Tag: biscuits

Pancake mix can be made at home for less money and less packaging. The mix can be easily adapted to make other favorite quick breads like muffins and biscuits. Cornbread can be made if cornmeal is added. Jiffy Mixes are actually a line of Michigan baking products made in Chelsea, Michigan. http://www.jiffymix.com/ (I love Jiffy Mixes but I cheat and make my own!)

This mix is not gluten free, see this webpage with cookie recipes for tips to make your own gluten free versions of quick bread baked goods. It is based on a half and half mixture of white flour for more gluten content, to support a light airy baked good, combined with whole wheat flour and wheat germ to boost the natural nutrients found in the whole wheat berry.

My basic Quick Bread Mix contains dry milk powder so that only water, oil, egg and sweetener will need to be added when making a speedy batch of pancakes, muffins or biscuits.

Basic Quick Bread Mix

(makes about 15 cups of dry Quick Bread Mix)

5 cups White Flour  (or any mixture of 10-12 cups flour)
5 cups Whole Wheat Flour
2 cups Wheat Germ (or 2 cups flour or very finely crushed dry cereal flakes)
4 Tablespoons Baking Powder
2 Tablespoons Salt
3 cups Dry Powdered Milk (optional – if liquid milk or milk substitute is to be used instead of water for baking.)

High Protein Variation with Pomegranate Peel Powder

• 7 cups Whole Wheat Flour
• 3 cups Chick Pea Flour
• 1 cup Coconut Flour
• 1/2 cup Ground Flaxmeal
• 1/4-1/3 cup Pomegranate Peel Powder (inner peel dehydrated and ground, see G13.Pomegranate)- if stored the powder may need to be sifted or smash any lumps by hand – it clumps – absorbing moisture from the air. Pomegranate peel has antioxidants that give a preservative effect to the baked good, and to our health.
• 2 Tablespoons Cardamom powder
• 4 Tablespoons Baking Powder
• 2 Tablespoons Salt

Using the Mix:

Pancakes  

1 1/2 cups Quick Bread Mix
1 egg

Pancake batter is drippy but not watery.

1 Tablespoon Sugar (helps brown the surface)
1 Tablespoon Oil
1 cup water plus extra 1/8 cup water as needed – if batch is thick or if thinner pancakes are desired.

Pancake batter is fairly runny but will mound slightly and the back of the spoon may be used to spread out the pancake batter to an even thickness. Fresh or thawed blueberries or chocolate chips can be dropped in the dough in each individual pancake or mixed in the batter. The sticky sweetness can burn to the pan more.

Pancakes take about 2-3 minutes per side on a medium hot skillet or large pan. Watch the surface for air bubbles to begin bubbling to the top and flip them for the first time after the bubbles have started to pop but haven’t all stopped rising to the surface. The second side can take just 1-2 minutes. The skillet may need to pulled from the heat if the pancakes are burning but are still raw in the middle.

Biscuits

makes about 9 three inch square biscuits
(bake for about 30 minutes at 375-400F)

3 cups Quick Bread Mix
1 stick margarine or butter
– using two knives, your hands or a pastry blender crumble the mix and butter together until granular – like floury rice crumbles instead of obvious bits of butter.

1 cup water – add and mix together.

Dump the dough onto a lightly floured work surface to fold the mass onto itself, squish down, fold again, squish down, repeat.

Add a little extra water by sprinkling on a spoonful or two if the crumbles aren’t sticking together well.

Powder the cutting board or table before the folding process or during as needed. If a little too much water was added just add a little more sprinkling of the Quick Bread Mix over the dough.

Eventually form the dough into a rectangle roughly 6 inches by 12 inches and about 1/1/2 inches thick  and then cut into 9 to 12 pieces. Perfect rounds was never the goal – crunch and taste but a more moist dense biscuit can be expected when using part whole wheat flour.

Basic Muffins

Makes one dozen. (about 25-30 minutes at 375 F)

2 1/2 cups Quick Bread Mix
1/2 to 3/4 cup Sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Oil or 1 stick melted Butter or Margarine
1 teaspoon (tsp) Vanilla Extract *** and/or other flavor combinations and add ins
1 cup Water
or 1 cup Applesauce plus 1/8 cup water if needed
or 1/2 cup cooked pumpkin or cooked pureed sweet potato plus 1/2-3/4 cup water *

*Possible substitutions for the liquid. When milk powder is in the mix many other liquids can take the place. Orange juice or other fruit juice concentrates can be used in the concentrate form as a substitute for the liquid in the recipe and for part of the sweetener – depending on the family’s sweet tooth.  (Milk protein does add stability to the chemical mixture. Split pea soup powder that was made with no onion or other savory seasonings is a protein substitute worth trying in baking.)

Spiced Apple Muffin variation:

• 1 cup Applesauce instead of water. Flavoring: 1 teaspoon Vanilla plus 2 teaspoons Ginger powder, 1/2 tsp Cardamom powder and 1/2 tsp Nutmeg powder.
• The Applesauce muffin flavor could be the simple vanilla – up to 1 Tablespoon of Vanilla could be used if that is the only flavor. 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of cinnamon would be typical with applesauce.
• Possible add-ins: 1/2 to 1 cup of raisins, currents or other chopped dried fruit – rehydrate for a few minutes with 1/4 cup very hot water; 1/2 to 1 cup chopped nuts; 1/2 to 1 cup finely grated carrot; a half package of chocolate chips; or a cup of blueberries fresh or thawed slightly; 1 cup finely diced raw apple or pear; – With additions the one dozen muffin cups get too full and a mini muffin pan can usually be filled in addition to the regular size muffin pan resulting in roughly 12 regular and 6-8 mini muffins / tart pan.