Category: Fun

Earlier this year, I was shopping for hardware in our neighborhood Lowe’s when I noticed about twenty-five Blackstone Griddles sitting near the entrance. Some of the Griddles had rust on the cooking surface, all covered in drywall dust. They were priced at well over $200. I went to find the manager.

The manager told me that the griddles were stored outside during the winter and were not covered.  I asked him if the price was firm or if there was some “wiggle room” considering the condition. He asked me to make him an offer. Ten minutes later, I had a Blackstone Griddle in my truck, and Lowe’s had $100 of my money. I was elated.

After experimenting with recipes, I was convinced that anything I could grill, I could griddle. The versatility of a griddle makes it an excellent appliance for outdoor cooking.  The first recipe I tried out for Helen was “Smashburger Tacos.” Unfortunately, I didn’t take pictures of the process, but I inserted a link to the video here and promise they are excellent.

One recipe I photographed is a side dish called “Bacon Fried Corn,” which worked extremely well with grilled chicken. When prepared for two, I used about a half-pound of bacon and crisped it on the Blackstone. When done, I set the bacon aside.

Next, I cleared most of the bacon grease from the griddle and added some diced green and red peppers and some diced onions on the griddle. I let them simmer in the remainder of the bacon drippings.

I used a one-pound bag of frozen corn for the next step and let them heat through completely alongside the peppers and onions. Once that step was completed, I mixed the corn, peppers, and onions together, added the bacon back into the mixture, and stirred in some fresh parsley.

I used Blackstone Tequila Lime Seasoning and a ribbon of Garlic paste for spices. Cheddar Jalapeno Cheetos are also added when finished to add a little crunch to the dish.

Thanks to my prowess as a multi-tasker, I grilled chicken thighs simultaneously and heated some fresh zucchini as a second side dish. The result was a delightful summer meal prepared outside without heating up the kitchen.

Sourdough Bread

I enjoy cooking, but I have no experience with baking outside of my favorite recipe for Molasses cookies (a recipe I’ll share in a future post). It was time to expand my range, but I didn’t know how or where to start—until this past week.

A lady in our exercise class walked into the gym sporting a large bandage.  I asked her what caused the injury, and she said she had burned herself while baking sourdough bread. After wishing her well, I asked her to tell me about her bread recipe. She then said she would bring it to the next class.

Two days later, she walked into the gym with two copies of the recipe and a pint jar of “starter,” a key ingredient for making sourdough bread. I was thrilled and rushed home, ready to expand my cooking horizons. On the way home, I ran into the supermarket for a bag of bread flour, a product different from the All-Purpose flour we had in our pantry.

The recipe called for six cups of bread flour, a half-cup of buttermilk (or oil), a tablespoon each of sugar and salt, a cup and a half of warm water, and a cup of the starter. I blended the flour mixture into a stiff batter, then transferred it to a lightly-greased large bowl where it would rise overnight.

The next day, I sprinkled some flour on a cutting board and then dropped the risen batter onto the board, dividing it into three parts.  Each part was placed into loaf pans and allowed to rise again. I let the loaves sit for about six hours.

When the loaves were ready to cook, I placed them in a preheated oven to 350 degrees and allowed them to bake for about 40 minutes. When done, I pulled them out to cool. The smell of fresh warm bread filled the kitchen, and I waited until my patience got the best of me and cut off a large slice…then bowed for five minutes.  The bread came out light and very flavorful.  If you like sourdough, this is an excellent way to prepare it. I’ve now made three batches, and Helen placed an order for one more to give away.

That’s what is on my plate—what’s been on yours?

Until next time, we’re eating well and Easin’ Along!

P.S. This post was shared with Retirement Reflections, a well-written blog by my online friend Donna Connelly. I have inserted a link to her blog here.

Easin’ Along has been on the sidelines for a few weeks. Helen and I returned home in April after a road trip to California…then let other events in our busy lives drive us forward. I’ll give a summary in the paragraphs below.

After returning home, we discovered a broken leaf spring on the passenger side of our fifth-wheel trailer and one of our slides needed repair. Dora is now in the shop and waiting for parts that won’t arrive until late July. Helen continues to receive treatments for breast cancer and is doing very well. She underwent surgery in May and is on the mend.  Her doctors tell her that she will completely recover and that the treatments will end in a few weeks.

While we were away, my brother and my sister moved my mom into a nursing facility and moved her furniture into my garage.  Mom is doing exceptionally well, but my garage pleaded for a better arrangement. Some friends took a few pieces of furniture into their consignment shop, and hopefully, buyers will emerge. A neighbor picked up a piece for her grandson. The remaining pieces of furniture still needed a home until this week when a ball bounced our way.

A friend in Helen’s pottery group mentioned that a group of ladies from a foreign country was moving to Knoxville and needed furniture and household appliances to help them settle. Helen reached out to the lady leading the effort. She accepted our offer of furniture and provided some details about the recipients–members of the Afghan Women’s Basketball Team.

When the United States departed Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban took over the country and immediately denied women the right to an education and to play sports. With the swift assistance of some International Rescue groups, members of the Women’s Team were led out of the country with nothing more than a backpack and temporarily settled in Albania. Efforts continued to find a permanent home for the athletes until word reached Sarah Hillyer, a faculty member at the University of Tennessee. Sarah and Michelle Marciniak, a former star basketball player under the legendary Pat Summitt, traveled to Albania to meet with the team and offer help.

Mindful that Pat Summitt’s life focused intently on education and basketball, Sarah and Michelle felt that there was no better place for the team to settle than Knoxville, where they could further their education at the University and live in freedom in one of the most livable places on earth. (For more on the story, click here).

Two of the ladies have arrived and moved into apartments. The rest of the team will come soon. Much is needed to help them during the early days in their new home.

Last week, Michelle and another volunteer arrived in a large truck to pick up our furniture. I remembered Michelle from her time as a Tennessee Volunteer and her performances in winning two National Championships under Coach Summit. I could have chatted with her all morning about basketball and the Afghan Team project, but our pick-up was just one of many, and they had to keep moving.

They loaded the furniture without our help.  I jokingly commented to Michelle as she lifted a desk effortlessly that she was “tough.” She replied, “I had to be to play for Pat Summit.”

Helen also added a smattering of household appliances like an air fryer, a toaster, and a blender to the collection. They posed for pictures, we exchanged thanks and well-wishes, and they were off to help another downsizing household and some deserving women.

We got our garage back and felt great doing so.  We’re Easin’ Along.

I’ve worn many hats in my life, but one role I am very proud of is my time as president of the Appalachian Anglers Society. This group is composed of men who love the sport of fishing for trout in the waters of our mountains and share a love of the great outdoors. Since 1957, our group has held a three-day event in the Cherokee National Forest near Tellico Plains, Tennessee. The founders of the Society dubbed the gathering Camp II. I spent my 30^th birthday at my first Camp II and attended regularly for at least two decades.

Over the last ten years, my attendance at Camp II has been sporadic due to our RV travel. However, I still visit the Cherokee National Forest at least once a year for “mind cleansing” and because I cherish my time surrounded by the unbelievable beauty of the area.  There is something about the roar of a mountain stream that shuts out much of life’s noise.

Camp II is usually held during the first weekend of May. For many years we had the event in a group campground. Still, due to a shortage of Forest Service personnel, we were asked to move the camp from McNabb Branch to the Holly Flats campground about six miles further into the forest near the North Carolina border.

I love Holly Flats and have often camped there with the Anglers and my family. Nevertheless, this campground is too small, and the road is too steep and narrow for our trailer.  I’m long past my tent-camping days, so I drove down for one day, taking my new dog, Mortimer, with me. I also had a mission on this visit.

The eighteen-mile drive along the Tellico River from Tellico Plains to the road over the mountain to Holly Flats is captivating. The fast-flowing and scenic river heightens the sense of what it means to be alive and in the presence of such beauty. I never tire of it. I paused once to enjoy the stream and give Mortimer his first taste of Tellico River water.

I arrived at Holly Flats just before noon. There was little movement in the campground. This was predictable—many of the campers were out for a day of fishing, and several of the younger guys were still sleeping off the first night’s usually raucous activities. Tucked into one corner of the campground were several friends of mine and veterans of Camp II—guys who learned long ago to pace themselves. I chatted away and enjoyed myself immensely recalling old stories of Camp II’s of the past. Mortimer made several new friends as well.

My overall mission for the trip was to honor one of our members who passed away recently—my brother-in-law, Jimmy Dean. Jimmy, Helen’s younger brother, died in a tragic fall at his home last November. He was a long-time Anglers member and loved every minute of Camp II. Jimmy is pictured below, bottom row, fourth from the left.

His lovely daughters gave me one of his hats and asked that I leave it somewhere in the campground as a tribute and a memorial to Jimmy. I was honored that they asked and accepted immediately. I wrote a short note to go with the hat and had it laminated before the trip to the campground.

I could have stayed well into the evening and feasted on the Prime Rib dinner being prepared on the smoker that a brave Angler towed over the mountain, but I needed to scoot before temptation took over. I spotted a tree in the corner of Holly Flats, overlooking the Bald River, that was the perfect spot to give Jimmy’s hat a home.

A number of the campers asked that I read the note, and another camper brought a ladder over, allowing me to nail the hat high on the tree trunk, away from trouble and perched high above a section of still water. Mission accomplished.

Leaving Camp II is always difficult; this year was no different. As I drove along the river, past Bald River Falls, and back toward Knoxville, I again found myself so grateful for another visit to this blessed sanctuary and that a piece of Jimmy was there, shared with his friends.

In no hurry to depart, I was Easin’ Along…slowly.