When you have that little voice inside that says paint, make a pot, plant something, sew, embroider, quilt, create a shelf to display the new cups you got for Christmas, it’s the Divine voice that is beaconing us to draw within to re-capture that lost part of us that wandered into oblivion when we were told to do something substantial enough to bring home a paycheck.  Albeit, those paychecks are important, the art within is just as important.  It makes the “paycheck getting” more satisfying.  It’s all right to have a “real job” without being made to feel that “real art” is something that must be sacrificed in order to have it.

Tonight, I am beginning my first pottery class since I was in high school.  This is the eve of my 49^th birthday.  I have carried the torch for the spinning wheel of moldable clay since I was sixteen.  That is how long I have resisted my inner-art.   With the birth of my cookbook, and remembering the joy of creating in the kitchen, the overwhelming pull to make the serving dishes, plates, and mugs in which to serve my culinary explosions was too much to ignore.  I talked of wanting to take a pottery class  constantly to my best friend, until this year for my birthday, she drove me to the local pottery studio and said, “Happy Birthday – you are signed up for a class.  You have to go.  You are committed.  They are already paid for.”

So here I sit, watching the Zen of the spinning wheels captivate those here.  My class begins in one hour.  I came early to absorb the vibe.  I watch people come in and don aprons, and begin getting muddy as life’s cares spin away.  Men and women let go of the world’s expectations and silently begin smiling as they create bowls, herb garden planters, or simply pound away at gray marbled clay.  One lady’s back after six months of being absorbed in re-building her flood ravaged home.  One man talked animatedly about the stupidity of local politics while constructing the most beautiful swirled handles   to a new serving bowl.

They just called my name.  I feel the excitement of a well-percolated dream about to enter my heart.  This is what creativity feels like.  It’s new and joyful.  It’s a stress reducer.  It’s a time machine.  It’s the beginning of a new me.  I’m thankful for a best friend who knew I’d just put the dream off for another year if she didn’t get me these classes!  Yesterday I made creamy jambalaya pasta and remembered the beautiful ceramic colander I saw here when I was signed up for classes.  Today, perhaps I will learn the basics for creating something to serve that jambalaya in next time.  Tomorrow, I might just create new curtains for the kitchen.  I have no idea where this creativity will go, but I do know from this feeling in my heart that I do not want it to stop.  This was the tugging I’ve been resisting.  We are all creative, born and bred that way by a most creative God.  I urge you to listen to that voice within you.  If you have listened, help someone else listen to theirs.  Then we can all be a synergistic force of creativity and the world becomes a more colorful, artful, beautiful, delicious place overnight.  – created 1/17/11 by Devon O’Day at Mud Puddle Pottery in Pegram, TN.  Thank you to Kim McLean and Will Johnston for this most excellent gift!

Monday – Homemade Turkey Chili served over corn chips, topped with grated cheddar (left-over makes a nice spaghetti sauce for a lunch portion the next day)

Tuesday – Pintos & Sausage served over brown or wild rice, accompanied with homemade cornbread (left-over makes a yummy burrito with some added cheese, and left-over cornbread can be made into dressing for Wednesday night)

Wednesday – Chicken & Dressing (NOT just for Sunday) and early peas (Make this fast and cheaper by using three frozen chicken breasts, left-over cornbread, left-over breakfast sausage of bacon, and  a can of cream of chicken soup – store brand of course)

Thursday –  Maple Syrup glazed ham, homemade mac n cheese, and baked beans (a small dinner sized ham isn’t too expensive, especially when the meats are on sale,  Tues/Wed at most grocers)  Any left-over ham can become a lunch sandwich, a quiche ingredient, or blended with left-over mac n cheese for lunch the next day.

Friday – Cheddar stuffed kielbasa, black beans, and yellow rice (served separately or blended and baked for a yummy casserole.

Saturday – Pork chops in a pot, baked sweet potatoes, and green beans with onion (left-over pork chops can be diced and stir-fried with bell-peppers and onion and served over rice, or served on a hoagie bun)

Sunday —   Pot roast with potatoes, carrots, onion and celery  (Left-over pot roast is wonderful diced and stir-fried with onions and provolone cheese for a sandwich.  Left-over broth and veggies can become a great soup base for Sunday night)

Money saving tips:

1.        Shopping mid-week and during the day can mean big bargains.  The crowds are smaller, so stores are trying to get your business.  Often they double coupons…even more if you are a senior.  Buy meats on sale on the last ‘buy by’ date and freeze them.

2.       Don’t just re-heat left-overs.  Re-CREATE them, and turn them into a new entrée.  Then they don’t seem like left-overs at all…but new dishes.  Don’t be afraid of trying something…it’s just food, and it’s just left-overs – so be courageous!  Almost any small meat portion can be added to bread crumbs, dried beans, egg, and spices and become a croquette or a patty.  So venture into a creative art space – YOUR KITCHEN!

3.       Make a list.  Plan a little – save a lot!  While shopping, cooking, and storing food – a list keeps you on track with spending and inventory.

Cora taught me to wear a big hat and long sleeves, even in the still humid heat of an August in Louisiana while working outdoors. My skin is eternally grateful. She also was so tight with money, she squeaked. Whether “Depression era thinking” or simply being the eldest daughter who was made to care for her younger siblings, Cora Walker made us feel rich with a heavy laden table three times a day, without breaking the bank to do it.

Here are things she did to make the food and the money go farther:
1. Grow as much as you can yourself, and learn to preserve it during harvest time.
2. Don’t waste anything.
3. Make left-overs into something else, so you don’t realize you are eating left-overs.

That last spoonful of butterbeans, the grease from the morning bacon, and the stale bread all got used in another dish. A vegetable soup on Friday night was usually the last drops of vegetables from the meals during the preceding week. Left-over cornbread became chicken and dressing. The bacon grease was kept in a aluminum pot with a pourable spout that sat on the back of the stove. I have it now. That bacon grease seasoned everything she cooked.

If you eat out at a medium priced family restaurant, the bill will come to at least $40 in most cases. My grandmother taught me that $40, if well thought out, could feed a family for a week.

Southern cooks stretch meals by adding rice, pasta, or potatoes and making casseroles that stick to the ribs. For instance, last night I made Jambalaya (rice, bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, and meats). I had left-over kielbasa from a weekend cookout. I used 1 large chicken breast from the freezer. The bell pepper came from the pepper plant on the porch, the onion from the bag I bought on sale last week, and rice is a staple I keep on hand. The dish takes about 30-40 minutes to prepare, and feeds four with the amount of meat I had (about 3/4 of a pound).

I had a can of red kidney beans which I used as a side. Slices of fresh cucumber rounded out the meal to a hearty plate of homemade goodness for under a dollar a serving. Yes, all of the meal – four servings covering all the food groups for about $4 total.

When the budget is cramped, learn a tip from Southern cooks to be creative, inventive, and flavorful in the kitchen. Your dollar will go further, and no one will even miss going to a restaurant because their best food experiences will be from home! — dev

Butter beans are a southern staple - as a side dish or soup ingredient

Country Air Personality Joins Hit Country Songwriter For a Celebration of Southern Culture With New Cookbook and Soundtrack
Press Release August 28, 2010 – Career Country Air Personality-Songwriter, Devon O’Day heads to the Southern kitchen with her new collection of mouthwatering recipes in My Southern Food, hitting store shelves October 2010 (Thomas Nelson Publishers). Since music and food are a great combination, award-winning songwriter Kim McLean (Beautiful Goodbye, All About Us, Ain’t No Glory, Angels and Eagles, Count Your Blessing, Elisabeth, Go Tell) has been commissioned to compose the perfect soundtrack for a Southern meal, of which the debut title cut, Sweet Tea heads to country radio September 13 via CDX and Radio Submit.
The Sweet Tea-My Southern Food Tour will cover the southeast U.S. beginning with the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, TN Oct. 8, 9, and 10 as well as the Kentucky Book Fair Nov 13. Tour stops will include radio and TV, along with major bookstores, gift outlets, and key southern eateries like Jim Oliver’s Smokehouse in Monteagle, TN Oct. 23rd. Instead of traditional book signings, O’Day and McLean have created a unique book/music presentation called a book SINGing.
To set up a tour stop or an interview by phone or ISDN, contact HCT Media at 615-400-5140 or email devonoday@msn.com.

Available now on Amazon