My dad’s birthday was in March. When I was really young, my mom would often make him a peanut butter cake. Just for fun, one year she put a big red, twisted taper candle right smack dab in the center of the cake. That was impressive! After I took a cake decorating class as a …
One of my favorite forms of chocolate is a fudgy brownie. And here’s a funny story. My mom taught me to make cookies from “scratch”, which means gathering ingredients from the refrigerator and cupboards to make a cooky dough to bake into cookies. But making a cake or baking brownies always started with a boxed …
I remember my mom making chicken and dumplings while I was growing up. What fun it was to have a big dumpling in your soup bowl! But turning up as cook in the kitchen, I wasn’t pleased with chicken and dumpling recipes. I wanted a thicker soup and more dumplings than the diameter of the …
Whenever I think “Chocolate Cream Pie”, there’s an echo that goes off in my head: “Chocolate Cream Pie, Chocolate DREAM Pie”. Truly, that’s how I feel about this nothing other than delicious dessert. It’s a dream. Apparently, I’m not the only one who feels this way as several people in our family have requested this …
Everyone has their favorite holiday dish. The dressing has always been a favorite of mine. My mother made dressing from bread cubes. And my first experience with cornbread dressing had been at someone else’s house. The cornbread was an orangish color (too much soda) and burnt. Ugh. You can imagine my alarm when Tom declared …
Fall is one of my favorite times of the year. I love changing decorations around the home to reflect the season that embrace us with a warm welcome as the crisp, chilly air sends us indoors. Although it may not be cool enough for a warming fire yet, warm drinks are welcome. Which makes me …
My grandma was born in Tomah, Wisconsin. I inherited her mother’s cookbook, The Tomah Cook Book, second edition, 1914. Under Vegetables, it says, “We now come to the root of matters.” Cute. Then it goes on, “The rule for vegetables is always the same. Wash in cold water, cook in boiling water.” What a hoot! …
My mother came away with a variation of this recipe from her high school home economics class. It was one of my favorites, even a birthday request. Making this recipe for my family has brought some additional sweet memories. Such as Jesse, at age 3, asking if we could have some more of that black …
I love working in the kitchen, and I’ve passed that interest on to my kids. At young ages they worked beside me, perched on a kitchen chair. Gradually they learn to cook on their own…complete with bloopers along the way. They graduate to more adventurous enterprises, exploring un-chartered territory in our kitchen. That’s what Steven …
Whether you’re harvesting veggies from your garden, the farmer’s market or the produce section of your local grocery store, there are abundant options for making a variety of summer salads. There are themed favorites, like Taco Salad, with crunchy iceberg lettuce, pinto or black beans, seasoned meat, shredded cheese, cucumbers, tomato, avocado, peppers, olives, salsa …
While we love fresh, homemade salsas there’s nothing like a handy jar of ready-to-use picante sauce. It’s a must have in our refrigerator and pantry. I’m very selective about prepared foods and the ingredients they contain, so there was one particular store brand that was our go-to. That is, until one day when Jesse decided …
When you’re repeatedly asked to bring a certain dish to family celebrations and gatherings, you know you have a winner. And that’s exactly the case with this pie. I top this pie with slightly sweetened whipped cream. Rich? Yes. Perhaps we shall call it Coconut Dream Pie because it’s like a sweet dream, topped …
