Sweet September

When September arrives I immediately think apples and apple cider. I think most of us do while looking forward to a change from the extreme heat of summer. A nice crisp apple is synonymous with the crispness of fall.
I think fall was one of my Mother's favorite times; maybe being born in September had a little to do with it. My mother would just come to life when the apple farms and cider mills went into full swing. Her great love for pork didn't hurt either, she always said that apples and pork were a match made in heaven and I would have to agree.

Apple Cider Stew

1-2 lbs. Pork shoulder (any pork with a good amount of marbling) cut into bite size pieces.
8 large carrots, chopped
6 potatoes, chopped
2 apples, chopped
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 large onion chopped
2 c. apple cider

Place carrots, potatoes, and apples in crock pot. Add meat and sprinkle with salt, thyme, and onion. Pour cider over meat and cover. Cook on low heat 10-12 hours. Thicken gravy using 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in a separate bowl mixed with a little bit of the hot gravy. Put cornstarch mixture back in pot of hot stew and bring to a boil while stirring.

Choose Laughter

  Me with my Mother and Grandmother - September 2008

At times we get a glimpse into what might be while spending time with older relatives. You become an observer to what waits for you as you approach the end of life's road. It can be a very sad and painful time but luckily as with all other times in life it to can be fraught with joy and laughter as well. Thank God, we can laugh even through insurmountable sadness.
My mother spent her last several years of life living in a nursing home a potential existence most of us view with fear and dread. In my mother's case this was a welcome and much needed chapter in her life and fortunately in my mother's case her time in the nursing home was a very good, loving and nurturing experience.
My grandmother's road in life has lead her to an assisted living facility, considered to be a step up from a nursing home but in the eyes of many who are living there it is another cruel act of life that rids us of our independence and ability to choose.
What I have observed so far in my 51 years on this earth is; we live to gain as many chronological years as possible hopefully filling those years with love, laughter, hope and our God given free will of; "choice". Choice, the freedom to think independently and choose between what you deem right or what you deem wrong, what you feel that you need or that you don't need, what you want or don't want, who you love or don't love.....How you wish to be cared for, who will be doing the caring and where you will call, home.
What I have learned as I lovingly observe all these potential " future me's" is as we forge through this life with all its joy, hardship and never-ending changes. As we gain years our list of choices becomes smaller and the unpleasant choices seem to out number the pleasant ones.....except for one choice that is always ours to make no matter how old we are or where we are on this road in life and that is to laugh. Laughter will always  help us to rise above the gloom and shine down on us with a light that lets us know that we will and can survive this moment and any moment that life can throw our way.
I am posting a recipe for shrimp croquettes because they became a source of laughter while having a dinner visit with my grandmother. Let's just say a woman that was seated two tables away from ours took great issue with her croquettes and it just grew into being comical. My grandmother who was in a crabby mood (which is most of the time) even began laughing, she looks so much better with a smile on her face......so here is to the power of laughter, smile and enjoy!

Shrimp Croquettes

3/4 lb. frozen cooked shelled shrimp
3 tbsp. Crisco
1/3 c. flour
1/2 c. milk
2 tbsp. finely chopped onion
1 tbsp. snipped parsley
Dash of pepper & paprika
2 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. fine dry bread crumbs
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp. water
1 pkg. (8 oz.) frozen peas with cream sauce

Defrost shrimp, devein if necessary. Chop finely (about 2 cups). Melt 3 tablespoons Crisco. Blend in flour. Add milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until very thick and smooth; remove from heat. Add onion, parsley, lemon juice and seasonings; stir in shrimp.
Preheat Crisco for deep frying to 350 degrees. Shape shrimp mixture into 8 cones. Roll in crumbs. Combine egg with water. Dip cones in egg mixture roll in crumb again.
Deep fry a few at a time until brown, about 3 minutes. Turn if necessary, drain on paper towel
Prepare peas according to directions on package. Spoon creamed peas over croquettes.

Makes 4 servings.

Gone But Not Forgotten....Happy Birthday Mom

       

         "To live in the hearts we leave behind is not to die." ~ Thomas Campbell

                                                           Are there birthdays in Heaven?

Does the Angel blow his horn

announcing to everybody

this is the day that you were born?

Can the stars be your balloons?

or an angel food your cake?

Presents wrapped in moonbeams

that the Angels helped to make?

Your birthdays have meant so much to us;

they were always a very big deal.

Birthday presents, your favorite treats,

and perhaps a special meal.

So we'll whisper a little prayer today

asking everyone here and  above

to sing you a Happy Birthday song

and with it all our love.

I wasn't sure what recipe to post in honor of my Mother's Birthday she loved to eat and had a great many favorites. Then it dawned on me the one food item that was always on the top of her list was......onions! Without exaggeration I can honestly say that my mother went through at least five pounds of onions a week if not more.

I'd like to say that I am about to wow you here with some fancy schmancy recipe using onions but my mother was a purist and enjoyed them in their simpler form......sliced thick between two slices of bread.......it's enough to make you cry!

Happy Birthday Mom, you are greatly missed, fondly remembered, spoke of often, your Harriet-izms still fill us with laughter and bring smiles to our faces...we thank you for the joy that you have given us and still give us.

Harriet's Favorite Sandwich

1 Onion (red, white, Vidalia, Spanish...it just needs to be an onion).
2 slices of bread (she didn't care; it could have been wonder bread or rye)!
1 Tablespoon of either miracle whip or mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste.

Spread the mayonnaise/miracle whip on one or both slices of bread. Cut onion into 1/2 inch to 1 inch slice, place slice on bread add salt and pepper, cover with remaining slice of bread and enjoy.

The Gift of A Lifetime

At this time of year as the temperatures grow ever colder the human heart appears to grow ever warmer. It is as if people have been holding their breath through life’s challenges all year long managing with nothing more than the promise that at this magical time they will be given the gift of exhaling. That one cleansing moment in time when expressing our humanity is not only expected but equally shared by all. The spreading of friendly hello's and seasons greetings to any and all we meet no matter what walk of life become more contagious than any disease known to man or womankind. Feelings seem to be so magnified at this time of year, so much so that even the loss of a human life takes on a far deeper meaning that at any other time. I can personally attest to this as I have lost many loved ones during this time, most recently the woman who greeted me into this world with a full heart, loving smile and the promise that all things good in life are possible.
Death always seems to be defined as the end of something but I am beginning to learn with each passing that death is actually the beginning. The beginning of a renewed promise of hope that brings with it possibilities. The chance to right old wrongs and better our less than perfect souls.

Yes, Virginia their is a Santa Claus! His red suit the color of our hearts rich with love for life and all humankind. His meaning a simple one; “Merry Christmas to all and to all...... a good life"!

My wish for this post is not to convey sadness but instead to lighten all our heavy hearts and honor all those amazing souls who have touched us with love and the ability to go on..... Merry Christmas everyone


Christmas Brie

2 lb. wheel of brie
5 tbsp. minced parsley
5 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
10 sun dried tomatoes (packed in oil), minced
2 1/2 tbsp. oil from sun dried tomatoes
12 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. basil, minced
3 tbsp. pine nuts, chopped

Chill brie; remove rind from top. Combine the rest of the ingredients. Spread on top of cheese. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to stand 24 to 48 hours in refrigerator.
Serve with crackers.
Serves 30 to 40

Flickr/P. Sto

Happiness Is On The Menu

My mother the queen of onions has been in her glory these past couple of weeks. The nursing home has added a few new items to their dinner menu and two of them contain pearl onions. My mother said that one night she got some type of beef burgundy with pearl onions and the other day they had put some caramelized pearl onions in her green beans. It may not sound like much to you and I but to her it’s the world. This morning she called me to tell me that last night they served her chicken cacciatore and it was delicious, she is all giddy. It’s actually quite cute to see the amount happiness something as simple as a menu change can bring.

Roasted Pearl Onions

1 pound of fresh or frozen tiny pearl onions

1 tbsp. sugar

Salt & pepper

Paprika

Butter

Drain onions and place in baking pan. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, paprika and sugar, dot generously with butter. Bake in a 450 degree oven, turn occasionally until browned (12 to 15 minutes).

Lima's in Disguise

Yuck, Lima beans, how many times have we heard that in our lives? How many times have we been the ones who have said it? My mother refused to eat lima beans as a child which was difficult since her mother often made succotash. My mother would pick out all the lima beans and hide them in her napkin. My mother’s hatred for the poor little lima bean carried over into adulthood until I made this recipe. Granted, I left out the fact that there were lima beans in it, I merely said that it was a bean casserole (very truthful). My mother loved this so much she had seconds, when I told her it was lima beans she did not believe me but by then she was hooked.

Unbelievably Good Baked Lima Beans

1 lb. dried lima beans (Yes you can substitute a different type of bean but then I'd have to change my story lol)
1/2 pint sour cream
1 1/2 sticks of butter (must use butter, no substitutions)
1 Tablespoon of molasses
1 1/2 teaspoon of dry mustard
3/4 cup of brown sugar (light or dark)

Soak 1 pound of lima beans overnight in 4 cups of cold water for each cup of beans; add more water if beans soak up the initial amount of water.
Boil the beans in the same water for ½ to ¾’s of an hour, add 1 teaspoon of salt; drain well. Mix the above ingredients together to make a sauce, bring the sauce to a simmer and then pour over the beans. Bake for 1 1/2 hours at 325 degrees in a covered casserole.

These beans turn out so buttery and creamy with a nice mix of sweet and tangy that it will make you think of lima beans as comfort food.

Orange Blossom Banquet

The whole semi- homemade idea that Sandra Lee has for her food network TV show is great and all but it certainly is not new. The use of pre-made brand items mixed with other products and some human ingenuity spans the generations. I cannot imagine a household anywhere that has not dabbled in this use of food products at one time or another. I know I certainly do and have for years; I call it doctoring. For example if I buy a jar of pre-made tomato sauce (I know shameful to admit being part Italian) I doctor it up with a little seasoning, maybe some wine, I might add a little meat or seafood….delicious. There is no crime, you make do, you stretch ingredients, you save time or maybe you just make something taste better than it would have on its own.
My mother had this dish she would make once a week using Banquet Fried Chicken (I love it and make it to this day).

1 Box of Banquet Fried Chicken (the one with the legs, thighs, wings and breasts)

1/2 to 3/4’s of a cup of Orange Blossom Honey (use any kind of honey that you like, orange blossom was her favorite).

1 small can of crushed pineapple with juice

Place chicken in a buttered baking pan; pour honey and pineapple with juice over chicken making sure each piece is covered. Bake at 325 degrees for 40-45 minutes covered with aluminum foil.

This is so tender, sticky, sweet and delicious you will keep craving more. My mother would always serve this with rice. The rice was great to mix with the little chicken bits, honey and pineapple that remained on the bottom of the pan.

Tomatoes $2.99 lb., Onions $.99 lb, My Mother's Face While Eating Them........Priceless

It only seems fitting that my first post of the year be a light and healthy one. I decided to use my mother’s favorite weekly request which is tomato and onion salad. I have been making a big container of this for her every Saturday for three years. Even though the food is pretty good at the nursing home, the little salad that comes on her tray has always left a lot to be desired. This salad, if you can call it that consists of a couple chunks of ice berg lettuce, one bite size piece of cottony tomato and if she’s lucky a thin slice of cucumber and my mother’s biggest disappointment there are never any onions (my mother is the queen of onions, she can eat them like apples).
The only way any of the residents there can get any onions is to go down to the cafeteria where they have a pretty extensive salad bar. Unfortunately for those who are bed ridden such as my mother this is not an option, so a big container of tomato salad with lots and lots of onions has become a tradition. Every week comes with a specially requested treat in addition to her salad. This week she is craving liverwurst and onions on rye. She has also informed me that in a couple weeks she wouldn’t mind some spaghetti and meatballs.
If you could see the pleasure and contentment on her face when she is eating her tomato and onions it is absolutely priceless. Something so simple, yet it brings such joy and it’s really quite healthy for her to eat, I should probably follow her example and eat more tomatoes and onions.

My Mother's Tomato and Sweet Onion Salad

6 lg. fresh Roma tomatoes
1 medium sweet onion, sliced on the thin side
2 tbsp. minced fresh Italian parsley
2 tbsp. chopped fresh basil
1/4 c. olive oil
2 tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
or
A bottled dressing such as Italian or some type of vinegrette works just fine

Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Cut tomatoes as you desire and place in salad bowl. Add sliced sweet onion, parsley, basil, and salt and pepper. Mix olive oil and vinegar. Pour over the other ingredients. Mix gently and then refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

May I Please Have Your Turkey Carcass?

When my friend Pamm was little her mother always made turkey carcass soup with the Thanksgiving Day dinner remains. This became one of Pamm’s favorite things and a tradition that she did not take lightly.
One thanksgiving Pamm’s father decided to give his wife a break from cooking and took her and Pamm out for thanksgiving dinner. This did not make Pamm happy, nothing tasted good at the restaurant, it just wasn’t like her mother’s especially when it came to the pumpkin chiffon pie that she was accustom to.
But it wasn’t until they got home that it hit her that because her mother hadn’t cooked a turkey that there was no carcass for her to make Pamm’s favorite turkey soup. Now poor Pamm who is in absolute panic mode did the only thing that a little girl could do in desperate times to keep a tradition alive………she got a brown paper bag and went door to door and asked her neighbors if they had any turkey carcasses and if so could she have them so her mother could make turkey soup. Four of these neighbors took pity on Pamm and gave up their dinners skeletal remains. Now happy and skipping back home with four turkey carcasses in her bag so pleased with her ingenuity all was right with her world again, until..... Apparently while Pamm was out telling her sad story and gathering her carcasses, people were calling her mother asking if they had fallen on hard times and was there anything that they could do. This highly embarrassed her mother and made her a little angry at first and Pamm did get sent to her room. But in the end she got her soup and all these years later Pamm is still getting her turkey carcass soup, the only thing that has changed is the person who prepares it (that would be me).

Turkey Carcass Soup
In Memory of Pamm's Mother

1 turkey carcass
2 onions, chopped
6 stalks celery, chopped
6 carrots, chopped
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 cup of rice or pasta
Salt & pepper to taste

In enough water to cover carcass boil carcass for 2 hours. Pick meat from bones. Strain broth and return broth and meat to pan. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer for 1 hour.