|
Chef2Chef Recipe Club - Volume 3 Issue 081 - October 21, 2002 Chef2Chef Recipe Club Member Forum: http://forums.chef2chef.net Un/Subscribe: http://chef2chef.net/news/subscribe.htm -------------------------------------------------- Hello Recipe Club, This week we'll look at the Halloween holiday, it's history, traditions, parties and of course timely recipes. If you've got a favorite recipe for this time of year, send them in to me and I'll try to post them. Send them using this link. http://chef2chef.net/contacts/mail/mail-dn.html If you respond to this letter by hitting reply, I will never see them. -------------------------------------------------- The History of Halloween Halloween is one of the oldest holidays with origins going back over thousands of years. The holiday we now know as Halloween has had many influences from many cultures over many centuries. Hundreds of years ago the Celtics lived in what is now the UK and Northern France. The Celtics worshipped nature and had numerous gods. The "Sun" god was their favorite. It was "he" who dictated their work and rest times. He made the earth beautiful and the crops grow. The Celtics celebrated their New Year on November 1st. It was celebrated every year with a large festival marking the end of the "Season of the Sun" and the beginning of the "Season of Darkness and Cold." The Celtics believed that, during the winter, the Sun God was taken as a prisoner by Samhain, the Lord of the Dead and Prince of Darkness. On the eve before their New Year celebration (October 31), it was believed that Samhain summoned all the dead people. The dead would take different forms, with the evil spirits taking the form of animals. The most evil, taking the form of cats. On October 31st, once all the crops were harvested and stored, the cooking fires in the homes would be extinguished. The Celtic priests would meet on the hilltop in the sacred Oak Forest and light new fires and offer sacrifices of crops and animals. They would dance away the sun and let the darkness in. In the morning the Druids would give a burning coal from their fires to each family. This ember would start the fires that would heat the homes and protect them from the evil spirits. The November 1st festival, which lasted 3 days, was named after Samhain and honored both, the sun god and Samhain. People would parade around in costumes made from the skins and heads of their animals. This festival would become the first Halloween. During the first century the Romans invaded Britain and,of course, brought many of their festivals and customs with them. One of these was the festival know as Pomona Day, named for their goddess of fruits and gardens. It was also celebrated around the 1st of November. After hundreds of years of Roman rule, the customs of the Celtic's Samhain festival and the Roman Pomona Day mixed, becoming 1 major fall holiday. The next influence came with the spread of the new Christian religion throughout Europe and Britain. In the year 835 AD the Roman Catholic Church decided to make November 1st a church holiday. It would honor all the saints. This day was called All Saint's Day, or Hallowmas, or All Hallows. Years later the Church would make November 2nd a holy day called All Souls Day, which honored the dead. The celebration included large bonfires, parades, and people dressing up as saints, angels and devils. Over the years the customs from all these holidays mixed. October 31st became known as All Hallow Even, eventually All Hallow's Eve, Hallowe'en, and then - Halloween. The Halloween we celebrate today includes all of these influences, the harvest, black cats, magic, evil spirits and death and the ghosts, skeletons and skulls. -------------------------------------------------- Foodservice Professional, How would you like to win a 5 night stay at 5-star Outrigger Wailea Resort in Hawaii? Roundtrip airfare and an economy car rental? Sign In to NestleFoodservices.com right now and you'll be automatically entered to win the Picture Yourself in Hawaii Sweepstakes. The Sweepstakes closes November 30, 2002. http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=231 NestleFoodservices.com provides the very best brand products, services and solutions to satisfy your customers and help you build your business. You'll find innovative ideas, solutions and recipes that answer your foodservice needs. http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=231 -------------------------------------------------- Vermont Pumpkin Walnut Cheesecake (16 servings) Ingredients: 1 pkg. (6 ounces) zwieback crackers, crushed (1 1/2 cups) 1/2 cupGranulated sugar 6 tbsp. Butter, melted 3 pkg. (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened 3/4 cup Granulated sugar 3/4 cup Firmly packed light brown sugar 5 Eggs 1 can (16 ounces) pumpkin 1 3/4 tsp. Pumpkin pie spice 1/4 cup Heavy cream Walnut Topping (recipe follows) Instructions: Blend zwieback crumbs, the 1/4 cup sugar and the butter in a medium-size bowl. Press firmly over bottom and up side of a lightly buttered 9-inch spring-form pan. Chill. Beat cream cheese in a large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add sugars gradually, beating until well mixed. Beat in eggs one at a time, until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice and heavy cream at low speed. Pour into prepared pan. Bake in a slow oven (325 degrees F.) for 1 hour and 35 minutes. Remove the cake from oven, sprinkle with Walnut Topping, bake an additional 10 minutes. Cool cake on wire rack, refrigerate for several hours, or overnight. Garnish with whipped cream and pecans, if you wish. Walnut Topping: 6 tbsp. butter, softened 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup walnuts Combine softened butter with firmly packed light brown sugar in a small bowl, mix well until crumbly. Blend in coarsely chopped walnuts. -------------------------------------------------- Jerky of the Month Club The perfect gift for the hunter or fisherman in your family. Enjoy a healthy lean treat while watching your favorite football team. Gourmet handcrafted beef jerky in your favorite flavors, like Teriyaki or Barbecue, delivered to your door for six months. Jerky-of-the-month.com is giving away three six-month memberships to lucky Chef2Chef visitors this month! Everyone loves great beef jerky! REGISTER for a chance to win gourmet beef jerky or give your winnings to the jerky lover in your family. http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=229 -------------------------------------------------- Chocolate Turtles 75 cups pecan halves about 1-1/2 cups 25 caramels 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate Preheat your oven to 300 degrees On a greased cookie sheet place the pecan halves in rows of three, each touching end to end. Place a caramel on the top of each one and place in the oven for about 6 minutes, until the caramel has softened. Remove from the oven and flatten the caramels over the pecans with a buttered spoon and cool. Melt the chocolate carefully in your microwave or in a double boiler. Dip the turtles into the chocolate and place on wax paper to cool. Store in a cool place in covered containers. -------------------------------------------------- Recipe Club, looking for unique, one-of-a-kind salsa, sauce and marinade recipes to wow your family and friends? Try "Banditos Quick Treat", a package of cream cheese softened, a 16 oz. Jar of medium or habanero salsa and whip together until fluffy. Delicious! You can find this recipe and many more at Bandana Bandito: http://www.bandito.com Check out their new recipe ebook "Appetizers - Recipes from the Bandit's Wife." http://www.bandito.com/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=230 The bandit's wife offers 23 great Bandana Bandito appetizer recipes that are unique, secret and tasty. Order it now for only $5.95 http://www.bandito.com/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=230. As you read this, the bandit's wife is in the kitchen secretly preparing other e-recipe-books, filled with great twists to old favorites and unique recipes only the bandit's wife knows about! She'd love to hear your ideas too! Recipe Club, REGISTER TO WIN a Chip and Dip Bowl and an exciting selection of gourmet salsas by clicking here: http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=238 -------------------------------------------------- Pumpkin Cake Serves 8 This is a very rich dessert. I top it with homemade ice cream and garnish it with honey roasted, shelled pumpkin seeds. 1 canned pumpkin, large can 1 evaporated milk, 1 can 1 cup sugar 3 eggs 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon cloves 1/4 teaspoon ginger 1 box yellow cake mix, dry 1 cup pecans, chopped 1 1/4 cups butter, melted Procedure: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Combine the canned pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and cloves in a large bowl and blend thoroughly. Pour the blended mixture into a greased 9X13 pan. Top with the dry cake mix, then the pecans. Finally drizzle with the melted butter and bake for 50-60 minutes until done. Let the cake stand overnight. -------------------------------------------------- Lost Yankee Winter Morels. Why wait till spring when you can enjoy Morels any month of the year? Winter Morels: frozen, bite sized wild Morel caps (no stems), in a low salt, no MSG, chicken, vegetable or beef stock. Recipe developed over five years with advice from two very fine restaurants. Designed to be a versatile Morel product allowing a chef to explore the world of Morel recipes. http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=237 NOTE: I've had these delicious morels recently and they are every bit as good as this company claims them to be. All the aroma, flavor, texture of fresh picked wild Morels can now be had year round. -------------------------------------------------- Shopping Lists: 1 pkg. (6 ounces) zwieback crackers Granulated sugar Butter 3 pkg. (8 ounces each) cream cheese Granulated sugar light brown sugar 5 Eggs 1 can (16 ounces) pumpkin Pumpkin pie spice Heavy cream Butter Brown sugar Walnuts 75 cups pecan halves about 1-1/2 cups 25 caramels 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate 1 canned pumpkin, large can 1 evaporated milk, 1 can sugar eggs cinnamon nutmeg salt cloves ginger 1 box yellow cake mix, dry pecans butter -------------------------------------------------- QUESTIONS, Comments, Technical Support: http://forums.chef2chef.net -------------------------------------------------- ARCHIVE: All Club e-mails are archived each Friday at: http://chef2chef.net/news/club/ -------------------------------------------------- |