"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."

11.29.2010

Little Old Me???

I received an email informing me that I have been honored by a website called Online Cooking Schools. I am listed as a Top Southern Style American Cuisine Blog.

I am on a list with such blogs as A Southern Fairy Tale and Deep South Dish, two of my favorite food blogs, among many other amazing food bloggers! I was so surprised to see my little old blog's name on that list!



Thank you for the honor!

11.24.2010

"Turkey" Day

I'm doing nearly all of my cooking tonight, and I'm wondering....what's cooking in your kitchen this Thanksgiving Holiday?

We are having Thanksgiving dinner with my in-laws this year, and they've decided to have ham instead of turkey. I'm not a huge turkey lover so that's ok with me.

Ever since the first holiday meal I had with my in-laws, I learned to bring several dishes to supplement the dinner that they cook.

I am, obviously, from the South.

They are from England. The food is different, and so is the quantity.

The first time I had a holiday meal with them, I looked around and literally thought, "where's the rest of the food?" It just looked like any ordinary dinner for a small family. The food was okay....some of it anyway (ok, the mashed parsnips were freaking nauseating). But I was glad we were going to my parents' afterward! I couldn't wait to dig in to the real food! I don't know how John survived all these years without me; the man LOVES food.

Anyway, this year I am bringing:

chicken & dumplings
peanut butter cookies
w/ hershey kisses on top
mashed potatoes & gravy (John's request, I don't think it really 'goes' with ham, but whatever)
Fordhook lima beans
deviled eggs
sweet tea
and our
traditional turkey bread that I get from Publix every year. We may not have turkey, but we will have turkey bread!!

And Shelbie is making
Monkey Bread.

So, I'm making sure our Thanksgiving Dinner is Off the Chain!
Hope yours is too.....what's cooking at your house?

11.23.2010

Monkey Bread

I mentioned on my main blog, Putting the Fun in DysFUNctional, that my daughter Shelbie made Monkey Bread for our church potluck lunch this past Sunday.
My friend Unknown Mami was alarmed, and said she refused to eat bread made with monkeys!
To which I replied, Don't knock it till ya try it!
So I thought I'd share the recipe here on my regretfully neglected food blog.
{I'm on a mission to get all of my blogs going strong again!}

Now I promise, no monkeys are harmed in the making of this monkey bread. In fact, I have no earthly idea how they came up with the name Monkey Bread, but who am I to question?
I first learned about monkey bread from my late-ex-MIL. That is, my ex-husband's late mother. She used to make it for her kids, and she passed the instructions on to me. I haven't made it in ages, but they make it at the ex's house often, and my teenage daughter has learned how to make it. The recipe is actually on the back of the Pillsbury biscuit package, and that's the one I'm going to share here, because we don't really use a recipe.

Monkey Bread

3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 cans refrigerated biscuits
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
3/4 cup LIGHT brown sugar

NOTE: The recipe calls for this to be made in a Bundt cake pan. However, I don't have one and have never made it that way. We just bake them on cookie sheets individually (not piled up). This also reduces the cook time a lot, you just bake them for about 10 minutes like you would bake biscuits normally.

1. Grease or spray 12 cup Bundt cake pan (or cookie sheets).
2. Mix sugar & cinnamon in 1-gallon bag. Cut each biscuit into quarters. Shake quarters in bag to coat; place in pan. Mix butter & brown sugar; pour over biscuit pieces (we just spoon it over them).
3. Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes (if using Bundt pan); 10 minutes if using cookie sheets, or until golden brown. Cool 5 minutes. If using Bundt pan, turn upside down. Cookie sheets, just remove with a spatula & pile them up on a plate.

Serve warm. It's great for breakfast or a dessert. YUM!