I’m an Official Southern Pig – Snort

In some parts of the south, they tell you that your not officially a southern until you’ve had the basics.  The basics could be many things but some of them are collard greens, grits, sweet tea, fried chicken, sweet potato pie, macaroni and cheese and boiled peanuts.  I’ve had several of these things.  It makes sense.  My mom was born and raised in the south.  You know just between you and me they call people like my momma GRITS – Girls Raised in the South.  Snort

Well, let me tell you about one of these things that I absolutely LOVE…boiled peanuts.  Oh goodness – they are simply delicious.  And no, I didn’t have them in a RC Cola and no I didn’t have them on ice cream which is common here.  I had them straight up out of the shell.  mmm.  Boiling them just brings out a different flavor.  First of all, they’re soft so there is no crunch.  You boiled them in seasoned water right over an open flame.  Mom knows a guy that knows a guy that fixes them – LOL.  You break open a shell and juice goes everywhere.  Then you see the tasty little morsel.  You pop it in your mouth and it’s still hot from the flame – SHUT THE FRONT DOOR – the taste explodes in your  mouth.  It’s a little salty, sometimes it can be a little spicy according to the seasoning, and they are God’s tasty little morsels.

If you haven’t tried any yet, what are you waiting for?  Try them now and let me know what you think.  Dad never ate any until mom introduced him.  Now he can’t stay out of them.  They are that good!

 

Shopping Around the World

Hello Friends!! ❤  It’s that time for Shopping Around the World for March.  For March, we are highlighting ‘go to’ meals that you always prepare when you have nothing else to do.

This one is right up mom’s alley for sure.  Her ‘go to’ meal will always be some sort of chicken dish for sure.

In fact, she made her favorite ‘go to’ meal this weekend for all of us – and we all enjoyed it.

So without further ado, take it away mom!

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You will need the following:  four chicken thighs ($4.38); a pack of english peas ($0.88); salad mix ($1.00); salad dressing of your choice ($0.25); flour/spices/oil ($0.50) = Total cost $7.01 – Could possibly be a bit more 🙂

We all know how to fix your salad mix and peas so I will start with my ‘go to’ spice mix for my chicken.  And although I’ve been using my air fryer a lot these days, I decided to go old school and do this chicken the old southern traditionally way.  First thing – an iron skillet.  Every good southern cook here in the south will have different sizes of iron skillets in the cabinets.  Yes it makes a difference.  Put that skillet on the stove to medium heat and pour some oil in it to heat.  While it is heating, prepare your spice mix.  In a mixing bowl, put two cups of flour.  To that add:  salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste (make it as hot or leave it out altogether).  Mix it together.  In another mixing bowl, add a touch of milk, two eggs, and again season well with salt, pepper and a touch of cayenne pepper.  Mix it together.

Now clean your chicken.  Then they are going to get all seasoned.  Make sure your oil is hot.  How do  you do that?  Take just a pinch of flour and sprinkle it in your hot oil.  Does it bubble?  Yes, it’s ready.  No, give it some more time.

Take a chicken thigh and put it in the flour mixture, then to the ‘bath’ egg mixture, then (this is what a lot people forget) back to the flour mixture.  Yes your fingers will be messy.  Get over it.  After the flour mixture, then the chicken goes into the hot oil.  You should be able to put all four thighs in your pan.  Then wash up those fingers.  I usually do mine chicken around 10 minutes on one side and then flip to the other side for another 10 minutes.

Then serve with peas and a salad – there you go.  Southern fried chicken at its best!

 

Journal of Healthier Living – Week 6

Welcome my friends.  I’m tweaking my weekly journey with my healthier living.  It’s a step in the right direction for sure.  I hope you come along for the ride.  Instead of day-to-day comments, I’m going to post something from my personal journal to share.  Hope you enjoy.  Remember all of us go down this path and we are all in it together ❤

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Week of 02/11-02/17/2018 – Week 6

“Dear Journal – Sometimes I think we beat ourselves up too much.  There is a line between challenging yourself to do better and pushing yourself over the edge.  If I push myself too much, it becomes something I *have* to do, a chore if you will, and my OCD gets tested.  If I leave it at the pace I’m going, I can fit it into my life where it becomes a habit in the end and not so much as a chore.  Shaking my head.  Life is full of complications – LOL.  But so far, I think I have this right now.  I do want to pick up the pace a bit more.  Now I’m trying to turn a 24 hour day into 36 hours.  Do I really need sleep?  Just joking – I love my sleep.  It’s hard to believe how things these days in the form of moving around is so much easier.  I’m so grateful that I had breast surgery.  I think I need to send the doctor a thank you note.”

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This week walked: 9.12

TOTAL 2018 Miles:  53.30

TOTAL 2017 Miles:  541.06

 ❤ small goals turn into big accomplishments ❤

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Okay my friends – another week with using the air fryer at the Hotel Thompson.  One of my biggest weaknesses foodwise is fried chicken.  It might be a southern thing.  It’s a huge comfort food here in the south.  And it’s something I was never able to work around with trying to lose weight but yet keeping my favorite food in the mix.  Who needs all of that grease that it’s deep fried in, right?

Well, I think I found my heaven.  Let me present to you Exhibit A – fried chicken (skinless and boneless) that was prepared in air fryer.  I put it on on the white napkins straight from the air fryer so that you could see – absolutely NO GREASE.  Look at the crispy outside and the inside was so juicy.  Better yet, I’ve found with the air fryer that you actually taste your food and not the grease that it is cooked in.  I seasoned my chicken before hand with salt/pepper and some pepper flakes.  I then dipped it in a seasoned egg mixture and then dipped it in a seasoned flour mix.  I then put the chicken in my air fryer.  The basket held five chicken thighs at one time.  I set the timer for 20 minutes on chicken at 380 degrees.  At 10 minutes, I stopped the timer and turned the chicken.  It came out this beautiful.  It was a HUGE hit here at the Hotel Thompson.

 

Southern Home Security System

Life can be hard – really hard.  With as much crime that is going around, I fear for mom/dad in their safety.  I’ve done a LOT of research on this and found the perfect southern home security system.  I saw an advertisement on the internet that was perfect.  And it has to work, right?  I mean everything on the internet is true – snorts.

So, friends fear no more.  This is the perfect plan that was posted.

1. Go to Goodwill and buy a pair of size 14-16 men’s work boots.
2. Place said pair of work boots on your front porch along with a copy of the Guns & Ammo magazine.
3. Put four giant dog dishes next to the boots and magazine.
4. Leave a note on your door that reads:

Bubba,

Me and Marcel, Donnie Ray and Jimmy Earl went for more ammo and beer. Be back in an hour.  Don’t mess with the pit bulls.  They got the mailman this morning and messed him up bad.  I don’t think Killer took part but it was hard to tell from all of the blood.  Anyway, I locked all four of ’em in the house.  Better wait outside.  Be right back.

Cooter 

 

Travels in the South

Do you know what that is in the picture?  It’s the snack of the south… boiled peanuts.  Mom grew up with boiled peanuts straight out of the hot pot.  Dad not so much.  But since they’ve been married, mom has gotten dad hooked on these deletable salty morsels of yum.  And yeah, I love them too.  You can find them all over the south here at roadside stands and corner markets.  They usually give you a scoop right out of the boiling water into these double bags.  Double bags because you need one bag to put your shells into.  Have you had these before?  A lot of people will even put peanuts in their soda.  It’s a southern thing.  Trust me – don’t knock it until you try it says mom.  Snorts with piggy laughter!

 

Shopping Around the World

Hello sweet friends ❤  For the month of June we are focusing on something that you have cooked lately that you absolutely went bonkers for and everyone enjoyed.  This could be anything – even a cheese cracker.  Just make it the best cheese cracker you ever had and post prices… and pictures are awesome.  That gives us something to drool on while we read your recipe.

Today, I’m handing our recipe over to mom.  Can you believe that me and dad actually got her to cook dinner for us one night?  Now don’t get me wrong.  She cooks for us but she’s been watching her diet lately so we have to say she went overboard with this dinner.  And *we* all appreciated that – trust me.

So without further ado, take it away mom!

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Hello friends.  If you know me really well, then you know here in the south I just can’t get enough of fried chicken – ever.  I’ll admit it.  Usually instead of taking the time to fix it, I will usually just buy it from the store or a local restaurant.  Every once in a while, I will bring out my southern experience and fry some for the family.  Of course when I do, everyone wonders what they’ve done to deserve it – HA!  It just keeps them on their toes I say.  What you will need:

♦ A package of chicken.  We enjoy thighs.  You get whatever pieces your family likes – mixed or whatever.  This date, we bought a package of thighs.  There was 8 of them for $3.23

♦ You should have some of these ingredients on hand:  flour (3 cups – $0.75); buttermilk (2 cups – $0.50); eggs (3 – $0.50); frying oil (4 cups $2.50); salt/pepper/cayenne pepper

Now this is a pretty basic recipe that we have used in our family for years.  You can also use the same ingredients with different types of  meat – fried fish, shrimp and you know that other white meat that we can’t mention on Bacon’s blog.  You can also use different spices that you like.  Be creative and have fun.

Now is the time to get your assembly line going.  It gets a little messy.  You will need two bowls.  One bowl you will put your ‘dry’ ingredients in – the flour, salt, pepper and shake cayenne pepper to your taste.  Now test your taste.  Remember you can add more, you can’t take out.  In the other bowl, put your 3 eggs and beat them.  Add your milk, salt, pepper and more cayenne pepper.  As that is sitting, put your grease in a frying pan (we like to use an iron skillet) and let that start to get hot somewhere around medium/high.  Now while that is getting hot, put about 4 pieces of raw chicken (that you have already washed) into the wet ingredients.  Let the oil get hot.

Once hot, here comes the fun part. You want to take the pieces of chicken out of the wet ingredients and coat them in the dry ingredients.  Get everything coated.  Now repeat that step.  Yep, I believe in double coating for an extra crispy skin on the chicken.  Dip the floured chicken back into your wet ingredients, back into the dry ingredients and then place the chicken in your hot oil skin side down.  Your pan should comfortably hold 4 thighs – don’t overcrowd.  I cook the chicken about 8 minutes and then flip the chicken over to the other side for about 6 more minutes.  Once it is nicely golden brown, put on paper towels to drain and do the remainder of your chicken.

There you go – a classic southern dish from the Hotel Thompson.  Eight wonderful fried chicken thighs for around $7.50 – great for a Sunday meal.  Enjoy ❤

 

Mommy Said There Would Be Days Like This

Mom has been under a little stress lately.  There I said it.  My mom is weird though.  Instead of letting things out, she holds things in and gets really quiet.  Like super quiet.  Which is so unlike women – come on all of us can admit that.  Us men know that when women go quiet, there is something brewing and trouble is on the horizon.

So here she is trying to exercise, lots of things on her ‘to do’ list, sweating deadlines and you know before too long she is going to blow.  Shaking my piggy head.  This can’t end well if you know what I mean.  So I think I’m going to let mom explain the rest.  Take it away mommy.  Remember I love you ❤

Thanks my sweets.  Mommy loves you too.  I’m better today.  Really I am.  But I think a lot of people can relate to stress – especially when things pile up and you just can’t get it off your back.  I’ve had lots of deadlines lately – work deadlines, September surprise deadlines, government deadlines, accounting deadlines.  Usually I just juggle everything and off I go but this past week.  WOW.  Everything added up until I ran into a wall.  Like for instance….

Here in Georgia we get our car tags every year which are due by your birthday.  My tag is coming up due so I was going to get it one day last week.  Went to the local government office to get it.  Stood in line for what seemed like forever cause you know there was only what 20 people in front of me.  Finally got to the window to realize that I forgot to get my emissions checked on my Jeep.  Really?  How could I forget that?!  I’ve only been doing it for YEARS.  So, I leave the office and in my favorite Scarlett O’Hara voice reminded myself that tomorrow is another day.  

The next day I get up early and decide that I will get my emissions/tag on the way to work.  I have plenty of time – famous last words.  I go to an emissions shop that I normally go to.  Guess what?  They are closed because their computer is down.  Lovely.  

So I go on down the street to another emissions shop and pull into the facility.  Their machine is working; however, the guy using the machine is pretty new at this.  You can tell because of his clumsiness in getting around everything.  I keep repeating to myself be patient.  Then the young kid… did I mention he was young too?…plugs his contraption into my car that turns on all of the lights on the dash – which is the point of said contraption.  But the young man starts getting excited telling me I’m not going to pass because my check engine light came on the dash.  This kid is acting like he won the lottery jumping around and waving his hands.  I thought maybe I had missed something.  He rambles on and on when finally he takes a breath.  I tell him that all of the lights come on during this stage to verify they work.  That’s when this kid did some incredibly stupid.  He told me oh no I was wrong.   

Okay so maybe at this point I closed my eyes and counted to ten while this kid continued his rambling about the check engine light.  I finally held my hand up to him and asked for the manager.  He went and got the manager.  Walking back to my car I could hear Mr. Excitable explaining to the manager what happened.  The manager stopped him and pretty much told him the same thing – that’s suppose to happen.  I was good.  I promise you I was good.  I didn’t say a word but sat there smiling like the southern gal I was.  But I admit, it took a lot.  And guess what?  My car passed emissions.  I got my paperwork, paid and told them to have a good day.  

I then proceeded back to the government office to get my tag.  The Gods were with me.  Maybe they were paying me back for not going off on the young kid at the emissions office because I was able to walk straight in and get my tag decal.  Now is that tag on my Jeep yet?  Nope.  I keep forgetting to put it on.  Shaking my head – I think I need a secretary myself.  

So I’m ahead of schedule so I’m thinking I need to take care of one more thing before work.  Remember back in April when I had my car accident?  The accident made one of my tail lights go out on the Jeep.  I had it replaced and last week the darn same light went out again!  Of course, that was bugging the heck out of me.  The place I had it fixed at only takes appointments.  Really, appointments at a service department.  What about last minute things that come up.  You have to make an appointment two weeks out?  Drives me crazy.  So I thought I might just go to this place this morning and check it out.  

I enter the office and it was full.  There was 5 consultants and they all had people they were helping.  So I stood waiting patiently.  No one acknowledged me but hey I’m good.  That was until a MAN walks in and everyone jumps to wait on him.  WHY do car places do this?!  I don’t get it.  What?  I’m a woman so I’m invisible?  I’m a woman so I don’t know how to think?  Okay that might have been the point that I turned in my southern charm card.  I might have said really, REALLY loudly, “So much for waiting in line.”  Maybe I said it too loudly because I do believe I heard a mouse fart in the corner.  Of course then someone finally acknowledged me and offered to help me.  

I told him what was wrong with my car and that I was just in to get it repaired.  I advised that it should still be under warranty and I wanted the bulb replaced again, that if it quit working again I would take it to the Jeep dealership.  Mr. Service Guy just smiled at me and get this had the gall to say – are you ready for this? – “Okay little lady we will do just that and it will be about an hour.”  What the heck?!  I think the look on my face might have been his first clue that I was fixing to blow.  I took a breath and told him, “First off, I would like to say thank you for calling me little and thank you for *finally* waiting on me.  However, an hour of waiting for you to replace a simple bulb is totally unacceptable.  I’ll give you 20 minutes and thank you.”  Needless to say, I was out within 15 minutes.  

So come on friends.  You know we’ve all had these kind of days, right?  LOL

 

 

Travels in the South

 Welcome back my friends to another edition of Travels in the South.   Last week, I gave you some appetizers from a restaurant that mom/dad visited a couple of towns over from us.  You can read about that here.  Today I wanted to share the main course with him.  Now after eating all of those wonderful appetizers, mom did the right thing.  She went for a salad.  Mom said their salads were awesome with all kinds of the goodies that she likes in them like cucumbers, tomatoes, onion, mixed greens and croutons.  Doesn’t it look fantastic?

But dad, dad went straight up southern on all of us.  He got what the restaurant has on their menu as Glynn Street Burger.  Why is it called that?  Well the restaurant is on Glynn Street of course – snorts with piggy laughter.  Makes sense huh?  But what is in a Glynn Street Burger is the question.  Let me introduce you.

The Glynn Street Burger is an 8 ounce hamburger patty topped with a fried green tomato, pimento cheese and -gulps- bacon.  If you need to click on the picture to make it bigger to get a better look at this magnificent burger, please do.  You will want to see all of this goodness.  Dad says it’s one of those burgers that is wet and delicious.  You will need plenty of napkins… or as mom says a hose to hose you down before you get back in the car.  This burger is messy but so worth the fight in getting it into your tummy.  If you never had a burger with pimento cheese and a fried green tomato – don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.  Dad went straight up southern with this meal.   But as in the famous words of our favorite television detective, “One more thing.”  See those tater tots in the plate.  They are sweet potato tater tots.  Mom doesn’t care that much for tater tots but on this date couldn’t stay out of dad’s plate.  They were that delicious!

 

But wait a minute, mom has one more picture to share with you.  These are the outside doors of the bathrooms – too cute huh??!!

 

Travels in the South

Oh friends!  What a week it has been.  With mom recuperating from her car accident, we have all been trying to be nice to her.  After one doctors appointment last week, mom was craving some comfort food.  Nothing screams southern comfort more than this picture, right?  For those that don’t recognize that awesome glory, let me break it down for you.

Those two delightfully brown looking pieces on that plate, that would be boneless fried chicken.  You see chicken of any kind is like one of mom’s fall to foods when she is feeling really icky.  And personally I think these past couples of weeks qualified for just that.

Mom ordered the chicken with green beans, a side salad and white gravy on the side.  What was the gravy for?  Of course to dip that wonderful chicken into before eating it.  You’ve never done that before?  You are so hidden from southern comforts.  You must try it.

So you see mom didn’t do too bad but she sure felt better afterwards. ❤

 

Travels in the South

 Welcome my friends to another week of Travels in the South. This past weekend, daddy was craving his favorite – pizza.  It doesn’t matter what kind or where, daddy loves all kinds and doesn’t discriminate – snorts.  Mom/dad went shopping this past weekend a couple of towns over from the Hotel Thompson.  After a long day of spending money and daddy lugging all the bags (like a perfect southern gentleman), both were ravished.

So mom saw this darling little pizza shop and thought she would bless daddy cause you know his hard work of (A) pulling out the credit card often this date and (B) lugging said packages everywhere.  Let me start by saying that this is *not* a meal that mom/dad would splurge in often because of their new way of eating; however, today was a special date night of sorts.

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Mom/dad started with buttered garlic knots.  Now there were more buttered garlic knots in the bowl but someone conveniently forgot to take a picture before diving head first into that wonderful dish.  Not that I’m pointing hooves mom but it’s so hard to train humans.  Those two humans of mine acted like they had never eaten before and the next thing you knew – the dish was empty except for buttery/garlic goodness on the bottom of the bowl.

And of course, mom wouldn’t give that bowl up for all of the money in the world.  She told dad they would keep it.  Why?  So they could swipe their pizza crust up all in that concoction.  Yep, it was that good.

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Now for the main star.  The pizza.  Not just any pizza.  Dad said it was probably the best pizza he has ever had – and that is saying a lot!  Look at all of that cheesy goodness.

This is called the white pizza (one of mom’s favorite pizzas to order anywhere).  It has a blend of ricotta, mozzarella, provolone, parmesan cheese and minced garlic.  Then they sprinkle MORE fresh parmesan cheese on top before bringing it to the table.

Can you see the cheese dripping everywhere?  Okay, maybe this picture of dad eating slice shows you how cheesy and wonderful this pizza was.