Homebound Reflections

It was on my calendar to drive down to the area where I grew up to have lunch with the gals I attended high school with today, BUT... it's 19 degrees outside [feels like 10] and more snow is predicted this afternoon so I decided to stay home and join them next month instead. 

Below is a picture I took from my front porch yesterday.  It's not a lot of snow, but enough to make you want to stay inside where it's warm and cozy, and drink lots of tea.  It's the perfect month for National Hot Tea Month.

We're enjoying our 5th pot of homemade soup since the beginning of January:  Northern White Bean & Ham;  Split Pea & Ham; Hamburger Vegetable with Barley; Creamy Cauliflower; and Chicken Noodle [actually I used Orzo pasta instead of noodles because I had it in the pantry and didn't want to go out to the store to buy noodles].  Soups are comfort food at it's best when it's cold outside, and they're so healthy.  

My hubby and I went to Ike's Lebanese restaurant Sunday after church and I ordered Lemon Lentil Soup, and now I'm anxious to make a pot of that at home, along with six other's on my list [which keeps growing].

I've been keeping occupied while staying indoors by reading about former President Carter and his beloved wife, Rosalynn.  Last week I watched his memorial service at The Carter Center in Atlanta; transporting his body to the U.S. Capitol and the service there; the beautiful service at the National Cathedral; returning his body to Plains for the service at Maranatha Baptist Church and interment at the Carter home property.   What a remarkable couple with no 'dirty laundry' for the media to exploit!

I read previously that Jimmy Carter was the second-best presidential cook after Ike [Dinner with the President], and he and Rosalynn shared cooking responsibilities.  One article stated he taught Rosalynn how to cook when they were first married, and another contradicted it by saying she helped her mother cook for her three siblings when her father died.  Regardless, they also enjoyed cooking together sometimes too, as they did with so many other activities. What fun it was watching Paula Deen's two shows where she went to Plains and cooked with President Carter.

I ordered the book, The Carter Family Favorites cookbook and am anxious for it to arrive

One of Mr. Carter's favorite foods was cornbread.  Executive White House Chef, Henry Haller, [1966-1987] shared the Carter's cornbread recipe in his book, White House Family Cookbook [it's on my wish list].  I decided to honor the former President by making cornbread for dinner last night to go with our soup.  It was yummy.

Since Mr. Carter was a peanut farmer, he loved anything with peanuts in it, including Peanut Butter Pie, so that was our dessert last night.  My hubby is a peanut butter lover so it was a hit with him, and I liked it too.  I should point out, however, that the Carter's ate very healthy, which meant watching their sugar intake and avoiding foods with additives - they made fresh foods a priority, and limiting their fat and sodium intake.  The White House Chef said he only prepared a dessert for them on weekends.  Maybe that's why he lived to be 100 and Rosalynn 96?? 

President Carter did enjoy dairy products - cheese in particular, and would include it in another favorite food - grits.

I read that the Carter's liked tea.  Mr. Carter drank tea or coffee with meals, and sometimes chose hot tea over coffee.   If he had iced tea he drank Lipton's.  Below is a photo of the President and Rosalynn having lunch on the White House patio.

[Internet Photo]

I had heard of Peanut Soup before, but it didn't sound appealing to me.  I read yesterday that peanuts are a legume in the pea family [they're known in the south as goober peas] but they're categorized as nuts for culinary purposes.  They're a protein-packed food containing vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Their popularity grew significantly during Mr. Carter's Presidential campaign and White House Administration.

Have you had Peanut Soup before?  I may have to reconsider it.

That sums up what I've been doing to keep occupied while being homebound.  How have you been keeping busy?