Pam's Rhubarb Nut Bread

I an a note from my dear friend Pam about a week ago and she shared a quick bread recipe with with me and I thought that Rhubarb lovers out there might like to try it.

Pam's Rhubarb Bread

3/4 C. brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 C. buttermilk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. vanilla (remember, use the real thing, tastes better that way)
1 1/4 C. bread flour (Robin Hood will work here as well)
1 1/2 C. fresh rhubarb, diced
1/2 C. chopped nuts
1 1/2 tsp. butter, softened
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.
Combine the brown sugar and buttermilk in a bowl. Stir until smooth
Add the salt, soda, vanilla, and flour. Blend well until moist.
Fold in the rhubarb and nuts.
Pour batter into greased 8x4" loaf pan.

In a separate bowl, combine the butter and the granulated sugar. Mix until crumbly. Sprinkle over the batter in the loaf pan.

Bake @ 350F for 50-55 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Place on a wire rack to cool before slicing.

I haven't tried it yet,but it sounds good. My rhubarb plants are just new this year so I will have to wait until Betty brings some in from the farm to try it.
Makes 12 servings, if Den isn't slicing the loaf. Each serving is 153 calories and only 4 grams of fat. Not bad.

Enjoy!!!

God Bless and Hugs To All,Linda

Cheeseburger Chowder Gwen and Tori's Way

Hey, hope all is well with each of you today. Thanks for your prayers, thank you so very much!!!!

I had some commercial Cheeseburger Chowder today and liked it a great deal. Hey, I like comfort food and cheeseburgers are definitely comfort food in my book. It got me thinking of something that went on a year or so back. My sister-in-law, Gwen, and great-niece, Tori Lane, made Cheeseburger Chowder and took it to a soup supper at the Oakland Mills Church and took home the 1st prize. The recipe originated with a back issue of Taste of Home magazine and like all good cooks, and Gwen is a champ, she and Tori added their own touches to it. The last time Den and I were home I brought Tori an apron sized for her and when Vic and Linda got there they had a cookbook for her. I am thinking of putting together a Tori Lane Cookbook with Gwen's help. It will be a work in process as Gwen works some pretty wicked hours these days.
I have the original recipe below and have added the changes that Gwen and Tori made to make it their own. Give it a try. It is quick and hearty and sure to warm you up on a chilly spring evening.

Cheeseburger Chowder

"This is a family favorite for cold blustery days," writes Rebecca McCabe from Ekalaka, Montana. "It's very filling and an easy meal when served with corn bread or biscuits."
SERVINGS: 7
CATEGORY: Soup
METHOD:
TIME: Prep/Total Time: 30 min.
Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onion
1-1/2 cups water
3 teaspoons beef bouillon granules (Gwen uses a product called "Better Than Bouillon")
1/2 teaspoon salt (using Velveeta you might not want to add this in)
2 cups cubed red potatoes
1 celery rib, thinly sliced (Dave, my brother, isn't fond of the texture of cooked celery so Gwen chops this pretty finely in the food processor)
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2-1/2 cups milk, divided
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese (Gwen uses a 1/3 of a 2# block of Velveeta processed cheese, cubed. She likes the way this melts and blends better than the cheddar.)
Directions:
In a large saucepan, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the water, bouillon and salt. Add potatoes and celery. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Combine flour and 1/2 cup milk until smooth; gradually stir into beef mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Stir in the remaining milk; heat through. Stir in cheese until melted. Yield: 7 servings.

Hope that the rain clouds outside right now don't drop another tornado on the area. It is warm enough to make that happen. We have had plenty of rain over the past 6 or 7 days so I could skip the whole rain thing all together. I remember thinking that it was just about right for a tornado a few days ago and it sure enough took out the "Flying Squirrel" camp grounds at Pinicon Ridge Park not far from here. I don't think that anyone lost their lives but it make a total wreck out of a number of camper and one family lost their dog that was inside theirs. It is just warm enough to do it again and I hope I am wrong.

Well, you all take good care and think spring and blooming flowers.

God bless and Hugs To You All,
Linda

Greek Salad Dressing and Greek Salad

Greek SeasoningA traditional blend of lemon, garlic and oregano. To make GREEK SALAD DRESSING: Mix 2 TB. seasoning with 2 TB. water, let stand 5 min. Add ¼ Cup olive oil, ¼ Cup salad oil, 1/3 Cup red wine vinegar (or ¼ cup balsamic vinegar and 2 TB. water), plus 1 tsp. sugar if desired. Use to dress vegetable salads, tomatoes and red onion with feta cheese and olives, chicken and pasta salads, or a plain lettuce salad. For gyros, mix 1 TB. in 1 TB. water. Let stand 5 min., add 1 TB. olive oil and 1 TB. lemon juice. Combine with 1 lb. cubed lamb (traditional), pork or chicken, refrigerate 2 hours. Broil until browned. Mix 2-3 tsp. with 1 Cup yogurt and 2 TB. cucumber for gyro sauce. Great on grilled, baked or fried fish or chicken, rub on 1 tsp. per lb. Hand-mixed from: coarse salt, garlic, lemon, black pepper, Turkish oregano, marjoram.

I make this dressing adding a tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese to mix. We like it best with just EVOO being used.

The salad usually consists of baby greens, chopped tomatoes, slices of a sweet red onion, diced European cucumber, black or Greek olives and some chunks of Feta Cheese.

This seasoning and recipe are from Penzey’s Spices at www.Penzeys.com
Penzeys is one of the best places to mail order your favorite spices. The prices are reasonable and they are always flavorful and fresh.

God Bless and Hugs To All,
Linda

Linda's Peach Glazed Chicken Breast

1 full chicken breast, boneless and skinless, beaten to 1/4" thick or there abouts, and cut into 4 fairly equal portions.
1/2 C. flour, for dredging
Salt and pepper to taste (I also like to add a bit of Lawry's or Emeril's Essence
2-3 Tbsp. EVOO

Mix the dredge and flour each portion well. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and brown the portions on both sides. Continue cooking until the juices run clear. This only takes a few moments so don't walk away from it, over cooking these is not a good idea. At this point you can put them in a low oven covered if you like to keep warm for serving later.

Glaze:
1/3 C. peach preserves or jam
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. onion flakes
1 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
Mix well and heat in the microwave until melted and well blended.

When you serve the chicken, spoon the warm glaze over each portion at the time of serving. This would make about 4 servings. If these are big eaters, double it or make half again as much.

Homemade Focaccia Bread

I don't have a picture of this one but can tell you that it is one of our favorite breads in the summer. It makes the best veggie sandwiches with grilled egg plant, roasted red bell peppers and maybe a slice of provolone cheese and some pesto or Good Italian dressing. Den also like it just to dip in EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) and Parmesan cheese with a bit of cracked pepper. This recipe came from Allrecipes.com in 2008

Yes, you read it right, it only has one rising period.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 C. all purpose flour
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. active dry yeast
1 C. water
2 tbsp. EVOO
1 egg, slightly beaten
3 tbsps. additional of EVOO
1 tsp. crushed dried rosemary (I like to use fresh from you herb pot for this better than the dried)

Directions:
Combine 1 C. flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Mix well.
Heat water and 2 tbsp. of EVOO until just warm and add to the yeast mixture along with the egg.
Blend with and electric mixer at low speed until moistened.
Beat for 2 additional minutes
Stir in 1 3/4 C. flour while beating, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. (I like to use my kitchenaid stand mixer for this. For one thing it has splash guards and I can switch to the dough hook as the dough stiffen up. Make life a bit easier.)
Turn the dough on to a lightly floured surface and kneed in the remaining 3/4 C. flour.
Cover the dough with the bowl and let it rest for 5 mins..
Place the dough on a greased baking sheet. Roll out into a 12 inch circle Cover with greased plastic wrap and tea towel in a warm place for 30 minutes.

(Here I will tell you that dough is like a baby, it doesn't like it too warm or two cool. Betty gave me this tip and it works well. I turn my oven on to the lowest setting for just a wee bit of time. Don't let it get to the 170F or what ever, you just let it get warm and then you turn it off and leave the light bulb burning. Set you dough in the oven to raise. Works like a champ)

Uncover the dough and poke holes in it with the handle of wooden spoon at 1 inch intervals. (You can use your fingers, if you like.)
Drizzle the remaining 3 tbsp. of EVOO over the dough and sprinkle with the crushed rosemary. (If you are me and want to use fresh, just chop the leaves a bit to release the flavorful oils.

Bake at 400F for 17-27 minutes, depending on how crusty you like. As with all yeast breads, remove from the baking sheet or pan and cool on a rack.

This also makes good pizza dough.

Sour Cream Scones

I picked this one up from Betty Kruse's collection of good recipes. This is one of our favorites.

Sift together in a large bowl:

2 C. flour

3 Tbsp. sugar

2 Tsp. baking powder

3/4 Tsp. salt

1/2 Tsp. baking soda

Cut in to a course meal stage

1/3 C. cold butter

In a small bowl mix together:

1 C. sour cream

1 egg yolk

Add this to the flour mixture.

If you like add in

1 C. softened dried fruit such as blueberries, cranberries, cherries, chopped apricots, raisins.

Mix just until the dough clings together. (You don't want to over work this kind of dough as it makes it tough and you want this to kind of melt in your mouth.)

Place on a lightly floured surface and divide into two equal portions. Form each portion into a round about 1/2 inch thick. Place each round carefully on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. With a sharp knife or dough scraper cut each round through into your desired portion sizes.

Brush lightly with one beaten egg white. Sprinkle with crystal sugar (this is sugar that is quite course and kind of gives it a sparkle.)

Bake at 400F for 12 minutes

Now if you want to try this this is Mock Clotted Cream (the Brit's like their scones with clotted cream and jam).

Beat together in a large bowl until well blended and slightly fluffy:

3 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/4 C. powdered sugar

1/4 C. sour cream

Add in:

1/2 C. heavy or whipping cream

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

This has kept up to 2 weeks covered and in the refrigerator for me. Denny likes it with just butter on it.

I hope that you enjoy this one, we do.

Gwen's Orange Pretzel Salad

This is Gwen Capps' take on this Pretzel Salad and it is tasty!!!!!!!

Orange Pretzel Salad

2 C. crushed small pretzels
3 tsp. sugar
3/4 C. butter, melted
Combine well and press into a 9x13 baking dish and bake at 350F for 10 minutes. Set aside.

Combine in a large bowl:
2 reg. pkgs. orange Jell-0
2 C. boiling water
Stir to dissolve the Jell-0
Add in:
2 8 oz cans crushed pineapple in it own juice, drained
1 11 oz. can Mandarine Oranges, drained
Still well and refrigerate until partially set.

In a smaller mixing bowl, whip until well blended and fluffy:
1 8 oz pkg. cream cheese, softened
3/4 C. sugar

Fold in
2 C. whipped topping, Cool Whip.

Build the salad.
Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the pretzels, now cooled.
Gently spoon the partially set Jell-O mixture over the cream cheese mixture

Cover and chill 2-4 hours or until firm

I have had this with Strawberries instead of the Mandarine oranges and using Strawberry Jell-O and it is very good as well.

God Bless and Hugs To All,
Linda

Spectaular Overnight Slaw and MOM's Cole Slaw Dressing

Vic's girlfriend, Linda brought a great slaw. I really don't like slaw that is just cabbage with mayo or Miracle Whip and called good. To me a dressing that involves oil, sugar and spices and may involve a bit of cooking makes the best dressing for any slaw. This one fits the bill. This is so good and has a nice variety of flavors and textures. The recipe came from a Taste of Home Prize Winning Recipes cook book from Spring 2005

Spectacular Overnight Slaw

1 med. head of cabbage, 2.5 pounds, shredded (you could go the easy route and use the bagged stuff as well)
1 med. red onion, sliced thinly (look for the onions that are more flat, not the big round ones, these flatter ones seem to be less strong than the round ones)
1/2 C. chopped green bell pepper
1/2 C. chopped red bell pepper
1/2 C. sliced stuffed green olives
Mix this well.

In a sauce pan:
1/2 C. white wine vinegar
1/2 C. canola oil
1/2 C. sugar
1 tsp. each salt, celery seeds and mustard seeds
Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Combine the cut veggies with the in a 4 qrt. container and mix gently. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.

Mix well before serving.

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MOM's Cole Slaw Dressing

In a heavy sauce pan, combine:
3/4 C. sugar
1Tbsp + 1 1/2 tsp. corn starch
Add:
1/2 C. good Cider Vinegar (that would like Hienz, some of it is just too acidic)
1/4 tsp. celery seeds

Cook to "clear" stage. Remove from the heat. Store covered in refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.

Fresh Strawberry Pie

Have you tried those jars or tubs of what they call "strawberry glaze" in the grocery store? The stuff kind of creates somewhere for the strawberries to reside for short cake or pie but it has no real taste beyond "sweet" and it is too loose for a pie. I call the stuff "strawberry slime" This pie is made with something that is "semi homemade" in that it uses strawberry Jello as it's binder and it actually has a taste. For me gone are the days of "strawberry slime". If you want to use this for short-cake, I would cut the cornstarch to 1 tablespoon. You are only cooking this long enough to go clear for you (the cornstarch is dissolved at that point, the longer you cook it, the more it sets up. Kind of like making gravy.). So here we go.

1 single crust pie shell, baked (you can use the graham cracker ones if you like, they are tasty as well)

In a sauce pan over medium heat combine:
1 C. sugar (Cindy would use 1/2 Splenda)
2 Tbsp. corn starch
1 1/4 C. cold water (Cindy would use 3/4 C. water and 1 C. crushed strawberries)
1 Tbsp. white corn syrup
1 reg. package of Strawberry flavored Jello

Bring this to a boil, stirring continually to dissolve the sugar and Jello. Allow it to boil for about 1 minute and remove from the heat. (You are replacing that red slime in the jar with this.)

Wash and hull 1 quart of lovely strawberries (Cindy uses 6 Cups total with one of these being crushed for the Jell-O mixture). Saving one really pretty one off to the side, don't hull this special one.

When the glaze has cooled enough that you aren't likely to cook the berries, slice the berries in to the glaze and stir gently to incorporate the berries. Turn the mixture in to your prepared pie shell. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

When you get ready to serve it you will need either Cool Whip or some Reddy Whip. In the very center of the top of the pie make a pool of fluffy whipped cream or Cool Whip. Now remember that berry that you were saving back. I want to you take a very sharp paring knife and holding it firmly but gently in one hand cut from the bottom toward the top but not through it about 5-6 times, making the cuts as evenly spaces as you can. Now using the hand that you cut the berry with, very gently force the berry into a fan. The top will be the bottom of the fan and the slices will fan out like a hand of cards. This strawberry fan is then gently laid in the center of whipped cream pool. Pretty as a picture and it tastes cool and yummy. Enjoy.

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I have added in the changes that my friend Cindy would make as her husband is diabetic. It would reduce the calories as well for those of you watching you waist line.

Happy spring/summer/fall fresh fruits and veggie season.

God Bless and Hugs To All,
Linda

Crock Pot Corn

I had this last Saturday at the luncheon that we did for the group that was singing at the Greeley Church and it tasted so much like the way Mom and I make corn to freeze that I thought that I would pass it on.

First, when Mom and I prepare corn to freeze, we cut it off the cob and in to a large pot. (We don't measure so forgive me if this isn't really a recipe that you might think of as being in a cook book. ) We have done like a dozen large ears this way, so go from there if you are going to try this. We bring the corn in the pot to a simmer slowly. Add a stick of real butter, about 3/4 Cup sugar, 2 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper. Simmer this until the butter is melted, stirring to keep it from scorching, just a few moments. You are kind of blanching it. We put the cooled corn in zip-lock freezer bags and use as we need by just reheating. It tastes like fresh.

The corn that we had this past Saturday with Mini Meatloaves, twice baked potatoes and salad and strawberry pretzel salad was wonderful and tasted so muck like what Mom and I do that I thought that I would share it with you. This is done in a crock pot and for that reason, count on it taking an hour to make.

Crock Pot Corn
From Renee Johnson


2 16 oz. bags of frozen corn
8 oz. cream cheese
1 stick butter
1/2 C. sugar
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Cook this is your crock pot. Stir occasionally.

Works well for pot lucks, family gathering and such.

God Bless and Hugs To All,
Linda