Bready or Not: Maple Truffles
Every time I make truffles, I always end up raving to my husband, “I HATE MAKING TRUFFLES.”
The chocolate is always so slow to melt. I usually end up burning myself in some small way. My truffles never look as pretty as other truffles I see online (yes, I’m judging myself by my truffle beauty, dangit).
However, I always end up making truffles again because my husband’s co-workers go absolutely bonkers for them. They are referred to as “Mrs. Cato’s Balls.” Yeah. Go ahead and snicker.
The standard home truffle uses Oreos. This is my unique version, done using maple creme cookies. You could also substitute Golden Oreos and add more maple flavor.
Everything is better with maple.
Bready or Not: Maple Truffles
Ingredients
A Bready or Not Original Recipe
- 8 ounces cream cheese 1 block
- 1 package of maple creme cookies or substitute Golden Oreos, and add more maple flavor
- 3/4 teaspoon maple flavor
- 11 ounces white chocolate or white candy melts
Instructions
- Bring cream cheese to room temperature, or place unwrapped block in a bowl and zap in microwave until softened, about 20 seconds.
- Pulverize the cookies. Use a blender to rend them to crumbs, or put cookies in a gallon zipper bag and crush them with a rolling pin.
- In a large bowl, combine soft cream cheese and crumbs. Begin to mix together, add maple flavor, then mix until completely combined and fully beige. Arrange a shelf in your freezer that will fit a mid-size cookie sheet; line the cookie sheet with wax paper. Use a tablespoon or teaspoon scoop or a spoon to form truffles, then use hands to compress the balls more. Set them all on the wax paper, then place in freezer for at least 30 minutes.
- Choose your method of melting the chocolate: the microwave or a double boiler. The latter has the advantage of keeping the chocolate warm. Carefully dip the cookie balls into the chocolate to completely cover. Let set. Often it's best to do a second coat.
With any leftover chocolate, use a spoon to form lumps on the wax paper, and add nuts, candies, etc, or dip crackers or fruit from your kitchen.
Keep truffles stored in fridge; they will stay good for weeks.
OM NOM NOM.
Bready or Not: Buttermilk Biscuits
I failed at buttermilk biscuits. For years. This grieved me. This recipe, finally, is the one that has repeatedly produced lofty, flaky, perfect biscuits.
This is an important heritage thing. My dad is from Alabama. He is of the firm belief that every meal should come with a side of bread, and buttermilk biscuits are about as good as it gets.
My husband’s family isn’t much different. Grandpa and Grandma Cato are Arkansas born and bred. We go to visit them, and we are fed an “Arkansas breakfast.” That means enough food to go out into the woods and chop down trees all day and not be hungry until dusk. That breakfast always, always, always includes buttermilk biscuits with sausage gravy.
Biscuits. Serious business.
I found this recipe from Bakergirl and have modified it slightly; she in turn got it from Bobby Flay. I wish I could hug this recipe. You have no idea how pleased I am to have a biscuit recipe that works.
A few notes on this:
– I do homemade sour milk for the buttermilk by mixing a tablespoon of lemon juice in with milk (I’ve also done a mix with half & half) and letting it curdle for 15 minutes before using it.
– the recipe also works just fine if you happen to have buttermilk powder.
– it produces more than a single cookie sheet of biscuits.
– they are fabulous to bake and the freeze. It’s always nice to have some stashed in the freezer!
Bready or Not: Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 12 Tablespoons unsalted butter cold, cut into cubes
- 1 1/2 cups cold buttermilk or substitute sour milk
On top:
- 1/4 cup milk brush on tops before baking
- 2 Tablespoons butter melted, to brush on tops after baking
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450-degrees. Prepare baking sheets by lightly greasing them or using parchment or baking mats.
- Combine the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Gradually cut the butter into the flour mix, using a pastry blender or forks until it resembles coarse meal.
- Add the buttermilk and combine until it just comes together. Don't overwork it! The butter needs to stay in small lumps; that creates the flaky layers.
- Lightly flour about a square foot of counter. Press the dough out to mostly fill the space, with the dough still about 3/4-inch thick. Use a 3-inch round biscuit cutter to punch out shapes and place on baking sheets. Brush a little bit of milk on the tops of the biscuits.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until they turn golden brown. Remove from oven and immediately brush melted butter on the tops.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not: Crock Pot Pesto Ranch Chicken Thighs
I present to you one of my very favorite chicken crock pot recipes, one I previously shared at Novelocity.
Seriously, I’ve been making this about once a month for a few months now. My husband even requests it. This is impressive since he 1) does not like ranch dressing 2) does not eat pesto.
There’s something about the combination in this recipe, though, that is just plain savory and delicious.
This is my go-to meal when I’m on a writing deadline. It mixes up in five minutes and cooks itself over the afternoon, and produces chicken to feed us–quite happily–for days.
Modified from Picky Palate.
Bready or Not: Crock Pot Pesto Ranch Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs 2-3 pounds, thawed or mostly thawed
- 6-8 ounce pesto jar
- 1 packet ranch dressing dry seasoning mix or 3 Tb ranch dressing mix
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
Instructions
- Place chicken thighs, pesto, ranch dressing (dry from the packet) and broth into crock pot. Stir gently to coat chicken and combine everything.
- Place lid on top. Cooking tip: It tends to cook in half the time you set on the crock pot, i.e., a 6-hour high setting means the chicken should be done in about 3 hours, depending on how many thighs are in there and how thawed they were to start. Leave thighs whole or chopped. (If you chop, add them into the pot again on warm for 15 minutes so they can soak up more flavor! It's also a great way to make sure they are cooked through--just chop the meat and cook on high a while more.)
These thighs are great with veggies, or in a salad, or cold out of the fridge. They also freeze wonderfully.
OM NOM NOM.
Bready or Not: Oreo Fudge
‘Tis the season. The season when I am keenly aware that air conditioning is the greatest invention in the last century.
This also means I’ll be pulling out a lot of non-bake sweet recipes, because 1) the oven makes the house hot, 2) I have a gazillion other things to do than stand in the kitchen for an hour, 3) fudge is awesome.
Some purists say this isn’t kind of fudge isn’t fudge because it’s not made on a stovetop, with a candy thermometer, with the proper animal sacrifices. I say they’re rather silly. All fudge is good and worthy.
This recipe is so easy to throw together. It’s great for potlucks because it makes a ton of fudge. It also keeps well in the fridge.
This is a good time to point out a similar recipe I posted a few years ago–Oreo Bars, featuring three ingredients. Oreos. Marshmallows. Butter. It’s like Rice Krispie Treats, but uses Oreos. Also non-bake, and makes a smaller amount.
Just in case, you know, you’re wanting to make something without chocolate and, uh, healthier.
Tweaked from Shugary Sweets.
Bready or Not: Oreo Fudge
Ingredients
- 3 cups white chocolate chips
- 20 Oreo cookies crushed/chopped/maimed
- 7 oz marshmallow fluff jar
- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract
Instructions
- Prepare a 9x13 pan by lining it with foil and applying nonstick spray.
- Either in microwave or on stovetop, carefully melt chocolate with canned milk and marshmallow cream. If microwaving, do it in short bursts because it can burn fast. Stir often.
- When the mix is smooth, add the vanilla extract. Fold in the Oreos.
- Refrigerate 3 hours until firm. Cut into bite size pieces. Keep stored in fridge.
OM NOM NOM.
Cool Stuff! Plus a note regarding my recipes.
John Scalzi’s Whatever Blog is such a major site among writers, so I was thrilled to see that my book is in his stack of new acquisitions this week! I was gobsmacked. Thanks again to Erica Wagner for the heads-up!
My poem “Mad Scientist’s Lament” will be in issue 2 of Lakeside Circus. It’s scheduled for July 2nd.
If you’re having trouble finding a recipe on Bready or Not, it’s because the recipes are now split between two sites. All the old recipes are still over at LiveJournal and the new ones show up there as well.
To find all the recipes in one place, take a look at my Pinterest board. My trick for searching there: scroll all the way to the bottom to force all the images to load, then do a search by keyword. Or just skim the pretty pictures and drool. I do that, too.
I’m sorry that they aren’t all in one convenient spot on BethCato.com! I don’t know if I’ll ever have the time or opportunity to port them all over. To my amazement, I’ve put almost 150 recipes online. That boggles my mind.
Read MoreBready or Not: Overnight Apple Cinnamon Steel Cut Oats in the Crock Pot
In recent years, we’ve been trying to eat more healthy stuff.
That means I’ve been trying more alternative grains like quinoa (okay), amaranth (bleh), and steel cut oats. What are steel cut oats, you ask? They are oats that haven’t been processed as much. They take longer to cook and they have more texture and more nuttiness to them.
That whole texture things means they are awesome when slow cooked in the crock pot.
It takes maybe ten minutes to throw everything together the night before. I don’t bother peeling the apples. Just chop, combine everything, put the lid on, close the pot.
In the morning, give it a good stir. Most of the liquid will have soaked it. It will be soft, though my crock pot creates some crunchy bits, too–which are my favorite, to be honest. Dish it up, and then add whatever topping you want– nuts (pecans are awesome), maple syrup, agave nectar, honey, more milk, more spices…
Keep the crock pot on “warm” and the slow-to-rise people can get their food, too!
Really nice thing? The leftovers. Stash them in the fridge, and for several days–maybe all week–you can scoop some out, zap it in the microwave, and go about your day.
Modified from Jamie Cooks It Up.
Bready or Not: Overnight Apple Cinnamon Steel Cut Oats in the Crock Pot
Ingredients
- 2 medium-sized apples cored, unpeeled, chopped
- 1 cup steel cut oats uncooked
- 3 Tb brown sugar packed, or substitute with xylitol and a drip of molasses
- 2 Tb butter
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
- 1 Tb ground flax seed
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups vanilla almond milk or any kind of milk
- 1 1/2 cups water
Topping options:
- milk
- chopped nuts
- maple syrup/agave nectar/honey
- more spices
Instructions
- Spray the inside of your crock pot with cooking spray. Pour all ingredients (except the toppings) inside. Stir.
- Cover and cook on low for desired length of time, like 10 hours.
- Dish up oatmeal and add desired toppings.
OM NOM NOM all week long!
