Norwegian Meat Pie

4 eggs
½ c. milk
1 ½ c. bread cubes
¾ lb. ground beef
1 ½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. chopped onion
1 tsp. salt
¼ lb. sliced bacon (about 5 strips)
¼ lb. sharp cheese
½ c. chopped celery
2 c. milk
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. celery salt
½ tsp. garlic salt

Beat 1 egg with milk; add bread cubes; let stand about 5 minutes. Add beef, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, onion and salt; mix well.

Line bottom and sides of 9” or 10” pie pan with mixture.

Fry bacon until crisp; crumble, and sprinkle over meat in pan.

Shred or cube cheese; sprinkle cheese and celery over top.

Beat remaining 3 eggs slightly; add milk and seasonings. Pour gently into meat shell.

Bake in hot oven (400 degrees) for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to moderate (350 degrees) and bake 30 minutes, or until custard tests done. Makes 6 servings.

Cottage Coleslaw

A salad men like; it’s a good-for-you, tasty dish.

½ c. cottage cheese
½ c. mayonnaise or salad dressing
3 Tbsp. vinegar or lemon juice
1 ½ tsp. onion juice
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 tsp. caraway seed (optional)
6 c. finely shredded cabbage
2 c. diced cored apples
½ c. chopped green pepper (optional)

Combine cottage cheese and mayonnaise. Add vinegar, onion juice, seasonings and caraway seed.

Combine dressing with cabbage, apples, and green pepper.

Place in large bowl lined with cabbage leaves. Garnish with cottage cheese and green pepper. Chill thoroughly. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Minted Walnuts

1 c. sugar
½ c. water
¼ c. light corn syrup
1/8 tsp. salt
6 marshmallows, cut up
3 drops oil of peppermint
2 ½ c. walnut halves

Combine sugar, water, syrup, and salt in saucepan. Bring to a boil; cook until mixture reaches 230 degrees, or just before the soft ball stage. Add marshmallows, stir to melt.

Add oil of peppermint, then walnuts. Stir until mixture starts to lose its glossiness and hardens slightly.

Quickly turn out on plain paper; separate into individual pieces. Cool. Makes 28 to 36 pieces.

Broccoli au Gratin

2 (10 oz.) pkgs. frozen cut broccoli
2 (10 ½ oz.) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
½ c. buttered toasted bread crumbs
½ c. grated sharp cheese

Cook broccoli as directed on package; drain. Bring soup to boil; add broccoli.

Place in casserole. Sprinkle with crumbs and cheese. Serve hot. Makes 6 servings.

Party Ham Loaf

5 c. ground cooked ham
2/3 c. minced onion
1 c. rolled oats
½ tsp. Pepper
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
¼ tsp. ground cloves
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/3 c. milk
¼ c. currant jelly
1 Tbsp. prepared horseradish

Combine ham, onion, oats, seasonings, eggs and milk; mix thoroughly. Shape like a ham in shallow baking pan; score top in diamond designs.

Bake in moderate oven (375 degrees) for 45 minutes. Remove; brush top with melted jelly and horseradish mixed. Trim with pineapple and maraschino cherries if desired. Makes 8 servings.

I’ve only been to the Northeast once, so I’d never heard of Scrapple until some friends of ours from Pennsylvania mentioned it. Scrapple is a famous dish in states like Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland, and it hasn’t yet made it up to the Pacific Northwest. The dish originated as a way to use up pork scraps. The scraps are combined with cornmeal, buckwheat flour, seasonings, and broth to make a mush, then chilled till firm. Before serving, the scrapple is cut up and fried.

Historically, scrapple is an early American dish. It was created by Dutch immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania in the 17th and 18th centuries. A German dish, called Pannaus, is closely related to scrapple in preparation and flavor.

Philadelphia Scrapple

2 lbs. lean bony pork
2 qts. water
1 Tbsp. salt
Pepper
1/2 tsp. sage or poultry seasoning
1/8 tsp. mace
1 c. fine cornmeal
1/2 c. buckwheat flour

Put meat in kettle; add 1 1/2 qts. water, salt and pepper; simmer until meat is very tender. Skim fat from top, strain off broth and set aside.

Remove meat from bones and chop it fine (do not grind). Pour broth into saucepan; add meat, sage and mace and bring to boil.

Combine cornmeal and buckwheat; slowly stir 2 c. cold water into mixture. Add a little at a time to meat, keeping it simmering continuously. Stir until mixture reaches the consistency or soft mush. Lower heat so scrapple will not scorch (or cook over boiling water 1 hour), stirring occasionally.

Pour into two 9×5x3″ pans, rinsed with cold water. Chill.

To cook, turn scrapple out of pan and cut in 1/4″ to 1/2″ slices. Lay them, so slices do not touch, in a cold, heavy skillet. Set over moderate heat; let brown slowly but thoroughly on one side; repeat for other side. It may take about 30 minutes to brown scrapple properly. Makes 8 to 14 servings.

For extra flavor, add 2 slices pork liver, chopped, with pork.