9/29/11

It is a damp, chilly, and dreary Monday morning. My intellectual being is responding accordingly. However last week did offer several bright spots. Her family helped my husband’s sister celebrate her 80th birthday. Doesn’t seem as if that many years could have passed already. I remember her way back when we moved to Edgerton. She rode on the same school bus as a little blond girl with pig tails in the lower grades, never dreaming at that time she would become such an important part of my life. We honored her wishes with a family dinner at The Barn in Archbold, followed by a gathering in another sister-in-law’s home for those who could not make the dinner celebration. We had a lot of conflicts with a number of niece’s and nephew’s schedules but it was a great celebration. Let’s try for 85, Mary.

On Friday, a tremendous surprise made my day. I had overscheduled too many things for my tired old body to accomplish. In the middle of the afternoon, I decided I needed a short break. As I leaned back in my easy chair with my feet on the foot stool, I breathed a deep sigh of contentment. In my subconscious being, I thought I heard something, but didn’t respond. I finally realized that it was my back door bell. Since I am no longer youthful, it took me a short while to get out of my recliner, stabilize my upright position and get to the back door. This youthful lady, to me anyone under 65 is youthful, was just going back to her car. She had been here earlier in the day and I was not at home. By this time I am was certain that she was thinking, “Why did I bother with her?” She had brought me a piece of fresh grape pie! She is very gracious to me, but we do not have a really close friendship. I knew her dad from my childhood. She responds to my recipes and has brought me a few to pass on to you. I never bake grape pie because the preparation is too lengthy and tedious. There were two very important results of her kindness. First, why should she think of me and want to share her labor? Secondly, it brought back memories of my childhood and my mother. It was another combination of many magic moments recaptured. All of this brought to mind the importance of doing random acts of kindness to those who do not expect them. I call that “God nudges.” I remember in my youthful days when my mother made grape pie. It was my oldest brother’s favorite. He could talk me out of my piece with a nickel, occasionally on my luckier days I would get a dime. As I look back now I wonder why our parents allowed such dealings. I do understand how tempting even a nickel was to me when money was such a scarce item in our household. Thanks, Kay. You made my day a magic one.

I have almost given up finding the lost recipe I found on my back door. I thought by now that it would surface, but now I am looking for two things that I put in a “special place” where I would know where they are. Guess I will have to admit defeat and contact the source of the recipe.

I am still weeding out unnecessary clutter and things that I have saved and not used. I came upon a collection of recipes in a weekend mailing. I will use two and then pass the rest on to posterity. I am certain that my kids will appreciate the disappearance of some of my gatherings. The picture of the cookies was quite unique, although I will admit I have not tried to make them. The chicken recipe intrigued me as I look for new ways to prepare chicken and this seemed really simple. Hope they both appeal to most of you.

CHOCOLATE INSERT COOKIES
¾ cup butter, softened
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ cup flour
25 solid chocolate candies
1 ½ tablespoons powdered sugar
¾ teaspoon powdered cocoa
Combine butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
Add vanilla. Add flour to butter mixture. Shape dough
into 25 one inch balls. Flatten each ball into a flat 2 inch
round. Place the rounds 1 inch apart on an ungreased
cookie sheet. Place a chocolate candy in the center of each
round. Enclose the candy with the dough, making sure the
candy is completely sealed in the dough. Bake at 375 degrees
12 to 15 minutes. Combine the powdered sugar and cocoa.
Sprinkle over the hot cookies. Cool cookies for a few minutes
on the cookie sheet, then transfer to wire racks to cool.( I
checked several times to be certain that I did not miss listing
soda nor baking powder!) It was suggested to put the cocoa
and powdered sugar in a shaker. The cookies will absorb the
mixture, so you may want to sprinkle again .

BAKED DRUMSTICKS
1 cup cooking oil
½ cup Bisquick
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon seasoning salt
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
¼ teaspoon pepper
10 drumsticks
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour oil into 10 by 15 inch baking
pan. Combine baking mix and seasonings and place in a paper
bag. Add the drumsticks, a few at a time and shake to coat.
Arrange on the prepared baking pan. Bake chicken, turning once,
About 30 minutes or until juices run clear. Serve immediately.

9/22/11

The weeks certainly do roll past quickly. Last evening I was working on a project that I had put off conquering. That left my mind in a completely different direction. There is not enough of it left to spread in more than one place. So I quickly chose two recipes and a thought flashed through my extended mind which I quickly grasped and calmly went to bed thinking that I had everything under control. I awakened in the wee hours this morning with my subconscious nudging me that I still had this job to do. I was tempted to just pull the covers up tightly and pretend that I had a free day. That did not happen and I also could not recall what I had decided to focus on this week. That was scary enough to really wake me up. As I pondered deeply and discarded a few substituted ideas, my original idea floated past. So I scrambled (only to me it was a “scramble” - to those of you who already have your day well on its way it was more like slow motion) out of bed and here I am much earlier than I ever planned before my thoughts vanish again.

The past couple of months my family has been interacting on a project that has brought much magic into focus. We walked to California to visit my niece who lives in a San Diego suburb! Now you all know we did not actually physically accomplish this. We had a Healthy Heart walking program. Those of us who wanted to participate wore pedometers and each week reported our steps to headquarters which were tallied into miles and mapped out across the good old USA. This created special interest to those participating and inspired us to walk more than we otherwise would. Each week one of us was granted a Healthy Heart award for major distance accomplishments. You can imagine that my contribution was the bottom of the list every week, but I got two awards! One for participating, that was easy. The other one was for valor above and beyond the call of duty. My numbers were so insignificant that I walked to Dollar General and back when I didn’t even want nor buy anything! My best week was a total of 14 miles. My daughter who was the headmaster each week made an itinerary of the area we covered with pictures of that area which we could download. I appreciated her efforts of an interesting account of each week’s journey. The imaginary antics of each of those participating and the interaction between us was full of magic. Now we are in California so how do we get home? One is going to try for a buddy pass on Delta from his brother. As for me I stated “I am tired, I am going to hitchhike home.” We have one problem. Kay enjoyed our fantasy journey and visit, but has double dared us to make it a reality.

After all of that walking I am certain that we need some nourishment. So I have suggested a quickly prepared snack to munch on while you prepare something more lasting. It is also time for pumpkin to appear on our menus, so I am offering one that is easier to do than make a pie, but will fulfill that pumpkin urge.

PEANUT BUTTER POPCORN
2 quarts popped popcorn
1 tablespoon peanut butter (creamy or chunky)
2 tablespoons butter
In a small sauce pan, melt butter and peanut butter
until smooth. Pour over popcorn and mix well. Add a bit
of salt if desired.

PUMPKIN DELIGHT
½ stick of butter, melted
Graham crackers
12 ounces whipped topping
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 large can pumpkin (not pie mix)
½ cup milk
2 packages instant vanilla pudding mix
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon cloves
½ teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup brown sugar
Line bottom of 9 x 13 baking dish with graham
crackers. Melt butter and brush over crackers.( I’m tempted
to make a graham cracker crust).Beat cream cheese, add spices
to pumpkin and add to cream cheese. Add sugar, milk and sprinkle
in dry pudding mix. Mix in the pumpkin and cheese mixture.
Blend well. Fold in whipped topping. Pour over crackers, cover
with plastic wrap and chill overnight.

This is great. It is all finished and ordinarily I would just be crawling, not scrambling out of bed!

9/15/11

As I notice the date, two startling facts penetrate my mind. First of all, it can’t possibly be that we have placed into our past half of another month. That brings to mind the rapid approaching of winter and the memories of last year’s snow, snow, snow.

On a more pleasant plane, this week MAGIC MOMENTS became an adult. Would you believe that on the 13th it reached its 21st birthday? We celebrated by proposing a special toast with a strong drink of decaffeinated tea minus any sugar! My sincere thanks go to the patience and understanding of four editors, and the unbelievable support of all of you readers. (I am certain that my style of writing and thoughts are not favorites with everyone, but those of you who enjoy it have my eternal thanks.) Shall we try for another year?

I was performing a corporal work of mercy last week, (visiting the sick). When I returned home, I found taped to my back door a recipe from a faithful reader. I “put it where I would know where it was” but all I can find this morning is the cover sheet. The only thing that I can think of after quickly scanning my favorite spots is that the old lady that keeps messing up my things has been here again. Since I have already used up all of the time I dare spend searching, I will go to my reserve source of recipes and give you something to stifle the hunger pains. We will hope that my “lost” recipe will come to the surface for next week. My theory is that you can’t spoil potatoes, no matter what you do to them. So I have one that is simple to prepare and ready in half of an hour. It should be an answer for a quick meal when you spent more time shopping than you planned, or just wanted to finish that interesting novel that you had only a chapter to finish. We will hope that my “lost” recipe will come to the surface for next week.

SAUSAGE SKILLET DINNER
1 pound Italian sweet sausage (or your favorite choice of meat)
½ cup chopped onion
1 cup diagonally sliced celery
4 baking potatoes, pared and diced
1 can (1 lb.) tomatoes
¾ cup water
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 beef bouillon cube
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Brown sausage in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook
until tender. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer 20 to 25
minutes or until potatoes are tender.

I can’t pass by a simple idea for a quick sweet tooth antidote. If I make these I will have to have someone in mind to give 98% of them, or I would eat the whole thing myself.

PEANUT BUTTER ROCKY ROAD
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
¾ cup crunchy peanut butter
¾ cup chopped peanuts or walnuts
3 cups miniature marshmallows
Combine chocolate and peanut butter in a microwaveable bowl.
Heat on high 2 minutes. (Adjust to your own microwave.) Stir once
halfway through cooking time. Stir until chocolate is melted and
smooth. Stir in peanuts and marshmallows. Immediately spread in
foil lined 11 x 7 baking pan. Refrigerate 1 to2 hours. Cut into pieces
the size of your choice. Keep refrigerated.

9/8/11

Some days we do not have to look far nor hard to find much magic in our life. This past week was such an experience. I received word from my youngest son that he had been promoted to manager of the Bunge facility, formerly Central Soya, in Decatur! He graduated from Tri State with a mechanical engineering degree after serving 8 years in the army, three of them in Germany, where I had the privilege of visiting him. Just before graduation they purchased a home in Decatur. We wanted to question the advisability of this because it would limit his choices of employment. Fortunately our theory of keeping our noses out of our kids lives was the right one. We were available for advice and support but not control. He accepted a position at this facility that was about three blocks from their new home! It is a fantastic feeling when as Sam Levinson, an author who had his own television show years ago, said, ”It is great when others say nice things about your kids.” Success is usually the combination of the co-operation and support of family members. So here is my thanks to Mari, his wife and his four kids.

Following this news his two youngest daughters, one a sophomore at Dayton University, the other a junior in high school, sent me a message asking if they could come on Saturday and have me teach them how to bake pies! This was a great compliment because just about a month before they had been here and we baked cut out sugar cookies. It must have been a successful day because they wanted to come back again. For years, after a number of years of struggling with pie crust, I thought I could make good pie crust. Then I experienced several times some that was served by a long time friend that I decided was better than mine. I asked her for her recipe and have used it for several years. (Thanks, Treeva.)

After accepting the girls request for a Saturday pie baking lesson, I wondered if they could manage the difficulty of rolling this particular crust. My theory is that the more difficult it is to roll and handle the better the finished product will be. Why did I even question this? They were so adaptable to the project. I wanted to show them how to bake a pie shell for cream pies. After a few suggestions, Aubrie ,the youngest one, produced a perfect pie shell, better than most that I have made. A great granddaughter joined us later in the afternoon. We made pumpkin, apple, fresh peach and banana cream with Hershey Bars in the bottom. We made three small individual pies with the left over filling from each variety, which we shared after a spaghetti supper. It was a great day of interaction between the three generations, good pie and I sent them merrily on their way with three of the pies for proof to their parents that they were where they said they were going. We ate the chocolate- banana cream pie along with our three small samples. Grandmothers, if you want a day of magic, initiate a cooking school with your granddaughters for a super day of interaction as well as passing along your experiences of being a good cook.

Today I do not have to work hard to get to the idea of food. I did not have recipes selected so I turned to my old Taste of Home Annual Cookbook of QUICK COOKING. I think my guardian angel opened the book because there on that page were two simple to make complementary suggestions. Try them together and impress your family.

SAUSAGE BREAKFAST LOAF
1 pound smoked kielbasa or Polish sausage, julienned
1 ½ cups, (6 oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese
2 eggs
1 ½ teaspoons minced parsley
½ teaspoon onion salt
1 tube (10 oz.) refrigerated pizza dough
Saute the sausage. Cool. Combine the sausage, cheese,
one egg, parsley, onion salt and garlic salt. Mix well. Unroll
pizza dough. Roll into a rectangle 8 inches x 12 inches. Spread
sausage mixture down the center of dough. Bring dough over
filling. Pinch seams to seal. Place seam side down on a greased
baking sheet. Tuck ends under. Beat remaining egg, brush over
top. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden
brown. Let stand for five minutes before slicing.

STRAWBERRY PEACH CUP
2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
2 cups sliced fresh peaches
1 package (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons orange juice
¼ teaspoon grated orange peel
½ cup whipped topping
Divide strawberries and peaches among four small dishes.
Beat the creamed cheese, orange juice and orange peel. Fold
In whipped topping. Dollop over top of fruit. Can serve orange
cream as a dip with other fruit.
Congratulations to Ruth Kimpel for her 85th birthday. We are nearly lifelong friends as we are not related but shared the same aunt and uncle, through marriage. When my parents moved to Edgerton in 1940 from Butler, we found that that her parents had moved here from Waterloo. We rode the same school bus and continued our friendship throughout our lives.

9/1/11

Look what happened when I wasn’t looking. Where did the summer go? Seems as if it were just a short time ago that I was so tired of snow, snow, snow. Here already it is time to put my white shoes and white slacks, back into storage. At least we can give many thanks for the diminished amount of damage from what was forecast from the hurricane that hit the East coast. No matter how our lives are disrupted there are always things to be thankful for.

My busy schedule for the weekend included 2 funerals, a baby shower, my weekly visit to the nursing home, and we won’t mention a couple of garage sales. I am always comforted by my visits to see my sister at the nursing home by her uncomplaining acceptance of her controlled existence brought on by her extended illness. In her “other life” she was always going somewhere and doing something. When I went in her room she smiled from ear to ear and said, ”I was just thinking about you”. Even though I went to cheer her, she sent good feelings my way, thanking me for coming and making a good spot in her day. I have added her name to the list of people I want to be like when I get old. We always find something to laugh about. My visit was indeed a magic moment for both of us.

I was searching for recipes last evening and then closed the book without marking the ones I wanted to use. By now I should realize that it was a dangerous thing to do,. I did remember what book I had used. So today we will venture into a couple that I have not tried to make nor heard about before. I use the theory that if you put good ingredients into a project you should get a good product. Let’s see if that works this week. They both sound good to me.

SCALLOPED EGGS, HAM AND MUSHROOMS
3 tablespoons butter
½ cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
1 cup dry breadcrumbs (Think we could substitute crackers?)
¼ cup butter
6 hard cooked eggs, sliced crosswise1 cup cubed, cooked ham
½ cup sliced mushrooms
Make a white sauce of 3 tablespoons butter flour, salt and milk. In a
casserole dish alternate 1 cup of the dry crumbs moistened with the butter, hard
cooked eggs, ham and mushrooms. Over this pour the white sauce.
Top with buttered crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

EAGLE BRAND COOKIES
30 graham crackers, crushed
1 cup English walnuts, chopped
6 ounces chocolate chips
1 can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
Mix ingredients well and drop by spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for 7 to 10 minutes. These freeze well.

I forgot to mention that we old cooks can learn from the younger generation. I was a supper guest at my son and daughter-in-law’s home. She made a creamed chicken mixture over biscuits. I tried to copy the idea. It is a long story, so we will save it for next week.