Grandchildren’s favorites

Good morning. Some of the grandchildren will be substituting for Memaw the next few weeks. Hope we can do her justice. All of us love being in the kitchen with her. When we were little she would not let us in the area near the stove. She had a long window behind the stove with a bar and stools there so that we could sit and talk to her. When we were going to help her bake she would sit us on the counter on let us stand on a stool and drop cookies. Here are a few of my favorites … 

Paige Nichole.

 Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup butter

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon good vanilla

2 cups plain flour

1 teaspoon each of salt, baking soda, and cinnamon

2 and ½ cups quick cooking oatmeal

Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In another bowl whisk together the remaining ingredients and mix in the wet mixture. Drop by rounded tablespoonsful on a lightly greased or parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Remove to rack to cool.

 Pan Broiled Steak

(You must use a cast iron pan for this to work. Memaw uses a deep one.)

Steak as thick as you want it ( ½ inch to ¾ inch thick, works best.)

Salt and pepper

Butter

Trim off any excess fat. Heat the pan and use a cooking fork to sear the fat in the pan until it is smoking hot. Add steak and seer, turn and sear. Repeat until you get a good color on it. Dash some Worcestershire sauce on top, turn and repeat. Remove steak to a platter and put butter on top. Remove grease from drippings and add a tablespoon or two of water or beef broth. Heat and serve with steak and a baked potato.

 Candied Peanuts aka Bull Dog Peanuts

(Memaw did these for 2 of my cousins when they were in school at UGA.)

2 cups dry raw peanuts

1 cup white sugar

½ cup white sugar

Couple drops of red food coloring

Mix all ingredients in a deep cast iron or heavy aluminum pan. Cook on medium heat on top of the stove until sugar sticks to the peanuts and begins to crystalize. Put on a buttered sheet pan and spread out. Bake at 275 degrees for about 30 minutes or until coating is dry.

 Potato Soup

In a large soup pot melt 1 stick of butter or margarine and add the following:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, minced

1 rib celery, minced

Cook for a few minutes and add:

8 cups cubed potatoes

Salt and Pepper to taste

Water, enough to come to the top of the potatoes

Cook until potatoes are tender and add: 1 quart milk and slowly bring to a boil. Quickly reduce to simmer and add ½ cup of plain coffee creamer. If too thick — add more milk. If too thin — carefully add a few instant potatoes to thicken. About 15 minutes before serving, add 2 – 3 cups grated cheddar cheese. Serve with slab bacon and corn bread.

NOTE: For potato corn chowder, add 2 cans of cream style corn when you add the milk.

 Popsicles

(My first published recipe—when I was 5 years old.)

1 package Jell-O

1 package Kool-Aid (same flavor at Jell-O)

1cup sugar

2 cups boiling water

2 cups cold water

Small paper cups

Cut paper or foil disk about ½ inch larger than the top of the cup.

Dissolve Jell-O in boiling water and stir in sugar and Kool-Aid until all is dissolved. Stir in cold water and pour in paper cups. Set cups in a pan and place in the freezer and freeze until almost set. Put sticks through center of paper or foil disk and put in popsicles, being careful not to put a hole in the bottom of the cup.

Paige Nichole—signing off