Author: Connie Brannen

Categories
Soup

Connie’s Country Potato Soup

Comfort Food on a cold day.


http://wisdomforpennies.com

Good, late morning to all.Last night was a very nice and cool night, here in North Florida. As, we have been having muggy days, it was a nice gift of weather.

I hope that you are well and hanging on, as I know the pressure may be getting higher. I can say that I am praying daily for you all, and I do include myself in there, also. I have a comfort food recipe, that I created and want to share with you, today. May it bring some comfort to you and your’s.

I do hope that you will try this one. I know that I will as soon as cold weather arrives and stays here in Florida. I also took this to a Community Dinner (way back) when we could have those things. The pot was scraped clean, with no left-overs.

And I am proud to say that this is the one recipe that gave me my first and only blue ribbon, but hey, it’s off my bucket list!

Now for the recipe. 3 large baking potatoes that are wrapped in 2 very wet paper napkins (each one). Microwave each potato for 9 minutes each, Test for doneness, with a fork. Set aside to cool.

1 stalk of celery-1 c. baby carrots 1 small package of turkey bacon and 1 small onion (chop everything). Saute all this with 1/4 c. of butter for 10 minutes. While this is sauteing, peel potatoes and cut into large chunks, and set aside.

Have a boiling cup of water ready and drop in 2 chicken bullion cubes to melt and set aside. Stir in 1/2 c. flour into veggies and turkey bacon. Now add in the hot water with bullion cubes and stir very well.

Add in 4 c. of milk and 1 c. sour cream (stirring well). Add 2 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. pepper. Now it’s time for the chunked potatoes to be gently lifted in and gently lifted to be mixed into the soup.

After sauteing the veggies and bacon, this recipe is cooked with a low heat setting (low and slow) while you are anticipating tasting it. It is worth the wait!

Sorry, this recipe was so long, I did shorten it as I typed it into this post. Basically, you need turkey bacn and 4 huge baking potatoes or equivalent in potatoes.(LARGE CHUNKS).

Most of us have the onion-carrots-sour cream and bullion cubes and milk around the house already, hopefully.

I post on Sat-Tue and Thursdays. So stay awhile with a cup of coffee and read some of my monthly archives, if you wish to. And remember to come back again to see what’s next. Even I do not know that, myself.

https://www.wisdomforpennies.com #Connie #Country #Soup #Recipe #Blueribbon

Categories
Jellies Water Bath Canning

Raspberry Jam

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Hello World. Today in North Florida, it is a cloudy and rainy day, with hit and miss, quick little showers. I hope that you are holding something close to you, that brings a special memory to your mind and soul. I wish this for all, along with God holding you, in his peaceful arms. I know that this is where I choose to try to stay, each and everyday. Sometimes I miss, but I know where I should be standing.

To lift up myself in spirit and mind, I made my very first raspberry jam today. I just heard the last jat seal with a pop, a moment ago, so I know all 4 jars are sealed for storage. I would love to open one now, but alas I have a jar of lemon-drop jelly already opened! So I must wait with anticipation, maybe in January on a cloudy day!

I happened to see raspberries on sale the other day for 99 cents each pack. So I got 5 little packs of them, so I could try to make some jam. The recipe is very simple and does not take long at all. You will also be water-bath canning, once at a full boil for only 10 minutes.

#Raspberry #Jam #Recipe

It’s kinda seedy looking, but those seeds don’t mean a thing! This stuff is what, raspberry dreams are made of. I hope you are smiling now!

The recipe that I put together_—- 5 little packages of raspberries (makes 5 cups of berries). Minus 1/2 a cup, that I ate. Turned into

4 1/2 c. raspberries 4 c. sugar

1/4 c. lemon juice 2 heaping TBSP Mrs. Dash Pectin

4-to 5 jelly jars. I used olive jars and pickle jars that had rubber seals in the lids. Tiny container of vinegar paper napkins de-bubble chop-stick

Jar lifter and kitchen towel folded in two on counter, neat the canning pot.

Candy themometor ( will read 225 F. when your jam is done).

Wash raspberries and put into a heavy duty med-to big pot. (This pops out while bubbling). Keep in mind. Mash berries with a potato masher or spoon.

Stay with this stirring with a long wooden spoon and cooking on med-high while constantly stirring to it comes to a rolling boil. Pour in the sugar and keep stirring. Have your 2 heaping TBSP of pectin, near by.

This will come to a rolling boil, now is the time for the themometer to be placed on the inside of the pot. Att 175 degrees F., I stir in the pectin.Stir and boil until it reaches 225 degrees F. Then add lemon juice and skim off the foam with a spoon and discard it.

Now its time to get a bigger pot that allow your filled jelly jars to have 2 inches over the top of the lids filled with boiling water. So get the water boiling as your jam is very hot. Use a ladle to funnel in the jam into the jars.

Use the de-bubble stick now. Dip napkin in vinegar and wipe each jar rim very well as you do each jar. Finger tighten lid on each jar. When water is boiling in pot, put the filled jam jars in and set for 10 minutes of rolling boiling. Remove and set on kitchen towel and listen for the pings as each jar seals. If a jar does not seal, open it and eat it or recan the same way again.

Thank you for visiting me and do come back for more, if you wish. Share if you will and I will be back on Saturdays-Tuesdays and Thursdays. Connie B.

Categories
November 2020 Recipe

Spaghetti

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Hello to everyone on this sunny but cloudy, North Florida day. Our day is in between, while making up it’s mind today. So it is in sync with our world today. I wish you peace of mind on this day and all the days that follow. I also wish you, happiness, so look around and grab onto some and hang on to it, with all your might! I am also keeping all of you in my prayers, each and everyday.

A big pot of my spaghetti sauce with a fist-full of my de-hydrated mushrooms tossed into the pot.

I am working up to the recipe, I promise!

Here it is!

Now for the recipe—-1 can of tomatoes

1 can of paste (the little one)

2 jars of Ragu (Left-over from my couponing days) The last two!

6 cloves of garlic peeled and chopped fine

1/2 of an onion chopped 1/2 tsp. accent 1/2 tsp. garlic powder 1/2 tsp. oregano and 1/2 tsp. basil

3 TBSP. sugar (An Italian tip to reduce heartburn). Mushrooms if you like them,however many you like.

2 lbs, hamburger meat Box of spaghetti 1-lb.

I use ground round hamburger meat so I don’t have to drain off, a lot of grease. Fry the meat, along with onion and garlic cloves until done. If you have grease in the pan then drain it off.

Open up your jars of Ragu and pour in the pot, use a little water in the empty jars to get all the sauce out. Open your can of tomatoes and pour in the pot. Open your paste and dilute it in a bowl, with 3 cans of water, whisked into it. Pour this in the pot.

Add all your spices and if you want, add in some mushrooms. They can be dry of fresh. If fresh make sure to wash in water real quick, and cut up. Cook on medium high temp. for 30-40 minutes, while stirring the pot sometimes. You could use a lid on the pot so that the sauce will not pop out everywhere.

Use a big pot of water and get it to boiling. Put in your spaghetti noodles. I use the 1 lb box and that makes a ton of spaghetti. Boil for 8 minutes for al dente spaghetti (firm) and not mushy). Drain off the water and put into a huge bowl and pour all the sauce over the spaghetti, if you wish or keep the sauce and pasta apart if you wish.

The only reason that I used Ragu in this recipe is that I was one of those bad Mamma jamma couponers, years ago and this was the last of it. I could buy $100 worth of editable groceries and only have to pay $8 for them. But I don’t coupon any longer as I am by myself now and I have no use for all that food.

So without the Ragu, you will need to have 3 cans of tomato sauce and 2 cans of tomato paste to take the place of the Ragu.

So I will be adding a whole tsp. of each of my spices the next time I make spaghetti and adding in 1 tsp. of parsley also. I hope that you will try this recipe and see if you like it! I eat this for days and then on the 3rd day, I give the rest of it to one of my neighbors and tell them to eat it that day as it is 3 days old, but still good for the day.

While you are here, feel free to check out my monthly archives for more recipes. I post on Sat-Tue and Thursdays so stop back in for a visit anytime. Thank You. Connie B.

Categories
Meats November 2020

Pork Chops

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Good morning everyone! I hope this day finds you staying on the calm side of your emotions, as they could be swinging wildly, like a ship on the ocean. Please try to find that little calming place within yourself and hang on to it. I am praying for you all, in this trying, world that we are all, part of.

I thought that I would put this pork-chop recipe up for my post, today. As I have not cooked pork chops in about 5 years, I was not too sure how they would turn out. But as you can see, they turned out,even the bone.

I could imagine that about most everyone on here, knows how to cook pork chops, but this is for the ones, that just might need this recipe. And I do use lard in my cast iron frying pan, so no lard haters, please. On to the recipe now.

Ingredients needed are—2 inches of lard in a cast iron frying pan or any frying pan.

A deeper bowl with 1 1/2 c. self-rising flour in it, also add in 1/2 tsp accent and 1/2 tsp CAVENDEK’S greek seasoning (Save A lot) Grocery Store. This has the pepper already in it along with other nice seasonings.

Pork-chops rinsed off and sprinkled with accent and greek seasoning also.

A splatter screen ( A northerner) taught me this one! And I love, not getting burned with the grease. ( Dollar Tree has them).

Heat up the lard or whatever, your choice of grease is. I only cook these on #5 on my stove dial and lower it to #4, when I first put in the second batch of chops, to let cool a little, then I raise the temp. back to #5 to finish cooking. There is nothing worse than burned grease tasting meat!

I also like to cook entirely the first side before I turn the chop over to cook the second side entirely, without turning it. So I keep my lard on a medium-hot to accomplish this, by frying for about 5 minutes on each side. Peek at your chop for around 4 minutes until you see how your stove does for you. These are the medium-thick pork-chops, not the paper-thin ones. For those that need this recipe, I hope that you try this one! This is how I do it!

I forgot to tell you, that that jar in the photo, is my lemon drop jelly, that went on one of those hot biscuits. It is so sweet but then so sour too! I think it is my favorite. You can find the recipe in my monthly archives if you wish to make some for yourself. Try October archives on my blog, which you can also get to from Google. I hope that you will share my little blog and I do hope that you like some of my recipes. Just save it to your favorites and you won,t have to write it down or print it out if you do.

Well it’s time to stop for today, so I will post again on Saturda-Tue and Thursdays. Wishing you well. Connie B.

Categories
Candy November 2020

White Chocolate Walnut Fudge

https://www.wisdomforpennies.com

Hello to everyone on this cool, North Florida morning, as we had our very first frost this morning. I am a happy lady today. I do hope that you have happiness in your soul, this day and I wish the very best for you all!

Back about 3 weeks ago, I saw the dog fennels in bloom and I told the person that I was with that it should be about two weeks until we get our first frost. Well, it turned out to be three weeks and a day! So the old saying is correct, from our ancestors.

Today I am giving you a good fudge recipe that only takes a few ingredients. You will need a gram scale or know how to do calculations very well. I just paid ten dollars and ordered one from eBay or Amazon I forget which one. The ingredients are ——–

400 grams of white chocolate (This may be two boxes).

250 grams of butter ——- 1 1/2 stick

3 c. powdered sugar whisked smooth

1/3 c. half and half or cream–1/2 c. chopped walnuts

1 tsp. vanilla or less if you want a whiter fudge

A long wooden spoon a mixer –candy themometer

8×8 square pan with buttered wax-paper, hanging off the sides quite a bit

A double boiler and a heavy-duty medium- size pot–set this up by having the bottom pan with boiling water in it, but not touching the top pan or even a metal bowl would work.

Put the white chocolate and butter in the top pan and melt while stirring all the time. This recipe takes a lot of stirring through-out the whole recipe, so it does not burn. When it is melted add in the cream and powder sugar and vanilla also. Chopped walnuts go in now also.

Take away the bottom pot and put fudge pot on stove burner at #4. Cook and stir until the candy thermometer reaches 250 F. I got almost there and mine started to almost burn to the pan, so I took it off the stove. Remember stir-stir-stir while this is cooking.

Now take a spatula and scrape the fudge into a mixing bowl and beat on high for 3 minutes. Pour into prepared pan and freeze for 3 hours. Take out and place on a plate. Peel the wax paper off and cut into 1- inch chunks or whatever size you choose. Keep cold until ready to serve.

Thanks for your visit today and check out the monthly archives for more recipes. If you would, share my blog and check back on Thursday as I post on Tue-Thur and Saturdays. I hope you enjoy this! I know I did!

See you soon. Connie B.

Categories
Dairy

Homemade Yogurt

Good morning to everyone on this last day of October 2020. I hope that you are doing well today and have a really good day. I am enjoying some very nice and cool weather for this North Florida day.

I will have to post the photo, next month, when I make up some of this awesome yogurt for myself, again. This yogurt is thick, but not as thick as what you buy that is already made. So the texture is smooth but a little more drippy than the store bought type, and I do not want to add any thickner’s to it as I want it natural.

When you have finished making this yogurt and stored it in multiple bowls, then the combinations are endless for your own choice of flavors. I end up with 4 Betty Crocker plastic, square bowls that are half filled with yogurt and that’s a lot of yogurt! This will also last for a month in the refrigerator.

You could make banana yogurt or apples and cinnamon or strawberry or peach or blueberry or raspberry, just use your imagination!

The recipe is—-one 8 oz container of plain yogurt (must say acciladolphus) active cultures on it.

1/2 gallon of whole milk

2c. powdered milk

Farenhight themometer

Heating Pad

Start this recipe by putting the yogurt into an ice-tray the day before. When froze then put this in a ziplock baggie for your culture for this time and ten more yogurt adventures also. Thaw out 2 cubes when you start to make this recipe.

In a large heavy duty pot, pour in the half a gallon of whole milk and the 2 cups of powdered milk. Using a whisk to stir this the whole time that you are making this recipe. You do not want it to burn. Use medium heat.

Use your themometer to see that it gets up to 180-190 F. Then take off heat and cool down to 100-110 F and then add in the thawed 2 yogurt cubes and stir.

Set up your hot pad on top of a cutting board and turn to medium heat. Put the pot that is covered with a lid on it, on the hot pad and leave for 8 hours, or overnight, is my choice. Stir once in a while to make sure that it is not burning. When finished, you will have something amazing to add sugar and fruit to create your flavors. You could toss granola on top, when ready to eat. You can also leave it plain for sour-cream or use some in baking or cooking.

I do hope that you will try this! I have made this for many years and need to get back into it, which I plan to do just that.

Thank you for your visit and feel free to check out my monthly archives of recipes and things, while you are here. Please share my blog with others.Thank you again Connie B.

https://www.wisdomforpennies.com

Categories
Meats October 2020

Sausage Balls

I am sorry that this photo is not up to par. The sausage was so dark that it needed a little color this is one of the many things that you can make with the best already prepared sausage balls.

Hello everyone, on this very stormy looking, North Florida day. We have just had a big pour-down of rain and it was nice to see for a short little while. But I do hear that Alabama has serious weather there. So stay safe everyone and make this day, a good day.

I spent a long time today, wrestling with my Mama Jammer gamer computer that my 15 -year- old Son, built from all new parts that were ordered off the internet. This computer is a blast! And lightning fast.

I was wrestling with a cooking club that I had a lot of my home-made recipes and photos on. And the one I wanted to share would only go through as a web page photo and my Word-Press Blog would not accept my photo. So I had to change my mind, so I am posting my very late lunch idea today.

On to the recipe now! First of all, you need to buy your very favorite sausage that you have to patty out. Mine comes from Save-A-Lot as I really like their sausage mix that the butcher prepares. And the price is nice also.

Get a deeper cookie sheet and roll out all the sausage into balls. Then just put the pan in the freezer for an hour. If you wish to stop now, you can put these in freezer bags and store in the freezer raw. I do some this way, but I prefer to take them from the freezer on the tray and bake them at 350 degrees for 60 minutes, check to be sure that they are done. Then put these in freezer bags and store in the freezer.

For this recipe, the possibilities are endless, on what you can come up with. I am having an ice-cold coca-cola with my meatball sausage sandwich as I am typing now and it is really good. All I had to do was thaw the meat out and warm it up in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. A great time saver!

As to other meals that you could make, here are a few. Pizza with sausage and cheese-etc. Cabbage and sausage, Sausage burritos with egg, Spaghetti with sausage, Sausage biscuit, Sausage gravy, and on and on and on. The list could go on forever. And is so nice to quickly fix a meal up and not stay long in the kitchen!

I hope that you enjoyed my very late post today. I hope that you stay awhile and spent some time sharing my blog with others. Thanks for stopping by and do visit again in the future. I do have a PayPal button for anyone wishing to give a small donation to help with the upkeep of my blog and small needs. Thank You and I will post again on Saturday.

https://www.wisdomforpennies.com

Categories
Links I Follow

Apple Wine

https://www.wisdomforpennies.com This is my blog where I have all my recipes.

Hello everyone, on this hot and muggy, North Florida night. I hope all is well with you and your household. I hope you try to see the beautiful stars in the sky if you can see them. Our moon is beautiful tonight as it peeks from underneath the clouds. As hot as it is, I believe that we will be seeing a severe storm, sometime in the late evening or early, wee morning hours.

As I sit here finishing off my homemade grape wine, I thought that I would spend about 40 seconds, starting out with an apple wine that does take 4 weeks to be finished brewing. So I thought that I would let you in on my secret! This wine recipe does come from a friend of mine on YouTube and he goes under Paw Paw on YouTube, so he gets all the credit for this amazing, wine crafting idea. Look him up, please. He will make you laugh! www.youtube.com/user/DoingItCheap/videos

Ok, so now on to this short little recipe. Buy a jug of 100% juice, any cheap juice will do, as long as it says 100% juice made from concentrate is on all the jugs also. I get mine from Aldi’s or Save-A-Lot.

All the rest of the ingredients are these two things. 1/2 tsp. yeast ( those little 3 strip packets) that you use for bread making will do just fine.

The last item is 1 1/2 c. sugar.

So now we begin. Pour out 2 cups of the juice and drink it or save it. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of white sugar and put your 1/2 tsp. of yeast with it. Use a funnel to pour the sugar mixture into the jug of juice.

Now you put the lid on and shake like crazy for a little bit. Now, this last step is the most important step of all! LOOSEN the CAP on the jug and store in a cool and dark place for a month. Under the sink will do.

If you do not keep the cap loose then the wine will explode all over everything! After the month is up, then you use a hose to siphon off the top-most part of the wine. Leave the dregs in the bottom of the jug to throw away. To siphon if, you don’t know how as I did not know how myself. You keep the wine jug high and the decanter bottle low so the flow will be a strong and steady flow. You now have made wine! Enjoy or let it keep sitting around as it keeps getting better with age.

Thank you for visiting my little blog. Please stay a while and read more while you are here and please do share so my little blog will grow. I post on Tue-Thur and Saturdays. Connie B.

Categories
Canning Jellies Links I Follow

Lemon Drop Jelly

https://www.wisdomforpennies.com This is my blog where I keep all my recipes.

Hello everyone on this cloudy and rainy looking, North Florida day. I do love the rain and the coolness in the air is not bad, not bad at all, after this hot summer that we are finally coming out of, I hope.

I hope and pray that you and your family are doing well this day and I hope that you look for happiness today! Well onward to this recipe that I and my 15 year old Son, put together a few days ago. Everyone that has tried the sample jay, loves it as so do I.

3 big lemons

4 c. sugar

3 TBSP Clear Jel Cook Type I have changed from the pectin to this. I order this from my favorite spice Company www.myspice.com I get all my spices from them.

The first and second time that I made my lemon-drop jelly, I used this and it came out fine. The third time I used pectin and now have to re-do those two pint jars with a little clear jell added.

Lemon Drop jelly does not stay in my house very long, as I and all my friends love it.

1 1/2 c. water and 1/2c lemon juice.

Wash the lemons well in the sink. Then you peel off the outer yellow peel , trying to not get the white pith, as much as you can. It is bitter! You need 1 cup of lemon peels for this recipe.

Now you cut off the pith and discard it. Cut the lemons into slices and remove the white sections and discard, along with the seeds also. So now you have the pure lemon fruit and the lemon peels!

Put a tall pot on the stove, as this jelly sputters and pops as it is boiling. Use a long wooden spoon also, so you won’t get popped.

Put the lemon peels and water and into the pot. Let this boil and then simmer for 15 minutes. Take off the heat.

I do not have a jelly bag so I made my own by getting a medium strainer and putting a wet and thin cotton cloth across it. Then I sat this on top of a tall bowl and poured the cooked lemon ingredients into the strainer. With the wet cloth the juice drains better. Let this sit for 3 hours while draining and then use a large spoon to mash down from the top so that you get a little more juice. If you do not quite have 2 cups of juice, then add enough lemon juice to make it up to 2 cups.

Throw away the peels mixture now. Go back to your tall cooking pot and put in the juice liquid, mixture and bring it to a boil. Add in pectin while stirring very well with your wooden spoon. You have to stay with this and keep stirring the whole time or it burns easily.

Now is a good time to start a water-bath canning pot or a large pot with enough water added so that it will cover the jars by 2 inches. Also have your jars in there with a little water in them so that they are sterilized and hot and ready for the jelly. This recipe should make 2 pints or 4 half-pint jelly jars worth of jelly.

After adding in the pectin, bring back up to a boil that you can not stir down. Watch for the popping at this point! Add in the sugar while stirring very well Bring back up to a boil and boil 1 minute longer, while stirring.

Now you put the hot jelly pot into the sink and the jars and funnel,rings,seals,de-bubbler,tiny dish of vinegar and paper napkins right near the pot and on the counter so everything is near at hand. Yes this jelly is a lot of work but it is a supreme surprise for your taste buds.

Have a hot and empty jar ready to go. Use a soup lale to ladle into the jar. Use a de-bubbler, I use a chop-stick and de-bubble the jar. Dip the edge of a napkin into the vinegar and wipr the top rim of the jar inside and outside. Now put the seal on the jar and then the ring on the jar, but only finger tight as the jelly has to breathe while processing.

Finish your jar filling and sealing and put into water-bath and after it is a rolling boil. Then set timer for 10 minutes and just prop a lid on top of pot. When time is up. Have a kitchen towel folded and next to the pot on the counter. Use a jar lifter to remove jelly jars from the pot and sit on the towel. You will start to hear the ping sound as each jar seals. You have done a great job!

This is a short recipe with a long process but it is awesome. I do give the credit to Suttons Daze on YouTube for this is her recipe. Thank you for visiting me, stay a while and look around please, and do come back often, if you will, and share this blog for me please. Thanks. I post on Tue-Thur and Saturdays. Connie B. Just go to youtube and type in Sutton Daze + Lemon Drop Jelly and you will see this awesome lady.

#CONNIEBRECIPESWISDOMFORPENNIES

Categories
Casseroles Vegetable

Cheesy Cauliflower

Everyone loves this at Church Dinners!

Hello everyone on this foggy North Florida day. I have already been up early and done all my laundry and put it away, also. That involves going to the laundry mat for me, so I have a good day started already. I hope your day is amazing for you today!

Today, I am going to share my cauliflower recipe with you, but no haters, please. As I do make my rue (cheese sauce) out of a box cheese, like velveeta, but cheaper at Save-A-Lot. I like it and everyone else that has eaten it really likes it also. There are people that say this is not real cheese! I do use fancy cheese’s on sandwich’s and crackers, but not as a cheese sauce. I prefer this velveeta like, cheesy sauce.

On to the recipe now. The ingredients are 1 head of cauliflower.

1 1/2 thick slice (wedge) of cheese that is cut up into small pieces.

1/2 cup of flour 4 TBSP butter

1c- to – 1 1/2 c of milk salt and pepper to taste (about 1/8 tsp) and 1/8 tsp of accent.

Use a large pot and have water boiling in it. Wash the cauliflower and cut the stem end off and throw it away. Break cauliflower into flowerettes and put in boiling water. Add your salt to the water also.

Boil under fork tender and then drain the cauliflower and sit it aside. Put the butter in pot and melt add the flour and keep stirring and let it brown slightly but not burn. Add in the milk and cheese and spices and keep stirring. If the flour is too dry and not in a creamy mixture type, then add a little more milk at a time, until you have a rich and creamy cheese sauce.

If you are ready to serve, arrange cauliflower on a pretty platter and pour the hot melted cheese over it. Serve this hot! I took mine, hot off the stove and in a covered dish to my Church Dinner with me.

I hope you love this as much as I do! It is a dish that stands out and most people don’t think about this one.

While you are here, please feel free to look around my blog, by the monthly archives at the bottom of my page is the quickest way. Please do share my blog so that it can grow. Please return and visit me again as I post on Tue-Thur and Saturday’s. Today is just a special extra post.

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