Father's Day Cottage Pie

FATHER’S DAY COTTAGE PIE

 Whenever I cook a large dinner I always end up with lots of leftovers to make sure that everyone gets plenty to eat- a throwback from my English grandmother, who wasn’t satisfied she had made a good meal until you were so stuffed you could barely move away from the table.  I love leftovers.  Some foods gain more flavor the second time around and after spending hours in the kitchen cooking it’s nice to have a something on hand for a quick and easy meal the next day.  My husband is a meat, mashed potatoes, and gravy type of guy so I often make a pot roast with all the trimmings on Sunday.  The only downside is you end up with several containers of leftovers crowding your refrigerator.  I’ve heard about Shepherd’s Pie and even looked at some recipes about Shepherd’s Pie, but it wasn’t until I saw a picture in a magazine with a totally different name that something clicked in my brain, caught my attention and imagination.  

“Shepherd’s pie” became popular around the 18^th century when the potato was being introduced as an edible crop affordable for the poor. It is generally agreed that it originated in the north of England and Scotland where there are large numbers of sheep--hence the name. Shepherds’ pie is made from ground lamb (not beef; that is cottage pie) and vegetables baked under a potato topping, although in early cookery books the pie dish was lined with mashed potatoes as well as having a potato crust on top. Since 1877 the term “shepherd’s pie” has been used synonymously with “cottage pie” whether the principal ingredient used was beef or mutton.

This past Sunday while clearing up instead of grabbing microwave containers for the leftovers, I started layering the leftovers in a baking dish.  Not only did I save space in my frig, but when I decided to use what I call my Father’s Day Cottage Pie for a meal later all I did was add another topping and pop it into the oven.   My Father’s Day Cottage Pie was an instant hit with my husband.  So from now on whenever I find myself with several leftovers from a big meal, I plan on making a Father’s Day Cottage Pie. The neat thing about the Father’s Day Cottage Pie is that you can incorporate all kinds of leftovers and toppings this way- the amount of servings being relative to the quantity of food used.

FATHER’S DAY COTTAGE PIE

2 c cooked beef with gravy

1 c stove top dressing

1 c corn (drained)

2- 2½  c mashed potatoes

6 slices Velveeta cheese

1 tb minced chives

Layer leftover beef (cut into bite size pieces) and gravy in the bottom of a 7 x 11 inch baking dish sprayed with cooking oil.  Sprinkle the stove top dressing on top of the beef and then add the corn. Spread the mashed potatoes over the top to the edge of the baking dish. When ready to use place Velveeta cheese on top and garnish with chives. Cover and bake at 350º for 35 to 45 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and slightly browned.  Let sit for five or ten minutes. This recipe serves six.

Tip:  You can also freeze your Father’s Day Cottage Pie to save for a busy day later on.  Just be sure and cover securely before freezing. Then thaw out and bake in your oven for an instant meal!

Tex Mex Mac & Cheese

Tex Mex Mac & Cheese
Dorcas Annette Walker

It felt like a lazy summer day as I took a moment to swing in my woods watching the chickens scratch around in the dirt clucking contentedly. Everywhere I looked was a vision of spring color. Delicate violets carpeted the ground in my orchard and other shady spots. My lettuce, beets, carrots, peas, and potatoes had popped out in the garden. It seemed like warmer weather had come to stay. Then overnight like an April fool’s joke the temperature plunged down to freezing up here on the mountain as cold north winds blew scattering flower petals everywhere. Not just one night, but a couple days in a row making one feel like winter had returned as I’ve kept my wood stoves burning day and night. Again I had to grab my warm jacket when going outside to make sure the animals stay safe and warm.

As though disgruntled by the cold weather, my hens started pecking at one of my beautiful white ducks that have lived together side by side for over a year. And when one hen starts to pick and jab it seems like the entire brood joins in on the hapless one. By the time I discovered what was going on the hens had surrounded and stripped a good portion of the feathers off my poor duck. Talk about a sorry sight. I was good and mad as I waded in the bunch of hens threatening to wring any neck that stood in my way letting them know exactly what I thought of their behavior. Dana helped me rescue the ducks relocating them in my enclosed garden.

When all the feathers and dust had settled, those attacking hens reminded me of gossip. All it takes is one whispered comment or exaggeration and before you know it everyone is talking about a certain person. By the time the unfortunate one realizes what is going on their reputation has been ruined and they are left vulnerable like a sitting duck. Meanwhile my ducks think they have arrived in paradise after being switched from a barren dirt chicken yard to a garden full of bushes and plants with a goldfish pond to swim around in. They spend their days hunting bugs and playing in the pond.

My Tex Mex Mac & Cheese will warm up your insides during cold days with its zesty spicy south of the border zing providing you with extra vitamin C to ward off colds and flu while giving your immunity a boost during spring weather changes. You can add green chilies or Tabasco sauce for more heat if you like your food extra hot. For meat lovers brown and crumble up hamburger or sausage and/or include pepperonis. Either way my Tex Mex Mac & Cheese will grab attention each time it is served. Preparation time for my Tex Mex Mac & Cheese is thirty-five minutes and this recipe serves four.

Tex Mex Mac & Cheese

1 (12 oz) box of shells & cheddar cheese
1/3 c frozen seasoned onions & peppers
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes drained
¼ c jar salsa cheese

Cook shells according to the directions adding the onions. Drain macaroni and stir in the tomatoes and cheeses. Keep on low heat until the cheese is completely melted. Serve hot!

Weekly tip: Adding a tb of cooking oil when preparing macaroni or noodles will keep the pot from boiling over and prevent the noodles or macaroni from sticking together!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Dwight's Breakfast Bake

Dwight’s Breakfast Bake
Dorcas Annette Walker

It happened so fast right before Christmas. One minute I was on my feet changing my son’s bed with a list of things to get done that day when my foot caught on one of the numerous cords running across the floor and I fell flat on my face. I kept telling my son that his bedroom was a disaster area and that one day I’d break my neck. Thankfully it was my elbow that was thrown out of joint instead, although the pain was excruciating. It wasn’t like I hadn’t fallen before, but this time when I saw my arm sticking out in a position that wasn’t normal, I realized that I was in big trouble. On the way to the hospital in the ambulance I was given a shot for pain, which didn’t even faze me. Normally it doesn’t take much to knock me out. In the ER I was given a stronger dose of pain medication that barely took an edge off my agony. After x-rays- where it was confirmed that my elbow was indeed out of the joint- I was sent by ambulance down to the Cookeville hospital. On the way I was given another shot. Almost six hours later, I was still awake and hurting when the orthopedic surgeon finally came down to the emergency room, put me under, and got my elbow back in place.

The next day I spent throwing everything up- a reaction from all the pain meds I had been given- while my dear husband tried to nurse me back to health. Suddenly I couldn’t dress myself, put up my long hair, or even take a shower. I’ve always been independent. Now I was dependent on my two fellows that at times were quite helpless. Thankfully my daughter, Dawn, came to the rescue. Between helping me she cleaned my house, wrapped up all my Christmas presents, baked lots of goodies, and fixed meals. What at first seemed like a big disaster turned into a special family get-to-gether. Instead of spending only a couple of days with us, Dawn and her family spend the entire week. Despite having my arm in a cast our house was full of laughter and love during the Christmas season.

Dawn and Dwight helped me put together this week’s column. One morning Dwight fixed a new dish that I named Dwight’s Breakfast Bake. Not one crumb was left. Since I couldn’t take pictures with my arm in a cast, Dawn did the honors for me. Both of my children rallied around their mom to make lots of wonderful holiday memories that warm our hearts to carry into the New Year.

Dwight’s Breakfast Bake is an ideal way to use up leftover ham and can also be made for lunch or as a light supper. You can add or mix match sausage, pepperonis, hash browns, and black olives. Preparation time for Dwight’s Breakfast Bake is around forty minutes and this recipe serves eight.

Dwight’s Breakfast Bake

1 can of eight crescent dinner rolls
8 large eggs
4 pieces of bacon crumbled
½ c cooked ham chopped
½ c frozen seasoned onions with peppers
1 c shredded coby-jack cheese
salt & pepper

In a 9 x 13 greased baking dish layer the crescent rolls on the bottom. Beat up four eggs, add a little bit of milk, and pour over the rolls tilting the dish to cover. Sprinkle on the meats and onions. Beat the other four eggs adding a little bit of milk and layer. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle on the cheese and bake at 350º for thirty minutes. Serve hot!

Weekly tip: Have a safe, healthy, and happy New Year!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Goulash

Goulash
Dorcas Annette Walker

Yesterday I was sitting out on my front porch in the late afternoon jest a’rockin a spell watching the sunlight filter through the canopy of autumn leaves all around me sparkling like multi-colored gems letting it all soak in. I feel sorry for folks, who don’t have a front or back porch where they can sit every so often and let their spirit catch up with their bodies. Life too often turns into a frantic race with the clock. Earlier that day I had been in town making several stops and needed a chance to sit and catch my breath. All was quiet except for a chirping of the birds now and then in the treetops broken by a few loud crows echoing through the woods by Red Pepper- my large white rooster with his fiery red comb. Rocking and sipping a mug of warm tea I felt my body relax and wouldn’t have traded places with the richest person on earth.

Today it is raining outside with the temperature dropping for another cold spell. As soon as I got up I started a fire in both of my stoves and decided to make an old dish- what I call comfort food on a dreary day- that I can’t even remember where I first tasted it what my family calls Goulash. To my surprise I discovered when doing some research that what I call Goulash is a far cry from the original recipe. My Goulash is made up of macaroni cooked in a tomato sauce with ground beef that makes a hearty satisfying meal. Often I use leftover cheese and macaroni when preparing Goulash.

Goulash originated in Hungary and is a national dish of thick stew consisting of meat and vegetables seasoned with paprika made by cattle herders and stockmen that initially used three kinds of meat. Today only beef, veal, pork, or lamb is used. Some cookbooks suggest using flour to thicken the stew while others use tomatoes cooked down into a paste. Many Hungarian chefs forbid the use of tomatoes instead employing chopped potatoes to cook down as a thickener. The Slavic’s use deer, boar meat, or bacon and mushrooms in their goulash while the Czech Republic’s goulash is served with dumplings. Some mix match carrots, parsnips, green peppers, celery, hot chili peppers, bay leaf, thyme, caraway seeds, red wine, sauerkraut, sour cream, and substitute kidney beans in place of potatoes. Others spoon the soup or stew over noodles or potatoes.

In Canada and the United States we use hamburger instead of beef and macaroni in place of potatoes, which cuts the preparation time down drastically. In the mid twentieth century the Betty Crocker and Margaret Fulton cookbooks made Goulash here in America a popular dish. In parts of New England and the Midwest, Goulash is known as American Chop Suey. Goulash is also a slang term for a dish made with miscellaneous leftovers. Some replace the beef with chicken or use taco seasoning for a Mexican flare. No matter how you like your food seasoned or what kinds of vegetables you prefer, you can experiment and make a Goulash recipe to suit your taste buds.

Goulash

1 (7.25 oz) box of Mac & Cheese dinner
1½ lb hamburger
1 tb dried minced onion
garlic, regular salt & pepper
1 qt canned tomatoes
1 pt mild salsa

Prepare the Mac & Cheese dinner as directed. Brown hamburger adding onion, salts and pepper to taste in a large pan. Pour in the tomatoes and salsa and bring to a boil cooking for fifteen minutes. Stir in the macaroni and cheese and simmer for five more minutes. Preparation time is thirty-five minutes and this recipe serves seven!

Weekly tip: Another way to jazz up leftover cheese and macaroni is by pouring homemade chili over the top before serving!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Veggie Ham Casserole

Veggie Ham Casserole
Dorcas Annette Walker

The one thing I always enjoy after cooking a large meal for a holiday or company is the leftovers. While traveling around the United States I’ve actually run into some people who throw their leftovers into the garbage. Can you imagine? They would rather spend money going out to eat instead of eating nutritious leftovers. It never made a lick of sense to me. Living on the road for years with my husband traveling and having to eat out in restaurants day after day, I quickly became tired of restaurant food. I’d rather prepare and eat a homemade meal any day than go to a restaurant to eat. Especially with the high cost of food these days (not to mention all the people starving around the world, who would give anything for one good meal) saving and the utilization of leftovers makes good economic sense. Here in America we have been richly blessed with an abundance of food that I’m afraid is too often taken for granted. Being raised by a Pennsylvania Dutch father in a poor family food was not something that was wasted. Frozen leftovers can quickly be heated up in the microwave for a later or used as a base to make a brand new meal. Some leftovers actually taste better the second time around giving the ingredients a chance to marinate and become more favorable. After spending hours in a kitchen cooking up a big meal, I always look forward to using leftovers the next few days giving me a chance for relaxation away from time cooking in the kitchen.

Our family tradition over the years has been that I always cook up a big turkey for Thanksgiving and then a large ham for Easter. I freeze the larger leftover slices of ham for another meal and then use the small pieces of meat for something like in my Veggie Ham Casserole. Since I usually make up a batch of cheese and macaroni with a big meal along with a couple kinds of vegetables making a Veggie Ham Casserole is a snap afterwards and uses up a couple different leftovers at the same time presented in a different manner. You can substitute the vegetables or use scalloped potatoes in place of cheese and macaroni, replace the yogurt with milk, bake the ingredients, and top with a bread or cracker crumb topping for a nifty casserole. No matter how you make up a Veggie Ham Casserole it will be a tasty, filling, colorful, quick, and nutritious meal. Preparation time for my Veggie Ham Casserole is ten to fifteen minutes and this recipe serves five.

Veggie Ham Casserole

3 c prepared cheese and macaroni
1 c cooked mixed vegetables drained
1 c chopped cooked ham
½ c plain yogurt
¼ c parmesan cheese

Mix the cheese and macaroni, vegetables, and ham with the yogurt in a microwavable dish. Sprinkle with cheese and microwave on high for five minutes or so until thoroughly heated through. Serve hot with a tossed salad!

Weekly tip: Crusty bread or cracker toppings can be made by crumbling the bread or crackers into small pieces, layering on top of the casserole, and then pouring a stick of melted margarine over them before baking. You can also substitute a stuffing mix for the bread!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcasannettewalker@gmail.com For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Candied Orange Sweet Potatoes

Candied Orange Sweet Potatoes
Dorcas Annette Walker

Last Sunday our home church had its annual home coming. Along with the huge crowd there were all kinds of casseroles, meats, salads, and desserts that overflowed several tables in our church fellowship hall. Even after everyone was stuffed there were enough leftovers to make another church meal. The sight of tables filled with food always captivates me with the possibility of discovering a new recipe. I think the one thing all good cooks have in common is curiosity. Just let a different dish appear before us or a familiar one with a new twist to it and our noses start to twitch. Not only is the taste of delicious food one grand delight, but chatting with all the other cooks and discussing recipes is the main highlight of church dinners. I’ve made more new friends discussing ingredients to a casserole or dessert over the years than in any other way. No matter what area of the United States I’m in as long as there is food around it is always an instant ice-breaker. Food has a way of breaking down any age or culture barrier. It was Granny in her nineties, who passed this recipe along to me a couple of years ago. What a joy to know that if I live to be a hundred years old I’ll still be interested in trying new recipes.

Our first frost up here on the mountain recently signaled that it was time to begin harvesting the sweet potatoes in my garden. My Candied Orange Sweet Potatoes recipe is a new twist on the sweet potatoes casserole topped with marshmallows. No matter how you prepare sweet potatoes whether by baking, frying, microwaving, simmering in butter and brown sugar, doing up in pies, or making into casseroles you can always be assured of a tasty and nutritious dish. I always keep a supple of canned sweet potatoes in my pantry. Not only do the jars give off a bright orange color, but they are available for instant use.

My Candied Orange Sweet Potatoes gives a hint of summer with its mild citrus taste and embodies the fall season with its bright orange color while the topping of toasted marshmallows is reminiscent of sitting around a campfire. This casserole is quick and easy to make and can be made up ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator until ready to pop into the oven for baking. Preparation time for my Candied Orange Sweet Potatoes is ten minutes and this recipe serves eight.

Candied Orange Sweet Potatoes

1 qt cooked sweet potatoes
½ c orange juice
¼ c syrup
½ tsp ginger
3 tb margarine
pinch of salt
cinnamon
10 oz bag of marshmallows

Mash the sweet potatoes in a medium-sized bowl and add the next five ingredients stirring until well mixed. Pour into a buttered 7 x 11 baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon and top with the marshmallows. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes until the marshmallows are puffy and browned. Serve hot!

Weekly tip: To can sweet potatoes: cook the potatoes until almost tender and ready to peel, then cold pack the potatoes in quart jars with a medium syrup (3 c sugar to 4 c water), and can for thirty minutes!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Lasagna Supreme

Lasagna Supreme
Dorcas Annette Walker

We never had Italian dishes at home while I was growing up so it wasn’t until I was married and in my own kitchen that I began experimenting with different styles of food. After becoming comfortable making spaghetti, I ventured into the field of lasagna. Throughout the years I have tweaked my lasagna recipe as I sampled other cook’s versions and discussed different methods of making lasagna to what I now call my Lasagna Supreme dish. Mouth melting lasagna takes time to create, but the preparation is well worth the investment. A dreary rainy March day is a perfect occasion to schedule making a Lasagna Supreme.

Lasagna is a classic Italian dish consisting of alternate layers of pasta (wide flat or ruffled edged noodles), cheese, and tomato, meat, or vegetable sauce baked until bubbly and golden brown. England was the first to feature a lasagna recipe in a cookbook, even though the recipe does not mention meat. Richard II was noted for enjoying lasagna in the 14th century, although pasta faded from the British diet when potatoes arrived. Today there are recipes for lobster, Mexican, pumpkin, turkey, vegetarian, zucchini, eggplant, spinach, and chicken lasagna. So no matter what flavor you desire there is a lasagna dish to please everyone.

My Lasagna Supreme has melting cheese surrounded by chunks of meat in a zesty tomato sauce; a meat lover’s delight that can also be made in a Crockpot. Any leftovers can be frozen and heated up in the microwave for an instant meal on another day or taken to work as a filling lunch. Mix-match different meats and cheese for your own family’s style or add chopped veggies for a one-of-a-kind gourmet dish. Either way a Lasagna Supreme is sure to please the fussiest of taste buds. Preparation time for my Lasagna Supreme is about an hour and this recipe serves twelve.

Lasagna Supreme

1 (16 oz) box of lasagna
2 tb salt
2 tb cooking oil
2 lb hamburger
garlic & regular salt
pepper
1 (26 oz) jar of spaghetti sauce
1 pint of mild salsa
½ (24 oz) container cottage cheese
1 (12 oz) pkg mozzarella cheese
1 c parmesan cheese
4 oz pkg pepperoni
sliced black olives

In a large kettle fill with water, add salt, cooking oil, and bring to a boil. When boiling immerse the lasagna and cook for twenty-five minutes until tender stirring occasionally with a large spoon to keep the noodles from sticking together. Brown hamburger in an iron skillet sprinkling garlic, regular salt, and pepper. In a large saucepan bring spaghetti sauce, salsa, and cottage cheese to a boil and then add browned hamburger.

Spray a 10 x 14 baking dish with cooking spray. Layer lasagna to cover the bottom of the dish, then a layer of hamburger/spaghetti sauce, sprinkle parmesan cheese, pepperoni, and then mozzarella. Repeat until all the lasagna is used only using pepperoni slices every other layer. Finish with mozzarella cheese and garnish with sliced black olives. Bake at 350º for thirty minutes until the cheese is melted and slightly browned. Serve hot with garlic bread and a tossed salad!

Weekly tip: Always place casserole dishes on a large baking tray before baking in the oven to catch any run over’s!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.webs.com

Cheesy Cheese & Macaroni

Cheesy Cheese & Macaroni
Dorcas Annette Walker

There are some dishes that are a basic staple when it comes to preparing a meal whether just for the family or for company. One of them is cheese and macaroni. I think that cheese and macaroni range right next to mashed potatoes as a food that everyone loves. I remember when the first boxes of macaroni and cheese dinners came out. They were an instant hit being quick and easy to prepare on the stove compared to the previous baked style of macaroni and cheese and economical as well. Today there are several brands to choose from. I know that cheese and macaroni is my grandkids favorite so no matter what else I prepare, I always make a batch of my Cheesy Cheese & Macaroni.

I still use a cheap brand of the cheese and macaroni dinners and once in a while make it like the directions say, but most of the time I add a few other ingredients to make it more homemade. It wasn’t long until after eating so many of the same flavored cheese and macaroni dinners over and over that I began experimenting. While my husband can eat the same thing twice in a row, I prefer something different. Why settle for something plain when there are different ways to prepare food? Most of the time it doesn’t take a bunch of costly ingredients to give something a homemade twist. Just a blend of a couple ingredients will create a scrumptious taste. The crowning touch is seeing the surprised and satisfied smiles on your family’s faces as they eat something that you gave a little extra attention too.

My Cheesy Cheese & Macaroni is made up of a creamy smooth blend of cheese sauce surrounding cooked macaroni that is sure to be an instant hit with your family. You can experiment with different kinds of cheese for a different taste or pop the prepared Cheesy Cheese & Macaroni into the oven for a few minutes creating a browned crusty crumb topping of crushed crackers or bread crumbs with melted butter. My Cheesy Cheese & Macaroni takes about fifteen minutes to prepare and this recipe serves six.

Cheesy Cheese & Macaroni

2 (7.25 oz) boxes of macaroni & cheese
2 tb cooking oil
1 tsp salt
12 c water
1 c milk
¼ c parmesan cheese
2 c processed cheese cubed
paprika

In large saucepan bring water, salt, and oil to a rolling boil. Add macaroni and cook for ten minutes until tender. Drain water and add milk. Mix in the packets of powdered cheese until smooth. Add parmesan and the cubed cheese. Simmer on low for five minutes until all the cheese is melted. Garnish with a sprinkle of paprika and serve!

Weekly tip: When cooking macaroni or rice on an electric stove bring the water to a boil, add macaroni or rice, cover with a tilted lid, shut off the burner, and let finish cooking as usual. The food cooks just as fast and you save electricity as well!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Mexican Spanish Rice

Mexican Spanish Rice

Dorcas Annette Walker

From the time that Christopher Columbus landed on America’s shore in 1492 until now the United States has become a great melting pot of different cultures founded on our belief that all men are created equal as stated by the Constitution adopted September 17, 1787 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Since October of 1886 the Statue of Liberty has stood at the port of the New York harbor welcoming millions of immigrants to our country from around the world. We come from diverse backgrounds, have different political viewpoints, and yet we are united. We are Americans.

Traveling around the United States I was intrigued how distinctive traditions show up in the way we name and prepare our food. For instance there is Texas Hash, French dressing, Boston Baked Beans, Russian Tea, Navajo Tacos, Japanese Fruit Pie, and Mexican Stir Fry just to name a few items. The neat thing here in America is that we can all enjoy these amazing different cultural foods unlike other countries where the variety of groceries is limited. Basic staples that we take for granted are often not available elsewhere. Also the more a certain food style becomes popular, changes to the original recipe are made until the cuisine becomes truly an American dish.

My Mexican Spanish Rice is a filling dish and can be eaten by itself with garlic bread as a meal or spread leftovers in a soft taco with toppings and microwave. You can spice up the Mexican Spanish Rice by adding red, green, and jalapeno peppers to suit one’s taste. Also a variety of precooked beans can be included. Preparation time for my Mexican Spanish Rice takes about 30 minutes and this recipe serves at least ten.

Mexican Spanish Rice

In a large iron skillet brown 2 lbs of hamburger. Add 1 tb dried onion or dice up a small onion and sprinkle on ½ tsp garlic salt, regular salt and pepper.

In a medium saucepan cook 2 c rice with 4 c water and 1 tsp salt.

In a large kettle bring to a boil:
3 qt of tomatoes pureed
1 tb dried oregano
1 tb dried parsley
3 tb sugar
¼ tsp crushed dried red pepper
Drain hamburger and add to the tomatoes. As soon as the rice is cooked pour into the tomato mixture. Simmer for ten minutes. To serve place corn chips on plate and layer the Mexican Spanish Rice over it.

Mix-match toppings of: shredded cheese, sour cream, lettuce, chopped tomatoes, black olives, and Tabasco sauce!

Weekly tip: Avoid putting ripe tomatoes in the refrigerator, instead store in a cool dark spot. To ripen a tomato place in a paper bag or wrap up in a newspaper and position in a warm place or at room temperature, but not in direct sunlight. Store cut tomatoes in the refrigerator and use as soon as possible!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

3-Step Cast Iron Supper

3-Step Cast Iron Supper
Dorcas Annette Walker

Since writing my Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin weekly newspaper column, I have been delighted to hear from several men, who love to cook. These dear guys are loyal fans, some who every week without fail tries out each of my recipes. One fellow told me awhile back that he is getting quite a stack of newspaper clippings. Guys, I am working on putting together a cookbook of my recipes- honest! In honor of my fellow chefs for Father’s Day I thought I’d give my 3-Step Cast Iron Supper recipe.

The first known Father’s Day celebration took place on July 5, 1908 at Fairmont, West Virginia in commemoration of 361 men killed in a deadly explosion nearby. A year later in the state of Washington, Sonora Dodd began working to have a yearly Father’s Day celebration observed after listening to a Mother’s Day sermon and realizing the sacrifice her father (a Civil War veteran) made over the years as a single father raising their family, who became widowed after his wife died in childbirth. In 1924, President Coolidge recommended that Father’s Day become a national holiday. President Johnson designated the third Sunday of June for Father’s Day in 1966, but it wasn’t until 1972 that President Nixon instituted Father’s Day as a national observance. Roses are the official flower for Father’s Day; red roses for living fathers and white roses in memory of fathers who have died. To all fathers I’d like to wish you a very Happy Father’s Day!

My 3-Step Cast Iron Supper makes a hearty meal by itself and is easy to make consisting of three main ingredients: macaroni and cheese, pork and beans, and hotdogs. You can also tweak this recipe by using up leftover macaroni and cheese, adding a can of pork and beans, mixing in chopped hotdogs, and heating it up in the microwave for a quick meal. For variety you can substitute chili beans instead of pork and beans. My husband spreads ketchup over his portion whenever I serve my 3-Step Cast Iron Supper. Preparation time for the 3-Step Cast Iron Supper is thirty minutes and this recipe serves six.

3-Step Cast Iron Supper

Step 1:
In a 10 inch cast iron skillet bring 6 c of water, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tb cooking oil to a boil. Pour 2 (7.25 oz) macaroni and cheese dinner macaroni in the boiling water and boil for ten minutes stirring occasionally with a large spoon. Lower the heat, add ½ c milk, and stir in the powered cheese until smooth.

Step 2:
Open up and pour in 1 (16 oz) can of baked beans.

Step 3:
Cut up into ½ inch pieces of 1 pkg of 8 hotdogs (your choice) and stir in. Bring to boil and simmer for five minutes. Serve piping hot right out of the cast iron skillet!

Weekly tip: A saving tip when cooking macaroni, noodles, or rice: bring to a boil, cover, and turn off the heat. In twenty minutes or less your macaroni, noodles, or rice will be cooked!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Meat Lovers Pizza Macaroni

Meat Lovers Pizza Macaroni

Dorcas Annette Walker

Need a main dish this summer for a family reunion that will be filling and an instant hit with both young and old alike? My Meat Lovers Pizza Macaroni will fit the bill. I can’t remember where I first tasted pizza macaroni, whose recipe I’ve tweaked throughout the years, but whenever I make this casserole it always brings raves. Combining the taste of pizza with macaroni is an irresistible magnet to kids.

Macaroni is believed to have had its first origins in China. By the eighteen century, macaroni had become popular throughout Europe. Colonists brought recipes for macaroni to the New World and by the 1800’s macaroni and cheese recipes appeared in American cookbooks.

Thomas Jefferson served macaroni at the White House in 1802 after bringing back a macaroni mold from Paris. In 1937 Kraft introduced boxed macaroni and cheese that became an instant success with the start of World War II when rationing meat went into effect. As women joined the workforce boxed macaroni and cheese became a best seller with its ease of preparation and having the reputation for being a nutritious alternate to meat. Today Kraft sells more than one million boxes of macaroni and cheese a day. Even though there have been dozens of variations of boxed macaroni and cheese the basic combination is still the greatest seller. Macaroni and cheese can be served at lunch, as a light dinner, or added to the main meal. This comfort food had become an American staple.

My Meat Lovers Pizza Macaroni is filled with spicy meat surrounded by tender macaroni swimming in a mouth-watering sauce and melting cheese making each bite a culinary delight that makes a main meal in itself. You can add and mix-match mushrooms, green peppers, or black olives to this basic recipe as you cater to your family’s individual taste buds. The Meat Lovers Pizza Macaroni can also be prepared the day before and then heated up in a Crockpot or baked in the oven right before serving. My Meat Lovers Pizza Macaroni takes twenty-five minutes to prepare and this recipe serves eight to ten.

Meat Lovers Pizza Macaroni

4 c cooked macaroni total
1 lb hamburger
1 lb sausage (your choice)
Cook macaroni in salted water while browning the hamburger and sausage.

Drain and mix together with:
1 (26 oz) jar of spaghetti or pizza sauce
1 c salsa (your choice)
Pour half of the macaroni meat mixture into a Crockpot or baking dish.

Layer with half of:
1 (4 oz) pkg pepperoni
1 (12 oz) pkg mozzarella shredded cheese
Add the remaining macaroni meat mixture and finish layering the rest of the pepperonis and shredded cheese. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 350º until the cheese is browned and bubbly or put on low and let simmer in the Crockpot for 2-3 hrs. Serve hot with garlic bread or a tossed salad!

Weekly tip: Adding a tablespoon of cooking oil when cooking macaroni prevents the macaroni from boiling over and becoming massed together!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Chicken and Rice Casserole

Chicken and Rice Casserole

Dorcas Annette Walker

A sunny spring day tantalizes my senses and has a way of luring me out of the house. I love discovering what flower or plant has popped out of the ground overnight. Each time I take a break I go outside to sit on my porch and listen to the excited chatter of the birds as they scurry around building nests. This past week I spotted a set of hummingbirds migrating north as they buzzed around my blooming azaleas. I hurried to fill my hummingbird feeders and hung them up. In no time the hummingbirds spotted the feeders and began drinking and dive bombing through the air. It is days like this that I don’t want to spend a lot of time in my kitchen. So I made up my Chicken and Rice Casserole in the crock-pot and then hurried outside to plant some seeds knowing that supper was taken care of.

Speaking of chicken here is some more chicken or rather rooster gossip. My husband was given a hen from someone, who heard that he raised chickens, after deciding that having a pet hen was not what they wanted. Dana put the lovely hen I named Pretty Girl in with the rest of the hens. After a couple of weeks Pretty Girl was still hiding in the henhouse and was looking rather scrawny. Then Dana discovered that Pretty Girl was growing long tail feathers and realized that Pretty Girl was a rooster instead of a hen. So I changed Pretty Girl to Pretty Boy, who was promptly transferred to where the other roosters resided in the rabbit house. Within a month Pretty Boy filled out and became larger than any of the other roosters. Each morning there was a contest of who could crow the loudest. Zebulon, the reigning rooster, was always determined to have the last word or should I say crow. A few times I worried that he would collapse a lung or keel over in his efforts to out-crow the six other roosters.

When the roosters that we were fattening up landed in our freezer, we saved Pretty Boy as he is still not full grown and to help increase our chicken stock for meat. On a daily basis Pretty Boy and Zebulon fought mock battles through the glass window of the rabbit house that adjourns the chicken pen. One warm spring evening after dark my husband transferred Pretty Boy back to the henhouse. Even though Zebulon is clearly outsized, he is still determined to rule the roost. So far Pretty Boy gives Zebulon a wide berth and has only lost a couple of feathers even though he is almost twice as big as his opponent. We are keeping a close eye on our chickens these days as our henhouse nearly gives off sparks with all the electricity generated of two roosters in close quarters.

My Chicken and Rice Casserole is a filling yet quick meal to make. You can bake the Chicken and Rice Casserole in the oven for a couple of hours or put the ingredients in a crock-pot and let simmer on low all day while you are working. Try substituting cream of mushroom instead of onion soup or add vegetables such as carrots or broccoli to create an entire meal. You can alternate beef instead of chicken as well. My Chicken and Rice Casserole takes only ten minutes of preparation and this recipe serves four.

Chicken and Rice Casserole

Mix together in the crock-pot:
2 c rice (white or brown)
4 c warm water
1 tsp salt
1 pkg onion soup mix
1 pkg chicken gravy

Add:
4 pieces of chicken (your choice)
Cover and cook on low for at least eight hours until the chicken is tender. Garnish with parsley and serve!

Weekly tip: When making a casserole double the amount needed and store the extra in the freezer for a quick warm-up meal later!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Tennessee Mountain Cookin blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Cast Iron Broccoli Cornbread

Cast Iron Broccoli Cornbread

Dorcas Annette Walker

After the whirl of holiday activities when the last dirty dish, glasses, and utensils have been washed and put back where they belong and once more the counter and stove has been wiped clean, all I want is something quick and easy to fix. That’s when I like to take out ole faithful (my cast iron skillet) and cook up a simple meal. You can’t go wrong and the beauty of it all is that you only have one pan to wash up. Also when winter ice storms hit the mountain causing power outages- that still happen frequently up here in Fentress county- I simply transfer my cast iron skillet over to the top of my woodstove and soon have a meal cooking. No matter how advanced technology gets, I remain connected to the past whenever I cook with my iron skillet. Some things only get better with age and my iron skillet is one. As handy as all my modern, time-saving, gadgets are in my kitchen if I was stripped of everything save my iron skillet, I could still survive. A reassuring fact as we face a New Year full of change and uncertainty is that as we re-adjust our priorities we begin to focus on what is truly important in life.

To start off the New Year I am going to give you two recipes for using your cast iron skillet. I hope it triggers off creative ideas for other nutritious meals in your kitchen. Not only does an iron skillet retain more heat than other cookware, which costs less energy to use, but cast iron also boosts the iron levels in your prepared food making iron skillets more nutritious to use. So grab your iron skillet and let’s get to cookin!

My Cast Iron Broccoli Cornbread is a colorful cheesy dish perfect for chasing away winter blues and bringing back the taste of summer while my Taco Cornbread Casserole is packed full of nutritious vitamins that will help to keep you healthy all winter and guarantee to warm up a cold winter day. Both recipes make a meal in themselves and would be a perfect to prepare when unexpected company arrives. Both the Cast Iron Broccoli Cornbread and my Taco Cornbread Casserole recipe serve eight.

Cast Iron Broccoli Cornbread

In a greased 10 inch iron skillet mix together:
2 eggs
1 stick of melted margarine
½ of a medium-sized onion chopped fine
½ (12 oz) carton cottage cheese of your choice
½ (16 oz) frozen pkg of broccoli chopped into small pieces
1 (8.5 oz) pkg Jiffy Cornmeal mix
Bake at 350º for one hour. Cut into serving pieces and eat while hot!

Taco Cornbread Casserole

Brown 1 lb of hamburger in a 10 inch iron skillet.
Add one quart of salsa (your choice) and simmer for five minutes.
Spread ½ pkg of shredded cheese (your choice) on top.
Prepare 1 box of Jiffy Cornmeal mix as instructed and pour over cheese.
Bake at 350º for 30-35 minutes until brown. Serve hot right out of the oven!

Weekly tip: Cast iron skillets are easy to care for when you soak with water encrusted food before washing in hot soapy water to avoid any hard scrubbing, and then thoroughly dry your iron skillet using a paper towel before storing (don’t cover with any lids) with your other pots and pans!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Mountain Cookin page and blog at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Sweet Potato Delight

Sweet Potato Delight

Dorcas Annette Walker

I was introduced to Sweet Potato Delight while my husband, Dana, and I pastored a rural church in North Carolina. Our move from the Dutch area of Pennsylvania, where my husband met and had wooed me to the altar, to the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains was quite a change on my part. Even though I was still in the United States, at times I felt like I had moved to a strange continent. It was hard for me to understand the Southern mountain dialect and in return the mountain folk seemed puzzled by my Northern accent. I should have read the signs during the quick trip down South for a Sunday trial service. Since my husband had been raised most of his life in Florida there was no communication problems between him and the mountain folk. Instead I was the girl who ended coming up short.

The older couple we stayed with was quite friendly and welcomed us with open arms into their home. Although, the names Mamie and Otto struck me as quite strange their house was neat and clean. When the guys disappeared, Mamie and I were left by ourselves in the kitchen to get acquainted. Our conservation was punctuated with lots of smiles and, “Excuse me I didn’t understand you” or “did you mean… on my end”. Dear Mamie shook her head numerous times over the young Yankee girl who seemed a bit slow to catch on what she said, but was kindness itself. I remember Mamie asking me if we used srup. For the life of me I couldn’t figure out what on earth srup was. Mamie finally went over to her cupboard and pulled out a bottle of syrup. I smiled and quickly assured her that we did indeed have and used sy-rup up North. I met my waterloo that night after supper.

We had finished washing up the dishes and it was getting on towards evening when Mamie gave me a jar of her prized canned green beans. I had never eaten white half-runners before. After handing the jar to me, Mamie asked if I wanted a poke. I took a step backwards and smilingly declined. Mamie took a step in my direction, gestured towards me, and asked a little louder if I was sure I didn’t want a poke. I took another step backwards feeling a bit frightened. Up to that time the only poke I was acquainted with was if someone was angry at you they might jab or poke you. In another situation I might have been a bit more rational, but we had driven that day about twelve hours on the road starting before daybreak, I was nine months pregnant, and was very conscious that we were there on trial so I didn’t want to do or say anything that would hinder my husband’s ministry. I turned and ran to the room where we were staying. When Dana entered the room, between sobs, I confessed that I didn’t know what I had done, but somehow I had upset Mamie because she wanted to poke me. My loving husband instead of consoling me began to laugh uproariously. Gasping for air he slowly informed me that all Mamie had done was offer me a paper sack for the jar of green beans. Mortified I called it a day and crawled into bed. Despite our language misunderstandings, Mamie and I became close friends and shared many recipes.

My Sweet Potato Delight casserole is a great dish for the holidays as well having it year-round. The sweet potatoes are enhanced by a crispy nutty topping that is sure to please even the fussiest eater. Preparation time for the Sweet Potato Delight is about ten minutes and this recipe serves eight.

Sweet Potato Delight

Beat together with a mixer until smooth:
3 c cooked sweet potatoes
1 c sugar
2 eggs
½ c margarine
¼ c milk
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp salt
Pour into a buttered 7½ x 11 inch baking dish.

In a small bowl mix together until small crumbs form:
1 c brown sugar
½ c self-rising flour
½ c margarine
1 c chopped pecans
Pour topping over sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350º for thirty minutes. Serve hot!

Weekly tip: Sweet potatoes make lovely indoor trailing vine plants. To start your own plant, stick the top of a cut sweet potato into water. Place in a sunny window until roots form and then plant in potting soil!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Mountain Cookin page at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Tuna Noodle Casserole

Tune Noodle Casserole

Dorcas Annette Walker

I thought this week I’d balance out my dessert recipes with a main dish that I have made throughout the years without using a recipe. I discovered this easy-to-make version of the baked casserole as a newly-wed, while visiting out-of-state at a parsonage, and instantly fell in love. I always keep the ingredients on hand for my Tuna Noodle Casserole and have made this dish more than once when unexpected company showed up. When my daughter started cooking as a new bride, Dawn, loved this casserole so much that she made it several times a week. My poor son-in-law ate so many Tuna Noodle Casseroles that today he avoids any casserole with tuna in it. While I promise that you will love my Tuna Noodle Casserole, I would urge restraint in making it more than once a week.

There are eight species of the tuna fish with a range of different colors of flesh. Tuna are ocean-dwelling fish and are fast swimmers. They have been clocked at 45 mph. Several species are warm-blooded allowing them to survive in cooler water by raising their blood temperature above the water through muscular activity. Tuna is an important commercial fish, so much so that some species of tuna fisheries are being over-fished until some tuna fisheries are at the verge of collapse. Japan’s huge appetite for tuna has put them at the top- 17% of all the world’s tuna catch and consumption- with Taiwan in second place at 12%. Because of this wildlife campaigners warn that unless more rigid quotas are agreed on tuna may become commercially extinct. More quantities of tuna are entering the market from operations that raise tuna in net pens fed on a variety of bait fish that in return have accumulated metal from their diet causing high mercury levels. As a result the United States FDA issued guidelines of recommendations for eating tuna in March of 2004 for pregnant women, nursing mothers, and children.

Canned tuna was first produced in 1903 and quickly became popular in the United States as it is easy to prepare. Only Albacore “white meat tuna” can be legally sold in canned form here in the United States. Since tuna is caught at a great distance from where it is processed the tuna is pre-cooked for 45 minutes to three hours then cleaned, filleted, packaged into cans, and sealed. The second cooking of the tuna meat is carried out inside the cans for two to four hours to kill any bacteria at processing plants and labeled. While there still remains conflicting reports of dangerous levels of mercury in certain varieties of tuna, canned tuna is very high in protein and is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids. Many weight trainers’ diets use canned tuna as a prominent component.

My Tuna Noodle Casserole is a filling main dish comprised of creamy noodles interspersed with chunks of tuna topped by crunchy bread crumbs. Adding a green vegetable or a tossed salad quickly rounds out your meal. Preparation time for the Tuna Noodle Casserole is about thirty minutes and this recipe serves six.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

1 pkg (12 oz) noodles
1 can (10.5 oz) cream of mushroom soup
1 can (6 oz) tuna- drained
½ c milk
Cook the noodles in hot water with 1tsp salt until soft and drain. Stir in cream of mushroom soup, milk, and drained tuna. Heat the noodles on low until heated through. Garnish with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, parsley flakes or fresh parsley, and toasted bread crumbs!

Toasted Bread Crumbs:
1 stick margarine
6 slices of bread (your choice)
While the noodles are cooking, melt the stick of margarine in a frying pan and crumble up the slices of bread. Stir until the bread crumbs are golden brown.

Weekly tip: To keep pasta from sticking when cooking add a tablespoon of cooking oil to the water, then run the pasta under hot water when draining!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, syndicated columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net For more recipes check out her Creative Mountain Cookin page at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

French Fry Casserole

French Fry Casserole

Dorcas Annette Walker

A major portion of motherhood is spent in the kitchen planning and preparing nutritious meals. This month I’m giving recipes that are time-saving and easy for any family member to make. So invite your family into the kitchen and let them prepare a meal while you sit on the sidelines and boss. On second thought this might be a good time to disappear- after listing all emergency phone numbers in large print - and go shopping or take a leisure bath. Either way have a great Mother’s Day!

Even though my father had severe hemophilia, I wasn’t prepared for the challenges I would face when my own son was born with the same condition. Raising a boy who averaged two to three internal bleeds a week has made me a stronger person, stretched my patience, taxed my strength, taken me to the brink of despair, and lifted me to great heights of joy. Motherhood with a severe bleeder is:
- the awe of holding a perfectly normal-looking newborn close and wondering if maybe the doctors are wrong
- walking a hospital floor for two hours crying as they try to find a vein in your tiny son then, kissing all the ugly bruises on his body from needle sticks
- gripping your hands behind your back to let your son fall as he learns to walk
- hearing the doctors say that there isn’t anything more they can do as your nine- month-old son keeps hemorrhaging
- feeling chubby arms around your neck and slobbery kisses of a toddler who says, Luv ou mommy, after an exhausting day
- spending hours at the hemophilia clinic or in a tiny emergency room week after week
- learning to give your son factor infusions in his veins at home in an effort to have a more normal lifestyle
- trying to keep a hyper-active four-year-old still in bed for days at a time to get a joint bleed under control
- wrapping your son’s right arm to a pillow to render it useless after talks of shooting basketball flares up his elbow falls on deaf ears, only to find him down in the gym laughing with glee as he shouts, “See Mom, I can still shoot baskets with my left arm!”
- trying to answer hard questions like: Why do I have to hurt all the time? Why can’t I be like other boys? Does God hate me?
- asking a ten-year-old with two ankle bleeds, why, after jumping out of his tree house in a race with his older sister back to the house, seeing him grin, and say, “It’s worth it mom. I beat her!”
- endless hours of tutoring for missed days at school and constantly filling out stacks of paperwork
- blinking back tears as you watch your thirteen-year-old limp painfully behind his team on the basketball court after two knee surgeries
- sitting with a sixteen-year-old on the sidelines watching him wrap numerous joints as his team warms up just so he can play in the game and trying to talk him out of it, only to see him shoot basket after basket for his team
- seeing him stagger in the door barely able to walk and trying to stay calm when finding out that he didn’t factor before playing basketball, he was knocked off balance and slammed into a wall during the game, and instead of coming home he stayed to finish the game even thought it meant he could only use one foot and one hand to drive
- reaching up to hug a young adult towering over me, hearing him laugh and say, “Mom you worry too much. See I’m alright!” after coming home from traveling out-of-state in his restored pick-up the very week a sniper decides to shoot at pick-up’s on the interstate my son was traveling

My French Fry Casserole is sure to be a hit with the entire family and is something that can be popped into the oven on short notice if you have leftover hamburger in the freezer. For a zestier taste you can add salsa instead of soup to the hamburger. My French Fry Casserole takes about fifteen minutes to prepare and this recipe serves eight.

French Fry Casserole

Brown two pounds of hamburger. Add garlic salt and a tb of dried chopped onions.
Mix in:
1 can of mushroom soup diluted with ½ can of milk and ½ can of water
¼ block of a 32 oz process cheese spread cut into chunks
Simmer until the cheese is melted. Pour into a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Top with:
2½ pounds of French fries (I split a large bag)
Bake at 350º for thirty to thirty-five minutes until the French fries are brown and cooked. Serve hot!

Weekly tip: The trick to crispier homemade French fries is to coat the sliced potatoes with two tablespoons of cornstarch before frying them in hot oil!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, syndicated columnist, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net For more information check out: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Grandma's Chicken Pot Pie

Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie
Dorcas Annette Walker

March weather is fickle at best. It teases and tantalizes with hints of warm summer days just around the corner. You never know from what day to the next whether to wear warm winter clothes or something cool and summery. In fact the day may start out with a freezing chill only to warm up like summer by noon. The earth itself here in the Tennessee mountains plays hide-and-seek with spring flowers appearing overnight by magic. It is hard for me to stay indoors on a sunny spring day. I find myself making endless rounds of my flower beds trying to catch green shoots popping out of the ground and seeing if the buds on my daffodils or tulips have opened. My fingers itch to work in the dirt and I start dreaming of my first taste of a vine-ripened garden tomato. This is the time of the year I make my Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie to help survive spring days.

Vegetables are defined as a plant cultivated for eating whether it be the root, leaf, or flower buds. In 1582 was recorded for the first time the adjective use of vegetable that is familiar to our usage today. It was not until the 18th century that vegetables became used as a noun to identify the kinds of plants that are eaten. Vegetables are an important source of vitamins. Most vegetables are low in fat and contain no cholesterol. They also are high in minerals and fiber. Here are some veggie facts. Carrots provide Vitamin A with fiber and potassium. Baby carrots are produced year round. They became so popular that demand exceeded the capacity to produce them so now regular carrots are cut into shorter lengths and peeled to look tiny. When corn is eaten fresh it is considered a vegetable. When corn is allowed to mature, dry, and is ground up it is then classified as a grain. There are about fifty varieties of green beans produced in the United States. Some green beans are string-less and grow close to the ground while others climb poles. Peas are a medium starch vegetable with good sources of vitamin C and fiber. Most peas are frozen or canned. Snow peas or Sugar Snap pea pods are eaten raw or stir-fried. The potato is America’s most versatile vegetable rich in potassium and Vitamin C that comes in a variety of color and sizes and is served baked, mashed, boiled, or fried. Potatoes also are used in casseroles, soups, appetizers, and snacks. The potato has been an essential part of the world’s diet for centuries first cultivated by the Indians in the Andes Mountains of South America then finding its way to Europe by the 16th century. By the end of the 17th century the potato was an important crop in Ireland. Today potatoes are grown in over 100 countries. The potato is only 20% solid and 80% water with most of the nutrients located just below the skin layer. The average American eats 140 pounds of potatoes each year including over 50 pounds of French fries. Thomas Jefferson is credited for introducing French fries to America.

My Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie oozes with lots of vegetables interspersed with pieces of chicken making it a colorful summery dish that is a feast for the eyes on a cloudy spring day. This casserole is a hardy and filling dish packed full of vitamins and nutrients with a thin biscuit-like topping. Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie can be eaten by itself or served with a tossed salad. Preparation time is around thirty minutes and this recipe of Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie serves twelve.

Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie

Cook in salt water until soft:
2 c peeled and cubed potatoes
2 c frozen mixed vegetables

Drain and mix in:
2 c sliced cooked chicken

Add:
1 can celery soup mixed with one cup of milk and one cup of water (can use a cup of chicken broth in place of water)
Pour into a greased 9 x 13 baking dish.

In a small bowl mix together:
1 stick of margarine sliced
2 c self-rising flour
2 c milk
Pour over the top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes until the crust is golden brown and a knife inserted into the crust comes out clean. Serve piping hot to warm the body and soul!

Weekly tip: When boiling vegetables leave the lid of the pan tilted slightly to maintain color. A small chunk of margarine added to the vegetables while cooking will help prevent the water from boiling over!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, syndicated columnist, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net For more information check out: www.dorcasannettewalker.com

Hash Brown Casserole

Hash Brown Casserole
Dorcas Annette Walker

I always use some type of a potato dish as a staple with nearly every meal. Today there are many varieties and ways to use potatoes. Somewhere along the way I got hooked on the ease of using frozen potatoes with a meal, especially in a pinch. Now-a-days I always keep French fries and hash browns handy in the freezer. Potato casseroles are ideal for church dinners as they are simple to warm up and you don’t have to worry about the texture changing like mashed potatoes. I loved my first taste of a Hash Brown Casserole and have experimented with different recipes since. My Hash Brown Casserole is similar to a scalloped potato casserole and has been mistaken for scalloped potatoes different times.

Originally the full name for hash brown potatoes was hashed brown potatoes, shortened to hash brown potatoes in 1945, and finally has become simply hash browns. Hash browns are potatoes that are diced, riced, shredded, or julienned then formed into cakes and pan-fried until brown. In many parts of the United States hash browns or pan-fried potatoes are considered a breakfast food. Sometimes a diced or chopped onion is added to improve the taste. I was amazed at all the recipes for hash browns that added carrots, radish, zucchini, and beets. I even found a recipe that used sweet potatoes to make hash browns. No wonder the volume of frozen potatoes consumed today is now larger than the volume of fresh potatoes. In 2005 the U.S. per capita use of frozen potatoes was 56 pounds compared with 45 pounds for fresh potatoes, 17 pounds for potato chips, and 16 pounds for dehydrated potato products.

My Hash Brown Casserole is a filling, creamy, potato dish that goes well with any meat or vegetable. Preparation time for the Hash Brown Casserole is ten to fifteen minutes and this recipe made in a 9 x 12 baking dish serves twelve to fifteen. The potato casserole can be made the day or night before and popped into the oven when ready to use.

Hash Brown Casserole

1 pkg hash browns
1 small onion diced or 1 tb dried onion
2 c cheddar cheese shredded
1 (16 oz) container sour cream
2 cans cream of celery soup

In a large bowl:
Crumble thawed hash browns (may quickly defrost hash browns in microwave). Mix in onion and shredded cheese. Add the container of sour cream, the two cans of celery soup, and two cans of milk. Mix together thoroughly and pour into buttered 9 x 12 baking dish. Cover and bake at 350º for one hour.

Dorcas Annette Walker is a freelance writer, author, columnist, and photographer from Jamestown, TN. If you have any cooking tips or favorite recipes you are welcome to contact me by email at: dorcaswalker@yahoo.com. For more information about the Walker family and Dorcas’ books check out her website at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com or htpp://dorcasannettewalker.blogspot.com for other Creative Mountain Cookin recipes.