Vintage Biscuits

a vintage recipe clipping found in my 1943 edition of
The Joy of Cooking

I don't know why I'm so into vintage recipes these days... perhaps I'm just an "old soul." (that's what I was recently told by a companion at a dinner party) The above recipe was found tucked in between the pages of a newly-acquired 1943 edition of The Joy of Cooking. While showing the stack of clippings to David (who was in town from Ithaca last weekend), I'd re-read this recipe which I had recently only skimmed over...

fresh bacon from the butcher

Never having bought bacon before (literally), I decided to go to my local butcher instead of picking up a pack at the supermarket. For just $4.50 for a dozen slices, I received what I'd believed to be a much superior quality to any bacon I'd find pre-packed at the supermarket. (quoting Julia: Freshness is essential, that makes all the difference!) I also picked up a half-pint of cooked rice, from the local Chinese restaurant, because leftover rice is always a pain... (David and I are--proudly--sans le microwave)

a dozen eleven muffins, ready to go

Prepping the muffin mixture was easy enough; but the amount was just shy of a dozen--the twelfth recess held a "snack for the cook." (lucky for me, that was me) Thirty minutes later, from a pre-heated 425° oven, I pulled out this:

not a low calorie food

At about twenty-five minutes in, I opened the oven door just enough to check on the muffins--and they looked amazing. Just shy of ten minutes later, I was proudly plating the finished product.

(eleven) rice muffins

The more I cook, the more I'm surprised at how quickly some things can be done. I've also become better at pinpointing which ingredients can improve a recipe--the next time I cook "rice muffins" (which seemed more like biscuits to me than they did like muffins) I think I'll add some chopped chives to the batter and a pad of butter atop of each muffin prior to baking. I prefer something a little more buttery...

good enough for seconds

However, they were good enough to If I told you how many of these I ate I'd be embarrassed. But even though I did find one or two minor flaws with the muffins, I think I will make rice muffins again (with some minor adjustments). After all, there's still a quarter-pint of cooked rice leftover in the fridge!