This is an invitation to a Maritime Kitchen party:

“Having informal night at … tomorrow night!!! (Saturday night chili recipes are being featured!!) Friends are passing thru from Cape Breton. Love to see everyone … more the merrier!!! Drop over after 6:30ish!!! Bring a musical instrument if you are so inclined!! What to bring… 1. Whatever you wish to drink, but then I’ll have beer, wine too. 2.A choice of an app, biscuits or corn bread that will complement chili and Bob’s beans, or dessert, But it’s optional!! Don’t stress yourself.. enjoy your day!!3. A musical instrument if you play. But I do have a piano and spoons!!4. And if you wish to bring friends that’s great too! Just want a gathering of good peeps!! Cheerio!!”

The note showed up in my Inbox Friday morning. An impromptu, casual, last minute pot luck for neighbours and friends to spend the evening talking about everything from politics to trying to name our future pup. We’d only made it to the ‘c’s before one of my friends lost his mind. Not everybody finds puppy naming stimulating…

In typical east coast style, we had enough food to sink a ship! There were sixteen people to eat a huge pot of vegetarian chili, another of spicy ground turkey chili, a pork and garbanzo bean creation, two honking loaves of molasses cornbread, buttermilk biscuits and my blue cheese biscuits. All to be washed down with the odd bottle of wine or beer!

We cozied in for the evening telling tall tales and lies in true Maritime fashion. I loved it!

Flaky Blue Cheese Tea Biscuits

Preheat oven 425*F

3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 ½ tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoons white sugar
½ cup cold butter, cut into 8 pieces
4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
1 ½ cups heavy cream

Sift flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together into a medium bowl

Add butter and cheese to bowl then, using a pastry cutter, cut into flour mixture until it resembles coarse oatmeal

Stir in milk…mix well and turn onto floured board

Knead lightly several turns then roll dough out to 1 ½ inch thick…cut with a sharp cutter

Place on a parchment lined baking sheet

Check at 12 minutes…tops should be golden and bottoms browned

Remove from oven and cool on cooling rack

THE LOVE: When you’re cutting out your biscuits be careful not to twist the cutter. Straight down and straight up! Twisting the dough inhibits the biscuits from their maximum raise.

printable copy

one year ago: coddle

Thanks for reading.