Enjoy the Holidays

December 20, 2013 · Filed under Baking, Christmas, Family, Motherhood · Tagged ,

Don’t forget to slow down and enjoy Christmas.

 

December 1982

 

Have a happy holiday. Relax and enjoy yourself. If all the handcrafted Christmas gifts you were making aren’t completed toss them in a closet and bring them out to finish next year. This takes a strong will, but it is better than going without sleep in order to get done and then being grouchy on the best day of the whole year.

I wish I’d followed this advice when our children were little. Joy says she always remembers me being cross on important days. Even though I remember staying up half the night to finish a doll’s wardrobe, from swimming suit to pajamas to coat, my daughter’s memory is of a cross momma instead of the gift I worked so hard over.

So if you need more Christmas cookies try some of these easy recipes. The peanut butter ones can made in 30 minutes. The others take less than an hour.

 

Peanut Butter Cookies (Flourless)

 

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup sugar

1 beaten egg

1 teaspoon soda

 

Mix all the ingredients. Roll the mixture into small balls. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

 

Cookie Pralines

 

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 egg, separated

1/2 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups chopped pecans

 

Cream butter, sugar, and egg yolk. In larger bowl beat egg whites stiff. Add first mixture. Sift in flour and salt. Add pecans. Gently fold in all these additions.

Drop by a teaspoon into high mounds on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until brown.

A cookie praline is a cross between a cookie and a candy. Store in airtight container.

 

Easy Frosted Cookies

 

1/2 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

 

Topping:

1 cup chopped nuts

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup whipping cream

 

Cream first four ingredients. Sift dry ingredients. Mix together. Shape into 1-inch balls. Place on greased baking sheet. Make a depressions in center of each cookie.

Mix topping. Put a teaspoonful in the depression. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until a golden brown.

 

Date Bars

 

1 cup sugar

3 egg yolks, beaten

1 8-ounce package dates

1/4 cup sour cream – This sour cream is not cultured sour cream. Take plain whipping cream and add a 1/2 a teaspoon vinegar to sour it to produce the sour cream for this recipe.

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Pinch salt

3 egg whites, well beaten

Powdered sugar

 

Mix ingredients in order given. Add egg whites last. Bake at 350 degrees in an 8 x 8 inch pan for 30 minutes. Cut while warm and roll in powdered sugar.

 

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Christmas Cleaning Proves a Snap

December 15, 2013 · Filed under Christmas, Cleaning, Stories · Tagged ,

How much do you do to get ready for Christmas?

 

December 1989

 

Christmas Cleaning Proves a Snap

 

In the November 11th issue of The Kansan my attention was caught by the headline “Holiday cleaning a snap with right methods.” Now here was a story after my own heart because if there is anything I need right now, just before Christmas, it is learning how to make housecleaning a snap.

In the past the only snap in housecleaning for me has been the snap in my back when I sink to my knees to scrub the kitchen floor. But I pride myself on being open to new ideas, so before I pass judgment on this new snap method of housecleaning. I’d better give it a try.

Reading on I found the first item of instruction was what to do if the guests were on their way and you discover a chip or two in your best crystal.

“Don’t panic,” was the advice, “just use emery paper on the small chips and nicks – use the finest grade available, moisten and rub over the chip until it smooths out.” This sounds sensible so I decided to try it. But first, I had to locate my best crystal (also, my only crystal). After a search I found it hiding behind a miscellaneous assortment of plastic cups and jelly glasses on a top shelf. It passed inspection with a lovely variety of chips that qualified for the smoothing out process.

Now, where was the emery paper? I located some sandpaper, but the article warned against using that – too rough, it said. Finally I discovered a circular piece of paper that I recalled having seen used on an emery wheel a long time ago. With high hopes I set to work. A half an hour later the nicks were still there but the skin had disappeared from the tips of my fingers.

One of the next enumerated jobs called for cleaning the outside of the house with a pressure washer spray that powers off dirt and grime. I sallied forth to check the outside of the house. My spirits lifted. “This will be a snap.” I said, “as soon as I find a pressure washer.”

Years ago we had one for cleaning the milking barn and it worked great when it worked. Now that I needed it I couldn’t find it so I decided to get through the holidays with an unwashed exterior rather than spend the money I had earmarked for Christmas presents for the grandkids on a new pressure sprayer.

Anyway, with my luck if I had the exterior walls of the house immaculate the Christmas Day weather would be too snowy and cold for the guests to gather around the outside of the house and exclaim, “Isn’t this siding the cleanest in all of Harvey County? Not a speck of dust on it.”

I turned my attention back to the paper and read the paragraph about cleaning the fireplace so Santa Claus could step out of it on Christmas morning with all his fur white and shining. Now I don’t have an authentic fireplace, but I do have an open fire in a Franklin stove and I’m sure Santa would not emerge spanking clean from the chimney no matter what gigantic cleaning feat I attempted. No use to try. So it looks like Santa will just have to fly back to the North Pole and put on a fresh suit of clothes after he makes his visit here.

The next instructions for snap cleaning called for shining up the household brass (doorknobs, etc.). They were tantalizingly simple – just use a lemon rind dipped in a little salt, rinse and buff before applying a coat of wax. Feeling a bit tired from all of the decisions I had been making I decided to sit down and make a glass of lemonade out of the juice of the lemon, before the rind and I went to work. When we did, I discovered my brass door knobs were too old to take a shine so I abandoned the lemon rind to the garbage disposal.

Now the final activity before the coming of Christmas was a speedy cleaning of the crystal chandelier in the living room. The directions were to cover each light bulb with a plastic bag securing it with a rubber band before spraying the pendants with glass cleaner. The zing of the rubber band snapping on to the neck of the light bulb might qualify as the elusive snap or the snap might be the housewife’s neck as she fell off the stepladder while stretching to get each pendant covered with spray.

Suddenly, I made a snap decision. If I did all this snap cleaning I’d have to forego buying the Christmas presents, writing notes on the Christmas cards and making the peanut brittle, tea balls and peppernuts that are family traditions. I’d never have the time or strength left to put up and decorate the Christmas tree or go to the Christmas programs or read the grandchildren the story of that long ago night in Bethlehem when Christ was born.

So I’m canceling cleaning the house by the snap method for now. Maybe, next year.

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Christmas is coming

December 6, 2013 · Filed under Baking, Family · Tagged ,

Christmas is coming and it’s important to try and keep it simple. Though I’ve never attempted to make this many cookies or candies.

 

December 1978

 

Just over three weeks to get ready for Christmas is what the calendar says. Unbelievable, you say. The coming days promise to be as hectic and hurried as wheat cutting, milo harvesting or hay baling time, but at least they will be more fun.

Creating the atmosphere for the family holiday festivities rests squarely on the shoulders of the mother. Quite a load, isn’t it? To try to do too much and end up being cross and worn out when the big day arrives is a temptation difficult to resist. It takes will power to decide not to spread oneself too thin. Myriad activities in the home and in the community entice us to spend long hours on them. And that’s good as long as the hours are available, but if not, try to simplify.

Cookie baking is traditional and a lovely part of the whole holiday scene but do we need peppernuts, lebkuchen, tea balls, date pinwheels, snicker doodles, almond crescents, scotch shortbread, and decorated sugar cookies to exclaim over before eating them? Choose a few to make and let the rest go.

The same philosophy goes for candy making. Instead of bogging down in divinity, fondant, fudge, and peanut brittle stir up 1 or 2 batches and call it quits. Then go visit a neglected friend or read somebody’s kid (preferably your own) a Christmas story, or just take a brisk walk with your farmer if you can locate him.

For me, I’ve selected the 3 p’s for our Christmas food tradition peppernuts, peanut brittle, and popcorn balls. After I finish making these standbys, I try something different each year from what we usually have. Last time it was chocolate fudge with home grown black walnuts. That is ruled out this December – the candy was so sweet and creamy I overindulged, and the bulge I acquired is still bulging away on my waistline a year later.

Here is a simple recipe you might enjoy this Christmas.

 

Apricot Coconut Balls

 

1 ½ cups dried apricots, ground

2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

2 cups shredded coconut

 

Combine apricots and milk. Let rest 30 minutes. Add coconut. Shape into balls. Keep refrigerated in covered container.

 

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Thanksgiving Turkey

November 21, 2013 · Filed under Baking, Cooking, Family, Turkey

It’s turkey time.

November 1980

Thanksgiving is coming up this month and that usually means roasting a turkey for the holiday dinner. Elaine Broadhurst of Broadhurst Turkey Farm has cooked a lot of big birds in her time and they always turn out moist and succulent.

 

Roast Turkey

Choose either a hen or tom turkey since both have equally good meat. Rub the exterior of the turkey with fat. I prefer rendered bacon fat, but butter can be used instead. Use generously. Then rub salt inside the big cavity, the neck cavity and the outside of the bird. A 20 to 22 pound turkey takes 2/3 cup salt while a 10 to 14 pound one requires 1/3 cup of salt.

Place turkey on a rack in the bottom on a large roaster. Put on lid, but leave the vent open. Bake at 325°F oven 6 ½ hours for a 20 to 22 pound turkey and 4 ½ hours for a 10 to 14 pound turkey.

Set giblets to boil in 2 or 3 cups water and cook until tender. Cut into small pieces. One hour before the roasting time is completed pour off the broth that has collected in the bottom of the roaster. Remove roaster lid and bake the remaining hour uncovered so the bird will brown.

Make dressing with part of the broth and make gravy with the rest. To make the gravy use 3 cups of hot broth or broth and milk mixed. Combine ½ cup of flour with an additional cup of cold milk. Add this flour paste to the hot broth and stir and cook until thick. If it gets lumpy, beat with an electric mixer. Add the giblets. Season to taste. Keep hot until serving time.

Take turkey out of oven at correct time and let it stand 20 minutes at room temperature before slicing and serving. (Lift turkey from the roaster with the rack supporting it.)

 

If you want a different pumpkin dessert to finish off the big dinner, try this cake roll. It requires no last minute work. It also makes a nice dessert for a club meeting or a party, I got the recipe from Eleanor Schirer after she brought one to work. Her father, Calarence Schirer, farms north of Sedgwick

Pumpkin Cake Roll

Cake:

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup pumpkin

1 teaspoon lemon juice

¾ cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup finely chopped walnuts

 

Filling:

1 cup powdered sugar

6 ozs. Cream cheese

4 tablespoons margarine

½ teaspoon vanilla

To prepare cake beat 3 eggs for 5 minutes. Gradually beat in one cup of sugar. Stir in the pumpkin and lemon juice. Sift dry ingredients.

Fold dry ingredients into pumpkin mixture. Spread on greased and floured 15” x 10” x 1” inch jelly roll pan. Top with the nuts.

Bake at 375° for 15 minutes. Turn out on towel sprinkled with powdered sugar. Roll towel and sake from narrow end. Cool. Unroll. Spread with filling. Roll and chill. Slice and serve.

 

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Potatoes

November 15, 2013 · Filed under Cooking · Tagged , ,

I have been getting a lot of potatoes from my CSA right now and these recipes will come in handy.

November 1983

Now that cooler weather is here it is more fun to cook, and the warmth given off when something is baking in the oven is welcome.

Since restaurants featuring elegant baked potatoes are finding a good reception from the eating out public, this might be a good time to try a few baked potato ideas on your family.

Potatoes are the new darlings of nutritionists, being praised for both their high food fiber and low fat content. If you are looking for economy, they invariably are a good buy for your money.

A medium size potato (about 3 per pound raw) has 90 calories. It is 75% water and has 3 grams of protein, only a trace of fat, 21 grams carbohydrate, 9 milligrams of calcium, some thiamine and riboflavin, and is a good source of niacin and vitamin C. A potato this size has one third as much Vitamin C as a medium size orange.

These recipes feature baked potatoes that become the main source of protein, as well as carbohydrates, for a meal.

With raw carrot sticks, whole bread, and applesauce or a fresh apple for dessert, they make a satisfying and nutritionally sound meal for a crisp fall or winter day.

Pizza Potato

2 baked potatoes

2 tablespoons oil

2 teaspoons Parmesan cheese, grated

1 teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon pepper

1 cup Pizza sauce

1 cup grated Mozzarella cheese

Bake potatoes at 400° for 1 hour. Do not use foil. Cut in half. Cut slits one-half inch apart in the edges of the shell and flatten the potato halves to form a base for the pizza. Put on cookie sheet. You will have four bases.

With a fork work in one-fourth of the oil, in the pulp on each potato half. Spread one-fourth of the pizza sauce on each base and top with the Mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 400° F for 15 minutes. For variations add pepperoni, mushrooms, green pepper or any other topping you like on top of the cheese.

Pizza Sauce

2 cups tomato juice

2 tablespoons vinegar

¼ teaspoon salt

1 medium- sized onion, sliced

1 teaspoon oregano

Mix all ingredients except oregano. Bring to boil. Simmer one hour. Add oregano and simmer 30 more minutes.

Yield: 1 cup

Taco Potatoes

2 baked potatoes, large

1 cup cooked hamburger

1 cup taco sauce

½ cup grated cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded lettuce

½ cup diced tomatoes

Bake potatoes at 400° for one hour. Do not use foil. Cut off thin slice. Scoop out pulp. Mash and keep warm.

Add beef, taco sauce and cheese and then mix. Put mixture in shells. Top with shredded lettuce and diced tomato.

Potato Lasagna

2 baked potatoes, large

1 medium- size onion, chopped

½ cup ground beef

¼ cup milk

¼ cup tomato sauce

1 small tomato, peeled and chopped

¼ teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

½ cup grated Mozzarella cheese

¼ cup ripe olives, sliced

1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

Bake potato at 400° F for one hour. Do not use foil. Cut a thin slice from top of each potato. Scoop out pulp. Add milk. Mash and keep warm.

Heat skillet. Add beef and onion. Stir and cook for 10 minutes over low heat. Add tomato sauce, tomato and seasonings. Add the potato pulp and stir. Add cheese, olives and Tabasco sauce. Heat. Heap into shells and garnish with parsley.

Dried Beef Baked Potatoes

1 large baked potato

1/3 cup dried beef, torn into pieces

2/3 cup medium white sauce

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Bake potatoes at 400° F for one hour. Do not use foil. Cut off a thin slice and scoop out potato. Mash. Keep warm. Combine white sauce and dried beef and cook until mixture comes to boil. Add the mashed potato and pepper. Heat through. Scoop into shells and garnish with parsley.

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Simple Foods

November 7, 2013 · Filed under Cooking · Tagged , ,

November 7, 1985

Appetites are perking up with the cool fall weather. It’s time to get out the big kettle and cook some simple food that takes a while to be done. You’ll warm the kitchen and get supper ready at the same time.

The recipes today are all meatless, but they are still high in protein and low in fat. Also high in fiber and low in cost.

The Mung Bean Dal and Lentil Soup are authentic recipes I got from an Indian friend who babysits my Connecticut grandchildren, Kaberi Chakraborty.

Lentil Soup

8 ounces dry lentils

Water to cover

2 onions, chipped

4 celery stalks, chopped

4 carrots, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

4 cups grated zucchini

2 quarts canned tomatoes

Cook beans in water 20 minutes. Add onions, celery, carrots and garlic. Cook 30 more minutes. Add zucchini and tomatoes and cook 15 more minutes.

Any kind of dry beans may be substituted for lentils. Adjust cooking time so they are tender before adding other ingredients.

Makes 4 large servings, 300 calories each.

Mung Bean Dal

1 cup mung beans

4 cups water

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1 hot yellow or green pepper

4 tablespoons ghee

Cook beans and next 5 ingredients until beans are sot. Add chopped pepper and cook five more minutes. Add ghee Mix and serve. Makes four servings.

In India the chapati (a form of bread) is dipped into the dal and eaten with the fingers.

Butter may be substituted for the ghee.

Refried Beans

2 cups cooked pinto beans with juice

1 six ounce can tomato paste

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 onion, chopped

2 teaspoons oil

Mash beans. Add tomato paste and chili powder. Saute onion in oil.

Stir in beans and cook, stirring frequently until beans are hot. Serve with flour tortillas and cheese, if desired.

Mexican Rice and Beans

1 pound red kidney beans

3 quarts water

2 15 ounce cans tomato sauce

4 tablespoons chili powder

4 teaspoons oregano

4 onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

8 ounces brown rice, raw

1 tablespoon oil

Soak beans in water overnight. Cook till tender. Saute onions and garlic in oil. Add tomato sauce and spices. Simmer 15 minutes. Add to cooked beans. Add rice and stir. Cook one hour. Makes eight serving. 350 calories per serving.

White rice may be substituted for the brown rice.

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Brotherly Love

October 24, 2013 · Filed under Family, Motherhood, Stories

I feel so lucky to have my brother’s reaction to my birth written down to be read and laughed about years later.

October 17, 1984

The October sun filtered down on the streets of Putnam, Connecticut. In the white two story house set high above the busy street the phone rang.

“Hello,” followed by expectant silence.

“Hello. The baby was born just five minutes ago. A girl and everyone is fine. Will you tell Chris?”

“Oh that’s wonderful,” I responded. “I’m so happy and I’ll tell Chris right away. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye.”

Christopher, playing with Castle Grayscull in his bedroom, looked up when I sat down on the bed.

“Chris, Daddy just called and you have a baby sister.”

Christopher’s brown eyes looked right through me and he didn’t bother to answer. Secure in his four- year tenure as top kid in Mom and Dad’s heart his attitude reflected his thought.

“Well, what did you expect? I’ve heard too much about that baby already. Now she’s here. No big deal!” and he went back to his play. That evening when Daddy came home from the hospital Chris didn’t ask about the baby or show any interest in her at all.

The next day, dressed in brown corduroy overalls and matching striped shirt, Christopher went with his Daddy and me to the hospital in Massachusetts. Feeling very independent he scrambled in the car, climbed into his car seat, snapped his seat belt with a brisk click, and rode away, king of all he surveyed. The Interstate stretched through the wooded hills rioting with deep yellow, rusty oranges and brilliant scarlets.

After Daddy parked the car Chris hopped out and holding Daddy’s hand firmly, he trudged up the long steps heading to the tall red brick hospital. He maintained his best man of the world attitude in the elevator and down the hall to Momma’s room.

She, dark curly hair tousled, lay among the pillows in a pink satin negligee.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Hi, Honey. How’s my boy?” Momma reached out and smoothed Chris’ hair.

“Fine.”

“Climb up on the bed so I can hug you,” Momma said as she reached to help him up.

“What’s that?” Chris asked pointing toward the bedside table.

“A thermometer, dear. Daddy has gone to get the baby now so you can see her. Won’t you like that? We’ve named her Carolyn.” And Momma gave him a big hug.

“Daddy bought me a new Gobot. It turns into a submarine. Want to see it?” Chris dug down into his pants pocket to produce the treasured toy.

Just then Daddy and Carolyn came in. “Oh, look, Chris, here’s your baby sister.”

Tenderly his parents showed Carolyn to him and waited expectantly for Chris to melt at her winsome charm and become a proud and protective big brother.

Chris did not melt. He glanced casually at her and began to organize his resources for a complete exploration of the hospital room. He climbed down to the floor, smelled the roses and chrysanthemums on the window ledge, drank out of the water pitcher, turned on the call light and peeked under the curtain at the patient in the next bed.

Room investigation completed, Chris scaled the bed for a two minute cuddle with Momma, slid down to the floor and made ready to move on to bigger challenges. At this point Daddy interceded.

“Chris, would you like to hold Carolyn?”

“No, I’m going to the bathroom,” he said as he turned the knob on the door.

When he came out Daddy tried again. “Carolyn would like for her big brother to kiss her.”

“I want to go home now and watch ‘Masters of the Universe.’” He reached for his coat.

So the visit ended with a brief kiss for Momma and none for Carolyn.

 

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Apples

October 18, 2013 · Filed under Baking, Cooking, Farming, Kansas, Nutrition, Pie · Tagged

Last weekend was my birthday and as usual I got treated with apple dumplings. Despite all the nutritious value found in apples that my Grandmother describes below, those dumplings should probably not be enjoyed more than once a year, though they are quite delicious.

October 1982

As my farmer and I sat on the porch this morning eating our breakfast between the dark of the night and the light of the day there was an unmistakable feeling of fall in the crisp air.

The rising wind sighed through the windbreak and rustled the leaves of the little spring- planted cottonwood tree into an early morning song. Gleaming dull gold, the milo field stretched to the south while across the road George Miller’s cattle grazed in the tall Sedan grass, silhouetted in the misty haze.

Four young robins winged in from the vegetable garden and settled in the driveway to busily run about in search of grain, looking for all the world like plump Dutch matrons hustling about their morning chores.

Out west the last of the apples hung high on the tree where they had escaped all my efforts to reach them with a ladder and a grappling hook. The sparrows and the blackbirds are pecking away at them for an early snack.

The apple tree is old and broken and each year we say, “This crop will surely be the swan song for that tree.” It was planted soon after our marriage and for over 35 years has kept the family supplied with apple pies and cobblers, apple crisp and apple sauce, as well as apple dumplings.

The children used to eat so many green apples I just knew they would have a stomach ache, but they never did. This year two small grandchildren took up the green apple eating tradition with no ill effects.

Each April the old tree blossoms into a beautiful halo of flowers and sets on a crop of apples that grow plump and red by August. Then, we begin making applesauce for the freezer.

My farmer and I spend many companionable evenings removing the worms and bad spots from the raw apples, cooking them and pushing them through a colander before sacking the sauce in plastic bags for freezer or, if it is full, canning them.

Applesauce sprinkled with black walnuts or pecans, with light cream poured over the top is a delightful winter dessert after a heavy dinner.

Sliced raw apples freeze well and can be used in any recipe the same as fresh ones. Incidentally a food processor makes fast work of slicing them.

The good news about apples is that nutritionists are rediscovering what your grandmother knew – apples are not only good, they’re also good for you.

Apples are high in fiber. Fiber is the name for a quite a few indigestible substances namely cellulose, lignin, pectin, hemicellulose, and gum. Apples contain lots of pectin.

Quite a few authorities think fiber reduces the incidence of some types of cancer. It is also suggested that fiber may help to protect people from heart disease by its effect on cholesterol- lowering effect on the body.

While this research on heart disease, cancer, and diet is still in the beginning stages and not conclusively proven it looks as if you can enjoy apples with a clear conscience. These recipes make the most of the apple’s juicy, tart flavor.

Cheese Crumble Apple Pie

Topping:

½ cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

5 tablespoons butter

Filling:

5 cups apples, sliced

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 ½ cups shredded Cheddar cheese

4 teaspoons flour

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

Make one 9-inch pie crust with a high rim using your favorite recipe. For the topping combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter with pastry blender. Set aside.

For filling, toss together apples and lemon juice. Mix cheese, flour and nutmeg; toss with apples. Arrange this fruit mixture in the crust. Sprinkle with topping. Bake at 375° for 40 to 50 minutes.

Serves 6-8.

 

Apple Dumplings

1 ½ cups white flour

1 cup lard

1 ½ cup whole wheat flour

1/3 to ½ cup cold water

½ teaspoon salt

Mix dry ingredients. Cut in lard with pastry blender until size of peas. Add the smallest amount of water in driblets that you can and still have the dough stick together. Roll out ¼ inch. Cut into 6 or 7 squares. Set aside.

Core and partially peel 6 apples of a large and juicy variety. Then prepare this syrup:

Syrup:

1 cup water

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup brown sugar

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Boil for 3 minutes. Place apples on each pastry square. Fill cavities of apple with mixture of:

½ cup sugar

1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Bring opposite points of pastry up over the apple. Overlap, moisten and seal. Place separately in shallow baking dish. Pour hot syrup around dumplings.

Bake at once at 425° for 40 to 45 minutes until brown and apple is tender. Serve warm with the syrup and Half and Half.

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Fall in Kansas

October 11, 2013 · Filed under Baking, Canning, Farming, Gardening, Kansas · Tagged ,

Fall is a wonderful colorful season. Below is a beautiful description of fall in Kansas.

 

October 1979

 

A Report on Fall

 

In the southwest sky the sun glows red and the drowsy air is satiated with the incessant chorus of the locust. The fields of milo are sculpted in bronze and copper heads reaching in stately ranks toward the blue arc of the heavens. Nearby, the soft violet of an alfalfa plot is slashed to pale green by each round of the swather.

 

Out by a weatherbeaten shed an ancient apple tree is weighed down with a crop of Red Delicious. The apples that were wormy, bird pecked, half rotted, or windfalls are all made into applesauce and resting safely in the freezer.

 

Pheasants with their half grown young run across the road to a brushy shelter to escape the wheels of a passing car. Knowing at first hand what man and a gun can do to their delicate bodies, doves are wary of all movement.

 

Sunflowers bloom extravagantly in any available spot. Where the soil is moist, smartweed grows luxuriantly, putting out great feathery clusters of dainty pale lavender plumes. The goldenrod is thick along the roads wherever it has escaped man’s effort to tidy up the countryside with a mower.

 

Toward dusk a moth hovers over the petunia bed sticking its long proboscis into each bloom and sucking out the nectar. A few bees are flying about gathering honey. The usual brisk Kansas wind is a gentle zephyr as it blows over the ripening land.

 

Overhead, momentarily, is the roar of an airplane and in the distance is the continual drone of tractors. The wheat fields are worked and fertilized awaiting the magical moment when each farmer knows in his bones that it is time to plant. The black walnuts are hanging thick on the trees along Emma Creek with the early drop offs being carried down stream by the current or laying water soaked in a quiet inlet.

 

In the garden the last planting of sweet corn is finished. Watermelon, cantaloupe, and cucumbers can still be found, but the vines are shop worn and seedy looking. Tomato plants have escaped their trellis and wire cages and sprawling every which way, but with fruit still ripening in abundance.

 

The fall planting of green beans is ready to be picked. The radishes planted in August have been pulled and September planting is coming in. The turnips and beets have grown good globes, one white and one red according to the imprinted message of their seeds.

 

Queen of the late garden is the okra – a plant growing over five feet tall that can – oh, blessed thought – be picked with the pickee in an upright position. It has an olive green five pointed leaf growing from a main stalk that is about one or two inches thick. This soft green stem is streaked and splotched with dark red coloring. The flower is conical shaped before opening to five creamy yellow petals with a maroon base. Inside is a stamen ending in a blood red bulb divided into seven small velvety cushions. Okra is prolific. A small patch will produce enough pods each day for a large family. It is almost a miracle – the more you gather the more there is the next day.

 

In sorting out the images of fall I find the one sure portent is the daily passing of the school buses as they rumble by picking up and delivering children, that most precious asset of any farm, to school and bringing them back home in the late afternoon.

 

Bread and Butter Pickles

 

12 medium cucumbers

3 teaspoons celery seed

8 onions

¼ cup white mustard seed

4 green peppers

1 ½ teaspoons turmeric

1 medium cauliflower

2 teaspoons prepared mustard

¾ cup cooking salt

1 teaspoon ginger powder

6 ½ quarts water

 

Sauce:

7 cups sugar

¼ teaspoon mace

6 cups vinegar

Few dashes red pepper

 

Slice pickles, onions, peppers, cauliflower and soak in salt water over night. Boil syrup with ½ quart of water. Boil three minutes. Add vegetables and boil 20 minutes or until clear. Seal.

 

Apple Cake

 

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon soda

¼ cup butter or margarine

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 egg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

5 large apples, finely chopped

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup white flour

½ cup raisins or nuts

 

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and apples. Sift dry ingredients. Add to first mixture. Add raisins or nuts. Pour into greased 8 x 8 inch pan. Bake at 350° F for 35 minutes. Allow cake to cool.

 

Sauce

 

½ cup water

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon flour

½ teaspoon vanilla

6 tablespoons sugar

 

Put first 4 ingredients in a pan. Cook until thick. Add vanilla. Spread over top of cake. Serve warm or cold

 

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Pork

September 26, 2013 · Filed under Cooking · Tagged , ,

Here are some great pork recipes.

September 1982

With the coming of fall the family will enjoy heartier food so pork is lean and packed with good nutrients. It has complete protein, vitamin B6 and B12, iron, thiamin, riboflavin and niacin. The flavor of pork is delectable and enhances many different types of dishes.

Pork Chops Supreme

4 pork chops

1 can tomato soup

½ cup water

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

½ teaspoon oregano

6-8 small potatoes

4 carrots, split lengthwise

Brown chops in skillet. Pour off excess fat. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer covered for 1 hour or until tender.

Serves 4.

Sweet Sour Sausage

1 pound pork sausage

3 cups finely chopped cabbage

1 large onion, sliced

1 6-oz. can tomato paste

¼ cup vinegar

¼ cup sugar

¼ cup water

Brown sausage. Fry cabbage and onion in small amount of margarine for about 5 minute. Add the remaining ingredients. Simmer covered 45 minutes. Serve over noodles

Serves 4

Bacon & Cheese Bake

6 slices white bread

1/3 pound bacon or ham, fried

1/3 pound cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

3 eggs, well beaten

2 ¼ cups milk

¼ cup bacon fat

Salt to taste

Break bread in small pieces, crumble bacon or cube ham and mix in cheese, bacon grease, mustard, salt eggs and milk. Pour into greased 1 ½ quart casserole. Cover and refrigerate overnight or 8 hours. Bake at 350° for one hour. Resembles quiche in flavor.

Serves 6.

Pork Chop Suey

1 ½ pound pork

1 tablespoon fat

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup hot water

2 cups diced celery

1 cup chopped onion

3 tablespoons cornstarch

3 tablespoons cold water

1 tablespoon molasses

½ teaspoon soy sauce

1 can drained bean sprouts

Cut meat in small cubes and brown in fat. Add salt, soy sauce and water. Simmer 1 ½ hours. Add onions, celery, and molasses and cook until tender.

Mix cornstarch and cold water. Add to first mixture, stirring constantly. Serve with cooked rice and Chinese noodles.

Serves 6

Barbecue Sauce

½ cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon paprika

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dry mustard

¼ teaspoon chili powder

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup vinegar

1 cup tomato juice

¼ cup catsup

½ cup water

Combines all ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes before pouring on ribs.

Serves 6.

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