buttermilk biscuits

when in high school

what we called 

"the roach coach"

rolled up come lunch-time

selling 

all sorts of delicious (read really unhealthy)

food stuffs

once a week

it stopped at kfc

loading up 

on chicken and biscuits

i would queue

for the length of our lunch break

for those biscuits

big, fluffy & buttery

just the nutritious lunch i needed

(ha ha)

those days are long gone

roach coaches

are now gourmet eateries

and i

much more discerning

in my biscuit admiration

 Buttermilk Biscuits

(printable recipe)

2 cups flour-plus more for kneading

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bakewell cream

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

5 Tbs unsalted butter--cold & cut into small squares

1 cup buttermilk--cold + more for brushing tops

mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl.  using your fingers or a pastry knife to cut in the butter, allowing for both pea size and smaller pieces of butter.  do not overwork, you want the butter to stay relatively firm and cool.  quickly add in the buttermilk and stir to create a moist dough.  turn dough out onto a well floured surface and press into a rectangle.  do not saturate in flour, but also use enough to prevent sticking. bring the short ends of the dough in, folding into thirds.  give the dough a quarter turn and press or roll again into a rectangle.  fold into thirds.  repeat 2 more times, using enough flour to keep dough from sticking.

after the final turn, roll the dough into a 3/4" rectangle.  use a biscuit cutter to make rounds, or for simplicity, cut evenly into squares.

brush top of each biscuit with buttermilk, and place on a lined baking sheet.  i like to place my biscuits fairly close together, so they bake together a bit. it gives it a little softness around the edges. if that is not your thing, make sure you have at least 1 1/2" separation when placing in pan.  bake at 400F for about 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.

sweet potato & swiss chard tart

i was able to pick up

swiss chard

for a song

at this week's market

which means

creating meals 

around this favorite green

has been my charge

this morning

i was longing for

the buttery crust of pie

with the

wholesome chew

of comfort

i threw together this tart

in a jiff

simply using

larder staples

sweet potato and swiss chard tart

(printable recipe)

1 pie crust--press in to an 8-9" tart pan

1 medium sweet potato--1/4" slice and halved

1/2 onion--halved and thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic--finely chopped

1 Tbs (about) olive oil

1 bunch swiss chard--ribs removed and chopped into thin ribbons

generous pinch salt and pepper

generous pinch freshly ground nutmeg (or small pinch of dried)

6 large eggs

1/4 cup plain yogurt

2 Tbs grated parmesan

2 stems thyme--stems removed (or 1/4 tsp dried)

1/2 cup grated cheese (asiago,white cheddar, provolone, or jack)

preheat oven to 375F.  Blind bake the crust for about 20 minutes.  When you remove the weights, you will fill with the custard and place back in the oven to continue baking.

Heat a large skillet over low heat.  Pour in enough olive oil to just coat the bottom of the pan.  Toss in the potatoes and onions.  Cook until the potato and onions begin to soften. You are not frying for color, you are softening the vegetables.  Toss in the garlic and swiss chard and continue on low-stirring occasionally) until the chard is droopy and has cast off some moisture. Do not let the garlic burn.  Season with salt and pepper and nutmeg

Pour into the par-baked crust and spread evenly to cover the entire bottom

Gently whisk the eggs, yogurt, thyme and parmesan together in a bowl. You want to incorporate the yogurt (eliminating large lumps) without incorporating too much air.  Pour over the vegetables.  

Reduce oven heat to 350F and place the tart on a sheet pan and then in oven.  Bake for approximately 30 minutes, or until the eggs do not jiggle when you gently tap the pan, and the crust is golden brown.

keeping up with the clampetts (new blog)

i am city folk

however

an old dog can learn new tricks

if

milking a goat

is considered a trick

we are making a move

first emotionally

then

physically

you can follow our progress

through a new blog

written with two voices

mine 

and

hubster

the words aren't

stylized

or

triple worked

the photos

unfiltered

just simply

the happenings

our feelings

triumphs

and

stumbles

with

lots of humor

beginning with the name

we were trying to think of names for the ranch

and summer was in full swing

what was green in the spring 

is now brown

hubs affectionately began calling the place

brown acres

and 

i added in a tag line

keeping up with the clampetts

save for the 

occasional surprise pregnancy and trial separation

(livestock only)

will be more

jed and granny

than

kim and any poor soul with a k as his first initial

as we were making a list of all the equipment we need to purchase

we thought

we really should call this blog

honey i shrunk the nest egg

all references to pop culture

more accurately (gran)pop culture

hey

it is our blog

and we will call it what we want

even 

if it is only funny to us

i do hope

you follow along

so you will be good and ready

when we need a house-sitter 

follow us here

Keeping Up With The Clampetts

zucchini chevre spoon-bread

a few days back

hubs

fresh from visiting

our long neglected garden

presented me

with an enormous zucchini

confession

i sorta only grow zucchini

for flowers

occasionally

a few squash survive

when they do

i use them for bread

sometimes 

sweet

sometimes

savory

this spoon bread is a great side dish

it also rocks

scooped warm and soft

as a bed

for 

caramelized onions

sunny side up eggs

and

crispy bacon

best.breakfast.ever

 

zucchini chevre spoon bread

(printable recipe)

4 large eggs

6 oz olive oil

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 cup chevre

1/2 tsp freshly grated pepper

1 Tbs honey

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp fresh or 1/2 tsp dried thyme

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 cups all purpose flour

1 lb (about 3 cups) grated zucchini

1 cup grated cheese (mix of asiago, parmesan and provolone)*

*use your favorite flavorful cheese...if you use a salty cheese, modify your salt to 1/2 tsp

whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda in a bowl, set aside.  in a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the eggs and olive oil until pale (about 5 minutes).  add the salt, chevre, pepper, honey garlic powder and thyme.  mix for about another minute at as high speed as you can without splashing.  STIR in the flour until fully incorporated, then stir in the zucchini and cheese.  bake at 375F in an 9" buttered cake tin or cast iron skillet.  bake for about 45-50 minutes.  this is a spoon bread, so it will be soft, but should not be jiggly.  it will set as it cools as well.  serve warm.

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