Sour Cream Pound Cake
INGREDIENTS
½ Cup Butter
4 Eggs
½ Cup Sour Cream
1 ½ Cups Unbleached Flour
¼ Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/8 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Cup Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Preheat oven to 325° F. Grease and flour a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan and set aside. I like to use a glass loaf pan. Allow butter, eggs and sour cream to stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes. In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for about 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and then add eggs one at a time. Beat eggs one at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each addition and scraping the bowl frequently. Alternately add the flour mixture and sour cream to butter mixture, beating on low to medium speed after each addition just until combined. Spread batter evenly into the prepared pan.
Bake for 60 to 75 minutes or until done. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool thoroughly on rack.
You can experiment and add blueberries, lemon, chocolate or whatever strikes you.
Goes great with coffee!
Oyster Stew
INGREDIENTS
2 Chopped Green Onions
3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
12 Ounces Undrained Fresh Raw Oysters
1 Quart Half & Half
¼ Teaspoon Kosher Salt
¼ Teaspoon White Pepper
1/8 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
Oyster Crackers for Serving
Slice Green Onions for Garnish
Saute the onion in butter until tender and then add the remaining ingredients. Cook over a low heat until the edges of the oysters begin to curl and mixture is hot, but NOT boiling. Serve oyster stew with crackers and garnish with diced green onions.
Italian Cheesecake
INGREDIENTS
3 ½ Cups Ricotta Cheese
¼ Cup Unbleached Flour
Pinch of Salt
1 Grated Lemon Rind
1 Grated Orange Rind
1 Tablespoon Vanilla
4 Beaten Eggs
1 Cup Sugar
Mix all ingredients and place in a 9 inch spring form pan. Bake in pre-heated oven of 350° for 45 minutes to 1 hour – or until firm. Serve warm or chilled. Serves 6. Store in the refrigerator.
Rum Balls
You may use bourbon instead of rum if you wish.
INGREDIENTS
3 Cups Finely Crushed Vanilla Wafers
1 Cup Finely Chopped Pecans
1 Cup Powdered Sugar – Divided
1 Cup Semi-Sweet Morsels
½ Cup Light Corn Syrup
1/3 Cup Rum or Bourbon
In a medium mixing bowl combine crushed wafers, pecans and ½ cup powdered sugar and set aside. In a double boiler (over simmering water) melt chocolate morsels with corn syrup. Add rum or bourbon and stir until smooth. Pour chocolate mixture over wafer mixture. Stir to combine thoroughly. Shape mixture into 1 inch balls and place on waxed paper.
Place remaining powdered sugar in a shallow bowl and roll balls in sugar. Store in an airtight container between layers of waxed paper. Makes approximately 4 dozen.
Standing Rib Roast
Super easy to make and great for Sunday dinners or Christmas Dinner!
INGREDIENTS
7 Pound Rib Roast (Bone-in)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 Crushed Cloves of Garlic
Salt & Freshly Ground Pepper
Place roast in a baking pan or broiling pan. Brush oil over roast; place garlic on roast; salt and pepper to taste and let stand at room temperature for 2 hours. Pre-heat oven to 450° F. Roast for 10 minutes and then reduce heat to 350° F and continue for 1 hour and 20 minutes for rare. Baste with drippings from time to time. Roast 15 minutes more if you want a medium roast and another 15 minutes for well done. Remove from oven when done and allow the roast to rest for a few minutes before carving. Transfer to a warmed serving platter.
Russian Tea Cakes
I grew up eating these at Christmas. Sometimes I would see how many I could fit in my mouth at once!
INGREDIENTS
1 Cup Softened Butter
½ Cup Powdered Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
¼ Teaspoon Salt
2 ¼ Cups Unbleached Flour
¾ Cup Finely Chopped Walnuts
Additional Powdered Sugar
In a large bowl combine first 6 ingredients on the low speed of a mixer for about 1 minute. Gradually add flour at low speed until just combined. Next stir in the nuts. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place them about 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350° F for 8 to 10 minutes or until firm to the touch – but NOT brown. Do NOT over bake. While warm, roll in additional powdered sugar. Cool and re-roll in powdered sugar before serving.
A holiday favorite!
Shortbread Cookies
INGREDIENTS
1 Cup Unbleached Flour
¼ Cup Sugar
½ Cup Salted Butter
Preheat the oven to 300° F.
In a large bowl mix together the flour and sugar. Add the butter, but don’t over mix. Evenly press the shortbread mixture into a tart pan. If you don’t have a tart pan then you may use a pie pan. Smooth the top and prick the surface with the tines of a fork. Bake on the middle rack for approximately 40 to 50 minutes. You will know when it is done when shortbread turns a light biscuit color. Remove and place on a rack to cook for about 5 minutes. Cut into approximately 16 wedges.
Cranberry Pineapple Relish
INGREDIENTS
2 Cups Fresh Cranberries
4 Cups Diced Pineapple
4 Cups Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon Grated Ginger
1 Cup Pineapple Juice
½ Teaspoon Cinnamon
Add all ingredients in saucepan and bring to a boil until cranberries pop. Cool in the refrigerator until ready to serve. A twist on traditional cranberry relish.
Naughty Naughty Mashed Potatoes!
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
5 Pounds Peeled & Cubed Russet Potatoes
2 Sticks Butter
¾ Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
2 Teaspoons Kosher Salt
¼ Teaspoon Garlic Powder
½ Teaspoon Fresh Ground Pepper
Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Cook potatoes in boiling water until very tender for approximately 20 minutes. Drain well. Mash potatoes with butter. Add cream, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Mix well. Super yummy and super naughty.
