A Perfect Day

Those of you who know me know how much I adore my granddaughter!  Today was a rainy day and it was perfect for a cooking lesson.  Here we are making sweet potato pie.

Pineapple Casserole

This one is everyone's favorite.  (A cup of sugar!  Well, yeah.)  My grandmother used to make it to carry to covered dish dinners at her church in Turin, Georgia.  It is in the Parrott Family Cookbook she published.

Yellow Crookneck Squash Casserole

2 to 3 cups cooked squash (I boiled for 3-5 min)

1 egg, slightly beaten

1/2 stick butter, sliced

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided

1.5 cups Ritz or saltine cracker crumbs, divided

Dash to 1/8 tsp red (cayenne) pepper

About 1/4 tsp salt

About 1/8 tsp pepper

About 1/4 tsp oregano

Cook squash.  Mix egg, butter, mayo, sugar, 1/2 of cheese, and 1/2 of cracker crumbs.  Add drained squash and mix.  Add cayenne pepper, salt, pepper and oregano. Mix all ingredients well.  Use Pam cooking oil spray to coat 2 quart casserole dish.  Pour ingredients into casserole dish.  Top with remaining cheese then remaining cracker crumbs.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Louisiana Remoulade

My hubby and I discovered remoulade sauce while on our honeymoon in Jekyll Island, Georgia.  Yumminess!  It is expensive though, and being a cheepy accountant type, I sought to make my own!  I stole this one from somewhere and I've lost the link. 

Louisiana Remoulade

1 cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 tablespoon Louisiana-style hot sauce

2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons capers, roughly chopped

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon mild paprika

1 scallion, finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, parsley, hot sauce, whole-grain mustard, garlic, capers, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, scallion, salt, and cayenne pepper. Let sit for 1 hour for flavors to combine, then serve or cover and store in the refrigerator.

Biscuits

I can't find the site I stole this from.  When I do, I will give them credit!

2 cups self-rising flour

1 tablespoon baking powder (3 teaspoons)

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 to 1/3 cup shortening

2/3 cup milk or buttermilk or yogurt

First get out your big bowl. Put the flour, baking powder and salt into the bowl. Drop in the shortening and use your fingers to casually mix it in with the dry ingredients. Don't get too serious about it because it is better to under mix at this point than over mix. There should still be a few lumps of shortening, the size of peas, or even a little bigger. Two minutes or less of mixing should do it. Next add the milk. Stir it up into a soft dough. On dry days you may need another spoonful or two of milk. Form the dough into a soft ball. Get a piece of waxed paper and lay it on your counter. Sprinkle the waxed paper with a little bit of flour. Place the dough ball on the flour and knead it exactly 10 times. No more, no less. This activates the gluten in the flour just enough, but not too much. Next flatten out the dough with a rolling pin or your hands so it is about 3/4″ thick. Cut into biscuit shapes with a biscuit cutter, or the rim of a clean cup or can. I use a tomato paste can for small biscuits and a tuna can for large biscuits. Works really well. Lay the biscuits onto a cookie sheet or pizza pan and bake them at 425° for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on their size. Makes about a dozen medium sized biscuits. You can brush them with melted margarine when you take them from the oven if you want them to look pretty when they arrive at the table.

Cheese Biscuits: These are made simply by adding a cup of cheese to the flour after you mix in the shortening, right before adding the milk. Cut into smallish biscuits and cook as directed. They are really good with spaghetti or lasagna.

Caldo Verde (Portuguese Green Soup) Recipe

I started growing kale this fall in my garden.  I had never eaten kale before, but after learning how healthy the stuff is, I couldn't wait to try it!

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 6 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 quarts cold water
• 6 ounces linguica sausage, thinly sliced
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• ground black pepper to taste
• 1 pound kale, rinsed and julienne

Directions

1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, cook onion and garlic in 3 tablespoons olive oil for 3 minutes. Stir in potatoes and cook, stirring constantly, 3 minutes more. Pour in water, bring to a boil, and let boil gently for 20 minutes, until potatoes are mushy.
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium-low heat, cook sausage until it has released most of its fat, 10 minutes. Drain.
3. Mash potatoes or puree the potato mixture with a blender or food processor. Stir the sausage, salt and pepper into the soup and return to medium heat. Cover and simmer 5 minutes.
4. Just before serving, stir kale into soup and simmer, 5 minutes, until kale is tender and jade green. Stir in the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and serve at once.

http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/25737/caldo-verde-portuguese-green-soup