Shadow Shot Sunday #15

Hosted by Hey Harriet

(click above image for more photos)

Path to the Pond and Pasture

Our meager snowfall

Frozen precipitation is not an every winter occurance for us and when we do get it, it's usually in the form of freezing rain or sleet. I'm not a big fan of winter, but I do think the occasional snowfall is pretty.... especially when it goes away quickly like this one is doing. I'm sure many of you are sick of winter weather and looking at snow pictures is the last thing you want to do. Or, perhaps you're scoffing at our scant snowfall. Please bear with me, though. As one who rarely gets the fluffy white stuff, I had to post the obligatory photos for my friends and relatives.

Oh, and you might be entertained to know my husband said the cows had icicles hanging off their ears. Wish I'd gotten a photo of that!

Game Day Chili

Chili is one of those dishes that I often use a pre-packaged seasoning mix to make. Just add meat, tomato sauce, beans and you're done. When I found this recipe in the January issue of Southern Living magazine I knew I had to give it a try. It's definitely been chili weather lately and this was perfect chili to serve!


Game Day Chili



Ingredients

2 pounds ground chuck
1 medium onion, chopped
3 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 to 2 tsp. ground red pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 (6-oz.) can tomato paste
1 (14.5-oz.) can beef broth
1 (12-oz.) bottle dark beer
3 (8-oz.) cans tomato sauce
2 (15-oz.) cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (4.5-oz.) can chopped green chiles, undrained
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Preparation

Cook first 3 ingredients in a 5- to 6-qt. Dutch oven over medium heat, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes or until meat crumbles and is no longer pink. Drain well, and return to Dutch oven. Add chili powder and next 3 ingredients; cook 1 minute. Add tomato paste, and cook 1 minute. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 2 hours.



What Am I ? (#5)

1. Most of the world's supply of me is found beneath America's Great Plains. The US began stockpiling me in the 1960s, but in 1996 opted to recoup its investment and will sell off the reserve by 2015.

2. At that point, other producers - including Russia, Algeria, and Qatar - will control what's left of the global market: perhaps only 40 years' worth.

3. I'm used to purge rocket engines for NASA and the military and I am crucial for diving equipment, particle accelerators, and MRIs.

4. Most of you know me as the gas that fills party balloons, blimps, and giant cartoon characters in holiday parades.

Have you figured out what I am from my clues? * Scroll down for the answer.




















I am Helium!

* Facts provided by the February 2011 issue of National Geographic.

The Dragon Man by Garry Disher

The Dragon Man by Garry Disher takes place in a coastal region of Victoria, Australia. The novel opens as the killer is stalking his victim, a young woman with car trouble on a desolate stretch of highway. We soon learn this isn't the first victim and more will follow.

An interesting police procedural, I enjoyed the location and the overall story...although I wasn't particularly surprised by the ending. I felt a little overwhelmed by all the personal information given about each of the characters in the novel. This is the first in a series and I assume this was done to set the stage for development in future novels. I'm still not positive whether these should be referred to as the "Inspector Hal Challis" mysteries or the "Inspector Hal Challis & Sergeant Ellen Destry" mysteries (I've seen both descriptions at Amazon). Both characters stood out as central. I'll admit I liked the Challis character more than Ellen Destry.

This novel was read to fulfill half of the Australia portion of the Global Reading Challenge (Victoria, Australia) and I enjoyed it enough that I might read more in the series. After all, I now know so much about this group of law enforcement officers I might as well check out more of their cases!

Shadow Shot Sunday #14

Hosted by Hey Harriet

(click above image for more photos)




Mabel

Brrrr!!

Once again, despite having snow in our forecast, we ended up with the nasty stuff instead.  We did get a dusting of sleet and snow overnight, but most of today we've had freezing rain and mist.  Our temperature has stayed below freezing all day so thankfully the precipitation never got heavy enough to cause much damage. (In other words, we still have power!)

 Here are some photos I took on my walk to the mailbox.  

Billions of Birds!

Okay.  Maybe not billions, but I'd wager hundreds of birds visit my feeders each day.  That's one of the pleasures of country living, a large and varied bird population.

I found myself totally mesmerized as I watched them through the window this morning.  They're constantly on the move:  eating, fighting, swooping in and out.  I tried to take a head-count, but there was too much activity for that.  I know there were 50 or more birds at any given time! 

Without a doubt, the majority of the birds are Goldfinches.  A few have started to put on their yellow summertime feathers, but most are still in winter clothes.  I also get lots of Cardinals, my favorite kind of bird.  Most folks speak of the bright red males when referring to Cardinals, but the females are quite lovely, too.   In addition, I have Sparrows (not sure which variety...maybe Song Sparrows?) and a few Purple Finches. 

Naturally the birds all flew off when I went out to take the above photo.  I tried to stand there without moving so they'd come back, but it was too cold!  I bet you can spot a few in the photo, though.  I hope by now you all know you can click on my photos to enlarge them for better viewing.

As winter passes the Goldfinches will move on.  Others, like Indigo Buntings, Grosbeaks, and Cowbirds, will take their place at the feeders.  Nothing, however, beats this time of year for sheer numbers!

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain

I ended up with this book in a round about way. It all started when I saw something about Anthony Bourdain's new book, Medium Raw . I've commented several times here that I really enjoy watching the Food Network. I prefer the reality/challenge based shows at night to the daytime cooking shows, but I've grown quite fond of many of the chefs featured on the network. Bourdain devotes a part of Medium Raw to some of these chefs and the Food Network in general, and not in a good light, I'm sure.

Anyway...all the reviews made reference to Bourdain's first non-fiction book (Kitchen Confidential) and suggested reading it first. The Kindle price was acceptable, so I took their advice.

I enjoyed Kitchen Confidential quite a bit, despite the fact Anthony Bourdain isn't the huggable, lovable person that many of the FN chefs are. I already knew this from watching this season of Top Chef on Bravo, on which he appears. Very different from most of my FN programs! The book, written ten years ago, covers a variety of aspects of the restaurant industry as well as personal reflections from Bourdain. I have enough culinary knowledge that I wasn't lost in the telling and actually learned quite a bit. I refuse to be so cynical as to believe that all the industry is filled with the drugs, alcohol, sex and decadence that Bourdain describes.

Not only did I enjoy Kitchen Confidential, but now I definitely want to read Medium Raw. However, I will wait until the Kindle price comes down some.

I am counting this book towards the North American part of the Global Reading Challenge since the majority of it takes place in New York City.

Chicken-and-Sausage Creole

I'm pretty sure I found this recipe in Southern Living magazine...the December issue, I think. We had it last night and it was delicious. Of course I tweaked it just a bit.

Chicken-and Sausage Creole

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
2 (14-oz.) cans low-sodium fat-free chicken broth, divided
1/2 pound smoked sausage, cut into 1/2-inch rounds
1 medium-size yellow onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
1 cup chopped celery
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 (14 1/2-oz.) can diced tomatoes
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 bay leaves


Preparation

1. Prepare rice according to package directions, substituting 2 cups broth for water.

2. Sauté sausage and next 4 ingredients in a lightly greased Dutch oven over medium-high heat 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in chicken, next 5 ingredients, and remaining broth. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low; simmer, stirring occasionally, 20 minutes. Remove and discard bay leaves, and serve over hot cooked rice.