Smoked Salmon Cheesecake

This recipe sounds good and is Brenda's contribution even though she admits to having stolen it from the Houston Chronicle, via the Denver Junior League Cookbook.

4 ½ tablespoons butter
28 ounces softened cream cheese
½ cup dry bread crumbs
4 eggs
¾ cup grated Gruyere cheese
1/3 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon minced fresh dill weed,or ½ teaspoon dried (fresh is better)
½ teaspoon salt
1/2 pound smoked salmon,coarsely chopped,
1 medium onion, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter an 8 or 9 inch springform pan,using about 1½ tablespoons butter.Use a springform pan with a tight seal to avoid leakage. In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs, ¼ cup Gruyere and dill. Toss to blend. Sprinkle in prepared pan, turning and tapping to coat evenly. Chill while preparing filling.

Melt remailing butter in a heavy skillet with a lid over low heat. Add onion.Cover and cook until soft,stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Set aside. In a food processor, blend cream cheese until smooth.Add eggs, remaining cheese, half- and -half, and salt. Process until smooth. Gently (very gently) stir in onion and salmon (reserve 'bout 2 tablespoons) by hand. Pour into prepared pan. Top with the rest of the salmon.
Set the pan in a large roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with enough water to come halfway up to the top of the springform pan (see why it shouldn't leak?) bake one hour and 20 minutes. Turn off oven and cool cheesecake inside oven, with door ajar, for about one hour. Yes, it smells good, leave it alone! And keep a CLOSE eye if you have a large dog or thieving neighbors.

Transfer the pan to a rack and cool to room temp before removing sides of pan . Store in refrigerator and bring to room temp before serving. Best 24-36 hours after baking. Makes 12 servings.
That's pretty much the original recipe. but storing for 2 days I cannot vouch for. The "serves 12 " is also a blatant lie, IMHO. Just TRY to eat one piece!
If entertainment is sparse the night you serve it, there's an alternative. Wear pants. About an hour after you have your second or third slice, back up to a mirror and watch your butt expand. Enjoy friends! This makes a great entree with a crispy salad and some fresh crusty bread..OMIGOD, did I say bread? Skip the bread. It's also a great appetizer, especially for a beef meal.
Don't substitute ingredients . I gave the recipe to a friend who went nuts over it. She substituted milk for half-and -half, margarine for butter, and used "Lite" cream cheese. She said it tasted like wet newspaper, with a smoky salmon flavor.

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Pork chops á la Deborah

This is Deborah Ingram's masterpiece which she calls Big Weeping Sissy Special
...don't ask me, I don't know why! I'm just passing these recipes along to an unsuspecting world.

2 pork tenderloins
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt
pepper
1 sweet onion (Vidalia, red, or whatever the hell you feel like slicing).
6 small new potatoes (do not peel)
6 carrots, cut in large chunks
6 granny smith apples (or other tart apples), peeled and cored.
sprig of rosemary
1 Tbs of fresh ginger-- diced
3 bay leaves
Brown sugar
brandy or rum..... a few Tbs for the roast, and the rest for you
2 Tbs butter
1 tsp of arrowroot or flour

Put sliced onions on the bottom of a casserole dish (use no-stick spray on the casserole first). Rub the tenderloins with the salt, pepper, and garlic, and place the tenderloin on top of the bed of onions. Stuff the core of the apples with brown sugar, and place around the tenderloins. Moisten the brown sugar with a little brandy, and top with a little slice of butter.
Place cut up carrots and small potatoes around the apples and tenderloins. On top of the roast, place the ginger, bay leaves, and rosemary sprig.
Cover and bake for an hour at 350.
When the roast is done, drain off the liquid into a pan and heat. Add a little arrowroot or flour to thicken, and pour back over the roast.

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Sue's World Famous Dump Cake(for those who don't know it)

Ingredients:
1 yellow or white cake mix
1 can cherry pie filling
1 can pineapple, crushed, cubed, whatever
1 package pecans
1 stick butter or margarine

Directions:
Using any kind of pan, dump cherry pie filling into pan. Dump pineapple into pan. Dump pecans into pan. Dump cake mix into pan.(Do not add egg or oil or eggs or whatever). Dump cake mix right from the box. Warning:do not mix any of the ingredients. Cut stick of butter/margarine over top of cake. Bake in 350 degree oven till brown.
Serve with whipped topping or ice cream.

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Roasted Fall Vegetables

Here's another 'unusual' recipe from Sue which she found somewhere else, so she can't claim that it's an original.

One small sugar pumpkin (3 - 5 pounds)
1 Tbsp.. Olive Oil
1 Tbsp.. Melted Butter or Margarine
½ tsp. Salt
2 large Carrots, sliced
4 small Potatoes, halved and sliced
1 Apple, halved, cored and cut in 12 slices
1 medium Onion, diced
3 cloves Garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. dried Thyme
1/8 tsp. freshly ground Black Pepper

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut top off pumpkin, about 2 in. below stem. Scrape out seeds and stringy pulp with a spoon. Mix oil and butter in a small cup. Lightly brush some inside pumpkin, then sprinkle with ¼ tsp of the salt. Place cut side down at one end of 9 x 13 inch pan. Pile carrots, potatoes, apple, onion and garlic at other end of pan. Drizzle with remaining oil mixture, then sprinkle with remaining salt, the thyme and pepper. Toss to coat, then spread out. Roast 30 minutes, turning vegetables over once. Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees F., turn pumpkin over and continue roasting 15 minutes, turning vegetables once more, until vegetables and pumpkin are tender. Fill pumpkin with vegetables. Cut in wedges to serve.
Yield: 6 servings

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Stottie Cake

...and before you accuse me of disregarding the Trades Descriptions Act, yes, I know it's not a cake. It's bread but that's the name of it! Basically it is the same as ordinary bread but with a subtle difference.

6lbs Strong white bread flour
6 teaspoons of salt
1oz lard
2oz fresh yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
2½ to 3 pints warm water

Mix flour and salt together then rub in the lard. Cream the fresh yeast and sugar and stir in about half of the warm water until dissolved. Leave the yeast mixture until frothy then add to the flour/salt mix together with the rest of the warm water, sufficient to make a firm but not sticky dough. Knead for ten minutes, place in bowl, cover and leave in a warm place until it has doubled in size. Turn out and knead again.
This is where the recipe differs from 'normal' bread. Sufficient is cut after the dough has had its first rising. Roll out to about ½" thick and 6" to 8" diameter. Prick all over with a fork and bake on a floured tray on the bottom of the oven ­ this is important ­ for about 25 to 30 minutes on gas mark 8, 450F.
When baked cut through middle and fill with butter.(Best eaten on the same day!)
Even better, put a few rashers of bacon in also. Best bacon sandwich you ever tasted!

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Red Lobster Cheese Biscuits

This is Linda's contribution to our feast. Now, I've looked long and hard at this recipe but I just cannot find any lobster in it! But that's what she calls it so why should I complain.

Dough:
1 1/4 lbs. Bisquik
3 Oz. freshly shredded cheddar cheese
11 Oz. cold water

Garlic Spread:
1/2 cup melted butter
1 teas. garlic powder
1/4 teas. salt
1/8 teas. onion powder
1/8 teas. dried parsley

To cold water, add Bisquik and cheese, blending in a mixing bowl. Mix until dough is firm.
Using a small scoop, place the dough on a baking pan lined with baking paper. Bake in 375 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. While biscuits bake, combine spread ingredients.
Brush baked biscuits with the garlic topping.

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Okra Pilaf

(4 to 6 servings)

There are many versions of okra cooked with rice. In the South, some are called "Limping Susan", no doubt a relative of "Hoppin' John", a dish of peas and rice. Call it Sue or purloo or pilaf, but try this tasty combination because the bacon in the recipe is an incomparable complement to the vegetable. Serve the pilaf as a lunch or light-supper entree, or as a side dish with almost any menu. I always put Tabasco sauce on the table.

3 thick slices bacon, cut in 1 inch lengths
1 pound okra, trimmed and cut in 1/2 inch slices
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup rice
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
Salt and cayenne pepper or hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco, to taste

Cook the bacon until the slices are just beginning to brown. Remove all but 3 tablespoons of bacon fat. Add the okra and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes. Add the bell pepper and onion, stir and cook until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and broth, stir once, bring to a boil. reduce the heat to low,cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until the rice has absorbed the broth but is not dry. Season with salt and cayenne pepper or hot pepper sauce, fluff and serve.

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Guacamole

Jerry C posted this one. Thanks Jerry, I know you don't mind me borrowing it (I think)

Take two avocados (they should be dark green, and just slightly mushy), cut them in half, pop out the pit and scoop out the flesh with a spoon (easier than trying to peel the slippery things, and you lose less flesh - both from you and the avocado).
Crush two or three (or eight or sixteen) cloves of garlic ( I use about four), and throw that on the avocado.
Squeeze the heck out of about half a lemon (or about all of a lime), and then go by taste (it's easy to overdo the lemon part). Mash all this together until it's smooth.
Chop up a small onion and throw it in (it's easy to over-onion this recipe), along with about half a normal size tomato, (I like to have decent size chunks of onion and tomato, just for texture. But I know there are people out there who are going to puree it like baby food anyway. Don't. For me, okay?).
Give it a little more mashing and stirring, then cover the bowl (did I mention to do this in a bowl? If not, scrape everything off the counter into a bowl) and put it in the fridge. If you give it about an hour, the garlic will seep through and blend the flavors together. If you have a problem with the top layer discoloring, it is said putting one of the pits on top will help. It never works for me.

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That Alaka Guy's Chilli

If you are living in the frozen wastes of Alaska then it is no surprise to find this a popular recipe!

3 cups dried onions (or fresh -- I just don't like chopping.  If you use fresh onions, you probably ought to use less.)
1/2 cup peanut oil
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 pounds lean ground pork

The next part is a basic recipe for the chili powder.  Use all of it or as much as you have a taste for.  If you don't use all of it, add enough salt to the brew to compensate.  I use all of it.

2 1/2 ounces ground red pepper (I use medium New Mexican chili -- So sue me, I'm from there!)
1 ounce dried garlic powder plus 1 tablespoon
1 1/2 ounces dried cumin plus 3 tablespoons
1/2 ounce dried Mexican oregano
2 tablespoons salt
continuing....
4 fifteen-ounce cans of Ranch Style (brand name) pinto beans
1 quart boiling water
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
1 tablespoon Folgers or Taster's Choice dark instant coffee
3 tablespoons or so crunchy peanut butter
OPTIONAL - chopped fresh jalapeno peppers to taste, with or without seeds,
Thai peppers or Habaneros.

Once the onions have soaked up about two cups of water (enough to moisten, not enough to have any left over -- use a fine strainer and drain them for a few minutes to make sure), saute them in the peanut oil until soft and golden, NOT BROWN.  Use the same strainer and drain the oil off after they're cooked. 
In a heavy two gallon pot over medium heat, brown and kibble the meat.  Toward the end of the cooking, add onions, jalapenos and chili powder.  Continue cooking just a few minutes until the mixture blends a bit, the chili's wilt just a little and all the flavors transfer.  Add the boiling water and beans.  (Watch it with the water,  you want stew, not soup.)  Add the coffee, peanut butter and chocolate. Keep it warm while stirring constantly until the last ingredients disappear into the mix. Don't have the heat too high, or you'll burn the stuff on the bottom of the pot.

Can be served immediately but gets lots better if left to cool for a day in the fridge and then reheated in little microwave batches and topped with shredded rat cheese and raw chopped purple onions.  Serve with Beano, chili-cheese cornbread and a medium dry brown designer ale of some sort, or Gallo Hearty Burgundy (used to be good....)

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Terry's Killer Kurry

8 oz margarine
3 medium onions
3 firm sweet apples, largish
1 tablespoon of Madras curry paste
2 tablespoons curry powder
3 pints of beef stock(make it with beef stock cubes)
qtr teaspoon of salt and same black pepper
2 dessert spoons white sugar
4 ozs of sultanas
1 good teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon hot chili sauce
1 eggcup of lemon juice
10 ozs of pineapple chunks
3 teaspoons vinegar
1 of each,red,green and yellow peppers
2 lbs of lean beef or all the meat from 4 to 5 lb chicken
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon haldi (spice)
1/2(half) teaspoon ground ginger
1/2(half) teaspoon ground garlic
1/2(half) teaspoon ground cumin seed
4 ozs of dessicated coconut
plain flour to thicken.

Here's how;
strip and slice the peppers into narrow strips. peel and dice the apple,discard core and soak in lemon juice to stop apple browning. In a large jug, mix all the spices,sugar,salt and pepper,paste and sauce, and 1 stock cube fill with 1 pint boiling water and stir well. If beef is used stir fry at high heat to sear the surface,then put on one side and cover. slice and dice the onions and fry in 1 oz of the marg in a large wok or other pan until soft, add the peppers and stir fry together for a couple of minutes. add all the spice mix and the rest of the margarine. add the sultanas and coconut and stir well,add 2 pints of stock. add the meat and simmer for 1 hour, add the pineapple cubes. simmer for further 1/2(half) hour, add apple and thicken with flour. stir well until all flour lumps if any have dissappeared, check that meat is properly cooked through then serve with boiled white rice,indian popadoms and plenty of tea, do not drink loads of water if you are thirsty it will only make your thirst worse!

If you prefer chicken part-cook a 4/5 lb chicken for 1 hour,strip all the usable meat off the carcase and dice,use in the same way as beef.

If you want a veggy curry substitute peas,carrots,cauliflower,sweet corn or whatever you fancy for the meat and adjust cooking time to suit.

The above amount will serve about six people, or do as I do and cook a batch then freeze whatever is left over. If you can keep the pan off direct contact with the heat source it will stop the stuff sticking to the pan,I have a support ring about two inches high that my Wok stands on and it works perfect,all you need do is turn the heat up a little higher than normal.

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Banana & Raisin Slimwich

This is Bunty's favourite meal!

2 slices wholemeal or granary bread
1 banana
A handful of raisins
1 teasp honey

Mash the banana onto one slice of bread
Spread the other slice with the honey
Place the raisins on top of the banana
Place the second slice on top of the first slice (honey side down, of course)
Eat!

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Lancashire Hotpot

Another gut-buster from Terry (nouvelle cuisine? not in these pages! this is the place for real food!!)

one and a half lbs potatoes
one and a half lbs mutton
2 sheeps kidneys
1 large onion
quarter pint of stock

Arrange a layer of sliced potatoes in the bottom of a casserole dish. Cut the meat into pieces and remove the fat from the kidneys,then skin,core and slice them. Place the meat over the potatoes. Add the onion, sliced, over the meat with seasoning and stock. Cover with the remaining slices of potatoes and a lid or cover with foil. Bake in a moderate oven for 2 hours, remove lid or foil for last 15 mins. Bake until browned.
Traditionally served with pickled red cabbage.

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Melon Pickle

7 pounds watermelon rind
7 cups sugar
2 cups vinegar
1/2 teaspooon OIL of cloves
1/2 teaspoon Oil of cinnamon

Trim off dark green and pink parts of watermelon rind. Weigh it, cut into 1 inch cubes. Soak in 1/4 cup salt to 1 quart water; drain; rinse and cover with cold water. Cook until just tender, not soft. Drain. Combine rest of ingredients; heat to boiling; pour over rind. Let stand overnight. In the morning pour off syrup; heat and pour over rind. Repeat. The third morning, heat rind in syrup; seal in hot sterilized jars. The oils of cinnamon and cloves keep the rind clear. Makes about 8 pints.

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Sweet Potato Fries

2 tablespoons orange juice
1 teaspoon Onion powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 lb Sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2" sticks

Preheat oven to 450F
Line a cookie sheet with foil and spray with Pam(btw, this comes in fat free buttery spray, very good, I used it on my regular french fries that I make in the oven)
In a medium bowl combine orange juice, onion powder, salt and cayenne. Add potato sticks and turn to coat.
Arrange coated potato sticks on the oiled foil in a single layer. Bake 10 min; turn carefully, bake 10 more minutes or until tender.

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