breaking bread is a universal ritual that brings us together. a good meal has the power to heal us, body and soul. all my cooking comes from the heart.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

sometimes we need shortcuts; garlic cheddar biscuits



Although I love to bake and cook from scratch, and my cookies and cakes are always scratch recipes, we all need some time savers and shortcuts in our busy lives.  Better to use some shortcuts in the kitchen than simply throw up your hands and hit the drive-thru.  One of my favorite foods, and a pre- long run ritual, is garlic cheddar biscuits--and they are my favorite shortcut.  These are especially good with tomato soup on a cold day. Here's the recipe.

Suzy's Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

Ingredients:
1.5 cups Bisquick Mix
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup cubed cheddar cheese (or shredded cheddar cheese if you're in a rush)
1/2 cup skim milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
For easiest clean-up, cover cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium mixing bowl, stir together first three ingredients thoroughly
Add liquid and stir mixture together.
Drop in 9 evenly sized spoonfuls on cookie sheet, spacing about 1.5 to 2 inches apart.
Bake on center rack for 9 minutes.

Each biscuit is approximately 120 calories (less if you use reduced fat cheese) and has a three-to-one carb to protein ratio (for people like runners who are interested in that).  I line a bowl with a tea towel and fill with biscuits, covering up with the towel to keep them warm.  Delicious with Smart Balance or butter. (If you are not concerned with the calories double the cheese, which adds 30 calories per biscuit, or brush the biscuits as soon as they come out of the oven with a mixture of melted butter and garlic--and perhaps some Old Bay).

From hitting "preheat" on the oven until I'm snuggled on my couch munching these biscuits is about 15 minutes max.  How?  First, because I keep a glass jar full of minced garlic in the fridge and simply spoon out whatever I need for recipes.  I buy a container of whole peeled garlic cloves, toss them in the Cuisinart (a/k/a the "Whirly-Chopper") until minced, and then store in a nice glass jar [update: I had to give up my beloved Whirly-Chopped when I moved aboard so I hand chop now].  Second, I often use pre-shredded cheese.  Unless I am using a fancy-schmancy cheese for a special recipe, I find that the increased convenience of pre-shredded cheese outweighs the additional cost over shredding it myself. I do think that cubes of cheese will give you a better overall flavor and look, however, if you have the time to cube it up yourself.

Enjoy!