Holidays went off without a hitch, well almost without a hitch. It’s always troublesome to figure out what to feed family and friends. For years I’ve tried to prepare vegetarian meals. The holiday meals were always met politely but less than enthusiastically. There was the time I cooked tofu. Sam said he didn’t particularly care for tofu and it would be OK if I never cooked it again.
A year or so ago the youngest daughter and I went to the Mississippi Modern Homestead for a weekend of cooking lessons. The first thing I noticed was the delicious smells of home cooking wafting throughout the whole house. It was an epiphany moment when I realized my kitchen never smells like kitchens oozing with aromas of a rib roast, smothered onions, seasoned potatoes or homemade apple pie laced with butter and cinnamon.
It came to me how much easier meal preparation would be if I’d just cook meat, so I did. I bought bacon, ham, pork chops, boneless chicken breasts and chuck roast. I was stunned by the price of a single roast that sold for $57! It had been more than a coon’s age since I had checked the prices of meat in the grocery store.
Usually when I cook a dish requiring meat I use a soy product called “crumbles,” which is a tasty meat substitute. However, every time I serve the dish to guests Sam leans over and whispers not so quietly, “It’s not real meat,” every time.
This holiday I served crumbles once in spaghetti but otherwise offered grilled chicken, pot roast with seasoned potatoes, buttered peas and honey glazed carrots, ham sandwiches with chips, broiled hamburgers and French fries, baked crappie fish that Sam provided, rosemary potatoes and coleslaw and a couple of three pounds of large shrimp provided by Sam’s sister, Rose.
Meal preparation became easy when after cooking the meat all I had to do was come up with a couple of sides. For the first time I can remember we ate all meals at home and everyone was satisfied.
Our only excitement was when Sam and nephew Mark took a drive over to Starkville to check on brother, Skip’s, suburban that wouldn’t start. Sam thought the battery needed a twist or two. At the time storms were brewing in the area and the streets were empty. On Highway 12 just shy of the Holiday Inn Express an eerie blue aura of lightning surrounded the two then struck a transformer. Mark describes a loud explosion and sparks flying. For a surreal moment Mark said he wasn’t sure where he was.
Back in the Prairie horizontal rain pelted the house which cleared out the porch sitters, snapped a few cedar trees and took the power out but it returned before dinnertime.
I contributed some excitement by setting the microwave on fire while heating the Christmas potpourri. Brother-in-law Tim saved the day when he grabbed the glass plate with the potpourri, dashed to the porch and doused the flaming potpourri from the cats’ water bowl.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.