About a year ago, we ended up with a last-minute mess of donated collard greens we wanted to serve at our takeout lunch ministry. We knew just who to call for guidance. JaNaé Swanson-Brown says she learned to cook her Southern-soul collards by first watching her mother and grandmother in Millen, Georgia, and then perfecting... Continue Reading →
Surprised by the broccoli salad
A month ago, we went on a quest for a great broccoli salad to serve at our free community drive-thru lunch. Several tasty suggestions were shared, but we chose this recipe from the collection of a 102-year-old woman who lived in Kenbridge, Virginia. We didn’t expect all of our 90 guests to like it, but... Continue Reading →
First taste of fall: Sweet Potato-Chocolate Chip Cookies
I’m on a small team of people who run a food ministry in north Knoxville, Tennessee. Our friend Marci Villanueva created these cookies because we need to use up sweet potatoes stored in our freezers, but also because we wanted to provide dessert a little special for last Saturday's free takeout lunch. The sweet potatoes... Continue Reading →
Alone in a greenhouse: Time that nourishes
The Henderson Settlement campus is nearly empty this summer. But tucked away in one of five greenhouses is Casey Smith with a water hose. She's nurturing the vegetables and greens she planned and planted before everyone realized the pandemic is going to stay awhile. “God gives me the ability to do it,” she says. “I... Continue Reading →
Here’s a story about a connectional sweet potato
It starts with thousands of potatoes that were dropped on the parking lot at Concord United Methodist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee, on a chilly Saturday morning in January. The potatoes were gleaned by the Society of St. Andrew, which redistributes produce that would otherwise end up in landfill, so that it can be used to... Continue Reading →
Onions and pantyhose go together like … Wait, what?
The photos that come out of Elk Garden School Community Ministry Center are always intriguing. The onions-and-pantyhose post led me to give Rev. Brooke Atchley a call! Brooke is a Church and Community Worker -- a local missionary in The United Methodist Church -- who hosts all sorts of mission teams and volunteers at the... Continue Reading →
God’s gift
And yet food is a gift from God. It represents God's love for us. This wonderful world that God created provides us with all that we need to live -- air, water, food, shelter -- the basic elements a person needs to live and function. It is no accident that our most profound sacrament, Holy... Continue Reading →
Update on the potato salad and green beans
We recently invited you to share your potato-salad preferences and no-no's, with a promise to use your suggestions for a church cookout. Don't laugh, but I literally made a Yes/ No chart of the comments we received by blog, Facebook and email -- to help me decide which direction to go. My chart I'll cut... Continue Reading →
Potato salad: What’s your pleasure?
We need your help. What do you like in your potato salad? Eggs? Pickles? Mayo? Mustard? What sort of potatoes do you use? Russets? Redskin? Yukon gold? Scott Ketron, who let us borrow the above photos from his Facebook page, clearly likes a Southern-style potato salad with brand-name mayonnaise and vinegar. (Some of you know... Continue Reading →
Green beans are coming
On Tuesday, July 9, Mike and I went to Henderson Settlement to celebrate our anniversary. It's a United Methodist mission in Frakes, Kentucky. We were married there! The next morning, I was in a hurry to get up and make the two-hour trip back to my office in Alcoa, Tennessee. My boss, Tim, had scheduled... Continue Reading →