Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

I have collected so many recipes over the years, but the ones I have kept the longest were from college--from  roommates or classes or church homemaking activities.  This is a favorite every time I make it--which isn't often enough.  Everyone raves about it.  I had never even heard of rhubarb until Mom Metzger made it for Sunday dessert when I went home with my roommate, Cindy, over break.  I was like, "That looks like celery, but it's red.  Is it a fruit or a vegetable?" (that's probably not what I actually said.  It was 1980.  Who remembers?)  Whatever...it was amazing.  I made the pie a few days ago and decided I needed to know what kind of food this was.  Check out the collage below for the answer.

Ingredients:

1 qt. rhubarb, cut up into 1/2" little chunks 

3/4 - 1 cup sugar

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/4 cup tapioca

3-oz. strawberry Jell-O

about 1/4 - 1/2 cup of water

1.  Mix everything but the Jell-O together in a large saucepan and bring to a boil.

2.  Add the Jell-O and stir to evenly combine.  

3.  Pour into prepared pie crust. Dot with butter, if desired.

4.  Place top crust over pie and flute the edges to seal.

5.  Cut slits in top crust to vent.

6.  Bake 40 minutes at 425 F.

7.  Cool in refrigerator.

*Note:  the filling may boil over a bit so be sure to have something under your pie to catch any drippings.

Source: Cindy Wilson's Mom in Buhl, Idaho, 1980.

Rosemary Olive Oil Bread

Sometimes I just forget about Pinterest.  Can you even fathom that?  And really, that is not a bad thing.  But once in a while I will go to my boards and find something that I really want to try.  This week it is this yummy bread--reminiscent of the bread at Macaroni Grill.  Just sayin'.  When I made this tonight, I put together a little "Italian Salsa" to dip the bread in, just like in a restaurant.  When we lived El Paso, Texas,  we went to another Italian place called Johnny Carino's--best Chicken Scaloppini on the planet, by the way--and when the waiter brought out the bread, he poured some olive oil in a little plate, added a little balsamic vinegar and some herbs and BAM!  He called it Italian Salsa.  You know because we were in Mexican salsa territory.  Get it?

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water (100-110 degrees F)

1 T. sugar

2 t. active dry yeast

1 t. salt

2 T. fresh rosemary, chopped (you can use 2 t. dried, instead)

1/4 t. Italian seasoning

1/4 t. black pepper

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour 

1/2 cup bread flour, plus extra for kneading

1 egg, whisked with 1 T. water, for egg wash

dried rosemary for sprinkling on top

Directions:

1.  In a large bowl, combine the warm water, sugar and yeast.  Let sit 10 minutes to proof.

2.  Stir in the salt, fresh rosemary, seasonings, olive oil, and whole wheat flour.  Add the bread flour and stir until the dough forms a ball.  Knead on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes, adding in more flour to prevent sticking and for a smooth dough.

3.  Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl; cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

4.  Punch down the dough and form into a round loaf.  Place on a cornmeal dusted pizza peel or parchment paper (I used this), cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

5.  Meanwhile, preheat oven and a pizza stone to 400 degrees F.  When the dough has risen, gently brush top with egg wash and sprinkle with some dried rosemary.

6.  Bake  for 20-25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and sounds hollow when you tap on it.

SOURCE:  A Hint of Honey via Pinterest

Non-Alcoholic Substitutions

I don't know about you, but as a cook who doesn't partake of alcoholic beverages, I have a hard time figuring out what to substitute in recipes that call for wine and liquor.  I was looking through a cookbook the other day to figure out my next blog post and found this list of substitutions that seem to be pretty good.  It's a little lengthy, but comprehensive.

DESSERTS:

• Liquor/Liqueurs--sub an equal amount of fruit juice
• Wine--sub equal amount of fruit juice plus 1 T. vinegar

SAVORY DISHES:

• Liquor/Wine--sub equal amount of liquid: chicken, beef or vegetable broth, or even water.  Add 1 T. of red wine vinegar or white vinegar for a little zing.  Also consider available non-alcoholic wines, but still add a vinegar to balance their sweetness.

SPECIFIC SUGGESTIONS:

• 2 T. Grand Marnier or other orange-flavored liqueur--sub 2 T. unsweetened orange juice concentrate.
• 2 T. Rum/Brandy--sub water, white grape juice, or apple juice.
• 1/4 c.or more White Wine--sub equal measure of chicken broth, vegetable broth, or clam juice (If      using non-alcoholic wine, add 1 T. vinegar to cut the sweetness.
• 1/4 c. or more Red Wine--sub equal amount of chicken broth, beef broth, vegetable broth, clam juice, flavored vinegar, fruit juices, apples cider, and non-alcoholic wines (remember the vinegar trick).

SUBSTITUTIONS THAT INCLUDE EXTRACTS:

• 2 T. Grand Marnier or other orange-flavored liqueur--sub 2 T. orange juice and 1/2 t. orange extract.
• 2 T. Rum/Brandy--sub 1/2 to 1 t. rum or brandy extract for recipes in which liquid amount is not crucial.  Add water, white grape juice, or apple juice, if necessary, to get the right amount of liquid.
• 2 T. Amaretto--sub 1/4 to 1/2 t. almond extract.
• 2 T. Sherry or Bourbon--sub 1 to 2 t. vanilla extract.
• 2 T. Chocolate Liqueur--sub 1/2 to 1 t. chocolate extract plus 1/2 to 1 t. coffee granules dissolved in 2 T. water (I don't drink coffee either, so if you know of another way, let me know)
• For 1/4 c. or more port wine/sweet sherry/rum/ brandy/fruit-flavored liqueur--sub equal measure of orange juice or apples juice plus 1 t. of corresponding flavored extract or vanilla extract.

Source: Just a list stuck in my cookbook.

Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

White Texas Sheet Cake

White Texas Sheet Cake.  Hmmmm.  For a southern girl who has only had the chocolate version, this seemed a bit unnatural, but I was game, so I tried the recipe for my daughter's 27th birthday.  Oh. My. Goodness. Gracious.  It was so good, and we were all snatching little pieces of it the rest of the evening.  I had to give half to my daughter to take home because I knew I would not be able to stay away from it.  Enjoy this.  And definitely use the coarse sugar sprinkles.

Ingredients:

1 c. butter

1 c. water

2 c. flour

2 c. sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 c. sour cream

1 T. almond extract

1 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

FROSTING: (Mix well in large bowl. Frost cooled cake.)

1/2 c. butter

1/4 c. milk

4 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1/2 t. almond extract

1.  Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

2.  In a saucepan, bring water and butter to boil and add to dry ingredients.

3.  Mix eggs and sour cream together in a small bowl and add to mix, along with almond extract.

4.  Pour into a jelly roll pan and bake at 375 degrees F. for 20 minutes.

5.  Cool and frost. Coarse sugar sprinkles are great on top.

SOURCE:  Shawni Pothier

Slow Cooker Roast Beef

I could not tell you how many times I have prepared a roast this way.  I learned it from a roommate in college, and have used it ever since.  Everyone loves it and I rarely fix it any other way.  So easy, so delish.  This is my favorite roast beef dish.  It's actually cooking in my CrockPot, as we speak.

Ingredients:

3-4 lb. chuck roast (cheaper cuts are fine, because the slow cooker tenderizes everything)

1 pkg. dry onion soup mix

1 10-oz can condensed cream of mushroom soup (Golden Mushroom is great, as well)

1.  Place roast in slow cooker.

2. Sprinkle onion soup mix over roast.

3.  Spread condensed soup over top of roast.

4.  Cook on HIGH 4-6 hours (you can cook this on low; just make the time adjustment.  I usually only have time to cook on HIGH!)

Low Country Beef & Rice

Have I ever told you how much I love one dish meals?  Seriously.  They just find me and I love to make them.  I found this one in a great cookbook that I have already shared.  It's called Saving Dinner.  So Sunday was a good day to throw this one together since I had been on church assignment 1 1/2 hours away for half the day.  And just a little note, I left out the fresh, chopped tomatoes when I first made this.  They were right there in the dish drain but we were in such a hurry to eat, I forgot about them.  I added them in the next day and reheated the dish for my supper and believe me it was even better!

Ingredients:

3/4 lb. extra-lean ground beef (I used a whole pound and it was fine.)

1 stalk celery, chopped fine (used my re-hydrated Thrive celery, already chopped.)

1 large onion, chopped (or re-hydrate some Thrive chopped onion, no tears.)

1 small green pepper, chopped (what do you think?  Yep, freeze-dried green peppers)

1 t. Cajun seasoning

1 cup oats (recipe did not specify, so I used quick oats)

3 cups brown rice (I had some Sushi rice to use up)

3 medium tomatoes, chopped--don't forget!!

2 11.5-oz. cans V-8 juice

1.  In a skillet, over medium-high heat, cook beef, celery, onion, bell pepper, and Cajun seasoning about 4 minutes, stirring frequently, until beef is brown and vegetables are tender.

2.  Blot any excess grease with a paper towel.  I didn't have any grease.

3.  Stir in oats and mix well.  Add remaining ingredients.

4.  Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to simmer, uncovered, for about 5 minutes.

Source:  Leanne Ely, "Saving Dinner: The Menus, Recipes, and Shopping Lists to Bring Your Family Back to the Table," p. 148.

Roasted Baby Red Potatoes with Garlic & Thyme

So how many great recipes have you gotten off of a food package?  Yeah, me too!  This one came in really handy.  I had to come up with a meal on the fly while in the meat section of Walmart.  I decided to get small red potatoes because they would cook fast and I did not have a lot of time after work to put this meal together.  As I was preparing to boil the potatoes--and I hate waiting for the water to boil--I saw this recipe on the bag and thought that roasting would be so much quicker.  And there you go--a tasty side dish that was not a lot of work.

Ingredients:
1.5 lbs. baby red potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
1 t. freshly ground black pepper
8 cloves garlic, chopped (I just used whatever minced garlic I had in the fridge.  I need to buy some more)
6 sprigs fresh thyme, or you can use dried thyme.

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  
2. Combine all ingredients in baking dish and mix well.
3. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender and browned.
4. Stir gently a couple of times during cooking time.
5. Remove from oven and serve warm.

NOTE:  I am going to add some chopped onion next time.  I think that would be really yummy.

SOURCE:  Melissa's Baby Red Potatoes, package recipe. Check out their site HERE.