Author: Easin' Along

Americans are richly blessed to live in a nation founded on freedom and the right to worship. The older I get (and it’s coming too fast), the more grateful I become for the country I call home. I’ve traveled a lot of the world and even lived abroad for a while, and although each of those experiences was wonderful, they convinced me that we live in the greatest nation on earth.

Over the past seven years, Helen and I have visited every state in the Lower 48. We have marveled at America’s staggering beauty, the homespun friendliness of the small towns, the abundance of our natural resources, and the treasure and joy found in our National and state parks. We hiked a lot of trails, ate some fabulous food, and took a lot of pictures.

Six years ago, I made a short video using some of the pictures from our early trips. To accompany the pictures, I added Kate Smith’s stirring rendition of God Bless America, which always revs up the patriotic juices of this old soldier and fills me with pride. I wanted to share it again, and I hope you enjoy it.

Happy 247th Birthday, America! We’re still filled with pride, we’re still strong, and we’re still Easin’ Along!

Dora, our fifth wheel, was waiting for parts in the repair shop for over two months. While on our trip home from California, we hit some huge potholes in Texas, which probably caused the damage. A broken leaf spring and damage to one of the slideouts were the results, and we were temporarily grounded.

Good things come to those who wait, and our patience was rewarded when we received a call last week that the repairs were finished and Dora was ready to hit the road again. Helen and I decided to release some pent-up frustration and take a short trip to our favorite campground in Cherokee, NC. Helen called Happy Holiday Campground to see if our favorite campsite was available.  It wasn’t, so we reserved the one next to it, a spot on the creek and almost as good.

The weather forecast wasn’t ideal, but we figured we could handle anything for three days, so we loaded up a few food items, Helen’s puzzle, my camera, Mortimer, our English Bulldog, and drove east.  We managed to stay ahead of the rain all the way to the campground…then the sky opened up. I had to put my truck into four-wheel drive to back into the campsite—a first.

We decided to visit Cherokee Casino for Happy Hour in the late afternoon with no letup in the rain. The Casino is operated by the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation to benefit tribal members. The Casino is enormous and is as nice as any casino we have visited in Las Vegas or elsewhere. Casino gambling is not for everyone, but we consider it fun entertainment and budget about the same amount of money as we would for a nice dinner.

After Happy Hour, we returned to the campground to watch our Tennessee Baseball Vols play LSU in the College World Series and enjoy a hot dog for dinner. The hot dogs were a suitable substitute for an expensive dinner, but baseball could have been better. Oh well, we’ll get them tomorrow.

The following morning, Helen’s sister told us that Knoxville received over two inches of rain with more on the way.  That news received little sympathy as we stared out our trailer door at a deluge. We added more time to our morning coffee break and canceled our plans to go hiking. Mortimer seemed pleased with that decision.

The heavy rain allowed us time to relax, read books, puzzle, and do some cleaning after Dora spent two months in the shop. We stretched this routine until Happy Hour at the casino late that afternoon, then drove through the rain back home for Helen’s Ham Tetrazzini dinner and more baseball. Dinner was terrific, but our Vols lost again, ending their World Series run. Nevertheless, they enjoyed a great season; we’re proud of them.

By day three, our reading, puzzling, and music listening had us pretty laid-back but a bit restless nonetheless. The rain showers had diminished to a light but very steady drizzle. I had to get out and stretch my legs with a walk around the campground. No one else was out at the time except for the ducks that populate Happy Holiday. A short distance from our trailer was a large pile of wood chips that remained from a fallen tree.  I walked around it and spotted a Mama Duck sitting on her nest.  She had burrowed herself into the pile to avoid the worst rain.  Mama sat quietly and hardly gave me a second glance.

Further down the campground path, a lone Rhododendron stood proudly as the last one on the property. The blooming season is over, but the spring bloom was good if there were more like this one.

Soaked by now, I splashed my way back to the trailer where Mortimer was eager to show me his new trick—standing atop his crate instead of sleeping in it.  I guess he was a little restless himself.

We had rain on our camping trip…but I can’t remember when I was more relaxed.

We’re Easin’ Along.

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.