Sweet Treasures

There is just enough nip in the morning air to awaken the craving for comfort foods.  Warm waves of scent revealing a pie or muffins baking are a part of fall.  I yearn for the sweet and hearty tastes of pumpkin and sweet potatoes.  So today I'm making sweet potato muffins.  These are versatile muffins that can complement a salad or entree or they are good for a quick breakfast on the run.  This recipe comes from Colonial Williamsburg's Christiana Campbell's Tavern.

Sweet Potato Muffins    (makes 6 dozen, but they can be frozen and reheated)

1/2 cup butter                                       1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups sugar                                    1 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs                                                   1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 1/4 cups canned sweet potatoes         1 cup milk
2 tsp baking powder                             1/4 cup pecans or walnuts chopped
1  1/2 cups flour                                   1/2 cup raisins

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.   Grease 1 1/2 inch muffin tins.  Cream butter and sugar. Add the eggs and mix well.  Blend in the sweet potatoes.  Sift the flour with the baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Add alternately with the milk.  Do not over mix.  Fold in the nuts and raisins.  Fill the greased muffin tins 1/2 full.  Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes.

Tarantula

Snakes on my porch make me jump, but tarantulas just give me the creeps.  I'm not a fan of spiders, although I do love my big garden spiders that weave the most beautiful webs and eat the harmful bugs.  But big, hairy tarantulas are another story.  I did not have to have a personal encounter with one today, but one did cross the road in front of my car this afternoon.  He strode right across the black top lifting those big hairy legs like a goose-stepping soldier.  It is amazing how fast a tarantula can travel on those stilt like legs.  This one was dark, maybe black with a reddish body.  I swerved to miss him.  No need to bother him on his way to his supper.  I'm just glad that he was headed away from my house!

Killing Snakes

Snakes don't usually come too close to the house; the animals usually keep them away.  But I had to kill a poisonous snake this week that had come up on the porch.  I went out to water the front flower bed, and as I pulled my hand away from the faucet I saw him.  He was only about eight inches long, but his little mouth was wide open.  He shook it back a forth at me as he raised up.  It was a baby copperhead.  We had cleaned out a nest of them a week ago, and he was probably one that got away.  Young copperheads will bite, and the venom can make you sick.  Although you should go to the emergency room, they seldom administer anti-venom for a copperhead bite.  It can be more dangerous than the bite itself.  This little snake was angry!  When they are young, copperheads have a green/yellow tip on their tails to lure in their prey.  He was shaking his little booty at me, and I think if he had been bigger I could have heard him hiss.  Normally, I will just move a blacksnake, but this little guy was small enough to go up the siding, and he was a threat to me, the animals and the grandchildren.  So suffice it to say he lost his head.  I always feel so bad when I have to kill a creature.  Maybe I'm writing about this because I still feel sorry to have killed him and a bit scared that he was making himself at home by my front door.  The porch isn't big enough for the two of us, and this time I prevailed.

Fried Potatoes

I suppose everyone has one or two secret foods that are not healthy but that he or she loves .  We may say we don't eat that kind of food anymore and feign disgust at such indulgence, but secretly we love those fatty, fried, sauced foods that we ate regularly as we grew up.  At least we "country" kids did.  One of my secret favorites is fried potatoes.  I love the smell of the onions and potatoes as they fry, crispy crunch as I eat them, and that little skim of grease that they leave on my lips!  About once a year I indulge myself in this culinary pleasure.  As the seasons begin to turn and the temperatures cool, give yourself a treat and tried some fried potatoes.

Fried Potatoes

Peel and cut potatoes in halves or quarters depending on the size of the potato.  I use 2-3 per person depending on the size of the potato.

Parboil (this step can be skipped, but the potatoes are so much better if you do this) until they just begin to soften.  Do not over boil.  Better a little firm than too cooked.

Drain and cool until you can handle.  Slice the potatoes into 1/4 inch slices.

Heat vegetable shortening in a large skillet until a potato slice dropped in the melted shortening sizzles.  A cast iron skillet is the best followed by cast aluminum or stainless steel.  Nonstick will work if that is all you have.
Add all of the potatoes, salt and pepper to taste.  When the potatoes are just beginning to brown, add in chopped onions to taste.  Continue to cook until the potatoes are crispy and golden.  Turn them occasionally, but not too often.  Too much turning makes them crumble  Keep the heat on medium, but you can turn it up for the final crisping.  Watch them closely so that you do not burn them.

Remove from the heat and drain on paper towels and serve immediately.  These are so delicious and are worth the yearly indulgence in a secret favorite food.

How About This Weather

Love the weather today - still in the 70's.  Grandma actually had to wear a jacket to work yesterday!  The garden, or what is left of it after the ravages of this summer of extreme heat, is barely going.  A few peppers hang sadly on the plants; tiny things compared to the big, plump peppers I expected.  The eggplant is doing fine.  It took the heat and is still going.  If you haven't tried eggplant, I would suggest the Japanese varieties (you can find them at Farmers Markets).  Peel them, slice them and stir fry them with some onion and dill.  Top with Parmesan cheese and you have a quick lunch or side dish.  Think I'll go to the garden and pick some - I've made myself hungry!

In the Garden

It is amazing what 30 degrees difference in temperature can do!  Last week it was over 100 degrees and today it is 75.  Grandpa and I worked in the yard most of the day trying to catch up on long overdue tasks.  We took the swing out of the tree today.  The limb to which it was attached died, and it was unsafe for the grandchildren.  We moved a wood pile and worked in the raised bed garden.  The biggest, heaviest task was moving the railroad ties from around the old garden.  The big, old garden is being given back to the grass (at least the majority of it).  It is surprising that after 20 years in the ground how heavy those old, half rotten beams can be!  We heaved and hauled and got them to the burn pile.  It was heavy, hard work, but in this delicious weather we really didn't mind.  After unloading the ties we jumped in the truck and headed to the highway to blow out the debris.  Like a couple of kids we rolled down the windows, let our hair fly and flew over the country road in the sweet September afternoon.