Friday Friend Recipe #124 --Fresh Fruit Dip

Come with me as I continue to countdown my Friday Friend Cookbook!

What is it, you may ask?

In a nutshell...
About 17 years ago, 50 of my closest friends and family, who had been on an e-mail forum with me, sent in recipes in different categories and we compiled a cookbook.
I decided to count those down!
Why?

Because  one night I was looking thru the cookbook and I said, "I should make every recipe in here for my blog"
The Handyman--who thinks he knows me better than I know myself, said,  "you'll never EVER do that."
Well,  maybe I will!  Maybe I'll show him!

Which brings me to recipe #124 My Mom's Fresh Fruit Dip

FRESH FRUIT DIP

Beverly Hambelton

Kennewick, WA

3 T lemon juice

2 C. cream of coconut mix

(not coconut milk, but cream of coconut, you can find it in the liquor section of the grocery store)

8oz Cool Whip

1 pkg instant vanilla pudding

Mix all together and refrigerate. This is good with all fresh fruits!

This really is good! 

This is my mom's 20th time in the Friday Friend Cookbook Countdown!

As I've said before, it's getting harder and harder to think of stories about people--even tho she was my mom!

Let me see what I can come up with.....

My Mother: Naughty and Nice!

I came from a split household. 

Divided right down the middle.

My dad was  a reader--my mom was not.

Once I asked them if their parents were readers--if they had books around the home when they were growing up.

My mom said: There were always books around my house.  My parents read all the time especially as they got older. The only book I ever read of my parents was "God's Little Acre" because it was naughty!!!

They read anything they could put their hands on.

I always remember my mother saying that, so a couple of years ago, I found that book at the Boise Library Sale and I picked it up. I've never read it, but HOLY COW, look at that cover!  It really was naughty!!

 My dad answered:

My parents both read quite a bit, but usually paperbacks or mysteries from the library.  We had no reading room or library--just the bathroom (my dad thought he was so funny)

I don't remember any specific books.

My dad was a lifelong reader and my mom learned to put up with it, eventually even learning to like to read a bit herself.

Here they are on their honeymoon.... 

And again, 15 or so years later.

My mom talks about sneaking 'God's Little Acre', from her folks, but little did she know, I was sneaking books from their night stand too...

Valley of the Dolls

Coffee, Tea or Me!

There was some naughty stuff going on in those books too!  But the cover was mild compared to God's Little Acre.

For some reason a year later, I asked them another book question --

What is your favorite book? What one book have you read over?

My mom said:

Think about that question!  This is your mother! (sigh) I suppose the book that I have read over and over is "God's Little Acre" back when I was in school.  It was considered a 'naughty' book and I suppose that is why I read it!

Anyway, I should say that my favorite book is the Bible, but I have only read it clear thru once, and some of it was....confusing.

I have read all of Erma Bombeck's book and liked them, but as you know, I'm not much of a reader.

My dad answered:

Boy, how do I answer the question, 'what is your favorite book?'

I have read Hawaii many times and I really like James Michener's books. I like 'The Shining' by Stephen King.  I guess I don't know if I really have a favorite  (we should always say The Bible, and although I don't read it much, it is probably my favorite)

I own my books and rarely go to the library and when I read a good book, I tell people about it.

Books like movies though, everyone has different likes and dislikes.

They both mentioned the Bible as a favorite.

I find that nice, but funny that my mom could go from

God's Little Acre to the Bible in one sentence. 

And then Erma Bombeck---because---Erma, you know.

That was my mom--very multi-layered.

Naughty and Nice!

And she was very comfortable with that.

*****************

I ended up with a bunch of family bible's.

My dad's.

My grandma's

and

some ancestor named Louisa who got the red one in 1830 when she was born or 1847 when she got married.  (the copyright date is 1811)

Then it made it's way to my great-grandmother, Mrs. OD Shaver.

I did not end up with my mom's bible---my brother has that one.  He probably has others too.  When my parents passed away we uncovered many many in  the basement.  Old family bibles and one cannot get rid of them.  I mean, how?

Anyway, that's my story!

Recipe #124

out of 298

Applesauce

While  glancing thru some of my favorite blogs the other day, I found this easy homemade applesauce recipe at  "At Spoonful of Thyme".

I love homemade applesauce, so much more than store-bought.  I love it warm, and traditionally as a side dish next to some pork chops.  So, that's just what I did last night---made pork chops and applesauce.

Because I am a child of the 70's,  whenever I hear or in this case, write, pork chops and applesauce,  I can see Peter Brady, on the Brady Bunch doing his Humphrey Bogart impression, saying:  Pork chops and applesauce.

Does anyone besides me remember that?

(I am sure my friend Theda does--yay Theda!)

I didn't have to go far to find apples for this applesauce---the ones left on my tree needed something to be done with them FAST, so I went out and gathered some, peeled chopped and added them to the slow cooker.

My house smelled--FANTASTIC all day long.

I love fall.

Thanks Kathy for the great recipe.

Homemade Applesauce
A Spoonful of Thyme

6-10 large apples, peeled, cored and chunked
1/2 cup water
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 to 1 cup brown  sugar, packed

Put all ingredients in the slow cooker.  Cover and cook  on low for 8-10 hours.
Use a potato masher to get the desired consistency.

Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake

My grandchildren love blueberries, so I bought a big carton of blueberries last Friday and even tho they ate their way thru so many of them, I still had enough to whip up the blueberry sauce for yesterdays German Pancakes and today's  Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake.

I let no blueberry go to waste.  (now bread?  Bread I let go to waste...but that's another story...)

This pound cake recipe can also be found at Brenda's Canadian Kitchen.  I should just start a regularly featured-weekly post about all the recipes I get from her.  There are many, and I'm almost embarrassed...but....they are really good. They call my name and I have to make them. 

I love the flavor of lemon and the blueberries in this pound cake were just an added bonus.
Pound cakes  have always been on my favorites list.  Pound cakes are usually very dense and heavy,  and while I like that heavy denseness, not everyone does. Well, let me tell you,  this particular one was kept very moist by the addition of the Lemon syrup over the top.
I am without a microwave at the moment, so I made a lemon and sugar simple syrup and brushed that over the top of the warm cake and when we bit into the cake--WOW--what a burst of fresh lemon flavor.

Blueberry Lemon Pound Cake


1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
3 T milk
2 T finely grated lemon zest
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen wild blueberries


Lemon Syrup
1/4 cup sugar
3 T lemon juice


In large bowl, beat butter with sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until light and creamy. Beat in milk, lemon zest and vanilla.


In separate bowl, whisk together all but 1 tablespoon of the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into butter mixture until smooth and blended.


Toss blueberries with remaining tablespoon of flour; fold half into batter. Scrape half of the batter into 9 x 5-inch parchment paper-lined loaf pan. Sprinkle with remaining blueberries. Scrape remaining batter over berries, smoothing top. Bake in 350F oven until cake tester inserted in centre comes out clean, about 1 1/2 hours.


Lemon Syrup: In microwaveable bowl, microwave sugar with lemon juice at high, stirring once, until hot and sugar is dissolved, 30 seconds.


With skewer, poke holes all over top of cake; brush or pour syrup evenly over top. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan; let cool completely.


Makes 12 servings.

*******************************

I ran  home at lunch today and made myself some oatmeal.
(ran:  not as in literally ran, but went home very fast in my car)
YES, oatmeal.  I like oatmeal, and I was itching to try  the blueberry sauce on the oatmeal.  (I had pound cake for breakfast, remember.....I eat a balanced meal)

verdict?
Home made blueberry sauce on oatmeal is great!!

**********************************************************

Java from Never Growing Old hosts the "Meet Me on Monday" meme.  I thought I'd play along today.

Her questions this week are:
1. What feature of the opposite sex do you notice first?
I guess I notice eyes....and if they have laugh lines.  I like somebody who laughs.  The Handyman laughs at me all the time---in a good way.  (He laughs with me)

2. Do you talk to yourself?
Of course I talk to myself....doesn't everybody?



3. What is your current relationship status?
On Friday, the Handyman and I celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary!


4. Do you have a garden?
A flower garden only this year with some herbs and a few tomato plants interspersed thru-out.


5. What is your favorite licorice flavor?
I like the licorice flavor..... black, but that is not my favorite licorice-type of candy ----since we all call Twizzlers, Red Vines, etc etc, licorice, I'd have to say that Red Vines  are my favorite.
I like to eat them at the movie theater. With popcorn.
WAIT!  I do love Good and Plenty too...and that is  'real' licorice flavor.

Candied Apples and Family Recipes

I knew I was late posting a Thanksgiving recipe for a reason.

The reason is, so that I can start a new year by being a part of:

 

Family Recipes is an event hosted by Shelby of "The Life and Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch", Laura of "the Spiced Life", and Lynda of "Lynda's Recipe Box".

Check it out here for complete details.

 

 

I always call dishes such as these, weird foods from my youth, (we have a lot of them)  because I've never seen anyone else make them, EVER.

I'm sure they do, because I used to think that my grandma's hot buttered rum recipe was a family secret too, but have since found out that it's a "very popular" recipe for homemade batter.

By now, I'm sure you're wondering what?  What is she making that is so "weird"?   (but good).

I will tell you...

Candied Apples.

 

My great-grandmother made them:  Lillian Staggs

My grandmother made them:  Irene Shaver

My mother makes them:  Beverly Hambelton

and I make them: Debbie Stone

and I love them.  They are a tradition.

 

The handwritten recipe below comes from my great-grandmother, Lillian.

(notice no paragraphs or punctuation)

 

Notice that she says it makes a "colorful" dish.

And that's the truth.

These are not the candied apples of carnivals...

...but more of a spiced/cinnamon whole applesauce kind of thing.

Like a baked apple, only not baked.

cooked on top of the stove

Candied Apples 

 (taken verbatim from my great-grandmother)

I get apples about the same size

I've always cooked them in that heavy frying pan

about twelve or thirteen apples.

Core your apples first and peel

fill centers with those little red cinnamon candies and  put

enough sugar over them so juice thickens about like Jelly

and I keep turning them with two forks until they

are tender generally a few at a time are ready to take out

if the juice gets too thick I keep pouring a little water to it as they cook and I add red food coloring from the first thats what colors them red

Hope you can read and make this out

you can rewrite it if you can read it once

I think that's all there is to it.

It makes a colorful dish

Love, grandmother

Now I will translate:

find about 8-12 small apples that cook up well  (won't turn mushy)

Actually,  Rome apples work well, or Golden Delicious.

Peel and core them.

place in a heavy frying pan

fill with "red hots"  (little cinnamon candies)

pour extra candies around the apples.

Add a bit of water and a bit of sugar, and a bit of red food coloring

simmer apples , until candies melt and you think the apples are "red" all the way thru.

Keep in fridge, serve cold.

The Trick is to try and get the "red" color all the way thru the apples without them turning to "mush".

you want them whole, like a baked apple.

Sadly, I didn't get a picture of the finishes product.

Here we go.....

Counting to see how many apples will fit in the pan.

Peeled, cored and filled with red hots!

It is okay if there is a bit of peel left on the apple. It happens.

My mother adding a bit of sugar...she was very fast.

Consider this a "action" shot.

She has her old Tupperware scoop. It's been in our sugar bin since I was a kid.

Another "action" shot.... as she began to turn the apples.  I don't think she was using "2 forks", but some tongs.

My mom never quite got the "hold it...I'm going to take a picture" of this candied apple making process.

Pouring the "juice" over and over and over the apples, so they get the color thru and the "red hot" flavor.

My mom.  On the phone.  While making candied apples for me.

Ta-Da!!

We always serve these apples as a....

not really a salad

nor a dessert

but, rather,

with the cranberries.

If you like applesauce, baked apples or apple pie. 

(or red hots, fire styx,  atomic fireballs, all candies of the 1960's and 70's , or candied apples from your old carnival days)

You'll probably like these.

I am submitting this to the Family Recipe Event.