Monday, June 27, 2011

Calling Outdoorsmen! Coot Stew!

I don't think I need to say much about this, other than to say that this guy is clearly a manly man/artist.
You can tell because there is only one butterfly in his gun-centric still life. Not to mention his recipe humor.

Down East Coot Stew

My father had, what he always claimed was a recipe for the finest stew a man could sit down to:
Pluck and singe four or five white winged coot (mud hens).

Marinate the skinned and dressed birds, along with a block of pine wood (needed to remove gaminess) in a solution of water and vinegar for a period of two days, or at least overnight. After marination period; place birds in a large kettle. Add salt, pepper and herbs to taste, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer along with pine block.

When nearly tender, add several large potatoes, carrots, turnip, parsnip, onions, and continue cooking until all is properly succulent. Then throw away the Coot and serve vegetables along with the pine block.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Baked Macaroni d'Olive Oyl soeur

There is something troubling about this page.

Or perhaps "depressing" is a better word for it.

Take a look at the picture. Then couple it with the recipe below.

Then click here to cheer yourself back up.

Baked Macaroni

2 cups elbow macaroni
Large can whole tomatoes
1/2 lb. American cheese sliced

Place ingredients in casserole in layers finishing with cheese. Bake in 350 degree oven 10 to 15 minutes or until cheese bubbles.

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Cheese "Fondue"

I'm a huge fan of cheese fondue. Who isn't? It's gooey, unctuous, rich, deliciousness.

But the kind I'm familiar with is kept warmly viscous in a heated pot, awaiting chunks of bread and veggies to be dipped. The recipe below sounds as if it could very well be slice-able.

What gives?

Cheese Fondue
(an often used old South Hampton Recipe)
1 cup milk
3 eggs
1/2 lb. grated cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup soft bread crumbs
1 tbsp. butter

Pour milk over the bread crumbs, add salt, cheese and well-beaten yolks of eggs. Mix thoroughly. Cut and fold in the stiffly beaten whites and pour mixture into a greased baking dish. Bake in a moderate oven (325 degrees) until firm (20 min.). Serve at once.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Baked Chicken Not-so-Continental

This lady looks like a sophisticate to me. Check out her simple but chic hairstyle and circle necklace.

The artwork is also rather sophisticated. It has a certain elegant simplicity.

The recipe that follows sounds as if it would have a similar sophistication, but take a closer look. Can a recipe containing this many prepared American ingredients really be named "continental".

I think NOT.

Not unless you spell "continental" C-A-M-P-B-E-L-L-S.

Baked Chicken Continental

1 1/2 cups Minute Rice - put in buttered casserole.
Heat 1 can cream of mushroom soup and 1 can celery soup with 3/4 cups milk. Pour over the rice and mix well.

Lay chicken pieces on top (one chicken) and sprinkle with 1/2 package of onion soup mix. Cover with foil and bake 2 hours or longer at 325 degrees F. Serves four generously.

Hints: use a flat pan like a cake pan (large) or small roaster because it is better if the pieces of chicken are spread out and not on top of each other. If you double the recipe for a larger group, I suggest that you use two pans or one larger roaster so pieces can be spread out. For variety this dash may be prepared using only chicken breasts. This dish served with a vegetable and salad makes a very complete meal.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Newburyport Art Association's Artists Directory & Cookbook

Time for a new cookbook! Yippee!

The recipes featured in coming days will be from the Newburyport Art Association's Artists Directory & Cookbook from 1971.


I love community cookbooks of all kinds, and this one has a special twist. Each artist's page contains a photo or picture of the artist, a sample of their work, and a recipe. It's fascinating to connect the photo with it's choice of hairstyles and clothing, the artwork which often reflects the highly stylized era, and the recipe. Each one is evocative of its day.

While technically a 1970's book, most of the recipes have an older feel, as you will see if you follow along in upcoming posts.

Some the ads in the back of the book are a trip. Take the groovy example below:

Or the fantastic hairstyles in this one:


Imagine the cans of hairspray sacrificed in the making of those dos!

This ad is a favorite because it's for my bank, which still looks exactly like the illustration, right down to the curtains.

It's good to know that some things don't change, especially good things like this gorgeous old building.

Upcoming posts will highlight recipes that have changed, recipes that have remained the same, and recipes that have gone away entirely (perhaps for the better.) You be the judge of which is which.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Where have all the puddings gone? (Auntie's Date-Apple Pudding)

Something happened in the dessert world during the 1970s.

Something earth shattering. Pole shifting. Cataclysmic.

And yet something so subtle we didn't even notice it happening.

For some reason, we stopped making pudding. (If I was a betting woman, I'd wager that Bill Cosby had something to do with it.)

Pudding as an ubiquitous dessert option virtually ceased to exist in any form other than what comes from a box. Eventually you didn't even need a stove.

I've tried to fight the trend in small ways. I made tapioca pudding from scratch the other day, recognizing that it was a small splash of rebellion against a tidal wave of change. And I may grow even more daring, and try a recipe like the one below, despite having no knowledge whatsoever of who "Auntie" might be.

What's the worst that could happen? JELL-O brand takes a contract out on me?

Auntie's Date-Apple Pudding
A butterschotchy pudding rich in apples, dates, and nuts.

1 cup brown sugar (packed)
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 1/4 cups water
1 cup chopped dates
1 cup chopped apples
2 tbsp. butter
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1 cup broken walnuts

Mix brown sugar and cornstarch in 2-qt. saucepan. Gradually stir in water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil 1 min. Add dates, apples, butter, and vanilla. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature, add nuts, then chill. Serve in sherbet glasses. Top with whipped cream, if desired. 6 to 8 servings.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Peach-Cantaloupe Pie

Not sure about you, but I've not come across a recipe which calls for cooking cantaloupe before.


I'm not a huge fan of the stuff, and I can't see how cooking it would improve the situation, but I'm sure many of you are major cantaloupe-heads looking for ways to eat it other than in ball form.

In which case, this recipe is for you.

Peach-Cantaloupe Pie
Pastry for 9" Two-crust Pie
2 cups fresh peach slices
2 cups thinly sliced cantaloupe
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 tbsp. butter

Heat oven to 425 degrees (hot). Combine peaches with cantaloupe; toss with mixture of sugar, flour, and salt. Arrange fruit in pastry-lined pie pan. Sprinkle with nuts, dot with butter. Cover with top pastry; bake 35 to 40 min.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Cranberry Delight Pie

While I find many of the recipes in these old books entertaining, there are many more that I'd like to actually try. Here's one on that list. I love cranberries, and have been tweaking several of my own cranberry recipes lately, so this one caught my attention.


Cranberry Delight Pie
Perfect for any holiday party.
8" Baked Pie Shell
1/2 lb. marshmallows
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup ground fresh cranberries (2 to 2 1/2 cups unground)
1 tbsp. grated orange rind
1 cup whipping cream, whipped

Place marshmallows and milk in top of double boiler; heat over hot water until marshmallows melt. Then chill until the consistency of thick whipped ream. Drain excess juice off cranberries until quite dry. Fold in cranberries and orange rind. Chill until thick (almost holds shape when spatula is drawn through). Fold in whipped cream. Pour into cooled pie shell. Chill until set (about 2 hr.). Remove from refrigerator 20 min. before serving.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Happy Father's Day: Dad Cooks Out!

The main reason I'm including this recipe is the nifty illustration at the top of the page.


Doesn't this look just like your dad when he's grilling? It sure looks like mine.


The Hearty Green Bean-Sausage Casserole doesn't seem exactly like a cookout dish, but whatever. It was right below the picture of your dad, so be quiet.

It's probably a good idea that they didn't include a picture of the dish itself. Consider the combination of sausage, tomatoes, and green beans in a gravy base. Gordon Ramsay might say it looks like a dogs dinner, which is more polite than the comparison I would have used.

Despite the potential appearance, let's not be hasty. It may well be delicious.

Ask your dad to make it at the next family cookout. But maybe he should lose the pipe.

Hearty Green Bean-Sausage Casserole
Tomatoes and green beans add garden-fresh flavor and appealing color to this tempting supper dish.
1 lb. bulk pork sausage
1 cup sliced onion
3 to 4 tbs. unsifted Gold Medal Flour
2 1/2 cups cooked tomatoes (1 lb. 4-oz. can)
2 cups cooked fresh green beans
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Biscuit Topping (below)

Heat oven to 425 degrees (hot). Brown sausage and onion over low heat. (Break up sausage with fork.) Drain off excess fat. Stir in flour; stir in vegetables and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Pour into 2-qt. baking dish. Immediately top with Biscuit Topping. Bake 20 min. 6 to 8 servings.

Biscuit Topping: Add 1/3 cup milk all at once to 1 cup Bisquick. Beat hard 20 strokes; knead 8 to 10 times. Roll into 9" circle; cut in 8 wedges.

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Fancy Schmancy Fish

Nuff said.


(Ok, if you really want to know, this picture is for a dish called Buffet Salmon en Gelée. I know you aren't going to make it and so am not including the recipe. If you want to find out where the Jello comes in, you'll have to Google it.)

Friday, June 17, 2011

Lost Deliciousness: Wilted Greens

I'm not sure what happened over the last 30 years, but we threw some darned good recipes out with the hot dog water.

When I first began dating the guy who would become my husband, his mother used to make a salad dressed with a sugary, vinegary, bacon-y dressing that softened the lettuce and turned it into something altogether different. I'd never had it before, and thought the concept brilliant.

But then it just... disappeared.

She stopped making it. Haven't seen it in over 25 years.

I think it's about time that Wilted Greens made a comeback. Here's a recipe so you can do your part for the movement.

Wilted Greens
This salad should be served while the dressing is still hot.

Fry 4 slices bacon, cut up, until crisp. Add 1/4 cup vinegar, 2 tbsp. water. Heat. Pour over 1 qt. shredded greens (lettuce, spinach, endive, romaine, or a combination) tossed with 2 green onions, chopped, 1 tsp. salt, and pepper. Sprinkle 1 hard-cooked egg, chopped, on top. 6 servings.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

More recipes for ladies who lunched: Fonduloha

I'm starting to see why my Mom might have been intimidated by cooking for a ladies event. If the menus in the 1962 Betty Crocker's Cooking Calendar cookbook are any indication, ladies luncheons were not casual affairs. Clearly the menus were meant to impress.

Take the one below for example.

The name of the main dish alone is intimidating: Fonduloha. I can't pronounce it.

The book contains 7 or 8 ladies luncheon menus, and each of them is heavy on presentation. It must have been a lot of pressure.

Here's the recipe, in case you have a few friend's coming over later this week.

Fonduloha
Chicken Salad in Pineapple Boats

2 fresh pineapples
2 1/2 cups diced cooked chicken or turkey
3/4 cup diced celery
3/4 cup sliced bananas
1/3 cup salted peanuts
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp. chutney or 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 to 1 tsp. curry powder
1/2 cup shredded coconut
mandarin oranges

Cut pineapples into quarters lengthwise, leaving green tops on. Cut around edges with curved knife, remove fruit, and dice. Drain pineapples and pineapple shells very well on absorbent paper. Combine pineapple, chicken, celery, bananas, and peanuts in 3-qt. mixing bowl. In small bowl, blend mayonnaise, chutney and curry. Lightly toss mayonnaise mixture with pineapple mixture. Fill pineapple shells. Garnish with shredded coconut and mandarin oranges. 8 servings.

Angel Pie (Lemon Schaum Torte)

I was excited to see this recipe, because it is a repeated hotel menu item in the Emma Graham book series by Martha Grimes (which I highly recommend).


In the books it sounds luscious but there wasn't enough description to actually know what the heck it was.

And here, at last, it is!

Lemon Schaum Torte

Make Meringue Torte (below). Spread with cooled Lemon Torte Filling (below). Top with 1 cup whipping cream, stiffly whipped. Chill about 12 hr. before serving. 8 to 10 servings.

Meringue Torte: Heat oven to 275 degrees (slow). Beat 4 egg whites (1/2 cup) and 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar until frothy. Gradually beat in 1 cup sugar, a little at a time. Beat until very stiff and glossy. Tint, if desired, with food coloring. Spread on heavy brown paper on baking sheet in 8 or 9" round. Shape with back of spoon. Bake 60 min. Turn off oven and leave in until cool.

Lemon Torte Filling: Beat 4 egg yolks in small mixer bowl until thick and lemon-colored. Gradually beat in 1/2 cup sugar. Blend in 1/4 cup lemon juice and 2 tbsp. grated lemon rind. Cook over hot water, stirring constantly, until thick, 5 to 8 min. Cool.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

This is the way men like onions...

My mom occasionally made liver and onions when I was young, though if I remember correctly it was a dish she enjoyed solo.

The thing I love most about the recipe below is the caption under the title, which reads "This is the way men like onions--smothering tender slices of liver."

Ain't that the truth.
Fried Liver and Onions

Peel and slice medium sweet onions. Cook in hot bacon fat until golden. Cover and cook slowly until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Remove to warm plate and keep warm while frying liver.

Dip 1/2" thick slices of calves or baby beef liver (allow 1/4 lb. per serving) in flour. Brown in hot fat. Season. Cook over low heat 10 to 15 min., turning once. Serve hot, topped with onions.


Cabbage and Frank Jubilee

The 1960s may have been the hot dog recipe heyday. Here's a fine example, along with a snappy illustration of a sailor on shore leave.

By all means, feed that man some cabbage!

Cabbage and Frank Jubilee

8 cups coarsely shredded cabbage
2 cups Medium White Sauce
2 tbsp. prepared mustard
1 lb. weiners, cut diagonally in 1 1/2" pieces
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
2 tbsp. fine bread crumbs

Heat oven to 350 degrees (mod.). Cook cabbage covered in 1/2 to 1" boiling salted water, 5 min.; drain. Prepare White Sauce. Add mustard and mix thoroughly. Place half the cabbage in bottom of greased 2-qt. baking dish. Arrange half the winer pieces on top of the cabbage. Pour over half of the mustard sauce. Repeat layers. Top with cheese and fine bread crumbs. Cover and bake 35 to 40 min. 5 to 6 servings.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Turkey Divan and fear of pie-ing

When I was growing up, my mother was a competent cook who presented the simple, basic foods of the day. She didn't experiment much but stuck to her familiar repertoire. We had homemade sloppy joes, chili, boiled dinners, fish sticks, awesome potato and macaroni salads, and the occasional breakfast for dinner (which began my guilty love affair with Spam).

I still occasionally get a craving for macaroni mixed with sliced hot dogs and tomato soup or stewed tomatoes.

She occasionally made homemade bread, pickles, cinnamon rolls, and the best brownies I've ever eaten.

At the time I couldn't tell how she felt about cooking. It seemed like something that just needed to get done, and registered a sort of emotional neutral.

With two notable exceptions.

First, pie crust. For some reason making pie crust sent her into a tizzy. She had a primal fear of tearing. I eventually learned to leave the house when pie was in the making.

The results always turned out beautifully; the fluting on the crust looked like a picture from a magazine. I can't replicate it.

But was it really worth it?

Keep in mind, this was before the days of Xanax, and she wasn't a drinker. Where was all that angst supposed to go?

To this day, the legacy of crust avoidance continues. I still fear the pie shell. I can only pray that my children will break the cycle and step into tart freedom. But only time will tell.

The second example of Mom's emotional cooking was the day she made chicken divan for a ladies event.

My mother was never the kind of woman who attended bridge parties or things of that sort. She was too busy working. I'm not sure what event therefore prompted the divan debacle, but it did involve ladies. And so I couldn't help but notice the recipe below, the starring dish of a Ladies Luncheon menu.

Looking back I know that it wasn't the recipe itself that gave her agita. Especially now, when I see her making spinach souffles, marinated asparagus, complicated desserts and many other dishes.

It was Something Else.

I'm guessing her fear was all about expectations. She didn't want to disappoint anyone. Same as with the pies.

Luckily she no longer seems to be burdened with such unnecessary food fears. Cooking after all is about love, and sharing. It is a gift of self, and should be judged as such.

That being said, I don't think I've ever made chicken divan. Nor am I planning to.

But for those of you adrenalin junkies who like to live on the edge, here's the recipe from the book.

Turkey Divan

1 1/2 lb. fresh broccoli or 2 pkg. (10oz. each) frozen broccoli spears
6 slices turkey (about 1/4" thick) or 1 1/2 to 2 cups pieces of turkey
6 slices cheese
1 can (14 1/2oz.) evaporated milk
1 can (10 1/2oz.) mushroom soup
1 can (3 1/2oz.) French fried onion rings

Heat oven to 350 degrees (mod.). Cook broccoli to crisp-tender stage. Put turkey in bottom of oblong baking dish, 11 1/2 x 7 1/2 x 1 1/2". Cover with broccoli; top with cheese slices and cover with mixture of milk and soup. Bake 25 min. Cover with onion rings and bake 5 min. more. 4 to 6 servings.

Monday, June 13, 2011

Betty Crocker's Cooking Calendar

I went through this cookbook today and pulled out a bunch of recipes for your delectation. It was the perfect thing to do on a gray and rainy afternoon.


It was published in 1962 by Golden Press. Can't remember where it came from but I think it was purchased at a thrift store. I love the illustrations!

In case you are wondering about the pasted in newspaper-clipped recipe, it is for Royal Hibernian brown loaf, an Irish soda bread served at the Royal Hibernian Hotel in Dublin.

The book isn't annotated, but there were two other recipes tucked into the cover, and a few pages are stained by mysterious ingredients blobbed on in years past.

I'll be posting recipes and other tidbits from it over the next few days.

Enjoy!

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Veggies ala 1964 (French Peas and Artichokes)

I'm fascinated with the way ingredients are specified in the recipes of today compared with those of our mothers, grandmothers, and great grandmothers. In Never in the Kitchen when Company Arrives, ingredients illustrate the place of respect that prepared foods held during the 1960's. The author was considered quite the gourmet, and yet many of her recipes contained canned and frozen vegetables.

Here is an interesting example.

French Peas and Artichokes

1/8 lb. butter
2 tablespoons frozen chopped onion
2 cans artichoke hearts (drained)
2 cans petis pois (drained)
Salt and fresh-ground pepper

Melt butter in a saucepan and pare frozen chopped onions into pan. Let cook over low heat for about 3 minutes, then add artichokes and turn gently to coat with butter-onion mixture. Butter a shallow casserole (from which the vegetables will be served) and make a bed of the peas. Spoon over the artichokes and any drippings from the pan. If not enough butter, dot with a little more. Cool, then cover with aluminum foil. In the evening, place in oven, covered, with broilers and potatoes.*

*Note: this dish is part of a menu, and was to be baked along with the Baby Broilers (chickens) and Tiny New Potatoes in their jackets.

---

(BTW, I'm wondering what paring would be needed for onions that are chopped...)

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Never in the kitchen when Balls Tartare arrive

Here's another recipe which is unlikely to appear in a more current tome. It's from a book called Never in the Kitchen when Company Arrives by Theresa A. Morse, published by Doubleday and Company Inc. in 1964.


Mrs. Morse' writing style is a pleasure to read. Here are some of her introductory comments in the Appetizers chapter:
"For some guests, this is the best part of the dinner. Others consider anything heartier than nibbles of vegetables, olives, or tiny crackers a menace designed to spoil appetites for the dinner that follows. Still others behave as though the calories involved in these particular viands are damaging to avoirdupois above all others.

If you know the tastes and preferences of your guests in this area, be guided accordingly. If entertaining calorie counters, don't mow them down with temptation. If starving young men, go overboard. If you are uncertain (usually the case) try to have enough variety to appeal to everyone. In any case, have the appetizers conveniently at hand, urge your guests to help themselves, then leave them alone.

When the cocktail hour first gets under way, I am always among those present. Long ago I discovered that if I'm out in the kitchen, broiling delicious tidbits, while my guests are cozily bending their elbows, I get a Cinderella-type feeling. So, unless a helper is in the kitchen to mind the appetizers, I limit myself to those that are tasty without benefit of oven."
Obviously so, Mrs. Morse, for here is one of your suggestions which requires no baking, saving you from coveting that which your ugly stepsisters get to enjoy.

Balls Tartare

1/2 pound top round or sirloin, ground twice
1/4 pound fresh sauerkraut
Salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
Chopped chives or parsley

Season the meat and form into 24 flat rounds. Drain the sauerkraut, chop very fine, and add the caraway seeds. Place 1/2 teaspoon of this mixture on each meat round and fold the meat over so that it entirely encloses the sauerkraut. Shape into small balls and roll in finely chopped chives or parsley. Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve. Have small glass filled with toothpicks on the platter.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Pinwheel Casserole

This recipe comes from the August 1950 issue of Women's Home Companion magazine. The thing that intrigues me most is the veiled advertisement for MSG.

Use of canned and other prepared ingredients is also interesting.

Might be fun to do an updated version of this one.



Pinwheel Casserole



Condensed cream of celery soup, 1 can
Milk, 2/3 cup or half evaporated milk and half water
Cooked vegetables, 3 cups mixed (lima beans, carrots and peas, or green beans)
Monosodium glutamate*, 1/8 teaspoon
Prepared biscuit mix, 1/14 cups
Milk, 1/3 cup or half evaporated milk and half water
Pimento, chopped, 2 tablespoons
Cheese, American Process, grated, ½ cup (2 ounces)

Combine soup and 2/3 cup milk in 1 ½ quart saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring until smooth. Add vegetables and monosodium glutamate. Pour into shallow baking dish (6 x 10 inches); place in hot oven 425° and heat until bubbly before adding pinwheels. While this heats combine biscuit mix and milk, stir just enough to blend. Turn out on lightly floured board and knead lightly a few times. Roll into rectangle about 8 by 12 inches. Sprinkle with pimiento and cheese. Starting with long side, roll up jelly-roll fashion; cut into 16 slices. Arrange sliced-side down on top of vegetable mixture. Bake in hot oven 425 for 20 to 30 minutes until pinwheels are well browned. Makes 6 servings.

*This unique seasoning (see it on your grocer’s shelf) enhances and blends food flavors. Try it too when cooking vegetables solo: a dash added to the water in which they’re cooked brings out the best in them.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

What's for dinner May 31, 2011

Last night's menu included salad, discount strip steaks (surprisingly tender, so I'm guessing the bones remaining in each one contributed to the low price), Hawaiian garlic toast, "Ranch Rings", and sautéed mushrooms and onions.

Dessert was a small handful of chocolate chips, eaten slowly.

I had the quasi-brilliant idea of making lower fat onion rings (aka Ranch Rings) by baking them in a coat of potato chips. Given that nearly a quarter bag of chips was used in the creation of the dish, I'm not sure that the lower fat concept was a success. I ran out of chips and patience before I ran out of sliced onions (hence the mushroom sauté).

Turns out making onion rings is tedious. It's exactly the kind of cooking I dislike.

I sliced the onions in thick rings, powdered them with flour, dredged them in beaten egg, and then pressed crushed onion-and-sour-cream potato chips on them. I think I needed the crumbs to be smaller, because they put up a fight and didn't want to stay on.

Next time--if there IS a next time--I will pulverize the suckers.

Luckily I have only one baking sheet, because by the time it was full, I'd had my fill. I generally don't mind tedious tasks because I go into a zone of semi-consciousness that is rather pleasurable. I'm not sure why coating things for frying doesn't put me there. It must take too much concentration.

Which seems weird.

But into the 400 degree oven they went. After about 20 minutes they came out.

(Apologies for the bad image quality...)

The onion was nicely cooked, and the coating had browned, but unevenly. I should have turned them over sooner than I did.

DiDi thought they were delish. I still held a grudge, so initially gave them an "OK" rating, but they grew on me.

Now I'm thinking of variants, not that I'm eager to enter back into THAT battle. I wonder how they would come out using ranch dressing mix in place of the flour, and regular chips instead of flavored? Possibly too salty?

DiDi's a southern girl. Maybe I could do the mise en place and she could take care of all the dredging.

I'll keep you posted.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Macaroni and Cheese: the other orange vegetable

Here's another great find from Meals for Small Families.

The vegetable voted number 1 by children all over the country: Macaroni and Cheese!


Mis-categorization isn't the only baggage this recipe carries; it offers the option of using CANNED macaroni.

Canned. Macaroni.

I never knew such a thing existed.

Have a look.

Macaroni and Cheese

Boil macaroni in salted water until tender, or purchase a small can ready for heating.

Place a layer of macaroni in a baking dish, add grated cheese and alternate with macaroni, until dish is filled. Cover with white sauce (Recipe, page 134) and bake about 40 minutes in a moderate over. A small can will make 3 servings. This may be used as a meat substitute.

Only American cheese of good flavor should be used for this.