Sound-off on dressing/stuffing/filling…or whatever you call it.

I wrote last week about an “interesting” recipe my Mom sent from the Birmingham News, for  grits dressing/stuffing for the turkey. I know…it sounds decidedly odd…but the writers of the Glorious Grits cookbook say it’s fabb. We’ll see.  Here’s what readers thought….

From Sue….”My husband would eat grits 24 hours a day. I will have to ask him if he would like his turkey stuffed with grits.” (We have not heard back from Sue about her husbands feelings on a grits dressing.)

Paul(who’s a fancy chef), said, ……”I love grits and used them in many ways but in the turkey?? I just don’t know..It could be one of those things that is possible and palatable but is it better than real dressing. Kind of like a veggie burger being substituted for a real beef burger, while it is tasty it not the same.”  (I couldn’t agree more.)

This was from my grits loving sister in Gulf Shores, Alabama( she had water under her house from Ida)….who wrote me about the recipe for pimento cheese …….” Hi little sister—lots of us still in the deep south add a little Worcestershire sauce–and i also have a friend who adds little green onion–which is very pretty and tasty ! I cannot imagine velveeta –sounds gross!i also want to try the grits dressing–but maybe not for thanksgiving! love u—audie”  And I want to point out that the velveeta and Worcestershire go in the pimento cheese…NOT the dressing. Though on second thought, it might not be half bad.

And from Kathy, a new word for dressing/stuffing…”I learned that grits were delicious when my husband was stationed in the Atlanta area about 25 years ago. I also learned how to make sweet tea and to order un-sweet. Those three years in the South taught me to love much about the South. Don’t know if I want to try grits in my turkey, though. My son-in-law from Philadelphia calls stuffing “filling”–he says that it fills the turkey and that is what they call it.”  OK, that is just odd. I mean I’ve heard of pie filling but turkey filling??  Those Phillies fans….

From Ed…”When this ole Pennsylvania boy went to Tenn for college in the ’70’s I discovered grits. To this day I can’t resist a hot bowl of grits at anytime of the day. Odd thing though, my wife is from Tenn and can’t stand ‘em, go figure. Ever put them in the fridge overnight and then the next day, slice and fry them and put maple syrup on them. Very good!!” Ummmm…Ed, you have committed the cardinal sin in my book about grits…putting sweet stuff on them. It’s just so wrong.

And this one from Jessica has me really intrigued.…” My mother-in-law makes a dressing with grits and saltines that is to die for. She tried to teach me, and after years I think I have it down!”  Well, Jessica, what are you waiting for? Send the recipe so we can give it a try! I do love saltines…maybe that is like an addition of bread to the dressing??

Execution Watch…..

Mildred's book of her life with Muhammad....

I hope some of you got a chance to watch the story I did on Mildred Muhammad that aired last night on WBAL-TV…..tonight her ex-husband John Allen Muhammad is set to be executed for one of the ten sniper killings. Mildred has enormous dignity and poise….she is quiet-spoken, lovely, and a passionate advocate for victims of domestic violence. And she certainly was one even though she says her ex-husband never struck her. But there are soooo many other ways of hurting someone, as many of you already know ….firsthand.

She got a permanent restraining order against John Muhammad in 2000….and went into hiding here in Maryland…she was convinced that if he could find her he would certainly kill her, as he had promised her he would do. “You are my enemy, and as my enemy, I will kill you.” Chilling words.

But what struck me most about the interview, is what her children have gone through. Kidnapped for 18 months by their Dad, who was by most accounts a devoted father(though devotion became a mania of sorts)….they have had to watch as their Father was named as an infamous mass murderer. One of the most touching things Mildred said, was, “I appreciate the parents who let their children be friends with my children.” Imagine the pain and heartbreak contained in that one little sentence.

And tonight those 3 kids will know that their Dad, whom they still love in spite of everything, will die from lethal injection. That does something to you. Mildred said she and her husband Reuben are trying to help them process it…though she’s not sure how.  Anyway, send a little prayer, a little balloon of good karma, up tonight for the three Muhammad children….their life has been tough enough, and tonight, it will get tougher still. If you didn’t see the story or want to see Mildred’s entire interview here’s  a link…..oh, and her book Scared Silent is a really good read. You won’t believe all the twists to Mildred’s life with John Allen Muhammad.

Guess what I did this weekend??

And this isn't all of them.....

It was one of those uber-exciting weekends where there was just SO…MUCH…WORK…that all you really wanted to do was take a nap, but nooooo. We’ll have none of that.  Raking and bagging leaves is at least good exercise, so that’s something a little inspiring about it…and the gutter looks better, now that the leaves won’t get wet and impacted into something akin to a brick over the winter. Done.

Sigh... my dream closet....

Less exciting  was getting all the summer stuff  of my small closet(yes I know, some of you have closets large enough to not require this seasonal craziness but I don’t, OK?). So the winter stuff is in….and the summer stuff is on the bed in the guest room. Hmmmmm. Guest room closet is full of …something… so I guess it’s to the basement we go. It’s kinda dark down there, but now that I have a dehumidifier, it’s no longer damp. And there are closets, but I haven’t  kept clothes in them for years. That’s because after one really damp summer, I schlepped down to get some winter things and they were…wait for it…covered in mold. Yech. Ok, maybe not covered…but there were splotches, ok? Some things the dry cleaner saved, others had to be thrown away. But now dehumidifed, it should be ok, right? And it  is winter, which is dry anyway. I’m going for it. Will let you know next spring if it worked out.

And then, I’m expecting guests this weekend…the lovely Jennifer’s parents whom I love, her sister(who’s equally lovely), and possibly her Grandmother are in town for a little after wedding party for the Baltimore crowd. Yes…wedding II.  So I know they’ll be at our house at some point this weekend, and those of you who share my insecurities will understand there’s a little angst associated with this. I’m truly excited and happy about them being here, since we can’t go to Pittsburgh for Thanksgiving(I have to work)…but in spite of all my trying to be all laid back and cool….that really isn’t me. That’s just my cool facade. The inner real me wants everything to be P-E-R-F-E-C-T. And it won’t be…it never is. But maybe, just maybe ….it’ll be good enough. If my summer clothes don’t get moldy.

Pimiento Cheese and Flannel-lined jeans….

Wow, things really never change.....

It’s odd how seeing certain things take you right back to your childhood. Or maybe it’s that everything that goes around, comes around. Take for example, flannel-lined jeans. When I was a child, I had a pair in the back of my drawer that I absolutely despised. In ‘bama, there was little call for such an item as you might imagine, but every once in a while there would be a “cold snap”, and girls were “allowed” to wear pants to school(I know, I know…how archaic is that?). But rather than simply wear pants, my Mom shoe-horned me into the most awful  flannel-lined jeans… under a dress. Imagine if you will, a stiff, bulky, little worn pair of flannel lined jeans…under a dress. The horror of one of those days remains with me still.  I was quite the fashion statement, but as I saw today on L.L. Bean….flannel lined jeans are still around…hopefully, (dear Lord, think of the children)prewashed.

classic pimento cheese sammich

The Today Show this morning, had a 2009 version of one of my childhood favorites…. pimento cheese(pronounced puh-men-ta cheese)… took me way back. As I’ve mentioned before, people who’ve never eaten anything but sticky, gross, sweet, store-bought pimento cheese, have never eaten pimento cheese. No…don’t tell me you know one that tastes good….that’s just crazy talk. You have to make your own, to get the finesse of pimento cheese. And it just ain’t that hard…grate some sharp cheddar cheese, add some jarred pimentoes(which are basically roasted red peppers), some mayo….and you’re golden. I’ve read some recipes that use Velveeta…I’m skeptical.  I like the real cheese. I’ve provided a link here to Paula Deen’s recipe….she uses sharp white and yellow cheddar…sounds good…and I like a few dashes of  Tabasco for a little extra zip.

Layered pimento cheese potato gratin....why didn't I think of that?

But on the Today Show, the Lee brothers…authors of a new cookbook called Simple Fresh Southern…put a new spin on pimento cheese…in a potato gratin! The recipe which I’ve linked here….looks pretty simple….really more like a deconstruction of pimento cheese, with potatoes. How can you go wrong? I will definitely give it a try this weekend. pimento cheese and flannel jeans….one out of two isn’t bad.

Ebay Bounty…you really can sell anything…

Carefully hot-glued wine corks....

A shoebox came in the mail the other day, wrapped in brown paper…my daughter eyes lit up when she saw it and said, excitedly, “New shoes?”, naturally  thinking they MIGHT  be for her.  Ah, disappointment…. we meet again.

Inside the shoebox was about 50 used wine corks. She looked at me with the most peculiar look that implied Mommy has gone around the bend, and said, “Old wine corks? Wow…you really can sell any kind of crap on Ebay.”  I suppose that’s true. Sure, you can put anything on the market, but it takes a special buyer like myself to actually make it a sale.

But I needed more corks…(and still need more if you have any to send my way…especially fancy wine corks-amazingly I have very few of those) I’ve been saving them up for some time to cover part of  a wall over the door in the kitchen. And clearly, I needed to be drinking faster and more often to complete such a cork-thirsty project. After hot-glueing every cork I had, I was only about two-thirds of the way. Sooooooo,  I went on Ebay.

Wine Store in NYC with a total wine cork wall....

I was soon the proud owner of not one but two lots of various, wine corks( the first batch has way too much Woodbridge in it)…corks worthless to someone else of course, but not to me.  And this is also very green…these corks did not end up in the trash…reuse is the ultimate recycling…and if you don’t send your corks to me, save them up and send them to this Planet Green website….Corks for Kids is a non-profit organized through Recycle Cork U.S.A.

A wider view….

 I kinda like the look of the wall….and it’s fun to arrange the patterns. And if I get tired of it, I can pull them all down and sell them…on Ebay. Oh, and I also bought some pine cones on Ebay. yes, I know I can walk under any pine tree and find pine cones…but these are special! Huge pine cones that only grow out west!  Wonder no more about who is the grease that makes the Ebay wheel turn….it is I.

Happy Halloween everyone..have a great weekend, be nice and come home safe.

A Grits Thanksgiving??

OK, I told you yesterday about how my Mom had saved two things from the Birmingham News….the first was about my childhood pediatrician having hosted the illustrious Julia Child for a week…and the second was all about grits.

It/s true, you know....

Glorious, glorious grits…I always feel sorry for people who say they don’t like grits…and always feel that if they had good grits, prepared and served the right way(mainly with butter, salt and pepper and never with sugar)…they would understand this basic, economical food of the south. Just think polenta. And I’ve carried grits way beyond the breakfast table, as most of you know. Grits cooked with chicken broth and finished with a little heavy cream and parmesan cheese are  worthy of any dinner table. My sister in Gulf Shores got a tip from a chef about the cream part…he suggests pouring cream over the top of grits after they cook, and let it sit there while you finish everything else, and then just stir it in when you’re ready to serve. It works.

But grits dressing for Thanksgiving?? (And for those of you who call it stuffing, let me tell you, in the south, it’s called dressing) This I have never heard of, but a new cookbook called…..that’s right…”Glorious Grits” says it’s not only possible but desirable. Yes,  all the recipes are about grits, including one for Sausage and Grits Dressing-here’s a link to the recipe.  My first thought…how can you take some gloppy grits and turn it into dressing? How?

The answer: cook grits and chill them. If you’ve ever put leftover grits in the frig, you know they turn into something akin to rubbery hockey pucks. Very firm. In this recipe you cut chilled grits into cubes and then roast those cubes until they are crisp and browned. So I’m thinking it’s kind of like a cornbread dressing? I may try it.

Nothin' better than hot grits

And there some other good recipes to try on the link…Shrimp and Grits with Succotash, Coconut-Crusted Polenta Cakes with Triple Berry Sauce, and Grits Bruschetta with Tomato Salsa. So get your grits on this weekend…and do yourself a favor one morning.  Cook a bowl of grits…NOT INSTANT…although quick grits are ok…add salt and pepper, and plop a pat of yellow butter on top. Sigh as it melts into golden rivulets. Enjoy.

Alabama Memories of Julia Child

I’m freshly back from ‘bama, where I had a great visit with my Mom, one of my sisters, one nephew, one brother-in-law, two sisters-in law, and my Father-in-law and his new love. It was one of those somewhat hectic visits where there is sooooo much more that you’d like to do and see, but there are lots of people to get to and only so many hours in the day. You know what I mean…

And my Mother is still an avid reader of the Birmingham News…wouldn’t go a day without reading it cover to cover, though as with many newspapers these days (including the venerable Baltimore Sun) it doesn’t take as long as it used to. But she had saved a couple of things she thought I’d like…and she was dead on, both times.

The first was an article about Julia Child, and a visit she made to Birmingham 36 years ago to give a series of cooking demonstrations at the Civic Center. She stayed with a Dr. Hughes Kennedy (seen with Julia in the top photo)at his home. My Mom asked, “Do you recognize him?”…and both my sister and I were clueless….”Nope…who is he?” She replied, almost scandalized that we didn’t know, “But he was your pediatrician!” Seriously, I don’t remember him at all, but she does.

And he must have done pretty darn well in the kid doctor business, because he had not one, but three kitchens in his home, and a dining room that would seat 100 guests. Good Lord. Dr. Kennedy hosted a dinner party for Julia while she was his guest, for about 125 people… he said he was too naive to be intimidated by cooking for the great Julia Child…they just dove in.

He made his signature dish, a pretty simple chicken casserole with celery, onion, cheddar cheese and slivered almonds called Chicken Riggins. And even though it calls for only seven ingredients, Julia was impressed by it, so much so that she later requested the recipe for her garden club and named the dish, after Dr. Kennedy’s partner Wendell Riggins! 

My Mom said a group at church years ago saw the recipe long ago and made it for a Christmas party…it was such a hit  that they served the same thing year after year. And I plan to give it a try, though my mind reader Mother(who knows me well) said, “And don’t change any of the ingredients!” I was secretly  thinking…TWO CUPS of mayonnaise?? I can only imagine Dr. Kennedy didn’t eat this too often, as he’s now 85 and still kicking it. But I’ve provided the recipe below…and it does sound sinfully delicious. Let me know if you make it and how it was. Just loosen the belt buckle.

CHICKEN RIGGINS (Serves 10)

3 cups diced chicken

2 cups diced celery

1 cup diced onions

1 pound sharp cheddar cheese

1 can slivered almonds

2 cups mayonnaise

Bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook 4 chicken breasts and 4 thighs with salt, pepper and celery tops until tender, about 20 minutes. Cool and dice. Dice 2 cups celery. Saute onions and cube 1 pound sharp cheddar cheese. Mix above with 2 cups mayonnaise and almonds. Place in 3-quart casserole, sprinkle with bread crumbs and bake at 350 degrees until bubbly and golden on top (approximately 20 minutes).

I got an A!! The all important boarding pass….

I got and A, I got an A!!!

I’m headed to the heart of Dixie this weekend…that’s right, Buhminham, Alabama honey. I never got down this summer as I thought I would, and I need to spend some time with my little 89 year old Mommy, while I still have her. Bless her heart, she is starting to have trouble talking,. as there is something going on with her vocal cords, so that it’s really difficult to understand what she’s saying over the phone. And if she loses her voice…it’s her last lifeline to the outside world. We’re hoping a specialist can help her.

But when you fly on Southwest Airlines, as I do 100 % of the time when I go to B’ham….as it is the only airlineto go there nonstop. And for those of you who also are Southwestaphiles….you know getting the all important A boarding pass, has become more of a contest than ever. Nowadays, most people are computer literate, and plugged into how the system works…you can go online 24 hours before your flight leaves, and not one second before. Now, it used to be that if you got online within a couple of hours, it was all good….but no longer.

Today I tried to log in, got there a couple of minutes early, (you get a message-sorry you’re too early, idiot) went to get something, came back I swear, two minutes later…and bang. Yes, you’re in the A group, but at the back of the pack with 59. 59!! That means that 58 other people cleverer than I, quicker than I am, maybe smarter than I am will board before me….possibly filling all the overhead compartments with their junk, this creating a problem for my junk. 

Whatever….I’ll make it. But I always feel sorry for people with truly lousy C boarding passes…then you really have no chance at any overhead space at all. Don’t they know the system? Don’t they care? No computer? Not as competitive as me? Sometimes I want to whisper to them the secret of the A boarding pass, but that would only add to the onslaught when the witching hour comes….24 hours to the second before your flight leaves. Oh, Southwest will take care of it for you….for $10. No thanks….I can do it my self. For free. I’ll say hi to Mommy for you!

Missing the opening curtain….

Topol....shouting at latecomers(just kidding)

I did something I have never done before last night….and not in a good way. I was so excited to see Topol’s farewell tour of  Fiddler on the Roof ,now at the Hippodrome ….it is one of my…no, make that my favorite…musical. I have seen it many times, and the story never grows old. And while I saw Topol in the movie version, when he was about 38 years younger and easily 20 pounds heavier(how does one do that…LOSE weight as they get older), I had never seen the maestro of Fiddler,  live on stage. You might think he’s too old to play the part of Tevye, and let’s face it, in reality he is…but somehow he pulls it off. His voice is deeper and richer than ever…hats off to man who is still doing it.

But alas, I got there late, late, late. We were meeting another couple for a “quick” dinner at Lucy’s across the street from The Hippodrome….and just in case you think about doing the same thing…it’s closed. Sad but true…shut tight. Their website says they are closed for the “summer months” and will post their new hours in due course. Since it’s now October 21st….that doesn’t bode well for the future.

So we went down the street to the little Indian place in Lexington market…I’ve eaten there several times and the food is quite good, but on this night, they were totally overwhelmed(perhaps by others who did not know Lucy’s was closed). We were seated about 6:45….and by 7, we still had ordered nothing and had no drinks..tick tock tick tock. Finally we accomplish the order, another 30 minutes goes by and our samosa appetizers(included with entree)finally arrive….and thank God for those samosas. They turned out to be dinner because we never got to the main courses….at five of eight, two of us set off to get the tickets, while the other two remained to effort getting the food wrapped to go. But by the time we walked there, and rushed to the theatre, the usher looked at me with a pitying look and said, “Sorry, there’s an 8 minute delay for seating. Topol doesn’t like people coming in in the first 8 minutes“.  And you know what? I don’t blame him! I have never, ever been one of those people who come in late to a live performance, but I was one last night….one of what seemed like a small herd of people who had to be seated. We all skulked into our seats, feeling the harsh looks of  others no doubt thinking, “If you can’t get here on time, just come when you can, idiot” …and immediately fell under the charm of that marvelous production.  If you get a chance, do yourself a favor and see Fiddler with Topol…you won’t regret it. But make plans for dinner…remember the 8 minute delay.

The Kitchen Cure….I’m taking it!

Refrigerator stuff: bits of butter, yes, perfume, anchovy paste, curry sauce

Ok, if you’re anything like me at all, in spite of your good intentions, your kitchen counter/shelves/refrigerator get cluttered. All the stuff that you don’t really want to throw away…hey, I might need that 3-year-old half  jar of red curry paste…but you really don’t know what to do with it either. So, it ALL…ADDS…UP.

Last week, I was sent an email from Apartment Therapy…which is a website that caters to people who live in small spaces…how to expand your storage, decorating issues, 8 top stylists tricks, etc…..and regarding the kitchen cure, which they actually did this past spring, this is the challenge: “Welcome to our second annual Kitchen Cure! This is a series of posts, reader interaction, and assignments designed to help get your kitchen in shape. The goal, in four fast weeks, is for your kitchen to be clean, healthy and organized, and your cooking more nourishing and delicious than ever.” And while I don’t live in an apartment, my kitchen is small….organization is key.

Well, at least I have 4 weeks…that’s something. So this weekend, as assigned,  I tackled the frig, and a lazy susan cabinet in the corner that tends to be the place I put the kitchen flotsam and jetsam.  And the refrigerator’s need goes without saying. Full of stuff …how old is that jar of spaghetti sauce in the back anyway? And three jars of opened picked okra? Really?  I mean, I love pickled okra, but let’s combine and recycle. And why does my daughter buy those little container so flavored yogurts and then never touch them again? Bye-Bye. And yes, I keep my cologne in the frig, especially in the summer after I read somewhere that it stays nice longer. For sure, it stays cooler.

I know...that's nasty....

And uh-oh. Something really sticky on the bottom of one shelf…soap and hot water required….So I invested a couple of hours to this project, reorganizing, combining, cleaning, polishing, (I think that mozzarella stick might be the oldest think in the frig….date unknown), but you put back the pared down items, into the newly cleaned spaces, and….sigh, happiness.

That same shelf, clean and freshly arranged...

I actually opened the refrigerator a couple of times this morning, just to look at its gleaming, fresh interior. And the lazy susan( which was known to throw various plastic container tops into its dark corners just to snarl up the works-a pathetic cry for attention) now turns freely….look below, I’m really happy about it. Now if someone wants to reach for something in my cabinet or frig, I won’t have to rush over and say, “Oh, I’ll get it!”…out of cabinet shame. Next weekend , the spice cabinet. Now there’s a challenge.

Much, much better, now I know where my Furi chopper is!