Canned Salmon and Rice Casserole

This recipe is adapted from the 1961 edition of "The New Antoinette Pope School Cookbook." I found the combination of bacon and salmon intriguing. The recipe calls for bacon that is "cubed." I used regular bacon and "diced" it with kitchen shears. Next time, I might try pancetta instead of bacon. Most of these ingredients one easily has on hand in the pantry or refrigerator, so it's quite economical.

Served with a fresh salad and vegetable, it is a light meal in itself. But it could just as easily be served as a side to white fish. The recipe is easily doubled.

Use a trusted, name-brand of canned salmon. Others can be overly salty and taste more like tuna than salmon.

• 1 1/2 cups cooked white rice (I use Uncle Ben's and make it the day before)
• 1/4 lb. (about four slices) diced bacon
• 3/4 cup chopped onions
• 1, 7 1/2 oz. can pink salmon, drained and flaked
• 1/4 cup minced, curly parsley
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 cup milk
• Tabasco Sauce, about 4 drops
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Pepper
• Fresh, pulled bread crumbs
• Parmesan cheese, grated
• Dried dill and lemon wedges for serving

Fry the cubed bacon and chopped onion together in a skillet over medium heat, about five minutes. You do not want to "crisp" the bacon. Add the garlic and stir through just until fragrant--maybe a minute or so. I de-glazed the pan with a bit of dry, white wine.

In a medium bowl, mix the salmon with the rice and parsley. Add the bacon-onion mixture, mixing well with "two forks"--I used my hands. Add salt and pepper to taste, being careful with the salt since both the bacon and the salmon have plenty.

Measure the milk into a small glass and add the egg yolk. Drip in Tabasco and lightly beat with a fork. Pour into salmon mixture and mix thoroughly.

Butter a one-quart casserole and fill with salmon mixture, pressing down slightly. Pour melted butter over pulled breadcrumbs and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese. Mix. Cover top of casserole with breadcrumbs. 

Cover with a lightly-greased piece of tin foil and bake at 375 F degrees for about 40 minutes, removing foil last ten minutes. Serves 2 generously as a main meal, 3-4 as a side.

To serve, sprinkle portions with a bit of dried dill and a lemon wedge on the side. Goes great with fresh asparagus.

NOTES: The original recipe did not call for the addition of an egg yolk or milk, but I found the mixture dry and in need of something to bind it. I wanted to use 1/2 can of cream of celery soup, but with soup prices so high ($1.47 here) I was too cheap to open it. 

Kitchen Tip: How to Soften Rock-Hard Brown Sugar & Make Your Own

There's nothing more frustrating than going to use brown sugar only to find it's morphed into one massive rock on un-usability. But don't despair, or throw it out. Break it up the best you can and place it in a sealed bag, container or jar. 

Take a broken, clay pottery chard and clean it then soak it in water for about 10-30 minutes. Wipe dry and throw into the container with the sugar. Just lay it on top. In a few days, the sugar will have miraculously returned to its soft, natural state from slowly absorbing the moisture. It may be necessary to re-wet the shard. 

Once the sugar is reconstituted (yes, pat yourself on the back for a kitchen disaster avoided), simply keep a wet pottery shard in the sugar at all times. Works like a charm.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN BROWN SUGAR

Add one tablespoon of molasses to one cup of sugar. Mix in well. If you want it a bit darker, add a bit more molasses. Use as you would brown sugar packing it down as you measure.

Sour Cream Chocolate Cake

Not your ordinary, everyday snacking cake, this
chocolate beauty is rich with butter and sour cream.

This is another in my quest for small cakes that bakes in an 8 x 8 x 2 pan.* It's a perfect dessert cake for guests or special occasions. The crumb is dense but light, moist and chocolaty and lends itself to decorating options, such as fresh berries in the summer. I settled for a simple, almond buttercream frosting. The addition of rum and vanilla flavoring to the thick batter gives just a hint of "richness" that complements the chocolate.

• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature (1 1/2 sticks) not margarine
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs, washed
• 1/2 teaspoon rum-flavored extract
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 F. and butter/grease your pan. Cut a piece of wax paper to fit in the bottom and then grease it. Dust with cocoa powder tapping out the excess.

Stir together the dry ingredients of cocoa, flour, baking soda and salt.

I used a combination of regular, unflavored cocoa
and Dutch-processed cocoa.

Beat the butter and the sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add flavorings.

I now wash all my eggs before cracking them open.
Remember folks, they're pushed out of a chicken's butt!
If you wash an apple, why not an egg? Think about it.

Add flour alternately with the sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

I think maybe that "J" swirl was from my finger
scooping up the rich batter...

Spread batter into prepared pan. Tap on counter to dislodge any air bubbles. Bake for 30-35 minutes, checking on it after 25 minutes and until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes. Invert on wire rack. Cool and frost as desired.

Almond Butter-Cream Frosting

• 1/4 cup margarine, a bit cool
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon almond extract 
• 1-2 tablespoons milk

Cream margarine until light. Begin adding powdered sugar a little at a time, beating after each addition. If it's not "creamy" but remains "powdered" don't be alarmed. Add the vanilla and almond extracts. Beat in. Now add the milk, first just one tablespoon. Beat. Add another teaspoon. Beat. If it needs to be fluffier, add a bit of another teaspoon until desired consistency is reached. Taste. Add more flavoring if desired.

Skim a thin layer on cakes and sides, not worrying about crumbs. Then add remaining frosting. If desired, top with fresh berries or a decoration of slivered almonds.

*Notes: I baked this in a 9 x 9 pan since my 8 x 8 was being used for another purpose. The cake was done after about 25 minutes. May also be baked in a round 8" cake pan.

For a less-rich, but equally great cake, try my chocolate mayonnaise cake with almond cream cheese frosting. Just click on the link below:
Kitchen Bounty: My Favorite Chocolate Cake

Small Baked Ham with Brown Sugar Glaze and Bacon

With rising food and meat prices, I'm trying to find ways to stretch my dollar. Leftovers is one of the easiest solutions ... and nothing keeps giving like a ham. But it needn't be that half-a-hog affair for the holidays that weighs as much as a toddler.

Boneless (even bone-in) hams provide a lot of food for a great price. Having said that, avoid propaganda pre-sliced, pre-voted, hunks of meat. You are quite the cook and you can determine the centimeter slice of of your meat and your vote!

A ham like this cooks fast. It provides a ton of taste and, even more importantly, can be used for sandwiches and cut and diced to be used in casseroles later on. And that's exactly what I plan to do with it. It will feed me for quite a while.

In case you didn't know it, I worked in a deli and am "certified" in all things "Boar's Head." To make this ham, I used a Boar's Head product that I highly recommend: Brown Sugar Glaze. It has a great "spice" flavor that balances the sweet brown sugar. The ham was a whole, non sliced, "sweet ham"

A little goes a long way. This will easily do 2 small hams.
 I look for it on sale.

Follow the instructions on the back of the jar. I prefer to stud a ham with cloves after scoring it. You want to score it so the glaze seeps down into it. If there is a layer of fat on the ham, this is especially necessary. Unfortunately, with small hams such as this, there is not. They tend to be very lean.

I've had this can of whole cloves since the 1980's.
I got it at my little corner store in Indiana
where prices were written, not stamped.
I'm not a believer in changing your spices
every year. Sheesh...who came up with that idea?
Oh, the $pice companies . . .

Score the ham diagonally using a sharp knife.
Stud with whole cloves. These are spaced
about two inches apart (they don't have to go into the cuts.)

Because smaller hams can be very lean, I cover it with bacon which is optional. Then put in about 3/4 cup HOT water into the pan and tent with foil and crimp the edges tight. Why? Well, the ham is already cooked. You just want to warm it up and let the flavors seep into it without drying it out. The water and foil will kind of steam it. (The directions only call for 1/2 cup of water, but I like the extra "sauce.")

After scoring and studding, slather with the glaze.

This is probably a bit of overkill with bacon--
I could have used less. It won't crisp during cooking,
it will just release needed juices into the ham
and drip into the water making a wonderful sauce.
(This is my black deli apron.)

Bake at 350 degrees about 15 minutes per pound. The last fifteen minutes, remove the foil. Baste the ham with pan juices and pat on a bit more glaze over the bacon if desired.

When done, remove and discard bacon. Cut ham into thin, thin slices removing cloves as you go. Place them back into the pan drippings. To make sauce, place pan over low flame and heat up. Add a pinch or two of Cayenne pepper. Strain and serve on the side.

Here's what to make with leftover ham:

Kitchen Bounty: Mashed Potato Cakes with Ham, Cheese, and Scallions 

Kitchen Bounty: Leftover Ham-and-Noodle Casserole