Sunday, March 31, 2013
Happy Holiday!
I'm talking about Easter and Passover and if you're a Pagan, have a great Spring.. If you hid eggs? I hope you find every one!
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Easter Buffet
We're doing the Easter meal as a buffet. We bought a triple dish warmer at Target and that will make it possible to keep the hot things hot without running back and forth from the kitchen and the oven.
This is the traditional dish here. It comes from a cousin's mother-in-law and that was some years ago! It goes well with a ham and is less trouble to eat than if you'd covered the ham with rings of sliced pineapple.
JEAN CLARK'S PINEAPPLE DRESSING
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs (2 eggs works just as well)
5 slices of white sandwich bread
allspice and nutmeg to your taste
1 can 20 oz. crushed pineapple
Cube the bread and set it aside. Cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in one egg at a time, add the seasonings. Add the can of crushed pineapple - juice and all. Mix well, letting it "steep" so to speak and then bake at 350 for an hour. It will puff up and turn a golden brown.
This meal is heavy on the sweet side - the honey-glazed ham, the pineapple dressing so I wanted a dessert that while easily as rich was perceived as "light, palate clearing." Thus Key Lime Pie. I got this recipe at the Dockside restaurant, Savannah, GA. They'd had so many requests for it, they'd printed it out on 3x5 file cards!
1 store-bought graham-cracker crust pie shell.
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup bottled lime juice
1 14-oz. can condensed sweetened milk
Unwrap the pie crust and put it in the oven for 10 min.. at 325.
Mix the egg yolks, lime juice and canned milk together
Pour mixture into pie shell and bake about 15 min. at 325
Richie couldn't resist a package of Peeps so when this pie has cooled down, I'm going to cut it into wedges and put a bright yellow Peep at the crust's edge of each serving. Should at least get a laugh!
Unfortunately we won't be able to have the chicken races down the center of the cleared table as Richie only found one of them. They're wind-up white chickens who lay "eggs" (reusable jelly beans - you don't want to eat one considering where it came from and the floors they've fallen onto) as they walk.
HAPPY EASTER TO YOU ALL!
This is the traditional dish here. It comes from a cousin's mother-in-law and that was some years ago! It goes well with a ham and is less trouble to eat than if you'd covered the ham with rings of sliced pineapple.
JEAN CLARK'S PINEAPPLE DRESSING
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs (2 eggs works just as well)
5 slices of white sandwich bread
allspice and nutmeg to your taste
1 can 20 oz. crushed pineapple
Cube the bread and set it aside. Cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in one egg at a time, add the seasonings. Add the can of crushed pineapple - juice and all. Mix well, letting it "steep" so to speak and then bake at 350 for an hour. It will puff up and turn a golden brown.
This meal is heavy on the sweet side - the honey-glazed ham, the pineapple dressing so I wanted a dessert that while easily as rich was perceived as "light, palate clearing." Thus Key Lime Pie. I got this recipe at the Dockside restaurant, Savannah, GA. They'd had so many requests for it, they'd printed it out on 3x5 file cards!
1 store-bought graham-cracker crust pie shell.
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup bottled lime juice
1 14-oz. can condensed sweetened milk
Unwrap the pie crust and put it in the oven for 10 min.. at 325.
Mix the egg yolks, lime juice and canned milk together
Pour mixture into pie shell and bake about 15 min. at 325
Richie couldn't resist a package of Peeps so when this pie has cooled down, I'm going to cut it into wedges and put a bright yellow Peep at the crust's edge of each serving. Should at least get a laugh!
Unfortunately we won't be able to have the chicken races down the center of the cleared table as Richie only found one of them. They're wind-up white chickens who lay "eggs" (reusable jelly beans - you don't want to eat one considering where it came from and the floors they've fallen onto) as they walk.
HAPPY EASTER TO YOU ALL!
Friday, March 29, 2013
"Cheese It, It's Da Cops!"
Once upon a time, this was an alert sounded by the kids who were acting as look-outs during minor street crimes on the streets of old New York.
Today, Cheez-Its are small, square yellow crackers flavored with cheddar cheese and salt. While idly staring at the news pop-ups online, I was startled to see recipes for using them not only as a snack but as a mac and cheese topping. Other ideas included exchanging crushed Cheez-Its for the bread crumbs in Italian meatballs. I don't think folding bits into milk chocolate ice cream would prove rewarding, but what do I know? Another suggestion was to mix sour cream and crushed Cheez-Its as a coating for baked chicken breasts.
But don't rush out to squander hard-earned money on a box of Cheez-Its. Here is a recipe for making your own!
CHEEZ-ITS
8 oz. cheddar, coarsely shredded
1/2 stick sweet butter
1 cup all-purpose flower
2 T ice water
Cream the butter and cheese together, gradually stir in the flour. You'll have a crumbly mixture so use the ice water judiciously to turn the mixture into dough. Roll it out to Cheez-It width and score it with a knife. Carefully put this on a cookie sheet and bake it at 375 for 15 minutes. Check on it from time to time, don't just set the timer and go whistling off to do something else.
It also occurs to me to use this dough for the crust of an apple pie... it's just pie crust anyhow.
Today, Cheez-Its are small, square yellow crackers flavored with cheddar cheese and salt. While idly staring at the news pop-ups online, I was startled to see recipes for using them not only as a snack but as a mac and cheese topping. Other ideas included exchanging crushed Cheez-Its for the bread crumbs in Italian meatballs. I don't think folding bits into milk chocolate ice cream would prove rewarding, but what do I know? Another suggestion was to mix sour cream and crushed Cheez-Its as a coating for baked chicken breasts.
But don't rush out to squander hard-earned money on a box of Cheez-Its. Here is a recipe for making your own!
CHEEZ-ITS
8 oz. cheddar, coarsely shredded
1/2 stick sweet butter
1 cup all-purpose flower
2 T ice water
Cream the butter and cheese together, gradually stir in the flour. You'll have a crumbly mixture so use the ice water judiciously to turn the mixture into dough. Roll it out to Cheez-It width and score it with a knife. Carefully put this on a cookie sheet and bake it at 375 for 15 minutes. Check on it from time to time, don't just set the timer and go whistling off to do something else.
It also occurs to me to use this dough for the crust of an apple pie... it's just pie crust anyhow.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
This Just In!
I was talking to a friend the other night, who was going on and on about her friend Jackie's new beau. It seems he brings her flowers on a daily basis, frequently takes her out to dinner and, all in all, is seen to be a perfect gentleman and an excellent prospective husband.
Idly I asked where Jackie had met this paragon and my friend says, "The Home Improvement section at Wal-Mart!"
Given what I have seen of the Wal-Mart shoppers in the streams of photos of them, I was suspicious and said so.
"No, no!" my friend protested. "The day after she met him, I read an article in the paper about "The Best Places To Meet A Man" and "home improvement, Wal-Mart" was the answer!
All I can tell you is: caveat emptor both sexes.
Idly I asked where Jackie had met this paragon and my friend says, "The Home Improvement section at Wal-Mart!"
Given what I have seen of the Wal-Mart shoppers in the streams of photos of them, I was suspicious and said so.
"No, no!" my friend protested. "The day after she met him, I read an article in the paper about "The Best Places To Meet A Man" and "home improvement, Wal-Mart" was the answer!
All I can tell you is: caveat emptor both sexes.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
EGG-stravaganza at Centinela Feed & Pet Supplies
Mark your calendars -- Thursday, March 28th and Monday, April 1st, if you go into a Centinela Feed and Pet Supplies, don a pair of rabbit ears and sit for your portrait, they will give you either a furry mouse for your cat or a cotton rope toy for your dog. FREE!
Other Easter bargains for your animals include:
A Jolly Egg Dog Toy - 20%
Duck Jerky - 25% off It is not a good idea to have bought a duckling for your kid for Easter; some confusion could ensue with your dog...
Fresh Cat Grass in a little pot - $1.99
Lamb Chop Dog Toy - $4.99
24 Carrot Catnip Toy - looks like a carrot, but is filled with catnip.
And an offer you surely can't refuse - come in Saturday, March 30th, and join in an Easter egg hunt around the store. Each egg found will reward the hunter with a piece of candy - Donated and Supported By The American Dental Socity.
In my lifetime, Easter was always presented (more or less) as a religious holiday. I can understand how the custom of giving Easter baskets filled with candy, etc. came to be as an expression of joy and of sharing with others.
What I can't understand is dragging your pet into a (supposedly) religious celebration.
Granted many people refer to Fluffy or Fido as "my dog son" and dote on them. This is all well and good, but I draw the line at pretending to an animal that an Easter-themed gift salutes their religion.
As a side note to the Ladies - The 99 Cent Store is offering wide-brim straw or paper hats in vivid colors for 99 cents. You could really create a custom hat with fake flower accessories. In fact, you could have a Hat Party - decorations, a hat and some good chilled Pinot Grigio.
Other Easter bargains for your animals include:
A Jolly Egg Dog Toy - 20%
Duck Jerky - 25% off It is not a good idea to have bought a duckling for your kid for Easter; some confusion could ensue with your dog...
Fresh Cat Grass in a little pot - $1.99
Lamb Chop Dog Toy - $4.99
24 Carrot Catnip Toy - looks like a carrot, but is filled with catnip.
And an offer you surely can't refuse - come in Saturday, March 30th, and join in an Easter egg hunt around the store. Each egg found will reward the hunter with a piece of candy - Donated and Supported By The American Dental Socity.
In my lifetime, Easter was always presented (more or less) as a religious holiday. I can understand how the custom of giving Easter baskets filled with candy, etc. came to be as an expression of joy and of sharing with others.
What I can't understand is dragging your pet into a (supposedly) religious celebration.
Granted many people refer to Fluffy or Fido as "my dog son" and dote on them. This is all well and good, but I draw the line at pretending to an animal that an Easter-themed gift salutes their religion.
As a side note to the Ladies - The 99 Cent Store is offering wide-brim straw or paper hats in vivid colors for 99 cents. You could really create a custom hat with fake flower accessories. In fact, you could have a Hat Party - decorations, a hat and some good chilled Pinot Grigio.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Putting a Presidential Spin on A Snack Food
Former President, George Bush II, loved a Tex-Mex version of an old classic - Chex Mix. As it happens about once a yeark I succumb to the desire for a bag of them. I really love that buttery, salty taste of the cereal that looks like little tiny waffles. Problem is, I don't want any of the rest of the things in the sack. This recipe may solve my problem...
TEX-MEX CHEX
1 1/2 cups Corn Chex cereal
1 1/2 cups Rice Chex cereal
1 1/2 cups Wheat Chex cereal
1 1/2 cups pepitos
1 cup small thin pretzels
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1 1/2 T sweet butter, melted and then allowed to cool
1/2 T Yucatan Sunshine or other Mexican hot sauce
1/2 T Tabasco
1 T Worcestershire sauce
pinch of ground cumin
pinch dried oregano
pinch of garlic powder
Preheat the oven to 250
Combine the chex, pepitos, pretzels and pistachios in a big bowl
In a small bowl put the butter and the rest of the seasonings and mix them well. Then pour the mixture over the dry ingredients and softly stir them together. Spread this mixture out carefully in a single layer across a cookie sheet and bake it for 45 minutes, stirring it gently around every 15 minutes.
If I ever actually got up off my derriere and made this, I'd leave out the pepitos, pretzels and pistachios. It would save me from having to pick them out of the finished product...
TEX-MEX CHEX
1 1/2 cups Corn Chex cereal
1 1/2 cups Rice Chex cereal
1 1/2 cups Wheat Chex cereal
1 1/2 cups pepitos
1 cup small thin pretzels
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1 1/2 T sweet butter, melted and then allowed to cool
1/2 T Yucatan Sunshine or other Mexican hot sauce
1/2 T Tabasco
1 T Worcestershire sauce
pinch of ground cumin
pinch dried oregano
pinch of garlic powder
Preheat the oven to 250
Combine the chex, pepitos, pretzels and pistachios in a big bowl
In a small bowl put the butter and the rest of the seasonings and mix them well. Then pour the mixture over the dry ingredients and softly stir them together. Spread this mixture out carefully in a single layer across a cookie sheet and bake it for 45 minutes, stirring it gently around every 15 minutes.
If I ever actually got up off my derriere and made this, I'd leave out the pepitos, pretzels and pistachios. It would save me from having to pick them out of the finished product...
Monday, March 25, 2013
Poor Mondays..
They seem to be the redheaded stepchild of the week. Many of us have had a relaxing and fun weekend. And Monday? Back to the grind.
In an effort to distract you from the Grim Reality, here are some lines on aging from a book called "What's So Funny About Getting Old?" by Ed Fischer and Jane Thomas Noland Meadowbrook Press $7 Unfortunately, the pages aren't numbered.
"Middle age is when anything new you feel is most likely to be a symptom." Laurence J. Peter
"Setting a good example for your children takes all the fun out of middle age." William Feather
"Middle age is when the girl you smile at thinks you are one of her father's friends." Henny Youngman
"I have everything now I had 20 years ago -- except now it's all lower." Gypsy Rose Lee
"I'm so old I was born back when nighthood was in flower." Anon.
"I'm so old my prom date was Fred Flintstone." Anon.
"I'm too old to take turns." Anon.
Palm Beach bumper sticker: When I get old, I'm going to move north and drive slow."
"I used to dread getting older because I thought I would not be able to do the things I wanted to do, but now that I'm older, I find I don't want to do them." Nancy Astor
More Nancy: "I refuse to admit that I am more than 52, even if that does make my sons illegitimate."
In an effort to distract you from the Grim Reality, here are some lines on aging from a book called "What's So Funny About Getting Old?" by Ed Fischer and Jane Thomas Noland Meadowbrook Press $7 Unfortunately, the pages aren't numbered.
"Middle age is when anything new you feel is most likely to be a symptom." Laurence J. Peter
"Setting a good example for your children takes all the fun out of middle age." William Feather
"Middle age is when the girl you smile at thinks you are one of her father's friends." Henny Youngman
"I have everything now I had 20 years ago -- except now it's all lower." Gypsy Rose Lee
"I'm so old I was born back when nighthood was in flower." Anon.
"I'm so old my prom date was Fred Flintstone." Anon.
"I'm too old to take turns." Anon.
Palm Beach bumper sticker: When I get old, I'm going to move north and drive slow."
"I used to dread getting older because I thought I would not be able to do the things I wanted to do, but now that I'm older, I find I don't want to do them." Nancy Astor
More Nancy: "I refuse to admit that I am more than 52, even if that does make my sons illegitimate."
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