Good Old Fashion Down Home Christmas in Florida

Good Old Fashion Down Home Christmas in Florida

It always seems funny to me, as a 7th generation Floridian, that almost every Christmas scene or movie you watch has snow, blizzards and everything to do with the North.  You remember Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer ?  There was a blizzard so bad Santa Claus had to use Rudolfs’ bright red  nose to guide his sleigh through the blizzard.  Then there’s Christmas Vacation–(one of my favorite all time movies) Every time Chevy Chase goes out side, there is snow, and it is freezing. Remember the drive they took to get their Christmas tree?  It was so cold his daughter’s face was frozen.  How about the movie Santa Claus–Tim Allen was going outside in the cold and snow, and Santa Claus fell off the roof into a bank of snow.

This is a far cry from all my celebrations of Christmas here in Florida.  For Christmas we have sunshine instead of snow, and lots of winter visitors coming down to enjoy this wonderful sunshine.  If we want to see snow, then we must load the car up and drive as far north as we can until we find some of that illusive white stuff.

So let’s go back to  my childhood and see what a Good Old Fashion Down Home Christmas was in my home.

We didn’t put up a tree until a few days before Christmas-our decorations had been around for a long time, and we decorated our living room with as many decoration we could find. I still remember the Santa Claus my mom put on the top of the tree every year.  It was beautiful–what a memory.  There was garland on the mantle piece, windows and over the doors.  Now the tree is where we really get to shine-we didn’t go down to the local tree corner shop and buy a tree.  My dad headed out with his old truck and brought back a true Florida short leaf pine.  Yes, sap and all.  It wasn’t long before our house was smelling of pine-real old fashion Florida pine.  Back then, you just went in the woods and cut your tree.  No charge was ever paid-it was free. We had those big old light back then to put on the tree, and lots of tinsel everywhere.

The Holiday meal was much the same as it is today–Turkey with all the trimmings-the stuffing was made out of real cornbread that my mom had cooked, and the pies and cakes were all from her long list of family recipes.  Green beans with red bliss potatoes, some collards that  my dad grew himself-and the eggnog-wow! was that good.  It was the only time my mom would take a drink-my dad put a little whiskey in it, and would talk my mom into taking a sip.  It was usually so warm, we were wearing shorts and enjoying the day.  No, no sleigh rides in the snow, but a lot of singing by the old piano my mom had all those years ago.  She had sheet music of the Christmas songs, and we all loved to play the piano and sing until we were all sung out.  My mom would make hot cocoa for everyone later on-she had the best recipe for hot cocoa in the world.

Now listen to this!  You know how they always tell you to take the stuffing out of the turkey and put it all up right away.

My mom would take a clean sheet, after we were done eating, and cover the food right on the table.  She knew we would all be back at the table as soon as our tummies had a little room in them for more of those holiday goodies. We always had a crowd over for Christmas dinner, and believe me, there wasn’t much left to put up at the end of the day.

Presents were a big deal in my  home, and although we didn’t have much to give, there were always a lot of presents under the tree.  Believing in Santa Claus was a must, and an older child was never to tell the younger one that there was no Santa.  I still believe there is a Santa hehe.

Memories-I can close my eyes and still see my mom in the kitchen-cooking all those good holiday treats for us, and making the best Christmas dinner she could put on the table.  What a wonderful cook she was, and how wonderful was her love for her family.

Memories are made to be shared, and I hope you have enjoyed  mine.

Happy Holidays and a Merry Christmas to your and yours.

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Grandma Ollie and the Slop Pail

Grandma Ollie and the Slop Pail

Grandma Ollie always had a slop pail or bucket  by the side of her bed at  night.

I’m sure she grew up in this fashion, and she never put the slop bucket away even when she had a modern bathroom.  When I would stay with her at night, it was always by her side of the bed.  In the morning she would take it to the bathroom and empty it and clean it.  This is just a memory I thought I would share, and see if anyone else remembers the Slop Pails.

 

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Grandma Ollie–Sweeping the Yard in the 1900s

Grandma Ollie–Sweeping the Yard in the 1900s

by Jeanie Blanton

I use to visit North Florida in my youth, and I remember seeing clean swept yards in the country.  These yards were beautifully kept, and had flowers in the surrounding areas,  Often a family garden was growing in site of the swept yard.  My grandma Ollie told me stories of sweeping the yard clean everyday.  They wouldn’t let anything grow where they were keeping it swept.  She said they used a homemade straw broom to sweep it clean.

Grandma Ollie’s life on the farm was a hard one.  She not only had a large family to care for, but she often had to go out in the field with her husband and tend the crops.  My mother said that either she would stay in and fix the breakfast while Ollie went out into the fields to work, or Grandma Ollie would stay in and fix breakfast, and she would go out in the fields to work.  They did everything by hand: the clothes washing, the making of soap, the cooking on a fire or wood stove, the gathering of the crops to sell and eat, the making of syrup at certain times of the year, and many more things to help the family survive.

Stay tuned for the post on making lye soap–my mother made this even later on when you could buy soap.

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Jelly Making–Step by Step

Jelly Making–Step by Step

by Jeanie Blanton

Getting your jars  Ready

1.– Visually examne jars and sealing surfaces for nicks, cracks and sharp edges.  Wash jars in hot soapy water.  Rinse.  Leave jars in hot water until needed.  If using vacuum lids with metal screw bands, rinse in hot water.  Place lids and bands in sauceepan and cover with water.  Bring water almost to boiling point. (180-190 degree F) Leave in hot water until needed.

2–Following pectin manufacture’s directions, measure prepared juice and sugar into an 8-10 quart kettle.  Stir to dissolve sugar.  Remove jars and lids from hot water.  Invert on towel to drain.

3–Put kettle of juice and sugar on high heat.  Quickly bring ot a full rolling boil–one that cannot be stirred down–stirring constantly.

4–Immediately stir in liquid pectic and bring to a full rolling boil.  Boil for one minute.  Remove from heat.

5–Skim off foam.  Quickly fill jar to 1/8 inch from top.  Wipe top and threads with a clean, damp cloth.  Put lid on with sealing compound next to jar.  Screw band down evenly and very tightly.  Jelly may trickle down sides of jar if not tight enough.

6–Invert jar for a few seconds so jelly can destroy mold or yeast which may have settled on lid.  Then turn jar upright to cool.  When jar is cool, test for seal.  Store in a dry, dark, cool place.

Enjoy

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Stay tuned for all the latest information on the HINI Swine flu.

Old-Fashion Southern Fried Chicken

Old-Fashion Southern Fried Chicken

When I was a girl, we had chicken every Sunday; now I don’t know if this is a Southern Tradition or not, I just know we knew on Sunday, we would have fried chicken.  Now we had chickens running around in the yard all the time–I guess in our new Green World they would call them Free Range Chicken, but back then, they were just Chickens that ran around in the yard, scratching and chasing each other, and if you weren’t careful, the big old rooster would come chasing you if you let him, well, sometimes he would just chase you for no reason at all, and those big spurs of his would send you running into mama and crying “HELP.”   We never had to buy eggs in those days, you just went out to the hen house, and trying to be very brave, you would reach in under the hen and get some really fresh eggs still warm to the touch.  The hens were really friendly, and they loved it when your  mom gave you some corn to go out and feed them.

So, back my mother’s famous Southern Fried Chicken–the best in the world.

Now this might get a little bloody, so the faint of heart might want to skip this part, but it is so much part of my childhood, that I have to include this story.  On Sunday morning, after we had a good breakfast of those warm fresh eggs, a big old slab of bacon,sliced and fried to a golden brown, grits and tomato gravy, and a big skillet full of Grandma’s Southern Hand Rolled Biscuits, she would head out to the back yard and scope out the chicken she wanted to cook for that day.  Pool old chicken, he hardly knew that this would be his last day on earth-so he just ran around the yard, and then suddenly, he realized something or someone was after him.  Now my mom was short, but she make up for it in wide, so I’m sure the chicken thought a giant from outer space was after him.  Believe me, he didn’t have a chance in this old world once she set her sights on him.  Sometimes it was quite a chase, and I sure wish we had videos back then–it was quite a sight!  Now here’s where the faint of heart might want to quit reading and go on down to the recipe–When she caught that chicken, the loudest squawking would start–that chicken sure didn’t want to be caught.  His life was over for sure then, and she would grab the chicken by the head and started wringing his neck by slinging him round and round.  After she threw him around for a few times, and she thought his neck was wrung out, she would sling him over to the side and let him lay for a while.  She would go in and put on a large pot full of water, and as soon as it was boiling hard, she would dip the chicken in the boiling water (don’t worry, he was dead by then).  After dipping the chicken up and down in the water for a few minutes, she would take him to the sink and start plucking the feathers out as quick as she could.  Soon she had all the feathers out, and was ready to singe the chicken.  We had a gas stove, so all she had to do was run the chicken’s body over the flame a few times.  The feathers and pin feathers were soon all singed off, and the chicken was ready to be cut into frying pieces.  Now we think we have it hard when we fry chicken-next time you are frying chicken, remember what my mom had to go through just to have our good old Southern Fried Chicken every Sunday.

Now we are ready to get down to the real way a good old Souther Fried Chicken meal was prepared in the South.

She would take the chicken and cut it into pieces–she could cut up a chicken better than any chef I’ve ever seen on TV cutting them up.  My dad kept her knives sharp with an old whetting rock, and it seemed the knife would just glide through the chicken with such ease.  I think they kept their knives much sharper that we do these days, because when I’m brave enough to buy a whole chicken and cut it up myself, it never seems to cut as easy as my mom could do it.

Then she would have a big plate of flour, my mom always bought self-rising flour, so it had some salt in the flour, but she would still salt and pepper the chicken pieces before she rolled it in the flour.  She rolled it so it would be covered really good with the flour-no, no eggs or  milk dip–just flour. Now she had the biggest iron skillet I have ever seen, and she used it every Sunday.  She would fill the skillet up with lard, yes lard–not veggie oil hehe–and when the oil was sizzling hot, in would go the chicken pieces.  Now this is when the work began–She would stand there at the stove and keep turning the chicken over and over.  This is what’s makes it Southern Fried.  She didn’t just put it in the pan and leave it, and then turn it over in a while, no, she watched over that chicken with a careful eye, and kept turning it over and over.  Now I don’t know how she knew when it was done, but she had some kind of radar that told her it was ready.  All the family was eagerly awaiting the Traditional Sunday Dinner.  There would be sweet ice tea, mashed potatoes, salad made of just lettuce, tomatoes and mayo, all mixed up together, collard greens, biscuit and sometimes cornbread also.  There would always be some good desert, usually cake of her own recipe and making.  She would make Strawberry Shortcake, when the Strawberries were in season, or Pineapple UpSide Down Cake, one of my favorites, Layered hot fudge cake and many more.  I will be including some of these desert recipes soon.

So get ready to fry your Southern Fried Chicken and enjoy.  Memories are just precious–Don’t lose them.

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Recipe-Grandma’s Peach Cobbler

Grandma’s Peach Cobbler

by Jeanie Blanton

3/4 can milk (this is the evaporated canned milk)

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup flour

2 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 stick butter

1 -16 oz can of soft peaches or 2 cups of soft fresh peaches

Put butter in casserole or baking pan to melt.  She used her cast iron skillet–

Mix together sugar,flour,baking powder, salt and milk.  this is a thin batter.  Pour into baking dish then pour peaches on top.  Cook in moderate overn until batter rises through the fruit and browns a golden brown.

hints–use self-rising flour and  omit the baking powder and salt. Use any kind of fruit you want such as blackberries, strawberries, pears or etc. Serve with whipped cream and a cuppa sweet tea and enjoy.

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Grandpa’s Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Grandpa’s Cinnamon Raisin Bread

2 3/4 to 3 cups unsifted flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 package active dry yeast

1 cup milk

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

1/2 cups raisins

Mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and yeast in 1 quart bowl

Heat milk, butter and lemon rind in 2 cup saucepan until warm.  Pour into dry ingredients and beat with wooden spoon for 2 minutes until smooth.  Gradually add 1/2 cup more flour and mix with spoon again.  Remove all dough from spoon; then add raisins with remaining flour and knead with fingers until all flour has been absorbed into dough, or about 6-10 minutes.  The bowl sides will be clean and the dough will not be sticky, but firm and manageable.

Form dough into ball and grease on all sides.  Put dough into bowl and cover with damp cloth.  Let rise in warm place until doubled in blulk, or 1 to 1 1/4 hours.

Punch down dough and knead very vigorously for several minutes;  then shape into ball and put into bowl.  Cover with damp cloth.  Let rise for 15 minutes then knead vigorously and form into oval shape ball.  Place in 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch greased loaf pan; or form two equal size oval shape balls and place in two greased 6×3 3/4 x 2 inch foil loaf pans.  Grease exposed surface, cover with damp cloth and le rise until doubled in bulk, or 1 to 1 1/4 hours.

Bake in oven preheated to 400 degrees for about 30 minutes or until done depended on the pan size.  Remove from pans immediately and cool.  Keeps very well under refrigeration or in freezer.

Alternate:  For onion-Dill Bread; substitute 1 teaspoon dried dill week for cinnamon and 1 tablespoon instant chopped onions for raisins.  May be baked in greased 1 quart casserole if desired.

This is gooddddddddddddddd

 

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Fig Jam Grandma’s Way

Fig Jam Grandma’s Way

2 quarts chopped fresh fis (about 5 lbs)

3/4 cup water

6 cups sugar

!/4 cup lemon juice

Prepare your figs by pouing boiling water over them and letting them stand for 20 minutes.  Drain, stem and chop

Measure and add 3/4 cup water and sugar to figs.  Slowly bring to boiling, stirring  until sugar dissolves.  Cook rapidly until thick, stirring often to prevent sticking and scorching.  Add lemon juice and cook 1 minute longer.  Pour into  hot jars leaving 1/4 inch at top of jar, adjust caps and process 15 minutes in boiling water bath.  Yield: aboaut 5 pints

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HINI-The Swine Flu Shot

It’s here–The Swine Flu Shot

My grandma Ollie saw many cases of flu during her lifetime.  Sometime several family members would get sick at the same time.  I remember one time, both my mother and father were in the bed with the flu–now this could have been the Swine HINI flu, because it was years ago, and they didn’t go to the doctor, but I remember they were both in bed, and I came over everyday and cared for them.  In 1905 both my grandpa and grandma on my dad’s side died of some kind of epidemic–this could have been the flu also.  So it seems we have always had the flu with us.

The flu shot came to be and now we can get some protection for the flu.  They have started the HINI Swine flu shot in the schools in my area now.  The young children are more apt to get really sick, so that is why they have started in schools.

Read all about what to do for the Swine flu in my articles on my other site http://freeinformationhealthdiet.wordpress.com .

Good luck and stay well

If I got a cold or flu, my grandma Ollie would rub my chest down with Vicks Vapor Rub.

I don’t know if it helped or  not, but it sure did feel good when she rubbed it on my chest.

She would put a little in my nose also.

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Fresh Strawberry Jam-Grandma’s Best

Fresh Strawberry Jam–Grandma’s Best

8 cups fresh strawberries-washed hulled and crushed

2 teaspoons lemon juice

6  cups sugar

In a large heavy pot, slowly mix berries with sugar and lemon juice and stir over hot burner until sugar is dissolved

Boil rapidly for about 40 minutes until mixture is thick.

As mixture thickens, stir frequently to prevent sticking and scorching.

Pour into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch at top. Adjust caps and process 15 minutes in boiling water bath.  Yield about 4 pints.

This is gooddddddd.

My grandma and mom sometimes made this jam with pectin–go by the recipes on the pectin package if you want to make it that way.  Make sure to watch the jam carefully so it won’t burn.

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