buttermilk biscuits

one more reason why god loves the south more than the rest of the world.

this recipe is taken from southern plate, a fantastic website with tons of recipes and tutorials: http://www.southernplate.com/2009/05/buttermilk-biscuits-tutorial.html

i make these biscuits on a regular basis and don't usually have a lot of trouble getting other people to help me eat them. (like i need help!)

if you're fairly comfortable with your biscuit-making skills, this recapitulation of the recipe should work just fine for you. if you're a novice, i'd recommend reading through the thorough tutorial on the southern plate site.

ingredients:

1 stick butter
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
3 3/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup buttermilk

to make:

blend the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium-sized mixing bowl.

cut the stick of butter into 1/4in slices and toss with the flour. use a fork or a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour. this will take a while, but don't stop until the pieces of butter are about pea-sized.

stick the bowl in the fridge for 15 minutes.

preheat your oven to 450 degrees and let it heat while you're waiting.

after 15 minutes, pull the bowl out of the fridge and stir in the milk. the dough will be wet and sticky, but shouldn't be runny.

turn the dough onto a well floured surface. flour your hands and knead the dough three or four times. don't overwork the dough and don't let it get too warm. press it out (gently!) until it's about 1/2in thick. cut the biscuits with your favorite cutter - i use a heart. you can also use a glass to get a good circle.

place the biscuits on a greased and floured (or a non-stick) pan and bake for 13 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

you're welcome to brush them with butter when they come out of the oven, but there's plenty of butter in them already.

these biscuits are a dream to make and are fantastic with any meal. enjoy!

chips n' salsa chicken strips

chips n' salsa chicken was my million dollar idea of the day.

ingredients:

6 chicken strips or thinly sliced boneless breasts
3/4 cup crushed tortilla chips
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 lime

this recipe provides modest portions for two adults. adjust accordingly.

to make:

marinate the chicken strips with the salsa and lime juice in the refrigerator for two to three hours.

in the mean time, crush tortilla chips in a ziploc bag (try to get them pretty well crushed) and dump them into a soup bowl. spread them around the bottom of the bowl.

heat a non-stick frying pan with a little bit of olive oil.

shake the excess salsa from the chicken tenders and roll them in the crushed chips (they don't all stick, but do the best you can). cook the tenders over medium high heat, flipping as infrequently as possible.

serve up immediately. sauteed chard makes a great side!

modifications: feel free to add some black pepper to the tortilla chip crumbs, or even some panko.

the long summer

i'm finally home after a long summer of traveling. it was wonderful, but aside from my variation on a cheesesteak that i whipped up for an overseas labor day celebration in berlin, i took a backseat and watched a lot of cooking and baking happen. now that i'm home, however, it's back to the burners. here are two new recipes, chips n' salsa chicken strips and buttermilk biscuits, to get the academic year started off right.

enjoy!