Recipes: Afternoon Snack Recipes

It's 3 pm and a nap is headed your way-if you're at home that is. The mid-afternoon is the time of day when our brains are fried and our body is crying out for sustenance so it can continue working. The British refer to it as tea time. On the European continent supper or dinner or whatever the later meal is called...doesn't happen until much later in the evening say, around 9 or 10 o'clock; so the idea of having a mid-afternoon tea is just the ticket to keep everybody's blood sugars at a decent level. Those of us living in the US are usually heading to our coffee pots to help us remain alert and able to take on the rest of the day.

If you're a working person there is usually a round robin of days when someone is in charge of bringing something to the workplace for everyone else to eat and enjoy. If it's your turn to bring the goodies; you might consider making...then...taking one or more of these.

Strawberry Shortcut Cake
1 cup mini marshmallows
2 (10 oz) pkgs frozen sliced strawberries in syrup, thawed
1 (3 oz) pkg strawberry Jell-o
2 ¼ cups flour
1 ½ cups sugar
½ cup shortening
3 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs

Grease the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle marshmallows over bottom. Combine berries, syrup and dry gelatin. Combine remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Blend until moistened; beat 3 minutes. Pour batter over marshmallows. Spoon berry mixture over batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes. Serve warm or cool with ice cream or whipped cream.

Chip 'n' Cherry Bubbles
2 (8 oz) pkgs refrigerated biscuits
½ cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 (3 oz) pkg cream cheese
20 red or green candied cherries
1 cup milk chocolate chips
¾ cup powdered sugar
1 Tb plus 1 tsp milk

Flatten each biscuit into a 3 inch circle. Combine sugar and cinnamon. Place about 1 teaspoonful in center of each circle. Cut cream cheese into 20 equal pieces; mold each piece of cheese around a cherry. Press scant tablespoonful chocolate chips into each cream cheese ball; place one ball on each circle and pinch dough to seal tightly. Place rolls, seam side up, in 20 greased muffin cups. Sprinkle rolls with remaining cinnamon mixture. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Combine powdered sugar and milk. Drizzle over rolls. Garnish, if desired with additional chopped candied cherries and milk chocolate chips. Serve warm. Makes 20 rolls.

Tangerine Tea Bread
2 cups sifted flour
1 cup sugar
2 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
1 egg, well beaten
3 Tb minced tangerine zest
½ cup chopped black walnuts
½ cup freshly squeezed tangerine juice
¼ cup club soda
¼ cup apricot brandy
¼ cup melted butter
Pinch of nutmeg

Sift dry ingredients together into large mixing bowl; stir in minced zest and nuts. Thoroughly combine remaining ingredients. Add all dry ingredients at once. Stir quickly until well blended. Pour into 9x5x3 inch well greased loaf pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes, or until it tests done in the center. Let stand 10 minutes before turning out on wire rack for complete cooling.

Brazil Nut Fruitcake
2 lbs pitted large dates
1 lb Brazil nuts, shelled
2 cups whole English walnut halves
1 cup mixed red and green candied cherries
1 ½ cups sifted flour
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp melted butter
5 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Stuff each date with a Brazil nut. Combine fruit and nuts in a mixing bowl. Sift flour, sugar, salt and baking powder together and add to cherries and nuts. Add butter. Beat eggs until foamy. Add vanilla to eggs. Carefully mix gently with spoon. Pour into pans that have been well greased, and line bottoms with greased and floured brown paper. Bake in a 300 degree oven for 1 ½ hours, or until done. Fills 2 (1 quart) loaf pans.

Cottage Cheese Raisin Bread
¼ cup butter
¼ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup small curd cottage cheese
½ cup dark seedless raisins
1 tsp caraway seed (optional)
2 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ cup milk

Beat butter and sugar together until well mixed and fluffy. Beat in eggs, cottage cheese and raisins. Stir in flour mixed with baking powder, soda, salt and caraway seeds alternately with milk. Turn into a greased and floured 8 inch round layer cake pan. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake about 40 minutes longer, or until done. Cool for 10 minutes in pan, then invert and cool on rack. Makes 1 loaf. (This is wonderful when toasted and spread with whipped cream cheese.)

Bread Pudding-When I was a child I was insistent that I would not eat my grandmother's bread pudding, just the name was weird; or so I thought. Then, as with all of us, I grew up, have a family, found myself with stale bread and what to do with it. I made a bread pudding...just to try. I discovered it is delicious. Whether made with leftover bread or even donuts, raisin bread, bagels or whatever. Mix and match, bake and eat. Insist your family should at least try it before they can say they dislike it. If you are desperate call it a different name like...Afternoon Cake, 3 o'clock Custard...some kind of catchy title that makes people want to try it. (Remember Better Than Sex Cake?---everyone wanted that recipe!)

1 cup sugar
1 Tb butter
2 eggs
4 Tb cinnamon
1 quart milk
3 slices bread-cubed or torn apart in pieces or donuts, raisin bread, bagels...etc.
3 oz raisins or dried fruit of your choice

Topping:
1 cup sugar
1 cup boiling water
1 Tb flour
½ cup butter

Mix 1 cup sugar, cinnamon, and eggs in a bowl. Add bread. Melt butter and add to mixture. Add milk and raisins. Mix. Bake 1 hour at 325 degrees. To make topping, mix flour, sugar water and butter. Cook until thick and pour over bread mixture. Serve.