Grandma's Persimmon Cookies

1 cup of ripe persimmon pulp (smooth, not chunks)
1 tsp baking soda (put through sm. strainer so there are no bitter clumps)
2 cups flour (may need a little more)
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar (if you like a really sweet cookie you can add up to 1/4 cup more)
1/2 cup butter (not shortening or margarine, only the real deal)
1 egg
1 cup chopped walnuts (opt)
1 cup raisins (opt)

Cream sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl.  Add egg, persimmon, and baking soda. Stir well. Add all dry ingredients.  Add walnuts and raisins last.  Dough should be like a thick cake batter, not like a cookie dough.  Drop by spoonful ( I use a med. Pampered Chef scoop) onto cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes.  Don't over bake or cookies will be dry.  You want these to be soft.

Daddy says these are ok for breakfast because they have persimmon and walnuts.  Just add a glass of milk and you are good to go. ;-)

World's Best Gingersnaps

I don't normally like gingersnaps, but I LOVE these! They are a little crispy on the outside and slightly chewy on the inside.  So far, everywhere I take these, people love them! 

1 1/2 cups Butter (don't substitute for margarine or shortening -- gross)
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup dark molasses
2 eggs
4 cups flour
4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. ginger
2 tsp. cloves

Cream butter and sugar, add molasses and eggs.  Then add in dry ingredients.  Refrigerate for 1 hour. Shape into balls, flatten slightly and dip one side into sugar.  Place sugar side up on a baking sheet (I use Pampered chef baking stones.) Bake 13-15 minutes at 375, or until browned.  These should end up crispy on the outside and slightly moist and chewy on the inside.

These would be perfect for a fall or winter tea.  A little spicy but not overwhelming.  I know many people love flavored teas, in fact, I just picked up a pumpkin spice Rooibos for my mom that would probably be delightful with these.  I stick with my plain old black tea and I'm happy.  No clashing flavors.  But feel free to experiment and if you have a Trader Joes in your neighborhood, check out their Pumpkin Spice Rooibos.

Orange Crescents

Orange Crescents
An old altered Pampered Chef Recipe
*******************************

This is hands down my husband's favorite. If I make a batch, he will eat them all day long. It's often a Saturday morning special with a big pot of tea, but sometimes if he is having a rough week, I'll make these and warm up a couple for him to have  for breakfast during the week. Once he requested them the week he had to take snacks for his men's Bible study.  He said at first the guys were kind of stand-offish, but a couple of the college guys took a few and rushed back for more and then he said they disappeared immediately.  We have to take snacks for our small group study tomorrow morning and he asked it I could make them again, so I thought I would post them here

2 cans Pillsbury Buttery Crescent rolls (no store brands!)
1 orange
1 pkg. cream cheese (softened)
Powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Blend cream cheese, 1/3 cup powdered sugar, 1 tsp fine orange zest, 2 tsp.
orange juice. Place a dollop of the cream cheese mixture in the center of each crescent roll
and roll up. Place on a baking sheet (I prefer a Pampered Chef baking stone) and bake 15
minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool. Drizzle with glaze.

Orange Glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. orange zest
2-3 tsp orange juice.

**Optional additions - mini choc. chips, berries or nuts. If you would like to
add something to your rolls, add a 1/4 cup of your favorite addition to the cream
cheese mixture just before putting it in the crescent rolls.

Bacon, Cheddar and Green Onion Scones

     We have a little place in town here that makes wonderful scones.  I'm not one that likes a lot of things in my scones and I generally don't like a lot of fruit in them.  I'm a plain black tea and cream scone kinda girl, but every once in awhile I like some flavor.

     I went into the scone shop one day and they had these green onion, bacon and cheddar scones and I was like, give me six!  (there are only two of us here at home, but I was momentarily overcome.) They were so good!  But the scone place is clear across town and not open on Sunday and Monday.  Therefore on a rainy Sunday afternoon, I was forced to find a recipe.

      The one I liked best was on the King Arthur Flour website and since that is the flour I use, it was perfect! I simplified it and have it for you here.

 Bacon, Cheddar, Green Onion Scones

2 cups  Flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
4 tbs cold  butter
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/3 cup  finely diced green onions
1 cup bacon, cooked, cooled, and crumbled
3/4 cup heavy cream (have a little extra incase you need it and for brushing on the scones)

• Preheat the oven to 425°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet, or line it with parchment.
  Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. 
• Cut the butter into the flour until the mixture is unevenly crumbly.
• Mix in the cheese, green onions, and bacon.
• Add cream, stirring to combine. Try squeezing the dough together; if it’s crumbly and won’t hang together, or if there are crumbs remaining in the bottom of the bowl, add more cream until the dough comes together. Transfer to a well-floured work surface.
• Pat the dough into a smooth 7" circle about ¾" thick.
• Cut the disk into 8 wedges
• Lay the wedges a baking pan. 
• Brush the scones with a bit of cream to brown crust.
• Bake the scones for 22 to 24 minutes, until they’re golden brown. 
• Remove them from the oven, and cool. 
• Serve warm, or at room temperature.
• Yield: 8 large scones

I serve these with potato cheese soup, or scrambled eggs and fruit, or with whipped or flavored butter for a savory with your daily cuppa. 

Chicken Salad Popovers

Three posts in two weeks?  This must be a new record for me on this blog.

So I read the Tea Shop Mysteries by Laura Childs and sometimes the things that Haley serves for their tea times sound so good!  In the latest book, Scones and Bones, the first tea menu hit me right off the bat.  Haley said they were serving chicken salad in popovers and I was like, what?  That's genius!  Why didn't I ever think of that?  There may be a recipe in the book, but I didn't see it and so I made up my own.

First, I made our favorite chicken salad recipe, which I have already given you on this site here.
Then I made a really simple popover recipe I found online awhile ago and adapted it a smidge.

Easy Blender Popovers

4 tbs. melted butter (divided)

3 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup flour

Use 2 tbs. of melted butter to grease the bottom and sides of a muffin pan.  I use a stoneware muffin pan.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Put remaining 2 tbs of butter, milk, eggs and salt in blender and mix.  Add flour and blend for 10-15 seconds, just until the flour is incorporated.  Keep a slim spatula near by in case any of the flour sticks to the sides.  Do not over blend or your popovers won't pop much. Then pour batter into muffin pan until each section is 1/3 to 1/2 full.  This should make 12 popovers.

Bake in 400 degree oven for 35-40 minutes.  DO NOT CHECK POPOVERS FOR AT LEAST 30 MINUTES!  They need time to rise and this may cause them to fall.  Once the popovers are brown and popped, removed them from the oven and poke a hole in the top of each one to let the steam out (I use a sharp knife.

Once they are slightly cool, fill the hollow insides with chicken salad and serve.  Yum!

Here is a close-up.  And they turned out really, really good!  The inside of the popover is full of chicken salad.  This may be a new tea favorite!

 
For a tea recommendation, I never discussed it here, but there was a bagged tea advertised on one of the tea sites where I get my Yorkshire Gold and the site said it was a new favorite in the tea spots in London, so I ordered a box.  If a tea is good, we don't mind it being a bagged tea, especially when we just want one cup.  It was actually pretty good.  Not quite as good as the Yorkshire Gold, but good!  It's called The London Cuppa - a blend of Kenya and Assam.  Two of my favorite black teas!

 I hope you give these Chicken Salad Popovers a try!  They really are delicious!

Breakfast Enchiladas

Ingredients:
6 eggs
1 med, onion or 1 bunch green onions
1 bell pepper
1 lb of bacon, or sausage, ham, chorizo or other breakfast meat
2 cups (or more) of hashbrowns (I like the square ones for this recipe, not shredded)
Shredded Monterey Jack cheese ( I like a lot of this!)
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 can Ro-Tel diced tomatoes with onions and chilis
Flour tortillas
salt, pepper, butter or olive oil and any other preferred seasonings

Saute:
onion finely chopped or 1 bunch of green onions chopped
green bell pepper finely chopped
bacon chopped (I used 1 box of the pre-cooked Farmer John bacon) or sausage, ham or any other breakfast  meat -- you could even do chorizo.
Put into a bowl.

Cook hashbrowns (add a little more if desired) Don't over cook until they are mushy.
Salt and pepper and add any other seasonings you desire.
Put into bowl with sauteed items.

Scramble 6 eggs (I sometimes do a few more) salt, pepper and any other seasonings you wish.
Put in bowl with hashbrowns, and sauteed items.

Sprinkle cheese down the middle of one tortilla, then top with egg, hashbrown, meat mixture.  Roll up like an enchilada and place seam side down into a 9x13 pan. Continue until finished.

Mix mushroom soup and Ro-tel tomatoes together and spread down the middle 2/3 the enchiladas.

Cover with foil.

Bake at 375 degrees until hot through.

Remove foil, top with jack cheese and some additional tomatoes and chilis if desired.

Serve with fresh sliced avocado, refried beans and have sour cream and salsa on the side for those who want it..

*I have made this the night before and cooked it in the morning and it was fine

Marie's Sticky Buns

These are so good!  And I first had them at a book club tea hosted by a friend named Marie if you hadn't already guessed that.  These must be eaten with a fork as they are far too sticky to be eaten as finger food.  But really, so delectable.

In the picture, I made 1/3 of a batch.  The recipe Marie gave me is far too much for two people, so I reduced it and cooked it in a stoneware pie pan.  Normally when I cook this for a crowd, I bake it in a stoneware bundt pan.  You can decide what works best for you, but let me tell you, they are addicting!

Today I made them to eat with a pot of tea as I watched Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee pageant along the Thames.    No tea suggestions with this, but as you know, I don't like flavored teas, so I just went with my favorite blend, Yorkshire Gold, strong with lots of milk and sugar.  Hip Hip Hoooray! Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray!

Here is the recipe, but promise me you won't blame me if you get hooked!

Marie's Sticky Buns

1 1/2 sticks of butter (don't substitute!)

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1/4 cup heavy cream

3 packages crescent rolls (use only Pillsbury - there is a difference!)

1 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup raisins (optional)

cinnamon (optional)

In a sauce pan, combine the butter, brown sugar, and cream and heat to boiling.  Simmer one minute.  Pour half the mixture into a buttered bundt pan and sprinkle half the pecans and raisins on the mixture. Open crescent rolls, but do not unroll.  Cut into 1" thick slices. Layer half the crescent rolls onto the pecan, raisin and brown sugar mixture.  Sprinkle with cinnamon if desired. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Bake for at least 25-35 minutes at 350 degrees or until crescent rolls are cooked and slightly browned.  Let sit 5-10 minutes and then turn out onto a platter or cake stand.

Chicken Tea Sandwiches

Let me start by saying that I have not always been a fan of the chicken sandwich, but as I have matured, it has become one of my favorites, with one condition... NO MUSTARD! We have a local tea shop that I refuse to frequent now because the owner is so heavy handed with the mustard and curry powder. Really, why even differentiate the tea sandwiches on the plate? They should all just be listed as mustard sandwiches because that is all you taste. And on top if it, the food doesn't compliment the tea, it overpowers it. Not what you want from a tea menu.

So today I want to share our family's favorite chicken tea sandwich. It is always incredibly popular, and it is so good, that I like to make up a batch and eat them for lunch during the week, which is what I did this week.

I believe that you will find that this tea sandwich perfectly accompanies a freshly brewed pot of black tea. Although my favorite is Kenya, you could even brew a light tea like a Darjeeling with this sandwich.

Chicken Tea Sandwiches

2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
1/3 cup mayonnaise (or I use plain yogurt because I hate mayo too)
1 tbs. chopped chives (or green onion)
2 tbs sliced almonds, toasted and chopped
1/4 tsp. dill weed
salt to taste

Mix ingredients until well combined. Spread half of the bread with a thin coating of mayonnaise. Spread the other half of the the bread with chicken salad. Trim off the crusts and cut into either three parallel sections or four small triangles.