Cooking with Buttermilk ( Pancakes, brownies, and biscuits

What is a staple in your pantry? Is there something specific that you get every time you make your trip to the store?

I love creating in my kitchen and the convenience of having a well stocked pantry, yet I find some of my very best meals or most creative are the meals I make where I have to be inventive. If I don't have certain things on hand, it makes it very hard to be able to make a satisfying and appetizing meal for my family.

Items that are usually on hand in my pantry and refrigerator:

Butter
cream cheese
sour cream
chicken bouillon
beef bouillion
potatoes
rice/noodles
corn starch
buttermilk
flour
sugar
yeast


What do you keep on hand? Feel free to post a comment and share some of your must haves with me.

Now to my favorite staple of all ~ Buttermilk!... I love it. I love to cook with it. I love the flavor it lends to pancakes and biscuits,not to mention the way it makes cakes and baked goods rise. Have you ever watched the chemical reaction with buttermilk and baking soda? My grandmothers have used it as a marinade/soak for fried chicken.

My maternal grandmother, a precious gift in my life, would always tell me of the time her mom would save the buttermilk as a treat for her when they made the butter. I remember the first time she told me this, as I was making butter. I looked at the leftover milk and realized, this looks nothing like the buttermilk I buy at the store.

In reality, what we buy at the store is a cultured buttermilk, which has a lactic acid or something like a yogurt starter added to either a pasteurized milk or sweet milk. The culture is added to the milk, then left to sit till the milk becomes thick .

The milk my grandmother used to drink was thin and milky white. It was the left over liquid from the solids in the heavy cream. My grandmother drank it right away, but I have read that many like it chilled before consumed.

If you don't make your own butter or culture , but you are a frugal homemaker, you can make your own buttermilk at home using cultured buttermilk from the store. You can also purchase a starter and make buttermilk with fresh milk if you desire.

Basically, take 1 cup of cultured buttermilk then add 3 cups of milk. Seal, shake well, and let sit on the counter for 24 hours. ( 1 qt. of butter milk to 1 gallon of milk will make 5 qts of fresh buttermilk) The mixture should thicken in that time frame. Put in the refrigerator and use as you normally would.This website has a great tutorial on making buttermilk.
http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/cheese/buttermilk.htm

Here are some links with awesome recipes.
http://homecooking.about.com/library/archive/blmisc46.htm
http://www.pinkofperfection.com/2009/10/ultimate-buttermilk-recipe-repository/
http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/05/raspberry-buttermilk-cake/


Some of my favorites are:

Buttermilk Pancakes

3 eggs, separated

1 2/3 c. buttermilk

1 tsp soda

1 3/4 c. flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 Tbsp. sugar

3 Tbsp. soft butter

1. Whip the egg whites till foamy peaks are formed.

2. Whisk together the egg yolks, buttermilk and soda. Add in the flour, baking powder and sugar. Whip the butter into the mixture and then fold in the egg whites. Cook on a hot griddle. Tip I have found helps me to know when to flip. When the top of the pancake looks rubber and bubbles have popped, turn them over for just a bit. The heat of the griddle browns them quickly and they done w/in seconds.

Angel Biscuits

2 1/2 c flour

1/8 c. sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp soda

2 tsp. baking powder

1 pkg. yeast

1/4 c. warm water

1 stick butter

1 scant c. buttermilk

Sift flour, sugar, salt, soda and baking powder together in large mixing bowl. Dissolve yeast in warm water. Blend butter into flour mixture until the size of small peas. ( note: I put my flower in my kitchen aid and use the whisk attachment to do this! Easy !) Add buttermilk and yeast; mix until well blended. Bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 min. May be baked immediately or let rise before baking. ( This is a wet batter so I don't typically roll it out and cut the biscuits. Usually I drop them on the pan and bake like that.)

And this is my signature recipe. I take this to families when I bring food, I make it to take to potlucks or special gatherings and I often make it to take to holiday meals. My son has learned to make these because they are his absolute favorite. He decided the prerequisite for his future wife was to be able to make this brownie recipe. I informed him that "HE" needed to learn how to make this because I would not send him off to a new wife with an expectation to cook like his mom. He could bless them both by knowing how to make the brownies. :)

Buttermilk Brownies

2 c. flour

2 c. sugar

1/2 c. butter

1/2 c. shortening

1 c. coffee or water

1/2 cocoa

3/4 c buttermilk

2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

Frosting:

1/2 c. butter

3 Tbsp. cocoa

1/2 c. buttermilk

3-4 c. powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Mix sugar and flour in mixing bowl and set aside.

In a heavy saucepan, combine butter, shortening,( if I don't have shortening, I use 2 sticks of butter) coffee ( or water, but the coffee gives an awesome flavor) and cocoa. Stir and heat till boiling. ( tip. I start by melting the shortening and butter first then add the coffee and cocoa, whisking till mixture boils)

Pour boiling mixture over the flour/sugar in the bowl. Add the buttermilk, eggs, baking soda and vanilla. ( Another tip: I mix the buttermilk and the soda together but do it in a bowl with extra room because it will create a chemical reaction which causes the buttermilk to rise.)

Mix well using a wooden spoon or high speed on mixer.

Pour into a greased or buttered jelly-roll pan. Bake at 400 for 20 min. or until done.

While brownies are baking make the frosting.

I use the same saucepan that I used above. When I dump the boiling liquid into the flour and sugar I then add the next stick of butter to the pan, w/o turning on the heat. The pan is already hot, so it melts while you are mixing the brownies. Then when I get them in the oven, I add the cocoa and buttermilk. Cook till it is heated through and take off heat. You don't really want this to boil, just till the cocoa is dissolved and changes to a dark brown color.

Rinse out your mixing bowl for the brownies ( I use my kitchen aid for everything but only have one so I have to keep up on keeping the bowl clean to use multiple times. It is so easy to just rinse it out well when first done and then it is ready for the next use) Put the powdered sugar in the bowl. Pour the warm mixture in and mix well. This should be of medium thickness, not too thin and not too thick. Add more powdered sugar if necessary. Then add the vanilla and mix well. By the time you are done, the brownies should be done.

Take the brownies out. Run a knife around the side and pour the frosting on the hot brownies. It will melt and make it like a glaze. It is phenomenal, almost like a fudge.

I found this on allrecipes.com.

Buttermilk Coleslaw

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Ready In: 40 Minutes
Servings: 12
Ingredients:
2 cups mayonnaise
1 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 (16 ounce) packages shredded
coleslaw mix
Directions:
1.
In a large bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, buttermilk, sugar, celery seed and black pepper. Fold in the coleslaw mix, and refrigerate until serving. This tastes best if it is refrigerated for a few hours before serving.

Enjoy your experiment with Buttermilk! :)

Blessings to you~

Hanging Laundry

I have had this thought jumping around in my head for so long and when I happened upon and unopened e-mail tonight I realized I needed to share it.

I LOVE to hang my laundry out on the clothesline. Who loves their laundry?? Am I crazy or what? No, like the dishes I have come to find that when I put the job in proper perspective, (ie: doing it for Jesus and using the time for Him) I can accomplish so much and be blessed with abundance through it.

I have had some amazing conversations with my children and my friends while hanging out the laundry. Most noteably the subject of the correct way to hang your laundry on the line. :) ha!yes.. I said that.. the correct way to hang out your laundry. Did you know there was a specific way to do it? We'll get to that later but let me expound on why I love my laundry hanging out to dry rather than in the dryer.

1. It smells WONDERFUL!
2. I get much more done in one day.
3. It all gets folded and put in the right place.
4. It saves me money.
5. It is a great incentive to get moving and get my washing done.
6. It gives me opportunities to pray and talk with the Lord.

Now.. it looks as my priorities are slightly askew here... #6 should be 1st, right. I think they all have equal value. But I find it makes me just smile to see the clothes flapping on the line. I see the physical effort of taking care of my family and trying to do it the best way I know how. I see a clear result of productivity and feel pleased that I accomplished something for the day. I remember the conversations I had with the Lord while taking the time to hang up each piece of clothing and the prayer of thanks for those who wore each piece of clothing. And I appreciate the beauty of His creation, the gift of living in a place where I have the freedom to pursue what I love and be at home taking care of my family. I am blessed and doing laundry reminds me of those blessings.

So.. the next time you are overwhelmed with piles of laundry waiting, remember the One who is waiting for you. Thank Him for the job ahead, the ability to do that job and the blessing of serving your family in the most honored way.

And.. now to the proper way of haning out your clothes or should I say.. this is how I do it and there are some articles below that give you input from other "experts". :)

1. I hang all my pants from the bottom of the legs. ( waist band hanging down). They dry a little faster and there are not any wrinkles.
2. I hang my shirts from the waist or bottom with the tops and sleeves hanging down. *
3. Hang corner to corner. ( corner of one shirt to the corner of the next)*
4. I hang all the shirts together on one line and the pants/bottoms on another.
5. Sheets and blankets are hung over the line in half.
6. All underclothes are hung over the clothespins of the clothing already hung up.*
7. Hang in the order you are going to take off and fold.**
I can't think of anything else specific but these are the answers to questions I have been asked.
Note:
* all suggestions with an * at the end are listed not because of a specific rule on the correct way but to meet my ever pressing need of limited clothespins! :)hee-hee
**This is done mostly on the days I am being rather specific. I used to do this when I was newly married and didn't have children and a whole list of things to do. But.. the idea is good and I do take them off the line in a specific manner. Folding the pants first and putting all the socks, underclothes, etc. in the bottom where the folding isn't as important.

I do fold everything that I take off the line so that when I come in the house it goes straight to the dresser or room of its intended owner.

A few websites with suggestions:
http://tipnut.com/hanging-laundry/
http://www.christian-homemaking.com/hanging-clothes-on-a-line.htm
http://www.mommycoddle.com/2009/06/how-to-hang-laundry-on-the-line-and-a-few-other-things.html


Did you know that National Hanging Out day is April 19th? Established as a way to get people to use their clotheslines rather than their dryers and further a better environment.


Here is an idea of how to make a drying rack for your laundry room. ( or wherever you want to put it!)
http://tipnut.com/laundry-rack/


Here is a devotional to go along with our little topic.
http://proverbs31devotions.blogspot.com/2009/09/finding-god-in-laundry-room.html

I have enjoyed sharing this post. I hope it is helpful to you! If you are still not convinced, that is ok! :)

Blessings to you !

Bees, Beans, Berries and More

Well.. I have been reminded that I have been neglecting my blog recently. I extend my most sincere apologies.. my dear friends.

Life seems to, at times, overwhelm me with more to do than I can actually accomplish in a day. Ah, so we are thankful for his grace and mercies that are new everyday.

Well..what have I been doing?

The end of June and beginning of July found us picking berries, berries and more berries. Black Raspberries that is. Yumm! Oh, and I will share a wonderful recipe for my black berry cobbler. It is delightful.. but that will wait a bit.

God has so blessed us with the priviledge of being out in the country. A great place to raise kids and a few chickens, 1 very ambitions golden retriever, a large bunny, many adopted frogs, some cats and often kittens who choose to stay, and we can't forget the bees! Quite a diverse little "farm" we have here but we are supremely blessed. Besides the passle of kids and critters we have an abundance of vegetation, both planned.. and planted and many that are volunteer. Our Black Raspberry bushes are all volunteer, along with our grapes! So, in an effort to be a good steward of all that He gave to us, we endeavored to be extremely diligent and pick with fervency. I still have scratches to show for it! :)

I believe we gathered well over 3 gallons of black raspberries this summer. I can't remember ever pulling in such a large bounty before. I decided to clean and freeze them as soon as we picked them to keep them both fresh and in one piece. The berries are so fragile that it is hard to mix them w/o completely smashing them. What will I do with them? I plan on making jam out of some of them, use them in smoothies and ofcourse.. the occasional pie and cobbler are a must. It is so good to partake of God's grace and goodness when he shares of His abundance.

Beans! Yeah!My green beans are growing profusely in my garden. I love to freeze my beans rather than can them. I am not a fan of the mushy version of this delectable green delight. ( hee-hee) :) And it takes a lot longer to can them and so much more work. My husband blessed me with a wonderful boiling pot last year that has made my life so much easier. It has a wonderful colander that sets inside and when my water is ready, I plunge the beans into the boiling liquid..... wait 3 minutes and pull them out. I have a sink full of cold water waiting and go straight from the pot to the sink. Voila! I let it sit to cool and put it in the freezer bags and I am done.

My garden is always a deligthful escape for me. It is the most effective therapy I have found so far, next to prayer. I think I am much more up to the weeding than the harvesting but I am learning something new each year with regards to putting food up or preserving the harvest.

Our onions are huge and I love being able to go down to the garden to get what I need. It is so refreshing. The beets are ready and I will can them this year. My husband says I make some of the best pickled beets he has had. I'll take his word for it though, I haven't the desire to try them. I like beets, but I haven't tried the pickled version yet.

Our turnips are ready. This is the first year I have grown turnips. I will attempt to blanche them as I did with my green beans. Again, being purposeful to be a good steward with what I have.

And my favorite crop of all.. POTATOES! I love to grow potatoes. They are so easy to grow and to harvest. By far one of the most rewarding crops. We have 3 plots this year of potatoes. My grandmother always told me to plant them on Good Friday. So.. we have aimed for that each year but have not always been able to make that possible. This year, however, we did and they are wonderful. We had about 4 or 5 volunteer plants growing in the zucchini and beet patch. I pulled them early and we had new potatoes. yumm.. So tender and delicious.

My husband came home and told me that the father of a friend used to say " Plant your potatoes on Good Friday and never let the August sun touch their leaves." I am not sure how relevant or truthful that is, but I tend to believe those who have gone before us and worked this earth often have a better advantage when it comes to wisdom and farming. We were able to plant our potatoes this year with the left over potatoes from last year. That was a great joy. It felt good to know that we were able to plant a crop from our previous year. Now we just have to find a place to store them!

Lastly, my bees! Another source of therapy for me. I have loved my bees. I will write more about my bees in another post but let's just say that these resourceful animals have taught me so much about patience and hard work, perserverance and ingenuity. This little creature is one of the most amazing aspects of God's wonderful creation that I have had the pleasure of witnessing. I was able to put another super on tonight and pray that we will have a great honey harvest this year. Yumm.. now that sounds delicious.

We are enjoying our last days of summer before school starts for us. We're busy but blessed.

Thanks for letting me share some of our fun with you.
Here's the recipe!
I have not always had the best luck with my cobblers. So I began searching for a better recipe.. one that would make a light dough, a luscious filling and the combination of the 2 together a desert that makes your mouth water. A friend who lived in Texas raved about the cobbler she had there and so I purposed to find a good Southern recipe for a cobbler. So.. I found one in my Southern Living Cookbook.

Enjoy!

Black Raspberry Cobbler
(note: the actual recipe was for black berries by I used black raspberries instead, I think you could substitute any fruit you like)

5 cups of fresh black raspberries or 2 packages of frozen berries, thawed and drained.
1 c. sugar
3-4 Tb. flour
1 Tb. lemon juice

Crust

2 Tb. butter, melted
1 tsp. sugar

* Combine the 1st 4 ingredients; toss well. Spoon into a lightly greased 8 or 9 in. square pan. ( I used a round pan or a pie plate)
Prepare Crust, and spoon 9 mounds over berries. Brush with butter, and sprinkle with 1 tsp. sugar.
Bake, uncovered, at 425 degrees for 30 min or until brownee and bubbly. Serve warm with ice cream, if desired.
Yield:9 servings
* If you use frozen berries, increase the flour to 1/3 cup.

Crust.
1 3/4 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 c. shortening ( I used butter)
1/3 c. whipping cream
1/3. c. buttermilk


Combine 1st 4 ingredients; cut in shortening( butter) witha pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. ( I used my kitchen aid with my whisk attachment.. it works slick) STir in whipping cream and buttermilk just until blended. This yields enough topping for 1 cobbler.

*Note.. I didn't have cream or buttermilk so I used my substitute for buttermilk. 1 cup of milk + 1 Tbsp. of lemon juice will give you a substitude for 1 c. of buttermilk. I used 2/3c. of my homemade buttermilk in place of the other liquids)

Frugal Meals

Have I mentioned I love to cook? :) I do!I love to feed people. It is so gratifying to see someone enjoy something you made for them.

It isn't always cheap to bake and cook and have perhaps a little variety in your meals if you are cooking three times a day. Even those who love to cook sometimes get a bit burned out. But.. one thing I have really enjoyed doing is to try to make things last and just get creative with what I have. I think some of my best meals are the ones I have to "make-up" when I have only a limited number of ingredients. Now.. that said.. there have been quite a few times where we have had to dismiss my creative inhibitions as simply experiments to never try again, but.. for the most part... we have come to enjoy the little bits of creativity in the kitchen.

So.. back to frugal meals. I can't say I am by definition a frugal person. I am trying to learn to be. God has blessed me with some amazing friends who are so good at saving money and finding good deals ~that it is starting to rub off... a little. :) Bless their heart they try so hard to teach me.

One thing I have learned do is to make a meal last more than once. Not just reheating and eating left-overs but using the left-overs to create an entirely new meal. For example.. my very favorite is to take a Roast and reuse it through the course of the week by creating extra meals from the left-over meat. There are times I will actually take some meat out before I serve it so I will be assured there will be some left-over. Now that my kids are growing they eat more than they used to. But.. I have found a few things that help when I don't have as MUCH of the main ingredient as I used to.. like adding rice, noodles and extra veggies. I try to serve other fillers when I set my table. ie: my canned applesauce and/peaches, salads, cottage cheese, and of course.. bread. We love bread.

So.. what are some things I can do with my left overs.

Roast ( with potatoes and carrots) can also be then used to make :
Pot Pie
Beef and noodles
Beef Stew and or Vegetable Beef Soup.

Barbequed Beef ( shredded and simmered in sauce .. YUMM!)

Nothing is wasted.. or atleast hopefully nothing. With most of the recipes above, save the BBQ, I keep the broth from the roast and let it sit in a canning jar over night in the fridge. Doing this allows the fat to rise and I can skim it off. The broth is my base for just about anything I make and then I cut up the meat, left over veggies and throw it in the broth to cook .

Spaghetti
I usually don't mix the sauce and noodles together because I have a few who just prefer noodles so I store them separately.
I have made spaghetting salad with the leftover spaghetti by adding cut up veggies and italian dressing. I will do this when I have made meatballs and use the sauce and meat to make meat ball sandwhiches.
Baked Spaghetti

Ham
Scalloped Ham and Potatoes
Ham and Bean Soup
Ham Balls

Chicken ( roasted as the beef roast was done above)
Chicken Soup
Pot Pie
Chicken and Dumplings
Chicken w/ rice
Chicken enchiladas
(I use the base for my enchiladas to make Chicken Tortilla Soup)


Leftover Rice can be thrown into soups to add more depth to the soups or broths when you have only a little meat to put into it. ( I use this a lot!)

When I make Stuffed Green Peppers.. I acutally cut the peppers up and put them all in a pan to bake. With what is left over I will freeze it and make cabbage rolls later.


Ofcourse.. noodles add depth to your dishes as fillers.

Other times I have taken veggies that were not finished at dinner and put them in the freezer for days when I need just a cup of vegetables to add to a meal, not a normal serving portion.

Those are just a few things I can think of right now. I'll add more ideas when I think of them.

Below is my recipe for Pot Pie:

1-2 quarts of beef broth ( cooking juices from the left over roast.. then I add water to get the amount I want and sometimes add some beef boullion to give it flavor)
Carrots and potatoes from roast.
Other veggies I want to throw in. Usually something that was left over from dinner in that week or perhaps something I have frozen previously for such a time as this.
Rice ( can be either cooked or uncooked)
Diced meat

Corn starch to thicken
Spices ( salt, pepper, garlic and whatever I feel like at that moment)

Once the broth is boiling, I add the meat and any veggies that are not already cooked, I add rice now as well. When tender I add the cooked veggies and then thicken with corn starch.

Pour into the pie crust and bake at 400 for about 30 min.

Pie Crust:
4 c. flour 1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 c. cold water
1 Tbsp. sugar 1 Tbsp. vinegar
1 1/2 c. shortening

Mix flour, salt, sugar and shorening together to form crumbs. Beat egg, water, and vinegar; add to crumbs and stir with fork until mixture forms a ball. Roll crusts out and place in pans. Makes 5-6 single crusts

*note: I use lard when I have it and LOVE the result. Also.. the extra crusts freeze well. I roll them out and then fold them into half twice so they open nicely when I pull them out.I put them in plastic wrap and freeze.


You can substitute any meat in this very easily.