Simple Syrup

This is Kaarin's recipe for a "liquid sugar" sweetener that is the consistency of syrup. She uses it anytime she needs to sweeten something cold and doesn't want to have to dissolve sugar in it.

Combine equal parts sugar and water. Bring to a boil, then simmer until thick, stirring occasionally.

Aunt Kaarin's Mojitos

...as purportedly served to Ernest Hemingway in Cuba...
(but not by her, of course! ;)

Fresh limes
Simple syrup
Fresh mint leaves
Rum
Club soda

Roll fresh limes on the counter to loosen the insides. Press and squeeze through lime press/juicer (or otherwise extract juice). Per glass:

2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp. simple syrup
4-6 fresh mint leaves, torn small

Muddle (or whir lightly with hand mixer) to get mint leaves in small pieces and mix everything together well.

Fill each glass with ice. Add 2 oz. white rum and stir. Top with 2 oz. club soda and do not stir. Serve immediately.

Grandma Pat's Pie Crust

3 C. flour
1 C. lard
1/2 C. water
dash salt

This makes enough for a very thick double-crust pie crust.

Aunt Kim's Macaroni Salad

My sister Kim made this during Beach Week this year, and it was a big hit with everyone. Nanny especially liked it--and she's very picky about pasta salads. Doubled, it fed 15 of us as a side dish with some left over.

1 8-oz. box macaroni
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 medium carrots, grated
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 C. chopped celery
1 small cucumber, seeded and chopped
3 hard-boiled eggs, cut in small pieces
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. flour
1/4 C. tarragon vinegar
1 egg, beaten
1 C. mayonnaise

Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain and rinse in cold water. Combine macaroni and next 8 ingredients. Melt butter in pan. Blend in flour. Combine vinegar and egg. Cook, stirring constantly until thick. Cool. Blend in mayonnaise. Combine with macaroni mixture and chill. Serves 8-10.

How Nanny Cooks the Turkey

And here's one small example of the millions of ways my sweet husband makes me laugh and smile every single day...

I asked him one year, very early in our marriage, to find out from my mother how she cooks a turkey.  He called her and jotted it down for me in a loose notebook lying around.  This is what I found lying on the counter when I got ready to prepare the bird:

Aunt Kaarin's Moo Shu Pork

Yield: 20 moo shu "pancakes" (serves 10) - Not sure if this is accurate... will update after I make it.

1 2-lb. boneless pork loin roast, fat trimmed, quartered lengthwise
1 C. hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp. freshly grated ginger
6 cups shredded Napa cabbage
1 1/2 cups bagged shredded carrots (I used the Cuisinart.)
1/4 C. sliced scallions
3 Tbsp. rice-wine vinegar
1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
20 flour tortillas, warmed

Put pork, 1/3 C. hoisin sauce, and the ginger in a large slow-cooker.  Turn pork to coat.

Cover and cook on low 6-9 hours or until pork is very tender.  Turn off cooker.  Remove pork to cutting board and pull meat into shreds using two forks.  Return pork to cooker.

Toss cabbage, carrots, scallions, vinegar, and sugar in a bowl to mix.

Spread each tortilla with about 1 1/2 tsp. remaining hoisin sauce.  Top with about 1/3 C. cabbage mixture and 1/4 C. shredded pork.

Serve with hoisin sauce and chopped scallions on the side (optional).

This is also good with a side salad topped with oriental dressing.

Leftovers Turned Mexican Lasagna

This meal was the result of a creative use of leftovers.  If you want to try to recreate something like it, here's a description of what I did.  My friend Kathy ate some at our homeschool co-op where I served it for lunch, and really wanted the recipe.  So, here it is...

The first meal was homemade pintos and cheese.  (Recipe here.)  This is a staple in our home, near weekly, because iivo loves it and it is very cheap.

Also, for Evie's birthday, she wanted these burritos I used to make a lot when we were home for lunches.  I would turn the leftover pintos from pintos and cheese into refried beans by coarsely mashing them in a pot on the stove over medium heat and melting in some mozzarella or monterey jack cheese.  The burritos she requested involve those homemade refried beans with sauteed zucchini and onions (seasoned with SPG) on homemade whole wheat tortillas.

Those were the preliminary meals which resulted in that Crock Pot leftover meal, which was as follows:

I sauteed some finely chopped onions and peppers in olive oil and SPG.  Then I took the extra leftover rice and cooked it, fried-rice style, with that veggie mix and a little, little bit of chicken broth.  I also remember throwing in some very finely chopped leftover Hebrew National hotdogs we had from a grill-out earlier in the week, too, and some frozen corn.

I then took those raw ingredients and layered them, lasagna style, in the Crock Pot as follows:

sprayed with Pam to prevent sticking
placed a flour tortilla (store-bought, as it is exactly the same circumference as my Crock Pot)
spread it with a combination of some of the leftover homemade refried beans blended with some salsa (just enough to make it more spreadable)
a layer of the rice blend
a layer of sour cream mixed with chopped green chiles
a layer of grated Mexican/cheddar cheese mix

I then repeated those layers two more times.

I then cooked it all morning on low--about 4 hours, I guess.

Double Chocolate Cookies

These were first made for us by my friend Janet, a culinary school graduate and now homeschool mom...

Combine the following wet ingredients:
1 C. butter, softened
1 C. brown sugar
3/4 C. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs

Combine the following dry ingredients:
2 1/4 C. flour
1/2 C. cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Add combined dry ingredients to combined wet ingredients.  Stir in 2 C. chocolate chips.

Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Cinnamon Roll Biscuits

Again from my friend Cheri.  This is her great alternative to cinnamon rolls when she's in a pinch...

2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. soda
1/4 cup vegetable oil (or softened butter)
3/4 cup buttermilk

For filling:
8 Tbsp. butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Combine first four ingredients.  Stir in oil and buttermilk just until blended.  Knead (just little bit).  Roll into 15x8.  Spread butter over dough.  Sprinkle cinnamon sugar.  Roll up.  Pinch.  Cut into 1.5 inch slices.  Spray/grease pie pan.  Bake until light brown, 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.

For a special touch:
Drizzle while warm with a glaze of confectioners sugar/milk and/or add some nuts to the top.

Cheri's Beef Stroganoff

Hi,
After looking at my recipe that had little quantities, I came up with this one from Paula Dean with a great rating.  The following ingredients are on my recipe, but not hers.  I would consider adding all of them.  I left the item called cream soup thinking you would put what you want.  I would make homemade.  Other than the addition of those items, our recipes look identical.

garlic
fresh mushrooms (sliced)
2 ts + worcestershire
2Tb or so catsup

Ingredients
 a.. 1 1/2 pounds cubed round steak, cut into thin strips
 b.. House Seasoning, recipe follows
 c.. All-purpose flour
 d.. 2 tablespoons olive oil
 e.. 2 tablespoons butter
 f.. 1 medium onion, sliced
 g.. 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
 h.. 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can beef broth
 i.. 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
 j.. Salt and black pepper
 k.. 1 cup sour cream
 l.. Cooked egg noodles

Directions
Season the steak strips with House Seasoning, then dust with flour. In a large skillet, quickly brown them on both sides in the olive oil and butter. Remove the steak from the pan. Add the onion slices and mushrooms to the pan drippings. Saute for a few minutes, until the onion is tender. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon flour. Put the steak back into the pan with the onion and mushrooms. Add the mushroom soup and beef broth. Cook over low heat for about 30 minutes, covered. Adjust seasoning to taste, adding salt and pepper, as needed. Stir in the sour cream the last few minutes, right before you serve. Serve over cooked noodles.


House Seasoning:
 a.. 1 cup salt
 b.. 1/4 cup black pepper
 c.. 1/4 cup garlic powder
Mix the ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.