Authors: Charlotte Hubbard

Tags: #Restaurants, #Christian Fiction, #Amish, #Betrothal, #Love Stories, #Religious, #General, #Triplets, #Fiction, #Amish & Mennonite, #Christian, #Romance

Summer of Secrets (27 page)

Secret Ingredient Chocolate Pie

Cinnamon adds subtle richness to an everyday dessert!

2 pkgs. cook-and-serve chocolate pudding mix
1½ C. cold milk
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 9-inch graham cracker crust

Follow package directions for stovetop or microwave pudding, using only 1½ C. of milk. Cool pudding in the pan, with wax paper or plastic pressed on the surface. Spoon into a 9-inch graham cracker crust and garnish with whipped topping and a shake of cinnamon.

Kitchen Hint:
Sugar-free pudding mix and skim milk work just fine in this recipe.

Orange Knots

Fragrant, light, and sweet ... is it time for breakfast yet?

1 T. or pkg. yeast
¼ C. warm water
1 C. warm milk

C. butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs
¼ C. orange juice
2 T. grated fresh orange peel
5¼–5¾ C. flour

In a mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water. Add milk, sugar, butter or margarine, eggs, juice, and orange peel along with 3 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth, then add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Knead on a floured surface until smooth and elastic, then place in a greased bowl (turn the dough to grease the top). Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled (about 2 hours, using regular yeast).

Punch down dough; roll into a 16x10-inch rectangle and cut 10 strips on the 10-inch side. Roll and tie each in a knot. Place on a sprayed baking sheet and tuck the ends under. Cover with a towel and let rise about 30 minutes. Bake at 400° for 10 minutes or until golden. Cool and drizzle with frosting.

Frosting
: 1 C. powdered sugar, 2 T. orange juice, and 1 tsp. grated fresh orange peel.

Italian Zucchini Stew

A great way to use up zucchini when your garden explodes with it!

2 medium zucchini, sliced
1 small onion, sliced
1 large can diced tomatoes with juice; or 3–4 large
fresh tomatoes, peeled and chunked
1 green or red bell pepper, seeded and diced
Italian seasoning, dill weed, salt, pepper, garlic
powder, 2 bay leaves.
Parmesan cheese

Place the veggies in a large skillet coated with nonstick spray; season to taste with the spices. Simmer over medium heat, covered, until veggies are soft. (You might need to add a little water or tomato juice if you use fresh tomatoes.) Remove bay leaves. Spoon into serving bowl and sprinkle generously with grated Parmesan cheese. Serves 4.

Kitchen Hint:
For a meal in a skillet, add a pound of browned, seasoned ground beef; or Italian bulk sausage; or cooked chicken.

Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread

Dense and sweet, these loaves freeze well. Try a slice toasted!

2 C. sugar
3 eggs
1 C. oil
2 tsp. vanilla
2 C. grated zucchini
2 C. whole wheat flour
1 C. white flour
1 T. cinnamon
¼ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 C. raisins or dried cranberries
1 C. chopped nuts, optional

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a mixing bowl, blend the sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Add zucchini and dry ingredients, mixing until just blended. Add fruit and nuts. Divide among three 8x4-inch sprayed bread pans and bake about an hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the split in the top. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, and then cool completely on a rack.

Rhubarb Cream Pie

Tart and creamy-sweet. If you don’t have fresh rhubarb, frozen works well. This recipe makes enough crust for 2 double-crust 10-inch pies and enough filling for one pie.

Crust

3 C. flour
1½ C. Crisco
2 T. sugar
½ tsp. each baking powder and salt
½ C. cold water

Filling

3 T. flour
2 eggs
½ tsp. each nutmeg and cinnamon
1½ C. sugar
1 T. butter or margarine
3½ C. cut-up rhubarb

Preheat oven to 400°.

Crust
: Cut Crisco into dry ingredients with a pastry cutter or food processor until well mixed. Add water and mix well. Roll out and cut to fit a 10-inch pie pan.

Filling
: Blend flour, eggs, sugar, spices, and butter or margarine. Add rhubarb.

Fit bottom crust into a 10-inch pie plate and pour in the filling. Criss-cross or weave strips of dough over the top. Sprinkle lightly with sugar, if desired. Bake 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350° and bake 25 more minutes.

Kitchen Hints
: Placing strips of foil around the edge of the crust keeps it from getting too brown. Put the pie on a baking sheet to keep any filling that boils over from burning on the bottom of your oven.

Oatmeal Flax Bread

Dense and chewy with whole grains, this makes awesome toast for breakfast, or a great go-along for soups and salads. Flaxseed replaces the oil and eggs used in other quick breads.

1½ C. whole wheat flour
1 C. all-purpose flour

C.packed brown sugar
½ C. old-fashioned oats

C.ground flaxseed or flaxseed meal
1 tsp. salt
1

C.buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350°. Coat an 8x4-inch bread pan with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, combine the flours, sugar, oats, flaxseed, and salt. Stir in the buttermilk just until mixed. Pour batter into the pan and sprinkle with 1 T. oats. Bake about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes before removing from pan to cool on a rack. Cool completely—at least 2 hours—before slicing.

Kitchen Hint
: No buttermilk? Stir 2 T. white vinegar or lemon juice into milk and let stand 5 minutes. This bread freezes well, so I always double the recipe.

Lemon Pound Cake

An old favorite! Bake it in a 9x13-inch pan for squares or in a Bundt pan for slices.

1 box lemon cake mix
1 box instant lemon pudding mix
¾ C. oil
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 350°. Mix all ingredients and pour into a sprayed pan. Bake about 20–25 minutes (toothpick comes out clean) for the 9x13-inch version and 50–60 minutes for the Bundt version.

Meanwhile, mix glaze: 2 C. powdered sugar, ½ C. lemon juice. While cake is still warm, in the pan, gently poke holes all over it with a meat fork and pour the glaze over it to soak in. If using a Bundt pan, invert after 25 minutes to cool completely and drizzle additional, thicker frosting on the top.

Dark-On-Dark Cookies

A soft, chewy chocolate cookie that’s sinfully delicious!

1¼ C. butter or margarine, softened
2 C. sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 C. flour
¾ C. Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1 bag Hershey’s Special Dark chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350°. Cream the butter or margarine and sugar, then blend in the eggs and vanilla. Combine the dry ingredients and mix into the dough, adding the chocolate chips last. Drop by spoonfuls onto greased or parchment paper–covered baking sheets and bake 8–9 minutes. Cookies will be soft and puffy. Allow to cool on the sheets about a minute, until they settle around the chips, and then cool on a rack. Makes about 5 dozen.

No-Bake Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies set up like fudge and they won’t heat your kitchen on a summer day!

C.sugar
½ C. butter or margarine
½ C. milk
¼ tsp. vanilla
1 C. peanut butter
3 C. quick oats

Mix sugar, butter or margarine, milk, and vanilla in a pan and bring to a boil; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter and oatmeal. Cool and drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper. If they stay too gooey, store them in the fridge.

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