Signing off

Sorry friends...this is it. It was fun while it lasted and now I think I have more exciting things to take my time on than blogging. Don't worry, I'll be stopping by regularly to visit your sites and if I do come across an incredible recipe, I'll be sure and save it for the time when I start my cooking adventures again!

Country Style Pork Ribs

I hadn't ever made ribs before. I know, cry for my husband. But there was this terrific sale and I thought I should pick some up just to have in my freezer in case the need to make ribs arose. Then, I got so excited, I googled some recipes and decided to try the one for which I had all three ingredients on hand. Oh, and it didn't call for a grill, which was helpful as I don't like to stand in the cold.

Ingredients:
Boneless country style pork ribs
Pineapple juice
Barbeque sauce

Mmmm. Okay, so you boil the ribs in the juice for 45 minutes. Enough to cover should be good, but I added about twice the amount of water because all I had was the (frozen) juice from a can of pineapple chunks. Pineapple juice is a natural tenderizer and therefore works well in marinades and basting sauces and for boiling ribs... Drain ribs, baste on barbeque sauce and broil 2-3 minutes. Then turn them over, baste and broil again and you're done! Very good, and pretty, too. Wish I would've snapped a picture.

This will now be a staple and probably a freezer meal. And if you make them better, I'd love to hear about it...

Christmas Eve Clam Chowder

For my mama...
If you'd like a picture of the cookie trees we made, I have plenty. I didn't get one of the chowder.
This recipe originally came from my old backyard neighbor, Norma Nichols, who designed the CTR shield (yes, the very one) and whose house my sister now resides in.

Christmas Eve Clam Chowder
2 Stalks celery, sliced
1 onion, diced
2 large potatoes, cubed
2 cans chopped clams
3/4 c. butter
3/4 c. flour
1 qt. half and half
1 1/2 t. salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
dash pepper
1 T. lemon juice (opt.)

Place onion, celery and potatoes in a large pot. Add the juice from the clams and enough water to barely cover. Cook until potatoes are just tender. In a mixing bowl, melt butter and stir in flour to make a roux. Add spices and enough half and half to make it smooth. Slowly stir into veggies and cook on medium until thick. Add clams and lemon juice, heat through.

Suggestions are as follows: I can't stand how clams chew and chew and never go away, so I use one can of minced and one can of chopped. Lemon juice is optional, but makes all the difference, so not really.

Shame on Me!

I know it! Thanksgiving came and went without so much as a recipe posted on my blog. So here it is, for all future generations, the must-haves, the tradition of traditions, our Thanksgiving Menu:

Turkey
Mashed Potatoes (some chunks and some skin)
Gravy (from the drippings)
Mary's Cranberry Relish (I love this so much, I make myself enough to last six months and freeze it. Husband tells the kids not to eat it alone, only on turkey, or ham, or chicken, or whatever is on your plate. Are you kidding? I spoon it up like applesauce.)
Cauliflower Piquant (Mmm, mouth is watering...)
Sweet Potatoes (WITH marshmallows)
Stuffing (Stovetop--hey, it's tradition!)
Rolls (usually purchased, these don't matter much until the next day when it's time for sandwiches)
Pumpkin Pie (not my favorite, but necessary)
Apple Pie (in the brown paper bag--MY favorite--makes me want to sing)
Lemon Meringue Pie (one of my assignments this year and I should have taken a picture, it was right purty!)
Barb's Raspberry Jello with Pretzel Crust dessert (actually a must have at every family get together, she struck gold on that one)

I know this probably sounds exactly like everyone else's, but certain parts of it are ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY for furthering the happiness of mankind (here at our house).

Hmmm, did I miss anything? Okay, now I'm wondering why we've never done a pecan pie, that is one of Husband's favorites...leave it to me. I will fix everything.

Your turn. Let's hear what it is you can't do without on Thanksgiving or Christmas or for that matter your birthday ( I love how traditions revolve around food in my head--they do in yours also, right?)

On a roll...

I've been missing for a few weeks. My children have come to think of Grandma's as their second home and wonder why we come to our own some days after kindergarten. We have been on a canning kick. No, I wasn't much of a canner before, but she wanted to try some things and so did I and we ended up doing much more than planned, but the good thing is, it all goes faster with more than one person.
Our first endeavors all had to do with the abundance of tomatoes in our garden. Here we have two different salsas, diced tomatoes, tomato juice, and spaghetti sauce (my pressure canner is AWESOME!). Our latest was enchilada sauce, which is better than anything storebought, makes 60 pints with one recipe and requires a pot taller than my son, which Mother-in-Law happened to come upon just days before we planned our excursion. Oh, and don't forget a two-and-a-half foot wooden spoon...


We did peaches and pears for the fun of it and pear sauce because the way Sara described it, I just had to have some...

Joni's family gave us a box of apples which I didn't can because I found myself alone and not able to embark on an all-day project without help, so I made dehydrated cinnamon apple chips (nice and crunchy like potato chips, the thinner the better) and cinnamon applesauce for the freezer in my crockpot, thank you, Joni...

Two different recipes for dill relish. I like the sweet stuff, I just prefer it sour...

And last, but not least, chicken. It ain't pretty, but it tastes just fine and I bought a forty pound box of boneless skinless for $1.19 a pound. Can you get it cheaper?

Next week: beef chunks.

Purely for the Punch Line

I know, I know, you all don't really read my blog because, let's face it, what can you say about a recipe? Well, this one's for you and I promise, there is no recipe to be had. Yes, I did it purely for the punch line.

Mmmm, see these? Don't they look yummy? This is the way to start your day, one big boost of sugar (not for children).

Rhodes' Sticky Buns, and they are easy as can be. Simply pull off the wrapping and place the whole pan in your oven, then turn it on. No preheating necessary! When your timer is up, enjoy them warm and smothered in yummy caramelly goo. If prefered, you may turn them onto a plate for a beautiful presentation. Isn't your mouth watering? Good. Here it comes...

Speaking of buns in my oven, I have one. (I think Dad got the joke this time.) :)

Cream of Broccoli Soup!

We officially had our first snow and as tradition has it in Husband's family, Cream of Broccoli soup was served. It's hard to get the full effect when your house isn't filled with the wonderful aroma of this creamy bowlful. Believe me, it's just what you need when the snow starts falling...

32 oz. frozen chopped broccoli (florets are prettier, but expensiver too)

1/4 c. dried minced onion (1/2 cup fresh will work as well)

1/4 c. chicken bouillon

1 qt. half and half

1/4 c. butter, melted

1/4 c. flour

red wine vinegar (opt.)

Place broccoli in a pot and barely cover with water, add onion flakes and bouillon and bring to a boil. Turn down and cook 5-8 minutes until broccoli is almost tender. Stir in half and half. Mix melted butter and flour together into a roux and slowly stir into soup. Keep on low and do not boil. Stir until thickened and add more milk if you prefer it thinner. Salt and pepper to taste. MIL Mary adds a tablespoon of the vinegar for a final touch (I do two, I love it, but it can be overdone!) She has also been known to throw in a small bottle of Cheez Whiz, so if you like it Cheesy, there you go. Enjoy it hot.

Two Easy Recipes

...that look like nothing at all...

This one is curry popcorn. I know you can't see the curry, but believe me, it is there and it is awesome. I don't even eat plain buttered popcorn anymore. I was always the one who made popcorn in a pot with the oil and the shaking, until the lady who sold us our last house and left most of her unwanteds in it kindly "donated" a hot-air popper. Mmmm, this is yummy.
Okay, so for all you curry fans, here is the recipe: Popcorn, butter and a mix of curry powder and salt. Make sure you have at least two parts curry to one part salt or you will be sorry. Then do it nice and slow, sprinkle here, sprinkle there, tasting as you go. I like lots of curry.
If you'd like a recipe for real actual curry, you'll have to see my brother-in-law. He's a good Scottish boy who prefers not to "go for an Indian", but to make his own. (They talk funny over there.)

Next we have broiled grapefruit. Yes, broiled, and I must say, it is also tasteworthy. There is a bit of conflict within the families, some eat grapefruit with salt and some with sugar. I don't think I ever put anything on it, but once in a while you get those sourish ones that need some help, so this is what you do: Cut grapefruit in half and along all those little lines so it's ready to go. Sprinkle nicely with brown sugar and broil it close until the sugar is bubbly. This will improve even those old dried grapefruits you haven't eaten yet. Oh, but if they are my Grammie's grapefruit, don't you dare, they are perfect the way they are. (Why don't they sell those yellow ones in Utah?)

In the words of my Husband...

"French fries are just a means of getting the ketchup to your mouth."

In the words of my five year old (3 years ago): "More kappitch please."

In the words of my two year old: "Dip, dip, diiiiiippp!"

That's right folks, my family loves ketchup--except for me. Oh, it's not bad, it just isn't what I prefer. They eat it on chicken nuggets and in beef stew, on eggs and potatoes. It leaves red rashes on my little one's faces and still they dip on. I must say in high school, ranch dressing was my condiment of choice for fries and nuggets, but it is shunned in our current household (who doesn't like ranch??), also except for me, although I can't stand the stuff out of a bottle, but I could drink my homemade version. So I now go for plain fries--or even fry sauce is better than ketchup--and equal parts dijon mustard and apricot jam for my nuggets, honey mustard at McDonald's. I take a good amount of hot pepper sauce on my eggs and sour cream on my potatoes.

Now I want to know what you like. I don't mind if you are closed-minded ketchup freaks. Crazy or not, tell me your favorite dips, sauces and condiments and what you eat them on. Come on, people. I need a laugh.

Warning

You know those cute little light sticks you give your kids on Halloween? You bend them and they light up and they say NON-TOXIC on their packages. I would show you a picture of one only I immediately rid my house of the pests after this incident (which unfortunately has nothing to do with cooking only that it went in my kid's mouth and then ruined the kitchen table).


So, apparently the outer plastic coating is the non-toxic part they refer to, because if you bite one open and leave it on your table, it will melt your varnish. Yes, completely dissolved away and stained forever. If you do not want this to happen to your child's esophagus, I suggest you disregard the NON-TOXIC part and get yourself a flashlight.