HOME & LIVING
B2 — THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD
TUESDAY, JULY 6, 2021
Suncredible: Award-winning sunfl ower variety
BY NORMAN WINTER
Tribune News Service
Norman Winter/TNS
Suncredible sunfl owers will also get visited by hummingbirds.
BISCUITS
Continued from Page B1
Chef Christian’s Southern
Drop Biscuits
Drop biscuits are heavier
and more substantial than
typical fl aky biscuits. They
are diff erent, but no less
delicious. This sweet recipe
comes from the chef at a
Cincinnati biscuit restau-
rant, which may be the best
idea ever.
Angel Biscuits
These are the ones that
have yeast in them, along
with baking powder and
baking soda. Not surpris-
ingly, they rise especially
well. Mild and pleasantly
fl avored, they are hearty and
satisfying despite — as the
name implies — being as
light as an angel’s wings.
FABULOUS
BISCUITS
Yield: 12 servings
2 cups all-purpose fl our
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 to 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup melted butter
1. Preheat oven to 425 de-
grees.
2. Combine the fl our, salt,
baking powder and sugar in a
mixing bowl. Slowly add 1 cup of
the cream to the mixture, stirring
constantly. Gather the dough
together; if it is still dry and crum-
bly, gradually add a little more
cream until it holds together.
3. Place the dough on a lightly
fl oured board and knead for 1
minute. Pat the dough into a
square that is about 1/2 inch
thick. Cut into 12 squares and
dip each into the melted butter
so all sides are coated. Place the
biscuits 2 inches apart on an
ungreased baking sheet. Bake for
15 minutes or until the biscuits
are lightly browned.
Per serving: 148 calories; 8
g fat; 5 g saturated fat; 24 mg
cholesterol; 2 g protein; 17 g
carbohydrate; 1 g sugar; 1 g fi ber;
226 mg sodium; 65 mg calcium
— Recipe from “Four Sisters
Inns Cookbook”
CREAM
BISCUITS
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
2 cups all-purpose fl our, plus
more for the counter
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1. Adjust an oven rack to
the upper-middle position and
heat oven to 450 degrees. Line
The National Garden
Bureau has designated 2021
as The Year of the Sunfl ower.
If you choose to participate,
I have the plant for you: Sun-
credible Yellow, a new ever-
blooming bush variety.
I wrote about this incred-
ible variety in summer 2019,
while I was growing it. In
2020 it exploded, winning 53
awards like the Perfect Score
All Season from Oklahoma
State University and Oregon
State University, Louisiana
Super Plant LSU, Medal
of Excellence Greenhouse
Grower, Leader of the Pack
North Carolina State and Top
Performer from Michigan
State, University of Minne-
sota, Mississippi State, Uni-
versity of Georgia, Cornell
and dozens more. It has truly
captured everyone’s heart.
Everblooming and bush
habit are not two descrip-
tors you would ever expect to
give a sunfl ower, but that has
all changed. If you haven’t
experienced it, this will be a
totally new plant product for
a baking sheet with parchment
paper. Whisk the fl our, sugar,
baking powder and salt together
in a large bowl. Stir in the cream
with a wooden spoon until the
dough forms, about 30 seconds.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly
fl oured counter and gather into
a ball. Knead the dough briefl y
until smooth, about 30 seconds.
2. Pat the dough into a 3/4-
inch thick circle. Cut the biscuits
into rounds using a 2 1/2-inch
biscuit cutter or into 8 wedges
using a knife. Place the biscuits
on the parchment-lined baking
sheet. (The baking sheet can
be wrapped in plastic wrap and
refrigerated for up to 2 hours.)
Bake until golden brown, about
15 minutes.
Per serving (based on 8): 272
calories; 16 g fat; 10 g saturat-
ed fat; 50 mg cholesterol; 5 g
protein; 27 g carbohydrate; 2 g
sugar; 1 g fi ber; 160 mg sodium;
143 mg calcium
— Recipe from “The America’s
Test Kitchen Family Cookbook”
ANGEL
BISCUITS
About 24 servings
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose fl our
2 1/4 teaspoons (1
package) dry yeast
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup shortening, lard preferred
2 cups buttermilk
Note: This recipe needs to be
refrigerated overnight.
1. In a large mixing bowl, stir
together the fl our, yeast, baking
powder, baking soda, sugar and
salt. Drop chunks of shorten-
ing into the fl our; work in the
shortening with your hands, two
knives cutting across each other
or a pastry blender. The fl our will
resemble grains of rice or smaller.
2. Stir the buttermilk into the
fl our; mix it thoroughly but do
not knead. The dough will be wet
and heavy, but it will become stiff
and workable when it has been
chilled in the refrigerator.
3. Place the dough in a
greased bowl, cover with plastic
wrap and refrigerate overnight.
4. Preheat the oven to 400 de-
grees at least 20 minutes before
baking. Grease a baking sheet or
line with parchment paper.
5. Pinch off only enough
dough to make the desired
number of biscuits. Return the
balance of the dough to the
refrigerator or freeze.
6. Knead the dough under
your palms for 3 or 4 minutes.
Roll into a rectangle, fold into
thirds and roll again. Fold and
roll one more time. The dough
should be about 1/2-inch thick.
7. Cut the dough with a cutter
of the desired size and place the
biscuits on the prepared baking
sheet. Do not allow to rise (they
you. It will reach 42 inches
tall and around 36 inches
wide in the South. The
fl owers are 4 inches wide and
produced in abundance all
season, bringing in bees and
butterfl ies. Those of you with
roaming deer populations
can rejoice that this plant is
typically not on the menu.
Your fi rst thought might
have been that sunfl owers
don’t last that long in the
garden. But this will simply
not be true with this new
breeding of our loved native
Helianthus. It will thrive in
just about any soil and will
be riveting as long as you
give it good sunlight. My
advice: Plant a cluster of
three, spacing your plants 18
to 24 inches apart.
Rockin Deep Purple or
Rockin Blue Suede Shoes
salvias would make a most
thrilling plant partnership. I
also have mine planted with
an assortment of agastache
or hummingbird mints. Sun-
credible Yellow will keep
blooming whether you dead-
head or not. In my garden
I have clipped them off a
couple of times.
will bake up taller, but will taste
doughy).
8. Bake on the oven’s middle
shelf for 15 to 17 minutes, until
the tops are nicely browned.
Per serving: 176 calories; 8 g
fat; 3 g saturated fat; 8 mg choles-
terol; 4 g protein; 22 g carbohy-
drate; 4 g sugar; 1 g fi ber; 193 mg
sodium; 76 mg calcium
— Recipe from “Bernard
Clayton’s New Complete Book of
Breads” by Bernard Clayton Jr.
BUTTERMILK
BISCUITS
Yield: 12 servings
2 cups all-purpose fl our
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
3/4 cup buttermilk
1. Preheat the oven to 450
degrees.
2. Sift together the fl our, salt,
baking powder and baking soda
in a large bowl. Cut in the butter
using a knife, a pastry cutter or
your fi ngers, until the mixture
resembles coarse cornmeal.
Quickly but gently stir in the
buttermilk, just until the dough
holds together. Don’t overstir or
the biscuits will be tough.
3. Turn the dough onto a
lightly fl oured board and knead
gently with fl oured hands. Press
the dough into a ball, cut it in
half. Place one half on top of the
other and press down. Repeat
three or four times. Then roll out
the dough to about 1/2-inch
thickness. Cut rounds with a
biscuit-cutter or glass, or cut
rectangles with a knife. Place the
biscuits on an ungreased baking
sheet, leaving a little space
between them.
4. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes,
until the biscuits are golden.
Serve warm.
Per serving: 140 calories; 6
g fat; 4 g saturated fat; 17 mg
cholesterol; 3 g protein; 19 g
carbohydrate; 1 g sugar; 1 g fi ber;
170 mg sodium; 167 mg calcium
— Recipe from “Sundays at
Moosewood Restaurant” by the
Moosewood Collective
Note: Place butter in freezer
several hours before using.
When ready to use, shred
using a box shredder,
shredding attachment on
a food processor or even
a blender. Place shredded
butter back into freezer
until you are ready to use.
1. Preheat convection oven to
405 degrees or standard oven to
420 degrees. Line a baking sheet
with parchment paper.
2. Combine fl our, sugar and
salt in a medium mixing bowl.
Add lard and, using your fi ngers,
work into dry ingredients until it
forms small pebbles of lard and
fl our.
3. Lightly toss shredded butter
in with lard and fl our mixture.
Using your hands or a silicone
spatula, quickly work butter into
mix. Pour cold buttermilk into the
bowl and mix until all ingredients
are combined and there are no
stray crumbs.
4. Use a 1 1/2-ounce ice cream
scoop to portion out drop bis-
cuits, gently packing the scoop
so each biscuit is the same size.
Evenly distribute drop biscuits on
prepared baking sheet as if you
are making cookies.
5. Bake 8 minutes or until
the outside is golden brown
(approximately 12 minutes in a
conventional oven). Let cool 5
minutes before serving.
Per serving: 251 calories; 15
g fat; 8 g saturated fat; 30 mg
cholesterol; 4 g protein; 25 g
carbohydrate; 3 g sugar; 1 g fi ber;
209 mg sodium; 27 mg calcium
TOUCH
OF GRACE
BISCUITS
Yield: 10 servings
1 1/2 cups Southern self-
rising fl our, such as
White Lily, see note
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
The look screams cot-
tage garden but will be
simply amazing just mixed
in with perennials and other
annuals. Of course, those
of you working on a back-
yard wildlife habitat will be
pleased beyond your wildest
expectations.
As great as Suncred-
ible Yellow is, you will be
thrilled at what is coming
next year, Suncredible
Saturn. It has the same bush
habit, same rugged perse-
vering performance, but the
name Saturn says it all. Sun-
credible Saturn has yellow
petals with a bronze red
center.
Because of their bushy
habit, they too will excel
as the thriller plant in
mixed containers, or look
stunning as a monocul-
ture plant growing with no
partners. My son James
is using them in horse
trough-type containers,
with Supertunia Petunias,
Superbena verbenas and
Luscious lantanas.
We as gardeners and pol-
linator lovers can give a tip
of the hat to Proven Winners
Norman Winter, horti-
culturist, garden speaker
and author of “Tough-as-
Nails Flowers for the South”
and “Captivating Combi-
nations: Color and Style in
the Garden.” Follow him on
Facebook @NormanWinter-
TheGardenGuy.
Hillary Levin-St. Louis Post-Dispatch/TNS
Homemade Buttermilk biscuits.
1/3 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 tablespoons shortening
1 to 1 1/4 cups buttermilk, or 3/4
cup buttermilk and 1/2 cup
heavy or whipping cream
1 cup all-purpose fl our for
shaping, see notes
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Notes: Not all White Lily
four is self-rising.
— If Southern self-rising fl our
is not available, use 1 cup
national brand self-rising
all-purpose fl our and 1/2 cup
cake fl our or instant fl our (such
as Shake & Bake or Wondra),
plus 1/2 teaspoon baking
powder. If self-rising fl our is
not available, use all-purpose
fl our and a total of 11/2
teaspoons baking powder.
— Do not use self-rising fl our for
shaping because the leavener
will give a bitter taste to the
outside of the biscuits.
1. Preheat the oven to 475
degrees and spray an 8-inch
round cake pan with nonstick
cooking spray.
2. Combine the self-rising fl our,
baking soda, salt and sugar in a
medium mixing bowl. With your
fi ngers or a pastry cutter, work
the shortening into the fl our mix-
ture until there are no shortening
lumps larger than a big pea.
3. Stir in the buttermilk and
let stand for 2 or 3 minutes. This
FAMILY
OWNED
dough is so wet that you cannot
shape it in the usual manner.
4. Pour the cup of all-purpose
fl our onto a plate or pie tin.
Flour your hands well. Spoon a
biscuit-sized lump of wet dough
into the fl our and sprinkle some
fl our over the wet dough to
coat the outside. Pick up the
biscuit and shape it roughly into
a soft round. At the same time,
shake off the excess fl our. Push
the biscuits tightly against one
another in the cake pan so that
they will rise up and not spread
out. Continue shaping biscuits in
this manner until all of the dough
is used.
5. Brush the biscuits with melt-
ed butter and bake just above
the center of the oven until
lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes.
Cool for 1 or 2 minutes in the
pan, then dump out and cut the
biscuits apart. Serve while hot.
Per serving: 200 calories; 7 g fat;
3 g saturated fat; 9 mg cholesterol;
4 g protein; 26 g carbohydrate; 3
g sugar; 1 g fi ber; 120 mg sodium;
34 mg calcium
— Recipe from “CookWise” by
Shirley O. Corriher
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needs
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CHEF
CHRISTIAN’S
SOUTHERN
DROP
BISCUITS
Yield: About 14 servings
400 grams (3 cups plus 1
tablespoon) self-rising fl our
35 grams (2 tablespoons plus 1
teaspoon) granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
75 grams (1/2 cup) lard or
vegetable shortening
160 grams (11 1/2 tablespoons)
frozen shredded
butter, see note
1 cup cold buttermilk
for introducing new native
DNA plant material that
will thrive during the entire
growing season, including
the heat and humidity preva-
lent in West Georgia. While
the heat turns the dial into
the misery index, we will
still be celebrating with
blooms, bees and butterfl ies.
One last thing very worth
noting is the Suncredible
sunfl owers plant’s ability
to give you cut-fl owers for
the vase. Every day I watch
users on Instagram making
arrangements out of roses,
zinnias, salvias and cone-
fl owers. Now we can all
go out and snip our own
sunfl owers to add, too.
This year it is Suncredible
Yellow, and plan on adding
Suncredible Saturn to your
pollinator arsenal in 2022.
Baker County
CUSTOM MEATS
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