DELICIOUS Drop Doughnuts (Made with leftover mashed potatoes!!)

These doughnuts are rolled in cinnamon and sugar.

These little gems are a lot like doughnut holes when it is all said and done.  They are tender, moist, and easy as pie to make.  They use leftover mashed potatoes in the batter so it is great to add this to my list of great things to do with leftovers!! 

Waste not want not.

I found the recipe online given by Marilyn Kleinfall of Elk Grove Village, Ill.  She says that her neighbors mother-in-law originated it. 

Here is my version:

1/2 C. mashed potatoes (made with milk and butter)
1/4 C. sugar
1 slightly beaten egg
1/2 C. sour cream
1/2 t. Tahitian Vanilla
1 1/2 C. all purpose flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. baking powder
1/8 t. salt
sprinkle of nutmeg
Oil for deep frying
Powered sugar or cinnamon sugar, optional to coat while warm.

Using a large bowl combine the potatoes. sugar, egg, sour cream, and vanilla. 







Mix until smooth.  Combine the dry ingredients and stir into the potato mixture to form a stiff batter.

Heat oil in a skillet or deep fryer to 375 degrees F.  Drop teaspoonfuls of the batter, a few at a time, into the hot oil.  Fry until golden brown on both sides then remove to drain on paper towels. 

Roll in sugar while warm and cool.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  Yield 2-3 dozen depending on the size you make them.

Fruit Cream, a lovely fruit salad.

Brian loves fruit salad and I am always on the look out for a new twist.  I adapted a recipe I saw in a Church cookbook called, Sharing Our Best, from the Peace Lutheran Church in Okeechobee, Fla.

My version goes like this:

1 20 oz. can of pineapple chunks, drain and save the juice
1 qt. thawed frozen peaches, drain and save the juice
1 18 oz. can of mandarin oranges, drained
3 bananas sliced into the juice of a fresh lemon
1 apple chopped with peel left on
1 - 3.4 oz. pkg. instant vanilla pudding
milk to add to pineapple and peach juices to make 1 1/2 C. liquid
3/4 C. sour cream

Combine the fruit draining any additional juice that may have formed in a large bowl.  In a small bowl whisk together the pudding mix and combined juices and milk for about 2 minutes.  Add the sour cream and mix well.  Spoon over the fruit and toss to coat.

Either cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or spoon into desert dishes and cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.  Serve as is or top with sweetened cream.

Aunt Betty's 1-2-3 Cake

 I just love when friends and family send me new things they have found and they invite me to try them too.  My husband's Aunt Betty sent me this a few weeks ago and I just got around to trying it out and it is a WINNER!!

You could even make this up and give a Christmas gifts  either the whole recipe or in a small glass jelly jar with the directions to make more and how to mix up and bake.  As a quick and lightly laden (calorie wise) desert it is a find.



NOTE: I do not make any claims regarding calorie or weight watchers points because it would vary according to what brand and what flavors of cake mix you are using.   Others have made statements in the notes sections and I have no way to know if any or all are accurate so please beware.

You simply assemble as follows:

1 box Angel Food cake mix
1 box any flavor cake mix
2 T. water

Directions:

Using a large plastic bowl with a tightly fitting lid or a large zip lock bag, combine the two boxes of cake mix stirring or shaking well.

For each individual serving,  take out 3 T. of the cake mixture and mix it with 2 T. of water in a small microwave safe container.  I used a small coffee mug.  Microwave on high for 1 minute.  You now have your own instant individual cake and it is warm and inviting.  You can top with a dollop of fruit or whipped topping if you like.

Try various flavors of cake mix but it must always be combined with an Angel Food mix.

Keep the mix tightly sealed in an airtight container until used and remember:  This recipe is called 1-2-3 Cake because all you need to remember is 3 T.mix, 2 T. water, and 1 minute in the microwave.

And a big thank you goes out to Aunt Betty!!

Our First Snow Accumulation of the Season.

As I drugged off to the Vet's office this morning it didn't occur to me that I might soon be getting pelted with big wet globs of snow.  But that is exactly what happened.  After I picked up Molly's RX, yes the prescription is for the dog.....She is like having another kid you know!!

Anyway I needed a carton of eggs and a jar of mayonnaise so I rounded the corner to Wesselman's, or what used to be Wesselman's, it is now the Grocery Outlet.  NOT an improvement in my book!!

When I came out wow.....it was coming down and it has continued......They are forecasting up to an inch by evening. 

LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW.

Spicy Lemon Herb Hot Wings

Just for a drastic change of pace from the Thanksgiving leftover recycling efforts I pulled out a package of chicken wings from the deep freeze.  Lazy as I am feeling after all of the preparations for the Holiday season if is an easy project with a great flavor return.

First the seasoning:

12 T. Coarse Kosher Salt
3 T. Lemon Pepper
1 T. Oregano
1 T. Thyme
1 t. Red Pepper Flakes
1 t. Paprika
1 t. sugar

Mix well and store in an airtight glass jar.  Yield 1 1/8 cup seasoning salt.  Good for chicken, fish, or pork.

The recipe:

12 fresh chicken wings
1/4 C. melted butter
1/4 C. Shiracha Chinese Hot Sauce
Juice of 1 lemon or lime
1 T. honey
Butter flavor cooking Spray

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. and cover a half sheet pan with heavy duty foil and spray well with cooking spray.  (Or butter a rimmed flat pan well.)  Set this aside.

Separate the chicken wings at the joints discarding the wing tips or freezing them for stock.  Season  the drummets well with the prepared salt and herb mixture and lay them about the prepared pan so the aren't touching.  Place in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes turning every 20 minutes.

Meanwhile heat the sauce ingredients in a small pan over very low heat stirring to combine. 

When the wings are crisp and browned remove them from the oven and toss them and the sauce together in a large glass or metal bowl.  Serve with blue cheese or ranch dressing and assorted crisp vegetables.  Don't forget plenty of napkins!!  Yield 24 pieces.

Fresh Ham Salad Made at Home.

Fresh made ham salad on a saltine cracker.

Brian loves fresh ham salad so I have just enough today to make up a batch.  It made 5 cups so he can take sandwiches to work next week for a nice change.  Here is how I make it:

1-1 1/2 pounds left over baked ham trimmed of fat and rind
4 hard cooked eggs
1/2 small onion
1 washed and trimmed stalk of celery
1/2 C. sweet pickles
4 ounces of shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 C. mayonnaise
1/4 C. sweet pickle juice
pinch kosher salt
large pinch freshly ground black pepper

I use the food processor to make this but if you have not done this before you need to really watch so you DO NOT over process or you will be unhappy with the consistency of the finished product.

Start with the ham.  Dice it into chunks of uniform size.  Place the ham in the bowl of the processor and pulse until it is a rough chop using the chopping blade.  Dump the ham into a large mixing bowl.  Next repeat the process with the onion and celery.  Dump them into the bowl with the ham and repeat with the sweet pickle adding it to the ham bowl. 

Now change to the shredding blade and shred the cheddar cheese then dump it into the growing bowl of salad ingredients.  Peel the hard cooked eggs and hand chop them into the ham salad.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add the mayonnaise and the sweet pickle juice and stir well tasting when well combined and correcting the seasoning.  You may add additional mayonnaise or pickle juice if the salad is too dry.  Serve on bread or crackers or on a lettuce leaf as a salad.  It is also good used as a celery filling. 

Note:  Coney Island salad can also be made using bologna instead of ham.

Candied Yams or Sweet Potatoes

This is another REALLY EASY dish our family has made since before I began cooking!!  It is often made at Easter or with an pork or poultry main dish.  Everyone loves it and is a no brainier!!  When reheating be sure to add additional marshmallows and stick under the broiler to brown them.  Watch them disappear!!  I am sorry not to have a "just before serving photograph" but they were snatched up and served before I knew it.

3-5 sweet potatoes or yams, peeled, chunked and boiled in salted water until tender or 1-2 cans canned sweet potatoes or yams drained of liquids
1 - 1 1/2 C. dark brown sugar
cooking spray
1/4 C. butter
1 t. cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a shallow flat baking dish with cooking spray and add the drained cool potatoes.  Sprinkle evenly with brown sugar and dot with butter.


Adjust the amounts of brown sugar and butter to the amount of sweet potatoes you are making. 

Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake about 30 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven.  The liquids should have melted together and formed a dark thick syrup that clings to the potatoes when they are turned.  You may serve like this or top with marshmallows and brown them a few minutes under the broiler.  You may also spread with marshmallow cream or fluff and brown the top.  It's all good.

We also love Sweet Potato  Pecan Casserole and often make both at the same meal.  This recipe was given on 11/11/10

Baking Oyster Dressing and Plain Dressing the Old Fashioned Way.

Whee, what a wonderful Thanksgiving we have had.  My thanks go out to Emmy and Katie for their delicious Pumpkin Pie!!  It was a big help to me to have them make the pies!!  It was terrific to have all of our children and grandchildren here all around the dinning room table, we are Blessed and grateful.

I missed getting pictures of the dressing before it was served so I am just going to run through the "how to" of it in the event anyone wants to try this old but easy dish.

Here are the recipes for how our family has traditionally made two popular and old side dishes.

We have always made dressing as a side and not stuffed the turkey and we always make two dishes of dressing.  The "with oyster" and the "without".   Here are the ingredients:

1-1 1/2 pound loaf of day old bread or bread mixture of your choice
4 T. butter
1/4 C. olive oil
2 C. diced celery
2 C. diced onion
1 1/2 quart strong hot chicken or turkey broth
1 egg
1 t. freshly ground black pepper
2 t. kosher salt
1 t. ground sage
1/2 pint (1 Cup) fresh shucked oysters)

The day before I lay out the bread to dry out on large clean trays and turn it a couple of times for even drying.  The day I am making the dressing I tear it up into about 1 1/2- 2" pieces and place the dry bread in a very large bowl.  If you don't lay the bread out ahead to dry it you can toast it then tear it into the bowl.

Set this aside and saute the onions and celery in the oil and butter for about 10-15 minutes until it is tender and translucent.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter two baking dishes of ample size for the amount of dressing you are preparing.

Add the vegetables to the bread then start adding about 1/2 of the broth slowly as you want this to soak into the bread.  Then stir in the egg and the seasoning.  Resume adding and stirring the broth in until the mixture is very damp but not watery.  Taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary.

Pour 1/2 of the dressing into a buttered baking dish.  Add the oysters and their liquid to the remaining half of the raw dressing.

Pour it into the other dish and bake both for about 45 minutes until light brown on top and bubbling around the edges.  Serve hot along side the roasted turkey, chicken, or pork roast  it is delicious with all of these entrees.

Note:  To be sure the broth is strong I have added bouillon cubes or soup base to fortify it if necessary.

Thanksgiving Morning

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone and God Bless!!  My morning has been good.  Here is sort of a play by play of so far.  Fixed breakfast for Brian.

Carved the turkey and ham.  I did the ham first.  Sorry forgot to take pictures but my procedure for both is the same.  I roasted then both a couple of days ago and cooled them then wrapped them each in a big plastic bag.

The ham was cooked in a dutch oven with nothing but about 12 ounces of coke poured over it.  I roasted both meats at 325 degrees F and kept them covered.  This keeps them from drying out and is the way our family has always done it.  I use a meat thermometer to ensure they are done.

The turkey breast was cooked in a large covered kettle sitting on a bed of sliced onions and washed and trimmed carrots.  No liquid is added.  I did use a rub I make up and used for about anything.  It is 1 part garlic powder to 1 part ground black pepper to 4 parts kosher salt.  I mix this up and ad 1/3 of this to one third paprika and a third lemon pepper.  I season inside and out and cover with a big lid again testing for doneness with a meat thermometer. 

After both meats are cold I refrigerate.  The meat absorbs it's juices and condensation and is WAY easier to slice when it is cold.

I lines two 9 x 13" pans with parchment paper and sliced each type of meat into one of the pans.  Then I cover again with parchment and then wrap the whole thing in heavy duty foil.

Before serving I will just heat up at 325 degrees fir about 20-25 minutes.  Just until heated through.  The parchment aids in again keeping it moist and it keeps the foil off of the meat, which I prefer.

I keep all of the bone and not so pretty pieces, skin, ham rind, all of it and make 2 packages and freeze them.  The ham I will sort through later and make ham and beans.  The turkey carcass with have enough meat when I thaw it to cool and make the most delicious turkey pot pies.  So there is nothing going to waste.

The potatoes are peeled and in salted water and a gallon of chicken broth is waiting for the making of the dressing and noodles. 

I am going to go dress and do my hair now and set the table.  I may not get back once our guests start arriving so again Happy Thanksgiving one and all.

Cocktail Cranberry Sauce

When we lived in Indianapolis at one time I did some market research.  One of the subjects was the cocktail.  At that time it was noted that a mixed drink was not a cocktail unless it contained some amount of fruit juice.  Otherwise it was considered a mixed drink and not a cocktail.  I looked it up today in reference to my recipe and it confirmed fruit was the component to be considered along with the alcohol but added," seafood served prior to dinner."  So in case anybody was wondering .

I love cranberry sauce and concocted  this sauce from others I have made and what I wanted to use today.  And so it goes:

1 large or 2 small oranges zested and superemed
12 ounces fresh cranberries, 3 C.
1 C. sugar
1 C. pineapple juice
1 tart apple peeled, cored, and diced
2 T. orange flavored liqueur or orange juice

Using a medium heavy bottomed saucepan combine the cranberries, orange zest, sugar, pineapple juice, and apple and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to medium low and cook uncovered for about 5 minutes or until all of the cranberries have popped.    

Remove from the heat and stir in the liqueur and  orange sections.  Allow to cool then refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving.  Yield about 2 1/2 cups.

Thanksgiving Prayer 2011

Holy Father as we come to Your table this Thanksgiving let us do so with renewed gratitude for all You have Blessed us with.  We thank you for  sending Your Blessed Son to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. And we ask that the Holy Spirit be loosed that all across this land people will know You.  We acknowledge our sins and that we have fallen far from Your glory but we thank You for the salvation Your Son Jesus has given us through His death on the cross and His Resurrection.

We ask you to soften our hearts and the hearts of all that we may more easily forgive, see the side of others, show patience and compassion and avoid strife.  But not that we abandon your commands and our beliefs but rather that we more kindly but firmly present them in a manner pleasing to you. We ask You to help us go forward in a way pleasing to You.

Father we ask that You be with those who thirst or hunger, those who are ill or have unspoken needs and fears and that You provide for them in Your bounty.  For Father we know You can prosper us, heal us, and ease our pain.  We know it is by Your grace and we thank You.

Holy Father we pray you would protect our country and guide our leaders.  We pray your would heal our country and our earth and show us the best way to proceed to the benefit of all and to Your glory.

And Father we pray for our families.  We thank You for our families and we ask for your guidance and protection that they may strengthen and flourish  in your grace.   We ask You to be with the families of our service men especially.  That you comfort them and Bless them each and everyone.  Bless every soldier where ever he may be and grant him your Holy Blessing, guidance,  and protection.

Holy Father we ask these things in Jesus name, not my will but Thine be done.  A-men

Sunday Morning Poem and Pictures

After I finished the dishes from breakfast I looked around and what did I see?

Two tired  ol' dogs just looking at me!!!


But you have to admit it makes a great picture, man and his dog.

Sooo I just couldn't pass up, sharing it on my blog.


Tummy's stuffed and very well fed.

What better to do than go back to bed?

And so it ends here,

My dog and my dear.

Make Egg Noodles for Now or Store in the Freezer

Since I will not want to be a slave to the kitchen on Thanksgiving day I have made the egg noodles today and I just plopped them in a freezer bag and stored them in my newly cleaned out freezer.

It is newly cleaned out not only because I "cleaned" it this week but in doing so I discovered I had plenty of great things stored to make a lovely pot of vegetable beef soup for Sunday Dinner!! The meat is simmering away this very minute.

So on to the subject at hand.  Our family has long made skinny strands of egg noodles by hand and my dear Mother holds the record for them.  Mine as you will see are thin but she bests me, no contest.  We make rolled dumplings that are fat but it's not a noodle at our house unless it is skinny!!

With these threads of golden egg and flour goodness you can make any type of noodle soup desired.  We make chicken noodle, beef noodle and a wonderful concoction with a ham bone and tomato juice boiled down to make a broth.  Yum.

But for big holiday dinners we just make a side known as noodles.  We use either turkey or chicken broth and simply boil the noodles 6-8 minutes until they are tender and pass your plate.  It is probably   the most requested and asked for left over after maybe the the meat and dessert.  Children love them.

Here is how I make them:

4-5 egg yolks
2 whole eggs
2-3 C. all purpose flour

Using a medium sized bowl dip about 2 C. of flour into the center and make a well.  Mix the yolks and eggs in a tea cup and beat them well with a fork.  Pour the eggs into the flour and stir with the  fork until it comes together and forms a stiff dough. 

Using you clean hands form the dough into a ball and continue to knead until it is smooth, stiff, yet pliable.  Divide the dough into two equal portions. 

Flour a large work surface.  I use the entire enamel counter of my Hoosier Cabinet.  Flour the rolling pin and roll the dough, turning it over frequently and dusting with flour as you go.   Roll it very thin.

Now you leave it to dry.  Try not to make noodles on a rainy day, the high humidity makes it hard to get them dry.  That is why I did this today as it is to rain the next 3 days here.

Usually it takes a couple of hours or so and you need to check them and turn them over about every 30-40 minutes.  If you have a portion that sticks.  Don't panic, just run a thin bladed knife under the dough to loosen it from the counter.

When dry and no longer sticky, but NOT brittle.  Cut the circle in half and lay all of the halves atop each other.

Starting at one edge roll them all tightly together.  Now slice.  If you prefer thicker noodles just cut them anyway you like them!!  Toss them a bit and store in a plastic bag in the freezer til needed.

To cook prepare about 6-8 C. hot strong broth and season well.  The noodles are not salted in the making so this is when they pick up their flavor.  I usually keep another couple of cups of hot broth on the ready in case it is needed.  Bring the broth to a full rolling boil and add the noodles all at once stirring as you go.  Turn the heat back to medium when it returns to a boil.  Cook about 8-9 minutes and taste for seasoning and to see if they are done. 

Potato Rolls

Our family loves these soft fragrant yeast rolls and I almost always make them when we have large gatherings.  This batch made 28 nice sized clover leaf rolls.  My version is adapted from a red plaid Better Homes and Gardens cookbook published in 1976.

Ingredients:

1/2 C. cold left over mashed potatoes at room temperature*
4-4 1/2 C. all purpose flour  (I use King Arthur flour)
2 1/2 t. instant yeast  ( I use from a 1 pound block of instant yeast I ordered from King Arthur, it is always fresh)
1 1/4 C. milk
1/4 C. sugar
1/4 C. butter
1 1/2 t. kosher salt
1 egg at room temperature


In a large mixing bowl combine 2 C. of the flour and the yeast and whisk it together.  Set this aside.

In a small sauce pan heat the milk, sugar, butter, and salt just until it is warm (115-120 degrees F.) stirring constantly until the butter is almost melted.    If the temperature gets over 120 degrees you will need to cool it down lest the heat kills the yeast.  

Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients then add the mashed potato and the egg.  Beat at low speed with the mixer for 30 seconds.  Scrape the sides of the bowl well.  Beat 3 minutes at high speed.  By hand add enough of the flour  to make a soft dough.  Knead by machine for 6 minutes or by hand for 8.

Dough should not be terribly wet and sticky but rather soft, smooth and elastic.   Shape into a large ball and place into a large buttered bowl turning once to coat all sides.  Cover and set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour until doubled in bulk.

Punch down;  turn onto a lightly floured work surface and  cover.  Let the dough rest for 10 minutes then divide the dough in half, then in quarters, then each quarter into 6 equal portions.  Shape each portion into a ball and place it into a buttered muffin tin.  Continue until you have used all of the dough to form the rolls.  Take a clean sharp scissors and clip the top half of the roll in half.  Then clip again so you have formed a cross in the top of the roll.  Using your fingers push the top of the roll down just the smallest bit to round the top off.

Cover and set aside to raise for about an hour until almost doubled.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. 
Bake in a hot oven for 10-12 minutes.  Yield 24-28 rolls.

* If you do not have left over mashed potatoes boil 1 small potato in 1 C. water for 10-15 minutes.  Drain and mash.  Measure and set aside to cool 1/2 C. mashed potato.  

Note:  I under bake the rolls, cool them completely, wrap them well and freeze them.  Then I thaw and finish baking as needed.

Thanksgiving Menu 2011

Thanksgiving Skies.

This is always a challenge and I have been all around the block on the menu for years.  There have been times I did totally unconventional menus.  Like an all finger food Thanksgiving.  And times that I made every one's favorite dish and had so much I could not get and keep it all hot at once!!

This year I will aim for traditional moderation!!   

MENU for Thanksgiving 2011.

Roast turkey breast with plain and oyster stuffing,
Smoked Ham Roasted 'n Coke
Sweet potatoes with marshmallow topping,
Mashed potatoes and gravy,
Homemade noodles,   (recipe given Sept. 16, 2010, titled Handmade Noodles)
Green bean casserole,
Fresh cranberry sauce with apples and oranges.
Homemade potato rolls 
Pumpkin pie Ala mode,    (recipe given Oct. 5, 2010, titled Pumpkin Pie and Nov. 14, 2011, titled Pumpkin Bourbon Pie)

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Tea and coffee.

The appetizers will be shrimp cocktail and raw vegetables with fresh buttermilk dip. My Daughter in Law ( Mother of my 2 granddaughters) said she is bringing a cheese ball from when the girls were selling them for some fund raiser.

My granddaughter's have offered to bake the Pumpkin pies which they do well.  I am so proud of them!! I'll get the ice cream!!

I am getting excited!!  Now I must go and finish cleaning the upstairs and work on my grocery list.  I may bake the rolls today and slip them in the freezer.  They do beautifully if under baked and frozen.

I will try to have the where with all to take photos and give the recipes as I go.

Beef Steak and Onions What a Soup!!!

On 10/ 26/11 I gave a recipe for Caramelized Onion and Mushroom Soup that we thought was delicious and Brian had said at the time it was a "do again"!!!  LITTLE DID HE KNOW.....it had made enough to freeze 1 1/2 quarts.......and that is just what I did.

Yesterday I spent washing down the walls and baseboards and cabinets in my kitchen and had no desire to cook.  I defrosted instead!!

Sunday for dinner I had made Roast Beef Au Jus.  Recipe posted on 5/23/10, Roast Beef Au Jus and on 10/11/10 Roast Beef on Swiss,  There was a pint of thinly sliced lean and tender beef and meat juices that I julienned and added to the defrosted onion soup.

What a meal!  It was even better than I had thought it might be.  In the future I will use any leftover cooked steak or roast by slicing it ultra thin and freezing it for later use in this wonderful onion soup.

Then if you REALLY want to hit it out of the park top the steaming soup with shredded cheese of your choice.   I used extra sharp cheddar but I will be try crumbled Maytag blue for sure!! 

Yield 4 servings.  NOTE:  These are challenging times for a lot of us and it is wise to not waste under any circumstances. Using your freezer to save and use your good ingredients is truly a wise and useful habit to cultivate.  My Grandma Neukan set a wonderful example for me.  I am so glad she did!!

Pumpkin Bourbon Pie

There is a warming quality in bourbon that I like a lot.  It just added a little extra "somethin somethin"to these pies.  Now I am wondering if it might be really tasty to stir about a tablespoonful of good Kentucky bourbon into soft vanilla ice cream before topping the pie with a big dollop????Ummmm.....

Ingredients:

2 unbaked 9" pie shells  (Pastry recipe for 5 crusts given 7/7/10 under Cherry Pie or recipe 10/29/10 Pastry for Three Crusts.)
1 large can of pumpkin puree (29  Oz.)
4 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 T. bourbon
1 1/2 C. sugar
1 t. salt
2 1/2 t. Vietnamese Cinnamon
1 1/2 t. ground ginger
1/2 t. ground cloves
1 1/2 cans evaporated milk (12 Oz. cans) or  2  1/4 C. half and half 

Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.  Using a large bowl beat the eggs well.  Add the pumpkin and continue beating.  Stir in the vanilla and bourbon then set aside.

Using a medium bowl and a large sieve measure the sugar, salt, and spices into the sieve and press it into the bowl to remove any lumps.  Add this into the pumpkin and egg mixture and mix well.  Slowly beat in the milk scraping the sides and bottom well to incorporate the ingredients well.

Pour into the two prepared pie shells and bake in the center of the oven for 15 minutes.  Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. and bake for 50 -60 minutes more until the filling is done in the center.

You may want to cover the pie edge with edge guards or foil if it is browning too quickly, this varies oven to oven.  Each pie serves 6 so two pies yields 12 large slices.  Top with sweetened whipped cream or ice cream.

Pineapple and Walnut Cheese Ball ('Tis the Season to Entertain)

This morning as I was heading up the stairs the phone was ringing and I heard Brian catch it.  We are having guests tonight was what he told me as I rounded the hallway.  Since I was cooking the orange marmalade I was in the kitchen anyway so I thought I'd make up something to snack on this evening!!

We had a neighbor named Brenda Remlinger who gave me this recipe back when the boys were in grade school and I have made it many times.  It is especially good served with Sociables Crackers.

Ingredients:

2,  8 Oz. bars of cream cheese
1 large can of crushed pineapple drained through a strainer then pressed on paper towels several times until it is very dry.

Drained and Dried Pineapple.

2 T. minced shallots or onion
2 T. drained pimentos
1/2 C.  finely chopped walnuts
1 C. rough chopped walnuts


Combine the cream cheese, pineapple, shallots and finely chopped walnuts until well mixed.  Then fold in the pimento.


Place 2 large sheets of plastic wrap on a work surface forming a large cross.  Plop the cream cheese mixture in the center of the cross and gather up the wrap (with your hands under it) forming the cheese into a ball.

Place the chopped nutmeats in a shallow bowl and turn the cheese ball into it.  Pressing the nuts with your fingers press them into the sides of the cheese ball and turn it in the nuts until coated.



Refrigerate until serving time.  Serve with assorted crackers and crisp vegetables.