Thyme-Smothered Chicken

This is sooo good and sooo economical. Talk about comfort food!

Traditionally, "smothered" anything, meat, poultry or vegetables are served with (and often cooked in) a heavy flour-thickened gray. Here the chicken is cooked in it's own juices, with plenty of thyme, onions and butter. No water or stock is added, so both chicken and sauce are lighter and more intensely flavored. Delicious served over stone-ground grits or rice.

Thyme-Smothered Chicken
4-6 servings
print recipe

4 chicken legs, 4 thighs and 4 wings, brined for 8-12 hours (see note)
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons dried thyme (dried will give a more intense flavor than fresh)
4 tablespoons (1/2-stick) unsalted butter
3 large onions, peeled and sliced 1/2-inch wedges
5 cloves garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Rinse the chicken pieces, and dry them thoroughly with paper towel. Sprinkle the chicken all over with the pepper and thyme. Heat the butter in a large covered skillet or Dutch oven until hot and foaming. Put the chicken pieces, skin side down, into the pan, and cook over moderately high heat until the chicken is a rich golden brown. Turn the pieces as needed until they are golden brown all over.

Remove the chicken from the pan. Immediately toss the sliced onions into the skillet and cook, stirring often, until the onions become limp and translucent. Use a wooden spoon to dislodge from the bottom of the pan any browned bits left from cooking the chicken. Add the garlic, bay leaf, salt, and pepper, stir well to distribute the seasonings, and cook for 5 minutes longer. Return to the pan the browned chicken pieces and any juices they have given off while resting. Bury them in the onions and cover. Cook, covered, over low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 1 1/2 hours, until the chicken is fork-tender. Serve hot.

Note: For brine, stir kosher salt into cold water until dissolved, in the proportion of 1/4 cup of salt to 1 quart water. (Don't use table salt in this formula, it will be too salty). Mix enough brine to cover the chicken in a (non reactive) bowl or pot. Store refrigerated for the times specified in recipe

My First Recipe Box and Lipton Onion Roasted Potatoes

This may sound strange to some of you, since I'm always cooking. But I have never owned a recipe box. Until now. I have always stuck recipes in a big yellow notebook binder or a box. Now most are on the computer. I love hand written recipe cards. In one of the boxes of books that Joyce sent the other day was a metal recipe box like the one she has of her mothers. I just love it. In the recipe box was this recipe I haven't made in 35 years. Don't forget to check the Note at the bottom. I made mine today with Italian Herb with Tomato Soup Mix. How long has it been since you made these?

Lipton Onion-Roasted Potatoes
6-8 servings
I think you can remember the recipe.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

1 envelope Lipton's Onion Soup Mix
2 pounds potatoes, cut into large chunks
1/3 cup olive or vegetable oil. I like to mix the two

In plastic bag or bowl, add all ingredients. Close bag and shake, or toss in bowl, until potatoes are coated. Empty potatoes into 13 9-inch baking pan; discard bag. Bake, stirring occasionally, 40 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Garnish, if desired, with fresh parsley.

Cook's Note" Also terrific with Lipton's Onion Mushroom, Savory Herb with Garlic, or Italian Herb with Tomato Soup Mix.

Egg Custard Baked in Custard Cups

Someone at church this morning was talking about Egg Custard, which of course brought to mind my mom and grandmother making this when we were kids. This classic Southern dessert is rarely made these days, which is unfortunate, because it is a refreshing and simple, not to mention delicious dessert. Its sweet nutmeg flavor brought back wonderful taste memories of my life. Made you wish you were 6 years old again. I whipped these up when I got home and have already had two.

You can top them with a lightly sweetened whipped cream or fresh fresh. I like it best the old-fashioned way, completely unadorned.

Egg Custard Baked in Custard Cups
8 custards
print recipe

6 eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 cups milk
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Put the eggs in a mixing bowl, and stir with a wooden spoon just until mixed. Add the sugar, salt, and milk, and mix until well blended. Strain through a fine-meshed sieve, and stir in the grated nutmeg and vanilla. Divide evenly among eight 6-ounce custard cups. Put the cups in a deep baking pan, and fill the pan halfway up the cups with hot water.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, just until custards are set. Remove from the hot-water bath and cool. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled. Mine were warm. I can't wait.

Saint and Scriptures Sunday - Moment By Moment

This is a meditation I should do more than I do!

Let me tell thee, time is a very precious gift of God; so precious that it's only given to us moment by moment. - Amelia Barr

Where are our minds right now? Are we focused fully on this mediation? Or are our minds wandering off to events scheduled for later today or tomorrow perhaps? The simple truth is that this moment is all God has allowed right now. It's God's design that we will live fully every moment, as it comes. Therein lies the richness of our lives. Each moment contributes to the full pattern that's uniquely our own.

We must not miss the potential pleasure of any experience because our thoughts are elsewhere. We never know when a particular moment, a certain situation, may be a door to our future. What we do know is that God often has to work hard getting our attention, perhaps allowing many stumbling blocks in order to get us back on target.

Being in tune with now, this moment, guarantees a direct line of communication to God. It also guarantees a full, yet simple life. Our purpose becomes clear as we trust our steps to God's guidance. How terribly complicated we make life by living in the past, the present, and many future times, all at once.

One step, one moment, and then the next step and its moment. How the simple life brings me freedom.

Potato Chip Sandwich

Don't worry, I'm really busy next week and will not have so much time to blog. I was back in The White Trash Cook Book again and found this oh so familiar old sandwich. This was our hang-over prevention food back in the day. Got home too late, drank too much and forgot to eat, Don't say you never did that! Wash this down with a Pepsi and you would feel great in the morning. The secret here is don't be using those healthy baked potato chips. You have to have the grease to soak up the alcohol.

If you have kids in college make sure they have this recipe.

Potato Chip Sandwich
1 sandwich

2 slices of bread
mayonnaise (not low fat or no fat)
potato chips

Spread the mayo generously across the bread. Pile the potato chips on to one of the slices as high as you can. Then top it with the other slice and mash down until all the potato chips are crushed.

You will be so glad in the morning you took the time to do this.

Boursin Cheese Potatoes

You have had plenty of time to make your Boursin Cheese. Here is just one beautiful way to use some of it, if you have any left. It will take about half of the recipe for this. These are wonderful served with any meat.

Boursin Cheese Potatoes
serves 6-8
print recipe

3 pounds red potatoes, scrubbed and unpeeled
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 pint heavy cream
One 5-ounce package Boursin cheese, homemade is better
Fresh chives or parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash and slice potatoes into 1/4-inch thick rounds. Toss potatoes with salt and pepper. Heat cream and cheese together, on top of stove or in microwave, until cheese has melted. Stir mixture until thoroughly blended. Layer half of the potatoes into a 2-quart baking dish (this is best if done in a deep dish instead of a long, flat dish). Cover potatoes with half of the cream mixture. Repeat with remaining potatoes and cream mixture. Cover and bake for 1 hour. Sprinkle top with chopped chives or parsley.

High Calorie Pick-Me-Up

I had so much fun yesterday reading my cook books from Joyce. Yes, I read cook books, not just look at the recipes. White Trash Cooking by Ernest Matthew Mickler, is one of the funniest books ever.

I have never thought of any of my family or friends as "white trash". After reading this book I may have to re-visit that thought. How many times have I seen my brother do this very thing. I wonder if he knows it's a "white trash" thing? He does now!

High Calorie Pick-Me-Up

Pour a small bag of Tom's peanuts into a cold bottle of Pepsi. Turn it up and eat and drink at the same time.

This needs to be done in a bottle not a can so you can see how gross it looks.

I may have to try this!