Breads

Cranberry Brie Sheet Pan Biscuits

Marrying two of my favorite fall flavors, Brie and Cranberry, into a biscuit was too good to skip. The fresh herbs and the drizzle of honey makes these savory biscuits a must for a special fall meal or Thanksgiving dinner. They are especially good warm from the oven. Even my grandsons liked them…but who doesn’t love a biscuit with honey!

Cranberry Brie Sheetpan Biscuits

INGREDIENTS:
  • Nonstick cooking spray, for the pan
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting (see Cook’s Note)
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
  • 2 1/2 sticks (20 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus
  • more for serving
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk, plus more for brushing
  • 8 ounces Brie, cut into small pieces
  • 1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped chives
  • 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped
  • 1/4 cup honey
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Spray an 18-by-13-inch half sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda and 2 teaspoons of the salt in a large bowl. Rub 4 tablespoons of the butter into the flour mixture with your fingertips until completely absorbed. Work the remaining 16 tablespoons butter into the flour mixture until pea-sized bits of butter remain. Use a fork to stir in the buttermilk until the mixture comes together into a shaggy dough. (Don’t overmix the dough.)
  3. Add the Brie, parsley, cranberries, chives and thyme to the bowl and gently mix with lightly floured hands, folding the dough over itself (this is where the flaky layers will form) until the ingredients are just combined.
  4. Turn the dough out onto the prepared sheet pan and use lightly floured hands to evenly distribute the dough into the prepared pan. Using a paring knife, gently score 24 squares on top of the dough, making sure the knife does not cut through to the bottom of the biscuit. (If baking the biscuits the following day, cover gently with plastic wrap at this point and refrigerate up to 24 hours.)
  5. Brush the top of the dough with more buttermilk. Bake until the biscuit top is lightly browned, 12 to 14 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then use a paring knife to follow the score marks to cut through the biscuits.
  6. Meanwhile, mix the honey with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a small bowl. Drizzle the honey over the warm biscuits. Serve the biscuits warm or at room temperature with more butter, if desired.

Recipe from Food Network

Breakfast · Family Favorites · New Favorite · New Traditions

Egg and Bacon Cups

Let me send a huge compliment to one of my favorite blogs, Iowa Girls Eats. Not only is she from Iowa but she eats gluten-free and has many great ideas.  While browsing for egg recipes I saw that she had tried bacon egg cups and I decided to give my own version a whirl. Most of the recipes on the web show that you use a whole egg in each cup but I decided to scramble the eggs and add ingredients.

Next time, I would either cook the bacon even longer or I would precook the bacon and crumble it in the bottom of each cup.  I like my bacon crispy so I’d prefer my bacon slices to be the same.  You’ll also see that the bacon was not on the outside of the eggs cups since the bacon shrinks while precooking but they come out beautifully as cups just the same!

BACON EGG CUPS

6 slices of bacon
6 eggs
1/4 cup cheese (I used cheddar)
pinch of Herbs de Provence
salt & pepper

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Wrap a slice of bacon around each of six muffin tins.  Bake in oven for 15-20 minutes or until almost done to your liking.
  • While the baking is cooking, beat eggs and add cheese, herbs and salt and pepper.  Set aside.
  • Remove muffin tins from oven and carefully pour or remove the bacon fat.
  • Carefully pour egg mixture into each of the six muffin tins.
  • Bake another 15+ minutes or until eggs are completely cooked through.

 

 

Family Favorites · Holidays · My Roots

Thanksgiving Leftovers…Yummy Turkey Vegetable Soup…

My Mother grew up in the depression and had a knack for making the most out of everything.  Every year, she would make a large pot of Turkey Vegetable Soup after the big day.  The aroma of the soup allowed us to relive Thanksgiving Day all over again.  I love to add caraway seed (if you are Czech…it’s a true passion).  Yum!

Turkey Vegetable Soup
Turkey Vegetable Soup

TURKEY VEGETABLE SOUP

1 Turkey Carcass (leftover from holiday meal)
Diced Potatoes
Pearl Barley
Corn
Green Beans
Green Peas
Diced Onion
Diced Celery
Diced Carrots
Diced Red or Green Peppers
Bits of leftover dressing
(Whatever you feel like throwing in the pot!)
Pinch of oregano, parley, thyme, dill, caraway seed
Salt & pepper to taste

  • Remove carcass/meat/skin from broth.  Strain broth.  Return bits of turkey to the broth.  Chill overnight.
  • Skim fat from broth.  Bring broth to slight boil.
  • Add vegetables, herbs, and seasoning.  Simmer until vegetables are tender.

Fresh Vegetables and Barley chopped and ready

The soup freezes so well and provides you with a taste of Thanksgiving long into the winter.

Do you have a favorite turkey soup that is tradition in your family?