Chocolate Christmas Cookies

Chocolate Christmas Cookies
Dorcas Annette Walker

In case you haven’t noticed I’ve been a bit wild over chocolate recipes this year for the holidays. In my way of thinking how else can you properly celebrate unless chocolate is involved? For those of you though, who aren’t crazy over chocolate I’m going to give you a vanilla version or what I call my Snowball Cookies that are also rolled in powdered sugar. That’s the neat thing about cooking. You can always find or change a recipe to suit your own taste buds. I feel sorry for the folk that don’t cook. They are limited in so many ways when it comes to personalizing food. When you are the chef the sky or rather the saucepan is the limit. So this Christmas don’t be afraid to try a new recipe along with the tried and true ones.

These Chocolate Christmas Cookies are very simple to make and will go fast with their soft brownie-like texture dusted with a cracked powdered sugar crust turning a plain chocolate cookie into something fancy. The Chocolate Christmas Cookies are great dipped in a glass of milk (my son’s favorite way of eating cookies and cake) or by themselves. You can add chopped nuts if you prefer or mix in some chocolate chips for a double chocolate burst of flavor. Preparation time for my Chocolate Christmas Cookies is around twenty minutes and this recipe makes two dozen cookies.

Chocolate Christmas Cookies

2 c self-rising flour
1 c sugar
½ c cocoa powder
½ c shortening
2 eggs
¼ c milk
1 tsp vanilla & almond extract
1 c powdered sugar

In a medium-sized bowl mix together all the ingredients except for the powdered sugar until well combined. The batter will be stiff. You can add another drop or two of milk if needed. Take a heaping tablespoon of batter and form into a ball. Roll in the powdered sugar until well coated. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350º for ten minutes. Let cool for five minutes before removing from the cookie sheet. Finish cooking and then store in an airtight container!

Snowball Cookies

1 c sugar
1 c shortening
2 eggs
½ c milk
1 tsp vanilla & almond extract
3 c self-rising flour
1 c chopped pecans
1 c powdered sugar

Cream sugar, shortening, and eggs together. Add milk and extracts. Stir in flour and chopped pecans. Take a tablespoon of dough, form into a ball, and place on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for ten minutes at 350º. While warm roll the cookies in the powdered sugar and let cool. Makes three dozen cookies.

Weekly tip: When rolling out cookie dough or forming it into a ball the dough is often easier to work with if you chill it first. Cover and place the cookie dough in the refrigerator for about an hour until completely chilled then roll out the dough or form it into balls!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Chocolate Peanut Nuggets

Chocolate Peanut Nuggets
Dorcas Annette Walker

Have you ever had a day when it seems like everything goes wrong? I had a “Calamity Jane” Saturday this past week. For some reason my dear hens decided somewhere along the way to go modern and stage an attack on my large white rooster that is twice as big as them. My “women libber” hens kept pecking and pulling feathers off of the rooster until they had intimidated the poor fellow to where he hid in the henhouse. Nothing deterred the hens no matter what I sprayed on or did to the dear boy to help him get his self esteem back. I finally decided Saturday afternoon that I had to move my rooster before the hens did him in. So putting on some old clothes and gloves I girded myself for the battle of catching my turkey-sized rooster. Feathers and straw flew everywhere with me biting the dust more than once until I managed to corner and catch the dear boy. By the time I put him into a large feed stack and deposited him in another pen I was out of breath. A couple of hours later I tripped over the small fence around my herb garden while gathering some chives for supper and landed flat on my face in the dirt again. By then my bones were definitely protesting. I dusted myself off and limped into the house for a cup of tea. As dusk settled in I went back outside to help my son get some firewood. We had made a couple of trips and were on our last load- Dwight pushing the wheelbarrow ahead of me- when I reached over and picked up the handle on my wagon to leave the woodpile. Just as I was getting ready to pull the wagon I heard a loud noise and looked up in time to see a dead tree falling in my direction. I screamed and totally froze. The tree twisted and thankfully landed on the workshop standing next to me. Dwight raced back in wide-eyed disbelief. I moved my body and wagon to safety while he pushed the tree over enough for it to crash onto the ground. I tell you once I got back into the house there was nothing that was going to get me out of the door again that day.

So this week I decided to do something simple and made up a batch of my Chocolate Peanut Nuggets. You can mix-match nuts, add dried fruit and/or rice crispies, or substitute white chocolate for dark. Also using decorative candy or cupcake papers will make the Chocolate Peanut Nuggets a perfect homemade candy Christmas gift. Preparation time for my Chocolate Peanut Nuggets is around twenty minutes and this recipe makes three dozen nuggets.

Chocolate Peanut Nuggets

2 lbs dark chocolate almond bark
1 (16 oz) jar of dry roasted peanuts
1 tsp almond flavoring
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a large bowl microwave the chocolate until melted. Stir in the flavorings and peanuts. Drop by large tablespoons into candy or cupcake papers in muffin pans. Chill in the refrigerator or freezer a few minutes until hard. Store in an airtight container!

Weekly tip: To help make it easier and less of a mess to get the melted candy into the papers to harden, use a table knife to first push the paper down into the muffin pan before dropping in the candy mixture!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Holiday Cake Truffles

Holiday Cake Truffles
Dorcas Annette Walker

This year for my birthday I decided to make Holiday Cake Truffles instead of a birthday cake. I’ve been reading about these intriguing cake truffles that seem to be all the rage. It turned out that I didn’t get my Holiday Cake Truffles made for my birthday on Monday like planned as I ended up back in the hospital with my husband instead. I was out in the living room in my recliner relaxing Sunday evening when I heard my husband go into the bathroom. A minute later there was a loud noise and I realized that Dana had fallen. I raced to the bathroom in time to help my husband get up and sit on a nearby chair. I told Dana to sit still thinking that maybe he had taken a dizzy spell and ran to get my son. By the time I got back my husband he was standing, took a step, and started to fall. I tried to hold onto him, but it was like trying to stop a falling tree as Dana is taller and weighs twice as much as me. To my horror my husband hit the floor again. By then Dwight had arrived so he helped me get his dad up off the floor and with us both holding onto Dana we tried to walk him to his recliner. Dana had barely taken three steps when he passed out again. We lowered my husband to the floor, put a couple of pillows under his head, and patting his cheek while calling his name I got Dana to respond. His pulse was thready and rapid so telling Dwight not to let his dad get up, I ran to call 911. With the assurance that an ambulance was on the way, I ran around getting dressed- as I didn’t want to make a grand entrance at the hospital in my PJ’s- while keeping an eye on Dana trying to convince him to lie quiet as he was all confused. My husband was admitted and finally taken to his hospital room around midnight. Around 1 o’clock in the morning back home I collapsed into bed feeling my age and thinking, what a way to start a birthday.

These Holiday Cake Truffles are a scrumptious temptation with their soft inner cake core coated by a shell of hardened chocolate that can be made into zillions of ways. You can use any flavor of cake mix (I used lemon) and frosting then coat with melted candy, white or dark chocolate and even put these balls on sticks for holiday lollipops. The Holiday Cake Truffles can be garnished with crushed nuts, peppermint, sprinkles, mini holiday candies, and rolled in powdered sugar or cocoa. Whether plain or fancy these Holiday Cake Truffles will be an elegant addition to your holiday celebration. Preparation time (not counting freezing time) is around thirty minutes and this recipe makes twenty-eight cake truffles.

Holiday Cake Truffles

lemon cake mix
1 c vanilla frosting
1 lb chocolate almond bark
candy sprinkles & powdered sugar

Bake cake mix according to the directions, cool, and then remove from the pan and crumble. Add frosting and mix with a beater on low speed until combined. Roll into 1½ inch balls and place on a wax papered cookie sheet. Freeze for one hour to set. Melt chocolate in the microwave until runny and completely cover the cake balls. Garnish with sprinkles before the chocolate hardens or roll in the powdered sugar after the chocolate sets!

Weekly tip: Another way to cover candy or a cake truffle with melted chocolate instead of dipping is by using a teaspoon and pouring it over the top, swirl around, let harden, and then ice the bottom!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Chocolate-Mallow Bars

Chocolate-Mallow Bars
Dorcas Annette Walker

This past week we had some very interesting company at our house in the form of British folk all the way from England, whom we had never met before. As anyone who knows me will tell you I am the chatty soul who knows no stranger, but even my husband was shaking his head in amazement over how all this came to be. It started when my niece went over to England the other year as an exchange student and made friends with a girl named, Hazel. Somewhere along the line Hazel and I got connected through facebook and began emailing back and forth. Hazel became intrigued about my descriptions of the south and the Tennessee Mountains where I live. So she and her Mum decided to take a vacation touring the west then swing by our place on their way up to New York to see the Thanksgiving parade. Hazel’s brother, wife, and young child decided to come so they all rented an RV to travel in. They definitely are braver than me as I would never consider driving in a strange country on the opposite side of the road of what I’m used to. While going through San Francisco in the middle of heavy traffic they lost a side mirror and then later damaged the muffler backing up. They made it to Oklahoma when the transmission went out so were towed back to Texas spending the night in a Wal-Mart parking lot. After spending part of a day in a garage making several phone calls to the company, who owned the RV, they at last were given another RV to continue their journey. Despite battling jet lag and coping with time changes as they traveled east, the Barrie family finally arrived at our home- only a couple days later than planned- where I had a hot supper waiting for them.

I gave a true warm Southern welcome with lots of food. We had a wonderful time during their short stay with laughter and conservation between the southern and British accents. They ate all the food I set before then with hearty appetites so I sent plenty of goodies to help see them through the rest of their journey admiring the stamina and grit of the British in their endeavors to tour the United States from coast to coast in just one month. We promised to stay in touch. Before leaving the Mum warned me that she would be asking for some of my recipes.

One of my desserts was the Chocolate-Mallow Bars. These bars have a soft bottom with a fudgy middle topped by melted marshmallows, chocolate bits, and crunchy peanuts making it a handy snack during the holiday season. Total preparation time for my Chocolate-Mallow Bars is forty-five minutes and this recipe serves twelve.

Chocolate-Mallow Bars

1 chocolate cake mix
1 egg
½ c water
1 c creamy peanut butter
¼ c milk
1 (10 oz) bag of marshmallows
1 c chocolate chips
1 c salted peanuts

Mix cake mix, egg, and water together and press into the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake at 350º for fifteen minutes. Combine the peanut butter and milk and spread over the partially baked bars sprinkling the marshmallows, chocolate chips, and peanuts over top. Return to the oven and bake for twenty more minutes. Let cool and slice into bars before serving!

Weekly tip: When flouring a pan for a chocolate batter use cocoa powder instead of flour!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Spinach Quiche

Spinach Quiche
Dorcas Annette Walker

Can it be that Thanksgiving is only a couple of days away? Not that I want to put anybody into a panic mode, but time seems to fly faster every time I turn around. This year instead of having Thanksgiving at our house we will be with our daughter and her family in Nashville. I quickly discovered over the years of moving hither and yon with my husband in the ministry that it isn’t the place, festive decorations, or even a superb meal- although all those things are nice- that make a holiday truly special. A perfect celebration is when I can spend it with close friends and family members. I truly am blessed to have so many friends. One of the biggest fringe benefits in writing a cooking column- besides getting to spend time in the kitchen and experiment with food- is getting acquainted with so many folk, who tell me that they read my column faithfully every week. I’ve met fans while buying yarn for a project, in the hardware and fresh produce departments of a store, while checking out, through emails, out on the street, in the hospital, and even pumping gas into my car. It doesn’t matter what the circumstance just let two cooks get their heads together and there is an instant connection. This year as I give thanks for all my blessings you, my fans, are also at the top of my gratitude list. I hope that each of you will have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Holidays also mean lots of extra cooking. While baking why not whip up a healthy Spinach Quiche and pop it into the oven too? My Spinach Quiche is ideal for a brunch, excellent heated up in the microwave for a quick lunch, or eaten as a light supper. Some make it without the crust; add cream cheese or yogurt for a creamier texture. You could also include chopped onions, chives, or peppers to spice it up. No matter how you make a Spinach Quiche it is a delicious quick and easy meal. Preparation time for my Spinach Quiche is ten minutes (not counting baking time) and this recipe serves six.

Spinach Quiche

8 large eggs
1 c milk
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground pepper
pinch of ground nutmeg
1 c shredded Swiss cheese
1 pd frozen spinach thawed

In a medium-sized bowl beat the eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and nutmeg until smooth. Fold in the cheese and spinach. Pour into a deep dish 9-inch pie crust. Bake at 350º for forty-five minutes until puffed and the center is firm. Serve warm!

Weekly tip: To thaw out frozen spinach, put into a colander and run under hot water. Squeeze out excess water. You can save the spinach water to make soup or use it as soup stock!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Pecan Nut Pie

Pecan Nut Pie
Dorcas Annette Walker

In all my years associated with the Walker clan I have yet to make a dessert too sweet for the Walker men. The guys are known for their “sweet tooth” and to them the sweeter the dessert the better. My old Mennonite recipe of the Pecan Nut Pie during holidays was one of the fellow’s favorite, especially my husband’s old brother, Dale, who was a Vietnam vet and very patriotic. Dale spent a lot of years, until he retired, in Germany involved in several border incidents that never made the news. A family favorite tale of Dale’s army life was years ago when he was in his early twenties and wounded in Vietnam. The surgeon involved in his case decided that Dale’s leg was too badly damaged to be saved and made the decision to take it off- making the mistake to declare his intentions in Dale’s hearing. Dale pulled out a hidden pistol, pointed it at the doctor’s head, and said, “Oh no, you’re not.” When the surgeon tried to reason with Dale saying, “You are going to lose that leg anyway.” Dale replied, “I might, but not by you.” Today Dale has both legs and barely walks with a limp thanks to the Walker bulldog determination.

Unfortunately, a lot of vets aren’t as fortunate as my brother-in-law. We still have too many soldiers overseas trying to keep peace in war torn areas of the world risking their lives each day. The longer the situation drags out in Iraq with a no win solution, the more I agree with an older vet who summed up today’s overseas state of affairs by saying, “We need to pull our boys back home, let them fight it out amongst themselves, kill each other instead of our boys, and when they finally decide they want peace send in our boys to clean up the mess.” Meanwhile we salute each veteran with heartfelt thanks of gratitude for their part in ensuring that America remains the home of the free and the brave!

My Pecan Nut Pie has a crunchy nutty filling that also can be made into mini tarts by placing pie crust into mini muffin pan cups and filling for individual servings this holiday season. You can add maple syrup to the corn syrup for a different twist or substitute dark corn syrup for the light and for every chocolate lover just add one cup of chocolate chips to make a chocolate pecan pie. Preparation time for the Pecan Nut Pie is five minutes (not counting baking time) and this recipe makes one 9-inch pie.

Pecan Nut Pie

1 9-inch unbaked pie crust
3 eggs
1 c light corn syrup
1 tb self-rising flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
¼ c brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
2 tb melted butter
2 c pecan’s halves

In a small bowl beat together the eggs, syrup, flour, extract, sugar, and salt with a Wisk until smooth. Add the butter and pecans and pour into the unbaked pie shell. Bake at 350º for 45 minutes. Let cool before serving!

Weekly tip: For a perfect homemade pie crust think cold. Always use chilled eggs and cold water to ensure a flaky crust. Some even chill the pastry before rolling it out and chill before baking. Don’t overwork the dough as handling it too much will result in a tough crust!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Pumpkin Trifle

Pumpkin Trifle
Dorcas Annette Walker

November is the month where I focus on counting my many blessings that have been bestowed upon me and my family. Despite our country’s economic and political woes there is still much to be thankful for. This year the top of our family’s appreciative list is my husband. As most of you know that read my column, Dana, suffered a heart attack and open four by-pass heart surgery the first of April. Since then my husband has been in and out of hospitals due to chronic lung problems as well as being a severe diabetic. He also has suffered mini strokes affecting his short term memory. There have been constant doctor visits, filling out stacks of paperwork, and endless phone calls to the state, social security, and disability office. Even with stressful days when Dana’s health took a nosedive, juggling our sudden drop in finances, and having to take over the leadership in our family we are very grateful to have Dana still with us. This holiday season will be extra meaningful for our family.

Like my grandmother always said there is a silver lining to every dark cloud in life and a rainbow of blessings if one will look for it. Our rainbow with Dana’s health issues has been getting to know so many caring and wonderful nurses. From the many ER nurses and cardiac staff to the cardio rehab team each one has spread a touch of brightness with individual rays of color into our lives. Knowing that they will be there day or night, week days and weekends, if needed is such a support. Our lives have been greatly enriched with their cheerful smiles and words of encouragement these past months every time we have come into contact. To each nurse that has had a part in caring for my husband we send a big hug and grateful thank you!

For Dana’s birthday, I decided to make a Pumpkin Trifle substituting Splenda for sugar in the pumpkin bread and using sugar-free pudding and caramel. You can add nuts, raisins, or chocolate chips to the pumpkin bread and even replace the pumpkin with sweet potato. Either way the Pumpkin Trifle makes an elegant holiday dessert. Preparation time for my Pumpkin Trifle is ten minutes (not counting baking time) and this recipe serves eight.

Pumpkin Trifle

8 slices of pumpkin bread
2 (3.4 oz) boxes instant vanilla pudding
4 c cold milk
1 (8 oz) container of cool whip
caramel topping
chopped pecans or walnuts

Cut bread slices into cubes and make up the pudding as directed. In individual dessert dishes or one large glass bowl divide and layer the pudding, bread cubes, cool whip, and warmed caramel topping twice. Finishing by garnishing with chopped nuts.

Pumpkin Bread

2 c sugar
½ c cooking oil
2 eggs
2 c mashed pumpkin
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 c self-rising flour
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg, ginger, allspice & ground cloves

In a large bowl beat together the sugar, oil, eggs, pumpkin, and vanilla. Add the flour and spices mixing well. Divide the batter and pour into two greased loaf pans baking at 350º for 1 hr.

Weekly tip: To make homemade pumpkin cut the pumpkin in half, scrape out the seeds, and bake at 350º for one hour in the middle of the oven to soften the skin. Let cool, peel, and cut into chunks. Put into a Crockpot covering the bottom with water, cover, and cook on high for five hours then low for five hours. Let drain for a couple of hours and then freeze or can in pints!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Sweet Potato Halloween Pie

Sweet Potato Halloween Pie
Dorcas Annette Walker

Every year around Halloween my mind goes back to where I first tasted a Sweet Potato Pie years ago when our family lived on a small isolated island for a couple of years off the coast of North Carolina. The only way to access Harkers Island was by a draw bridge. My father hoped that by living in a milder climate he would be able to get around easier with his arthritis caused by many internal bleeds that was slowly crippling him. Looking back I don’t know if our family or the island folk had the greatest culture shock from having a northern Pennsylvania Dutch family in their midst. Not only did the island folk have their own unique accent, but most of the islands folk were quite superstitious. They were quite astonished when my father parked our trailer in the back of the property beside a graveyard where we kids played. We discovered it was a perfect place to play hide and seek, especially after dark. Meanwhile no one would come near our trailer once the sun set. The large property we lived on not only contained a church where we attended school, but there was an old run down abandoned mansion that had weathered the fierce coastal storms throughout the years- sometimes being the only thing left standing- so was also considered an emergency building and island landmark. With its tall dark narrow halls and multiple rooms this large building that some declared haunted was the perfect place to explore. Even though with our strict upbringing we were never allowed to go trick or treating we still managed to enjoy ghostly experiences.

The church school was small and quite rigid. The principle was an ex-sergeant, who ran the school like a mini army making us come to attention every time we approached a staff member and answering “yes sir” or “no sir” while enforcing discipline like a drill sergeant. Sleeve lengths and skirt hemlines were inspected every day. I’ll never forget the day my younger sister was called out in the lineup for having too short of a skirt. Lois was having a growing spurt and my mother was hard pressed letting out hems and in some cases sewing a piece of material around the bottom and hemming it up. This came to light when my sister was told to let my mother know she was to let down her hem as her skirt was too short only for Lois to reply, “She can’t, it’s a fake hem.” “What?” roared the principle, “What do you mean by a fake hem? There is no such thing. I can see at least two inches that can be let down.” In vain did my sister protest only to get marked up for arguing. Between the island superstitions and unique church/school experiences this short span in my life still remains a vivid memory.

Sweet Potato Halloween Pie

1 9-inch deep dish pie crust
2 c mashed sweet potatoes
4 oz cream cheese
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp cinnamon
1 (1.55 oz) Hersey’s chocolate bar

In a large bowl beat all the ingredients, except for the pie crust, until smooth and creamy. Pour into the unbaked pie shell and bake at 350º for forty-five minutes until the center of the pie is almost firm when you jiggle it. Chill and decorate the pie by cutting the chocolate bar with a sharp knife in pieces to make a Halloween pumpkin face. Can garnish with cool whip or other Halloween candy!

Weekly tip: You can also make a sweet potato custard by eliminating the crust and adding a mashed banana or raisins if you’d like. Another idea is to make a candied sweet potato pie by slicing the sweet potatoes instead of mashing them, and pour the beaten sugar, eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon over the sliced sweet potatoes along with halved pecans!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Goulash

Goulash
Dorcas Annette Walker

Yesterday I was sitting out on my front porch in the late afternoon jest a’rockin a spell watching the sunlight filter through the canopy of autumn leaves all around me sparkling like multi-colored gems letting it all soak in. I feel sorry for folks, who don’t have a front or back porch where they can sit every so often and let their spirit catch up with their bodies. Life too often turns into a frantic race with the clock. Earlier that day I had been in town making several stops and needed a chance to sit and catch my breath. All was quiet except for a chirping of the birds now and then in the treetops broken by a few loud crows echoing through the woods by Red Pepper- my large white rooster with his fiery red comb. Rocking and sipping a mug of warm tea I felt my body relax and wouldn’t have traded places with the richest person on earth.

Today it is raining outside with the temperature dropping for another cold spell. As soon as I got up I started a fire in both of my stoves and decided to make an old dish- what I call comfort food on a dreary day- that I can’t even remember where I first tasted it what my family calls Goulash. To my surprise I discovered when doing some research that what I call Goulash is a far cry from the original recipe. My Goulash is made up of macaroni cooked in a tomato sauce with ground beef that makes a hearty satisfying meal. Often I use leftover cheese and macaroni when preparing Goulash.

Goulash originated in Hungary and is a national dish of thick stew consisting of meat and vegetables seasoned with paprika made by cattle herders and stockmen that initially used three kinds of meat. Today only beef, veal, pork, or lamb is used. Some cookbooks suggest using flour to thicken the stew while others use tomatoes cooked down into a paste. Many Hungarian chefs forbid the use of tomatoes instead employing chopped potatoes to cook down as a thickener. The Slavic’s use deer, boar meat, or bacon and mushrooms in their goulash while the Czech Republic’s goulash is served with dumplings. Some mix match carrots, parsnips, green peppers, celery, hot chili peppers, bay leaf, thyme, caraway seeds, red wine, sauerkraut, sour cream, and substitute kidney beans in place of potatoes. Others spoon the soup or stew over noodles or potatoes.

In Canada and the United States we use hamburger instead of beef and macaroni in place of potatoes, which cuts the preparation time down drastically. In the mid twentieth century the Betty Crocker and Margaret Fulton cookbooks made Goulash here in America a popular dish. In parts of New England and the Midwest, Goulash is known as American Chop Suey. Goulash is also a slang term for a dish made with miscellaneous leftovers. Some replace the beef with chicken or use taco seasoning for a Mexican flare. No matter how you like your food seasoned or what kinds of vegetables you prefer, you can experiment and make a Goulash recipe to suit your taste buds.

Goulash

1 (7.25 oz) box of Mac & Cheese dinner
1½ lb hamburger
1 tb dried minced onion
garlic, regular salt & pepper
1 qt canned tomatoes
1 pt mild salsa

Prepare the Mac & Cheese dinner as directed. Brown hamburger adding onion, salts and pepper to taste in a large pan. Pour in the tomatoes and salsa and bring to a boil cooking for fifteen minutes. Stir in the macaroni and cheese and simmer for five more minutes. Preparation time is thirty-five minutes and this recipe serves seven!

Weekly tip: Another way to jazz up leftover cheese and macaroni is by pouring homemade chili over the top before serving!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

White Chili

White Chili
Dorcas Annette Walker

Every day I look outside and see the colors intensifying on the tree leaves. Soon they will reach their peak. Sunny days with cool breezes surrounded by many autumn shades enchant me until I can hardly stay indoors. Like a squirrel hoarding nuts up for the winter season, I want to soak up every bit of this delightful weather possible. Clothes hung out on the line dry quickly even when the temperature doesn’t get high. There is something invigorating about battling the wind while pinning wash to a clothesline and seeing clean clothes whip around in breezy gusts. Even the hens in the chicken yard squawk and do a two-step dance as the wind ruffles their feathers giving them a fall dusting while colorful leaves float down to the ground all around.

One such delightful day this past week found me outdoors burying spring bulbs in different spots reminding me of Lady, my golden German shepherd, who will scratch around in the leaves until she makes a spot to hide a bone or choice morsel for later instead of eating it right away. Digging in the dirt gives time for contemplation. I’ve discovered that planting bulbs is like planting seeds. It’s really a matter of faith putting brown dead-looking bulbs in the ground, forgotten during long winter months, trusting that a resurrection will occur next spring and turn something lifeless into beautiful flowers like those photographed on the labels that entice people into buying them.

Autumn weather also brings rainy weather, damp days, and cold nights where the only good place to be is close by a warm stove. I keep plenty of dry wood on hand and keep my wood stoves cleaned out. Already I have kept fires burning several times savoring the smell of the crackling wood that keeps my house warm and cozy. Fall also means the start of watching tendrils of smoke curling out of the chimney until they disappear into the atmosphere leaving behind the scent of wood smoke that wraps around one like the comfort of an old quilt. This past week during a cold spell I made up a pot of White Chili.

I became intrigued the first time I spotted a recipe for White Chili awhile back and have checked out different recipes before trying it myself. White Chili can be made as simple or exotic as you like. Some add oregano, garlic, green chilies, cumin, green peppers, cayenne peppers, and even jalapeno peppers to spice things up or sour cream to enrich the broth. My White Chili is a milder version. However you prepare your White Chili it is an ideal way to use up leftover chicken or turkey. Preparation time for my White Chili is twenty-five minutes and this recipe serves eight.

White Chili

2 c chopped chicken/turkey
2 (15 oz) cans of white Northern/kidney beans
1 (15 oz) can of creamed corn
1 (11 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 tb dried minced onion
1 tb dried parsley
1 tsp chili powder
salt & pepper to taste

In a large saucepan mix together the chicken, beans, corn, and soup (adding one soup can of hot water). Then stir in the onion, parsley, chili powder adding salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer for five minutes. Serve hot with shredded cheese, nacho chips, or sour cream!

Weekly tip: Doing up extra chicken or turkey when preparing a meal is a great way to have instant leftovers later for quick use in soups and salads by chopping up the cooled meat, putting it in sealed bags or containers, labeling, and freezing !

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet Potatoes
Dorcas Annette Walker

Every autumn when the leaves begin to change colors and the brisk breezes begin to blow up here on the mountain, I am drawn to cooking with Sweet Potatoes. This is the time of year that stores stock fresh supplies of Sweet Potatoes making it easy to add to your menu. Sweet Potatoes provide excellent nutrition as they are loaded with carotenoids, vitamin C, potassium, and fiber and are one of the most versatile vegetables to fix. Sweet Potatoes can be prepared as part of the main meal in a baked casserole, mashed, eaten by themselves, grilled, or served as a snack. There are endless possibilities when it comes to preparing Sweet Potatoes. Here are a couple of ideas to try:

Microwaved Sweet Potatoes

Poke holes all around a whole sweet potato with a fork, then it wrap up a paper towel or place in a microwave bowl with a lid (what I always do when preparing several potatoes at a time), and microwave until soft when you pierce the sweet potato with a fork. Cut the sweet potato in half, place butter and a scoop of brown sugar on top. Garnish with cinnamon and serve!

*You can also use applesauce, crushed pineapple, raisins, or chopped pecans as added toppings!

Sweet Potato Fries

Cut sweet potatoes (peeled or with skin left on) in half and slice into wedges. In a bowl combine melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon and toss until the potatoes are coated. Place on a baking tray in a single layer and bake at 350º for thirty minutes until crispy brown. Serve hot!

*You can also substitute taco seasoning mix, paprika, garlic salt, red pepper, or Tabasco sauce to give your fries added zest!

Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes

Bake sweet potatoes wrapped in tinfoil in the oven at 350º for forty-five minutes until soft. Let cool, then cut in half, and scoop out the center. Mash the sweet potato and mix with a little milk, butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Pour the mixture back into the shells, sprinkle on chopped pecans, and bake for ten minutes until the nuts are toasted and the topping is slightly browned. Serve hot!

*You can also add cream cheese or cottage cheese to the sweet potato mixture for a creamier texture!

You can find the recipe for my Candied Orange Sweet Potato and Sweet Potato Delight on my Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at:
http://dorcasannettewalker.blogspot.com/2010/10/candied-orange-sweet-potatoes.html
http://dorcasannettewalker.blogspot.com/2008/10/sweet-potato-delight.html

Weekly tip: Handle sweet potatoes with care as their skins are delicate. Store in a cool dry place as dampness will cause the sweet potatoes to spoil. Never store raw sweet potatoes in the refrigerator as the insides will become hard and affect its taste. If sweet potatoes are stored properly they will keep for several months!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: http://www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com/

Carrot Zucchini Brownies

Carrot Zucchini Brownies
Dorcas Annette Walker

I was in my veggie garden this week harvesting pumpkins and the few remaining vegetables. I’m always sad to see the brown shriveled remains of what once were growing green vines loaded with zucchini and yellow squash signaling the end of the summer season. Long ago an ancient Hebrew writer penned the words, “To everything there is a season.., a time to be born and a time to die.” Right now our household is in a time of mourning a beloved aged pet.

Years ago I agreed to let my son have a dog out of sheer frustration as personally I was a cat person. Dogs chewed things, barked at night, ran through flower beds, and were more trouble than they were worth, but ever since Dwight was little, he kept asking for a dog. It wasn’t until my son went through two knee surgeries that backfired due to internal bleeding- undoing everything done to stop his knee bleed in the first place- that I gave in. Dwight, who has severe hemophilia and averaged two to three internal bleeds a week was no stranger to pain, but this episode had lasted five months with the orthopedic surgeon pressing us for another surgery brought me to the brink of desperation. Always on the skinny side, my son had lost twenty pounds and was in constant pain despite strong narcotics. I had tried everything I could to bring the spark of life back into my Dwight’s eyes without success until the morning I mentioned the possibility of getting a dog.

As soon as people heard about our situation, we were overwhelmed with offers of dogs and advice from friends and dog breeders. I was hoping my son would pick out a small dog, but Dwight fell in love with a six month old chocolate lab pup- the color of sand- and named her Sandy. From the start Sandy was Dwight’s dog, whining at the door every morning until she saw Dwight. My son began spending his days outdoors propped up on the porch swing with pillows or sleeping in the yard using Sandy for a cushion. He’d hobble around on crutches playing with Sandy to give “her” exercise or painfully limp down our gravel road to walk his dog. Then one day Dwight wanted to ride his bike so my husband rigged it up where he could drive it with his stiffened leg. From morning until night, Sandy and Dwight were inseparable. Dwight began going longer periods without his pain medication and slowly became a lively healthy-looking boy once again.

One month later we went back to see the orthopedic surgeon, who shook his head in amazement as Dwight bent his knee back and forth without pain, asking me what on earth we had done to get more movement in a knee than expected without another surgery. I smiled and told the surgeon it was God and a chocolate lab while Dwight chattered nonstop about his dog, Sandy.

Carrot Zucchini Brownies

1 c shredded carrots
1 c shredded zucchini
1 c sugar
2 eggs
½ c vegetable oil
¼ c orange juice
1 tsp vanilla
2 c self-rising four
½ c raisins
½ c chopped pecans
1 tb cinnamon
cream cheese frosting (optional)

In a medium-size bowl mix together thoroughly the first seven ingredients then stir in the flour, raisins, pecans, and cinnamon. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 baking dish and bake at 350º for thirty minutes. Makes twelve brownies. Let cool before serving!

Weekly tip: Dust nuts and raisins with flour before adding to the batter as this will prevent them from sinking to the bottom while baking!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Barbeque Chicken Pizza

Barbeque Chicken Pizza
Dorcas Annette Walker

My son, Dwight, has advanced his cooking knowledge from grilling outdoors to learning how to make a homemade pizza crust. He has become fascinated working with rising dough, which while at this point is limited to crafting pizzas or bread sticks- since like the rest of his generation pizza is considered the main item all other foods revolve around, little does my son realize what other avenues of cookery this entails . While Dwight hasn’t yet mastered the art of cleaning up- at least to my specifications- my son is becoming quite the chef. The other night we were both working together in the kitchen. Having a male perspective while cooking is very interesting as a guy’s viewpoint is totally different than a women’s, especially in the kitchen. Together we created a Barbeque Chicken Pizza that I thought I’d feature in this week’s column.

Our Barbeque Chicken Pizza is quick and easy to prepare particularly if you use leftover meat. You can substitute the chicken for pork, turkey, or beef- whatever you have on hand- with your favorite barbeque sauce and add crumbled bacon, mushrooms, black olives or peppers if you wish. For a deluxe pizza add a top crust with mixed cheese. The possibilities are endless. No matter how you fix it your family, especially your kids, will love your homemade Barbeque Chicken Pizza. Preparation time for the Barbeque Chicken Pizza is around fifteen minutes (not counting the baking time) and this recipe makes one 12-inch pizza.

Barbeque Chicken Pizza

pizza dough for 12-inch pizza pan
1½ c hickory flavored barbeque sauce
2 c chicken cut up into pieces
1 small onion diced
2 c shredded mozzarella cheese

Spread ½ c of the barbeque sauce on the pizza crust mixing the chicken pieces in the rest of the sauce until coated. Layer the onion and chicken on top of the sauce. Sprinkle on the cheese and bake at 350º for 30-35 minutes until lightly browned. Serve hot!

Homemade pizza dough:

1 pkg dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 c warm water
2½ c all purpose flour
2 tb vegetable oil
1 tsp salt

Stir in yeast and sugar in warm water until dissolved. In a large bowl place flour adding the salt and oil. Mix in the yeast and knead until smooth. Let sit and rise until almost doubled. Roll out the dough thin on a floured surface and place on a pizza pan covered with cooking spray. Makes enough dough for two regular-sized pizzas!

*Can substitute wheat bread flour for the plain flour or mix half and half.

*Use any leftover dough for breadsticks by rolling out thin, sprinkling with garlic salt, topping with shredded cheese, and then baking.

Weekly tip: You can also use frozen bread dough that is thawed and rolled out for a homemade pizza crust!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Double Squashy Casserole

Double Squashy Casserole
Dorcas Annette Walker

Yesterday I was cleaning my veggie garden spot to make it look a bit tidier where stalks of corn and vines have dried up. Time always flies when I work outside on a sunny day soaking up the warmth before autumn’s chilly blustery weather arrives. Harvesting seeds always gives me the same kind of thrill as canning produce for my pantry, but then I’ve been a pushover for saving seeds since the first year of marriage. I was fascinated to discover when the brilliant marigold flowers grown from a thin packet of seeds dried out that the pods were full of seeds. Little did I realize back then as I zealously broke off and saved each dead flower pod that not only was I keeping my window box looking tidy, but my efforts were a direct result in making the marigolds bloom like wild creating an eye-catching spot on the college campus.

Gathering seeds always brings back memories of all my other landscaping endeavors throughout the years where my husband pastored churches that I had to leave. Now that I’m living on my own piece of land I am a bit garden crazy. This year I grew gorgeous tall sunflowers that towered over everything else. After letting the birds eat a good portion of the seeds, I gathered seed pods to save while letting some fall to the ground to come back up- a rule I follow for every seed I harvest. If only humans patterned their lives after seeds what a better world we would live in. Once planted a tiny seed will produce lovely blooms, and then depending on the type of plant yield food to sustain human life and before dying give back seeds to reproduce their existence many times over in the cycle of plant life that the creator ordained.

So a kind deed given to someone else has a way of multiplying like seeds creating a circle of goodwill that eventually will find its way back to you in a bountiful measure. I love watching how a smile or considerate word changes an unfriendly atmosphere into pleasant conservation. We humans have the choice of leaving our fellow man feeling better for seeing us or letting our chance encounter in life become like a pesky weed.

For some reason growing squash reminds me of good deeds spreading everywhere. You never know where one will grow next. The yellow squash is like a ray of sunshine. This week I tried a new recipe I named Double Squashy Casserole to use up some yellow squash and zucchini. The Double Squashy Casserole tastes like a fresh summer garden with its colorful slices of squash with chopped onion in a creamy sauce topped by bread crumbs. Preparation time for my Double Squashy Casserole is around forty-five minutes and this recipe serves twelve.

Double Squashy Casserole

2 medium yellow squash
2 medium zucchini
1 small onion diced
1 c shredded mozzarella cheese
1 (10.5 oz) can of cream of mushroom soup
1 c milk
1 (6 oz) box of chicken stove top dressing

In a 9 x 13 oven dish thinly slice the yellow squash and zucchini alternating layers of each while sprinkling onion and cheese on each layer of squash. Mix together the soup and milk and pour over the top. Sprinkle the stove top dressing over the casserole. Cover with tinfoil and bake at 350º for thirty-five minutes. Serve hot!

Weekly tip: There are almost 100-150 varieties of squash classified in two categories of winter (hard skin) and summer (soft skin). Both have a good source of vitamin B1, C, folic acid, fiber, and potassium!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Old FAshion Lime Pickles

Old Fashion Lime Pickles
Dorcas Annette Walker

I first tasted Old Fashion Lime Pickles years ago in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and of course the first chance I got I made some for myself. Since then I’ve always kept a shelf full with several quarts of these old timey pickles in my pantry to have on hand. Their brilliant green color always brightens up my room of canned produce. This time of year cucumbers have multiplied in gardens and usually there is an abundance to be found so this past week after taking inventory, I decided to restock my pickles and make up a batch of the Old Fashion Lime Pickles as several of those jars on my pickle shelf were empty.

As soon as my son came home one evening while I was simmering vinegar and spices on the stove to make the pickling syrup he told his dad, “I can smell Mom doing up her a batch of pickles as soon as I entered the house.” To me there is nothing like having spicy smells permeate the house when one is canning. From the first batch of spring strawberry jam, to summer green beans, tomatoes, peaches, and pickles, then to apples and pumpkins in the fall each one has its own particular aroma when preserving. Even though canning can be a long and tiring process hearing the “ping” of the lids as canned jars seal is a pleasure I never tire of- not to mention the satisfaction of seeing the shelves in my pantry fill up to overflowing with produce for the coming year. No matter which way the economy goes, I know that my family will have healthy food to eat.

My Old Fashion Lime Pickles are a chunky sweet pickle that has a unique spicy taste of their own. Their greenish tint adds color to any meal. I always dice up some of the Old Fashion Lime Pickles when making my potato and macaroni salad, which help to add a distinctive flavor. Even though it takes a couple of days to make these Old Fashion Lime Pickles they are well worth the time and effort. One batch of my Old Fashion Lime Pickles makes six to seven quarts.

Old Fashion Lime Pickles

10 large cucumbers
1 c pickling lime
2 qts white vinegar
8 c sugar (about 5 pounds)
2 tb pickling spice
1 tb green food coloring
1½ tb salt
1 tsp whole cloves
1 tsp celery seed
½ whole cinnamon bark crushed

Slice cucumbers in ¼ inch chunks in a clean bucket (not aluminum). Cover with water and stir in pickling lime until dissolved. Soak for 24 hrs stirring occasionally. Drain and rinse the cucumbers three times in cold water. Then soak the cucumbers for 3 hrs in ice water and drain. In a large saucepan bring to a rolling boil the vinegar, sugar, pickling spice, food coloring, salt, cloves, celery seed, and cinnamon bark. Pour syrup over the drained cucumbers and let sit overnight. Pack into clean quart jars, seal, and can for fifteen minutes. Let jars cool and then chill before serving!

Weekly tip: For a guaranteed sealing of jars when canning, always make sure that there is no cracks or food particles on the top of the glass jar by wetting your finger and running it around the rim before putting on the lid and ring. Then make sure that all the filled jars are completely covered in water by a good inch!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Labor Day Beans

Labor Day Beans
Dorcas Annette Walker

Outside my window the birch trees lining the driveway already have yellow leaves floating down on every wind laying a carpet of gold across the lawn. I’ve noticed the poplar trees have turned as well due to the dryness, although if we soon don’t get a good rain the autumn colors this year will be muted instead of flaming across the mountain peaks. Even with hot days the nights have grown cooler and in every breeze stirring up the dust I feel fall in the air just around the corner. I love to hang out the wash this time of the year watching lines full of clothes puff out in every gust quickly drying almost as soon as it is hung up while feeling the wind ruffle through my hair. Soon gentle breezes will turn into blustery autumn weather and the temperature will plunge downward, but for now the sun still warms the earth with its fervent heat. Meanwhile I decided to do up a batch of my Labor Day Beans for this holiday weekend.

This summer has been a study in weather contrast gardening wise. We had frosts and freezing temperatures into May causing me to scurry around and cover up my bean and tomato plants. Then up until this month every time we turned around we had stormy weather with heavy rain showers between soaring temperatures near 100 degrees- what I call jungle weather. After nearing being froze my poor crops were then alternately drowned and scorched. Needless to say I’ve had better harvest from my gardens in past years. Despite unpredictable weather patterns, I was excited to reap wax (yellow beans) and black beans for the first time. I still have lima beans climbing around my tall sunflowers. With increasing prices, I may venture next year into growing kidney and butter beans. Either way I’m “beans” about gardening and trying out new vegetation.

My Labor Day Beans is a colorful hearty autumn dish that can be served year round hot or cold. Filled with protein the Labor Day Beans are a nutritious addition to any meal and can also be fixed in a Crockpot or baked in the oven. Chunks of hamburger with multicolored beans simmered in a lip-smacking sauce tastes great when paired with corn muffins or used on a cookout. Other beans such as black, pinto, or white can be added or substituted as well for variety. Preparation time for my Labor Day Beans is around forty-five minutes and this recipe serves ten.

Labor Day Beans

1 lb hamburger
1 tb dried onion or small onion chopped
garlic, regular salt, & pepper
1(27.5 oz) can pork’n beans
1 (15 oz) can kidney beans
1 (15 oz) can lima beans
1 (15 oz) can butter beans
1 c ketchup
½ c bacon bits
¼ c br sugar
¼ c dark syrup
1 tsp mustard

Brown hamburger and onion adding salts and pepper to taste in a large skillet. Dump the contents of all the beans into the pan. Mix in the ketchup, bacon bits, brown sugar, syrup, and mustard. Bring to a boil and let simmer for thirty minutes. Serve hot!

Weekly tip: Saving the starchy liquid bean juice and adding it in when cooking makes the sauce thicker, more favorable, and gives extra body to your finished dish!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Double Strawberry Delight

Double Strawberry Delight
Dorcas Annette Walker

Ever since I was a small girl and planted my first wild strawberry plant in a sty foam cup placing it on my sunny bedroom windowsill, I have been enchanted with strawberries. Each day after school the first thing I did was to check on was my strawberry plant talking to the green leaves and making sure to keep it watered when the soil dried out. I still remember the excitement of seeing tiny berries form and slowly redden after the white flowers had died. My mother was quite impressed with my green thumb as every plant died on her. In fact that tiny plant became the conservation piece of our household. It was triumph indeed when my father actually came to my bedroom to see my strawberry plant. The day I harvested tiny strawberries and shared them with my family clinched my fascination with plants. From one strawberry plant on my windowsill my love of living green things grew to covering every available space in my house with plants as a young housewife until my husband complained that we lived in a jungle. Today the lure of seeing things grow has stretched outside to several gardens that I delight to work in.

Early this spring, Dana built a wooden fence to protect my newest flower garden in front of our woods where we keep my two German Shepherds. At one end of my garden is a steep hill where I planted several strawberry plants that thrived and produced strawberries. It was delightful to go out first thing each morning and see which strawberries were ripe. So you can imagine my shock when one morning I discovered that my two “wolfies” had jumped the wooden fence and dug out several of my strawberry plants killing them. I loudly scolded Shep and Natasha severely wagging my finger threatening in front of their long black noses telling both what bad dogs they were for getting into my strawberry patch. Even though they whimpered and apologized by licking my hand to reassure me that they had learned their lesson, I decided to take no chances on further raids in my garden and had Dana run electric wire around the fence. Some folk might claim that strawberries and German Shepherds don’t mix, but I am determined to have a patch of strawberries regardless of having German Shepherds in the same area.

My Double Strawberry Delight is an excellent simple light summer dessert with fresh strawberries, angel food cake, and cool whip. You can substitute other fruit in season like peaches or raspberries coordinating the jello as well. The Double Strawberry Delight is a colorful dessert that also can be served year round using canned or frozen fruit. Preparation time for my Double Strawberry Delight is fifteen minutes (not counting baking or cooling time) and this recipe serves twelve.

Double Strawberry Delight

1 angel food cake mix
1 (3 oz) box of strawberry jello
1 (16 oz) container of cool whip
1 lb fresh strawberries

Prepare the angel food cake mix according to the directions folding in the strawberry jello before baking. Tear the cooled cake in half placing bite-size pieces in the bottom of a glass dessert bowl. Layer half of the cool whip on top. Hull and slice half of the strawberries on top of the cool whip. Repeat using the rest of the cake, cool whip, and strawberries. Chill and serve!

Weekly tip: Strawberries do not ripen after harvest so choose ripe strawberries. Medium to small berries usually taste better than large ones. Use strawberries as soon as possible, but leave the caps/stems on and do not wash the strawberries until ready to use. You can store strawberries in the refrigerator for several days if you layer them with paper towels!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Chocolate Angel Lightning Cake

Chocolate Angel Lightning Cake
Dorcas Annette Walker

I finally had a more normal week- meaning that I was able to stay home for a change instead of running my husband to one of his numerous doctor appointments, cardio rehab, or having another hospital episode- spending the week catching up on several things indoors and out that needed urgent attention when my week ended in a big bang. Saturday evening right after supper my husband and I were relaxing in the living room. A summer storm had arrived, thunder was rolling, and lightning flashing. I was enjoying hearing the sound of rain falling outside envisioning all my thirsty plants greedily drinking when suddenly right out of the blue a loud noise exploded and lit everything up like the noon day sun. Living here on the mountain we’re used to having violent storms come through- not to mention having a neighbor, who loves to shoot guns until it sounds like a war is in progress some days- but when I heard this explosion I knew something close by had been hit.

My husband asked, “What in the thunder was that?” as I jumped out of my recliner and ran to the back of the house. Rain was pouring down making it hard to see in the darkened twilight, but I noticed that the henhouse lights were out. My heart sank as I figured that my henhouse had been struck by lightning since I couldn’t see damage anywhere else. It was still storming when we went to bed. I was heartsick imagining discovering fried chicken the next morning in the henhouse. Nothing like a bolt of lightning rattling the henhouse and killing hens to put off egg laying for any of the surviving chickens left.

The next morning as soon as I awoke I ran to check the henhouse. My heart gave a leap of joy when I saw fat hens waddling around the pen busily scratching for worms looking quite unconcerned over their death-defying experience of the previous evening. While I fixed Sunday dinner, Dana went outside to investigate. A couple of minutes later Dana came back inside shaking his head telling me, “You’ve got to come outside and see this for yourself.” Lightning had struck the huge tree at the front corner of Dana’s workshop splitting it, ran down the tree, put a hole in the roof of the workshop, went inside blowing out paneling, insulation, window trim, light switches, etc (knocking out the henhouse lights that run from the workshop), then traveled across the yard to the main pole beside out house, flipped a main switch, and disabled our phones. The miracle is that nothing caught on fire, not a feather was singed, and we are still all in one piece.

My Chocolate Angel Lightning Cake will zap your taste buds with an explosion of melting chocolate, Carmel, and crunchy peanut butter surrounding the velvety angel food cake texture filled with chocolate chips that with either turn you diabetic or send any chocolate lover into orbit. The Chocolate Angel Lighting Cake has the appearance of a lightning strike right down the center. Preparation time for my Chocolate Angel Lightning Cake is around fifteen minutes (not counting baking or cooling time) and serves twelve.

Chocolate Angel Lightning Cake

1 angel food cake mix
1 c chocolate chips
½ (11.75 oz) jar Carmel ice cream topping
2 c powdered sugar
4 tb cocoa
2 tb crunchy peanut butter
1 tb shortening
¼ c hot water

Prepare angel food cake mix according to the directions folding in the chocolate chips before baking. Let cool. Spread melted Carmel topping over the top of the cake. In a small bowl mix together the powdered sugar, cocoa, peanut butter, shortening, and hot water with a Wisk until smooth. Pour over the top of the cake letting the frosting run down the sides and serve!

Weekly tip: When adding chocolate chips or nuts to a batter first dust with flour to prevent sinking to the bottom of the cake!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Triple Layer Fruit Fluff

Triple Layer Fruit Fluff
Dorcas Annette Walker

This month I am sharing some summery dessert recipes that I am experimenting with myself. So welcome to my air conditioned kitchen as we mix together some ingredients to help beat the heat. Right now a lot of fresh fruit is in season and can be bought at a low price making it not only healthy for your family, but economical as well. Last night I served this week’s masterpiece and as we taste tested it, we were tossing names around that would aptly describe this fruity dessert. My son, Dwight, came up with the winning title: Triple Layer Fruit Fluff. Normally Dwight is rather picky about eating fruit so I wasn’t sure how he would like a bunch of fruit all mixed up together, but he was quite enthusiastic over my Triple Layer Fruit Fluff.

It used to be that when making an Angel Food Cake cooks had to save up a dozen eggs first. Now-a-days you can whip up an Angel Food Cake with a box mix or buy one already made. Speaking of eggs, I was quite excited to find the first egg laid by the chicks we bought and raised this spring. The way they gobble up the food and scraps I throw them these past months have turned them all into fat hens. Lately I’ve been given them broad hints about laying eggs as the reason for their feathery existence in my hen house. I’m reserving dark threats about wringing their necks and putting them in the pot for any laggards that show up in the flock. So I was quite pleased to discover a few bright ones (my Cornish Rock hens) amidst my mixed group of chickens that decided to start laying. The way I lavishly praise the sight of an egg, you’d think that there would be a mad rush of hens to sit on the nests and lay eggs, but unfortunately chickens are a bit bird witted at times. It was a sad day about a month ago when my huge majestic rooster (about the size of a small turkey) suddenly died. I miss his loud crow early in the morning, although my large white ducks- Daffy Duck, Quack Quack, and Snow Queen- do their best to fill in the gap. Whenever I stick my head out the back door it is amazing the racket those ducks make trying to get my attention. We bought a small plastic kiddie pool that we keep filled with water in the chicken yard, which the ducks enjoy splashing around in. Romeo, my male Mallard duck’s head is turning a gorgeous shade of green while his feathers are starting to sport brilliant colors. Sweet Juliet looks rather drab blending in with the dirt where you usually find her sitting contently while her mate struts around the pen.

My Triple Layer Fruit Fluff is a light fruity rainbow dessert, easy to make, using fruit, angel food cake, and cool whip that looks elegant in a glass dish. You can mix match all kinds of fresh fruit and substitute the cool whip for vanilla ice cream if you prefer to turn the Triple Layer Fruit Fluff into a frozen dessert. I used sugar-free jello for my diabetic husband. Preparation time for my Triple Layer Fruit Fluff takes around thirty minutes and this recipe serves fifteen.

Triple Layer Fruit Fluff

1 angel food cake
1 pkg (3 oz) of strawberry, lime, and orange jello
1 (10 oz) can Mandarin oranges drained
2 c blueberries
2 c strawberries- hulled and cut into pieces
1 (16 oz) container of cool whip

Divide the angel food cake into thirds and tear into bite-size pieces in three medium bowls. Sprinkle a box of jello over each bowl and toss with a fork until well coated. In the bottom of a glass dish place the orange cake pieces, layer with Mandarin oranges, and cover with cool whip. Repeat with the lime cake pieces and blueberries covering with cool whip, and then the strawberry cake pieces and strawberries covering with cool whip. Garnish with slices of fruit. Chill and serve!

Weekly tip: Crushing strawberries and adding sugar before freezing in zip lock bags gives the strawberries a fresher taste when thawed, saves space in your freezer, and makes an instant filling for pies or shortcake!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Strawberry Ice Cream Cake

Strawberry Ice Cream Cake
Dorcas Annette Walker

August is the hot humid month of summer when outdoor temperatures soar. Now-a-days the month of August is also the start of another school year. Each year school is moved up into what we used to consider summer vacation time. Of course back then we didn’t have air conditioning only open windows and fans stirring the hot air as we sweltered in the heat trying to get our minds focused on textbooks once again. I’m very thankful today for modern conveniences such as central air during these hot summer days. This week I made up a Strawberry Ice Cream Cake; an ideal summer dessert.

Aluminum foil is a widely used household item for wrapping food, grilling, crafts, etc. The earliest production of aluminum foil was in France about 1903. Commercial foil was made from a thin leaf of tin in 1910 at a Switzerland plant near the foot of the Rhine Falls that used water energy to produce aluminum since 1886. This foil was pliable and easily bent or wrapped around objects. Here are some aluminum and tinfoil facts:

- Tinfoil is stiffer than aluminum foil.

- Aluminum is prepared in thin metal leaves.

- Tinfoil is fragile and sometimes laminated to plastics or paper.

- In the United States the commercial production of aluminum foil began in 1913.

- Aluminum foil supplanted tin foil in the mid 20th century.

- World War II established aluminum foil as a major packaging material.

- In North America aluminum foil is also called Reynolds Wrap after Reynolds Metals- the leading manufacturer in the USA.

- In 2003 the annual production of aluminum foil was approximately 666,000 tons.

- Aluminum foil is extremely durable and is 100 percent recyclable.

- Americans throw away around three pounds of aluminum foil annually.

- It takes roughly 400 years for aluminum to break down naturally in a landfill.

- Recycled aluminum takes 95 percent less energy to produce aluminum.

My Strawberry Ice Cream Cake is a light sweet summer dessert containing rich creamy strawberry ice cream with a crunchy graham/chocolate cookie base surrounded by cool whip. You can substitute the chocolate graham cookies with chocolate or Oreo cookies. Other fresh fruit such as peaches, blueberries, etc could be used instead of strawberries. Preparation time for my Strawberry Ice Cream Cake is around twenty minutes (not counting the freezing time) and this recipe serves twelve.

Strawberry Ice Cream Cake

1 lb strawberries
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (16 oz) container of cool whip
1 (12.5 oz) pkg fudge covered graham cookies

In a medium-size bowl crush ¾ of the strawberries. Stir in the condensed milk and ½ of the cool whip with a Wisk and mix well. Pour into a tinfoil-lined loaf pan. Crush half a pack of the cookies and gently press into the entire top of the strawberry mixture. Freeze overnight (or at least six hours until firm). Turn out onto a serving dish, peel off the foil, ice the cake with the remaining half of the cool whip, and garnish with sliced strawberries!

Weekly tip: For easier lining of tinfoil in a pan cover the outside of the pan first. Also a cardboard covered with tinfoil makes an excellent cake dish!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Nutty Cheerio Snack

Nutty Cheerio Snack
Dorcas Annette Walker

I’ve always kept snacks around and carried them with me as I traveled due to the fact that I have hypoglycemia- where my blood sugar can suddenly drop. Snacks were also a lifesaver when my children were young. I think though the biggest fan of my snacks is my husband, Dana. Every time we headed down the road on a trip the first thing- almost before we were out of the driveway- Dana would ask is, “What did you bring along to snack on?” Since Dana’s heart surgery and being diabetic where his sugar swings, having a snack handy has saved the day more than once traveling back and forth to the doctors down in Cookeville. Now that my husband has to be on a strict diet, I’ve been doing research on heart healthy foods. It hasn’t been easy for Dana, who for years ate everything and anything, to switch to smaller portions of food and stay on his cardiac/diabetic diet. After hearing my poor husband complain for the umpteenth time that there was nothing for him to snack on- refusing the baby carrots, bananas, and apples that I keep handy for such a thing- I decide to combine a couple different items together and came up with my Nutty Cheerio Snack that was an instant hit with Dana.

Cheerios was invented in 1940 by Lester Borchardt, an employee of General Mills, after months of trial and error to figure out how to puff the oats into a circular shape. First named Cheeri Oats the name was changed to Cheerios in 1945. By 1954 Cheerios became General Mills’ most popular selling cold cereal partly due to the face that Cheerios sponsored “The Lone Ranger” radio show. Today there are more than ten varieties of Cheerios. In 1999 Cheerios earned the distinction of being the only cold cereal to effectively lower cholesterol. Cheerios have only one gram of sugar per serving, fiber, aren’t made with any artificial flavors or color dyes, are low in fat, is an excellent source of iron, and contains at least 10 percent of your calcium needs.

My Nutty Cheerio Snack is a perfect filling crunchy heart-healthy snack. You can substitute a different kind of Cheerios from regular Cheerios, add other nuts instead of pecans- as nuts are low in saturated fat and beneficial to your heart as well- or use different dried fruit in place of raisins. Preparation time for my Nutty Cheerio Snack is ten minutes and this recipe makes twenty cups.

Nutty Cheerio Snack

1 (15 oz) box of regular Cheerios
1 (16 oz) pkg of pecan halves
1 (12 oz) bag or box of raisins

Combine all three ingredients in a large bowl and store 1-cup servings in a sealed baggie.

Weekly tip: Besides making a healthy snack, you can crush Cheerios and add to flour for homemade baked items or used crushed Cheerios in place of bread crumbs!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Dwight's Grilled Pork Chops

Dwight’s Grilled Pork Chops
Dorcas Annette Walker

My son, Dwight, came to my rescue again this week when my husband was back in the hospital with lung problems. It has been a slow recovery process since my husband had his open heart 4 by-pass surgery over three months ago. Yesterday when Dana tried to do some cardio rehab he nearly went into cardiac arrest. So I’ve not had much time to spend in the kitchen lately. With the summer heat wave and high humidity that has blanketed the mountain a hot stove or oven is the last place I’d want to be near for any length of time anyway.

I have never been a real meat eater like the fellows in my household; especially pork. Secretly I was thrilled that pork is mainly ruled out on a cardiac diet. But one day- one of those days when your mind comes up absolutely blank- despite gazing at all the food in the freezer and pantry and browsing through recipes for an idea for something quick to make up for supper as I was running out of time, Dwight came home. When I told him my about my dilemma over what to make for supper, in true male fashion, Dwight shrugged he shoulders like it wasn’t that big of a deal and offered to grill something. Since Dwight had mastered grilling hamburgers and hot dogs to his satisfaction he decided to try pork chops while I made a vegetable and potatoes. To my surprise Dwight had the meat done before I was finished. I chose the smallest pork chop and took a tiny bite. It actually tasted good. I took another bite thinking that my hunger had overridden or paralyzed my taste buds. The next bite was even better. Now folks if I think a pork chop- considering that I don’t even like pork chops- tastes delicious you know that it has to be something exceptional. When I asked Dwight what he had done to those pork chops to make them taste so good, I was delighted to find out that he had used a simple method. The next time Dwight made up some of his pork chops, I also had him do potatoes on the gas grill as well. Why should I slave in the kitchen if my son will cook? So this week when Dwight came to my rescue and grilled up some pork chops I followed him around with my camera (to catch my son in action) along with a pen and paper to write it all down in order to pass his recipe along to you. The next hot and humid day try some of Dwight’s Grilled Pork Chops that I promise are finger-lickin good.

Dwight’s Grilled Pork Chops

4 pork chops
garlic salt
regular salt & pepper
spray cooking oil

Spray the racks with oil and turn on the gas grill. When the racks are hot lay a pork chop on the top rack, sprinkle on the salts, and pepper. Then spray the meat with cooking oil to hold in the meat juices, turn over, and do the other side the same way. Turn the heat to low and close the lid for five minutes. Turn over the pork chops and brown the other side the same way. Preparation time is around fifteen minutes and this recipe serves four. Serve browned pork chops immediately. You can garnish with apple sauce or cooked apples!

Weekly tip: To round out a grilled meal of meat, vegetables, and potatoes, try something different and grill fresh fruit for dessert as well. Grilled fruit actually tastes sweeter!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches

Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Dorcas Annette Walker

Summertime madness, as any parent brave enough to confess will tell you, is not the local grocery or department store sales, but their offspring out of school during the summer. For some reason the summer heat that drains and exhausts an adult doesn’t seem to have any effect on children. If anything it rejuvenates their systems. I shake my head over the many escapades my sister, brother, and I got into during the summer as kids. We dug underground houses that turned into forts or tepees when we hit solid rock a couple of feet down. When it rained and the holes in the ground became flooded we climbed trees swinging dangerously from the treetops or explored the surrounding countryside daring each other to jump off of dizzying heights. The fact that not one of us ever suffered a broken bone during our growing up years was not due to our prowess, but the guardian angels watching over us. I can often remember the look of shock on my mother’s face (when after a long day’s work at the local hospital) we proudly showed off our handiwork or bragged about what all we had done that day as she shook her head speechless in despair over our dirt encrusted bodies and torn clothing. Living out of state we didn’t have any close relatives to keep an eye on us and we were too poor to have a babysitter while my dad was laid up with internal bleeds. As long as we showed up in one piece for mealtime, my dad figured we were doing okay.

When I became a mother I determined that my children were not going to be left unattended to run wild during the summertime. Somehow even with close supervision my daughter, who inherited my sister’s tomboy personality, managed to wreck her bike every time I turned my back until her elbows and knees remained covered in splotches of red mercurochrome as bandages were quickly torn off in “playing”. As soon as one spot healed up Dawn had another accident. Four-year-old Dwight one summer somehow managed under his father’s nose (while working outside and “keeping an eye on his son”) to firmly nail down a decrepit looking board on top of our new wooden front porch that stuck out at a jagged angle- the first thing anyone noticed when approaching our home. Dwight had put so many nails into that one board crossing the porch in a way that my husband would have had to rip up almost half of the porch. Instead Dwight’s “diving board” became a conservation piece. Another hot summer Sunday afternoon while we were taking a nap, Dwight dug three large holes in our front yard to plant “trees”- brush that my husband was clearing on our land.

I try to look sympathetic and wait to chuckle later when my daughter complains of all the wild antics that my grandchildren get into during the summertime- even when she is keeping an eye on them. So far this summer my granddaughter has broken her arm falling off the trampoline while my grandson cut his finger playing with a pocket knife requiring stitches, blacked his eye, and stepped barefooted on a pitchfork. My daughter has been kept busy running my grandchildren back and forth between the ER and the local doctor’s office. What my daughter doesn’t realize is that with the inherited genes her children carry and summertime madness, she doesn’t stand a chance.

Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches

1 brownie mix (your choice)
1 qt vanilla ice cream

Prepare the brownie mix according to the directions- you can add more water if needed- and spread the batter into a greased rectangular cookie sheet. Bake at 350º for fifteen minutes and let cool. Cut in half and transfer upside down into a 9 x 13 baking dish. Soften ice cream and layer over the top half of the brownie. Top with the remaining brownie. Cover and freeze until firm. Cut into eight pieces and serve!

Weekly tip: You can substitute any cake mix or use a different flavor of ice cream to make you own individualized Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches. For easier transfer line the cookie sheet with wax paper or tinfoil before baking!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com