Uncle Phaedrus, Finder of Lost Recipes (2024)

-----Original Message----- From: KellieSent: Saturday, February 21, 2015 1:08 PMTo: phaedrus@hungrybrowser.comSubject: Rio Bravo restaurant cheese dipI have been searching for the cheese dip served with homemade hot flour tortillas from Rio Bravo Restaurant in Atlanta. The restaurant has been closed for years.Thanks in advance for your help.Kellie 

Hi Kellie,

Do you mean Rio Bravo's popular chile con queso dip? If so, it was published in the Sun Sentinel newspaper. See below and here: Rio Bravo Dips

Phaed

"The Rio Bravo Grill uses processed American cheese in this recipe, but I used a high-quality processed sharp cheddar cheese, available from most supermarket delis."Rio Bravo Grill's Chile Con Queso3/4 pound processed cheddar cheese1/8 cup milk1 tablespoon chopped pickled jalapenos*1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (or regular parsley)2 tablespoons cannedchopped green chiles1/4 cup diced onions1/4 cup diced celery1 clove garlic, mincedPinch white pepper1/3 cup canned diced tomatoesTortilla chips, for dippingCut the cheese into small chunks (about 2-by-2-inches) and place in a medium microwavable serving dish. Add remaining ingredients except for tomatoes and tortilla chips. Microwave cheese mixture on high (100 percent) for 4 to 5 minutes, or until hot and bubbly, stirring twice during cooking. Remove and stir in tomatoes. Serve with tortilla chips. Makes about 3 cups.Per (2-tablespoon) serving: 61 calories, 4 grams protein, 5 grams fat, .72 grams carbohydrates, 15 milligrams cholesterol, 110 milligrams sodium.*Pickled jalapenos are available with ethnic foods in most supermarkets.

From: David Sent: Saturday, February 21, 2015 11:11 PMTo: phaedrus@hungrybrowser.com Subject: "Tomato Blaze" sweet and hot preserves condimentUncle Phaedrus,If this finds you retired, well, Well Done!If it finds you still a'hunting, well, bless us!My aunt Dorothy used to make a sweet and spicy condiment which she canned in small batches and called "Tomato Blaze".I've had no luck finding a recipe in all of Googleland."If google can't find it, how on earth will Uncle Phaedrus?" (fret, stew)Thank you for the hundreds of recipes I've squirreled away from your site (got any good squirrel recipes?) in the vain dream that I will live to try them all.-- David--Live from Goats Roost, WI

Hi David,

I’ll probably be doing this as long until I’m 100 (which is still a long way off.). Keep current with this link: Hungrybrowser

I could not find anything called “tomato blaze”. That may be a creative name for something that’s usually called by a different name. There may be dozens of recipes out there for something that’s the same or very similar to what your aunt made, but just not called “tomato blaze”. There are lots of recipes for sweet & spicy tomato relishes and chutneys. See below for a sampling.

I have a recipe for fried squirrel on the site, and I have other squirrel recipes in my library. These links have some squirrel recipes: Wild Game Recipes

Phaed

Tomato Chutney12 ripe tomatoes, peeled, cored & diced3 onions, chopped3 sweet red peppers, seeded1 sm. hot pepper, chopped1 cucumber, seeded, chopped1 c. raisins1 clove garlic, minced3 c. brown sugar1 tsp. cinnamon1 tbsp. ginger2 tsp. salt Combine, boil then simmer until thick (about 1 1/2 to 2 hours). Process 10 minutes in boiling water bath canner.----------------------------------------------------------Zippy Tomato Relish12 ripe tomatoes, chopped lg.2 lg. onions, chopped lg.2 bell peppers, chopped lg.2 c. hot peppers*, chopped lg.2 c. vinegar2 c. sugar*2 tbsp. salt*Mix all ingredients and simmer about 2 hours. This is very hot. Wear gloves when slicing peppers and use less if you don't like hot stuff! *Peppers: 1/2 cup is plenty for those who do not like it too hot; 1 cup for medium heat. *Sugar: 2 cups is really sweet; 1 cup is sufficient. *Salt: Or use 1 tablespoon for those on low salt. -------------------------------------------Tomato Relish1 gal. tomatoes, chopped4 med. onions4 to 6 hot peppers2 c. sugar2 c. vinegar1 tbsp. saltCook until done or thick. ================================================Phaed,Go, go, Inspector Phaedrus!Thanks much. (I think, I and other people, should add the regional information for the recipes, although of course they could easily have been clipped from a national magazine. In my case, I encountered tomato blaze in Southern Indiana--WHERE btw, I still visit, and knowing now that you are in the dark as well, feel it's my bounden duty to inquire among the locals for it. I'll be in touch. Unless I forget. I too am no spring schicken.--David

-----Original Message----- From: CoreyAnneSent: Sunday, February 22, 2015 1:31 PMTo: phaedrus@hungrybrowser.comSubject: Looking for lost recipeI'm trying to find the recipe for Gina's Chicken Breasts (I think this is the correct name). It was one of the recipes in the Great American Recipes card collection. In on-line search results I see them also called McCall's Great American Recipe Cards. I had a subscription to the recipe cards in the early to mid 90's. The recipe included chicken breasts, artichoke hearts, ricotta cheese, and almonds. I don't remember if it was part of the recipe or my own modifications, but I used to put onion, Parmesan cheese, and chicken broth in it as well. The dish was partially cooked on the stove (chicken breasts and onion) then put in a casserole dish and baked in the oven. It was one of my husband's favorites, but I can't find the recipe card. I have continued to make it from memory, but I'd like to get the original recipe, as my recollection gets fuzzier every year. I hope you can find the recipe! I've tried searching for it on line number of times over the years and have never been able to track it down.Thanks!CoreyAnne PA

Hello CoreyAnne,

At least three different sets of McCall's Great American Recipe Cards have been published. We have one set, and there is nothing like your description in it. Searching the web and our other sources, I did not find any recipe with chicken breasts, artichoke hearts, ricotta cheese, and almonds, without even considering the onion, Parmesan cheese, and chicken broth. I found nothing like that under any name.

All I can do is put this request on my site in the hopes that one of my readers has the other sets of Great American Recipe Cards and will check to see if this recipe is in them.

Phaed