Cherries for George Washington's Day

Today is George Washington's Birthday. We used to celebrate that in February, and Abe Lincoln's birthday on Feb. 12, before it was all rolled together into Presidents' Day on the third Monday. (Does that make me old - that I know that??) Anyway, I always think of cherries for February foods. Even though we now know that George Washington probably didn't really chop down a cherry tree and confess truthfully to it, historians do say he liked cherry pie. So its February and we're making something cherry.
I needed a quick covered dish to take to a meeting during a busy week, so this wasn't going to be the time for that cherry pie! Instead I recalled a 4-H demonstration my daughter had done ages ago (like 20 years!). We must have been so tired of that Cherry Angel Delight dessert after many practices that I didn't save the recipe. Nothing in my recipe notebooks. So I searched the old 4-H record books, and found it! Not only did she do this for a 4-H Day demonstration, but it was also a Favorite Food Show entry. It made a good demonstration and is an easy dessert to prepare. Blue ribbon all-around. The day after I made this I happened to find a very similar recipe on Pinterest, I guess it is still popular.

Cherry Angel Delight 

(also called Heaven of Earth Cake on Pinterest)

1 large prepared angel food cake (you can be ambitious and make your own, but remember I said this was an easy prep? Use a cake mix or buy a baked cake).
1 can (21 oz.) cherry pie filling
1 package (3.4 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 ½ cups cold milk
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream

Directions:
Cut or tear cake into ½-inch pieces to measure 8 cups. Place half the cake cubes in a 9-inch x 9-inch baking pan. Reserve ⅓ cup of pie filling, spread remaining filling over the cake cubes. Top with remaining cake cubes. Combine pudding mix, milk, and sour cream. Spoon over cake cubes. Cover an chill. To serve, cut into squares and top with reserved cherries.

The Heaven on Earth Cake version also included 8 oz. of whipped topping (Cool Whip). It was assembled with ½ of the cake cubes, ⅔ of cherry pie filling, ½ cake cubes, pudding mixture, whipped topping, garnish.

I prepared the dessert as a trifle in a footed clear bowl. Since this made the cake layers a little thicker and I wanted it to look pretty from the side, I layered it cake cubes + pudding mixture + cherries + cake cubes + cherries + pudding mixture, garnish with reserved cherry pie filling. Later I thought I should have also garnished with slivered almonds, next time!

Strawberry Shortcake is My Favorite too!

Favorite Food Shows have always been one of my favorite 4-H events. So when I was asked to judge in a neighboring county this spring, I agreed! It is always a fun time to see what the young cooks will bring and how they will display it. Of course, the interview with the judge carries the most points. I always ask about preparation, food safety, food groups, nutrition, and family traditions. They tell me why they chose the food as their favorite food display and what they know (or remember) about the preparation.
Usually there is a theme used to showcase the food and table, this can be a party theme, international idea, holiday, or other. This week when I judged, I saw a birthday party, a Mexican dinner, Irish stew, Easter and Christmas meals, and a cookout. The senior age winner used a chicken theme for Father's Day. The table was decorated with chicken decor and the main course was a chicken dish. But the favorite food was strawberry shortcake, the red accented the blue tones of the table well, as the dessert would have been a sweet accent for the meal.

Quick Breads - 101

Cold winter days are good days for baking. One of  my favorite things to bake is some sort of quick bread - muffins, banana bread, scones, coffeecakes, etc. Even pancakes or waffles for supper are a warm and tasty choice. Recently Beth, the County Extension Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, and I held a baking class on Quick Breads for 4-Hers. We talked about basics and more, then prepared 3 recipes. With the preps we covered different types of mixing, the functions of ingredients, nutrition, and what the judge might be looking for at the county fair.
The recipes we used were Special Banana Nut Bread (blog of August 4, 2013), Pumpkin Chip muffins (blog of May 20, 2012) and a basic scone recipe from the Home Baking Association (homebaking.org). These scones are easy and tasty, a recipe to enjoy again!
Quick breads are baked immediately after they  mixed since they don't require the extra rising time that yeast breads do. Leavening is accomplished with air, steam, and/or carbon dioxide from baking soda or baking powder.
Both baking soda and baking powder will cause baked products to rise, but they are not the same! The main difference is that baking powder contains an acid and baking soda does not. Baking powder today is usually double acting, meaning that it reacts and rises both with the addition of liquid and again with heat (in baking). Baking soda is often combined with other ingredients that contain an acid such as buttermilk or molasses to react. It reacts with liquid, not heat, and should be placed in the oven immediately after mixing.
You can check the strength of either leavening product easily to ensure the best rising action. Fresh ingredients will give a better product and I usually purchase new leavenings before baking for the fair or Christmas. To test the freshness of what is in your cupboard:
Baking soda: Put 1 tablespoon vinegar (acid) in a small cup. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. There should be a vigorous fizz.
Baking powder: Put 2 tablespoons warm water in a small cup. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon baking powder. It should bubble and foam, but will not be as vigorous as baking soda.

There are generally 3 methods of mixing quick bread batter. The type of quick bread and the consistency of the batter will determine which method you should use. The biscuit method cuts the fat into the dry ingredients. This is used for biscuits and some scones. The blending method combines the liquids and dry ingredients separately then adds the dry to the liquids. Use this for most muffins and fruit breads. The creaming is similar to cookie dough; solid fat and sugar are creamed together, then eggs are added, followed by wet and dry ingredients alternately. These product are more cake-like.

BASIC SCONES WITH CHOCOLATE CHIPS

2 ¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

⅓ cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ cup cold butter

1cup to 2 cups chopped dried fruit, chocolate or other flavored chips, nuts, or a combination (optional, but good!)

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract or the flavoring of your choice

½ cup to ⅔ cup half and half or milk

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.

Work in the butter just until the mixture is unevenly crumbly; it’s ok for some larger chunks of butter to remain unincorporated.

Stir in the fruit, chips, and/or nuts, if you’re using them.

In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla or other flavor, and half and half or milk.
Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until all is moistened and holds together.

Line a baking sheet with parchment; if you don’t have parchment, just use it without greasing it. Sprinkle a bit of four atop the parchment or pan.

Scrape the dough onto the floured parchment or pan, and divide it in half.

Round each half into a 5-inch circle (if you haven’t incorporated any add-ins); or a 6-inch circle (if you’ve added fruit, nuts, etc.). The circles should be about 3/4–inch thick.

Brush each circle with milk, and sprinkle with coarse white sparkling sugar or cinnamon sugar, if desired.

Using a knife or bench knife that you’ve run under cold water, score each circle into 6 wedges.

For best texture and highest rise, place the pan of scones in the freezer for 30 minutes, uncovered. While the scones are chilling, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Bake the scones for 20-25 minutes, or until they’re golden brown. When you slice one away from the others, it should look baked all the way through; the edge shouldn’t look wet or unbaked.

A good way to test baked products for doneness is with a food (meat) thermometer. Quick breads should bake to an internal temperature of 210 degrees.

Remove the scones from the oven, and cool briefly on the pan. Serve warm.

Holiday Snack Mix - 2nd generation

Little hands like to help

In the Kansas 4-H cookbook "Essence of Kansas - Taste 2",  my daughter, then a very young 4-Her, submitted a simple recipe for young cooks. Yesterday her daughter and I made the snack mix. Here's a simple and quick combo that can also help teach measuring and stirring skills for aspiring chefs.
They can even make it for teacher gifts.

Holiday Snack Mix

3 cups cinnamon toast-flavored cereal

2 cups chocolate bear-shaped graham snacks

2 cups peanuts

1 1/2 cups red and green candy-coated chocolate pieces

Combine cereal, graham snacks, peanuts and candy in large bowl, stirring to mix. Store in a tightly covered container. 

Cattle Work and Lunch

This has been the season for cattle work as the calves and their mamas find new pastures with fresh green grass. As the ranchers, my husband and daughter, spend their days in the pens, I prepare lunch with beef from our ranch. Here are two favorite recipes made with ground beef.

Ground beef is so easy to prepare in a variety of ways, and I usually request a big portion of a beef carcass be ground and packaged into 2-pound packages for our use. Recipes often call for 1 pound of ground beef; I use a 2-pound package after removing enough for 2-3 patties that I freeze for later use. Ground beef, often called Hamburger, has been associated with less expensive budget meals and perhaps a less tender or tasty cut, but we have it made 90/10, so there is very little fat to drain. The origin in the hamburger is not very clear, but the prevailing version is that at the end of the 1800's, European emigrants reached America on the ships of the Hamburg Lines and were served meat patties quickly cooked on the grill  and placed between two pieces of bread.

Mexican Cornbread                                                         

1 ¾ ground beef

1 onion, chopped

Brown in skillet. Add hot sauce or picante sauce to taste.

1 (Jiffy or Martha White) cornbread mix

Ingredients to make mix (egg and milk)

Mix as if making cornbread and add
1 can creamed corn

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

To assemble: Put ½ of cornbread mixture in bottom of oiled iron skillet (must be oven-proof). Add ground beef mixture. Add cheese. Add remaining cornbread mixture. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Mixture should appear set, not runny. Serve with picante sauce and/or sour cream.  

Cavatina

This recipe is from one of my favorite cookbooks - Essence of Kansas, Taste 1. The Kansas 4-H Foundation did a series of 3 cookbooks several years ago. It is fun to use the recipes and see where they came from. This one was submitted by a Greenwood County 4-Her, who is now a 4-H mom herself! 

8 oz curly noodles

2 pounds ground beef

16 oz spaghetti sauce

8 oz tomato sauce

1 (4 oz) can mushrooms

2 oz pepperoni, chopped

4 oz shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Cook noodles using package directions. Cook ground beef in skillet until brown and crumbly; drain. Add spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce, mushrooms and pepperoni. Heat until well mixed. Mix with noodles in large casserole dish. Top with cheese. Bake at 350° F. for 20 minute or until cheese melts.