Thanksgiving Sides

Thanksgiving is just around the corner! It has been my favorite holiday since I was a child. I refuse to even name the presumptuous holiday that continually tries to creep its way into Thanksgiving territory, but I am not giving it any quarter until after we have fully celebrated Thanksgiving!

I cannot tell you how excited I am about Thanksgiving this year because we get to host it and we have a number of family members coming for the day! It is going to be WONDERFUL, I just know it!

I'm already working on a menu. I don't feel quite so intimidated this year, because it will be the second time I get to host it. Actually, maybe the third... my brain is failing me at the moment. Here are some recipes for sides that I have planned:

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Crock Pot Dressing
(Makes 18 servings)
1 lg. loaf dried bread, cubed (or about 16 c. bread crumbs - may combine bread/cornbread)
2 c. chopped meat - turkey, sausage, salami (opt.)
1 lg. onion, chopped
3 ribs celery with leaves, chopped
1/2 c. butter, melted
4 c. broth
1 1/2 tsp. sage
1/2 tsp. thyme leaves
2 dashes of marjoram and cloves
4 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Mix this all up, put in crock pot. Cook on high for 1 hour, reduce to low for 6-8 hours.

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Orange Cranberry Relish - this was my invention! I'm rather proud of it!
1 orange
1 c. sugar
2 tsp. fresh grated ginger (or 1 tsp. ground)
3 c. fresh cranberries
In a medium pot, combine the juice and zest of the orange as well as any loose fleshy bits. Mix in the sugar and the ginger. Turn the heat to medium and stir in the cranberries. Cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring constantly, crushing the cranberries as you stir. (For a thinner sauce, cook for closer to 10 min. For a consistency more like jelly, cook for 15 min. I prefer it somewhere in the middle - about 12 minutes.)

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Corn Pudding

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Green Bean Casserole - I just use the recipe on the side of the french fried onion can - only I use home grown/canned green beans! YUM!

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Turkey Gravy
Pour out the pan juices from your turkey and let them sit for 10 minutes separating. Meanwhile, pour ¾ c. water or stock in the roasting pan and deglaze. (Scrape up the yummy little bits.) Whisk in 4 tbs. flour one tbs. at a time. Transfer this to a saucepan. Pour the fat off of the pan juices, then slowly add 2 c. of the good juices to the saucepan, whisking it all in. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium and cook it down until it reaches the proper thickness. (If you wish, add 1 pkt. of gravy mix to season and to thicken.)

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And then of course sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, and dinner rolls. After going into a state of shock looking at the price of frozen dinner rolls last time, I ended up making my own. They turned out quite good, but I'm not in love. They are not the way I remember my grandma making them - fluffy inside, lightly crispy browned outside... I used to buy the Rhodes frozen dinner rolls and they were quite close to what my grandmother made if that gives anyone an idea of what I'm looking for. They don't sell them in my area, and I will not pay almost $1 per roll for Sister Schuberts! Seriously? They are mostly flour, water and yeast! That is highway robbery!

I would love to hear about your Thanksgiving traditions, menus, and dinner rolls!

Editing this post to link up to The Four Moms Plan for Thanksgiving.

Blogkeeping

A note - I'm still learning about blogging technique and such, so please bear with me on this journey. I'm hoping to incorporate more photos with my posts, but given copyright issues, I think I'm safer using my own. That means I need to start taking a LOT of pictures! I also need to figure out where to host them and such... So much to learn.

So far, I'm looking at using some themes for a couple of days a week, such as:
Sunday Hymn Post
Meditations for Monday
Wednesdays with the Word
Thankful Thursdays
and Saturday's Potluck Post

Anyway, any recommendations and requests for the blog are most welcome!


Thanks for reading!

Cooking With Dried Beans

Beans are very, very cheap, especially if you use dried beans. They are also very good for you! They have lots of fiber and protein, beans paired with brown rice make a complete protein, and the more you eat them, the less of an "unpleasant effect" they have. Another key to reducing the gassy after effects is the long soaking/cooking time. I soak for 24 hours and cook for 24 hours and this helps a lot with digestion.



**Red or Black Beans, Pinto Beans & Black Eyes Peas
-- GENERAL DRIED BEAN TECHNIQUE --
- 1 lb. dried beans
- water
- ham hock or bone (opt.)
- pickled jalapeno slices (opt.)
- 1 1/2 tbs. salt
- hot sauce to taste
Sort the beans first to remove any foreign objects or rocks. Rinse and wash beans in a colander in cold water, sometimes they can be a bit dirty. Dump into a crock pot and fill with water so the beans are covered by several inches of water. (The beans will expand as they rehydrate.) Let it sit overnight or up to 24 hours. Drain the beans in a colander and rinse, place the beans back in the crock pot and fill up with fresh water, covered by 1.5" water. If you like a ham taste in your beans, add a ham hock. If you like a little spice, add as many jalapeno slices as you like. They will add a nice subtle flavor. Simmer for 24 hours on low heat. Add salt to taste. (Adding salt at the end keeps the beans from getting tough.) Serve with some hot sauce and/or cajun seasoning. Serve with rice and/or cornbread or use in a recipe.

Refried beans and spanish rice is lunch for church mouse and family several times a week. Before almost every single meal, Big Littles will ask, "Is it beans and cheese?" with a hopeful little voice. Obviously, this is a favorite around here! :)

**Refried Beans
Best with pinto beans, although some people prefer black beans. (If you intend to use your pintos for refried beans, leave out the ham hock.) Put about 1 tbs. oil in a fry pan or cast iron skillet and heat to medium. Saute 1 chopped onion and a few minced cloves of garlic. Add a few scoops of cooked beans - they can be cold from the fridge, but they will mash easier if they are already warm. Mash with a potato masher. When smooth, turn down the heat to low, put a lid on, and they will stay warm until you are ready to eat. If the beans begin to dry out at any point, add a little bean liquid. Great as a dip or for burritos/tostadas.
(This is Preacher Man's method - he says he's come up with this through experimentation, and is always open to suggestions for improvement.)

**Spanish Rice (to serve with refried beans)
Saute a small onion in 2 tbs. oil. When soft, add some minced garlic. Add 1 1/2 c. white rice and lightly brown it. Add 2 c. broth and 1 c. chunky salsa. Stir and simmer, covered for 20 minutes.

I also make this using brown rice, you just have to let it simmer for 40-45 minutes instead.

This post is a part of the "Life in a Shoe" Bean/Lentil linkup AND the 4 Moms Lunch Menu linkup.

Praying for My Children

Before Big Littles was born, I prayed earnestly. I keep a prayer journal that I write in from time to time, and should use more often, so I still have one particular prayer recorded. I prayed for the safety of the pregnancy and birth, and that prayer was answered differently than I imagined. More than anything, I prayed that I would be able to teach and train this child in the way he should go, keeping Proverbs 22:6 in mind.

Train up a child in the way he should go;

even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Here is an excerpt from my writings from several years ago:

"This child belongs to You, Lord. Thank you for this precious gift. The magnitude of the responsibility is great, Lord, and we do not take it lightly. You have given this child into our care for just a little while. With Your guidance, we will bring this child up in the nurture and admonition of Your word, preparing another willing servant and hard-working solider for Your kingdom. Grant us wisdom to know Your ways, that we may teach them to this child, that this child may also be blessed..."

My prayers for my child were always focused upon two things - 1. Thankfulness 2. Seeking wisdom and guidance for how I would teach this child. When this child was still a wee one, I was speaking with an older, wiser mother of many and fellow preacher's wife. She shared a wonderful piece of wisdom with me. She said that when her oldest child was just a baby, she realized that she had been praying just as I was, always asking for God to help HER make the right choices and decisions, and to do the right things to teach her child. She realized that this prayer was rather one-sided, and that it was not enough. She started praying for God to work upon the heart of her child also, that He would give her a teachable heart, that she would grow to love wisdom and instruction, and that her child would have a heart for the Lord. I'm so thankful that she shared this with me, because it has changed the way I pray for my children.

The task of raising a newborn to adulthood and instilling all of the knowledge and love of God within their hearts, and equipping them with all of the knowledge and skills they need to thrive on their own one day is absolutely daunting. I can only do this with help from the Lord. I pray for my little ones daily.

God, give me strength and wisdom as I undertake this most important task.

God, give my children a heart that longs for You.

James 1:5 - If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

Isaiah 28:9-10 - To whom will he teach knowledge,
and to whom will he explain the message?
Those who are weaned from the milk,
those taken from the breast?
For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
line upon line, line upon line,
here a little, there a little.

Sunday Hymn Post

Be Thou My Vision

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

Words attributed to Dal­lan For­gaill

Wednesdays with The Word

So, I recently referenced Psalm 27:4 in this post.

Psalm 27:4 - "One thing I have asked from the Lord, that shall I seek; That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord, And to meditate in His temple." (NASB)

Today, I would like to focus on a different part of the passage - "to behold the beauty of the Lord". I rather like the translation from the ESV on this one...

"One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple."

No earthly being has ever seen God in his glory. We have accounts from three men in the Bible who had visions of God's glory, and we are blessed to have them written down for our learning, encouragement and edification. I thank God for these passages because they are some of the most beautiful, mysterious, and awe-inspiring in all of the Bible! From these passages, we get a tiny, tiny taste of what it will be like in heaven when we are able to "gaze upon the beauty of the Lord".

Are you ever awe-struck by a gorgeous sunset... a mountain range... the face of a sleeping child... imagine gazing upon the beauty of the Lord!

I will hit the highlights from some of the three passages here, but for the full effect, I recommend reading the chapters. Be awestruck!

Moses - Exodus 33:11-23

11 - So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend
19 - And he said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name 'The LORD.' And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. ²⁰But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live." ²¹And the LORD said, "Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, ²²and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. ²³Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen."


Ezekiel 1 -

²⁶And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance. ²⁷And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him. ²⁸Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.

Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.

John - Revelation 4 -

¹After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this." ²At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. ³And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. ⁴Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. ⁵From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God, ⁶and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal.

Don't you long to see it? Imagine how powerful it will be when we are not just beholding a "likeness", but the One True God! Surely, we, too, will fall down on our faces and worship Him!

Revelation 21:22-22:5 -

²²And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. ²³And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. ²⁴By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, ²⁵and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. ²⁶They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. ²⁷But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

22:1 - Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ²through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. ³No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 - They will see His face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

Crunchy Granola

While my rating is "Crunchier Than Grape Nuts" on the "How Crunchy Are You?" scale, this post is not about that...

It's actually about crunchy granola!



I wanted to try making homemade granola for years, but for some reason, it really intimidated me. The high price for what is really just glorified toasted oats finally gave me the nudge I needed to start experimenting and I am very happy with the results. We love eating granola in our house! We like it plain as a snack, on top of yogurt, with rice or almond milk, and I recently discovered that it makes a very nice topping on a muffin. If you have never made homemade granola before, don't be intimidated! If you can make chex mix, you can make granola!

To me, recipes are mere suggestions, and I almost never make something exactly the same way twice. Here are some of the recipes that I have used to come up with the perfect granola combo for us:

1) The Family Homestead - This is the recipe I started with, and is the main one that I use and tweak. I love that it makes 20 c. of granola at once and that I can stir it up in my big roasting pan. I leave out the powdered milk and substitute extra oats for the whole wheat flour. I just don't care for the floury, powdery stuff that ends up just being residue in my bowl. I think wheat germ would be a nice substitute.

2) Flourish's Cranberry-Orange Good Morning Granola - This stuff is like CANDY I tell you! I made it exactly as written the first time and it was just like eating a bowl of sugar cereal! Nice treat, but way too much for every day, and while I love the use of maple syrup, it is a very expensive ingredient to be using so much. I do love the craisins though and the orange peel was a stroke of pure genius! I now add orange peel to every single batch of granola I ever make!

3) Hillbilly Housewife's Skillet Granola - If you don't want to make an enormous batch, this is a nice easy way to do it! It comes out with less crunch, but it is still delicious.

So if I were to put my own recipe down on paper, or screen as is the case, this is what I would come up with:

Church Mouse's Granola 
42 oz. canister uncooked old fashioned oats 
1 cup shredded coconut
zest and juice of 2 oranges
1 T. cinnamon
1 ½ t. salt
1 cup coconut oil
1 cup liquid sweetener of your choice (honey, maple syrup, agave nectar, etc...)
1 T. vanilla
2 cup craisins (or other dried fruit)
2 cups nuts of your choice, chopped(I like slivered almonds or pecans, walnuts are more economical though.)

Mix these ingredients in a large roasting pan, heat in a 300* oven for an hour, stirring every 15 minutes or so.  If this recipe is too large for you, consider freezing some in ziploc bags.

And just for kicks, the amazing muffins I told you about from Ina Garten - Banana Crunch Muffins. I have gotten rave reviews from the families I have shared them with. I got 2 dozen out of the batch and they keep for about a week sealed in an airtight container. They also freeze well, but only have their crunch when they are fresh.

Hope this gives you some ideas and inspiration to come up with your own favorite combination for granola. Enjoy!