Favorite Banana Cake

I found the recipe for this cake  in a magazine in 1986 and the cake became a family favorite.   I have a note in my recipe binder, “Excellent.  Won Blue Ribbon at Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati).  Took to work and Matt (my boss) said it was an ‘exceptionally good cake’ – about the best anyone could get from him.”

FAVORITE BANANA CAKE

• 1 cup plus 2 Tblsp. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup shortening (Crisco)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. banana extract (actually, banana flavoring)
• 1/2 cup buttermilk*
• 1/2 cup mashed banana

*A substitute for buttermilk:  Place 1 Tblsp. of white vinegar in a liquid measuring cup.  Fill with milk to the 1/2 cup line.  Allow to stand for 5 minutes before using.

Grease and flour an 8″ cake pan.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.

In a small bowl combine mashed banana and milk.  Set aside.

In large bowl of mixer, cream shortening and sugar.  Add the egg and beat in the vanilla and banana extracts.

Add the dry ingredients alternately with the banana mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients – beat well after each addition.

Pour into prepared pan and bake @ 350 degrees  F for 30-35 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

Frost with Banana Cream Cheese Frosting:

BANANA CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

• 3 oz. cream cheese
• 3 oz. butter
• Approx. 2 cups  confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 tsp. banana extract (flavoring)

In mixer bowl cream butter and cream cheese.  Add extract and then add confectioners’ sugar a small amount at a time, beating until smooth and of spreading consistency.

Yield:  6 pieces of delicious cake.

Apricot Cheese Dainties

I found this recipe in 1990 in a publication called Blue Ribbon Gazette, a collection of winners from county and state fairs all over the country.  The lady who submitted the recipe cautioned that Solo apricot filling should be used, not jam or preserves, to keep the filling from seeping out too much.  I can attest to that, since I tried other products and found Solo to be the best.

The cookies won a ribbon at the Ohio State Fair and a Blue Ribbon at the Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati) in 1990, and have become a favorite of my daughters for every holiday – Christmas, St. Nick, Valentine’s Day, birthdays.

APRICOT CHEESE DAINTIES

• 1/2 cup margarine (I like Imperial)
• 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 Tblsp. ice water
• 1/2 can of Solo Apricot Filling

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Cream the margarine and cheese until smooth.  Add flour and salt, mix together until blended.  Add water and stir with a fork until the mixture forms a ball.  Divide dough in half,  roll one portion 1/8″ thick (like pie crust) on a lightly floured surface and cut with a floured 2″ cutter.

Place cutouts on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Place 1/2 tsp. of apricot filling on each circle of dough.

Roll the remaining portion of dough 1/8″ thick and cut into 2″ circles.  Place the circles on top of the filled cutouts, press together lightly and prick with a fork around the edges.

Bake @ 375 degrees F for approximately 10 minutes until cookies are golden brown.  Cool slightly and then remove to a rack.

Makes about 1-1/2 dozen cookies.

Note:  These cookies are like pie – best the day they are made.

Best Light Bread

Many of my childhood Thanksgivings were spent in my Grandma’s kitchen where she cooked a big family dinner on a woodburning stove.  I cook for my grandchildren now, gratefully using all the latest conveniences.  My favorite yeast rolls for Thanksgiving are made from a recipe adapted from one that appeared in Better Homes & Gardens Country Cooking magazine (1982-83).  The original recipe called for the more conventional method of proofing, mixing, and rising, but I converted it to a quicker way with fast acting yeast.

I won blue ribbons at the Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati) and the Ohio State Fair using this recipe in the 1980s.

BEST LIGHT BREAD

• 6 to 7 cups of all-purpose flour
• 2 pkgs. fast-acting dry yeast
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 cup hot milk (130 degrees F)
• 1 cup hot water (130 degrees F)
• 1/2 cup margarine, melted
• 2 beaten eggs, room temperature

Place 2 cups of flour, yeast, sugar and salt in the large bowl of an electric mixer.  Add the hot milk, hot water and melted shortening and beat for 3 minutes at medium speed, using the paddle beater.  Mix in the eggs.  Insert dough hook and continue to knead dough for another 6-1/2 minutes, adding flour as needed.

Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.  Punch down and form into rolls.  Place on greased baking sheets, cover and let rise for 30 minutes.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Bake rolls for 12-15 minutes until golden brown.  Let cool on wire racks.

For Thanksgiving, I like to make the rolls large – the better for making turkey sandwiches.

Mom’s Blue Ribbon Watermelon Pickles

I once heard Garrison Keillor say something to the effect that the only purpose for watermelon pickles was to have an item on the Thanksgiving table that you could pass up.  When I was a child at my Grandmothers’ or Great-Aunt’s tables, the very things I looked forward to were corn relish, picallili and watermelon pickles. 

I was a late-comer to canning and preserving.  My mother never attempted it and I was 50 before I found myself in a country home with a big garden and a lot of produce to use up.  Once I got started, I enjoyed canning so much that I spent the entire summer “putting up” everything my husband brought into the kitchen in his oversized basket.  We never grew watermelon but I bought a good Indiana melon each summer at the farmer’s market and made these pickles in quantity.  Now that I’m alone, I make up one small jar so I can have something on the Thanksgiving table for people to pass on.  This recipe won a Blue Ribbon at the Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati) in 1983.

MOM’S BLUE RIBBON WATERMELON PICKLES (Makes one cup)

• 3 cups of watermelon rind, prepared*
• 1 cup cold tap water
• 3/4 Tblsp. pickling salt

Brine:

• 1 tsp. whole cloves
• 1 tsp. whole allspice
• One 2″ piece of cinnamon stick
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup plus 2 Tblsp. granulated sugar

*To prepare watermelon rind:

I used a medium sized seedless watermelon.  This melon had a thin rind.  Big old-fashioned black-seeded melons have a very thick rind and may need a longer cooking time.  The very small melons don’t have enough rind to use in this recipe.

Cut the melon in sections and cube the watermelon to set aside for some good eating.  Don’t cut too closely to the white portion of the rind. 

Trim off the green rind and scrape the watermelon off the white section.  I cut my melon in matchstick strips about 1/2″ wide.

Place the rind strips in a non-metal container, cover with water and add salt.  Soak overnight.

The next morning, drain the rind, cover with fresh water and cook approximately 30 minutes at medium heat until almost tender.  Add water if needed.  Drain.

In a large pan, place the allspice, cloves, cinnamon, white vinegar, water and sugar and bring to a boil.  Add the drained rind and simmer gently for about 45 minutes.  The brine should be syrupy and cover the rind with a little to spare.  

Remove the cinnamon stick and pour pickles into a sterilized 1/2 pint jar and cap.  

Process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes. I’ve found an asparagus steamer is good for processing just a jar or two.   Let jar cool on a rack before storing. Allow pickles to cure for at least a week before using for best flavor.

This is a good web site for information on canning and preserving foods.

A Good Sunday Lunch

I offered to fix lunch for my two daughters and two grandchildren before they headed for the large pool at Coney Island in Cincinnati.  One daughter suggested an oriental style pasta salad would be good and I found one on Allrecipes.  This is my edited version with a few changes.

SESAME PASTA CHICKEN SALAD

• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 8 oz bow tie pasta (Barilla Piccolini)
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup Teriyaki sauce
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 3 Tblsp. granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• few gratings of black pepper
• 2 chicken breast halves, baked and shredded
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds

Heat a small skillet over medium high heat.  Add sesame seeds and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly toasted.   Remove from heat and set aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add pasta and cook for 7 minutes.  Drain pasta and rinse under cold water.  Transfer pasta to a large bowl.

In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine canola oil, Teriyaki sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, sesame seeds, ginger and pepper.  Shake well.  Pour dressing over pasta and toss to coat evenly.  Gently mix in chicken, cilantro and toasted almonds.

The three adults loved this salad – it was exactly what I was looking for in flavor and I would suggest that you not omit the fresh cilantro.  It just adds so much to the salad.

For dessert, I pulled out a recipe for a pie that my oldest daughter had made for a pie contest at the Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati) in 1985.  She won an award and as soon as we tasted it, we could see why.  It’s incredibly rich, so plan on at least 8 servings.

NANCY’S CHOCOLATE LIME PIE

• 16 chocolate sandwich cookies, crushed (Oreo)
• 2 Tblsp. butter, melted
• 3 egg yolks
• 14 oz. sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)
• 2 envelopes of Nestle Choco-Bake pre-melted chocolate
• 1/3 cup lime juice
• 3 egg whites
• 7 oz. jar of marshmallow creme

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

Crust:

In a 9″ pie pan, combine crumbs with melted butter.  Press onto bottom and up sides of pie plate.  Bake @ 375 degrees  F for about 8 minutes.  Cool while preparing filling.

Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees F.

Filling:

In mixer bowl beat egg yolks at high speed about 4 minutes.  Add condensed milk, pre-melted chocolate and lime juice, mixing well.  Pour into prepared crust.

Meringue:

Beat egg whites to soft peaks, gradually adding marshmallow creme, incorporating well and beating to stiff peaks.  Spread over filling.

Bake @ 350 degrees F for 12 minutes until meringue is golden brown.

Chill for 2-3 hours.

Note:  It’s important to chill the pie well and to chill any leftovers to make the pie easier to serve.

The Pie Contest

I didn’t want to enter the county fair pie contest at all.  My experience with pie baking consisted of old-fashioned pies for Sundays and holidays – nothing that was worthy of a contest.  But my oldest daughter insisted and so I got up early on a hot August morning in 1983 to bake a pie for the Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati, Ohio).  I had a lot of fresh blackberries we had picked in the wild bramble area behind the house and some green apples from the trees in the front yard.  It sounded like a good combination and I baked the pie.  I felt a little dismayed when I saw the juices had bubbled out of the top crust as usual, but cooled the pie, wrapped it in foil and started out for the fairgrounds.

Contest entries were flowing in by the time we got there.  It was an open class contest so there was every conceivable kind of pie – apple, strawberry rhubarb, blueberry, lemon meringue, chocolate cream, a fancy strawberry pie with mint leaf garnish – I was starting to get a little worried.  I didn’t want to embarrass myself with such a low-key entry.  I was only hoping for one of the runner-up baskets of apples with no thought of winning a ribbon.  The pies were being arranged on large tables set end-to-end and at one point I almost went over and removed my entry but my daughter insisted on going through with the ordeal.

It was an interesting experience watching the entrants and their supporters, the judges, the passers by – all in intense heat in an antique building with windows open and an occasional swishing electric fan.  There were 34 entries in all, each one lovely and surrounding my very ordinary-looking pie.  Finally, after about an hour and a half, the winners were announced, beginning with the runners-up – no basket of apples for me.  Then the third place was announced and the second – I was almost relieved that it was finally over – when I heard the blue-ribbon, Best of Show winner called – BLACKBERRY APPLE PIE!  I was astounded and went to the contest director to ask if there could be a mistake.  I couldn’t believe that a Sunday dinner pie had won this contest.

I had my picture taken for the newspaper holding my pie and blue ribbon in one hand and the Best of Show rosette and an engraved brass tray in the other. 

Then, my daughter and I got to carry all this plus a half-bushel of apples through a very crowded Saturday afternoon fairgrounds midway to the parking lot.

I entered this pie in a lot of other contests after that and it always won for me, but I never again had the thrill that I had that hot August day when I WON THE PIE CONTEST!

BLACKBERRY APPLE PIE

• Pastry for two-crust 9″ pie (See recipe here)
• 3 cups blackberries
• 1 cup peeled & thinly sliced green apple
• 3 Tblsp. quick-cooking tapioca
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 Tblsp. butter
• 1 Tblsp. milk
• 1 Tblsp. sugar mixed with 1/8 tsp. cinnamon for topping

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

In large bowl combine berries, apples, tapioca, 1 cup sugar, and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon.  Mix well and allow to set while preparing pastry.

Turn berry mixture in a pastry-lined 9″ pan.  Dot with butter, adjust top crust, cut vents and flute edges.  Brush top with milk and lightly sprinkle with sugar/cinnamon mixture.  Set pie pan on a larger flat pan to catch spills.

Bake @ 375 degrees F for 45-50 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack.

A remake of the pie some years later with the coveted rosette.

Blue Ribbon Zucchini Marmalade

For 20 years, we lived in a rural area where my husband delighted in tending a huge vegetable garden.  He liked to grow zucchini because he got such great results.  Prior to moving to the country, I had cooked zucchini once when I was in my 30s because a kind Italian neighbor lady had given me some and raved about how good it was.  I wish I could have told her how much experience I got later in life with her favorite vegetable. 

Trying to keep up with the zucchini my husband brought into the kitchen daily, I fixed it every conceivable way.  My sister-in-law from Somerset, Kentucky, gave me this recipe for using SIX CUPS of the stuff, so I made several batches.  

MOCK ZUCCHINI MARMALADE

• 6 cups peeled, seeded, chopped zucchini
• 6 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 cup crushed pineapple, drained
• 6 oz. package Jello (I used banana-strawberry)

Combine zucchini, sugar and lemon juice in large pan.  Bring to boil and let boil for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  After 15 minutes of boiling time, add the drained pineapple, bring to a boil and boil for 6 more minutes. 

Remove from heat and stir in Jello.  Place in sterilized half-pint jars, cap and process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes.  Let cool on a rack before storing.

Makes eight half-pint jars.

This is a good web site for information on canning and preserving foods.

We all enoyed the “marmalade” and I decided to enter it in the Hamilton County (Cincinnati) Fair in 1984.  I was thrilled and surprised when it won not only the Blue Ribbon, but the Best of Show Rosette. 

County Fair White Cake

My youngest daughter’s adventures with baking award-winning cakes for our county fair started in 1983 when she was a 13-year-old 8th grader and never that interested in fairs – to attend or to exhibit.  But her older sister and her mother were immersed in getting things ready for the Hamilton County (Cincinnati) Fair and she decided to enter the cake division.

Cakes were not allowed to be frosted, so all of the attention was centered on the attributes of the cake itself.  She made the cake, I took it to the fair and she won a Blue Ribbon and even got her recipe printed in our community newspaper.  Here is the recipe:

BLUE RIBBON WHITE CAKE

• 2-3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1-2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 4-1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2/3 cup Crisco shortening
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 5 egg whites

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In large mixer bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Add one cup milk and Crisco.  Beat with electric mixer for 2 minutes at medium speed.  Add 1/3 cup milk and vanilla and beat until smooth.

Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.  Fold into batter.  Pour batter into two greased and floured 9″x1-1/2″ round cake pans.  Bake approximately 25 minutes until cake tests done when a toothpick is inserted near the center.

Cool in pans for 15 minutes, remove from pans and cool on wire rack.  Frost as desired.

The years passed by,  she married, had two children, and out of nowhere in 2006, 23 years after her first blue ribbon, she decided to enter again.  But this time she was adamant that she was going to get a Best of Show Rosette.  Her sister and I, seasoned fair exhibitors, tried to tell her it was very difficult to get the Rosette which would represent the best cake out of all kinds of cakes – white, chocolate, spice, layer, sponge, angel food, pound, etc.  She said the Rosette was all she really wanted and she would retire from fair competition after winning it.  In spite of a broken oven, coping with two young children and taking the cake to the fairgrounds on a day so hot that we were afraid the cake itself would dissolve – she did it.  She won the blue ribbon and the Rosette for Best of Show.

The cake was a favorite she had been baking for quite a few years as my birthday cake – White Velvet Cake from the Cake Bible cookbook.

WHITE VELVET CAKE (Cake Bible)

• 4-1/2 large egg whites (4 full liquid ounces)
• 1 cup milk, divided
• 2-1/4 tsp. vanilla
• 3 cups sifted cake flour
• 1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 Tblsp. plus 1 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 12 Tblsp. butter, softened

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl lightly combine the egg whites, 1/4 cup milk and vanilla.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer combine the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and mix on low speed for 30 seconds to blend.  Add the butter and remaining 3/4 cup milk.  Mix on low speed until dry ingredients are moistened.  Increase to medium speed and beat for 1-1/2 minutes.  Scrape down sides.  Gradually add the egg mixture in 3 batches, beating for 20 seconds after each addition.

Pour batter into prepared pans and smooth surface with a spatula.  Pans will be about 1/2 full.  Bake 25-35 minutes or until a tester inserted near the center comes out clean.  Cakes should start to shrink from the sides of the pans only after removal from the oven.

Let cakes cool in pans on racks for 10 minutes.  Loosen sides with a small metal spatula and invert onto wire racks.  To prevent splitting, reinvert so the tops are up and cool completely.

Frost as desired.

Note:  Two 9×1-1/2″ cake pans should be greased, bottoms lined with parchment or wax paper and then greased again and floured.

Can be frozen for two months.  Texture is most perfectly moist the same day as baking.

The fair exhibit rules called for a single layer with no frosting, but I’m including the recipe for the lucious caramel frosting that she always uses for my two-layer birthday treat.

QUICK CARAMEL FROSTING (Fannie Farmer Cookbook)

• 6 Tblsp. butter
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3 cups confectioners’ sugar

Melt butter and brown sugar in a heavy-bottomed pan, stirring over moderate heat until sugar is dissolved.  Add the milk and blend.  Cool in the pan.  Then beat in the confectioners’ sugar until the frosting is thick enough to spread.

I don’t expect my daughter to enter a fair again but I do expect her to bake this wonderful cake for my birthday in September.

UPDATE:  My daughter did bake the cake for my birthday and it was delicious, as always.

Best of Show Dill Spears

Twenty-five years ago (1983), my husband, daughter and I were living on two acres of land on the Ohio/Indiana border.  Fruit trees took up about one acre and a huge vegetable garden took up the other half, barely leaving enough room for a small house.  My husband loved his mini-farm and spent every spare minute away from his normal job working in the garden.  He got excellent results and from the first asparagus in April to the remnants of the garden in the fall, I tried to use everything he hauled into the house every day. 

He enjoyed walking down the rows of the garden in the early summer, pointing to each plant and telling me what kind of vegetable it was and how many plants he had.  He did this every day – a little boring, but he was so proud of his garden. 

We always had a bumper crop of cucumbers and I processed them immediately to be sure we had crisp, crunchy pickles all year around. 

The first year I seriously entered a county fair was in 1983 when I was brand-new to canning and preserving.  Imagine my surprise when we went to the fair and saw I had won a blue ribbon and a coveted BEST OF SHOW rosette for my Dill Pickle Spears.  That year, they had gotten creative in displaying canned goods and had them arranged on an old red wagon.  At the very top was a big, beautiful rosette and a completely empty pickle jar.  The judges told me they had liked the pickles so much that they had eaten all of them with their lunch that day. 

Here’s the recipe:

DILL PICKLE SPEARS

• 4 lbs. pickling cucumbers, cut in spears
• Dill seeds
• Whole peppercorns
• 2 cups of 5% acid strength white vinegar
• 4-1/2 cups water
• 1/3 cup pickling salt

Place spears in sterilized hot quart jars.  Add 1 tsp. dill seed and 3 peppercorns to each jar. 

Combine the vinegar, water and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Pour over the cucumbers, filling to within 1/4″ of jar top.  Seal and process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes. 

I’ve found an asparagus steamer is good for processing just a few jars. Let jars cool on a rack before storing. Allow pickles to cure for at least 2 weeks before using for best flavor.

Makes approximately 10 quarts

This is a good website for canning and preserving foods.

As a Best of Show Winner, I had my picture taken and there was a small article in our local newspaper with the recipe.

My husband passed away 4 years ago and since the dill spears were his favorite and not mine, I don’t make them any more.  But I think of him every time I drive by a big vegetable garden and remember the first Best of Show ribbon I ever won.

Zucchini or Yellow Squash Relish

In the 20 years that we had a country home, my husband had a huge garden where he harvested every kind of vegetable but was especially fond of growing zucchini and yellow squash.  I was overwhelmed with the quantity of produce and as a novice at country living, felt I had to use every single zucchini in the bottomless basket that he brought in every day.  I found a lot of recipes and this is one of my favorites – a sweet/sour relish that I made in large quantities and canned for the coming winter.

Now, that my husband has passed away and I’m living in a little bungalow with a small yard, I pick up my produce at the grocery store or farm markets and make a small amount of relish at a time – in this case, 1-1/2 pints. 

ZUCCHINI OR YELLOW SQUASH RELISH

• 2-1/2 cups chopped zucchini or yellow squash
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped sweet bell pepper
• 2 Tblsp. pickling salt

BRINE:

• 3/4 cup white vinegar (5% acidity)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp. celery seed
• 1/2 tsp. mustard seed
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric

FOR THICKENING RELISH

• 1/2 Tblsp. cornstarch
• 2 Tblsp. white vinegar

In a medium sized bowl, combine the zucchini/squash, celery, onion, red pepper and pickling salt.  Cover and let set at room temperature at least 8 hours.

Drain vegetables, rinse and drain again.

In a large sauce pan, combine the BRINE mixture:  3/4 cup vinegar, sugar, celery & mustard seed, and turmeric.  Bring mixture to a boil, then add the drained vegetables.   REMOVE FROM THE HEAT AND LET STAND FOR 2 HOURS.

Return the pan to medium high heat and bring to a boil.  Add the thickening ingredients:  Cornstarch and vinegar mixed together.  Let relish simmer at medium heat for 15 minutes.

Pour relish into sterilized jars and cap.  Process in a boiling water bath for 20 minutes.  I’ve found an asparagus steamer is good for processing just a few jars.  Let jars cool on a rack before storing.  Allow relish to cure for a week before using for best flavor.

This is a good web site  for information on canning and preserving foods.

Optional:  Add one-half of a medium dried red pepper to the jar after filling.  This “hot” version won a 2nd place ribbon at the Hamilton County Fair (Ohio) in 1988.

Yield:  1-1/2 pints