Texas Cooking Online * September, 2004 Newsletter *

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September is well upon us, and it feels like the year is picking up pace. While summer's heat may not be entirely behind us, the worst of it is done with, the kids are back in school, and football is king. Even if we can't yet feel a chill in the air, it's a lot easier to imagine it. This month's newsletter is sponsored by Fischer & Weiser Specialty Foods and their web site, Jelly.Com. This Fredericksburg, Texas enterprise, indeed, produces "much more than just jelly". Visit their site, and you'll find an outstanding array of Texas-produced sauces, marinades, salsas and, of course, jams, jellies and preserves, along with scrumptious recipes. With cooler weather comes a flurry of activities in Texas. Our Texas Events Calendar reflects literally hundreds of festivals, fairs, cook-offs, rodeos, antique and collectibles sales, birding and nature excursions and so many reasons to reacquaint ourselves with the fresh air. Events are added daily, so there's always something new to find in the searchable database. John Raven soldiers on in his quest for sourdough perfection in Sourdough Baking: Part Two. He shares his own bread recipe, and his mentor's recipe for the mouth-watering sourdough biscuits that are pictured below. A new contributing author to Texas Cooking, Rick Vanderpool, relates the story of his continuing quest for perfect barbecue in For the Best Barbecue in Texas, Go to Wyoming. Since dessert writer Sidney Carlisle is taking a well-deserved vacation this month, we are featuring an enduringly popular article, Patricia Mitchell's The Best Banana Pudding. And, yes, we like to think this article has improved the quality of homemade banana pudding all over the world since it first appeared in our pages in 1999. We are treating you not only to one of our finest Tex-Mex cuisine articles, Beef Machaca by Chef David Bulla, but two recipes from Grandma's Cookbook, Old-Fashioned Molasses Cookies for the kids' lunchboxes, and Tex-Mex Smothered Steak with Veggies for sharpened appetites of any age. You can also check out the September winners in the T-shirt contest near the bottom of the page. So settle down, get comfortable, and enjoy our newsletter. Help Yourself to Our Weekly Recipe Email Sign up for our latest feature, the Texas Cooking Weekly Recipe Email. Nothing fancy, just a carefully selected recipe that's sure to please with maybe a link or two to some compatible dishes. Recipes range from savory to sweet -- the entire spectrum. At Texas Cooking, we have always focused on quality over quantity, and we carry that tradition to our Recipe of the Week email. Sign up here.

Enter to Win this full size bottle of Moves Cologne for Her! USA Only. Special Features Sourdough Baking: Part Two by John Raven, Ph.B. Last month we wandered into the wonderful world of sourdough baking. We found what sourdough is and how it's made. Now it's time for Part Two. So let's bake some bread. For the Best Barbecue in Texas, Go to Wyoming by Rick Vanderpool It being almost a personal crusade to sample the best "Q" from as many different Texas joints (under the pretense of photographing the signs) as time, funds, and my arteries will allow, it was with no small measure of anticipation that I departed Lubbock, the morning of June 24, on a quest that would have amounted to finding the end of the rainbow - in gustatory terms, that is. The Best Banana Pudding by Patricia Mitchell "The Banana Pudding recipe you'll find here makes the best banana pudding I have ever tasted," claims author Patricia Mitchell. This article, a Texas Cooking classic, remains one of our most popular. Read by thousands, we like to think it has improved the quality of homemade banana pudding all over the world. Try it, and see if it isn't the best banana pudding you've ever tasted, too. Retired Fiestaware Now Available on Texas Cooking Homer Laughlin's colorful dinnerware, Fiestaware, brightens up kitchen and dining room tables everywhere with its classic and distinctive lines. Every year the manufacturer adds new colors, while retiring others. Texas Cooking's Fiestaware Store now has special pages on the recently retired colors juniper, chartreuse, pearl gray and yellow. Many of these products are available in our online store and through our special eBay connection. Test your knowledge of Texas trivia See if you can pick the correct gridiron match-up in our tricky September quiz. Have you read John Raven's latest Q&A column, Ask Dr. John? A new online form has been added that makes "asking Dr. John" easier than ever. Not only does he field questions about barbecue, chili and outdoor cooking in general, but his downhome culinary knowledge extends to all parts of the menu. Sports Tickets | Concert Tickets | Theater Tickets Great items for Longhorns, Aggies and Red Raiders fans. Visit today for useful, decorative and fun ways to show your school spirit. Discount Cigarettes Inexpensive shopping by the carton. Click on our link to find out more. Looking for free stuff? Participate in contests, get product samples, trial offers and information Beef Machaca by David Bulla I put Machaca in the category of chili. When the weather outside is right, I like to make a batch of it so that I have plenty to freeze and use when I don't have time to cook. It's great for tacos, burritos, chimichangas, enchiladas, quesadillas, taquitos, chili rellenos, and any recipe that calls for taco meat. In my opinion, machaca is so superior in flavor and texture to ground beef taco meat that it makes me wonder why anyone would use ground beef for tacos. It is also very easy to make. So, leave the ground beef tacos to your local fast food joint, and make a batch of machaca for your favorite Tex-Mex dishes. Classic Recipe: Old-Fashioned Molasses Cookies 4-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2 cups sugar 1 cup butter, at room temperature 1 cup molasses (light or dark, but not blackstrap molasses) 1/2 cup milk 2 eggs 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon salt sugar and cinnamon for rolling Combine all ingredients (except additional sugar and cinnamon) and beat with an electric mixer at low speed until well mixed, about 3 minutes. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until dough is firm. Preheat oven to 350°F. By rounded tablespoons, roll the chilled dough into balls, and roll each in a mixture of 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon. Mix additional sugar and cinnamon if needed. Place two inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Bake 15 to 16 minutes or until slightly firm to the touch. Makes about 4 dozen cookies. Classic Recipe: Tex-Mex Smothered Steak with Veggies 2-3 tablespoons canola oil 2 pounds boneless round steak, trimmed and cut in serving pieces 5 medium zucchini, sliced (1/4-inch slices) 3 cups whole kernel corn (canned or fresh) 4-ounce can of chopped green chiles 2 cloves garlic, minced or put through a garlic press 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons chili powder 1/2 teaspoon oregano 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1-1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro In a large skillet, brown the meat in the oil, a few pieces at a time. Remove from skillet as they brown. Over medium-high heat, sauté the zucchini for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium, and return the meat to the skillet. Add the corn, chilies, garlic, salt, chili powder, oregano and cumin. Simmer, stirring occasionally, about 12-15 minutes or until meat is tender. Stir in the cheese just until melted. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve. Makes 4 to 6 servings. You can find this and over 400 more recipes in Grandma's Cookbook. Walker Diet Cooking Products More Great E-Mail Newsletters Texas Cooking's Recipe of the Week email is great for people who enjoy our new and classic recipes from our cookbook. Cooks, recipe collectors and fans of Texas will enjoy this brief, weekly email that contains a carefully selected recipe with maybe a link or two to some compatible dishes. Sign up here. Stop Spyware! Kazaa, Gator and other similar programs have been sneaking onto people's computers wreaking havoc to their systems. These malicious programs are difficult to remove. They flood the screen with their own pop-up ads and open up the computer to a host of viruses. If you have programs like Kazaa, TopText, Gator, WhenU and others on your system, take a moment to learn about the problems these programs cause. We have written a useful and quick tutorial that will inform you about these programs and how to uninstall them from your computer. Free Catalogs Enjoy Great Savings from Free Catalogs Clothing Bridal / Wedding Invitations Wine & Brew Sporting Goods Hobbies / Crafts Pets _________ Cosmetics, samples, DVDs, promotions Gratis! September T-Shirt Contest Winners Larry A. of Clarksville, Tennessee Gus H. of El Paso, Texas Diane J. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Heather J. of Midland, Texas Julie M. of Appleton, Wisconsin Margie P. of Newport News, Virginia Coleman R. of Cleveland, Ohio Bill S. of Grand Prairie, Texas Barbara T. of Tempe, Arizona Chris T. of Wilmington, Delaware Congratulations winners! We are frequently asked if we award T-Shirts to non-US residents, and the answer is Yes. We have had quite a few Canadian winners, and have also sent T-Shirts to winners in England, Australia, Ireland, Switzerland and Germany. The Rules Since we began our T-Shirt giveaway seven years ago, our contest rules remained unchanged. Readers have been able to enter as many times as they like, and their entries were retained in our database. As you can imagine, our contest database has become very large (which is good), BUT much of it consists of old email addresses that are no longer valid. Therefore, we are making the following change in our contest rules: Readers can still enter as often as they like; however, each contest entry will expire three months following the date it was entered and will disappear from the database. This will greatly reduce the number of "names in the hat" and improve the odds of winning. We think this change will result in an even better contest. We are frequently asked how one goes about entering the T-shirt contest. Sign up here. Subscription / Unsubscribe Help This newsletter is sent to you because you, or someone on your behalf, indicated you would like to receive it when you signed our Guest Book or entered our T-Shirt Contest. If you wish to stop receiving the Newsletter, click here or point your browser to http://www.texascooking.com/unsub1.ihtml If you would like to change your email address, please send an email to txmailbox@texascooking.com. ©2004 Texas Cooking Online. All rights reserved.