Mom's Pie Crust

This particular recipe was one used by my Mother in her small bakeshop so it makes about 5 pies worth of pastry.

5 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 pound lard or shortening
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg beaten in a measuring cup then finish filling cup with hot water

Mix all ingredients thoroughly then chill to set approximately one hour or until ready to use.

Just be sure that all the shortening or lard is well mixed in otherwise your pastry will have holes in it when it is baked. The good thing about this pastry is that you can't over work it - it keeps the flaky texture when done.

Not Jaydens Cake

Well this is not the recipe to make a cake like the one
Jayden; (my youngest great grandchild) is munching on
but a Fudgie delight your family will love!

Fudgie Chocolate Cake

3 squares unsweetened chocolate
2/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 (6 ounce can) evaporated milk
1/2 cup soft shortening
3/4 cup white sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups unsifted all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking SODA
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk
2 egg whites

Grease the bottoms of 2 deep 10 inch layer cake pans;
then line with circles of greased wax paper.
Mix chocolate, brown sugar and evaporated milk
together in the top part of a double boiler
cook and stir over boiling water until
chocolate melts and mixture is smooth.
remove from heat cool to room temperature.
beat shortening 1/2 cup white sugar,
egg yolks and vanilla untill light.
Stir in chocolate mixture. sift and add 1/2 the dry ingredients;
then add milk and remaining sifted ingredients alternately.
beat egg whites until peaked, but moist;
then beat in remaining white sugar.
Fold into the chocolate batter
divide between prepared pans
bake at 350F 35-40 mins Cool 10 mins.
Cut around the edges
Invert on towels over a cake rake.
When cold fill with a date filling and frost with
your fav chocolate butter icing!
ENJOY

Christmas Dinner

I expect most of you have your Christmas dinner planned down to the last piece of pie or whatever it is you are having for dessert. Whether you are having a traditional dinner or something new, the anticipation, celebrations and excitement will be the same. Some of you will have made your own traditions and some will carry on from where the rest of your family left off. I am one of these. Although we actually have our festivities a week or two ahead of the actual day, we manage to get most of the family home for a gift exchange and traditional turkey dinner. Only 3 could not be here as they live too far away but I am sure their hearts were here with the rest of us. A couple did call to say Merry Christmas to everyone which brought them closer. Thanks to my parents, their tradition lives on!
I trust that each and every one of you will have a wonderful Christmas and create new memories that will last a lifetime and beyond.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup butter
12 oz. Chocolate chips
2 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 of an 8 oz. Hershey Bar (grated)
2 1/2 cups blended oatmeal
2 eggs
1 tsp. Baking powder
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped nuts (your choice)

Measure oatmeal, and blend in a blender to a fine powder.
Cream the butter and both sugars.
Add eggs and vanilla mix together
with flour, oatmeal, salt,
baking powder, and soda .
Add chocolate chips, hershey bar, and nuts.
Roll into balls, and place two inches apart
on a cookie Sheet. Bake for 10 minutes
at 375 degrees.
Makes 56 cookies.

The Simple Chef - video

In Mom's kitchen you could relax and just be yourself.  There was never any judgment made about anyone or anything.  Everyone was welcome to just come on in, sit and of course, have that always ready cup of tea. 
Believe it or not - my Mom's kitchen had everyone from hobos and trappers to celebrities and politicians come for tea and all were more than welcome.  As she would have said - they are all people just the same as we are.  People still remember and comment about the warmth and love in my mom's kitchen.

When I think about warmth and comfort the next thought is food.  One of my all time favorite meals is spaghetti with meat sauce.   We did not get it very often so perhaps that is why we considered it a special treat. 

I make my own sauce but I  use canned sauce and tomatoes.  It depends on what I have in the cupboard as to what goes into the sauce.  The base is a bottle of spaghetti sauce and a can of whole tomatoes.  I cut the tomatoes into chunks.  The rest could be all or some of the following ingredients.  Sliced or whole small mushrooms, green, red or whatever color bell peppers, onions (dried or fresh), fresh leeks (small wild ones), garlic (cloves or powder), chili peppers, hot sauce, carrot slices (precooked).  I throw it all in a pot and let it simmer until it looks thick enough to be spaghetti sauce - Each time is different and each time I have enough sauce to put several containers in the freezer for another day.  

As for the pasta - I will either use dried pasta or the fresh pasta you can buy in the deli. Sometimes I use the vegetable pasta, whole wheat pasta.  There are so many types to try out.   I find that other than cooking times pastas are all good and easy to prepare.  Some people prefer it al dente and some prefer it cooked all the way through. 

Because it is such a versatile meal - you can pour the sauce over the pasta or mix it in.  Some like to put parmesan cheese on top. 

Whatever way you like it - it is easy to make and fun to eat. 

A family favorite - Syrupy Butter Tarts

One of the most popular things in my Mom's kitchen and in her home bakeshop was butter tarts the real drippy kind.  Customers would pack up even the day old ones and the frozen ones to take home with them.  Dozens and dozens of them.  Whatever was there didn't last long.  I use that same recipe for all the holiday festivities in my own kitchen now.  Everyone gets very upset if I don't make any and have started to come to my house early to bake them themselves.  They never last until the big dinner but we have fun making and eating them anyway. 

Syrupy Butter Tarts

1 cup raisins (soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes then drained)
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup of brown sugar
1 well beaten egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix well until foamy and pour into prepared unbaked pastry shells and bake at 350°F until golden brown.
Approximately 10 minutes depending on your stove.
Remove from tart tins before they cool too much, but be careful - they are still very hot on the inside.