Merry Christmas to All! 12/20/12

As is the usual custom at Christmas time, I will just wish for you the best Christmas of all time.   My wishes for you were inspired by a card I received from a special niece of mine for my birthday. From the basic thought, I will develop my own perspective.  Christmas finds us scurrying around, trying to find the perfect gift for others. Most of the time it is quite simple what will really bring them a blessed holiday.

First I wish each of you a love-filled life. We all need to love and to be loved in return. Scripture tells us to love one another as ourselves, and as God has loved us.  Much joy and many magic moments can be found in  loving relationships.

I wish you peace. Being comfortable with what you believe in and the standards that you set for your life and dealing with others is a source of great contentment. Treat others as you wish to be treated.  Be kind to everyone that comes in to your life.

Next, may your life be controlled by a steadfast faith in God and His plan for our redemption.  Get your faith out of the corner and dust it off, polish and deepen it. More important share it with others.  In case you have shoved yours into a corner or worse, thrown it out, ask God for help in bringing it back to a priority in your life.

My final wish for you is joy, which can be readily supplied if you follow the first requirements of love, peace and faith.

So let’s just feed our souls today and let this be a recipe for a great life. May your Christmas be holy, merry and filled with great family connections. See you all in the new year of 2013!

Nutty as a Fruitcake!! 12/13/12

I see Christmas is sneaking up on us really fast.  I am certain that you all know I have really been trying to be good, but at that point I must rest my case. As I ponder over a few circumstances that I am afraid you might have heard about, I think the only thing left from me to do is to come clean and admit that you heard right. But why would anyone with the years of experience that I have had, be part of something that defies good sense. My only recourse is to blame my little sneaky friend who is always stirring in my business, making a mess of things.  I really had my Thanksgiving dinner plans under rigid control.  I had invited those who needed a place to share the noon meal to come to my house.  I carefully list what I am making and issue the  fact that whatever else they do not bring, we will not eat!  It always works wonderfully and we have more food than we know what to do with.  

I have a favorite recipe for Easy Meat Balls that I ordinarily have an extra one prepared in the freezer ready for unexpected guests. As the day approached, I began to think maybe I should use the two 8x 8 baking dishes full that I had prepared when I found a really good deal at the local grocery store on low fat ground beef.  So I intelligently took them from the freezer in advance so they would be ready to use for our noon meal.  So far, so good.  I even managed to have a time schedule so they would be ready the same time as my Honey Mustard Chicken that was already cooking in the oven.  I very confidently put the first one in the oven. As I was doing the second one, I removed the elastic bound plastic cover from the dish, I thought, ”Oh, Oh!” I did not remember removing the cover of the first one. Sure enough, and it was worse than I thought.  I had used Glad Wrap on that one and the whole thing had disintegrated except that that was clinging desperately to the sides of my dish.  There was none on the food, so I scraped off what I could and we ate it, but I am still digging off plastic from that dish! Reheating it was not a successful operation. 

Guess I am a slow learner and should really pay more attention to that little old lady that tries to help me when I really do not need any interference.  This time I was so proud of myself that I was doing Christmas cookies earlier than I ever start.  I keep my flour in a Tupper Ware container that holds over five pounds of flour. I was so proud of myself because I had put it back where it is stored instead of leaving it set on the counter where I was mixing cookies. It must have been her that put it back because I still needed it to roll out the cutout cookies. It is stored above the dryer and is a tricky reach for me, but I can master it with no problems. Wrong!  As I stretched to reach the container and pull it from the cupboard, wouldn’t you know that she had left the small flour sifter sitting on top of the container. It was less than half full , but I know there was more flour than that, and it landed directly on top of my head!  I think that I thought a bad word or two. Anyway, it was the first time that I washed my own hair at home since I retired and became a lady of leisure and luxury and have my hair done each Saturday morning.

Since both of these atrocities happened when I was preparing food, my advice will be carefully scanned, so I am going to use really simple recipes this time.  For years and years a favorite of mine is one that that my daughter told me about and we used it for her wedding reception. You may want to use it for your Christmas festivities.  I make it every year for a son-in-law’s birthday. I think I gave it to you years ago, but it might be a suggestion for you younger cooks.

                        

CHEESE AND BOILED EGG SPREAD

1 pound of Velveeta cheese

2 cups Miracle whip

4 hard boiled eggs, chopped

1 tablespoon bacon bits, more if you prefer

Melt cheese in microwave at 50% power.  Do not over heat.  Stir in Miracle Whip and blend thoroughly.  Add eggs and bacon bits.  Serve with favorite crackers. To make a smaller amount of spread, just remember to use as much Miracle Whip as you use cheese and add egg and bacon bits according to your preference.

How about a dessert that takes only 15 minutes to prepare? Let it chill while you are preparing the rest of the meal.

                  

PISTACHIO CREAM PIE

1 prepared 9 inch graham cracker crust

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese

1 cup milk

1 package (3.4 oz.) pistachio instant pudding

1 can( 8 oz.) crushed pineapple, drained

2 cups whipped topping

Toasted coconut

Mix the cream cheese, milk and pudding until smooth. Fold in drained pineapple.  Place in graham cracker crust. Spread top with whipped topping and sprinkle with coconut. Refrigerate until served.

The spirit finally got to me and I started decorating for Christmas.  Since I am having no celebrations at my home, I am doing less than usual.  I like them during the season. But I hate removing them and packing them away. I enjoy seeing all of the ones a lot of you so laboriously produce.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED 12/6/12

God picked another apple from my family tree this past week. Anna Mae Platt, 96, of Butler, Indiana, passed into eternity last Tuesday morning. She was the youngest sibling of my mother and the last of my direct ancestors, named after her grandmother, and always went by both names. She was survived by 6 nieces, which included my sister and myself. She lived a very active life until the last three years when she became a resident of Laurels of DeKalb in Butler. She retired from Indiana and Michigan Electric Company after approximately 40 years of service at the age of 60. She also was the organizer of the local Red Cross Blood drive for many years at which  she  diligently gave her best. Her parents were two of my favorite “old people”, (They both died 20 years younger than I am!!)  Grandma and Granddad Dick, formally known as Mr. and Mrs. Richard Platt.

For 45 years she was an expected guest at my family’s Christmas celebration.  It was the time of our three hour fast before receiving communion and we started  having a 6:00 A.M. breakfast, then the kids opened their gifts then we all went to Mass at 10:00.  I got an inspiration that since she had never spent Christmas morning with a bunch of kids,  I invited her to come to our breakfast. She readily accepted and was a guest for the next 25 years or so and never missed a Christmas morning.  After my family grew too much to get into my home, she still came to our celebrations until she could no longer care for herself and had to go to the nursing home. She always brought a huge box of “unnecessary” groceries that we did not buy because of the difficulty of spreading one wage to cover the needs of eleven people. She thoroughly enjoyed watching the kids go through the box, elated over the marshmallows, box mixes, sugar coated cereal, Quick chocolate drink mix, etc. She stated later that it was not nearly as much fun when I finally went to work to help out with the family finances and we did step out of our rigid budget occasionally.

She was a unique individual, happiest when she was in charge and will be greatly missed.  May she rest in peace.

I will give you two of her favorite recipes.  They happen to be in my cook book, but there are a lot of new readers who would not have one since that was published in 1992. (incidentally we sold 900 of them!)  The bread recipe she made by the dozens and gave them away.  I still enjoy it and bake it occasionally since I have the uncontrollable desire to sit down and eat the whole thing while it is still warm. It can’t be beat if you toast it and spread it generously with real butter.

                                    

DILLY BREAD

1 package yeast

¼ cup warm water

1 cup cottage cheese

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon minced onion

1 tablespoon butter

2 teaspoon dill seed

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon soda

1 unbeaten egg

2 ¼ to 2 ½  cups flour

Soften yeast in warm water. Heat cottage cheese to lukewarm. Add all ingredients, adding flour last. (From my upbringing, I think all bread needs to be kneeded, so I do.)  Cover and let rise in a warm place for 50 to 60 minutes. Mix down, turn into a greased glass loaf pan. Let rise 30 to 40 minutes. Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees until crust is golden brown. Brush top crust with butter. 

This is delicious toasted and served with soups and is a great way to use cottage cheese that has slipped past the “use by” date”. I freeze the cottage cheese and make the bread at a convenient time.

A real favorite of hers was broccoli noodle soup and I made it frequently for her while at the nursing home. She would eat this even after she refused to eat most food that was offered to her.  Hope you like it that well.

                        

BROCCOLI NODLE SOUP

¼ cup chopped onion

1 tablespoon butter

3 ½ cups water

1 tablespoon instant chicken bouillon

¼ teaspoon garlic powder  (I use more)

2 cups fine egg noodles

1 (10 oz.) package frozen broccoli

2 cups milk

1 can (10 ¾ oz.) cream of chicken soup

½ pound Velveeta Cheese

salt and pepper to taste

In a large Dutch oven, sauté onion until tender, but do not brown. Stir in water, garlic powder and bouillon. Add noodles. Cook uncovered, for five minutes. Add frozen broccoli. (I use fresh broccoli, cook until crisp tender and add broccoli and water that I cook it in.) Return to boiling, cook for three minutes. Stir in milk and chicken soup. Add cut up cheese and cook over low heat until cheese melts, stirring occasionally.

Again, rest in peace Aunt Anna Mae, you will always live in our memories.

11/29/12

Hope your holiday weekend was all that you hoped it would be.  Mine turned out to be greater.  I was expecting a small guest list because of distance and other commitments but had between 25 and 30 for the noon meal. Later in the day another 25 dropped in.  The latecomers were invited to fill a plate with leftovers and I showed them how to work the microwave. A lazy approach but it worked.

On Sunday my sister, sister-in –law and  I  were invited by a family of nieces and nephews to be “special guests” at their Thanksgiving celebration. My niece and her husband from Pennsylvania were visiting her mother, so they chauffeured all of us to the rural home of our nephew and his wife. It was a magical afternoon and we felt privileged to be included.

After a weekend of food and more food, I was captivated with a very simple, low calorie, healthy recipe.  I especially liked the simplicity of the fruit combination with a 5 minute preparation time, which also, sounds attractive and tasty.

                        

FRUIT  MELODY

1 ½ cups strawberries, halved or quartered

1 cup fresh blueberries

1 medium banana, sliced

¾ cup green grapes

1 can (21 oz.) peach pie filling

Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Especially attractive in a clear compote dish. I have a deep respect for potatoes, no matter what you do to them. So this recipe jumped from the pages of my book with such vivacity (yes, there is such a word) that I could not ignore it.  I am just as eager to prepare and taste it. Another asset is that there are only five ingredients.

                                    

CHEESY SAUSAGE POTATOES

3 pounds potatoes, peeled and sliced

1 pound bulk pork sausage

1 medium onion, chopped

¼ cup butter, melted

2 cups ( 8 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese

Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer, uncovered for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender. Crumble sausage a skillet and add onion. Cook over medium heat until no longer pink, Drain off fat. Drain potatoes and arrange in a 9 x 13 in baking dish. Drizzle with butter. Add sausage and stir gently. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Right at this moment my sister is preparing for surgery for a knee replacement. My heart and mind are full of prayers for a successful venture to free her of much pain and regain mobility.  Her usual comment is “Now I am not sick, I just can’t walk!” 

Thankful Thanksgiving 11/22/12

Let’s use this week to do something that we are very careless about doing.  That is right.  Count your blessings and express thanks for all that you have, instead of complaining about what you can’t have. It will produce a much happier frame of mind and make you acknowledge all of the magic moments in your life that you take for granted or maybe do not even notice. We should not have to wait for Thanksgiving Day to remind us. Why not set aside a special time each day to give thanks for the special things in life that have come your way?

May the day be special for you and your family enjoying and appreciating each other. My gathering will be small at noon, because half of my kids are sharing the noon meal with their in-laws. Since it is open house all day, some will stop in later for leftovers, but distance of traveling will make that impossible for some. Those that do not make it will be missed.

A reader asked for a recipe for Snickers dessert. I have heard of it but never made it. It is a bit on my no-no list so I did not save a recipe that I did see in a book. By not having the recipe, I was not tempted to make it. That brings me to one thing that I am thankful for. My daughter was here and showed me how to find recipes on the Internet and positioned a very prominent icon that I can just click on. That makes me thankful for two things.  First of all is the fact that I remembered what she told me. Also that I was smart enough to accomplish the intended task. Also ranking very highly is the fact that I can help my friend with her dilemma.  Maybe this will be in time for you to try it so you can have that something extra you were hoping for in your own Thanksgiving meal. I will give you two different recipes, so you can use the one that will fit your family’s preferences best.

                        

SNICKERS APPLE BANANA SALAD

6 cored, chopped apples, with skins

6 to 8 frozen mini Snicker bars

2 bananas sliced

1 container Cool Whip topping

Put frozen bars into a zip lock bag and break into small pieces with a rubber mallet. Mix apples, bananas and broken Snickers bars together. Just before serving, mix in Cool Whip topping. May add nuts if preferred.

                        

SNICKERS DESSERT

I (16 oz.) carton Cool Whip

1 pkg. (3 ½ oz.) French Vanilla Instant pudding

4 large apples, peeled and sliced,  (can leave peeling on 2 for color)

6 Snicker Bars, diced

Mix Cool Whip and pudding mix with beater. NO milk. Fold in apples and candy bars. Chill before serving.

May your Thanksgiving Day be filled with gratitude, pleasant family interaction, lots of good food and many blessings for the coming year.

Prayer, Politics, and Peanut Butter 11/15/12

I promised myself that I was not going into the area of politics. The campaign is over. I am certain that a lot of prayers were offered for different results.  Now we find ourselves dealing with the outcome. Perhaps a solution is that we should storm heaven daily with continued prayers that our President and Congress will do what we elected them for and get their heads and hearts on the  solutions that are the best for our country.  All of the good ideas do not come from your favorite side of the aisle, nor do all of the bad ideas come from your opponents. Each Sunday at our liturgy a prayer is offered for all of our elected officials during the Prayers of the Faithful.  Now let’s make it a daily petition.

This last week was full of magic moments for me. A special one was the fulfilling of a Christmas gift for last Christmas.  My daughter gave her aunt a gift of a meal at Red Lobster which is her favorite restaurant. She included me and her sisters. It was a fabulous venture and the only way it could have been better would have been if we could have managed to get all seven of us in the same available vehicle. To top that, the next day, when I was quietly attending to my own business, (no, I was not taking a nap, that was earlier!), I heard someone come in my front door. Lo and behold, it was my grandson who has been deployed (we do not know where) for several months with the Rangers, and his parents.  It was a great surprise.  He will be home for two weeks and can spend Thanksgiving Day with us!  Welcome home, Evan, even if it is for a short time.

Sunday a friend invited me to go with her to the Lutheran Church for their pie and soup luncheon for the benefit of The Foods Resource Bank, a Christian response to world hunger. I tell people that if they really do not want me, do not ask me because I tend to go! Besides, responding to world hunger there were many other benefits.  First they had about five kinds of soup.  My first inclination was to give me a ladle of each kind and stir it well. Then I narrowed it down to two favorites. Someone graciously prepared sugar-free pumpkin pie. My intelligent response reached for the sugar free.  My human nature remembered that a week or so ago my doctor was very pleased with my numbers that were the result of my blood work! So guess what?  When I arrived at my table to eat my selections, there was a beautiful piece of coconut cream pie that was just as delicious as it looked. If you might have made it, it was perfection.  Now tomorrow I will have two meals of oatmeal and cinnamon!  Besides an excellent choice of food, I saw so many people that I rarely see (including several of my farmer friends and a cousin of my husband) and the venture turned into a magic I ½  hours.

Now we can flow smoothly into the area of recipes. I changed my mind several times between a ten year old magazine and  an equally old church cookbook that I picked up at a garage sale.  Since my mind was settled on soups  today, here is one that I think I would like, also. Hope you agree. Really I used one recipe from each source.

                        

CHEESY FLORET SOUP

3 cups fresh broccoli florets, cut as fine as you like

3 cups fresh cauliflower, cut as fine as you like

3 celery ribs, sliced

1 small onion, chopped

2 cups water

½ teaspoon celery salt

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

2- 1/3 cups milk

1 pound Velveeta cheese, cubed 

Combine the broccoli, cauliflower, celery, onion, water and celery salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, melt butter, stir in flour until smooth. Gradually stir n milk. Bring to a boil and cook 2 until thickened. Reduce heat and add cheese. Cook and stir until cheese is melted. Drain vegetables, add cheese sauce and heat through.

                        

PEANUT BUTTER CUP CAKES

1 ½ cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup sugar

¼ cup butter

¼ cup peanut butter

1 egg

1 cup sour milk

Combine flour and soda, set aside. Cream sugar, butter and peanut butter. Beat in egg. Add sour milk alternately with flour mixture. Bake at 350 degrees in cup cake pans lined with papers.

Makes 1 ½ dozen or can be baked in a 7 x 11 cake pan.

            ICING:  2 cups powdered sugar

                           ½ cup peanut butter

                           1 tablespoon soft butter

                           2 to 3 tablespoons hot water

One reader told me today that she likes to read about my experiences of long ago.  Nothing came to mind as I sat down to my computer, so Pat, I will work on that idea for another day just for you! I also found the recipe that you lost. Call me and I can give it to you, if you do not locate it otherwise.

Spontaneous occasions are often the most enjoyable! 11/8/12

Has anyone seen any unused magic hanging around?  I am in much need for a whole day of it!  We have my house about 65% back to normal. But the finishing touches seem to be the most difficult, getting the dishes back in the china cupboards, putting nails back in for the tiebacks on the curtains, most of all parting with the things that I really do not need but have a bit of  nostalgia clinging to them and do not really want to trash them. The day our local carpet specialist engineered the carpeting of my living and dining room I found myself trying to accomplish a few things in my kitchen maneuvering around my sofa, lounge chair,  entertainment center and TV in the middle of my kitchen! But I survived and now I am impressed with the finished results and realize how badly all of this really needed to be done.

It is amazing when you think that you are just a small pebble on a very large beach how many people noticed that something was going on at my home with all of people here carrying things out of my house, etc. Some assumed that I was moving out of town! Nope, you can’t get rid of me that easily.

Yesterday turned out to be a great day after I had assumed it would be very low key. After returning from our fall brunch at church and sadly realizing that I must have not won any prizes  since  I had not received any phone calls announcing that I was a big winner, I settled in for a lonely day. But I received a call from my daughter that she was coming to help put dishes back in the china closet, but she would be on a limited schedule.  We did more visiting than working but got that project started and created a magic couple of hours. Before long a son, his wife, daughter, son-in-law and my newest great grandchild whom I had never seen arrived for a visit. Luke Michael Digan, two months old was not really overly impressed with his great grandmother, but we will give him a little more time to accomplish that. 

Since it was late afternoon, my son who likes to cook,  inventoried the refrigerator for possibilities for a meal.  I had bought 2 pounds of fresh sausage at the brunch, my daughter had brought me a bag of their freshly dug red potatoes.  Before I knew what was happening he had made a delicious concoction of vegetables that I would not have thought of. He must have inherited the ability to make something out of what you have from his mother and grandmother! If you are a innovative cook, you could duplicate it from general directions.  He chopped the sausage and browned it, and removed the meat from the heavy Dutch oven. He had boiled the quartered red potatoes in a separate pan. Then he put the potatoes in the Dutch oven, added the meat, a can of cooked carrots, a can of creamed style corn, and a generous chunk of butter. I would probably have used some onion, but he is not an onion fan. With some garlic toast and mandarin oranges for dessert, we had a very tasty meal with no previous planning.  

Spontaneous occasions are often the most enjoyable.  They even did all of the dishes!

I had a 2005 magazine I was hoarding and decided to glance through it before I put it in the recycle pile and found a couple of interesting recipes. The first one is for my new friend Elsie, an exchange student from Africa, who is living with my daughter and son-in-law.  She thinks the nice soft chewy cookies that I make are “biscuits”!  A cookie has to be crunchy.  So here Elsie is a recipe that will fill your “cookie” definition.

                        

BUTTER PECAN COOKIES

¾ cup butter

1 package (3.4 oz.) instant butterscotch pudding mix

1 ¼ cups flour

½ cup chopped pecans

Cream butter and pudding mix.  Gradually beat in flour.  Fold in pecans. Roll into 1 ½  inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Flatten to ½ inch with a greased drinking glass. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes or until light brown. Great served with a hot cup of coffee or tea. Maybe even a glass of cold milk!

If you like Rueben sandwiches, here is a quick spinoff.

                        

RUEBEN CRESCENTS

1 tube (8 oz.) refrigerated crescent rolls

1 cup sauerkraut, rinsed, well drained and chopped

1 tablespoon Thousand Island salad dressing

4 slices Swiss cheese, cut into 1/2inch strips

8 slices deli corned beef

Separate crescent dough into 8 triangles. Combine kraut and salad dressing. Place two cheese slices across the short side of each triangle. Fold corned beef slices in half. Place over cheese. Top with sauerkraut  mixture. Roll up each from she short side. Place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 10 to 12 minutes.

The magic day ended with an invitation to go out for a belated birthday celebration which I had to decline, but I am demanding a rain check!

Home and Food Makeover 11/1/12

Look at that date!! There will be a short intermission while I go get my winter coat out of storage. I really thought I needed it this morning as I was leaving the house for church in a  suit with a light jacket.  I did turn off the ignition, go back into the house and get a light coat that was easy to grab so I would not be late. I do not think that I am emotionally prepared for the start of cold weather, but may have to be ready quickly.

I just had a completely magic week. Just like a kid,  my birthday is special to me. Thank all of you who may have sent me a card, an email, a Facebook greeting, a phone call, stopped by the house or just happened to meet me about town and mention it.  Last May I impulsively purchased some new carpet for my dining room and living room. Several of my kids suggested that I not have it installed until they painted the walls in both rooms! It was a great idea but the idea got tabled and ignored. I suggested to a daughter that my birthday was approaching, so why didn’t they all work together to get my painting done instead of giving me birthday presents. So we had two magic days when those who were free came and removed the carpet, two of them wanted some of it for home projects of their own. Before I knew what was happening the old carpet was going out the door, furniture was packed into the small space of my front porch, the narrow space in my bedroom, a trailer parked in front of the house, and several kids (they are really adult, but will always be “my kids”)  were painting the woodwork, mopboards and windows.  Two worked later than they planned, so everything would be ready for a Saturday painting party. Also all of the dishes from two china cabinets were put in plastic tubs. Some of my belongings are on the front porch, some in the garage, some in the basement.  So can you understand that I do not know where anything is? This uncovered some more house repair jobs that have to be done. So I am going to have to pad my time sheet with Uncle Sam and try to stay afloat!

The special part of those two days was the specialness of family working together, enjoying each other and when we are together the most fabulous food appears. Another magic part of the day was when I saw three great-grand kids helping paint! No one interfered, so I also said nothing, When the adults painted over their art work, it disappeared.  It was a real enjoyment for them. Just hope they do not try it at home, when mom is not looking.

I am certain that when we get everything back together again, I will be more than happy with the project.  I doubt if I have enough years left to make it a wise investment but it will certainly be an enjoyable one. No doubt I will now spend more time in my living room enjoying the atmosphere instead of in the kitchen, doing dishes, mopping the floor and cooking.

That was a sneaky way to get to recipes but I have a couple I think you will like.  I think I was a grandmother before I ever  heard of beef stroganoff, but it is something that I like but have never made. Last week I saw this recipe and it sounds simple enough that I think I can master it, so why don’t you try it, too?  Also I am passing along the ultra peach pie recipe that I promised you last week.  See, my mind is not completely gone, just doesn’t work to top speed like it used to.
                       
BEEF STROGANOFF
5 tablespoons flour, divided
½ teaspoon salt
1 pound boneless beef sirloin steak, cut into thin strips
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
½ cup chopped sweet onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 ¼  cup beef broth
1 cup (8oz.) sour cream
2 tablespoons sherry or beef broth
Hot cooked egg noodles or rice
Place 2 tablespoons flour and salt in a bag. Add beef a few pieces at a time and shake to coat. Brown beef in 2 tablespoons butter over medium high heat. Add mushrooms and onion. Cook until vegetables are tender. Add garlic, remove from heat and keep warm. In same skillet add remaining butter. Stir in tomato paste and remaining flour until smooth. Slowly add broth. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes, stirring. Return beef mixture to skillet. Add sour cream and broth or sherry. Heat through but do not boil. Serve with cooked  noodles or rice.
    
SOUR CREAM PEACH PECAN PIE
4 cups sliced peeled peaches
2 tablespoons peach preserves
1 cup sugar
1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream
3 egg yolks
¼ cup flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
TOPPING:
½ cup flour
½ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar
3 tablespoons chopped pecans
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup cold butter
Line a 9 inch Pie plate with pastry from your favorite recipe and flute edges. Combine peaches and preserves. Place in pastry. Whisk sugar, sour cream,   egg yolks, flour and vanilla. Pour over peaches.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.   Combine the flour, sugars, pecans and cinnamon. Cut in butter until crumbly and spread over pie. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean and topping is a golden brown. Cool for one hour.

Make your favorite salad, the beef stroganoff and finish your meal with a generous piece of the peach pie and make your family all “happy campers”.

Family - God's Greatest Creation 10/25/12

Family has always taken a great priority with me. Even when I was very young, nothing was greater than when my cousins whom I did not see but a few times each year, came to visit my grandparents and often came to our house.  Since my parents came from families of 6 and seven siblings there was always a multitude whenever we had a family gathering.  That also provided me with numerous aunts and uncles, each very special their own personalities and their association with me personally and my family. These aunts and uncles were always the focus of attention and special to us at all family gatherings.  Now guess who is the old generation!  My how time changes things. Then when my own family turned out to be the magic number of nine, family necessarily became very important.

This is all leading up to a great day a week ago Saturday when my father’s family had their annual family reunion  at my nephew’s home. Steve and Barb graciously agreed to entertain us at their home when providing insurance each year for the use of the Miller Park facilities became a problem.  A fantastic day with hay rides, bonfire, trips to the Jennings addition of the Farnham cemetery where 6 generations are buried, yard games, rides in a delicate conditioned covered wagon were all on the planned agenda.  Not to mention a fantastic meal with lots of good Jennings cooking. We forgot to consult the weather man when we moved it ahead two weeks to guarantee a nicer day.  But it takes more than a few showers and wind to spoil a day of enjoying family for the ones who came from Lafayette, Indianapolis, Elkhart, Warsaw and a lot of us from more local destinations.  Oh yes, I need to mention a guest from Africa!  Elsie, the exchange student who is making her home with my daughter and son-in-law gets the prize for coming the greatest distance!  Let’s not mention who was the oldest!!  I won’t offer a prize for guessing that in two guesses!  Thanks again to Steve and Barb for their hospitality, extra work and expense of being our hosts. We agreed to come back next year hoping for nicer weather.

I hope you are proud of me because I still know where my book and recipes are that I promised to use this week.  I was going to say I am proud of myself, but my mother’s voice rang loud and clear in my hearing aid improved ears that “Pride goeth before a fall” and “Self praise stinks!” So maybe we should just say I still have it nearby.

I have never mastered beef roasts but this sounds simple enough I am going to try it. So you will be on your own. I may have to call you for advice! The only problem is that is serves eight, so I would be eating it for a week. Since it calls for two roasts it would be easy to diminish it for your needs.
             
COFFEE-FLAVORED BEEF ROAST
6 medium red potatoes, cut into wedges
6 medium carrots, cut into 1-inch lengths
2 beef sirloin roasts, 2 to 3 pounds each
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 medium onion, halved and sliced
2 cups fresh mushrooms, quartered
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ cups brewed coffee
1 teaspoon chili powder
3 tablespoons corn starch
¼ cup cold water
Place potatoes and carrots in a 6 quart slow cooker.  Sprinkle beef with half of the salt and pepper. In a large skillet brown beef in oil on all sides. Transfer to slow cooker. In the same skillet, sauté onion in the drippings. Add mushrooms and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes longer. Stir in the coffee, chili powder and remaining salt and pepper. Pour over the meat. Cover and cook for 6 to 8 hours on low heat or until meat is tender. Remove meat and vegetables to a serving platter. Skim fat from cooking juices, and transfer to a small pan. Bring to a boil. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth. Gradually stir into the hot water. Cook until thickened. Serve with the meat and vegetables. I think these rolls would complement the roast.

             
PARMESAN KNOTS
1 tube (12 oz.) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
¼ cup canola oil
3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
Cut each biscuit into thirds, Roll each piece a 3 inch rope. Tie into a knot, tucking the ends under. Place 2 inches apart on a  greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Combine the cheese, garlic powder, oregano and parsley. Add the warm knots and gently toss to coat.

There is also an interesting peach pie recipe that I will save for another day. Peach pie is one of my favorites and this one is different than any I have ever tried.

Good friends and good food! 10/18/12

Like I said a week or so ago, October is a great month in which to be born.  A long time friend celebrated  her 80th birthday Sunday. Her husband is a distant relative through my maternal grandmother. But I was invited to her surprise party because of my friendship with her. There were two bonuses of the day.  Ann, thanks to your family for including me. First of all, another friend had decided that she was going to pick me up for anything that we were both attending, even though it was a total distance of at least ten miles mile out of her way. She had set a limit of my 85th birthday to begin her act of caring for the elderly.  To her chagrin she discovered I was already 87!   For a number of years my youngest sister and I had gone to her house and then let her drive us to distant meetings. So I really need to get  her on my list of special friends, especially considering the price of gasoline, and then she had to bring me back to Edgerton! Thanks so much Ruth. You were already considered a special friend, but I am really fortunate now.

The second bonus was that I saw so many people that I had not seen for years, including several of my farmer friends from my years of working at the elevator. As we were going through the magnificent line of food, the honored guest’s daughter-in-law was refilling a container of meat balls. She looked perplexed as she scrutinized the contents of both containers.  They looked so different that she questioned combining them, even though they were from the same recipe. I noticed her indecision and said just put them together and stir them good and no one will notice.  I agreed to take the blame if she got in trouble.  Later the wife of one of my farmer friends told me how good the meat balls were and that they told her it was my recipe!!  I was going to ask for the recipe since it was different than my favorite one but very good. I decided that I probably should just leave good enough alone!

That should bring us around to food very easily. I am trying to part with a lot of my treasures. I was looking through a collection of magazines (I put several out in the recyclables last week) and decided why I had kept this one.. There were some amazing suggestions, easily prepared even though the magazine was over three years old.  There was a suggestion for making hamburgers so they do not round up in the center by pressing your thumb in the center to make a well. As they cook they will fill out.  Handle the meat as little as possible. Also, do not  (as I have seen lots of cooks do) press down on the burger with a spatula as they cook. This  forces out the juices that keeps the meat moist, tender and flavorful.

Decisions, decisions, should I give you an entrée  or my special yen for desserts? Want to bet five on which I will do?  I have a weakness for cookies and try to get them out of the house as soon as I have them baked because either the devil or that nosy little old lady that I notice is still hanging around entices me to eat them, against my doctor’s orders. Let’s start with one that says it is kids’ favorite but did not say what age the kids have to be. I bet you all will qualify.
            
KIDS’ FAVORITE COOKIES
1 cup butter, softened
½ cup  white sugar
½ cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups quick cooking oats
1 cup flaked coconut
5 milk chocolate candy bars (1.55 oz.)
Cream butter and sugars. Beat in vanilla and egg. Combine flour, baking soda and salt. Add to creamed mixture. Beat in oats and coconut. Mix well. Roll into 1 inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on cookies sheet, flatten slightly. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Break each candy bar into 12 pieces, press a piece into each warm cookie. Cool on wire racks.
           
CHERRY and ALMOND KRISPIE SQUARES
1 package (10 oz.) large marshmallows
5 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon almond extract
6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
3 cups salted roasted almonds, divided
1 ½ cups dried cherries, divided
Combine in a heavy pan, marshmallows and butter. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until melted. Remove from heat and stir in extract and cereal, 1 cup of cherries and 1 cup almonds. Press  into a 9 x 13 inch greased pan. Sprinkle with remaining almonds and cherries. Gently press into cereal mixture. Cool and cut into squares.

I will save my magazine for another week and give you some good ideas for a main meal. I am writing it in ink right here. Hope I can find my magazine next week!

Miracle Triplets - Three Times the Magic! 10/11/12

Last week I was asleep at the switch when I dated my original copy for the paper.  I didn’t realize until a few days later that I had dated it a week later than it should have been.  This is the week I should have mentioned the interesting date that goes in chronological order, 10, 11, 12, therefore reminding me of my brothers’ birthday.  If it did not make sense to you, the buck stops here and I take full responsibility.

Both this week’s date and the rainy, chilly, damp day reminds me too much of the long winter days ahead, with possible snow to shovel. So I will doubly enjoy the nice fall days that do come our way and try not to think of the winter months. My favorite time of the year is springtime when the earth suddenly springs to life with green appearing everywhere and signals the end of snow hindering my travel plans.

The past week brought magic moments to my life with the birthday party of my year old great granddaughter who was unfazed by all of the attention, but it was a great day for us to enjoy many people that we do not see often. Wish you could remember all of the “lady bug”  festivities, Everleigh.

Climaxing the week was the visit from Kentucky of my sister’s great grandkids- nine month old triplets, Emmy, Gus, and Tommy Mathews. They were in our town from Friday evening until Sunday morning getting acquainted with their extended family with an open house at my sister’s for anyone who wanted to meet them. Seeing some of the demands of three at such a tender age, made us partially realize the challenge presented to the parents who have the 24 hour a day responsibility for the lives of such a precious blessing. I mentioned to the parents an article that I read when I was in charge of my large family that the first requirement to successfully managing a large number of kids (which could also be applied to three at one time) is the fact that you really want to do it.  Their parents seemed calm, cool  and collected and very much in charge of the situation. (With much assistance and encouragement from Grandpa Doug and Grandma Sandy!)

My thoughts this week went in the area of sugarless items, probably of my guilt pains of too many cookies with a sugar test coming up in about three weeks.  I am not certain if that is enough time to bring my three months average down or not, but I will give it a good try. For any of you with a similar problem I am including a recipe for sugarless brownies that came from my Dad’s sister who included it in her church recipe book that she gave to us on our 25th wedding anniversary.  That makes it a bit old but should be quite tasty. I also have a simple but good recipe for a quick lunch when ideas and time are scarce for a meal for your family.
           
BROWNIES FOR DIABETICS
½ cup butter
Sweetener equivalent to 1 ¼ cup sugar
2 squares unsweetened chocolate
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
¾ cup sifted flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ cup chopped walnuts
Cream butter and sweetener, add melted chocolate. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder and nuts. Spread in a greased baking pan (8 x 8). Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
           
CHEESY POTATO SOUP
4 potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
4 chicken bouillon cubes
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons flour
4 cups milk
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Cook potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, bouillon cubes in water until tender. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add 2 tablespoons flour and stir until smooth stirring constantly. Add milk heat until thickened, stirring constantly. Drain vegetables, add sauce and shredded cheddar cheese.  Mix and heat thoroughly. DO NOT BOIL. Serve with crackers, shredded cheese and paprika. To prevent cheese from sticking to a shredder, spray the shredder with cooking spray before beginning.

Memories that we might have roses in December 10/3/11

Isn’t today an interesting date? More than just interesting in numerical succession, it brings back memories of a favorite person in my life. October 11 was the birthday of my older brother whom God wanted in His garden of fantastic people. Rest in peace, Kenny, or “Deke” as he was affectionately known to his siblings. October is a great month to be born. The 1st is my first born son’s birthday, October 4th brought my first grandchild. October 8th was my husband’s birthday just 16 days before mine which made him think he was boss!!  This week marks the birthdays of 2 great granddaughters, and the birth date  of my paternal grandmother. The nineteenth was the birth date of my maternal grandfather. Bringing up the end of the month is a granddaughter’s birthday who just became a new mother herself. Too numerous to mention are the October birthdays of cousins, in-laws, nieces and nephews. When I was a teenager our minister’s birthday was the same as mine. I still have a birthday card in which he wrote “A great day when great people celebrate their birthdays.” That was in the 1940’s and I still have the card among my treasures!

On the sad side of life was the recent damaging of the Spencerville Covered Bridge when a truck driver drove a semi through it even though it was posted as a 3 ton weight and a height limit. Damage has been estimated from between $100,000 and $300,000! Besides the monetary damage is the historical value since it was built in 1873. It had a special significance to me because my husband had expressed his desire to have a covered bridge picture. Since he did not drink nor smoke, I agreed to let him have this special wish.  He came home from work one night and said he was going to get his bridge picture. A co-worker, Jill Ordway, was going to paint it for him.  He went to Spencerville and took a photo of it and gave it to Jill. He gave me frequent developments as time passed with the fact that it was going to be bigger than he thought, then that it was going to cost more than he thought.  I asked him if it would be enough for a Christmas present which he readily agreed.  He got the picture 2 feet by 3 feet without the frame, just a week or two before Christmas. A friend made a frame for it from barn siding. On Christmas Day I realized his thinking, not mine, was that it was to be a present for both of us!  He died on the thirteenth of January and enjoyed it only a few weeks. It has graced my living room wall for thirty years, and is one of my most prized possessions next to our family photo that was taken less than a year before his death.

Since the photo that he took had no leaves on the trees, she wanted one to paint from.  He called our youngest son and told him to go down to the bridge and where to stand and take a photo of the trees with their fall colors. She drew small squares on the photo and painted from that picture. From this history, when I am gone, that son becomes the owner of the picture. To diminish thoughts of favoritism, a friend took a picture of the picture and made a nice sized framed picture for each of my kids for a Christmas present a few years ago.

I experienced a few magic hours this evening when I received a telephone call from a son wanting to know if I were going to be home for supper.  He and his wife were coming to Parkview Nursing home to see his mother-in-law and they wanted to bring her to my home for a meal. They were bringing the essentials for a salad.  I quickly thawed some meatballs I had in the freezer especially for such an occasion. Also,  some apple sauce that I made from apples given to me from a kind gentleman who was generous in bringing me apples from his farm. I think I neglected to mention him when I was acknowledging  my wonderful and kind friends in the past.  It was a special visit with me realizing the fantasy that I have been listening for—noises from the kitchen insuring that someone was doing my dishes! I will give you the idea of their salad which would have been a meal in itself without my meatballs and apple sauce.
                                  
SANDERS SALAD
Torn salad greens to fill a nice sized plate
Garnish with :
     Shredded cheese
     Diced apples
     Diced strawberries
     Fresh blueberries
     Thinly sliced deli turkey (can use chicken or ham)
     Raisins
     Chopped hard boiled eggs
Top with salad dressing of your choice.  I chose Russian and Ranch, complimented with a slice of baked Texas Toast!  Like I said, we really did not need meat balls, apple sauce, nor the raisin oatmeal cookies.
                      
SOUTH WESTERN BEEF COMBO
1 pound lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
6 cups frozen potatoes, O’Brien, thawed
2 cups salsa
Brown beef and onion in large skillet. Pour off any drippings. Stir in potatoes and cook over medium-high heat for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in salsa and continue to cook for 10 minutes longer.

Let's Just Eat! 9/27/12

 Pistachio Pineapple Whip

As I look at my last week’s appointment book, it is quite empty of activities. I went to the same garage sale twice. Bought a few things both times, but especially  enjoyed the social visiting and the friendliness of the family performing the difficult task of disposing of the many treasures of their parents’ lives. A very special event was a small impromptu family birthday celebration of my sister-in-law’s birthday on Saturday evening, at the local restaurant .  It was a busy day for most of her nieces and nephews but those of us who celebrated with her had a very enjoyable time. She is trying hard to catch me in age, but I do keep staying ahead of her. My son-in-law drafted the assistance of an acquaintance who happened to be dining at the restaurant  to help us in singing “Happy Birthday”. We were not blessed with musical talents and our singing leaves much to be desired. She helped keep the rescue team from coming to our aid!  Best wishes to you, Mary, and may we have another party next year!!

I keep  churning my mind for an interesting topic, but I keep returning to my disturbing thoughts about the present presidential campaign. Never before in my 65 years of voting, ( I do not think I ever missed an election, served on an election board for years, ran for township trustee, or rather was nominated without my consent, fortunately I gave my opponent an astonishing race but was not elected),  have I ever seen such a negative approach.  If you say something bad about me, I will say something worse about you does not persuade me to vote for anyone.  If you cannot sell me your sweeper with its positive qualities about your product instead of criticizing my worn out broom, you will not make a sale.  There are things that I do not like about both candidates.  In the past I have voted for both parties in the presidential election and locally I pay no attention to the party of the candidate, but rather on what I personally know to be true about their personality and character.  Sometimes I let my idea of their intelligence persuade me, but we can learn from our kids.  One daughter told me once, in a kind way, “Mom, you cannot judge people by their intelligence. They only have what God gave them to work with!” At this time I was not voting for a president, I was giving advice on a choice of friends.

There are only a few weeks left for me to ponder where I should mark my “X”. I will make what I think is a sound decision only to have the media tear apart the statements made by the candidate. In a fact finding report after the conventions, it stated false statements made by each candidate! Since not voting is not an option, may some positive, not prejudicial, statements be forthcoming.

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

As I am searching for food, I thought I needed some dessert to settle my political nerves, but I found only a controversial recipe.  You may criticize it, because I am not certain that I will try it. Let’s just say I am prejudiced with my own present recipe for pie crust! Might I mention one fault about this new one?  It makes too much if it is one I do not like!  Might I suggest cutting it in half.  This might not be intelligent on my part, because I have never heard of this approach even though this cook book is over 25 years old. I must have lived a sheltered life.
                              
SOUR CREAM PIE CRUST
4 cups all purpose flour
1 ½  teaspoons salt
2 cups vegetable shortening
1 cup dairy sour cream
Cut mixture of flour and salt into the shortening until mixture resembles small peas. Stir in sour cream. Wrap and refrigerate overnight. (It can be stored in the refrigerator up to ten days.) This dough browns more quickly than the usual pie dough. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 to 9 minutes. I usually do not bake crust at that high temperature. That is the suggested one and since I do not bake it, use your own judgment. This makes 3 double crusted pies.

Next there is a very simple, quickly made dessert. Why wouldn’t anyone want to try it? Bet it would be good with other choices of pudding mix if you do not like the suggested flavor.
                       
PISTACHIO PINEAPPLE WHIP
1 carton (16 oz.) whipped topping, thawed
½ cup miniature marshmallows
1 can (20 oz.) crushed pineapple
1 small box instant pistachio pudding mix
½ cup chopped nuts
Turn whipped topping into a large serving bowl. Fold in marshmallows, undrained pineapple, dry pudding mix and nuts. Refrigerate. Good as salad or dessert.

To impress your family put it in dessert dishes and top with a dab of whipped topping and a candied cherry.

Happy Birthday Magic Moments 9/20/12

Just living can play dirty tricks on the most unsuspecting. Last evening when I should have been doing this, I thought that since I had a couple of ideas that I could develop, that I would just go to  bed, get up early this morning and breeze through another chat with you.  Wrong.  I did wake up early, but decided nothing was worth getting up that early, so I just pulled the covers up higher and went back to sleep. Here is where the trouble started.  This must have been heavier on my mind than I realized because I was struggling with getting it arranged, finally had it where I wanted it and awakened to the startling facts that it was an hour later than I needed, my paper was blank, and what in the world had I written while I was sleeping!

Let’s go back to the original activity of last week.  I baked a few pies for my daughter which she took back to her work place in Bryan and shared with her co-workers. She decided it would be nice to have me bake three pies and she would have me come in during their lunch break so could they could meet me. This was a very flattering suggestion, and all went well with the help of her embellishment of ice cream. By the time I got home I had four emails, from coworkers thanking me for my efforts.  That evening I got one from my daughter with a development she wanted to share. A customer from Maine had called and placed an order for thousands of dollars worth of products and commented on her “Monday”, implicating that all Mondays are difficult. She informed him that hers was a good one that they had just enjoyed pie baked by her OLD mother and ice cream.  He followed up with the suggestion, “Just keep the products that I ordered and send me 2 apple, 1 peach and 1 cherry”!

Now we will go from the ridiculous to the sublime.  On Saturday evening I was an honored guest at the outdoor wedding of my granddaughter  at the Orchard Hills Country Club. Along with a  backdrop of a flower decorated arch and a mini altar, the rest of the magnificent scenery was provided by the hand of God  in the view that was overpowering as we witnessed their vows. The officiating clergyman imposed the requirement for a successful marriage of keeping God at the center of their home and lives.  For what it is worth, I like to add that each of the couple has to put the other one first. Weddings have the obstacle of months of planning and ideas that have to come together at an appointed hour. Again we can say “Mission accomplished.”   Our best wishes go out to Steve and Morgan for a very happy and long marriage.

Now for a short intermission as I select a couple of recipes. Wish I knew how the chef at the reception did some of the fantastic food  that was served. Since it is late for my dead line, maybe I better look for my four ingredient cook book. That will be almost impossible, just because I do remember that I had it in my hands two days ago!  Here is one that is simple and seasonal. It brings back memories of mini-muffins that my first granddaughter always brings to our Thanksgiving dinners. The pie is a different approach to pecan pie.
                      
PUMPKIN MUFFINS
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground  allspice
4 tablespoons butter
1 egg beaten
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup milk
Sift together flour, baking powder sugar, salt, spices. Work in butter until crumbly. Stir in egg and pumpkin. Mix in milk just until all ingredients are moistened. Bake in 12 greased 2 ½ inch muffin cups at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until muffins test done.
                      
PECAN CREAM CHEESE PIE
1 package (8oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
I unbaked 9 inch pie shell
1 ¼  cup chopped pecans
3 eggs
1/4cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup light corn syrup
Mix together cream cheese, sugar, salt, vanilla and egg. Pour into pie shell. Sprinkle with pecans. Combine all remaining ingredients. Mix well. Pour over pecans. Bake at 375  degrees 35 to 40 minutes or until center is firm.

Wishing Magic Moments a belated happy 22nd birthday last week.

Noodle Casserole for Your Sinful Cake to Sit on 9/13/12

I didn’t really think it was possible for it to rain more than 15 minutes at a time until Friday evening.  My youngest granddaughter was a member of the Homecoming Queen Court at Adams Central High School, at  Decatur. Of course it would have been impossible to not have a Sanders cheering section. According to family tradition we were a few minutes late leaving Edgerton. This made us a few minutes late arriving at my son’s home where his wife had prepared a chili and snacks buffet. You know what happens to the best laid plans of mice and men!  We were more minutes late getting started to the football field.  But our guardian angels were on duty and we had a full five minutes after we were seated before the festivities began.

We tried to not notice a few heavy dark clouds to our right.  Our pick of the six senior girls who were court delegates was not chosen as the queen, but we took consolation in the fact that her escort was chosen as king!  As the football game began, we were more interested in chatting with relatives, but near the end of the second quarter it began to rain. A large number of people scampered down the bleachers seeking shelter as it began to rain harder.  My daughter-in-law shared her umbrella with me as my son scampered to his truck, which he drove as close to us as he could get in order to transport me to where we had parked.  In the meantime, my daughter came back to be certain that someone was looking after “mom”.

Aubrie

Did you ever see an 88 year old grandmother try to get in a pickup truck in the rain?  It wasn’t pretty but I made it. We had agreed to just go back to Keith and Mari’s home and finish off the chili. Rather than get me out of the truck and into another vehicle we just went back to their home in the truck. After indulging in an array of food, we decided to play cards. Our exchange student went with us and she had never played cards, but I was amazed at how quickly she followed our less than expert directions. Good job, Elsie. During our card game, I noticed a few lightning flashes. It apparently had not stopped raining all of that time.  We arrived home after midnight and it rained all the way home.  Too bad that we couldn’t have been in line for some earlier in the summer.   I talked to one of my farmer friends recently and he said, ”We will make it though.  Next year we will be right back out there planning another crop”.

On Thursday I tested my stamina and went to an all day meeting in Lagrange County followed by the DeKalb County Annual Farm Bureau Meeting. This included two catered meals. This was easier than me getting into that truck! The speaker was the Indiana State President. He made two comments that stuck with me. He stated that in Knox County (that is in the south western part of the state along the Wabash river and includes Vincennes) the average yield of corn this fall is between 4 and 25 bushels per acre! He pointed out a bright spot in all of this. A lot of our urban and city friends will learn where their food comes from, since the problem is nearly nationwide. That reminds me of my youthful days when our city cousins visited our home and one of them told me she did not like our milk from our cows. She wanted hers from the grocery store!

That makes a good entry into the food area. I was scanning a box of cook books that I had decided to part with.  I took one last look, as if I were deserting an old friend, and selected today’s recipes.
Hope these find some interested cooks.  I received comments from a reader about the ham and cabbage recipe (her husband approved and he likes very few vegetables).  One made the Rosy Apple Cobbler for a finicky friend’s birthday and it was a success. I have a delicious sounding chocolate cake recipe, but as I try to convince my grandkids that you have to have something healthy for the desserts to sit on, I will start with a healthy casserole.
                  
HAMBURGER NOODLE CASSEROLE
1 ½ pounds of hamburger
1 green pepper, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 small can creamed corn
1 can mushrooms
1 can tomato sauce
1 pound Velveeta cheese
1 package noodles
There is no size mentioned of the size of the cans nor the bag of noodles. If you use a big bag of noodles. I would use a larger can of tomato sauce. Likewise, if you like a lot of mushrooms in a casserole, choose a larger size.

Brown hamburger, green pepper, and celery. (I would probably put in some onion, too.) Add corn, mushrooms and tomato sauce. Simmer for a few minutes. Cook noodles according to package Directions. Add noodles and cheese to hamburger mixture. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
                              
SINFUL CAKE
1 package German chocolate cake mix
1 package (14 oz.) Kraft caramels
½ cup evaporated milk
8 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup chocolate chips

Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Pour ½ of the batter into a greased 9 x 13 cake pan. Set remaining batter aside. Bake batter in a preheated 350 degree oven for 18 minutes. Meanwhile, melt caramels, milk and butter. Stir pecans into caramel mixture. Pour over cake.  Sprinkle with chocolate bits and pour remaining batter over top. Bake for 20 minutes until cake springs back when pressed with finger tips. Cool on a wire rack.  (Do not think about the number of calories, just think how fantastic this will taste).Do you think that would need a dip of ice cream or maybe whipped topping?

Oh yes, I should mention my two new great grandsons! The oldest, about 6-7 weeks, Juda Leo Sanders in South Bend and brand new, Luke Michael Digan in Ft. Wayne. They happen to be cousins. Don’t think I am to thirty greats yet but am over 25.  Need to “recalculate”.

Juda Leo at 6 weeks

Welcome to our country and town! 9/6/12

 Ribbon Crispies

Since we are into the Fall months, it seems that I have a few regrets.  I find that even though we endured some really harsh hot, dry weather this summer, I am not ready to box up my white slacks, and summer clothes. In the past, if you were really fashionably hip, you would not be caught in white clothes or shoes after Labor Day.  I think perhaps that rule has been modified.  At least I plan to wear mine a few more times.

Sunday was a day with many magic moments crowded into it.  My daughter and son-in-law have opened their home to a 16 year old exchange student from Africa.  They held an open house Sunday afternoon for their close relatives to meet Elsie.  It was a rare and very pleasant afternoon.  I can’t even imagine what it would be like to be that far from home, living with complete strangers, committed to stay for the entire school year.  For myself, when I have been gone from  home, even with people that I know, after only a few days all I want to do is go home. The Sleesman and Sanders families have committed themselves to make her visit with us as pleasant as possible. So we have an indefinite date as soon as she is comfortable in her new surroundings to make cut out sugar cookies.  She told me that she has never made cookies before. I sincerely hope that it does more than make her realize that she never wants to bake any again!!  A very precious moment to me was when she was sitting near me she leaned over and quietly said to me, “I really like your hair!”  I told her the only way you can get hair like mine is to get really, really OLD! She just flashed her very pleasant broad grin at me.  Elsie, welcome to the Sleesman and Sanders family, our country, and our Edgerton, where you will be attending classes at Edgerton High School this school year.  May your visit be filled with many, many magic moments and days.

Would you believe that I still know where the book and the recipe that I saved from last week is?  I had a pleasant surprise again from a friend who unselfishly donated lovely heads of cabbage from her garden.  I made last week’s cabbage casserole from my cookbook that I had never made.  Thanks to another friend’s recommendation, I made it and would label it very successful. If you like cooked cabbage, I hope you saved the recipe.   Now back to my favorites—desserts!
                      
BUTTER PECAN ICE CREAM DESSERT
74 (approximately two sleeves) butter flavored crackers, crushed
¾ cup butter, melted
3 small packages instant butter pecan pudding mix
2 cups milk
½ gallon butter pecan ice cream, softened
1 carton (8 oz.) whipped topping
Halved or chopped pecans
Mix cracker crumbs with melted butter. Press into 9 x 13-inch pan. Whip pudding according to package directions, but reduce milk to 2 cups, fold in softened ice cream. Pour over crust. Cover with whipped topping and garnish with pecans. Refrigerate until serving time. (I think I would try at least part of the pudding just vanilla.  Use your own preference.)
                                  
RIBBON CRISPIES
This recipe was taken from an annual Taste of Home Cook Book and is
recommended for all children from “1 to 101”.
½ cup butter, cubed
2 jars (7 oz. each) marshmallow crème
11 cups crisp rice cereal
1 to 1 ½  cups peanut butter
1 to 1 ½  cps hot fudge ice cream topping, warmed
In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium low heat. Stir in marshmallow creme until smooth. Remove from heat, stir in cereal until blended. Press half of the cereal mixture into a greased 15 x 10 by 1 inch pan. Spread with the peanut butter. Carefully spread with the warmed hot fudge topping. Press remaining cereal mixture over the fudge layer. (pan will be full) Cool for ten minutes before cutting into squares.

Again, WELCOME to our country and town, Elsie!

Summer is leaving but good food is here to stay! 8/30/12

I was amazed when I wrote the date that anything you intended to do this summer had better already be accomplished.  Scarier  than that is that 2012 is already two thirds gone!  Time is whizzing by.  No wonder my hair is getting so white.

This last week was a rather quiet one, which was nice but it left me with a search for a magic moment.  I had more quiet time to relax in my recliner and just think about what I ought to be doing instead of scrambling to accomplish what had to be done before the next social obligation.  This afternoon did furnish some magic moments for me, built on the heartbreak of some of my extended family. I attended the calling hours for the death of an in-law in my paternal  grandmother’s extended family. We are distant enough  that they don’t have to claim me if they do not want to. As I was inquiring about the oldest son who lives in Atlanta. He was pointed out to me and as I made myself known to him, he responded with “Oh, you have to meet my wife. She has your cookbook”! A very pleasant interlude followed after she told me she has made everything in it, and it is a bit ragged and messy from so much use. They use the sausage casserole dish for Christmas that we have used for years. Flattery will get you places at times. So I volunteered to go home and get her a left over reprint which I autographed for them, so it will be worth more money after I get noticed as the author!  It was very nice touching base with the younger generation who have scattered across the continent.  Guess there is a silver lining to a lot of sad moments in our lives. I also renewed friendships with some of my farmer friends of the days when I worked at the elevator.  Duane was also a farmer in the area whom many of them also knew.

I imagine most of you are having withdrawal symptoms from the lack of dessert recipes this past week.  Let’s take care of that right now.  A friend told me that she had just recently used my recipe for ham and cabbage casserole.   I had to admit that I did not remember it. That seems odd because I can remember things that long ago, but am not certain that I ate my breakfast and took my medications this morning. Since it has been over 21 years since the book was printed, I am certain that we have some younger cooks who have not seen it.  Since it is a very simple casserole and seasonal, because many in an ordinary year  would have an ample supply of fresh cabbage in their garden.  I intend to try it this week, since I enjoy cooked cabbage.
           
HAM AND CABBAGE CASSEROLE
I quart shredded cabbage, (my friend said that she
 used more cabbage because it is a favorite of theirs)
¼ cup butter
¼ cup flour
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded cheese
1 pound cooked ham, cubed
¼ cup chopped green pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup bread or crushed cracker crumbs
Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat, slowly stir in flour until smooth. Add milk stirring until thickened. Add cheese, ham and green pepper. In a buttered casserole, place a layer of cabbage that has been boiled five minutes, then a layer of ham and cheese sauce. Repeat, using sauce last. Sprinkle buttered crumbs on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Now , let’s get to the dessert.  I will save a good one for next week. I promise to remember which one and where I put it! I found this unusual apple cobbler recipe.  Hope it is as successful as the peach cobbler. Apple harvest time is just around the corner. Hope there is a successful harvest of them because I keep apples in my home nearly all of the time.
                       
RUBY APPLE COBBLER
4 cups apples, peeled and thinly sliced
1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1/3 cup red cinnamon candies
4 ½ teaspoons cornstarch
¾ cup water
2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 can (10 oz.) large refrigerated flaky biscuits
¼ cup chopped nuts
Mix together apple slices and lemon juice. Set aside. Combine marshmallows, cinnamon candies and cornstarch. Stir in water and butter. Cover low heat, stirring constantly, until candies are melted. Stir in apples. Heat until bubbly and slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Pour into an ungreased 8 or 9 inch square baking pan. Mix together sugar and cinnamon. Separate each biscuit into two layers Dip one side of each in melted butter, then in cinnamon sugar. Overlap, sugared side up, in rows over hot apple mixture. Sprinkle with nuts. Bake at 350 degrees 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
Serve warm.

Fine Arts, Good Food, Long Lives, Lasting Marriages, GOD IS GOOD 8/23/12

This past week has been a rather quiet one with a good number of days with very few social obligations.  Now wouldn’t you think that would be a great opportunity to get some deep but ignored cleaning done?  I had great plans, even wrote down a few, but do you know what happened?  I forgot to start them!  Oh, well this is another week, maybe I will activate those plans. (Please note that I slipped a “maybe” into that statement. That is enough to make me more relaxed.)

Last Monday was a great day for me.  Due to  a desire from a casual friend of mine who wanted to see a musical stage play in Shipshewana, Indiana, a group of seven friends made her suggestion a reality. I left home at 3:00 P.M. to join a car pool near Auburn.  We arrived at our destination to indulge in a family style dinner at the Blue Gate Restaurant, featuring chicken and ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, dressing, green beans, freshly home baked bread, topped off with our choice of pie.  I chose a new experience of vanilla cream pudding over crushed red raspberries with whipped topping. To be great pie for me, it has to have above average crust.  It met all of this criteria.  It was a real treat that slipped down by itself after over eating of the fabulous home cooked meal.  I kept watching and I saw no calories nor sugar, so I enjoyed every bite.

We made a hasty exit from the dining hall upstairs to the Blue Gate Theater where we were mesmerized by the performance of The Confession, a story of an Amish family who had raised their adopted daughter without her ever knowing of her origin. The cast included all professional actors and trained musicians which made the next nearly three hours go by rapidly. Many thanks to several of my friends who made it possible for me to be a part of such an evening. It was a rather expensive evening, but I decided it would cost each of my kids only $5.75!  It rained harder than I have seen it rain all summer most of the way home, which made it later than I had thought I would be and it was past midnight when I quietly slipped into the house, turning only the minimum of lights on and crawled into bed hoping no neighbors saw this little old lady in such circumstances. There is another play scheduled with an  Amish background for September through November. Do not be surprised if we go back again.  I will have to fudge my time sheet for extra funds, but I think I can make it if I stay out of the grocery stores.

My week ended with a very full schedule for Sunday.  I had declined one invitation for a celebration for two special friends who  have been married for over 65 years, and were celebrating both of their advanced birthdays. I have known them since I was a sophomore in high school and was disappointed that I had already accepted an invitation for a baby shower for a first child of one of my granddaughters.  I could not possibly honor both invitations since one was in Kendallville. When my daughter picked me up for the shower she said she intended to get me back to Edgerton in time to get to the birthday party!  We made it at the last moment and were graciously received by Bob and Marcella Koerner and their family. May they have many good memories of the day. We hurried from there to the church basement for a 40th wedding anniversary celebration. Again we were the last guests to arrive but, were glad we made the extra effort to help them celebrate. Congratulations to you, Larry and Viv Welch.

We ate at only two of the parties, but I came home with no intentions of having anymore food. It was even difficult to think of any food that I thought you might be interested in.  It will surprise you that for a change I ignored all of the desserts that usually attract my first thoughts. I have eaten, and made occasionally, poppy seed chicken but this is a bit different as this uses diced chicken instead of whole pieces. It makes a large amount so maybe you can divide it in half or maybe freeze some of it before you bake it.   It suggests chicken breasts, but I am going to use a mixture of both white and dark meat, because that is what I like best.  The salad recipe is one that I have never tried but has possibilities.  The title fascinated me, too.
                                  
POPPY SEED CHICKEN
About 7 to 8 pounds of chicken, cooked and diced
1 ½  cups sour cream
2 tablespoons poppy seed
2 cans cream of chicken soup
½ cup chicken broth
1 ½ sleeves butter flavored crackers, crushed
1 stick butter
Place cooked and diced or shredded chicken in a 9 x 13 pan. Mix chicken soup, sour cream, poppy seed and broth. Pour this mixture over the chicken. Sprinkle crushed crackers on top. Drizzle butter over all. ( I usually just mix the butter and crackers.  The recipe called for “2 cream cheese” but did not mention it when giving directions.)  Maybe some little old white haired lady turned in this recipe!  I am going to try it with at least 1 (8 ounce) package and then make a final decision.

Why don’t you live dangerously?
                      
HILLBILLY PINEAPPLE SLAW
I head shredded cabbage
1 can crushed pineapple, drained
1 small onion, shredded
½ cup mayonnaise, more if needed
Salt and pepper if desired
1 package mini marshmallows (Use your own discretion as to size.)
Combine cabbage and onion. Stir in pineapple. Add mayonnaise. Stir in marshmallows. Enjoy.