When I was a boy back on the prairies one of our favorite treats was to have Dad cook dinner.
Mom worked and some times she would have evening shifts at Safeway or be out at a Historical Society meeting.
This would sometimes mean breakfast for dinner or just about anything he could put together after a hard day in the field or in the shop.
One of my favorites was battered Bologna or any other type of meat like salami or kielbasa.
I had a roll of turkey summer sausage given to me as a stocking stuffer over the holidays. Get your minds out of the gutter it was Pepper Ridge Farm!
So one night in a fit of desperation, or was it culinary boredom and nostalgia, I grabbed a box of pancake batter and my sausage and heated up the fry pan.
Cut the sausage as thin as you can and dip it into the batter, it should be think enough to stick to the meat but not so think as to fall off when it's cooked.
Fry until golden brown, and enjoy... with catsup or spicy pepper sauce.
Christmas mornings meant a few special treats beyond the obvious stocking stuffers. We would be allowed to dig in to our own stockings which contained mandarin oranges, chocolates and other goodies. Small gifts from Santa (Lego) would keep us busy until the adults were up and ready for the formal gift distribution. This was done by Grampa or Dad under the strict supervision of Grama or Mom. " Not that one, do this one next". Each tag and card was read before the gift was ripped open and the wrapping paper tossed in to the fire for an extra pyrotechnic punch. Although at Grama's house we were encouraged to unwrap carefully and keep the bows and paper for reuse. We had some fancy cards that were reused year to year with extra verses added on paper. I remember some that were exchanged year after year between my Mom and Dad.
After the mornings drama played out and before relatives from afar arrive, mom would take her signature breakfast pizza out and pop it in the oven. It was a welcome somewhat balanced meal after the mornings sugar rush.
This is the original recipe as transcribed by my mom, possibly from Canadian Living or BH and G, or more likely off the back of the crescent roll package.
I hope you enjoy this as much as we did when we were children.
Ps It's also easy to make on a hectic day.
This seems like an unlikely name for a drink that I first experienced in the bright sunshine on a summer day. However I was sitting on a pier enjoying a lobster quesadilla ( fusion food, but it worked)
The basic idea is dark rum and ginger BEER with a splash of lime. However that's just the start.Ginger ale is not the same it's just soda, you really need to have that ginger kick.
As a bit of background, this drink owes its roots to the British Empire.
Legend has it that in a effort to cut down on rum consumption in Bermuda the Brits decided to allow Ginger Beer as an option for the weekly ration. However the rules were not specific and the boys just said yes to both.
And the Dark and Stormy was born.
The ideal rum is, not surprisingly, Goslings Black Seal from Bermuda, a strong dark rum with molasses to spare. Pour this onto three ice cubes in an old fashioned glass and top up with ginger beer. Make sure you get a spicy one, there are a number of them that range from artisan to discount. Some are even from Bermuda and many are good. Try to get cane sugar and real ginger flavor, if its cloudy and makes you "hack" it's so spicy it will work just fine. Some people like a slice of lime and that can add to the cloudy storminess of this potent drink.
May all your Dark and Stormy nights be of this kind.
Cheers, BW
This cookie, if you can call it that, was always a favorite of mine. I sent out the usual request for recipes but it was not in the archives... It may have fallen out of fashion before the definitive set of recipes in the book of books was written. Not a problem with the internet. I trolled around and found a suitable replacement. I don't remember these having peanuts in them and others don't remember these treats at all :-(.
But they did exist and as with many prairie treats they were often wrestled from Tupperware in the freezer when no one was looking.
The basic formula is as follows:
2 cups of chocolate chips 2 cups of butterscotch chips 2 cups of dried canned chow mein noodles 1 cup peanut butter
Melt the butterscotch chips first if you can using the double boiler add the chocolate chips stir slowly until fully melted.
then turn off the heat let it cool slightly, then mix in the noodles with a spatula or wooden spoon. mix slowly taking care not to brake the noodles. Stir until they are covered with chocolate. Add peanuts at this time.
If you don't want the peanuts add more noodles until it has the consistency of reinforced concrete and not a noodle soup.
Place the stacks on wax paper on a cookie sheet and put in the refrigerator to set.
If they look like they have a skirt of liquid chocolate they are too runny and add more noodles.
I made several batches and found that if you reduce the butterscotch chips and use dark chocolate chips they are much better . I also added a teaspoon of Nescafe " Classico" instant coffee to the final batch that really pushed the whole taste over the top.
When I was a boy on the Prairies, my Mom used to make these cookies in a giant salad bowl. I decided to work on reducing the size of the recipe from Canadian Forces kitchen size to a manageable batch! I'm sure we used Smarties as M+M's were not available till later.
The non giant size that worked for me was to 1/4 every thing, it all fit into a regular mixing bowl. Put the M and M's in last to avoid crushing them.
1/4 lbs butter, unsalted 1 cup white sugar 3 eggs 3/4 lbs peanut butter, ( 1, 1/3 cups ) 4.5 cups oatmeal, quick cook type 2 tsp Baking Soda 1/4 lbs unsalted blanched peanuts ( 3/4 cup ) 1/8 cup milk 1/4 lbs M and M's Makes 5 dozen ( not that I'm counting its a lot) The directions and temperatures are all below and all good.
I see from the original recipe it came from my Auntie Eileen who lived in Compton, and then Annihiem California. Everything she made or sent us in care packages was viewed as the height of sophistication. After all it came from Caaalifooornia ! My Aunt moved to California in the 50's and we came to visit her a few times over the years and she came back to Rapid City and Virden a few times as well. I remember my Aunt Joy came to the Rapid City Centennial or was it the Manitoba Centennial in 1971. Six years before they celebrated the end of crank phones. Party lines lasted in to the 80's in this rural area. I still remember only answering on " Two Long " rings and how people would pick up to see if the phone was busy as 4 families were sharing one line.
It was at my Nana's where I remember watching the Quebec crisis unfold on her Viking black and white TV. Tanks in the streets of Canada. I have taken a detour down memory lane..
I have posted the original recipe for those feeding an army and it has the original credit to Eileen on the card. I went to visit Uncle Russ and Auntie Eileen in 1983 crashing on their couch as a stop over on my way to Mexico in my VW. It was the thing to do back in the day. We celebrated my cousin Glens boy Russ's 2nd birthday with his and his wife Glinda's family. I was 20 and a bit crazy I guess. It cost $87 in gas to get to Mexico in those days... When I got to the border they asked where I was going I said " Montana " What? they didn't like that answer and grilled me for a while. I can't remember if I had my "Hippy" beard or not probably looked rough after a few days of sleeping in the car. Che' Guevara sort of look. I blew through Montana and on to California, stopping in Great Falls Idaho to pick up a Sony cassette and a copy of Led Zeppelin 4. I remember every time I turned on the radio it was Robert Plant "Big Log"
On this day, Mothers Day, 2011 I would like to post this recipe, as I do all with of my Mom's recipes as a tribute to those modern day pioneer ladies who were the mortar that held our families together.
Here's to all our mothers and there great knowledge.
In the language of the Lakota people "Mitakuye Oyasin " we are all family.
I guess we are just one global dysfunctional family.
Once twice three times a lady ...oops that's not Meat Loaf! Two outa three aint Bad. I was making a few treats for the holidays and realized that I had yet to post anything in 2011. It's not for lack of cooking or eating for that matter.
I have been a bit disturbed lately as my favorite cooking show featuring Nigella Lawson has been moved from the am to mid day on Sunday. How am I supposed to wait to have morning tea until that hour... I have have to get a recorder.
Nigella is at least 3 times a lady and four times the cook too. Her knife technique is unusual but two out of three isn't bad.
Meatloaf is a family staple and I have posted this in the past. Nigella's meatloaf on a scale of one to ten is definably an eleven. She has taken this house hold staple and elevated it to the status of an imposing island king robed in resplendent bacon, bejeweled with a golden orb embedded within. Intrigued? read on...
The first thing you have to do is hard boil three eggs, then let them cool so you can peel them. Preheat the oven to 400
4 eggs 1lbd of onions chopped finely 5 tablespoons of duck fat or butter 1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1/2 teaspoon table salt 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 2 pounds ground beef, (I used turkey and pork) 2 cups fresh breadcrumbs 20 slices of bacon
large roasting pan
Peel and chop the onions, make them uniform and smallish as large ones make the loaf fall apart. Heat the fat in a fry pan and cook the onions gently until they are golden, sprinkling with salt, remove and allow to cool in a bowl
Put the meat in a large bowl and add the Worchestershire sauce and the onions once cooled. Mix it with your hands
Add the last egg mix and then add the bread crumbs.
Divide the mixture into two parts patting half of it into a ovoid shape in the bottom of the pan. peel and place the three eggs in the middle of the loaf.
Shape the remaining meat over the eggs and into a fat torpedo of truth shape taking care npot to over work it. Be wary of holes.
This next step separates art from stupidity, bandage the meat torpedo in bacon carefully wrapping the entire loaf like a Mummy.
Bake for 1 hr at 400 and then let it rest for 15 to 20 min before cutting with a sharp knife
It's really quite spectacular and easy to make. The leftovers make meatloaf sandwiches which are great in there own right.
