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Sunday Pie3 of 5
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Danish Red Cabbage4 of 5
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Beverly Lee, far left, enjoys dinner with husband, Cliff, and daughter Wendy.
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Jack Hicks and Lulu grilling out at a family gathering.
The judges had some delicious choices for our first Holiday Favorites Recipe Contest, but the winners brought bright ideas and a good story to the table.
Beverly Lee’s “Sunday Pie” adds a light, lemony finish to any heavy holiday meal. It earned the Grand Prize and won in the Desserts category.
Bev is from Mahtomedi, Minnesota. She will receive $100, a signed copy of Betty’s Pies Favorite Recipes and a one-year subscription to Lake Superior Magazine.
We liked this pie because it was easy to prepare and can be made the night before the holiday meal. While we’re suggesting it could make a good Christmas or Thanksgiving addition, Bev’s family also likes it for the Easter gathering. It fits nicely any time of year. For all of those reasons, it earns the top position in this year’s contest.
In the Side Dishes/Salads category, “Maren’s Danish Red Cabbage,” sent in by Jack A. Hicks of Deerfield, Illinois, won and it includes a marvelous family-tradition story. Jack will receive a signed copy of Betty’s Pies Favorite Recipes and a one-year subscription to Lake Superior Magazine.
While cooked cabbage tends to be more of an “Old World” recipe these days, this version blends a sweet-smokey flavor and, as Jack explains, it can be modified well to match any particular taste.
These recipes plus some additional finalists can be found below.
When you try them, and if you add something of your own, please post your comments and suggestions for others to try.
The story of the Sunday Pie
“The lemon flavor and lightness of this pie is a great dessert after a big holiday meal,” writes Beverly Lee. “It has been a favorite of our family since the ’60s.” Her two sons, now 45 and 47, “just look forward to it all the time.”
The pie recipe, tucked forever into her oldest recipe book, may have come from her mother-in-law, Bev says.
The crust recipe is equally aged. “The pie crust recipe was one of the first recipes that I got when I was first married – 1962. I got it at a Tupperware party. That’s a historic event of the past! And the title is true … it has never failed me.”
Sunday Pie
submitted by Beverly Lee
1 baked pie crust, 9 inches. (You can use the Never-Fail Pie Crust recipe, your own or store-bought)
1 box (3.4 oz.) of lemon pudding & pie filling (not instant)
1 envelope of Knox gelatin
1 c. sugar
2-1/4 c. water, divided
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. lemon rind, grated
3 egg yolks
3 egg whites
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 pint whipping cream
Combine filling, gelatin, sugar, lemon juice and 1/4 c. of water in saucepan. Blend in egg yolks and remaining water. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a full boil, being careful not to burn it. Remove from heat and add rind and butter. Beat egg whites until soft peaks form and gradually fold into hot pie filling. Cover and chill. Whip cream and when filling is cool, blend in 1 c. of the whipped cream into the filling and spoon into the pie crust. Chill until set, about 3 hours. Garnish the top of the pie with the remaining whipped cream.
Never-Fail Pie Crust
(makes 4 crusts; freezes well)
3 c. flour
1-1/4 c. lard or shortening
1/2 tsp. salt
Put these into a bowl with a tight-fitting lid (such as a Tupperware bowl). Secure lid and shake for 5 minutes.
1 egg
1 tsp. vinegar
5-1/2 Tbsp. water
In another bowl with a tight-fitting lid, mix these ingredients. Secure lid and shake well. Pour wet ingredients into dry-ingredient bowl, secure lid and shake for 3 minutes. Roll out enough crust to fit on the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan (about 1/4 of the total). Roll the remaining dough into balls, wrap and freeze.
The story of the Danish Red Cabbage
“When my brothers and sisters were young,” Jack Hicks writes, “there was no greater treat than to go to our grandparents’ home for the holidays – either Thanksgiving or Christmas. There was always a gathering of aunts and uncles, but most important to us kids were our cousins. In 1898, at age 15, my Gramma Maren immigrated to South Dakota to be a farm cook and she was nothing short of a great cook. She married Lauritz J. Voss.
Her holiday dinner was always a big production, usually featuring roast goose stuffed with apples and prunes. Gramma treated us with her specialties – spicy watermelon pickles, homemade chutney, fresh breads and rolls and her wonderful plum pudding with a hard sauce for dessert (for which my dad would sneak her the necessary bottle of brandy).
But all of us – kids and adults – always looked forward to her red cabbage. I am sure she took many liberties with the traditional dish, and it was not always the same. This is the version that I liked the best – rich, fruity and pungent.
This past year, after being apart for 40 to 50 years, we had major reunions with the cousins and their children. … We talked about how at holidays we all made ‘The Cabbage.’ Not surprisingly, all of our recipes were different, but the memories of Grampa and Gramma’s holiday dinners remained the same – a cherished part of our childhoods.”
Maren’s Danish Red Cabbage
submitted by Jack A. Hicks
1 large or 2 small heads of red cabbage
1 medium onion
2 large apples (leave skins on)
4 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. salt
scant white pepper (less than 1/8 of a tsp.)
1/4 c. white sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. white vinegar
1/2 c. water
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1 bay leaf
15-20 caraway seeds
2/3 c. lingonberry preserves (or currant jam)
1 Tbsp. cornstarch (to thicken)
Remove tough outer leaves of cabbage. Chop remaining cabbage, onion and apples. Add to large sauce pan (or soup pot) on low heat, sautéing in the butter. Add vinegar, sugar, water, salt, white pepper, caraway seeds and bay leaf. Stir in lingonberry preserves and sprinkle on ground cloves. Cover with lid and cook very slowly for 2-3 hours.
Occasionally stir and check for sticking or for low water level. Mixture will reduce in volume. You want the cabbage to be sweet/sour, so adjust sugar or vinegar as needed. Cabbage should be tender, but not mushy or overdone.
Strain off 1/2 c. of the liquid. Mix it with the cornstarch. Add back into the cabbage to thicken and let simmer for 20-30 minutes, taking care that it does not scorch. Tastes even better if made the day before (which I do because it’s fussy). Can be served hot with a main dish or cold with leftovers. We use it mashed into cold turkey sandwiches.
Finalists
Desserts
Buster Bars – Ice Cream Bar
Submitted by Mrs. Thomas Olson of Duluth
1 lb. Oreo cookies, finely crushed
1/2 c. melted butter
2 qrt. ice cream (vanilla), softened
Mix butter and crushed cookies together and pat into a jelly roll pan. Chill until cooled. Spread softened ice cream over the crust and put into freeze until solid.
2 c. powder sugar
10 oz. can evaporated milk
1 c. chocolate chips (use half dark & half milk chocolate)
1/2 c. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1-1/2 c. crushed Spanish salted peanuts
Except for the vanilla and peanuts, boil ingredients in sauce pan for 8 minutes, stirring constantly. After removing from heat, add vanilla. After mixture has cooled, pour over the frozen ice cream in jelly roll pan and spread the peanuts on top. Freeze. Keeps well for at least 1 week.
Best Banana Bread
Submitted by Carol M. Olsen of Duluth
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1-1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1/3 c. oil
1/2 c. buttermilk
2 or 3 smashed bananas
Preheat oven to 350° F. Mix all ingredients together and place in large loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour. If using two smaller pans, reduce baking time.
Side dishes
Jim’s Jalapeno Corn Bread
Submitted by Jim Westman of Duluth
1 package (6 oz.) of corn bread mix (I prefer Marie Callender or Betty Crocker)
3/4 c. water
1/3 c. plain yogurt
1/2 can corn with peppers (such as Green Giant “mexicorn” or Butter Kernel “corn with peppers”
1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp. pickled jalapeno peppers, finely chopped (I use half regular and half mild)
Preheat oven to 400° F.
Stir all of the ingredients together well. Pour into an small cast iron skillet. Bake for 40 minutes, but after 35 minutes, beginning checking with a toothpick or a fork. It’s good to crack the surface at this point to release moisture.
While the cornbread is baking, simmer:
1/2 c. butter
1/4 c. honey
1 Tbsp. fresh jalapeno, finely chopped
1 or 2 tsp. orange or yellow pepper, finely chopped
Once the cornbread is baked, remove it from the oven and spoon the simmered sauce over the bread right in the skillet. Adding coarsely chopped peppers on top is a nice garnish. Slice into 12 pieces and serve from skillet.
Delightful Pasta Side Salad
Submitted by Linda Thomas of Sayner, Wisconsin
1 box (7.25 oz.) Caesar-style Suddenly Salad (by Betty Crocker)
1/4 c. cooking oil (your preference)
2 Tbsp. water
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 to 4 Tbsp. of colby cheese (small cubes)
1/4 c. frozen peas
Cook pasta according to directions. I add the frozen peas in here, too, so they get cooked. While that’s cooking, whisk the oil, water and vinegar in a medium mixing bowl. Add to this the package of croutons and packet of extras from the Suddenly Salad box. Drain cooked pasta and while it’s still warm, add to mixing bowl with dressing (you are not using the dressing from the box). Taste and add more oil or vinegar as you desire. Toss in the cheese.
I like this alongside leftover turkey and dressing, along with a dab of cranberry sauce. The little tang of vinegar is truly surprising and lovely along with the homey taste of turkey.
Family Cabbage
Submitted by Karen Hendrickson of Warrenton, Virginia
6 slices of bacon
1/2 c. hot water
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
3 c. shredded cabbage
1 c. fresh or frozen corn (thawed)
paprika
Fry bacon until crispy in large skillet. Remove bacon, leaving 3 tablespoons of bacon grease and crispy remnants in the skillet. Add water, sugar and salt to bacon fat. Heat to boiling. Add cabbage and corn. Cover and cook on medium high until tender (about 7 minutes). Drain. Place in serving dish and sprinkle with paprika. Garnish with crumbled bacon. Makes 5 to 6 servings.
This dish was created by my mother and grandmother in Northern Indiana during the 1950s. This dish is always served on Thanksgiving Day and multiple other days throughout the year.