In the Kitchen With Denise Root

 in Favorite Recipes / Now Magazines by

These recipes were contributed by Denise Root, a Southwest resident, and originally appeared in the SouthwestNOW October 2015 issue.

Denise’s Barbecue Brisket

  • 1 whole brisket
  • 1 12-oz. bottle Shiner Bock beer
  • 1 32-oz. bottle Stubb’s Bar-B-Q Sauce
  1. Place the brisket, fatty side up, in a pan. (A disposable pan makes clean up easy.) Pour beer on top, and chill overnight. 
  2. Coat meat completely with sauce. Cover the pan with foil and cook at 250 F for 15-16 hours.
  3. Remove meat from pan; trim off top fat and slice. Serve with additional heated sauce if desired.

 

Denise’s Baked Beans

  • 2 28-oz. cans Bush’s Baked Beans (original)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 3/4 cup Heinz ketchup
  • 1/3 to 1/2 cup Grandma’s Molasses, or to taste
  • 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 2 Tbsp. French’s Mustard
  • 7-8 strips bacon
  1. Mix first 7 ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour into a 9×13-inch glass baking dish. 
  2. Cover with bacon strips. Bake for 1 hour at 350 F.

 

Charlene’s Potato Salad

  • 1 lb. potatoes (russet or yellow)
  • 5 eggs
  • 1 cup dill pickles, chopped or 8-oz. dill pickle relish, well-drained
  • 1/2 large onion, chopped
  • 15 oz. Miracle Whip
  • 1-2 Tbsp. French’s Mustard
  • 1 4-oz. jar pimento
  • Vinegar, salt and pepper, to taste
  1. Peel, chop and boil potatoes. Remove from heat, drain water and allow to cool.
  2. Hard boil eggs, cool and peel.
  3. Combine pickles and onion, set aside.
  4. Mash potatoes; add Miracle Whip and mustard; mix well.
  5. Chop eggs. Add eggs, pickles, onion and pimentos to the potato mixture. Mix well and add vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.

 

Alta’s Punch

  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 46-oz. can Dole Pineapple Juice
  • 1 12-oz. can frozen lemonade
  • Ice (I use a 10-lb. bag.)
  • 2 liters ginger ale
  1. In a pan, dissolve sugar in water; bring to a full boil. Remove from heat and cool completely.
  2. Add pineapple juice and lemonade; mix thoroughly.
  3. When ready to serve, pour into a punch bowl over ice and mix in the ginger ale.

 

Four-layer Delight

  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 stick margarine
  • 1 cup pecans, chopped
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 8 oz. cream cheese (or Neufchatel)
  • 1 16-oz. Lite Cool Whip (divided use)
  • 1 each 3.9-oz. chocolate and vanilla Jell-O instant pudding
  • 2 1/2 cups milk
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  1. For first layer: Mix flour, margarine and pecans together with a fork in a 9×13-inch baking dish; pat down with fingers. Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes. Cool completely.
  2. For second layer: Cream powdered sugar, cream cheese and 1/2 of the Cool Whip. Spread over crust; chill thoroughly.
  3. For third layer: Thoroughly combine pudding mixes, milk and vanilla. Spread over second layer. Return to refrigerator and chill until set.
  4. For fourth layer: Spread remaining Cool Whip on top. Garnish with chocolate shavings or chopped pecans, if desired.

 

Peanut Brittle

  • 1 cup Blackburn’s Waffle Syrup
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 cups raw Spanish peanuts
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  1. Grease a cookie sheet. Combine syrup, sugar and peanuts in a 4-qt. saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 10 minutes, stirring constantly.
  2. Remove from heat; add soda and stir as fast as you can. Pour immediately onto the cookie sheet.
  3. Let the brittle set for at least 4-5 hours. (I usually make it one day and serve it the next.) Do not make on a humid day, as it will not set up properly.
  4. Break by hand into pieces and enjoy!

 

Pecan Pie

  • 1 cup white corn syrup
  • 1 cup dark or light brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 3 eggs, slightly beaten
  • 1 pie shell, unbaked
  • 1 cup pecans, chopped
  1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium mixing bowl; mix well. Add eggs and mix again. Pour into the pie shell. Sprinkle pecans over the filling. Bake at 350 F for about 45 minutes. Filling will not be firm, but will firm up as the pie cools.

 

Pie Crust

Makes one crust.

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 4-5 Tbsp. cold water
  1. Combine flour, salt and shortening in a Tupperware Fix N Mix bowl. Cover, seal and shake until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle water over mixture; cover, seal and shake until mixture is blended.
  2. Form dough into a ball and roll out on a floured pastry sheet. Place crust in 9- or 10-inch pie plate. To prebake; bake at 450 F for 10-12 minutes.