grandma carr's everyday no recipe dishes

(1 rating)
Recipe by
Kathie Carr
North Liberty, IN

Grandma cooked without written recipes for the most part. Here are some of her everyday dishes. I have many great memories of her and these simple foods that tasted so good when she made them. As an adult I learned what a limited income my Grandma had lived on. But as kids we never knew it. She cooked such wonderful food, much of it was home grown or traded with family, friends, and neighbors. A neighbor might bring her blueberries and she gave them back a bread she had made. Grandma worked hard and always felt blessed by God. What an inspiration she was!

(1 rating)
yield serving(s)

Ingredients For grandma carr's everyday no recipe dishes

  • usually on hand

How To Make grandma carr's everyday no recipe dishes

  • 1
    HOT DOGS WITH BAKED BEANS: In casserole dish mix 2 cans pork and beans with 1/4 cup catsup and 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Dice 4 slices bacon and stir into beans. Cut 5-8 hot dogs in quarters and stir into beans. Place 2 slices baon on top of casserole and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
  • 2
    BAKED BEANS: In casserole dish mix 2 cans pork and beans with 1/4 cup catsup and 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Dice 4 slices bacon and stir into beans. Place 2 slices baon on top of casserole and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
  • 3
    MACARONI SALAD MAIN DISH: To cold, cooked elbow macaroni add tuna, ham, or chicken. Mix well. Make a simple salad dressing of mayonnaise, pickle relish, and a little chopped onion. Stir into macaroni-meat mixture. Add salt and pepper as desired. Nice supper dish on a hot summer day.
  • 4
    TUNA SALAD SANDWICH: Grandma drained a can of tuna and added a little chopped onion, a hard boiled egg, chopped, a little mayonnaise, and some sweet pickle relish. She served this on whole wheat bread.
  • 5
    GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES: Grandma buttered whole wheat bread and made a grilled cheese sandwich with American or Cheddar cheese. She often added sliced bologna, or crisp bacon, tomato slices, and mayonnaise.
  • 6
    EASY HOT DOG SOUP: Just cook a couple of hot dogs in tomato soup. Serve with crackers.
  • 7
    FRIED BOLOGNA SANDWICHES: Grandma fried bologna slices in a little oil. She made sandwiches with these and mayonnaise, tomato slices, and pickles.
  • 8
    POACHED EGGS ON TOAST: Grandma poached eggs in water and served them on whole wheat toast for lunch or supper. Add salt and pepper as desired.
  • 9
    SPECIAL COTTAGE CHEESE AND EGGS: Stir any fresh or leftover canned fruit into cheese mixture for a nice dish. Grandma's favorites were pineapple, strawberries, blueberries, and fruit cocktail. Sometimes she sprinkled cinnamon sugar on top of the finished fruited cottage cheese. She served this with cold hard boiled eggs.
  • 10
    PEANUT BUTTER SANDWICHES: Grandma made peanut butter sandwiches on whole wheat toast. She added homemade strawberry jam, marshmallow cream, or a few chocolate chips when she made them for us kids.
  • 11
    HOT DOGS AND SAUERKRAUT: Mix 1 can (14 ounces) sauerkraut, rinsed and well drained with 1 package (16 ounces) of hot dogs, cut into chunks. Place in casserole dish or baking dish. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
  • 12
    EGG SALAD SANDWICH: Grandma cooked 4-6 eggs to the hard boil stage. After peeling and chopping them she added a little chopped onion, a little mayonnaise, salt and pepper, and some sweet pickle relish. She served this on whole wheat bread.
  • 13
    CHICKEN SALAD SANDWICH: Grandma chopped up a cup or two of leftover cooked chicken and added a little chopped onion, a hard boiled egg, chopped, a little mayonnaise, and some sweet pickle relish. She served this on whole wheat bread often with home grown lettuse and tomatoes.
  • 14
    QUICK CHICKEN AND NOODLES: Cook 1-2 cups cooked, leftover chicken in 2-4 cups water. Add 2 chicken bouillon cubes, 1 chopped onion, 1/2 a sliced carrot, a little chopped celery if you have it on hand, and salt and pepper. Simmer until onions and carrots are tender. Add 1 package wide noodles and cook in the broth until noodles are done. Serve in big bowls with crackers.
  • 15
    MINUTE (CUBE) STEAKS AND GRAVY: In a large frying pan Grandma would fry minute steaks and a sliced onion in a small amount of oil until done. She would add home made beef gravy or a can of mushroom soup, salt and pepper to taste, and heat all well. She served this with mashed potatoes.
  • 16
    LIVER AND ONIONS: Grandma would buy very fresh liver. She sauted it in butter and oil with onions. Sometimes she would add a couple of slices of bacon. Add salt and pepper to taste. She would be careful that it was cooked completely but not over cooked. If she had fresh chicken livers she always added a can of mushrooms. With other liver she used only onions.
  • 17
    RED JELLO AND BANANAS: This was a staple side dish. Make any flavor of red Jello acording to package directions. Stir in a sliced banana when Jello is beginning to set. Grandma would also make this with a can of fruit cocktail (well drained) instead of banana.
  • 18
    BASIC BUTTERED VEGETABLES: Grandma boiled most vegetables in a small amount of water.She didn't over-cook them as she often said many of her Irish-Welch relatives did. She seasoned with salt and pepper and poured melted butter over them. And her veggies were simple and good. This workes well with cauliflower, broccoli, corn, cabbage, asparagus, green beans, and more.
  • 19
    BASIC SOUP: Grandma would save the neck, tail, wings, and giblets of a turkey or chicken. She would boil this with any leftover meat until the meat fell off the bone. Then she would remove the bone and skin from the mixture and add any vegetables she had on hand (always onions) and salt and pepper. Sometimes she added noodles. Then cook until veggies are tender and noodles are done.
  • 20
    HAMBURGER AND CABBAGE: Grandma would brown 1 pound of hamburger with a small diced onion. She would drain off the fat, sprinkle it with salt andf pepper and add about 1 cup, or a little more, water. Then she would lay wedges of cabbage (from 1 medium cabbage) on top of this, and often a few slices of carrot, and cover and cook until cabbage was tender. Grandma served this over mashed potatoes.
  • 21
    BLT SANDWICHES: Place about 3-4 strips cooked crisp bacon on a slice of toasted bread. Cover with fresh home grown lettuce, sliced tomatoes, and spread with mayonnaise. Cover with second slice of toasted bread.
  • 22
    TOMATO SANDWICH: Spread mayonnaise on 2 slices of white bread. Place fresh lettuce leaves on mayonnaise. Cut 1 large tomato into 1/2 inch thick slices and place tomatoes on top of lettuce. Sprinkle salt and pepper on tomato.Top with remaining bread slice. Cut in half and enjoy.

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