201 S McNeill St.
Carthage
age
coffee • tea • lunch • coffee • tea • lunch •
HOME SWEET SOUTHERN HOME continued
Mary Beth Voelker is a writer, a mother,
a cook, a gardener, and a crafter. Though
originally from Pittsburgh, she and
her family kept coming back to North
Carolina until God let them stay. She likes
to say that while she has often been bored
at work she has never been bored at home.
HOME SWEET SOUTHERN HOME continued
HOME SWEET SOUTHERN HOME con't. next column HOME SWEET SOUTHERN HOME con't. next column
M-F 6AM-7P
Sat: 8AM-6P
Sun: Clos
Original
Tyson & Jones
Buggy Co. of Carthage
Buggy #1407
c. June 1914
PM
PM
sed
(910) 722-2076
910-692-0882
Forever Young Med Spa
160 Turnberry Way • Pinehurst
My Top 12 Kitchen
Gadgets
by Mary Beth Voelker
So, you’re spring-cleaning your kitchen and
looking at your jammed drawers and overstuffed
cupboards trying to figure out what’s worth
keeping and what should go. Or, maybe you’re
going to a wedding shower and trying to pick
a gift. There are some gadgets you use all the
time and some that gather dust. Here’s my list of
things I actually use:
• Prep/measuring bowls. The sort that have
measurements from 1/8th of a cup to 2 cups.
I use these both as measures and to set out
ingredients before I start a long recipe so I don’t
miss anything.
• Paddle strainer for my pots. It’s very
convenient to drain a pot without having to
dump the contents into a colander then return
them to the pot, and it’s easier to wash.
• Hot air popcorn popper. No trouble. No
mess. Using real butter and controlling the
amount of salt makes it taste better too.
• Mandoline. If I’ve got more than a single
cucumber or a quarter-head of cabbage to slice
I get this out of the cupboard for fast, perfect
slicing and shredding in quantity. Tip—while
the ones that the blades store in the unit look
like a good idea, they’re actually harder to clean.
Go with separate blade storage when you choose
yours.
• Garlic press. Get a good one, and it’s instant
mincing any time you need it. Most are easy to
wash or go in the dishwasher.
• Imersion blender. I don’t use it as often
as I use some of the other gadgets, but when I
need it I NEED it. Most often I use it to mix aged
bread dough into a new bucket for the good,
sourdough flavor or for smoothing out pasta
sauces made from diced tomatoes.
• Lemon Juicer. There are many kinds. I like
the one that squeezes the lemons inside out
while straining out the seeds best. I use it often
because I often finish pan-broiled pork chops or
chicken with some fresh lemon juice just before
serving.
• Wire whisk. I have all sizes, but the mediums
are the most useful. From beating eggs to stirring
pan gravy into lump-free smoothness they’re
the best.
• 8-cup, Pyrex measure. Cooking for a big
family I use this so often I bought a second one.
It’s not just a measure, it’s a mixing bowl you can
pour from.
• Jar Opener. This was a present from my
daughter-in-law. I have small hands and have
trouble with lids. I don’t know how I managed
for so long having to hunt for someone else to
open jars for me.
• Silicon brushes. So much easier to clean
than the old-fashioned bristle type.
• Accusharp Knife sharpener. People get cut
by dull knives. Food gets cut by sharp ones. This
is the best tool I’ve had for maintaining the edge
I’ve put on with my stones.
Following are a few seasonal-use items I
can’t do without.
• Apple corer/slicer. I like to make applesauce
in the fall when I can get good deals on apples
in bulk. This makes processing them so much
easier.
• Food mill. This gets pulled out when I’m
making jam, applesauce, and the Thanksgiving
cranberry sauce.
• Potato masher. Because boxed mashed
potatoes don’t cut it for holidays. It’s also useful
in cold weather when I make potato soup.
And, speaking of Spring Cleaning, I
recently went through my cookbook shelf
and weeded it down almost by half. I got rid
of the ones I’d gotten because something
looked cool but never actually used and
kept the ones with the stained covers and
beat-up pages.
The best of the survivors include the
following:
I can’t live without my Women’s Day
Encyclopedia of Cookery. 12 well-used volumes
from 1965—the sort of thing you bought one
per week at the grocery store. After I left home,
without my Mother’s copy, it took me years to
find a complete set. It’s my go-to cookbook
when I want to learn a cooking technique I’ve
never tried before. Wiener Scnitzel? It’s in there.
Amish schnitz and knepp? It’s in there. Roast
suckling pig? It’s in there.
Good, old Betty Crocker. You’ve got to have
one like this because it’s got the basic recipes
you need when you can’t remember how many
tbs of flour to how much liquid for the gravy,
what you season the stuffed peppers with, or
how much baking powder to put in the biscuits
if you’re not using self-rising flour.
The Moosewood Cookbook, which is an
old vegetarian cookbook which is also a piece
of hand-lettered and hand-illustrated art. I’m
not a vegetarian and almost never make a fully
vegetarian meal other than spaghetti or mac
and cheese. But I often find that these tasty
veggie and/or grain dishes are excellent sides
and many need only a little chicken or browned
ground beef to make an all-in-one family meal.
The Ball Blue Book. Invaluable basic
reference for anyone who ever cans, pickles, or
makes jam. These recipes are what you grew up
thinking jam and pickles were supposed to taste
like. I need a new one though because mine is
so well-used that it’s shedding pages beyond the
ability of tape to repair.
My stained, old cookbooks are like old
friends. From time to time I’ll pick one up and
just read through it like a novel remembering
successes and looking for ideas I haven’t tried.
Creamy Chicken, Vidalia,
and Cheese Soup
Sweet onions, sharp cheddar, and the
richness of homemade chicken stock. Does it
get better for a light meal in Vidalia season?
Ingredients
4 large vidalia onions, quartered and sliced
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 cups chicken stock (Homemade is best, but
if using canned or bullion be careful about how
much salt you add)
1 lb cooked chicken, cubed
1 pinch thyme
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
fresh ground black pepper to taste
8 ounces cream cheese or 8 ounces neufchatel
cheese, cut in chunks
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 lb sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Parsley (optional)
Directions
Saute onions gently in butter and olive oil
until soft and golden. Keep heat low to avoid
excessive browning.
Add chicken stock, meat, thyme, salt, and
pepper. Bring to boil then turn down to simmer.
Add cream cheese and allow it to melt inches.
Whisk cornstarch into the cold milk then
add to soup. Heat to a simmer again, stirring
regularly to prevent lumps. Taste and correct
seasonings if necessary.
Stir in sharp cheddar until melted.
Serve, garnished with parsley if desired.
Alternately, use ham and ham broth instead
of chicken and chicken stock.
No. 129 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. p.11