This is the November 2012 issue edition of Looking for a Recipe.
Email us at lookingforarecipe@americastestkitchen.com and tell us what recipe you’re looking for. (Make sure to include your name and mailing address.) Ever so often, we’ll share your submissions here, and we’ll feature some in a future issue of Cook’s Country magazine.
And if you happen to have one of the sought-after recipes in your recipe Rolodex, please leave us a comment. May many more lost recipes be found!
Coronado Salad Ring
From Victoria Rodgers, San Antonio, Texas:
My great-aunt Elsie used to bring her signature dish to every family reunion. She called it Coronado Salad Ring. It was made with lemon-lime Jell-O, pineapple chunks, cottage cheese, chopped walnuts, and horseradish. She often filled the center of the mold with fresh strawberries. It was perfect on hot summer days. I’ve lost her recipe, and I’m wondering if anyone has heard of this delicious, long-forgotten salad.
Sweet-and-Sour Braised Red Cabbage
From Brit Hagland, Somerville, Mass.:
Years ago, my husband and I frequented Lenora Restaurant, a now-defunct neighborhood restaurant in Porter Square in Cambridge, nearly every weekend. They served wonderful braised red cabbage that I’ve never been able to duplicate. It had red wine, vinegar, and some sort of sugar to make it both sweet and sour. I’d love to find a recipe like this one.
Maple-Walnut Cookies
From Melissa Hohler, Kettering, Ohio:
Many years ago there was a restaurant in Yellow Springs, Ohio, called Carol’s Kitchen. They made many things, but if you ask me, the best by far was their maple-walnut cookies. They were big, thick, and chewy, with a bit of a crunch on the outside and lots of walnuts. The walnut flavor was really strong but not artificial-tasting. I have searched out and tried many different recipes, but none has come close. I would love to find a recipe that truly replicates these cookies. Thanks.
Aunt Set’s Albany Cakes
From Cathleen Luce, Clifton, Va.:
I’m looking for a recipe for a cookie that my great-great-aunt Emmie passed down to my grandmother. We called them Aunt Set’s Albany Cakes. They were very large, soft, molasses-type cookies, but they were not spicy. They were rolled in sugar and then pressed with the bottom of a glass. My mother has lost the recipe, and I can’t find one like it anywhere.
Pastita
From Margaret dePaulo, Haverhill, Mass.:
I’m trying to duplicate a recipe for something I had at a friend’s house called pastita. It’s a spaghetti pie (served at room temperature), with egg, ricotta, and fresh parsley. There may be some other cheeses in there as well. I’m wondering if anyone has a good recipe.
Deviled Ham Spread
From Lola Wilson, Fort Wayne, Ind.:
When I was a kid, I brought lunch to school every day, and one of my favorite sandwiches was made from Underwood Deviled Ham Spread. I know the company still makes it, but I’d prefer to create a better (and healthier) version of it myself. Does anyone have a good recipe for deviled ham that you’re willing to share?
Kielbasa-Rice Casserole
From Bari Sullivan, Glendive, Mont.:
My best friend’s mom used to make the most delicious supper in her electric skillet. This was back in the 1950s, when cream soups were all the rage. The recipe included browned kielbasa, rice, and vegetables (frozen, I think), and it had a wonderful creamy texture. It was topped with cheese (of course!). Maybe it was a promotional recipe for the electric skillet or cream soups? I’d love to find it.
Crab Rangoon
From Laura Giesecke, Whitefish Bay, Wis.:
When I’m eating out, I often order crab rangoon; it’s one of my favorite appetizers. But often they seem to be made primarily of cream cheese, with very little crab meat inside. I’d love to find a crab rangoon recipe that actually tastes like crab.
Glazed Chocolate Doughnuts
From Janice Koenig, Louisville, Ky.:
My kids love chocolate doughnuts. the ones I bought at a school bake sale recently were way better than those I usually buy from a nearby doughnut chain. They were soft and tender and actually tasted like chocolate, with a light, vanilla-flavored glaze. I’d like to try making them myself. Can you tell me how?
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Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage
(recipe from my Danish Great Grandmother)
1 cup vinegar
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon salt
1 large head red cabbage, shredded
1 cup sugar
2 medium tart Apples grated
In a deep pot combine vinegar, butter and salt to bring to a boil. Add cabbage & simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Add sugar & apples. Simmer 30 minutes.
I have a recipe for “Albany Cakes.” They are chilled, rolled out to a quarter-inch thickness, and cut with cookie cutters, however; not rolled and flattened.
Let me know if you’d like the recipe anyway.
For Margaret and her “pastita.”
The dish you describe would be one made from leftover cooked pasta. Not much need for a recipe – it will work over a range of ingredients.
What you’re making is a frittata, really. You can make it in an ovenproof skillet or a casserole. In fact, I’d bet that the word “pastita” is a clever portmanteau of “pasta” and “frittata.”
1/2 lb cooked pasta – penne or spaghetti would be fine — avoid very thin pasta like spaghettini or angel hair
6 – 8 eggs, lightly beaten
Salt and pepper
6 – 8 oz whole-milk ricotta cheese
1/4 – 1/2 cup grated pecorino or parmigiano cheese
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 c olive oil and/or butter
Non-stick skillet
Beat the eggs lightly. Season well. Add ricotta, grated cheese, parsley. Mix well. Warm the olive oil and/or butter in the skillet. Add the leftover pasta and warm it through for a few minutes. Add the egg and cheese mixture, and cook over moderate heat, lifting the edges to let uncooked egg to drain underneath. Continue until most of the uncooked egg has drained underneath.
When it’s still creamy on the top (but not fully cooked), put it under a broiler (thus the need for the ovenproof skillet) for about 3 minutes, until the top is cooked and nicely browned. Watch it carefully – it can burn easily.
Slide onto a serving platter, cut into wedges, and enjoy.
This can be made just as easily with sauced or unsauced pasta, too. It’s particularly good with leftover pasta that had been dressed with olive oil, garlic, and capers.
Alternately, you could do this in a well-greased baking dish in the oven at 350°F for about 20 – 25 minutes.
For Victoria Rodgers:
I am so pleased that I can help you out! I LOVE the Coronado Salad Ring! My mother used to make it. The recipe comes from Barbara Goodfellow’s book, Make It Now, Bake It Later. Thanks for reminding me to make it again after all these years. Here is the recipe as it is in the cookbook:
1 package lime jello
1 package lemon jello
2 cups hot water
10 oz. dry creamed cottage cheese (small curd)
1 #2 can crushed pineapple, WELL-drained
2/3 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup pastry cream, not whipped
1 cup mayonnaise
1 T. horseradish (bottled type)
Dissolved the jellos in the hot water.
Add remaining ingredients in the order given.
Place in a wet ring mold and refrigerate until firm.
When ready to serve, unmold onto a platter. Fill center with fresh strawberries.
Serves 8.
I may be able to help Bari Sullivan with the Kielbasa-Rice Casserole. I have a recipe that I got in a magazine in the 90′s, called Colorful Kielbasa. I haven’t made it in ages, but my husband loves it (I think I’ll put it on next week’s menu….).
Colorful Kielbasa
1 can cream of celery soup, undiluted
1 1/2 c. water
1 Tbsp butter
1 lb smoked sausage, cut into 1/2″ pieces
3/4 c. uncooked long grain rice
2 small cans of mushrooms, drained
1 (10 oz) package frozen peas
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
In a skillet, combine soup, water and butter. Bring to a boil. Add kielbasa and rice. Reduce heat, cover and simmer about 18 minutes, or until rice is almost tender. Stir in mushrooms and peas. Cover and simmer 15 minutes, or until rice is tender and peas are heated through. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover and let stand until melted.
That’s the way the recipe is written. I haven’t used canned mushrooms in years, so I would probably saute fresh ones instead, and I would definitely brown the sausage pieces before adding the liquids. But that’s just me. I hope this is close to what you are looking for!
For Laura Giesecke, (Crab Rangoon): The original, as nearly as I can tell, comes from Trader Vic. The basic recipe is 1/2 crabmeat, 1/2 cream cheese (by weight) with a little A1 steak sauce. You can look it up. After filling the wonton wrappers, sealing them with beaten egg and frying them in a deep fat fryer, server with a dipping sauce, like Teriyaki, sweet-and-sour, or any other asian dipping sauce or one of Trader Vic’s recipes.
Jim S
Adapted from a Food Network recipe ‘Dad’s Red Cabbage’:
1/2 Tbsp cooking oil
Cooking spray
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tart apples, thinly sliced
1 small red cabbage, shredded
1 cup red wine
Brown sugar (1/3 – 1/2 cup, depending on how sweet the wine is)
1/2 cup water
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 small potato, peeled and grated
Spray large saucepan, add oil and heat over medium heat. Sauté onion and apple for 3-4 minutes until softened. Add cabbage and sauté a few more minutes. Add all ingredients except potato, bring to boil, and simmer partially covered for about an hour. Add grated potato and simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes, stirring frequently, until mixture thickens.
Sorry, forgot an ingredient.
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
Add with other liquids.
Hungarian Red Cabbage
A tried and true recipe from generations of Hungarian cooks via Mary-Beth Prokop Phillips, November 2004
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS…
1 large head of red cabbage, medium shred
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 large tart apple, unpeeled but cored, quartered and shredded
1 cup red wine
6 TB unsalted [sweet] butter (3/4 of a stick)
1/3 to 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/3 to 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
3 – 4 bay leaves
salt
pepper
toasted caraway seeds (optional)
PREPARATION…
• Melt butter in large heavy pot over medium high heat
• Saute onions and apples until soft but not brown
• Add cabbage and toss to coat with butter
• Add red wine and cook until cabbage begins to wilt and reduce in volume, and wine will almost evaporate
• Adding a little at a time, mix apple cider vinegar with brown sugar, just enough to dissolve sugar into a syrup (depends on sweetness of cabbage… winter cabbage (after a frost) is usually sweeter
• Toss syrup with cabbage mixture
• Add all seasonings EXCEPT caraway seeds to cabbage to taste and continue to cook over LOW heat until cabbage softens but still retains some crispness, or to your preference. A good indicator is that the onions have disappeared and the apple is gone too.
HINTS…
Depending on the sweetness of your raw cabbage, you may need to adjust seasonings. I’ve given approximate proportions of all ingredients…but as always, it is best to follow your own personal taste.
If you need more liquid, add water sparingly….better to add more butter, otherwise the cabbage steams and does not braise.
Use butter, not margarine or olive oil. Somehow anything other than butter makes it greasy and the cabbage actually squeaks and slips when you bite it. (In the interest of healthy eating, I’ve tried.)
Toast caraway seeds in a hot dry pan on the stovetop till fragrant… or use the toaster oven.
We even like it cold as a sandwich relish….good with leftover roast pork/roast beef/ham.
Re: Coronado Salad Ring
Sounds like Sarah has probably found the exact recipe for this down to the strawberry garnish.
My Mom used to make this with Easter dinner, only she called it Molded Pineapple Cottage Cheese Salad. Ingredients are just slightly different and it is served with a dressing.
Molded Pineapple Cottage Cheese Salad ( 6 servings )
1 pkg lime gelatin
1 pkg lemon gelatin
2 cups boiling water
1 No. 2 can crushed pineapple
1 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup salad dressing
1 cup small curd cottage cheese
1 tsp. horseradish
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Curly endive and Tokay grapes for garnish
Dissolve the 2 pkgs gelatin in the boiling water. Add pineapple and juice. Chill until partially set. Whip. Mix evaporated milk, salad dressing, cottage cheese, horseradish, and nuts. Fold into whipped gelatin. Fill 1 1/2 quart mold and chill until firm. Unmold on serving plate. Garnish.
Banana – Nut Dressing ( makes 1 cup )
Blend 1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing, 1 mashed banana, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, 3 T heavy cream, and 1 T lemon juice in a small bowl.
My husband cannot imagine horseradish and jello together, so I think I will make this over the holidays. I always loved it.
Malerie D.
Looks like there are several variations to the Coronado Salad Ring recipe. Here is what my husband’s grandmother used to make for holiday meals. She simply called it
Lime Salad
1 package Lime Jello
1 package Lemon Jello
1 cup boiling water
1 pint cottage cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup evaporated milk
1 tablespoon horseradish
1 can crushed pineapple — drained
Dissolve both packages of Jello in boiling water. Cool slightly. Stir in cottage cheese and mayonnaise. Next, add the evaporated milk, horseradish and pineapple and mix well.
Refrigerate. Serve on lettuce leaves.
No walnuts in this recipe, but I don’t see why they couldn’t be added.
Sweet and Sour Braised Red Cabbage
This recipe has been handed down from my German “Oma”. It really incorporates the basics of Umami, a balance of sweet, savory and sour. Putting this recipe into measured ingredients is a challenge so I will quote Canadian Chef Michael Smith here and say that a recipe is just words on a paper. Cooking is a lot more forgiving than baking where exact measurements are required. All the ingredients may be increased or decreased based on personal taste. I will give you approximate measurements keeping in mind that heads of red cabbage vary in size and therefore, ingredients must vary accordingly. Just taste and adjust.
1 large head red cabbage; cored and chopped into approximately 1/2 inch pieces.
3-4 slices of smokey bacon, chopped
1 large onion; chopped
2 tart apples (such as Granny Smith)l peeled and grated
3 bay leafs
3-4 allspice balls
6-8 cloves
salt and pepper to taste
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup white sugar
In a large dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until it starts to crisp. Lower heat; add onions and saute until transparent. Add grated apple and cook over medium for approximately 2 minutes. Add chopped red cabbage, bay leafs, allspice, cloves, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and let cook for about 15 minutes or until desired doneness; stirring occasionally. Add vinegar and sugar; stir; taste; adjust. You are looking for a nice balance of sweet and sour. Neither flavor can dominate. If you over sweeten, add salt. Heat through and remove bay leafs, allspice and cloves.
This dish freezes well.
I also have another German recipe for braised green cabbage if anyone is interested. I have never found this recipe on the internet so it is a family original.
I have worked long and hard to duplicate Underwood’s deviled ham. I have come very close, so close that I like my recipe even better:
Follow exact measurements to taste like Underwood’s –
3 c ground ham or 1-lb canned ham or 1-lb Spam, diced
¾ c mayo
1 Tb prepared mustard
1 tsp horseradish
2 tsp Worcester
¼ c sweet pickle relish – drain well
1 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp garlic powder ( no more! )
3 drops red food coloring – optional ( no more!)
Process all in food processor.
My family recipe for the red cabbage calls for goose fat and currant jelly! Otherwise pretty much the same than all around the www.
To Brit Hagland on the Braised Red Cabbage: Your description of the red cabbage you had reminded me of Julia Child’s recipe for Braised Shredded Red Cabbage in “The Way to Cook”. If you need me to type out the full recipe, let me know. The ingredients are:
3 Tbsp butter
1 lg. red onion
2 cloves garlic
6 cups shredded red cabbage
Seasonings: salt and pepper, 2 tsp caraway seeds, and 1 bay leaf
1 cooking apple such as Granny Smith, grated
3/4 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup red wine
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Thiis is for Cathleen Luce. I’m not sure if these are the cookies she’s looking for, but they sound similar. The recipe is from an old La Leche League cookbook, “Mother’s in the Kitchen”, and was submitted by Mrs. Clarence Gerdes, or Platte City, Missouri:
Molasses Ginger Snaps
3/4 C. margarine or shortening
1 C. sugar
1/4 C. molasses
1 egg
2 C. flour
1 t. soda
1 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. cloves
1 t. ginger
Mix together at one time all the ingredients. Form into balls. Roll in sugar. place wide apart on slightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375°F for 8-10 minutes. (For a chewy cookie, use minimum time; for a crisper cookie, use maximum time.)