Noni’s Crostada

This is actually almost Noni’s Crostada. Noni never used a recipe and never measured! Yet, somehow she had consistent quality in her soups, sauces, pastas and sweets. I never took notes when I watched her prepare things in her kitchen, I just sorta took it all in!

It was years after she passed, tasting Olive Garden’s too soft, too sweet, but just reminiscent enough of her crostada that I set out to rediscover my grandmother's sweet treat!

This recipe is a combination of recipes from cookbooks and online with a liberal application of my own memories from my years as her helper in the kitchen. There was a lot of trial and error, and maybe a little intervention from beyond?

The last time I tweaked the recipe, alone in the kitchen, I was sure I heard Noni’s voice say “no so sweet!” as I dipped the measuring cup back in the sugar. It spooked me, so I put the cup down and did not add the addition 1/4 cup I was going to add.

Whether it was a gift from beyond, an over active imagination or my subconscious telling me something I needed to remember, when the baking was done, I had the flavor and texture of Noni’s crostada! Younger family members who’d forgotten her crostada tasted it and said “OH! I remember!!”


Noni’s Crostada

2 1/2 cups flour
5 TBS butter
5 TBS shortening
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
pinch of salt
1 14-16 oz jar of jam or preserves

To make the pastry:
In a bowl, cut the butter and shortening into the flour until the mixture looks like fine bread crumbs. Add the sugar, eggs and salt and knead it quickly until it forms into a dough. Flatten the dough into a disk shape and refrigerate it wrapped in plastic for an hour.

After removing the dough from the refrigerator, preheat the oven to 375º.

Break off about a quarter of the dough and set aside. On a floured surface, roll the dough thin and cover the bottom of a 9” tart pan with it.

Generously spoon the jam on top of the dough.

Roll the remaining dough thin and cut it in strips. Create a lattice pattern on top of the jam. Optional - use whatever dough is left to roll out and make a shape for the center using the cookie cutter of your choice.

Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the pastry is golden. Allow to cool before serving.

Turkey Congee

Traditional Vietnamese Congee

This has often been the traditional day after Thanksgiving soup. It's a simple soup that I use to make the most of those wonderful leftovers. I was inspired by a recipe for Vietnamese Congee, which is a strong broth poured over rice, boiled meat and vegetables. Mine is little heartier using broth made from the Thanksgiving Turkey and leftovers like stuffing, potatoes and veggies in cream sauce.


Turkey Congee

The broth:

After cutting off the remaining meat and scooping out the last of the stuffing, put the carcass of your Thanksgiving turkey (or any roasted or baked poultry at any other time of the year) in a large soup pot. Add 3 or 4 celery ribs and about 3 carrots along with salt and peppercorns to taste. Cover the bird to about an inch over it's top with water. The seasonings can be adjusted through the cooking process, but I usually rely on the flavors from the spices I used on the turkey and dressing to flavor the broth. Bring to a boil on high heat and reduce the heat to medium low. Let the broth simmer for up to 6 hours.

When the broth has a rich flavor, remove it from the heat. Strain the broth into a soup tureen or a new pot. retain the celery and carrots to use in the base. Discard the carcass and any remaining pieces of bone.


The base:

This is where it becomes your personal soup! In the original Vietnamese recipe, it calls for rice spooned into the bowl with some cubed boiled meat and vegetables like bean sprouts or curly leaf cabbage. In my after Thanksgiving recipe, I cut into bite sized pieces some of the remaining turkey meat, make stuffing cubes with some of that Mom's Recipe Sage Dressing, and some of the leftover tortellini from our Thanksgiving Day soup. (Tortellini will usually absorb what's left of the broth over night and that adds even more flavor to the Congee) Every year I make a different kind of potato and veggie with Grandma. so every year the congee has a flair all of it's own. Sometimes the potatoes are roasted or they are done in parsley and butter, I use a dollop of mashed the years we do them that way. The veggies are usually in a butter, cream or cheese sauce and a spoon of that adds to the congee flavor too. I also cut the celery and carrots from making the broth and add those too. I even cube some of the leftover cheeses from the fruit and cheese tray. (Havarti in this congee is SO good!) The base ingredients don't have to be warned up, but get them on the table while the broth is reheating so they aren’t refrigerator-cold!


Dinner time!

To serve the congee, I put the tureen with the hot broth in the middle of the table and surround it with the smaller bowls with the base ingredients so everyone can choose their own things to add to the broth.

Spoon the base ingredients of your choice into the center of the bowl. Ladle hot broth over the base ingredients to cover and enjoy!

Congee is really great with a lightly toasted piece of bread or roll leftover from Turkey Day and a slice of that leftover pumpkin pie for dessert!

Krisp Kringles

The original Davinity

Krisp Kringles

1- 6oz bag (1 cup) butterscotch morsels
1/2 cup peanut butter
3 cups Rice Krispies

Melt morsels and peanut butter together in the top half of a double boiler. When mixture is smooth, remover from heat. Mix in Rice Krispies until all of the cereal is coated. Drop the mixture with a tablespoon onto wax paper. Sprinkle with colored sugar if desired. Candies will be set and ready to enjoy in about an hour.

Makes about 2 dozen Kringles

Originally posted at Simply Davine December 2003

Ginger Kids

My recipe is for soft ginger bread. If you roll it a little on the thin side the cookies crisp up just enough to hold up to the frosting but not enough to make them hard.

Ginger Kids

2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 TBS water
1/4 cup molasses
Assorted cookie cutters
frosting
Decorations

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt. set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat i the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually ad the sifted dry ingredients into the mixture. Add more flour if necessary, until the dough forms into a good consistency for rolling.

Roll the dough in medium sized portions onto a floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Dough should be about 1/4" thick or slightly thinner. Using cookie cutters make shape and place the cookies two inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until one. Don't let the cookies get over browned in the oven! place on wire racks to cool.

Decorate with frosting, candies, sprinkles - be creative!

Originally posted at Simply Davine December 2003

Celebration Chocolates

Celebration Chocolates
by Davinities Holidays

I bag of milk or dark chocolate candy melts
2 cups Confectioners sugar
your favorite liquor or liqueur

Empty contents of Chocolate Melts into top section of a double boiler stirring occasionally until melted. While coating is melting, prepare filling.

Put the Confectioner's Sugar in a medium bowl. Gradually add liquor to the sugar, stirring as you go, until the mixture reaches a doughy consistency. hand roll the dough into small balls. if the dough crumbles, add more liquor until it is pliable.

When the chocolate has melted, remove the top half of the double boiler to working area. Using a wooden skewer, pierce one center half way and roll it in the chocolate to cover the center. Drop the ball onto wax paper to dry, using a skewer dipped in chocolate to cover the puncture hole. Repeat until all balls are covered.

Top the balls with confectioner's sugar, sprinkles, or melted colored "chocolate."

For a nice party or gift tray, use a few different liquors and colors of candy coating.

Originally posted at Simply Davine November 2003


Note - in 1987, Michigan State Police representatives acknowledged that one should not eat Celebration Chocolates and drive. (Then they said "Thank you, Merry Christmas," and assured me they would be opened OFF DUTY!)

Mom's Sage Dressing

Mom's Sage Dressing

1 - 10 oz can condensed Cream of Celery soup
1 - 10 oz can of chicken broth
1 1/2 loaves of plain white bread
2 eggs
1/2 stick of butter
2 medium onions, chopped
Fresh sage to taste (we usually use 2 of those boxes of herbs you get sat the grocery store)
Salt, Pepper, Parsley and Garlic Powder to taste

Brown the onions in the butter. Tear the bread into medium sized pieces. Mix the bread, sage and other spices in a large bowl. Add the soup, eggs, broth and onions and knead until thoroughly mixed. Stuff your turkey and cook according to directions on turkey package for a stuffed bird.

Originally posted at Simply Davine November 2002

Davonna's Cranberry Relish

This my family renown cranberry relish. It's tops on Grandma's request list for Thanksgiving!

Davonna's Cranberry Relish

1- 12 oz bag fresh cranberries
1 cup cold water
1 cup sugar
1 small can mandarin oranges
2 small to medium apples peeled and diced
3/4 cups chopped walnuts

Rinse the cranberries and put them in a saucepan with the water and sugar. Boil rapidly until the berries pop and the liquid thickens into a syrup. (about 4-5 minutes) Let cranberries cool. Chop the mandarin oranges and add them with the apples and walnuts to the cranberries. Mix well. Refrigerate before serving.


Originally posted at Simply Davine November 2002