What I Cooked Tonight!

In my previous post I told  you about the cookbook my daughter got me for Christmas, Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible.  Tonight I decided to make something from the book.  I chose Fried Pork Chops with Tomato Gravy from page 142. 

Source:  Goodreads

Fried Pork Chops with Tomato Gravy

4 bone-in center-cut pork chops (1 inch thick, 1/2 pound each)
Salt and Black Pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
3 T. olive oil
4 T. butter
2 T. finely chopped onion
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c. whole milk
1/2 c. chicken broth or water
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, drained

1.  Lightly sprinkle the chops on both sides with salt and black pepper, then sprinkle with garlic powder.  In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.  Add the chops and cook, without moving, until a dark golden crust forms on the bottom of each, 5 to 6 minutes.  Flip the chops and cook for 5 minutes more.  Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate to drain.

2.  Add the butter to the skillet and melt.  Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes.  Go ahead and reduce the heat if the onion starts to brown too quickly.  Sprinkle the flour over the onion and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.  Slowly whisk in the milk, then the broth or water.  Simmer the mixture until thickened , about 5 minutes.  Whisk in the tomatoes, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. black pepper.  Spoon the sauce over the pork chops and serve to a hungry family.
(Recipe Source:  Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible, pg. 141)


I chose to serve the pork chops over brown rice along side crispy fried okra, and here's the finished product.

Source:  My Photo

This was a fairly easy recipe, fun to cook, and the end result was yummy!  The okra went very well with the gravy and rice...it added the needed crunch to the meal.  Plus I think tomatoes and okra go well together.

That's what I cooked tonight!!!

Southern Belle Reading Challenge Wrap Up...Man Was It Fun

Southern Belle Reading Challenge
Hosted by Brenda Gail at Curling Up With A Good Book 

Well September is over, and I'm sad to say so is the Southern Belle Reading Challenge.  But I'm glad to report that Brenda says she will host it again next year...Yay!  So if you missed it this year start making your list now. 

This challenge was about all things "southern"...fiction set in the south, non-fiction, cook books, magazines, food, music, festivals, and famous southerners.  Before this challenge I hadn't read all that much southern fiction, but now I have to say that I have a real love for it.  I have found so many good books and authors by participating in this challenge.  Not only did I find lots of new books...I found a new blog that I absolutely love and visit every day.  Brenda did such a great job running this challenge.  Every day she posted a southern topic on her blog, and they were all different.  I learned a lot about the south, and had fun doing it.  I also loved reading all the great comments from others doing the challenge.  I'm always interested in what others are reading.

I read 5 books in the month of September for the Southern Belle Reading Challenge.

Source:  Goodreads

The first book I read for the challenge was The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.  You can read my review HERE.

Source:  Goodreads

 The second book I read for the challenge was My Summer of Southern Discomfort by Stephanie Gayle.  You can read my review HERE.

Source:  Goodreads

 The third book I read for the challenge was Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg.  You can read my review HERE.

Source:  Goodreads

Book number four and perhaps my favorite from the entire challenge was Hissy Fit by Mary Kay Andrews.  I had no idea what to expect from this book, and to be honest I was expecting a shallow girly book.  Boy was i wrong!  This was a deep meaningful book, but fun at the same time.   You can read my review HERE.

Source:  Goodreads

The fifth and final book I read for the challenge was The Southern Belle of Honeysuckle Way by Linda Bruckheimer.  I haven't posted a review yet, but look for it soon!


My goal for the challenge was 4 books.  I met it plus one, so I'm very happy.  The Southern Belle Reading Challenge was lots of fun, and I will definitely be doing it again next September.  Thanks Brenda!!!

Book # 3 For the Southern Belle Challenge: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe

Source:  www.goodreads.com
395 pages

Goodreads Summary
Here is a folksy and funny, endearing and affecting, southern-fried tale about two very special friendships. In a small town near Birmingham sits the Whistle Shop Cafe, a place alive with the hungry, the heartbroken, the righteous and the garrulous. The cafe is owned by sweet, patient Ruth, and by Idgie, irresistibly big-hearted and big-mouthed. Their story is remembered, years later, in the Rose Terrace Nursing Home. As elderly Cleo Threadgoode chats with her visitor—the over-stuffed, overwrought, menopausal Evelyn Couch—she casts a hypnotic narrative spell: honeysuckle vines and custard pies; births, deaths and marriages; sorrow and laughter; an occasional murder—and even the recipe for fried green tomatoes. And as the past reaches into the present, the Whistle Sop Cafe touches the one thing missing from her existence: life.

Fannie Flagg
Source:  Southern Living

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I have been meaning to read this book for years...probably since I watched and loved the movie years ago.  My sister read it a while ago, and she, knowing my taste in books, said I should definitely read it.  She actually did a guest blog on it back in June.  You should go back and read her post if you have the time.  It's really good.  Finish mine first thought :)

As for my thoughts on the book...She was right.  I really really liked this book, and oh how different it is than the movie.  My favorite character was sweet Mrs. Threadgoode.  Her simple honest way of telling her life story to poor discouraged Evelyn won my heart early in the book, and although I liked Idgie, I found myself at times getting aggravated with her.  What I did admire so much about Idgie was her acceptance of everyone...white, black, male, female, rich or hobo...she treated everyone the same, and she understood that everyone has problems and makes mistakes in life.  Another of my favorite characters is Smokey Lonesome simply because I'm a sucker for undying love.  It gets me every time.

I liked how the story was told in short little snippets.  It really gives you the feel of someone telling you their story as the memories flood in, not necessarily in chronological order.  There were parts of the book that were from "The Weems Weekly: Whistlestop, Alabama's Weekly Bulletin" written by Dot Weems.  I always found these very entertaining, and so indicative of small town life.  I think it was unique way to convey information from a different point of view.

This is book number three for the Southern Belle Reading Challenge which I am participating in for the month of September.  This challenge is hosted by Brenda Gail over at Curling Up With a Good Book.  My goal for this challenge is four books.  It's looking like I may be able to do even more than that.  It's been really fun!

We Went to the Library!

After I picked my daughter up today, we went to the library.  She's been wanting to check out some Goosebumps books, and I wanted to get some books myself.  She ended up getting ten "Goosebumps" books.

A couple days ago I told you about a reading challenge I'm participating in during the month of September.  It's called the "Southern Belle" challenge, and the idea is to read books set in the South.  It is hosted by Brenda Gail at Curling Up With a Good Book.


I got four books from the library today to get me started...


Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg

Source:  www.goodreads.com

The Secret Life of Bees: A Novel by Sue Monk Kidd

Source:  www.goodreads.com

My Summer of Southern Discomfort by Stephanie Gayle

Source:  www.goodreads.com

Hissy Fit by Mary Kay Andrews

Source:  www.goodreads.com