CLASSIC BISCUITS

OK I've made a lot of biscuits in my lifetime, but these really were THEE best I've ever made! And you can't go wrong baking on or in a Pampered Chef stone! Baking stones make any bread item bake up to perfection! And these biscuits didn't disappoint. Be sure to liberally brush the tops of these babies with butter as soon as they come out of the oven. Then watch in sheer delight as the melted butter slides down off the top, over the sides and onto the piping hot stone and FRIES the bottom of the biscuit to give it a crispy edge! Mmm! Makes me want to run into the kitchen right now and whip up a batch of fresh biscuits for absolutely no reason at all, other than to slather them with butter and homemade strawberry freezer jam! OK AND to eat them! :-)

CLASSIC BISCUITS

If you want your biscuits to turn out light and feathery, then handle the dough as little as possible. You're sure to get a nice flaky biscuit if you do it that way.

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1⁄2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 stick cold butter, diced into cubes
• 2⁄3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 450°F. 

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. With a pastry cutter, cut the cold butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in the milk and blend w/ spoon just until all the liquid has been absorbed. With lightly floured hands, work the dough briefly until it barely holds together in a flaky ball. 

Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Roll or pat the dough out into a round about 1⁄2 inch thick. With a 2-inch biscuit cutter, cut out as many rounds as possible. Gather up the scraps, reroll and cut out more rounds. Do not reroll the dough more than once or you will end up with tough biscuits.

Transfer the biscuits to the baking stone and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Serve immediately with real butter and homemade jam. Or top them with piping hot gravy! ENJOY! 

STRAWBERRY FREEZER JAM

It's that time of year again! Strawberry season is upon us! For you folks in the cold North, you still have another month to wait for berries! Someone gave me a bunch of "leftover" berries the other day and it was so many that my first thought was to make freezer jam with them! I ended up making 20 (1/2 pint) containers and still had enough left over to make a batch of strawberry shortcake! WooHoo!
Strawberry freezer jam is so quick and easy to make! And makes such a nice gift when you pair it w/ a loaf of homemade bread or biscuits. To make preparing the berries quicker, I chop mine in my food processor. But you could mash your berries with a potato masher or just mash them with your hands even. At any rate, any work that goes into making the jam is WELL worth the effort!

STRAWBERRY FREEZER JAM

2 cups  crushed strawberries (buy 1 qt. fully ripe strawberries)

4 cups  sugar, measured into separate bowl

3/4 cup  water

1 pkg.  SURE-JELL Fruit Pectin

 

RINSE 5 (1-cup) plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly. Discard stems. Crush strawberries thoroughly, 1 cup at a time. Measure exactly 2 cups prepared fruit into large bowl. Stir in sugar. Let stand 10 min., stirring occasionally.  

 

MIX water and pectin in small saucepan. Bring to boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Continue boiling and stirring 1 min. Add to fruit mixture; stir 3 min. or until most the sugar is dissolved. (A few sugar crystals may remain.)

 

FILL containers immediately to within 1/2 inch of tops. Wipe off top edges of containers; immediately cover with lids. Let stand at room temperature 24 hours. Jam is now ready to use. Store in refrigerator up to 3 weeks or in freezer up to 1 year. (If frozen, thaw in refrigerator before using.)

 

*I'm still trying to master the low sugar version. I made both kinds yesterday. The regular one set up quite nicely but the low sugar one did not. I'm working on fixing it and figuring out what I did wrong. 

If I can't fix it, I'll have 8 jars of ice cream topping to give away as gifts! When life hands you runny jam, make ice cream sundaes!  :-)   

OLD FASHIONED BROWN BREAD

With bread at almost $3 a loaf, I figured it was time to try my hand at learning the skill of bread making. This is one area that I have not ventured into much. I suppose it's because with the carb content, we don't eat a lot of it. But we constantly have need of it since we often have family and guests in for fellowships and meals. This was an easy recipe to make, although a little dense for my taste. It has molasses and oats in it, which gave it a delicious flavor. I was hoping it would have risen and had a lighter texture. I think I either added too much flour at the start or it may have been in my kneading "technique." At any rate, I will make it again though, just so I can "master" this recipe! The first time I made cinnamon rolls I wasn't happy with them either. But now I can make them with my eyes closed! You learn as you go - what to do and what not to do, to get a good product.

OLD FASHIONED BROWN BREAD

2 1/3 cups boiling water
1 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup soft butter, cubed
1/3 cup molasses
5 1/2 - 6 1/2 cups all purpose flour
5 tsp active dry yeast
2 tsp salt

In a large bowl, pour boiling water over oats. Stir in butter and molasses. Let stand until mixture reads 120 to 130 degrees, stirring occasionally.
In another bowl, combine 3 1/2 cups flour, yeast and salt. Beat into oat mixture until blended. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to make a SOFT (not stiff) dough. Turn onto a floured surface, knead until smooth and elastic (about 6 - 8 minutes). Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled. About 1 hour.
Punch dough down. Turn onto LIGHTLY floured surface and divide in half. Shape into loaves. Place in 2 greased loaf pans . Cover and let rise until doubled - about 30 minutes.
Bake at 375 for 35 - 40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Brush tops with butter to soften crust.
ENJOY! 

4 INGREDIENT CRUSTY BREAD

Well as my debut into the world of food blogging I think BREAD is the best choice to start out with!! I mean really... who in their right mind doesn't love a big ol' slice of homemade, fresh out of the oven, slathered in butter, bread to enjoy in some dark corner! "Let it cool completely! BAH!  Bread is always great to make, because as long as you have flour and yeast you are good to go!
This bread is so easy to make! I can't take the credit for it because it's been around for years, but it's new to me.This is great if you love homemade bread but don't have the time to stand and knead for 10 minutes, then wait for another rise. Just a little thinking ahead and you can have this wonderful bread on your taste buds! This bread comes out with the similar consistency & chewiness of Ciabatta.

4 INGREDIENT CRUSTY BREAD

3 cups of flour
1 3/4 tsp. of salt (I used kosher and love it!)
1/2 tsp. of yeast
1 1/2 cups of water

In a medium-large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients then stir in the water. This dough will be very, very sticky! This is what you want. No special kneading or dough whispering skills are necessary for this bread! lol
Once you have this all mixed together all you have to do is let it sit  covered in plastic wrap for 12-18 hours. That's why I mentioned thinking ahead a little. All I do is mix it together before I go to bed.
Preheat your oven to 450. Once that is done preheat your pot. You will need one that is about 4-5 quarts and that has a lid. I like my Le Crouset! Plus it's purple and pretty!

Any kind of cast iron pot or one that's covered in ceramic will work.
Preheat your pan with the lid on in the oven for 30 minutes. While that is heating drop your very airy, very sticky dough onto a heavily floured surface and shape into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for the same 30 minutes.
CAREFULLY remove your hot pot from the oven and place the bread down in it. It will still be very sticky, but that is the purpose of giving it that extra coating of flour - so you can more easily handle it while placing it in the hot pan. Cover and bake at 450 for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for an additional 15 minutes. When it's done, immediately remove your bread from the pot (or else it will continue to bake on the hot cast iron) and place bread loaf on cooling rack for 5 - 10 minutes (or however long you can manage to not drool all over your glorious creation!

BACON BREAKFAST CUPS

It doesn't take much to make my hubby happy - especially when I say the word, "BACON!" He got so excited when he saw me putting these together this morning. They turned out extremely delicious! These don't go together in a snap, however, like I am so used to saying about many of my recipes. Although they take a little time, they are WELL worth the wait! These would be so fun to fix for a big family breakfast! Pair them w/ a big ol' batch of hash browns and some fresh fruit and you will have yourself a breakfast feast!
The amounts listed here are to fill a 12 cup muffin tin. But you can easily pair it down to the number you need.

BACON BREAKFAST CUPS

12 slices bread
24 slices bacon, fried until almost crisp (will finish cooking in oven)
12 eggs
Butter
Salt & Pepper

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly fry bacon and drain on paper towels. Butter muffin cups. With rolling pin, roll each slice of bread until thin. Using kitchen shears, hold bread and cut off crusts, shaping into circle as you go, keeping as much of the bread as you can. Butter the top side of the bread. *Using your hands and fingers, form the bread into a 4 leaf clover shape. Carefully position it into the muffin cup. Gently open the bread up so it will hold the remaining ingredients. Take 2 slices of bacon and form an X on the bottom of the bread cup w/ them. The bacon will hang out over the top of the cup. (I know mine barely look like that, but it is because hubby wanted to help put them together and he started breaking the bacon up into the bread cups! haha) Now crack 1 egg into each muffin cup, on top of the bacon. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Bake at 375 for 20 - 25 minutes, or until whites are set.
*NOTE* Don't try to force the buttered bread circle into the muffin cup w/ a tart shaper. Tried it, it doesn't work! :-)

HOMEMADE WAFFLES

In keeping with my breakfast food theme lately.... who doesn't love breakfast for dinner, once in a while? And what could be better than a steaming, hot waffle with deep pockets to hold all that butter and warm, sweet, delicious, homemade syrup?! These waffles have a 2 step process, but are well worth the time invested. I've used this same waffle recipe for over 25 years and it always gets rave reviews. You can top them with all your favorite things: sauteed apples, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, whipped cream, bananas, pecans, let your imagination run wild here! And then ENJOY!

HOMEMADE WAFFLES

2 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 egg whites, beaten stiff

Heat waffle iron to med-high. In the meantime, in a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, combine the 2 egg yolks and milk and whisk into the flour mixture. Stir to combine. Next, add the melted butter. Again, stir to combine. In a clean separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form, and then fold gently into waffle batter. Pour 1 1/2 soup ladles of batter onto hot waffle iron and bake for 3 - 5 minutes or until desired crispiness is achieved.
Yield: 4 round waffles

*When I am making this for my family, I usually double the recipe. 


*New Feature* Share your favorite recipes with us here:

PARKER HOUSE ROLLS

Mmm! Don't you just love a crispy bottomed, hot, buttery, yeast roll with your Thanksgiving dinner?! I sure do! And these little beauties steal the show! It's an old recipe. Possibly the original Parker House Roll recipe.
Parker House rolls are an American tradition, dating back to 1855 and the opening of Boston's famous Parker House Restaurant. They are very easy to make. The first time I had them at someone's house, I knew I had to add the recipe to my blog to share with you all. It's just way too good to pass up! And it makes a ton, which is nice for those big family dinners!! Make sure you have lots of REAL butter on hand to slather on these puppies when they come out of the oven. I dare say, you won't be able to resist their charm!

PARKER HOUSE ROLLS

6 to 6 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp salt
2 packages dry active yeast
1 cup butter softened
1 egg
2 cups hot tap water (120 - 130 degrees)

About 3 1/2 hours before serving:

1. In a large bowl,combine 2 1/4 cups flour, sugar, salt and yeast; add 1/2 cup butter. With mixer at low speed, gradually pour 2 cups hot water (120' to 130'F) into dry ingredients. Add egg. Increase speed to medium. Beat 2 minutes, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Beat in 3/4 cup flour or enough to make a thick batter. Continue beating 2 minutes, occasionally scraping the bowl. With a spoon stir in enough additional flour (about 2 1/2 cups) to make a soft dough.

2. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Shape dough into a ball and place in greased large bowl, turning over so that the top of dough is greased. Cover with a towel. Let rise in a warm place (8-0' to 85'F) until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.

3. Punch down dough by pushing down the center of the dough with fist, then pushing the edges of dough into center. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface. Knead lightly to make a smooth ball. Cover with bowl for 15 minutes and let dough rest.

4. In a 17 1/4" by 11 1/2" roasting pan, over low heat, melt the remaining 1/2 cup butter. Tilt the pan to grease bottom.

5. On lightly floured surface with floured rolling pin, roll dough 1/2 inch thick. With floured 2 2/4 inch round cutter, cut dough into circles. Holding dough circle by the edge, dip both sides into melted butter in pan. Fold in half and give it a push right in the middle, with the tip of your finger (to make it stay folded). Arrange folded dough in rows in pan, each nearly touching the other. Knead trimmings together, re-roll and cut more rolls. Cover pan with towel. Let dough rise in warm place until doubled, about 40 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, preheat over to 425'F. Bake rolls 18-20 minutes until browned. Makes about 3 1/2 dozen.

PEACH FRENCH TOAST

This is a lovely recipe! A few weeks ago we were invited to accompany a family from our church on a 2 night get-away, to go rafting and stay in a Bed & Breakfast. We drove about 5 hours South, down to the Ozarks. It is beautiful down there! We took a small detour and stopped off at Lamberts for lunch, before we made our way down into Eminence. Lamberts is home of the "thrown rolls!" They were DEElicious too! Well worth the 1 hr wait to get in! Late in the afternoon we arrived at The Hawkins House Bed & Breakfast in Eminence, MO. Miss Patty is a FINE hostess and made our first ever stay in a bed & breakfast just delightful! It felt just like home! The morning we left she made this wonderful Peach French Toast for breakfast. We were all proclaiming how wonderful it was and talking about trying to finagle the recipe out of her. Next thing you know, out she walked from the kitchen with a smile and plopped the recipe down right in front of my plate! I was so happy and couldn't wait to get home and experiment on family and friends with a new recipe! I made it for my family when they were all gathered here last week for a Revival meeting with the Tharp Brothers. Then I made it for the Saturday morning soul winning crowd today. Both times it has gone over with a bang! Everyone loves it!
The only difference between Miss Patty's recipe and mine is, I have to make everything on a LARGE scale! Other than having to add a little extra cooking time, it still turns out MAHvelous Dahling! I know you'll enjoy this one!

PEACH FRENCH TOAST

1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 Tblsp water

1 (29 oz) can sliced peaches
5 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 Tblsp vanilla
1 loaf french bread, sliced about 3/4" thick

Drain peaches. Heat brown sugar and butter on medium heat until melted. Add water and continue cooking until sauce foams up. Pour into 6 individual buttered baking dishes and cool 10 minutes.
Place peaches on cooled sauce and cover with slices of bread placed close together. In separate bowl, beat eggs, milk and vanilla until mixed. Pour over bread, cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, remove from fridge and bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Loosely cover with foil the last 10 - 15 minutes if browning too fast. Remove from oven and loosen from edges of dish. Invert each dish onto serving plate to serve (so it is peach side up!)

PECAN FRENCH TOAST

Make caramel sauce from peach french toast. Pour into 6 buttered baking dishes and cool. Add chopped or whole pecans. Cover with slices of bread placed close together. Pour egg mixture over, cover and refrigerate overnight. Next morning bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

*TIP* I skipped the cooling time on the caramel sauce and it didn't affect the recipe at all. Actually placing the room temp peaches on the sauce probably helped cool it down faster. Also, since I frequently cook for a crowd, I doubled this recipe to fit a 1/4 sheet cake pan (lasagna pan). I think I fit 16 slices of french bread in the pan. You can get 16 slices out of one loaf if you slice it down the middle and slice each half into 8 equal portions. I also added 10 - 15 minutes of extra baking time to allow the custard laden bread to cook through all the way. The tricky part to making this in a large batch is inverting it when it is done baking. I use the 1/4 sheet cake pan because it doesn't have handles on the edges and I can fit my 1/4 sheet cookie pan over the top and then invert it right onto the cookie sheet. You still have to be very careful for two reasons: 1) it's VERY hot and 2) remember there is sauce in the bottom of the pan and when you invert it, if you are not flush against the bottom of your cookie sheet, the sauce may splash out. I did it over the sink. You may want to wrap a towel around it just to be sure you don't splash or burn yourself. If you do it quick though, you should be alright. I was, but still, please be very careful when you invert it.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

If you ever get a chance to travel down to the Ozarks, I encourage you to look up The Hawkins House Bed & Breakfast! Each bedroom has it's own private bath. Very clean and beautifully decorated. And a HEAVENLY wrap around porch with all sorts of swings and bistro sets and wicker furniture! We stayed in Annabelle's room - it has a partriotic theme - just lovely! http://hawkinshousebb.com/index.html
Tell her the preacher and his wife from Independence recommended her!

BACON CHEDDAR PULL APARTS

This one is super yummy! When my daughter Sarah and her friend, Amy were raising funds for their missions trip to Brazil - this was one of the top sellers every week at our bake sales. It always sold out first, and was being requested every week at the sales. I made these today for our Saturday morning soul winners / prayer breakfast. We had a ladies meeting last night and there was all kinds of left over fresh fruit to go with them. So I served Bacon Cheddar Pull Aparts, Scrambled Eggs and Fruit. It was the perfect breakfast combo! The muffins went really well with the eggs!



BACON CHEDDAR PULL APARTS

2 eggs

4 tablespoons milk

4 (7.5 oz) (10 count) cans refrigerated biscuits

1 lb bacon, diced and cooked

1 (8 oz) bag shredded Cheddar cheese (I've also used Shredded Monterey Jack)

1/4 cup finely chopped green onions (4 medium) (I use half of the tops too)
1 stick butter, melted

Optional: 1 small can diced green chiles, drained
Can also add: diced green pepper or diced red pepper if you like those.

DIRECTIONS

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 2 regular size muffin tins with cooking spray. In large bowl, beat eggs and milk with wire whisk until smooth.
• Separate dough into individual biscuits; cut each into quarters. Gently stir biscuit pieces into egg mixture to coat evenly. Gently fold in bacon, cheese and onions. Spoon mixture evenly among 12 sprayed muffin tins. You could also use the foil muffin liners - but I would even spray those.
  
• Drizzle melted butter evenly over top of pull aparts.
• Place muffin tin on cookie sheet - the muffins tend to leak the butter a bit and the cookie sheet helps contain the mess.
  
• Bake at 350°F. for 20 - 23 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from muffin tins.
  
• Best served warm.

EGG NOG FRENCH TOAST

What's your favorite thing to make on a Snow Day? School is canceled, many can't get out to go to work, you're not going anywhere until the driveway is plowed or snowblowed. You may as well make a hot breakfast for everyone. If you like egg nog and can get your hands on some, you have GOT to try this! It's so custardy and delicious. The only thing I would change would be to use a heartier bread. All I had in the bread box was Aunt Millies Cracked Wheat bread, and it was a bit to thin for this thick, custardy recipe. I still used it, but a nice, crusty, french, bread loaf, sliced thick, would work a lot better for this.

EGG NOG FRENCH TOAST

2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup store bought egg nog
1 tsp rum flavoring (or vanilla, it's your choice)
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or 1/8 t. cinnamon + 1/8 t. nutmeg)
6 slices bread

Whisk together eggs, egg nog, rum flavoring and spices. Heat a griddle to hot. Dip bread in egg mixture, allowing it to soak in slightly. Butter (or oil) the hot griddle and place soaked bread on griddle. Cook on each side until golden brown and crispy. Serve with butter and powdered sugar or hot syrup.

*Note* To increase the recipe: for every additional 3 slices of bread, add one egg, 1/4 cup of egg nog and 1 tsp. rum flavoring (or 1/2 t. vanilla)

CINNAMON APPLE BREAD PUDDING

Yum! Do you love a good, warm, cinnamon'y' bread pudding on a chilly Fall day? This is another good Autumn recipe, and a good way to incorporate some of those apples that you've been picking. We are in the middle of our annual Faith Promise Missions Conference and we are feeding the missionaries dinner each night. We thought this one would go over well, and it surely did.
The original recipe had twice the amount of sugar called for here. It was good, but way too sweet. So we reduced the amount of sugar (since we were working with a sweeter bread). And the results were WONDERFUL! I love this because it's almost like eating baked french toast, but better. You will love the crispy, crumb topping too.

CINNAMON APPLE BREAD PUDDING

1 cup white sugar
5 eggs, beaten
2 cups milk
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups cubed - iced cinnamon swirl bread (you can do cinnamon-raisin if you prefer)
1 large yellow delicious apple, peeled, cored and finely chopped

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup chopped pecans, optional
cinnamon-sugar mixture

Sauce:

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 egg, beaten
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup apple juice

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9 x 13 baking pan. Place bread cubes in pan. Mix together sugar, eggs and milk in a bowl, add vanilla. Pour over bread cubes and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Sprinkle diced apple evenly over the top. In a separate bowl, crumble together the brown sugar, flour, butter and pecans. Sprinkle brown sugar mixture evenly over the top. Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake for 35 - 45 minutes, or until set (no longer 'jiggly' in the middle). Remove from oven.

For sauce: Mix together sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla in a saucepan. Over medium heat, stir together until sugar is melted. Add apple juice and stir well. Pour warm over bread pudding. Delicious served warm with ice cream!

PEPPERONI ROLL UPS

I made these last night to go along with our Italian chicken and rice soup. They are so yummy and so quick and easy to make. These would also make a tasty Sunday night snack for the family or the monthly ladies meeting, or any other group of people you may happen to have over for a fellowship. And biscuits are always on sale at the store. I just used the refrigerated 4 pack regular buttermilk biscuits. The original recipe didn't call for mozzarella cheese, but we are big cheese hounds around here and just look for ways to add it to recipes! haha And I'm telling you, I wouldn't make them without it!

PEPPERONI ROLL UPS

1 can of biscuits
1 pack of Pepperoni
Shredded Mozzarella cheese
garlic salt
butter to brush on
Italian seasoning (optional)


Roll each biscuit out flat (don't worry, it will puff back up when it bakes). Place 2 pepperoni in each half (I overlap the pepperoni on top of each other, about half way) and a pinch of shredded mozzarella cheese. Fold the biscuit in half and pinch shut along all edges. Place on greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning if desired. Bake according to package directions. When they are done, brush with butter and sprinkle with garlic. While these are baking you can heat some marinara sauce to dip them in.
I served them with soup and they were so yummy that way too!

IRON SKILLET PIZZA

Have you ever baked homemade pizza in a cast iron skillet? Oh my soul! It is so YUMMY!
The crust gets crispy on the bottom but stays moist on top. If you have an iron skillet, you simply MUST try this some time! You won't be disappointed and you'll probably never bake it on a pizza pan ever again!

IRON SKILLET PIZZA

Instructions for basic pizza dough:

Preheat oven to 400.

2 pkgs. quick rise dry active yeast
1 cup warm water (120ish degrees)
3 tblsp. veg. or olive oil, plus extra for drizzle
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
Approx. 3 cups flour, plus extra for handling

It's good to "feel" out your dough. Start with the yeast in a mixing bowl. Add the warm water, oil sugar or honey and let everything dissolve together. Begin adding flour. (This can be done in a mixer, but I prefer to mix by hand, adding the flour a cup or half a cup at a time.) After mixing in about half the flour, add the salt. Mix in the rest of the flour, and when dough can be handled without sticking too badly, begin kneading by hand until soft and elastic, about 12-15 times. Let it rest for about 15 minutes. Punch it down, knead and let it rest again, if you have the time. After the second rise, form it into whatever you want (loaf, rolls, etc.) and bake in 450 deg. oven until golden brown. But this time we're forming it into our pizza dough. So lay it on the counter and begin rolling it into a circle big enough to fit your cast iron skillet on the bottom and up the sides a little. Grease your skillet heavily with Crisco. Pat dough into skillet and push up sides of the pan a little.

HAM & PINEAPPLE PIZZA

1/2 cup pizza sauce
1 lb lean deli ham, sliced into thin, bite size pieces
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained (if you don't have crushed, you can use chunk, just dice it up)
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

Spoon the pizza sauce (or pasta sauce, doesn't matter) evenly over your dough in the iron skillet. Top with 1 cup of the shredded mozzarella cheese. Layer on your ham and pineapple and top with remaining cheese. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly and crust is light golden brown on the bottom.

*Feel free to add more or less ham, pineapple or cheese, according to your taste.

WARM CINNAMON MINI SWIRLS (WW)

Here's a yummy little Saturday morning treat to lure even the worst sleepy head out of bed! And with a points value of only 1 each - what's not to love?! They are super quick & easy to make and so good! If you're doing WW and are craving a big fat cinnamon roll - then QUICK make these and it will take care of that craving! These make a nice treat for company too. Serve them up with a hot mug of coffee or a tall cold glass of milk.

WARM CINNAMON MINI SWIRLS - WW 1 pt each

1 (8 oz) pkg refrigerated reduced fat crescent rolls
4 tsp bottled cinnamon sugar
cooking spray
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp 1% milk

Preheat oven to 375. Unroll crescent roll dough onto work surface. Separate the 2 hunks of dough. Leave 4 of the crescent rolls hooked together, and with a mini pie dough roller, press the perforations together. Sprinkle each portion of dough with 2 tsp of the cinnamon sugar. Starting at the wide side, roll up 1 portion of dough, pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets. Pinch seams to seal. Cut roll into 10 slices. Place rolls, cut side down on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Repeat process with remaining dough and cinnamon-sugar. Bake at 375 for 10 - 12 minutes or until golden. Whisk together powdered sugar and milk until smooth. Drizzle over warm rolls with a small whisk.
Yield: 20 swirls
Serving sz: 1 swirl
Points value: 1 pt
Cal: 55
Fat: 1 g

CREAMY CORN MUFFINS

I really love cornbread, but find the dry, gritty texture a bit distasteful. We recently had a chili cook off at our church and my daughter-in-law brought the most delicious corn muffins! They were so moist and flavorful. I made white chili tonight and was just itching to whip up a batch of these muffins to go with it! Soooo yummy!

CREAMY CORN MUFFINS

1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar, OR pepper jack (your choice)
1/2 of a 4 oz can of chopped green chiles OR 1/4 cup of canned sliced jalapeno, drained (your choice)

*The Pepperjack cheese and the jalapenos would give the muffins a bit more "kick." So if you like heat - go for it!

Preheat oven to 375. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray. Mix all ingredients together in bowl. Fill muffin cups 1/2 way and bake for 15 minutes or until they spring back when lightly touched with finger. Let cool for 5 minutes. Loosen edges with butter knife to pop out of muffin tin.
Yield: 8 muffins

MUFFIN MONDAY - CHEESECAKE STUFFED PUMPKIN MUFFINS

CHEESECAKE STUFFED PUMPKIN MUFFINS

This was actually a 2nd attempt! I made this muffin on Saturday for the group on Sunday. The original recipe called for sour cream in the batter and for a cube of plain cream cheese to be shoved down into the center of the muffin batter before it was baked. At first bite, I told myself that nobody will like these. I bit into it and immediately had this feeling, that I didn't know how I felt about that cube of cream cheese! Then one by one, as different ones tasted, they all said the same thing - it wasn't horrible, but .... that cube of cream cheese.... ugh!
So today I remade them. I couldn't handle the defeat! I was really pleased with the results!

CHEESECAKE STUFFED PUMPKIN MUFFINS


Philadelphia brand, prepared cheesecake filling mix (sold next to regular cream cheese)
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup melted butter
1/4 cup applesauce

Combine flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt in bowl.

Mix eggs, pumpkin, butter and applesauce together, then add to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened.

Fill greased muffin cups 1/3 full. Place 1 Tblsp of the prepared cheesecake filling , in center of each. Add remaining batter to fill cups 2/3 full. Sprinkle with chopped pecans and then with sugar.

*NOTE* When you fill the muffin papers - be sure to spray them with Pam first. Also, after you spoon in the cheesecake filling, and add the top layer of batter - do not seal the top layer. Just spoon it on top - and let the cheesecake filling show on the sides or however it turns out. Don't smooth the top over.

Bake in 375ºF oven 15 to 18 minutes or until they spring back when lightly touched.

FOR COFFEE CAKE: Spread half of batter in a greased 9 inch square pan. Arrange cheese cake filling evenly spaced over the batter. Top with remaining batter. Sprinkle with chopped pecans, and cinnamon & sugar. Bake approximately 30 minutes.

Yields: 12 muffins

HANNAH BANANA MUFFINS

Don't you just love a good muffin? But I think it's a cardinal sin to make or eat a DRY muffin! I just won't do it. I like muffins to be MOIST and have a nice crispy, light brown, crown on them. To me, that is perfection in a muffin. You can tell these muffins are moist, because they don't crumble when you cut them. I probably make these a couple times a month, or whenever the bananas don't get finished off after I buy them. Tonight I had 4 dark bananas sitting in the fruit bowl, staring at me, wondering what their fate would be. I finally took pity on them and re-made them into some glorious "Hannah Banana" muffins. They were so happy! *hehe* If you're wondering where "Hannah Banana" came from, it was when our daughter (now 23) was diagnosed with cancer at 6 yrs old. It was the nickname attached to her by her nurses and caretakers in the hospital. The name has just kind of stuck, so these muffins are in honor of my sweet "Hannah Banana!" I'm so glad we still have her with us! THANK YOU Lord!

HANNAH BANANA MUFFINS

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
3 or 4 very ripe bananas
1/2 cup sweetened applesauce or 1/2 sour cream
(whichever you prefer or happen to have on hand)
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 heaping tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Chopped pecans & extra sugar for topping

Cream softened butter and sugar together with a mixer. Add eggs, bananas, applesauce (or sour cream, whichever you decided on) and vanilla. Mix well. In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Slowly add to creamed mixture a cup at a time, beating with mixer after each addition. Line a jumbo muffin tin with jumbo muffin papers and fill each one 3/4 of the way with muffin batter. Sprinkle liberally with chopped pecans and then liberally with sugar. Bake at 375 for 20 - 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. DO NOT overbake them or they will dry out. Remember the 20 - 25 minutes is for JUMBO muffins. If you are using a regular size muffin pan, you will need to adjust your cooking time accordingly. I LOVE the crunchy topping these get while they are baking! Mmm!To get the full effect of this delicious muffin, you HAVE to eat it warm. So if you make them the night before (like I did) be sure to warm yours in the microwave for about 10 seconds before you eat it. When you sit down with your hot cup of coffee and a warm banana muffin in the morning, think of me and say a prayer for this preacher's family.

HUSH PUPPIES

Do you love a mess of fish and hush puppies as much as we do? My Honey can fry a mean batch of catfish and I always whip up the hush puppies to go with it. We had a discussion during dinner tonight, over the origin of the word, hush puppies. This is what I found.

Hush puppies are a favorite accompaniment to fried catfish, and are often served with other types of fried fish. Also known as corn dodgers, hush puppies are deep-fried little cornmeal breads. The popular legend surrounding the hush puppy takes us back to Civil War days. Southerners would sit beside a campfire, preparing their meals. If Yankee soldiers came near, they would toss their barking dogs some of the fried cakes with the command, "Hush, puppies!"

HUSH PUPPIES

6 cups vegetable oil
1 ½ cups self rising cornmeal
½ cup self rising flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 small onion
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg, lightly beaten

Prepare the oil for frying in a skillet. Preheat it to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, stir together the cornmeal, flour, baking soda and salt. Stir in the onion. In a small bowl, stir together the buttermilk and egg. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix until blended - don’t worry if there are a few lumps. Drop the batter, one teaspoon at a time into the oil. Dip the spoon in a glass of water after each hush puppy is dropped. Fry until golden brown, turning the hush puppies and during the cooking process.

BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

What is it the Southerners say? "You can't make a good biscuit without buttermilk!" Boy that is so true. I love these biscuits, they are SO much better than the store bought, refrigerated kind that you pop open. Those kind just taste like a mouth full of FOOF to me. I don't know what foof is, but I'm sure that's what it would taste like! These go good with a pan of fried chicken, a plate of biscuits and gravy, a bowl of gumbo, or baked beans, or breakfast, or just by themselves with some butter and honey drizzled on them. Or how about some homemade strawberry freezer jam? Is there ever a time to NOT have biscuits? LOL

BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

2 cups self rising flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 Tblsp shortening
2 Tblsp butter
1 cup buttermilk
*Melted butter to brush on tops after they bake

Preheat the oven to 450. Sift the flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl and make a well in the center. Cut in the shortening and butter until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Pour the buttermilk into the dry ingredients. Mix lightly and quickly with a wooden spoon to form a dough moist enough to leave the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead lightly by turning the dough away from you, pressing down with palms of hands, and pushing the dough away. Repeat 4 or 5 times. Just enough to work the dough into a large, smooth ball. Roll out with rolling pin to about an inch thick. Cut out biscuits with biscuit cutter or large glass dipped in flour. Place on well greased baking sheet and bake at 450 for 12 - 15 minutes or until golden brown on top. Remove from oven and brush tops with melted butter.