Lois's Chocolate Pound Cake

Lois Walker Blalock

and her Handwritten Recipe for

Chocolate Pound Cake

The handwritten recipe above and picture of Lois
is part of a small 3-ring binder cookbook prepared and given to some of the family members for a special occasion quite some time ago. This one belongs to my daughter, Gail, who married Lois's grandson, 23-years ago. She treasures the book.

Sometimes I have a perfectly beautiful chocolate pound cake; other times it is as though the oven gremlins are laughing at me behind their oven mitts and aprons as my cake sticks to the bottom of the pan or fails to cook evenly. Recently, as I've gotten used to my new oven, I've had more good luck than bad. Lois's Chocolate Pound Cake is a favorite of the Blalock and Shubert family and has always been one of my go-to recipes when called upon to bring a dessert to any kind of a gathering, even when living back in my home state of Texas.

There are many variations of pound cake found in the New Sharon United Methodist Church Cookbook, Hillsborough, North Carolina. Lois has several recipes found within the pages of her beloved church's cookbooks, but somehow this one slipped through and fell on the editing floor. 

,

I gather all of the ingredients together, allow the eggs and butter to come to room temperature before I begin to mix the cake.

Turn the oven on to preheat. I find every oven is different. Lois's recipe calls for a 325-degree oven, but I set mine on 350-degrees or it will not get done! Adjust your baking time accordingly. She bakes hers at 325-degrees for 80 minutes; I bake mine at 350-degrees for 85 minutes. Generously grease and lightly flour the tube pan and after the eggs and butter are at room temperature I am ready to prepare the other ingredients. I am giving you her version of the recipe here. I sift and then measure the dry ingredients together into a large bowl and set aside. I pour the milk into a large cup and set aside. 

 Lois's Chocolate Pound Cake

1 cup butter or margarine

1/2 cup shortening

3 cups sugar

5 large eggs or 6 small

3 cups flour (straight)

1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

4 T. cocoa (rounded)

1 c. milk

1 t. vanilla

Cream together butter and shortening. Add sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each. Add vanilla. Sift all dry ingredients together. Add dry ingredients and milk alternately to cream mixture. Bake in 10-inch tube pan at 325-degrees for 80 minutes.

TIP: Cool in pan on a cooling rack for 20 minutes. Also run a butter knife around the edges between the cake and the pan to loosen before turning out onto the rack. There won't be much left if you take it to a pot-luck supper. Certainly not this much!

Texas Chocolate "Sheath" Cake

First Published Here in 2008

How Hershey's Kisses, Hershey's Cocoa,
and Crisco Make my Cakes Perfect

There are a great number of chocoholics in this world! I guess I have loved chocolate ever since I tasted my first Kiss! Hershey's Kisses turned 100 years old in 2007, having first come on the market in 1907. Wow! They are a favorite of so many, too. But Hershey's chocolate can be found in Kit Kats, Ice Breakers, Almond Joy, Mounds, Twizzlers, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, York Peppermint Patties and more. Whatever your preference, Hershey's chocolate is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth.

For Hershey's Kisses birthday, Hershey created "The World's Largest HERSHEY'S KISSES Chocolate" in Hershey, Pennsylvania, The Sweetest Place on Earth. It weighed 30,540 pounds and was wrapped in silver foil with a giant plume. Guinness World Records weighed the giant Kiss at a private birthday party on July 7, 2007 and it was on display at Hershey's Chocolate World through July 12^th of last year.

Hershey's cocoa powder has been a staple in my grandmother's, mother's, and my kitchen since each of us set up housekeeping. Grandma began her marriage in 1919 with a box of the indispensable cocoa powder in her pantry. My stepmother began cooking for her family in 1942 and I began in 1964. I think it's amazing that that little brown box has been with us through all of these years!

According to their website "HERSHEY'S Cocoa debuted in 1894 when Milton Hershey founded Hershey Chocolate Company. The item was initially sold as a beverage mix. In fact, 'Great for Baking' was added to the can as a reminder that Cocoa could be included in baked goods as well. Today most HERSHEY'S Cocoa is used for baking... and it's still great!"

I want to share my recipe for one of the absolutely best chocolate cakes you have ever tasted. My stepmother used to make it for us often, and it is one that at least one of us kids asked for every time we had a special occasion. The cake found its way into the kitchen of my grandmother and aunt Irene often, as well. You can see Grandma Gailey working in her kitchen west of Mineral Wells in the late 1950s.

The cake is laced with the wonderful taste and aroma of cinnamon. Baked in a "sheath" pan - better known as a rectangular 9x13x2-inch baking dish or sheet pan - it is quick to make and very satisfying.

  

Directions and Ingredients

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups plain flour

Place the above ingredients into a large mixing bowl.½ cup Crisco solid vegetable shortening

4 tablespoons Hershey's cocoa powder

1 stick margarine or butter

1 cup water

Bring the above 4 ingredients to a rapid boil in a saucepan. After it comes to a rapid boil, pour it over the sugar and flour mixture. Mix together using an electric mixer.

Add:

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ cup buttermilk

2 eggs

Pour into a prepared oblong baking pan that has been lightly greased with Crisco or butter and lightly floured to prevent sticking. Instead of using Crisco and flour, I sometimes use a no-stick spray such as Pam or Crisco no-stick spray with flour already in it, and then I sprinkle granulated sugar on top of that in the bottom of baking pan.

According to their website, "Crisco® Cooking Spray contains no alcohol and offers 575 servings per can. Also, it combines Crisco 100% Canola Oil with Pillsbury® flour for easier, tastier, and healthier baking."

Bake cake in a 350º oven for 30 minutes, or until it is done. Cake is done when it pulls slightly away from edges of pan and a toothpick placed into center of cake is clean when removed. It can also be tested for doneness when the cake springs back when touched lightly in center.

Icing

4 tablespoons Hershey's cocoa powder

6 tablespoons milk

1 stick butter

1 box confectioner's powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Chopped pecans or walnuts

Place first 3 ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Then add the confectioner's powdered sugar, vanilla, and nuts.

Ice or frost the cake when both are cool.

I've found all kinds of helpful information at Hershey's. They have videos, baking tips, recipes, gifts, the history of Hershey's, a kids' section and more.

If you love chocolate and cinnamon, you'll love, love, love what we call in our kitchens, this Texas "Sheath" Cake!
Also published by Judy Shubert at Associated Content।

Making Pear Butter and Honey

Anjou Pears from my Sister's Tree
October 2009

"A farm cook suggests: Pour coffee for drop in guests and let them spread spicy peach, grape or apricot butter on hot buttered toast. Grandmother made fruit butters for two important reasons that are just as valid today: (1) they taste exceptionally good and (2) they make use of the sound parts of windfalls or culls. Among the favorite fruits for butters are apples, apricots, grapes, peaches, pears, plums, quince, guavas and combinations of fruits."

To prepare pears: Remove stems, but do not core or peel. Quarter or slice. Cook in half as much water as fruit. Add 3 tablespoons lemon juice to each gallon fruit pulp.

Put cooked fruit through food mill or colander. For a superior, smooth butter, sieve the pulp to remove fibrous material.

Sugar: Use white or brown sugar. Brown sugar darkens the light fruits; it gives a pronounced flavor to bland ones. The amount of sugar to add depends on personal tastes, but the general rule is half as much sugar as fruit pulp.

Salt: Add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon for every gallon of fruit butter.

Spices: Usually ground spices are added, although some people prefer to omit them. About 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon each ginger and allspice to 1 gallon of butter is a good proportion.

Whole spices tied loosely in cheesecloth may be substituted for ground spices in making light-colored fruit butters. Ginger is an especially tasty spice with pears. Also, adding 3 tablespoons lemon juice to 1 gallon of fruit pulp steps up the flavor.

Additions to Fruit Pulp:
1. Measure the pulp and sugar into a large kettle; add the salt. Boil rapidly, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. As the butter becomes thick, lower heat to reduce spattering.
2. Add spices and lemon juice, if used.
3. Continue cooking until butter is thick enough almost to flake off the spoon, or as Grandma used to say: "Until it is thick enough to spread." Another test for consistency is to pour a tablespoon of the hot butter into a chilled plate - if no rim of liquid forms around the edge of the butter, it is ready for canning.
4. Pour into hot jars and seal. Or process pints and quarts in hot-water bath 10 minutes.

This September I made pear and orange honey/relish, pear and pineapple honey/relish, hot pepper pear preserves, and pear butter made with brown and white sugar.

For the pear butter I used the following:
12 cups chopped uncooked pear
3 tablespoons lemon juice
Cook pear and lemon juice following above suggestions. You should have about 8 cups pulp after forcing fruit through colander.

To the 8 cups pear pulp, add 4 cups brown sugar, 2 more tablespoons lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
Can or process as suggested above.

Mildred's Pear Honey

My step-mother's pear honey is my favorite. This is her easy recipe:

4 cups peeled, cubed pears

3 cups white sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Combine in a heavy pan and cook, stirring constantly for 25 minutes.

Makes 2 pints or 4 - 1/2 pt. jars.
I add bits the bits of pear that remain in the cooked honey to each jar. By the time I fill the last jar it is mostly honey ~ no pear pieces left!

(I double the recipe and cook for 45 minutes, even though the recipe books advise against it! I had way too many pears not to double recipe.) 

Canning Pears 2009

SOURCES:

Photographs:
Canning Pears, Digital Photographs, 2009. Privately held by Judith Richards Shubert, Fort Worth, Texas.

Books:
Nichols, Nell B., Farm Journal Freezing and Canning Cookbook, Doubleday and Company, Inc., Garden City, New York 1963. Judith Richards Shubert Private Library.

Websites:
Produce Oasis, "Anjou Pear," (Online: Produce Oasis Web Site, 2009) http://www.produceoasis.com: accessed October 27, 2009.

Tasty Brioche and Sally Lunn Bread

Several days ago I decided I wanted to try Terry Thornton's bread. Although I was not all that excited about dragging my large bread maker out of storage in the pantry, I was excited about trying Terry's recipe. Well, turns out I couldn't find my bread maker. Bob and I looked and looked. We poked into corners in this house and the attic that I forgot were there. But no bread maker to be found. I'm sure it's somewhere ~ surely I wouldn't have put it in a yard sale ~ would I?

No problem, I still have the dough hook that attaches to my counter-top Kitchen-Aid electric mixer, so I figured all is not lost. I should have tried Terry's recipe first, but instead I decided to get a little more adventuresome and picked a recipe out of my cookbook, A World of Breads, by Dolores Casella Ms. Casella had written in an introduction to Loaf Breads that "not many women make a yeast-raised Sally Lunn any more." So that's the one I decided to try. Just had to follow directions for making bread that came with my Kitchen-Aid and I should be alright. Right?

I placed it in one regular loaf pan and as the dough was rising, I realized it should have gone into two pans. It started coming over the sides and I had to cut some of the excess off before I actually baked it. The Sally Lunn was a little too sweet for me, but it was a good bread.
Here is Ms. Casella's recipe:

SALLY LUNN
(Yeast)

This is the yeast version of this famous English bread which has been popular for several hundred years. (The cookbook also has a baking-powder version.) Serve the bread for tea or afternoon coffee, with bowls of fresh fruit, or at breakfast with butter and plenty of homemade jam.

1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup scalded and cooled rich milk
1 cake yeast
1/4 cup lukewarm water
3 eggs, beaten
4 cups flour, sifted

Cream the butter, sugar, and salt. Add the cooled milk. Dissolve the yeast in the water and add to the creamed mixture along with the beaten eggs. Add the flour a little at a time, beating thoroughly between additions. Cover and let rise until doubled. Then punch down and pour into a well-greased loaf pan or small tube pan. Cover and let rise again. Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 40 minutes, or until loaf is golden brown and tests done.

NOTE: To bake as buns pour the batter into well-greased muffin pans, cover and let rise. Brush with beaten egg and bake in a 400-degree oven for 20 minutes, or until done.

In the Rolls section of this cookbook, Ms. Casella includes a recipe for Brioche with several variations. Two days after my Sally Lunn adventure, I decided to try Brioche. I must say, the results were great. I shared rolls with my neighbor and my granddaughter and both raved about them. I had enough dough to make 2 pans of rolls and 1 loaf of this very versatile bread.



Here is Ms. Casella's recipe:

BRIOCHE

Brioche is typically French. Some authorities believe that it was named for the town of Brie, where it supposedly originated, and that originally it was always made with Brie cheese. It is a rich basic dough with many uses. This recipe, my favorite, is based on the one given in Catherine Owen's Culture and Cooking, or Art in the Kitchen (1881 edition), which she said was from the Paris Jockey Club.

1 or 2 cakes or packages yeast
1/4 cup warm milk or water
3 tablespoons sugar
7 eggs, or 6 egg yolks and 4 whole eggs
4 cups flour
1 1/2 cups soft butter
2 teaspoons salt
1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tablespoon cream

If dry yeast is used dissolve it in the warm milk or water along with the sugar. If fresh yeast is used, cream it with the sugar and add the milk or water. Add the 7 whole eggs, or the egg yolks and eggs, and stir well to blend. Add 2 cups flour, the salt, and the butter and beat thoroughly. Add the remaining flour, blend, and beat well. Beating Brioche dough is very important, as it is too soft to knead. Either beat it is a heavy-duty mixer, or else pick up the dough in your hands and slap it down on a breadboard. (This will become frustratingly sticky, which is why I beat the dough in a mixer, very thoroughly, before and after adding the last 2 cups flour.) When the dough has been well beaten, brush the top with melted butter, cover the bowl, and let it rise until doubled. Then punch it down, cover the bowl again, and place in the refrigerator to chill thoroughly. This will take at least 12 hours, so it is best to made Brioche dough the day before it is needed. It will keep in the refrigerator for several days. When needed, remove from refrigerator. Handle it quickly, as it soon becomes too soft to use. Brioche dough can be shaped in various ways. You might braid small pieces of dough and place the braids in small, buttered loaf tins (these are fluted tins available in specialty shops). Or make small loaves, or regular-sized loaves, or buns to be baked in buttered muffin tins. In any case, let the shaped dough rise until doubled. Glaze with egg yolk and cream. Bake rolls or buns at 400-degrees for 20 minutes; large loaves at 375-degrees for 45 to 50 minutes.

NOTE: If desired add another 1/2 cup flour to the dough. Shape it into a crown or large round loaf and place on a buttered cookie sheet. Let rise until doubled and bake in a 375-degree oven until browned and done.

Next I'm going to buy some small loaf pans and try Terry's bread recipe. I'm just very afraid mine won't be as pretty as his turned out to be!

Sources:

Website:
Thornton, Terry. A Weblog: Hill Country of Monroe County Mississippi, "I'm Baking for the Sale at Itawamba Historical Society." http://hillcountryofmonroecountry.blogspot.com/ :accessed June 10, 2009.
Books:
Casella, Dolores. A World of Breads. NEW YORK:David White Company, 1966.
Photographs:
My Brioche, Digital Format. Privately held by Judith Richards Shubert, 2009.

Cherry and Chocolate

Cherry Fudge Cake

1 box fudge cake mix
1 can cherry pie filling
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond or vanilla

Mix by hand. Bake in tube pan at 325 degrees for 40-45 minutes.


Icing

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
5 tablespoons oleo (margarine)
package chocolate chips

Bring to boil and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the stove and beat in chocolate chips with mixer. Spread on cake.

From Granny Marilee's Recipe Box

Coca-Cola Salad

Here is the Coca Cola salad Bob's mother used to make - very sketchy directions but you get the idea. This is also the recipe that uses the Bing Cherries that my cousin, Julie Martin, mailed to me at Christmas.

Ingredients:

1 pkg. Raspberry Jell-O

1 pkg. Cherry Jell-O

2 cans Bing cherries, sweet (drained)

1 small can crushed pineapple (drained, saving some for cream cheese topping)

1 cup nuts

2 bottles coca cola (cold)
She used coke that was sold in individual glass bottles. I imagine they held about same amount as our canned drinks of today.

Congeal

Then mix one 4 oz. pkg. cream cheese with a small amount of pineapple juice.

Sprinkle walnut or pecan pieces to top.

Tastes great!

Enjoy!

Copyright 2008 Photo taken by Judy Shubert

at The Daily Grind Museum, Mineral Wells, Texas May 20, 2008

Arthritis Formula

Maedelle Carlyle

"Mother gave me this for arthritis."

1 cup Bur Rabbit Syrup (Blue label)

1 cup lemon juice

Mix and keep in "box".

Take 2 tablespoons 3 times a day.

As you feel better, take less.

Chess Cake Squares from Marilee

Yesterday my sister-in-law in Nashville, Tennessee, called to ask if I had her Mom's recipe for Chess Cake Squares. It was her son's 37th birthday on June 4th and that is the cake he requested for his celebration dinner last night. I didn't remember the recipe or the cake but I have a lot of Mom's recipe cards in a box that I brought home from Nashville after she died on January 11, 2000. My intention then (and now) was to somehow devise a way to make copies of all of them for the grandchildren in the family. There are 8 of them and I would love to surprise them with a group of recipes in their grandmother's handwriting that they can use and cherish. My sis-in-law's request has placed this on the fore-burner of "my list of things to get done SOON!" If anyone out there has any good ideas I'd really, really like to hear from you.

I found the recipe in the first handful of cards I picked up and read it to her on the phone. I'm sure she made a delicious version of this cake and it was enjoyed by all of the family there last night. Sure wish Shubert and I could have been there to enjoy it, too, and wish our nephew a "Happy Birthday".

In case you'd like to try this easy cake I've copied the recipe here for you. Bon Appétit!

CHESS CAKE SQUARES

1 box Butter Cake Mix (Duncan Hines)
1 egg
1 stick oleo (I'd substitute butter)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Mix the above ingredients. Pat the fairly dry mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. (Do not melt butter.)

8 ounces cream cheese
3 eggs
1 box powdered confectioners' sugar
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Place the above 4 ingredients in the same bowl, mixing well. Pour over top of dry mixture in pan.

Bake 38-40 minutes at 350 degrees for metal pan, 325 degrees for glass pan.

Don't over cook!

And, yes, I DO plan to give that box of original recipes to my sister-in-law as SOON as I get them scanned into my computer!

My Favorite German Chocolate Cake

German Chocolate Cake is one of my family's favorite desserts for special occasions. I always thought it a little tricky to make because of the use of three layers. But as I've gotten older and more experienced in the kitchen I've found it's not difficult at all. There are a few tricks that will help you in the construction of this beautiful 3-layer German Chocolate Cake.

I found this written up in the Dallas Morning News twelve or fifteen years ago and added it to our Family Cookbook. You can find my article here on the pitfalls and successes of publishing our Family cookbook entitled "How to Put Your Family's Recipes Into a Cookbook Using WordPerfect."

I use this particular version of German Chocolate Cake when making cakes for a birthday party, a Christmas get-together, a reunion, or other special occasions.

The ingredients are as follows:

1 (4-ounce) package Baker's German's sweet baking chocolate

½ cup water

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) margarine or butter, softened

2 cups sugar

4 egg yolks

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup buttermilk

4 egg whites

Coconut-Pecan Filling and Frosting (recipe follows)

Preheat your oven to 350° F. Line the bottoms of 3 (9-inch) round cake pans with wax paper and set them aside. In a microwave, heat the chocolate and water in a large bowl on high for 1½-2 minutes or until the chocolate is almost melted, stirring halfway through heating time. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted.

Mix flour, baking soda and salt and set the mixture aside. Beat margarine and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

Stir in chocolate mixture and vanilla.

Add flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beating after each until smooth.

Beat egg whites in another large bowl with electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently stir egg whites into batter. Pour into prepared pans.
Bake 30 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched in the center. Immediately run a spatula between cakes and sides of pans. Cool 15 minutes; remove from the pans. Remove wax paper. Cool completely on wire racks. Spread coconut-pecan filling between layers and over top of cake.

Coconut-Pecan Filling and Frosting:

In a large saucepan, mix 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk, 1½ cups sugar, ¾ cup (1½ sticks) margarine or butter, 4 egg yolks (slightly beaten) and 1½ teaspoons vanilla. Cook and stir over medium heat about 12 minutes or until the mixture is thickened and golden brown. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 (7-ounce) package shredded sweetened coconut (about 2⅔ cups) and 1½ cups chopped pecans. Cool to room temperature.

The Bad News:

The Dallas Morning News reports that each serving has about 848 calories, 51 grams fat and 152 mg cholesterol. But, it sure is gooooood!

Helpful Hints:

If you freeze the layers for 30 minutes or an hour after they cool on the counter it will be easier to spread frosting on them. Lightly brush off any crumbs from the frozen layers and place them on wax paper as you're working on the frosting.

Place one of the cake layers in the middle of a cake plate, frost with about 1 cup of icing and top with a second cake layer. Frost the second layer and place the third cake layer on top. Frost the third layer with the rest of the icing. This cake typically does not have icing around the edges so if you want to frost the edges you will have to make more icing.

To make perfect egg whites use perfectly clean utensils. Place bowl (preferably glass or metal), electric mixer wire whip, and egg whites in refrigerator to get completely cold before beating.

Buttermilk Substitution

If you don't have buttermilk, mix up some soured milk to use as a substitute.

To make 1 cup of soured milk, place 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar in a 1‑cup glass measuring cup. Add enough low‑fat (1% milkfat) milk to measure 1 cup; stir until mixed. Let the mixture stand for 5 minutes in the refrigerator before using.

Hope you try this recipe and use it often!

Judy's Mustard Potato Salad

There is an on-going disagreement in our family about potato salad. There are at least 3 different versions of this favorite dish brought to nearly every covered-dish get-together we have.

I've always claimed that my version, Judy's Potato Salad, is the one made by our grandmother when we were children. Then there is the version my sister makes that I believe she borrowed from her German friends! But the most heated discussion is over which potato salad our favorite uncle favored - his daughter's or mine. He often said mine was his favorite! I'll let you decide if mine suits YOU!

Ingredients:

5 pounds potatoes, cooked (use the variety for mashing)

3 or 4 hard-boiled eggs

¼ cup onion, chopped

½ cup celery, chopped

1 small jar pimento

¾ cup sweet pickle relish

Salt

Pepper

Paprika

Mayonnaise

Yellow mustard

Peel and cut the potatoes into medium size pieces. Cook the potatoes in a large stew pot with enough water to cover while boiling. Drain in a colander and place potatoes in a large mixing bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste, about 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, and about ¼ cup milk. Mix with electric mixer until potatoes are smooth.

Add chopped eggs, onion and celery. Add pimento and pickle relish. Add mayonnaise and yellow mustard to taste (approximately ½ cup mayonnaise and ¼ cup mustard). If potatoes are too watery at this point add less mayonnaise. Add more salt and pepper if needed.

I usually do the taste test and add more of any of the ingredients if I feel the salad is lacking something!

Place in serving bowl and sprinkle top with paprika. My grandmother usually boiled one or two more eggs that she sliced and used to decorate the top of her potato salad.

Cover and place in refrigerator until cold. Do not cover with aluminum foil; use plastic or glass instead. Foil will discolor eggs and possibly interact with mayonnaise.

Potatoes are easier to peel if you rinse them first with water. I learned that from my mother-in-law. It works, too!

Grandma used to use a little vinegar as well as mustard. I rarely do, but the vinegar tastes great! Another on-going joke in our family is one concerning my husband and squash relish. It is a well-known fact that he cannot stand squash and declares no one can trick him into eating the stuff. My youngest sister decided to give it a try. She and her husband usually have a garden and one year it was overrun with squash. She spent hours in the kitchen making squash relish and had our youngest granddaughter, who was about 7 years old at the time, help her. You guessed it - at the next family get-together she served her version of potato salad, told my husband after he had eaten more than his share that it had the dreaded squash relish mixed in. We've never known whether she actually put squash relish in the potato salad or not, but it certainly comes up at every meal where potato salad is served! Enjoy!

Judy's Beef Enchiladas

Do you love Mexican food? Do you sometimes crave the hot, spicy taste of enchiladas? I have the perfect recipe for enchiladas that I use every time one of my family members has that craving.

My younger sister also makes delicious enchiladas and her son requests them every year for his birthday dinner. She makes a wonderful green chili and cheese enchilada. They are a little more complicated; I usually opt for the quick and easy!

My mother's twin sister taught me how to make enchiladas at least 25 years ago. She said she always used El Paso brand tortillas, enchilada sauce and taco sauce. I prefer that brand, too, but if I can't find them in one of the local grocery stores I will use the brand available. My husband and I also prefer the mildest flavor of sauces; they can be found in Mild, Medium, and Hot. When I first started making these you could find the El Paso tortillas in a flat round can and that's what my aunt used. I haven't seen them in the grocery store lately. I substituted the bagged tortillas found in the bread section and they are great.

Ingredients

2 or 3 pounds ground hamburger (I prefer ground chuck)

2 small cans El Paso mild taco sauce

1 package of 24 corn tortillas

2 cans El Paso mild enchilada sauce

½ cup chopped onion

1 16-ounce bar sharp cheddar cheese, grated

Brown hamburger meat. Add 2 small cans taco sauce and cook slowly while preparing the tortillas.

Having tortillas and paper towels handy, I quickly dip tortillas one at a time in and out of hot oil in a heavy skillet. I use a pair of tongs to lift them out of oil. Then I place them on a paper towel to drain. I usually get 4 on a paper towel, and then place another paper towel on top, then another 4 tortillas, layering them until you have used all of the tortillas. It's important to dip them in and out of hot oil quickly to soften them. If you skip this step the tortillas will become too brittle while baking.

Let the tortillas cool slightly so you can handle them without burning your hands. Fill each tortilla with about 2 tablespoons hamburger mixture and roll tortilla up. Place them in an oblong baking pan, such as a 13" x 9" x 2" Pyrex dish. After filling the dish, sprinkle chopped onion and shredded sharp cheddar cheese over rolled tortillas. Then pour 1 can mild enchilada sauce over all. Bake in a 350º oven for approximately 20 minutes.

There will be too many enchiladas for 1 pan; place the overflow in a smaller baking dish and pour the second can of enchilada sauce over them.

This can be a little messy but it will help if you gather everything together before you start cooking. Also, don't get the oil too hot or it will begin to splatter and pop. Take your time!

I serve mine with a great salad and chips. Enjoy!

Vernelle's Baked Butternut or Acorn Squash Recipe

My mother moved to the west coast in the early 50s, married a career Air Force guy and traveled to many interesting places. We kids were always pretty jealous because we would get the postcard saying, "Wish you were here." We would love to have seen the things that were shown in full-color on the front of the postcard, but we knew in our hearts that we were safer and more loved right where we were - at home in Texas with Daddy and Grandma and Grandpa.

Anyway, I've since grown a lot, both mentally and emotionally and as an adult I've seen my share of interesting places. So, I no longer hold it against her that she saw the Statue of Liberty, the Redwood Forest, and Moammar Ghadafi up close and personal, and smuggled a memento out of Libya stuffed inside her bra!

She loved squash and when I ran across these 2 recipes for her favorite, butternut squash, I thought I would share them. She probably learned how to prepare the squash like this from a friend or neighbor while living in California or Idaho. I know we never had it at Grandma's!

Baked Butternut or Acorn Squash

Preheat oven to hot (400º F.).

Cut a butternut squash in half lengthwise, and then across into quarters; or cut acorn squash in half. Remove the seeds and fibers and brush cut surfaces with melted butter. Mother said she sometimes sprinkled cinnamon and sugar along with the butter if she had a sweet tooth! Or you can just add salt and pepper.

Place on a baking sheet, cover with aluminum foil and bake until almost tender when tested with a knife, about twenty-five minutes. Uncover, brush again with butter, and continue baking until tender and lightly browned.

Glazed Butternut Squash

1 2-pound butternut squash

½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed into measuring cup

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon nutmeg or ginger

¼ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Peel, seed and slice the squash. Place on a rack in a pot with a tight-fitting cover; add water to cover bottom of pot, cover and steam until squash is nearly tender - 12 to 15 minutes. Drain the squash well.

Preheat the oven to hot (400º F.).

Arrange the squash in one or two layers in a greased shallow baking dish. Mix sugar, spices and salt and sprinkle over the squash. Drizzle with the melted butter.

Bake until the squash is tender and somewhat glazed, 15 to 20 minutes. For a deeper glaze, place under the broiler for a few minutes.

Also published by Judy Shubert at Associated Content.

Judy's Chocolate Cream Pie

Chocolate cream pie has been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember. In my family chocolate cream pies were made for every get-together; but some family members liked one kind of pie more than another, so we usually had a chocolate cream, lemon meringue, coconut cream, and chess pie. One for every taste bud!

Most cream pies start with the same basic recipe with the addition of chocolate or coconut, etc. I found my mother-in-law's recipe for chocolate cream pie in a recipe book from her high school in Maryville, Tennessee. I use it every time I create one of these luscious desserts! My husband especially likes pie. He complains that I don't cook them nearly often enough.

My Tips and Suggestions

When I first started making this pie I wondered why the instructions said to stir a portion of the hot mixture over the beaten egg yolks. So I conveniently skipped over this step. Then I noticed my pie mixture had stringy cooked egg pieces all through it, similar to that found in fried rice! I reread recipe and followed it to the letter next time, and like magic, no more stringy cooked egg pieces.

I like to sift my cocoa with my sugar, salt, cornstarch, and flour before placing in saucepan. This eliminates any lumps forming while heating.

While making meringue and after pouring the chocolate pie mixture into baked pie shells, gently place a piece of Saran Wrap or other similar wrap over the chocolate, pressing out the air bubbles forming underneath the Saran Wrap and pushing it to the edges of crimped pie shell. This prevents the chocolate pie mixture from forming a layer of thickened "skin" on top.

I follow my stepmother's advice while making meringue. She always added about ¨û teaspoon baking powder - she called it a "pinch" when adding the sugar. The baking powder makes the meringue higher and fluffier.

I also find that the modern version of meringue works better: beat the sugar into egg whites 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high speed of mixer about 4 minutes more or till mixture forms stiff, glossy peaks and sugar dissolves (rub a little of the meringue between your fingers - it should feel completely smooth).

I hope you'll try making a cream pie of your own. They are delicious.

Ingredients:

2 baked pie shells

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon flour

3 cups milk

4 tablespoons Hershey's cocoa

3 egg yolks

1 tablespoon butter

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3 egg whites for meringue

Instructions:

Bake pastry shells and cool.

Blend together in a saucepan the sugar, salt, cornstarch, flour and cocoa. Gradually stir in the milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens. Remove from heat. Stir a portion of this mixture over the beaten egg yolks, stirring briskly. Then blend into hot mixture, return to heat and continue cooking over low heat until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla. Cool. Pour into cool pastry shell. Top with meringue.

Meringue

Ingredients:

3 egg whites

6 tablespoons sugar

Instructions

Beat well the egg whites. Use 2 level tablespoons sugar for each egg white. Fold in sugar gradually. Use a folding motion. Do not beat in sugar.

Recipe submitted to Porter PTA Cookbook
By Mrs. Elmer Scarbroug

Also published by Judy Shubert at Associated Content.

Cheesecake Baking - Sour Cream, Cream Cheese, Sugar and Eggs

Do you love cheesecake? I think it is my favorite dessert. There are many different flavors you can experiment with but my favorite is the "Can't Fail Cheesecake" that I want to share with you.

I've heard many people say that they wouldn't try to make a cheesecake from "scratch", but they are the easiest things in the world to make. I love to make them for special occasions when my family and friends get together. My husband says that I'm just addicted to the compliments! That's probably true.

Several years ago a friend gave me her recipe. She assured me it was fool proof. Of course, I thought that I wouldn't be able to make one that looked and tasted like the wonderful bakery or cheesecake factory desserts; but I was so hungry for cheesecake I decided to give it a try.

My friend told me she had two secrets to success when baking her cheesecakes - not opening the oven door while baking and leaving the cake in the oven over night!

Can't Fail Cheesecake

1¼ cups crushed graham crackers

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons melted margarine or butter

2 8-ounce packages cream cheese

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 eggs

2 cups (16 ounces) sour cream

For the Crust

Combine graham cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar, and margarine or butter. Press into bottom only of spring-form pan.

Then

Cream together until fluffy the cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, and vanilla. Add 3 eggs, beating well after each addition. Fold in sour cream.

Pour over graham cracker crust and bake in 350º oven for 30 minutes. Turn oven off - do not open oven door - leave in oven for 1 hour. Remove from oven and cool. Put in refrigerator.

If baking late at night you can leave the cheesecake in the oven until the next morning. I have done that and placed it in the refrigerator as soon as I get up.

Best if this is made the day before serving. But sometimes I can't wait that long!

My secret: Have all ingredients at room temperature.

I have read that the mark of a perfect cheesecake is having no cracks develop in the top while baking. Sometimes mine crack; sometimes they don't. No matter, they taste great. Those cracks can be covered by your choice of toppings.

Some favorite toppings of mine are cherry pie filling, chocolate syrup, strawberries and banana. Use your imagination and try this Easy recipe if you want a Can't Fail Cheesecake.

Also published by Judy Shubert at Associated Content.