Gooder n' Grits

Sour Dough Bread

Starter:

2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

2 cups warm water

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 c white sugar

~In large glass or plastic container, dissolve the yeast in warm water. Stir in the flour and sugar; mix until smooth. (*DO NOT USE A METAL SPOON!!) cover loosely and store in a warm place overnight.

The next day, stir and refrigerate.

Stire once each day for the next 4 days. On 5th day, stir and then divide in half. Give half away with feeding instructions.

Feed Starter with 1/2 cup white sugar, 1 cup flour, and 1 cup milk. Stir until smooth. Cover and refrigerate. Stir once each day for the next 4 days.

On the 10th day feed again with 1/2 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, and 1 cup milk. Return to refrigerator and stir once each day for the next 4 days.

On the 15th day it is ready to be used for baking. Keep 1 cup of starter in fridge and contine the stir/feed cycle for future baking.

Bread:

1 cup starter

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water

2 tsp yeast

1 TBSP sugar

2 1/2 tsp salt

5 cups flour

~Mix all ingredients. Place in a greased, covered bowl (I use a towel to cover) until dough has doubled in size (about 90 minutes).

Gently  divide dough into half-it’s going to deflate. Shape dough into 2 oval loaves and place into lightly greased bread pans. Let rise for about 1 hour.

Bake in 350* oven for about 30 minutes-till golden brown

Let cool unless you are like us! cut and slather with butter…..ENJOY!!

Pasta Carbonara

1 lb linguine pasta

4 eggs

1 lb bacon or pancetta

up to 1 1/2 cups parmesan cheese

couple cloves garlic

large onion

chicken broth

1/2 stick butter

parsley

pepper

~slice up bacon into pieces and fry. Remove bacon from pan but save bacon grease!! Chop onion and put into pan of bacon grease-give several tosses on med heat—add garlic (minced up) and cook till onion is translucent. Remove from pan. Discard grease. Put pan back on burner and get fairly hot— Add about 1 cup chicken broth—use whisk to whisk off all the bacon ‘parts’ that were left on bottom of pan.*if more liquid is needed, you can add more chicken broth or a little water.  Return bacon, onions and garlic. Let simmer on Med heat. Cook pasta per directions on pasta box.

Crack 4 eggs-add most of parmesan cheese and parsley (this is per your taste—more cheese makes creamier—-) Mix well with fork. After pasta has cooked, drain and pour into bowl (Pasta MUST be HOT!! as it will cook the eggs!!) Pour egg mixture over hot  pasta and mix well. Add bacon, onions and garlic to pasta—mix well….toss in butter and some pepper-mix well.  For garnish, add more parmesan cheese and  parsley to top.

*The orginial recipe was taken from Pioneer woman—then I added or deleted.

Enjoy!! This dish is DELICIOUS!!

menus for the week

Seems like the week flows better and moods are better if I plan a menu for the week…~and~if that menu goes off course a bit—-feathers  get ruffled around here…guess my folks like consistency!! I try to keep my menu in line with sales at the local grocery—-as well as what coupons I am using for that week…yep…I am a couponer….managed to save $88.00 at one local grocery this week….YAY me!!

Maybe I should apologize to the man behind me in the grocery—sorry you had to wait on me to use my coupons…but, saving $88 is a big deal to me….if you had wanted to get out earlier—guess you should have used another lane!! Sorry.

Sunday-(breakfast)                 (lunch)                     (dinner)

           muffins(sale item B1G1)    leftovers from Sat.         Ham (on sale $1.49lb)

                                                                                potato casserole,

                                                                                 cabbage, asparagus

Monday-bacon/eggs                  parmesan cheese            Left overs

                                              bread sticks                  *use ham bone to add

                                                                                  to pintos to add to

                                                                                 dinner, biscuits

Tuesday-oatmeal or cereal           sandwiches                   Chicken Stew

  *coupon with cereal                                                                             

Wednesday- grits/sausage             frozen Pizza                  Tacos

 *coupon for sausage                  *Aldi has the best!         

Thursday- livermush sandwiches          sandwiches              Spaghetti & salad

Friday- Cereal                              nachos                        baked left over

                                          (with leftover taco meat)      spaghetti & Salad

Saturday- pancakes                    trash—this is                lit’l smokies over rice  

                                                anything leftover            *coupon               

                                                in fridge!!                   

Cure for PMS cake! or My kids LOVE this cake!!

either name above is appropiate!! Really—-got PMS—-have some cake, it’ll make you feel better!!

Whenever I tell my children that I making this, they all say with wide eyes, “OH! I LOVE that cake!!”

1/2 cup butter (yep—I use the real thing—you could use margarine if you prefer)

1 cup water

1/4 cup cocoa

1/2 cup cooking oil

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar (pronouced “Sug-Ha”)

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup buttermilk (make your own 1 tsp vinegar added to regular milk-let sit 2min)

2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

~bring butter, water, cocoa and oil to a boil. add to dry ingredients. Mix well. Add buttermilk, eggs, soda, and vanilla. Mix well. Pour into a greased and floured (or take my lazy way out and just spray some baker’s joy!) 10x15 pan. Bake at 400* for 20 minutes—make sure middle is done—the ol’ handy dandy stick a toothpick in it, if it comes out clean—it’s done—-will work!

Icing: (the YUMMY part!!)

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup cocoa

1/3 cup buttermilk

(optional—1 cup pecans—I don’t add because my children like this cake plain)

1 tsp vanilla

1/8 tsp salt

1 pound powdered sugar

~bring to a boil: butter, cocoa and buttermilk. Remove from heat. Add salt, vanilla and powdered sugar—beat till no lumps. Add pecans if you are using them. Ice cake while hot….let cool.

My family devours this!! and like I said earlier, a wonderful chocolate fix!! Makes you feel better every time….

and if that doesn’t make you feel better, follow my Grandmaw’s advice, “put on some lipstick, that’ll make you feel better”….I have no idea why she thought that would make a person feel better, but it’s just one of her many sayings….

Ya’ll enjoy now, ya hear??

cooking with bacon grease…

It must be a southern thing that we learn from our grandmothers. My ‘MawMaws’….both of them used bacon grease. It’s used to season eggs, potato soup, green beans, peas, potatoes, cabbage…..on and on.

The BEST cabbage you could EVER put in your mouth is seasoned with bacon grease!!

When you cook  your bacon, gather your left over grease (I know it sounds disgusting-but I am imagining that in yesteryears women had to use whatever they could to help with their cooking—-bacon grease was left over from the breakfast-and imagine them saying to themself “Hmmmmm…I’m making soup for ‘supper’ and need something to help season it…oh look, left over grease! wonder how that would be in the soup—just a spoonful’….and the man of the house grinning from ear to ear as he slurps up his delicious soup!!)…now, I’m not talking about dumping the whole pan of left over bacon grease in there!! Just a spoonful will do!

After I fry bacon (I have a George Foreman grill and it really helps that I don’t have grease popping up all over the kitchen!!—the grease runs down the grill and is caught in a container) after breakfast, I transfer to another container that  I keep in the fridge.

When cooking cabbage, just put a spoonful in the fry pan, melt a little over med heat and add cut cabbage—-salt and pepper good. *if you like a little zip in it, add a few shakes of red pepper flakes….talk about eating GOOD!! MMmmmmm, that’s good right thar!!

Green Beans—I used canned green beans from my own (well, usually from my father-in-law’s garden) that I canned myself (this is me :-) grinning from ear to ear on my fine accomplishment!! My grandmaw would be proud!!) I add onions (diced), garlic (minced), salt, pepper, a tsp of sugar (ABSOLUTELY!! helps take the ‘canned’ taste off) and a spoonful of bacon grease!! Yummer!!

Add bacon grease to potato soup (recipe to come in future) or to your potatoes when boiling to make creamed potatoes….as a base for your gravy—-for your biscuits and gravy—- EEEEEWWWWW, WEEEEEE!! Now that’s good eating right thar!!

Now, with all this being said…I can only imagine that my dear friend Stacey (the healthful cook!) is cringing in her chair at the mention of ‘grease’ and ‘lard’….BUT….it is all in moderation and only for seasoning—-the grease is going into the cooking water and you are not going to sit there and gulp this water down—-so, you are really not ingesting all that grease….and besides….it’s just a spoonful!! hee hee!!

Ya’ll come back now….ya hear?? Well cook up something good for supper!!

Cracked Pepper Cheddar Muffins

2 cups all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon sugar

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon black pepper (I always use 1 tsp)

1 egg

1 1/4 cups milk

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I ALWAY use more)

~combine flour, sugar, baking powder and pepper. In another bowl, mix egg, milk, oil. Stir into dry ingredients. Mix in cheese.

Spray non-stick spray in muffin pan. Fill 3/4 full of muffin mixture. Bake at 375* for about 30 minutes. Eat warm! Yum!

Really good with homemade soups!!

starting a cooking blog….ya’ll!!

I’ve been asked by numerous people to start a cooking blog. I’m a stay-at-home-schooling-mama to 5, wife to 1—who loves to cook. With a family as large as mine, there isn’t a choice about cooking or not. Proudly, I have managed to spoil my family with homemade goodies! The style of my cooking is very southern….very southern. A very dear friend of mine is always picking at me about my southern sayings and ways! hee hee!! I’m proud of it….a chef, I am not…I’m a cook—as Paula Deen says! I cook like my “MawMaw” did. The family table and ‘Supper’ is dear to me…I hope to encourage others for that special time of the day where we all come together at the table and enjoy those good ol’ comfort foods. Ya’ll get your bacon grease and spoons ready….and let’s cook!!