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Great Recipes From the Past

Cross Country Cookery

Shrimp Christmas Tree

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The Shrimp Christmas Tree comes from the Cross Country Cookery cookbook.  The recipe suggests that you could also make the Shrimp Christmas Tree with ivy leaves. For summer you might try fresh strawberries and serve with bowls of powdered sugar so guests can dip their own.

This makes quite attractive center piece and is a conversational item!

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Shrimp Christmas Tree

Servings 12 servings

Ingredients

  • 3 lb frozen shrimp peeled and deveined
  • 2 quart water
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 4 large bunches curly endive
  • 1 styrofoam cone - 2 1/2 foot high
  • 1 styrofoam square 12x12x1
  • 1 small box round toothpicks

Instructions

  1. Place frozen shrimp in salted boiling water. Let shrimp return to boiling. Cook from 2-3 min. Do not overcook. Drain and chill.

  2.  Separate and wash endive. Drain well. Chill.

  3. Place cone in center of styrofoam square and draw circle around the base of the cone. Cover base and cone with overlapping leaves of endive. Fasten endive to styrofoam with tooth pick halves. Start at the outside edge of the base and work up. Cover fully with greens to resemble Xmas tree.
  4. Attach shrimp to tree with toothpicks. Provide cocktail sauce for dunking.

Spumoni with Holly Berry Sauce

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This ice cream dessert is perfect for Christmas time, and it comes from Cross Country Cookery.  Feel free to use frozen orange juice concentrate in place of the triple sec.

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Spumoni with Holly Berry Sauce

A delightful finale for a Yule meal!

Ingredients

For the ice cream

  • 3 pints chocolate ice cream softened
  • 1 pint pistachio ice cream softened
  • 2 pints vanilla ice cream softened
  • 1/2 cup candied mixed fruits
  • 2 teaspoon rum flavoring
  • 1 1/2 cup heavy cream whipped

For the Holly Berry Sauce

  • 1 10 oz pkg frozen raspberries defrosted
  • 1 10 oz pkg frozen strawberries defrosted
  • 2 tablespoon triple sec

Instructions

Make the Ice Cream

  1. Place a 2 1/2 quart melon mold in freezer.
  2. In large bowl, beat chocolate ice cream until smooth, but not melted. Quickly press evenly inside mold in 1" thick layer. Freeze until firm.
  3. Repeat with pistachio pressed evenly over chocolate.
  4. Combine vanilla ice cream, candied fruits, and rum flavoring. Beat till well blended, but not melted. Press into center. Freeze.

Make the Holly Berry Sauce

  1. Put berries and triple sec into blender. Whirl till smooth. Strain. Serve in refrigerator till serving time.

Finish the Dessert

  1. Unmold the ice cream. Decorate with sweetened whipped cream. Serve topped with Holly Berry Sauce.

Mother’s Cheese Straws

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Here is a recipe for cheese straws from 1976’s Cross Country Cookery by Helen Bemis Black.

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Mother's Cheese Straws

Ingredients

  • 1 cup flour sifted
  • 1 cup cheese grated
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tablespoon cold water
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 dash red pepper
  • 1 tablespoon butter

Instructions

  1. Mix dry ingredients and butter, then cheese.
  2. Add cold water to beaten egg yolk - mix together as for pie crust.
  3. Roll thin.
  4. Cut in strips 6" long and 1/8"wide.
  5. Bake in 400 oven until light brown.
  6. Stack on plate like a "pig pen." Best I ever ate!

Heavenly Ice Cream Puff Fondue

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Talk about a special summer dessert! This Heavenly Ice Creme Puff Fondue is sure to please anyone with a sweet tooth.

The recipe comes from the Cross Country Cookery cookbook.

To serve, heat the chocolate fondue sauce slowly in fondue pot. Arrange frozen filled puffs on plate, five to a serving.

Each guest spears puff into sauce and swirls to coat.

If you wish, provide small bowls of flaked coconut, chopped pecans, and sprinkles for dipping.

Makes 6 servings.

To prepare this dessert, you will make the cream puffs, stuff the cream puffs with ice cream, then make the fondue.

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Heavenly Ice Cream Puff Fondue

Course Dessert

Ingredients

Cream Puffs

  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 cup oleo or butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup all purpose flour sifted
  • 4 eggs

Chocolate Fondue Sauce

  • 1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 12 ounce package semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1 7 ounce jar marshmallow cream
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Heavenly Cream Puff Fondue

  • 30 miniature cream puffs
  • 1 pint burgundy cherry ice cream
  • 1 pint chocolate mint ice cream
  • 1 pint jaimoca ice cream
  • 2 cups chocolate fondue sauce

Instructions

Make the cream puffs

  1. Slowly bring water, butter, and salt to a boil in medium saucepan. Turn heat on low. 

  2. Stir in flour all at once. Beat until mixture leaves sides of pan and forms small compact ball. Remove from heat. 

  3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. 

  4. Drop dough by slightly rounded teaspoonsful, about the size of a quarter, 2" apart onto ungreased baking sheet. 
  5. Bake in a preheated 375 oven 25-30 min or until puffed and golden. 

  6. Cool away from draft. Makes 60-70 puffs. You will need 30 for this recipe.

Build the cream puffs

  1. Cut tops off puffs. Pull out dough to form shell. 
  2. Fill and mound six puffs, using melon ball cutter with one flavor of ice cream. 
  3. Press tops into ice cream. Freeze. 
  4. Repeat with other flavors. Continue until all are filled and frozen. 
  5. Place in freezer bag and store until needed. 

Make the Chocolate Fondue Sauce

  1. Combine ingredients in fondue pot or saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring until mixture is smooth and warmed thoroughly.

Recipe Notes

  • May use 1 cup miniature marshamallows for the marshmallow cream.
  • Chocolate Fondue Sauce can be made ahead and reheated. Add a little more milk if sauce becomes too thick. Makes 4 cups sauce.

 

Crunchy Munchies

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This sounds an awful lot like any number of different Chex Mix you’ve had. Just add this to your collection of recipes because you know how much you love these.

The recipe is from the Cross Country Cookery cookbook.

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Crunchy Munchies

Ingredients

  • 1 pkg cheese tidbits
  • 1 pkg rice chex
  • 1 lb dry roasted nuts
  • 1 6 oz pkg thin pretzel sticks
  • 1 12 oz pkg bite size shredded wheat
  • 1 pkg pretzel nuggets
  • 1 jar onion bacos
  • 1 pkg fish shaped cheese crackers
  • 2 tablespoon tabasco
  • 2 tablespoon worcestershire
  • 1 tablespoon garlic salt
  • 1 tablespoon celery salt
  • 1 tablespoon onion salt
  • 1 pinch Lowry's seasoned salt
  • 1 cup oleo

Instructions

  1. Break pretzels.
  2. Mix dry ingredients in roaster (you can choose whatever kind of nuts you want to add.)
  3. Combine seasonings and melted oleo. Pour over dry ingredients and coat well.
  4. Bake at 325, uncovered, 1 1/2 hours. Stir often.
  5. Remove. Cool. Store airtight.