The Diverting History of John Gilpin

Showing how he went farther than he intended, and came safe home again.

John Gilpin was a citizen
Of credit and renown,
A train-band captain eke was he,
Of famous London town.

John Gilpin’s spouse said to her dear,
“Though wedded we have been
These twice ten tedious years, yet we
No holiday have seen.

“To-morrow is our wedding-day,
And we will then repair
Unto the ‘Bell’ at Edmonton,
All in a chaise and pair.

“My sister, and my sister’s child,
Myself, and children three,
Will fill the chaise; so you must ride
On horseback after we.”

He soon replied, “I do admire
Of womankind but one,
And you are she, my dearest dear,
Therefore it shall be done.

“I am a linendraper bold,
As all the world doth know,
And my good friend the calender
Will lend his horse to go.”

Quoth Mrs. Gilpin, “That’s well said;
And for that wine is dear,
We will be furnished with our own,
Which is both bright and clear.”

John Gilpin kissed his loving wife.
O’erjoyed was he to find.
That though on pleasure she was bent,
She had a frugal mind.

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Sunday's Hymn

This week’s hymn writing poet is Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

Since without Thee we do no good,
And with Thee do no ill,
Abide with us in weal and woe,
In action and in will.

In weal, that while our lips confess
The Lord Who gives, we may
Remember with a humble thought
The Lord Who takes away.

In woe, that while to drowning tears
Our hearts their joys resign,
We may remember Who can turn
Such water into wine.

By hours of day, that when our feet
O’er hill and valley run,
We still may think the light of truth
More welcome than the sun.

By hours of night, that when the air
Its dew and shadow yields,
We still may hear the voice of God
In silence of the fields.

Abide with us, abide with us,
While flesh and soul agree;
And when our flesh is only dust,
Abide our souls with Thee.

Other hymns by poets:

• William Cowper
• John Donne
• George Herbert
• Alfred Tennyson

Other hymns, worship songs, sermons etc. posted today:

• Lord’s Day 27, 2009 at The Thirsty Theologian
• Christ By Heavenly Hosts Adored at The Happy Wonderer
• Art Thou Weary, Art Thou Lanquid at Hiraeth
• Mighty God, While Angel’s Bless Thee at Fieldstone Cottage
• Conflict from The Valley of Vision at The Upward Call
• God of All Power and Truth and Grace at Tapestry of Graces
• Your Weekly Dose of Spurgeon at Pyromaniacs: Keeping to the Old Truth

Have you posted a hymn today and I missed it? Let me know by leaving a link in the comments or by emailing me at the address in the sidebar and I’ll add your post to the list.

Thirteen Ways to Use Stale Bread

If the bread is moldy, you’ll want to toss it out, but if it’s just old and dry, it’s a handy kitchen ingredient. With the help of my readers, I’ve compiled this list of ways you can use up bread that’s gone stale.

1. Make homemade croutons. This favorite way to use up old bread was suggested by Rosemary and seconded by Kim. I’d say that most of my leftover bread ends up as croutons. The great thing about using your old bread to make croutons is that just about any type of bread except sweet breads is good for it. I use rye, corn, whole wheat, french, sourdough and more. We prefer our croutons made from a mixture of different types of breads. I make croutons as directed in these instructions for homemade croutons from About.com except that I toss my already-cubed bread in the oil mixture instead of brushing precubed bread slices with oil. This is because I cube my odds and ends of bread and collect them in a bag in the freezer until I have enough to use. We use our croutons in green salads like everyone else, but the boys also eat them as a dry snack food like you’d eat popcorn or potato chips.
2. Make toasted bread crumbs (Rosemary’s suggestion) to use as toppings for baked dishes or as an ingredient in meatloaf (Kim’s suggestion) or meatballs. I just make my bread crumbs by crushing already toasted croutons.
3. Use your past-its-prime bread for garlic toast, a suggestion that also comes from Rosemary. One thing we never have in this house is leftover garlic toast. The boys who eat croutons as a snack food are  also crazy about garlic toast.
4. We can’t forget french toast, can we? From Emmie:

   Stale bread? French toast! An egg, some milk, vanilla, and a little sugar; dunk the bread, fry it up, put some butter and syrup on it. Cheap and a favorite breakfast-for-supper here.

   We do the french toast for supper thing here, too. And did you know you can make child-pleasing baby french toastlets from leftover hot dog buns?
5. Those baguettes or loaves of French or Italian bread get old so quickly, but you can use the less-than-fresh slices for bruschetta.
6. While we’re on a toast kick, can I just say that any old dry bread is better after it’s been toasted? If you’re too lazy or busy to make garlic toast or french toast, just put that dry bread slice (or two) in the toaster and finish with your favorite toast topper.
7. Kim suggests using leftover bread for stuffing for turkey or chicken. (Did you know that bread cubes of mixed types make delicious stuffing?) Your favorite cook book will have recipes for you to use. Since we prefer wild rice stuffing in our holiday turkeys, once in a while I’ll put together this mix for stove-top stuffing to use in more ordinary meals.
8. Then there’s bread pudding, which was also suggested by Kim. My mother made bread pudding often and I love it. I make it when oldest daughter is home because she loves it, too. We like our bread pudding flavored with cinnamon and brown sugar, but there are many different recipes. In bread pudding, you can use up those bits of sweet breads you can’t use for croutons.
9. Kim also uses old bread “to make a panade when making bolognese sauce.”
10. Serve a strata for brunch. Here’s a basic strata recipe than can be switched up using different ingredients.
11. You can crumble dried out bread in a bowl and add sugar and milk like you would to breakfast cereal. When I was a girl, this was one of my favorite after school snacks and I wasn’t the only kid I knew who ate bread this way. This simple comfort food even warrants a recipe from Nigella. Lately, my youngest son has been eating leftover cornbread like this and he likes it so much that I double the recipe just to ensure that there’s some left for another day.
12. It’s summer, so why not use your bread leftovers in panzanella, a salad made from bread cubes.
13. If all else fails, Kim says you can take the kids to feed pieces of dried out bread to the ducks. 

This list, of course, is not exhaustive. What ways do you use old bread at your house?