Buttered Rum Pound Cake

This recipe was originally from Southern Living, but I’ve made several alterations.

Buttered Rum Pound Cake
1 c butter, softened
2 ½ c brown sugar
6 eggs, separated
3 c flour
¼ t baking soda
1 c sour cream
1 t vanilla
½ c sugar

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in yolks, 1 at a time, beating until just mixed. Stir in vanilla. Combine flour with baking soda and add alternately with the sour cream.

In a clean bowl beat egg whites until foamy, then gradually add ½ c sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. Stir half the whites into batter to lighten, then gently fold in remaining whites.

Pour into greased and floured 10” tube pan. Bake at 325 F for 1 ½ hours. Cool on rack for 10 minutes, and while the cake is cooling make the glaze. After 10 minutes turn cake over onto plate and remove pan. Prick with toothpick or wooden skewer and pour glaze over cake.

Buttered Rum Glaze
6 T butter
3 T rum*
¾ c sugar
3 T water
½ c chopped toasted pecans

Combine butter, rum, sugar and water in a pan. Bring to a boil; boil for 3 minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in pecans.

* Light is best although dark works, too.

Bananas Foster Sauce
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
3 T water
1/3 c rum
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 bananas, peeled and sliced

In a large, deep skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in sugar, water, and cinnamon. When mixture begins to bubble, add bananas. Cook until bananas are hot, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the rum, heat for 1 minute, then ignite rum with a long match. When flames go out, serve immediately.

An abundance of squash and carrots and….

Yellow Squash Soup
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 T olive oil
2 large yellow bell pepper
1 1/2 lbs yellow summer squash
3 cloves garlic
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 c half and half or light cream

Sautee the peppers in oil until soft, add squash and garlic, cook covered until squash is softened. Add stock and simmer 5-10 minutes. Purée until smooth, return to pan and reheat until just heated through, adding cream to thin to desired consistency, and season with salt and pepper.

Makes about 5+ cups

Corn and Tomato Pie

This is one of my favorite late summer treats. I adapted it from a recipe by Laurie Colwin, I think it was in Home Cooking. I adapt it just about every time I make it depending on what is ready in the garden.

The pie has a biscuit crust and calls for rolling out the dough into 2 discs for the top and bottom crust. I use James Beard’s cream biscuits from my Fannie Farmer cookbook, and when I’m lazy, just drop them on top of the filling like a cobbler. This particular iteration included dill in the biscuits. The filling consists of sliced tomatoes, lightly salted and drained briefly on paper towels, fresh corn cooked and cut off the cob, and basil or some other flavorful herb (like dill). I added zucchini ’cause I had some.

I usually make it the day after we have corn on the cob. In this instance, I layered the ingredients and added a sprinkling of cheddar cheese between the layers. Oh, and I also lightly sprinkle each layer with flour. I think it would be excellent with ricotta cheese and lots of black pepper. The original recipe called for mayo thinned with lemon juice but I don’t like mayo so I skip that option. I find the juice from the tomatoes is enough. If your tomatoes are really sweet you could add a squirt of lemon to brighten the flavor. Bake in a 400° F oven until hot and bubbly with browned biscuits. It makes a great leftover lunch, too.