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Beef Creole with Potato Puffs (McCall’s Great American Recipe Cards)

Last night’s dinner.  Went over rather well, especially when my partner’s reaction to the picture of the dish was twitchy and involved commentary about how the “potato puffs” looked like fungal growths.

<strong>Beef Mix:</strong>

1 lb ground beef

1/2 c chopped onion (I used around a cup)

1/2 c chopped green pepper (I used a whole pepper, probably came out to around a cup)

1/2 c chopped celery

1 pkg frozen peas, partially thawed (The recipe called for 10 oz, the package I used was 14)

1 T flour

1 tsp chili powder (I used a tsp and a half)

1 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1/2 c catsup

1 c tomato juice (since we get the small set for drinking cans, this ended up being 11 oz)

1 T Worcestershire sauce

<strong>Potato Puffs:</strong>

1 1/2 c mashed potatos

1 egg, beaten

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp grated onion

1 T parsley flakes

1/3 c dry bread crumbs

1/4 c flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 375.

In large skillet, over medium heat, slowly brown beef, leaving it in large chunks.  Add onion, green pepper, and celery – cook, stirring until it is aptly cooked for your tastes.  Add peas.  Blend flour with chili powder, salt, and pepper – quickly stir into the meat mixture.  Add catsup, tomato juice, and W-sauce.  Cover, simmer five minutes, or until you have the potato puff mixture ready.

In medium bowl, combine all the puff ingredients, blend well.

Put the meat mixture in a 2 quart casserole (3 quart if you increased amount the way I did).  Drop tablespoons of puff mixture into the meat mixture.  Cover.  Bake 30 minutes.  You can also do everything up to actually putting it in the oven, and then hold off beginning cooking until close to mealtime.  However, if it cools down, add 15-30 minutes to the cooking time.

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Almond Tile Cookies (McCall’s)

Benefit to making things that produce as many leftovers as some of my choices of late is that sometimes I can use my cooking time to make something more interesting.  This was the first time I had made this particular style of cookie, and it was an amusing experience.
Warning:  This recipe doesn’t make very many cookies.  The count for me was 17 (though it claims 3 dozen), although I was less particular about the “drop by teaspoon” and I didn’t flatten them out or curl them.
2 egg whites
1/2 c sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla
3 T butter, melted
3 T flour
1/2 c sliced, blanched almonds
Preheat oven to 400.  Grease large cookie sheet and dust with flour.  (Unless using nonstick or silicone.)  Combine egg whites, sugar, and vanilla – beat with a whisk about 2 minutes, or until sugar is dissolved.  Add melted butter and flour, beat until smooth.  Stir in almonds.
Drop by teaspoonful onto cookie sheet.  With a small spatula, spread each to a 3 inch circle.  I only put six in per cookie sheet.  Bake 4 to 5 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown around edge and lightly browned in the center.  Immediately, using the spatula again, remove cookies carefully, and place over a rolling pin to curl them.  Repeat until out of batter.

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Spinach Frittata (McCall’s)

3 T oil

1/2 c thinly sliced onion

10 eggs

1 c finely chopped raw spinach (1/2 lb)

1/3 c grated Parmesan cheese

1 T chopped parsley

1 small clove garlic, crushed (I think I used a couple, my household really loves garlic.)

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

PReheat oven to 350.  Heat oil in 10 inch heavy skillet (if using cast iron, make sure it is well-seasoned, or reseason it before starting.)  Add onion, saute until onion is tender and golden brown.  In large bowl, combine remaining ingredients.  With wire whisk or fork, beat until well blended.  Turn into skillet, with onion.  Cook over low heat, lifting from bottom with spatula as eggs set.  (It says three minutes, I guesstimated when it looked right-ish.)  Bake, uncovered, 10 minutes, or until top is set.  This can take quite a bit.  With spatula, loosen from bottom and around edges.  Cut into wedges and serve.

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Fels Naptha Soap

Posting this as sort of a warning.  My household has done some searches over time for homemade detergent recipes.  A number of them included a suggested ingredient of “Fels Naptha Soap.”  Looked into it because there are a lot of unhealthy ways to make soap, varying in degree.  This particular soap contains a Benzene derivative.  Definitely not on the list of things you want to absorb through the skin, or get into your clothes.

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Alsatian Pot Roast (McCall’s)

3 lb chuck pot roast

2 T oil

5 medium carrots, pared and cut in 2 inch lengths

5 medium onions, peeled and quartered

1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves

1 T wine vinegar

6 juniper berries

1 tsp salt

2 lbs sauerkraut

Trim any fat from beef.  In hot oil in a 5 qt Dutch oven, brown beef, turning on all sides.  Add carrots, onions, thyme, 2 1/2 c water, vinegar, juniper berries, and salt.  Cover and cook over medium heat for 2 hours, turning once.  Wash and drain the sauerkraut, add to beef, cook covered for another half hour, stirring occasionally.   Serve.

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Substitutions for Cooking

Eggs:  1 tsp baking powder, 1 T water, 1 T white vinegar per egg

Milk:  Nondairy liquid fairly much 1 for 1

Wheat:   1 tsp xanthan gum, 1 c alternative flour

Cornstarch:  Use arrowroot, but cut the amount in half

Vinegar:  Lemon juice

White Flour:  Use a whole grain flour, but increase the amount of moisture in your recipe by 20%.  Cut shortening by 10%.

White Sugar:  Brown sugar, raw sugar, maple sugar, or honey.  If you are subsituting honey, grease the measuring cup first, lessen the amount by 1 T + 1 tsp.  If you are substituting brown sugar or maple sugar, pack it tightly in the cup.

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Homemade Mixed Pickling Spice (Cooks.com)

4 3 inch cinnamon sticks

1″ dried ginger root

2 tsp mustard seed

2 tsp whole allspice

1 1 1/2 inch whole dried red pepper

2 tsp whole black pepper

2 tsp whole clove

2 tsp dill seed

2 tsp coriander seed

2 tsp whole mace, crumbled

8 bay leaves, crumbled

Break up the cinnamon sticks and ginger root and whole pepper in order to be able to make smaller measurements.

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