My Public Speaking Report

I appreciated all your encouragement regarding the program I had to present earlier in the week. We ended up with a small group, but it was a very receptive group. Everything went well and I have to admit it wasn't as painful as I anticipated. I think a lot of that had to do with the subject matter. I really, really like that book!

Not only did I give the program, my "Circle" group was responsible for the meal as well. In addition to a bowl of red seedless grapes, I contributed the following two items. I apologize for the poor quality of the photos, but they were snapped quickly and without preview. The first recipe is from Southern Living Magazine, the second from Simple & Delicious Magazine.

Creole-Roasted Black-Eyed Peas

Preheat oven to 425F. Gently toss 2 (15.8 oz.) cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed, with 3 Tbsp. olive oil and 1-1/2 tsp. Creole seasoning. Transfer mixture to a lightly greased 17 x 12" jelly-roll pan. Bake 55 or 60 minutes or until crispy and dry, stirring every 10 minutes. Let cool 20 minutes.



Party Vegetable Dip
(Amy Engle, Geneva, NB)

2 cups mayonnaise
1-1/2 cups (12 oz.) 4% cottage cheese
1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream
1 envelope (1 oz.) ranch salad dressing mix
1 Tbsp. dried minced onion
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
Assorted fresh vegetables

In a food processor, combine the first six ingredients; cover and process until blended. Transfer to a serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled. Serve with vegetables.

A New Year

We brought in the new year in our usual way by gathering with two other couples for games and good food. Our favorite game is Pictionary, the guys against the girls. We got off to a great start this year, but the guys made a stunning comeback and ended up beating us.

As always, we had way too much food. One of the dishes I took was a new recipe for pumpkin pie dip. I thought it was great and so did two of my kids who stopped by the house earlier that day. It didn't go over that well at our gathering, though. Still....I consider it a "keeper" and want to share it here with you.

Pumpkin Pie Dip

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Gingersnap cookies

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Beat in the pumpkin, sour cream, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and ginger until blended. Serve with gingersnaps. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 4 cups.

Friendship and Fun (and food, of course)

First of all, thanks to Petty Witter , for awarding me the Panda Super Comments Award*. She has a fun blog filled with humor, trivia and books reviews. Always a pleasure to visit! (* These bloggers leave awesome comments - they make you laugh, think, and offer encouragement and support. In other words, they're freaking awesome) Though this award has no "rules" for passing on, I thought I'd share it with Marion. I can count on her (and Petty Witter) to visit me here most every day! Thanks, Marion.... I appreciate you!

It's fun to make new friends in blogosphere. Sometimes those friendships become more personal such as when Marion, Quid, Pam and I got together for a weekend in Louisiana. I managed to dig up the post from my old blog here telling about that meeting. Then, occasionally an old friend from real life will also become a blogging friend. I'm referring to Bob, who is one of my oldest friends (old in the sense we probably first met as toddlers in the church nursery).

Thanks to one of my friends for organizing get togethers when she comes "home" for visits, there is a group of us from high school (and earlier) that try to connect at least once a year. Last night was one of those times. I especially enjoyed the evening because when they gathered last year I was at my WI BOW event and missed it. We had one missing member this year, too..... she had to be in Orlando, FL for a work related event. Maybe next time we'll all make it. It was a great evening packed with lots of talking, laughing and, of course, eating. Everyone contributed and one of the recipes I took was this one that I clipped from the May issue of Simple & Delicious.

Spinach Cheese Dip
(contributed by Christine Cragan of Salem, MA)

1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 jar (16 oz) salsa
1 pkg. (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
2 cups (8 oz) shredded Mexican cheese blend, divided
Tortilla chips

In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, salsa, spinach and 1 cup cheese blend. Spread into an ungreased 9-in. pie plate. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake, uncovered, at 350F for 20-25 minutes or until heated through. Serve with tortilla chips.

In conclusion, here's a photo of Bob and me along with a group shot.

Fruit and Cheese

My Circle group hosted the UMW General Meeting at our church yesterday. I bravely (foolishly?) tried out two new recipes for the brunch we provided. The fruit dish was okay, but the cheese spread was wonderful!

Hot Fruit Compote
tasteofhome.com
Joyce Moynihan (Lakeville, MN)

2 cans (15-1/4 oz. each) sliced pears, drained

1 can (29 oz.) sliced peaches, drained

1 can (20 oz.) unsweetened pineapple chunks, drained

1 package (20 oz.) pitted dried plums

1 jar (16 oz.) unsweetened applesauce

1 can (21 oz.) cherry pie filling

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Pour into a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Spread pie filling over fruit mixture; sprinkle with brown sugar.

Cover and bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes or until bubbly. Serve warm.

French Quarter Cheese Spread

Simple & Delicious

Heidi Blaine Hadburg (Safety Harbor, FL)

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1 Tbsp. grated onion

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/4 cup butter, cubed

1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp. prepared mustard

1 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted

Assorted crackers

In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese, onion and garlic. Transfer to a serving plate; shape into a 6-in. disk. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and mustard. Cook and stir over medium heat for 4-5 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat; stir in pecans. Cool slightly. Spoon over cheese mixture. Serve with crackers. Can be prepared ahead of time for convenience, then brought to room temperature for serving.

Pre-holiday snacking

My younger daughter enjoys cooking and when she's home from college we like to try new recipes. Here are some recent efforts, all "keepers". She prepared the sweets and I did the party mix.

Lemon Square Bars

Submitted to allrecipes.com by RCOMP

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup butter, melted

4 eggs
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
5/8 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch pan.

In a medium bowl, stir together 2 cups flour and confectioners' sugar. Blend in the melted butter. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until golden. In a large bowl, beat eggs until light. Combine the sugar, baking powder and 1/4 cup of flour so there will be no flour lumps. Stir the sugar mixture into the eggs. Finally, stir in the lemon juice. Pour over the prepared crust and return to the oven.

Bake for an additional 30 minutes or until bars are set. Allow to cool completely before cutting into bars.

Kickin' Snack Mix

Contributed to Simple & Delicious by Kim Vogt of Creighton, NE

3 cups Crispix
3 cups Wheat Chex
2 cups cheddar-flavored snack crackers
1 cup pretzel sticks
1 cup almonds
1 cup mixed nuts
1 cup pistachios
1/2 cup butter-flavored popcorn oil
1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
1 tsp. dill weed
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. cayenne pepper

In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. In a small bowl, combine the oil, dressing mix, dill, garlic powder and cayenne. Drizzle over cereal mixture, toss to coat.

Transfer to two greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans. Bake at 250 degrees F for 45-55 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool on wire racks. Store in an airtight container. Yield: 3 qt.

Pecan Pie Bars

Great American Brand Name Recipes Cookbook

2 cups unsifted flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup cold margarine or butter
1 (14-ounce) can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk (NOT evaporated milk)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (6-ounce) package almond brickle chips
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350F (325F for glass dish). In medium bowl, combine flour and sugar; cut in margarine until crumbly. Press firmly on bottom of 13x9-inch baking pan. Bake 15 minutes. Meanwhile, in medium bowl, beat sweetened condensed milk, egg and vanilla. Stir in chips and pecans. Spread evenly over crust. Bake 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool. Cut into bars. Store covered in refrigerator. Makes 36 bars.

Cooking for the Bazaar

Tomorrow we will have the annual Holiday Bazaar at our church. Sponsored by our “Wednesday Worker” craft group, we offer all sorts of handmade crafts and holiday decorations, a big spread of baked goods and preserved items, lots of jewelry, and a huge selection of “Trash & Treasure”. In addition, we serve a breakfast of muffins, cinnamon rolls, coffee cake, etc. One of the items I provide for the breakfast is this pear cake:

Pear Bundt Cake
1 can (15-1/4 ounces) pears in light syrup
1 package (18-1/4 ounces) white cake mix
2 egg whites
1 egg
2 teaspoons confectioners' sugar

Drain pears, reserving the syrup; chop pears. Place pears and syrup in a mixing bowl; add dry cake mix, egg whites and egg. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on high for 4 minutes.
Coat a 10-in. fluted tube pan with nonstick cooking spray and dust with flour. Add batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Yield: 16 servings.

I always make a few things for the bake sale area including my Van Gogh cake and bags of these crackers:

Seasoned Oyster Crackers
16-20 oz. plain oyster crackers
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Original Buttermilk Recipe salad dressing mix
¼ tsp. lemon pepper
½ to 1 tsp. dill weed
¼ tsp. garlic powder
¾ to 1 cup vegetable or canola oil

Spread crackers into a jelly roll pan. Combine remaining ingredients and drizzle over crackers, stirring to coat well. Place in a warm oven (lowest setting) for 15-20 minutes, stirring once halfway through.

This year I also tried a new recipe. Of course mine don’t look like the picture in the magazine, but they still taste okay. Not the best, but good enough to sell. From a recipe submitted to Simple & Delicious magazine by Rebecca Clark of Warrior, AL., they're called Oatmeal Surprise Cookies.

1 cup butter, softened
¾ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
2 ¾ cups quick-cooking oats
1 ½ cups chocolate-covered raisins

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs. Combine the flour, baking soda and pumpkin pie spice; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in oats and raisins.

Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Flatten slightly. Bake at 350º for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks. Store in an airtight container. Yield: 3 dozen.

Here's hoping for a successful day!!

A weekend of eating

My sister came for a quick visit this weekend. That meant lots of talking, laughing and, of course, eating. I always like to experiment with new recipes when she’s here. This time I tried three, all from past issues of Simple & Delicious magazine.

Festive Feta Cheese Ball
Contributed by Cinde Ryan of Gig Harbor, WA

2 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened

½ cup crumbled feta cheese
2 teaspoons ranch salad dressing mix
¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
¼ cup crumbled cooked bacon
½ teaspoon dill weed

In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add feta cheese and dressing mix; mix well. Shape into a ball. Combine the Parmesan cheese, bacon and dill week; roll cheese ball in Parmesan mixture. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until firm. Serve with crackers. Yield: 2 cups.

Confetti Corn Salad
Contributed by Tonia Mahnke of Sun Prairie, WI

1 can (7 oz) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (2 ¼ oz) sliced ripe olives, drained
½ cup chopped green pepper
½ cup chopped sweet red pepper
2 radishes, sliced
¼ cup prepared Italian salad dressing

In a small bowl, combine the corn, olives, peppers and radishes. Add salad dressing; toss to coat. Refrigerate until serving. Yield: 3 servings.

Peanut Butter Jumbos
Contributed by Deborah Huffer of Staunton, VA

1 ½ cups peanut butter
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 ½ cups quick-cooking oats
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup M&M’s miniature baking bits

In a large mixing bowl, cream peanut butter, butter and sugars. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine oats and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips and baking bits.

Drop by heaping tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350º for 12-14 minutes or until edges are browned. Remove to wire racks. Yield: 9 dozen.

Christmas recipes

I’ve been taking Simple & Delicious magazine (formerly Quick Cooking) for a number of years. A part of Reiman Publications, it’s a great magazine filled with easy, yet tasty recipes. Seldom does an issue arrive that I don’t find at least one recipe that I want to try. Here are three I served on Christmas Eve… all of them “keepers”. I was out of milk, so I subbed light soy milk in the baked pancake, I omitted the hot pepper sauce in the dip, and I made the pie in a glass pan, so I dropped the temperature by five degrees and baked it for a full hour.


Baked Blueberry Pancake
Submitted by Norna Detig of Lindenwood, IL

2 cups pancake mix
1½ cups fat-free milk
1 egg
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
Butter and maple syrup

In a large bowl, combine the pancake mix, milk, egg, oil and cinnamon just until blended (batter will be lumpy). Fold in blueberries (if using frozen, do not thaw).
Spread into a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Bake at 400° for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with butter and syrup. Yield: 6 servings.


Sun-Dried Tomato Dip
Submitted by Andrea Reynolds of Rocky River, OH

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
½ cup sour cream
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and patted dry
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. hot pepper sauce
2 green onions, sliced
Assorted crackers and/or fresh vegetables

Place the first seven ingredients in a food processor; cover and process until blended. Add green onions; cover and pulse until finely chopped. Serve with crackers and/or vegetables. Yield: 2 cups.


Pear Custard Pie
Submitted by Barbara Rea of Glenshaw, PA

1 sheet refrigerated pie pastry
3 medium ripe pears, peeled and thinly sliced
1 cup sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Unroll pasty into a 9-in. pie plate; flute edges. Place pears in pastry. In a small bowl, combine sugar and flour. Stir in the eggs, cream and vanilla. Pour over pears. Bake at 375° for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.
Cool on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Yield: 6 servings.

Easy Cheesy Dip

For years I felt like I had to follow a recipe exactly. I eventually learned that it's okay to make substitutions or changes to suit our tastes. Sometimes I'll skim cookbooks to get ideas then try making up recipes of my own.

Here's an easy cheese dip we concocted last weekend:




1 can Cheddar Cheese soup


1 can Southwest Style Pepper Jack soup


1 can Cream of Chicken soup


1 can mild diced tomatoes & green chilies (Rotel)

Stir together in a saucepan and heat until bubbly. Use the spicier Rotel tomatoes if you want it "hotter".

Toasted Zucchini Snacks

Here's another zucchini recipe that I found on the Taste of Home website. (contributed by Jane Bone of Cape Coral, FL) I thought this one was pretty good, but I would have liked it better on something other than rye.

Toasted Zucchini Snacks

2 cups shredded zucchini

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper

4 green onions, thinly sliced

1 garlic clove, minced

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

36 slices snack rye bread

• In a bowl, toss the zucchini and salt; let stand for 1 hour. Rinse and drain, pressing out excess liquid.


• Add the next eight ingredients; stir until combined. Spread a rounded teaspoonful on each slice of bread; place on a baking sheet.


• Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until bubbly. Serve immediately. Yield: 3 dozen.
  
  

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After supper tonight we decided to do a little fishing. I caught two of the three bass pictured on this stringer. My husband caught the other one along with two smaller fish he threw back. The keepers were about three pounds each.