Here in the mountains of Kentucky, all in one week, the weather has swung from colder than average and snow to spring-like temperatures and rain. During the below-freezing days, we were using the woodstove to heat the house; so I decided to try my hand at cooking on it. I was amazed at how fast I was able to prepare our supper.
Using the “Autumn Vegetable Soup” recipe from Simply in Season, I sautéed onion and garlic in butter on the woodstove and then added the other ingredients which included cabbage, carrots, kale, turnips, tomatoes, black beans, barley, broth, and herbs.
Cornbread seemed like a nice complement to the soup, so I searched the Internet for instructions on how to prepare it on a woodstove. Surprisingly I did not find much information, but one person had tried it; so I gleaned some tips from her. First I melted the butter in a frying pan on the woodstove, then I added the cornbread batter and put the lid on the pan. After cooking for a few minutes, I put a cooling rack under the frying pan to keep the bottom from getting too brown.
When I returned to the house after about an hour, the aroma of soup greeted me; and the cornbread was finished. The texture of the bread was smoother than usual, and the flavor was delicious. Curiously, the taste reminded me of homemade communion bread.
The family savored simple, but hearty food on a cold evening; and I was gratified to know that, were we without power, we could still prepare a meal.
Taste and See That the Lord is Good 