Author Archives: Patti

PEPPERMINT HOT CHOCOLATE MIX

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As promised, another wonderful Christmas recipe. But this is a recipe for more of a cold weather treat than just a treat reserved for Christmas eve. Decadent hot chocolate. And when I say decadent, I mean DECADENT! I don’t even like most hot chocolate, but when made with this mix, I could easily become addicted. Seriously. Because this mix makes amazingly delicious hot chocolate. And all you add is boiling water to the mix. How cool is that?!

Now, what you need to realize right off the bat is that this is not an inexpensive hot chocolate mix to prepare. Because at least in my local grocery stores, I can never find powdered whole milk, really good unsweetened cocoa powder, or soft peppermint candy like See’s or King Leo’s. For these products I must go to Amazon or some other source that specializes in quality ingredients.   

And you know me. I’m not trying to be an elitist. It’s just that if you want good results from this recipe, you need to pay the price. You also need to know that the peppermint flavor is not going to knock you over. In fact, it’s almost unnoticeable. But what it brings to the mix is amazing. Then when topped with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles (sometimes called “jimmies” or “shots”), life just becomes wonderful. It immediately starts to snow. Not enough to stick, but enough to make you happy to be alive. Your favorite music starts running through your head. And if you happen to be blessed with teenagers, they ask you if they can please do the dishes after dinner. Just kidding. That would never happen. But I do promise you that a cup of this hot chocolate will absolutely lift your spirits.

So, I hope you give this recipe a try. And do consider building a batch and gifting some of the mix to a friend. A nice way to let someone know how much you care.

Well, that’s it for now. Mr. C. has a holiday gig tonight and I’m going along to further get in the mood for all the upcoming festivities. Presents are ordered. Holiday goody packages are either already sent or ready to be hand delivered. The live Christmas tree has been purchased, but so far has not been brought into the house. (All in good time Patti. All in good time.) And I now have the time to further get ready for Christmas without any immediate deadlines. So, I am well pleased to be able to take the evening off and listen to fun Christmas music.

May you too take the time to enjoy the holidays. For many of us it’s a frantic time trying to get everything done that we feel should be done. No one is going to know if everything isn’t checked off our lists. So, cut yourself as much slack as you would cut someone else. Make it a Christmas present to yourself.

And as always, peace and love to all. And Merry Christmas.

1 c. powdered whole milk

1 c. good unsweetened cocoa powder (I use a combination of Valrhona, Ghirardelli, and Dagoba

1 c. granulated sugar

½ tsp. kosher salt

½ c. miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips

heaping ½ c. semi-crushed peppermint candy (I use King Leo’s Soft Peppermint sticks) (Do not use regular inexpensive candy canes. They have no resemblance to good peppermint candy.)

Whisk the powdered whole milk, cocoa powder, granulated sugar, salt, and mini chocolate chips together in a mixing bowl. Break the peppermint sticks up a bit and place in your food processor. Whirl until the peppermint candy is mostly crushed. There will still be a few small pieces. Not a problem. Add the candy to the other ingredients. Mix all together. Store in an airtight container.

For each serving, place ¼ – ⅓ cup hot chocolate mix (depends on how rich you like your hot chocolate) in a mug and add 1 cup boiling water. Stir slowly until the mini chocolate chips are dissolved.

If you are totally into decadent hot chocolate, top with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles.  

      

SWEDISH MEATBALLS

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Staying on the theme of Christmas and my favorite recipes, I again offer you my recipe for Swedish Meatballs. Which BTW, was one of my kids’ favorite dishes. (Probably still is!) They would gobble the meatballs up every time I made them. And for me, they were easy to build. Especially if I’d made the meatballs ahead and either refrigerated them overnight or hid them in the freezer.

So, even on a work night, I could throw this dish in the oven and dinner would be ready in about an hour. That left me time to start a load of laundry, make a salad or steam a green veggie, and slowly unwind from my workday. And I often needed that little bit of time to transition from managing people at work, to managing kids at home. (Not that different BTW!) It also left me time to talk with the kids about their day, even though we would be sitting down to dinner together and every subject imaginable would be fodder for our conversations. With 4 kids there were always stories to be told. Sometimes even more information was provided than I wanted or felt I needed to know. But the discussions were always lively. And I learned a lot about what the kids were experiencing just by these easy and relaxed exchanges. But I bet you are wondering why Swedish Meatballs would be considered a Christmas dish.

Every Christmas Eve my sister-in-law Evelyn and brother-in-law Dan and their kids feast on homemade lefsa and Swedish Meatballs. They spend the day making the lefsa and the meatballs and it is a tradition cherished by one and all. So, I too think of Swedish Meatballs as a part of what makes Christmas special.

So, if you too are still making Christmas traditions, I offer this recipe for your consideration. But don’t stop at Christmas time to serve this dish to family and friends. Meatballs are good any old time of year.

Well, enough posting for today. There are presents still to be ordered. And Christmas goodies to be baked.

But before I leave you today, just a hint about making cookies. Especially if you are crazy like me and insist that there be several different types of cookies for family and friends to enjoy. Make all the dough one day and bake it off the next. Most cookies profit from time spent in the fridge anyway. And make refrigerator cookies whenever possible. Much easier slicing the dough rather than shaping it. And making all the dough in one day only makes sense.

I place all the ingredients I will be using that day on a kitchen counter or sometimes on my kitchen table. Then any recipe calling for room temperature butter, vanilla, all-purpose flour, etc. etc., is right at hand. No putting ingredients away just to have to get them out again for the next recipe.  Plus, you only make a mess one time. And measuring cups and spoons if used for dry ingredients can be used repeatedly thus saving time for cleanup. And yes, it took me years to figure this out. But there is no looking back now. This system just plain makes cookie baking easier and faster.

OK Patti, enough pontificating. Let these fine folks get back to their real lives. And the real reason they are reading this post in the first place!

As always, may you find peace and love in your life. And Merry Christmas.

⅓ c. dehydrated chopped onion

½ tsp. granulated garlic

2 T. parsley (dried or fresh)

½ tsp. ground savory

¼ tsp. paprika

½ tsp. dried thyme leaves

¼ tsp. dried rosemary

pinch nutmeg

½ tsp. seasoned salt

freshly ground black pepper

2 eggs

2 T. milk

¾ c. uncooked oats

1 lb. ground beef

1 lb. pork sausage

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 tsp. beef base

2 c. sour cream

Combine the onion, garlic, parsley, savory, paprika, thyme, rosemary, nutmeg, salt, pepper, eggs, and milk in a bowl. Add the oats, ground beef, and pork sausage. Form into balls with a small ice cream scoop. Place on a low sided baking pan and bake in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 20 minutes or until cooked through.

Meanwhile whisk the cream of mushroom soup, beef base, and sour cream together. When meatballs are out of the oven, layer them with the sour cream mixture in a covered casserole.

Cover dish and bake at 350-degree for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and continue baking an additional 15 minutes.

Great served with thick al dente egg noodles.

MINCEMEAT  

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Since it is December, and along with December comes Christmas. And with Christmas, at least at our house, comes fruit cake and often mincemeat pies, tarts, galettes, or bars. So, of course this year again, homemade mincemeat is happily mellowing in my refrigerator. What recipe I decide to use containing this amazing mixture is still to be determined. But I do know that whatever I make will be topped with a hard sauce. And not just any hard sauce. A bourbon hard sauce. (I’m still working on the recipe.)

And since it happens to be Christmas time and I am in the process of re-posting some of my favorite recipes, I decided to post some of the dishes I most associate with the holiday. And mincemeat has been a part of my Christmas for as long as I can remember. So, for me, it isn’t really Christmas unless mincemeat is featured in one of the holiday desserts.  

Now, some would argue that mincemeat without meat (beef in most cases) or even suet in the mix is not the real thing. Don’t care! And I only mention beef because that was the most common meat used in the making of mincemeat in the 19th century. But before chunks of beef, it might have been tongue, tripe, venison, lamb, or veal in with all the fruit and spices. None of which are ever going to be included as an ingredient in any mincemeat I make. I frankly see no reason to mess up perfectly good, dried fruit, apples, brown sugar, spices, and booze by adding meat of any variety. And suet – no way! I use butter! Because butter simply makes everything better!  

Also, most mincemeat recipes call for brandy, rum, or whiskey. But not mine. I leave those liquors for someone else to use.  Instead of brandy, rum, or whiskey, I use both bourbon and cognac. Why? Because I use bourbon a lot in cooking. Can’t stand to drink the stuff, but to cook with it for either sweet or savory dishes, bourbon is perfect. It’s the sweetness of bourbon, with hints of both caramel and vanilla, that I believe works so well in this recipe. And many other recipes for that matter. And as far as that little bit of Cognac I throw in at the last moment, well, when does Cognac not add an extra little bit of joy to any dish? Especially because of the flavor sensations that are unique to Cognac – sweet, spicy, fruity, and slightly bitter. So, there you have it. A recipe for homemade mincemeat that is easy to make and absolutely delicious.

But as with other Christmas treats like Holiday Fruitcake, Caribbean Black Fruitcake, and Christmas Berliner Stollen (all on this site BTW), it is best to let mincemeat contemplate the meaning of life for a few weeks, or months, in your refrigerator before using it in one of your favorite Christmas treats. Some things just get better with age. Like fine wine, many great cheeses, and men and women who cook. Cooking helps keep older minds remain active and bodies stay limber by making multiple trips into pantries trying to remember why they went there in the first place! Or second place, etc. etc.

So, from one old cook to all of you – Peace and Love. And happy Christmas preparations.  

1½ c. dark raisins

1½ c. golden raisins    

1½ c. dried currants

2/3 c. bourbon

2 tart apples, peeled, cored, and finely diced

8-oz. candied orange peel

½ c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

¾ c. brown sugar

½ tsp. ground nutmeg

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground mace

¼ tsp. ground allspice

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange

¼ c. cognac

Place the dark raisins, golden raisins, and dried currants in a small saucepan. Add the 2/3 cup bourbon, bring just to a boil, stir to coat all the fruit, remove from heat, and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, combine the apples, candied orange peel, melted butter, brown sugar, spices, and the zest and juice of the lemon and orange in a large ovenproof dish. When the raisins and currents are cool, stir into the apple mixture. If there is any liquid left, throw it in too. Cover the dish and place in your refrigerator overnight.  

The following day, place the ovenproof dish in a cold oven, bring the temperature to 200 degrees, and bake for three hours, stirring every hour or so. Remove from oven, let cool completely, and stir in the cognac. The mincemeat will look quite runny. But don’t be concerned. After it has rested in the refrigerator for a few days it will be perfect.

Store covered in your refrigerator until ready to use. (Best if left to mellow at least 4 weeks, but if you are like me, the mince only gets to age for about a week. It’s still good, so no worries.)

This recipe makes enough mincemeat for 2 10-inch tarts, 2 8-inch pies, or 3 10-inch galettes.

 

MY FAVORITE BEEF RECIPES

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OK, back to my regularly scheduled posts. I had to take a couple days off to make Holiday Fruitcake (recipe on site), host Jim and Margo for my first try at preparing Cassoulet and get mincemeat (under Mincemeat Galette) started. Mincemeat (no critters harmed in my recipe BTW) needs to mellow in a cold environment for a couple three weeks before it is ready to be used in whatever dish I decide is worthy of its magnificence. And as “they” say, timing is everything! So, regardless of my commitment to you to provide you with my favorite recipes, Christmas reared its head and demanded my attention. But, at least for now, I’m back to post my list of favorite recipes by categories.

Like I said in an earlier post, this is not easy. Because I love food. And singling out just a few recipes out of over 2,000 (either on this blog or in my 2 cookbooks) is taxing. But being the considerate person that I am, and tired to death with being asked what my favorite recipe for this or that is, I am back on track. Well at least until it is time to make all the cookies and goodies that go in my kids and special friends Christmas treats packages. So, if I get off track again, get over it! I’ll get to each category as time permits. Remember, I’m 79 years old. Cut me some slack! (Now, if I could just remember to do the same, I would be a lot happier. But I digress!)

Anyway, these are my favorite beef recipes. And the ones I am going to prepare again and again until either my doctor tells me to cut back on beef (which I already have) or I look one more cow in the eyes and decide that there is no way I am going to be responsible for any more of these critters’ early loss of life! (And yes, I’m getting soft in my old age. I’m actually quite fine with that!)

So, my friends, I hope you enjoy these recipes. But certainly, don’t limit yourself to my favorites. Food is such a personal thing. Eat what you like. Eat healthily (at least most of the time). Cook from scratch. And try to make each meal special not only for yourself, but also for your family and friends.

And as always, peace and love to all.

MY FAVORITE BEEF RECIPES

Boeuf à la Bourguignonne (Beef Burgundy)

Beef Stew

Beef Stroganoff

Ćevapčići (Serbian Grilled Sausages)

Cheezy Stuffed Green Peppers

Chez Carr Chili Con Carne

Chicken Fried Steak with Pan Gravy

Grilled Argentine (Like) Marinated Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

Grilled Meatloaf with Bacon Flavored Red Gravy

Hamburger Dip Sandwiches with Onion and Dry Sherry Au Jus

Hamburger Steak with Mushroom Onion Gravy

Meatballs (under Old Fashioned Spaghetti and Meatballs)

Old Fashioned Meatloaf

Oven Baked Boneless Beef Country Style Short Ribs

Pot Roast with Potatoes, Onions, and Carrots  

Quick and Easy Marinated Flank Steak

Simple Braised Corn Beef with Horseradish Cream Sauce

Steak Au Poivre (Peppercorn Steak)

Swedish Meatballs

Swiss Steak with Cheddar Cheese Polenta

Swiss Steak with Mushrooms

Weeknight Tamale Pie

   

SWEET AND SOUR CHICKEN OVER RICE

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This is a takeoff of one of the first recipes I posted when I started this blog back in January of 2013. In fact, I posted Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings on January 11, 2013. And the reason I posted that recipe so early on, was because it has remained to this day, one of my very favorite ways to enjoy chicken.

Now having confessed that this is a favorite chicken recipe, you need to also know that I rarely fix this recipe. Because, well, before you read any further, look at the list of ingredients.

Not that this recipe contains a long list of specialty ingredients or anything like that. Nothing could be further from the fact of the matter. It’s just the few ingredients themselves that cause me not to make this dish more frequently. Because I should not eat butter, soy sauce, and brown sugar in this quantity on a regular basis. And white rice? Definitely a no-no! Anyone with half a brain knows that! However, occasionally I throw caution to the wind. And last night’s dinner was just one such time. And I enjoyed EVERY SINFULL MOUTHFUL. OMG, if someone told me this recipe had been sent to mankind by a loving deity, I would buy right into their theory without even a backward glance.

And since we are the subject of loving deities, the night before last as we were driving home from a delightful evening of music and food at the Hosts and Regulars JazzVox December get-together, Andy put on one of my favorite CDs. (Well actually he used Spotify, but you know what I mean.) It was a CD by the Austin Lounge Lizards. And the song that brought me a bit of relief from my worry about our present world situation, was recorded on their 2006 album “The Drugs I need”. It’s entitled “We’ve Been Through Some Crappy Times Before”.

So, for your reading pleasure, I give you the lyrics that lifted my spirits, eased my worries, and made me laugh out loud. (Along with the other songs on the album of course!)

WE’VE BEEN THROUGH SOME CRAPPY TIMES BEFORE

You say the last election didn’t turn out like you planned.
You’re feeling blue and clueless, you just don’t understand.
You’re sad, sulky, sullen, moping and morose.
You’re woefully weak and weary, semi-comatose.
You stare at your computer screen devoid of any joy and hope.
You’re so depressed, you can’t get dressed, your noose is up a rope.
Just remind yourself, when you can’t stand it any more:
That we’ve been through some crappy times before

We’ve been though some crappy times before.

Slavery, unbridled knavery and the civil war.

Don’t stop caring, stop despairing, get up off the floor.

Because we’ve been through some crappy times before.

Intolerable intolerance has swept across the land.
The gospel thumping homophobes have got the upper hand.
They are peeping though the windows and they are creeping through the door.
But we’ve been through some crappy times before.

We’ve been through some crappy times before.

McCarthyism, Prohibition, and the World Wars.
We’re up a the creek, the boat is leaking, still we will reach the shore.
But we’ve been through some crappy times before.

We hear reassurances that everything is fine.
It’s been a while since we were a canary in this mine.
When you think it’s really bad, it gets a little worse.
But keep on looking forward, though we’re going in reverse.

We shout out that the emperor is not wearing any clothes.
He lies so much that you could hang your laundry from his nose.
The fox is in the hen house and the wolf is at the door.
But we’ve been thought some crappy times before.

We have been thought crappy times before.
Indiscretion, floods, Depression, Vietnam and more.
The sun has set but don’t forget another day is in store.
Because we’ve been thought some crappy times before.
Yes, we’ve been though some crappy times before.

Well, I hope that brought you too a little relief from any worries you might have about the state of the world. (And to think the song was written when politicians were still semi-civil to each other! And we all still believed they were on our side!) We must all remember that the human race has a long history of seemingly unsurvivable situations. And yet, somehow, we have managed to persevere. And one of the best ways I know to stay sane is through laughter.

So, if you too enjoy a bit of humor, may I recommend the Austin Lounge Lizards. They are not only fine musicians but have an irreverent bent that I find not only funny, but very refreshing. Kind of like The Capitol Steps, Victor Borge, Flanders and Swann, and Tom Lehrer. All of whom are greatly adored by Mr. C. and me. But back to the real reason for this post.

If you ever want to serve your family or friends the very definition of a guilty pleasure, serve them this dish or the original – Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings. And to make this dish even more appetizing to every tired cook in America, it’s bloody easy to make! But I promise you that you will never forgive me for introducing you to either of these dishes. Because I am positive you too will become addicted. But I’m strong. I can take the pressure. But if you must, feel free to take me out of your will.

And as always peace and love to all.

½ c. (1 stick) unsalted butter

½ c. soy sauce

1 c. brown sugar

¾ c. orange juice

1 T. dry mustard

1-1½ lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces

Melt the butter in a wide frying pan or electric fry pan. Stir in the soy sauce, brown sugar, orange juice, and dry mustard. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let burble for about 10 minutes.

Add the chicken pieces and simmer uncovered for 30-40 minutes or until the sauce is thick. (Towards the end of the cooking time, it is very easy to burn the chicken. So, keep a close eye on the sauce. You want it thick but not burnt.)

Serve over white rice. (OK, brown rice is fine, but white rice is better.) Sunomono (an easy Japanese cucumber salad) (recipe on site) is a wonderful accompaniment.

HOLIDAY FRUITCAKE (revisited)

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Notice the 1-gallon container for macerating the dried fruit, candied fruit, and pecans. It’s actually a jar I saved about 40 years ago that originally contained dill pickles. Never throw a one-gallon jar away. They store cookies and other assorted items that you want to keep airtight or keep something like spare silverware clean.

The finished product.

Well, in keeping with my decision to post my list of personal favorite edibles (by category) and re-publish some of my favorite recipes, I offer my previously posted recipe for Holiday Fruitcake. I also have a wonderful recipe for Caribbean Black Fruitcake on site, but this year I decided to make this fruitcake for gifts and to set aside for the year to come. (I love to bring out a fruitcake on a trailer trip, for example, because for us and our friends, fruitcake is a favorite treat.)

I hadn’t decided to start with fruitcake with my re-posting project because I am well aware that there are those among us who think fruitcake is a dreary dry brick-like- cake containing icky tasting candied fruit and burnt raisins. (That would be me from my grandmother’s fruitcake.) And, that there are people who still believe that anyone who actually likes fruitcake has a mental deficiency. I get that, because I too felt that way until about three decades ago when someone gave us a fabulous fruitcake they had purchased at great expense. And OMG, it was the best thing I had ever tasted.

Well, you know me! I immediately went to work developing a fruitcake recipe that would result in a fruitcake that was as good or maybe even better than the one we had been gifted. And I came up with this recipe.

But the real reason I am posting this recipe today, is because yesterday I fulfilled the first requirement in preparing this recipe. I filled a one-gallon glass container (as witnessed by picture above) with dried fruit, candied fruit, pecans, and 3 cups of spiced rum. This delightful assembly of ingredients would then spend the next few days being periodically turned upside down so every single tasty morel could become good friends with Captain Morgan. (See picture of Captain Morgan above.)

After I finished this hour and a half of cutting and chopping fruit and nuts, I went back to my computer and decided to see what was happening on Facebook.

OK, I’m not a woo-woo kind of gal. But right there on “Your Memories on Facebook” was my post from December 1, 2009, containing only the following words on my post: “One gallon of fruit and nuts soaking in 3 cups of spiced rum on my counter. I wonder what it will be when it grows up? Fruitcake perhaps?”

Now if that’s not a less than subtle hint from the beyond to post this recipe today, I don’t know what else it could be. Coincidence? I think not!

But in all reality, this is the perfect time to remind people that a) fruitcake can be amazingly delicious, b) fruitcake makes a perfect Christmas gift (but only to those we truly love), and c) if you are going to make fruitcake, now is the time. Because fruitcake only gets better the longer it is allowed to “ripen”. In fact, I should have started this process about 2 months ago. But I have yet to even think about making fruitcake before the first of December. I do, after all, have a life outside the kitchen!

But starting this year, I’m adding one more step to my original recipe. After the baked fruitcakes have cooled, and before I package them, I am going to poke holes in the top with a toothpick, and slowly slather (using a pastry brush) on more of the Captain’s finest. Not too much rum to make a soggy mess. But I believe this will give the fruitcake even more flavor (ya think?) and help its taste and texture to better resemble a fruitcake that has been allowed to age longer. That’s the plan at least.

Well, that’s it for today. I hope you too have plans for the holidays that include some homemade gifts. Our dear friend Vicki has the whole Christmas giving thing down pat. She always includes homemade jams, curds, stollen, and various and sundry other edibles that make her packages a real treat to receive.

And for me, giving is the real secret to enjoying Christmas. It’s not about receiving. It’s about the joy you can bring someone else by thoughtful and from-the-heart gifts. So, please don’t feel you must provide expensive gifts to your loved ones. Or that homemade gifts would be less appreciated than something purchased. In my humble opinion, homemade gifts best exemplify the spirit of Christmas.

So, happy yummy fruitcake to everyone and to all – peace and love.

1 lb. chopped dried fruit combination (peaches, pears, apricots, apples, golden raisins, currents, etc.)

½ lb. dried Bing cherries

1 lb. chopped dates

1 lb. candied/glazed pineapple, coarsely chopped

1 lb. or more red and/or green candied/glazed cherries, coarsely chopped

3 c. spiced rum, plus more for soaking

1 c. unsalted butter, room temperature

2 c. brown sugar

2 tsp. cinnamon

1½ tsp. ground allspice

1½ tsp. ground nutmeg

5 lg. eggs

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

1 lb. coarsely chopped pecans (about 4 cups)

Combine dried fruit, dried Bing cherries, chopped dates, candied pineapple, candied cherries, and rum in a covered glass container for 3 to 7 days. 7 days is best.

Cream butter, sugar, and spices until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time.

In a separate bowl whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Stir into butter mixture just until combined.    Stir in the macerated fruit and nuts, including any remaining liquid. 

Place a large shallow pan of water on the bottom rack of your oven to prevent the cakes from baking too dry. Pre-heat the oven to 275-degrees.

Line 3 (9×5-inch) loaf pans or 1 (9×5-inch) and 5 (7×4-inch) loaf pans with parchment paper and lightly grease paper. Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake on the middle rack of the pre-heated oven for 2-2½ hours or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and cool on racks for one hour. Remove cakes from pans, and carefully peel off the parchment paper.

When completely cool, place on a rimmed baking sheet, poke lots of tiny holes in the top of each, and slowly slather with more spiced rum. Allow to sit for several hours while the cake absorbs the booze before tightly wrapping in plastic wrap and foil. Store for at least 1 month before serving. (Good luck with that!) (Haven’t had it happen yet!)

 

PUMPKIN PIE WITH BOURBON WHIPPED CREAM

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OK, this is really Sweet Potato Pie. But pumpkin pie looks just like this. I never took a picture of pumpkin pie because I thought I’d already posted the recipe. Duh!

While going through all my recipes to share my favorites with you, I realized I had never posted my recipe for pumpkin pie. What?! Sweet Potato Pie with Bourbon Caramel Whipped Cream, yes, but not my favorite pumpkin pie recipe. Whenever I want to make this pie, I just look up the recipe in my first self-published cookbook. So, I guess that’s why I never got around to publishing the recipe on this site. But I have to say that if you don’t already have a wonderful pumpkin pie recipe, you do now.

The filling is smooth and creamy with lots of warm spices to set this recipe a bit apart from others. And the bourbon spiked whipped cream just makes the whole dessert simply amazing.

And yes, I know. Thanksgiving has come and gone. But it is never too late to make a pumpkin pie.

And because I’m basically a good person (or try my best), I’ve provided you with the recipe for my favorite pie crust. (Recipe below.) The one pie crust recipe that has never, ever failed me. So, I hope you enjoy that recipe too, although it’s a bit different from most pie crust recipes. But I’m sure you will have figured that out for yourself once you have read the instructions.

Well, that’s it for today. I’m still working on my list of favorite recipes by category. And believe me, it’s quite a challenge. Narrowing my favorites out of hundreds of recipes, is just plain crazy. But then, well, you see where I’m going with that!

Anyway, it’s helping me figure out my list of goodies to send out in my Christmas packages to my kids. Which BTW, is one of my favorite things to do. Makes me feel like I’m still Santa Claus. Speaking of which, I read this the other day and thought I might share it with you. I believe the author was Robby Bennett, but I can’t be sure of that. But in my opinion, whoever wrote this lovely response to “Is there a Santa Claus” should be awarded the Pulitzer Prize.

ATTENTION TO ALL PARENTS WHO NEED TO TELL THE TRUTH ABOUT SANTA  

Son: “Dad, I think I’m old enough now. Is there a Santa Claus?”

Dad: “Ok, I agree that you’re old enough. But before I tell you, I have a question for you. You see, the “truth” is a dangerous gift. Once you know something, you can’t unknow it.

Once you know the truth about Santa Claus, you will never again understand and relate to him as you do now.

So, my question is: Are you sure you want to know?”

Brief pause…

Son: “Yes, I want to know”

Dad: “Ok, I’ll tell you: Yes, there is a Santa Claus”

Son: “Really?”

Dad: Yes, really, but he’s not an old man with a beard in a red suit. That’s just what we tell kids. You see, kids are too young to understand the true nature of Santa Claus, so we explain it to them in a way that they can understand.

The truth about Santa Claus is that he’s not a person at all; he’s an idea.

Think of all those presents Santa gave you over the years.

I actually bought those myself.

I watched you open them.

And did it bother me that you didn’t thank me?

Of course not!

In fact, it gave me great pleasure.

You see, Santa Claus is THE IDEA OF GIVING FOR THE SAKE OF GIVING, without thought of thanks or acknowledgement.

When I saw that woman collapse on the subway last week and called for help, I knew that she’d never know that it was me that summoned the ambulance.

I was being Santa Claus when I did that.”

Son: “Oh.”

Dad: “So now that you know, you’re part of it. You have to be Santa Claus too now. That means you can never tell a young kid the secret, and you have to help us select Santa presents for them, and most important, you have to look for opportunities to help people. Got it?” Help each other this Christmas and…be kind.

And on that refreshing thought about how to approach Santa, gift giving, and the upcoming holiday in general, I wish you peace and love.

For the pie:

pie crust for 9-inch one crust pie (regular not deep-dish pie plate)

2 c. canned or pureed fresh pumpkin

¾ tsp. kosher salt

1 (14.5-oz.) can evaporated milk

2 lg. eggs

1 T. melted unsalted butter, cooled

¾ c. granulated sugar

1½ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground ginger

¼ tsp. ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

Line your pie plate with crust. Crimp the edges. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, salt, evaporated milk, eggs, and melted butter. In a separate bowl, whisk the granulated sugar and spices together. Stir into the pumpkin mixture.

Pour into the pastry lined pie plate. Cover the crust with thin strips of aluminum foil to prevent excess browning. Remove the strips for the last 10 minutes of baking time so that the crust can obtain some color. (You don’t want a white crust. But you don’t want a crust that is too dark either.)

Bake in a pre-heated 375-degree oven for 40-45 minutes or until knife inserted near the edge comes out clean. (The middle will set as the pie cools.)

Remove from oven and let cool completely before cutting. Or refrigerate if not serving the pie until the next day. Serve dolloped with whipped cream

For the Bourbon Whipped Cream:

1 c. heavy cream

2-4 T. powdered sugar

2-3 tsp. bourbon

Whip the heavy cream to stiff peaks. Add the powdered sugar and bourbon. Serve dolloped on big old slices of cooled pie.

Please note: I have never in my life made only 1 pumpkin pie. So, I make 1½ times this recipe for 2 (8-inch) pies.

PIE CRUST

¼ c. very cold water

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp. kosher salt

heaping 2/3 c. Crisco

Step 1 – Pour cold water into a small bowl. Step 2 – Measure flour and salt into a mixing bowl. Step 3 – Take 1/3 cup of the flour back out of the mixing bowl and stir it into the water. Make a paste. Set aside. Step 4 – Add the Crisco (heaping 2/3 cup) to the flour and salt mixture. Mix together. (I use my KitchenAid mixer.) Step 5 – Add the water/flour paste to the flour/shortening bowl and mix just until blended. Do not over-mix. Roll out dough and place in pie plate.

This recipe makes enough dough for a double crust pie, if using a regular sized pie plate, or one large bottom crust with a little left over for Pastry Cookies. See recipe below.

PASTRY COOKIES

pie crust scraps

ground cinnamon

granulated sugar

Place scraps on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon and granulated sugar.

Bake along with your pie for 10-15 minutes depending on how thick you rolled your dough.

Remove from oven and allow to cool before devouring these tasty morsels. Don’t worry about storing them. There won’t be any left to store. This I promise you.

MY FAVORITE SOUPS, STEWS, AND CHOWDERS

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So, now that I have already posted my list of favorite cakes and appetizers, I am thrilled to share with you my list of all-time favorite soup recipes. But you must know, there are very few soups that I don’t like. And every soup recipe on this site is something I would enjoy eating again. But, at some point you must decide which are your favorites. And after much deliberation, I narrowed my choices down to this list. In my opinion, these are the best of the best.  

Now, if you find yourself pondering over which soup on my list to make for either a first course or as an entrée, I have given you a helping hand. M = main dish/entrée, FC = first course.

I hope you find this information helpful. Because sometimes a soup can be very rich. And when consumed as the only dish, even with some type of bread product on the side, a rich soup can become just too much of a good thing.

As I stated above, these soups are my personal favorites. And the soups that over the years, people have told me they also love. So, these are the soups I plan to prepare more often in the years to come.

As I stated in my first post – My Favorite Appetizers, in the future, I plan to spend most of my time in the kitchen preparing dishes that I already know to be delicious. Rather than developing or perfecting (in my humble opinion) someone else’s recipe. Then reposting the recipes or referring to them in my post. So, you will still hear from me, but not with as many brilliant new recipes. (Right, Patti!)

Anyway, I hope you can benefit from this list of my personal favorite soup etc. recipes. Sometimes it’s easier if there aren’t too many options from which to choose. (Like 1 rather than 30 million, 500 thousand recipes for Old Fashioned Chili alone!)

And as always, peace and love to all.

My favorite Soups, Stews, and Chowders: 

Beef Stew – M

Boeuf à la Bourguignonne (Beef Burgundy) – M

Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup – M

Crab Bisque – FC

Curried Pumpkin and Peanut Soup – M or FC

Flageolet Bean and Ham Soup – M

French Onion Soup – M or FC

Ground Beef and Vegetable Soup – M

Gruyère Soup – FC

Hot and Sour Soup – M

Italian Sausage, Cannellini Beans, Pasta, and Kale Minestrone – M

Mulligatawny – M or FC

Mushroom Onion Soup – M or FC

Navy Bean Soup – M

Old Fashioned Chili – M

Potsticker Soup – M or FC

Russian Borscht – M

Savory Ham Hock and Dried Pea Soup – M

Soupa Avgolemono (Greek Egg and Lemon Soup) – FC

Tomato Soup with Lemon Cream – M or FC

Tortilla Soup – M

Turkey Meatball Soup – M

MY FAVORITE CAKES

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In keeping with my current decision to provide all my readers with my personal favorites, I offer my list of my favorite cake recipes. My decision to post these lists by category is explained if you read my post entitled My Favorite Appetizers. So, I am not going to bore you with why I am providing these lists multiple times. Just read all about it as referenced above.

Now, the first thing you must know about this category is that I truly love homemade cakes. But I do understand why so many people don’t bother. Too many office and home birthday parties featuring Safeway’s finest. (And that is not a slur against Safeway. They actually do pretty well at cake baking.) But rather a statement that home baked cakes can truly be delicious. And are usually a far sight better than cakes that come from your local grocery store. Or even a bakery. There truly is a difference. And I feel the cakes listed below are all outstanding.

Some are easy to make. Some not so much. A couple use a cake mix. Most not. But all are worthy of your effort, and I promise they will be very well received by your adult family and friends.

But I must also say that I don’t feel any of these cakes would be appreciated by children. They are cakes for older folks with more well-developed palates. So, I would not recommend making any of these cakes for a 5-year-old’s birthday celebration. You would be wasting your time and money. (Except of course if you bake two cakes. One for the kidlets and the other for the unlucky adults attending the event. They always need all the reinforcement they can get!) (Remember, I raised four kids. With lots of birthday celebrations with birthday cake and kid appropriate food. But there was always grown-up food and adult beverages for the older folk brave enough or crazy enough to attend.) (Fair is fair!)  

But for a dessert for a group of adults – go for it!

Well, that’s it for today. The sun is shining but it is cold out there. Mt. Baker is visible in all her glory, and our granddaughter Rebecca is coming over for a visit, so we are going out for dinner. Mr. C. has a rehearsal, but we are hoping he gets done in time to join us. If not, there’s leftover turkey soup at home.

So, all in all, a wonderful way to spend a Sunday. May you too enjoy your day.

Peace and love to all.  

My favorite cakes:

Apple Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Caramel Cake with Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting

Caribbean Black Fruit Cake (a Christmas favorite)

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Chocolate Bourbon Cake

Chocolate Orange Cake with White Chocolate Cointreau Frosting

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

German Chocolate Sheet Cake

Ginger Cake with Bourbon Caramel Sauce and Bourbon Whipped Cream

Holiday Fruit Cake (My son-in-law Willie hides this fruitcake from the rest of the      

  family when I send one in their Christmas goody package.) (It’s just that good!)

Kahlúa Bundt Cake

Mocha Chocolate Cake with Sour Cream Frosting

Rhubarb Coffee Cake with Cointreau Flavored Whipped Cream

Sour Cream Poppy Seed Cake

Tres Leche (Three Milks) Cake

MY FAVORITE APPETIZERS

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When entertaining, especially by those who do not know me well, I am invariably asked what my favorite appetizer, salad, casserole, etc. happens to be. And I am always at a loss how to answer the question. So, I decided to get my act together and prepare an answer when next I am asked this question. But limiting myself to only one dish in each category was an impossibility. Because after enjoying many wonderful, in this case, appetizers over the years, and sharing the recipes with you on this site, selecting even just a few required me to go back over each one and whittle the number down to a realistic number.

But how to narrow down my favorites? I realized there was only one way to do that. So, my criteria became – if I could only eat the same several dishes per category for the rest of my life, which ones would I choose? That became quite difficult, because I wouldn’t have posted any recipe on my blog unless I wanted to eat it again. But of course, like everyone, I have my all-time favorites.

But going through the process also gave me some insight into what I want to serve us over the next few years. Do I want to keep experimenting, or simply prepare our favorites and then re-introduce them to my readers? Actually, Mr. C. suggested that I re-post some of our favorites rather than always feeling like I needed to start from scratch. And since I have always appreciated his insight, I think I am going to go in that direction.

Now that doesn’t mean that no new recipes will be coming your way. Just not as many. Which leaves me not spending so much of my time on wasted endeavors.

So, you may not be seeing as many sparkling new recipes on this site. But rather a reminder that some of the best dishes have been around for a long time. And perhaps you too might profit by a reminder that Swedish Meatballs, for example, are not only a fabulous appetizer, but also a wonderful main dish.

So, without further ado – a list of my all-time favorite appetizer recipes. All the recipes are on this site with the titles given exactly as you will find them below.

And as always, peace and love to all.  

Bacon and Parmesan Stuffed Mushrooms

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

Baked Brie with Curry Powder, Chutney, and Toasted Pecans (under Two Brie, or not Two Brie, That is the Question)

Buffalo Wings

Butternut Squash, Blue Cheese, and Walnut Tart

Cheddar Pecan Crackers

Chunky Shrimp, Avocado, and Tomato Dip

Creamy Curry Dip

Crostini (great base for all kinds of spreads)

Deviled Eggs

French Chicken Liver Pâté

Grilled Marinated Prawns (can also be a main dish)

Guacamole

Hot Pepper Chicken Bites with Cilantro Sour Cream Sauce

Hummus A Tune Mr. C. (two recipes in one)

Marinated Goat Cheese

Mussels in Ancho Chili Cream Sauce

Olive Stuffed Cheese Balls

Onion Dip

Pastrami Roll Ups

Quick and Easy Party Mix

Rosemary Roasted Cashews

Smoked Salmon Spread

Southern Pimento Cheese Spread

Sun Dried Tomato and Basil Spread

Swedish Meatballs (can also be a main dish)

Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings (can also be a main dish served with rice)

Tapenade

Viennese Liptauer