Mom's Kitchen
When I checked at the store for the
cheese I mentioned before, they were sold out. I'll keep trying and post our comments once I'm successful in finding it in stock.
Trevor (Mr. Cheese) will be my primary taste-tester. Forget grains, his version of the
food pyramid has a very broad base made of cheese.
I shouldn't talk, my ideal pyramid would be based on chocolate.
North Carolina State Fair Winning RecipesIowa Farm Bureau:
Cookout Contest Recipes from the State Fair
Wisconsin State Fair Winning Recipes:
Oriental Summertime Salad, Barbecue Sauce, Old Fashioned Sausage and Peppers, Beef and Rice Enchiladas, Pina Colada Bread, Marbled Maple Cheesecake, Frango Chocolate Cappuccino Mousse Pie, and Frango Raspberry Mint Brownies.
Winning Cake Recipes from the Logan County (Illinois) Fair.
First place:
Sour Cream Chocolate Cake (Jack Buckley)
1 cup baking cocoa
1 cup boiling water
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream (8 ounces)
Dissolve cocoa in water; set aside. In a mixing bowl cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with cocoa mixture and sour cream. Pour into three greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, until tester comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
Frosting
6 cups powdered sugar
2 sticks butter
4-6 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 teaspoon almond
1/2 cup cocoa
Mix until light and fluffy.
Make your own
Sweetened Condensed Milk from
Go.Memphis.com Food & Dining3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup boiling water
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. powdered milk
Dissolve sugar in boiling water. Pour into blender container and add powdered milk. Blend. Refrigerate overnight. Use in recipes calling for sweetened condensed milk. (Double to equal 14-ounce can.)
From the American Institute for Cancer Research: Origins of the
Clean Plate ClubThe origins of the admonishment to clean your plate aren't clear, but it was an idea that was promoted in the U.S. during both World Wars. What is forgotten now in the days of super-sized portions is that part of the original premise was to take no more than you needed.
When you eat out and are served gigantic portions, forget what you learned as a child, you don't have to eat it all.* Yes, you paid for all the food now and hate to waste the money, but think what you'll save on diet books later. Yes, people are starving in (China, Africa, your own city) but finishing everything on your plate isn't going to help them.
*There are always exceptions to not having to clean your plate.
This is one. Eating reasonably doesn't mean you can't indulge in a favorite.
The
Courier-Journal has an article about a Kentucky farm that produces cheese. I haven't tried it but will try to make a trip to one of the locations that sell it here locally. I'll post when I get that done...it might be faster for you to
order some of your own online. (So far my to-do list today includes going to the Girl Scout Council offices in Louisville, my younger son's basketball game, my daughter's gymnastics, and a trip to the pediatrician.)
Check out
I Love Cheese for other cheesemakers and recipes.
Trevor, my oldest son, made dinner Tuesday night. Until now most of his cooking has consisted of heating up frozen foods in the microwave. He cooked
Fettuccine Alfredo for us and it turned out really well. (That means even the younger kids had to admit he did a good job fixing dinner.) The original recipe came from
Betty Crocker's New Cookbook.
8 ounces uncooked fettuccine
1/2 cup butter
1 cup cream
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper (use white pepper if you have it)
chopped parsley
Cook fettuccine in boiling water (as per the directions on the package.)
While it is cooking, heat the butter and cream in a 2-quart saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until the butter melts. Stir in cheese, salt, and pepper.
Drain the cooked fettuccine. Pour sauce over fettuccine, toss until well coated. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.
Notes - This makes six 3/4 cup servings. This really is a simple recipe to prepare and is nice enough to serve to company. You can stir cooked chicken or shrimp into the sauce if you want.
We doubled the recipe since we were having it as the main dish. We also had garlic bread (remind me to tell the boy to go easy on the garlic next time!) and a fruit salad.
You can substitute margarine for the butter...but the calories are about the same and butter is so much better tasting.
You can use regular black pepper but if you have white, use it. The sauce looks nicer without the small black specks.
Next Friday is homecoming at my son's high school. In honor of the event, here's a recipe for
Sweet and Spicy Football Cookies from the Decatur Daily in Alabama. The article by Patrice Stewart includes a couple of other recipes recommended for tailgating parties.
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
1 large egg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2¾ cups buttermilk biscuit and baking mix
1 cup (6 ounces) white "chocolate" chips
2 teaspoons shortening
In large mixer bowl, beat brown sugar and butter until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add egg, ginger, cinnamon and cloves; beat until light and fluffy. Add biscuit and baking mix, beating on low speed to combine. Chill dough for at least 1 hour.
On surface dusted with additional biscuit and baking mix, roll out half of dough to 1/8-inch thickness. With cookie cutter, cut out football shapes (or other shapes as desired). Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until tops are no longer moist. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough.
To decorate, place white chocolate chips and shortening in heavy-duty resealable plastic bag; microwave on medium for 3 to 4 minutes, massaging bag every minute, or until chips are melted. Cut off tip of one corner of bag. Pipe melted white chocolate onto cookies to resemble laces on footballs. Makes 4 to 5 dozen cookies, depending on size of cutter.
Note: To make sandwich cookies, spread additional melted white chocolate on top of cookie. Top with another cookie. Decorate as directed above.
Make your own
corn dogs (Link via The Sun in Bremer, Washington. Article by Louise Durman of
The Knoxville News-Sentinel in Tennessee )
CORN DOGS
8 to 10 hot dogs
8 to 10 wooden sticks
Vegetable oil for deep-frying
Batter
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons solid shortening
1 slightly beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir in cornmeal. Cut in shortening.
Combine egg and milk and add to mixture. To ensure that batter adheres to hot dogs, wipe them off with a paper towel.
Insert sticks into hot dogs or use a fork to roll hot dogs in batter until coated.
(Another trick is to pour the batter into a tall glass for easy dipping.)
Deep-fry in hot vegetable oil at 350 to 375 degrees for 4 to 5 minutes.
Drain on paper towels.
Note: If batter is too thick, add a little milk.
Use good-quality hot dogs.
Oil can be refrigerated and reused.
The most popular section of Mom's Kitchen last month was the listing of
food companies. The most popular single recipe was
Honey Hot Wings.
One of my favorite resources for recipes and crafts is
AZCentral.com, a partner of the Arizona Republic newspaper. The
Food & Home section has a searchable recipe index, online cooking videos (requires RealPlayer), a beer guide, a chocolate guide (!!), and basic step-by-step cooking lessons.
The craft section has an
archive of projects. The latest one tells how to make
tissue paper flowers.
