Recipe - Red Raspberry Dessert

I can't remember a time when Red Raspberry Dessert wasn't a staple in our family.  Back in the day, which some of you won't remember, it seemed we spent a good part of each Sunday in church--early morning Priesthood, followed by a lengthy Sunday School, then back to Sacrament Meeting in the evening, which sometimes concluded way past dark.  When I think of those long Sundays as a child, Mom's comforting mid-day meal is a bright memory, many aspects of which I carried into my own family.  I still make a nice dinner each week, although my grown daughters (except when visiting) prefer the modern, and perhaps more Sabbath-keeping, trend of simpler Sunday meals.  Nevertheless, no one complains when I ask Grandma to bring this for dinner, or, like this past weekend, make it myself.  The recipe requires a quantity of frozen raspberries, which I always prepare and put away in the summertime specifically for this purpose.  However, if you don't have any of these . . .

All you need to do is go to the store and buy these . . . 

As you can see, some of my frozen hoard of raspberries are individually frozen, and some are frozen in syrup.  You need to use the kind frozen in syrup, as pictured above.  The recipe will require three 10 oz containers like this or one big ol' bag of your own frozen cache.

Those of you who find cheesecake a bit too rich should love this light, fruity dessert.  My favorite part is the center, which has a unique, creamy taste which is a delicious contrast to the tart raspberries. 

Red Raspberry Dessert

3 (10 oz) packages of Raspberries frozen in syrup, partially thawed

1 cup water

2 teaspoons Lemon Juice

50 large Marshmallows

1 pint (2 cups) Whipping Cream

1/2 cup milk

1 ½ packets of Graham Crackers

½ cup Sugar

5 Tablespoons of melted Butter

½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans (if desired)

¼ cup Cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup cold Water

-Place raspberries in fridge to thaw a few hours before making the dessert.

-Melt Marshmallows in ½ cup milk over double boiler or in a regular saucepan until melted.  Set aside to cool. (Note:  You may have to wait until they start to melt a bit to fit them all in).

-Place frozen raspberries (if commercially prepared) in 1 cup water and heat in a saucepan until they finish thawing and you can drain off all the liquid.  If you have frozen your own raspberries in syrup, you probably won’t need the 1 cup of water as enough liquid will come off your berries.

-Drain the juice off the berries. 

-Simmer the drained juice without the berries on stove, adding the cornstarch which has been dissolved in water as it simmers to thicken the sauce.

-When it is thickened and clear, carefully fold berries back into the sauce along with the Lemon Juice.

Note:  You can do this without separating the berries from the liquid, except be aware that they will break up and not remain whole because of the amount of stirring you need to do to thicken the sauce.  If the sauce doesn’t seem thick enough, dissolve some more cornstarch into a very small amount of water and add slowly until you can see it’s just right.  If the sauce seems pale, add a few drops red food color.

-Set the sauce aside to cool.

-Grind up Graham Cracker Crumbs in food processor or with a rolling pin.  Add the melted butter and sugar and nuts (if desired) and mix well.

-Press into the bottom of an oblong glass casserole dish.

-When the marshmallow mixture has cooled to room temperature, whip the 2 cups of cream in large glass bowl. 

-Carefully fold the whipped cream into the cooled marshmallow and spread it over the crumbs. 

-Place this in fridge while you wait for the raspberry sauce to cool to room temperature. 

-Remove from fridge and spread on the raspberry mixture. 

-Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
-Cut into squares to serve.  Makes 16 servings.

Recipe - Slow Cooker Southwest Chicken Spaghetti

While serving as a missionary in Florida many years ago, I had a dish called Chicken Spaghetti at a large P-day lunch for several zones hosted by some thoughtful members in the area.  At that time I had never eaten spaghetti prepared any other way than with traditional Italian style red sauce, and I was amazed by the delicious taste of the zippy, creamy chicken sauce over the pasta.  This was back in the day when dinner appointments--especially for sister missionaries--were few and far between.  With time for cooking so limited, we mainly subsisted on peanut butter and cold cereal.  In short, we appreciated the offering of an occasional hot meal so much that it was almost pitiful, so it could be that my memory of this culinary experience exceeds the reality!

The other day I spent some time trying to replicate this yummy dish, and I think my version comes pretty close.  It has a nice blend of flavors that I think everyone will like.  I served this to the whole family the other night, including my parents who don't like things overly spicy, and they really enjoyed it.  It was easy to put together and ready to eat when we were.  See instructions at the end of today's post.

Slow Cooker Southwest Chicken Spaghetti

4 boneless Chicken Breasts, cut into chunks

1 diced Onion
1 diced Red Bell Pepper
1 diced Green Bell Pepper
2 small cans whole Green Chilies
1 teaspoon Cumin
4 minced Garlic Cloves
1 teas. Tabasco Sauce
¾ teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoon Black Pepper
2 cans Campbell’s Cream of Chicken Soup
1 to 1 1/2 cups Sour Cream
12 oz Velveeta Cheese, cut into cubes
24 oz cooked Thin Spaghetti
Shredded Medium Cheddar Cheese
Chopped Cilantro if desired

Cut up chicken into chunks.  Set aside.

Dice up peppers, onion, garlic, and green chilies.

I had a cute little helper.

I like to buy whole canned chilies instead of diced so I can cut up my own.  I think you get better quality chilies that way and it only takes a minute.

Mix up soup, cumin, Tabasco, and half of the salt and pepper.  Add in the diced veggies & garlic and stir well.

Place chicken in bottom of large Slow Cooker.  Sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper.  Pour sauce over, but do not stir.

-Cook on low for 6 to 7 hours without stirring.

-A few minutes before time to eat, stir the mixture well, add the Velveeta cubes and stir until melted, then add the sour cream.

-Replace the lid and heat for another 5 to 10 minutes or turn your slow cooker to the "keep warm" feature if you aren't ready to eat.  You don't want it to simmer after the sour cream is added, but make sure it's good and hot after the cheese has melted and sour cream is in.

-In boiling salted water (1 to 2 Tablespoons in a very large pot of water) cook 24 ounces of Thin Spaghetti according to package directions.  Do not overcook.  Rinse in hot water and drain well.

-Over individual servings of spaghetti, sprinkle with shredded chedddar cheese, then sauce (so it will melt the cheese).  Top with chopped Cilantro if desired.

Makes 8 good sized servings.