copy of at least one or two of said cookbooks).

Makes 48 twists

Ingredients

Dough

3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided

1 envelope FLEISCHMANN’S RapidRise Yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup water

1 (8-ounce) container sour cream

1 cup butter or margarine

2 eggs, large

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

Vanilla Glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

3 to 4 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup finely chopped almonds

Directions

In a large bowl, combine 1 1/4 cups flour, undissolved yeast, and salt. Heat water, sour cream, and butter until very warm (120 to 130 degrees). Gradually add to flour mixture. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add eggs, vanilla and 1/2 cup flour; beat 2 minutes at high speed. Stir in remaining flour to make a stiff batter. Cover tightly with plastic wrap; refrigerate 2 to 24 hours.

Divide dough in half, returning half to refrigerator. Roll remaining dough to 12 x 8-inch rectangle; sprinkle with 3 tablespoons sugar. Fold ends of dough over center (like folding a letter). Repeat rolling, sprinkling with sugar, and folding procedure twice more. Roll dough to 12 x 6-inch rectangle. Cut into 24 strips, 6 inches long and 1 / 2-inch wide. Twist each strip 3 to 4 times; place on greased baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough and sugar.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 17 minutes or until done. Remove from sheets; cool on wire racks. Drizzle with Vanilla Glaze; sprinkle with chopped almonds.

Vanilla Glaze: In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth.

BLUEBERRY DROP BISCUITS

This is from the infamous long-since-forgotten emailing list. Serves 8 to 10.

Ingredients

1 cup blueberries

3 tablespoons sugar

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cold shortening

1 cup cold milk

Directions

Butter a baking sheet. Wash drain and dry the blueberries. In a medium bowl combine the blueberries with 2 tablespoons sugar. In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Cut the shortening in to the mixture with a pastry blender. Add the milk stirring with a fork. Add the blueberries. Drop by spoonfuls 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the biscuits with the remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake at 450 degrees for 12 minutes. Serve hot with butter.