I have a cookbook called "White Trash Cooking" you might enjoy. Lots of inspiration for a Cracker Christmas in there! Ahhh, so sad to be a member of the only remaining group which is accorded no PCness, lol.

Here is a link that might be useful: White Trash Cooking

Hey Lisa we are in Opelika ! Just down the road from Childersburg.I go through there every time I go to B'ham. It was so funny about the yellow cornmeal. That recipe is of course from a cookbook that got its start in Ithica NY. Pretty Yankee for sure LOL. I have to get my yaller cornmeal at the health food store as they only have white in the store. We will definitely do a chili thread, just realized I can't even spell it !

pickle I will have to see what comes up next . You are a sweety.

malhgold- I have 3 Cusinarts !! Mine that I bought in SLC in 1978 and had the motor rebuilt once years ago. Then my Mom's that I gave her in 1980 or so. And my MIL's that she got about the same time. I have enough blades to sink a ship. LOL. Get it out and get going. They are wonderful.

rjr: what a flatterer ! I don't think I am movie material unless it is Laurel and Hardy remake ! The biscuits are wonderful baked and frozen. Seal them up in heavy plastic bags. Thaw them while you are getting everything together and then pop them in the oven at about 400 or so to quicky reheat them. They will be wonderful. Since they have so much butter they reheat beautifully and also thaw quickly. You will love the buttermilk. Shake it very well. I would also practice the biscuits a couple times just so you have the hang of it and the oven . Can't eat to many practice biscuits !! c

C, you are killing me with these recipes! And I am with you on the "real" stuff. As Michael Pollan wisely says, "dont eat anything your grandmother wouldnÂt recognize as food."

These sound amazing but the deal was that I was going to LOSE weight before Xmas (I'm with you Martha :-) Thankfully at least our Canadian Thanksgiving has passed already so I have a bit of breathing space 'tween now and Dec 25.

I guess I need to become a "trailrunner" like you...

Eliz

Biochem101,
I'd be happy to help you with your bread! I've been baking whole wheat bread for about 15 years and mill my own wheat. There are a couple of things that might keep your bread from rising properly, including your yeast being bad/not the right kind, not kneading enough/too much, or an imbalance of liquid/flour ratio. What kind of wheat flour are you using? Can you post your recipe? That's a good place to start. If you would rather do this offline, email me at wifage
at
wi
dot
rr
dot
com

Hope you can figure that out! I'll check back. There are numerous bread baking forums as well, bet you could drop in there and get some advice on whole grain baking as well. A nice, light loaf can be had without using any white flour at all.

Cj

oops I missed the whole wheat bread biochem . Sorry. I don't make flat bread so not sure about that. I don't like onions in my bread either though for sure.

As cj says there can be a lot of factors in why whole wheat or any bread doesn't rise to a nice lofty light texture. As to the dry milk all you do is sub regular milk in an equivlent amount to the water in the recipe. That is an easy conversion.

I have lots of ww bread recipes. I will tell you the reasons breads can be heavy and then make another suggestion.

Yeast is not good - put a sprinkle of yeast in 100 degree water and add a sprinkle of sugar. mix. If it foams up after 5-10 min,the yeast is good.

You killed the yeast. Liquids were too hot. Or you set the bread to rise at too hot a temp...turned on the oven and it was so hot it killed the yeast.

100% ww bread is always heavier than a 50/50 blend with AP white flour.

Do you make much bread? Are you kneading by hand or using a KA mixer or food processor? If the bread is not sufficiently kneaded ,the gluten ( protein) won't develop and the bread will be heavy. The faster you try to get the bread to rise and the more yeast you use the less flavor the bread will have.

If you want a ww loaf. I would suggest making an easy 50/50 type to get started. After you get good at that you can increase the ww flour. You will find on the bread forums that most folks struggle with trying to make a light ww bread. It is pretty hard. I would be glad to give you some recipes and Cj has also offered. You can e-mail through the GW to me. Hope this helps. c

I find that you eat way less when what you eat tastes wonderful and has great " mouth feel".

Yeah, right!

I find I eat even more when it "tastes wonderful......!!"

LOL!!!!!

PS bring some of that buttermilk with you when you come up next time!

yum! i love biscuits and I'm trying these for sure!

BTW, trailrunner et al: have you tried freezing buttermilk? i have successfully done so (and other milk too) and use in baking/cooking. that way you don't have to worry about it going bad. (there are only 2 of us now at home)

C'mon people! PICTURES!!!

(and if y'all didn't know, the cooking forum here on GW is almost as fattening as a TR post!)

LOL!! Love the cornbread discussion. :) I read somewhere that you can tell Yankees from Southerners because the former eat sweet cornbread with plain iced tea, and the latter eat plain cornbread with sweet tea. :)

Out West we eat corn pone fried up over an open fire. The yellow kind. :-) No sugar, no eggs, no baking powder. Just cornmeal, salt, water and fat. (Traditional is bacon grease, but it's very good and crunchy fried up in butter.) Very dense, very coarse, very sour, and very good!

Biochem--I almost forgot, for the absolute best comprehensive book on whole grain baking, pick up The Laurels Kitchen Bread Book, by Laurel Robertson. It's truely excellent--not just a recipe book but a book about the techniques that allow you to make a good whole grain loaf.

Happy baking!
Cj

I'm with you on the "real stuff" too. In fact, I also try to avoid the "lowfat" buttermilk you can find in groceries and go for the regular ole' fatty buttermilk.

For those that were making chilli, don't discount a good faux "mexi-cornbread" with it. You just add a can of "mexi-corn", a tbsp of chopped jalapeno, and some really good grated jack cheese to your cornbread mix (I also find a tbsp of sugar helps offset the heat). It's even better if you try to layer it in the cast iron skillet --- layer of batter.. layer of cheese... top layer of batter. It is awesome with chilli.

oh dear... and just when I was thinking I can probably get away with only having a small micro/convection oven in the new place. this doesn't sound like it tho... sigh... will save recipe (whole thread) and check out a real oven...

OK, I've obviously missed something. What do the numbers mean? 500? I saw the other post for 550. What are we counting down (or up?) here? Is this trailrunner's 500th recipe? Can I get in the loop, please?

jenswrens - Sure you can "get in the loop" - of course that means you'll become addicted to reading these recipes and want to try each one. 500 because the biscuits are baked at 500 degrees. The first post was about pizza baked at 550 degrees.

Thanks so much for all the tips Caroline (and Everyone!) This is very inspirational. It is an interesting fact that a 'new' kitchen actually makes you want to cook more. :)

I've started a Bread Tips From GW file to keep them all in. That Southern cornbread in the pan sounds great. Glad ccombs already made the biscuits and reported a variation. Got that too! (I think I can manage to freeze butter)

You're not going to believe this but I've never bought Buttermilk. Every time I see something like that (i.e. strange ingrediant) in a recipe I put it aside. Never even heard it came in "Bulgarian"???

cj47, I'll look for the Laurel's Bread book. Thanks!

Lisa, thanks so much for posting your southern corn bread recipe. My DH has always asked me to make the same cornbread his granny used to make. He said she made it a cast iron pan and I just never made it because I didn't know how. I can't wait to try it....he's going to be SO happy!

ah cat_mom you got it baby...I will even make biscuits so we can have them with your wonderful additions on the back deck in the sun with J and the guitar !! I miss you.

kandt: I would but it never lasts long in my house LOL. DH loves to drink it .

fori: I almost had pics of the biscuits for you. We ended up doing breakfast for supper last night but it was just us 2 and I already had wonderful bread thawed so we had toast and Lavender Fig preserves I made last summer. Will have to start a preserve thread too. When the temp gets lower LOL. I used to be over on Cooking but haven't lately...need to go visit !!

plllog: I love anything cooked over an open fire. One of the things DH and I are planning next summer is a lot of camping and biking since he retires June 1st. Would love to know how you make your pones .

cj is right that is a great book. You need to start with simple recipes and few ingredients ( less to go wrong). Laurel has lots of tips. Get a thermometer and scale and get bakin' !

cindy that sounds yum. I always think I will do one like that and then my family says "no way Momma don't change it " . Will have to sneak it on their plates. Sounds yum !

steph : what were you thinking ??? U gotta have a REAL oven girl. Get shopping asap. you have lots to bake when you get finished with the kitchen :)

jenswrens you are so funny...you are definitely in the loop !! I was just having fun with the title and also to keep the "moving a thread" folks away LOL. Have to make it all pertinent to the kitchen don'tcha know.

countrysmile so what shall we have at 450??? hmmm...

biochem you are really coming along Good for you !! I hope you will post back as you try things and let us know how it goes. We do need pics though. I gotta get to making up for the lack here on biscuits and ciabatta...we need pics from everyone !!
cc: her recipe sounds wonderful doesn't it. I started heating the skillet on the stove since I had the new ovens and they preheat so fast that the skillet doesn't get hot very quickly since it is so heavy. I like to have it really sizzling and that takes time. On the burner you can save a lot of oven time by preheating there instead of the oven. Just an energy saving tip.

Oh also if you double the recipes don't double the baking soda. It will make the outcome too salty as baking soda degrades and ruins the batter in larger amounts. The 1/4 tsp works great even for the larger amount of buttermilk.

Gotta go...be thinking what we should do for 450 !! c

Caroline, I have been making biscuits using the method you posted for quite some time. The ingredients proportions in your recipe are just a little different: slightly less butter and slightly more buttermilk. I remember my great aunt's biscuits and never had success in duplicating the texture until now. Thanks for the recipe! Supper last night was biscuits with roasted potato and leek soup.

I used the same method with scones.
These are blueberry-orange I did for a customer Saturday morning baked at 425, lol.

Caroline,

I said "eat" corn pone. LOL!! Honestly, it's been too long since I've been camping to give anything that I'd expect anyone to be able to duplicate. Use your best judgment. Pour boiling water over coarse yellow corn meal and a little salt, and let it ... steep? Is that the word? Mature? Bloat? In real trailspeak it's more set it aside while you're doing a bunch of other stuff, but that doesn't explain anything, right? Melt too much fat in a cast iron pan (or shovel blade), make fat fingers of dough (or a wad in your fist), and fry 'em up. Some people put a little baking soda in, but I don't know enough food science to know what that does. I'm sure you can make it work, and my apologies to anyone else who's going, "Huh?"

JC

OMG...look at those biscuits and those scones !! You are killing me LOL ! WOW !! You deserve that FABULOUS kitchen you have. WOW !!! I am making 2 surprises this afternoon so stay tuned...new theme !!

JC oh you are so funny. There was a thread on The Fresh Loaf about camping food so I will have to look at it and check back. I THINK YOU ARE VERY FUNNY !! You need to write more stuff on here...you really make me laugh. Thanks c

silly question i'm sure, but if you use a biscuit cutter/cookie cutter, etc. on a granite or marble counter, will the counter get scratched? Can you tell i'm new to all this??????

I think anything sharp would scratch. I cut the biscuits and scones on the enameled Kitchenet counter, it doesn't damage that. I also at times use a silicone mat to protect the marble or slip a cutting board under sweet rolls to cut.

Caroline, you are too funny! Thanks :)

trailrunner - for 450 - how about something with fruit in it?

Biscuit cutter? Sharp? I've only cut rolled biscuits and that was with an old can. You mean we're supposed to have a sharp cutter?

I mentioned Caroline's Smoosh And Moosh Bodacious Bulgarian Buttermilk Bonanza Biscuits to my mother at lunch and she gave me the what-are-you-talking-about look. Apparently this recipe, minus the Bulgarian part, is part of her repertoire. I said, "I've never seen you make them!" She wrinkled up her nose and said that they were too much trouble. At this point I'm about needing to be scraped back off the floor. Like kneading and rolling biscuits isn't???

Caroline, I'm glad you think I'm funny. I have other, whiney, teary threads where I complain about acquiring tiles, but life is too short to be sad for long.

Oh good heavens...you guys are a riot ! When are we going to have a get together. We are going to have to pick a central location...I am serious here.

Judy you already KNOW what I think of that kitchen. I would love love to see it in person...we can make biscuts and anything else you want...including a good time.

countrysmile...you are on...right after the newest edtion...check the new thread :)

I use a wooden biscuit cutter that Momma gave me from a Kentucky shop that had cherry utensils.

JC now I know you got your sense of humor from your MOM !! She is a riot too. It was always so funny how Mom simplified her cooking when she got older 'cause it was all too much work. This is a woman that cooked on a farm for the hands and hung chickens from the clothesline before she cut off their heads so they wouldn't get dirty , if you put them on the ground they ran all over without their heads...thus the saying" running around like a chicken with its head cut off " !! Oh we have really started something here haven't we. Thank you all. c

Biscuits were officially a hit for band night... I had to hide two of them for my son when he comes home from work. Thanks Caroline!!

Trailrunner, since reading and drooling over your biscuit recipe, I have been to Target and four different locations of our local grocery chain. No one has ever heard of Bulgarian Buttermilk. (Insert long sad sigh here.)

When I Googled Bulgarian Buttermilk, I found the following info from the California Milk Advisory Board: Bulgarian buttermilk is a version of cultured buttermilk in which the cream cultures are supplemented or replaced by yogurt cultures and fermented at higher temperatures for higher acidity. It can be more tart and thicker than cultured buttermilk.

I plan to use my powdered buttermilk like ccoombs did when she made her biscuits. I use the powdered buttermilk in my angel biscuits and and they are always good. But the next time I go to Chicago, I will be searching the stores for Bulgarian buttermilk.

Oh, Caroline, I'm crying with laughter!! I know what you meant, but I'm picturing one of those stark white overbred chickens, with each of its feet clothespinned to the line so that its newly laundered feathers don't get dusty.

I like the sound of a wooden biscuit cutter (though cans are a lot easier to come by). I'm going to keep my eye out for those. :)

JC

Where? When? The cooking/GW get-together/bake-off/lots of wine consumed gathering? If ya'll weren't south of the border and could stand the chilly Canadian winter starting to seep in, I'd say right here! I'm thinking a batch of corn bread/pone/pudding/biscuits would warm us up and be swell.

Eliz

Elyse: I am so glad you were able to get in on this...I bet things are moving along well at the house . Keep us posted.

mc: yep I am not surprised as it really has a tangy yogurt taste. Try using the powdered buttermilk and just stir in some yougurt to thicken it ..voila...Bulgarian buttermilk !! Otherwise get the reg. carton of buttermilk in the store and put some yogurt in it and leave it on the counter overnight, covered. Will ferment a little and taste wonderful, I bet. I will have to try it too and see.

jcI I will have to try a can LOL...my wooden one is pretty small and I love big biscuits ! You are funny...I cant remember how she kept them clipped to the line...hm...

eliz: where in CN ??? We are planning a bike ride up there next summer. You may have visitors !! c

Come on down! I'm guessing though, that a bike trip is either going to take you west or way east, where it's really quite beautiful... We're in very urban Toronto, but with lots of dedicated bikers, so you'd be right at home
:-) Keep me posted!

Eliz

trailrunner, I do not have an iron skillet. Any suggestions on what to look for when I am buying one, or is there a substitute I can use?

Thank you!!

Yes, YES! come on up! Maybe it is time for a Chicago get-together?

Yummy! Trailrunner-Those biscuits sound (and look, Judy!) SO much better than our usual recipe. I love these kitchen-at-work threads.

I need to see if I can find bulgarian buttermilk. My dh makes buttermilk pancakes every weekend, so I'll have to buy extra if I want to make biscuits and your cornbread! I grind organic popcorn from the co-op for cornmeal-very fresh! I haven't experimented with the difference between white and yellow, though.

Last night my dd diced up some yukon gold potatoes and fried them up (in lots of fat...) for supper. We used both our cast iron skillets, since we were serving 9. The Lodge cast iron did a far better job than the non-lodge one that we bought at Target. In the Lodge skillet, the potatoes didn't stick and got a nice brown crisp outside. So, my informal test results convinced me that Lodge makes better cast iron.

So, trailrunner-are you bikers as in "Harley" or bikers as in "bicycle"?

I love the area North of Toronto...Haliburton Forest. I have run the 100 miler up there through the wolf preserve area...it was amazing to hear the wolves at night as we ran. Attached a link to it...West Guilford area was so similar to Holland with the lakes and canals...just loved it.

Trudymom..the iron skillets by Lodge Logic are wonderful. The prices have risen this past year. Not sure why. Check your local flea markets and Antique malls. There is almost no iron skillet that can't be saved no matter how bad. You use a scrubby and hot water and grease remover even oven cleaner. Get it back to square one and then cure it again with oil and heat. It will be good as new and get a new patina. Way cheaper than new and you then have history. I have so many really old ones...my Grandmother's and Mom's and MIL's. They are all wonderful and essentially nonstick. c

Oh, this thread is making me long for my new ovens. Thanks so much for the recipes and baking hints. I can't wait to try them out.

I been warned....OT is over here. Guess they missed the other ones....hope everyone finds this. c

How can a thread on using a kitchen be OT in a kitchen forum? I don't get it.

Incidentally, thanks for the tip on letting hoecake/cornpone stand a while before baking it. I've never had good luck with it, and it's because I was just mixing it up and sticking it right into the oven without letting it soak up the water.

C, I wondered where this thread went! If by chance you head our way, pls pop by for a visit - that would be so much fun. And I agree - northern Ontario is absolutely beautiful, especially because we truly have "four seasons."

BTW, I am trying the pizza dough again tonight with a different type of flour - will report back!!

Eliz

cotehele, your biscuits and scones certainly look tasty! Were you able to find the Bulgarian buttermilk in Chicago? If so, Please tell me where so I don't have to spend all my time in Chicago searching for Bulgarian buttermilk.

Elizpiz, how did your pizza dough turn out?

Julie, try number two was NOT good! I thought I'd try a different type of flour and so used Italian "00" flour - which is typically used to make pizzas, breads, pastas, etc. The dough just didn't rise and was quite bubbly.

So, today I figured I would go back to basics. My mother was one of the best cooks Ive known and she used good old fashioned Five Roses flour always, for everything (and being Italian, of course she made pasta, bread and the worlds best pizza :-) Success! Although the dough did not rise as quickly as it did for Trailrunner (took closer to three hours), and I did need to add the full amount of water, the results were yummy. Much less dense than the first time, light, lots of great texture, and surprisingly easy to work with.

I brought over two partially baked crusts still warm from the oven to a friend's tonight and had fun making a Hawaiian pizza with her four year old and a "grown up" one for the adults to munch on with drinks before dinner.

Eliz

eliz. I am so glad that the ciabatta crust worked with the flour the 2nd time...3rd ?? Anyway I have had great success as I said with the AP and also bread flour. The "00" flour is different as far as saturation with the water. I have found that the few ounces difference that it takes is all the difference in whether the dough comes together. It will not hurt to leave off or add flour, It is pretty forgiving dough.

If we get to the Toronto area we will let you know well in advance !!

writersblock...I wrote them a pretty strong note ,,,have not heard anything back,,,I agree,,,they are off base, c

mcraney, thanks. I froze the biscuits since the two of us shouldn't eat them at one sitting. It is tempting!

I am not from Chicago. Just thought Chicago may be an easier more central place for GWers to meet sometime. I live in east central Indiana.

The buttermilk was whatever Meijer had on the shelf. I may try adding yogurt to the milk and letting it sit overnight. Seems like it would make the milk thicker, which may or may not be a good thing.

Oh my, know what I'm having for supper tonight. If you want a real treat that will blow your mind make Paula Deen's Chocolate Gravy to go with the biscuits. Don't know if I can wait until supper, may have to have a really early one!

Trailrunner - I use that recipe too! It's the only one I've ever made to work well. Trailrunner? Trailrunner! Are you still here...? This thread is seven years old ... :(

Haha,,aliris HEY !! Haven't heard from you in so long. I haven't been posting but did make up a return post for the deco conversation side last week or so and I did two back to back KAW's at the same time. Haven't had time to post anything since. Have no idea how this showed up again except the pink needed a biscuit recipe and this thread was resurrected on Cooking . So glad the recipes worked well for those of you that made them. Often wonder where elizpiz is . Never made it to Ontario. Take care aliris and post a KAW with your recipes :) c

Hi c! Sorry -- what's a KAW?! yikes; these acronyms...

I am rarely on GW and missed its conversion to Houzz; I can't figure it out. I don't, for example, know how to get it to say when there's been a post on thread you've contributed to?! So I missed your post.

Mostly, I just marvel, certainly weekly sometimes daily, at how much help this community provided me. Really, it's democracy and the internet at its very, very best here. Go Us!!

Is KAW for recipes then?

Kitchen at Work...I too don't understand Houzz LOL ! I mostly read a few things that I like . I have so little time these days. Glad you are still happy with your kitchen ! If you google KAW there are LOTS of old threads. I renewed one about my pizza so you can look at that one. Good Luck and nice to talk to you :) c