Fare Exchange: New Year means new recipes for cake, coffee, cornbread

Good morning, readers. It's a new year, with new ideas and well-remembered meals revisited and reproduced.

The first requests of 2015 are from Lou LaNieve, who was visiting in Chattanooga over the holidays and left us with a handful of challenges for the experts (that would be all of you). She is looking for meals for one, simple but tasty one-dish winter meals, and for anything that works well in her new small crock pot.

"I want to eat healthy, but it is not fun to cook for one. I had a recent idea of using the crock pot to make meals to take to others who are living alone, so ideas there would help, too."

We assured her that there are no more generous or skilled cooks than those who live in or near Chattanooga. Please prove us right, and right away.

As promised last week, here's a cake from Janice Hixson that is distinctively orange with a twist of lemon, and the next two recipes are from the Town and Country cookbook that several of you have shared.

Orange Juice Cake

1 box orange supreme cake mix

1 small box lemon instant pudding

1/2 cup oil

1 cup orange juice

3 eggs

1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Glaze (recipe below)

Spray a Bundt pan with Pam. Blend cake mix, pudding mix, oil, orange juice and eggs in a bowl. Place nuts in the Bundt pan and pour batter over nuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes, until cake springs back when lightly touched.

Glaze

1 stick margarine or butter

1/3 cup orange juice

1 cup sugar

In a saucepan, bring to boil margarine or butter, orange juice and sugar. As soon as cake is done, pour glaze over warm cake while it is still in the pan. Let sit for 30 minutes and then flip over.

Town and Country Bridge Tender Coffee

1/2 ounce Amaretto liqueur

1/2 ounce Kahlua liqueur

8 ounces hot coffee

Whipped cream for topping

Serve in a mug topped with whipped cream. Makes 1 serving.

Town and Country Mushroom Gravy for Meat

1/2 cup onion, diced

1 pound mushrooms

1/2 pound butter, melted

1 quart hot water

1 ounce sherry

Bread flour

Salt to taste

Saut onions and mushrooms in melted butter in saucepan. Add flour to make a roux. Cook mixture 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Add hot water as needed and stir until slightly thickened and smooth. Add sherry and salt to taste. Bring to a boil. [The cookbook doesn't specify, but you certainly could serve over beef or chicken. JH]

***

And here's a first answer to Ms. LaNieve above, offered by someone who heard her request.

Paleo Ham and Egg in Muffin Cups or Ramekins

Butter or nonstick cooking spray

1 slice Canadian bacon

Cheese, chopped tomato or onion (optional)

1 egg

Use cooking spray or a little butter to prepare a muffin tin or ramekin. Lay a slice of Canadian bacon down first. If you want to add grated cheese, finely chopped tomato or onion, do so now, then break an egg into it.

Bake in a heated 350-degree oven until eggs are set to please you. One set of instructions says 8 minutes for a runny yolk, 10 minutes for a semi-soft yolk and 14 minutes for a hard, crumbly egg. This varies greatly, depending on the oven, so you will need to check often.

Salt and pepper to taste, and add a little butter if you want.

Serve immediately, or make a number of these and reheat gently in the microwave to make easy weekday breakfasts.

***

In the Meraz home, jalapeno cornbread is a favorite. This is the most recent one from Gwen Meraz.

Jalapeno Cornbread

2 cups yellow cornmeal

2 eggs

cup corn oil

1 cup sour cream

1 (No. 303) can whole kernel corn, drained

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

5 jalapeno peppers (or fewer if you don't like a lot of bite)

1 medium onion, chopped fine

8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated

In a large bowl, mix cornmeal, eggs, oil, sour cream, corn, flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, peppers and onions.

Heat oven to 500 degrees. Put a greased heated pan into oven until it is good and hot. Pour cornbread into pan and top with cheese. Lower temperature to 350 degrees when you put the bread in the oven. Bake until light golden brown on top. Check at 15 minutes, but you may need 20 to 25 minutes.

Because there are in the Meraz circle (and in most of our circles) those who eat gluten-free, this recipe works well for them. Yes, flour is called for, but because it is so little they can use whatever gluten-free flour mix they have on hand. Cornbread that is heavy with flour or more than a tablespoon of sugar doesn't really count as cornbread, says Ms. Meraz. It's got to be corn-crisp and salty.

***

From a generous collection sent by Sue Mickel of Hixson came "a really good potato soup recipe. It is from Oxmoor House recipes." The original sender, Sherry Haupt, advised that one could "use leftover baked potatoes to make this thick and creamy soup."

Baked Potato Soup

12 slices bacon

2/3 cup butter or margarine

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

7 cups milk

4 potatoes baked, cooled, peeled and cubed

4 green onions, chopped

1 1/4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1 (8-ounce) container sour cream

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned. Drain, crumble and set aside.

In a stockpot or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potato and onion. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Mix in bacon, cheese, sour cream, salt and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese is melted. Yield: 6 servings.

***

With a little help from a tech-savvy son, I erased almost all of the hefty year past from my Fare Exchange inbox. It was a nostalgic parting, archiving helpful words from many of you and remembering the recipes you sent, the conversation you entered. It was a good year, and it was a sad goodbye, but now there is an expectant, trim inbox awaiting word from you. Please hit "Send."