More Biscuits, Please

One thing I am most certain of in this world...is that there aren't enough biscuits. Seriously. When was the last time you had a homemade, flaky, delicious little biscuit? For me, it was this morning. And hot damn, is my life better because of it. Yes, I am a firm believer in that we need more biscuits in our lives. They go with everything, have a wide range of flavor options, and are pretty hard to screw up. That's winning in my book! Therefore, I took it upon myself to test out yet another biscuit recipe and see just truthful the claim that biscuits taste better with buttermilk.

This one I borrowed from Joy of Baking (awesome in all things baking). Mainly because I was out of buttermilk, and biscuits had been specifically requested as a component of this morning's meal. I have to admit - the buttermilk makes a big difference. While these were amazing in their own right, a little denser, with just a hit of crispy to the edges, my usual buttermilk biscuits are just a wee bit better (I believe because they are flakier). One tweak I made this time, again because I was limited by what was in the cupboards, was the use of Kerry Irish Butter in place of plain ol' fashioned butter. A little bit of Irish seemed to make it tastier to me!

And in other news, I've been up and around more (the knee injury seems to nearly be behind me) and taking in the beautiful colors of fall. Outside of a few special places, the Western North Carolina fall season is one of the loveliest I've had the pleasure of experiencing. Just check out these trees?!?!

It's like Bob Ross has been hanging out in the local woods, painting a little color into the forest to perk folks up a bit. Mind-blowingly beautiful! Definitely more inspiration to make transportable food so I can make like John Muir or Henry Thoreau and contemplate my navel in the backcountry. Enjoy the season!

Good Ol' Biscuits
Borrowed From: Joy of Baking

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated white sugar (optional)
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

Topping:

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs (use pastry blender, two knives, or fingertips). Add the milk and slightly beaten egg and stir until just combined. (The texture should be sticky, moist and lumpy.)

Place mixture on a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough gently until it comes together and is a smooth dough.

Roll out dough to about a 1/2 inch thickness. Cut out biscuits with a lightly floured round cookie cutter. Place on prepared baking sheet and brush the tops with the beaten egg and milk mixture and bake for about 10 -15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the biscuit comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack. Serve warm with butter.

Makes about 10 - 2 1/2 inch biscuits.

Yellow Butter Birthday Cake with Buttercream Frosting

I have a confession to make. I have food guilt. Of various sorts. This may sound funny to you, but I am being sincere here. I. Have. Food. Guilt. What does this mean exactly? Well, it means that when I make a delicious meal or bake a creative cake or indulge in something smothered in nutella (a substance I have to limit in my house due to my addictive personality) I experience a period of guilt directly related to the food I just made/baked/consumed. I suppose it is a form of an eating disorder, if one could be related to second generation Irish-Catholic guilt, however it is one I readily and wholeheartedly indulge in on a regular basis. Such as indulging by enjoying this yellow butter birthday cake I recently made.

You likely guessed it; another birthday. I seem to have an affinity for surrounding myself with people who have a birthday within the second quarter of the calendar year. For this week's lucky birthday boy, a helpful bird chirped that he had a long standing hankering for yellow butter birthday cake and homemade buttercream frosting. Being the baker I am, I obliged and surprised the fellow with this buttery goodness.

So yeah, the food guilt thing. Strange, right? That a baker have food guilt. And the funny part is my guilt isn't just associated with consuming too much or overeating, it also has to do with having the guilt of enjoying amazing cuisine when others fight for morsels of food. The guilt is multi-layered, and maybe its presence is merely to remind me to be grateful (which is good if so), but at least it isn't debilitating. I equate my baking to ongoing therapy which is slowly helping me accept my humanness. Or that is the train of thought I often find my brain heading in when standing over the mixer, pouring batter ingredients into a glass bowl. Baking (like running) is a very zen endeavor and meditation when done in the right frame of mind. And with that...namaste from a baker's heart!

Yellow Butter Birthday Cake 
Adapted from:

• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs, yolks separated and slightly mixed
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter (or Pam) two 9-by-2-inch round cake pans; line the bottoms with parchment paper. Butter (or Pam) parchment, and dust with flour, tapping out excess; set aside. Into a medium bowl, sift together flours, baking powder, and salt; set aside. I did mine a second time for good measure. 

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. 

In a separate bowl, using a handmixer beat the separated egg whites until frothy. Set aside. 

Into the butter mixture beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, then beat in vanilla. Next, gently mix in the whipped egg whites. 

With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour; beat until combined after each addition.

Divide batter between the prepared pans, and smooth with an offset spatula. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through, until cakes are golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool 20 minutes. Invert cakes onto the rack; peel off the parchment. Reinvert cakes and let them cool completely, top sides up.

Buttercream Frosting
Borrowed from: My Baking Addiction

• 4 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• pinch of fine grain sea salt
• 1 tablespoon clear vanilla extract
• 2 pounds confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• 4-6 tablespoons heavy cream or milk

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter until fluffy add in salt. Slowly add in confectioners' sugar, and continue creaming until well blended.

Add salt, vanilla, and 3 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk. Blend on low speed until moistened. Add an additional 1 to 3 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk until you reach the desired consistency. Beat at high speed until frosting is smooth and fluffy.

This recipe will make enough frosting to generously frost 24 cupcakes or one 9 inch layer cake.

You can easily adjust the consistency of this recipe by simply adding in more heavy cream or milk.

If you are a fan of shortening in your buttercream. simply omit one stick of butter and replace with 1/2 cup shortening.

Clear vanilla extract is used in this recipe to keep the frosting nice and white. If you don’t mind a slight color change, feel free to use pure vanilla extract, but decrease the amount to 2 teaspoons.

Covered and refrigerated frosting can be stored for up to three days. Simply bring it to room temperature and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. You may need to add a couple of teaspoons of heavy cream or milk to revive the consistency.

If you choose to dye your frosting, go easy with the dye. Remember, you can always add more color, but you can’t remove it.

Fly Fishing & Almond Butter Cake

Fly fishing is an acquired art. One that I obviously need to practice more at because every fish I have ever caught measured in at under 4 inches. Hey, at least I get out there and try, right? My pole is nearly twice my height...

For me, it's more about the time spent out doors and less about the fish. Don't tell my fishing buddies that, though.

Some days it feels like I am out tree fishing as opposed to fly fishing, casting from tree branch to tree branch. Those of you who fish smaller streams will hear me on this one. It's mind-blowingly frustrating, but much like other skilled arts practice, practice, practice.

In the midst of a fishing Sunday, I was hit with the baking urge but without the desire to put a lot of effort into anything. Stashed away in the back of my to-bake recipe pile I found this one for Boterkeok, or a type of Dutch (almond) butter cake. Imagine something in between marzipan and a small breakfast butter cake - that's where this recipe steps in.

I modified the recipe to add some cream in during the batter making as I was worried it was too thick, and also the addition of cranberries in place of sliced almonds. I think by adding the cream it ended up making the cake more similar to marzipan, so if you hoping for more of a cake batter try it without the added cream. The cake is wonderful for breakfast, for a snack, or actually any old time as that seems to be when I was picking at it. Happy baking!

Almond Butter Cake
Adapted from: Butter Cake

• 1 1/3 cups butter
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3 tsp almond extract
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1-3 tbsp cream 
• Milk or cream for brushing top
• Sliced cranberries to decorate top (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prep two 9" cake pans for baking (butter and flour). 

Cream butter and sugar until very light and fluffy (3-5 minutes). Then add eggs and almond extract and beat well. 

Next add baking powder and flour and mix well. Finish by adding in a small amount of cream (I thought the batter was way too thick, and then decided to incorporate a little liquid to offset the original recipe). 

Spread evenly between two 9″ cake pans or pie plates. Brush tops with a little cream and top with sliced cranberries if desired. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until light brown – do not overbake or cake will be dry.

Let cool on rack before slicing and serving. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.