Jacobson's Recipes

The Dearborn Store

I got a little nostalgic about Jacobson's the other day. Jacobson's was a Michigan based department store that went bankrupt in the early 2000s.    When I was a new engineer at Ford and working and living in Dearborn, my hair salon was in the Dearborn store right on Michigan Ave.  When we first got married, we were living there.   I got my hair done there for my wedding by a very talented young man that they kept on staff there that only did wedding hair.   He asked me how I wanted it done, and I admitted I had no idea.  He grasped my hair in his hands and held it up and declared, "Two words.  Steel Magnolias!!" and then flounced back to the stylist's break room. On that Saturday, he arrived after my own stylist set my hair and combed me out and he welded it into place with a lot of bobby pins and hairspray.   I still can remember my brother saying to me, "Your hair looks great!  You should wear it like this every day!" and I replied that it took 3 hours to get it this way, no thanks! I had already had my nails done there earlier in the week.  It was the one and only time in my life that I have ever had my nails done.  Jacobson's also had an aesthetician that put on my makeup.   I had a favorite pink Clinique lipstick I had her use.   Wish I could remember the name of the color!  We young gals all loved Clinique in those days, circa 1992. 

  

Two words: Steel Magnolias

The Dearborn Jacobson's had a restaurant there called "Top of the Fountain" where ladies would lunch. Department stores often had these places where the shopping crowd could rest and take in a light lunch and tea, or perhaps a dessert.  For example. check out what I wrote about the famous Maurice Salad that was served at Hudson's.   West Dearborn was a very preppy, affluent area and we had all sorts of fancy shopping, including a Pendleton store and Crowley's and, of course, "Jake's", as we used to call it. 

The Dearborn store closed in 1997.   By that time, I had moved to Ann Arbor and we had our own Jacobson's in Briarwood Mall.  Before that,  I can remember the original store when it was in downtown Ann Arbor, which became eventually became Borders after they moved off State Street.  Now, I think it's largely office space and restaurants.  I think the A2 store folded in 2002, but before it did, I used to shop there for wedding and shower gifts because they would gift wrap them with their signature red ribbon and silver box and ship for free.  So classy!   When I was going to Michigan for my MBA, I can remember standing in line behind this very famous professor at the B-school,  and his very young looking attractive ladyfriend and/or trophy wife.   It was Christmas time, and there were 3 decorated trees full of lovely ornaments for sale next to the cash register area, probably placed there to stimulate an impulse buy.  The beautiful blond patted her old man on his arm and declared "Let's get this for the house!" and the cashier asked which ornament she would like, and she replied "I want all three of these trees for our foyer!".  And just like that, the cashier replied, "Absolutely! What is your address?   We will put this on your account".  That's the kind of store Jacobson's was.   Great customer service!

I got a book out of the library about its history, and it included several recipes from their store restaurants, so I wanted to share them.   I can remember enjoying the garden sandwich and the quiche.   What was your favorite? 

JACOBSON'S CASHEW CHICKEN SALAD

1 pound cooked chicken 
1/4 cup diced celery
1/4 cup chopped green onion 
2 tablespoons raisins 
1/4 cup cashew pieces

Dressing

2 tablespoons mango chutney
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon curry powder

Combine chicken, celery, chopped green onion, raisins and cashews. Purée mango chutney and add to mayonnaise. Season with curry powder. Combine with chicken mixture and allow to cool in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving.

JACOBSON'S CHEESE SOUP

1/2 cup diced carrot
1/2 cup diced celery
¼ teaspoon white pepper
1 stick butter
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour 
6 c water
6 teaspoons chicken base
1 pound American cheese, cut in cubes
1/2 cup half and half, warmed
Cayenne pepper to taste

Sauté carrot, celery and white pepper in 1/4 stick of butter in a frying pan. Remove carrot and celery and set aside. Melt 3/4 stick of butter. Over heat, whisk flour into butter to form a roux. Set aside.

Boil water in a large stock pot. Add chicken base and sautéed vegetables. Bring to a boil; simmer for 10 minutes. Slowly add cheese cubes, whisking until melted. When cheese is melted, whisk in roux in small batches, adding slowly to avoid lumps. Allow soup to cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until thickened. Remove from heat and add heated half and half. Season with cayenne pepper, if desired. Makes about four servings.

JACOBSON'S MING DYNASTY CASSEROLE

1 can sliced water chestnuts, chopped
1 can chow mein noodles
1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 cup diced celery
I can chunk-style tuna, drained 

1/4 pound cashew pieces
1/4 cup onion, minced 

Pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients, holding 1/4 cup noodles for the top. Spoon into a greased casserole dish and sprinkle reserved noodles over top. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes.

JACOBSON'S HUNGARIAN MUSHROOM SOUP

1/4 pound butter
4 medium onions, sliced thinly
2 1/2 pounds fresh white mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

1 tablespoon dill weed 
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
4 mushroom bouillon cubes
12 cups water
3/4 cup warm water 

1/2 cup flour
1 12-ounce container sour cream, thinned with milk

Melt butter in the bottom of a large stockpot. Add onions, mushrooms, th weed and paprika. Sauté until the onions are translucent. Dissolve mushroom bullion in water and add to sautéed mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer 30 minutes. Mix warm water and flour into a thin paste. Return soup to a boil, add flour paste in a thin stream and simmer for 10 to 15 miles until thickened. Remove from heat. Temper sour cream and milk mixture by slowly adding a ladle of soup to the cream. Slowly mix sour cream into the soup and serve. Do not boil when reheating.

JACOBSON'S GARDEN SANDWICH

2 green onions
4 medium-size fresh white mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon butter
I small package frozen spinach, thawed and chopped 
Lemon juice and pepper to taste
4 slices each medium cheddar cheese, provolone and Swiss 
8 slices light rye bread

Lightly sauté onions and mushrooms in butter. Add thawed spinach and heat through. Season with lemon juice and pepper. Assemble sandwiches starting with provolone and cheddar cheeses. Spread a layer of spinach mixture of top of cheese and top with Swiss. Grill sandwiches as for grilled cheese or heat in sandwich press.

JACOBSON'S QUICHE LORRAINE

6 large eggs
½ cup half and half, mixed with 1/2 cup 2 percent milk
1½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
12 cup shredded Swiss (Emmental) cheese
1 large pie shell
1/2 teaspoon dry basil
Paprika
Nutmeg

Beat eggs slightly. Add half and half and milk and beat again. Place shredded cheese into pie shell. Add basil to eggs and milk and pour over cheese in the pie shell. Dust the top of the pie shell with paprika and nutmeg. Place quiche on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes. Quiche is done when a knife poked into the center comes out clean.Let cool for 10 minutes and cut into 8 slices.

JACOBSON'S FISHERMAN'S SALAD

Salad Mixture

3/4 pound deli imitation crab sticks, shredded (or use cooked lump crabmeat)
½ cup diced celery

½ cup chopped green onion
2 tablespoons toasted sliced almonds 

1/4 teaspoon dill weed

Dressing

½ cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup milk
1½ teaspoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Whisk all items together and cool in refrigerator for at least 1 hour

Assembly

4 large leaves head lettuce, shredded into 1/4-inch shreds
2 vine tomatoes, quartered into wedges 2 hard-boiled eggs, quartered into wedges
12 pitted Kalamata olives

Combine crab sticks, celery, onion, almonds and dill weed with dressing, reserving some dressing for final presentation.

Line bowls with lettuce strips. Place a scoop of seafood mixture on lettuce in each bowl.Place a tomato wedge at 12 and 6 o'clock near the rim of the bowl. Place an egg wedge at 3 and 9 o'clock near the rim of the bowl. Place 3 olives on top center of salad scoop to decorate. Serve with additional dressing on the side.

Strawberry Chiffon Pie

As usual this time of year, I am up to my eyeballs in delicious Copper County Strawberries.   I prefer  to get my berries from Crane Berry Farm in Chassell.  They are the best.    Jane is up visiting, and she requested a strawberry pie.  I had recently checked out Kate Lebo's Pie School cookbook from the library and came upon her recipe for strawberry chiffon pie that she said was inspired by the strawberry chiffon pie recipe in Farm Journal's Complete Pie Cookbook, which is one I don't have in my arsenal of Farm Journal cookbooks.   I need to write a blog post about my FJ collection.   This pie came out fantastic!  I decided to try a new tip I read about using instant pudding to stabilize whip cream, and it really works  I just looked at the piece of pie I still have left that I made days ago and the cream is still perky!

I took this pie to our friends Steve and Lisa's beautiful place in Eagle River for the 4th of July, and it was a hit.  We got some rain later in the day on the 4th up north, but I understand it was a big storm in Houghton/Hancock.   From the looks of the water on our deck here just north of McLain, it was pretty heavy here as well.  

Vanilla Cookie Crumb Crust

2 c. crushed vanilla wafer crumbs
pinch of salt
6 T. butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 F. Pulse cookies in food processor until fine - it was almost a whole box of mini Nilla wafers. In a medium bowl, melt 6 T. butter in the microwave.   Add crumbs and and salt and mix with a fork to combine.  Press into a 9 inch pie plate.   Bake for 10 minutes until it is slightly fragrant.   Allow to cool before filling 

Filling

2 cups (1 pint) fresh strawberries, trimmed and quartered
3⁄4 cup sugar, divided
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1⁄4 cup cold water
1⁄2 cup hot water
4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1⁄2 cup chilled heavy cream
2 egg whites

In a medium bowl, crush the strawberries with your hands or a fork.  Mix the berries with 1⁄2 cup of the sugar and let them sit for 30 minutes.  Pour the gelatin into a small bowl, pour the cold water over it, and stir to soften it.  Then stir it into the hot water until dissolved. Add the gelatin to the crushed berries, along with the lemon juice and salt. Refrigerate the mixture. Briefly stir the mixture every 5 minutes while chilling to catch it at just the right setting stage—the mixture will lump softly when you drop it from the spoon back into the bowl.  This takes about a half hour.

Beat the chilled cream on high until it forms stiff  peaks. Fold the whipped cream into the strawberry mixture.  Whip the egg whites with an electric beater on high until they hold soft peaks, then gradually add the remaining 1⁄4 cup sugar as you beat the whites into stiff , glossy peaks. Fold the meringue into the strawberry mixture.

Pour the filling into the crust and smooth it into a mound with a spatula or spoon. Chill until completely set, about 2 to 3 hours. 

Stabilized Whipped Cream

1/2 T. instant vanilla pudding mix

1 t. powdered sugar

1/2 c. heavy cream 

A pinch of kosher salt

¼ tsp. vanilla extract

Whip cream with sugar and pudding mix until it forms stiff peaks.  Stir in salt and vanilla.  

To garnish the pie, I used a Wilton  2D tip and then used some sliced strawberries. 

Serve chilled. Store leftovers covered in the fridge.  I like to use my vintage tupperware pie carrier, mine looks like this:

If you want to buy one, this seller on etsy has it.  It's a great way to bring pie with you to a potluck!  I need to make more pies.  I think this is the first one I have made this whole year.