Easter Dessert

Spring feasts are ripe with meaning and it’s a time for traditional spring foods such as ham, lamb, salmon, asparagus, strawberries, lemon and rhubarb—and time for spring flowers to decorate the table. And don’t forget eggs—they are usually a centerpiece food for the major holidays of spring like Easter and Passover.

I am planning a traditional Easter dinner of ham, a cheesy potato dish, asparagus, and the usual accompaniments but dessert is another matter. Dessert can be different every year and this year I have run across several I’d like to try.

Often Easter comes in March. Even though it comes in April this year, I am going to make an old-fashioned dessert called a Daffodil cake since March is the month for daffodils and the cake will look beautiful on the Easter table along with some fresh daffodils for a centerpiece. Sweetened strawberries served alongside would be perfect.

Since rhubarb and strawberries are among the first fruits to appear in the spring (rhubarb is technically a vegetable but is cooked and served sweetened as a fruit), I am throwing in a wonderful and simple dessert for fun—hey, it’s Easter, two desserts are allowed after the fasting of Lent.

Here is the great potato recipe that we use for family gatherings—easy, make ahead, delicious!

Two plus Two Potato Casserole

2 cups sour cream
1 can cream of celery soup
1 tsp. salt
Dash pepper
½ cup green onions, chopped
2 packages Simply Potatoes (brand) hash brown potatoes
½ cup butter, melted
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups crushed potato chips
¼ cup butter, melted
1 tsp. paprika

Mix sour cream, soup, salt and pepper, and green onions in medium bowl. Put hash browns, ½ cup melted butter and cheese in a 9x13” baking dish. Pour soup mixture over. Mix gently. Top with crushed potato chips and drizzle ¼ cup melted butter over. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees.

Daffodil Cake (adapted from Betty Crocker Cookbook)

1 cup cake flour
¾ cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
12 egg whites (1 ½ cups)
1 ½ tsp. cream of tartar
¼ tsp. salt
¾ cup sugar
6 egg yolks
1 ½ tsp. vanilla
½ tsp. almond extract

Lemon glaze (below)

Preheat oven to 375. Stir together flour and ¾ cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar; set aside. In large mixer bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until foamy. Add remaining ¾ cup sugar, 2 Tbsp. at a time, beating on high speed until meringue holds stiff peaks. In separate mixer bowl, beat egg yolks about 5 minutes or until very thick. Gently fold flavorings into meringue. Sprinkle flour sugar mixture, ¼ at a time, over meringue, folding in gently just until no flour mixture is visible. Pour half the batter into another bowl; gently fold in egg yolks. Spoon yellow and white batters alternately into ungreased tube pan, 10x4 inches. Gently cut through batters to swirl. Bake on bottom shelf of oven about 40 minutes or until top springs back when touched lightly with finger. Invert pan and let hang until completely cool. Spread with glaze.

Lemon Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar
½ tsp. grated lemon peel
1 tsp. lemon juice
About 2 Tbsp milk
1 drop yellow food color

Mix all ingredients until smooth.

You can decorate this cake with candy flowers or other spring motifs.

Frozen Vacherin Torte with Rhubarb Cream and Strawberries (adapted from Bon Appetit, April 2002)

Begin preparing at least one day before you plan to serve it. Once assembled, the torte can be frozen for up to four days.
8-10 servings

Meringues

Non-stick vegetable spray
6 large egg whites
¼ tsp cream of tartar
Pinch of salt
1 cup sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract

Rhubarb Cream

2 cups ½-inch pieces fresh rhubarb
3/4 cup halved hulled strawberries
1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup sugar
¼ cup water
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
5 large egg yolks
1 cup chilled whipping cream
½ tsp vanilla extract

Sweetened strawberries (optional)

For meringues: Position racks in top third and center of oven and preheat to 250 deg. Using 8-inch diameter bowl or plate as guide, firmly trace 2 circles onto 1 sheet of parchment paper and 1 circle onto second sheet. Place papers, marked side down on 2 baking sheets. Spray paper with nonstick spray. Using mixer beat egg whites in large bowl until frothy. Add cream of tartar and salt; beat until soft peaks form. Beat in sugar, 1 Tbsp at a time, then beat until whites are stiff and glossy. Beat in vanilla. Working in batches, spoon meringue into large pastry bag fitted with ½-inch plain tip. Starting in center of each traced circle and holding tip just above paper, pipe meringue in spirals to fill circles, forming 3 rounds. Bake meringues until firm, dry and pale golden, about 2 hours. Turn off oven; leave meringues in oven with door closed at least 4 hours or overnight.

For Rhubarb Cream: Combine rhubarb, strawberries, ½ cup sugar, water and lemon juice in saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat and simmer until rhubarb is very tender, about 15 minutes. Puree mixture in processor. Chill until cold. Whisk yolks and 1/3 cup sugar in large metal bowl to blend. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bowl to touch water). Whisk until mixture thickens and thermometer registers 140 for 3 minutes, about 7 minutes total. Chill mixture until cool, about 15 minutes. Gently fold rhubarb mixture into yolk mixture. Beat whipping cream and vanilla until stiff. Fold cream into rhubarb mixture in 2 additions. Place 1 meringue disk in 9-inch springform pan. Spread 1/3 of rhubarb cream (about 1 ½ cups) over meringue, leaving ½-inch plain border. Top with second meringue disk, then 1/3 rhubarb cream. Top with remaining meringue disk and rhubarb cream (cream will not spread to sides of pan). Freeze until cream is firm, about 6 hours. Release cake pan sides. Serve torte with sweetened strawberries, if desired.

Special Easter Breads

Easter and Passover are the last big holy days until fall; at least that involve special feasts and food preparation. Besides eggs, ham or lamb and asparagus, the other category of foods we associate with Easter is breads. Every ethnic group seems to have a special bread to bake at Easter.


The Greeks and the Russians really do this category proud. The Greek tradition has Easter as a more prominent holiday than Christmas, which of course, is opposite of the Northern European way; there are more of us in the Midwest that put our best efforts into Christmas (as in the hundreds of delicious Scandinavian butter cookies) leaving Easter as mostly colored eggs and a nice brunch or dinner.

I decided to look at all the breads of the Eastern European and Southern Mediterranean areas baked for Easter and it was amazing. Ukrainians have a specialty called Paska (or sometimes kulich—then paska will be a cheese mixture baked in a mold and served with the kulich) baked in tall, cylindrical cans (like coffee cans). This bread takes a long, long kneading time and a special cooling done on a pillow. “The paska will be very soft. Place a pillow on your kitchen counter; then remove the cans from the oven, using both hands. Place each can over the pillow with the opening of the can facing away from you. Gently let the paska slide out onto the pillow, shaking the can to get it started. Every minute turn the paska from side to side with your hands. Do again and again until it is cooler. Leave it on the pillow, turning it once in a while until it is completely cool.”—from Valentina’s Ukrainian Kitchen

The Greek bread for Easter, tsoureki, is a beautiful, braided affair with red-dyed eggs baked right into it. These eggs, having been boiled and then baked, are not eaten, but used for a favorite family game in which everyone grasps one of the red eggs tightly in his hand with the point showing. Each tries to crack the other’s egg. The winner is the lucky one who successfully escapes having his egg cracked.

The Italians, not to be left out in the culinary field, have a lovely bread called Creska in northern Italy. This is a savory rather than sweet bread, using Parmesan cheese, of course.

With all the Easter morning breads, there was only one Good Friday bread that I found in my search: hot cross buns. Most of us are familiar with these British offerings, but perhaps not the tradition surrounding them.

Good Friday comes this month, the old woman runs

With one-a-penny, two-a-penny, hot cross buns,

Whose virtue is, if you believe what’s said,

They’ll not grow moldy like common bread.

--Old English Folk Chant

By the early part of the eighteenth century the Hot Cross Bun was traditional Good Friday eating throughout England. Until lately, in England, they were available only on Good Friday, but now are sold throughout the Lenten season. There are variations on the recipes I found, but all include currants or raisins and candied fruit peel. Here’s one I liked for you to try.

Hot Cross Buns

1 cup scalded milk (can use microwave) 4 cups flour
One-half cup butter (1 stick) One-half teaspoon salt
One-half cup sugar 1 cup currants or raisins
1 pkg. dry yeast (dissolved in one-fourth One-fourth cup candied fruit peels
cup warm water) One-half teaspoon ground allspice
1 large egg

Pour the scalded milk over the butter and sugar and stir to dissolve the butter and sugar. Let cool to lukewarm. Add the dissolved yeast and the egg and blend well. Add the flour and salt gradually, reserving a small amount of flour to dust the fruits. Add the floured fruits and the allspice to the dough and knead in thoroughly. (I use the dough hook on my stand-mixer). Place in a buttered bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled. Punch the dough down and turn it out onto a floured board. Shape dough into 15 buns and place on sprayed cookie sheets. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes, then very carefully press the shape of a cross into each bun, using a spatula or the back of a knife. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking until buns are browned and done, about 10 to 15 minutes longer. Frost either the entire bun or just the shape of the cross.

Frosting: Beat 1 egg white until stiff, adding powdered sugar gradually until mixture is thick. Flavor with 1 teaspoon lemon juice or vanilla extract or one-quarter teaspoon almond extract. If frosting thins, add more powdered sugar.

Easter Morning Brunch

I love Easter morning. I am a morning person, anyway, but there is something so very special about Easter morning—imagining the “Marys” arriving very early in the morning and finding the tomb of Jesus empty and being told by an angel that he had risen. What a morning! So I am planning a special Easter Brunch instead of a big dinner.

This menu is so make-ahead that you can even plan to go to the Easter Sunrise Service and get back in plenty of time to relax and enjoy your brunch. If you have young children around, they are too busy engaged in finding Easter baskets to care if breakfast is a bit late and they have all that candy to snack on.

If you are having an Easter brunch—great—but this menu is equally delightful for a Spring brunch—since it calls for many of the favorites for Spring (now that it is finally here) and it affords the opportunity to really dress up the table with tulips, daffodils, lilies, baskets of colored eggs, etc. The ultimate Spring celebration:

Menu

Baked Eggs with Cheese and Herbs
Homemade Sausage Patties
Fresh Pineapple and Strawberries with Cream Topping
Bohemian Easter Braid

Baked Eggs with Cheese and Herbs
8-10 servings

3 slices bread, crusts removed (such as Italian, French, or a whole grain bread)
3 medium scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
½ cup (packed) parsley leaves
1 cup whole milk or half and half
¾ cup water
12 eggs
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1 tsp. dried chervil
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp. dillweed
¼ lb. Swiss cheese, shredded
¼ lb. mozzarella cheese, shredded
¼ cup butter

Spray a 6-cup soufflé dish or casserole. Mince bread and parsley in work bowl of food processor using several pulses. Blend milk and water in small bowl. Add bread and let soak 5 minutes. Strain, reserving liquid. Combine eggs, seasonings and half of soaking liquid in work bowl and mix 5 seconds. Transfer to mixing bowl and blend in remaining liquid and onions. Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 400 degrees. Combine cheeses and sprinkle ¼ cup into prepared dish. Heat butter in large skillet over low heat. Add egg mixture and cook briefly just until barely set (mixture should just start to thicken; do not overcook). Add bread and 1 ½ cups cheese. Ladle into prepared dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese. This dish can be prepared to this point, covered tightly and refrigerated overnight. Bake until top is browned and puffy, about 30 to 35 minutes.

Strawberries and Pineapple with Pineapple Cream Topping (serves 8)

1 large, ripe pineapple
2 pints strawberries (leave 8 whole for garnish)
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. grated orange peel
2 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
Grated lemon peel from one lemon
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup whipping cream, chilled

Split pineapple (including leaves) in half lengthwise. Without cutting through skin, remove meat from each half in 1 piece leaving ½-inch-thick shell. Discard core. Quarter halves lengthwise; cut 1 length in half again vertically and set 1 piece aside to use in topping. Slice remaining pieces and transfer to mixing bowl. Slice strawberries. Add to pineapple with sugar and peel and toss lightly. Spoon into shells. Top with whole berries, cover and refrigerate.

For topping: Combine eggs, sugar and peel in work bowl and mix 1 minute. Cut reserved pineapple into 2 pieces, add to work bowl and mix 1 minute. Add lemon juice and mix 5 seconds. Transfer mixture to top of double boiler set over medium heat and stir until sauce is thickened and coats spoon. Remove from heat and cool. Whip cream. Fold into cooled pineapple mixture. Cover and refrigerate. To served, spoon fruit into individual dishes. Pass topping separately.

Homemade Sausage Patties

2 lbs. lean pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes
12 ounces pork fat, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 Tbsp water
2 sp. salt
½ tsp freshly ground pepper
½ tsp liquid smoke (optional)
¼ tsp. ground cloves
¼ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
¼ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. dried oregano
¼ tsp. dried sage
1 small onion, minced
¼ cup all purpose flour

Combine pork and fat in large mixing bowl and mix well. Divide into three batches for food processor or use meat grinder. Chop, 1 batch at a time, in processor or feed through meat grinder until coarsely chopped. When all is chopped, return mixture to large bowl. Combine water and seasonings and add to chopped mixture with onion. Blend gently but thoroughly with hands. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Shape into 16 patties. Lightly flour each patty and place in large cold skillet. Fry over medium-high heat until well browned and cooked through, turning once, about 20 minutes.

Canadian Maple Brown Bread

So much has been written about bread that I haven’t a lot to add except to say that I was appalled when the low-carb diet craze demonized bread. Bread? The staff of life? Now we know that bread made from whole grains and baked with loving hands at home is not bad for one’s health. Actually, recent nutritional studies have found that bread is a very valuable food and that the use of whole grains and other add-ins (such as fruit and nuts) only adds to that nutritional worth. Thank Goodness. The other health benefit is the warm, homey, good feelings we get from the aroma and taste of freshly homemade bread. Think stress reduction.


Our ancestors never doubted the value of bread. It has been around for thousands of years. I’m not sure how the first man figured out to grind the grains they found growing wild and mixing the result with water and baking it in the sun on a flat stone but historians tell us that that’s how it all probably began. It used to be a formidable task—even as recently as our grandmothers who baked bread for a week for a family—usually on Saturday. Today we can use our heavy-duty mixers or breadmakers (on the “dough” setting) to mix and knead and (in the case of the breadmaker) raise the bread in a nice, warm environment.

But even if you don’t bake your bread using machines to help, it is a labor of love and therapy. Kneading yeast breads and feeling the springy, smooth, fragrant and live dough beneath your fingers is gratifying as few other cooking tasks are. One of my cookbooks says, “The satisfaction of producing a fine loaf is a thrill hardly possible to exaggerate.”

It took me several years to learn to make good yeast bread. I was probably intimidated a little by my mom who won blue ribbons for her bread when she was just a teen and always made it look simple, but never really taught me how. She was not one to measure or write down directions and so my first loaves as a bride turned out like bricks and I didn’t know why. I finally asked her to show me, step-by-step, how she did it and talk me through how she knew when the water was the right temperature so as not to kill the yeast (what I had evidently been doing to produce those “bricks”), how to tell when the dough was kneaded just right—and also how to tell when it was done. Now I can bake a pretty mean loaf.

While working on a cookbook entitled The Thrifty, Healthy Kitchen, I costed out the price of a 1 ½ pound loaf of part white, part whole wheat bread with some shortening and sweetener in it. The cost was about $0.48. In today’s world, that’s pretty inexpensive for a wonderful loaf of bread—so I decided to bake all our bread. Since I had picked up a hand-written cookbook at the Library’s book sale last week called “A Diary of Bread 100 ways 100 Days” I got the brilliant idea to start at the beginning and bake a bread a day. Well, almost a bread a day—there are days when I simply can’t. What to do with all that bread? I am using it for my breakfasts, ourselves, the freezer and as gifts. It’s amazing how welcome a loaf of homemade bread is! I am going to keep my readers abreast of my 100 loaves of bread by writing about the most outstanding once a month and sharing what I am learning about baking bread. The first is Canadian Maple Brown Bread

Canadian Maple Brown Bread

¾ cup uncooked rolled oats
1 ¼ cup boiling water
1 package active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water (105 to 115)
¼ tsp. sugar
¼ tsp. ginger
½ cup milk
1/3 cup maple syrup
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup butter
2 tsp. salt
5 cups unbleached white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup golden raisins
Maple syrup and turbinado sugar for glaze

Combine oats and 1 ¼ cups boiling water in a small bowl. Cover and let stand 20 minutes. Dissolve yeast, ginger and sugar in warm water in a large bowl; let stand until bubbly, about 5 minutes. Combine milk, 1/3 cup maple syrup, brown sugar, butter and salt in small pan. Heat over low heat until butter is melted. Cool to lukewarm. Stir into yeast. Stir in oats mixture. Mix in flour and raisins to make a stiff dough. Turn dough onto floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. (Alternatively, use dough hook of heavy-duty electric mixer and knead about 10 minutes.) Place in greased bowl; turn greased side up. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double ( 1 ½ hours). Punch down and divide in half. Shape in 2 greased loaf pans. Cover; let rise until double (about 1 ½ hours). Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans. Brush tops with maple syrup and sprinkle with turbinado or maple sugar while still warm. Cool on wire rack.

Fool and Flummery

Yesterday was April Fool’s Day and I have always wondered how this celebration began—so I set out to discover the origins of Fool’s Day. That turned out not to be as easy as it sounded. The best I could do was this: “The origins of April Fools’ Day have never really been determined. Some speculate that it derives from an ancient New Year festival celebrated at the vernal equinox. It bears certain resemblances to Hilaria, an ancient Roman festival in honor of a nature goddess, which was celebrated on March 25…but whatever its roots, the timing of April Fools’ Day is certainly appropriate, since it occurs during that part of the year when nature fools men with capricious changes” [in the weather].


There is actually a dessert called a fool; very old-fashioned and probably originating in England. How did a dessert come to be known as a fool? It may have come from the French word, foule meaning pressed or crushed and refer to the combination of crushed fruits and thick cream. It is a simple dish—but sublime.

And then there is the dessert known as flummery. The dictionary definition of that word is: 1. A name given to various sweet dishes made with milk, eggs, flour, etc. 2. Empty compliment; unsubstantial talk or writing; mumbo jumbo; nonsense. That last one fits the foolish theme.

Both of these desserts are fantastic and as easy as can be—maybe the name of them comes from fooling our guests into thinking we spent hours on these delightful desserts! There are a number of simple variations to each—especially the fruit used to make it. Here are the two that I tried with their variations:

Strawberry Fool

3 cups washed, hulled and sliced strawberries or 1 pound bag unsweetened frozen strawberries, thawed
1 Tbsp Cointreau or other orange flavored liqueur (optional)
½ cup white sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Put fresh or thawed strawberries in bowl and add optional orange liqueur and ½ the sugar (1/4 cup). Set aside in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours. Pour all but ½ cup strawberries into a food processor or blender. Puree until smooth. Pour into bowl and refrigerate for a few hours. Put remaining strawberries into a food processor and pulse until still a little chunky. Put them into refrigerator also for a few hours. When ready to assemble fool, whip the heavy cream with the remaining ¼ cup sugar until fairly stiff peaks form. Fold the puree into whipped cream very carefully. Spoon into pretty stemmed glasses, swirling at top. Put remaining strawberries on top and just barely twirl them into cream, leaving some to show. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Variations:

Serve with drizzled ganache or a chocolate covered strawberry,
Make fool with strained pureed raspberries or blackberries
Use stewed, sweetened rhubarb for the fruit
Healthy alternative: use yogurt in place of whipped cream or lighten yogurt with half whipped cream

Blueberry Flummery

4 cups blueberries
¾ cup sugar
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp. lemon rind, grated
½ tsp. nutmeg
¼ cup water
½ cup (1 stick) butter
8 slices oatmeal or white bread

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Liberally spray a 1 ½-quart baking dish. Mix blueberries, sugar, lemon juice and rind, nutmeg and water in large saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to bubble; allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Melt butter. Cut each slice into 3 strips and dip in butter. Line the baking dish with a layer of bread. Pour half hot berries over bread, add another layer of bread and cover with the remaining berries. Bake for 20 minutes. The flummery is excellent served hot or room temperature with whipped cream or ice cream.

Variations:

Flummeries can be made with almost any fruit and can be thickened with oatmeal or cornstarch instead of using bread. I even found several recipes using gelatin. This rhubarb variation is timely and easy and sounds delicious—no fooling!

Rhubarb Flummery

1 ½ lbs. rhubarb
1 ½ cups water
½ cup sugar
¼ tsp. vanilla
3 Tbsp cornstarch

Cut rhubarb in ½” slices. Add water and sugar and simmer until mushy. Add vanilla. Mix cornstarch with a little cold water. Stir into rhubarb; cook, stirring constantly for 5 minutes or until thick. Serve warm or chilled with sweetened whipped cream.

Still Time for Meatloaf

When you think of comfort food, what comes to mind immediately? Mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, meat loaf? I think meat loaf is the most universal answer.


There are many versions and ideas of meat loaf around the world, but for me, ground meat, some kind of starchy filler, egg, liquid, seasonings and a topping are standard. After that, the sky’s the limit. I went through my recipe collection to find variations on the meat loaf theme and this is what came up:

Let’s start with the meat; beef is the most common, but years ago there was a standard ground meat mixture sold in markets called “meatloaf mix” that was ½ ground beef, ¼ ground pork and ¼ ground veal. Actually you can still find this in a few places but veal is getting to be so rare and so expensive that it is definitely hard to find. Here in Red Wing I found it in the regular packaged meat case at Koplin’s Village.

The starchy filler is really variable; some folks swear by bread crumbs, others use crackers. Then there are the aficionados of wheat germ, oatmeal, farina (cream of wheat) or other cereal grains. Do you dump the crumbs in dry or soak them first in milk or water?

Egg is necessary to bind the mixture together so the loaf doesn’t crumble apart after it’s cooked. Egg substitutes work perfectly well, as do just egg whites or just yolks. If you use just yolks, you will need some extra liquid for moisture.

The liquid is extremely important and will determine the moistness of your loaf as well as add to the flavor. Common liquids used are milk, wine, water, broth, or tomato juice.

Seasonings can really make your meat loaf distinctive and also define its character: Mexican meatloaf using chili powder and cumin, French using tarragon, Italian using an Italian seasoning blend, etc. Salt and pepper are standard, but I came across recipes that had Worcestershire sauce, onion-soup mix, horseradish, mustard, sage, thyme, oregano, Italian salad-dressing mix and garlic powder.

Add-ins are getting very popular these days—especially vegetables. I guess the thinking goes that since meatloaf is usually an acceptable food to husbands and children, it’s a good place to get them to eat more vegetables. Chopped onions are pretty standard, but now red and green peppers, carrots, peas, even broccoli (I don’t recommend this one) are added to what is usually termed “calico meatloaf.”

What is a meatloaf topping? Well, when I was a kid my Mom used catsup—sometimes mixed with brown sugar and mustard. But again, only your imagination limits you here. Mashed potatoes, canned ravioli (no kidding), chili sauce, soups, pickle relish, cheese, mushrooms, bacon slices, pastry crusts or filo dough all are found on the top of a meatloaf somewhere. Some recipes called for pouring off the drippings, skimming the fat and adding tomato juice to reserved sauce and thickening it for gravy to serve over the finished loaf.

After reading about all these meat loaves, I got the bug to come up with a basic meatloaf and then give some of the more appealing variations a try. Here is the basic meatloaf mix I used:

1 ½ pounds ground beef or mixture of beef, pork and veal if you can find it
½ cup dried bread crumbs
1 egg
½ cup milk
¼ cup chopped onion
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. dry mustard

Mix all ingredients with hands, gently. Spread mixture in an ungreased loaf pan, 9 x 5 x 3 inches, or shape into a free-form loaf to bake in an ungreased baking pan. Spoon topping of your choice onto loaf. Bake at 350 degrees uncovered for 1-to-1 ¼ hours. Drain off fat. Makes about 6 servings.

Meat loaf and mashed potatoes seem to me to be a natural combo, so I am including this variation (which we loved).

4 slices fresh soft bread
2 pounds ground beef
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground sage
¼ tsp. pepper
½ cup milk
2 eggs
1 small onion, quartered
5 parsley sprigs
1 4-inch-long stalk celery
4 medium potatoes, cooked and mashed with milk and butter, salt and pepper
2 Tbsp melted butter

Into food processor or blender tear bread and process until finely crumbled; empty into large bowl. Mix beef, salt, sage and pepper with crumbs. Into blender container put milk, eggs, onion, parsley and celery. Cover and blend until vegetables are finely chopped. Pour over meat; mix well. Place meat mixture in a sprayed loaf pan (10 x 5 x 3”). Bake at 350 for 1 hour 15 minutes. Remove from oven and spread mashed potatoes over top, sealing to edges of pan. Bake for ten minutes. Remove and drizzle melted butter over potatoes and broil until potatoes brown slightly.

Blizzard Food

It’s been quite some time since we’ve experienced so many snow storms in Minnesota. And here it is March.  It came in like a lion and is purported to be the snowiest month of the year. Who knows? We may have even more of the white stuff piling up around us before the winter is through. Except for the difficulty of travel and the labor of removing snow, it is rather exciting and reminiscent of one’s childhood if you—like I—grew up in the cold and snowy north.

This week I am home and ready to “cozy in.”  All winter long we keep copies of Whittier's "Snowbound" in the library and around the house.  We actually have six copies so all of our guests can enjoy their own copy.  I sat in our library and re-read it. I had forgotten what a wonderful piece of literature it is. Of course, any references to food popped out at me and I share this delicious passage:

Shut in from all the world without,
We sat the clean-winged hearth about
Content to let the north-wind roar
In baffled rage at pane and door,
While the red logs before us beat
The frost-line back with tropic heat;…
Between the andirons’ straddling feet,
The mug of cider simmered slow,
The apples sputtered in a row,
And, close at hand, the basket stood
With nuts from brown October’s wood.

We actually have 9 working fireplaces in this house even though 5 are in guests’ bedrooms. That still leaves us four to choose from and I plan to find some great books, games—I think it would be great to read the whole poem of Snowbound out loud to each other. Add some “fireside food” to comfort us. Here are a few recipes I pass on to you in case you want to do the same.

Baked Apples with Raisins
(6 servings)

6 baking apples (such as Golden Delicious or Braeburn)
1 1/3 cups golden raisins
¾ cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1 cup apple juice
¼ cup butter

Preheat oven to 375. Scoop out stem, core and seed of apples, leaving bottom intact. Peel skin off top half of each apple with an apple peeler. Arrange apples, cavity side up, in a 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish.

Stir raisins and sugar in a bowl to blend. Pack about 2 Tbsp raisin mixture into cavity of each apple. Sprinkle remaining mixture into the dish around apples. Pour juice over and around apples. Dot with butter.

Bake apples for 1 hour and 10 minutes, basting often with juices. Let apples stand 10 minutes, basting occasionally. Serve in bowls with juices poured over and pass thick cream

Delightful Hot Chocolate

4 cups whole milk
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup sugar
4 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
Pinch of salt
Miniature marshmallows

Bring milk, cocoa powder and sugar to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat, whisking frequently. Add chocolate; whisk until melted and smooth. Add salt; bring to simmer, whisking constantly until frothy. Ladle into 4 mugs. Sprinkle with marshmallows.

If you’re not a big hot chocolate fan or want something a little more bracing against the storm, try this concoction:

Mulled Cranberry, Apple and Rum Cider
(makes about 6 cups)

1 large orange
3 cups cranberry juice cocktail
3 cups apple cider
¾ cup (packed) golden brown sugar
4 ½ 3-to 4-inch long cinnamon sticks
18 whole cloves
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
6 Tbsp. dark rum
6 additional 3-to 4-inch-long cinnamon sticks (optional)
6 orange slices

Remove peel from orange in long strips. Place strips in large saucepan; halve orange and squeeze juice into pan. Add cranberry juice cocktail, apple cider, sugar, 4 ½ cinnamon sticks, cloves and nutmeg. Bring to boil over high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 25 minutes. Add rum to cider; simmer 5 minutes. Ladle into mugs. Garnish with cinnamon sticks and orange slices, if desired, and serve.  (Adapted from Bon Appetit, February 2005)

For heartier fare, the obvious choices are usually the best: a big pot of chili or any thick, hot soup, or perhaps a robust beef stew. Here’s one that should stick to your ribs and comfort you as well:

Blustery Day Beef Stew

4 ounces bacon slices, coarsely chopped
4 Tbsp olive oil
3 pounds trimmed boneless beef chuck, cut into 1 ½-inch pieces
2 large onions, peeled and quartered
3 Tbsp. flour
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
2 cups red wine
1 ½ cups canned beef broth
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 pound rutabagas, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 large carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 pounds white potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

Cook bacon in heavy large pot over medium-high heat until brown and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer bacon to small bowl, leaving drippings. Add 3 Tbsp. oil to drippings in pot. Increase heat to high. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper. Add beef to pot and sauté until no longer pink, about 4 minutes. (Do it in batches). Transfer beef to large bowl. Add remaining oil to pot; add onions until brown, about 8 minutes. Add flour and stir 1 minute. Return beef and any accumulated juices to pot. Mix in bacon tomatoes with juices, wine, broth, bay leaf, and thyme. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover pot and simmer 15 minutes. Add rutabagas, carrots and potatoes. Cover and simmer 45 minutes. Uncover and simmer until meat is tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Serve.

I say, “Let it snow!”