Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Hot Soup and Homemade Biscuits


slowcookingthursday
Originally uploaded by pwinn.




Sandra at Diary of a SAHM hosts Slow Cooking Thursday and I thought I would join in the fun this week! Be sure to check out all the great recipes at her place!


Soup
Originally uploaded by pwinn.



The soup ingredients are very simple but when left in the crockpot all day, something magical happens!

~Vegetable Cassoulet~

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 pound dry navy beans, soaked overnight. (You can also use 2 cans of navy beans)
4 cups mushroom broth
1 cube vegetable bouillion
1 bay leaf
4 sprigs fresh parsley
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 large potato, diced

Directions:

1. Heat a small amount of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir onion and carrots in oil until tender.

2. In a crockpot, combine beans, carrots and onion, mushroom broth, bouillon and bay leaf. Pour in water if necessary to cover the ingredients. Tie together parsley, rosemary and thyme and add to the pot. Cook on low for 8 hours.

3. Add the potato after 7 hours of cooking. Remove herbs before serving.


If you need something to serve with your soup, here is my recipe for Buttermilk Biscuits.


Biscuits
Originally uploaded by pwinn.



Buttermilk Biscuits

These biscuits are sweet, crisp and tender.

2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 to 5 tablespoons butter (depends on how healthy you feel that day!)
1 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 450F.

2. Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Cut the butter into small pieces and either incorporate into the flour using a pastry blender or rub the butter between your fingers, until thoroughly blended.

3. Use a large spoon to stir in the buttermilk, just until mixture forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead it 10 times, no more. If it is very sticky, add a little flour, but don't worry if it sticks a bit to your hands.

4. Press into a 3/4 inch-thick rectangle and cut rounds with a biscuit cutter or glass. Gently reshape leftover dough and cut again. This recipe will produce about 10 biscuits.

5. Bake 7 to 9 minutes, or until the biscuits are a beautiful golden brown. Serve within 15 minutes for them to be at their best.

To feel safe and warm on a cold wet night, all you really need is soup.”~Laurie Colwin

18 comments:

Sandra said...

Oh Kelli I just want to jump through the computer, that soup and the biscuits look so good, and it's so cold here that it would be just perfect :)

Thanks for playing along,
Hugs to you,
Sandra

Susan Godfrey said...

This sounds so good! I am definately saving this recipe to try some time really soon! Thanks for posting!

Anonymous said...

I love soup and this one sounds good too! I love seeing all these recipes.

Beck said...

Oh, I LOVE Laurie Colwin! And your recipe sounds just delicious - I'm copying it down right now!

Anonymous said...

Oh Kelli this sounds delicious! I'm saving this one for sure! And I LOVE that you don't use shortening in your biscuits :) I'mgoing to have to give your biscuits recipe a try for breakfast this morning :)

Kelli said...

Hi Miranda,

I have a couple of ideas. First, make sure that your butter is very cold. I cut off how many tablespoons I need and then cut that into small cubes. I use my fingers to mix it into the butter, working quickly so it doesn't melt too much.

After I mix up the dough, I knead it gently. Pretend you are working with clouds. :0) My dough looks very messy and scrappy when I go to cut out the biscuits but this is what will give you the flaky layers.

I hope this helps a little!

Kelli

Emily said...

This looks delicious! Fresh herbs. . . oh you are making me want to whip my garden back into shape just to make this. I've been craving soups for lunch lately alot!

dot said...

I want to jump thru the computer too, grab a bowl of soup and a biscuit, and run like crazy! lol

homespun living said...

Hi Kelli, we had soup and biscuits this week also ~ one of my favorite cold weather meals. I will have to try your soup recipe; it must be very yummy with the mushroom broth. Thanks,
Debbie

Amy said...

I think this is the perfect meal for fall :) I'm especially interested in your biscuit recipe! My beloved buttermilk biscuit recipe uses vegetable shortening, which contains hydrogenated soybean oil. We recently found out that this gives my daughter hives. So, I'm excited to find a recipe that uses butter instead.

Sharon said...

I just made chicken noodle soup for dinner tomorrow nighT, In Fl. in never gets cold enough for soup so I will have a hot cup of soup on a warm evening. Another reason to move back up north......

Carole Burant said...

Oh yum, that soup and biscuits look absolutely wonderful!! I haven't used my crock pot in such a long time, now with all the recipes I'm getting from my blogging friends, I think I need to take it out of hibernation!

Tina Leigh said...

Will you pass the biscuits please before my soup gets cold!! Man that looks good!!

Susan P. said...

That makes me feel warmer already! We have a rainy, cold day forecast for tomorrow and I think this menu is just what the doctor ordered!

Marci said...

I love soup. I oculd eat it every day!!! This looks like a good recipe to try.

Anonymous said...

The buttermilk biscuits looks yummy.

Have a great weekend.

Mike
http://somethingaboutparenting.typepad.com/

Janet said...

Fall is just the perfect time for soup and biscuits. Thanks for sharing the recipes. They both sound delicious.

Susie said...

Kelli,
I'm so anxious for the "soup weather" to arrive here! Yours looks so very appetizing!!