Cherry Rhubarb Cobbler

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1 pound dark sweet cherries, pitted and halved
1 pound rhubarb, diced fairly small, about 5 stalks


1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ginger
1 1/2 tablespoon cornflour

Topping:
1 cup all-purpose white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 stick of butter, finely diced
2/3 cup milk, any kind you like

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Select the baking dish you want. In area an 8 inch square dish equals a 9 inch round dish.
Put the fruit into the dish.
Combine the 1/2 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon ginger, and 1 1/2 tablespoons cornflour.
Spread over the fruit and stir in gently.
Put the fruit into the oven to start cooking while you make the topping.

In a fairly large sturdy bowl combine the toppings dry ingredients.
Cut in the diced butter to a rough cornmeal consistency.
Using a fork, stir in the milk.
Get the fruit out of the oven and using two soupspoons put dollops of the topping all over the fruit.
Bake for about 35-40 minutes.
Cool a bit and enjoy!

Molly's Cornbread

The is a really nice basic recipe for cornbread. Great with a soup dinner, or chilli. My family likes it with butter and honey or syrup or jam.

2 cups flour
2 cups cornmeal
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons salt
2 eggs
2 1/4 cups milk, or sour milk, or buttermilk
1 stick of butter, melted.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Butter a 9 x 13 inch bake pan.
Mix the dry ingredients in a big bowl.
In another bowl or pitcher, combine the egg and milk.
Pour into the bowl with the the dry ingredients and mix.
Add in the melted butter.
Pour into the pan and bake for about 25 minutes.

This batter can of course be made into muffins if you like, or mini loaves, or whatever you like. Just adjust the cooking time.

If you want to make a smaller batch of cornbread:

1 cups flour
1 cups cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons salt
1 eggs
1 cups milk + 2 tbls, or sour milk, or buttermilk
1/2 stick of butter, melted.

Put into an 8 inch square pan and bake for maybe 18-20 minutes.
Stick a toothpick into it to make sure it's done.

Streusel Pound Cake

The is a really nice cake, especially if you need to travel with it.

1/2 cup nuts + 2 tablespoons sugar + 1 teaspoon cinnamon ground up in a food processor

2 sticks butter (8 ounces)
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1 cup sour cream or yogurt or buttermilk or sour milk

Amply butter and flour a 10 inch bundt pan
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Cream the butter, sugar, and eggs
Mix the dry ingredients.
Add the dry ingredients and the liquid to the creamed mixture.
Put half of the streusel mix into the pan, spreading it around as much as possible.
Put half of the batter into the pan.
Put in the other half of the streusel.
Put in the rest of the batter.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes.

Cool for about 10 minutes, then turn the cake out onto a rack.

Egg Nog Pie

This is a big family favorite in my family I grew up in. It's not particularly spectacular, but we all liked it. Maybe it was because our Mom put so much rum in it.

1 pre-baked pie shell

1-2 teaspoons knox gelatin, soaked in 1 tablespoon cold water
1 cup milk, scalded in the microwave
2 tablespoons cornflour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 2 to 3 tablespoons rum
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup heavy cream, whipped

Mix the sugar and cornflour and salt together and put into a saucepan. Stir in the scalded milk and cook over medium heat until thick. A a big to the hot liquid to the egg yolks, then add the egg yolks to the hot liquid and bring to a boil. remove from the heat and add the flavoring, butter, and gelatin. Cool.

When nice and cool, whip the cream and fold in the egg mixture. Pour into the pie shell and sprinkle with nutmeg.

Lemon & Lime Meringue Pie

1 pre-baked pie shell

1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornflour
1 1/2 cups water

3 egg yolks, beaten

juice and zest of 1 lemon and 1 lime
3 tablespoons butter

3 egg whites
6 tablespoons sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Combine the 1 cup of sugar and cornflour and put into a saucepan and add the water. Cook over medium heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir a bit of the hot mixture into the egg yolks to temper, the mix the egg yolks in with the hot mixture. Return to the heat and stir until the mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the lime and lemon juice and zest and the butter. Let sit for a little while to cool.

I think that this pie could be good with a graham cracker crust, but I haven't tried it yet. And when you make the curst you can reserve some of the crust for sprinkling on top of the meringue.

Make the meringue by beating the egg whites until nice and foamy, slowly add in the sugar. Beat until nice and thick and glossy, Then spoon onto the filling by dollops and even up nice and artistically. Make sure that the filling is not exposed. Put into the oven for maybe ten minutes or so to brown the top.

Cool completely before serving. This will take at least 2 hours in the refrigerator. More is better if you don't like surprises when you cut into the pie and thinking that maybe a bowl would be better than a plate.

Variation: I think that this pie could be very nice with a graham cracker crust - homemade of course. And when you make the crust set a little bit aside for sprinkling onto the meringue before baking.

For a really stupendous looking recipe like this one, but grander, see Peabody's lemon-lime tart.

Oriental Cabbage Salad with Chicken

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This is a huge family favorite. I made it for the weddings of two daughters. I actually make it in huge bowls to try and insure left-overs, but there's rarely very much left. We do have a family dispute about which raman mix to use. I really like using spicy Thai, while other's prefer just plain chicken.


The measurements here are sometimes appoximates, and can be changed by the maker, The dressing itself is not approximate, except for the optional addition of sesame oil. This is a salad that can be made by several people at one time. Person #1 cut s the vegies. Person #2 roasts the nuts and crushes up the noodles and pours boiling water over them. Person #3 makes the dressing. Person #4 poaches and cuts up the chicken.

10 cups shredded cabbage
3 green onions, chopped as you like
1/4 sesame seeds, toasted
4-5 ounces slivered or sliced almonds, toasted
2 pkgs chicken flavored oriental noodles, crushed (or any flavor you like)
4 halves of chicken breasts, poached and chopped (3-4 cups)

dressing:
the seasoning packets from the noodles
1/2 cup vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup oils
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

Get a great big bowl for the salad.
Get the chicken poaching, remembering to salt the water.
When it's done, let cool for a while, as it's too hot to touch at first.
Cut up the cabbage, as for cole slaw, and slice up the spring onions. Put it all in the bowl.
Take the seasoning packets out of the noodle soup packages to be used in the dressing.
Crush up the noodles (this can be done even before the package is opened), and put the noodles into a sieve and pour boiling water over the noodles. The point it to soften the noodles, but not to make the all limp and cooked as for soup. When sufficiently drained, put into the bowl with the cabbage.
Toast the nuts and seeds, being very careful not to burn them. One way to do this is to put them into a frying pan and stir while heating up. Another more risky method is to put them in a pan in the oven. I have burned them several times this way.
When they are toasted, add to the salad.
Finally, pour on the dressing, giving it a really good stir before putting it on. Toss well.

Christmas Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are so decadent that they can only be made for a special occasion. They're definitely one of my favorite chocolate chip cookies, and they're flat and chewey.

4 sticks butter, softened (1 pound)
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla

1 pound unbleached flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

9-12 ounces real chocolate chips, I like dark chocolate
1/2-1 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Cream the butter, sugars, and eggs.
Add in the vanilla.
Combine the dry ingredients and stir into the creamed mixture.
Add the nuts and chocolate chips.
Put onto the cookie sheet in 2 tablespoon blobs. I like to use a scoop. Make sure they are rather far apart, because they will spread. Bake for about 8 minutes.

If you'd like to hang them on the Christmas tree, use a chop stick to poke a hole near the edge. Then when cold insert a ribbon for hanging.

French Breakfast Puffs

1/3 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup milk

topping:

2 - 4 tablespoons melted butter

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Either grease a muffin tin, or get the papers into the muffin cups.

I like to make 24 mini muffins, but this recipe is perfect for 12 regular muffins.

Cream the butter, sugar, and eggs, either by hand or with a hand-held mixer.

Combine the dry ingredients and add them to the creamed mixture alternately with the milk.

Fill muffin cups 2/3 full and bake until golden brown, 20 - 25 minutes for the regular muffins, less for the smaller ones.

While still hot either dip the top of the muffin in the melted butter, or brush on the melted butter, then dip the muffin into the mix of cinnamon and sugar.

note: the painting is by Therese Albert.

Lemon Pound Cake

I don't know where this recipe came from, but it is great to use when you have a crowd to feed and you need several cakes.

2 sticks butter (1 cup or 8 ounces)
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk (or sour milk or sour cream)
1 pound flour
a pinch of salt
1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
zest of 1 lemon

juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan, or a large bundt pan.
Cream the butter sugar and eggs.
Mix the dry ingredients and lemon zest.
Add the milk and the dry ingredients alternately.
Stir in the extract.
Put into the pan and bake for about 55-60 minutes.
When done, cool about ten minutes and then turn out onto a rack.
Put the lemon juice and equal amount of sugar into a glass dish and heat in the microwave to melt the sugar.
Spoon the lemon sugar mixture very carefully over the cake so that it is absorbed. Sometimes I poke holes in the cake so that the juice sinks in.

Strawberry Meringue Torte

This is a recipe I got from a friend. We had at for dinner at his house, and I haven't yet made it myself. I can't remember if he got the recipe from his mother or grandmother, or great aunt.

cake layer:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup milk
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 cup sifted cake flour (about 5 ounces regular flour, sifted)

Meringue:

4 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoons cream of tarter

filling and topping:

berries for the middle of the cake, lightly sweetened
1/2 cup slivered almonds, for the top


Preheat the oven for 325 degrees.
Grease, paper, and grease two cake pans.
Cream the butter, sugar, and egg yolks.
Mix the dry ingredients, and add to the creamed mixture, alternately with the milk.
Put into the pans.

Make the meringue by mixing the egg whites, and cream of tartar and beating until foamy, then gradually add the sugar and beat until nice and stiff.
Spoon the meringue onto the batter, sprinkle with the almonds, and bake for 30-35 minutes.
Cool a bit, them remove from pans and cool on a wrack.

When cool, find a lovely serving plate and place the first layer on the plate with the meringue side down. Then spoon on the sweetened berries, and place on to the second layer, with the meringue side up.

Lemon Sugar Tea Biscuits

I absolutely adore these cookies, which is a very good reason for my not making them very often. Last time I made them I think I used a little less sugar, but I forgot how much little. And maybe I used all organic sugar and no brown sugar. I just about ate the whole batch all by myself. Well not really, but I was excessive.

15 ounces flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 teaspoon salt
zest of 1 small lemon

2 sticks butter, softened
1 3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
juice of 1 lemon
some raisins

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Combine the first 4 ingredients.
Cream the butter, sugars, and eggs.
Add the lemon juice and then the dry ingredients.
Put some sugar in a bowl and drop scoops of the cookie dough in the sugar and roll into balls.

I like to use my littlest scoop because then when I eat one it isn't too big.
Place on the cookie sheet and put a raisin in the center of each cookie ball.
Spritz water on the cookies, or not, as you wish.
Dip a cookie press or a small glass in sugar and press on the top of each cookie.
Bake from 8 to 11 minutes, depending on the size of the scoops.
Cool on a rack.

Rustic Blackberry Pie

To begin with, I love blackberries. They are totally worth the effort it takes to pick them. It's just so hard to find them. Though it's my belief that if for some reason Oregon was completely abandoned by the people, then it wouldn't be long before it was overrun by blackberries.

crust:

1 stick (4 ounces) butter, chilled and diced
1 1/3 cup flour (about 6 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons iced water

Mix in the usual pie-crust way, place onto a piece of plastic wrap and form into a disc, and put into the refrigerator for about 20 minutes. In the mean time prep the filling.

filling:

4 cups blackberries
1/3 cup flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 - 2 tablespoons butter for dotting the berries

Blend the sugar and flour thoroughly.
Gently mix the berries with the flour and sugar mixture.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
When the crust is chilled, dip it in flour to coat thoroughly, then roll out on a piece of waxed paper to as big as you can and them lay the rolled out crust over a pie plate. Mix the flour and sugar and gently mix with the blackberries. Pour berry mixture into the crust, dot with butter, and then lift the excess crust up over the berries. Using a wadded up piece of plastic wrap, or a pastry brush, daub a little cream or milk over the crust and then sprinkle with sugar. I like to use fat sugar.
Bake for about 45 minutes, or until done. If you are worried about the crust burning in your oven, you can turn the temperature down to 350 after 15 minutes, and then cook for just a bit longer. The pie should be bubbly when done.