Does anyone know where I can buy a large container of magic for a very small price? I have myself in a bind with more to do this week than anyone should or can expect out of one little old lady.
Then, as I was trying to consolidate tasks and omit anything that was not absolutely necessary, I uncovered a note that I had volunteered three dozen cookies for a special project in Auburn! I decided that I could not leave them for tomorrow because I didn’t know how I was going to manage everything that had to be done besides forgetting that I had used my last card of hearing aid batteries. I do not think that anyone in Edgerton sells them. All of the things on my schedule are things that I really want to do, but why did they all come this week? I think those cookies were the result of that nosy little old lady I can’t catch. She must have signed my name on that list.
I have an apology to make to all of you mothers. I have trouble getting things done in the first place, then when I should think of things in advance, I really fall off the cliff. Anyway now I do hope you had a very nice, fulfilling Mother’s day. Mine was top notch. They must have believed me when I said “I do not cook on my birthday and Mother’s Day” because I was a guest at the local restaurant on Saturday evening and Sunday noon. The day was complicated because two of my grandkids from the same family graduated at the same time. One received her Pharmacy degree from Ohio Northern and her brother graduated from Wabash College near Indianapolis with a History/German degree. Their mother went to one and their dad went to the other. I am prejudiced and think that other things should not be scheduled on Mother’s day. Is there someplace that we could protest or occupy?
Since I took time to bake my cookies this evening and when I came in to do my column, I had a note from a classmate that I thought I had lost contact with. So I spent more time than I thought making connections with him before I started here. So we had better go to food before I fall asleep at the computer.
I have a strong interest in casseroles. Mostly because most of them are easy to prepare, are good eating and give us a different angle on some foods. The first old, old cook book that I picked out had a number of interesting ones to pick from. The first one I chose because the picture was so tempting. The only problem with that was I tried a new brownie recipe and mine do not look anything like the picture, so I am going to wait to give you that recipe until after I have eaten some of them and performed an autopsy.
BRAT AND TATER TOT CASSEROLE
1 pound uncooked bratwurst, casings removed
1 medium onion chopped
1 can (10 ¾ oz.) cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 package (32 oz.) frozen Tater tots
2 cups sour cream
2 cups ( 8 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese
Crumble bratwurst into a skillet, add onion and cook
until no longer pink. Drain. Stir in the soup. Pour into
a 9 x 13 inch, greased baking dish. Top with Tater Tots
and sour cream. Sprinkle top with cheese. Bake, uncovered
for 35 minutes or until heated through . Serves 6.
I have heard people remark how well they like cashew chicken at Chinese restaurants, but I have never eaten any. So this recipe fascinated me. Hope it is as good as I think it will be.
CASHEW CHICKEN
1 pound boneless chicken breasts, cut into I inch cubes
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups frozen broccoli
1 ¾ cups boiling water
1 cup uncooked long grain rice
1 jar ( 6 oz.) sliced mushrooms, drained
1 tablespoon chicken bouillon granules
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¾ cup salted cashews
Salt and peer to taste
Combine chicken, onion, broccoli, water, rice, mushrooms, bouillon and ginger. Transfer to a greased shallow 1 ½ quart casserole dish. Cover and bake at 375 for 45 to 50 minutes. Stir in one half cup of the cashews. Sprinkle rest on top.
See you next week if I am still right side up!
Monday, May 14, 2012
5/10/12
May 10 would have been our 65th wedding anniversary. Several of my high school classmates were fortunate enough to celebrate this milestone in their lives. We extend best wishes to those who were so blessed. My husband’s family had a magic day today by honoring the anniversary of Stan’s death by attending services at St. Mary’s with his widow , sister, brother, sisters-in law and many nieces and nephews. Following Mass we congregated for coffee and rolls in the church basement. True to tradition they left us to turn out the lights a couple of hours later. Since we have another tradition- we love to eat- we found nearly a dozen of us at Rita’s for lunch. It was a great time of sharing and enjoying old memories, making it difficult to explain that at 1:15 we were still not home from 8:30 church services. A few relatives continued to celebrate at Mary’s home. It is wonderful to me when family enjoys each other to that extent.
Another magic experience takes us to the ridiculous side of life. Since I use the dumb things I do quite often for basic ideas, one was mentioned at a recent meeting of my Home Extension Meeting. Remember when I used corn starch for powdered sugar in my icing for cookies for a special occasion? Well as someone mentioned that fact, out of nowhere a young member of the club approached me with a gift. She had made two labels from powder blue cardboard about ten inches long and 1 ¼ inches wide with the names “POWDERED SUGAR” on one and “CORN STARCH” in royal blue letters on the other. They will look quite distinguished in my condiment cupboard above the microwave! To incriminate me further, in case I had trouble reading the labels, she included a Dollar General magnifying glass! Bet I don’t make that mistake again. Thanks for your sense of humor and the effort it took to follow through on the idea, Linda!
I have a recipe that I use a lot with red hot candies, but this one is quite different, but should be very tasty.
RED HOT APPLE SAUCE SALAD
2/3 cup red hot cinnamon candies
2 cups boiling water
1 package (6oz.) lemon Jello
2 cups applesauce
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped nuts
Dissolve candies in boiling water. Pour over Jello.
Stir until Jello is dissolved. Add apple sauce, stir until
blended. Chill until firm. Blend cream cheese, mayonnaise.
Mix in celery and nuts. Spread over top of Jello mixture. Chill.
MACARONI MIXED VEGETABLE CASSEROLE
1 cup raw macaroni, cooked according to package directions
1 package (10 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables, cooked
1 can cream of mushroom soup
6 Smoky link sausages, cut into slices
1 cup shredded Velveeta cheese
Cook macaroni and vegetables until done. Drain and mix together
with soup, meat and most of the cheese. Save some to sprinkle on top.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
Another magic experience takes us to the ridiculous side of life. Since I use the dumb things I do quite often for basic ideas, one was mentioned at a recent meeting of my Home Extension Meeting. Remember when I used corn starch for powdered sugar in my icing for cookies for a special occasion? Well as someone mentioned that fact, out of nowhere a young member of the club approached me with a gift. She had made two labels from powder blue cardboard about ten inches long and 1 ¼ inches wide with the names “POWDERED SUGAR” on one and “CORN STARCH” in royal blue letters on the other. They will look quite distinguished in my condiment cupboard above the microwave! To incriminate me further, in case I had trouble reading the labels, she included a Dollar General magnifying glass! Bet I don’t make that mistake again. Thanks for your sense of humor and the effort it took to follow through on the idea, Linda!
I have a recipe that I use a lot with red hot candies, but this one is quite different, but should be very tasty.
RED HOT APPLE SAUCE SALAD
2/3 cup red hot cinnamon candies
2 cups boiling water
1 package (6oz.) lemon Jello
2 cups applesauce
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped nuts
Dissolve candies in boiling water. Pour over Jello.
Stir until Jello is dissolved. Add apple sauce, stir until
blended. Chill until firm. Blend cream cheese, mayonnaise.
Mix in celery and nuts. Spread over top of Jello mixture. Chill.
MACARONI MIXED VEGETABLE CASSEROLE
1 cup raw macaroni, cooked according to package directions
1 package (10 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables, cooked
1 can cream of mushroom soup
6 Smoky link sausages, cut into slices
1 cup shredded Velveeta cheese
Cook macaroni and vegetables until done. Drain and mix together
with soup, meat and most of the cheese. Save some to sprinkle on top.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
5/3/12
God again reached down and plucked another flower from my garden of siblings. Last week my youngest sister answered His call after an over 2 year battle with kidney problems. She surprised us because she was always so full of life and was on no medication. Me and my six siblings were all close with no problems between any of us. In looking for a reason, I can only suggest that part of it was due to the untimely death of our mother at the age of 41. We all had to band together emotionally and share the household work so we could remain at home as a complete family. We lived in a home with a Delco battery light system, with the only appliances being a radio and an iron. If we wanted to fry an egg in the summer time, we had to go get corn cobs, kindling and fire wood to build a fire in a wood range in the kitchen. In the winter time a fire was kept burning constantly to help heat the house. So we had to be concerned and care for each other.
Till and I were united by several bonds. She had just turned 12 at the time and I was 16. Remember how smart you were when you were that age? We always had a standing joke that I taught her everything that she knew, but not everything that I knew! In our later years, we were both widows, me for 30 years and her for 23. So we did a lot of time sharing. I went with her on at least a dozen bus trips sponsored by the Farm Bureau. She would call me and say she was going to Angola, Auburn, Defiance, Kendallville, or wherever and did I want to go along. No matter what I was doing, I just left it and went to her house and went shopping. She would ask me if I were hungry and my answer was always “What has that got to do with it? Let’s go eat”! I have adjusted to missing these jaunts since her becoming a resident of a nursing home these past two years, but they will always be etched in my memory. The only plus side is that at the end of the month I still have more money left.
Her name was Wilma Jean, which I thought was a very pretty name, but my dad gave us all nicknames and she was known to most of her friends as Till. She was so involved with living, never met a stranger, and enjoyed the activities of my kids and grandkids. We went to Ohio Northern to a number of soccer games, basketball games, tennis matches, and other sport events. She made many premature baby burial garments and donated and delivered them to a number of local hospitals to be given to families who lost a premature infant. Another ritual was for a number of years donating ham salad to the Butler blood drive for food for the blood donors. Her death leaves a big hole in our lives, but we will manage on our great memories. See you down the road, Till.
As we go to food, we remember that she made a mean chocolate sheet cake. It was always a favorite of ours and I will pass on to you the recipe, so it can still be enjoyed by everyone.
TILL’S CHOCOLATE SHEET CAKE
Bring to a boil:
1 stick butter or margarine
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup water
4 tablespoons cocoa
Pour over
2 cups sugar mixed with
2 cups flour
ADD:
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup milk
Bake in a sheet cake pan for 15 minutes at 400 degrees.
ICING
Bring to a boil:
1 stick butter
6 tablespoons milk
4 tablespoons cocoa
ADD:
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound powdered sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
Spread on hot cake.
She had a great following for her ham salad. I am not certain that she had a recipe. But here is the way I would say that she made it. We were partial to Echrich bologna.
HAM SALAD (made with bologna).
1 pound sliced bologna
¾ cup Miracle Whip
½ cup pickle relish
Boil bologna to remove excess fat and salt. Chop fine but do not puree. Add Miracle Whip and pickle relish. Serve in sandwiches made with your choice of rye, white or whole wheat bread. I usually put a bit of chopped onion in mine and some people like chopped hardboiled eggs added. Be creative according to your family’s preferences. I like it grilled occasionally, too.
Rest in peace, Till. You will be greatly missed.
Till and I were united by several bonds. She had just turned 12 at the time and I was 16. Remember how smart you were when you were that age? We always had a standing joke that I taught her everything that she knew, but not everything that I knew! In our later years, we were both widows, me for 30 years and her for 23. So we did a lot of time sharing. I went with her on at least a dozen bus trips sponsored by the Farm Bureau. She would call me and say she was going to Angola, Auburn, Defiance, Kendallville, or wherever and did I want to go along. No matter what I was doing, I just left it and went to her house and went shopping. She would ask me if I were hungry and my answer was always “What has that got to do with it? Let’s go eat”! I have adjusted to missing these jaunts since her becoming a resident of a nursing home these past two years, but they will always be etched in my memory. The only plus side is that at the end of the month I still have more money left.
Her name was Wilma Jean, which I thought was a very pretty name, but my dad gave us all nicknames and she was known to most of her friends as Till. She was so involved with living, never met a stranger, and enjoyed the activities of my kids and grandkids. We went to Ohio Northern to a number of soccer games, basketball games, tennis matches, and other sport events. She made many premature baby burial garments and donated and delivered them to a number of local hospitals to be given to families who lost a premature infant. Another ritual was for a number of years donating ham salad to the Butler blood drive for food for the blood donors. Her death leaves a big hole in our lives, but we will manage on our great memories. See you down the road, Till.
As we go to food, we remember that she made a mean chocolate sheet cake. It was always a favorite of ours and I will pass on to you the recipe, so it can still be enjoyed by everyone.
TILL’S CHOCOLATE SHEET CAKE
Bring to a boil:
1 stick butter or margarine
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup water
4 tablespoons cocoa
Pour over
2 cups sugar mixed with
2 cups flour
ADD:
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup milk
Bake in a sheet cake pan for 15 minutes at 400 degrees.
ICING
Bring to a boil:
1 stick butter
6 tablespoons milk
4 tablespoons cocoa
ADD:
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound powdered sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
Spread on hot cake.
She had a great following for her ham salad. I am not certain that she had a recipe. But here is the way I would say that she made it. We were partial to Echrich bologna.
HAM SALAD (made with bologna).
1 pound sliced bologna
¾ cup Miracle Whip
½ cup pickle relish
Boil bologna to remove excess fat and salt. Chop fine but do not puree. Add Miracle Whip and pickle relish. Serve in sandwiches made with your choice of rye, white or whole wheat bread. I usually put a bit of chopped onion in mine and some people like chopped hardboiled eggs added. Be creative according to your family’s preferences. I like it grilled occasionally, too.
Rest in peace, Till. You will be greatly missed.
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