Chop Suey Caserole

I find this recipe in Mom's recipe box; I suspect Mom found it on a soy sauce label or something similar. Despite the name, it is a very American dish because it includes a can of condensed soup and is a classic American hot dish. In my internet research, I found a number of variations that appear under this name, but I stuck to Mom's version. It is a delicious and filling meal that is quite easy to make.

The prep work for this dish takes a little bit of time because the ground beef needs to be browned. Otherwise, the dish just takes time in the oven. When I made this recipe, I used a smaller dish and had to use two dishes. Next time, I will use one 13x9x2 pan.

Chop Suey Caserole 

• 1 pound ground beef, browned
• 2 cups diced celery
• 1 1/2 cups diced onion
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup rice, uncooked
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup

Combine all the ingredients. Pour into a 13x9x2 baking dish. Bake at 350 for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Enjoy!

Lemon Kuchen

I don't know what is so good about lemon-flavored sweets, but I always enjoy them. I found this recipe in Mom's recipe box and thought it would be terrific for a dreary winter day. Lemon Kuchen is the German name for this lemon pound cake. This Lemon Kuchen is just delicious. 

The recipe's ingredients are mostly basic ingredients that you may readily have available. When I made this recipe, I did not have a lemon handy for grated lemon peel, so I just used lemon juice in the cake batter. The cake was just fine and had a good lemon flavor. This recipe could be turned into orange pound cake by substituting orange for lemon in the recipe.

Lemon Kuchen 

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 2 Tbsp. grated lemon peel
• 4 eggs, separated
• 3 cups flour
• 2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup milk

Lemon Glaze frosting

• 1 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla
• dash of salt

Preheat oven to 350. Combine butter and sugar. Blend in vanilla and lemon. Add egg yolks, one at a time and mix well after each. Add combined dry ingredients alternating with milk, mixing well after each addition. Fold in stiffly beaten egg white. Pour into a greased and floured bundt or tube pan. Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan. Combine the lemon glaze ingredients until well blended. Spread the glaze evenly on the cake. Enjoy! 

Strawberry Cookies

Megan recently hosted a family party for her birthday at her new condo. In addition to the Cannoli Cake that I made for the party, I also made these strawberry cookies. Meg likes strawberries, and I wanted to try a new cookie. This recipe results in delicious cookies and would be good with other fruits, such as raspberries.

This recipe makes delicious and soft cookies. Instead of butter, the cookies use olive oil. And, a little lemon juice is added to the dough. But most importantly, I liked that this recipe uses actual strawberries, not artificial flavoring. Because it was not strawberry season, I used frozen strawberries that worked just fine. I recommend chopping the strawberries into a size similar to chocolate chips. Then reserve some nice pieces to be pushed into the top of each cookie before baking.

Strawberry Cookies 

• 2 eggs
• 3 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 1/3 cup sugar
• 3 1/2 cup flour
• 3 tsp. baking powder
• 2 cups chopped strawberries
• powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, juice, oil, vanilla, and sugar. Add flour and baking powder until combined. Gently mix in most of the chopped strawberries, reserving some for pressing into cookies. Form dough into a ball and drop onto cookie sheet. Press a strawberry piece or two into each cookie. Bake for 13-15 minutes. Allow to cool. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Enjoy!