Chocolate Coconut Shell for Ice Cream

This is an incredibly easy and delicious recipe I got from Aunt Becky.  I got the coconut oil from Aunt Gina, who got it at Costco.  

You really won't believe how simple this is.  After it is melted together, you just pack ice cream onto a cone and dip it carefully!  Or you can spoon it over ice cream in a bowl.  Or just eat it with a spoon.  There's no judgement here at all.  You can see I used just the right amount of chocolate, it's pooling at the bottom of my very precariously top-heavy cone.

I made 1 batch, covered 4 ice cream cones with it, ate a couple spoonfuls, and still had almost a whole pint of chocolate leftover!  Don't forget to store this in the refrigerator and reheat as necessary.  

Becky uses a microwave, I used a saucepan, it's all good.  I had some Guittard Extra Dark Chocolate Chips in the cupboard, so that's what I used.  Becky told me she uses fancy chocolate sometimes, but usually semi-sweet or dark chips.  I was dreaming of that 11 pounds of gianduja I had once upon a time...might be time to order that again!  (and follow the link, if only to read my story!  Don't worry, I have an email in to the company, asking how I can get more since it didn't come up on a search)

Chocolate Coconut Shell

1/2 cup coconut oil

1-1/4 to 1-1/2 cup chocolate chips (guess which one I used?) 

Gently melt and stir together in microwave or saucepan.  Cool slightly, then dip solidly formed ice cream cones or spoon over ice cream.

Store in a jar in the refrigerator, if you can make it last that long.

Three Cranberry Sauces!

Cranberry Sauces--- yes I make three different cranberry sauces for Thanksgiving. My brother Robert called me today and we got to talking about cranberry sauce. He is making a fresh sauce to contribute to his Thanksgiving dinner. I told him about the sauces that I was making and he suggested I share them on Min's blog---so here they are, ENJOY !

The fresh sauce is my mother's recipe----you just have to make this one----easy and very good. The next one my sister Maraley found this recipe on NPR. It has horseradish and sour cream---yummmmmmm! The last but not least is just a good basic cooked cranberry sauce that is super easy.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone !

Cooked Cranberry Sauce
12 oz. fresh cranberries
2 cups sugar
1 cup orange juice
Mix and cook in microwave till cranberries pop their skins.

Fresh Cranberry Sauce
Food Processor:
1 orange & 12 oz. fresh cranberries
Stir in 1 cup sugar, mix well.
Chill 24 hrs. Keeps 2 weeks

Cranberry Relish (NPR)
2 cups chopped cranberries
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup sour cream
2-3 TBL horseradish
Mix together. Keeps 6 weeks.

Redd Ranches Famous BBQ Sauce

If you've never heard of the Redd Ranches Bull Sale, you are truly missing out. This is an annual event, I believe it was started by Number One's grandpa & grandma, Charlie & Annaley. The tradition has carried on, and the Bull Sale is now hosted by Redd Ranches (Uncle Paul & Aunt Diane's family). The sale is kicked off every year by the most delicious lunch ever, served to several hundred people.

Roast beef sandwiches with barbecue sauce, Grandma Annaley's Prairie Fire Beans, Cole Slaw, Cowboy Beans, Brownies, Lemonade. The whole family pitches in to make lunch, from Uncle Brian and crew getting the beef on the BBQ around 4AM, to all the cousins serving up the meal. The Bull Sale is known far and wide for its lunch, in addition to the quality of its bulls, and hundreds of people travel from all corners for the event.

After lunch, is the actual Bull Sale, a real live auction. It's simply a great time, and sort of like a family reunion all rolled into one day. Later, we usually stop at the old Ranch House and eat leftovers for dinner, play cards and visit with aunts, uncles and cousins.

For some pictures and more about the Bull Sale, read Left After The Cattleguard.

Here is the recipe for our favorite barbecue sauce. We are going to serve it up on BBQ Beef Brisket Sandwiches next week on branding day. I found these cool squeeze bottles, which will be handy for serving it in the corral. I bought two and told Number One he could have one squeeze bottle all to himself!

Barbecue Sauce

REDD RANCHES

makes 2 quarts

3 cups brown sugar

60 oz. catsup

1 1/2 cups vinegar

9 dashes Worcestershire sauce

2 TBL dry mustard

6 TBL chili powder

6 TBL celery seed

3 dashes tabasco sauce or cayenne pepper

3 dashes salt

6 cloves garlic, minced

3 TBL minced onion

Simmer 2 hours.

That's just how I got the recipe from Aunt Becky and Aunt Diane. Obviously you stir up the ingredients, simmer on low heat for those two hours, stirring occasionally. What I found out is that simmering barbecue sauce is sort of bubbly and messy, so if you have one of those wire mesh pot cover things, you might want to pull it out.

They say the sauce keeps well in jars in the fridge for several months (although it usually doesn't last that long!) You can and probably will eat it on anything, from beef to beans to bbq pizza.

Let us know how you use your BBQ sauce, and of course what you think of this one!

And now, I have a confession to make. I'm not sure exactly how this happened, but my first batch of bbq sauce was WAY TOO SPICY. I used the same measurement of chile powder, I really didn't think I used more than the recommended dashes of tabasco. The only thing that I can think of: I get my chile powder from the Mexican section of the grocery store, so it's REAL. Maybe Too Real. Number One tasted the sauce and said, "It tastes exactly the same, just spicier." Hmmm. So in an attempt to rectify this embarrassing situation (thank god I wasn't making this for the bull sale!), I bought another 30 ounces of ketchup and some more celery seed. I made another half batch as above, but I left out both the chile powder and the tabasco. I finished this mild sauce, then combined it with the spicy sauce. Now we got a lotta sauce! I'm going to wait until Number One gets home to give me his opinion, him being the Expert Sauce Taster that he is. I think it's pretty good, I'm just debating making yet ANOTHER half batch of mild sauce to tone it down even more. Too much? I guess we'll see.

That would give us 4 quarts of the stuff, in which case it may be a BBQ Thanksgiving AND guess what everyone is getting for Christmas! So. That's it. My name is Min, and I'm a spice-aholic.

Sourdough Orange Pancakes with Orange Syrup

My son, Marc has been after me to post these recipes. Mindy's blog has made him hungry for any and all sourdough recipes. He came home several weeks ago for the weekend and much to his delight I made Sourdough Orange Pancakes. This is one of our family's favorite recipes, give it a try, it just might become one of your family favorites as well. You don't have to mix this the night before like many sourdough pancake recipes. Just make sure your starter is alive and active and that you have enough.

Sourdough Orange Pancakes

2 cups sourdough starter
3 TBL melted butter
2 eggs
1 6 oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
2 TBL sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. soda

Mix together and cook on a griddle.


Orange Syrup

1 6 oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter

Mix together in a small saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes. It will thicken slightly as it cools.

The Winner! Homemade Rootbeer!

Thank you everyone for your entries for YOUR Grandma's Recipes. Just when it looked like I'd have to choose between one of my mom's cookie recipes and one of my mom's other cookie recipes, reddquilter pulled this out of the hat!


Number One has been coveting this recipe for years, while I have never actually sampled a bottle. After reading the story behind this more-than-50-year-old recipe, and sweet reddquilter's relatively recent history with rootbeer making, I am sold.

I cannot wait for summer so we can make this! We are saving every brown bottle we can get our hands on. We may even hold off on drinking Corona for a time (because it comes in clear bottles!) and switch to a brown-bottled variety. That is commitment, my friends.

And now, reddquilter's story, followed by the recipe! Congratulations, reddquilter!


"Brian's family have been making homemade rootbeer for more than 50 years. When Brian was young his job was to bottle the rootbeer after his mom had mixed up the brew. He hated that job hence he hated the rootbeer. It is a bit different than most homemade rootbeers. With less sugar than most recipes and with the addition of hops which gives it a most unique taste. Brian now loves the rootbeer, which we make each summer. Our kids and grandkids love the brew as well. I think it was a test when I was dating Brian , if I liked it then I was in, if not, it was time for Brian to look for a new girlfriend. Good thing I love it, for I am very lucky to have Brian in my life !"

Lambert's Homemade Rootbeer

1 bottle Hires extract (sorry to say that Hires doesn't make this any more, so use Shilling instead)
7 1/2 cups sugar
Hops (steep 1/4 to 1/2 cup in 1 quart boiling water for 5 minutes, strain and then make sure to cool down before adding to rest of mixture.) You can find hops in most health food stores.
1/2 tsp. yeast dissolved in warm water
Add enough water to make 5 gallons.

Bottle and cap. If you can't find a bottle capper we have found that you can reuse pop bottles (the plastic bottles, either size and screw the tops on very tightly). However, old (recapable not screw top) brown beer bottles work the very best.

Lay bottles on their sides and store in a warm dark place for about a week (in summer). It will take longer in cooler climates. Chill and enjoy!

Favorite Pie Crust

This recipe was originally posted with reddquilter's Famous Pear Pie (which you should Go Make Right Now). The pie crust is delicious, easy, and you can freeze it two ways, so I decided it deserved a post of its very own. --Min


Reddquilter's Favorite Pie Crust

1 1/4 cups pastry flour or all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold
2 to 4 tablespoons ice water

I usually make a large batch in my food processor (make sure not to over mix--easy to do in the processor) WITHOUT the water. Then I package it into single pie crust portions in zip lock bags then freeze till needed. Add the water later by hand with a fork.

I also have made the pie crust including the water and then put in the freezer in individual single crust packets as well as actually rolled out the crust into the pie plate and then freeze till needed. I now prefer to just do the dry mix, works best for me.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, this is Min again. For those who need more step-by-step instructions, this is how I make reddquilter's delicious pie crust:

Add flour, salt, and sugar to a food processor bowl. Cut COLD butter into cubes, and add to food processor bowl. Pulse quickly in short bursts, just until the butter is reduced to pea-size lumps, don't process too much. Dump the flour/butter mixture into a small bowl, and add water by the tablespoon, mixing with a fork just until the crust starts to come together. Sometimes I need to use 6 or 8 tablespoons of water. The crust will not be completely together, it will look crumbly but should not look floury at all. Don't worry about this.

Generously flour the surface you'll be rolling your dough out on. Turn the dough out into a pile on top of the flour, then use your hands to gently push it together into a round shape. Flour your rolling pin, and roll out your dough. The key is not to work it too much. And you're done! Use your rolling pin to transfer the dough to the pie plate, and proceed with your pie!

Pork Tenderloin

We just made this for a birthday celebration. It makes a meal special, yet it is super easy. The brinning is the key here. Also don't be tempted to buy the already seasoned tenderloins, you will be disappointed , besides it is easy enough to do your own seasoning. You can use any rub you like, be creative and try something different each time you cook these. Maybe I will add some of our other favorite rubs.
Pork Tenderloin
In a medium bowl dissolve 3 TBL Kosher salt and ¾ cup sugar in 2 cups hot water.
Then add 2 cups COLD water.
Add 2 pork tenderloins (1½-2 lbs total) *also trimmed of silver skin
Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
Remove from brine and dry, then set aside.
Rub: 1 TBL orange zest
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 TBL chopped fresh sage leaves
1 TBL olive oil
1 TBL orange marmalade
½ tsp. pepper
¼ tsp salt

Rub tenderloins with rub
Preheat grill on high
Put loins on grill-----3½ minutes on 3 sides,
then 4th side cook until 145 degrees , about 2½ minujtes
Transfer to cutting board cover loosely with foil and rest 5 minutes.
Slice and enjoy.
Serve with extra rub, or just mix some orange marmalade mixed with sage, garlic.

Bread Sticks

I thought you might enjoy a very easy and delicious recipe for Bread Sticks. I just made a double batch of these for a church group of 19-30 year old kids. I doubled the recipe thinking we would have some left over for our family. Boy was I wrong, they ate up 4 large pans of these things along a basic tomato sauce for dipping in a matter of minutes. I was smart, I tasted a couple as they came out of the oven to make sure they were good, but my husband didn't get a one, poor baby!

Dissolve 2 TBL yeast in 3 cups warm water in a large bowl (or bread mixer or Kitchen Aid mixer bowl)
Add the following: 4 TBL melted butter, 2 TBL sugar or honey, 1 TBL salt and about 4 cups flour.
Mix well, then add about 4 more cups of flour. Mix well about 5 minutes. Cover and let rest.
*Punch down every 10 minutes ---5-6 times.
Then roll out and cut into strips. I roll it out about 1/2 thick and use a pizza cutter to quickly cut it into strips. Dip each strip in melted butter (about 1/2 cup) and roll in Parmesan Cheese and parsley (as much as you like). Place on baking sheet (if you line it with foil clean up will be a breeze) Let rise about 30 minutes. Bake 350 for about 15 minutes or until lightly brown on top.
I usually do it this way but if you are in a hurry you can also divide dough in half and place in a well buttered baking pan (9X13) pat it out into the pan. Take a knife or bench scrapper and cut into desired sized strips. Then pour melted butter (about 1/4 cup per pan) over dough and then sprinkle with cheese and parsley. Let rise about 30 minutes. Bake 350 for about 15 minutes or until lightly brown on top.Then after baking take your knife again and cut apart where you had made the cuts.
The picture is the quick way in 9x13 pan.

Artisan Bread in Banneton mold

Just had to share what I just took out of my oven.

I wanted to try the Artisan bread from a previous post using a banneton (brotform).

Looks good for a first try. I know it doesn't have to look good to taste good, but there is much to be said for eye appeal. If you haven't tried this bread, please check out my previous post on Artisan Bread and give it a try, I promise you won't be disappointed.

Butternut Squash Soup

Winter is here to stay so time to make soup. This soup is easy and good and one you should try . It may not make winter go away but it will make it much more bearable. As I look out my window the snow is coming down and it is truly beautiful. I am nice and warm inside; with bread raising on the counter and a quilt to work on, indeed I am very happy. However come March I will be very ready for Spring. Make some soup and enjoy this beautiful time of year.

Butternut Squash Soup

Pre heat oven to 400

Take a cookie sheet and line with foil ( just makes clean-up easier)

Place the following on the cookie sheet:

About 3 pounds butternut squash, peeled . seeded and cut up into cubes.

1 large onion, large chunks

2 tart apples, peeled, cut in pieces.

l pear, peeled , cut in pieces.

Toss with about 2-4 TBL olive oil

Sprinkle with the following spices: thyme, sage, salt and pepper, and a dash of nutmeg.

Roast in 400 oven , stirring after about 15 minutes, continue roasting about 30-45 minutes, until tender.

In blender or food processor take some of the roasted veggies etc. and some chicken broth (a total of 3 1/2 cups) process until smooth as desired. You will probably have to do this in a couple of batches depending how large your blender/processor is. Place in large saucepan and warm to simmer, then adjust seasonings adding more as needed, then add 1/2 to 1 cup half and half. Don't let it boil after adding cream. You might do as I do and add the half and half (after warming separately) to each serving bowl, instead of to the saucepan.

ENJOY !

Pear Pie

I was asked to take a pie to a church function last night, so I thought I would share the recipe. We are a family of pie lovers, so it was hard when I baked this pie and then left the house without sharing with my husband. So while I was out with women and enjoying homemade pies he was home eating leftover gingerbread cake. I really can't feel to sorry for him. So if you ever get in the mood to make a pie try this pear pie , it is one of our favorites. Just a note about the crust recipe, I have found a local flour mill that has pastry flour and it is the best for pie crusts, scones, biscuits etc. Also I usually double, triple it etc . and keep the dry mix in the freezer and just pull it out when I want to make a pie---makes the process super quick. Another thing I also keep my flour in the freezer, one of the keys to making good pie crust is having all the ingredients cold.

Happy Pie Making!

Pear Pie

7-8 large pears, pared, cut into slices
3 TBL lemon juice
1/4-1/2 cup sugar
3 TBL flour
1 tsp. lemon zest
Mix all together and spoon into one 9 inch unbaked pie shell
Sprinkle with the following mixture:
[ 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp. each ginger & cinnamon
cut in 4 TBL butter until crumbly ]
Bake Pie in preheated 400 oven for about 45 minutes.

My Favorite Pie Crust

1 1/4 cups pastry flour or all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold
2 to 4 tablespoons ice water

I usually make a large batch in my food processor (make sure not to over mix--easy to do in the processor) WITHOUT the water. Then I package it into single pie crust portions in zip lock bags then freeze till needed. Add the water later by hand with a fork.

I also have made the pie crust including the water and then put in the freezer in individual single crust packets as well as actually rolled out the crust into the pie plate and then freeze till needed. I now prefer to just do the dry mix, works best for me.

Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a day!

I heard about this recipe on NPR---The Splendid Table. I hurried home and checked out the recipe online and quickly made up a batch. I tried several other batches with my own variations and then of course I just had to buy the book. I've tried this basic recipe using half whole wheat flour. Also have added about 1 cup sourdough starter to the basic recipe. I have made bread for many years and this is probably the easiest recipe and also one of the best for crusty, hearty bread (our favorite type of bread). If you don't have a baking stone you really should get one, but until then a good substitute is a clay saucer from the garden shop---the ones that are red and go with the red clay pots. We use these outside on our barbecue for cooking pizza in the summer and they work great. Also, I have found that using parchment paper to raise the dough works easier than using the pizza peel, just pick up the edges of the paper and lift everything onto the stone.

Note from Min, 2/2009: I watched Becky make this bread this past weekend, and it is fast, easy, and delicious. I am embarrassed it has taken me so long to make any! Also, for anyone who's wondering, you can check out the authors', Jeff and Zoe, website at http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/.

Five-Minute Artisan Bread

December 15, 2007


From Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois (Thomas Dunne Books, 2007). Copyright 2007 by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois.


Serves 4

Note: This recipe must be prepared in advance.

1-1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast (about 1-1/2 packets)
1-1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
6-1/2 cups unbleached flour, plus extra for dusting dough
Cornmeal
In a large plastic resealable container, mix yeast and salt into 3 cups lukewarm (about 100 degrees) water. Using a large spoon, stir in flour, mixing until mixture is uniformly moist with no dry patches. Do not knead. Dough will be wet and loose enough to conform to shape of plastic container. Cover, but not with an airtight lid.

Let dough rise at room temperature, until dough begins to flatten on top or collapse, at least 2 hours and up to 5 hours. (At this point, dough can be refrigerated up to 2 weeks; refrigerated dough is easier to work with than room-temperature dough, so the authors recommend that first-time bakers refrigerate dough overnight or at least 3 hours.)

When ready to bake, sprinkle cornmeal on a pizza peel. Place a broiler pan on bottom rack of oven. Place baking stone on middle rack and repeat oven to 450 degrees, preheating baking stone for at least 20 minutes.

Sprinkle a little flour on dough and on your hands. Pull dough up and, using a serrated knife, cut off a grapefruit-size piece (about 1 pound). Working for 30 to 60 seconds (and adding flour as needed to prevent dough from sticking to hands; most dusting flour will fall off, it's not intended to be incorporated into dough), turn dough in hands, gently stretching surface of dough, rotating ball a quarter-turn as you go, creating a rounded top and a bunched bottom.

Place shaped dough on prepared pizza peel and let rest, uncovered, for 40 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough or refrigerate it in lidded container. (Even one day's storage improves flavor and texture of bread. Dough can also be frozen in 1-pound portions in airtight containers and defrosted overnight in refrigerator prior to baking day.) Dust dough with flour.

Using a serrated knife, slash top of dough in three parallel, ¼-inch deep cuts (or in a tic-tac-toe pattern). Slide dough onto preheated baking stone. Pour 1 cup hot tap water into broiler pan and quickly close oven door to trap steam. Bake until crust is well-browned and firm to the touch, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven to a wire rack and cool completely.