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Grandma Elodye’s Scrapple

Submitted by Kate Teefy

Ingredients

  • 1lb Jimmy Daen Sausage
  • 3 cups water
  • 1 tsp sage
  • 1⁄2 tsp ground mustard
  • 1 chicken bullion cube
  • 1 tsp hot pepper sauce
  • 1 1⁄2 cups yellow corn meal

Instructions

  1. Place sausage in water with all ingredients except corn meal.
  2. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 20 min.
  3. Gradually add corn meal and stir constantly. It will need to thicken (add more corn meal if needed)
  4. Put in a loaf pan and set aside to cool.
  5. Once cool, remove from pan and wrap in aluminum foil.
  6. Refrigerate minimally 1 hr. (Can make ahead up to 24 hours in advance)
  7. Cut into slices and fry in skillet.

Cranberry Pie

Submitted by Austin Hoeft

Ingredients

  • Dough for single-crust pie (or premade pie crust)

Cranberry Topping

  • 1 package (3 ounces) raspberry gelatin
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1-1/4 cups cranberry juice
  • 1 can (8 oz.) jellied cranberry sauce

Filling

  • 3 ounces cream cheese, softened  1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon 2% milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup whipped topping

Instructions

(Skip steps 1-2 if you use premade crust.)

  1. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; transfer to a 9-in. pie plate. Trim to 1/2 in. beyond rim of plate; flute edge. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425°.
  2. Line crust with a double thickness of foil. Fill with pie weights, dried beans or uncooked rice. Bake on a lower oven rack until edge is golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Remove foil and weights; bake until bottom is golden brown, 3-6 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack.
  3. In a bowl, combine gelatin and sugar; set aside. In a saucepan, bring cranberry juice to a boil. Remove from the heat and pour over gelatin mixture, stirring to dissolve. Stir in cranberry sauce. Refrigerate until slightly thickened.
  4. Meanwhile, in another bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, milk and vanilla until fluffy. Fold in whipped topping. Spread evenly over bottom of crust. Beat cranberry topping until frothy; pour over filling.
  5. Refrigerate overnight or until set.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Submitted by Shantel Noel

Ingredients

Crust

  • 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 24 squares)
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted

Filling

  • 1/4 cup Gold MedalTM all-purpose flour • 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 tablespoons brandy, if desired
  • 1 can (15 oz) pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
  • 4 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 5 eggs

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 325°F. Grease 9-inch springform pan with shortening. Wrap foil around pan to catch drips. In small bowl, mix cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and the melted butter. Press crumb mixture in bottom of pan. Wrap foil around outside of pan to prevent drips. Bake crust 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool 5 minutes at room temperature. Refrigerate about 5 minutes or until completely cooled.
  2. Meanwhile, in another small bowl, whisk flour, pumpkin pie spice, brandy and pumpkin together until well blended; set aside. In large bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Grad- ually beat in brown sugar and 2/3 cup granulated sugar until smooth. On low speed, beat in 1 egg at a time just until blended. Gradually beat in pumpkin mixture until smooth.
  3. 3. Pour filling over crust. Bake 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 25 minutes or until set but center of cheesecake still jiggles slightly when moved. Turn oven off; open oven door at least 4 inches. Let cheesecake remain in oven 30 minutes.
  4. Run knife around edge of pan to loosen cheesecake. Cool in pan on wire rack 30 minutes. Refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight before serving.
  5. To serve, run knife around edge of pan to loosen cheesecake. Carefully re- move side of pan before cutting cheesecake. Store covered in refrigerator.

Spaghetti Pie

Submitted by Joette Jindra

Ingredients

  • 6 oz. spaghetti
  • 2 tbsp. butter or margarine
  • 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 well-beaten eggs
  • 1 lb. ground beef or bulk pork sausage • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/4 cup chopped green pepper
  • 1 – 8 oz. can (1 cup) tomatoes, cut up • 1 – 6 oz. can (1 cup) tomato paste
  • 1 tsp. sugar
  • 1 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
  • 1/2 tsp. garlic salt
  • 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (2 oz.)

Instructions

  1. Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Drain; should have about 3 cups spaghetti. Stir butter or margarine into hot spaghetti. Stir in Parmesan cheese and eggs. Form spaghetti mixture into a “crust” in a buttered 10-inch pie plate.
  2. Spread cottage cheese over the bottom of the spaghetti crust.
  3. In a skillet, cook ground beef or pork sausage, onion, and green pepper until vegetables are tender and meat is browned. Drain off excess fat. Stir in undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, garlic salt, and oregano. Heat thoroughly.
  4. Turn the meat mixture into the spaghetti crust.
  5. Bake, uncovered, in a 350° oven for 20 minutes.
  6. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese melts.

Makes 6 servings

Peanut Butter Popcorn Balls

Submitted by Molly Davenport

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups Karo syrup
  • 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 4 quarts popped corn

Instructions

  1. Pop corn in a large bowl and set aside.
  2. In a medium saucepan, bring sugar and Karo syrup to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.
  3. Once mixture begins to boil, stir constantly for 30 seconds.
  4. Remove from heat and add vanilla extract and peanut butter. Mix until it is a smooth texture.
  5. Pour mixture over popcorn and mix well with buttered hands.
  6. Form popcorn balls and place on wax paper to cool.
  7. Store in an airtight container or wrapping.

Yields 12-18 popcorn balls.

Stuffed Mushroom Appetizer

Submitted by Molly Davenport

Ingredients

  • 6 ounces package of cream cheese softened
  • 1⁄2 cup grated mozzarella
  • 3 teaspoons of melted butter
  • 1⁄2 cup of cooked/crumbled Italian sausage
  • 4 tablespoons of Italian or plain breadcrumbs
  • 2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion(optional)
  • 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
  • 18-22 large mushrooms

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Wash and drain mushrooms and remove stems and set and set aside.
  3. Combine all ingredients except mushrooms and mix well.
  4. Fill mushrooms with mixture and arrange on lightly greased baking sheet.
  5. Bake for 15-20 minutes until top of mixture is slightly browned.

Mrs. Stokes’ Cold Oven Pound Cake

Submitted by Christina Logue

Ingredients

  • 3 cups sugar
  • 2 sticks butter, soft
  • 1⁄2 cup Crisco, soft
  • 5 eggs
  • 1 cup Carnation milk
  • 3 cups cake flour, sifted before measuring
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp almond extract

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, cream together butter, Crisco, sugar.
  2. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each.
  3. Add flour and milk in small amounts, alternating between each and mix until combined.
  4. Pour into greased bunt pan and place in COLD oven.
  5. Turn oven to 325 degrees and bake for 90 minutes.
  6. Let cake cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

Ponche Navideno (Christmas Punch)

Submitted by Yara Rojero

Ingredients

  • 4 quarts of water (1 gallon)
  • 1 large piloncillo cone (or 12 oz. of brown sugar)
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 lb Tejocotes* (SEE NOTES)
  • 1 1⁄2 lb guavas (about 12 guavas)
  • 1⁄4 cup prunes chopped
  • 1 1⁄2 cup apples chopped
  • 1 cup pears chopped
  • 1⁄2 cup raisins
  • 3 sugar cane sticks, about 5-in. long, cut into four pieces each
  • 1 cup of Tamarind pods peeled (or 1 cup of Hibiscus Flowers***)
  • Rum to taste

Instructions

  1. Place water in a large stockpot.
  2. Add the piloncillo (or brown sugar) and cinnamon to cook for about 15 minutes. If you are using fresh Tejocotes, add them with the piloncillo and cinnamon, since they take longer to soften. Ponche Navideño
  3. Add the chopped guavas, apples, and prunes along with the rest of the ingredients like the sugar cane sticks, tamarind pods or hibiscus flowers. If you are using the canned version of the tejocotes, then add them in this step.
  4. Simmer for about 1 hour. Serve hot in mugs, ladling in some of the fruit and adding rum to your liking.

Notes: In some of the central states of Mexico, like Puebla, Hidalgo & Estado de Mexico, the Tejocotes are precooked in water over medium heat to help remove the skins and seeds. Then, they are added to the rest of the ingredients to finish cooking the Mexican ponche. If you are still looking for all the ingredients like the Tejocotes, you can still make this warm drink without them. Other dried fruits can be used as a substitute. The best thing about this warm beverage is how easy it is to substitute ingredients. If you can’t find piloncillo cones, substitute with dark brown sugar or Rum with brandy. Sometimes, I add the tamarind pods, and other times just the Hibiscus flowers. I rarely use the 2 in the same punch, and it still comes out with a heavenly aroma and is extremely tasty. For serving, use a ladle to ensure you give a 50/50 ratio of liquid and chuck of fruits and don’t forget to pair it with your favorite tamales on your next Noche Buena (Christmas Eve).

Pozole Rojo (Mexican Pork & Hominy Stew)

Submitted by Yara Rojero

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours

Total Time: 3:30 hours
Servings: 12

Ingredients

  • 4 ounces dried guajillo or ancho chiles, or a combination of both
  • Salt
  • 1 large (108 ounce, 6lb 12 oz, 3 kg) can
  • white hominy, drained and rinsed
  • 3 pounds pork shoulder (preferably
  • with bone),cut into 1 to 11/2 inch cubes (can also use pork shanks), make sure to use a cut well marbled with fat
  • 8 cloves garlic, 4 cloves roughly chopped, and 4 whole cloves
  • 3 bayleaves
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2 tablespoons dry oregano (Mexican oregano if available)

Garnishes (can prep while pozole is cooking):

  • 1/2 small cabbage, thinly sliced
  • 1 bunch cilantro , chopped
  • 1/2 white onion, chopped
  • 2 avocados, chopped
  • 4 limes, quartered
  • 1 bunch red radishes, sliced thin
  • 12 to 24 tostada shells (see note)

Instructions

  • Boil 5 quarts water: Fill a large 10 to 12 quart stockpot with 5 quarts of water. Set on heat to bring to a boil while you proceed with the next steps.

  • Heat the chiles, cover with 3 cups hot water: Remove and discard the stems, seeds, and large veins from the chili pods. Heat a cast iron pan on medium high and heat the chili pods for a couple minutes, until they begin to soften. Do not let them burn.

    While the chilies are heating, bring a medium pot with 3 cups of water to a simmer and remove from heat. Once the chiles have softened, add the chiles to the pot hot water and cover.

    Let the chiles soak in the hot water for 15 to 20 minutes.

  • Brown the pork, add garlic: Heat a tablespoon or two of olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of the pan) in a large sauté pan on medium high heat. Pat the pork pieces dry with paper towels. Sprinkle them generously with salt.

    Working in batches, taking care not to crowd the pan or stir the meat much, brown the meat on all sides.

    Right at the end of browning the meat, add 4 cloves of roughly chopped garlic to the pan with the meat, let cook with the meat for about a minute.

  • Add the pork and spices to large pot of boiling water: Once the meat has browned, transfer it to the large stockpot of boiling water. Scrape up any browned bits at the bottom of the pan, and any garlic, and add those to the pot as well. Add the rinsed hominy.

    Add bay leaves, cumin, and oregano. When you put the oregano in, smoosh together with your hands so that the oregano breaks up more as it goes in. Add a tablespoon of salt. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat and cook for 15 minutes.

  • Prepare the red sauce: by puréeing in a blender, the chilies, 2 1/2 cups or so of their soaking liquid, a teaspoon of salt, and 4 cloves of garlic. (To prevent the blender from creating too much pressure, it’s probably best to start with the chiles and garlic and only a cup of the liquid in the blender, and then adding the rest of the liquid.)

    Strain the red sauce through a sieve, discarding the tough bits of the sauce.

  • Add the red chili sauce to the pot with the pork and hominy: Add another couple teaspoons of salt. Return to a simmer, lower the heat to just high enough to maintain a simmer, partially covered.

  • Cook for 2 to 3 hours until the pork is completely tender: Skim away excess fat. Taste for seasoning and add more salt to taste (you will likely need more than you expect, perhaps a tablespoon or more.)

    The resulting soup should be rather brothy, as you will be adding a lot garnishes. Add more water if necessary.

  • Assemble the garnishes: When getting ready to serve the pozole, you can prep the garnishes (slice the cabbage, chop the cilantro, etc.)

    To serve, arrange the garnishes in bowls on the table and serve the pozole soup into bowls. Let your guests pick and choose which garnishes they would like on their pozole.

    Serve with tostada shells (or tortilla chips if you can’t find tostada shells).

Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus

Submitted by Pamela Voss

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 min
Servings: 4-6 people

Note prosciutto is naturally salty, so you shouldn’t need to add any more salt to the asparagus. If you want to make a bigger batch, just double up the ingredients in the recipe and use two large baking sheets for roasting.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb asparagus, preferably thick spears
  • 3 to 31/2oz sliced prosciutto
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Ground black pepper
  • Lemon zest, optional
  • Freshly-grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
  2. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
  3. Prepare the asparagus – Rinse and pat dry the asparagus. Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus. Set asparagus spirits aside.
  4. Wrap the asparagus with prosciutto – Cut prosciutto slices in half down their length. Wrap each sphere of asparagus with one strip of sliced prosciutto. Tug the prosciutto a little as you wrap it around the asparagus to give tension. This helps to ensure that the prosciutto wraps around the asparagus tightly. Lay the wrapped asparagus spears on the line sheet pan.
  5. Drizzle the asparagus with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Sprinkle a pinch of black pepper on top.
  6. Bake for 8-10 minutes. When done, this virus will be bright green and easily pierced with a fork, and the prosciutto will be crisped around the edges.

Serve – Transfer the asparagus to a serving platter. Top with lemon zest and freshly grated parmesan cheese if using. Serve immediately while hot

Homemade Apple Cider

Submitted by Khiana Jeanniton

Ingredients

  • 6 cups apple cider
  • 1⁄4 cup real maple syrup
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 6 whole cloves
  • 6 whole allspice berries
  • 1 orange peel, cut into strips
  • 1 lemon peel, cut into strips

Instructions

  1. Gather the ingredients.
  2. Pour apple cider and maple syrup into a large stainless steel saucepan.
  3. Place cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice berries, orange peel, and lemon peel in the center of a square of washed cheesecloth; fold up the sides of the cheesecloth to enclose the bundle, then tie it up with a length of kitchen string. Drop the spice bundle into the cider mixture.
  4. Place the saucepan over moderate heat and cook until cider is very hot but not boiling, about 5 to 10 minutes.
  5. Remove cider from heat. Discard the spice bundle
  6. Ladle cider into big cups or mugs, adding a fresh cinnamon stick to each serving if desired.

Recipe yields 6 servings.

Boñelos Dago (Yam Doughnuts)

Submitted by Doris Fejeran

Ingredients

  • 5-10 lbs dågu (yam), peeled
  • 2 1⁄2 cups flour
  • 2 1⁄2 cups water
  • 4-6 young coconuts, grated
  • 1 cup sugar

Instructions

  1. Grate dågo into a pan or bowl. Add flour, water, coconut, and sugar.
  2. Mix ingredients thoroughly and shape into round balls.
  3. Fry in hot cooking oil for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Tamale Pie

Submitted by Sharon Holmes

Ingredients

  • 2 green peppers, chopped
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 can (16 ounces) corn
  • 1 can (16 ounces) tomatoes (Mexican-style, if desired)
  • 1/2 cup cornmeal
  • 1 pound lean ground beef, browned and drained
  • 1 egg (beaten)
  • Pitted olives (as many as desired)

Instructions

  1. Brown onion and peppers in a small amount of oil.
  2. Add remaining ingredients.
  3. Cook and stir over low heat until heated through.
  4. Place mixture in a baking dish.
  5. Cover with foil or baking dish lid.
  6. Bake at 300°F. for about one hour.

Makes 4 servings.

Raspberry Delight

Submitted by Sharon Holmes

Ingredients

  • 3 cubes butter
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 8oz. cream cheese
  • 1 cup walnuts, chopped
  • 3oz. box raspberry jello
  • 2 10oz packages raspberries, thawed
  • 12oz. coolwhip

Instructions

  1. Mix 2 cubes of butter, 1 1/2 c. flour, 2 tbsp. sugar. Spread in 9×13 pan, bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool.
  2. Mix 2 c. powdered sugar, 1 cube butter, cream cheese. Spread over cooled crust, sprinkle 1/2 c. nuts on top.
  3. Drain berries, save juice. Add enough water to juice to make 1 c. liquid. Bring liquid to a boil, remove from heat, add jello and dissolve well. Add berries. Let sit in fridge until slightly thickened. Spoon over cream cheese layer. Let set, in fridge then cover with cool whip. Sprinkle remaining nuts on top.

Creamy Polenta

Submitted by Sharon Holmes

Ingredients

  • 1.5 cups heavy cream
  • 1.5 cups vegetable broth
  • 5 tablespoons polenta
  • 5 tablespoons semolina
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • salt
  • pepper

Instructions

  1. In a small pot combine the cream and broth and heat, bringing to a low boil.
  2. Reduce the heat and add the polenta and semolina while constantly stirring.
  3. Cook the polenta until it thickens and has a creamy texture.
  4. Stir in butter and cheese and season with salt and pepper.

Serving Suggestions: Serve with grilled chicken or fish, portabella mushrooms or olive relish as an appetizer.

Serves 6 

Grandma Marlene’s Fresno Famous Persimmon Cookies

Submitted by Sharon Holmes

Ingredients

  • 1 cup persimmon pulp
  • 1 teaspoon soda
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 cup raisins
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Beat the pulp, soda, sugar, shortening, and egg until creamy. Add salt, flour, and spices. Fold in walnuts and raisins.
  3. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet and bake 12-15 minutes.
  4. Cookies will freeze well.

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