ruthcooks

On the fifth day of first grade, I went into the hospital to have my appendix removed. I wasn't scared, just angry because my mother wouldn't let me eat peach cobbler in spite of that ole stomach ache.

Hear, hear, snowangel. It's very difficult to prepare a vegetarian meal that meat lovers will like when you tie the cook down to certain ingredients. Especially when one is a spice mixture which one has never tasted, seen in a store, or, (until I looked it up) even heard of. And since when do mystery baskets include spices, anyway? For these two cooks it would make more sense to just tell them to come up with a vegetarian meal of their choice, OR to give them a basket containing a more well-rounded selection, and asking that the meal be suitable for both meat eaters and vegetarians. Voting on individual foods and then combining the top scorers makes no sense; the idea is to provide an interesting and seasonal selection which will inspire the cook. This is not supposed to be a popularity contest. What if the top scorers were lamb, duck and seafood? And "vegetarian meal" is not an ingredient, therefore ineligible for inclusion.

Most of the mystery basket suggestions do not have enough items for the traditional basket, except for L and the list above which Smithy just offered. Six seems the right number to me. My own list, which I've been noodling over, is: 1/2 pound any seafood item rack of lamb or duck pea shoots and/or spring peas polenta or orzo rhubarb and/or cherries chocolate How about we leave the final selection to one of our gurus?

Would work, but might be a bit sweet. Just don't sweeten the cream very much and use lots of it. Personally, though, I'd prefer some not-too-sweet vanilla pudding or pastry cream to provide a foil. Good luck, gotta go now.

Yes...that's all there is to it. But I think butterscotch plus chocolate plus raspberries might be a bit much.

No recipe necessary for trifle. Pastry cream, whipped cream, cake, fresh raspberries..and a sprinkle of Chambord or other liqueur, unless Ryan would complain. Well, maybe a recipe for the pastry cream.

Marlene has won my heart with Bearnaise Sauce and Bread Pudding

I've lived enough places to know that local and regional specialties are often known by names which mean something else to outsiders. For example, growing up in rural Illinois a half century ago, we never ate bologna or baloney--we knew it as "minced ham". Sounds like the Ohio version of cassatta is simply a pastry cream filled Boston Cream Pie with frosting/topping instead of chocolate icing on top. The best bread pudding I ever had was made with leftover Italian Cassata. I substituted cake cubes for about half the bread, and the bits of fruit and chocolate were simply wonderful in the warm pudding with whipped cream.

Let's see if I have these two pegged from their 2004 posts: We have the lady who worries about making pie crusts...versus the gentleman who worries about what to put in the bottom of the soup bowl. The perfect challenge: Potage a la Croute en Surprise, or however it goes in French.

There are lots of pictures if you Google, but here's one that shows both stalks and plants. Some rhubarb has very little red on it, others have completely green stalks. Do not eat the leaves, they're poison. rhubarb

It's an acquired taste. Here's an easy one: POI. You'd have to be Hawaiian to love poi. To the rest of us it's what we imagine wallpaper paste would taste like, after it's gone off. My own nominee, however, is not geographical. I think you have to have more than a few drops of Jewish blood in you to appreciate noodle kugel/pudding. I've tasted many of them and not once was I ever inspired to ask for the recipe, take seconds, or even finish what was on my plate. Dry, yet somehow soggy too, overcooked noodles with very little flavoring, not nearly sweet enough to be considered a sweet dish like applesauce or sweet potatoes. I've heard there are savory ones, but haven't happened upon one. Anyone have a recipe that will change my mind? Otherwise, gimme that pastrami and the blintzes and the matzo ball soup--yeah, and the tzimmes, too--but keep the kugel. SOOOOOO, what's your nominee for acquired taste?

You could be right about the Midwest, but this took place in Tennessee and only one couple was Midwestern (the Dakotas, which seems more plains-like); the others were from the East coast and Florida. I have noticed that it seems to be a fairly universal belief that "Everybody likes lasagna."

Years ago, after many years of not being invited for dinner because of people being intimidated by my cooking, my ex and I received three, count 'em, three, invitations for dinner during the Christmas holidays. I must mention that I intensely dislike every lasagna I have ever eaten, with one exception. On my list of "way too much work for the results", lasagna is numero uno. I can never understand why everyone seems to like it, and why anyone would want to go to so much trouble to make it. So, first dinner party, we were served, you guessed it: lasagna. Because this was at the home of a friend who was an excellent cook, plus married to an Italian, this meal was more than tolerable to me. She served multiple courses and everything else was wonderful, so I didn't think much about it. Second dinner party was at the home of a business acquaintance and his wife, both known to me, whom we had entertained in our home many times. What did they serve? Lasagna. The wife was what the ex called "a weeds and seeds person", meaning she was a hippie who wore long dresses and sandals and her hair in a long braid down her back. Her lasagna was vegetarian. Hmmm. We're not talking spinach, red pepper and wild mushrooms with a lovely Bechamel here, we're talking carrot and celery lasagna. Good grief. You've probably already guessed what we were served at the third dinner party. Another business acquaintance, whose wife did not cook. I can't remember this lasagna, I was so dazed at meeting my nemesis once again. I do remember that she had bought REAL whipping cream for the strawberry shortcake and that I had to tutor her in the kitchen on how to whip it. She really tried and I appreciated that. I didn't let on to anyone how I felt about lasagna, but it did tend to wear me down. These women went to a lot of trouble to impress me, and could have done better by just throwing a steak on the grill. Or even a hamburger. And that lasagna I liked? Totally atypical, just the noodles, alfredo sauce, and fresh seafood.

If you want to achieve all 50, you'd better have a lot of money. This list has more to do with travelling than with loving and enjoying food. Show offs. (Not you guys, the original writers.)

I have posted a nice Rhubarb-Maple Muffin recipe in RecipeGullet HERE.

Rhubarb-Maple Muffins Serves 12. The original recipe for these came from Sarah Leah Chase’s “Cold-Weather Cooking”. I really like her cookbooks; she was one of the writers on the “Silver Palate Cookbook”. I have made changes in the recipe, both ingredients and method,so that it’s pretty much my recipe now, but thanks to her for the idea. My version is moist and tender when fresh, but, like all muffins, suffers from day after blues. 2 c diced rhubarb, cut 1/2 inch 1/2 c brown sugar or Whey-Low Gold 2-1/4 c flour (fluff, spoon and sweep method) 1 T baking powder Dash salt 1/2 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated 1/2 c unsalted butter, melted 1/2 c maple syrup 1 egg , large or extra large 2/3 c milk 1 tsp grated orange rind Remember to start the rhubarb ahead. In a small bowl, mix rhubarb with brown sugar and let stand at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg with a whisk. In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter. Give the rhubarb a last stir and add the accumulate juices and sugar to the maple syrup. Whisk syrup into butter. Add egg and whisk until well combined. Whisk in milk and orange rind. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Dump rhubarb on top and stir just the flour and rhubarb together to coat rhubarb. Now fold ingredients all together just until mixture is of an even consistency. Don’t over mix. Spray 12 1/2-cup-capacity muffin cups very thoroughly with vegetable spray. Fill cups with an ice cream scoop. Don’t worry about over-filling, just use the batter all up. Bake 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees, or until tops spring back when lightly touched or a toothpick comes out clean. Muffins will be an even color, not browner on top. Notes: Regular muffin tins hold either 1/3 cup or 1/2 cup batter; you want the 1/2 cup size or else you may have to make more than a dozen. Instead of orange zest, Sarah used lemon; she also added 2 teaspoons cinnamon and 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans. Keywords: Easy, Breakfast, Brunch, Bread ( RG1257 )

Rhubarb-Maple Muffins Serves 12. The original recipe for these came from Sarah Leah Chase’s “Cold-Weather Cooking”. I really like her cookbooks; she was one of the writers on the “Silver Palate Cookbook”. I have made changes in the recipe, both ingredients and method,so that it’s pretty much my recipe now, but thanks to her for the idea. My version is moist and tender when fresh, but, like all muffins, suffers from day after blues. 2 c diced rhubarb, cut 1/2 inch 1/2 c brown sugar or Whey-Low Gold 2-1/4 c flour (fluff, spoon and sweep method) 1 T baking powder Dash salt 1/2 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated 1/2 c unsalted butter, melted 1/2 c maple syrup 1 egg , large or extra large 2/3 c milk 1 tsp grated orange rind Remember to start the rhubarb ahead. In a small bowl, mix rhubarb with brown sugar and let stand at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg with a whisk. In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter. Give the rhubarb a last stir and add the accumulate juices and sugar to the maple syrup. Whisk syrup into butter. Add egg and whisk until well combined. Whisk in milk and orange rind. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Dump rhubarb on top and stir just the flour and rhubarb together to coat rhubarb. Now fold ingredients all together just until mixture is of an even consistency. Don’t over mix. Spray 12 1/2-cup-capacity muffin cups very thoroughly with vegetable spray. Fill cups with an ice cream scoop. Don’t worry about over-filling, just use the batter all up. Bake 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees, or until tops spring back when lightly touched or a toothpick comes out clean. Muffins will be an even color, not browner on top. Notes: Regular muffin tins hold either 1/3 cup or 1/2 cup batter; you want the 1/2 cup size or else you may have to make more than a dozen. Instead of orange zest, Sarah used lemon; she also added 2 teaspoons cinnamon and 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans. Keywords: Easy, Breakfast, Brunch, Bread ( RG1257 )

All these tales remind me why, as a child and teen, I hated small town living so much I couldn't wait to get outta there. And why I now miss it. Rural Illinois, wonderful homemade food in the home. More likely, nowadays, in the church or hall. Not so wonderful as before.

The original Hot Brown contained no tomatoes, but pimiento pieces were used on top for decoration. To "uptown" the "Brown", use large croutes (think croutons) instead of toast. For each person, take two slices of a firm white bread like Pepperidge Farm. Trim crusts and cut one slice into two triangles. Brush both sides of all bread with melted butter and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 325 degrees until lightly brown on both sides, turning once. I don't think this takes long, maybe 15-20 minutes. They hold their crunch much better than soggy toast, and can be made a day or two in advance. The whole piece is placed in the center of the plate and the triangles on either side. There are some mighty deplorable dishes being touted as Hot Browns, including ones with canned mushroom soup. It is never to be made with deli pressed turkey. (Shudder.)

Thanks, racheld. Now I can say I've read my food porn for today. Great writing!

My mother was a pretty good cook, but plain foods. I felt privileged that she would turn over her kitchen and let me cook anything I wanted for dinner. Later I realized what a favor I was doing for a farm wife with 4 kids. I don't remember having failures, and no one ever criticized my cooking, which gave me confidence in the kitchen. I wouldn't hesitate to cook for anyone.

Hi Zilla, So glad you're blogging Derby Week. When I lived in Louisville my ex was a TV sportscaster and he worked like crazy the entire week. I always tell people my favorite sport is the Kentucky Derby--a few minutes and I don't have to watch any more sports for a whole year. During the 70's when I lived there, most of the entertaining was done in homes by the big hat ladies--locals--for their guests, while the totally opposite crowd was in the infield with beer and cut offs. I loved the way the entire city went into party mode for two weeks. In fact, I loved Louisville period. I still make Benedictine, Derby Pie, Hot Browns and all those special vegetables the Colonel featured in his restaurant near Shelbyville. No juleps for me, can't stand mint.

I couldn't stand it, had to post the full fat version here. This one has no cinnamon, no nuts, and more butter and more cocoa--plain ole Hershey's. In my experience, Dutch process cocoa has more in common with carob than chocolate, it never tastes as chocolate-y to me. I've been making this cake since the mid-70s, and it's always faster and better tasting than I remember. Very rich and better than brownies to me.

Texas Sheet Cake (full fat version) Serves 24. For an even more chocolate-y cake, substitute some black cocoa for some of the regular cocoa. I use regular cocoa, not Dutch process. A heaping tablespoon is more full than rounded, but don’t try to beat any world’s records for most cocoa on the spoon. Just fluff the cocoa and dip in the spoon. A very quick dessert for a crowd, and freezes well if you need to. Cake: 2 c flour 2 c sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1 c unsalted butter 3 heaping tablespoons cocoa 1 c water 2 eggs 1/2 c buttermilk 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp vanilla Frosting: 1/2 c unsalted butter 6 T whole milk 2 heaping T. cocoa 1 1-lb. box powdered sugar 1 tsp vanilla Cake: In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar and salt using a whisk. In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, bring to a boil the butter, cocoa and water. In a small bowl, beat the eggs, buttermilk, soda and vanilla. Slowly pour the hot mixture into the sifted ingredients while stirring. Now beat in the egg mixture, only until well combined. Batter will be very thin. Pour into a buttered pan (I use vegetable spray) measuring 10 x 15 x 1. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees, or until a tester comes out clean. While the cake is baking, make the frosting. Combine butter, milk and cocoa in a medium saucepan, and bring to a boil, constantly stirring. Off heat, add about 2/3 of the powdered sugar and the vanilla. Beat with an electric hand beater until it is smooth, adding powdered sugar until mixture thickens. You will not need the entire box. When the cake comes out of the oven, or within a few minutes of that time, give the frosting one more beat in case a skin has formed. Pour the frosting all over the hot cake and spread evenly. Keywords: Dessert, Brownies/Bars, Easy, American, Chocolate, Cake ( RG1231 )

Texas Sheet Cake (full fat version) Serves 24. For an even more chocolate-y cake, substitute some black cocoa for some of the regular cocoa. I use regular cocoa, not Dutch process. A heaping tablespoon is more full than rounded, but don’t try to beat any world’s records for most cocoa on the spoon. Just fluff the cocoa and dip in the spoon. A very quick dessert for a crowd, and freezes well if you need to. Cake: 2 c flour 2 c sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1 c unsalted butter 3 heaping tablespoons cocoa 1 c water 2 eggs 1/2 c buttermilk 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp vanilla Frosting: 1/2 c unsalted butter 6 T whole milk 2 heaping T. cocoa 1 1-lb. box powdered sugar 1 tsp vanilla Cake: In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar and salt using a whisk. In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, bring to a boil the butter, cocoa and water. In a small bowl, beat the eggs, buttermilk, soda and vanilla. Slowly pour the hot mixture into the sifted ingredients while stirring. Now beat in the egg mixture, only until well combined. Batter will be very thin. Pour into a buttered pan (I use vegetable spray) measuring 10 x 15 x 1. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees, or until a tester comes out clean. While the cake is baking, make the frosting. Combine butter, milk and cocoa in a medium saucepan, and bring to a boil, constantly stirring. Off heat, add about 2/3 of the powdered sugar and the vanilla. Beat with an electric hand beater until it is smooth, adding powdered sugar until mixture thickens. You will not need the entire box. When the cake comes out of the oven, or within a few minutes of that time, give the frosting one more beat in case a skin has formed. Pour the frosting all over the hot cake and spread evenly. Keywords: Dessert, Brownies/Bars, Easy, American, Chocolate, Cake ( RG1231 )