Pear Bread

A funny thing happens when you're faced with a large pear tree and lots of really small pears. Yeah. You guessed it. You start baking things you've never ever tasted before. That's okay. I'm thrilled to have the pears. I love to eat them. More importantly, this particular tree got its start from my Gran's pear tree. The tree means a lot to me because it reminds me of the wonderful times spent at her house. Oh, and the bread's pretty good too!

Pear Bread

3 eggs

1 ½ cups sugar

¾ cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

4 cups peeled, cored, finely chopped pears

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Combine eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla. Mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Stir into the egg mixture just until moistened. Don't overblend because that will make it dry.
Toss pears with lemon juice. Stir pears and pecans into batter. The batter will be really thick.
Spoon the batter into two greased bread loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Pear Cake

There are many thoughts that cross a person's mind when she is staring at three buckets of pears. Desperation. Determination. And a frantic search for pear recipes.

Most folks immediately think of canning pears, especially the hard pears like we have. But why can something we're not going to eat? I could always make a cobbler. And I will before the pears are gone. But I really wanted to make a cake. I'd made a cake with apples. Why couldn't I make one with pears?

I didn't know how it would end up. But the entire kitchen smelled wonderful as it baked in the oven. I served it warm. Wonderful! Moist and delicious. Seconds, please!

Pear Cake

4 cups peeled, cored, chopped pears

2 cups white sugar

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

4 egg whites

2/3 cup Crisco oil

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Combine pears and sugar. Let stand one hour.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat 10-inch tube pan with PAM.

Slightly beat egg whites. Add oil, chopped pecans and pear mixture.

Combine flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves. Add to the pear mixture. Pour batter into the tube pan.

Bake for one hour and 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Let cool on wire rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

Fresh Apple Cake

I found this recipe in the Sherwood Baptist Family Cookbook. The church is in Huntsville. I’ve no idea where I got the cookbook, though a yard sale or auction seems most likely.

This cake was wonderful! Moist and yummy. The original recipe gave an option for a cup of nuts, such as walnuts. I decided against them and I’m glad I did. It’s perfect without them.

I used apples from the garden. I’m not sure what kind they are but they taste really mellow. I don’t think a tart apple would taste as well. The recipe also said to sift the flour. I can’t remember the last time I did that. Just whisk it and you get the same effect without the headache.

Fresh Apple Cake

3 eggs
1 1/2 cups Crisco oil
3 full cups diced apples
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 2/3 cups sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk (or sift) flour; add all other dry ingredients. Set aside.

Beat eggs and oil until blended. Slowly add dry ingredients. Add vanilla. Fold in apples.

Pour into a greased and floured Bundt pan. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Cool in pan for 15 minutes before removing.

Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Everybody needs a Grilled Cheese Sandwich at some point. There are, of course, different kinds. When I was a kid a cheese sandwich meant two slices of toasted bread and some sliced hoop cheese. Nowadays, I get out the cast iron grill. This sandwich is loaded with calories but who cares? Nothing quite beats the taste.

Grilled Cheese Sandwich

1 tablespoon butter, softened
2 slices bread
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Spread butter on one side of each slice of bread, making sure it reaches all the way to the edges. If you forget or don’t have time to let the butter soften, stick it in the microwave for a few seconds. Just remember you want it soft not melted.

Mound one unbuttered side of the bread with the cheese. Set remaining slice on the cheese, buttered side up, and press together.

Heat large cast-iron grill over moderate heat. If you don’t have a grill, just use a cast-iron skillet. Really the grill is just a skillet without the sides. I’m not even sure it’s called a grill by anyone but me.

Cook sandwich until underside is browned, about 3 minutes. Turn it over and cook until second side is browned and cheese is melted, about 3 minutes longer.

Cut in two and serve.

Mud Hens

Last fall my aunt had ankle surgery and ended up spending some time in rehab. Her friend brought a dessert for her to enjoy and share with visitors. Of course, I had to try it. The bar cookies were really good. I wanted to know what they were. Mud Hens, my aunt replied. I figured either the pain medication was messing up her mind or I had totally misunderstood. I decided to be polite and not saying anything. Just in case.

After we left, I asked my Mother what she’d understood the dessert was called. She’d heard the same thing. Okay. So I started searching. Every recipe I found was basically the same. And no one knows where the name came from. Hey, I’ll have you know I am not the only one who has tried to find out.

I could just make something up. Really. I’m a writer. Fiction is fun. The chocolate chips could be the mud. The eggs -- hello -- come from hens. Or I could play off the brown sugar and egg whites. Maybe that’s where the name comes from.

But I won’t do that to you. I’ll just tell you the truth. I don’t know where the name comes from and nobody else seems to either. I just know that this is a wonderful dessert. Or snack. Or take-off-from-home dish. Whatever. Just sit down with the whole pan and refuse to share. Yeah. Yummy. Enjoy!

Mud Hens

¼ cup shortening
4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 whole egg
2 eggs, separated (egg whites at room temperature)
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup mini marshmallows
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 cup packed light brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Coat a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray. If you’re a traditionalist you can use butter.

In a large bowl, cream the shortening, butter and sugar. Beat in the egg yolks and whole egg.

In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together.

Combine the flour mixture with the creamed mixture. Blend thoroughly.

Spread the batter into the baking pan. Sprinkle the nuts, marshmallows and chocolate chips over the batter.

In a large bowl, beat the two egg whites until stiff. I find this works best if the egg whites are room temperature. I hope you have a mixture with that whisk beater. Just turn the mixer on HIGH and watch those peaks form. Or, you could use a hand beater. Either way, when the egg whites are stiff, fold in the brown sugar. Spread this over the batter.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.

Cool completely before cutting. You’ll just be so much happier if you do.

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

There is nothing quite like homemade ice cream. I know. It’s much easier to just buy Blue Bell and, really, it is good. But you don’t have that whole experience of mixing the ingredients, poring in the crushed ice and adding the special salt.

As a child, my job was to sit on the hand-cranked ice cream freezer. I was small enough to fit but heavy enough to keep it from moving around while someone much older turned the crank. I was in college when I purchased my very first ice cream freezer -- a really nice electric one. I still have it.

This recipe came from a wonderful man I knew at the University of Alabama. He was a wonderful Southern man who was working on his doctorate in history. Sometimes I imagine him teaching bored students who somehow grow to love history as much as I was did.

I spent many afternoons feeding friends homemade ice cream. It was a wonderful time of laughter and joy. It reminds me of a time when life was filled with hope and endless possibilities. Take the time to give it a try. Remember good times and make new memories.

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

6 eggs, separated
3 cups sugar
1 13 oz. can of Pet Milk
½ gallon sweet milk
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla

Beat egg whites in a bowl. Set aside.

Beat egg yolks separately. Add sugar. Mix well. Add Pet Milk and vanilla. Mix well. Add ½ of the sweet milk and beaten egg whites.

Pour in freezer can. Add remaining milk.

Put cover on container and make ice cream according to manufacturer’s instructions.

Butterscotch Brownies

Sometimes you just gotta use what you have. In my case, it was butterscotch morsels. It wasn't what I intended but, well, things rarely are. In this case, I'm glad it worked out like it did. This ended up being a wonderful recipe. So yummy!

As usual, I started with a recipe and changed it up. A little more of this and a little less of that and it comes out just right.

One big change is how I melted the butterscotch morsels. I'm a big believer in melting things in the microwave rather than getting out the double boiler. It's just faster and easier. The key is to do 1 minute in the microwave, then stir. Afterwards, do 30 seconds at a time until morsels are completely melted. It's super important to stir after each time. They can be melted and not look like it until you stir it. Really.

So here's my version. Hope you enjoy it.

Butterscotch Brownies

12-oz package butterscotch morsels
1/2 cup butter or margarine
4 eggs
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Melt butterscotch morsels and butter in microwave. (See instructions above) Do NOT overcook.

Combine eggs and sugar, beating until light and fluffy. I just use a fork to do this but it's okay to get the mixer out if you'd rather.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add slowly to creamed mixture. Stir well. Stir in butterscotch mixture and pecans.

Pour into a greased 15x10x1-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool completely in the pan. Cut into small pieces. Store in airtight container.

Makes about 3 dozen.