I didn't have a particular goal for this year's reading, so the list is pretty eclectic. This is the year I discovered George Eliot and Lloyd Alexander (I read through the Prydain Chronicles twice, once myself and once with Ponytails). It was also a good year for art-inspired fiction. (R) means it was a re-read. § means I actually finished it. A few of the books I didn't finish or didn't like have been left off the list..
Classic-type stuff
On the Art of Writing, by Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch
Meno, by Plato (and I started reading a couple of other dialogues) §
"Lancelot and Elaine," by Alfred Lord Tennyson §
"Self-Reliance," by Ralph Waldo Emerson §
Parts of Plutarch's Lives (R)
Silas Marner, by George Eliot §
Scenes of Clerical Life, by George Eliot §
Middlemarch, by George Eliot
Great Expectations (R) (re-read with Crayons) §
The Abbot, by Sir Walter Scott §
Guy Mannering, by Sir Walter Scott §
The Incredulity of Father Brown, by G.K. Chesterton §
The Innocence of Father Brown, by G.K. Chesterton (R) §
The Scarlet Pimpernel (R) §
Candide, by Voltaire §
Science-type stuff
Not Even Wrong: The Failure of String Theory...., by Peter Woit
Theology-type stuff
The Pursuit of God, by A.W. Tozer
Making Men Whole, by J.B. Phillips §
The Call, by Os Guinness (R) §
Serious Times: Making Your Life Matter in an Urgent Day, by James Emery White §
Lessons I Learned in the Light, by Jennifer Rothschild §
One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp §
Parts of the Bible (RRRRR)
Old-favourites-type stuff
Shepherds Abiding, by Jan Karon (R) §
At Home in Mitford, by Jan Karon (R) §
Light from Heaven, by Jan Karon (R) §
The Trail of the Conestoga (R) (re-read with Crayons) §
Meet the Malones (R) (re-read with Crayons) §
Beany Malone (R) (re-read with Crayons) §
Daughter of Time, by Josephine Tey (R) §
An Episode of Sparrows, by Rumer Godden (R) §
In This House of Brede, by Rumer Godden (R) §
Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, by Anne Tyler (R) §
84, Charing Cross Road / The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street, by Helene Hanff (R) §
Teaching-type stuff
Norms and Nobility, by David V. Hicks (R) §
Marva Collins' Way (R) §
"Ordinary" Children, Extraordinary Teachers, by Marva Collins §
Read & Grow Rich, by Burke Hedges §
Homeschooling Only One (R), by Donna Conner §
Schoolproof, by Mary Pride (R) §
Parts of Charlotte Mason's books (R)
Gurgi stuff
The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain, by Lloyd Alexander §
The Book of Three, by Lloyd Alexander §
The Black Cauldron, by Lloyd Alexander §
The Castle of Llyr, by Lloyd Alexander §
Taran Wanderer, by Lloyd Alexander §
The High King, by Lloyd Alexander §
Madeleine stuff
Walking on Water, by Madeleine L'Engle (R) §
A Wind in the Door, by Madeleine L'Engle §
A Swiftly Tilting Planet, by Madeleine L'Engle §
A Ring of Endless Light, by Madeleine L'Engle §
Two-Part Invention, by Madeleine L'Engle (R) §
More space-and-time stuff
C.S. Lewis: A Biography, by A.N. Wilson §
Till We Have Faces, by C.S. Lewis (R) §
The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis §
Out of the Silent Planet, by C.S. Lewis §
Perelandra, by C.S. Lewis §
That Hideous Strength, by C.S. Lewis §
Prince Caspian (R) §
Homey stuff
More Make it Fast, Cook It Slow, by Stephanie O'Dea §
Canada's Slow Cooker Winners, by Donna-Marie Pye §
Hooked: A Crocheter's Stash of Wit and Wisdom, ed. by Kari Cornell §
other craft books that I can't remember
Creating a Beautiful Home, by Alexandra Stoddard (R) §
two other books by Alexandra Stoddard §
Flanagan's Smart Home, by Barbara Flanagan §
Does This Clutter Make My B---- Look Fat?, by Peter Walsh §
Miscellaneous
Madam How and Lady Why, by Charles Kingsley (R) §
The Long-Ago Lake, by Marne Wilkins
A Passion for the Impossible (bio of Lilias Trotter), by Miriam Huffman Rockness §
Trial and Error, by Anthony Berkeley §)
Detectives in Togas, by Henry Winterfeld §
Roman Ransom, by Henry Winterfeld §
Lydia Cassatt Reading the Morning Paper, by Harriet Chessman §
Girl with a Pearl Earring, by Tracy Chevalier §
Out of the Storm, by Grace Livingston Hill §
Not Under the Law, by Grace Livingston Hill §
Beauty for Ashes, by Grace Livingston Hill §
Showing posts with label Lenora Mattingly Weber. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lenora Mattingly Weber. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
What's for supper (last night)? Sloppy Joes and frugal thoughts
We used to make Sloppy Joes with canned Manwich Sauce (bought on sale for 99 cents). A few years ago we started making them from the Beany Malone recipe, and we liked them pretty much except that I had to remember to keep a jar of chili sauce around. Later I modified the recipe (less chili sauce, no salt) to have a lower sodium content.
When I thought about making Sloppy Joes yesterday, I wasn't sure how long the half-eaten jar of chili sauce in the fridge had been there--that's how long it's been since we've made them. Then I remembered the Sloppy Joe recipe at A Year of Slow Cooking, which is also in Stephanie's first cookbook. It's a different style from Beany's--mostly spices and seasonings added to the browned meat, plus water and a can of tomato paste. I made it on the stove instead of in the slow cooker, and added in a chopped pepper, because peppers, after several weeks, finally went on sale for under a dollar a pound. Mr. Fixit, who sometimes has problems eating tomato-ish, onion-ish dishes, said that this recipe didn't cause him any aftergrief. I also noticed that it's very easy to control the sodium in this recipe--the amount of salt you add to the mix is up to you. No MSG or anything else nasty either.
So unless I happen to have a fresh jar of chili sauce on hand, we will probably keep making Stephanie's recipe.
Oh, and the frugal thoughts?
Just that if you had to go out and buy all those seasonings at once, you might not consider Sloppy Joes to be a frugal dish. But I already had everything called for, even onion flakes and celery seed, so for us the cost of the "mix" was very low. I think about it the same way if I'm making granola: the last batch I made (from the Common Room recipe here) had coconut, orange extract, wheat germ, almonds, and sunflower seeds in it; but those were ingredients I already had on the shelf and wanted to use up, not things I went out and bought specially.
A teaspoonful of spice is different from a cupful of coconut, of course. The trouble with buying spices, unless you scoop them in bulk, is that you have to buy a whole package or jarful in the beginning. (I buy both frugal-brand-in-a-bag and bulk seasonings.) But you do start to accumulate them after awhile, so putting a bit of paprika and cumin and cornstarch together to make Sloppy Joe mix barely registers in the cost of a meal. It's like starting a new hobby, something like folk art painting or knitting where you have to start out buying not only tools but every single colour of paint or yarn that you need; eventually you can stop buying so much and just use what you have, replacing only as needed.
Of course it costs the same in the end, since eventually I have to replace the ingredients used up (or maybe I don't bother for awhile). But if they're there on the shelf, you might as well use them.
P.S. Crayons wants to know if people make "Tidy Joes."
When I thought about making Sloppy Joes yesterday, I wasn't sure how long the half-eaten jar of chili sauce in the fridge had been there--that's how long it's been since we've made them. Then I remembered the Sloppy Joe recipe at A Year of Slow Cooking, which is also in Stephanie's first cookbook. It's a different style from Beany's--mostly spices and seasonings added to the browned meat, plus water and a can of tomato paste. I made it on the stove instead of in the slow cooker, and added in a chopped pepper, because peppers, after several weeks, finally went on sale for under a dollar a pound. Mr. Fixit, who sometimes has problems eating tomato-ish, onion-ish dishes, said that this recipe didn't cause him any aftergrief. I also noticed that it's very easy to control the sodium in this recipe--the amount of salt you add to the mix is up to you. No MSG or anything else nasty either.
So unless I happen to have a fresh jar of chili sauce on hand, we will probably keep making Stephanie's recipe.
Oh, and the frugal thoughts?
Just that if you had to go out and buy all those seasonings at once, you might not consider Sloppy Joes to be a frugal dish. But I already had everything called for, even onion flakes and celery seed, so for us the cost of the "mix" was very low. I think about it the same way if I'm making granola: the last batch I made (from the Common Room recipe here) had coconut, orange extract, wheat germ, almonds, and sunflower seeds in it; but those were ingredients I already had on the shelf and wanted to use up, not things I went out and bought specially.
A teaspoonful of spice is different from a cupful of coconut, of course. The trouble with buying spices, unless you scoop them in bulk, is that you have to buy a whole package or jarful in the beginning. (I buy both frugal-brand-in-a-bag and bulk seasonings.) But you do start to accumulate them after awhile, so putting a bit of paprika and cumin and cornstarch together to make Sloppy Joe mix barely registers in the cost of a meal. It's like starting a new hobby, something like folk art painting or knitting where you have to start out buying not only tools but every single colour of paint or yarn that you need; eventually you can stop buying so much and just use what you have, replacing only as needed.
Of course it costs the same in the end, since eventually I have to replace the ingredients used up (or maybe I don't bother for awhile). But if they're there on the shelf, you might as well use them.
P.S. Crayons wants to know if people make "Tidy Joes."
Monday, June 22, 2009
Favourite Cookbooks? (Bonus book to download!)
The Real Life Home has a post about her favourite cookbooks--why she likes them, favourite recipes. Want to join in?
Mostly I use my binder of recipes that I've printed out. So I could say that my favourite cookbooks include the Internet, Canadian Living, magazine ads, and my grandmother's recipe box.
My favourite cookbooks years ago were mostly vegetarian cookbooks, and I had a lot of them, especially before we went online. Most of them I've given away since then, especially the soy-based books, because a couple of the Treehouse people have discovered that tofu and TVP don't agree with them--I haven't even made our favourite Chocolate Pie in a long time, for that reason.
One I still use, or at least go to for ideas, is Nikki & David Goldbeck's American Wholefoods Cuisine: Over 1300 Meatless, Wholesome Recipes from Short Order to Gourmet. What I like: international menu ideas and the menu suggestions after a lot of the recipes; the "Food Factory" section (a lot of basic instructions for cooking beans, freezing things and so on), stock-less soup recipes, sauces and dips. Where we differ: their baking is almost always sweetened with honey, which is fine for some people but I still use sugar. Anything we don't like: I like their molasses-cranberry baked pudding fine, but it's a bit intense for my kids.
Another book that's gotten pretty worn is Whole Foods for the Whole Family, a La Leche League International Cookbook. Its 1981 date means that it's very big on cutting out sugar, less concerned about fat. Very family-friendly and with a view towards economy (recipes contributed by a wide variety of LLLl members). Things I've never made and don't plan to: the liver recipes (the Squirrels are not big on organ meats), and some of the regional things like Goetta (sounds like Scrapple) and White Boudin. Things I like: lots of "optionals" and choices, like baking recipes that use sugar or honey, butter or oil.
A very small book that I got when we were first married and still use sometimes: Eating Better...A Basic Shelf Cookbook. This is an early edition of the book still sold by the City of York Health Unit. [Hmm, I followed the links there and it doesn't seem to be available now. But here's a PDF of a similar book published by the Porcupine Health Unit.] Check out the no-salt seasoning blends!] Very economical and based mostly on real-life-keep-in-your-pantry items. (Does anyone else get annoyed by cookbooks that assume you have capers in the pantry?) Things I don't like: bland recipes made with hamburger (I think they improved them in later editions), and a terrible recipe for oatmeal cookies. Recipes I still like: stovetop rice pudding made with powdered milk, pudding mix made with powdered milk, bean salad.
There, that's three: we also use two volumes of the Harrowsmith Cookbook, all three Food That Really Schmecks cookbooks, the Beany Malone Cookbook, and Betty Crocker's Cookbook (because I can never remember how much sweetening to put in the whipped cream; I also like the meatloaf and brownie recipes). A few months ago I was also drawing heavily on some low-sodium cookbooks from the library, but we haven't had those out for awhile; they're a good source of no-salt seasoning mixes and other general ideas.
Mostly I use my binder of recipes that I've printed out. So I could say that my favourite cookbooks include the Internet, Canadian Living, magazine ads, and my grandmother's recipe box.
My favourite cookbooks years ago were mostly vegetarian cookbooks, and I had a lot of them, especially before we went online. Most of them I've given away since then, especially the soy-based books, because a couple of the Treehouse people have discovered that tofu and TVP don't agree with them--I haven't even made our favourite Chocolate Pie in a long time, for that reason.
One I still use, or at least go to for ideas, is Nikki & David Goldbeck's American Wholefoods Cuisine: Over 1300 Meatless, Wholesome Recipes from Short Order to Gourmet. What I like: international menu ideas and the menu suggestions after a lot of the recipes; the "Food Factory" section (a lot of basic instructions for cooking beans, freezing things and so on), stock-less soup recipes, sauces and dips. Where we differ: their baking is almost always sweetened with honey, which is fine for some people but I still use sugar. Anything we don't like: I like their molasses-cranberry baked pudding fine, but it's a bit intense for my kids.
Another book that's gotten pretty worn is Whole Foods for the Whole Family, a La Leche League International Cookbook. Its 1981 date means that it's very big on cutting out sugar, less concerned about fat. Very family-friendly and with a view towards economy (recipes contributed by a wide variety of LLLl members). Things I've never made and don't plan to: the liver recipes (the Squirrels are not big on organ meats), and some of the regional things like Goetta (sounds like Scrapple) and White Boudin. Things I like: lots of "optionals" and choices, like baking recipes that use sugar or honey, butter or oil.
A very small book that I got when we were first married and still use sometimes: Eating Better...A Basic Shelf Cookbook. This is an early edition of the book still sold by the City of York Health Unit. [Hmm, I followed the links there and it doesn't seem to be available now. But here's a PDF of a similar book published by the Porcupine Health Unit.] Check out the no-salt seasoning blends!] Very economical and based mostly on real-life-keep-in-your-pantry items. (Does anyone else get annoyed by cookbooks that assume you have capers in the pantry?) Things I don't like: bland recipes made with hamburger (I think they improved them in later editions), and a terrible recipe for oatmeal cookies. Recipes I still like: stovetop rice pudding made with powdered milk, pudding mix made with powdered milk, bean salad.
There, that's three: we also use two volumes of the Harrowsmith Cookbook, all three Food That Really Schmecks cookbooks, the Beany Malone Cookbook, and Betty Crocker's Cookbook (because I can never remember how much sweetening to put in the whipped cream; I also like the meatloaf and brownie recipes). A few months ago I was also drawing heavily on some low-sodium cookbooks from the library, but we haven't had those out for awhile; they're a good source of no-salt seasoning mixes and other general ideas.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Library Sale
The big downtown library had its annual sale this weekend, and we brought home a box and a bagful of books, about forty in all. Some were Crayons' choices, some were mine, and a few The Apprentice picked out. Some we've read before, and some just looked interesting.
A Story of the Group of Seven (Hunkin--about a well-known group of Canadian artists)
Cornelius Krieghoff (Hugues de Jouvancourt) (one of our term's artists)
Adventures of Richard Wagner (Opal Wheeler)
Young Brahms (Sybil Deucher--same series as the Wheeler music bios)
Elisabeth & the Water Troll (Wangerin)
Meet the Malones (Weber)
Beany Malone (Weber)
The Glass Slipper (Eleanor Farjeon--her version of Cinderella)
Go With the Poem (Lillian Moore)
The Unbroken Web (Richard Adams)
The Cuckoo Clock (Mary Stolz)
The Story of Holly and Ivy (Christmas story by Rumer Godden; we already have a copy of this, but this edition has illustrations by Barbara Cooney)
The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree (Eleanor Estes)
'Round the Christmas Tree (Corrin)
The Alley (Eleanor Estes)
Doctor on an Elephant (Kroll)
Diamond in the Window (Langton)
Harry's Mad (Dick King-Smith--about a parrot)
Ben and Me
Backyard Vacation: Outdoor Fun
Mountain Bluebird (Hirschi)
Thanksgiving Fun
An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving (Alcott)
Cat's Cradles, Owl's Eyes
Crystals and Crystal Gardens
Sugar Free Kids' Cookery
Make Clothes Fun!
Miss Patch's Learn to Sew Book
Dancing Is (Ancona)
Ballet Company
Have Fun with Magnifying
The Past of Pastimes (Bartlett)
World of Swans
Music for Very Little People
Winners! Super Champions of Ice Hockey (don't ask)
Not Much News: Ruby's Letters from Home (Edna Staebler)
These High Green Hills (Jan Karon)
A Story of the Group of Seven (Hunkin--about a well-known group of Canadian artists)
Cornelius Krieghoff (Hugues de Jouvancourt) (one of our term's artists)
Adventures of Richard Wagner (Opal Wheeler)
Young Brahms (Sybil Deucher--same series as the Wheeler music bios)
Elisabeth & the Water Troll (Wangerin)
Meet the Malones (Weber)
Beany Malone (Weber)
The Glass Slipper (Eleanor Farjeon--her version of Cinderella)
Go With the Poem (Lillian Moore)
The Unbroken Web (Richard Adams)
The Cuckoo Clock (Mary Stolz)
The Story of Holly and Ivy (Christmas story by Rumer Godden; we already have a copy of this, but this edition has illustrations by Barbara Cooney)
The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree (Eleanor Estes)
'Round the Christmas Tree (Corrin)
The Alley (Eleanor Estes)
Doctor on an Elephant (Kroll)
Diamond in the Window (Langton)
Harry's Mad (Dick King-Smith--about a parrot)
Ben and Me
Backyard Vacation: Outdoor Fun
Mountain Bluebird (Hirschi)
Thanksgiving Fun
An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving (Alcott)
Cat's Cradles, Owl's Eyes
Crystals and Crystal Gardens
Sugar Free Kids' Cookery
Make Clothes Fun!
Miss Patch's Learn to Sew Book
Dancing Is (Ancona)
Ballet Company
Have Fun with Magnifying
The Past of Pastimes (Bartlett)
World of Swans
Music for Very Little People
Winners! Super Champions of Ice Hockey (don't ask)
Not Much News: Ruby's Letters from Home (Edna Staebler)
These High Green Hills (Jan Karon)
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Retro Sloppy Joes
We had a request for Sloppy Joes tonight--but we were a bit short on ingredients and didn't have a can of Manwich sauce around either. The recipe in our Betty Crocker cookbook calls for various chopped vegetables, none of which we had (too close to grocery day and anyway green peppers were $2.49 a pound last week. In June.). I looked around and found a more retro-style recipe in the Beany Malone Cookbook. This is my adaptation--since I didn't have the required can of tomato soup and decided to add a few extra seasonings.
The Sloppy Joes turned out impressively chunky (rather than too sloppy) and quite flavourful--Mr. Fixit says they tasted like his mom's.
Since we were doing the Retro thing anyway, we had them with cooked green and yellow beans, potato chips, carrot sticks, and a dip I made that looked like spinach dip but was actually made with broccoli--and that got eaten instead of ignored because it was also quite good.
Not-Too-Sloppy Joes
In a large skillet, heat 3 tbsp. oil.
Brown: 1 cup chopped onions, 1 lb. ground beef. (I started the onions first because I wanted them nice and soft.) Drain fat if needed.
Add:
1 can tomato soup OR 1 can tomato paste put into a measuring cup and topped up with milk to make 1 cup
1/2 cup chili sauce
1/2 cup water or as needed
1 tbsp prepared mustard
A dash of garlic powder, a dash of celery seed, salt, pepper to taste
A dash of vinegar (that wasn't in the recipe but I thought it needed a little more sour)
Simmer for half an hour to an hour, on low so it doesn't burn. Add a bit more water if you think it needs it, but don't let it get too wet unless you just like it that way. Serve on hamburger buns. The Squirrelings like hamburger-style toppings on Sloppy Joes (like sliced cheese, relish and mustard), but Mama Squirrel doesn't bother.
The Sloppy Joes turned out impressively chunky (rather than too sloppy) and quite flavourful--Mr. Fixit says they tasted like his mom's.
Since we were doing the Retro thing anyway, we had them with cooked green and yellow beans, potato chips, carrot sticks, and a dip I made that looked like spinach dip but was actually made with broccoli--and that got eaten instead of ignored because it was also quite good.
Not-Too-Sloppy Joes
In a large skillet, heat 3 tbsp. oil.
Brown: 1 cup chopped onions, 1 lb. ground beef. (I started the onions first because I wanted them nice and soft.) Drain fat if needed.
Add:
1 can tomato soup OR 1 can tomato paste put into a measuring cup and topped up with milk to make 1 cup
1/2 cup chili sauce
1/2 cup water or as needed
1 tbsp prepared mustard
A dash of garlic powder, a dash of celery seed, salt, pepper to taste
A dash of vinegar (that wasn't in the recipe but I thought it needed a little more sour)
Simmer for half an hour to an hour, on low so it doesn't burn. Add a bit more water if you think it needs it, but don't let it get too wet unless you just like it that way. Serve on hamburger buns. The Squirrelings like hamburger-style toppings on Sloppy Joes (like sliced cheese, relish and mustard), but Mama Squirrel doesn't bother.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Pure Comfort
"Beany found....that no male found I Surrender perfume any more alluring than the spicy smell of cinnamon rolls right out of the oven."--The Beany Malone Cookbook
Crayons has been fighting yet another cold-and-cough, and the Squirrels are feeling (literally) under the dreary weather. Time for a comfort food dinner: Beef in Onion Gravy, Mashed Potatoes, Salad, and Orange Dumplings.
Crockpot Beef in Onion Gravy
I clipped this from the April/May 2002 Taste of Home magazine; it was sent in by Denise Albers in Illinois. And look at that: it's online already. Denise is right: it is very good, and it is very simple. But I was puzzled by "2 tablespoons beef broth"; did she mean bouillon powder, or wet broth? If she meant wet broth, it seems pretty pointless since you're slow-cooking beef cubes all day and they make lots of broth. But I put in a spoonful of beef bouillon powder just to be on the safe side.
Also, I mixed some of the hot gravy with a spoonful of flour at the end and then cooked it on high for a few minutes, because it seemed too thin. We got more than the suggested three servings out of it, even if you don't count Crayons not really eating anything. More like four plus some leftovers.
Orange Dumplings
Mark this as an occasion: an original Treehouse recipe! Actually it's a combination of two other recipes: the much-Googled Butterscotch Dumplings (Twenty-Minute Dessert) from Food That Really Schmecks, and the sauce from Baked Orange Pudding in The Harrowsmith Cookbook Volume Three. I have made that Orange Pudding before, but I just couldn't be bothered tonight washing the extra sauce pot and heating the oven, so I decided to do it all as one. Ta da...(and they were very good too).
Sauce: 1 cup sugar, 1 tbsp. flour, 1 tbsp. butter, juice & rind of 1 or more oranges (I used one orange and then topped it up a bit with orange juice from the fridge), 2 cups of boiling water. Combine the sugar and flour in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid; add the boiling water and the remaining ingredients. Let it come to a boil and then simmer while you mix the dumplings.
Dumplings: 1/3 cup sugar, ½ tsp. salt, 1 tbsp. butter, 1½ cups flour, 1 tbsp. baking powder, about ½ cup milk. Cream the sugar, salt and butter; add flour mixed with baking powder alternately with enough milk to make a stiff batter.
Drop by tablespoonfuls into the boiling sauce (my grandma's method is to drop dumplings only in spots where it's bubbling); cover and let boil gently (do NOT take the lid off) for about 15 minutes.
Crayons has been fighting yet another cold-and-cough, and the Squirrels are feeling (literally) under the dreary weather. Time for a comfort food dinner: Beef in Onion Gravy, Mashed Potatoes, Salad, and Orange Dumplings.
Crockpot Beef in Onion Gravy
I clipped this from the April/May 2002 Taste of Home magazine; it was sent in by Denise Albers in Illinois. And look at that: it's online already. Denise is right: it is very good, and it is very simple. But I was puzzled by "2 tablespoons beef broth"; did she mean bouillon powder, or wet broth? If she meant wet broth, it seems pretty pointless since you're slow-cooking beef cubes all day and they make lots of broth. But I put in a spoonful of beef bouillon powder just to be on the safe side.
Also, I mixed some of the hot gravy with a spoonful of flour at the end and then cooked it on high for a few minutes, because it seemed too thin. We got more than the suggested three servings out of it, even if you don't count Crayons not really eating anything. More like four plus some leftovers.
Orange Dumplings
Mark this as an occasion: an original Treehouse recipe! Actually it's a combination of two other recipes: the much-Googled Butterscotch Dumplings (Twenty-Minute Dessert) from Food That Really Schmecks, and the sauce from Baked Orange Pudding in The Harrowsmith Cookbook Volume Three. I have made that Orange Pudding before, but I just couldn't be bothered tonight washing the extra sauce pot and heating the oven, so I decided to do it all as one. Ta da...(and they were very good too).
Sauce: 1 cup sugar, 1 tbsp. flour, 1 tbsp. butter, juice & rind of 1 or more oranges (I used one orange and then topped it up a bit with orange juice from the fridge), 2 cups of boiling water. Combine the sugar and flour in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid; add the boiling water and the remaining ingredients. Let it come to a boil and then simmer while you mix the dumplings.
Dumplings: 1/3 cup sugar, ½ tsp. salt, 1 tbsp. butter, 1½ cups flour, 1 tbsp. baking powder, about ½ cup milk. Cream the sugar, salt and butter; add flour mixed with baking powder alternately with enough milk to make a stiff batter.
Drop by tablespoonfuls into the boiling sauce (my grandma's method is to drop dumplings only in spots where it's bubbling); cover and let boil gently (do NOT take the lid off) for about 15 minutes.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Dulcie's Dish
I've mentioned the Beany Malone Cookbook before and given the recipe for Beany's Beans. I thought I had posted this recipe for a helper-like dish before, but I don't see it in our archives. Like Beany's Beans and like our Kitchener Special, this recipe (which we had for supper last night) does not use gourmet ingredients. In fact, the number of recipes we make that include ingredients like ketchup is kind of embarrassing. Not particularly healthy or fashionable, I know. But this one is good, inexpensive, and husbands and young squirrels like it, so I'm passing it on, with a couple of adaptations.
Dulcie's Macaroni Meal in a Skillet
2 tbsp. bacon fat (we leave this out)
1 lb. ground beef or ground chicken (it's good with chicken; in a pinch we have even used bacon)
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper (or less, to taste--we don't like that much pepper)
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 8-oz. can tomato sauce (or equivalent anything else like tomato puree; last night I used part of a can of diced tomatoes and added a little extra water)
1 1/2 cups water, or as needed (depending on how wet the tomatoes are)
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 rounded tsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. cider vinegar
1/2 cup ketchup
2 cups elbow macaroni (we used whole wheat)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese for serving (optional. We were out of Parmesan, so I grated some Cheddar and mixed that in before serving.)
This is how I do it. Because the list of spices and things is kind of long, I combine the salt, pepper and paprika with the cupful or canful of tomato sauce (just dump them in the top of the opened can). I put the mustard, sugar and vinegar into the half cup of ketchup. I chop the onion and start browning the ground meat in a large skillet that has a cover; when it's almost done I stir in the onion and finish browning it. When the onion's soft, I add the tomato sauce mixture. The recipe says to rinse the tomato sauce can out with the 1 1/2 cups of water and add that to the skillet. (If you don't have a tomato sauce can, obviously you just measure out the water and add that.) And then add the ketchup mixture.
Stir it all together, bring it to a boil, and then add the two cups of macaroni. Let it boil for a minute or two, and then cover (if you haven't already), turn the heat down, and cook for about 1/2 an hour or until the macaroni is done. You can check it occasionally and add more water if necessary. Mix in grated cheese if you want, or serve with Parmesan at the table.
You can also add canned grean beans or mushrooms to this skillet meal; we've done both. Mr. Fixit likes to add hot sauce at the table.
Dulcie's Macaroni Meal in a Skillet
2 tbsp. bacon fat (we leave this out)
1 lb. ground beef or ground chicken (it's good with chicken; in a pinch we have even used bacon)
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper (or less, to taste--we don't like that much pepper)
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 8-oz. can tomato sauce (or equivalent anything else like tomato puree; last night I used part of a can of diced tomatoes and added a little extra water)
1 1/2 cups water, or as needed (depending on how wet the tomatoes are)
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 rounded tsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. cider vinegar
1/2 cup ketchup
2 cups elbow macaroni (we used whole wheat)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese for serving (optional. We were out of Parmesan, so I grated some Cheddar and mixed that in before serving.)
This is how I do it. Because the list of spices and things is kind of long, I combine the salt, pepper and paprika with the cupful or canful of tomato sauce (just dump them in the top of the opened can). I put the mustard, sugar and vinegar into the half cup of ketchup. I chop the onion and start browning the ground meat in a large skillet that has a cover; when it's almost done I stir in the onion and finish browning it. When the onion's soft, I add the tomato sauce mixture. The recipe says to rinse the tomato sauce can out with the 1 1/2 cups of water and add that to the skillet. (If you don't have a tomato sauce can, obviously you just measure out the water and add that.) And then add the ketchup mixture.
Stir it all together, bring it to a boil, and then add the two cups of macaroni. Let it boil for a minute or two, and then cover (if you haven't already), turn the heat down, and cook for about 1/2 an hour or until the macaroni is done. You can check it occasionally and add more water if necessary. Mix in grated cheese if you want, or serve with Parmesan at the table.
You can also add canned grean beans or mushrooms to this skillet meal; we've done both. Mr. Fixit likes to add hot sauce at the table.
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