Nana's Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Here is the recipe for my Nana's Pineapple Upside Down Cake. I swear to you that this is the single best cake ever made.

Melt a stick of butter in a heavy cast iron skillet. Then add 1 cup of brown sugar and bring this to a boil. Take a large (around 16 oz.) can of crushed pineapple and drain it well, reserving the juice. Then add the pineapple to the skillet and mix well. Let this continue to simmer on low heat.

Meanwhile, separate 3 eggs and to the yolks add 1 cup of white sugar and beat well and add 1 cup of the reserved pineapple juice. Then mix in 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1 tsp. baking powder.

In a separate bowl, beat the 3 egg whites till stiff. Then fold into the batter mixture. Spread this over the pineapple and bake at 375 F for about 25 to 35 minutes. Let stand to cool in the skillet and invert on to a cake plate. Keep away from large dogs.

Enjoy!

At long last, another recipe

I swear it has been forever since I posted a recipe here.  Maybe you don't care?  Maybe you don't cook?  Maybe no one is really out there reading this?

Whatever.

Here's the deal with the recipe.  I got it off of Pinterest!  Yes, it is the first recipe I have gotten off of my board and actually made.

Both my kids claim to be gluten-intolerant.  I say "claim" because I don't think either of them have ever gotten any type of scientific confirmation.  But that is just like me with my stupid menopause stuff and the fact that I have noticed that the hot flashes are REALLY BAD whenever I eat meat.  I haven't needed anyone to corroborate this for me, I have just learned to not eat meat very often.

So the kids are gluten-intolerant.  You know what this means, don't you?  No sandwiches, burgers, no pasta, no pizza.  Pretty much no fast food, no take-out.  And it is much like back in the day when Rachel Pie was vegan, you have to think a lot and plan a lot before every meal choice.

This recipe is gluten-free.  It is tasty.  It is so versatile!

Check it out:

Broccoli and Cheddar Quiche with a Brown Rice Crust

2 cups cooked brown rice
1/4 cup cheddar cheese, finely grated
5 eggs
1 cup milk
2 cups broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces and blanched
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
4 green onions, sliced
1 pinch nutmeg
Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Mix the rice, finely grated cheese and one egge in a bowl. Press the rice mixture into a pie plate, about 1/4 inch thick.

2. Bake in a preheated 450 F oven until the edges and bottom just start turning golden brown, about 5 to 7 minutes.

3. Mix the remaining eggs, milk, broccoli, sharp cheddar cheese, and green onions in a bowl and season. Pour the egg mixture into the pie crust.

4. Bake in a preheated 375 F oven until golden brown and set in the center, about 30 to 35 minutes.


***Okay, here are MY notes and changes.


1. Make sure you have COOKED rice.  Remember that brown rice takes almost an hour to cook.  Then you have to cool it a bit before you mix the egg into it.  


2. The pre-baking of the rice crust took longer for me than the 5 - 7 minutes, but I was also doing 2 at a time.


3. Instead of blanching the broccoli, I sauteed it quickly with some garlic and seasoning.  Because if you read this recipe it says "Salt and Pepper to taste". Then it says "add the seasoning to the raw egg mixture".  Really?  No, I prefer the method of not tasting the raw eggs.


4. Baking time was right on.  30 - 35 minutes worked out perfectly.  


Think of the possibilities for this recipe.  Different seasonings, herbs and cheeses in the crust.  Completely different filling combinations.  We were thinking of spinach, bacon, gruyere or fontina cheese.  Or chicken, chiles, corn, and tomatoes.  


When you make rice for a meal during the week plan to make enough for 2 cups leftover to make this dish.  A "planned-over", as it were.  Use whatever is in your fridge to create a new way to enjoy it and create less waste.  


And by the by?  This was delicious.  I made one for us and one for my client who had just delivered her baby.  


Try it and let me know what you think.

Thanksgiving Plans and Menu

I realize I like to plan things maybe a little too much.  I realize that others are not as planning-oriented as myself.  I know that I should be tolerant of others and their desire to wander through life willy-nilly with not a thought to a major holiday meal coming around the pike in less than 3 weeks.

But I am running out of patience for those slacker types of people.  If I go to the effort to call you and email you and invite you to my table and to stay in my home, would it KILL you to respond?  Would the earth stop spinning on its axis if you, oh say maybe, you know, PLANNED more than 24 hours in advance?

It doesn't make any sense to me.  Because the people who do this are the very. same. people. who always claim to be so fucking busy that they have to plan their lives a whole year in advance to get a day off of work or whatever.  If you need to plan a year in advance to take a day off, I think you already know if you are going to be free for Thanksgiving or not.  If you just don't want to tell me "No thanks, we are waiting for a better offer and just don't want tell you this" I can see how this strategy might be the one you would use.  But come on, a little consideration.  I asked you here because we love you and want to spend one day being thankful that you are in our lives and for you to be so rude as to not even reply kind of makes me feel my gratitude for your presence might be uncalled for?

Boy, I hate feeling this way.  Especially since I am participating in the "Let's be thankful for one thing each day" facebook status thing for the 3rd year running.  And this year I have chosen to only list people, not things.  I am having a really hard time being thankful for twits with no manners.

I guess it really only matters for me to know how many to set the table for and whether or not I need to buy a gigantic turkey and double the side dishes or not.  But it still irks me.  I told Mr. Big Ed last night I really felt like calling them all back and rescinding the invites.  He is much nicer and more diplomatic than I am and thinks we should just send a blanket email to all the slackers and say something along the lines of "hey, we haven't heard from you and realize you are probably busy with other plans and just haven't called. We will miss you around the table this year.  Maybe next holiday?"  I don't know whether that is really nicer or just kind of passive-aggressive.

Regardless, I still have to make the same plans, the same lists, menus, etc. whether I do it for 6 or 26.  And I have been working on the menu and lists.  Last year's menu was such a hit that I am planning to do almost the exact same one this year.  I will leave out a few things that were only so-so, and bring in a few winners from the previous years.

Here's what I have so far:

Roast Turkey with Maple Herb Butter and Gravy.  This is from the Bon Apetit 1994 Thanksgiving issue.  Here is a link to last year where I posted the recipe.

New England Sausage, Apple and Cranberry Dressing (from the same issue of Bon Apetit)

Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes with Bacon

Mashed Yams in Orange Cups (this is also from Bon Apetit, different year)

Cranberry Relish with Grapefruit and Mint (Here is the link to where I posted that recipe last year)

Shaved Brussels Sprouts with Ham and Pecans

Edamame Succotash (pretty much edamame, corn, parsley and a bit of bacon)

Rolls

Desserts (haven't picked them out yet)

How are the plans going for your Thanksgiving dinner?  Do you plan?  Are you a planner?  Do planners like me drive you as crazy as the slackers drive me?  Any ideas on how I can avoid these issues for the next round of invites to the tamalada and Christmas?

A few of my favorite things

It's fall, or autumn, whichever you prefer.  Do you capitalize your seasons like they do in German?  Some do because they think it is correct.  It is technically not capitalized in English, but it does look better as Autumn, doesn't it?

Anyhoo!  It is time for the fall/autumnal version of regular items.  All the breweries are making their winter/fall/holiday versions of their beers and ales.  Yay!  Does anyone remember Coors Winterfest?  o.m.g. that was such a great beer!  Can I find it here?  Nope.  Do I know if Coors still makes it?  Nope.

But I do know that Hershey's has brought back the Pumpkin Spice Kisses!  Score!

Have you had these?  They are like little bits of pumpkin spicey cheesecake goodness.  Get some.  And be sure you get a second bag to get you through to Thanksgiving.

While I was at the store scanning the Hershey Kisses I saw these:

However good you think these might be, well, they are a million times better.

Those almonds are delicious.  I am thinking that as good as they are all by themselves, they might be excellent in some brittle or other candy recipe.  Maybe chopped up and put into some fudge?  Maybe tossed in a fall/autumnal salad with some roasted squash or beets?

What about sprinkled on top of some ice cream?  Or cheese cake?  Or ground up and mixed into a graham cracker crust with a pumpkin cheesecake filling?  (I am trying it both ways to see if cheese cake looks better as one word or two.)

What I am saying about the nuts is . . . . . Get some.

You're welcome!

Recipes!

Recently I mentioned making King Ranch Chicken which is a staple in Texas.  Everyone makes it, everyone knows how to make it and as per usual, everyone does it just a wee bit different.  And someone asked for the recipe.

So I am here to share the recipe with you.  And also I am going to give you one that is even better.

Here is my thinking on this:  As I said above, everyone in Texas makes the King Ranch Chicken casserole which gets its name from the King Ranch.  Supposedly a cook on the ranch put this together and that's how it came to be known as King Ranch Chicken.  *And could I say King Ranch any more times in this paragraph?

But before I go further in my story about these 2 recipes I want to give you the link to the actual King Ranch . Just in case you want to peruse this fine establishment and see what's what on their site.  The King Ranch is the largest ranch in the whole wide world.  It is bigger than many of the east coast small-ish states.

So with the King Ranch Chicken casserole, it's one of those recipes that evolved over time.  I am sure way back in the day when the cook first made this he/she did NOT run right out to the store to get a couple of canned goods to get started.  On a property with that many thousands and thousands of acres you don't run right out for anything.  So it makes sense that it was probably made with from-scratch items and then when it became popular it was easier to get home cooks to make this using store-bought cans to make a few shortcuts.

I have made this and eaten this my whole life.  And when we moved to Guadalajara I took a TON of different cooking classes.  One set of which were taught by a neighbor of mine, the late Maria Machuca. She was a very talented cook and a great teacher.  She taught me to make a Mexican tradition known as Chilequiles.  The first time I tasted it I knew immediately that this is what the King Ranch Chicken was trying to imitate.  The cook probably had come from Mexico and had the recipe or the taste memory of the Chilequiles and wanted to recreate it with local ingredients available.

So I am giving you both, the King Ranch Chicken and Maria's recipe for Chilequiles.  Try them both and see what you think.

King Ranch Chicken

1 3-lb. chicken, cut up
2 cans cream soup (can be mushroom, chicken, celery.  I usually do one mushroom and one chicken)
1 can Ro-Tel diced tomatoes with chiles
1 dozen corn tortillas, cut into wedges (much like a pizza or a Trivial Pursuit game piece)
2 cups cheese, grated

Boil the chicken with some celery, parsley, garlic, onion or whatever you like to flavor the meat. You are going to use a bit of the broth in the recipe, as well.  After the chicken is cooked and cooled, debone and cut or tear the meat into bite-sized pieces.

Combine the cans of soup with the Ro-Tel and about a cup or so of the broth and mix till smooth.

In a large casserole or a 9x13 pyrex pan, layer up tortillas, chicken, cheese, soup mixture, tortillas, chicken, the rest of the soup and then top with the rest of the cheese.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 F for about 1 hour.  I usually take the foil off the last 15 minutes and let the cheese brown a bit for the last part of the cooking.

Sounds good, right?  It is.

Now here is the recipe for the Chilequiles

2 pkg of corn tortillas (I usually go with about 24 - 36), cut into the same wedges
1/2 liter heavy cream or sour cream
1/2 kilo shredded Mexican Manchego cheese or a good Monterrey Jack or Mozzarella (you want the melty stretchiness)
3/4 kilo green tomatillos
6 small green serrano peppers
1 small wedge of onion
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 1/2 cups cilantro

In a good-sized saucepan cover the tomatillos with water. Add the peppers, onion and garlic. Boil until water darkens, about 10 minutes.

After you have cut the tortillas into wedges, heat some oil in a frying pan and fry them till crispy and golden.  Spread on paper towels to drain and sprinkle with salt. (try to not eat them all!)

Shred the cheese.

Let the tomatillos and peppers cool a bit. Then put the tomatillos, and 3 of the peppers and the onion and garlic into the blender or food processor.  Add a bit of salt and the cilantro.  Blend with 1 1/2 cups of the water they were boiled in.  *This is going to make way more green salsa than you will need for this dish. Don't try to use it all or your Chilequiles will be swimming and soggy.

In a 9x13 pyrex layer tortillas, green sauce and cream. Repeat layers and top with the shredded cheese.

Bake until bubbly and heated through.

***Now here is the deal with Chilequiles.  This is a dish made to use up the leftover tortillas from yesterday that are not all soft and pliable.  This dish is often made with shredded leftover chicken in the layers.  I also put half the cheese in the middle and half on top.

We like to make this with leftover smoked chicken too.  It's very good.

This dish is served all over Mexico with refried beans and sliced avocado.  You can order it for breakfast, brunch or lunch.  Some places ask you if you want yours made with green or red sauce.  I prefer the green.

And by the way, that green sauce in the recipe up there?  That is killer!  It is so darn good you will want to keep dipping those fresh hot tortilla chips in it.  So, if you want to be really traditional when you serve this sauce at your table, dice up a couple of really firm and ripe Haas avocados and mix them in.  Now, THAT is a beautiful thing right there.

Please, try both of these dishes and let me know how it goes for you and if you have a preference.

¡Buen Provecho!

Doing the Can Can

Recently I made a King Ranch Chicken Casserole which I love, but haven't made in a very long time. Partially due to the fact that it requires 5,233,739 cans to open.

Have I ever told you how much I hate a recipe that is really just "open 10 cans out of your pantry and mix together" type recipes?  This is why I hate, loathe, and despise that horrid Sandra Lee "Semi Homemade" travesty of a cooking show.  That is NOT a cooking show!!  That is a "let's justify being lazy" show.

Anyhoo, I was making King Ranch Chicken and opening up the  5,233,739 cans.  And what did I spy inside these cans?

Some of them have that crappy BPA plastic coating and some do not.  Those companies that do are going to be getting letters from me complaining, and those that do NOT will be getting Attaboy letters from me.

Do y'all know about the BPA stuff?  It stands for Bisphenol A, a chemical which can mimic human estrogen and which is linked to breast cancer and early puberty in women.  You know how over the last 15 years or so people have been blaming the meat and dairy industries for all the hormones causing 9 year old girls to start puberty?  Well, the canned food people need to shoulder their part of the blame on this one.


What I am saying is this BPA is bad news.  We don't need it.


Let me show you my cans.

There are all sorts of brands of cans I used there, but the two that stand out as being bad in that they are lined with the dreaded BPA are two of my favorite canned products.


Ro-Tel tomatoes & chiles and also Hatch brand Green Chile Enchilada Sauce.


It is a sad day when I have to tell these two companies that if they don't change their process of adding white plastic lining to the inside of their cans, I can't buy from them again.  But there it is.


Does anyone know and can anyone effectively explain to me why on earth anyone thought we needed this?  Why do we need to take perfectly good metal cans and paint carcinogenic cancer on the inside of them?  Do my tomatoes care if they are in white or shiney silver metal?  Does my body care if my tomatoes come with extra carcinogens for free?  Why yes, it does!


I will let you know if and when I hear back from Ro-Tel and Hatch.  In the meantime, check your cans.  Do you use many canned products?  If so, how many of them have the BPA lining?  Do you care?  Do you care enough to write companies and demand change?  Or do you care enough to find an alternative that is packaged in a safer manner?

Spicy Scallops Recipe

Remember way back a couple weeks ago when I was telling you about the scallop debate?  Whether to buy the smaller bay scallops (imported from China AND raised in a "farm") or get the larger wild-caught U.S. scallops that were not exactly perfect for the recipe?  And I promised to post the recipe for you?

Well, here it is!

First off, this comes from a cookbook my mama gave me for Christmas back 1993.  It is called Accents of the Orient - Eastern Influence on Western Cooking.   Just in case you love this recipe as much as I do and you want to find your very own copy of this book.  Most likely you will need to check Amazon or a used book store as I can't imagine that it is still in print all these years later.


Spicy Scallops


2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp minced fresh gingerroot
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1 1/2 lbs bay scallops
1/2 lb cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup sake
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 tsp sambal oelek
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 tsp Kosher salt


Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the gingerroot and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the green onions and cook for 30 seconds longer. Add the scallops and cook until barely opaque, about 1 minute longer. Add the tomatoes and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Stir in the sake, cream, and sambal. Bring to a boil; stir in the cilantro and salt, then serve.


Makes 4 servings. 
Their notes: Scallops are one of the sweetest of the sea's treasures, perfect for all kinds of quick dishes. This one is made with a creamy sauce flavored with spices of the East. Serve it over plain rice, with quickly sauteed green beans, snow peas, or spinach on the side. To complete the meal, add a salad of mixed greens.


**My notes:  See why you need the smaller scallops?  So they are similarly sized to the cherry tomato halves.  You know I never use the green onions, but I do everything else exactly as written and this is so delicious you will just love it.  I usually make jasmine or basmati rice and serve it with either the green beans or asparagus.  But the snow peas idea is what I am going to do next time.


Last time when I did this with the larger sea scallops, I cut them in half so that they would cook faster, more like the smaller ones.  It worked perfectly.


I hope you try it and let me know what you think.


¡Buen Provecho!

Dog Food and the making thereof

I have made my dogs' food for about 15 years.  Yes, that would be right because the 2 oldest are over 14 and have only been given store-bought food as an occasional treat.  Like you give your kids a healthy diet and throw in the odd outing to McD's for a junk fest.

This came about at the dawn of the internet age and I was doing some research and found some information on the horrible shit that goes into mass-produced pet foods and the problems it may cause in your pets.  The list of symptoms went on and on and read like my last dog, Sammy's, vet records.  I was horrified that all the health issues he had could have been brought on by my buying commercial dog kibble and I was unaware and apparently so were all my vets, as not one of them ever suggested this as a root cause.

That led to more and more research as to what goes into dog (and cat) foods and what alternatives there could be.  It took me back to when my first-born Sparky was just a small chubby baby and I had stocked the pantry with jars and jars of Gerber's in anticipation of his moving up to baby foods.  And then the news hit that there were recalls of Gerber's due to ground glass showing up in the food.

Now I may not know a lot about a lot of things, but I knew that ground glass was NOT one of your top nutrients for growing a healthy child.  So I went to the store and bought a baby food grinder.  Just one of the hand crank items that is easy peasy to clean and use and went to town making my own.

This is the same philosophy I applied to the dog food situation.  Make your own.

If you make your own, you can control the calories, the worthless fillers, the crap that doesn't need to be in there and provide a clean, healthy, nutritious chow for your dogs.  It costs so little compared to the bagged stuff, AND!  get this!

When you make your own and you don't add in a bunch of things that your dog's body doesn't need and only things it does need, most of the food gets metabolized and you have LESS WASTE coming through your dog.  Now, who doesn't want THAT for a side benefit?

I have 3 dogs.  A 14 1/2 year old Siberian Husky of about 40+ pounds, a just 14 year old Mini. Schnauzer of 20-something pounds, and a 4 year old pitty-mix of 75 pounds.  I make one big pot of dog food per week.  It lasts between 7 and 8 days for all 3 dogs.  The Schnauzer gets 1/2 cup per meal, the Husky about 1 cup and the big dog gets 1 1/2 cups all twice a day, double it for once a day feedings.

I spent quite a bit of time researching dog foods and typing up recipes and put them all in a binder.  But what has happened over the years is that I have settled on a recipe and vary it up a bit each week.

Write this down and follow it and I swear you will never go back to store-bought kibble for your doggies.

And I am sorry I am not going to be able to do this in a traditional recipe format, I have too many sidenotes to do it that way.  Here goes!

Natural Dog Food Recipe

6 pounds lean meat (either ground turkey, beef, chicken or whole chicken pieces)
3/4 cup canola oil
4-5 cloves garlic (there are TONS of people on both sides of the "can dogs eat garlic" debate, I come down on the "yes they can" side.  If you don't, then leave it out)
10 cups of chopped, shredded vegetables (sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, green beans, kale, spinach, celery, cauliflower, bean sprouts, red peppers, beets, lettuce, tomatoes)
2 or 3 cans of kidney beans (sometimes I use lentils, too)
1/2 cup molasses
3 cups raw rice OR 32-42 oz. dry raw oatmeal

Optional: you can add in eggs, crushed shells and all.
Also a doggie vitamin for good measure.  Recipe for a good supplement powder to follow, if you want to make your own.

In a really large stock pot brown the meat in the oil.  If you are using whole chicken pieces rather than the ground, start by boiling it instead.  Then add the oil and the rest of the ingredients to the chicken and the stock, after you have taken the chicken out and deboned it and returned it.

Now that you have the meat and oil in the pot, add the vegetables, the balance of the ingredients and a quart or more water.  You will need more water if you choose rice and less if you do the oats.  Also if you use rice, turn the heat down and let it cook till the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed.

If you use the oats, add the water and then cook just a few minutes stirring well so that it doesn't stick like crazy and turn off the heat while it continues to absorb the liquid.

**My notes:  What I have found is that my dogs can't tolerate white potatoes, corn, peas or other starchy vegetables.  They get horrendous gas.  My Husky can snatch up a mouthfull of food and spit out all the lentils whole with not a toothmark on them.  Don't ask me how she manages to do that little trick!

Dogs don't need extra salt added, so do not add any.

Here is the recipe for the Healthy Supplement Powder in case you want to make your own to sprinkle on the food:

2 cups nutritional yeast
1 cup lecithin granules
1/4 cup kelp powder
9,000 mg. calcium or 5 tsp of ground eggshells
1,000 mg. vitamin C powder

Mix well and sprinkle 1 tsp. on each dog's meal.

Ice Cold Paletas! Get 'em here!

If you live in south Texas or in Mexico you know about the Paleta Man.  If not, picture this; small-framed older man with a cowboy hat on either pushing a cart or he has the kind that is half bicycle with cart in the front.  He will have caramel-colored wrinkled weathered skin and kind eyes.  Paleta men are not usually skeevy or gross.

When he opens the lid to the brightly painted and decorated box on the cart he reaches in and brings out fabulous home-made frozen treats.

Paletas.

That's popsicles to you people who don't know about paletas.  Paletas come in 2 varieties.  Water-based and cream or yogurt based.  This time of year most people prefer the water-based flavors, but the creamy ones are great for dessert or when it isn't so miserably hot out.

Now, if you don't live near a paleta stand or where a paleta man comes to you, you will have to make your own.

In the old days before Tupperware everyone used regular ice trays to make teensy paleta cubes with a toothpick frozen in the middle to serve as a stick/handle.  You can make them out of leftover juice, koolaid or whatever you like.  Pickle juice is a favorite among the 8 - 13 crowd and all boys regardless of age.

But after Tupperware came up with their version of popsicle molds, it was waaaaay more fun to make things.  Here is what Tupperware has come up with over the ages, starting with the 1970s.

Tupperware still makes these things.  I think the latest reincarnation is the Mickey ones and they go for about $20.00.  Unless you can't live without Mickey Mouse popsicles, hit a neighborhood garage sale. You can find all sorts of old Tupperware for dirt cheap.

After you have either your Tupperware popsicle molds or ice cube trays or even teensy paper cups you will want to have some fabulous recipes to put inside them.
Here ya go!!

In Mexico there is a drink served everywhere called Jamaica (pronounced Ha-MY-kuh) that is essentially a tea made from dried hibiscus blossoms.  It is lovely and full of vitamin C and acts like a diuretic much like cranberry juice.  This recipe calls for making the Agua de Jamaica first and then adding raspberries.  Note: the Agua de Jamaica recipe here is a bit more concentrated than what you would make to drink.  So if you have any left you can add a bit of water till it tastes right and drink it.

Hibiscus-Raspberry Ice Pops

2 cups chilled Agua de Jamaica
2/3 cup sugar
4 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen

For the Agua de Jamaica

1 cup dried hibiscus flowers
1/3 cup sugar (or more to taste)

Rinse the flowers in cold water and drain thoroughly. Put them in a saucepan, cover with 4 cups water and let steep for at least 4 hours or overnight. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the sugar and continue to cook, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Let cool to room temperature. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a pitcher, pressing the solids with the back of a wooden spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Add water to bring the volume up to 4 cups. If the flavor is too intense, add more water as needed. You can also add a little more sugar if you like.

After preparing the Agua de Jamaica, combine 2 cups with 1/3 cup sugar and warm over the stove till sugar is dissolved. Mix the raspberries with the remaining 1/3 cup of sugar and let sit until they release some of their juice.  Then add the raspberries and their juice to each of the popsicle molds evenly. then pour in the Agua de Jamaica mixture dividing it evenly among the molds.

Here is another very traditional Mexican version of a Paleta.  But this one is a cream based.

Paletas de Yogurt con Moras

1 lemon
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups plain unsweetened Greek style yogurt
2 Tbsp. honey
2 cups fresh blackberries

Rinse the lemon, then peel it. Combine 1/2 cup water and the sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium high heat, stirring until the mixture comes to a boil and the sugar has dissolved. Add the lemon peel, lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. Strain the syrup through a fine-mesh sieve, then refrigerate until chilled.

Add the yogurt and honey to the chilled syrup and stir until thoroughly combined. Put a bit of the yogurt mixture into each of the molds, to a height of about 3/4-inch. Freeze unti lthe mixture begins to set, about 40 minutes. If the blackberries are big, cut them in half. Divide the blackberries among the molds, then pour  in the remaining yogurt mixture, dividing it evenly amonthe molds and freeze solid.

Now we come to some that are a bit interesting and not-so-very traditional!

Balsamic Strawberry Pops

2 cups sliced, hulled strawberries
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons good quality balsamic vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Place the strawberries and sugar in a food processor and pulse just until the mixture is finely chopped and juicy but still chunky; you don't want a smooth puree. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the balsamic vinegar and a few grinds of pepper.

Spoon the mixture into the ice pop molds and insert sticks. Freeze until firm, about 6 hours.


Prosecco-Rose Petal Pops

1 cup white grape juice
1 cup cold, flat Proseco
1/3 cup rose water
1 1/2 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
30 (approximately) red rosebud petals, rinsed

In a large bowl, stir together the grape juice, Prosecco, rose water and lemon juice. Fill ice pop molds about 1/3 full. Drop 2 or 3 rose petals into each mold and freeze until set, about  30 minutes. Fill the molds another third of the way and drop 2 or 3 more rose petals in each mold. Insert sticks freeze until set about 30 minutes. Then fill all the way with the remaining mixture and drop 2 or 3 more petals into each mold. Freeze until set, at least 8 hours.


Honeydew- Lime Pops

4 cups 1-inch cubes peeled honeydew melon
1/3 cups fresh lime juice
1/2 cup mild honey
1/4 cup sugar

Puree melon, lime juice, honey and sugar in a food processor; add 1/4 cup water and puree until smooth. Set a fine-mesh strainer over a medium pitcher; strain, pressing on solids to extract puree. Divide among molds. Cover and freeze until firm.

Campari-Orange Pops

1/3 cup sugar
 1 3/4 cups fresh orange juice
1/3 cup Campari
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Bring sugar and 1/2 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Transfer syrup to a medium pitcher; chill until cold, about 1 hour. Stir orange juice, Campari and lemon juice into syrup. Divide among molds. Cover and freeze until firm.


As you can see by these recipes, you only need a small amount of any one ingredient and what a wonderful way to make use of that last bit of yogurt, or small amount of fruit or that last cup of champagne that sat overnight in the bottle.  You are only limited by your imagination to come up with heavenly combinations for your own version of paletas!

Lots of Musings and Catching Up Stuff

Oh my, I have so many things to share!  And even pictures this time!  Woo Hoo!  I know, could I use my excitement point more?!!!

First up, Judge Belvin seriously admonished the attorneys (attornies?) about being such slow-ass slackers and recessed court till tomorrow.  It's like a 24 hour time out for lawyers.  Ha!  He is such a sweet man even when he was telling them to get their triflin' asses into gear.  So, I finally had enough time to go get my camera to show you the goings-on.

Without further ado . . .


Y'all know that I play Mah Jongg twice a month, right?  And never and I mean to tell you never does it come up that 2 of the 4 of us are playing the SAME HAND.  Well, hardly ever.  But last time we played, Jen and I played for the same hand with reversed suits.

Here is a picture of her tiles, and then mine.

See?  She was doing dots and then cracks.  I was doing cracks and then dots.  She won.  All I lacked was a 1 crack which she had!

And believe it or don't, we did it AGAIN!  That same night, we picked the exact same hand another time.  I can not even imagine what the odds are that 2 players on the same night will choose the exact same hands twice out of 5 games.  But it must be like a gazillion to 1.  1 crack that is!

Next up is something I captured when I was driving across town to purchase something in a plastic-free container vs the one right around the corner from my house that comes in plastic.

See the first picture?  That is some moron standing on a street corner in front of the grocery store with a bullhorn (bull horn??) yelling.  So I rolled down my window and turned down the radio so I could hear what was so important.  He was yelling about Jesus.  And not in a friendly, Jesus loves you sort of way, but more like Repent and turn to Jesus or burn in hell you damn heathens kind of way.

That's odd, I said to myself.  You don't see this every day.  And certainly not in this location.  You want to know what was on the opposite corner from this wiener?

Ta Da!!!  It's the Beer 'n All!  For those of you not from around here the Beer 'n All is basically a drive-thru beer barn that sells margaritas, or should I quote their menu and say Adult Snow Cones.  Here's my only story of the Beer 'n All; Sparky and I were driving through this intersection years ago when they first opened up the B'n All and whipped in to see what all the hoopla was about.  They have scantily clad skinny little girls working there for tips.  So we pull up and a scantily-clad skinny little girl hands us a menu that basically is what kind of flavors of frozen margaritas I mean Adult Snow Cones they have. So we went with plain regular lime margarita flavor.  Then she asks us this question.

"So how many shots do you want it that?"

We were all Huh?  Wtf?  It seems that in a 16 oz. styrofoam cup (boo! hiss! on the styrofoam) you can get UP TO FOUR EXTRA SHOTS of alkeehaul at the B 'n A!!!   Holy Toledo!  We got the plain ordinary regular one.  They made no money on us and if I remember right, she got a minimal tip.  How do they get away with selling you frozen margaritas to go, you might ask?  Well, here's how they get around that whole pesky Drinking and Driving silliness:  They then take the cup with a lid on it and stick the whole thing in a clear plastic bag and seal it.  They give you the straw separate.  So technically it's still a sealed container and what you do with it after you drive through is none of their concern.  I guess it's the same as if you bought a bottle of liquor and took it to the car.  Whatever with them.  It's a stupid business that requires these girls to degrade themselves for tips.

And now we come to much more interesting news and events!  Tomatoes!  All sorts of bounty from the garden.  And things we made from said bounty.  Check it out.

Firstly we have jars of Chili Sauce, which is basically exciting ketchup.  Gorgeous, aren't they?  That used to be about 24 giant heirloom tomatoes that got turned into 16 cups of peeled, cored and chopped tomatoes.  And then mixed with peppers, onion, garlic, spices, sugar and vinegar and then cooked for hours and hours.

See the close-up of the the red vs. green?  The red was made with mostly Cherokee Purple variety tomatoes and the green was with German Green.  These are NOT green as in unripe, immature but rather in a beautiful tomato that stays green when it is ripe.  It has a lovely tomato flavor.  Isn't it pretty with the red cayenne pepper floating in there like confetti?

This is some of the remaining tomatoes left on our kitchen counter.  See the other German Greens there on the right?  Next to them is another cayenne pepper that is green.  But it is green because it hasn't turned red yet.

See the bowls of small tomatoes?  Same thing here, all heirloom varieties.  The red ones are called Big Cherry and the green (but ripe) ones are called Green Grape.  They are delicious.

In the windowsill are some that Mr. Big Ed picked to ripen inside away from the threat of bugs, birds and wildlife.

And what else do we have in the windowsill?  3 small pots and 1 larger pot all with baby seedlings of different varieties of tobacco.  Sparky has decided to try his hand at growing tobacco.  Tricky thing is tobacco can NOT  be grown next to tomatoes.  Remember Mr. Big Ed's NINETY-FIVE tomato plants? They are all over the place.  So when these guys get big enough to brave the outside world we have to be really careful where they go.  Hopefully they will make it and I can keep you apprised on the tobacco growing.

Personally, I would like to put in a couple of tea bushes.  Wouldn't a tea bush be a lovely thing to have in your yard?  And useful, too!  Then I could finally use up all those damn tea tins I have left over from the Tea Hoarding Challenge.

Speaking of which, if you are in the need of some tea tins, mostly the round Republic of Tea type, please let me know.  I would be happy to off-load some of them to help you out.

I am thrilled to have gotten caught up on this stuff. If you are happy to have been reading it, please thank Judge Belvin.

Back to the trial tomorrow.

Red Lentils

I don't know where I read this, but I *did* read about red lentils.  And somehow the little teeny red French lentils are supposed to be better tasting and better for you.  So I got some local organic red French lentils from Greenling, my local online green grocer that delivers.  I love these people.  They are so customer-satisfaction-driven and that is exactly what I appreciate in a company.

Anyhoo, back to the lentils.  Here's what I did:

Up there is the ingredients I used.  The tub of lentils, fresh celery, carrots (and let me just say here that the organic carrots are the juiciest, sweetest, and best-tasting ones we have available to us.  Spend the extra few cents.), garlic, ginger, veggie broth and garam masala.

Then I tried to dump out the lentils on a plate so you could see how pretty they were.

Below is the carrots, celery and garlic all sauteeing in some olive oil that I didn't show you.

The finished product would have looked much better had I poured it into a pretty bowl rather than try to photograph it in the pot.

In spite of the bad pics, this lentil soup was delicious.  You might notice that the extra-nice red lentils lost their color in the cooking process.  That said, maybe all the propaganda about the red lentils wasn't about the redness but rather the great texture and flavor?

I am thinking I may do this again soon.

Return of one of my favorite things

I had a jar of Pickled Spiced Peaches in my pantry last year and I had no recollection of how they got there. I am sure I bought them somewhere, but where?  Anyhoo, I broke them open and, my oh my!  It was like nectar of the Gods.  It was the perfect contrast of sweet, tart, spicy and juicy.  It was perfect, is what it was. So I searched high and low.  I searched near and far.  I even got smart and scoped out their website.  They claimed that the closest grocery store to me is about 300 miles away and it's a chain I have never been in. Hmmmpph.

I let it go.  I assumed that I had picked them up when traveling sometime and the likelyhood of running across these little gems was zilch.

And what happened yesterday, I ask you?  Do you think I was at one of my favorite stores and ran across these Pickled Spiced Peachy little wonders?  Yes indeedy!  There they were.  Cases of them standing at the end of the cat food aisle. (Not exactly where I would market jars and jars of peaches, but there they were)

So I snagged 2 jars this time.

This is what the old jar looked like.  The new one is squatter and fatter.  I am beside myself to open one of them up and find something to go with them.

Last jar of these started out as a side dish for a pork loin and it was fabulous.  And then I started pouring out the juice and some of the peaches on yogurt and on cottage cheese.  This is one of those awesome things that people say you could put on a turd and you would love it.  I, myself, will not be mixing turds in with my fabulous Pickled Spiced Peaches.

On the website they have recipes using their products and here is the one recipe they have starring the peaches.

Pickled Peach Salad

Ingredients:

-3 oz. Packaged orange jello
-1 cup of boiling water
-22 oz. Jar of Pomona Sunshine Pickled Peaches undrained
-cup finely chopped celery
-cup chopped nuts (optional)

Recipe Instructions:

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water; set aside. Drain peaches, reserving 2/3 cup juice. Add peach juice to gelatin mixture and stir well. Coarsely chop the peaches and add with the celery and nuts to the gelatin mixture. Pour into individual molds. Serve with dressing of pineapple yogurt with a little cool whip and miracle whip added in.

I might even give this recipe a test drive and see.  I bet it would be better in apricot jello rather than boring orange.

Don't you just love finding unexpected little treasures like that?  It sure made my day!

Saturday Stuff

Yes, I am up at the crack of dawn.  Yes, it does suck.  I am not a morning person.  Never have been, never will be.  But my little tiny Rachel Pie had a crack of dawn flight this morning so we had to be at the airport 2 hours before that crack of dawn flight, which meant I had to be up even earlier than that!

I am back home from the airport and drinking my morning tea and thinking about going back to bed.  It's always sad when people leave, but most especially if it is one of my kids.  That's the hardest thing.

Thanksgiving day was really nice.  The food was fabulous, the company was spectacular, and the conversation was great.  The only bad thing that happened that day actually happened to my poor s-i-l, who was making a few of the dishes and bringing them over.  She was loading the food in the car and dropped one pie on top of the other one.  And bam, just like that!  There was no pie.  That's pretty flipping sad, is what that was.

So I trotted on over to Luby's and picked up a few pies and was back in no time.  No harm, no foul.  Except for all the time and ingredients and effort she had put in were in the garbage.

Now we tried some new recipes this year and some tried-and-true ones and here is the scoop on them:

New England Maple Herb Butter Turkey and Gravy (t and t recipe) ***** (that's 5 stars)
This is always fabulous.  The recipe is a few days back if you want to scroll back and find it.

Dressing with Sausage, Apples and Cranberries (t and t recipe) *****
Same thing here.  I make this because it goes perfectly with the turkey and gravy recipes above.  And this year it was just sublime.  Love this dressing.

Cranberries with Grapefruit and Mint (new to the rotation) *****
This was so good, I can't even tell you.  I did make it twice, rather than doubling it.  Sometimes recipes just don't double well and I didn't want to screw up all the cranberries and have to start over, so I just made single batches twice.  I can't even think of a thing this stuff wouldn't be good on.

Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Smoked Ham and Pecans (new recipe) *****
We doubled this recipe, but did half with ham and half without.  We had a guest who is from Saudi Arabia and doesn't eat from the pork so we split it up this way.  It was really good.  We went around the table and critiqued each recipe so I could make notes on which to keep and which to ditch, and everyone agreed the sprouts were awesome.

Butternut Squash with Tangerine Juice and Sage (t and t recipe) ****
Everyone loved this and went on and on about it, but I thought it was only a 4 star dish.  I am not sure exactly what was missing for me, but it was not quite top-notch.

My s-i-l made a sweet potato dish that was very savory and spicy rather than the usual sweet stuff and it was really good.  She also did some homemade Parkerhouse rolls, and a corn dish.  Also, along with the poor smashed pies she made this Apple, Cranberry, Pineapple crisp recipe that we made last year. It was just delicious.  That one might be 4 and 1/2 or 5 stars.

We served champagne (Korbel Natural), iced tea, jamaica and water.  Jamaica (pronounced Hah - MY - Kah) is a beautiful tea served iced from Mexico that is made of dried hibiscus blossoms.  It looks a lot like cranberry juice in the glass.  Just gorgeous color.  It is loaded with vitamin C and other good things and is a diuretic and so is used as a diet aid to help flush things out of your system.  It tastes good, it's good for your body, it is pretty, I mean, what more can you expect out of a beverage?!

That's my review for this year's recipes.  Someone please remind me next year to find this post so I can remember what to do and what to tweak and which ones to kick to the curb.

Yesterday we did our traditional trip to the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center. They do an annual shopping extravaganza called the Peace Market that is so much fun.  It is essentially an anti-Black Friday thing to do.  They invite artisans from all over South America and Mexico and local artists to come set up booths and sell their wares.  In addition, there is wonderful food and live music.  It is like the best little street fair you ever attended.  I had such a good time and I bought some great things.  As a matter of fact, I will probably go back today with a friend and see if there are any treasures I missed the first go-round.  I promise to post some photos of my new goodies, all recycled, or made from recycled stuff or just cool and original.  No plastic or crap involved is what I am saying!

It has been a wonderful Thanksgiving week.  I was dreading it and didn't even realize that until we got into it.  Probably because of Grandma dying last Saturday, but I didn't make that connection until Thursday.  When we were sitting down to the Thanksgiving dinner I said how sad I was that this was my first holiday without her and that we needed to all remember her because we were eating off the beautiful dishes she had given me.

Grandma gave me a set, a huge set, of antique Franciscan Desert Rose dinnerware.  Her uncle worked in the factory in California where they made these dishes. They are kind of a rustic pattern and each one is hand-painted.  Not like now.  Franciscan was bought out by some English fine china company and is made there now and each piece is perfect and identical to the last piece. I don't like the new stuff near as much as the older, more charming pieces.  Anyway he worked there way back in the day and he was able to buy the seconds for a song. So he collected a set for each of his nieces.  And that is where Grandma got hers.  And get this, she never used them.  Never.  She carried these boxes and boxes of dishes around with her since the '40s and never used them.  Doesn't that just beat all?  Ever since she gave them to me I have used them every single Thanksgiving.  I will try and remember to post some pictures of  some of the really cool serving pieces I have of this set.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone, and I hope to do the same.  It sort of seems like a weekend after a weekend, doesn't it?

Cranberries

I know, you probably have your menu lined out, your recipe and ingredients ready or have already bought the can-o-jellied cranberries.  But just in case you haven't,  get a pen and paper and write this down.  I made this last night and after it cooled and thickened up, Mr. Big Ed tasted it and declared that I needed to make a second batch.  One would not be enough!  We all tasted it and agreed, this is some good stuff.

Good tasting, 4 ingredient fabulousness.  What more could you want?

Without further ado, from the 2008 November issue of Bon Appetit I give you:

Cranberry Relish with Grapefruit and Mint

2 large pink grapefruits (we all know that Texas Ruby Red, Star Ruby are the best, please buy them)
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups cranberries (or 10 oz.) **The bag is 12 oz. just use it.
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint

Using vegetable peeler, remove peel (pink-yellow outer layer only) from 1 grapefruit in strips. Cut peel into 2-inch-ling 1/8-inch-wide strips (about 1/2 cup). Squeeze 1 cup juice from grapefruits.

**Note I started doing this as directed and then realized that I own a citrus zester and grabbed it and made short work of this.  Love that zester!

Stir 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add grapefruit peel; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until peel is soft, about 15 minutes. Add 1 cup grapefruit juice and cranberries; bring back to boil. reduce heat and simmer until berries burst, about 10 minutes.

**Note: My berries both times needed a little more time to be done. Probably between 15 and 20 minutes.

Transfer to medium bowl. Stir in mint. Cover; chill until cold. Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.

That's it, easy peasy.  And delicious.

Randomness and a Recipe for Joann

You know how I have mentioned my trees?  I have lovely large live oak trees in my yard.  There are approximately 30 of them in the front yard alone.  The whole neighborhood was built up around the oaks. There is a tree in my across-the-street-neighbor's yard that is one of those historic oaks that is hundreds of years old.  Mine are babies at probably 100 years old.  They are gorgeous and they create a fabulous canopy over most of the front yard.

This time of year you know what having 30 live oaks in your yard means?  It means any time you go outside you are getting pelted with acorns.  And I mean pelted!  It's as if the trees are winding up their branches and pitching those little bastards right at you.

My son, Sparky has a new car that he drives and an old car that he looks at.  He used to drive the old car and now he just looks at it.  Anyhoo, they sit one right in front of the other at the top of our circular drive and when the acorns hit them you can hear the difference in hitting the old car made of thick solid metal (BAM) vs hitting the new, lighter-weight car with lots of plastic (ping).

So Mr. Big Ed and I were sitting out front on our steps the other evening enjoying the sunset and watching the cats frolicking around the yard and playing hide and go seek, and BAM!!!

One of those damn acorns fell right on me and hit me in the face.  Not just in the face, but fell between my eyeball and my eye glasses.  Then it bounced off my eye and on to the lens and then rattled around like it was in a pinball machine and dropped out the bottom on to my cheek before I caught it.

Can you believe that?  Neither could I.  What the hell would be the odds of a random acorn just happening to fall off the tree at the exact minute that I was sitting in the exact spot and leaning at the perfect angle for it to hit between my glasses and my eyeball?

Now that I think about it, I wonder why I didn't just run right out and buy a lotto ticket or something!

If we decide to stay here rather than sell everything and buy some property and go off the grid for our retirement home, I have decided that I am going to get myself a bb gun, probably pink, and keep it filled with rock salt.  And I am going to sit on my front steps and watch people drive by.  Jack asses who drive way too fast like that damn Fed Ex man who just sped by are going to get shot at.  Nice considerate people are going to get me holding up a sign that says Thanks!  with a thumbs up sign beneath.

I am going to be like Robert Duvall and Michael Caine in Second-hand Lions

Yep, that will be me.  But with a pink gun.  And probably with Ernest T. Bass as my side-kick.

Isn't Ernest T. Bass a handsome sidekick?

Did I mention that I have gotten Ernest T. a DNA test?  June Gardens over at Bye Bye Pie has done this for her 2 dogs and so I thought it would be nice for Ernest T. to know what his heritage is.  Other than just dropped-off-in-front-of-the-house-like-he-was-disposable mutt dog.  So, I ordered the kit.  It comes in the mail and basically it is two really long handled mascara brushes and an return mailing envelope to send back the mascara brushes after you swab out the dog's saliva.  It has been TWO LOOOOOOONG WEEKS since I swabbed and mailed and we are all on pins and needles to find out Ernest T. Bass' DNA.

Here's the thing, in perusing the DNA people's website there is a Dog Breed Library.  And in going through the library to see what 170 breeds they use to find your dog's DNA, I found a breed that I would swear Ernest T. has in abundance in his blood.  These dogs look like all of Ernest T.'s kinfolks for sure!

Take a look here:

Can you tell which one is my Bassie?  He's the one on bottom.  The other dog is not.

Now look at this comparison.

Ernest T. Bass on top, unnamed Presa Canario on bottom.  Don't you hate it when people cut dogs' ears? Shame on them.

Ok, so now that you have seen the Presa Canario breed and you have seen that Ernest T. does indeed resemble these dogs, guess what?

This isn't one of the breeds that they test for!  Who knows what breeds are going to show up!  It will be a mystery, that's for sure.

And now for something completely different . . . . . .


A Thanksgiving Recipe for Joann!!!

This is my tried-and-true go-to recipe for turkey and gravy.  I have used many different ones but always come back to this one.  I don't think you can make a better turkey and gravy than this.  This comes from the Bon Appetit 1994 Thanksgiving issue.  You can sometimes find these at the Half-Price Books or at estate sales.

Roast Turkey with Maple Herb Butter and Gravy

2 cups apple cider
1/3 cup pure maple syrup (I always use 1/2 cup)
2 Tbsp. fresh thyme chopped
2 Tbsp. fresh marjoram chopped
1 1/2 tsp. grated lemon peel
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp.

1 14-lb. turkey, neck and giblets reserved (I always get a bigger turkey)
2 cups chopped onion (never use them, don't like them)
1 1/2 cups chopped celery with leaves
1 cup coarsely chopped carrot
2 cups canned low-salt chicken broth

Gravy Ingredients:

3 cups combined canned low-salt chicken broth and pan drippings from the turkey
3 Tbsp. all purpose flour
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 small bay leaf
2 Tbsp. apple brandy

Boil apple cider and maple syrup in a heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 20 minutes. (This always seems to take longer than 20 minutes for me)  Remove from heat. Mix in half of the chopped thyme, half of the marjoram and 1 1/2 tsp. of the lemon peel. Add butter and whisk until melted. Season generously with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until cold.
Can be prepared to this point up to 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.


Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 375 F. (I have started using my electric roaster for the turkey and it cooks so much faster than the regular oven)  Pat turkey dry with paper towels. Place turkey on rack set in large roasting pan. Slide hand under skin of turkey breast to loosen skin.  See if you can get your hands all the way up to the thighs under the skin.  Rub 1/2 cup maple butter under skin.  Rub 1/4 cup of the maple butter all over the outside of turkey. Reserve remaining maple butter for gravy. Tie legs together loosely to hold shape of turkey. (You may want to tuck the wing tips under as they tend to brown faster than the rest of the bird)  Arrange onion, celery, carrot and reserved turkey neck and giblets around turkey in pan. Sprinkle vegetables with remaining 1 Tbsp. of thyme and remaining 1 Tbsp. of marjoram. Pour 2 cups broth into pan.

Roast turkey 30 minutes. Reduce oven temp. to 350 F. Cover entire turkey loosely with heavy-duty foil and roast until meat thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 180 F or until juices run clear when thickest part of thigh is pierced with skewer, basting occasionally with pan juices, about 2 hours 25 minutes for unstuffed turkey or 2 hours 55 minutes for stuffed turkey. Transfer turkey to platter. Tent turkey with aluminum foil for 30 minutes; reserve mixture in pan for gravy.

For Gravy:

Strain pan juices into large measuring cup, pressing on solids with back of spoon. Spoon fat from pan juices. Add enough chicken broth to pan juices to measure 3 cups. Transfer liquid to heavy medium saucepan and bring to boil. Mix 3 Tbsp. of reserved maple butter and flour together in small bowl to form smooth paste. Whisk paste into broth mixture. Add chopped fresh thyme and bay leaf. Boil until reduced to sauce consistency, whisking occasionally, about 10 minutes. Mix in apple brandy, if desired. Season gravy to taste with salt and pepper.

Brush turkey with any remaining maple butter and serve with gravy.

This is so delicious you will want to sit right up and slap your mama.  Enjoy!

Me and Gregg Allman

What do I have in common with Gregg Allman?  Well, first off neither of us are angels.  And secondly, we both ramble.  He's a ramblin' man, and I have a ramblin' mind.  Ha!

Let's enjoy looking at the Gregg Allman of my youth, shall we?

I absolutely adored him when I was in 8th and 9th grade.  The very first t- shirt I ever bought that sported a picture of someone was Gregg Allman.  It was black.  Nowadays, the black has faded to a funky brown/purple/olive color.  How would I know this about a shirt made back in 1973?  Because I STILL have it!  It lived in my cedar chest with my favorite pair of torn-up, paint-spattered, worn-in, cool-patch wearin' Levis for many many years.  Then my teen-aged Rachel Pie person spied them and heisted them for her very own use.  So the Gregg Allman t-shirt is still in use.  All these years later.  One of these days I will dig out the shirt and the jeans and take pics for you.  Then you can say "Hey Lisa Pie, your ass used to fit in THOSE jeans?"  And I will say what every other person on the planet says, "Yes, it did.  And I will have you know that I thought I was fat and went on every flipping fad diet that came down the pike".  What the hell is wrong with girls that we all think we are fat when we are perfectly made and beautiful?

Anyhoo, the reason I woke up thinking about Ramblin' Man is because my mind was seriously all over the place.  So I will just start listing things as they occur to me.

1. You all know how much I adore Matt who dances badly around the world.  I have signed up to be notified if and when he shows up in my neck of the woods so I can gather people and go dance with him at some fabulous local sight.  And he is out right now filming for the next video!  And he is in this hemisphere!  The chances are good that this might be the year we get in!!

2. It's almost Thanksgiving.  Today is actually Nov. 12 and no one loves to decorate for Christmas more than I do, but I restrain myself until after Thanksgiving.  And last night I was driving home from Childbirth Ed class and what did my wandering eye spy?  One of the other homes in my neighborhood already had lights up.  And I thought "well maybe they aren't really Christmas lights.  Maybe they are just generic decorative lights."  I slowed down and looked and guess what?  There were not only lights on the house, but in the trees, bushes and . . . . .  

AND they also had 3 of those fake trees with lights and decorations in a cute little grouping in the yard!  Holy Way-to-jump-the-gun Batman!!!  Talk about early!

The good thing is, no matter what I do now, I wasn't the idiot who put my lights up first.  : )  Love that.

3. Thanksgiving Menu is made!  Shopping list is made and the to-do lists are being worked on.  This is all good.  And . . . .  I was able to get the group to agree to try some new recipes. I love it when that happens.  So I am here to share with you the cranberry recipe I am going to try.  Now, be forewarned that I have never made this.  But if I am willing to try this out on my family without test-driving it first, you should to.  : )

From the 2008 Bon Appetit Thanksgiving issue:

Cranberry Relish with Grapefruit and Mint

2 large pink grapefruits
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups cranberries (about 10 oz.)
2 Tbsp. fresh mint, chopped

Using vegetable peeler, remove peel (pink and yellow outer layer only) from 1 grapefruit in strips. Cut peel into 2-inch-long, 1/8-inch wide strips (about 1/2 cup). Squeeze grapefruits to get 1 cup juice.

Stir 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add grapefruit peel; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until peel is soft, about 15 minutes. Add grapefruit juice and cranberries; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until berries burst, about 10 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl. Stir in mint. Cover; chill until cold. Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.

***My notes:  First off, I am completely irked by the title.  I have read enough cookbooks and recipes to know that a cranberry RELISH is one where you use them raw and grind them in the food processor with other ingredients.  Cranberry SAUCE is when you cook them and let them burst and thicken the mixture.  So if this is good and I deem this a keeper, I will change the name.  Other than that, how fabulous does this sound?  I swear I can smell it already just from the written word!  No pics necessary.


4. I sent off for Ernest T. Bass to have his DNA done and find out what mixture of breeds caused this particular dog.  He is such a handsome fellow, but everyone swears they see something different in him. So I thought I would spring for the test and find out.  And while I am patiently waiting, and patiently clicking on the website hourly to see if they have the results yet, I was perusing a dog breed website. In addition to pure breeds they also have a category of the new "Hybrid breeds".  These are like those purposely made Labradoodles, not just your average mutt dog.  And I came across the cutest picture of puppies ever.  Check this out:

Awwww.  Have you ever seen such cuteness?  Squishy, squishy, you must want to smoosh them!  These are called BaShar pups.  Half Basset hound, half Shar Pei.  Hilarious is what those are.  Absolutely precious.

Enjoy your weekend!