GWU regular season play ended with two games played at home. Family members from Oklahoma, Missouri, Alaska, Texas and all over were in town for these games and for senior night.
Very spur of the moment we decided to fix Saturday morning breakfast for whoever could come to the Cabin in Lattimore.
I made 80 homemade biscuits and breakfast casserole. (recipes on previous posts) David fried bacon and sausage.
Daddy fried country ham and livermush. He decided to rename livermush to make it more palatable for the folks who aren't from around here. So for Saturday morning he renamed the livermush Pork Bread - which is pretty descriptive of what it is - cornmeal mixed with spices and all kinds of pork. The name change didn't entice most of the guests. Kind of the reverse of the saying a rose by any other name...
Anyway, we really enjoyed everybody who came for breakfast early on Saturday morning. Besides biscuits, bacon, sausage, ham, pork bread and breakfast casserole, we had plenty of other goodies. Daddy made Red Eye Gravy and Sausage Gravy. Dorothy was visiting from Oklahoma and pitched in to make a huge pot of grits and a big fruit salad. I lost count after David had scrambled 5 dozen eggs. Nobody was shy about eating and when it was all said and done there weren't many morsels leftover.
After everyone finished eating they sat for a good while to relax, talk and tell stories. It was music to my ears to hear everybody laughing and just enjoying each other's company.
Outside, the sun was shining, the cows were frolicking around and the train car was chugging along. It was the beginning of a perfect Saturday. Later on, we met up with Kay, Kim, Avery and Archer for a quick dinner before the game. And what a game it was.
The three GWU senior players with their families were recognized for their years of dedication. Then the game started and the Bulldogs came out like gangbusters. On offense and defense. The score was 22-0 before High Point finally got their first bucket of the night. The Bulldogs went on to win in front of a really charged up home crowd. It was a great way to end regular season play.
The win put the Bulldogs into the Big South Tournament and so on Tuesday we headed down to Coastal Carolina for our third match up of the year. Earlier in the year, Coastal had won the first time and then we won the next which ended Coastal's 22 game winning streak. For the Big South tournament, Coastal had home court advantage and the game was really close and intense. In the end, Coastal won it and the Bulldogs had to say goodbye to the 2010-2011 Season.
It's been an amazing basketball season with so many new experiences, so many new friends and a lot to look forward to next year. The level of play is fast and exciting and the GWU players, staff and families are a joy to get to know.
Through sports we continue to make friends for a lifetime. Like some Wofford boys who showed up recently for another spur of the moment dinner. Tenderloins went on sale and suddenly we had Wofford boys and family gathered around the table.
If you're ever hungry for food, fun and fellowship, just remember:
If you cook it they will come!
Daddy's Red Eye Gravy
Scrape country ham on both sides and then trim off the fat. Cut the fat into small cubes. Daddy calls these crumbles or jibbles or cracklins. Fry the jibbles until they are really browned and have released grease into the frying pan. Remove the jibbles and save for later. Sometimes we add them into cornbread for Cracklin' Cornbread and sometimes people put them on their corn. Sometimes we just eat them all by themselves. One thing is for sure - there are never any jibbles left over.
Cut the country ham into biscuit sized pieces and fry in the jibble grease. There is an art to cutting up the ham and to cooking the ham done but not chewy and dry.
When all the ham is cooked, heat the grease in the cast iron pan to very hot. Make sure there are a few jibbles in there to help flavor the gravy. When the grease is sizzling, pour in water and stir quickly with a spatula. Pour enough water to deglaze the pan, but not so much it dilutes the pretty reddish brown color. Pour gravy into a bowl until ready to serve. The name comes from the Red Eye in the center of the bowl as the gravy separates a little bit.
Some people use coffee to make the gravy brown but Daddy prefers water so the real ham flavor comes through. Serve over grits, biscuits or cornbread.
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