Slow Cookers

Although I haven't posted many recipes here using a slow cooker, or crock pot as I prefer to call it, I do like to cook in one. It's so convenient to throw all the ingredients together in the morning, turn it on, then have a delicious meal ready at the end of the day.

A slow cooker quiz popped up on the MSN page today. My score wasn't too bad, a 9 out of 10. Test your knowledge by clicking on the link below.

Are You a Slow-Cooking Smarty?

FreeVerse at Ooh...Books!

Thanks to Petty Witter I discovered Cara over at Ooh...Books! She has an interesting post each Wednesday in which she shares poetry and invites others to do the same. Click here to read her introduction to FreeVerse.

I may not participate every week, but I think it's a great idea and will join in when I can. Check it out if you like poetry. Hey, check it out even if you don't... you never know when you might develop a taste for it!

Venison Trio Recipe Rehash

I was discussing venison with a relative this morning and decided it would be good to rehash these recipes. They originally appeared in an article by Renee Miller in Quality Whitetail magazine.

SLOPPY DOES

2 pounds venison burger
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup catsup
1 tablespoon mustard
1 can cream of mushroom soup

Brown meat in a little butter. Add rest of ingredients and cook slowly until thick. Fills 8-12 hamburger buns.

MOM'S VENISON BURGERS

1 pound ground venison
1 beaten egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
1/2 cup cornflakes (or bread crumbs), crushed
2 tablespoons minced onion
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup bottled chili sauce or 1/2 cup barbecue sauce or both

Combine ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Form into four to five patties. Broil four to five inches from heat. Broil about eight to 10 minutes, turn, broil five to seven minutes. Serve on white hamburger buns. Can also be done on a contact grill like a George Foreman.

NO LOOKIN' - THE BUCK IS STEWED

2 pounds venison roast or stew meat (cut up into chunks)
1 package dry onion soup mix
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 (2-1/2 oz.) can mushrooms, drained
1 cup ginger ale

Throw all ingredients into a crock pot and simmer on low for five to six hours. Don't peek! Makes six servings.

The Etiquette of Letter Writing

Do you have etiquette questions regarding letter writing, invitations, announcements, or visiting cards? If so, I'm your "go to" person! Maybe I should clarify that. I'm your "go to" person only if you are interested in what was proper in the 1920s!




This clever little volume, published in 1927 by Eaton, Crane & Pike Company, measures about 3 x 5 inches and contains 155 pages. As you can see by the table of contents, it covers a wide variety of topics to assist in dealing with the problems of social correspondence.




To quote page three: "There is nothing more indicative of good breeding and refinement of taste than correspondence; and today, when the expert assistance of stationers, engravers and authorities on the etiquette of correspondence is readily placed at everyone's disposal, there is no excuse for the mistakes sometimes seen."




So what are you waiting for?? Ask those burning questions and I'll provide the answers! (but only if they're covered in the book...)

Favorite Five - Flowers

All this cold weather has me turning my thoughts to Spring. If I take the past into account, we still have our coldest weather ahead of us here in south Arkansas. That doesn't stop me from dreaming about warmer days and what they'll bring. Flowers!

Here are my favorites. What are yours?

1. Pansy

2. Hibiscus

3. Moonflower

4. Camellia

5. Hydrangea

Autumn Splendor

I had a flash of recollection while walking past the jams and jellies at the store last week: another meat dish I had "forgotten to remember" since giving up my vegetarian ways. I prepared it using some of the beef from our own pasture and it was just as delicious as I remembered!

Autumn Splendor

Golden Glazed Flank Steak

1 envelope onion soup mix
1 (12 oz.) jar apricot preserves (I use the "spreadable fruit")
1/2 cup water
1 flank steak (about 2 pounds) cut into thin strips
2 medium peppers (green, red or yellow), cut into thin vertical slices
Hot cooked rice

Heat broiler. In a small bowl combine soup mix, apricot preserves and water. Mix well. In a large, shallow baking pan arrange steak and peppers; spoon soup mixture evenly on top. Broil, turning once, until steak is done to taste. Serve over hot rice.

January girlies

I wondered how we would make it through the holidays with our rambunctious Alice and Mabel. Somewhere around a year old, they still have all their puppy exuberance, but both weigh a good 35-40 pounds. Have we trained them any? Not much, so it's a struggle sometimes to keep them from jumping up and being obnoxious in general.

Thanksgiving was only immediate family this year and I kept them closed in their room (the sun porch) until we finished eating. At Christmas they were banished to the back yard a good part of the time. I knew better than to trust them with the Christmas tree (more fear of them knocking it over than anything else), so it was moved back to the piano room behind a baby gate, the same as when Esther and Betty (and JJ) were young. They were only set free once the gifts had been opened and the paper cleaned up.

Betty has suffered some health issues lately (I won't go into detail) and has lost quite a bit of weight. She seemed to be feeling the cold, so we bought her a coat. In the past she has despised any type of clothing we've forced her to wear, but I think she really likes the warmth her new coat provides. Check her out! (tail and mouth in motion)

I was in the right place at the right moment to capture this photo of Alice, Esther and Mabel looking out the window together. Alice (Miss Busybody) frequently looks out the window, but Mabel rarely does.... and especially not when Esther is standing there.

Hard to believe we were in the midst of our first puppy drama this time last year. I sure hope things are calmer on the "dog front" in 2010!

The Birth of the Blues

Here's a fun clip my cousin sent me. Maybe you will enjoy it, too.

Personal Gospel

I found this while sorting through some papers today. It was part of a Circle lesson at my church awhile back .

You are writing a Gospel,

A chapter each day,

By the deeds that you do

And the words that you say.

Men read what you write,

Whether faithful or true;

Just what is the Gospel

According to you?

~source unknown

A new year

My husband and I welcomed in the new year in our usual way. We gathered with two other couples, ate entirely too much food, laughed, talked and played boards games. We've done it for years and years and always have a good time.

Today we slept in, had a late lunch of Black-Eyed Pea Soup and Mexican Cornbread, then headed to the movies to see Avatar. Considering my attention span is sometimes a bit short I wondered if I would enjoy an almost three hour movie. I did have to shift around in my seat and peek at my watch a couple of times, but the movie was wonderful and I really liked it!

When I finish here and shut down my computer for the evening I plan to settle in with my handwritten journal to make my annual New Year's entry. I'm not always good about writing on a regular basis throughout the year, but I always write on New Year's Day. It's my time to look back and reflect on how well I met the goals I set a year ago and to decide what I want to work on in the coming year. First, though, I'll share a few recipes from our New Year's eating.

Eggnog Tube Cake

Contributed to Simple & Delicious by Mary Ellen Severance of Biggs, CA

1 pkg. (18-1/4 oz) white cake mix

1 pkg. (3.9 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix

4 eggs

1 cup eggnog

1/4 cup canola oil

2 tsp. rum extract

1-1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

Glaze:

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1/4 tsp. rum extract

3 to 4 tsp. eggnog

In a large bowl, combine the cake mix. pudding mix, eggs, eggnog, oil, extract and nutmeg. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.

Pour into a well-greased 10-in. fluted tube pan. Bake at 350F for 38-41 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before inverting onto a serving platter.

In a small bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, extract and enough eggnog to achieve a drizzling consistency. Drizzle over cooled cake.

Black-Eyed Pea Soup

Contributed to American Profile by Joyce Gates of Clovis NM

1 pound lean ground beef

1 cup finely chopped onions

1 pound Polish sausage, cut into bite-size pieces

2 (15 oz) cans black-eyed peas with jalapenos, undrained

1 (14 oz) can reduced-sodium beef broth

1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (10 oz) can mild diced tomatoes and green chilies, undrained

1 (4 oz) can chopped mild green chilies

1 to 2 medium jalapeno chilies, seeded and chopped (optional)

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 to 3 cups water

Place a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and onions and cook until beef is browned, stirring frequently. Drain excess grease.

Add remaining ingredients; mix well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and cover tightly. Simmer 45 minutes.

Refrigerate overnight to allow flavors to blend. Reheat before serving.

Mexican Cornbread

(my mother's recipe from when I was growing up)

Sift together:

1-1/2 cup cornmeal

3 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

Add in:

2/3 cup oil

2 eggs, one at a time

1 cup sour cream

1 (no. 2) can cream-style corn

1 cup grated cheese

2 jalapeno peppers, chopped (I sub dried, chopped chives)

Bake in a greased, square glass dish at 425F about 45 minutes.