Dinner with the Pastor: And Stay for Dessert

By Joe R. Cannon

This book is filled with everyday recipes and spiritual insights. Recipes include my own creations as well as recipes from family, friends, coaches' hospitality rooms, fellow teachers, etc. My unique experiences as both coach/teacher and pastor has provided recipes from many different sources. The spiritual insights are from my perspective as a pastor and teacher. Enjoy and share these recipes and stories with friends; that's my desire as I share this book with you!

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Jul 27, 2012
• ISBN: 9781475936247

Joe R. Cannon

Coach, umpire, pastor, teacher, father—all these combined to give Dr. Joe Ross Cannon opportunities to experience food from numerous areas of life. Added to these experiences was a desire to cook and create delicious foods for others to enjoy. Joe received a Bachelor of Science and a Masters of Education from East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma, and a Masters Degree and a Doctorate in Pastoral Theology from Andersonville Theological Seminary in Camilla, Georgia. He umpired baseball professionally for three years. After that, he became a successful coach with two state championships in girls’ basketball and one state championship in high school baseball. Joe has served as pastor in three churches in central Oklahoma. He lives today in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with his wife. He is the father of three children and four grandchildren.

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Copyright © 2012 by Joe R. Cannon.

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Artwork – Clendon Cannon

Artwork – Gena Wright Goodson

Typing and Proofing – Evelyn Kay Cannon

Proofing – Kristalyn Stewart

ISBN: 978-1-4759-3622-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-3623-0 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-3624-7 (ebk)

iUniverse rev. date: 07/25/2012

Contents

APPETIZERS

BEVERAGES

BREADS

BREAKFAST

CAKES

COOKIES AND CANDIES

FROSTINGS

HODGE PODGE

ICE CREAM

MAIN DISHES

PICKLES AND RELISH

PIES AND PUDDINGS

SALADS

SOUPS

VEGGIES

DEDICATION PAGE

God has blessed me with an incredible gift of putting ingredients together to create what I believe are very good foods. As long as I can remember, I have had a desire to cook and create different foods.

During most of my adult life, I have had a desire to own and operate a restaurant. In fact I once had the idea of what I would call a Commuter Cafe. My strategy would be to place the cafe in an area of heavy traffic, traveling toward home at the end of the work day during rush hour. The menu would cater family-ready meals prepared for various size families. The meals would include a variety of main dishes (meat) and vegetables to compliment, available in a bulk package. The dinner would be completely prepared, ready to set on the table when arriving at home. Fixing these meals in bulk would greatly reduce the cost of preparation, resulting in a reduced cost to the consumer.

I have always loved cooking and experimenting with preparation of various foods. I feel that I also have been blessed with a knack to figure out what certain dishes and foods contain. Many times I have had a different first-time food and gone home to my lab (kitchen) and began to experiment until I came up with the same food. This has provided some very good dishes and some not so good. It is fun and exciting to explore and experiment with cooking—creating recipes that are keepers.

My desire is to pass along some of my recipes along with other recipes accumulated over the years from family and friends. This joy of creating or discovering new recipes has been something I’ve wanted to share over the years. As you will discover, these recipes have come from many different places; some passed down from family, some shared from acquaintances, as well as some from the many coaches’ hospitality rooms that I have visited during my years of coaching. Others have been from teachers’ hospitality rooms and church fellowship dinners. I’ve also included a short story about many of the recipes—its origination or other special information about the recipe or the person from whom it came. Interspersed throughout the book are spiritual life stories, or insights, about the Christian life.

I want to take this opportunity to express my appreciation to those who have been willing to share their recipes with me, and those who have volunteered to experience these recipes first hand.

One of the things that all my family has learned over the years is that when Dad, or Grandpa, is in his laboratory, stay out of his way! I do like my space when I am preparing food. I want to take this opportunity to thank all my children, Kristalyn, Clendon, and Daro, and my grandchildren, along with my wonderful wife, for giving me the space to create and for being willing to try the food I prepared.

One particular recipe is a family funny that we keep alive all the time. I made a big pan of gravy one evening. I had been reading through some cook books and one of the writers said to drop a couple drops of Worcestershire sauce in the gravy to enhance the taste. I did and my family, including our dog Dexter, turned their nose up at it and refused, yes, I said REFUSED to eat it. I didn’t think it was that bad—of course, I made it. (LOL) They all tease me about it, and it is a standing funny when it comes to gravy building at our house. Oh yes, I have included that wonderful recipe in this book.

I do hope you enjoy these personal recipes and have many wonderful moments in the kitchen preparing them. If you do, please pass them along to a friend or family. When you start one of the recipes and come to a point that you think maybe you can’t complete the task of fixing the dish as it is supposed to be fixed, remember this: I can do all things through Christ who is my strength. (Philippians 4:13) Please enjoy! If you pass along the recipe to a friend, be sure to pass along your faith in God as well.

Once again I want to say thanks to my wonderful wife for putting up with me for all these many years and cleaning up after me when I have destroyed the kitchen. Thanks, Honey, for the many wonderful times we have had together. I could never have been what I am today without you.

I Love You.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

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APPETIZERS

LIFE GOAL

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, 

and all these things shall be added unto you.

Matthew 6:33

SOUL FOOD

With a book full of recipes of fabulous food, we need to make sure we are fed spiritually as well. Being right with God seems to make our food taste much better. Because we need to eat right to be healthy, eating foods that not only are good tasting but also good for us should be our daily goal.

The same should be said for feeding our soul with the right spiritual food. This spiritual food must improve our daily walk with God, just as the right food improves our physical health. Life is one big drama as we trudge along the road of life. On that road are potholes, bumps, curves, dangerous intersections, as well as hills and valleys. Facing these obstacles is a hindrance to our Christian walk. We all need strength from the spiritual food that we intake daily.

Throughout this book, I’m giving you spiritual recipes as well as some of the best food recipes that I can possibly give. As you read through the book, don’t feed only on the physical food but also feed upon the thoughts and precepts from God’s Word.

Here’s a new one for you to remember, When life gives you lemons, don’t make lemonade; put some effort into it and make a lemon custard pie. Most people seem to like lemon custard better than lemonade!

TICO TACO APPETIZER

I first had this in a coaches’ hospitality room at Okemah, OK. A coach’s wife made it and brought it to the hospitality room. I immediately asked for the recipe. Try this and that will be the rest of the story.

Add water to browned meat, add taco seasoning and simmer for 5 minutes. Combine cream cheese and milk. Blend well. Spread cheese/milk mixture on serving tray or large round cake pan. Top with meat mixture. Sprinkle on chilies, tomatoes, onions, and lettuce, in that order. Drizzle sauce over top and cover with cheese. Serve with corn chips.

PUPPY CHOW

I got this recipe in an unusual way. A young lady at our church at Scipio Baptist Church brought puppy chow to Vacation Bible School one night. One of the workers at VBS asked her for the recipe. She wrote it down and gave it to the worker, who then laid it down. I picked it up, took it to my office and copied it on the copier. I took it back and laid it back right where I had picked it up. Last time I saw that piece of paper, it was still lying there on that stack of papers. I got my copy, however!

Use a microwavable bowl and put chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter in the bowl. Microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring after each 30 seconds, until liquid and creamy. In a very large bowl, put the cereal and begin pouring the melted ingredients over it while folding all together. Slowly add powdered sugar in the same manner. Store in an air-tight container.

SWEET AND SOUR COCKTAIL SAUSAGES

This is a great entre at parties. I don’t really know where I came up with this recipe. Someone told me about it. I went home, tried it, and liked it.

1 cup grape jelly

¾ cup yellow mustard

2 packages little cocktail sausages

Combine jelly and mustard and heat over low heat. Add cocktail sausages and allow to heat for about 5 minutes on low heat. This can be done in a crock pot or electric skillet. Serve at your favorite gathering.

Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6

MYSTERY HORS D’OEUVRES

This is a surprising dish—not what you might expect, but a very tasty, well-liked appetizer.

1 can (15 oz) sauerkraut (chopped & drained)

2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

2 Tbsp chopped onion

2 Tbsp chopped pimento

3 Tbsp finely chopped green peppers

Blend above ingredients together and add the following to mixture:

¼ cup mayonnaise

½ cup bread crumbs

½ tsp salt

1 Tbsp sugar

Mold and chill overnight.

Next day mix 8 oz cream cheese with just enough milk to make a spreadable consistency. Spread this over vegetable mixture like a frosting.

DAVE’S DYN-O-MITE

This is a recipe I got from fellow coach David Ward. When we would go to summer team basketball camp, coaches would stay in the home ec room. Dave would pick up the ingredients, bring them back to the home ec room, and tell the coaches he was going to make some DYN-O-MITE! All the coaches would work together to prepare it, then devour 2-3 boxes of crackers and several helpings of this spread. This happened every night, over and over all week long.

16 oz cream cheese @ room temperature

6-8 finely-chopped green onions

1 jar finely-chopped Armour dried beef

Blend all together. This can be formed into any shape or put into a bowl. Serve with your favorite crackers or chips.

TEATIME TASSIES

Kay has made hundreds of these for various occasions, such as teachers’ meetings, hospitality rooms, parties, fellowships, and Christmas at the Pastor’s. They take some time, but they are well worth the effort. They can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator. The recipe came to us from Kay’s niece, Sheila Deaton.

CREAM CHEESE PASTRY

6-oz cream cheese

1 cup butter

Soften and blend together. Stir in 2 cups flour and ½ teaspoon salt. Chill cream cheese pastry about 1 hour. After chilling, form into 4 dozen 1-inch balls. Place each ball into small (1-1 ½ inch) muffin cups. Press dough evenly against sides and bottom.

FILLING

Beat together