Nana's Pumpkin Roll!

 

 

This is my mother's pumpkin roll which she has been making for years.  I don't know how many years and wouldn't even begin to try to guess how many of these pumpkin rolls she has made.  She starts making them right before Thanksgiving and she makes them right on through Christmas.  The holidays just wouldn't be right without her pumpkin roll. This looks like it might be hard to make, but really after you get he hang of it, it's not.  I don't have the step by step pictures this time, because my mother had this one made by the time I got there with the camera.  She moves fast for a grandma...lol.   Here is what you will need for this:

Roll
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup pumpkin
1 tsp. lemon juice
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Filling
1 cup confectioners sugar
1  8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup butter, softened

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat eggs for 3 minutes. Gradually add in the sugar.  Mix in the remaining ingredients. Pour onto a well greased cookie sheet (15"x10").  Bake for 15 minutes.  Turn out onto a clean kitchen towel. Let cool.

While it cools, make the cream cheese filling by whipping the cream cheese, confectioner's sugar, butter and vanilla together.

Spread filling over the baked roll.  Roll into a roll with it still in the towel.  It will slice best if you place it in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes.  Slice in even slices and place on a serving tray.  You can leave this refrigerated for several days before serving as long as it is wrapped up tightly.   See how easy that was and you will be so impressive with your baking skills this holiday season!

Nana's Pumpkin Roll!





 

 

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Southern Cornbread Dressing!

 

 

Thanksgiving just wouldn't be Thanksgiving proper without the cornbread dressing.  It's almost, if not, the most important part of the meal at our house.  If you have turkey, you have to have dressing with it.  Nothing else will do.  Of course, you also have to have mashed potatoes and gravy.  It just all has to be there, together in unison, on the plate.   This might not be true for all of you and your Thanksgiving dinners, but it is for us.  As far back as I can remember, the night before Thanksgiving, I can conjure up the pungent smell of poultry seasoning, black pepper and celery and onions being diced by my mother or other relatives who might be at our house for the holiday.  The dressing was always mixed up the night before and it made me so hungry smelling all of the preparations for the next day's meal.  It was comforting to know that people were in that kitchen getting things ready for all of us so that we would have a wonderful meal together.   The smells are always what bring us back it seems.

 

Now, out of the past and into the present,  I really have dreaded writing this post.  I have discovered, the hard way, that dressing or stuffing as some call it, is a very controversial topic in the food world.   I guess I never really knew that.  Is it dressing or is it stuffing? Does dressing have to be cornbread or does stuffing have to be, well, stuffed, as in the bird stuffed?   Is dressing the southern term for the same thing those above the Mason Dixon line call stuffing?  It's all so crazy and people can get so argumentative about it. 

 

Here is my take on it, dressing is the southern term for what we make and serve and it's usually a base of cornbread with (sometimes) other breads mixed in.   Stuffing seems to be a northern or Midwestern term for something similar, but not always made with cornbread.   Whether you stuff it in the bird or not, doesn't really seem to be a factor in whether it's called dressing or stuffing. I really think it's a geographic semantics sort of thing.  

 

We bake our dressing in a casserole dish or baking pan.  I honestly don't ever remember my mother baking it in the bird.  I hear it's safer to bake it in the baking dish and not in the bird where it might not get cooked through enough so it's good we don't do that.  If you do, be sure it reaches 165 degrees in the very center of the stuffing to be safe. 

 

Now, this is the recipe we use for dressing, I am sure you and your family do it differently, but this is how we do it.  All recipes are adaptable, so do what you will with it.   Here is what you will need: 

 

 

1 pan of cornbread ( recipe below)

6 slices white bread, toasted and cut in cubes

1 sleeve saltine crackers, crushed

2 cups celery, finely diced

1 large onion, finely diced

1 stick butter

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

2 Tbs. poultry seasoning

1 tsp. sage (optional)

6 cups chicken or turkey stock

1 can cream of chicken soup

4 eggs, beaten

 

 

Cornbread Recipe

 

1 cup self rising flour

1 cup self rising cornmeal

1 cup buttermilk

2 Tbs. oil

2 eggs, beaten

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

 

Mix all together and pour into an 8"x8" baking dish that has been heated with enough oil in it to cover the bottom well or you can use an iron skillet.

Bake for 30 minutes.

 

In a large mixing bowl, crumble cornbread, add bread cubes and the crushed saltines.  Place butter in a skillet over medium heat and sauté the onion and celery until tender.  Pour this mixture over the bread and crackers. 

 

Add seasonings.  You will notice that we use mostly poultry seasoning.  We actually leave the optional sage out, because the poultry seasoning is a blend of sage, thyme, rosemary, marjoram and black pepper.  It's not so overwhelming and 'green' like the sage can be when overused.    If your family likes their dressing green with sage, use more sage and less poultry seasoning.  However, I am convinced that the over use of sage and the under use of other seasonings is what ruins a lot of good dressing. 

 

Add 6 cups of chicken or turkey broth, the beaten eggs, and the can of cream of chicken soup.  The can of soup adds the best flavor to dressing, but I can always envision the comments on this.  I am not sure when canned soup got such a bad reputation, but let me say you can leave it out if you think you might die after ingesting it right there at the Thanksgiving dinner table.  If you do leave it out, add an extra cup of broth and you might need a smidgen more salt.   Lightly mix all of this together.  This mixture will be loose, not tight or too thick.  If it's too thick, add some more stock to it. 

 

Spray a large baking pan or casserole dish with nonstick baking spray and pour the mixture in.  Smooth the top, but don't pack it down in the dish.  That makes the dressing too compacted and dry when baked. 

 

This is best when prepared the night before and refrigerated overnight to give the flavors a chance to blend.  When you take it out to bake on Thanksgiving day, drizzle about a cup of the warm turkey broth from your just baked turkey over the top of the dressing.  This seeps down into the dressing as it bakes and really makes it moist and flavorful.

 

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 50 to 60 minutes. 

 

This makes a really big pan of dressing, so if you are cooking for a smaller family, you can put this in two casserole dishes and freeze one for Christmas or another meal when you might have baked chicken or whatever.   If you use two smaller casseroles, bake for about 30-35 minutes.

 

 





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Coca Cola Cake...It's a Southern Thang!

 

It seems like almost every other day now I get someone asking about the Coca Cola Cake recipe and there is a good reason for that... it's delicious and it's a southern thang!    I love to use Coke to cook with and if you have been reading my recipes long, you will have noticed that.  The carbonation, sweetness, cola and acid in Coke products just do good things to some food....barbeque, sweets, sauces, and even congealed salads.  My mother has been replacing the water in cakes with Sprite for years now.  It's a family secret...so shhhh,  don't you dare tell anyone!

There are several different variations and recipes for the classic "Coca Cola Cake" and while they are all good, this recipe turns out better than any of them.  It is not hard to make and it is one of the most moist chocolate cakes you will ever bake.  If your family is like mine, you have to have something chocolate for the holidays and this is just the cake to have. Make this cake and take it to dinner, wherever your dinner is this year,  and you will be the star, I guarantee it!   Here is what you need:


2 cups unsifted all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 sticks butter
3 Tbs. cocoa
1 cup Coca Cola
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups miniature marshmallows

Icing
1 stick butter, melted
3 Tbs. cocoa
7 Tbs. Coca Cola
1 box confectioner's sugar
1 cup chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the flour and sugar in a large mixing bowl.  In a saucepan, heat butter, cocoa, and the Coca Cola until it boils.  Pour hot mixture over the flour and sugar.  Mix well.  Add the buttermilk, eggs, soda, vanilla and marshmallows and mix well.   The marshmallows will rise to the top and the batter will seem thin, but that's ok.   Pour into a 9"x13" baking pan that has been sprayed with nonstick baking spray.   Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or just until a pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, make the icing.  Place the butter in a saucepan on medium heat with the cocoa powder and Coca Cola.  Heat until the butter is melted and it is all well blended.  Pour over the box of confectioner's sugar and mix until it's smooth. If you are adding nuts, stir them in.  Spread the icing over the cake while it is still warm.  That's it, now pour a big glass of milk and cut the cake!  Wasn't that easy!

 



Coca Cola Cake!

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Beefy Vegetable Soup!

 

 

When the weather gets chilly, there is nothing better to me than a bowl of vegetable beef soup.  It seems a lot of folks don't make vegetable soup with nice chunks of beef anymore.  So much of it is made with ground beef, chicken, smoked sausage or even no meat at all and just vegetables.  Those variations are all good and I have made them all myself at times, but they just don't compare to a good hearty and beefy vegetable soup with tender chunks of beef.  

 

This soup takes some time to prepare, so it's not one of those that you can throw together when you come home from work more than likely. It's a soup you need to make on the weekend or your day off, because the meat needs time to hang out and simmer for a few hours and then the vegetables have to have time to cook and the flavor time to blend.  This is a soup that gets better the next day also and it makes a lot.   Here is what you will need:

 

 

1  1/2 to 2 lbs. beef stew meat, round steak or sirloin, cubed

1 large onion, diced

vegetable oil for browning meat

1 large can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes

4 cups V-8 vegetable juice (I use the hot n spicy type)

4 beef bouillon cubes or a can of beef broth

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. seasoned salt

1 tsp. black pepper (less if you don't care for much pepper)

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce

2 stalks celery, sliced thin

3-4 medium size potatoes, peeled and diced

1 bag frozen vegetables for vegetable soup

1 cup frozen corn niblets

1 cup frozen baby lima beans

1 cup sliced carrots

1 can green beans, drained

1 cup sliced okra (if you use vegetable soup mixed vegetables it has okra in it, you can leave this out, but it acts to thicken the soup nicely)

6 cups water

 

 

Heat the oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven.  Add the cubed beef and brown on all sides.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add the diced onion to the pot

and sauté a little until slightly softened. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Add the can of tomatoes, V-8 juice, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, seasoned salt, beef bouillon or broth, and garlic powder.  Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to a low simmer, cover and let simmer for about 2 hours.  After the 2 hours, add the rest of the vegetables and the water and bring back to a boil, turn down to a low simmer and simmer for 1 hour.  Taste for seasoning, you might need just a tad more salt depending on your tastes.

 

 

This is so good served with Cornbread Hoe Cakes!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





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Shari's Chicken Broccoli Stuffing Bake!

 

 



 

This is my sister, Shari's recipe.  She is also an excellent southern cook, but she lives in another state  so we don't get to cook with her very often.  She has some dishes she makes that I have never been able to quite duplicate to taste just like she makes them. You know how every good cook has those recipes that just never taste the same when you try to make them?  I have never figured out if it's just because it tastes better when you don't have to do the cooking or they actually leave a certain ingredient out when they give you the recipe...lol.  I have accused my mother of doing this, but she says she just actually forgets what she puts in some things, because she has made them so long.  I know that feeling also, we just almost cook some things on remote control.  We have really had to slow down and remember each and every ingredient for this blog.

 

My sister's hamburger steaks come to mind when thinking of things certain folks make better than anyone else.  She makes the best.  She has given me and my mother her 'recipe' and we have tried to make them the same way, but they never taste the same.   How can something so simple taste so different?  It's just this strange thing about cooking, everyone has their special dishes. 

 

 My sister got this recipe years ago from a friend of hers and it's one of her families favorites. It makes a great main dish and is a good way to sneak some broccoli in on the kids and husband or you could use less chicken and more broccoli and it makes a wonderful side dish for your holiday buffet also.  You could also substitute some of your leftover turkey in it as a good way to use up all of that holiday bird after the holiday is over.   Here is what you will need for this:

 

 

large package of frozen broccoli florets or an equal amount of fresh broccoli florets

4-6 chicken breast, cooked and diced into bite size pieces

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup mayonnaise

1 tsp. curry

2 tsp. lemon juice

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

dash black pepper

2 cups herbed stuffing mix (like Pepperidge Farm or even Stovetop)

1/2 stick butter, melted

 

Cook broccoli according to package directions or if fresh, just steam until tender. Drain well.  Don't overcook because you will be baking this also.

 

Lay bite size broccoli florets in a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish. 

Spread the diced chicken over top of the broccoli.

Mix the soup, mayonnaise, curry powder, lemon juice, and cheddar cheese and a dash of black pepper.  Spread evenly over the chicken and broccoli.

Mix the melted butter with the herbed stuffing mix.  Sprinkle that evenly over the entire top of the casserole. 

Place in a 350 degree oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until it is bubbly around the edges and just starting to brown on top. 

 



Shari's Chicken Broccoli Stuffing Bake!



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Butterscotch Pie!

 

One of our favorite pies is a butterscotch pie.  This is not a pie we make all that often for some reason though. It seems that chocolate, lemon and coconut cream always are made more in the meringue pie varieties.  However, the butterscotch pie is one that is a lot of folk's favorite.  They just don't know anyone who makes it anymore.   I am not sure why, because it's really very easy.  This recipe is one of the easiest.   Here is what you will need:

1  9" pie shell, baked
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
pinch of salt
3 eggs, separated (leave the eggs out of the refrigerator for a couple of hours beforehand to let them come to room temperature)
2 cups milk
4 Tbs. cornstarch
1/4 stick of butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Meringue

3 egg whites

1 tsp. baking powder
4 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. corn starch
1 tsp. vanilla


Bake pie shell in a 350 degree oven just until it is starting to brown, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Mix cornstarch, sugar, and salt.  Beat egg yolks with milk and add to dry ingredients in a medium sauce pan over medium heat.  Stir constantly and cook until it thickens. You can also do this in the microwave.  Cook for about 2 minutes on high, remove and whisk well, return to microwave and cook on high for another 4 minutes or until it is thickened. Once thickened,  add butter and vanilla and beat well until blended.

Pour filling into the pie shell.

For the meringue, add 1 tsp. of baking powder to the egg whites and start to beat the whites with an electric mixer on high.  Gradually add in 4 Tbs. of sugar, continuing to beat.  When stiff peaks start to form (this takes some time) add in 1 tsp. of corn starch and 1 tsp. of vanilla.  Don't go too heavy on the vanilla or it will change the color of your meringue or use the colorless.

 

This is what the meringue looks like when it's stiff enough. 

Spread the meringue over the pie filling and be sure to go to the edges of the crust and seal it.  This is a very important tip when making a meringue pie, because if you don't seal the edges of meringue around the edge of the crust, your meringue will sink in and not stand up tall on the pie when you brown it.  Place it in a preheated 350 degree oven for 13 - 15 minutes just until slightly browned. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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Easy Cheesy Au Gratin Potatoes!

 

 

If you have read my Traditional Southern Macaroni and Cheese post, you know I don't care for boxed macaroni and cheese.  That might be an understatement actually...lol.  As much as I hate boxed mac and cheese, I have an even greater dislike for boxed au gratin potatoes.  They are disgusting with a capital 'D'!  I am not sure what Einstein came up with freeze drying potatoes and putting them in a box with a dry powder that is supposed to be cheese, but it was someone who doesn't eat au gratin potatoes, obviously.  I just don't get it y'all!  This recipe for homemade au gratin potatoes is almost just as easy. 

 

There is one advantage to those boxed potatoes, they cook up quick and in this day and age, quick is what everyone is looking for understandably, at times.   Have you ever tried to make au gratin potatoes from the start, in the oven in a short amount of time?  It's not happening folks.   It takes well over an hour and even then it's tricky to get the potatoes tender and not burn the top.  

 

This is a shortcut method that I really like to use.  You partially bake the potatoes in the microwave, then peel (or not) slice and finish in the oven.  It cuts the time in almost half and you won't have to worry about crunchy potatoes.   Here is what you will need:

 

5-6 medium baking potatoes

1 can evaporated milk

2 cups half and half or whole milk (don't use reduced fat milk in this)

1 Tbs. cornstarch

4 Tbs. butter or 1/2 stick

3 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

salt

black pepper

seasoned salt

 

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

 

Scrub the potatoes and place on a plate, pierce the skins a few times and bake about 7-9 minutes, depending on your microwave.   They should be starting to get tender but not baked all the way through.  Let them cool, then peel and slice.   You can bake them ahead and place them in the refrigerator to get cold before peeling and slicing. They actually slice up nicer if they are cold, but it doesn't matter. 

 

Spray a 2 1/2 quart  casserole with nonstick spray.  Lay half of the potato slices in the casserole. Dot with half of the butter and sprinkle with salt, black pepper, and seasoned salt.

 

Sprinkle with half of the Parmesan cheese and half of the cheddar cheese.

 

 

Repeat on the next layer with the rest of the potatoes, sprinkle with seasonings again, dot with butter, Parmesan cheese and cheddar cheese.   Pour the can of evaporated milk around the edges. Be sure to shake it up first, because it sometimes separates. Stir the cornstarch into the milk or half and half until it's smooth and pour that around and over the potatoes.  The milk should come to the top of the potatoes and start to come over the edge of them.  It doesn't have to cover the entire top, because as it cooks it will bubble up over the top.  Be sure your casserole is big enough to have some room at the top to prevent spill over.  Place the casserole on a cookie sheet or pizza  pan and if it does spill over it saves your oven.  Cover the dish, either with the casserole lid or foil and bake for 30-35 minutes.

 

Remove the cover and increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees and cook for another 15 minutes.  The top should be just starting to brown and the cheese nice and melted.

 

Easy Cheesy Au Gratin Potatoes!

 

 

 



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