Goodness Gracious! This Glaze!!!

Sunday dinners used to be a thing. After church we would sit down to a table set with the good china on a tablecloth. Food was placed on the table to be passed around family style. That is how we learned to set a table and how we learned good table manners. How on earth my mother got the dinner cooked on Sundays, I am still not sure. It felt like it magically appeared after church. But it was a given...we would sit down together and eat,

Fast forward several decades and things are different. Pre-pandemic, we often would go out to eat after church. No lunch to cook. No dishes to wash. And we would always see some friends to visit with as we left the restaurant. If we did eat at home, it likely was something I had picked up at a drive-thru on the way home. (KFC, anyone?) 

Roasted sweet potatoes, green beans, & pear salad on the side.

But on Sunday of this week it felt like we time traveled back to the 1960s. The table was set. A full meal was ready. And we—just the two of us—sat down together and shared a proper meal. Daddy-O saw this recipe a couple of weeks ago and he told me he'd like for us to try it. I suggested that he cook it. And he said, "Sure. If you will make the side dishes." The deal was done. 

He found the recipe for glazed pork loin in the online version of our local newspaper. Not the pork tenderloin that we cook fairly often. But a pork loin. Make sure you buy the right cut of pork. This roast is cooked, uncovered, in the oven and basted with a tasty glaze. 

I make pork loin in the slow cooker sometimes. This excellent oven version is almost as easy. This particular pork roast came from Whole Foods (I have discovered they will deliver to my front door) instead of the big box store where I have picked up groceries for months now. I will still order pork loin from the big box store but I do think the pricier Whole Foods roast was the better piece of meat. It's nice to have options.

But y'all...this recipe is all about the glaze. It is delicious. After putting the first slices on our plates we realized we needed to spoon some glaze over the top. And the best part of this recipe might have been the leftovers. We sliced the remaining roast very thin and put the slices back in the glaze to be reheated. So. Very. Good. The last slices were made into sandwiches on toasted buns topped with a sliced of Swiss cheese that got all melty.

If you are close to my age, you remember cutting recipes out of the newspaper or a magazine. When you find a recipe online now, it's still possible to print it out (ask a grandchild how if necessary) if you like to cook from a printed copy. I do. And there are several ways to save them online, too. I like the "CopyMeThat" app. It only saves the recipe. Pretty uncomplicated. I only use it to clip recipes. Maybe it does get complicated if you try to do more, but it's easy to save recipes.

MAPLE GLAZED PORK ROAST

1 (3-lb) pork loin roast

2 teaspoons canola oil

1-1/4 cups maple syrup

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 375º.  Season roast well with salt and pepper. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet until just smoking. Brown roast on all sides, about 10 minutes. Do not clean skillet. 

Move roast to a 9x13-inch baking dish. (We used a baking pan lined with foil.) Cook 50 to 70 minutes, until internal temp is 145º, flipping roast over about halfway through cooking.

While roast is cooking, make the glaze. Pour any fat out of skillet. Heat to medium-high and add syrup, cinnamon, cloves and cayenne pepper, scraping up any brown bits left in skillet into sauce. Simmer until slightly thickened and fragrant, about 30 to 60 seconds. Remove from heat and let sit until ready to use.

With 20 to 30 minutes left to cook, pour the glaze over the roast and roll the roast over in pan to coat it all. Return to oven to finish cooking. If glaze in pan begins to look dry, pour 1/4 cup hot water into pan. Check temp at 50 minutes. Continue cooking until desired doneness.

Slice and serve with glaze spooned over slices.

Serves 8. (Or two hungry people, with lots of leftovers)

 

It's Book Club Day!

Saturdays are the day the Red Beret Book Club gets together on Zoom to talk about the book of the week. My 10-year-old granddaughter and I are reading the Nancy Drew books in order. I sent her a boxed set for Christmas having no clue if she would even like these books that were written in the 1930s. I know she loves old Fred Astaire movies, so I had hopes.

I loved them when I was the 10 year old. But I wasn't even sure if I would still enjoy them as much now as I did decades ago. But I do! Yes. They are dated. Nancy climbs up a trellis to sneak in an upstairs room to look for clues wearing a SKIRT! They are served a first course of bouillon or fruit cup for lunch. Neither of those things are likely to happen today. But it's like watching old black & white movies—those references add texture to the story.

Back in the fall, while stuck at home, I began sending Little Sister a Trixie Belden book every few weeks. I know how much fun it is to get a package in the mail. I was the biggest Trixie Belden fan back in the day. That's one of my old books pictured above. I still have a few on my book shelf. I remember the books on the revolving book rack at the local dime store. I'd slowly turn that rack around over and over, studying all the titles. But if a new Trixie book was there, it was an easy choice. I still love a good mystery. And this is where that love started. 

During the Christmas holiday season I'll admit I watched a lot of Hallmark Christmas movies. I, like everyone else, was home more than usual. And you all know, those movies may not be stellar cinema. But this was a year when we craved comforting and predictable. These movies fit that bill to a tee.

One Saturday morning in December a Hallmark movie was playing on TV while I was folding laundry. I had missed the beginning of the movie but I heard the main character mention a "Trixie" as she talked about books with a young reader. I was not paying close attention. But I felt sure the Trixie they were talking about was MY Trixie.  I managed to find a re-broadcast of that movie (Holly and Ivy) so that I could record it and take a closer look. And yes, I found a couple of scenes that showed the book title. Trixie Belden on a Hallmark movie! 

I was so excited that I posted the two movie screen shots on Instagram. I did not expect the flood of comments that appeared under that post. So many of my IG friends were also Trixie fans growing up. Trixie was a strong, brave young girl who had adventures that we only could dream about. She made us feel like we could do brave things, too.

Soon after Trixie I discovered the next mystery series—Nancy Drew. Nancy was older and got into more dangerous situations (always coming out on top.) And I loved these books, too. I found an old one at our lake house yesterday. It's waiting on Little Sister when she gets back there. 

At our Red Beret Book Club, we talk about the plot, the characters we like best, things we find interesting and how things were different way back then. And beginning today, we will talk about two books. I discovered there is another Nancy Drew out there...Nancy Drew & the Clue Crew. It features an 8 year old Nancy and her friends. The first mystery involves a missing doll. They are a good starting place for a 1st grade reader. Baby Girl is joining us. Yep. She also has a red beret.

In this crazy year of distancing, we have found a way to stay connected. No, it's not like being together. I miss the hugs. I miss having them curl up in my lap or tuck in under my arm while we read together. But I am thankful for today's technology. Zoom and FaceTime can fill in the gaps until we are together. It is still a connection. We are still making memories.

While we are talking about words—that is what we've talked about, isn't it?—let me say that I think I've gotten more thank you notes in the mail this year than ever. Another way to connect. I'll take a thank you any way it comes...text message, voice mail, email...but a written note can linger on my desk and be re-read again and again. Since this photo, our mail has brought several more notes. So it made me rethink my own note writing. I want to send more.

I decided to make it so easy to write a note that I had no excuses. I found a cute rope coil basket on the Target website ($8) and I added it to my basket. I am loving the Target "drive up" option. They usually are walking out with my order before I've completely pulled into the designated parking spot. Now my writing station is ready. I've added my cards to the basket, along with stamps, return address labels, a pen and my Christmas card list that has most of the addresses I need. For now the basket is on my kitchen table where I can write a note while I enjoy that last cup of coffee. But because it's all contained it can move to the desk in the den, or even the little table beside my favorite chair. This basket stares me in the face every day. I don't do New Year's resolutions. But if I did, writing more notes would be at the top of my list.

Retro Recipe — And It's Still A Good One

Salmon Loaf

When my daughters were in elementary school there were only a few recipes that they both loved. Now, they pretty well ate whatever I cooked. But typically one daughter would really like something while the other tolerated it. Thankfully there were a few things that got a big thumbs up from both of them. This recipe—and it still surprises me to this day—was a favorite. (In full disclosure, they probably liked salmon patties even more, but this baked dish is easier and healthier.) 

And lucky for me, it was quick to stir up. I could mix it up in the morning and put it in the refrigerator until dinner time. The ingredients are pantry staples. There is always a can or two of salmon here.  (I'm still maintaining a robust pantry. The virus numbers here are out the roof and I'm not shopping any more than necessary.) I don't use the stuffing mix as much as I did back then, but happily I had some left from the holiday cooking. And mayonnaise and eggs are basics.

I started out years ago making this in a small loaf pan, but then figured out we liked it better baked in a pie plate. More "crust" that way. It's been some time since I made this. I'm happy that this reliable old recipe surfaced again. We always served the salmon loaf with peas and mashed potatoes. Worked out well that I had half a bag of potatoes that needed to be cooked sooner rather than later. Tonight's dinner was like a step back in time. 

SALMON LOAF

1 (16-oz.) can of salmon, with liquid

1/2 cup Pepperidge Farm Herb stuffing mix

1 egg

1/4 teaspoon instant minced onion (I just give it a few shakes)

1/2 cup mayonnaise

Put salmon (with liquid) and remaining ingredients in a bowl.  Mix thoroughly.  Place in a greased pie plate or small loaf pan.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

Serves 6.

I like to remove most of the icky black skin and take out the bones. When I realized that if I "unfolded" the salmon, the spine bones were intact and came out easily. My now grown daughters taught me something recently. They like to buy canned salmon that is skinless and boneless. And they don't have to do any of that. I didn't know skinless/boneless was a thing. I've done it for so many years, it doesn't bother me. But if the "ick" factor is high for you, look for the kind of salmon my daughters buy. 

My week of "holiday" eating turned into several weeks. That happens. But I'm getting back in gear. If you count points, this recipe is 5 Purple Points. I make mashed potatoes with only a tablespoon or so of butter for the whole pot and I use low-fat milk, so I calculated that my entire supper was 7 points. 

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

Okay. Okay. You know I always aim to start the new year by getting back on track with my meal plans. I try not to get far off track over the holidays, but I do let myself enjoy some traditional treats. Then, BAM! It's back to business. I do this because making better food choices makes me feel good. I do this because I love how those healthy foods taste. My lunch today was a huge salad and it was so good after some heavier foods (also good) we've enjoyed the last few weeks.

So, why is there a picture of a cake at the top of this post? Because we celebrated not one, but TWO birthdays in the first four days of January. We could not be together for a party but I did bake a cake for us so that we could celebrate virtually. Zoom has become our friend. 

While I was doing my post-holiday refrigerator inventory, I discovered that I had extra sour cream and eggs that needed to be used quickly. I also found a box of yellow cake mix in the pantry that was about to pass its "best by" date. And as part of the same "regroup" effort in the kitchen, I cleaned out a drawer with recipes that have collected over time. And there it was—a cake recipe that was easy and that called for the ingredients that I needed to use. Perfect!

I don't use a lot of cake mix, but I do like to keep a box or two on hand, mostly for the pumpkin muffins we enjoy and the honey bun cake is excellent when I need a quick dessert to take somewhere. I had made this cake once before, but I had forgotten how good it is. When I made it before, I used regular size chocolate chips. This time I happened to have the mini chips on hand. Maybe that's the difference. A tiny nugget of chocolate in every single bite.

CHOCOLATE CHIP POUND CAKE

1 box yellow cake mix (without pudding)

1 (6-oz) box instant chocolate pudding (this is the family size box)

1/2 cup sugar

2/3 cup water

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 (8-oz) container sour cream

4 large eggs

6 oz. mini semisweet chocolate chips

Confectioners sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan (or 10-inch tube pan) with baking spray.

Add cake mix, pudding mix, sugar, water, and oil to a large bowl and beat with electric mixer for about 2 minutes, until creamy. Add sour cream, mixing well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners sugar before serving.

Little Lady enjoyed her first birthday cake. We enjoyed our cake on her birthday. And I've been happy to share a few slices with some others. I returned a cake carrier to a cousin. My mother never returned an empty dish. So taking a page from her book, I added a couple of cake slices to the plate. This morning I dropped a meal off at the front door of friends who are both home sick with Covid. I added a couple of slices to their meal package. How good it is to show we care by sharing food!

Now, I need to tell you about how I actually mixed this cake. Not sure where my head was—I've made this before and these are standard cake mixing instructions—but I dumped everything into the bowl all at once. When I turned the mixer on the first time, dry ingredients flew out of the bowl. I realized my mistake at that point. So I used a spatula to mix the wet and the dry ingredients just enough so that I could use the electric mixer. And I mixed the whole concoction enough to make sure it was well blended and creamy before I stirred in the chocolate chips. And glory be...the cake was perfect!

Goodbye, 2020

Louise Jacks Fudge Pie

We all know about the bad things that took over 2020. Some terrible things. It has been a year like no other. But we found some good things in 2020, too. It's been hard to see the good because we have been so focused on the virus that upended life as we know it. Covid even complicated the "regular" bad things that happened in peoples lives and made those "bad" things terrible.

But I'm looking back at the good things that happened this year...

• We had a new granddaughter born right after the calendar page flipped over. What a joy it has been to watch her grow!

• My cabinets and drawers may be the cleanest they have been in years. With so much time at home I've done deep cleaning out that was way overdue.

• I am exercising faithfully now. Every single day since March 15. I'm using Grow Young fitness online. It's designed for senior adults. (Forgive me, if I laughed at you chair exercisers years ago.) I started at the very beginning—15 minute sessions, all sitting down. Now I'm doing 40 minute sessions, all standing. This is not an advertisement. Just sharing what is working for me. (I asked my dermatologist once what was the best moisturizer I could use. She answered, "Which ever one you're willing to use daily." Kind of the same thing with exercising—find the one you'll stick with.)

• I have spent extra time at the piano figuring out songs by ear. And by golly, it's getting easier.

• I gave up coloring my hair and discovered I that I love the silver color that's been hiding under the blonde I've been paying for. It shouldn't have taken a pandemic for me to figure this out. But it did.

So I'm sitting here on New Year's Eve, planning to watch the ball drop on television. Like we always do. If we can stay awake, we will kiss and toast the new year. But before this year is completely in the rearview mirror I want to share a recipe that we enjoyed on Christmas Eve. One of the many joys of expanding a family is learning about the foods from the other family. This pie, a tradition in our son-in-law's family, was new to me. It was delicious. And so easy. You know me. I am a fan of easy recipes. Todd said I could share his grandmother's fudge pie recipe.

LOUISE JACK'S FUDGE PIE

1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell (we used refrigerated pie crust)

2 oz. unsweetened chocolate

1 stick butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350º.

Melt butter and chocolate. Add flour and sugar. Mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one until well mixed. Add vanilla. Pour into pie shell. Bake 20-25 minutes, until pie is just set. 

Serve with whipped cream, if desired.

Jessica's version:  She opted for bittersweet Ghiradelli chocolate.  Because the store was out of bittersweet. Since the chocolate was not unsweetened, she adjusted the sugar and used a scant cup. This also worked well.

The chocolate you use may depend on what's in your pantry. But a good quality chocolate is always a good choice.

Here's to a better 2021!

Party For Two, Anyone?

Toasted Maple Pecans

Just because you're not having a Christmas party this year doesn't mean you can't have party food. We decided yesterday that it would be fun to have just appetizer type foods for our supper. Then when I picked up my grocery order, there were several items out of stock. I checked out what I had here in the fridge and make a new plan. And it turned out just fine. 

And in another change of plans, Jessica and baby arrived right at dinner time—a day earlier than expected. She decided the smart thing to do was come the day before the predicted bad weather. So it turned out to almost be a party. A party for three. Right after she put the baby to bed, we used Christmas plates and helped ourselves to party foods. And settled in to watch some wonderful Christmas concerts on PBS.

Using what I already had here, I made the very quick and very delicious Baked Sausage Dip that we've made before. And in an effort to balance that heavy recipe with some healthy options, I added carrot and celery sticks and hummus and fresh fruit. It was a perfect combination. 

The other snack food I added to the tray was a little bowl of maple-flavored toasted pecans. I've toasted pecans for years but adding the maple syrup was new to me. It was so easy and it only made a little bowl full. Of course, you could easily make a huge batch but one cup of nuts was all we needed this time. These are not glazed and sugary like pecans sometimes are prepared. But there is enough maple syrup to give them a little extra umph!

TOASTED MAPLE PECANS

1 cup pecan halves

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Salt

Pepper, optional

Preheat oven to 375º. Line a sheet pan (I used a quarter sheet pan) with parchment paper. 

Pour maple syrup over nuts in a small bowl and stir to coat. Spread in a single layer on a sheet pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper if using.

Toast nuts for 10 minutes then stir. Toast for another 2 minutes and taste them. Toast for another 2 minutes if needed. (Mine took the whole 14 minutes.) Let them cool before serving. Store in an airtight container.

Toasting pecans is a judgement call—they need to come out of the oven just before they are crisp because they will crisp up as they cool. 

Having a party for two or three at home is simple. I arranged everything on a tray and just that one step made it look special. A local restauranteur years ago said, "I could sell peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at a premium price if I presented them well." He was speaking at a ladies club and told that group that half of success in the fine dining business was in the presentation. Yes. His food was also delicious, but the other half of his success was in creating the proper ambience and serving the food well. I heard many speakers in that club over the years. He is the only speaker I remember 30 years later.

I am taking a blog break for a few weeks. We, like many of you, are observing Christmas in new ways. Our celebration will be pared down to suit the times. We may discover that there are part of this scaling back that we like. And at the same time we will miss some of our traditions. But Christmas will come in its own fashion this year. And it will be one for the books. I imagine we will be talking about this particular Christmas for years. Be sure to make some good memories, too.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you all!

Soup For The Non-Soup Lover

Mexican Cabbage Soup

During the holiday season—even this strange one—you might feel the need to take a food break. Not a "don't eat anything" break, but a break that calls for lighter foods. Even if the parties have been fewer, some holiday foods might have still made it to your table. (Little Debbie Christmas Tree cakes, anyone? Your special homemade fudge?) We might need foods that are not so carb loaded. But we still want delicious. And I always want easy. My friend Missy told me last week that she had made this soup for her dinner. I quickly looked up the recipe. It fits the bill of not-so-carby while being simple to put together. It's also gluten-free, dairy-free, grain-free and fits paleo and whole30 diets. What it is not, is flavor-free.

I have the same cookbook that Missy used. Both of my daughters cook from it frequently. (Mommy also recommends the Greek Lemon & Oregano Potato Soup.) When I looked up the recipe I realized I had all the ingredients here...if I made a couple of minor changes. I didn't have any beef broth here but I did have a jar of Better Than Bouillon roast beef flavor. I mixed up 6 cups of that. This bouillon base is handy to keep in your pantry, but know that it needs to be kept in the refrigerator after it's opened. And my fire roasted tomatoes were garlic flavored, so I adjusted the amount of garlic I added.

This was a perfect supper on a cold rainy night. And it was the perfect balance to the caramel cake we enjoyed that same evening. It's Daddy-O's birthday week. We had the soup again the following night for supper and Daddy-O said it was even better than the first time.

Starting to simmer.

Daddy-O is a well-known non-lover of soups. There are a couple of exceptions, but in general he does not like soup the way I do. But he declared this one "a keeper." (Could be all the meat in the soup.) That is high praise from him. 

To speed up the "making supper" process, I diced all the vegetables ahead of time. And I measured the spices into a small cup, ready to all to the pot. Then it was simple to make the soup. Here is my version. (Only minor changes from the original.) Don't let the unglamorous name throw you. It's good!

MEXICAN CABBAGE SOUP

    -makes about 3 quarts

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 lb 93% lean ground beef

1 cup diced onion (about 1/2 of a medium onion)

1 large carrot, peeled and diced

1/2 cup diced green pepper

2 teaspoons jarred minced garlic

1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

6 cups low-sodium beef broth (I used Better Than Bouillon to make mine)

1/2 head of cabbage, cut in half & thinly sliced

1 (14.5 can) fire roasted diced tomatoes, undrained

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon cumin

Pinch of cayenne (or to taste)

Juice of 2 limes (about 1/4 cup)

In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium high heat. Add ground beef, onion, carrot, green pepper, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook, breaking up ground beef, until beef is no longer pink. 

Mix in broth, cabbage, tomatoes, chili powder, oregano, cumin and cayenne. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes, until cabbage and vegetables are tender. Stir in lime juice and serve.

If you are looking for a cookbook to add to your collection, The Defined Dish--Healthy and Wholesome Weeknight Recipes is a really good choice. Both of my daughters have cooked many of these recipes, as has my friend Missy. All of them have used the same word when they tell about the recipes here—flavorful. We don't do Whole30, but the recipes here are just good ones. And it's good to mix in some "clean" recipes along with my regulars. 

The ingredient lists can look long, but it's often only because there are more spices/herbs to be measured. I find it helpful to measure all of those before I start cooking. It's the worst to have the main ingredients in the pan only to discover you are out of one of the spices. Plus, it seems to speed up the prep process. I often measure the spices earlier in the day—or even the day before. Less kitchen time required when it's close to dinner time.