thoughtful consumption

A couple of people have asked about the emergency goat cheese biscuits I made the other day. So here’s the deal. The emergency part just means I didn’t roll out the dough and cut it. They’re also called drop biscuits.

with dried Sea Island red peas and spinach, romaine, and beet green salad

The goat cheese part is adding goat cheese to the dairy mixture. All biscuits have some kind of dairy – buttermilk, milk, yogurt , cheese or a combination. I make these biscuits because I have a tendency to hoard goat cheese. I love it so much that I try to consume it very slowly. Then comes the day where it tastes a little sour. Not bad, mind you, just not brilliantly fresh anymore. I try to eat a bunch that day, and anything that’s left gets added to biscuits.

with fresh field peas, baked butternut squash, and arugula (What is it with peas and biscuits?)

Here’s the method that works for me. It mainly comes from How to Cook Everything.

1. Preheat the oven to 450.
2. Dice 2-5 tablespoons of butter. The more butter the better. (This tip brought to you by the makers of Duh.)
3. Mix 2 cups flour, 3 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and a teaspoon of salt. (I just used a pinch because I had salted butter.)
4. Work in the butter bits. Take a few in hand and add some of the flour mix and smush the flour into the butter buts between your thumb and fingers. Dump the smushed-up mixture back into the bowl and repeat until all the butter is smushed in. Then feel around in the bowl and smush any more butter bits you run into.
5. Add 3/4 cup goat cheese. (If you have less than that, make up the rest with milk.) Mix it up and evaluate the texture. It will probably be too dry. Add milk until it’s a dough ball that’s not shaggy but hangs together.
6. Place tablespoon-sized drops on a greased baking sheet and bake for  7-9 minutes.
7. Eat them right away. They’ll keep a couple of days but will never be better.

They’re also really good for breakfast with local wildflower honey.