FOOD FOR THOUGHT – Here’s to DAD

by | Jun 1, 2013

By LYDIA BOLEN

Father’s Day is June 16 this year. Whether you celebrate with a special lunch, a backyard barbeque, or a family dinner, find recipes to serve your Dad the foods that are special to him.

My own father loved to plan meals, but was not much on helping to prepare them! He liked good old-fashioned dishes and requested them on a regular basis.

I vividly remember his obsession with Sensation Salad. This salad originated in the kitchen in an old Baton Rouge, Louisiana, restaurant. It closed down in the early 1970s, but the salad and dressing has sunk its roots deep into the local culinary culture. This dressing is now bottled and sold in many Louisiana grocery stores.

I can’t recall a single week going by that my mother wasn’t making Baked Custard or whipping up various pound cakes at my father’s request. The cream cheese pound cake wins out as his very favorite.

Enjoy!

 

Cream Cheese Pound CakeSour-Cream-Pound-Cake

Ingredients:

  • 1 and 1 / 2 cups butter
  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 3 cups cake flour, sifted
  • 6 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (or use one teaspoon vanilla and 1 teaspoon almond)

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease one 10-inch tube pan or 2 loaf pans.

Cream together the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until light. Stir in the extracts.

Add the flour and the eggs alternately, ending with the flour. Pour batter into the prepared pan or loaf pans.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

(Bake loaf pans at 300 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.)

 

 

Baked CustardBaked-Custard

 

Ingredients:

  • 4 eggs
  • 2 / 3 cup sugar
  • 1 / 2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 / 4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 / 4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 and 2 /3 cups milk

 

Directions:

In a bowl, combine eggs, sugar, spices, and vanilla. Blend in milk.

Pour into 6 ounce custard cups or ramekins. Sprinkle top of each ramekin with nutmeg.

Place cups in a 9 x 13 inch baking pan; fill pan with hot water to 1-inch depth.

Bake at 325 degrees for one hour or until a knife inserted near the middle comes out clean.

Yield: 6 servings. Can be served room temperature or cold.


Sensation Salad and DressingSensation-Salad

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups cold iceberg lettuce (washed, spun dry, and torn into small bite-size pieces)
  • 1 / 3 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 / 2 cup olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced and mashed
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Granulated garlic to taste
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
  • 1 cup grated Romano cheese (can use Parmesan cheese)

Method:

In a 1-quart jar with lid, blend together oils, lemon juice, mashed garlic, white vinegar, and season to taste using salt, pepper, and granulated garlic.

Cover with lid and shake well. Place salad dressing in refrigerator and allow it to sit for 24 hours for flavors to incorporate. When ready to serve, shake well.

Place iceberg lettuce and parsley in a large mixing bowl, top with dressing, and toss to coat well. Add Romano cheese and toss gently.

Note: Add a little dressing at a time. Toss and add more as needed. Too much dressing will make the salad too oily.

Yield. 6 servings

 

Pro-Life Mississippi