The Anderson County courthouse, located in the county seat of Palestine,  is the fourth that the county has had over the years, replacing the third courthouse which burned down in 1913.

I lived in Anderson County in the early 2000′s, and went to this courthouse for various business purposes then. I was amazed by the beauty of this architectural gem the first time I went inside.  I climbed the gray and white marble spiral staircases and looked up at the domed stained glass ceiling, the painted mural on the floor, and all the other beautiful features that are so unique, like the light fixtures.  It’s a really special place.

Last week I was taking pictures for the community pages I run for KLTV.com, and was excited to be heading down to Palestine once again, this time to get photos for KLTV Where You Live- Palestine, our Anderson county-area website.

The people in the courthouse were friendly to me as I walked around, leaning over banisters to take pictures; one even kindly warned me not to get dizzy.   (I didn’t.)

This building is lovely, inside even more than outside, and I couldn’t help but think how pretty the staircases would be for a bride to walk down during a wedding.

I hope you enjoy the pictures as you take this little mini-trip with me.

Clicking on any picture will take you to a larger version of the picture.

You can see the dome in this picture

Just inside the front entry

Looking from the bottom level up to the dome.

The stained glass ceiling of the dome.

....at the top looking down to the mural of Texas on the ground floor.

Detail of a cast iron radiator in the entry.

Is there a special architectural structure in your town? I’d love to see a picture or two.  Post a link to it in the comments section, below, if so!

All images and text copyright 2012 by Stephanie Frazier.  All rights reserved.

It’s a good thing I like black-eyed peas. I like purple-hull peas from the garden even more, but they don’t work on New Years Day, apparently.

So I made black-eyed pea soup. It is a healthy soup to kick off the New Year, as we  begin to rethink all of the not-so-healthy choices we’ve made over the weeks from Thanksgiving to Christmas.

To be honest, though, even if you’re not thinking in terms of eating lighter and healthier,  I believe you’ll really enjoy this spicy soup. It has great sausage flavor, and the garlic and red pepper flakes give it a nice kick.  Who wants bland soup?

Here’s how I made it light:

First, I used polska kielbasa in this soup, which gave it a lovely flavor.  There were two choices at the grocery store, regular polska kielbasa, or turkey polska kielbasa.  Check out the differences there are between the two, fat and calories-wise:   (clicking on the pictures should take you to a larger version)

Turkey polska-kielbasa

Regular polska-kielbasa

There’s a big difference! I was curious as to whether it would taste good, and I have to say….it was wonderful! I love this brand, and will not use the full-fat version again.  There’s just no need.

This is the brand I used, along with some nice organic garlic for flavor and heart-healthiness!

Another way to keep it light is to use olive oil instead of bacon fat, which is the traditional way of cooking black-eyed peas.  The olive oil gives you heart-healthy fat, and using it and onions in the peas as they are cooking give them tenderness and flavor without saturated fat.

Here’s the recipe; feel free to substitute pinto beans or others that you might prefer to black-eyed peas. It’s not an exact science, so play with it to make it what you and your family will enjoy most

Mama Steph’s Simple and Spicy Black-eyed Pea Soup

1- 16 ounce bag of dried black-eyed  peas, soaked acording to package directions, then cooked and seasoned with salt to your taste. (alternatively, use two 15 oz. cans of the peas,drained and rinsed.)  I cook my peas with an onion, chopped, and a teaspoon or so of olive oil, and I don’t salt until they’re almost done.

1  medium onion, chopped (this is separate from any onion you cooked your peas with.)

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced

1 TBS olive oil

1 package of polska-kielbasa, sliced into medallions

Chicken broth (6 cups or so  if you have it; fill in with water if you feel you need a bit more broth)

salt and pepper or Tony Cachere’s seasoning, or other seasoned salt, to taste

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 TBS dried parsley flakes

________________________________________________________

Pour olive oil into the bottom of a stock pot or dutch oven on a burner at medium heat.

When the oil is hot, add sliced sausage and chopped onion.

Cook, stirring, for three minutes or until the onions begin to turn clear.

Add minced garlic, stir in, and cook for another minute.

Add cooked peas.  (note: while I cooked a whole 16 oz package, I took out about a cup of the cooked peas for another use.  There were still plenty.)

Add chicken broth and stir.

Season with salt (or a seasoning blend like Tony Cacheres’ Cajun blend in the green can, which is our favorite) to taste.

Add red pepper flakes and parsley flakes.

Gently simmer ingredients for at least 20 minutes, stirring often so that peas do not scorch.

I used my chicken stock that I learned how to make in Chef Jackson’s cooking school. Here’s the recipe for that.

Don’t allow your peas, as you’re cooking them, or the soup itself, to come to a full rolling boil.  Simmer gently, so that your peas don’t turn into mush.

Simple and spicy and really good for you!

I also tried out the Pioneer Woman’s black-eyed pea dip, which was pretty good.

Black-eyed pea dip with pita chips

Here’s the recipe from PioneerWoman.com:

Black-Eyed Pea Dip

• 1 can (14-ounce) Can Black-eyed Peas
• 1/4 whole Onion, Chopped Fine
• 1/4 cup Sour Cream
• 8 slices Jarred Jalapenos
• 1 cup Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 3 Tablespoons Salsa
• Hot Sauce, to taste
• Salt And Black Pepper To Taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drain black-eyed peas and partially mash, leaving some whole.
Add all other ingredients, stirring to combine.
Spread into a 1 1/2 quart baking dish and bake for 20 to 30 minutes until hot and bubbly.
Serve with tortilla chips!
*Note: if you have them available, you can use the canned black-eyed peas and jalapenos (they’re canned together.) If you do this, you can omit the extra jalapenos.

___________________________________________________________________________________

For dessert, the boys wanted their favorite thing I make, which, happily, is just about the easiest: the no-bake chocolate- peanut butter bars.  Click here for recipe.

They are so decadently delicious. Creamy, better than Reese’s peanut butter cups could imagine, and much easier than making those buckeyes that are so yummy.  Win!

No-bake Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bars

That was my cooking for this day; I love that I started off the new year with two of my favorite people, Jacob and Jared, and was able to stay home working  creating in the kitchen all day.  That always makes me feel happy and content.

Sharing it now with you is the perfect way to end the day!

Happy New Year, friends, and may all your hopes and dreams be fulfilled in 2012!

Sweet SugarBelle's cookies from Foodista.com - Aren't they perfect?

You might also like:

Super-flavorful Curried Lentil Soup

Creamy Tomato-Basil Soup

No-Bake Chocolate-Peanut Butter bars

On Tuesday, December 20,  I had the honor of speaking to the ladies of the Bethesda Alliance at one of my very favorite restaurants, The Potpourri House in Tyler.

What a wonderful group of women they are, and they have a great purpose: to support  the ministry of Bethesda Health Clinic, a clinic that exists “… to provide health services to the working uninsured of Smith County, whose only access to health care had historically been through the emergency rooms of local hospitals.”

I enjoyed sharing with them how God’s grace has worked in my life, and how it has brought me through many struggles and trials in my four decades of life. Without it, who knows where I’d be!  (I suppose we can all say that, can’t we?)

Grace is defined as undeserved favor or blessing.  It means you’re receiving something good that you haven’t done anything to earn.  Have you experienced that in your own life?

Ten years ago I would never have imagined that I’d be speaking before a group like Bethesda Alliance, working for a KLTV 7, or baking on television!  If you’d have told me that would be a part of my life, I’d have laughed.  Those were not things I’d have ever thought myself brave enough to be a part of nor thought myself worthy of being asked to do.

But that’s what I’m doing!  And the whole time I’m doing any of it, I’m amazed and thankful that I’m allowed to do so.

We also talked about the busyness of life, and how we don’t always have time to bake decorated cookies and fancy cakes during the holidays because of the schedule we keep.  As a now-working woman, my life makes it impossible to spend that kind of time on one baking project.  I have to make the most of what little time I have, and the ladies at the luncheon today agreed. Many of them are still very busy, whether working or retired but active in volunteering and other projects.  Fancy baking projects may not be do-able for us in these circumstances.

That’s ok; we have to give ourselves a little grace too.

In light of this, I shared three  favorite recipes that can easily be made in a short amount of time, and still produce something lovely and delicious to share with family and friends.  The amount of love is the same, it’s just the preparation time that is cut down.  :)

Clicking on the links below will take you to the original posts containing the recipes that I shared with the ladies of Bethesda Alliance.  These are posts I shared in the past; I hope you enjoy the walk down memory lane with me.

No-Bake Chocolate-Peanut butter bars

Pumpkin Blondies with Cranberries and White Chocolate Chips

Chewy Blondie Bars with Dried Cherries and Walnuts

In some of those posts, I likely mention that the additions of dried cherries, cranberries, nuts, butterscotch or white chocolate chips.  These are optional and interchangeable.  You can truly do whatever you and your family would enjoy most.

I hope you’ll do just that.

Happy New Year to you all, and may the grace of God be abundant in your lives all year long.

I remember acorns from my childhood very clearly.  There was a huge oak tree in our yard in Charlotte when I was a little girl, and I used to pick them up to play with them.

Do you remember that time during childhood when you picked up every little thing and marveled at its perfect detail? Remember the way you used to look so closely at things? We lose that when we become adults and are busy with bigger things.

“Children find everything in nothing; men find nothing in everything.”  ~Giacomo Leopardi, Zibaldone Scelto

Sometimes it’s nice to slow down and purposely look.  Just look, and remind yourself how detailed and wonderful everything is.  It’s amazing, and sort of pulls you out of your worries and narcissism for awhile, reminding you that everything is not about you.

photo by the Sylva OneOak Project

(check out this interesting website about forest preservation: SVLVA One Oak Project.)

Here’s a little autumnal project that your children, or someone else’s children that you’d like to spend time with during the holidays, will have fun making with you.  It can be their contribution to the Thanksgiving table, perhaps.   Spending time with kids always reminds me to laugh and settle down to enjoy life for awhile.   Enjoy it!

Candy Acorns:

You only need a few things:

a bag of Hershey's chocolate kisses...

a box of mini Nilla wafers...

...and a bag of Reese's peanut butter of chips.

Place about a quarter cup of the peanut butter chips into a small bowl, such as a custard cup, and microwave for a few seconds at a time until they’ve melted enough to become spreadable.  This is your glue.

Unwrap a cupful of chocolate kisses, more or less.

Put some peanut butter chips in another bowl.

Line a cookie sheet with wax or parchment paper.

Using a small spatula or butter knife, dab some of the melted peanut butter chips on the bottom of a kiss.

Press the kiss onto the flat side of a mini Nilla wafer.

Dab a bit of melted peanut butter chip on the bottom of a whole peanut butter chip, and center it on the rounded top of the same mini Nilla wafer.

Place on the cookie sheet to dry.

Drying adorably on the cookie sheet

These are so cute and, of course, taste delicious. When I made them for a cooking spot on the news , my co-workers were spotted on numerous occasions popping one or two into their mouths.  It’s funny how food can make a busy professional slow down and smile, even for just a few seconds.  I like that.

Place a platter of these on a counter top or table and watch people smile and indulge. Happy!

Thanks to my dear friend Kyli Nail, mommy of the cutest twins ever, for this idea!

Kruz and Knox's mom, Kyli.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

How beautiful are the shapes and muted colors of squashes:

Acorn squash:

photo from cookstr.com

Butternut squash:

photo from cookstr.com

and spaghetti squash, too:

photo from cookstr.com

However, I’ve always been more proficient in cooking zucchini and yellow squash than the more beautiful varieties that appear in the fall. I’m determined to change that this year!

I bought an acorn squash yesterday. My first one ever.

I asked some foodie friends on Facebook how they like to prepare acorn squash, and got several good ideas. I ended up doing the most simple thing. Here’s the recipe:

Easy baked acorn squash

Wash an acorn squash, pat dry,  and cut in half horizontally.

Scrape out seeds and strings.

Place halves into a baking pan or dish, cut side up.

Sprinkle with a bit of salt, 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg per half, 1 TBS butter and 1 TBS brown sugar in each half, and then bake at 450 degrees F for about an hour.

If the tops seem to be getting too dark, lay a sheet of foil over the halves to keep them from burning. (this happened to me, but only because I fell asleep and they baked for an hour and twenty five minutes, which was too long.)

The fun thing is that the acorn squash are rather small, so you can easily serve the squash as they are, using the outer shell as a pretty bowl.  No need to scrape out the flesh before serving.  People will think you’re as talented as Martha Stewart when you bring a platter full of beautiful baked squash halves to your dining table.

And when they taste the mild, sweet, creamy flesh of their very own acorn squash, they’ll be so thankful that you made it for them.  Enjoy!

I am so susceptible to pictures and videos of food being made; I see something that looks delicious, and I can just imagine how good things smell as they’re sizzling in a big stainless pan.  Just imagining the sweet warm scent that olive oil releases as it gently heats in the pan, and how that scent changes each time a new ingredient is added to it: some minced garlic, a chopped onion, or maybe some celery, makes me want to try that recipe, too.  It’s addictive, almost. I love watching “food tv,” and I love trying out new recipes.

Well, Ina hooked me yesterday.  She calmly talked her way through what she calls “Weeknight Bolognese.” She calls it that because bolognese usually takes hours and hours to cook, therefore the average person couldn’t really make it during the week.  It’s a project to tackle on, say, a cold and rainy Saturday morning.

Ina came up with her own version that is so quick that it can easily be made by a hurried person after work or school.

I particularly enjoyed her choice of pasta: orecchiette.  This pasta is perfect for a hearthy sauce like bolognese, as it’s thick, and has a nice curved shape, perfect for holding onto the sauce.  If you can’t find orecchiette, a great substitute would be small shell pasta, which is more widely available.

I hope you’ll try this soon; it may just break you from your “jar of sauce” habit when  you taste how much better it is than that bland, watery stuff.

Tomorrow, though, our high will be around 85, and by Sunday, a mere 79! I love it.  But before it happens, let me share one quick recipe to get us through this last HOT day of 2011.

Frozen Mint Brownie Dessert

Ingredients:

• 1  9″x13″ pan of brownies, baked and allowed to cool (see my easy recipe here)
• 1/2 gallon mint chocolate chip ice cream
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 (16-ounce) jar chocolate fudge ice cream topping

Bake the brownies in a 9×13 pan, and allow to cool.

Take the ice cream out of the freezer and allow to soften as you work on whipping the cream with your mixer (until soft peaks form.)

Fold the whipped cream into the softened ice cream until mostly combined.  (it’s ok if a bit streaky.)

Alternately drop dollops of creamy ice cream mixture and of fudge sauce over the brownies.  Swirl with back of a big spoon or spatula if you would like to make a pretty pattern.

When all cream and fudge sauce is on top of the brownies, spread a sheet of waxed or parchment paper over brownies and press down to flatten.

Freeze 4 to 6 hours.  Cut into squares to serve.

Enjoy!

Fall baking: the prospect of it makes me cheerful.  It’s one of the pleasures of the season, for me; it reminds me of my growing-up years, and the comfort there was sitting on the big oval braided rug in the living room in our home in N.C., watching Sesame Street or Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, while mom baked an apple pie or some fluffy buttermilk biscuits to smear with apple butter when they came out of the oven.  What a pleasure.

I remember taking walks in the autumn-splashed woods behind our house on Ivanhoe Place in Charlotte, woods which I’m sure aren’t there anymore,  what with the growth of that city.  The neighborhood kids and I (Angie and Andy, John-John and Paul, Cissy and Johnny) would bundle up and walk through the paths that had been trampled down years before by the folks who lived behind us then. There were farmers in old shacks back there, on the other side of the woods, and I would marvel at their little wooden houses with trails of smoke ribboning out of the chimneys.

Reminds me of Annie's home

Annie was the most interesting to me; she was a large African-American woman, almost always in an apron and a dress, and she and her husband Henry had a mule. I for the life of me can’t remember that mule’s name anymore, but he was there on their little plot of land, and Annie would holler for her husband to come out and hitch the mule to the buggy, and he would, and they’d go clomping down the street to market or church or wherever Annie wanted to go that day.

I always wanted to go to Annie’s house.  She seemed so nice and I liked her safe-looking little home.  Looking at her life through the woods was, to me,  like looking into another world.  My world was about suburban school and little brick houses, Big Wheels and Barbies, station wagons and steaks on the grill.  Annie’s was about working with her hands, hanging her clothes on the line, growing her own food, and riding behind a big, ornery mule in a buggy.  Less than a quarter of a  mile separated us, but we were worlds apart.  The falling of the leaves was like the opening of a window between our worlds,  and I loved the escapism of looking through it.

I loved that time in my childhood.  Even when the weather was cold, we were outside for most of the day unless we were in school.  We explored those woods and played make-believe and made up stories and had fun.  Our parents bundled us up against the chilly autumn wind  (I can still remember my little red knitted mittens with a blue pattern stitched into the backside of them) and sent us out for awhile, and then called us in for a hot supper of spaghetti or soup or tuna casserole.  Those were the evenings when I was happy to get inside the warmth of the house, watch some fun shows on PBS, and smell whatever yummy thing mom had baking in the oven.  That is my first memory of fall baking.

I still love autumn; the change of seasons is just as exciting to me as an adult. However, I live in Texas now, (and no interesting people with mules and buggies live behind me) and this week we are still in the 90s and toasty warm.  That kind of heat doesn’t exactly lend itself to heating up the oven and, with it, your whole house.  That’s why I’m proposing that today we try a recipe that doesn’t need the oven at all.  One burner on your stovetop and about five minutes of your time is all you’ll need, and you’ll end up with a tasty fall treat to share with your family, friends, or neighbors.

I found this recipe at SouthernPlate.com and the main change I made was the addition of a cup of white chocolate chips.  I hope you’ll try it, too, and enjoy a little bit of fall flavor, no matter the temperature at your house.

No-Bake Peanut Butter-White Chocolate Chip Bars

• 3 Cups Oats  (I might cut this down to 2 1/2 cups next time)
• 2 Cups Sugar
• 1 Cup Peanut Butter
• 1/2 Cup Milk
• 1/4 Cup butter
• 1 tsp vanilla

This is such a fun time of year; it feels like home to me.  There’s something about the scents of cloves and nutmeg, the sight of  fat, cheerful pumpkins, and the taste of apples and cinnamon that make me feel comforted and happy.

It’s the time of year that brings with it festivals in every small town; everyone shows up cheerful, excited to see each other and to be outside together in the crisper, brighter air.  It’s so much fun to see bright yellow mums show up on the neighbors’ doorstep while scarecrows stand guard near the door.

I love it. I love it all.

I was asked to bake something on KLTV for today’s Good Morning East Texas, and of course I immediately began thinking of a tasty, easy way to kick off fall baking, since today is the first day of the season.  It’s also National White Chocolate Day, so when I found this recipe, I knew it would be just right. Here’s what I made along with my friend, Jennifer Hines:

Pumpkin Blondies

After we filmed the segment, the crew and some friends down in the newsroom finished up the whole pan of these blondies; there were lots of  ”ohh, I love fall” types of comments as they enjoyed them.   The scent of the baking treat made the whole station smell lovely, too. I hope you’ll try them, too, to welcome fall into your home!

Time to bake!

Silly little iPhone video as we finished filming:

It’s been a hot summer in the U.S., so we have all been trying to make things that cool us off, as well as things that are summer-y and fun. 

Here’s one recipe for a dessert that is really fun;  adults will love it  and it can be pre-made for parties, barbecues, or just for grabbing on your own from the freezer for a “party for one” on your tastebuds.  :)  They’re so tasty that they’ll be appreciated all the way through fall football parties, too.

Picture from Cooking Light magazine

Margarita Ice Cream Sandwiches

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 5 teaspoons grated lime rind, divided
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 11 1/4 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 1/2 cups)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon table salt
• 1 teaspoon turbinado or demerara  sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
• 2 cups vanilla reduced-fat ice cream, softened
• 2 cups lime sherbet, softened