First Bread



           I have always wanted to make bread.  The smell of fresh bread, well it is just wonderful.  When I was stationed in Germany their were bakeries and guest houses everywhere.  Shoppes that sold cheese, wines, and bread, with tables to sit at.  Eat it there if you like, or take it home.  Well 35 years later I decided to buy a jar of yeast.  My Mother said I was on my own with this.  I guess my love of yeast rolls goes back to grade school.  I asked the cooks in the cafeteria for the recipe to their rolls we had at lunch.  Kids today should get the lunches we did.  My mother, she only tried to bake the rolls once.  That's why I'm on my own with this now.

         After all those years that recipe for rolls is still in Mom's box of recipes.  I decided not to try that as my first attempt at baking.  Getting out the trusty cookbook "the Betty Furness Westinghouse, Cook Book", from 1954.  This the second copy my Mother has, the first was burned in a house fire.  My sister was lucky to find another copy.  The notes and stuff are missing, but it is a great cook book.  Now the chapter on yeast bread comes with pointers.  I read this part many times before attempting to bake.

          To start off with it list 5 tricks to baking bread and I'm going to share them with you.  Guess you might need to know them if you decide to try it to.  Tip one is be careful about the temperature of liquid used.  Yeast should never be put in liquid hotter that 85 degrees.  It also said it is like checking a babies bottle.  Tip 2, use fresh yeast.  Tip 3, keep the bread dough away from drafts.  Between 80 and 85 degrees is ideal.  Tip 4, if the house is chilly, when you finish kneading the dough.  Turn on the oven for 1 minute, then turn it off, set dough in and let it rise.  This only works in an electric oven.  And tip 5, have a large bowl for the dough to rise in, and don't let it cascade over the side.  Measure accurate, follow recipe, and be sure to use all-purpose flour.

          As I'm reading in this book, and pondering over all these recipes, I come upon Oatmeal Bread.  I love Oatmeal Cookies, this looks like a good one, until words like sponge, and dough as separate parts.  OK , I have a recipe for sponge, then combine the ingredients of dough.  As I read down some more it said this makes 3 loaves.  I don't think I want to mess up 3 loaves of bread my first time trying.  Is that wrong, well the lady who taught me to cook, refuses to help bake bread.  With that said, I'm going to pick something easier.  Plymouth Bread is only one paragraph, this is it.

          The first ingredient is corn meal.  Corn meal in bread?  OK; but it doesn't look hard.  2 cups water, 2 tablespoons butter, or margarine, and a 1/2 cup sorghum molasses.  Then more water, some salt, and 4 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour.  As I read it, it said stir corn meal into boiling water, stirring constantly.  I can do this, it's not rocket science.  Famous last words, before I mess up all 5 tips, and bake bread for the first time.  I start by putting a pot of water on to boil, then start getting out my ingredients.



           I messed up already.  Pour out the boiling water, measure out 2 cups of water put back on the stove.  Make sure you have all your ingredients ready before you start.  Now add 1/2 cup of corn meal stirring constantly thing.  Messed up again, this is where not having 3 hands comes in.  I was supposed to pour the corn meal slowly with one hand, stir with the other hand and keep the pot from falling off the stove with the other hand.  O Well, I'll break up the lumps on the side of the pot, since I have to stir for 5 minutes.  Now, with another hand put 1/2 cup of lukewarm water into a bowl.  In this we add 1 cake quick-acting yeast.

         Yes I have messed up again.  I bought a jar of yeast, and 2 1/4 teaspoons equals 1 package or 1 cake of yeast.  I measured out 2 1/4 tablespoons.  I did realize it in time though.  It looked like to much, so I poured it back.  Measuring it again 2 1/4 teaspoons, I add the 1/2 cup warm water.  To my corn meal boiling and still stirring, I add 1/2 cup molasses, and 2 tablespoons margarine.  The margarine and molasses all mixed together with the corn meal I turn off and let sit.  This is not going well.

          Going over to the counter I measure 4 3/4 cups of flour.  Putting it in a large bowl.  Check the mixture on the stove.  The old milk on the wrist trick, right, I stuck my finger in the pot.  It didn't burn, it was just warm, so I poured in the bowl of melted yeast.  Stirring in the yeast mixing it well, then pouring into the bowl of flour.  Now taking the wooden spoon and mixing it all into the flour.  The direction say knead the mixture, but this isn't right.  The mixture is sticking to my fingers.  I thought kneading was folding the mixture over and over.  This is just sticking to my fingers.



          The book said let the mixture rise to double in size.  This does not look like what I thought it should.  I just set it on the stove and realized I had just used self-rising flour, instead of plain flour.  I got the flour off the counter, and the all purpose flour is in the cupboard.  I do not believe this.  What else can go wrong.  I just can't believe I just messed up that bad.  What is done is done.  Worse thing will be throwing it in the trash and starting over.  The biggest lost is the molasses.  I have totally messed up, but an hour later I split this in two well greased bread pans.



           It said do not cover, seems like they covered dough when it rises.  I covered it and thought about it, then decided to turn the oven on for 1 minute.  Turning off the oven, I un-covered them and stuck them in for about 1/2 hour or so.  I didn't leave covered long but since I made every mistake in the book, thought it made a great picture.  When they had doubled in size I took them out, turn the oven on to 350 to pre-heat.  Popped them back in to bake.  What can it hurt now, the book said one hour.



Looks like Bread

          Looks like maybe I should have checked on it before the hour was up.  Just one more mess up, check on it next time.  Some ovens cook faster than others.  We are going to taste it, before throwing it away.  You know I think maybe, that molasses might be why the dough, doesn't look like dough.  That molasses is some sticky stuff.  Well lets cut one of these loaves.  They do feel spongy, I wonder how they taste. 



That doesn't look so bad

With a little melted butter

           Well, I guess, seeing one loaf is almost gone.  Considering everything I did wrong, you know you can use yeast with self-rising flour.  Now, if you think you can't bake.  I have just done everything wrong, and the Plymouth Bread taste great.  I do hope my next bread goes better.  If not at least I hope it taste as good as this one.  As always share with your friends.  Thank-you for reading Charles Kenneth's Corner.

           

           

          

            

Canadian War Cake



           The Canadian War Cake.  It is Thanksgiving and I was looking threw recipes to Blog on and found this 3X5 card of my Grandmother's cake.  When I mentioned that I have not had that cake in like a hundred years, I was told it was because only my

Grandmother and I liked it.  After deciding to make it, I had second thoughts.  Why make it if I'm the only one who likes it.  All my life it was just "War Cake", I didn't even know it was called a Canadian War Cake until I saw the title on the 3X5 card. 

          A couple days went by my Mother and I discussed what we were cooking, the plan was to make a Lain Cake.  The Lain Cake was another cake that was taken to Christmas dinner long time ago.  OK the War Cake is more for a Christmas thing, or the Lain Cake, then a couple days ago Mom said it's going to be War Cake for Thanksgiving.  With that decided, maybe I should look up Canadian War Cake on the Internet.

 

           Did you look it up on the Internet?  No I didn't.  We just will go by the recipe.  Mistake!  My Grandmother is despicable.  I have other family members who say I'm giving away all the family secrets.  I would keep them private, those are the family's, you're not supposed to tell everyone in the world.  I tell them you are just like Grandma, she would never give the right recipe.  She would leave something out to mess you up.  Well she did it to us here, with this recipe too.  It is like she came back from the grave, just to laugh at us, trying to cook her favorite cake. 

           We are lucky, because she didn't mess us up to bad.  She even gave me this great family story to tell y'all, while we cook it.  For one thing, there are times when I think she was just mean.  My Mother tells the story that she loved coconut cake and would always ask her mom to make her one.  My father's mother, made coconut cakes but it was not the same.  Her mother made the best coconut cake ever made.  At least in her eyes, yet she goes to her Mothers house one day.  Her Mom says; I made you a Coconut Cake.  So where is it?  O, I let Jerry and Yvonne, take it home with them, they were here yesterday for a visit.  She never did get it. 

           May she rest in peace, because even Yvonne tells a story that my Grandmother made her an apple pie, and she sat and ate it all her self.  She never missed going to Church, right up till she died.  Yet she would talk about so, and so, who wore a red dress to Church, or some other gossip.  Her house is the memory I have of Thanksgiving, and Christmas.  As the years went by and less, and less showed up.  That house and the family are my

Hallmark Christmas Card memory.  My Father, being in the Air Force, coming home for Christmas was just that.



           The whole thing about the War Cake is that food was rationed.  Ingredients which include butter, milk, and eggs, were expensive, or hard to come by.  You can't tell, but that is 1/2 a stick of margarine, or 4 tablespoons.  When I looked it up on the Internet they used a whole stick.  We are sticking to the card.  To our pan we will add 2 cups of water and 2 cups of brown sugar.  Getting out our measuring spoons we need 1 teaspoon each of nutmeg, all spice, and cinnamon.  You can see in our picture we have apple pie spice instead.  It has the nutmeg in it.

 

          To this we are going to add 2 cups of raisins, one box is what the recipe calls for.  Our container is 4 cups so it would be 1/2 that.  Now when I looked this up on the Internet, I found Depression Cake, and Boiled Raisin Cake.  I found some saying it came from WWII, and the Great Depression.  What I didn't realize is it was WWI.  The more I read, it goes back to the America Civil War.



 

         We bring this up to a boil, just let it boil for a good 5 minutes before turning off to cool.  While this is cooling get out your mixer, baking soda, and flour.  Once again on the Internet they used self-rising flour, we are using all purpose flour.  Most of the time we will use all purpose flour, unless specified.  As this is cooling it will form sugar crystals on the side of the pot.  Keep stirring periodically with a wooden spoon until cooled.





        The all purpose flour needs the baking soda the self-rising doesn't, that is the difference.  In the back ground of this picture we have our baking pans for the cake.  We are going to mix 3 cups of flour and 3 teaspoons of baking powder into our raisins.  Then pour equal parts into the two pans.

 

            Our recipe call for cooking in a pre-heated oven at 300 degrees for 40 minutes.  On the Internet I was surprised that they said 375, for 20-30 minutes.  Most of the time you cook on 350 degrees.  I think with the raisins in the mixture, I like the 300 degrees as the way to go.  Also, I saw a lot of recipes with out the frosting, which would make a great coffee cake.  To me the frosting is the best part.  So, while that is in the oven, go take a break while I chop some nuts.



           Here we have Pecans and Walnuts.  2 cups, a cup of each chopped up fine.  Now here is where things get tricky.  We need 2 cups of brown sugar and 1 cup of white sugar.  Take 2 sticks of margarine, and 3/4 cup of sweet milk.  Back then they called whole milk sweet milk, and then you had butter milk.  We are going to use 3/4 cup of evaporated milk from the can.  Today's milk just isn't the same.

         The  Pecans we are going to set to the side and get out our pot for cooking on top of the stove.  Our sugar, milk, and butter, we will bring to a boil.  We will also have a bowl of cold water.  The mixture will continue to boil for 12 minutes or so.  As you stir let a drip fall into the cold water.  When the frosting drip you drop into water is a small ball, it is ready.  Then turn off burner and let cool.



           This is the part where Grandmother is laughing at us looking down from heave, Ha, Ha, Grandma.  I am showing a lot of pictures on this cake, so we get it right.  But Grandma wrote and I quote, " but in vanilla beat a little, and spread".  The frosting needs to cool completely and thicken.  Add about 1/2 of your chopped nuts and stir in as it cools.  Keep stirring as it thickens.



           While our frosting is cooling, let's get the cake out of the oven.  When the cake comes out will let it cool on our wire racks.  We want the cake completely cool before putting on the frosting.  

  

           As you can see in the next photo, this frosting has not set up enough.  This is where Grandma got us.



          And here after we put the frosting on the cake, we take it back off and put it into the pot and stirred until it thickens.  This is what it should look like.



           As I end this story and I'm sure you got a laugh.  Mom and I are laughing too.  Because not only have we made Grandma's favorite cake for the first time, and shared it with you.  With all the mistakes it is delicious, we had fun, and we will remember it forever.

 

 

          I took the first picture of the cake to post in the Blog and when I got back, my piece of cake was gone.  Have a great Thanksgiving, as always share with your friends and click on the ads.  We thank-you very much.  Cooking is fun.

           Now to re-cap;

     

            2 cups Brown Sugar

            2 cups Hot Water

            4 Tablespoon Butter (Margarine)

            1 teaspoon each; Nutmeg (Apple Pie Spice)

                                        All Spice

                                        Cinnamon

            2 cups Raisins

            3 teaspoons Baking Soda

            3 cups Flour

       Frosting;

            2 cups Brown Sugar

            1 cup White Sugar

            2 sticks Butter (Margarine)

            3/4 cup Evaporated Milk

            1 teaspoon Vanilla 

                  1 cup Pecans

            1 cup Walnuts

          

           

          

                

 

Fried Pork Chops -n- Rice and Gravy



Fried Pork Chops -n- Rice and Gravy

           Seems to me pork chops are getting thinner and thinner.  I love gnaw-in on the pork chop bone.  Around here you don't need a knife and fork when it come to poke chops, or chicken for that matter.  Just reach down and pick it up.  Where you think they got finger lick-in-good from.  It sure wasn't from eating spaghetti.  There is no bone in these, because I like to taste the pork in a pork chop.  Once in a while I find a good thick pork chop with a bone, but it might be pork stakes.  No they don't taste the same.  Family packs, some times has a mixture of both.  I separate out the pork stakes, and use them to cut up in beans and such.



            First off we get out a large frying pan, pot, and a baking dish.  That grease in the frying pan is from frying bacon.  There in the picture with the salt and pepper, is a small kettle.  That is for left over bacon grease only.  Get you grease good and hot for fry-in.  In your pot, put in the collie flour, and carrots.  They need to cook longer than the broccoli.  Your rice put in covered baking dish, 2 to 1,  2 water, to 1 rice.  We use 1 cup of rice, if is just 2 of you, you might just want to make 1/2 a cup of rice. 



           We do this the same way we did in the Blog "Fried Green Tomatoes".  Put some flour in a bag and shake each pork chop one at a time.  You want a good coat of flour on each one before putting it into the hot grease.  Make sure it is hot by dropping just a little flour in.  If it is sizzle-in, then slid the pork chop in, like slide-in, in a hot tub.  Don't just drop it in, that grease will pop all over you.  You want these pork chops to stay on one side and cook awhile before flipping over.  Talk about some thing looking good.



           Look at it, just look at that frying in that pan.  See the brown in the bottom of the frying pan that, is going to be the pride of your dinner.  No lumpy gravy any more.  No bad gravy here.  After today, your friends will brag on your gravy.  Today we are making brown gravy, there is white gravy, even red-eye grave.  Red-eye grave is made using coffee, brown gravy is made with milk and water.  I have made it with all milk for a creamer taste, and with just water, when I was out of milk.  No matter which way you make it, it will not have lumps.  

  

            Now before you get to this point, put some water in a glass.  When your pork chops are golden brown and crusty on both sides.  Take them out and put on a plate, then cover with a upside down plate.  Pour off some, but not all of your grease.  Leave the brown crusty part, and about a tablespoon of grease in the pan.  With the burner on medium heat, put in two heaping tablespoons of flour.  Use the flour from the bag you coated the pork chops with.  The important part is now.  Mess this up and you'll have lumpy gravy.  Stir in this flour real good making sure it is all dissolved.  You can add more flour now if you need more, but after the milk goes in, that's it. 

           With the flour melted into the grease, add a cup of milk.  Slowly pouring in the milk while stirring.  Constantly stirring, and adding milk until the milk is gone.  Now while still stirring add about 2 cups of water,  With practice you will not measure this, and acquire a feel for it.  You can stop stirring for a minute or so, but don't go far, as it will start thick-in-ing.



            As you stir, get the gravy off the sides or it will start a film.  Just keep stirring and add the secrete to brown gravy.  Kitchen Bouquet, for browning and seasoning.  You can fine it at your grocery store.  Don't panic if you don't have any.  That's how you make white gravy.  You just learned how to make 2 different gravy's.  Brown is for pork chops, hamburger, and chicken.  White grave is for sausage gravy and biscuits, and hamburger gravy too.



            Now, a word from our sponsor.  I do not get paid for the products I use in my Blogs.  Like this one and the other spices I use.  It is just the things that it takes to cook in the south.  The difference in the food you make, and every one wishes they could.  That is why people will tell you, "Mine just don't taste the same".  I do get a little sompin, sompin, when you click on the ads.  I do thank-you for that.  Now, back to lump free gravy.



           When your gravy is just about thick enough, turn off the burner.  If your gravy is getting to thick, with the glass of water you have, just add a little and keep stirring.  Take the rice out of the oven when done and take the top off.  Let the rice breath a minute, and take the top off the steamed veggies.



            The main thing about steaming vegetables is not to cook them to long.  Vegetables should be just done enough, not mushy.  Well if everything went alright with the house is smell-in, and the food it ready.  I must tell you this;  As always share my Blogs with your friends, and click on the ads.  I would show you a picture of this meal all plated up, but, well, I, it, this is all that is left.