My Childhood Hit List

Open Face Sandwich         Margaret Konschak

My mother used to spread baked beans on toast and top it with a slice of tomato, a thin slice of onion, a slice of cheese and two crossed slices of bacon and broil it. Sounds terrible but was pretty good and cheap.


Creamed Spinach on Fried Eggs with Home Fries

Here's another dish I remember having as a child. I don't know that I'd enjoy it today, but thought I'd mention it since we ate it quite a lot. I do remember the egg yolk being pretty good when mixed in with the spinach. At least we got our iron! 
Start the potatoes first as they will take longer. Brown 2 or 3 sliced potatoes in hot oil in a frying pan. Salt and pepper to taste. Keep heat low and cover. If they start to stick, add a little water around the edge. Try to turn potatoes only once so they don't become mushy. 
Cream the spinach by combining in a sauce pan 1/4 c butter, 1/4 c flour, 1 c milk,(what my mom always called "The basic White Sauce") 1 bag or 2 boxes of frozen spinach (I would use fresh today) salt and pepper. Fry eggs as you normally would and on the plate, put the creamed spinach over the fried eggs.


Vegetable Soup       Margaret Konschak
1 lb beef cubes
1 qt beef broth
1 qt water
2 stalks celery chopped
1 turnip diced
1 can dices tomatoes
1 large bag of frozen mixed vegetables
Thyme, parsley, bay leaf, dried basil, salt and pepper to taste
Pasta - orzo, broken spaghetti, or small shells (about 1/2 cup)
Brown meat in bottom of large pot. Add the rest of the ingredients except pasta. Simmer for three hours stirring occasionally. Remove meat and bay leaf and add pasta. Pull meat apart into small pieces and return to pot. Continue to cook until pasta is soft.

Quakers - Oatmeal Cookies     Margaret Konschak
2 c brown sugar
1 c shortening
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 c flour
3 c oats
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
Cream sugar and shortening and then add eggs and vanilla. Mix together flour, oats, baking soda and salt. Blend into creamed mixture. Roll dough into balls the size of walnuts. Dip in granulated sugar and drop[ on greased cookie sheet 3 inches apart. Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes.

Crab Imperial        Margaret Konschak
1/4 c butter
1/4 c flour
Melt butter and mix in flour stirring constantly. Gradually add about 1 1/2 cups of milk continuing to stir. Season with salt and pepper. Cool sauce and add 1 can of crab meat. If you're using fresh picked crab meat, gradually add meat to sauce until the mixture holds together without being too dry or too soupy. If making crab cakes, let mixture cool before forming. Dip in beaten egg and then breadcrumbs. Makes 6 large cakes which can be broiled or fried. This can also be a casserole with a light coating of breadcrumbs on top dotted with butter.

Shake-A-The-Pot             Walt Konschak
Cook live crabs in a large pot of water, beer, and old bay seasoning. My dad always said that you knew when they were done when they stopped singing and turned red. Ugh. Cool the crabs and remove the legs and pinchers from the body.  
Melt a stick of butter in a frying pan. (My dad used an electric frying pan back in the day) Place crab bodies in a single layer in the melted butter. Sprinkle with Old Bay seasoning. Since you can't stir crabs, my dad would "shake the pot" to keep them from sticking. After they have bubbled in the butter for 3 or 4 minutes, turn them over, sprinkle with more Old Bay, add more butter if you like and shake again for a few minutes. Be prepared to have butter dripping everywhere as you pick the warm crabs and enjoy.

Home made crab measurer.
The points  of the shell had to be wider than the  opening or you had to throw them back.

Clams Casino                Walt Konschak
Recipe is the same whether you are making 20 or 200. We usually made 200! Use little neck clams. Good advice: If the clams open too easily or are already slightly open, don't use them! They ought to put up a little fight.
Open, loosen from shell and clean clams under cold running water. (Sand, bits of broken shell, any suspicious looking stuff that you wouldn't care to eat) Place clam on half of the shell and line up shells up on a baking sheet.
1 lb bacon - cut in 1 1/2 inch pieces (We don't precook the bacon - the broiler takes care of that)
1 lb cheddar cheese (like Cracker Barrel) sliced and then the slices cut in half
1 chopped green pepper and 1 chopped onion sautéed together in butter or oil.

My dad's old clam opener

On each clam place a spoonful of green pepper mixture, a small slice of cheese and a piece of bacon or two. When tray is assembled, place it under the oven broiler until bacon is crisp. Many a lip was burned in Sea Isle because we couldn't wait for them to cool.