Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Corn Pudding

1/2 stick butter
2-1/2 c fresh yellow corn kernels, cut from the cob (3-4 ears)
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 large eggs
1/2 c milk
1/2 c half-and-half
1/2 T sugar
1 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
dried parsley

Preheat oven the 375. Spray a baking dish (8-10 cup capacity) with cooking spray.

Melt butter and saute corn and onion for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Whisk together eggs, milk, and half-and-half. Add sugar, salt, pepper, and parsley. Add the corn mixture and pour into the prepared baking dish.

Place the dish in a larger pan and fill the pan halfway up the sides of the dish with hot water. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the top is brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Makes 4 servings, but can easily be doubled.

Friday, November 21, 2008

Holiday Eggnog Cookies

1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup eggnog
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 egg yolks
2-1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 300 F. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg.

Cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggnog, vanilla and egg yolks. Beat a medium speed with mixer until smooth.

Add flour mixture and beat at low speed until combined. Do not overmix. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet 2 inches apart. Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg.

Bake 20-23 minutes until bottom of cookies turn light brown.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Cranberry Sauce

1 medium orange
1 small jalapeno
1 pound fresh cranberries
1 c sugar
2 T vegetable oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
2 T Triple Sec


Using a vegetable peeler, peel the zest from the orange. Seed the jalapeno and slice thinly.

Put the cranberries, juice from the orange, orange peel, sliced jalapenos, sugar, vegetable oil, salt, cloves, cinnamon and Triple Sec in a saucepan.

Cook on medium heat until the cranberries pop and are soft, about 15 minutes. Remove the orange peel. Let cool and enjoy!

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Pizza

3/4 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1 envelope active dry yeast
2 cups flour
1 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
3 T olive oil

Pour 3/4 cups warm water into a small bowl. Stir in the yeast and let stand until dissolved (5-10 minutes).

Put 2 cups flour, 1 tsp sugar and 3/4 tsp salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Add the dissolved yeast and 3 T olive oil. Knead dough until smooth (5-8 minutes) adding more flour, if needed.

Put dough into a bowl that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand until doubled in size, about an hour.

Punch down dough and let rest for 5 minutes. Place dough on an oiled pan (sheet pan, pizza pan, etc.) and using your hands, form into desired shape.

Cover dough with spaghetti sauce of your choice. Add cheese and whatever toppings you like (pepperoni, onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, olives, ground meat, etc.)

Bake at 450 degrees until dough is browned and cheese has melted, approximately 15-20 minutes.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Bolzano Apple Cake

Adapted from Scott Carsberg

1 stick butter (4 ounces), plus more for greasing pan
1/2 cup flour, plus more for pan
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean
4 small Gala apples
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup heavy cream at room temperature
Powdered sugar

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9-inch round pan with cooking spray. Line bottom of pan with parchment, then spray the parchment with cooking spray.

Melt butter in small saucepan. Set aside.

Beat together eggs and half the sugar in a bowl. Continue to beat while slowly adding remaining sugar until thick; it should form a ribbon when dropped from a spoon.

Split vanilla bean in two lengthwise. Scrape seeds into egg-sugar batter and add pod to melted butter.

Peel, quarter and core apples, then trim ends and slice thinly.

Remove vanilla pod from butter and stir butter into egg-sugar batter. Combine 1/2 cup flour and baking powder, then stir it into batter alternately with milk. Stir in apples, coating every piece with batter. Pour batter into pan, using fingers to pat top evenly.

Bake for 25 minutes, then rotate pan; bake for about 25 minutes more, until cake pulls away from pan and is brown on top; a thin-bladed knife inserted into center will come out clean when it is done. Cool 30 minutes, then cut lengthwise and sprinkle slices with powdered sugar.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings.

Chinese Chicken Salad

Salad
1 medium head of cabbage
2 cups frozen peas and carrots
¼ cup chopped green onions
Cilantro (optional)
2 T sesame seeds
¼ cup toasted almonds
2 pkgs Top Ramen (use dry; break up)
3 chicken breasts (bake and cut into bite-sized pieces

Chop the cabbage up and add everything together in a good sized bowl.

Dressing
¾ cup salad oil
¾ cup rice vinegar
3 T soy sauce
½ tsp dry mustard
2 tsp sugar


Stir or shake all of the ingredients together and put the salad dressing on whenever you please.

Cheesecake Cupcakes

4 (8 oz.) pkgs cream cheese
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 box Vanilla Wafers
Cupcake liners

Soften cream cheese, beat eggs and add with the sugar to the cream cheese. Beat until smooth.

Drop one vanilla wafer into each cupcake liner. Fill with cheesecake mixture to about ½ full.

Bake at 350 degrees about 25 minutes or until firm to the touch and very lightly browned.
Cool and top with topping of your choice (canned cherries, blueberries, etc.) Makes about 40 cupcakes.

Big Lake Scalloped Corn

½ cup butter, melted
2 eggs, beaten
2 cans whole kernel corn, drained
2 cans creamed corn
1 cup sour cream
3 pkgs Gold Medal corn muffin mix (6.5 oz.)


Combine all above, add muffin mix last. Pour into buttered 9x13—bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Optional: Add 4 oz. can diced green chilies.

Mom's Blueberry Muffins

1 cup blueberries
¼ cup butter
1-3/4 cups flour
2-1/2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ cup sugar
1 egg
½ cup milk

Melt butter in a mixing bowl. Sift flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar into the butter. Add unbeaten egg and milk. Beat until smooth. Fold in blueberries. Put cupcake liners in muffin pans and fill 2/3 fill. Top generously with additional granulated sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.

Snow Pudding with Custard Sauce

Pudding
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup cold water
¼ tsp salt
2 egg whites, beaten stiff
2 cups boiling water
1/3 cup lemon juice
5 T cornstarch

Combine sugar, salt and boiling water. Blend cornstarch and cold water. Add to sugar mixture in medium saucepan. Heat to boiling, cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Cool slightly in refrigerator. In a bowl that has been rinsed in cold water, fold in egg whites and lemon juice. Refrigerate until it reaches the consistency of Jell-O.

Custard Sauce
1 egg yolk, beaten
1 cup milk, scalded
½ cup sugar
½ tsp vanilla
1 tsp cornstarch
Pinch of salt

Combine sugar and cornstarch. Combine egg yolk and scalded milk. Combine sugar, add milk mixtures in a small saucepan. Heat until slightly thickened. Add vanilla and salt. Cool. Serve over Snow Pudding.

Portuguese Sweet Bread

2-1/2 lbs flour (about 7 cups)
2 cups milk
2 cups sugar
1 tsp salt
1-1/2 sticks butter
6 eggs
2 oz yeast
¼ cup flour
2 T sugar
¼ cup water

Combine milk, sugar, and salt in saucepan and boil for three minutes. Add butter and stir until melted. Cool pan with milk mixture in sink filled with cold water. Combine yeast, ¼ cup flour, 2 T sugar, and ¼ cup water to make paste. Set aside in a warm place. Beat eggs until foamy. Place flour in large mixing bowl and stir in cooled milk mixture. Using electric mixer, blend in eggs and yeast mixture at a low speed. Stir until dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. Shape dough into a ball, place in a well-greased bowl, and let rise two to three hours in a warm place. Punch down and shape into biscuits or small loaves. Let rise again four to five hours. Bake at 325 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Makes three dozen small loaves.

Portuguese Rice Pudding

1 cup rice
1 cup water
½ tsp salt
5-1/2 cups milk
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup sugar
cinnamon


In a heavy pot (preferably not Teflon coated), boil rice and water over high heat, stirring constantly, until water is absorbed. Lower heat to medium and add salt and 2 cups milk, stirring well and cook for 15 minutes. Add another 2 cups milk, stirring well, and cook for 15 minutes. Add another 2 cups milk, stirring well before and after. Repeat this process 15 minutes later with remaining 1-1/2 cups milk. Stir constantly for an additional 20 minutes, then blend in beaten egg, and cook for two minutes. Add sugar, stir well, and cook for two more minutes. Pour into a medium-sized bowl, dust with cinnamon, and cool or refrigerate before serving.

Mom's Boston Baked Beans

Saturday night dinner—serve with
brown bread…

1# pea beans, soaked overnight
½# salt pork
1 tsp salt
4 T molasses
6 T brown sugar
1 T dry mustard
1 sliced onion
3 to 4 cups boiling water

Drain beans and put them in the bean pot. Cut the pork and bury in the beans. Combine seasonings, mix with one cup of water and pour over beans. Bake at 250 degrees for 8 hours. Add additional water to cover beans as needed.

Portuguese Kale Soup

2# pinto beans
2 pigs feet
4 linguica
1 sliced onion
About 5 potatoes, peeled and cut into medium-sized chunks
About 3 cloves pressed garlic

3 bunches Kale

Put everything into a big pan and cover with water. Simmer until beans are done—about four hours.

When beans are done, take out the pigs feet and linguica. Mash the beans and potatoes right in the pan. Slice a head of cabbage and add it to the pan. Add three bunches of kale. Put the pigs feet and linguica back into the pan. Add more water and season with salt. Simmer all day.