Citrus Apricot with walnut chunks and chocolate morsels

Take your favorite, chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe,

add the fine zest of 1 orange,

use 1 cup of chocolate chips,

1 cup of chunked walnuts, and

1/2 to 1 cup of chopped dried apricots... could use peaches, or mangoes and it would be just as good.

Mom’s Fudge early recipe

3 cups sugar

1 cup milk

2 teaspoons butter

2 squares bitter chocolate

½ teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cups nuts

Mix first 4 ingredients and cook to soft ball stage (238°).  Pour out to cool.  When cool to the touch, work with wooden spoon & spatula.  When creamy add vanilla and nuts.  When fudge starts to lose its gloss, turn into greased pan for hardening.

Post note by Aunt Enid:

From what used to hear from mother’s brothers and sisters, making fudge has been a very long-time endeavor with her.  She used to make it as a child when her parents were out and hide it under her bed.  Likely in those days, she was not using the marble slab.  I have found that a Formica table top will work also for pouring out the fudge, but not so well as marble.  I have always been amazed that such creamy fudge can come from a recipe which uses so little butter, but it is so.  I recall Mom telling me that the cooler the fudge is when you start stirring it, the creamier it will be –but the longer it takes to “turn.”  The cooking temperature is of extreme importance.  If it is under cooked, it will not harden and will have to be eaten with a spoon.  If overcooked, it will become hard.

Grandma’s Fudge

4 cups white sugar

¼ cup brown sugar

¼ cup dark Karo

1 cup whole milk

½ cup butter

2 squares bitter chocolate

Combine all ingredients and cook in a heavy bottomed pan, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.  Bring to a mild boil.  Wash down sides of pan to remove sugar.  Cook until candy has reached soft ball.  Pour onto a cold marble slab.  When it quits moving, stir with a pastry cutter until creamy brown.  Then knead fudge to soften it.  If it is a little hard and crumbly, add a little milk and knead it in.

(To make penuche use all brown sugar and leave out the chocolate.  To make fondant, make as directed but leave out the chocolate.  Experiment with fun flavors like rum extract and a little nutmeg for eggnog, or strawberry and a little red food coloring, etc.)

Gran'ma Wood's Fruit Salad

*Dressing:

¾ cup sugar

2 Tablespoons corn starch

1 cup boiling water

zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon

juice of 1 orange

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Boil the zest in the water for 5 minutes.  Mix sugar and corn starch thoroughly and add water.  Cook 10 minutes until thick.  Cool.  Add the juice of one orange and 1 Tablespoon lemon juice.  Just before serving add ½ cup of cream whipped stiff.

The fruit usually consisted of sliced bananas, canned pineapple, Royal Ann cherries, small marshmallows, or Mandarin orange slices.

*I sometimes use piña colada yogurt instead of a cooked dressing

Gran'ma Wood's Fondant early recipe

3 cups sugar

1 cup boiling water or milk (for creamy fondant, use milk)

1/3 teaspoon cream of tartar

Cook to soft ball stage (235° or 236°).  Pour out to cool –on marble slab or Formica table top.  When cool to touch, stir and “work” with a wooden spoon and spatula. When it losses its gloss, pile it up on the slab and let it harden.  Let it sit for a few hours.  Then take chunks and knead it until smooth.  Place in a covered bowl in the refrigerator to ripen.

Gran'ma Wood's Divinity

3 cups sugar

½ cup dark Karo

½ cup boiling water

1 cup chopped nuts

¼ teaspoon maple flavoring

3 egg whites stiffly beaten

Cook sugar, syrup and water to hard ball stage.  Pour over egg whites beating constantly and until candy thickens.  Add nuts and flavoring just before spooning candy onto waxed paper.  Makes 4 dozen.

Gran'ma Wood's Apple Relish

Peel and chop coarsely 30 medium, ripe tomatoes.  Put in cooking pot (not aluminum) with 10 peeled, cord apples sliced thinly. (Pie apples work best as they hold their shapes.)

Add 3 cups white vinegar.  Cook about 1 hour over medium heat stirring occasionally.

Cut into pieces 12 onions, 1 large stalk celery, and 4 bell peppers.  Add to cooking pot along with 1 cup white sugar, ¼ cup salt, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon allspice, and 1 teaspoon cloves.  Bring to a boil and simmer 1 hour.

Seal in jars.  Pressure canner for 10 minutes for quarts.

Gran'ma Wood's Broccoli Salad

4 cups broccoli flowerettes

1 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup golden raisins

½ cup read onions, diced

½ cup bacon bits

Dressing 1 cup mayonnaise

¼ cup sugar

2 Tablespoons rice vinegar

salt & pepper to taste

Mix all together no sooner than 1 hour before serving

Gran'ma Wood's Caramel Spice Nut Cake

Cake:

1 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

3 eggs, separated

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon soda

¼ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cloves

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 cup sour milk

¾ cup walnuts

Cream shortening and sugar.  Beat egg yolks and add to creamed mixture.  Beat thoroughly till well mixed. Stir in vanilla.  Sift flour, measure and sift together with other dry ingredients.  Add alternately with milk to creamed mixture.  Beating till smooth after each addition.  Whip egg whites till stiff but not dry.  Add to batter along with nuts.  Turn into two 8-inch pans that are well greased.  Make in moderately hot oven (375° high altitude or 350° sea level) 25 minutes.  Let cool, then spread with caramel frosting.

Caramel Frosting

2 cups sugar

6 Tablespoons caramelized sugar

2 egg whites

2/3 cup water

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Place sugar, water and cream of tartar in saucepan. Bring to boil; add caramelized sugar.  Cook to 242° or soft ball.  Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry.  Add vanilla.  Pour syrup slowly over beaten egg whites while beating till frosting will stand in stiff peaks and is of consistency to spread.  Spread on cake fast.

Gran'ma Wood's Cheese Fondue

1 cup scalded milk

1 cup soft stale bread crumbs (soaked in the milk)

¼ pound mild cheese cut in small peaces

½ teaspoon salt

yolks of 3 eggs

whites of 3 eggs, stiffly beaten

First 5 ingredients were mixed together then folded into the stiffly beaten egg whites and cooked in a moderate oven (350°) for 45 minutes

Gran'ma Wood's Chocolate Prune Cake

2 cups cooked prunes

2/3 cup shortening

1 ½ cup sugar

3 eggs, well beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon soda

½ teaspoon salt

2 squares (2 oz.) bitter chocolate

2 ¾ cup cake flour

1 cup milk

Pit prunes and cut into small pieces.  Cream shortening and sugar thoroughly.  Melt chocolate over hot water and add to creamed mixture;  mix.  Add well-beaten eggs and mix again. 

Sift flour with baking powder, soda and salt, and add alternately with the milk, a small amount at a time.  Add prunes and vanilla band beat thoroughly.  Pour into 3 greased layer cake tins and bake 25 to 30 minutes in a moderate oven 350° or 375°.  Put layers together and spread top and sides with chocolate butter frosting.

Gran'ma Wood's Imitation Chocolate Prune Cake

1 pkg. pudding-included devil’s food cake mix

1 ½ cup cooked & chopped prunes (these may be cut with scissors, or mashed, or pureed/chopped in a food processor)

½ cup buttermilk*

½ cup oil

3 eggs

½ cup walnuts, chopped

Heat oven to 350° (375°).  Grease and four 2 8 inch or 9 inch cake pans.  In a large bowl mix cake mix, buttermilk, oil and eggs at low speed until moistened.  Beat 2 minutes at high speed.  Stir in prunes and walnuts.  The batter is thick.  Turn into the cake pans.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Frost with chocolate butter frosting.

*To substitute for buttermilk, use 1 ½ teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice plus milk to make ½ cup.

Gran'ma Wood's Cream Puffs

Pastry:

1 cup boiling water

½ cup butter

1 cup flour

4 eggs

Boil water and butter, add flour and stir rapidly;  remove from heat.  Break and stir in each egg separately.  Cool and bake in hot oven.  (Preheat oven to 400°)

Filling:

1 cup milk

½ cup sugar

½ cup flour

1 egg

flavoring

Combine sugar, flour, and salt in large double boiler. Whisk milk and egg and add to sugar mixture.    Bring to simmer, whisking occasionally over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, whisking constantly, until thickened and large bubbles appear at surface, 2 to 3 minutes. Off heat, stir in vanilla.

Gran'ma Wood's Date Nut Bread

1 cup cut-up dates

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 Tablespoons shortening

1 cup hot water

1 egg

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

2 ½ cups sifted flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup coarsely chopped nuts

Remove pits from dates and cut across with scissors into 4 or 5 pieces;  place in bowl.  Sprinkle dates with soda and drop shortening on top;  pour hot water over all and let stand until cool.  Beat egg and gradually beat in sugars.  Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.  Add the egg mixture alternately with date mixture, beating well after each addition.  Add nuts.  Place batter in a well greased and floured loaf pan and bake in a moderate (350°) oven 1 hour.  Removed from pan and cool on rack.