Easy Sour Cream Biscuits for Two
I love biscuits for breakfast but most of the time I don’t feel like going to the trouble of cutting in butter, and rolling out and cutting the dough, especially before coffee! I just want a hassle free breakfast. These biscuits are light, tender and buttery with a nice tang from the sour cream and a golden-brown exterior. I like that they make such a small batch and that’s another reason I want a simple recipe. It just doesn’t seem worth it to go to a lot of trouble for 4 biscuits. I need a recipe that’s quick and easy and this one is just that! Just stir, scoop, and bake!
Go ahead and adjust your oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Whisk all dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.
Add the sour cream and 2 tablespoons of the melted butter into the dry ingredients.
Stir everything until just combined.
Using a quarter cup spring-loaded ice cream scoop, or a greased 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop out and drop the dough onto the parchment paper lined baking sheet spacing them out about 2 inches apart. Brush them with the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons melted butter and bake until golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet halfway through baking. Let the biscuits cool for 10 minutes.
I ate mine with butter and mango-peach preserves!
Orange and Rosemary Roasted Turkey Breast
This roasted turkey breast is super easy and tastes amazing with the orange and rosemary mixture roasted under the skin. Starting the turkey off at a higher temperature ensures that the skin is crisp and then lowering the temperature to keep the meat moist results in the perfect main course for your Thanksgiving.
Sometimes you just don’t want or need a whole turkey so roasting a turkey breast is the perfect option. A turkey breast is perfect for a small gathering or just for the two of you. You’ll have left-overs but who doesn’t want that? I know I love the left-overs! It seems I enjoy it more the next day anyway. Maybe because all of the frenzy of cooking a big meal is over and you can just relax!
The first thing you’ll do is mix together the butter, garlic, rosemary, orange zest, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
Next you’ll carefully separate the skin from the turkey meat by sliding your hand in between the skin and breast and working your way up to the breast bone. It seems weird at first if you’ve never done it but hang in there…it’s easy! Once you’ve done that you will work half of the softened butter-herb mixture under one half of the turkey breast, repeating the process on the other side of the turkey breast.
Using your hands again, gently rub the turkey skin to evenly distribute butter over the entire breast. Basically you’re smoothing out all that butter and herb mixture so it’s evenly distributed under the skin.
Place the turkey in a V-rack sprayed with cooking spray and set it inside a large roasting pan. Pour one cup of water into the roasting pan.
Roast the turkey for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees. Continue roasting turkey until the thickest part of breast registers 160 degrees on instant-read thermometer, about 1 hour longer. Transfer turkey to carving board and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.
Fresh Succotash
If the only succotash you’ve ever had was corn and lima beans, frozen in a bag and drowned in a heavy cream sauce then you have to try this recipe! It’s so easy and quick to put together using fresh corn off the cob. You absolutely don’t want to substitute the fresh corn in this recipe for frozen or canned. The crisp kernels really make this a stand out dish that everyone will love.
I know, I know…nobody loves to take the corn off of the cob. It can be a messy job! I have a trick that makes removing the corn from the cob super simple and neat. Just place the stem of your corn cob into the hole of a bundt pan and then remove the kernels with a sharp knife. The bundt pan catches the kernels with no mess!
To keep this recipe quick and easy I’m using canned butter beans for a creamy consistency and mild flavor, reserving some of the liquid to make a light sauce. Fresh red peppers add gorgeous color along with onion and garlic sauteed in a little butter because well…corn and butter just go together! Adding a little lemon juice to the reserved butter bean liquid really brightens everything up, don’t skip it. Parsley adds more freshness to the flavors and the little kick of cayenne makes this dish perfect! It tastes like summer on a plate!
Rustic Free-Form Tartlets for Two
I love summer fruit pies but making a whole pie for just two people is just too much not to mention the pie crust takes time. This simple free-form tartlet is a great alternative to pie.
I wanted a flaky crust so I learned a new technique called fraisage, in which the dough is smeared with the heel of your hand, spreading the butter pieces into long, thin streaks between layers of flour and water. This technique is perfect for free-form tarts where leaking might be a concern. Because you are creating alternating layers of butter and dough, you are less likely to get a clump of butter that will melt during baking and form a hole in your crust as it bakes.
Fraisage Technique
The dough is then lifted up and back over the fruit leaving the center exposed, and loosely pleated. The fruit needs only the simple addition of sugar, 3 to 5 tablespoons depending on the type of fruit.
Some of the best mix of fruits are stone fruits and berries (I’m using peaches and blueberries but plum and raspberries or apricots and blackberries would be delicious too), you can use only one type of fruit if you prefer. Peeling the stone fruit, even the peaches, is not necessary.
Taste the fruit before adding sugar to it; use the lesser amount if the fruit is very sweet, more if it is tart. Be sure not to add the sugar to the fruit until you are ready to fill and form the tart, the sugar releases the juice in the fruit and you’ll end up with a soggy crust if done too soon.
Once baked, the tartlets are best eaten warm, or within 3 or 4 hours, although you can reheat them in a 350-degree oven. Don’t forget to add a scoop of vanilla ice cream…heaven!
Pasta with Cauliflower, Bacon, and Bread Crumbs for Two
It’s 19 degrees outside right now with snow covering everything, but inside it’s toasty warm and smells like bacon and herbs. Smelling fresh herbs in the winter makes me happy! Smelling bacon ALWAYS makes me happy! 
Easy weeknight meals also makes me happy but I also don’t want to sacrifice flavor for ease. This recipe delivers on both. Pasta, nutty cauliflower, meaty bacon and crispy bread crumbs are a wonderful combination and the flavors are so well balanced. The lemon juice at the end really helps to brighten it all up. Browning cauliflower in a skillet develops its flavors and cooks off some of the water to keep it from becoming mushy.
Cooking the pasta in a small amount of water skips the draining step and makes a creamy sauce as the pasta cooks. Topping the pasta with bacon-flavored bread crumbs adds texture and another layer of flavor.
Quick and Easy Broiled Pork Tenderloin and Black-Eyed Pea Salad for Two
I love fast, easy meals during the week. This recipe is healthy, low in fat, diabetic friendly, and you can have it on the table in 20 minutes! I think the broiler is so under utilized. I don’t know why I don’t use it more often, it’s so quick! Toss the pork in the oven and in 10 minutes it’s done! I also love the black-eyed pea salad and could just make a meal off of that alone! I love how it doesn’t have any oil in the dressing, just fresh lime juice. I have used bottled lime juice when I didn’t have any limes and it was great! I have also substituted cilantro for the parsley when I had too much cilantro in the fridge.
The first thing you’ll want to do is to set your oven to broil and raise the rack in your oven to the top. Next you’ll remove the silver skin on the pork loin, it’s tough and can cause the pork to curl if it’s not removed. Remove any fat as well. Rub a teaspoon of oil on the meat and then season with salt and pepper. I like to line the pan with foil for easy clean up. Place the pork loin in the oven and set a timer for 5 minutes to check it and turn it if it’s brown. You’ll want to turn the pork once for even cooking.
While the pork is cooking go ahead and rinse your peas really well. Place the rinsed and drained peas in a bowl and add 1/2 of a diced avocado, 1 scallion, and 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley and fresh lime juice.
Check the pork if you haven’t already and flip it for another 5 minutes. Insert an instant read thermometer. You’ll want a temperature between 140-145 degrees. Let the meat rest for 10 min. Slice against the grain and drizzle the pork with any pan juices. Enjoy!
Easy Beef Stew for Two
It’s cold out today! When it’s cold out I immediately think of warm, comforting food and this super easy full-bodied stew is perfect for cold days! This red wine-braised beef stew is the ultimate one-pot meal, loaded with tender potatoes and carrots. Don’t forget a loaf of crusty French bread for sopping up the rich sauce.
Many stew recipes call for cooking the meat and vegetables at the same time, leaving the vegetables overcooked and mushy. Instead, first braise the meat with onions in red wine and beef broth until a rich sauce develops. Then, after about an hour, add carrots, and potatoes. By the time the vegetables are cooked, the beef will be tender, then just stir in some peas if you like, for a little freshness and color. I sprinkle a little fresh parsley in at the end. You can also spoon the stew over buttered egg noodles. YUMMY!
