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Food For Thought

We share recipes and stories about family traditions and legacy in our "Food For Thought" section.

We share recipes and stories about family traditions and legacy in our “Food For Thought” section.

Food For Thought: Cranberries – the North American Fruit

Vicki Prock, Galliard Special Projects

VickiWhile no one knows exactly how the first Thanksgiving feast was pulled off, it is certain cranberries were on the table. One of the few fruits native to North America, the cranberry was used as food, for dyeing fabrics and very likely were offered at that first community meal we now call Thanksgiving. While the inexperienced might view cranberries only as the gelatin the comes slurping out of a can once a year; where I live in Wisconsin the cranberry is a major crop and bountifully represented in hometown and church basement recipe books. My favorite is still the one my mom has brought to the table for as many years as I can remember

Ingredients:
1 lb. cranberries, cleaned and sorted.
One orange, peeled and cut into small chunks.
“About” ¼ cup sugar.

Directions:
CranberriesPut cranberries in saucepan and cover with water. Heat to boiling and add orange pieces. Stir cranberries and orange as they slow boil and the cranberries begin to pop open (usually 10-15 minutes). Continue cooking until all cranberries are popped and mixture begins to thicken.

Cranberries are a bitter and sweet fruit so you can add sugar (or sweetener) to your own taste. The added orange in this recipe naturally sweetens the mixture so less sugar is typically needed.

Let ingredients cool and pour into a bowl. (My mom has used the same small cut-glass bowl for so many years I can’t even imagine not seeing it on the table.)

Refrigerate for several hours before serving.

We’re looking for more recipes for our “Food for Thought” section. What recipes carry special significance for you and your family? Click here to submit a recipe.

Read moreFood For Thought: Cranberries – the North American Fruit

Grandma’s Chili Sauce

This recipe is for my grandmother’s chili sauce. It is the best thing possible to incorporate into a meatloaf.  It makes the best meatloaf in the world. This one has been passed down to myself from her and she got it from my great-grandmother, so we are on generation four with it.
chilisauce

  • 1 peck (15 lbs) of skinned ripe tomatoes
  • 1 quart of yellow onions – chopped fine
  • 3 sweet peppers (green or red) – chopped fine
  • 1 quart dark vinegar
  • 4 Tbsp salt
  • 6 cups of sugar
  • 2 Tbsp ground cloves
  • 2 Tbsp of ground allspice
  • 2 Tbsp cinnamon

Add everything to a stew pot/stir.  Bring to a light simmer. Cook with the top off and reduce the mixture over the course of an hour, stirring occasionally. Liquid should brown to a maple syrup-like color.

Jar and store for later use!

Read moreGrandma’s Chili Sauce

Food for Thought: Wilted Lettuce Salad

00094-1024x768I learned how to make this recipe from my grandmother Leah (the wife of our Agency president from 1941-1985) and understand it came from Germany originally. We serve this on major holidays and it is the most sought after item on the menu. My father loves this so much that he will have seconds or thirds. It’s really rather ridiculous as we have turkey or ham and all the other fabulous items that go with family meals and yet it is always the wilted lettuce that is a focus.

The critical item with wilted lettuce is the timing. As soon as the bacon is done and crispy it must be added promptly to the lettuce, mixed with the vinegar and served immediately. This gets everyone to the table which is an added plus even if there is a bit of good natured hurry up and arguing who gets the sugar bowl first. The combination of flavors is very interesting to experience.

I think the reason why it is also coveted so much is because we do not serve it that often so it is super special. Last year at our annual holiday gathering for our office I made the salad on-site for the brave staff that were willing to try it and it as a huge success.

Ingredients (16 servings/people):

  • Red leaf or Boston lettuce – 4 full sized heads
  • Red onions, thinly sliced – 2
  • Hard boiled eggs sliced – 1 dozen
  • Bacon cut into small pieces (use scissors) 1 ½ packages
  • Vinegar – to taste
  • Sugar – enough to sprinkle lightly on top

Steps:

  • Wash, dry and break up the lettuce into a salad bowl
  • Add sliced onions
  • Add sliced eggs
  • Prepare the bacon in a hot skillet. Cook until just crispy
  • Add the bacon along with the bacon grease to the salad along with the vinegar to taste
  • Toss and serve immediately
  • Put sugar on the table and salad eaters should put a bit of sugar on top of their serving
Read moreFood for Thought: Wilted Lettuce Salad

Food for Thought: Spicy Blue Crabs à la Williams

For as long as I can remember, blue crabs have added an ingredient of fun to our family gatherings. As a child growing up in Florida, one of my fondest memories is of our frequent family outings to New Smyrna Beach (which is north of, and in those days was far nicer than, the more famous Daytona Beach). We would spend the day fishing and crabbing, and cook the day’s fresh catch right there on the beach. I can’t remember the last time we went crabbing, but we still eat lots of crabs.

The newest member of our family is Immanuel, who turned 3 on Christmas Eve. He ate so little and was so finicky about what he ate that from 18 months old until he was about 27 months old, he was in weekly “feeding therapy sessions.” But Immanuel is a Williams to his core. Even he has always loved crabs!! In fact, he loves crabs so much that he keeps everyone else busy cleaning crabs and piling pieces of the succulent white meat onto his plate: “More crabs, please. More crabs, please.”

My family is full of great cooks, men and women, across the three generations around the table and from generations past, but no one, not a single person has ever been known to actually write out a recipe – and we’re not too precise about quantities either. My father, Tom, and his oldest brother, Grant, who was a chef on an Air Force base and made his own wine decades before local wineries became popular, were both great cooks. They’ve both been deceased for decades now, but they would say that cooking is an art form, and that artistry comes from the soul. What you put into it is a lot more than the ingredients that makeup a recipe.

Where I grew up in the South, you cook from a feeling, rather than from a recipe. Even though my family has been enjoying blue crabs for at least five decades, it was a family project to come up with what’s written below. From my family to yours; enjoy!

CAM00804-1024x768Recipe

Fill an 8-quart pot ½ to ⅔ with fresh water

Add:

  • 6 oz. bottle of hot sauce (any brand)
  • ¼ of standard 2 oz. bottle of Tabasco® sauce
  • 2 to 4 fresh habanero peppers (depending upon size & how hot you like your food)
  • ¼ to ½ cup of fresh crushed garlic
  • 2 or 3 fresh bay leaves
  • 1 bag of Old Bay® Crab Boil
  • 1 cup of salt (yes; it is a lotta salt, but the crabs’ shells are hard, so the salt is not easily absorbed … or at least that’s the excuse my mom uses for adding so much salt)

Pierce holes in the red potatoes with a fork and add them to the water. Cover the pot, and allow the potatoes to cook for a total of 20 minutes or so.

Shuck the corn on the cob. After the water comes to a boil, add the corn to the water and replace the lid. The corn should boil for no longer than about 10 minutes.

After you take the corn out of the water, add as many crabs as you can to the water and recover the pot with the lid. The water will stop boiling, and it’ll take a few minutes for it to start boiling again.

Remove the crabs 10 minutes after the water starts boiling again.

Continue to add crabs until you’ve cooked them all.

For guests (or those rare family members) who don’t appreciate the tender white meat of blue crabs, we offer Snow crab claws (which, unfortunately, are generally only available frozen) and fresh shrimp. They need to stay in the boiling water only 5 to 7 minutes.

Accompaniments
For those who prefer extra seasoning, Lawry’s® Seasoned Salt

My sister-in-law, Immanuel’s mom’s contribution: Warm garlic butter for dipping

  • Melt a stick of unsalted butter
  • Sprinkle in a couple of tablespoons of McCormick® Garlic Seafood Steamers seasoning mix
  • Add a little garlic salt & stir

Beverages
Homemade ice tea and lemonade (Southern favorites)

Other essentials
An ample supply of crab claw or nut crackers

Crabs are messy to clean (how to do that requires a separate blogpost!) – and eat, so we spread lots of old newspapers over the kitchen table (too messy for the dining room), and use paper plates, paper towels and paper cups, so that all of the trash can be rolled into a big bundle and easily disposed of.

Read moreFood for Thought: Spicy Blue Crabs à la Williams

Food For Thought: Beth’s Carrot Cake

Beth Adamson, Family Business Development Group

BethWhile living as a mother’s helper in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, I was introduced to some incredibly delicious recipes, some of my favorites I saved for my own family someday.

This is one of my favorites! It is my go-to whenever I need to bring a dessert for a get-together. It is the most delicious carrot cake ever!

Ingredients and Directions:

Step 1
2 ½ cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 ½ tsp. soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
Sift into large bowl.

BreadStep 2
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 ¼ cup oil
Beat well.

Step 3
2 cups grated carrots
1 8 ½ oz crushed pineapple – undrained
Add steps 2 & 3 to step 1 and beat well.
Bake 9×13 greased and floured pan at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

Cream Cheese Frosting
½ cup butter
8 oz cream softened cream cheese
Add 1 tsp. vanilla
Beat in 1 lb. powder sugar
Enjoy!

Beth is a Certified Advisor with the Galliard Family Business Advisor Institute.

Read moreFood For Thought: Beth’s Carrot Cake

Food For Thought: Melissa’s Yummy Cod Soup

Melissa S. Kelly-McCabe, Executive Strategy Coach

MellisaI love food. Everything about it. Growing it, harvesting it, preserving it, cooking it…and especially eating it. So it was with great pleasure that I said “Sure! I am happy to offer a recipe for the Galliard Newsletter.” Lisë said, “Perhaps you have a family favorite recipe…or a story that goes along with a favorite food.” Well, yes I do, for so many wonderful foods I could list. But, honestly? At this crazy time of year, all I want is something tasty, good for us, and quick…so I can get back to baking, volunteering, shopping, wrapping, entertaining…you know the drill.

So, Lisë, my little story falls short of telling you of some wonderful, homey dish that has been in my family for generations; one that takes a list of ingredients and hours of browning, simmering and finishing. This is an easy, yummy, fast, low fat, no carbs, short-ingredient-list, hot soup – that you don’t even thaw the fish to make!! Yup. Frozen fish. So from the first step to ladling it in the bowls – about 20 minutes. Also, though it is very tasty when you use your own summer-canned tomatoes and home-made chicken stock, you can just whip out the can opener and use canned ingredients from the market.

kitchenIngredients and Directions:
Makes 4-6 Servings

In a food processor, pulse to create a paste of:
1/3 cup raw almonds or pine nuts or raw cashews
4 large cloves of garlic

In a large sauce pan,
heat 1 tablespoon of oil
cook to wilt 2 cups chopped onion
(variation: skip this step and toss in 1/3 cup dehydrated onion into the mixture below)

Add to the onions,
a pinch of Saffron or 1/2 tsp of Turmeric
28 oz. crushed tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
2/3 cup dry white wine (or more chicken stock)
The nut/garlic paste

Simmer 10 minutes
(variation: To make more of a chowder, add in two potatoes, 1/2 inch diced. Simmer until potatoes are nearly tender, then add fish. This will add about 10 minutes to the cooking time.)

Add 1.5 pounds frozen cod, cut into bite-sized chunks
Bring to a simmer and simmer another 5-7 minutes, until fish is tender.

Ladle in to bowls and serve with croutons on top or with crusty bread. Add a crunchy salad or cole slaw, and Bing! you have dinner.

And now, back to wrapping.

We’re looking for more recipes for our “Food for Thought” section. What recipes carry special significance for you and your family? Click here to submit a recipe.

Read moreFood For Thought: Melissa’s Yummy Cod Soup

Nana’s German Potato Salad

potatosMy grandmother, Elisabeth Suzanne Linschied (Shifty – as she was known by her friends) was the granddaughter of German and Austrian immigrants. She was a rebel and remained so until her death, two weeks shy of her 102nd birthday. At the age of 30, she was a feisty and determined spinster –  destined to live with her ailing father and spend the rest of her days as his caregiver. That was, until a striking young man, 10 years her junior and one-half Apache Indian, came to work on the family farm. She was smitten, he was smitten and a clandestine affair began. They eloped, to the shock and shame of the clan, and gave birth to my mother, Joan, just under a year after. It was the only child they ever had. Sadly, my grandfather, with his russet skin, twinkling blue eyes and prematurely white hair, became ill quite early in their marriage and passed almost 50 years before my grandmother.
Nana, as she was known to me, managed to keep both her strict German heritage alive, fully integrated with her subtle, shifty, mischievous streak. This was one of her favorite recipes:

Nana’s German Potato Salad

  • 5 lb of new potatoes
  • 1 lb of center cut bacon (thick if possible)
  • 1 medium sweet onion
  • 1/4 cup of flour
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 1/2 c of water
  • 1/2c of vinegar
  • Green onions or chives to finish

Boil potatoes until they can be pierced easily with a fork. Drain and let cool. Slice (leave skins intact if possible). Chop bacon into 1 inch pieces. Fry until about half done. Drain off 1/2 of grease. Add chopped onion and continue frying until bacon is done and onion is transparent. Mix flour, sugar, water and vinegar. Pour over bacon and noons. Stir over low heat until it thickens. Pour this mixture over potatoes. If possible, refrigerate for 24 hours and serve warm or room temp. Sprinkle with chives and serve to hungry farmers!

Read moreNana’s German Potato Salad

Patty’s Back-to-School Snickerdoodles

snickerdoodlesHi, Folks. As many go back to school, I am reminded of making my family’s favorite cookie to tuck into our lunches – Snickerdoodles. Often, I made them with my youngest brother who is 8 years my junior. So when I was in Junior High, his little preschooler hands reveled in being in the dough, rolling the dough balls and then rolling them in cinnamon. And, of course, the powerful scent of baking cinnamon made it hard to wait until they cooled enough to eat and to save some for lunches! This recipe is adapted from my mother’s 1969 Betty Crocker’s Cookbook, which itself is dusted with flour and butter splatters.

Patty’s Back-to-School Snickerdoodles

Adapted from Betty Crocker’s 1969 Cookbook

– 1 cup butter
– 1-1/2 cups sugar
– 2 eggs
– 2-3/4 cups flour
– 2 tsp cream of tartar
– 1 tsp baking soda
– ¼ tsp salt
– 2 tbsp sugar
– 2 tsp cinnamon

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Mix thoroughly butter, 1-1/2 cups sugar and eggs. Blend in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Shape dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls.

Mix 2 tbsp sugar and the cinnamon; roll balls in this mixture. Place balls 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Immediately remove from baking sheet. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.

Note: During the last 6 months that I’ve been part of the Galliard team, our commitment to harvesting legacy and passing what is tried and true down to the next generation has really spoken to me. We hope that this new feature of our newsletter will become a celebration of legacy in the form of sharing recipes passed down to us. If you have a recipe to share, please send it to us at info@galliardgroup.com along with a picture of you and up to 125 words to tell us why it’s meaningful to you. Remember that sending it gives us permission to print it. We can’t wait to see what you send us!

Read morePatty’s Back-to-School Snickerdoodles
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