Fluffy Southern Buttermilk Biscuits

I seem to have an unstable neighbor. She was somewhat normal until she had her kid, now it's a 180 degree turn. Yesterday she felt the need to throw eggs at our 12 year old dog with arthritis. I heard our dog whimpering and found eggs in our backyard. Needless to say I wasn't happy. She has also forgotten to pick up her kid at the bus stop multiple times forcing me to walk him home so he doesn't get hit by a car. I feel bad for her since I think she might have post partum depression that isn't treated. However, I also am beginning to lose my patience with the entire situation. At the bus stop in the morning she allows her kid to stand in the street and push my children, while I calmly try to explain to my own kids that there is a difference between raising your kids to survive to adulthood and raising your kids to be successful members of society. I miss the 80's when I was growing up. If I acted up at the bus stop my mother would have gotten phone calls from all our neighbors and I would have been grounded or had my tv privileges taken away by the time I got home. Apparently modern parenting isn't something that I do so well with.

One thing that I have learned to do well is to make biscuits. Growing up my mother never made biscuits, we ate them at restaurants, but even those were few and far between. When I moved to WV it was a whole different story. There is a whole breakfast chain that just serves biscuits (and a few other items). Over the years I have learned that there is a right and wrong way to treat your biscuit dough. The following is a recipe for Fluffy Southern Buttermilk Biscuits.

Fluffy Southern Buttermilk Biscuits

Fluffy Buttermilk Southern Biscuits

Recipe Type: Side

Preparation Time: 0h, 15m

Cooking Time: 0h, 12m

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 cup buttermilk

Cooking Directions

1. Combine first 4 ingredients.
2. Cutting the butter into small pieces add it to the flour mixture.
3. I use a small knife and cut off chunks above the bowl and then add the chunks using either a fork or your hands.
4. Add buttermilk to the mixture and stir just until the dough comes together, any longer and it will be tough.
5. Pat the dough into a circle approximately a 1/2 inch thick.
6. Using a 2 inch biscuits cutter cut out the biscuits.
7. Make sure not to twist the cutter in order to get the biscuits out, it will lead to tough biscuits.
8. Place the biscuits a couple of inches apart on a parchment lined baking sheet.
9. Bake for 10-12 minutes in a preheated 450 degree oven.

Lemon Yogurt Cupcakes with Fresh Raspberry Frosting

I still have my maiden name even though my husband and I have been married over 10 years. The thought of changing to my husband's name was never something that I ever really though about. My husband and I were both working on our master's degrees when we got married and professionally it made more sense to keep my maiden name. Plus I joked with my husband that I wasn't property and there was no reason I needed a new identity just because we got married. Oftentimes I have to explain to people that yes my husband and I are married, no I did not change my name. Honestly, I find the whole thing a big hassle and not something that makes my marriage any stronger. A commitment is a commitment whether I took his name or not. I'm no more likely to get divorced due to a different last name than if we shared the same. My oldest uses my different last name as a source of pride, he tells people that his mommy is strong enough to be different. I love his saying and it's the perfect description of how I run my life and the values that I want my kids to understand. A unifying bond has nothing to do with a shared last name, it has to do with the love that connects the people within it.

One thing that brings my family together is dessert. We all love dessert. My husband is picky about the kind of dessert, but my kids and I will pretty much eat anything with sugar. Since sugar should be eaten in moderation, we don't enjoy dessert all the time. When I do make sweet goods I also try to modify the ingredients to be healthier by using alternative flours and natural sugars. Recently I tried a new recipe for Lemon Yogurt Cupcakes with Fresh Raspberry Frosting. The recipe is as follows.

Adapted from Martha Stewart Living.

Lemon Yogurt Cupcakes with Fresh Raspberry Frosting

Recipe Type: Dessert

Preparation Time: 0h, 15m

Cooking Time: 0h, 20m

Lemon Yogurt Cupcakes

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon grate lemon zest
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups plain yogurt

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl combine butter, sugar, and lemon zest.
4. Beat with a mixer on medium speed for 3 minutes.
5. Add in lemon juice, vanilla, and egg.
6. Slowly add flour mixture to wet ingredients.
7. Add yogurt just until the batter comes together.
8. In a paper lined or greased muffin tin add the batter to each cup 3/4 of the way full.
9. Bake 18-20 minutes.
10. Let cool before frosting.

Fresh Raspberry Frosting

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup fresh raspberries
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
• 2 cups sifted confectioners sugar

Cooking Directions

1. Place berries and sugar in a food processor and puree.
2. Using a sieve or cheesecloth pass mixture through pressing out solids.
3. Beat butter until fluffy, approximately 2 minutes.
4. Add sugar 1/2 cup at a time.
5. Add berries until frosting is light and fluffy.
6. Store in the fridge for up to two days.

Tips: 

• Paper liners make it much easier to take the cupcakes out of the muffin tin. 
• I have used both Greek yogurt and regular and they both worked well, plus the Greek yogurt has added protein. 
• Don't worry if a few seeds get into the frosting, after they are pureed in the food processor they really aren't noticeable. 
• I tried the frosting with a small amount of almond extract and it was delicious. A small amount of vanilla extract would also work. 

Coconut Flour Chocolate Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

I have a pet peeve with companies that follow a ton of people on social media and then unfollow everyone a few days later. While it's irksome when an individual does it, with a company it just comes off as a little tacky. We all know that the company is doing it to get massive amounts of people to follow them and then betting that most people either don't know how to check or don't care enough to unfollow the company once the company unfollows them. Then the company has 30,000 followers while only following 10 people. It looks bad. I wish that PR companies would do a better job of discouraging this behavior. Almost all the likes that they receive with this type of social media behavior won't be the ones buying their products, the followers don't equal profit. It's a much better idea to actually have a great product and offer coupons on social media, making people care enough to genuinely follow your company. I'm hoping that once companies get a better grasp on how to run social media effectively this behavior will begin to stop. However, as of now that isn't happening, it's pretty much  a free for all.

Since going gluten free I have tried just about every type of gluten free flour. Some have been okay, others kill my stomach (I'm referring to you soy and quinoa flours, no thanks). I've joked with my husband that I'm going to go to a straight steak and potato diet. It would taste awesome and my stomach would be happy. However, it would also cost a mint and variety is better for my health. Coconut flour seems to be all the rage right now, so the following is my recipe for Coconut Flour Chocolate Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting.

Adapted from Healy Eat Real.

Coconut Flour Chocolate Cupcakes

Coconut Flour Chocolate Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

Recipe Type: Dessert

Preparation Time: 0h, 20m

Cooking Time: 0h, 30m

Recipe by Foodie in WV

Yield: 8-10 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 5 eggs
• 1/3 cup maple syrup or honey
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup milk

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend.
3. Allow batter to sit for 5-10 minutes.
4. Place batter into a muffin tin either greased or with muffin liners.
5. Bake for 20-30 minutes.
6. Let cool before frosting.

Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

• 3 cups confectioners sugar
• 1 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1-2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Cooking Directions

1. Beat butter and sugar with a mixer for 3 minutes. Add vanilla and cream and beat for another 1-2 minutes. If needed add more cream to get to a spreading consistency.

Tips: 

• If you've never used coconut flour before it absorbs liquid like crazy. You have to use a lot more liquid than flour in order for baked goods made with coconut flour to work. 
• These cupcakes are a mix between muffins and cupcakes. The texture is somewhere in between. 
• If you don't consume cows milk you could try using coconut milk in this recipe. I often substitute canned coconut milk in baking recipes and it works well. 
• The coconut oil could also be substituted for vegetable oil, canola oil, or unsalted butter. 
• If you like sweet cupcakes/muffins I would increase the amount of honey to 1/2 cup. Additionally the honey can be substituted for date or coconut sugar (or granulated if you eat it in your diet). 
• The frosting obviously has butter and confectioners sugar so if you are avoiding either of those things you would want to make a substitution. An easy way to make dairy free frosting is to whip a can of full fat coconut milk and a teaspoon or two of vanilla. You can add cocoa powder (or cacao) if you are wanting chocolate flavored, approximately 2 tablespoons. 

Peanut Butter Banana Popsicles

I am so ready for cooler weather. It has been hot, sticky, and nasty humid here for months. Luckily the weather is supposed to cool down into the high 70's next week, which I am so looking forward towards. One thing I do love about summer are the thunderstorms. There is something so refreshing about a great summer thunderstorm. Everything becomes quiet, the temps drop, and for a few minutes everything is still. It's peaceful, calming, and a great refresher during a busy day. Thunderstorms might just be my favorite thing about summer.

With hot weather comes cold desserts and drinks. My kids are in love with popsicles and they are so easy to make at home and cost a fraction of the cost of store bought. Plus you can use whole ingredients making them a delicious summer treat. The following is my recipe for Peanut Butter Banana Popsicles.

Adapted from Kroger mymagazine mailer.

Peanut Butter Banana Popsicles

Peanut Butter Banana Popsicles

Recipe Type: Dessert

Preparation Time: 0h, 5m

Total Time: 4h, 5m

Yield: Serves 8

A simple summer dessert using fresh bananas and peanut butter. Only takes minutes to make. 

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 4 ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar

Cooking Directions

1. Cut bananas into 1-inch chunks. 
2. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. 
3. Stir wet ingredients into dry and mix until just combined (do not over mix).
4. Spoon into an 8-serving popsicle mold and freeze until set, approximately 4 hours. 

Tips: 

• If you don't have a blender a food processor would also work. 
• I know a lot of people avoid granulated and brown sugar. I haven't personally tried this recipe with honey, agave etc., but I would love to hear if anyone tries and how it turns out! 
• Run the popsicle mold under hot water to loosen the popsicles and they should pop right out. 
• I have tried this recipe with whole and non-fat milk and they both set beautifully. I have not tried it with soy, almond, or coconut milk, but you are free to try and tell me if it works. 

Banana Crumb Muffins

I seem to be having a string of bad luck. For the last three weeks my family has been fighting hand, foot, and mouth disease. My youngest had it first, then my husband, and today I had to pick up my oldest who seems to have come down with the high fever and sore throat that begins the illness. During these three weeks my father managed to fall and break his hip requiring surgery 2500 miles away. That's a whole other story for another day. To add to it all my oldest was formally diagnosed with ADHD this summer (after three months of appointments) so we have been adjusting our lives to deal with the diagnoses. I'm feeling a little burnout out and as most of you have probably noticed my blog has taken a back seat. I though that once my kids were both in school that I would have more time during the day, that has failed to come to fruition so far. I'm hoping that things will calm down soon and I will be able to go back to blogging more regularly.

When I'm stressed out I bake. I find baking to be almost therapeutic, it helps me to calm down and feel more like myself when life gets crazy. My kids love banana flavored anything so this week I made a new recipe for Banana Crumb Muffins. The recipe is as follows.

Adapted from Taste of Home.

Banana Crumb Muffins

An easy banana muffin recipe with a delicious butter crumb topping. Great way to use over ripened bananas.

Yield: 10 servings

Calories per serving: 243
Fat per serving: 9 grams

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 ripe bananas
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg, lightly beaten

Topping:

• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter

Cooking Directions

1. Combine dry ingredients together in a bowl.
2. Mash bananas either with a fork or a blender/food processor (I prefer this method).
3. Add bananas to sugar, egg, and butter and mix well.
4. Stir wet ingredients into dry and mix until just combined (do not over mix).
5. Grease a muffin pan.
6. Fill muffin cups 3/4 of the way full.
7. Combine the sugar, cinnamon and flour for the topping.
8. Add butter and mix until crumbly.
9. Sprinkle topping mixture over the tops of the muffin batter.
10. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 18-20 minutes.
11. Let cool in pan 10 minutes.

Tips: 

• I have not tried making this muffins gluten free so I can't attest to whether they would turn out or not. 
• The butter may be substituted for canola or vegetable oil. 
• You could also experiment with using Greek yogurt instead of part of the butter to reduce the fat and increase the protein. I do this frequently with muffin recipes and it works well. 

Banana Crumb Muffins

Preparation Time: 0h, 15m

Cooking Time: 0h, 20m

Total Time: 0h, 35m