We still have an abundance of fresh frozen veggies from last year's garden in the freezer and carrots, potatoes and cabbage in the root cellar so I frequently make one variety or another for our first (breakfast, kinda/sorta) meal of the day. (By the by, we're still happy with and staying on the two-meal-a-day routine we established a couple of months ago. Admittedly, we fell off the wagon a few times during the holidays [with a heavy thud], but neither of us felt as good when we did. Coulda been the influx of sugar during the holidays, but we won't talk about that just now. Ahem.)
The broccoli may not taste quite the same as it would fresh out of the garden, but it's still mighty good and the wonderful retained green color makes it all the more appetizing.
To prepare our egg/protein part of the meal, I melt a little butter or coconut oil in a skillet, add pre-cooked bacon bits I keep in the freezer and warm them up well. Then I crack eggs on top, turn once and service on a piece of bread, homemade rye this morning.
Papa Pea's contribution to our morning meal is a small dish of homemade kefir/yogurt with a drizzle of haskap berry syrup. Gotta get those probiotics into our system each day.
Looking at our Franciscan, Apple pattern, dishes reminds me of when my mom and dad used to make the trek up from Illinois to visit us. Dad always grumbled about eating off these dishes because he said he frequently tried to eat the painted apples on the border.
I've mentioned it before . . . I've had these dishes since 1964 and it feels as though they've become an integral part of our lives.
Once, a few years ago, I thought I was tired of them so my brother-in-law, who manufactured dinnerware in his ceramics factory, sent me a set of all-white Bauer dishes which I used for a couple of years.
Eventually I realized I missed my Franciscan Ware and brought them back up from the basement where they had been packed away and stored. Some old things can't be replaced, I guess. I sure hope so 'cause there are a lot of "old" things around here. Don't get me wrong; old is not necessarily bad or inferior, but rather loved, revered, valued and in the case of some folks, full of wisdom. Right? RIGHT??
I am still using the same Cornflower Blue patterned Corelle my Dad bought was I was a teenager for our camper. He passed them on to me when I moved into my first apartment. Nothing wrong with them so why get new?
ReplyDeleteSame here, still using the same Noritake Versastone dishes we got for wedding gifts over 35 years ago. Like you, we changed things up once with some Winfield Ware Blue Pacific that I bought from a neighbor many years ago.
ReplyDeletePutting vegetables on the plate with breakfast is such a good thing to do, especially if you are doing just two meals a day. I like to think that a hot mug of tomato soup in the morning gives me a boost!
Lisa B - And the thing is those dishes of yours have so many memories attached to them. I wonder if they even make Corelle anymore?
ReplyDelete2 Tramps - We almost always have a vegetable or two with our second (main) meal of the day, but another serving of them sure can't hurt in a day's time. If we have leftover soup, we'll have that for breakfast so I can understand why you like tomato soup sometimes in the morning. The other morning I had about 1-1/2 cups of homemade turkey broth left over from some I defrosted to use in another recipe so I put some chopped cabbage and onions in the broth, simmered it until the veggies were tender and we each had a little bowl of that with our breakfast. Tasted darn good, too!
Definitely full of wisdom! :) I love your dishes! The story of your dad grumbling made me smile :) Oh gosh I'm craving bacon and eggs now...I eat my homemade yogurt every morning too, but I also add a cranberry/probiotic powder to it for added probiotic power!
ReplyDeleteRain - Mixing in a probiotic powder sounds like a good way to go, too!
ReplyDeleteI am trying intermittent fasting and have discovered that I really do not need to eat constantly to keep my energy levels up. Two meals each day is absolutely plenty
ReplyDeleteLooks great lots of character to those dishes
ReplyDeleteThat pattern looks familiar. Maybe I had it, "back in the day." Did have another one of those patterns, which became collectable, after I had gotten rid of it. :-(
ReplyDeleteGood breakfast! We are eating "so healthy" after his illness, that our auras must be GREEN and SPARKLY!!! ,-)
Alternate protein (eggs) with oatmeal breakfasts. Add fruit. Lunch is always a fresh salad, veggie or Waldorf. And fruit.
Dinner, most important parts are the veggies.
And we have nuts and yogurt. Probiotics very important here!!!
I'll tell you, it is "WORK", to be sure to get all those good things in. And to prepare them. But I have become a pro.... In my old age! He used to cook. Now I push the good stuff!!! lol
Oh and keep track, so we get 60oz. of liquid daily! Yesss!!!! I said 60. That's work too. And a lot of nagging, which he does not see as nagging. He's very happy I am in charge of all this!!!!! :-)
Thanks for doing this post. It gave me a chance, to tout our new, healthful ways. LOL.
✨✨✨✨
My grandmother had the Franciscan Apple pattern, And yes, they still make Corelle. We eat off of it every day.
ReplyDeleteGreat breakfast! I use my Grams everyday china, and love it. I had it in a trunk for years, and one day decided that I needed to use it, and its been in the cupboard ever since. So, I truly get your reason to bring back the set that makes you happy! The greatest joy to grocery shop from the garden you preserved in the freezer!
ReplyDeleteI waded through high school years with Fransician Wear envy. But patience Grasshopper I now eat off of my dear mother in loves Blue Danube Dresden China . Who knew?
ReplyDeleteBoth have a lot to be desired but with so many settings of hers I doubt I will ever need the other enough to justify the expense. .
And both she and I would love your break fast meal .
We ate supper off my Grandma's Franciscan Rose dishes tonight; I loved them when she had the and love them even more now in remembrance of her! Old is best. ;-)
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteYep, gotta get those probiotics in for sure. We had broccoli last night too.
ReplyDeleteCherie K. - We've talked about doing some fasting . . . but haven't made the effort to do that yet. So many sources say that's good for the body. Giving it a rest from the work of digestion is the main reason we went to the two meals a day.
ReplyDeleteNancy - The Franciscan Ware must have something going for it as it's been around a LONG time!
wisps of words - Oh my, you're doing such a good job of taking care of not only your dear husband but yourself! Yes, it IS work. As is cooking from scratch, but as we age we have to give our wonderful bodies extra added help to keep them functioning at a good level . . . for a long time! You go, girl!
SmartAlex - Good to know some good stuff hasn't gone by the wayside. (A lot has in the name of economy and/or ease!)
wyomingheart - Once again, just think of all those memories attached to the dishes you use every day! This time of year, I really, really appreciate and reap the bounty of the work that goes into a garden in the summer and then harvest season. Such a good feeling!
ReplyDeleteGoatldi - I just love hearing of so many of you that are using dinnerware passed down from previous generations. A daily reminder of love. So good to hear from you, my friend. Have been thinking of you and sending good vibrations to you through the Ethernet. Hugs.
Michelle - Yes, the rose pattern is has always been very popular. I have a couple of dishes I picked up on a sale table in a large department store years ago of the Fresh Fruit pattern which you don't see often. Who knew so many of us were using Franciscan Ware! I love that!
Unknown - They say the very base of good health, especially as we age (and get wise!), is the gut. And supplying the gut with healthy, vigorous, good probiotics is a necessity! So any way we can get them is a plus! (Our kimchi adds a lot for us, too, besides the kefir/yogurt mix we ingest.)
I love Franciscan ware - my great Aunt Edie had the flowers. I always think that food tastes better on lovely plates. I am faced with a large quantity of sliced, frozen beets. Do you have any suggestions, oh wonderful cook, you?
ReplyDeleteSusan - Beets? Just don't send them to me. We eat ours heated, well-drained, salt and peppered and buttered. The more butter the better. Of all my veggies put by this fall, I now know I did too many frozen beets. You may be enticed to eat more of them (this goes for us, too) knowing they are low in calories, contain nitrates and pigments that may help lower blood pressure (think breaking and entering dogs) and improve athletic performance. (Think olympic-rated snow shoveling this weekend.) Lots of iron in them, too. Now go eat your beets.
ReplyDeleteThe presentation of your food plate looks really good. Made me hungry. The dishes are pretty. My grandmother had a set of those, but don't know what became of them. Brings back good memories. Two meals aday works for me! We have a storm coming to us this week-end. 50 mile an hour winds , possibly higher, sleet ,rain and snow! What fun, ugh!
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking of going to the two meal a day plan, but the problem is I get so hungry sometimes, don't know if I could go that long. I love your dishes but after breaking so many pottery-type dishes over the years, I went to mismatched Corelle that I picked up at yard sales. I can practically throw those things and they don't break. Also they are lightweight and don't take up much space.
ReplyDeleteLynne - Yes, I know you're preparing for a whopper-doo of a storm over the weekend. I hope you can hunker down and stay home. Of course, it will be the winds to watch out for. They can be brutal. We had the winds all last night and with our temp below zero, it was worrisome. Sunshine today, though, so that helps plus the wind has abated. Hope you don't get any of the sleet and rain. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteRuth - I know, I have days when I just have to put something on my tummy 'round about 2 or 2:30 in the afternoon. Not all days, but sometimes. The trick is to eat not much at that time and try to make it something nourishing. I like an apple, hubby like to eat a whole carrot! Just keep remember the "fasting" hours for your digestive system is worth trying to do it. I never have trouble waiting in the morning for our first meal at 9:30. Even though I may have been up for 3-4 hours and active, my morning latte tides me over very well.
I've broken relatively few of my Franciscan pieces. A few do have chips in them though! I can totally understand why anyone would favor the Corelle dishes.
My grandmother had a set of Franciscan dishes, I think it was Desert Rose(?) Something rose, anyway. They were always for "best," so they always remind me of special occasions.
ReplyDeleteI was curious about your 2-per-day meals and am glad the plan is still going well. Back to my grandmother again, but she and my grandfather only ate two meals a day too! They were both in excellent health.
It's understandable why we use those things that have proven the test of time. I still use my parents' 1960's "Colonial Homestead" by Royal dishes... green dishes where the plates, cups, saucers, etc each show an article of a colonial log cabin. I remember they would get one at a time from the grocery store, using points or maybe coupons issued at each purchase of groceries. Phil/Eagle Bend
ReplyDeleteLeigh - I should do some research and learn when Franciscan Ware first was made. It definitely seems to be a long time ago because so many have commented that their grandparents used it.
ReplyDeleteInteresting about your grandparents eating just the two meals a day. I wonder if it would work for the old-time farmers who worked so very hard physically even in the winter time.
Phil - Oh yes, the dishes and other things one could get at the grocery store or bank as incentives! I still have and use an ironing board and rack with colorful tea cups and saucers that my grandmother got for Green Stamps and gave me for wedding shower gifts!
My good dishes are dishes I got piece by piece when I bought groceries! LOL! They may not be valuable but I love those dishes still. I remember when Franciscan ware was all the rage! I think I remember that pattern too. My Aunt had something similar. Very pretty indeed!
ReplyDeleteI too am down to 2 meals a day...maybe some popcorn if I can't wait for dinner. I've never heard of that berry...is it a wild one?
I'm not supposed to have regular milk products...no allergy just cholesterol so I use Almond milk and I'm looking to make yogurt from it as I miss my Greek yogurt. I also saw a kefir recipe that I might try. I love eating healthy but I do go off the wagon during holidays. Some of the things I used to love I can't take anymore though...Chex Mix is too salty, Rotel dip is too rich and salty, some desserts are too sweet....I think that's a good sign! Stay warm and healthy!