Tag: Aunt Hen’s Recipes

Aunt Hen's Chocolate Bar Pie topped with chocolate curls beside vintage apron.

Aunt Hen’s Chocolate Bar Pie

Chocolate Bar Pie is a simple recipe. All you need to make it is two basic ingredients along with water, a pinch of salt and the pie shell of your choice. Still it is a crowd pleaser. Aunt Hen recognized the value of such a recipe. Classically light and sweet, it was easy to make, easy to enjoy and still made her guests feel special.

Cranberry Eggnog Salad on crystal plate

Family Traditions – Cranberry Eggnog Salad

Last year I read a piece in Southern Living magazine that had me laughing out loud. “Taking Sides” by Allison Glock described a formidable family tradition in the form of The Cranberry Salad, a side dish that nobody liked but was made and served each Thanksgiving day as a matter […]

Aunt Hen’s Cinnamon Toast

This is not exactly a recipe. It’s more like a memory. Or maybe a mindset, intent on those old-fashioned basics, pared down and well executed. And it’s not exactly news. It’s been written about by food bloggers everywhere, some who have great thoughts on the matter, some who get right […]

Aunt Hen’s Beef Barley Soup

After I was married and had left my home the boisterous family of five that had gathered around Aunt Hen’s dinner table every week night for years had dwindled to two. She and Aunt Bet were next door neighbors and still ate together but the big meals she cooked every […]

Homemade Ice Cream – Through the Generations

Homemade Ice Cream – Past and Present Nothing pulls a thread through summers past and present quite like homemade ice cream. I have fond memories of taking turns providing the muscle for Aunt Hen’s hand-cranked ice cream freezer when I was a child. The homemade ice cream it made was […]

A square of Bishop Chocolate Cake with Fudgy Icing served on a white plate.

Bishop Chocolate Cake

Bishop Chocolate Cake is a recipe based on a bond of friendship. A family favorite, it is a recipe I remember from my childhood. This moist chocolatey cake is easy to make and easy to transport. It is also a crowd pleaser, a basic recipe favored by children and adults alike.

Lessons from Childhood – Chocolate Macaroons

The Virtues of Coconut? To be honest, I didn’t think I liked Macaroons. In truth I have always avoided them. It was never even a challenge to say no to an offered tray of those nubby golden mounds. My aversion to flaked coconut was written in my mind as a […]

A Serving of Southern Style Green Beans with bits of ham.

Southern Style Green Beans

While they take their own sweet thyme getting ready, the wonderful old-fashioned flavor of Southern Style Green Beans is worth the wait. Just put them on early and let them simmer slowly on the back of the stove. They are quite simple to put together and they go with almost everything.

A slice of Lemon Meringue Pie, topped with No Weep Meringue, served on a white dessert plate.

Lemon Meringue Pie

The filling for this Lemon Meringue Pie focuses on the fresh tartness of the lemon. Bright and tangy, it sets a perfect contrast to the soft, sweet cloud of meringue on top. Nestled in a flaky golden pastry this pie is sure to be a family favorite.

Meringue That Won’t Weep

No one likes sticky beads forming on top of their pie, or a damp sticky layer between pie filling and topping, especially after making the effort to create something special. Aunt Hen had a solution. She discovered Meringue That Won’t Weep and she still loved to share the recipe with friends and family well into her eighties.

a broken Pork and Beans Muffin with bacon

Pork and Beans Bread

One of Aunt Hen’s favorite recipes to share, Pork and Bean Bread is a simple quick bread with a twist. It takes a plain can of traditional Pork and Beans and dresses it up in a new and unexpected way. Great for a barbecue side dish or a summer brunch, you can keep it basic or add chocolate chips or bacon