Grandma’s Bowl Cookies

Have you ever remembered a favorite food your grandmother made when you were young and wished you had the recipe for it?

I can’t count the number of times I have gone through Mom’s recipe box trying to find the recipe for Grandma’s Bowl Cookies.  I knew that Grandma didn’t write down recipes; at least I had never seen any but, I was hoping that Mom did write down this one.  No such luck.

Grandma - very young!

Then out of the blue, not too long ago, arrived a newsy letter from my wonderful Aunt Phyllis ~ Uncle Jake’s wife.  I opened up the letter and I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT!!!  Out fell a newspaper clipping with Grandma’s recipe for her bowl cookies!  Oh my gosh!  I was shocked and thrilled at the same time!

Aunt Phyl told me that a friend of hers was looking through one of her friends’ cookbooks and came across the newspaper clipping with Grandma’s name at the bottom of the recipe so she gave it to Aunt Phyl.  The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio) had a weekly column in which readers shared their favorite recipes ~ it may still have it for all I know ~ and Grandma mailed them her recipe for bowl cookies many years ago.

 

Aunt Phyl & Unc Jake

We always called them “bowl cookies” and I have no idea how Grandma came up with that name. The cookies are not rolled out, no cookie cutters were used; maybe Grandma used a small bowl to judge the size (?).   They are a sugar cookie that Grandma made with lard.  I’m sure it’s the lard that gave her cookies the unique taste and I doubt if they would be good using butter or margarine as they would be too bland and spread too much on the cookie sheet when baking.  Bowl cookies are large soft cookies, almost cake-like; baked until they are very lightly golden around the edges, requiring no frosting or decorations. 

My guess is that this would have been a Depression era cookie recipe since the cookies were made with just a few ingredients that were most always available and the price was right.   It seemed like she made these weekly when I was young and also another great cookie with walnuts; another recipe I don’t have!

I’m just sooooo happy to have this recipe and I’m sure Bill is also because he won’t have to listen to me whining anymore about how I wish I had this recipe! 

Sadly though, I must confess ~ when I made them,  they just didn’t taste the same as back then and I know exactly why:  because my dear Grandma didn’t make this batch and because she is no longer here to enjoy them with a cup of coffee and me...

 

 

Here’s Grandma’s recipe in her exact words:

Maude’s Bowl Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup lard

2 cups sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 eggs

1 cup (8-ounces) sour cream

3½ cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

Method:

Cream lard, sugar, salt and vanilla.

Add eggs one at a time and beat well.

Beat in sour cream and flour with baking soda and baking powder mixed in it.

(The secret of having these cookies stay soft is that the dough is not stiff enough to roll with rolling pin.)

Spoon out a “glob” of dough on a floured board.

Dash a little flour on top so your hand won’t stick, and pat to about 1/8-inch thickness, cut and put on baking sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

NOTE:   These will stay soft if kept in a covered container.

Pam’s notes:

I used an electric hand mixer to cream the lard and sugar for 2-3 minutes.  Then I blended in the sour cream and flour by hand.

For the “glob” of dough, I used a flatware tablespoon, heaping, and just swiped it through the dough.

I did not dash flour on top of the cookie before patting it down.  Instead, I ran my fingers through the flour on the board and then pat down the cookies to about ¼-inch thickness.  This worked much better as the dough is very soft and sticky.   Use a thin spatula to move the cookies to the baking sheet. 

I baked them at 400 degrees for 8 minutes, a light golden brown color around the edge.

Here’s to you Grandma and…

Thanks for the recipe, Aunt Phyl!

Visit my friend Linda’s blog @My Kind of Cooking for great tips, recipes and cookbook giveaway! 

Round Steak, Grandma’s and Mom’s Way

I am a beef lover, my favorite meat!

While growing up on the farm, beef was the best, and there was never a shortage of it.  Mom even canned it for making mince meat pies and so forth.  

My mother and grandmother prepared round steak this way so I carry on the tradition and do it the same way. 

Since round steak is not the tenderest of cuts, I learned from Mom that the easy way of helping it out is to have the butcher tenderize first before cooking it.  Or, do it the old fashioned way with a mallet.  

Actually, I have used a saucer edge to tenderize it many times, just like Grandma did, and that works just fine.  Then a coating of flour, followed by searing the meat in the skillet, finishing in the oven.

I love this dish and it reeks of comfort food to me.  The round steak is so tender you won’t need a knife.  

Serve it with buttery, creamy mashed potatoes and a vegetable for a delectable dinner!


Round Steak in Gravy

Ingredients:

2 pounds round steak

¼ cup flour, or more

2 or 3 tablespoons shortening

Salt and pepper

Water

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Tenderize round steak.

Cut into serving size portions.

Dredge both sides of meat in flour.

Melt shortening in large skillet.

Brown beef over medium heat, a few slices at a time, turning once.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Arrange all of meat in skillet, cover with water and lid.

Place skillet in oven and bake for 1 to 1½ hours until tender, adding a little  water if too thick.

Place meat on serving platter.

Heat remaining gravy to boiling, adding a little flour if needed, stirring constantly.

Pour gravy over meat or in a gravy boat.

It cuts like butter and is sooooo meaty delicious! 

ENJOY!!!

Grandma’s Fried Corn

Melody, my cousin with a great sense of humor, back in Pickerington, Ohio, was looking for Grandma’s recipe for fried corn and here it is for her and you also. Have you ever eaten fried corn? It is good when it is cut fresh off the cob, fried in butter or bacon grease. That’s not the way Grandma did it though!

Grandma and Melody, around 4 years old

Great pose, Melody!

I'm guessing that Grandma’s fried corn was so delicious, because she fried it in lard; her shortening of choice.  She used it when frying and baking as well.  She made her pie crusts and biscuits - all baked goods - using lard, which resulted in moist and flaky finished products. 

Lard is pig fat and is used in many cuisines today.  It has a wonderful aroma when in the skillet and gives the food a unique taste which is not like pork at all.  It also gives the food great texture and structure.  

 Here is the best and surprising thing about lard; it is not bad for you!  It has less saturated (bad fat) fat than butter and more than twice the amount of monosaturated (good fat) than found in butter.  There are no nasty trans fats in it, unless it has been hydrogenated, which is the type of lard found in the grocery store today.   It is hydrogenated today to enable the lard a longer shelf life.  That is the problem.  So, the way to combat that folks is to render your own lard!  I am amazed to read that many cooks do just that.  It is supposedly very easy to do.  

There is nothing that compares to the flavor of fresh corn, shucked, cut off the cob and fried in the skillet.  When I grew up on the farm, I walked out to the field with Mom and picked the corn for a meal.  I’d love to be able to do that now; just go right outside the back door to the corn field ~ pick, shuck and cook!  If you’ve never eaten fried corn, you must try it!  Delectable and I wish I had a plate of it right now!

Grandma’s Fried Corn

Ingredients:

8 ears fresh corn

A smidgeon of sugar

Salt and pepper

Milk or water

Lard

Method:

With a sharp knife, run it down the cob to remove the corn.

Use the back of the knife and scrape the whole ear again to remove the milk.

Add lard to the skillet and heat well.

Add corn, sugar, salt and pepper.

Stir well and often as it can burn easily.

As it gets too thick, add a little milk or water.

Cook about 20-25 minutes. 

Ummm!!!  Good! A meal unto itself!

Grandma’s Nut Bread

English Walnut Tree

I adored my grandmother, Maude!  We lived on our farm outside of Columbus, Ohio until I was 11 and moved to Louisville, KY. In Pickerington, Ohio, Grandma and Grandpa lived on the farm across the road, just down a little ways from us.  I was on my bike every day pedaling to her house to see what was going on.  She never scolded me, was always kind and loving.  I could do no wrong in her eyes and I loved her dearly and tried to live up to her expectations. 

Grandma was a good seamstress, sewing a lot of my clothing when I was young.  She loved her family and friends and also loved doing crossword puzzles, a slice of bread soaked in a glass of milk, reading scripture, watching the Ruth Lyons 50/50 Club every week-day on TV,  peanut cluster candy, aprons, watching Midwestern Hayride on Saturday nights, playing the piano, clipping recipes, Pepsi Cola, doilies, the foods she canned, their big black cat, “Mugs,” and especially Elvis Presley.  But, I’m sure, most of all, she loved giving all of her grandchildren a round of worm medicine each and every summer; she insisted upon it and to her credit, not one of us ever had worms!!!          
         

Grandma was a short small lady who always seemed to have her apron on, whether she was in the kitchen or not.  She was the mother of 7 kids and cooked for family and friends; actually, for anyone who showed up at the door.  I’ve got many happy memories of her and the best ones are of just talking to her while she was cooking or baking.  Grandma could cook some mean fried potatoes and I loved her cookies and this nutritious, delicious moist nut bread, which she baked every Thanksgiving.

Grandma’s Nut Bread

Ingredients:

2 well-beaten eggs

2 cups brown sugar

2 cups buttermilk

4 cups flour, sifted

½ t. salt

1 t. baking powder

2 t. baking soda

1 cup walnuts – whole

Method:

Beat eggs and sugar thoroughly with beater.

Add buttermilk, beat well.

Add sifted flour with salt, baking powder and soda.  Stir well.

Stir in whole walnuts.

Pour into 9x5 loaf pans.

Let stand for 10 minutes before baking.

Shake out air bubbles.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes-1 hours, until toothpick comes out clean.

Makes 2 loaves

YUM!!!