Last summer my daughter Jan and I toured northern California on a cookbook signing and cooking shoot. It was in Bakersfield that we discovered the difference between regular canned food verses organic. The difference was like night and day. The tomato sauce we made was naturally sweet. It had better taste, less salt, no acidity and less cooking time. We promised never to buy regular canned goods again only organic. I should of known, since I was born on a farm eighty years ago that all we grew and ate was organic. I don’t even remember seeing any cans or jars of food in the market in those days. This weeks Rescued Recipe comes from a lady who talks about her mom with much nostalgic and sentimental memories. She remembers her making home made strawberry jelly every year and how good it was. Her story has touched my heart because I too have done that in my life, a long time ago in the sixties and seventies in Lake Tahoe. One of my hobbies was gardening, besides cooking. I had a glorious vegetable garden, also many fruit trees and a large spread of strawberry plants. Every year in the summer I would process the fruits and can them. My children remember my pantry always full of canning jars of vegetable, fruits, jams and jelly. Most of the jars I gave away to family, friends, and neighbors. My children like to tell their friends that I have a green thumb. Not so, every body can have a green thumb. It is something you love to do and take proper care, water, feed, sun and sometimes even talk to the plants. If you’d like to read the Rescued Recipe and story of the lady who sent it to us, it will be in Saturday’s newspaper in the Scottsdale Section where you can always find Jan’s column
My rescued recipe for this week is over one hundred years old. It was given to me many years ago from a very dear, dear friend. It was his mothers and grandmothers favorite recipe. When Andy first brought the torte to my house I loved it so much that I made it my favorite right then too. Sometimes I make it for a special occasion or holiday. This is so good, so different, and so unique. Try it, if you like French desserts, you are going to love this torte.
Ciao, until my next blob, may God bless you, Love Momma
Mrs. Kallin’s Strawberry Almond Torte
Ingredients:
1 cup shortening (half butter and half margarine)
½ cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup strawberry or raspberry jam
Directions:
Cream together shortening and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and mix. Blend in flour and baking powder to form a dough. If the dough is too grainy or crumbly, add 1-2 tablespoons of cold water. Take ¼ of the dough and set aside for the lattice topping. Roll out the remainder of the dough and place in the bottom of one 10″ x 15″ pan (or two 9″ x 9″ pans). Spread jam evenly over dough.
For the Topping:
Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 ½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
4 cups ground almonds (blanched or with skin)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoon almond extract
1 cube (1/4 lb.) butter, melted
Directions:
In a food processor, grind almonds to a course meal-like consistency.
In a large bowl, blend together eggs, sugar and salt. Add ground almonds, cinnamon and almond extract. Add melted butter and combine all until well blended. Spoon mixture evenly over jam. Roll out remaining dough and cut into thin strips. Place diagonally over top of torte to form a lattice crust. Bake at 325 degrees for 50-60 minutes. Serve with small dollop of jam on top.
*Note: Recipe may be cut in half
Go to Rescued Recipes for the pictures
