Continental Breakfast

Just out of curiosity, does anyone else have trouble getting the kitchen cleaned up from breakfast? No matter what type of breakfast we have (& believe me, they’re not elaborate most days), it seems to take me forever to clean up the dishes, toast crumbs, etc. Make me feel better – it’s not just me, right? Right?!? Thank you.

At my age, I’ve come to the conclusion that we’ve all set our kitchens up wrong. Scientists insist that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, yet we make little to no effort to prepare for it. My mom would make big meals for breakfast, but I never ate it. I didn’t like it – then or now. I cook it for everyone else, most days, but can’t really stomach it for myself. No pun intended. I don’t mind something quick with my COFFEE! Like a granola bar or donuts, something easy.

This morning, I had an epiphany & decided to round up a few ideas. If I could sit the kitchen up like a hotel breakfast bar, complete with Continental Breakfast, nothing too fancy, just the basics. The fam could just grab the milk &/or juice… Voila! And there you have it! Done & done. It would also be a way to streamline the snacks. The fruit & granola bars are already out, the kids would have to put forth effort to get to the pop & chips. What do you think they’ll grab first?

Honestly, I think if Julia Child had – had children, her kitchen would have looked a whole lot different than the one placed at the Smithsonian. Just sayin’

To include any variety of sliced bread or toast with butter/jam/jelly/honey, cheese, meat, croissants, muffins, pastries, bear claws, Croissant & Scones, rolls, pancakes with syrup, cornflakes or other cereal, yogurt/granola, coffee/tea, fruit juice(s). Use paper plates, plastic forks & spoons, paper napkins, etc.. Don’t feel guilty, you’re saving time & water. Less mess. Heck, I may even start to order the paper, I could sit & read it; gain some badly needed quiet time.

A simple enough pleasure, surely, to have breakfast alone with one’s husband, but how seldom married people in the midst of life achieve it. ~ Anne Spencer

 

Cherry Dump Cake

I was asked today for my Dump Cake recipe. I’ve seen all kinds of variations, from blackberry to blueberry and even peach, I even have an old friend Maxine’s on the blog, only because she loves rhubarb. Me, I actually prefer the plain old cobbler that every woman from church makes. I’ve eaten it for as long as I can remember; it’s just to easy to make. So here it is, hope you all enjoy it.

INGREDIENTS:
1 (20 ounces) can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 (21 ounces) can prepared more fruit cherry pie filling
1 (18.25 ounces) box yellow or white cake mix
2 sticks (1 cup or 16 Tablespoons) of butter or margarine, each cut into 12 slices
1/4 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans or walnuts, but you can use your favorite)

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (325 for glass baking dish).
Dump undrained pineapple into a 9x13x2 baking dish and spread it out evenly.
Using a spoon, dump globs of cherry pie filling evenly on top of the pineapple.
Sprinkle the cake mix evenly over the cherry and pineapple layers.
Cut butter into slices with a butter knife and place slices evenly over cake mix.
Sprinkle nuts on top if you’re using them.
Bake for one hour.
To serve, scoop cake out with a large spoon like a cobbler and add a  scoop of vanilla ice cream. Serve warm or cold.

Yield: about 10 to 12 servings

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Many people miss their share of happiness not because they never found it but because they didn’t stop to enjoy it.

 

Buttermilk Cornbread

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, separated
3/4 teaspoons soda
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons melted shortening

DIRECTIONS
Lift the cornmeal by spoonfuls into the measuring cup, then level off. Sift cornmeal and salt together. Beat egg yolks thoroughly, add soda and buttermilk and beat until completely mixed. Add to cornmeal mixture and stir until ingredients are blended. *Add hot melted shortening, beat again (work quickly so it doesn’t fry) and fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites. Turn immediately into a piping hot greased 10 inch heavy skillet and bake in a hot oven (450 degrees F.) for 30 minutes. Serve at once with melted butter.

Yield: 5 servings.

* Preheat the oven to temperature with the skillet in the oven. Pull out right just before time to bake. Add 3 tbsp tablespoons of shortening and swirl around until it covers the bottom and sides of the skillet. Dump 2 tbsp of the melted shortening into the batter.

That’s the way my mom always coated her skillet. My oldest sister Shirley only uses white cornmeal and adds 2 tbsp of sugar to the mix. She makes everything sweet.

I hope that everyone has a huge assortment of iron skillets, I know I do. Just make sure as soon as you wash them, to place them on top of the burner or back in the oven to dry out. When pan is completely dry, season the skillet (wipe inside & out with a cooking oil on a paper towel).

My dad’s favorite food was always cornbread and buttermilk. Sometimes he’d use crackers instead of the cornbread in his buttermilk. My kids would have staged a protest if I had served them, buttermilk with anything. I still use it in the occasional biscuit or cake. They don’t know the difference. sh

I remember as a kid being cold a lot, and hungry sometimes. We’d go to bed with just cornbread and milk, and I remember wearing shoes with holes in the bottom. I remember having twine for shoestrings. ~ Buck Owens

 

Sunday Supper

You know that I love pork loin. Its so easy to make, you can put it on before you leave for work or shopping and it will be waiting on you when you get home. That’s one less thing to worry about.

MENU
Spinach Salad
Maple Glazed Pork Loin with Tomato & Pine Nut Relish
Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes
Peas & Baby Carrots
Rolls and Butter
*Baked Apples
Beverages

Maple Glazed Pork Loin

INGREDIENTS
1 (5 pound) pork loin roast
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup light maple flavored pancake syrup
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup brown sugar

DIRECTIONS
Place the roast into a large resealable bag. In a small bowl, stir together the melted butter, vinegar, pancake syrup, cornstarch and brown sugar. Pour into the bag with the roast. Seal, and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Then bake the as per my Easy Pork Loin directions, making sure that the Butcher cuts the loin in half lengthwise for you.  Its done when its internal temperature is at least 150 degrees F (65 degrees C) when taken with a meat thermometer.

Pine Nut Relish

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup (generous) chopped dried apricots (about 3 ounces)
1/3 cup chopped white onion
3 tablespoons finely chopped drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
2 1/2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons chopped jalapeño chili with seeds

2/3 cup chopped seeded plum tomatoes
3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS
Combine first 6 ingredients in medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Add tomatoes, pine nuts and cilantro to apricot mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Serve along

*Baked Apples – stuffed with raisins, walnuts and brown sugar.

I do not regret one moment of my life. ~ Lillie Langtry

 

Hot Rice

INGREDIENTS
1 cup rice, uncooked
1 pint sour cream
1 (4 oz) can green chile peppers, diced
1 (10 oz or 12 oz) pkg jack or sharp Cheddar cheese
House Seasoning (garlic, pepper, salt), to taste

DIRECTIONS
Cook rice according to directions on the package. Mix with sour cream and chile mixture; season. In 2 qt greased casserole dish, layer half of the rice mixture, 1/2 cheese, sliced, remaining rice mixture, and top with remaining cheese, grated. Bake uncovered for 30 to 35 minutes at 350 degrees. Serves 6.

Note: For a milder flavor, substitute banana peppers for the green chile peppers.

The essence of being human is being able to direct your own life. ~ Stephen R Covey

 

Diet Berry Pie

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup sugar substitute
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1 1/2 cups water
1 (4 oz) pkg sugar-free jello
1 cup each: strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries (can use all strawberries)
1 pre-baked pie shell
whipped topping

DIRECTIONS
Mix sugar substitute and cornstarch in saucepan. Gradually stir in water until smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute to thicken. Stir in gelatin until dissolved. Cook to room temperature. Stir in berries and pour into pie shell. Refrigerate until firm. Top with whipped topping.

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Edible, adj.: Good to eat, and wholesome to digest, as a worm to a toad, a toad to a snake, a snake to a pig, a pig to a man, and a man to a worm. ~ Ambrose Bierce