Gigi Long

Gigi Long of Vardaman would “pass up a bowl of spaghetti for a piece of cake any day.” Desserts are her favorite. She cooks a lot of sweets and tries new ones, because she likes to experiment with new recipes.

She cooks lunch every Sunday and most of the time the family is o.k. with new stuff as long as it’s not too “off the wall”. She enjoys cooking and has always done a lot of it. “I got the kitchen,” she commented about her being the one who helped her mother, the late Virginia Edington,  in the kitchen the most, and the first thing she learned to make was refrigerated sugar cookies at 4-H.

She has her mother’s dressing recipe, who wrote on it, “Hope this works for you. You will probably get your touch to it and make it better.” Gigi was elected to make the dressing after her mother passed away, and they have it for all the holidays.

For Easter breakfast at the church she always fixes chocolate gravy, and also makes it for their family breakfasts or when they have supper for breakfast. She likes to make cheesecake, a favorite of granddaughter, Lauren, and was shocked that her first one turned out. She has tried some different kinds since then, and Bro. Jeff Harmon is her cheesecake “guinea pig.”

All her family loves Sweet Potato Crunch, a recipe from Bell’s Best, and they do eat a lot of sweet potatoes. Grandson Oakley loves sweet potato pie and she usually keeps them made and in the freezer. Her biggest flop can’t be explained but grandson Hayden wanted sourdough rolls and even using someone else’s starter, they don’t do for her. “They are a flat as a pancake!” she said.

Gigi loves to cook at Christmas, and she and daughters, Nicole Long and Tiana Alexander, make candy and “have the most fun.”

They try new ones each year, but they keep on making their favorites also. Her mother always made unbaked fruit cake at Christmas when they were growing up, and her daddy used to always make a brunswick stew on their “woodcutting day” when all five kids were there together working. Gigi has continued part of that tradition with a family stew in October.

Fresh Apple Salad
1-20 oz. can crushed pineapple with juice
1/2 cup flour plain
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. butter
4 Granny Smith apples, cut in bite-size
8 oz. Cool Whip
Chopped nuts
Mix first four ingredients and cook until thickened. Remove from heat. Add butter, let cool. Mix in apples. Pour in dish. Top with Cool Whip and sprinkle into on top. Chill.

Chicken Dressing
Virginia Edington
1 family pack leg quarters or thighs, cook and take off the bone
1 large pan cornbread, crumbled
4 slices stale loaf bread
10 eggs (3 of them boiled)
Large onion
Poultry seasoning
2/3 cup milk
Crumble cornbread and loaf bread in large baking dish. Sprinkle with black pepper and poultry seasoning until top is covered good. Add chopped up eggs. Take broth and boil onion until clear, and pour over bread. Beat seven eggs in milk and pour over bread, then fold over. Do not stir, just fold over. Let stand at least 2-3 hours. Bake on 450° until done.

Unbaked Fruit Cake
Virginia Edington
1 lb. box graham crackers, crushed
1 lb. box vanilla wafers, crushed
2 bottles candied cherries (one red, one green)
2 cups coconut
2 cups mini marshmallow
1 cup chopped pecans
2 cans Eagle Brand milk
(To candy cherries, add 2/3 cup sugar and cook on low until thick. Save juice, you may need it if cake is dry.) Mix all ingredients. Let stand covered with damp cloth about 30 minutes. Roll in bars or put in loaf pan. (If you make it in balls you need to keep dough covered until you get it all rolled out.)

Pimento Cheese
1 lb. Velveeta Cheese (cube in small pieces)
1/3 cup milk
Cube cheese and mix with milk on low heat. Mix 3 Tbsp. sugar, 2 Tbsp. vinegar, 1 egg. Stir together with cheese mixture. Add pimento (juice and all). Cook on low heat, stirring constantly for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and add one cup of mayo. Mix well. Will keep in fridge up to three weeks.

Our Best Cheesecake
1 3/4 cups Honeymaid Graham Cracker crumbs
1/3 cup margarine or butter, melted
1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
3 pkg. (8 oz. each) Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
2 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs
1 cup Breakstone’s or Knudsen sour cream
1 can (21 oz.) cherry pie filling (optional)
Mix crumbs, margarine and 1/4 cup sugar in bowl. Press on bottom and 2 1/2” up side of 8 or 9” springform pan. Set aside. Beat cream cheese, remaining sugar and vanilla in bowl with electric mixer on high until creamy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Blend in sour cream. Spread in prepared crust. Bake at 350° for 60-70 minutes or until center is set. Turn off oven. Leaving door slightly ajar, leave cheesecake in oven one hour. Remove from oven; cool completely. Refrigerate four hours or overnight. Remove side of pan; top with cherry pie filling.

Sweet Potato Crunch
Crust:
2 cups flour
1 cup chopped pecans
2 sticks margarine
Preheat oven to 350°. Melt margarine and mix. Pat in 9×13 pan. Bake until light brown.
Filling:
3 medium size sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed with:
3 Tbsp. margarine
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. almond extract
Cool filling. Spread filling evenly over crust.
Topping:
1 box confectioners sugar
1-8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1-8 oz. whipped topping
Mix all ingredients together and spoon or spread over potato mixture. Refrigerate.

Chocolate Gravy
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk
3 Tbsp. cocoa
3 Tbsp. flour
Mix and cook in microwave until thick.
Meal-In-One
Virginia Edington
1 lb. ground beef
Sprinkle of nutmeg
1 tsp. salt
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp. salt
1 can English peas (half drained)
5 potatoes (sliced)
1 can tomato juice
Combine beef, nutmeg, salt, milk, onions, bread crumbs and roll in balls. Melt 3 Tbsp. butter and brown meat with onions. Put potatoes over meat and onion, sprinkle 1 tsp. salt over potatoes, add tomato juice. Cover and cook 15 minutes on 250°, add peas, and cook 10 more minutes.

Christmas Cheese Wreath
2-8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 lb. sharp cheddar cheese
2 tsp. grated onion
2 tsp. Worcestershire
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. mustard
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. salt
1-2 1/4 oz. can deviled ham
2 Tbsp. parsley flakes
2 Tbsp. pimento
2/3 cup chopped pecans
Combine ingredients and press into small tube mold. Double recipe for large tube cake pan. Remove from cake and cover with parsley flakes and sliced pimento or sliced stuffed olives.