Cheesy Biscuits

I have made these before with Bisquick, but the other day I was out of Bisquick. So I found a recipe for drop biscuits in my Betty Crocker Cookbook and added a handful of grated cheese. All the kids liked them and so did Fax. And they were better than the Bisquick version. Not quite as easy, but pretty close.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 TBSP baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter-flavored Crisco
1 cup milk
1 big handful of grated cheese (about a cup)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 F. Mix together dry ingredients. Cut in the Crisco. (I just used a fork, and then made sure it was well mixed in with my hands.) Add the milk and stir just until moist. Add grated cheese and stir just until combined. Drop on sheet pan lined with parchment paper. You can make these as big or small as you want. I usually divide the dough into 10 biscuits. When you make them this big it takes about 12 minutes to cook them. So, obviously, if they're smaller, less time; if they're bigger, more time.

Lentil Soup with Smoked Sausage

I found this recipe on Kraftfoods.com, but it called for hot dogs in it. (gross) My mom would call them 'wieners.' (Also gross but for a different reason.) Not that I hate hot dogs, but I only like them grilled. NOT BOILED! Anyway, I basically followed the recipe with the exception of the smoked sausage, and I also added some curry for flavor. You could add more curry if you want the soup to be spicier. Jake and I loved this soup. It was pretty easy to make, smelled good, and tasted good too. Fax, Brook, and Summer ate theirs but said it would have been better without the lentils. But one of the reasons I like this recipe so much is that lentils are SO GOOD for you! A mere 1/4 cup (uncooked) has 11 grams of fiber and 10 grams of protein. Not to mention how cheap they are. So let me know if you try this recipe and what you think of it.

Ingredients:
6 slices Bacon, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
Smoked Sausage, cut in half lengthwise & sliced
1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 tsp.)
4 cans (15 oz) chicken broth
1/2 lb. lentils, sorted & washed
2 carrots (1/4 lb.), chopped
1/2 lb. red potatoes, chopped
1 tsp. curry powder
1/2 cup Sour Cream

Directions:
Cook bacon and onions in large saucepan 5 to 6 min. Add smoked sausage and stir occasionally for about 5 more minutes. Add garlic; cook 1 min.
Add next 5 ingredients; stir. Bring to boil; simmer on medium to low heat about 40 min. or until lentils and vegetables are tender. (If you like more broth, you can cover the soup. If you like less broth, leave the lid off.)
Stir in sour cream, if desired.

I'm using the picture from Kraftfoods. Mine looked basically the same, but it was slightly more yellow from the curry and, of course, no wieners. ~And I forgot to take a picture.