March's Recipe: Southern Creamed Corn

They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach.  If so, this is a sure-fire interstate to Tim Barnette's heart.  He LOVES this dish.  I hope you do, too.

Southern Creamed Corn

Recipe Courtesy of Paula Deen

8 ears corn, husked and cleaned with kernels removed

"Milk" from corn cobs

2 Tbsp. sugar

1 Tbsp. flour

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup cold water

2 Tbsp. bacon grease from...

3 pieces cooked bacon 

(we use thick-cut Applewood bacon, but you use your family's favorite)

1 Tbsp. butter

Directions: Fry 3 pieces of bacon.  Remove the bacon from the pan, but reserve the grease in the pan.

In case you folks haven't noticed, between the bacon, the bacon grease, the heavy cream, the butter and the sugar...this is not so much a healthy sidedish!  That's why in my house this is categorized as a "sometimes treat." :)

 Meanwhile, in a large bowl, cut kernels from cob.  Then "milk" the corn by running down cobs with the back of a knife.  If you've never "milked" a corn cob, you've missed-out on a treat!  The thick liquid that comes out of a fresh corn cob is sweet and delicious.

 Mix together sugar, flour, and salt and pepper.  Combine with the corn.  Add the heavy cream and water.  Mix well.

 In a large skillet over medium-low heat, add corn mixture to bacon grease.  Heat for about 30 minutes. Before serving, add bacon pieces and butter.  Enjoy.

-Kara

Passover Seder

Our church tremendously enjoyed an explanation and demonstration of Passover last night by our Messianic-Jewish church planters, Howard and Melissa Taylor.  Howard and Melissa have planted Messianic-Jewish synagogues in Nags Head, Greenville, Ahoskie, and at our church here in Rocky Mount.  Howard himself is Jewish but is now a Christian.

For those unfamiliar with the concept...a Messianic Jew is someone who practiced Judaism but who has accepted Christ as Messiah.  Because the traditions of Jewish culture differ greatly from those of Protestants, Messianic Jews often struggle to assimilate comfortably into Protestant churches.   Howard and Melissa plant churches that serve newly-saved Jews by offering them the same formality of worship, music, and practices of the Jewish synagogue BUT that teach the New Testament and salvation through Christ.  These church plants also target Jews for evangelism and have the opportunity to lead Jews to Christ.

At the end of their demonstration, Howard and Melissa offered those interested in the opportunity to taste Passover foods such as horseradish and bitter herbs.

-Kara

"Marsh at Noon"

"Marsh at Noon" by Christopher Barnette, age 12.  

16x20 oil on canvas.

Teacher: Melody of Melody's Art World

Goose Creek State Park

This week we made a little field trip to the Goose Creek State Park in Washington, North Carolina.  What a beautiful state park!  The "creek" is actually a waterway that looks much larger than many rivers we've seen.  And there are plenty of hiking/walking trails that wander through the pine forests...

So here's what we saw at the state park:

FOSSILS

RACCOON TRACKS

FROGS

 GIANT TADPOLES, some about the size of a human hand

RED-BELLIED WATER SNAKES

FISH

(this one was about 14" long)

TURTLES

With all this exciting wildlife to see, Tim couldn't possibly be expected to stay on the safe and lovely boardwalk that was provided by the park service.  Nope, he had to venture off here and there to see what he could find...

And in the visitor's center, Anna gave a bear a....bear hug.  :)

There were lots of stuffed animals to investigate in the visitor's center, many of which having been captured within the park.  I would recommend the Goose Creek State Park to anyone in the area who loves nature as my family does.

Welcome Spring

Saturday was our first time really being outside in the fresh air this year.  Being a four-seasons kind of gal, I find that there is always something to look forward to: the first snowfall, the first bonfire in autumn, the first time baring your pasty-white legs in shorts in the summer, and yes...the first walk in the spring!  The five of us enjoyed a stroll through the Wilkerson Nature Preserve and around Falls Lake, both of which are in Raleigh.  

I have to hand it to Raleigh for having the foresight and wherewithall to partition the Wilkerson Nature Preserve, 157-acres of land right in the middle of some of the most expensive real estate in the vicinity.  Tempting though I am sure it would be for developers to build on that land, its preservation will make the area more enjoyable and liveable for those in the Raleigh/Wake Forest area.

The beautiful Carolina sky.  Its hew looks something between a UNC blue and a Duke blue, depending upon which team one roots... ;)

And on our walk we heard spring peepers.  

So it's official.  

It's spring.

Marbles Children's Museum, Raleigh

 To make-up to Anna for forcing her to endure the Duke and UNC Basketball musuems last month, this week we took Anna to the Marbles Children's Museum in Raleigh.  (For those of you who are unaware with the concept, "children's museum" is another name for "indoor playground you have to pay money to visit.")  Nonetheless, there were enough various educational things here and there which enable classroom teachers and homeschool moms to label this a "field trip."  Fun was even had by Anna's older brothers, who were good sports about the whole thing.  They especially liked the Giant Lego room.

The best thing about the museum was its Imax theater, which was showing a film called Jerusalem.  It was FANTASTIC.  (Granted, we were the only people in the theater. The other schoolchildren were all seeing the movies about blue whales and the rainforest.  The Barnettes seem to be the only folks interested in a 45-minute 3D film about Jerusalem...ha!)  The movie showed beautiful, sweeping scenes of the city, and followed the story of 3 girls who live there:  one a Jew, one a Christian, and one a Muslim.  It was a fair, non-offensive look at how those three religions interact (or should I say do not interact) with each other within the boundaries of the city, and even Tim and I learned from it.  Anyone who ever comes across the Imax Film Jerusalem would find it well worth their time and $5.