Homemade Bread Bowls

I love making these bread bowls with cheese soup.  My kids eat the soup so much better because it is fun and they want to eat the bowl, and the bread tastes really yummy with the cheesy soup.

(Makes 6 bread bowls)
Ingredients:
2 cups + 4 Tablespoons warm water
2 packages of active dry yeast (5 1/2 teaspoons)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
3 teaspoons salt
6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Directions:
Using a stand mixer or large mixing bowl, add warm water and sprinkle in yeast.  Let dissolve for a few minutes until yeast becomes foamy.  Add melted butter, sugar and salt and mix until combined.  Gradually add flour.  Once combined, allow your mixer to knead the dough for about 5 minutes (you could do this by hand if you weren’t using a mixer, but it may get a little tiring!).  Punch dough down and form into 6 equal sized balls.  Place on a greased cookie sheet and let rise until doubled.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.  Let cool and cut off the top, remove some of the bread from the inside and fill with soup or dip.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Another favorite from Christi Reed!

1 cup cut carrots (about g-7 medium carrots)
4 cups cut broccoli
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup minced onion
3/4 cup flour
3 cups milk
Velveeta cheese
pepper

Boil the carrots and broccoli together in a medium pot for about 15 minutes.

In a large pot combine the butter and onion to saute.  After the onions look golden add the flour with a whisk.  Then slowly add the milk while stirring.

When thick, add 3 cups water and 3 chicken bouillon cubes.  Add drained carrots and broccoli.

Add about 3/4 of a Velveeta cheese block.  I cut it up  in about 1 inch squares so it melts faster.  Slowly thicken on stove.  Add a dash of pepper

This makes a lot.  I sometimes half it, sometimes don't.

I like to serve this in homemade bread bowls.

Chicken Pesto pasta with Broccoli

I got this recipe from the wonderful Christi Reed.  It became a quick family favorite.  Very quick and easy to throw together, but tastes really good.

2 chicken breasts cut into thin strips
3/4 lb. angel hair pasta
1 jar classico alfredo sauce
1/2 jar classico pesto sauce
broccoli-however much your family wants
Lemon juice

Cook chicken, boil pasta, combine sauces and heat.  Cook broccoli in a frying pan in butter for 5 minutes.  Do not overcook broccoli.

Serve with lemon juice to squeeze on top.

Side ideas:  green salad, french bread

Chili-Lime Steak

1-2 lbs boneless steak (flank steak)

RUB
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp granulated garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4-18 tsp chili powder or cayenne
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 lime, juiced (2 Tbsp lime juice)
1 Tbsp olive oil

Combine spices in small bowl.  Add lime juice and oil and stir.
Place steak in shallow dish and pour mixture and rub onto meat.  Let stand for 15 min.
Grill steak over med-high heat 5-7 minutes per side.  Let meat stand for 5 min before slicing.
Slice steak against grain about 1/4 inch thick.

Serve on tortillas with pico de gallo and cilantro dressing.  Or put in a salad.

I have been trying to prepare homemade snacks for the kids once a week.  This is one of my favorite recipes.  It tastes so yummy.  And it really comes together fairly quickly.  I am going to start doubling it so we can freeze some because we eat them really fast.

GRAHAM CRACKERS

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1½ cups all purpose flour
• ½ cup dark brown sugar, packed
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ cup butter, chilled & cubed
• ¼ cup honey
• ¼ cup water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• optional: 1 tablespoon wheat germ or flax seed

I have been trying to prepare homemade snacks for the kids once a week.  This is one of my favorite recipes.  It tastes so yummy.  And it really comes together fairly quickly.  I am going to start doubling it so we can freeze some because we eat them really fast.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a food processor or mixer combine the first 6 ingredients. (If using wheat germ or flax seed add here.)
3. Add cubed and chilled butter to the mix and pulse/mix until it resembles coarse meal.
4. Add honey, water and vanilla and continue to mix until it all combines.
5. Remove and shape the dough into a flat disk and place between two pieces of wax or parchment paper. (I found it easier to roll the dough w/o a sheet on top of the dough.)
6. Roll dough out until ¼ inch thick. Cut into crackers or shapes. Combine the dough scraps and roll out again to cut more shapes.
7. Place cookies on a Silpat or parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 13-15 minutes.
8. Cool and serve.

NOTES

To Freeze: After step 6, place the cut out cookie shapes on a baking sheet and freeze for 20 minutes. Remove, place in a Ziploc bag, label and freeze for up to 4 months. When ready to bake, follow steps 7-8, adding an additional 1-2 minutes baking time.

Sloppy Joes

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c. chopped onion
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2 c. water
1 T. vinegar
1/2 t. chili powder
1 T. mustard
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1-2 T. flour

Brown meat and onion.  Add ketchup, water, vinegar, chili powder, mustard, salt, pepper and flour.  Simmer together 10 minutes.

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits - The Best!

This is the best biscuit recipe!  So moist and flaky, not dry like so many biscuit recipes are.  My sister-in-law made these and I was so impressed!  I got the recipe and was amazed that they tasted just as great when I made them.  Then Brad made them and they were pretty good, but not amazing.  So. . . if they are not amazing, maybe try again.  :)
They are great just as a side of biscuit, but I like making these for a meal and having egg, cheese, and sausage or bacon, biscuit sandwiches.
 I don't have buttermilk so I just put 3 Tablespoons of vinegar in some milk for a couple minutes before I mixed it in.   Also, I don't cut them out in circles. My dough ends up in a rectangle then I just cut square biscuits out so there isn't any left over pieces.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the board (if you can get White Lily flour, your biscuits will be even better)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, very cold   (I never have unsalted butter so I just used regular)
• 1 cup buttermilk (approx)

Directions:

1. 1
   Preheat your oven to 450°F.
2. 2
   Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, or in the bowl of a food processor.
3. 3
   Cut the butter into chunks and cut into the flour until it resembles course meal.
4. 4
   If using a food processor, just pulse a few times until this consistency is achieved.
5. 5
   Add the buttermilk and mix JUST until combined.
6. 6
   If it appears on the dry side, add a bit more buttermilk. It should be very wet.
7. 7
   Turn the dough out onto a floured board.
8. 8
   Gently, gently PAT (do NOT roll with a rolling pin) the dough out until it's about 1/2" thick. Fold the dough about 5 times, gently press the dough down to a 1 inch thick.
9. 9
   Use a round cutter to cut into rounds.
10. 10
    You can gently knead the scraps together and make a few more, but they will not be anywhere near as good as the first ones.
11. 11
    Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet- if you like soft sides, put them touching each other.
12. 12
    If you like"crusty" sides, put them about 1 inch apart- these will not rise as high as the biscuits put close together.
13. 13
    Bake for about 10-12 minutes- the biscuits will be a beautiful light golden brown on top and bottom.
14. 14
    Do not overbake.  This is what I think one of Brad's problem was.
15. 15
    Note: The key to real biscuits is not in the ingredients, but in the handling of the dough.
16. 16
    The dough must be handled as little as possible or you will have tough biscuits.
17. 17
    I have found that a food processor produces superior biscuits, because the ingredients stay colder and there's less chance of overmixing.
18. 18
    You also must pat the dough out with your hands, lightly.
19. 19
    Rolling with a rolling pin is a guaranteed way to overstimulate the gluten, resulting in a tougher biscuit.
20. 20
    Note 2: You can make these biscuits, cut them, put them on cookie sheets and freeze them for up to a month.
21. 21
    When you want fresh biscuits, simply place them frozen on the cookie sheet and bake at 450°F for about 20 minutes.