Scalloped Potatoes with Ham in comfort food for the soul. My Mother often made a version of Scalloped Potatoes with Ham and I have made in in the crock pot for years. I wanted a new version, and loved this recipe.
While perusing the reviews, several people added additional seasoning to the sauce, parboiled the potatoes, added broccoli, etc. This is a solid base recipe that you can use to get creative. In the photos below, I did not cover the dish while baking and it took a solid hour to cook. It is delicious ad comforting…just what we all need!
SCALLOPED POTATOES WITH HAM
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups milk
Salt & Pepper
1 tablespoon butter
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
4 large russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
12 ounces 1/4 inch sliced baked ham, cubed
2 cups grated Cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a baking dish.
In a saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium high heat. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute. Remove saucepan from heat and whisk in milk. Return pan to heat and bring to a simmer while stirring. When sauce has thickened remove from heat, season with salt and pepper and set aside.
In a skillet, cook onions in melted butter until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper.
Spread 1/3 of the white sauce in bottom of baking dish and top with half of the potatoes. Spread out half of the onions, ham, cheese and another third of the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Continue layering ingredients, ending with the remaining cheese on top. Bake, covered, for 45 mintues. Remove cover and bake another 15 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
We made it! At 12:01 am on Jan 1, for the first time ever, Hindsight will actually be 2020. Hindsight means it is easier to evaluate situations when we are looking back at them, and with perfect vision (20/20).
2020 was a year filled with isolation, fear, skepticism, loneliness, tragedy, depression, addiction, brain fog, strife, injustice, sacrifice, and much more. We learned so much about ourselves and the tremendous strength and perseverance we hold in times of difficulty.
Turning the calendar to 2021 doesn’t change everything, but what it gives us HOPE. Hope, by definition, is a feeling of expectation and desire for certain things to happen.
Which brings me to my favorite bible verse from childhood, Hebrews 11:1 (KJV), memorized in the southeast Sunday school room of our church in rural central Iowa, the Carlton Brethren Church
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
It’s as if this verse was ingrained in my mind for hope then and for this very moment. As we begin this year, my wish and prayers for 2021 are:
To experience peace
To be gentle with ourselves
To be kind and gentle with others
To be grateful for all we have
To breathe
To see the beauty around us
To stay connected
To remember what matters most in our lives
To experience rest and joy
To have good health and an end to the pandemic
To continue to see humor in the everyday things
Wishing you a Happy New Year filled with many blessings!
One year ago, we were all hustling and bustling without a virus care in the world. Stress was high because we put so many expectations on ourselves for the perfect Christmas experience.
Photo by @davidsonluna
Fast forward to Christmas 2021 and our lives are vastly different. It’s easy to focus on the negatives, but for a moment, I’ll focus on the positives of the COVID experience and a sheltered Christmas.
My family and I are COVID free. Every day I take the time to reflect on this blessing and pray for good health for all.
My family and I have shelter and food. We have the opportunity to help others in need.
We are blessed with doctors, nurses, healthcare workers, first responders, and other essential personnel who are working tirelessly to provide services during this challenging time. They have my complete gratitude for going above and beyond on a daily basis.
Vaccinations are on the way giving us hope of control of Coronavirus for the future.
Family and friends are even more precious. I love and appreciate each and every one of you!
Handwashing and mask wearing are second nature. When I watch a television show or movie where people are in close proximity, and not wearing masks, I get a little anxious. Do you? Wearing a mask and maintaining social distancing is the least I can do for the good of our country.
Home has never felt so good. I’ve always enjoyed being home but I’ve found peace and comfort in my own space.
Christmas ornaments are full of memories. Each year, I think of the moment or the year I acquired each ornament. Decorating the tree in 2020 was a reflection on a blessed life.
Christmas magic abounds with young children. My four young grandchildren are filled with wonder and awe for the holidays .
My hair is gray. If you haven’t seen me in a picture or on Zoom, you may not know that I have gone totally gray. Gray hair symbolizes the accomplishments and stress that I have lived. It has given me new found freedom.
I’m cooking more. Cooking has always been a passion and with more time at home, I can experiment. Curbside pickup of groceries is a new service offered that reduces my risk of exposure to COVID and makes quick work of shopping.
I’m posting again on Fork-Lore. I’m cooking; therefore I’m posting.
Technology allows me to catch up with family and friends to stay connected and enjoy social interaction. Our ancestors didn’t have this luxury during other lockdowns, such as the Spanish (ie., Kansas) flu.
Journaling this COVID experience for future reflection started in March and goes on to this day. Truly, I thought I would only be journaling for 3 or 4 months…Silly me!
Podcasts, audio books and long walks are saving me. My favorite podcast list has more than doubled and the number of books read in 2021 is far beyond any previous year.
Humor sustains me. There is nothing more humorous than reflecting on the silly things I do and see each and every day.
This Christmas let us find joy, peace, and good health. Sending virtual love and hugs to all!
Cranberry relish for the holidays is a tradition. I’ve made cooked and raw cranberry sauce, but the addition of raspberries, is a nice change. Cranberry relish is great with the big meal but also great on a leftover turkey sandwich.
Wishing everyone a wonderful, safe, healthy Thanksgiving in this difficult 2020. Let’s take the time to count our many blessings, thank our medical and essential workers, hug (virtual and real) those we love, help those in need, take care of ourselves, and breathe!
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 cup water
3 cups fresh cranberries
1 cup frozen raspberries
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a saucepan, combine ALL ingredients.
Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
After 10 minutes, mash up berries using a potato masher or fork or something to mash up the berries. You can mash up all the berries, some, or none, depending on how chunky you like your cranberry sauce.
Easter 2020 will be like no other. Most Americans will be home, distanced from family and friends. Our family will be doing the same but plan to share food and get together on Zoom for a short visit. Saturday we will be doing porch pickups of 1) homemade rolls, 2) Fresh Peach Cobbler…summertime favorite (using frozen peaches from last summer), and 3) Scotcheroos…Easter tradition. We will each cook our own dinner and enjoy a bit of what the others have made. It won’t be the same, but it will be an Easter to remember.
Today is the 26th day of self isolation and I am so blessed to be doing well, keeping in touch with family and friends and checking items off my ‘to-do’ list. Cleaning closets and recalling memories is part of the experience. While selecting books to read to my grandchildren, I found one of my childhood Easter books now very tattered but well loved. One of my daughter’s remarked that the bunny’s red eye creeps her out…I never even thought about that!
The pictures and stories are charming and would spark my childhood imagination. Here are a few pages:
‘Helping One Another’ is something we need to do all of the time, but especially now. ‘Jack In The Pulpit’ takes me back to springtime in Iowa and wandering the timbers with my Mother gathering Morel mushrooms and seeing Jack In The Pulpits, bluebells, Johnny Jump Ups, and many other wild flowers.
This week I also rediscovered my childhood bank, a bunny so sweet and tender. She was manufactured in the 1950s by Knickerbocker Plastics in North Hollywood, California. My mother saved her for many years, but why have I stored in the basement all these years? It’s time for her to shine her pretty little face again.
Memories are a wonderful thing…to be treasured and shared.
May your Easter be joyful…May your blessings be many. Happy Easter!
Living through a Pandemic was certain not on my wish list but here we are. While I try to keep an upbeat attitude, my first inclination is go dark but I’ve learned that doesn’t accomplish a thing.
Keeping busy with things that interest me is key. I have a long list of ‘to-dos’ that I have been ignoring so … get on it, Cathy! There is yardwork and garden preparation, closets to be cleaned, Shutterfly books to finish, genealogy research to be done, etc. I try to accomplish a little of this each day but self-care and personal connection is most important.
This is day 13 of self isolation except for a very protected trip to get my allergy shot (extreme tree pollen allergies) and porch delivery of my Mom’s chicken and noodles to my girls and their families.
Each day the weather cooperates, I try to go on a long walk. Seeing neighbors outside playing with their children, sitting on their front porch or simply waving to neighbors warms my heart. The two best experiences while walking were 1) encountering a family of dinosaurs with Mom and little daughter in full dinosaur costumes and Dad in a mask; 2) completing a chalk lava field drawn by a child on their sidewalk. I love to see such creativity!
Talking with my girls and my grandchildren is saving me, too. My grandchildren are ages 6, 4, 3 and 1. The opportunity to read books, have dance parties, and just play via video chat is a wonderful capability that we all can enjoy. Talking with friends, Virtual yoga with my Hot Flash yoga pals, virtual happy hour with our local winery, and family Zoom sessions also help to keep me connected.
I’ve not been to the store since Friday, March 13 but I have plenty to eat. My Mother taught us to always have a full pantry and freezer and now is the time to use it! To conserve on eggs, I’ve shifted my daily egg to a breakfast cake I’m loving with a dollop or yogurt!
Breakfast Cake
2 mashed bananas 1.4 cups oatmeal 2 beaten eggs 3 cups berries (fresh, frozen or canned/drained–even less works just fine) 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
Mix together and placed in greased pan (about 8×10″) and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cut in squares.
I heat a square of breakfast cake in the microwave for 20 seconds and then add a dollop of Greek Yogurt. So yummy!
This experience causes me to think back to the 1918 Spanish Flu Pandemic and the hardship of those times. What did our ancestors do in quarantine, usually with a multitude of children and no chance of grocery delivery or the care of today’s modern medicine. My Grandma Susie would be slaving over a hot wood cookestove in a very tiny house, with 4 little kids running underfoot. To my knowledge, no one in our family died during that time but I do not know who may have contracted the disease, either.
A friend shared with me that her Grandmother had written a journal during the time of the Spanish Flu and she has been reading it. It prompted her to start a journal for her grandchildren. What a great idea! I am not a journal kind of person, but this is such a unique time in our lives, that I think it is important to document what this experience has been like. Perhaps we can actually learn from our mistakes in the future.
In closing let me thank everyone who is sacrificing their own safety to care for the people of the United States. You are our true heroes!
May 7, I stepped onto my front porch and noticed a few unsightly weeds hanging from my front porch light. I pulled them down and went about my day. The next morning, lo and behold, there was a beautiful nest perched on top of the porch light.
I marveled at the intelligence of Mama and Papa Robin, selecting a nest site that was under the cover of the porch and warmed by the light 24x 7 because they built the nest over the light sensor!
On May 12, the eggs started to appear, first two, then a total of 5. The Colorado May weather was unusually cold so Mama was on the nest most of the time.
Mama Robin lays her eggs May 12-15
Excitement was building as our family watched the Robin’s nest with great anticipation. The grandkids were so excited to see photos and watch the wonder of nature.
Fifteen days later the eggs started to hatch, one by one. To be able to see (never touch) these sweet babies up close was amazing. The nest was too tall to actually look into the nest, iphone photos and video to the rescue (centering of the photos was often an issue).
Mama and Daddy Robin were consumed with feeding these hungry babies and they became very protective whenever we stepped out on the porch, swooping by and touching my hair to give warning.
Eleven days after the first hatch, two of the babies flew from the nest.
June 8: Two babies prepare to leave the nest
Mama was talking to them and away they went. A few days later the last two babies also left the nest. Their soaring abilities were very good and I hope they have learned to soar and be safe.
In the meantime, the grandkids are disappointed that the birds are gone, as am I. Thank you, Mother Nature, for the great adventure and we hope we’ll have the opportunity again next year.
Below is a link to a short video of our Robin Adventure.
Cherry desserts are one of my favorites and I had to try this Cherry Bars recipe from my late Aunt Joyce’s recipe box. While I don’t recall ever having these, they are wonderful. The combination of almond and cherry…yum!
Leafing through old, handwritten recipe cards is such a treasure…a lost tradition in today’s world.
CHERRY BARS
1 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 eggs, beat after addition of each egg
3 cups flour
1/8 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. almond extract
1 can cherry pie filling
Preheat over to 350 degrees. Grease 10×15″ pan.
Cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time and beat after each addition.
Sift together flour, salt and baking powder.
Slowly add flour mixture to batter. Then add vanilla and almond extract.
Spread 1/2 of batter into pan. Spool filling on top and spread to cover. Drop the remaining batter by spoonfuls over the top.
Bake for about 40 minutes. Watch it to just golden brown.
Drizzle with glaze of 1 cup powdered sugar, 4 or more tsp. milk, a few drops of almond extract. Add milk until the drizzle consistency is reached.
My Mother was such a great cook and many of my cherished recipes came from her kitchen. Apple Roll Ups is one of those recipes. They are fantastic served warm but equally good left-over. If you truly want to indulge, you can pour a bit of cream on the top of your Apple Roll.
APPLE ROLL UPS
SYRUP:
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups sugar
Boil for 3 minutes. Cool.
Pour into ungreased 9×13 inch pan.
DOUGH:
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons shortening (I used unsalted butter)
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
Combine flour, baking powder, salt and shortening and blend well. Add 1/2 up milk and 1 egg. Mix well.
Roll the dough out on a floured surface into a rectangle shape about 1/4-1/2 inch thick.
FILLING:
1/2 to 1 cup sugar
1-2 teaspoons cinnamon
3 cups finely diced apple (I used Granny Smith)
Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon over rolled out dough. Add chopped apple.
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