Humor
helps us to think out of the box. The average child laughs about 400 times per
day, the average adult laughs only 15 times per day. What happened to the other
385 laughs?
- USA Today
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Whipped Cream and Sweet Potatoes . . . but not together!
I had some cooking/baking ideas I've tried in recent weeks that really work and thought I'd share.
You've probably seen the easy-release foil they now sell in the stores. I have found the stuff to be invaluable when roasting to protect the bottom of the pan and facilitate clean up. I recently came across a recipe that was made for this convenience. We are trying to eat more wisely and the combination of this idea and the foil was perfect!
Oven Fried Sweet Potatoes
3 or 4 yams or sweet potatoes (I like the long, dark ones best)
Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 Tablespoon brown mustard
1 tablespoon vinegar
Grated zest of one orange
Sprinkling of cayenne pepper
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel and cut the potatoes into French fry shapes and place into a roomy bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and toss until every piece is coated. Lay out the potato sticks on the prepared baking sheet, one layer deep. Bake approximately 20 minutes or until tender and just beginning to brown on the edges. Serve immediately. It is like having baked yams/sweet potatoes without the fuss of the peel.
I like to frost certain types of cakes with freshly whipped cream. Freshly whipped cream, however, doesn't have much staying power and within a few hours will soak into the cake and lose it's fluffy surface. I've found a way to make it last on a cake several days in the refrigerator.
Lasting Whipped Cream Frosting
Four cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 heaping tablespoons sour cream
Whip up the cream and sugar until it starts to come together and slightly stiffen. Be careful, you don't want butter! Add the vanilla and sour cream and continue beating until it is whipped and forms soft peaks when you lift the beater. If you are making a two-layer cake, put your favorite jam in the middle and frost the top and sides with the whipped cream. Any leftover whipped cream, save for extra dollops on the individual servings.
We are cutting back on our salt intake these days but love the St. Patrick's Day corned beef and cabbage dinner. You can cut down the sodium a bit if you thoroughly rinse off your beef and then simmer it in clean water along with the included package of spices. It is still probably a bit more salt than you'd usually want in a meal but it's a once a year feast. It is a favorite meal for me to cook as the meat, potatoes, carrots, and potatoes all go in the same pot and need minimum supervision. Just remember the meat simmers about 45 minutes, then the carrots for ten minutes, then the potatoes until almost tender. The cabbage goes in last and just until it starts to wilt. You still want a little crunch to it.
You've probably seen the easy-release foil they now sell in the stores. I have found the stuff to be invaluable when roasting to protect the bottom of the pan and facilitate clean up. I recently came across a recipe that was made for this convenience. We are trying to eat more wisely and the combination of this idea and the foil was perfect!
Oven Fried Sweet Potatoes
3 or 4 yams or sweet potatoes (I like the long, dark ones best)
Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 Tablespoon brown mustard
1 tablespoon vinegar
Grated zest of one orange
Sprinkling of cayenne pepper
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel and cut the potatoes into French fry shapes and place into a roomy bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and toss until every piece is coated. Lay out the potato sticks on the prepared baking sheet, one layer deep. Bake approximately 20 minutes or until tender and just beginning to brown on the edges. Serve immediately. It is like having baked yams/sweet potatoes without the fuss of the peel.
I like to frost certain types of cakes with freshly whipped cream. Freshly whipped cream, however, doesn't have much staying power and within a few hours will soak into the cake and lose it's fluffy surface. I've found a way to make it last on a cake several days in the refrigerator.
Lasting Whipped Cream Frosting
Four cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 heaping tablespoons sour cream
Whip up the cream and sugar until it starts to come together and slightly stiffen. Be careful, you don't want butter! Add the vanilla and sour cream and continue beating until it is whipped and forms soft peaks when you lift the beater. If you are making a two-layer cake, put your favorite jam in the middle and frost the top and sides with the whipped cream. Any leftover whipped cream, save for extra dollops on the individual servings.
We are cutting back on our salt intake these days but love the St. Patrick's Day corned beef and cabbage dinner. You can cut down the sodium a bit if you thoroughly rinse off your beef and then simmer it in clean water along with the included package of spices. It is still probably a bit more salt than you'd usually want in a meal but it's a once a year feast. It is a favorite meal for me to cook as the meat, potatoes, carrots, and potatoes all go in the same pot and need minimum supervision. Just remember the meat simmers about 45 minutes, then the carrots for ten minutes, then the potatoes until almost tender. The cabbage goes in last and just until it starts to wilt. You still want a little crunch to it.
The last quote is sure applicable today . . .
"Ability will never catch up with the demand for it."
-- Malcolm Forbes
"All human beings should try to learn before they die what they are running from, and to, and why."
-- James Thurber
"Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe."
-- H. G. Wells
-- Malcolm Forbes
"All human beings should try to learn before they die what they are running from, and to, and why."
-- James Thurber
"Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe."
-- H. G. Wells
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Cranberry Jam . . .
My younger daughter insists that one cannot have Irish Soda Bread without homemade cranberry jam. I meant to make a couple of jars to last through the two loaves of bread . . . but my hit and miss recipe made more than I planned . . . and my canning jars were a good dealer smaller. I ended up with ten jars of cranberry jam! I'm glad I went the regular canning method as the jars were sterilized, the jam had the right amount of sugar, and I got a good seal when I processed the jars. My favorite part of canning? I love to hear the 'click' as the seal sets up on each jar. I am waiting on just one more to do it's job . . . otherwise, it gets eaten first!
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Although I have been known to bake Irish Soda Bread at other times of the year, St. Patrick's Day always reminds me of it. This morning, I cooked down cranberries for jelly which will go with the Irish Soda Bread that came out of the oven a couple of hours ago. It is such a simple recipe. I don't know why I don't make it more often. Some soda breads call for a lot of baking soda and salt. The recipe I posted earlier in the month, uses a lot less but still maintains that good texture and taste.The war being waged against women . . .
I go through my day a relatively happy person. I feel the freedom of being alive and productive. I am content with my lot in life yet the news informs me I am having a war waged against me and other women. It all stems, in part, from the recent obama mandate about providing free contraceptives to any and everyone in the name of women's 'health'. When the Catholic Church objected to participating in something that goes against our Faith and conscience, the Church is against the well-being of women. I was two weeks late in getting born and seem to be late for the war!
If anyone has put women on the 'battlefield', I'd venture it was the 'liberation' of women. It was the burden of abandoning feminine attributes in order to vanquish manliness and take it on as part of our own female selves. Let's see . . .
We have been provided with all kinds of birth control so we won't be tied down to housework and too many children and can be in the workplace full time with marriage as a sideline. The trouble with that is it isn't a great way to have a marriage so women have been avoiding marriage in order to prove themselves as independent . . . yet they are dependent on birth control as their 'freedom' now allows them 'free sex' when and where they will without the old-fashioned chains of modesty and purity. Everyone is doing it so it must be okay . . .?
With the mental relief from that pesky modesty, women can cut loose on what they wear because men should control themselves and not look at all the bare flesh that is on parade. Impure dress causes impure thoughts . . . is it the fault of the males for looking or the female for the display?
Since women no long need/want the constraints of marriage, they can change partners more often. I remember when a first date had you wondering if you were going to let the young man steal a quick kiss on your cheek. Now you are deliberating whether you are spending the night or not.
Many women end up as single parents trying to cope with job and children. The children lose out on a solid family home. I heard someone complain that her live-in boyfriend wasn't being faithful and I had to wonder . . . Faithful to what?
If anyone is waging a war against women, it is the ones that tell them any and everything is okay as long as it makes you happy.
If anyone has put women on the 'battlefield', I'd venture it was the 'liberation' of women. It was the burden of abandoning feminine attributes in order to vanquish manliness and take it on as part of our own female selves. Let's see . . .
We have been provided with all kinds of birth control so we won't be tied down to housework and too many children and can be in the workplace full time with marriage as a sideline. The trouble with that is it isn't a great way to have a marriage so women have been avoiding marriage in order to prove themselves as independent . . . yet they are dependent on birth control as their 'freedom' now allows them 'free sex' when and where they will without the old-fashioned chains of modesty and purity. Everyone is doing it so it must be okay . . .?
With the mental relief from that pesky modesty, women can cut loose on what they wear because men should control themselves and not look at all the bare flesh that is on parade. Impure dress causes impure thoughts . . . is it the fault of the males for looking or the female for the display?
Since women no long need/want the constraints of marriage, they can change partners more often. I remember when a first date had you wondering if you were going to let the young man steal a quick kiss on your cheek. Now you are deliberating whether you are spending the night or not.
Many women end up as single parents trying to cope with job and children. The children lose out on a solid family home. I heard someone complain that her live-in boyfriend wasn't being faithful and I had to wonder . . . Faithful to what?
If anyone is waging a war against women, it is the ones that tell them any and everything is okay as long as it makes you happy.
And so many people voted this possibility into office . . .
You just have to wonder about the twists and turns of the world's thinking today. You can end up in jail with a hefty fine if you abuse an animal. The whales are being protected. Vegens rue the meat eaters of the population because that is being cruel to animals. Meanwhile, abortion continues and the horrible deaths of fellow humans leaves many of these people untouched. Interesting how they put animals above humans and think they are on a higher level of kindness than others. When I read this recent notice, it was hard to be shocked because it was only a matter of time!
http://www.lifenews.com/2012/03/16/obama-admin-oks-using-aborted-babies-brains-in-lab-tests/
http://www.lifenews.com/2012/03/16/obama-admin-oks-using-aborted-babies-brains-in-lab-tests/
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