812-Lanc«*ter Farming, Saturday, August 21, 1999
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
ROCKSPRING (Centre Co.)
“You’d never know this has
tofu in it,” said Peggy Denison of
Shiremanstown as she tasted Cho
colate and Banana Cream Pie. “It
has a dense chocolate flavor in a
texture I like. I’m going to make
this one at home.”
That’s exactly the purpose of the
cooking demonstrations held in the
Family Room on the Ag Progress
grounds Tuesday through
Thursday.
Extension family living agents
demonstrated preparing healthy
meals for healthy families. Sam
ples were handed out to the
observers.
Two of the more unusual work
shops were about the New Face of
Soy and A-“Maize”-ing Possibili
ties with Cormeal.
Although soybeans have been
grown for thousands of years, con
sumers are taking a new interest in
it because research indicates soy
foods provide numerous health
benefits. Soyfoods arc believed to
reduce the risk of chronic diseases
such as heart disease and osteopor
osis and to decrease menopause
symptoms.
Because soy is a high protein
food, vegetarians also use it in
place of meat
The problem is that soy comes
in so many different forms that it is
difficult for people to know how to
prepare it. Some cooks try and are
disappointed with the results and
never use it again.
In the workshop, Allctta Schad
ler, Lebanon County, prepared
several diverse dishes, which
observers could sample to deter
mine if they wanted to try it at
home.
Most people are familiar with
the dried yellow or tan-color soy
bean but there are also brown and
black varieties. Some soybeans are
green, if they arc harvested just
before maturity. These are most
often cooked like a fresh vegetable
and lighdy salted.
Dried soybeans need to be
soaked in water for eight hours or
overnight. Do not add salt or acidic
foods such as tomatoes or vinegar
to yellow soybeans until they are
thoroughly cooked or it will delay
softening. (See the recipe for Oven
Baked Bean Soup that follows for
using dried soybeans).
The question is which do these visitors enjoy more: the chance to relax after wan
dering over acres of grounds at Ag Progress or the chance to watch a cooking demon
stration in order to learn new ways to serve food?
Ag Progress Visitors Sample Food
Made To Keep Families Healthy
Tofu is a soft cheese-like food
made by curdling fresh hot soy
milk with a coagulant. Tofu is very
bland but acts as a sponge in a
recipe and soaks up the flavor of
the other ingredients. Crumbled
into chili, it tastes like chili,
blended with cocoa and sweetener
it is like cream pie filling, cut into
cubes, it can be added to soup or
casseroles. Blend into a fruit
smoothie drink. Mash into a dip or
salad dressing instead of cream
cheese. Tofu can be substituted for
sour cream, ricotta cheese, and
cream cheese in recipes.
Some recipes follow. If you
would like more recipes, order a
copy of the 1999 U.S. Soyfoods
Directory by calling
1-800-TALKSOY or check the
Internet:
http://www.soyfoods.com/.
Combread has also been around
for a long time. People are taking a
new interest in combread as a
healthy alternative to white bread.
Nancy Wiker, Lancaster Exten
sion, said that combread was made
by Native Americans long before
colonists settled in America. The
earliest combreads were called
“pone,” a simple mixture of corn
meal, salt, and water.
In the South, com pone, ash
cake, and hoecake were consid
ered staples. Similar versions in
the north were known as johnny
cake, journey cake, or combread.
In the west, tortillas were popular.
As recipes became refined, spider
cake, spoon bread, and hush pup
pies were common fare.
Here are some recipes for the
food demonstrated at the
workshops.
HUSH PUPPIES
Legend has it that during the Civil
War, Southerners often prepared
meals outdoors. They would fry
cornmeal batter, andif Yankee sol
diers came nearby, they teased one
of the cakes to the barking dogs
and say, ‘Hush, puppies. ” ;
2 cups com meal
1 tablespoon flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons finely chopped
scallions
1 cup plus 3 tablespoon
buttermilk
1 egg, lightly beaten
Oil
During a cooking demonstration, Dana Wiker hands out food samples made by her
mother Nancy Wiker, at right in background, and by Alletta Schadier, left.
Sift together commeal, baking
soda, baking powder, and salt. Add
scallions, buttermilk, and egg. Stir
until thoroughly mixed.
Heat oil to 375 degrees and drop
by spoonfuls into hot oil. Fry until
golden brown. Drain on paper tow
eling. Serve at once.
ROASTED RED
PEPPER DIP
12 sundried tomato halves, not
in oil
1 cup hot water
2 Cans (15-ounccs each) soy
beans OR 3 cups soaked mid
cooked dried soybeans
6- firm silken tofu
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
l A cup spicy hot salsa
7- roasted red peppers,
drained
Soften sundried tomatoes in 1
cup hot water until soft. Drain
well, hi food processor, process
soybeans and tofu until coarsely
chopped. Add garlic, cumin, ore
gano, tomatoes, salsa, and roasted
red peppers. Continue to blend in
food processor until fairly smooth,
yet thick like a dip. Refrigerate.
Serve with vegetables.
CORN TORTILLAS
These tortillas can be served warm
as a bread, with cheese, meat, or
salsa. When fried in hot oil, they
become tacos or tostadas.
4 cups finely ground cornflour
2/ cups cold water
1 teaspoon salt
Combine corn flour, water, and
salt in a large mixing bowl and stir
until smooth. The dough should be
slightly sticky and form a ball
when pressed together. To test,
flatten a ball between palms. If
edges crack, add water to the
dough a tablespoon af a time, until
the piece does not crack 1
Divide the dough into 24 golf
ball size pieces. Place on a platter
and cover with damp towel
Line a tortilla, press with two
sheets plastic. Heat a dry skillet
until moderately hot. Flatten each
ball of dough in a tortilla press or
roll between pieces of heavy plas
tic. Remove from plastic and lay on
the skillet and cook about 30 to 45
seconds on each side. Press the top
of each to make it puff.
Serve immediately or let cool,
wrap well in a plastic bag and
store in the refrigerator for up to a
week.
TAVERN SPOON BREAD
Spoon bread or batter bread is a
custardy corn bread served
souffle-hot from the dish, prefer
ably earthenware, in which it is
baked.
I'A cups water
2 cups milk
IV2 cups commeal
I'A teaspoons salt
I'A teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons butter
5 eggs
1 tablespoon baking powder
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a large, shallow baking
dish. Combine waters and milk
and heat to simmer. Add com
meal, salt, sugar, and butter. Stir
over medium heat until mixture is
thickened, about 5 minutes.
Remove from heat.
Beat eggs with baking powder
Until very light and fluffy, then add
to com meal mixture. Mix well.
Pour into prepared dish and bake at
350 degrees for 45-50 minutes.
Serve hot.
OVEN BAKED
BEAN SOUP
8-ounces dried soybeans
3 cups water
3 cups lowfat chicken or veget
able broth
'h cup ketchup
'/«cup molasses
1 cup onion, diced
2 cups raw sweet potatoes,
peeled, diced
1 cup green pepper, diced
Pinch ground cloves
'h teaspoon dried thyme
Black pepper to taste
Place beans in a laigd Cori&indf
and add enough cold water to cov
er them by several inches. Note: to
soak them quicker, place the beans'
in a pot, cover them with' Water,
bring to a boil; cover them, remove
from heat and allow to stand one
hour. Drain and proceed.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place ingredients into a large oven
proof Dutch oven and heat on top
on high heat Bring to a boil, stir
well and cover. Place the Dutch
oven in the middle of the oven and
allow to cook until the beans are
tender, about 2 or 3 hours. Add
more liquid if needed.
CHOCOLATE AND
BANANA CREAM PIE
12-ounces firm silken light tofu
l h cup cocoa powder
% cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 ripe bananas
1 graham crust
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Place the tofu, cocoa powder,
sugar, vanilla, and bananas into a
blender or food processor and
blend until smooth. Pour into the
graham crust and place in the cen
ter of the oven. Bake until firm in
the center, about 30 minutes. Chill
thoroughly before serving, about 3
hours.
Graham Crust:
1 cup graham crumbs
* t 1 cereal bar
* Grind crumbs and cereal bar 1
together in food processor. Spray
pie pan with cooking oil then pack
crumbs into pan.