POLL: The recipe that got away

[Kristilyn1]

Poll time: I am also hoping that this can help people find the "one that got away"

Have you ever gone somewhere (a friend's house--a restaurant) and had a dish that was to die for--but you have never been able to get the recipe?

Mine is my best friend's mom used to make spice cake with peanut butter frosting that was sweet and fluffy--she also used to make them into whoopie pies--delish! I have tried it at home but never found a recipe that tasted close......

[Natasha]

Mine is a recipe that my dad used to make for a thick stew with all sorts of veggies and spices. I watched him make it so many times, and he attempted on many occasions to tell me and show me how to make it, but I just couldn't make it the way he did. He died a few years ago ... http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/frown.gif I haven't tried to make it since but I think I should try again.

[Pat]

My mom makes fried sweet corn and she has given me specific directions many times, but I cannot duplicate it. My daughter has tried without success also. I told my mom today that we thought she was "holding out" on us. Just kidding her, of course, as I have watched her make it. I just cannot do it.

[lorilei]

When I was 19 years old I started making filled chocolate covered cherries as gifts for Christmas. I started off using a recipe (which I am almost positive is from a Womans' Day magazine). The recipe was quite basic -- a powdered sugar-based fondant, maraschino cherries soaked in liquor, and chocolate coating. The only deviation I made was to use Cognac instead of brandy.

They were superb!

Unfortunately, I lost the magazine a few years down the road and have not been able to find it. I have kept on making cherries each year, and I've substituted similar recipes, but have never again come up with one for cherries which gelled so finely and tasted so rich!

[This message has been edited by lorilei (edited 07-19-2000).]

[MrsReber]

My mother makes, on rare occaisions, the most wonderful manocotti. Instead of using store bought pasta, she makes thin creamy tasting crepes and fills them with cheese. The last time she made them was for Christmas dinner a few years ago. Everyone had seconds. They were out of this world, but I have no idea how to make them and I may lack the patience to make that many thin crepes and fill them! I know it took my mother quite some time to prepare them.

[BethR]

Neat topic!

The one that got away from me was a chocolate mousse recipe that I cut out of the newspaper about 18 years ago. It was one of the desserts at a (now closed, I believe) restaurant in Pittsburgh called The Common Plea (near the courthouse, hence the name). It was fairly easy to make and tasted spectacular! Somewhere along the line, I lost the recipe and can't remember how to make it. I keep meaning to go to the library and look through old issues of the Pittsburgh Press until I track it down!
Beth

[Cyn]

A no-bake kaluha/black russian pie with a chocolate wafer crust: My mom used to make it for my dad. The creamy kahlua filling was incredible.

[KateH]

Great topic! In 1993, when my parents and I were getting my grandmother's house ready for sale http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/frown.gif one of the neighbors had us over for drinks. She served the best stuffed mushrooms I've ever had!!!!! They were rich, but not too rich; stuffed, but not too stuffed. I think maybe there were breadcrumbs, and maybe some butter, and perhaps chopped mushroom involved. But beyond that, I don't know what gave them their heavenly taste.

[SueK]

Originally posted by BethR:
Neat topic!

The one that got away from me was a chocolate mousse recipe that I cut out of the newspaper about 18 years ago. It was one of the desserts at a (now closed, I believe) restaurant in Pittsburgh called The Common Plea (near the courthouse, hence the name). It was fairly easy to make and tasted spectacular! Somewhere along the line, I lost the recipe and can't remember how to make it. I keep meaning to go to the library and look through old issues of the Pittsburgh Press until I track it down!
Beth
Beth-I grew up in Pgh! I don't know if you were referring to the Press or the Post-Gazette, but the PG has a web site at http://www.post-gazette.com. They have on-line archives back through '90, but maybe if you email them, they can look further back in their files.

[lindrusso]

The recipe that got away for me is a spinach, pasta and cheese sauce thing that someone once made for me. It was very similar to a recipe that I had once at a restaurant called Cheddar's - they have something there called "Spasagna" - or something like that. It's sort of a spaghetti pie. Yummy!!!

[This message has been edited by lindrusso (edited 07-19-2000).]

[bookworm]

My mother thinks I'm crazy but I remember when I was little my babysitter would make a soup which looked like creamy blended crackers, almost like tomato soup but beige. When I close my eyes I can still taste it but I haven't found anything like it.

[Danielle]

I had a best friend in elementary school, and her mom made the best pancakes. She would make them for us when I slept over at their house. They were very thin, and we would roll them up and eat them with powdered sugar. Down the road I discovered they were probably Swedish pancakes she was making, but I haven't tasted any since that were as wonderful as they were. Oh, what heavenly memories! I've lost touch with that friend, so I have no way of getting the recipe.

[This message has been edited by Danielle (edited 07-19-2000).]

[shoyski]

Cyn, is there any way of getting that recipe? I'm quite sure I won't be able to come close to what your mom makes but I'd love to give it a try. That pie sounds awesome!

[Beth]

I guess I have 2: the Oreos and Cream Cheescake I remember from a magazine and could't post earlier, and and Italian soup similar to a minestrone with meat. I know that cam out of a magazine or the newspaper, but I couldn't find it when I wanted to make it again. I still hope to find it, after the weather cools off significantly.

In the never had it category, we have a grocery store that makes a flourless chocolate chewey cookie that I crave sometimes. Someday we may learn that they engineered that chocolate to be more addictive (ala tobacco), but for now, no sharing any secrets.

[This message has been edited by Beth (edited 07-19-2000).]

[Angelina]

Originally posted by Danielle:
I had a best friend in elementary school, and her mom made the best pancakes. She would make them for us when I slept over at their house. They were very thin, and we would roll them up and eat them with powdered sugar. Down the road I discovered they were probably Swedish pancakes she was making, but I haven't tasted any since that were as wonderful as they were. Oh, what heavenly memories! I've lost touch with that friend, so I have no way of getting the recipe.

[This message has been edited by Danielle (edited 07-19-2000).]


Danielle, my mother used to make for me and my brother these thin Dutch pancakes, called pannekoeken, that we used to eat spread with jam or Nutella and rolled up. They were like crepes, but the Dutch version of it. When she comes back tomorrow, I will ask her for the recipe, if you are interested. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Beth]

Originally posted by Angelina:

Danielle, my mother used to make for me and my brother these thin Dutch pancakes, called pannekoeken, that we used to eat spread with jam or Nutella and rolled up. They were like crepes, but the Dutch version of it. When she comes back tomorrow, I will ask her for the recipe, if you are interested. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif


Angelina, I would be interested if you could get that recipe. My father's side of the family is 100% Dutch, but I have few recipes to reflect that heritage.

[Danielle]

Angelina, I would love the recipe! Thank you so much for offering. These pancakes were definitely as thin as crepes (in fact, that's what I thought they were for a while)so the Dutch pancakes sound perfect. Oh, I'm so excited! I'm anxious for the recipe. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[Grace]

Hi Danielle (and anyone else who's interested!)

I just came across a CL recipe for those thin pancakes - they called them German pancakes (which they also are - I'm German and we have always eaten them too - they're GREAT!!). Anyhow, I haven't tried the recipe, but I'll post it, so when you get the "real" one from Angelina, you can compare them and decide if the CL recipe is worth trying! I'm thinking about making them myself, for a little taste from my childhood, so if I do, I'll let you know if they turn out well or not.

CookWare(tm) from Cooking Light(r)

German Pancakes

SOURCE: Cooking Light YEAR: May 1996 PAGE: 116

INGREDIENTS FOR 3 SERVINGS:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup skim milk
1 egg
Vegetable cooking spray
6 tablespoons apricot preserves
Orange slices (optional)
Raspberries (optional)
1-1/2 teaspoons powdered sugar (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Combine first 3 ingredients in a medium bowl; stir well. Combine milk and
egg in a small bowl; stir well. Add to flour mixture, stirring well with a
wire whisk.

2. Coat a 10-inch nonstick skillet with cooking spray, and place over
medium-high heat until hot. Remove pan from heat, and pour a scant 1/4 cup
batter into pan; quickly tilt pan in all directions so batter covers pan with
a thin film. Cook about 1 minute.

3. Lift edge of pancake carefully with a spatula to test for doneness (pancake
is ready to turn when it can be shaken loose from pan and the underside is
lightly browned). Turn pancake over, and cook an additional 30 seconds.

4. Place pancake on a towel, and let cool. Repeat procedure with remaining
batter. Stack pancakes between single layers of wax paper or paper towels to
prevent sticking. Spread 1 tablespoon preserves over each pancake, and roll
up. Garnish with orange slices and raspberries, if desired. Sprinkle with
powdered sugar, if desired. Yield: 3 servings (serving size: 2 pancakes).

--Cynthia McMahan, Matthews, North Carolina

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:
CALORIES 238 (9% from fat); PROTEIN 6.7g; FAT 2.3g (sat 0.7g, mono 0.8g, poly
0.3g); CARB 49g; FIBER 1g; CHOL 75mg; IRON1.4mg; SODIUM 164mg; CALC 95mg

[Danielle]

Thanks, Grace! They sound yummy. Can't wait to try! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif