(Cinnamon Raisin Biscuits Supreme, Hot Milk Sponge Cake, Creeping Crust Fruit Cobbler, Basic But Oh So Good Butterscotch Brownies, Homemade Vanilla Pudding, Cinnamon Sugar Muffins, Homemade Flour Tortillas, Granny’s Pancake Mix, Simply Perfect Brownies)
I love recipes that stick to the basic ingredients. If you keep your kitchen stocked with flour, sugar, eggs, butter, milk, and a few other basic ingredients, you can whip up something homemade and delicious in no time. Unexpected company? No time to go to the grocery store? No problem! Go back to basics.
Cinnamon Raisin Biscuits Supreme
2 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp sugar
1/2 cup shortening (butter)
2/3 cup milk
2-3 tsp cinnamon
1/4 – 1/3 cup raisins
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cream of tartar, and sugar. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the milk all at once. Stir only until the dough begins to form a ball. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Knead gently for 1/2 minute. Pat the dough together and gently roll to about 1/2 inch thick. Sprinkle with the desired amount of cinnamon and raisins. Fold the dough in half. Roll slightly and fold again. Reroll, keeping the layer of cinnamon and raisins in a layer so to speak. Only roll 4 to 6 times. Overworking the dough will result in tough biscuits. After the last rolling out, cut your biscuits. Keep the dough in a square or rectangle shape about 1/2 inch thick. Cut the dough with a knife into about 9-10 biscuits. (A round cutter will result in having scraps that will be tough after reshaping.) Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet in a 450 degree oven about 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Ice with powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk icing while biscuits are still warm.
Hot Milk Sponge Cake
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup milk
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat the eggs until very thick and light–about 5 minutes. Gradually beat in the sugar, then the vanilla. Add the flour mixture gradually. Heat the milk and butter just to a boil. Very quickly stir the hot milk mixture into the batter. Blend well. The batter will be thin. Pour into a greased 8″ square pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until the cake tests done.
For fun, I used a special pan to make individual cakes. I chose this particular pan because the dip in the top of each cake makes a perfect place to add strawberries, icecream, etc. This is an extra sticky batter, so be sure to grease and flour any specialty pan you might want to use.
Creeping Crust Fruit Cobbler
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
29 oz can sliced peaches*
In a 9″x9″ baking dish, melt the butter. Combine flour, sugar, and baking powder. Stir in the milk and vanilla. Mix well. Pour batter over the melted butter. Do not stir. Top the batter with sliced peaches and 1/2 cup of the juice. Do not stir. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until tests done in the center.
*Use 2 cups fresh or frozen fruit and 1/2 cup sugar in place of the canned peaches. I often use frozen fruit which may increase the baking time. Depending on the fruit’s tartness, you can adjust the amount of sugar. A can of pie filling will also work in place of the can of peaches–I’m just not a fan of canned pie filling.
Basic (But Oh So Good!) Butterscotch Brownies
1/4 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar until blended. Cool. Stir in the egg and vanilla. In a bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt. Gently stir the dry ingredients into the butter mixture just until the flour is incorporated. Spread into a greased 8x8x2″ pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Do not over bake.
Homemade Vanilla Pudding
1/3 cup sugar
2 Tbsp corn starch
1/8 tsp salt
2 cups milk
1 egg beaten
1 tsp vanilla
Blend the sugar, corn starch and salt in a saucepan. Combine the milk and egg. Gradually stir the milk mixture into the sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and comes to a boil. Boil and stir for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in the vanilla. Pour into a bowl and cool.
Cinnamon Sugar Muffins
1/3 cup shortening
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 15 muffin cups. Mix the shortening, 1/2 cup sugar, and egg. Stir in flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg alternately with the milk. Add the vanilla. Stir gently with a pastry fork and do not over mix. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake 20-25 minutes. Mix 1/2 cup sugar with the cinnamon. Immediately after baking, dip the tops and sides of the muffins in the melted butter, then into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Serve hot and enjoy!
Homemade Flour Tortillas
5 cups flour
2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups warm water
Mix all ingredients together. Knead 5 to 7 minutes. Divide dough into balls about the size of an egg. Cover and let rest 5 minutes. Roll out to 7″ diameter and cook on hot griddle until slightly browned on both sides. Serves 12-18.
Granny’s Pancake Mix
6 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 Tbsp salt
2 Tbsp sugar
Combine the ingredients, and store in an airtight container.
For Pancakes or Waffles:
2 cups “Granny’s Pancake Mix”
2 cups buttermilk
4 Tbsp butter, melted
2 eggs, separated
1 tsp vanilla
In one bowl, combine the egg whites with the buttermilk. Combine the yolks with the butter in a second bowl. Stir the liquid mixtures together adding in the vanilla. Pour over the pancake mix. Whisk for 10 seconds. Batter will be lumpy. Fry on griddle or in waffle iron.
Simply Perfect Brownies
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 cup melted butter or margarine
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
In mixer bowl, combine sugar and cocoa. Mix in the melted butter or margarine. Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat well after each addition. Add the vanilla. Gradually add flour and salt, beating until batter is creamy. Pour batter into greased 9×13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
I have the brownies in the oven right now. The warm, sweet aroma has filled my home. I cannot wait to pull the pan out of the oven and allow the brownies to cool. How long should I wait before I dip in?
That’s like asking how many licks does it take to reach the center of a Tootsie Pop! As long as you can. LOL! Seriously, I try to wait until they’re set enough to cut. Then, I enjoy them nice fresh and warm!
How did you make the sponge cake into mini’s?
I used a special pan that makes individual cakes with a little dip in the middle so that it can hold the toppings. I probably ended up filling them a little too full because of the amount of batter, but it worked. This batter is stickier than typical cake batter, so I had some issues with them sticking to the pan. Next time, I would try greasing AND flouring the pan first. I’ll add a photo of the pan.
These are great recipes! Most people will have all of the ingredients on hand all the time!