Monthly Archives: August 2011

Chocolate Dipped Lemon Potato Candy

Posted on by

My first experience making this was a total disaster — well, maybe not. We gave away a ton of candy that Christmas, in every conceivable form. Gramma said, “Boil some potatoes and mash ‘em, then add powdered sugar and roll spoonfulls into balls then dip in chocolate.” So, I followed her directions. I wanted some serious candy, so I boiled up about 10 potatoes in a BIG pan. Then I started adding powdered sugar. By the bag(S). There were many bags of powdered sugar. (Yes, I had many bags on hand, I was a cake decorator – way back then – so I always had four or five bags of powdered sugar.)

I moved the candy to the bread bowl (a big honking ceramic thing I couldn’t lift if I tried) and kept mixing. Finally, I separated out a smaller amount and mixed more sugar in it, to get it stiff enough to make small balls. Mom went and got more powdered sugar to finish up the “potato candy” and we ended up using 12 bags of powdered sugar and there were about 20,000 pieces of potato candy rolling around our kitchen. Not all of it became chocolate coated.

I added different flavors, colors and “dippers” and we had every kind of potato candy conceivable to man that winter… And gave away boxes of potato candy to everyone on the planet, including all our neighbors (most of them moved away that winter) and most of the folks at church, some of the people Dad worked with, and anyone who came by to visit got a nice box of potato candy.

At the Christmas Bazaar, I sold (you guessed it) potato candy!

Potato Candy – that doesn’t take over your life…

1 SMALL potato – boiled and skinned – mash it well.
1 teaspoon butter mashed into potato
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest (fine shredded)
about three cups of powdered sugar – 1 cup at a time

make a soft dough (firm enough to work with easily) and form into balls about 1 inch in diameter.

8 ounces REAL chocolate chips
8 ounces edible paraffin

melt together chocolate and paraffin.

dip potato balls into chocolate and let set

These are incredible if you wrap the candy around a maraschino cherry, hazel nut, or other round flavor morsel. Try spiced gum drops for a nice surprise. Or add 1/2 cup coconut to the potato candy and cut the amount of sugar by about 1 cup. Amazingly like Mounds candybars.

We also made some cherry mash using the potato candy as the base. I have no idea what we used to help it become cherry mash – but oh my gosh that was delicious!

Imagination goes a long way with this recipe.

Oh – the one potato variety makes about 3 cups of candy or about 100 candy drops, so you may still want to give some away. And your friends that you give candy to, will be BACK next Christmas for more candy! It’s addictive. YUM!

Apricot Glazed Chicken and Rice Dinner

Posted on by

Here’s a family favorite, takes about twenty minutes to prepare from start to finish, and you’re sitting down to dinner.

Put water on for rice – enough for 4 – 5 servings. Bring to a boil while you start chicken. Once boiling, add rice, cover and remove from heat.

In a cast iron skillet, sizzle chicken strips 3/4 per person in about 1 tablespoon of olive oil until white through. Add 1 – 6 ounce jar Smuckers Apricot Preserves (unless you have homemade preserves – then use those). Toss lightly. (Less or more depending on how many you’re cooking for.)

Steam Broccoli Spears on top of stove while everything else is cooking.

If you’re having company, or just want to serve dessert, our favorite with this meal is a cherry pie or quick cherry compote with real whipped cream. You can always have one ready and in the freezer, or whip one up while you’re putting together the rest of the meal. Definitely worth waiting for is this Cherry Dessert!
Chocolate Decor

Quick Cherry Compote

Posted on by

Two cans cherry pie filling — in a square bake dish.

Cherry Compote - Delicious Dessert1 cup quick cook oat meal
1/4 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter

Stir all together (I use a pastry blender) until crumbly, sprinkle over cherries and bake at 350 until hot and bubbly – golden brown – about 25 minutes.

This is a quick and easy company ready dessert – serve with real whipped cream for added delight.

If you’re looking for pretty dishes to serve your family dinners, I recommend a visit to Country Treasures in Lamar, Colorado. Carol Owens, the owner of Country Treasures, is a local girl, home grown and dedicated to keeping family heirlooms a part of our community.

Sponsored by:
Country Treasures - Lamar, Colorado

Pasta Meal for Pot Luck

Posted on by

Everyone always asks what to take for a pot luck dinner at church, and this favorite keeps coming back year after year. We always enjoy revisiting the old favorites, because we know they are well loved.

Cook fresh pasta – any kind – a BIG Pot of it.

Add in all your favorite pasta veggies – chopped up bite size – fresh.
We add onion, bell pepper, tomato, corn (unusual – but delicious), grated carrots, celery, Zucchini, cucumber, chopped up chicken and some drained and rinsed black beans.

Drizzle on a bottle of Italian Salad dressing and toss lightly to coat all the pasta.

Season with salt and pepper if desired. Add in some fresh chopped basil and parsley and you’ve got a meal fit for a king!

Everyone at the pot luck is going to rave over this salad and it’s so easy, they’ll NEVER know, unless you tell them that you put it all together while the kids finished getting ready for church this morning. Talk about your soul saving, baptism type meal – this is it!

Chocolate Decor

Alvin’s Sombrero Surprises

Posted on by

Wrap your stetson around these apples, cowboys!

Alvin Grover was my cousin, I suppose he still is, although he’s been gone a long time. I don’t remember him ever fixing this dish, but it’s a favorite of ours, and I’d forgotten where it came from, until I received a copy of this family cookbook from Sharon Fleming of California. The recipe comes from Genevieve Grover (former post mistress from Springfield, CO) where she still resides. So, I’m not real sure if Alvin ever prepared it, or if it was just one of his favorite meals… If I were a betting woman, I’d be banking he never prepared it himself.

But, here is Alvin’s Sombrero Surprises

3/4 lb ground beef
catsup
1 tsp seasoned salt
dash of seasoned pepper
1 (10) package refrigerator biscuits (brand don’t matter, but we like Pillsbury ohhhooohooho)
prepared mustard
5 very thin onion slices
1/2 cup torn or shredded lettuce
5 slices American Cheese

Combine ground beef, seasoned salt and pepper. Shape into 5 patties about 3 inches around. In cast iron skillet, brown patties on both sides, drain off fat. On lightly floured board, roll out each biscuit to a five inch circle. Spread half the circles with catsup and mustard, place beef patty on each of these. Add an onion slice cover with lettuce. Cover with the other half of the circles of dough. Moisten edges with a bit of water and press together with a fork to seal. Prick top of each sandwich with a fork three times. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet, about 10 – 12 minutes until golden. Place a cheese slice on top of each and melt in oven about 3 minutes.

Refrigerator biscuits are wrapped around burgers and salad then baked and topped with cheese. Extra cheese is required for delicious results!

Whether or not Alvin made these for himself, I’m betting he enjoyed them frequently. I know my kids love ‘em. My grandkids have decided I’m the PERFECT Gramma because I remembered how to cook… Lucky me! I often make these in patterns the kids love – flowers, cars, boats, etc. and change up the fillings. I’ve been known to add pickles, and other healthy veggies to the Sombrero – which gives them even greater Surprise.

If Alvin’s watching, I know he’s proud of me for thinking about that little option!

Virginia Inman’s Green Chili Recipe

Posted on by

This chili recipe turned heads, rocked a few tails and burned a few holes back in the day. Lincoln School needed to raise funds for something (I can’t remember what) and the moms got together and decided to do a chili supper way back in 1965. That chili supper continued for many years, and they still have a chili supper almost every fall – even now. In fact, in 1996, the chili supper got snowed out, and they had to reschedule it, when Lamar, Colorado got 36 inches of snow.

Virginia Inman offered to make the green chili, and this is her recipe.

Brown cubed pork, with the bone in the pot, until completely done.
Add some chopped onions and stir fry until done.
Add in plenty of diced green chilis and continue simmering.
If these are fresh, simmer until they pale in color and become tender.
Add in the chicken broth from the chicken described below.

Simmer until this thickens to taste. You can thicken it with a little flour and water if you choose, but it will slowly thicken without that.

While all this cooks, put a chicken in a big pot to boil. Boil until chicken is done.
Add chicken broth to pork, onion and chili mixture and simmer while you prepare the chicken enchiladas (recipe below).

Chicken Enchiladas —

Use the chicken from the recipe above, remove all bones and chop into fine shredded bits.
Add in finely chopped onion.

Spoon into warm corn tortillas with monterey jack cheese and a little bit more green chili. Roll it up and bake enchiladas for about 20 minutes with a little green chili smothering them.

Top with cheese and serve with more green chili.

She didn’t share the specific amounts of anything, because these are usually made in HUGE amounts. So play with the recipe until you get it right.

The Tuna Alternative

Posted on by

Every family has their quick and ready dinner standbye — ours has been tuna and pineapple for several years, but tonight… My son changed that up a bit.

We were out of pineapple so he went straight for creative genius!

Tuna Sandwiches with a touch of… um… cranberry?

They were heavenly!

Tuna salad with mayo — the usual mix with a bit of pickle relish, boiled egg and onion. Throw in a handful of mozzarella cheese, and a couple handfuls of craisins. The slather onto bread as usual and serve with a few carrot sticks and some chips. Yummy delicious.

I never ever thought he’d replace pineapple in our quick and ready tuna dinner – but… he did!

Back to School Insanity Dinner

Posted on by

You know your kids will be starving when they get home from school, so keep plenty of fruit and healthy snacks on hand to tide them over for dinner, but be prepared with extra food on the table. One of the biggest events in most homes at the end of summer is that first dinner after school starts. Mom’s too busy to cook and there’s too much going on for any pre-planning, so whatever you make has to be ready to go – ahead of time.

In a gallon size plastic bag —

Put a whole chicken (this can be frozen before you put it in the bag), 2 cups each of chopped carrots, chopped celery, onion, and squash – or just pick five of your favorite summer veggies to throw in there – already chopped.

Mix up seasonings your family loves (we use dill, oregano, onion, garlic and paprika) throw these in the bag too. (about a table spoon of each)

Freeze bag for those days you won’t have time to cook.

The night before such a day – empty the bag into a large size crockpot, add 3 cups water and set to slow cook. By dinner time tomorrow – your dinner will be ready (chicken falling off the bone) and you can easily serve a ready made chicken stew to your hungry family.

Add some steamed rice or crusty bread to round out the meal.

If you happen to have a frozen pie to serve as dessert, you’ll have a house full of happy campers. Freeze your own homemade pies by baking and freezing an extra whenever you make a pie.

This easy to make freezer meal is a family favorite. We keep one or two on hand most of the time!

 

Eggplant Lasagna anyone?

Posted on by

Okay – I really have to get a camera ready for cook nights.

This recipe came out extra spectacular and I am going to share it (even without a good picture) because it just turned out so great.

Slice eggplant, paper thin, with a super sharp knife.

Slice a tomato just as thin and set them aside.

Slice an onion super thin, too.

(I cheated and bought a loaf of whole wheat bread from the store unsliced.) Slice a loaf of homemade whole wheat bread into super thin slices.

Layer the eggplant, tomato slices and bread slices in a bake dish with your favorite bottled tomato sauce – we really like a sundried tomato and basil one for this purpose.

In the middle, layer in ricotta and mozzarella cheese combined (about a half inch layer).

Top with more layers of eggplant, tomato, onion slices and bread slices topped with your bottled tomato sauce.

Finish off with a thick layer of mozzarella cheese and bake in a 350 degree oven for 1 1/2 hours.

Serve with salad and bread sticks. You’re going to LOVE this summer fresh veggie dish. It’s definitely one you’ll be pulling out for company too. YUM!