Jennifer Cain

“When I get a three-layer cake to balance and not fall apart, I feel like I’ve accomplished something,” said Jennifer Liles Cain of Bruce.

She has a sweet tooth and makes desserts for get togethers a lot, usually once a month for somebody’s birthday, for which she might make apple cake or pecan pie. The pie is a favorite of her husband, Jason’s grandmother, Inez Murphree, and uncle, Doug Murphree.

She says the apple cake recipe is as close to mother-in-law Betty Crawford’s as she can get without giving away a family secret. Jennifer always sat on the cabinet when she was little and watched her mother Donna Liles cook, and chocolate chip cookies were probably the first thing she ever baked.
Jennifer is not a meal planner or one to recipe search, she just takes what she’s got and “throws something together.”

She has always gotten cooking information from her mother, who is not precise in measuring, and puts “a little of this and a little of that,” in a dish.
“I’m bad about improvising, too” Jennifer said, and we like to “add a little spice–some red pepper or jalapeno.”

The spicy chicken and dressing, a “Donna Liles concoction” is something she describes as a little different. Jennifer thinks this recipe creating came from her grandmother, Margaret Callahan.

Lucille Morris used to bring the hominy casserole for church dinners year ago and it is a favorite of Jennifer’s. It’s a dish, along with the dressing, that she likes to take to events.

Her favorite cookbooks are an old Bell’s, an old Methodist Women’s and Baptist Women’s, and a box of her mother’s recipes. Jennifer has tried to master “throw biscuits” and spent hours with Inez trying to make them, but says she can’t and has now gone to the frozen ones.

She also commented that she can’t make meringue, and has not yet perfected her mother’s fried chicken.

Her big kitchen is a gathering spot for the family–Jensyn, 8, likes to stir and lick the bowl; Julianna, 14, likes to cook, but Jordan, 17, just likes to eat.
She and Jason have a small garden, and she enjoys canning green beans, tomatoes, salsa and pear preserves.

Hominy Casserole
1 lb. sausage
2 cans yellow hominy, drained
1 medium chopped onion
1 can of Rotel
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pkg. shredded cheddar cheese
Brown and crumble sausage. Drain off grease. Saute onion with sausage. Add hominy, Rotel and cream of chicken soup.?Stir in half package of cheddar cheese. Pour in small casserole dish and top with remaining cheese. Bake until cheese melts and bubbles at 350°.

Spicy Chicken and Dressing
4 cooked chicken breasts
2 cans of chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 medium onion and 1 cup chopped celery sauteed in butter
2 sticks butter
1 pan cooked cornbread
3 eggs
1/2 cup jalapenos sliced
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
Red pepper to taste
Crumble cornbread into large bowl. Add garlic salt and pepper to taste. Stir in beaten eggs, broth, sauteed onions and peppers, jalapenos, cheese. Melt butter in casserole dish or Dutch oven and pour in mixture. Bake until golden brown at 350°.

Fresh Apple Cake
3 cups chopped Granny Smith apples
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups cooking oil
2 cups flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans
2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Beat eggs and slowly add oil and sugar. Add flour and cinnamon to egg mixture. Mix thoroughly. Add vanilla, apples and pecans and mix well. Pour cake batter evenly into three greased/floured cake pans. Bake at 350° for approximately 45 minutes. Completely cool layers and add frosting.
Frosting:
1 stick butter
1 box powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups toasted and chopped pecans
1-8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 tsp. vanilla
Allow butter and cream cheese to soften at room temperature. Mix together and slowly add sugar and vanilla. Add toasted pecans. Mix well and spread on each layer and sides of stacked cakes.

Pecan Pie
1 uncooked pie crust
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup Karo medium pancake syrup, green label
3 eggs, well beaten
1 stick of butter, melted
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
Mix together sugar and eggs. Add Karo, vanilla, butter and pecans. Stir well and pour into unbaked pie crust. Bake at 325° for about 45 minutes until the center is set.