Recipes from Donna McCafferty Kalita

Dip For Fresh Fruit                      Donna McCafferty Kalita
1 jar fluff marshmellow
1/4 c sour cream (add sour cream slowly)


Lemon Butter (for seafood)     Donna McCafferty Kalita
1 stick butter
2 tsp lemon zest
2 TB finely chopped Italian parsley leaves.
pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper
(can freeze also)

Pineapple Cake       Donna McCafferty Kalita
yellow cake mix
1/2 c sugarless applesauce
1 small can mandarin oranges including juice
4 egg whites
Mix above ingredients with mixer for 2 min. Pour into 9 x 13 lightly greased pan. Bake at 350 degrees according to cake mix directions.
Topping:
1 pkg sugar free vanilla instant pudding mix
1 20oz can crushed pineapple including juice
1 8oz cool whip
Hand mix the pudding mix and pineapple until pudding starts to set, add cool whip. Frost cooled cake..Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Corn Casserole      Donna McCafferty Kalita
16oz kernal corn (drained)
16oz creamed corn
1 pkg jiffy corn muffin mix
1 stick melted butter
1 egg
1 c sour cream
salt and pepper
Mix all ingredients. Bake @ 350 45-55 minutes. or until center is firm or toothpick comes out clean.

Filled Sugar Cookies              Great Grandmom Baileys
Filling: (make filling first and let it cool)
1 c chopped raisins
1 c sugar
1/2 c of water put on stove. When boiling, add 1tsp flour mixed with a little cold water. Cook until it thickens and add 1 tsp. lemon extract and chopped black walnut meat. Bake at 450 degrees (doesn't say how long) till done.
Cookie:
1 c sugar
1/2 c of butter & lard mixed
2 eggs
3 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c sweet milk  (sweet milk is regular milk)
1 tsp cake soda ( baking soda dissolved in milk)
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 TB vanilla
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs well beaten, then milk & soda mix. Sift the flour and cream of tartar and add to the above mixture with the vanilla. Roll thin and cut out (with round cookie cutter) and place 1tsp full of filling (can use little bit more)on one cut out and cover with another cake and press the edges together. Bake at 450 degrees. (doesn't say how long so I guess when bottoms are light brown.)

Pepper Cabbage                   Janice McCafferty

6 c. shredded cabbage
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 c sugar
1 c vinegar
1/2 tsp pepper
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp celery seed
1 stalk celery, chopped
Mix sugar, vinegar, pepper, salt and celery seed. Pour over vegetables and mix well....chill.

Vegetable Soup                       Janice McCaffery
1 soup bone
1 1/2 lb lean beef cubes
1 large onion chopped
2 stalks celery chopped
1 bunch fresh pot herbs
1/4 c sugar salt&pepper
1 qt tomatoes (in can) I put them in blender for a few seconds.
2 c each carrots, lima beans, green beans, peas,corn
2 c sliced cabbage or so...
1 c potatoes diced (I also use a yellow turnip diced.)
1 1/2 cup or so of medium egg noodles
Cook meat, bone, onion, celery, pot herbs, salt and pepper, cabbage, tomatoes and sugar about 2 hours. When that is done, add veggies and cook until done. Keep plenty of liquids in the soup. When everything is done, add noodles and turn off, but let it stay on the burner to finish cooking the noodles.

Cry Babies                      Frances Brandriff (granny)
1 c molasses
1 c sugar
1 c shortening
1 egg
1/2 c. boiling coffee
1 heaping tsp baking soda
1 tsp ginger and cinnamon
5 c sifted flour
Mix sugar, shortening, egg and molasses. Put soda in boiling coffee and mix well then add to creamed mixture. Sift dry ingredients and add to first mixture and blend well. Drop by spoonfuls on greased cookie sheet and bake 12-15 min. at 420 degrees. Raisins or nuts may be added.

Pineapple Sauce                      Irene Sharpless (moms friend)
1 large can crushed pineapple with juice
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c dark rum
1/2 c raisins
8 whole cloves
12 maraschino quartered
1 tsp white vinegar
1 TB corn starch
Combine first 7 ingredients and bring to boil. Cook 5 min. Mix corn starch with 2 TB water and add slowly to mixture. Cook until clear and thickened. Very good on baked ham.

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.