Let's get into the Spirit of the Season

I feel like I have just been waiting for someone to ask for these recipes I have been collecting.  None of these are T&T

 

TIJUANA TINSEL-TIME TWISTER

 

1-10oz pkg frozen sweetened strawberries (slightly defrosted)

2 cusp tropical mix fruit juice

1 pt whipping cream

2 Tbsp granulated sugar

1 banana (mashed with no chunks)

ice cubes

green food coloring

red, green, and white granulated sugar (mixed)

 

Moisten rim of wide-mouth (12-14 oz) glasses or goblets with lime juice.  Roll rim in mixed color sugars to coat.

 

Set aside 4 Tbsp whipping cream.  Blend remainder with sugar until thick but pourable and stir in banana.  Set aside.

Whip remaining cream until very thick and add several drops green food coloring.  Set aside.

 

In blender, mix strawberries until slushy, adding ice cubes if necessary.  Pour into small pitcher.  Set aside.

In blender, mix fruit jucice and ice cubes (8-12) until slushy.

 

Layer as follows for each servings:

Pour approximately ¼ cup of strawberry mixture in bottom of each glass.

Pour layer of thickened whipped cream and banana mixture (1/4 cup).

Gently pour fruit juice (1/4 cup) slush into center of whipped cream layer. 

 

Repeat layers.  Top with green whipped cream.

Garnish with a skewer of fruit.

 

Serves 6-8

 

 

SPARKLING 7UP EGGNOG

 

From 7UP

 

3 ½ cups of 7up, chilled

4 cups of chilled half & half cream

2 quarts vanilla ice cream, softened

4 eggs

1/3 cup sugar

1 ½ tsp grated nutmeg

2 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup maraschino cherries, cut into quarters

 

Combine eggs, sugar and nutmeg; beat until light and lemon-colored.  Stir in half & half cream and vanilla.  Pour mixture into punch bowl and add 7up slowly.  Mix.  Spoon ice cream into punch and sprinkle maraschino cherry bits over top.  Makes 22 (4 oz) servings.

 

 

FROZEN STRAWBERRY DAIQUIRIS

 

From Detroit Newspaper sent by Mrs. Linda Piotrowski

 

1 cup light rum

1 (16 oz) pkg frozen strawberries

6 oz frozen lemonade

2 Tbsp limeade

1 cup crushed ice

 

Put first four ingredients in blender.  Blend at high speed.  Add ice to top of blender.  More ice will make it thicker.  (For a nonalcoholic version, rum may be omitted.)

 

Makes 6 servings

Texas, thanks for posting your dip again. It is absolutely delicious and as you mentioned too, you can add your own little variations.

Marlene, don't even try to change your hubby. I guess he is so spoiled (from you of course) that he takes everything for granted.

Lydia, maybe were you grew up there didn't drink, but I remember when we had those, hm, good parties, my favored drink was Himbergeist (Rasberry Schnaps). You right we did not had mixed drinks at our time, but this has changed now. The germans are great lovers of champane though.

Lydia, how nice to go to Florida again. Cocktail parties are nicer then sit down dinners. You never know at those what boring person you can  next to you. Don't forget to take your bikini with you. Hee, hee!!!!

Except for cleaning up the mess (boxes & tissue) from yesterday, I been sort of lazy. We went to see auntie and since I baked that amazing (hee, hee) cheesecake, I took some for her and she just gobbled it up. We also went to see some friends around the corner from us. He fell on the road the other day, because he is to stubborn to use a can, he is almost blind. He loves cheesecake and we took some over to make him feel better. Good deads make you feel better too. This is my work for today, will do some crocheting and just be a lazy person.

Bis spaeter

Erna

Here is the cheesecake recipe

"The Stage Deli ...is a place where the stars from stage, screen, and vaudeville congregated. Today it still commands respect and love." Sheryll Bellman, America's Great Delis.

4 tablespoons graham cracker crumbs

4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

4 eggs

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Fresh strawberries or blueberries or favorite preserves for serving (optional)

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Sprinkle the bottom of a lightly greased, 9-inch springform pan with graham cracker crumbs. Combine the cheese and sugar in a blender or with an electric mixer at medium speed until they are well mixed. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla. Pour the mixture into the springform pan, wrapping the bottom and sides of the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Place the springform pan in a large roasting pan. Add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the springform pan. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cheesecake comes out clean.

Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack. When it is cool, loosen the cake from the rim of the pan using the blade of a knife. If desired, top it with fresh fruit - strawberries or blueberries - or fruit preserves. Refrigerate the cheesecake until you are ready to serve it.

Serves: 12

 

Erna, you are welcome for the crab dip post. Thank you for the wonderful sounding cheesecake recipe. Sounds excellent. It was nice of you to share.

 

I made the frosting fudge for Christmas Eve but we never got to it. Instead we muched on chocolate gifts all night. Every thing from Godiva chocolate covered biscuits to a double decker Whitman's sampler. So many sweets. Woooo. My fudge is still sitting untouched. I wish you all lived closer so I could share some goodies with you.

 

Cooking- wise I got 2 woks and one of those nesting crockpots. It has 3 differnet quart sizes that you can interchange and use in the same crock base. The queen of crockpot cooking here is quite happy. The wok my DD bought me has all sorts of utensils including a bamboo steamer basket. Can't wait to make some pork dumplings and homemade dipping  sauce. Yum. I've learned not to buy ground pork from the grocery store so I buy really lean boneless chops and grind it up in my KA mixer. There is no comparison from store ground and home ground pork. No fat, not gristle. So much better.

 

I feel quite spoiled and happy. Hope the rest of you do too. Think good thoughts for me tomorrow afternoon while I undergo yet another frustrating test for my recent health problems. It's going to be tough and I am counting on your prayers and such. Thanks.

Lentil Soup

(This is my own toss-together recipe)

1 (16 oz) bag of lentils or the equivalent in bulk

2 cans condensed beef broth

1 T. dried chopped onion

2 medium carrots, diced

3 stalks celery, peeled and diced

1 - 2 dried bay leaves

salt & fresh ground pepper medley to taste

diced ham, 1  to 2 cups

Water for soaking

Soak lentils in cold water and drain several times to clean. Transfer lentils to crock pot with broth, dried onion and bay leaf. Set CP on high and cover.

Microwave carrots and celery in a little water until slightly tender. Add to soup mix. Cook on high for several hours until lentils are tender. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste. Add water if necessary.

Depending on how fresh the lentils are it make take 3 to 6 hours for them to become soft. When they are completely tender, put about half the lentils with broth in a blender and puree. Return to soup mixture. Stir well and allow to heat thoroughly again. Remove bay leaf or  leaves and serve.

 

Note: My bean and split pea soups are made basically the same way except I like to use chicken broth in the bean soup and either beef or chicken broth in the split pea.

 

 

 

 

Sorry, somehow this did not get posted under Recipes where I intended to post it. But, what the heck, have some soup with your favoirte drink.

TexasroseII:

I feel quite spoiled and happy. Hope the rest of you do too. Think good thoughts for me tomorrow afternoon while I undergo yet another frustrating test for my recent health problems. It's going to be tough and I am counting on your prayers and such. Thanks.

Hi Texasrose, so glad you had a nice Christmas and are spoiled and happy! LOL

Thinking of you tomorrow and hope all will go well. I hate doctor visits, honestly, and put them off as long as possible. Not always a good idea! I hope all goes well for you.

Zum neuen Jahr Gesundheit, Glück und viel Erfolg!  Health, happiness, and much success in the New Year!           hugs und Gute Nacht, Germanlady

Germanlady,thank you for your wonderful long letter. I did not bake anything either.You know how hard this is for a girl (if you still can call me this) ,who loves to bake. But I will plenty of it later. We know a Hungarian baker,who makes the greatest poppyseed and nut stollens and great European cookies. Fortunately we had ordet some. I also was unable to use my oven,since my men put in the new kitchen floor. Still some corners have to be finished.==================================================== Of course I forgot again to use something else as the Safari. I am so used to it ,that I forget to use Firefox. I forgot to mention,that our new neighbours,who are from Alabama, made a Southern cake close to what we make here the Gooey Butter Cake. It is so sweet,that we are unable to eat it. I don't know,what to tell her. We have to find somebody,who will eat it.========================================================What will the weather do? It is snowing in Denver and I am not there.It brakes my heart.It is raining here and in the fourties. Ich wünsche Ihnen noch eine gute Woche und ein schönes Wochenende. I know it will be nice,when your DS and his family comes to visit you. Since we are both getting better,I hope we will have two days without snow to get out to Colorado. Now I have like a allergy with runny nose and itchy eyes.How strange! Gute Nacht,Renate

Texas, I wanted to have for Christmas some of the red KitchennAid pots. Maybe I still will get them later.My family thinks I have already to much kitchen stuff as it is. I have two woks also.One electric one,which I got at a Garage sale and another one,which is pretty rusty. I have a bamboo steamer also,which I never used. Do you have I good recipe for the Chinese dumplings.? I buy Potstickers at Trader Joes,which they call Gnoochi (which they are not). I made some different sweet-sour sauces from the BB,which were great. What kind of pork do you use for your dumplings? I also have an attachment for my KA for grinding meat. I only used some time ago for making Leberknödel = Liverdumplings,which I should make soon again.It has been to long ,since I made them.=======================================================I will think about you and keep my fingers crossed,that the tests turn out OK. Hugs,Renate

Erna does this cheeseckae recipe sound delicious!! So does Picasso's Twister.====== Erna I can not see you being lazy. ================================We ate some of our wonderful chocolate today. How did my neighbours know,what I NEEDED? Renate

Thanks so much Germanlady. I'm so tired right now but I didn't sleep last night and am afraid I will be up most of the night again. You know how it is when you don't feel good. Sometimes the harder you try to sleep the more it fights back and you toss all night. I'm praying for a better nights rest tonight. My mind just doesn't want to shut off and allow me to rest. But, I think I better go give it a try. Thanks again for your thoughts.

hello everybody - just quickly checking in - my i have a lot of catching up to do.

thanks everybody for the recipes!!

Erna have fun with your new convection oven!! I am glad you had a great time - i agree on the strike - you should be getting a chef for some time now!

berny how was your day out? Hope you had a good trip.

lydia fort lauderdale sounds great to me - i am sure you will have tons of fun!! I agree on the cocktail party thing - so much more relaxed and nice to enjoy everbody and not just the two sitting next to you - which can be horrible company if you have bad luck -lol

renate i hope you can make your trip soon and get rid of 3 birds - wow that is a lot of food... i hope they will be better than last years one... we had a turkey soup and bruchetta for lunch yesterday then at night we made a big quiche, salads and had the rest of the trifle... it was a very relaxed day.

jet have fun with the wedding activities, the later christmas and all - sounds like fun!!

picasso thanks for sharing recipes - mine are alos 90% not tried and true - just things i would enjoy or think someone else would - we are happy to see you posting!

Texas  - i had made you r crab dip before and it is wonderful. i hope you feel much better and get some rest!

Germanlady i hope that you and DD get better soon.

DS is skating on our pond in the garden - it is not very big but thckly frozen and we had snow yesterday - so he played hockey with walnuts and sticks with grandpa on the pond and was inbed by 8 as he was blown out from fresh air... this morning he woke up at 7 and is already bakc to the pond - but in a min we have to run errands and he has to come with..

see you twinkle

Renate, I like very lean pork so I usually buy boneless loin chops. I cut off all the fat then grind up the meat. I've found that the stuff already ground from the grocery store has too much fat and grstle in it. If I can't find dried black mushrooms I just dice up the small white button mushrooms. They are good too.

 

Pork Dumplings

8 to 10 medium dried black mushrooms
1 pound ground pork
1/2 c finely chopped bamboo shoots
1/4 c chopped green onions with tops
1 egg white
2 T cornstarch
2 t salt
2 t light soy sauce
1/4 t white pepper

40 round won ton skins or 40 square hand-cut into circles

Soak mushrooms in warm water until soft, about 30 minutes; drain. Rinse in warm water; drain. Remove and discard stems; chop caps finely. Mix mushrooms, pork, bamboo shoots, green onions, egg white, cornstarch, salt, 2 teaspoons soy sauce and pepper.

Place one tablespoon pork mixture in center of won ton. Bring edge up around filling leaving top open. Bottom should be flat and they should look like little baskets. Repeat with remaining won tons.

Place dumplings in single layer on rack in steamer; cover and steam over boiling water 20 mins

Chinese dumpling dipping sauce

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

3 tablespoons light soy sauce

2 tablespoons Chinese rice vinegar

2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil

1 teaspoon hot chili oil

Combine all the ingredients. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator until ready to use (use the sauce within 3 days).