The tail end of last week was busier than anticipated, so Friday and Saturday meals were pretty slap dash. Had some scratch pancakes one night(with bacon!), and the other night was a bean dip deluxe (ground beef, refried beans, cheese, salsa, chopped onions, and chopped peppers). It's thick, and filling on some good quality tortilla chips. We have a tortilla chip factory in town, and the brand name is El Matador. Always fresh and sturdy, they are perfect for dipping the heavy duty stuff!
I had to make dessert for a family get together at my sister's new house...We had all decided I would attempt to make an heirloom dessert we had 40 years ago every Christmas- Sailor Duff! I had my grandmother's recipe which read like a witch's potion- pinch of this, handful of that, etc. I Googled it, and indeed there were similar(but better measured!) recipes. It is similar to Boston brown bread..It's rich, moist, steamed, with molasses, ginger, cinnamon, and raisins in it. I used a bundt pan which sat in a water bath and steam baked at 350 for 90 minutes. It is topped with a simple sauce of water, white sugar, butter, and corn starch for a thickener, all simmered until thick- with a splash(now I'm doing it!) of vanilla extract stirred in after cooling. The cake can be cool or room temp., the sauce warmed and drizzled over it- topped with cold whipped cream.
This stuff is RICH- cut small pieces!
For the kids, I brought a quick, no fail treat similar to rice crispie squares
1. 1 cup of white sugar
2. 1 cup white Karo syrup
3. 1 cup peanut butter
Mix and heat through until liquid, but not boiling
4. Stir in 7 cups of Honey Bunches of Oats breakfast cereal until mixed
5. Spread in buttered 9 x 13 pan, compress with a sheet of waxed paper until uniform height
6. Melt a 1/2 bag of semi- chocolate chips with 1/4 stick of butter, until speadable
7. Spread top of filled pan until covered, refrigerate until cooled.
Those will disappear quickly, as kids and adults enjoy them..
I'm sure we are all ramping up for the big week- so keep your cool, and try to enjoy!
I apologize for the blurry photos, the camera setting got bumped, and made the blow-up photos blurry.. Remember, kids- I paint with a very broad brush!
34 comments:
wow, that sounds terrific, and very rich. that corn syrup will send this over the top for sweetness. Tough time of year for my growing ass... I want to make and eat everything
Sounds like something I would like Buff! :)
Griller- Adult taste buds would enjoy- kids, not so much..
Ake- It is English or Scottish in origin- that I know..
Hey! We make those too, except we use rice krispies :)
Merry Christmas to the Buffalo family!
You continue to impress me! The Sailor Duff does sound rich, I am impressed with your ingenuity and patience and I am impressed with your thoughtfulness of making such a sweet, healthy treat for the kiddos!
Merry Christmas Buff!
Great, I love it all, and wish we had a chip factory here, because I would stock the pantry with them!
Glad the steamed cake turned out good!
Everything sounds great! Sailor Duff - never heard of it but it sure sounds good! Glad it was a success :-)
I am soooo making the treats with the honey bunchs of oats! What a great idea!
and p.s. i will send you my address so you can mail me the bread!
I would've been the odd kid wanting the Sailors Duff. Merry Christmas, Buff!
Tavolini- Where recipe originated from, but we tried other cereals to great success...
Katherine- I would have put super glue in the kid treat, if it would have given us a moment's peace! Pandemonium reigned!
Chef- Would use smaller pan, and back off on the sugar next time!
Martha- Old English treat, that made it to America- probably been made for well over 100 years..
Rachel- Kids will love the treats- the other dessert was more tradition than anything else!
Margie- I need to work on that recipe a bit- really rich!
the mix of flavors sounds wonderful...may have to give that a try. tortilla chips fresh...nice. wish we had something like that nearby.
Brian- These chips are the best! they make them for mostly restaurants, but big grocery stores have them too-- white or yellow, triangle or round, always thick and fresh!
I love your bean recipe. I must try it.Thanks.
Merry Christmas,Buffy.
Sounds tasty as is usually the case here. I'm on the road to the wife's family this year. so my cooking is on hold for the next week.
The sweet stuff sounds good to me!!!
Uber- It is a simple thing, that works- try it!
Jeff- Enjoy, and let somebody else bust their butt!
otin- It's good, but rich!
Seriously, is there anything better on cold, dark night than pancakes (or waffles or french toast) and bacon for dinner? I think NOT!
Don't you love it when they give you their recipes and it is not precise!! Merry Christmas
somehow I have a bottle of that karo syrup in my cupboard, I always wondered what the heck it was used for.
I'd never heard of Sailor Duff or Boston Brown Bread, but you know I'll google it (and ask my Bostonian husband about it). Why do you make everything sounds (and look) so damned good??
Chris- Exactly!
Darngirl- It was an adventure, but came out OK..
Mr. C- That treat is literally the only thing I use it in!
Ily- I wish the photo was better!
All recipe's are now up for Google Buff...Modern Technology!
G-man- I've found most of them to be people who wrote them, but never made them!
That bean dip sounds almost like 7layer dip. Reading about all this food is making me hungry.
Jen- It's a meal in a bowl, hot and spicy! Good dipping chips- and it's gone!
Love some good chips and homemade salsa!
You know that you always kill me with the chips!!
Adventures are what life is all about!!
Gene- This is thicker and more hardy!
otin- Snack/meals- hard to beat!
Darngirl- That is right as rain!
Just popping in to wish you and yours a wonderful Christmas! Have a merry! Can you come and cook for me???? :-)
Peace
Odat- I'd love to! Happy Holidays!
Your bean dip sounds perfect. I know El Matador chips!
Yes indeed - Rich! I've never heard of the recipe and how fun to make heirloom recipes.
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