Ham and Sweet Potatoes

From the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook

I once had a friend who loved sweet potatoes. I mean seriously loved them. So much so that she would have done nothing short of grabbing a steak knife and telling you to back off if you got too close to her sweet potatoes. Now that’s a food devotion. However, she wasn’t much of a cook, and when I began testing recipes for Rosie’s Riveting Recipes, I passed this one along to her. It’s easy to prepare, even for those who are kitchen challenged. It’s also a nice dish for those who wax nostalgic for holiday meals over the course of the year.

Gayle Martin

HAM WITH SWEET POTATOES

  • 1 1/2 pounds sliced ham or shoulder
  • 3 cups raw, sliced sweet potatoes
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 cup hot water
  • 1 tablespoon margarine

Cut the ham or shoulder into pieces for serving. If the meat is very salty, parboil it in water and drain. Brown the meat lightly on both sides and arrange the pieces to cover the bottom of a baking dish. Spread the sliced sweet potatoes over the meat, sprinkle with sugar. Add hot water to melted margarine and pour over the sweet potatoes and meat. Cover the dish and bake slowly until the meat and sweet potatoes are tender, basting the sweet potatoes occasionally with the gravy. Toward the last, remove the lid and let the top brown well. Yields 6 servings.

Modern adaptation: Heat oven to 350F. Butter may be used instead of margarine. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for approximately one hour, basting the sweet potatoes occasionally as directed in the original recipe. After baking for one hour remove foil and bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until the sweet potatoes have browned. Turkey ham may also be used, and the sugar can be decreased to one teaspoon.

Cover photo by Robert Resetar.

Rosie’s Riveting Recipes is available on Amazon Barnesandnoble.com, and other online booksellers.

 

Old-Time Rice Custard Pudding

From the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes cookbook
© Can Stock Photo/pruden

My ex husband used to bring home rice pudding from the refrigerated section at the supermarket. He said it reminded him of his grandmother’s rice pudding. I’d never had rice pudding before, and it reminded me of my grandmother’s homemade tapioca pudding. Funny how certain foods bring back happy childhood memories.

Fast forward a few years. I’m testing some recipes for the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook. This rice pudding recipe was easy to prepare and used ingredients found in most pantries. However, it had a very different texture from the premade supermarket rice pudding, which created a delicious yet totally different experience. Puddings have variations, and it’s nice to try something different.

Gayle Martin

OLD-TIME RICE CUSTARD PUDDING

  • 2 cups cooked rice
  • 1/2 cup seedless raisins
  • 2 cups scalded milk*
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • nutmeg

Mix rice and raisins. Place in 8-inch baking pan, 3 inches deep. Blend milk into beaten eggs, sugar, salt and vanilla. Pour over rice and raisin mixture. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Place pan in shallow pan of water. Steam bake 1 1/2 hours in moderate oven (325F). Serve warm or chilled, with or without cream.

*Pasteurization has taken the place of scalding.

 

Cover photo by Rob Resetar

Rosie’s Riveting Recipes is available on Amazon and Barnesandnoble.com.