Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Recipes of Christmas

KM's Christmas Baking

Friends & Family Christmas Baking
  • My aunt makes Swedish Toast every year along with Jifta (Great for the Scandahoovians!) She swears Swedish Toast is easier than biscotti, but I think it's just as time consuming to prep and bake. It's great for dunking, though!
  • D's aunt long ago started bringing Tequilaberry's Salad to Christmas and Easter, now holiday meals just aren't the same without it.
  • SIL made a pretty batch of Holiday Wreaths for others; I just asked for a huge blob of the stuff since these are some of my favorites and four wreaths just won't do.
  • Another aunt of mine makes Russian Tea for all of the families each year. Although it's not really tea, it's a tasty hot drink. She would not give me her secret recipe, but said that the link is close.

KM's New Year's Baking
  • Two years ago I started making homemade caramels to add to my goody baskets; this year however, the multiple snow storms and bad driving conditions did not allow me to buy the necessary ingredients. My dad made a little pouty face after opening the caramel-free tin so I promised to make them for NYE.
  • Biscotti is the last on my list but the first in my heart, saving the best for last, if you will. My love of biscotti started at a young age when I would accompany my mom to the Grand Ave Dunn Bros as she held volunteer meetings and interviews. When I took my current job with the ever so convenient tunnel to Sbux, my love of biscotti hurt my checkbook. After learning to make Swedish Toast, I decided I could handle biscotti and set out to find my favorite twice baked cookie recipe. Along with a variation of Vanilla Almond Biscotti that lives only in my kitchen cupboard and not on my computer, this Vanilla Bean Biscotti is a treat that my mom and I both treasure. It is such a pity that D's family had never even heard of biscotti until I first made it, and even then did not delight in the crunchy, crumbly cookie that longed to be dipped and dunked in latte. Oh well, more for me.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

How D Plans Ahead For Potlucks

Tuesday night, 10:46 pm (I just checked my cell phone log), D calls.

D, in a slight panic: What do I need to make broccoli salad?

KM: Broccoli florets, apples; I don't know, a whole bunch of stuff. Why?

D: I need to bring a dish to work tomorrow and I signed up for salad.

KM, tired and a little annoyed: Why don't you just bring an easy salad then?

D: I promised everyone I would bring your salad because they really liked it last time.

KM, flattered and no longer annoyed (Good job, D!), rattled off the ingredients stating the ones that were in the refrigerator at home.

D comes home to find the recipe on the kitchen counter with the large Tupperware bowl rinsed and ready for use. Instead of following the directions on how to make the salad, he yells for KM to help. KM is not pleased but chops two apples anyway, and pulls the rest of the ingredients from the cupboards. She returns to bed. It is now almost midnight. D doubles the recipe for the salad and goes to bed.

KM awakes in the morning to find a mess in the kitchen. She is not a clean freak, but a messy kitchen she does not like.

D brings the salad to work.

D calls KM after lunch asking for the recipe to give to his coworkers. KM smiles that she has a recipe that people like.

KM’s Broccoli Salad

Dressing

  • 1 cup Miracle Whip (or mayo if that’s your preference)
  • ½ cup & 2 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
Salad Base

  • ~5 cups broccoli florets (I used one 16oz bag of precut broccoli florets and chop them into more bite size pieces)
  • 1 small/medium apple, chopped
  • ½ cup Craisins
  • ¼ cup chopped walnuts
  • ¼ cup slivered almonds

Preparation

  • Mix all dressing ingredients together
  • Mix dressing with salad base
  • Chill
  • Serve