Chocolate Nutty Delight

I was trying to remember where I was when I got this recipe. I think it was at a baby shower in Okinawa, Japan while we were serving there in the Air Force. I knew right away it was a keeper for our family and it is with us still, some 30 years later. It's just one of those desserts that everyone loves. We have all made this for countless functions and it makes an appearance regularly at family get togethers.

This recipe is for a 9"x13" (regular size) oblong cake pan. *
Preheat oven to 350º.

Crust:

• 1 stick (1/2 C.) butter or margarine, softened
• 1 C. pecans chopped small (Walnuts can be used) (no nuts can be used and it's still good)
  
• 1 C. Flour

In a small bowl, cut flour into softened butter. When the texture is mealy, mix in pecans and turn into a 9x13 pan. Press into bottom of pan and put into oven and bake for about 25 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove and allow to cool.

Cream Cheese Layer:

• 2-8 oz. Cream Cheese softened
• 2 C. Powdered Sugar
• 2 C. Cool Whip or stabilized whipped cream

In a small bowl stir ingredients together until smooth. Mixture should be very easy to pour onto crust. If it is too sticky it will pull up the crust, so be sure and get it about the consistency of cake batter. I soften the cream cheese in the microwave. Spread over cooled crust and refrigerate until cream cheese has firmed up. Food coloring can be added to this layer for seasonal purposes. I usually make this layer green or pink.

Pudding Layer:

• 1 sm. Box Instant Vanilla Pudding
• 1 sm. Box Instant Chocolate Pudding
• 3 C. cold milk

In a medium bowl combine instant puddings and milk. Stir together with a wire whip until smooth. Donʼt wait for pudding to completely thicken in the bowl. Pour over cream cheese layer and refrigerate.

Whipped Cream Layer:

• 1 Large container cool whip or stablized whipped cream (the non-dairy whipped topping mix in the refrigerated case at Smart & Final works well too)
• Mini chocolate chips or chocolate curls

Spread cream over top of pudding. Sprinkle chocolate chips or chocolate curls to garnish. A grated Hershey with Almonds bar makes a great garnish too. Refrigerate. Serves 12-15

For a Christmas version Candy cane chocolate kisses chopped in the food processor are a yummy addition to the mini-chips or chocolate curls on top.

*If you are doubling this recipe in the big cake pans we love in this family, only do one and a half the recipe for the cream cheese layer.

I have made this in individual servings in clear, plastic 8 oz. cups. I got Pecan Sandie cookies for the crust as they just fit in the bottom of the cups. You could also make several pans of crust and crumble it into the bottoms to keep the recipe more true. I put the cream cheese layer in by loading a pastry bag with it, using a large hole tip. Nana always had large pastry bags around and a wonderful array of tips to choose from. I did the same with the pudding layer and the whipped topping. It made the cutest little parfaits and they are so delicious. A little more work, but serving them was really fun. No cutting and plating and no pan to wash.

Peanut Brittle

Peanut brittle is by far the thing Papa loved about Christmas. He is a peanut brittle man. There is a little store on McKellips Road called the Orange Patch Too. He stops in at this store when he gets a craving for ice cream, as they have a small ice cream counter there. At the ice cream counter are also the fudge, turtles, various chocolates and yep, peanut brittle. Actually, different kinds of brittles are there and it's all tempting. Often Pop would come home from visiting Falcon Field with a small bag of peanut brittle. Nana would make several batches of peanut brittle just to keep on the counter for anyone who might be by, and of course for Papa to snack on.

Butter a 12"x18" (half sheet cake) pan and set aside. A silipat can also be used with great results. A large pizza pan works well also.
In a small mixing bowl combine:

• 1/2 t. Salt
• 2 t. Baking Soda
• 2 t. Vanilla
• Set aside

In a heavy 4 qt. sauce pan combine:

• 3 C. Sugar
• 1 1/4 C. Corn Syrup (light)
• 1 1/4 C. Water

Put on medium-high heat and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon until mixture comes to a full boil. (about 20-30 minutes). Remove from heat and add:

• 1/2 C. Butter (1 stick) Cut into chunks

Clip on candy thermometer and return to burner. Continue cooking and stirring until mixture reaches 280º or soft crack stage. Add:

• 3 C. raw peanuts

Stirring constantly, bring mixture up to 300º or hard-crack stage. (about 12-14 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in baking soda mixture. Be careful as this will cause steam and you could burn your hand. Pour into prepared pan and cool for 1-2 minutes. Working quickly, begin stretching the brittle from the edges with buttered hands or two forks. As it stretches beyond the pan, allow those pieces to break off and place them on the counter, or onto another silipat. If you turn them upside down, this will cause the peanuts to stay in the middle rather than sink to the bottom of the candy. Continue stretching and pulling off pieces until all the candy has been stretched. Allow to cool completely. Store in airtight containers.

Panocha (Penuche)

The "blond fudge" Nana would make every year that everyone loves. This and her chocolate fudge were the neighborhood hits every Christmas. Everyone looked forward to her gifts from the kitchen especially when they came in round take-out containers with a bow on the lid.

• 2 C. Whipping Cream
• 1 T. Corn Syrup (light)
• 2 C. Sugar
• 1 C. Brown Sugar (firmly packed)
• 3 T. Butter
• 1/2 C. White Compound Coating* (or white chocolate chips)
• 1 1/2 C. Nuts (usually pecans or walnuts, but up to you)

Butter an 8"x8" pan and set aside. In a heavy 4 qt. sauce pan combine cream, corn syrup and sugars. Bring to a boil over medium heat stirring with a wooden spoon. Wash down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush if sugar crystals on present. Clip on candy thermometer and cook stirring occasionally to 238º, or soft-ball stage. Remove from heat. Without stirring add butter. Set aside until it cools to 210º. Without stirring add white chocolate chips. Let stand 1 minute. Add nuts and stir with wooden spoon until smooth. Candy should be thick and creamy. Scrape into prepared, buttered pan. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm. Cut into squares. Store in a cool dry place. Can be refrigerated.

*Compound coating is a vegetable oil base rather than a cocoa butter base.

Caramels

I'm into Nana's files for Christmas candies she has made and found some good caramel recipes. She taught me to make them too, long ago. It's been awhile. A long while. I did put the nuts in my batch, but next time I make them I won't. I don't like the texture as well, and I really just like the caramel part anyway. Again, personal preference. I didn't have the right size pan, so put them in this dish. Some of my caramels have curved edges, but they still taste just the same.

• 2 C. Light Corn Syrup
• 1 (12-14 oz. can) Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 1 1/2 C. Milk
• 1 C. Whipping Cream
• 1 C. (two sticks) Butter
• 4 C. Sugar
• 2 t. Vanilla
• 2 C. Nuts (optional)

Butter a 9" x 13" baking pan. Glass is best, or maybe a non-stick kind. Set aside.
In a heavy 6 quart pan, combine first six ingredients. Place over medium heat and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula until mixture comes to a boil. If you have sugar crystals on the side, brush the sides down with a wet pastry brush.

Clip on a candy thermometer. Cook, stirring constantly now to 240º, or a soft-ball stage. If you don't stir it now, it will stick to the bottom and burn. The stirring is important. Kind of a lazy stir that keeps the bottom in motion. Once it has reached 240º, remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and nuts (if you are using nuts). Pour into prepared pan without scraping sides. Allow to stand at room temperature overnight. 24 hours is good. Turn out onto cutting board and cut into 1" squares or rectangles. Wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap and put into air-tight container. Can also be dipped into dipping chocolate for an even more decadent treat. Makes about 110 pieces.



I made a mistake and got regular evaporated milk instead of the sweetened condensed. Duh, I know, right? The recipe still worked, but took a long time to reach the soft-ball stage. The texture is a little different too. I'm sure if I do it again with the right ingredients they will be fabulous! They still taste good, they just aren't the ones I remember. You live, you learn. The people I give them to this Christmas will like them just the same.

Golden Good Caramels

This recipe is like the one Nana made long ago when we lived on Allen Circle. Our neighbors, the Sherwoods in the next circle over had milk cows and we would get our milk from them. We would go through the rosebushes in the back yard, over to their carport where they had two refrigerators. We would sign the clip-board on top of one of the fridges as to how many gallons we were taking, reach inside for a glass, gallon jar of milk. I loved that milk. No hormones, no crazy processes, just milk from the cow. Nana would sometimes skim the cream off the top and save it to make various goodies. Ice cream in the summer and candies in the fall. Caramels were one of my favorites. Another neighbor, Theresa Robinson had a great recipe for the most delicious caramels and that is the one Nana used. I have looked in her file for a reference to that recipe, but none of them say Theresa's caramels. This recipe is the most like that one of long ago.

• 2 C. Whipping Cream
• 1/2 C. Milk
• 1 1/4 C. Light Corn Syrup
• 2 C. Sugar
• 1/4 t. Salt
• 1/2 C. Evaporated Milk
• 1 t. Vanilla

Butter an 8" square baking pan. Set aside. In a 4 cup glass measure combine cream and milk. In a heavy 4 qt. sauce pan combine 1/3 of the cream/milk mixture, corn syrup, sugar and salt. Place over low heat and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon. When mixture comes to a boil, stir occasionally for about 30 minutes until it turns a light tan color. Clip cany thermometer on and increase the heat to medium. Without stopping the boiling action slowly pour in 1/2 of the remaining cream/milk. Stirring constantly now, cook for 15 minutes. Slowly pour in the rest of the cream/milk and the evaporated milk. When temperature reaches 245º, or firm ball stage remove from heat. Stir in the vanilla. Without scraping, pour mixture into prepared baking pan and allow to set at room temperature overnight. Turn out onto cutting board and cut into squares. Wrap in wax paper and store at room temperature. Makes about 50 pieces.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Soup

Been wanting to try this ever since I found it on LDS Living. I sent it to Taya to try and their family loved it. Made it last night and Grumpy says it's a keeper.
Would easily feed 8.

• 1/2 C. Butter
• 2-3 Garlic cloves, minced
• 1 Onion, chopped
• 1/2 C. Flour
• 5 C. Milk (skim is fine, I used half cream)
• 1 Qt. Chicken stock
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 6 Medium baked potatoes, baked and still warm if possible. ( I would use potato pearls or potato flakes in the interest of time and texture)
• 2 C. Swiss cheese, shredded
• 2 C. Chicken, cooked and shredded (rotisserie would be awesome) Even better would be chicken pieces, bitesize and pan sauteed in butter.
• 2 C. Ham, diced (I used sliced lunch ham I needed to use up. I would love a Costco ham steak diced for a chunkier texture though)
• Parsley flakes (a few just for fun)

In a mixing bowl pour about 2 cups of the milk. Add the flour little at a time stirring constantly with a whisk. When all the flour is in, add about a teaspoon of salt and pepper if you like it. Set aside.

In a large stock pot, melt the butter. Add the garlic and onion and let cook until nice and browned (caramelized). Stir frequently so there's no burning. Add half the chicken stock and heat through. Pour in the flour mixture stirring constantly to avoid lumps. When the mixture is all in, allow the pot to come to a boil. Once there, add the rest of the chicken stock and milk. Allow to heat through stirring occasionally so avoid burning on the bottom. Allow to return to a simmer and soup will thicken. If you like a really thick chowder type soup it should be there. If you want it a bit thinner, add more chicken stock or water. If it isn't thick enough for you, add a bit more flour & milk mixture, but you must make sure the soup comes to a simmer or you will taste the flour.

Now the soup is heated through and is just at a low boil, or simmer. Turn the heat down to medium low and add the flesh of the baked potatoes. If you are using a potato flake product, add the flakes and enough milk or water to make the mixture more soup like. Once you have the consistency the way you like it, throw a few parsley flakes in for color, add your chicken, ham, and cheese. Allow to simmer for about 20 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Great served with garlic toast, or crackers. A side salad would be excellent and it's a fine dinner.

To reheat for leftovers, you may have to thin with milk, chicken stock or water.

Yummy on these cold days we're having right now.

Sherry's Chicken Salad

This is a recipe I got from a friend and then tweaked it my way. We have taken this yummy sandwich filling to the lake countless times, to the dunes, made it for wedding showers, wedding receptions, baby showers, and many and varied luncheons. It is a crowd pleaser and we have enjoyed it well.

Quantities are just guidelines as we all have our personal tastes. I will try to estimate, but just make it to your taste.

• 10 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

In a large pot, put about a quart of water. Rinse the chicken off and put into pot. Bring to a boil and reduce heat a little. Let it simmer on a low boil for about an hour so you know the inside gets done. Remove from heat. Take the chicken out and put in a colander to drain. (This way you can save your chicken stock if you need some) If you have a Bosch, put on the wire whips and put one chicken breast in the bowl. Hit the moment speed a few times. Add a couple more breasts and repeat. You can do about 5 breasts before you have to empty the bowl. (I put the chicken in ziplocks to cool). Try not to get it too fine, chunkier is better. Repeat until all the breasts are shredded. This only works if the chicken is hot. Once it cools it is too dense and will damage your wire whips and your Bosch. Pretty amazing though - I love doing this.

After chicken has cooled put it in a large bowl. Add in:

• 4 C. shredded Cheese (I use longhorn or Colby) I like the fine grate, but regular works well too.
• 2 Bunches chopped Green Onions (just the green part)
• 1 C. diced Celery (this is optional as some my family hates celery)
• 1 Can (around 14 ozs) Dole Pineapple tidbits or crushed pineapple (drained) Do not use fresh pineapple. Found out the hard way the acids react to the chicken badly. Very badly.
• 1 large Bunch Red Seedless Grapes (cut in half lengthwise). We like a lot of grapes, so this is definitely personal preference on quantity.

Mix well.
In a medium mixing bowl combine:

• 4 C. Mayonaise
• 1 T. Salt
• 1 t. Granulated Garlic
• 1 1/2 t. Curry Powder
• Pepper if you like it, but not much

Pour over chicken mixture. Work into mixture thoroughly. Consistency should be loose with enough mayo, not compacted. You may need to add more mayo to get the right consistency. Refrigerate overnight and let the flavors combine. When you get it out to use it, you may have to loosen it up. A little more mayo maybe thinned with a bit of milk or cream works well.

Serve in croissants, on your favorite bread, or just in a bowl on a bed of lettuce.

The quantity above will serve a family, plus. When I do this recipe for the smaller cocktail size croissants, I plan a regular size ice cream scoop for a serving size. You can get about 50 servings from this quantity.

Nana's Roast Turkey

Nana always made such delicious turkeys. And not always for the holidays. We used to laugh that Papa was a true turkey junkie. He does love a good turkey. Every Thanksgiving and Christmas for sure Nana was up early getting the turkey prepped for roasting. I remember big roasting pans in the oven, and then when they were available to buy, roasters on the counter that freed up the oven for other things. She would shop for a Butterball turkey most years, but then decided there were other brands that did just fine too. As the turkey sales became more competitive, she would get a great deal on more than one, so she would have one in the freezer for sometime. I know she made turkey dinner on Father's Day now and then because of Papa's addiction to a good turkey. (and dressing, etc.) She also decided the 12-16 lb. turkeys were more tender, so she would roast 2 smaller ones as opposed to the traditional 20 pounder. Any left-over turkey that was not consumed in a couple of days went into her famous pot-pies. She would make up several small pot pies and freeze them. They were so very good. Another of Pop's favorites.

Nan's tricks of perfecting her prep evolved over the years and became the following:
The night before she would mix up a brine recipe and get the turkey into it overnight. There are lots of brine recipes to choose from. Hers was just a simple brine.

For about a 16 lb. Turkey

• 1 C. kosher salt
• 1/2 C. Light Brown Sugar
• 1/2 Gallon Vegetable Stock (or chicken stock), or water.
• 1 T. black peppercorns
• 1/2 gallon ice water (more if needed).

Combine all brine ingredients (except the ice water) in a large stockpot. Bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve solids, then remove from heat. Cool to room temp and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

There are brining bags available at the store which make it much easier. Follow manufacturer's direction on amount of liquid content for the bag. A five-gallon bucket can be used if you have no bag. Place turkey in bag or bucket and pour the cooled brine mixture in. Add enough ice water to cover turkey and place in the refrigerator, or if it is cold enough, in the garage maybe. Needs at least 6 hours to brine well.

Remove bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard brine. Pat the bird dry with paper towels. Stuff with your favorite dressing recipe, or add aromatics to the cavity. Loosen the skin on the breast of the bird. Do not remove the skin, just loosen it from the breast meat so you can get your fingers in-between the skin and the meat. Nana would make a paste of softened butter, a little flour, salt, pepper and maybe a little garlic. She would then work the paste between the skin and the meat. Then she would rub any left on the outside of the skin over the breast. In the early days she would then put tin foil over the breast before putting it in the oven. When the counter top roasters were on the scene, the foil didn't matter anymore. Even better are the Reynold roasting bags that she used even in the counter-top roasters. No more basting. The bags hold the juices and make clean up even easier. Roast at lower temps (200 or 250) for a longer amount of time, or at 350 for a shorter time. Use a table for temp/pounds of meat to determine cooking time. The counter top roasters usually get the birds done in less time. A meat thermometer is good also. 161º inside meat temp is recommended.

Turkey should rest for about 15 minutes after removing from the roaster before carving.

Some aromatics for the cavity if you are not stuffing with dressing:

A peeled onion and some garlic cloves are the simplest.

Nana found this recipe online and wrote her additions and tweaks to it:

• 1 Red Apple, sliced
• 1 Onion, sliced
• 1 Cinnamon Stick
• 1 C. Water
• 5 Sage leaves
• 2-3 Sprigs Rosemary
• Vegetable Oil

In a saucepan combine first four ingredients. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Allow to steep until cool. Add steeped aromatics to cavity along with the rosemary and sage. Coat the whole bird with vegetable oil for a really brown turkey.

Nana's Turkey Dressing

I wanted to get Nana's recipe for dressing on here as I see there is nothing posted for the hallowed holiday of Thanksgiving.

Nana's Simple Dressing

1 Box cornbread croutons (or cornbread made ahead, broken up and dried out) Nana was good to make her cornbread ahead of time. We would have soup or beans and cornbread about a week before Thanksgiving. She would then break up the cornbread and put it into large bowls to begin drying out. You have to stir it up once in a while so it all dries and doesn't mold in the bottom.

Other breads she would dry out to make a good combination for the whole were:
a bakery white bread
a bakery wheat bread
some leftover hotdog or hamburger buns
or leftover rolls.

A few days ahead she would break it all up (about the size of large croutons) in a big metal bowl to start drying out. If it wasn't dried enough by the day before she would put it in the oven on 200ºF. Stir often so it drys uniformly. Should be like croutons when done.

1 Cup chopped celery. She always pulled the strings down the backs and even scraped the backs a little (to take the bitterness out), sliced it lengthwise and then across for a good dice.

2-3 Chicken Breasts. Nana got to where she didn't like to boil the neck, and innards of the turkey to dice up for the dressing. She started boiling a chicken breast or two to put in the dressing instead. Much more convenient and then the kids don't think you are putting weird stuff in the dressing. When cooled dice and save the water (now chicken stock) for later.

1 Large Onion. Also diced rather small. Green onions can be added also if your family likes them.

3-4 Cloves Fresh Garlic. (optional) I added this as my family likes garlic.

2 T. Poultry Seasoning
Butter (at least 3 sticks)
Salt and Pepper
Eggs
Chicken Broth or Water

All measurements are guidelines. More or less of anything is just personal preference. I never saw her measure anything in this process. It was mostly a tried and true combination of quantities that went into each batch through the years.

In a really big bowl combine all the dried breads. It looks like a lot, but it does "cook down" and gets less volume as the eggs and broth or water is added. Put in the onions, green onions, garlic (if you are using it), celery, diced chicken breasts, and salt and pepper. Mix it all up well.

Now dice up at least 1 stick of butter (I use two) and add it to the mix in the bowl. Take a couple of eggs and slightly beat them before adding them to mix. Kind of getting a moister consistency now. Add in some chicken broth or stock. She would add about a cup at first and then more by small increments until she got it to the consistency she liked. It should be crumbly still, but if pressed together would stay a little. She made it a little on the dry side at first knowing that once in the turkey it would absorb the juices as the turkey cooked. She would stuff the turkey loosely so it wasn't so packed in and had a little room. After the turkey was stuffed she would add a little more stock to it for a moister consistency and put into a sprayed or buttered casserole dish for baking later. She would dot the top with more diced butter. After all, it is mostly bread and butter, right? She would bake covered at 350º for about an hour. We all looked so forward to her wonderful dressing. It was better than the turkey, or the potatoes. I do love dressing.



This is sadly the only picture I have of our Thanksgiving prep this year. Or any year. I don't remember to get the camera out while doing the prep, probably because my hands are doing the prep! This is what it looks like in the drier state before stuffing the turkey. It is moister looking (and feeling) after more stock is added for the pan dressing.