Memories of Mom

After a short, very difficult battle with cancer, my mom went home to be with her Savior in December, 2009.  When I think of my mom, besides her favorite scriptures, I think of her cooking.  I remember getting off of the bus on Wednesdays, greeted with the smells of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn.  That was also the meal I requested when I went home from college.  And, not surprisingly, I haven’t even tried to master that meal.  I think I just know I couldn’t do it like her

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When our family gets together, it never fails that we talk about foods that Mom made.  My kids, even though they were young, even remember Nana letting them help her make biscuits in the mornings.  We miss so much about Mom, including her cooking.  That’s how she showed love to her family and friends, and I guess I do the same.

Mom was able to make home-cooked meals feed our family of six, plus usually extras, on a really tight budget.  She was able to make cooking look easy.  She was a natural, for sure, probably because she learned from my grandmother, who was also know for her cooking and baking.

One of the meals I remember was what she called “Poor Man’s Roast.”  I don’t know if she made it up or if she found it in a book or someone else told her about it, but it was so good!  I’ve made it for my family a lot, as well; and they love it.  It’s easy, for sure, and can be done in the oven or crock-pot.

When I made this last week, I did it in the crock-pot.  Ingredients are ground meat, cream of mushroom soup, onion soup mix, onion, carrots, and potatoes.  (What isn’t good with onion soup mix and cream of mushroom soup??)

Simply put ground meat in the bottom of the pot and press it down.  I used venison/beef this time.  Sprinkle the onion soup mix over the meat.  You can also add some pepper.  I don’t add salt because there’s plenty in the soups.

  

Add sliced onions.

Put carrots and potatoes on top.  I used full size, peeled and cut carrots.  Pour in the cream of mushroom soup.  I used two cans since I was making about 4 pounds of meat.  I added a little bit of water, but I realized at the end that I didn’t really need it.  It made the juice thinner.

I cooked it in the crock-pot on high for about 5 hours.  The important thing is to just make sure the meat is done.  Usually, the meat gets done before the carrots; so you can kind of judge it by the carrots and potatoes.

This is great served with white bread.  It can be a complete meal that can cook all day and be ready for dinner, without a lot of effort or clean-up.  Enjoy!

I’m so grateful that Mom provided such yummy food for our family, and she also showed us the importance of spiritual food from God’s Word.  One of her favorite passages was Psalm 91:1-2, which we saw her live out to the end.  I saw her trust in her God, her refuge and fortress to her last breath.  Thanks, Mom, for teaching us the importance of physical and spiritual food.  I miss you!

Psalm 91:1-2 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”