Beckham enjoys tending her garden

Bobbie Beckham loves living on a farm and being able to access fresh produce from the family's garden.

"We have goats, and we raise different kinds of chickens," Beckham said of the farm she and her husband, Pete, have. 

Beckham also has lots of fresh produce that she incorporates in her cooking. She cooks fried squash and okra and also squash dressing. The reason the Beckhams chose to keep goats is that they help clean the chicken yard, she said. 

Beckham eats the fresh peas and butterbeans that come from her garden, and she cans tomatoes to make tomato soup during the winter. 

Beckham is originally from Meridian, but her husband and her grandparents, Mary and Louis Stokes, are from Philadelphia, so they moved to Philadelphia. 

Beckham is an assistant for first grade and a bus driver at Neshoba Central Elementary School, where she has worked for 25 years.

"When my kids were growing up, I always had a house full of kids, and I wanted my schedule to be like theirs," Beckham said. 

Pete is retired after working in the logging industry. 

The Beckhams have two children, Krystal Palmer and Eric Beckham. In addition, they have five grandchildren, Zach Griffin, Zoey, Molly, Logan and Ethan Palmer.  

Beckham's grandson Zach is her biggest fan when it comes to her fried chicken and pork chop. The Beckham family believes her cooking specialty is fried chicken and her grandson, Zach and her husband, regularly ask her to make fried chicken. 

Beckham's oldest granddaughter, Zoey, asks her to help with new recipes she wants to try. That is one thing they enjoy doing together.

Beckham said her cooking style strictly Southern. Her mother, the late Nell Mason, and grandmother, the late Mary Stokes, taught Beckham how to cook. 

Beckham said her grandmother had a lot of influence on her cooking later on. 

During the summer, Beckham loves going to the beach with three of her best friends, Shelia McDaniel, Barbara Fortenberry and Alesia Alexander. The friends make sure to take a trip together once a year. Beckham also likes going to yard sales and flea markets.

PECAN PIE COBBLER 

2 refrigerated Pie crusts softened (Pillsbury 14.1 oz) 

2 ½ cups light corn syrup 

2 ½ cups brown sugar packed 

½ melted butter 

4 ½ teaspoon vanilla 

6 eggs slightly beaten 

2 cups chopped pecans 

Butter flavor cooking spray

2 cups pecans 

Heat oven to 425 spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Place one of the pie crusts in bottom of baking dish. Trim to fit. In a large bowl stir together corn syrup, brown sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs with wire whisk. Pour ½ into dish-lined crust. Unroll second crust and place over filling. Trim if needed. Spray with cooking spray. Bake 14 to 16 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350. Carefully spoon remaining filling over baked pastry. Place pecan halves on top. Bake 30 minutes longer or until set. Cool and serve with vanilla ice cream.

REDNECK ROLLUPS

2 lbs tenderized deer steaks (or beef) 

2 lbs bacon 

1 large onion sliced 

1 large bell pepper sliced (or hot pepper) 

1 pkg cream cheese 

Dale seasons (liquid) 

Slice deer steak into strips. First, layout a slice of bacon, then a strip of steak on bacon then spread a layer of cream cheese. At one end put a piece of onion and pepper stacked. Then start to roll it all together. When rolled up-dip into Dale’s and let it sit for about an hour. These can be cooked on the grill or in the oven for 40 minutes at 350. Serve them with rice when they are baked. 

STRAWBERRY TRUFFLE

1 pkg moist cake mix (white)

1 pkg instant pudding (vanilla) 

1 tub cool whip 

2 cups strawberries 

Bake cake according to direction. While cake is baking mix pudding and refrigerate. Slice strawberries. When cake is cool in a large bowl crumble ½ of the cake then add a layer of pudding (1/2) then a layer of cool whip (1/2). Add ½ of the strawberries. Then do a second of everything. Enjoy.