{family) Aunt Vivian's recipe tin

I've posted before about my love for food, and cooking/baking, and where it's roots are. Knowing this bit of information about me will help you understand how excited I am about a little treasure I came upon while looking through some boxes at my parents' house this weekend.

Tucked away below some beautiful old glass dishes was a small pink tea canister FULL of recipes. This box had belonged to my Great Aunt Vivian. Now, when I think of my Aunt Vivian, I recall a home that was always full of wonderful food, yummy sweets, pretty hard ribbon candy that one doesn't see often anymore, a fridge stocked with glass-bottled Cokes, and listening to long talks between my mom and other family members at the table in an entirely blue kitchen. Blue. Everywhere. Blue flowered wallpaper, blue glasses and pieces everywhere, china plates with blue flower patterns hanging on the walls, and --now I was small mind you, but if I remember correctly-- blue counter tops and tiles. (Family, am I right? it's a bit blurry)

When my mom told me this little box had belonged to Aunt Vivian, immediately I said "But it's pink!?". She said that before the blue kitchen, there existed a pink one. And I will imagine it as wonderfully over the top as the blue one. I will always remember that great kitchen.

Right away I began shuffling through the clippings and little scraps of papers with recipes scratched on them. I found some treasures.

There are so many to share, so please bare with me. I may go a little overboard with photos. I love old things, and I have fallen in love with this tin of fun.

There were an high number of wrappers from things like Carnation canned milk, and Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk, and an even higher number of clippings from the newspaper.

I am going to try these!

I even found a recipe that, I assume, I had sent to her. This one was written in my hand, and it is a recipe that I've made several times.

And in a little bundle paper-clipped together, I found, along with some other things, a recipe written by my mom, and a note to my Aunt Missy.

Could they have made food MORE unattractive in photos back then?! ha!

Here is a fun little bit about making colored flames in your fire by using things like Lithium Chloride and Copper Sulphate. Um... ok. Crazy! I actually want to see about this.

There were lots of recipes for things I have never heard of before in my life!!

"yuck" what the first thing I thought. But these look similar to russian tea cakes.

"yuck" also entered my mind with this one. Might be like a custard?

um, I don't know... but I'm just curious enough to try this one. It sounds sort of like a cheesecake-type dessert

What in the world is corn pudding?! There were more than a couple recipes for it.

There were also some family favorites tucked in with all these other interesting recipes.

These were ALWAYS at her house at Christmas time. 

This Dump Cake is different from the one we make now. This recipe uses a cake that has been baked and you break it up and put cherry jello over it, then cherries and whipped cream. 

I had never heard them called "Preacher Cookies" until this past Christmas when my cousin told me. 

this is the same recipe as above. We always called the No-bake Fudge cookies.

This was a little group of recipes that, i assume, was given to her by someone she knew.

I thought this one was too funny...

 I can't figure out quite what this next recipe is for. It calls for a peck of green tomatoes and 3 pounds of onions, cabbage, vinegar, a gallon of cucumbers, pickling spices and sugar. Chow-chow maybe?

There are a lot of recipes in this box that I'd like to try. 

Interesting name.

I haven't had this in so long... I need to make some soon!

 And there are some things that I just think are cute...

even a couple little doilies in the mix :)

 I don't know where all of these recipes came from. She may have not written them all out herself, but I love looking through this little treasure box. It's like a glimpse into her daily life. I wish she was still here so I could ask her about some of them. Sometimes I feel guilty about holding onto little things like this around my house. Little papers, and clippings from magazines. Little drawings and doodles that I've stuffed into boxes and envelopes. But one day, when I'm gone, I think that those are the things that those I've left behind will cherish as I cherish this little box of recipes.

Aunt Vivian and her twin brother, Midian. 

Aunt Vivian and Uncle Richard, her husband.

**EDITED TO ADD:

Aunt Vivian in her ALL-pink kitchen!

{food} Baked Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes

Welcome Fall!

I cannot express my excitement over wearing sweatshirts and slippers, drinking hot chocolate and baking autumny treats! When I woke up yesterday morning and let our dogs outside, I noticed a chill in the air! I had to go put on my warm and comfy clothes! In celebration of this wondrous time of year, I have made my first pumpkin wonderfulness of the year!

This is a new recipe that I found through Pinterest, a great site I mentioned here. (I got this recipe here, at Craving Chronicles, after I found it on Pinterest)


These, my friends, are Baked Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes...

They are SO easy... just mix all the wet ingredients together, then add all the dry.

After they come out of the oven, as soon as they are cooled enough to handle them, you --get this-- DIP THEM IN MELTED BUTTER! Yep. I said it. then you roll them in cinnamon and sugar. 

Heaven.

Add a cup of hot chocolate.... perfection. (actually, I think a spiced soy chai may have been a better companion, but I'll take what I can get! :) 

Baked Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes

Adapted from Tasty Kitchen
Makes 20-24 mini muffins

Don’t worry – you don’t actually use the whole stick of butter for the coating, it just makes it easier to dip the muffins. If you’re looking for a somewhat lighter treat, skip the coating – the muffins are moist and pumpkin packed all on their own. These are best dipped and coated the same day you are going to eat them, otherwise the coating tends to get soggy.

Ingredients

For Donuts
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoons ground cloves
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup canned plain pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1/2 cup low-fat milk

For Coating
1 stick of unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon

Directions

Preheat oven 350°F. Spray each cup in a 24-cup mini muffin tin with baking spray or butter generously.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and spices (through cloves). In a separate, large bowl whisk together oil, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin and milk until smooth. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until just combined – do not over mix!

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. (Using a 2-tablespoon scoop will ensure uniform size.) Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

While the muffins bake, melt butter in one bowl and combine granulated sugar and cinnamon in another bowl. Remove muffins from oven and cool for 2 minutes, or until just cool enough to handle. Dip each muffin in melted butter, then roll in cinnamon sugar to coat.