A Peek From My (Snowy) Porch

February 25, 2015March 13, 2015 RefreshHer6 Comments

This snowy scene was my view yesterday, and perhaps yours, too. It was a bit of a surprise! They had predicted snow flurries, but we got four inches after most of the previous snowfall had melted the day before. I love it, so I’m not complaining. However, I am dreaming and planning a bit for spring, as I’m sure many others are.

As I rested inside all warm and toasty, I enjoyed looking through my new March issue of Southern Living Magazine. I was delighted to see the articles about The Doors of Charleston. There were gorgeous pictures of the houses in this historic South Carolina city, whose homes boast front doors of many hues. This was one that caught my eye…

Do you know why? Because last summer I painted my front door.
Maybe you saw this picture I’d posted…

I went with an Apricot color, very similar to the Southern Living photo. I LOVE it! It sets the house off so nicely, rather than just blending in.

But I feel like the front door needs plants that will set it off. So while the snow is blowing around me, I’m looking at the topiaries and flowers they added to the Charleston house and making notes for springtime purchases.

The Southern Living containers boast of petunias and calibrachoas in peach and orange, which echo the door’s lovely color. I have made a note of this so when the snow melts and spring comes, I’ll be ready for the local nursery with list in hand!

MiniFamous™ Double Rose Chai Calibrachoa Annual Plant

So rather than pout while the winter weather stays around like an unwanted cold, why not do some planning for your yard and house?

What could you do to improve your patio?
Will you need new outdoor rugs? What color?
How’s the umbrella for your patio table? Will you need to replace it?
Do you need to add a nice fresh color and coat of paint to your front door? You could even do that while you wait for the white, fluffy stuff to melt!

Some shopping on Amazon won’t even require you to get outside!

What are you dreaming and planning for as the snow flies?

With love from my country porch,

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What’s Cookin’ in the Country?

February 23, 2015March 13, 2015 RefreshHer14 Comments

In the Old days women made amazing Sunday dinners that included yummy fixings like Fried Chicken with mashed potatoes and white, cream gravy. But also in the old days, everyone had to wait until 2:00 to eat dinner! Most of us are starving when we get home from church, and if dinner isn’t on the table in thirty minutes, people at my house start snacking!

Lucky for me, years ago I found a recipe from Carnation Evaporated Milk that is called, Baked Chicken that Makes it own Gravy! No need to stand and fry chicken pieces after church – this dish is baked in the oven, topped with a Cream soup mixture and baked a little longer, yielding a lovely creamy gravy – perfect for those mashed potatoes that were cooked in the crock pot!

Here’s my menu for yesterday:

Baked Chicken that Makes its own Gravy

Mashed Potatoes ~ ~ Honey-Glazed Carrots

Salad ~ ~ Make-ahead Butterhorns

Light Chocolate Pie ~ ~ Laura Bush’s Texas Buttermilk Coconut Pie

Baked Chicken & Gravy

3 to 3 1/2 lb. frying chicken pieces
1/4 c. flour
1/4 c. melted butter
2/3 c. (small can) undiluted Carnation Evaporated Milk
10 1/2 oz. can cream mushroom soup
1 c. grated process American cheese – I don’t add this – I don’t feel like it’s needed.
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 c. (1 lb. can) drained whole onions – I love onions, but I don’t add this either!
1/4 lb. sliced mushrooms
Dash paprika

Coat chicken with flour. Arrange in single layer with skin down in melted butter in 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish. Bake uncovered in moderately hot oven (425 degrees) for 30 minutes. Turn chicken, bake until brown, 15 to 20 minutes longer or until tender. Remove from oven; reduce temperature to 325 degrees. Pour off excess fat. Add onions and mushrooms to chicken. Combine Carnation, soup, cheese, salt and pepper. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle with paprika. Cover with foil. Return to oven, continue baking 15 to 20 minutes. I found it helpful to add some chicken broth as it’s baking. It needs a little more liquid to keep from getting dry, and I love the the addition of the chicken broth to the gravy!

Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes

Peel potatoes and place in crock pot with water to cover. Add salt. Cook on high for several hours ( I do it on high for about 3 hours, then allow my cooker to move to low for the next couple hours until I get home). Drain water and mash as normal.

This was a pretty heavy meal in my book, but I was feeding a some young people who I thought would appreciate old fashioned kind of cooking! They don’t have to know how easy it was to put together! Shhhhhhh. If you’re a chicken and mashed potatoes kind of girl you need to try this recipe! Your grandma will be proud!

What recipe of your Grandma’s carries special memories?

With love from my country kitchen,

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A Peek From My Porch

February 18, 2015February 19, 2015 RefreshHer6 Comments

Last weekend we had our Mission’s conference at church. I was blessed to get to host dinner at our house for one of our missionary families on Sunday. Since it was Valentine’s weekend I tried to reflect that in my table setting and food.

I wanted to make a special dessert that I’d found on Pinterest recently. The recipe was Salted Caramel Cheesecakes from The Rustic Willow Food blog. What could be more “Valentines-y” than Cheesecake wrapped in a red wrapper?!

I tweaked the recipe a little, but it’s great which ever way you do it! You can’t go wrong with cheesecake, caramel and chocolate, right? I like this miniature version, because it’s not as intimidating to make as a whole cheesecake that can crack down the middle. These are pretty much fool proof.

Here’s her recipe:

Salted Caramel Cheesecakes

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
4 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 packages 8 oz. cream cheesed, softened
4 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
salted caramel – Here’s my recipe that I used instead.of the purchased sauce
semi-sweet chocolate chips
walnut morsels

INSTRUCTIONS
Heat oven to 350–place 12 cupcake wrappers in muffin pan
Mix graham cracker crumbs, 4 tablespoons sugar and butter in a bowl until all crumbs are covered in butter
Distribute mixture evenly across all wrappers (about 1 tablespoon each)
Press down on crumbs and form a tight base in each one
Bake for 5 minutes–take out and let cool while making cheesecake filling
Add cream cheese, 4 tablespoons sugar, and milk in a mixer
Mix on low setting until well-combined, pushing down edges as needed
Add vanilla and mix for 30 more seconds
Distribute cheesecake filling across all 12 wrappers
Bake for 15-18 minutes
Take out and let cool on counter for 1 hour
Add 1 tablespoon of salted caramel to each cheesecake
Sprinkle with chocolate chips and walnuts
Refrigerate for 2 hours

I love the pretty cupcake wrappers. They added a lovely touch to an already pretty dessert!

You need to try these; they’re super simple and so de-lish! Did you make a special dessert for Valentine’s Day?

With love from my country porch,

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Tell the Next Generation

February 17, 2015March 13, 2015 RefreshHerLeave a comment

On Sunday I was standing in the choir loft at church while all the congregation was doing one thing that I love ~ reading Scripture together. The passage on the screen was Psalm 145. As one voice, we read the passage. When we got to verse four, it was as though the brakes were hit and everything came to a halt. The rest of the congregation read on, but my mind was mulling over one phrase:

One generation shall praise thy works to another…

The thought the Lord brought to my mind as I read that was, “That is mentoring and discipleship!” One generation should tell the next

what God has done,

how He has answered prayer,

how He guides,

how He loves,

how His Word has the answer for all their questions.

The whole chapter tells all the mighty acts of the Lord that the psalmist was going to share. You and I have our own “chapter” of what God has done for us! The question is, Who are we telling? Am I praising and sharing God’s goodness? I don’t know about you, but for me it’s easier to complain. Griping comes natural to my sinful heart. I get forgetful of all the wonderful acts the Lord has done on my behalf. I worry about me instead of pouring into another person. When I focus on me and my gripes, I’m not praising the Lord. In short, I’m not obeying this passage!

Do you have a younger person (or persons) with whom you are regularly sharing what God is doing or has done in your life? If we’re keeping it to ourselves we’re not only disobeying, but we’re also missing out on the joy of encouraging them! How might you and I go about telling others?

Share these blessing in a brief sentence on your Facebook status (Sure beats griping about the weather or the pokey driver on the interstate!).
Give a testimony at your church. Don’t worry about tripping over your words or saying the “wrong thing.” Give God the glory; that’s always the right thing!
Call a young friend who might be struggling in the area that God has worked in your life and share what He’s done so that He would be glorified and they would be encouraged!
When someone asks you “How are you?” Tell them how wonderfully good the Lord has been! They asked, so tell them!
Instagram a picture that would represent your answer!

“One generation will praise they works to another.” Will you?

Lovingly,

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Freshen Up Friday

February 13, 2015March 13, 2015 RefreshHer7 Comments

It wasn’t until a few years ago at my friend’s house that I tasted a Pomegranate. Seriously, where have these little guys been all my life? Not only are they delicious, they’re really good for you! It has little seeds that are full of juice. Only the seeds and juice are edible, but they are full of flavor and the seeds have a nice little crunch. With all the other fruit I’ve been buying at Aldi’s recently, Pomegranates have been a major score at a little under a dollar.

They might look a little intimidating to peel, but they’re very easy to open up. You don’t peel it like an orange or cut it like an apple – you do a little of both.

Cut around the top and kind of “scalp” it so that the lid of the fruit lifts off.
Score down, from top to bottom, where you see the six sections
Pop one section off at a time. The seeds will come right out. Repeat on all the other sections.

What a nice addition this is to a daily fruit intake!

Put in Vanilla yogurt
Add it to fruit salad
Top your hot oatmeal
Make juice with it
Sprinkle some over your salad
Add it to a smoothie
Put on Top of Vanilla ice cream
Eat it right from the fruit!

Freshen up your Friday with a yummy Pomegranate! It’s even the right color for this Valentine weekend!

Do you eat Pomegranate? How do you eat it?

Stay refreshed,