January Third Sunday Dinner

10 lbs. of Pinto Beans

     Third Sunday Dinner was wonderful this month. The Indian Fry bread was a huge success.  It is my favorite meal ever  to prepare for a Third Sunday Dinner or any large eating event. It is easy, and great on a budget. Flour is cheap and beans cost next to nothing. To be able to feed that many people with small cost, is amazing and to have everyone stuffed and happy is the best. As promised, I will fill you in on all the details of this months dinner.  

A couple lbs. of bacon.

      On Saturday I purchased the beans and flour. I also bought some fresh greens for the salsa and 10 pounds of ground beef.  

I had some bacon in the freezer that needed to be used up so I chopped it up and fried it until crispy.  

      On Sunday Morning I place 10 pounds of beans in the large roasting pan and added water, bacon, and salt. I also used a little Mesquite seasoning. I cook the beans on high for about an hour and made sure there was enough water.  I turned down the heat and let them simmer until dinner time. They were perfect and cooked just enough.  

      I browned the ground beef with taco seasoning ,and cooked up 8 cups of oat groats in beef stock. After the oat groats were cooked, just like white rice, I added them to the cooked beef and place it in the roaster pan. That I placed that in the oven to stay warm until dinner time.  

       I made two pans of brownies and fresh salsa, and I had ready to go to church.  After church I pulled out the tables with some help from my son-in-law and 2 young men that come every Third Sunday Dinner to help out.  They chopped the lettuce, mixed the beverages, and got everything organized while I set up the propane tank and dutch ovens for frying the fry bread. We were ready to go.                                                                       

Our Fearless Leader

The Happy Crew making the dough,

10 of the 15 lbs. of Flour used.

      At about 4:00 Bernadine arrived. She is the neighborhood authority on making Indian Fry Bread.  She has been making Fry Bread since she was 10 years old, and what I love is she has passed down the skill to her daughters. They are always willing to share their knowledge and skills with others.
















     The rest of the crew arrives and the fun begins. Making Fry Bread is really a community event. The more hands involved, the better it is.













     Bernadine is really particular about the flour used. We used Blue Bird Flour for most of the Fry Bread. Ten pounds was not enough so we used up another five pounds of the white flour I use. All of it turned out great. It was a new experience for Bernadine to use the Bosch Mixer, but to make all the batches we needed, we had to use the Bosch Mixer. I think Bernadine wants one now. Once we got the hang of it, the dough was perfection.

The recipe is simple. 10 cups of flour, 1 tablespoon Salt, 4 tablespoons Rumfords Baking Powder. And enough water to make it soft. Place all the dry ingredients in the mixer and warm water until a nice dough forms and mix for about 4 minutes. Remove and form balls. Let the balls rest before patting them out into disks.

Our Amazing Leader takes a break

Messy Kitchen and amazing dough.

Let the Frying Begin.

  She deserved a big break. Teaching all of us how to mix, divide the dough, pat and fry it, is hard work.  But oh so enjoyable when you get to eat the results of our labor.




















The balls of dough ready to take outside to fry up.  There was flour everywhere.  I loved it. It really looked like we were hard at it, and having a great time.
















We put the men to work frying and patting. I think they fried about 150 in about one and a half hours. It was great so see everyone gathered around watching and enjoying. The smell was wonderful. Frying outside is great, no mess in the kitchen, and lots of room.

The Spread.

 


 The Spread in the House. Cheese, sour cream, salsa, beans, and seasoned meat with the oat groats. The desserts are on top of the washer and dryer. Perfect place.

Before

This is my back yard filled with tables and chairs. We had to add more tables and chairs after we started. The table cloths my wife made out of some material she bought.  It is the kind that you just throw in the washer, no ironing, no fuss.  I have a shed were we keep them the tables and chairs.  The tables fold up and roll right into the shed, and the chairs stack.

During.  Sorry it's a little blurred.  

    I love the back yard filled with people.  So much fun.  I think we had about 80 to 90 people. So much fun. Third Sunday Dinners are work, but I just keep the big picture in mind remembering it's the little things that bring about miracles. And every time you get a group of people together to fellowship and eat great food, miracles do happen. I see them every Third Sunday and every other time I am surrounded by family, friends, and great food. Don't worry about the mess, don't worry about how much room you have, don't worry about anything, just open your door, open your heart, and let the adventure begin.