My Favorite Recipes - Meet Carleen Bennett, Farmington

Carleen Bennett, who was born in Colfax and grew up in Farmington, has made the large circle back home. After graduating from Oakesdale High School, she started training in airline school, but dropped out after being hired as a baby photographer. Pixie Pinup studios were located in J. C. Penney stores, and she traveled a territory of seven western states. This was “a glimpse of my future being a gypsy,” she noted.

In 1975, she opened B Bar C, a western wear shop in Colfax. She had three children, Julie Niehenke, Christie Spangler and Bill Green. During that time, she also owned Talk of the Town, a ladies’ boutique.

Carleen departed Colfax in 1990, bought a small farm in Union, Ore., and leased out the cattle range land. She and her husband spent almost nine years farming with draft horses, raising alfalfa, grain and five acres of market garden. There was no tractor and no rototiller!

They sold produce from the market garden from their home, at a farmers’ market in LaGrande, and to larger markets in Walla Walla. They also operated a bed and breakfast in their home, did farm tours with school children, and had rides in the fall through their pumpkin patch. The custom saddle shop on the place was run by her husband.

Her big entry into cooking for a crowd came in 1998, when she leased the cafe at Intermountain Livestock Auction in LaGrande. She learned that she loved the food service business. She had already helped a sister-in-law open a pizza shop.

The next adventure occurred when they bought a cattle ranch on the banks of the Walla Walla River at Milton-Freewater. It was amazing, beautiful, rugged country.

“You certainly didn’t use a four-wheeler to gather cattle there!” In 2002, they sold the ranch and started working for other ranchers in Wyoming and Idaho.

Jordan Valley, Ore., was the site of their next home, where they lived part-time and operated a custom saddle shop and custom furniture shop. They still worked seasonally on Wyoming cattle ranches.

After divorcing, she decided to return to her roots in Farmington, but Carleen kept her summer job at the Snake River Ranch, Jackson Hole, Wyo. Snake River Ranch is a large working ranch and the largest deeded ranch in the area. The owners, the Resor family, are now in the fifth generation. Four thousand head of steers are pastured each summer. Those owned by other ranchers go on to be fattened, but some of the steers are finished on grass and sold as grass-fed beef.

Several other businesses are on the ranch—a 500-acre golf course at Teton Village, a hot air balloon business, elk hunting, and fishing on the river. The owners were Stanley and Helen Lansdowne Resor, prominent advertising executives. Their children and grandchildren now own the property.

Lansdowne Corporation is located at the ranch, which includes several houses. Family members fly in to visit the ranch, often bringing guests. Feeding all of these guests is Carleen’s calling, and she caters the annual ranch picnic. She prepares three meals daily for six days a week from late June through Labor Day.

The family provides a schedule for Carleen of who will be visiting and when, but there are frequent revisions. Usually 15 to 25 people are served at each meal. Family members love desserts, and she prepares Mediterranean-style meals, lots of vegetables and salads, meat and fish. If guests don’t like onions or love huge salads, Carleen keeps that in mind.

Some of the family members like to work cattle with the ranch hands, while others prefer hiking, biking, rafting and other recreation. The ranch has professional managers.

A beautiful place to work in the Teton Mountains, the Snake River Ranch can also be demanding, depending on the family members in residence. Carleen works with a budget, shopping in nearby Jackson. She buys her meats wholesale at one supermarket and everything else at another store. One year her sister Celesta Dailey assisted her at the ranch. Her current assistant cook is a 20-year-old distant cousin.

Julie and Keith Niehenke, Carleen’s daughter and son-in-law, have also moved back to the Palouse. Keith is working at SEL, and he and Julie have formed a new band, the Barley Bashers. They have already started playing local gigs, with Julie doing vocals and Keith playing fiddle. Julie has some health concerns, so less time touring with the band is a major change for them. Carleen is on hand to help with their twin two-year old boys. Julie’s daughter, Amelia, attends college in California, and Elizabeth is a junior at Colfax High School. Julie and Keith are now house shopping in Colfax.

Carleen remains an active member of the LDS Church. She has worked hard for many years and that’s what she truly enjoys. For now, she’d love to see the Barley Bashers play, as she has had fun following Keith and Julie’s band a little. Carleen has a great schedule, with time to be a grandmother and summers working at a job that she loves.

Baked items must be altered to cook at high altitude, so Carleen uses more mixes and prepared things than at lower altitude.

Recipes:

Maple Salmon

Loved by Resor family members from the Seattle area

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 pound salmon

In a small bowl, mix the maple syrup, soy sauce, garlic, garlic salt, and pepper.

Place salmon in a shallow glass baking dish, and coat with the maple syrup mixture. Cover the dish and marinate the salmon in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, turning once.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the baking dish in the preheated oven, and bake salmon uncovered for 20 minutes, or until easily flaked with a fork.

Optional: Remove salmon from marinade and bake on a foil covered pan.

Sopapilla Cheesecake Pie

2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon Mexican vanilla extract

2 8-ounce cans refrigerated crescent rolls

3/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1/4 cup honey

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

Beat the cream cheese with 1 cup of sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth.

Unroll the cans of crescent roll dough, and use a rolling pin to shape each piece into 9x13-inch rectangles. Press one piece into the bottom of the 9x13-inch baking dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture onto the dough, then cover with the second piece of crescent roll dough. Stir together the 3/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Dot the mixture over the top of the cheesecake.

Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and drizzle with honey. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 12 squares.

PF Chang’s Style Almond and Cashew Chicken

4 chicken breast pieces

1/4 cup oil

2 ounces cashews

2 ounces almonds

1 cup celery, chunked

1 onion

2 green peppers, chunked

1 cup fresh mushrooms

2 cups chicken broth

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1 Tablespoon cornstarch, dissolved in water

Remove chicken bone and skin and cut into strips.

Cut celery and green peppers into chunks; slice onions and mushrooms.

Heat deep pan until hot, add oil, and then stir fry cashews and almonds over medium heat. Stir around until slightly brown. Remove and set aside.

Reheat pan, add chicken and stir constantly for 8-10 minutes. Combine celery and onions. Cook for 4-5 minutes more.

Pour in green peppers and mushrooms; add soy sauce, chicken broth, and sugar. Stir around for 1-2 minutes.

Add cornstarch/water mixture to thicken. Simmer for one minute. Add cashews and almonds; stir around.

Serve almond and cashew chicken immediately over rice.

Apple Cake

1/2 cup melted butter

1 cup white sugar

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup apples—peeled, cored, and finely diced

1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour an 8x8-inch baking pan.

In a large bowl, mix melted butter with sugar and egg. Mix in flour, baking soda, and cinnamon, and then stir in apple and walnuts. Spread batter into prepared pan.

Bake for approximately 40 minutes, or until a small knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve with Vanilla Sauce.

Vanilla Sauce

from Lois Lisenbee, close friend of Carleen’s mother

1 cup brown sugar

2 Tablespoons cornstarch or flour

Small amount of water

2 cups boiling water

4 Tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons vanilla

Stir together 1 cup brown sugar and 2 Tablespoons cornstarch or flour.

Add water to make a paste. Gradually add 2 cups boiling water. Boil one minute, stirring constantly. Stir in 4 Tablespoons butter and 2 teaspoons vanilla.

Serve on apple cake or other similar desserts.