Mississippi Sin

Ingredients:

1- lb roll spicy or breakfast sausage
2 pkgs cream cheese, softened
1 8 oz sour cream
1 8 oz pkg of shredded cheddar cheese
1 small can green chillies (optional)
1 loaf French bread or 2-round Hawaiian breads
1 bag of Frito Scoops

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Hollow out bread and reserve the bread that was removed.

Crumble and cook Sausage until done. In a large bowl combine all ingredients, softened cream cheese, sour cream, shredded cheese, sausage, chillies.

Pour mixture into the hollowed out bread, cover completely with aluminum foil. Place on baking sheet and bake in a 350°F degree oven until mixture is melted and bread is crisp (about 30-45 minutes).

Remove foil and bake additional 10-15 minutes to brown top.

The bread chunks that were left over can also be toasted to make them a little crispy to dip.

Homemade Ricotta Cheese

YIELD: MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS OF RICOTTA CHEESE

Note:

Don't discard the whey! Use leftover whey in pancakes (in the place of buttermilk) and in homemade bread (subbing it in for the water), among other things.

INGREDIENTS:

8 cups milk (2% or above for creamier ricotta)
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon coarse, kosher salt
1/3 cup distilled white vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

Combine the milk, heavy cream, and salt in a medium pot. Heat on medium, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching (you can kick up the heat to speed up the process if you don't mind stirring attentively the whole time), until the milk is steaming just below a simmer and registers 180 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.

Off the heat, stir in the vinegar. Immediately, the milk will start to separate. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes.

Line a colander with a double layer of cheesecloth (coffee filters work great, too, if you stagger them or they are large enough) or open a nut milk strainer bag over a large bowl. Spoon in the large curds first if you want to avoid splatters and follow it up by pouring in the rest of the mixture.

If using a nut milk bag, carefully lift it up and out of the bowl and hang it so it can continue to drip into the bowl. Let the ricotta strain for 10-60 minutes, depending on the texture you are after. I usually go with right around 15 minutes for super creamy ricotta.

Scrape the ricotta out of the colander or bag; use immediately or refrigerate up to a week or so.

Southern Fried Chicken Batter

Ingredients:

2 beaten egg
1 cup milk
2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
4 teaspoons garlic salt
2 teaspoon black pepper
2 cup all-purpose flour

How to Make It:

1. Beat the egg and milk together in a bowl.

2. Combine the flour with the garlic salt, pepper, poultry seasoning and paprika in a big plastic bag.

3. Put the chicken in the bag, seal it and shake to coat it.

4. Dip the flour-coated chicken in the egg mixture and again in the flour mixture.

5. Heat the oil in a skillet to 365 degrees F. Brown the chicken on all sides in the hot oil.

6. Turn the heat down to medium low and give the chicken another half an hour or until it is cooked through.

7. Drain it on paper towels and serve.

Bo Berry Biscuits

Biscuits:

2 Cups Flour
1 Cup milk (cold)
1/3 Cup sugar
5 T of butter (cold or frozen)
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 oz of blueberries (fresh or dried)

Glaze:

1 Cup of powdered sugar
1/8 Cup of water
1 tsp of vanilla
½ tsp of lemon juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450F. Mix salt, sugar, flour, and baking powder in a bowl. Add the super cold milk into dry ingredients and mix. As dough begins to form take each tablespoon of hardened solidified butter and break chunks off and spread evenly over dough.                        

Fold dough, and knead… repeat until all butter is spread in chunks evenly throughout dough. Move dough to floured cutting board and roll flat to about ¼ - ½ thick (or to desired thickness) and cut approximately 6 BoBerry Biscuits with a biscuit or cookie cutter.                          

If you notice the butter start to melt (hot kitchen) during this process it may be necessary to return the dough to the freezer for 10-15 minutes. Do not exceed 20, as the baking powder’s 1st stage may become inactive past that.                                    

Place in oven and bake for about 7-12 minutes. Melt 1 tablespoon of low-fat butter in the microwave, and paint finished biscuits with pastry brush.                                    

Mix glaze ingredients in a bowl, and drizzle over BoBerry Biscuits with a fork.

Five Flavor Pound Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
3 cups white sugar
5 eggs, beaten
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 teaspoon rum flavored extract
1 teaspoon butter flavored extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Five Flavor Glaze:

1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
1/2 teaspoon rum flavored extract
1/2 teaspoon butter flavored extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease a 10 inch tube pan. In a small bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Set aside. In a measuring cup, combine the milk and 1 teaspoon each coconut, lemon, rum, butter and vanilla extracts; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter, shortening and 3 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, and beat until smooth. Beat in flour mixture alternately with milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Spoon mixture into prepared pan.

Bake for 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours, or until cake tests done. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes.

Turn cake out of pan onto wire rack. Place waxed paper under rack to catch glaze drippings. Slowly spoon Five Flavor Glaze onto top of hot cake. Cool completely.

***

To make the Five Flavor Glaze:                                      

In a saucepan, combine 1/2 cup sugar, water and 1/2 teaspoon each coconut, lemon, rum, butter and vanilla extracts. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved.

Sandy Barrette

Eggless Sugar Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

1½ c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
½ c. unsalted butter
½ c. granulated sugar
1 tbsp. sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes. Add sour cream and vanilla and beat to combine.

Turn mixer speed to low and gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Turn dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap, form into a disc, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

When ready to bake cookies, set oven rack to the center position and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness.

Use a cookie cutter to cut dough into desired shapes, gathering and re-rolling any leftover dough until it is all used. Place cookie cutouts onto prepared baking sheet.


Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until cookies are just barely golden at the edges. Cool on the baking sheet on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies directly to wire rack to cool completely.

Microwave Fried Chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. dry mustard (optional)
1 frying chicken (2 1/2 or 3 lbs.)
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. cooking oil
2 tbsp. butter
Paprika

Directions:

In paper bag, put flour, salt, pepper, and mustard. Shake well. Rub lemon juice on chicken. Shake chicken in bag. Preheat 9 inch browning dish for 4 1/2 minutes. Add oil and butter to dish. Arrange chicken, skin down, on dish without crowding. Cover loosely with waxed paper.

Cook on high for 3 minutes. Turn chicken; sprinkle with paprika. Cook another 3 minutes. Let stand, covered with foil, for 5 minutes.

Serves 8 to 10 people.

Chicken Fried Steak

Ingredients:


1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons seasoned salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 pounds cube steak (tenderized round steak that's been extra-tenderized)
Kosher salt
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon butter

Directions:

Begin with setting up an assembly line of dishes. Mix the milk with the eggs in one; the flour mixed with the seasoned salt, 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, paprika and cayenne in another; and the meat in a third. Then have one clean plate at the end to receive the breaded meat.

Work with one piece of meat at a time. Sprinkle both sides with kosher salt and black pepper, then place it in the flour mixture. Turn to coat. Place the meat into the milk/egg mixture, turning to coat. Finally, place it back in the flour and turn to coat (dry mixture/wet mixture/dry mixture). Place the breaded meat on the clean plate, then repeat with the remaining meat.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the butter. Drop in a few sprinkles of flour to make sure it's sufficiently hot. When the butter sizzles immediately, you know it's ready. (It should not brown right away, if it does, the fire is too hot.) Cook the meat, 3 pieces at a time, until the edges start to look golden brown, about 2 minutes each side. Remove the meat to a paper towel-lined plate and keep them warm by covering lightly with another plate or a sheet of foil. Repeat until all the meat is cooked.