Pinch Some Off

Okay. That sounds vulgar.
Better Homes and Gardens Fish and Seafood Cook Book (c) '71 features this appetizer of the sea:

Potted Shrimp and Cheese

"Trim this spread with tiny fluffs of parsley or a bouquet of watercress"

1 4 1/2 ounce can shrimp, drained [better chase some lemon rind down that disposal or your kitchen will smell like the garbage chute in Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory]
4 ounces natural Cheddar cheese [imagine, something natural, not processed, in a retro cook book], shredded
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 tablespoon milk dash cayenne pepper

Finely chop shrimp. Have cheese at room temperature. In small mixer bowl beat cheese, butter, milk and cayenne till fluffy. Blend in shrimp [when is the last time blend and shrimp shared a directive?] Press mixture into 10 ounce custard cup [or kickass mini-lobster mold]. Chill. Unmold onto serving plate. Let set at room temperature 10 minutes [ugh. room temp shrimp? I thought that was a Vegas thing]. Serve with assorted crackers.

Something's fishy here... I would absolutely suggest subbing cream cheese for the butter. I don't know wtf [what the fish] was up with butter, but it didn't blend with the shrimp - so it DIDN'T MOLD! Ugh, so much for the potted part [unless they were smoking it when they opted to add butter to the recipe]. I was crushed. And then I was a little too yucked out to put it on a cracker, but did. That nibble tells me to also add a dash of cocktail sauce [that + the cream cheese makes for a dip similar to the shrimp/cream cheese/cocktail and a triscuit snack that's second only in popularity to cocktail weenies] and maybe a little red hot sauce, too. Then maybe, just maybe, it will take shape. I'll try harder to reel this recipe in next time.

Have a swell weekend - next week I'll have some Thanksgiving doozies to share!

kitschy-kitschy,
heidi

Are you as kitchen-savvy as a 5th grader?

I'm not convinced that I am.

But this tutorial from Betty Crocker's New Boys and Girls Cookbook (c)'73 [I can't put it down this week, eh?] proved that when armed with a paring knife, boys and girls of all ages can do anything. So I followed Betty's steps regarding crisp relishes. Looks easy enough, right? Radish Roses:
[1] Scrub fresh red radishes. Cut off the root end. Leave a bit of the stem and leaf.
[2] Then, with a small paring knife, cut thin "petals" around radish from root end almost to stem end.
[3] Place "roses" in iced water to "blossom." (The cold water makes the radish open its petals.)
Carrot Curls:
[1] Wash, then pare raw carrots with a vegetable parer [that's peeler to you & me]. For long, very thin slices, slice the length of carrot paper thin with a parer. Always cut away from your hand.
[2] Roll each slice around your finger, then hold it together with a toothpick [frilly, of course!].
[3] Chill curls in iced water about an hour so they will hold their shape. Then remove toothpicks.

Drat! I totally skipped the chill steps - so my radishes have yet to blossom and my curls are still holding themselves in place with their frilly friend. Here's what a 5th grader + 25 years is capable of. I think I passed. Just barely:


And, hey, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my mom today - the lady that opened this book up for me and started this whole thing 30 years ago [and I'm pretty sure she let me hold a paring knife]! xoxoxo!

Shades of Grey

These cold, grey days will drive a housewife to do two things:

Drink [Hot Toddy, anyone?]
& Bake [Oatmeal Cookies ala Betty's New Boys and Girls Cookbook]

So, don't mind if we do - do you?

The recipe for this gullet-warming drink will cure what ails you, and if you like brandy [she's a fine girl], it suits you to a tea:

Hot Toddy
1 tbsp honey
3/4 glass hot tea [of choice]
2 shots [or whatever your day demands] brandy
1 slice lemon

Brew tea and fill a tall glass 3/4 full. Mix in honey. Mix in brandy shots [definitely plural]. Add lemon slice and get under an afghan, already!

Next, preheat [then repeat - with another Toddy]
You can judge a cookbook by it's sticky pages [no, I'm a lady and I'm not going there]. And just looking at the love Betty Crocker's New Boys and Girls Cookbook (c)'73 reprint has received for this recipe alone shows you how stellar these cookies must be:

Stir-'n-Chop Oatmeal Cookies

"Just about the best cooky there is for an after-school snack...with a tall glass of milk."
[...or a hot toddy, for mommy]

Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Lightly grease a baking sheet.

Stir together in bowl:
1 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ginger [pssst... this is the secret ingredient!]

Add:
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 cup rolled oats (that's old-fashioned nowadays)

Mix in thoroughly:
1/4 cup vegetable oil 2 tablespoons milk 1 egg

Stir in:
3/4 cup chopped walnuts if you like [nah, we like chocolate chips better!]

Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart on baking sheet. Bake about 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Makes about 3 dozen cookies [if you're stingy - plan to double this recipe to achieve 3 dozen - otherwise, after you've gorged on dough you're down to about 12 cookies w/the recipe Betty suggests].

This cooky [that spelling is kooky - don't you just love it?] recipe is the equivalent to a quickie - in any form. You don't have to get out the mixer. You really - really - do just stir it by hand. I was done mixing and baking [two batches] in way under 30 minutes. And by way under, I mean in 27 minutes [forget you, Rachael Ray]. The cookies are more cushy than crunchy, so if you like them soft, what are you waiting for? In less time than it takes to watch an episode of Donna Reed [or Real Housewives] you can have a batch. Baker beware: they will fall apart in your hot toddy when they become saturated with whiskey.

kitschy-kitschy,
heidi

Something Fishy This Way Comes

I'm going to do it.

I'm going to channel the chutzpah of the fishermen on the east coast.

I'm going to wrangle the chickens of the sea.

And press them into my lobster mold.

Stay tuned - and hold your nose - the stank is going to be pretty fierce.

Tippy Tuesday!

[not to be confused with "Tipsy Tuesday," which some of you may celebrate...hey, maybe we'll do that next week.]

Betty Crocker's "Dinner for Two Cook Book" (c)'58 has a bevy of tips on preparing meals perfectly for pairs. Every bride, business girl, career wife and mother whose children are away from home will appreciate tips like these, on marketing:

"Good marketing is as important as good cooking, and the good shopper will always be prepared for any emergency. Dinner for unexpected guests, snacks for friends who drop by on a Sunday afternoon, ingredients for a last-minute hurry-up meal - all this should be on your shelves within easy reach. This will make your reputation as a good homemaker and a cordial and unflustered hostess, and without any strain on you."

[And ladies - gents, too - as we all know, without your good reputation you have nothing. Well, nothing anyone else gives a hoot about.]

She then goes on to share info every lady of the house can't dare live without: Choosing a good head of lettuce. I don't want to find you stuck in the produce section of the market hemming and hawing over a head of leafy greens, so I'm passing this tip on to you:

"Weigh the heads of lettuce with your hand to see whether they are firm and heavy or lighter and more loosely formed. [oh my - Betty you dirty bird!] A heavy head is the best buy for tossed salads. A lighter head will be easier to handle if you want lettuce cups in which to arrange a salad."

So now, when you're standing mid-aisle with two handfuls of lettuce, loose [the lettuce, not you] or otherwise, don't feel like a ninny, feel like a smarty pants.