Thanksgiving 2009

All too quickly, Thanksgiving 2009 is history. All the planning, coordination of what time to cook what so that everything is ready on time, all the looking forward is now past. I trust yours was as special as ours was. Although we missed being with our boys and their wives, we were blessed to be with the rest of our family minus my nephew and his family who live in Colorado.

I just thought I would report that all the desserts I took to my sister's turned out great. My brother in law informed me that he tried all four that I brought (one was a pumpkin roll given to me by a friend) and that the apple pie was the best. (Here's a picture of the middle of the pie.) I had a half slice of the gingered pumpkin (outstanding!) and a half slice of the derby (very good too!).

I wonder what you either served at your home or took to someone else's home? I would love some recommendations for some great recipes! Leave me a comment and tell me how your Thanksgiving was. I would enjoy hearing from YOU! And if you tried one of my recipes, I hope you had good success. Most of all, I hope you realize all that you have to be thankful for. We are blessed indeed!

Beginning December1, I will have a special edition of My Recipe Box for the Christmas holidays. Be sure to check in daily!

Proud Kentuckians!

My husband is originally from Kentucky and although I was born in Michigan and lived there until I was 13, I claim Kentucky as my home. I lived in Kentucky from 7th grade until I got married when I was 20 (yes, I know--I was very young!). We may be partial, but we love Kentucky for its beautiful horse farms, rolling white fences, and these days, the mountains. (This picture was taken in my sister's neighborhood.) We have been back in Kentucky now since August and we still forget from time to time that we are actually here. We'll catch ourselves saying "When we go to Kentucky . . . " Then it dawns on us--we ARE in Kentucky! We are so happy to be back in the Bluegrass state, despite the fact that I heard today that we are to receive a higher than normal amount of snow this winter.

Another Kentucky favorite of ours is derby pie--or I should say Kentucky derby pie. It's almost as famous as the derby. It's a chocolaty, gooey pie that definitely calls for a tall glass of cold milk as its companion. This will be another dessert that I will be taking to my sister's when we go to Kentucky Thursday--oh yeah--we ARE in Kentucky!

1/2 c. butter

1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla

1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 c. broken English walnuts or pecans

1 6 oz. package chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and flour. Add vanilla. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Pour in unbaked 9" pie shell. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until top is golden brown.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

A Twist on Pumpkin Pie

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I think that's why I resent the push of the media to skim over it. It seems we go directly from Halloween right to Christmas. I know it honors the Lord when we take the time to be thankful. He has blessed us so much! Our hearts should overflow with praise to Him for his goodness. I heard someone say that if God hadn't done anything else but sent Jesus to save us, that would have been enough for us to praise Him through all eternity. If you are like me, you have that and so much more to be thankful for. I hope as you gather this week that you will take a few moments to express your thanks. Make a list and include not just the big things but the small things. They all come from the hand of God.

If you happen to be baking pumpkin pie for your Thanksgiving dinner, here's a recipe I found on the Cooking Light web site. It's pumpkin pie with a gingersnap topping and was rated with five stars. Who knows? Maybe this recipe will end up on your list of blessings!

Dianne to the Rescue!

A friend called out on Facebook (Hey, Joe Davis!) needing an easy dessert. Dianne to the rescue! This is another Pampered Chef recipe and one of my favorites. I just hope I'm not too late!

Banana Cream Supreme
16 graham crackers crushed or 1 1/4 c. crumbs
1/4 c. melted margarine
3 T. sugar
1 container (12 oz.) whipped topping
1 c. sour cream
1 package (3.4 oz) vanilla instant pudding and pie filling
3 medium bananas, sliced
2 T. pecans

Combine graham cracker crumbs and melted margarine. Press mixture onto flat bottom of springform pan (you could also use a pie plate). In a bowl, whisk together whipped topping and sour cream. Add pudding mix and combine well. Spread half of the filing over crust. Slice bananas over filling. Spread remaining filling over bananas. Crush pecans (I place them in a plastic storage bag and zip shut then crush with a rolling pin or meat mallet). Sprinkle over filling. You can garnish with raspberries if you like. You can eat this immediately or refrigerate for 30 minutes to reach a colder serving temperature.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Fall in a Cup!

I found a recipe this week in a Susan Branch book my sister had. Check out Susan's web site. Her books are filled with great ideas. This recipe appealed to me because I love the Pumpkin Pie Spice creamer that is available this time of year. Since I was visiting my sister, she obliged me and prepared this latte for dessert one evening. She wasn't crazy about it, but I thought it was very good. If you're calorie conscience, I think this is a good option for a treat since there's only 1 T. of brown sugar in a serving. Stir the ingredients in your favorite cup and drink in some fall!

Pumpkin Latte

2 heaping T. canned pumpkin
1 T. brown sugar
1 t. vanilla
1/2 t. pumpkin pie spice

Put all ingredients in a large mug. Fill cup halfway with coffee and stir well. Fill cup with hot milk and whisk. Top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

Fall Flavors Continued

I mentioned in my post yesterday that I was serving popovers along with the seafood chowder. Popovers are a very, very simple bread to make and take very few ingredients. They are very unusual but a favorite of mine and my husband. They are baked in a very hot oven for about 45 minutes and as they bake, they get very big and nice and brown. When you tear the popover open, you will see it is pretty much hollow inside with a very crunchy outside. It's a delicious accompaniment with soup. My one caution is not to overbeat them. If you do, they won't puff up. Enjoy!

Popovers
1 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
1 c. milk
2 eggs

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Combine all ingredients and beat just until smooth. (Overbeating will reduce volume.) Pour into well-greased deep muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake 40-45 minutes until golden brown. If not baked long enough, they will collapse. Serve at once.

(Yields 5-9 popovers)

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.

The Taste of Fall

I don't know if you're like me, but I have certain dishes that I save for specific seasons. Some of my fall favorites are chili, Swiss steak, apple cake, and many soups. I love to make soup because they are so satisfying to the stomach as well as the nose! There is something very comforting about walking into the house on a cool day and smelling something wonderful simmering away on the stove. I am having company tonight and although the weather is a bit warmer, the calendar says November so I better take advantage of the season. Winter will bring flavors and favorites of its own.

This recipe is from Pampered Chef and is simple to make and very hearty. I like soups because you can make them a couple days in advance then reheat when ready to serve. (Just be careful when you reheat this one not to overcook the shrimp which will make them tough.) I plan to serve cole slaw and popovers with my chowder tonight. Get out your Dutch oven and make a pot of chowder this week--hurry though, fall is flying by!

Seafood Chowder

4-5 medium red potatoes, cut into 1" cubes
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. sliced carrots
1 c. diced red bell pepper
2 cans (6 1/2 oz. each) minced clams, drained, reserving juice
1 T. butter or margarine
2 14.5 oz. cans chicken broth
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. black pepper
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. half and half (light cream--I buy the low-fat)
1 lb. fresh by scallops
1 lb. frozen cooked medium shrimp, thawed, rinsed and tails removed
Snipped parsley

Cut potatoes into 1" cubes to measure 3 cups. Chop ion, slice carrots, celery and dice bell pepper. Drain clams reserving clam juice. If clam juice does not measure 1 cup, add enough water to equal 1 cup.
Melt butter in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion; cook 3 minutes or until onion is tender. Add potatoes, carrots, celery, bell pepper, reserved clam juice, chicken broth, salt and black pepper. Bring to a boil; cover. Reduce heat and simmer 3 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Meanwhile, measure flour into a small bowl. Whisk in half-and-half until smooth.
Add clams, scallops and shrimp to chowder; gradually whisk in flour mixture. Return to a boil; cook 2 minutes or until thickened, stirring constantly. Cover until ready to serve. Sprinkle with parsley. (Yield: 12 servings)

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.)

Caramel Chews--A Great Gift

If you are like me, along with cookbooks and recipe boxes that hold favorite recipe cards, you have many loose sheets of 8 1/2" x 11" paper that hold recipes that you have printed off of the internet (and maybe even some of mine from this blog!). A couple years ago I found a great three-ring binder made just for these papers. It has a stand in the back that I can pop out when I am using one of the recipes. I purchased some tabs that I could write on to separate my recipes into categories. I purchased my binder at Wal-Mart but you can probably find them at any store that sells scapbooking materials. I found a recipe binder at Big Lots the other day for $4. I highly recommend one if you're a recipe collector.

As I was going through my binder today trying to find an idea for something to take to our church bake sale this Sunday, I came across a recipe I printed off August 9, 1999. It is definitely a keeper and my chosen recipe for the sale. It is for Katie Brown's Carmel Chews. They are relatively easy to make, they are chewy, DELICIOUS, and they make a pan full! I can easily have two or three bags to offer for the auction and maybe even send some to a homesick niece at college. As Ina Garten says, "Who wouldn't like that?"

If you have a gift to make, an item to make for a bake sale, or someone who would just appreciate a homemade candy, try these. It is a little tedious wrapping each caramel but trust, me--it's worth every minute. Print the recipe off--and buy yourself a binder. You'll want to keep this one!

Caramel Chews

1 c. butter
2 c. sugar
1 c. light corn syrup
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 t. vanilla
2 c. broken walnuts, pecans, almonds or peanuts

Slice butter into pieces and melt in saucepan. Add sugar, corn syrup and sweetened condensed milk. Stir constantly and cook until it reaches 240 degrees on a candy thermometer. Mixture will turn a golden color. Remove from heat and add nuts; stir in vanilla.
Pour into lightly greased jelly roll size pan. (Using butter to grease your pan will give the chews more flavor and allow them to slip out of the pan easily.) Let cool and harden at room temperature for 2-3 hours. They are ready to cut when you press down on them and it doesn't leave a mark.
Cut waxed paper into squares. Use a flexible spatula to cut out chews in approximately 1" x 2" pieces. Wrap in waxed paper by rolling it and twisting the ends.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe.