Iron Skillet Peach Cobbler

Even though heavy iron cookware was first brought to North America by the early settlers of New England, none appreciate the pots and pans like the cooks of the South. Every home cook has at least one well-seasoned skillet they couldn't imagine cooking without, and many have corn stick and muffin pans, grill pans, and larger kettles or Dutch ovens, all made of heavy cast iron. One of the reasons heavy iron is so highly valued is its cooking properties. Heat is evenly distributed and held, making it ideal for deep frying, searing and even baking. The versatility of the iron pot or skillet is unrivaled; use it on the stove top, grill, or in the oven. If you're still not convinced, check the price. An iron skillet will cost under $10, a fraction of the price of a comparable heavy aluminum or stainless steel pan, and it should last a lifetime.     2 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/2 cups sugar 2 teaspoons baking powder 2 teaspoons salt 2 large eggs, beaten to blend 1 1/2 cups crème fraîche, divided 1 cup whole milk 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter 2 pounds peeled, pitted peaches, each cut into 1/2" wedges (about 2 cups) 1 cup Peach Preserves 1 cup chilled heavy cream 2 tablespoons sugar     Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl. Whisk eggs, 1/2 cup crème fraîche, milk, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Add egg mixture to dry ingredients; whisk until smooth. Melt butter in a 12" castiron skillet over medium heat. Swirl pan to coat with butter. Remove from heat. Add batter to pan. Scatter fresh peaches over, then spoon dollops of preserves evenly over batter. Bake until a tester inserted into center of cobbler comes out clean, 45–50 minutes. Let cool slightly. Meanwhile, whip cream in a medium bowl to form soft peaks. Fold in sugar and remaining 1 cup crème fraîche. Cut cobbler into wedges and serve with whipped cream mixture.

Yield: Makes 8 servings

MOUNTAIN BLUEBERRY COBBLER RECIPE

 They have been and are still called by various names such as cobbler, tart, pie, torte, pandowdy, grunt, slump, buckles, crisp, croustade, bird's nest pudding or crow's nest pudding. They are all simple variations of cobblers, and they are all based on seasonal fruits and berries, in other words, whatever fresh ingredients are readily at hand. They are all homemade and simple to make and rely more on taste than fancy pastry preparation.

Early settlers of America were very good at improvising. When they first arrived, they bought their favorite recipes with them, such as English steamed puddings). Not finding their favorite ingredients, they used whatever was available. That's how all these traditional American dishes came about with such unusual names. Early colonist were so fond of these juicy dishes that they often served them as the main course, for breakfast, or even as a first course. It was not until the late 19th century that they became primarily desserts.

 

MOUNTAIN BLUEBERRY COBBLER RECIPE 1/2 cup butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup of sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup of milk
1 pint of blueberries
• Gobs of ice cream is optional :-)

DIRECTIONS:
• Melt butter in a 1 1/2 qt. glass casserole, set aside. In a large bowl combine flour, half of the 3/4 cup of sugar, baking powder, and salt, alternately with the milk.
• Pour over the melted butter in casserole dish.
• Drop blueberries and remainder of sugar on top of the batter.
• Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for about an hour (the berries will sink to the bottom).
• Makes about six servings.

* Taken from "Miss Daisy's Blue Ribbon Desserts" Recipe Book.

Pain Perdu ( Chocolate French Toast)

The earliest known reference to French toast is in the Apicius, a collection of Latin recipes dating to the 4th or 5th century; the recipe mentions soaking in milk but not eggs (though the editor adds eggs) and gives it no special name, just Aliter Dulcia 'another sweet dish'. There is a 14th-century German recipe under the name "Armeritter". There are 15th-century English recipes for "pain perdu" (French for "lost [or wasted] bread", suggesting that the dish is a use for bread which has gone stale).

A 1660 recipe for "French Toasts" is different: toasted bread is soaked in wine, sugar, and orange juice.
A similar dish, suppe dorate, was popular in England during the Middle Ages, although the English might have learned it from the Normans, who had a dish called tostees dorees.

 

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch kosher salt
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
• 2 eggs
• 6 slices white bread, crusts removed and cut into triangles
• Special equipment: 9 by 5-inch baking dish

Directions

In a small pot over low heat, add 1/4 cup cream, milk, sugar, 3 tablespoons butter, vanilla, and salt and bring to a simmer. Put the chocolate into a medium bowl and pour in the cream mixture. Let sit until the chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs and mix until well combined. Grease the baking dish with the remaining tablespoon of butter, and it line with the bread slices, overlapping slightly. Pour the chocolate mixture over the bread, making sure to cover the tips. Push the bread down with your fingers to coat the bread completely. Refrigerate, covered, for at least 2 hours. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Bake until the custard sets and the bread turns golden at the edges, about 30 minutes.
Add the remaining cream to a chilled bowl and whisk until soft peaks form. Serve the French toast on individual plates with a dollop of cream.

Always a favorite!! My Aunt Mary Louise always makes these for our Family reunion in July in the Smoky Mountains. I got the recipe from her many years ago and make them now for our get togethers.

Calico Beans

Mary Louise Hailey

2 – 1 lb cans barbequed beans (hot chili beans)

1 – 1 lb can red kidney beans, drained

1 – 1 lb can lima beans, drained

1 lrg onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

¼ C. spicy ketchup or regular ketchup with a few dashes of hot sauce

½ C. brown sugar

1 tbl cider vinegar

1 tsp dry mustard

3 bacon strips, cut into 1” pieces

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350^.

Saute bacon in skillet until crisp, remove from pan. In the same pan used for the bacon, add the onion and garlic and cook until clear. Mix together all the other ingredients, add onion mixture, mix well. Add the bacon and stir gently to combine. Pour into a baking dish and bake for 1 ½ hours, or place in a crock pot for several hours.

This recipe can be doubled.

Add hot sauce to taste and add additional brown sugar to taste if desired.

Red-White & Blueberry Torte

Red-White & Blueberry Torte

Ingredients

• 1 cup crushed gingersnap cookies (about 20 cookies)
• 3/4 cup crushed vanilla wafers (about 25 wafers)
• 1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1 envelope unflavored gelatin
• 1-3/4 cups white grape juice
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2-1/2 cups fresh blueberries
• 1-1/2 cups sliced fresh strawberries

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the cookie crumbs, wafer crumbs, walnuts and butter. Press onto the bottom and 1-1/2 in. up the sides of a greased 9-in. springform pan.
• Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes or until set. Cool on a wire rack.
• In a small saucepan, sprinkle gelatin over grape juice; let stand for 1 minute. Heat over low heat, stirring until gelatin is completely dissolved. Cover and refrigerate until partially set, about 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread over crust.
• Place berries in a large bowl; add gelatin mixture and gently stir to coat. Spoon over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen. Remove sides of pan. Yield: 12 servings.

Cherry Cola Ribs

I have served these so many times and actually plan on having them for dinner tomorrow night! They always get RAVE reviews and they are very easy to prepare. I like using the St Louis Style Ribs because there is so much more meat on them.These are a favorite at our yearly Memorial Day Picnic. Pork is usually on sale this time of year so pick some ribs up and enjoy!

Cherry Cola Ribs

LouAnn Dykhouse

Before using the cherry cola, pour it into a bowl and allow it to stand at room temperature until no longer effervescent, about four hours.

4 12-ounce cans cherry cola (flat)- diet Cola is NOT RECOMMENDED.
2 cups cherry jam or preserves
2/3 cup Dijon mustard with horseradish
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons malt vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
3 to 4 Racks Baby Back ribs or  St Louis Style Ribs


Boil cherry cola in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 45 minutes. Stir in next 5 ingredients. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until mixture is reduced to 2 1/2 cups, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes. Transfer glaze to large bowl. (Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover; chill. Bring to room temperature before using.)
Position racks in top and bottom thirds of oven and preheat to 325°F. Sprinkle ribs with salt and pepper. Wrap each rib rack tightly in foil, enclosing completely. Divide foil packets between 2 rimmed baking sheets. Bake until ribs are very tender, switching positions of baking sheets halfway through baking, about 2 hours total. Cool ribs slightly in foil. Pour off any fat from foil packets. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep covered in foil packets and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before continuing.)
Prepare barbecue (medium-low heat). Cut each rib rack in half between bones. Set aside 1 cup glaze. Brush ribs with remaining glaze and grill ribs until brown and glazed, turning to prevent burning, about 5 minutes total. Serve, passing reserved glaze separately.

The glaze is easily doubled to feed a crowd.

In Memory of my Sister

After what seems like a very long hiatus, I am back and plan on posting wonderful recipes from across the world again. I must first mention that my sister, Susie Waters Davis, was a big contributor to this site. She was one of the best, if not the best cook I ever knew.  We shared a lot of things but the love of food and cooking was probably the most important. She sadly passed away on March 20, 2012 and I miss her every day. Luckily, I have a lot of her recipes and will continue to post them from time to time.
 I will continue this blog in her honor and memory. Memorial Day is fast approaching and my recipes will be a tribute to the good ole USA!