What's Cooking: Enjoy the ‘first’ moments in life
By Marilyn Block

It always happens sooner than we think— another school year is about to begin.

Between packing lunches, cooking meals, laundry and homework, quick and easy is music to the ears of any parent.
Take time to celebrate the firsts — first day of school for kindergartners, the first school bus ride, first music lesson, first sports activity, first time to advance to middle school and don’t forget those going off to college for the first year — make these special events special with a special menu.

I must answer requests for two pies in this column, and next week we’ll begin a roundup of recipes using the fruits and veggies so popular during fall.

Low-Fat Mincemeat Pie

1 (9-inch) deep-dish pie shell

1 jar prepared mincemeat

4 medium apples, peeled and diced

1/2 cup orange juice

2 slightly beaten egg whites

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

Combine mincemeat, apples, orange juice, egg whites and sugar; mix well and pour into pie shell.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until very bubbly. Cool and serve.

Low-Fat Sour Cream Raisin Pie

1 (9-inch) baked pastry shell

1 cup skim milk

1 (8-ounce) carton plain yogurt

1 small package sugar-free instant cook-and-serve pudding mix

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1 cup raisins

Whipped topping

In a saucepan, combine milk, yogurt and pudding mix; cook until mixture thickens. Fold in allspice and raisins; mix well and let cool 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour into baked pie shell and chill at least 2 hours before serving.

Top each serving with whipped topping, if desired.

Six-Can Tortilla Soup

1 (15-ounce) can cream-style corn

1 small can chicken broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 (10-ounce) can chicken breast, shredded

1 (15-ounce) can black beans

1 (10-ounce) can tomatoes with diced green chilies, drained

Chili powder (amount is your choice)

Combine all ingredients in a large kettle; heat until heated through and hot but not boiling. Serves 6.

Peach Whirls

3 (20-ounce) cans peach slices with juice

1/2 cup red hot cinnamon candies

1 tablespoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons butter

1 (12-count) refrigerated cinnamon rolls

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Combine peaches, candies, cinnamon, sugar and butter; mix well and pour into 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bake at 400 degress until bubbly and candies are melted. Remove from oven and place rolls over peach mixture. Top with chopped pecans. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until rolls are golden brown and they test done. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream or topping.

Note: I omitted the tablespoon of cinnamon as it was a bit too much for us. Serves 12.

Snack Time Pinwheels

1 (8-ounce) can refrigerated crescent rolls

Shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 to 3/4 cup finely chopped sliced pepperoni

1 egg yolk

1 beaten egg white

Separate rolls into 4 rectangles and seal edges. Combine cheese, pepperoni and egg yolk; mix well and spoon equally between rectangles. Roll up each rectangle and pinch edges to seal well. Slice each roll into 6 slices. Place onto ungreased cookie sheet. Brush top of each with beaten egg white. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm. Makes 24.

Breakfast Or Anytime Doughnut Muffins

1-1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup white sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/3 cup oil

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

Tiny pats of butter

Cinnamon sugar

Sift dry ingredients together into large bowl; set aside. In small bowl, whisk together oil, egg and milk; pour over dry mixture and fold together until well-mixed. Spoon into greased and floured or paper-lined muffin tins. Top each muffin batter with a tiny butter pat. Sprinkle desired amount of cinnamon sugar over each. Bake at 300 degrees for 20 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.

Top Of The Morning Bundt Banana Coffeecake

For the streusel:

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

For the cake:

1 package 2-layer banana-flavor cake mix

1 small package vanilla instant pudding mix

4 eggs

1 cup ripe mashed bananas

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup water

Powdered sugar glaze (if desired)

Combine ingredients for streusel, mix well and set aside.

Combine cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, bananas, oil and water in a large bowl. Beat for 2 minutes. Pour half of batter into greased and floured bundt pan. Sprinkle streusel over batter. Spoon remaining batter over streusel. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 25 minutes. Remove from pan; place on serving plate and drizzle with glaze, if desired.

Hearty Steak Casserole

Flour

Salt and pepper to suit taste

1 pound round steak, cut into bite-size pieces

6 tablespoons oil

2 large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 (8-count) can refrigerated biscuits

Stir flour, salt and pepper to mix well. Toss meat pieces with flour mixture until well-coated. Brown in oil only until lightly browned. Lay half of steak pieces into a buttered casserole dish. Top with half of the potato slices and half of the onion slices. Repeat layers. Stir 2 tablespoons cornstarch into just enough water to cover all ingredients. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour 30 minutes. Turn up heat to 375 degrees and lay biscuits on top of ingredients. Bake until biscuits are browned and done. Serves 4.

Marilyn Block can be reached at news@winonadaily news.com or Winona Daily News, P.O. Box 5147, Winona, MN 55987.

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