The Quest for Biscuits Continues: Red Lobster Style

So for any of you that have read my little food blog from the beginning, know that I orginally started this whole adventure in the quest to return to my baking roots. My first attempt at making biscuits ended up being a complete failure, as far as biscuits are concerned since I ended up with some sad looking crackers instead of fluffy and delightful biscuits.

So I left the baking world for a while, and busied myself with soups, salads, and entree style dishes instead, with a dessert thrown in here and there for good measure. Recently however, my fiance's mother sent over a recipe for biscuits that was styled after the ones that are served at Red Lobster. For any of you who have had the pleasure of eating a biscuit from Red Lobster, know that these cheesy fluffy little dinner rolls are quite delightful.

So this morning I made a second attempt at making biscuits with this easy recipe, and they came out...well...freaking awesome. Give these a try. They will go good with any meal in my humble opinion.

Ingredients

2 cups Bisquick
2/3 cup of milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450 F. Mix the Bisquick, milk, and cheddar cheese together in a bowl until all combined. Consistency will be a bit sticky. Don't over mix though, as too much mixing can cause the bisquick to not bake properly and make the biscuits heavy instead of fluffy and light.

Using a tablespoon, place drops of the biscuit mixture on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes (sometimes less depending on how big you've made your drops of dough, just keep an eye on them.)

Melt the butter in the microwave and then stir the garlic powder into the melted butter. Once you remove the biscuits from the oven, brush the butter/garlic mixture lightly over the top of the biscuits. Serve warm. Makes 10-12 biscuits.

Flippin' Good Fruit Smoothie

Warm summer mornings often call for something cool to drink to start your day. Especially if they are pretty damn good for you. I often use this beverage as a full breakfast. With the fruit, yogurt, orange juice, water and then the addition of the nutritional supplement I throw in, its just plain health in a glass. However, because fruits do have a lot of natural sugars in them, this may not be the drink for those who are diabetic or need to watch sugar levels in general.

With the wonders of modern day technology when it comes to keeping foods frozen, this can actually be enjoyed year round. You can freeze fresh fruits you have picked in the summer, or you can buy bags of frozen fruit at your local grocery store.

Ingredients

1/2 Banana, frozen
1/2 cup Frozen mixed berries (raspberries, blackberries, strawberries)
1/2 cup Frozen peach slices
1/2 cup Orange Juice
1/2 cup Nonfat Yogurt, plain
Water

Optional: 1 Tbs. Super Green Max Plus (available at www.swansonvitamins.com)

Preparation

Add all the ingredients to a blender. The amount of water you use will vary. After adding the orange juice, I usually add just enough water to reach the top of the fruit so that it blends easier and doesn't end up being overly thick. Blend the mixture. Pour. Enjoy.

Nutritional Information

Serving Size: 2 1/2 Cups
Calories: 233
Fat: 0
Cholesterol: 2.5 mg
Carbs: 49 g
Fiber: 5 g
Sugars: 36 g
Protein: 9 g

Acorn Squash Soup

So here it is the end of July and I'm writing (and cooking) a recipe for acorn squash soup. Doesn't quite sound like summer fare does it? Acorn squash, butternut squash, pumpkins, etc., are usually more associated with the fall or winter months, as they kind of fit into that warm comfort food genre. However, my dad was kind enough to bring me a bounty from his garden this past week that included six acorn squash. Having never made anything with them previously, I decided to give it a try.

Acorn squash is actually indigenous to the Western Hemisphere, and wasn't known to Europeans until after Columbus sailed the ocean blue. Originally, when the Europeans first found it, they only ate the seeds of the acorn squash since the flesh was thought to be to hard to deal with. Later on the European settlers learned that squash in general was easily stored for winter and became pretty big fans of this hardy vegetable.

So while you may not think that acorn squash soup is your idea of a good meal on a hot summers night, it is still good eats at any time. But if you don't make it until fall or winter, you will still enjoy this delicious soup.

Ingredients

6 Acorn Squash
6 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 small onion (about 1 cup, rough chopped)
3 Tbs. Olive Oil
1 Stick of Unsalted Butter
4-6 cups of Chicken Broth depending on how thick you want your soup. Can also substitute vegetable broth.
1 tsp. Ground Sage
1 tsp. Savory
1/2 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup Nonfat Plain Yogurt
1/2 tsp. cayenne (or 3 dashes of red pepper flakes)
Salt
Black Pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350F. Cut the acorn squash at the equator. Remove the seeds with a spoon and discard. Place the acorn squash, cut side up, on a baking sheet pan. Put two garlic gloves in the center of three of the squash. In the other 3 squash halves divide the 1 cup of onion. Drizzle the squash with 2 Tbsp. of the olive oil, then sprinkle lightly with salt and ground pepper. Place the squash in the oven and bake for approximately 1 hour. (May take a little longer or shorter time depending on thickness/size of the squash. They should be very soft when ready, nearly ready to cave in).

Remove the squash from the oven and let stand until cool enough to handle. Once cooled, remove the onion and garlic cloves and set aside. Scoop the flesh of the squash out into a separate bowl and discard the skins. In a large pot, add the stick of butter, the remaining Tbsp. of olive oil, and the garlic and onion that were in the center of the squash. Cook on medium to high heat until the butter melts and just begins to foam. Add 1/2 cup of the chicken stock and stir to remove any bits from the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to medium. Then add the remaining stock, all of the squash, milk and yogurt. Continue to stir and bring to a light simmer.

Once the soup has come to a simmer, use a stick blender to puree the mixture. If you do not have a stick blender, you can ladle it into a blender and puree it in batches and then add it back to the pot. Once the soup is pureed, add the savory, sage and cayenne or red pepper flakes. Stir until the spices are fully incorporated. Serve hot.

This soup has a creamy and buttery flavor. I didn't have the cayenne, so I used 3 dashes of red pepper flakes, which gave it a nice spice kick at the end.

Nutritional Information

Serving Size: 2 Cups (information below is based on using low sodium chicken stock).

Calories: 336
Total Fat: 16 g
Cholesterol: 16 mg
Carbs: 48 g
Fiber: 16 g
Protein: 16 g