Post your favorite winter time stew or soup (Bonus points if it's easy)

[sree251]

My grandmother used to make it. This is my version of it from what I remember.

Grandma seems like the likely one to pass on the recipes of America's farm cooking. But the ones in this thread are coming from guys driving tractors. What I call farm cooking today was something like cowboy cooking back then. In the old days on the range, the kitchen was the chuck wagon and the cook was the man. Miss Kitty of Gunsmoke didn't cook.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Grandma seems like the likely one to pass on the recipes of America's farm cooking. But the ones in this thread are coming from guys driving tractors. What I call farm cooking today was something like cowboy cooking back then. In the old days on the range, the kitchen was the chuck wagon and the cook was the man. Miss Kitty of Gunsmoke didn't cook.

Here's the kinds of recipes that Grandma left...

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Here's my Grandmother's (born 1887) recipe for corn bread dressing. It was never placed in the turkey, but cooked separately. I love it with mashed 'taters covered with giblet gravy. Modified slightly by Sharn Jean.

CORNBREAD DRESSING​

Ingredients for cornbread

2 cups yellow corn meal
2 cups flour
2 Tbs baking powder
2 and 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Mix ingredients in a mixing bowl; pour into a greased, 9X13" cake pan. Place into a preheated 400 degree oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Cool; crumble and allow to dry for a couple of days.

Ingredients for Stuffing

Dry Cornbread (above)
1-14oz package of Seasoned Bread Stuffing Mix (Sharn Jean uses Pepperidge Farm)
2 cups chopped celery
2 cups chopped onion
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups (approximate) turkey broth/drippings
Salt, pepper and sage to taste

Heat onion, celery and chicken broth in a sauce pan until celery is tender. Mix cornbread and bread stuffing mix in a large bowl; add onion/celery/chicken broth.

Add turkey drippings to effect a wet (but not soupy) mix; add salt, pepper and sage to taste.

Add 3 eggs and mix well

Place in a large pan, 3 or 4 inches deep. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour, until brown around edges and done in the center.

Best served with giblet gravy.

Note: The boss says that the amount of celery, onion and seasoning (I like a lot of sage) is pretty much a personal preference, and you will have to adjust it to your own liking.

GIBLET GRAVY​

Ingredients

Giblets from turkey...gizzard, neck, tail, heart (not liver)
2 or 3 eggs; boiled
2 cups chicken broth (approximate)
flour/water thickener
salt and pepper

Cook the giblets in sauce pan in about 2 cups of chicken broth until done (about an hour or so). Remove giblets, drain and allow to cool. Strain the broth.

Boil eggs until done; slice/dice.
Cut up giblets; tease any meat from the neck. Discard the tail

Add turkey drippings and/or chicken broth to make however much gravy you want. Bring to a boil; add the flour/water thickening until it is the right consistency. Add the eggs, giblets and seasoning to taste.

 

[sree251]

Here's the kinds of recipes that Grandma left...

View attachment 732094

This is precious. You need to keep handwritten recipies for the cookbook. Their inclusion would add a charming touch of tradition to the book. 1887 was from the era of the horse and carriage. The Model T Ford was first made in 1908.

 

[5030]

Split Pea with ham chunks. No point in wasting anything.

 

[5030]

in 2002, I asked my mom to collect her favorite recipes. She was 70 at the time and I wanted to preserve them. (pun intended)
She is still kickin' and we have used the cookbook she handmade many times.

One that stands out isn't a recipe but rather a way to can vegetables without a pressure cooker.
It seemed strange until I understood it but she did it this way for years.

View attachment 732115

Called clod pack. My wife does it all the time.

 

[sree251]

in 2002, I asked my mom to collect her favorite recipes. She was 70 at the time and I wanted to preserve them. (pun intended)
She is still kickin' and we have used the cookbook she handmade many times.

One that stands out isn't a recipe but rather a way to can vegetables without a pressure cooker.
It seemed strange until I understood it but she did it this way for years.

View attachment 732115

What a great mother you have. Her recipe collection is done by someone with care and affection. How come you asked her to do it and not one of your sisters (if you have any)?

 

[Molalla1]

What a great mother you have. Her recipe collection is done by someone with care and affection. How come you asked her to do it and not one of your sisters (if you have any)?

Mothers take care of their boy's too . . . .

 

[Root Cause]

What a great mother you have. Her recipe collection is done by someone with care and affection. How come you asked her to do it and not one of your sisters (if you have any)?

Well, she loves to share and help others. She was at an age when she had time and was excited to be needed like anyone else.
She still keeps her own books, sends emails daily, types up the minister's sermon from Sunday, and gives it to her friends who don't have the capability to link onto a Zoom meeting.
She is 90 now and still walks around the building twice a day weather permitting.

 

[sree251]

"Elsie's White Holiday Cake"

By the way, who is Elsie?

I made the cake yesterday. Ate a chunk of it this morning. Tasty. Will eat more for dessert after dinner. The raisins make the cake stands out. I normally have cake with black coffee. This cake should go well with a nice Kentucky bourbon.

 

[sree251]

Mothers take care of their boy's too . . . .

I wasn't being clear. Sorry. What I meant was why was he the one asking mother and not one of his sisters. Girls not interested in cooking anymore?

 

[Molalla1]

I wasn't being clear. Sorry. What I meant was why was he the one asking mother and not one of his sisters. Girls not interested in cooking anymore?

I have three sisters and 2 brothers; I am in the middle at 79 . . . my sainted mother gave me her and our grandmothers recipes/book . . . I guess for some reason she (mother) wanted me to have them . . . I think part of it was I was my grandmother's favorite . . .

 

[sree251]

I have three sisters and 2 brothers; I am in the middle at 79 . . . my sainted mother gave me her and our grandmothers recipes/book . . . I guess for some reason she (mother) wanted me to have them . . . I think part of it was I was my grandmother's favorite . . .

You must be the one who showed the most interest in and gobbled up grandma's cooking.

How come you have not shared with us your favorite grandma's winter stew?

 

[Molalla1]

You must be the one who showed the most interest in and gobbled up grandma's cooking.

How come you have not shared with us your favorite grandma's winter stew?

I will have to look . . . it's been a long time . . . I will.

 

[jyoutz]

in 2002, I asked my mom to collect her favorite recipes. She was 70 at the time and I wanted to preserve them. (pun intended)
She is still kickin' and we have used the cookbook she handmade many times.

One that stands out isn't a recipe but rather a way to can vegetables without a pressure cooker.
It seemed strange until I understood it but she did it this way for years.

View attachment 732115

All the canning books and USDA now says that this method is unsafe. But people did it and survived. We do use the pressure canner though. Not taking a chance.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

By the way, who is Elsie?

I made the cake yesterday. Ate a chunk of it this morning. Tasty. Will eat more for dessert after dinner. The raisins make the cake stands out. I normally have cake with black coffee. This cake should go well with a nice Kentucky bourbon.

My Mother in Law; departed this earth more than 50 years ago. I used to make it in November, and store it on top of the frige for Christmas. I hate to put it this way, but it's a great substitute for fruit cake.

 

[sree251]

My Mother in Law; departed this earth more than 50 years ago. I used to make it in November, and store it on top of the frige for Christmas. I hate to put it this way, but it's a great substitute for fruit cake.

Quite right, it is a version of the traditional fruit cake or Christmas pudding. Used to? Don't you make it anymore? I will be having "Elsie" for dinner next Christmas.

 

[Molalla1]

sree251 . . . you are welcomed here.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Quite right, it is a version of the traditional fruit cake or Christmas pudding. Used to? Don't you make it anymore? I will be having "Elsie" for dinner next Christmas.

Well, our kids are all gone, we're getting older, and holidays, especially the last couple of years, are not as much in our control as in years past. However, I still like it, and maybe I can make it again soon.

P.S. Are you in the field of education? A professor perhaps?

 

[sree251]

Well, our kids are all gone, we're getting older, and holidays, especially the last couple of years, are not as much in our control as in years past. However, I still like it, and maybe I can make it again soon.

P.S. Are you in the field of education? A professor perhaps?

Kids coming home for the holidays does give an incentive to cook up a feast. Cooking and the cleaning up takes work. Luckily, I do enjoy cooking and somewhat of a gourmet. So, whipping up dinner for myself alone or with a friend is not a chore to me. If your wife likes food, then there is something for her and you to look forward to every day if you play chef with your recipes.

You did ask before about my background. I got distracted and did not get back to you. I apologize. My only farm experience was as a kid visiting with family in upstate New York. They had a chicken farm. I was an engineer by trade and worked in the heavy construction field. I did not like the profession and took early retirement. Yes, I would have been happier doing research in engineering science.