Southern Recipes by Jan

Hey y'all. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and have a happy new year! Hoping this year is super delicious!!!

P.S.
I've updated my cookbook with even more delicious recipes. Be sure to check it out at: http://garyb.co/eCF0

Southern Recipes by Jan - Cookbook “I have a love for Southern Cookin' and my desire for writing this cookbook came from a heart of love for my three boys. I wanted to give them something really special, so to pass on to them some of my southern family recipes was just the thing to do.”

Do you eat Fried Okra! I sure do! Some people like ranch dressing to dip it in but I like it just the way it is. "It's not fancy, it's just good eatin'!"

Can anyone say chicken and dumplings? Fall is around the corner and a good bowl of this luscious dish is at the top of my menu! Ha! Ingredients:
4 quarts water
1 small can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 2 1/2 lb chicken
Salt to your taste

Cut up chicken, don't remove skin. The skin and bones can be removed later. Place chicken and bouillon in water and cook at a low boil for 30 to 45 minutes, until meat begins to fall off the bones. Now remove the skin and bones. Cut up your chicken in bite size pieces. Return chicken to the pot. Prepare dumplings and set them aside for a few minutes. Add cream of chicken soup to chicken and continue to boil. If you like you can thicken the stock at little by mixing 2 tablespoons cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water and adding it to the stock. Drop dumplings into boiling "stock". Never stir the dumplings, just sure the dumplings get covered . Cook until the dumplings float and are no longer doughy about 3 to 4 minutes. Do not overcook.
To make the dumplings: use a good biscuit recipe & use a teaspoon size spoon to drop the dough in the pot when that step is ready or you can buy the ready made dumplings in the frozen section of the grocery store. P.S. I have a picture of a breast piece of chicken on the plate. Enjoy! :)

When I was growin' up we used to go barefoot all summer long! We lived in the country and mama used to tell us to put on our shoes but we didn't listen! I remember being able to walk across about anything and not even feel it. (Today that's not the case!) lol
We would play sooo hard out in those woods! I could hear her calling us in the house to eat now. Maybe a banana sandwich was on the menu or a good ole' peanut butter and jelly sandwich (mama made her own jellies) and glass of cold milk.

I think cookin' with an iron skillet marks a seasoned cook. ;) I think nothing's better than frying some chicken in one! Hey, mama used to make some good ole' corn bread in one too!

Today, farming is a high-tech modern business. Many farms are trying to get people to visit so they will appreciate fresh produce and farm live stock. I especially like to visit local festivals in the fall... I can just taste the apple cider and oh some good ole' boiled peanuts!

Hey, pumpkin season is almost here. I just love Fall, don't you? Hayrides & candy apples! Yum!

I visited and ate supper at Paula Deen's restaurant, Lady & Sons, in Savannah yesterday! It was some good eatin'! Her fried chicken was out of this world. I had fried shrimp and added a fried chicken wing with it! Oh, I know.... they usually don't go together but I couldn't make up my mind. lol The hoe cakes brought back some wonderful memories. (Mama used to make them.) Hoe cakes are made with a mixture of flour, corn meal, buttermilk and eggs. (I'll share the recipe later.) :)

Did you ever eat a mayonnaise sandwich? I admit that I loved them growin' up! Did you ever eat a tomato sandwich too? I liked my tomato sandwich by fryin' the green ones and making a sandwich out of them by adding lettuce, mozzarella cheese slice or provolone cheese slice and mayonnaise on a bun (you can add strips of cooked bacon and sliced onion if desired) .

How to fry- Fried green tomatoes: salt & pepper to taste, cover your sliced green tomato in self-rising flour mixture (mixture contains 1/2 cup corn meal & 2 cups self-rising flour) then drop in your hot oil for fryin'. It only takes approx. a minute on each side. Drain on paper towels. Oooh! Sooo good eatin'! "It ain't fancy, it's just good eatin'! :)

Hey some of you asked for my Fried Pork Chop Recipe. Here it is!
Ingredients: 6 to 8 pork chops (I like to use center cut ones)
Approx. 4 cups oil (I like peanut oil)
Season Salt ( Lawry's )
black pepper ( amount you want)
self-rising flour
Hot Sauce - optional
Directions: Sprinkle your chops with the season salt & black pepper. Next get your oil heated in your skillet. (Secret to frying is making sure your oil is at the right temp. (One old fashioned way to tell is by sprinkling a little of your flour on top of the oil--- if it "beads" on top then your oil is ready.) Now place your pork chops in a paper bag with a cup or two of flour and shake it to distribute the flour all over those chops! lol or roll them in flour in a pan. Fry them for approx. a minute or two on each side. (Make sure you don't over fry them though. They are done when no pink or red juice is present. Keep your eye on them! Optional: If you want "spicy" pork chops, soak them in the hot sauce overnight first then flour them and follow the rest of the recipe. Enjoy! :)