Hello family, and yes we are. We’re cooking up something good today, because today I’m making recipes that my mom used to make. She was an excellent cook. And she’s the one who kind of instilled in me the desire to learn how to cook, because she could put a meal together that fast. She just knew how to plan it, how to prepare for it, what to get, what to make, what — you know, just put it all together. And this is one of the things that my brothers and my dad and I, we loved. It was Momma’s Beef Pot Pie. She made it — my dad said since they first got married, she started then to make it, and all through our lives until she went to be with the Lord, she made Momma’s Beef Pot Pie. She didn’t use beef cubes, because she started this during the war when you couldn’t get chunks of beef. But you could get ground beef. And I’ve made it since then with beef cubes. Don’t like it as well as I like it with a good ground beef. So that’s what we’re going to do today. I want to give you a little instruction in case we have a lot of new viewers that are just seeing us for the first time. And some of you folks that have been watching us for a long time, when you send for recipes — and we give you that information at the end of the program — we need to make sure that you send this size of an envelope, and it’s addressed to CTVN or At Home. At Home would be fine, 1 Signal Hill Drive, Wall, Pennsylvania. Do not put that address up here. Put your address up here, please. Because if something happens and it comes back to us, and then you never get your stuff, and you’re saying how come I didn’t get my recipes? And the self-addressed envelope that comes on the inside, it needs to be this size. Don’t send us those little ones, because if you do, guess what? That monthly newsletter is so thick that you can’t get it folded in a small envelope and get it in the mail to you. And so, you know, when we have to do that kind of stuff, sometimes it takes a longer time for you to get your recipes, and we want you to get them quickly. So please, this is the size, and you have to put a stamp. Don’t forget to put your stamp on there. And send it just like this. This is the size envelope you need, OK? Want to make sure everybody knows that. Makes the girls happy upstairs that have to process all this. And we want to do — want you to get your Enjoy newsletter in good condition, and not all wrinkled up and bunched into an envelope. So please keep this in mind. Well, along with Momma’s meat pie, she also would always make a staple, applesauce, coleslaw — mmm — and then a dessert. I’m not going to tell you what that is, but when we come back, we’re going to get started. So stay with us, and we’ll be right back right after the hint. Here it is right now. Here’s today’s At Home hint. Has your honey turned hard and crystallized? Honey that has solidified can be brought back to liquid life by uncovering the jar, placing in the microwave, and heating on medium power for 30 seconds to one minute. It will be smooth as new, and delicious too! If you’ve got a helpful hint, we’d sure like to hear from you. Send your hint to At Home Hints, Cornerstone Television, Wall, Pennsylvania, 15148-1499. Well, Patty’s joined me in the kitchen, and she’s chopping up some mushrooms. Right?
Yes, I am.
Some fresh mushrooms. Just going to make those into some chunks, sliced up. And what I have for starting this is the base for Momma’s Pot Pie. And we have two pound of ground beef here. And I have — we’ve browned it off. And you want to keep some of the juices, although there’s not grease on here. You can see it’s very dry. But we added one clove of garlic that we minced, and we added a cup of finely chopped onions, and just let that sweat in there. Now I’m going to turn the gas up on this because it needs to come up, because we’re going to put some flour on this. Want to make sure this is cooked through. You can see it’s really cooked. There’s no pink in that. And then we’re just going to add flour, because this is going to help us. You want to get it all over the meat. Now you don’t want this real, real thick when we make the gravy, because you want that gravy to come up and cook the crust that we’re going to be putting on the top of it. I think I’m going to add just a little bit more. And you want this to almost — not brown, but — I mean not burn, but almost get to that edge where it starts to get a little bit crispy, because that’s when it renders all that wonderful flavor out of the beef. And so you just keep turning it. Keep it going. And while that is starting to absorb, you want to cook the flour taste out. That’s the important thing. So we’re going to want to salt. This is kosher salt. Remember you don’t use as much because it’s more pungent. And we’re going to do some pepper. And if you like different seasonings in with your meat, you can use that. Like what other seasoning would you use? Like basil or even oregano or something like that. They would all work.
Seasoned salt?
Yes, you could.
We put on seasoned salt at our house.
Yes, I know you told me that. You could do that. But you just want this to be cooking up and getting brown. When it starts to stick to the bottom of the pan, it’s a good sign, because that’s the fond on the bottom there that’s coming off. It’s drying out because of the flour. That makes the little bits so good. Alright. After that’s done, then we’re going to take our beef broth. As soon as that has browned up, and we’re going to add — this is a whole 32 ounces. And we’re just going to add that in there. I can remember coming home from school and smelling this cooking in the kitchen. Momma would be doing this, you know, like 3:30, 4:00 in the afternoon. Oh! And then you couldn’t wait.
Oh yes.
Oh! Because that smell is like — oh! Look how nice that is! You see how that brought up a nice gravy?
Oh yes.
And this adds more flavor, so you could use bullion. I tend to stay away from the bouillon.
It’s salty.
Because the salt is too much. Yes, too much. But this is certainly not going to be enough, because we have potatoes and carrots and peas and mushrooms to add to it. So what I do at this point, I add some water. And you can taste it. Because if it tastes like it’s watery, throw a — if you have more beef broth, you can do that. But what you want to do is make sure that there’s enough broth for these vegetables to be covered so they start to cook. Because we’re going to need to start putting them in now. OK. We’re going to add our carrots. It’s about two cups of carrots. And you cut them small because they’ll cook quicker that way. If you leave them real big, it takes forever for them to cook. And then we have our potatoes. I like the red potato for this, because I think it cooks quicker. And they seem to me more tender than those big heavy-duty ones here.
This looks really interesting.
You never made this?
I’ve made pot pies, but never in a pot.
Oh, that’s why it’s called pot pie.
I’ve always done it in a dish, and —
Yes, made it like a chicken pot pie.
Yes.
With a crust on the bottom.
Never done it like this. This is really interesting.
Well, this is the way Momma did it. And she had one pot that she always used, because she knew how much of everything to put in so it would be the right amount. And you really want — I mean, this is going to feed a lot. Like probably eight people easily.
Oh, wow.
And the thing is, if you only want to make a half a batch, use a smaller pot, but it’s the same principle. You’re still going to make it the same way. And you want this to cook on top of the stove for a little while, just so — look at that.
Let the potatoes cook down.
Yes.
Do you cook it until the potatoes get nice and soft?
No, no, no. Because it’s going to go in the oven and bake.
Oh. OK.
Because when we put the crust on it, it’s going to bake. So it’s going to have another 30 minutes in the oven, so you really don’t want this — because you’re going to have mush if you cook it too much.
Too long.
You just want to bring this up to a boil. I think I have that on as high as it will go. Let’s see. We never know about this stove.
Yes, you got it. A little higher.
OK. So Patty.
Get rid of this.
Hand me — let me do the mushrooms too while we’re at it.
Here’s the mushrooms.
OK. Here we go. Look at them going in there.
So that just gets everything going.
Right.
And the oven finishes it up.
OK. Now over there beside you is the applesauce. And we’re going to do that — I’m going to give you this pan.
OK.
Momma used to doctor up applesauce, OK? By that I mean, she’d take a jar like that or if somebody’d give us some homemade, of course that’s always better. But she’d say you know what? You can make applesauce and doctor it up, she called it. And make it taste like it’s fresh made. You know what, let me give you a hint. Put the lid back on that.
Yes?
And turn it upside down and let it sit on your counter. And by the time that you’re done with this, that will all have drained down, and you can open, and you save — you don’t throw it away.
Right.
Alright. Let’s put this on the fire.
OK.
And —
Put the sugar and stuff in it?
No, I want this to warm up a little bit.
And then you put the sugar and stuff.
And then we’re going to add a little sugar and some cinnamon, and a touch of butter. And you want to do this ahead of time, because you really want that — it has to be hot so that it melts the sugar, and it cooks everything. But you don’t want it to be piping hot. You want it to be just warm when you serve it. That’s the way we like it the best.
Oh yes.
When it’s warm.
I love warm applesauce.
Yum.
Jenna likes it chunky, and she puts it over ice cream.
Oh geez!
It’s such an odd thing, but it’s really good.
Ice cream? Oh, OK. That’s different.
Yes. But if it’s chunky.
Yes. OK, now. You’re going to do that. When that comes up to — starts to get around the edge, then you’re going to add about 1/2 cup or so of sugar. And a touch of cinnamon.
Right. And butter.
And a little chunk of butter. And we’re going to do that. We’re going to take a break. When we come back, we’re going to be adding some more to our really big, delicious dinner. We’ll be right back. Alright. If you just joined us, we’re making Momma’s Beef Pot Pie. We’ve got some applesauce cooking. OK, you want to show them — empty that bottle. Look how much has come down.
Yes.
OK. Empty that out and show them. Oh, that’s a whole lot of applesauce. And you want that to be like that, and you know, it’s good and hot. We brought it to a boil. We added the sugar and our cinnamon and our chunk of butter. Now she’s going to pour that into a bowl, and that’s ready to go. My pot pie here, look at this. It’s boiling. It’s come up to a boil. We’re ready to put the crust on, but first we want to add half a bag of frozen peas. Don’t cook them;, don’t thaw them. Right out of the freezer. Just drop them in there.
This is like the coolest recipe.
It’s so easy!
Yes.
And what’s nice about it, I love the color. Isn’t that nice, that color in there?
Yes, the green really makes it.
Yes. And this is a big potful, I’m telling you.
Yes.
This is a really big potful. Patty, I think when I put the crust on that, we’re going to set this — I’m going to add a few more. We’re going to set this on a cookie sheet, because we don’t want this cooking over all the oven.
Oh yes, that could happen.
Because that’s like, no fun. No fun. So. Remember those potatoes have had a chance to start to cook. You can tell. That meat, that flavor has blended. Let’s turn this off. OK? Yes.
Go ahead.
Now what I have here is a refrigerator pie crust. Just plain. And I’m going to doctor it up with some add — this is some onion salt. This is just going to give it some flavor. Hello? Come on out. There it comes. Just to give it some flavor. Want to check that? We’ve got some rice cooking back there.
Yes, it’s boiling away.
OK. Turn it down so we can see how much we have. Because you don’t want that to go dry. That’s for our rice pudding that we’re going to be making for dessert, which I didn’t tell you. But that’s what dessert’s going to be. This is Paul’s Favorite Rice Pudding. You’re going to love it, too. I think we’re OK with that.
Do you want to look at that? Does it look good?
Yes.
I’ve never done this, so I don’t know.
OK. Shut it off. And then I’m going to add some garlic salt to this.
That’s going to look really pretty too, on top of there.
Yes. And what you do is, you just take your rolling pin, and you roll it into the crust, so that it stays on the crust. And you want this crust to get a little bit bigger than the pan that you’re going to cover. Alright? So Patty, let me give you that to get it out of the way. Because now we have to do some major work here. OK? You’re going to put that — let’s have that —
On a cookie sheet?
Cookie sheet, yes. And we’re going to set that cookie sheet over here.
Right here?
Yes. And now just going to put this pan right there.
Put this on the cookie sheet.
On the cookie sheet. And then what you’re going to do with this is — now some people would set this on the top, but I’m afraid that that’s going to burn, those spices would burn. And I want to flavor what’s inside with that. So I turn it upside down and put it on.
You are tricky! Look at this!
Drape it over, just like that. You press it on the edge. Momma used to make a big crust, and she would drape it around the edge of the pan and it would drop down, and this all gets crispy and — oh. Unbelievable.
And you flute this like you would a —
No. You don’t do anything. You just let it hang like this.
Wow.
And then you want to put like a little X on the top, because you need a steam hole. Or else it could explode. We don’t want that.
No.
OK. You know what I do want, I don’t like all that flour, because that will burn, too. So when you have too much flour on it, just take your brush and brush it off. Because we don’t want — I know I’m making a mess here, but the elves will come and clean. Because we don’t want that burning all over the place.
You look like me cooking now.
[laughs] yes. OK Patty, I’ll open the — oh, can you do it? OK. Go ahead, girlfriend.
You think that’s deep enough?
Yes, I think so. We’ll see. If not, we can go to Plan B.
Yes.
Alright? Careful.
This is good.
Yes.
It’s heavy, but it’s good.
Now that’s on 350. Now you have to be careful, because you want to make sure that the handles on the pot that you use can tolerate temperature. And I know that goes to 350. So for about 30 minutes until it gets crisped up. That also gives the all the contents of the pot pie a chance to really get going there. OK.
OK.
Moving right along. What are we doing now?
We’re going to move the applesauce in a bowl.
OK. I’ll do that.
And then we do the rice pudding.
And you start the pudding. Tell us about the pudding.
Alright. Well we already cooked the rice with the water.
One cup of rice, and just cover it with water. Put it on with a little bit of salt, and let it cook until it’s almost dry.
Yes. And then we add — I’m going to carry it all over.
Aw. You could take the pan over there.
That would be smart.
[laughs] save steps.
Save steps. That would be smart. Alright.
And this applesauce smells like it’s homemade. I’m telling you. Just that little bit of heat. Oh!
Then you add the sweetened condensed milk.
That’s one can. Now that’s not canned milk. That’s sweetened condensed.
Eagle brand.
So real thick.
That’s right.
Thick and sweet.
Yepper.
This is the good stuff. I love this stuff.
Well, they’re so versatile. You can make so much stuff with that. That’s what I like about it.
Yes, you can. And then you add a cup of milk, which you actually put it in the can, so it’s actually a can of milk.
It’s a can full of milk. That’s plain, whole milk.
Right.
OK?
Which is almost —
Keep going. Yes.
Yes.
Actually a little bit more. That would have been OK. Go ahead.
OK. And then we need a cup of water.
Just a plain cup of water.
That’ll work.
Give me the can.
And then that cleans the can out, too, so that you get all that —
All the goodies.
— that good stuff out.
Absolutely.
I’m so glad I’m learning how to do this.
All at one time.
This is Paul’s very favorite. All-time favorite, I’m telling you.
OK. And then we put the butter in?
You put the butter in. And let’s put that on the stove. Let’s get that going, OK?
OK, put the butter in beforehand?
Yes. Sure.
OK.
And you can either season this with cinnamon. Since we have cinnamon here, I’d probably do nutmeg there, just for a little variety. OK. And that makes — we’re going to cook that on a low — we’ll start it out to get a boil, and then you want to turn it down. Now, the important thing is to keep on eye on that, because that baby will boil over that fast. So you have to really keep an eye on it.
And do you want it at a low heat, medium heat?
You want it on a medium heat to start.
OK.
And then, right before it starts to get thick, she’s going to add a half a cup of raisins. That’s optional. If you don’t like it, don’t do it. Don’t do it. Now what we’re going to do, we’re going to — a rice pudding is known to be kind of heavy. So we’re going to lighten that up. So we need some Cool Whip, and we need our cold rice pudding that we already made ahead of time. While you’re doing that, I’m going to throw together my coleslaw. This is so easy, it’s ridiculous. But I thought it’d be good to do it. Head of cabbage. Do this in your food processor. And then we’re going to add — we just added some carrots for color. This is the key. A couple of teaspoons of sugar. If you have a big head of cabbage, you want a couple of tablespoons, alright? And just mix it around. And then what I do, good old Hellmann’s. I use only Hellmann’s. I don’t use the tart stuff. I just don’t like it, so this is what I use. OK? And what you want to do is, start with a cup if you have a big head of cabbage, and then start to mix it. If you’re making this ahead of time, this is going to get milky as it sits because the cabbage will start to render its juice. But if you’re going to make this like now, and sit down and eat, you’re going to make it more moist, OK? Then you want to keep it refrigerated until you do use it. How we doing over there?
Good.
OK.
Butter’s starting to melt.
OK, Patty. I want you to take this bowl, and we have a small Cool Whip. And I want you to get a spatula, and I just want you to lighten this up with that.
Put the Cool Whip in there.
Yes. Now you can eat it like this. This is perfectly wonderful. Or you can add the Cool Whip which just lightens it up. And it makes it go further too, which is kind of nice. OK?
I’m telling you, this is a wonderful meal, especially if it’s cold outside. Of course, we like it any time of the year. But when it’s cold, it’s really nice. You put a nice loaf of bread with it, and you’ve got the whole meal. And it’s not that it’s hard to make. It’s not expensive. It’s a good, nourishing meal for you.
Yes, this looks like it’s going to be really good.
Oh yes.
Yes.
Lighten it up. OK. We come back, we’re going to be in the dining room, and you’re going to be able to see everything we made today. And here’s how you can get all the recipes. Stay tuned. You’re going to want to be sure to get the recipes, because I’m telling you, take a look at the table. Your family would love to sit down at this table.
Oh my, yes.
Because there’s everything you could want. Look at our wonderful pot pie, Momma’s Beef Pot Pie. That’s what it looks like. Look at that crust on top. Now you just break that edge off, and then you cut it into like a wedge, like you would a regular pie, and then you scoop it out, put the piece of crust on the plate, and then scoop down and get that stew that’s under there. Oh yes. Next to it is our coleslaw right down there in the front. That’s what it looks like. A little paprika on the top of it. But remember to moisten that with enough mayonnaise so you can taste it. And if you make it early in the day, it will get wet. So you can let it be a little drier. But if you’re serving it immediately, you want to keep it pretty moist. And there’s our doctored-up applesauce. Doesn’t it look like homemade?
Yes, it does. Looks good.
And I’m telling you, the apple smell in this place is awesome. Then here’s our — look at this. This is our rice pudding. We just added a little bit of cinnamon in the middle, and we did a few little cherries on the top. And it also makes a really lovely individual dessert if you wanted to do them this way and not have it on the table in a bowl. Whichever way, it’s awesome and it’s delicious. We just added a nice loaf of fresh bread, and a little bit of raspberry preserves. What more could you want? This is comfort food. I hope you’ve been comfortable as we’ve been making it today, because it wasn’t hard to put together.
Not at all.
Very simple, very easy. And it’s OK to open up the can occasionally or to open an applesauce, and then doctor it up as Momma used to say. And the coleslaw, make it in your food processor, easy to do. And that pot pie, you saw how easy that was. Cook the meat, put the vegetables in. Thicken it up a little bit. Put a crust on it, let it bake a half-hour. You have a wonderful dinner. We’re always glad when the family comes by, and we hope that we have helped you to get some ideas of something a little different. This is good comfort food. Sticks to your ribs, as Momma said. God bless Momma. She was a great cook. Well, we’re so glad you dropped by. Be sure to join us the next time, because it just wouldn’t be the same without you here At Home. We’ll see you then.
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