Within the past few months, I’ve needed to make a dessert on the spur of the moment. Each time I turned to a recipe which is easy to assemble with ingredients I usually have on hand.
Likewise, I love hearing the stories behind any recipe. Almost always, there’s a tale about how we acquired a new recipe. I know there are folks who craft their own recipes, but most of us like knowing that a friend or family member has already tested the dish.
We first met our neighbors when we lived in the same town. He and my husband worked together. Both families have moved on several occasions, but we’ve nurtured a long distance relationship for years. Today, we’re not only friends, but once again neighbors as well. At a dinner party, she served Apple Dumplings. We all raved about this tasty dessert, and she generously shared the recipe which her sister had given her. The secret to this recipe is to use Mountain Dew. Do not substitute any other lemony soda. While I have most ingredients on hand, I do have to have enough heads up time to purchase refrigerated crescent rolls.
The Texas Cherry Cobbler recipe comes from a Texas friend who acquired it from her son-in-law’s mother. Can’t you see these two mothers, both mothers-in-law, becoming friends because of their children and sharing recipes? I keep flour tortillas in the freezer.
And, I obtained the Chess Pie recipe as a newlywed. The kitchen staff at the high school where I taught shared this recipe, used by all schools in the Dallas Independent School System. The original recipe makes six pies. The secret ingredients are the cornmeal and vinegar.
After we moved to Georgia, a friend brought us a Pecan Chess Pie and shared the recipe with me. The two are very similar except hers also calls for a cup of pecans. Either way, it’s easy, quick to assemble and delicious.
Apple Dumplings
2 large or 4 small Granny Smith apples
2 refrigerated packages crescent rolls
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 sticks butter
1 can Mountain Dew
Peel apples, core and cut into 16 slices. Place each apple slice on a crescent roll triangle. Roll and seal. Place dumplings in baking dish and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Melt butter. Mix with Mountain Dew. Pour over dumplings. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree oven for 40-45 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream.
Texas Cherry Cobbler
1 can cherry pie filling
10 flour tortillas
1 cup of sugar
1 stick of butter
1 cup of water
1 teaspoon vanilla
Spread pie filling on each of the tortillas, roll up and place in baking dish. Bring to a boil sugar, butter, water and vanilla. Pour over tortillas. Sprinkle each with sugar and cinnamon. Bake, uncovered, in 350 degree oven for 40 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream.
Chess Pie
1 pie shell
1-1/2 cups sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons cornmeal
1 stick butter, melted
3 whole eggs
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup milk
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
Mix sugar and cornmeal. Add melted margarine and mix thoroughly. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add liquids. Mix well. Add pecans. Pour filling into unbaked pie shell. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 45 minutes or until golden brown crust forms on top.
2017
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