Rolls I Like to Make

My sister's second marriage ended in 2010. She didn't get much out of her 10+ years with the guy, but she did get this amazing dinner roll recipe from his mother. She called it "Rolls I Like to Make."

The recipe notes that "the secret to good rolls is: The 'rising' of the dough. 1st rising at least 1 hr. and 15 or 20 min. 2nd rising the same amount of time."

I have had a lot of luck cutting this recipe in half, and with making interesting shapes out of the dough. I suppose sometimes the best family recipes come from other families.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups warm water
• 2 packages yeast (dry yeast)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg (beaten)
• 1/4 cup shortening (FW note: I use butter.)
• 6 1/2 to 7 cups flour

Mix the first 6 ingredients all together. Pour into the flour and mix well ("a dough"). Set in a warm place to rise (an hour and a 1/2). Knead the dough and shape into balls and put on two greased cookie sheets. Set in a warm place and let rise another hour and 20 minutes at least. Set oven at 350 degrees and have oven on for the 2nd rising. Bake rolls until light brown (almost 15 minutes).

Coloma County Casserole

My dad found this recipe, but I am not able to find a "Coloma County" in the south (California gold country and Wisconsin are the two that come up). I also haven't seen black eyed peas done this way, but it is the best way and will convert most people who say they hate black eyed peas.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. bag dried black eyed peas
• Bay Leaf
  
• 2 cups chopped ham
• 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded & divided
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 onion, chopped (save other half for beans)
  
• 2 cups milk
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
  
• 2 tsp Seasoned Salt (Lawry's)
• 1 tbsp Tabasco sauce

Soak beans overnight, and rinse. Cover with fresh water and bring to boil in large pot. Add a ham bone if you have one, and the non-chopped half of onion & bay leaf. Reduce to simmer and let cook until the peas are soft, an hour to 90 minutes.

Make a cheese sauce by sauteing the onion and butter until onions are soft. Add milk and heat to almost boiling. Add cornstarch dissolved into a little cold milk, and stir with a whisk into the milk mixture. Keep stirring as it thickens. Add Seasoned Salt, Tabasco, and 1 cup of the cheese.

Grease a 13"x9" casserole dish. Add drained black eyed peas, ham & cheese sauce. Top with remaining cheese, and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve with corn bread and collard greens on New Year's Day for luck & prosperity. And if you double up on the ham and cheese, it still comes out okay.

[photo from sleepyneko's flickr stream]

Ginger Cookies

During the '70s health craze, my mom would make "cookies," made with Wheaties, wheat germ, whole wheat flour, practically no sugar, and raisins. They came out of the oven as hard as rocks, and my sister and I would use them as such in our fights. Later on, my mom started making cookies that were much better, like these:

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Combine butter, sugar, molasses and egg; beat well. Sift dry ingredients and add to the butter/sugar mixture. Chill in the refrigerator while you enjoy a glass of wine; about an hour. Roll dough into 1" balls, dip on sugar, and place un-sugared side down on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Battle of the Banana Breads

"In this corner is Patricia's banana bread - a lightweight if there ever was. And in this corner is Jackie's Banana Bread - heavyweight champion of the bake sale." Both of these are great recipes - you decide which one you like best.

Patricia's Banana Bread
Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup soft butter
• 1 egg
• 1 cup mashed banana
• 2 tbsp orange rind
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup nuts

Cream butter and sugar; beat in egg and banana, rind, then milk. Sift dry ingredients together and gently fold in. Add nuts. I forget how long to bake this as bread; mostly I make muffins with it - 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Jackie's Banana Bread
Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 cup banana (3 large)
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk

Cream butter and sugar; add bananas, eggs and vanilla. Sift dry ingredients; add alternating with milk. Pour into greased loaf pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 hours.

Lemon Meringue Pie fit for a King

In the past when I've gone to visit my dad, he's greeted me at the door with a pie pan and a lemon. This recipe is why.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1 1/2 cup water
• 3 egg yolks (reserve whites for meringue)
• 3 tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• Rind of one lemon

Meringue:

• 3 egg whites
• 1/3 cup sugar

In heavy saucepan, blend sugar and cornstarch. Gradually add water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. Bring to boil, and boil for one minute. Stir 1/2 mixture into beaten egg yolks; stir back into rest of the mixture. Boil one minute longer. Remove from heat and add lemon juice, rind and butter; stir well. Pour into baked pie crust and top with meringue; brown under broiler taking care to not set it on fire because man oh man it will do so the minute you look away.

Sugar Top Cookies

This amazing bar cookie recipe is from my Great-grandma Brown, and I've never seen anything like it in any cookbook or on the internet. It is my mother's favorite.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter (one stick)
• 2 eggs; plus one egg yolk (reserve white)
• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp salt

Topping:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg white
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Cream butter and sugar; beat in eggs one at a time. Add sifted dry ingredients. Spread into greased 13"x9" pan. Make a meringue by adding brown sugar to stiffly beaten egg white. Add vanilla, and spread over cookie mixture. Sprinkle nuts evenly over top, and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Cut into bars.

Peanut Butter Cookies

This is my father's mother's recipe, and my all-time favorite peanut butter cookie.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 2 1/2 cup flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp vanilla

Cream sugar and butter. Add eggs and beat well. Add peanut butter, flour, soda and vanilla. Drop by teaspoon full onto cookie sheet. Flatten with a fork. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Makes 6 dozen cookies if you don't nibble at the dough.