Internet Cooking 2- Simple Turnip Green Casserole

 I'd heard of all kinds of greens casseroles  and how delicious they are but, had never tasted  or tried one.  As with most recipes, the proof is in the seasonings of the cook.    

The Greens Casserole is good for using any type of leftover greens. I first used leftover kale.

I liked it so much I made it again  but, this time I used canned greens and instant cornbread mix. I like to keep things simple.

    There are numerous recipes out there on YouTube. Many that are pretty elaborate layering the greens with chicken,corn, additional cheeses and other extras.   After viewing various recipes, I developed a  simple recipe that would suit my needs. I might get fancy in the future but not this time.

Simple Turnip Greens Casserole

                    Ingredients

• 1  27 oz. can of Margaret Holmes turnip greens, drained (or use your own leftover  greens approximately  3 1/4 cups

• 2 boxes of  Jiffy cornbread mix (or use homemade)  yielding approximately 4 cups of batter

• 1  8oz. block of cream cheese

•  additional seasonings of your choice 

                                Instructions

Preheat your oven to  350 degrees

1. Drain the juice from your greens and place them in a large mixing bowl.

2. Add the 8 oz. block of cream cheese to the greens. opt. add any additional seasonings to your liking. Mix well. Set aside.

3. In another bowl prepare your cornbread batter. Set it aside.

4. Grease a suitable sized baking pan or casserole dish. (I used a 9 x 9)

5. Pour in an even layer of cornbread batter that goes up to about 1 inch in depth.  

6. Spread your greens mixture evenly across this layer of batter. DO NOT MIX  or STIR  IT.

7. Pour the remaining batter across the greens mixture. DO NOT MIX or STIR IT

 8. Place your casserole inside the 350 degree oven and bake for 30-40 minutes. Check  at 30 minutes to see if the casserole has "set" when you jiggle it and the  cornbread top has browned.

9. Allow the casserole to cool for about 10 minutes giving the filling extra time to set.

10. Cut a square of the casserole, place it on a dish, and serve.

Alternates and Extras

Some views showed a dollop of sour cream on individual servings.

Others showed a strata consisting of cooked chopped chicken, cheddar cheese and corn. All recipes ended with the cornbread topping.

This casserole was also delicious and simple. It's in the "Keep" pile.

That's It ***

Internet Cooking 1- Brown Sugar Cookies

 I come across interesting recipes when scrolling YouTube. Sometimes I'm looking for something quick and sweet. Other times I'm looking for alternate ways to prepare a vegetable.

This time I was looking for something sweet and came across, 3- Ingredient Brown Sugar Cookies at Steph's Stove.   The recipe is as follows;

Brown Sugar Cookies ½ cup butter - softened to room temperature ½ cup packed brown sugar 1 cup All-Purpose flour Preheat oven to 375° In a medium mixing bowl add softened butter and brown sugar. Using a stand mixer, with the paddle attachment, on medium speed blend butter and brown sugar until well combined and fluffy. Gradually add the flour (all-purpose flour) to the butter mixture and blend just till combined and the mixture forms a dough without any flour streaks visible. Do not over mix. Using a 1- tablespoon cookie scoop (or your hands), form cookie balls, place onto a parchment or silicone lined cookie sheet, and flatten each cookie ball. This will allow the cookies to be thin and crispy when baked. Place into the pre-heated 375° oven and bake for approximately 8-minutes. The cookies should be golden brown with set edges and the center will appear soft. Remove from the oven and drop the hot pan onto the counter (or hard surface) immediately. This will allow the cookies to spread, create a chewy center, and a crinkle effect on the cookie surface. After “the drop” place the pan onto a wired cooling rack and allow to cool for 5-minutes. Transfer cookies from the pan to the cooling rack after 5-minutes and allow them to cool completely. After the cookies have completely cooled, place in an airtight container, on the counter, and enjoy for up to 5-days. If you would like to create a “just baked” cookie after storing, pop into the microwave for about 8-10 seconds. Enjoy! Tips - For a thicker cookie, chill the dough for about 20-30 minutes before baking.

This recipe was a bust for me. They were thin, hard and ended up more like Peanut Brittle without the peanuts. Human error on my part is possible. I won't be trying this again.   👎😞

That's it***

Boxing Boxes

 I shop online periodically.  I always save the boxes for a while to determine if I can use them for something else. (I've been trying to declutter and organize lately.) 

I've made a pact with myself that if I don't use them within 30 days, I break them down and take them to a recycle station. After all, more boxes will be on the way...eventually. 

Being that I frequent fast food restaurants, (Don't judge me.) I accumulate a lot of paper napkins. (Why throw them away when I can use them in the car or at home*?)

 For a while I stacked them on top of the microwave. That stack can get so large, it tumbles over.  I decorated one of the small, cardboard  shipment boxes using one napkin, acrylic paint, felt and air-dry clay to decorate a box to keep them in. I happened to have all I needed in my craft stash. 

* I never buy paper napkins. I use cloth and launder them. I purchase the cloth napkins in good condition from thrift stores.  Since I'm at a vintage age 🙂, I also have vintage 

tablecloths that have matching napkins. 

That's it ***

Costume Jewelry

 

I have organized the necklaces and bracelets. Now comes earrings and brooches.

While decluttering I had to decide what I would give away and what I would keep. Among the jewelry were some pieces that have sentimental value that I am not ready to let go of even if I rarely wear it or not at all.

After setting the “give away pile” to the side, I focused on how to store the “keepers.”

Instead of dumping it all in a box, I decided I wanted to dump it in an attractive box.

I used a decorative contact paper I had recently bought and covered a hinged shoe box with it. Rummaging through my stash I found Velcro, imitation leather, and a lone blue button.

I set to work covering the outside of the box. I then cut out two pieces of leather in the shape of a strap and glued them together for sturdiness. Measuring carefully, I determined where the Velcro should be on the underside of the lid and attached it. Instead of placing the button at the bottom of the strap, I placed it on top just for color. Later I was able to place a title on the box indicating its contents. 

After sorting the jewelry by colors and sets  I placed them inside the box and stored it on a closet shelf.

FOOTNOTE: 

I came across this receipt during my decluttering. As of 2026 this receipt is thirty-five years old.

The Century Plaza Mallhas gone the route of so many malls of today. 

Century Plaza Mall

It no longer exists and has been replaced by an Amazon Fulfillment  Center.

That's it ***

Bracing the Bracelets

Now that I have the necklaces corralled it was time for the bracelets. 

1. I spotted a small wooden crate that  once held fancy fruit and chocolates, at a second hand store   A new crate at a Craft or $ Store would have been about $5. I got this one for 99 cents. 

2. A  base coat of white followed by pink was  the previous plan.  I later decoupaged it with a floral gift wrapping paper which you'll see in the final product.

3. The wooden drawer knobs in my stash finally got a chance to shine...literally. They were from a project that was never fulfilled. Originally,  I wanted the knobs green, but later decided on silver.

4.  The wooden dowel purchased from Lowe's for $1.69+ was cut to length with a  hacksaw I'd forgotten was in the garage. The pool noodle was easy to cut with a pair of strong scissors.

5.  I'm pleased with how this project turned out. You can see the decoupaged floral paper I used. The cup hooks are strong and hold the bracelets and dowel well.

        6. Now I can see the bracelets (this is just a sample) I have without rummaging through a drawer  looking for them. This hangs in my closet, on the wall next to the necklace holder.

That's it ***

1 

Necklace holder

This wooden slice was drawn and decorated by Matthew S.     He gifted it to me and I made a jewelry necklace  holder from it.

Necklace holder

 

Single Serving Oven Baked Rice

 

That's it ***

Corn Fritters (Mock Oysters)

                                                                                   Why are they called mock oysters?

I  used bell pepper, salt, black pepper, green onions and paprika in my mix. I didn't use cracker crumbs or corn meal. 

*FOOTNOTE

When I say this cookbook has everything;

                    Ever been hungry enough to eat a bear?

There you have it.

That's it ***

Amish Bakery

Dutch Oven Bakery is an Amish bakery located in   Falkville, Alabama. I took a day trip with others to see what they offered. 

Inside did not disappoint. It was chock full of goodies. You can see pictures here.

I bought these items.

I've had success using this microwave popcorn popper. 

There are many varieties of corn. All of it isn't yellow or white. 

You are probably wondering if the popcorn turns red  after popping? No it doesn't.

It turns out white and the kernels are smaller than the yellow that I'm used to. 

There seemed to be less husk to get out of my teeth and throat.

I seasoned it the first time with a little powdered Ranch seasoning from the salad mix pack. The popcorn seasonings in the shakers are expensive and they have little to no taste to me.

 

Tin Can Wind Chimes

 Things don't always work out. You can either chalk it up to experience or you can try again.

In this particular instance I'd seen colorfrul wind chimes made from tin cans and thought I'd try it.

Oftentimes my problem is that I can't decide on what I want to do, end up incorporating all features and then it turns out a tragic mess. 

I saw this.

Laura Daniel

             AND                         I saw this.         Debra Makol

*Coffee can, vegetable cans, Red Bull can. All      spray painted white 

 *Cans painted with acrylic paint in the colors        on the napkin. 

   *Napkin decoupaged onto one can.

I tried too many techniques. 
Decoupage, stencil, free hand, stones, glitter

The wire and chain (from a broken necklace) I used was difficult to shape. Then I tried to use string. 

A TACKY MESS!

I decided that this would be an experimental experience.   

I will try again. 

That's it ***