Black Forest Cake

WE HAD A FAMILY BIRTHDAY and I planned to cook dinner and make birthday cake. I had been thinking I would make spaghetti because it is always a crowd pleaser and I was in the mood for it (I still am). I also had fresh cherries on hand that wanted to be used. I had seen a recipe for cherry upside down cake which sounded delicious.

I asked Alice what she wanted and she said barbecue and chocolate cake. Naturally, I changed gears in my planning. After all, I did ask.

Pritchard Parker grilled ribs which were outstanding. I made freshly shredded cabbage slaw, baked beans, and corn on the cob. Still wanting to use my cherries, I decided to make Black Forest Cake.

I made the cake, the cherry filling, and the whipped cream from scratch. If you didn't want to do that you could use cake mix, canned cherry pie filling, and cool whip. But be warned, it won't taste nearly as delicious as homemade.

Black Forest Cake

1 Devil's Food Cake (Recipe I used)

Freshly Whipped Cream - directions follow

Fresh Cherry Pie Filling - recipe follows

If you have never made whipped cream, do yourself a favor. The taste is superior and you can make it much faster than you can thaw frozen whipped topping. Pour 8 ounces of heavy whipping cream, 3 tablespoons powdered sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla into mixing bowl. Whisk until fluffy peaks form but don't over beat. That's it! 

Fresh Cherry Pie Filling

4 cups fresh cherries

2/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup cornstarch

1 Tbsp. cognac

Wash and carefully pit cherries. Place in a heavy, medium saucepan along with sugar, water, fresh lemon juice, and cornstarch. Heat over medium until everything is blended and mixture is beginning to boil. Lower heat and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened. 

Remove from heat to cool, then stir in the cognac.

To assemble cake, place one layer on plate or cake board. Top with whipped cream, then cherry filling, as desired. Top with second layer and repeat with whipped cream and cherries. Chill before serving. 

Nicoise Salad

I AM NOT GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE unrelenting heat wave that has us in its grip. I am not going to talk about living in an older, un-air conditioned home in the mountains. I am not going to talk about my love of summer.

What I will mention is that this is the first summer Pritchard Parker is not working in an air conditioned office all day but rather from home. And he is not enjoying it. He does not love summer. Even when he is not saying anything, he is saying plenty, if you know what I mean. The heat will break soon and he will be back to his usual good humor.

Meanwhile, I have been serving only cold food. If I need to do any cooking at all, like I did here with cooking the beets, potatoes, and eggs, I do it early in the morning before the afternoon sun beats down on our west facing kitchen.

By dinner time, the ingredients for this delicious and satisfying Nicoise salad will be cold and we will dine a little later. I made a simple lemony vinaigrette and chilled that as well.

Nicoise Salad
Washed, torn, and chilled lettuce
Oil packed tuna
Boiled eggs
Sliced Vidalia (or other sweet) onions
New potatoes, simmered until tender
Beets, simmered until tender
Tomato slices
Anchovy fillets
Calamata olives

Lemony Vinaigrette Dressing
2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place lettuce on individual plates. Top with tuna, eggs, onions, potatoes, beets, and tomato. Garnish with anchovies and olives. Drizzle with lemony dressing.

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad with Marinated Grilled Drumsticks

The first thing I noticed when I awoke Memorial Day was the silence. There was no traffic noise with neighbors leaving for work, no lawn mowers, no barking dogs, just quiet. Nice! I knew that our nearby downtown area was already teeming with tourists.

We had previously decided we were going to break out our grill for the season. And we decided we were going to grill chicken and vegetables. The day remained relatively quiet. I guess our neighbors had left town for the holiday weekend, while thousands of tourists were pouring in.

Pritchard Parker did the grocery shopping. He chose chicken legs and marinated them overnight in olive oil, soy sauce, garlic, lime juice, paprika, and salt and pepper. They were outstanding! He also bought the vegetables I wanted--corn, zucchini, onions, red bell pepper, jalapeno, garlic, limes, and parsley.

We don't have a fancy, modern grill that involves turning a knob. We have an old school charcoal grill. While Pritchard Parker was getting the fire ready, I prepped the vegetables. While they cooked, I put on the pasta and made a dressing. While the chicken was cooking, I finished the salad, and we were ready to eat.

Delicious!

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad
8 oz. elbow macaroni, cooked according to package directions
3 medium zucchini, sliced in half lengthwise
1 red bell pepper, cored and cut in half
3 ears sweet corn, husks removed
2 Vidalia onions, cut in half horizontally, stems left in place
1 whole head of garlic
2 jalapeno peppers, sliced in half lengthwise, membranes removed
1 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 bunch parsley, chopped
Juice of 2 limes (approx. 1/4 cup)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 Tbsp. maple syrup or honey

Rub the zucchini, bell pepper, corn, onion, and jalapeno peppers with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Slice the top off the garlic, drizzle with olive oil, and wrap in aluminum foil. Grill vegetables until tender and slightly charred.

Cut grilled vegetables into bite-sized pieces and combine with pasta. Squeeze in whole garlic cloves.
Sprinkle liberally with parsley.

Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, and maple syrup. Pour over salad and toss to combine, adding salt and pepper to taste.

Homemade Old-Fashioned Southern Caramel Frosting

THERE IS A GROUP OF SOUTHERN LADIES, of a certain age, I make a luncheon for every couple of months.  These are the deep south bless-her-heart, yes-mam-no-sir, tea-is-always-sweet, set-a-proper-table, use-your-best-manners, go-to-church-on-Sunday Southern ladies.

I love cooking for them. One reason they are such a joy to cook for is that I don't have to wade through a list of dietary restrictions--low carb, paleo, whole 30, gluten free, clean, vegan, keto, raw, sugar free, nut free, plant based, etc. They are from the "eat what is served and be thankful for it" era. I am free to choose my own menus and I always try to cook things that are delicious, interesting, and provoke memories and discussions.

Recently, I made a cake with an old-fashioned, cooked, caramel icing. They swooned.

This icing has several steps and does take time stirring, mixing, cooking, and caramelizing, Plan to spend some time in the kitchen, and enjoy! It is a true labor of love.

Homemade Caramel Frosting
(Southern Living)
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Sprinkle 1/3 cup sugar in a shallow, heavy 3 1/2 quart Dutch oven; cook over medium heat stirring constantly, 3 minutes or until sugar is melted and syrup is light golden brown. (Sugar may clump). Remove from heat.

Stir together 1 Tbsp. flour and 2 1/2 cups sugar in a large saucepan; add milk and bring to a boil over medium-high heat., stirring constantly.

Gradually pour about one fourth hot milk mixture into caramelized sugar, stirring constantly; gradually stir in remaining hot milk mixture until smooth. (Mixture may lump, but continue stirring until smooth).

Cover and cook over low heat about 2 minutes. Increase heat to medium; uncover and cook, without stirring until a candy thermometer reaches 238 degrees (soft ball stage) about 10 minutes. Add butter, stirring until blended. Remove from heat and let stand, without stirring, until temperature drops to 110 degrees (about 1 hour).

Pour into bowl of heavy duty electric stand mixer. Add vanilla and beat at medium speed (setting 4) with whisk attachment until spreading consistency, about 20 minutes.

Chop Suey

 THERE ARE MANY VARIATIONS OF Chinese-American Chop Suey. At first, I didn't feel sure about even calling this stir-fry meal Chop Suey. One glimpse at Google Images, and all the variations, gave me the confidence to go ahead and all it Chop Suey. After all it is not even a traditional Chinese dish at all but rather one invented in California, out of necessity, by a Chinese-American Chef.

Any protein (or none) can be used--chicken, beef, pork, tofu. I had a couple of thick cut pork chops in the freezer, so I used those. Any vegetables can also be used. I used onion, garlic, celery, carrot, red bell pepper, cremini mushrooms, water chestnuts, and bok choy. Bamboo shoots, broccoli, and bean sprouts would also be delicious.

Most times, when I make a stir-fry, I serve it with rice. This time I wanted to use noodles. The noodles we used were called "Chinese Noodles" and we found them in the Asian section of our grocery store. Any noodles can be used--udon, soba, rice noodles, cellophane, or even vermicelli.

The recipe I am giving is enough to serve 6 people. Since we are a family of 3, I divided the ingredients and cooked it fresh 2 times, rather than making the whole recipe and having leftovers. Stir-fry wants to be served fresh.

Chop Suey
8 ounces pork, thinly sliced
Vegetable oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 cup celery, sliced on a diagonal
1 cup carrots, sliced on a diagonal
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch squares
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 (8oz.) can sliced water chestnuts
1 large bunch bok choy, coarsely chopped

Sauce
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (to taste)
1/2 tsp. powdered ginger (to taste)
Water

6 ounces Chinese noodles, cooked according to package directions

Heat about 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat, in a wok or large skillet. Add the pork; cook, stirring until the pork begins to brown, about 10 minutes. Remove meat from the wok and set aside. If needed, add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet.

Begin adding the vegetables to the skillet, cooking and stirring after each addition. While cooking the vegetables, mix the sauce ingredients in a 1 cup measure, adding water up to the 1 cup mark. Stir until thoroughly dissolved. Cook noodles according to package directions. (Our noodles cooked in 2 minutes).

When the vegetables are to your liking, add the meat back to the wok and stir. Add the sauce, stirring for about a minute until beginning to thicken. Stir in the cooked noodles.

Serve piping hot and garnish with toasted sesame seeds.

Fork Tender Oven Braised Corned Beef

THE TRADITIONAL ST. PATRICK'S DAY Corned Beef and Cabbage is my husband's favorite meal of the year! This year I took a different approach. Since the day was on a Sunday this year, my thoughts turned to brunch and home fries. I had made Irish Soda Bread, which we had toasted and smeared with sweet Irish butter.

Rather than Mimosas, we made Black Velvet Cocktails. I recently learned of this libation from the excellent blog, Kitchen Riffs. It is made from Guinness stout and Champagne. Very different, delicious, and celebratory. Thanks, John.

I also cooked the corned beef differently than my usual. I normally braise it on the stove top or on working days, the crock pot. This year, I oven braised it in beer--I used Guinness Stout, because I had it on hand. Use any beer you like. The brisket was moist, juicy, and so very tender. I'm pretty sure I will always cook it this way.

Oven Braised Corned Beef in Beer
4 lb. flat cut corned beef
12 ounce bottle beer
Water as needed

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Open corned beef in your clean sink. Save the spice packet. Rinse the brisket and pat dry with paper towels. Dispose of the liquid from the package. Trim off any excess fat.

Place the corned beef into a large, heavy Dutch oven with a tight fitting lid, fat side up. Sprinkle with spices from the packet. Add the beer. Use water, if needed, to bring the liquid barely to the top of the corned beef.

Cover and place in the oven for 1 1/2 hours. Turn oven to 300 degrees and continue cooking for another 2 1/2 hours.

If desired, add vegetables about 1 hour before the end of cooking time.

Tempeh Bolognese

IT IS VERY RARE NOT TO FEEL JOY, when I walk into the kitchen to cook. Even if I am feeling a bit on the grumpy side, once I begin assembling ingredients and getting out my pans, a contentment washes over me. The old Southern ladies I grew up around, used to say, "If you are feeling down in the dumps, go into the kitchen and bake a cake". I feel especially happy when baking.

I also love to make our day-to-day meals and I love eating homemade food. We recently went out of town two weekends in a row. After eating in restaurants so much, I couldn't wait to get into the kitchen. I enjoy making everything from scratch and taking time to appreciate the experience.

I prioritize making dinners from scratch using fresh, whole, ingredients. This Tempeh Bolognese fit the bill. It was delicious and we loved it!

Tempeh Bolognese
1 (8 oz.) package tempeh, crumbled
3 Tbsp. olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 - 2 stalks celery, sliced
2 tsp. basil
1 tsp. oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
4 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 cup red wine
28 oz. can whole Roma tomatoes, crushed by hand
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan, over medium heat. Add tempeh and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned.

Add garlic, onion, carrots, celery, basil, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste. Cook and stir about 5 minutes. Add wine and stir until well combined.

Add tomatoes and simmer, uncovered, over low heat for one hour, adding a little liquid (wine, broth, or water) if needed. Stir in parsley. Serve over pasta of your choice. Top with grated Parmesan, if desired.

Sauerkraut Salad

SAUERKRAUT SALAD IS A FAIRLY NEW DISH in our family. I first experienced it when a friend asked me to go with her to visit her aunt.  Auntie served us a meal of "soup beans" (pinto beans), cornbread, sauerkraut salad, and iced tea. I swooned from the deliciousness.

The salad reminded me of chow-chow, which I love with beans and with a summer vegetable plate. But this salad is much, much easier to make with sauerkraut than with fresh cabbage. And sauerkraut has surprising health benefits.

This salad can also be served as a relish for hot dogs, as a topping for a pulled pork sandwich, as part of a cold salad plate. What other ways can you think of serving this?

I have experimented with the recipe I was given. The first thing I did was cut way back on the sugar. The next thing was add heat by way of fresh jalapenos. Other things I think about are ginger, turmeric, mustard seed, celery seed.

I'm sure I will continue to tweak. Here is a recipe to get you started.

Sauerkraut Salad
3 cups sauerkraut
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeds removed, finely chopped
1 (2 oz.) jar sliced pimiento
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and chill at least 2 hours. Drain before serving or serve with a slotted spoon.

Clam Chowder

IT WAS A COLD AND GLOOMY DAY with freezing rain and I was thinking about food. Looking out the window, it looked magical with the tree branches sheathed in a layer of ice. But there was no way I was going slip sliding to the grocery store.

Fortunately, I keep a well stocked kitchen. Even though I was a little short on fresh foods, I did find a couple of cans of clams and a bottle of clam juice lurking in my pantry. I was well on the way to a creamy and cozy dinner. The recipe I used called for half and half which I did not have, but I always have cans of evaporated milk in the pantry. Evaporated milk makes a fantastic substitute for cream in recipes.

Clam Chowder
4 slices bacon
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 small potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 cup water
1 (8 oz.) bottle clam juice
1/4 tsp. white pepper
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1/3 cup flour
2 cups half and half, divided
2 (6 1/2 oz,) chopped clams, undrained

In soup pan, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to drain and set aside. Saute the celery and onion in the drippings in the pan until tender. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Stir in the potatoes, water, clam juice, pepper and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 15 - 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender.

In a small bowl, combine flour and 1 cup half and half until smooth. Gradually stir into the soup. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for about 1 - 2 minutes until thickened.

Stir in clams and remaining half and half. Heat through but do not boil. Crumble the cooked bacon and sprinkle over each serving.

Sally Lunn Bread

MY LOVE OF VINTAGE RECIPES should come as no surprise to anyone. I have talked about it for years. Here is a short post I wrote about it a few years ago.

I have known Sally Lunn Bread all my life as a Southern recipe. I can remember ladies sitting around my Mother's kitchen table drinking coffee and eating warm slices of this bread with butter and honey or jam, while talking about what ladies talk about.

Sally Lunn bread is a slightly sweet brioche type bread. It is fantastic with pimiento cheese and makes delicious toast. It also freezes beautifully. This is a no knead recipe but it does require two 1-hour risings plus a 25 minute baking time, so allow plenty of time to make it. It is made in a tube pan or bundt pan. The craggy top crust is a result of a very thick and sticky dough and is a signature of this bread.

Sally Lunn Bread
1 package yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 cup warm milk
1/2 cup softened butter
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
5 1/2 - 6 cups flour

In mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the warm milk, butter, sugar, salt, eggs, and 3 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Do not knead.

Place dough into a greased bowl, turning to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Stir the dough down and spoon into a greased and floured tube pan. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown. Remove from pan onto a clean kitchen towel.

Vegetarian Cuban Picadillo

THERE IS SOMETHING ABOUT A DISH that has both briny, bitter olives and plump, sweet raisins that makes my palate very happy. Warming spices make the flavor almost perfect.

Cuban Picadillo is ordinarily made with ground meat. Because my husband and I have both been feeling squeamish about commercially produced ground beef lately, I decided to substitute lentils for the meat, which was perfect. The final result was absolutely scrumptious.

Vegetarian Cuban Picadillo
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large potato, diced
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. oregano
2 bay leaves
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 (28 oz.) can whole tomatoes, undrained
1 1/2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
3 cups cooked lentils
1/2 cup Spanish olives
1/2 cup golden raisins
Salt and pepper to taste

Warm olive olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and bell pepper; cook and stir until tender. Add garlic and stir for a few seconds. Add diced potato and continue to saute for a few more minutes. Add cinnamon, cumin, oregano, bay leaves, and tomato paste. Stir to combine well. Add the whole tomatoes and break up with a wooden spoon. Stir in red wine vinegar. Add cooked lentils, olives, and raisins. Stir well and add salt and pepper to taste. Cover pan and simmer for about 30 minutes until everything is very tender.

Taste and correct seasonings.

Serve with rice.

Beef Bourguignon

MY HUSBAND AND I DECIDED to spend the afternoon in the kitchen making Beef Bourguignon,
He wanted to make it in honor of a beloved chef and I wanted to make it because I had never eaten it, much less cooked it, and felt that was a gaping hole in my culinary experience.

We wanted this to be authentic and were happy and willing to spend the time sourcing ingredients and cooking. I did a lot of reading about the history of this dish, and reviewing recipes. I also watched videos, including one of Julia Child herself making this.

Julia recommended serving the Beef Bourguignon with buttered and parslied new potatoes and French green beans (haricot vert). Ina recommended toasting slices of French bread and rubbing with a garlic clove to soak up the scrumptious gravy, so we did that too.

We were both very happy with the way this amazing dish turned out. It is easy to  see   taste why this has become a well loved classic. I can truly say this was the best meal I have ever eaten.

Beef Bourguinon

Preheat oven to 300 degrees

6 ounces bacon, cut into 1/2-inch slices
2 1/2 pounds beef chuck roast, cut into 2-inch chunks
Salt
Pepper
1 pound carrots, sliced into chunks
2 yellow onions, sliced
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 bottle medium bodied dry red wine (we used Pinot Noir)
2 cups beef broth
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
5 Tbsp. room temperature butter, divided
3 Tbsp. flour
1 pound fresh baby onions, peeled
1 pound fresh mushrooms, halved or quartered

In a large Dutch oven, cook the bacon for about 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove bacon to a plate.

While the bacon is cooking, dry the beef chunks very well. Salt and pepper generously.

Cook the beef in the fat in the pan, in batches, until well-browned on all sides. Place on plate with the bacon.

Place the carrots and onions in the pan, adding a little olive oil if needed. Add 1 tablespoon salt and 2 teaspoons pepper. Cook and stir for about 10 minutes until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.

Add the meat back to the pan with the vegetables. Add the wine, the beef broth, tomato paste,  and the thyme. Bring to a simmer, then cover with a tight fitting lid and place in oven for about 3 hours, until the meat and vegetables are very tender. Check after 2 hours.

Stir together 3 tablespoons butter with the flour, until smooth. When the stew comes out of the oven, stir in the mixture until smooth.

Saute mushroom, in remaining butter, for about 10 minutes until lightly browned. Add to the stew. Add the baby onions to the pan and cook until almost tender. Add them to the stew. Simmer, on top of the stove, for about 15 minutes. Season to taste.

Japanese Fruit Cake

I REMEMBER MY GRANDMOTHER MAKING this lovely celebration cake each year for the holidays. As a girl I thought this was the most impressive and beautiful cake I had ever seen! After my grandmother passed away, the cake stopped appearing at our holiday gatherings.

For years, I asked family members, especially some of the older aunts, if they had the recipe. I searched through old southern cookbooks.

Last summer, because she knows my interest in heirloom recipes, Mama gave me a cookbooklet she had found in some of her aunt's belongings. The booklet was published in 1952 by a community group in Chambers County, Alabama. Imagine my delight when I turned to the cake chapter and there was the recipe for Japanese Fruit Cake!

 I have no idea why this cake has such a mysterious name. I don't believe it is remotely Japanese and it is not a fruit cake in the traditional sense. The fruits in the cake are coconut, lemon, and raisins. There are two moist and fluffy yellow layers and two spice layers with pecans, raisins, cinnamon and allspice. The cake is topped with a luscious lemony coconut glaze.

I loved making this cake!

Japanese Fruit Cake
3 cups cake flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup chopped raisins
1 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. allspice
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter and flour four 8-inch cake pans.

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In another bowl, combine the chopped raisins, pecans, cinnamon, and allspice.

I mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar; beat with mixer to combine them well. Add eggs one and a time, beating after each addition, to make a smooth, fluffy mixture.

Stir the vanilla into the milk. Add about half the flour mixture, the half the milk, beating at low speed just until combined. Repeat with remaining flour mixture and milk.

Divide half the batter between 2 of the pans. Stir the raisin and spice mixture into the remaining batter. Divide this mixture between the remaining 2 pans. Set all 4 pans in the oven.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes, until the layers are golden brown, pulling away from the sides of the pans, and spring back when touched lightly in the center. Cool the cakes on wire racks for 10 minutes, and then turn them out onto the wire racks to cool completely, top side up.

Lemon Coconut Icing
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. grated lemon zest
3 1/2 cups (approx.) frozen shredded coconut
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 cup water

In heavy, medium saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil over medium heat. Stir in the sugar, lemon juice and zest, and the coconut. Bring to a boil. Adjust heat to maintain a gentle boil, and cook for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir cornstarch into the 1/2 cup water, stir well and add to the pan, mixing to dissolve. Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often, until thickened and clear. Transfer to a bowl and cool to room temperature, stirring from time to time.

To assemble the cake, place a plain layer, top side down, on a cake stand, or serving plate. Poke little holes all over and spread about one fourth of the icing over the layer, spreading all the way to the edges. Place a spice layer over the icing and spread another 1/4 of the icing. Continue layering with the remaining layers and icing. Place the last spice layer, right side up and pour all the remaining icing over the layer so that some of the icing cascades down the sides of the cake. Let stand for several hours, then cover and refrigerate overnight. Remove cake from refrigerator about 1 hour before serving.

Celery Salad with Dates and Roasted Pecans

THIS SUPER SIMPLE SALAD MADE with only a few ingredients is surprisingly delicious. I got the recipe from my long-time blogging buddy, Rosie Hawthorne of Kitchens are Monkey Business. At her blog she speaks of her discovery of Medjool dates and shares some date history. Check it out!

I have found that most good produce departments have Medjool dates but sometimes you have to ask because they are not always obvious.   I have posted a few date recipes before, always using Medjool dates, though not specifying. Here is a lovely summer dessert, Stuffed Dates. Here is another stuffed date recipe; one of my favorites and one of my favorite photographs

Celery Salad with Dates and Roasted Pecans
4 stalks celery, sliced on a diagonal
1 cup dates, pitted and chopped
3/4 cup roasted pecans
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon joice
2 -3 Tbsp. good extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup (approx.) shaved Parmesan cheese

Combine celery, dates, pecans, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and olive oil. Stir well. Garnish with Parmesan.

Vegetarian Gravy

                     
THERE IS NOTHING I LOVE MORE THAN A VEGETABLE PLATE.  I am not a vegetarian, I just love vegetables--all vegetables. I was this way even as a kid. I was the nerdy kid who liked rutabagas, beets, brussels sprouts. I especially love greens and beans of all kinds.   

For this vegetable plate, I cooked fresh turnips with turnip greens and fresh black eye peas, all of which I got at the Farmers Market. I know rice is technically not a vegetable, but it is a plant based food. Plus I was craving gravy (which I often do) and needed something to serve it over. Also, I think rice is lovely with beans.

Vegetarian Gravy
3 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. flour
1/2 cup finely minced onion
1 1/2 cups milk
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp. rubbed sage
1/4 tsp thyme
generous salt and pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp. Kitchen Bouquet

Melt butter, in a medium skillet. Stir in flour until well blended, the add the finely minced onion. Cook over medium low heat until onion is tender. Slowly stir in milk. Add bay leaf, sage, thyme, and salt and pepper. Cook and stir until thickened to desired consistency. Remove bay leaf and stir in Kitchen Bouquet. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt and pepper if desired. Serve hot.

Peach and Orzo Salad with Mango Viniagrette

OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF WEEKS, I HAVE made several pasta salads. Loaded with fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, they seem to be perfect for a light supper on a hot summer evening. The combinations are endless with the varieties of pasta shapes available as well as the abundance of summer produce.

This was one of our favorites. Our Southern peaches from South Carolina and Georgia have been outstanding this year--perfectly juicy with intense peach flavor. This salad uses those flavorful peaches along with small mozzarella balls and toasted pecans as well as other vegetables. The mango dressing really ties everything together.

Peach and Orzo Salad with Mango Viniagrette
8 ounces orzo, cooked according to package directions, drained
2 large peaches, peeled and chopped
4 scallions, sliced
1 stalk celery, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
8 ounces small fresh mozzarella balls
1 cup pecan halves, toasted
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup mango chutney
1/2 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large serving bowl, combine cooled orzo, peaches, scallions, celery, bell pepper, cheese, pecans, and parsley.

Add mango chutney, olive oil, and red wine vinegar to a mason jar and shake vigorously to blend. Add salt and pepper to taste and shake again.

Pour the dressing over the salad and combine well. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt, pepper, or vinegar if needed.

Creamy High Protein Chicken Salad (No Mayo)

THIS DELICIOUS CHICKEN SALAD IS MADE WITH NO mayonnaise. It doesn't use yogurt either as I find it too unstable for a salad with planned leftovers. The dressing is made with low fat cottage cheese which is blended with lemon juice, honey, garlic, onion, salt and pepper, paprika, and cayenne. The salad consists of tender chunks of moist chicken, sliced celery, cubed granny smith apples, and pistachios.

I bought  a whole chicken, about 2 1/2 pounds, and poached it with aromatics. It is easy to do and results in the juiciest, most flavorful, and tender chicken. As an added bonus, you are making chicken broth, for later use, at the same time.

The delicious cottage cheese dressing is clearly superior nutrition-wise. One cup of 2% cottage cheese contains 194 calories, 5.5 g of fat and 26.7 g of protein (almost half your daily value). One cup of mayo (and yes people do put that much in salads) has 1500 calories, 160 g of fat, and only a trace of protein.

Everyone loved this chicken salad and no one missed the mayonnaise.

Creamy High Protein Chicken Salad
3 cups cooked chicken
1 cup sliced celery
1 granny smith apple, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup roasted pistachio nuts, roughly chopped
1 cup 2% cottage cheese
1 clove garlic
1/2 large sweet onion (I used Vidalia) roughly chopped
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. honey
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/8 tsp. cayenne
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine chicken, celery, apple, and nuts in a large bowl.

Add cottage cheese, garlic, onion, lemon juice, honey, paprika, cayenne, and salt and pepper to a blender or processor. Process until smooth and creamy. If you want it a little thinner, add some milk.

Stir into the chicken mixture until blended well. Best if chilled for at least an hour before serving. Even better the next day.