About Dawson County news. (Dawsonville, Georgia) 2015-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 17, 2024)
Wednesday, January 17,2024 dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 3B Peasant food that became fit for nobles Family is precious in Southern culture A significant awakening swept over me recently. When it happened, I was happily stunned at my observation. Daddy had a close first cousin named Gurley, link, a Yankee, had never heard of degrees of cousins until he came south. He did not know what a “first” cousin was or how you became third cousins. “In my family, we were just cousins,” he replied, puzzled. Aw, but in the South, cousin degrees are important. I and a friend were discussing once, someone we both knew. “We’re cousins,” I said. “Really? How? “Our daddies were first cousins.” “And that would make you what? Third cous ins?” “Yep.” Of course, there’s always those no-accounts that we don’t like to claim so we’ll often say, when pressed, “We’re distant kin. Not close enough to count.” Once, as I talked about Gurley being the brother Daddy never had, Tink asked, starting to learn the importance of degrees, “They were first cousins?” “Double first cousins.” Surprise sprung into his eyes. “What’s that?” “That’s when two brothers marry two sisters so their children are first cousins two times.” It’s probably not fair to say it was horror that swept across Tink’s face but it was, at least, sec ond cousin kin to horror. “So, that really does happen in the mountains.” I rolled my eyes. “Not that way. It’s when a set of brothers from one family marries a set of sisters from another family.” Daddy and Gurley, being so closely kin, both possessed AB negative blood, the rarest blood type. When Gurley was cut up badly in a saw mill accident and bleeding to death, the hospital could not get AB negative. Gurley’s wife, Idell, said, “Call Ralph. He has AB negative.” Daddy hurried to the hospital and his blood donation saved Gurley, creating an even tighter bond between them. It was out of the Appalachian foothills, this Satterfield clan of men came, wearing only the clothes on their backs and carrying Bibles in their hands. In the lowlands, they worked hard, eager to escape the poverty in which they had been raised. They settled in the same town, mak ing their ties forever unbreakable. For the first half of their lives, Gurley and Daddy lived next door to each other in tiny houses they built. Daddy was the first able to afford to build a small brick house then he helped Gurley build a similar house using the same house plan. The clan had all the good and bad Appalachian qualities. They were mountain “quare”, hard to understand, set in their ways and once they “fell out” with you, they didn’t fall back in. But the good qualities were out standing: They were devoted to the Lord, wore out several Bibles over a lifetime, possessed strong work ethics deeply embedded in their bones, and they took admirable care of their families and any other family that needed help. Many were the times that I walked into Daddy’s car repair garage and found the two of them, Bibles in hands, discussing the scriptures. Once, Gurley interrupted a church sermon to stand up and say, “Excuse me, preacher, but that’s not what the Bible says.” Then he explained it to a jot and tittle. My awakening came on the night, the Satterfield clan gathered at a funeral visitation to observe the homegoing of Gurley’s wife. I looked around at the room of cousins — all sec ond and third — and realized what a family these mountain folks had “brung up.” All are God-fearing, church-attending and successful citizens: Registered nurses, a pharmacist, a post master, military, one retired in management from Wrigley’s and another, after 35 years, who is in management with Johnson & Johnson. Two have been appointed by governors to sit on state boards. It reminded me of what my Sunday School teacher used to say: “You can go anywhere from right here in this little country town.” To quote Daddy, “The truth don’t lie.” Ronda Rich is the best-selling author of the new novel "St. Simons Island: A Stella Bankwell Mystery." Visit www.rondarich.com to sign up for her free weekly newsletter. Believe it or not, some of the most iconic dishes and some of the most comforting, were once considered peas ant dishes — that is, dishes prepared by the poorest people who used ingredients that were inexpen sive and accessi ble. If you are won dering how peas ant dishes wound up in the homes of the rich and the royals, think about who was doing the cooking — the peasants who worked for the well off. These resourceful “peasant” people knew how to take tough cuts of meat — and even parts of the animal that were considered undesirable, and turn the dishes into delicious meals. For example, the famous French dish, Coq au Vin has been around for centu ries. Translated, the dish means “rooster and wine.” For this dish, that resourceful cook took a rooster who was past its prime, and slowly cooked it in flavorful red wine sauce. The result was a tender and succulent dish, bathed in a velvety sauce — a dish now fit for a king or a queen — or just us! We don’t have to use a rooster—just use a cut up whole chicken, or your favorite bone-in, skin- on pieces of chicken. Your entire house will smell heavenly — this is a perfect cold weather dish. Pair with buttery egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or white rice. You are welcome. Coq auVin • 4 chicken thighs, skin-on, bone-in • 4 chicken drumsticks, skin-on, bone- in • 2 chicken breasts, skin-on, bone-in • 2 cups dry red wine • 2 cups chicken broth • 14 cup brandy • 'A pound bacon, cut into lardons • 1 onion, chopped • 4 carrots, peeled and chopped • 4 cloves garlic, minced • 1 teaspoon salt • !/2 teaspoon pepper • 2 !/2 tablespoons tomato paste • 2 !/2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves • 2 cups mushroom caps, sliced • 2 cups frozen pearl onions • 2 tablespoons butter • 2 tablespoons flour In a large bowl, whisk together red wine, chicken broth and brandy. Add chicken pieces, turning to combine all. Set aside. In a large Dutch oven, cook bacon until crispy. Remove bacon with a slot- FROM IB Lumpkin deliberate pace to begin the game, with defense playing a prominent role. The visitors led just 7-5 after the first quarter but expanded that advantage FROM IB White a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Reed also had 12 points. One key statistic involved Parker, whose big passing night included zero turnovers. Head coach Todd Cottrell was pleased with the team’s strong resilience to the previous loss, which secured a second region win. “It’s always nice when you get off to a good start like that,” Cottrell said. “We shot the ball extremely well early. I liked how we responded after a really disappointing performance on Wednesday. Communication was a lot better.” The Fady Tigers traveled to Cleveland knowing they had an ted spoon. Remove chicken from mari nade, reserving marinade. Using paper towels, pat chicken dry and then sear in the bacon grease until browned. Remove chicken to a plate. Add onion to the bacon fat and cook until softened, about 8 minutes. Add carrots and cook another few minutes. Add garlic and cook another minute. Add tomato paste and cook another minute. Add chicken pieces and any accumulated juices along with the reserved marinade. Add thyme leaves and mushrooms and bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Add the pearl onions, cover and simmer for an hour until chicken is cooked through. Mix together flour and butter. Add the mixture to the stew, stirring to combine. Once stew has thickened, taste for sea soning. Goulash doesn’t sound like it would be a delicious dish, but it is! This tradi tional stew dish from Hungary, can be traced back to the 9th century. Enjoyed by Magyar Shepherds, these workers prepared their stew, and then dried it in the hot sun. Once the stew was in a dehydrated state, the shepherds trans ported the stew in bags made from sheep’s stomachs — I told you they were resourceful. The shepherds would head out for days and nights in the fields, tending their flocks, and heating up their dried stew in boiling water. Goulash is pretty much beef stew — what sets it apart is the addition of cara way seeds and paprika, preferably Hungarian paprika. This would be deli cious served with egg noodles or rice — neither of which those shepherds had access to. Hungarian Goulash • 2 onions, chopped • 2 tablespoons olive oil • 2 tablespoons butter • 1 !/2 teaspoons caraway seeds • 2 tablespoons paprika, preferably Hungarian paprika • 14 cup flour • 1 Vi pounds stew beef, cut into 1” cubes • 4 cups beef broth • Vi cup dry red wine • 1 can fire roasted tomatoes, with juices • 1 teaspoon salt • Vi teaspoon pepper • 2 carrots, chopped • 3 cups Yukon gold potatoes, cubed • 1/3 cup parsley, minced Toss cubed beef in flour salt and pep per. Heat olive oil over medium high heat and brown beef on all sides — you can do this in batches. Add butter and onions, cooking until onions are soft. quickly in the second quarter, taking advantage of numerous turnovers. By halftime, Fumpkin led 28-14 and did not look back. Dawson whit tled its deficit down to single digits but was not able to threaten its rival all night. Harvey led the team with 15 points. For head coach Todd Cottrell, he immense challenge on their hands, fac ing a team that had already built up an impressive 14-3 record. After a rocky first quarter in which the Fady Warriors got out to a 22-11 lead, Dawson got right back into the game and shored up their defense quick ly, making the game a close encounter throughout. But finding a way to obtain a lead proved elusive for the Fady Tigers, who struggled from the free throw line and missed a few shooting opportunities from close range. While the general gameplan was working — with the team passing the ball well and finding players in the paint — some of those missed chances would haunt the team later on. By halftime, the Fady Tigers trailed just 30-26, but that would be about as close as it got. White County never ran off with the game but maintained a sin- Add caraway seeds, paprika, beef broth, red wine, tomatoes, carrots and pota toes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 2 Vi hours, until beef is super tender. Garnish with pars ley. Shepherd’s Pie Mashed Potato Topping: • 2 pounds russet potatoes • % cup heavy whipping cream, warmed • 1 teaspoon salt • !/2 teaspoon pepper • 1/3 cup parmesan, grated • 1 egg, lightly beaten • 2 tablespoons butter • 1 tablespoon chives, minced Filling: • 1 tablespoon olive oil • 1 pound ground beef or lamb • 1 teaspoon salt • !/2 teaspoon pepper • 1 onion, minced • 2 cloves garlic, minced • 2 tablespoons flour • !/2 cup red wine • 1 cup beef broth • 1 tablespoon tomato paste • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce • 2 cups mixed frozen vegetables (peas, carrots, com) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a skil let, heat olive oil. Cook ground beef or lamb until meat is cooked through. Drain if there is excess fat except for a tablespoon. Remove meat and set aside. Cook onion in fat until softened. Add garlic and cook another minute. Sprinkle on the flour and cook a minute. Add red wine, beef broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and frozen vegeta bles. Add cooked ground beef to mix ture. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Meanwhile, make the mashed potato topping. Peel potatoes and cut into chunks. Bring to a boil and add a good amount of salt. Cook potatoes until potatoes are done, about 25 minutes. Drain and return potatoes to the pot. Add warmed whipping cream, salt, pep per, and parmesan, whipping until com bined. Add whisked egg and butter. Stir in chives. To finish, pour ground beef mixture into baking dish that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Spread mashed potatoes over ground meat mix ture. Bake for 30 minutes. Adlen Robinson is an award-winning col umnist and author of "Organic Food and Kitchen Matters." You can email her at adlen@adlenshomematters.com. hopes the game serves as an important lesson as region play heats up. “We took some quick shots early and often, and we’re not good when we do that,” Cottrell said. “We missed some cutters, we missed some guys open on some kicks. Too many unforced turnovers trying to do too much.” gle-digit advantage for the remainder of the contest. While there was plenty to clean up, head coach Will Anglin appreciated his team’s efforts to stay competitive in a tough road environment against one of the best teams in Class 3A. “Against good teams like [White], you can’t miss free throws and dig holes,” Anglin said. “Once we recovered from the first quarter, we played pretty good from there. I was really happy with how hard we played; we competed all night.” Abby Samples-Slaton led the team with 20 points while Eva Bishop chipped in with 9. Up next, the DCHS varsity programs returned home to face Wesleyan on Tuesday, Jan. 16, and will play West Hall on Friday, Jan. 19. Tuesday’s game was Middle School Night and Friday’s game is Parks and Rec Night. RONDA RICH Columnist ADLEN ROBINSON Columnist Rio White Dawson County News Logan Burt is heading into his second year as the head coach of DCHS baseball. FROM IB Baseball lefty who can locate well, will be just as vital as Harvey to the team’s fortunes this year. Two others, Sawyer Bearden and Preston Bannister, had some impressive relief outings that could bode well for Dawson in 2024, partic ularly against region foes. Offensively, the team gradually came into its own and had some memorable high scoring games, such a 17-16 win over Wesleyan. At the helm of the offense is the powerful Julian Horner, who hit eight home runs, 32 RBI and a 1.244 OPS in 2023. His high contact rate and ability to spray the ball will be impor tant assets to his upcom ing season. Horner was chosen as a preseason All-State selection earli er this year. Bearden will be another key offensive force for Dawson County after hitting over a .400 average against region teams last sea son. Other notable hitters to look for are Davis Glass, Elijah Odom, and Jacson Rickett. Much like last year, Dawson County has scheduled a number of tough non-region oppo nents to prepare them for the challenge of regional competition. Some of these match ups include North Hall, East Forsyth and Jefferson. The Tigers finished as the fourth seed in Region 7 in 2023, just one game behind rivals Fumpkin for third. Those two teams will once again likely be close in the standings this season, although both are aiming to give powerhouses Pickens and Wesleyan something to think about. DCHS baseball begins the season with a home scrimmage against Chestatee on Feb. 7, before hitting the road for the season opener at Greater Atlanta Christian on Feb. 13. The first home regular season game is against North Hall on Feb. 15. Dawson County base ball is also fielding try outs for middle and high school players from Tuesday, Jan. 16, through Thursday, Jan. 18. For more informa tion, contact coach Burt at logan.burt@dawson. kl2.ga.us.
