Good Things: December 2006 Archives
Christmas is the time of year when thoughts turn to night time snacks, warm drinks and toasty fires.
It is the time when I usually make trash. Although since moving to Virginia somehow it got left behind. This year it is front and center.
Trash is a treat my best friend and I made together every year from the time I was 17 until my late thirties. This year I make it alone as she is no longer with us.
Gather together worcestershire sauce, butter, garlic, salt (or Lowry's season salt).
I forgot to buy the Lowry's.
Melt a stick of butter and pour in a bottle of worcestershire sauce. Add garlic and salt to taste. Some of us believe there can never be enough garlic.
Worcestershire makes my mouth water when I smell it.
Choose and assortment of cereals. Hard dry cereals that will retain their shape. Not flakes. Some people believe that it isn't good if name brands are not used. I have made this stuff for 20 years and I promise you the generic cereals equal to chek's cereal works perfectly. Add pretzel sticks , butter squares, nuts, cherrios (generic) and any other hard square or round cereal that strikes your fancy. At times I have added cracklin oat squares for a bit of a sweet flavor.
Generic cereal works just as well.
Put it all in a large roaster. Mix well. Drizzle the melted butter/sauce mixture and toss well inbetween stirrings. Don't pour it in all at once. The cereal will be gross and soggy and will fall apart.
Stir and turn gently lifting from the bottom to the top.
Set the roaster on low. Periodically throughout the day give it a stir. Let the cereal cook until it is dry.
Slow roasted snacking goodness.
At the end of the day you have made a wonderful snack for your family.
This is also a great recipe to let kids help with.
Spread it out on paper and let it cool making sure the cereal is dry. Store in a big air tight container. It will keep for months -if you don't eat it all within a week.
I will be bagging some of this into decorative bakery bags and giving it as hostess gifts for the holiday parties we attend. I will also be giving some to our neighbors. It really makes a nice food gift.
Note: This roaster by GE is on sale now at Walmart for under $30. There is also an insert to make this into a buffett steaming tray for hot foods. Little did I know when I purchased this that it would be by far one of my best investments.
If you don't have a roaster spread the mix out on baking pans and bake in a slow oven stirring until the mix is roasted dry.
Back in August I had an idea to make something that would be wonderful to have at Christmas. In the mind set of the very long ago housewife and mother I set about a little here and there dreaming of the cold of winter during the heat of summer.
1 part damson. 2 parts sugar. Top off with vodka or gin.
Late August came with the damsons ripening. I picked and sorted and washed. Packing the lovely tart fruits into hot clean jars. Lots of sugar went into the jars as well. Then they were topped off with vodka and gin.
Shake daily until all the sugar is dissolved. Continue to shake every once in a while.
Every few days a good shake was given to the jars. The fruits softened and the sugar melted. With each passing day the liquid in the jars began to turn the slightest shade pf pink then red and finally a beautiful crimson.
From August to December the wait can seem so long.
With Christmas almost here the jars were pulled out from their long cool dark hibernation and given a shake. Yesterday the lids were popped and the liquid strained to separate the fruit.
Strain. Bottle. You don't need a pressure seal. Between the sugar and the vodka bacteria will not grow.
Damson Cordial, Home Grown Winter Tipple, is ready to be served for the Christmas season. Cheers!
Late August came with the damsons ripening. I picked and sorted and washed. Packing the lovely tart fruits into hot clean jars. Lots of sugar went into the jars as well. Then they were topped off with vodka and gin.
Every few days a good shake was given to the jars. The fruits softened and the sugar melted. With each passing day the liquid in the jars began to turn the slightest shade pf pink then red and finally a beautiful crimson.
With Christmas almost here the jars were pulled out from their long cool dark hibernation and given a shake. Yesterday the lids were popped and the liquid strained to separate the fruit.
Damson Cordial, Home Grown Winter Tipple, is ready to be served for the Christmas season. Cheers!
