Pear Salad Memories

Isn't it funny how sometimes a memory, from way back in the back of your mind, perhaps a memory not thought about in years, will suddenly pop into your head totally unprovoked? Maybe you're just moseying along, thinking some mundane or routine thought, totally unrelated to the suprise visit from your memory.
This happened to me the other day. I believe I was dwelling on upcoming assignments for my students, engrossed in the subleties of business writing...and WHAM! Into the forefront of my thoughts charges the memory of my mama's pear salad. "Where did that come from?" I thought. I haven't thought about or even had Mama's pear salad in ages. I was taken aback by the sudden memory, and then the longing for a bite of that sweet pear yummy-ness.
I've never seen or found this version of pear salad outside of the South. I believe there was once a generation of women who, at one time or another, routinely served this pear salad on their table. It was a staple of Mama's spring and summer menus, and always served at Easter.
So, this year, for the first time in many years, I'll be serving it on our Easter table. I'm afraid this old fashioned, southern Pear Salad may be one of those dying recipes from our past. I'm determined to keep it remembered, as generations of the women of my family did. Its simple, its good, its southern.
Pear Salad
1 can of pear halves, drained. (Save the pear juice for something else.)
Mayonnaise (preferably Dukes or Blue Plate)
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Maraschino cherries (whole or half, I like halves)
Simply place the pear halves on a pretty plate. Add a dollop of mayo to the little pitted center of the pear. Sprinkle with shredded cheddar. Add the cherry on top.

Sweet...tangy...tart...yum!

Sunday Pondering

Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheiritance?

You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.

You will again have compassion on us; and You will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.

You will be true to Jacob, and show mercy to Abraham, as You pledged on oath to our fathers in the days long ago.

Micah 7:18-20

A New Discovery

I love me some Pimento Cheese. But, I've never been able to stand the store bought versions. Thankfully my dear departed Aunt passed down a recipe to her sisters, my mother, and on to me. It was a heavenly blend of sharp cheddar, cream cheese, mayo, some secret spices and flavorings, and of course pimentos. Oh, once I did discover some made on site at a neat little family grocer in my town, and it came a very close second to Aunt Dottie's pimento cheese but I still often found myself whipping up batches of my own. Then...my friend Bella Michelle introduced me to this a few days ago....Good friend that she is, Miz Michelle knows my love of pimento cheese and low carb eating.

http://www.palmettocheese.com/

Palmetto Cheese? "Hmmmm....don't know this one, and besides its store bought." I said to myself, with doubt. But...on a whim yesterday, while in one of the large grocery store chains that were said on their website to carry Palmetto Cheese, I thought I would see if by chance they had it. They did! One container left of the original, one container left of jalapeno. "Which one?" I thought..."ok, I'll get both." Boy, am I glad I did! This stuff rocks! It comes the closest to tasting like my Aunt Dottie's pimento cheese than anything else I've ever tried. So yesterday, I had a scoop of original and a scoop of the jalapeno (and it has a KICK!) with a spinach salad for lunch. I decided today I would have it again for lunch...a scoop of each, a scoop of chicken salad, and a sliced tomato. What a bite of heaven for this low carb gal.

So, if you love good homemade pimento cheese, like I do...check out Palmetto Cheese. It's gooood. And, while you're at it, check out Bella Michelle's blog. She's an awesome writer, mom, and fine southern gal. I love her book reviews, recipes, and great outlook on life. http://www.southernsomedays.com/

Southern Springtime

Mark Twain once said, "In the spring I have counted one hundred and thirty six different kinds of weather inside of twenty four hours." Yesterday, it was 70 degrees at 10:30 a.m. By mid afternoon is was 83 degrees. We played at the lake, walked along the shoreline, rode the golf cart. We spent time resting on the dock, reading the latest gardening magazines. Last evening we grilled chicken outside on the grill. It was a wonderful Monday, the perfect way to start Spring Break. But by nightfall, it was stormy. Terrible storms that threaten to break the tree tops, bending periously in the wind. The kind of storm where lightening outside the window is enough to make one jump. The thunder boomed and the sounds of small twigs and debris could be heard hitting the house. This morning, its bright and sunny, but cold and breezy. It feels like winter is trying to make one final stand. One last hurrah to show us that she doesn't go out easily. This morning I said to God, "Ok, make up your mind already." I hope He smiled and wasn't offended that I would question His awesome power to orchestrate exactly what the earth needs to prepare for her spring beauty. I like to think he understands the longing of this southern girl's soul...for spring, warmth, new life, and always the return to my old places. "Look!" He says..."Here's what my power sends to you." Spring in the south is an awesome, ever changing landscape, just like life. Sometimes stormy, even terrifying storms...but always behind it comes the beauty, the blessings, the everpresent gifts of God. Always delightfully surprising.

I Love Spring

Yes, I do! Yes, I do! Time to dig in the cool, damp dirt. I love the smell of freshly turned garden soil. I love the wiggly wiggly earthworms. I love the way my muscles ache, after a long winter's rest from digging and planting. I love the flowers that peep out of the ground, the daffodils that are already showing off around my birdbath. Yes,I love spring.

Each year, I think about this poem, one of my favorite children's poems...

My Spring Garden...

Here is my little garden,
Some seeds I'm going to sow.
Here is my rake to rake the ground,
Here is my handy hoe.

Here is the big, round yellow sun;
The sun warms everything.
Here are the rain clouds in the sky;
The birds will start to sing.

Little plants will wake up soon,
And lift their sleepy heads;
Little plants will grow and grow
In their little, warm earth beds.
-Author Unknown

Pondering

I'm pondering this today...

From Zechariah 7:8-10....The word of the LORD came again to Zechariah: "This is what the LORD Almighty said: 'Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner, or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.'

I've read with interest on the recent events regarding the Immigration bill in our Georgia State House, as well as in the federal ranks. I understand the issue, I believe, from both sides. I've seen it from a range of experiences, working with "foreign" victims of crime, and from the legal system. I've seen it from the perspective of an HR manager in the workplace. I've seen it from the perspective of an educator. So, I'm pondering....pondering this verse, and my personal beliefs. I have no answers for myself, not yet.

At 16

Once upon a time, you liked matchbox cars, toy tractors, scooters, and sandboxes. You loved playing in the woods, running the creek, and feeding sugar cubes to the horses. You told elaborate stories of kings, soldiers, and monsters, and made your own swords out of sticks and limbs.

You loved the ocean, rolling in the waves and yelling at the top of your lungs. We built sandcities, big and elaborate. I thought you would be an architect, or an engineer. You loved crabbing on the pier, walking through the old places on the island, and telling ghost stories. You loved ice cream from that special shoppe.

Nowadays you love long hair, video games, computer games, playing the guitar, and acting in your school's improv club. You love your Itouch, and texting on your phone...all the time. You love driving, and dancing, and wearing a fedora.

You are 16 years old today. You are kind, funny, sweet, loving, and what a wild ride you have taken me on. At two, you literally climbed curtains. At four, you took apart the vacumn cleaner... and the VCR... and the TV. I sat on my bed and cried. At seven you read "real books mommy, not those baby books", and did math problems at an amazing speed. At sixteen....you're still my baby. Smart, witty, bright, fun...love. Love in its purest form. Happy Birthday sweet boy.

"Between the innocence of babyhood and the dignity of manhood, we find a delightful creature of a boy."