ManCave Test Kitchen

You dont’ have to wake up, you’re not dreaming, you really just read that.  Once in a while you need to take a classic and give it some balls.  In this case, I took a Southern staple, gave it aforementioned balls, and sold it as breakfast in Philadelphia and DC.  Well, if the results weren’t good, it wouldn’t be on this blog so it must be, right?  I learned the Sweet Potato biscuits while in Atlanta form an incredible baker in a hotel I where I was working.  The gravy was my own addition after some brainstorming.   This will make enough for 6-8 biscuit (depending on how thick you like them).

For the Biscuits:

• 1 3/4 c. All-Purpose flour
• 1 tbsp chopped sage
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 6 tbsp chilled, small diced, unsalted butter, plus just a bit for brushing
• 1 medium baked sweet potato peeled and mashed
• 1/3 c. buttermilk

For the Gravy

• 2 links chorizo sausage
• 1/4 lb cooked shrimp (any size), rough cut
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 pint half and half
• 2 tbsp. chopped onion

1. First things first, we’re making the biscuits…because they’re awesome…Heat up your oven to 425.
2. Combine all of your dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder) and whisk them in a bowl to just combine them.
3. Add your butter and cut it in with a pastry cutter, two knives,or your hands.  If you’re very careful and use the “pulse” feature, you can use a food processor too.  You want the flour mixture to look like meal with a few pea-sized butter balls mixed into it (Seriously, I don’t know a better way to describe it, just look at the picture).

   

4. In a separate bowl, mix the sage, buttermilk and sweet potato with a whisk until it’s smooth-ish.
5. Combine the sweet potato mixture and flour mixture together and mix just so they come together in a loose dough.
6. Roll your biscuits out to about 1/2-3/4 of an inch and cut them any way you like.

   

7. Lay them on a buttered or greased sheet tray and brush them with the melted butter. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until they’re golden brown.
8. NOW FOR THE GRAVY!!!!  ‘Cause seriously, that’s the best part…
9. Melt the butter in a pot on medium-low heat and add the Chorizo and onions.  If you have a potato masher, this would be the time to break it out.  It’s a great tool to crumble the sausage with.  Cook the sausage and onions until the onions are translucent and the fat is rendered from the sausage.
10. Add you flour and stir.  Cook and stir the flour for about five minutes.
11. Add your half and half slowly, whisking the mixture the whole way.  Cut the heat just a bit lower and let this simmer and whisk for about 10-15 minutes. Add the shrimp and just let them warm through. 

Now it’s obvious how you serve  these, you slather as much gravy as you can onto the biscuits and EAT!!!  Another, and preferred, alternative would be to grab a biscuits and just dunk it, but your guesst might not appreciate your hands in the gravy..although it’s awesome.   How do you eat them?  Let me know in the comments

Happy Eating

-The Doctor

Say what???  Yes, you heard it, I’m not stuttering, that’s what this is.  This isn’t a light fluffy traditional cornbread.  This cornbread is dense heavy and savory.  It’s a Northern Pennsylvania specialty that I learned about in college on a road trip visiting a few friends at one  of the many fine (but really cold) colleges in that area.  I first had this, where most people have great food, in old school diner in the college  town I was in. It was like 3 AM, and eveyone was, well…well hydrated shall we say…and had this in front of them chowing down.  This recipe will make you and 8×8 pan.

• 1c. flour
• 1/4 c. fine ground corn meal
• 2 oz. country ham (or prosciutto is you can find ham), small diced
• 1 tsp. chopped sage
• 1 tsp. chopped thyme
• 3 tbsp. butter
• 1/2 c. cheddar cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1c. milk
• 1/4 c. chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 ts salt
• 1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/2 c. fresh corn kernels

1.  Grease up your 8×8 cake pan with some spray or butter and set is aside fora little it.  Turn on your oven and preheat it to 400.
2. Take one tablespoon of the butter and melt over low heat on a saute pan.  Add your onions and cook them down slow, until they’re nice and caramelized.
3. Add your ham, garlic, and herbs.  Slowly render  out the fat from the ham.  After about 5 minutes, add thes rest of the butter and cut the heat.  You want the rest of the butter to just melt.

   

4. Time for the wet ingredients.  Take your milk and egg and lightly beat them together.
5. Now for the dry ingredients.  Take the flour, baking powder, cornmeal, brown sugar and salt, and whisk them together, just to get them combined.
6. Add your dry ingredients in to you wet ingredeitns slowly, mixing them with a whisk until there are no lumps left
7. Fold in your ham, onion, and butter mixture, with a spatula or a wooden spoon.  Then fold in the corn and cheese.
8. Throw this into the oven for about 20 minutes.  To test if it’s done, do the toothpick test.  (Pop the tooth pick all the way down to the bottom, if it comes out dry it’s good).
9. Let this cool for about 20-30 minutes before you try to cut it.  It’s going to be very fragile before that.

I like serving this either toasted in the oven or griddled with some butter, with maple syrup and more butter on top, just like a pancake.  I’ve seen people do whipped cream and cream cheese on this as well.  How do you like it? Let me know in the comments.

Happy Eating,

-The Doctor

It’s fall.  Fall is my favorite season.  Fall bring us squash, which is one of my favorite things to cook with. One of the most versatile squashes out there is the spaghetti squash.  I do everything with this vegetable.  I pickle it, I roast it, make ragouts with it…I even (dare I say) make BREAKFAST WITH IT!!!!  Spaghetti Squash is very flavorful and can be a substitute for hash brown potatoes.  I used it quite a bit  as something different, yet familiar, for the most important meal of the day.  One of the more interesting things I did with it was take a spin on the traditional breakfast casserole, and use the squash instead of shredded potato.  Some people could never tell the difference and some people knew and loved it.  It’s a great way to get kids to try squash to and start that love affair with fall gourds.  This recipe feeds about 4-6.  You’ll need:

• 1 whole spaghetti squash
• 3 oz, breakfast sausage cooked and rough chopped
• 8 strips of bacon, cooked and chopped
• 2 cups of your favorite shredded cheese (I’m using smoked gouda today)
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 c heavy cream
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Start this up by turning your oven up to 350.  Split the squash in half and take the seeds out.  Rub it with some oil or melted butter and season with salt and pepper.  Through that bad boy in the oven, skin up, for about an hour.  You can do this the day before too.
2. Let the squash cool, then pull it out of it’s skin with a spoon like this:
3. Crack your eggs into a bowl, add the cream, the beat the eggs well.  BEFORE YOU ADD THE EGGS TO THE SQUASH!!!!!  Taste the squash and season it again.  Taste good?  OK great.  Now add your eggs, meats, and half the cheese to the bowl and mix everything together.
4. Butter up a lasagna pan or casserole dish and lay down that mixture evenly.  Cover it with parchment (or wax) paper and foil then throw it in the oven for 40 minutes at 350.  Take it out, add the rest of the cheese to the top and cook it another 10 minutes.

This doesn’t need any accompaniments, it’s perfect on its own.  Aaaahhh, who am I kidding it’s breakfast.  It gets slathered in hot sauce and ketchup.  I prefer some Hollandaise if you know how to make it.  It’s a perfect foil for the sweet squash.  Change up the cheese and meats too.  Why not do a casserole with ham and cheddar, or pulled chicken and queso fresco?  Tell me how you changed this up in the comments.

Happy Eating,

-The Doctor