When Pigs Fly, a visit with Deb Coty, and Sacred Breath

Welcome, y’all. Shellie here, in this week’s episode of All Things Southern, I’ll be visiting with Deb Coty, best-selling author of the phenomenally successful Too Blessed to Be Stressed Series. Deb is a popular humorist, speaker, and award-wining author. She’s also a choco-athlete. We’ll let her explain that one.  (Listen to the audio to find out how to enter a giveaway drawing for a personalized copy of Deb’s book!)

 

Before we’re through I’ll share some good cooking from the All Things Southern kitchen and bring you a few devotional thoughts. Right now, let’s chat…

They’re back! The PajamaGram people are at it again, and this time they’re offering matching holiday pajamas for you and your favorite dog. I should’ve seen this coming. Those PajamaGram folks are nothing if not persistent. For years now, they’re been pushing Hoodie-Footies on well meaning husbands who are desperate for gift ideas. And for just as many years, I’ve been warning my beloved farmer not to fall for it.

“Yes, Phil. I know they say Hoodie Footies will make your sweetheart silly happy, but they’re lying to you. Trust me, here.”

I’m even less enthused about their matching canine pajamas, although I’m not above using them to threaten Hank and Beau. I told Double Trouble if they don’t quit chewing up the place, I’m taking them to Nanee’s Christmas party in fluffy pink Hoodie-Footies! Desperate times call for desperate measures and all that.

Which reminds me, I ran across some news that you and your furry friends may want to know about before you make your holiday travel plans. Some states are cracking down on the fraud surrounding the service animal industry. They’re defining and regulating exactly what a service animal is and is not. Owner beware— you can face a huge fine for pretending your beloved pet is a service animal so they can fly with you. Nor will it work to suggest that your favorite canine is in training as a Seeing Eye Dog just in case you go blind at some point in the future.

Yeah, that last example was for Papa. Not that he’s ever tried to pass Lady’s fat little Dachshund self off as a service animal but it doesn’t hurt to keep your people informed. Besides, I happen to agree with him that, with or without papers, Lady should qualify as a legit service dog before those therapy squirrels and emotional support pigs that have been gaming the system.

I mean this in the nicest way, but if you need to hold a pig to say calm in the friendly skies, I’ll wait for the next flight!

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Interview with Deb Coty *you’ll find this on iTunes (you can subscribe for free!) or you can listen through the audio link at the bottom of this post. Just look for the audio bar and hit the play button!

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Hey folks! Welcome back to the All Things Southern kitchen. Meatloaf has never been a favorite of mine or the beloved farmer’s. I think we had a few too many back in the day. However, I’ve taken meat loaf over the top with some new ingredients and my sauce plays a big hand in it. Let me walk you through it!

The Belle’s Reimagined Meat Loaf

Ingredients:

1.5 pounds ground hamburger meat
2 cups crushed saltine crackers
1 white onion, diced
2 tablespoons butter
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning
Black pepper

Sauce:
1 cup Ketchup
1 capful Balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Brown sugar
½ teaspoon dry mustard

Mix ground uncooked beef with crushed saltine crackers, a cup of milk, and one egg. Sauté’ diced white onion in butter and add to beef. (No more raw onions going into my meatloaf. Caramelize those babies and they’ll add a lot more flavor.)

Season meat mixture with crushed red pepper flakes, minced garlic, Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning and black pepper. Instead of making one large loaf, I like to form mine into nice sized servings—like you would with hamburger steaks.

Prepare the sauce by taking a small bowl and combining the listed ingredients. Place loaves on a raised grill inside a roasting pan (to catch the drippings), and pour sauce across them. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for an hour and fifteen minutes and knock the socks off your family! That’s The Belle’s Reimagined Meat Loaf! You can also find this recipe in my storytelling cookbook, Hungry is a Mighty Fine Sauce! Which reminds me, have you found my boxed gift set?  It includes a copy of Devotions for the Hungry Heart and my storytelling cookbook! The fine folks at Barbour publishing have released it right in time for Christmas. They make great gift ideas, full of laughs inspiration, and mighty good eating from the All Things Southern kitchen to yours!

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Southern Comfort

Let’s open the Word together before we go. Psalm 107.9 reads, “God satisfies the hungry and fills the thirsty soul.” And Job 33:4 reads, “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”

Friend, you and I can’t breathe so deeply today, that we need not breathe tomorrow. We’d roll our eyes at the very suggestion. And yet, we willingly allow ourselves to live air hungry for Jesus.

May we establish this deep in our souls: Our spiritual strength and wellness is as wholly dependent on the ongoing nourishment we draw from Jesus as our physical lives are on the breath in our lungs. We can do religion under our own steam, but we are completely and totally dependent on Christ for a living faith.

Bind us to you, Lord.
Stir our hunger.

That’s it for this week folks, I want to leave you with a reminder to join me for Giving Thanks, a Christmas Adventure! You can subscribe here. Until next time, may the Good Lord bless you and keep you, make His face to shine upon you, and give you peace. This is Shellie with hugs for all~

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