Recipes: Great Meals Under $10
May 8, 2011
Today’s recipes — French Onion Burgers and One Dish Chicken And Rice – are all about feeding your family good food on a small budget.
(Make sure your scroll all the way down the page to see all of today’s recipes.)
On your next trip to the store, pick up a few extra items and have them ready for the Stamp Out Hunger food drive on May 14. Our local letter carriers will collect food donations left at the mailboxes of generous North Escambia area residents and deliver them to regional food banks and local hunger relief organizations. The timing is important, because many organizations would otherwise face depleted food stocks during the summer months, which is when demand increases to meet the needs of children no longer being served breakfast and lunch by school programs.
Here are some creative ways to cook a good meal, save money and get the whole family involved.
- Double dinners: If you have time on the weekend, prepare a double batch of the family’s favorite dinner with your kids. It’s a great way for them to learn to cook, and even young ones can help. Set enough aside to serve that night and freeze additional batches for days when dinner has to happen in a hurry. Classics like lasagna and chili are perfect for making and freezing.
- Kids’ night in the kitchen: If your kids are old enough (around 10 or 12), assign them a night for creating the family’s dinner. Simple casseroles or skillets are easy for young chefs to assemble on their own and are inexpensive options.
- Interactive menu ideas: How about a fajita, taco, pasta or baked potato bar for dinner? All the ingredients are inexpensive, but the best part is that everybody has a good time building their own dinners.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 can (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell’s Condensed French Onion Soup
- 4 slices cheese
- 4 Pepperidge Farm Classic Sandwich Buns with Sesame Seeds, split
Preparation
- Shape beef into 4 (1/2-inch-thick) burgers.
- Heat 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add burgers and cook until well browned on both sides. Remove burgers from skillet. Pour off any fat.
- Stir soup into skillet and heat to a boil. Return burgers to skillet. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until burgers are cooked through. Top burgers with cheese and cook until cheese is melted. Serve burgers on buns with soup mixture for dipping.
Serves
Serves 4
Notes, Tips & Suggestions
Serving Suggestion: Serve with romaine salad tossed with fresh basil and Italian salad dressing. For dessert, serve orange slices.
Preparation Time:
5 minutes
Cook Time:
20 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free)
- 1 cup water
- 3/4 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Preparation
- Stir soup, water, rice, paprika and black pepper in a 2-quart shallow baking dish. Top with chicken. Season with additional paprika and black pepper. Cover baking dish.
- Bake at 375°F for 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender.
Serves
Serves 4
Preparation Time:
5 minutes
Bake Time:
45 minutes
Mother’s Day: Meet Several Local Moms
May 8, 2011
Happy Mother’s Day! NorthEscambia.com invited our readers and Facebook fans to submit stories about their mothers. We’ve selected a few and included them below.
If you would like to tell your mom’s story, or just wish her a Happy Mother’s Day, please do so in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
“Mama Leigh”
submitted by Samantha Bryant
My mother is special because she is always herself. She is never afraid to be just that. She is my best friend and someone that I can tell anything to. I trust her and I really don’t know what I’d do without her.
On March 22, 2009, we were in a bad car accident and she suffered some major injuries. However, she has yet to let the long term effects of her injuries slow her down. She still works just as hard as she ever has to make sure that the family is happy. She supports me in everything that I do.
She is the mother of four kids — Amanda, Curtis, Jessica and Samantha. Also, she is a mother to many of my friends. Everyone knows her as “Mama Leigh”. She is also a wonderful wife to my dad, David. She is a truly beautiful woman inside and out. This is why she is special to me.
Jeanette Cawthon, Molino
submitted by Chris Cawthon
My husband’s mother is the best mother-in-law ever. Jeanette Cawthon has been a mom to me for 30 years now and, of course, to her son, Jeff, for almost 50.
Jeanette has three children — Doug, Jeff, and Sandy. We all grew up in Molino. Now, however, we all live slightly south of our old hometown. Jeanette has been my cheerleader all the years that I’ve been married to Jeff. She has encouraged me as I raised my own three children and is teaching me how to be an awesome grandma now that I have my first grandchild. Jeanette is a prayer warrior for our family and for that I’ll always be grateful. This year she blessed me for Mother’s Day by accompanying me to the Annual Mother/Daughter Banquet at my church, Heritage Baptist.
Becky Sepulveda, Molino
submitted by Christina Sepulveda
My name is Christina Sepulveda and I would like to share my story of why my mother, Becky Sepulveda, is a very special woman to me.
The Sepulveda family consists of my father, Scott Sepulveda, me, my younger siblings, Michael, Rebekah, and Rachel Sepulveda, and of course our mother. We live in Molino and have now for a little over eight years.
This year is my senior year at Northview High School, but right before my senior year started I found out that I was pregnant. My fiance, Dustin Yuhasz, and I had our beautiful baby girl, Bailey Nicole Yuhasz, on March 11, 2011. Many others have been so helpful the three of us, but my mother has been especially helpful. She has been there for us every single step of the way and helps in whatever way she can.
She supports us, loves us, and is there for us every day. I would like to give her a day of recognition, a day to herself, a day where everyone can see what a wonderful mother, grandmother (Meme), and person she is. She’s amazing in every way and I love her so much. Happy Mother’s Day Mom!
Martha McCann, McDavid
submitted by Tammy McCann
I have the best mother in law in the whole world. She has been the best influence in my life. When my husband and I got married 29 years ago, she took me in as her own child.
She loved me as her own. She is a very special person to me she helps all she can. She helped to show us what was right and what was wrong. She tried to tell us what God would want us to do.
She has 10 grandchildren and six great grandchildren and she loves each and everyone of them. She spends Sundays after church playing with them, and she cooks a Sunday dinner every Sunday for her family not because she has to — it’s out of love. That’s how she is, a very loving and giving person.
Mrs. Moye
submitted by Shaun Moye
Our mother was the best of the best. Though she lived a hard life, if you were to meet her you would have never known it. She lived the last several years of her life confined to a wheelchair. Night after night in pain, but yet you wouldn’t know it.
If it wouldn’t have been for her I would not be what I am today. Her kids and grandkids were her whole world, as long as they were happy, she was. Many times I know she would do without as we were growing up just to make sure we had stuff we wanted or needed. Though I would have liked to keep her around, I know now she is painless and happy as ever in heaven..and she can actually walk again! I love you and miss you with all of my heart Mom. Happy Mothers Day!
Sinde Smith
submitted by Jacke Johnston
June 4, 2010 will be a day I never forget. My mom had been battling a bad pain in her abdomen which we thought was a stomach bug that was going around. My dad had taken her to the doctor a couple of days before and they determined she had a UTI and sent her home, antibiotics in hand. Little did we know that a huge war was waging in her body.
I got the phone call at lunch time from my dad. Mom was still hurting badly and he had taken her to ER at Whiting Field. They did an xray and determined that she had air escaping. Immediately she was being sent to the Pensacola Naval Hospital for surgery. We loaded up and went to the hospital. I will NEVER forget the surgeons faces when they came out. It was worse than what they thought. It would not be just a quick fix. My mom had a ruptured colon that had been leaking waste for days. Her body was so infected that they couldn’t even close her wound. We rode the elevator up to ICU with the doctors telling us that it was touch and go at this point.
I remember begging and pleading to one of the surgeons to save my momma…I couldn’t get the tears to stop. I needed her. My baby girl needed her. I remember praying to God. I remember asking everyone who would listen to pray for my momma. I prayed that my mom would fight. And fight she did. She battled a blood clot, lower lung function, and 3 more additional surgeries….all in two weeks time. We were told it would be a long recovery, and it was. Due to the blood clot, even after she was released from the hospital, mom had to make daily trips to the hospital for blood checks and to have her surgical site (which still wasn’t all the way closed) checked. Not one time did she complain. That’s simply not her nature. As a matter of fact, in true “mom” fashion, all she worried about was us.
As we approach the year mark of this life changing event, I want to tell my mom how much I love her. I am so proud of how she fought and never even thought of giving up. My mom is now back at work, off of her blood thinners, and will be going back in for a final surgery sometime in the near future. Looking at her now, you would never know what she went through. I thank God every day that He gave us more time with her. I thank the people who lifted us up and covered us in prayers during that time. I will be forever grateful.
So, Happy Mother’s Day, Momma. I love you…to the moon and back….with all my soul.
Nadine McCaw, Century
submitted by Felicia McCaw Jones
My mom is such a giver. She has always given freely of herself to others and to the town of Century. I want her to know that Me and the kids all love her with all of our hearts. It is because she chose to have a family that we are all here today. I hope her day is extremely special, as she sure does deserve it! I love you Nadine McCaw!
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I just want to wish my mom Effie Lambeth of Jay a very Happy Mother’s Day. I’m not able to be there with her because I’m in Mexico, but I hope that she knows how much she means to me. She worked hard her whole life to take care of us. It was hard for her because she also took care of my disabled dad until he passed away in 2004. She did a great job! Happy Mother’s Day!
The person that deserves the best Mothers Day is Sharon Freeman. She is my sister but she is the best. My mother past away 21 years ago and is dearly missed. But my sister has stepped in and become my next to best mother. She is the back bone of the family even though her health has declined some what through the years. But she never complains. She is a strong person with a lot of love. She is always there to remember birthdays, and the specials occasions that a mother always remembers. Sharon is the best mother to her four children, seven grandchildren and a great on the way. She is the light at the end of the tunnel, she is the most precious voice to hear at the end of the day. I just want to say I love you and hope you have the best day ever. Love your sister Sherry Caraway
Well, my story isn’t exactly about my mother. But it is about my mom — my grandmother Linda Ward. She is the most amazing woman I know. Without her, my sisters and I would be completely lost. When things turned for the worse, she was the one who took us in and raised us as her own. She’d already dealt with her fair share of teenage angst, raising her own two daughters.
And at 58, she’s doing it again with me, Chelsea, and soon, Emily. She’s put up with a lot from the three of us, me especially. And even though we give her a hard time, she returns the strong emotions in the form of love and understanding. She’s given us the world and more, and given up so much for herself in the process. She’s done her best to give us a normal childhood and has done a dang good job of it. She’s raised us to always be thankful for everything, to help people when we’re capable of it, to say yes ma’am and no ma’am, and how a lady is supposed to sit in a dress. She’s my hero, my role model, and the kind of woman I pray everyday I hope I can be. She’s my Nana, but more than that, she’s my mom. I love you, Nana. And thank you. — Dezarae Turner
Drivers Trapped In Two Different Crashes, One Requires Special Ops Team
May 7, 2011
Drivers were trapped in two different North Escambia wrecks — one requiring a special operations rescue team.
Highway 97 Crash
A Defuniak Springs woman was trapped in her SUV about 40 minutes early Saturday morning after slamming into large pine tree on Highway 97 about 12:20 a.m.. The Florida Highway Patrol said Rosetta Johnson, 52, was southbound on Highway 97 when she lost control at Abromovich Lane near Molino Park Elementary School. She traveled off the west side of the roadway before crossing back over Highway 97 and traveling through a ditch on the opposite side of the highway and into the large pine tree. The vehicle than spun around into a wooded area.
It took first responders about 40 minutes using the Jaws of Life to cut Johnson out of her Toyota SUV. She was transported to a Pensacola hospital by LifeFlight with a serious leg injury.
The Molino, Walnut Hill and Cantonment stations of Escambia Fire Rescue and Escambia County EMS reponded to the crash. The crash remains under investigation by the FHP.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Kingsfield Road Crash
The driver of a car lost control on East Kingsfield Road between Highway 29 and Highway 297A about 7 p.m. Friday. The vehicle left the roadway into a deep gully, narrowly avoiding entering a creek. An Escambia County Fire Rescue special operations team responded to assist. The driver was airlifted to a local hospital.
Two different wreckers were used over a three hour period to removed in the car from the gully.
The Cantonment, Brent, Ensley and Oceola stations of Escambia Fire Rescue responded, along with Escambia County EMS.. The accident remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol; further details were not available.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Pictured top: A Defuniak Springs woman was injured in this early morning wreck on Highway 97 in Molino. Pictured below: Emergency workers used the Jaws of Life to free the 52-year old. Pictured inset (Kristi Smith photo): A vehicle is removed a deep gully after a Friday night crash on East Kingsfield Road. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Federal Regulators Demand Change At “Troubled” Atmore Bank
May 7, 2011
Federal regulators are ordering the First National Bank and Trust of Atmore to make changes to take action to bring bad loans in line, designating the bank as being in “troubled condition”.
“The Comptroller has found unsafe and unsound banking practices relating to credit risk management and underwriting at the bank,” according to an agreement between The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the bank.
Under the agreement, the bank agreed to maintain an adequate loan reserve and form a compliance committee to ensure the bank follows their agreement with the OCC. The bank also agreed to reappraise the property and creditworthiness of large, troubled loans, particularly those that exceed $250,000 per borrower. The plan also calls for the bank to not pay shareholder dividends unless approved by the OCC.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is the federal agency in charge of regulating national banks.
The First National Bank and Trust of Atmore has reported a modest profit in 2008-2010 and has made a $47,000 profit in the first quarter of 2011.
Man Throws 4-Month Old Son, Causes Traumatic Brain Injury
May 7, 2011
A four-month old infant is in the hospital with a traumatic brain injury and his father is now in jail charged with child abuse.
Steven Allen Tutwiler, 20, is charged with three felony counts of aggravated child abuse. Tutwiler is the father of the four-month old boy who was abused, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
On April 27, the Sheriff’s Office was contacted by the medical staff of Sacred Heart Hospital about the suspected abuse. When deputies spoke to Tutwiler, he told them that he had called 911 after the infant regurgitated his food and became unresponsive.
Deputies learned the following day that the infant was suffering from a traumatic brain injury, which required emergency surgery, and had other injuries that were believed to be non-accidental. Sheriff’s investigators determined that the infant received the brain injury after being thrown to the floor while in the care of his father.
Tutwiler told investigators that he was sitting on the floor holding the infant, and became frustrated and angry with the baby for crying. He explained that he pushed the infant backwards causing the infant to hit his head on the floor.
The infant boy remains hospitalized for the injuries. Tutwiler was being held in the Escambia County Jail without bond.
New Farmers’ Market Opens Today In Cantonment
May 7, 2011
A new farmers’ market will open today in Cantonment.
Beginning with today’s event, St. Monica’s Episcopal Church will host a Farmers’ Market on the first and third Saturdays of each month from 8 a.m. until noon.
The market will offer locally produced commodities such as seasonal vegetables, fruits, eggs, flowers, plants, cheese, pasta and more to consumers. Local artisans also invited to sell their wares such as art, clothing and more.
“Faith can and should be a major force for change towards sustainable development, sustainable communities, and a healthy environment,” according to a church press release. “Since local food does not have to be hauled long distances, fresher and more nutritious food can be eaten that does not require large amounts of fossil fuels to transport it. In fact, eating locally produced food, in addition to supporting local farmers and families, can reduce an individual’s carbon footprint by 12 percent. ”
Vendors are now being accepted for upcoming Market at St. Monica’s. In lieu of vendor fees, vendors are asked for a donation of cash or food for Manna Food Pantry. For more information, call the church office at (850) 937-0001, Wednesday through Friday, from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.
St. Monica’s is located at 699 South Highway 95A in Cantonment.
Poarch Creek Indians Donate Half Million Dollars To Tornado Relief
May 7, 2011
The Poarch Band of Creek Indians tribe is joining in efforts to help tornado victims by donating a half million dollars to relief efforts.
In announcing the donation Friday, Tribal Chairman Buford L. Rolin said, “I think everyone who has seen the pictures of the destruction caused by the tornadoes that struck our State wants to help any way that they can. We hope this donation will help begin to ease some of the suffering of our neighbors. This is the first of what we want to do to help, and we look forward to continue to work with relief agencies on the ground in the affected areas.”
Members of the Poarch Creek Tribal Council voted to make the donation after members of the Council toured the destruction last week. The donation, which is part of the Tribe’s ongoing Planned Giving Campaign, will be distributed to several organizations. Both the Birmingham and Tuscaloosa Chapters of the American Red Cross will receive $50,000. The Tribe will donate $100,000 to Governor Bentley’s Emergency Relief Fund. The remaining $300,000 will go to the Poarch Band of Creek Indians Disaster Relief Fund to assist in additional disaster relief efforts that will be distributed according to local needs throughout the affected areas.
“All of us at Poarch Creek still remember how relief organizations like the Red Cross helped us after Hurricanes Ivan and Dennis hit our area,” said April Sells, tribal emergency management director for the Poarch Creeks. “We had so many people in the area without food, water, electricity, or ice. Thanks to the Red Cross, we were able to feed everyone in the community twice a day after the storm and take care of their basic needs. We are thrilled to be able to give back to that organization and others who are helping families who have lost so much,” she said.
“We feel for the victims of this disaster and want to do anything we can to help,” said Robert McGhee, tribal council treasurer and governmental relations advisor. “Immediately after the tornadoes hit, the Tribe’s emergency management response teams were dispatched to the area to help with disaster relief. The Tribal Council hopes this donation will be another way the Tribe can continue to assist Alabamians weather this disaster. And as efforts to rebuild begin, we will continue to do what we can to aid families as they start anew.”
Photo Gallery: Northview Presents ‘Bye Bye Birdie’
May 7, 2011
Northview High School presented their senior class play Bye Bye Birdie Saturday evening at the school.
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from Friday afternoon’s Bye Bye Birdie practice, click here.
Bye Bye Birdie is one of the most captivating musical shows of our time with lots of golf old-fashioned fun. It is a satire done with the fondest affection, and tells the story of a rock and roll singer who is about to be inducted into the army.
Pictured top: Josh Scott, Colton Sims and Sarah Killam in Northview High School’s production of Bye Bye Birdie. Pictured below: The entire cast. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
What Is Special About Your Mom? Tell Her Story On NorthEscambia.com
May 7, 2011
Do you want to say thanks to your mom for Mother’s Day? NorthEscambia.com wants you to tell us what is special about your mom.
We may select your story to appear in a special feature this Sunday (Mother’s Day). Tell us a little bit about your mom and why she is special to you in 300 words or less.
Please include your name (and the names of your siblings, if you would like), your mother’s name and the community where she lives. Please include your phone number, which will not be published.
Please take the time to proofread your story just a little and make sure you use spellcheck.
To submit a story with a photo:
Email the story in the body of an email and attach a photo. Please tell us the names of everyone that appears in your photograph. Send to news@northescambia.com with the subject line “Mother’s Day”.
To submit a story without a photo:
You can simply leave a comment on this story (your comment will not be “approved” or appear to the public until Sunday). Or you can email your story to news@northescambia.com with the subject line “Mother’s Day”.
Pill Mill Bill Goes To Scott
May 7, 2011
With a key lawmaker likening it to a war, the Florida Legislature unanimously passed a bill Friday that seeks to wipe out the state’s pill-mill industry and curb prescription-drug abuse.
Gov. Rick Scott and Attorney General Pam Bondi made a rare appearance in the House chamber as lawmakers gave final approval to the bill (HB 7095) in the closing hours of the legislative session.
Bondi helped broker a deal between the House and Senate that is designed to crack down on unscrupulous clinics, doctors and pharmacies that have made Florida a magnet for drug users and traffickers.
“Quite simply, we’re at war,” said House sponsor Rob Schenck, R-Spring Hill. “We’re at war with this prescription-drug epidemic.”
The bill, in part, will increase criminal and administrative penalties against doctors who are involved in prescription-drug wrongdoing. Also, it would ban most doctors from dispensing two categories of controlled substances in their offices or clinics.
At the same time, the bill will require a new permitting process for pharmacies that want to dispense dangerous painkillers — an effort to prevent fly-by-night pharmacies from acting as suppliers.
Also, lawmakers decided to continue moving forward with a controversial prescription-drug database that will help track sales of controlled substances. Scott and some legislative leaders called earlier this year for eliminating the database because of concerns about infringing on patient privacy.
Senate sponsor Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, said the database is slated to start operating by Aug. 28, after numerous delays.
House and Senate debates Friday focused more on the devastation of prescription-drug abuse than the details of the bill. Unscrupulous storefront clinics have operated in various parts of the state in recent years, drawing addicts from as far away as Kentucky.
But Paul Sloan, president of the Florida Society of Pain Management Providers, questioned the effectiveness of the bill.
For example, Sloan pointed to a legislative decision that will bar the use of financial contributions from the pharmaceutical industry to help pay for the prescription-drug database. Lawmakers have refused to use tax dollars to pay for the database, and the decision will eliminate a potential $1 million contribution from the drug company Purdue Pharma.
More broadly, Sloan said in an email that lawmakers should deal with addiction issues that drive demand for the drugs, rather than trying to “arrest our way out of the predicament.”
“This so-called solution has a 40-year history of outright failure, yet we repeat it every year,” Sloan said.
The debate Friday was personal to some lawmakers, who talked about constituents or family members who have struggled with addictions to drugs such as oxycodone.
Sen. Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, said some bad doctors have gotten away with “murder” by supplying prescription drugs to users. He said the epidemic has particularly hit young people.
“It’s not a rich person’s problem, it’s not a poor person’s problem,” Bennett said. “It’s a kids’ problem.”
Rep. Rich Glorioso, a Plant City Republican who has a family member with a prescription-drug problem, said the bill will keep young people from dying.
“Tonight, we have an opportunity to stop … the death, the destruction of our young ones, our future leaders,” Glorioso said.
Bondi has made combating pill mills one of her top priorities and said she was on the phone at 3 a.m. Friday with House Speaker Dean Cannon to try to get agreement on the bill.
One of the final issues was a House proposal that would have banned drug wholesalers from selling to a retail pharmacy more than 5,000 “unit doses” a month of oxycodone, hydrocodone or other types of often-abused drugs.
Bondi said that limit would be too low for some legitimate pharmacies, such as those near the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa. The negotiations led lawmakers to drop the 5,000 unit-dose limit but require a study to determine a more-appropriate amount.
Also watching closely Friday was physician Stephanie Haridopolos, the wife of Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island.
Stephanie Haridopolos said she tried to make sure her husband didn’t “waver” on issues such as the drug-monitoring database. She said she has seen patients who have asked for help dealing with prescription-drug problems and expressed frustration with doctors who supply addicts.
“They should have penalties like attempted murder,” the family-practice doctor said.
By Jim Saunders
The News Service of Florida