By Andy Bedwell
When I mentioned to family and friends that I was working my way through hundreds of recipes for my cookbook and what fun I was having, someone would proudly chime in with a comment about their momma’s or aunt’s famous recipes. Some of my recipes may seem dated by today’s measure. A few may even be found shocking. The mere idea of the words Poor Man’s Spaghetti, Earthquake Cake, Santa’s Whiskers and Death by Chocolate in a title just sounds enticing to me. I found it rather refreshing and helpful that the names of many of my recipes tell you right what it is (Mary Sue’s Ham Roll-Ups, Everyday Southern Cornbread, Fruit Pizza). But for the most part my recipes have stood the test of time.
Chicken Fruit Salad
2 cups chopped
chicken breast
1 cup chopped celery
(I use the food processor)
1 11-ounce can
mandarin oranges
1 cup green or red
seedless grapes, halved
½ cup chopped pecans (toasted, if I have time)
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup sour cream
1 ½ teaspoons dry Italian salad dressing mix
Make ahead for seasonings to flavor.
Andy’s Note: Sometimes I add a medium can of pineapple tidbits to give it a tro-pical flavor. This also makes a beautiful salad with all of the special fruits.
Beef Chow Mein
Soy sauce
1 ½ pounds sirloin cubes
1 cup flour
¼ cup flour (set aside)
salt and pepper to taste
¾ cup oil
2 cans LaChoy noodles
1 can LaChoy
Chinese vegetables
1 can LaChoy
bamboo shoots
1 can LaChoy bean sprouts
2 cans LaChoy
chopped water chestnuts
1 cup water
Toss sirloin cubes in flour. Heat oil and brown sirloin cubes. Add meat to LIQUID ONLY from the following canned vegetables, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots and bean sprouts. Stir well and cook for one hour on low heat. Add small amount of water to one-fourth cup of flour to make paste. Add slowly and stir in to make a gravy type sauce. After meat and sauce cooks on low for 30 minutes, add vegetables, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots and bean sprouts to meat mixture. Heat well. Serve over toasted noodles. Add soy sauce to each serving.
Andy’s Note: If you love Chow Mein, you will enjoy this recipe. I hope it will become a favorite at your house.
Sour Cream Apple Pie
1 cup sour cream
2 ½ tablespoons flour
¾ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
3 cups diced, tart apples
½ cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
¼ cup margarine
1 unbaked deep-dish crust
Blend together sour cream, two and one-half tablespoons flour, sugar, salt, vanilla and egg. Stir in apples and flour mixture into pie shell. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes. Combine brown sugar, one-third cup flour and margarine. Sprinkle over the pie and return it to the oven to bake about 20 minutes more. Serve warm or cold.
Andy’s Note: My favorite pie is a lemon icebox and my second favorite is an apple pie. I love this apple pie recipe. Granny Smith apples are what I use and the temperature needs to be checked often. My oven is too hot to bake a pie on 400 degrees and I bake mine on 350 degrees.
Happy Cooking, Andy
“Southern Cooking with Andy Bedwell” can be purchased at Alabama Gift Company in downtown Gadsden and The Messenger newspaper on Rainbow Drive.