On Mammaw

Ginny mentioned in a previous post a couple of weeks ago that we had been dealing with a death in the family. My mom's mom - Mammaw to me - passed from the earthly to the Heavenly realm. And while we all are sad and miss here, we know she not only met her Savior face to face but also reunited with her husband. 

My Uncle Tim had put a note on Facebook asking for memories or stories people had of her. I commented, half jokingly, that I could write an essay. He held me to it, and what you see below is the essay I wrote and what he shared at her memorial service. I enjoyed writing this and remembering all of the many good times I had at my grandparents' house.

    Our grandmother was good at a lot of things. One thing, however, she was not good at was Nintendo, as my brother can attest to, as Mammaw tried to play a game of Anticipation (basically Pictionary) for him when he was 4. Actually, the fact that Andrew was even able to get her to pick up a controller was amazing, but it also points to the one thing about her all of the grandkids loved the most - she cared and spent time with us. When my mom went back to work a couple of years after I was born, I would stay at Mammaw and Pappaw's house. The first few times she would come to pick me up, well, let's just say I would run away and scream, "No!" or so the story goes. I think all the grandkids felt the same way. Going over there was fun.
   
    Playing tennis in the backyard. Throwing a ball on the carport roof and catching it when it rolled off. Cooking with sand. Watching the trains. Playing the game "Uncle Wiggly" or "Life" or "Sorry." Looking at stamp collections. Watching The Price is Right and Wheel of Fortune. Working a United States puzzle. Drawing on all of the Exide paper. Playing "farm" in the backyard. Getting to play in her car in the carport, even if one time my cousin Emily and I somehow managed to start it with a key that was not the actual key. Catapulting little plastic balls into a plastic net in the middle of a metal board. There are a lot of toys and games in that house that got played with for over 20+ years. If the walls at 4042 Speck Drive could talk, they would have a lot of stories about a lot of grandchildren laughing and having fun.

    If you were to ask the Whitehorn family what my favorite dessert is, I'm willing to bet the most popular answer would be "Mammaw's Rice Krispie Squares," and they would be correct. And not the marshmallow squares... the peanut butter Rice Krispie squares. I don't know what she did to make them so good, but they were. Often imitated but never duplicated, hers were and always will be the best. As my cousins Emily and Mary can attest to, she made a mean bowl of chocolate ice cream, too. And by chocolate ice cream, I mean taking vanilla ice cream and mixing the precisely perfect amount of chocolate syrup in it and stirring it until it was the perfect consistency and flavor. Her cheese toast was always the best. And for Andrew, her meatballs could not be matched, even when our mom followed the exact same recipe Mammaw had. His response? "Not as good as Mammaw's." Indeed.

    Now that I am a parent myself, I see the way my mom interacts with and loves on my 2 daughters. I know where she gets that. I know where she learned that. And it makes me smile, because I know how much fun I had with Mammaw. And my girls get to experience that same fun with their Gigi. Proverbs 17:6 says, "Grandchildren are the crown of the aged." And for Mammaw and Pappaw, that was the absolute truth. All of us knew how much we were loved and how much we mattered to them. And that legacy will carry on. The stories and memories will pass on. And if I am blessed enough to have grandchildren of my own, I will share those stories and have as much fun as possible with them.

-D

Menu Plan-February 4

February 4-10

Happy February, y'all! February is a big month in our family this year. My baby sister (she's 27) is getting married this month! We are so excited and so looking forward to all the festivities. One of my grandmothers is coming in this Friday and the rest of the family and our friends will get here the following Thursday and Friday. So not only are we in the process of remodeling our new home but we have a wedding and all the final details to get done. It's going to be a crazy couple of weeks. I'm so looking forward to all the fun times the next couple of weeks bring! Thankfully, menu planning saves me the headache of "what's for dinner?" I'll be sticking to my planning and hopefully cooking the next 14 days. Here's the plan for this week!

Monday- leftover honey baked ham, 30 minute rolls and vegetables

Tuesday- leftover cheesy chicken spaghetti and salad or vegetables

Wednesday- fluffy diner-style omelet {new} (from Cook's Country) and fruit

Thursday- jambalaya and vegetables

Friday- pizza and salad

Saturday- lunch: leftovers
dinner: dinner at our house with my parents, sis and future brother-in-law and Grandmother; I'm making cheeseburgers and bbq chicken legs on the grill. Here's the bbq sauce recipe I'll be using.

Sunday- lunch: leftovers from Saturday night
dinner: dinner with my family, at my parents house

Naomi-15 months old

Sweet Naomi,

You are 15 months old today! Where has the time gone? Didn't we just bring you home and lay you down in your bed, where you looked so tiny, even though you were 11 pounds?

You were a surprise pregnancy, our surprise baby. What a surprise blessing you turned out to be! You are a ball of energy,with a never-ending smile, always on the go and in love with your sweet, big sister!

You love puzzles, books, anything with wheels to push around, jumping on Nyla's old baby bed mattress, Gigi's phone, saying "cheese" when we take your picture, and doing "cheers" with cups while we're eating. You give sweet hugs and kisses are you're still our snuggle bunny. You love your bed, blanket, baby doll and running around with Nyla. Coloring and playing outside are two of your favorite activities. You never like when I take away the markers to clean you up or grab you to come inside. But after a few minutes you're smiling again. 

We are so happy and thankful God entrusted you to us. I pray we do all God calls us to do for you. We love you sweet baby girl!

Busy, busy

We've been busy around the Gafford home.

We are moving! Houses, not blogs. :)

We are getting some major renovation done in the new house so we won't be moving for 4 weeks or so. Don't worry, I have before pictures! (I love seeing people's before pictures, too). Y'all it's going to look nothing like it did when we bought it. It was a well-cared for home just a little outdated and in need of a face lift. We aren't going anywhere else so it's worth it to get it all done before we move in. We'll be able to enjoy it all for years!

Because of all this house updating blogging is last on my list. Don't worry I'm still cooking, we're gobbling leftovers and up to our usual shenanigans. But, right now, I'm focused on paint colors, tile, countertops, etc. I'm almost done picking all of it out (thank goodness) so I'll be back here before you know it. I'll still pop in and post my menu plan or a meal we've loved. You can't get rid of me so easily!

Until my next post, keep on cooking and checking back. I'm here, just in and out.

P.S. I'm checking out blueberry bushes. I'm going here for my needs (Daniel's cousin used them and gave good feedback). Anyone do any gardening? I've tried tomatoes, bell peppers and jalapeno peppers the last 2 years but I just didn't get much out of it. But blueberries I cook with a lot and the girls eat like they're going out of style. And they come back year after year. I like that. Now, I just need to keep them alive so I can reap the benefits of them. :)

Garlic Pesto Chicken with Tomato Cream Penne

Garlic Pesto Chicken with Tomato Cream Penne-modified from Southern Girl Cooking

Printer-Friendly Recipe

Ingredients:

1 bottle of Lawry's herb and garlic marinade

4 large spoonfuls of pesto

4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts; cut into one-inch strips

-Place all ingredients in a gallon size bag and marinate up to 24 hours.

Sauce:

16 ounces pasta (I used whole wheat penne)

2 Tbsp olive oil

6 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

4 spoonfuls of pesto

1 cup of chicken broth

16 ounces tomato sauce

2 cups half and half

Cooking Instructions:

1. Boil water and start cooking noodles, drain when ready.

2. Pour entire batch of chicken, marinade too, into skillet and cook chicken fully. The marinade will evaporate and cook down to about half. When complete, remove from pan.

3. In now empty pan, heat olive oil, cook garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add pesto, then chicken broth and simmer until half is cooked down. Add tomato sauce then half and half. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add 1 Tbsp flour if it needs to thicken (I thought it needed it). Stir in drained noodles and then the chicken and it's sauce until combined. Serve.

Verdict:

We loved this, even our Naomi loved it. She couldn't get enough in her mouth. It's creamy and has tons of flavor. It made so much I had enough to put a few servings in the freezer. This would easily serve 6 people when you serve it with a salad and vegetables. And the one jar of pesto I bought will make another batch of this. Enjoy!

Menu Plan Monday- January 21

We've had a busy week. It's been full of doctor visits, a sick mommy, getting work done in the house and a death in the family. I'm tired! We all are. I'm thankful for the family we have here and the love we've received from our church family. It's been an emotional week.

Last week, despite all the craziness, I stuck to our menu! We got a little behind but I made a Wednesday's dinner for lunch on Friday. So glad I did, too. The duchess potatoes were amazing!!! Try them, you won't be disappointed.

I've got another week of good eats planned. I've really enjoyed getting back into the kitchen. Just another 6 weeks or so and I'll be cooking in my new kitchen! :) I can't wait to create more memories in our new home.

January 21-27

Monday- garlic pesto chicken over pasta {new recipe} and vegetables

Tuesday- spaghetti, garlic bread and salad

Wednesday- chicken tortilla soup 

Thursday-chicken breasts with a special rub, baked potato and vegetables

Friday- pizza

Saturday- America's Test Kitchen taco's (these are the best, I never make anything else), black beans, mexican rice and lemon pudding cake {new}
(I gave my parents a gift certificate for Christmas, for dinner once a month with us)

Sunday- spaghetti leftovers


What's cooking in your kitchen this week?

Duchess Potatoes

Y'all these are amazing little wonders. They are fun and a different side item than just a baked potato. And surprisingly, so so simple to make. I was really surprised about how simple they were. Try them. You won't be disappointed!

Duchess Potatoes- from Cook's Country (aka America's Test Kitchen)
Printer-Friendly Recipe

Ingredients:
3 pounds russet potatoes
1 cup heavy cream
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 inch pieces and softened
1 large egg and 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of nutmeg (yes, really!)
vegetable oil spray

Cooking Instructions:
1. Prick potatoes all over with a fork. Place in microwave and for 18-25 minutes, turning potatoes after 10 minutes. (Mine took right at 20 minutes, total)
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
3. Remove from microwave, cut in half. When cool enough to handle, scoop out flesh and place in large bowl. Mash until no lumps remain. Add cream, 3 Tbsp butter, egg and yolk, salt, pepper, baking powder and nutmeg. Continue to mash until potatoes are smooth. Let cool to room temperature, 5-10 minutes. Gently fold in remaining 3 Tbsp softened butter.
4. Transfer potato mixture to piping bag fitted with 1/2 inch star tip. *(I used a gallon size ziploc bag and didn't use a star tip). Pipe eight 4-inch wide mounds of potato onto rimmed baking sheet. Spray lightly with vegetable oil spray and bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve.

These can also be made 24 hours in advance. Pipe, cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate up to 24 hours and bake as directed.

For the freezer:
Once piped onto baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap (loosely) and freeze for 2 hours or until solid. Transfer to your method of storage. When ready to bake place them onto a baking sheet, spray with vegetable spray and bake according to instructions. They can go straight from freezer to oven and need no extra time.

*Tips:
-I didn't have a big enough star tip so I put my potatoes in a gallon size ziploc bag and snipped off a corner. I then piped it on just like that and while it wasn't as pretty, it worked just the same.
-When piping, start from the outside and slowly work your way to the middle, overlapping a little each time around to create the mound and point in the middle. They make look terrible the first few times but you'll get the hang of it.