Way Out West Wild Mustang Grape Juice - Family Recipe Fridays

Summer's coming! 

With summer, comes berries, wild berries!

And grapes!  Wild grapes!

Sorry to not have posted anything for sometime, but life kidnapped me.

We took a trip to Texas, where we were met by my favorite college freshman (son!)!

We stayed on a family ranch, where I took a gazillion pictures.

All sorts of wildflowers provided a feast for our eyes!

Staying on the place brought back memories

of driving on country roads in the summer time,

searching for sand plums so Mom could make plum jelly.

YUM!

By the time there are sand plums, the grapes are usually in season too.

or close anyway!

I found this recipe that Henry Vissotzky had written on some memo paper

from his desk at Tarleton State University.

Maybe this will be the summer for me to try to make

Wild Mustang Grape Juice!

Fluffo Jam Sandwich Cookie Bars

Word of the day:

FLUFFO!

This was a new one to me.

Maybe I'm just dating myself,

How many of you have ever used FLUFFO?

How many of your grandmothers have ever used FLUFFO?

You should ask them!

These jam sandwich cookies sound like a precursor to

a power breakfast bar. 

Not anything you really worried about

back in the days of

FLUFFO!

While you're at it though...

don't forget to take off the paper before you bake the cookies!

ANd for more tidbits on FLUFFO, do a search on youtube....

Nowadays you can probably use Crisco shortening instead. 

Spring into Easter with Cheese Bunnies

Cheese Bunnies.   Easter falls on a late date this year. 

If your kids or grandkids are driving you hopping crazy (sorry...couldn't resist!) 

settle them down with cheese bunnies! 

But for the life of me, I can't figure out why they are called bunnies -

unless it because they are round (the bun) with a little white tail (the egg). 

But I can't keep myself from wondering - where are the bunny's ears? 

Or his head for that matter! 

The more I thnk about the more it worries me. 

All different scenarios flash before my eyes...

and as I hum in my head
"Here comes Peter Cottontail, hoppin down the bunny trail..."

it quickly becomes

"little rabbit FuFu, I don't wanna see you,
scoopin up the field mice and boppin them on the head!" 

Oh my.

SO - in order to save questions from inquiring 4 year olds,

and so that I can sleep at night without worrying about the bunny...

Here is an addendum to the Cheese Bunnie Recipe:

After cooking the recipe as per the instructions above,
serve the bunnie onto the plate,

take the part of the bun that you cut out with the cookie cutter,
(you may want to toast that part as well)

and place it above the bigger bun with the egg.

Voila!

The bunny now has a head!

Just remember you are looking at the backside of Mr. Bunny.

"But what about the ears?" says your inner 4-year old voice.

You have options here.

Either cut off a piece of bread in ear shapes from the bunny head,

(Oh no - I am hearing little rabbit FuFu again!)

and place above the head for ears, or slice a piece of fruit -
 banana, apple, or what have you,

and place above the head.

Just make sure you give it a nice bunny ear shape.

You want your bunny to have ears he'd be proud of, don't you?

Okay.

I am back to humming "Here comes Peter Cottontail, hoppin down the bunny trail,

hippity hoppity, Easter's on it's way....!"

I can picture June Vissotzky making this for her 2 children when they were little, can't you?

English Muffins

Oh do you know the muffin man,

the muffin man, the muffin man?

Who didn't sing this nursery song while growing up? 

I'm not sure who Mary H. was - one of June Parker Vissotzky's

many good friends. I have an idea who it was...but

can't ever know for sure since all that was written

was Mary H's cookbook.

I made English Muffins once. 

once being the keyword.

They made great dog frisbee treats, and flung really well off the deck!.

Let's just leave it at that, shall we?

My Dad always enjoyed a good English Muffin.

They were a real treat for breakfast on the weekends.

He also really enjoyed breakfast. 

I would have liked to make English Muffins for him.

Good English Muffins. 

Not the dog frisbee kind.

Maybe I should try again

using June's recipe from Mary H's cookbook!

I hear the muffin man calling me.....

McCall's How to make basic crepes perfectly

June Parker Vissotzky was a recipe collector extraordinaire!

After she passed away, we found recipes EVERYWHERE!

In books.

In pockets.

In envelopes.

In drawers.

In her car.

In purses.

In her bathroom drawers.

In her closet.

And of course, in her kitchen!

It was really overwhelming!

She loved to make things for her family and friends.

I think she would have liked this blog.

Now go forth and make some perfect crepes! 

Fried Navajo Indian Bread from Mrs. Robert Pacheco (like Sopapillas)

I MUST TRY THIS! 

First, let me start by saying that we are talking about American Indian Fry Bread...not the flatbread variety!

We had Fried Indian Bread when we traveled to the Southwest last summer.

I had had some before that. 

I make some for my resident tomato hater hubby to take along on hunting trips.

But they are NOTHING like the Indian Fry Bread we had last summer! 

 Unfortunately I have no clue what paper this is from, which makes it hard to give any credit, where credit is due.  Maybe the Alberquerque, New Mexico paper?  June Vissotzky and her crew lived there for a short while.  It would make sense!  This clipping is a little hard to read,

so here is the typed recipe. I'll post some pictures later after I make this recipe! 

Mrs. Robert Pacheco, whoever you are, wherever you are, THANK YOU!!!!

 4 cups unsifted flour

1 teasoon salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/4 cup lukewarm water

Mix dry ingredients thoroughly. 

Add water and knead throughly. 

Cover and let stand 10 minutes.

Roll dough into balls about 2 inches in diameter and roll out flat with a rolling pin into a circle.

Cut two slashes in the center of the circle and ease it gently in to the hot grease in a frying pan.

Fry the dough until both sides are browned.

Serve with salt

(my note - also delicious with honey, or sugar and cinnamon!  Enter the danger zone at your own risk!!!)

Makes 10-12 servings. 

Banana Bread

Forgive me while  I drool.

I can't believe I have no bananas in the house! 

I MUST get some.....

Foremost Biscuit recipe

Sometimes fortune deals us a funny hand.  I had planned on featuring a recipe for Apple Blossom Cake, that had a date of 1967 on it.  When I clicked to insert a picture on the blog, up popped this biscuit recipe! It being Friday, and the end of what seems to have been a long week, biscuits it is!   The Apple Blossom Cake will just have to wait, cuz biscuits are calling our name! The trick for getting fluffier biscuits is to NOT twist the biscuit cutter, glass, or whatever you are using to get your biscuit shape. 

Just press down and right back up. 

No twisting. 

ever.

The biscuits don't like that.

They DO like to touch other biscuits though as they bake.

So don't feel obligated to give them space to spread as they bake.

Touching but no twisting!

I feel like I am in an exercise class...

Hmm, maybe sausage, gravy and biscuits for breakfast/brunch tomorrow? 

By the way, I am guessing these biscuits are named Foremost biscuits after Foremost Farms.  I asked my hubby if he'd ever heard of Foremost and he said "Yes, they used to deliver milk way back when"  Oh yeah.  I guess I do remember that!   And they still DO have Foremost Farms Dairy cooperative...and they make cheese...and whey. And Foremost Farms was originally started by no other than J.C Penney!   I also found out he was a strong believer in The Golden Rule.  Smart man. 

"Do unto others as you shall have them do unto you"

Smart words to live by, and they aren't said enough these days. 

Foremost was a Guernsey bull - google it - it is very interesting! 

Class dismissed!