Favorite quick night dinner . . .

This is a quick dinner to throw together but we like to have it even when we have all the time in the world to prepare it. Very easy, few ingredients, and most people will not complain especially after they smell it cooking!

Enough our your favorite sausage or bratwurst to feed your family.
One, large onion, chopped.
Two bell peppers (I like to mix red and green ones when I have them), chopped
20 cloves of peeled garlic, chopped
A pinch of chili flakes

Cooked Jasmine rice to serve with it.

Cut the sausage into slanted slices and lightly brown in a large, oiled frying pan. Add the onion, garlic, and chili flakes and cook until vegetables are limp and starting to brown. Add the bell peppers and continue cooking until warm through but still a bit crisp. Serve over the hot Jasmine rice and serve.

You can use any rice you like. It goes well with brown rice, too. We just like the flavor contrast with the Jasmine rice.

Today, I tried something a bit different and parboiled the sausage in beer before slicing and browning it. We are about to sit down for dinner and get the verdict!

U.S. Citizens, review before you vote in 2012!

http://legalinsurrection.com/2011/06/how-do-you-fit-this-in-a-30-second-tv-commercial/#comments

Computers are always sources of surprises . . .

Although I can find my way around a computer pretty well, I am still far from being computer literate in many facets of that particular machine/genre. My daughter just informed me earlier in the week that I could 'label' my recipes so they would be easier to find. I willinging figured out how to do this and one can now access recipes by title/ingredient.

Sigh . . . Someone else mentioned that it would be easier to find just, my vacation pictures if  I would . . . label them and that has now been accomplished! So, anyone wanting to view pictures of my tour of the World War II battlefields need only 'search' Vacation to see a list.

Some day, I will get this computer era all figured out . . .

Mostly a day for myself . . .

After I finish doing the bills, this morning, I have most of a day for my own. We did our weekly cleaning on Sunday instead of today because of prospective company which freed up Tuesday for sewing for me . . . after I complete the bookwork that keeps us up to date and our bill collectors happy!

I'm trying something new before settling down to quilting. My husband and I were browsing through a fabric/craft store, yesterday, and came across a sale on a tool that will fold and iron fabric into bias tape. I use a lot of bias tape for hems and designs on quilts. The prepacked stuff gets expensive. This little machine thing will make bias tape out of any cotton fabric and I can now match the bias tape exactly to the project . . . since I can actually use the same fabric. The best part of this find? It was on sale for 50% off otherwise I would never have even considered it. My husband made the final decision on the purchase, handed it to me and said, "Early Merry Christmas or belated Happy Birthday!" I'm looking forward to figuring out a new sewing adventure today . . .after I do the bills!

A week of hot weather which is kind of scary when I realize the real heat of summer hasn't even hit yet. We usually have two or three weeks during the summer months where the temperatures go up to triple digits and stay up. When it only goes down to 80 at night, you know you are living in California and you know it is hot.

We live in a rapidly aging house so don't have central air conditioning. We cope with stragically located fans and keep bottles of ice-cold water on hand. It bothers my husband more as he works in a nicely air conditioned office all day and goes through a 'weather shock' when he walks in the door at night. Just so you know, I'm always ladylike and do not sweat . . . I sure do glow, however!

Homemade Granola

I remember when granola first made an appearance in my neck of the woods. These days, it shows up everywhere but is often a bit expensive. Although the ingredients for making your own might seem a tad pricy, remember that it goes a long way and you will know exactly what went into your creation. Your family can also have their input into the end result so you have some assurance that they will actually eat it.

Homemade Granola

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup sunflower seeds, shelled
1/2 cup pumpkin seed, shelled
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans
1/2 cup  toasted almonds
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I like olive oil)
2 tablespoons molasses
1/4 cup corn syrup

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Combine the rest of the ingredient in a separate bowl and stir until well combined. Pour into the dry mixture and mix well to coat all the nuts and oats.

Spread the mixture in a shallow baking pan or rimmed cookie sheet. Bake in preheated oven for about 15 minutes. Stir several times during the baking. Bake until the mixture is dry and has crunch.

Additions:

This is a very basic granola mix. You can make it your own with ingredients that appeal to your own family. Here are some ideas/suggestions:

After the granola has cooled, mix in some small, candy-coated chocolate candies.
Toss in a handful of tiny marshmallows. The colorful ones are fun!
Toast some coconut and mix in 1/4 cup for taste.
Some toffee bits couldn't hurt.
Raisins or dried fruit bits can be tasty.
Some sweetened cereal can be added for texture.

Adding a teaspoon of cinnamon to the granola before baking takes it to a whole, new level.
A teaspoon of vanilla extract before baking is good.

When you batch of designer granola is completely cooled, put servings into individual sandwich bags that seal. You now have something to hand your hungry family when you hear that familiar refrain, "Mom! There isn't anything to eat!"

Quesadillas

If you are wondering what that 'funny' word might be in the subject line, it is Spanish for a great way to have a cheese sandwich! Basically, it is cheese melted between two tortillas. In case you don't have easy access to the required tortillas for this recipe, I posted an easy one earlier in the year. You can find it by way of the search engine on the home page of the blog.

My favorite way of having a Quesadilla is with cheddar cheese, thinly sliced tomatoes, and lots of black pepper and chili flakes. My children prefer just the cheese and tortilla and none of that potentially healthy stuff.

Since tortillas are mild in taste, you can use just about anything inside of one for a great lunch or snack. Here are a few suggestions/ideas to go along with the cheese:

Grilled onions
Spicy salsa
Bell pepper
Chili peppers if you are brave and adventurous
Shredded chicken
Lunch meats like salami, etc.
Cheeses other than cheddar

Once you have actually made a batch of your own homemade tortillas, you have a lot of other options besides just the savory. You can cut the rounds into wedges, quickly deep fry them, drain, and toss with cinnamon and sugar. You could do the same thing but substitute a spicy seasoning. When my children were little, they liked them cut into strips and fried for dipping into salsa. You can even spread peanut butter and jelly on a tortilla, roll it up, and hand your child a relatively mess-free snack.

Buying a package of tortillas isn't all that expensive but making them at home does save some money and that trip to the store when you realize you don't have any on hand.

If all else fails, grab a warm tortilla from the pan, butter it, and enjoy life!

History trying to repeat itself?

Very scary as the following excerpt from an historical proclamation sure sounds a lot like what our own government is trying to implement into our lives today. You don't study history, you tend to relive it.

We ask that the government undertake the obligation above all of providing citizens with adequate opportunity for employment and earning a living. The activities of the individual must not be allowed to clash with the interests of the community, but must take place within its confines and be for the good of all. Therefore, we demand:... an end to the power of the financial interests. We demand profit sharing in big business. We demand a broad extension of care for the aged. We demand... the greatest possible consideration of small business in the purchases of national, state, and municipal governments. In order to make possible to every capable and industrious [citizen] the attainment of higher education and thus the achievement of a post of leadership, the government must provide an all-around enlargement of our entire system of public education... We demand the education at government expense of gifted children of poor parents... The government must undertake the improvement of public health—by protecting mother and child, by prohibiting child labor... by the greatest possible support for all clubs concerned with the physical education of youth. We combat the... materialistic spirit within and without us, and are convinced that a permanent recovery of our people can only proceed from within on the foundation of the common good before the individual good.






Nazi Party, Munich, February 1920.