Talking over recipes

Yesterday, I talked over recipes with my girls. First, I got lots of persimmon questions and so I am channeling my great grandmother, Aunty Co, to answer these...ha! Yes, persimmons can go either way...be a sweet delight or a bitter pill to swallow. There are a two kinds I like...I don't know which I ate as a kid. I was 12 when Aunty Co died at the age of 94.  "Hachiya" is the pear shaped one and "Fuyu" is the flatter shaped one. Both must be fully ripe in order to be sweet and delicious. If not eaten as raw as a fruit, they are great mashed into a puree, made festive with lots of cinnamon and turned into a pudding. A picture of the fuyu was in yesterday's post. Here is a pix of the hachiya...

Mom and I have talked lots...not only is it the day before Thanksgiving but in our world, it is the day after Dancing with the Stars. She has watched every season and most of the time, I have watched along with her and we share woohoo's and rants every week. This season I should have recorded some of her phone messages. They are hysterical. Not this: "Hi Pensy...This is Mom. What did you think?"  But this: "Oh, she needs to stop whining!" click or this: "What a crock!" click.

Recipe-wise, she found a fresh veggie variation for the traditional green bean casserole. Neither one of us have that recipe in our holiday mix and so it is curious that she has a "new" version that has her so excited. She is going to let me know the taste verdict...looks yummy in the picture.

Sweet daughter, fabulous cook Lissa and I have talked gingerbread. I have scads of gingerbread recipes and two favorites. I usually make one of them to go along with our favorite pumpkin pie. Yesterday, it boiled down to, "You know, Momma, I want the one where you forgot the sugar one year." Obviously, a really good recipe that can't be wrecked, sweetened or not!

Here is our Corn Pudding recipe which came from Country Living magazine decades ago. When at home, I do use canned or frozen corn. When in Shelter Island, I use fresh, guaranteed-to-be-still-sweet corn...yes, some farm stands still have it!

1 17-ounce can creamed corn
1 17-ounce can whole kernel corn, drained
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup sugar 
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into bits

Preheat oven to 350 and generously butter a 1 quart casserole. In a large bowl, combine corn, eggs and milk. Add sugar, flour and salt and stir until well mixed. Pour into casserole and dot with butter. Bake about 1 hour. Serves 6-8.

One of the beauties of this recipe is that it is good hot, room temperature or cold. Cooks choice. Christian and Resh, I think you two have the honors making the corn dish this year. It will be delish! oxxoxo 

And so, although we are not going to be together, we are together. Kisses for all my cooks!