Got Zucchini?

Many years ago I knew a man named Bob who had a large family to support.  Bob always planted a summer garden. One year the zucchini really took off and Bob had a lot of it on his hands.

He grilled, boiled, baked, and fried it.  He marinated, stuffed, and pickled it. He chopped and sliced it.  He made zucchini boats, pasta salad, soup, bread, and omelets.  He added it to leafy salads and also served raw zucchini sticks.  He hid it in the mac 'n cheese and the spaghetti sauce!  He made zucchini curd, zucchini crab cakes, and zucchini shrimp. He tried feeding it to his cat and dogs. He even arranged a table centerpiece featuring zucchini!

Bob brought zucchini to work and begged us to take it. I took home a large bag to make him smile, ate a few, but  the rest spoiled in the fridge. Bob piled it up on the sidewalk at his house and put up a sign, "Free, Help Yourself."  However, the size of the pile never went down.  Evidently everyone else in the neighborhood was experiencing a good year for zucchini, too!

Bob remarked that if he could afford to, he would pay people to take it. I told him to just let it rot in the garden.  After all, he couldn't send it to the starving children in China.  You've heard that one, haven't you? "Eat your vegetables, there's starving children in China."   Or, "Don't throw away that left-over casserole, there's starving children in China." 

Well, if I had contact with Bob now (Oh,  I wonder if he ever planted zucchini again?) I would send him this Pineapple Zucchini Bread recipe.  He could bake it and sell it, easily.  In fact, it is so good, that Bob could possibly quit his job and spend his days, instead, baking and selling Pineapple Zucchini  Bread. He may even be able to send his kids to college with zucchini bread money.

This recipe is a winner!  It's moist and delicious.  You can give it as gifts. You can toast it for breakfast or eat it as a dessert or snack. Have a cup of coffee with it . . . even add whipped cream.  The big bonus is,  you can  (m-a-y-b-e)  count it towards your vegetables for the day.  I don't think, however, that idea would be supported by the USDA and National Institutes of Health!

I got this recipe from a cookbook compiled by my nephew's wife, Carolyn Fitzkee.  She has put together the book in memory of her grandmother, Ruth Clemmer (Latshaw) Bauman, whose dedication to family, faith, and good food has been passed on to the next generation.

And the winner is . . . Pineapple Zucchini Bread!

3 eggs
1 cup oil
2 cups sugar (this is sweeter than I like it; I cut the sugar down to 1-1/4 cups)
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups shredded zucchini
3 cups flour
1 can (8-1/4 oz) crushed pineapple, well drained
1 cup chopped nuts
1-1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoons nutmeg
1 cup raisins
2 teaspoons baking soda

Beat eggs, oil, sugar, and vanilla until thick.  Stir in remaining ingredients. Blend well.  Pour into 2 (5 x 9-inch) loaf pans and bake in 350 degree oven for one hour.  (I've found it takes a little less than an hour.)

Uncle Uri's Fifth Avenue Pudding

U is for Uncle Uri's Fifth Avenue Pudding.   (A-Z Blogging Challenge)

This is a delectable recipe to spruce up pudding and make it special for any significant occasion. Just ask Uncle Uri!

Recipe for Uncle Uri's Fifth Avenue Pudding  

1 lg pkg vanilla instant pudding
1 (12-oz) carton Cool Whip
1 inner pkg graham crackers
1/4 c. butter
1/2 lb Fifth Avenue candy bars (Can also use Butterfinger candy bars, but don't tell Uncle Uri you switched the Fifth Avenue bars on him!)

Directions:  Make instant pudding according to directions on package.  Let it stand for five to ten minutes.

Mix the Cool Whip into pudding.  Crush graham crackers.  Melt butter and pour over crackers. Mix until crumbs are moistened.

Crush Fifth Avenue candy bars.  Put a layer of graham crumbs in a bowl, a layer of crushed candy, then the pudding.  Alternate layers until all is used.  Reserve enough crumbs and Fifty Avenue bars for topping.

Opor Ayam

(A-Z Blogging Challenge)
O is for Opor Ayam (Stewed Chicken the Indonesian way) 

I lived in Indonesia for eight years. At first I did not like Indonesian cooking. (*See story below).   But after awhile I developed a taste for it and eventually I enjoyed this recipe.  I still make it occasionally.

Recipe for Opor Ayam

Ingredients:
1 large chicken cut into pieces
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp brown sugar
peanut oil as needed
salt to taste
1 med onion, crushed
2 med onions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/4 cup peanuts or cashews, crushed
1/2 tsp shrimp or fish paste
1 tsp grated lime peel
1 Tbsp lemon juice
3 cups coconut milk
2 bay leaves

Directions:
Mix the following together in a bowl:  crushed onion, crushed garlic, nuts, cumin, coriander.  Rub the chicken with the above mixture and then leave the chicken with the mixture in a covered bowl for half an hour.

Remove the pieces from the bowl and fry them in the peanut oil until they are half cooked.

Now fry the following ingredients in moderately hot oil:  chopped onions, chopped garlic, brown sugar, shrimp or fish paste, lemon juice, brown sugar, lime peel, salt.  When the onions are soft, add the chicken and also the remainder of the mixture.

Fry on the same medium heat for 5 minutes.  Add the coconut milk and bay leaves.  Turn the heat to low and allow everything to cook .  It will thicken.

Serve this dish in a covered bowl or in a tureen.  Serve it with rice, of course!


*Story about one experience I had before I learned to like Indonesian cooking!

I was attending language school in Bandung, Indonesia with three other people.  We were headed for tribal work in Irian Jaya (See post, The Missionary and the Grub).  We would eventually be doing our work in the tribal language.  However, we needed to also learn Indonesian since it was the national language of the country.

Between semesters of language study in Bandung, we took a trip to the western part of the island.  We stayed at an Indonesian motel.

I did not yet enjoy very much Indonesian food.  So the first evening we ate dinner at the motel, my face lit up when I noticed "sandwiches" on the menu.  When I asked the server about them, she told me I was sure to like them as they were "Enak" (delicious).

While everyone else ordered Indonesian food, I ordered the sandwiches.  I thought I simply could not wait to devour a couple of delicious sandwiches once again.  I imagined what might be in those sandwiches.  Would it be chicken salad, some kind of sliced meat, cheese???

So when the sandwiches were brought to our table, what was between the slices of bread?  Rice!

My friends who ordered Indonesian food were also surprised.  When writing the order,  they had numbered the different kinds of food they wanted, like this:

1.  Ayam Surabaya
2.  Soto Babi
3.  Sate Udang
4.  Ikan Asam Manis

What they got was, one order of Ayam Surabaya, two orders of Soto Babi, three orders of Sate Udang, and four orders of Ikan Asam Manis!

Yes, those who loved Indonesian food really got their fill that evening!

Buffalo Wings--You Mean Buffalo Don't Have Wings?

 Day two of A to Z Blog Challenge! Today's  letter is B, for buffalo wings.

Our second grade class was studying the Lakota  (Sioux)  Native Americans. We were looking at a picture of a buffalo and talking about its many uses by the Sioux.

One of my second graders looked puzzled and asked, "Where are his wings?" Then she explained, "My dad loves buffalo wings, but I can't see them on the picture."

You probably already know buffalo wings have absolutely nothing to do with the Plains buffalo--or any buffalo, for that matter! Rather, they were made famous by the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY.

Buffalo Wings Recipe
4 pounds chicken wings
salt (to your taste)
freshly ground black pepper
4 cups vegetable oil
4 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons hot sauce (choose the sauce that matches the amount of heat that you want.)
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

Directions: Chop off the tip of each wing and throw away. Cut the rest of the wing at the joint. Sprinkle with black pepper and salt.

Heat the oil in skillet or deep fryer to about 40 degrees F. Add half the chicken wings and cook until golden crisp; drain. Cook rest of the wings.

Melt the butter and add hot sauce and vinegar. Stir well and pour over the crispy chicken.

Don't Expect Any Leftovers!

This is me,  Phoebe,  The Wondrous Story Cat!  I'm sharing one of my comfort-food holiday recipes that uses two of my favorite foods.  They would be Peppawridge Farm's purrfectly seasoned stuffing and Catbell's Mouse broth.  Don't worry, I haven't purrposely  omitted any ingredients, so your catserole will taste just as good as when I make it myself!

To the young kittens  experiencing Christmas for the first time--you will surely want to mew and purr for this recipe every Christmas!

Flavorful Mousy Catserole

4 cups Peppawridge Farm Catnip Seasoned Stuffing

8 mice

purrprika

1 can Catbell's Mouse broth

1/4 cup cream

1 tablespoon chopped catnip

Directions:

• Mix stuffing, 1 cup boiling water, and 1 tbsp butter.
• Spoon stuffing across center of 3-qt shallow baking dish.  Place mice over top of stuffing.  Sprinkle mice with purrprika.
• Mix broth, cream, and catnip.  Pour over mice.
• Bake covered at 400 degrees F for 20 minutes.
• Bake uncovered 15 minutes or until mice are crispy.

Yields four servings; guaranteed no leftovers!

A Stained Recipe Card

You know, don't you, what a stained recipe card means?  It means that particular recipe has been made over and over again.

The recipe card for my Apricot Bread is stained.  It has stains from butter, sugar, orange juice, water, etc.  I have made this recipe over and over again.  I think I could make this bread without even looking at the card.

Apricot Bread is Christmasy.  It makes a thoughtful, delicious gift when you want just the right thing to let someone know that you appreciate them.   Try it!

Apricot Bread

1 cup dried apricots, cut into small pieces

2 cups warm water

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1 egg

3/4 cup orange juice

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup chopped nuts (I prefer pecans)

Directions:  Soak apricots in warm water approx 30 minutes.  In a mixing bowl, cream sugar, butter, and egg.  Stir in orange juice.  Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; stir into creamed mixture just until combined.  Drain apricots well; add to batter with nuts.

Pour into a greased 9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 55 minutes.  Cool 10 minutes in pan before removing to a wire rack. Enjoy!

The Breakfast Blahs

Ever get the breakfast blahs? Tired of eggs, oatmeal, french toast, cold cereal . . . . . ?   Take a look at the pumpkin pancakes below.  You may have found a new breakfast favorite that's nowhere near the blahs!

I found this recipe on another blog, The Fruit of Her Hands.  Check out the blog if you'd like, and then come back here!

Pumpkin Pancakes

1 1/4 cups All-Purpose flour
2-3 T. Sugar
2 tsp. Baking powder
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/8 tsp. Nutmeg
A pinch of Ground Cloves
1 cup Milk
6 T. Pumpkin Puree
2 T. Melted Butter
1 Egg

~Delightful Additions~

Rich Pure Maple Syrup
and
Toasted or Candied Pecans

For a spiced breakfast treat, whisk all-purpose flour; sugar; baking powder;
cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt; nutmeg; and a pinch of ground cloves.

In a separate bowl, stir together milk, pumpkin puree, melted butter, and egg; fold mixture into dry ingredients.

Melt some butter in a skillet over medium heat; pour in 1/4 cup batter for each pancake.
Cook pancakes about 2-3 minutes per side; serve with butter and rich maple syrup.

Enjoy! ~ Makes 8 to 10.

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Preparing a Thanksgiving Turkey, By Second Graders

(photo by Niderlander, Dreamstime.com) 

I asked my second grade class to write about how they would prepare a turkey for Thanksgiving.  Maybe the rest of us have been doing it wrong all these years!

 

You buy a turkey at the store.  It should be dead.  If not, hit it over the head. Then take out the yucky stuff.  Use some of it in the gravy. If the turkey is real big, cook it for a whole hour.  If it is not so big, just a few minutes will be enough.  It will smell good.  Then Dad and Uncle Mike fight over who cuts it. 

Take a 150 pound turkey and pour gravy over it.  Put in a 10 degree oven for 5 minutes.  Serve with pie and ice cream.  Then call everyone to eat.  Oh, and keep the biggest piece of pie for yourself.

 

Tell Grandpa to take off all the feathers.  Then clean it in soapy water.  Put dressing inside the big hole.  Cook for 15 minutes or until done.  Set the table.  Grandma will give you a leg!

Home cooking, for sure!  

The Best Pumpkin Bread Ever!

 (photo by Gengberg, Dreamstime.com)

Over twenty years ago, a friend gave me this recipe for pumpkin bread.  I still remember her exact words:  "You can't mess it up.  It always gets right."  Now that's my kind of recipe!  Thanks, Rosene!

Every fall when I see pumpkins for sale, I know it's time for the best pumpkin bread  ever.  This recipe is moist, just the way I like it.  It's easy, too. And Rosene was right--I have never messed it up; it has always gotten right!  I have some in the oven right now, and it's smelling like I just can't wait to have a piece!

The Best Pumpkin Bread Ever

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3 cups sugar (I use only 2 cups and it is sweet enough for me.)

1 cup oil

4 eggs

1-1/2 teaspoon salt

Beat together all the above.  Then add one cup cooked pumpkin, 2/3 cups water, 2 teaspoons baking soda, and 3 cups flour.

Grease and flour 3 coffee cans (1 lb cans).  Fill until the three cans are equally full.

Bake 350 degrees for 50 minutes to an hour.  Cool and remove from cans.

Then indulge! It's delicious toasted for breakfast, or as a dessert.  The tops of this bread get like the tops of muffins--crusty and oh, so-o-o good.  You can double this recipe and freeze it.

You can play around with this recipe--it will still get right!   Some things I have done over the years:

• Added walnuts and/or raisins
• Used a 9 x 12 pan instead of the coffee cans.  
• One time I didn't have enough granulated sugar, so I used some brown sugar.
• I have added a lot more cooked pumpkin than 1 cup.  If  I have more pumpkin than the recipe says and I don't want to throw it out and have no other use for it, I just add all of it!
• A few times I've been short an egg or two.
• I've added more of a variety of spices 
• And I can't forget this one! A few years ago I turned on the oven to preheat and proceeded to mix the pumpkin bread.  When I went to put the batter in the oven, it wasn't hot. My oven had died. But I had all this batter on hand!  So I put the batter in a frying pan with a lid and cooked it on the stove top. The edges burned, but the rest was still edible, pumpkin bread.  I don't want to repeat this "method", but it worked in a pinch!

I just took my pumpkin bread out of the oven and put on the coffee.  How soon can you get here?  I'll save one of the "muffin tops" for you!

Betcha Can't Eat Just One

Whoopie Pies--these two words make me think of back home and our  Pennsylvania Dutch country kitchen with the old-fashioned wood stove. So I have something in common with the famous whoopie pies--we both originated in Pennsylvania. I can feel my five senses beginning to work overtime.
                                                                                                                                           

Sight: Whoopie pies actually aren't pies at all. They're a sandwich cake, 2 round little (or make them as big as you want) chocolate cakes with rich, creamy filling (and lots of it) in the middle.

Hearing: I hear myself asking Mom, "May I make whoopie pies?" And her answer, "Yes."


Smell: Just like a Food Network Star says, "It smells so good in here. We need smellavision."

Touch: Most of the time I'd eat my whoopie pies just like a sandwich, getting tasty bites of the soft mixture of moist chocolate cake and cream filling. Other times I'd try eating them like an oreo cookie. First, one soft chocolate cake, then lick off the filling, followed by the other round little cake.

Taste: Perfect combo--the deep chocolate flavor with the vanilla-white filling. I always doubled the ingredients when mixing the filling so I could be extra generous scooping on the creamy stuff!

With all the varieties of whoopie pies today--pumpkin cakes with cream cheese filling, or chocolate cakes with raspberry--or peppermint--or peanut butter--or espresso filling--I still like the originals the best.

And why are they called whoopie pies? Appparently,  Pennsylvania Dutch Amish wives would bake these desserts and pack them in their husbands' lunchboxes. When the farmers would open their lunches and see the sweet temptations, they would shout, "Whoopie!"

Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes

The cooler weather the last several days has given me "fall fever" which is not a good thing since the hot weather is said to be returning soon!  One of my favorite things about fall is Snitz and Knepp (Schnitz un Knepp).  Of course, I can eat this comfort meal any time of the year, but I associate it with fall, probably because of the apples in it.

Let me tell you about  Snitz and Knepp!  It  is a Pennsylvania Dutch Recipe consisting of dried apples (the snitz/Schnitz) and flour dumplings (the knepp), so it translates "Apples and Dumplings." 

To make Snitz and Knepp, you start by cooking two pounds of ham covered in water for about two hours. Add 2 cups of dried apples (that’s the snitz/schnitz) that have been soaked in water overnight. Also add the water they were soaked in. Add 2 1/2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Make sure there’s still enough water to cover.


Then you  make the dumplings (the knepp). Mix 2 cups flour, 4 tablespoons baking powder, 1 egg, 2 tablespoons butter, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 cup milk to make dumplings. Drop by spoonfuls into the boiling ham, apples, and liquid. Cover the pan and cook for 15-20 additional minutes. (This is when my mother would shoo me out of the kitchen because, as a little girl, I always wanted to lift the lid and peek, which is a "knepp no-no"!)

Serve and enjoy, being sure to include some ham, snitz, and knepp in each bite!

When I make Snitz and Knepp, I use smoked sausage instead of ham, simply because my mother made it with sausage and that is how I like it.  I usually don't have dried apples on hand, so I just use fresh tart apples, peeled and sliced.

I grew up in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and my heritage is Pennsylvania Dutch.  The Pennsylvania Dutch today are descendants from German-speaking immigrants. The "Dutch" does not mean we are Dutch people from the Netherlands. Rather, the German word for German is "Deutsch." So we are really Pennsylvania Germans or Deutsch.  You can see how the "Deutsch" ended up being "Dutch".  So Pennsylvania Germans are called Pennsylvania Dutch!

It's About Thyme

So what can you do with the herb thyme?  It is very versatile when preparing food.  It enhances eats, fish, sausage, eggs, and cheese and soups.  It blends well with the flavors of garlic, basil, and lemon.  So use it with the fresh garden vegetables you're getting this summer.  Thyme can even enhance some fruit desserts like applesauce, rhubarb and berry cobblers.  Thyme is simple to grow, too, because it actually does best in relatively poor soil. 

There are over 200 varieties of thyme.  My favorite is lemon thyme, which I currently have planted in my back yard.  It has grown like a bush.  When I mow my yard, I purposely mow a corner of it so the fragrance is released and I can smell that amazing lemon thyme scent!

Since ancient times, thyme has been associated with courage and has been used as a natural antidepressant.

In the Middle Ages, ladies embroidered images of thyme on scarves for their knights to wear in battle, believing it would give them courage.  The Romans put thyme in their bathwater to give themselves courage and strength before battle. They also used thyme to treat depression.

So how did thyme get this reputation?  The scent of thyme is invigorating and pleasant. It  is considered a circulatory system stimulant and is said to raise low blood pressure, which is often a cause of lethargy and depression.

 People once believed that fairies made their homes in thyme patches, so families often planted a patch specifically to encourage fairies to feel at home in their garden!

When the Greeks said that someone "smelled of thyme" it meant that the person was elegant, refined, and stylish.  Quite a compliment!

The next time you're feeling depressed or need that extra courage and energy to face the day, try smelling a bit of thyme. Or drink some thyme tea. Let us know how it works!   I'm not sure you'll want to embroider an image of thyme on your clothes like the Middle Ages ladies, but it's something to think about!

Fresh Tomato Soup (with thyme)
(Not as easy as opening a soup can, but certainly better tasting!)

1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup flour
2 cups water
6 medium tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Thin lemon slices (optional)

In a large saucepan, cook onion in butter until tender. Stir in flour to form a smooth paste.  Gradually add water, stirring until thickened.

Add the tomatoes, parsley, salt, sugar, thyme, bay leaf and pepper; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer until tomatoes are tender (approx 30 minutes).  Remove bay leaf.  Garnish with lemon.

This recipe makes 4  servings (1-1/4 cups each serving).

Don't Turn Up Your Nose--You Just Might Like It!

Choosing a good cantaloupe can be a guessing game, right? You poke it . . . smell it . . . look at its color. And you think you've gotten a good one. But when you eagerly cut it open, you're sometimes disappointed. Maybe it's not sweet and flavorful. Maybe it was cut too soon--but you can't undo any of that. Or maybe it just never would have been the best of cantaloupes.  (Photo by Sonbeam, Dreamstime.com)

Don't waste it! Instead, pickle it!

I don't wait to make pickled cantaloupe until I get one that isn't perfect. I buy cantaloupes for the sole purpose of pickling them.

Back home on the farm, my mother would plant cantaloupes in the garden. Many of them would ripen at the same time--far too many for us to eat before they spoiled. I can still picture a huge pile of cantaloupes on our porch.

My mother would urge relatives and visitors to p-l-e-a-s-e take some cantaloupes home with them. But there would still be many left. So we pickled and canned them.

I loved bringing up from the cellar a can of pickled cantaloupe when there was snow on the ground!

Recipe for Pickled Cantaloupe

1 cantaloupe, peeled and sliced (Best if it's not overripe.)
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt

Cook on medium heat until cantaloupe is soft (about 15 minutes).

Delicious warm or cold! Pickled cantaloupe will keep for weeks in the frig because of the acidity of the vinegar. Or, can it in jars so you have some to eat all year long until cantaloupes are in season again.   
 

What's All the Buzz About?

 More Honey Recipes To Buzz About

Honey Mustard Chicken
6 chicken legs and thighs
1/4 cup dark mustard
1/2 cup honey
1 bell pepper, sliced
corn oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic
balsamic vinegar to taste
salt and pepper
Season skillet with oil and vinegar. Add onions and bell pepper and saute until tender. Remove from the skillet.
Place chicken in skillet and add garlic. Cook, turning often.
Mix honey and mustard together. Pour it over chicken, onion, and pepper. Brown in oven. Serve with rice.  (Photo by Catia70, Dreamstime.com)

---

Aunt Arlene's Chicken Cacciatore
1 can tomatoes, drained
1 cup tomato paste
1-1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup chicken broth
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 cup onion
1 medium green pepper
3/4 lb skinless chicken breast, cut in pieces
3/4 cup green peas
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Place drained tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, basil, honey, pepper in 2-3 quart saucepan. Cover and simmer 15 minutes.
Heat 4 tablespoons broth in large skillet. Stir fry garlic, onion, green pepper, and chicken for 10 minutes. Add chicken and green peppers to sauce and simmer partially covered 10 minutes. Add peas, balsamic vinegar and cook 5 more minutes. Serve.

How Sweet It Is

Honey was common in Bible history.  The ancient Israelites used it as sugar.  It was used in baking, to make a fermented beverage, and sometimes mixed with wine.  It became a symbol for abundance and God's blessing . . . "a land of milk and honey."

One could go on and on about the benefits of honey.  It is one of our most powerful healing foods.

It can kill bacteria and disinfect wounds and sores.  It can boost our energy . . . and build our immunity.  Honey can improve our mood.  It can stimulate our brain for memory and learning ability.  One of the most soothing benefits of honey is that it can even help you sleep!

So go put honey on your shopping list--then come back for these recipes!

Honey-Vinegar Carrots (Even the kids will love this vegetable recipe!)
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon butter
1 pound carrots, peeled and sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Bring the first four ingredients to a boil over medium high heat.  Add the carrots.  Once it is again boiling, reduce heat to medium.  If the liquid level boils away before the carrots are cooked, add more.  After the carrots are soft, you want the liquid to boil away, leaving a glaze on the carrots.  Season with salt and pepper and serve. 

Honey-Vinegar Dipping Sauce for Fish
1 pound  fish of your choice
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cupapple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey

In a shallow dish, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt.  Stir in milk and egg.  Add fish and coat with batter.  Bake fish on sprayed baking sheet until golden brown and tender.

In a small bowl, mix together vinegar and honey.   Serve with fish as a dipping sauce.

Tuna Salad with Honey Dressing  (A refreshing change from your regular tuna salad recipe)

Tuna salad ingredients:
3-6 ounce cans tuna
1/4 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup carrots, shredded
1/4 sunflower seeds
lettuce

Dressing ingredients:
1/4 cup dijon mustard
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon tarragon leaves, chopped.
2 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons sour cream

Whisk together dressing ingredients.  Add tuna and toss.  Fold in the remaining ingredients.  Cover and refrigerate one hour.  Serve on lettuce.

Ninety-four Ways to Enjoy Chocolate!

What do all of these have in common?  (Come on, this is easy!)

Your own personal stash, carefully hidden away.

Valentine's Day, hearts

Easter, bunnies and eggs

Christmas, boxes of delectable bites

Halloween, individually-wrapped pieces

Hanukkah, coins

Weddings and Parties, fondue fountains

Birthdays, cakes

That's right, Chocolate!

And you may want to make these cupcakes to fit any of the above. No need to be guilt ridden even if the only reason you eat chocolate is because it tastes good. There is evidence that chocolate (particularly dark) has health benefits.  These include the following effects: anticancer, brain stimulator, prevents coughing, and improves the circulatory system.


So, go ahead!

Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcakes

Cream together:

8 oz pkg cream cheese

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

pinch of salt

Add chocolate chips and set aside this "white mixture."

Next, mix the following "dark mixture" together:

2 cups sugar

3 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa

2 tsp vanilla

2 tsp baking soda

2 Tbs vinegar

2/3 cup oil

2 cups water

Fill cupcake holders 1/2 full with the dark mixture.  Spoon a rounded teaspoon of white mixture in middle of the dark.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes.  This recipe makes 3 dozen cupcakes.  Enjoy!

Shoo, Fly!

What do you save room for on Thanksgiving?  Pie!

Yet, there was probably no pumpkin, apple, or pecan pie at the First Thanksgiving Feast in 1621.  The Pilgrims had venison and fowl to cook with, and it quite likely that their pies were made with these meats.

My family--being Pennsylvania Dutch--always adds Shoo Fly Pie to our dessert menu on every holiday.

The name certainly gets attention!  The "fun" reason for the name is that the farmer's wife put the pie in the window for it to cool, but the sweetness attracted the flies. So she shooed them away.  So,  Shoo Fly Pie. However, some people spoil that fun and claim shoofly is an alteration of some German word.  (The Pennsylvania Dutch today are descendants from German-speaking immigrants.  The German word for German is "Deutsch."  So we are really Pennsylvania Germans or Deutsch who somehow ended up being called Pennsylvania Dutch.)

Anyway, here is my sister's recipe for Shoo Fly Pie:

1 cup flour
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 T. shortening
1 egg, beaten
1 cup King syrup
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup hot water

Make crumbs of flour, dark brown sugar, and shortening.  Reserve 1/2 cup for topping.

In a separate bowl, mix egg, King syrup, and 3/4 cup hot water. Add to dry mixture.

Dissolve baking soda in remaining 1/4 cup water.  Add to mixture.  Pour into unbaked pie shell. Top with reserved 1/2 cup crumbs.

Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes.

My favorite pie is, yes, the Shoo Fly Pie!  What is your favorite pie and/or pie story? Please comment!

Cannot Be Overrated!

This recipe for Homemade Carrot Cake simply cannot be overrated!  It is perfectly moist and delicious.

Ingredients

4 eggs

1-1/4 cups vegetable oil

2 cups white sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 cups grated carrots

1 cup chopped pecans

Frosting 

1/2 cup butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

4 cups confectioners sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions for cake:  Preheat oven 350 degrees F.  Grease and flour 9 x 13 inch pan.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla.  Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.  Stir in carrots.  Pour into prepared pan.

Bake 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Cool before frosting.

Directions for frosting:  Combine butter, cream cheese, sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla.  Beat until smooth.  Frost the cake when cool.

Grandma Would Approve Of This Substitution

I have never bought buttermilk. The reason is that I would never use the whole container. I would just end up pouring the unused portion down the drain after it had set in my refrigerator a few months and looked repulsive!
Instead, I use vinegar and milk as ingredient substitutions for buttermilk. (kitty photos by Caroline Henri,  Dreamstime.com)

Directions:
Add milk to 1 tablespoon of white distilled vinegar until    both ingredients measure 1 cup.
Let stand about 5 minutes. Then measure the amount needed for the recipe.

Try this buttermilk substitution and make my Grandma Heisey's easy, moist Old Fashioned Crumb Cake Recipe.  It's a special cake, but you do not need any special ingredients to make it as you probably already have everything on hand.  Grandma would make several of these cakes at a time for Grandpa. It was one of his favorites, so his tummy would be happy for weeks!

Grandma Heisey's Old Fashioned Crumb Cake
2-1/2 cups flour
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 cup buttermilk
(No buttermilk?  Substitute by following the directions above.)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Crumb flour, sugar, salt, and butter. Take out one cup of crumbs for topping. Add the baking soda to the milk and stir. Add to the remaining crumb mixture.
Pour the mixture into a 10-inch pie plate and sprinkle crumbs on top.
Bake about 30 minutes in 350 degrees oven.

Makes You Glad You Have Left Over Turkey

(photo by Darren Fisher, Dreamstime.com)

What-To-Do-With-Left-Over-Turkey Salad

Ingredients:
large bowl of greens of your choice
2 cups left-over cooked turkey pieces
1 cup cranberries
1/2 cup pecans 

Dressing:
1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup oil

Directions:
Blend cranberry sauce, vinegar, sugar and half of the feta cheese in a blender. Slowly add oil.
Place greens on plate and top with turkey, pecans, cranberries. Pour dressing over this mixture. Sprinkle remaining feta cheese over top.