Suppertime - Remembering Daddy

I've been working on a project and you have seen parts of it with these posts. I've also been recording friends as we talk about Suppertime - family time around the table, recipes and remembering how life used to be for all of us.

After I finished a gig today I stopped by the nursing home where my Mom lives these days. On the way there I bought her a couple broasted chicken legs, broasted tater wedges and a roll. Though the food at the nursing home is healthy, it is pretty bland and they never have anything like the lunch I took her today.

We talked about a lot of things as she ate; my Daddy, food, what he liked and didn't like.  Daddy wanted meat and potatoes at every meal. According to Mom, "Most men from down in the mountains were like that. They wanted their meat an' taters."  I laughed and remembered that even when she fixed breakfast Daddy wanted bacon, sausage or even steak with his breakfast. Fried potatoes and gravy along with biscuits were a given.

"Your Dad didn't like macaroni and tomatoes. It was more of a main dish than a side dish. He didn't mind it, but it wasn't meat and taters.  I made it every now and then, but I had meat with it. Maybe a pork chop or chicken."

She really was enjoying the broasted chicken and tater wedges. After one chicken leg and one big tater wedge she decided she was full and put the rest aside for the aides to store in the kitchen till supper.

She reminded me that Daddy wasn't like a lot of folks. He didn't talk much as he ate. He was a serious eater.  Head down and fork in hand, Daddy went after food in a serious way.  Daddy wasn't ever much of a talker. 

Last time I ate with my Daddy was in mid March of 2004, just two months before we lost him.  I know it was just a day or two before my birthday which is March 16.

Mom had sinus surgery and started hemorrhaging after they arrived home.  After spending the day at the emergency room we were told she would be staying overnight.

I took Daddy home and on the way we stopped at Captain D's to get two country style catfish dinners. Daddy had sat by Mom all day and only left her side for bathroom breaks. I took him a sandwich around noon that day, but that had been seven hours before.  When we sat at their table he attacked that country style catfish dinner, eating his hush-puppies and mine. I said grace, of course. We did have time for that before we ate.

As we ate I said, "Boy, this catfish is sure good."

Daddy's only words as we ate, "Yeah man".  He ate every single bite of that dinner, catfish, fries, Cole slaw and hush-puppies all devoured quickly. He never talked when he ate. "Yeah man" was a lot for him to say.

I stayed the night with Daddy that night and took him to get Mom the next afternoon. We had Corn Flakes the next morning. Corn Flakes were Daddy's meal of choice most of the time when he worked 2nd shift. They had to be Kellogg's Corn Flakes with no sugar.

Daddy got sick quickly after that night I stayed with him. He was diagnosed with cancer on April 4th, 1984. He lost his battle 41 days later on May 15th, 2004. I had no idea he was sick when we sat at that table and ate. When I got into bed that night in their spare room, turned off the light and told him good night... well, I wish I had known I would lose him so quickly.

I've often thought God gave me that one last "Suppertime" with my Daddy. I was blessed to sit at his table one last time, hold his hand and say grace, thanking God for His blessings.

I suspect that each of us, if we could go back one more time and sit at the table with family and friends, would jump at the opportunity to share just one more suppertime.

Suppertime - Soup Beans!

I've been workin' on a project for a while and want to begin to share a few things that will be part of the project.  It is a book and CD combination that will be called "SUPPERTIME".  It is mountain stories, reminisces and good ol' down home recipes from family and friends.  The CD won't be a fancy studio recordin', but is being recorded around the table.  I've already started the recordin''s with friends and it is goin' to be wonderful.  You can hear the clink of glasses and plates faintly as they talk.

So, for today a simple but important recipe and a lesson for city folks and Yankees.  SOUP BEANS!

Soup beans have been a staple for mountain folks for many years, cheap, easy to dry and store and

full of flavor and nutrition.  Meat was often hard to come by and fresh meat was seldom seen years ago.  Mountain families often had a hog or two roamin' the hills and during the fall they would wait for "hog killin' time" , that is to say, cool weather that would be good for butcherin' a hog without spoilage.  Soup beans with a ham hock, fatback, hog jowl (jowl bacon to some) or a big ol' ham bone made good use of the leftover parts from a meal.

In addition to addin' a little meat to the soup beans, the bone and meat will have a little fat for flavor as well as addin' salt.

Please note, and this is important; Soup Beans means only one kind of bean in the hills - PINTO BEANS!  The bean is spotted like a pinto pony and this is the REAL bean for Soup Beans.




The recipe for Soup Beans is simple!

Place your beans in a pot and wash well.  There are often little rocks in the beans, so sift through them as you wash them, also toss any nasty lookin' beans.  I don't want to eat a nasty ol' bean.

Cover the beans with plenty of water and set them aside to soak overnight.  Some folks don't do this step, but I think it makes for a better pot of soup beans.  They plump up and absorb the water.  Also, some of the natural starches leech out and makes the beans (and you) a little less gassy.

Next day pour off the water, fill the pot and put on the stove on a medium low heat.  I like to cook beans low and slow.  Add some salt and pepper.  I do this by feel, but I'd say at least a tablespoon of salt at this point and maybe a teaspoon of pepper.  You will taste it as it cooks and can add seasonin' as needed.

I add my ham at this point.  I often have a big ol' ham bone that came from a Sunday dinner or maybe Easter or Christmas.  Some folks add some bacon grease if there isn't much fat on the piece of ham or ham hocks you add.  That is up to you and you can add bacon grease at any time for flavor.

As it cooks I stir it occasionally and add water as needed.  If you soak the beans overnight you won't add as much water as they cook.  Cook the beans for all day is usually how I cook them.  I want them to be thick and not soupy/watery when I eat them.

DO NOT STIR A LOT!  Over stirrin' will break the beans up and you will have mush.

That is the basic recipe that you would find back home.  I add a little garlic and a small onion chopped well to mine.  Gives it a bit more flavor.

Now, don't forget the cornbread an' an ol' onion to go with it.  If y'all are real mountain folks you might want a big ol' cold glass of buttermilk!

Supper Time

Sliced maters, fried taters, green beans
Squash an' sweet corn, sweet peas too
Onions fresh an' long shoots green
Big ol' ham hocks fallin' apart in them beans
Sliced up cuke an' radishes spicy red
Oh Lordy, cornbread golden in a cast iron skillet
Hot and steamy from that glowin' woodstove
Table laden an' over flowin'
Red checkered tablecloth almost hidden
Plates a clatterin', glasses clinkin'
Come an' get it, now, come on here
Its supper time children, suppertime.