There is a wonderful cookbook I use quite often. Mrs. Wilkes' Boardinghouse Cookbook: Recipes and Recollections fromHer Savannah Table speaks from an era way back in 1943 when a young and determined Sema Wilkes took over a non-descript boarding house in downtown Savannah. Her goal was to make a modest living by offering comfortable lodging and home-style Southern cooking served family table style in the downstairs dining room. This gave transits a place to eat, socialize, and nourish their souls.

I was fortunate to make an adventure to her actual spot several years back on a school trip. There was something about that down home family dining experience that brought Sema home back to my own table. I was touched by pictures of history that adorned the restaurant walls that boasted Ms. Wilkes much-noted fame despite her initial intentions. What touched me the most, was this woman who happened to be in love with preparing and serving food, was a mere fragment of the weight I envisioned. Apparently she was on to something. Sema's tables were truly family style. There was a multitude of sides at any meal. Any patron could find extra veggies, fruits, breads, and pickles to munch away while savoring his meal allowing less fatty calories to bond. Of course, this makes sense, the more healthy sides offered at the table, the less calories consumed, and Sema always had good old fashioned healthy sides of vegetables, fruits, and salads.

Do think about this thought as you set your own table. How many sides do you offer? Is your family more of a meat and potatoes family enjoying only fare that is rich in carbohydrates and fats? What else can you place on your table to get your family eating healthier?

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries thawed
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
3 tab. plain yogurt in a measuring cup, add milk to fill 3/4

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine blueberries (drained) with 1/2 cup sugar. Sift flour, baking soda, salt, and 1/4 cup more of sugar. Mix egg, milk, and margarine. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the liquid all at once. Stir until just blended. Add blueberries, and mix lightly. Fill greased muffin pans to 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes.
- Adapted from Mrs. Wilke's Boardinghouse Cookbook

Oh snap! End of the year frazzles hitting you yet?  Time for end of the year school parties and spring sport event.  You're probably trying to squeeze in every minute of the day to ensure you finish it all.

Here's a fantastic recipe you can place in the crock pot that will be waiting and ready when you get home.  It's that time of year to bring in a little fiesta to your day!

2 lb. pork roast, fat trimmed, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. cumin
1 tab. rice vinegar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
onion, medium, quartered
3 bay leaves
shredded lettuce
slice avocadoes
plum tomatoes
sweet onion
cilantro
8 oz. of cheddar cheese, shredded
Corn or white tortillas 

Place first 9 ingredients in slow cooker.  Cook on low for 6 hours.  

Remove pork from pot.  Take out onion and bay leaves and discard.  Shred pork.

Return to crock pot stirring well.  Keep on warm.

Slice and chop your sides into separate bowls.  If using corn tortillas be sure you lightly fry each on in a fry pay coated with cooking spray.  Place tortillas on plate, arrange bowls, and put carnita meat in a bowl on the center of the table.

Let everyone fix their own.  You've done enough today.  

Folks will savor the subtle peach flavor in this elegant brunch beverage. This homemade treat is a wonderful addition to a Mother's Day brunch.  Just enough love to ensure your mother knows how much you care.

• 3 medium peaches, halved
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 can (11.3 ounces) peach nectar, chilled
• 2 bottles (750 milliliters each) champagne or sparkling grape juice, chilled

Line a baking sheet with a large piece of heavy-duty foil (about 18 in. x 12 in.). Place peach halves, cut sides up, on foil; drizzle with honey. Fold foil over peaches and seal.

Bake at 375° for 25-30 minutes or until tender. Cool completely; remove and discard peels. In a food processor, process peaches until smooth.
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Transfer peach puree to a pitcher. Add the nectar and 1 bottle of champagne; stir until combined. Pour into 12 champagne flutes or wine glasses; top with remaining champagne. 

Sit down to hot-off-the-griddle stuffed French toast and fresh blueberry sauce in as little as 30 minutes. The bread's toasted to a golden brown, and the delectable filling features cream cheese brightened with blueberry preserves. The fast sauce is out of this world!

What a perfect, thrifty combination for Mother's Day!


1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup syrup, divided
2 tablespoons blueberry preserves
16 slices French bread (1/2 inch thick)
2 large eggs
1 cup 2% milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

SAUCE:
1 cup sugar
1 cup cold water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1 tablespoon butter

Beat the cream cheese, 2 tablespoons syrup and preserves in a small bowl. Spread over eight slices of bread; top with remaining bread.

Whisk the eggs, milk, flour, vanilla, salt and remaining syrup in a shallow bowl. Dip both sides of sandwiches into egg mixture. Cook on a greased hot griddle until golden brown on both sides.
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Combine the sugar, water and cornstarch until smooth in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 3 minutes or until thickened. Stir in blueberries; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until berries burst. Remove from heat; stir in butter. Serve with French toast.

​I have the most fantastic pizza recipe to share with you today.  But, I must warn you, once you produce this chewy, gooey, bubbly joy; your family will request this over take out.  Oh, come on you say?  I'm not kidding.  This pizza gets rave reviews from family members and guests each time it is lovingly made.  I have taken this recipe, and over the years, made it into the fantastic pizza it is today.  

I put it in the back of my recipe box when times got tough.  It does require that wonderful silky smooth cheese titled mozzarella.  And, it can be a bit expensive lately.  But, recently I went to my local discount food store and found it for 99 cents a pound.  Yes, FRESH mozzarella that cheap!  Well, once I put this on the pizza, rather than the traditional shredded, I now had a gourmet pizza.  Do look for bargains for this heavenly delight.

I have two large pizza pans that are restaurant style.  So I split the dough into 3 pizzas.  If you have the regualar size pan, you can split this dough into 4 pizzas.

Dough
1 pkg. active yeast
2 cups spring water
2 tsp. sea salt
4 cups flour
2 tab. olive oil
Place in bread machine on "dough" setting or 1 hour and 40 min.  You can add all ingredients, knead this by hand, and set it aside too.

Pizza Sauce
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) chopped tomatoes
2 tab. olive oil
dash oregano
1 or 2 cloves of garlic
Put all in blender and whirl on high.  Set aside.

Toppings
3 cups of Mozzarella Cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
Basil (fresh or dried)
Mushrooms
Pepperoni
Ham
Onions
Whatever strikes your fancy!

Set oven to 450 degrees.  Take out dough and gently knead again on lightly floured board.  Cut into 3 even pieces.  Roll out pizza to conform to pizza pie pan.  Top with 2/3 cup of pizza sauce, 1 cup of shredded cheese, 2 tab. parmesan cheese, and toppings of your choice.  Top with a sprinkle of fresh or dried basil.  Bake for 10-15 min. or until bubbly.  If you can, get that FRESH mozzarella!

Here'a superb one pot meal that takes minutes to toss together.  Cook three hours on high, and you have a wonderful, nutritious meal for a busy weekend.

I purchased one pound bags of shrimp recently at Winn Dixie for only $5.99 to create this dish.  The quality was excellent for a frozen shrimp, much better than some over the counter fresh varieties.  

The rice ends with fantastic flavor from peppers, onions, garlic, chicken thighs, and shrimp.  Just perfect!

3 1/2 pd. bone-in, skin on, chicken thighs
salt and pepper
2 tab. olive oil
1/4 pd. cooked ham diced
1 large onion, chopped
1 green pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 tsp. Oregano
1/2 cup white cooking wine
1 can 15 oz diced tomatoes
3 cups chicken stock
2 tsp. red wine vinegar
2 cups long grain rice
2 cups frozen peas
1/2 lb. shrimp 
6 green onions, sliced
2 tab. parsley, chopped

Oil the slow cooker.

Pat dry chicken and season with salt and pepper.  Warm oil in frying pan and add chicken cooking on medium until both sides are golden.  About 8 minutes.

Pour off most of the fat.  Add ham, onion, and bell pepper.  Saute about 7 minutes.  Add garlic and oregano and cook for one more minute.  Stir in 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper, and wine to dislodge browned bits on the bottom. 

Transfer to slow cooker.  Add tomatoes, stock, and vinegar.  Stir in rice.  Nestle chicken in the rice, cover, and cook on low setting for 3 hours.

Uncover and check to be sure a little liquid is still visible at the bottom of the cooker.  If it appears dry, add 1 tab. water.  Scatter the peas and shrimp evenly over the top.  Re-cover and cook until shrimp are pink, the chicken is cooked through, and the rice is tender, about 15 minutes more.

Transfer contents of cooker to plates.  Top with green onion and parsley.  Serve.  

With the joys of spring in full swing, it's important to have great protein filled snacks ready in the fridge to keep your energy reserves high.  Days seem to turn into endless hours that often tempt us to reach for the easy snack sections in our pantry when hunger rises.  But with a bit of preplanning, you can have luscious snacks ready at your fingertips for easy snacking.  Here's one that is thrifty and satisfying.

2 garlic cloves chopped
1/2 green pepper chopped
1/2 medium onion chopped
tsp. oil
Sauté above ingredients in a saucepan until soft

2 (15 oz.) cans black beans drained
3 tab. lime or lemon juice
1/4 cup cilantro
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne or pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tab. water

Add above ingredients to a blender or food processor.  Blend slightly.  Top with sauteed ingredients and blend until smooth.  Grab some pita chips!

​I know it sounds like I'm on a pancake kick this week, but it was my son's birthday yesterday, and this is what he personally requested in the morning.  We make it a family ritual to make the birthday boy's favorite breakfast on his special day.  What a nice custom to get into!  It starts the day off right, and makes your family member feel extra loved from the moment he awakens.  These pancakes are delicious.  I just leave the strawberries on the side along with the whip cream so that each person can top the pancakes to his own desire.  These are yummy;  you may want to have these on your breakfast menu soon before berries go out of season.

I went to Aldi's the other day and found boxes of strawberries for $1.39!  With these prices, anyone can make this special treat!

Favorite pancake mix
1 cup sliced strawberries
1 tab. sugar
1 carton Cool Whip

In a bowl take slice strawberries and top with sugar.  Mix gently and let it sit while making pancakes.  Make desired amount of pancakes and set out on family plate.  Top pancakes with strawberries and whip cream.  Easy, ready in no time and looks elegant!

It's that time of year to fire up that grill!  If your old grill hasn't seen the light of day in months give it a once over in cleaning and get ready for some great grilling in the months ahead. 

Here's a great recipe to get you started. Easy and thrifty to put together, you'll be quite pleased to place this on your picnic table.  

• 
  
• 6 chicken leg quarters
• ​
• RUB:
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 
  

SAUCE:
2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup honey
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
Dash cayenne pepper, optional

Pat chicken dry. Combine rub ingredients. Rub over chicken pieces; refrigerate, covered, in a shallow dish 2 hours.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan over medium heat, combine sauce ingredients, adding cayenne if desired. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, to allow flavors to blend, 8-10 minutes.

On an oiled grill rack, grill chicken, covered, over indirect medium heat, turning frequently, until a thermometer reads 165°, 35-45 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Brush chicken with sauce, reserving 1/2 cup. Cook, covered, until chicken pieces register 170°, 4-6 minutes. Serve with reserved sauce. Yield: 6 servings.

To cook indoors, preheat oven to 450°. Place prepared chicken in a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan; bake until a thermometer reads 165°, about 25 minutes. Brush with sauce, reserving 1/2 cup. Bake until chicken pieces register 170°, about 5 minutes. Serve with reserved sauce.
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The weather is finally beginning to ease up and bring a bit of spring sunshine to the air.  Now's the time to grab some fresh pic-kin's and add a dash of fresh flavors to your table.  Give this one a try due to its easy slap together in a flash style.

• 2 large Gala or Honeycrisp apples, unpeeled and chopped (about 3 cups)
• 2 cups chopped celery
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
• 1/3 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup plain yogurt

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Combine apples, celery, raisins and walnuts. Add mayonnaise and yogurt; toss to coat. Refrigerate, covered, until serving.