My favorite recipes

The Whitman Samplers are a busy group, meeting once monthly at Palouse River Quilts, working on group quilts as well as their own individual projects. This year the group has completed a quilt, titled “Black Beauty,” and raffle tickets are being sold for one dollar each. The quilt is on display at Whitman County Library in Colfax with tickets sold there or by individual quilting group members.

Proceeds of the raffle benefit local charities, including the Firemen’s Toy Fund, the Council on Aging Christmas project and Whitman County Library. The winner of the quilt will be drawn on Dec. 4 in conjunction with the Colfax Christmas Parade.

Whitman Samplers, formed about 20 years ago, also makes a quilt every few years for the Whitman County Library auction. The membership waxes and wanes, dependent on the presence of a quilt shop, where they meet on the second Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., and the serving of food at meetings, they confessed.

Their past and present projects include a quilt raffle for Erwin Hall’s heart transplant surgery, Quilts of Valor for military members, very decorative Christmas stockings filled with goodies for shut-ins distributed by the Council on Aging and for Mobile Meals recipients. Alternatives to Violence on the Palouse also receives funds raised by the quilters.

As if that is not enough to do, Whitman Samplers members work at Palouse Empire Fair in the Home Arts Department quilt section. Members who wish may participate in a mystery quilt “block of the month” project. A Christmas party and a summer potluck provide food and fun without quilting. At regular meetings, the program is a demonstration or sharing of members’ current projects.

Whitman Samplers make quilts and donate them to DSHS and to the sheriff’s department to be carried in their patrol vehicles. They make hats and receiving blankets, some quilted and others knitted or crocheted, for babies at Whitman Community Hospital.

The group also makes quilts for palliative care patients at the local hospital, a project headed by Jackie Klossner. The project has been so successful that Whitman Community Hospital Foundation gives financial support. Peggy Rodgers heads the Quilts of Valor committee, and Myrna Teade chairs the Christmas stocking project.

For interested quilters, joining is easy--attend a scheduled meeting or contact anyone in the group.

Recipes:

Dilled Cucumbers with Sour Cream

Polly Anderson

1/2 cup sour cream

3 Tablespoons white vinegar

1 Tablespoon sugar

pepper to taste

4 medium cucumbers--peeled or not--thinly sliced

1 small sweet onion, thinly sliced into rings

1 teaspoon dill weed

Combine sour cream, vinegar, sugar, pepper, and dill weed. Whisk until well blended. Add cucumbers and onions; toss to coat evenly. Refrigerate at least 4 hours. Serve with a slotted spoon.

Creamy Sweet Potato Salad

Jackie Klossner

4 medium sweet potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds), peeled and coarsely chopped

2 Tablespoons olive oil

salt and ground black pepper

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

4 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped

1/4 cup bottle whole sweet picante peppers (such as Peppadew), chopped

3 green onions, sliced (1/2 cup)

1/4 cup fresh dill

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine potatoes and oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Transfer to shallow baking pan. Roast 15 minutes or until just tender. Remove from oven.

Return potatoes to large bowl. Drizzle with vinegar; stir to coat. Cool completely. Add eggs, peppers, green onions, and dill. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise and yogurt. Pour over mixture; toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cover; refrigerate up to 24 hours. Toss salad with dressing just before serving.

Oven BBQ Beef

Debbie Wells

3 pounds round steak (tenderize before browning)

1/2 cup chopped onion.

Flour steak and brown in pan with the onions. Drain any fat.

Sauce:

3/4 cup ketchup

1/2 cup vinegar

3/4 cup water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

1 Tablespoon prepared mustard

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Mix the sauce ingredients together and pour over the steak and onions in a baking pan. Bake for 2 hours at 350 degrees F.

Note: If you prefer a thicker sauce, add 1 Tablespoon cornstarch prior to baking.

Chicken Yum-Yum

Judy Imler

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/4 cup milk

6-8 slices Swiss cheese (2 per chicken breast)

4-6 chicken breasts

1 box Stove Top stuffing

Mix soup and milk; pour over chicken in a greased baking pan. Top each breast with cheese slices.

Cover with foil and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Make Stove Top stuffing according to package directions. Spread stuffing over chicken.

Bake for 1/2 hour covered and 1/2 hour uncovered. Broil 5 minutes for crisper topping.

Lemon Chicken Stir Fry - Charli Hochsprung

from Rachel at

Annie’s Country Quilt Store, Ashburton, New Zealand

2 large skinless chicken breasts

3-4 chopped spring (green) onions

1-2 yellow peppers

Marinade:

1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger (or paste)

1 teaspoon crushed fresh garlic

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

Grated rind of 1/2 lemon

1/4 cup olive oil

Lemon Sauce:

1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger

1 teaspoon crushed fresh garlic

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup chicken stock or water

1 stalk lemongrass chopped (or lemongrass paste is ok)

2-3 teaspoons cornstarch

Cut the chicken on the diagonal into thin slices. Stir in the ginger, sugar, garlic, salt, lemon rind and oil. Rub over the chicken and leave to marinate for 10 minutes while you make the sauce.

To make the sauce, pan fry the ginger, garlic and a dash of oil until fragrant. Stir in the sugar, lemon juice, lemon grass, chicken stock or water, and simmer for 5 minutes. Thicken with cornstarch paste and set aside.

Stir fry the chicken, onion and peppers in batches. Return all of the chicken and vegetables to the wok and pour in the sauce. Serve with fluffy white rice. Serves 4-5.

Baking Powder Biscuits and more

Margo Balzarini

1 cup flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

For biscuits add-- 1 Tablespoon shortening

1/2 cup milk

For pancakes add-- 1 egg

1 cup milk

For waffles add-- 1 egg

1 cup milk

1 Tablespoon oil

Watergate Salad

Peggy Rodgers

1 29-ounce can fruit with juice

1 small box pistachio instant pudding

1 8-ounce container low-fat Cool Whip

1/2 to 1 cup chopped nuts

Dump all ingredients into a bowl, mix thoroughly, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Note: I generally gear this salad towards the diabetic individual.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Myrna Teade

3 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil

2 squares baking chocolate or 3 Tablespoons cocoa + 1 Tablespoon oil

2 cups shredded zucchini

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 bag chocolate chips

Beat eggs slightly, add sugar and oil, and mix well. Add all ingredients except zucchini and chocolate chips; mix lightly until moistened. Spoon into 2 greased and floured loaf pans.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour to 1 hour 20 minutes until center tests done.

E-Z Punch

Michele Beckmann

1 jar citrus Hawaiian Punch

1 bottle ginger ale

Combine in punch bowl with ice cubes.