Recipes by Arlene

• 6 medium potatoes (about 3½ pounds), cooked, peeled and sliced
• ½ cup chopped celery
• ¼ cup sliced green onions
• 1 tsp. salt
• ⅛ tsp. black pepper
• 1 cup (or more) Ranch dressing
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped
• Dash of paprika
• Lettuce (optional)

Combine potatoes, celery, onions, parsley, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Stir together dressing and mustard in a small bowl; pour over potato mixture and toss lightly. Use more dressing if needed. Cover and refrigerate several hours. Sprinkle with eggs and paprika. Serve in a lettuce-lined bowl if desired.

• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 cup Ranch dressing
• 8 cups torn lettuce
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 1 cup chopped green onions
• 1 can (8 oz.) sliced water chestnuts, rinsed and drained
• ½ cup sliced almonds, toasted

Whisk together dressing and soy sauce in a small bowl. Combine lettuce, chicken, green onions and water chestnuts in a large salad bowl; toss with dressing mixture. Top with almonds just before serving.

• 1 can tuna, drained
• 1 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup onion, chopped
• 3 eggs
• 2 tbsp. pimento, chopped
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper
• ¾ cup milk
• 1 deep-dish pie shell

Bake shell for 10 minutes before adding filling. Set aside and let cool.

Sprinkle tuna and onion in bottom of pie shell. Beat eggs, milk, salt and pepper and pour mixture over tuna. Combine cheese and pimento and sprinkle over all. (You may also add mushrooms if desired.) Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until done when center is like custard. Let stand a few minutes before cutting.

I'm going to post something on Mom's blog about the importance of food in family history. Some of you may know that I am very active in researching my family history. Part of a family's history revolves around the special dishes that family members prepare, especially around the holidays. Mom makes her famous deviled eggs that we have tried (with some success) to emulate. My wife, Lisa, is trying to learn her mother's potato salad recipe. She makes her own lasagna recipe that will be handed down to her daughters. Most of these recipes exist either in scribbled notes or in the head of the preparer. It's easy to copy the ingredients; it's the nuances that are difficult to reproduce. This blog was created, in part, to have my mother share her special recipes. Almost all of the recipes posted so far came from some other source. Mom made them her own by making minor changes to them.

Mom collected cookbooks. She would receive them as gifts from her friends or she would buy them when she went on trips with my father. She has given many cookbooks away to her friends and to my sister, but still has literally hundreds of them here with us.

I have recently come across several genealogical sites that talk about food and its relation to family history. Here are just a few of them:

• Genwriters
• Your ancestor in the kitchen
• Old Cookbooks
• Vintage Cookbooks

This recipe comes from the Lazarus Restaurants cookbook. The Lazarus Restaurants were located in Columbus, Ohio and are no longer in business.

• 1½ tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. flour
• 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. grated lemon rind
• 3 tbsp. butter
• 3 cups cooked carrots, sliced
• 1½ cups cooked apples, sliced

Mix together the salt, flour, brown sugar, lemon rind and butter. Set aside. In a 9” x 13” baking dish, arrange the carrot and apple slices in alternate layers. Sprinkle each layer with the mixture. Bake at 350° until well heated and the seasoning mixture is thoroughly melted. Yields 8-10 servings.

• 1 lb. orange roughy
• 1 tbsp. melted butter or margarine
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• ½ tsp. paprika
• ½ tsp. chili powder
• ¼ tsp. garlic powder
• ⅛ tsp. hot pepper sauce

Combine butter, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder and hot pepper sauce. Place fish in ovenproof pan. Brush with mixture and broil 5 minutes. Turn, baste and broil another 5 minutes or until flaky.

• 1 lb. sweet potatoes
• 1 tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. butter or margarine
• ½ cup mandarin oranges
• 1 cup ham, diced or cubed
• 1 tbsp. orange juice
• ½ cup pecan nuts

Cook whole sweet potatoes until done. Peel and cut in serving-size pieces. Melt butter, add brown sugar and juice. Pour over potatoes. Add hand and orange segments. Add nuts. Keep warm in a 300° oven for about 15 minutes before serving. Makes 3 or 4 servings.

• 2 8-oz. packages cream cheese
• 2 packages Buddig corned beef, finely-chopped
• 1 large can crushed pineapple, very well-drained (no juice left)
• 1 tbsp. grated onion
• Chopped pecans
• Dash Lawry’s seasoned salt

Mix cream cheese with corned beef, pineapple, onion and seasoned salt. Roll in chopped pecans. Makes 1 large or 2 smaller balls. Serve with crackers.

Note: Recipe can be cut in half using a smaller can of pineapple.

• 1 8-oz. package cream cheese
• 1 3-oz. package cream cheese
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tsp. creamy horseradish
• 2 tbsp. onions, finely chopped
• 1 tsp. prepared mustard
• Dash of garlic powder and onion salt
• 2 8-oz. packages chipped corned beef, finely chopped
• Stick pretzels to serve

Cream softened cream cheese with all ingredients except corned beef. Mix well. Add 1½ tbsp. corned beef. Mix. Roll into balls and coat in remainder of corned beef. Refrigerate. Just before serving, put a pretzel stick in each cream cheese ball. Serves 8 to 10 people.

• 4 large russet potatoes (2½ to 3 lbs. total)
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 2 tsp. butter
• ⅛ tsp. ground white pepper
• 4 to 6 tbsp. milk
• Salt to taste

Peel potatoes; cut lengthwise into quarters and place in a 3½- to 4-quart pan. Add garlic and pour in water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-high and cook, partially covered, until potatoes are very tender when pierced (about 25 minutes). Drain well, then add butter and white pepper. Beat with an electric mixer (or mash with a potato masher) until smooth; then mix in milk, beating until mixture has a creamy texture. Season with salt and serve.