Strawberry Jam Freezer Jam

2 cups, fully ripe, strawberries
1 box sure- jell
4 cups sugar

Crush strawberries; pour in sugar and let stand for 10 minutes. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Mix 1/4 cup water and Sure- Jell in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil 1 minute; stirring constantly. Stir into berries, continue stirring for 3 minutes. Ladel into containers, cover with lids and let sit at room temperature for 24 hours. Store in freezer.


I have done this recipe with peaches and it is absolutely delicious...if using peaches you will need to skin the peaches first and then boil peaches in 1 cup water to soften...drain water before adding the sugar.

Homemade Laundry Soap

This laundry soap is safe in the Front or Top Load Washing Machine.


4 cups- hot tap water
1 bar Ivory Soap- grated
1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
1/2 cup Borax

Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium heat until soap is dissolved and melted.

Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let it sit overnight to thicken.

Stir and fill a clean used laundry soap dispenser half full with the soap mixture and then fill the rest of the way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)

Optional: You can add a few drops of your favorite essential oils if you want scented laundry detergent.

Yield: Soap makes approximately 10 gallons of laundry detergent

Top load machine: 5/8 cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)
Front load machine: 1/4 cup per load ( Approx. 640 loads)

Above the Sky Roofing

When you own a home or business, the unexpected Roofing issues can happen. Ever wish you had a Roofer to quickly and skillfully take care of issues as they arise, without breaking the bank? You just found one...Steve is experienced and will work hard to meet and exceed your expectations. Steve can be reached at 912-429-4074 or Jamie at 912-655-5632. Free Estimates.

Advertise with A Southern Cook

A Southern Cook would love to advertise your business. Please contact me at dlcobb1@live.com for more information.

Vegetable Soup

Now is the time to make an a wonderful vegetable soup...there is alot of fresh produce around to choose from..Make the winter months bearable and bring a cup of comfort to the table with this recipe...Enjoy!


1 lb. stew meat or ham bone
1 large can tomatoes or pint of fresh stewing tomatoes
1/2 cabbage, cut up
1 large onion, cut up
6-8 carrots, sliced
5-6 potatoes, cut up
1 can corn or pint of fresh corn
1 can sweet peas or pint of fresh peas
1 can butter beans or pint of fresh butter beans
1 can green beans or pint of fresh green beans
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 tbs. thyme
1 tbs. rosemary
1 tbs. salt
 1 tbs. pepper
1 tbs. garlic powder.

Cover meat with water and simmer about 1 1/2 hour or until meat is done. Add vegetables and seasonings. Cook until all vegetables are tender.

Glass Cleaner

1 large container with lid
1 spray bottle
1 gallon water
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup alcohol

Pour water into a large container; add other ingredients. Mix well.  Pour into a spray bottle. Cleans glass and chrome.

Peach Pie

2 pie crust
4-5 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
1- 8 oz. package cream cheese
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 box peach gelatin
1 tsp. cornstarch
1 container cool whip

Cook pie crust; set aside to cool. Mix cream cheese and powdered sugar together. Spread evenly on the bottom of cooled pie shell. Place slice peaches over cream cheese mixture. Make jello according to package and add 1 tsp. of cornstarch. Mix well and then pour over peaches. top with cool whip and chill.

Nothing says Southern like a Good Ole Fashion Peach Pie. Enjoy!!!!


This is a recipe that was shared with me from a country cousin...Thank you for making me love peach pie.

Getting Back to Basics

As a child I spent many hours planting, harvesting, and canning vegetables with my parents. This was not my idea of a way a kid should have to spend their summer, but in my house if you did not work we may not eat. That is just the way it was...now in saying that, I have two of the most loving and devoted parents, and I am blessed to still be able to say they are still together today and they both still plant and can their own vegetables.
But.....as a teenager this is the last thing that I wanted to be doing. I can still hear myself saying, when I grow up  I will never can my own vegetables, WHY WOULD YOU WHEN THERE IS STORE BOUGHT IN THE CAN VEGETABLES!!!! Well, I stuck with this as an adult for many years. This year however, I feel God has been telling my family, it is time to get back to the basics. In the beginning, I did not even know what the basics were...after all we live in a microwave society and I liked it that way. The easier the better, after all I am a busy woman.
A few months ago, things in our lives took a drastic turn when I had to have back surgery and was no longer able to work to help supplement my husbands income...Let's just say, you will get back to the basics quick when you have to. In in effort to keep my family above water, I took cable television out of our home...what a blessing that turned out to be...we now have to communicate, we read our bible more, and we have complete control over what we see and hear on our t.v. (through dvd's). Next the dishwasher went (conserves water and electricity) in doing this I found I have alot of alone time to spend in prayer or just contemplating my next step in life...after all everyone scatters when it's dishwashing time. We no longer spend money eating out all the time...I really enjoy cooking so for me this was no big deal other than not always convienient... Now to the biggie...Canning my own vegetables. Well lets just say that is exactly what I am doing...not only is it cost effective, its healthy, and so rewarding. It gives you a great sense of accomplishment when you see the results of all of your hard work. I love to see all of those fresh vegetables on my families dinner table and know that came from the results of my hands. I am praising God daily for the back to basic life that my family is living. It has brought my husband and I closer together and through the hardships I have complete joy and peace.
Go get some fresh veggies and try canning some of your own...See if you may want to bring a little of the basics into your life. God Bless You And Your Family.

Chicken Pot Pie Casserole

The poll is now closed and the votes are in;  you would like to have more recipes for Casseroles and Main Dishes. This does not surprise me at all. We are all so busy in our everyday lives, but we still want to feed our family a healthy well rounded meal. So here is a Chicken Pot Pie Recipe that is super easy. Enjoy!!!

3 boneless chicken breast
1 can chicken broth
2 cups water
1 can veg-all
1 pint sour cream
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 sleeve townhouse crackers
1/2 cup shredded cheese
salt, pepper, seasoning salt;to taste

Boil boneless chicken breast in 2 cups water; add seasonings. Remove chicken and cut in small bite size pieces into a glass casserole dish. Add in all other ingredients (except cheese and crackers) and add enough chicken broth to make it creamy. Sprinkle top with shredded cheese and add crushed townhouse crackers on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until crackers are lightly browned.

Proverbs 31:13- 20

She finds wool and flax and busily spins it. She is like a merchant's ship; she brings her food from afar. She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her family and for her servant girls. She goes out to inspect a field and buy's it; with her earnings she plants a vineyard. She is energetic and strong, a hard worker. She watches for bargains; her lights burn late into the night. Her hands are busy spinning thread, her fingers twisting fiber. She extends a helping hand to the poor and opens her arms to the needy.

In this passage of Proverbs it is speaking of a virtuous woman; a virtuous woman speaks of excellence, moral worth, ability, and nobility; not just marital fidelity. Such a woman is ideal of wisdom in action. In Proverbs 31: 13-15 it says she carefully considers a field; that is , she buys and sells and builds her own resources. In this passage it clearly shows that she found ways to provide an income for her family to help her household. In Proverbs 31: 20-22: The virtuous woman works not to get rich, but to give to others. She can be concerned for others because her own family is taken care of. God expects us to take care of our family first, but then to help others where you see a need.  When you help someone else, I can promise you a need in your own life is also fulfilled.

I strive daily to watch over my family and to be mindful of the way I spend God's money. I try to be a good steward by cooking good wholesome food and by looking for ways to save money; one way is by making my own laundry detergent and other cleaning supplies. This saves my family money and still gets the job done. One of my favorite cleaning agents is vinegar...Vinegar can be used in so many ways and has no toxic chemicals. Here is my favorite bathtub cleaner recipe:

Put your drain stopper in your tub. Sprinkle bottom of the tub with baking soda and pour vinegar over the baking soda to form a paste. Scrub away. Rinse tub. Gets the tub nice and clean and no harsh fumes to contend with. The vinegar smell will go away once the tub is rinsed and air drys.

This blog has become for me a resource to help others. I hope that each person that reads it, takes something away with them that will nourish their body. Get into God's Recipe Book for your life (the Bible), and watch your life change. Keep Reading and Keep Cooking.

Chicken and Dumplings

1 whole chicken, cut up
6 cups water
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. seasoning salt
1 stick butter
1 can chicken broth
1/2 cup lard
3 cups self-rising flour
1 cup milk

Cook first 5 ingredients until chicken is tender, debone chicken. Put chicken back in the pot with broth that you cooked the chicken in; add 1 can chicken broth. Put flour in large mixing bowl add in lard and milk...Mix well. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and roll out very thin. Bring chicken back to a boil and drop in dumplings. Cook for about 30 minutes. Do Not Stir dumplings. Shake pot gently to turn dumplings over in the pot and to prevent sticking.

New Business

I have just added a new link to my blog. Please take a moment to check these businesses out. If you would like to advertise your website on my blog, please email me. The blog has been up for 1 week and has already been viewed over 350 times. I appreciate every one for all of your support and comments. I hope everyone will continue to come back often, cook the recipes, and refer this blog to your friends. Happy Cooking!

Fried Green Tomatoes and Grits with Roumolade Sauce

This is one of my favorite recipes of all time. The nice thing is, it can be eaten anytime of the day. A true comfort food. Hope you will enjoy it as much as I do.

Grits

2 cups grits
4 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbs. butter

Prepare grits according to package.

Fried Green Tomatoes

1- 2 green tomatoe
1 egg
1 cup milk
2 cups cooking oil
2 cups flour
salt, pepper, and seasoning salt to taste

Heat oil and season tomatoes with salt, pepper, and seasoning salt. Beat egg and milk together in seperate bowl. Dredge tomatoes through egg mixture, dust with flour and repeat process. Drop tomatoes into hot oil and fry until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towel.

Preparation:

 Place hot grits down the middle of plate. Place 3-4 fried green tomatoes on top. Sprinkle with cheese. Add Roumolade Sauce.

Roumolade Sauce Recipe is in a previous blog...This really makes this recipe.

Crock Pot Cubed Steak

Another recipe that I was ask to post is Crock Pot Cubed Steak.. This is such an easy recipe and you can throw it in before you leave for the day and when you get home in the afternoon, it is ready for your enjoyment... So Amanda, this one is for you
6-8 pieces cubed steak
flour
1 pkg. southeastern mills gravy mix
salt to taste
pepper to taste
seasoning salt to taste
1/2 cup oil
2 cups water

In a skillet heat the oil. Season cubed steak and dust with flour. Brown cubed steak in oil on both sides and remove. Place cubed steak in crock pot. Mix gravy pack according to direction on package. Pour over cubed steak. Pour in water... Add any onions, bell peppers, or mushrooms. If desired. Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. Serve over mashed potatoes or rice. Some people prefer to use a pan gravy, which I like...See Recipe below

Pan Gravy

After removing meat from skillet, drain all but about 1 tablespoon of oil leaving the meat drippings. Add 2 tablespoon of flour and stir until flour is browned. Add enough water to make a gravy consistency. Pour this over the meat in the crockpot in place of the gravy package...You can do this anytime you need gravy, if you have fried meat and have pan drippings.

Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

I love that my friends and family are asking me to post their favorite's..This is one that a close friend of mine said she would like to see on here...So here is a favorite fill em' up kind of meal. Enjoy!

Biscuits

2 cups self rising flour
1/2 cup lard
2/3 cup milk

Sift flour and cut in shortening. Pour milk in. Knead together. Lightly dust hands and roll into biscuits or roll out on a lightly floured surface and cut with biscuit cutter.  Place on greased baking sheet. Bake in a 350 degree oven until bottoms are browned...Put oven on broil and brown the top of the biscuits. ( Be careful not to burn them on the broil cycle).


Sausage Gravy

1 tube bulk sausage
1/4 cup flour
Milk
Pepper to taste

Brown sausage on medium heat. ( Do not drain, unless there is an excessive amount of fat). Add in flour until flour is browned and has become a paste with the sausage. Stir in milk and stir continuously until gravy consistency. Add pepper to your liking. (If gravy seems to thick you can add a little more milk)

Chocolate Pound Cake

This is for a sweet lady that wants to honor her husband's request for a chocolate pound cake...A sure way to get to a man is through his stomache and good southern cooking. Hope yall Enjoy!

2 sticks margarine
1 cup Crisco or lard
3 cups sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
5 eggs
1 cup sweet milk
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix salt and baking powder to flour. Mix sugar, margarine, Crisco, and cocoa together and beat; add eggs one at a time...beating after each one. Alternate milk and flour. Add vanilla. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 hour.

Lima Beans with Hamhock

This is a story that I was ask to share on my lima bean making skills...I was blessed to have a mom that stayed at home and cooked really good southern food. There were four of us kids and she definetly had her hands full. Each night there was a pot of Lima Beans on the table. My dad did not think it was a meal unless there were Lima Beans on the table. Well, one day mom thought it was time for her to go outside the home and help my dad make a living so she up and got herself a job...now keep in mind, I had only watched her cook... she had never allowed me to cook anything! But off to work she went and I had explicit instructions to watch over my 2 younger brothers and sister and to put the lima beans on to cook and DO NOT BURN THEM! Well, as you can guess, I scorched the mess out of them. My mom comes home and finds her kitchen very stinky and the beans are burnt to a crisp and stuck to the pot. She was a little irritated but forgiving. The next day again she gives me the same instructions, (and did I fail to mention...I am only about 13 years old) and once again I scorch those stinking beans. Mom arrives home and let's just say she is not as forgiving as the day before...She knows that I am not watching the beans, or the beans would not have burned. Day 3 same instructions, but my mom tells me if the beans burn today she is going to spank my bottom cause she is certain I am not watching the beans close enough. Well here comes my cousin Teresa over for a visit...so I put the Lima Beans on and she and I commence to have our most important conversation, (after all,  we have things to discuss whether my mom thinks so or not) and pretty soon we are smelling those beans and they are very stinky...my heart drops. If mom says you are getting a spanking a spanking you will get...I knew I was in big trouble. I looked at my cousin and I told her my dilemma and then I said you know what I am going to do with these here beans and she said, "" no what" and I said, " I am taking them outside I am going to dig a hole and I am going to bury them and start over"...After swearing her to secrecy that is exactly what I did!!! After that though I learned to make a mean pot of Lima Beans and the secret to not letting them burn is medium heat and lots of water:) Hope you will give these hearty beans a try...This story was just for you Teresa along with the recipe. I hope you will enjoy them.


1 small pack of dry baby limas
2 pieces of hamhock
1/2 tsp lard
8 cups water
1/4 cup onion diced
Salt and Pepper to taste

Add all ingredients to a large stockpot and boil on medium heat for 2-3 hrs. Stir often and add water as water level drops and broth starts to thicken. Beans are done when they are fork tender and there is a nice thick broth gravy. Serve with rice or a hot homemade biscuit.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Monday's are always quite busy in the Cobb household. It is a catch up from the weekend kind of day. It always starts with laundry including all of the bedding and this morning included putting all of the peas that my daughter and I shelled this weekend into the freezer. Thankfully that job is done and laundry is almost complete. My granddaughter came into the laundry room this morning and said, " I have a great project". I then replied, "and what is that". She said, "we can make a cake together. Well anyone that has grandchildren know, you can never deny them anything...especially if they want to cook. Get your kids involved in the kitchen, it is a great way to spend some great quality time together. So I am off to spend some time baking with my beautiful grandbaby...everything else can wait! Here is the recipe. Bake one with your babies and Enjoy!

1 1/2 cups butter, softened (do not use margarine)
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups self- rising flour
1 block cream cheese, softened
1 tbs. vanilla

Cream butter and cream cheese together. Then add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time beating between each one. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time beating after each time. Add in vanilla and continue to beat until well blended. Pour batter into a greased and lightly floured bundt pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour.

Happy Fathers Day

I would just like to take the time out today to wish all of the dad's out there a Happy Fathers Day. I was blessed with a wonderful dad that always put his family first in his life. I then married a great man who just so happens to be an incredibly wonderful father and grandfather...So to the 2 men in my life, I love you  both very much and thank you for the great men that you are. Happy Fathers Day!!

Roumolade Sauce

Ok, Debbie (my cousin) here is the recipe for the roumolade sauce for the okra fritters... This sauce is also good with fried green tomatoes, fried squash, chicken fingers, or anything else you make want to dip. Hope every one will enjoy it as much as my family does.


1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup horseradish sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard

Mix all ingredients together and enjoy...if too spicy for you just reduce the horseradish sauce to your liking.

Easy Peach Cobbler

1 can peaches
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1 stick butter

In a 9x13 glass baking dish, melt butter. Add can of peaches, including syrup. Mix together flour, sugar, and milk. Pour over peaches. Bake in a 350 degree oven until brown on top. Approximately 30 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla bean icecream or whipping cream.

This is a quick and easy dessert that you can throw together last minute and will compliment any meal. Enjoy!!!

Thank You God for Crazy Busy Days

It has been one of those incredibly crazy busy days. I have put fresh okra in the freezer today and along with my daughter we have been shelling peas to put in the freezer tomorrow. I love to see my freezer start filling up with all of the new season's produce.
Tonight was spent with a most precious friend and her soon to be new  family...I feel so honored and blessed to have her and her new family in my life. She cooked another amazing dinner of fried pork chops, red skinned mashed potatoes, broccoli casserole, and cast iron skillet corn bread. If she keeps cooking like this she is guaranteed a happy marriage. No man can resist good home cooking! So to my friends, I absolutely can not wait until your wedding day...You are both so special and yall are blessed to have found each other. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your lives and to my sweet friend...Keep on Country Cooking!

Change In Plans

Well any woman you know has the right to change her mind...and that is just what I did today...We did have sausage but everything else changed. I fixed some fresh black-eyes straight out of my mother- in- laws vegetable garden, rice, sliced tomatoes, squash casserole, and homemade biscuits. This is one of my favorite country meals and I was a happy southern cook tonight, along with the rest of my family. The grandbaby even had seconds of the squash casserole after having to convince her to try it. Here is the recipe for the squash casserole that is an all time family favorite.

                                                      Squash Casserole
6-8 medium squash
2 eggs, beat
1/2 cup milk
1 cup mild shredded cheese
1 stick butter
1 sleeve townhouse crackers
1/2 diced vidalia onion

Cut up and boil squash with diced onions until tender. Drain and mash squash until water has run out. Pour into a casserole dish. Beat eggs and milk together and pour over squash. Melt butter and add to mixture. Add cheese and crushed sleeve of crackers. Mix well. Bake in a 350 degree oven until lightly brown on top..Approximately 1 hour.....ENJOY!!!!

What's For Dinner

If you have a family, you probably hear, "What's For Dinner" on a daily basis. I know I do. Well, for me that is always something I try to have in mind way before dinner. When cooking southern there is always a need for preparation...whether it's defrosting the meat, peeling potatoes, or slicing and dicing. Sometimes meal preparation just is not quick and easy. Today however, the menu is going to be quick and easy. My family will be feasting on Sausage with onions and peppers, tomatoes and rice, and cornbread. Here is my Cast Iron Skillet Cornbread Recipe.
                                              
                                                 Cast Iron Skillet Cornbread

2 cups self rising corn meal- (I prefer House of Autry)
1 egg, beaten
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 cup milk

In a large cast iron skillet add 1/4 cup oil and coat skillet well (reserve the remaining oil). Place skillet in a 350 degree oven for 5- 10 minutes or until oil is hot. In the meantime, beat all other ingredients together including the remainig oil. When skillet is very hot pour in cornbread mixture. Bake in 350 degree oven for 25 minutes or until golden brown on top. Serve hot with melted butter and The Vintage Bee Company Honey....Yum Yum good.
 To get your honey please visit The Vintage Bee Company's website located under my link section.

Fried Okra Fritters

Last night for dinner, I made fried okra fritters. Each day my son-in-law takes his lunch to work. Today just minutes of this blog hitting the world wide web, he called saying he had shared his lunch with another employee that wanted the recipe...So here it is. Enjoy!

1 bag cut up okra
1/2 cup flour
2 cups oil
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp seasoning salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Beat eggs in a large mixing bowl. Add okra, flour,  and seasonings.  Mix well and until okra is coated in mixture. Heat oil in cast iron skillet on medium heat. Place okra by small spoonfuls in skillet and lightly press down in the shape of a pancake. Brown lightly on both sides and okra is tender.

Southern Fried Chicken

1 whole chicken- cut-up
2 cups self rising flour
2 cups vegetable oil
Salt, pepper, seasoning salt, garlic powder

Place oil in a skillet and heat on medium heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper, seasoning salt, and garlic powder. Dust chicken in the self rising flour until completely coated. Place in hot oil. Cook chicken and turn often until both sides are golden brown and juices run clear...approx. 15 minutes.

Hello Everyone!

Wow! That is all I can say right now. I never dreamed I would be writing a blog about anything. After all I am just a stay at home mother and  grandmother. My love for cooking came from the love I have for my family. It warms my heart when my husband or one of my children ask me to cook something for them. Not so long ago one of the ladies at my church, (who is soon to be married) ask me to teach her to cook a real southern dinner of fried chicken...what an awesome honor that is! This started me to thinking that alot of newly married women would love to be a able to cook a "for real" southern dinner...so the blog begins. I hope everyone enjoys it and takes alot away from it. It comes from the heart, but these recipes are NOT heart healthy.Just Good Ole Fashion Cooking At It's Best!!!