Baking Powder Biscuits

Cedar Hills home kitchen with Christine "the flour bandit", August 1975

Combine:
4 c flour
6 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

Blend in with a pastry blender 1 1/3 c shortening.

Add 1 1/3 c milk (or more) with a fork until dough is well moistened and it barely holds together.

Move dough onto floured surface and gently knead 10 times.  Press dough with hand to 1" thickness.  Cut biscuits out with small glass and place onto cookie sheet.

Bake at 400ºF for 10-12 minutes or until lightly brown.  (When testing, pull apart biscuit and the dough will fall apart easily; no stickiness.)  Makes 18-20 biscuits.

Best topped with homemade raspberry jam, honey or country sausage gravy.

My kids helped me with these ones. See! They don't have to be perfect to taste good.

Basic Vanilla Ice Cream

Beat well:
4 eggs

Add slowly until well blended:
2 c sugar
1 tsp lemon extract
2 T vanilla
1/2 tsp salt

Add:
1 can evaporated milk
1 pint cream

Pour into gallon freezer and add enough milk (1 to 1 1/2 quarts of milk) to reach "fill line." Freeze!

Remove beater and enjoy with your favorite toppings!

For flavor variations:

• Chocolate chip--mix grated chocolate into frozen ice cream
• Peppermint--substitute peppermint extract for lemon in above recipe and mix crushed peppermint candy into frozen ice cream
• Butter brickle--substitute almond extract for lemon in above recipe and mix crushed "butter brickle"/candy toffee into frozen ice cream
• Orange cremo--add 12 oz frozen orange concentrate before filling with milk
• Pina colada--omit eggs from above recipe and add 8 1/2 oz can coconut cream, 14 oz can crushed pineapple; mix 1/2 c sweetened coconut flakes into frozen ice cream

Pastry Crust

Mom's pumpkin pie with her amazing pie crust

Place in mixing bowl:
2 c white flour
1/2 tsp salt
2/3-3/4 c shortening

Blend shortening into flour with pastry blender until flour has coated the shortening and mixture has the same color throughout.

Sprinkle about 6 T cold water while tossing mixture with a fork.  When crust is sufficiently moist, scatter mixture in a small circle on a sheet of wax paper. Place another sheet of wax paper on top and roll with rolling pin to desired pan size.

Remove upper wax paper.  Turn dough upside down onto, easing into pie pan.  Gently remove wax paper.  Trim excess dough and fill in necessary areas needing more dough.

For baked pie crust, bake at 350ºF until lightly browned. Makes 2 crusts.

Cleo's Old Fashioned Banana Bread

Every Christmas that I can remember, Mom would bake this banana bread so that we could deliver it to friends and neighbors.  We would also sing to them.  My favorite carol that comes to mind is "Away in a Manger" for three parts.  I would sing the melody, my sister Michelle would sing the middle part and Mom would sing the low part.  Music and baked goods--Mom's favorite treasures!

Cream:

2 c sugar

1 c shortening

Add:

5 large ripe bananas, mashed

4 eggs, beaten

In separate bowl combine:

4 c flour

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp salt

Add flour mixture to batter. Mix well.

Pour into greased bread pans.  Fill 2/3 full.  (DO NOT OVERFILL.)

Place in a cool (not pre-heated) oven, bake at 325ºF for approximately 1 hour. (Note: Bread is done when you can test the center of the bread and the cake tester comes out clean.)

Fabulous French Bread

Combine and mix to form batter:

2 1/4 c warm water

2 T sugar

2 T oil

1 T salt

2 1/2 c flour

Stir in 2 T dry SAF yeast.

Add:

1 egg white

2 1/2 to 3 1/2 c more flour

Stir until the dough follows the spoon or dough-hook around.  May need more flour depending on size of egg (usually 5-6 cups of flour total).

Dough should be sticky to the touch, but still able to handle with your hands.  Cover bowl and let sit.  Stir down every ten minutes for one hour (five or six times).  

Divide the dough into two parts and form into long rectangles.  Place side by side on large cookie sheet that has been generously coated with corn meal.  Cover and allow to rise 20 to 30 minutes.

Cut slashes on top of loaves and brush with beaten egg.  Bake at 400ºF for 23-30 minutes.