memoir

I Think I Can! I Think I Can!

imageSometimes I get obsessive about canning and filling my freezers.  I make a point to get to it the markdowns at the meat counter and in the produce department.  You get great deals that way.  The butcher was marking meat down as I was making my selection today.  I simply handed him my purchases and he checked the date and marked it right then.  If I had been five minutes earlier, I’d have paid thirty percent more.  It made my day.  I make sure to watch the dates in he freezer and can the meat up if it’s been there a few months.   I buy whole turkeys after the holidays, bake them, and can the turkey and broth.  I still have four quarts of canned turkey from Christmas.  It makes great soup, turkey salad, pot pies, and casseroles.

Yesterday I got twenty pounds of assorted apples off the markdown rack for six dollars. I canned seven quarts of apple pie filling, five pints of apples in light syrup and juice and five pints of apple jam from the peelings.  It’s incredible to think of all that produce for just six dollars.  I’d cooked two pounds of dried navy beans and pork the night before, so I canned four quarts of beans as long as I had the canners out.  I’d been wanting to can sausage gravy, so I made a batch and canned two quarts of that, as well.  It turned out great!  The main thing to remember when canning meat, is that it has to process at least ninety minutes at ten to fifteen pounds pressure to kill off microbes.  Vegetables and fruit take far less time, so they will fall apart if you process them with at the same time as meat.

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I have two of these pressures canners, so I can can fourteen quarts at once.  I have an smaller canner I can use for pints or smaller.  Should you stumble up on a used pressure canner, you can find replacement parts easily on line.  You can also find brand specific instructions and parts lists on line.

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Bud built shelves in the garage for storage.  I mark and date jars with Sharpy.

 

 

 

Good Old Champ

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Art by Kathleen Holdaway Swain

I knew Champ, our horse, loved me since he trotted up to the fence every time he saw me. I carefully held my hand flat and let him snuffle up goodies with his velvety muzzle. My big sister said it he’d love anyone who slipped him apples, sugar and carrots, but she was just being mean. I didn’t tell my friends and cousins the trick, so they were scared he’d bite them. Before long, I found he could help himself to treats out of my pocket or off my shoulder.

My grandmother had written that she was coming for Easter and bringing Easter outfits with hats and shoes. I didn’t hear much except the part about outfits with hats and shoes. I was thrilled! I had been dying for a cowboy outfit with red boots, red hat, and shiny pistols in a holster but Mother said I needed other things worse. Good old Grandma knew what really mattered! I was up before daylight waiting for her. Breakfast and lunch dragged by…..…..nothing. I was getting more and more upset. Maybe Grandma wasn’t coming. Maybe she got lost. Just before dark an old black car crept up. We all flew out to the car, trying to get to her first. “What did you bring me? What did you bring me?” Mother tried to shush us, but nobody listened. Grandma was slow getting out of the car and slower getting in the house. No wonder it took her so long to get here. We got busy and helped with her bags and a big brown box from the back seat. There was plenty of room in there for a cowboy suit and lots of other good stuff.

Even though we were dying, Mother made us wait till Grandma went to the bathroom, got a cup of coffee, and caught her breath. She was slow at that, too. Finally, Grandma got the scissors and started cutting the strings on the box. She was so old her fingers shook. It took forever. I could have ripped into that box in a second, but would Mother let me? Noooooo!

Just before I died of old age, Grandma started pulling things out of the box. I knew she always saved the best for last. I got a gumball machine full of gumballs. That was great!! Next she pulled out a baby doll and handed it to me. Grandma couldn’t seem to remember I hated dolls, but I tried to be nice about it. All baby dolls were good for was burying when we played funeral. I tried to be patient till she got to the cowboy outfit. Finally, she hit bottom. She made me and my sister close our eyes and hold out our hands for our outfits.

I peeked just a little and was furious!! This was a horrible joke! We were both holding fancy Easter dresses, big ridiculous straw hats with flowers, and shiny white shoes. I hated them! Where were my cowboy boots and guns? My mother gave me a dirty look before I could tell Grandma what I really thought. I hated dresses, but Mother made us put on our Easter getups and pose next to the fence for a picture. It was hot. The clothes were scratchy. We looked stupid. My prissy big sister kept dancing around like a ballerina while the mean kids from next door laughed at us across the fence. I’d be dealing with them later. Boy was I disgusted.

Mother was as slow as Grandma. While I stood there like a dope waiting for her to take that darn picture, Champ came up behind me expecting a treat. We both got a big surprise. I felt a big scrunchy chomp on my head. The strap on my hat stretched tight, snapped, and that horrible hat with the flowers was gone. I flipped around, and Champ was eating my Easter hat. He still had straw and flowers sticking out of his mouth, but I could see he didn’t think too much of it either. He was the best horse ever. I never had to wear that hat again. He did love me!

20 Questions with Linda Bethea

Reblogging from Don Massenzio’s Blog

Unknown's avatarDon Massenzio

Today we sit down with author and blogger Linda Bethea. She has published her first book and we are going to hear about her work, inspiration and even get a sample of her first completed effort.

Please enjoy this edition of 20 Questions:

me-and-annQ1) When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

As soon as I saw books, I wanted to write.  I drew pictures on typing paper and tried to sew the pages into a book before I started school.  I thought people who wrote books had to be the finest folks in the world.  It was like a superpower!

Q2) How long does it typically take you to write a book?

I’ve only published one.  It took a couple of years to write and vegetated a few months before I really got serious about publishing.  I was very intimidated by the process, imagining it was…

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A Simple Command

horse-skidding

Vintage Picture of Logging Operation

For a time, Daddy had an old time logging operation.  Mr. Bill was old when Daddy was just a kid so he was probably at least eighty at the time he ran Daddy’s brought his horses and came to work.  He set up camp in a shack on skids he hauled in on his old truck.  A mess of barking dogs piled out when he opened the truck door, quieting at his word.  A truck pulled in behind him hauling in his two enormous logging horses.  At Uncle Bill’s command, the horses backed out of the trailer and moved into position behind his truck.  He harnessed them to chains attached to the shack.  In seconds it was unloaded and skidded into place.  He quickly set to work sawing and positioning a few saplings to make a shelter for the horses, topping it was a few pieces of tin he pulled from the back of his truck.  Two bucket for feed and a water bucket later, he and the horses were snug at home.  The intelligent horses needed no reins, following Bill’s verbal commands as they slid the big logs out of the thickets, positioning them in perfect loading position next to the skids of the log wagon. There they waited until unchained from their load, only to walk around the wagon to assume their position on the opposite side of the wagon.  As soon as they heard the chain hooked to their harness, they worked in tandem to pull the huge logs onto the wagon, halting at the sound of the logs settling into place.  Had they only had opposable thumbs and been able to manage the chains, they wouldn’t have needed the help of the man at all.  It was amazing to see the skill and respect Bill and his giants shared in the job they did.

 

Sunday Living History Interview – Far East Prisoners of War – Hilary Custance Green

Reblogged from Smorgasbord

Yellow Hair by Andrew Joyce

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Yellow Hair documents the injustices done to the Sioux Nation from their first treaty with the United States in 1805 through Wounded Knee in 1890. Every death, murder, battle, and outrage written about actually took place. The historical figures that play a role in this fact-based tale of fiction were real people and the author uses their real names. Yellow Hair is an epic tale of adventure, family, love, and hate that spans most of the 19th century.
This is American history.

Yellow Hair on Amazon

Andrew Joyce Author

Be sure to look for Andrew Joyce’s new book on Amazon.  The cover design is really eye-catching.  I am well into it and loving every word.  I believe this is the best thing he’s written yet.

It’s Time to Be Real

Reblogged from Anchors and Butterflies.

Anchors and Butterflies's avatarAnchors and Butterflies

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Good Old Sausage Gravy

If your pants are getting loose and your cholesterol and blood sugar are dropping by the minute, try this great recipe for sausage.gravy.  It will fix you right up.  A word of caution, don’t confuse evaporated and sweetened condensed milk like my son did.  You will have a mess.

Good Old Sausage Gravy

1/2 pound breakfast sausage

1/3 cup flour

3 Tablespoons oil

1 can evaporated milk (not condensed) diluted with 12 ounces of water.

I always cook this in a large cast iron skillet. Scramble sausage in oil over moderate heat, scraping bottom of skillet with spatula continuously.  Sprinkle flour over sausage as it cooks, Continue to cook and stir until scrambled sausage is no longer pink.  Flour should be starting to brown as you cook.  Do not allow to singe.  Stir in milk stirring continuously, taking care not to get burned by steam as you add liquid.  You may have to add more milk to get consistency you desire.  Taste before you season, since sausage may season it perfectly.  Simmer on low about three minutes.  Serve over hot biscuits.

 

Twenty-Seven Biscuits

image imageMother made twenty-seven biscuits for breakfast every morning.  The number wasn’t intentional; that was just how it worked out.   Her recipe wasn’t measured, just experience.  She started out by hollowing out a hole in the flour in her big biscuit-making bowl into which she plopped out shortening scooped by hand straight from the eight pound can and poured in an indeterminate pool of fresh cow milk.  Bravely plunging her right hand in, she squished the glob of shortening through her fingers, working it round till it gathered just enough flour.  She worked the dough carefully, never using all the flour,  thereby letting the gooey mixture adhere to the bottom of the bowl. I thought that looked horrible and never mastered the age-old biscuit making technique that had probably come to her through many generations.

                Once she was satisfied with her mix, she tossed it a time or two to coat with flour, and started pinching off biscuits, which she gave a quick roll or two in her hands before placing smooth side up on her biscuit pan. Finally, she buttered the top of each so they’d brown nicely and popped them in the hot oven.  About twenty minutes later, biscuits!  She always ended up with twenty-seven, though she never measured.  They were wonderful.  The flour-filled biscuit-bowl was covered and went back into the cabinet till the next baking, which would be supper if she didn’t make cornbread.

                I am a biscuit-making coward.  I measure and mix my ingredients in a bowl, dust them with a handful of flour, then pinch them off and roll them out in my hands.  I spray them with cooking spray rather than dipping a spoon in melted butter to butter the tops, but they are still pretty good. 

Age-Old Biscuit Recipe 

(Can be easily doubled or tripled)

Preheat oven to 420 degrees

2 ½ cups self-rising flour (For plain, add 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt PER cup)

½ cup vegetable shortening or softened butter

¾ cup milk (I prefer undiluted fat-free evaporated canned milk.  Note:  this is not the sweetened condensed kind that goes in desserts)

Cooking spray

Mix 2 ¼ cups self-rising flour with shortening or butter.  Stir in up to ¾ cups milk to make gooey, not drippy dough.  Should be about the consistency of mashed potatoes.  Use remaining ¼ cup to dust top of dough, turn dust again.  Pinch out small handful, about ½ cup and roll a time or two in your floured palms.  Turn best side up on greased baking pan.  Spray tops with vegetable or butter spray to enhance browning.  Bake at 450 for 12-15 minutes on center rack. Done when tops are starting to brown nicely and browning can be seen around edges.  Should yield 8-10 biscuits.

These can be rolled out on lightly floured surface and cut with a biscuit cutter if you prefer.  Don’t waste leftover dough.  Roll into strips, butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and bake for five minutes.  Wonderful treat.  I have made entire batch into cinnamon sugar strips for a treat.  Watch carefully to keep from burning.

If you can stand the health risk, put your bacon in on a rack on a cookie sheet to bake on at the same time as your biscuits.  It will all come out perfect at the same time.

If you have leftovers reheat in microwave or slice in half, butter, and toast under broiler.