RECIPES
Recently with our past president, Ronald Reagan, dying after suffering
for years with Alzheimer’s, memories surfaced concerning my mother who dealt
with the same disease for ten years before she died. I started thinking about
those last years with her and decided right away not to do that to myself.
Instead, I began reliving the good times we had as mother and daughter. There
were many.
My mother was a nurse and a very devout Christian who gave of herself to
many in her professional life as well as her personal. At Christmas we used to
have a steady stream of visitors to our house and she often had an open house on
Christmas Eve before we would go to midnight services at the church.
My mother loved to cook and was very good at it with many recipes handed
down from my grandmother. She would cook for days in order to have enough food
for the open house. She loved to have friends and family over, especially
during the holidays. Remembering those open house parties, I can see my
mother’s smiles of greeting or her hugs when she consoled someone who was having
a problem. She always had time for me and others, especially if we were going
through a difficult time in our life.
When I think of my mother, I see what a wonderful example of a woman who
turned her life over to the Lord. What a role model for me! When we went to
church, Mom would march right up to the front pew and sit. Never in the back
for her. She proudly proclaimed her love of Christ before everyone. And even
though she didn’t sing particularly well (I got that from her), she sang every
song at church as though she was the best singer in the world. She was quick to
lend a hand if something needed to be done at the church and she knew so many
members of the congregation, young and old.
One of my favorite verses, “I am with you always, to the very end of the
age,” I like to think of when I remember my mother in her last few years when
she didn’t recognize me as her daughter. I believe in my heart Jesus was with
her to the end of her days, giving her what peace she needed, and now she is
with Him in Heaven, healed and whole.
The recipe I want to share with you is one that could easily be served at a
holiday open house. This looks very festive for Christmas because of the red
jello.
Strawberry Surprise
2 cups pretzels
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 T sugar
8 ounces cream cheese (low fat acceptable)
1 cup sugar
12 ounces Cool Whip (low fat acceptable)
6 ounces strawberry jello (or another flavor of jello)
2 cups boiling water
16 ounces frozen strawberries (or another kind of fruit)
Make crust: Crush the pretzels in a plastic bag. Combine pretzels, butter and
1 T sugar in a 8”x11” rectangle pan. Press to make the crust. Bake for 8
minutes at 400 degrees.
Layer one: Whip together cream cheese, 1 cup sugar and Cool Whip. After crust
has cooled, put first layer down.
Layer two: Melt jello in boiling water. Put frozen strawberries into jello.
Set for 10 minutes then pour on top of layer one.
Put in refrigerator until ready to serve.
This recipe brings back fond memories of the many open houses my high
school students with special needs had at Christmas time right before winter
break. For a month they would cook different dishes to serve during a two hour
period. They were proud of what they had accomplished and were always eager to
show their friends and families how well they cooked. The tables were laden
with many sweets but also appetizers and dips.
For that month they cooked, they also decorated the room and made the
invitations before personally going around the school delivering them to their
teachers and friends they had made. This open house and the play they performed
right before it became the highlight of the year for their families and many
people at the school. Their peers attended and applauded their efforts. The
smiles of joy on my students’ faces made all the hard work worth it. They’ve
always helped me to realize what was important in life--God, family and friends.
Tropical Fruit Salad
1 can of pineapple chunks
1 can of mandarin oranges
2 mangos
2 apples
2 bananas
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans
1 cup of mini-marshmallows
1/2 cup of coconut
1/4 cup of cherry or raspberry yogurt
1 cup of sour cream
Open and drain the pineapple and mandarin oranges, then place them in a large
bowl. Cut up the mangos, apples and bananas and put them in the bowl. Measure
and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix together, then chill for several hours
in the refrigerator.
Here is the recipe I really enjoy as the weather gets colder. In Oklahoma it
hasn’t gotten very cool yet, but a person can only wish. What I love about this
recipe is that you can freeze part of it for use later. It will make a big
batch of soup that can last over several meals.
Taco Soup
Two pounds of ground round (extra lean is the best)
1 large onion, chopped
3 cans of stewed tomatoes, plus the liquid
2 cans pinto beans, plus the liquid
1 can of kidney beans, plus the liquid
1 can yellow hominy, plus the liquid
1 4 ounce can green chiles, chopped
2 packages of taco seasoning (some people only use 1)
1 package Ranch style dressing mix
1 cup water or more as desired
Brown the meat and onion together. Drain any fat. Add the rest of the
ingredients and simmer for thirty minutes. Serve with grated cheddar cheese and
tortilla chips on top.
Here is a recipe I love to make during the summer months because I don’t have to
use a stove and heat up the kitchen on those hot days.
Bean Salad
1 can of kidney beans
1 can of pinto beans
1 can of green beans
1 can of chick peas
several stalks of celery-diced
1 red onion-diced
Mix all the ingredients together then put oil and vinegar in to taste (the
mixture should be what you like--I usually have more vinegar to oil). Season
with salt, pepper and Mrs. Dash.
With this recipe you can substitute different beans or spices. This salad is
better if it sits a day in the refrigerator and it last for a while.
A
friend gave me this one after I had it at a luncheon. It was great! It is a
wonderful dish to take to a potluck dinner or for a party.
Pumpkin Pie Cake
1 large can (29 oz.) or 2 (16 oz.) cans of pumpkin
1 (13 oz.) can of evaporated milk
4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
3 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 to 1 cup sugar (depending on pumpkin amount)
Beat together above ingredients. Pour into lightly greased 9x13 pan.
Sprinkle 1 box yellow cake mix over top. Dribble 1 1/2 to 2 sticks melted
butter or margarine over the top. Top with lots of chopped pecans. Bake 50
minutes at 350 degrees until crispy. Serve hot or cold. Top with cool
whip.
My recipe for the spring is full of antioxidants to help fight cancer. I’m
on a health kick this month and hope you enjoy this. One serving is about
40 calories.
Sweet and Sour Coleslaw
4 cups of chopped coleslaw
1 red (you can use yellow or green) bell pepper, chopped
1 batch of green onions, chopped
1 can of cooked corn
1/2 cup of white vinegar
1/3 cup Splenda (no calorie sweetener)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Toss all the ingredients together and refrigerate for a few hours, then
serve. This recipe keeps well for several days.
Spaghetti Pie
10-12 ounces spaghetti, cooked
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 stick butter
1 large (24 ounce) carton of cottage cheese
1 onion--chopped
2 cans tomato soup
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup sugar (optional)
1 package spaghetti sauce mix
1 large can mushrooms (optional)
8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
garlic salt to taste
Brown 1 1/2 lb. ground beef and onion. Drain fat. Add soups, ketchup, spaghetti
sauce mix, mushrooms, sugar and garlic salt. Simmer briefly. Cook spaghetti.
Drain. Mix eggs, Parmesan cheese and butter into cooked spaghetti. Place into a
greased 9x13 casserole dish. Pour cottage cheese on top. Add the meat mixture on
top of the cottage cheese. Bake 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. Top with
mozzarella and return to oven to melt. Serves 12.
I am with you always,
to the very end of the age.
Matthew 28:20
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