Southern Fried Hoecakes (Cornbread)

Ingredients:

2/3 cup of cornmeal
1/3 cup of self-rising flour
1/3 cup of low-fat buttermilk
Oil for frying
1 large egg

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, combine the cornmeal, self-rising flour, low-fat buttermilk, and large egg. Mix the ingredients thoroughly until well blended. The mixture should have a moist consistency, but not be too runny.

2. Heat a skillet with oil. (You can use ~3 tablespoons of coconut oil, or use your preferred oil.)

3. Drop spoonfuls of the batter into the hot oil, being careful not to overcrowd the skillet. (The cooking technique used is similar to traditional pancakes.)

4. Cook the fritters until they turn brown on one side, then flip them over to brown the other side.

5. Once the fritters are cooked, transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels. Blot any excess oil by gently pressing the fritters with the paper towels.

6. Serve!

Buttery Flakey Biscuits

It's not a whole meal, but I could eat just biscuits and be very content. 🥰

It's taken me a lot of practice to come up with a recipe that I really like. Mana's biscuits are great, but these are really a step up. 

I just eyeballed this batch, and thankfully, they were perfectly moist, buttery, and flaky.

Here's the recipe to the best of my ability...lol😁 I'm an eyeballer. 

I didn't really measure well. 

Approximately 3 cups White Lily self-rising flour 

A stick and a half of frozen butter

I rarely keep buttermilk in the house, so I use half and half. I just added by eyeballing the dough.  Maybe 2 cups. You can get powdered dry buttermilk that keeps longer if you like buttermilk better 

I think that grating the butter frozen into the flour is what makes them flaky and moist. 

And I touch the dough as little as possible, so that my hands don't warm the butter. I use a pastry cutter to mix. And a fork. I only fold the dough maybe twice and pat it out as quickly as I can. Cut them out and get them in the pan. That frozen butter melts as they bake, and leaves nice tender, moist layers. 

I'm sorry I'm not accurate on measurements, but I think these are pretty close.

Slow Cooker Roast with Gravy

Ingredients:

2-3 pounds of your preferred roast (such as chuck or sirloin)
3/4 cup beef broth
1 tablespoon Kitchen Bouquet (browning and seasoning sauce for roast)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 can (10.5 ounces) cream of mushroom soup
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 package onion soup mix (1 ounce)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon each of dried thyme and garlic powder
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, combine beef broth, mushroom soup, onion soup mix, Worcestershire sauce, red wine vinegar, garlic powder, thyme, and pepper. Set aside.

2. Coat the roast with Kitchen Bouquet. Brown it in a skillet.

3. Transfer roast into slow cooker.

4. In the same skillet, melt butter, add flour, and cook briefly.

5. Pour the prepared gravy mixture into the skillet, whisking to loosen browned bits. Cook until the gravy thickens.

6. Pour the thickened gravy over the roast.

7. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours until roast is tender