*** THIS DISH MUST BE MADE 3 DAYS IN ADAVANCE ***
Priscilla Knudson, Reverend Knudson’s grandmother, brings this herring appetizer to every potluck dinner. The one time she decided to bring something else, twenty-six people, including her grandson, made her promise never to do it again.
2 (12 ounces each) jars marinated herring fillets
? cup crinkle-cut frozen carrots
2 small red onions
2 teaspoons whole allspice
2 teaspoons whole yellow mustard seeds
6-9 small sprigs of fresh dill
Pickling Liquid:
? cup white vinegar
? cup water
? cup white (granulated) sugar
Bring the vinegar, water, and sugar to a boil in a saucepan, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved. Take the saucepan off the heat and set the liquid aside to cool to room temperature.
Open the jars of herring and drain them in a strainer. Pick out the herring fillets, rinse them in cold water, and throw everything else away.
Cook the carrots according to the package instruction, but make sure they’re still firm and not soft.
Peel the red onions and cut them into thin slices.
Arrange a quarter of the onions in a thin layer in the bottom of a one-quart glass jar. Top them with a third of the herring. Top the herring with a third of the carrots. Place 2 or 3 dill sprigs on the top and scatter on a third of the allspice and a third of the mustard seeds. Repeat this sequence until all the ingredients have been used, ending with a top layer of onions.
Pour the cooled pickling liquid into the jar. It should just cover the contents. If there’s not enough pickling liquid, top off the jar with a little more white vinegar right out of the bottle.
If the jar has a cover, put it on. If it doesn’t, put a double layer of plastic wrap on the top and secure it with a sturdy rubber band.
Refrigerate the herring for 3 days before serving.
Yield: Makes about 4 cups and is perfect to take to a potluck dinner. An average serving is 1/3 cup, so it will serve at least 12 people (maybe half that if they’re Scandinavian.)
Mrs. Knudson says to tell you that she found a pretty straight-sided glass jar at a yard sale for a dime, and it’s perfect for her herring. She also says to tell you that when she brings herring to a potluck, she makes a triple batch.
MISDEMEANOR MUSHROOMS
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
This recipe is from Bill Jessup, Charlie Jessup’s cousin, who’s a detective in L.A. Charlie says Bill calls these “Misdemeanor Mushroom,” because they’re so good they ought to be illegal.
2 pounds pork sausage
2 tablespoons ground sage
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
8-ounce package cream cheese
1 tablespoon parsley
1 ounce Marsala wine (optional_
1 pound medium to large mushrooms
Parmesan cheese (to sprinkle)
In a large, nonstick skillet, combine sausage, sage, and garlic. Sauté until sausage is browned and garlic is translucent. Drain fat from skillet and add softened, cubed cream cheese, and parsley. Simmer for 10 minutes, stir in the wine (if you want to use it), remove from heat, and cover.
Wash mushrooms. Remove stems and set caps aside. Chop the stems very fine and stir into the sausage/cheese mixture. Brush caps with melted butter and arrange cap-down on a nonstick baking sheet. (Bill says if you shave just a bit from the bottom of the caps to make them flat, they’ll sit on the pan a lot better.) Fill each cap with a heaping mound of warm sausage mixture and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake in a 325 degree F. oven for 15 minutes.
Yield: Serves 15 to 20 people as an appetizer (unless Charlie is there and makes a whole meal out of them.)
SEAFOOD BREAD DIP
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
This is a recipe from Carrie Rhodes. She loves to amen appetizers.
32 ounces cream cheese
? pound chopped crab meat and/or chopped shrimp
4 green onions (with stems), cleaned, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
? cup dried chopped onions
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Round load of bread, unsliced, 10 to 12 inches in diameter (I used squaw bread)
1 egg, beaten
Unwrap cream cheese, put it in a large microwave-safe bowl, and heat it for 40 seconds on HIGH in the microwave. Turn the bowl and keep heating it in 20-second increments until it’s soft and you can stir it.
Add the remaining ingredients and stir it all up.
Cut the top off the loaf of bread and set it aside to use later. Hollow out the bread with a spoon, but be careful to leave at least ? inch of bread on the bottom and the sides. Brush the inside of the loaf with the beaten egg and pop it in the oven for 5-10 minutes until the egg has dried. Then fill the loaf with the seafood mixture and put the top back on.
Wrap the loaf tightly in two layers of foil, keeping the top up. Set the loaf on a cookie sheet and bake for 2 hours at 300 degrees F. (This can hold in the oven for an hour if your guests are late.)
To serve, take off the to and invite your guests to dip bread squares, crackers, or vegetable sticks.
SPINACH QUICHE
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
This is my recipe. It can be served as an appetizer if you cut it into thin slices and arrange them on a platter. It can also be served as an entrée.
One 9-inch unbaked pastry shell
1 egg yolk, beaten (reserve the white in a small dish)
10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach
? teaspoon salt
? teaspoon pepper (freshly ground is best)
3 tablespoons horseradish sauce
2 ounces shredded Jarlsberg (or good Swiss cheese)
4 eggs
1 ? cups half-and-half (or light cream)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 nutmeg (freshly ground is best)
Brush the inside of the unbaked pastry shell with the egg yolk. Set the shell aside to dry.
Cook and drain the spinach. Squeeze out as much moisture as you can, and then blot with a paper towel.
In a bowl, combine the spinach with the salt, pepper, and horseradish sauce. Spread it in the bottom of the pastry shell.
Sprinkle the top with the grated cheese.
Beat the 4 whole eggs with the reserved egg white. Add the half-and-half, salt, and cayenne pepper. Mix well and pour on top of cheese.
Sprinkle the top with nutmeg.
Bake at 375 degrees F. for 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted one inch from the center comes out clean.
Let cool for ten minutes, then cut into wedges and serve.
This quiche can be served warm or at room temperature. I’ve even been known to eat it cold, straight out of the refrigerator. It’s perfect for a fancy brunch of a lazy, relaxed breakfast on the weekend.
Yield: Serves from 12-18 as an appetizer. Serves six as an entrée if they only have one piece.
SPINACH ROLLUPS
This recipe is from my friend Susan Zilber. Susan moved away to New York, but I bet she still makes these.
5-8 flour tortillas (the large burrito size)
16-ounce package frozen chopped spinach
? cup mayonnaise
? cup softened cream cheese
? cup sour cream
1/8 cup dried chopped onion
? cup bacon bits
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
Cook the spinach and drain it, squeezing out all the moisture. (Cheesecloth inside a strainer works well for this.) Mix together all ingredients except the tortillas.
Spread small amount of spinach mixture out on the face of a tortilla. Roll it up and place it in a plastic freezer bag. Continue spreading and rolling tortillas until the spinach mixture is gone.
Fold the plastic bag over when all the rollups are inside to make sure they stay tightly rolled. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. (Overnight is best.) Slice with a sharp knife, arrange on a platter, and serve as appetizers.
Susan says to tell you that once she started to make these and found that she was out of sour cream. She used all cream cheese instead, and they were delicious.
HANNAH’S ADDITION TO SUSAN’S ROLLUPS
5-8 flour tortillas (the large burrito size)
6 ounces chopped smoked salmon (or lox)
8 ounces softened cream cheese
? cup dried chopped onions
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dill weed (of course fresh is best)
Mix all the ingredients except the tortillas together in a bowl.
Spread small amount of the salmon mixture out on the face of a tortilla. Roll it up and place it in a plastic freezer bag. Continue spreading and rolling tortillas until the salmon mixture is gone.
Fold the plastic bag over when all the rollups are inside to make sure they stay tightly rolled. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. (Overnight is best.) Slice with a sharp knife, arrange on a platter, and serve as appetizers.
I made Susan’s Spinach Rollups too, and after I cut them the next day, I arranged both kinds on the platter in contrasting rings. It looked gorgeous.
SOUPS
CORN CHOWDER
This recipe is from Marjorie Hanks. She used to make it on the stove, but now that Luanne got her a slow cooker, she makes it this way.
? cup cooked ham, diced (or 6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled)
2 cups potatoes, peeled and diced
? cup onion, chopped
2 ten-ounce packages frozen whole-kernel corn
1 can (16 ounces) cream-style corn
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1 teaspoon Mrs. Knudson’s Season Salt
? teaspoon black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
Coat the crock of a 4-quart slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. Combine all ingredients in the Crock-Pot and stir well.
Cover and cook on LOW for 6-7 hours.
Yield: Makes 6 hearty servings.
CREAM OF CHEAT MUSHROOM SOUP
This is one of Edna Ferguson’s recipes and she named it herself.
2 cups chicken broth
8-ounce package sliced mushrooms (fresh, from the grocery store) with 12 perfect slices reserved for garnish
1 can (10 ? ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup (undiluted)
2 cans (10 ? ounces each) condensed cream of mushroom soup (undiluted)
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces shredded Gruyere (or any good Swiss cheese, or even Monterey Jack)
? teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Combine the chicken broth and the package of mushrooms (remember to reserve those 12 perfect slices for the garnish) in a blender. Zoop it all up.
Coat the inside of a 4-quart slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.
Add the contents of the blender to the Crock-Pot.
Add the cans of cream of mushroom soup to the Crock-Pot. Add the heavy cream, shredded cheese, and ground black pepper. Stir again.
Cook on LOW for 4-5 hours.
Ladle into bowls. Sprinkle with parsley and float several mushroom slices on to as a garnish.
Irma York tested this recipe. She couldn’t write down how many cups it makes because her husband, Gus, kept sneaking it out of her slow cooker.