Category: Grandpa’s Use Only

These recipes are for Grandpa and his family. This category includes recipes from magazines, TV shows, newspapers, and other sources where I don’t have permission to republish the recipes, but still feels they are recipes that he may want to cook for himself at a later time.

Buttercream Frosting

Easy Buttercream

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (115 grams) unsalted butter (softened)
  • 1.5 cups (180 grams) powdered sugar
     For a sweeter frosting, mix in an additional 1/4 C
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) heavy cream or heavy whipping cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • Tiny pinch of salt

Instructions

  1. In the large mixing bowl, combine the butter and powdered sugar.  Mix with a hand-held mixer until smooth and fully combined.
  2. Add the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt
  3. Continue mixing on medium speed until everything is well combined.
  4. Pipe the frosting onto cupcakes or frost a cake.
 

Note

Frosting can be made 1 to 2 days in advance, cover tightly and transfer to the refrigerator. Remove from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before frosting cupcakes/cakes.

 

Heavy Cream: You may replace the heavy cream with milk, but the frosting won’t be quite as creamy.

 

Recipe Variations

  • Vanilla: For a vanilla buttercream frosting, double the vanilla.
  • Chocolate: Sift 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder and mix it into the frosting base until well combined.
  • Caramel: Mix in 1/4C  caramel ice cream topping.
  • Strawberry: Add a 1-ounce frozen strawberries to the bowl at Step 2 above.

American Buttercream

  1. Combine
    • 2 sticks softened butter
    • 1/2 C shortening
    • scant salt and 1 tsp vanilla
  2. Combine with
    • 12-14 oz confectioner sugar
  3. Beat everything using your paddle attachment
  4. Add
    • 1/4 C buttermilk
    • 2 TBL (1 oz) sour cream
  5. Blend until combined
  • Ice round cakes on a lazy susan
  • You can elevate the cake by putting a flat mixing bowl on the lazy susan at the beginning
  • Put a blob of icing on the cardboard cake round to “hold” the cake still
  • Cut the puffy top off so that layered cakes will sit evenly.
  • Using a long knife or long saw blade, cut even layers
  • Cut a notch in the side of the cake to help with alignment later
  • Ice between layers
  • Create a “crumb coat” of icing that will be covered up later.
  • Put the crumb coat into the fridge for 20-30 minutes to harden
  • Apply the final outside layer of icing.
  • To create “writing chocolate” combine 1 C chocolate chips and 2 tsp canola oil.  Stir together, then microwave for 60 seconds.  Stir to mix, then put into a piping bag or squirt bottle.  As you are writing, back up and the end of each letter.

Baked Avocado Rolls

CLICK HERE for Avocado Tips and Tricks.  

1 avocado- diced
1/4 C red onion – minced
1/4 C sun dried tomatoes
1 TBL chopped cilantro
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 lime – juice
– TOSS

4-6 egg roll wrappers
Wrap / roll – Seal edge with water
Tray & spray
Turn & spray
Bake 20 min @ 350°
Turn and bake 20 min more

Serve with dipping sauce

CLICK HERE for more great recipes from TipHero.

Lemon Blueberry Pie

Ingredients
9″ graham cracker pie crust
1 pkg (8oz) cream cheese
1 can(s) (14oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/4 c powdered sugar
1 box (3.4 oz) instant lemon pudding mix
2 Tbsp freshly grated lemon zest
1/4 c lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1 can(s) (21 oz) premium blueberry pie filling

Directions
1 -Combine cream cheese, condensed milk and powdered sugar in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, mix at medium speed for 1-2 minutes, until smooth. Add pudding mix, lemon zest and lemon juice; mix until well blended.

2-Spoon about half of the LUCKY LEAF Premium Blueberry Pie Filling evenly into bottom of graham cracker crust. Spoon lemon-filling mixture on top and spread evenly. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour.

3-Spoon remaining Lucky Leaf Premium Blueberry Pie Filling on top just before serving. Garnish with fresh lemon zest if desired.
FullSizeRender-58

Growing Tomatoes

After the last frost set your tomato plants outside to start adapting to the environment.

Your plants should be about ten inches high without flowers or fruit.

Prepare a hole about eight inches deep.

Put a banana peel in the bottom of the hole and cover it with a little bit of compost or potting soil.

Strip off the lower leaves and put the plant into the hole.

Fill in with soil that has been amended with compost.

Fertilize with Vitamin B

Roots will grow from the entire buried stem.

 

Kitchen Gadgets

There are certain gadgets and things that should be in every kitchen.  Some are nice-to-haves but some are essential.  Here is Grandpa’s list of things that you need for your kitchen, with a rating of 1, 2 3, or 4 pomegranates.  This translates to (1) OK if you like to own gadgets, (2) This is really helpful, but only if you have enough space to store it, (3) You should really try to make room for this, and (4) After using this a few times, you will wonder how you ever got along without it.  Click on the item name to be taken to Amazon.com t(or other) o order one.

Microplane Grater  This is good for zesting lemons, oranges, nutmeg, cheese and many other things.  You will use this fairly often.
OXO Good Grips Y Peeler Any peeler is a must-have, but this is the one that I like.  Don’t invest too much money cause they will become dull after a year or two of normal use.  Just throw it away and get another one when this happens – don’t try to sharpen it.
  Zester
  Digital Kitchen Scale
IR Gun Thermometer This SOUNDS like it is just a fun toy, but I use mine several times each week.  This is good for pancakes (350º)  scrambling an egg (300º)  making caramel (385º) and setting the temperature of your bath (105º).  I also use it to test the pavement to see if it is too hot for my dog without her booties (120º)
  ThermaPen by ThermoWorks  A thermapen is used to
Wireless Cooking Thermometer
   Paring Knife
   Bread Knife
   Chef’s Knife
  Bench Knife
  Crinkle Cutter

 

Dulce de Leche

DIY from scratch

This is a great topping for cakes and ice cream.

Place a can of sweetened condensed milk (with the label removed) on its side in the bottom of a stockpot filled with water, and covering the can completely with water, plus about an inch. Replenishing the water as necessary to keep the can totally submerged.   This prevents the can from bursting.

LONG AND SLOW METHOD – CONSISTENT RESULTS

Keep the closed can at a low simmer for 3-4 hours.

Using tongs, transfer the can to a wire rack and let cool completely before opening.

Drizzle the caramel over the ice cream or use it as a filling for sandwich cookies.

Leftover dulce de leche can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight tight container and re-warmed in a double boiler or microwave.

FASTER DULCE de LECHE

If you are in a hurry, pour the condensed milk into a casserole, then put the casserole into a larger baking pan with hot water coming up about halfway.  Cover the casserole with foil and bake at 350º for 90 minutes.

Here is another recipe

Alternate Recipe

  • Step 1: Heat the sugar over medium heat in a non-stick frying pan or 2-quart saucepan. Stir constantly using a rubber spatula. Within a few minutes the sugar will start to liquify and turn amber in color. Keep stirring until the sugar fully dissolves into a brown-colored syrup.
  • Step 2: Turn the flame down low and add the sweetened condensed milk (keep stirring as you’re adding it) and then add the butter and vanilla extract. The caramelized sugar will start to harden and bubble when you add the ingredients. Keep stirring, the mixture will become smooth again after 5-7 minutes. 
  • Step 3: Carefully transfer the dulce de leche to a small bowl or mason jar. Let it cool slightly.

Vegetable Fries ~~ 4

Eggplant Fries

  1. Skin and cut spears
  2. Brush with EVOO
  3. Dredge in 1/2 C flour
  4. Dredge in 1 C flour, 1/4 C beer, 1 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1 tsp cornstarch
  5. Fry in peanut oil heated to 365º till golden brown
  6. Serve with tzatziki sauce

Tzatziki Sauce

  • 1/2 C yogurt, 1 tsp sesame oil, 3 leaves ginger, salt, thyme, oregano and marjoram to taste
Sweet Potato Fries
Zucchini Panko Fries
Parsnip Fries

Pintxos

Pintxos (pronounced PEEN chose) have been around in Spain for many years.  They are now catching on in the United States.  It is essentially a TAPAS which is a more common word.

A TAPAS literally translates as a small top.  Drinks were served with (bartender’s choice) of a tapas plate on top, so that it would keep the bugs and flies out.  Not quite as necessary as before there was indoor plumbing, tapas is still served in most restaurants and bars in Spain.  The picture link below shows lots of food on most of the plates.  A tapas in Spain would be a few pieces on the plate, and would run you a dollar or two.

tapas

  • Aceituna is the Spanish word for olive.  These are frequently served on the side, just as we are served taco chips at a Mexican restaurant.
  • Boquerones are anchovies.  They are usually lightly picked or in a heavy cream.  They will frequently be served on top of biscotti or a cracker.
  • La Gilda is the toothpick on which the aceitunas and boquerones are skewered along with a guindilla pepper.
  • Montaditos are small sandwiches served with shaved slices of Iberican Ham, which is a staple in most Spanish kitchens.
  • Morcilla is Spanish pork blood sausage.  No my favorite, but at least I can say I’ve tried it.
  • Pulpo IS one of my favorites.  Octopus – grilled and served in a small pool of guajillo tomato and pepper salsa

A collection of photos of different types of tapas would fill my entire computer, so here is a GOOGLE LINK that will allow you to view hundreds of different tapas. If you have an even mildly active imagination, you will see plenty of these that you could create for your next party or potluck.

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