Biscuits and Turkey Sausage Gravy – a Stick to Your Ribs Breakfast

Okay, so this morning I woke up and decided to make biscuits and gravy for breakfast.  It’s a really sturdy breakfast, preparing you for a long day of lumberjacking or folding laundry while chasing a toddler who likes to knock nicely folded clothes off the bed.  You know, heavy work.

My first confession is this:  I used store-bought biscuits.  There, I said it.  I have yet to find a good, tasty, toothsome, fluffy biscuit recipe so I simply break out the can from the fridge, crack it open, and stick them in the oven.  No muss, no fuss, don’t tell Martha Stewart.

The gravy I make from scratch.  First, in a large shallow pan, I fry up one pound of turkey sausage. Being Muslim, of course I don’t eat pork, so I will always use a turkey, beef, or lamb substitution for any sausage or bacon that a recipe calls for.  Since turkey sausage is usually very low in fat, I put a couple of teaspoons of oil in the pan before frying it up so it won’t stick.  When it’s nicely browned, I set it aside and save it until I’m ready to put it in with the gravy.

For the gravy, you will need to make a roux.  I know some people are intimidated by this but it’s actually very easy.  Use equal parts butter and flour.  That’s the rule of thum.  I use a medium size pot, put in 1/4 cup of butter (or in this case, leftover beef bacon fat from a breakfast earlier in the week), and let it heat up over medium heat.  When the butter has melted and it has stopped foaming up, add 1/4 cup of all purpose flour and whisk it in briskly until combined.  It might be a little clumpy but it will smooth out.  Allow it to brown for two to three minutes so the “floury” taste cooks out of it.  It should start to turn color just a bit and it will have a nutty flavor.  Then whisk in about two cups of cold milk.  Keep whisking briskly until everything is well combined and there are no clumps of flour in the mix.  Turn the heat up to high.  Whisk in another two cups of milk and then use a mixing spoon to get into the corners of the pot since bits of flour get trapped in there that the whisk cannot reach.

You can set aside the whisk now and just use your spoon.  Stir lightly but constantly as the mixture heats, being sure to get into the corners.  The gravy will start to thicken as it approaches the boiling point.  As soon as it does, to avoid having little volcanoes popping off and splattering you with gravy lava, reduce the heat.  Keep stirring and then add salt and pepper to taste.  You will need more salt than you think you do, but remember you’ll be putting somewhat salty sausage in in a minute so don’t put too much.

Once the gravy has thickened, add in the crumbled sausage and stir to combine.  Lower the heat to a bare simmer and put on the lid, allowing everything to come together for a few minutes.

That’s it.  You just made gravy!  Now you just have to split open a couple of biscuits and ladle the scrumptious sausage gravy over it, and enjoy.

Bil hana wa shifaa!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

Basic Dinner Rolls – Gone in an instant!

I’ve made these dinner rolls three times this week.  As usual, they disappear in about five minutes.  The recipe is very basic.  You don’t have to make these into rolls.  You can make two big round loaves, use a loaf pan, or shape them into twists.  I like the little rolls.  They’re easy to shape and the right size for kids to grab.

Dinner Rolls:
5-1/2 to 6-1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup melted butter with 1 tsp dried oregano and 1/2 tsp garlic powder for brushing over finished bread (optional)

First, gather and measure out all your ingredients so you know you have everything you need.  Nothing is worse than getting started making bread and then realizing you are out of yeast or you used the last egg for hubby’s breakfast.  Measure half of the flour into the bowl of your stand mixer (or big bowl if you will be mixing and kneading by hand).  Add the yeast, sugar, and salt and mix up a bit.  Set aside.

In a small pot, add the water, milk, and butter and heat until the butter has melted.  It is very important to not heat it too much, or to let it cool down to the correct temperature, before adding this to the flour.  The liquid needs to be at a temperature of between about 86 degrees and 104 degrees.  Too cool and the yeast will not activate; too hot and the yeast will be killed and your bread will never rise.

Put the bowl with the dry ingredients onto the mixer and attach the mixing paddle (not the dough hook).  Set the speed to one and slowly add the liquid.  Let it mix in and then add the egg.  After this incorporates, turn the speed to medium or a bit higher and allow it to mix for about three minutes.  This starts to activate the gluten, that sticky stuff that provides a strong framework for your bread to rise.  After three minutes, turn off the mixer and replace the paddle with the dough hook.  Add a little less than three cups of flour and turn on the LOWEST speed and allow to mix in.

The consistency you are looking for is fairly firm and pulling away from the sides of the bowl.  The dough will be tacky but not very sticky.  This is where a “feel” for the dough is important, and your feel will develop over time.  If the dough is too wet, add flour about 1/2 cup at a time and let it incorporate fully before checking again.  You may not have to add any flour or you may need to add up to a cup.  It depends on how dry the flour is or even if it is a humid day.  The dough will crawl up the dough hook; this is fine.  If you need to stop the machine to scrape it down you can do that.

Let the dough knead in the mixer for five to eight minutes.  If you are kneading by hand, well, you’re my hero and you no doubt have big Popeye biceps.  You’ll need to knead by hand for a full ten minutes.  Once the kneading is done, stop the machine, detach the hook, and bring the bowl to your work table.  Sprinkle the surface with just a bit of flour and scrape out all the dough onto the table.  Knead it for just a couple of minutes to bring it into shape and then place it in a greased bowl to rise for up to an hour (in my warm kitchen today it only took about half that amount of time) Grease the top of the dough as well to keep it from drying and developing a crust (I use a spritz of cooking spray), and cover it with a clean damp towel or a small clean grocery bag.  After it has doubled in bulk, poke your fingers into it to pop out as many bubbles as you can and then put it on the table again and knead into a round.  Cut the round into fourths, and then cut each fourth into eight relatively even pieces (mine are certainly not Martha Stewart perfect, as you can see.  Please don’t tell on me.)

Each piece should be rolled into a ball.  I usually shape mine in my hand and then roll it in my cupped hand on the surface of the table.  A bit hard to describe but you can watch the technique here.  Place on 1/4 size sheet pans, 8 to a pan, and allow to rise again until doubled in bulk.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Carefully, so as not to deflate your lovely dough, place each tray into the oven.  Close the door gently, set a timer for 8 minutes.  After eight minutes, the rolls will not yet be done, but you will need to rotate the pans so they bake evenly.  That means the pans are turned 180 degrees and the pans on the bottom rack go to the top and the top to the bottom.  Then set the timer for six  minutes.  Check after this time to see if they are done.  I like my rolls to be a little darker so I gave mine eight minutes, but ovens can run a bit hot or cold so keep a close eye on them and take them out when they are medium golden brown or a little darker.

Set them on the counter and brush immediately with the melted butter that has the oregano and garlic powder.  You don’t have to do this step but trust me, it is delicious.  Let the rolls cool either on the pans or on a rack and then get out of the way as your family stampedes to get to them.

Bil hana wa shifaa!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

 

 

 

Mama Ganouj – Because why should Baba have all the fun?

 

Okay, I’ve been on an eggplant kick recently.  I love making baba ganouj, but I make mine a bit differently.  Mine has sweet and hot peppers in it, making it more spicy, so I have renamed it “Mama Ganouj”, because you know we ladies are more spicy than the guys .  Enjoy!

1 large eggplant
1 large sweet red pepper
1 jalapeno pepper

1/4 cup tahini
juice of one lemon – Use fresh-squeezed lemons, not bottled juice!  In this dish, it does make a difference
2 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper to taste
drizzle of olive oil

Wash all your veggies.  Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise and place, cut side down, on cookie sheet covered with aluminum foil.  Cut peppers in half and remove seeds and the white membrane (leave membrane if you want it hotter).  Place peppers on cookie sheet with eggplant.  Place in the oven and roast for 45 minutes to one hour, until eggplant is soft.

Remove from oven.  Scrape peppers off into the bowl of a food processor with a chopping blade.  Pick up each half of the eggplant, placing it cut side up on a cutting board, and scrape out the flesh using a spoon.  You may want to wait until it has cooled a bit.  Discard skin, put flesh in food processor bowl with peppers.  Add the remaining ingredients except olive oil.  Put the lid on the processor and puree to a mostly smooth consistency.  Check the flavor while processing to see if you need more salt.  Add more seasoning if needed and then continue the puree.

Scrape the mixture out into an attractive bowl, drizzle the top with olive oil, and enjoy!  You can eat this either with soft pita bread, or crisp up the bread in the oven, or buy pita crisps or whatever you like to serve this with.  It will be a bit spicy and very rich.  Bil hana wa shifaa!

 

Challah Cinnamon French Toast

Ah, french toast. Warm, toasty, French. Well, maybe, maybe not. I don’t know if French toast actually originated in France. Don’t care, actually. All I know is that it tastes good. I just finished wolfing down a portion in a most unladylike fashion. I did restrain myself enough to not lick the leftover syrup off the plate.

2/3 cup of milk
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla (I use alcohol-free)
cinnamon sugar mixture (optional)
four thick (3/4″) slices of challah bread

Heat up a large skillet or griddle to medium (about 325 on a griddle). Crack two eggs in a bowl, add milk, salt, and vanilla, and whisk to break up the eggs very well. Pour this mixture into a shallow dish – I just used a small frying pan but you can use a cake pan or pie pan. Put one piece of challah in the batter. Count to ten to allow it to soak up the liquid; flip and repeat. Pick up the bread carefully by a corner and allow to drain into the dish. Be careful! The bread is wet and may try to fall apart. I usually hold it gingerly with my fingertips. When it has drained, put it into the heated nonstick skillet or on the griddle which has been buttered or sprayed with cooking spray (I used cooking spray). If you have room for all four pieces, continue until they are all in the pan. I used a pan that could fit two or three pieces so I did mine in stages. Allow to cook for about two to three minutes on one side. While the first side is cooking, sprinkle the tops with a cinnamon sugar mixture. This is optional but I really like the taste, and it’s better than putting cinnamon in the batter because it tends to float on the top of the batter and get completely taken up by the first piece of bread, leaving the other pieces deprived and depressed.

When the first side is browned, flip to cook the other side for another two to three minutes. Remove from heat, place on plate, top with a dab of butter, then syrup. Add berries or bananas or whatever you like, and DIG IN!

Why challah? Well, challah is a rich egg bread. It holds together well and the inside has an almost “custardy” consistency when it is done. If you like a drier French toast, you can cut the bread a bit thinner or use a different type of bread. It depends on your personal taste and you can fiddle with this recipe as you like.

Bil hana wa shifaa!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Foccacia Bread With an Arabic Twist

I just finished making this recipe for foccacia bread:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/michaels-foccacia-bread/detail.aspx

It was a pretty simple recipe. I didn’t have honey so I used sugar. Instead of using the herbs he suggested, I used zaatar. I also let it rise a second time after I had punched it down and put it in the pan to bake. I heated water in a kettle, put the hot water into a pan in the bottom of the oven, then put the dough in for about half an hour to rise in the warm, moist oven (with the heat OFF). Then I took it out, set the oven to 375, and baked for about 25 minutes.

The bread came out lovely and delicious. The chopped onions in the bread give it a tiny bit of sweetness when you chew. It is soft but toothsome, not a wimpy bread at all but not something you have to rip at like a vulture on a carcass. Here are some pictures of my method:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

bil hana wa shiffa!

Home Made Cinnamon Rolls – Rich and Decadent

Is this sweet enough for ya?

Okay, someone asked for my cinnamon roll recipe. Now, I used to work for a country style fried chicken restaurant called Grandy’s back in the day. I learned how to make the world’s BEST dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls under the tutelage of a Hawaiian lady named Lelani. She was a tough customer, let me tell you! The only way was the right way. I got over being intimidated by baking really fast. I used to make rolls and cinnamon rolls for up to 400 customers a day. You get big Popeye biceps doing that! Here’s how I made the ones I made yesterday that are causing a stir on my Facebook page .

I should warn you that I use my KitchenAid mixer to do the mixing and folding of the dough except right at the end. You can do this all by hand but it will be more work.

Basic Sweet Dough

3-1/2 to 4 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs

In a small pot, heat the milk and the butter. Remove from heat and cool until it is warm enough for you to put your finger in for ten seconds without burning, between about 86 and 103 degrees for you technical types. It is VITAL not to use the milk while it is too hot, or you will kill the yeast and your dough will not rise. While the milk and butter are cooling, in the bowl of your mixer combine the 1-1/2 cups of the flour, all the yeast, and the sugar and the salt. Attach the mixing paddle. Turn the speed to one and slowly add the milk and butter mixture, then add two whole eggs. Mix to combine and then raise to medium speed and allow to mix for about three minutes. This starts activating the gluten in the flour so you’ll get a nice texture. Okay turn off the mixer and then change from the mixing paddle to the dough hook. Add two cups of flour and start the mixer on LOW speed unless you want to have flour in your face, eyes, and up your nose. Allow it to work in and see if the dough starts coming away from the sides of the bowl and creeping up the dough hook. If it is too sticky, add more flour about a 1/4 cup at a time. The dough should be slightly tacky but not too sticky. It is more towards a firm dough than a loose dough. When it looks good, allow it to mix in the mixer for about ten minutes. This saves you from having to knead it by hand. Go have a latte or something….

Okay, turn off the mixer, remove the dough from the hook, scrape all the dough out onto a lightly floured counter, and knead for just a few minutes to bring it together into a nice ball. Place in a greased bowl, grease the top and sides of the dough ball nicely, and allow to rise undisturbed in a warm place for probably at least an hour. This is not a super-fast rising dough and you do want to give it time to work. It should be doubled in size when it is ready.

Punch it down and plop it out onto a floured surface. Flatten it as best you can with your hands and then grab the rolling pin and be ready for battle! You will need to roll this out to about a 12×12 square or 14×12 or so. I actually didn’t measure but just went with what looked right. The dough will want to spring back so you’ll have to put some muscle into it.

For the next step, melt a stick of butter, and get out cinnamon and sugar and raisins (if you like raisins; if not, just omit. Also, you can toss in ground walnuts or pecans also). Using about 3/4ths of the melted butter, pour it on the dough and then lightly spread it with your fingers so the entire face of the dough is covered. Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon, sugar, and nuts; toss raisins on. Then you start to fold the dough away from you until it is rolled up. Now, my mom used to make something called a tea ring, which means she did up to this point, then made a circle of the dough, tucked it in on the ends, then snipped about 3/4ths of the way through all around the ring, laying over the pieces like flower petals. You can do that, or do like I did and cut out 12 cinnamon rolls. Place on a 1/4 sheet pan. Brush with some of the leftover melted butter. I boiled a kettle of water and then poured the hot water into a deep pan and put it on the bottom shelf of the oven (turned OFF), then put the rolls in this steamy environment to proof until they are doubled in size. Take them out – gently so as not to bump and deflate them! – then take out the water pan and heat the oven to 350 degrees. When it is at the proper temperature, put in the rolls and bake for about 15 minutes (check at 13 to see if they are done in case your oven runs a bit hot). Bake until light brown on top and then remove from the oven. Allow to cool for about fifteen minutes. I used store-bought (gasp!) cream cheese frosting on mine because I happened to have it in the cupboard but you can make your own or make a simple powdered sugar glaze. Frost or glaze the rolls, then step out of the way because your family WILL trample you on the way to get them.

Bil hana wa shifaa!

Split Pea Soup with Potatoes

Well, winter weather is not yet here,  but it’s not too hot so I decided to make a big pot of split pea soup.  It’s actually very easy and makes a nice meatless meal.  Here’s what you need:

1 pound bag dried split peas

1 medium onion, diced

1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

1 pound of potatoes, waxy or russet, peeled and diced

2 teaspoons olive oil

salt, pepper, and spices to taste.

Heat oil to medium.  You want to gently sautee the onions until translucent, not brown them.  Add the onions and stir to coat.  Let them cook for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent.  Add garlic and sautee for five more minutes.  Add potatoes and peas, then add water to cover plus about one inch.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  I also add 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric, 1/4 teaspoon mild chili powder (my kids can’t handle the heavy-duty stuff) and one chicken bouillon cube.  Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer and cook until the peas are broken down and the potatoes are tender.  Waxy potatoes will hold together better if you want them to be distince in the soup; mealy ones like russets will break down more for a thicker soup.

You can serve this on its own with some toasty bread, or over rice, or, if you are a starch fiend like my husband, both.

Bil hana wa shifaa!

 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies For a Worthy Cause

Salaam Alaikum / Hello!

Okay, I am the world’s worst procrastinator, so when I volunteered to bake cookies for a charity bake sale, I figured I’d better get a serious head start.  The sale, sponsored by Moms of Fredericksburg , is called the “Cookies for Kids’ Cancer Bake Sale” and will be held on September 20th here in my area, inshaAllah (God willing).  Well, my motto is “think globally, act locally” and for a mostly-at-home mom who has a hard time getting out the door, this is my kinda charity.  Stay at home and bake cookies.  Today is, ugh, let’s see – today is September 6th, so I have about two weeks.  Two weeks to make two dozen cookies.  I should be able to do that….

I’m baking ahead, starting with a recipe for oatmeal raisin cookes from my Pilsbury Complete Book of Baking.  I believe I got this book at a yard sale or thrift store; I don’t pay full price for cookbooks because I can almost always find a recipe I need online or from a cookbook at the library.  Yes, I am frugal.  Or cheap.  However you want to look at it.

Here’s the recipe:

3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (I use fake vanilla w/ no alcohol)
1 egg

3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups quick cooking rolled oats
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans in this recipe)

If you are baking right away, preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Otherwise, start mixing your ingredients:

In a large bowl, beat sugar, brown sugar, and butter until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and egg;  blend well.  Stir in flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well.  Stir in rolled oats, raisins, and nuts.  Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto greased cookie sheets.

Bake at 375 degrees for 7 to 10 minutes or until edges are light golden brown.  Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets.

Yield:  2-1/2 to 3 dozen cookies.

Okay, that’s the book recipe.  I used the instant oats but not the quickest “one minute” cooking oats, so my cookies will be a bit more “toothsome”.  I also put the oats in with the flour instead of putting them in with the raisins and nuts; it never has made a noticeable difference.  I used an ungreased cookie sheet so the cookies didn’t spread out as much and made sure to bake for the full ten minutes.  I like mine not to be too thin.

I took a picture of the cookies that I am freezing.  Those are the ones shoved together on one sheet.  Since they’re going in the freezer I don’t need to have a lot of space between them.  Once they are solidly frozen, I’ll put them into a ziptop bag and stash them back in the freezer until the day before the event.  Then I just take them out, arrange them on a cookie sheet no more than 12 to a sheet, allow to come to room temperature, and bake according to directions.

My big kids are in school but my three year old and one year old are at home with me, so I had to bake off a few of the cookies or risk the tears and wailing of a cookie-deprived preschooler.  I made two dozen for charity and had enough dough left over for nine cookies for us.  The battery in my camera died just as I was about to take the shot of the cookies on a pretty white plate; I’ll try to refrain from eating them all until the batteries are charged.  But I’m not promising!

Bil hana wa shifaa!

 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Read to Feed – A Program for Masaajid

 

Bismillahi Rahmani Rahim

Salaam Alaikum wa Rahmatullah

Okay, so I was a good girl and got up promptly when the alarm went off this morning.  I made a nice suhoor (pre-fast meal) of eggs, turkey bacon, toast, and dates.  Yes, I buttered the toast, but no jam.  The baby woke up with us, which makes preparing food a challenge.  I can’t really trust my drowsy husband to keep track of him because, well, let’s just say Sherif is not terribly effective when he first wakes up (translate:  he’s a zombie).  So I did suhoor then fajr came in and then Zaid was wide awake so I stayed up with him while everyone else went back to bed.

Eventually the little monster – uh, sweetheart – slept and of course instead of going to sleep myself I went on Facebook.  Yeah, pitiful, I know.  So I was catching up on Project Conversion and my friend Andrew Bowen had written a new blog post wherein he challenged Muslims to put our money where our mouth is in regards to feeding the hungry.  Go read the post.  Don’t worry, I’ll wait….

Okay, back?  Good.   Well, his post inspired me.   I decided to start a program in our masjid called “Read to Feed”.  Last year, my son’s elementary school instituted this program.  Students read books.  Students take a test on each book and then are awarded points based on the size and complexity of the book, from one point for a beginner book read by a Kindergarten student to up to forty points for a multi-chapter book.  The school kept track of all points, and for every 10,000 points, they donated $500 to a local food bank.  Now, sure, they could have just solicited donations from families, but by tying the money to the accomplishments of the children, they were able to teach the kids the value of reading and the value of helping out in the community.  I know my son felt very proud of his contribution to the effort, and indeed he was recognized and was given an award for most points at the end of the year, masha Allah.

So.  How about it?  I think it would be a noble cause and it can easily be adapted to our masaajid.   I also started A Facebook page so people all over the world could share information, give ideas, and perhaps start programs in their own communities.  Not bad for an idea that arose out of sleeplessness, huh?  See, there is a real blessing in staying up after fajr .

I hope you will join me as I try to establish this program.  I’ve never done anything like this before so I will need all the input and creative criticism I can get.  So mosey on over to Facebook and join the page, will ya?  Jazaak Allah Khair.

Basbousa. Or Basboosa. Or Basbousah. Whatever, it tastes good!

I found a really good basbousa recipe online at food.com.  I make it every so often and I ended up making it twice this week, once for home and once for an iftaar (meal to break the fast) at the masjid.  Here is a link to the recipe:

 

http://www.food.com/recipe/basbousa-1576-1587-1576-1608-1587-1577-12957

 

And here are the pictures:

 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

My son said there was a line for the basbousa at the masjid and definitely the pan came back clean.  Now, I baked these in two smaller pans but you can follow the recipe exactly.  I also added 1 cup of coconut, which is not in the original recipe, and you can decorate with slivered almonds as well.

 

Bil hana wa shifaa!