gift guide Archives - Wood & Spoon

Overnight Buttermilk Biscuits (& A Gift guide!)

A Gift List for You(rself) or Your Galentine!

1. Puff Sleeve Top from J.Crew Soft cotton and accented sleeves come at an easy price for this top.
2. Faux Orchid Real orchids are wonderful, but these faux ones stay pretty all year long with little effort.
3. HER DAILY BREAD My first book, Her Daily Bread, stays in style all year long.
4. Alpaca Beanie These beanies are so soft and scrumptious that I bought some for a few friends too.
5. Je T’aime Frame This frame is backordered, and you better believe I’m on the waiting list.
6. Wrap Pajamas These kimono style pjs from LAKE are silky soft and pretty too.
7. Rose Gold Photo Locket These lockets offer engraving and etching of inner photos as well.
8. Williams-Sonoma Dish Towels My favorite dish towels come in pink, just in time for February!
9. Recycled Cashmere Crew Neck Sweater These sustainable cashmere sweaters from Reformation are at the top of my list!
10. Salt and Pepper Mills I fell in love with these petite mills while in NYC. I may or may not have already gifted them twice since.
11. Hyaluronic Acid Lipstick My favorite lip shade now comes in a silky smooth moisturizing stick!
12. AT THE ARTISAN’S TABLE I’m dying to get my hands on this beautiful book that features tablescapes prepared by artists.

Overnight Buttermilk Biscuits

Now, onto the cozy stuff.

You know I love biscuits. An adaptable starchy treat that serves as an option for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? Sign me up. But sometimes, making fresh biscuits first thing in the morning isn’t in the cards. For those kind of days, these overnight buttermilk biscuits are the ticket. Here, a butter-packed dough comes together hours in advance so that you can bake and serve them at your leisure. It’s the morning convenience of the refrigerated can biscuits but without that greasy mouthfeel. Truly, these are awesome.

Making the Biscuits

To make these overnight buttermilk biscuits, we start with the dry ingredients. Stir together all-purpose flour, leavening and loads of salt. Next, cut ice cold butter into the dry mixture until the mixture has uniform clumps throughout. Finally, stir in the buttermilk until a shaggy dough comes together.

I pat the dough together, knead slightly, and then begin trimming out rounds of dough with a floured round cutter. Be sure not to overwork the dough- this will yield a tough, chewy biscuit. Place the dough rounds on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan and cover the entire thing with plastic wrap. When you’re ready to bake them the next morning, preheat the oven and pop them in for about 12-15 minutes!

I hope you give these overnight buttermilk biscuits a try and let me know how you enjoy them. Happy (almost!) February and happy baking!

If you like these overnight buttermilk biscuits you should try:

Funfetti Biscuits
Mini Garlic Herb Biscuits
Cheddar Cornmeal Biscuits
Mini Buttermilk Biscuits
Maple Oatmeal Biscuits

Overnight Buttermilk Biscuits

Print Recipe

These overnight buttermilk biscuits feature flaky layers and can be made a night in advance!

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 10
Cook Time: 15
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 18
Category: Bread

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup unsalted butter, cold and diced
1 ¼ cups buttermilk, cold
Extra butter for brushing, if desired

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a baking pan with a sheet of parchment. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, powder, and soda. Use a pastry cutter or the backs of two forks to cut in the butter until evenly dispersed with pea-sized clumps throughout. Gently stir in the buttermilk until a shaggy dough forms, being careful to NOT OVERWORK. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of flour out onto a clean work surface and dump the crumbly dough on to the flour. Gently and quickly work the dough together, kneading a few times, before patting out into a 1” rectangle. Use a 2” round biscuit cutter to trim out rounds of dough. Flour the cutter well and press down straight being careful not to twist the cutter at all. Re-flour and continue cutting out until all the dough has been used. You can gather leftover piece and gently form back together to trim out more circles. Place the biscuits about 1” apart on the baking sheet or dish. Brush with a bit of the melted butter and bake in the preheated oven for about 17 minutes or until the tops are golden and the biscuits have risen. Allow to cool slightly before enjoying and reheat in the toaster oven as needed.

Mom’s Homemade Bread & a Mother’s Day Gift Guide!

1 Comment / Bread

Mom's Homemade Bread by Wood and Spoon blog. This is a recipe excerpt from Her Daily Bread, a simple wheat loaf with added flaxseed meal, honey, and olive oil. Learn how simple homemade bread to make from scratch on thewoodandspoon.com

If words like Mom’s Homemade Bread don’t stop you in your tracks, you just haven’t had it like my Mom’s. Growing up, my mom didn’t spend a whole lot of time in the kitchen, but homemade sandwich bread was a speciality that I have relished over the years, so much so that I included a recipe inspired by hers in my new book, “Her Daily Bread.” Today, in honor of my mom and all the woman who we will honor in a couple of weeks for Mother’s Day, I’m sharing a simple recipe in addition to a fabulous gift guide for the moms who have it all. First up: the gifts!

A Mother’s Day Gift Guide

A Potted Tree. If you’ve got a mom with a green thumb and a brightly lit home, consider a tree that will grow well indoors like this arbequina olive tree. If she doesn’t have a green thumb, just consider a faux one instead.
Floral Dinnerware. Any mom with an eye for soft colors and feminine florals will love these on her spring and summer table!
Personalized Stationary. The gift that keeps on giving, in my opinion, is always stationary. I’ve loved these watercolor notecards that come in a variety of prints.
Adirondak Chairs. Durable outdoor seating was a gift of choice for our parents last year, and I loved them so much that I’ve decided to invest in a set of my own.
Floral Earrings. The resin flowers on these earrings are interchangeable and come in a variety of colors to match Mom’s favorites.
Airy Button-down Sundress. This pale blue dress from Zara is one of my favorite spring purchases- comfortable, lightweight, and not at all form-fitting.
Radiance Face Mask. I’ve been supporting Tata Harper products here for a long time now, and this gentle mask for sensitive skin is one of my new favorites.
Rattan Purse. With summer just around the corner, give mom a gift she’ll hold close anytime she leaves the house.
Her Daily Bread. With 365 daily readings, many that reflect family, motherhood, and womanhood, Her Daily Bread is a thoughtful gift for any woman on Mother’s Day.
Stoneware Canisters. Are they for the kitchen? The bathroom? Who cares! These canisters from Crate and Barrel are beautiful and would make a great gift for Mom.

Mom’s Homemade Bread

I adore this recipe inspired by my Mom’s homemade bread. The wonderful thing about recipes that are even kinda handed-down is that newer generations get to enjoy them. I love getting to make this bread for my own family, especially know how loaves of it used to feed me in my own mom’s kitchen.

I’m keeping today’s post short and sweet, but you can read more about this recipe in my new book, Her Daily Bread, which is available everywhere. (Bonus: it contains over 50 other delightful recipes that are ready to share!) Check out a copy at your local bookstore or online here. Happy early Mother’s Day and happy baking to you all!

If you like this recipe for mom’s homemade bread, you should check out:

Buttermilk Bread
Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread
English Muffin Bread
Honey Oat Bread
Flaxseed Bread

Mom’s Homemade Bread & a Mother’s Day Gift Guide!

Print Recipe

This recipe, inspired by my mom’s homemade bread is a flavorful family favorite that make terrific sandwiches and even better toast!

Author: Kate Wood, an excerpt from her book, “HER DAILY BREAD”
Prep Time: 15
Cook Time: 25
Total Time: 180
Yield: 2 Small Loaves
Category: Bread

Ingredients

1–1/2 cups lukewarm water
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup honey
1 large egg
2 teaspoon salt
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
¼ cup flaxseed meal
1 tablespoon instant yeast

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Instructions

In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir to combine the water, oil, honey, egg, and salt. Add 2 cups of the flour, the flaxseed meal, and the yeast, stirring to combine. Add 2 more cups of flour, and, using the dough hook attachment of the mixer, begin to knead the dough on medium speed. If you notice the dough is still very soupy and loose, you can sprinkle in a little more flour 2 tablespoons at a time until it comes together into a soft stretchy dough. Knead for a total of 6 minutes or until the dough stretches slightly when you pull the dough hook out of the bowl. Lightly grease a separate large bowl with cooking spray and dump the dough into that bowl. Use a sheet of plastic wrap or a large tea towel to cover the top of the bowl and set it aside in a warm area of your kitchen to allow it to rise until doubled in size, about 1-1/2 – 2 hours total.
Once the dough has puffed and risen to double its size, lightly sprinkle a counter with flour and dump the contents of the bowl onto your prepared workspace. Use a knife to cut the dough into two equal-sized pieces. Lightly spray two 8”x4” loaf pans with cooking spray and begin to shape your loaves. Gently pat a single piece of dough into a small rectangle and fold the bottom third of the dough up towards the center as if you’re folding a letter. Fold the top part dough and gently pinch the dough to seal the seam shut. Gently roll the dough over so the seam is on the bottom and use your hands to carefully work the dough with your hands to form it into a log roughly the shape of your pan. Put the log of dough into the pan and repeat this entire process with the second piece of dough. Once each log of dough is in its respective pan, cover each with a piece of plastic wrap and set aside in a warm area of your kitchen for a second rise, about 45-60 minutes. In the meantime, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Once the loaves have risen and are barely doming over the lip of the pan, put the pans in the oven to bake for about 25 minutes, or until the loaves are golden and a thermometer inserted in the center of the loaf registers at 190 degrees Fahrenheit. Allow to cool in the pan for 20 minutes and then remove from the pan to cool completely. Cooled loaves can be wrapped in foil and frozen for up to six months or can be enjoyed immediately.

Chocolate Peppermint Olive Oil Cookies

3 Comments / Cookies and Bars, Uncategorized

I really want to start this post with a giant “MERRY CHRISTMAS,” but I don’t want to annoy you with my over-zealous festivity right off the bat. Instead, let me appeal to any last minute shoppers who may be looking for the perfect gift for their favorite gal pals, sisters, teachers, and neighbors. These are all items that you can literally have to your door and wrapped before Christmas, so if you’re scrambling for some in-a-pinch gifts, I’ve totally got you covered. As a sidenote, I’d like to say that a lot of these are items on my personal Christmas list, so Brett, if you haven’t gotten me anything, start shopping!

The Cookie Book:

My dear friend’s cookie book was one of my top two favorite cookbooks of the year. This is a must for the home bakers in your life.
Sister Pie:

This is obviously my other favorite of the year. The salted maple pie I shared earlier this year is from this book and it is to DIE for.
Woodford Reserves Bitters Bundle:

For the bourbon-loving gal in your life (raises hand!)
Poloroid 600 Camera:

This is almost a perfect replica of the classic camera I had as a child. I’ve been dying to get my hands on this new version!
Americolor Gel Food Coloring Set:

This is the ultimate of all ultimates. 50 shades of the very best food coloring money can buy. Get this for the baker you love!
Espro Coffee Press:

I’ve been using this coffee press for 2 years now. Once you have it, you’ll never go back.
Alexander Hamilton:

This book by Ron Chernow was the inspiration behind Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit Broadway show. This is a history buff’s must!
Global Tassel Throw:

Cozy up with this trendy gift ASAP.
Hand Lettering Set:

This beginner’s set from Prismacolor might be the perfect gift for the crafty chick in your life.
Staub Cocotte:

Every girl wants a Staub. Pick her one in her favorite color.
Tumi Backpack:

This is the only brand of luggage I would swear by. This backpack is lightweight and would make a perfect carry-on.
Mac Lipstick:

This shade, “Twig,” was named the most diverse shade- perfect for a multitude of skin tones!
Starfetti Sprinkles:

These all-natural sprinkles are beyond adorable. I need some ASAP.
Lululemon Hat:

What girl doesn’t want to open a little Lulu on Christmas morning? I love the color of this hat.
Kate Spade Lunch Tote:

It says “Just Desserts” on it. I’ve never identified so well with a lunchbox.

One More Idea…

Each and every one of those items are things I love and use/want regularly, so shop away. And if you’re shopping for a true foodie, might I recommend another gift idea: a batch of these chocolate peppermint olive oil cookies with an accompanying bottle of Lucini Italia Extra Virgin Olive Oil to go with it. Yes, this is the same olive oil I used to make that dreamy lemon olive oil chess pie a few week ago, and it’s the brand I reach for on the daily. Any home baker or cook will love the addition of quality ingredients to their pantry, so check out Lucini products here.

Chocolate Peppermint Olive Oil Cookies

Now let’s talk about these chocolate peppermint olive oil cookies. They’re fudgy, chocolatey, and seriously moist. The bits of peppermint add crunch and flavor, while the olive oil and cocoa powder add depth of flavor and keep them tender. These cookies are beautifully festive, the kind of cookies that your holiday guests with ooh and ahh over as they reach for them over and over again. Plus, I like to think they’re a little less guilty given the lack of butter and the addition of olive oil?

These chocolate peppermint olive oil cookies come together quickly with the whiz of a hand mixer. I’d argue the most difficult part is crushing the actual peppermints or candy canes, although sources tell me you can buy those pre-crushed, so who knows. Once baked these cookies will stay fresh for days, the perfect thing to have on hand when holiday guests arrive.

I hope you’ll give these cookies a try and let me know what you think! I am new to baking cookies with olive oil, but the results I experienced with Lucini were so terrific that I look forward to trying it again and again. Be sure to check them out next time you’re at the store, and thank you for supporting brands that make Wood & Spoon possible! I won’t be seeing y’all until after Christmas, so I hope your next few days are merry, bright, and full of joy and wonder. Merry Christmas, y’all!

This post is sponsored by Lucini Italia. All opinions are my own.

If you like these chocolate peppermint olive oil cookies you should try:

Peppermint Icebox Cake

Mint Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

Peppermint Bark Brownies

Peppermint Bark Bread

Chocolate Peppermint Olive Oil Cookies

Print Recipe

These chocolate peppermint olive oil cookies are rich, fudgy, and moist. The bits of peppermint add a festive color and crunch to every bite!

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 20
Cook Time: 30
Total Time: 90
Yield: 24
Category: Cookies

Ingredients

½ cup (120 gm) olive oil
4 ounces dark (I used 70%) chocolate, chopped
¾ cup (150 gm) sugar
¼ cup (50 gm) brown sugar
2 large (120 gm) eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1–1/4 cups (175 gm) all-purpose flour
½ cup (40 gm) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon cornstarch
½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup (170 gm) white chocolate chips
½ cup chopped peppermint bits, plus more for topping

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Instructions

Combine the olive oil and chocolate in a saucepan over low heat and gently heat it, stirring regularly, until the chocolate has melted. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and stir in the sugar and brown sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and whisk to combine. Add the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt, stirring just until combined. Fold in the white chocolate chips and peppermint bits and allow the mixture to cool in the fridge while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Prep two baking sheets with parchment papers. Once the dough has firmed up quite a bit scoop dough roughs (you can use a medium or large cookie scoop, about 1-1/2 or 3 tablespoons worth of dough) onto the parchment paper. Roll the dough balls to smooth in your hands and place 2” apart on the cookie sheet. Bake in the oven about 9-10 minutes or until the edges are set and the tops are no longer gooey. Remove from oven and sprinkle with additional peppermint bits immediately.

Notes

For extra peppermint flavor you can add ¾ teaspoon of mint or peppermint extract. I prefer the subtle crunch of the actual peppermint bits but if you’re really into peppermint that’s an option here.

gift guide

A Gift List for You(rself) or Your Galentine!

Overnight Buttermilk Biscuits

Making the Biscuits

If you like these overnight buttermilk biscuits you should try:

Overnight Buttermilk Biscuits

Ingredients

Instructions

A Mother’s Day Gift Guide

Mom’s Homemade Bread

If you like this recipe for mom’s homemade bread, you should check out:

Mom’s Homemade Bread & a Mother’s Day Gift Guide!

Ingredients

Instructions

The Cookie Book:

Sister Pie:

Woodford Reserves Bitters Bundle:

Poloroid 600 Camera:

Americolor Gel Food Coloring Set:

Espro Coffee Press:

Alexander Hamilton:

Global Tassel Throw:

Hand Lettering Set:

Staub Cocotte:

Tumi Backpack:

Mac Lipstick:

Starfetti Sprinkles:

Lululemon Hat:

Kate Spade Lunch Tote:

One More Idea…

Chocolate Peppermint Olive Oil Cookies

If you like these chocolate peppermint olive oil cookies you should try:

Chocolate Peppermint Olive Oil Cookies

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes

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