Last Day!

last turkey sandwich

last piece of apple pie

last day of NaBloPoMo!

Thirty Days Hath September

so that means I have today and tomorrow to complete NaBloPoMo. YAY!

I made my appetizer for our Stitch & Bitch Xmas party Thursday. A few spares also served as supper. A lot of things I wanted to accomplish over the weekend never happened- including putting up the tree, giving the dog a bath, any stitching at all (aaarrrgggg!!!!).

Random:

1. Why does CVS pharmacy have items on sale in their Sunday flyer, but doesn’t stock those items in the store?

2. What’s the deal with LED Xmas lites anyway? Do they look OK on the tree? Are they worth the extra up front cost?

3. I’m very annoyed with crumbs and dirty glasses.

I rode Axe last night- she was a good girl. Em rode her all last week. She (the Axe) has been enjoying the mud, though. She was covered head to toe on her right side. Which sucks because she hates to be brushed, never mind scrubbed!

Too Easy:

Leftovers….

just a drive-by:

little turkey sandwiches (YUM!) (on my dinner rolls  which didn’t come out good this time- technical difficulties with my timer- I saved them in the nick of time)

So I made a loaf of oatmeal honey bread (YUM!) for better sandwiches, and then the guacamoles had turkey dinner  redux, and I sent them back to Boston with one more meal, and so now I have one really big sandwich-worth’s left. Bye bye 18 pounds of brined goodness…..:^(

SO i had some Brie & crackers for supper (YUM!) I served Brie, smoked Monterey jack, cheddar, and pub cheese yesterday for snacks.

I bought some ham at the supermarket, so I can make ham & cheese toasty sandwiches (YUM!)

Now I can have homemade Mostess cupcakes for dessert! (YUM!)

Did you say you had one sandwich left? I’ll take care of that!

My other cupcake

Happy Thanksgiving!

I wonder how many blog posts around the world will have that title today?

I’m thankful for all my friends and family, live and virtual; you make each day special, and interesting, and informative and downright side-splitting funny. Thanks for all your comments and advice- I’m grateful to be part of this small segment of “It’s a small World Wide Web”.

I’m especially thankful that we have such a dedicated military- fighting, or even just keeping watch, in far-flung places, missing their own families desperately, so that we can eat some turkey and watch some football. Thanks and heart-felt prayers to each and everyone, wherever you are.

(yeah- I wish my turkey would look so good!)

Wonderful Wednesday Wrecipes

The turkey’s resting over on the table, waiting to be carved and you have all the sides that have to be cooked or re-heated and on the table all at once. So you have no more room in your oven to heat stuff up? Today’s recipe is all about convenience, especially if you don’t like your stuffing (dressing- is it a regional thing to call it one or the other, or is there an actual distinction between the two??) cooked inside the bird. The technique is the key here- substitute your favorite stuffing ingredients, just remember it all has to fit your crock pot. Put it together just after the turkey goes in the oven, and it should all be done at the same time.

Slow Cooker Stuffing

• One- 16 oz. package Pepperidge Farm seasoned stuffing (the dry stuff) or use comparable quantity of dried bread cubes
• ¼ to 1/3 lb. Bulk sausage- I use a couple of sweet Italian sausage patties
• 1 stick butter
• 2 stalks celery, washed & chopped to about ½” pieces
• 1 medium onion, chopped to ½” pieces
• 1 tart apple, chopped to ½” pieces
• 1 TBSP poultry seasoning
• 3 TBSP minced fresh parsley
• salt & pepper
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2-3 cups turkey broth (you may not use all, or you may need a bit more)

1. In a large sauté pan, brown sausage and break into bits. Add butter, melt, and add chopped celery, onion and apple. Stir & cook until softened/wilted.
2. Meanwhile, in a very large bowl, toss stuffing mix with poultry seasoning and parsley, salt and pepper.
3. Spoon cooked vegetables over bread and toss to mix well. Pour in enough broth to moisten to degree you prefer, then mix in eggs.
4. Transfer to crock pot that has been sprayed with cooking spray and cover.
5. Cook on High for 1 hour, the reduce heat to Low and cook an additional 4-6 hours (in 4 hours it should be done, but it won’t suffer the additional time). Stir pot contents occasionally, adding more broth as necessary. If you prefer a crispier finish, turn back to High for the last 45 minutes or so.

Makes enough for 8-10 maybe? I’m not sure because it’s usually only 3 of us, and there’s always tons leftover. The Pepp. Farm bag says the whole bag makes 11 servings.

No pictures until tomorrow!

(what- you think I’m gonna make this twice???)

I’m late, I’m late…

there was an accident in front of the supermarket- it took 20 minutes to do a 3 minute drive. I shouldn’t complain- evidently, 2 pedestrians walking together were hit. Their holiday just turned to crap in a basket.

The 2 guacamoles are back and they graciously house cleaned for me when I got home. However, their presence dictated the necessity of preparing dinner. Does everyone agree that the MOST annoying thing about Thanksgiving is having to cook meals on the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings leading up to what must be the biggest cooking day of the year? I don’t know about youze guys, but I’m tapped. I’d just as soon throw a bag of pretzels at them & call it a day. But the green beans are par-boiled and the squash is cooked. I had hoped to also make either the dinner rolls or the apple pie, but I’m done for the night. Peeling that squash irritated my fingertips. Tomorrow, there’s always tomorrow…

Have You ever Wondered….

what happens in your house after you head off for work every day?

This will finally shed some light on what has been a very deep, dark mystery…

The Secret Life of Everyday Objects

 

Look for the “View This Gallery” tab on the right side of the page.

I’ll be giving my marshmallows a wide berth from now on!

And another one bites the dust…

…Weekend, that is. I actually feel like I accomplished some things:

cleaned my gutters, dumped 2 bags of salt in my softener system, put up my icicle lights, started house cleaning for the “big” day, took care of the horsie, did some sewing- fixed a blanket for my B.O.’s horse and hemmed 2 pairs of jeans for Em, brought horses in for B.O. on Saturday afternoon, did my Sunday walk…

TV will be scanty tonight because of AMAs; maybe I’ll do some stitching!

I’ve been seeing a lot of new traffic thru my Feejit widget coming from blogger. I used to be able to track back by clicking their blogger dot com link, but for some reason I can’t anymore. I’m wondering if it’s bloggers using the “improved” “Next Blog>” tool, and coming to my blog accidentally? A lot of foreign countries have been stopping by- I’m just curious how they come across little old me, is all.

My back ache issues have indeed resolved themselves. I’ve been doing everything I usually do will no ill effect since last Wednesday- those bags of salt weigh 40 lbs each! I’ll bring it up with my doctor in December.

I’ll have to start with my lists tomorrow for Thanksgiving- what to cook & when, what chores need to be done, yada, yada, yada.

Who Knew?

Blue Snoballs?

Shopping’s Done!

• Got the turkey-check
• stuffing-check
• squash-check
• potatoes-check
• cranberry sauce-check
• green beans-check
• 2 packages LOL butter- on sale for $2!!!
• broth
• apple cider
• parsley
• corn
• apples
• cheese
• ice cream
• aluminum foil
• basil
• bay leaves
• poppy seeds
• 2 folding chairs

It’s Christmas Eve!

Well, not quite, but really:

I figured I’d show you this now, even though I intend to add some gold beads along the traces. It might be weeks before I get to that!

And then back to A Conspiracy of Pumpkins:

And to all a good night!

Wonderful Wednesday Wrecipes

I came across this recipe from another food blog I occasionally visit- The Wednesday Chef, coincidentally. I never do anything with frozen corn except “Cook as Directed” and top with butter & salt at the table.

I hardly ever use fresh mint so I’m not used to its flavor; maybe I’ll try a different herb like thyme or tarragon or sage next time. The unsalted butter seems to be key- I used regular & tried to adjust the additional salt , but I think I added a wee bit too much.

This was tasty- different but quite tasty, and very pretty in a bowl. I’d even consider it for Thanksgiving next week except for the traditionalists I typically serve.

Caramelized Corn with Fresh Mint
Serves 2

• one- 10-ounce package frozen premium corn
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh mint
• Salt

Defrost the corn in a colander, tossing occasionally, for about 30 minutes.

In a wide skillet, melt the butter over high heat. Add the corn and cook, stirring often, until golden and browned (kernels may begin to pop), about 10 minutes. Stir in the mint and sprinkle with salt. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve while hot.

Damn this NaBloPoMo!

Cripes it’s hard to post something everyday!

Do you ever click on the “Blogs of Note” tab in your blogger dashboard? Today I found this gem:

http://librarytypos.blogspot.com/

And in a totally unrelated development, i present my new eyeglasses:

take THAT NaBloPoMo!

Monday, Monday

la-da, da,da,da,da

Well, that’s how I always heard it!

On  a serious note:  Ladies- have you heard about this: New York Times article on the recommendations to not bother with mammograms and self-examinations in your forties? The news seems to be breaking this evening over the internet, and similar stories are appearing in other papers. This study must have been done by a team of ignorant men! Let’s stop with prostate exams while we’re at it- everyone knows a man will die of old age long before prostate cancer will claim him!

Off my soap box, but I’m just trying to keep you all informed.

Em’s horse was SO dirty today! It took me half an hour to scrub all the mud off her hooves & sheet, at which point I removed the sheet and had to clean her! Her neck and side of her face was covered with dried, caked-on mud, as was her rear leg not covered by the sheet. It was the first time I’ve ever had to sweep the floor before AND after  a ride! She’s a silly girl, but I love her.

In other medical news, my single glass of wine last night did nothing for me, sleep-wise. I went to bed at 10:30 and was painfully awake at 11:40 with my nagging back ache (leftover from barn sitting a couple of weeks ago). And I couldn’t even take pain drugs because of the wine. After trying to find a position that didn’t make me cry(between the dog at my ankles and the cats at my neck), I ended up on the couch in a fetal position with my back pressed flat against the back of the couch. I don’t have a heating pad, so I heated a damp towel and placed that against my lower back. Then Chickie came looking for me and curled up in my sideways lap. Once I get up and move around, my back feels fine- I don’t even have any pain riding. It seems I just can’t lie down- either on my side or flat on my back. Laying on my stomach seems so contrary I’m not even considering that option!

Don’t know if it’s a skeletal issue or muscle spasms. I’m not a run-to-the-doctor person, so I’ll see if it resolves itself. My annual physical is the day before Xmas- I’ll probably end up waiting until then if I can stand it that long.

That’s enough drivel for NaBloPoMo!

WOW!

This is a digitally-recreated version of Flight 1549- the one whose Captain, “Sully” Sullenberger, landed in the Hudson River successfully:

Totally remarkable!

Wunnerful, Wunnerful!

Hmmm.. what does it say about me that it’s 5:44 pm on a Sunday evening, and I’ve had my face washed for bed and been in my jammies for 20 minutes already?

Cue the Lawrence Welk soundtrack and pass the Geritol!

My self medicating worked last night- I had 2 glasses of merlot and was in bed by 9:30, and I think i actually slept (dreamless) until 2:15 am. Then I woke and the usual weird Steven King-like movies started. Chickie let me stay in bed until 7:15 or so, and I almost wasn’t tired for once. I’m thinking of having one glass of wine tonight- work night & all.

What I really need to do is get out my stitching and finish that Prairie Schooler!

Another Saturday Night…

I saw this on the evening news about Domino Day 2009 in the Netherlands:

ABC News

Enjoy!

I’m off to consider a couple of glasses of wine vs. OTC sleep drugs for tonight. I’m thinking I’ll enjoy the wine more….But I’m like that.

Fabulous Friday!

SCORE!!:

$25 from eBay. It also has a magnetic easel for charts. I have to figure that out. Now I’m not limited by having my TW “Fruit Bell pull” permanently mounted to the scroll frame that is the only thing that fits in my other floor stand. Now I can use any frame!

Leftover Town Spa linquica pizza! (And see- it’s Friday!!)

Chickie hoping I drop a piece on the floor.

Maybe This Weekend….

I can finish this:

There is still all the snowflakes to do on the entire right half side and backstitching the window mullions and I wanted to add some gold beads and maybe gold backstitching on the sleigh……

And back to those breadsticks- I re-heated some in the toaster oven by brushing with some melted butter and sprinkling with more parmesan cheese- YUM!

Wonderful Wednesday Wrecipes

I came across this in a local townie blog I read, for politics, mind you, NOT recipes! It sounded simple & good so I thought I’d give it a try:

*NOTE: what follows is my version of the original, due to ingredients on hand. Click link above to see original

Garlic Breadsticks

Breadstick dough ingredients

• 3/4 cup water – lukewarm
• 3-4 oz honey
• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tsp yeast

Topping ingredients

• 3-4 oz olive oil
• 5-6 cloves crushed garlic
• Parmesan cheese – regular spaghetti type
• course ground sea salt

Directions

1. Add ingredients in order to bread machine – use dough cycle. My Betty Crocker takes 90 minutes.

2. Remove and gently roll out about 1/2” to 3/4” thick- roughly a 9” or 10” x 12” –ish rectangle on a lightly floured board. Using a sharp knife, cut dough into 3/4” wide strips. Shape & twist into desired sized bread sticks – say 3/4 inches in diameter and 6-8 inches long – whatever you want. If the dough is too sticky to work with, coat your hands with flour.

3. Place on baking sheet greased with olive oil and covered with corn meal to prevent sticking. Alternatively, i lined a baking sheet with parchment & sprayed with cooking oil spray.

4. Crush 4-5 cloves garlic into 3-4 ounces of olive oil – brush over bread sticks. (My garlic was old, so I used some of that chopped garlic in olive oil in a jar- about 2 TBSP and 1/4 cup of oil)

I think I need a new brush- this one sucked dead llamas.

5. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and coarse sea salt

6. Cook in preheated oven at 375 on center rack until done – around 15 – 20 minutes depending on the size, until lightly golden brown.

A little more brown than this.

I found they needed to be brushed with additional melted butter when done, but that’s my taste.

Forget I said Anything….

about finishing this up “this” weekend!

Best laid plans and all.

And now, something we hope you’ll really like!

(Do you know what that line is from???!!!)

I’m off for pizza and Greek salad tonight with my bestest friend from forever (well, 1st grade) at Town Spa. Maybe I’ll go temporarily insane and get a beer!

Mystery Solved!

A person attending The Pioneer Woman’s book signing tour posted a link to an in-studio cooking demo Ree did for a local TV station-see  link.

It seems Ree’s “Flat Apple Pie” is nothing at all like my flat apple pie. Phew! I didn’t want a copyright suit on my hands before I was even able to proclaim my undying affection for Ree, Marlborough Man and her punks!

Doesn’t it look like everyone at all those book stores had a blast???

I wish she was coming to the Boston area, but I think she hinted she may only get as far as New York City if time allowed. And I don’t do well deviating from my scheduled routine, so traveling there is out of the question for me. Poor Chickie would disown me for good!

What’s in Your Bag?

Stitch Bitch proposed this meme a couple of weeks ago. Always a day late and a dollar short is me, but it’s been fun to read what other people carry in their stitching bags. Here’s mine:

My repurposed bag from a Womens’ Conference my best friend attended several years ago.

Back row, left to right:

in purple bag is the end of a roll of paper towels around which I wrap unframed WIPS; my PS Christmas Eve chart & framed WIP; in the yellow plastic envelope just above is some silks I carry around in case I want to work on a monochrome ornament although I no longer carry around the chart for those ornaments (!); my Quaker Halloween chart & my floss selections is under the large blue plastic envelope which contains my WDW, GAST, and Crescent Colours floss lists; then the scavenger hunt answers for the Online Needlework Show and some miscellaneous freebie charts. In the front row is a bookmark, my needlebox, and a spool of red thread for marking fabric centers or attaching fabric to scroll frames, and lastly, a fat honking pile of orts (Yuck!)

My needle box has some Thread Heaven, a threader, needles (Doh!), scissors, a seam ripper. a yellow pencil for marking off my working charts. I think that’s a spare skein of black or DMC 3371, some odd buttons and more orts.

Pig Pen with straps!

Just Cooking…

What is it about November that’s so conducive to cooking? Is it the shorter days, the cooler temperatures, the imminent holidays?

This week I’ve made a loaf of cranberry bread, sautéed steak, then chicken tacos for the kids, then pizza last night immediately followed by a pot roast overnight, cooked up the leftover piece of chicken from the tacos, and then a batch of brownies.

Hmm.. the list seems skimpy now that I’ve written it down. Maybe I feel like I’ve been chained to the kitchen this week because I was away last week and didn’t cook at all?

Also, the brownies I made were a Ghirardelli's mix. I’ve decided I like my homemade ones a lot better.

And hey! Has anyone gotten the Pioneer Woman Cookbook? I saw a review or a write-up somewhere that listed the recipes; she had a “Flat Apple Pie”. Can someone tell me how it compares to my recipe?

I think I  may have submitted my recipe to her comment page for a contest a long time ago. Not that I’d sue her or anything, I’m just curious is all. Actually, I’d find it kind of flattering if she liked it enough to use it!

Phew! that takes care of my NaBloPMo entry today!

Friday Night highlights…

I don’t know if it was my strict Catholic upbringing or what, but pizza on Friday nights always makes me happy.

Growing up, Lent, non-Lent, it didn’t matter: it was always either cheese pizza, macaroni & cheese, or fish sticks on Friday nights. NEVER any meat. In fact, if we so dared to make as much as a bologna sandwich, we would get the parental hairy eyeball and a derisive “You’re going to have THAT????” The tone in which it was said was enough to make us put the sandwich in the refrigerator in shame, to be eaten, slightly stale, on Saturday for lunch, and to slink to the kitchen table with our proverbial tails between our legs.

Behold happiness:

sautéed pepper & onion

pepperoni.

Happy Friday!

Almost, almost there…..

starting the second reindeer. The border goes alongside those trees at the far right.

Wonderful Wednesday Wrecipes

The cranberry boy brought home some product, hence the following:

Cranberry Nut Bread

• 4 TBSP (1/2 stick) cold butter
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• ¾ cup orange juice
• 1 TBSP minced or grated orange zest
• 1 egg
• 1 cup cranberries, coarsely chopped
• ½ cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, Grease a 9 x 5 inch bread pan with shortening.

In bowl of food processor, pulse together the dry ingredients 3 times.

Cut butter into small chunks and add to food processor. Pulse together with dry ingredients until pieces are no larger than a small pea, about 10 pulses. Remove mixture to large mixing bowl.

Beat together the orange juice, zest, and egg in a small bowl. Pour into flour/butter mixture, mixing just enough to moisten; do not beat and do not mix until batter is smooth.

Fold in cranberries and walnuts, then pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake about an hour or until bread is golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out to slice & serve.

I was concerned it might be too tart, so I had to do some quality control, but the rest will come to stitching on Thursday night! (It was OK, if I DO say so myself!)

Closing in…

If I try very hard, I may be able to finish PS Christmas Eve this weekend:

Axe is being good for me. I gave her last week off- I was stressed out enough with barn chores and Chickie and lack of good sleep, plus Em thought she had a sore shoulder. Axe and her paddock pal, Gracie, wander around quite a bit. They have almost an acre to play in and now that the grass isn’t as plentiful and satisfying, they are constantly on the move looking for something green to eat.

Here’s Gracie:

Sometimes you laugh until you cry...

I stole this from Happy Meals and Happy Hours:

I actually was crying from laughing so hard! I hope the link works....

I’m Back….

home in my own house. I’ve decided 10 days of barn sitting is just too much- 5 days is officially my limit. Chicken can’t believe I’m home to stay- she’s seen me in 45 or 90 minute increments and the past two nights she’s been home alone.

The only benefit of barn sitting has been all the stitching I’ve been able to do. I worked on PS Christmas Eve again a bit yesterday and today. I hope I’ll be able to find some time to work more on Garden- it’s such a fun piece to work on! And I’m sooooo close to the halfway point!

Jodi (my barn owner) had an awesome run at the World Appaloosa show in Texas: she got second place in the Two-Year-Old Western Pleasure Incentive class, FIRST in Open Two-Year-Old Snaffle Bit Western Pleasure Futurity and sixth in the Non-Pro/Youth Five & Under Western Pleasure Maturity. Here’s the Winner’s photo:

That’s Jodi in pink next to her horse- her trainer rode in the class. She won the use of the red 3-horse trailer for a year (i guess it’s kind of like the Stanley cup- you only “borrow” the trophy!) and that saddle is hers, plus some other things.

Here’s a photo from another show- this is her champion horse Mojito:

Well, I guess this qualifies as my first NaBloPoMo entry- I guess I should register! I hope I can keep up all month!