Can't Wait to Get to Heaven

Recipes

Neighbor Dorothy’s Heavenly Caramel Cake

PREHEAT OVEN TO 350 DEGREES.

1¾ cups cake flour (sift before measuring)

Resift with 1 cup brown sugar Add:

½ cup soft butter

2 eggs

½ cup milk

½ teaspoon salt

1¾ teaspoons double-acting baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat for 3 minutes. Bake in greased pan for ½ hour.

CARAMEL FROSTING

2 tablespoons cake flour

½ cup milk

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup sifted powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ cup butter, softened

¼ cup shortening

¼ teaspoon salt

Mix cake flour and milk. Cook to a thick paste over slow flame. Cool. Cream sugars and vanilla with butter and shortening. Beat until light and fluffy. Blend in salt. Mix in cooled paste. Beat until fluffy. Blend. Should look like whipped cream.

Mrs. McWilliams’ Corn Bread

4 cups cornmeal

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons salt

4 eggs, beaten

4 cups buttermilk

½ cup bacon drippings, melted

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine dry ingredients and make a well in center. Combine eggs, buttermilk, and bacon drippings, mixing well; add to cornmeal mixture and beat until smooth. Heat a well-greased 12-inch cast-iron skillet in the preheated oven until very hot. Pour batter into hot skillet; bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean and top is golden brown. Yield: 6 to 10 servings.

Louise Franks’ Deviled Eggs

1 dozen hard-cooked eggs

1 5-ounce jar pasteurized Neufchâtel cheese spread with olives, or pimiento-flavored

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 tablespoons minced sweet pickles

2 tablespoons minced sweet onion

½ teaspoon salt

Peel eggs and cut in half lengthwise. Mash yolks; blend with cheese spread and mayonnaise. Stir in remaining ingredients. Refill egg whites. Yield: 2 dozen halves.

Irene Goodnight’s Bundt Cake

1 package yellow cake mix

1 package instant vanilla pudding mix

¾ cup butter-flavored oil

¾ cup water

4 eggs

¼ cup sugar

½ cup chopped nuts

Combine cake mix and pudding mix with oil, water, and eggs in mixer bowl. Beat at medium speed for 8 minutes. Mix sugar and nuts. Sprinkle half of that mixture into well-greased Bundt pan. Top with half the cake batter. Add the remaining nut mixture, then the remaining cake batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.

Aunt Elner’s Liver and Onions

1 pound calf or beef liver

salt

pepper

all-purpose flour

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons butter or margarine

2 large onions, peeled and thinly sliced

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons beef broth

¾ cup sour cream (optional)

Sprinkle liver with salt and pepper and dredge well in flour. Cook in 2 tablespoons melted butter in a large skillet until liver loses its pink color and is lightly browned. Remove from skillet and set aside.

Melt ¼ cup butter in skillet over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until tender and lightly browned. Sprinkle flour over onions, stir well, and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add beef broth; cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly. Add liver to sauce; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat; transfer liver to a serving platter. Stir sour cream into skillet and pour sauce over liver. Serve with hot buttered noodles or rice. Yield: 4 servings.

Irene Goodnight’s Green Bean Funeral Casserole

1 10¾-ounce can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

½ cup milk

4½ cups cooked and drained cut green beans

½ cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted (optional)

1 cup crushed saltines

1½ cups (6 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine soup and milk. Arrange half of green beans in bottom of a greased shallow 1½-quart baking dish. Spread half of soup mixture over beans; sprinkle with half of almonds, saltines, and 1 cup cheese. Repeat bean, almond, soup mixture, and saltine layers. Bake, uncovered, for 25 minutes; sprinkle with remaining ½ cup cheese and continue baking 5 minutes longer. Yield: 6 servings.

Norma’s Pimiento Cheese

3 cups (12 ounces) shredded mild cheddar cheese

1 cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons grated onion

2 to 3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (optional)

¼ to ½ teaspoon red pepper

2 4-ounce jars diced pimiento, drained

Combine first 5 ingredients in a food processor; pulse until blended and cheese is processed as fine as you want it. Add pimiento; pulse just to blend. Store in covered container in the refrigerator. Yield: about 3 cups.

Aunt Elner’s Pecan Pie

½ cup butter or margarine, melted

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

4 eggs, beaten

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

¹/₃teaspoon salt

1 unbaked 9-inch pastry shell

1½ cups pecan halves

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine first 3 ingredients in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Cool slightly. Beat eggs, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl; gradually add sugar mixture, beating well with a wire whisk. Pour into pastry shell and scatter pecans over top. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes. Serve warm or chilled. Yield: one 9-inch pie.