GOOD EATS

No-bake nibbles

It’s summer! Who wants to turn on the oven just so you can enjoy a little dessert?

RECIPES AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY CATHERINE MURRAY

CANNOLI CONES

Prep: 20 minutes | Servings: 12 1¼ cups mini chocolate chips, divided 12 sugar cones 8 ounces whole-milk ricotta 8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ½ cup heavy cream ¾ cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon

In a small, microwave-safe bowl that’s wide enough to dip the opening of a cone into, pour ½ cup of the mini chocolate chips. Microwave in 30-second increments, stirring after each time, until just melted. Dip each cone in melted chocolate. Stand the cones upright in tall drinking glasses to let the chocolate solidify. If ricotta is watery, drain through cheesecloth, squeezing out excess liquid. In a large bowl with a mixer, beat cream cheese, ricotta, and vanilla extract. Gradually add heavy cream and beat until light and fluffy. Slowly incorporate powdered sugar and cinnamon until smooth. Fold in ½ cup of mini chocolate chips. Transfer mixture into a piping bag and pipe into cones. Top with remaining mini chocolate chips.

Per serving: 399 calories, 23 grams fat (14 grams saturated fat), 70 milligrams cholesterol, 225 milligrams sodium, 36 grams total carbohydrates, 0 grams fiber, 12 grams protein.

Prep: 30 minutes | Servings: 6 TOPPING ¾ cup sliced almonds 2/3 cup flour ¼ cup sugar ¼ cup packed brown sugar ¼ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon salt 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ½ cup oats

FILLING 2 pounds sweet cherries (fresh or frozen) 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ½ teaspoon almond extract ½ cup sugar ½ teaspoon salt 2 to 3 tablespoons cornstarch

Note: This dessert can also be made over a campfire! To make the topping: Finely chop ¼ cup of the sliced almonds. In a medium bowl, mix the chopped almonds, flour, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in melted butter and vanilla until the mixture easily crumbles. Mix in oats and remaining almonds. In a medium cast-iron or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, toast almond/butter mixture, stirring regularly to keep from burning. Once golden and crisp (about 5 minutes), transfer back to bowl and set aside. To make the filling: Wipe off skillet and put back on stove. Add cherries, lemon juice, vanilla, and almond extract. Cook over medium-high heat until cherries are warmed. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine sugar, salt, and cornstarch (2 tablespoons for fresh cherries, 3 for frozen). Add sugar mixture to cherries and continue stirring regularly until cherry juice thickens to a nice syrup consistency, about 10 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes, then spread almond topping evenly over cherries. Garnish with whipped cream if desired and serve.

Per serving: 552 calories, 18 grams fat (8 grams saturated fat), 31 milligrams cholesterol, 403 grams sodium, 94 grams total carbohydrates, 3.5 grams fiber, 5.5 grams protein.

UNICORN BARK

Prep: 25 minutes | Chill: 1 hour | Servings: 20 12 ounces bright pink candy melts 6 ounces turquoise candy melts 6 ounces lavender candy melts ¼ cup pastel sprinkles 6 ounces white candy melts Notes: The candy melts should be vanilla flavored. Candy will lose its consistency and may not re-solidify if overheated or liquid is added (such as food coloring or milk.) Get creative with the theme of your bark, like red, white, and blue melts for the Fourth of July, superhero bark, peppermint bark, rainbow bark, s’mores bark … the options are endless! Place parchment paper onto a baking sheet and set aside. Pour each color of candy melts into a separate microwave safe bowl and microwave according to package directions. Using a large spoon or spatula, drop a dollop of melted white candy on each corner of the parchment paper and one in the center. With a clean spoon, intersperse dollops of the remaining colors in between the white. Use a flat icing spatula to slowly draw lines through all the colors, blending to create a marbling effect. Drizzle any leftover melted candy across the top. While it’s still tacky, garnish with sprinkles, then let cool at room temperature for 10 minutes. Cover loosely with parchment and place in freezer for 1 hour. Break or cut into pieces of bark. Store in a sealed container.

Per serving: 210 calories, 12 grams fat (11 grams saturated fat), 35 milligrams sodium, 0 grams cholesterol, 27 grams total carbohydrates, 0 grams fiber, 0 grams protein.

South Central Power Company celebrates 85 years

South Central’s Lancaster office in 1942.

Humble beginnings

The Depression of the 1930s ushered in change for many Americans, including those living in rural areas of the country without electricity. The Rural Electrification Act, signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in May 1936, kicked off a movement across the nation, bringing neighbors together to help one another and improve the quality of life in rural communities.

Nine individuals from Fairfield, Perry, and Pickaway counties came together to form a rural electric cooperative headquartered in Lancaster that would become South Central Power Company as we know it today. Each contributed a membership fee of $5, and the group began the process of forming a new electric cooperative that could purchase wholesale power and distribute it to rural communities and farms that the first wave of electrification in U.S. cities and towns left behind.

The group quickly organized and were able to erect the cooperative’s first power pole on Coonpath Road in Lancaster in September of 1937. From those humble beginnings, today, your cooperative is among the largest in the nation and serves more than 122,000 meters in parts of 24 counties.

Mergers and expansions

As South Central continued to grow beyond its initial limited service area, mergers with other rural cooperatives and electric utilities presented greater opportunities for growth. In 1946, the cooperative merged with Guinsler Electric, expanding the service territory footprint into new communities. In the 1960s, the cooperative merged with Ohio-Midland and Inter County, expanding the cooperative’s reach into communities like Canal Winchester and Hillsboro. Already Ohio’s largest electric cooperative, in 1992, South Central completed an additional merger with Belmont Electric Cooperative, adding members in Belmont and several surrounding counties in the eastern region of the state.

Working together

In 1959, South Central and other electric distribution cooperatives in Ohio formed Buckeye Power Inc., a nonprofit generation and transmission cooperative. Buckeye works on behalf of all Ohio cooperatives by generating enough electricity to provide power to roughly 400,000 homes and businesses across Ohio through a diverse portfolio of power generation resources, including best-in-class environmental controls and economically sustainable sources of renewable power.

A bright future

South Central was formed 85 years ago based on the idea of neighbors helping neighbors. And that idea still rings true as we move into our new era of member service. To do so, we’re making investments in technology that improve dependability and service, while consolidating our office footprint from five locations down to three in geographically central offices to serve members in southern, central, and eastern Ohio. While our Barnesville facility will remain as it is, new buildings in Hillsboro and Lancaster will replace aging facilities that would require significant investment to continue to operate. We expect these new facilities to host our current and next generation of workers, and we continue to find new and better ways to serve you. In the months ahead, we’ll be sharing more about our history to celebrate this milestone, but know that our energy remains focused on how we can best serve you in the future, just as we have in the past.

100scholarships awarded

Thanks to the generous contributions from members who willingly round up their bills through Operation Round Up, South Central Power members are helping to send 100 students to college or vocational training for the upcoming school year.

Since 2015, more than 650 students have received a scholarship from the foundation, for awards totaling $651,000. “I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity the South Central Power Foundation gave me,” says Christopher Williams, a Columbus State Community College student studying to become an aircraft mechanic and a past recipient of a career-technical scholarship. “The scholarship helped me pay my tuition and buy required tools for my classes.” The foundation’s board of directors selects students to receive scholarships in four categories: career-technical, community, academic, and leadership.

“We saw such an impressive group of students from across Ohio in our scholarship applicants this year,” says Don Jones, chair of the South Central Power Company Foundation. “On behalf of the foundation, I want to congratulate them on their many achievements and wish them the best as they continue their education.”

Here’s a snapshot of our 2021 winners, with details about their high schools and future plans. For more on South Central Power Company’s scholarship program, as well as details on other past scholarship winners and grant recipients and awards, visit https://www.southcentralpower.com/ south-central-power-company-foundation/.

Adena HS

Savannah Robinson

Academic Ohio University Music education

Amanda Clearcreek HS

Stephanie Bowers

Academic Wright State University Finance Kole Williams

Career-Tech Pickaway Ross Career Center Power lineman

Anthony Buckley

Academic Undecided Pre-med

Amanda Clearcreek HS

Morgan Anderson

Leadership Ohio University Broadcast journalism Abigail Bolin

Leadership Otterbein University Nursing

Olivia Hutchison

Community Ohio University Speech language pathology Emily McCormick

Leadership Ohio State University Accounting