Texas Christmas Pecan Fruit Cake

I'm not a fan of fruitcake. This is the only exception I've met. It reminds me of the date-nut candy roll I made at Christmas as a child. 

 Ingredients

3 cups finely chopped pecans

1 pound pitted, finely chopped dates

1 cup finely chopped maraschino cherry halves

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

2. In large bowl mix all dry ingredients well. 

3. Beat eggs until foamy and stir in vanilla. Add to dry ingredients and mix well.

4. Place in loaf pan lined with parchment paper sprayed with Pam or oiled well.  

5. Press cake down very well.

6. Bake for 90 minutes or until center tests done with toothpick.  Allow to cool slightly before removing from pan and removing paper.

 Texas Sticky Pork

Originally this was called  Vietnamese Caramelized Pork, but when wrapped in a warm tortilla it becomes a Texas dish. 

INGREDIENTS/DIRECTIONS

Place the following in a cast iron skillet and cook on high heat until the meat is browned on all sides  

2 lbs pork butt or boneless ribs, cubed

1/2 onion, chopped

1 T olive oil

Reduce heat and add

2 T fish sauce

1 T soy sauce

3 T brown sugar

1 cup water

Bring to a low boil and cook until meat is tender and liquid is reduced to a glaze that coats the meat—about one hour. 

Serve in warm tortillas or over white rice. 

Scalloped Potatoes

This recipe comes from Food.com. This is one of my favorite potato dishes.

Ingredients

• 4  cups  thinly sliced potatoes
• 3  tablespoons butter
• 3  tablespoons flour
• 1 ¹⁄₂ cups milk
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1  dash cayenne pepper
• 1  cup  grated sharp cheddar cheese
• ¹⁄₂ cup  grated cheese, to sprinkle on top
•  paprika

Procedure

• 1. Make a white sauce: In a small sauce pan, melt butter and blend in flour. Let sit for a minute. Add all of cold milk, stirring with a whisk. Season with salt and cayenne. Cook sauce on low until smooth and boiling, stirring occasionally with a whisk. Reduce heat and stir in cheese.
• 2. Place a half of the sliced potatoes in a lightly greased one quart casserole dish. Pour half of cheese sauce over potatoes. Repeat with second layer of potatoes and cheese sauce. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Top with some paprika for color.
• 3. Bake uncovered for about 1 hour at 350°F.

Grape Salad

My dear friend Brenda Pilley of Fort Stockton, TX made this for a school potluck. I was hooked.

Ingredients

1 package, 8 ounces cream cheese, softened 
1 cup 8 ounces sour cream 
1/3 cup sugar 
2 teaspoons vanilla 
2 pounds seedless red grapes 
2 pounds seedless green grapes 
3 tablespoons brown sugar 
3 tablespoons chopped pecans

Procedure

1. Use an electric mixer to beat cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, and vanilla until well combined. 
2. Add grapes and toss to coat. Refrigerate until ready to serve. 
3. Before serving, sprinkle with brown sugar and chopped pecans.

Carne Guisada

I miss Mexican food when I'm away from Texas, so I have to make my own. Here's an easy and delicious version of a West Texas favorite. A few months back I posted this on Facebook and had many favorable comments from people who tried it.

Ingredients 

3 lbs meat--stew meat, roast, top round or pork shoulder/butt--cut into small cubes
1 tablespoon oil (lard, bacon grease, etc)
1 medium onion, diced
1 small green bell pepper or jalapeño, diced--I use some of both
3 tablespoons tomato sauce or 1-2 small fresh tomatoes
1 teaspoon garlic powder or 3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup water or chicken or beef broth/stock--I use chicken broth

Optional: 3-5 peeled, diced potatoes

Procedure

1. In a large pan, brown the stew meat, onions and green pepper (if using) over high heat.
Add the tomato sauce (or tomato), garlic powder (or fresh garlic), cumin, salt and pepper and stir well.

2. Sprinkle the flour over the meat and mix well. Add the water (or stock) and mix well so there are no lumps.

3. Bring to a boil, cover pan and reduce heat to low. Cook for 1 ½ hours, or until meat is tender. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

4. IF adding the potatoes, now is the time. Continue simmering until they are tender.

Serve with flour tortillas or rice.

• Cereal Crack

• I found the recipe for this addictive snack at Food.com.

• Ingredients:

• 8  cups  Quaker Oatmeal Squares Cereal (1 whole box)--Rice Chex could also be used.
• 2  cups pecans, coarsely chopped
• ¹⁄₂ cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• ¹⁄₂ cup light corn syrup
• 4  tablespoons butter (margarine ok)
• 1  teaspoon vanilla
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon baking soda
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt (optional)

Procedure:

1. Heat oven to 250ºF. Spray 13 x 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Combine cereal and pecans in pan; mix well.
2. In large microwaveable bowl, combine sugar, corn syrup and margarine.
3. Microwave on HIGH 1 minute 30 seconds; stir. Microwave an additional 30 seconds to 1 minute 30 seconds or until boiling.
4. Stir vanilla and baking soda and optional salt into sugar mixture. Pour over cereal mixture; stir to coat evenly.
5. Bake 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Transfer to baking sheet, spreading mixture in even layer. Cool completely; break into pieces. Store tightly covered at room temperature.

Brownie Recipe You All Keep Asking Me For

I found this easy and oh, so good brownie recipe several years ago in a cookbook for Mason jar gift recipes. It's easy to layer in a jar and give as a gift, but I usually just whip up a batch.

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, melted
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup cocoa
3 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla--optional, but I usually add it.
Optional: pecan pieces, chocolate chips, broken chocolate candy bar pieces

Procedure:

1. In a medium-sized bowl mix the melted butter, sugar and cocoa until no lumps remain.
2. Add eggs, mixing well.
3. Add flour and vanilla mixing well.
4. Stir in any optional items. I usually only add pecans.
5. Place in a well-greased 8x8 or 9x9 inch pan, or even a cast-iron skillet, and bake at 350 degrees until center is set, but not dry. Time will vary depending on the type of pan you used (glass, dark metal, cast-iron, etc.) Try not to overtake.