Attempt one... deeeeee-licious
Attempt 2, almost just as good...
Recipe:
2 cups scalded milk (save a little cold milk for dry mixture)
2 egg yolks, beaten
3/4 cups sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 PLUS 1 tbs cornstarch
2 tbs cocoa powder
2 tbs butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
Mix together cornstarch, salt, sugar and cocoa. Mix cold milk and beaten yolks together, add to dry mixture. Then add to hot milk and cook in a double boiler until thick. Add butter and vanilla. Cool and pour into baked pie shell. Top with meringue *. Bake at 400 for 2 - 3 minutes or until light brown.
I made this pie 2 times, and will probably attempt a 3 version of it which I think combines the best aspects of both methods.
First attempt, I made the pie exactly as the the recipe said to, only I used a graham cracker crust that had a fair amount of brown sugar and butter mixed into it. The pie was gone within 6 hours, and there were only 2 of us eating it.
However, I had a couple of issues with the original recipe... namely the meringue. Which to be totally fair isn't really even part of the recipe... technically.
But the pie called for 2 egg yolks, that left me with 2 egg whites. So I made meringue with the 2 eggs whites because I couldn't justify wasting an egg yolk so that I could add a third white to my meringue. It mostly covered the pie, but it was very thin, and because I have only a stand mixer and not a hand-held, 2 whites wasn't really enough to reach the whipping attachment very well so the meringue was a bit runnier than I wanted it to be.
The solution I came up with?
Add a 3rd yolk to the pie filling, reduce the amount of cornstarch, then add the third egg white to the meringue.
By the time I was finished the recipe was closer to this:
1 1/2 cups scalded milk
1/2 cup cold milk
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup cornstarch
3/4 cup sugar
3 tbs cocoa powder
1 tbs strong coffee
2 tbs butter
Meringue
3 egg whites
pinch of salt
1/2 cup sugar
In one bowl combine yolks and sugar until well blended, add cornstarch salt, cocoa powder and coffee. Mix well. Pour into saucepan of scalded milk and whisk constantly until thick. Take off heat, whisk in butter. Pour into baked pie crust.
* In another bowl beat egg whites, salt and sugar until thick, but still spreadable.
Spread over pie. Bake for 4-5 minutes at 400.
Upping the eggs helped a lot... though as I was typing this up, I just realized that I forgot to add the butter. So it appears that you could, if you wanted, skip the butter altogether and still have a pretty awesome pie.
I will say, the graham cracker crust really takes this pie from "good" to "freaking amazing". My next attempt I'll use the modified filling recipe, with the graham cracker crust.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
I'm back!
Hello friends!
So a perfect-stormy combination of getting a new computer, starting a volunteer position at the museum, George teething, several illnesses and Lenten Fasting has caused me to neglect my blog... I am sorry, but I promise I'm back and will try to update the blog at least once a week, preferably more though :)
So a perfect-stormy combination of getting a new computer, starting a volunteer position at the museum, George teething, several illnesses and Lenten Fasting has caused me to neglect my blog... I am sorry, but I promise I'm back and will try to update the blog at least once a week, preferably more though :)
Friday, February 19, 2010
Basic Sweet Yeast Dough, Mrs. A. Dunker. Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt #1
Many steps, but if you follow them, the recipe is extremely rewarding.
Recipe:
2 cups milk
2 tsp salt
2 pkgs dry yeast
1/2 cup water (105 - 110 degrees)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup soft butter
2 - 4 eggs
8 - 10 cups of sifted flour (depends on how many eggs you use)
Scald milk, pour over sugar and salt in mixing bowl. Cool to lukewarm. Soften yeast in 1/2 cup water. Add to milk and add 3 cups of flour. Beat thoroughly. Let stand until light and foamy (about 15 minutes). Add soft butter (must not be hot) and eggs. Beat well. Add enough flour to make a soft dough which can be handled easily. Sprinkle a little flour onto the board and turn dough onto the board. Knead dough until smooth and satiny. Put dough into a lightly greased bowl. Turn dough over to grease top as well. Cover. Let rise until double in bulk. Punch down, turn out onto board. Shape into loaves, rolls, rings or braids. Place in lightly greased pans. Bake rolls at 375 for 15-20 minutes. Bake bread at 375 for 10 minutes then finish baking at 350 for about 45 to 50 minutes.
Many years ago, after watching Baking With Julia, I thought it would be really fun (cause thats just the kind of kid I was) to make my own sour dough starter and make bread with it. I kept it going for almost a whole year too... since then I haven't done much bread baking though. It's too specific for my taste and the slightest problem can cause failure. But I thought I'd give it another chance with this recipe.
I followed every step, just as the recipe said I should. And I'm going to go through each one of these steps here (for anyone else intimidated by yeast dough).
I scalded the milk...
Softened the yeast...
Mixed the milk with the sugar and salt and waited for it to cool down. Then added the yeast with the first part of the flour.
..
Let it sit til foamy...
Added the butter and I only used 2 eggs (next time I try this recipe I will try 4 to see what difference it makes)...
I added the second part of the flour (5 more cups added to the original 3) and mixed it all for about 5 minutes (I used my Kitchenaid with the dough hook attachment)...
As you can see, I let the machine do the work of the kneading... mostly because I don't have enough counter-space to be able to knead this much dough properly by hand.
So I greased it and put it in a bowl, then flipped it over so that the top was greased as well as the bottom. Then I covered it with a damp towel and forgot about it for about an hour.
<---notice the dough is slightly below the 2 Qt mark
I went back to check on the dough, and it looked pretty well inflated to me... though i probably could have let it go longer, as you can see it didn't quite double in volume...
This makes a LOT of dough, so 2 different things. I made a pan of dinner rolls...
And I used the rest to make a big loaf of bread. My original intention was to use this dough to make a King Cake for Mardi Gras, but we got slammed with a huge snow storm that day and I wasn't able to get out to get the rest of the supplies I would need to complete it. So, plain old bread it was. With the rolls, I coated them in melted butter, but the loaf got a nice little egg-wash (just 1 egg beat with a splash of milk and brushed all over the dough).
I baked each according to the instructions provided in the recipe. Though the rolls needed almost 30 minutes in the oven. But the bread (using the 2-step baking method outlined in the recipe) needed only about 35 minutes tot
al.
The rolls were definitely my favorite. The dough bakes up very smooth textured, sweet but not too sweet. It would make great cinnamon rolls, but I wouldn't make pizza dough with it. The loaf made very yummy french toast, but was a little too crumbly as regular toast. Also, the loaf tasted very spread with pesto, but NOT garlic butter. It's just a touch too sweet for certain applications.
All in all, it was a great way to kill time and take my mind off the snow storm, and the thought of my husband driving in it, and bonus... we didn't have to try to brave the weather to go to the store for bread!
Many steps, but if you follow them, the recipe is extremely rewarding.
Recipe:
2 cups milk
2 tsp salt
2 pkgs dry yeast
1/2 cup water (105 - 110 degrees)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup soft butter
2 - 4 eggs
8 - 10 cups of sifted flour (depends on how many eggs you use)
Scald milk, pour over sugar and salt in mixing bowl. Cool to lukewarm. Soften yeast in 1/2 cup water. Add to milk and add 3 cups of flour. Beat thoroughly. Let stand until light and foamy (about 15 minutes). Add soft butter (must not be hot) and eggs. Beat well. Add enough flour to make a soft dough which can be handled easily. Sprinkle a little flour onto the board and turn dough onto the board. Knead dough until smooth and satiny. Put dough into a lightly greased bowl. Turn dough over to grease top as well. Cover. Let rise until double in bulk. Punch down, turn out onto board. Shape into loaves, rolls, rings or braids. Place in lightly greased pans. Bake rolls at 375 for 15-20 minutes. Bake bread at 375 for 10 minutes then finish baking at 350 for about 45 to 50 minutes.
Many years ago, after watching Baking With Julia, I thought it would be really fun (cause thats just the kind of kid I was) to make my own sour dough starter and make bread with it. I kept it going for almost a whole year too... since then I haven't done much bread baking though. It's too specific for my taste and the slightest problem can cause failure. But I thought I'd give it another chance with this recipe.
I followed every step, just as the recipe said I should. And I'm going to go through each one of these steps here (for anyone else intimidated by yeast dough).
I scalded the milk...
Softened the yeast...
Mixed the milk with the sugar and salt and waited for it to cool down. Then added the yeast with the first part of the flour.
..Let it sit til foamy...
Added the butter and I only used 2 eggs (next time I try this recipe I will try 4 to see what difference it makes)...
I added the second part of the flour (5 more cups added to the original 3) and mixed it all for about 5 minutes (I used my Kitchenaid with the dough hook attachment)...
As you can see, I let the machine do the work of the kneading... mostly because I don't have enough counter-space to be able to knead this much dough properly by hand.
So I greased it and put it in a bowl, then flipped it over so that the top was greased as well as the bottom. Then I covered it with a damp towel and forgot about it for about an hour.
<---notice the dough is slightly below the 2 Qt mark
I went back to check on the dough, and it looked pretty well inflated to me... though i probably could have let it go longer, as you can see it didn't quite double in volume...
This makes a LOT of dough, so 2 different things. I made a pan of dinner rolls...
And I used the rest to make a big loaf of bread. My original intention was to use this dough to make a King Cake for Mardi Gras, but we got slammed with a huge snow storm that day and I wasn't able to get out to get the rest of the supplies I would need to complete it. So, plain old bread it was. With the rolls, I coated them in melted butter, but the loaf got a nice little egg-wash (just 1 egg beat with a splash of milk and brushed all over the dough).
I baked each according to the instructions provided in the recipe. Though the rolls needed almost 30 minutes in the oven. But the bread (using the 2-step baking method outlined in the recipe) needed only about 35 minutes tot
al.
The rolls were definitely my favorite. The dough bakes up very smooth textured, sweet but not too sweet. It would make great cinnamon rolls, but I wouldn't make pizza dough with it. The loaf made very yummy french toast, but was a little too crumbly as regular toast. Also, the loaf tasted very spread with pesto, but NOT garlic butter. It's just a touch too sweet for certain applications.
All in all, it was a great way to kill time and take my mind off the snow storm, and the thought of my husband driving in it, and bonus... we didn't have to try to brave the weather to go to the store for bread!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
TASTING PARTY Onion Pie, Mrs. D. Early. (My Aunt Dorothy!)Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt #1
Very good. Even a non-onion-lover said she enjoyed it :)
Recipe
2cups Ritz Crackers crushed
1/2 stick melted butter (finally! someone uses butter!)
2 cups of onions thinly sliced
1 Tbs butter
2 eggs
3/4 cups milk
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Mix crackers and butter together to make a crust. Saute onions in butter until clear but not brown. Place in crust. Pour milk over the mixture and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Anyone else notice a few steps missing from the recipe? I took it upon myself to mix the milk, eggs and cheese together before pouring it over the onions and it turned out just fine. Very simple, very tasty. This would be an excellent side dish for a pork roast if you're looking for something a little out of the ordinary.
So, here was my Tasting Part Spread. The Molasses Cookies, then clockwise the Cabbage Casserole, Lazy Daisy Meatballs ( I made them again for the party, but with ground pork instead of beef... they were just as yummy as the first time!) and the Onion Pie.
Needless to say... we were pretty full by the end of the evening, and I had gobs of leftovers to munch on over the next few days for lunches.
Very good. Even a non-onion-lover said she enjoyed it :)
Recipe
2cups Ritz Crackers crushed
1/2 stick melted butter (finally! someone uses butter!)
2 cups of onions thinly sliced
1 Tbs butter
2 eggs
3/4 cups milk
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Mix crackers and butter together to make a crust. Saute onions in butter until clear but not brown. Place in crust. Pour milk over the mixture and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Anyone else notice a few steps missing from the recipe? I took it upon myself to mix the milk, eggs and cheese together before pouring it over the onions and it turned out just fine. Very simple, very tasty. This would be an excellent side dish for a pork roast if you're looking for something a little out of the ordinary.
So, here was my Tasting Part Spread. The Molasses Cookies, then clockwise the Cabbage Casserole, Lazy Daisy Meatballs ( I made them again for the party, but with ground pork instead of beef... they were just as yummy as the first time!) and the Onion Pie.Needless to say... we were pretty full by the end of the evening, and I had gobs of leftovers to munch on over the next few days for lunches.
TASTING PARTY Cabbage Casserole, Mrs. E Kost. Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt # 1
Yummy! But with a little adjustment...
Recipe:
1 lbs ground beef
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 small head of cabbage cut up coarsely
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large can of condensed tomato soup.
Cook beef in skillet until lightly browned; season with salt and pepper, drain fat. In 3 quart casserole layer 1/3 of cabbage, 1/2 the beef and 1/2 the onion. Repeat and top with the final 1/3 of cabbage. Pour soup on top of all. Do not mix or stir. Cover, bake at 350 for 40 to 60 minutes.
I picked this particular recipe because it reminded me very much of "stuffed cabbage rolls", with all the beef and cabbage in a tomatoey sauce. Also, it was the first of many Cabbage Casserole recipes that S.F.R. had to offer, and I thought that would be a good way to keep track of them. It was super simple to assemble, though I choose to slice my cabbage into long, thin strips (moo shoo style) as opposed to the coarse chop the recipe called for
.
After about 30 minutes in the oven though, I was really starting to doubt if this recipe would be any good. It was looking very dry and some of the cabbage was getting a tiny bit burned... So I did a quick re-read of the recipe and realized I hadn't covered the dish! And to make matters worse, I had run out of aluminum foil the day before. So I grabbed my broiler pan and turned it upside-down over the casserole. It wound up cooking for another 45 minutes after that... but when it was done it was good! And I mean GOOD! Even my husband, Mr. "I Don't Like Cabbage" tried some and liked it. Also, I think if you eliminated the ground beef altogether it would be a really yummy vegetarian dish too (Lent is approaching, and I'm always looking for vegetarian recipes during Lent).
Another plus of this recipe is that with all the acid, it keeps really well in the fridge. It's actually better after a few days and reheated.
So... If you like cabbage, I say give this recipe a try. It makes a TON of food, but it can very easily be cut in half.
Yummy! But with a little adjustment...
Recipe:
1 lbs ground beef
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 small head of cabbage cut up coarsely
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large can of condensed tomato soup.
Cook beef in skillet until lightly browned; season with salt and pepper, drain fat. In 3 quart casserole layer 1/3 of cabbage, 1/2 the beef and 1/2 the onion. Repeat and top with the final 1/3 of cabbage. Pour soup on top of all. Do not mix or stir. Cover, bake at 350 for 40 to 60 minutes.
I picked this particular recipe because it reminded me very much of "stuffed cabbage rolls", with all the beef and cabbage in a tomatoey sauce. Also, it was the first of many Cabbage Casserole recipes that S.F.R. had to offer, and I thought that would be a good way to keep track of them. It was super simple to assemble, though I choose to slice my cabbage into long, thin strips (moo shoo style) as opposed to the coarse chop the recipe called for
.
After about 30 minutes in the oven though, I was really starting to doubt if this recipe would be any good. It was looking very dry and some of the cabbage was getting a tiny bit burned... So I did a quick re-read of the recipe and realized I hadn't covered the dish! And to make matters worse, I had run out of aluminum foil the day before. So I grabbed my broiler pan and turned it upside-down over the casserole. It wound up cooking for another 45 minutes after that... but when it was done it was good! And I mean GOOD! Even my husband, Mr. "I Don't Like Cabbage" tried some and liked it. Also, I think if you eliminated the ground beef altogether it would be a really yummy vegetarian dish too (Lent is approaching, and I'm always looking for vegetarian recipes during Lent).
Another plus of this recipe is that with all the acid, it keeps really well in the fridge. It's actually better after a few days and reheated.
So... If you like cabbage, I say give this recipe a try. It makes a TON of food, but it can very easily be cut in half.
TASTING PARTY Molasses Cookies, Mrs. C. Rehmert. Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt #1
Good, simple. Would be good to add to a tray of mixed Christmas Cookies.
Recipe:
2/3 cup margarine
1 cup sugar
1/4 dark karo syrup
1 egg
2 tsps baking soda
1 cups flour
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
Melt margarine and cool. Add sugar karo and egg; beat. Combine with rest of ingredients and chill. roll in powdered sugar. Bake at 350 for 8 to 10 minutes.
Now, if you're anything like me the first thing you said was "There isn't any molasses in these Molasses Cookies..." That's because there ISN'T! I know! But, since I was throwing together a tasting party, and I happened to have all the ingredients for this recipe, I thought I'd give it a shot.
I mixed up the recipe with all my standard substitutions (seriously, whats up with all the margarine?) and for the spices I just used the teaspoon equivalent of all the spices called for with Pumpkin Pie Spice... In this case 1 full teaspoons of P.P.S.
The dough did not take very long to chill, maybe a half hour or so. Then I just scooped out the balls of cookie dough right into another bowl with some powdered sugar (Hidden Ingredient!)
The recipe made 30 cookies which was nice to only have to bake a couple of batch
es (as opposed to 5 or 
6 like some other recipes make).
The cookies do go from "perfect" to "rock-hard" in a matter of seconds, so as soon as they look set-up I'd pull them out of the oven. But as you can see, they make very pretty, crackly-looking cookies. Chewy and spicy and honestly the Karo does a pretty good job of mimicking the molasses in this case. Though I am curious to try the recipe with real molasses and see what kind of results I'd get.
As I mentioned before, this was part of my "Tasting Party" which was really just my awesome friend Megan coming over and eating a bunch of food with me and my husband... either way the cookies got the "Thumbs up" from Megan, my husband and me. So I would recommend giving this recipe a shot if you're looking for something easy and a little different.
Good, simple. Would be good to add to a tray of mixed Christmas Cookies.
Recipe:
2/3 cup margarine
1 cup sugar
1/4 dark karo syrup
1 egg
2 tsps baking soda
1 cups flour
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
Melt margarine and cool. Add sugar karo and egg; beat. Combine with rest of ingredients and chill. roll in powdered sugar. Bake at 350 for 8 to 10 minutes.
Now, if you're anything like me the first thing you said was "There isn't any molasses in these Molasses Cookies..." That's because there ISN'T! I know! But, since I was throwing together a tasting party, and I happened to have all the ingredients for this recipe, I thought I'd give it a shot.
I mixed up the recipe with all my standard substitutions (seriously, whats up with all the margarine?) and for the spices I just used the teaspoon equivalent of all the spices called for with Pumpkin Pie Spice... In this case 1 full teaspoons of P.P.S.
The dough did not take very long to chill, maybe a half hour or so. Then I just scooped out the balls of cookie dough right into another bowl with some powdered sugar (Hidden Ingredient!)
The recipe made 30 cookies which was nice to only have to bake a couple of batch
es (as opposed to 5 or 
6 like some other recipes make).The cookies do go from "perfect" to "rock-hard" in a matter of seconds, so as soon as they look set-up I'd pull them out of the oven. But as you can see, they make very pretty, crackly-looking cookies. Chewy and spicy and honestly the Karo does a pretty good job of mimicking the molasses in this case. Though I am curious to try the recipe with real molasses and see what kind of results I'd get.
As I mentioned before, this was part of my "Tasting Party" which was really just my awesome friend Megan coming over and eating a bunch of food with me and my husband... either way the cookies got the "Thumbs up" from Megan, my husband and me. So I would recommend giving this recipe a shot if you're looking for something easy and a little different.
Texas Sheet Cake, Mrs. V. Moore and Mrs. H. Voge. Salem's Favorite Recipes.
Attempt # 1
Pretty good... I had enough faith in it to take it to a party :)
Recipe:
Boil together:
-2 sticks of Oleo (margarine)
-4 tbs cocoa powder
-1 cup water
Add:
-2 cups flour
-2 cups sugar
-1/2 tsp salt
Mix, then add:
-2 eggs
-1/2 cup buttermilk
-1tsp soda
Bake on a 10X15 cookies sheet (small jelly roll pan) at 350 for 35 - 45 minutes.
Frosting:
-1 stick oleo
-4 tbs cocoa powder
-6 tbs milk
Boil just a little Add 1 box of powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla. Sprinkle with chopped nuts (optional) and spread over warm cake.
First off, let me apologize for my long absence. A 6 month old baby who is continuously having his nap time interrupted by some very loud neighbors makes for one VERY clingy and restless baby. But enough about the elephant herders upstairs...
This was a recipe that took me back to my younger days of working at Kings Island. My friend Shannon would often bring Texas Sheet Cake whenever we had something to celebrate and this recipe came very close to the recipe she used to make.
It was pretty straightforward... although I was not a fan of the "hidden ingredients" I.E. the ones that aren't mentioned until they pop up in the directions. But that just goes to show you, you should always carefully read the instructions.
I didn't have and buttermilk so I just added a splash of cider vinegar to regular milk and let it sit for a few minutes until it had slightly curdled. I pulled my cake out after only 28 minutes the corners were started to get the slightest bit charred... so keep an eye on this cake once it's in the oven. It also baked up much more than I expected which made pouring the frosting over the top a bit messy and I wound up frosting (glazing really) in steps. Just a thin layer at first, then pour the rest on after the first layer had time to set up.
The cake was very moist and very chocolaty, though it did get a little "streaky", which a lot of baking-types consider a "no-no". But after tasting it my husband and I decided it was good enough to take to the Super Bowl party we were attending the next day. It seemed to go over pretty well with that crowd too.
S.F.R. contains 3 recipes for Texas Sheet Cake and they all seem very similar. I may try a different version of this somewhere down the road, but I really don't see that much differentiation to try several versions all at once.
Pretty good... I had enough faith in it to take it to a party :)
Recipe:
Boil together:
-2 sticks of Oleo (margarine)
-4 tbs cocoa powder
-1 cup water
Add:
-2 cups flour
-2 cups sugar
-1/2 tsp salt
Mix, then add:
-2 eggs
-1/2 cup buttermilk
-1tsp soda
Bake on a 10X15 cookies sheet (small jelly roll pan) at 350 for 35 - 45 minutes.
Frosting:
-1 stick oleo
-4 tbs cocoa powder
-6 tbs milk
Boil just a little Add 1 box of powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla. Sprinkle with chopped nuts (optional) and spread over warm cake.
First off, let me apologize for my long absence. A 6 month old baby who is continuously having his nap time interrupted by some very loud neighbors makes for one VERY clingy and restless baby. But enough about the elephant herders upstairs...
This was a recipe that took me back to my younger days of working at Kings Island. My friend Shannon would often bring Texas Sheet Cake whenever we had something to celebrate and this recipe came very close to the recipe she used to make.
It was pretty straightforward... although I was not a fan of the "hidden ingredients" I.E. the ones that aren't mentioned until they pop up in the directions. But that just goes to show you, you should always carefully read the instructions.
I didn't have and buttermilk so I just added a splash of cider vinegar to regular milk and let it sit for a few minutes until it had slightly curdled. I pulled my cake out after only 28 minutes the corners were started to get the slightest bit charred... so keep an eye on this cake once it's in the oven. It also baked up much more than I expected which made pouring the frosting over the top a bit messy and I wound up frosting (glazing really) in steps. Just a thin layer at first, then pour the rest on after the first layer had time to set up.
The cake was very moist and very chocolaty, though it did get a little "streaky", which a lot of baking-types consider a "no-no". But after tasting it my husband and I decided it was good enough to take to the Super Bowl party we were attending the next day. It seemed to go over pretty well with that crowd too.
S.F.R. contains 3 recipes for Texas Sheet Cake and they all seem very similar. I may try a different version of this somewhere down the road, but I really don't see that much differentiation to try several versions all at once.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole. Mrs. A. Burkart, 1st Lord of Life Cookbook, Redone.
Attempt #2
Tried to make a more "calorie friendly" version.
The revamped version goes a little something like this...
3 cups cooked brown rice
2 cups cooked chicken diced
1 10 oz can of low fat cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 cup diced celery
1/2 cup minced onion
2 cups Special K
1 tbs canola oil
Mix first 6 ingredients, place in 2 quart casserole. In a food processor put cereal (equals about 1 cup after processed) and oil. Process until cereal is evenly mixed with oil. Sprinkle on chicken and rice. Bake for 1 hour at 350.
My husband said he liked this version, but if he had his choice he'd prefer the original. I'd have to agree on that opinion. This was a good substitute... but the original was SO good, it was kinda hard to top it.
Tried to make a more "calorie friendly" version.
The revamped version goes a little something like this...
3 cups cooked brown rice
2 cups cooked chicken diced
1 10 oz can of low fat cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 cup diced celery
1/2 cup minced onion
2 cups Special K
1 tbs canola oil
Mix first 6 ingredients, place in 2 quart casserole. In a food processor put cereal (equals about 1 cup after processed) and oil. Process until cereal is evenly mixed with oil. Sprinkle on chicken and rice. Bake for 1 hour at 350.
My husband said he liked this version, but if he had his choice he'd prefer the original. I'd have to agree on that opinion. This was a good substitute... but the original was SO good, it was kinda hard to top it.
Old Fashioned Cream Pie. Mrs. S. Habekost, Heirlooms from our Salem Family
Attempt #2 (same basic pie... different recipe, different method)
Recipe:
1 pint half and half
4 Tbs butter
2 Tbs cornstarch
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Heat half and half and butter. Pour some of this mixture into sugar and cornstarch. Then return all into milk pan. Continue to cook until thick. Add vanilla. Pour into unbaked pie shell and bake 30 minutes at 350.
Recipe:
1 pint half and half
4 Tbs butter
2 Tbs cornstarch
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Heat half and half and butter. Pour some of this mixture into sugar and cornstarch. Then return all into milk pan. Continue to cook until thick. Add vanilla. Pour into unbaked pie shell and bake 30 minutes at 350.
This recipe is very special to me for a few reasons. First of all, this is the pie that got me started on this project. And secondly, this recipe was submitted by my Godmother.
This is me, about 3 months old, with my Godparents Ralph and Shirley Habekost just after my baptism.
I made a few minor substitutions... I used (according to my handy substitutions chart located in Salem's Favorite Recipes) 4 tbs of flour instead of 2 tbs of cornstarch. I just don't typically buy cornstarch. I also added nutmeg, because... well, I like nutmeg. And when my Aunt Nancy made this pie, it had nutmeg in it.
This method worked MUCH better than the last recipe's did. I did everything just as the recipe said... Mixed it and then cooked it until it was thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Then poured it into the pie shell, let it bake for 30 minutes and "Presto!" Finally something that resembled the pie I remembered from my childhood. My husband didn't really care for the pie. He thought it was too sweet... and it *is* a very sweet pie. But, operating on the "more for me" theory, I wasn't too upset that he didn't care for it.
If I was to make this pie again, I think I would double the filling. This recipe make a very shallow pie, and since the filling is cooked first and then baked, I don't think doubling the filling would cause problems with the pie setting properly.
This is me, about 3 months old, with my Godparents Ralph and Shirley Habekost just after my baptism.
I made a few minor substitutions... I used (according to my handy substitutions chart located in Salem's Favorite Recipes) 4 tbs of flour instead of 2 tbs of cornstarch. I just don't typically buy cornstarch. I also added nutmeg, because... well, I like nutmeg. And when my Aunt Nancy made this pie, it had nutmeg in it.
This method worked MUCH better than the last recipe's did. I did everything just as the recipe said... Mixed it and then cooked it until it was thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Then poured it into the pie shell, let it bake for 30 minutes and "Presto!" Finally something that resembled the pie I remembered from my childhood. My husband didn't really care for the pie. He thought it was too sweet... and it *is* a very sweet pie. But, operating on the "more for me" theory, I wasn't too upset that he didn't care for it.
If I was to make this pie again, I think I would double the filling. This recipe make a very shallow pie, and since the filling is cooked first and then baked, I don't think doubling the filling would cause problems with the pie setting properly.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole. Mrs. A. Burkart, 1st Lord of Life Cookbook
Attempt #1
Very good.
Recipe.
1 box converted long grain and wild rice
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 10 oz can cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup diced celery
1 small can water chestnuts
1 tsp lemon juice
3 tsp onion minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick of margarine (melted)
1 cup corn flakes (crushed)
Cook rice as directed by box. Combine all ingredients except margarine and corn flakes. Put in a 3 quart casserole . melt margarine, add crushed corn flakes, sprinkle over top. Bake uncovered at 350 for 1 hour.
OK, right off the bat, I subbed a pre-boxed wild rice mix for a wild rice mix that my local grocery store sells in bulk. I made 3 cups of cooked wild rice. Also, I don't particularity care for water chestnuts, so I left them out all together. I didn't have lemon juice, so I used malt vinegar. Special K in place of corn flakes again and as always butter instead of margarine.
Finally, I found the measurement of "3 teaspoons of onion" a bit suspect. First because that's not very much for such a big casserole and secondly because 3 teaspoons is 1 tablespoon... so I treated that as a typo and used 3 tablespoons of minced onion.
I started by cooking my rice and poaching my chicken. I cooked both of them with chicken stock.
This step took about 30 minutes all together.
In the meantime, I diced up the celery
and the onion, simple simple.
From there on out, the recipe was really easy to assemble.
It was very extremely good! I highly recommend giving this one a try.
Very good.
Recipe.
1 box converted long grain and wild rice
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 10 oz can cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup diced celery
1 small can water chestnuts
1 tsp lemon juice
3 tsp onion minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick of margarine (melted)
1 cup corn flakes (crushed)
Cook rice as directed by box. Combine all ingredients except margarine and corn flakes. Put in a 3 quart casserole . melt margarine, add crushed corn flakes, sprinkle over top. Bake uncovered at 350 for 1 hour.
OK, right off the bat, I subbed a pre-boxed wild rice mix for a wild rice mix that my local grocery store sells in bulk. I made 3 cups of cooked wild rice. Also, I don't particularity care for water chestnuts, so I left them out all together. I didn't have lemon juice, so I used malt vinegar. Special K in place of corn flakes again and as always butter instead of margarine.
Finally, I found the measurement of "3 teaspoons of onion" a bit suspect. First because that's not very much for such a big casserole and secondly because 3 teaspoons is 1 tablespoon... so I treated that as a typo and used 3 tablespoons of minced onion.
I started by cooking my rice and poaching my chicken. I cooked both of them with chicken stock.
This step took about 30 minutes all together.
In the meantime, I diced up the celery
and the onion, simple simple.
From there on out, the recipe was really easy to assemble.
It was very extremely good! I highly recommend giving this one a try.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Lazy Daisy Meatballs. Mrs D. Cress, Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt #1
Fabulous and yummy!
Recipe
1 lbs ground beef
1/2 cup crushed corn flakes
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tbs flour
1 tbs chopped onion
1 tbs mango (more on that later)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
Combine first 8 ingredients. Shape into balls and brown in butter. Dip off excess fat. Add mushroom soup to the meatballs and simmer in a covered skillet.
Well, all I can say is "hats off to you Mrs. Cress!" Super-duper easy, and yummy! She has restored my faith in this cookbook, and my own cooking skills!
I started off a little shaky... upon rereading the recipe I was annoyed to find that it called for corn flakes. I was sure it called for Ritz Crackers, and therefore bought Ritz Crackers at the store last night. Sigh... first substitution of the recipe... I used Special K instead of corn flakes.
Then a few seconds later I had to send an emergency text to my mother... See, somehow or another people in southern Ohio got it in their heads that a "mango" is not actually a mango, but a green bell pepper. In fact, in many grocery stores you'll still see them listed in the produce section as "mangoes". So when I saw that the meatballs called for "mango", but only a tablespoon's worth I panicked thinking "maybe 'mango' means a third thing!!!" She assured me she didn't think there was anything else known as a mango... and I figured "what the heck" and boldly trudged on gathering my ingredients.
I decided to put the onion and "mango" through the food processor because, personally, I can't stand biting into a big chunk of undercooked vegetables hiding in something else. When you puree the veggies ahead of time the flavors get more evenly distributed and you're avoiding the risk of some of the veggies not getting softened in the cooking process.
After mixing everything all together and got all the meatballs formed, I popped them all in the skillet, turned them a couple of times (no easy task... they're very delicate until they're completely cooked through... be careful).
So far so good. Since this was basically a Swedish meatball recipe, I decided I'd serve it with orzo pasta, so I started cooking the orzo in a separate pan, and then sauteed a bit of spinach to go with the meal.
After the meatballs were almost completely cooked through, I dumped in my can of mushroom soup and tried to stir it to coat the meatballs. It wasn't cooperating and I didn't want to risk the meatballs falling apart from me mixing too much. I gave the soup a minute or 2 so that the heat could thin it down a bit... but it wasn't budging from it's "fresh from the can" look. And then I remembered that I had bought the low-fat soups, and they can have a very different consistency from the regular kinds. So I deviated from the recipe once again and added a 1/2 cup of milk. Within 10 seconds the soup was the proper consistency (or at least what I imagined the consistency was supposed to be). So I put the lid on and let it simmer until the orzo and spinach were both done.
The end result, yummy! Yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy! It was so good I went back for seconds even though I was totally full. It was yummy!
Next time... and there will be a next time... I'm going to try using either ground turkey or chicken and see what (if any) kind of a difference that makes. I highly recommend this recipe! Yummy!
Fabulous and yummy!
Recipe
1 lbs ground beef
1/2 cup crushed corn flakes
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tbs flour
1 tbs chopped onion
1 tbs mango (more on that later)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
Combine first 8 ingredients. Shape into balls and brown in butter. Dip off excess fat. Add mushroom soup to the meatballs and simmer in a covered skillet.
Well, all I can say is "hats off to you Mrs. Cress!" Super-duper easy, and yummy! She has restored my faith in this cookbook, and my own cooking skills!
I started off a little shaky... upon rereading the recipe I was annoyed to find that it called for corn flakes. I was sure it called for Ritz Crackers, and therefore bought Ritz Crackers at the store last night. Sigh... first substitution of the recipe... I used Special K instead of corn flakes.
Then a few seconds later I had to send an emergency text to my mother... See, somehow or another people in southern Ohio got it in their heads that a "mango" is not actually a mango, but a green bell pepper. In fact, in many grocery stores you'll still see them listed in the produce section as "mangoes". So when I saw that the meatballs called for "mango", but only a tablespoon's worth I panicked thinking "maybe 'mango' means a third thing!!!" She assured me she didn't think there was anything else known as a mango... and I figured "what the heck" and boldly trudged on gathering my ingredients.
I decided to put the onion and "mango" through the food processor because, personally, I can't stand biting into a big chunk of undercooked vegetables hiding in something else. When you puree the veggies ahead of time the flavors get more evenly distributed and you're avoiding the risk of some of the veggies not getting softened in the cooking process.
After mixing everything all together and got all the meatballs formed, I popped them all in the skillet, turned them a couple of times (no easy task... they're very delicate until they're completely cooked through... be careful).
So far so good. Since this was basically a Swedish meatball recipe, I decided I'd serve it with orzo pasta, so I started cooking the orzo in a separate pan, and then sauteed a bit of spinach to go with the meal.
After the meatballs were almost completely cooked through, I dumped in my can of mushroom soup and tried to stir it to coat the meatballs. It wasn't cooperating and I didn't want to risk the meatballs falling apart from me mixing too much. I gave the soup a minute or 2 so that the heat could thin it down a bit... but it wasn't budging from it's "fresh from the can" look. And then I remembered that I had bought the low-fat soups, and they can have a very different consistency from the regular kinds. So I deviated from the recipe once again and added a 1/2 cup of milk. Within 10 seconds the soup was the proper consistency (or at least what I imagined the consistency was supposed to be). So I put the lid on and let it simmer until the orzo and spinach were both done.
The end result, yummy! Yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy! It was so good I went back for seconds even though I was totally full. It was yummy!
Next time... and there will be a next time... I'm going to try using either ground turkey or chicken and see what (if any) kind of a difference that makes. I highly recommend this recipe! Yummy!
Oven Easy Beef Stew. Mrs. L. Price, Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt 1
... edible. I guess. Let me put it this way, neither of us went for seconds.
Recipe:
1 1/2 lbs stew meat
1 small onion
2 stalks of celery cut into pieces
4 carrots cut into pieces
2 medium potatoes cut into chunks
1 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs flour
2 cups tomato juice.
Bake for 2.5 hours at 350.
I'll be honest with you... this recipe isn't worth trying. I believe my husband said it best with "Well... It tastes better than I expected it to... based on how it looked."
I like the technique of oven-baking a stew... but the sugar was off-putting and with that much carrot and tomato, you really don't need the supplementary sugar. What it *did* need was garlic, more salt, pepper, thyme and bay leaves.
I also think it would have done better at 300 for 3.5 hours rather than the hotter heat of 350. The beef was really just dried out, tough and gamy instead of flavorful and melt-in-your-mouth like braising it *should* have done.
Thus bringing me to a frustration I have...
I have been asked on a few occasions to submit recipes to various cook books (church, work and family collaborations). And I LOVE doing so, but when I put a recipe in a cookbook, you better believe that I've made it myself dozens of times and tweaked it and refined into perfection. It's something I believe is a showstopper, even if it's something simple. My Aunt Wilma's Salad is a simple as simple gets. But you know what, if we don't have it at every holiday, or get-together something just doesn't seems right. She's made it for years and years, and when you use her recipe it comes out exactly the way she makes it. So, if I don't think a recipe can be recreated by someone else and have it turn out fabulous, I don't pass it along until I've explained every step, every nuance so that when someone else attempts it, it turns out the way it's meant to turn out. This is one of the main reasons I have stopped watching Paula Deen's show. I have tried her recipes, over and over again and they're just no good.
But then again, that was one of the reasons I wanted to attempt this project... I wanted to take these recipes and learn from an older generation and then make it my own (much like I had to do with Paula Deen's "Chicken Georgia"... but thats a whole 'nuther story for another time).
So maybe in a week or so, I'll attempt this recipe again... only with some massive modifications... Stay tuned.
... edible. I guess. Let me put it this way, neither of us went for seconds.
Recipe:
1 1/2 lbs stew meat
1 small onion
2 stalks of celery cut into pieces
4 carrots cut into pieces
2 medium potatoes cut into chunks
1 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs flour
2 cups tomato juice.
Bake for 2.5 hours at 350.
I'll be honest with you... this recipe isn't worth trying. I believe my husband said it best with "Well... It tastes better than I expected it to... based on how it looked."
I like the technique of oven-baking a stew... but the sugar was off-putting and with that much carrot and tomato, you really don't need the supplementary sugar. What it *did* need was garlic, more salt, pepper, thyme and bay leaves.I also think it would have done better at 300 for 3.5 hours rather than the hotter heat of 350. The beef was really just dried out, tough and gamy instead of flavorful and melt-in-your-mouth like braising it *should* have done.
Thus bringing me to a frustration I have...
I have been asked on a few occasions to submit recipes to various cook books (church, work and family collaborations). And I LOVE doing so, but when I put a recipe in a cookbook, you better believe that I've made it myself dozens of times and tweaked it and refined into perfection. It's something I believe is a showstopper, even if it's something simple. My Aunt Wilma's Salad is a simple as simple gets. But you know what, if we don't have it at every holiday, or get-together something just doesn't seems right. She's made it for years and years, and when you use her recipe it comes out exactly the way she makes it. So, if I don't think a recipe can be recreated by someone else and have it turn out fabulous, I don't pass it along until I've explained every step, every nuance so that when someone else attempts it, it turns out the way it's meant to turn out. This is one of the main reasons I have stopped watching Paula Deen's show. I have tried her recipes, over and over again and they're just no good.
But then again, that was one of the reasons I wanted to attempt this project... I wanted to take these recipes and learn from an older generation and then make it my own (much like I had to do with Paula Deen's "Chicken Georgia"... but thats a whole 'nuther story for another time).
So maybe in a week or so, I'll attempt this recipe again... only with some massive modifications... Stay tuned.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Nut Bread. Mrs. M. Roselius. Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt #1
Fair
Recipe:
3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
4 tsps baking powder
1 egg
2 tbs cooking oil
1 cups milk
1 cup nuts
Let rise 25 - 30 minutes. Bake at 325 for 1 hour, or until done.
Yep... those are the only instructions. No order as to what gets mixed first.... no instruction as to what kind, or how many pans to use. So a great deal of this was just me using what baking knowledge I had based on the ingredients.
I mixed it in this order: Eggs, sugar and oil beat together first, then flour, salt and baking powder get mixed in alternately with the milk in 3 steps, trying to work very quickly so as to not let the flour get overworked. I mixed in the nuts ( I used pecans, because I typically always have pecans on hand). I tasted the dough, and it was sweet... but lacked any personality. So I added 2 tsps of pumpkin pie spice (awesome to have if you don't have a lot of cupboard space... mixes all your "sweet spices" together in one handy little can). It helped... kind of.
I also dipped into my memory from my Jr High days when every one and their mother (literally) was making "Amish Friendship Bread" and rather then greasing and flouring a pan, I buttered and sugared it instead. It's a handy little trick for baking things like pound cakes or zucchini bread. It just makes the outside sweeter and a little crunchy.
I should point out, I used the loaf pan because, quite simply, the recipe called this "bread". I found out later, this was probably a bad choice. The dough was very dense, and didn't contain much oil either. I wasn't really sure what kind of consistency to expect from the finished product. But I poured it into the pan and let it rise for
a full half hour.
As you can see, it did rise ever so slightly... but I was getting a smidge nervous because with that much baking powder, it should have risen a lot more.
But I put it to bake for it's hour in the oven anyway.
After an hour I went to retrieve my Nut Bread and was delighted to see this.
All golden-brown, and smelled delicious... when you tapped the top it "sounded hollow" just like bakers say breads should if they're perfectly cooked. So I grabbed my bread knife and started to cut 2 pieces so that Ben and I could try Mrs. Roselius's Nut Bread's Maiden Voyage...
The first piece cut beautifully! I was very excited, because while I think I'm a pretty fair hand at cooking, baking anything other than cookies is usually a disaster for me. I thought I had finally broken my streak... when all of a sudden my knife cut into this
Ew.
A good 4 inches of the center of the loaf was pure goo, and subsequently ended up in the trash. The ends were very tasty though. And after having sampled both "Fresh from the Oven" and "Next Morning for Breakfast", I can tell you that it's much tastier fresh from the oven.
So, next time (if there *is* a next time) instead of a standard loaf pan, I think I'll use a shallower, wider baking dish. I'll definitely repeat the butter and sugaring process, and maybe even add a little more spice. I think it might do well also to replace the oil with butter, and maybe even double the amount of fat used. I have my suspicions that this recipe is a "war recipe" since it calls for such a small amount of oil and had no frills like Cinnamon or nutmeg. Though, the full cup of sugar is a little suspect for a recipe based on food rations...
Tonight I'm of to the grocery for the first time since starting this blog. So I'll be shopping with these recipes in mind ( first of all, most of the "main dish" type recipes call for some sort of canned soup or another. I don't typically buy those, so I haven't been able to attempt may of the recipes in that category). So expect a few savory recipes next time :)
Fair
Recipe:
3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
4 tsps baking powder
1 egg
2 tbs cooking oil
1 cups milk
1 cup nuts
Let rise 25 - 30 minutes. Bake at 325 for 1 hour, or until done.
Yep... those are the only instructions. No order as to what gets mixed first.... no instruction as to what kind, or how many pans to use. So a great deal of this was just me using what baking knowledge I had based on the ingredients.
I mixed it in this order: Eggs, sugar and oil beat together first, then flour, salt and baking powder get mixed in alternately with the milk in 3 steps, trying to work very quickly so as to not let the flour get overworked. I mixed in the nuts ( I used pecans, because I typically always have pecans on hand). I tasted the dough, and it was sweet... but lacked any personality. So I added 2 tsps of pumpkin pie spice (awesome to have if you don't have a lot of cupboard space... mixes all your "sweet spices" together in one handy little can). It helped... kind of.
I also dipped into my memory from my Jr High days when every one and their mother (literally) was making "Amish Friendship Bread" and rather then greasing and flouring a pan, I buttered and sugared it instead. It's a handy little trick for baking things like pound cakes or zucchini bread. It just makes the outside sweeter and a little crunchy.
I should point out, I used the loaf pan because, quite simply, the recipe called this "bread". I found out later, this was probably a bad choice. The dough was very dense, and didn't contain much oil either. I wasn't really sure what kind of consistency to expect from the finished product. But I poured it into the pan and let it rise for
a full half hour.
As you can see, it did rise ever so slightly... but I was getting a smidge nervous because with that much baking powder, it should have risen a lot more.
But I put it to bake for it's hour in the oven anyway.
After an hour I went to retrieve my Nut Bread and was delighted to see this.
All golden-brown, and smelled delicious... when you tapped the top it "sounded hollow" just like bakers say breads should if they're perfectly cooked. So I grabbed my bread knife and started to cut 2 pieces so that Ben and I could try Mrs. Roselius's Nut Bread's Maiden Voyage...
The first piece cut beautifully! I was very excited, because while I think I'm a pretty fair hand at cooking, baking anything other than cookies is usually a disaster for me. I thought I had finally broken my streak... when all of a sudden my knife cut into this
Ew.A good 4 inches of the center of the loaf was pure goo, and subsequently ended up in the trash. The ends were very tasty though. And after having sampled both "Fresh from the Oven" and "Next Morning for Breakfast", I can tell you that it's much tastier fresh from the oven.
So, next time (if there *is* a next time) instead of a standard loaf pan, I think I'll use a shallower, wider baking dish. I'll definitely repeat the butter and sugaring process, and maybe even add a little more spice. I think it might do well also to replace the oil with butter, and maybe even double the amount of fat used. I have my suspicions that this recipe is a "war recipe" since it calls for such a small amount of oil and had no frills like Cinnamon or nutmeg. Though, the full cup of sugar is a little suspect for a recipe based on food rations...
Tonight I'm of to the grocery for the first time since starting this blog. So I'll be shopping with these recipes in mind ( first of all, most of the "main dish" type recipes call for some sort of canned soup or another. I don't typically buy those, so I haven't been able to attempt may of the recipes in that category). So expect a few savory recipes next time :)
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
World's Greatest Cookie. Mrs. V. Moore, Salem's Favorite Recipes.
1 attempt in 4 parts.
Recipe:
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tsp soda
1 bag of chocolate chips
In large bowl cream together until smooth peanut butter and butter. Gradually add sugar and brown sugar. Add eggs one at a time until smooth. In another bowl, mix flour and soda. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet and flatten slightly with back of spoon. Bake at 325 for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 6-7 dozen.
Now, don't get me wrong... these cookies are good, but hardly worth of the title "World's Greatest Cookie". Unless you're this guy...
This dough was very simple to throw together... no fancy ingredients, no special techniques. What I found to be very frustrating was the baking time. The recipe says 10 to 12 minutes, and I prefer chewy cookies to crunchy cookies so I took them out at 10 minutes... They were just warm, melted dough at that point. I put them back in for 2 more minutes and there was not much improvement. 3 more minutes (a total of 15 at this point) and the cookies were undercooked but somewhat holding together to the point I took 3 off to cool, and put the rest back in the oven for 3 more (18 total) minutes. It was at this point I realized I skipped a step. I had not flattened the dough before baking them.
The next sheet I put in the oven for 15 minutes, and I made sure I flattened the cookies this time. They came out very, very golden-brown and very, very crispy. So the final 2 trays were both flattened and baked for only 12 minutes.
The final result? Major differences based on how the cookies are baked. Batch 1a (15 minutes, unflattened) were, what I consider, perfect after they had completely cooled. Chewy, but don't fall apart when you pick them up. Batch 1b (18 minutes, unflattened) were also good, though much more crunchy than you'd expect. Batch 2 (15 minutes, flattened) I did not care for at all. They has a texture like shortbread, but if crunchy cookies are your thing, then this might be what you'd want to try. The final 2 batches turned out pretty well, but not as good as those first 3 I took out of the oven early from batch 1a.
After looking over the recipe, there is a LOT of sugar, which I suppose accounts for the major difference between the warm cookies and the completely cooled cookies. If I were to repeat this recipe in the future, I would only bake them for 12 minutes and I don't believe I would flatten the dough either as that also seems to have contributed to a very crunchy end-product. I do think this would be a great recipe if you're baking with kids, since the measurements are so straightforward, and it's pretty hard to mess up this dough.
Recipe:
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tsp soda
1 bag of chocolate chips
In large bowl cream together until smooth peanut butter and butter. Gradually add sugar and brown sugar. Add eggs one at a time until smooth. In another bowl, mix flour and soda. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet and flatten slightly with back of spoon. Bake at 325 for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 6-7 dozen.
Now, don't get me wrong... these cookies are good, but hardly worth of the title "World's Greatest Cookie". Unless you're this guy...
This dough was very simple to throw together... no fancy ingredients, no special techniques. What I found to be very frustrating was the baking time. The recipe says 10 to 12 minutes, and I prefer chewy cookies to crunchy cookies so I took them out at 10 minutes... They were just warm, melted dough at that point. I put them back in for 2 more minutes and there was not much improvement. 3 more minutes (a total of 15 at this point) and the cookies were undercooked but somewhat holding together to the point I took 3 off to cool, and put the rest back in the oven for 3 more (18 total) minutes. It was at this point I realized I skipped a step. I had not flattened the dough before baking them.
The next sheet I put in the oven for 15 minutes, and I made sure I flattened the cookies this time. They came out very, very golden-brown and very, very crispy. So the final 2 trays were both flattened and baked for only 12 minutes.
The final result? Major differences based on how the cookies are baked. Batch 1a (15 minutes, unflattened) were, what I consider, perfect after they had completely cooled. Chewy, but don't fall apart when you pick them up. Batch 1b (18 minutes, unflattened) were also good, though much more crunchy than you'd expect. Batch 2 (15 minutes, flattened) I did not care for at all. They has a texture like shortbread, but if crunchy cookies are your thing, then this might be what you'd want to try. The final 2 batches turned out pretty well, but not as good as those first 3 I took out of the oven early from batch 1a.
After looking over the recipe, there is a LOT of sugar, which I suppose accounts for the major difference between the warm cookies and the completely cooled cookies. If I were to repeat this recipe in the future, I would only bake them for 12 minutes and I don't believe I would flatten the dough either as that also seems to have contributed to a very crunchy end-product. I do think this would be a great recipe if you're baking with kids, since the measurements are so straightforward, and it's pretty hard to mess up this dough.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Truly Different Cupcakes. Mrs. D. Pemberton, Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt #1 Fair
Attempt #2 Better, but still not perfect.
Recipe:
4 oz semi sweet chocolate
2 sticks oleo (for anyone NOT born during the Baby Boom, that's "margarine")
1 1/2 cups broken pecans
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup flour
4 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
Melt chocolate, oleo and then add nuts. In a bowl combine sugar, eggs, flour and vanilla. Do not beat. Mix only by hand. Add chocolate mixture. Pour into cupcake pans. Bake 35 minutes at 325. Do not frost.
Seems pretty simple right? And for the most part it was. When I read this recipe what struck me first was that there was no leavening agent. I also thought it had an awful lot of sugar... but I proceeded to try it out. Mostly because I happened to have all the ingredients it called for.
I used butter instead of margarine, but only because I don't ever use margarine. I mixed everything by hand as the recipe very sternly told me I needed to to.
And since it seemed I had enough batter for 18-24 cupcakes (recipe didn't specify how many it would make) I thought I'd try a
few different options.
To your right, you'll see a gem that I inherited when my grandmother died. I honestly don't ever remember her using for anything in my lifetime, but it was too unique and too pretty for me to let it go to Goodwill. I believe it's some sort of steel... it's too heavy to be aluminum and far to light and un-rusted to be cast iron. It makes perfect miniature pies, but I've never tried making cupcakes it it before.
I filled them pretty full, since the recipe didn't contain baking powder or soda I assumed there wouldn't be much rise to the batter (I did put the pan on a cookie sheet just to be safe though). Also, the recipe did not mention greasing the pan... But it did contain a LOT of butter. So to be safe, for Attempt #1 I greased 6 of the cupcakes and left 6 ungreased.
After about 20 minutes the apartment smelled so strongly of chocolate, that I went to check on them to make sure they hadn't already finished cooking. They weren't quite done yet, so I let them finish baking for the full 35 minutes.
For the most part they turned out "OK". The bottoms were very moist and sticky, but didn't hold together well. There was no real difference between the greased and ungreased versions. The tops were crunchy, but in a good way. They tasted like a very rich brownie. They are very delicious, just a wee bit messy.
For my second attempt, I baked the remaining batter in a regular cupcake pan (non-stick, ungreased) but had very similar issues with trying to get the cakes out of the pans. The straight edge pans were easier then the fluted pans only because I was able to run a knife around the cupcakes the second time.
If you're going to try this recipe I think I would recommend using cupcake papers, in fact you'd probably want to try the kind made from aluminum foil. And for people with nut allergies, the pecans aren't crucial to the end result. The could be omitted or substituted. The batter also keeps very well in the fridge overnight (Attempt #2 was done the next morning). And it would make and awesome base for a brownie sundae :)
Attempt #2 Better, but still not perfect.
Recipe:
4 oz semi sweet chocolate
2 sticks oleo (for anyone NOT born during the Baby Boom, that's "margarine")
1 1/2 cups broken pecans
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup flour
4 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
Melt chocolate, oleo and then add nuts. In a bowl combine sugar, eggs, flour and vanilla. Do not beat. Mix only by hand. Add chocolate mixture. Pour into cupcake pans. Bake 35 minutes at 325. Do not frost.
Seems pretty simple right? And for the most part it was. When I read this recipe what struck me first was that there was no leavening agent. I also thought it had an awful lot of sugar... but I proceeded to try it out. Mostly because I happened to have all the ingredients it called for.
I used butter instead of margarine, but only because I don't ever use margarine. I mixed everything by hand as the recipe very sternly told me I needed to to.And since it seemed I had enough batter for 18-24 cupcakes (recipe didn't specify how many it would make) I thought I'd try a
few different options.To your right, you'll see a gem that I inherited when my grandmother died. I honestly don't ever remember her using for anything in my lifetime, but it was too unique and too pretty for me to let it go to Goodwill. I believe it's some sort of steel... it's too heavy to be aluminum and far to light and un-rusted to be cast iron. It makes perfect miniature pies, but I've never tried making cupcakes it it before.
I filled them pretty full, since the recipe didn't contain baking powder or soda I assumed there wouldn't be much rise to the batter (I did put the pan on a cookie sheet just to be safe though). Also, the recipe did not mention greasing the pan... But it did contain a LOT of butter. So to be safe, for Attempt #1 I greased 6 of the cupcakes and left 6 ungreased.
After about 20 minutes the apartment smelled so strongly of chocolate, that I went to check on them to make sure they hadn't already finished cooking. They weren't quite done yet, so I let them finish baking for the full 35 minutes.
For the most part they turned out "OK". The bottoms were very moist and sticky, but didn't hold together well. There was no real difference between the greased and ungreased versions. The tops were crunchy, but in a good way. They tasted like a very rich brownie. They are very delicious, just a wee bit messy.For my second attempt, I baked the remaining batter in a regular cupcake pan (non-stick, ungreased) but had very similar issues with trying to get the cakes out of the pans. The straight edge pans were easier then the fluted pans only because I was able to run a knife around the cupcakes the second time.
If you're going to try this recipe I think I would recommend using cupcake papers, in fact you'd probably want to try the kind made from aluminum foil. And for people with nut allergies, the pecans aren't crucial to the end result. The could be omitted or substituted. The batter also keeps very well in the fridge overnight (Attempt #2 was done the next morning). And it would make and awesome base for a brownie sundae :)
Friday, January 15, 2010
Old Fashioned Sugar Cream Pie Mrs. D. Falldorf. Salem's Favorite Recipes
Attempt # 1: Utter disaster.
Here is the recipe.
1 c sugar
scant 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 pt cream
1 tsp vanilla
unbaked 9 inch pie shell
cinnamon or nutmeg
1 tbs butter
Sift together flour and sugar and salt. stir in one cup of cream to make a paste. stir paste until very smooth and then add remaining cream. beat lightly. Stir in vanilla and nutmeg, pour into unbaked pie shell and dot the top with butter. Bake in a very hot (400 degrees) oven for 15-20 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 and bake for an additional 45 minutes to 1 hour. Filling must boil all over in little heat bubbles. If filling begins to boil out of the pie, reduce heat slightly and work the filling down with a fork. Pie is done when shaky, but not runny.
I started by making my standard pie crust that I always use ( 2 cups flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 stick room temp salted butter, 1 egg yolk and enough water to make dough come together. I make it in the mixer with the paddle attachment and I don't subscribe to all that "butter and water must be ice cold" nonsense. This crust turns out perfect every time.)
The filling on the other hand is a different story altogether. To Mrs. Falldorf's credit I did substitute the cream with evaporated milk, which could have been the root of my problems. after the 15, and then 20 minutes at the high heat, my pie never boiled...
But I kept following the instructions hoping that it would boil at the lower temperature. after 40 minutes at the lower temperature, no boiling had occurred yet, so i took the reverse of the advice for "if the pie boils over, lower the temp". The pie hadn't boiled so I raised the temp to 375.
After 20 minutes it finally started to boil... but the bottom of the pie had set while the top was still very much pure liquid... no signs of thickening yet.
Finally after an addition 35 minutes at 375 the pie was jiggly (still kinda runny) so i took it out. It was, to say the least, obnoxiously sweet and the bottom of the filling was almost as stiff as the pie crust while the top was very runny still. It was not pretty, and the crimpings were nearly burnt.
I'll attempt this pie again when I have actual cream and see if the results are different. But this is definitely *not* the pie I remember Aunt Nancy making.
So next time:
-No substitutions
-Try not to deviate from the recipe, even if it doesn't seem like it's working
-Keep in mind, some of these recipes were created when ovens were very different from what they are now.
Here is the recipe.
1 c sugar
scant 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 pt cream
1 tsp vanilla
unbaked 9 inch pie shell
cinnamon or nutmeg
1 tbs butter
Sift together flour and sugar and salt. stir in one cup of cream to make a paste. stir paste until very smooth and then add remaining cream. beat lightly. Stir in vanilla and nutmeg, pour into unbaked pie shell and dot the top with butter. Bake in a very hot (400 degrees) oven for 15-20 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 and bake for an additional 45 minutes to 1 hour. Filling must boil all over in little heat bubbles. If filling begins to boil out of the pie, reduce heat slightly and work the filling down with a fork. Pie is done when shaky, but not runny.
I started by making my standard pie crust that I always use ( 2 cups flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 stick room temp salted butter, 1 egg yolk and enough water to make dough come together. I make it in the mixer with the paddle attachment and I don't subscribe to all that "butter and water must be ice cold" nonsense. This crust turns out perfect every time.)
The filling on the other hand is a different story altogether. To Mrs. Falldorf's credit I did substitute the cream with evaporated milk, which could have been the root of my problems. after the 15, and then 20 minutes at the high heat, my pie never boiled...
But I kept following the instructions hoping that it would boil at the lower temperature. after 40 minutes at the lower temperature, no boiling had occurred yet, so i took the reverse of the advice for "if the pie boils over, lower the temp". The pie hadn't boiled so I raised the temp to 375.After 20 minutes it finally started to boil... but the bottom of the pie had set while the top was still very much pure liquid... no signs of thickening yet.
Finally after an addition 35 minutes at 375 the pie was jiggly (still kinda runny) so i took it out. It was, to say the least, obnoxiously sweet and the bottom of the filling was almost as stiff as the pie crust while the top was very runny still. It was not pretty, and the crimpings were nearly burnt.
I'll attempt this pie again when I have actual cream and see if the results are different. But this is definitely *not* the pie I remember Aunt Nancy making.
So next time:
-No substitutions
-Try not to deviate from the recipe, even if it doesn't seem like it's working
-Keep in mind, some of these recipes were created when ovens were very different from what they are now.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
First meal... not so Lutheran.
So, I didn't have much time to scour the cookbooks tonight. Alas, meet Baked chicken with couscous and sauteed chick peas. I feel very certain that none of these would have recipes in a Lutheran Cookbook...
Welcome!
I am a Lutheran Woman.
My mother is a Lutheran Woman. My grandmother was a Lutheran Woman and her mother before her... you get the idea right? My heritage is approximately 75% German, the remaining 25% is split between Irish, English and whatever other nationalities were settling in the Appalachian Mountains where my grandfather's family hailed from.
So yeah, I'm *really* Lutheran.
I'm also currently unemployed at a time when 1 out of every 10 people in our country is also unemployed... So I *really* need a hobby. And I found my inspiration today while searching for a recipe that I loved in my childhood; my aunt's "Old Fashioned Cream Pie" which is an eggless custard pie flavored with nutmeg. I found 2 different versions of said pie in my mother's cherished "Salem's Favorite Recipes"."Salem" is for Salem Lutheran Church in West Alexandria, Ohio, which is the church I was baptized in, and my mother was baptized in, and *her* mother was baptized in... (that's the last time I do that... I pinkie swear).
I got the inspiration to do a Julie/Julia type experiment where I cook my way through all the different Lutheran Cookbooks that my mother and I own. I'll try them out, see if they need updating, simplifying or trashing.
I'll be sure to include the recipe in it's original version, as well as any modifications, tips or pictures that I think help.
Challenges? I have a 5 month old son, a very small kitchen and a husband who doesn't care for cabbage... (S.F.R. has 3 whole pages of "Cabbage Casserole" recipes alone!)
So join me, if you like, on my journey. Feel free to try whatever recipes I share, and please feel free to share your opinions on how they work out for you.
And Guten Appetit! (yes, I had to look up the German version of "Bon Appetite")
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