Good Press

by guest blogger Tracy Strother The fridge is mostly empty right now, in anticipation of the turkey and the ham and the other festive foodstuffs that will soon be taking up residence inside it. I'm still trying to figure out where all the sides will go to warm up! Last year I tried to fit casserole dishes full of sweet potatoes, scalloped potatoes, mashed potatoes, brussels sprouts, green beans, and two different kinds of stuffing all together in my little oven with a turkey that was STILL COOKING well after it was supposed to be finished. This year, the turkey and the ham will be done early! I hope. I'm making my Dad's Jack Daniels Ham recipe, because he was always in the kitchen when I was a kid, cooking all kinds of special things for us while the Macy's Parade flickered on the TV in the background. Now that he's laid up and can't cook, I plan to make enough so I can take him some leftovers. Dad's Jack Daniels Ham Ingredients : one ham, whatever kind...

I would rather have an Easter brunch than a dinner, perhaps it's because of all the sweets, yeast breads and egg dishes. Plus ham goes well for breakfast, too. Here are some of the brunch dishes I've served in the past plus some new things I've tried recently that I think would be great on Easter morning. This past Sunday morning, I tried this 1978 Pillsbury Bake-Off finalist recipe for Maple Cream Coffee Treat. If I made it again, I would up the powdered sugar and leave out the coconut. It's yummy though and the sticky sauce reminds me of January Thaw . Image borrowed from Pillsbury MAPLE CREAM COFFEE TREAT from Pillsbury's "Crescents biscuits & more" booklet 1 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup chopped walnuts 1/3 cup maple syrup or dark corn syrup 1/4 cup butter, melted 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened 1/4 cup powdered sugar 2 tablespoons butter, softened 1/2 cup coconut 2 12-ounce cans Pillsbury Golden Layers refrigerated buttermilk biscuits He...

Wow. Tonight's dinner was special and awesome. I consoled myself for missing tonight's firemen's parade at the 67th Annual Preston County Buckwheat Festival by making a fully-cooked-just-heat-and-eat glazed ham with from-scratch summer squash cornbread and sweet potato, dried cherry, Madras curry and bleu cheese dressing. (That's dressing as in a casserole-style side dish that can also be used to stuff turkeys and game hens, not salad dressing.) I'll get right to the recipes and photos. Yum! SQUASH CORN BREAD From Taste of Home's Simple & Delicious Sept./Oct. 2008 This recipe makes two -- one to eat now and one to freeze. If you're trying it for the first time, you can halve the ingredients make just one, as I did. I like that it packs in extra nutrition and uses up some summer squash. 5 medium yellow summer squash (about 2 pounds), chopped 2 packages (8 1/2 ounces each) cornbread/muffin mix, such as Jiffy 4 eggs, lightly beaten 2/3 cup 4 percent cottage...

These gingered sweet potato pancakes are quite capable of carrying the meal for a vegetarian dinner. I only added slices of ham to the plate because we had them leftover. Naturally sweet applesauce sets off the salty-earthy flavors. A food processor's shredding disk makes quick work of the potatoes you'll use in this dish. Go ahead and chop the onions with it too for tear-free preparation. GINGERED SWEET POTATO PANCAKES 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and shredded 1 medium potato, peeled and shredded 2 eggs, lightly beaten 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/3 cup finely chopped onion 1 tablespoon minced fresh gingerroot 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 3 teaspoons Canola oil, divided In a bowl, combine the first eight ingredients; toss to mix well. In a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, heat 1 teaspoon of oil over medium heat. Drop batter by 1/4 cupfuls into skillet; press lightly to flatten. Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Repeat with remaining ...