The more I do research on this column, the more I learn. Not only to be careful with inclusion and amounts of ingredients, (and sometimes "Woops!",) but how recipes differ from one book, and one generation of cooking to another.

Cooking is an art which changes with each cook, who adapts it to family tastes and available time.

Traditions of the kitchen of each household become memories that children carry with them.

There are a lot of possible changes to the following!

Breakfast Puff
Black River Inn, VT
From Gourmet about 10 years ago
It is made like "popovers"
3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
Pinch nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon butter

In a large bowl, whisk together egg and milk, add flour, nutmeg and sugar and whisk thoroughly.

In 8 inch pan (non stick omelet or skillet, melt butter over moderate heat, remove pan from heat pour in batter. Bake in preheated 425 degree oven 15-20 minutes or until puffed and golden. Sprinkle with 10x sugar and serve with maple syrup and sautéed (or glazed) apples. And serve immediately.

Glazed apple slices
2 pounds cooking apples
1 lemon
2 cups brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Peel core and slice apples. Grate the lemon peel and squeeze the lemon. Arrange apple slices in a shallow baking dish. Combine 1 cup sugar, lemon peel and juice and spices with 1 1/2 cups of water. Pour over apples. Bake in a moderate oven for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup sugar and broil under low heat for 5 minutes. Serve warm or chilled. Serves 6

Note: the recipe from the Margaret Holland Inn below. There apples are softened prior to baking by adding cider instead of water, then a batter is added for a cake topping

Note 2: We could certainly take some of these apples and put them on the bottom of single custard cups and bake the custard combination. (see last weeks recipes)

Crow's Nest Pudding
"A popular Rotary Dessert by Margaret Connarn of the Margaret Holland Inn"
Found in the "Little House" Cooking collection: copied as I found it.

Fill a pudding dish 2/3 full of hard fall apples, peeled, cored and quartered

Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
1 teaspoon Cinnamon

Pour on 1 pint of Sweet Ciderset on heat, covered. When it begins to steam, sprinkle on 1/2 cup of sugar and steam till apples are soft. Cover with the following cake batter and bake till cake is done.

1 cup Sugar
1/3 cup shortening
1 cup milk
2 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt.

Serve with plain cream or ice cream.

Note: this is kind of a puzzle to me. The "pudding dish" has to be something with a lid, plus being able to survive being "heated". I think I'll try a deep dish pie pan, put the apples in, and put it in the oven with a sheet of aluminum foil on top till the "steam" rises, then put in the batter, and bake it uncovered, at 350-375degrees. Till a tooth pick comes out clean from the cake portion. If any of you try it..let me know!

Cranberry Streusel Coffee Cake

I found this recipe that came from a truck stop in Ohio. (published by the Washington Post) It had some notations that people drove miles to have it.

Cranberry filling

1/1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice

Streusel

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter softened
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Cake:

1/1/2 cups flour
1/1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons butter at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees grease and flour 8 inch square baking pan.

Cranberry filling: combine cranberries, sugar and orange juice in saucepan, cook stirring constantly over medium heat until berries begin to pop. Cool.

Streusel: combine brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and butter in small bowl until crumbly, stir in nuts

Cake: combine flour, baking powder and salt in medium bowl. Beat butter, sugar and orange peel in mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in dry ingredients alternately with milk. Beginning and ending with dry ingredients.

Spread half of the batter in prepared pan, spoon on half of the cranberry filling, add remaining batter, then filling. Sprinkle streusel over top. Bake 50-60 minutes until tooth pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack.

Note: I'm going to try putting some streusel in the center of this as well

Oatmeal Bread

A recipe found by a dear friend in 1980 while on vacation on cape cod. I tried it first while looking at our dear mountains in Northfield. It was altered by her as well.

Mix well in a large bowl
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
2 cups quick rolled oats
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup Craisins or raisins
3 eggs
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Bake in a well greased loaf pan for 1 hour 9x5 works well. Cool slightly and remove from pan. Be sure to bake well as this is a dense batter. Slice thickly and serve warm or toasted with butter or cream cheese. Freezes well.

Note: this recipe was altered to make the loaf less dense. "It seems perfect just the way it is now written"

Flexibility.