Fare Exchange: Bunch o'Biscuits with 7 Up, sour cream and Paula Deen

Jane Henegar

Good morning, welcome readers. I have returned to our shared time zone after a couple of weeks away, and now will begin to record what you sent in that gap.

We came home to two requests, Shirley Middleton's sent from Hixson for "a quick and easy recipe for pickled eggs." And Julie Luce hopes you can help her turn her home into a creperie - a place where crepes are the specialty. Specifically she would like a recipe for buckwheat crepes, as well as a recommendation for a good crepe maker.

CHIPS 'N' PEANUTS

Linda Morris provided a flourless cookie filled with chocolate chips and roasted peanuts - because you asked.

Flourless Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup roasted salted peanuts

Heat oven to 350 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. In a large mixing bowl, stir together peanut butter, sugar, egg, baking soda and salt until well combined and smooth. Mix in chocolate chips and peanuts.

With moistened hands, roll 1 heaping tablespoon of dough into balls. Place 2 inches apart on 2 baking sheets. Bake until cookies are golden and puffed, 12 to 14 minutes, rotating sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through cooking. Cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

7 UP 'N' BISCUITS

Ms. Morris also answered the request for sour cream biscuits, this version calling for biscuit mix and, of all things, 7 Up.

Sour Cream Biscuits

4 cups Bisquick

1 cup sour cream

1 cup 7 Up

1/2 cup melted butter

Mix Bisquick or any baking mix, sour cream and 7 Up. Dough will be soft. Knead and fold until well mixed. Pat dough out and cut. Melt butter in bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Place biscuits on dish and bake in a preheated oven at 425 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes.

BEANS 'N' VEGETABLES

Here's another recipe from the website recommended by Dwight Witherow II - www.kamadogrillsreviews.com.

Grilled White Beans and Winter Vegetables

12 Brussels sprouts, halved

1/2 pound of small red potatoes, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

2 large onions, each peeled and cut into eight pieces

1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

3 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2 cups white beans, cooked and drained

2 teaspoons dried herb mixture

Heat the grill to 400 degrees.

Use aluminum foil to line a baking sheet containing sides. Toss the Brussels sprouts, potatoes, carrots, garlic and onions on the sheet with 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and the olive oil. Use salt and pepper and dried herbs to season.

Place the baking sheet on the grill and roast the vegetables for 30 to 45 minutes or until they are tender and golden brown. Toss the vegetables one or more times during grilling.

Remove the sheet from the grill and stir in the beans. Put the sheet back on the grill and roast approximately 5 minutes or until the beans are crisp. Remove the pan from the heat.

Toss the teaspoon of balsamic vinegar with the vegetables and if desired, drizzle on some additional olive oil.

TOWN 'N' COUNTRY

Margaret Collins, among others, shared her Town and Country restaurant recipe book. This one seems just right for the season. It's a basic good-for-you soup and meatless.

Town and Country Vegetable Soup

2 (28-ounce) whole tomatoes, hand-crushed

1 cup peas

1 cup green beans

1 onion, chopped

2 potatoes, cut up

4 carrots, sliced

2 stalks celery, sliced

1 cup lima beans

1 cup corn

2 cups water

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 cup macaroni

Combine all ingredients except macaroni and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3 hours. Then add macaroni and continue to cook until done.

FRUIT 'N' CAKE

Linda Leake's collection of fruitcake recipes included this one for a Japanese version. And it won't be long until fruitcake time. This one, however, is not dense like a traditional fruitcake. Raisins and almonds are in the filling but no candied fruit.

Japanese Fruit Cake

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cloves

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon allspice

1/2 pound chopped raisins

3/4 cup chopped or slivered almonds

Filling (recipe below)

Seven-Minute Frosting (Paula Deen recipe below)

Grated coconut or slivered almonds for garnish

Cream together butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture alternately with milk into egg mixture. Separate batter into 3 parts. To 1 part add spices, raisins and nuts.

Bake in 3 layers at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes, watching carefully. Cool before filling and frosting.

Filling

Juice and rind of 3 lemons

1 coconut grated fine (or 2 cans coconut)

2 cups sugar

1 cup boiling water

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Mix lemon juice, coconut, sugar, water and cornstarch. Bring to a boil and cook until it falls in lumps from a spoon. Put layers together with filling, placing spice layer in the center.

Seven-Minute Frosting

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar or 1 tablespoon white corn syrup

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup water

2 egg whites

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Place sugar, cream of tartar or corn syrup, salt, water and egg whites in the top of a double boiler. Beat with a handheld electric mixer for 1 minute. Place pan over boiling water, being sure that water does not touch the bottom of the top pan. If this happens, it could cause your frosting to become grainy. Beat constantly on high speed with electric mixer for 7 minutes. Beat in vanilla.

Ice with Seven-Minute Frosting and cover with grated coconut or slivered almonds.

DEEN 'N' BISCUITS

Yeast of the Ridge has provided us with two yeastless breads recipe - for biscuits.

The first one out of the envelope answers a request for three-ingredient sour cream biscuits. These are baked in miniature muffin tins, and credited to Paula Deen.

Sour Cream Butter Biscuits

2 cups self-rising flour

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

1 cup sour cream

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease miniature muffin pans.

Mix the flour and butter together, add the sour cream, and blend well. Place spoonfuls of the batter in the muffin pans. Bake until golden, 8 to 10 minutes.

Thanks for all you sent this week, and for what you've got up your cooking sleeve to send next week. I will be watching for you.