Pinto Beans and Cornbread

I worked with so many wonderful people when I was a southern belle. One lady in particular I will never forget. We called her Miss Ruby. Miss Ruby was an older African American woman who could be a little intimidating at first, but once she decided she liked you, she'd baby you like the great southern mama she was. I can't remember how many children she had, but she always bragged about them - she was such a proud mama!

During the years that I worked with Miss Ruby, she'd always station herself in the cookhouse. She'd come in early in the morning and get a fire going in the hearth. Her star dishes were pinto beans and cornbread, cooked in cast iron in the fire of the cook house. Whoever was visiting the attraction that day could stop by and she'd give them each a small helping of pintos in a Dixie cup and a slice of cornbread on a napkin with a smear of butter.

I loved to stop by the cookhouse and have a taste too. All of the buildings of the "un-named attraction" are original buildings to the time period, but they've all been updated with air-conditioning. I'd stand next to the air vent and let that air-conditioning go right up my hoop skirt. Miss Ruby would give me a big helping of pintos and cornbread. I'd crumble the bread into the beans and dig in. Something about those salty beans and the buttery cornbread really hit the spot on hot summer days.

I decided on Monday that I wouldn't be considered a true southern woman until I'd cooked some pintos and cornbread. I tried out Paula Deen's pintos recipe (except I cooked mine on the stove) and the Pioneer Woman's cornbread. Very tasty, but they didn't compare to Miss Ruby's.

Miss Ruby passed away when I was in college. She worked at the "un-named attraction" for many years and a few of us attended her funeral. There were so many people there - I know she was well-loved by all.

Leftover meatloaf, 2 slices of white bread, and a shmear of Dukes mayo makes...

The BEST lunch ever! I LOVE meatloaf sandwiches...probably more than I like meatloaf itself! Sunday I made a tasty turkey meatloaf and the hubby and I have been enjoying the leftovers.

Here is my meatloaf "recipe" (a variation on the Kraft foods meatloaf recipe):
1 lb ground turkey
1 package Stove Top Stuffing (uncooked)
1 small yellow onion, chopped
Dump in any of the following: BBQ sauce, ketchup, mustard, worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, garlic power, grill seasoning, and anything else you have on hand that you think would taste good - This is why I called it my meatloaf "recipe" with quotes. ;) (all the liquid items should total up to about 1/2 a cup)
Smush together and bake for 30 mins on 375
Slather on some sauce (ketchup, mustard and brown sugar mixed togther)
Bake another 30-45 mins until done

Serve with mashed potatos. Or slice and put on white bread with Dukes mayo.

Yum! :)

Farmers Market Food, Great Recipes and a New Kitchen

A couple of weekends ago, my hubby and I decided to try out the Farmers Market near our house. My friends had been and told me how awesome it was - tons of fresh food for great prices. However, apparently the market is SO awesome, that it is always super crowded. You really have to get there right when it opens to beat the crowds. And I hate getting up early on the weekends!

But a few Saturdays ago, I made the sacrifice and rolled out of bed at 8:00am on Saturday (uggg - yes that is early for me) and we drove on over. We got there right before they opened and there was already a line to get in! I didn't get it. Really? This place was that great?

But once we got in there, I understood. First off, it is HUGE! I mean, picture a warehouse. There is every type of fruit and vegetable you can image. The prices were great! They had containers of spices for super cheap! And FRESH pasta...and FRESH homemade sauce...and FRESHLY baked breads...and FRESH fish...and chocolate...and desserts...and flowers...and coffee...we were in awe. We couldn't buy too much that day (we were about to leave for vacation, so we didn't want to buy a bunch of food that we couldn't eat and would end up going bad). But last Saturday, we went again.

And oh the food we bought....

Yum!

And since we had lots of fresh food, I decided to finally cook some of the recipes I've had bookmarked for forever. (These aren't my pics...I never remember to take pics of the food I make - too busy eating it!)

I made this from Deep South Dish:

This from Smitten Kitchen:

And this from Food Network. (No pic for this one.)

And I plan on making this and this from Bower Power:

And this from The Pioneer Woman:

Nom nom nom! :) I love to cook! And come October, I'll have a brand new kitchen to cook in! Which reminds me, I need to post pictures of my beautiful new kitchen design -

(Although we may end up making some more changes to the design before October since I can't make up my mind which wall I want the fridge on...)

But I can't wait to have a beautiful new kitchen to cook in!

-Holly