Side Dish | Rosie's Riveting Recipes

Corn Pudding

from the pages of Rosie’s Riveting Recipes

This recipe is such a classic, and so simple I’m surprised neither my mother, nor any of my grandmothers, ever prepared it. It is, however, included in the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook, and it’s one of the easiest recipes in the entire book. The results are delicious. The pudding has a rich, buttery flavor, making it the perfect, flavorful side dish. Enjoy.

Gayle Martin

CORN PUDDING

3 eggs
2 cups fresh or canned corn
2 tablespoons melted margarine
salt and pepper
2 cups milk

Beat the eggs. Add all the other ingredients and salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a greased baking dish, place in a pan of hot water, and bake in a moderate oven, (350F) for about 1 hour or until set in the center. Yields 6 servings.

Note: A 15.5 ounce can of corn works nicely for this recipe.

Book Cover for Rosies Riveting Recipes — Cover photo by Rob Resetar

Imagine the government telling you how much meat or chicken you could buy, or how much sugar or flour you could have. Strange as it may seem, at one time it actually happened. During WWII, the United States government devised a food rationing program to help insure that every family would have enough to eat. Rosie’s Riveting Recipes gives readers a glimpse into life on the WWII home front. A cookbook and a history lesson in one Rosies’s Riveting Recipes includes more than 180 economical, back-to-basics World War II ration recipes and short tales of life on the American home front interspersed throughout.

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

Broccoli with Hollandaise Sauce

If you ever want to spruce up a side dish to impress your family and friends, this one will do nicely. The recipe is included in the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook. Hollandaise sauce is quick and easy to make, and the ingredients are already in the fridge. Homemade also tastes better than a mix.

Everything is better with hollandaise sauce. Along with broccoli, it tastes great on asparagus, baked potatoes and my all time favorite breakfast. Eggs Benedict.

Gayle Martin

BROCCOLI WITH HOLLANDAISE SAUCE

¹/₂ cup margarine
4 egg yolks
¹/₄ cup water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
salt, pepper
cooked broccoli

Put all ingredients, except broccoli, in the top of a double boiler or a small deep saucepan. Put over direct heat, and beat constantly with a dover beater* until the sauce is thick, smooth and foamy.

Serve on hot cooked broccoli, or other cooked green vegetables.

* A dover beater is another term for an egg beater

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

How to Make Minestrone

Minestrone has always been one of my favorite soups, but when I did an online search for recipes I found so many variations it made my head spin. Suffice to say minestrone is one of those dishes intended for using up leftovers, and for that it works quite nicely. I can clean out my fridge and create a tasty dish at the same time. Best of all, it’s never the same twice.

As I created my own version of minestrone I noticed I used a few ingredients consistently. The rest was whatever I happened to have on hand, which is why I’m leaving plenty of leeway on my ingredients list.

By the way, Rosie, of the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook, would have approved. She never let leftovers go to waste.

Gayle Martin

MINESTRONE

2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter (optional)
1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic (optional)
1 cup sliced celery (optional)
1 bell pepper, chopped (optional)
1 or 2 carrots, sliced (optional)
1 small (8 oz) can tomato sauce
2 cups chicken broth or water
1 can garbanzo beans
Other leftover vegetables, such as corn, lima beans, chopped zucchini or cubed potatoes
3/4 cup small pasta, such as stars, small shells, or mini farfalle
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1 tablespoon basil
1 tablespoon parsley
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 package of spinach, fresh, frozen or canned

Heat oil and butter, if desired, in a stock pot and saute the onion, garlic, bell pepper, carrots or celery. Cook for approximately 5 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add tomato sauce and broth or water. Stir well. Add any remaining vegetables, garbanzo beans, seasonings and pasta. Heat to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for twenty minutes. Add spinach and simmer for another minute or two. Serve with bread, rolls or corn muffins.

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

Traditional Cranberry Sauce

I hear the least popular Thanksgiving side dish is the dreaded cranberry sauce. Okay, I have to admit it; that jelly looking cranberry colored blob that comes out of the can, shaped like the can, is nasty. So who wants to eat that? Yuck.

There is, however, a tasty alternative; making your cranberry sauce from scratch. It’s what Rosie, of the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook would have done. Fresh cranberry sauce surprisingly easy to prepare, and it’s delicious. You can make your cranberry sauce a day or two ahead of time. Best of all, it freezes well, so you can serve the leftover sauce at Christmas.

Believe me, once you’ve tried fresh, you will never go back to canned.

Gayle Martin

TRADITIONAL CRANBERRY SAUCE

3 cups fresh cranberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup water

Place cranberries in a colander or strainer and wash thoroughly, removing any damaged berries. Set aside.

Pour water into a 2 quart saucepan and place over medium high heat. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Bring to a boil and add cranberries. Reduce heat to medium, stirring occasionally until cranberry skins begin to pop. Keep stirring for several minutes. If a smoother sauce is desired, keep stirring until most of the skins have popped. Remove from heat and set aside. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Refrigerate sauce once it reaches room temperature.

Rosie’s Riveting Recipes contains a variety of delicious recipes for the dishes our grandmothers used to make. It’s available on Amazon and Barnesandnoble.com.

My Grandmother’s Green Beans

I think every family has their favorite recipes which have been passed down generation to generation. One of our favorites was my grandma’s green beans. She served them at family get-togethers for years, as did my mother. I’ve played with the recipe a little over the years, but not too much. It’s an oldie but a goody, and there are probably a lot of other grandmothers out there who made this dish as well. Here is my interpretation. Please consider this recipe a guide as I never make it the quite the same way twice. (I don’t think Grandma ever did either.)

Gayle Martin

GRANDMA’S HOMEMADE GREEN BEANS

1 to 1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans
3 or 4 red potatoes
3 or 4 slices of bacon
1/2 cup chicken broth
water

Wash green beans, snap off ends, snap into bite-sized pieces and drop into a large mixing bowl. Scrub and dice the potatoes and add them to the beans. Cut bacon slices into small pieces and brown in a small stockpot. Once bacon is browned dump in the green beans and potatoes. Add chicken broth, stir, and cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer for approximately 30 to 45 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and cooked all the way through. Stir occasionally, and, if necessary, add small amounts of water or chicken broth to prevent the beans from scorching. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve as a side dish with pork roast, pork chops or fried chicken.

The Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook contains many of the recipes our grandmothers and great-grandmother’s used to make. It’s available on Amazon and Barnesandnoble.com.

A Super Simple Holiday Side Dish

I love cooking full-course Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday dinners, even though it’s a lot of work. So much food to prepare in so little time. I have, however, figured out one quick little shortcut that helps save time, and confusion, in the kitchen.

I first discovered baked sweet potatoes at a buffet restaurant. The friend I was dining with pointed them out and raved about how delicious they were. I also noticed what an easy side dish it would be to prepare. Simply take a sweet potato, or a yam, quarter it, add a little butter, wrap it in foil, and bake it like a regular potato.

I tried it myself a couple of Thanksgivings ago, and it was a big hit. Much less prep time and less hassle than candied yams, with no added sugars or preservatives, no casserole dish to wash, and fewer calories to boot. Best of all, my guests loved them. No doubt Rosie, of the Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook, would have approved.

Gayle Martin

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

The Cure for Mashed Potato Phobia

I’ll bet if I were to take a poll and ask Americans what is their favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal, the answer would mostly likely be mashed potatoes.

Don’t get me wrong. I like the turkey and stuffing too, but Thanksgiving just isn’t Thanksgiving without the mashed potatoes. Amazingly enough, there are people out there who don’t serve mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving because they’re “unhealthy” or “too fattening.” Sorry, but that’s just wrong in so many ways! I’m also thankful I’m not having my Thanksgiving dinner of their houses. If I found out my host or hostess wasn’t serving mashed potatoes I’d bring my own.

No one needs to be phobic about mashed potatoes. Especially on a special day like Thanksgiving. There are some really simple ways to make them healthier, so you don’t have to deprive other people of their favorite part of the meal. So, here are my suggestions for dealing with Mashed Potato Phobia.

Keep the skin on the potato

Remember when we were kids and our parents told us that the skin was the best part of the potato? Well, they were right. Potato skins are high in vitamins and a good source of fiber. The skin also has the most flavor. So I leave some of the skin on when I peel my potatoes. Along with being healthier, it adds a wonderful flavor and texture to the finished mashed potatoes.

Use skim milk, 2% milk, chicken stock, or a combination thereof

Chicken stock, along with the skins, adds even more flavor while cutting back on fat and calories. I would, however, recommend using at least little bit of milk along with it just to add creaminess and thickness.

Skip the margarine

I think we all know by now that margarine is a trans fat, and trans fats are extremely unhealthy. I no longer allow margarine in my home. In fact, I consider trans fats to be poison. Nowadays I only use real butter. However, if you’re worried about cutting fat and calories, you can also skip the butter and use the chickenstock.

See? How simple was that? With just a few easy steps everyone can enjoy healthier, and more flavorful, mashed potatoes.

Gayle Martin

The Rosie’s Riveting Recipes historic cookbook includes many delicious historic potato recipes. Available Amazon, Barnesandnoble.com and other online book sellers.