"Growing up Southern is a privilege, really. It's more than where you're born - it's an idea, a state of mind that seems imparted at birth. It's more than loving fried chicken, sweet tea, high school football, country music, and acoustic guitars. It's being hospitable, being devoted to front porches, magnolias, the good Lord, and each other. We don't become Southern - we're born that way."

6.22.2010

Fresh Berry Cobbler



When we moved into our home, we knew we had blueberry bushes growing in the back, and we were told that they produced well.
We were not told that they actually produce like the world is coming to an end and blueberries were the only thing that would save human kind.
We also didn't know that we had wild blackberry bushes growing all along one side of the fence. Soooo needless to say, we have an abundance of berries right now, and I am looking for things to do with them. I found a cobbler recipe in an old cookbook, tweaked it, and made two delicious cobblers. I brought the blackberry cobbler to work with me two hours ago and there is maybe one large spoonful left! The blueberry cobbler, I left at home to be devoured eaten by me hubby with vanilla ice cream. O.M.G. is it good!
So here is the recipe, which I will probably be using a LOT in the coming weeks!

*note: this recipe is for one cobbler.*
Blackberry or Blueberry Cobbler
½ cup butter (1 stick)
1 cup flour
½ cup white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 cup milk
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. nutmeg
2 cups blackberries or blueberries, washed & drained

Melt butter in 8" square baking dish in 350 degree oven. (I used a round dish for one cobbler. The universe did not explode.) Blend next 6 ingredients in bowl. Pour batter into melted butter. Spoon berries into the center of the batter. Sprinkle with a little cinnamon & sugar. Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees until browned.
Serve over vanilla ice cream. Eat until you are ready to POP!

blueberry
blackberry
{Do you think I need to change the stupid date stamp on my camera?}

P.S. I'm giving away FREE CHOCOLATE over at Putting the FUN in DysFUNctional!
Check it out!

6.15.2010

What's Going On?

I've been on a little bloggy break lately. You can see what I've been up to here.
I wanted to share with you all a couple of new recipes.
I found this one at a new-to-me site, Recipe Shoebox.

The ingredients:
4 strips bacon, halved crosswise
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1-1/2 lbs)
salt and pepper
1 cup favorite BBQ sauce
1/2 chipotle pepper, minced (optional)
1/4 cup water4 large onion rolls, split (we used onion hamburger buns)
1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Fry bacon in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until crisp, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Cook chicken in bacon fat until browned on one side, about 4 minutes. Flip chicken and add barbecue sauce, chipotle pepper (if desired), and water.
Cover, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until chicken is cooked through and sauce is slightly thickened, about 8 minutes.
Remove chicken from skillet and slice into bite size pieces. Arrange onion rolls cut side up on baking sheet. Divide chicken among bottom haves of rolls and top with sauce, cheese, and bacon.
Bake open-faced sandwiches in oven until cheese melts and rolls are golden brown, about 4 minutes. Top each sandwich with toasted roll top.
Serve immediately with a fruit smoothie on the side. Makes 4 sandwiches. Enjoy!

My notes: I skipped the chipotle pepper just because I didn't have any around. I doubled the recipe and added more bacon, because, ya know, bacon!!! YUM!! It was absolutely delicious, we all loved it.

And this dish from Taste of Home is sitting in my refrigerator right now, waiting for me to finish it for our breakfast in the morning. I'll let you know how it turns out. I am so looking forward to going home and eating it, it sounds wonderful!

Ingredients
1 loaf (10 ounces) French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (10 cups)
8 eggs
3 cups milk
4 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon salt, optional
TOPPING:
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Maple syrup, optional

Directions
Place bread cubes in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and salt if desired. Pour over bread. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.
Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Dot with butter. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over the top.
Cover and bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes. Serve with maple syrup if desired. Yield: 12 servings.


6.01.2010

Krispy Kreme Free Doughnut & Publix Deal




Friday, June 4th, is National Donut Day!

What better day could there be, I ask you?
And Krispy Kreme is giving away one Free Doughnut on that day, no purchase necessary!






Also, if you have a Publix nearby and drink Pepsi products like they're going out of style (not that I would know anything about that, ahem, *sips Diet Dr Pepper*), then this deal is custom-made for you.


At Publix you can buy 3 twelve packs of Pepsi products for $11.oo, and get a 4th one for free. (so, it's 4/$11.oo). Great deal!




Happy saving!