I just spent the last three years performing what can only be described as the Donner party of shopping trips.
Seriously, shopping with a 5 year old can only be counted in dog years. Especially a girl like the Diva.
I finally had to break down and take the Diva shopping for her fall/winter wardrobe.
We decided it would be a "girls outing". I'd pick her up from school, we'd ditch the youngest boy with Pappa, we'd get some lunch and shop until Mom couldn't take it anymore.
I was ready to cry mercy after the first store.
Truthfully, a lot of it isn't Diva's fault.
Another truth of Mommyhood is that along with those eyes that pop up on the back of your head shortly after giving birth, comes the critical eye for clothing.
I'm not talking about fashion. That's a whole nother ball of wax.
No. I'm talking about the criteria that every Mom takes with them when faced with having to buy clothes for the brood. Suddenly we develop an eye for quality and construction and an eerie ability to calculate approximate wear life for any form of clothing and just how far that life can be pushed.
This time I was after warm clothes suitable for the perpetual 50 degrees and grey that has set in as typical weather for Seattle from October to April-ish.
Long sleeved shirts, easily layered a plus..Hoodies are good...high washability factor a must...nothing too old for her (which is harder than you might think since she is so tall for her age - she's into the "pre-adolescent" sizes. God help me)...nothing too fancy...jeans or cotton leggings. Seems pretty easy doesn't it?
Ok. Let's start with what should be a no brainer for pretty much ANY store at this point of the season - particularly in the northern reaches. Long sleeved tops.
I can't even tell you how many times I said "No, Diva. No tank tops. We are shopping for winter here." (what the hell? Shouldn't those be gone?) I should have just recorded myself and put it on perma-loop. Save my voice.
Then there's the fact that somewhere, when I wasn't looking, it became fashionable to make tops out of Kleenex. Seriously. Kleenex. I'm pretty sure that with some of those tops, if I did use them to try and stop a decent sneeze - they would disintigrate.
What the hell?!
What happened to the regular t-shirt material that I remember? I have a few shirts made out of the appropriate fabric - so I know it still exists. And, yet it does not in any store that has clothing for those under 21.
Ok. I think that now I have firmly established with Diva that we are looking for warm things. Here comes the next Mommy challenge. Biting your tongue while she picks out the things she likes.
Unfortunately, Diva being the diva she is, instantly goes for anything with bling on it. I'm not sure if it's outside influence or merely a sign that she's part ferret.
In any case our conversations then go "No, we're looking for long sleeves and I don't think that a fully sequined vest is a good idea. Someone turns on a disco ball and it could send all your classmates into seizures . We don't have liability insurance to cover that...pick something else."
Which, of course leaves us with a sea of High School Musical, Hannah Montana, Camp Rock subliminal neon billboard wear. Diva, of course has no problem with this. Personally, I think that if my child is going to be a walking advertisment for Disney, she ought to be drawing a pay check from them, but NO. I am expected to shell out.
I know. Theoretically the choice exists to NOT buy the Disney propaganda, but really that choice doesn't exist because the alternative is 'ho in training gear. Really? The kid is 5. Cut me some slack here. What happened to just your basic single colored cotton sweaters or shirts without logos, emblems, gang signs, cute little bunnies advocating violence against boys, or promoting a false sense of royalty?
Oh. That's right. I have to buy it online.
Silly me.
So, 10 stores, two malls and a couple of antacids later we settled on a couple of hoodies, one HSM shirt, one Camp rock shirt, two shirts declairing Princess status and one trumpeting Authentic Rock Star as I looked longingly at the boys section.
Boys are SO much easier to shop for.
One store, three sweatshirts, two henleys and I so could be outta there. I don't even have to take him with me. Bubba will wear whatever I get him without thinking too hard about it. Even if I do take him with me and I ask if he likes it, all he does is shrug.
Sigh.
I haven't even considered taking Diva shoe shopping. I think I'll leave that for a Diva/Oma bonding session. I can't take it.
And now, since I spent all day yesterday lost in the shopping jungle I probably ought to get my ass in gear and get things cleaned up. I still have a box of apples I need to deal with (I think - It may be a mass of fruit flies by now) and I have yet to get the Halloween decorations up to my satisfaction.
Come on baby, Fork me one more time! (Complete with smokin’ hot photos)
Current mood: mischievous
Category: Food and Restaurants
I know. I'm such a tease.
I know you just wanted me to talk dirty to you. Lookin' for a little food porn, but you're just afraid to admit it.
I know. Nice people don't DO that sort of thing.
And yet, here you are. Bwahahahahahaha!
So. Wanna know how I'm going to make you weak at the knees?
BBQ.
Uh-huh. Don't act like the thought of good BBQ doesn't just make you weak at the knees and your pupils dilate in anticipation...
I made this last night for ManRoom dinner along with some roasted potatoes and an apple crisp. The end result was I had three guys falling at my feet in worship, kissing my toes and ready to do my slightest bidding.
Ok. That's only slightly true. They were doing a fair amount of worshipping - and making plans for the menu for our traditional Superbowl party. My point still stands. It's some nummy stuff.
Carolina Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Rub:
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup paprika
Combine ingredients in a small bowl until well mixed. Apply liberally to a Boston Butt roast or other pork shoulder roast.
Smoke roast at 200-225 for at least 4 hours. For true Carolina BBQ- continue to smoke until roast is fork tender- about 12 hours. If you don't have a spare 12 hours floating around, remove roast from smoker and put into a roasting pan.
Tightly cover the pan with aluminum foil and finish in a 325 degree oven until the roast is fork tender.
Remove from the oven, and vent foil to let steam escape. Let sit for 1 hour. Remove roast from pan to a cutting board. Using a couple of forks, pull the roast apart into small chunks.
Now, you have a couple of options. You can just throw the meat on a bun and eat it plain. You can put the meat into a crockpot with some BBQ or mop sauce, mix it up, heat it up and eat it that way. For Carolina or Memphis BBQ they tend to go with a sauce heavier on the cider vinegar so it's pretty tangy. One of them (I don't remember if it's Carolina or Memphis) generally puts coleslaw on top of the pulled pork. St. Louis style BBQ sauce also tends to be more on the sweet side of life. (my personal favorite).
Wood selection here is also going to make a difference. Southeast BBQ is usually done over hickory wood. Texas and Southwest BBQ favors Mesquite and Northwest BBQ's usually tend toward Alder. But, since Mr.Fairy is allergic to Alder, and I have a source, I'll probably be using Applewood instead. You can get wood chips at any sporting good store - particularly one that caters to hunters (I got my supply of Hickory at GI Joe's)
What prompted this journey down this particular road? I decided I wanted to make some beef jerky. Last time we went down to Olympia, I got some really GOOD beef jerky, but the damn stuff costs a fortune. Seriously - $18.99 a pound. Being the cheapskate that I am, I decided I could make it at home just as well and cheaper.
So, here's a recipe for some of that. Nope. Haven't make it yet, but you know I will be doing it in the near.
Basic Homemade Beef Jerky
INGREDIENTS: 2 pounds sirloin or flank steak, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices 4 tablespoons ground black pepper 1 cup soy sauce 1 tablespoon cider vinegar 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon soy sauce 1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
DIRECTIONS: In a large, nonporous bowl, combine the ground black pepper, soy sauce, vinegar, soy sauce, hot pepper sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Mix well and add the meat slices. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Prepare an outdoor smoker for low heat and lightly oil grate.
Lay the meat out on the grill so that the strips do not touch. Smoke over the lowest heat on your smoker or the coolest spot on your grill. Beef jerky will be done when the edges appear dry with just a tiny bit of moisture in the middle of the pieces of meat, or about 6-8 hours.
(you will want to store anything not eaten immediately in the fridge - just to prevent anything from going rancid on ya)
I would post a recipe for Salmon, I mean what the heck! It is Salmon Days this weekend. The problem is there are SO many BBQ/Smoked Salmon recipes I couldn't pick one. All you need to to is make your favorite salmon marinade/glaze, put the salmon on an aluminum foil "boat", slap the whole thing on the grill and smoke over Alder until fork tender.
I know. You are looking at me now thinking "Great, Fairy. I'll just run out to my smokehouse and get right on it."
I wouldn't leave you hanging would I?
You don't need one. I don't have one. All I have is a propane grill...and...
Meet my leetle friend.
Affectionately dubbed the Cletus 2000. Redneck cooking ingenuity at it's best.
Some of you are now gasping and pointing at the screen saying "You watched that episode of Good Eats!"
Darn tootin' I did! For the rest of you - you really need to watch Good Eats.
In the meantime my directions on how to make a ceramic smoker on the cheap- stolen from Alton Brown and that epsiode of Good Eats.
1. Something to put the terra cotta base pot on. You need a couple inches of clearance between the bottom of the pot and whatever surface you are putting it on. Bricks, these silly feet, chunks of 2x4 - whatever works - just get it up.
.
2. Put your base pot on whatever you are using as feet.
3. Put a hot plate in the bottom of the flower pot. Snake the chord through the hole in the bottom and plug it in. Turn it on to medium or higher. Medium will get a good smoke going.
.
4. Metal pie plate -one you are not fond of and won't mind having dedicated to the smoker.
5. Wood chips/chunks in the pie plate. For best smoking action, soak the chips in water for 20-30 minutes before using. You will need to have something near by to throw the spent wood chips into . A metal bucket or a coffee tin works nicely.
6. Grill from a kettle style BBQ. I actually have two - the full size one and a smaller one that fits in closer to the pie plate.
7. Meat.
8. Lid- I tried to find a terra cotta geranium bowl, but can't find one in the right size to save my life. Obviously two pots work just fine.
So there you go. Smoker on the cheap. You will know it's time to change the chips when the smoker stops smoking. Just take off the lid, I put the grill on top of the lid, take out the pie plate, dump it, refill it and reassemble. The smaller chips get you about 1 hour of smoke time.
Also, just for your information - this smoker does not get too hot. The lid was warm to the touch and the bottom was just barely uncomfortable to the touch. There are no worries about accidentally bumping into it and getting a burn like with anything metal.
Ok. I had better go. The Dowager is here "watching the kids" and I can hear that she can't find the kids lunch...even though I told her it was out in the garage. Guess I'd better go save the day...and then I am going to get the hell out of Dodge so they CAN'T find me.
Have a fabulous weekend...and maybe you have a new project for this weekend.
Warning: It appears to be an ADD sort of week. Ooooo shiney!
Current mood: indescribable
Category: Blogging
You know, one of those weeks where you can't seem to hold a coherent thought for 5 minutes to save your life?
I wish I could blame Scooter and his latest round with a cold/reactive airway disorder. I'm not entirely sure I can. Nebulizing the little bugger at every chance isn't helping a lot though. He isn't wild about it. He has to sit still(ish) and that just isn't on his agenda right now...I am up to my earballs in apples. Still. On the brightside, apples have a slightly longer shelf life than say peaches or pears. I am on batch 3 or 4 of applesauce. I think I am just about done with that. Next is apple pie filling. No. I don't usually make apple pie, but I love apple crisp and figure 6 of one, half dozen of the other. What the hell? I've got a box & 1/2 left of apples. Did you know that you can make apple juice from the peelings and cores from when you make applesauce/pie/whatever? I did not know that until recently. Yup. Just throw the scraps in a pot, cover them with water, bring to a boil and then let simmer for about 1/2 hour. I wouldn't necessarily drink the stuff (especially if you get the apples from a grocery store - wax) but you CAN make apple jelly from it...and apple jelly is a mighty fine medium for glazing things or making sauces. I have all these apples because they were left over from my uncles memorial service...which was nice...it was very Uncle H. It was held outdoors at a local boy scout camp...which required hiking out to the ampitheaterish area...and then hiking back to the mess hall...and all the toilets backed up and started to overflow which required you to REALLY get in touch with nature, if ya know what I mean...depending on how bad you had to go. Luckily, the family members managed to be on their good behavior, which with that side of my family can be a challenge for some of them. It was still a nice memorial service/celebration of life...my family does sort of do things a little oddly. For both my grandmother and my uncle the services were put off until right around their birthdays rather than the traditional 3-5days postmortem. It drives Mr. Fairy batty and most people don't get it. Meh. I figure better time to absorb than sitting around wailing and gnashing teeth...our inheritance from Grandma Fairy is here. We got a dresser that I'm pretty sure has been in the family for quite sometime...I know it's an antique, but I don't know how antique it is...I think Grandma Fairy's mother had it before she did...anyway it's here...I also got a book that was written by Grandma Fairy's Home Ec teacher...I know...sounds strange...but I was written in 1916 and after flipping through it, I think it was actually the teacher's notes from whatever home ec class she took. It sort of reads like notes from a college class...there are things in there about the proper way to make tea and experiments done with precipitation to prove the point...gee...if my chemistry classes were conducted in the kitchen A) it would have actually made sense and B) I would have gotten a LOT better grades...as it is, my Chem classes made my eyes glaze over in abject obliviousness...it's really cool...I think I'm going to make pulled pork sammiches for dinner tomorrow...I have to stop at the grocery store and pick up some pork butt if that is the case...I think I'll stop at Winco since they are most likely to have the stuff I want...Hmmm...Scooter is up from his nap...that's good I can round up the kids and get them out the door...I should probably throw in a load of laundry before I go....How the hell does Bubba have a nearly full laundry basket ALREADY?! I JUST did all his laundry...what does this kid wear three outfits a day?...Now that's just scary...he has more dirty clothes than Diva does and you want to talk about a clothes horse...I haven't been horseback riding in a long time...I should probably be riding a broom from the looks of this floor...I have my witches out...I should probably take pictures to share with the class...Maybe sometime tomorrow I can get the rest of the decorating done...
See what I mean? I am out of here. Scooter is up and I need to go to Mom's house. Hopefully by Friday my ADD tendencies will settle down and I can deliver a coherent blog.
Your invitation to a Gala Affair
Current mood: chipper
Category: Food and Restaurants
Happy Friday, everyone!
Hey look! I finally got a little blogging time and since it's Friday that means recipes. Woo hoo!
I decided to go with an ode to my favorite fruit today.
The number one reason apples are my fave? Make a big batch of applesauce and you will quickly figure it out. There is nothing better than the smell of apples, cinnamon and brown sugar. Good eats AND aromatherapy in one portable package.
In fact, if you have kids with sensory problems or autism, the smell of cinnamon and apples is soothing and can help them sleep better.
No joke.
When Bubba was 2ish he had a horrible time sleeping. He would get up well before the butt-crack of dawn, he would be restless during the night and he would have problems settling down at night. Finally, when he started occupational therapy when he was about 2 1/2, the first thing his OT told us to try was some soothing scents in his room. She suggested lavender, but I HATE lavender so I went with vanilla instead. Within a week Bubba was sleeping better - he wasn't having as many problems during the night and he wasn't waking up at 4 am either. It got to the point where I could tell just from his demeanor when I needed to change the room freshener - there was that big a difference.
There are a handful of soothing smells - apples are one of them. Go ahead. Try and be cranky when there is an apple pie baking.
Consider that your PSA for the day.
Anyway, since apples are in season and I am working my way to being up to my eyeballs I thought I would give you a couple of my favorite apple recipes. Ok. I'm not posting the Glop recipe here. I've posted that one several times here, so I'm retiring it to the Dinner is Served group. It is one of our faves though.
First up is a nod to Grandma Fairy. Every year at this time the ladies at McNatt church make up a ton of these to sell as a fundraiser. They sell quite a few and they are sooooo good. Also - for those of you who might be interested they do freeze mighty well. Pardon the recipe - it's taken out of the church cookbook, so it's written by and for people who have had them before.
(Oh. And just to warn you - I consider anything made with apples to be fair game for breakfast food. ANYTHING).
McNatt Apple Dumplings
Dough: 2 2/3 c flour 1 tsp salt 1 c Crisco 1/3 c water
Syrup: 1 c sugar 2 c brown sugar 2 c water 1 tsp cinnamon 4 Tbsp butter
12 c peeled and sliced apples, sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar.
1. Bring syrup to a boil in saucepan; set aside 2. Dough: Mix flour, salt and Crisco with fork. Add water. Make 6 dough balls. 3. Repeat above to make another batch of 6 dough balls. (heh heh heh. She said "dough balls". ) 4. Roll out each ball of dough. Place a small mound of apples in the center of the dough and bring the edges together to seal dumpling. Place in a 9x13 pan (probably greased, though it doesn't say it). 5. Pour syrup over dumplings. Bake 20 minutes at 450 degrees or 35 minutes at 400.
This next one is my favorite winter brunch food (I TOLD you anything with apples is fair game). It's meant to be a dessert...but who can wait that long. If you've never had bread pudding before - start here. It's super easy to make.
I don't know who Gramma is, but the woman was a genius.
Grammas Apple Bread Pudding
4 c soft bread cubes 1/4 c raisins 2 c apples - peeled and sliced 1 c brown sugar 1 3/4 c milk 1/4 margarine 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 2 eggs beaten
1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 7x11 baking dish 2. In a large bowl combine bread, raisins & apples. In a small saucepan over medium heat combine 1 c brown sugar, 1 3/4 c milk and 1/4c margarine. Cook and stir until margarine is melted. Pour over bread mixture in bowl. 3. In a small bowl wisk together cinnamon, vanilla and eggs. Pour bread mixture into prepared baking dish. Pour the egg mixture over the top. 4. Bake in a preheated oven 40-50 minutes or until center is set and apples are tender. 5. While pudding is baking, in a small saucepan mix together 1/4 c brown sugar, 1/2 cup milk, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 cup margarine. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in 1 tsp vanilla. Pour over bread pudding just before serving.
This recipe is also about to be retired. It's a nice alternative to sweet taters at Thanksgiving and if you haven't ever had sweet taters it's a tasty place to introduce yourself.
Apple and Sweet Potato Gratin
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup apple cider
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1/4 tsp fresh grated nutmeg
salt to taste
1 egg beaten
2 medium sweet 'tatoes peeled and cut into 1/8" thick rounds
2 large cooking apples, peeled and sliced equally thin
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2) In a sauce pan over medium heat, combine the cream and cider and bring just to a boil. Reduce heat to med-low and stir in the maple syrup, nutmeg and salt. Simmer for 5 min. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
3) Butter a shallow baking dish. Layer the sweet potatoes and apples alternately in the dish.
4) Combine beaten egg with the cooled cream mixture.
5) Pour the cream mixture over all. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until apples and potatoes are tender and the cream mixture is set.
6) Combine bread crumbs and brown sugar. Sprinkle over the gratin and dot with butter. Place under a preheated broiler until golden brown. Watch closely! This will burn easily at this stage!
(Yeah, No. This is not a "light" recipe. Probably why it is so damn good. Also, since there are no marshmallows it's vegetarian friendly)
And, finally...what I had for breakfast this morning.
Apple Pie Breakfast Parfait.
This is a no brainer.
Homemade applesauce
Yogurt...and I'm talking about the GOOD STUFF. If you haven't tried homemade then get some Stoneyfield Whole Milk yogurt and just try it. You will never go back to the Yami/Yoplait/Dannon crap again.
Granola. (I add some All Bran Buds to the granola. Might as well up the fiber ante while I'm at it.)
Layer it up and chow down. Look at that! Dessert for breakfast.
If you are keeping score - my all around favorite apple is the Honeycrisp. It works well as an eating apple or as a baking apple. The only thing keeping it from being the perfect apple is the price.
Ok. I should probably go. I need to nag the kids into doing some homework and I'm supposed to figure out where we're going to dinner tonight. That's about it on our front...
Although Mr.Fairy did alert me that the first request of the season for Peppermint Marshmallows has come in....but that's a whole 'nother blog, now isn't it?
Some days it doesn’t take much to amuse me.
Current mood: relaxed
Category: Automotive
Yesterday as I sat at a stoplight in the course of my daily attempt to single-handedly destroy the forces of ozone and clean breathing , I noticed that the license plate holder on the car in front of me was from Fairbanks, Alaska.
"Hmm. They're a ways a way from home. Hmmm...Fairbanks...Heidi is in Fairbanks...Or at least, she was...Is she there or is she in Anchorage these days?...I can never keep them straight...That's a long drive...I wonder what that drive is like through that part of Canada...I bet there are some pretty boring stretches... Those license plate holders are interesting things...where else have I seen license plate holders from?"
(For godsake people! Do you know how boring it is to drive all over kingdom come? I've been told it's a bad idea to read novels or blog while driving...I've got to do SOMETHING. The only other alternative is to listen to my children, and frankly, that's just scary.)
If I didn't already have a license plate holder on the MommyMobile what would I get?
Not just any holder will do.
No.
I want a really cool one. One you don't see everyday...
I want one from far away!
First I thought "Hawaii!". Then I decided that I've seen a decent number of cars in our area with Hawaii tags. My general assumption is those people must have a boatload of money to ship their cars up here. I really can't imagine that it's cheaper to ship a car than it is to sell the old one and get a new one on the main land.
Then I decided that what I REALLY would want to do is get one from far away AND mess with people's heads. But where?
Tuktoyatuk? No. Too current.
Australia? No...if people are loopy enough to ship cars from Hawaii, Australia might not seem too extreme.
Africa? Mmmm...maybe...
I know!
I want a license plate holder from some car dealership in Papua New Guinea.
I have no idea if the cars have licenses like ours or like European plates. Who cares?
How many people actually know where Papua New Guinea is anyway? For the people who do have an inkling, I think it would totally mess with their heads to see a mini-van from there. Let them figure THAT one out!
I would also accept one from Reykjavik or Fiji.
Assuming people even spend time staring at the butt end of the car in front of them the way I do.
(Right now it's making it hard to get him in the damn bathtub....pardon me while I go pry the kid away from his Yu-gi-oh cartoon and convince him that cleanliness is next to godliness or some such junk.)
Ok. He's taking a shower. Shortly I will remind him that he does, in fact, need to go to bed tonight.
Anyway, as I was saying...
Bubba has joined Pokeman Nation.
Frankly, I don't get it. I don't understand how the game is played. I have no clue how they figure it out. I have watched the Yu-gi-oh cartoons when he puts them on. (I figure it's close enough)
I don't get it.
I looked at the pack of cards he got today.
I still don't get it. How on earth do they know who does what, when and the whole defensive v. attack mode thing?
I knew we would be heading down this road soon. I saw one of Bubba's team mates had a notebook with his card collection in it. Bubba was checking it out too. I'm not sure if it was the cards or if it was all the cards in their neat little slots in the notebook that gave him that glassy-eyed future addict stare.
*sigh*
It looks like I will be doing a Google search very soon to figure this out, because if I don't it will drive me crazy.
A couple of days ago, Mr. Fairy and Scooter were having a little one on one time. Scooter was sitting on Mr. Fairy's lap with his back to the TV.
Scooter is not really a TV watcher. He will watch a few minutes here and there, but at the moment he is REALLY into practicing this whole "walking" phenomenon that just came to his attention.
None the less, Scooter was on Mr. Fairy's lap with his back to the TV and Mr. Fairy had the remote in his hand.
(Please. I know. Just try to contain your gasps of shock and amazement.)
Scooter grabbed the remote away from the Mister.
Scooter studied the remote, and pushed a button. (No big deal right? Hand a baby anything with buttons and he is going to push them...)
He then turned around to look a the TV to see if it did anything - the little stinker!.
It didn't. So he went back to the remote and pushed another button until he managed to change the channel.
Ok. He did NOT get that from me. How often do you think I'm allowed near the remote? With now three males in the house who know how to work the remote - do you think I will EVER be allowed near a remote to watch my shows again?
FYI - The grape jelly recipe that I posted awhile ago. You know, the one from grape juice? Has gotten an enthusiastic thumbs up from Mr. Fairy.
He said it had better grape-y flavor than the Smuckers that we had before. I think it spreads better than the brand name jellies and definately better than the generic jellies. So that one's a keeper.
Did ya ever have one of those situations where there was too much on the brain to actually get it on "paper" in any coherent fashion?
I'm having one of those days.
Which is why I spent the morning dicking around with a banner and trying to get the comic on my blog.
Just call me Madame Productive.
The problem is today is the Autumnal Equinox. I love that word. Autumnal. It has nice flow.
(see? there I go digressing again).
And since it is the Autumnal Equinox there's a whole buncha stuff to talk about (Mave's 20 things about Fall, Sheets, recipes and the random crapola that reared it's ugly head over the last week or so...)
I think I finally have my head on straight (for now) and now have blog direction. Can't say the same for anything else...
Since today is the first official day of fall, I thought I should start with some overdue recipes. Recipes with a definate nod to the changing weather and darkening skies.
Most people change their wardrobe in the fall. I change my recipes. Time to put away the recipes for the light and grilled and time to pull out the ones for the hearty and roasted. The nice thing is that usually anything roasted is good for at least two meals.
I got the first recipe out of a Cooking Light a couple of years ago. It takes a little more work, but it is soooo good and totally worth the effort. Besides, it has apples and nothing can ever be bad if it has apples in it.
Cider Roasted Chicken/Turkey
Brine:
3 quarts water
1 quart apple cider
1/4 cup kosher salt
1 Tbsp black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
Combine these ingredients in a large sauce pan. Bring to a boil to dissolve salt. Remove from heat. Allow liquid to cool completely. While this is cooling clean your chicken/turkey. The chicken should be about 6 lbs, whole. Remove the extra bits and pieces that are crammed in the nether regions. Rinse, pat dry and trim any exess fat.
Add the chicken/turkey to the cooled brine. I usually make this by cooking the liquid in the biggest stockpot I have and then chucking the chicken directly into the stock pot and then put the stockpot into the fridge. Whatever you need to do to mostly submerge your fowl in the brine. Allow it to soak at least 8 hrs, best overnight.
Next Part:
2 cups apple cider
1 large onion, peeled and cut into largish chunks
4 flat leaf parsely sprigs
4 garlic cloves, peeled and slightly crushed.
1 large apple cut into same largeish chunks as the onion.
Remove your fowl from the brine. Pat dry. Discard brine. Fill the cavities of the bird with the apples, onions, garlic and parsely. Roast in a 400 degree oven for 1 - 2 hours or until your bird is done. ( I HIGHLY reccommend one of those nifty probe thermometers. They are WORTH the $20). While the bird is roasting reduce the 2 cups of apple cider until it is about 1/3 to 1/4 cup.
Remove the bird from the oven. Remove and discard the skin. Baste the bare bird with a some of the reduced apple cider. Return the bird to the oven for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven, baste again with the last of the cider. Remove the "innards" you stuffed in the bird and discard. Plate up.
Place a large ziploc bag in a bowl (to make for easy pouring). Pour the pan drippings into the ziploc bag. Allow the drippings to sit in the bag for about 10 minutes. The fat will separate from the nummy gravy. When this has happened, snip a tiny corner of the bag. Let the gravy/jus part run into a small bowl or a gravy boat. Stop just before you hit the fat layer and discard this. Serve the jus over the chicken/turkey.
And, in case you wanted something to go with your roasted chicken/turkey...
Chevre and Gruyere Scalloped Potatoes
1 10.5ozlog of herb and garlic Chevre cheese
1 cup grated Guyere cheese
salt/pepper to taste
4 russet potatoes, scrubbed clean and sliced thin (1/8-1/4" thick)
2 - 2 ½ cups whipping cream.
A couple of notes:10.5oz is the big log of goat cheese.Yes, it really needs to be the herb and garlic variety.You notice there aren't any other seasonings there – that is for a reason.You can also add in a little smoked cheese if you would like, but it isn't necessary.This dish is NOT low fat.Get over it.
1)Grease the bottom and sides of a 9x13 baking dish.You can use butter or you can use spray oil.
2)Put down a layer of potato slices, slightly overlapping. Lightly season with salt and pepper.Over that sprinkle about one third of the Gruyere, then crumble 1/3 of the log of goat cheese over the potatoes and spread evenly.
3)Repeat the last step twice.When you are done there should be a layer of Gruyere and Chevre on top.
4)Pour the whipping cream over the top of the cheese.Let sit for a minute while the cream works it's way to the bottom of the dish.
5)Cover lightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven
6)Remove foil and bake an additional 30 minutes.
7)Remove from oven and allow to sit for at least 10 minutes to set up.
Tis the season to buy roasts, and I do love a dish that I can throw together in the morning and end up with a complete meal at the end of the day.
Roast Pork with Apples
1 - 4 lb boned and tied pork loin roast trimmed of visible fat
salt and pepper to taste
6-7 tart cooking apples, peeled, cored and quartered
1/4 cup apple juice, fruity wine or Champagne (or applesauce)
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1. Season pork roast with salt and pepper. Brown roast on all sides (either in a skillet or under a broiler).
2. Coat slow cooker with spray oil. Add apples. Add the roast on top of the apples. Combine apple juice/sauce, brown sugar and ginger in a small bowl. Spoon over the roast.
3. Cover and cook on HIGH for 1 hour. Reduce to LOW for 5-6 hours or until the roast is fork tender.
And since this recipe actually makes quite a bit, and you are likely to have leftovers (ok. this formatting thing is just driving me crazy) I have a recipe for the leftovers too.
Hoisin Pork Wraps
2 lb boneless pork roast
5 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon 5 spice powder
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
10 flour tortillas
3 cups shredded lettuce
8 medium green onions, sliced
1 can (15oz) mandarine orange segments drained (optional)
1. In a small (3-4 quart) slow cooker, place pork roast. In a small bowl mix 4 Tbsp hoisin, ginger, 5 spice and garlic. Spread mixture over pork.
2. Cover and cook on LOW 7-8 hours
3. About 15 minutes before serving, heat oven to 300 degrees. Wrap tortillas in foil and warm in the oven.
4. Meanwhile (back at the ranch...) remove pork from the slow cooker, place on a cutting board. Stir in remaining hoisin into the juices in the slow cooker. Shred pork and return to the slow cooker.
5. To serve spoon about 1/2 cup pork onto a warm tortilla, top with lettuce, onions and orange segments.
(or, do what I'm going to do and re-heat the pork from the previous recipe in the hoisin sauce mixture with a little bit of chicken stock added to thin things out a bit...)
Ok. .
And, on that note I should probably get my hiney in gear. I think I need to spend tomorrow cleaning to make up for doing pretty much nothing of consequence today. Which means I am going to be all out of whack. Damn.
Oh well.
Have a good day, and hopefully, I will be able to figure out what the hell is up with the formatting on this stupid blog....
Just when you get one thing figured out, something else goes kerflewy.
Really. I am. I just have to carve out some time to find some good recipes. (As in find some good 'uns in my stash and copy them). I was a wee bit busy yesterday, so it's not happening today.
We had Manroom last night (which is funny because our guests yesterday consisted of one gay guy and another couple with their 7month old baby. Not terribly testosterone riddled if you ask me.) so I made lasagna from the ground up.
Ok. I didn't make the noodles (complete lack of time) but I made everything else - including the cheese. Why? Because I am a lunatic. In my efforts to make the cheese, I did find out that my rennet tablets are expired and are worthless. Oh well, at least I have some liquid rennet.
Needless to say, since I spent aaaalll day in the kitchen yesterday, we are having leftovers for dinner tonight, and not much has happened around the house today. Part of that is due to spending 2 1/2 hours at the dealership while my car was getting an oil change and the brakes done.
In any case there isn't a lot of motivation to do anything today.
I really ought to clean my room though.
Hmmmmmm....
What else?
My itty bitty baby boy is doing his damndest to grow up, even though I'm not giving him permission. He has started to take his first steps. (boooo hoooo! )
That's about it.
I'm going to clean my room...I can't stand looking at it. Then I think I'm going to start decorating for Halloween.
Matchmaker, Matchmaker, make me a match
Current mood: cynical
Category: Movies, TV, Celebrities
Have you guys seen the commercials for Match.com?
They aren't overly remarkable...
Except for their "promise".
If we don't find you a match in 6 months, your next 6 months are free.
Great. So, let me make sure I'm getting this...
I pay you once a month for 6 months to find me a "match" (I assume there is some definition of what a match is). If you can't manage to find me a match in that 6 months, I get the spectacular offer of the same crappy service for another 6 months, but I don't have to pay for it now.
Fantabulous.
And this is supposed to make the average Joe or Jane want to run out and sign up?
Monday Mental Meanderings
Current mood: breezy
Category: Blogging
You know what?
Nothing really exciting happened this weekend. Now that I think about it, that's probably a good thing.
Or, it's a bad thing and it's just further proof that I am in the grips of brainlock. You know. That state where you have so much to do the brain just freezes and you sort of get tunnel vision?
Yup. In spades.
Bubba and Diva had their first soccer games Saturday. Their soccer league is not overly organized. I don't know why - they've been at it for a good long time, but they aren't. They finally released the season's schedule Thursday night. (Thanks for the warning, guys).
Diva's games are all pretty much at the same time and at the same place. Bubba's are not. They are all over hell and gone. He has two games at his "home" field. Which caused a little bit of a problem. I had his home field location lodged in the brain (along with 5 bazillion other things I am supposed to keep track of). The problem was his first game is not at his home field. A factoid that I was NOT tracking well at 8 something in the morning-following a rough night with Scooter and pre any caffiene delivery system (just keep that in mind, huh? No sleep, no caffiene and morning - which I don't do).
We showed up at the field about 10 minutes early for the game.
Tragically, the game was on the other end of the plateau. Which Mr. Fairy figured out after we got to the first field.
He was not happy. Luckily, he largely kept it to himself, which was good because I was PMS to boot. It could have gotten ugly.
We made it to the right place only a little late and Bubba's team didn't win, but he did score a goal. Yay, Bubba.
Diva was...well...Diva for her game. She did really well to begin with and as the game wore on she lost interest. She started posing more and paying attention to the ball less. Short attention span theater.
Some how I've become the "team mom" for Diva's team. I guess it's only fair. There is another mom who has a boy on Bubba's team and a girl on Diva's team. She's taken Mom duties for Bubba's team. I need to get an email out with a snack schedule...and probably keep back-ups in the car in case other parents forget or flake out on their snackly duties.
I have a couple of friends who are requesting "pink" thoughts. One of them is a woman with twin 4 y/o (ok. Almost 4 y/o) boys. She wants a girl with her latest pregnancy- which she is very happy to find out WON'T be another set of twins. Yes, there was some question as to whether she was carrying twins again.
Anyway...after two boys, both women want girls.
I don't know that they really want ME sending them pink thoughts. Last time I did that I ended up with Diva. Don't get me wrong. I love Diva. She is definately one of a kind, but let's face it - she's up there on the high energy/high maintenance scale. I think both women are thinking of a nice, quiet lower energy girl. I don't know how to do that.
Either that or they are just thinking of the cute clothes and the dolls. THAT I can do.
I think I am giving up- or at least setting aside the 365 photo thing.
I made it half way! Which is a lot further than I thought I would make it.
But, let's face it. This is my "busy season". Canning season rolls right into the school year. Once the canning ends, in comes birthday season with the boy's birthdays in October followed by Thanksgiving and throughout it all I'm trying to get ahead of Christmas season.
Where in there exactly do I have time to do the daily picture thing? Like I said, I made it halfway. It did what I wanted it to do, which was to keep me from drowning in kid-dom and losing myself completely. I've got other things I want to do now...so enough of that.
And speaking of things to do. I should probably get moving and get some of those things done. My goal is to get a load of crap to take over to Goodwill today...somewhere between dropping one kid off at soccer and the other off at TKD...
Ciao, peeps! Catch ya later!
Currently
reading
:
Agnes and the Hitman
By
Jennifer Crusie
Release date: 2008-08-26
busy
mischievous
Lookin' for a little food porn, but you're just afraid to admit it.
"
indescribable
chipper
)
relaxed
distractable
)
cynical
breezy
nauseated