Friday, December 24, 2010

Carol's Potatoes

5 lbs potatoes (I like red ones best and may add a few more)
2 of 3oz pkgs cream cheese (I use 1 8 oz)
1 cup sour cream
2 tsp onion salt (I usually just salt to taste reg salt)
1 tsp salt
2 TBS Butter (I used 1/2 cube)
Cook peeled potatoes in boiling salted water until tender; drain. Mash until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and beat until light and fluffy. Cool. Put in greased casserole, cover and place in refrigerator (or I have even frozen) To use, dot with butter and bake.

Another similar recipe used a cup of milk. If the potatoes seemed a bit dry I either added a bit of the potato water from steaming them or some milk until I like the consistency.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

The Old Men

New Grandchild

Sock Monkey Java Jacket

Dark Chocolate Tart with Gingerbread Crust



The Little Friend - Donna Tartt

The Little FriendThe Little Friend by Donna Tartt

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Too, too long. I listened to this audiobook over several weeks. It seemed to just plod along, there wasn't much resolution to any of the plot lines. Just ok.



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The Reliable Wife - Robert Goolrick

A Reliable WifeA Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book had moments of greatness. I really enjoyed the plot and the characters, but the author's obsession with sex put me off. He spent pages on sex for each character. Too much and completely unnecessary to the plot.



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Saturday, December 18, 2010

Weekly Recipes 46

Dedicated to my crockpot:

This recipe has an unusual flavor. We ended up serving it over rice and adding quite a bit of salt.

White Bean and Sausage Soup

This was delicious. I recommend waiting until the end to add the rice. My rice turned to mush.


Pot Roast

The best pot roast recipe ever. Highly recommend this.


Chicken Korma


The Monsters of Templeton - Lauren Goff

The Monsters of TempletonThe Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Great concept. I loved the town and the idea of the monster, but it wasn't utilized enough. Too much of a side character.



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Wednesday, December 08, 2010

Weekly Recipes #45 - Heather

Fontal Polenta with Mushroom Sauté paired with Spice Mulled Wine

Mulled Wine...
1 Bottle Merlot
1tsp almond extract
2 cinnamon sticks (plush additional sticks to garnish cups)
3 whole cloves
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1T honey

Pour wine into top of a double boiler and warm over med high heat. add the remaining ingredients and stir until honey dissolves. reduce heat, cover, and simmer gently, stirring occasionally. serve in heat resistant glasses. Yields 4-6 glasses.

Kung Pao Chicken with Coconut Jasmine Rice

Rice...
1 cup uncooked jasmine rice,
1 1/4 cups water,
1/2 cup light coconut milk, and
1/4 tsp salt
Combine in a med saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer; cook 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. Remove from heat; fluff rice with a fork. Stir in 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro.

Herbed Smashed Potatoes
1 pound of smashed new potatoes.
Add 1/3 cup half-and-half,
1 T butter,
1T mixed herbs, and
3/8 tsp salt Buttered Peas with Shallots
Cook 2 cups frozen green peas. sauté 1 sliced shallot in 1 T butter and 2 Tsp olive oil for 3 min. stir in peas and 1/4 tsp salt.

Thanksgiving Menu

We had a great Thanksgiving dinner this year:
The Perfect Turkey
· 3 hours before baking put lots of salt on the skin, cover with cellophane, leave on the counter
· Inside cavity, onion, celery, carrot, garlic, lemon, sprigs of fresh thyme and rosemary
· Under breast skin, melted butter and sprigs of fresh thyme and rosemary
· 1 cup of chicken broth in roaster
· Bake 20 minutes uncovered at 475
· Reduce heat to 325 until done, do not cover unless getting too brown
· If done too early, reduce heat to 250 for no more than 30-45 minutes
· Rest covered with foil for at least 30 minutes

Honey Ham (Debra)
Spiced Sweet Potatoes (Darla’s Recipe)
Candied Yams with Marshmallows (Debra)
Mashed Potatoes (Debra)
Italian Sausage stuffing
Cranberries 3 ways (Debra & me)
Apple Chutney
Deviled Eggs 3 ways (Debra & Kristen)
Corn Pudding (Cheri)
Spinach Dip (Kerri)
Cherry Tomatoes stuffed with goat cheese & basil (Kerri)
Bread (Kristen)
Pumpkin Pie (Lois)
Pecan Pie (Lois)