88-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, September 21,2002
If you are looking for a recipe but can’t find it, send
your recipe request to Lou Ann Good, Cook’s Question
Comer, in care of Lancaster Fanning, P.O. Box 609,
Ephrata, PA 17522. There’s no need to send a self-ad
dressed stamped envelope. If we receive an answer to
your question, we will publish it as soon as possible.
Check your recipe to make sure you copy the right
amounts and complete instructions for making the reci
pe. Sometimes we receive numerous answers to the
same request, but cannot print each one.
Answers to recipe requests should be sent to the same
address. You may also e-mail questions and answers to
LGOOD.EPH@LNPNEWS.COM
QUESTION Anna Bryan, Oxford, N.J.,
wants a recipe for pickled red cabbage.
QUESTION A reader wants recipes to use
end-of-season produce.
QUESTION How about some recipes for
dried apple slices and other ways to use an
abundance of apples?
QUESTION Readers would like recipes for
preparing pumpkin and squash dishes to serve
as a vegetable or main course.
QUESTION A Leola reader wants a recipe
to make homemade French vanilla coffee
creamer.
QUESTION A Leola reader wants a recipe
to make beef gravy like that served with Salis
bury steak in restaurants.
QUESTION A reader from Lebanon wants
a recipe for pizza sauce that tastes like the
Ragu brand.
QUESTION Penny Haber from Bucks
County writes that for several years she has
used a Victoria Squeeze Strainer to prepare her
tomatoes for canning. She has also tried to use
it to prepare strawberries and raspberries for
jelly making but the proportions have turned
out wrong. She would appreciate if readers who
have successfully prepared fruit this way send
instructions and the proportions of sugar, fruit
pectin, and fruit they used.
QUESTION Gail Silveira would like a reci
pe for a corn, shrimp soup, which she recalls
had been printed in a previous issue. Anyone
have the recipe to which she is referring?
QUESTION Eva Burrell, Glen Gardner,
N.J., wants to know how to make filet of beef
on the grill by using wet newspapers and en
casing meat in a paste made with kosher salt
and water. Years ago, the Burrells used this
method but can’t remember exactly how it was
done or the time required to cook per pound.
This made the best filet of beef Eva has ever
tasted and she would like to use it for several
cookouts. If we do not receive a response to
this within the next two weeks, we will assume
our readers do not know the answer and drop
the request.
QUESTION Dave Wilder, Gladwyne, grows
lingonberries in Berks County. He wants to
know uses for this Old World fruit. The Latin
name, Wilder writes, is Vacciniam vitis-idaea.
Native varieties are sometimes called cowber
ry. If we do not receive a response to this with
in the next two weeks, we will assume our
readers do not know the answer and drop the
request.
ANSWER Thanks to Anna Martin, Denver,
for sending a squash recipe. More recipes are
requested for pumpkin and squash dishes.
Baked Acorn Squash
3 acorn squash
6 tablespoons honey or syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound pork sausage
1 teaspoon sage
Wash each squash and cut in half. Remove
seeds and strings. Put a tablespoon honey or
syrup in each half. Sprinkle with salt and pow
dered sage. Fill cavity with pork sausage and
top with bread crumbs. Place halves in baking
pan, add about one-inch water. Cover and bake
at' 400 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove cover
and allow to brown. Serves 6.
ANSWER A reader wanted a recipe for
green tomato pie. Thanks to Anna Martin, Den
ver, for sending one.
Green Tomato Pie
3 cups green tomatoes, sliced
Vi cup brown sugar
Vz cup molasses
Vi cup water
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
% teaspoon nutmeg
Pastry for 2 9-inch crusts
Slice tomatoes in thin rings. Do not pare.
Cover with boiling water and let stand 10 min
utes. Drain. Put tomato slices in unbaked pas
try shell. Combine sugar, flour, and spices. Add
molasses and water. Pour mixture over toma
toes. Cover with top crust. Bake at 425 degrees
for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to
375 degrees and continue to bake 30 minutes.
Makes one 9-inch pie.
ANSWER Roxanne Bonifay, Salem, N.J.,
requested a very old recipe called Spanish bar
cake, which is a heavy spice cake with raisins.
Thanks to Charlotte Vanßuskirk, Halifax, for
sending one that she writes tastes better a day
or so after it is made so the spices have a
chance to blend.
Spanish Bar Cake
4 cups water
2 cups raisins
1 cup shortening
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
Vb teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease
9x13-inch pan. Cook raisins and water for 10
minutes over medium heat. Stir in shortening.
Remove from heat and let mixture cool.
Combine flour, sugar, salt, baking soda,
ground cloves, ground nutmeg, ground cinna
mon, ground allspice, and salt. Add flour mix
ture to the cooled raisin mixture and blend
well. Stir in beaten eggs. Add chopped nuts Of
desired). Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at
350 degrees for 35 minutes.
ANSWER Pamela Hoy, Lewistown, wanted
to know where to purchase hickory salt, which
is often listed as an ingredient in sausage reci
pes. Thanks to Shirley Orfanella, Quarryville,
for recommending mail ordering it by request
ing a catalog from Penzeys, Ltd. Spice Compa
ny, 582 W. 19362 Appollo Drive, Muskego, Wl
53150.
ANSWER Karen Ramseur, Williamstown,
N.J., wrote that she attended the Kutztown
Pennsylvania German Festival and saw a Penn
sylvania German cooking presentation demon
strating drying corn on a double-walled pan
with a funnel adaptor at one end to add water.
She also attended the country auction featured
at the festival and brought a vegetable dryer.
She wanted recipes to instruct her how to dry
vegetables. Check out this week’s and the next
two weeks column “Well Preserved,” which ap
pears in B section of this paper. For three
weeks, the column will include information
about drying foods.
ANSWER Evelyn Smith had requested a
recipe for creamsicle fudge, which was printed
in last week’s issue. Thanks to a Shade Gap
reader for sending the same recipe only she
called it marbled orange fudge. Shirley Orfanel
lo, Quarryville, sent in a recipe for white fudge
in which she added orange extract.
Creamsicle Fudge
2 cups granulated sugar
Vz cup sour cream
Vb cup white corn syrup
2 tablespoons butter
V* teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla OR orange extract
Nuts, optional
Combine first five ingredients and bring to a
slow boil. Boil without stirring to 236 degrees.
Remove from heat. Let stand 15 minutes. Do
NOT stir. Add flavoring, beat until mixture loses
its gloss, about 8 minutes. Pour into greased
pan. Cool and cut into squares.
ANSWER Thanks to Pen Leicht, Manches
ter for sending this dessert recipe, in answer to
a request for dessert recipes.
Cherry Graham Dessert
Graham cracker crumbs
8-ounce container whipped topping
2 cans cherry pie filling
Spread graham cracker crumbs on the bot
tom of a bowl. Layer one can of cherry pie fill
ing and half the whipped topping. Add more
graham crackers, and second can of cherry
pie filling. Top with remainder of whipped top
ping and a few graham cracker crumbs for
decoration.
It’s Not Tough To
Tenderize Meats
Just Make Marinade
UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre Co.) Nothing ruins a
dinner faster than a tough cut of meat. However, a meat
scientist in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences
says even the most unforgiving meats can be tenderized,
given enough time and the right marinade.
“Giving a marinade time to work is the key,” says Ed
Mills, associate professor of dairy and animal science.
“The ingredients that break down the connective tissue in
the meat must be able to penetrate all the way through
the cut. Cooks should prepare the marinade the night be
fore, put the meat in, and let it marinate overnight in the
refrigerator.”
Although would-be gourmets can soak meat in any
thing and call it a marinade. Mills says any marinade
must contain some type of acid to be an effective tenderiz
es Acidic molecules in fruits, vegetables and vinegar
break down and soften the connective tissue in meat over
time. The alcohol in wine works in much the same way,
but it is not as effective as stronger acids.
“The idea behind marinating meat is to add flavor and
to tenderize,” Mills says. “If you marinate a steak for 20
minutes right before you cook it, the flavor will be en
hanced, but that isn’t enough time to improve tender
ness.”
Mills recommends that every marinade include three
essential elements:
• Flavor. Using seasonings and spices, cooks can give a
variety of meats unique flavors.
• Acids or alcohol. Effective acids are found in tomato
products, lemons, fruit juices and vinegar. Almost all ma
rinades containing alcohol are made with wine, Mills
says.
• Salt. The acid in a marinade may cause meat to lose
its ability to retain water. Mills explains. Add salt im
proves juiciness and allows the meat to retain the mari
nade’s flavors.
“Marinades aren’t limited to less tender cuts of meat,”
Mills says. “All cuts of beef, pork and poultry can benefit
from a marinade. It’s also an easy way to add unique
flavors to the dinner table.”
Mills says home tenderizing products also work, al
though marinades can penetrate through meat more
quickly. “Commercial home tenderizers usually contain
papain, a derivative of the papaya,” Mills explains. “Pa
pain takes longer to penetrate into the meat because the
tenderizing agent is a protein, which is much larger than
the acids in fruit juices, vinegars or alcohol. Given enough
time, it will penetrate and tenderize the meat but by then
the surface will be soft and mushy. When using either ma
rinades or meat tenderizers, it is helpful to use a fork to
make small holes that speed up penetration.
Checkoff Helps Develop
New Pork Sandwich
At McDonald’s
DES MOINES, lowa Pork producers, through their
investment in the Pork Checkoff, helped develop the new
“Breaded Pork Loin Sandwich” that McDonald’s is offer
ing in more than 400 locations in Indiana, Kentucky and
Missouri.
“Growing demand for pork is a primary goal of all
pork producers,” said National Pork Board member
Mark Reding, a pork producer from Howardstown, Ky.
“Through new product offerings such as this sandwich in
the foodservice segment, we have opportunities to build
demand.”
This Breaded Pork Loin Sandwich was developed for
the Indiana marketplace. “The quickserve restaurants
were looking for a way to use a long-time favorite sand
wich,” Reding said. “Pork producers are always looking
for ways to get more pork on menus.”
When this sandwich promotion is successful, there is
the potential for the sandwich to be available in McDon
ald’s restaurants across America. Part of the sandwich
promotion is featuring the Pork. The Other White Meat
logo in television advertising in Indiana, Kentucky and
Missouri.
ANSWER Thanks to Lancaster County
Dairy Princess Kari Martin for sending this reci
pe using sweet potatoes.
Sweet Potato Pudding
2 cups mashed sweet potatoes
2 eggs
1 cup cream
6 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
8 marshmallows or V 2 cup marshmallow whip
Cook sweet potatoes with skins on until soft.
Peel and mash sweet potatoes. Add sugar, salt,
melted butter, and cream. Beat eggs well, and
add to mixture. Pour in a buttered baking dish
and top with marshmallows. Bake at 350 de
grees for 45 minutes. Serves 6.