Luck and Love and Angel Biscuits

Ah-yah. What a day.

Well, it's not been bad. Okay. Part of it was. I talked to one of my brothers and he hung up on me. If I was a prayin' woman, I would pray for a softening of the heart for each of us.
I would pray for us to find out where our anger lies, for us to root it out, for us to be able to love each other the way I know we do. Somewhere. I know we do.

But besides that, it's been a good day. I weeded three rows of beans and it took me three hours. I mulched them. Mr. Moon went to an old car rally to raise money for a boy who has a horrible blood disease. He bought raffle tickets and as he always does, he won and won and won. One of the prizes- a TV- he gave to the family of the boy the fund-raiser was being held for. One of the prizes was a giant Easter basket and I'll take that tomorrow to Lily's brunch and egg hunt. One of the prizes was a manly-as-shit griller/barbecuer/smoker thing.
Mr. Moon is just damn lucky. He always gets FOB parking. He won me in love. What more need I say?

Jessie's here and we made angel biscuit dough together. Most to take tomorrow and a bit to roll out for tonight's left-overs feast. We'll have mustard shrimp and brown rice, venison meat loaf and green beans and potatoes and corn on the cob, and a salad. And biscuits. The table will be filled with food and hot sauces and salt and pepper and butter and ketchup and last year's blackberry jam.
We're all lucky.

You bet.

Bethany's gourd and cucumber seeds are coming up. So are the zinnias.

Tomorrow Owen will learn how to hunt colored eggs.
Tonight I am home with my husband and my daughter.

If you want my recipe for angel biscuits which I am sure I have posted over and over again, go HERE.
There's a recipe for fig preserves too.

If you have set your cap for someone and you want to seal the deal (and I say this every time, almost), make them these biscuits. If you have already sealed the deal and want to remind them of how much you love them, make these biscuits. If you are hungry and need comforting, make these biscuits. If the Queen is coming for tea, makes these biscuits.

Make these biscuits.

Serve with butter and something sweet. Honey is the purest form of that. Fruit preserves of any kind ain't bad.

Love on a plate.

The rest is up to you.

Because I Have No Xanax

Well, here I am in hour I-don't-even-know of one of the worst anxiety phases of my entire life and it's so bad that I am rethinking my trip to the island. Listen- I can't even bring myself to call the guy to set up the ride for the bay-crossing!
However, I am proceeding as if I were going; I am trying to fake this until I make this and then hope that the magic of an island cures me.
In the meantime, I am going to write out the recipe for angel biscuits because what in the world is as soothing as contemplating biscuits?
These biscuits are fussier than my normal biscuits. However, they are the very best biscuits I have ever personally made or eaten. The recipe was given to me by my husband's Aunt Ann who is a good Christian Southern woman and who died once at church on an Easter morning and was revived and risen and is living to this day in Nashville where I feel certain she is still making these biscuits.
Need I say more?
I don't think so.
Except for this- if there is someone you have set your hat for and they seem not to be sure of their feelings for you, make them these biscuits.
Things will soon be going your way and love will abound.

Angel Biscuits

4 cups self-rising flour
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 Tsp. soda
1 cup Crisco (I like butter flavored)
1 cup self-rising flour (this is not a typo)
2 cups buttermilk
1 pkg. dry yeast dissolved in 1/2 cup warm water

Sift flour, sugar, and soda. Cut in shortening until texture of cornmeal. Mix the 1 cup of flour, 2 cups of milk and yeast in the water in a separate bowl. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. Place in a greased, covered bowl. Keep in refrigerator for use as needed. You may keep this for up to a week and use only as much at a time as you want.
Roll out the dough on a floured counter to desired thickness and cut biscuits with a glass of desired biscuit-size that has been dipped in flour. If you want layers, roll them fairly thin, sprinkle with a little flour, fold dough over and roll again. This may be repeated several times. Bake on a greased baking sheet at 425 degrees for approximately 20 minutes or until brown and lovely.

Serve with love, butter, and honey. Or, fig preserves. Recipe follows.

Fig Preserves

4 pounds of fresh figs
1 lemon
4 cups of sugar
1 cup of water

Wash figs, slice lemon extremely thin and remove all seeds. Combine sugar, water, and lemon in a large pan and bring to a boil and cook for five minutes. Add figs and cook rapidly until the figs are clear. You will know what I mean.
Seal in clean, hot jars with canning lids and bands. Process in boiling water bath for about ten-fifteen minutes. Remove jars and listen for the "pop" which means they have sealed.
Makes 3 pints.