December 14, 2010 · 4:54 pm

Cranberry Key Lime Punch

We’ve been looking for a punch with a kick and finally found one that we love.  We tested it at Thanksgiving and saw many family members go back for a second and even third cup!  The red and green colors make this one a good choice for Christmas parties.

by Elizabeth Savoie Dronet based on a Southern Living recipe

Ingredients

4 cups fresh cranberries, plus more for garnish (3 cups are in the bag)
2 cups of sugar
2 cups water
1 cup freshly squeezed key lime juice
sliced key limes for garnish
2 cups chilled vodka
2 liters or more chilled club soda

Method

Set aside some time the day before to juice the key limes. It can be time consuming and the acid from the juice may irritate your hands if you do not wear gloves. You may wish to take a break. Store juice in the refrigerator.

Combine sugar and water in a saucepan and stir to combine.  Add rinsed cranberries.  Cook over medium heat until most cranberries have popped.  Mixture may not come to a boil.  Pour mixture through a wire mesh strainer into a pitcher.  I use my 8 cup measuring cup.  Discard solids.  Cool completely.

Add key lime juice. You can refrigerate at this point or continue.  When ready to serve, pour into a punch bowl and add in chilled vodka and club soda.  Taste to see if you would prefer more of either.  Top punch with fresh cranberries and key lime slices.  This punch may be served alone or over ice.

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December 9, 2010 · 3:38 pm

Janeen’s Cranberry Christmas Punch

What’s a party without punch? My Phi Mu sister Janeen served this yummy Christmas punch at an ornament exchange I attended at her home.  The recipe was a keeper!  You can mix most of the ingredients ahead of time and add the ginger ale just before serving. It looks beautiful in a punch bowl or glass beverage dispenser.

by Janeen, Elizabeth’s friend

Mix:
2 quarts Cranberry Juice Cocktail, chilled
1 60z can frozen orange juice concentrate thawed (half size can)
1 6oz can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
1 tsp. almond extract or 1/4 cup amaretto

Add before serving:
1 liter ginger ale, chilled
handful of fresh cranberries
slices of a lemon and an orange

 

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December 5, 2010 · 4:49 pm

Rotel and Cream Cheese Dip

Need something to munch on while watching the football game on tv?  Whip up this simple recipe with two ingredients I always have on hand.  My sister-in-law, Dana, came up with this dip as an alternative to Velveeta and Rotel, and I like it so much better!

by Dana, Elizabeth’s sister-in-law

1 can Rotel as hot or mild as you like
1 block of cream cheese

Drain the Rotel using the lid of the can.  Put it in a microwave safe bowl with the cream cheese.  Heat for  2 minutes.  Stir and continue to heat in 1 minute intervals until creamy and warm.  Do not overheat or dip will scorch around the rim of the bowl.  Serve warm with tortilla chips.

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November 30, 2010 · 9:49 am

Pecan Pie Mini-Muffins

These little muffins taste like butter pecan ice cream without the ice cream!  In 1998 I (Elizabeth) did my student teaching at Barbe High School in Lake Charles.  It was my first taste of what the teacher’s lounge had to offer…lots of treats!  The math teacher, Mrs. Bradley, brought in these pecan pie muffins and I couldn’t get enough of them.  Her husband, Mr. Bradley, was one of Dave’s math professors at McNeese.  He was a lucky man to have such a good cook for a wife!  When my father-in-law brings me a bag of hand peeled pecans from his trees in Lafayette, I know just what to do with them.

by Mrs. Bradley

1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1 cup finely chopped pecans
2/3 cup real butter melted
2 eggs beaten

Combine the sugar, flour, and pecans.  Beat the eggs and butter together.  Pour egg and butter mixture over the pecan mixture and stir until moist.  Fill miniature muffin tins 2/3 full. You can either grease the tin or use papers.  Bake at 350 for 10-13 minutes.  Makes about 4 dozen.

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November 14, 2010 · 11:15 am

Jello Shapes

These jigglers are perfect for lunch boxes and picnics.  They hold their shape and do not melt with an ice pack in the bag.  My kids have such a fun time cutting out little animals, hearts, and their letter of the week.  You can use the tip of a straw to make faces in the shapes.

by Elizabeth Savoie Dronet

4 small packages of jello, any flavor
1 1/2 cup boiling water
1 cup white grape juice

Mix jello with boiling water, stirring until completely dissolved.  Pour in white grape juice.  Pour mixture into a 9×13 dish and refrigerate until solid.

Cut into cubes or use cookie cutters to make shapes.  You can dip the bottom of the dish in warm water for about 30 seconds to help the jello come out of the dish better.

Store covered in the refrigerator.

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November 11, 2010 · 7:37 am

Cinnamon Bananas

When I was in junior high school, Santa brought us a microwave oven for Christmas.  We were all so excited.  The microwave came with a recipe book that included a recipe for “baked” apples.  You simply cored the apple and stuffed it with butter, cinnamon, and sugar then popped it in the microwave.  As kids, the apple coring was not a simple as it looked, so we made up our own after school snack, which was the same thing but with bananas.  We thought it was delicious!  You can eat it alone or serve the bananas with ice cream.  It’s the perfect use for over ripe bananas and my four-year-old kids can easily make it with a little help.

by Elizabeth Savoie Dronet

one banana broken into pieces
sprinkle of sugar
sprinkle of cinnamon
dab of butter

Place all ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl.  Microwave about 1 minute until banana is soft.  Stir to combine.  Serve warm.

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November 2, 2010 · 9:58 am

Fruit Cookie Cups

These adorable cookie cups are at must at birthday parties.  We call them “adult cupcakes” since they are so much better than regular cupcakes. They also make a great Fourth of July treat when topped with blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries.

by Mary Ellen Burton

1 package Pillsbury sugar cookies (The flat one, not the tube.)
1 7oz jar marshmallow cream
1 8oz cream cheese block softened
small pieces of fruit

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a mini-muffin pan. Let cream cheese sit on the counter to soften while making the cookie cups.

Cookie Cups:
Use a pizza cutter to cut each cookie in half while it’s still on the cardboard.  Roll each half in the palm of your hand and press into a 1″ circle. Place each disk in the mini-muffin pan.

Press a tool into a cup of flour and then press a circle into the dough until a cup is formed and the sides reach top of pan. Mom actually owns a wooden kitchen tool made for tasks such as this, but if you don’t, get creative!  We’ve been known to use the end of an ice cream scoop and even the handle of a screwdriver!  Your fingers do not work well for this job because they do not put even pressure on the sides of the pan.  The cookies will likely be thin around the top and be difficult to remove later.

Bake for around 8 minutes.  Cool in pan for 3-5 minutes and carefully pry the cups out with a butter knife.  If you wait too long, the cookies may crumble when removed.  If you try to remove them too early, they are too soft to remove.  You want them just right where the cookie is still soft enough to press back into shape if they are damaged during removal.

Repeat process for second half of dough.

Let cookie cups cool completely.

Filling:
In a mixer, combine marshmallow cream and cream cheese until light and fluffy.  Do not attempt to combine by hand. (This is the same recipe as our favorite fruit dip.)

Fill a pastry bag or Ziploc bag with the corner cut off with mixture and carefully fill each cookie cup.  You can also scoop and drop the mixture into the cups with a spoon.

Top with fruit.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Yield 24 cookie cups.  We often double the recipe for a crowd.

If you are in a hurry, make fruit pizza instead (see picture below) following the same recipe. Cut into bite-sized squares to serve.

Use pizza cutter to slice cookies in half.

Let cups cool completely before filling.

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October 30, 2010 · 8:33 am

Egg-Drop Soup

Ever wonder how the egg in egg-drop soup gets its shape?  The secret is in the stirring and a little coordination.

This mild egg-drop soup is a winner with the kids, especially if you serve it in “straw bowls,” which are made for cereal.  Alone, it makes a nice lunch.  Serve it as an appetizer or along with spring rolls for supper.

by Elizabeth Savoie Dronet

4 cups vegetable broth
3 cups water
4 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp fresh ginger (or 1/2 tsp powder)

8 oz snow peas, cut into 1/2 pieces
1 1/2 cup bean sprouts

3 eggs, beaten
rice vinegar, sesame oil, and green onions to taste

In a large pot, bring to boil first 4 ingredients.  Add snow peas and bean sprouts.  Simmer about 3 minutes until vegetables are tender.  If you’d like the soup to be thicker, you can add 1-2 Tbsp of cornstarch that has been disolved in a little water.  Be sure to stir it as it is added.  Boil for 1 minute.

Here is where you have to be coordinated.  With one hand stir the soup in one direction.  With the other two hands, slowly pour the egg through a slotted spoon.  Make sure the soup is moving in a circular fashion to ensure that egg ribbons form.  You may have to stop pouring to get the soup moving again and continue.  Add rice vinegar, sesame oil (only a touch) and green onions before serving.

*Small cubes of tofu can be added with the vegetables to make the soup hardier.

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October 25, 2010 · 10:48 pm

Julie’s Pumpkin Bread

My friend Julie brought this delicious pumpkin bread to bible study last fall, and I just had to make it this year.  Canned pumpkin can be hard to find during months other than October and November, so don’t miss your chance to bake a loaf and fill the house with the smell of spice.  I like to serve it with a dollop of freshly whipped cream.

by Julie, Elizabeth’ friend from church

*This recipe makes a large loaf, muffins, several mini loafs or one bunt cake.  The recipe may easily be halved.

Ingredients

3 cup sugar
1 cup oil
4 eggs
15 oz can pumpkin
3 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. allspice
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2/3 cup water

Method

Mix dry ingredients  in a bowl and then add in to mixed liquid ingredients.

Bake at 350 in a big loaf pan or bundt for 50-60 minutes until a tester comes out clean.  For muffins or small loaf pans bake a shorter amount of time.

To whip cream, chill metal mixing bowl by swirling around some ice cubes in the bowl and then tossing them out.  Add liquid whipping cream and beat on high until soft peaks form.  Add a little powdered sugar to taste. Spoon over bread.

Freeze or give away extras.  Use a halloween cookie cutter to cut slices into shapes for school lunches.

For muffins, add 2 cups mini chocolate chips. 12-14 minutes for mini-muffins. 20-22 for regular muffins.  Freeze and put in lunch boxes.

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Filed under Bread, Cakes, Dessert, Freezes Well, Lunch Box, Vegetarian

October 21, 2010 · 7:49 am

Fluffy Pumpkin Dip

Our basic fruit dip is ready for fall!  Serve along side apples, vanilla wafers or graham cracker sticks. It makes a nice addition to a Halloween or Thanksgiving buffet. A good snack for kids, pumpkin dip just sounds like autumn.

by Elizabeth Savoie Dronet

1 8oz pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 7oz jar marshmallow cream
1/2 cup canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg

In a mixer, beat cream cheese and marshmallow cream until well blended.  Add pumpkin and spices and mix well.  Chill.  Serve with apples, vanilla wafers or graham cracker sticks.

*Also see our similar Pumpkin Apple Dip recipe.



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Filed under Appetizer, Dessert, Holidays, Lunch Box