Family holiday recipes

From Thanksgiving to New Year’s, I have recipes scattered all over the countertop as I line up family favorites to make for the holidays. The guaranteed staples are my grandma’s fudge and divinity, Mark’s grandma Preusser’s date filled cookies and my mom’s Christmas morning caramel rolls. Then, there are all the new family recipes to incorporate. As new people join our family, we also incorporate their family favorite recipes.
I have discovered that many of the recipes are the same, but it is the memories behind the recipe that make it a family tradition to continue for the next generation. Marilyn Kaschmitter’s chocolate chip pie is a perfect example. Mark came home from picking up roasted soybeans at Kaschmitters’ just beaming. He couldn’t wait to tell me about a pie Marilyn was making for the holidays. He thought it sounded delicious. I reached out to Marilyn to make sure Mark had the correct ingredients as I was going to try making it for his birthday.
The recipe is very simple, but the story makes it a rich recipe. When Marilyn was about 6 years old, during World War II, her aunt wanted this pie served for her wedding. Marilyn remembers watching all the ladies prepare the wedding pies. She licked a lot of spatulas that day. This simple pie has become a family staple for the holidays over the years. Last Christmas, Marilyn gave each family member the recipe in her handwriting. This recipe will continue in her family and now ours. It is so simple, even a bachelor can whip it up.

Chocolate chip pie
by Marilyn Kaschmitter
30 regular marshmallows
1/2 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
Graham cracker pie crust
Combine marshmallows and milk in saucepan. Heat until marshmallows are melted. Cool. Whip whipping cream. Chop unsweetened chocolate into small pieces. Add to whip cream. Fold marshmallows and whipped cream together. Pour into graham cracker crust. Chill pie for at least an hour or more.
When I made this, I forgot to cool the melted marshmallows before I added the whip cream and chocolate chunks. They melted and turned it into a chocolate colored pie. Marilyn’s is a white pie with visible chunks of chocolate. Both taste great.

Tricked-out little weenies
by Joelle Liddane
1 tube crescent rolls
1 package smoked sausages
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup chopped nuts
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons brown sugar
Unroll crescent rolls and separate into triangle sections. Cut lengthwise into three smaller triangles. Place sausage on the long side and roll up tightly. Place in 8-by-8 baking dish. Set aside
Mix honey, brown sugar, melted butter and nuts. Pour mixture over sausages in baking dish. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with toothpicks.

Cranberry jalapeno dip
by Libby Schmitt
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sour cream
6 ounces cranberries
3 green onions, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup sugar or less
1/4 teaspoon salt
In food processor add cranberries, jalapeno, green onions, sugar and salt. Pulse until finely chopped. Set aside. In mixing bowl, whip softened cream cheese until smooth. Add sour cream to combine. Drain excess liquid from cranberry-jalapeno mixture. Add to cream cheese mixture until blended. Serve with crackers or bread for dipping. Can make a day ahead to allow flavors to blend. If any leftovers, spread on bagels for breakfast the next morning.

Cranberry lemon bread
1 cup cranberries
1 2/3 cups flour plus 1 tablespoon
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
Glaze
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
Toss cranberries with 1 tablespoon flour; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together remaining flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar together until fluffy and creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add eggs and beat an additional minute. Add half the flour mixture; mix on low speed just until incorporated. Add milk and mix on low until blended. Add remaining flour mixture until no flour is visible. Fold in lemon zest and cranberries. Pour batter into greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on rack for 15 minutes. Before removing bread from pan, pour glaze over bread. Glaze: Mix sugar and lemon juice in small sauce pan. Bring to boil for 30 seconds. Pierce top of warm bread with toothpick or fork. Pour glaze over bread and allow glaze to seep in.
As their four children pursue dairy careers off the family farm, Natalie and Mark are starting a new adventure of milking registered Holsteins just because they like good cows on their farm north of Rice, Minnesota.