Homemade Wine

The title of this post is real--this recipe is for homemade wine. Mom told me that when all us kids were young, Mom and Dad did not keep alcohol around the house, except for an occasional batch of this wine. I am sure that all my siblings remember the Dad making this wine. It is hard to forget the gallon jug with a balloon on top sitting around for weeks. When we lived on Lincoln, Dad would usually put the jug in the basement near the washer and dryer.

This wine takes time to make, about three weeks. When I made a batch for this post, I used a half-gallon jug because I wanted to use a glass jug and that size is what I had on hand. I simply halved the recipe. You could use any type of jug, such as a milk jug. The wine itself was not bad, and maybe even good. MDS asked me whether it was a merlot or a cabernet, but I told him it was concord. As in concord frozen grape juice concentrate. There is no French appellation for this wine. In researching tips on homemade wine, I read that any flavor frozen juice concentrate could be used. Next time, I will try peach juice frozen concentrate. Also, I used just regular yeast and it turned out fine. But, there are different types of yeast meant for winemaking that allegedly yield better wine. The wine tasted fine to me and was pretty sweet, so I did not need to add extra sugar. All in all, homemade wine was a success.

Homemade Wine

• 2 12-oz. cans of frozen grape juice concentrate, thawed
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 tsp. dry yeast dissolved 
• water
• gallon jug
• balloon

Pour the juice concentrate and sugar into a gallon jug. Add the yeast to one cup warm water (about 115 degrees) with a spoonful of sugar. After the yeast has foamed, add the yeast mix to the gallon jug. Fill the jug with water. Make a pinhole in the tip of a balloon and place the balloon over the spout of the jug. The balloon will inflate a bit as the yeast works. When the balloon deflates (about three weeks), the wine is ready.

The sediment will sink to the bottom. Pour the clear wine out and remove the sediment. You could also pour the wine through a filter (I used a coffee filter and sieve). You may add an additional cup of sugar to sweeten to taste. Enjoy!

Egg Foo Young

Growing up, ordering in Chinese food or actually going to our favorite place, Golden Wok, was a special treat. Perhaps because it was what I grew up with, the Golden Wok is still my gold standard for Chinese food. While I have since learned that Golden Wok serves the typical Americanized Chinese food, I still love it.

Every now and then, Mom would actually make homemade Egg Foo Young. Until now, I had never tried to make it myself. Of course, it is essentially an omelet, so it is quite simple. Egg Foo Young is easy to adjust to whatever ingredients you have handy. You can use any cooked meat, such as pork, beef, or chicken. Mom usually added mini-shrimp. The other classic ingredients include sliced water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, sliced cabbage, mushrooms, and garlic.

Of course, what makes Egg Foo Young special is the brown sauce that is typically served with the dish. I recall that the Egg Foo Young from Golden Wok came drenched in the brown sauce. I served this Egg Foo Young on a bed of brown rice to help soak up the brown sauce. Egg Foo Young can be served with or without rice or noodles, or other accompaniment, but don't serve it without the brown sauce.

Egg Foo Young 

• 6 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 8 oz. can water chestnuts, drained and sliced
• 8 oz. can bamboo shoots, drained and chopped
• 1 Tbsp. chopped garlic
• salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl, mix together the ingredients. Spray a frying pan with cooking spray or coat with oil. Heat the pan on medium. Spoon about 1/2 cup of the egg mixture onto the frying pan. Cook until brown and then flip and cook the second side until brown. Repeat until all the egg mixture is used.

Egg Foo Young Brown Sauce

• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 1/2 cups cold water
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce

Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over low heat. Then, blend in the cornstarch and sugar. Gradually stir in the cold water and soy sauce. Cook and stir until thickened.

Serve the Egg Foo Young with the brown sauce. Enjoy!

Cheese Ball

Mom usually made this cheese ball for big family parties. This recipe is easy and should be made in advance. It can last in the frige for a while and it can even be frozen.

Mom recently hosted the family for Labor Day. Just the day before, I was flipping through Mom's recipe box when I came across this gem. It has been years since I have tasted this cheese ball, but it tastes just as I remember. Mom and I are pictured here enjoying the cheese ball before anyone else had even arrived at the party.

Mom usually used nuts with this recipe to coat the cheese ball, but the recipe states that you could use parsley or paprika instead. I used almonds when I made this cheese ball because I like almonds and had some around the house. Mom seems to think that she used walnuts, but any nut would work. Mom also remembered using parsley and paprika, so I will have to try those another time.

Cheese Ball 

• 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
• 1 jar (4.5 oz.) mushrooms
• 1 Tbsp. dried minced onion
• 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts

Drain and finely chop the mushrooms. Mix the cream cheese, mushrooms, onion and sauce. Chill for about one hour. Form the cheese into a ball and roll in the nuts. Serve with crackers. Enjoy!

Fried Bologna Sandwiches

Yes, you read that title correctly. Mom occasionally made these simple sandwiches for dinner. Really, there is no need for a recipe. Simply fry up some bologna in a frying pan and serve on bread. In my memory, Mom always made the sandwiches with basic white sandwich bread. I remember putting a slice of processed American cheese and mayo on my sandwich. I used thin sliced bologna for these sandwiches, but I seem to recall the bologna being thicker in my childhood than what I found in the grocery store this week. I used classic beef bologna, but I saw turkey, pork and chicken bologna at the store. You could use any type of bread, toasted or untoasted. Of course, there are many potential condiments--consider mayo, ketchup, mustard, pickles or even barbecue sauce. You could even make these sandwiches super fancy by adding lettuce and tomato. There is nothing to stop you from turning a simple bologna sandwich into a masterpiece.

These sandwiches are good even for picky eaters, like MDS, who like the sandwich in spite of himself. He was skeptical, but, ultimately admitted that he enjoyed his sandwich, which he had on toasted bread with mustard. In fact, MDS observed that the sandwich would be better with even more bologna on it. So, next time I make these sandwiches, I will make them with extra bologna.

Fried Bologna Sandwiches

• Bologna (3-5 slices per sandwich)
• sliced bread
• cheese
• condiments

Spray a frying pan with cooking spray. Heat pan with medium heat. Place a layer of bologna in the pan and cook for 3 to 5 minutes per side, or longer, if you prefer. 

Place the fried bologna on bread, add condiments or other toppings. Enjoy!

Broccoli with Cheese Sauce

Whenever Mom made broccoli, she made it with this cheese sauce. I suppose covering broccoli with cheese was Mom's way to get us to eat vegetables. It worked for me because now I love broccoli even without cheese sauce.

MDS, who often claims to dislike cheese, even liked this broccoli with cheese sauce. So I guess that proves that Mom's cheese sauce tastes good to just about everyone.

Recently, when talking with Mom and Megan about this dish, Mom seemed to think that she used her imitation hollandaise sauce with broccoli. But, Meg and I clearly remember that Mom always used this cheese sauce with broccoli and her imitation hollandaise sauce with cauliflower. Nevertheless, this cheese sauce would be tasty with any vegetable. And, stay tuned for cauliflower with imitation hollandaise sauce, which will appear in a future post.

Broccoli with Cheese Sauce 

• 1-pound broccoli
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 2 Tbsp. flour
• 2 Tbsp. milk
• 4 slices American cheese

To prepare the broccoli, cut the broccoli into spears. Add broccoli to boiling water. Cook for about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Place the broccoli in a casserole.

While the broccoli is cooking, make the cheese sauce, by melting the butter in a small sauce pan over low heat. Whisk in the flour. Continue stirring the flour and butter. Add in the milk and blend together. Allow to cook for a few minutes. Then slowly add in the cheese until melted.

Pour the cheese sauce over the broccoli. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Wheat Pizza

Mom occasionally varied her recipes to try to make them healthier. A prime example is Mom's wheat pizza. The recipe is the same as regular pizza, just substituting wheat flour for regular flour. Wheat flour has more nutrients and fiber. For this recipe, I used only wheat flour, but you could also use half wheat flour and half regular flour, or any combination of the two flours.

I know certain siblings were not fans of wheat pizza. As for me, I really like it. The wheat flour gives the pizza a nice flavor that is distinct from standard pizza. You can get standard pizza at just about any pizzeria, but I do not recall seeing wheat pizza on any pizzeria menu. To enjoy wheat pizza, give this recipe a try.

Just as with the regular pizza, Mom usually just used rectangular cookie sheets, so that is what I used here. Although, I do vaguely remember that for a time, Mom did have a round pizza pan. But any kind of pan will work just fine.

Wheat Pizza 
(yields 2 pizzas)

• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water (110 degrees)
• 2-3 cups wheat flour
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. sugar
• Sauce (16 ounces of tomato sauce seasoned with garlic and oregano)
• 2-3 cups mozzarella cheese
• toppings such as cooked sausage (about one pound), veggies, etc.
• grated parmesan cheese

Dissolve yeast in the warm water and let stand for about 10 minutes until foamy. Combine flour, olive oil, salt, sugar, and yeast mixture in a large bowl. Stir well until the dough comes together and is stiff. Add additional flour, if needed. Cover dough and allow to rise until dough has doubled, about 1 to 2 hours. When the dough is almost done rising, cook any of the toppings (such as sausage) that need to be cooked. Turn out dough on floured surface and form into pizza crusts. Grease the pans and sprinkle with semolina flour. Place dough into pans and create a slight edge with the dough. 

Cover the dough with sauce, toppings and mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle pizza with grated parmesan cheese. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes, or until pizza is golden. Enjoy!

Grandma's Carrot Cake

When I was in fourth grade, Mom's parents moved in with us. Grandma and Grandpa had their own "in-law" apartment in our house, but we still spent a lot of time with them, especially hanging out on the front porch. I feel lucky to have grown up and spent so much time with Grandma and Grandpa. Today, July 31, would have been Grandma's 94th birthday. In her memory, here is a terrific cake straight from Grandma's recipe box. This blog will still focus on Mom's recipes, but there are a number of other family recipes that deserve to be here. I know that you will enjoy this one.

Grandma had a serious sweet tooth, which I definitely inherited from her. She made this cake often and so did Mom. The recipe is quite simple. For this post, I used grated carrots, but pumpkin could just as easily be used. Now, when I gave Mom a piece of this cake, she was disappointed that there were no nuts in the cake. Grandma regularly used nuts in the cake. While I like nuts, I usually do not like nuts in cake. And, as you can see from Grandma's own handwritten recipe, you can add nuts if you want. Grandma's recipes were typically direct and without full explanation of the steps. But, also, there is no need to follow a strict recipe; the cake will come out just fine no matter the method used to mix the ingredients together. Use a bundt pan, or as Grandma noted, a tube pan. Also, the recipe for the frosting is not written on the recipe here, but Grandma used the cream cheese frosting recipe noted below for this cake (whether carrot or pumpkin).

Carrot or Pumpkin Cake 

• 3 cups flour 
• 2 tsp. baking soda 
• 5 tsp. baking powder 
• 1 tsp. salt 
• 2 tsp. cinnamon 
• 2 cups sugar 
• 1 ½ cup oil 
• 4 eggs 
• 2 cups pumpkin or grated carrot 
• Add nuts if you want

Mix together all the ingredients. Bake in 350 over 25 to 30 minutes in a bundt pan.

 Cream cheese frosting 

• Cream cheese, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla 
• 2-3 cups powdered sugar
• milk to thicken 

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Frost cake after it has fully cooled. Enjoy!