COOK OF THE WEEK - LINDA LANE

She told me she did lots of crafts, but when I walked into her home, I couldn’t believe the beautiful items that she had made – quilts, afghans, designing her curtains and draperies, angels, room décor - everything was personally Linda Lane’s handy work. Linda is a cosmetologist and has a shop in one end of her home. She was kind enough to rearrange clients so that she had time to visit with me. She has been a cosmetologist for 39 years and of that time she has had her own shop 38 years. Linda and her husband, Rick, have been married for 39 years. I asked her how or when they met. She replied, “In kindergarten, maybe earlier than that!” As children they even had the same interests – love of animals and sports. Rick is a rural mail carrier and also helps part time doing auctions. Linda was a native of Hardy. Her parents are Joe and Jerry Crossley. Rick grew up in Hardy and Renwick. Rick’s parents are Bob and Mary Ann Lane. They both graduated from Boone Valley High School. Their children are Corey and Bobby Jo. Bobby is also a cosmetologist and works in the shop with Linda. She has been in her mom’s shop for 12 years. Linda laughed and said, “and we still get along great!” Bobby Jo has a daughter, 11, and a son, 1-1/2, years old. Corey works at the Pioneer plant in Renwick. He has a 9-year-old daughter and a 4-year-old son. How fortunate that Linda and Rick have their kids and grandchildren right in the same town so they can share their interest in all the school, church, and other activities. “Her hobbies, as mentioned earlier, are sewing, crocheting, knitting, actually any crafts,” she adds! They both enjoy riding horses. In fact, they have a horse and buggy, but they don’t do rides commercially. They started their own camping area with electrical hook-ups between Humboldt and Renwick. They do horseback riding there also. Linda stated that their favorite menu is grilling. Because she doesn’t have a lot of spare time, she says her recipes are quick and easy and usually just require items that are on her pantry shelves, since they don’t have a grocery store in Renwick. Linda likes recipes with few ingredients and that are easy to prepare.OLD TIME FUDGE2 cups sugar3/4 cup milk2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate2 tablespoons butterDash of salt1 teaspoon light corn syrup1 teaspoon vanilla Butter sides of a 2 quart sauce pan. Add ingredients except the butter and vanilla. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture comes to a boil. Then cook to a softball stage, stirring only if necessary. Immediately remove pan from heat. Add butter and cool to 110 degrees without stirring. Add vanilla. Beat vigorously until fudge becomes very thick and starts to lose its gloss. Quickly spread in a shallow buttered pan. Score the top when warm. Cut when firm.FRENCH PANCAKES Linda Arends gave this recipe to Bobby when Bobby was just a young girl. Use ELECTRIC SKILLET at 375 degrees.1 cup flour1/4 cup powdered sugar1/2 teaspoon salt1 cup milk2 eggs Pour 1/4 cup batter into skillet. Pick up skillet and tip to spread batter out. Brown one side and then flip and brown the other side and remove from pan. Spread with butter and sprinkle with sugar. Roll up and cut in half. Linda’s kids love these.APPLE DIP3/4 cup brown sugar1/4 cup white sugar8 ounces cream cheeseDash of vanilla Mix together. Enjoy!COFFEE ALMONDCAKE One of Linda’s clients brings this to her and her family loves it. She says she has made it many times. She can’t quite perfect it, but they all still love it.1-1/2 cups oleo1-1/2 cups sugar2 eggs1/2 teaspoon vanilla3 teaspoons almond extract1-1/2 cups flourPinch of salt Mix first 5 ingredients, then add remaining ingredients. Pour in a 10-inch cast iron fry pan lined with foil. Even out batter. Sprinkle with sugar and slivered almonds. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven, cool for 5 minutes. DON’T OVERBAKE. Linda says any oven safe pan may be used instead of the cast iron fry pan.EASY SALAD This came from a friend at church.1 cup buttermilk1 pkg. vanilla pudding8 ounces Cool Whip2 small cans mandarin oranges1 pkg. fudge stripe cookies, crumbled Stir all together except for crumbled cookies. Stir these in right before serving. But she says this is good the next day also, even with the cookies already in it.LASAGNA2 pounds hamburger, browned Boil the noodles. Drain.2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste4 (6 ounce) cans water1 pkg. Lawry’s spaghetti mix (in envelope)Dry chopped onions (to taste)1-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese1 cup cottage cheese (optional) Their family prefers the cottage cheese be omitted. Mix tomato mixture into the hamburger. Cook a few more minutes. Mix cheeses together in another bowl. Layer meat mixture on the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan, then noodles, then cheeses. Repeat layers until all is used up, making sure there is plenty of tomato/meat mixture over the top of all so the noodles do not get hard while baking. Bake in a 350 degree oven until done.BLUEBERRY COBBLER on the GRILL8 x 8 inch pan1-1/4 cups Bisquick baking mix1/2 cup sugar1/2 cup milk1 cup fresh blueberries1 nectarine, cut in narrow wedges1/4 cup butter, melted in the bottom of the pan Mix Bisquick, 1/2 cup sugar, and milk together well. Put this on top of the melted butter already in pan. Sprinkle blueberries and the nectarine over the batter. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Bake on grill 30 minutes or until inserted knife comes out clean. NOTE: Other fruit may be used instead of the blueberries, but always top it with the one nectarine.PUDDING COOKIES1 cup margarine1 cup sugar1 cup oil1 cup powdered sugar Cream above, then add:1 teaspoon vanilla2 eggs1 pkg. instant pudding * Mix, then add:4 cups flour1 teaspoon baking soda1 teaspoon cream of tartar Drop by teaspoons, flatten with glass, dipped in sugar. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes. *NOTE: Make these cookies any flavor, just by changing the pudding flavor.HOMEMADE ICE CREAM7 eggs3 cups sugar3 quarts half and half1/4 cup vanilla (only half as much if using Mexican vanilla, as this is stronger in flavor) Mix well, then put in ice cream freezer. If you are afraid of the raw eggs, you can cook the eggs, sugar and half and half, making a custard first, before freezing. Linda says it is better and more convenient, just using the raw eggs.CHEESE ENCHILADAS1 pound hamburger1 can enchilada sauce (mild)1 pkg. flour tortillas2 cans Rotel (diced) tomatoes2 pounds Velveeta cheese Brown hamburger, draining off the grease. Then add enchilada sauce and let simmer for a few minutes. Set aside. In another pan mix the cheese and Rotel tomatoes. Heat until cheese is melted. Take the flour tortillas. Put hamburger mixture on each tortilla and roll up. Line these up in a pan. When all are filled and rolled, pour cheese mixture over the tortillas. Heat in a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes. If you are reading this, then you probably enjoy new recipes. If you would like to share some of your recipes with the community YOU could be Cook of the Week. Please contact me, Sally Cuthbertson, if you would like to be in this column some week. I can be reached by phone at 515-373-6346 or email me at sacuthbe@msn.com. I will be happy to email or send you my short questionnaire and set up a time to come and visit you at your convenience. I’m always looking for NEW Cook’s of the Week. Also, if you are new in town, this is a good way to introduce yourself to Humboldt County and surrounding communities. I will look forward to visiting with you.