What’s better than a home-cooked Sunday dinner? Dinner that’s home-cooked for you in your daughter’s kitchen! We were at Whitney’s house this weekend so I could attend her bridal shower at her church. The folks at Clearview are so gracious and we had a sweet time around the Bread of God’s Word and worship of our great God. We then enjoyed a wonderful meal around Whitney’s kitchen table with her and her fiance’, then the shower with the sweet ladies from her church. It was a special day indeed!

Shes’ good…the meal was ready within minutes of walking in from the morning service! Our growling stomachs loved her preparedness!

Dinner was Chicken Stew – a recipe she’s adapted for the crock pot so it will be ready when church is over. To make this recipe in the crock pot, put it in for 8 hours on low or high for 4 hours. She also adds chicken breasts that are slightly frozen!

It was “deliciousness” in a bowl! She served it with oatmeal rolls, crackers, cheese and salami. Pudding parfaits with chocolate pudding, pound cake cubes and Cool Whip were for those that had room at the end of meal.

The recipe is from Food network and is as follows:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 stalks celery, cut into bite-size pieces
1 carrot, peeled, cut into bite-size pieces
1 small onion, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can chopped tomatoes
1 (14-ounce) can low-salt chicken broth
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn into pieces
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
2 chicken breast with ribs (about 1 1/2 pounds total)
1 (15-ounce) can organic kidney beans, drained (rinsed if not organic)
Serving suggestion: crusty bread

Directions

Heat the oil in a heavy 5 1/2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the celery, carrot, and onion. Saute the vegetables until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in the tomatoes with their juices, chicken broth, basil, tomato paste, bay leaf, and thyme. Add the chicken breasts; press to submerge.
Bring the cooking liquid to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently uncovered until the chicken is almost cooked through, turning the chicken breasts over and stirring the mixture occasionally, about 25 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the chicken breasts to a work surface and cool for 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Add the kidney beans to the pot and simmer until the liquid has reduced into a stew consistency, about 10 minutes.
Discard the skin and bones from the chicken breasts. Shred or cut the chicken into bite- size pieces. Return the chicken meat to the stew. Bring the stew just to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Whitney simplifies the recipe by adding chicken breast fillets, then cubing them after the stew has cooked all the way through.

What’s been cooking in your kitchen recently or have you blessed to be invited out, as I was?

With love,

What a way to start my day! I opened my Bible yesterday and read Psalm 39:1 – I will take heed to my ways that I sin not with my tongue. It was convicting! I grabbed my journal and wrote, “If only I could learn this!” I’ve found that as people age, it gets easier to say whatever comes to mind…not always a good choice! Gulp, I’m talking about myself! I have regretted too often saying what I was thinking!

1. be like apples of gold in pictures of silver. Proverbs 25:11
2. be words spoken in due season. Isaiah 50:4
3. be a well of life. Proverbs 10;11
4. be health to those that hear them. Proverbs 12:18
5. would make others glad. Proverbs 12:25

The psalmist had the right idea – we must think about what we’re going to say before it comes through our lips. If we stop and think first, we’d be far less likely to sin with our words. A good guideline for what to say is:

• Is it true?
• Is it kind?
• Is it necessary?

If it can’t pass all three questions, I shouldn’t say it! Period!

“Lord, make me take heed to my ways. Help me to listen to myself think before I speak and then refrain from saying anything that would cause my tongue to sin! And thank you for starting my day off by getting this right…again!”

With love,

Your heart begins to pound, perhaps your palms get damp. The urging you hear in your ear is the Holy Spirit’s prompting,

“Tell her/him about Me. Share the Gospel. Speak up now.”

P.S. Let’s pray for my friend as she makes follow-up visits and disciples this new 101 year-old babe in Christ!

I love little lamps and candles. The proof is sitting all over my house. Up on my china cabinet, on the table in front of the living room window, on the coffee table, on the kitchen counter, on the bathroom counter…everywhere – you’ll see hospitality lights or candles. I love the softness they give to a room. They help the space to be cozy and inviting.

Saturday I was reading Proverbs 13 verse 9 that says, The light of the righteous rejoiceth. Being a lover of lights, I stopped and thought about that. Why would the light of the righteous be able to rejoice?

• Jesus is the light and we can always rejoice in Him!
• His light reveals who I am. I can get right and rejoice Ps 36:9b – In thy light we shall see light. Spurgeon says that we never see Jesus in the light of self, but self in the light of Jesus. When I look at Him I see myself correctly.
• If I’m doing righteous things I don’t mind the light – I rejoice that it’s on and revealing what I’m doing!
• I can share the light with others and that always brings rejoicing! Luke 15:7…joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth…

However, the second part of Proverbs 13:9 says, but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.

• A wicked person’s light will only shine for a while. The “wick” on sin is short – it doesn’t last. It gives temporary pleasure then then it is snuffed out. All that’s left is darkness and ashes. There is no warmth, no light, no rejoicing – only cold, darkness and sadness.

The amazing thing is that it is our choice to have light or darkness! How deceived we are to choose the temporary light for Eternal light (Jesus Christ)!

Is your light on and full of rejoicing, or is the wick on your sin about to burn out? God’s mercy is extended to each of us to turn to the Light of the World and find forgiveness and then rejoicing!

With love,

The 30’s Sunday school class had an Italian lunch after church yesterday. I brought a bowl of salad and a Pumpkin Roll. When I had my home baking business several years ago I made lots of pumpkin rolls at Thanksgiving and Christmas! They’re not hard to make and will turn out great if you follow a few pointers. I’ll share my technique and recipe with you…it’s no secret!

Pumpkin Roll

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup mashed, cooked pumpkin ( regular size can of pumpkin will yield 2 pumpkin rolls + about 1/2 cup extra for muffins!)
1 tsp lemon juice
3/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1-2 Tbl. powdered sugar
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup marg or butter
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Line a 15 10 x 1″ jelly roll pan with waxed paper, then spray well with cooking spray; set aside. I do this instead of greasing and flouring the pan – I’ve found it comes out of the pan much easier.

Beat eggs in a large bowl at high speed of an electric mixer until thick; gradually add 1 cup sugar, and beat 5 additional minutes. Stir in pumpkin and lemon juice.

Combine flour and next 5 ingredients; gradually stir into pumpkin mixture. Spread batter evenly in pan; sprinkle with 1 cup nuts, gently pressing into batter. Bake at 375 degrees for 12 -15 minutes.

Sift 1-2 tablespoons powdered sugar in a 15 x 10-inch rectangle on a cloth towel. When cake is done, immediately loosen from sides of pan, and turn out onto sugared towel. Starting at narrow end, roll up cake and towel together; cool completely on a wire rack, seam side down.

Beat Cream cheese and butter in a large bowl at high speed of an electric mixer; gradually add 1 cup powdered sugar and vanilla, beating mixture until blended.

Unroll cake; spread with cream cheese mixture, and carefully reroll. Place cake on plate, seam side down. Garnish with whipped cream or pecans, if desired. Yield: 10 servings.

Here are pictures of each step:

Waxed paper-lined and sprayed jelly roll pan
I often mix up the dry ingredients at another time and mark them in a plastic bag so this process is quicker.

Batter is poured into prepared pan and sprinkled with nuts.

A sugared towel is ready for the baked cake.

Finished cake is flipped out onto towel

Gently pull waxed paper off of cake

Cake is rolled around the towel and allowed to cool completely before icing.

I usually make two rolls at a time. I can have the batter for the second one ready to pop into the oven in the time it takes the first one to bake.

The cooled cakes are frosted with cream cheese icing.

Cakes are rolled up then turned seam side down.

Sliced and ready to eat!

We were privileged to have some of our own missionaries, the Loescher’s, here on furlough this weekend. They serve in Cameroon, Africa and were coming here to visit our church and share about their work.

My husband had said we’d take them out to dinner when they arrived Saturday night, but I got up Saturday morning and knew I had things on hand with which I could make homemade soup. How much better to have them here in our home than try to visit in a restaurant! So I set to making chicken noodle soup using a chicken carcass I had from my roasting hen earlier in the week. I whipped up a batch of pumpkin muffins with the remains of the pumpkin from the rolls, and then decided to have a savory bread as well. A friend at church had shared a recipe for Parmesan Knots just last week, and they looked so easy I decided to give them a try.

Take a look:

It only requires canned buttermilk biscuits and a few ingredients to brush over the bread to make this recipe! I made only a portion of the recipe and they were all gone at the end of the meal! Thanks, Lora!

Parmesan Knots

1/2 c vegetable oil (I used Olive oil)

1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 t dried parsley flakes

1 1/2 t dried oregano

1 t garlic powder

Dash black pepper

3 (12 oz) cans refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

In a small bowl, combine oil, cheese, parsley, oregano, garlic powder, and pepper. Set aside. Cut each biscuit in half. (This would be a good appetizer size. I left mine whole for supper) Roll each portion into a 6-inch rope; tie in a loose knot. Place on greased baking sheets. Bake @ 450 degrees for 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown. Immediately brush with the Parmesan mixture. Serve warm or freeze for up to 2 months.

That was my cooking weekend. What’s been cooking your kitchen?

With love,