RECIPE SWAP: START THE NEW YEAR WITH SOME SHARED RECIPES FROM READERS

I hope each of you had a wonderful holiday with friends and family and were able to try some new and delicious recipes. Be sure to send in all of your new favorites to share with other readers.

With a refrigerator full of food and a counter full of cookies and candies, it was hard for me to even think about food. Then I started opening mail for Recipe Swap and I got all excited to share some good recipes with you.

Still more Gooey Butter Cake. When we had the recipe request sent in, I never thought we would have such an overwhelming response to the old favorite, but we did. This week we have a couple of more to share.

Joan Haring of Cape Girardeau not only sent in her favorite recipe, but some history of the dessert that originated in St. Louis.

In a 1994 edition of Midwest Living magazine, there was an article about famous foods from St. Louis. Supposedly, Gooey Butter Cake originated there, as well as the ice cream cone and the hot dog. According to the legend of the Gooey Butter Cake, in the 1930's, a baker making a butter cake assembled the wrong proportion of ingredients. The result was a coffee cake with a thin, rich, doughy layer on the bottom and a sweet filling, topped with powdered sugar. Since it was the depression, the baker sold the cake anyway, and customers loved it. This recipe came from Rozanek's Bakery.

St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake

1 c. all-purpose flour

3 T. sugar

1/3 c. butter or margarine

1 1/4 c. sugar

3/4 c. butter or margarine

1/4 c. light corn syrup

1 egg

1 c. flour

2/3 c. evaporated milk

In a mixing bowl, combine 1 c. flour and 3 T. sugar. Cut in 1/3 c. butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs and starts to cling. Pat into bottom of a 9x9x2-inch baking pan. For filling, in the mixing bowl, beat the 1 1/4 c. sugar and 3/4 c. butter or margarine till combined. Beat in the corn syrup and egg till just combined. Add 1 c. flour and evaporated milk alternately to the mixing bowl, beating till just combined (batter will appear slightly curdled). Pour into crust-lined baking pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes or till cake is nearly firm when you shake it. Let cool in pan on wire rack. Remove to serving plate. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. Serves 9.

Thanks to Joan for sharing not only this recipe, but the interesting history behind the cake.

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Verla Sailer of Cape also sent in her favorite the she uses out of the 1974 Evangelical United Church of Christ cookbook.

Gooey Butter Coffee Cake

1 box yellow cake mix

1 stick margarine, melted

2 eggs

Mix above ingredients and beat well. Batter will be stiff. Spread in bottom and edges of greased and floured 9x13-inch pan.

Combine: 1 (8 ounce) pkg. cream cheese

2 eggs

1 box powdered sugar

Beat well and pour mixture on top of batter. Bake at 350 degrees 40 to 45 minutes.

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Barb Johnson of Cape Girardeau was looking for a recipe for pumpkin fudge and again, Joan Haring of Cape Girardeau responded by sending in a recipe she got from her cousin who lives in Ottumwa, Iowa.

Pumpkin Fudge

2 1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. butter

5 oz. evaporated milk

1 c. pumpkin

1/2 t. cream of tarter

1/4 t. cinnamon

1 t. vanilla

1 c. chopped pecans

Cook together sugar, pumpkin, cream of tarter, cinnamon, and milk until it forms a soft ball or reaches 236 degrees on a candy thermometer. Pour over vanilla, butter, and pecans. Beat until creamy. Pour into a buttered aluminum foil lined 9x9-inch dish and cut into small squares when cool.

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Over the holiday my dear cousin, Cindy Dude from Denver, Colo. visited with us and she gave me a recipe that sounds wonderful. It uses the packaged dried cranberries. My 22 month old, Lexie, cannot keep her hands out of the Craisin package and seems to find them even when I think they are hid. I will be making this wonderful sounding rice pilaf recipe with pork tenderloin of which I am sharing both recipes with you.

Rice Pilaf with Craisins and Caramelized Onions

2 c. chicken broth

1/2 c. long cook white rice

1/2 c. wild rice

3 T. margarine or butter

1 medium onion, thinly sliced, or more if desired

2 T. brown sugar

1 c. Craisin brand dried cranberries

Combine both types of rice and broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 45 minutes.

Melt margarine in a pan, add onions and brown sugar. Cook until onions are soft and transparent and margarine is absorbed. Reduce heat to low. Stir in Craisins, cover and cook on low, 10 minutes. Fold onion mixture into the rice. Serve warm.

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Marinated Pork Tenderloin

1/4 c. soy sauce

3 T. honey

2 T. vinegar

1 1/2 t. ground ginger

1 1/2 t. garlic powder or garlic salt

1 T. instant minced onion

2 pork tenderloins

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Pour into a zip-top plastic bag and add the pork tenderloin. Marinate in the refrigerator overnight.

When ready to prepare, remove the pork from the marinate reserving for later use. Wrap each pork tenderloin in bacon and place in a sprayed baking pan. Bake at 300 degrees for 2 hours or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part reaches 160 degrees. Slice the tenderloins into medallions.

Heat the reserved marinate to a boil and reduce by half. Pour hot sauce ribbon fashion on the sliced pork. Enjoy!

Happy New Year to each of you and may 1999 bring new cooking adventures to your life and many new recipes that you will want to share.

~Susan McClanahan is administrator of the Cape Senior Center. her cookbook collection tops 2,000 books.