Veggie Tails and Flowers for Fancy Veggie Basket

My Mother began making fancy cut veggie baskets for special occasions after I left home, so I didn't have the chance to watch or help her much. Now that she's passed to the other side of the veil I had to recall, search for photos of her vegetable basket and online to "see" how to make various veggie tails and flowers.  In addition I asked myself questions.  I began to get some inspiration of my own--possibly from her whispering suggestions in my ear.  I felt her nearby as I thought of her, which made for a priceless time.   

What follows is how I make radish roses, green onion tails and stems, carrot crinkles and flowers, jagged cucumber circles, celery tails and turnip flowers. 

Pretty Pavlova

Pavlova was served to us in Estonia and Finland then I made it for a Relief Society meeting dessert and now make it at home.  It's been requested in place of birthday cake by our youngest.  Here is the Pavlova recipe I use.

Milk Can Dinner

MILK CAN DINNER

My brother made a "milk can dinner" during our Family reunion July 4th!  

It was such a fun meal and an easy way to serve a crowd. 

I decided the girls at Young Women's ward camp would like it too.   

They DID!  

Our 3rd year campers prepared this evening meal for our special guest speaker, 

Olympian Werner Hoeger and his wife Sharon.   

We served 30 people and several went back for seconds.  

 To make a

MILK CAN DINNER you will need to . . .

Norwegian Christmas Cookies

We just love our exchange student daughter from Norway!   Last night she and the other Scandavian girls in our town shared their Christmas traditions with their host families at a Christmas party.  I made these "thumb print" cookies.  She'd never seen or heard of them before, but I know they make thumbprint cookies in Finland.  They were tasty, but who can go wrong with butter and sugar?

Norwegian Butter Cookies
1 cup butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Any flavor jam or jelly (raspberry is my favorite, pictured here with strawberry jam)

Cream butter and sugar well.  Add sifted flour and salt.  Mix until dough forms a ball.  Chill overnight.  Shape into 1/2 inch balls.  Press an indentation into each cookie ball with your thumb.  Bake at 350 degrees for ten minutes.  Take out of the oven, let cool.  Fill each indentation with jam or jelly.

By the time they finished baking they'd spread and my son asked, "Did a giant make these thumbprints?"

I also made Finnish gingerbread cookies and Finnish Christmas tarts to share.  She and another Norwegian girl made cookies with potato starch flour.

Norwegian Christmas Cookies
1 1/2 cups potato starch flour
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla sugar (I get mine at IKEA.  I imagine you can just use vanilla.)

My husband and I looked at each other and said, "There can't be that much potato starch flour in the recipe, but there is and they are delicious!  They crumble in your mouth and leave it feeling a bit sandy.

Raspberry Pie

ingredients
1 bottom pie crust
4 oz. light cream cheese
1 small pkg. rapberry Jello (four 1/2 cup servings)
2 Tbsp. corn starch
1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar to taste
4 cups clean raspberries (chilled if possible)
1 cup ice
1/2 cup boiling water

directions
Put cream cheese on counter to soften.
Bake pie shell.  I keep my Mother-in-law's bulk pie mix on hand.
Cool on rack.
Set aside 1 Tbsp. of cream cheese. When pie shell is cool,
use rubber spatula to gently and completely cover pie shell
bottom and sides with an even layer of softened cream cheese.
Leave the top 1/2 inch or so of crust plain.  Put pie crust into
fridge to chill.

Filling
Set out one cup of raspberries.
Microwave 1/2 cup of water for 1 minute.  Pour into blender.
With blender on low speed, slowly add Jello/cornstarch/sugar mix
until fully dissolved.  Add tablespoon of cream cheese.
Blend in the cup of raspberries.
Add the cup of ice and increase speed to blend thoroughly
until all ice dissolved and ingredients are completely incorporated.
If desired, continue at high speed until sauce is both thickened and
light in texture like a chiffon.

Option 1:
Fold sauce mixture into the remaining 3+ cups of raspberries and
pour into chilled pie shell.

Option 2:
Pour layer of sauce into shell.  Top with layer of raspberries.  Add
another layer of sauce.  Add raspberries.  Etc. until shell is full.

Refrigerate for 15 minutes and serve.