Paddy’s Chocolate Cobbler…

Yummy, is all I can say about this scrumptious dessert! This is so simple to make. Those who do not usually cook, this would be a great surprise for your loved one on Valentine’s Day.

When I combined all the ingredients in the dish, it reminded me of a child’s mud pie!

I changed the recipe a bit, instead of adding 1 ½ cups water, I added 1 ¼ cup of water and ¼ cup of Hershey’s chocolate syrup… I like chocolate!

I did not have any self-rising flour, so I substituted it for 1 ½ cups of all purpose flour and added a teaspoon of baking powder.

Ingredients:

2 sticks of margarine

¾ cup chopped pecans

1 ½ cup self-rising flour

2 ½ cups white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

¾ milk

5 Tablespoons of cocoa powder

1 ½ cups water

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F

In a 9X13 pan add pecans and sticks of margarine, melt in oven

In bowl mix flour, 1 ½ cups of sugar, vanilla and milk

In separate bowl, mix 1 cup sugar and cocoa powder, set aside.

When margarine is melted, evenly pour flour mixture into the pan

Top flour mixture with cocoa mixture, DO NOT STIR

Pour water onto of the cocoa mix again, DO NOT STIR…

Place in oven and cook for 30 minutes. If contents seem too fluid let cook five minutes longer. The mixture should firm and will not totally set up until completely cool.

You can serve with vanilla ice cream or top with whipped cream.

Apple Salad, well maybe dessert…

This is good salad, which can be served as a fruit dessert. I have paired this with both pork and chicken. You have to be careful not to curdle your egg when adding the warm pineapple juice. Go slowly and add small amounts of the juice if you have never tempered warm ingredients with eggs.

1 Tablespoon flour

1 cup white sugar

¾ cup pineapple juice

¼ cup water

1 egg yolk

1 Tablespoon vinegar

1 Tablespoon butter

1 cup raisins

1 cup chopped nuts, I prefer pecans

1 cup grapes, green

1 8 ounce can crushed pineapple, drained

3 cups apples, chopped

Directions:

In small saucepan over medium heat, mix flour and sugar

Stir while slowly adding juice and water, bring to a boil

Let simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.

In a bowl beat egg yolk, temper by slowly adding one spoonful at a time of pineapple mix, for a total of 5 spoonfuls. Stir well between spoonfuls.

Pour egg, juice mix into the remaining juice. Return to heat and cook for a minute. Add vinegar and butter, stir until combined.

In a large bowl, mix raisins, nuts, grapes, pineapple and apples. Pour juice mix over fruit, toss to coat, and then chill 30 minutes until ready to serve.

Those Special Treats…

What is about Christmas that makes us want to consume sweet treats, we would not normally eat? Is it because taking the time making the special foods is just as much a gift, as being able to unwrap one?

At Christmas, my mother would buy Pickled Watermelon Rind. I asked her once why she only bought it at Christmas, she said because it was too expensive, thus making it a special treat.  So why don’t we buy it for the Fourth of July, Memorial Day or Mother’s Day? I think we do this, because it helps build the jolliness of the season and the spirit of Christmas.

My grandmother would make candied citrus peels; my Mother-in-Law, Paddy makes fudge and the fruitcake cookies I gave you earlier. My mother would make Mexican Wedding cookies among other treats.

I have on the carried tradition of cookies and sweets. Every year the kids and I sit down and make out a list. Most of the time there are more on list than we can make. The favorites though, are always at the top; we make those first. Those include Snickerdoodles for my daughter, the candied citrus peels for my son and white chocolate macadamia cookies for my husband.

My family likes fudge, I have never made it even though Paddy gave me the recipe 17 years ago. I decided to try making it yesterday. I followed the directions and still was apprehensive about how it would turn out. Four hours after pouring the candy into the pan, it looked like under cooked brownies…

My first thought was "3 cups of sugar down the drain," until my husband said we should mix it into in ice cream, ooohhhh yummy! That thought rolled around in my head all through dinner.

After a quick run to the store for vanilla ice cream, we got ready to scoop out the fudge only to find it finally harden. We still had ice cream, but the thrill of having gooey chocolate with it was gone. Oh, don’t fear, I broke up pieces of the fudge in the ice cream. It was not gooey but still spectacular!

So just a note to all of you if you have not made fudge before, it might take four to six hours for it “set up.”

I think the next time I make this I am going to experiment a bit, by adding peanut butter or marshmallows. I thought it might be fun to make both chocolate and peanut butter fudge, and then layer them. I can’t stand peanut butter, so I will have to have taste testers… does anyone want to volunteer?

Paddy’s Fudge

Ingredients:

3 cups of white sugar

¾ cup Hershey’s coco powder

1 ½ cups of milk (I used 1%)

½ cup of light Karo Syrup

1 stick of butter, halved

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1 cup of pecans, chopped (or nuts of your choice)

Directions:

In a large saucepan mix sugar, milk, Karo, ½ cup of butter and coco powder. Do not get worried if the coco powder just sits on top of the liquids, it will eventually mix in.

Bring mixture to a rapid boil until you form a soft ball in cold water ***I would suggest using a candy thermometer; it will make it easier to determine if the candy is done***

Remove from heat and add the additional butter, vanilla and nuts.

Beat until nearly cool, pour into a buttered platter. Cut when cool into desired size.

I used a glass Pyrex 9”X13” pan, and then cut into one-inch square pieces.

Grandma Webb’s, Bourbon Sweet Potatoes & More!

This recipe has been in my family for a while; my husband calls it a true southern dish. Keep in mind; this is the same man who deemed me a Yankee, because my family comes from Kentucky.

This recipe was my grandmother's. My second cousin, is six years old. Kate about had a fit when she saw her grandmother putting alcohol in this recipe. With the wisdom of a six-year-old, Kate questioned her grandmother, "does my mom know you're serving me alcohol?" Her grandmother laughed and said, "Well I sure hope so, she's been eating this all of her life!"

Grandma Webb’s Bourbon Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

3 pounds sweet potatoes, baked, peeled and mashed

                or if you absolutely must 3, 1 pound cans of canned sweet potatoes (Not yams!)

1 cup white sugar

1/3 cup a good Kentucky bourbon (If it is not good enough to drink, then it is not good enough to cook with)

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, preferably not imitation

2 cups miniature marshmallows

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F

Heat sweet potatoes until hot, mash if not already done so

Add ingredients, except marshmallows, blend well

Place mixture in a 2-quart baking dish, sprinkle top with marshmallows

Bake uncovered for 30 min. marshmallows should be golden brown

Paddy’s sweet potato soufflé:

I inherited this recipe when I married my husband. I have not tinkered with this recipe.*Please don't die of shock*I have threatened a few times though, to place this in a piecrust and serve it as desert. Again, make sure if you use canned sweet potatoes there actually sweet potatoes and not yams.

My father recently sent me a similar recipe that is my stepmothers. There are a couple ingredients differences between the two, but they are basically the same recipe.

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes, or if need be one 1 pound canned sweet potatoes

1/2 cup sugar, white

two large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk

1/3 cup butter

2/3 cup brown sugar, packed

1/3 cup flour

1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°

Combine first five ingredients, until blended

Pour into a 2 quart casserole dish, sprinkle with topping

Topping:

In separate bowl combine brown sugar and flour

Cut in butter

 add pecans

Sprinkle over the top of the sweet potato mixture

Cook for 30 min. uncovered

Sweet Potato, Potato Salad:

My aunt sent me this recipe the other day, and I cannot wait to make. I would say it is a new twist on the traditional potato salad.

Ingredients:

two baking potatoes

one sweet potato

four eggs

two stalks of celery, chopped

one onion, chopped

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon prepared mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons of ground black pepper

Directions:

In a large pot of salted boiling water add potatoes (baking and sweet) and cook until tender but still firm. This will take approximately 30 min.

Drain, cool, peel and chop

Place eggs in saucepan and cover with cold water bring to boil. Cover, remove from heat, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 min.

Remove from hot water; cool, peel and chop

In a large bowl, combine potatoes, eggs, celery, and onion

In a separate bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, mustard, salt and pepper. Add to potato mixture toss well to coat.

Place in refrigerator for two hours and serve cold

Ginger Peach Sweet Potato Bake:

2 pounds of canned sweet potatoes, not yams

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/3 cup broken unsalted cashews,(you can substitute with either pecans or walnuts)

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 9 ounce can of sliced peaches

3 tablespoons butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F

Place with potatoes and a buttered 10 x 6 x 2" dish

Open and drain peaches

In a bowl, combine brown sugar, cashews, ginger, and 1/2 teaspoons salt

Layer potatoes peaches and nut mixture

Cut butter into chunks and sprinkle on top of mixture

Cover dish and bake for 30 min.

Uncover bake for 10 more minutes

Spoon syrup from pan over sweet potatoes before serving