Coleslaw

Ingredients
2 Cups Cooked Peas
2 Cups Sweet Corn Kernels
10 Cups Green Cabbage, finely shredded
2 Cups Purple Cabbage, finely shredded
2 Cups Carrots, finely grated
1/2 Cup Radishes, grated (optional)
3 Cups Red, Green, Yellow Bell Pepper, finely chopped
1 Cup Greens of Spring Onions
1 Cup Dill and Cilantro, finely chopped
1 Cup Celery, chopped fine (optional)
3/4 Cup Tahina (sesame paste)
1/2 - 3/4 Cup Lemon Juice
1/2 Cup Orange or Tangerine Juice
4 T Onion Powder
Description Homemade coleslaw tastes far superior to any that you can buy. You can make it one day ahead.
Instructions You will also need: 2 ½ t dried mint1 t Garlic powder1 t Ginger powder½ t Celery seedsalt¼ c roasted salted peanuts or roasted sunflower seeds or cashews1. Place all vegetables in large mixing bowl. 2. Mix tahina, lemon juice and rest of seasonings together and pour on top of vegetables. 3. If making a day ahead, leave out salt and peanuts and mix these in just before serving add salt and sprinkle with roasted peanuts. Variations: Instead of cabbage you can use broccoli stems shredded like cabbage Can use any other nut or seed (i.e. cashews) just blend with lemon and orange juice to make creamy ‘mayonnaise/’

6 Tips for Perfect Homemade Hard Candy

There's nothing better than the juicy, flavorful hard candy from your local gourmet candy shop . . . unless you make it yourself, that is! Making perfect hard candy at home is easier than you think. You just need the right tools, a few simple ingredients, and your imagination.

Try these tips the next time you want to make something special in the kitchen. Your family will love it!
1. Stock up on basic candymaking tools.

You'll need a medium-size saucepan (3 or 4 quarts) with a heavy bottom and straight sides.

You'll also need a long-handled wooden spoon, a pastry brush (used to brush off any crystals that might form), and a good candy thermometer with a metal clamp that attaches to the side of your saucepan.

2. Get the weather forecast.

Did you know that humidity has an enormous effect on the outcome of your hard candy? Because sugar attracts water, rainy days can wreak havoc on even your best attempts at homemade delicacies. Make it easier on yourself-wait for a clear, dry day to try out your recipes.

3. Test your thermometer.

Test your thermometer by placing it in a pan of water and bringing it to the boiling point. It should now register 212 degrees at sea level. If it registers 214 degrees, you can correct it by adding two degrees to those given in the recipe; if 210 degrees, by subtracting. If it's more than a few degrees off in either direction, you need a new thermometer.

4. Use fresh ingredients.

Sugar is the most basic ingredient in hard candy. Be sure to use a new package of sugar each time you make your recipes to ensure that the sugar hasn't been contaminated by other common kitchen ingredients.

If your recipe calls for butter, be sure to use the unsalted variety. Salted butter and margarine can adversely effect the cooking time, texture, and taste of your efforts.
5. Go easy on the food coloring.

Colors like green and yellow look much more appetizing when they're applied lightly, so be sure to add food coloring gradually. You can slowly add more until you reach the intensity you want.

6. Use the proper storage techniques.

After cooling your candies, store them in airtight jars without wrapping them first. Never store hard candy in the same container as desserts that lose moisture, such as fudge.

Ready to begin? Try this basic hard candy recipe--and have fun!

BASIC HARD CANDY RECIPE
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup water
2/3 cup light corn syrup
Flavorings and colorings to taste (just a few drops will do)

Measure 2 cups sugar, 2/3 cup light corn syrup and 3/4 cup water into a saucepan and blend together. Place over low heat and stir until mixture boils. Cover the saucepan for 5 minutes so that any sugar crystals that have formed on the sides ofthe pan will be washed down. Now put in the candy thermometer and let the candy boil without stirring. Using a pastry brush or a fork wrapped with muslin and dipped in water, wash off any crystals that might form. After the candy reaches 280 degrees, lower heat so as not to discolor the candy. When candy thermometer registers 300 degrees, remove pan from the heat and allow it to stand until all the bubbles have simmered down. Then add the flavoring and coloring. There are many to choose from but one favorite is anise along with red coloring. One teaspoon of a flavoring extract should be used for this recipe, while only a few drops of an oil such as peppermint, wintergreen or cinnamon are enough. Coloring should be added gradually until the desired intensity is reached. It is important to stir these in as gently as possible. Too much stirring will cause the syrup to solidify into a hard sugary lump. Now the candy is ready to be formed. It may be poured into a pan, 7 by 7 inches, and marked into squares as it begins to harden. Or it may be poured in rounds on skewers or sticks to form lollipops.


Vanessa Kirkland is publisher of the cherished recipe collection, "Candymaking Secrets," by Virginia Pasley. This long-lost collection includes 67 vintage recipes for making delicious old-fashioned candies at home . . . without a single cooking class.

How to Cook Rice Right

The easiest way to make rice well every time is to use a rice cooker. If you don't have one, or don't want one, though, here's a no-fail recipe for rice that one of my grandmothers taught my mother, who taught me. This one, I use mainly for seasoned rice dishes because things can be added to it before boiling, or broth (a plain soup) can be used in place of water.
This is for 4 substantial servings (4 rice bowls).
You will need:
1 large saucepan, or a short pot.
2 cups of white rice, preferably persian, glutinous, or converted, depending on how sticky you like it.
2 tablespoons of butter, margarine, rendered fat, or vegetable oil.
water or broth as needed (usually 3 to 3.5 cups)
salt to taste
Directions:
1.Put the rice in the bottom of the saucepan, and wash it thoroughly by rinsing, and then pouring off the cloudy water. Repeat until you
can recognize grains of rice through the water, and then pour this last rinse out.
2.Put your middle finger in the saucepan until it touches the bottom, and put in water or broth until the level reaches the second line of
your finger.
3.Add your salt and oil.
4.Place on the stove, and cover loosely, which means there should be a centimeter of space between the side of the cover and the edge
of the pot or saucepan.
5.Turn on the stove at medium/low heat, and leave it alone for about 20 minutes.
6.Check to see if it's done, and if not, come back every 5 minutes.
7.If you need to check, and can't tell from looking at the top, stick a spoon in the middle, and push gently to the side to see if there is any
water left. If there is, then move the rice back to cover the hole. Try not to touch it too much.
8.If you run out of water before the rice is the level of softness you want, in the well you make in it for checking, just pour a quarter cup
of hot water to the middle, and move the rice back over to cover the water.
9.When it's done, turn off the heat, and cover the rice completely, and let it sit for 5 minutes.
10.Stir, and then serve.
Then, there is the other absolute sure-fire way that my other grandmother taught me. This is how I cook rice when I want it somewhat plain.
You will need:
However much rice you want up to 5 cups.
A pot of water, salted, with about a tablespoon of oil
A strainer
A large bowl
Directions:
1.Set the pot of oiled and salted water on high heat.
2.In a large bowl, rinse the rice repeatedly, until the water is somewhat clear.
3.Drain as much water as you can from the rice, and then wait 'til your water on the stove boils.
4.When the water reaches a fast, rolling boil, gently pour in the rice.
5.Stir to make sure the rice doesn't stick together, and then wait.
6.Occasionally stir the rice, and after 10 minutes, check to see if it's done.
7.Check every two minutes after that, and when it's as soft as you like, turn off the heat and then pour the contents of the pot into a
strainer.
8.Shake the strainer a bit, to get out as much excess water as possible, and then return the rice to the now empty pot.
9.Season to taste, and then serve.
Rice cooked this way can also be used for rice balls, unless it is parboiled rice. Parboiled rice should never be used if you prefer it sticky on its own, but is the best to use when making the deep fried breaded rice balls.
More Rice Tips
For golden coloured rice, stir a teaspoon of turmeric into the water before the rice begins to cook.
Seasoning blocks or bouillon give a nice flavor to rice. It will need to be stirred after cooking to evenly distribute it though.
Use leftover rice to make fried rice. It can also be used to add a bit of starch to a meatloaf in place of bread crumbs.
Never let cooked rice sit out for more than a couple of hours without keeping it very hot. Rice turns very quickly. To serve it at parties that may last awhile, but keep it from burning at the bottom, put it in a pan atop a pan of water that is over a tea light or other warmer. To cool it off quickly before it turns after a meal, transfer it from the pot to smaller containers.
If you are on a salt restricted diet but don't like your rice too sweet, use a couple of dashes of pepper and salt free chicken broth to enhance the taste.
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