Ann's Brownies

1/3 cup butter
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate square
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.
When completely melted, add the unsweetened chocolate square, and continue cooking over medium-low heat until chocolate is melted into the butter.
Remove from heat and cool for about 15 minutes.
While cooling, grease well an 8x8 inch pan.
After 15 minutes, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put all ingredients (except nuts) in a large mixing bowl, and beat for 2 minutes on medium.
Fold in the chopped nuts by hand and then pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake for 30 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.
Remove pan to cooling rack and cool completely before cutting into 16 squares.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Now, here is where Mom would cheat a little. She would take a can of good quality canned fudge icing, and ice the tops of the brownies with a thin layer before cutting into squares. Oh my, this is definitely going to be made again, in the next few days!

Perfect Easy to Peel Hard Boiled Eggs

Hard boiled eggs, that are easy to peel, are made with eggs that should be bought at least a week ago. Your eggs should be purchased 5-7 days in advance of boiling. 

Directions:

Remove 6 eggs from the refrigerator as you bring a pot of water to almost a boil. Make sure you have enough water in the pot so as when you place the eggs in they will all be covered with the water.

Gently lower one egg at a time into the water...I place each one on a large spoon to lower them into the water. Set timer for 13 minutes. When the water starts to boil again, turn the heat down to medium.  When the timer rings, it is time to cool the eggs. Drain off the hot water and fill pot with cold water. After 5 minutes, drain and fill pot once again with cold water, and let sit for another 5 minutes. Once cooled, drain the water from the eggs. Store the eggs in a covered container (eggs can release unpleasant odors) in the refrigerator.  They should be eaten, or used in a recipe within a week.

***It is very hard to overcook eggs using this technique.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Pumpkin Gobs

2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup Crisco oil

Put the sugar and oil in a large mixer bowl and cream together.
Add:
2 eggs
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
1 tsp. vanilla
Mix well.

Mix the following dry ingredients togehter in a seperate bowl.

1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3 cups flour

Add the above dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well.
Drop a teaspoonful of batter onto parchment lined cookies sheet.
Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes.
Remove to cooling rack to cool completely.
This will make loads of cookies and you need 2 cookies to make a Gob, with a cream filling.

Gob Cream Filling:
1 cup Crisco shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 (3 oz) box vanilla INSTANT pudding
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Cream Crisco and sugar together. Add the rest of the above ingredients and mix on medium-high for 10-15 minutes. Now take one cookie, and on the flat side of it, spread a teaspoon or so worth of cream on it, and top with another cookie. You just made 1 Gob. This will make a load of Gobs to celebrate Autumn.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Christmas Eve (or anytime) Punch

46 oz. apricot nectar
46 oz. pineapple juice
1 (12 oz) can frozen orange juice concentrate
1 (12 oz) can frozen lemonade

Mix all 4 ingredients together well, serve immediately, or chill and use later.

This is my Mother-In-Law's Christmas Eve Punch recipe. I always remember enjoying this, for I so love  apricots. (Apricots, to a Hungarian, is a gratification used in many Hungarian recipes).  I can still see this Punch in Mum's glass punch bowl, and all the punch glass cups surrounding the bowl. Memories of years gone by, and thoughts of good times.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Oatmeal Waffles

1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup quick cook rolled oats
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
2 slightly beaten eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
6 Tbsp. melted butter
2 Tbsp. brown sugar

In a large bowl, mix together flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. In a seperate small bowl,stir together eggs, milk, butter and brown sugar. Add to the flour mixture; stir until well blended. Pour batter onto lightly greased, pre-heated waffle iron. (this is where you need to know your own waffle iron and how much batter to pour). Close lid; do not open until you see less steam coming from sides of iron and lid raising slightly. The first batch is always the test batch. Time that test batch, and jot the time it takes to bake a well cooked waffle with your own iron. Serve with butter and maple syrup.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

These are a very hearty waffle, sure to please overnight guest for a "Waffle Breakfast Wake Up" call.

Thumbprint Cookies

1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs, seperate yolks and whites into 2 bowls
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. In mixing bowl, cream brown sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add salt, the 2 yolks, and vanilla. Beat well. Gradually add in flour,and blend well. Chill dough 1/2 hour. Remove from refrigerator and shape into 1" balls. Lightly beat the egg whites until foamy. Dip the balls in egg whites, then roll in the chopped walnuts to cover. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Use your thumb to make an imprint in the center of each ball. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned. Use your judgement, all ovens are different. Remove to cooling rack and cool completely.

Now, I must say, I have not made these Thumbprints in years. My sister Lynn has made these her signature cookies. If you have a birthday, wedding, baby, etc., you are guaranteed to get a dozen or two sent to your event. Now you know why I haven't had the need to make them anymore. A batch just showed up in our mail for this past Christmas. This tells you, these cookies ship well. Thanks Lynn, for all the dozens sent our way. I'll be checking the mail tomorrow.

Icing: Lynn uses a quality canned icing and tints the icing with food coloring to match your event.
We get red and green at Christmas. Brown, yellow and orange at Thanksgiving. Pastel yellow, pink and blue at Easter. Wishing you fun picking the colors for your event.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Awesome Bean Casserole

1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound diced bacon
1/2 cup diced onion
1 (16 oz) can of kidney beans, drained
1 (16 oz) can of butter beans,drained
1 (21 oz) can of pork and beans
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp yellow mustard

In a frying pan, brown bacon until crisp. Remove to paper towel to absorb excess grease. Wipe remaining grease from pan and then brown the ground beef  and onion in the same pan until no longer pink. Drain off grease. Combine beef and onion mixture with the bacon, and all remaining ingredients. Spoon into a lightly greased 2 quart casserole. Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for 45 minutes. Awesome!

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Easiest Baked Rice Pudding

1 cup cooked rice
4 eggs
1 (13 oz) can evaporated milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup milk
dash of nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup raisins (optional)

Mix all ingredients together and pour into a well greased 9 X 9 inch pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
Remove from oven and cool at least 20 minutes before serving warm.
...or cool completely, and serve at room temperature.
...or refrigerate cooled pudding for a few hours, to serve cold.


Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

“Oh My, Now One of the Kids is a Vegetarian” Burgers

1 16 oz can pinto beans, rinsed well in cold water, drained, and mashed

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup bread crumbs
2 Tbsp chopped green onions
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg white

Mix all the above ingredients until thoroughly mixed. Shape into 6 patties. Spray a skillet with vegetable spray, or lightly greased with vegetable oil, over medium heat. Fry patties for 10 minutes on each side. Serve as you would any hamburgers with all the great condiments.

We know we got a great, tasty meal, that is also healthy for us. When one of the “KIDS” tells us their now a vegetarian, or they are bringing home a vegetarian. It will be easy to continue with this recipe even if there isn’t a vegetarian in the family. Oh well, even if you’re a meat lover, this refreshing, break from ground meat, tastes great when topped with all the trimmings.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Bev’s Classic Potato Salad

 

6 red potatoes

3 hard boiled eggs

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 tsp vinegar

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp sugar

1/8 tsp pepper

1 stalk celery

1/4 cup onion

Rinse and clean 6 whole potatoes and place the potatoes in a large pot just the way they are, with the potato skins still on the potatoes. Add 3 eggs to the pot with the potatoes and fill the pot with enough water to cover the potatoes and eggs.

Bring the pot of potatoes and eggs to a boil and continue boiling for 15-20 minutes.

After 15 to 20 minutes, carefully remove the eggs and set them in a bowl of cold water.

Continue boiling the potatoes until they are fairly tender, yet still slightly firm.

Remove the potatoes from the heat and carefully drain the potatoes in a colander. Let them cool for awhile. Meanwhile, peel and rinse the hard-boiled eggs. Cut and dice the hard-boiled eggs and place the eggs in a large mixing bowl. If the potatoes are now cool enough to touch, remove the potato skins and dice the potatoes into small chunks. Add the potatoes to the eggs in the large mixing bowl. Add remaining 7 ingredients. Cover and chill.

 

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Delight

Crust:
1/2 cup cold butter
1 cup flour
2/3 cup finely chopped dry roasted peanuts
Filling:
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 (8 oz) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 carton (8 oz) cool whip, thawed
Topping:
1 small instant chocolate pudding
1 small instant vanilla pudding
2 3/4 cups cold milk
chocolate shavings, optional

Cut butter into flour with a pastry blender, until crumbly. Stir in the peanuts. Press onto the bottom of a greased 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 16-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely. For filling, beat sugar, cream cheese and peanut butter until smooth. Fold in 1 cup whipped topping. Spread over crust. In another mixing bowl, combine pudding mixes and milk; beat on low speed for 2 minutes. Spread over filling. Top with remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle with chocolate shavings, if desired. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.
Yummy, Yummy, for the Tummy!

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

A “Chick” of a Stuffing

1 cup butter (2 sticks) 
6 stalks celery, chopped 
4 medium onions, chopped
3 carrots, grated fine
3 Tbsp parsley
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
6 eggs slightly beaten 
3-4 C chicken or turkey broth   (or 4 C water with 3 chicken bouillon cubes)
2 lbs stuffing cubes

***If you would like to make this outside the bird.. scroll below and click on Annie's Classic Stuffing (Casserole Style).

In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add celery and onion, cook until tender. Stir fry. Remove from heat and add 16 cups bread cubes. (8 whole wheat and 8 white makes a great stuffing) Add parsley, carrots, salt, and pepper. Toss and mix well. Into the 4 cups boiling water add the bouillon cubes and let them dissolve. Add the eggs to the stuffing mixture and mix thoroughly. Add water to this mixture using as much as necessary for a moist consistency. ( I usually have to use all 4 cups). This makes enough stuffing for a 16-20 lb bird. If all of the stuffing doesn't fit in the bird, you can butter a loaf pan and pack the remaining stuffing into it and bake separately for 30-35 minutes. Sometimes I pour a little extra broth over the top of the one in the loaf pan, as it has a tendency to get drier without the advantage of the turkey’s basting juices.

If you would like to just make the Casserole version of stuffing...here it is: Annie's Classic Stuffing (Casserole Style)

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

When my husband first had turkey at my house, he helped get the food ready. When it was time to remove the stuffing, my Mom stepped in to handle the chore. While the turkey was still hot, she would get a knife and slice the stuffing into her free hand and place it on a platter. My husband’s eyes were wide in amazement, since he thought she was burning herself. After so many years of doing this, we teased my mother, telling her she had no feeling in her left hand because of the hot stuffing that landed in it on Thanksgiving. But, to this day, when Duke carves our turkey, he empties the stuffing from the bird the same way my Mom does, out of respect for her natural ability to withstand heat and serve delicious slices of stuffing. And, besides, it’s my favorite part of the meal.

Beef Soup

 
2-3  lb lean boneless chuck roast
4 quarts water

Bring chuck roast and water to a boil. Skim off any foam and discard.

Reduce heat to low add:

4 beef bouillon

2 medium onions, skinned
1 whole tomato
5-6 stalks celery including leaves
1/4 cup dried parsley or 1 cup fresh
and cover pot with a lid.

Simmer on low for 2 hours. 

Remove meat to a plate and strain out the onions, whole tomato and celery, and discard.

Add:

1 lb bag carrots, cut into fourths
1 Tbsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
and return meat to pot
Add 1 quart more boiling water and cook another hour or until meat is tender. Remove meat to a serving platter. Cut meat into serving bite size pieces and return it to the soup. 

Add 4 medium potatoes, cut into quarters and cook 1/2 hour more.

Make homemade gumboli (or use store bought egg farvel) and add to soup.

This soup brings back memories of my father. I think this may have been one of his favorite soups that my mother would make.

Not only did he enjoy the soup, he would have my mom not add the meat back to the soup, but to leave it separate. (He liked his soup with just the broth, carrots and potatoes. The roast  my mom would then use the bite size pieces of meat to make him a hearty sandwich, served on white or rye bread, and spread with mustard (brown not yellow for my dad, yellow for me) to go along with the bowl of soup.

Oh what a wonderful Sunday feast my mom would make of this meal.

Homemade soup is really very simple, it’s just the length of time cooks don’t like to put into their cooking. Everything in this fast world has to be done in under 30 minutes. The flavors of yesterday, start to feed you with just the aroma and your sense of smell over the time frame it takes to simmer. It really isn’t a lot of work to cook it’s the time I think we don’t like to put into it.

 

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Apricot Cold Dough Cookies

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup apricot jam
1 large egg
2 tbsp. coarse sugar

In a mixing bowl, beat the butter, cream cheese and granulated sugar until fluffy. Add the vanilla. Gradually add the flour and mix until just incorporated.
Turn dough onto floured work surface, and just bring all the dough together. Form the dough into 2 (1-inch) thick rectangles. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour.
On a lightly floured piece of parchment, roll one of the rectangles into a 9X12 inch rectangle. Spread 1/2 the jam over the dough. Cut the dough crosswise into thirds, making  three 9-by-4 inch rectangles. Roll each rectangle into a 9 inch log. Wrap each log in waxed paper and refrigerate until firm, approximately 30 minutes. Repeat this with the remaining dough.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice the logs intp 9 one inch pieces and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Brush with a beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake 18-22 minutes or until color appears on tops.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Cherry Squares Deluxe

1 box white cake mix
1 1/4 cups oatmeal
1 stick butter, softened
1 egg
21 oz. can of cherry pie filling
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup packed brown sugar

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x9 inch pan. In large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, 6 tablespoons butter and 1 cup oatmeal. Mix until crumbly with electric mixer and then reserve 1 cup of this mixture for topping. To the crumbs left in mixing bowl, add 1 egg; mix until well blended. Press this mixture into prepared pan. Pour cherry pie filling over crust; spread to cover evenly. To the reserved crumbs, in large bowl, add remaining 1/4 cup oatmeal, 2 tablespoons butter, walnuts and brown sugar. Mix thoroughly and then sprinkle over the cherry filling.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool completely. Cut into 2 inch squares to serve.

Who would I say loves this recipe the most??? Well, that would be Hannah. I can see her smiling as she sees this post. Makes me smile too.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Wedded (Wedding) Soup

Why Wedded Soup? Wedded, because it is the marriage of my Mom's basic Chicken Soup recipe and my version of a great Wedding Soup.

Chicken Stock Ingredients:
5 quarts water
8-10 chicken thighs
4 chicken bouillon cubes
2 medium whole onions, skinned
1 whole tomato
5-6 stalks celery
1 pound carrots cleaned and cut into 1" pieces
1/4 cup dried parsley or 1 cup fresh
1 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 package frozen chopped spinach

In large stock pot, put the chicken thighs with skin in the 5 quarts of water. Bring to a boil and skim off any foam that forms on the top of water, and discard. Turn heat down to medium low and add bouillon, onion, celery and parsley flakes. Simmer on low with a lid on for 1 1/2 hours.

Remove chicken pieces to a casserole and let cool and refrigerate to use for another recipe tomorrow.
Strain out the onions and the celery. Return liquids back to pot and add the carrots, salt, pepper and frozen spinach. Keep on low heat while you make the meatballs.

Meatball Ingredients:
3/4 pound ground pork
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
3/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Mix all the above ingredients. With clean, wet hands, form into 1/2 inch, bite-sized balls. Drop into the hot broth. Continue cooking for 30 minutes with lid on. Boil one bag of farvel store-bought noodles (or make your own from my gumboli recipe). (Gumboli.) Add to broth when serving.

This is my version of wedding soup that I developed on my own, using the knowledge given to me from my Mother's basic Chicken Soup recipe. I feel that if you have a great basic recipe (without a lot of fussiness), you can take it and make exquisite dishes out of it with little added bonuses.

A great meal by itself served with bread, or a great way to start a grandiose meal.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Scallop Casserole

12 oz. frozen scallops
3/4 cup "half and half"
1 cup dry seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Paprika (optional)

Remove any shells and wash scallops in cold water.
Drain well and pat dry.
In a greased 8x 8 inch or 12x 7x 2 inch baking dish, arrange the scallops in a single layer.
Pour half of the "half and half" over top of the scallops.
Mix the bread crumbs, melted butter, salt and pepper together well and sprinkle over top of all the scallops. Pour the remaining half of the "half and half" over top of the bread crumb mixture.
Sprinkle top with a little Paprika if desired.

Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Tuna Cheese Melts

2 cans of tuna, drained
1/4 cup finely chopped onion or 1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
3 Tbsp. mayonnaise
1/8 tsp. black pepper
4 English Muffins, split and lightly toasted
8  slices of tomato
8 slices of American Cheese

Mix first 5 ingredients together well.
Spoon tuna mixture evenly on the 8 halves of toasted English Muffins.
Place English Muffins on cookie sheet and top each with a tomato slice and  an American Cheese slice.
Broil until cheese melts

This is a great lunch option.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Tarhonya Hungarian Noodles (Gumboli , to our Family)

  3/4 cup flour
  1 large egg plus 1 teaspoon of water
  1/4 tsp salt

I mix this recipe up by hand:

I crack the egg into a small mixing bowl, add the water and salt, beat together with a fork. I then add the flour and use the fork to incorporate the flour until I can't stir any longer. I then start using my hands to mix in the remaining crumb like mixture using a squeeze and turn motion until a nice firm ball of dough forms. Go to*** 

However, you can use a food processor as follows:

 

Place the above ingredients into a food processor and process until mixture stops moving in bowl, about 1 minute. Dump mixture onto cutting board and squeeze into a firm ball of dough, until all flour it incorporated. 

***Cover with a bowl and let rest for 1/2 hour. Use the grater to grate into “Gumboli” noodles. (using the large holes of a 4 sided grater) Dip the ball of dough into a little bit of flour often to make grating easier. Spread all the noodles out evenly on cutting board or floured cookie sheet and not in clumps. Make sure you spread them out in a single layer and let them dry out about two hours. Boil a medium pot of salted water and place all the noodles in. Bring back to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Boil for 4 minutes more. Drain and rinse in cold water. Ready to be added to soup.

If you want to use the noodles at a later date, they can be frozen. Spread noodles onto floured cookie sheet and freeze for 1/2 hour. Place frozen noodles in a freezer bag and store in freezer until ready to use.

This is the noodles my Mother would make almost every Sunday for homemade Chicken Soup.

I use this noodle for my Wedded Soup. Triple this single batch recipe for the perfect amount for the Wedded Soup Recipe.

To me there is no other noodle for soup. These are easy to make and oh so delicious. They are great for the little toddler, no messy noodles to cut up in the soup. When you take a spoonful of soup, you get noodles with each and every bite. No noodles slip, sliding off the spoon. I believe these noodles may be a form of the Italian, pastina noodle, but I guess I'm partial to these since I was raised on them. For those of you that don’t want to attempt to make these, look at the grocery store for and egg noodle called Egg Noodle Farvel.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!

Easiest Crab Puffs

1 (5 oz) jar Olde English Cheese Spread
1 stick butter
1 1/2 tsp. mayonnaise
1 (6 oz) can crabmeat, drained
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 English Muffins

Bring butter and cheese to room temperature.
Mix mayonnaise, crabmeat, garlic and salt together.
Add the room temperature cheese and butter, and mix well.
Separate muffin halves and spread all halves with even amounts of cheese and crabmeat mixture.
Cut muffins into 1/4s and place a dozen on a styrofoam plate, and place in a freezer bag.
When ready to serve, remove from freezer and place on cookie sheet and broil until bubbly and crisp, about 5-7 minutes.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!