Sour Cream Pound Cake

2-3/4 cups sugar
1 cup butter or margarine
6 eggs
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp. lemon extract
1/2 tsp. orange extract
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

In a mixer bowl, cream together sugar and butter or margarine till light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine flour, salt and soda. Add to creamed mixture, alternately with sour cream, beating after each addition. Add extracts and vanilla; beat well. Pour batter into greased and floured 10-inch tube pan. Bake in 350 degrees oven for 1-1/2 hours or till cake tests done. Cool 15 minutes; remove from pan. When cool, frost or sprinkle with confectioner's sugar, if desired.

Bread Pudding

6 eggs, separated
6 cups milk
1 T. vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. grated nutmeg
1/2 pound left over bread, cut into 1" cubes (8 cups loosely packed) I mix different breads
1/2 stick butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup raisins

Combine the egg yolks, milk, vanilla, 3/4 cup of the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and whisk until the sugar dissolves. Place the bread pieces in a large 10-cup rectangular baking pan or casserole dish. Pour the yolk and milk mixture over the bread and let it sit for about 30 minutes, mashing the bread occasionally with a fork. Add raisins, stir until mixed.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Beat egg whites until stiff. Fold into bread mixture. Dot the top of the mixture with the butter. Place the pan in a larger pan and fill the larger dish with enough water to come up halfway on the bread pan or casserole dish. Bake for 1-1/2 hours, or until the pudding sets and a knife comes out clean. Remove the pudding from the oven.

Apple Pancakes

1 1/2 cups flour
3 T. sugar
3 eggs
1 cup milk
4 T. melted butter
1 T. vanilla extract
1 large apple, peeled, cored, thinly sliced

Mix all dry ingredients in one bowl and all wet ingredients in another bowl. Add dry to wet, blend well. Fold in apple slices. Cook as you would any other pancake.

Recipes from Macy's Home Centre

I found this in an old cookbook, along with some newspaper clippings. Since I spent most of my life in New York, this was like finding a touch of home. I spent many Saturdays shopping in Macy's with my mother. The used to have a Home Centre (that's how it was spelled in the 50's) and they had many imported foods, the latest kitchen appliances and gadgets. They also had a restaurant and sometime I got a special treat and mom and I had lunch there.

So here's a recipe from Macy's, in the 1950's. To the right is the copy of the actual paper I found. Below is the recipe, in case you can't read this.
P.S. If anyone can tell me how to put a pdf file in blogs, please email me.
thank you.

Cream Cheese Pastry for Tarts and Turnovers (my comments red)

1/2 cup butter
1/2 lb. cream cheese
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Blend cheese and butter together. Add salt to the flour and work in flour with a blender (pastry blender or I would use a food processor). Add a little ice water or a little cold milk if you need to use up flour. Form into a ball wrap in waxed paper and chill a few hours or over night in a refrigerator.

Tarts

Roll cream cheese pastry out thin. Cut with a cooky or tart cutter. Fit over a tart pan or a muffin tin. Bake at 450 degrees about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the pan, turn upright and cool. Fill with any jam, jelly, stewed fruit, fruit sauce or cut up bananas. Top with a glaze or whipped cream. Any jelly melted slowly will make a good glaze..

Gertrude Gallian, Director of the Home Centre
Housewares Basement

Apple Crumble

A newspaper clipping found in an old cookbook. I couldn't find a date on the clipping, however, mention of rations leads me to believe this is during World War II.

"Here is a dessert in which part of the sweetening is done with honey. Desserts such as this will make your sugar ration go farther.
Peel and core apples, slice and measure four cups. Place these slices in the bottom of a well greased shallow baking dish. Sprinkle one-fourth cup of sugar over the slices, then add two teaspoons of lemon juice and one-half cup of honey.
Combine one-half cup of flour, three tablespoons of brown sugar, a dash of salt and three tablespoons of butter. Work this mixture until it is crumbly.
Sprinkle over the top of the apples and bake in a 375 degree oven for about 30 minutes, or until the apples are tender and the crumbs are lightly browned. Serve warm with thick cream."

Breath Freshening Dog Biscuits

3/4 cup minced parsley leaves and tender stems (1 medium bunch)
1/4 cup finely grated carrots (about 1 large carrot)
1 T. vegetable oil (I used Canola)
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup corn flour or finely ground cornmeal
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the food processor, mince parsley. Next grate carrot in food processor, no need to wash between uses. Add parsley back to food processor. Add oil. Pulse 2, 3 times. Add dry ingredients, process one minute. Through hole in cover, add water while processing for one more minute. Remove from food processor. Mixture should be in the form of a ball. Spread some cornmeal on counter top and spread dough, rolling with rolling pin, 1/2" thick. Use cookie cutters, large bones 3" or small bones 2". I used 1" bone for last pieces. Bake 20 minutes for soft bones or 30 minutes for hard bones.
Have fun. It really doesn't take much time using the food processor. The original recipe did it by hand. My hands are too weak for this so I tried the food processor and loved it.

Anise Cookies

3 eggs, room temperature
1 cup plus 2 T. sugar
1-3/4 cup unsifted all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1-1/2 tsp. anise extract

1. Grease and flour (spray may be used) 2 large cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, with electric mixer, at medium speed, beat eggs until very thick and light.
3. Gradually beat in sugar. Continue beating 20 minutes longer.
4. At low speed, beat in flour. Add anise extract; beat just until blended.
5. Drop by teaspoonful, 1/2" apart, on prepared cookie sheets. Swirl each, to make into a circle.
6. Let stand at room temperature, uncovered, 8 hours or overnight.
7. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake cookies about 10 minutes, or until smooth and firm when pressed with fingertip. Cool cookies on wire rack. Then store in airtight container.

Yield: Approx. 5 dozen

Snickerdookles, cookies of the fairy world

1-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup margarine or butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
2-3/4 cups flour
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
2 T. sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Mix 1-1/2 cups of sugar, the margarine (butter), shortening and eggs, beating well. Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda. Shape dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls. In a separate bowl, mix 2T sugar and 2 tsp. cinnamon. This is the magic fairy dust!! Roll balls of dough in fairy dust, coating all sides. Place on ungreased cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake 8-10 minutes or until golden brown on bottom. Immediately remove from cookie sheet onto wire cooling racks. Makes about 6 dozen cookies. Store in air tight container.
Hint: Great cookie to share with Santa Claus!

Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies (Drop)

3/4 cup flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/3 cup chopped almonds or nut of your choice
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp. vanilla
1-1/2 cups quick cook oatmeal

Stir together flour, soda and chopped almonds(nuts), set aside. With mixer cream butter/margarine and sugar until fluffy. Add egg, cocoa and vanilla, beat until well blended. Add oatmeal and flour mixture and mix well. Drop by teaspoon full onto greased cookie sheet (or use a baking sheet), 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes. Remove to rack to cool. Makes about 36 cookies. Recipe doubles easily!

Fry Bread - Native American version

4 cups flour
1 T. baking powder
1-1/2 tsp. salt
1-1/2 tsp. oil

Mix dry ingredients, then add oil and enough water to make a soft dough. Kneed until dough has spring. Let rest for 20 - 30 minutes. Take off a piece at a time, pat and stretch to size you want. Fry in hot oil, turn once, remove.

When I lived in Arizona I had the pleasure of enjoying these at a friends place. She was native American and the recipe has been in her family for many years. It's very basic so if you have seen fry bread you will understand the 'forming of the bread'. I make these when I get yearn for a taste of Arizona!

Bean Salad

1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed
1 can waxed string beans
1 can green beans (or cooked frozen or cooked fresh, your choice)
1/2 cup sliced onions
1/2 sliced yellow peppers (sweet)
1/2 sliced red peppers (sweet)

Mix together above ingredients.
Mix the following ingredients and add to bean mixture:
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup canola oil or extra virgin olive oil (depends on your taste)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. mustard
salt and pepper to taste.

Let stand in refrigerator at least 24 hours before serving.

Puffs

1/4 cup Crisco
1/2 cup boiling water
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs.

Mix Crisco and water on low heat until crisco melts. Remove from heat. Then, all at once, mix in flour and salt. Add one egg at a time, beat well. Drop from teaspoon onto a greased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes at 450 degrees, then lower temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the cookie sheet. When cooled, fill with desired fillings.
Puddings and cream for cream puffs, chicken salad, shrimp salad, tuna salad, etc. for appetizers.