[speaker001:] Ok-, okay.
[speaker002:] What, what is, do you have a favorite recipe?
[speaker001:] Um, yeah, that's what it said to discuss some maybe a recipe, well, it says, why would you, what you would have for a dinner party. Um, this is strange because I pressed one and I thought it said begin.
[speaker002:] Oh.
[speaker001:] Okay, maybe, maybe we're all set. Okay, we'll talk for five minutes, they interrupt at the end. Um, yeah, it says what you would have for a dinner party, I just happen to plan one out for Saturday I'll tell you,
[speaker002:] Oh, that's wonderful.
[speaker001:] what I'm going to have.
[speaker002:] Okay.
[speaker001:] Um, if I can find it. Well, I have this new fondue pot and I was going to do basic cheese fondue, and I have two different kinds of breads and some ham and I was going to try something weird which, you know, when you have fish au gratin, I was going to make some, uh, like fish chunks and dip it in the fondue. I don't know if it will come out.
[speaker002:] That's, what kind of fondue, the cheese dip or,
[speaker001:] Yeah, the cheese fondue I make, some people like swiss, um, I prefer cheddar. And I'll mix, I won't make, I won't have a sharp cheddar because it, for fondue I think it should be a little calmer than real sharp,
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] cheddar.
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] And then I was going to make other things like potato skins.
[speaker002:] Oh, that sounds good.
[speaker001:] It-, see you don't necessarily have to dip this stuff. And, um, I was going to have broccoli and cauliflower for a, a vegetable.
[speaker002:] That's always a good thing. Vegetable trays always go over so well, because I think people get tired of eating junk. I mean, I think they like to have healthy stuff too, you know it's,
[speaker001:] Oh, yeah, it's amazing how vegetables trays will go at a party.
[speaker002:] Oh, definitely. I think better even than, than other kinds of food [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yeah, instead of something greasy or,
[speaker002:] Right, exactly. Yeah.
[speaker001:] my, uh, girlfriends do catering and they always, about every party they do is they have a vegetable tray. I think they try and suggest it.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] What I've been doing when I get invited someplace and bring something, I make, uh, food kabobs. You take little toothpicks and cut up,
[speaker002:] Oh.
[speaker001:] uh, pineapple and strawberry,
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] and even banana if you can do it just before you leave.
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] It stays nice and fresh.
[speaker002:] Right, that's true. Or even have you ever seen where they, they'll take a watermelon and just cut the top out of it and then hollow that out,
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] and then put the fruit in the watermelon that is really neat.
[speaker001:] Yeah, I like those [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Yep.
[speaker001:] Um, they, they made a couple of those, uh, they made one for my, uh, bridal shower and I was pretty pleased. I never made one for myself though. But they look easy enough to make it's not,
[speaker002:] Oh, I think it would, it would be a lot of work but, um,
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] you know, because it's, you know, you have to cut each thing or, you know, use the melon baller and stuff but, but I think they're really neat and, you know, I think they're worth the time, you know, because they,
[speaker001:] Yeah, you probably get this, probably pretty sticky after you get done.
[speaker002:] Oh, yeah [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Then you've got to drain the water out of the watermelon because, you know, when you scrape it, it makes the water.
[speaker002:] Right. Yeah.
[speaker001:] Yeah, um, something I do is a fruit, is, I'll get, um, make chocolate sauce and dip strawberries and bananas in them. Yeah, I have two nieces and they, they they go melt some chocolate chips, [LAUGHTER]. Go buy me some strawberries.
[speaker002:] Is that, is that good? You know, I've seen that so many times, strawberries dipped in chocolate but I've never tried it, are they really good?
[speaker001:] Yeah, ther-, you know, if you get a sweet strawberry they're much better, but if you get a sour strawberry,
[speaker002:] Oh, I bet it doesn't mix well, does it?
[speaker001:] Huh. Yeah, no, they, um, the strawberries are coming in season now from, they're, they're coming up from Florida, of course. I live in Vermont, so. But they're really reasonably priced, they're coming up from Florida, so.
[speaker002:] Oh, well, that's good because I know they've been really expensive lately.
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER] Yeah.
[speaker002:] Because they weren't in season, of course, they had to be, be, uh, grown in greenhouses and stuff and in,
[speaker001:] Yeah, I think the, uh, actually I think they get, um, some of them from South America.
[speaker002:] Oh, is that right?
[speaker001:] Yep, they, a lot of, um, of a, um, winter produce comes from South America.
[speaker002:] Oh, I.
[speaker001:] Of course, their seasons are switched.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh. Right.
[speaker001:] So, um, do you want to discuss the recipe?
[speaker002:] Well,
[speaker001:] I have a recipe if you want [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Okay, sure, su-,
[speaker001:] Um, it filled, a lot of people try to stay away from this but I make my own homemade pudding just because I don't like box pudding.
[speaker002:] Is that right? I've never heard of that.
[speaker001:] Yeah, it, and it if you, um, well, first of all I take about a quarter and a half of milk and I put it in a two quart saucepan and you put it on a really low heat.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] And you want to use one of your good sauce pans that dissipate the heat because it, it ends up burning, I mean, no matter how careful you are you still might get a film on the bottom of the pot.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] I don't let that worry me. And I get the milk lukewarm and then I pour about a half a cup of cornstarch in it and I have this thing it's called the slender blender, it, it makes the, uh, it makes, uh, a whip topping out of milk if you get the milk cold enough. It's, uh, I don't know, they're called moo goo leaves or something they're sl-,
[speaker002:] I think I know what you're talk-, is it like a hand held?
[speaker001:] Yeah. They're real neat.
[speaker002:] The, yeah, okay.
[speaker001:] I think they're real reasonably priced, some of them, they used to be a hundred dollars [NOISE], and they used to whip skim milk into a dessert but I didn't get that one, I got the Black and Decker kind. But, uh, it's real handy because it doesn't have a cord and you beat this cornstarch right into the mil-, the milk, you know, and it does an excellent job, or just hand beat it. I guess you could use a hand mixer but I don't think it pur-, I don't think it gets it good enough.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] And then before the milk gets too hot, um, I add two beaten eggs and I really mix them in good. And then about a half a cup of sugar and I let it pretty much, I beat it like every minute for about ten seconds and it's, it starts thickening, when it thickens the cornstarch might get a little, I don't know, it gets like little globs of this rubbery cornstarch,
[speaker002:] Oh, huh.
[speaker001:] and you just keep beating it in. And it's the, the trick is, is to have this blender, so, if you were, you'd have to probably almost go out and someone who's just going to make it first time, it's, you'll have much better luck if you had one of these little blenders.
[speaker002:] Huh.
[speaker001:] And then you can add cocoa powder to it to make chocolate or after it's thickened I cook it for a good, once it starts boiling, I just, I cook it for a good seven minutes,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] seven to ten minutes and then you can make chocolate or you can take it off and let it cool you put, um, really good vanilla favoring in it and some butter and that makes french vanilla, um, custard. Yeah,
[speaker002:] Oh, wow. That is really interesting. Are you saying to use like, um, for chocolate like, unsweetened,
[speaker001:] A chocolate powder.
[speaker002:] unsweetened?
[speaker001:] Yeah, that cocoa, yeah, the unsweetened. It comes in like a real dark can,
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] our mothers used to use it. And then,
[speaker002:] Ri-, I have some [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yeah, we all used to,
[speaker002:] I just want to,
[speaker001:] yeah , it's the unsweetened kind it's not like Nestles Quik.
[speaker002:] Right. Okay.
[speaker001:] I suppose you could use that. I-,
[speaker002:] Cooking chocolate.
[speaker001:] Yeah, but, um,
[speaker002:] That's really interesting, I've never heard of anybody making their own pudding before that's really neat.
[speaker001:] Well, I used to make the regular pudding, the chocolate and put it in the pie shell and if it would sit in the refrigerator for a day, where you cut the pie, it would soak into the pie shell and it was like red, and I'm like, oh, this is kind of groedy.
[speaker002:] Well, how did you get a recipe for pudding on your own?
[speaker001:] Um, actually I found it in one of my mother's, um, homemade cookbooks, I mean,
[speaker002:] Is that right?
[speaker001:] something she had collected out of WOMAN'S DAY or something.
[speaker002:] Oh, neat,
[speaker001:] So,
[speaker002:] that is just really neat. Because I,
[speaker001:] I think you couldn't make it with a hand whisk or, or a regular beater but, um,
[speaker002:] It would probably be a lot more work and probably not turn out as good.
[speaker001:] Yeah, but I still think a beater would do it good enough, um, the trick is to get the cornstarch,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] um, yeah , right in the, in the lukewarm milk. Sometimes I put the cornstarch in a separate bowl and I would put it in the sink and I'll take my lukewarm milk and put it in the cornstarch and beat it good. It seems to be better than putting the, the cornstarch into the liquid it, once it hits the top of the liquid it seems to make little balls and stuff on the top.
[speaker002:] So you put the milk in the cornstarch?
[speaker001:] Yeah. And I'll do this, uh, sometimes I'll put my after I pour that into my, back into my saucepan. I'll put the eggs in the same dish and beat them up and then pour the cornstarch and the milk mixture in the egg. So,
[speaker002:] And then put that back in the saucepan?
[speaker001:] Yep. And then, you know, if you can put your cocoa in with your cornstarch if you wanted to. The cocoa even seems to thicken it even more.
[speaker002:] Huh that's,
[speaker001:] Because by the vanilla doesn't seem to thicken as well as the, sometimes the cocoa is like, my husband really likes it thick he says, I can stick the spoon right in this.
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER] Oh.
[speaker001:] Because I'm always worrying it won't firm up because it, when you take it out of the saucepan it's like, boy, I hope this thickens a little more because it's not like real package thick, you know, when you cook a package,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] it's, it's a little less, but I put it in a nice glass bowl and, um, some people don't like that, that, film on the pudding so you can put, uh, Saran Wrap over the top.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] And then once the pudding starts cooling it makes little balls of water on the Saran Wrap, so, when you pull the Saran Wrap back, you sort of should be a little careful, pull it back and shake the water off the Saran Wrap and I might put it back on. But, um,
[speaker002:] Do yo-, do you put it in the refrigerator then or y-,
[speaker001:] Yeah, after, well when it starts steaming a lot, uh, I definitely, yeah, put it in the refrigerator,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] but, um, I, my father always told me if you put hot food in your refrigerator you're going to make it work too hard.
[speaker002:] Right, that's true. I knew that.
[speaker001:] That's, yeah,
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] so, [LAUGHTER], that's why I do that.
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] So, well, I don't know that's my, my great hard recipe.