Two From My Grandma's Recipe Notebook

I'm unpacking (yes, still) and found an old notebook of my Grandma's before she was married.  It's stuffed full of yellowed newspaper clipped recipes and pencil written recipes.   It's hard for me to fathom that not that long ago my Grandma was a young lady with hopes of having her own family to love and feed one day.  The notebook is worn and I have no idea if she ever used any of these recipes.  I can't ask my Mom if she remembers any of them either.   I'll just have to imagine that the ones I choose to make for my family are the same ones my Grandma made sixty years ago.


St. Patrick's Cookies

A good basic cookie recipe may be relied upon to fill the jar for St. Patrick's day dessert.  These are the ingredients. 

1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
3 1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cream the shortening, sugar, and salt, add the well-beaten eggs, and vanilla.  Mix and sift the flour and baking powder, and add to first mixture.  Shape dough into a roll, wrap in waxed paper and chill.  Roll out the dough in a thin sheet and cut, preferably with a shamrock cookie cutter.  Press a green candied cherry in the center of each cookie or sprinkle with green sugar.


One Egg Cake

1 heaping cup sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup sweet cream
3/4 cup milk
2 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
Flavor

Beat the egg and the sugar together.   Add to that the sweet cream and the milk.  Sift the flour, salt, and baking powder twice.  Add milk and flour mixtures half at a time.  Add flavor, beating well.  Makes two layers. 

(I'm assuming flavor here is something like a teaspoon of vanilla or lemon extract.)


Weirdly, there are no baking instructions on these recipes.  For my own oven I would bake the cookies on a greased cookie sheet at 350 for about ten minutes- checking them frequently starting at eight minutes.  The cakes would be 350 in greased pans also and I would set the timer for two round pans at 20 minutes or 28 for a 9x13.  You should use your own judgement though.

Durkee Chocolate Cinnamon Snowballs

This is not my recipe. I clipped this from a coupon insert today and decided to make them since I had all the ingredients. These are pretty easy to make and taste a bit like yummy Mexican hot chocolate.
Hope you like them too.

Chocolate Cinnamon Snowballs

1 cup butter (no substitutions), softened
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 cups all purpose flour
Extra powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 400.
Beat butter, powdered sugar, cocoa, and cinnamon with a mixer until light. Gradually add flour, mixing until just blended.
Shape dough into 1 inch ball. Place 1 inch apart on greased baking sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer from baking pan to wire racks. Cool slightly. Roll in powdered sugar. Cool completely. Roll in sugar again.

What's in the Works- Making Gingery Things in the Kitchen

I'm going to try this recipe for Gingerbread Creamer. If I like it, I might bag up some to give out as neighbor gifts.


I'm also planning on making a pan of these ginger snaps. I like them as a bar cookie and I use half white/half wheat flour. I amp up the ginger a bit for Hubby.


I lucked into some Trader Joe's Sugar Cookie Kits today for .99 cents each on clearance. They come with cutters, frosting, and colored sugars. I think this might round out my Christmas baking. Here's a review of the cookie kit. I dropped off a box for my friend who's stuck at home with sick children who are climbing the walls with boredom. I think I'll use the extra cookie cutters as decoration for the neighbors cookie bags.

What I'm Working On

Our tv arrived today. I know it's not very frugal to get excited about a big flat screen. But, it is a planned, researched and paid for item and that feels pretty good.

Using What We Have in Baking-

I found a mostly empty bag of m&m's in the cabinet today.
The kids and I made m&m cookies today. I didn't let myself google the monster cookie recipe I wanted to make because I have an overflowing shelf of cookbooks that have been woefully neglected. I need to start using them. I bought a Mouse Cookies cookbook before I had kids and have only used it once to make peanut butter cookies. We made the jumbo chocolate chip cookie recipe and substituted m&ms for most of the chocolate chips. I had Big Girl read the ingredients to me and Little Guy carried them to the table and helped me measure. It was a fun experience for them. Now I just have to remain firm that those cookies will not be consumed by me.

I found six hot dog buns, a wrinkly peach, and aging milk in the fridge. I made bread pudding with them. I'm going to try not to consume this either although it smells really good.

Tuesday I made my normal banana bread with three smooshy bananas. I make banana bread so regularly that I don't even use a recipe anymore. I only measure the baking mix anymore. Here's my quickie version-
2 cups baking mix (I use homemade or Aldi)
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbs. oil
Splash of vanilla
3 mashed bananas
Nuts are optional but we like them.
I sprinkle sugar on the top of the loaf too.
Bake at 350 for 55-60 minutes in a greased loaf pan

The kids and I finished our library reading pages this week. They both read 36 books and got:
3 free meals at Bob Evans restaurant
2 free tickets to a minor league baseball game
1 free paper back from Scholastic
1 free night at the Magic House (a children's museum- awesome fun)
3 free food items at Sonic
2 free food items at McDonalds
Blow up beach balls
1 piece of candy
Entry into a drawing for Cardinals tickets

I got an entry into a drawing too but I'm not sure what it's for. I LOVE my library card.

I'm thinking seriously about going cash only for my spending habits. It's so easy to charge on my Discover card and I do. I now parting with cash would be harder for me. And also, tend to hate to got to the ATM.

My gift tubs are full too. Right now toys are on clearance at department stores so I've been buying presents for Christmas. I bought a Holiday 2009 Barbie for $5 at K-Mart this week. The lady in front of me had one too. We must have bought the last two. They were originally over $50. But, if the tubs are full it's time to stop buying. I picked up two retro packs of gum for part of my Father In Law's Christmas present for a quarter at Dollar Tree- Black Jack and Beemans today though. (I also bought Tame shampoo- anyone remember Tame from the 70's? (and no I know I didn't need shampoo- I told you I needed to take the credit card out of my wallet.)

That's all I can come up with for now.

Bread and Life

I'm making this high fiber bread recipe today with my bread machine. Our milk is starting to turn a bit so I'm using it instead of milk powder/water.

I'm down about twelve pounds since I started Weight Watchers about three weeks ago. It comes of so much more slowly than it goes on. While I am a little happy I still have so far to go. And my big pants aren't really even baggy yet. Maybe another ten pounds before I can get rid of my fat pants?

It is raining here and it is such a blessing after days of scorching 90 and above heat. My garden is breathing a deep sigh of relief.

We had chocolate chips and blueberry pancakes for breakfast and are enjoying a lazy family day.

Right now life is good.

Today I puree squash for a Coconut Curry

I found this surprise squash in my front garden. I thought it was a zucchini that had turned yellow from all our heat. Next time I'll let the little guy get a little more yellow. But, this one is destined for the cooking pot.

This is a great idea I got from a old friend on Facebook-

"so easy to make: puree chopped raw yellow squash or yellow belle peppers, raw garlic cloves, & fresh herbs of your choice with coconut milk to cover. Pour mixture into pot with heated olive oil and stir.Add curry, turmeric, cumin, salt, cinnamon to taste. While cooking puree, add sliced onion and raw meat depending on cooking time, add raw veggies of choice toward end. I made mine with seitan, red onions and more squash & served over coconut basmati rice."

I am going to add tofu and zucchini to my curry mix.

Pizza Dough for Bread Machines

Taken from Better Homes and Gardens Best Bread Machine Recipes

Basic Pizza Dough for a 2 lb. loaf (or to make two big crusts)

1 1/3 cup water
2 tablespoons olive or cooking oil
4 cups of bread flour (works well mixed half/half with whole wheat too)
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp yeast

Add ingredients according to your machines instruction manual. Select the dough cycle. Remove the dough from the machine and punch down. Cover and let it rest 10 minutes.

I normally use half the dough immediately and freeze half for later. I prefer the thawed dough over the fresh because it is so much easier to work with.

Still haven't made it to the grocery store

Breakfast- Instant (store brand) oatmeal packets & organic pop tarts from basement pantry. Cherry limeade (out of juice & milk), cocoa, and instant latte mix to drink.

I think I have some powdered milk in the basement. I'm tempted to go a few more days and see what I can come up with for meals. I can always make baked goods using soy flour/water instead of eggs.

This recipe for Scottish Oat Cakes does not need eggs and might be a suitable replacement for bread with our meals. I have everything in my pantry to whip this up.

There are a few pieces of fruit left in the fridge and I have some clearance/dent&ding cans of fruit when we run out of that.

We have half a jar of peanut butter (my kids favorite protein snack) left. When we run out I have half a jar of roasted peanuts that I could whir in my blender and make more spread.

We're out of pop. I'm not going to cry about it though. I plan on making some sun tea and kool-aid when we run out of limeade.

Update: I found three cans of pop in the garage and dry milk in the basement. My Mom is bringing my girl home today and is bringing some dew berries they picked off a wild bush growing by her yard. We're making a crumble top pie with a no roll pie crust. I'm thawing a frozen chunk of pizza crust for dinner. I think we're having crackers, bread, cheese, chopped fruit and a homemade creamy spread for lunch. I'm making this recipe I found in Yankee Magazine's Living Well on a Shoestring.

Herb Cheese Spread:
4 ounces cream cheese
1 tbs. butter
1 tbs. white wine or balsamic vinegar
2 cloves of minced and mashed garlic
Fresh herbs
Black pepper to taste

Mix it all together and serve.

I'm out of garlic so I have to use powdered. I do have fresh basil growing in my windowsill though.

Does anyone know if dewberry bushes transplant well? I'd like to move one to my backyard.

Orange-Cinnamon Loaf for Your Bread Machine.

Orange Cinnamon Loaf for the Bread Machine taken from Better Homes and Gardens Best Bread Machine Recipes

2/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup water
1 egg
1/4 margarine or butter cut into pieces
4 cups bread flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tsp orange peel
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp yeast

Makes a 2 pound loaf. If you want to cook it in your bread machine choose the white bread cycle.

Glaze recipe:
Stir together one cup of powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla and enough orange juice to make a glaze consistency. Drizzle over your cooled loaf.

Here's how I tweak this recipe for our own tastes:
When I don't have buttermilk I mix plain milk with a bit of orange juice. I substitute one cup of wheat flour for bread flour. I use freshly grated orange peel. I simply grate an orange into the bread loaf pan until my arm hurts or the orange is naked. It's less peel than called for but we don't like the entire amount anyway. I also reduce the salt a bit and increase the cinnamon.
I use one orange for the entire recipe with the pulp leftover for eating. Half of the orange juice goes into making buttermilk, the rind goes into the pan, and the other half helps make the glaze.

I put mine on the dough cycle and rise my bread in our oven with the light on. I make two small loaves but they don't last long. This is our favorite sweet bread.

What I'm Trying Today

No roll pie crust that uses oil instead of shortening.

Hubby found a bag of frozen apple pie filling in the basement that I made last year. So far, this pantry challenge has us eating very well.

Making my own Rootbeer.

In February I bought a bottle of root beer concentrate on a whim. The no grocery shopping this week has left me desperate for a taste of cold soda.

This is the cost breakdown:

A recipe contains 3/4 cup of sugar, water, concentrate and some type of bubbly water beverage.

I bought a six pack of sparkling mineral water a year ago for $3. I used two bottles for a cost of $1. The concentrate bottle makes 8 recipes at a cost of .43 cents. I'll estimate the cost of sugar at .15 cents since I got a good deal on it. I spent a $1.62 to make about about a liter and a half of root beer. If you're buying the ready made stuff in the grocery store then it's definitely a rotten deal.

How does it taste?

It's not as carbonated as store bought but I think that's because the sparkling mineral water I bought doesn't have much fizz. It definitely has a nice clean taste to it. I like it better than the high fructose stuff because it doesn't feel like I'm coating my teeth with syrup. I think it would be delicious over vanilla ice cream.

I was happy to use up the mineral water that was laying in my pantry. And I got the joy of surprising Big Girl with homemade soda. (she said, "You can make root beer????")
Someday it will no longer seem weird to her that her mother makes spaghetti sauce, chocolate sauce, apple sauce, laundry detergent, and sandwich bread from scratch. Maybe she'll even start thinking store bought stuff is weird. I can only hope.

Now I plan on scooping up club soda when it's on a great sale.

Babysitter Cookies

I had a scrape of peanut butter, a handful of chocolate chips, and a few frosted flakes left. And our cookie tin is empty. It's a perfect occasion to try out this recipe from Gayle:

Babysitter Cookies

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup oatmeal
• 1 cup cereal
• 1/2 cup coconut (optional)
• 1/2 cup raisins (optional)
• 1/2 cup nuts (optional)
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (optional)

Melt together the butter and shortening.
Add sugars and cream thoroughly.
Add eggs, vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, flour, oatmeal, cereal (corn flakes, grape nuts, cocoa puffs -- whatever you have) and mix well.
Stir in any or all of the optional ingredients.
Drop by rounded tablespoons onto lightly greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes.

I've got a pan of these cooling right now and my house smells so good. I froze half the dough for later too so we can't indulge too much. Thanks Gayle!

Bread Machine Recipe: Italian Whole Wheat Sage Bread

For a 2 pound loaf- place in your bread machine in the order called for.


1 1/3 cups of water
4 teaspoons of oil
2 2/3 cups of bread flour
1 1/3 cups of whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar
1 tablespoon of fresh sage (or 1/2 teaspoon of dried, crushed sage)
1 teaspoon of salt
1 1/4 teaspoons of yeast

You can use either the whole grain cycle or the basic white bread cycle.

(I selected the dough cycle and will bake this in my oven. I also substituted garlic powder and Italian seasoning for the sage.)

Frugal Sick Day Special Requests

Big Girl wanted lemonade. After searching my pantry for a powdered mix to make her a cupful, I can up empty handed. Instead I took lemon juice concentrate and a quick sprinkle of sugar and poured it into a cup. I added water and ice and gave it a quick stir. It made a pretty decent drink and she's happy too.

Little Guy wanted chocolate milk. Hmm, we're out of Nesquick. Homemade chocolate syrup to the rescue. No complaints.

Now I just have to figure out how to make gingerale.

Misc. Cooking Tips for Pasta Night

Instead of watching and stirring pasta- Bring a pot of water to boil. Turn off the heat. Pour in your pasta. Cover and let sit for 20 minutes. Works great. It gives you just enough time to whip up a homemade sauce with onions, peppers, tomato sauce etc. if you don't have a jar of sauce.

Quickie Spaghetti Sauce-

Melt a tablespoon of butter or oil in a sauce pan. Stir in some chopped onions and peppers. Add some minced garlic to taste (this is when I add rehydrated tvp or veggie crumbles). Pour in a can of tomato sauce and rinse the can with a tablespoon or so of water and throw that in the pan. Add oregano, basil, parsley, salt, pepper, to taste. If you like canned mushrooms add them now. A sprinkle of sugar mellows the tart tomato sauce flavor. If you don't have tomato sauce then use a small can of tomato paste and thin with a rinsed can or two of water. Heat until bubbly.

I know TVP can be kinda tasteless and even unappealing. To make it taste better I soak mine in vegetable broth before cooking. You can use bouillon cubes or homemade if you have them but Kitchen Basics is my favorite broth. And a little broth goes a long way.

What's Delicious Around Here- Homemade Chocolate Syrup

I got the kids to finish their cereal by using up the last of our Aldi's LaMissa chocolate syrup. To get the dregs out of the bottle I poured in some milk and swished it around. They gobbled their cereal up for once without complaining. And as I turned to recycle the bottle, I realized that I could reuse it by making Amy Dacyczyn's recipe. If you don't have the Complete Tightwad Gazzette (go buy one), Our Red House has a copy of the recipe.

It was simple to make and tastes fantastic. I think the key is using good cocoa. Hershey's is my favorite. I prefer my own syrup over the taste of Hershey's bottled syrup too. Hershey's pre-made syrup is too sweet while the homemade Hershey's tastes rich and dark. I don't know how much money I'm saving but I know I'm enjoying it a lot more. This morning I turned my cup of coffee into a mocha by using that syrup and some milk. Yum!

G'Bye Cascade

The dishwasher detergent I mixed up a few days ago with a cup of borax, a cup of baking soda, a teaspoon of salt, and the last tablespoon of ReevaAldi brand dishwasher powder works great.
It is a lot better than the Reeva powder by itself.

One more reason why the only cleaners I need to buy are plain soap, vinegar, washing soda, borax, and baking soda.

One more thing that I can make myself- Microwave popcorn

Brown paper bag- check. 1/4 cup of popcorn kernels- check. butter spray- check

Sorry Orville, I actually prefer my own.

Baking Days and Holes in the Freezer and Pantry.

Baking multiple items at once is a great energy saver. Here we have sweet bread and savory bread sticks.
Today I'm making muffins with whatever I can find in the fridge and pantry that needs to get used up. I also found a new bread maker recipe that uses things I already have in my pantry.
Grandma's Oatmeal Bread

Ingredients:

• 1 cup water, boiling
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon dark molasses
• 1/2 cup oats, old-fashioned
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 3 cups bread flour
• 2 teaspoons yeast, sprinkled over flour

Preparation:

Put oats in a mixing bowl; pour boiling water over the oats. When oats have cooled but are still a bit warm, add remaining ingredients according to bread machine manufacturer's manual. Bake on light setting. Makes a 1 1/2-pound loaf.
(I substituted a cup of whole wheat flour for one of the bread flour.)


The $60 food and household budget (which is more like the $70 dollar budget) doesn't leave much room for stock up so my freezer and my pantry are becoming less and less full. I love using up things that I had forgotten about (like the eggplant I froze months ago and made into Parmesan last week) and seeing what I have at a glance rather than doing a big excavation. A big part of keeping to a budget is that I shop at multiple stores to get the best deals rather than doing one stop and shop. Stores like Aldis and Save A Lot (my favorite because they take coupons) are great for pantry stock ups but nothing beats combining a coupon with a loss leader sale.

My Favorite Sugar Cookie Recipe

This is my favorite cookie recipe in the whole world. These aren't good for doing cut outs though because they have too much fat in them.


Ella Anderson's Best Sugar Cookies

1 cup of powdered sugar
1 cup of white granulated sugar
1 cup of butter (2 sticks- not margarine)
1 cup of oil
2 eggs
4 cups plus 4 heaping Tbs. of flour
1 tsp. of baking soda
1 tsp. of salt
1 tsp. of cream of tartar

Cream the sugar, butter and oil together. Mix dry ingredients together and add to the creamed mixture. Drop by heaping teaspoons onto greased cookie sheets. Press down slightly with the flat part of a glass dipped in sugar. Decorate with colored sugars, nuts, cherries or any other thing you like.
Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees until slightly golden.


This recipe came from the book "Murder in the Air" (page 335) by Ellen Hart.