A Very Old Biscuit Recipe

 

   This is a very old biscuit recipe. I found it in an early 1900's cookbook about 25 years ago. I made it often as my children were growing up — especially during hard times... and there were a lot of hard times. ~smile~ BUT GOD, was always good and always took care of us. We always had what we truly needed. Godliness with contentment is great gain. It took awhile to learn contentment. The time was worth it.

Old Fashioned Baking Powder Biscuits

This is my family’s favorite biscuit recipe!

 

4 c all-purpose flour

3 T baking powder

2 t salt

4 T canola oil, shortening, or lard 

1 ½ – 1 ¾ c milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Begin with a large bowl. Sift all the dry ingredients into the bowl and then mix it all together well with a big fork. Combine 1 ½ cups of milk with the oil. Pour it all into the dry ingredients at once. Stir until it’s all mixed in and all the flour is moistened. Add the extra ¼ cup of milk if the dough is too dry.

Now, take all the dough in your hands and put it on a baking sheet. Pat the dough into a large rectangle, keeping in mind that you want the dough about an inch thick and you’ll be cutting it into 12 equal pieces.

After you cut the dough into equal pieces, separate the biscuits by about ¼ inch. Then put them into the oven for 15 minutes. Brush the tops of the biscuits with melted butter and put them back into the oven to bake until they’re golden brown on top. Makes 12 big biscuits.

May God bless you as you are making do!

Laura

Shared at Vintage Finds Friday

My Old Fashioned Cocoa from Scratch

    My family just loves the rich flavor of old-fashioned cocoa made from scratch.  Scratch means you start with basic ingredients, and go from there.  I love it because I always have the ingredients on hand.  My kids have the memory of Momma over the stove stirring the cocoa.  They came running when they heard the sound the whisk makes in the pan.

    Here’s how I make mine.  All you need is Hershey’s cocoa, sugar, milk and a bit of water.

Old Fashioned Cocoa from Scratch

1/2 cup Hershey’s cocoa
1 cup of white sugar
1/3 cup of cold water
Enough milk to fill 3 quart saucepan (I prefer whole milk.)

Combine 1/2 cup Hershey’s cocoa and 1 cup of white sugar in a three quart saucepan using a wire whisk. I do this while the cocoa and sugar are still dry, so that the cocoa will mix in nice and smooth without a bunch of lumps.

Add about 1/3 cup of cold water and mix until smooth. Bring to a boil and continue to boil it for about a minute, stirring constantly. Don’t worry if it sticks to the sides, it’ll melt back into the cocoa as it heats up.

Fill the pan with milk, It'll be a little more than a half a gallon of milk.  Stir and heat on medium heat. If you need to walk away from it, just turn it on the lowest heat. I check to see if it’s hot enough by dropping in a miniature marshmallow. It’s ready when the marshmallow just starts to melt. I offer extra milk to my little ones to cool it if they want it.

This is so easy, we can make it any time we want it. Read aloud time was one of our favorite times to enjoy Old-Fashioned Cocoa.

I miss serving cocoa to my littles. They're all grown up now; but sometimes, one or two will come by, and out comes the cocoa pot!

Happy Christmas!

Laura

Shared at: Inspire Me Tuesday

Harvest Lane Cottage German Apple Stuffing

    My momma always made sage dressing.  When I got married, wanting to begin a tradition of my own, I decided to do something different.  Somewhere I found a recipe for German Apple Stuffing. It became my husband’s favorite stuffing.  I am embarrassed to say that my children prefer Stove Top stuffing. Gasp! I finally decided to make a box or two for them since it's what they like, and it is a holiday! I just make a smaller batch of stuffing for Lowell and me. I always think I’m going to go back and make the Mom's sage dressing sometime, but I always make this! I hope you enjoy this stuffing like I do. 

Happy Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas!

Laura Lane of Harvest Lane Cottage

German Apple Stuffing

1 lb loaf white bread, toasted and torn in pieces
1/3 cup butter
1 medium chopped onion
1/2 c chopped celery
1/4 c chopped celery leaves
2 T chopped parsley (optional)
1/4 t salt
1/8 t pepper
2 cups milk
2 eggs, beaten slightly
2 medium Red Delicious or Gala Apples, pared and chopped
1/4-1/2 cup raisins

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 6 cup baking dish. Place bread cubes on a baking sheet and bake until dry and toasted, about 5 minutes. I sometimes just have the kids toast the bread in the toaster and tear it up small for me instead. 

2.  Transfer bread into large bowl. Lower oven temperature to 350°. 

3.  Melt butter in saucepan  Stir in onion, celery, parsley, salt and pepper. Cook 3 minutes. 

4.  Pour over bread and stir. Add milk and eggs. Stir to moisten. Gently stir in the raisins and apples. Spoon into sprayed or greased baking dish. Cover with foil.

5.  Bake one hour. Remove foil half way through baking.

    I encourage you to make a point of making or keeping little traditions with your family, friends, or even just for yourself. Sometimes we don't even know we've made a tradition until we try to stop it. ~smile~

Happy Christmassing! Keep Jesus in the front of your mind!

Laura

Easy Morning Breakfast Casserole ~ A Christmas Tradition

Easy Morning Breakfast Casserole

This yummy dish is straight forward and to the point. It’s got a down home flavor my kids really like. Now that my children are grown, and two of them are over six foot tall, I make a double batch and put it in a glass roasting dish to bake.

1 lb. Sausage

6 eggs

2 cups of milk

2 slices of bread

1 cup of shredded cheese

Add some chopped green peppers and chopped onions if you like, we always do!

Brown sausage and drain well. Beat eggs, and add the milk. Gently stir in the shredded cheese, sausage, and torn up bread pieces. This is the time to add the green peppers and onions if you’d like. Put it in 13 x 9 pan which has been sprayed with cooking spray. Refrigerate overnight.

Put it in a cold oven the next morning and Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Insert a knife in the middle to check doneness. It should come out clean. This is great with salsa.

The Must Have Buttery Chocolate Chip Cookies for Every Baker's Recipe Box

I've been baking cookies since I was ten or eleven years old. Before that, I was up on a chair helping my mom stir and mix and lick the beaters. We didn't worry about raw cookie dough in those days. ~smile~ I was in charge of making sugar cookies as soon as I learned how. I remember staying up late one night making eleven dozen sugar cookies for my mom to take to work the next morning for her birthday treats. It was my gift to her. I couldn't have been more than ten or eleven at the time. 

Later, in my teen years, I began making chocolate chip cookies. I don't remember where the recipe came from. The only copy I had was in my own handwriting. I made the cookies often. The family liked them slightly underdone, and they would eat them right off the cookie sheet before they finished cooling. I only had two brothers, my mom, and my step-dad, but they loved cookies! 

I've changed the recipe a little over the years. I'm now using butter instead of Parkay margarine. I also find that I like the Ghiradelli semi-sweet chocolate chips best. Back in the olden days, I used Tollhouse or Bakers. You can use your favorite chips. I have made them with and without pecans. I've even made them without the chocolate chips. I substitute coconut and pecans. It's a nice basic recipe to play with. Any way I make them, my family loves them. But even more than the cookies, they like the dough. ~smile~ There's only one rule—you must use butter!

Laura Lane's Buttery Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cream the following together in a large bowl:

1 cup salted butter, softened 

1 cup white sugar

1 cup C & H dark brown sugar

Add:

2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Beat until fluffy.

In another bowl, combine:

3 cups of all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

Add dry to wet ingredients and mix just until combined.*

Add:

12 oz Ghiradelli, Hershey's, or Toll House chocolate chips
1/2 to 1 cup chopped pecans optional

I use a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop to make uniform cookies twelve to a cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes depending on whether you like them soft or crispy.

Now put some on a plate and enjoy with some tea or milk while you think about who you want to bless with a few!

Blessings to you!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Laura of Harvest Lane Cottage

Thankful to Be Wife and Momma at Home
for my Husband and my Adult Children


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Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop

Chocolate Icebox Pie ~ One of Our Family Favorites

Chocolate Icebox Pie is a recipe that I received as a young bride. I cannot remember now for sure who gave it to me, but it went over quite well. It's quite easy to make and lends itself well to variations. 

CHOCOLATE ICEBOX PIE

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 c    butter
1 1/2 c flour
1/2 c    chopped pecans
8 oz     cream cheese
12 oz   Cool Whip
1 lg     Jello brand chocolate instant pudding (or chocolate fudge)

pecans or shaved chocolate for sprinkling on top

FIRST LAYER:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Melt 3/4 c of butter and put in 13 x 9 baking dish.
• Add 1 1/2 c flour and 1/2 c chopped pecans.
• Mix well and spread across bottom of dish.
• Bake 20 minutes at 350°.
• Allow to cool completely.

SECOND LAYER:

• Beat 8 oz softened cream cheese with 1 c powdered sugar until creamy.
• Fold in 1 c Cool Whip and spread over crust.
• Refrigerate while mixing the third layer.

THIRD LAYER:

• Mix one large or two small boxes of chocolate instant pudding with 3 cups milk. Mix until thickened.
• Pour over second layer.

FOURTH LAYER:

• After pudding has set completely, put remaining Cool Whip on top. 
• Garnish with chopped pecans or grated chocolate.
• Refrigerate at least an hour.

Share Your Cup

My Family's Favorite Dinner ~ Old-Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings

Source

Chicken and Dumplings

This can be made very frugally with a few backs and necks.  It's a do with what you've got recipe.  I remember being so poor that I'd haggle with the butcher to just buy a few chicken backs or necks.  Even two dollars was more than I had to spend.  Back then I was cooking for two and a toddler.  There are six of us now.  This will make enough for 6 to 8 people.  We make this nearly every time we have family visiting from out of town.  It's our favorite family dinner.

10 lbs Chicken leg quarters, or 1 whole chicken, or any package of chicken of your choice.

The more chicken you boil, the better the broth.  You really want some dark meat for flavor.

6 eggs

flour

salt & pepper

Okay, first of all, put the chicken into a large stockpot. Salt and pepper it generously. Boil the chicken for at least an hour, until the chicken is ready to fall off the bones. Take the chicken from the broth, and put it in the refrigerator until it’s cool enough to handle. Keep the broth simmering.

Next, crack six eggs into a large bowl and beat well with a fork. Add some salt and pepper. Start adding flour half a cup at a time until the dough becomes stiff, hard to mix, and a bit dry. Bring the broth back to a full boil, then begin dropping dough by teaspoonfuls into the broth. Allow them to boil about 20-30 minutes until they are cooked through when you cut them. It won’t hurt them to cook them a little longer. Meanwhile, de-bone the chicken and add back as much chicken as you’d like to the broth. Save the rest for another meal.

Serve this up on a bed of mashed potatoes and enjoy!

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Related Posts:

• Chicken Bone Soup
• Cowboy Beans
• Crock Pot Mistake
• From the Back Yard to the Kitchen to the Table 

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