Monday, March 29, 2010

Chocolate Fudge Bars

It was a big baseball weekend AND I needed to make something from my Grandma's recipe boxes so the Chocolate Fudge Bars were my choice.  I knew I could bake a bunch of these and have them for the team between games.  The Bars (also known as Brownies) were a hit....and I'd like to think they helped the boys get lots of hits, as they won all 3 games. (My Grandma would definitely approve).  I should note that  while I found this recipe in my Grandmas recipe box, it is a familiar recipe.  My mom has passed it on to me and it is one I have made many times over the years, so it is a little different than most of the recipes that I have truly made for the 1st time after finding them in her box.

Chocolate Fudge Bars (Brownies)
2 eggs                                           1/8 teas. salt
1 cup sugar                                   1/2 c. cake flour
1/2 cup melted butter                    1 cup broken nuts
2 squared melted choc (bitter)       1 teaspoon vanilla


1. Sift flour
2. Melt choc & butter
3. Beat eggs, add sugar, beat again
4. Add melted butter, choc, vanilla, and salt & beat again
5. Add flour & mix until smooth.  Add nuts
6. Fill 7 x 10 plan 1/3 full.
7. Bake in preheated oven 350 degrees - 25 min.
Cut into bars before cool.



Sunday, March 21, 2010

No-Knead Overnight Parmesan and Thyme Rolls

Okay, I know what those of you that have been following along are thinking...and you are right, this recipe didn't come from my Grandma's Recipe Boxes.  Oh, she has bread and roll recipes all right, several of them, but I am telling you, they are hard to figure out.  Between the handwriting and lack of directions in many of them, you really really have to get psyched up to take some of these on.  Since Saturday was the first day of spring and I wasn't going to a baseball game (which would have been my first choice) I was having trouble getting interested in taking on one of her recipes when I decided to approach my cooking for the weekend from a different angle.  One my Grandma would approve of...using up ingredients I had...the frugal approach.  Add to it, my recent issue of Cooking Light had just come and their spring recipes were catching my eye.  (I'll try to forget about the fact that by the same time the next day, I had about 6 inches of snow in my back yard).  These rolls are very tasty and easy and if you like the flavors of olive oil, parmesan and thyme, I think you'll really like these.
No-Knead Overnight Parmesan and Thyme Rolls
1/2 teaspoon dry yeast
2 tablespoons warm water (100 to 110 degrees)
2 tablespoons extra-vifrgin olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/3 cup 2% reduced-fat milk (I used skim and didn't see a real difference this would have caused)
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1.1 ounces whole-wheat white flour (about 1/4 cup)
5.6 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/4 cups), divided
Cooking spray
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1. Dissolve yeast in 2 tablespoons warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes or until bubbly.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Add thyme to pan; cook 1 minute or until bubbly and fragrant.  Add thyme mixture and milk to yeast mixture, stirring with a whisk; add 1/4 cup cheese, sugar, salt, and egg, stirring well.
3. Weigh or lightly spoon whole-wheat white flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Using a wooden spoon, stir whole-wheat 4.5 ounces (about 1 cup) all purpose flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife.  Add all-purpose flour to yeast mixture, stirring well.  Add enough of remaining all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to form a smooth but very sticky dough.  Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top.  Cover and refrigerate overnight. (Dough will not double in size.)
4. Remove dough from refrigerator.  Do not punch dough down.  Turn dough out onto a floured surface; sprinkle dough lightly with flour.   Roll dough into a 12 x 7-inch rectangle.  Brush dough with remaining 1 tablespoon oil.  Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup cheese evenly over dough; sprinkle with pepper.  Beginning with a long side, roll up dough jelly-roll fashion.  Pinch seam to seal (do not seal ends of roll).  Cut roll into 8 (1 1/2-inch) slices.  Place slices, cut sides up, on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.  Cover and let rise in a warm place (85 degrees), free from drafts, 1 hour or until rolls have risen slightly.
5.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
6.  Place pan in oven, and immediately reduce heat to 375 degrees.  Bake rolls at 375 degrees for 12 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve warm.  Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 roll).
Calories 161, Fat 6.3 g(sat 2g, mono 3.3g, poly 0.6 g); Protein 6.3g; Carb 19.7g; Fiber 1.3g; Chol 32 mg; Iron 1.4mg; Sodium 246mg; Calc 112mg.   
April 2010 Cooking Light

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Agatha's Blueberry Buckle

It's not blueberry season, and I don't know if you have seen the price of blueberries in the store lately, but they are darned expensive.  I know because I keep checking the price of fresh berries because I have wanted to make this Blueberry Buckle recipe for some time now.  I finally decided that I was going to have to find an alternative, and boy, did I.  Wal-mart (my Grandma loved shopping, so I know she would have loved "my" Wal-mart - it's huge) has some great frozen fruits under their "Great Value" brand..and the blueberries, although frozen, when thawed are big and juicy.  This recipe card is a rather "catchy" one, it is one that is "professional" and I didn't have to try and figure out what the ingredients where or what to do with them once I figured it out.  But what I did decide to understand is where this cute card might have come from.  If you'll notice it has the name Red Farm Studio on the bottom of the card.  After doing a little research (Have I mentioned how much I like Google?), I found out that Red Farm Studio, makes greeting cards and coloring books...right up my dear Grandma's alley!!!  I suspect she ordered something from them for school and the recipe card was included..she neatly stapled it to a recipe card, and here we are.  Bubba loved the Buckle...that's all I need to say.
Agatha's Blueberry Buckle
Mix together thoroughly 3/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup butter and 1 egg.  Stir in 1/2 cup milk.  Sift together and add 2 cups flour, 2 tsp. baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt.  Blend in 2 cups well drained blueberries.  Spread batter into well greased and floured square pan.  Sprinkle with following mixture: 2/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup sifted flour, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/3 cup belted butter.  Bake at 375 degrees about 35 to 40 minutes.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Chocolate Cake

This recipe is probably more about the recipe card than it is about the actual recipe, although the cake isn't bad. This card is torn and tattered, it's yellow and the paper feels fragile when you touch it.  I haven't found another recipe card quite like this one in my Grandma's Recipe Boxes.  It is truly one of those special instances that only could be found in an old recipe box.  Although I am not completely sure, it is quite possible that this recipe belonged to my great grandma (which would make this really old).  She uses Roman numerals to capture the steps.  What is really interesting is the picture of a young boy (although Bubba thinks it is me...now that is funny)  that has been glued to the recipe card. It's truly something very different.  I don't actually know why she would do this and I have spent several days trying to imagine what would lead her to put the picture of someone on a recipe card.  I have decided that maybe it was this persons favorite recipe, someone she loved to make this for and so a picture on the recipe card was a loving gesture, a special tribute to someone special.  Maybe my family who visits this blog from time to time might have an idea.
Chocolate Cake
I  Scald 1 cup milk, 3 tbsp cocoa - let cool
II  Mix 1 (Scant) cup sugar, 1 tbsp butter - 2 eggs
III Add cocoa and milk mixture and 1/2 tsp soda - 1 tsp B.P. - 1 cup flour
IV Beat until smooth
Butter and flour pan.


I don't know if you have noticed the use of "scant" in some of the recipes I have posted.  This is a term that is rarely, if ever seen in "modern" recipes.  I have not been able to find any specific reason for the use of the term  "scant" other than these recipes really do need ingredients that are just short of, for example a full cup of sugar.  The fun and mysteries just keep on coming.

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Chocolate Chip Cookies

What recipe box doesn't have a chocolate chip cookie recipe?  My Grandma's Recipe Box is no exception, I found at least one and to my surprise, it wasn't the Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.  I compared her recipe to the all-time favorite and while it is similar, there are some differences...starting with the amount of flour, which is sifted, the addition of water (to offset the additional flour) and the absence of nuts.  Now, I will admit, I think every chocolate chip cookie on earth should include nuts, but because my Grandma's recipe didn't include any, I did it exactly like the recipe said (she would be so proud that I followed directions) Oh - not to mention that there are actually a couple included with this recipe.  These cookies baked up very nice and really do taste good.  No complaints here and if Bubba wasn't on the road for baseball he would give them a thumbs up for sure. Enjoy!
Choc Chip Cookies
3/4 C sugar
3/4 C brown sugar
2 sticks oleo (I used butter)
2 eggs beaten
3 C flour (sifted)
1 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp soda
1 C Choc chips
2 Tbsp water
Cream sugar & oleo - add eggs - makes 3 1/2 - 4 doz
I baked these at 375 degrees for about 9 minutes.  I did everything exactly as stated.  My recipe made 3 dozen cookies, using a medium sized cookie scoop (Bet my Grandma would have loved one of these gadgets)..she surely had to do these using a spoon.  The scoop is great because this is a moist cookie dough and handling it wouldn't be much fun (unless you like licking your fingers alot!)