Monday, October 30, 2017

DRESSING

Being a "mature" homemaker, I have always made dressing to accompany chicken or turkey.  I have never had a recipe.  Truly, in my beginning homemaking life I did need one but found that as others gave me advice, I could concoct my own.  For the past few years, I have had success making it.  No brag, just fact.

The Girl asked me to teach her once she got her own kitchen and I was happy to do so.  I am preparing a Thanksgiving meal in three or so weeks so I decided I would go ahead and make this dressing for that meal.  I have also learned as I have matured that it's nice to do all you can ahead of time.  That's why God made freezers.  A friend told me that it's good to freeze dressing before final cooking and that it will freeze well for up to a year.

Keep in mind that my pictures are not exact.  For instance, for the following amount of breading, I used two boxes of broth plus  about two cups of water with chicken bouillon dissolved and an onion and a half.  When all was said and done, I also used two cans of cream of chicken soup with one being "with herbs" that I bought by mistake.  It was the perfect place to use it.

I begin with cornbread and biscuits.  No, I have no recipe for those either.  I just use Martha White Cornmeal (cornbread) and White Lily Flour (for biscuits).  Both have Crisco cut in and buttermilk added before baking in greased pans on 455 degrees until done.  For this recipe, I used a large and a small iron skillet for cornbread and two 8" cake pans of biscuits minus three used out for breakfast this morning.  You can also use loaf bread if you don't have biscuits.

Here's my beginning place:




The cornbread and biscuts are made into very coarse crumbs in the food processor with the regular food processor blade.  When crushed, they look like this:



I also forgot to say that butter is an ingredient.  After the crumbs are chopped, chop the onion in the same messy crumb food processor for only one time cleanup of food processor.  Mix, using a fork, both types of crumbs and chopped onions in a large bowl.



Boil the broth so it will be hot enough to melt the butter.  While it's boiling, to the combined crumbs add pepper, a smidgen of salt (the broth is also salty), and poultry season to suit your taste.  I gauge the amount by the smell.  Uh huh.  Then when all is mixed I gauge by the taste and add more if needed.

Add sliced butter and cream of chicken soup to the crumbs.  Pour boiling broth over it a bit at a time, mixing well with a spoon.  Keep adding more broth and more poultry seasoning as needed for taste and texture.  Dressing should be a bit soupier if freezing.


When mixed, mine looks like this:



The amount of breading I showed in the picture plus the extras I mentioned in the beginning made this much dressing for my freezer:

 
Now I am ready for as much or as little as I need depending on the number of people I serve in a few weeks.  And I most likely have some for another day in the future.  An idea also is to add cooked chicken to the dressing, freeze, and cook for a meal during the week.

If not freezing the dressing, cook at 400 degrees until done or thaw well and cook at 400 degrees until done.

Thursday, October 26, 2017

FEAR

As I took the time just now to go ahead and read my online devotion early this morning, I could hear the Lord speaking to me to share.  The catchy phrase to me was:

"Fear can't catch what it can no longer reach."

Wow!  How's that for some wise words for us all?

The devotion wound up with two of my favorite verses from one of my favorite scripture chapters and it says this:

"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress:  my God; in him will I trust."  Psalm 91:1-2

Consider.......

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

"WILD"

Since I do not have nor plan to have a Facebook page, I will share my pictures and such that's "facebookish" here on my blog.

A couple of weekends ago, The Son-In-Law, The Girl, and The Grandbaby invited us to go on a Saturday morning trip to the zoo.  As a child (and we know that was a LONG time ago), I would get to the zoo a few times and then as a children's youth leader I have escorted a couple of groups of children in the past but it's been several years.  I found the zoo had changed little.  Face it, animals look the same for the most part.  I discovered this trip, though, that I see it differently when looking through a Gramma's eyes.   I did take my good camera so I could share my memories with you.

The first zoo attraction has always been the flamingos.


When The Poppa thinks The Grandbaby wants to feed them and he has no change for the feed machine, he goes to get some change.  He proved his "Poppaship" by coming back with a whole roll of quarters.  Wow.



The Grandbaby was dressed in her "wild" zoo finest of attires.


There were kangaroos....

....unusually red haired apes....


and other interesting monkeys of all ages.





Birds......


turtles....big turtles....


animals we couldn't identify.......


And animals with which we were familiar.


Every giraffe is called Sophie Speckles around here.  The Poppa named The Grandbaby's squeeze Sophie giraffe "Sophie Speckles" so now all giraffes are named that.



The Grandbaby loved the lions....the "roary" lions as she says.......Roar!


And she especially loved the elephants.  The Poppa taught her how to raise her hand and make elephant sounds many months ago.  She practices the technique often.




It seems like the favorite "aminal" of this trip was the panda bears.  



The Grandbaby and The Poppa enjoyed seeing the fish so much they just made a seat to watch.


Cookies and Cream Dippin' Dots.  Enough said.


"Here Gramma, you can wear my sticker for a while."


No zoo trip is complete without smiles and poses...





Look how much this girl looks like her dadadada....


...and how much she loves her mamama.






The Perfect Son-In-Law and The Perfect Mother-in-Law support the orange and blue.  War Eagle!


Learning fence antics....




The merry-go-round....no "aminals" please...



Yes, a wild day of fun, smiles, and joy!




Wednesday, October 11, 2017

SALTY?

A few weeks ago I received a summons in the mail to report for jury duty in my county.  A week ago I made my way to my county's courthouse to honorably "serve".  It had been forty years since I had this honor and with my feeble mind as it is, I had very little remembrance of the experience.

I won't bore you with details of my time in this service.  I will share a bit, though.  A buddy from my church also was summoned for this experience.  We began the week with him and me sitting in the back of course, listening to the orientation and instruction.  I was early for a change that first day and was able to view other co-jury summoned folks as they arrived.  That's an advantage to sitting in the back.  There was one female person who got my attention as she was dressed kind of a cute quirky and very happily speaking to folks as she made her way to the front.   The Church Buddy was called to join a panel to be questioned so he made his way to the front.  The Friendly Person was also called and made her way to the front.  I sat and crocheted and waited.

After an hour or so, the ones waiting were dismissed for lunch.  When I arrived back, The Church Buddy was there.  The courts had decided to call another panel to question for the same case before making their decision.  Yep, my name was in that one.  After that long questioning was done and the panel of 12 and an alternate were chosen, The Church Buddy, Me, and The Friendly Person were part of the jury.  At that point, I officially met The Friendly Person.

The Friendly Person was the happiest person I think I have ever met.  It only took a sentence or two for one to realize that she loves Jesus.  (His name comes right up in her conversations.)  And, more than that, she wants to be sure everyone else loves Jesus, too.  She was cute and slightly younger than The Church Buddy who is decently younger than me, just so you can get the picture.  Some folks would genuinely respond to her, others would do eye rolls and look bored.  Either way, she was not affected in her obvious love for Jesus.

The next morning as we reported back, she had realized The Church Buddy and I were friends.  Three of four of us women had the opportunity before the case began for the day to go to the jury assembly room for coffee.  Long story, are you surprised?  Me of many words....

By now, the Friendly Person has witnessed already to practically everyone there.  As we are walking to get our coffee, she asks me, "What kind of need can we pray for you?"  Well duh.  Even though taken aback I immediately suggested healing for my gut.   I mean--I have a long list of needs and I feared we didn't have a lot of time.   Another girl came up for coffee, too, and her hand was held and The Friendly Person said, "We are going to pray.  What can we pray for you?"    At that point, I asked The Friendly Person what her prayer need was.  Imagine my conviction when she said, "I just want to be the very best witness for my Jesus that I can."  Shouldn't we all want that?  Well, the three of us stood there with hands and hearts joined in that empty courtroom jury assembly room and she prayed for my gut, for the Lord to prepare a husband for the other girl, and for her own witness.  Before ending the prayer, she directed me to finish it up and I prayed for wisdom as we all needed that.

At the lunch break, the Church Friend, The Friendly Person, and I decided to have lunch together.  As we made our way to the city's famous hoagie shop, The Friendly Person began to practice a song she was to sing later in the week,  "His Eye is on The Sparrow".  She sang it all the way down the sidewalks.  Loudly.  Smiling as she met folks, singing beautifully all the way.  At the hoagie shop, she made a young worker smile and be encouraged and she saw a family she had witnessed to at the local hospital.  Their smiles said it all--and she didn't even really know them.   The Church Buddy and I witnessed "making a difference" in action.

Before the panel began deliberations, she also asked if anyone would be offended if we had prayer before we began.  If they were offended, they didn't voice it.  The Church Friend and I prayed three times that day in an organized prayer.   And guess what?  No one objected.  Imagine.  No.  One.  Objected.

So when The Pastor preached his sermon last Sunday titled "The Salty Christian", I was again reminded of The Friendly Person and how she wanted so badly for everyone to love Jesus.  I know Jesus smiles when she witnesses.  And The Church Friend and I do, too, as she touched our lives tremendously and gave us a renewed sense of purpose to share Jesus.  Granted everyone doesn't have the same kind of knack in sharing Him as she does, but we all have some ability to share Him in our own various ways.

I want to do it more.

As The Pastor's sermon scripture from Sunday says:

"Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted?  it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men."  Matthew 5:13 

When I think on it, the Lord was sending me a message for sure last week with The Friendly Person and the Sunday sermon.

I'm considering.....you do the same.




Sunday, October 8, 2017

UH....

...when you have your coffee cup in the left hand, pick up the coffee pot with your right, and start to pour.....what a way to start a day!   What does one do?  Do the same thing over using coffee and "serve the Lord with gladness!"