Category Archives: Family Recipes

Add the following ingredients in the order listed into a Bread Machine.

Set Bread Machine function to Dough Only

• 1 ¼ cups lukewarm water
• 3 cups bread flour
• 3 1/3 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 ½ tsp fast yield rise yeast

Once Bread Machine is done making the dough, remove dough to a floured surface.

Divide dough into 8 – 12 pieces.

Form balls. Press thumb through center. Shape bagels.

Leave bagels to rise for about 30 minutes. While bagels are rising bring 3 quarts of water and 1 Tbsp of sugar to a rapid boil.

Boil bagels 2 to 3 at a time for 1 ½ minutes per side.

Remove and cool for 1 minute (place on a rack to help with the cooling),

Brush bagel with a mixture of 1 egg and 1 Tbsp of water.

Add toppings.

Place bagels on a backing sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

On 1 October 2012 the favorite topping was pepper jack cheese. The least favorite topping was cinnamon sugar. The flavor of the cinnamon sugar seemed to just disappear.

I had a hankering to try my hand at completely homemade pizza. It was an immediate success and requests were made to share the recipe.

Bread Maker Pizza Dough (makes enough for two 12″ round pizza pans)

1 1/3 cups water

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 tsp sugar

1 1/4 tsp salt

2 cups bread flour

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp minced onions

1 1/2 tsp yeast

Parchment paper

Olive oil

Add ingredients in the order given to bread machine. Set on Pizza Dough setting. After the machine beeps remove the dough and cut in half. Place dough on parchment paper and stretch, roll, and tug gently to form the size crust you desire.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Lightly drizzle olive oil over dough before placing in preheated oven. Parbake crust for 10 minutes and then remove.

 

Classic Margherita Sauce (makes enough for two 12″ round pizza pans)

1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes

2 8-oz cans tomato sauce (can be flavored if desired)

3 large garlic cloves

2 oz fresh basil

Crush and hand mince garlic cloves. Slice basil leaves into short ribbons. Simmer all ingredients together in one large pot for at least 30 minutes.

 

Assemble

Allow pizza dough to cool. I usually make this the night before and refrigerate both the pizza dough and sauce. Before assembling bring ingredients out of the refrigerator and allow to warm to room temperature(ish).

With parchment paper still under parbaked dough, add 1/2 of the Classic Margherita Sauce to each crust. Add desired items like pepperoni, Italian sausage, etcetera. Top with grated mozzarella cheese. Bake pizza at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove parchment paper, and bake for 5 more minutes.

Remove pizza from oven and drizzle lightly with more olive oil immediately. Allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing.

Enjoy

Offered suggestions and hints from those who enjoyed:

• thinner crust is best because this dough rises while it cooks.
• cook one pizza at a time.

 

Categorizing this recipe as a Family Recipe may be a little bit of a stretch. I grabbed this recipe from some website that I don’t remember (and I beg apologies for this oversight) while I was dieting. Dave and I immediately enjoyed it. I have also fixed it for Natania and Travis and it was followed with a request for the recipe. That is about as far as it goes in the Family Recipe history, but it should be fixed more often. I bet it will be a hit.

Ingredients

1 14-ounce package of frozen vegetables with a Southwest theme that include black beans, corn, and red pepper (there are several on the market)

1 10-ounce can Rotel Original – undrained

1 10-ounce can cream of chicken soup

12 ounces cooked chicken, diced (great idea for leftovers)

2 cups water

1/2 teaspoon cumin

Spray large saucepan with Pam. Heat over medium high heat. Add frozen vegetables; cook 3 minutes or until thawed.

Stir in undrained Rotel, soup, chicken, water, and cumin. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low. Simmer for about 10 minutes.

This original recipe makes 6 servings of one cup each. Each cup has 160 calories.

To yummy it up I have added tortilla chips and sour cream, but those calories must be counted separately.

Graugonzas are such a family favorite and so special that an announcement is actually made of when they will be served. The common reply is, “What’s the occasion?” When this conversation is shared with individuals from outside the family it is a sure thing that you will also hear, “What is a graugonza?”

Graugonzas are also known as German Burgers, at least in this family. They are actually a small loaf of bread stuffed with hamburger, cabbage, cheese, and onion. My ex-husband was David Henderson. His mother was Arlene (Woerpel) Henderson, whose mother Katherine (Schlepp) Woerpel was the fifth child born in a family of ten children. Katherine, or Katie, was the first of these children born in the United States though. I’m not sure if this is an Old Country (German) dish, or just has roots in Germany. I do know that it was such a special dish of Arlene’s that the recipe was actually printed on the back of her funeral card.

Below is the recipe exactly as it is printed on Arlene (Woerpel) Henderson’s funeral card. After the recipe I have added my own notes to include tidbits that I want to remember when creating this family recipe

One of Arlene’s Favorite Recipes

“Graugonza”

AKA German Burgers

Brown together (in a large skillet)

2-3 Lbs Hamburger

1 -1 1/2 cups cabbage (cut up)

1/2 medium onion

Salt and pepper to taste

After browned, pour off excess grease. Cut two loaves of thawed frozen bread dough into thirds. Roll out about 1/8th inch thick. Spoon hamburger mixture onto dough, fill about 3/4 full, add 2 squares of cheese, fold dough over to cover meat mixture totally. Place on a cookie sheet. Bake 350-375 until brown. About 25-35 minutes. Serves 6.

~Additional tidbits to remember~

When rolling out the bread dough don’t get overly concerned about the shape but work toward an oblong shape. Cut one square of sliced American cheese in half and lay each half in the center of the oblong shape, side by side. With a measuring cup, add two 1/3 cup measurements of the hamburger mixture. Fold in half and seam. Cut off excess dough and set aside to use for another graugonza. Tuck in the sides by slightly folding them toward the seam. Place graugonza seam side down on cookie sheet to cook.

After pulling the graugonzas out of the oven, spread butter over the top and allow it to melt into the hot bread outer cover.

I use a combination of about 5 pounds of hamburger and 4 loaves of frozen bread dough. This makes a huge amount of graugonzas, but then again graugonzas are meant to be shared with the family and we have a large family. With this combination I add about 3/4 of a small head of cabbage and 1/2 of an onion, diced. It is all made to taste, so use the desired combination that you want. Just remember the cabbage though. It wouldn’t be graugonzas without the cabbage.

There are many members of the family that would profess that this is not their list of favorites. I can’t have a true holiday Thanksgiving meal without it. I grew up with it as a standard holiday dish, so it brings back all of those cherished holiday memories. Mom (Jane (Rose) Davis Tracy) and I talk every holiday and check our lists of the seven necessary ingredients. We always seem to remember six of the seven items, but a different six then the other. It has become a part of the holiday festivity.

Ingredients

1 cup marachino cherries

1 cup pineapple chunks

1 cup mandarin oranges

1 cup miniature marshmallows

1 cup coconut

1 cup sour cream

1 cup sliced bananas

Mix together, chill, and serve. If making ahead of time, which is not recommended, add the bananas immediately before serving.

SPECIAL HOLIDAY DRINK

Now this IS a big favorite and we serve it as a punch whenever Seven Cup Salad is on the menu.

Drain all of the candied fruit into the same bowl. Add a 2 liter bottle of Sprite. Serve over ice or in a punch bowl with an ice ring.

Krystal Long introduced this dip to us years ago, and we keep going back for more. It has been one of our holiday menu items ever since. I’m sure there are plenty of us that would prefer we served this more often.

Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 package of toffee pieces (usually about 12 ounces and found in the baking section)

Beat together first four ingredients. Stir in toffee pieces. Chill and serve with sliced apples. Smile.

This wonderful dish was first introduced to us by Betty (Boddy) Davis, otherwise known as Grandma Betty. It immediately became a family favorite that we have turned to countless times. It is that perfect cold entree to serve on a hot day.

Ingredients

2 cans refrigerated crescents

1 8-ounce package cream cheese

1 cup mayonnaise (Grandpa Bob preferred 1/2 cup mayonnaise and 1/2 cup Miracle Whip)

1 package dry Ranch Dressing Mix

grated cheddar cheese

Mixture of fresh vegetables, according to taste and preference. Some favorites are sliced zucchini, sliced cucumber, sliced scallions, diced bell pepper, broccoli floret bites, cauliflower floret bites, grated carrots, diced onion, sliced mushrooms.

Unroll crescent bread dough from tube and fit as a single full layer on a cookie sheet. Bake according to directions on can. Remove and allow to cool at room temperature. Refrigerate, if time allows.

While cooking and cooling bread, beat together cream cheese, mayonnaise and Ranch Dressing. Refrigerate while cutting vegetables.

Spread chilled cream cheese mixture on cooled bread. Layer with any selected variety of vegetables desired.

Sprinkle with grated cheese. Immediately cut and serve.

I’m personally not a big fan of “Mexican Food”. My husband, Dave, grew up just this side of the Mexican border and he can’t get enough of the stuff. Several years ago we went to southern California to enjoy his high school class reunion and someone brought out a big pot of soup. In my book soup is okay and probably ranks a little higher than Mexican fare in general but I did find it odd that there was some excitement over a vat of offered soup. Dave encouraged me to try it. I was shocked. The flavors were bright, crisp, varied, and deep. I had never heard the word “Posole” before, but suddenly I found a Mexican dish I could add to my limited supply of enjoyable Mexican food. Posole is not a popular dish in the Pacific Northwest so I had to find a way to repeat the flavor the best I could by cooking it at home.

Ingredients – Step 1

2 lbs pork shoulder (any pork roast works, but it should be lean and boneless)

1 onion

4 cloves garlic

5 peppercorns

1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seed

pinch oregano

Ingredients – Step 2

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion

4 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon cloves

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

2 15.5 ounce cans white hominy

1 cup canned chopped green chilies

32 ounces to 64 ounces chicken broth

Ingredients – Step 3

radishes

cabbage

cilantro

onion (white or green)

avocado

lime

corn tortillas

Directions

Place pork roast in dutch oven. Cover with water. Quarter onion and place one clove into each quarter. Take the skin off of the garlic. Place everything in Ingredients list for Step 1 in the dutch oven with the pork. Bring to a boil over medium heat and let gently boil for 1 hour.

Remove pork and let cool so that it doesn’t burn your fingers. Set the remaining broth to the side. Cut the pork into about 1/2 inch pieces. In the same dutch oven heat the olive oil. Dice the onion and the garlic. Saute onion and garlic until translucent. Add the remaining spices from the Ingredient list for Step 2 and cook for 1 minute. Add the pork, hominy, green chilies and chicken broth to taste. You can also use the broth from Step 1. Again, bring to boil over medium heat and let gently boil for 1 hour.

Prepare all of the items in Ingredients for Step 3 while soup simmers in Step 2. Place each in a separate serving bowl. Slice radishes thin. Shred cabbage. Remove stems from cilantro and cut the leaves in very small sections. Dice the onion. Dice the avocado. Cut the limes into sections. Warm the corn tortillas.

Serve soup warm with the various garnishes listed in Step 3 on the side, allowing each person to put their personal selection of items in their bowl on top of the soup.

Enjoy!