TODAY's CASES:

• Monterey Jack's Cheese Chowder
• Maultaschen mit Ei
• Swedish Egg Dish

Monterey Jack's Cheese Chowder -----Original Message----- From: Chad Sent: Friday, March 13, 2015 1:04 AM To: phaedrus@hungrybrowser.com Subject: Monterey Jack's Cheese Chowder As a kid, Chip and Dales Rescue Rangers was a favorite cartoon show of mine with Monterey Jack being the best character. There is a episode entitled Short Order Crooks in which Monty makes his famous Cheese Chowder Soup that everyone loves. Ever since then I have tried many times to create/find a Cheese Chowder like the one portrayed, but have failed miserably each time. Such attempts have been just melting cheese with milk/cream until smooth, and trying similar recipes like broccoli/potato cheese soups minus the vegetables. Nothing seems to work so far and after seeing your page of finding lost/unique recipes, I wonder if you have ever seen/heard of any such Chowder? Best Regards, Chad Hello Chad, My initial searches, for "Monterey Jack's Cheese Chowder recipe" and "Chip n Dale's Cheese Chowder recipe" came up empty-handed. I did find a lot of items about that "Short Order Crooks" episode of "Chip n Dale's Rescue Rangers." In some of that material, I found that the chowder is called "Cheddarhead Charlie's Cheese Chowder." However a search using that name was also a dead end. I read that, at then end of the episode, the recipe is found nailed to the door in the diner. So, I found the Chip N Dale's Rescue Rangers cartoon "Short Order Crooks" on Youtube and watched it, hoping that the recipe nailed to the door might be readable, or that there might be clues to the chowder's ingredients elsewhere in the cartoon. No such luck. We therefore have to drop any unwarranted assumptions and proceed from a different angle. We cannot assume that there is, or has ever been, an actual recipe called "Cheddarhead Charlie's Cheese Chowder" or "Monterey Jack's Cheese Chowder." We cannot assume that the cartoonists or writers had an actual recipe in mind when they wrote the episode. There is no evidence of that. There is a slim possibility that one of the writers had a recipe in mind when (s)he wrote the script for the cartoon - possibly his or her mother made a cheese chowder, or perhaps the writer's favorite restaurant served a cheese chowder - but we don't know and have little or no way to find out. We cannot assume anything about the ingredients except: a) The chowder contains cheese, probably cheddar due to one of it's names, although there is a slight possibility that Monterey Jack would have used his namesake cheese in his chowder - Monterey Jack Cheese. b) The chowder probably contains potatoes and milk, since potatoes and milk are generally what makes a chowder different from a soup. Chowders often contain seafood, but not always, as in the case of corn chowder. Chowders often contain a bit of bacon or ham for flavor, but since these are herbivorous mice and chipmunks and the like, they might make a vegetarian chowder. With the popularity of this cartoon, I'm a bit surprised that someone hasn't created their own version of "Cheddarhead Charlie's Cheese Chowder" or "Monterey Jack's Cheese Chowder" for their own children and then posted the recipe on the Internet. There are dozens of "cheese chowder" recipes and "cheddar cheese chowder" recipes on the Internet. Since we have no clue as to the ingredients in the cartoon chowder other than cheese, milk, and potatoes, then one of these will have to suffice. You'll have to try them. See the recipes at these links and below for examples. My Recipes Recreating Happiness Corn & cheese chowder with Monterey jack cheese Cheesy Vegetable Chowder Phaed Potato Cheese Chowder (from "Pig Out" cookbook) Can do ahead; cannot be frozen Quantity: 4 - 6 servings 1/2 cup potatoes, pared and diced 2 chicken bouillon cubes 2 TBSP butter 1/4 cup green pepper, diced 2 TBSP flour 1 tsp salt 1/8 tsp pepper 2 cups milk 1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese Parsley, finely chopped 1. Simmer potatoes in 2 cups boiling water until tender. 2. Drain potatoes, reserving 1 1/2 cups liquid. Add bouillon cubes and dissolve. 3. Melt butter in same saucepan. Saute green pepper. 4. Remove from heat. Stir in flour, salt, pepper. Gradually stir in potato liquid and milk. 5. Bring to boiling and simmer 2 minutes. 6. Remove. Add cheese and potatoes. Stir until melted. Sprinkle with parsley. ---------------------------------------------- Cheddar Cheese Chowder 2 c. boiling water 2 c. cubed potatoes 1/2 c. carrot slices 1/2 c. celery slices 1/4 c. chopped onion Salt and pepper to taste 1/4 c. butter 1/4 c. flour 2 c. milk (or 1 c. milk and 1 c. light cream) 2 c. sharp Cheddar cheese, cubed (about 3/4 lb.) 1 c. ham cubes Simmer vegetables and seasonings in water, in covered pan for 10 minutes. Do not drain. In a saucepan melt butter, stir in flour and cook stirring constantly until a paste forms. Boil for 1 minute. Whisk in milk. Stir until thick and bubbly. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add ham, vegetable and broth to cream mixture. Heat until hot. Do not boil. ------------------------- Amish Cheddar Chowder 2 cups water 2 cups diced potatoes 1/2 cup diced carrots 1/2 cup diced celery 1/4 cup chopped onion 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon black pepper Combine all ingredients in a large kettle. Boil 10 to 12 minutes. Meanwhile make white sauce. Stir sauce into undrained vegetable mixture. Heat throughout. White Sauce 1/4 cup butter 1/4 cup flour 2 cups milk 2 cups cheddar cheese,grated 1 cup cubed ham or fried bacon crumbs In a small saucepan melt the butter. Add flour and stir until smooth (about 1 minute). Slowly add milk while stirring. Cook until thickened. Add grated cheese and stir until melted. Toss in ham or bacon. Maultaschen mit Ei From: Barbara Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 12:57 PM To: phaedrus@hungrybrowser.com Subject: Schwabsiche Maulthausen mit Ei Hello, Phaed, I wonder if you’ve come across this German recipe in your ‘studies’. Although I have visited Bavaria a couple of times, I never heard of this and recently came across a conversation about it. It sounds good and I hope you have/can find something about it. “It's a wonderful Bavarian, actually Schwabian, large ravioli that is traditionally cut into strips, then fried with onions, bacon, and other likable add-ins depending on your preference. Slightly beaten eggs (Ei) are then gently added and stirred. The skillet is allowed to sit on the fire, while the eggs firm up a bit.” Hello Barbara, Spelling is very important, particularly when searching for a recipe in a language different from your own. The only “Maulthausen” is a town in Austria known for being the location of a German concentration camp during World War Two. Fortunately, I was able to locate what appears to be the original of your quote here: Community.qvc There, I find two other spellings: “maultachen” and “maultaschen”. “Maultaschen” appears to be the preferred spelling. “Maultaschen mit ei” means “fried dumplings (or ravioli) with eggs.” There are articles about and recipes for maultaschen on these sites: Maultasche Germany.info Making Maultaschen Maultaschen - Swabian Pockets There is a lot of variation in the fillings and added ingredients. The ravioli may be made from scratch or bought ready-to-use. There is a translated recipe for “Maultaschen mit ei” here: Maultaschen mit Ei Phaed Swedish Egg Dish From: Bob Sent: Saturday, March 14, 2015 11:04 AM To: phaedrus@hungrybrowser.com Subject: Request your help I grew up on a farm in central MN in the 50's/60's. I am looking for a recipe that I believe is Swedish and we called it "eggida" (phonetically). I do not know the correct spelling. I am 100% Swedish so I believe it was a Swedish recipe. It was a scrambled egg dish base with something extra added. I haven't given you much information. I hope you can help. Thanks Bob Hi Bob, As you say, that’s not much information. Swedish for “scrambled eggs” is “Äggröra”. The Swedes add lots of different things to their egg dishes just as we do, so not knowing what that “something extra” is makes it very difficult to determine what your dish is. I looked though a lot of Swedish dishes and a lot of Minnesota dishes, but there was nothing forthcoming. There are simple Swedish scrambled eggs dishes on these pages, and a couple of others below. Swedish Country Style Scrambled Eggs Swedish Simple Scrambled Eggs (Enkel Äggröra) Phaed Swedish Scrambled Eggs 4 eggs 4 ounces cream cheese, cut into small chunks 1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely chopped (or can use 1 1/2 teaspoons dried dill) 1 dash garlic powder salt and pepper Directions: Whisk together the eggs until they are light yellow and frothy. Add the chunks of cream cheese, the dill and the garlic powder to the eggs and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper as desired. Spray a medium-sized skillet with non-stick cooking spray, and heat over high heat until the fat begins to sizzle. Pour the egg mixture into the pan and reduce heat slightly. Stir eggs gently to scramble until they reach the desired consistency. Serve immediately. ---------------------------------------------------------- Cheese Souffle (“Ostsuffle” in Swedish) 2 tbsp. butter 3 tbsp. flour 1 c. milk 1 c. grated cheese 3 egg yolks 5 egg whites Salt, pepper Melt butter. Stir in flour and gradually, milk. Simmer until thick, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes. Beat egg yolks and stir into sauce. Blend in cheese. Season to taste. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into batter. Pour batter into buttered baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake in slow oven, 325 degrees, until set, about 50 minutes. Serve immediately from baking dish. 4 servings.