Cheese Bread

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cheese. In another large bowl, beat together egg, milk and oil. Stir the flour/cheese mixture into the egg mixture, stirring until just moistened. Pour batter into prepared pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.

Sausage Cornbread Stuffing

My mom made this stuffing for Thanksgiving this year, and it is utterly the most amazing, flavorful stuffing I have ever had. I copied it exactly from this recipe because there is literally nothing I would do to change it...but I definitely plan on it being a staple for Thanksgivings from now on.

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2 (8 ounce) packages corn bread mix
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound spicy pork sausage
2 onions, chopped
2 apples, cored and chopped
4 stalks celery, diced
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons rubbed sage
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Bake cornbread according to package directions. Cool and crumble into a large bowl.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook sausage until brown and crumbly, remove from the skillet but keep the oil in the pan. Add onions, apples and celery; cook stirring occasionally until tender, about 5 minutes.

Toss the cooked mixture and the sausage into the bowl with the crumbled cornbread. Stir in the chicken broth and melted butter. Season with parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary salt and pepper. Blend well and press into a 9x13 inch baking dish.

Bake at 350 heat for 35 to 45 minutes.

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Southern Cheddar Biscuits

Cheesy buttermilk buscuits: They have a Southern hominess about them that make them irresistible. The frame of the recipe is adapted from Alton Brown's recipe for Southern Biscuits, but I added a few of my own elements.

If you just want plain buscuits, take out the cheddar, Parmesan and garlic powder. They are delicious anyway!

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Prep:
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons shortening
1 cup buttermilk, chilled
1 cup sharp yellow cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

After cooked:
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/8 teaspoon dried parsley flakes (optional)

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, butter, and shortening in large bowl with fork until sandy texture is achieved. Add milk, cheese, and garlic powder. Mix dough by hand until chunky, very sticky dough is achieved.

After placing dough on floured surface, sprinkling flour on it, and folding it over itself 3-4 times, spread dough into 1-inch thick layer over floured wax paper and cut dough into circles with a diameter no larger than 3 inches. Place biscuits close together on greased cookie sheet (they will not rise or expand much). Bake for 15-20 minutes on 450 heat until biscuits are light brown on top and until visible cheese is dark brown.

Remove biscuits from oven and brush melted butter with parsley flakes on top. Makes 10-12 biscuits.
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Henry and I made 3 batches of these, refining them each time. This is the final recipe that we produced. We had these with sausage, egg, and (more) cheese, and it was delicious! This will definitely be a staple of our home-cooked meals and breakfast foods.

Pictures to come!