Biscuits

The other day I was making biscuits for breakfast. I went to my blog to get the recipe and realized I never posted it. So here it is, my favorite biscuit recipe. I serve them with jam or honey. The next day, the leftovers are split open, topped with cheese (melted under the broiler) and then topped with a fried egg.

Biscuits
Serving Size = Around 8 biscuits

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup of butter
• 1 egg
• 2/3 cup of milk

1. In a food processor, mix together the dry ingredients, pulse to mix. Chop up the stick of butter into 1 tablespoon pieces. Add to processor and quickly pulse until it's a bit thicker than sand.
2. In a bowl, mix together the egg and milk. Turn the processor on, add the egg mixture, and pulse until it forms a ball.
3. Put a bit of flour on a surface, remove the dough from the processor and knead about 8 or 10 times, until it comes together. Roll out into about a 1-inch rectangle. Using a drinking glass, or biscuit cutter, cut out about 8 biscuits.
4. Place onto a greased baking sheet, and bake in a preheated 450F oven for 8 - 10 minutes.
5. When done, brush the tops with melted butter (optional).

Homemade Flour Tortillas

At first, flour tortillas might seem like a lot of work, especially when you think about rolling each tortilla out, but honestly, they take no time at all. For this recipe, which makes 9 very large tortillas, it takes about 10 - 15 minutes total to mix the dough and roll each one out. Cooking time is seconds for each one. Most people with bigger families might consider doubling the recipe, but even that will only take about 15 - 20 minutes. Sure, it isn't as easy as opening a pre-made package, but the difference in flavor is night and day. I promise. And it's light-years healthier, too.

My favorite meal to serve these with: Picadillo

Homemade Flour Tortillas
Serving Size = 9, 10-12-inch tortillas

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 3/4 cup water

1. Mix together the dry ingredients. Place water in a bowl and add the dry mixture. Mix until it comes together. Knead it for a minute or two, or until it becomes smoother.
2. Divide into 3 pieces, then each piece into 3 more. Roll each tortillas out, keeping flour handy so nothing sticks. They will be about 10-inches, maybe 12. But you can make them any size you want, or even leave them thick instead of thin.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Toss one tortillas on and let it cook for a few seconds, turn and cook a few more seconds, remove to a plate. They should have some golden brown spots on them, when done.

Top Picks for Food on a Cold Day

It's cold outside! Here are some of our favorite cold weather foods...

First up: Broccoli and Cheese Soup. I get requests for this soup almost every single week. It's creamy, filling, and Velveeta free.

Pot Roast. This one is obvious. Who doesn't love pot roast on a cold day?? Actually, I'll eat pot roast on a hot day too. :)

Look away Paleo friends. Everyone loves to carb load in the winter. Honey Oatmeal Bread is one of my favorite bread recipes. It's super soft, even the next day, no toasting required.

Muffins are also a great way to warm up. I love Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins with a bit of icing over each one.

Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake Cupcakes. The picture says it all..... rich, chocolatey, and beautiful. They are so pretty, it's almost a shame to eat them.

Stay warm everyone!! :)

Chocolate Turtles

Valentine's Day is tomorrow, so I had to get started on the treats. Not only do I plan to give these to my kids, but the rest will be packaged up and handed out to my family members. Very easy, affordable, and delicious. I did do one thing unusual for this blog though.... I used pre-made caramel squares. Gasp! :) The reason I did, was because I found them in my pantry. I have no idea why I bought them, but they were there, so I used them. Pay close attention to the instructions, I included a good tip on how to keep the caramel off your fingers.

Turtles
Serving Size = About 50

• 8 oz of caramel
• 2 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
• 10 oz of chocolate (I used 60% cacao)
• Roughly 10 oz of Pecan Halves (this is the bag size I bought, but I used a little over half)
• Parchment or wax paper, cooking spray, and some teaspoons

1. Over a double boiler, melt the caramel with the heavy cream. 
2. Place two pecans halves a few inches apart on a cookie sheet that has been lined with parchment or wax paper, and then sprayed with oil (I needed 3 cookie sheets). 
3. Once the caramel has melted, take one measuring teaspoon and scoop out the caramel, then take one of the two pecan halves and scoop the caramel out of the teaspoon and then stick it to the other pecan half. This keeps the caramel off your fingers. Do that with each pair of pecans. Keep doing this until all of the caramel is gone.
4. Leave them at room temperature for about 15 minutes, until they set up.
5. In the meantime, melt the chocolate (gently) over a double boiler. When done, scoop 1/2 - 1 teaspoon of chocolate, and pour over each turtle.
6. When done, place in refrigerator to harden (takes a few hours).
7. Eat, or gift give..... or both. :)

PS: You could make these in the shape of a turtle, like they are traditionally done, but that's just too much turtle for me. I prefer them bite size.

Linking to: Hearth and Soul

Valentine's Day Special: Cinnamon Chocolate Fudge

Even though I posted this recipe last year, I thought it was worth repeating. With Valentine's Day coming this week, cinnamon chocolate fudge is the perfect gift. Make up a batch, divide them into a few pieces each, wrap them up, and give them to your loved ones with a card.

Stay tuned, because I'm planning on making another Vday gift in the next day or so. :)

Originally Posted Feb. 13, 2012

Valentine's Day is right around the corner so I thought I would make a decadent chocolate dessert. Instead of buying chocolates this year, consider making some and then wrap them up in something pretty. It's much more personal and will be appreciated by the recipient because of the time you put into it. I love this fudge because it's different. I'm not sure I've ever had cinnamon fudge, and honestly, I didn't think I would like it. But I LOVE it. Possibly my favorite fudge. The recipe does say that semi-sweet chocolate will work but I really think bittersweet is the way to go. I also think nuts might be a nice addition. I'll have to try that next time.

And my wonderful husband bought me some roses so I decided to decorate my pictures for Valentine's Day. :) Of course, my 2-year-old wanted to see them and ended up pulling a rose off of its stem, so I decided to take the petals off and get really creative. I didn't want it to go to waste after all! :)

Sweetened condensed milk (yeah, I could eat that straight from the can)

Add the rest of the ingredients

Melt it all together

Place into a pan and cool

Cinnamon Chocolate Fudge

Serving Size = 8x8-inch pan, 4-6 servings

Original Recipe: Giada De Laurentiis

• Butter for greasing a pan
• 1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 lb (about 2 1/2 cups) bittersweet chocolate chips (60% cacao) (Ghiradelli recommended)
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, at room temperature

1. Butter the bottom of an 8x8-inch pan and line with a sheet of parchment paper, 14-inchesx7-inches wide, allowing overhang on the sides (makes it easier to remove from pan).
2. In a medium glass or stainless bowl, combine the milk, cinnamon, and vanilla. Stir in the chocolate chips and butter. Put the bowl on a saucepan of barely simmering water and mix until the chocolate chips have melted and the mixture turns smooth, about 6-8 minutes. Make sure the bowl does not touch the water. 
3. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.
4. Run a warm knife along the edges to loosen the fudge, pull the fudge out and cut into 1-inch pieces. Store in refrigerator or freezer.

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Carrot Cake with Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting

After taking a step back and leaving Hearth and Soul, I'm hoping to make more free time to blog. I've been so caught up in my every day schedule of cooking, cleaning, bathing the kids, dishes, taking care of the dog, laundry, work, so on and so on that I rarely take time away. The most  "me time" I take is to go on the internet to check on baby wraps, which I couldn't do any of the previous things mentioned without (click here to see what a baby wrap is).

So I took some time away from the daily schedule, wrapped Emmett on my back, and called Mimi over to help bake a cake. To make myself feel better for feeding my kids a ton of sugar, I added a carrot. It seems healthier that way. I would like to add broccoli as well, but I'm afraid I would be pushing my luck....

Pictured above is a piece of "healthy" carrot cake, broccoli-free, full of yummy cinnamon flavor, very moist, and topped with cream cheese icing that has pecans mixed in. Oh my goodness. I've never liked carrot cake this much before.

Enjoy!

Carrot Cake with Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting
Serving Size = 1 Bundt pan
Adapted from: The Pioneer Woman

Cake

• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 whole eggs
• 1 cup oil (I use grapeseed, but vegetable would work)
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups grated carrots
• Butter to grease the pan with

Icing

• 1 stick butter, softened (unsalted)
• 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1 pound powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup pecans, chopped finely

1. Preheat oven to 350F and grease a Bundt pan.
2. In a mixer, or large bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, and oil.
3. In another bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix well. Add the carrots and mix again.
5. Pour into the pan and bake for 50 minutes, or until done. Let cool for 10 minutes or so, then remove from pan and let cool completely.
6. For the icing: With a mixer, cream together the butter and cream cheese. Add the powdered sugar and flour. Mix well. Mix in the pecans (I chopped them in a food processor).
7. Spread over cooled cake.

Hearth and Soul Update

Hello,

Just a quick note to let everyone know that I will no longer be co-hosting the Hearth and Soul blog hop. Life is getting too busy and it's time for me to take a step back. I will still be blogging awesome recipes though.

All of the other hosts are still available, so click here to visit their blogs and link up. :)

Thanks!!