Tomato Scallion Shortcakes with Whipped Goat Cheese

Six weeks ago, JP and I had a truly delicious summer meal: tomato scallion shortcakes with whipped goat cheese.  Doesn't that just make your mouth water thinking about it?  Trust Smitten Kitchen to come up with such a wonderful way to serve tomatoes.
Start out with some flaky, buttery scallion biscuits/shortcakes, then marinate some grape tomatoes with tangy red wine vinegar, and top with savory, light whipped goat cheese.  It is just as delicious as it sounds.  This recipe should make 6-8 shortcakes.
We served it with sausages, but it would be great for brunch with scrambled eggs, or some grilled lamb at a cookout.  Just be sure to make it while the tomatoes are still in season!

Tomato Scallion Shortcakes with Whipped Goat Cheese (from Smitten Kitchen, 2012)
2 c. plus 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp. baking powder
3/4 t. table salt
5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes
3 scallion, thinly sliced
1 c. buttermilk, well-shaken
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of sugar
1/2 lb. grape tomatoes
3 Tbsp. whipping cream
4 oz. goat cheese, softened

1. Preheat oven to 425, line baking sheet with parchment paper, and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together.  Use a pastry cutter or your fingers to cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal.  Stir in 1 sliced scallion, add buttermilk, and stir until dough just comes together.
3. On a floured surface, pat or roll dough to 3/4" or 1" thickness and cut into 3-inch rounds, reforming scraps as needed.  Arrange on prepared sheet, and bake 15 minutes, until golden on top.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.  Halve or quarter tomatoes (depending on size), then toss in dressing.  Allow to sit while you finish goat cheese.
5. In another medium bowl, combine cheese and cream.  Whip on high until peaks form.
6. Split each shortcake in half, and spoon each portion with tomato mixture.  Top with goat cheese and remaining scallions.  Enjoy!

Whole Wheat Honey and Goat Cheese Biscuits

Happy 2013, lovelies!  I hope you're off to a wonderful start this year.  As you may have heard, by other half on this blog will be on a bit of a hiatus for the next couple of weeks while she organizes her new life in South Florida with her handsome fiancee and sweet Layla.  We'll miss her, but I'll do my best to keep you occupied with my usual three posts a week.  Good luck with you new home, Haley; we can't wait to see pictures of it!
Now, let's start things on the right foot, shall we?

Try baking up some of these whole wheat honey and goat cheese biscuits from Joy the Baker.  There is actually only a small amount of butter in them (only 1/2 stick), whole wheat flour (none of that refined nonsense), and honey for sweetness (get out of here, white sugar!).  Indulge a bit without feeling like you're completely back to square one with your resolution to exercise more and eat healthy.

2 cups whole wheat flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1-1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 c. (1/2 half stick) unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes, plus more for the pan

4 Tbsp. crumbled goat cheese

1 c. buttermilk, cold

2 Tbsp. honey, plus more for topping

Instructions

1. Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. Place a 10-inch cast-iron skillet in the oven as it preheats.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With your fingers, quickly incorporate the cold butter and goat cheese until the flour resembled coarse meal. Some of the butter and cheese chunks will be the size of small pebbles, others will be the size of oat flakes. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture.
3. Whisk together buttermilk and honey. Honey may not completely blend into the buttermilk; that’s okay. Pour the buttermilk into the well of the flour mixture. Use a fork to blend together the wet and dry ingredients. Mix until all of the flour is incorporated and no dry flour remains. Set aside.
4. Remove the hot skillfrom the oven and add 1 tablespoon butter. Swirl the butter around the bottom and sides of the pan until butter is melted and pan is coated.
5. Spoon batter by the 1/4 cupful into the hot skillet. About 6 biscuits will fit into the 10-inch skillet. Biscuits should have about an inch of room separating them, but will bake up to touch one another. That’s great!
6. Place in the oven to bake for 14 to 16 minutes, until golden and tops appear dry and slightly firm. Remove from the oven. Let rest for 5 minutes. Repeat with the remaining batter. For a glossy finish, brush the biscuits with slightly warm honey. These biscuits are best served imediately, but will last for up to 3 days, well wrapped, and at room temperature.

Bacon and Goat Cheese Drop Biscuits

 

This will be a quick post, because all I did was take a delicious recipe from Smitten Kitchen and, somehow, improve upon it.
Do you have a meat-eater in your life?  S/he probably likes bacon.  Everyone likes bacon.  I try to eat a lot less meat (like, hardly ever), but this crispy, salty treat is not easy to give up.  We made br(eakfast d)inner recently and had some leftover.  Our fridge also had some goat cheese from paninis a few weeks ago.  I took these two things, added some buttermilk and flour, and threw a scrambled egg on top.
Use this recipe (the original is amazing, but not super-breakfasty), and just sub the cheddar cheese and scallions with 2 slices crispy bacon and 2 oz. crumbled goat cheese.
Your meat-lover will love you.

Cheddar Cheese Drop Biscuits

Maybe it has something to do with so many meals spent in southern Georgia, but there is a huge portion of my soul that can only be fulfilled with biscuits. Buttery, rich, and perfect with soups, salads, jams...they're really all-purpose. Not that I need any justification to bake homemade biscuits.

Which is exactly what I've done twice in the past week. This recipe is quickly becoming the go-to comfort food pick, mostly because it is full of butter AND cheese. It only requires one bowl. Mix with your hands, no biscuit cutters needed. Can it possibly get any better? According to John Paul, it really can't. If presented with a choice between these cheddar cheese and scallion biscuits and finding out how LOST ends, the finale would lose. And he REALLY wants to know how it ends already.

Cheddar Cheese Scallion Drop Biscuits* (From Smitten Kitchen, here)
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp. salt
6 Tbsp. (3/4 stick or 3 ounces) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups crumbled cheddar cheese (you can add another 1/2 cup for a super-cheesy biscuit)
4 scallions, finely chopped
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
Preheat oven to 450°F. Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, then blend in butter with your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in cheddar cheese and scallions. Add buttermilk and stir until just combined.
Drop dough in 12 equal mounds about 2 inches apart onto a buttered large baking sheet, or one lined with parchment paper. Bake in middle of oven until golden, 16 to 20 minutes.




*If I may make a suggestion for day-after biscuits: cut them in half, toast, put a poached egg on each half, and top with paprika. If you have a bad day, you certainly can't blame it on this breakfast.