We had a rainy weekend here which found us cozy and warm in a house filled with the smells of home cooking. We made delicious squash soup, biscuits and gingerbread. Gingerbread, oh I think I am in love. We are still searching for a perfect squash soup recipe, but we did find a new go to biscuit recipe. These are so easy quick and simple, I'm sure they will become a family staple.
Quick Biscuits
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Grease baking sheet. Whisk the dry ingredients together. Stir in the cream until the dough forms (about 30 seconds). Turn the dough out onto a floured counter, knead the dough briefly until smooth (about 30 seconds)
The key to light fluffy biscuits is working the dough as little as possible.
Pat the dough out until it is 3/4 inch thick. Cut out biscuits about 2 1/2 inches wide. Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. These bake up light and fluffy and delicious.
This is the basic starter which is delicious on it's own but the possibilities are endless. I am going to try to substitute in a little spelt maybe some flax. The keyfor me is these are so simple to make. Sometimes mama's need instant gratification too!
I cannot believe that I have never tried real gingerbread before. I have been missing out, it is so decadent, moist and oh so flavourful. A small piece with a little bit of ice cream or with my morning coffee, so yummy. The blackstrap mollasses gives the cake such a deep smoky flavor. The recipe I used comes from America's Best Lost Recipes, a really fun cook book full of great history and great recipes. This recipe dates back to 1893.
Nana's Gingerbread
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ginger
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup blackstrap molasses
8 tablespons butter (softened)
2 large eggs room tempurature
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup boiling water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 inch square baking pan. Whisk the flour sugar ginger allspice and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir the molasses, butter and eggs in a medium bowl. (Pieces of butter will be visible don't worry)
Make a well in the flour mixture, add molasses mixture and stir well. Stir the baking soda and the boiling water together in a bowl, pour into the batter and stir until butter is melted. Pour into pan and bake 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Yum! Our house smelled so good while this was baking. Add a little whipped cream and everyone is happy.