Stay tuned for my Favorite Holiday Gifts Guide and lots of giveaways coming up in a few days! 

We’ve never been fruitcake fans, but we do love our fruitcake cookies! Dried fruit layered with cinnamon, brown sugar, and just enough flour and butter to hold it all together until it reaches your mouth! Mama has made fruitcake cookies each year for as long as I can remember. She goes shopping for the candied fruit each year *after* Christmas, when it is on sale, and stores it in her freezer until the holidays roll around again and we all get to craving the brown sugar/fruity goodness of these yummy cookies.

Mama’s recipe is traditional and wonderful, but this year I worked up a simpler version with less fuss. I sent a platter of them to my mother’s house for her approval and she called this morning to get the recipe. She said she’s gonna make my version instead of hers this year to give herself a little break because “They taste every bit as good and sure are a lot easier!”.

So here is my easier version. No dropping dough or cookie sheets. Just pat it all into one pan, cook and let it cool and rest overnight, then cut into little bites and enjoy. Because we all have Christmases when we really want the fruitcake cookies, but a little break would be nice, too!

You’ll need: Baking Mix, Margarine, Chopped walnuts, sliced almonds, raisins, dark brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, one egg, and Candied Fruit Mix or chopped candied dried fruits of your choice.

Notes about ingredients and substitutions: 

Baking Mix – Some folks aren’t familiar with “Baking Mix”. Bisquick is a brand of baking mix and that usually strikes that note of recognition with them Bisquick is not my favorite baking mix. I prefer House Autry (which can’t be found where I live) or Pioneer Brand. I do get Bisquick if I have to make a really large quantity because it comes in larger boxes, or if I can’t find the other two that I prefer. You can also make your own homemade baking mix by using one of the gazillion recipes found on the internet

Nuts - I’m using chopped walnuts because they are so much cheaper than pecans. Feel free to use whatever nuts you have on hand.

Dried and Candied Fruit – My mother doesn’t like the fruit cake blend of candied fruit as much as I do so she uses only candied cherries in her fruit cake cookies. I love the added citrus fruits in the candied fruit mix Please tailor this to your own preferences and taste.

Brown Sugar - I’m also using dark brown sugar because I just really like dark brown sugar. You can use light if you prefer.

Margarine - You can substitute butter for margarine in this recipe but I prefer margarine in this one. These cookies have a longer shelf life and ship very well thanks to the margarine. Note: If shipping, be sure and let them sit for at least a day before cutting and package in a single layer so they have less chance of being smooshed.

Vanilla - I’m using real vanilla because someone gave it to me. For those of you purists, enjoy this picture but don’t get too comfy. You’ll see me using bargain imitation vanilla again soon enough I’ll cheerlead your personal choice all the way but we’re running on a two way street here

Melt your butter in a large mixing bowl.

Add in baking mix, brown sugar, cinnamon, egg, and vanilla.

Stir that up until well combined.

Now add in all of your nuts and dried fruit. 

And stir that up really well.

This will take some elbow grease (just a little bit) to get it all incorporated because your batter will be absolutely

filled with chunky goodness but that’s what is going to make it taste so stinking good!

Now spray an 8×8 pan really well with cooking spray.

Yes, this only makes one 8×8 pan, lol. We’re going to cut them in little squares though so it will end up with a lot.

Dump in all of your dough. 

Pat it out a bit with your hands to fill the pan.

Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

Allow to cool completely.

Let rest overnight before cutting.

“Its a good day to have a good day!”

Thanks to LAuren for submitting this quote. Click here to read more (there are over 1400 so far!) and add your own!

Please read the post below to see why I’m calling this “original” mud hens, and then try them soon! Have a GREAT day!

Gratefully, Christy

I have spent a considerable amount of time in the kitchen lately trying to come up with a shortcut recipe for my original Mud Hens recipe from My Cookbook.

No matter what I did, I ended up a little disappointed. The “shortcuts” weren’t nearly as good as the original. I normally don’t post recipes on SouthernPlate.com that are exclusive to my cookbook but when I found myself online looking to see if anyone else had come up with a good way to shortcut Mud Hens, I immediately came across over ten websites featuring the recipe from my cookbook ~laughs~  So I decided that if they can post my original recipe, I certainly can, too!

So forget the shortcuts. This recipe is simple and easy as it is. Once you taste it, I’m sure you’ll think it is worth the effort  

You’ll need: Shortening, sugar, eggs, butter, salt, baking powder, and all purpose flour. 

You’ll also need: Chocolate Chips, Marshmallows, and Brown Sugar

Note: Use dark or light brown sugar, whatever cranks your tractor.

You don’t have to use mini chocolate chips but that is what I had on hand.

Begin by separating two of your eggs, whites in one bowl and yolks in the other.

Make sure you don’t get any of the yolk into your whites because we’re about to make an amazing brown sugar meringue and if any of those yolks get in there our meringue won’t beat up right.

Now put your butter, shortening, and sugar in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until fluffy.

Add in your 2 egg yolks and the additional whole egg and beat again. 

Like this. 

At this point you should get out a separate bowl and place your flour, baking powder, and salt in it and stir together.

You really should do that.

I’m not, I’m going to just add in my flour, baking powder, and salt into the batter.

But you should really mix them up in a separate bowl first and then dump them in.

Unless you’re not in the mood to. In that case just put them into your batter separately like I did.

Mix that up until well combined and you have your dough.

Pat into the bottom of your greased 9×13 inch dish.

If you need to you can put a little flour on your hands to help keep it from sticking, like I did. 

Top with chocolate chips and marshmallows.

Now we need to make our brown sugar meringue topping.

My mouth started watering just typing that..

Place your egg whites in a mixing bowl and beat the mess out of it until stiff peaks form.

Like this  

Add in your brown sugar…

And stir with a spoon until it’s well combined like this.

Now this contains raw eggs so you shouldn’t taste it..

~She says as she licks the spoon and sets it aside for the next photo~

Pour your meringue over the top of your marshmallows and spread it around to the edges.

Like this.

Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

Oh how pretty!

Allow to cool completely and then cut into bars.

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

“Opportunity is always knocking.

The problem is that most people have the self-doubt station in their head turned up way too loud to hear it.

~Brian Vaszily

ENTER NESTLE’S BAKE AND SHARE HOLIDAY TREAT CONTEST

I’m teaming up with Nestle to help promote their Bake and Share Holiday Treat Contest! Click here to visit their Facebook page and get details on how you can enter your recipe for a chance to win $5000! We have some AMAZING cooks in the Southern Plate Family and I’d love to see one of you win this!

No matter how much I love cooking, there is always a special thrill when I make something that I know has one of my kids or auntlings are going to get excited about. That’s why I love these cloud cookies so much . They got their name from my nephew, Austin, about eight years ago. I’ve always been a fan of meringue cookies and I whipped up a batch when Austin was over at my house and decided to stir some chocolate chips into them before baking. Austin waited patiently while they cooked and then took one bite and declared them just like clouds – with the added bonus of chocolate chips!

So if you want to be the cool aunt/mama/grandmama/daddy/uncle who knows how to bake chocolate chips into clouds…I got ya covered today!

You’ll need: Chocolate Chips, two eggs, sugar, Cream of Tartar, a bit of salt, and some sprinkles if you’d like to add a little sparkle to your clouds...I mean cookies.

Crack your eggs and separate the whites from the yolk. Add in a pinch of cream of tartar and your salt.

There are all sorts of gadgets that do this but I just use my hands. Usually, I crack the egg and just gently tilt it until the white pours off, saving the yolk in the shell. You can also pour the entire egg into your hand and spread your fingers slightly to allow just the white to slide through while the yolk remains.

Or you can get one of those gadgeterators that lets you pour the egg into it and the white comes out of little spout on the bottom.

Whichever way you go, make sure you don’t get any of the yolk (the dark orange part) in this because our meringue won’t fluff up if we have yolk in it.

Beat your egg whites until soft peaks form.

Okay so what this means is that you need to beat them on high with an electric mixer for a few minutes. They will start out getting frothy and then begin to get foamy, and eventually turn white like this. As you keep on beating, they will start to hold their shape a bit, meaning you’ll see ripples remain in them where the beater has been.

Stop your mixer and pull your beaters up. Where your beaters came out of the egg whites a point will come up.  If that droops back down again (kinda like the top of a dairy queen ice cream cone), you have soft peaks.

Add in your sugar and beat it some more, unit the sugar is well incorporated.

It will get thick and glossy like divinity.

Oh my, I need to do a post on how to make divinity, don’t I? Oooh Mama has a great recipe for it…

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

Stir in your chocolate chips.

Place spoonfuls onto the greased baking sheet.

I do about a well rounded teaspoon…or whatever size I’m in the mood for

A lot of my cooking is centered around my mood. Good thing I try to pick good moods out of the bucket each morning!

Allow your clouds to cool completely and then store them in an airtight container, or just hand them to the kids in your life and watch them disappear!

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

I’m teaming up with Nestle to help promote their Bake and Share Holiday Treat Contest! Click here to visit their Facebook page and get details on how you can enter your recipe for a chance to win $5000! We have some AMAZING cooks in the Southern Plate Family and I’d love to see one of you win this!

Some people are so poor that all they have is money.

~Unknown

Thank to to Ticha for submitting this one! Add your quote to our ever growing collection or go get inspired by some others by clicking here.

And don’t worry about whether or not your quote has been submitted already. The good ones bear repeating!

I’m excited to have a guest in our kitchen today on SouthernPlate.com. Please welcome Tricia from Hodge Podge Mom as she shares her grandmother’s recipe for potato chip cookies! I can’t wait to make these – Thank you so much Tricia!

Gratefully,

Christy

I just mix up those crushed chips, some flour, butter, vanilla, and sugar, bake them in the oven and you’ve got cookies!

I hope you’ll get to try these soon!

“Most of the shadows of this life are caused by our standing in our own sunshine.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Submit your quote to our collection or read more by clicking here.

Tricia was born and raised in Marietta, GA. She gave up life in the drive thru lane for the joy-filled road home. She homeschools five children from preschool to middle school. You can find her facing that daily dose of chaos at Hodgepodge. There she writes about practical schooling strategies and shares how she is saving bucks and her sanity with the frugal recipes of her Southern roots. Tricia is also known as Hodgepodgemom. ]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/10/potato-chip-cookies.html/feed 51 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/peanut-butter-no-bake-cookie-bites.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/peanut-butter-no-bake-cookie-bites.html#comments Wed, 14 Sep 2011 14:10:04 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=16763 Pin it

If you’re on Facebook and could click that little “like” button up there I’d sure appreciate it!

Today I’m going to attempt to keep this blog post short and sweet. Well, the recipe makes it sweet but the only way we’re gonna make it short is if I’m not quite so chatty. Yeah….good luck with that one. But I have pies to bake, errands to run, and books to write so I’m gonna make an attempt. It’s the thought that counts, right?

These cookies are the ones you most likely remember from your childhood. We usually had them in chocolate form (click here to view my mama’s tutorial on how to make the chocolate ones) but I somehow ended up with an entire family who LOVES peanut butter. Anything Peanut butter. Seriously.

We go through one of the HUGE jars each and every week. They love PB&J sandwiches, peanut butter on toast, Peanut butter balls (which I try to always keep in the freezer), Peanut Butter Cookies, oh! And of course Yellow Cake with that Peanut Butter Fudge Icing. There is a cute story about that, too. When I did the 700 Club, I made seven different cakes and talked about The Seven Cakes of Christmas story from my family (You can watch all of my tv clips by visiting this page).

Well lo and behold I arrived back in Alabama that night and my whole family met me at the airport, including a very exuberant Katy Rose, who hugged me and immediately started craning her neck to look around at my luggage.

She said “Mama, where is that peanut butter cake? I know you made that one for me!” Bless her heart, she had watched me with that peanut butter cake on tv and since it was her favorite, she just knew I had made it to bring home to her! Needless to say, that child got Peanut butter cake for breakfast the next day

So what are we waiting for? Oh, yeah, we’re waiting for me to stop talking and get to the recipe, huh?

Alrighty then, do I need to tell you how good these are? Fudgey, chewy, and every kid’s favorite. I think we’re all about due for a batch today!

You’ll need: Sugar, oats, peanut butter, vanilla, butter (or margarine), and milk. 

Place your sugar, butter, and milk in a heavy bottomed saucepan. 

Stirring constantly, bring it to a boil over medium heat.

Once it reaches a full rolling boil, continue to stir and boil for one minute.

I usually boil for a minute and a half to be on the safe side. 

After it’s boiled for a minute, remove from heat and add in peanut butter and vanilla. 

Stir until smooth, creamy, and all of the peanut butter is melted. 

Like this  

Now add in your oats and stir those up really well. 

I love oats…

Like this. 

Don’t you just love seeing pictures of cooking? I think it makes us more likely to actually make a recipe because by the time we’re at the end of a post, having looked at al of the photos, we’ve already made it in our head so it doesn’t seem so daunting

That’s just my theory anyway. I love looking at the photos but I’m not too terribly into taking them, as you can tell by looking at mine. So many food bloggers take these gorgeous photos of all of their food but I’m kinda just more into cooking it, telling the story behind it, and then feeding people.

Okie Dokie, now pour that into an 8×8 pan that you’ve sprayed with cooking spray and let sit until cool.

Of course, if you want you can drop these by spoonfuls onto waxed paper like we did back in the old days. I just prefer the pan method because it is so much less work and they make cute little cookie bites when you cut them.

You can speed up the cooling process by placing your pan in the fridge.

Oh goodness, these are good!

Did you have these as a kid?

Who made them for you?

The recipe for the chocolate version of these cookies can be found by clicking here. 

If you’d like to watch some of my national tv appearances, I have a few on on my Media/PR page, click here to go there and just scroll down to see all of the videos.

“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are

conscious of our treasures.”

– Thornton Wilder

Submitted by Jenny. Submit your quote by clicking here.

]]> http://www.southernplate.com/2011/09/peanut-butter-no-bake-cookie-bites.html/feed 119 http://www.southernplate.com/2011/08/littlepigs.html http://www.southernplate.com/2011/08/littlepigs.html#comments Mon, 15 Aug 2011 15:48:04 +0000 Christy Jordan http://www.southernplate.com/?p=16318 Pin it

If you are on Facebook, I’d love it if you’d click that little “Like” button above! Thanks so much!

Whew, life is hard sometimes, isn’t it? Let’s just sit back a minute and take a few cleansing breaths before we head on into the heavy stuff because as a parent, as an adult, as a human really, I bet you’ve had more than your fair share of heavy stuff lately haven’t you? I know I sure have.

~breathes~ Alright, let’s get to the meat of things…..

This day and age, kids are having to face more things at a younger age than we ever seen and every day I see parents walking around oblivious to that – some days I’m one of those parents. A kind lady told me a story that really opened my eyes last week. She said a young man (around 14) got up on the last night of VBS at her church and addressed all of the parents. He pleaded with them to listen to their kids, to hear their hearts, to listen to their hurts and concerns. He said “I know it seems small to you, but these burdens are heavy to us. Please listen to us when we need to talk to you.” She said his voice was literally pleading and by the time he finished, there was hardly a dry eye in the house as his words really struck home with the parents in the audience.

As mine grow older, we hit snags on a more regular basis when it comes to issues, problems, and crisis. From the perspective of an adult, all too often my first reaction is to see their problems as trivial, because I know it is all a part of life and it will pass. I know that what seems like a heart wrenching tragedy today could be completely forgotten tomorrow – but then I think of what that kid said. “It seems small to you, but these burdens are heavy to us.”

Our world is changing, it’s faster than when we were kids. Twelve and thirteen year olds are having to deal with things I never had to deal with until I was sixteen or seventeen back in my time and even then I was too young to know how to properly handle the burdens given to me. Imagine the weight on a kid who is eight, nine, twelve years old. These burdens seem small to us, but they are so very heavy to them.

My kids have no idea that when they come to me upset and pour out their hearts, as I’m soothing them and telling them it will be okay, doing my very best to explain how the world sometimes works, inside I want to re-enact a scene from Where The Wild Things Are where I gnash my terrible teeth and roar my terrible roar at the world – and that is when it takes every ounce of strength I have to hold myself back and just love them through it. It’s funny how, compassion is the character trait we admire most in our children but it is the absolute hardest to watch develop. Don’t get me wrong, I have no qualms about having a Come-To-Jesus moment with anyone when necessary when it comes to my kids, but we can’t always do that and it isn’t always called for. Sometimes, we have to let them go through something, sometimes our hands are tied, sometimes it really isn’t as bad as they think it is and we have the wisdom to know that they just need time to see with a better perspective.

BUT during these times…

There is one thing we can all do to ease the pains of growing up for them and to make sure they know they have a home port. Sit down at the dinner table tonight. Together. With a meal. I don’t care what the meal is. Heck, make bologna sandwiches if you have to, just sit down together. Mama used to tell me “If you sit down at the table with your kids, they start talking to you about their day and they don’t even realize it. That is how you find out about their friends, their school, what is going on. That is where you keep your connection to them.”

My kids are so funny, they both view dinnertime as their BIG CHANCE to tell us everything. We sit down and they both race to see who can start talking first in hopes of having the first turn. They have so much to say each meal that we actually have to take turns letting them talk!

Our kids are growing up, they’re changing and learning how to cope with the world in a way that doesn’t sacrifice who they are, but in the middle of that it is very important to realize that we still have a lot to learn, too. When we all come together, we give ourselves a chance to learn from each other, even if it is over a pot of homemade mac and cheese and a passed around basket of pigs in the blanket.

Today I’m sharing some comfort food with you, because I think we all need comfort food this week. Would you like a little comforting today?

This is Katy Rose’s favorite. She shouts it from the rooftops whenever I make these and her excitement makes me feel like I’ve actually done something!

You’ll need: Beef Cocktail Smokies (Litte smokies), and ONE Can of Crescent Rolls.

I usually buy two just in case I end up needing more but for this tutorial and an entire package of little smokies, one was enough. So if you miss reading this note until after you have gotten back from the grocery store, just make some crescent rolls to go with your supper

Open your package of little smokies and put them all on a paper towel lined plate.

This will help dry them a bit and our dough will stick much better.

(This photo only shows about half of my package)

Take out your crescent rolls and roll them out one triangle at a time.

Cut that triangle into about five pieces, like this.

Now take each piece and wrap it around a little smoke, pressing the edges together to seal.

Place them all on an ungreased cookie sheet, leaving them a little room to spread, and bake at 375 for about 10-12 minutes.

Get ‘em while they’re hot..

and sit down with your kids to supper tonight.

I promise that even your grandchildren will thank you for it later!

Add this recipe to ZipList!

Little Pigs In A Blanket

Ingredients

• 1 package cocktail smokie weenies
• 1 can crescent rolls

Instructions

1. Place little smokies on paper towel lined plate.
2. Open can of crescent rolls and separate them into triangles. Cut each triangle into five pieces using the photo in this post as a guide.
3. Wrap each piece around a smoke and place on an ungreased baking sheet.
4. Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes. Makes about 40
5. These are great served with homemade creamy mac and cheese! (See below for link to Mama's Creamy Mac and Cheese Recipe)

Google Recipe View Microformatting by ZipList Recipe Plugin

1.2

Click here for Mama’s Creamy Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

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

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”

– Mother Teresa

Submitted by Jenny. I’d love for you to add your favorite inspirational or motivational quote on our Give A Penny Page. You can visit that page by clicking here.

June is National Dairy Month! To celebrate it, we were invited to visit an Alabama dairy farm courtesy of the Southeast United Dairy Association. We had a WONDERFUL family day and I’m so excited to bring you along with us in today’s post!

This is Mr. and Mrs. Childers, who celebrate their 47th wedding anniversary next Tuesday.  They were so kind to invite us to visit their dairy and you couldn’t hope to meet a nicer couple. They are a friendly as the day is long.

Mrs. Childer’s grandfather began the dairy in 1945.  He had purchased some jersey cows and bred them to sell but when the calves started coming they found they didn’t have a buyer so they built a barn and started milking instead. When Mrs. Childer’s father came home from the war he just sort of stepped in and took over taking care of the cows and eventually built up the herd.

Mr. and Mrs. Childers met when they were both attending Auburn and were married in 1964. They both graduated in 1966 and moved home to start their own small dairy. By then, though, her father’s barn was in need of remodeling and some new equipment so the couple decided to merge the two herds and ended up with over 400 cows, in a rather crowded neighborhood. Mr Childer’s says “We got a lot of notice from the neighbors so we decided to move over to another location and built a brand new facility in 1983.”

And that is the facility we had the opportunity to visit.

We began our day in the break room, eating Mrs. Childer’s delicious oatmeal cookies and washing them down with ice cold milk (of course!) then we moved on to the milking room. (I’ve already asked for the recipe and will bring it to you soon!)

The dairy is a true family business, with two sons and several grandchildren helping out now. This is my family with Mrs. Mary and her husband (Mary works for the the Southeast Dairy Association), Mister Childers, his granddaughter Anna and his grandson Murphy (front right).

As we went through the farm, little Murphy, age four, caught me gazing up in admiration at a long line of cows getting ready to be milked and he softly pulled me down to his level and proudly said “Them’s my cows.”

Katy Rose checking out the milking process

Each cow is equipped with a sensor on their ankle.

As they come in to the milking stations the computer instantly reads that, picks up what cow it is and records all of the milk production and several other areas of data on the cow.

If the cow is determined to be ill or in distress in any way, they are then tagged in the computer and given special care to ensure they get well again. Instead of being milked, they are led out of the barn and a special gate (connected to the computer) opens when they get near it to send them to a section of the farm where they are looked after.

Okay, so it is much more technical than that but that is the jist of it.

It is amazing how well cared for the cows are and how sterile your milk is.

Did you know that the dairy industry is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the United States?

This is everyone headed out to the big barn, which is kind of like a little cow barracks

Murphy and his cows.

I just love this photo of the Childer’s daughter in law, Leigh Ann and her younguns, Murphy and Anna.

I love this photo of Miss Mary talking cows with Katy Rose. She looks like one of those Normal Rockwell kids

Here are the cows in what basically amounts to their beds. They just kinda roam in and out of the fields and shade as they want. Not a bad life!

Brady and Mister Childers talking about the cow business.

Mooo!

Don’t you just love black and white cows?

They have a pretty good setup here!

This is a big old pile of soil and fertilizer. There is a pretty involved drainage process throughout the farm and all of the water used to wash out the areas is then sent to a pond. The pond water is then filtered out, sediment removed to this pile, and reused. This pile then gets spread out over the fields where food for the cows is grown. Pretty cool.

Here is one of those drainage canals which is taking the water to the pond. I love how self efficient it all is.

And now for the best part!  BABY COWS!

Brady and Katy loved getting to meet all of the calves. The first one mooed as she went to pet it and she said “Mama, that cow growled at me!”

I said “Katy Rose baby, cows don’t growl, they moo.”

To which she replied “Well you didn’t hear that one then!”

Katy Rose and Murphy

This is Katy checking out the calf “crib”

Isn’t that the sweetest thing?

I highly recommend searching in your area to see if there is a dairy farm your family can visit. We had such a fun day!

I wanted to take this little baby home with me

Later on the Childers gave the kids popsicles while they continued with their cow gazing.

I just love this place!

Special thanks to Miss Mary for arranging this tour for us!

We had a FABULOUS day!

Happy Cows from from Happy Farmers

You can get your own coloring page like this by clicking here.

If you color one, ask your parents to post a photo of you and your picture on my Facebook page so we can see what a great job you did!

Be sure and check out the other great free kid’s activities they have, too!

Pour one more!

Experts reccommend three servings of milk a day but studies show that most people are falling short. An easy remedy to this problem is to “Pour One More” glass of milk a day for better health and stronger bones!

Here are some yummy ways to add more milk to your diet:

• Coffee drinker? Make it a latte! I love adding whole milk to my coffee. To make the coffee extra creamy and smooth, I pour the milk into my cup first and microwave it for about thirty seconds before adding in my coffee.
• Thrill the kids with Smoothies! Smoothies are a favorite of the whole family. They can be made with yogurt, milk, and a variety of your favorite fruits. For a quick and easy smoothie recipe, check out my Bananaritas by clicking here. You can also check out my recipe for Orange Juice Specials (similar to an Orange Julius) by clicking here.
• Yogurt! We all love Yogurt and each of us has a favorite. My husband likes Yoplait. Katy Rose likes Trix yogurt. Brady likes that Yoplait smoothie yogurt, and I love the Fiber One and Activia Light yogurts (key lime pie is my favorite!). That new greek yogurt is also very good, especially with some honey stirred in.



Pour One More today!

Be sure to search on the internet for great National Dairy Month Events in your area!  This weekend in my hometown of Huntsville, Alabama the Burritt Museum is having a Dairy Day. Click here for details.

You can also visit Working Cows Dairy online, Alabama’s own organic Dairy Farm

And be sure and check out Wright Dairy as well!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

**GIVEAWAY**

June Dairy Month Giveaway from the Southeast Dairy Association




To celebrate National Dairy Month, EVERY DAY THIS MONTH the great folks at the Southeast Dairy Association are giving away all sorts of great prizes like t shirts, hats, and even grocery gift cards! To enter, check out their facebook page for details!

Go say hi to them and get more details on their Facebook page by clicking here!

(Be sure and tell them I sent ya!)

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned,

worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.

– Denis Waitley

Thank you, Jenny, for submitting this wonderful quote. If you’d like to view some of the hundreds of others that have been submitted, or add your own, please click here.

Disclaimer: This post was not sponsored by anyone and I wasn’t financially compensated. We did have a great family day, though, and no amount of money can buy that! I hope you get to visit a dairy farm soon, it’s a great experience.

Jyl’s Favorite

Lemon Meringue Pie With Cookie Crumb Crust

Some people in this world take care of others. Chances are, you’re one of those people. The ones who step up to the plate when things need doing. When your Mother gets sick, when someone gets hurt and needs help around the house, when folks fall on hard times and need just a little help getting by. There is always someone who, despite their overly crowded schedule and already tight finances, can manage to fit in just a little more to help someone else or tighten their own budget just a little extra in order to fit in a way to help others.

My friend Jyl is one of those people. She takes care of others. She’s always been like that and I know she’ll still be the same way fifty years from now. Last year around this time she stepped up to the plate when there was a medical scare in her family. Jyl took care of things and people as needed and was grateful to be able to do it.

In the midst of that, when her birthday was forgotten in the shuffle, she didn’t complain. In fact, I doubt folks who forgot her birthday last year realize to this day that they did. But knowing that you’re probably one of those people just like Jyl, I thought you might like to join me in wishing her an even Happier Birthday today.

In honor of her birthday I wanted to showcase Jyl’s favorite dessert, Lemon Meringue Pie, along with a few other lemon favorites on Southern Plate. I’d love it if you’d join me in wishing Jyl a Happy Birthday, by clicking here to visit her blog and leave a comment. I know it will mean the world to her.

You can also make her favorite lemon pie or any of the lemon recipes listed here. I’m sure Jyl would approve!

Lemon Blossoms

Like little bits of sunshine!

Lemon Bars

Old Fashioned Favorite in a butter crust

Lemon Chess Pie

I first had this as a girl and have loved it all my life.

Be sure and click here to wish Jyl a Happy Birthday! Thank you!

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I would rather be Small and Shine, than be Great and cast a Shadow

Submitted by Patricia. Submit your quote by clicking here.

Special thanks to my friend Stacey Little of Southern Bite for providing a guest post today! I’m working on getting our forum up and running and finishing the details of the 2011 Southern Plate Basket so Stacey gave me a little extra time to get all that done. I hope you enjoy this post and I *know* you will enjoy these pecan chewies!

Gratefully, Christy

Hey folks!  It’s me again!  (Isn’t that awesome that I got asked to post again!?)  It’s like hosting Saturday Night Live… I feel like I’m important or something being asked back!  You know – a guy could develop a complex.  Hmmm.  Anyway,  it is such a pleasure and an honor to be able to share another one of my most favorite recipes with y’all.  When I first got to meet Christy, it was on her book tour in Birmingham.  I took a little “thank you” basket to her that had some Diet Dr. Peppers (of course) and these Pecan Chewies.

I be John Brown if she didn’t open those suckers up right there in the middle of Books a Million and share them with all the other folks.  It was awesome!  I included the recipe for her and she asked if I minded if she shared them on Southern Plate.  I said of course not.  Now, low and behold, I’m the one sharing them on Southern Plate!

Let me also express a little appreciation for all the Southern Plate love after my last post.  The response was overwhelming, to say the least!  It’s just so great to be among such an amazing group of folks who share my passion for food.  Y’all enjoy!

Okay, here’s what you’ll need:  2 sticks of butter (you can use margarine here, but I suggest you splurge and go for real, unsalted butter – come on, you’re worth it!), 1 cup of white granulated sugar, 1 cup of packed light brown sugar, 2 eggs that have been beaten (poor eggs), 2 cups of self rising flour, 1 cup of pecans, and 1 teaspoon vanilla.

First, melt the butter and combine the butter and white and brown sugars in a large bowl.

Next, add the beaten eggs.

Gradually add the flour, stirring well.  Then add the pecans and vanilla and combine.

The batter is going to be rather thick and hard to stir, but keep going. 

Scrape the batter into a greased and floured 9X13 inch baking dish.

Spread to cover bottom of dish with fingers or a spatula dipped in water (or a little melted butter -hee hee).

Bake approximately 40 to 50 minutes being cautious not to over cook.

You want them to remain chewy, hence the name!

Treasure each other in the recognition that we do not know how long we shall have each other.

~Joshua Liebman

And now a little something fun from my son Brady (who requested I post this)

One of the questions I get asked the most from SouthernPlate.com is “Where did you get your canisters? I love them!”. Well thank you so much,I’m tickled to death that you like them as much as me! I’ve never been able to tell folks where they could get their own until today though, because I actually made those up myself. You see, my old Tom’s Jar was the inspiration for my canister set a couple of years ago when I designed the lettering and had my father in law cut them out in his vinyl shop. A quick coat of paint to the lids and my canister set was born!

The good news is that as of today, you can make your own set just like I did because I am now offering the Southern Plate Canister Decal Set in the new online Southern Plate store! Quantities are limited and once they sell out they won’t be for sale again until we restock so pick up your set today and then follow along this tutorial to see exactly how I made mine.

Update: In the first hour of the store being opened we sold over half our stock of the decal sets. If they are sold out when you go to the store please know that we’re working on making more now. We hope to have more in stock by week’s end so check back if we’re sold out. Thank you!

To start with you will need clean glass canisters of your choice. You will also need tape and a canister decal set from the Southern Plate Store.

These canisters were purchased at Wal Mart and Target. Old Time Pottery and many other stores that carry kitchen merchandise will have glass canisters similar to these or that will work just as well.

Lay out your labels and decide which ones you are going to use.

Place a small piece of tape, sticking side facing up, on the far left end of one of your words.

You should be holding the word so that it reads properly when facing you, not backwards.

Align your word on the front of your canister and make sure you have it where you want it,

then stick it down using the tape on the end.

Lift the untaped end and gently peel the backing off.

like this.

Holding it taut to keep your letters straight, gently begin pressing it down onto your canister as shown in the next photo…

As you press down, run your finger over each letter when it makes contact with the canister to ensure it goes on smoothly and with no bubbles.

like this.

Once you have your entire word onto the canister, go over it again with your fingers,

pressing and smoothing down each line of each letter.

Gently peel back the paper to reveal your lettering.

And there ya go!

*These are not dishwasher safe. To wash your canisters please wash the inside only in the sink and gently wipe off the outside as needed.

Here is a set all ready to go with stainless steel lids (I’m about to show you how I painted mine).

and here is a cookie jar in a different type of canister that I picked up.

Notice the similarity to my antique Tom’s jar. This is what I first modeled my canister set after when I designed the letters and made them a couple of years ago. This jar was purchased at Wal Mart and is just about identical to the Tom’s design. I just love it, but really, any glass jar would work just as well.

Wanna paint your lids like I did? Lets get to it!

First, you’ll need to take apart each lid as pictured both above and below..

The paint I use on mine is Rust-Oleum Gloss Protective Enamel.

The color I get is called “Sunrise Red”.

NOTE: Due to the design of my canisters, none of my painted surfaces will be touching food ingredients. Please be careful that if you are painting a surface that will be touching food or ingredients, your paint is food safe.

On a warm sunny day, lay out all of your parts on cardboard in your yard somewhere.

• You’ll need to apply at least two coats of paint. The first coat should be extremely light. (You’ll probably still see some of the original color showing through.) Spraying too much on the first coat will cause bubbles to form on the lids. Make sure you are far enough away that the wind will not blow any paint overspray onto something you don’t want painted.

Spray your paint in nice even coats.

Make sure you do this on a warm, sunny day for best results and as I said be careful of the wind and overspray or there is no telling what you’ll end up getting red paint on.

This is a set with bright red lids all freshly done.

The “Coffee” canister isn’t in this photo but the decal for it is included in the set along with “Cookies”.

Please note: The canisters are not included in the kit you will purchase. Decals only are included. You will need to purchase glass canisters of your choice as well as paint if you choose to paint them.

This is what my lid looks like after a little over two years of heavy use.

I love how this just adds to the antique look of the jars. Ricky keeps wanting to re pain them but I won’t let him!

To purchase my canister decal kit, visit the Southern Plate Store.

Note: Once kits sell out they will not be for sale again until we have had a chance to restock.

See below for photos of more fun things available in the store!

Click here to visit the store

An assortment of Southern Plate aprons

Car (or fridge) magnet

Car (or fridge) magnet

Vinyl decal

Southern Plate Canister Decal Set