I had the most surprising call yesterday. A call from a famous person no less! Really. Imagine my surprise when I answered my cell phone to hear the unmistakable voice of Niecy Nash, star of Style Network's Clean House, and her other zany show, Reno 911. I wrote about her in a blog post last week, and then I was talking to her! Go figger. You see, while I was digging around at her website for a link to include in the post, I decided to email one of her peeps in hopes that Mz. Niecy would somehow get the message. I wanted her to know how much my mother has enjoyed watching Clean House, and that she always perked up and smiled when she heard or saw Mz. Niecy fussing some messy homeowner about his/her "foolishness and chaos" involving an abundance of clutter.
When I got an email back asking for my phone number, I just assumed one of Mz. Niecy's assistants wanted to Google me to make sure I wasn't some kind of crazed stalker. No...it was so I could get a personal call from the star diva herself! The sweet words she shared about keeping Mom in prayer were touching, but the fact that she took time from what must be a crazy busy schedule of filming two TV series and a movie...well, what can you say? She made my day. I even got a smile out of Mother when I told her Mz. Niecy had called all the way from Hollywood to tell her she hoped she was doing okay and that she was praying for her.
So, if you ever stop by and see this, Mz. Niecy, you are the real deal, the sweetest thing, a bomb of a diva, and it's nice to see fame and riches haven't destroyed the goodness of your soul! Thank You!
Now, what sort of "expected goodness" am I talking about today besides the "surprise" kind I received? Well, it's recipe day, and today I'm sharing my all time favorite. It's a family recipe we hold near and dear to our hearts, as it came from my grandmother (Mom's mom), Bigmama.
The directions for making Bigmama's biscuits originally appeared in our inspirational book pictured over in the sidebar, along with the story of how she'd tried valiantly for years to teach me to make the biscuits, but i never mastered her techniques.
I hope you enjoy it. If you have success with the recipe, I'd dearly love to know how you did it!
BIGMAMA'S BISCUITS
Use a medium large bowl that will become your biscuit bowl forever. Fill it ¾ full with sifted Gold Medal Self-Rising Flour. “Doodle out a ‘waller hole’ in the middle of your bowl,” as Bigmama used to say. Make this well by gently swishing your fist in the flour. It will hold the other ingredients.
Pour in ½ tablespoon of cooking oil. In a standard drinking glass, stir together ½ cup buttermilk and ½ cup water. Add to your well.
Work the mixture gently with your fingers, pulling in as little extra flour as possible. Try not to handle or knead the dough very much. Prepare your heavy iron skillet by pouring in a thin layer of oil. Roll the skillet around to spread the oil evenly. Pinch off biscuits and place into skillet. (Dusting your hands lightly with flour helps.)
When the pan is full and biscuits rest gently against one another, sprinkle on a small amount of oil to the raw biscuit tops. Put skillet into a cold oven, and set at 400 degrees. Put your pan in the middle of the rack so biscuits cook evenly. When they are light golden brown, move skillet to top rack until darker brown. If your oven is true to temperature, the whole process, including preparation time, will take about 25 minutes. The first few times, watch the biscuits' progress in the oven closely to be sure.
Butter immediately...or cover with gravy...or drown in maple or cane syrup. Any way you like your biscuit, you'll love these!
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41 comments:
Angie, Beautiful call from Mz. Niecy - if it perked up your mom, it was a true, honest-to-God blessing.
And, I see you didn't mention fat content in your recipe. Just how many zero's come at the end of the calorie count per biscuit? (Which, btw, are tied w/homemade chocolate chip cookies for my favorite comfort foods on Planet Earth!)
Wow, what a story. It must have been so exciting. People can be so surprising in their wonderfulness.
What goes around comes around - all your goodness is coming back to you!
I absolutely agree with Amy's comment. What a very special phone call!
And those biscuits look perfect. Mm-mmm.
What a wonderful surprise. Always nice to hear about the ways in which people connect. And those biscuits look yummy!!
I am flabbergasted! What a sweet, sweet woman to call you like that. Think about what the world would be like if we could all be like that. (Well, you already are that nice, but I have some work to do.)
Now, biscuits. I so want to be a good biscuit maker. And I have tried. Heaven knows I've tried. But, I'll try again with this recipe. I figure this one has a shot since I could have doodled out a waller hole without instructions. It isn't the end of the world, but I do feel like all of my southern grannies are somewhat disappointed in me.
That is SO sweet that she called you. Wow. :-)
What a fun call to get! And I love the biscuit recipe. I've never been able to make really good ones, so I'll give these a go.
:D
~ Wendy
Schube, for reals. When I told her that her Mz. Niecy had called to check on her, she smiled real big. And, girl, on the fat content of this recipe...you DO know there is NEVER any fat in family recipes, right?
Amen, Lori. Reaching out across time and geography to a total stranger! Restores your faith in humanity. :)
Amy, that's so sweet! Hope all's well with you and the WIP.
Really was, Janna. *smile*
Scobber, yes ma'am. Funny how a stranger's voice thru the phone can uplift you. :)
LOL, Debbie!! I thought the same thing about how wonderful it'd be if niceness spread like a virus. (And you do not have work to do. You're good and kind always.) Lemme know if you try the biscuits, k?
I know, right, Jessica? I couldn't believe it, but it was like talking to an old friend.
Go for it, Wendy! Hope they fluff up like my Bigmama's mouth watering little dough angels for you.
Who would have thought she would actually call! Awesome! I've watched her show too and will more now that I know she is that way:))
That is so wonderful for you and your mom! People always assume stars are too stuck up to talk to regular joes and janes.
Biscuits...mmm. Bigmama makes them look good!
LOVE that Miss Niecy called - how cool! And love that story in the book of the biscuits!
Terri, she always makes me smile on the show. That big sweet personality really shines forth.
So true about that assumption, Michelle. And, yeah, my Bigmama was an expert biscuit slinger. :)
Carrie, thanks for the kind words about the story. Loved.your.post.today!
I'm gonna email George Clooney and see if that will work for me!
Karen - LMBBO. Why not? Ya never know. :)
Hey Ang...I love Miss Niecy!I love the show!
They need to visit me! HA!
YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN in FLAT ROCK !!! Kat and I had a great time! She will be at one of those tables next year and you and I should be there to support her! JUNE 5th, mark it down!
Carol
How lovely of Miss Niecy. I will check out her shows.
As for your recipe, I think I'd better put it away for another day. I just signed on to Joshilyn Jackson's "Go Red" posse, and those biscuits just sound too tempting.
What fun! Isn't it cool that a celeb would take the time to do that for a fan? I'm going to check out her show.
And I'm going to try those biscuits! They look delish.
I've been a huge Niecy Nash fan for years (Reno 911 cracks me up!). How incredible that she took the time to call you! Thanks so much for sharing. Can I have a biscuit? Yum.
That is so wonderful that she took the time out of her busy day to call you. One classy lady!
Wow- how cool is that?!
And yum... biz-kits...
;)
I think that's great you heard from her and I love a good biscuit.
Carol, not strange to me we both love that lovely southern diva and her clutter-cuttin' ways. Yeah...she'd probably have a ball at my house too. :o) So glad you and Kat connected at Flat Rock. Would love to attend next year!
Do check out Clean House, Sandra, and if you like quirky irrerant humor, Reno 911. Good luck with your quest.
Yes sir, Mr. Rodell, a good heart for sure. Lemme know if you try ti biscuits. :)
Jill, who knew there were so many Niecy fans about? The biscuits make me drool too!
Classy is just the word I've been looking for, Melissa. Thanks.
Red Bird, very very cool. (Almost cool enough for me to say coolio. LOL)
JyLnC, was a great surprise for sure. :)
The phone call is really cool. Isn't it nice when a celebrity turns out to be a truly nice person?
However, biscuits! Man, I love good biscuits, and I haven't had any in a long time. I'm willing to wreck a bowl. I think I'll try it.
Very cool story! And thank you for the recipe!
That is so awesome! Some people are just GOOD!!!
Those biscuits look amazing. Now I'm hungry again!
What a fun call! Lucky you! And how generous to share a family recipe like this. We lived in the south (Charlotte, NC) for a while and grew to appreciate the southern cooking--my husband and kids especially loved biscuits, so we'll definitely give these a shot!
Great story about phone calls out of nowhere. Would you be mad if I worked the biscuits up for dutch oven? I will give it a try.
Oren
Great story. She sounds like a truly kind-hearted person. I'll bet it made your day.
Mmmm.... biscuits. Thanks for sharing the story! How cool to talk to her! :D
I love my biscuits with honey...mmmm,mmmm,mmmm.
COOL! *smiling* - I love that she called you -
and oh, I want some of those biscuits......
THAT is one classy lady. She just showed you her soul and her heart, hon. What a sweet human!
I certainly can't claim to hobnob with the rich and famous, but on the couple of occasions I had the pleasure of spending time with a couple of reasonably well known celebrities, they have both been extremely nice and thoughtful people. Nothing like the self centered monsters they were supposed to be.
Darn, you just can't trust in stereotypes any more!
Suldawg, it is, indeed. Now, you let me know if you try my granny's biscuit recipe. I'd love to feature the tale of a Yankee baking on this here blog! :)
You're welcome, Cheffie.
Lady G, it does a soul good to meet such kindness.
Do try it, Amy. Biscuits, they do a body good. :)
Oren, I just dare ya to break out the dutch oven on this one! And, hey, there's a campout coming up....so git bizzy. LOL
For reals, Hilary.
Tres cool, Jenn. And you're welcome!
Colby, me too...or just lotsa butter, or good ol' bacon drippings gravy. *drool*
Me too, Kat. (Those y'all got up there that are frozen were pretty durn good too!)
Lori, so so true.
LOL, Barry. Ain't it the troof?!
What a nice, nice lady! And what a great surprise for you. That is just really cool.
They look like my scones...What's in a name? x
That really is unexpected and cool! And I got a pleasant surprise from reading this post--who knew biscuits came out of something besides an exploding, cylindrical canister!?
I am truly impressed that Miz Nash took the time to call you. I LOVE her in Reno 911.
And, that is exactly how my first mother-in-law made biscuits, and I could never do it that way. Those biscuits of hers were ALMOST enough to keep me from divorcing her son....
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