Oatmeal and Maple Biscuits

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

Growing up, I was not a breakfast person; I would rarely eat anything before rushing out the door to school (I know, I know, shame on me). The weekends were the same story, unless grits were involved in which case that'd be about the extent of my breakfast. Now that I'm a parent, alhamdulillah, I take breakfast more seriously. No, I still don't eat it regularly but I do make sure my children do. I'm also not a fan of cold-breakfasts (see above: grits) and try to get something warm and filling in those growing bellies each morning.

 

 

 

 

Now before you go and get visions of a niqaabi June Cleaver let me tell you we have plenty of mornings of cold cereal around here, because that's just life. Mornings just always seem to be a bit chaotic and though I want something hearty and hot to serve my family, it needs to be easy and quick. All that and still yummy, too.

And that's exactly why these biscuits* are the new family favorite: they come together quickly, the kids love them and I don't have to worry about speculatively halal ingredients as is often the case with canned biscuits. But please don't even began to try and compare these to anything that pops out of a can. Thanks to the oatmeal these are hearty, thick and crumbly yet don't feel like a hockey puck sitting in your tummy. They have a slightly sweet crumb thanks to the syrup (DO NOT try and substitute any mrs-aunts-butter-jemima-junk for pure maple syrup!) but are still subtle enough to be slathered with your cheesecake leftovers. Wait...cheesecake? Huh?

Yes, you heard me right. Strawberry cheesecake for breakfast, just without the chesecake part. That strawberry topping is perfect atop these biscuits straight out of the oven. You can easily swap for any other fruit, fresh or frozen. Refrigerate the sauce over night for best consistency. You can keep it for a few days in the fridge, though it didn't even last one day in our house, but anything beyond that may not be the best thing since this faux-jam is pectin and preservative free. Warm maple biscuits with homemade strawberry jam, now that's a breakfast I can get used to.
 

 (*the original recipe calls these scones but seeing as I'm all unrefined and can't tell the difference between a scone and a biscuit, plus my kids ended up calling this is a biscuit, I just went with the more American-y sounding of the two. Either way, it's delicious)


Oat and Maple Biscuits
Breakfast Lunch, Tea: The Many Little Meals of Rose Bakery
Yield: about 8 - 10, depending on your biscuit cutter size

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting surface
1/2 cup  whole wheat flour
1/2 cup rolled oats (I used quick-cooking)
1 very heaped tablespoon baking powder
1 very heaped tablespoon  granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
Scant 3/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup milk or buttermilk
1 egg, beaten (for glaze)

Directions
1.Preheat your oven to 400°F  and butter a baking tray

2. Whisk the flours, oats, baking powder, sugar and salt together in a large bowl. With a pastry blender or your fingertips, work the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

3. In a small dish, combine the milk and syrup, then add these liquid ingredients to the butter-flour mixture. By hand or with a rubber spatula, bring everything together to form a softish dough. If it feels too dry, add a little more milk but not enough that the dough is sticky. I usually end up adding another 1/4 cup milk but whatever you do, add in small amounts until the dough comes together and is no longer sticky.

4. On a lightly floured surface, pat or roll the dough out until it is 1 1/4 inches tall. Using a 2-inch cutter, cut the dough into rounds and place them on the prepared tray so that they almost touch. Glaze the tops with beaten egg and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the scones are lightly golden. The scones will stick together, so pull them gently apart when they’ve cooled a bit.

5. Serve warm plain, drizzled with honey or slathered with jam.

Strawberry Jam
1 cup strawberry, mashed
1 cup sugar 
3 tablespoons cornstarch 
1/3 cup water

1. Blend sugar and cornstarch together in a small saucepan.

2.Stir in water and strawberries.

3.Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and boils.

4. Boil and stir for 1 minute. Cool thoroughly before storing in a container and refrigerating. Keep in fridge overnight for best results.

Cheesy Loaf

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

It's no secret I love this dough, I mean, who wouldn't? It comes together so quick and doesn't even need to rise yet still yields soft and fluffy rolls, alhamdulillah. I've already done one spin-off, figured another wouldn't hurt! This ooey, gooey cheesey loaf of bread was the result of last minute company and the best thing to accompany the boiling pot of pasta on the stove I was getting ready for them. I had intended it to be a braided-bread type of thing, but it rose while cooking and spread out, resembling nothing of the original breading it went into the oven with. The middle of the loaf looked so empty and sad that I had to fill it with something and what better than some cheese? I sprinkled on some in the last 5 minutes of baking and there you have it: a very easy cheesy loaf.

Cheesy Loaf
1 batch of 40 minute roll's dough
1 tsp of seasoning/toppings of your choice (I used poppy seeds and Italian herbs)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Prepare dough according to directions. Roll out into a log and slice lengthwise into three strips. Connect strips together at the top by pressing dough together and begin to braid, tuck ends in underneath. Allow to rest on baking sheet.

2. Brush with an egg wash and top with your seasoning (optional). Bake 25 - 30 minutes (keep an eye on it!).

3. In last 5 minutes, remove loaf and sprinkle the middle with cheese. Return to oven and continue baking until cheese is bubbly and melted. Allow to cool 5 mintues before cutting.

Red Lobster-ish Biscuits

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem





It's been a while since I've actually eaten a real Red Lobster biscuit so I can't promise these biscuits are exactly like them. Imitation factor aside, these are delicious and so simple to make. I relied on my go-to biscuit recipe (straight off the back of a Clabber Girl baking powder can!) and added necessary touches from many online copy-cat recipes of the Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuit. Dough should be wet enough to be scooped but not runny. Enjoy!



Red Lobster Wanna-Be Biscuits (Muslim Wife adaptation)

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cold butter (cut into cubes)
3/4 cup milk (more as needed)
2 tablespoon melted margarine or butter (for brushing tops)


1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 heaping cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/8 tsp parsley (for brushing tops)


Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 400.

2.In a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, baking powder, garlic powder and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

3. Stir in shredded cheese. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add the milk all at once. Using a wooden spoon, stir just till moistened and dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl (dough will be sticky).



4. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out biscuits onto a non-stick or lightly greased baking sheet, 1'" apart.



5. Bake for 11 to 15 minutes or until edges turn golden brown. After removing, immediately brush with melted butter and parsley flakes .