Grandma's Cheesecake - 1960s

1 lb. ricotta cheese (or dry cottage cheese)
1 lb. cream cheese
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, milted
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
3 Tbsp. flour
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 pint sour cream

Mix cheeses well with beater. Add butter and eggs. (I added butter, beat to mix and then added eggs). Add remaining ingredients; fold in sour cream. (Note that this says add remaining ingredients - don't add sour cream yet. Also, the next time I make this I'll add the flour and cornstarch before adding the eggs. I believe they will blend better and smoother.) Thoroughly grease 12" Bundt pan and dust with fine zwieback crumbs. (I used just enough graham cracker crumbs to barely cover the bottom of a spring form pan sprayed with non-stick spray with flour.) Pour batter into pan and bake for one hour. Turn off oven and allow to remain in oven for one additional hour. Glaze or top if desired. Refrigerate. Cool completely before slicing.

Notes: This recipe came from my wonderful friend Lillian. She ran across it in a little paper cookbook that she bought many years ago at the cost of 10 cents. It dates back in the 1960s.

I used the graham cracker crumbs because I haven't seen Zwieback crackers since my kids were little. For those of you who don't know what they are, back then they were used for teething cookies for babies. Also, I read the recipe before beginning but didn't keep in mind that you include everything BUT the sour cream. I added that with the other ingredients. It did turn out fine so I have no idea as to what difference it might have made. This is a delicious cheese cake, a little different from what you may be accustomed to. I don't like a glaze on my cheese cakes but you can add strawberries, cherries, etc. and a little glaze. Don't go very heavy, weight wise, with your toppings. This is a delicate cake and a heavy topping will cause it to break up. It might even be best to serve a topping on a piece that's been cut and plated. No matter how you eat and serve this, it's delicious!

Banana Marshmallow Pie

1 vanilla wafer pie crust (9")
1 pkg (3 1/8 oz.) instant vanilla pie filling
1 1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup miniature marshmallows
1 cup whipped cream
2 bananas

Prepare vanilla pie filling using 1 1/2 cups of milk. Chill until firm. Fold in marshmallows and whipped cream. Slice bananas and place evenly over the bottom of the pie crust. Spoon filling over bananas. Chill for several hours or even over night.

Changes - change the pie crust to graham cracker, chocolate, shortbread, etc. Change pie filling flavor or instead of bananas, use fresh strawberries.

Chocolate Chunky Pecan Pie

1 deep dish pie 9" pie crust, unbaked
3 large eggs
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup pecan halves, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup chocolate chunks

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl combine eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter and vanilla with a wire whisk. Stir in pecans. Sprinkle chocolate chunks over bottom of crust. Pour pecan mix slowly over chocolate. Bake 50 minutes.

If your crust starts to brown too quickly, cover it with foil. If you are using a frozen pie shell, do not thaw. Always bake pies with a baking sheet under them just in case they boil over. If you have trouble finding chocolate chunks, buy squares and chop them or use a good quality of chocolate chip.

Ambrosia Bars

This recipe was sent to me by my dear friend Lillian. It came from one of her cookbooks "Favorite Recipes of Eastern Star, 1967." Enjoy!

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 Tbl. all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) soft butter
2 cups coconut
1 cup chopped pecans
1 tsp. vanilla
2 well-beaten eggs

Combine 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1 cup flour, baking powder, salt and butter. Mixture will be crumbly. Press into a 9 x 13" pan. Bake at 325 for 12 - 15 minutes. Combine all remaining ingredients. Spread over baked layer. Bake for 20-25 minutes longer. Cool

Frosting

2 Tbl. butter
6 large marshmallows
2 Tbl. cream (evaporated milk)
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. grated orange rind
Orange juice if needed

Gently heat butter, marshmallows and cream until marshmallows are melted. Add powdered sugar, lemon juice and orange rind. Add enough orange juice to spread easily if needed. Spread on cooled cookie and cut into bars when icing is set.

When I made this I grated a little more orange rind for garnishing. This would also be pretty garnished with cherries. It is a very rich dish so when cutting, you might want to cut into small squares.

Fruity Gelatin

2 cups water
1 pkg (3 oz.) strawberry gelatin
1 can (21 oz.) strawberry pie filling
1 pkg (3 oz.) lemon gelatin
1 pkg (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 can (8 oz.) crushed pineapple, undrained
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1/2 whipped topping
3 Tbl. chopped nuts

In a large saucepan, bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Stir in strawberry gelatin until dissolved. Add pie filling, mix well. Pour into an 11 x 7 x 2 dish. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.

In a saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil. Stir in lemon gelatin until dissolved. In a mixing bowl beat cream cheese and mayonnaise until smooth. Beat in lemon gelatin and pineapple. Cover and refrigerate 45 minutes. Into cream cheese mix, fold in marshmallows and whipped topping. Spoon over strawberry layer. Sprinkle with nuts. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Serves 12.

Changes - change pie filling to blueberry, cherry, peach, etc. Make sure your gelatin flavor fits the flavor of your pie filling.