MerryHeartCrafts.comMountain Momma… Country Living

Another picture of Stripes.  Maybe she wants a shower.  Grace took this picture of Stripes in one of her strange places.  She lays in the sink quite frequently.  She also loves to get a drink from the faucet.   I think the word “spoiled” might come to mind.  Yesterday was lots of fun.  I went to my friend Vicki’s  and we made our own hot cocoa mix.  It is really good.  Much better than the powdered mix bought from the store  and I’m sure much healthier.  We read the ingredients of the store bought instant mix and it contained lots of things we couldn’t pronounce.  In case anyone is interested in making their own here is the recipe.  16 cups powdered dry milk, 1 1/4 cup cocoa powder, 5 cups sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt.  In a large bowl mix all ingredients well and store in an airtight container or zip lock bags.  To use measure 1/3 cup of mix into a cup and add hot water, stir.  This will make about 1 gal. of mix, perhaps a little over.  Vicki and I halved this recipe.  The powdered milk will be your biggest expense, so shop around for the best price.  I hope you enjoy this as much as we have.  God Bless.

My accomplishment for the day.  This cake goes by several different names.  Some call it a stack cake.  Some call it a lassie (molasses) cake.  No matter what name you call it, it is just plain GOOD.  When I was growing up in the mountains of southwest va, this cake was very popular among my mom’s family.  You very seldom had any type of family get together that someone didn’t make this cake.  Of course, as a young girl I took this for granted.  Ate the cake and never thought about learning to make it myself.  Then we moved away from family and of course I wanted me some stack cake.  I called my aunt and got the recipe.  It has taken much trial and error but I think I’ve just about got it right.  This is a recipe I want to pass down to my girls.  Old mountain recipes will be lost if we don’t teach the next generation how to make them (even if they don’t want to learn).  If anyone is interested in the recipe, here it is:  1/2 cup oil, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs,   1 1/2 tsp. ginger, 1/2 cup hot water, 1/2 cup molasses, 3 cups self-rising flour.  Mix all ingredients together.  Turn mixture onto floured surface.  Knead until slightly stiff.  Divide into 6 parts.  Put wax paper into round cake pans. ( I do three at a time)  Take each section of dough, spread out thinly in cake pans.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Romove from oven.  Place on cooling rack.  Repeat process for the other 3 sections.  Spread apple butter between the sections.  Let set overnight to allow the apple butter to moisten the cake layers.  Then serve.  Many enjoy this cake with buttermilk.  Any questions, just leave a comment or e-mail me.  Enjoy and God Bless.

I have been asked to post my salsa recipe.  This is a very good recipe and can easily be divided to make less.  This recipe makes about 10-12 pints depending upon how thick you let it get when simmering.

Salsa

7 qts tomatoes chunked
6 cloves garlic chopped
5 med. onions chopped
5 green peppers chopped
1/2 cup hot peppers chopped(this makes med. hot-lower or increase amount for your preference)
2 cups vinegar
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp cilantro
2 tsp chili powder
Combine all ingredients.  Simmer until thick.  I  simmer 4-5 hrs.  Process in hot water bath canner 20 min.  I use pints.

Enjoy!