Meal No. 3633: Tomato and Corn Pie

On the first Saturday of official summer, Amy and Gern came over for dinner and hanging out, and it was a great evening. Our weather had turned hot and dry to accord with the shift of seasons, as if on cue, and figuring out a dinner when the world outside just felt oppressive was a sordid affair. But settled at last on a reasonable course of action, I got busy mid-afternoon and brought out at dinnertime a pretty smart spread for the mood of that day: tomato and corn pie, salad with sunshine dressing, roasted spiced potatoes, and lots of fresh fruit to pile high on the platter.

After time up on the third floor, including quite a few rounds of pleasurable pool, back to the kitchen we went for that evening's dessert: lemon blueberry yogurt loaf with lemon icing. That was an excellent recipe and I hope I remember to bring it out again. Amy and Gern also sampled the apple chai-cream strudel from the previous night, and it also proved to be well-received.

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Pulled together and based on the following evolving recipe history:

• "Tomato Pie," from the Swamp Rabbit Café in Greenville, SC.
• "Tomato and Corn Pie," from Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen. [Published 27 August 2009]
• "Tomato and Corn Pie," by Maggie Ruggiero in Gourmet, August 2009, p. 42-43. [Published Online 15 July 2009]

"All-Butter Pie Crust," from King Arthur Test Kitchen of King Arthur Baking. See also "Butter vs. Shortening: The Great Pie Crust Bake-Off," by PJ Hamel of King Arthur Baking. [Published 23 November 2013]

"Sunshine Dressing," from Kathryne Taylor of the Cookie and Kate blog.

"Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Loaf," by Laura of Sweet Pea's Kitchen.

National Vanilla Milkshake Day

It was a deliberate choice not to let National Vanilla Milkshake Day go uncelebrated, so Thursday a week ago the late afternoon dessert was a rare item in our dessert stable. There is something special and evocative of childhood when this concoction fills a tall cup, with oversized straws and unrivaled satisfaction.

This incredible treat was probably boosted quite a few levels because I had made a batch of super-rich fully-yolked New England-style vanilla bean ice cream to go along with what still remained from the earlier batch of sweet milk ice cream. I had to use a ticket-taker's counter clicker to tally the number of tops that took the milkshakes over.

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"Dense, Chewy, and Rich New England-Style Ice Cream," from Max Falkowitz, former senior features editor of SeriousEats.com. [Updated 28 February 2019]

Meal No. 3632: Skillet Sausage Pan Pizza

It's been over six months since I made these remarkable skillet pan pizzas, more than reminiscent of those personal pan versions at the ol' Pizza Hut. And somehow Thursday a week ago, when the primary topping featured Italian sausage, the crust was just about as perfect as it has ever been.

Marvelous olive-oil-singed crunchy crusted exterior, and an awesome chew for the bubbled innards: I had to go back for an extra piece beyond what had been allocated as appropriate for a mid-day meal. I also tried out a different pizza sauce recipe, this time from the lovely and dependable Chef John of FoodWishes.com. I may not be convinced that I truly get a significant difference when I make my own sauces, but I do have reason to sleep better at night for the effort and earnestness.

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Pizza Crust based on "Fool-Proof Pan Pizza," by J. Kenji López-Alt, culinary consultant for SeriousEats.com. [Updated 30 March 2023]

"How to Make Homemade Pizza Sauce," by Chef John Mitzewich, on AllRecipes.com. [Clipping Originally Printed 01 September 2016 / Web Recipe Updated 19 March 2024]

Meal No. 3631: Creamy Sausage Alfredo Bake

It was a new recipe on the evening of the Juneteenth holiday: creamy sausage Alfredo bake. It sure was good, and filling, and plentiful. The good news is that the neighbors with whom the leftovers were shared had glowing reports, once they'd dug into their own portions. I guess it's so tasty and tempting because it's also terrible on the next-morning weigh-in.

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"Creamy Sausage Alfredo Bake," from Mallory Austin of Bad Batch Baking.

Meal No. 3630: Caesar Greens with Blackened Chicken

Tuesday a week ago, it was sort of nice to return to the simplicity of a salad, topped with blackened chicken from the sous vide and drenched with homemade Caesar dressing. As last week's heatwave proceeded on schedule, staying inside and also not heating up the kitchen were prime considerations.

National Apple Strudel Day

Once more driven by the latest National Day of, the Roediger House celebrated National Apple Strudel Day with a puff pastry strudel and the side highlight of homemade sweet milk ice cream. Some dessert ideas are better realized than others, and last Monday's effort looked like it was going to fall short of what I'd envisioned. My own primary misstep was in preparing the apple filling too late in the process; it was still way too warm when I wanted to spoon it onto the bed of chai-spiced sweetened cream cheese. The other dilemma, which made it all so much worse, was the puff pastry was entirely too sticky to work with. I didn't leave enough time to return it to the fridge to chill more. So: a flat, poorly-filled, leaky apple cream cheese strudel was the closest I could come to improperly celebrate the occasion. And you know what? It was actually kind of perfect! The apple filling settled into the chai-spiked sweet cream, even though some oozing led to some losing. The frothed egg white brushed on before baking proved an excellent adherent for a generous dusting of cinnamon sugar, sort of in the direction of a cinnamon crunch bagel topping. And then there was the fantastic vanilla sweet milk ice cream, making this a surprisingly excellent Monday night dessert. No need to be careful when this is the sort of treat you wish for.

Update: The following Friday night, I repeated this strudel recipe, with a fresh batch of the sweetened chai-spiced cream cheese and the other half of the cooked apple filling. I did cook the pastry longer than I should have, so the result was not as good for this second round...but the ice cream was even better because (in the meantime, between first and second strudel nights!) I'd made a new batch of dense, chewy, New England-style vanilla ice cream. That was quite the crowning touch!

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Based on "Easy Apple Strudel with Puff Pastry," from Hyegyoung "Holly" K. Ford of BeyondKimchee.com. [Published 15 September 2021 / Updated 29 October 2023]

Apple Filling based on "Apple Turnovers," by Sam Merritt of Sugar Spun Run. [Published 08 September 2022]

Chai-Spiced Sweetened Cream Cheese Filling loosely adapted from "Blueberry Cream Cheese Pastry Braid," from Sally McKenney of Sally's Baking Addiction. [Published 16 February 2014]

"Sweet Milk Ice Cream," published in the King Arthur Flour catalogue some years ago, but no longer available on their website.

Meal No. 3629: Steak au Poivre

The recent and long overdue return to the marvelous steak au poivre a few weeks ago has hung over me with an ongoing relentless temptation to repeat this meal. So Monday mid-day I did: steak au poivre again, amazing again, with mashed potatoes and that remarkable shallot cream sauce, again. No need for a second side when this is what's filling the plate. I was a little knocked down that afternoon once it had filled my belly, and everything seemed in slow motion for a few hours.

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"Steak au Poivre," by Dawn Yanagihara. In Cook's Illustrated, September & October 2001, p. 8-9.

Meal No. 3628: Turkey Bacon Ranch Sandwiches

The remaining pair of hoagie rolls from last weekend's experiment with chicken philly cheesesteaks had me stuck in a sandwich mood for supper last Sunday. I fried up a couple of packages of bacon that afternoon and whipped up a somewhat runny chipotle ranch dressing. When dinnertime approached, I prepped those rolls first with some of that ranch sauce, plentiful portions of bacon, some deli-sliced honey-roasted turkey, and thick slices of Swiss cheese. All this was toasted in the oven before I then added sliced tomato and a selection of power greens...plus more chipotle ranch sauce to boot. These were incredible sandwiches, too large to finish in a single sitting, and quite the rare treat given what's usually on the menu here.

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Based on "Chipotle Ranch Dressing," from Natasha Bull of Salt and Lavender. [Published 01 August 2023]

Lemon Velvet Cake

A combination of feeling restless but also wanting to indulge some kitchen creation time last Saturday night brought me to a fine recipe for lemon velvet cake, perfect in all its sweet springtime bright citrusy goodness as we clearly found ourselves moving into the summer season and its heat. Once it was frosted and ready, I broke out my good cake-cutting blade and served up those pieces of glorious confection, and also filled quite a few to-go clamshells to share with neighbors on the street. This much-appreciated layer cake was well-timed, it seems, to coincide with the very special birthday of Dr. Stefanie Harmon. How 'bout that?

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"Lemon Velvet Cake," from Barry C. Parsons of RockRecipes.com.

Meal No. 3627: Chicken Philly Cheesesteaks on Homemade Hoagie Rolls

Sometimes it's nice to be reminded that breads and rolls are not always complicated or involved endeavors. Last Saturday, after enjoying a considerably more pleasant and breezy sunny morning outside with coffee and the canines, I retreated to the cooler kitchen to tackle a quick batch of homemade hoagie rolls. This was in anticipation of an evening meal of chicken philly cheesesteaks, which I'd been hankering for lately. The saucy goodness of the meat and sautéed peppers and onions, plus the over-the-top cheese sauce, all on a fresh-baked roll? This was an unencumbered pleasure for an end-of-spring night in Winston-Salem.

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Philly Cheesesteaks based on a combination of ideas from:

• "Chicken Philly Cheese Steak," by Brandi Burgess of Aunt Bee's Recipes. Posted 11 September 2014.
• "Philly Chicken Cheesesteak Sandwich," from the Creole Contessa. Posted 30 July 2013.
• "Homemade Chicken Cheesesteaks," by Jessica Merchant of How Sweet It Is. Posted 05 September 2012.

"The Best Soft and Chewy Hoagie Bread Rolls," by Lori Monte, the Kitchen Whisperer.

Meal No. 3626: Grilled Barbecue Pork Kebabs

My custom and habit is to draft the blog posts when they are fresh on my mind, even when they are just going to join the queue of waiting entries, as happens when I get a little ahead of myself. Last Friday night, just before bedtime, as I sat down to capture that evening's dinner fare, I was more than a little surprised to find out it had been over two years since I'd last made grilled pork kebabs with barbecue glaze. This is a dependably delicious and pretty straightforward recipe to execute; it ought to be in more regular rotation given how tender yet economical that cut of meat can be. But on an especially hot day here in Winston-Salem, I liked heating up the grilling patio more than heating up the kitchen, so pork kebabs it was.

I brought back another heaping pan of Willie Mae's mac and cheese, and also dug out of the archives a now-rarely-seen pot of lima beans (which hadn't shown up as a side in almost four years—almost one thousand meals ago!). We retreated up to the third floor mancave then to watch Triangle, which turned out to be a pretty good movie, followed by Part One of the Doctor Who season finale. In between was the last of the previous evening's marvelous strawberry cake. We live it up right around here.

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"Grilled Pork Kebabs with Barbecue Glaze," an online extra from Cook's Illustrated and based on "The Best Way to Grill Pork Tenderloin," Issue No. 134, May & June 2015, p. 6.

"Willie Mae's Mac and Cheese," shared by Willie Mae's Scotch House of New Orleans via Good Morning America. [Published 19 May 2020]

Mamaw Emily's Strawberry Cake

So as not to mislead you, let me state for the record that I am not on a first-name basis with Mamaw Emily. But her daughter-in-law was sufficiently motivated to bring a new burst of happiness into the bliss of wedded life that she sought to create the cake her husband's mother was famous for making. Thanks to Taste of Home, the rest of us might hope to achieve a similar measure of household harmony and joy. When the crew gathered to fill the six seats at the dinner table last Thursday, our dessert was a modern realization of Mamaw Emily's strawberry cake. The convenience of cake mix is herein acknowledged, a step I try rarely to take. I mean: I confess to manifesting a prideful beam when I can pull off a successful result with a from-scratch layer cake, as happened the other time I made a strawberry version. As for our degrees of satisfaction last week, the general consensus was one of delight, methinks: a summer-themed slice of layered and frosted goodness to wrap up another great night together.

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"Mamaw Emily's Strawberry Cake," from Jennifer Bruce of Manitou, Kentucky. Published on TasteofHome.com. [Updated 19 November 2023]

Meal No. 3625: Pipetizer Casserole

Now appearing for the second time in the 2024 calendar year: pipetizer casserole, a Roediger House creation of meat and cheesy goop with a small tribute to pasta thrown in. This was last Thursday's meal when the crew of six RoHo regulars was over for hanging out. Now that I'm not scared of focaccia, that was a reasonable accompaniment. And it was all so good that I was first to go for seconds, in spite of the room I knew I'd need to leave for the new dessert making its first appearance later that evening.

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"Pipetizer Casserole" is an adaptation of "Tailgate Casserole," from The Big Book of Casseroles, by Maryana Vollstedt. San Francisco: Chronicle Books (2000), p. 120.

"Easy Rosemary Garlic Focaccia," from Adam and Joanne Gallagher of InspiredTaste.net.

Cinnamon Brown Sugar Rice Krispies Treats

Only a couple of weeks ago I tried out a new sweet treat for the Roediger House enjoyment: cinnamon brown sugar rice krispies treats. I've been jonesing for more ever since, so that's how the post-dinner, post-downtown-stroll time was filled in the early evening. A short cool-down and set-up was made shorter because I had to start digging into them pretty soon after I'd made them. Oh, so easy, and pretty wonderful for a simple sweet after-dinner snack.

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"Cinnamon Brown Sugar Rice Krispies Treats," from Christine Goff and published on JustAPinch.com.

Meal No. 3624: Roasted Salmon & Broccoli

Last Wednesday marked the final day of my latest Project CRISS training, this time with an excellent group of directors from the local school district. We had two great days together, and we worked hard, and I came back to the house ready for a rock-solid dinner very much to my liking. Enter the latest pan of roasted spiced salmon, with a heap of roasted broccoli florets. That is the ideal prescription for making a Wednesday wonderful.

Meal No. 3623: Spice-Rubbed Chicken Leg Quarters

A very full Tuesday of training with central office administrators in a local school district left me with little time to prepare dinner. Under the gun, and with a package of chicken quarters, I let the first decent recipe to pop up on a quick web search guide me to a most delicious result: spice-rubbed chicken legs, supplemented with a new side feature of yellow Spanish-style rice. It was more than enough to satisfy the appetites and did not taste like a time-crunch shortcut at all.

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"Best Baked Chicken Leg Quarters," from Chef Dennis Littley of Ask Chef Dennis. [Published 01 September 2022]

Meal No. 3622: Pseudo-Madame Cristo Sandwiches

By the time supper had to be prepared Monday night, I'd left myself almost no time to do it. In this household, that does not mean a quick take-out or a run through the drive-thru. It just means I'm-a make something quick and still reasonably decent. In this case, it was an excuse to bring back the Croque-inspired Madame Cristo pseudo-grilled-ham-and-cheese sandwiches, and a nice pile of raspberry preserves is actually the main reason I am all about it.

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Based on "Madame Cristo—Grilled Ham and Cheese," from Chef John Mitzewich of FoodWishes.com and AllRecipes.com. [Updated 03 July 2018]

Meal No. 3621: Weeknight Chicken Tikka Masala

The freezer is again a bit stuffed with prepped and vacuum-sealed meats, so Sunday's plan was to bring out a package of spiced bone-in chicken thighs to drop into the sous vide immersion circulator. That gave me space and time to work on updating the plans for this week's professional development sessions. Then it was also pretty simple to get an appropriate portion of basmati rice going in the rice cooker. Close to dinnertime, I then only had to make the tikka masala cream sauce to go over it all. These time-savers and shortcuts to still get something decent on the table, when also trying to be mindful of work obligations, continues to bolster my gladness for the impulsive immersion circulator acquisition!

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"Chicken Tikka Masala," from Cook's Country, October/November 2014, centerfold recipe cards.

Double Chocolate Liqueur Ice Cream

My work travels last week allowed me to be home again as of Thursday night, but too late to prep the ice cream base to fully and properly observe National Chocolate Ice Cream day on Friday. But in the grand spirit of the occasion, I set my sights on using the lull of post-dinner-and-cleanup time to make the most excellent double chocolate liqueur ice cream, ready for freezing Saturday morning, and perfect for serving Saturday night. Rich, chewy, dense, and intensely chocolatey, this is quite the culinary creation, brought home with a tongue-delighting weightiness when transitioned from spoon to swallow.

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"Double Chocolate Liqueur Ice Cream," by Kita Roberts. From her Pass the Sushi blog.

Meal No. 3620: Grilled Porterhouse Steaks

Gorgeous sunny weather, a kicked-up appetite, and a desire to overcome some of the preceding week's road-warrior poor eating choices: these made a sale on porterhouse steaks seem like divine intervention. Simply prepped with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and tossed onto a sizzling hot grill, these rascals cooked up almost perfectly in short order and were ready to be served alongside roasted spiced potatoes. This is a lot of meat, and I would not be deterred; this also was the first time in over six years that I grilled porterhouse cuts, and the amazing meaty meal moment that Saturday night was exceptional and exceptionally overdue.

Meal No. 3619: BBQ-Spiced Chicken Thighs

The previous week was spent on the road, divided between Virginia and Florida, with about 1,500 miles driven in my fine new automobile. With the last day being so marvelous as I wrapped up the latest Project CRISS training with teachers in Jacksonville, that 6.5-hour drive home had me arriving at bedtime Thursday night. I hope that makes it seem reasonable to keep things easy on Friday, as I settled in back at home and caught up on some paperwork and made a quick shopping run and snuck in a nap. Once more I was glad for the sous vide immersion circulator, so I could bring BBQ-spiced chicken thighs out of the freezer and drop them in to leisurely cook for a few hours to a perfect tender temperature. Some garlicked asparagus cuts with more Shenandoah herbs and seasoning roasted most gloriously, and the lazy weekender in me was happy to once more have a pot of stovetop stuffing. I often eat poorly when I'm on work trips; this meat and two sides was just what this doctor ordered.

Meal No. 3618: Sausage Egg Scramble & Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Last Sunday was departure day for me, with two days of work scheduled in Virginia, immediately followed by two days in Florida. I was pretty prepped and packed but wanted to squeeze in a final meal before I hit the road, and the painfree course of action was to throw together a sausage and mushroom egg scramble, with scallions, plus a glorious pan of Cheddar Bay drop biscuits. It was just right for the moment, and those biscuits sure hit the mark.

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"Easy Cheddar Bay Biscuits (Red Lobster Copycat)," from Amy Nash of House of Nash Eats. [Published 11 August 2023]

White Chocolate Walnut Blondies with Maple Cream Sauce & Sweet Vanilla Milk Ice Cream

Oh, it sure was a special dessert treat on the final day of May: Applebee's-style white chocolate walnut blondies, topped with a sweet maple cream sauce, and accompanied by scoops of homemade sweet vanilla milk ice cream. For the inaugural visit of neighbors Ashley and Alex to the house, this was meant to be a glorious start to a much-hoped-for string of future evenings together.

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"White Chocolate Walnut Blondies with Maple Cream Sauce," from Jillian Hatsumi of ABajillianRecipes.com. [Published 23 July 2018]

"Sweet Milk Ice Cream," published in the King Arthur Flour catalogue some years ago, but the recipe is no longer available on their website.

Meal No. 3617: Oven-Roasted Baby Back Pork Ribs

The month of May ended with the very best weather you can imagine, mostly sunny days, delightful breezes, and mid-70s temps. There was ample outside time and yet it still wasn't quite enough. As the month's final day unfolded last Friday, I was in a hearty southern summer state of mind for the evening meal: oven-roasted barbecued baby back pork ribs, plus the indulgence of Willie Mae's Scotch House mac and cheese. It was all good even if a bit flawed in execution, and was appreciated for being a feast that is not so hard to throw together.

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"How to Make Great Ribs in the Oven," by Emma Christensen. From The Kitchn. [Published 01 July 2017]

"Willie Mae's Mac and Cheese," shared by Willie Mae's Scotch House of New Orleans via Good Morning America. [Published 19 May 2020]

Cinnamon Brown Sugar Rice Krispies Treats

While late last Thursday afternoon I should have been outside cutting the grass and trimming overgrowth, or at least pulling weeds, instead I was in the kitchen to try a new recipe: cinnamon brown sugar rice krispies treats. I'm not even all that experienced with regular Rice Krispies squares, but boy howdy was this a simple and perfectly-realized recipe: sweet and crunchy with all that extra flavor and spice that I already love. I doubted my capacity to be moderate about the intake. The doubts were well-founded. I too could've been found guilty of 34 felony counts.

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"Cinnamon Brown Sugar Rice Krispies Treats," from Christine Goff and published on JustAPinch.com.

Meal No. 3616: Roasted Salmon Caesar Salad

After heading out for the larger shopping excursion to Costco, clearly because I've not spent enough money this week, I came home and whipped up a new batch of creamy Caesar dressing...after putting away all the provisions I'd loaded my cart with. It was able to set up, and the flavors to meld, in time for me to chop fresh Romaine hearts and spice a couple of slabs of salmon. Once properly roasted to temp, the salmon fillets went atop the dressed greens, and it was all finished with a generous shake of roasted sunflower seeds to complete the picture.

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Based on "Easy Lemon Caesar Salad Dressing," by Kim Hardesty of lowcarbmaven.com.

Meal No. 3615: Coq au Vin

Another Wednesday filled with productive stuff ended on a high note, in honor of National Coq au Vin Day. That silky long-simmered wine sauce, the succulent mushrooms, the snappy pearl onions, the scattered chew of full-strength bacon pieces, and the tender braised thighs: this almost-reasonable-for-a-weeknight dinner hardly needed an accompaniment, but homemade mashed potatoes fit the call of foodie duty.

I’d been referred to a retina specialist, after my yearly eye exam gave the optometrist pause because of a newly-spotted abnormality along the left eye's edge. But the specialist I saw Wednesday morning was glad to report that I might have been born with this slight scarring, or at least carried it a long time [photo above for illustration/pulled from Google!]. It’s the higher-grade imaging equipment in my downtown eye care shop that he believes made it possible for them to see it for the first time. I like when the diagnosis is: “Nothing to see here!” Taking the new Camry in for its first 5,000-mile servicing happened mid-day, followed by a full grocery shopping trip. There was hardly enough time to enjoy another glorious perfect spring day...but I was determined that this special meal would be the supper that night!

Finally: as of late Tuesday afternoon, May 28th, my childhood home in Buies Creek is now proudly owned by our long-time renters, the Sorrell family. I drove down to Harnett County that day to be present for the rather speedy closing. While home and Buies Creek and Parkwood Circle (our quiet neighborhood tucked in on the northwest side of the Campbell University campus) are absolutely dear to me, what especially tied me to it passed away with my mother, who was the rock and anchor and reason for that deeply-felt bond to a place and time. There was a little scrambling for signatures on a final document, as I sat with dilated eyes at the retina specialist's office, but now it's all sealed and delivered. I think Josh and Amber are pretty happy, and we are all very happy for them.

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"Modern Coq au Vin," by Sandra Wu. In Cook's Illustrated, Number Eighty-Three (November & December, 2006), p. 18-19.

Pumpkin Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

When we returned to the tradition of Thanksgiving on the Half-Year back on Memorial Day Monday, I had in reserve a dessert appropriate to the menu: pumpkin spice cake with cream cheese frosting. A relatively new addition to the dessert stable, I first made it as a command performance for a former neighbor's birthday cake. When I got around to making one here for us, it proved itself worthy of regular returns, whenever the mood strikes. In sheetpan form, it seems less fussy, and it does come together pretty easily. While I'm sure we were all sufficiently stuffed from the Thanksgiving menu a week ago today, our superior focus and unwavering commitment made dessert supremely do-able.

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"The Best Pumpkin Cake I've Ever Had," from Sally McKenney of Sally's Baking Addiction. [Published 11 October 2017]

Meal No. 3614: Thanksgiving on the Half-Year

For the first time since 2018, the Roediger House returned to its celebration of Thanksgiving on the Half-Year on Memorial Day evening. Six of us were at the table for all the usual fixins that we love too much to limit only to November and the Christmas feast. This tradition started in 2010, but between my huge weight loss push and the coronavirus pandemic, the interruption is understandable but its six-year hiatus is harder to fathom.

Given the time of year, I had the option either to grab a frozen turkey several days in advance, knowing the turkey's age was also advanced...or I could go for the big time and grab an absolutely fresh turkey breast from The Fresh Market. I opted for the latter, and boy howdy was I ever pleased with the result.

A buttermilk brine, boosted with fresh-cut sage leaves and stems of thyme and rosemary from the kitchen garden, seemed to set this turkey breast on the path to guaranteed success. I don't know if it was needed, but I did a regular basting with a seasoned melted butter, spiked with dry white wine. This was indeed about the most amazing turkey I've ever served, methinks.

I made turkey gravy with the drippings and the marvelous slow cooker sweet potato casserole, and to join these on the plate was a massive pan of stuffing:

...and a much-loved variation of green bean casserole:

Folks filled their plates as they wished:

...and some went back for seconds...

All in all, it could hardly have been a finer evening for the cast of regulars who so enrich this house with their presence. And it all played out as an incredible spring day wrapped up in Winston-Salem. Even with the sense that this kind of holiday meal is a huge deal, the prep played out smoothly and I was mostly done with everything by early afternoon. That allowed lots of outside time in the nice breezes and ample sunshine, much to the delight of the house pooches.

Here is a shot of the man of the house, Sumner, in refined repose:

And here is the ever-watchful Scarlett, absolutely enthralled with the chasing of squirrels and therefore always in hypervigilant mode:

Once our guests had departed, leftover bags in hand, and all the clean-up was completed, I tackled my evening stroll in what remained an incredibly pleasant night. Here's how things looked from the east edge of Bailey Park as the last light of day was fading:

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Adapted from "Buttermilk-Brined Turkey Breast," by Amy Angelli of The Copper Table. [Published 17 October 2023]

"Layered Green Bean Casserole," a Jones Family favorite.

Adapted from "Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping," from Southern Living Slow-Cooker Cookbook,  (Oxmoor House, 2006), p. 234-235.

"Mary Margaret's Dressing," from Mary Margaret McKnight of Buies Creek, NC. Recipe obtained November 2002.