If you are hungry when you start reading this, I’ll warn you right now, you will be drooling by the time you get to the bottom of this post. Lots of food pics and lots of talk about food. My family gathered in my parent’s mountain house in NC (they live in ATL, but have had this mountain house for about 25 years) for a few days. We ate, we sat on the porch, we walked for miles and miles a little bit, we talked about food, and we ate like pigs some more. 
My family dearly loves a good meal and when we get together, there’s plenty of celebrating with food. We are so blessed to have parents that know how to grow things and this is how we were raised. Fresh vegetables from the garden, my mom “putting up” food for eating later, either canning or freezing that bounty from the garden. So, this is normal for us. I feel for those of you who do not know what eating fresh veggies from the garden is all about, but I know that many of you do. We had plenty of it and still do, thanks to my hard working parents who still enjoy growing their own food and sharing it with us. They are 81 and 82 now and that hasn’t slowed them down much at all. My mom can still cook up a storm and I’ll share some of that with you here.
We are blessed indeed! I have a sweet video of my mom making this cornbread, but I haven’t been able to get it uploaded. If I do, I’ll post it later. On a side note, I should have mentioned that this recipe comes from a book about some of my family who were missionaries in Paraguay back in the late 60′s, early 70′s. So, this recipe was mentioned in the book and mom decided to try it.
Edited: Several mentioned the cole slaw and I’ll try to remember to get that one and post it too.
Paraguayan Cornbread from Aunt Evelyn
(Note: This recipe is for a 9 x 13 pan, but mom halved it)
3 cups Martha White cornbread mix
6 eggs, beaten
1 3/4 cup milk (skim is fine)
1 lb. Monterey Jack cheese (cubed)
3/4 cup oil (olive is fine)
4 cups chopped onion (2 large onions)
Grease 9 x 13 glass baking dish. Chop onion, saute in olive oil. Cube cheese (don’t use shredded, the cubes will bake & get gooey, you want that!).
Measure cornmeal in one bowl. Beat eggs & mix with milk in another. Pour milk into cornmeal all at once, beating with whisk to eliminate lumps. Add cubes of cheese. Pour hot oil/onion mixture into cornmeal batter. Quickly mix well. Pour into greased pan. (Note: mom didn’t saute the onions, but added them in raw & they cooked fine inside).
Bake at 450* for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Cut and serve hot. I also think adding chopped jalapeno or chile peppers would be great too.
I took pics of most of our meals and you can see, we eat well. Our first breakfast was grits and tomato gravy, with homemade biscuits, sausage and bacon. Tomato gravy is probably not something that is common to all Southerners, but my mom has been making this for as long as I can remember. She serves it over grits or rice and it’s delish. She uses fresh tomatoes when available and when they are not, she uses her canned tomatoes. I use her canned tomatoes for a LOT of things I cook too.
Tomato gravy is basically, a little bit of bacon grease (left over from cooking bacon), a couple of TBL will do, add some flour (couple TBL) and then add those fresh chopped tomatoes with salt and pepper. Add the flour to the grease first, making sort of a roux, then add the tomatoes and stir, stir, stir. The gravy will thicken up a bit and you’ll have a delicious gravy that is to die for over grits.
Mom’s made from scratch biscuits. Don’t ask me how to make these, I have no idea. I don’t make biscuits from scratch.
Here’s my plate, with the grits and tomato gravy, bacon, sausage, and a biscuit topped with honey. We found a local small fruit market near my parents that carried Sourwood Honey from Asheville for $10 a quart and we brought home 2 quarts. It’s not that easy to find and Sourwood honey is the best, in our opinion.
My dad in the garden, where he feels so much at home among all the vegetables.
We did take a walk down the street one morning and here are the sights we saw.
Queen Anne’s lace growing wildly in the nearby meadows.
An old and rustic barn.
Another wildflower.
A pretty hydrangea in someone’s driveway.
We hiked up to a neighorhood across the street from my parent’s house that has filled up over the last few years. There’s quite a view from up there. This house was adding a double decker observation deck and I’m sure they will enjoy that.
Cause here’s the view that they will have. Gorgeous, huh? Nothing like the NC mountains for the most beautiful scenery.
We drove down by the river that’s near our parent’s house too and had never been down this little lane.
There are some beautiful cottages and mountain houses right here on the river. Loved that this house is apparently Bama fans! Roll Tide.
Back to my parent’s house, they have a sweet little creek right in their front yard.
Peter took his gold panning equipment with him and tried it out for the first time. He’s always wanted to pan for gold. He did find a few flakes, no nuggets, but apparently there is gold in these mountain rocks. He had fun in the creek while we girls did a little shopping.
My parent’s creek.
Flower in the creek.
My parent’s also have huge blueberry bushes that are always loaded. They gave us 2 big bags of blueberries to bring home, as the end of blueberries is near. We did go out and pick about a gallon more off the bushes, since there were still some left. They are big and sweet.
Back inside, we are getting ready for yet another wonderful meal. Mom’s getting ready to fry some okra.
Eggplant is frying here and she’s getting the rest of the veggies ready to go.
We had feasts at every meal.
Fried okra, zipper peas, black-eyed peas.
Creamed corn, fresh tomatoes, and pole beans. Are you drooling yet?
The girls played Mexican train dominos one night. That’s my niece, Lauren, who went yardsaling with me a few weeks ago.
And the breakfast finale on Saturday morning: Blueberry pancakes with sausage and bacon. I told you we like to eat. We certainly cannot eat like this all the time, but it sure is a treat for a couple of days.
My plate.
While we were out shopping a little, I took this pic of the local store in Brasstown, near my parents house. Clay’s Corner is known for the New Year’s Eve possum drop. They drop a possum in a basket, then set him loose to celebrate New Year’s Eve. You know, just like New York and dropping the Big Apple. It’s quite the culture here in the NC mountains.
A few short years ago, news of the possum drop in Brasstown, NC made The NY Times and the fine folks at PETA (ha!) decided to sue this little store for animal cruelty if they did the possum drop that year. So, the store backed off for a year or two until things died down and now they are back to normal with the possum dropping. Thank goodness. They sure don’t need anyone telling them what to do. I mean, after all they weren’t hurting any possums, just having some good clean fun with them.
The grand finale was a fish fry. Dad and Lauren are cooking up the fish, while I was getting the ice cream churn going for our homemade vanilla ice cream. My mom gets fresh perch from her brother in Florida and we love, love having fish fries with this wonderful filleted fish. It’s the best!
Fried perch and my mom’s hushpuppies, along with cole slaw.
My plate, with baked beans and cheese grits. We love to serve cheese grits with our fish fries down here too.
And to top it off, homemade vanilla ice cream with fresh peaches. We were so stuffed, of course we didn’t eat anything the rest of the day. Again, can’t eat like this every day. It will be back to normal with the exercise routine.
We brought home some wonderful fresh SC peaches from the local market, as well as peppers and cucumbers from my parent’s garden.
Just picked okra came home with us too. I’ll be frying this up this week.
Two bags of fresh blueberries. I sure do love these on my morning cereal.
And we brought home a huge box of tomatoes that some friends had given my parents from a local garden that had been picked and they had a surplus. More salsa coming up! We also brought home more frozen veggies that my mom had put up as well as a case of her canned tomatoes, which is so great to have around. I use it for everything from spaghetti sauce to homemade soups.
So, I hope you enjoyed going to the NC mountains with us! It’s always a treat to just hang out with my family, eat and visit, and be together. There’s no cell phone coverage where they are or internet service. They do have a big TV though with satellite, so are not completely isolated. But, it’s a great way to get away from the busyness of life in the city and enjoy country life for a few days.
Linked to Jen’s Tasty Tuesday.
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Thanks for stopping by! I'm Rhoda, from Atlanta, GA and I love decorating and DIY projects. Decorating a home doesn't have to cost a fortune and I've spent years thrifting at antiques markets and yardsales, finding those treasures that make a home unique. I'm here to inspire and encourage other women to find their own inner creativity. Won't you join me? 
{ 102 comments… read them below or add one }
Yum! Can I go next year?
Yes, I’m totally drooling now! heading off to the kitchen…
Bad bad Rhoda! Now I’m starving to death. Being from Alabama I surely know how good those veggies and fruits are. I love fried okra. When I was growing up, if you couldn’t bread it and fry it – you didn’t eat it!
Be a sweetie,
Shelia
Your posts about visiting your parents are always some of my very favorites. I don’t know if it’s the food, the scenery, or the down home feel- all three I think.
Cornbread- never seen it done that way, but can’t wait to try it.
Tomato gravy- southern girl with southern roots, but I’ve never heard of this ever. Don’t know if I’m brave enough to try it.
Blueberries and fresh veggies, red ripe tomatoes- so yummy!
Fish, ice cream, coleslaw, blueberry pancakes- all I can say is I want to visit your parents too! I’m drooling!
Curious, though, do they have any problems with cholesterol? I do and I can’t imagine eating like that and not having it, yet I have older relatives who work hard, eat whatever they want, and have no cholesterol issues. Just wondered if your family is the same way.
We love to play Mexican dominoes when I visit my parents, too. Have you ever played Chicken Foot? It’s another game using the dominoes and it’s so much fun. You can google the rules.
Thanks so much for taking us back home with you Rhoda. I’m glad you enjoyed your visit!
Ohhhhhh … Can I come next time? That food looks absolutely amazing.
Ok, chickadee! I am meeting up with you next time along the interstate and going! That cornbread recipe is new to me! As is the tomato gravy. I’ll have to ask hubby’s mom if she’s ever made that!! The okra…oh, mercy!! I’ll bring you the SC peaches if you let me go!! And the honey from Asheville is one that we enjoy as well. My boys put honey on everything!! Loved the pictures!!
Hugs!
Susan
I love the mountains! Thanks for making me feel like I was on your family’s little getaway! I feel full from all the beautiful food pics!~Patti
It was like being back home with the family and my momma cooking!! All the things we had growing up that I never learned to cook. The sausage – reminds me of Thompson Brothers sausage – the best. And the ice cream. We had an old hand churned ice cream maker (not electric) which meant someone had to sit on top of the ice (covered with a burlap bag) while someone else churned it. Boy could your rump get frozen, but the ice cream was the best. You sure brought back some nice memories. So glad you were able to be with your family.
Thank you so much for this very special post…I enjoyed it so much…God bless you…Robyn
Thanks for the mini vacation! The NC mountains are such a treat and a refreshing break from the heat. Thanks for letting us tag along!
NC as in Northern California? Sooo preety these photos. I need to come to visit America and soooon! Your Dad is the cutest!
Oh wow, you are bringing back some delicious memories. My in laws would cook like that, and now at 88 and 90, with health issues, those days are gone. But the food I remember was so delicious. For over 30 years I sat at their table for Sunday dinner, with many of the same fare. Thanks for sharing your sweet family hospitality. Your pictures are beautiful.
Oh Rhoda you made my mouth water! Now I really can not wait to go back home for some good ole southern cooking! And boy do i miss my South Carolina peaches especially ones from a town called Gilbert, they have a peach festival every July 4th! And i love the NC mountains and mexican train! Thanks so much for sharing!!! Glad you enjoyed your trip and your family!
How wonderful! I remember loving the post you wrote after being there last year. Love this one too!
Becky K.
That looks like Conecuh sausage. Everything looks so good. It is my kinda food that I grew up on. I have never had the tomato gravy, though. We made homemade vanilla ice cream last week. We bought a new freezer and had to try it out.
This is a great post about all of the good Southern foods that I have only heard about but never tasted. Looks like you had a great vacation.
I sure am learning alot about the south since moving to GA 3 years ago. The games and the food… how do you stay so thin? Loved your pictures too.
::drool::
Your parents are so adorable!
Oh, and that food? YUM!
I’m going to have to make some tomato gravy. That looked dee-lish! So does that soup…
nothing beats good home cookin’
I’m a country girl from NC and really miss my Nanny’s garden. She passed away at Christmas, but the memories of picking cucumbers, tomatoes and collards will live in my heart forever.
That sounds like my idea of heaven! I’ve longed to live in the mountains every since I was 4 years old. I’ve always been a country girl at heart.
There truly is nothing like good, home cooked food, picked straight from the garden. I love this time of year.
Love it all Rhoda! The scenery, family time, chats, games, shopping and the FOOD. What a way to relax.
That cheesy cornbread…wow…
wooo! i had to get a muffin before i could finish this post! glad you warned us. makes me want to run up to the orchard and get some fresh veggies. and your little daddy is too precious.
What can I say? I’m so jealous, and hungry, and drooling!!! Looks delicious, every single last morsel
I had to call J in, from the deck, so he could see this!!! You should have heard the ooo’s and ahhh’s! Our kind of food. Your dad fries fish, just like J does. I think we need to have a fish fry, soon!!
I haven’t had breakfast…I think it’s time!
Yep, now I’m hungry.
What a fun post, Rhoda! Y’all can cook!! The okra looked delicious. Your parents are so cute!!
Okay, now I am starving. I could eat a little of all of that and it is only 9:00 in the morning. Such beautiful pictures, reminds us of all of God’s blessings.
Wow, my mouth was watering the whole time I was reading. Everything looked so delicious & tasty.
Sweet friend- I have tears of sweet memories in my eyes while
reading today’s blog. Mama lived and cooked just the way
your parents seem to – everyday for the last 5 1/2 years there
has been the biggest crater in my life with her now gone home.
Enjoy -store up these treasures of time spent – so glad you have taped them talking to you. Your greatest treasures are your
parents and the heritage you have been given. hugs, patti
l
Rhoda, I loved your post today. Coming from a very close Southern family who truly enjoys the pleasure of good Southern food, I could totally relate. Thank you for sharing your family and traditions with us. I especially loved the pictures.
I’ll soon be trying some of the recipes too. Oh and I grew up with my mom making tomato gravy too. I haven’t had it in a while so I think it will be on our menu for Saturday morning. The cole slaw looked really good too. Do you know that recipe off hand? THanks again!
Love your blog!! Have you ever given any thought to publishing your Mom’s wonderful recipes? And… do you know how lucky you are?? I read you everyday and you inspire me.
Thanks for being who you are.
Sharon
ok..now i have to go raid the frig!
Yes, I am sooo hungry now! All of that is my comfort food! What a wonderful post!
Yum need I say more?
)
Now I am starved!
I think I need a new laptop now that I’ve drooled all over mine! I live in Greensboro, NC and my parents have a cabin they retired to in Maggie Valley. I adore getting away to enjoy the mountain life whenever I can get away. I’m dying to get over there and get some peaches – I may have to make a trip very soon now that your post reminded me what I’m missing!
Yum, this is the food I was raised on. I wish I could sit at my grandmother’s table one more time for her glorious food. She’s been gone 20 years, but I still remember her cooking.
You’re right, I’m hungry now. That’s what I call some southern cooking! I haven’t had a meal like that in years cause I don’t fry and my mom never cooks anymore, but I remember those days of fried okra and homemade cornbread in the black frying pan!! Oh yum…..
What an awesome post. M;y hubby and I have a small garden this year and have been eating many all veggie meals…so good. I’m definately going to try the corn bread and hubby will love the tomato gravy. I too would like to know your Mom’s recipe for coleslaw. Thank you for sharing your family and food with us, it is a joy!
Kathi
Oh my gosh… I just ate, but I feel like I need to again after seeing all of the treats you got to tuck into!! It looks SO good. Can I come for dinner sometime?
Haha… I am so glad you had a good time. Your parents sound like they’re wonderful! And I love how they haven’t slowed down at all. It is exactly how I want to be when I’m their ages. 
holy Southern-Fried cook’n! wow thats some eats!! and love all the beautiful scenery!
Hi Rhoda! What a great way to spend with family. You are truly blessed.
I really enjoyed reading your post and your pictures. The food looks soo delish and here I sit eating just plain ole special k cereal…*blush* Thank you for sharing with us all. 
Blessings,
Sandra
Dang, we just missed you! We just got back from a week up near Maggie Valley! Coming from Florida we need a break from the heat in the summer, even if it’s only a few degrees sometimes.
My parents are from Savannah, GA and I grew up eating like you did. I don’t fry very often for my little family but it is sure a treat when I do!
Thanks for sharing!
Today’s post is such a treat.
Beautiful family, delicious food, wonderful scenery, and such a relaxing read. Sounds like my husband’s family in the mountains of Tennessee. They’re all gone now, but such great memories!
Southern cooking sure looks appetizing! It is lunchtime right now, and I am wanting that fried food and fresh vegetables, NOW! I make a cornbread totally from scratch – indicative to New Mexico, where I grew up. It has freshly roasted NM green chiles, onions, and longhorn cheese in it. And yes, baked in a cast iron skillet! Is there any other way? Thank you for making my mouth truly water!
Sue
TG I was eating lunch when I popped by … or I’d be out there cooking some of your dee-lish foods. Beautiful pics, but my fav is the barn … I have a real passion for them. Glad you had such a lovely time & togetherness. TTFN ~Marydon
Okay… totally drooling! Those pictures were amazing! I’ve never been hardly any where as I grew up in Idaho and have NEVER seen the ocean. I loved seeing the mountain pics and that picture of your dad in his garden brought a tear to my eye as it totally reminds me of my grandpa (boots and all
who is a farmer… Never ate hardly any of that food before but it looked delish! So glad you had such a wonderful time with your family and thanks for sharing – Toodles, The Lady
I absolutely love your posts about visiting with your family and seeing all the food that is prepared. It takes me back to my home life when family lived close enough to visit.
All the food looked so good! I am especially interested in the cole slaw. It doesn’t look like any cole slaw I have ever seen. Have you posted that recipe before and I have missed It? I have made a lot of cole slaw this summer. It is especially good with fish and fries. Yours looked so colorful.
Oh wow, what great looking food. Could almost smell it. The tour of the area was neat also. Looks beautiful around there. I’d like to live in a place like that all year.
Yep, I’m drooling. It started as soon as I saw the photo of the cornbread! I’m going to try that recipe, for sure! I’ve never heard of tomato gravy but it looks like a delish alternative way to enjoy grits. One of my favorite dishes as a kid was fresh okra and tomatoes over rice with bacon crumbled on top and that’s how I usually fix okra now since I don’t fry much anymore. But dang, I just might have to fry up some okra…soon!
Thanks for sharing your trip. I know you had a wonderful time with family. You are blessed to have healthy, active parents.
I grew up the same way you did…and I LOVE your visits home, the food and the stories. I raised my own children on this food…now we go out too often, makes me want to go to the Farmer’s Market and see what’s left!
Seriously, that is the BEST FOOD POST EVER!!
Thanks for sharing it at Tasty Tuesday.
This was your most tantalizing post yet!! Loved it!! Thanks for sharing!!
Rhoda,
All this fresh food looks wonderful! There is nothing better then sharing a meal with family and good friends!
Enjoy, Cathy
can I come with you next time? Fried okra…mmmmm
Rhoda you were right now I’m starving!
~Beautiful place.
Oh my, this post was heavenly!!!! I haven’t had fried okra since we lived in KY, love that stuff!!
Oh my goodness girl! Now that was some food. Im hungry now…smiles~
Yum! I love Southern food. Everything looks delicious.
Hi-wonderful blog. This is my first visit-I found you through a google alert for Brasstown. I live just down the road from Clays. This is a wonderful place to live-with amazing food as you’ve shown in your colorful post. I wouldn’t want to live any where else!! So glad you enjoyed your visit.
This is my favorite post because it reminded me of my time with my family. These are the kinds of meals we had. There is absolutely NOTHING better than home cooked vegetables. By the way, tomato gravy is always a treat for my son when he comes home. You are correct when you say there are many people who don’t know about it.
Everyone in my office is going to try the cornbread tonight. Thanks for sharing.
Hey, my family and I are very adoptable if your family is in the market
All your wonderful food pictures reminded me of my sweet grandma and all her wonderful cooking… we lost her last fall to cancer. She always cooked with lots of fresh veggies from her garden!
Thanks for sharing!
Oh, you are so lucky! The food looks delish, and the views are gorgeous. I would like to ask you for a favor. My folks and I will be in the mountains of NC next year. I would like to find a road that takes us as close as possible to a river. Can you tell me how to find the river in your photo? Like whats the general vicinity and the name of the street? You can drop me an email at otano33@hotmail.com
Thanks!!
I have sooooo enjoyed this post! It takes me back to the good ‘ol days when my husband and I were first married and went up to his parents cabin in the N. GA mountains. They have since sold it and his mom (the great country cook) has had a stroke and can longer cook. We miss that old life! I loved looking at all that good food and pretty mountain scenery. Cherish these times!!
Rhoda, reading this post was pure torture!!! Everything looks so good. My mom is a good southern cook also. It sounds like you all had great fun. I would have gained about 20 pounds on that trip! I may try the cornbread recipe. It sounds intriguing.
Oh! One more thing………I grew up eating tomato gravy over toast and crumbled bacon on top. Yummy! My family is from NC. Maybe that recipe originated there. Thanks for sharing your version.
Oh Rhoda, please no more entries like this. I am STARVING! Starving for the southern cooking of my youth. I am certainly going to make that cornbread–very different from what I grew up on but soooo delicious looking! I grew up in Virginia. Now live in Chicago. Hmmm, where can I go right now for some good southern cooking?
OMgosh Rhoda. Everything looked so yummy! Can’t wait to try that cornbread recipe. Thank you mom for sharing it. Hugz, Diane
Do you have the recipe for the soup in the first picture?
Oh – that corn bread near the top just made me hungry!!!
All of the food looks sooooo good….comfort foods from home. What a fun weekend. I enjoyed the tour!
Can your Mama and Daddy adopt me?
The food looked great! Your parents must live close to mine as my parents usually go to the possum drop. They live in Andrews, NC. The views from their deck are amazing! Looks like you had fun!
I just love comfort food and although I could eat it all day, I know I shouldn’t. Have fun working it all off. lol
Rhoda,
I live here in Alabama and still cook like that too! I am 50 years old and learned to cook from my mom and grandmother! I just “put up” tomatoes the other day out of our garden!
Love your blog!
Donna
I’m available for adoption! Hope you will join me at diningwithdebbie.blogspot.com for Crock Pot Wednesday this week. Debbie Go HOGS!
Rhoda, absolutely lovely pictures and memories. I really need to photograph my mom’s food next time I go to TN. Her meals look much like your mom’s. and every meal is always a feast too. Great post as always. Marla
Girl, you have got this northern girl wanting to taste all your southern treats. I love grits but never had them with tomato…got to try that. Your dad is so cute, I wish I was there to learn gardening tricks from him. Your blueberries look as good as our world famous Maine blueberries. Love your site, I just found you this weekend.
Thanks for the tour, home is wherever you happen to be, isn’t it?
Hi Rhoda,
Yummy – goodness gracious – what a great time to stop by for a visit. Thank you for sharing your trip to the beautiful North Carolina mountains and all that yummy food – I am originally from N.C. (Wilmington on the coast) and your delicious food brings back fond memories of fried okra, peas, grits and all of the fabulous food you shared.
Have a lovely week.
Blessings,
Erin
Boy am I hungry after reading your yummy post! Sourwood honey is my favorite too, we live in VA and are having a hard time finding it. Fried okra is another favorite of mine, I only get it when I go home to mom’s! I will have to try your aunts cornbread, looks tasty. Thanks for sharing!
holy moly! i am drooling now!! i love all of the above, though the closest thing to many of your fresh vegetables for us are… frozen. i love blueberries on my cereal too. corn bread recipe…. wow!!!!! thanks for sharing such wonderfully, family-oriented, down home goodness! I wish things were still like this!
I am starving now
All the food looks DELISH!
I have followed your posts for some time but this is the first time I have commented. The food looks delicious. I think I LOVE your parents. You are so blessed. Now, I want to go stay a week with them and let you mother teach me to cook all that glorious food! I will clean their house and hoe the garden and whatever else just teach me to cook all that food!
WOW! Yumm-O! I copied the cornbread recipe. I will be making that real soon. Why is it when family gets together all we do is eat? I am not southern but I am Slovak. I have a good ole Irish name by marriage but I cook a lot of Slovakian foods. When we get together for the Holidays with my family all we do is eat! LOVE! Thanks for such a great post. You will have to add it to your favorite posts column! Nancy from OHIO
yes, that did it, now I am starving ahaha!!
I’m a southern girl so I can appreciate and drool over every single picture! Oh.My.Word! What I wouldn’t give to have been there. Tomato gravy is one of my favorite things my Mom makes. I love it over rice with her pork chops and a pear salad. Oh, I’m hungry just thinking about it. You’re a lucky girl.
Hugs!
Kat
I love zipper peas; Those pictures could have been taken at my family get togethers. I have seen many of the same dishes cooked up.
Fried okra, zipper peas, black-eyed peas, grits: I have never had any of these to my knowledge. But your pictures sure made everything look good! I think I gained five pounds just by reading.
Hey Girl! This is how we eat too, sometimes! I was born in NC, lived in GA, MS and now in AL. My grandmothers were fantastic cooks and I’d like to think that I learned something from them. Your family “get-together” reminds me of my own. Lots of great food and LOVE! The Smokey Mt. photos made me SOOOO homesick for NC. Some of my family still lives there, need to get home and visit them soon. Wish we were having a family reunion up there, but it’s here in AL this Oct. I sure did enjoy your trip to the mountains, thanks for the memories!
Rhoda, I hold you responsible for the 5 pounds I just gained bu simply reading your post and looking at the pictures. Thanks for taking me along, I enjoyed the trip.
This is the way Roy(husband) cooks, but we are on diet right now, so will save recipe for later.
Barbara
Rhoda, I always love your posts with your family. Your mother reminds me so much of my grandmother. I have memories of her standing by her stove, and she could cook the best food ever. And, you daddy is so cute. Our families are such a blessings.
Hi Rhoda!
OMG! You are right I am hungry now!! God bless your parents who are still active, and eating good healthy foods!
My grandparents had a farm many yrs ago, and used to grow their own vegetables too, Oh the pies too! Thanks for sharing this great post!
Debbie
Rhoda, I am drooling all over my computer, I am jealous to the core, and I WANT ALL THAT FOOD RIGHT NOW! You ate ALL my favorite things. IT IS NOT FAIR!
Hi Rhoda *smile* I love your blog! Deep South and yummy food! What a beautiful family too! Please ask your sweet mama if you could do a little video of her making those biscuits! They look waaaay better than mine! Thank you for being you!
I love the cabin and the food, oh man I am drooling and it’s only 8AM! What a special time with parents and family!
Thanks for all the pictures of that beautiful southern food, it made me reflect on my childhood visits to Alabama to visit my Grandma Gregson. There is nothing like Tomato gravy and rice. When it comes to cooking good food southerners do it right and most of all they will always make you feel welcome at there table.
Kandy
Dozx yoru know where I can find some pole beans in northern va or north carolina? I would love to have a pot for Thanksgiving.
Wow, that’s some good looking food and right down my Southern alley!
I just posted about Tomato Gravy on my blog the other day, and biscuits…yum, yum.
And those fresh tomatoes…can’t wait for a fresh summer vine-ripened tomato!
Love your blog. Hope to find the recipe for your mother’s apple/walnut cheesecake. Also, would love going to yardsales with you. At almost 76 years old, I still love, love, love thrift stores, yard sales and getting ideas.
It’s all about southern cooking and family. Love your site