Comfort Food Makes A Comeback In Challenging Times!

Connie and Chris Loux, identical twin sisters were born into a large, loving Pennsylvania Dutch family and grew up in a household where warm hospitality and good food was provided to all that entered their home.

The Loux twins decided to combine their talents and experiences in business and create a loving tribute to their family traditions that captures the best culinary highlights they inherited and learned along the way.

Their new book, Twinfare, is more than a cookbook – it is a celebration of loving God, good food, good living, and honoring the special traditions of family and friends. Twinfare is unique in it’s presentation. It’s filled with ideas of menu’s, how to ‘set the scene’, Pennsylvania Dutch folk art and lots of pictures and quotes.

Twinfare

By Connie Loux-Murray
and Chris Loux-Henning

List $2595 470 pages, with over 700 recipes index and dozens of photos
ISBN 978-0-942407-87-7

This hard cover, enclosed spiral bound book contains over 700 recipes. It contains 40 ‘gatherings’, including comprehensive menus, from appetizers through desserts along with ways of setting the scene for each gathering.

The book is filled with time and home proven hand selected favorites from decades of family cooking. It is a valuable resource for entertaining which contains down-to-earth language, with clear, non-intimidating recipe instructions and menus for every skill level.

Along with their cooking and entertaining expertise, Chris and Connie have decades of combined experiences, in business and working for Fortune 500 companies. Connie owned and operated upscale take-out eateries and worked as Corporate Food Service director for Retirement communities serving over 6000 residents. Chris has a solid background in accounting, office management, and human resources. She worked for many years for one of our nations’ leading entertainment personalities. Connie and Chris also manage their website, www.twinfare.com where they sell Lancaster, Pennsylvania Amish hand-made items such as quilts, aprons, quillows and many other wonderful pieces.

GATHERING: -‘OUR TRADITIONAL THANKSGIVING DINNER’ (Sample menu and recipes using excerpts from the book):

MENU:

Williamsburg Cheese Straws
Shrimp Bowl
Celery Hearts Stuffed with Cream Cheese and Herbs
Champagne Cup
Roast Turkey stuffed with Fried Bread Stuffing
Sweet Potato Soufflé
Oyster Filling
French Green Beans with Lyonnaise Sauce
Glazed Beets with Mandarin Oranges
Old-Fashioned Egg and Lettuce Salad
Cranberry and Pear Relish
Homemade Crescent Rolls
Pumpkin Bread
Gooseberry Pie
Coconut Custard Pie
Broken Glass Torte
Baked Cherry Tapioca Pudding

RECIPES:

CHAMPAGNE CUP

1/2 cup each; pineapple, bananas, strawberries, oranges,
seedless grapes, and diced peaches
1/3 cup sugar
1-3 tablespoons Kirsch
½ pint lemon sherbet
1 bottle champagne, well chilled
Mint springs

Place fruit in bowl. Sprinkle sugar and Kirsch over mixed fruit. Put sherbet on fruit and garnish with mint springs. Pour champagne over fruit right before serving.

Serves 4-6


SWEET POTATO SOUFFLÉ

6 cups sweet potatoes, mashed
¼ cup evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
¼ cup butter, melted
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon cinnamon

Topping

1 cup corn flakes
1/3 cup pecans, chopped
½ cup butter, melted
½ cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 375-degrees.

In a bowl, beat sweet potatoes and milk until fluffy. Add sugar, eggs, butter, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Beat slowly. Pour into a greased 13”’x9”’ pan. Mix topping ingredients together and place topping mixture on top of soufflé. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Serves 6.

BROKEN GLASS TORTE

3 packages of gelatin (any color)
1½ cups water for each package
1 envelope plain Knox gelatin
¼ cup cold water
1 cup pineapple juice, hot
2 cups whipping cream
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Graham cracker crust
1/3 cup crushed graham crackers

Dissolve each package of gelatin in water in separate cake pans and let set until firm. Then cut into cubes.
In a bowl, soften gelatin in cold water. Dissolve in hot pineapple juice and set aside to cook.

In another bowl, whip cream until stiff. Add sugar and vanilla and beat
into cream. Fold in gelatin and pineapple juice mixture. Blend in gelatin cubes carefully. Turn into graham cracker crust. Sprinkle crushed graham crackers on top. Chill for 6-12 hours.

Serves 8.

‘SETTING THE SCENE’ FOR ‘OUR TRADITIONAL THANKSGIVING
DINNER’

INVITATIONS-
Feature clip art of pilgrims on the front of your invitation; it’s a great way to convey the gathering together spirit of this holiday. Add your warm message of hospitality:

‘Please be our guests on Thanksgiving Day for feasting, reminiscing and counting our blessings-just like the pilgrims used to do.’.

Put details on the inside of the card.

TABLE-
It’s the little details that bring big smiles to your guests’ faces: use a delicate cream lace tablecloth or something in a rich fall hue like burnt orange, gold or cocoa brown, with cloth napkins in a complementary color; tied with brown silk ribbon. Treat guests to your finest china, silverware, crystal goblets and wine glasses. Add extra warmth with a mixture of vintage and modern pilgrim figurines, including functional items like salt and pepper shakers. Don’t forget lots of candles-there’s nothing better than a candlelit glow to add holiday ambiance.

FLOWERS-
Cornucopias are the classic symbol of generosity and abundance: fill several with cheerful flowers like sunflowers and red berbers, along with water vials to keep them fresh. Add berry branches as accents.

PLACE CARDS-
Select fresh pears with a stem. Handwrite ‘Count Our Blessings’ on
a place card along with the name of each guest and tie it to the stem with brown ribbon.

FAVORS-
For the little ones, hand out colorful illustrated books about pilgrims. Adults will cherish a mini-journal that shares exactly why you are so thankful for them and how they’ve enriched your life. Add a picture or two of the family.

REMEMBER –
‘Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.’
-Mother Teresa