Heart shaped biscuits and steaming sausage gravy

A good, hearty Sunday morning breakfast, and one of the boys’ favorites. 

I’ve been on a mission to find the best recipe for homemade biscuits.  With all this flour, I refuse to resort to buying those that come in a can, though they are cheap and easy. 

In my quest for the perfect biscuit, I am up against a few added challenges due to the altitude and my preference for making breakfast on the old wood cook stove. After many attempts, none with the results I desired (though the boys have been enjoying my various and frequent tries), I turned to a fellow “high altitude” back country baker for her favorite biscuit recipe.  The results were the best yet.  The boys found them especially tasty.  So, following is a “guest post” recipe for biscuits, thanks to Valerie, followed by my old faithful simple recipe for sausage gravy.  I hope you try and enjoy.

Biscuits and gravy with Val's biscuit recipe

Valerie’s Biscuits

In a large bowl, combine:

          2 cups flour

          4 teaspoons baking powder

          1 teaspoon salt

          2 tablespoons sugar

Cut in:

          1/2  cup Crisco

Add:

         1 large egg

         2/3 cups milk

Mix together just until blended. Do not over mix. On a heavily floured surface with well floured hands, pat out dough to about ½ – ¾ of an inch thickness.  Cut with the rim of a small canning jar (or heart shaped cookie cutter if you’re feeling so inclined), and place on a baking sheet fairly close together. Bake in a good, hot oven (if using a gas or electric oven with proper gages, preheat to 425 degrees) for 15-20 minutes.

(thank you, Val!)

yes, I'm a sucker...

Breakfast Sausage Gravy

This is good on fried eggs, hash browns, and even toast.

In a medium iron skillet, melt:

            1 tablespoon butter

Add, and cook until brown:

            1 pound bulk breakfast sausage (you can use crumbled bacon, or diced ham with good results as well)

Stir in:

          3 tablespoons flour

Slowly add, while stirring over medium/high heat:

            2 ½ cups milk

            1 chicken bouillon cube

Stir until boiling and thickened, then sprinkle liberally with:

            Fresh ground pepper

A dutch baby hot out of the oven

What’s for breakfast on Saturday mornings here?  A Dutch Baby.  It’s our “pre-cabin cleaning” ritual, followed by leaving the dishes stacked in our sink to run out and go clean the guests cabins in preparation for new friends and families arriving for the new week. 

This dish is Forrest’s favorite breakfast and has become our Saturday morning tradition I suppose in an act of bribery:  I’ll give the crew a good, hearty breakfast in exchange for no whining while we spend the better part of the day cleaning.  It doesn’t always work… but really, cleaning cabins is not that bad…

Anyway, this breakfast dish is called either a Dutch Baby or a German Pancake, and it looks really fancy, but it’s actually really simple.  It puffs up beautifully straight from the oven, but falls quite quickly, so be prepared to serve it right away.

This recipe serves the three of us with a good hearty meal, or can serve several more if accompanied by fresh fruit or sausage or bacon. I hope you try and enjoy.

Dutch Baby

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together well:

                4 eggs

Then add:

                1/3 cup all purpose flour

                1 tablespoon sugar

                ½  teaspoon salt

Whisk this together until very smooth, then slowly add:

                2 ½  cups cream or evaporated milk or regular milk, or a combination there of

Meanwhile, in a large cast iron skillet, melt:

                3 tablespoons butter

When melted, pour the batter into the buttered pan and bake in a hot oven (about 400 degrees) for about 25 minutes, or until the top is well puffed up and starting to get a nice golden brown.

To serve, sprinkle with lemon juice then confectioners sugar.

Dutch baby, all powdered up

Breakfast muffins, with blueberries, made fresh this morning.

The boys headed out on an early morning ride.  Snowmobile, not horses… yet.  We’re close, and I’m counting the hours, but for now, we’re getting the most out of the last of the snow.  It is melting, the ground is warming, so they must leave early and be home by noon before the snow rots and makes travel all but impossible.  But they’re up for an adventure, and have me wake them just as the crescent moon clears the mountain to the east (I consider that another cycle has passed; the sky is my reminder, my calendar), the sun still a ways behind.  They pack and dress in the quiet early morning hours that I usually tip toe about the cabin alone; Bob still and silent, sipping his coffee by the fire; Forrest noiselessly drifting about with a headlamp on to light his way.  Me… under the glow of the gas lamp, preparing a good, hot meal for them before sending them off into the early morning cold.

For 15 years or so, my mother stressed the importance of starting the day off with a healthy breakfast, but somehow I didn’t get it.  Then for the next 15 years or so of my life, I simply didn’t have the time.  Once moving up here, in this elevation, I discovered not only the importance, but the absolute necessity of breakfast.  One burns more calories just being up here.  Living and working and running around as we do up at nearly 10,000 feet elevation, without breakfast, we would fade by mid morning at best, or become somewhat nauseous by noon at worst… it’s worth taking the time to eat!

Scrambled eggs with muffins are a great way to start the day.  Muffins are tasty enough to be considered a treat, but rather simple to make.  I use the disposable paper cups to save on clean up, and it helps the muffins stay fresh and whole when packed for snacks, or kept in the freezer for a morning I don’t have time to bake.

Here’s my basic muffin recipe.  I throw in whatever I’m lucky enough to find around the house that sounds tasty on that given morning.  This morning, I used dried blueberries, a treat my mom often brings us.  Last week, I tossed in a ripe, mashed banana (my sister sent two home in a care package after our last trip to the big city); some chopped pecans (still remaining from the gift from our Texas neighbors); and a few handfuls of chocolate chips (at Forrest’s request).  Another combo I really like is dried cranberries, coconut, and more of those pecans. 

Breakfast Muffins

In a medium sauce pan, slowly melt:

1/3 cup (or 2/3 stick) of butter.

Remove from heat and stir in (yes, right into the sauce pan):

                1 cup milk

                1 teaspoon vanilla

                2 eggs

Then add:

                2/3 cup sugar

                2 cups flour

                2 teaspoon baking powder

                ½ teaspoon salt

                A dash of nutmeg

Stir together well, then add your “mix ins”

                1 cup dried blueberries

                Or

                1 mashed banana, 2/3 cup chopped pecans, 2/3 cup chocolate chips

                Or

                2/3 cup dried cranberries, 2/3 cup flaked/sweetened coconut, 2/3 cup chopped pecans

                Or

                Whatever else you have and want to experiment with!

Pour batter into muffin cups, each about ¾ full as they’ll rise a lot.  Sprinkle the top generously with cinnamon sugar.  Then bake in a medium hot oven (about 350 degrees) for probably 25 minutes to ½ hour.  Keep an eye on them.  The tops should end up puffed, crackled open, and golden brown.  I double pan always so that I do not burn the bottoms.  You may not need to do this in lower elevations.

Let cool a couple minutes in the tray, then lift and tilt each muffin sideways, leaving them in the tray to cool.

I hope you try and enjoy!