summertime on the menu

Hello from the farm! We're still here, with everything that smacks of summer on the menu!

Yesterday we enjoyed fresh cabbage salsa, with chopped tomatoes (green tomatoes are best in cabbage salsa!), cilantro, Ancho Pablano & Bell & Jalapeno peppers, and grated cabbage and sweet onion. Top it off with a little salt, pepper, sugar, vinegar, lemon and lime juice (the only things that don't come from our garden!), and you've got the perfect complement to nachos or an entire Mexican meal.

Of course, last night I ate an entire tomato all by myself--sliced, with salt and pepper... It was one of the Caspian Pink heirloom variety and oh was it delicious! A few fresh basil leaves are the perfect complement to any tomato, of course. Speaking of basil, I have to share our newest favorite basil and chard recipes...

Garlicky Baked Chicken with Chard and Basil

Gretchen's revision of a recipe from Church Suppers

1 whole chicken, cut up

2 large heads garlic, chopped

4-6 stalks/leaves Swiss Chard, chopped

1/4 c. olive oil

3 T. fresh lemon juice

2 T. chopped fresh parsley

1 c. chopped fresh basil

1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind

Preheat oven to 375. Arrange chicken in baking dish. Sprinkle the garlic cloves over the chicken. Combine all remaining ingredients except lemon rind, and pour over the chicken. Sprinkle lemon rind on top. Bake, covered, for 40 minutes, or until chicken is tender. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes longer.


Tomato Basil Pasta

Heat all ingredients thoroughly in skillet. Add grated Parmesan cheese and milk or half and half, and reheat (don't let milk boil). Salt and pepper to taste.

summertime ingredients:

sliced summer squash and zucchini

diced tomatoes

chopped fresh basil leaves

cooked pasta

garlic scapes or minced garlic

winter ingredients:
cooked, diced chicken
whole olives
mushrooms
sun dried tomatoes
frozen basil leaves (when I have leftover basil, I freeze it to preserve the just-picked flavor--the leaves then crumble easily straight out of the freezer)

cooked pasta
minced garlic

Our Mother's Day lunch

Mom requested our favorite summer dessert for Mother's Day, so I whipped up an Angel Lush cake and garnished it with some of the largest, most delectable strawberries I've ever seen. It is a fast, easy, low-fat recipe and tastes amazing. During a walk right after church I found the most luscious wildflowers blooming along our road: white irises tinged with lavender and little purple and yellow clusters which I don't know the name of but made into a nice bouquet for the dinner table.

Now a small vase of the flowers graces my desk. Every night as I am falling asleep I can smell the irises and, if I wanted to be dramatic and romantic like Anne, I would imagine I was sleeping in a garden, or a tree graced with cherry blossoms.

Recipe for a Good Cook Book

Flipping through a new cook book, just glancing at the pictures can make your mouth start to water. But before you pay for it based on salivary appeal alone, take a second look, and see if you can actually make the recipes included. Is it so gourmet that it calls for ingredients that aren't in your cupboard, let alone in your food budget? Or is it so modernized that it calls for boxes and cans and packages, instead of from-scratch ingredients?

Here's a recipe for a good old-fashioned cook book you'll reference the rest of your life...

Turn to the index, and find a recipe for spaghetti. If it calls for a 16-ounce jar of spaghetti sauce, don't even give it a second look. If it tells you how to simmer your own spaghetti sauce, the cook book may have some promise.

Next, look up minestrone soup. If it calls for a 15-ounce can of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed, forget it. If it tells you the proper dried measurements for soaking, rinsing, and cooking your own kidney beans and chickpeas, you're onto something.

Finally, sniff your way through the pages to pumpkin pie. If it calls for a can of pumpkin, it still fails the test. If it tells you how many cups of pureed pumpkin to use, it's a good cook book. If it mentions substituting winter squash as well, you've really got a winner.

Anyone can open a can of beans in the interest of speed, or follow the recipe off the can of storebought pumpkin. But only a good cook can substitute the perfect from-scratch with-plenty-of-garlic spaghetti sauce when the recipe just calls for a 16-ounce jar. And every gardener knows that squash pie is better than pumpkin any day.

Coming soon: Gretchen's favorite cook books... Stay tuned!

On Sourdough - Part Two

If your sourdough is used to eating white flour, I probably would advise against changing its diet. If you want to experiment, divide it into two parts; feed one part as usual, and feed the other part whole wheat. That way, if you kill it, you will still have your starter!

My Grandma had a starter for years that she fed water, sugar, and potato flakes. She made lovely bread with it, but always used quite a bit of white flour in her dough. I got some from her a couple of years ago, and my bread was never quite as nice as hers, but I used mostly whole wheat flour.

I would advise against feeding a sourdough milk, especially if you only have pasteurized milk. Milk contains other proteins that will be difficult for the little beasties to digest, and pasteurized milk will not ferment naturally, as raw milk will, but will rot instead. You can certainly add milk to your bread dough, just don’t use milk when you feed the starter.

Mom’s best starter was one she bought at "Jedidiah’s House of Sourdough" in West Yellowstone, when we went to Yellowstone in 1991. It was supposedly a descendant of Jedidiah Smith’s sourdough. We made the world’s best sourdough cornbread with that starter, as well as pancakes and other bread. Mom’s loaves never were very high, but we always used mostly whole wheat flour, and I think that was probably why. When I used it after Ben and I got married, I added a tiny bit of yeast (1 tsp. or so for four loaves) to my dough, along with baking soda and vinegar (two other things I had heard would help it rise better). I had beautiful bread until I killed the starter when Ben and I moved. I found a telephone number for "Jedidiah’s Original House of Sourdough" in Jackson, WY. (307-733-5671) They will sell sourdough starter.

For more information about why sourdough is good for you, I recommend Sally Fallon’s cookbook, Nourishing Traditions. You may think she’s crazy at first, like I did, but keep reading until you get the big picture. I don’t do everything exactly the way she advises, but I have applied her principles to my cooking in many areas. She recommends using yeast rarely or never, but I haven’t gone that far. I think it depends a lot on your health (some people are very sensitive to candida infections and can’t handle yeast), and it also depends on your husband’s preferences. (My husband doesn’t really like heavy, sour-tasting bread.) My sisters are currently using a "cool rise" starter that they purchased on recommendation from Sally Fallon’s book. They have made some pretty nice bread with 100% whole wheat flour with that starter.

I recently started a new sourdough using some yeast from the freezer, white flour, and water. My main purpose with this one is to stretch out my yeast supply until my mother-in-law orders from the food co-op again in June. I have made two batches of bread with it, and we’ll see how long it lasts. It is not very "sour", and it has risen nicely for me. (A couple of weeks ago, Ben came in from his two a.m. heifer check, and informed me that my latest batch was about to take over the kitchen. It had pushed the cover off my biggest plastic bowl, and was heading over the edge.)

Happy baking!

How to Multiply Yeast
from the Nitty Gritty Food Book

1) Dissolve yeast in water.
(The cookbook did not give proportions—I would use 1-2 Tablespoons yeast and 4 cups water.)
2) stir in 4 cups flour.
Put one cup aside for starter, let it rise awhile and then refrigerate.
Use the balance for that day’s baking.
Next baking, mix the reserved starter with water in place of the yeast.

Mom’s Sourdough Cornbread

Combine:
1 ½ c. sourdough starter
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1/4 c. buttermilk

Sift:

1/2 cup flour
1 1/4 c. cornmeal
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Baking powder
½ tsp soda

Stir dry ingredients into liquid, allow to stand in the bowl for 20 minutes before baking. This is best if you preheat a heavy pan for about five minutes (a 9x13 glass pan or a 12 inch cast iron skillet) in your oven while the oven is heating (to 400 degreees). When the pan is hot, drop a couple of tablespoons of butter in and spread it around as it melts. If you like, you can also sprinkle some sesame seeds in the bottom of the pan. Pour in the batter, and bake for 20-30 minutes.

- by Ruth Weichmann

On Sourdough - Part One

Ruth wrote Gretchen a response to her post on sourdough bread and allowed me to share it with the rest of you!

Dear Gretchen,

We have had a few days of spring weather here in south-western South Dakota, and yesterday I heard the first robins singing in the cottonwoods by the creek. It’s a Sunday morning, and I suppose we should be in Church, but–guess what? I am a "farm girl" too, and my husband is busy being "midwife" to a large herd of Angus cows. My two boys just went out with him to do a few chores, so we will do our own "church" later, and I have a few quiet minutes to write to you about Sourdough and other things... I’m sitting here at the computer with a cup of tea, trying to gather my thoughts. (Yes, it is a real tea cup, not a mug. It’s not a perfect match to the saucer, but they look pretty together anyway.)

I am no expert on sourdough, or any other cooking topic, for that matter, unless you want to know how not to do something. My mother experimented with various sourdoughs over my childhood years, and I ate her successes and threw out her failures. I have used a couple of starters since my marriage, but I seem to lose them when I move. That is the extent of my experience!

I expect you have heard all of the "basics:" use glass or plastic containers, not metal, stir it with a wooden spoon, etc. I do use a stainless steel bowl to mix up my bread dough in, as I don’t have anything else big enough, but I think the main caution against metal refers to aluminum, or any other metal that the sourdough could "eat. Mom had a friend who was a potter, and she made Mom a two- or three-quart crock with a special lid that had holes in it so that the sourdough could "breathe." We always put a coffee filter on under the lid, too, to keep out unwanted objects and insects.

I am sure you know this, too, but I will remind you anyway: sourdough is a living organism. Like any creature, it responds differently in different environments, and it may or may not "like" different foods. Sourdough is basically "wild" yeast. Each kitchen has varying amounts of this in the air, and probably varying strains. For this reason, some starters may work well for some people, and not at all for others. It may take a lot of experimentation to find one that works for you, or you may have gorgeous bread right away. If something doesn’t seem to be working, try something different, but if it is working for you, don’t change what you’re doing. Oh, and by the way, if something works, write down what you did so that you can repeat the process accurately. This is my husband’s best advice to his haphazard cook of a wife!

Sourdough, like most other creatures, needs warmth and food. Caroline Ingalls set her starter on the shelf behind her wood cookstove in the winter. Those of us with modern kitchens can usually just set the starter on the counter, but if it seems slow, try setting it in the oven (if you have a propane stove) with just the pilot light for warmth.

Sourdough, like other yeast, eats starch and sugar. White flour is a simple starch, and probably the "ideal" sourdough food for this reason. Some people have had success with whole wheat or whole rye flour sourdoughs, but I would hate to have anyone see the ones Mom made when I was growing up. They smelled bad enough to make my brother gag, and they grew spectacular mold formations. Mom’s conclusion was that the bran in the whole grain flours fermented without being digested by the sourdough, and that caused it to go bad. I suppose it all depends on the environment in your kitchen and your particular starter, though, as my sister-in-law had a wonderful sourdough going for awhile, and all she fed it was rye flour. I also read on the Ladies Against Feminism site recently about a lady who started a sourdough using all whole wheat flour.

...to be continued

- by Ruth Weichmann

Delicious, frugal mixes!

Kristy Howard is doing a wonderful job over at the Homemaker's Cottage designing and filling a website for women of all ages who desire to make their homes places of beauty and refreshment. As a newlywed, Mrs. Howard's newest 30 page ebook on making your own frugal mixes has been a great treat!

The waffle and muffin mix recipes have been used a lot--they are quite delicious and admittedly addicting. With the holidays approaching I'm hoping to make mixes to give as gifts to some friends at church--knowing that they are not just the typical chocolate cookie mix, but scrumptious banana bread, biscuits, and pizza dough. Who wouldn't enjoy a way to make homemade food in less time?

(Be sure to also look at her September Meals for a Month book.)

Homemade Beauty Recipes

Aspirin Mask

Aspirin has salicylic acid in it, which comes from trees, and is good for drying up any acne outbreaks you may have. It is commonly used in face care products. The best aspirin to use is the inexpensive, uncoated aspirin. Once you find some, you need to grind it into as fine a powder as possible. (Natalie: A mortar and pestle are perfect for this) I keep my crushed aspirin in a mini-tupperware type container in the bathroom so it's handy. The aspirin is the dry portion of your mask.

Spoon a little of your powdered aspirin into a bowl. I never measure, but I guess for a whole face, I use about 3/4 to 1 tsp. of the powder. After you do it a few times, you will figure out just how much you need. For that amount of aspirin, mix in two drops of pure 100% aloe gel, one large drop of honey, and drop or two each of lavender and tea tree essential oils. Mix that together thoroughly with your spoon, and it's all ready. You should wash your face with warm water before using any mask, because it helps your pores open up so the mask can work deeply. Leave your mask on for at least 15 minutes, and then rinse with warm water.

I wouldn't do the mask more than two time a week for the first couple of weeks until your skin adjusts to it. Then you can work up to probably doing it every other day if you want. On the in-between days (especially at first when you're only doing the mask a couple of times a week), you can do a plain honey mask. Do that by just smearing plain honey on your face (and stay away from any bears or insects!) after washing, and again, leave it on for 15 minutes or more. The honey really helps to calm your skin, reduce any redness/inflammation, and make you glow. :smile:

Natalie: Wal-Mart's pharmacy will order lavender essential oil for you. Total cost: $3.50. We found 100% aloe vera gel at Target and a mortar and pestle at the local health food/nutrition store. If you can, get local honey from a beekeeper!

Conditioning Mixture

For hair, your aloe and honey are your best friends. I keep a plastic bowl in the bathroom, and I like to squirt my conditioner in the bowl, and then mix in some honey and aloe with it. I'd say I do about two parts conditioner to one part aloe and one part honey.

The honey and aloe are great humectants, which means they help your hair absorb moisture. About once a week, I like to do an apple cider vinegar rinse after shampooing (blondes should use white vinegar, as ACV has a tendency to darken light hair), and then use my conditioner mixture. I think the ACV really helps strip up any buildup that has accumulated on my hair shaft over the week, and then the super-charged conditioner mixture can really soak in.

- by April Hala

What's cooking? - Tipi Tales Part Four

Swiss Family Robinson, Little House on the Prairie, Wilderness Family, Goldilocks and the Three Bears - we could relate to all these stories during our time on the homestead. Wait - Goldilocks? Oh, yes - porridge for breakfast every morning...

Cornmeal gruel, to be exact. Honestly, we couldn't stand the stuff. But we were dedicated to making a sincere effort towards simplicity and self-sufficiency, even if our taste buds suffered. Before we left N.C., Mom had made one final order from the local bulk food co-op, including 25 Lbs. of ground cornmeal, 50 Lbs of oats, and 50 Lbs of brown rice. These grains were the basis for most meals on the homestead. We also had dried beans, whole wheat flour (and some white), lentils, peas, and other good stuff, all stored in air-tight plastic buckets, labeled with permanent marker, completing our pantry.

We didn't have meat a lot, not for any particular reason but that no one had time to go hunting that first summer. Once in a while the boys happened to get a rabbit or a squirrel, and Mom would faithfully add it to the stew after they had cleaned it. I usually passed up this particular form of protein and went for a spoonful of beans instead! We had beans a lot, to make up for the lack of protein. One dish I remember well consisted of rice, boiled dried peas, sauted onions, and summer savory for seasoning. I liked it, but this, too, got old.

My dear mother did her best to provide variety and treats to keep moral up. But cooking over the wood stove we had installed in the tipi, and later, all summer, over the open fire in the middle of our campsite, she was limited in what dishes she could create. No oven meant no cassaroles, breads, or baking of the usual kind. She learned to use a dutch oven (a heavy cast iron pot with short little legs so you could set in in the fire, and a lid with a rim to hold coals to heat the top), but most of our meals were what could be prepared by frying or boiling.

Breakfast. Oatmeal. Every few weeks, we tried variations - oatmeal with peanut butter and honey, oatmeal with cream and berries, oats raw with milk and honey poured over. Honey helped - some.

Cornmeal - stirred gradually into a pot of briskly boiling water. 'Gradually' being the operative word here - certain of us absolutely couldn't stand lumps in the mush, and many mornings I would wake up to the sound of the antique, metal egg beater whirring away as Dad tried to annihilate every last lump in the pot.

Granola - fried slowly and stirred frequently on the top of the wood stove ina large pan, rather than baked, served with fresh cow or goat milk was a quick breakfast and a favorite.

Pancakes were a real treat, and were had for dinner as often as breakfast, because they took so long to make, two or three at a time over a carefully tended fire. This was one of the first meals I learned to make myself...

Lunch was whatever happened to be ripe in the garden that day (more on the garden later), cottage cheese, yogurt and granola, rice, unleavened bread. We loved the simple recipie for this that our nighbors taught us - flour, salt, oil, honey, and water. Pat it into a cast iron frying pan and lean it against a stone a little ways from the fire. Flip it once, and when done, cut it into pie-shaped wedges. Some of us with sweet teeth drizzled the top with even more honey. When we had company, or some other pinch required a fast, filling lunch, we would do peanut butter or tuna fish sandwiches. All the ingredients being store bought, we felt that this was 'cheating', but often it was the only option.

Dinner was same as above, maybe the one meal a day that would have meat. If it was a day she was in town on other errands, Mom might bring home some fresh ground beef and we would make beet spaghetti. This was made by grating a huge beet (our nieghbors grew them nearly the size of cabbages), adding the meat and tomato sauce, and simmering it over a good fire for 30 min until the beets were tender.

It sounds gross, and it looked rather interesting, too - a swirlling stew of red tomato sauce, nearly overcome by the violet beet 'noodles', but I remember loving it. Probably 'cause we were so hungry after a long day of chores in the fresh air. Other days, like when a continual rain kept us from starting a fire, or the time a skunk invaded our campsite (now, that's a story), it was just impossible to cook, and we went for pizza.

Mom struggled with feelings of guilt whenever we had to make consessions like that, however, as she was doing her best to prepare for the day when we wouldn't have that life line - when we would no longer have a vehicle and the nearest pizza shop was a 10 mile walk. So, she did her best with what she had, and was amazingly creative. I don't remember going hungry, but I do remember eating till my sides ached - fresh cornbread bakded in the dutch oven, veggies stew with dumplins, and apple cobler. It was worth all the arm loads of wood I had hauled and chopped myself to keep the fire going all day...

- by Trina Holden

Blueberry Pie

I grew up in berry country. Blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, boysenberries, raspberries, Marion berries, we had them all, in great abundance. When I got married, I moved to apple country. My husband tells me I had never tasted a real apple until I came here. And Washington apples are good. But I have a few things to say about the dry, scrawny things they call berries here. And after all those years of spraying and burning blackberry bushes, I never thought I'd be wishing my own property was bordered with the prickly things.

So when my aunt and uncle were coming to visit in the heart of blueberry season, I mentioned to my mom that I would be thrilled if she could send up just a few blueberries for fresh eating... I was thrilled to find 20 pounds of just-picked blueberries when they arrived! I’m sure I consumed at least half of them, in great big handfuls, all by myself. But I also made four blueberry pies. And the recipe was so yummy I had to share it...

Double-Zip Blueberry Pie

Baked 9 inch pie shell

Combine in saucepan:
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 Tblsp cornstarch
3/4 tsp salt

Add:
1 cup water
4 cups blueberries

Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil, and sauce around blueberries is thick and clear-blue.

Remove from heat and add:
1 Tblsp butter
1 Tblsp lemon juice

Cool approximately 10 minutes.

Gently fold in:
3 to 4 cups blueberries

Pour into pie shell and chill. Garnish with whipped cream or ice cream.

A Favorite Summer Recipe

In the Glaser family, there's nothing that goes better with ham, barbequed chicken, or hamburgers than a big helping of potato salad. And not just the stuff out of the container from the store--Mom's potato salad. My dad is convinced there's nothing better. It's one of the few things I make, however, that my husband will not eat (he doesn't like cold potatoes)--so now I make potato salad whenever I know my sister-in-law Marlys and my cousin Abbie (who is spending the summer with us) will be around to help me eat it. But when my family visited for Memorial Day, I talked my mom into making a big potato salad to go with our hamburgers--and once again we came to the conclusion that nothing spells summer like potato salad, hamburgers, and home-cranked ice cream.

Mom's Potato Salad
1. Scrub and boil potatoes until they will peel easily but won't turn to mush when chunked
2. Cool potatoes, peel, then cut into bite-size chunks
3. Mix in a dollop of mayo, a squirt of dijon mustard, and some pickle juice (just enough to moisten the potatoes--you can always add more after it has soaked in)
4. Add:
Finely chopped green onions, purple onions, or sweet onions
Diced celery or chard stems
Diced dill pickles
Salt and pepper to taste
5. Garnish with hard-boiled eggs and paprika. Serve with salt, pepper, and lemon pepper on the side.
Notes: We often make our potato salad the day before, let the flavors absorb, and then add a little more mayo or pickle juice if it's too dry. My mom has also taken to using fat free Italian dressing in place of most of the mayo, to cut calories. Since my husband doesn't like cold potatoes, I tried making a hot potato salad recipe my Aunt Margie gave me. We had purple potatoes and purple onions on hand, so it was a hot purple potato salad, with mayo/ranch dressing, garlic, salt and pepper, and no pickles. While I prefer a cold potato salad, I have taken to eating my potato salad before the potatoes have cooled, and it's good that way, too.

Captions Above right, Gretchen with her mom, Sara Glaser. Below, Gretchen with sister-in-law Marlys, cousin Abbie, and sister Jessica.

Dinner for Three

Every time Marlys and I brainstorm about the evening’s menu together, we are sitting out in the store. The beautiful, bright red, green, and orange jalapeno and habanero peppers in front of us most often inspire a Mexican meal. But the tempting aroma of the Walla Walla Sweet Onions always brings to mind my favorite delicacy of French variety, and we plan to “someday” have a girl party and make French Onion Soup.

Last Friday, we decided it was high time that “someday” became today. But the man coming to our girl party didn’t care for the menu. We promised him a steak if he would close for the day so we could make our soup. It was a bargain.

My sister-in-law and I raced over to my little pink house, with onions in hand. I set the table and lit some candles as Marlys got emotional over the onions. We’ve always had a bond when it comes to onions. After a lengthy visit from her family in 2001, in which much cooking was involved, I sent her the following note:

I thought of you today,
And with the thought came a tear.
I’m missin’ you so much,
Wishin’ you were here.
The tears just kept a-comin’,
As I remembered the fun we’ve had.
Yep, I guess today
I’m missin’ you pretty bad.
So I wrote this little ditty
To tell you of my feelin’s,
And that I thought of you today
While cuttin’ up some onions.

But I digress. The table was set, the onions were well salted with tears, three potatoes were baking in the oven, and it was time for the steak for the man of the house. I placed two steaks on a cookie sheet, then rummaged around in the refrigerator for the perfect marinade. I poured Raspberry dressing over each steak, while Marlys cut little slits in the meat so it would soak in. As a final touch, we added a bit of cranberry juice, then set the steaks aside, to complete the more delicate main dish.

French Onion Soup
Cook slowly in large pan until soft:
1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup sliced onions (or more)
2 or more cloves minced garlic

Add, stir, and cook 1 minute:
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 T. flour

Add and simmer 30 minutes:
4-8 cups water or beef broth
1 T. Worcestershire sauce (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

To serve:

Place a slice of toasted French bread in each bowl. Pour soup over the toast, and sprinkle with grated Italian, Mozarella, or Swiss cheese. Set the bowls in a 400 degree oven to melt and brown the cheese.

(A combination of recipes from The Fannie Merritt Farmer Boston Cooking School Cookbook, copyright 1896-1959, and Reader’s Digest “Like Grandma Used to Make”, copyright 1996.)

My husband came home and reclined on the couch as the dishes were done and the finishing touches completed. “How would you like your steak, sir?” Well, we tried for medium rare. But when the smoke alarm went off, we realized that my little oven wasn’t real partial to broiling steaks. After we got the smoked aired out of the house, and the cheese melted to perfection atop our bowls of soup, we sat down to enjoy a delicious meal for three at our little yellow kitchen table. My husband ate his steak and potato with relish, while my sister-in-law savored every bite of our French Onion Soup.

Fruit Thins

"Crust"

1 1/2 cup Brazil Nuts, or Walnuts ( I used 1 cup of brazils, 1/2 cup walnuts, but I'm quite sure almost any nut would be fine.)
1 cup shredded coconut (unsweeted, and not roasted)
2 cups quick oats
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (I used totally whole wheat, and it was fine. :) )
1 teaspoon salt (It could have used a pinch more, but it was fine with out.)
1/4 cup honey, warmed.
1/2 cup water

Filling:

1/2 cup of water blended with one of the following:

-2 cups of raisins &1 cup of dates

- 1 cup each of dates, raisins, and dried cranberries

- 1 cup dried apricots, 1 cup dried pineapple pieces, 1 cup golden raisins

My filling:

I did not use any of their recipes, because I didn't have anything they called for on hand. Instead, I took some canned peaches that had been "boiled down" a little with some fruit juice for another recipe, (Put them in the oven with some of the syrup, and extra sweetener if you want it and let them bake at a really low temperature for a couple hours or overnight, stirring occasionally. ) put them in the blender with some walnuts, vanilla powder, and a tiny bit of sweetener, since they were kind of sour still. I put a few diced dried apricots I found in there too, and let it blend creamy, except for a few chuncks of apricot. Basically, all it's looking for is something that is a thick sauce. I have ideas for strawberry filling, and I'd like to try cherry or blackberry too.

Directions:

1. Blend coconut and oatmeal for 2 minutes in a food processor (Blender will work, if you don't have a processor, just put it in small amounts. :) ) and place in a bowl

2. Blend Nuts, flour, salt for 30 seconds. Mix in the bowl with the oats and coconut.

3. Put honey and water in a small saucepan on the stove, and heat until the honey is melted and liquidy but does not boil.

4. Pour the honey and water mixture into the dry ingredients, and stir until it is a pie-crust like consistancy.

5.Divide it into two balls, of about the same size. Roll out one ball on a piece of wax paper, or one of those thin "Bake Magic" sheets. I used one of those thin, flexible "cutting boards" and it worked just fine, though I did spray it with a little baking spray to keep it from sticking. Roll it out fairly thin- remember it's going to be doubled when you put the "top" on. Transfer it to a cookie sheet (I simply put a flat cookie sheet over my "cutting board" and turned them over at the same time, so the cookie sheet was on the bottom now, and the plastic sheet on the top. The dough stuck just a tiny bit the first time, but I was able to loosen it with a sharp knife, and it was fine.)

6. Spread the filling over the first layer evenly, and not too thin, or it'll not have a lot of flavor. :) Roll out the other half of the dough on another plastic sheet, and transfer it to the top of the first fruit covered layer. Put the plastic over the top of both and lightly roll the top with the rolling pin to make sure they are somewhat stuck together, but not too hard, or the filling squishes out.

7. Score into desired portions, and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, until the bottom and edges are golden brown.

Put on a cooling rack, and enjoy them once they are cooled off.

- submitted and modified by Chantel Harding

Just for the fun of it

We did not plan on making it...but that's part of what made it so much fun. My friend Amy is home on spring break from Moody and we wanted to get together. With my brother home, friends have been over several nights this week and little sleep has been had by all.

So Amy came over--it was just the girls at home and Mom made a salad. I commented chocolate sounded better. We needed no further encouragement--one tradition the two of us started last year is cooking with whatever ingredients happen to be on hand; no prior planning is allowed. We wanted chocolate so I dug into the pantry to see what might be usable.

Graham cracker for pie crust, chocolate pudding (sugar free, Amy noted), semi-sweet baking chips, whipped cream...apparently we were meant to make a chocolate pie! The filling was fairly straightforward but while the pudding set we began experimenting with a topping. Marshmallow fluff leftover from a fudge attempt at Christmas...the remnants of whipped topping...this isn't enough for a topping. What else can we use?

Meringue became the word of the evening. Amy thought we should make one. Had either of us ever made one before? "I think once, maybe," was the consensus. Out came the cookbook. Can we alter the recipe a bit? What happens if we add the egg whites, cream of tarter (oops--too much--oh well), and sugar (why not try brown instead of white?) in with the whipped mixture? We were giggling too hard to be precise by this point. I tripped and spilled chocolate on the floor. Amy dropped an egg when my mom cracked a joke (no pun intended). Somehow the meringue-want-to-be ended up splattered on all of our shirts instead of in the mixing bowl.

Several hours later, the pie complete with chocolate chip and syrup decorations, we realized that our "meringue" topping morphed into a sticky, glue-like substance which was sickly sweet and would not melt, harden, or even freeze. What had we done? We laughed until we cried. Undeterred, we gathered everyone in the house for a sample. The pie actually tasted fabulous even though it was impossible to cut and all stuck together.

Sometimes you have to do things just for the fun of it.

Tea time sweets and savories, Part Two

~Shortbread is a very traditional tea time cookie. Here is a recipe that makes my mouth water just thinking about it:

1 pound butter
6 cups flour
1 ½ cups sugar
½ cup cornstarch

Soften butter and place in a large bowl. Sift the dry ingredients over the butter and mix with your hands. Work in thoroughly, until nothing sticks to the side of the bowl. Pat the dough into pie plates at about ½ inch thick. Prick with a fork in a pattern of small wedges and bake at 350 degrees until the edges start to brown. Break on the pricked lines and sprinkle with sugar, if desired.

~These Carrot Muffins make for a dainty bite of something sweet:

1 ½ cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup grated carrots

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Sift together the dry ingredients and set aside. Combine the oil, sugar and eggs in a large bowl and mix by hand until blended. Gradually add the dry ingredients and mix well; stir in the grated carrots. Spoon the batter into greased muffin tins and bake 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

And, just for fun, here’s some Tea Etiquette I’ve picked up along the way:

~Tea should always be served sitting down. While a punch server is obliged to stand, a lady serving tea—even at a large event—should be seated before the tea tray with all the accouterments before her. (When my mother has a party, she positions either my sister or me at one end of the dining room table with the tea while the other stands at the opposite end before the punch bowl.)

~If hats and gloves are the order of the day, then ladies should keep their hats on for the duration of the party. But gloves should be removed before coming to the tea table. And, if you want to be a stickler, it’s never truly proper for the hostess to wear a hat.

~At a small tea, a well-appointed tray should contain the following: cups and saucers for everyone present, napkins and tea spoons, cream and sugar, and small slices of lemon. The hostess should ask each person in turn what they take in their tea and serve it as soon as it is poured.

Tea time sweets and savories, Part One

As I promised last week, here are some simple ideas for making the ceremony of afternoon tea a special occasion:

~Homemade scones, or ones from the bakery, are delicious served with fresh strawberry jam and a dollop or two of this decadent Mock Devonshire Cream:

Whip ½ cup heavy cream with 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar till stiff peaks form. Then gently fold in ½ cup sour cream. Serve generously with warm scones or tea biscuits.

~Tea sandwiches are the ultimate finger food. The bread should be sliced as thinly as possible (I like to use Pepperidge Farm) and the sandwiches can be made either open-faced or closed. Cut your sandwiches into interesting shapes using cookie cutters, if you wish, or slice them into tiny triangles with a knife. Here are some of my favorites:

Salmon:
Layer finely-sliced smoked salmon atop brown bread points that have been spread with cream cheese. Top with a tiny sprig of dill.

Cucumber:
Peel the cucumber with a vegetable peeler and slice very thin. Place one slice on a circle of soft white bread that has been cut with a 2-inch biscuit cutter and spread with butter. Top with a dash of paprika.

Date-Nut:
Slice a loaf of canned date-nut bread into thin pieces and spread half with a mixture of cream cheese that has been sweetened with a little bit of powdered sugar. Top with the remaining slices and cut each round into four points.

Chicken Salad:
Cut the crusts off slices of whole wheat bread and spread half with chicken salad. Add a dash of poultry seasoning and a sprinkling of finely chopped parsley and top with another piece of bread. Cut into small triangles.

Tea sandwiches can be made up to an hour or two ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator covered with damp paper towels so that they won't dry out.

~Look for crumpets in the frozen case at your grocery and serve them toasted with butter and raspberry jam.

Next week: More recipes and some tea time etiquette tips!

Gretchen's Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/2 c. white sugar
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
1 c. "sugar in the raw" (the natural cane sugar gives it such a good texture!)
2 c. margarine
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla

Cream above and add:
3 c. white flour
1 c. wheat flour
2 tsp. soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
5 c. oatmeal ground in blender

Add at least 4 cups of chocolate chips.

Drop dough into balls on cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees.

Tip: For softer, chewier cookies, take them out while they still look a bit "doughy" and let them cool on the pan. Experiment to find your family's favorite!

Extra: One of my guys' favorite things to do is to grab a freshly baked cookie, somehow get past me to the bowl of cookie dough, grab a big ball of dough, plop it on top of the cookie, and put the whole thing in his mouth. They claim it is extremely good.

Skillet Lasagne

An easy recipe to throw together, this is a favorite in our family!

Brown in skillet:
2 lbs. ground beef

Top with:
1 pkg. spaghetti sauce mix
1 pt. cottage cheese
4 Tblsp. grated parmesan
4 cups uncooked medium noodles (12+ oz.)
1 Tblsp. Italian seasoning
1 Tblsp. parsley
3 cans (14 1/2 oz. each) tomatoes
2 cups water

Cover tightly and simmer 30-35 minutes (at 225 in electric skillet). Stir gently once in a while to keep from burning the bottom layer.

Top with 8 oz. mozzarella for 10 minutes.

Since you asked...

Jessica put in a request for my Thanksgiving recipes last week, and since they are equally suited to Christmas baking I thought I'd begin posting them here.

Starting with the Cranberry Conserve:

4 cups fresh cranberries
1 Tablespoon grated orange peel
2 oranges, peeled, sliced and quartered
1 cup raisins
1 1/4 cups water
1 cup chopped pecans
2 1/2 cups sugar

In a large saucepan, combine cranberries, orange peel, oranges, raisins and water. Cover and simmer over medium heat until cranberries are soft. Add pecans and sugar; stir well. Simmer, uncovered, 15-20 minutes, stirring often. Cool and spoon into covered containers. Serve as a relish wih poultry or pork, or spread on biscuits or rolls. Yield: 3 pints

Alternately, you can put up the hot conserve in jars and process them in a canner. (If you don't have any experience with canning, track down someone who does that can give you some tips...canning can be dangerous if the strictest guidelines are not followed.) I like to do it in 1/2 pint jars with pretty lids...makes for a few lovely little Christmas presents! :)

Image: 'Stirring the Cranberry Sauce' from 'The Whitehouse Cookbook', 1887

Honey's Southern Cornbread Dressing

This year I tried my grandmother's recipe for "stuffing" (or dressing as they call it in the South) for Thanksgiving. I succeeded and it tasted just like it was supposed to. The recipe is so delicious (and healthy!) I wanted to share it. You can make it for Christmas, since Thanksgiving is past.

Cornbread Dressing
recipe of Alice Braxton, modified by Natalie

Bake a pan of cornbread the night before, as well as boil three eggs and refrigerate.
Mix crumbled cornbread, a large can of Swanson's chicken broth, 2 sticks of celery (minced) and 1 onion (diced), 3 eggs (minced) with the following spices: 1 tablespoon of garlic salt (I use a bit more), 1 tablespoon of herb sprinkles (I use thyme, basil, and a bit of oregano), and one tablespoon of celery salt (if desired--it will make the dressing fairly spicy). Add a dash of black pepper, mix well, and bake either with the turkey or at 375 degrees until tops and edges are lightly browned.

Salted Peanut Chews

Salted Peanut Chews

Base:
1 yellow cake mix
1/3 cup margarine, softened
1 egg
3 cups miniature marshmallows

Topping:
2/3 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup margarine
2 teaspoons vanilla
12 ounces chocolate chips
2 cups rice cereal (other cereals work, too)
2 cups peanuts

Heat oven to 350F. In large bowl combine all base ingredients--except marshmallows--until crumbly. Press into ungreased 13"x9" pan. Bake 12-18 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and immediately sprinkle with marshmallows. Return to oven 1-2 minutes, until the marshmallows just begin to puff. Cool while preparing topping.

In large saucepan, heat corn syrup, margarine, vanilla, and chocolate chips just until melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat, stir in nuts and cereal. Immediately spoon over marshmallows. Chill and cut into bars.