Cooking Lessons with Mom

My Mom is the best cook! She can whip up anything and it always turns out. So when she comes to visit, I try and learn how from her. I hope I can have at least half her talent!


This year the menu consisted of:

Grandma Hodgen's Angel Food Cake
Nana's Moons
and Mom's Famous Lasagna

Grandma Hodgen's Angel Food Cake

Here is the Recipe for the Angle Food cake. This cookbook is a special Hodgen family cookbook. The recipes were compiled by the family and as you can see in the picture, even the handwritten originals from Grandma Hodgen were scanned it. Too special!


Forming the stiff peaks with the 13 egg whites~


The finished cake, we then placed it upside down on a wine bottle overnight to set.


The finished cake. To serve, we topped with fresh strawberries and blue berries.....Delicious!

Grandma Hodgen's Angle Food Cake Recipe:

2 cup egg whites (approx 13)
1 1/3 tsp cream tartar
5 tsp water (cold)
1 1/3 c cake flour

Sift flour and measure. Then sift with 2/3 c sugar. Set aside. Sift remaining 1 1/3 c. sugar separately. Set aside. Beat egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar. Beat until stiff. Add water. Gradually add the 1 1/3 sugar. Fold in, beat or stir slowly. Then add flour/sugar mixture and fold in slowly. Pour into angel food cake pan. Bake 1/2 hour at 250 degrees F. Increase heat to 325 degrees F for another 1/2 hour.


As for Nana's Moon's we attempted to bake them just right....However they are tricky, as the temperature needs to be just right! No humidity, fresh eggs, and a little not so specific instructions. But a great delicious treat to have.


And the brown paper bags are a must... Silly me, I didn't take a picture of the finished product. White cream filling to create the finished moon. They did turn out delicious, but not quite like Nana's!

Nana's Moons Recipe

Filling:
1 Box conf. sugar
1/2 or more small jar marshmallow
About 3/4 cup Crisco
Milk and small splash of vanilla

Add gradually until consistency to spread. Mix with mixer until sluffy.

Moons
Oven at 400 degrees F for 7 min
2 c flour (sifted)
1/2 c cocoa (Hershey's unsweetened)
1 tsp vanilla
1 c sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 c milk (evaporated 1/2 with 1/2 water)
1 egg (fresh)

Sift together, dry ingrediants. Add Crisco, milk, egg, and vanilla. Mix by hand. Drop on cookie sheet with tsp. Cool on brown paper bag. No Crisco needed for cookie sheet. Makes 2 dozen moons.


Here is the recipe for the Lasagna....No pictures, but absolutely amazing:)

Mom’s Lasagna

Brown 1 ½ lb. Hamburger with 1 med diced onion. Drain off grease.

Add: ½ diced green pepper

2 cloves garlic or ¼ tsp. Garlic powder

1 – 16 oz. Can tomato sauce

2 – 6 oz. Italian tomato paste

1 can tomatoes (I use 1 pt. Stewed tomatoes)

1 sm stalk celery, diced

3 bay leaves

4 whole cloves

1 tsp. Oregano, 1 tsp. Salt, ½ tsp pepper

1 tbsp sugar

Cover and let simmer 1 hour. Remove bay leaves and cloves. Cook 1 pkg lasagna noodles and drain. Use ½ - ¾ lb. Grated Swiss cheese and ½ - ¾ lb grated mozz. Cheese. Layer noodles, sauce, cheese. Repeat. Bake covered @350 for 45 min – 1 hr. 9 x 13 greased pan. Let set for 10 min. before serving.