Sandwiches and Chicken on Sunday

Some of our kids have been helping since they were toddlers.

The sun shone, unlike last year. We served lunch in the garden.

The main dish was baked chicken and rice. My recipe is simple: 10 cups of rice, 10 cups of liquid---two cans of condensed cream of mushroom soup and the rest water, and about 30 drumsticks on top. Cover with foil, and bake for two hours at 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

The flavor can be improved by marinating the chicken overnight in soy sauce and garlic, browning the chicken, and adding chopped onions to the rice before baking. Preparation would then take 45 minutes instead of 15, so I don't do this if I'm pressed for time---which often occurs on Sunday morning.

Volunteers baked seven trays of chicken and rice, and, though we had only 50 diners this Thanksgiving weekend, all of it was spoken for. About a third of it was taken home by the diners, along with the brown-bag meals prepared by St.Pius of Redwood City. Some of the clientele really don't know where their next meal is coming from.

We take turns serving Sunday lunches at the community center with four other churches. Our next date will be in January, which will arrive before we know it.