ruthcooks

Please help! Where, oh where, can I find the recipe for the Fruited Cocoa Cake? Think I've seen it, but can't remember where.

I like to put a few cut-up dates in my apple salad--sort of like Waldorf Salad, but with no celery. If dates weren't so hard on diabetics, I'd make Date Salad with a few pieces of apple. I also add halved grapes, walnuts, and sometimes fresh pineapple. The dressing is just a tablespoon or two each of mayo, cream and lemon juice and a bit of sugar or sweetener. I have my grandmother's recipe for Date Cookies, which my mother used to send to me when I was a college student. My daughter and sister and I love them, but many people don't like the idea of eating dates. The already cut-up dates have mostly sugar so the date flavor and texture are lost IMO. Last year I tried Medjool dates for the first time and fell in love. Do they have a season?

In first grade (think WWII) my first lunch was two tuna salad on hamburger buns and two pieces of homemade angel food cake. Middle grades I ate at a little cafe about a block from the school. Food varied. I remember dishes of REAL mashed potatoes and gravy (ten cents) and a sandwich, or two hot dogs and two popsicles. There was also another restaurant, owned by a friend's grandmother, but all I remember about that was watching my friend picking the tomatoes out of her chili, and chicken and dumplings plate lunches. High school, in the 50s, I always packed my lunches. A thermos of Campbell's tomato soup and an orange figured largely, as I was usually on a diet. School cafeteria was built by then, but was not operating until after I graduated. I attended all twelve grades in the same building. Pre-school and kindergarten were still in the future.

Amen to that.

Shelby, what are your favorite kinds of tomatoes to grow? And do you make different relishes, as well as pickles? I used to have a large garden at the same time I had a "part-time" restaurant in my home (all inspected and legitimate back in the late 70s and early 80s) and froze eggplant and tomato Caponata and corn for winter months, but mostly used the bounty fresh. I'm unable to garden any more, but still "put up" my favorite relishes and freezer jams in small batches. And eat at least one tomato a day while the farm stands have them.

And here it is--August 17, 2002! I haven't been active lately, due to TWO crashed hard drives, getting a new computer installed, and learning how to use it.

Guess the only way to remember my enrollment date is to post here!

I think it's mostly what you grew up with. We ate a lot of ketchup growing up. My dad, however, would occasionally eat mayonnaise on his hot dogs.

Here is one of my favorites: Cook asparagus. Hard cook some eggs. Melt some butter. Each person takes an egg and mashes it, then keeps mashing as melted butter is added and mashed in. When the egg will hold no more butter, each person helps herself to some asparagus spears, dips each spear into the buttered egg and alternately dips and eats. This is finger food and a good dish for luncheon. Make plenty of everything. You can cook the eggs on the spot or cook and hold them at room temperature and reheat a few minutes in a dish of boiling or near-boiling water. Be sure to heat the plates.

Horrible music or any music played horribly loud. Having to watch a video before getting access to the recipe. Let me read the ingredient list and I'll know whether I want to spend time watchin A short description up front would help, i.e., "Today I'm making a Pavlova for dessert-- a huge marshmallow-y meringue filled with whipped cream, fresh fruits and liqueur." Narrative delivered in English, but with a nearly indecipherable accent. And who are you and what's your claim to cooking knowledge?

For those of you wishing to try this pretty toy, save $75 when use the code FB75. No date given, but this was posted on Facebook today, March 21, 2015.

You can substitute tart strawberry or raspberry coulis for the whole berries. Even better, I think, unless the berries are very fresh, and frozen berries can be used.

You could flavor your sugar with the empty pods (bury the pods in s container of sugar and leave for a few days) but I think some people prefer the seeds to show so as to inform the guests that they are savvy to using real vanilla!

For those who missed my original post, I still have available FORTY years of Gourmet Magazine absolutely FREE to anyone who can arrange to come to my house south of Nashville TN to pick them up! PM me if interested.

The catch? Can't be mailed, so you have to pick them up south of Nashville TN. PM me with name and e-mail address and I'll send you full details. Write "Gourmet" in subject line. Time is of the essence.

Two adults + four children = 6 homemade angel food birthday cakes with powdered sugar icing.

I roasted potatoes, carrots and onions by the "slow" method to accompany a garlic pork roast last Sunday, and must say I am still not impressed. Good thing I had some terrific gravy. I already ate the leftover onions and will toss the potatoes, as they were hard and tough. Tonight's dinner will feature some cubed leftover lamb roast from the freezer, plus small amounts of carrots, pork and pork gravy rescued from above. Will add some frozen peas and freshly mashed potatoes for a Shepherds' Pie. It makes me feel so virtuous to use up leftovers.

Meatball Stew The original of this recipe came from an “Open House” type TV show for “ladies” back in the late 1960s. The first time I made it, I had no tomato paste or sauce, so I improvised with catsup and water that gave it a more sweet-spicy taste. Serves 4 with 3 meatballs each, or 6 with 2 meatballs. Vegetables: Potatoes, cut up Onions, sliced Carrots, cut in 1 inch pieces Green bell pepper (save part for chopping for meatballs), cut in 1 inch pieces Meatballs: 1 egg, slightly beaten 1 lb. ground beef 1/4 C. chopped onion 1/4 C. chopped green pepper 1 t. chili powder 1 t. salt 1 1/2 t. dry mustard 1/4 C. cornmeal 1/2 C. milk Flour Vegetable oil plus butter for frying 2/3 C. tomato catsup 1 1/3 C. water Prepare vegetables and steam or boil for about 5 or 10 minutes. Remove to large, flat casserole dish. Add salt and pepper. Beat egg with a fork in a large bowl. Add to bowl the ground beef, onion, green pepper, chili powder, salt, dry mustard, cornmeal, and milk. Combine ingredients with a meat fork that has only 2 or 3 tines; never use your hands, as the warmth will compact meat and make it tough! Mixture will be rather sloppy. I portion it out with a large dipper to form 12 large meatballs. Roll meatballs in flour and brown in oil and flour. They will “slump” so turn only twice, making sort of triangle shapes instead of round. When brown, place on top of vegetables. Mix catsup and water in 2 C. measuring cup with a whisk. Add to pan in which you browned the meatballs and bring to a boil. Pour over meatballs and vegetables and cover tightly with foil. Bake about an hour, depending on size of vegetables and how long (or if) you pre-cooked them. If freezing leftovers, remove potatoes and carrots. I never knew how much my kids liked this until my grown daughter came for dinner with her husband and two boys. She looked in the oven and said, "Oh boy! Mom's Meatball Stew!" Still my favorite after all these years.

Darienne--I have never found that a "subject" cookbook yields more than two or three good recipes. Why don't you start a thread on this forum like "My favorite casserole/one dish meal recipe" and see what you get. I'll contribute.

My mother may have made salmon loaf a few times, but never croquettes. We always ate canned salmon (red, never pink) straight from the can, with fried potatoes, bread and butter and either applesauce or apple butter for the bread. Never heard of anyone else who ate it this way. This was back in the 40s and 50s.

Anna--use your scales. Zero out and weigh each pan. Re-apportion as needed. Easy to make even cakes this way!

If you serve a dinner with meat, starch, veg and salad, the diabetic only has to limit the starch to comply, assuming little or no sugar is added and the veg is not carrots. As a Type 2 diabetic for over 20 years, I think the worst thing is when people serve a bunch of weird stuff which nobody will enjoy. We are used to policing our own food and it is tiresome to have attention drawn to it!

Anna, before this thread ends--and I will be so sad--I see you like braunschweiger (liverwurst) as I do. I want to know if it freezes. I eat about 3 sandwiches before I am tired of it, then have to pitch it as I don't know how long it lasts. I always like it with something sweet, and pairing it with raisin bread is one of my favorites. If only those who make raisin bread would refrain from adding cinnamon to it! Any knowledge here?

I reheat chicken, skin side up, in my toaster oven on the little pan that comes with it. Set to "toast" or "bagel". When the skin is crisp, the chicken is warm throughout. Line the pan with foil, no dishes to do.

I have heard that you can crack black walnuts by spreading them over your (concrete) driveway and running your car back and forth over them. No experience, because to me they taste as though someone has sprinkled aspirin over my food.