Hominy Ham Dish

I first published this recipe in May of 2010.  I invented it for a recipe contest which my Aussie sister-in-law was then having on her blog (since discontinued). It was in her top three but it didn’t win (probably because they couldn't make it since hominy is not readily available there), but my husband and I enjoyed it, so I thought I would post it here. :-)  I hope it’s a winner at someone’s house!

Personally, I love the color combination in this dish!  It is a very cheerful dish for dark autumn and winter days.  Sadly, I am no longer able to eat ham.  Made with fully-cooked, chicken it would lack a little color, but still probably taste quite good. :-)

--------------------------

2 Tbl. olive oil
4 med. garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 C. yellow hominy (or white), drained
1/2 C. sliced carrots
1/2 C. frozen peas
1 C. ham chunks (fully cooked)
3/4 tsp. onion powder
1/2 C. sour cream
Black pepper
Ground red pepper (capsicum) (mild, med. or hot according to your taste)

Heat a medium sized, non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add oil and garlic. Cook garlic just till done but not browned. 

Add hominy and cook, covered, till heated, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with onion powder. Add carrots and continue to cook over medium-high heat till hominy begins to "dry" but not brown, about 3-5 minutes. Stir occasionally. (Note: You may need to add a bit more oil or a tablespoon of water at some point during this process to keep the hominy from sticking. I used water when I added the carrots.)

Mix in ham. Sprinkle with frozen peas. Cover and cook over medium-low heat till ham and peas are heated through, stirring occasionally. Add black pepper to taste. Reduce heat to low. Add the sour cream and mix in thoroughly. Sprinkle very lightly with the red pepper. Cook over low just till the mixture is hot again. For best results, remove from heat and allow the dish to stand for about 5-10 minutes at this point to allow the flavors to blend well. Mix in the red pepper.

Serve with a leafy, green salad and your favorite salad dressing.

About 4 servings.

The Thousand Word Project – Frosting

In Loving Memory of Aunt Helen

 

Psalms 116:15  Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.

In April of 2014 I posted a memorial to my great-uncle, Dana Mathna.  This past summer his dear wife, Helen Hoover Mathna, went to be with the Lord also.

I told a good deal about Aunt Helen and their family in the previous post, so I will not repeat it all here, but please to take the time to go back and read it if you can.  Uncle Dana was a great blessing also, and I mentioned a good bit about Aunt Helen there as well and various things that affected her life.

Added to the previous information, Aunt Helen was born on January 29, 1925.  She was the sister of my grandfather.  She is the last one on either side of the family from my grandparents’ generation.  Somehow that seems sad to me because we’ve lost a connection with the past that can’t be replaced.  But, this is one of the aspects of time that is unavoidable.

Uncle Dana and Aunt Helen were married in June of 1946 and Aunt Helen wore my grandma’s wedding dress.  I believe they planned their wedding for when my grandparents would be home (see picture at the other post).

Aunt Helen was primarily a homemaker and loved her family very much (you can see more pictures of them all at the post about Uncle Dana). 

She was a sweet Christian and a real prayer warrior.  She was also a member of the Shippensburg First Church of God for 78 years!  She worked in the nursery, taught Sunday School and served as a Deaconess for many years.  After Uncle Dana retired, she helped him with custodial work at the church building.

This is the old building of the Shippensburg First Church of God (Pennsylvania).  It was within walking distance from their house, which was convenient for church meetings as well as the custodial work.  I remember attending services there.

My mother always speaks lovingly of Aunt Helen.  She thought very highly of her.  Mom’s family visited them and Grandpa’s home church in Shippensburg whenever they came home on furlough, and those were happy times to her.

This is how I remember Aunt Helen.  She is the only great-aunt that I knew very well, and I’m very thankful I had that privilege. I remember her as a kind and gentle lady.  She didn’t always talk as much as some of the others when we were all together, but you could tell she enjoyed being with her family and she considered us as part of that.  We stayed with them a couple times that I can remember and it was a pleasure to visit there.  I plowed my way through a collection of her books one summer when we spent a couple of weeks there. :-)  She had one of the sweetest smiles, and my mom has inherited it from her dad and his youngest sister.

This is Aunt Helen with her mother, my Great-grandma Hoover.  Aunt Helen really makes me think of my own mother in this picture!

I love this picture of Aunt Helen having a meal (dinner?) with these ladies.  I know two of them were related to her, and the little girl is her daughter, Janet (wasn’t she a cutie?).  That was her sister beside her and her mother is the first on the left.  Please notice that all the ladies in this picture are wearing aprons!  :-)  I am SO happy we have this picture! (Thanks to my Uncle Jim’s notable efforts at scanning.)

One thing I remember about Aunt Helen’s house was that the food was good.  She was famous in our family for her Chicken Corn Chowder and Pineapple Bake, as they called it.

----------------------

I found this recipe from Aunt Helen in my mom’s write-in cook book.

Chicken Corn Chowder

Boil 2 C. water

Add:
1 envelope chicken noodle soup dry mix
1 Tbl. onion
1/4 C. rice

Cook until done.

Add:
2 C. milk
1 8 oz. can cream style corn
15 oz. boned, fully cooked chicken

Heat through and serve.

----------------------

I couldn’t find the following recipe in the book, so I looked online and was able to figure out what it should be.

Pineapple Bake

Heat oven to 350F.

Cream:
1 stick butter
1 C. sugar

Beat in:
4 eggs, one at a time

Drain and stir:
1 20 oz. can of crushed pineapple

Fold in:
6 slices day old white bread, cubed

Pour into a greased casserole dish (I think it was 2 qt.) and bake for 50 minutes or till top is golden brown.

----------------------

I can’t post many pictures of her from later in her life because they aren’t scanned into the computer, and the ones my parents have would be time consuming to locate.  Perhaps another day (or year) I may add some.  Here is one last shot of her, which I love.  This was taken in their back yard.

The Thousand Word Project – Summer’s Bounty: Corn

 

Psalms 65:11-13  Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness.  They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness: and the little hills rejoice on every side.  The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with corn; they shout for joy, they also sing.

 

(Non-GMO Inca corn my dad has grown for two years now.)

Quick Meals - Black Beans and Hominy

 

What do you do when you need a fast meal but you don’t eat “prefabricated food” much (if at all)?  Most of us in Western culture have been trained by experience and advertising to think that in order to get a really fast home cooked meal we have to buy something that we simply pop in the oven, wait and eat.  If your family, like ours, are trying to get away from this type of meal, you may wonder how you can make a good, quick meal without eating out or using a lot of frozen dinners and meals in a can.  I’d like to share some simple recipes and methods with you that I’ve found useful.  These mostly have evolved out the fact that I have had health issues in the recent past that tended to make me abnormally weak and tired and also dietary needs that made it impossible for me to rely on those frozen meals that make home cooking abnormally easy.

I do use canned foods, but not much of the sort that comes with seasonings and goos and gunks in it – supposedly to make it taste “just like homemade” (which it never does).  We also use plain frozen vegetables.  (Our “indiscretions” in the line of pre-made meals mostly runs towards one particular kind of frozen pizza to which I still add things to make it more nourishing).

Most or many of these recipes may be so simple that I don’t have any measurements for them.  You will have to take the challenge of learning to cook by the seat of your pants.  And, after all, this is the first step to learning to make quick and easy home cooked meals.  You need to learn to take a few ingredients and just fly with it. :-)  Once you’ve done a bit it will start to come naturally and you will start to invent your own, if you don’t already.

Today’s recipe is super simple, but my husband and I both find it very tasty and filling.
---------------------------

Black Beans and Hominy

One can black beans and
One can hominy in the same size.  (I like golden hominy the best.)
Garlic powder
Onion powder  -- both to taste
Bacon or ham bits (optional – but it does improve the taste)

Heat all together in a medium to large sauce pan (depending on the size cans you use).  Serve with sour cream or grated cheese on top if desired.

For a spicier taste add red pepper flakes when cooking.

---------------------------

That’s it!  How easy is that?  I suggest serving it with a simple side salad, but even that is not particularly necessary.  :-)

(And, yes, that is a paper bowl. :-)  I’d gotten away from paper quite a bit at one point.  Then last year we had a sever drought here in Texas.  I realized that I might as well go back to using some paper plates/bowls and all paper napkins at that time because it actually saved on water use.  The paper “dishes” also save me extra work when it’s necessary that I save my energy or strength for something more important.  You may not agree, but this is what is best for us now.) :-)