Dana Marie's Country Living Blog

I made the most yummy simple biscuits the other night. They're great as a side dish at dinner or for a delicious snack. These are semi-homemade, because you start with a couple cans of refrigerator biscuits. I used Pillsbury®, but any brand will work. Enjoy! ~Dana Garlic & Cheese Pull-Apart Biscuits Ingredients 2 cans refrigerator biscuits 1/2 cup salted butter 1 tablespoon chopped parsley chopped fresh chives, to taste garlic powder, to taste garlic salt, to taste ground pepper, to taste 7 ounces gouda or mozzarella cheese Instructions 1 . Using kitchen shears, cut the opened biscuits into pieces, about 3/4 inch. Place them in a large bowl. Biscuit pieces and herbed butter 2 . Next, melt the butter. I used my homemade garlic-chive butter - the recipe is here on the blog if you would like to make it. Otherwise, you can use regular butter and add the parsley, chives, garlic powder, garlic salt and ground pepper. As for how much to add, just season to your taste. Melted butter w...

When I need roasted garlic for a recipe, I always roast more than I need so I will have some ready for other uses throughout the week. It's heavenly in so many ways! - as a spread on bread - blended into softened butter - tossed into pasta - as a topping for grilled steak or fish - stirred into soups - as a dip flavoring - added to mashed potatoes - pizza topping - in a marinade - as a topping for sautéed vegetables - some people eat it with a spoon It can be kept in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Just separate the cloves out of the head and wrap tightly to minimize drying out. If you wish, you can freeze it as chunks removed from the peels or mashed. Spread the chunks in a freezer bag and freeze flat, for easy removal when you want to use some. Or you can freeze mashed roasted garlic in an ice cube tray.  Keeps up to 3 months in the freezer. Enjoy this delicacy! ~ Dana Garlic paste - mashed roasted garlic Roasted Garlic Ingredients heads of garlic olive oil salt (optional) In...

I made butter from scratch! So much fun. You can really tell the difference in flavor when it's made from scratch. I do have to buy cream from the grocery store, though. I wish I could have a cow. I love this kind of butter with anything savory that I cook. It's also a perfect match for steak and baked potatoes. I flavored this batch with garlic and chives. So delicious! Another great thing about making butter from scratch is all the buttermilk that you get. It can be frozen in canning jars for up to 3 months or up to 6 months if you don't mind it separating when you thaw it. It's so nice to have on hand when buttermilk is called for in a recipe. Try it, you'll love it! ~ Dana Homemade butter with garlic & chives Homemade Butter Ingredients 5 cups heavy whipping cream 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste Supplies butter muslin or several layers of cheesecloth a butter mold or container with a lid Instructions 1 . Pour the cream into a mixing bowl. Using a sta...

These Steak Pinwheels are stuffed with cheese, garlic and spinach. They're a great way to fancy-up your steak. Enjoy! ~Dana Steak Pinwheels Ingredients 2.25-pound flank steak 1 teaspoon coarse salt 1 tablespoon cracked peppercorns 1 tablespoon minced garlic 5 ounces cream cheese 3 slices Parmesan or Fontina cheese 1 cup fresh spinach leaves 2 tablespoons salted butter Instructions 1 . Place the steak between two pieces of plastic wrap, with enough room to expand. On a cutting board, use a meat mallet to pound the steak until it's 1/4-inch thick. 2 . Sprinkle both sides of the meat with the salt, pepper and garlic. Spread the cream cheese on one side and cover with cheese slices. Place spinach leaves on top. 3 . Roll up the steak, starting from one of the long sides. The rolled log should be about 4 inches in diameter. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 15 minutes. 4 . Remove from freezer, unwrap the roll, and tie baker's twine around it in six even...

These little bites are so addicting and so yummy! They have all my favorite flavors. If you happen to have leftovers, you can keep them in an airtight container for a few days or freeze them for up to 3 months. Enjoy! ~Dana Cheesy Garlic Squash Bites Ingredients 2 cups shredded yellow squash or zucchini 1-1/2 cups Italian-flavored bread crumbs 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese 2 eggs 1/2 cup chopped green onions 2 tablespoons chopped dill 1 teaspoon salt (optional) 1 teaspoon pepper, or to taste (optional) 2 teaspoons garlic powder ranch dip for serving Instructions 1 . Grate your squash or zucchini onto a thick pile of paper towels or a clean tea towel. Squeeze as much liquid out of it as you can.  2 . In a large mixing bowl, stir together the squash, bread crumbs, cheeses, eggs, onions, dill, salt and pepper until well combined. 3 . Using a small cookie scoop or a spoon, form 1-inch balls and place about 1/2-inch apart on a parchment paper-lined cooki...

Here's my recipe for orange zucchini bread. I like to dress it up with an orange-flavored cream cheese frosting and some fresh orange slices. You can freeze the loaves for up to 3 months, and you can also freeze the frosting. It's nice to have it already made when you pull a loaf of the bread out of the freezer. Enjoy! ~Dana Orange Zucchini Bread Ingredients 3 eggs 2 cups granulated sugar 1 cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract juice and zest from 1 orange 3 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 2 cups grated zucchini Makes 2 loaves Instructions 1 . In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, oil, vanilla, orange juice and zest. 2 . In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking soda. Add this to the wet ingredients, one cup at a time until combined. 3 . Grate your zucchini onto a thick pile of paper towels or a clean tea towel. Squeeze as much liquid out of the zucchini as you can. Fold it into the cake batter and mix it in ...