Vegetable Beef Soup

The inspiration for this soup comes from my friend, Janine, who was generous enough to share her technique for making this soup.  I have searched for a great tasting vegetable soup for years, yet never was quite satisfied with any of the recipes that I had tried.  Janine never really had exact measurements, but I kept a record of amounts of ingredients that I used.  Her big secret for this soup was twofold.  Do not leave the cabbage out of the soup, even if you think that you do not like cabbage.  It is so fine, it just sort of disappears and the flavor of it is not overwhelming.  And although they are often a challenge to find, it is really important to use the beef short ribs.  Apparently, the marrow from the bones, adds a great flavor to the soup, and it will not be nearly as flavorful if you do not have this item in the soup.   Thanks Janine, for helping me cross one of my bucket list items off my list.                         

Part One: 

• 1 ½ lbs. beef stew meat
• 1 ½ lbs. beef short ribs
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

1.  In a plastic bag, put flour, salt, and pepper.  Shake to mix. 
2. Put the stew meat chunks in the bag and shake. 
3. Start heating the olive oil in a Dutch oven. 
4. Brown the stew meat in the oil. 
5. Add the beef short ribs.  It is not necessary to brown them.  In fact, the soup will be more flavorful, you don’t.
6. Add 10 cups of water to the meat mixture, and bring to a boil. 
7. Reduce and simmer with the lid on for 2 hours.
8. Remove the ribs only and let cool.

Part Two:

• ¼ head cabbage, finely grated or finely chopped with a food processor
• 3 carrots, coarsely chopped
• 2 stalks celery chopped
• 3 medium potatoes, diced into 1 inch cubes
• ½ cup pearly barley
• 3-8 oz. cans tomato sauce
• 8 beef bouillon cubes
• 1 tablespoon dried basil

1. Add the grated cabbage, chopped carrots and celery, cubed potatoes, pearl barley, and beef bouillon cubes.
2. Let cook for about 15 minutes with the lid on.
3. Pick the beef of the ribs and discard the fat and bones. 
4. Return the beef of the ribs to the soup mixture.
5. Add the tomato sauce and basil.
6. Cook for about 30 minutes more, stirring occasionally.
7. Serve and enjoy.

German Potato Salad

This is my favorite German Potato Salad recipe.  I get many requests for this for potlucks.   But you can now make it for yourself.  Serve this hot salad and there will be no leftovers!

5 large potatoes – peeled, sliced  in ¼ inch slices

12 slices of bacon

1 onion, chopped

1 tablespoon cornstarch  (do not use flour as a substitute)

1/3 cup cider vinegar (it must be cider vinegar)

1/3 cup sugar

1 cup water

1 ½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon celery seed

In large saucepan, boil the potato slices in plenty of water.  (Don’t boil too long or it will turn to mush-probably no more than 9 minutes.)  Drain right away.  Do not let them sit in the hot water.

Meanwhile, in a skillet, fry bacon until crisp.  Remove bacon from skillet.  

Brown chopped onion in the remaining bacon drippings.  Let get really brown.    

Add cornstarch and stir.  

Add sugar and stir.  

Add cider vinegar and stir.  

Add water and stir.  

Add salt and celery seed.  Stir sauce and cook for three minutes.  

Crumble bacon (reserve some for the top) and return to sauce.

Drain potatoes and gently stir into sauce.

Transfer to serving dish.  Sprinkle the reserved bacon over the top.

Serves 6.

Pumpkin Cookies with Bourbon Icing

This makes a soft cookie.

Pumpkin Cookies

• 2 sticks butter
• 3 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 large can pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

1. Cream butter and sugar together.
2. Add eggs and stir well.
3. Add pumpkin and stir.
4. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Stir well.
5. Add flour a little at time, stirring to mix well.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7. On a cookie sheet lined with a silicone cookie sheet liner, drop dough onto the sheet, using a medium sized cookie dough scoop.
8. Bake 12-16 minutes.
9. Let cool one minute before removing from the sheet and place on rack to finish cooling.
10. Makes approximately 60 medium sized cookies.

Bourbon Frosting

• 2 sticks butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon bourbon
• 1 2lb. bag confectioner’s sugar

1. Cream butter and confectioner’s sugar.
2. Add vanilla and bourbon.
3. Stir until smooth.
4. Frost cookies when they are completely cooled.
5. Enjoy.

:

Nancy's Tangy Ham Sandwiches

• 2 pretzel burger rolls (I find them at Cub Foods)
• 6 slices shaved ham
• 2 slices thin sliced Swiss cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 ½ teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon minced garlic (the refrigerated kind in a jar)

1. Melt butter in microwave.
2. Add the Worcestershire sauce, mustard, brown sugar, and garlic. 
3. Mix well.
4. Slice the rolls horizontally.
5. Brush with the butter mixture.
6. Brush mixture on the insides of the rolls, making sure they are covered.
7. Add one slice cheese to one side of each roll.
8. Add three slices of ham to the other side of each roll.
9. Toast under the broiler until cheese is melted.
10. Assemble the sandwiches.
11. Serve and enjoy.

Garlic Buttered Baked Potatoes

Ingredients for each potato:

• 1 large baking potato
• 1 tablespoon butter
• ½ teaspoon minced garlic (I use the refrigerated kind in a jar)
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon shredded parmesan cheese

1. Melt butter. 
2. Add the garlic and cayenne pepper.
3. Cut ¼ inch slices across each potato, but not all the way through.
4. Place each potato on a individual sheet of aluminum foil.
5. Pour melted butter mixture in the crevices of the potato.  Sprinkle with half the parmesan cheese.
6. Wrap the potato, top side up in aluminum foil.  Place wrapped potato in a baking container as the butter could drip.
7. Bake in a 425 degree oven for 1 hour or until tender, testing with a fork.
8. Unwrap and plate.
9. Sprinkle the remaining shredded parmesan cheese across the top.
10. Serve and enjoy.

Nancy's Stuffed Peppers

• 1 cup brown rice (not the instant cook rice)
• 2 cups water 
• 1 lb. ground chuck
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• ½ teaspoon minced garlic (from refrigerator jar)
• 1 large onion, chopped 
• 4 or 5 green bell peppers
• 2 cans condensed tomato soup
• ½ soup can water 

Bring rice to boil in the two cups water and simmer for 45 minutes. Stir occasionally, so it does not stick.

Wash and top the green peppers, scooping the ribs and seeds out to discard.

Combine and mix well the ground chuck, cooked rice, salt, pepper, minced garlic, onion and one of the cans of condensed tomato soup. 

In a microwavable covered dish, stuff and place the peppers, open side up.

Mix ½ cup water with the other can of condensed tomato soup, and pour mixture over the tops of the peppers.

Cover the filled dish and microwave 30 minutes on power level 5.
Remove lid and baste the tops of the peppers with the soup mixture that has drained to the bottom of the dish.
Turn the dish, cover again, and microwave for 30 more minutes at power level 5.
Remove, let set for about 5 minutes and serve.

 

Sydney's Salted Caramel and Chocolate Shortbreads

This recipe was adapted from British concoction, Millionaire Shortbread, this is my granddaughter Sydney's improved version of it.  Shortbread, being very fragile, often crumbled when we made these in a 9 x 13 baking dish.  Using one of those silicone pans for baking filled mini-cupcakes we adapted the recipe to take advantage of this updated baking container. These finished delights reflect on the complex of layers of life—the salty caramel  paired with  the sweetness of the chocolate.  These cookies are required a bit work, but not overwhelmingly so and are so WORTH it!

Shopping list:

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 pounds salted butter in sticks (2 packages, but you only use 6 of the sticks) 
• 1 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar, divided
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt,
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla divided
• ¼  cup light corn syrup
• 1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 2-12 ounce packages of milk chocolate chips
• Non-stick cooking spray

Shortbreads:

Bake in two batches as follows.  For each batch:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Spray the silicone filled mini-cupcake baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.

To make batch of shortbread, measure the 2 cups flour, ½ cup of the brown sugar, and ½ teaspoon of the salt into the bowl of a food processor.  Pulse until mixed.

Add 1 cup (two sticks) of the butter in chunks and pulse until roughly mixed.

Add ½ teaspoon of the vanilla.  Continue to process until the dough begins to for a ball.  Remove from the process and press evenly over cupcake cavities of the silicone baking pan.  Try to make them even.

Bake 20 minutes.  Turn baking pan so that it browns evenly.  Bake another 15 minutes.  Remove the container and let cool exactly 10 minutes.  

Place a cookie sheet over the pan of baked shortbreads.  Invert and press if necessary to make the cups release the shortbread.

Repeat this process for the second batch of shortbread.  Use a separate cookie sheet for the inversion step.

Caramel Layer:

This amount will fill all the cookies.  

Melt the remaining 1 cup butter (2 sticks) over low heat.  Stir in the remaining 1 cup of brown sugar, the corn syrup, and the condensed milk.  Raise heat to medium-low.  Bring to boil, stirring constantly for 4 minutes.  Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining ½ teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon vanilla.  With a measuring spoon, scoop 1 teaspoon into each of the cooled shortbreads.  Let cool 10 minutes.

Chocolate Layer:

Do this next step in two batches. 

Heat half a bag of milk chocolate chips. heat over low heat, stirring constantly until melted. Stir after every minute until the chips are all melted or microwave for one minute.  

Again with a measuring spoon, scoop 1 teaspoon over each shortbread with caramel piece.  This should do half of them.  Let cool.

Repeat with the second half bag of milk chocolate chips.  

Makes 40 Sydney's Salted Caramel and Chocolate Shortbreads.