If you’re unfamiliar with ube, it’s a violet hued yam grown in the Phillippines. Ube is different from its purple sweet potato cousin. The sweet potato has a thinner, edible skin and belongs to the morning glory family, whereas ube is a tuber with a thick, starchy rind. But both have a delightful royal color!
Halloween is less than a week away, and it has me thinking about all ghouly and ghosty sorts of spectacles. The Hubby, Sons A and B, and I are known to haunt cemeteries looking for long-gone family members. We’ve traipsed through battlefields a plenty, as well as Key West’s spooky spots. But one notorious and potentially spooked up spot not shared to date is Coffeyville, Kansas, which couldn’t be more of a 180-degree juxtaposition than ube’s Asian origins.
Coffeyville, Kansas is located in southeastern Kansas on the Oklahoma state line. Adjacent to the Indian Territory border, Colonel James A. Coffey began a trading post here starting in 1869. Members from the Five Civilized Tribes (Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee (Creek), and Seminole) came here to trade and conduct business after being relocated to the U.S. Government’s reservation land. In 1871, the Leavenworth, Lawrence & Galveston Railroad created a southern stopping point on its line to transport cattle, grain and other train from this region. Before the U.S. Government opened up Oklahoma to non-native settler in 1889, my Cherokee native Singleton family from Kentucky moved into the area in 1880.
In 1883, my Singleton and Winters family lines merged together in Coffeyville when Canna Singleton married Thomas Jefferson Winters. Within 7 years, two of four children were born and buried in Coffeyville. In 1890, Canna became a single parent to the remaining two little boys, when T.J. died of spinal meningitis. Canna raised my great-grandfather and his older brother (shown in photo) the best she could as a laundress and proprietress of several distinguished boarding houses.
Without a doubt, Canna and her Singleton family would’ve been a buzz about the infamous bank robbery gone wrong in 1892 Coffeyville. Starting in February 1891, the Dalton Brothers Gang–Bob, Grat, and Emmett-and acquaintances Dick Broadwell and Bill Powers, wreaked havoc robbing five trains and stations. But in an overconfident move, the gang decided to rob two Coffeyville banks on October 5, 1892. Dividing up their duties and hitching up their horses near the town jail, the Gang split into their bank assignments. (Doesn’t the jail hitching post location seem odd?!) Bob Dalton, Dick Broadwell and Bill Powers went into the Condon Bank, while Emmett and Grat Dalton went into the First National Bank. A Condon Bank teller was quick enough to recognize Bob and stalled him by making him wait for the vault to open Town members in nearby Isham Hardware were notified and called on to defend Coffeyville. In a gunfight with the escaping Dalton Gang, the Coffeyville Defenders neutralized Bob and Grat Dalton, Bill Powers and Dick Broadwell in “Death Alley”.
Emmett Dalton was found riddled with 23 gunshots, but alive. He was taken to the Farmer’s Home Hotel where he was treated by a doctor, and survived his wounds. Coincidentally, this is the same location my Great-Grandmother was Proprietress later in 1898. The site of the Farmer’s Home Hotel is ironically now a bank parking lot. Haunted parking lot? Maybe?! The four other Dalton Gang members were laid out in front of the jail where their horses were once tied in front of.
The Dalton Brothers–Bob and Grat, and gang member Bill Powers were buried in Elmwood Cemetery near the railroad tracks on the cemetery’s southeastern side. (Dick Broadwell’s family buried him in Hutchison, KS.) For years, the only marker for their graves was the metal pipe used to hitch their horses up in front of the city jail. Emmett Dalton later purchased the headstone we see today. The Dalton Gang members lie several rows east of my family members, including T.J. Winters, his mother, and two young children. Regardless of place, station, and situation, death is always a guarantee.
Since we’re talking cemeteries and it’s that spooky time of the year, I whipped up a batch of ube inspired Frankie’s Halloween Ube Cookies. They’re a nod to Halloween’s quintessential colors….green, purple, black, and blah, blah, blah… The master dough recipe is a delightful vanilla sugar cookie, divided up into three equal parts. In one portion…3/4 tsp. purple Ube Extract; a second portion 1/2-1 tsp. green food coloring/gel; and a third portion left plain. Roll each dough ball into a log and stack into a one bigger roll. Chill in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes (or freeze for later). Slice into 1/4″ slices and bake off. The dough will spread, so be sure to space out about 2″ apart. Don’t over bake these. The edges should be a pale golden color on the edges. The sugar cookies will crisp up, yet remain slightly soft. If you’re feeling fancy, decorate with colored candy melts and candy eyes. Enjoy!
Frankie’s Halloween Ube Cookies & A Bank Robbery Gone Wrong
All dressed up for a Halloween bash, these vanilla based cookies are ready for the party. But they have a exotic twist…ube or purple yam. Ube turns a normally neutral color into a natural amethyst-plum color with a nutty vanilla note. Ube can be purchased at Asian grocery stores or online.
- Prep Time: About 30 Minutes + 30 Min. Chill Time
- Cook Time: 11-13 Minutes
- Total Time: About 1 Hour + Chilling Time
- Yield: About 24 Cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
Ingredients
- 1 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1–1/4 c. granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 tsp. vanilla
- 2–1/4 c. all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt (table, kosher or sea)
- 3/4 tsp. ube extract
- Green food coloring
- Yellow, black, green or purple candy melt wafer; sprinkles; candy eyes (if desired)
Instructions
- Using a hand-held or a standing mixer, cream butter and granulated sugar until light colored and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla. Beat well.
- On low speed, add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to egg mixture. Combine until flour is just combined.
- Divide dough into three equal portions in separate bowls. Add 3/4 tsp. of ube extract to one of the doughs. Blend until evenly colored. In a separate bowl, add green food coloring/gel until desired color is reached. Leave the third dough uncolored/plain.
- Using your hands, roll each dough into a log about 2-inches in diameter and 6-inches long. Lay each log side by side on a piece of plastic wrap. Form doughs into one larger dough log. Using the plastic wrap, roll the dough into a longer log, about 2-inches in diameter and 12-14-inches in length. Place dough into the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to chlll.
- Preheat oven to 350 degree F while dough is chilling. Put parchment paper on 2-3 baking sheets and set aside.
- Remove dough log from the refrigerator. Roll in granulated sugar and cut into about 1/4-inch slices with a sharp knife. Place cut dough about 2-inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Dough will spread. Bake for 11-13 minutes. Cookies should be set and pale golden brown on the edges and bottom. Remove from oven and to a wire rack to cool. Decorate as desired with colored candy melts, or leave plain.
Notes
If you don’t want to use Ube powder, substitute purple food coloring.
For green colored dough, add 1 T. all-purpose flour to dough if it appears too wet after mixing in coloring/gel.
IMNPB
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