The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
10/8/2018 column
As soggy, cold weather settles in Central Minnesota, the harvest comes to a halt and it is time to take shelter in kitchen. The cold temperatures push me to turn on the furnace but I resist and turn on the oven instead.
Nothing warms you up faster than the smell of supper ready to eat when you walk in the door at night or fresh baked goodies.
When I married Mark, I knew I was marrying the cows too when I said “I do”. What I didn’t realize was that I was also saying I do to cooking. Over 30 years, I have collected recipes from newspapers, magazines and now the internet. I have had the dentist receptionist copy off recipes I found while waiting for appointments and didn’t have anything to jot it down on. I have a whole cupboard filled with cookbooks, clippings and back issues of Taste of Home magazines.
Some women throw open the doors to their closets and wonder what they’ll wear today. I pull open the cupboard and wonder what I’ll cook today. (I have more options in my cooking cupboard than I do in my closet.)
Here are a few recipes I discovered digging through my options that I think I’ll be whipping up over the next few days. Enjoy!
12 oz Italian sausages
1 jar (7 oz) roasted red peppers, drained and coarsely chopped
1 TBSP chopped fresh basil or 1 tsp dried
1 jar (26 oz) marinara sauce
1 pkg (30 oz) frozen large square cheese ravioli, thawed
1 c (4 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese
2 TBSP grated Parmesan cheese
Heat oven to 375 degrees. You’ll need a shallow 2 qt baking dish.
In a skillet over medium high heat, cook sausage breaking up chunks with a spoon, about 5 minutes until no longer pink. Remove from heat; stir in roasted red peppers and basil.
Spread 1 cup pasta sauce in baking dish. Top with a layer of 12 ravioli, the sausage mixture, then the mozzarella cheese. Top with 1 c. sauce, remaining ravioli and remaining sauce. Cover with foil.
Bake for 1 hour or until ravioli are tender when pierced. Uncover, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bake 5 minutes longer until cheese is barely golden. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. You may want to put an old cookie sheet on a lower rack when baking to catch any drips.
1 (2 lb) pork tenderloin (pork shoulder or butt can also be used)
1 (12 oz) can root beer
1 (18 oz) bottle barbecue sauce
Place pork in a slow cooker and pour root beer over meat. Cover and cook on low for 4 – 6 hours or until pork shreds easily with a fork.
Once cooked, drain and discard liquid. Shred pork and place back into the slow cooker. Toss with barbecue sauce and serve immediately or keep warm in slow cooker until ready to serve. Makes 8 servings
Melt 1 c. Butterscotch chips in microwave.
Combine: 1 yellow cake mix
4 large eggs
2 medium mashed ripe bananas
½ c. vegetable oil
¼ c. water
¼ c. sugar
Stir 1 c of batter into melted chips. Spoon this batter/chip mix into a greased 10 cup bundt pan or round tube cake pan. Top with remaining cake mix batter. Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees until toothpick comes out clean.
Cool in pan for 20 minutes. Invert pan onto wire rack.
Place ½ c. butterscotch chips into a heavy-duty plastic bag. Microwave :20. Knead until smooth. (May need to put in microwave for a few more seconds to finish job.) Cut tiny hole in corner of bag and squeeze to drizzle on cake.
1 1/3 c. flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 c butter
1 c baking cocoa
4 eggs, beaten
2 c. sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 c. chopped maraschino cherries
½ c chopped nuts
Icing:
¼ c. softened butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 c. confectioners’ sugar
6 TBSP baking cocoa
¼ c milk
¼ c. chopped nuts
Combine flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a large saucepan, melt butter. Remove from heat and stir in cocoa until smooth. Blend in eggs, sugar and extracts. Stir in flour mixture, cherries and nuts. Pour into a greased 13 x 9 cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until brownies test done.
For icing: blend butter, vanilla, sugar, cocoa and milk until smooth spread over hot brownies. Sprinkle with nuts.
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As their four children pursue dairy careers off the family farm, Natalie and Mark are starting a new adventure of milking registered Holsteins just because they like good cows on their farm north of Rice, Minnesota.
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