Recipe: Buttery Flaky Biscuits

RECIPE:  BUTTERY FLAKY BISCUITS

2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp sugar or sugar substitute (Splenda, Stevia, etc).
4 tsp baking powder
1 stick (8 Tbsp) very cold butter butter
3/4 - 1 cup milk

I love biscuits.  I.   LOVE.  BISCUITS.

I grew up in Texas, and every family in the Deep South has a biscuit recipe, usually one that's never written down.  My grandmother had one.  This is NOT her recipe, but I think she'd be proud of it.  She'd especially like the bottoms of the biscuits, which basically fry in butter.

Preheat the oven to 425.

Mix the first 4 ingredients (the dry ingredients) into a medium mixing bowl.

Take a pastry cutter or a fork or what I use -- a box cheese grater-- and cut about 1/2 of the butter into the dry ingredients.  If using a grater, use the "medium holes."  If using a pastry cutter or fork, cut them together until it resembles corn meal and you can't see any large pieces of butter.  Now, cut the rest of the butter into the mixture, leaving pieces the size of large peas.  If using a grater, use the "slicer" side.

Add the milk and stir to combine.  You want a somewhat sticky, but not overly wet, dough.

Flour a work surface, and turn the dough out onto the surface.  Pat it out until roughly a rectangle.  Fold it over onto itself in thirds, as if you were folding a letter.

Now, take your rolling pin and roll it out into another rectangle about 1/2-3/4 inches thick.  Fold over onto itself in thirds again.  Roll out.  Fold over.  Roll out.  You want to fold over a total of 3 or 4 times, adding flour as necessary.  Roll out one final time to 1/2 - 3/4 inches thick.

Take your 2-inch biscuit cuter (usually the largest in a set), and cut out biscuits.  Pat the scraps together and fold the dough in half.  Roll it out again and cut more biscuits.  Continue until you run out of dough. You can also put scraps on the top of biscuits you've already cut as a decoration, if you wish.

Put the biscuits into a cast iron skillet or onto a cookie sheet lined either with a silicone baking pad or parchment paper.  Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the tops are brown.  Serve hot for any meal you care to eat them with.

BAKED GROUND TURKEY EMPANADAS

The dough:

3 cups flour (whole wheat or unbleached all-purpose)
1 tsp salt
1/2 stick (4 Tbsp) very cold butter
1/2 cup cold water
1 egg white
1 Tbsp vinegar (apple cider, champagne, or red wine)

The filling:

1 - 1 1/4 lbs ground turkey
1 tsp minced chilis (optional)
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground corriander
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp garlic salt (or 1 tsp each garlic powder and salt)
1 tsp paprika (sweet or smoked)
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheese (cheddar, etc.)

Other:

a little water
1 egg yolk

To make the dough, mix together the flour and salt, and then cut in the butter using two knives or a pastry cutter.  You want most of the big chunks to disappear into the flour.

Mix together the water, egg white, and vinegar.  Add to the dry ingredients and mix with a fork until a very stiff and dry dough forms.  Turn the dough onto a work surface and knead until all the flour is incorporated.  It will be very dry and a little crumbly at this stage, but that's o.k.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and then place it inside a zipper bag.  Put the dough into the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, but never more than 24 hours.  This will allow the flour to soak up all the liquid and form a more stable dough.

To make the filling, brown the turkey, working it as it cooks to break it into small pieces.  Add the chilis and allow them to cook through.  Drain off any excess liquid, and put the turkey into a bowl.

Work the meat with a fork to further break it down into smaller pieces.  Add all of the spices, and mix with the fork.  Allow to cool to room temperature.  Add the cheese, stirring to combine.

Retrieve the dough from the fridge, and cut it into 12 pieces (for 4-inch empanadas) or 24 pieces (for 2-inch empanadas).  Roll these into a ball in your hands.  Put a piece of parchment paper over your work surface and dust it very lightly with flour.  Using a rolling pin, roll out the first ball very thin until it is a little larger than the size that you're shooting for.  The dough will be about 1/8 inch thick in the end.

Pre-heat the oven to 375 F.

Cut the rolled-out dough into a circle.  For 2-inch empanadas, I'd recommend cutting the dough with a 2-inch biscuit cutter.  For the 4-inch, most mixing bowl sets come with the smallest bowl being about 4-inches across.  Use anything that you want, but you want something that you can push down through the dough.  A little twisting is fine, but you want to keep the round shape.

Now to fill the empanadas.  If you're using the smaller size, you won't be able to fit more than a tablespoon of filing in.  For the larger size, you can get 2-3 tablespoons.  Put some filling off to one side of the center of the round, not exactly in the center.  Now, dip a finger into some water (or use a pastry brush) and go around the edge of the dough.  You only need to go 1/2 way around.  Fold the dough over the filling so that the dry side touches the wet side, and pinch it to seal.

Repeat until you run out of either dough or filling.  If you wish for glossy-topped empanadas, mix the egg yolk with 1 tbsp water, and brush the tops of all the empanadas with it.  Cut a small slit in the top of each to allow steam to escape while cooking.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until heated through.  Allow to cool slightly.  Serve warm with salsa or chili con queso.

Recipe: Egplant Fries

EGGPLANT FRIES

2 small eggplants
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp oregano
2 eggs
2 Tbsp water
salt to taste (preferably kosher)
oil for frying

This may sound a bit odd, but this will be some of the tastiest eggplant you've ever had.  Eggplant isn't really one of my favorite vegetables, but this works.

First off, if possible, use 2 small eggplants instead of 1 large one.  Smaller eggplants tend to be a little sweeter than larger ones.  Cut off the two ends of the eggplant, and then peel it, taking off as little flesh as you can.  A sharp vegetable peeler will work well.

Cut the eggplants into 4-5 "planks" lengthwise, and then cut these plants into strips no less than 1/2 inch wide.

NOTE:  Most recipes that I've ever read for eggplants say to cut them into planks or rounds, and then to salt and squeeze as much of the moisture out as you can.  I have NEVER done this when making eggplant in any way.  The only way they'll be bitter is if you start with big, old eggplants.  If you're using smaller, younger ones, you don't generally need to worry about it.  Also, in this case, we want plenty of moisture in the eggplant.

Heat the oil to 350-375 in a dutch oven or other large, heavy pot.

Next, mix the flour, garlic and onion powders, and oregano together.  I use a brown paper "lunch bag," but a large bowl or large zip-top bag will work just fine.

Crack the eggs into a shallow, wide bowl and add the water.  Mix well.

Take 8-12 of the eggplant strips and dredge them in the flour mixture.  Shake off the excess, and then coat in the egg.  Now, put the strips back into the flour and toss to coat.

Take the floured eggplant strips and immerse them in the hot oil.  The temperature will go down, but so long as it stays about 325 or so, you're in good shape.  If your oil is too cool, the eggplant will get VERY oily.  Fry them until golden brown and crispy.  Remove them from the oil, and evacuate them to a draining rig of some sort (I use a cooke sheet lined with a kitchen hand towel).  Sprinkle lightly with salt while they're still hot, so that the salt will stick.

Repeat with the rest of the eggplant.  Serve immediately.

Restaurant review: Bintliff's American Cafe, Portland, ME

Bintliff's American Cafe (98 Portland, St., Portland, ME) is a bit of an institution in Portland.  It's been around for decades, in a city where literally dozens of restaurants open and close during the course of any given year.  

Around the walls of Bintliff's are autographed pictures of celebrities that have visited and old (as in 100 years +) invoices and other paperwork of grocers and such.  There are two floors of tables, most on the second floor, as well as outdoor seating that is open, weather permitting.

Saturday and Sunday breakfast can be busy, often with a significant wait, but the weather today was beautiful, which opened the outside tables and allowed for fast seating.  My companion and I were given a booth indoors, and our friendly waiter was quick to our table to offer coffee.  He asked if we wanted cream for our coffee -- which I greatly appreciated, since both me and my companion take our coffee black.

We both ordered pancakes for our late breakfast.  I had  two ginger bread pancakes, which is served with a warm lemon syrup, and my companion had one of the morning specials --  two pancakes with white peaches and walnuts.  We also shared a side of corned beef hash, and my companion added an egg over easy to his order.

Pancakes here are not for the faint of heart.  As our water remarked after we were finished, it is rare for anyone to finish a stack of 3.  They are dense and big (usually more than 8 inches across).  Mine were slightly smaller than my companions, but that was perfectly fine due to the additional side of hash.

My pancakes were very tasty, only subtly of gingerbread.  It was not, as I feared it would be, big and soft gingerbread cookies.  The lemon syrup was very tart, and is best used sparingly.  Luckily, the portion of the syrup that comes with the order is small and was just the right side for the two pancakes.

My companion's peach pancakes were not, he reported, overly sweet, which was a concern.  (Since I do not care much for peaches, I did not sample his breakfast.)  White peaches were used, and they were not so juicy that they created dimples or pockets in the pancakes.  Whole walnut halves were also used.

His egg over-easy was perfectly cooked, with a very runny yolk, which he promptly broke over his pancakes and ate.

The corned beef hash is made in-house and bears no resemblance to the pasty stuff you find in cans.  Large chunks (cubes about 2 inches per side) of corned beef, potato, and sweet potato, as well as sliced and sauteed red onion.  It tasted faintly of rosemary, and the beef was only slightly fatty.

Our server was highly efficient and pleasantly chatty, though not overly so.  He kept our coffee filled and was able to answer our questions about items on the menu and ingredients in what we had ordered.

Other items on the menu include several types of Belgian waffles, huevos rancheros, as well as some breakfast frittatas and vegetarian and vegan items.  Sandwiches and salads are also served on a lunch menu.

The cost for our meal (2 orders of 2 pancakes, a side of corned beef hash, 1 egg over-easy, and 2 cups of coffee) was $26.86 -- slightly pricy for a breakfast, but the quality of the food is reflected in the slightly higher prices.  It would be nice if the pancake portions were slightly more reasonable, but luckily there is the option to order them 1 or 2 at a time instead of a full stack of 3.

OVERALL RATING:  8 out of 10.

Recipe: Fruity Bread Pudding

FRUITY BREAD PUDDING

1 stale baguette (or 5-7 slices stale sliced bread -- NEVER "Wonderbread")
3 eggs
3 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar (or Stevia or Splenda sugar substitute)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg (freshly grated is MUCH better than stuff in a tin)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup dried (or fresh) cranberries
1 apple, peeled and diced
1/2 cup dried apricots, diced

First, toast the stale bread.  For a baguette, it's easiest to cut it in half, then slice it lengthways and pop it in a toaster oven or under a broiler for a couple of minutes.  Once it's toasted, pull it out, allow to cool, then cut into medium-siced chunks.  You should have somewhere around 5 cups of bread, but a little more or less is o.k.  Put these into a large bowl.

Mix the eggs and milk together, along with the sugar, spices and salt.  Pour these over the bread cubes, adding the fruits.  Allow these to sit for 15 minutes, or until most of the liquid is absorbed.  Turn on the oven to 375 F.

Grease a medium baking or casserole dish with butter or no-stick spray, and add the bread mixture to the dish.  If you wish, add a little ground cinnamon to the top.  Put into the oven, and allow to bake for about 1 hour, or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean.  Allow to cool for 30 minutes or to room temperature.  Serve warm, with or without ice cream or whipped cream, or chilled, also with or without ice cream or whipped cream.

Recipe: Spanish Tortilla

SPANISH TORTILLA

8 eggs

1/2 lb bulk sausage (chorizzo, garlic, Italian hot, etc.)

5-6 oz mushrooms, sliced (white button or crimini)

4-5 scallions, sliced

1/4 tsp salt
1 medium potato
4 Tbsp olive oil

This obviously is not the tortilla you'd get at a Mexican restaurant.  That is closer to an unleavened flatbread....and a different recipe.  This is what you'd get if you went to Spain and got a tortilla.

In a large bowl, scramble the eggs.

In a medium-sized non-stick pan (a 10-inch omelette is a good pan to use), add the sausage, mushrooms, and scallions and cook over medium heat.  Add the salt to help draw out the moisture from the mushrooms.

Once cooked through, add about 1/4 directly into the eggs, stirring the eggs to keep them from scrambling. Add another 1/4, still stirring, then the rest, and stir to combine.

Using a box grater (that you grate cheese with), turn it to the "slicing" side.  It's the side that you otherwise will never use, that has 1-3 wide openings on it that run the length of the side.  Use it to slice the potato thin.  If you don't have one, use a sharp chef's knife to slice the potato 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick -- no thicker.

Add 2 Tbsp of the olive oil to the pan, and heat over medium heat.  Add the potato to the oil (it WILL sizzle and make noise), and put a lid on the pan.  Give it a shake every couple of minutes until the potato slices are cooked through -- 5-10 minutes.  Add the potato slices to the eggs a little at a time, just like you did the sausage mixture.

Clean the pan of any pieces of potato, sausage, etc., that may be stuck to it.  Add the other 2 Tbsp of oil, and heat on high.  You want this oil HOT.  If you look at it, the surface will "shimmer," and it's o.k. if you're just starting to see a couple wisps of smoke.

You're going to work fast, now.

Quickly add the egg mixture to the oil.  Shake the pan constantly for 30 seconds.  Allow to cook for another 2 minutes.  Now, flip it over.  If you're not confident into your "pan flipping" abilities, take a large plate (and oven mitts) and slide the eggs onto the plate.  Now, put the pan over the plate, and (using the oven mitts), grab the plate and the pan and quickly flip it over.  Put back over the high heat, and shake for another 30 seconds.  Allow to cook for 2 more minutes, and then slide it out of the pan and onto a serving plate.

Allow to cook for 15 minutes.  This will let the eggs in the center that may not be cooked when you de-pan to cook from the residual heat in the rest of the dish.  Slice and serve warm.