Pawtuckets, A Quirky Old Recipe

Hi, Friends,

How are you? I hope you are well. I haven't disappeared into the woods of East Texas.

 I am only blogging when I feel like it these days which is a good feeling but I have missed you all.  

I talked about East Texas in my last post. In that one, I mentioned that I have taken more time to relax when we are out there which has been wonderful. The urge to do everything at once as subsided. I've taken your advice. Thank you for that. 

I still have a list of things to do. however. 

Our kitchen is a joy to use, so on Saturdays I've been trying out new recipes. 

 Before she died, my step mother sent me a box of my mom's old cookbooks. 

"Favorite Recipes of the Red River Valley" was among the volumes. 

I came across a recipe for Pawtuckets while looking for a sweet treat. 

I read the ingredients aloud to Bill and he was intrigued. He was headed to town so he would pick up pecans and baking chocolate before he returned. The pantry out there isn't quite complete. 

Pawtuckets

1/2 cup butter

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 squares chocolate (We assumed she meant unsweetened baking chocolate so that is what we used.)

3/4 cup flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans 

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one a a time Beat well. 

Then add flour which has been sifted with salt and baking powder. ( I never sift.)

Add chocolate which has been melted, vanilla, and pecans. 

Pour in a buttered shallow pan and bake in a moderate oven. 

Cut in strips and roll in powdered sugar. 

I used a 7 by 11 baking dish. A moderate oven is 350° which was something I'd never encountered with a recipe. 

This is more of a brownie than a cookie so I started toothpick checking after 20 minutes. 

They baked in about 25 minutes. 

I didn't cut them into strips but powdered sugar was sprinkled on the top while they were still warm. 

They were delicious. They have a very light chocolate touch which is good with the pecans. 

We decided that they would be really good frosted with a German chocolate cake frosting. 

I tried to find a recipe like this on the internet and there was nothing. If you have every heard of these, let me know. 

We both had no idea where the Red River Valley was. The forward cleared that up for us. 

Once we learned that the Red River Valley is in Louisiana, I realized the cookbook had to have been gifted to my mom from my Aunt Susan. 

The front cover has my mom's and my aunt's handwriting which is so special. 

Cookbooks are a wonderful gift and this one is a treasure. 

My aunt is still alive and she always has tidbits of family history to share with me. 

Recently she told me about a house that my grandfather designed and had built. 

I was able to find the address from my father's draft card which I'd found on Ancestry. 

It sold in 2016 so there were listing photos on the internet.  

Here is the link in case you'd like to see. 

My aunt told me that as they were building the kitchen window wasn't installed according to the blueprint. My grandfather made them take it out and put it in the right place. 

I could absolutely see myself doing the same thing.

 Sadly, I didn't know my grandfather because he died of tuberculosis a decade before I was born. 

If I ever get to Valparaiso, I'll have to drive by to see this house. 

I've been tinkering with our decor. I know spring is still a bit away but I've added a few spring tidbits. 

I'll get some photos to share with you soon. 

Stay well, 

Katie