Chicken Fried Steak

 Growing up my Mom was the one who made dinner, whether she worked that day or not so most days the meals were quick and filling. We would have sandwiches or Spaghetti but on the weekend she would have the time and energy to cook a really great meal. One of the house favorite meals wad Chicken Fried Steak and we would have it with Corn Fritters and Mashed potatoes and if that wasn't enough carbohydrates and starch for you we would usually cap that amazing meal off with Sour Cream Pound Cake for dessert.

I took video and pictures last week when my mom made us Chicken fried steak and corn fritters. I hope you try this and enjoy it as much as we  always did.

Start with a mixture of Panko Breadcrumbs and flour 

Add salt, pepper and red pepper to the mixture

Be sure to add the salt, pepper and red pepper to the steaks on both sides

Crack a couple of eggs and add them to the bowl. Use a fork to break the yolk and scramble them

Get nice and brown on both sides and then add enough water to cover the steaks, replace the lid and let simmer on low medium heat until the water boils down

While it boils down you can try your hand at corn fritters 

Hope your meal turns out as yummy as ours

Grandma's Recipes

This week my Mom and I were talking about extended family. I was born later in my Mom's life so I really don't know many of the extended family on either parents side. Unfortunately that same disconnect holds true for my siblings' children and their children. That made me think of how we could bridge that divide a little, and give my Mom's grand and great grandchildren a piece of her. They may not be in the same state as she is but they can share some of the family stories and recipes that we grew up on.

The first recipe that I am going to share is for Peanut butter candy. My Dad had a huge sweet tooth and every time he got hungry for something sweet he would ask Mom to make a batch. Mom would pull out her old tattered cookbook and set to work. Us kids would gather around once she poured it into the plate to lick the spoon and the pot (yes it is that good).

I plan on sharing over the next three weeks, several of Grandma's recipes. I have one more recipe on tape of Chicken fried steak with a side of corn fritters, but computer problems won't let me upload it tonight maybe by mid week. I was running out of space on my computer so I had to export this in a smaller format, but I hope you are still able to hear and see Grandma as she walks you through the most popular Smith recipe ever.

I hope you enjoy Grandma's Peanut Butter candy. The plate in this video was a quarter gone when we wrapped it up and went to bed but there was only two pieces left by morning :) Enjoy and come back for the Chiicken Fried Steak and Corn Fritters and our next video session we will capture Grandma's Sour cream Pound Cake.

Going Digital

This week my crafty mind went digital. I have been blessed to have my Mother with me for the past couple of weeks and we have had discussions that there isn't many people left to tell about the family. We decided to start a project with some of the old family favorite dishes (next week) but first I grilled her on her brothers and sisters and all of her nephews and nieces. 

After I grilled her for all the information I turned to a photo editing software called iPiccy. I mapped out my Mom's family and all of their children and Grandchildren if I had that information. 

Using the "make a design" feature you can type information right onto a background and place pictures with the text. It is sort of like a dumbed down version of Photoshop. You can crop, adjust and edit photos easily and quickly. When you sign up for a free account they allow you to store the pictures you are working on at their site. 

This is the Webb/Richards Family From Parkersburg West Virginia 

If you notice I am the baby of the next to the last child on this. Which means that I have no idea who most of these people are. I may have met them at one point in my life, but my parents had me later in life and then moved to Florida so I missed out on knowing my cousins. My daughters have no idea who their family is. Now with this and hopefully some added pictures down the road they will at least be able to show their kids where they came from. 

Here is the collage I made of my branch of the family tree.

As you can see my branch is pretty large. 

Don't be afraid of digital editing. Make a copy of your photos on your computer (just in case) and have fun. See what each button does to your photos. You can undo many things and if the worst happened and you totally mess up your photo you made a copy so you are still good and you figured out what not to do the next time. 

Below is an example of some of the old photos that my youngest (the picture editing master) and I have digitally restored. 

We were able to brighten this enough to see the baby face on my Grandmother 

This photo was wrinkled and torn but we were able to at least get it viewable again

This was another dark and dingy picture that was able to be brightened

This one was able to be brightened so we can see the smile on the girl and the seems of the young man's cover alls. 

Don't be afraid to try photo editing out. Preserve those old memories for future generations to appreciate. I love seeing pictures of my Grandmother so young. She died the week my oldest was born so my kids don't know her, but through this project, hopefully they will see that they come from a long line of very strong women. 

This week everyone in our house felt a little under the weather. 

Winter in Florida often includes all four seasons in one week and that can really mess with your sinuses. 
I know what we have isn’t a cold, so I went looking on Pinterest to try and find an organic solution to our stuffed up sinuses and soar throats.
The first thing I found is for adults (me) only in the house but that is okay. This soothing solution contains 2 tablespoons of honey, 2 tablespoons of Vodka and the juice of a lemon (about a quarter cup). Make sure no seeds get into the bowl and then place all the ingredients in a mason jar or sealed container and shake until mixed. I will take 2 tablespoons before bed and my throat will feel better and I will get a good night’s sleep.

The other thing I found is how to make shower bombs with Vicks vapor rub. I live on the stuff on a daily basis and have always wanted to have it in a form to take in a hot shower. The recipe is simple, it is a small container of, Vicks around 3 ounces, 1 cup of corn starch, ½ cup of baking soda and water to help in the mixing process. Throw everything in the bowl and start to mix together. I started with a spoon the quickly went to my hands to finish the job. I added a little bit of water until it ended up the consistency of play dough. I added them to a mini muffin tin and let them dry for 24 hours. Once dry I used a knife to remove them and when I take a shower they will be on the floor of the hot shower helping this never ending sinus headache to go away. 

There are tons of ways to help treat minor issues with organic products and essential oils. There are companies that offer products that help you live more chemical free as well. Our favorite company is the Honest Company. I use their surface cleaner everywhere; it doesn’t have a lot of the chemicals in popular cleaners. I have a child who is horribly sensitive to all kinds of chemicals and their shampoo and laundry detergent are some of the only products that do not bother her sensitivity. I am not against using popular products, but I think if it is possible to treat a sore throat or clogged sinuses without chemicals you should try. No one in my house is a fan of medication even when we are really ill, so hopefully using some more natural product will help them accept help to feel better. No organic product or recipe can take the place of regular medical care. Make sure that you run anything you put into your body by your physician. Enjoy, hopefully next week we will get back to our regular crafting schedule