My Appalachain Culinary Education

We have just returned from a week in West Virginia. A good friend of mine was there visiting her parents for a few weeks and invited us to join her. Her family was very generous and hospitable and welcomed me and my kids and treated us just like family.
In addition to the gorgeous mountain views, the fresh cool air, the huge yard for the kids to run and chase butterflies and lightening bugs, and the chance to sleep in once in a while, the best part was the three meals a day placed in front of us that I didn't have to cook. That in itself made it worth the 10 hour drive. Even better, they were usually made from scratch homemade meals that my kids would actually eat. Unfortunately, I think I gained about a pound a day while I was there.
Each day I was asked, "Have you ever tired...." or "Do you like....." and then was presented with a new eating experience. I thought it would be fun to journal the things that I ate while I was there. If I had to find a way to illustrate good country cooking, I think this is probably the menu I would put together.

Beans and ham with fried potatoes and something green in a frying pan that I didn't try
Lasagna and green salad, made with vegetables pulled right from the garden by curious little kids
Chicken, fried green tomatoes, and home bottled green beans
Biscuits and gravy
Elk steak with tomato sauce, creamed potatoes and peas- new potatoes and peas served with white sauce, dug straight from the garden earlier that day
French toast and eggs
Wild turkey cutlets and trout fillets, fried in seasoned flour, and fresh broccoli with cheese sauce
Paper cupfuls of blueberries picked right off the bush
Ice cold lemonade, made without the use of any powdered or frozen mix
Chicken pot pie

Throw in some fishing, four wheeler rides, nature walks, deer sightings, bird watching, and rain dancing and I'd say we had a pretty good country mountain experience. Did I mention we slept under the watchful eye of a mounted boar's head?

Thanks Rosetta, Wilma, and Tim for a fun week! The kids are already talking about going back next summer.