I’m late, I’m late, for a very important date!!!
25 Jul 2015 4 Comments
First post on my Facebook feed this morning was a Happy Anniversary wish from our son John. It’s our 11th … and both of us spaced it off completely, a first in that number of years. We are, joyfully and officially, The Old Married Couple. We’ve been cutting Hallmark short since about year five, our favorite flowers ever were the ones at our wedding, and neither of us needs chocolates, so nothing lost — it rained a bit ago and cooled off the oven that’s been raging outside our door, so we’ll probably walk the half-block to Cielito’s, our home away from home, and celebrate on their big patio with the best margaritas in town.
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Eleven years ago today, we got married after the close of the morning church service, and then our pastor and friends served lunch to about 300 people. Simple, beautiful, memorable, sweet, and fun.
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Happy. So happy.
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Our glamour photo shoot — a gift from Kim for my birthday not long after our wedding.
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Yeah. This guy.
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The newlyweds today. A lot of changes can happen in eleven years’ time, but the basics stay the same, and that’s so cool.
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PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP CREAM CHEESE COOKIES
14 Mar 2015 3 Comments
Yes, these exist, and they melt in the mouths of those who eat them, I have that on good authority. They’re also fun to make, pretty to eat, and you can switch those two things around for entertainment. Tell me this doesn’t look like your grandma’s kitchen when she was on crack.
Ingredients:
1 can seamless crescent rolls (or pinch together seams on a regular can, or make your own.) {WHAT??}
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
¾ C mixed peanut butter and chocolate chips
Directions:
Beat sugar, cream cheese and vanilla together until smooth and creamy.
Unroll the crescent roll sheet onto lightly floured surface. Stretch dough (you can use a rolling pin), then trim the edges for a nice rectangular shape. A pizza cutter is great for trimming edges of dough. {I didn’t say that about the pizza cutter because what would I know?}
Spread the cream cheese mixture over top of the crescent sheet, leaving 1/2″ around the edge.
Sprinkle chips on cream cheese – press lightly to aid in rolling.
Roll the crescent sheet up tightly, from long side to opposite long side (helps to have four hands) and wrap in your favorite brand of clingy stuff.
Place in freezer for at least 2 hours. It won’t get really solid as the cream cheese mix won’t freeze hard.
When chilled preheat oven to 350°.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (prevents sticking and helps in cleanup). {Honestly, there are still phrases out there that make me want to go back to the kitchen, but so far the short-term memory thing is still kicking in on demand.}
Slice the crescent roll into 1/4″ slices. They won’t keep the precise round shape, but that is fine! {You bet it is, because your mother isn’t standing over your shoulder anymore oh hi whoever’s mom, you are so lovely in that sweatshirt is that the color this year? Jeez, who knew you could appear out of nowhere like that, somebody’s mom … or whoever?}
Look at the ghosts, living or dead, that haunt your creative-idea board, the ones that turn your Pinterest projects into panic attacks because they WILL.NOT.TURN.OUT.F*CKING.PERFECT. AND.THE.WORLD.IS.NOT.FAIR.DAMMIT. {Yes, that IS part of the original recipe, I’m frankly surprised you would ask.}
Bake on prepared cookie sheet for 12 -14 minutes until crescent roll appears golden brown.
Cool on the parchment paper or wire rack.
{I don’t know how many melty things this makes because I am not the cook. Clearly a bit of attentive hands-on research would not be out of line. I’ll get back to you … but please don’t bug me about it.}
Grown Up Game Day Cheesy Beer Dip
07 Feb 2015 4 Comments
The Kansas Jayhawks will be playing basketball in about twenty minutes over on the hill and here on HD, so we’re in Snack Mode. Here’s a variation on the usual white-guy queso, and I’m sure you can think of all kinds of ways to personalize it. Enjoy!
“There are certain times when we are totally okay with indulging in ridiculously yummy foods that we know are probably less than great for our health. Sitting around and watching the big game with friends and family is one of those times when we’re just happy to be around loved ones and we like to soak it all in. (Much like the piece of bread when we dunk it into this dip!)
This beer cheese dip is sinfully delicious and we’re not sorry! Use your favorite beer—keeping in mind that lighter draughts will produce a lighter dip and vice versa—and cheese, gradually melt and blend it all together and you’re golden. You do need to plan out the rest of your party prep, since this dip is best made right before serving, but it’s really easy and packs a flavorful punch, sure to be everyone’s favorite!”
Beer Cheese Dip
Yield: 2-2 1/2 cups
Ingredients
1 cup ale or lager (or your choice beer; light and crisp will result in a lighter sauce, etc.)
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup pepper jack cheese (optional)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
tortilla chips, for serving
Directions
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and add in flour. Stir roux for 2-3 minutes, or until smooth and pasty and flour has had a chance to cook (but not burn).
Whisking continuously, gradually whisk in milk until smooth. Then pour in beer and stir until fully incorporated.
Raise heat to medium-high and let mixture simmer lightly. Stir in Worcestershire sauce and dry mustard and season with salt and pepper.
Continuing to stir, let cook for about 4 minutes, or until sauce thickens.
1/3 cup at a time, add in grated cheese and stir until (almost) fully melted. Then add another handful. Continue with remaining cheese.
Once mixture is smooth and thick, taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
Transfer to serving bowl and serve immediately with tortilla chips, crackers, or slices of toasted baguette.
Recipe adapted from Williams Sonoma
http://12tomatoes.com/2015/01/grown-up-game-day-cheesy-beer-dip.html
We survived another week!
24 Jan 2015 2 Comments
in Citizenship, My Thoughts, Quotations, Saturday Stuff, Wisdom Tags: be real, friendship, life, Photos, politics
President Barack Obama was here in Lawrence, Kansas, on Thursday, a few short blocks away on Mt. Oread. The University of Kansas hosted him and I would have stood in line for hours to get a free ticket, and then for hours more to see and hear him, if my face didn’t look like a jigsaw puzzle and feel like rubbish.
As you know, there was no throwing it back on Thursday because the pitching arm was sleeping it off. No Friday Funnies, because twern’t funny, McGee. Which brings us to SaturYAY and a guest editorial, graciously loaned by my dear friend, playwright Philip Grecian. Thank you, UncaPhil, for sharing your unadulterated thoughts with us.
(By the way, Kim and I love Lawrence because it isn’t just for Smurfs — everybody gets a say here, and plenty took advantage of that opportunity in reference to the president’s visit.)
And here’s Philip …
Been lookin’ over fboo today and see that an awful lot of ignorant people said an awful lot of stupid things while the president was in the area.
I understand if you’re a racist (and some of you are and think I don’t know it), and I understand if you’re a moron (Most of you aren’t. A few of you are, and demonstrate it regularly. I try to deal with you charitably).
Some of you are just blindly Republican (The thoughtful Republicans don’t spew hateful, stupid things. Some of you would be surprised how many thoughtful Republicans are actually reading this. I pray they’ll wrest some power away from the others. It could happen).
When George Bush was president I admit that I didn’t much care for him in the office and said so. Usually I waited till he’d done something that seemed…odd…or clueless…or thoughtlessly mean-spirited, and I’d comment. Usually making a little fun because, well, let’s be honest, he was easy to make fun of.
But, you know, my comments about George Bush…and comments made by others who didn’t like him much…were never as bone-deep mean and hateful and angry as what I’ve read here about Barack Obama. Some of you folks take my breath away with your hate.
And when I ask you why you feel that way…you give me some boilerplate FoxTrot talking point…one that’s usually made up out of whole cloth by some Foxy Barbie or Ken or dissolute Jabba the Huckabee. And if you’re called on it…if it’s pointed out that somebody just made up that “fact,” you’re quiet, retreat, and bring it up elsewhere on somebody else’s wall…like some extremist whack-a-mole.
Whaddya got? “Obamacare?” Wanna bitch about that? Hey, idiot, IT’S WORKING. Wanna talk about how we need to “Take Back America?” Yeah? From whom? He handily won office by vote of the majority. Twice. He reminded you of that, didn’t he?
Wanna talk about how he’s “ruining the country” and how you “can’t wait till he’s gone so we can put America back together?” Yeah? Really? Show me how he’s doing that. Jobs are up, economy’s up, we avoided a Great Depression–The Sequel. We’re better off than we’ve been in a long time.
So why all this palpable…hate?
Racism is all I can come up with…racism spiced up with a little party loyalty on steroids…a lot of “poor me” victimology…and a lot of foolish belief in the Murdochtrine of Fox News.
If George Bush had accomplished what Barack Obama has accomplished, you’d be building statues to the guy. And, except for a very few days when President Obama first took office (No, not two years…not 365 X 2. Do the math to see when Congress was in session during those 24 months), he did it with Congresspeople whose main raison d’être was to keep him–and by extension, the American people–from having any success at all.
And look what he accomplished in SPITE of that.
And just think what he MIGHT have accomplished beyond THAT, if the House, especially, had been working for the country…instead of for their exclusive club…and instead of for the Koch Brothers.
Just think.
For once.
If you are this clueless after all this time, you will always be this clueless. The world isn’t just passing you by, it’s passing over your head.
And you just sit there…engorging yourself with Fox News lies and Koch Brothers treachery.
I pity you.
So very much.
~ Philip Grecian
Sweet, sweet tapioca …
17 Jan 2015 4 Comments
Are there dishes from your childhood you’d give your right earlobe to duplicate? (Don’t fear it, Stephen Colbert’s doing okay without his.) I finally came across my mom’s potato pancakes when we moved here — miraculously, they’re made every morning by the nice folks at The Roost, just up the street — who knew?
Still looking for a few things, most of them cooked up by one of my vimmens … the collection of interesting females who shaped my concept of personhood, for good and ill. My grandmothers, my mom, my aunts … they’re a warm honey-pot in my heart, part perfume, part tears, part crazy, part food. Like peach cobbler. I have my grandma’s recipe, but not her homegrown peaches that I helped pick and blanch and slice. So there’s that, but it’s fixable, except for the grandma part.
Still-warm lemon-meringue pie that’s at least four inches high, baked from scratch with my mom’s recipe. Actually, somebody I know might have that recipe …
My Aunt Bette’s meatloaf. That one could probably be solved, too. The list gets really long, though, once I open the Food Memories file folder — might have to leave the rest of the salivating and crying for another day. Meanwhile, here’s a thing I’ve looked for and tried to whip together and just happened across today because that’s how the universe works sometimes … the clone of my mom’s tapioca pudding, which, trust me on this, is equally incredible warm or cold. But I like it warm.
Notes from 12 Tomatoes, where I found the recipe:
“A dessert that’s a favorite among many is tapioca pudding. It’s similar to other sweet puddings like rice pudding to a degree, however there’s something unique to the taste of tapioca. What exactly is tapioca, though? It’s a starch harvested from the cassava plant.
Far too many tapioca pudding recipes call for an instant mix or come in the ‘instant’ variety. So much of the creamy, delicious flavor is lost this way. Instead, our recipe calls for small, pearl tapioca. This wonderful, sweet dessert is a great way to end a meal, or even as a night-cap before you head off to bed. Some tapioca requires soaking overnight. If that is the case, soak overnight and reduce the milk to 2 1/2 cups.”
Devils on Horseback
03 Jan 2015 Leave a comment
From the brilliantly clever people at The Crepes of Wrath … Bacon-Wrapped Dates! With surprises!!
No wonder these little beauties are known as “Devils on Horseback” — they pack a powerful, naughty punch with spiced poached pears, crispy bacon, and sweet, chewy dates. Recipe here.
Broccoli Cheddar Soup
27 Dec 2014 Leave a comment
Creamy Soup Recipe: Broccoli Cheddar Soup
When temperatures cool down, there’s really nothing better than digging into a warm and hearty soup; the thicker the better, we say. Broccoli cheddar is one of our favorites, and this recipe is the way to do it! It really delivers on flavor and creaminess—packed with broccoli and cheese, you get a ton of bang for your buck and you will feel it warm you up from your core! This soup tastes delicious and is fool-proof to make; get cooking and see how much you love it!
Ingredients
4 cups broccoli florets
2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 cups half-and-half
1/4 cup unsalted butter, divided
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
In a medium pan over medium-high heat, sauté onions and garlic in 1 tablespoon butter until softened.
In a large pot, cook remaining butter with flour to create a roux, 3-4 minutes. Once pasty and thick, add in half-and-half and chicken stock. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes.
Add onions, garlic, broccoli, and nutmeg to mixture and simmer for another 25-30 minutes, until thickened.
Stir in cheddar cheese until melted, taste and add salt and pepper to your liking.
Optional: Puree soup to smooth out chunks {horrors!}, or serve as is.
Recipe adapted from Yammie’s Noshery
http://12tomatoes.com/2014/10/creamy-soup-recipe-thick-broccoli-cheddar-soup.html
Do this!!
29 Nov 2014 Leave a comment
Thank you to my friend Jeffrey Frank for this excellent idea. Terrific way to use leftovers.
If all the dressing vanished on Thanksgiving Day, make your favorite stove-top stuffing mix and bake it into waffles. Tear turkey into small pieces and heat with the gravy. Pour over waffles and top with a scoop of mashed potatoes with more gravy drizzled over the top. Be thankful. Again. Some more.
German Chocolate Waffles
22 Nov 2014 4 Comments
It’s SaturYAY! Try something new …
25 Oct 2014 2 Comments
This dessert from http://www.thepickyapple.com/blog is heavenly. Kim made it for one of the fall shows at Depot Theater Company and had non-stop requests for the recipe.
NOTES:
Kim uses condensed milk instead of evaporated, adds a splash of almond extract, and throws extra butter and pecans in there — more is better!
In the comments section under this recipe, one cook said she inverts the cake after it cools and spreads cream-cheese Cool Whip on top. YUM! (Kim would whip real cream, though … )
There are LOTS of good notes here: http://www.thepickyapple.com/blog/2008/11/22/pumpkin-crunch-cake/
Playing for Time 
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