Winter Comfort Foods at Our House

    

 Minute tapioca pudding is my favorite of comfort foods. It relates to memories of my dad. He loved to cook up a big pan tapioca for us on a winter night, usually a Saturday night or a Sunday night after church. (Many people hate tapioca and I can understand because most people have only tasted it cold from a cafeteria. It was thick and like glue and  it usually had been canned.)

A sprinkle of nutmeg on top and it is perfect–warm and delicious like a custard pudding or a heated eggnog. When I have a trouble or miss my dad I like to cook tapioca.

Molasses spice cookies are a comfort anytime. Shelley loves these. They taste wonderful with a cup of Ron’s “brown dog”coffee. They make the house smell so spicy cinnamon  sweet. I love to cool them on this brown and white plaid platter.

 Brenna made this batch . She can cook more and more good foods. She will be a fine cook some day even though she prefers grafting pecan trees and feeding the cows, climbing trees and riding horses to kitchen work.

When it begins to thicken I add vanilla and pecans and pour the candy into a round cake pan. When it hardens, I tip it out unto a plate and gently break it into pieces.

 I like to bake bread and this week I used Penny’s recipe. I use 4 tsp. yeast and 2 and a half cups of warm water, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 Tbl. salt, 1 egg, 1/4 cup oil, 2 cups wheat flour and 4 cups white flour. This makes a nice soft bread that is delicious. Often I add 1/4 cup of cornmeal to the recipe. I shape one into a loaf and roll the other dough out to make cinnamon rolls. I butter it, add brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins, chopped pecans.

The boys love this bread. They can eat a whole loaf of it fresh from the oven.