Springtime Hand-Ground Fennel Seed and Buttermilk Biscuits

The time for springtime picnics has arrived! I wanted to make my famous Flakey Goat's Milk and Thyme Biscuits for a lovely garden party my husband and I were having this afternoon, but I realized I had no goat's milk and only buttermilk. I also wanted a more delicate and spicier flavor than thyme to excite my pallet for the brighter flavors to come within a couple months. I scoured my spice rack for something that would fulfill my want of brightness when I stumbled upon a jar of dried fennel seeds. "Perfect!" I thought. These biscuits are incredibly light and fluffy with an uplifting flavor, perfect for a springtime garden party. Serve them fresh from the oven with apple butter or blueberry preserves.

What You'll Need:

2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 tablespoons ground fennel seed*

1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold cut into cubes

1 cup buttermilk

½ cup butter, melted

*You can purchase ground fennel seed, but I like grinding it myself with my mortar and pestle. It gives the fennel a more rustic quality and provides a wonderful texture within the biscuits.

- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

- In a large mixing bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, soda, and fennel.

- Using two knives, cut in the ½ cup of cold butter until well blended (this can also be done in a food processor which will speed up the process).

- Add the buttermilk and form the dough into a ball. Feel free to add a little extra flour if you need.

- The rest of the process is identical to the recipe for my Flakey Goat's Milk and Thyme Biscuits. Form the dough into a ball and roll out into a rectangle about ½" thick.

- Arrange the rectangle so one of the short sides is facing you. Starting from the edge closest to you and working up the rectangle, using a pastry brush or spoon, lightly cover two thirds of your dough with the melted butter. Starting with the farthest edge, fold the dough into thirds.

- Roll out the dough again and repeat the previous step about 3 more times. This process is what will make your biscuits flakey. Be careful not to roll to hard or be too harsh with your dough, otherwise your biscuits will be tough (and nobody likes tough biscuits!)

- Once you have coated and folded your dough for the last time, roll out the dough until it is about 1" thick. Using a sharp knife, cut the biscuits into equal squares. If you prefer circular biscuits like me, you can also use a round cookie cutter or even a biscuit cutter to cut out your biscuits.

- Place your cut biscuits on a greased cookie sheet and bake for about 10 to 12 minutes until golden brown.

- Remove from oven and let cool slightly. These babies are best served warm.

Yield: About 12

Wall Stenciling

Spring is in the air and I always get the itch to redecorate when the days get longer and warmer. Nothing brightens up a space better than a new paint job - and what a paint job this is! Stenciling is a wonderful way to update your space and unlike wallpaper, when you get sick of the pattern, you can just paint over it. It's the perfect project for a rainy, March afternoon and a wonderful little item to check off your "Sring Cleaning To Do" list.

What You'll Need:

Acetate (.005 or .010 thickness)

Permanent Marker

Razor

Masking Tape

Small Paint Roller

Paint color of your choice

Paper Plate(s)

Rag towel or paper towels

1. Go online and find a pattern you would like to use. Try searching for wall stencils or damask patterns. You can do a repeating pattern, or you can do a single image. Once you've found your pattern, print it out as large as you would like onto a piece of paper.
2. Layer your acetate on top of the pattern and using your marker, trace the pattern onto the acetate.
3. With the acetate layered over cardboard to prevent scratching the surface below, use the razor to cut out your pattern from the acetate. You now have a wall stencil! On to the actual painting of the wall.
4. Next, lay the tape along each edge of your pattern. Place the pattern on the wall where you would like your stencil.
5. Pour some of the paint onto the plate. Coat your roller in the paint. Once your roller is coated, drag the roller across the towels a few times. Your roller should look almost dry.
6. Carefully begin to paint over your stencil onto the wall. Do not press too hard, otherwise the paint will seep under the edges of the stencil resulting in a sloppy image.
7. Now comes the most rewarding part - carefully remove the stencil starting from the bottom up.
8. If you have a repeating pattern, replace the stencil in the next location and repeat. And there you have it - a cheap and easy way to update any space for the Spring. See below for stenciling tips.

Stenciling Tips:

• Start simple! If you're new to this, do not pick a pattern that is too ornate with a lot of curls or leaves. The simpler the better.
• If you are doing a repeating pattern, start your stenciling in the most visible corner and work from there. That way, if your stencil does not line up properly in the end, it will be in an unnoticeable area of your wall.
• As I mentioned above, make sure there is not too much paint on your roller. Your roller should look almost dry before rolling it over the stencil.
• At the end of your stenciling, use a paint brush to touch up areas that were hard to get to or need a sharper edge. 

Mini French Vanilla Ice Cream Pies with Fig Compote Topping

Spring is right around the corner. The birds are returning north from their winter retreat, purple and yellow crocuses are popping their tiny heads above the sullen, snow-soaked ground and each day, the sun slinks down behind the hills a little later. This dessert is wonderful for this time of year. The flavors are reminiscent of the winter while the ice cream is a lovely look forward to warmer months. These are super easy to make and are great for parties and entertaining.

What You'll Need:

1/3 cup almond meal

1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup cold, unsalted butter cut into cubes

2 tablespoon ice water

1 pint of French vanilla ice cream, soft but not melted

*For the recipe for the Fig Compote, refer to my post on January 15th.

1. Preheat the oven to 400 and fill a muffin tray with paper cupcake cups.
2. Combine the meal, flour and sugar in a bowl. Whisk to combine thoroughly. Add the butter cubes and coat with the flour mixture.
3. Using two knives, a pastry cutter, or a food processor, "cut" the butter into the flour until the dough forms into large pea-sized crumbs.
4. Sprinkle the water over the dough and combine. This is a VERY crumbly crust and should not form a ball.
5. Spoon about a tablespoon of dough into each paper cup. Using your fingers with the cup still in the tray, press the dough into the cup until compacted. Add more dough if necessary to make sure the whole bottom is covered.
6. Bake the cups in the oven for about 5 to 6 minutes until slightly golden brown but still soft. Do not over bake or your crusts will be too hard.
7. Remove the cups from the oven and let cool COMPLETELY.
8. When your crusts have cooled, spoon out about 2 tablespoons of ice cream into each cup on top of the crust. Use your spoon to level out the top of each pie.
9. While still in the tray, place the pies inside the freezer and freeze until the ice cream has re-hardened, about 20 to 30 minutes at most.

There are many ways you can serve these babies. The picture above shows the Bourbon Fig Compote, but here are some other tasty ideas:

Soft Spiced Pears
Caramel Sauce
Chocolate Ganache
Warm Apple Sauce
Fresh Mixed Berry Compote
Earl Grey and Cardamom Drizzle
Whipped Mascarpone