Vermont Maple-Corn Drop Biscuits

Description:
I took this recipe to a bridal shower this past weekend to share. Somewhere between there and here it went missing. !!!! I was horrified when I realized that today and was utterly relieved when I found that I'd posted it previously on my old website. whew! But I thought I'd post it here now so that my recipes are all together.

source: Biscuits and Scones: 62 Recipes from Breakfast Biscuits to Homey Desserts, by Elizabeth Alston (Clarkson N. Potter, Inc./Publishers) page 15.

Ingredients:
1 cup coarse-ground yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour --> [I use freshly ground wheat flour.]
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup maple or maple-flavor [gag!] syrup
milk
5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut up

Directions:
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Put cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Stir to mix well.

Measure maple syrup in a glass cup measure. Add milk to the 2/3 cup mark.

Add butter to the flour mixture and cut in with a pastry blender or rub in with your fingers, until mixture looks like fine granules.

Add the milk mixture and stir with a fork until a very soft dough forms.

Drop 1/4 cupfuls of dough 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 12 to 14 minutes, until pale golden brown. Cool, loosely covered with a dish towel, on a wire rack.

Tamale Pie

Description:
I love Amy's Tamale Pie. So for tomorrow's potluck at church I thought I'd try making my own version of the dish.

I've searched for recipes online and this is the one that I've used the most to base my own recipe off of. But I've made several modifications (mostly trying to draw it as close to the Amy's version as possible).

Ingredients:
2 cups dry pinto and/or black beans
Vegetable stock or water
1 tablespoon cumin
2 cups polenta
4 - 8 cups vegetable stock (to cook beans in)
1 teaspoon Bragg’s or tamari
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 cups chopped vegetables (corn, zucchini -whatever you like)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup grated cheese

Directions:
1. Cover beans with water and soak overnight. Drain and cover with vegetable stock or fresh water. Add 1 tablespoon cumin and 1 teaspoon chili powder and simmer 2 1/4 hours or until tender. (I covered with 4 cups of veggie stock but ended up adding at least another 4 if not 5 or 6 cups of water as the beans cook but didn't get soft enough. I also ended up cooking the beans for at least 4 hours. Why don't my beans ever get soft enough in the amount of time that the recipes say?!!)

2. Mix polenta and 2 to 3 times as much water. (I used 2 1/2 times as much.) Add 1 teaspoon Bragg’s and a pinch of salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir continuously until mixture thickens and all the liquid is absorbed (about 10-15 minutes). The polenta should still be smooth enough to stir fairly easily. Press mixture into sides and bottom of a buttered 9x13-inch baking dish at least 1 1/2 inches deep, saving one-fourth of the amount to drop of spread on top later. (The polenta will harden up as it sits in the pan.)

3. In a separate pan, saute onions until translucent. Add corn, zucchini and any other veggies (or tofu) that you might want to toss in. combine cooked beans (which can be mashed with a potato masher, leaving some whole) with other ingredients except cheese. Cook over medium heat until vegetables are almost cooked. Pour into baking pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle grated cheese on top and spoon on remaining cornmeal mixture.

4. Bake at 350F for 25 minutes.

Serves 6-8.

Speaking of Heroes

Bucky rocks.