The menus provided below are just a sample of some of the suppers Rebecca likes to prepare in the Kitchen here at Ravenscroft Castle. You can find the recipes for any of these dishes (and, of course, many others) in any number of good cookbooks currently on the market.
Traditional standbys include the Betty Crocker Cookbook, the Joy of Cooking, and the Southern Living Cookbook.
For the most attractive presentation of a meal, take a tip from restaurants, and serve everything on white plates. It always makes the food the focus and shows it to its best advantage. Before serving a hot meal, Rebecca also heats her plates (it helps to keep the food warm while it's eaten). Oven-safe crockery can be heated in an oven (set on low or warm) or in a warming drawer. Fine china should be heated with a plate warmer. Rebecca bought her own plate warmer from Waterbridge Plate Warmer.
MENU #1
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- Shrimp Cocktail.
- Caesar Salad.
- Rock Cornish Game Hens basted with Amaretto.
- Wild Rice and Mushrooms.
- Fresh Asparagus Sautéed in Butter.
- Hard Rolls.
- Praline Cheesecake.
- White Wine.
- Coffee.
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MENU #2
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- Stuffed Mushroom Caps.
- Mixed Garden Salad.
- Steak au Poivre.
- Baked or Twice-Baked Potatoes.
- Broccoli (Cheese or Hollandaise Sauce Optional).
- Crescent Rolls.
- Key Lime Pie.*
- Red Wine.
- Coffee.
- *This is Rebecca's own favorite dessert.
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MENU #3
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- Crudités.
- Romaine Salad.
- Pot au Feu.*
- French Bread.
- Assorted Cheeses and Fresh Fruits.
- Red Wine.
- Coffee.
- *A one-pot beef dish with potatoes, turnips, onions, and carrots,
which makes its own delicious soup.
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MENU #4*
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- Toasted Raviolis.
- Italian Salad.
- Spaghetti with Meat Sauce (Meatballs Optional).
- Garlic Bread.
- Spumoni Ice Cream.
- Red Wine.
- Coffee.
- *It has been Rebecca's own experience that almost all men like this one.
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MENU #5*
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- Deviled Eggs.
- Tossed Green Salad.
- Baked Virginia Ham.
- Mashed Potatoes with Gravy.
- Fried Okra and Green Tomatoes.
- Fried Yellow Squash and Onions.
- Cornbread or Spoonbread.
- Apple Pie à la Mode.
- Rosé Wine.
- Chickory Coffee.
- *For those men who come from south of the Mason-Dixon Line, of course.
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COOKBOOKS
Read 'em and Eat
Favorite Recipes by Favorite Authors
(A Cookbook.)
Compiled by the Monroe County Library System, Monroe, Michigan.
First published by the Monroe County Library System, October 1991.
ISBN: 0940696290.
About the Cookbook:
A collection of favorite recipes from a number of different authors --- including Charlotte Vale Allen, Sydney Biddle Barrows, Stephen Birmingham, Ray Bradbury, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Rebecca Brandewyne, Jacqueline Briskin, Len Deighton, David Frost, Andrew M. Greeley, Joan Hess, Jonathan Kellerman, Stephen King, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Elmore Leonard, Colleen McCullough, T. Jefferson Parker, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., Sidney Sheldon, and Jean Stubbs.
REBECCA'S FAMILY RECIPE FOR PEANUT-BUTTER FUDGE:
This recipe came from Ms. Dee Hall, a friend of my mother's, and it has been in our family now for years. It's one of the traditional goodies we make every year at Christmas --- three batches, at least, because it gets eaten so fast! Of course, you can serve it any time, but take heed: It could be habit forming!
In a deep, medium-sized pot, combine the following ingredients:
4 cups of white sugar
2 sticks of butter or margarine
1 can of evaporated (Pet) milk
Cook the fudge mixture to a soft-boil stage (about 8-10 minutes) on medium heat, stirring constantly. Then remove it from the heat, and add the following ingredients:
1 large (13 oz.) jar of Marshmallow Cream
2 cups of peanut butter
1 ½ teaspoons of vanilla
1 teaspoon of salt
Beat the fudge mixture until it is smooth and just beginning to harden. Then pour it into a buttered pan or glass dish, and set it aside to harden completely (you may refrigerate it if you wish). When the fudge is hard, cut it into thick chunks --- and serve!
Recipes of Romance
A Romance Novel Cookbook
(A Cookbook.)
Compiled by Diane Crawford.
First published by Media Publishing, 1988.
ISBN: 0939644398.
About the Cookbook:
A collection of "amorous" recipes from 110 romance authors --- including Rebecca Brandewyne, Barbara Cartland, Jasmine Cresswell, Barbara Delinsky, Roberta Gellis, Mallory Dorn Hart, Robin Lee Hatcher, Debbie Macomber, Patricia Matthews, Judith McNaught, Emilie Richards, Nora Roberts, Bertrice Small, and Susan Wiggs.
REBECCA'S FAMILY RECIPE FOR OATMEAL CAKE:
This recipe came from the mother of one of my high-school friends, and it has been in our family now for years. I've enjoyed serving it to many of my friends. It's yummy!
Oatmeal Cake
2 cups of water
1 ½ sticks of butter or margarine
1 ½ cups of quick oats
1 ½ cups of white sugar
1 ½ cups of brown sugar
2 cups of flour
3/4 teaspoon of salt
3/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoons of baking soda
3 eggs
In a deep, medium-sized pot, combine the water and butter or margarine, and bring it to a boil. Then add the quick oats, and remove from the heat. Let the oatmeal-cake mixture stand for 20 minutes.
Combine the remaining dry ingredients in a large bowl. Then add the eggs to the oatmeal-cake mixture, and combine that with the dry ingredients.
Pour the oatmeal-cake mixture into a greased 9" X 13" pan. Bake it at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
Oatmeal-Cake Topping
3/4 cup of coconut
3/4 cup of nuts (Rebecca uses either pecans or walnuts)
9 tablespoons of melted butter or margarine
3/4 cup of powdered sugar (you may use up to 1 cup)
3/8 cup of canned milk
3/4 teaspoon of vanilla
In a large bowl, combine the oatmeal-cake-topping ingredients, then spread the topping mixture on the cake. Broil. Watch until the topping turns light brown. Burns quickly!
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