Fare Exchange: Using leftover turkey; 'Terrible Ted's' hot applesauce cake

TO REACH USFare Exchange is a longtime meeting place for people who love to cook and love to eat. We welcome both your recipes and your requests. Be sure to include precise instructions for every recipe you send.• Mailing address: Jane Henegar, 913 Mount Olive Road, Lookout Mountain, GA 30750• E-mail: chattfare@gmail.com

Get your pencils, pots and pants ready, as usual, as you enter the print or online portals of Fare Exchange. Pork and beans are the requested topic today, specifically the recipe that Van Camp's once printed on its label, the one with brown sugar and molasses.

Foodie Kay sent that request from Apison, informing us that we are her last resort. Even the helpline at ConAgra, Van Camp's parent company, can't produce the recipe. I'm betting on this readership.

Here's another request for clarification about sourdough, and it comes from Linda Springer. "I have just used your recipe for starter and was wondering if this should be sealed when put in the refrigerator and what you use to store it in - glass, plastic, etc. Thanks so much."

A Kimball Weekly reader agreed with last week's praise of Tajin seasoning, the shakeable version of chili and lime flavors. K.W.R., who says she reads weekly and uses Fare Exchange recipes often, suggests using Tajin on "almost all fruits, even watermelon. It is a great spice."

Do you ever wonder what the rich and the famous cook? H.B.S. discovered what Ted Turner makes at Christmas, so we can start with him. First published in the 1984 issue of Esquire magazine, this recipe is attributed to the man who, according to Esquire, "once was known as Ted the Terrible at his Tennessee prep school." That would be the McCallie School, and here's the recipe, certainly suited for the month after Christmas as well.

Ted Turner's Applesauce Cake

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1-1/2 cups hot applesauce

2 cups sifted flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon clove and allspice mix

1 cup chopped nuts

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the hot applesauce. Mix and sift the dry ingredients and spices, and add to the first mixture. Add the nuts. Pour into a greased Bundt pan or tube pan and bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes.


The problem of leftovers is especially, well, problematic when we have loaded the serving board to groaning on special occasions. M.H.W. offers an easy solution to the turkey aftermath or the chicken surplus.

"When I need to use celery and stretch chicken, I go to this recipe, submitted by John H. Wilds in the 'Dining with Pioneers, Vol. 1' cookbook."

Golden Chicken or Turkey Bake

3 cups cooked chicken or turkey

1-1/2 cups thin celery slices

1 cup cubed cheddar or American cheese

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 cup cornflake crumbs

Combine all ingredients in a bowl except cornflake crumbs. Spoon into a 10-by-6-inch baking dish; cover with cornflake crumbs. Bake in a 325-degree oven for 35 minutes. Makes 6 servings.


The request for what to do with fresh cranberries brought this response from Yeast of the Ridge. I saw this shortly after receiving an email about the great value of fruits; the writer was highlighting cranberries, strawberries, blueberries and raspberries. Berries, in other words.

Here is the simple recipe that appeared first in the magazine Bon Appétit. This dish goes well with roast pork, turkey or chicken. And, says the writer, "try it stirred into wild rice with toasted pecans."

Roasted Cranberries with Thyme

2 cups raw cranberries

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

1 tablespoon sugar

Toss cranberries with olive oil, thyme and sugar. Roast in a preheated oven at 400 degrees until softened and slightly caramelized, 15 to 20 minutes.


Here's one more recipe from the "Town and Country Cookbook," this particular copy a gift of Margaret Collins. I remember thinking this was the very best dressing at Town and Country decades ago when they had a trendy new idea: the bottomless salad bowl. Note that the base is an entire quart of mayonnaise, with dominant proportions of vinegar and blue cheese.

Town and Country Blue Cheese Salad Dressing

1 quart mayonnaise

5 dashes Tabasco sauce

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1 teaspoon white pepper

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup vinegar

1 pound blue cheese

Mix well. Keep refrigerated.


And in the space that remains, here's an old-fashioned recipe sent by Anonymous, attributed to the anything-but-old-fashioned Williams Sonoma Kitchens.

Hoecakes

1 cup fine-grind cornmeal

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion, white and light green portion

1 egg

1 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 tablespoons canola oil

In a bowl, stir together cornmeal, baking powder, salt, sugar and green onion. Add egg, buttermilk and butter; whisk to combine.

Heat griddle to medium heat and pour 1 tablespoon oil onto griddle; spread with spatula. Dispense or pour batter onto griddle in 2-inch circles. Begin by testing 1 or 2 hoecakes to see if griddle is hot enough. They should be done when cooked about 30 seconds per side. Watch carefully.


The discussion last week about indispensables in the kitchen made me think of one more, and then it's your turn. What is your opinion of silicone pot-holders/trivets, easy to find in rounds or squares? They can be tossed in the dishwasher or washing machine, but they don't get singed and stained like their cloth counterparts.

More importantly, what is indispensable in your kitchen? Please let us know, so we can copy you.

Just a Dash ...

A reader named Anne has done this little trick for years, "freezing all the vegetable broth from cooking different vegetables. Keep a vessel there and just pour any broth on top. Right now I have only squash and asparagus in my stock pot, but expect to add the broth from mushrooms and onions tonight. Thaw and taste and add ingredients needed to balance the flavor, and any fresh cooked or frozen vegetables."

There you have it for today, dear readers. We all need new ideas to spice up these wintry days ... send 'em on.

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