A weekend like July 4th calls for some good ol’ American favorites.  Down South one of those favorites is barbequed anything!  I got a package of pork ribs on sale at Ingles this week, so I put them in the crock pot for Sunday dinner.  I found a new sauce to try, so I made that and poured it over top of the meat, turned it on low and left for church.  They were too done for my liking, but as long as they were covered with the sauce they were okay. It’s not the fault of the sauce as much as it was my timing the meat in the slow cooker.  It cooks faster than I’m used to, and I still haven’t figured it out! 

I served couscous as a side dish instead of potatoes or rice.  We really like it; it’s a nice change!  I added almonds instead of the pine nuts that the recipe calls for.  I halved the recipe and it still made more than we needed, so I’ve frozen it for future use!  My new favorite thing is corn on the cob with Parmesan cheese.  It is sooooo good!

My table wasn’t patriotic, because my husband had brought home the beautiful bouquet pictured above on Saturday (he’s so sweet), and it had  lavendar and pink flowers, so I stuck with that color theme on the table.  But my shelf pictured above is red, white and blue, so we had the flavor of the holiday in the room! 

I added a little sprig of Thyme inside the fold of the cloth napkin.  I’d seen a picture in a magazine with mint tied onto a napkin and thought it looked so fresh and summery.  I have several pots of thyme, and love the smell, so I simply folded the top layer of the napkin up to create a pocket, and tucked the herb inside.

Summertime and ants.  They’re synonymous, arent’ they?  I heard someone say recently, “I can’t rid of these pests!  They keep coming into my kitchen!” 

The Lord talk about ants, but it’s really not in a negative way.  Here’s what He has to say about them:

• Prepare now for eternity!  Today is the day of salvation.  Joy and peace are ours when we’re secure of a home in heaven.
• Plan and prioritize my day listing the things that need to be done.  Nothing will be forgotten if it’s written down!
• Prepare desserts, frozen salads, breads and main dishes and put them in the freezer.  They’ll be ready for guests I may have, or to share with someone who needs a meal.
• Look ahead for birthdays and anniversary cards.  This will mean no more late greetings! 
• Buy ahead for Christmas.  My budget will be lower when I buy things on sale throughout the year.
• Prepare ahead for Sunday school.  A calmer weekend and a happy Sunday school class will result!
• Plan ahead for ladies’ ministry events.  More people can be involved in helping and attending if they know what’s coming up.
• Using the summer fruits and vegetables God provides for me, can or freeze for the winter months.  This will give us summer fruits and veggies even in the wintertime!

See you in church Sunday!

With love,

I have no idea why I’m always tempted to try a new recipe for company or an important event.  The one thing I do know is that this started very early in my marriage.  We had only been married for a month, when I decided I would celebrate our first month anniversary with a knock-it-out dinner for my new husband.  I was taking Good Housekeeping Magazine at the time and had found some recipes with pictures that looked like the perfect choice for a menu that would “wow” him! 

Thirty years later, the recipe name alone would be enough to make me flip the page in horror, but the picture of the dish looked colorful and appealing so I fell went for it.  What did I make?  Lasagna Broccoli Roll-Ups!  I know, it’s a nasty combination.  Live and learn.  Let me describe the dish – you take a cooked lasagna noodle and place a mixture of broccoli and Ricotta Cheese on  it, then you roll it up and place it in a baking dish.  A spaghetti sauce is poured over all and it’s then placed in the oven to bake until it’s bubbly.  In my memory it looked good.  Tasting it was another story.

My husband came to the candlelit table that was set with our wedding china and crystal.  We eagerly spooned the dish onto our plates and took a bite.  Oh my goodness.  It was DRY.  That Ricotta Cheese was expanding in our mouths like a sponge.  My husband’s description of it (later) was, “Have you ever had something in your mouth that got bigger the longer you chewed it?”  He was a perfect gentleman, not saying anything, but dutifully chewing, smiling and nodding.  What relief came across his face when he heard me say, “This is terrible.  Let’s just eat the salad and bread!”  We did just that.  I’ve been terrified of recipes since then that call for Ricotta Cheese, though I’m sure not all are bad.  It’s just too scary to even try!  It would be like returning to the scene of the crime! 
Do you have an ingredient that you’re afraid to eat or cook with because of a bad experience? 

From the kitchen of my parsonage,

What would the children of a perfect family look like?  We’ll never know, because there are none.  Even where things look perfect, there are two sinners who marry, and with the vows made on their wedding day, they bring all kinds of cargo (emotions, habits, & natures) with them that they will have to deal with.  But what about a broken home, or family where only the wife is a child of God?   It is certainly harder, but His Word is full of instruction to guide us in helping our family honor Him – no matter the makeup.

I was reminded of this truth yesterday when I read Acts 16:1 – Then came he to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek: This is a family divided; Timothy’s mother was a believer, his father, it seems, was not.  We would gasp, shake our heads and grimace at the chance their son had to turn out to be a Christian, like his mother and grandmother.  But he did trust Christ! 

Timothy didn’t just trust Christ – he became a right-hand man to Paul.  Paul said of him in Philippians 2:19-22 But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timotheus shortly unto you, that I also may be of good comfort, when I know your state. For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s. But ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the gospel.  Timothy was a rare breed of young men.  He was a man who was faithful, dependable, and a servant of Jesus Christ, spite the fact that his mother trained him spiritually without the assistance of her husband. 

My point is this – if you are married to an unbeliever, or a man weak in the faith, or have no man at all in your child’s picture, God will equip you to train your child for Him.  Your little one isn’t a “lost cause.”  God has a plan for his/her life, and He can and will enable you to have wisdom, strength and grace to lead him/her to the Lord.  May you be like Timothy’s mother, Eunice who Paul said had “unfeigned, (sincere) faith”.  She lived out  a wonderful testimony of faith and obedience before her son, and that helped him to follow the same path for his own life.

You live like Eunice, and watch your child turn out like Timothy.

With prayers for you,

I’m thrilled to have daughters who love to cook.  I’m learning that’s unusual these days.  I know my son-in-law is happy that his wife knows what to do in the kitchen!  Not only is she a good cook, but she also knows how to cook good meals on a budget.

Whitney had told me recently about a new dish she’d tried and it sounded really good.  She’s here as my guest to share her recipe and the menu that she prepared for her husband and sister for their Sunday dinner. You’ll also read her good tips about making this ahead, and preparing some things in advance for later use so she can whip this dish together in a jiffy. 

Learning to cook for someone’s tastes beside my own has been an adventure! Like so many other things in marriage, just because something is good to me doesn’t mean it is good to my husband. Thankfully, I am married to a sweet, kind and patient man who will try and happily eat anything I make! This menu is one that he loves, and it is great for Sunday.

I assembled the casserole on Saturday. After church on Sunday, I put it in the microwave for a few minutes to give it a head start, then into the oven for about 15 minutes until it is heated through and bubbly. This time I made a 9×13 pan, but for the two of us I usually make half the recipe and bake it in an 8×8 pan. When I do that, I only need half of each can of soup and tomatoes, so I put the other halves in ziploc bags and label the bag with a sharpie. Then, I lay the bags flat in my freezer so they freeze evenly. It is so nice to have all the ingredients (except for the tortillas and cheese) ready and pre-measured, right there in the freezer! You could also assemble the casserole and put the whole thing in the freezer for a quick meal for a busy day.

My husband is not a huge fan of tomatoes, so I puree them in my food processor. He loves the flavor in the dish, and I get my tomatoes!

King Ranch Chicken Casserole

1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup*
1 can cream of mushroom soup*
4 ounce can diced green chilies
15 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
12 – 14 corn tortillas (six inch) (I use flour tortillas)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
*Can use fat free

Place oil in large skillet. Add onions and saute over medium heat until onions are lightly browned. Add chicken, cream soups, chilies, tomatoes, and all seasonings. Stir and cook over medium heat until bubbly.

Tear tortillas into small pieces. Place half of pieces in 9×13 inch dish.

Top with 1/2 of chicken mixture and 1/2 of cheese. Top with remaining tortilla pieces, remaining chicken mixture, and remaining cheese. bake at 350 for thirty minutes, or until bubbly and lightly browned around the edges.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Pie
One 9″ Graham cracker crust
1 8 oz. PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese bar
1 can condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix the cream cheese with the condensed milk with a mixer. Then add the lemon juice and vanilla. Mix well to thicken. Pour into crust.


Blueberry Topping


1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
Heaping tsp. corn starch

Cook berries with sugar over medium/low heat, stirring well. Add a heaping tsp. corn starch to thicken. Mix well and cook about 5 min.

Pour over top of cream cheese mixture and chill for a few hours.

Thanks for joining me in my kitchen!
Whitney

Thanks, Whitney! I can’t wait to try this! So, did you all know how to cook when you got married?  Any funny stories you can share with us?  I have one…read about it Wednesday.  =)

P.S. – I’ll try to remember to share the recipe for the Corn Saute’ that Whitney mentioned.