Fettucine with poppy seeds and prosciutto

This is my adaptation of a recipe from Saveur using tagliatelle. I used fettucine instead (linguine would be okay too) and left out the scallions (because I didn't have any).

The poppy seeds are a fun twist on this.

Don't forget: if you don't have buttermilk, you can substitute whole milk with a spoonful of white vinegar added to it. Let it sit for a few minutes before using.

2 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbsp. poppy seeds
½ cup white wine
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup heavy cream
1 lb. tagliatelle or fettucine
2 oz. prosciutto, thinly sliced
½ cup finely grated Parmesan, plus more to garnish
4 scallions, cut into ½″ slices
Juice of ½ lemon

Heat butter and oil in a 12″ skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots. Season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until soft, about 2 minutes. Add poppy seeds; cook, stirring, until fragrant and shallots begin to brown lightly, about 3 minutes. Add wine; cook until almost all liquid evaporates, about 5 minutes. Add buttermilk and cream; cook, stirring, until reduced slightly, about 3 minutes. Meanwhile, bring a pot of salted water to a boil; add pasta, and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving a little cooking water, and add to sauce in skillet. Add prosciutto, Parmesan, half the scallions, and lemon juice; toss to combine, adding water if necessary to make a smooth sauce. Season with salt and pepper, and transfer to a serving dish; sprinkle with remaining scallions and more Parmesan.

Buttermilk biscuits

This batch of biscuits, while tasty, didn't rise nearly as much as it should have. I think that means it's time for new baking powder.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 stick cold butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup buttermilk

Whisk the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter and shortening until it resembles coarse crumbs. Using a fork, work in the buttermilk.

Turn out the dough on a floured surface and gently roll into a 1-in tall rectangle. Cut biscuits. Place on an ungreased baking sheet and bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Brush with melted butter, if you like.

Buttermilk panna cotta

There's going to be a lot more panna cotta-making around my house, let me tell you. Easy to make, no baking required, delicious.

1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4-oz packet unflavored gelatin
1 vanilla bean
1/2 cup sugar

Put the buttermilk in a saucepan and sprinkle the gelatin over it; let sit 5 minutes. Turn the heat to low and cook, stirring, until the gelatin dissolves completely, 3-5 minutes.

Scrape the vanilla seeds into the mixture. Add the pod as well, along with the sugar and cream. Stir over medium heat until steam rises, 3-5 minutes. Turn off the heat, cover, and let sit 15-20 minutes. Remove the vanilla pod and pour the mixture into 4 to 6 custard cups. Chill until set, 4 hours. Serve in the cups or invert onto plates.

Lemon-buttermilk muffins

I have a container of buttermilk in my fridge that needs to be used up, so last night I made a batch of these lemon-buttermilk muffins.

Reprinted below:

2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 egg
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup buttermilk
Sliced almonds (optional), for garnish

Grease a muffin tin and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat 1 cup sugar with the butter and lemon zest on medium until light and fluffy. Add the egg, lemon juice, and almond extract. Beat until just combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary. Add one third of the flour, then one third of the buttermilk, beating until combined. Repeat with the remaining flour and buttermilk and combine until just blended.

Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Sprinkle a few almonds (if using) over the muffins. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until the muffins just turn golden.

Notes: THESE WILL SPILL OVER THE TOPS OF THE MUFFIN TIN, so only fill the cups up about 2/3. That's not a bad thing, mind you, they taste the same, but I did end up with some very blobby-looking muffins. They're very tasty, and I think they'd be even better with some fresh berries added in.

Sweet potato buttermilk rolls

For last week's dinner party, I made these sweet potato buttermilk rolls from Pinch My Salt. They were REALLY. GOOD.

Notes on the recipe:

I used two big sweet potatoes, roasted and mashed. Don't know exactly how much that was.

I used fresh yeast.

These are best hot.

These also make a great breakfast: I've been eating the leftover rolls at my desk at work all week long.

Blue waffles

Yep, blue waffles. No, it's not just the light.

The recipe originally called for two cups of all-purpose flour. I substitued one cup of blue cornmeal for one of the cups of flour. It gave the waffles a nice sweet grittiness, and left them a little blue around the edges. Also it's healthier, with more fiber.

1 3/4 cups buttermilk
2 eggs, separated
4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
a splash of vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
pinch of salt

Whisk the buttermilk with the egg yolks, butter and vanilla. Meanwhile beat the egg whites to soft peaks. Mix the dry ingredients together, then add the buttermilk mixture and combine. Stir in the egg whites and away you go to the waffle machine.

I served these with a little blackberry syrup. Yum.

Buttermilk cornbread

Also known as "skillet cornbread," because this is cooked in a cast-iron skillet. Which, for my money, is the only way to cook cornbread. A good cast-iron skillet will already have a built-in layer of bacon grease (that's what it's there for! To flavor the cornbread!), and, come on, isn't that the most appetizing-looking cornbread you've ever seen?

The Northern version of cornbread is typically sweet and not very dense, essentially a corn muffin rather than cornbread. This is incorrect. Every good Southerner knows that cornbread is a salty delivery system for fresh butter, and should be generally flavored with bacon grease.

2 cups yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 - 2 cups buttermilk
3-4 tablespoons bacon fat, lard, or vegetable oil

Sift the dry ingredients together, and add the eggs and buttermilk. Mix into a loose, soupy mass. Heat the fat or vegetable oil in a cast-iron skillet until smoking. Swirl it around the pan, then add to the batter and mix in well. Pour the batter into the pan and bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes, or until brown spots begin to appear on top. Serve hot.

Cost: a small bag of yellow cornmeal will run about $1.59; two quarts of buttermilk are about $3.59. Assume around 50 cents each for the cornmeal and buttermilk, 17 cents each for the eggs, and everything else should already be in the pantry. Around $1.30 for a big ol' pan of fresh buttermilk cornbread, which will yield at least 8-10 servings. For a true Southern experience, crumble it up into a glass of buttermilk and eat with a spoon.