Goodness gracious alive, am I ever blessed. As I write this, I have a small suitcase open and waiting for a quick trip to Texas to appear on Great Day Houston. I’ll fly in, do a live tv show (I have so much fun doing tv I feel guilty about it) and then fly back to the great state of Alabama. My kids won’t hardly know I was gone! Don’t forget that I’ll be on Paula Deen’s Best dishes November 5th (Check times in your area). To stay up to date with all of the goings on, join us on Facebook and have a great Monday! 

Comfort food. Pork chops breaded in a delicious crunchy coating served with my MeMe’s ultra creamy mashed potatoes and all of it happily covered in a good coating of milk gravy.

I sure do wish you would have been here last night when we were eating this. I even had an extra pork chop set aside. But alas, we’re screens apart and truth be told my house wasn’t clean enough for company anyway, so you’ll have to make this yourself if you wanna eat it anytime soon.

Now some of you are looking at that plate and thinking to yourselves “There’s nothing green! You’re supposed to have something green!”. Calm down, it’s okay. I kicked the “supposed to” people out of my kitchen a long time ago. There are plenty of restaurants they can eat at on their way back to their house where they do everything they’re supposed to do. If you need something green, head on over and have some of my sweet and sour green beans. I could eat a vat of those every day and still want more. Besides, it’s not like we have to eat the entire food pyramid in one sitting.

If you’re still feeling guilty (Hey, I had that same homeEc teacher in high school, too!) have a salad for lunch. Then you’re good to go

To make the pork chops, you’ll need: Chops, two eggs, and a sleeve of saltine crackers.

Make sure you use the salted crackers because they really give us a great flavor here. This recipe will make four -five pork chops and you can get the thickness you prefer, adjusting cooking time accordingly. I’m using chops that are almost one inch thick so they will take a little longer to cook.

I like to use pie plates for my ingredients to get ready for this.

Crack your eggs into a pie plate or bowl and beat them up with a fork.

In another plate, place your crushed saltines – I crushed the entire sleeve.

Dip both sides of each pork chop into the beaten egg.

and then press each side of each chop into the cracker crumbs.

Place in heated oil and cook over medium heat until browned, then turn and cook to brown on other side, removing when fully cooked and center is no longer pink.

Here is a photo of them just about to come out. It is a bit blurry but so are my kids when they run in and out of the kitchen wanting to know when supper is going to be ready….

so this pic will work just fine because they’re hungry

When your pork chops are completely done, remove them from the skillet and place on a paper towel lined plate.

Now it’s time to make our milk gravy.

There are just a few simple ingredients to making milk gravy and one of them is optional.

Flour, milk, salt and pepper are a must. Bacon grease makes it even better and I’m going to use it in this post but you can leave the grease out entirely if you like, you don’t even have to use oil.

It is entirely possible to make a perfectly good milk gravy with nothing but flour, salt, pepper, and milk. My mother was shocked when I told her this and others probably will be too so lets just keep the whole “greaseless milk gravy” thing to ourselves .

If you are using bacon grease, go ahead and put it in a small skillet and place that over medium heat until melted.

I’ve been storing mine in the refrigerator so it may look a bit more solid than yours.

Now add your flour and give it a gooooood stir. 

If you’re not using grease just put your flour in a dry skillet.

Continue cooking, stirring constantly, over medium to medium low heat until your flour is browned.

Now with bacon grease added the flour is going to quickly become paste-like. Without bacon grease it will just stay dry but it will still brown in a dry skillet. Stir constantly, especially if using a dry skillet, until your flour is good and browned.

You can go ahead and add the salt and pepper before it is done browning.

or whenever you think about adding it  

This is a photo of my browned flour.

Remember, if you aren’t using bacon grease it will be dry instead of pasty but it will still brown.

Pour in milk while stirring.

Cook this over medium low, stirring constantly, until gravy is thickened.

To start with it is going to look like milk with a bunch of brown globs in it. Just hang in there and keep on stirring.

You’ll know it’s thickened when it coats the back of a spoon like this If it gets too thick, just stir in a little more milk. 

Serve pork chops with Meme’s Mashed potatoes and pour gravy over it all. YUM!

P.S. This entire meal is also excellent without the gravy if you have non-gravy lovers.

Come and get it! 

 When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude.

~Gilbert Chesterson

I am so excited that this is apple week for Southern Plate. The weather has turned cooler here and brought with it thoughts of beef stew and apple dumplings. Of course, I love apples cooked any way, Apple Dapple cake, fried apples, apple pie and these apple dumplings.

Tonight I made a big pot of beef stew , a skillet of cornbread and a large casserole full of apple dumplings. Christy wanted me to take some pictures and send her the recipe that I use for apple dumplings. You will see that I am definitely not a photographer but the end product was delicious. This is an old fashioned recipe that uses a little of this and a smidgen of that so I have done my best to measure all the ingredients for you. Do not be scared of adding or adjusting the ingredients to suit your taste. This is a very delicious and forgiving recipe. It would be even more delicious with vanilla ice cream on top!

Before I give you the recipe, let me tell you a little about how I went about making these dumplings. I use the small cheap canned biscuits. We call them whampum biscuits since you whampum on the counter to open them. I open the biscuits, take them apart and lay them out on wax paper to come to room temperature while I prepare the apples. This makes the biscuits easier to roll out. Then I peel the apples and cut them up into little pieces about the size of Chiclets chewing gum. Now the original recipe said to place a small amount of apples (about a heaping tablespoon) on each biscuit and then sprinkle with cinnamon. I can never remember to sprinkle the cinnamon on the apples when I get in a rhythm of making the dumplings so I just sprinkle cinnamon on the apples in the bowl and stir them up to distribute it. If you don’t like cinnamon, the dumplings are just as good without it. I have had them both ways and love them either way.

~Mama

Alright, this is where I step in and take over. I, being me, Christy . Now I know my Mama and Grandmama really well. In fact, I’m pretty confident that I know both of them just about better than any living person at this point. Mama and I are best friends and talk several times a day on the phone and for a good bit of time when I was in college after my Grandaddy had passed away, Grandmama and I lived together as roommates. So knowing the two f them and seeing this post, I know that y’all missed out on the best parts and I’m here to insert them, word for word, as I am sure they went down in the making of these dumplings.

Mama: Mama, this don’t look right. Go get me a bath towel because Christy says you gotta have a light background.

Grandmama : Well what kind of a bath towel you want me to get? What you gonna do with it?

Mama: Get me a white one and hurry, I’ve got to get supper on before they all get here. Lane, baby, can you go do your homework on the kitchen table so I can take pictures here for Aunt Christy’s website?

To make this recipe you’ll need: Sugar, Cinnamon, 2 cans biscuits (ten count cans), apples (Granny smith is best but others work), and butter.

~in comes Grandmama with the towel~

Mama : Oh now that looks better.

Grandmama: It really brightened it up, didn’t it? Let me see how it looks…

~Mama holds up the camera with the image on the back~

Grandmama : Oh I never could see them things on these new fancy cameras…

Peel and slice your apples however you want, a knife is fine.

Mama uses this fancy thing, which is really awesome, but I just use a paring knife and it works just as well. Mama has more storage space than me for gadgets – and she also has the ability to keep up with them far better than I do! If I bought one of these I’d probably use it once and then never be able to find it again.

Grandmama: Jan are you about done? I’m gittin’ tired of holding this towel up here…

Mama: Almost, let me get one more picture and then you can put it down.

Grandmama : Well alright, hurry it up, we ain’t got all day and I’m hungry. Reckon Christy will really put this on her website?

*Click*

Grandmama: Jan you ain’t done took a picture of me did you! Janice! I’ll say!

Mama: ~giggle~

Place your diced apples in a bowl and sprinkle with cinnamon. Stir to coat.

Mama: Okay Mama, you can put the towel down now.

Grandmama : Oh good, I think the weather is fixin to come on.

~Grandmama shuffles off into the den to watch her favorite meteorologist~

Take each biscuit and roll it out as best you can on waxed paper. Don’t roll it too thin, just roll it out enough to be able to put some apple filling in the center.

Y’all don’t know this but every time Mama takes a picture that she thinks turned out well she grins and tucks in her chin proudly as she looks at it. So just pretend that big old shadow isn’t there and if she notices it we’ll tell her it is in her head and looked fine to us.

Wow, there’s the flash! lol

Put a heaping tablespoon of filling in the center of each one.

This is the point in the tutorial where Mama had to stop for a minute to try to help my nephew Lane with a math problem. The real problem occurred when she called me to help her figure out how to help him. My engineer husband wasn’t home just then and it was like the blind leading the blind…

Alright well the good news is that Mama turned the flash off in this one but…

~squints~

Lets just use our imagination here.

After you put the filling in each round of dough, fold up the sides and press them together to close them.

Place all of you dumplings in a baking dish (I’m using a 9×13). Top each with a small pat of butter and sprinkle your remaining apples over them. If you don’t have apples left, don’t worry, just go with it and it will be fine. Sprinkle your sugar over the apples*.

*Mama uses half sugar and half splenda when she makes these.

Mama’s Note: If you counted my dumplings, you will notice that I only had 17. My grandson ate two of the raw biscuits and his sister wanted to try one. She was not impressed! But 3 biscuits were missing in action.

Gently pour boiling water over the apples.

Mama says :I know this seems strange pouring water over this but trust me, it will turn into a delicious syrup.

Bake at 350 for one hour.

Sit back and enjoy fall and the all the wonderful flavors that it brings!

Mama: Mama come sit down and eat.

Grandmama: Well just a minute, I’ma cleaning up the stove a little bit coz you done made a mess…

Gotta love ‘em!

P.S. I just read this post to mama. She said “Well sounds like you got us pegged alright!”

“Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting

to see just you all day and now the day was complete.”

~ Marcy DeMaree

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/mama-and-grandmama-make-apple-dumplings.html/feed 70 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/07/easy-candied-dill-pickles-from-julie-hutson.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/07/easy-candied-dill-pickles-from-julie-hutson.html#comments Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:14:31 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=15251 Pin it

I dearly love getting to hear the stories and memories of your childhood. Knowing how much recipes are a part of our heritage, when you share one of your treasured recipes with me I take it to heart and consider it a great honor to receive such a gift. Today’s recipe is from Julie Hutson, and it is one she shares by way of her dear Grandmother. I know you’ll enjoy the story and recipe as much as I did.

From time to time I send out a call for submissions to email subscribers with details on where and how to submit their family recipes. I have a great collection now but as I share more of those I’ll send out another call in a few months so if you’d like to be a part of the Heritage Recipe collection on SouthernPlate.com, make sure you’re subscribed and be thinking over what you’d like to share!

Gratefully,

Christy

Julie as a baby with her Grandmother

Julie Says:

My Nanny, Janet Thomas Joyce, was my inspiration, my mentor, my prayer warrior and my cheerleader. When she passed away a little over a year ago, she left me a legacy of recipes, family photos and many notes and journals written by her throughout her 85 years. Her bible is dotted on most every page with her thoughts and notes – it is a special item that I will treasure forever.

Do you have one of those recipes that the minute you smell it or taste it, you are suddenly transported back to your childhood? This recipe does it for me! My Nanny kept these in the “Fridgidare” all the time. Once the pickle jar was almost empty, she started a new batch! This pickle is tart, sweet, crunchy, and just plain delish! I love to eat these with salty fried catfish or southern fried chicken. I even chop up the pickle slices to use in place of relish in potato, chicken or tuna salads. It is as much a staple in my kitchen as the mayonnaise and butter is!

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Candied Dill Pickles

Ingredients

• One large jar (46 ounces) whole dill pickles (I use Vlasic)
• 3 cups sugar
• ½ cup white vinegar
• heaping tablespoon of pickling spice
• cheesecloth, cut into a 3“ x 3” square

Instructions

1. Drain off pickles into a large bowl, reserving about a half cup of pickle juice (save for later). Slice whole pickles into slices - I prefer thicker slices to thin.
2. Cover pickle slices with sugar and stir. Pour reserved pickle juice and half cup of vinegar over pickles. Stir thoroughly. Allow pickles to sit at room temperature for several hours, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved.
3. Place the heaping tablespoon of pickling spice into the center of the cheesecloth square. Tie up corners, or secure with a piece of string.
4. Drop pickling spice bundle into the pickle jar and return pickles and juices back into the jar as well. Secure lid and place in the refrigerator. Pickles need to “sit” for about four days, turning the jar upside down every so often to mix the juices.
5. After 4-5 days, pickles are ready to enjoy!

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Julie also blogs! To visit her food blog, Southern Cooking Light, click here!

Julie and her Nanny shortly before she passed away.

I found a smile today. Every time I tried to give it away, someone would give it right back to me!

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This morning as I was walking through the den going on my daily dirty clothes scavenger hunt, someone said the name “Sally Mae” on tv and I stopped and looked up in surprise just as if they’d said “Christy Jordan”. I chuckled at myself as the memories flooded back of all the times I’ve answered to Sally Mae in my life.

I have no idea who Sally Mae is but during my childhood, I must have looked an awful lot like her. “Come on in here, Sally Mae” Mama would sing out as she opened the door when I ran in from playing to grab a quick cup of Kool Aid. Or she’d call out to me after running my bath at the end of a long day of playing “Get on in here and get in the tub, Sally Mae”. I never questioned it, even though in retrospect I realize my sister answered to it just as willingly as I did.

I got to thinking about that nickname as I read an email from Elaine Wong who mentioned how her Grandpa used to call her “Lanie girl”. There is something about a nickname that shows an acceptance, familiarity, and its sort of a way of saying “You and I are special”. It’s like in Little House On The Prairie (I think everyone should be required to watch the entire run of Little House On The Prairie before they are allowed to be an adult). Did you notice how Laura, who had been called Laura all of her life, suddenly became “Beth” to Almonzo and Almonzo suddenly became “Manley” to Laura? They wanted a special connection and way of talking ot each other that set them apart and so called each other by their middle names instead of first. Surely we all know what Laura’s Pa called her, do you rememeber it? Half Pint. She was his little tagalong, his best helper, and calling her what everyone else did just wouldn’t do.  She was his Half Pint.

I received my most prominent nickname shortly after I was born, the one my dad still calls me to this day (I don’t know if I’ve ever heard him call me Christy) and wrote about the story behind it in my book (page 171). It’s funny because every now and then I’ll be out and someone I don’t know will call me that, I instantly know where they got it from!

I have so many nicknames for my kids it isn’t even funny but they willingly answer to each and every one. My favorite nickname for myself to date though is Ma, Mom, or Mama, whichever one the two of them feel like calling me on any given day. I’ll never forget though, about two years ago, when Katy Rose asked “Mama, when you were born, how come Grandmama named you ‘mama’?”

I’d love to hear about your nicknames in the comments below and especially the stories behind them! While we work on that, let me show you how to make some awfully good baked beans. This is how my mother has always made hers and I can make a meal out of the beans alone! They get rave reviews at any barbecue and would be the perfect addition to your fourth of July menu. They’re also a breeze to throw together, always a plus in my book ~grins~.

You’ll need: ground beef (cooked and drained), 28 ounce can baked beans (any kind you want), 2-15 ounce cans Navy beans, onion, barbecue sauce, mustard, worcestershire sauce, bacon, and salt and pepper.

*Instead of the 28 ounce can of baked beans you can use 2-15 ounce cans.

Now I have my ground beef already cooked and in the freezer but if yours isn’t you wanna go ahead and cook that before this step.

Place beans (liquid and all) and ground beef in a large mixing bowl.

This is the largest of a set of vintage Pyrex bowls called “New Dot”. This one was hard to come by but it completed my set. The others are blue, red, and yellow. Just in case you wanted to know that…

A lot of folks have asked me about my salt and pepper shakers. They came from Cracker Barrel and I got them on Clearance

I could chat all day but I guess you came here for a recipe so I’ll get on with it…

(~whispers~ but the plate below is a Corelle pattern called “Memphis”)

Chop up your onion

Add to the bowl all of your other ingredients except for the bacon.

Stir it all together really well.

Spray a 9×13 pan with cooking spray

And pour your bean mixture into the dish.

Top with 3-4 strips of uncooked bacon.

Place this in the oven at 350 for 45-60 minutes.

During that time your husband, who has repeatedly stated that he does not like baked beans, will ask you “Man, what are you cooking? That smells good!”. When you tell him it is baked beans he will say “Oh….really?” and look at you in disbelief. This scenario will repeat itself ever ten minutes or so until the beans are done and then your husband, who has repeatedly stated that he does not like baked beans, will magically appear in the kitchen with a bowl and a spoon.

At least that is how it goes down at my house

Enjoy!

Now pull up a chair while this is cooking and chat with me about your nicknames in the comments below!

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Beefed Up Baked Beans

Ingredients

• 28 ounce can baked beans, undrained (or 2-15 ounce cans)
• 2-15 ounce cans navy beans, undrained (or bean of your choice)
• 1 pound ground beef, cooked and drained (can substitute cooked shredded pork bbq if you like)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 cup Barbecue sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Yellow Mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 to 4 slices uncooked bacon

Instructions

1. Spray 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Stir together all ingredients except for the bacon. Spoon into baking dish. Top with strips of bacon. Place in 350 degree oven for 45-60 minutes.
2. This is a very forgiving recipe so feel free to use what you have on hand and modify it to suit your family's tastes.

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Get rich quick … Count your blessings!

Submitted by Debbie Strum. Submit your quote or read hundreds of others by clicking here. Don’t worry if you have a good quote and you think it may have already been submitted, that just lets me know that it bears repeating.

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/06/beefed-up-baked-beans.html/feed 221 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/01/peanut-butter-fudge-iced-brownies.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/01/peanut-butter-fudge-iced-brownies.html#comments Mon, 24 Jan 2011 16:05:44 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=13383 Pin it

I’ve lost count of how many of you have tried this icing since I first brought it to Southern Plate back in 2008 on Red’s birthday cake. Our family tradition has us putting it over a yellow cake but the combination of chocolate brownies paired with this old fashioned boiled icing is a whole new level of old fashioned decadence – so much so that I’m devoting a whole new post to it!

We’re gonna start with boxed mix made brownies. I used two boxes of mix to make mine extra thick. If you do that you need to cut your oven temperature down to 325 and add about fifteen minutes to the baking process.

As far as which mix to choose goes, I usually get Kroger brand or some other generic but when I went to Krogers this brand was on sale for $1.00 a box. I’d go for whatever is cheapest where you shop because I’ve never met a brownie mix I didn’t like .

You don’t have to use two boxes of mix, one is fine and you get to taste more of the icing!

You can also make them from scratch by using your own recipe or Susan Spencer’s Grandmothers recipe for Blue Ribbon Brownies.  The peanut butter icing will take on the star of the show so go with whatever you prefer and what you have time for but as for me and my house, we will make them from a mix today.

Folks that turn their noses up at anything that was baked for them, be it from a mix or completely from scratch, don’t deserve to have people making them brownies anyhow. Snootiness doesn’t bother me though, because that just means there is extra room in my life for good hearted folks with more sense

For our icing we’ll need: Peanut butter, sugar, a bit of salt, bit of shortening and margarine, little vanilla (I really do need to get a smaller bottle coz eventually someone is going to think they have to go buy a gallon), and some milk.

Place your milk, sugar, shortening, margarine, and salt in a good sauce pot and put this over medium heat.

Stir constantly while you wait on all of it to melt and come to a boil.

This is what it looks like as it starts to melt.

My photo turned out with more yellow than it actually had so ignore that. Clearly, I’m not seeking accolades for my food photography.

I’m more like ~tilts head and looks before snapping the pic~ Eh. Good enough.

This is the icing mixture as it has come to a boil.

What you are going to do is stir it constantly until it comes to a full rolling boil and then stop and let it boil on it’s own (no stirring) for two minutes.

Remove from heat and pour in vanilla.

(I forget this half the time and it still turns out fine)

Add in your peanut butter and stir quickly until it is all melted and well blended.

Folks, I’m NOT kidding about stir quickly here. This sets up fast.

Now this is ready to pour.

Pour over your cooled brownies and spread to cover it all.

Mine would have been all smooth but I was trying to take photos at the same time and that ate up some of the time I should have been spreading.

Allow to cool completely .

You can occupy yourself during this time by licking the sauce pot clean once it cools enough to let you!

Go impress people because you rock. Seriously, you do. Look what you just made!

Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope you’ll take time to read the story of why this icing is so special to me by clicking here.

You can also find the story and this icing recipe on page 258 of the Southern Plate cookbook.

I want to thank you again for all of your kind reviews on Amazon.com - My mother actually read them all the other day!

“Smile and give your face a holiday”

Doris says, “This was my Mom’s favorite saying.” Thank you, Doris!

Submit your quote by clicking here.

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/01/peanut-butter-fudge-iced-brownies.html/feed 102 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/01/better-for-your-diet-southern-recipes.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/01/better-for-your-diet-southern-recipes.html#comments Fri, 21 Jan 2011 18:16:11 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=13365 Pin it

Mention Southern food and whats the first thing that comes to mind? Fried Chicken, lard, deep fried everything. We have a reputation for eating what many consider the most unhealthy food out there but I think that is mostly due to tourists stopping over and getting “authentic” Southern cuisine served at roadside diners.

Now don’t get me wrong, that stuff is delicious but folks who think we live on fried chicken just need an opportunity to see the rest of what the Southern heart and stomach considers comfort food. Fried chicken was a delicacy in the old south, one hard to come by and therefore cherished on the rare occasion it was served but nowadays I may eat fried chicken once a month at best. What I DO eat is a LOT of vegetables, a lot of fruit, and we drink an awful lot of water and tea (not always with sugar as you’ll see below!).

During one of our typical summers, with our temperatures and humidity, its impossible to survive without taking in more fluids than a camel in the Sahara!

Now let me issue my disclaimer about my view of dieting: I refuse to consider any vegetable “bad”, my common sense won’t let me. Some of these may be carb heavy, some of these may have spices or seasonings that are considered “bad” according to some, and thats perfectly alright because at the end of the day we all have to rely on our own common sense when it comes to what we choose to eat. I just want to bring you some lightened up versions of old classics and a few recipes that fall on the healthier side that you may not have thought of.

I understand that some people have personal convictions on using artificial sweeteners and that there are some who have conditions which prohibit using of them and trust that you, also, will use your best judgement and modify any of my recipes you’d like to use in order to suit you and your family.

So lets start things off by letting you know what I do differently to the following dishes in order to make them feast friendly for those of us who are watching our sugar and calories. I’m afraid I can’t give you nutritional values. I can’t tell you how many calories per serving or how many grams of sugar, fat, or protein each dish offers. It would be nice if I had that ability but I don’t own any fancy shmancy software to allow me to do that (and I detest math enough not to even attempt to calculate it on my own) so I’m afraid you’re on your own there. One of these days I’d like to be able to add all of that in but for now I’m just happy to get my stories in about why these dishes are so special to me. So in lieu of nutritional information, please accept my remembrances and gratitude for letting me bring them to you.

A note about Splenda: In most of the sweet recipes, all I do differently is substitute Splenda for sugar. I don’t use name brand Splenda.

My FAVORITE sugar alternative, though, is Ideal No Calorie Sweetener. This is the one natural sugar substitute that I actually enjoy baking with. Muffins, cakes, sweet breads, and cookies, IDEAL works like a charm when substituted for sugar (you cannot substitute Splenda directly for sugar in baked goods as it does not bake the same as sugar does). Unfortunately, Ideal is not available in my area but the company was kind enough to send me a shipment to experiment with and  I can order it online through Amazon.com. A lot of you can get it where you are from, though, so be sure and check and give it a try if you’d like to try my absolute favorite sugar substitute. It makes the most divine sweet tea!

My best advice when substituting Splenda for sugar is to use a hair less Splenda than the sugar it calls for. For example: If a recipe calls for one cup of sugar, measure out a cup of Splenda (don’t pack it!) and remove a tablespoon.

The common mistake most people make is to add a little more Splenda than what the recipe calls for in sugar and that yields an artificially sweetened taste. So use a little less and you’ll be just fine .

Now, how about some Southern Classics without the guilt?

“Free” Soup – Dieter’s Best Friend!

Many diets have “free” vegetables which are simply vegetables allowed in any quantities without restriction. This incredibly flavorful soup combines many of those in a rich broth that is sure to satisfy and can be eaten anytime to help fight off munchies!

Fire & Ice Salad

Substitute Splenda or Ideal for the sugar to make this diet friendly.

I know y’all will eventually get tired of me talking about this stuff, but I can’t help it! I swear I could live on Fire & Ice Salad!

Fresh Strawberryade

When I need a divine treat, this is the way to go. Fresh Strawberries and sugar free drink mix are the only ingredients but you won’t believe the taste! During the middle of winter, I think we need a taste of summer more than ever!

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I could eat these every night and they sure are easy!

Almost No Sugar Ice Cream Grahamwiches

They are not only delicious but another great treat ready from your freezer anytime!

Simple Squash

Truly, about as simple as it gets and full of natural flavor. I love the story that goes along with this post, too.

Healthier meals? Bring back the relish tray!

This is a quick, easy, and no nonsense way to get kids to pig out on raw veggies with wild abandon!

Chocolate Gravy Made With Splenda

WHAT? You’ve been doing without CHOCOLATE GRAVY?

Get on in that kitchen and mix up this recipe, substituting Splenda or Ideal for the sugar- Its how I make mine and my kids have never known!

In fact, this chocolate gravy pictured was made with Splenda.

Homemade Banana Pudding

Ahhh, the dish that started Southern Plate! I make my banana pudding with all Splenda instead of sugar. I use regular Nilla Wafers because they don’t have much sugar in them anyway, but you can buy sugar free wafers if you like!

Southern Style Rice Pudding

Yup…I even substituted Splenda for the sugar in this rice pudding, too…Mama Reed would be proud!

Strawberry Punch Bowl Cake

Now for this gorgeous little thing, we use sugar free jello and light or fat free whipped topping, fat free angel food cake, and fresh strawberries to create a light and delicious dessert!

Hot Apple Flautas

These hit the spot when you want something quick and sweet. Warm apple pie in a crispy tortilla shell, I use Splenda in place of sugar throughout this recipe and omit the caramel sauce at the end.

My husband can never tell if I’ve made them with Splenda or sugar!

Bananaritas

Craving a tropical drink? Something icy and cool ? I LOVE bananaritas (they are non-alcoholic!).

I mix up a batch of these using splenda in place of the sugar.

Sweet Tea: Elixir Of The South

Y’all know I can’t even remember the last time I drank sweet tea with sugar-

It’s been almost ten years! I substitute Splenda or Ideal for the sugar.

Ideal is my favorite if I have it. So much like the real thing!

Depression Bread Pudding

If you’re a bread pudding lover like me, you’ll love this recipe which uses leftover hamburger or hot dog buns.

Splenda for the sugar, and you can eat it guilt free!

Marshmallow Sweet Potatoes

I often make this recipe and use Splenda in place of the sugar.

You can omit the marshmallows and still have a wonderfully delicious dessert or side dish.

Holiday Fruit Salad

Just use light fruit cocktail in place of regular and Splenda or Ideal in place of the sugar.

This is what I’m asking for as dessert on my birthday

(hint, hint, Mama)

~~~~~~~

I hope you enjoy these lightened up Southern classics. Remember, whether you’re struggling with weight, wrinkles, career, or any of the other countless things we are constantly working on in our lives, the most important part of who you are and what you are contributing to the world is your heart and we love you right where you are right now .

Put your heart into today!

Gratefully,

Christy

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/01/better-for-your-diet-southern-recipes.html/feed 35 http://www.southernplate.com/2010/05/your-favorite-southern-sayings-and-a-giveaway.html http://www.southernplate.com/2010/05/your-favorite-southern-sayings-and-a-giveaway.html#comments Mon, 10 May 2010 15:03:17 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=8583 Pin it

I just love all of our SouthernSayings and talking about them never seems to get old. A few times now I’ve asked people to tell me their favorites on our Facebook page and that page lights up with hundreds of contributions, everyone tickled to get to talk about them and see what quirky sayings others have to contribute as we all walk down memory lane. So today I want to start that conversation on this post as a fun way of celebrating our silly Southern sayings and learning a few new ones we might want to work into our vocabulary.

Katy Rose’s shirt in that photo is from Sweet Tea T Shirts and demonstrates wearing one of their shirts, that demonstrates the Southern pronunciation of “Cat”. Isn’t it precious? ~giggles~

They’ve got a whole passel of t shirts with different sayings such as “Ah’m bout to burn up!” or another one of my favorites “Who’s pluckin’ this chicken, you or me?”.

So I’m gonna step aside here and let y’all have at it. Leave your favorite Southern Saying below and if’n ya see one that don’t make no sense feel fre to ask what it means by replying to it. This hyar is gonna end up being a Southernisms 101 of sorts and we’re all gonna have fun with it! I can’t wait to see what you have to offer!

I want to start by saying YES, Bless your heart CAN be a good thing. In fact, I’ve heard it used more often than not in situations where it really is a good thing. If someone is going through a rough time or suffers a loss, you’d hug them and say “Bless your heart” as a show of compassion.

“You think I don’t have culture just because I’m from down in Georgia. Believe me, we’ve got culture there. We’ve always had sushi. We just called it bait.”

~Ben “Cooter” Jones

We had a wonderful year here at Bountiful and Southern Plate and I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed getting to spend time with my Southern Plate family. As we look towards 2010, lots of great things are in store for us, including a Southern Plate cookbook which will be released in the fall by Harper Collins Publishing!

The other night, Ricky looked up our stats and informed me that SouthernPlate.com has received over 43 MILLION Page Views for 2009. I have two things to say to this:

1. Wow

2. THANK YOU!

As we round out the year, here are the top twenty most viewed Southern Plate recipes of 2009 – in order of popularity.

Homemade Cinnabuns – The Easy Way!

How To Make Southern Chicken And Dumplings

(click below to see 18 more of the top twenty recipes of 2009)

Monkey Bread (For Little Christmas Monkeys!)

Thanksgiving Menu Idea Bonanza

How To Make Homemade Banana Pudding

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Buttermilk Biscuits

One Slow Cooker Recipe – 2 Different Meals, Both Quick and Easy!

Our Family’s Chicken Stew

Crock Pot Apple Butter

Holly Jollies, Christmas Candy On A Budget

My Mother’s Southern Hoe Cake Recipe

Sugar Free Cappuccino Mix

Elvis Presley Cake

Melt In Your Mouth Doughnuts : Made at home, foolproof, and great for beginners!

Pumpkin Crumb Cake

Fried Green Tomatoes

Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix and Snowman Soup Kits

Today’s Home Brew. The secret to great iced coffee without the expense!

Apple Fritters And Fall Days

Happy New Year and thank you for a great year. I’m looking forward to getting to know (and hopefully meet) even more of you in 2010.

Gratefully,

Christy

If you’re planning on having a traditional Southern New Years Day dinner, go get your black eyed peas now before they sell out! I mentioned this on the Southern Plate Family page and some readers are already reporting not being able to find any. While you’re at it, pick up some collards or turnip greens and don’t forget the ham hocks and fatback!

The following is from my Hoppin John tutorial but I wanted to tell it again with the black eyed peas in case anyone didn’t know why Southerners eat what we do on New Years Day.

New Year’s day hosts the most important meal of the entire year for Southerners. Deeply rooted in tradition, superstition, and hope for the future, we have definite must have dishes which even those of us who might not be as superstitious as others dare not shirk on this day.

I’ve told this story before, but it certainly bears repeating in reference to this meal. Back in the days of civil war, Union troops swept through the south, confiscating crops and livestock to use as provisions for their troops. Southerners who weren’t off fighting were left with precious little, save for peas and greens. You see, Union soldiers considered “field peas” and greens to be fit only for animal fodder. These dishes became cherished and appreciated as what saved many a family from starvation during those times and the tradition of celebrating these dishes on the new year was born.

There are three things every southerner must eat on New Years day, Black eyed peas, greens, and hog jowl or fatback.Black Eyed peas are said to bring luck in the coming year, with many traditions holding that you must eat at least 365 of them. We never had a number, but the more you ate, the more luck you were supposed to have so Mama always makes plenty!

Fatback is very tough and extremely salty, it looks just like a thick slice of bacon but is more difficult to chew. As one of the cheapest cuts of meat, it rose rapidly in popularity during the depression era of the South. Eating this is said to ensure good health in the coming year and I must say, it is delicious.

Greens can be either turnip, collard, or a mix of greens or a “mess” as we call them. They are said to bring wealth in the new year and as with black eyed peas, the amount of wealth you have is directly proportionate to how much of them you eat! To see my greens tutorial (I just love the pepper sauce recipe), click here.

I don’t store my dried beans in the plastic bags they come in because I tend to purchase beans and store them a while (I buy in large quantities). Whenever I go to get dried beans, I pick up a couple of bags of each kind we like, which adds up quickly.

I used to store them in the bags but learned the hard way that this is not a good idea as the bags are easily permeated by little critters, especially certain types of buggies who delight in dried beans. Instead, I keep some large mason jars around and pour the bags out as soon as I get home with them. The mason jars look really pretty if you have a country kitchen and although I keep most of them in my pantry you’ll always find a few on shelves or the top of the fridge in arrangements in my kitchen. This is also how I store my popcorn kernels, candies for baking, and many other items. I find it’s not only frugal, but the glass jars are reusable for a number of things indefinitely.

Sort your dried beans into a bowl.

Sometimes, little stones end up being packaged with the beans. This is just an unavoidable aspect of bean farming and no big deal. What you do to avoid cooking up those stones with your beans (and possibly breaking a guests tooth!) is to pour out a handful at time into your palm and look through them before dumping them into a bowl.

Now we have to soak our peas.

I prefer the overnight soak method but if you would rather, you can simply cover your peas with water, bring them to boil, then remove them from heat and cover and let soak for one hour.Pour out the soak water and replace with fresh water to cook the peas in until done.

Having said that, I still prefer the overnight soak method, which is what we’re doing here

Before going to bed, cover the peas with water, leaving plenty of extra because they will absorb the liquid and expand.

See how much they expanded overnight? Now pour out this water…

And let me show you this beautiful bowl I had the peas soaking in…

It’s Pyrex, of course, a Cinderella bowl, which means it has handles on both sides. This pattern is called “Daisy”. I love how gorgeous and sunshiney it looks. Reminds me of my first trip to Florida when I was five and we stopped at the welcome center for free orange juice.

We thought we were big stuff if folks were on standby just to give us orange juice the moment we crossed over the state line!

Put drained peas in a large pot.

Add some type of pork for seasoning.

I am using a big old hunk from our Christmas ham.

The finest seasoning is a ham bone with a bit of meat still on it but you can also purchase a package of ham hocks for just a few dollars if you need to (I usually pay $2-$3 for four ham hocks). I also keep slices of country ham in bags in my freezer to season beans with in a pinch, works like a charm.

It is possible to make peas or dried beans without using pork as a seasoning but if you want to make real Southern black eyed peas, you’re gonna have to get a pig involved…

Fill pot with water. Make sure you cover them well because it will boil down over the course of the day and you don’t want your beans to go dry.

Another way of doing this is to cook the beans this exact same way in the slow cooker. With the lid on, you won’t have to worry about it boiling dry during the day or check on it like you do the pot.

Now we add our seasoning. To read about how I learned to season beans ~giggle~ check out this post on pintos.…

You’re going to have to season to your personal taste but I start with a tablespoon of each. Add a tablespoon of salt…

Note: you’ll definitely need to add more salt so be sure and taste it after a few hours of cooking.

and a tablespoon of pepper…

A tablespoon of sugar

This is a Southern Granny thing. If your grandmother was a southerner, chances are she told you to do this and we don’t question our granny’s, we just do as we are told with a smile of gratitude and a “yes Ma’am”!

and add a tablespoon of oil.

(Also a granny thing..)

Bring that to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for a few hours.

Remove ham, hambone, or ham hock, and shred it.

Return to pot and stir. Taste to see what seasonings you want to add more of.

Add more salt whether you think it needs it or not because it does, I promise.

Grandmama says “Beans just need a good bit of salt.”

Serve warm. Pour a little of the juice over your cornbread or onto your plate to sop up with your cornbread because this is delicious! The juice is known as “potlikker” or “pot liquor” by the fancy folks.

I read somewhere the Southerners serve pot liquor in cups along side their dishes to dip cornbread in. I’ve never heard of anyone doing this in my life, have you? I’ve heard of folks putting extra juice in a bowl of beans and crumbling cornbread over the top and I’ve also heard of pouring juice over cornbread, but serving it in cups alongside seems a bit too high falootin for my tastes. But hey, maybe I need to get a little more high falootin’ in my life. Maybe I’ll pour m’bean juice in a little custard cup and even hold my pinky out while I dip my cornbread….Naaaaahhh. ~winks~

Add this recipe to ZipList!

Black Eyed Peas

Ingredients

• 1 Pkg Dried Black Eyed Peas (or field peas, or cow peas) - package size doesn't matter
• Pork for seasoning: ham hocks, ham bone, or large piece of ham
• 1 T salt (will need more)
• 1 T pepper
• 1 T cooking oil
• 1 T Sugar

Instructions

1. Sort through beans to ensure there aren't any stones. Place sorted beans in a large mixing bowl or pot. Completely cover with water (with a few inches extra over the top) and soak overnight. In morning, pour off soaking water and place in pot they're to be cooked in. Add pork for seasoning. Cover with water and several more inches to ensure that peas don't boil dry. Add all other seasonings. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for several hours. Remove ham and shred, place back in pot. Continue cooking until peas are tender. Total cooking time will take at least three to four hours.

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A member of our Southern Plate Family sent me a fascinating and detailed message via Facebook today regarding New Years traditions and I think you’ll enjoy it as much as I did! Special thanks to Melissa!

The six major categories of New Year’s foods are grapes, greens, legumes, pork, fish and cakes. Here is what they represent:

Grapes: In Spain people eat twelve grapes at midnight—one grape for each stroke of the clock. This dates back to 1909, when grape growers in the Alicante region of Spain initiated the practice to take care of a grape surplus. The idea stuck, spreading to Portugal as well as former Spanish and Portuguese colonies such as Venezuela, Cuba, Mexico, Ecuador, and Peru. Each grape represents a different month, so if for instance the third grape is a bit sour, March might be a rocky month. For most, the goal is to swallow all the grapes before the last stroke of midnight!

Cooked Greens: Cooked greens, including cabbage, collards, kale, and chard, are consumed at New Year’s in different countries for a simple reason — their green leaves look like folded money, and are symbolic of economic fortune. The Danish eat stewed kale sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon, the Germans consume sauerkraut (cabbage) while in the southern United States, collards are the green of choice. It’s widely believed that the more greens one eats the larger one’s fortune next year.

Legumes: These include beans, peas, and lentils and are also symbolic of money. Their small, seedlike appearance resembles coins that swell when cooked so they are consumed with financial rewards in mind. In the Southern United States, it’s traditional to eat black-eyed peas or cowpeas in a dish called hoppin’ john. There are even those who believe in eating one pea for every day in the new year. This all traces back to the legend that during the Civil War, the town of Vicksburg, Virginia, ran out of food while under attack. The residents fortunately discovered black-eyed peas and the legume was thereafter considered lucky.

Pork: The custom of eating pork on New Year’s is based on the idea that pigs symbolize progress. The animal pushes forward, rooting itself in the ground before moving. Different pork dishes such as pig’s feet are enjoyed in Sweden while Germans feast on roast pork and sausages. Pork is also consumed in Italy and the United States, where thanks to its rich fat content, it signifies wealth and prosperity.

Fish: Fish is a very logical choice for the New Year’s table. According to Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World, cod has been a popular feast food since the Middle Ages. He compares it to turkey on Thanksgiving. The reason? Long before refrigeration and modern transportation, cod could be preserved and transported allowing it to reach the Mediterranean and even as far as North Africa and the Caribbean. Some people have been known to place a few fish scales in their wallets for good luck.

Cakes: Cakes and other baked goods are commonly served from Christmas to New Year’s around the world, with a special emphasis placed on round or ring-shaped items, a shape symbolizing the eternal, the neverending and continuity. In certain cultures, it’s customary to hide a special trinket or coin inside the cake. Whoever finds the trinket is said to be the recipient of good luck throughout the coming year. Cakes aren’t always round. In Scotland, where New Year’s is called Hogmanay, there is a tradition called “first footing,” in which the first person to enter a home after the new year determines what kind of year the residents will have. The “first footer” often brings symbolic gifts like coal to keep the house warm or baked goods such as shortbread, oat cakes, and a fruit caked called black bun, to make sure the household always has food.

In many cultures to have food on the table AT MIDNIGHT is symbolic of bringing good fortune into the home at the beginning of the New Year so that the home is guaranteed success and prosperity all throughout the coming year.

What NOT to Eat: Lobster, for instance, is a bad idea because they move backwards and could therefore lead to setbacks. Chicken is also discouraged because the bird scratches backwards, which could cause regret or dwelling on the past. Another theory warns against eating any winged fowl because good luck could fly away.

Now I am not a believer in “luck” of any kind…being a Christian, I put my faith and hope in God for my and my family’s needs to be met and believe that nothing is by accident. However, it is FUN to explore the origins of food and tradition, so I hope you enjoyed this little tidbit of info!

From One Foodie to Another…Many Blessings in the New Year!

Melissa K. Hand
Southern Plate Fan, Chef & Fellow Foodie

“Attitude to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what other people think, say or do. It is more important than appearance, gift, or skill. It will make or break a company…a church…a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day…I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you… we are in charge of our attitudes.”

- Charles Swindoll. Submit your quote here.

Also of interest:

How to cook a ham and get AT LEAST Four meals out of it

Southern Plate is more than just me typing and chatting away. In fact, YOU are the most important part of SouthernPlate.com. With that in mind, I hope you’ll take time to leave a comment and share your favorite sandwich from your childhood. See bottom of this post for more details! Gratefully, Christy

When my mama was a girl they had a tradition of going out riding through the countryside on Sunday afternoons. They’d stop off at a little store to have thick slices of bologna cut off and made into bologna and cheese sandwiches. Pair that with a bottled drink and they were living high on the hog! “There just wasn’t anything like getting to ride in that car and look out the window while you ate a bologna sandwich!”.

This treat was passed down to my generation when we often sat down for lunch with a big loaf of bread and a stack of cheese slices in the middle of the table while Mama fried up bologna in a skillet. We’d each make our own sandwich and I’d make mine just like my brother did: Fried bologna, cheese, and potato chips settled in between two pieces of “loaf bread”.

Bologna sandwiches, sometimes referred to as “the poor man’s steak”, are such a part of our culture, they’re even used to gauge a person’s character. On the day we got married, my husband’s best man, Jim, had driven in a ways and was planning on staying overnight before heading back. He stayed with my Grandmother, who lived across the road from what was to be our new home. It had been quite a day with the wedding and reception and that evening Grandmama and Jim went out on her porch to relax and look out over the river.

For supper, Grandmama made the two of them bologna sandwiches.

To Grandmama, Jim and my husband represented a new generation, with a huge divide between folks her age and them. Grandmama had grown up dirt poor and picking cotton all of her life and here was this young man newly graduated from college with an engineering degree whose experience with her world had been nothing more than glancing at the cotton as the car went by. Its sometimes a little intimidating for folks who come from such humble backgrounds in situations like this, but when Jim accepted that bologna sandwich, it spoke volumes to Grandmama about the type of person he was at heart. Even now whenever he is mentioned she always chimes, in,

“That Jim is just a real good boy, he sat out there on the porch and ate a bologna sandwich with me”.

To make the sandwich from my childhood you’ll need: Bread, cheese, mayo…

and potato chips

My brother taught me the wonders of a potato chip sandwich over thirty years ago.

I think it almost made up for him cutting the entire side of my hair off a few years later.

Now we have to fry out bologna. I always cut a slit halfway through to keep it from curling up into a bowl as it fries.

I prefer Zeigler bologna because it is made in Alabama. I try to buy as close to home as I can because last thing we want is to end up relying on a company halfway across the country for our food supplies. I think it’s best to support local suppliers to ensure that you have local suppliers. Zeigler’s has been around for over seventy five years. Their main plant is in Tuscaloosa and our own highly respected Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant was once an owner of the company as well.

Reminder to all: I am not into football but Alabamians take their football very seriously.

So whatever team you are for, GO THEM!

You don’t need to spray your pan or anything, just put your bologna in it and cook it on medium, turning after it browns on one side. Some folks like there is just barely heated but I actually like a wee bit of black on mine

Note to myself: You use the word “actually” too much, stop it. Now. Seriously.

~sighs~

Oh lawd, that’s some good eatin’!

I always smoosh it a bit to crunch the chips down some

Grandmama, I’m a real good girl because I still eat bologna sandwiches!

A few posts back we got into a comment discussion on strange sandwich combinations we grew up on. It was a fascinating comment section and we all really got a hoot out of reading it. I’d like to devote this comment section to those sandwiches. What did you grow up on? What brands do you insist on and why?

Mayonaise sandwich? Mustard sandwich? PB and banana? Tell us all about it! Also, why do you think Southerners eat such strange sandwich combinations-ketchup sandwich, anyone?

I think it is due to lack of food. When food was scarce, you could put something between two slices of bread, call it a sandwich and then it suddenly seemed like a meal. What do you think?

If there is anything else you wanna talk about in the comments section, feel free to do that, too.

See someone else’s comment you wanna reply to? Go right ahead!

I consider this to be my big old porch and we’re all just a standing around visiting with each other.

Y’all keep the conversation going and I’ll keep the tea glasses filled!

We’re all family here anyways.

“The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way.”

Submitted by Rebecca Hall. To submit your quote or read more, please click here.

I just love getting new positive quotes so thank you in advance!

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