PEACHY SANGRIA - Recipe

Sangria by the Pool

I guess everyone, today, is familiar with the popular and fruity Spanish Summer drink called Sangria. 

There are easily hundreds of recipes for making Sangria, and the only unique thing about this one, is that it has a flavor that is more “Peachy” than most.  

When we make it, it is usually during the time of year that fresh Peaches are on sale everywhere, and we always try to take advantage of the cheap prices.  Of course, today, with fruits and vegetables being shipped globally, you are able to get fresh Peaches pretty much year round.

 

Anyway, this recipe tastes great, and I recommend that you make it a day ahead of time to allow all of the flavors to blend together.

It is easy to make and tastes great.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2           cup         Peach Schnapps

2              bottles   White Wine, Dry, (750-ml.bottles),

1/3          cup         Vodka

2              tbs.        Sugar

1              large      Lemon, sliced thin

1              large      Navel Orange, quartered and sliced

2              large      Peaches, ripe, peeled and sliced

1              can         Lemon/Lime Soda (12-oz.)

DIRECTIONS:

1.       Combine the Vodka, Schnapps and Sugar In a large Pitcher, and stir until the Sugar is dissolved.

2.       Add the remaining ingredients, except for the Soda.

3.       Stir together well, then cover, and place in the Fridge overnight, until ready to serve.

4.       When ready to serve, add the Soda, stir together well, and pour into tall glass’ that are filled with ice cubes.

5.       Serve Cold.

NOTE: The lemon/lime Soda adds very little to the overall flavor of this drink, but it does give it a little bubbly.

NOTE: If you want a drink that has a little less alcohol, try only using only 1 bottle of Wine instead of 2, and add another Peach,  1 cup of water, then when you add the Soda, use 2 cans instead of 1. 

NOTE: You can easily add your other favorite fruits to this drink,and change the flavor to exactly what you want. I recommend, more Oranges, more Lemon, Apples (sliced), Kiwi Fruit, (sliced), Pear (sliced), just to name a few.

SEVEN-UP POUND CAKE - Recipe

A ShoeBox Recipe

This old ShoeBox Recipe is an oldie from the past.

I remember it being popular in the Sixties and Seventies. 

It uses part of a Seven-Up Soft drink as an ingredient, but any carbonated Lemon/Lime flavored soft drink will do in the recipe.

It is easy to make and tastes great.

INGREDIENTS:

3              cups       Sugar

1/2           lb.           Butter

1/2          cup         Crisco

5             large       Eggs, mixed

3             cups       Flour, plain

1             tbs.        Baking Powder

1             tsp.        Vanilla flavoring

1             tsp.        Lemon flavoring

3/4         cup         Seven-Up Soda

DIRECTIONS:

1.       Cream the Butter, Crisco and Sugar together for two minutes.

2.       Add the Eggs, Flour, Baking Powder and flavorings to the mixture one at a time while stirring constantly, until well blended.

3.       Fold in the Seven-Up.

4.       Pour the mixture into a well-buttered cake pan.

5.       Bake in a preheated 325F oven for 1-1/4 hours, or until done (using toothpick method)

6.       Remove from the oven and let cool before removing from the pan.

NOTE: Toothpick method= Stick a toothpick into the center of the cake and if there is cake mix stuck to the toothpick, then the Cake is not done.

Mustard and Chive Vinaigrette – RECIPE

This Vinaigrette has a very nice flavor for use on Salads, of all kinds, and it also goes well with strong Fish dishes, such as Salmon.

We got the recipe from a fellow camper who served it to us one night in Arizona.
Her husband was diabetic and had a heart problem, and she said that it was Low-Fat, Low-Carb and Low-Sugar. 

She wrote down the recipe for us, and we evolved it, over time, to this.

INGREDIENTS:

4              tbs.        Red Wine Vinegar

2              tbs.        Spicy Mustard

2              tbs.        Water

1              tbs.        Honey

4              tbs.        Chives (greens, chopped )

2              tbs.        EVOO (Olive Oil)

1              tsp.        Dry Mustard

1              tsp.        Black Pepper, Rough Ground

1/2         tsp.        Salt, Kosher

1              clove     Garlic, minced

DIRECTIONS:

1.       Combine the Vinegar, Water, Mustard and Honey in a bowl and blend together well.

2.       Add the Oil, slowly and blend into the mixture.

3.       Add the Chives, Garlic, Salt, Dry Mustard, and Black Pepper, and then blend the mixture together well.

4.       You can use this Vinaigrette right away, or let it sit for a few hours to allow the flavors to combine.

5.       Just shake and use this Vinaigrette.

NOTE: This recipe yields around 2/3-cup of Vinaigrette dressing, and a serving size is 1-tablespoon

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:

Calories-               21

Total Fat-             1.8 g

Sat. Fat-               0.3 g

Cholesterol-         95.3 mg

Carbohydrates-   1.3 g

Fiber-                  0.1 g

Sugars-               1.1 g

Protein-               0 g

PECAN NUT Cake Glaze

PECAN Nut Cake Glaze

Shoebox Recipes

This Shoebox recipe is for a simple glaze for sheet cakes, incorporating Pecans for their great flavor.

INGREDIENTS:

1/4         cup         Butter, room temperature

¾           cup         Brown Sugar

4            tbs.         Orange Juice

1/2         cup         Pecans, chopped

DIRECTIONS:

1.       Combine the Butter, Brown Sugar and Orange Juice together in a saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil.

2.       Cook over medium heat for about 4-minutes, while stirring constantly.

3.       Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the chopped pecans.

4.       Spread the topping over your favorite cake, such as our Orange Sheet Cake.

5.       Place the glazed cake under the broiler for about 1-minute (or a golden brown) then remove and allow to cool before serving.

ORANGE Sheet Cake

This recipe is pretty simple and is another of my Shoebox Recipes. 

Looking it over, I only say that it looks good, and I honestly cannot remember eating it. I am sure I did, if for no other reason, just because we kept a hand-written copy of the recipe, that someone else wrote down, not my wife or I. we only do this when we have asked for a copy because we really liked the dish.

This recipe makes 12 servings and after reviewing the ingredients and directions, it should be really easy to make.

INGREDIENTS:

1              cup         Quick Oats.

1-1/2       cups       boiling water

2              cups       All Purpose Flour

1              tsp.        Baking Soda

1              tsp.        Baking Powder

1              tsp.        Cinnamon

1/4           tsp.        Salt

1.2          cup         Butter (room temperature)

1/2          cup         Sugar

3/4          cup         Brown Sugar

2             large      Eggs

1             tsp.        Vanilla

1            cup         Orange Juice that has been reduced to 1/2 cup

DIRECTIONS:

1.       Combine the Boiling Water and the Oats in a Bowl and set aside.

2.       Combine the Flour, Baking Soda, Baking Powder, Cinnamon and Salt together and set aside.

3.       Combine the Butter and the Sugars and mix together well.

4.       Beat the Eggs into the Butter mixture, one at a time, and then the Orange Juice and Vanilla. Beat together until creamy.

5.       Add the Flour and Oats alternately until all is well blended.

6.       Pour the mixture into a greased pan and place into a pre-heated 350F oven for 25 to 30 minutes or it passes the toothpick test.

NOTE: This cake goes well with numerous toppings, including the Pecan Nut Cake Glaze

NOTE: To dramatically reduce the Calorie and Sugar content of this recipe, try making this cake and substituting artificial sweetener products made for baking, such as Splenda.

Crispy Oatmeal Cookies - Old Recipe

This is an old Shoebox Recipe that I found the other day, and I remember it being very tasty, especially with the added Coconut, so I am updating it into my database.

 I really don’t know who we got the recipe from originally, but the paper is yellowed and the recipe is typed on a typewriter, so it has been around for a while.

It is a relatively simple recipe, and it is easy to make, but be warned, this is not a recipe for your soft, mushy, chewy cookies that are popular today. 

These are, as the name says, crispy, thin cookies, the kind that go crunch when you bite into them and they work really well for dipping into a glass of Milk, or Coffee.

INGREDIENTS:

1/4             lb.         Butter

1              cup         Brown Sugar

1              large       Egg

1/2           cup         Flour

2              tsp.        Baking Powder

1/2           tsp.        Baking Soda

1/2           tsp.        salt

1              tsp.       Vanilla

1              cup       Quick Quaker Oats

1              cup       Coconut, shredded

DIRECTIONS:

1.       Combine the Butter, Brown Sugar and Egg, and mix together well.

2.       Sift the Flour, Baking Powder,  Baking Soda, and Salt together, and add to the Butter mixture.

3.       Add the Vanilla, Oats and Coconut, blending together well.

4.       Using a tablespoon, place dollops of the mixture two inches apart onto a well-greased cookie sheet.

5.       Bake in a pre-heated 400F oven for 8-10 minutes.

6.       Watch them carefully as they can burn easily. They will puff up and then fall and spread out.

NOTE: You can reduce the Calories and total Sugar content some by using an artificial sweetener version of Brown Sugar such as Splenda.

How RED WINE is made.

A lot of us will have a glass of a Red Wine every now and then.  We will sip and enjoy, and at the end of the day, toss the empty bottle into the trash, and repeat the process on another day.

But, how many of us know how a Red Wine is made?

Well, for those of you that are curious, here is a simplified explanation of the process.

Generally speaking, all red wines are made following the following steps:

1-The grapes are picked and then brought quickly to the winery for processing to retain the freshness of the grapes. 

 2-The stems are removed and the grapes are crushed to release the juices from the skins.

3-Then, the pulp, skins, seeds and juice is stored in a vat for a few days while the natural fermentation process begins

4-After a few days the wine is separated from the solids using a press and this wine is placed into another vat to finish its natural fermentation.

5-At this point the wine is "drawn off it's lees" (sedimentation) and placed into oak barrels for aging. This aging can take anywhere from a few months to several years depending on the quality of the wine.

6-At this point, for some wines, the wines are then filtered or "fined" to improve its clarity. Egg whites, gelatin, or sometimes other natural substances are used for this.

7-The wine is then bottled, and the better wines are allowed to rest for several weeks before shipment.

Ideally, Red Wines are best served at cool room temperatures (60F to 65F). 

But, remember, when it comes to wines and your personal tastes, if you want your wine colder, then have it that way. 

The proper temperature, for a wine, is the temperature that YOU, the consumer, prefers.

SPICY CHARIZO SPREAD - Recipe

This is a great Appetizer that I threw together not long ago.  We had been traveling in our RV, and had stopped at a campground in Virginia, near where we grew up, to visit friends and family.  We invited a few old friends down to sit around a campfire, and have Dinner with us.

I made this recipe from ingredients we had in the RV, including the Charizo, that I use often in my Red Beans and Rice recipe.  It has little spicy and sweet surprises with each bite, and is very popular with our guests, when we serve it.

INGREDIENTS:

2    8-oz. pkgs.     Cream Cheese

1-1/2        each     Charizo Sausages

3             tbs.       Pineapple, drained and minced

3             tbs.      Craisins (or raisins), finely chopped

1             large     Jalapeno, de-seeded and finely chopped

1/2          tsp.       Cayenne Pepper powder

2            tbs.        Cholula Hot Sauce

4            tbs.        Walnuts, finely chopped

DIRECTIONS

1-    Chill the Cream Cheese.

2-    Peel and fry the Charizo sausage, cutting it into smaller and smaller pieces until the meat has the consistency of a fine Hot Dog Chili.

3-    Remove from the heat, and drain all grease away.

4-    Drain the Pineapple, and press firmly in a paper towel to remove as much of the liquid as possible, then mince the Pineapple finely.

5-    Mince the Cranberry Raisins, and Jalapeno Peppers finely.

6-    Spread the Cream Cheese in a mixing bowl, and add all of the minced ingredients, to the cheese

7-    Then add the Cayenne Pepper and Cholula Hot Sauce and mix everything together until it is well blended.

8-    Place plastic wrap or wax paper into a shaped bowl, and sprinkle the Walnuts on the bottom and sides.

9-    Press the cheese mixture into the bowl, cover, and chill in the fridge until needed.

10- Serve on a platter surrounded with the cracker or toasted breads of your choice.

11-  

STORAGE:

This one can be made up to several days ahead of time if stored in a sealed container in the fridge.