Choice Recipes and Menus Using Canned Foods

FRUITS AND DESSERTS

Reading edition

APPLESAUCE A LA MODE

1 No. 2 can applesauce, chilled ½ pint vanilla ice cream nutmeg, mace or cinnamon

Divide applesauce in four serving dishes and top with a spoonful or scoop of ice cream. Sprinkle ice cream with preferred spice. 4 Servings

CHERRY-CITRUS COMPOTE

1 No. 2½ can Royal Anne cherries 5 tablespoons sugar 4 thin slices orange 4 thin slices lemon

Drain cherries and reserve juice. Add sugar, orange and lemon slices to juice and simmer gently 15 minutes. Add cherries and chill. 8 Servings

NECTAR-FRUIT JUICE COCKTAIL

1 12-oz. can apricot, peach or pear nectar, chilled ½ cup grape juice, cranberry juice or pineapple juice, chilled

Shake chilled nectar thoroughly and combine with juice. Stir well to blend. Serve immediately. 3 to 4 Servings

PUMPKIN CAKE

3 cups sifted cake flour 5 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon ground clove ¼ teaspoon cardamom 1¼ cups canned pumpkin ½ cup milk ½ cup shortening 1½ cups sugar 3 eggs

Sift together dry ingredients. Combine pumpkin and milk. Cream shortening, add sugar gradually and cream together until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Add dry ingredients, alternately with pumpkin-milk mixture, a small amount at a time. Beat until smooth after each addition. Turn into two greased and floured 9-inch layer pans. Bake in a moderate oven (375°F.) 35 minutes or until done. Frost with Maple Nut Frosting. Two 9-inch Layers

MAPLE NUT FROSTING

¼ cup butter or margarine 2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar 3 tablespoons hot water ¼ teaspoon maple flavoring ¼ cup chopped walnuts

Melt butter or margarine. Add to sugar and blend thoroughly. Gradually stir in hot water and beat until icing is of spreading consistency. Add flavoring and blend. Stir in nuts. Spread between layers and on top of Pumpkin Cake. Frosting for tops of two 9-inch Layers

INDIVIDUAL PURPLE PLUM PUDDINGS

1 No. 2½ can purple plums 2 cups sifted flour 4 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons sugar ¼ cup shortening 1 cup milk

Drain plums; reserve juice. Cut fruit in half and remove pits. Sift together dry ingredients. Cut in shortening. Add milk all at once and stir only until all flour is moistened. Place about 2 tablespoons dough in the bottom of each of 8 well-greased custard cups. Cover with a layer of fruit and then the remaining dough. Cover cups tightly with heavy waxed paper or aluminum foil. Place in a steamer or large shallow pan containing 1 inch of boiling water. Cover and steam in a moderate oven (350°F.) 45 minutes. Serve warm with Plum Sauce. 8 Individual Puddings

PLUM SAUCE

2 tablespoons cornstarch ¼ cup sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon juice drained from 1 No. 2½ can purple plums or prunes 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1 tablespoon butter

Combine cornstarch, sugar and cinnamon in a saucepan. Slowly stir in fruit juice. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and clears. Cook gently 3 minutes. Add lemon juice and butter; stir until butter melts. Serve hot with Individual Purple Plum Puddings. Scant 2 Cups Sauce

PEACHES IN ORANGE SAUCE

1 No. 2½ can peach halves or slices ¼ cup brown sugar 2 teaspoons cornstarch dash of salt ½ cup canned orange juice 3 whole cloves 3 whole allspice

Drain peaches; reserve juice and measure ½ cup. Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan. Stir in ½ cup peach juice and orange juice. Add spices. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add peaches and simmer 5 minutes. Cool. Serve with plain cream, whipped cream, or over baked custard, tapioca or vanilla pudding or vanilla ice cream. 6 to 8 Servings

PEAR SUNDAE WITH CHOCOLATE MINT SAUCE ⇒ page 38

½ to 1 cup canned chocolate syrup, chilled 2 to 4 drops mint extract 1 No. 2½ can pear halves, drained and chilled ½ to 1 pint vanilla ice cream

Combine chocolate syrup with mint extract. Place 1 or 2 pear halves cut side up in individual dessert dishes. Fill cavity of pear with ice cream. Pour chocolate-mint syrup over ice cream. 4 to 8 Servings

FRUIT COCKTAIL FRITTERS

1½ cups sifted flour 1½ teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon sugar 2 eggs ½ cup milk 1 cup well-drained, canned fruit cocktail deep fat for frying

Sift together dry ingredients. Combine eggs and milk and beat well; add to flour mixture all at once and stir only until all flour is moistened. Fold in fruit cocktail. Heat fat to 375°F. Drop batter from a tablespoon into fat and fry 5 minutes or until golden brown on all sides. Remove from fat and drain on absorbent paper. Serve hot with maple syrup or sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar and serve as a hot bread. 5 Servings or 15 Fritters

APPLESAUCE CAKE

2½ cups sifted flour 1½ cups sugar 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1¼ teaspoons salt ½ teaspoon cinnamon ½ teaspoon cloves ½ cup shortening 1½ cups canned, unsweetened applesauce 2 eggs, unbeaten 1 cup chopped, seedless raisins 1 cup chopped walnuts

Sift together into bowl flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Add shortening and applesauce and beat 2 minutes either by hand or with an electric mixer at medium speed. Add eggs and beat 2 more minutes. Stir in raisins and nuts distributing evenly throughout the batter. Turn into a greased and floured 5 × 9-inch loaf pan. Bake in a moderate oven (350°F.) 1½ hours or until done. One 5 × 9-inch Loaf Cake

APRICOT ICE CREAM

1 No. 2½ can whole apricots ½ to ¾ cup powdered sugar 1 cup heavy cream

Drain apricots; reserve juice. Remove pits and force apricots through a sieve. Combine apricots, juice and sugar; stir until sugar is dissolved. Beat cream until stiff. Fold apricot mixture into cream. Turn into refrigerator trays and freeze about 2 hours at coldest temperature until almost solidly frozen. Remove from trays to a chilled bowl and beat with a chilled beater until smooth. Return to trays; freeze until firm, about 3 hours. 1¼ Quarts

VARIATIONS:

PEACH ALMOND ICE CREAM—Substitute 1 No. 2½ can peach halves for apricots. Reduce sugar to 2 tablespoons and add ¼ teaspoon almond extract to peach pulp. Proceed as above. 1¼ Quarts

PEAR MINT ICE CREAM—Substitute 1 No. 2½ can pear halves for apricots. Omit sugar and add 6 to 8 drops mint extract to pear pulp. Proceed as above. Serve with chocolate sauce. 1¼ Quarts

COFFEE MILK SHAKE

1 cup cold milk ½ cup cold, strong coffee 1 tablespoon sugar cinnamon

Combine milk, coffee and sugar in a shaker or tightly covered jar and shake until well blended. Serve immediately.

Frosted Coffee Milk Shake—add ¼ cup vanilla ice cream to the above ingredients and shake until well blended. Serve immediately with a dash of cinnamon. Makes 1 Large or 2 Medium-sized Drinks

FRUIT COCKTAIL AMBROSIA

1 No. 2½ can fruit cocktail ¼ cup honey 1 tablespoon lemon juice 2 medium-sized bananas ¾ cup canned, moist, shredded cocoanut

Drain fruit cocktail; reserve ½ cup juice. Combine honey, lemon juice and fruit juice. Slice bananas and arrange in the bottoms of 6 sherbet dishes. Pour combined juices over bananas. Top with fruit cocktail; sprinkle with cocoanut. Chill thoroughly. 6 Servings

FRUIT JUICE COCKTAILS

1 or 1¼ cups juice drained from canned fruit (peaches, pears, apricots, etc.) 1 cup ginger ale 2 teaspoons lemon juice

Chill fruit juice and ginger ale thoroughly. When ready to serve, mix together; add lemon juice and serve in chilled cocktail glasses. Garnish with lemon slices, mint and cherries. 4 Servings

PINEAPPLE CREAM WITH CRUNCH TOPPING

1½ cups milk 1 3-oz. package vanilla pudding 1 No. 1 flat can sliced pineapple

Gradually add milk to vanilla pudding in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Cool slightly. Drain pineapple; reserve juice. Place one slice pineapple in each of 4 individual serving dishes. Gradually add pineapple juice to pudding and stir until smooth. Pour over pineapple slices. This may be eaten warm or cold. Just before serving, sprinkle with Crunch Topping.

CRUNCH TOPPING:

2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons brown sugar ½ cup cornflakes 2 tablespoons chopped nuts

Melt butter in a small saucepan; add brown sugar and blend. Add cornflakes and nuts and stir until all ingredients are well distributed. Cool; sprinkle over top of Pineapple Cream. 4 Servings

PRUNE SOUFFLE WITH CUSTARD SAUCE AND TOASTED ALMONDS

SOUFFLE:

4 egg whites ¼ teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons sugar 1 4¾-oz. can strained prunes

SAUCE:

1½ cups milk 3 tablespoons sugar ⅛ teaspoon salt 4 egg yolks 1 tablespoon flour ¼ teaspoon almond extract or ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons chopped toasted almonds

Souffle: Beat egg whites until stiff. Add salt and sugar gradually and continue beating until very stiff. Fold in prunes lightly. Turn into an ungreased 1½-quart casserole. Place in a pan of hot water and bake in a slow oven (325°F.) 1 hour or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, or turn into the top of a well-greased double boiler. Cover and cook over simmering water 1 to 1¼ hours or until done.

Sauce: Combine milk, sugar and salt in a saucepan; scald. Beat egg yolks well; add flour and blend. Slowly stir a small amount of the hot milk into egg yolks, then add egg mixture to remainder of milk. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture coats spoon. Remove from heat. Cool. Add almond or vanilla extract and chill. When souffle is done serve immediately with custard sauce. Sprinkle with chopped almonds. 4 to 5 Servings

APPLESAUCE BREAD PUDDING

1 No. 2 can applesauce 1 teaspoon lemon juice ½ cup seedless raisins 1 tablespoon butter 4 slices day-old bread ¾ teaspoon cinnamon 2 tablespoons sugar

Combine applesauce, lemon juice and raisins and place half of this mixture in the bottom of a greased 1-quart baking dish. Butter bread and cut 3 slices in small cubes and the remaining slice in 4 triangles. Place the bread cubes on top of the applesauce mixture. Mix together cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle half of this over the bread cubes. Top with remaining applesauce mixture and then with bread triangles, pushing them down slightly into applesauce mixture. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture over the pudding. Bake in a moderate oven (350°F.) 30 minutes. Allow to cool before serving. Sweetened whipped cream may be used as a topping, if desired. 4 to 5 Servings

ORANGE MUFFINS

1½ cups sifted flour 3 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt ¼ cup shortening ¼ cup sugar 2 eggs ½ cup canned, unsweetened orange juice

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Cream shortening; add sugar gradually and cream together until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat well. Add orange juice alternately with dry ingredients, a small amount at a time, beating after each addition until smooth. Bake in greased muffin pans in a hot oven (450°F.) 20 minutes. 12 Medium-sized Muffins

PINEAPPLE MERINGUE PIE

¼ cup cornstarch ¾ cup sugar ½ teaspoon salt 3 eggs, separated 1 No. 2 can unsweetened pineapple juice 1 tablespoon butter 1 8-inch baked pie shell 6 tablespoons sugar dash of salt

Mix together cornstarch, ¾ cup sugar and ½ teaspoon salt in a saucepan. Add egg yolks and blend thoroughly. Gradually stir in pineapple juice. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Add butter. Cool. Turn into pastry shell. Top with a meringue prepared by beating egg whites with 6 tablespoons of sugar and salt. Bake in a moderately hot oven (400°F.) 6 minutes or until meringue browns. Makes One 8-inch Pie

OLD-FASHIONED CHERRY SHORTCAKES

1 No. 2 can red sour pitted cherries packed in water[3] ¾ cup sugar 1 tablespoon cornstarch ¼ teaspoon cinnamon 2 cups sifted flour 4 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons sugar ¼ cup shortening 1 egg milk ½ cup heavy cream 2 teaspoons sugar

Drain cherries; reserve juice. Combine sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon in a saucepan; stir in cherry juice. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and clears. Add cherries and chill. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar; cut in shortening. Beat egg slightly in a measuring cup and add enough milk to make ¾ cup liquid. Combine with flour mixture to make a soft dough. Turn out on a lightly floured board and roll ½-inch thick. Cut with a floured 2½-inch biscuit cutter. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in a hot oven (450°F.) 12 to 15 minutes. Split biscuits; butter and spoon cherry mixture over bottom half, cover with top half and spoon more cherry mixture over this. Beat cream and gradually add 2 teaspoons sugar; continue beating until stiff. Serve on top of shortcakes. 6 Individual Shortcakes

Note: 2 cups prepared biscuit mix may be substituted for flour, baking powder, salt and shortening. Add the 2 tablespoons sugar to biscuit mix. Add enough milk to egg to make ⅔ cup liquid. Proceed as above.

GRAPEFRUIT SURPRISE SALAD

1 No. 2 can grapefruit segments 1 3-oz. package orange or lemon-flavored gelatin dessert 2 tablespoons sugar ⅛ teaspoon salt 6 to 7 maraschino cherries ½ 3-oz. package cream cheese 2 tablespoons mayonnaise

Drain grapefruit segments, reserving juice. Add sufficient water to juice to make 2 cups liquid; heat to boiling point. Pour over gelatin dessert, to which sugar and salt have been added, and stir until dissolved. Chill until mixture begins to thicken. Cut cherries petal fashion by quartering at stem end and cutting almost to center. Place one in the bottom of each individual mold, spreading out the petals. Soften cream cheese; add mayonnaise and blend. Roll into balls and place one in the center of each cherry. Line molds with grapefruit segments. Pour slightly thickened gelatin carefully over grapefruit and cheese. Chill until firm. Unmold and garnish with watercress and serve with fruit salad dressing. 6 to 7 Individual Molds

CHOCOLATE REFRIGERATOR CAKE

½ cup canned chocolate syrup 3 eggs, separated ¼ teaspoon almond extract 1 cup heavy cream 12 lady fingers, split, or left-over cake

Heat chocolate syrup over hot water. Remove from heat; add egg yolks, one at a time, beating vigorously after each addition until mixture thickens slightly. Cool and add almond extract. Beat ½ cup cream and fold into chocolate mixture. Beat egg whites stiff but not dry; fold into mixture. Line a refrigerator tray first with waxed paper then lady fingers or cake. Pour half the chocolate mixture over the cake; cover with another layer of cake, then remaining chocolate mixture and top with cake. Chill in freezing compartment 3 hours or until firm. Whip remaining ½ cup cream and serve as a topping on cake slices. 6 to 8 Servings

PINEAPPLE MERINGUE CAKE

¾ cup sifted cake flour ¾ teaspoon baking powder ⅛ teaspoon salt 2 eggs ½ cup sugar ¼ teaspoon grated lemon rind 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1 No. 2 can crushed pineapple 2 egg whites dash of salt ¼ cup sugar

Sift together dry ingredients. Beat eggs until light and lemon-colored. Gradually add ½ cup sugar to eggs, beating constantly. Add lemon rind and juice. Fold the dry ingredients gradually into egg mixture. Turn into a greased 8-inch layer pan. Bake in a moderate oven (350°F.) 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from pan and cool. Drain pineapple; reserve juice for sauce. Place cake on a baking sheet and spread crushed pineapple over the top. Prepare a meringue by beating egg whites with dash of salt and ¼ cup sugar. Cover top and sides of cake with meringue. Return to oven and bake in a moderately hot oven (400°F.) 6 minutes or until meringue is lightly browned. Serve warm cut in wedges with Pineapple Sauce. 6 Servings

PINEAPPLE SAUCE

2 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon cornstarch dash of salt 2 egg yolks 1 cup pineapple juice drained from No. 2 can crushed pineapple

Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan. Stir in egg yolks and beat until smooth. Gradually stir in pineapple juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and clears. Serve with Pineapple Meringue Cake. Makes 1¼ cups sauce

BAKED COCOANUT PEAR

1 No. 2½ can pear halves 1 tablespoon lemon juice ¾ cup canned, moist, shredded cocoanut

Drain pears; reserve juice. Sprinkle pears with lemon juice and roll in cocoanut. Place, cut side down, on a greased cookie sheet or in a greased, shallow, oblong baking dish. Bake in a hot oven (425°F.) 10 minutes or until cocoanut browns. Serve warm with Cinnamon Sauce. 8 Servings

CINNAMON SAUCE

1 tablespoon cornstarch ½ teaspoon cinnamon juice drained from 1 No. 2½ can pear halves 1 tablespoon butter

Combine cornstarch and cinnamon in a saucepan. Slowly stir in pear juice. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and clears. Cook gently 3 minutes. Add butter and stir until melted. Serve warm or cold over Baked Cocoanut Pears. 1½ cups Sauce

PEAR COBBLER

1 No. 2½ can Bartlett pear halves ⅓ cup canned, unsweetened orange juice ¼ cup brown sugar 1 tablespoon cornstarch few grains of salt 1 tablespoon sugar 1 cup prepared biscuit mix 6 tablespoons undiluted evaporated milk ½ cup heavy cream, whipped (optional) 2 tablespoons sugar

Drain pears and reserve ⅔ cup juice. Place pears in bottom of a shallow (10 × 6 × 1¾-inch) baking dish, cut side up. Combine fruit juices, brown sugar, cornstarch and salt and pour over pears. Place in a hot oven (425°F.) for 5 minutes. Combine sugar and biscuit mix and add evaporated milk to make a soft dough. Drop in 6 spoonfuls on top of pears. Bake 15 to 20 minutes longer at 425°F. or until biscuits are browned. If desired, serve warm with heavy cream whipped with 2 tablespoons of sugar. 6 Servings

Note: Canned Peach Halves may be substituted for pears in this recipe.

Notes in this chapter

Note 1 · Cherries packed in heavy syrup may be substituted. Reduce sugar to ½ cup.