Bona Fide Southern Cookin

I want to share the most AMAZING mac and cheese casserole that was in my Southern Living Magazine. I've made a few changes to help with the cost and the beginner cook. Enjoy!

"Mac and Cheese Overdose Casserole"
I chose not to count the calories because this is some serious comfort food! 

Ingredients:
12 oz elbow macaroni
5 cups diced sausage- the original recipe calls for ham but ham is $$$, especially for a weeknight!
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
6 tbsp butter
1/3 cup grated onion
2 tsp dry mustard
1/8 tsp (a pinch) ground red pepper
salt and pepper to taste
5 Tbsp flour
3 1/2 cups milk
1 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cups shredded Sharp Cheddar
2 cups shredded Swiss- these two cheeses are great together!!
1 cup breadcrumbs
French fried onions

Equipment:
13 x 9 baking pan, greased
smaller casserole dish, just in case!
large skillet
large large pan or pot
whisk
stout spoon

I like to get everything grated, diced and ready befor I even preheat. With this recipe, it makes it go so much smoother.

Steps:
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and cook the pasta to al dente. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet, Heat 2 Tbsp oil and saute the sausage until brown. Set aside.

3.Get the rest of your ingredients close, these next steps are very tight. In your largest pan (I ended up using my 6 quart stockpot!), melt the 6 Tbsp butter. Add the onion, mustard, red pepper and salt/pepper; saute about 30 seconds. Add your flour, stir it constantly for the next 2 minutes until brown and smooth. Gradually whisk in the milk and cream; bring to a boil, whisking occasionally. Reduce to a simmer, whisking constantly for 5 minutes until thickened.

4. Remove that creamy delight from heat! Now stir in the cheddar cheese until melted. (You will be drooling!) Next stir in the sausage, pasta and swiss cheese until it is one beautiful chessey mixture! After this step you will be glad you used the giant pot!

5. Pour into a greased 13 x 9 dish (I had enough to fill another small casserole dish as well!), sprinkle with breadcrumbs to your liking and bake for 30 min- it should be gold and bubbly! I put the french fried onions on the last five minutes of baking.

This recipe is filling, cheesy and just a great casserole. I felt like a little southern wifey pulling the bubbly sucker out of the oven. The leftovers aren't too shabby either!

If you try this at home and have problems, FB me. I proofread this over and over again, but everyone makes mistakes :)

Enjoy!!

Christian or Jew?

Are you a Jew?

Is it okay for Christians to eat pork? Should you be sacrificing animals on a holy alter? What am I talking about?

The Division of the Covenants.

Why are we not bound to the Old Testament Law? Why do we even have it today? There are about 600 laws in the old law. Seriously, Leviticus is ridiculous! It’s also a very different testament then what we know today. 

“Eye for an Eye, Tooth for a Tooth…” Exodus 21:24.

 

“He shall bring the bull to the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, lay his hand on the bull’s head, and kill the bull before the Lord.” Leviticus 4:4

So what changed?

Jesus.  

  “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” John 3:16-17

The Old Law

So what was the purpose of the Old Law?  Why didn’t Jesus just come first? Paul lets us know in Galatians!

 “What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator.” Galatians 3:19

 

*So the Old Law was made because sin was in the world and we needed to know what was right and what was wrong. It was to be there until Jesus came at the right time, which was decided before the world was even created.

“Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law.” Galatians 3:21

*The Law was a teacher and did not give eternal life like Jesus does. That was not its purpose.

“But before the faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefor the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” Galatians 3:24

*The entire Old Testament points toward the coming Christ; it is all about CHRIST. The Laws themselves taught people about the nature of God and what was transgression against his law.

Jesus Purpose

So the Law was a stepping stone to Christ. During His life, he lived under the Old Law and he did so perfectly (Wow!!!). Once His blood was spilt and His life was over, the perfect sacrifice was made to wipe out sin forever! No longer do we have to sacrifice a bull every year to erase our sins, just to have them come back next year.

“And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” Colossians 2:13-14

Jesus’ sacrifice has finished the Old Covenant and has established a New Covenant. Hebrews 10:1-10 does a great job of explaining. 

“For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. ² For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. ³ But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. ⁴ For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.

⁵ Therefore, when He came into the world, He said:

“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
But a body You have prepared for Me.
⁶ In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin
You had no pleasure.
⁷ Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come—
In the volume of the book it is written of Me—
To do Your will, O God.’”

⁸ Previously saying, “Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the law), ⁹ then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second. ¹⁰ By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

This concept of separating the Old Testament and the New Testament is essential for understanding things like correct worship and salvation. Examples and stories from the Old Testament cannot be used to justify doctrine used in the New Testament Church. You can however, use stories to illustrate principles taught in the New Testament; a lot transfers over. My blog about Samuel and Hannah, for instance, is a good example of the principle of faith that I needed to learn.

 God has established with us a NEW covenant through the sacrifice of Christ and it is the greatest blessing the world has ever known! It is now our responsibility to hold up our end of the bargain by following His law and living for Him.

Things to Come!

I'm in the middle of writing a great study; its going to be a little deeper and a little more complicated than my previous studies so its going to take some time to make right :)

But its a BEAUTIFUL day and its Valentines day so get off the computer and go outside!!!

I ran outside with Petey and I shaved more time off my mile, he set a pretty fast pace!

If you don't have a dog to play with, you can go to the humane society and pick a dog to play with for the day! Seriously! Its so much fun!

Anywhoooo here's a verse to meditate on for today:

Colossians 3:23-25
^"And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality." 

And here are some pictures of my Petey :) :) :) 

Run!

Guess what!

I ran yesterday! For the first time in over a YEAR! A mile and a half! It about killed me! But it was awesome!

Just wanted to let ya'll know, because I'm super excited to continue running this year and for the rest of my life.

Its not a New Years Resolution: its a "Wow I've gained alot of weight and I'm tired of feeling pudgy and sluggish". When something is wrong, you should change, not wait till the new year to "be a new you".

Be a new you... now! Or, at least try. I have a list of things that need improvement, everyone does. And it would be a full time job addressing every thing at once. But little by little, improvement comes. Lap by lap, I did an 11 min mile.

Here's my plan of attack: 

1. Make time to run- write it in my planner to ensure that I do

2. Self- inspire: use Pinterest, envision what I want to look like in a few weeks time, set attainable goals (when I reach them, it will inspire me even more!) Keep it on my mind! 

3. Keep myself "clean": eating better will make me feel better, which will make it easier to get up and go run and it will further my weight loss! 

4. Get help: keep Jeffrey on my back about, to keep me accountable

I got a lot of these ideas from Pinterest and some self-experience. I have always loved running but I think fear of failing has kept me from picking it back up. 

But fear will no longer keep me on the couch!!!!! 

What inspires you to better yourself? How do you keep yourself on track?

What is holding you back? How can you overcome those fears? 

1 Corinthians 9:24

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.

Save the Ponies!

I'm going to talk about something today that some people might not like.

 Horse Slaughter. It's kind of a hot topic today and I have an educated opinion that I would like to share with you all.

Being involved with the horse industry for a long time, I have seen some things that have shaped my opinion over the years. I used to be completely against horse slaughter but once I saw the suffering of horses that don't get humane slaughter in the US, my opinion has changed dramatically.

My first point is that slaughter in the US is the most humane and painless process in the entire world. No other place in the world takes the care that we do to ensure the animals feel no pain during the slaughter process. I'm not sure what comes to mind when people think of American slaughter houses but I assure you that the facilities are top-notch and that those that do not follow code are quickly shut down. Please don't let the few bad apples in the industry shape your opinion. 

Secondly, if the US doesn't have horse slaughter, where do they go? They have to go somewhere. Guess what. They're shipped 25 hours to Mexico (illegally) where there are no rules no restrictions and no humane slaughter. The animals are handled and killed in horrific ways that trust me, you do not want to know about.

But why have horse slaughter if we don't eat horses? With the recent downturn of the economy, there are thousands and thousands of unwanted horses that cannot be sold. The shelters are full up and people can no longer afford to feed their animals. What makes it worse is that there has been a horrific drought the past few years. Animals are literally starving to death in their own pastures. People will drop off their horses in stranger's pastures because they can't feed or water them. I've even heard of horses being let loose in national parks because there's simply no grass and no water and no money. 

Many people also don't realize the cost of owning and feeding horses.  If you can spend $3000 a year you're doing pretty well; most people spend $5-$6000 a year and that's on a horse who does not need medication or extensive care. When people say "don't open up slaughter! They all deserve homes!"-- I think "are you going to pay for these animals?"-- I don't think so. 

Please don't misunderstand me. My horse is my child and I would do anything for her. But animals should never bring down the welfare of human life. If your children are starving and your horse is getting fed, something is wrong.

Horse slaughter is the most humane and most effective way to ease the pain and suffering of these unwanted horses. I would much rather see the horses go to the slaughterhouse then to starve in pastures where there's no food and no water but their owners can't do anything about it.

The Struggle Is Real

I've been struggling with what to blog about- Its been easier in the past because I've been very positive...

But lately I've been bogged down with alot of stress and worry. Why? Because everyone seems to ask this one question:

"Have you secured employment upon graduation?" "Do you have a job yet?" "Got any job plans?"

That question is seriously, the worst. It looms over me like a dark cloud.  I'm excited to graduate (I think?!) but getting a full time job is the hardest thing I have ever had to do. It gets me all bent up inside. I need some reassurance...

The Story of Hannah, 1 Samuel Chp 1
This is the woman I was named after and her story is absolutely inspiring. (If you have never read it, please do so!)  She wants so badly to have a child that it grieves her to the depths of her soul. She pours her grief and anguish out to the Lord and asks to be remembered in her sorrow. She then trusts that the Lord has heard her cry and continues worshiping.

Guess what? He remembers her! She is blessed with a beautiful baby boy, which she names Samuel. Samuel means "God has heard". Wow. What a loving and wonderful God to answer her prayer and ease her wrecked soul.
But Hannah doesn't just say "thanks!" and head on her merry way. She dedicates Samuel back to God and Samuel goes on to be a great prophet and judge of Israel.
Her selfless act blessed Israel for many generations.
And God continues to bless her with more children.

My heart would burst with joy! In Chp 2, Hannah offers up a prayer of rejoicing, thanksgiving and glory to God: 

“No one is holy like the Lord,
For there is none besides You,
Nor is there any rock like our God."

I need to follow in Hannah's footsteps during my own time of grief and struggle:

 My Dearest Lord, my heart is heavy with worry and anxiety about my near future. I fear that I will not have a job after graduation and we will face hard times that we may not be able to handle. I ask that you give me strength and perseverance during my job search. I ask that you will lead me to a job where I may shine your light to those around me and that will provide for my family. Thank you for my education, my wonderful family and my husband. Help me to remember that all is for your glory. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Now, chill.           GOD'S GOT IT.


A verse that would be handy to memorize and quote to yourself when stress is overwhelming:
 Isaiah 41:10 "Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."