SUNDAY'S RECIPE

Seafood & Spinach Crepes

18 crepes *** 6 mushrooms, chopped *** 3 TBSP butter *** 3 TBSP chopped green onion, ***1 handful fresh spinach, chopped *** 16-18 oz crab or crab & shrimp, chopped *** 8 oz cream cheese, softened *** 1/2 tsp salt *** 1/3 cup half-and-half *** 2 TBSP sherry *** 1-1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese

Melt butter in large skillet, add onion and cook a minute or two. Add mushrooms and spinach and saute 3-5 minutes. Add seafood, cream cheese, milk, and sherry, stirring till
well blended and bubbly. Place 1/4 cup seafood mixture into crepe, roll up and place into ungreased 9 x 13 pan. Sprinkle swiss cheese on top and bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.

Top picture is a plate of crepes & brussel sprouts....ready to dig in! Bottom picture show crabmeat mixture ready to stuff.

SALINA NO-TILL CONFERENCE 01/25/11

...just another day in paradise...me talking with a farmer at the Salina No-Till Conference Tuesday at the Bi-Centennial Center in Salina, KS. We just had a 10' x 10' booth, so only 1 person works the show, and today was my day. Had a pretty good day...got to bullshit with some old farmer friends of mine and talk to a lot of people (my specialty!, after all, I do have a bull-shipping degree that i got in California when I was a junior in high school). Tommorow i go back to flying my desk, but this was a nice break!

SUNDAY'S RECIPE

House Barbeque Sauce

2 TBSP butter *** 1/2 cup finely chopped onion *** 1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper *** 1/2 cup Russian salad dressing *** 1 cup ketchup *** 2 TBSP brown sugar *** 2 TBSP cider vinegar *** 2 TBSP burgundy wine *** 1 TBSP Worcestershire +++ 1/2 tsp garlic salt

Melt butter in saucepan, saute' veggies till tender. Add remaining ingredients, bring to simmer and cook 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Yields 2 cups sauce.

SUTTONS' ON THE MOVE

Sutton came over today to show us how he could roll over by himself...he brought his folks along too. We had a nice lunch and watched my alma mater lose to A & M :'( He played with the John Deere tractor I had on the shelf...then he spied the Harley rocker! He wanted to see if he was big enough to ride, so we gave it a shot.
Not quite there, Bud! But i told him he could try it for size every time he comes to visit, so hopefully he'll put a bug in mom's ear to get back up to Grandpa's house again soon! Thanks for the visit, kids! and you too, Diesel...sorry about losing your brother!

OUR FAVORITE DOBERMAN, AXL

We lost our favorite Doberman last nite...Gina & Adam had to put Axl down yesterday. He had been sick for several weeks, had lost over 25 lbs, and was getting weak/looking anemic. They took him in to the vet and discovered a large mass in his abdomen, probabaly a cancerous tumor. So they made a terribly hard but correct decision to ease his pain.

I know the kids are hurting very bad right now...losing a dog that loves you unconditionally all the time for not much in return is so hard to take. We're thinking and praying for them during this difficult time...the sun will come out tommorow! Keep them in your thoughts!

CASE IH 5140 TRACTOR W/ DUALS & SADDLE TANKS

side view of the tractor to the right, front quarter
shot below

SUNDAY'S RECIPE & WINTER PICTURES

...pictures of winter in Kansas as thru the eye of
our resident staff photographer, Nancy.











We had about 5 or 6" of snow January 9-10, and very cold temps, so the snow has stayed with us even
to today, a week later. this is the mighty burr oak
tree we have in our front yard.



















a shot of the sun rising over our backyard neighbors house and our little acreage of
backyard.









The recipe for today is more of a cooking tip...

GRILLING STEAK 101. I can't stress enough how important it is to have your steaks at room temperature before putting them on the grill! I was at the KSU-Texas Tech game yesterday and called Nancy to see what she had bought for supper. she had found some ribeye steaks special priced and bought 2 nice ones...it was around 1pm when i called. i told her to leave them on the counter ALL AFTERNOON. I finally got around to throwing them on the grill at 6 pm...with absolutely nothing on them, plain jane style! they came out great...about 1" thick and about 7 minutes per side. they were juicy and relatively tender (they were select grade, not choice...so take that into consideration) with not having enough time to marinate them. Don't listen to the home economists...they have to say what they do 'cause the federal gov't. writes their paychecks. Anyone that knows beef will tell you the same...room temperature before grilling!

KSU WILDCATS

Went to the game at Manhattan and watched my 'Cats blow out the Red Raiders of Texas Tech! They looked a lot better today than the past few games...hope they keep up the intensity for the Mizzou game Monday.

On the way home we listened to KU escape Nebraska by the skin of their teeth...too bad the 'Huskers didn't pull off an upset. Oh well, it'll be coming sooner of later!

CABOVER FREIGHTLINER READY TO ROLL

The cabover Freightliner is now ready to roll and
awaiting a driver, with a payload of boxed freight
and the D4 Caterpillar 'dozer.

CASE IH WITH DUALS & SADDLE TANKS

Construction has proceeded smoothly today on the farm tractor...I decided to add a set of saddle tanks to the tractor(could have something to do with the job I have?!) The fenders and muffler need to be made & attached as do the saddle tanks, then all will go to the paint shop for stain & varnish.

SUNDAY'S RECIPE

SUMMER SAUSAGE

2 lbs ground venison *** 1 lb 73% or 80% lean hamburger *** 1 cup water *** 2 TBSP Morton Tender Quick curing salt *** 2 TBSP liquid smoke *** 1 TBSP mustard seed *** 2 TBSP soy sauce *** 1 tsp whole peppercorn (can substitute coarse ground black pepper) 1/2 tsp each garlic powder & onion powder.

Mix well, shape into 3 summer sausage sized rolls, wrap in saran wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours. Bake in 300 degree oven on broiler pan or cooling rack (so any juices drain) for 1 hour 15 minutes OR smoke on smoker 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Cool at room temp, then refrigerate or freeze.

Hint: I go to a butcher and buy their big sausage sleeves that they put their sausage in, soak them in water for 15-30 minutes, then stuff all the meat into 1 large sleeve. When done I cut into 3 pieces and freeze 2...makes for a nice, store-bought looking sausage slice.

1st PROJECT OF 2011 DONE!

Well, the first wood project out of Grandpa's woodshop is completed! I ordered plans for a Case IH tractor off the internet, and as a bonus, they sent me plans for this bulldozer. I decided to make it totally out of walnut given to me by a friend of my dads, so here it is, Max Teeter...this project came from your walnut tree!
I also decided to vary off my beaten path and finish this with a gloss lacquer finish instead of my usual poly semi-gloss...I think it turned out nice! Sutton, there's a lot of toys for you to play with when you grow older...they'll be waiting!

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2011

GRANDPA'S WOODSHOP OPEN

After a brief hiatus for the holidays, Grandpa's Woodshop is open once again. The latest/first projects for the new year are: a Freightliner cabover semi-tractor pictured immediately above with the tonnage to pull either the flatbed trailer previously constructed or the multi-hardwood propane transport currently attached to the conventional Peterbilt semi-tractor. Work has been halted while awaiting shipment of wheels from the manufacturer.

The top picture is the currently-under-construction solid walnut D4 bulldozer. That project was started early due to the "lean manufactring" holdup on the Freightliner.

Also on tap to be started mid-January is a Case IH rear wheel drive with duals, cab, and as a special add-on...dual side mount saddle tanks.

Get your orders in early, as production increases during the winter months before a mid-spring shutdown for the year (to go motorcycle riding!) Call BR549 today with your order!

SUNDAY'S RECIPE

Prime Rib Au Jus

2 rib standing rib roast, bone-in(4-5 lb) *** 1/4 cup + 2 TBSP flour *** 1-1/2 tsp seasoned salt *** 1 tsp black pepper *** 1 tsp paprika *** 1/2 tsp each garlic & onion powder *** carrot, 2 ribs celery, 1 medium onion-peeled & quartered *** Kitchen Bouquet

THIS RECIPE IS MORE ABOUT PROCEDURE THAN INGREDIENTS...FOLLOW CLOSELY. Take roast out of fridge and allow to set at room temperature 2 hours before beginning prep. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix flour and seasonings together and flour all sides of roast. Select metal pan not much bigger than roast and place roast in pan, ribs down. Cut veggies to fit in bottom of pan, place next to roast with 1/2 cup water. Bake for 30 minutes, then turn oven down to 350 degrees. Continue baking for approx. 1-1/2 hours, checking roast with a meat thermometer for 140 degrees internal temp for medium to medium rare. (Editors Note: if you want it any more done than this, don't waste your $$$$...go buy a chuck roast!) Tent the roast with foil and allow to rest for 20 minutes while making au jus. Place metal pan with veggies and meat drippings directly on stove element and turn up heat. Scrape off bits of meat & burnt juices off pan, then add 1/2 cup beef bouillion, several dashes Worcestershire, 1 TBSP Kitchen Bouquet, and a splash of red wine if desired, salt to taste. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve/blend juices. Remove veggies from pan and pour into small tall-ish container, let set a couple of minutes to let fat rise to top. Skim off fat and serve in small bowl at each place setting. Cut bone off roast and retain for prime rib soup. Slice & serve...feeds 5-6 people.

more DON'T MESS WITH THE FUNKS!

again, apologizes for the helter-skelter order of these pictures....haven't been able to figure this stupid program out that Blogger uses!

Anyways, here's the whole gang at a Mexican restaurant after the "war games" were finished. In case you wonder why you don't see me, its because I WASN'T THERE BECAUSE I HAD TO WORK!





Adam throwing a clay while Michael blasts it out of the sky. Notice the authentic Colorado muckluk headgear that Michael has on...provides some measure of noise reduction?!?!?















Gina honing here skills with the .40 semi-auto. She really has taken up the desire to be proficient with a handgun. She sports the more traditional noise protection device...earmuffs!












...and now the first picture, everyone getting out the weapons of choice and preparing for the onslaught. Baby Sutton stayed home with Grandpa Ed...I think they'll start him out on a BB gun!

DON'T MESS WITH THE FUNKS!!!

the Funks fully armed and ready...here's my lovely Mennonite wife wielding an AR-15 .22 caliber(under the close supervision of my son-in law Adam)













Daughter-in-law Sara squeezing off a few rounds on the .40 semi-auto...she grew up in the mountains of Colorado, so gun handling is no prob for her!













...as is evidenced also by dusting a few clay pigeons away with the Remington 870 Super Mag 12 guage....PULL!