Casserole Bread

Casserole Bread

1 package active dry yeast
½ cup warm water
½ cup lukewarm milk (scalded then cooled)
2/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon salt
2½ cup flour, divided
½ cup cornmeal
¾ tablespoon chopped green chiles
1 cup shredded cheddar or hot pepper cheese

Dissolve yeast in warm water in mixing bowl. Add milk, butter, eggs, salt, and 1 cup of the flour.

Beat on low speed about 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on medium speed for another 2 minutes, scraping occasionally.

Stir in remaining flour, cheese, chiles, cornmeal until smooth. Scrape batter from bowl sides, cover and let rise in a warm place, until the dough has doubled; about 30 minutes. (The batter is ready if indentation remains when touched with a floured finger.) Stir down batter by beating about 25 strokes. Spread evenly in a greased 2-quart casserole dish. Brush loaf with melted butter and sprinkle with a dusting of cornmeal. Cover and let rise again until it has doubled again, 40 minutes to an hour. Preheat oven to 375 F, and place in center of oven.

Bake about 50 minutes, until loaf is brown, and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from casserole dish immediately. Brush top with melted butter.

Curried Squash Soup

Curried Squash Soup

3 pounds butternut squash, halved, with seeds and strings removed
1 medium large onion, coarsely chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 large Granny Smith apple, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1½ teaspoons curry powder
¼ to 1/8 teaspoon cayenne powder
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup whipping cream

Cut squash in half and roast at 350 F until soft, which takes approximately 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook onion, carrot and apple in a large, heavy, covered pot in the butter or olive oil until the pieces soften, about 7 minutes. Don’t brown them.

Stir in the curry and cayenne and cook 1 minute. Add the broth and squash, cover, and simmer until squash, carrot, onion and apple are tender, about 25 minutes. Cool slightly, then purée in batches until smooth. Return soup to pot and add cream. Heat the soup, but don’t boil it after adding the cream. This soup is good garnished with chopped chives and a dollop of sour cream or créme fraîche. Serves 6 to 8.

Pumpkin Rice Krispie Treats

Pumpkin Rice Krispie Treats 

6 cups Kellogg's Rice Krispies®; cereal
3 tablespoons salted butter
10-ounce bag of marshmallows
Orange food dye Decorations: Rolo candy for stems, spearmint jelly-candy leaves, colored frosting, tubes of colored gel icing, and assorted hard candy or candy corns to make the face
Butter a 9x13-inch baking pan and lay a sheet of parchment paper across the pan, leaving the ends folded over the edge for use as handles to lift the treats out.
Melt butter over medium-low heat in a large pot or saucepan. Once the butter has melted, add marshmallows and several drops of dye. Stir until the marshmallows melt into a nearly smooth mass. (These steps can be accomplished with a microwave by heating both the marshmallows and the butter in the microwave on high for about two minutes and then stirring them to redistribute. Heat again for another minute on high and then stir until all is
melted together.)
Pour the crisped rice into the pot and stir until the rice is evenly coated and no more large clumps of marshmallow remain. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Let cool until firm. Using a pumpkin cookie cutter or the top of a cup, cut out shapes. Let children make their own pumpkins using the candy and frosting decorations

Candy Shop Pizza

Candy Shop Pizza
1½ cups all-purpose flour BD teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons butter, softened
½ cup granulated sugar
(Subtract 2 tablespoons from this amount to adjust for altitude.)
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
One 12-ounce package (2 cups) chocolate morsels, divided
½ cup peanut butter
1 cup chopped chocolate-based candy, such as Nestle Crunch bars,   Alpine White bars, Butterfinger bars, Baby Ruth bars, Goobers, Hershey Kisses, Snickers, etc.
Preheat oven to 375 F.   Lightly grease a 12- to 14-inch pizza pan or baking pan. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
In a large mixer bowl, beat butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until creamy.
Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Gradually beat in flour mixture.
Stir in 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels. Spread in prepared pan.
Bake 20 to 24 minutes until lightly browned.
Immediately sprinkle remaining 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels over crust; drop peanut butter by spoonfuls on morsels.
Let stand 5 minutes or until morsels become soft and shiny.
Gently spread chocolate and peanut butter evenly over crust. Decorate pizza with candy. Cut into wedges; serve warm.

Corn and Wild Rice Casserole

Corn and Wild Rice Casserole
½ cup wild rice
Dash of salt
3 ears of corn, shucked, or 1 box of frozen corn, defrosted
½ large onion, diced
3 eggs, beaten
¼ cup flour
1½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon sugar
Dash nutmeg
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cups cream
1 jar chopped pimentos and/or 1 cup mushrooms, diced
Cook wild rice in 2 cups water and a dash of salt until al dente. At Durango altitudes, this will easily take at least 1 hour. Keep the pan covered, but check occasionally to make sure there is still liquid.
Put shucked corn in a hot oven and roast until done and there is some browning of the corn. This will provide a very tasty, sweet corn.
In a large bowl, combine onion, eggs, flour, salt, pepper, sugar, nutmeg, melted butter, cream and pimentos or mushrooms. Stir, then add rice and corn. Thoroughly combine. Pour into buttered 2-quart, shallow baking dish. Set dish in a larger pan and pour hot water into the larger pan to a depth of 1 inch. Bake at 325 F for 1 hour, uncovered, until pudding is firm and a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cut into squares and serve hot. Makes 8 servings

Cranberry Salad

Cranberry Salad
2 small packages cherry Jell-O
1 cup crushed pineapple
1 cup hot water    
1 cup pineapple syrup (or juice)
1 cup sugar or Splenda  
1 cup ground raw cranberries, ground*
1 orange, sliced and ground*   
1 tablespoons lemon juice    
1 cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped walnuts

Add hot water to Jell-O and sugar. Stir until dissolved.
Add lemon juice and pineapple syrup. Add rest of ingredients. Pour into bundt pan. Chill well.
* Cut the orange into wedges
and put through a grinder with the
cranberries. It is best to prepare these ingredients a day ahead as they take a while to set up.

olden Apricot-Almond Fruitcake

olden Apricot-Almond Fruitcake
1½ cups dried apricots, cut into fourths
¾ cup water
¾ cup butter
¾ cup sugar
4 eggs
2 cups unsifted flour, divided
½ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon soda
1 cup whole candied red cherries
1 cup slivered almonds
1½ cup golden raisins
½ teaspoon lemon peel, grated
½ cup flour

Boil apricots in water for two minutes. Set aside to cool.
Beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each. In a separate bowl, mix 1½ cups of the flour with the salt and soda. Stir into creamed mixture.
Combine cooled apricots with cherries, almonds, raisins, lemon peel and the remaining ½ cup flour. Add to batter and blend well.
Spoon batter into two large, or three small, greased and floured loaf pans. Bake at 275 F oven for 1¼ to 1½ hours, or until a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean.