lazy sundays

When I was younger I didn't like Sundays. Only I can't remember why. Now Sundays are probably the best day of the week for me. I've been trying to make a good memory for my boys with a big Sunday dinner where I haul out the tablecloth, best dishes, and candles like my mom did for us but I'm not meeting this weekly deadline well! I can still smell that pork roast and all the other Sunday fare from long ago. We always had a special dessert too. Like banana pudding. I made it for my boys and they both made faces so maybe it's a southern thing. They do like garlic cheese grits, however, so they've redeemed themselves. And they love my granny's cornbread. See recipe below:)

So this Sunday afternoon I've been working on Red River Daughter, watching Randy and the boys plant raspberries and prune roses, and wondering how my brother is faring in Spain. He did email from a smoke-filled cafe a couple of days ago. Spain is 8 hours ahead of us here in Washington state. So that's only a 5 hour difference for my Kentucky kin. They are staying with an older Christian couple while looking for housing. And if you're missing Chris's wonderful pics with these posts of mine, he doesn't have an internet connection yet. I'm sure he's really missing his Mac at this point!

About that recipe. My granny spent her early years in Virginia (Marion, to be exact) before coming to Berea, Ky. When she was just a child she was hired out to work in the kitchen of a well-to-do Virginian who had a very fine black cook. This cornbread recipe is very old and when I make it I use my great-granny's black rectangular pan that has dimensions unheard of now. Here 'tis:

Granny's Cornbread

1 egg
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup self-rising cornmeal
pinch baking soda if buttermilk is real sour
2 Tablespoons melted bacon grease

Beat egg and add buttermilk. Mix well. Add cornmeal and pinch of soda if needed. Then add 2 tablespoons of melted bacon grease. Mix well and pour into greased pan (like a loaf pan). Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes or till golden brown. Slather with butter. Forget counting calories. Goes great with soup beans, ham, coleslaw, kale, sweet onions, and chowchow.

Happy Sunday!