Thursday, September 30, 2021

Thursday This and That

 My goodness, here we are at the end of September.  Crazy!!!  October is for sure the beginning of fall for me.  Campfires, leaves falling, cooler temps, sweatshirts............
I really do like this time of the year.  I think Spring is my favorite followed up with fall.

We had a conversation Tuesday about not having power or being without lights.  I noticed something the other day with a new neighbor.  Remember that yard I showed a while back with the full dump truck in the backyard?  (Oh that place was awful).  Well it has been cleaned up and there is a small family living there.  She obviously does not have a dryer and there is no clothes line - but that doesn't stop her!  She has figured a way to dry her clothes.  No power needed!!!!
She uses the fence rows!  Both sides.  Almost any day that is nice - you see her 'hanging' her laundry out there.  Bless her heart - she has a need and she figured out a solution until something better comes along.  So we all need to remember - "where there is a will, there is a way".  Being creative works.
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I think of different foods when cooler weather comes along.  I am a seasonal type person.  I can't wait for a pot of chili!!!!
There are some inexpensive food that can be had this time of the year to stretch that budget.  Now ids cabbage time and many farm markets have it and it is usually a cheaper ingredient.  I love chopped and fried cabbage (in bacon grease).  Mmmmmm!
Another favorite is sauteed cabbage with a little ham or smoked sausage or chopped Spam with rice added.  It is so good and comforting - and very filling and frugal.
                                                                 Comfort food!              
Smores are also a fall favorite - remember you don't have to buy all kinds of ingredients.  Just keep it simple  and you can even enjoy them in the house!!!!!!
Yep, store brand fudge striped cookies and marshmallows is all you need.  Roast the marshmallows over a gas flame (on stove) or heck - even with a lighter!!!!  LOL

FRIED CORN OR HOMINY
If you haven't tried this you need to.
1 can corn or hominy - drained
chopped peppers and chopped onion
Fry all together in butter or bacon grease (yes) until the peppers and onion are tender and corn or hominy has a lightly golden color.
A favorite of mine.  Makes for a nice side dish and something different.

EASY GLAZED CARROTS
1 pkg. baby carrots (16 oz.)
1/4 C apple cider
1/4 C apple jelly
1 1/2 tsp. dijon-style mustard
Place carrots and cider in a sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Simmer until carrots are tender and liquid is pretty well gone.  Add jelly and mustard.  Jelly melts and glazes.
These are so easy and tasty.

Now is the time to think about adding new and different dishes to your meal plan.  Keeps things fun and you don't get bored and your family tries new things.
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Now is the time to start looking for the ingredients to make up jar recipes - whether meal or spices - coffees or teas or chocolate - so many great ideas to be had.  I will do some posts of jar recipes in coming days.  They are nice to have on the pantry shelves and they are nice to have for gifts.  Jar recipes make great gift baskets.
Super nice to have on the shelf in case that unexpected person drops by around the holidays and you want to give them something.  Makes nice hostess gifts as well.
Coming soon!!!

Now is orchard time - apples, cider and pumpkins and gourds!  I love apples and cider!  The orchard I go to has a sales building that has a huge fireplace - on a cold day a fire will be roaring!  That is their only heat and it is just so fun to go in.  
Fall is in the air!

What are your favorite fall ideas?  Favorite foods or traditions?



27 comments:

  1. I am going to try the stores idea one night this fall!
    Also thanks for the way to transform canned hominy. I am adding to our canned food reserves and this sounds like something that would really amp up the flavor. Especially since I think hominy has little flavor straight from the can.

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    1. Enjoy your smores!
      I used to hate hominy - but love it this way. It is so yummy. Really does give it flavor.
      Adds something different to the lineup for dinner!

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  2. Your ideas sound yummy! I'll give them all a try. On Sunday I made a canned ham with baby potatoes and baby carrots. Another night I made a skillet dinner using cubed ham and potatoes with 2 fresh, chopped zucchini and a little freshly ground pepper; it was delicious! Tonight will be penne Alfredo using ham and frozen broccoli or peas.

    We're still having summer-warm days here, but the mornings and evenings are blissfully cool. --Elise

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    1. P.S. Reserved the pan liquid from the ham, strained into a clean frosting tub (about 1-1/2 cups), and popped it into the freezer door. When the weather cools, it will be used to season a pot of split pea & bacon soup with homemade bread.

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    2. Great uses of the ham and they sound so good. The ham, potatoes and zucchini sound right up my alley. I just love mix-ups!
      It warm during the day here as well - but evenings and mornings are very cool. I love it!

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    3. I have a container of ham 'juice' in the freezer as well - super great seasoning for beans or split peas
      Mmmmmm!

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    4. I've also used ham 'juice' to make broccoli cheddar soup, cabbage soup, etc. A little bit goes a long way for seasoning!

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  3. Cheryl,
    Throw a little cream cheese in your fried corn, I promise it is so good. Just take off heat and stir in. You will love it!

    Okay,let's go off topic. Do you have any idea how many people get so much joy from you. That we are excited to read to your post. That we are inspired by you. I do not think you have a clue how much you make a difference in the life's of us everyday people. You give so much, inspire so much, give so much to everyone and I just want to give you a big THANK YOU!!!

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    1. Now that is something I will try - it sounds yummy.

      Oh my - I don't have words No I can't imagine that.
      You are more than kind and I am just dumbfounded. Thank you so much much for your sweet and kind words.
      That truly made my day!

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  4. We have a lot of hominy on the shelves since the discount store had big cans 3/$1 awhile back. I appreciate having a new idea for preparing it!

    In Aldi this morning the bottled juice shelf was bare along with other areas of the store. So I asked at check out about the juice because we always keep cranberry on hand. We were told that there is a shortage of it and if we see it anywhere we had better grab it. So we went across the street to Walmart and sure enough the shelf there was almost bare. We did find 3 bottles of O Spray but it was double what we pay at Aldi. Just a heads up. We will be checking for it at every store to keep it in stock here.

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    1. Hope that helps with the hominy. I love it fried.

      It seems EVERYTHING is in short supply today! I do believe it is labor and transportation problems. I figured if I can't find something I 'want' - I will just get what I 'can'.
      I am super easy with substituting things - but I know everyone isn't.
      As Rosana Rosana Danna said IT'S ALWAYS SOMETHING!!!

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  5. Cheryl's got her fall mojo! It is a wonderful time to appreciate the harvest, the cooler days and the last of what we get before the big freeze and snows that we get in my neck of the woods. Happy Fall, Y'all.

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    1. LOL - Yep Cheryl is getting that mojo for sure. It is a wonderful time of the year. A cleansing of sorts.

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  6. I've never heard of hominy. It must be a regional thing.

    Fall always meant fresh potatoes and corn from the garden. Mom would make hamburger patties (no buns) to go along with the veg, and for dessert baked apples.

    After the crops were harvested, our Dad would take us out to fields to pile up the remaining straw from the crops. On a cool, and windless evening, we'd go out to burn the piles. It would be dark before we finished and we'd run from pile to pile with a pitchfork of burning straw to light the next. Only once do I remember a fire starting to get away from us when a wind came up, but the four of us managed to keep it contained - most likely my Dad did the most.

    Take care, stay well.

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    1. Really - never heard of hominy? It is sold all over the U.S.. It is a corn product - dried and treated and then canned. It has been used for centuries here and it is the key ingredient of a Mexican dish called Posole. (which is delish)

      What fun your story is. I bet you kids thought that was just such an 'adult' thing to do. It sounds like fun - but maybe it was more work than fun. Fresh potatoes are always wonderful in the fall and anything apple!!!!
      Lovely memories

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  7. The menu in this kitchen shifts with the seasons. I just finished canning tomatoes and salsa. Lots of preserving in Aug/Sept. There are fewer salads and more rib-sticking meals, i.e. chicken pot pie, borscht, slow cooked foods. I'm thinking about Thanksgiving on Oct 11 and there will definitely be roasted veg (potatoes, carrots, squash). Cabbage is one of my favorite foods cooked with mashed potatoes or fried with bacon. Ditto to what Texas said about your blog and you.

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    1. I figured I couldn't be the only one that cooks according to seasons. II love rib sticking meals and hearty foods in fall and winter. Fried cabbage and bacon with mashed potatoes - is a BUG yum!!!
      My goodness - thank you so much!!!!

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  8. I live alone so do not have to worry about what others want. I like to fix big pots of soup and freeze so it is always there when it is cold weather

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    1. Same here. Not that I had to worry when Glen was here - he loved anything and would eat whatever I served!!! He didn't mind leftovers and could eat them morning, noon or night.

      I fix what I want and like you - if more than I want to eat this week - I will freeze for later.

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  9. One Christmas I gave all the family jar gifts. They loved it. May have to do so again this year.

    God bless.

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    1. Jar recipes and home canned and homemade goodies - is pretty much my goodie baskets every year. I also add a few bits and bobs that people may not buy themselves. They always love them.
      HEY, we ALL have to EAT!!!!!!

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  10. Fall is finally here (I think). It is a cleansing of sorts, although I had never thought of it that way but it really is.

    Excellent idea about the hominy. We have some and usually put it in taco soup. Have to try it your way. We canned butter beans, pinto beans and navy beans. Also used the Food Saver to do up cup measures of rice and put in the freezer. Handy appliance!

    We watched Becky Walker's tribute to her husband (Hillbilly Kitchen). She said some folks were trying to say bad and false things about how he died. That just made me sick. I don't know how she managed to keep her composure during the video. I thought of you and what you went through when Glen passed.

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    1. It really is a cleansing season. Then winter is the resting season.
      The beans sound great and sure will be handy.

      I started watching her tribute and I couldn't finish it that day. I will go back and finish later. It just tore my heart up and sure brought back memories. It is the toughest thing I have ever been through. I would think the only think worse than losing your spouse would be losing a child. That I can't fathom.
      She was being very strong - and it sure makes you wonder why people have to so hateful. Just WHY.

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  11. Yes, Fall is in the air and I am so happy about that. I love any kind of Fall dessert that includes apples, pumpkin or maple. I just bought two packages of pumpkin fudge striped cookies. I think I'm gonna try making s'mores with them. We love hominy. Only where we live we call it posole and we always have it with red chile and tamales. So delicious.

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    1. The air is changing as well as the scenery. I imagine those would be good as smores.
      I have had had a soup called posole which I love. I guess we all call things by different names. That sounds good with chili and tamales.
      I will remember that next time I have tamales!

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