Happy Holidays

Christmas 2009 sure brought a doozy of a blizzard! Snowed in for 2 days with all my children and most of their children. What a very good time we had. This being our last Christmas in this house it turned out perfect that we should all be together like this. We had lots of food. Santa knew all about the kids being at my house instead of theirs and everyone got what they wanted. Uncle Tommy took the kids out sledding while us ladies made a delicous seafood burrito that was the brainchild of one sons girlfriend. Kudos to her it was very yummy. Now I am sitting in my comfy chair and Pa is taking a nap. I think I will plan my menu for the next 2 weeks I need to grocery shop. I am thinking lots of veggies after the last few days.

Hope you Holiday was good for you as well.

Banana Bread

Banana Bread
In my quest to put all my recipes in one place I cannot forget my famous banana bread. It comes from an old Roberts Dairy Cookbook. Roberts Dairy is a Midwest thing I think. They produced all kinds of milk products and eggs. My mom bought me this cook book. the page that has the recipe is dirty and stained. I have been making this bread for more than 30 years and it has served me well. Freezes good too.

2 bananas, mashed
3 T. milk
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, melted
2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 c. sugar
1 c. chopped walnuts



Combine mashed bananas, milk, eggs, vanilla and melted butter. Sift dry ingredients together; add sugar and banana mixture and beat until smooth and well blended. Stir in nuts. Pour into a greased 8x4x3 loaf pan or 3 smaller pans. Bake at 350 for about one hour, 30-40 minutes for smaller pans.
note: I used the oldest yuckiest bananas I have.

English Toffee

English Toffee

I originally started to blog in order to collect all my recipes so my children could have them in one spot. My candy recipes were the ones I really needed to get together in a form that would last. The picture of these recipes is 33 years old. The paper is so tattered and worn that even I have trouble discerning what is what.

English Toffee is a real favorite. It uses very few ingredients and is very simple to make if you pay attention. Its one of those recipes that is hard to describe because every ones stove and pans are different. I use the clock, my nose , and my eyes to tell if its just right. And yes I have thrown out a batch or two.I also find that I do better alone with no distractions.
I use Mexican vanilla. Its very cheap and comes in big bottles that last awhile. I got mine from snow bird family members who lived in Mission Tx. Years ago there was a concern about vanilla containing cumarin ( cancer causing agent) so I have my peeps make sure that the bottle claims it does not contain cumarin and this has never been an issue for me so I bet none of it contains it anymore but better safe than sorry!

I use a copper bottom pan for all my candy. 3 quart Revere Ware makes a nice pan.

In that pan put in

1 c. sugar

1/2 lb butter ( 2 sticks) must be butter.
3 T water

1 tsp vanilla

Cook on medium high stirring constantly.The cooking time is about 8 minutes. As you stir you will notice that the texture changes and thickens and as you stir through it you will see the bottom of the pan . This is where you will notice it scorching a bit. This is good because the scorching is what makes it darker. About halfway through the cooking you will need to turn the heat down to medium. Keep stirring from the bottom. At about the 8 min mark the color will be a carmel brown and bubbly and the smell will have changed to a very yummy aroma. If it begins to smell burnt you have gone too far. Don't throw it out yet. It could be ok.

Pour this mixture into foil lined pans. I use 8 or 9 in. round cake pans but anything that size will do.

When the surface has hardened somewhat lay out broken pieces of a Hershey bar. If they sink in too much hold off a few minutes. The heat from the candy will melt the chocolate and they will get real shiny.

Spread the chocolate around and let the chocolate harden completely which takes awhile.

Take a sharp knife and break into pieces.
Let me know how you come out. Good luck.

Cranberry Orange Bread

Every year I make this yummy moist tangy quick bread. Freezes well and makes a nice gift.

Cranberry-Orange Bread

3 medium oranges

1 beaten egg

2 T cooking oil

2 c. flour

3/4 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 c. chopped fresh or frozen cranberries

1/2 c. chopped walnuts

1 c. sifted powder sugar

Grease one 8x4x2 in. loaf pan or three 6x3x2

Shred the peel from one orange

Juice all oranges

Combine 3/4 c. of the juice the other 1/4 cup is for the glaze

1 tsp of the peel, egg and oil. Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and soda. Add the orange mixture, stir just till moistened. Fold in cranberries and walnuts. Bake at 350 degree oven for 50-60 min for larger loaf and 30-40 min for smaller loaf. Cool.

Glaze;

Blend 1 T orange juice with powdered sugar. Add rest of orange zest. Drizzle back and forth across loaves. Makes 1 large or 3 small loaves. If you make this let me know. This can be all done in a food processor too. You know chop the cranberries add sugar and wet ingredients then the dry.

Thanksgiving Countdown

Every Thanksgiving I always think back to the first Thanksgiving that I hosted. It was four months after Tim and I got married and I was a very rookie cook. My mom hooked me up with the recipes and I was very busy getting everything going. It being a beautiful aftrenoon my hubby and I went out to enjoy while the turkey was cooking away. When we came back into the house we breathed in the turkey smells...or did we! I had forgotten to turn on the oven! Well diner did get done and it was lovely if I say so myself and now 33 years down that road I have been making basically that same meal.
This year the menu is as follows
Roast Turkey with oyster stuffing
Deep fried Turkey
Mashed Potatoes/Gravy
Green Bean Casserole
Layered Lettuce Salad
Butternut Squash
Cranberry Chutney
Apple Crisp
Vanilla Ice Cream
On Monday I took out the turkeys. On Wednesday I plan on brining them for a day before cooking.
Tuesday I put togther the mashed potatoes and froze them.
Shirleys make ahead potatoes
5 lbs potatoes
1 cup half and half
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp onion salt
1 tsp season salt
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Cook and mash potatoes. Add the rest ingredients. Put in 3 qt. casserole. This can be made a week ahead and frozen. The day you need it, take out of freezer 2-3 hours before baking to thaw. Bake at 350 for 30-40minutes.
That done I needed to get the Cranberry Chutney going. I like to make this ahead to give the flavors time to do their thing.
I cannot find that recipe to save my life! Have you ever done that? I can see it in my minds eye but nowhere I thought it was, so I found a good recipe on line very similar to my recipe.
http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1823,146185-251207,00.html
The only deviation I made was to add chopped walnuts. This makes a quart and now its in the refrigerator.
While all this was taking place I was roasting a butternut squash. I will put this casserole together tomarrow. Now I will get some sleep.

More Comfort Food

My dad was sick last week and when he got to feeling better I asked him what he was craving. He wanted Ham and Bean Soup. My mom made it so good and I have picked up where she left off after she passed 14 years ago from breast cancer. Remembering is honoring.

I start with onion and celery sauteed in a large pot. Then I add the beans. I have used canned northern beans and dried beans, whatever I have and have time for. I like to add some different types of beans too, like lima and dried peas. Whatever I have or feel like.

The ham is usually turkey ham because its cheap and makes the soup meaty. My husband is all about meat. Sometimes I use a couple of smoked ham hocks.

I add water to cover all, add some carrot, bay leaf and salt and pepper. Then I add my moms addition of tomatoes. Just a can , diced, crushed, whatever. When its all cooked up and in the bowl add a spoon of vinegar to your bowl. I use balsamic, it is a great addittion, try it.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

Tim was chomping at the bit to pick a butternut squash before the vines died so I decided to make this beautiful fall soup. I found it on a cooking blog for gluten free cooking. I have been searching different blogs for interesting healthy foods to get me and the old man on track. This fits the bill.

I made a few deviations. Us Freemans are all about deviant behavior! Anyway, this recipe has just a few ingredients and the only thing you might not have ever cooked with, is the coconut milk, but dont let that turn you away. You must try this.

I didnt have any celery but I did have some Pak Choi and I used the stalk not the leaves. I put it together and got it started cooking when my BFF came over and we had to leave because I had some money burning a hole in my pocket.

Shopping was great! Got a cute pair of jeans just like I like, Tummy control, a little stretch, boot cut and cheap! Old Navy "Dreamer". And I picked up some everyday tees. V-neck with a little stretch.

After all that the BFF let us come home. (she has shopping stamina !)

When the Goof Troop gets together we work up an appetite and thats when I can try out new stuff. After I returned home from shopping ,released the hounds , I gathered up the last ingredients for the soup, the pot that the soup was in , my bottle of wine and headed to Carms.

I have not used my new immersion blender yet so I was very excited to get it out and try it. Assisted by Carm we tried to read the directions and figured it out quickly. I stuck it in the pot and did o.k. but when Carm tried it she didnt put it all the way down and it blended by drawing everything around it into a tornado in reverse. The color was rich golden orange and everything was completely blended in just seconds. It was beautiful. Then we added the remaining ingredients stired a bit and turned off the fire.

As you can see the Goof Troop liked it very much and we all had two bowls and there was enough for the old man and a bowl for me at breakfast.

I Know you all think that I am a wild child and that I Boogaloo all night but I was still home and in bed by 10.