The Sweet & Savory Life w/ Rynn Hennings:

with Rynn Hennings www.thehouseofelynryn.com

In the early days of train travel, there was no food on board for passengers. Travelers had to bring their own meal from home or wait until the train stopped to try to buy food. Soon after, young boys came on board to sell fruit and candies, but travelers didn’t like the offerings because they wanted a meal. So a few railroads decided to introduce dining cars and provide a “hotel” fine-dining experience to passengers-including white tablecloths, silver-plated flatware, and logoembossed china. Passengers loved it! Unfortunately, dining cars were terribly expensive, and not all railroads wanted to invest in them until they realized they were losing passengers to competitors who offered glamorous dining experiences. But once railroads opened their own dining cars, they tried to serve new and innovative foods to dazzle their customers.

One night a General Mills salesman traveling by train asked for a late-night snack. He was delighted when the chef was able to quickly prepare biscuits with a baking mix he had in cold storage. General Mills then worked to make a similar product that did not need refrigeration, and today that product is Bisquick. Although Bisquick became a profitable product for General Mills, the golden age of railroad dining cars did not fare as well because most trains could not charge enough to make the fine dining cars profitable. Here are recipes that use Bisquick as an ingredient:

NUTTY OKRA Servings: 4 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Ingredients

• ½ cup Bisquick • ½ cup salted peanuts, finely chopped • 1 teaspoon salt • ½ teaspoon pepper • 1 pound fresh or frozen (thawed) okra, cut into ½-inch pieces • 2 eggs, beaten • Cooking oil 1. Stir together the Bisquick, peanuts, salt, and pepper. 2. Dip the okra pieces in the egg and then add them to the

Bisquick mixture. Stir to coat. 3. Add ¼ cup of oil to a large skillet. Heat until hot, and then add the okra (cooking in 2-3 batches, so the pan is not crowded). Fry for about 4 minutes per batch or until the okra is brown, adding more oil when needed. Garnish with peanuts if desired. 4. TO DEEP FRY: Use 2 inches of oil heated to 375°F. Fry the okra in batches for about 4 minutes or until golden.

SPICY PIMENTO CHEESE SAUSAGE BALLS

Servings: (50) 1-inch balls

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 pound hot pork ground sausage • 2 ½ cups Bisquick • 1 ½ cups pimento cheese with jalapenos

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Break apart the pork and place it into a large bowl. Add the Bisquick and pimento cheese.

Mix the ingredients with your hands. 2. Roll into 1-inch balls and place them onto a rimmed baking pan with parchment paper. 3. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

CREAM CHEESE SAUSAGE BALLS

Servings: (50) 1-inch balls

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 22 – 24 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground pork sausage • 1 ¼ cups Bisquick • (1) 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened • 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (hand shred a block of cheese for best taste)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Break up the pork and place it into a large bowl. Add the Bisquick, cream cheese, and cheddar cheese. Mix the ingredients with your hands. 2. Roll into 1-inch balls and place them on a rimmed baking pan with parchment paper. 3. Bake for 22-24 minutes or until golden brown

Sweet Tips

Nutty Okra Recipe: Use only small, tender okra pods for the best taste. For much more additional information, photos, and even more recipes, go to Houseofelynryn.com

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