Cook's Corner celebrates 15 years

12/10/14 Cook’s Corner

Betty Kaiser

I was mulling over longevity last week (I know, that sounds weird) when I realized that Cook’s Corner is celebrating a milestone anniversary this month. If my math serves me correctly, I started working for the Sentinel in July of 1996 and I began working in the newsroom in Dec. of 1999. That was 15 short years ago.

Cook’s Corner was the new kid on the block when I moved into the newsroom. I had already been writing the Chatterbox and was looking forward to publishing recipes from the public. In fact, my first tagline read, “To submit a recipe, cook’s name or cook book, contact Betty Kaiser at the Sentinel, 942-3325.” 

I wish I could tell you that my phone rang off the hook but it didn’t. It seemed that very few readers really wanted to share their recipes. One woman bluntly told me “I won’t have anything special to take to potlucks if I share my taco salad recipe with you.” Interesting. I hadn’t thought about that possibility!

To celebrate Cook’s second year, I suggested to the Sentinel staff that it would be fun to publish our own in-house favorite holiday recipes. Most of my fellow employees didn’t think it sounded like fun at all. Some claimed that whenever they cooked the smoke alarm went off. Others said they only cooked if it involved a microwave. A few had a recipe on my desk the next day.

Today, in honor of Cook’s Corner’s 15^th anniversary, we’re going to take a look at some of those recipes from Dec. 19, 2001.

We’ll start off with a clam dip appetizer from Matt Treder our blond, gangly, sports guy of that era. He and his wife Eiko added sour cream and Tabasco sauce to his “Grammy’s” holiday recipe. I would love to see pictures of his adorable little girls who are now teenagers! By the way, there are no serving sizes on any of these recipes so just enjoy

CLAM DIP

(Matt Treder)

Mix all ingredients together and serve with chips or veggies:

1 clove garlic, minced

1 8 ounce package cream cheese

1/4 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 7-ounce can minced clams, drained, broth reserved

1/4 cup clam broth (from the clams)

*Betty sez to add more lemon juice if needed and garnish with chopped parsley. Yummy!

Editor Finn John’s wife offered a healthy vegetable side dish that she got from her mother-in-law. She said that it is easy to prepare with a hearty flavor and she usually doubles the amount of garlic. Yikes!

ROASTED VEGGIES

(Natalie John)

6 cups beets, peeled, diced

4-5 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed

3 cups turnips, peeled and cubed

2 cups carrots, sliced (thick)

1 cup red potato, peeled and cubed

8 garlic cloves

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 450° F.

Place vegetables in 13X9 baking dish, coated with cooking spray. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake 1-1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

*Betty sez: I needed to add additional oil and seasonings.

Robin Reiser has returned to the Sentinel after another career. Her mother Betty Watkins worked for Grove Escrow 31 years. Every year at Christmas, until her passing, she would share plates of homemade goodies with friends and neighbors. This recipe is 60+ years old!

CARAMELS

(Betty Watkins)

2 cups sugar

2 cups light corn syrup

2 cups canned milk

1 cube butter

2 teaspoons rum, brandy or vanilla flavoring.

Boil sugar and syrup and slowly add milk. Add butter. Cook until hard ball stage. Add flavoring. Pour into buttered 9 X 13 pan and let cool. After caramel is cool, lay sheet of candy on waxed paper. Cut into bite size pieces and wrap in wax paper. Delicious!

Longtime advertising manager, Brad Chambers (now living in Hawaii), shared one of his dad’s fudge recipes. Mel Chambers offered a smorgasbord of fudge choices ranging from divinity to light or dark chocolate with or without nuts. He would take orders from family members for Christmas. This year I’m finally going to make his peanut butter variety.

MEL’S PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE

2 cubes Blue Bonnet margarine

1 can evaporated milk

4 1/2 cups sugar

12 ounce package miniature marshmallows

28 ounce jar chunky peanut butter

1 tablespoon vanilla

In heavy pan, melt margarine over low heat. Add milk and sugar. Bring to rolling boil. Boil 6-7 min., stirring often. Remove from heat and add marshmallow and vanilla. Mix well. Add peanut butter and mix until smooth. Pour into greased 9X13 pan. Let set 24 hours before cutting into squares.

Mona DeSando was not a Sentinel employee but her daughter Brandalee, briefly worked with us. It was a thrill every year during the holiday season when Mona gifted us with her wonderful rum cake. We always ate every morsel!

RUM CAKE

(Mona DeSando)

1 box yellow cake mix (with pudding)

1 small box instant vanilla pudding

1/4 cup oil

1/2 cup water

4 eggs

1/2 cup dark rum (or substitute appropriate amount of rum flavoring)

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Grease and flour the bottom of an angel food cake pan. Line bottom of pan with chopped walnuts or pecans. Mix all ingredients together well and pour into greased and floured pan. Bake for one hour. Invert on plate and poke holes in top of cake with toothpick.

GLAZE:

Melt 1/4 cup butter in saucepan.

Add 1/4 cup water and 1 cup sugar

Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from stove before adding rum. Glaze will be thin. Drizzle over cake and allow to set.

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal! Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare. Contact her at 942-1317 or email bchatty@bettykaiser.com

A traditional 1950s Thanksgiving

11/26/14 Cook’s Corner

Betty Kaiser

Thanksgiving Hymn

We plough the fields & scatter

Matthias Claudius, circa 1790

We plough the fields, and scatter
the good seed on the land,
but it is fed and watered
by God's almighty hand;
he sends the snow in winter,
the warmth to swell the grain,
the breezes and the sunshine
and soft refreshing rain.

We thank thee then, O Father,
for all things bright and good,
the seedtime and the harvest,
our life, our health, our food.
Accept the gifts we offer
for all thy love imparts,
and what thou most desirest,
our humble, thankful hearts.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day and so it seems appropriate to begin today’s column with a hymn of Thanks-giving. The above hymn is part of a longer poem in which country people sang a harvest song of devotion to God. It is as relevant today as it was when written.

Thanksgiving day at our house has always been about tradition. As a youngster, it really began on Wed. with a trip to the meat market to pick up the turkey, fresh shrimp, fruit and vegetables.

Preparing the meal was a team effort. My grandparents lived across the street. Mother and grandmother would divvy up the baking. Mother would roll out piecrust dough for two of her traditional pumpkin pies. While the pies baked she would set the dining room table with her best white linen tablecloth and holiday china, silverware and glassware.

Over at grandma’s house, she would start early to make her famous yeast rolls. While the dough was rising she would also make piecrusts and fillings for her mouth-watering apple or cherry pies.

Thanksgiving morning the cooks rose early to get the turkey ready for the oven. Wearing their most comfortable housedresses and aprons they attacked the 20-pound bird. It was fresh from the farm but it was not the clean and perfectly prepared bird that we bring home today from today’s supermarkets.

Yesterday's turkey had to be thoroughly washed in the sink and the heart, giblets, neck and gizzards removed. They were not nicely packaged in a plastic bag. They were cleaned and set to simmer on the stove to make broth for the dressing and gravy. Then, with tweezers in hand, I helped mother with the tedious task of removing the bird’s pinfeathers. It took forever!

In the meantime, grandmother was putting together the dressing. A large pan of cornbread had been baked the night before. She crumbled the cornbread into the biggest pan she could find, along with seasonings (marjoram, sage, salt and pepper) and set it aside. Then she chopped up onions and celery and sautéed them in a generous amount of butter. They were added to the cornbread along with chopped giblets and just the right amount of giblet juice.

The recipe never varied. There were no apples, cranberries, chestnuts, sausage or other fancy stuff to mute the cornbread flavor. I make a similar dressing today. However, I use canned chicken broth (not available in the 1950s) and add shredded carrots for color and moisture. Sometimes I add chopped water chestnuts but that’s about as far afield as this southern trained cook can go.

Once the dressing was prepared they stuffed the turkey (both ends!) and put it in a roasting pan. The wings were tucked under the body (didn’t want it flying away); the legs and cavities were sewed together with needle and thread to hold its shape. It was then smeared with butter and seasonings and a lid put on the roaster. It was about 9 a.m. when the bird went into the oven at 300° to cook all day.

Around 4 p.m. our traditional appetizer tray was assembled: stuffed celery (pimiento and olive cream cheese), crackers, black and green olives and tiny gherkins were set out on the table. Shrimp cocktails with a traditional diced celery base were arranged in individual serving dishes along with a dollop of chili sauce and chilled.

At the same time, potatoes were being mashed, rutabagas, parsnips (ugh) or some of other kind of vegetable were seasoned; rolls were heated and Cranberry Jell-O salad was put on top of lettuce leafed salad plates. The turkey was tested for doneness (did the drumsticks move freely?) and removed from the pan. The stuffing was spooned into a serving dish and set aside.

The pan drippings were put into another large pan for gravy along with some of the giblet juice and cooled. The grease would rise to the top and be scooped off. More liquid would be added to the broth if needed. A roux would thicken the mixture and chopped giblets added.

Voila! It was show time! Mother and grandmother would remove their aprons and smooth their hair. Grandfather would say grace and the feasting would begin.

My mother and grandmother made Libby’s Pumpkin Pie and I do too. Following is the recipe. It’s practically foolproof. FYI: Be sure and make your own crust. Use the smaller can of pumpkin for premade crusts. I replace the ginger with nutmeg.

Enjoy your traditions and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

LIBBY’S PUMPKIN PIE

(Makes 2 pies)

4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 (29 oz.) can Libby's solid pack pumpkin
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2 (13 oz.) cans evaporated milk or 3 1/4 c. half and half
2 (9") unbaked homemade pie shells with high fluted edge

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine filling ingredients in order given; divide evenly into pie shells. Bake 15 minutes.

 Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 45 minutes or until knife inserted near center of each pie comes out clean. Cool; garnish, if desired, with whipped topping.

Yield: 2 (9") pies.

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal!

Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 

that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.

Cake Mix Cookies

10/29/14 Cook’s Corner

Betty Kaiser

Cake mix cookies for goblins of all ages!

Boo! If you live in the city, it’s almost time for ghosts and goblins to show up at your door. Out here in the country our trick-n-treaters are few and far between. But just in case some show up I like to have candy for them and homemade cookies for us. For me, baking cookies is a labor of love. Emphasis on the labor.

Cookies are a pretty simple treat to make. The basic batter is usually flour, sugar, eggs, butter, salt and baking soda. But most cookies have any number of other things added to the batter: coconut, chocolate, nuts, and so on. The problem is that all of these things have to be measured and that means I have to pay attention and that takes time.

And then there’s the baking. My oven is not cookie friendly. It seems to sense the minute I put a cookie sheet of raw dough inside. And then it goes haywire. It is either too hot and the cookies burn or too cool and they are soggy. I’ve had it checked and the service guy tells me it’s fine. So I have to stay nearby and watch them!

I thought about these frustrations as I sorted through recipes. I had just about talked myself out of baking anything when I came across an old recipe from my kids Auntie Gloria. She gave me this Duncan Hines box-cake-based cookie recipe at least 30 years ago. I knew that I could quickly put my favorite chocolate-chocolate chip cookies together and be out of the kitchen in an hour.

But then curiosity got the best of me. It had been years since Gloria gave me this recipe. Are there new recipes out there? Of course there are! I googled “cake mix cookies” and dozens of references came up. All of the recipes are very similar. Some call for added water, some don’t. Hint: if it says “ungreased” pan, use parchment paper or lightly grease the pan. Most recipes don’t give a quantity. If I were you, I would count on about 2-dozen cookies per batch. Extras are a bonus.

Today’s first recipe is a basic plan to build from. The others add frosting, cream cheese, peanut butter, oatmeal, etc. to give you a few ideas. For-instance, if you’re looking for a Fall flavored cookie, try a spice cake mix and frost it with a cream cheese frosting. The possibilities are endless. See what works for you. Enjoy!

AUNTIE GLORIA’S CAKE MIX COOKIES

1 cake mix—any kind

2 eggs

1/2 cup oil

2 tablespoons water

Mix and add 1 cup of anything!

Bake @ 350°

Note: Gloria didn’t fill in details:

Before baking, add chocolate chips, nuts, or flavorings if desired. Drop on a cookie sheet. Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes then sit down with a glass of milk and enjoy a warm, homemade  treat.

 CAKE MIX FROSTED SUGAR COOKIES

www.sixsisters.com

1 (15.25 ounce) box vanilla cake mix

2 eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, mix together cake mix, eggs and oil until well combined.  Roll into 1-inch balls and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until slightly golden.  Let cool completely.

HALLOWEEN FROSTING

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/4 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted (more or less depending on how thick/runny you like it)
A couple of drops of orange food coloring

Chocolate sprinkles

Chocolate frosting to spell BOO and EEK!

Combine all ingredients until smooth.  Spread over cooled cookies. Circle the cookie with sprinkles and write Boo! in the center.

CAKE MIX CREAM CHEESE COOKIES

www.justapinch.com

1 box white cake mix

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1/4 cups butter, room temperature

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup white chocolate chips or something similar

Preheat oven to 375° F.

Cream together butter and cream cheese. Add egg and vanilla; mix until blended.

Stir in cake mix a little at a time until blended. Add any chips, candy or nuts you like.

CAKE MIX PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

Betty Crocker

1 supermoist yellow cake mix

2 tablespoons water

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1/4 cup shortening or vegetable oil

2 eggs

Sugar (to crisscross cookies)

Preheat oven to 375° F.

In large bowl, beat all ingredients (except sugar) with electric mixer until smooth. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar and place 2-inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten in crisscross pattern with fork dipped in sugar.

Bake 10-12 min. or until golden brown. Cool 1 min.; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Store covered.

CAKE MIX OATMEAL COOKIES

Southern Living

1 18.25 ounce box yellow cake mix

2 cups quick-cooking oats, uncooked

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

1 cup raisins

1 cup pecans, chopped

1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Combine first 5 ingredients in large bowl. Combine oil and eggs; add to dry ingredients, stirring well. Stir in raisins, pecans and vanilla. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2” apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 min. or until lightly browned. Cool as above. Yield 48.

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal! 

Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes

 that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.

Adventures with salmon menus

10/1/14 Cook’s Corner
Betty Kaiser

Great dinner in Fairbanks, Alaska

On a recent trip to the great state of Alaska my husband and I somehow found ourselves on a bus headed outside downtown Juneau to the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery. It was a cold, wet and dreary day as we walked through the inner workings of a hatchery and a series of guides reminded us of the life cycle of salmon.

Depending on your point of view, the scene was inspiring (keeping wild salmon populations going) or rather pathetic. We got there by accident. It was an unplanned stop. Fish hatcheries are not our favorite places to visit. Still, there we were, watching these once lively kings and queens of the waterways languish and die in a man-made fish world so their eggs could be harvested.

Actually, the whole life cycle salmon story makes me feel a bit sad about the lifespan of such a magnificent fish. Salmon eggs hatch in about 3 months and the small fry are swimming at about 5-10 weeks old; they develop finger markings.  Smolts head out to sea between 1-3 years old where they will stay as adults up to 8 years. Then they return to their birthplace, spawn and die within 2 weeks!

We were digesting this bit of biology when there was a commotion at the entrance to the fish ladder. A huge sea lion was leaping from bin to bin and snacking on the salmon as they made their way up the 450-foot ladder to spawn! We visitors were reminded that one of the cycles of life in the real world is that one species feeds another.

Fresh salmon was on every menu at every stop of our two week Alaska visit. Whether in Denali, Anchorage or beyond, one could eat fish morning noon and night, Salmon omelets were a popular breakfast item. Salmon salad on a bun was a tempting luncheon choice and then, of course, there was dinner. Salmon was offered poached, baked, grilled, fried, roasted, brined, glazed and in casseroles. Wild salmon, of course, not farmed.

My favorite salmon entré is always glazed. In other words, sweetened with something like honey, maple syrup, brown sugar or molasses. It sounds simple enough to put together a rub of brown sugar and spices on the fish, grill it and eat it. Oh, but that would be deceptive. No two combinations taste the same. At a salmon bake in Fairbanks’ Pioneer Park I tried to weasel the glaze recipe out of the cooks to no avail. Something about marinating the fish overnight was as close as I could get. Another night and another diner, I heard a waiter say that the secret to their melt in-your mouth glaze was honey!

Along the way, I picked up a couple of recipes of unknown origin that I’m offering in today’s column. If you have a smoker, they tell me that the wet brine works well. The honey marinade is great on salmon in the oven, stovetop or grill. Use more or less as desired and feel free to add other spices. Finally, the salmon pasta is simplicity itself. Add some coleslaw and cornbread and you’ve got a meal. Enjoy!

BROWN SUGAR BRINE

(Enough for about 4 pounds salmon)

4 cups water

1 cup soy sauce

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup sea salt

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

1 tablespoon finely grated ginger

Wash salmon filets in cold water and pat dry. Cut filets into about 4”X6” pieces. Line them up in a non-reactive container: glass, plastic, stainless steel or large plastic bags.

Mix brining ingredients together in large bowl. Completely cover filets with brine until they float. Set aside any extra brine to use as a last minute glaze. Cover containers and marinate in refrigerator all day or overnight. Before cooking, remove from brine and drain on paper towels. Allow to dry for about an hour. Smoke fish according to your smoker’s manual.

HONEY SALMON MARINADE

3 tablespoons brown sugar, packed

3 tablespoons butter, melted

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

3 tablespoons honey

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 large salmon filet (about 2 pounds) cut into 8 pieces

In a small bowl, mix all ingredients except salmon. Pour marinade over salmon. Cover and marinate 30-60 minutes. Heat coals or gas grill. Remove salmon from marinade. Place salmon, skin side down, on grill. Cover and grill over medium heat 10-20 minutes, brushing periodically with marinade. Fish is done when it flakes easily with fork. Serves 6-8

SMOKED SALMON in CREAMY PASTA

1/4 cup butter

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

1 cups half and half

1 cup whipping cream

4 ounces julienne smoked wild Alaska sockeye salmon

1/2 cup peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes

2 tablespoons chives

Salt and ground white pepper to taste

8 ounces of linguine or fettuccine

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1 tablespoon minced parsley

Sauté garlic in butter about five minutes or until softened. Add half and half and whipping cream; heat to simmer and cook, uncovered, until thickened and reduced to 2-1/2 cups liquid. Add smoked salmon, tomatoes and chives; heat thoroughly over low heat about two minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook linguine in boiling water about 10 minutes or until barely tender; drain. Fold hot pasta into cream sauce; place on serving platter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and parsley. Makes 4 servings.

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal! 

Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 

that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.