Happy Thirteenth Birthday to I’m Turning 60…!! by Margaret Ullrich

 

Happy 13th Birthday to I’m Turning 60… !!

I want to thank each of you for visiting, whether it's been on a daily, weekly or occasional basis!

Also, a big Thank you! to those who've told their friends to visit!

I especially want to thank everyone who has been kind enough to comment over the years. 
I really appreciate it when you tell me that your family enjoyed a recipe, or that it brought back memories. I also like it when you ask if I have a recipe for a particular dish.

I’m Turning 60… continues to be more popular, with more than twice as many visitors - than its older ’sibling’ blog Winnipeg is Better Than Chocolate! 

Really!!
I’m Turning 60… - with 1,132 posts - has had over 1,192,000 visitors since July, 2010, when Blogger started keeping track of both blogs.
That's more visitors than its ‘elder sibling’ blog, Winnipeg is Better Than Chocolate, which has 2,817 posts, and has received over 547,000 visitors.
That's less than half the number of posts with over twice as many visitors!


Let’s get back to the recipes which deserve the credit for all these visits!
The weekly, as well as the monthly, top ten choices have frequent changes, especially during holiday seasons. The current all-time top twenty posts are:

Carmela Soprano's Ricotta - Pineapple Pie (Cheesecake)
21.8K


Anna Sultana's Imqarrun il-forn - Baked Macaroni, Maltese Style
17.9K


Carmela Soprano's Ziti al Forno / Baked Ziti with Tiny Meatballs
15.4K


Carmela Soprano's Anginetti / Italian Lemon Knot Cookies with Lemon Glaze
14.3K


Carmela Soprano's Penne alla Vodka / Penne in Cream Sauce
13. K


Carmela Soprano's Peppers and Eggs Sandwiches
10.8K


Anna Sultana's Ross il-Forn - Baked Rice, Maltese Style
10.5K


Carmela Soprano's Sfogliatelle / Shfooyadell' (Baked Ricotta-Filled Pastries)
7.97K


Carmela Soprano's Braciole / Stuffed Beef Rolls in Tomato Sauce
7.53K


Carmela Soprano's Sunday Gravy (Tomato Sauce with Meat) and Homemade Meatballs
6.01K


Carmela Soprano's Pizza Rustica recipe / Pizza Gaina / Italian Easter Pie with Ricotta and Meat
5.67K


Carmela Soprano's Scungilli in Hot Tomato Sauce l Preparing Conch and Friselle
5.2K


Carmela Soprano's Manicotti with Ricotta Filling / Filling for Large Shells
5.08K


Carmela Soprano's Meat Sauce and Lasagne #2, with Basil Leaves
4.49K


Anna Sultana's Christmas Cookies, Maltese Style
3.53K


Carmela Soprano's Rigatoni with Sweet Sausage and Tomato Sauce
3.44K


Anna Sultana's Imqaret - Deep-fried Date Slices, Maltese Style l Jelly Doughnuts
3.36K


Anna Sultana's Ful bit-tewm - Broad Beans and Garlic, Maltese Style
3.07K


Anna Sultana's Bebbux bl-Arjoli / Snails with Arjoli Sauce, Maltese Style
2.59K


Carmela Soprano's Mom's Pear and Grappa Pound Cake
2.46K 

These 20 recipes received 164.1 K visitors.

When the virus first came to Canada, I gathered recipes for two as well as recipes according to type of ingredients, and shared the posts on Facebook. Here they are:



Bread Recipes made with Yeast, Baking Soda, Baking Powder or Sourdough Starter

Anna Sultana's Roasted Cornish Game Hens
       / Chicken and Meat Recipes for 2 Links

Anna Sultana's Lemon Cranberry Muffins / Baking Powder Substitutes
       / Brunch, Dessert and Drink Recipes for 2

Anna Sultana's Pull-Apart Pizza
       / Cheese, Egg, Vegetable, Meatless and Fish Recipes for 2

Anna Sultana's Pork Chops in Lemon Caper Sauce / Wine Substitutes for Cooking
       / Links for Capers Recipes

Anna Sultana’s Milkless, Eggless, Butterless Cakes (Chocolate or Raisin)
       and Two-Egg Sponge Cake

Anna Sultana’s Coconut Cake, Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting, Boiled Frosting
       and Quick Fudge

Hope you find these grouped listings useful.
 

Please, if you haven’t already, do try a few of the recipes on these lists.
Just copy the name of the recipe and place it in the space under ‘Looking for a recipe?’ and click ‘search’.


I'm always amazed at learning where you live.
I expected visitors from the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom since many Maltese immigrated to these countries, especially after World War II.
The other top countries are a pleasant surprise.

The top ten countries and their visitors are:   
United States…………....... 617    K
Canada………….……….…106    K
Malta……………...…..……  71.7 K
Australia………….……...… 65.8 K
United Kingdom…….….....  40.9 K
Russia…………………...…. 33.9 K
Turkey……….…...……...…. 29.4 K
Germany……….….…...…..  20.8 K
France………….….…….…. 18.4 K
Ukraine.…….…….…...……. 11.9 K

During the years there have also been visitors from Italy, Finland, Poland, Spain,
the Netherlands, Macedonia, Mexico, Afghanistan, Thailand, Slovakia, Ireland,
Denmark, Bangladesh, Sweden, Israel, Moldova, Malaysia, Singapore, Kuwait,
Greece, Kenya, Vietnam, Czech Republic, Brazil, Bermuda, Namibia, Cyprus, India,
Philippines, Japan, South Korea, Norway, New Zealand, Madagascar, Armenia,
South Africa, Romania, Iceland, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Tanzania, Argentina,
United Arab Emirates, Belgium, Tunisia, Taiwan, Paraguay, Columbia, China, Jamaica,
Portugal, Bahamas, Kazakhstan, French Guiana, Côte d’Ivoire, Bangladesh, Egypt,
Kenya, Oman, Hungary, Belarus, Switzerland, Romania, Czechia, Lebanon, Austria,
Venezuela, Hong Kong, Bulgaria, Dominican Republic, Lebanon, U.S. Virgin Islands,
Gibraltar, Jersey, Nigeria, Serbia, Equador, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Albania
and Luxembourg.
It is a small world after all!!


I don't post regularly and I don’t put my blog posts’ links on Facebook.
Please become a subscriber to this blog, I’m Turning 60…
It’s easy and FREE - just click on the ‘FOLLOW’ link under the pictures of followers and post your email address.
Yes, you can follow I’m Turning 60… by email.
Free, easy, and, I promise, your address will never be shared with anyone.
You’ll get an email when there is a new post, so you'll never miss a post.

I do post a link on Twitter whenever there is a new post.
If you feel more comfortable using Twitter, just click on the Twitter link '@ImTurning60' and we’ll keep in touch that way.

I'd also like you to tell me what recipes you want to know about. 
It's easy to do - just click on 'Comments' and write.
Would you like more holiday recipes, or more easy, cheap, quick meals or…?

Thanks again for visiting!
I hope you'll drop by again real soon.
Stay safe and well!

Anna Sultana’s Kuchen Cookies, Pumpkin Cookies, Pumpkin Ginger Muffins and Potato Bread / Welcome, Ghosts

Happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian readers!
Happy Columbus Day to my American readers!
To everyone else… Have a great day, eh!

Thanksgiving Day has traditions, especially in the dinner department.
Covid-19 has affected supply chains and prices, but Thanksgiving does call for a bit of a nod to tradition, including its special meal.

It’s always hard to guess how much everyone wants to eat, so, to be on the safe side, we usually do cook a little extra of everything.
I mean, nobody wants to ration out veggies and trimmings during a family dinner.
It’s bad enough a turkey only has two legs.

Before prices became so ridiculous some of the leftovers were just tossed.
Well, no one wants to do that anymore.
Not at these prices.

One rule for lowering grocery prices is to buy what is in season and, if possible, local.
Another rule is to make use of leftovers.
Here are a few recipes Ma learned from her friends.
Back in the 60s moms didn’t let anything go to waste.
As moms back then said Waste not, want not.


Hints:



About the Kuchen Cookies…
There are many Kuchen recipes, for example, Blechkuchen is a sheet cake pastry, with variations. For example, if it is butter-based it is known as Butterkuchen.
Lebkuchen is a Blechkuchen commonly made during Christmas.

This Kuchen calls for apples, but it works with other fruits, too.
 If you don’t have fresh fruit you can use canned or frozen.
 All you need is 1 1/2 cups of fruit.

You could also use shortening instead of the butter or margarine.


About the Pumpkin Cookies…
Don’t have shortening? Use 1/3 cup oil.

You can scoop the insides from your Halloween jack-o-lantern, then steam, drain and mash.


About the Pumpkin Ginger Muffins…
You can use leftover baked squash or steamed pumpkin instead of canned pumpkin.

If you don’t like currants, leave them out. You can use raisins or walnuts, or both, instead.

You can bake a few muffins at a time. After filling the paper-lined tins place them on a cookie sheet in the freezer and freeze until solid. Remove the frozen batter in the paper cups from the tins and place in covered plastic containers. The frozen batter will keep in the freezer for up to six weeks.
When ready to bake, remove the paper cups from the freezer and place in a muffin tin, allow to thaw, and bake. 




About the Potato Bread…

Yeast is cheaper in the tin or a jar. I do hope you bought one.
A package of yeast has 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast.

If you’re planning on making this recipe add an extra cup of water to the pot of boiling potatoes and set it aside. If you salted the water when you boiled the potatoes, reduce the salt in the bread recipe.
Regular water will do if you don’t have leftover potato water.

For extra texture you can substitute a cup of barley or whole wheat flour for a cup of the white flour.




                       
                        Kuchen Cookies



Grease and flour a 15 x 11 inch cookie sheet with sides

Have on hand 1 1/2 cups fruit, for example: blueberries, sliced and peeled apples or peaches, sliced strawberries or plums, etc.

For Streusel:
Place in small bowl
1 Cup flour
1 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup margarine, softened
Mix with butter knives until crumbly.
Set aside.

For Batter:
Sift together into a medium bowl

3 Cups flour

1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder

Combine in a measuring cup
1 Cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Place in a large bowl

1/3 Cup butter or margarine, softened

Cream, then add gradually
1 Cup sugar
Add
1 egg, beaten
Add
the milk / vanilla mixture
Gradually stir in the flour mixture.
Beat well.

Preheat oven 350º F

Spread the batter in the prepared pan.
Top with prepared fruit.
Sprinkle streusel over the fruit.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Slice and serve as bar cookies.
                      

                        Pumpkin Cookies

Makes about 4 dozen cookies  

Grease 4 cookie sheets                

Sift together
2 1/2 Cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Place in a large mixer bowl
1/3 Cup shortening
1 Cup sugar
Beat until fluffy.
Blend in
2 large eggs
1 to 2 teaspoons vanilla
Stir in
1 Cup canned pumpkin
Add
the flour mixture
1/2 Cup raisins
1/2 Cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 375º F  

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets.
Bake about 15 minutes.
Remove cookies from pans and cool on racks.
                       
                       


                        Pumpkin Ginger Muffins


Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners

Sift into a medium bowl
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Place in a large bowl
3 ounces margarine or butter, softened
1/3 Cup granulated sugar
1/3 Cup firmly packed light brown sugar
Beat until light and fluffy.
Beat in
1 large egg
1/2 Cup canned pumpkin
Add the flour mixture alternately with
1/2 Cup milk
Blend well. Stir in
1/2 Cup currants

Preheat oven to 350º F  

With an ice-cream scoop, fill paper-lined muffin tins three-fourths full.
Bake 30 to 40 minutes.





                        Potato Bread


Grease three loaf pans     

Place in a large bowl
1/3 Cup warm potato water (about 110º F)
1 Tablespoon sugar
4 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast  
Let stand about 10 minutes, then stir.
Add
1 Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon oil
3 Cups mashed potatoes
Mix well then stir in
6 Cups white flour
Mix well, adding more flour until no more can be added.
Place dough in an oiled bowl.
Rotates to cover surface with oil.
Cover with a cloth, set in a warm place to rise, about 3 hours.

Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface.
Knead until it is smooth, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Divide the dough in three parts and put each piece in a prepared loaf pan.
Flatten to fill the pans.
Set in a warm place to rise until doubled, about 50 minutes.

When the dough is almost finished rising, preheat the oven to 375º F.   

Bake 60 minutes, or until bread tests done and is golden brown.
Cool on a wire rack 5 minutes.
Remove from pans.

                                                       ~~~
Thanksgiving and Columbus Day are events people mark as milestones.
But there are also personal milestones.
Today my Ma would have been 100 years old.
She died in 2009, and, a few days after she died, I started this blog.
At first it was just a place to write my thoughts.
Turning 60, deaths, thoughts… just another personal blog.

During the 90s Ma had gotten interested in the cooking shows.
I usually sent Ma the Christmas recipe brochures that I found in the stores.
She enjoyed reading and trying a new recipe or two.
I can't send recipes to her anymore, so, now I share her recipes on-line.


About a year after Ma had died, I had a dream and wrote this post about it.
Ma was still being Ma, having a hand in things…

I now believe in ghosts.

Up to now I never gave ghosts much thought. I've always enjoyed watching a spooky movie as much as the next person. But, I just thought of ghost flicks as wonderful flights of fancy.

You'd think I'd know better.

I was born a Catholic. Had Dominican nuns as teachers from kindergarten to grade 12. The good sisters did their job. I memorized the Baltimore Catechism and learned all about the Communion of Saints and how our dear departed, along with our guardian angel and saints with a vested interest (the ones we were named after) are looking over our shoulders trying to make sure we'd eventually join them. I received the sacraments and married in a church wedding ceremony.  

I've read saints' biographies. Lots of them mention having really chummy chats, while alive, with saints who had predeceased them. Saints don't lie, right?

So... why did it take 60 years for me to believe?


It started with the flu vaccine. I'd heard on Monday that the vaccination clinics would be running until October 23. I jotted a reminder on the calendar. I didn't give it another thought.

But Ma did.

First I had a dream of Ma having a cup of tea with me and asking me when I was getting my flu shot. The dream didn't seem that weird. Every year, since I'd turned 50, Ma asked if I'd gotten my flu shot yet. I just thought I was having a little flashback of when Ma was alive.

I liked the sharing tea part of the dream. Much cozier than using the phone which we had to do since she was all the way in New York and I am in Winnipeg.

Then, last night, I had the dream again.

I couldn't shake the feeling that I couldn't wait until tomorrow. All day the thought was nagging at me. Finally, at 3:00 p. m., I walked over to the clinic.

Hoo boy... There was a large sign:
The vaccination clinic would close October 22 at 4:00 p. m.
I had 50 minutes left.

I filled out the consent form and waited my turn. After I received my shot I had to wait 15 minutes, just in case there was an adverse reaction. As I was leaving I saw 2 people being turned away because they were too late.


Like I said, I now believe in ghosts.
And I love sharing a cup of tea instead of having to use the phone.
Bet Ma loves it, too.