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Odessa, MO —
Wow! It is 2013 and that seems next to impossible. The year 2012 was not a good year for our family but we praise the Lord that “Grouchy Bear” is in Heaven with Jesus and we are relatively sure he is keeping things interesting daily.
We all know that his suffering has ended and he is a happy guy. He would not come back if we asked him, and so we all look forward to the new year with thanks and praises and are so happy that he is probably eating all the biscuits and gravy he would want at any time.
In his honor our family had a Christmas breakfast of sausage and gravy on biscuits. Our kids grew up on biscuits and gravy and the girls also loved chocolate gravy. The girls would open a can of biscuits and sit and stick chocolate chips in the biscuits before placing them on the pan. Then I would make chocolate gravy.
CHOCOLATE GRAVY
1 cup sugar
1 1⁄2 cups milk
1 1⁄2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
2 tablespoons butter
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir until desired consistency is reached. Serves 8 to 10. This gravy is great on leftover biscuits also. This recipe came from Gooseberry Patch Cook Book. Great book.
After a few years I decided to try chocolate chip pancakes and they were such a hit we kind of dropped the chocolate gravy and used any pancake recipe, pouring into skillet and dropping chocolate chips on top. When pancake was ready we flipped it over and allow the second side to cook.
With the New Year we usually had black eyed peas. Many of our friends and family believe that if you don’t eat black eyed peas on New Year’s Day you will have bad luck. I think someone just made that up so they could have the peas.
By the time New Year’s Day rolled around I was tired of cooking so found a recipe in a cookbook I was given as a gift by Willa Mae Thomas. I am making Hoppin John Soup.
HOPPIN JOHN SOUP
1 cup dry black-eyed peas
8 cups water
6 slices bacon
3⁄4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup regular rice
2 teaspoons salt
1⁄2 teaspoon pepper
Rinse the black-eyed peas. In large saucepan add the peas and water, bring to a boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 1 hour. Drain, setting aside 6 cups of the cooking liquid. In heavy saucepan, cook the bacon, onion and garlic until the bacon is crisp and the onion is tender but not brown. Remove bacon, drain on paper towels: crumble and set aside. Stir the black eye peas, raw rice, salt, pepper and extra cooking liquid into mixture in saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Simmer 1 hour stirring every now and then. Stir in crumbled bacon and it is ready to eat. Serves 8 regular sized servings.
Happy New Year and I will see you next week.
Dixie Ryan lives in Odessa and has enjoyed sharing her cooking talents and secrets with readers for many years.
Wow! It is 2013 and that seems next to impossible. The year 2012 was not a good year for our family but we praise the Lord that “Grouchy Bear” is in Heaven with Jesus and we are relatively sure he is keeping things interesting daily.
We all know that his suffering has ended and he is a happy guy. He would not come back if we asked him, and so we all look forward to the new year with thanks and praises and are so happy that he is probably eating all the biscuits and gravy he would want at any time.
In his honor our family had a Christmas breakfast of sausage and gravy on biscuits. Our kids grew up on biscuits and gravy and the girls also loved chocolate gravy. The girls would open a can of biscuits and sit and stick chocolate chips in the biscuits before placing them on the pan. Then I would make chocolate gravy.
CHOCOLATE GRAVY
1 cup sugar
1 1⁄2 cups milk
1 1⁄2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
2 tablespoons butter
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir until desired consistency is reached. Serves 8 to 10. This gravy is great on leftover biscuits also. This recipe came from Gooseberry Patch Cook Book. Great book.
After a few years I decided to try chocolate chip pancakes and they were such a hit we kind of dropped the chocolate gravy and used any pancake recipe, pouring into skillet and dropping chocolate chips on top. When pancake was ready we flipped it over and allow the second side to cook.
With the New Year we usually had black eyed peas. Many of our friends and family believe that if you don’t eat black eyed peas on New Year’s Day you will have bad luck. I think someone just made that up so they could have the peas.
By the time New Year’s Day rolled around I was tired of cooking so found a recipe in a cookbook I was given as a gift by Willa Mae Thomas. I am making Hoppin John Soup.
HOPPIN JOHN SOUP
1 cup dry black-eyed peas
8 cups water
6 slices bacon
3⁄4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup regular rice
2 teaspoons salt
1⁄2 teaspoon pepper
Rinse the black-eyed peas. In large saucepan add the peas and water, bring to a boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 1 hour. Drain, setting aside 6 cups of the cooking liquid. In heavy saucepan, cook the bacon, onion and garlic until the bacon is crisp and the onion is tender but not brown. Remove bacon, drain on paper towels: crumble and set aside. Stir the black eye peas, raw rice, salt, pepper and extra cooking liquid into mixture in saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Simmer 1 hour stirring every now and then. Stir in crumbled bacon and it is ready to eat. Serves 8 regular sized servings.
Happy New Year and I will see you next week.
Dixie Ryan lives in Odessa and has enjoyed sharing her cooking talents and secrets with readers for many years.
