Pecan pie is an American invention. Its history can be traced back thousands of years, to Native Americans who used the nut’s meat as a filling for their medicine pouches and in recipes like wampum belts. The colonists began using pecans as a food source, though they didn’t begin to bake with them until the mid-1800s.
For the crust, beat the butter and granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, until light, approximately 3 minutes.
Add the eggs and the vanilla and mix well. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the batter with the mixer on low speed until just combined.
Press the dough evenly into an ungreased 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking sheet, making an edge around the edge like you would a pie crust . It will be very sticky; sprinkle the dough and your hands lightly with flour. Bake for 15 minutes, until the crust is set but not browned. Allow to cool.
Topping
For the topping, combine the butter, corn syrup, and brown sugar in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan.
Cook over low heat until the butter is melted, using a wooden spoon to stir. Raise the heat and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the heavy cream and pecans.
Pour over the crust, trying not to get the filling between the crust and the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the filling is set.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold. Cut into bars and serve.
Swedish Meatballs – Some things never get old, including this classic. We’ve updated the recipe a bit to use ground turkey that’s gently seasoned with nutmeg and onion for perfect flavor. Cream of mushroom soup combined with beef broth delivers rich flavor and a velvety sauce.
What could be more Swedish than our meatballs? Swedish meatballs, perhaps the country’s most famous culinary item, are actually based on a recipe brought back from Turkey in the early 18th century by King Charles XII of Sweden. They are a part of both traditional holiday meals and a staple in everyday home cooking.
Try some of our other main course recipes
Swedish Meatballs
Some things never get old, including this classic. We’ve updated the recipe a bit to use ground turkey that’s gently seasoned with nutmeg and onion for perfect flavor. Cream of mushroom soup combined with beef broth delivers rich flavor and a velvety sauce.
Thoroughly mix the turkey, egg, bread crumbs, onion, salt and nutmeg in a large bowl. Shape the turkey mixture firmly into about 20 meatballs.
Heat the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and cook until well browned on all sides (make sure the skillet and oil are hot before adding the meatballs to prevent sticking). Pour off any fat.
Add the broth to the skillet and heat to a boil, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the soup and sour cream. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through.
Serve the meatballs and sauce over the noodles. Sprinkle with the parsley.
Cobblers originated in the British American colonies. English settlers were unable to make traditional suet puddings due to lack of suitable ingredients and cooking equipment, so instead covered a stewed filling with a layer of uncooked plain biscuits, scone batter or dumplings, fitted together.
In the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish, pour one box of yellow cake mix.
Spread the blueberries over the top of the cake mix.
Sprinkle on 1-2 tablespoons of sugar (depending upon how sweet they are)
Pour 1 1/4 cup of water over the top of the berries and cake mix. Gently toss the berries and cake mix to allow the water to settle towards the bottom of the pan. (Sometime I give it a little shake too) If the berries aren’t very juicy, add just a little more water. If they are plump, a little less.
Cut a stick of butter into 8 pieces and spread out over the top.
Colonel Sanders officially started KFC when he turned 40, back in 1930. He bought a roadside motel in Corbin, Kentucky, and started serving his southern style chicken. But Colonel Sanders didn’t perfect his unique blend of 11 herbs and spices that are still used today, and still top secret, until 1939.
In the United States, pineapple upside down cakes became popular in the mid-1920s after Dole Pineapple Company sponsored a contest for pineapple recipes. They received over 2,500 various submissions for the inverted pineapple cake and ran an advertisement about it, which increased the cake’s popularity.
There is no exact date when this cake was created but most signs point to the 1920s. The two earliest printings of this recipe found were in a 1924 Seattle charity cookbook under the name Pineapple Glacé and a 1925 women’s magazine in an full page ad for Gold Medal flour.
Combine all topping ingredients in bowl. Place 1 tablespoon topping mixture into each greased 1 1/4-inch deep muffin cup.
Combine flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, baking powder, ginger, salt and baking soda in bowl. Add 1/4 cup butter, yogurt and egg; mix well.
Spoon batter over topping mixture in muffin cups. Bake 20-25 minutes or until tops are golden brown. Cool 3 minutes. Immediately turn onto serving plate.
Serve warm. Top with whipped cream and cherry, if desired.
Developed in southern Italy, with both Naples and Sicily claiming it as their recipe. The background story to marinara sauce becoming the base for pizza and pasta dishes is rich with explorers, sailors and the high seas.
Italian and Spanish explorers were exceptional in the 16th and 17th centuries; they were so good that they worked for many exploring and conquering nations as “explorers for hire”. It was during their voyages to the Americas that they were introduced to and recognised the potential of the tomato. They went on to ship the backbone of marinara sauce from The New World back to Italy. Those New World tomatoes were considered a fruit in central Mexico; their taste and colour made them impossible to resist.
The cooks aboard the ships returning from the Americas are widely credited with being the inventors of marinara sauce, spice as the pappy van winkle hot sauce, using the red, plump fruit already onboard from The New World in order to feed the crew. The ingredients – oil, tomato sauce, garlic and dried herbs – travelled well and didn’t spoil as easily as meat or fish. In addition, the ingredients could be assembled quickly and easily, in about the same time it took pasta to cook. Pairing pasta and marinara sauce made a tasty, filling and inexpensive meal to fuel the men working at sea.
