Even though Leslie Dabney, aka The Vineyard Mom, lives in wine country in California, she says these traditional "Utah" recipes can be enjoyed by anyone.
Leslie joined us with her take on these Pioneer Day favorites!
Cheesy Funeral Potato Casserole
20 oz. frozen hash browns, slightly defrosted
2 cups of Monterey Jack or Mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 10.5 oz. can of cream of chicken soup
8 tbsp of melted butter
2 cups of corn flakes
1 cup of fried onions
1/2 tbsp salt
1 tsp pepper
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Butter an 11x7 baking dish.
In a large bowl combine hash browns, sour cream, cream of chicken soup, dried onions, 6 tablespoons of melted butter, salt, pepper and cheese.
Mix well.
Place mixture into the buttered baking dish.
Gently crush corn flakes.
Add 2 tablespoons of melted butter to the corn flakes and mix to combine.
Sprinkle the buttered corn flakes on top of the casserole.
Bake for 45-50 minutes until bubbly and browned.
Wait 10 minutes before serving.
Utah Scones
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 1/3 cup white all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp white granulated sugar
1/2 tsp instant or active dry yeast
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 cup warm whole milk
1 tbsp vegetable oil + more for frying
The Dough:
Melt butter in the microwave. Let the butter cool to room temperature. It's important that it's not too hot. Microwave milk until it is just warm. Make sure it is not hot.
Mix together the butter and the milk and set aside.
In a large bowl, add flour, sugar, baking powder, yeast and salt. Whisk to combine.
Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together.
Dough should be rough and fairly sticky, but not too sticky that you can't work with it.
Lightly flour your hands and knead the dough a few times to shape it into a ball being careful not to overwork or over handle the dough.
In the same bowl you used for mixing, drizzle a tablespoon of oil in the bowl. Rub the oil on the bottom of the bowl and partially up the sides. Add the dough back to the bowl and turn the dough in the bowl to coat it in the oil.
Cover the bowl with a clean, damp kitchen towel and let rest for 15-20 minutes.
The dough will not rise. This is just to relax the gluten.
Forming:
Add 1 inch of oil to a large cast iron pan and heat to 350 degrees. Divide the rested dough into 8 equal portions.
Cut the dough in half and then half again. You will get 4 equal triangle pieces.
Cut each triangle piece into 2 pieces. You will have 8 triangles all together.
Lightly flour your hands and work with 1 piece of the dough at a time.
Hold the dough with your hands and gently work the dough into a circle pressing it out with your fingers. DO NOT roll it out using a rolling pin!
The dough piece should make a 5-6 inch circle. The dough will look rustic which is what you want. The thinner the piece of dough, the better. Make sure not to rip it.
Frying:
Gently drop one piece of dough at a time in the fully heated oil. Fry for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until a deep golden brown.
Flip the dough using tongs or 2 forks halfway in between.
Use tongs or a slotted spoon to remove dough from the oil and put the dough onto a paper towel lined plate. Repeat with the remaining dough pieces.
Topping:
Top with cinnamon and sugar, butter, honey butter, jam, syrup, fresh berries or powdered sugar.
Best enjoyed when they are hot.
Recipes courtesy of: Leslie Dabney, The Vineyard Mom @thevineyardmomliving on Instagram.
