Soul Stew

The temperatures are unusually cold here in south Alabama...so that means it is time for something warm to eat!  This recipe is so good and has been adapted from a few that I have merged together.

Ingredients

1-2 cups of cooked greens ( I used collards, but turnips taste great also)

1.5 lbs. smoked sausage

3 slices of bacon

2 yellow onions

3-4 cloves of garlic

1 can Rotel diced tomatoes (as mild or hot as you want)

1 can dark kidney beans

1 can pinto beans

2 cans black eyed peas

1 can navy beans

2-3 cups of low sodium chicken broth

Instructions

1. Begin by slicing sausage julienne style.  Add sausage and 3 slices of bacon to a large pot on medium heat.

2. While sausage and bacon are cooking, chop onion and garlic, then add to the pot.

3. If you are using fresh greens, if they aren't already washed and chopped up, now is the time. (Frozen work just fine, but I have an endless supply of fresh greens from my Dad's farm).



This is a whole sink full, but they magically cook down to not many at all.



I peel away the stems and just rip the green with my hands into bite sized pieces.  This is the way my Mother and Grandmother taught me.  The stems can taste bitter, but I am sure I am probably throwing away all of the actual nutrients.

 Hold the leaf with one hand folded in half, and just pull the stem away with the other.



 4. Add the greens to the pot, stirring the sausage, bacon, onion, and garlic mixture.  They will cook down significantly. 

Now, I put the rest of the steps in a crock pot, in that I had to leave for half of the day, but you may finish out the rest on the stove.

5. Open, drain, and rinse all beans. Then add to the crockpot.

6. Add greens mixture to crockpot, along with rotel tomatoes, and chicken broth.

7. Add salt, pepper, and whatever seasoning you like, I added a little Slap Ya Mama which is just a blend of red pepper, garlic, and salt.

Check out my organized spices!

Let the stew cook until the greens turn dark and everything softens. I would say at least an hour. Then, enjoy with a big slice of cornbread!



Hope you enjoy as much as I do!

-Meg



Weezy.

I have attempted to write this a couple of times, only to start over and push it aside because it didn't quite feel right yet. My grandmother passed away this summer, and it still seems like I just haven't been by to see her in a while. She was very sick, and as much as we all hated to see her go, we hated seeing her suffer even more.

  My grandmother, Nancy Louise Emmons lived a pretty amazing life. She married my grandfather, Floyd Emmons at only 15, and went on to have 6 children with him.  She dealt with his drinking and love of women, let's just say he and Hank Williams Sr. would have made great buddies. The funny thing was is that they loved each other, and couldn't stay apart. He died of a heart attack at only 39 years old, just 2 weeks before my mother and father wed. 

My grandmother then married again a few years later, became a loving stepmom and wife, and as life would have it moved out of that relationship eventually on to another. 

She then married Dan, who was her love until the day she died. She experienced the death of one of her children, and two grandchildren. What's funny is when someone you love dies, to me at least what sticks out about that person are the memories you made with them and the things they taught you throughout life.

My grandmother taught me many things, and her life was so much more extensive than the events listed above, but to keep from writing a biography I will stick to the lessons I learned from her life. 

1. Do what makes your heart happy.

Numerous times I would stop by and visit with her, and she always supported me, even when my life wasn't so impressive. 

She always told me to choose the path that I was most happy with.

2. Laughter is not an option; its a necessity.

She made me laugh until the day she died, even if it was not always with her but at her, she never lived a day without it, even at her worst.

3. Your heart is more important than your head.

My grandmother loved a man that many didn't agree with.  Funny thing is she never quit loving him. Her heart made decisions for her, which is odd in that so many of us seem to try and silence our hearts, and only listen to our heads, especially with age.

I hope that this shined a postive light on the amazingly charming, beautiful, loving, and passionate person that my grandmother was. She was loved by so many. We have such a huge family, and she has impacted every one of us in a positive way.

For a while she was in the nursing home (which she absolutely hated) claimed they hosed her down to give her a shower and never wanted to go back. She had a notebook there, and created many drawings. To me, they are incredible, maybe I am biased in that they are hers. 

What's interesting about them to me is that I imagine the drawings the same as they would have been if she had drawn them in high school. So, to not keep these to myself, I want to share them with you.   I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. 

"Dear God what a life. Be glad and praise God for letting you live through the broken bones." 

"A promise is great, as long as you keep it."

I can't wait to see her again one day. 

-Meg

My Generation

   The world is quite a different place than it was during my childhood; I assume many generations before me probably felt the same when they hit around my age or even a bit older. The world is always changing and evolving and much of that can be a good thing.

   What is odd though is I'd say the world has changed more in the past 10 years than it did the first 17 years of my life. Most of it having to do with technology and what happened the day of 9-11. Something as simple as communication has changed forever, we do not have to actually speak to each other anymore, we simply type. It's sad that picking up a landline and actually having a conversation seems nostalgic to many of us.

   It kills me to go to a restaurant and see families staring at their cellphones like drunk zombies instead of actually engaging in conversation. Yet, when horrible things happen we wonder how and why? Though, when we do not even talk to each other, how are we supposed to know what's going on in each other's lives? 

   Notice I keep saying "we", I am just as guilty as anyone else, though I do believe there are certain places cell phones shouldn't be; the dinner table, church, funerals, etc.There is also no need for wonder anymore, simply type in your question and you have the answers, which is a blessing and a curse in the same

   Living before  9-11 is included in this because I see the constant fear our country lives in and all the crazy precautions and regulations there are now. Kids who lived or grew up post 9-11 will never know that sense of calm which saddens me.  

   Another issue that scares me is the amount of crazy people in the world. I roamed the neighborhood on my bike during the early 90's...now if I had a child I'd be terrified. There are constantly stories of kidnap, murder, lurking sex offenders, it's frightening. 

   I loved and still love The Wonder Years growing up, which depicts a typical American family in the late 60's early seventies. What's odd as a kid I related to the show so much, and what the world was then didn't seem much different than the one I was living in the 90's. I'm sure that many kids now can't relate to that image anymore.

   My generation grew up with the idea that we could become anything we want; go to college, get a degree, become a millionaire, superstar, heck whatever you want. So we did, we went to college, got degrees, then worked at a local restaurant to start paying back our debt. Granted, this was not the case for everyone, but I know many friends who ended up going back to college for a 2nd degree because all of the "jobs" we were promised growing up were no where to be found.

   The cool thing about my generation is we have had to find our own way. Many of us crave the nostalgia and comfort of the world as it used to be, so we bought record players, because we know they actually sound better than any mp3. We grow our own garden, because we know eating things from a paper bag are actually bad for us. We make things from old materials, noticing there's a reason things like wood and glass outlast plastic.

  Many of us are dreaming of our past, our childhoods, and a time when relationships were stronger. The goal for my generation is to not leave the former world behind, to incorporate things built well, into the current world. Maybe we were taught that the world could be ours, what's so wrong with that? 

   To all generations out there, a little advice: read books, educate yourselves, plant something, put down your phone for candy crush and pick it up to call someone. Listen to a record on vinyl, and compare it to your iPod. Make something from scratch vs. out of the box.  See the beauty that is still left in this world.

The world can be yours, as long as you can open your mind.

-Meg

Best BLT -L + some other stuff

I love bacon, who doesn't? I made these last week and my husband requested them 3 nights in a row. They are pretty amazing.

BLTs

Ingredients:

1 pack nitrate free bacon (or regular bacon if you can find yours cancer free)

Bread, white or wheat (I used the wider sized wheat)

1/4 to 1/2 cup creamy goat cheese

Handful of fresh basil, chopped 

1 avocado 

Tsp. Lime juice

Fresh tomatoes, 2-3

S & P

To begin, cut bacon in half.

Weave 3 pieces on top of 3 other pieces. 

(You should know how to weave by now).

I used the whole pack of bacon for 2 sandwiches on wide wheat toast. 

Bake @ 400 for about 15 minutes, until it's crispy enough for you. 

While the bacon is bakin' grab the goat cheese and mix in the basil.

Then, slice the avocado, and scoop out the insides into a bowl. 

Use a whisk and mix in lime juice and a dash of s & p until it looks like this;

Then slice tomatoes.

Toast your bread if you like, and smear 1 side with goat cheese and basil mixture, and the other with avocado. Add tomatoes and bacon and you're done! 

Enjoy!

-Meg

Avocado Slaw

I love avocado, so much I could be the chick on the Subway commercial with the knitted avocado sweater. This recipe just kind of happened, and I loved it. It's great by itself of served on top of a taco, burrito, or any other Mexican arrangement of meat cheese and beans. 

Avocado Slaw

2 cups of shredded cabbage

1-2 diced fresh tomato

2-3 avacado  depending on size

Juice of 1 lime 

1 tbsp. of cumin

1/4 tsp. cayenne 

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Salt and pepper 

Mix her up and serve cold.

Enjoy! -Meg

Cold Brew Coffee

It's getting hot in South Alabama, not that I am complaining after the worst winter ever. I love coffee, black, rich, lukewarm coffee. (If I drink it hot it burns my tongue, I don't see how they do it). I've been reading a lot about cold brew coffee so I decided to give it a shot. I'm addicted. I've also never really been into cold coffee drinks, seeing as how they are usually overly sweet and as much as I love sugar, I don't want to drink it. 

So here's my recipe, taken from bits and pieces of other places. 

Cold brew coffee

5-8 tablespoons of coffee depending on how strong you want it.

(I use anything from Gevalia to Folgers. We don't have many coffees to choose from where I live. 

3 cups of cool water, filtered if you prefer.

A few sprigs of fresh mint (optional)

If you don't have a French press, just grab a quart jar and a lid or some Saran Wrap. 

Pour in the coffee and mint

Then add water

Cover but do not plunge the press down...if you are using a jar just cover.

Wait 12 hours. 

I usually just make it at dinner and finish the next morning.

Grab a coffee filter, a wide mouth jar and a strainer.

Press down coffee if using a press, then pour over into container.

Boom. You're done.

Now you can keep it in the fridge for up to a week. I add a little coconut or almond milk to mine. You can add ice and water, you can heat it, add stevia, or simple syrup. All of that is up to you. 

The coffee will taste a little different in that the heat didn't change the chemical compound of the bean. Also it keeps all of the antioxidants in. 

Enjoy!!!

-Meg

Weezy

Since my last post about love, I must say things in my life have shifted quite drastically. As some of you may know, or even if you have simply read my blog, my husband and I have wanted a baby for quite some time now, well, almost two years to be exact. Just like most months, my period came a few days late, and instead of rushing to the store for a pregnancy test the day it's late I decided to wait. I figured it was nothing and I would yet again be disappointed by another negative test, and the repeat cycle of drowning my sorrows with another bottle of wine and pandora radio. So on Sunday February 16, at approximately 7 pm I took a test...and I noticed a faint positive and immediately ran to buy two more before I got my hopes up; all three positive. At that moment I began to fall on my knees and thank God for what I had been praying towards for so long. It finally happened. My husband was at band practice at the time, so I basically walked around in a circle until he came home. I handed him a brown paper bag with all three tests inside. We were both speechless. 

The next day I decided to go take another test at the doctor's office to make sure, I received a "Congratulations! You're pregnant!" They estimated me at about 4 & 1/2 weeks. I have never been so excited. We decided we couldn't wait to tell our immediate family and close friends so we did that very night, knowing that it could be a risk we were taking. Why live in fear though right? 

I began noticing a few symptoms but I didn't mind them a bit. We talked about baby names, and all the other details that come with the news of finding out you will be a parent. My brain was clouded with warm fuzzy feelings of being a mother, I couldn't focus on much else.

About a week and 1/2 after I found out, I began bleeding, and heavily cramping. After being quite worried I called the doctor as soon as they opened, and they basically said lay down and it should stop. I couldn't wait so I decided to see another local doctor who was willing to see me.

I went in fairly positive that it was probably nothing, and had blood tested. I had to wait an hour to find out my results. My husband decided to go back with me. While sitting in the purple room listening to the awful classical music swirling in my head fear set it. As soon as the doctor sat down I heard the first few words and the rest were hazy after , "your numbers are very low." 

My heart dropped, I felt so sick, and like my world was crashing down. He then checked me and confirmed that I was indeed having a miscarriage. I looked at my husband and fell apart. All I could think was how can two people with as much love as us, with no real health problems,  have this happen? 

I gathered my things and left out, while seeing pregnant women in the waiting room that already have about 6 kids swarming around them I honestly wanted to punch them right in the face. It just so happens that as soon as I walk out of the doctor's office my mother who knows nothing yet is pulling up to drop off my grandmother's prescription. I didn't say a word and she knew what was wrong. My husband, mother, and I sat in silence for 3 hours. That same night in the news was a story in Mobile about a mother throwing her 2 day old baby in the trash and the baby not making it.  The next few days were basically a blur, filled with family and friends taking care of me and bringing me food. Thanks to them I made it, a special thanks to my niece who saved me at that very moment by just laying with me. 

It's odd how common miscarriage is because you rarely hear people talk about it. Just the word "miscarriage" sounds wrong, like the woman did some thing bad to their body and just weren't fit to have a healthy baby. Until it actually happens to you, you won't hear much about it, but hearing stories of other people going through the same thing actually helps.

The thing is most people don't realize, at the moment you find out you are pregnant, you are attached mentally and physically to the little life inside you, and when told that life is no more, you have lost a child, not just a little ball of cells or embryo or whatever term makes it sound less human. And it hurts like hell. I honestly have to say I have never been through anything this difficult. Though through this at least I now know I am capable of getting pregnant, which is wonderful.

My husband and I decided to get away for the weekend and I packed lots of wine, while we headed for the lake at a very kind friend's lake house. It's odd how little things can slowly stitch back together your soul; laying by my husband, music, seeing the water. All of these things helped. You see what your love with someone really is in a time like this. I have to say my husband and I have never been closer and I thank God he is stronger than me, in that I know he is grieving too. 

My husband Shannon and I at Lake Martin, beginning to feel a touch better.

The view

I know this is long, but I want to share this for a few reasons; one is to help myself. Another is to show you all who have never been through this to hug and kiss your children and thank God they are here. Also, if you are pregnant , no one wants to hear you constantly complain about being pregnant, there are plenty of people who would gladly trade places with you in a second. And last, for those of you who may have gone through this, I am writing for you also.

It's also funny how things happen in your life that are symbols of other things, while pregnant, I bought a coconut, thinking it would be cool to drain and drink the water, and eat the meat, as I had never done it before. After showing it to my husband and talking about how excited I was he pointed out a small crack, and shook it, no water inside. I was still hopeful that it was still fine so I sat it on the table. The day that all of this happened, I noticed the crack had became larger, and I popped it open, and as I had held onto a little hope, it was indeed rotten inside. It all hit me at this point of the unfair and never ending cycle of life. 

All of your prayers would be greatly appreciated.

-Meg