Cucumber Sandwiches

Jan17

Cucumber Sandwiches

Vickie’s Cucumber Sandwiches

What’s high tea if you don’t have some traditional English treats. I’ve always been fascinated with Queen Victoria, not sure why, just one of those very odd interests people sometimes have in life.

In 1840 the originator of afternoon tea, Anna Maria Stanhope, the 7th Duchess of Bedford, was a lady-in-waiting to Queen Victoria. She created Afternoon tea to ease the grumbling tummies of polite society in the mid-afternoon. With lunch at noon and dinner at 8pm, mid-afternoon was a perfect time for a mid-day tea with light sandwiches.

One of the most common or traditional tea time sandwiches has always been the cucumber sandwich. Because these are designed to be small, they’re created more for flavor than nutrition.

This is my recipe, it’s plain and simple and nothing like the long involved preparation of a traditional cucumber sandwich. So if you’re looking for a traditional cucumber sandwich, this is not it.

Preparation Time: 20 minutes Continue reading →

Chicken Noodle Soup

Jan17

Chicken Noodle Soup

Vickie’s Chicken Noodle Soup

Chicken soup has long been touted as a form of folk medicine to treat symptoms of the common cold and related conditions for centuries. And you’ll find a huge variety of recipes from around the world as well.

In 2000, scientists at Nebraska’s Medical Center studied the effects of chicken soup on the immune system. One thing their study found was that chicken soup contains the Amino acid cysteine, which is very similar to acetylcysteine. Acetylcysteine is used by doctors for patients with bronchitis and other respiratory infections to help clear them. So there maybe something to those old fashion cold remedies after all.

Preparation time: 1 1/2 to 2 hours  Continue reading →

The “Cold” Sandwich

Jan17

Tomato, Onion and Cheddar Sandwich

The “Cold” Sandwich

When my paternal grandmother passed, my sisters and I were given the task of going through her things. I discovered a box with recipes, something none of us thought she had. She was a great cook, but she never used a recipe, at least from what we could see.

Inside I found a little note written on a recipe card:
A Tennessee wives tale predicts if you have this 3 times a week, you can prevent the common cold. And beneath the recipe, was a note: “It works” and “From Fall to end of Winter“.

Preparation time: 5 minutes  Continue reading →

Don’t Make a Federal Case of It

Jan14

Why they say “Don’t make a Federal Case of It”?

The resources of the Federal Government are absolutely vast and include the unlimited resources and technology of the FBI. When you have the might and the weight of the federal government coming down on You, it’s extraordinarily overwhelming. When it’s the United States of America versus YOU, the odds of you winning a Federal Case are astoundingly against you. Individuals don’t often win a federal case, period! And that’s why they say “Don’t make a Federal Case of it”.

But it’s important to remember that those scales of Justice really do run both ways. Thankfully we have this thing called the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights to protect individuals within the United States.

The Government can’t just declare they have the power to do something and then do it.  Take the case of eminent domain. In order to take someone’s property, the government must prove it has a vital need for your property and there’s no other alternative. Even then, they must pay you a fair price for your land. They can’t simply seize it. And the outcome of such cases is not always a given in the favor of the Government. Owners have the opportunity to prove their need of the land is greater than the government’s. After all the Federal Government has unlimited resources, they can go anywhere and find land.

By the same token, when the Government does have a criminal case in their claws, they can use those vast resources to dig deep into an individual’s life and transactions. The breath of that power can be both comforting, that those who really need to be held accountable for their actions, can be and will be held to justice.  No one is Above the Law in the United States. At least, that’s the way it’s supposed to work.

Here in 2019, many Americans are hoping and some are praying that the scales of blind justice really does work that way!

spring-sig2019

© 1997-2014 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf's Kosmos. All Rights Reserved.
© 1997-2019 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf’s Creations. All Rights Reserved.

Continue reading →

Merry Yule – 2018

Dec20

It’s That Time of Year Again

The winter solstice, also known as midwinter, is an astronomical phenomenon marking the day with the shortest period of daylight and the longest night of the year. It occurs when one of the Earth’s poles has its maximum tilt away from the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere.

Here in the Northern Hemisphere, the solstice occurs on December 21st and marks the start of the Winter holiday for Pagans. The Solstice is known as Midwinter, Yule for Pagans, the Longest Night, and Jól for the Norse.

From all of Us, to all of You, We wish you a special and joyous Merry Yuletide!

Many Blessings during this holiday season, whatever that is for you and yours!
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© 1997-2014 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf's Kosmos. All Rights Reserved.
© 1997-2018 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf’s Creations. All Rights Reserved.

 

Happy Thanksgiving – 2018

Nov21

 

It’s Thanksgiving Again

We would like to extend our thanks to all of you for visiting our blog throughout this past year.
And we send out A Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours for a wonderful and happy Celebration!

“In the 19th century, the modern Thanksgiving holiday started to take shape. In 1846, Sarah Josepha Hale, editor of a magazine called Godley’s Lady’s Book, campaigned for an annual national thanksgiving holiday after a passage about the harvest gathering of 1621 was discovered and incorrectly labeled as the first Thanksgiving.

It wasn’t until 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln declared two national Thanksgivings; one in August to commemorate the Battle of Gettysburg and the other in November to give thanks for “general blessings.” ~ National Geographic: The First Thanksgiving.

Many Blessings during this holiday season!
spring-sig2018

© 1997-2014 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf's Kosmos. All Rights Reserved.
© 1997-2018 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf’s Creations. All Rights Reserved.

 

Southern Sausage Gravy

Nov17

Southern Sausage Gravy

Mamaw Carey’s Southern Sausage Gravy
A real southern dish that will surely stick to your ribs. I can remember my Mom fixing this dish for various occasions, and not just for breakfast.

Special dinners, such as Thanksgiving or Christmas dinners always had a side of sausage gravy on the table.

Preparation time: 45 minutes to 1 hour
Serves: 4 to 6

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb mild sausage roll
    (Bob Evans or Jimmy Dean is best)
  • ½ cup all purpose flour
  • 2 to 2½ cups of milk
  • Salt and black pepper

Directions:

  • Cut sausage roll into 1/4 inch patties and fry them in a deep skillet.
  • Remove cooked patties and set them aside to cool slightly.
    Leave as much of the sausage grease in the pan as possible.
  • Add flour to left over grease.
    Scrape the mix with a fork to mix the grease and the flour until it becomes light brown.
  • Add the milk and stir thoroughly.
  • Crumble the sausage patties into the skillet and stir the mix.
  • Add salt and pepper to desired taste. More pepper than salt!
  • Allow the mix to boil, then reduce the heat and stir constantly until thick.
  • Thickness is up to you.
    If it’s too thick, add a little more milk (1/4 cup at time).
    If it’s too thin, add flour (1 tblspns at a time).

Serve:

  • Serve plain, over country biscuits or buttered toast.
    Personally, I think serving over home made biscuits is best.

Alternatives:

  • Consider sauteing chopped onions with the sausage to add a bit of flair.

 

© 1997-2018 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf's Kosmos. All Rights Reserved.
© 1997-2018 Springwolf, D.D., Ph.D., Springwolf’s Creations. All Rights Reserved.

Southern Red Eye Gravy

Nov17

Southern Red Eye Gravy

Southern Red Eye Gravy
When I was kid growing up in North Carolina, my Mom (GranMa Sandy) would cook up some ham, make red-eye gravy and black-eyed peas for breakfast. It was always a fill your tummy with warmth and comfort on a cold winter day.

It’s been 20 years since I’ve had a breakfast like that, until New Years 2010 when Vickie created her version of Red Eye gravy just for me. And boy not only did it bring back memories, it was really good too.

I guess those folks from Tennessee know how to make some stick to your ribs gravy too!

Preparation Time: 10
Serves: 2

Continue reading →

Momma’s Sweet Jack BBQ Sauce

Nov17

Momma’s Sweet Jack Sauce

Garrett’s Momma’s Sweet Jack Sauce
Unlike men in the house, I can’t handle a lot of “hot” foods. So Gary decided to try his hand at making a home-made mild sweet bar-b-que sauce just for me.

We had gone to a local steak house in Virginia who serve their own version of a Jack Daniels bbq sauce. It was nice, but way to hot for me. I was fairly disappointed, because it truly smelled so GOOD. That inspired Gary to make a new sauce.

It goes great on chicken, beef and everything in between!

Preparation Time: 1¼ hours
Makes a bit less than 12 oz.

Ingredients: Continue reading →