Chocolate Covered Cherries!

Also called "Bon Bon Cookies," this recipe was one my mother always made at Christmastime....and I would sneak into the freezer and eat them frozen (for which I caught quite the scoldings.)

While you can omit the cherries and use chopped walnuts instead, our family preferred the cherry version.

Chocolate Covered Cherries (or Bon Bon Cookies- by Carol Meyer)

2 lbs (453 grams)  powdered sugar
1 large package (198g) of sweetened shredded coconut
1- 14oz (397g) can sweetened condensed milk
1 stick (114g) butter, melted (no substitutions!)
1- 10 (283g)ounce jar of stemless maraschino cherries, drained, dried, and chopped fine * there are dye-free options available on the market.

Mix together in a large bowl, stirring well. Roll into 1 inch- (25cm) -balls and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Refrigerate for one hour.






In a double boiler, melt 1 large package of chocolate chips (I prefer Enjoylife brand, as they are soy free, but you can use whichever you like) and -if you choose not to temper your chocolate- you can add 1-2 ounces (15-30ml) melted paraffin or baking wax.*
(*That is how the original recipe is written, but since paraffin is a petroleum product, I am more apt not to use it. There are many online sites which tell you how to temper chocolate for coating candies, so that paraffin is not necessary. Here is one I found: http://www.thekitchn.com
/how-to-temper-chocolate-without-a-thermometer-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-196475  )



Dip each ball into the chocolate mixture- I poke them with toothpicks and then hold the cold candy over the chocolate and dip/spoon the mixture over the entire piece. Then place the finished candy back onto parchment paper. Store in an air-tight container in a cool spot. (You can refrigerate or freeze, but the chocolate might grey/dull). 

Creamy Alfredo

Several years ago my sister gave me her recipe for creamy Alfredo sauce. While it does take a bit of patience and especially to cook it on a low heat so that the milk/cream does not curdle, it is well worth the effort.

Pancetta

For this I used some fresh Pancetta- Italian bacon- and fried it up in my cast iron pan. It does not really brown much, so fry it for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

* I also sauteed a can of sliced mushrooms too.

Parmesan Cheese

Fresh Parmesan cheese- I used about 1/2 plus a couple tablespoons of this in the recipe. (honestly did not measure, but used about 1/3 of the carton. Removed from fridge and set aside while I prepared the sauce.

spaghetti pasta noodles

 Organic- gluten free quinoa and brown rice spaghetti. You can use whatever pasta you like. I made about half of this package for a weeks worth of meals for myself.  (approx 5 servings) Boil noodles until done to your likeness- I prefer al dente, not mushy.  Drain and toss with a TBSP of olive oil to keep from sticking.

* I also added 1/3 cup petite peas to the water just at the end and then drained with the rest. 

 I did not take pictures of the beginning. For this recipe, take 6 tablespoons of butter (not margarine) and melt it slowly on low heat in a cast iron pan. (or nonstick, if you prefer.) To this I slowly added 1 1/4 cup of warmed Half and Half*
By slowly I mean a few TBSP's at a time, stirring constantly on LOW heat. This is very important as you do not want this to boil...as it will curdle and ruin your whole dish!  Adding all of half and half took at least 5 minutes or more.






 
(*skim will not work...whole milk, cream, or half and half are what I recommend.)

Now turn off heat and add about 1 tsp of fresh ground pepper, and the Parmesan cheese. Stir until the cheese is completely incorporated/melted.  Pour this over your prepared pasta, add the Pancetta, peas, and mushrooms (if using).  You could also use green beans or asparagus if you want. 

Yum! comfort food! Serve with a tossed salad or garlic toast if you wish.

Cracker Barrel Hash Brown Casserole

What does one do when they wake up at 5:30 a.m. on a Sunday? Start perusing Facebook on the kindle in bed, of course. As it happens the first recipe I came across, posted by my friend, was one I had already planned on making this weekend. However, a comment caught my eye, written by a former cook at the Cracker Barrel restaurants, and she said the recipe was incorrect- they did not use sour cream in the recipe!  For years I had been faithfully making it this way, so when the actual recipe was put in the thread, I knew I must try it.


So...without further ado.... here is allegedly the original Cracker Barrel Hash Brown Casserole recipe, as told by someone online who might know more than the rest of us! (I am not posting names as I would not want to get anyone in trouble, but another person said it had been published in People magazine once too.)

Cracker Barrel Hash Brown Casserole

1 stick of butter-melted
1 can cream of chicken soup
10 cups of frozen shredded potatoes
Chopped onion ( 1 put in about 1/4 cup)
Black pepper (1-2 tsp)
8 ounces of shredded Colby cheese and about a cup more sprinkled on top


Mix all together and put in a 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with the extra Colby cheese and bake 20-30 minutes at 375 or until browning and slightly crispy along the edges.

Cast of Characters- I am gluten-free, so I use a gf Cream of Chicken soup. Also, did not have frozen hashed browns so the refrigerated fresh will have to do.

Mixed it all together in a big bowl before pouring into a greased (sprayed) baking dish.

That's it! I can smell it baking right now, and anticipating the cheesy potatoey goodness! Just the thing for a cold Sunday morning in late November. 

Enjoy!



p.s. check my Facebook page out at https://www.facebook.com/RusticFroggie/

Vacuum Cleaner Maintenance 101

Vacuum Cleaner Maintenance 101- Recently my vacuum cleaner decided to try to suck up one of my scatter rugs, which caused it to slip the belt. This happens from time to time, but it does give me a good excuse to clean out the threads and hair wound up in the roller at the same time.

Now my vacuum is an OLDIE- meaning it is not bagless (which I do not care for, as dumping out the "dust and debris" causes more issues with airborne allergens, in my opinion) and has relatively few working parts to mess with. I actually found my vacuum on a curbside during a city wide clean up day, at least 10 years ago. The previous owner- presumably male, given it had a playboy bunny sticker on it- decided it was broken and tossed it. Actually, the belt had slipped and they had appeared to have sucked up a pen, causing a log jam of gunk. Once cleared and cleaned, and sticker removed, belt replaced, it has worked perfectly fine ever since.

But I digress... here is my step by step pictorial guide to changing out the belt and cleaning the roller of your vacuum. If you have a newer model, I am not certain what the inner workings looks like, but would hope that they all have similar abilities to general repair. Check with your owner's manual if you do decide to take matters into your own hands.

Unplug your vacuum and tip it on the back side revealing the base.

Locate screws holding the covering plate on the bottom and remove with a screwdriver. (usually a Phillips head)







In my case there were four screws to remove...

Remove the base plate and set aside.

Note the belt is not broken, just slipped off. You can replace broken belts in a similar manner. Every belt is a different size so make sure you are buying the correct one for your specific machine.

 Using a scissors, trim off threads and hair wound up in the roller.

Yuck!

Locate the bottom of the belt. I had to remove the roller bar in order to reattach the belt. It was hard to get a photo, but I basically pulled the roller gently toward me and then used the screw driver to help hook/guide the belt back onto the attachment rod. 

Note that it is attached to a metal rod sticking out.

Replace the roller bar, pulling the belt tight. My roller bar has fitted notches to guide the piece in securely.

Now that it is all attached (see arrow) I screwed the protective base plate back on, and voila! my vacuum was once again "fully operational."

Back together...and yes, the outline of the sticker is still on there. I never got around to removing it with rubbing alcohol.

Wild Rice Hotdish

 This is the recipe I received for wild rice hotdish while going to college. The young lady, my classmate, Kristen Larson, was from the White Earth Indian Reservation, and we had the opportunity to go to her family's home and listen to an elder tell stories. They also served us the wild rice hotdish there, and it was delicious!  Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Wild Rice Hotdish

1 pound wild rice

1 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped onions

1 can of cream of potato soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can of mixed vegetables (optional) - * I just chop some fresh carrots to add into the rice as it cooks

a few chicken bouillon cubes

1 package regular Jimmy Dean sausage

Rinse the rice. Dissolve the bouillon cubes in a pot full of water and add the onions and celery.  Once the water boils, add the wild rice.  It really puffs up a lot, so a little rice will go a long way! I don't really have a time estimate as to how long it will take to cook the rice.  You just need to keep an eye on it and sample it every once in a while. While the rice is cooking, mix together the two soups and cook them as the instructions say on the can.  You will add 2 cans of milk.  Also, brown the sausage.

After the rice is cooked, drain any excess water and put the rice in a large casserole dish.  Add the soups, the sausage and a drained can of mixed vegetables.  Cover and bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Ta da!

Browning the sausage...

I used a rice cooker instead of making the rice on stovetop- much faster!

carrots and red onions

I cook mine in the slow cooker /crock pot for 2-4 hours or so.

Orange Toast

A few days ago I made a loaf of gluten free honey oatmeal bread. While my attempt came out rather dense and a little dry- I have a feeling it was due to the flour blend I used-I didn't want the bread to go to waste, so I thought "Orange Toast!"

My mom would make Orange Toast out of the thinly sliced Pepperidge Farms bread, but since trying to go gluten free, I have not had the luxury of that treat. The ingredients are simple- just 4- and the taste is AMAZING.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 teaspoons grated orange peel 
• 3 Tbsp fresh squeezed juice
• 1 loaf white bread, thinly sliced (about 18 slices)

Directions:

 In a small bowl, combine butter, sugar and orange peel; mix well.

Spread on both sides of bread and place on parchment lined baking sheets.

1. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes. Turn slices over; bake 7 minutes longer (watch carefully). Yield: about 3 dozen.

***Originally published as Orange Toast in Quick Cooking May/June 2000, p37 ****


I will note that the gluten free bread did not get as crisp as regular white bread does, so the day after you can toast it lightly in a toaster oven. Store in a covered container in the fridge.

Swedish Meatballs

I keep forgetting that I have this blog as well, and should do better at posting things here. I'm transferring my grandma Mamie's Swedish Meatball recipe here from one of my former blogs, since this one is linked to my facebook page.

Grandma's Swedish Meatballs

Heat oven to 350º F
Spray a 2 quart glass casserole dish and set aside.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
1 12 ounce roll Jimmy Dean's light pork sausage
1/3-1/2 cup bread crumbs (you can use seasoned or plain)
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1 small onion peeled and chopped fine
1 small peeled russet potato, grated fine*
2 tsp ground sage
2 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp pepper

Combine above ingredients in a large bowl, mixing well. On a counter top pull out a 3 foot long sheet of waxed paper. Dump meatball mixture onto one half of the waxed paper and fold the other side over. Using the waxed paper to keep your hands clean, flatten out the meat mixture into a roughly rectangular slab approximately 1" thick. Then peel back the top waxed paper and with a long knife score the meat into equal 1 " grid portions for easy, uniform rolling.

Then roll each square by hand into a meat ball and set aside until all of your meat mixture is rolled.

In a heavy skillet spray with light non-stick spray and heat on medium. Add several meatballs at a time to the pan turning gently to brown on all sides, until no pink shows. Transfer browned meatballs to the greased casserole dish. Continue until all of the meatballs have been browned.

Then, in the same skillet, drain any excess grease, then add 1 can of Cream of Mushroom Soup (your choice of brand,) and 1 can of milk. Heat through, then pour over top of meatballs. Cover casserole dish heavy aluminum foil, and bake for 30-40 min in preheated oven. Serve with mashed potatoes or noodles.


* My Grandma Mamie always added grated potato, and this recipe can be made gluten free by omitting the bread crumbs and using a large potato instead, as well as omitting the mushroom soup gravy unless using a gluten free variety of soup.