Saturday Stories: When Polio Struck

Although Polio had been around for centuries, it reached a peak of almost epidemic proportions in the late 1940s and early 1950s.  My father was one of those children who fell victim to the infantile paralysis.  He was just 4 years old. 

When I asked him what he remembers, he said mostly just having a horrible headache.  Back then, windows and drapes were still closed tight in a sick room, so he remembers a pain filled dark.  He was sent to a hospital in the big city, but didn't need to be put in an iron lung.

Dad was one of the lucky ones.  He didn't need to wear braces on his legs.  He wasn't condemned to a wheelchair.  As he grew older, there were a few things he found difficult to do; positions he could not sit in, but it was very minimal.  He went out for baseball, football and lacrosse in high school and college.  He played center on his college football team.

    Nowadays, we take for granted that our children won't get sick.  Sometimes, when I am doing family history and read about a mother who lost 5 of her children to illness, I wonder how she handled the pain.   I know that my grandmother, grandfather and aunts were really worried about my father as he lay fighting polio.  He is from the first generation of childhood vaccines.  His is the border era of our country where children still died, but most didn't.  Antibiotics and vaccines that became prevelant in the following decades lowered the infant mortality rate significantly.

Tweet

Some Ideas for your Leftover Turkey

Here are a few of the recipes I have already posted that are great uses for leftover turkey. 

Turkey Tetrazzini
Turkey Soup
Turkey Enchilada Casserole
Turkey Taco Bake
Turkey Pot Pie
Turkey and Dumplings

What do you make out of your leftovers?

Still need ideas?  Here are 160 more recipes


Visit Tempt Your Tummy Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tasty Tuesdays Tweet

Agnolotti with Non-Vodka Vodka Sauce

Our household frugal coupe of the week was finding Buitoni agnolotti (both 4 cheese and mushroom) on clearance at Frys.  I was sent a sample of the Wild Mushroom Agnolotti six months ago and fell in love.  Imagine how excited I was to see them for $2.49.


Here is the sauce that I am putting on them.  Because I don't drink, I am substituting chicken broth for the vodka in the following sauce. 

Non-Vodka Vodka Sauce
1/2 cup butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/3 cups chicken broth (this is where the vodka of a real vodka sauce would be added instead)
2 cups crushed tomatoes
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
dried basil (for sprinkling on top)
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium low heat.  Cook garlic for half a minute or until fragrant.  Stir in broth and cook until slightly thickened, about 7 minutes.  Add tomatoes, cream, salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.  Cook 5 minutes.  Serve over pasta and sprinkle with basil and cheese.

A couple of sliced Italian sausages would  be really good in this, too.  However, because this is Thanksgiving week, and we are having turkey and ham, this is our meatless meal of the week.




Visit a Southern Fairytale for MouthWatering Mondays Tweet

Saturday Stories: Saving Hidden Treasures

For the last week, I have been going through drawers and cupboards in my parents' house, scanning everything I could find.  I have found some really interesting things.  For instance, my grandfather's sister was a published author.  She submitted poems and stories to such magazines as Ellery Queen and Family Circle.  I found birth and death certificates, report cards and even my great grandfather's autopsy report.

Some, okay, most of the pictures in the house have not been preserved in acid free conditions.  Some of the photos with ink pen written on the back have bled through to the front.  Some of the pictures have been taped into scrapbooks with what looked like first aid tape.  Some of the pictures were torn or damaged in some way.  By scanning them into my computer, hopefully I have preserved them so that even if the original disintegrates, we will still have the images. 

Here are some of the treasures I found:

 This is my grandfather as a teenager with my grandmother on a date

 

See how the tape around the edges damaged it?

Here is my grandmother with her father.  He died soon thereafter in a railroad accident.

It is the only picture we have of them together.

Here is a picture of my great grandmother's brothers:

It is torn and wrinkled.  I don't think it will last another generation.

Finally, here are my great grandmother's parents.

 I am so glad that modern technology has been developed to save these precious pictures.  Not only will there be no fights over who gets them because I can make a copy for all of my family, no one has to touch the originals.  We can put them in an archival safe box and keep them as safe as we can.

Tweet

Pumpkin Pie with Cranberry Pecan Crust

I wanted to come up with something new this year.  New, but still good that is.  I fiddled with my tried and true crust (a dangerous thing) and came up with something colorful and tasty.

Cranberry Pecan Crust: (makes 2 single pie crusts or 1 double crust)

1/3 cup lard

1/3 cup butter

1/4 cup chopped dried cranberries

1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

2 cups flour

dash salt

Ice cold water (between 1/3 and 1/2 cup)

Cut the lard and butter into the flour and salt.  Add the cranberries and pecans.  Add about 3 Tbls of water and mix with a fork.  Continue adding water until it forms a ball.  Don't play with it!!  Roll it out and place in pie plate.

Now, here is your choice for finishing the pie: You can bake the shell and make a stove top cooked pumpkin filling OR you can make a different filling and bake it all together. 

No Bake Pumpkin Pie:

1 (.25 ounce) package unflavored gelatin

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

2 eggs, beaten

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree

1/2 tsp orange extract

In a saucepan combine gelatin, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and salt. Stir in condensed milk and beaten eggs, mixing well. Let stand one minute, then place on burner over low heat, stirring constantly for about 10 minutes, or until gelatin dissolves and mixture thickens. Remove from heat. Stir in pumpkin and orange extract, mixing thoroughly, and pour mixture into baked pie crust (Bake 350 degrees for 18 minutes). Chill for at least 3 hours before serving.  

Serve with whipped cream and orange zest and maybe a sprinkling of cinnamon.

Baked Pumpkin Pie:

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup evaporated milk

2 eggs, beaten

1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

1 Tbls flour

1/2 tsp vanilla

3/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp ginger

Mix all ingredients and pour into an unbaked pie shell.  Cover the edges of the crust with either a pie shield or foil and bake 400 degrees for 40 minutes.

 

Although the baked pie isn't as pretty, it is the tastier option, in my opinion.

Visit

What Did You Bake Today?

Friday Feasts

Food on Friday

Foodie Friday

GCC Recipe Swap

Frugal Friday

http://verygoodrecipes.com/pumpkin

Tweet

My Thanksgiving

I have been thinking a lot about gratitude this month. I have seen a bunch of my friends on Facebook participating in a daily “I am thankful for” activity. Sometimes, I get so caught up in the day to day existing that I forget to be really grateful. So, to my five kids:



1. Thank you for the knee deep clutter in your room. I am glad we are able to afford those toys, books and warm bedding.

2. Thank you for asking me to drive you all over town. The time we spend in the car is often the only time we get one on one time to really talk.

3. Thank you for waking me up in the middle of the night with bad dreams or sickness. It is good to be needed.

4. Thank you for the hours of homework we do together each week. I am so proud of the improvement you have made this year.

5. Thank you for the “ick” of childhood. I used to be such a gagger. Now, I think I could handle anything.

6. Thank you for wondering about so many things, even embarrassing ones.. My mental faculties will never rust while you are in the house.

7. Thank you for challenging every one of my requests. You have made me think about really matters and which battles are really worth fighting.

8. Thank you for quoting stupid movies and commercials. Hearing you giggle together is music to my ears.

9. Thank you for expecting three meals a day. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be able to indulge my love of cooking and baking.

10. Thank you for asking that you be allowed to dress yourself, wear your hair a certain way, or even administer your own shots. My job is to get you ready to function on your own. These are steps in that direction.

11. Thank you for whining about anything new. It makes me realize how much you need consistency.

12. Thank you for all speaking at once, for forgetting to tell me about things you need for school until the night before, for having three activities scheduled on the same night. You have taught me organizational skills no university could teach.

13. Thank you for the wet, sloppy kiss, for holding up the “I love you” hand sign as I drive away, for the picture you drew for me when you were supposed to be listening to your teacher, and for every other way you make my investment in you worth while.





Thursday-13.com is here. Tweet

Triple Chocolate Crockpot Cake

Here is a simmmmmmmple dessert for you.  Basically, you mix the ingredients, throw it in the crockpot and leave it all day.  How is that for easy?


Triple Chocolate Crockpot Cake:
1 chocolate cake mix
1 cup water
4 eggs
3/4 cup oil or melted butter
2 cups sour cream
1 pkg instant chocolate pudding
1/2 pkg chocolate chips

Combine and pour into a GREASED crockpot.  Cook on low 6-8 hours.  Serve with ice cream.

Visit Dining with Debbie for Crockpot Wednesdays
Visit the Krazy Kitchen for Save Room for Dessert. Tweet

Hawaiian Haystacks

First of all, let me apologize for being absent for the last few days.  My husband came back into town and we went away  for the first time in six years.  It was so nice to suddenly pause,  and say, "Listen, hear that?" and not hear any kids' sounds.  Then, I came back home and caught a sudden compulsion to scan old family photos.  I am still in the middle of that project, but thought I'd take a break to share this recipe.

I was first introduced to Hawaiian Haystacks by my sister-in-law about 10 years ago.  (Note: I don't think these are really Hawaiian at all.)  There are a few variations which I will include along with the basic recipe.  They are incredibly frugal, as the main ingredient it rice and you choose the toppings.,

Hawaiian Haystacks:
1. Rice for your family, cooked
2. Chicken Gravy (I have had this made with cream of chicken soup or canned gravy or gravy mix with canned or "real" cooked chicken or homemade gravy with chicken...you choose)
3. Toppings (placed in separate bowls): chow mein noodles, coconut, pineapple chunks, black olives, chopped celery, green onions, water chestnuts, baby corn, peanuts, (here again, the choices are endless)
Simply place rice on a plate, top with gravy and then choose different toppings.  Don't be afraid to put on some of the weirder ones, they actually taste good.

Let me know if you have had these, I wonder if they are a cultural or regional dish.  If you have, what toppings have you used?

Visit Tempt Your Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday and Tuesday at the Table Tweet

Cherry Cheese Danish

What a weird week of baking I have had.  I managed to come up with a delicious new pie crust and I managed to ruin two pies.  Next week I will tell you more about those fiascos.  On a brighter note, I made cherry cheese danishes this week.   

Sweet Dough:

1 cup butter

1 cup milk

1 1/2 cups water

1 cup sugar

2 tsp salt

2 Tbls yeast

4 beaten eggs

7 1/2 cups flour

Heat butter, milk and water in microwave until butter melts.  Cool a bit (so you don't kill your yeast) and add the sugar, salt and yeast to form a sponge.  Add the eggs.  In a mixer with a dough hook attached, combine flour and yeast mixture.  Knead well.  Put in refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight. 

To shape into danish, pick off a golf ball sized piece.  Roll it out into a rope and coil into a circle.  Make sure the center is thinner than the outer edges.  Fill with filling (about 1 Tbls of filling per danish).  Let rise an hour and bake 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

Frost with a powdered sugar/milk/vanilla glaze.

Filling Options:

Cherry Filling:

1 can cherry pie filling

1/4 tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp lemon juice

Blend

Cream Cheese Filling:

2 8oz pkg cream cheese

1 egg

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 Tbls grated lemon peel

Blend everything until smooth

Visit

 Friday Feasts

Foodie Friday

GCC Recipe Swap

Food on Friday

What Did You Bake Today?

Frugal Fridays

Tweet

Turkey Trivia

In honor of our upcoming feast day, here is a bit of turkey trivia:

1. Although juicy and tender butterball turkeys are the main cuisine of today's Thanksgiving celebrations, these birds were NOT the most popular centerpieces on the first Thanksgiving tables.




In 1621 when the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians celebrated the first Thanksgiving, they were gobbling up many more foods than just turkey. Since lobster, goose, duck, seal, eel, and cod were plentiful during this time, these foods were most likely the main courses of this first feast. Deer meat and wild fowl are the only two items that historians know for sure were menu of this autumn celebration.



2. There are a number of explanations for the origin of the name of Thanksgiving's favorite dinner guest. Some believe Christopher Columbus thought that the land he discovered was connected to India, and believed the bird he discovered (the turkey) was a type of peacock. He therefore called it 'tuka,' which is 'peacock' in Tamil, an Indian language.



Though the turkey is actually a type of pheasant, one can't blame the explorer for trying.



The Native American name for turkey is 'firkee'; some say this is how turkeys got their name. Simple facts, however, sometimes produce the best answers—when a turkey is scared, it makes a "turk, turk, turk" noise.



3. At one time, the turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin was one of those who argued passionately on behalf of the turkey. Franklin felt the turkey, although "vain and silly", was a better choice than the bald eagle, whom he felt was "a coward".



4. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten in the U.S. at Thanksgiving—that's one sixth of all turkeys sold in the U.S. each year. American per capita consumption of turkeys has soared from 8.3 pounds in 1975 to 18.5 pounds in 1997. Ten years later, the number has dropped slightly in 2007 to 17.5 pounds.



5. In 2007, more than 260 million turkeys were raised with an average liveweight per bird of 28 pounds with nearly 6 billion pounds of turkey processed. By contrast, in 1970, only 105 million birds were raised with an average liveweight of 17 pounds and 1.5 billion pounds processed.



6. In 2002, retail sales of turkey was approximately $3.6 billion. Forecasts for 2008 expect sales to reach $4.3 billion.



7. Age is a determining factor in taste. Old, large males are preferable to young toms (males) as tom meat is stringy. The opposite is true for females: old hens are tougher birds.

8. A turkey under sixteen weeks of age is called a fryer, while a young roaster is five to seven months old.



9. Turkeys are the only breed of poultry native to the Western Hemisphere.



10. Turkeys have great hearing, but no external ears. They can also see in color, and have excellent visual acuity and a wide field of vision (about 270 degrees), which makes sneaking up on them difficult. However, turkeys have a poor sense of smell (what's cooking?), but an excellent sense of taste.



11. Domesticated turkeys cannot fly. Wild turkeys, however, can fly for short distances at speeds up to 55 miles per hour. They can also reach speeds of 25 miles per hour on the ground.



12. Turkeys sometimes spend the night in trees.



13. Turkeys can have heart attacks: turkeys in fields near the Air Force test areas over which the sound barrier was broken were known to drop dead from the shock of passing jets


Visit Thursday-13.com for more. Tweet

Save Your Favorite Frugal Antics Recipes on Springpad

Some of you may have noticed a new button amidst my posts that looks like this:

I have partnered with Springpad to allow you to save my recipes directly to your very own Springpad.  Let me explain.  Springpad is a free online personal organizer that helps people organize themsleves and get things done. Not only can you collect and organize your recipes, you can also manage your daily chores, schedules and share contents from blogs you follow, your favorite brands and your trusted friends. Currently the springpad community includes hundreds of food bloggers and thousands of members sharing more than 50,000 recipes. Here is a screen shot of one of mine:

Now with these little "Spring-It" buttons, you can save recipes without having to worry about printing them or book marking them or remembering where you found that great recipe for Banana Blueberry Chocolate Marshmallow Muffins.  (note: I may have made that muffin title up) All of your favorites will be in one place: your Springpad.

I highly recommend that you take a look at Springpad if you haven't already done so. 

(This post is included in Works for Me Wednesday.)

Tweet

Family Recipe: MIL's Turkey Stuffing

My mother in law makes the best stuffing. Actually, I am not a real expert on stuffings as my family is a dressing kind of family and relies on Stove Top to satisfy our need for Thanksgiving tradition. It took me a few years to develop a taste for stuffing. Now I prefer it. Every year, my MIL stays up the night before Thanksgiving cutting up bread into cubes, slicing celery, and chopping walnuts.


Recipe:
4 cups dry bread cubes
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/4 tsp pepper
sage to taste
1/4 tsp poultry seasoning
1/3 cup melted butter
chopped cooked giblets
chicken broth/stock to moisten
Combine all ingredients with enough broth to moisten. Toss gently to gently mix. Allow 1 cup stuffing for each pound of turkey. Stuff your turkey and cook accordingly. Bake a separate dish full, too, because it is just so darn good.

Cooking Tip: I have a nifty tool called a Roasting Wand (by Practical Innovations, Inc) that fits through the stuffing, through the entire turkey which allows for reduced cooking time and even cooking. I highly recommend it!


Visit Tempt Your Tummy Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Tables and Tasty Tuesdays Tweet

Goulash (In-Law's Version)

There are so many versions of goulash.   I grew up with one (see this) and the Good Guy grew up with another.  Both are tasty.  Both are frugal.  Neither is authentic in any way.  Because we moved within an hour of my in-laws right after we married and because I didn't know we'd ever leave that area, I learned to make as many of my Mother In Law's dishes as I could.  No one wants to put up with "I like my mom's (fill in the blank with a food dish, please) better than yours."  Luckily, my versions of the MIL's versions were close enough. 

the In-Law's Goulash:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1 medium green pepper, diced
2 cups thinly sliced celery
5 drops Tobasco sauce
1 16oz can diced tomatoes
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 cups cooked pasta
Brown beef with onion and garlic salt.  Add all remaining ingredients but pasta.  Heat to boiling and reduce heat to simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add pasta and stir to combine.

Other things on this week's menu are:
Baked potatoes with toppers
Stuffed pork chops
Pizza
Ham Bonaparte
chicken with a Romano's Macaroni Grill mix and a Wanchai mix (Both of which I received free in the mail)
Homemade Danish Pastries will be on the blog this Friday!!


Visit the Organizing Junkie for menu monday, a Southern Fairytale for Mouth Watering Mondays Tweet

Saturday Stories: Some Thanksgiving Memories

I asked my mom to share some of the memories she had of Thanksgiving.  She immediately started talking about her aunt Eileen.  It seems that Eileen hosted most of the Thanksgiving dinners in the family.  She was one of Bumpa's older sisters.  She and her husband had one child, David.  They lived in an old house with and Antique Shop connected off the back.

Aunt Eileen wasn't the greatest cook, but she tried really hard.  One year, she neglected to beat the eggs before she added them to the pumpkin pie.  When the first slice of that pie was cut, a solid, hard cooked egg yolk was waiting inside.

On another occasion, Eileen's son, who was in the military, sent home a hunk of Moose from Alaska.  They didn't have turkey that year.  The roast moose was delicious, but never repeated.  Bumpa's family weren't known for their gastronomic adventures. 

Many years later, after Mom and Dad were married and I was tagging along, we went over to visit Eileen.  Knowing that my dad was a big eater, she offered him a piece of pie.  Dad, a true blue pie lover, said yes.  What she brought him, however, was the only kind of pie he hates: mincemeat.  She cut him an extra large piece and handed it to him, telling him that she had made the mincemeat herself.  As she left the room to serve others, Dad pled with mom to help him eat it.  Eileen returned with Mom's normal sized piece at that moment, so Dad was stuck.  With a woeful look, he began eating the pie.  Seeing that he had eaten the entire piece, Eileen jumped up and said, "Here, let me get you another!"  Before he could refuse, she had another piece in front of him.  Poor Dad.

By the time I came on the scene, the big Thanksgiving gatherings were a thing of the past.  Sometimes, when we were stationed close enough, we'd travel back to upstate New York for Thanksgiving with my grandparents.  Sometimes, they'd come visit us.  Mostly, though, it became a meal served for just our immediate family.   My last Thanksgiving dinner at home was my senior year in high school.  My dad was TDY (read gone for 3 months at the military's request).  I needed to have my wisdom teeth removed, so Mom scheduled it for the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, thinking I'd have plenty of time to recover.  We had our traditional meal the week before.  I spent that Thanksgiving in a pain pill induced fog, sipping a second Thanksgiving meal through a straw.   UGH.

Tweet

Quiche Loraine

When bacon goes on sale, buy it and freeze it.  When cheese goes on sale, buy it and freeze it.  When you find cream on clearance, buy it, thaw your other ingredients and make this amazing dish.  It's great for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.  Just don't plan on losing any weight with it in the house.

Quiche Crust (or in fancy terms: Pate Brisee)

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup + 2 Tbls butter

3-4 Tbls ice cold water

Blend flour, salt and butter in a food processor or with a pastry blender.

Add water and mix  just enough to form dough.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 20-30 minutes.

Place cold dough into an 11" tart pan.  If you have one of these mini dough rollers, it really helps.  You don't want to handle the dough much because your hand oils and warmth may effect the dough.

Push the dough way above the rim of the pan.  It will shrink significantly while baking.

Bake 350 degrees for 10 minutes.  Let cool and start filling it with the Quiche ingredients:

1/2 onion, sliced and caramelized

1/2 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled

2 cups shredded Swiss or Gruyere cheese

Mix together:

2 cups cream (or half & half or milk)

dash of ground nutmeg

4 eggs, beaten

Pour liquid over cheese/bacon/onion.  (If it looks like the liquid is too much for your pan and crust, stop and use the leftover liquid for french toast.)

Bake on a cookie sheet.  350 degrees, 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let cool 15 minutes.

Take a small knife and work your way around all of the scallops of the tart pan and remove from pan onto a serving plate.

Visit:

Food on Friday

Foodie Friday

Friday Feasts

GCC Recipe Swap

What Did You Bake Today?

Frugal Fridays

Tweet

Menu for Thanksgiving 2009 (Thursday 13)

Tradition being what it is, the title of this post could have just about any year after it and the menu would be almost identical.  If we were having Thanksgiving with the good guy's family, the menu would be quite different, but theirs doesn't vary much, either.

1. Turkey.  Cooked in an electric roaster on the counter somewhere out of the way so the oven is available for other pressing dishes.  Usually, it is unstuffed, but filled with onions, citrus or fresh herbs.

2. Gravy.  I laugh when I see 28oz gravy boats.  Gravy comes in gallons, people!  There has to be tons of leftover gravy.  It has to last at least 2 extra days.

3. Rolls.  We vary what kind we make each year.  Potato rolls are really good.  Whole wheat are great.  I don't know what kind we will be having.

4. Mashed Potatoes.  Around here, the favorite ingredients are cream cheese and butter.  Milk and salt are good, too.

5. Dressing.  When the bird isn't stuffed, the stuffing becomes dressing.  Weird, huh.

6.  Green Bean Casserole.  French fried onions, bacon, cream of mushroom soup.  'Nough said.

7. Corny Casserole.  This came to our family via my newest sister in law.  We welcome all traditions, not just ours.

8. The Relish Tray.  Black olives and sweet gherkins in a little crystal tray have been making an appearance on the Thanksgiving table for as long as I can remember.

9. Cranberry Jelly.  In my in-law's house, this is homemade with fresh cranberries.  In my parent's house, it's a can of that jellified stuff.  I don't like it either way, so for me it's just  for show.

10. Pumpkin Pie.  We make four the day before.  Two are gone by Wednesday night.  That's part of the tradition.

11. Apple Pie.  One crust with crumb topping or two crust filled to the brim with apples; either way is delicious.

12. Lemon Merengue Pie.  This one is for my dad.  He loves the stuff.

13. Raspberry Cream Pie.  Homemade custard with fresh raspberries folded in....yum!

What foods always appear on your Thanksgiving table?

Visit Thursday-13.com for more. Tweet

Apple Pie

One of the best things about autumn is apples. And what good are apples if not for pie?

Apple Pie:

7-8 medium apples (I like Jonathan, Rome, Gala, and any other semi-tart variety I find)

1/3 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
pinch salt
dash lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 unbaked pie shell (homemade is, of course, best) (or enough for a 2 crust pie)

Topping: (optional, if you go the one crust route)
1 stick butter, cold
1/2 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon

Peel and slice apples into medium bowl. Add flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and lemon juice. I always make my filling in a Tupperware bowl with a lid. Instead of stirring, I put on the lid and then shake the bowl. Roll out pie crust and put it in pie plate. Fill with apple filling.

Optional topping directions: In smaller bowl, combine topping ingredients. Using a pastry blender, mix until it resembles coarse sand. Pour on top of pie.

OR Roll out top crust, place on top of filling, seal.

 I usually put a small pizza pan under the pie plate to catch the juice that invariably will run over the sides of the pie plate. Bake 325 degrees 1 hour 20 minutes or until juice is bubbling and thick. Let cool before cutting or you will have a juicy pie.

Visit Tempt Your Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, and Tuesdays at the Table.

Tweet

Sugar Cookie Science Project

My son, the Musician, is taking biology this year in school.  His teacher assigned the class to form groups and then make edible cells.  Some of the groups are making cakes, some are making pizzas.  The Musician's group chose to make a giant cookie and elected him to actually make it.  Someone else is doing the paper and  another student is doing a poster.

He used this recipe.
Gram's Sugar Cookies:

1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp lemon extract
1 tsp vanilla
3-3 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
3 tsp baking powder
Cream shortening and sugar. Add egg, milk, lemon extract and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients and add. Mix well. Roll out to 1/4 inch thick and cut into round shapes. Sprinkle with sugar and bake 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees. (Makes about 5 dozen cookies if baking normally. )




 I took a picture of it before it baked. 

I was concerned that some of his cell features might melt into each other and I wanted a picture to show his teacher.  However, the finished product turned out just fine.

 

He poked toothpicks into the various parts and attached little pieces of paper labeling them. 

Visit a Southern fairytale for Mouthwatering Mondays

Visit Real Life for real life Mondays

Tweet