Nancy took the Colorado kids to our neighbourhood coffee shop, Mojo's (i had to be at work), where they enjoyed latte's and cappicino's. My personal fave is a half cafe, 1 shot, breve' with caramel & toasted marshmallow syrup...yummmmmmmm!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
OUR FAVORITE LITTLE COFFEE SHOP
Nancy took the Colorado kids to our neighbourhood coffee shop, Mojo's (i had to be at work), where they enjoyed latte's and cappicino's. My personal fave is a half cafe, 1 shot, breve' with caramel & toasted marshmallow syrup...yummmmmmmm!
Monday, December 27, 2010
RECIPE CORRECTION
On the recipe of Honaker style Clam Cakes recipe of last week, the eggs were omitted from the list of ingredients. Add 2 eggs to that recipe and things should come out "much more betta"...sorry! Also, drain on paper towels and blot with another paper towel...otherwise they will be quite "greasy"!
Sunday, December 26, 2010
SUNDAY'S RECIPE
EASY CHICKEN CORDON BLEU
3 large boneless chicken breasts, pounded flat to 1/2" thick *** thin sliced smoked ham *** brick of swiss cheese *** flour *** butter and/or oil *** 1 tsp chicken bouillon *** small can of mushrooms, drained or 4 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced and sauteed *** 1/2 cup white wine *** toasted sliced almonds
After pounding the breasts flat, cut each in half. On each half at wide end, layer several slices of ham and a 1/2" x 1/2" x 4" stick of cheese. Roll up carefully and secure with several toothpicks. After all are rolled up, melt butter in large skillet on medium heat. Roll breast rolls in flour, season with salt & pepper, and brown lightly, removing and placing into sprayed 9" x 13" pan. Add oil to pan bits to make about 1 TBSP, then add 1-1/2 TBSP flour to make roux. Stir and cook slightly, then add chicken base, wine, mushrooms with liquid(or 1/2 cup water if using fresh 'rooms). Add toasted almonds and stir till slightly thicken sauce is achieved. Pour over chicken breasts, cover and bake in 350 degree for 1 hour...serve with a rice side dish.
3 large boneless chicken breasts, pounded flat to 1/2" thick *** thin sliced smoked ham *** brick of swiss cheese *** flour *** butter and/or oil *** 1 tsp chicken bouillon *** small can of mushrooms, drained or 4 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced and sauteed *** 1/2 cup white wine *** toasted sliced almonds
After pounding the breasts flat, cut each in half. On each half at wide end, layer several slices of ham and a 1/2" x 1/2" x 4" stick of cheese. Roll up carefully and secure with several toothpicks. After all are rolled up, melt butter in large skillet on medium heat. Roll breast rolls in flour, season with salt & pepper, and brown lightly, removing and placing into sprayed 9" x 13" pan. Add oil to pan bits to make about 1 TBSP, then add 1-1/2 TBSP flour to make roux. Stir and cook slightly, then add chicken base, wine, mushrooms with liquid(or 1/2 cup water if using fresh 'rooms). Add toasted almonds and stir till slightly thicken sauce is achieved. Pour over chicken breasts, cover and bake in 350 degree for 1 hour...serve with a rice side dish.
Friday, December 24, 2010
SEASONS EATINGS!!!
THEY'RE HERE! the kids arrived from ft. collins wed. nite...sara watching me cook!
michael sharing a moment with his 5-15/16th month old nephew. what's up with that beard!?
sutton watching us eat...always happy, even with a bad cold. notice the retro toys he's playing with...toys that Michael & Gina, and maybe even Nancy played with as a child!
us all (minus Adam) around the table the first nite sharing a feast of chicken cordon bleu, baked sweet potato, and fresh garden salad...a little something i just whipped up after work on Wed.
Monday, December 20, 2010
SUNDAY'S RECIPE- a day late
Honaker Style Clam Cakes
1 c. flour *** 1 tsp. baking soda *** 2 tsp. baking powder *** 2 eggs *** 1 TBSP lemon juice *** 1/3 c. clam juice(reserved from clams) *** 1/4 c. milk *** 1 TBSP melted butter *** pinch cayenne pepper *** 2 TBSP fresh parsley, finely chopped *** 2 - 10 to 12 oz cans clams, drained (or 4 dozen cherrystone clams, shucked, drained, minced) *** salt & pepper *** oil for frying
Stir together flour, soda, powder - whisk in eggs, lemon juice, clam juice, milk, butter & cayenne just till batter is smooth. Stir in parsley & clams, season with salt & pepper. Bring 1/8" of oil in skillet to 325-350 degrees, spoon 2 TBSP batter at a time into hot oil. Fry till golden brown on bottom side, flip and fry approx 2 minutes more on 2nd side. Drain on paper towels. Serve as appetizer or main dish.
1 c. flour *** 1 tsp. baking soda *** 2 tsp. baking powder *** 2 eggs *** 1 TBSP lemon juice *** 1/3 c. clam juice(reserved from clams) *** 1/4 c. milk *** 1 TBSP melted butter *** pinch cayenne pepper *** 2 TBSP fresh parsley, finely chopped *** 2 - 10 to 12 oz cans clams, drained (or 4 dozen cherrystone clams, shucked, drained, minced) *** salt & pepper *** oil for frying
Stir together flour, soda, powder - whisk in eggs, lemon juice, clam juice, milk, butter & cayenne just till batter is smooth. Stir in parsley & clams, season with salt & pepper. Bring 1/8" of oil in skillet to 325-350 degrees, spoon 2 TBSP batter at a time into hot oil. Fry till golden brown on bottom side, flip and fry approx 2 minutes more on 2nd side. Drain on paper towels. Serve as appetizer or main dish.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
CHRISTMAS MEMORIES
Just got back from a scooter ride on my 'Ferguson, and did some thinking while i was rumbling around town...decided to relay some of the Christmas memories I have experienced over the last 50+ years of my life...
-singing in the little kids choir in the old Goessel Church with the big wooden stage, forgeting my "piece" that i had memorized, and pounding my head with my fist to dislodge the words!
-playing Walter Cronkite in our school Christmas program (i was the main character), and at the end saying his famous line..."and thats' the way it is, December 25, 1968...goodnite!"
-my older brother Rod & I getting this HUGE 2 train set for Christmas (we crapped our pants!) complete with a layout board that Dad built in the basement completely without us knowing!
-getting a brand new Schwinn StingRay bike with ape hangers and a rear slick tire one year (an old man had won the bike at the local credit union Christmas meeting...Dad went and bought the bike from him)
-opening up a box under the tree and finding inside a beautiful green SK Wayne toolbox with my name printed on the top, and inside finding a couple of SK Wayne screwdrivers
-always going out the week or 2 after Thanksgiving and picking out a real Christmas tree(no one had artificial trees) and the tedious job of putting on the tinsel( and taking it off afterward)
-going to all the obscure Christmas gatherings of people i had no idea of who they were(Funk, Reimer, Duerksen sides of the family), eating fabulous carry-in food, and making the best of the aftenoon trying to play with kids i didn't know!
-going Christmas caroling with all the 3 local church youth groups (Goessel, Alexanderwohl, and Tabor) just because it was the thing to do (and you got to cuddle up real close to the girl you'd asked to go along...i had several, one of which ended up being my wife!)
-finishing up my freshman finals at K-State, then driving home in the snow for a wonderfully long Christmas break (of which i spent most of the time with my sexy, delicious girlfriend-Nancy)
-the hassle of making 3 gatherings on Nancy's side and 3 on my side while trying to keep our sanity intact while dragging along 2 little kids
-the fun we had shopping for toys for our kids...always had a hard time figuring out what to buy a girl, especially as Gina got older!!!
-the wonderfully LARGE bonuses that we gave us/our employees at Mid Kansas Propane...I always made sure to buy something very nice with the $$$ and not pay bills/buy food with it
-learning to wrap Christmas presents expertly when I worked at Grabers (there we days that i'll bet i wrapped 20-25 presents, some of very weird shapes).
-the time that I was unemployed for a year and received a Christmas box from the Salvation Army...what a humbling experience. This year I resolved to NEVER pass a Salvation Army bucket without dropping in a buck, or at least some change...and have rang the bell for several years.
which brings me to this year...I am the happiest that I have been in many years this Christmas. Maybe because for the first time in many years I have a job I enjoy, maybe 'cause I have had the $ and the inspiration to buy gifts this year, maybe 'cause I have been so blessed this year...don't know exactly why. I do know we are going to make some new memories this year...the first year with a grandchild. So...Merry Christmas!
-singing in the little kids choir in the old Goessel Church with the big wooden stage, forgeting my "piece" that i had memorized, and pounding my head with my fist to dislodge the words!
-playing Walter Cronkite in our school Christmas program (i was the main character), and at the end saying his famous line..."and thats' the way it is, December 25, 1968...goodnite!"
-my older brother Rod & I getting this HUGE 2 train set for Christmas (we crapped our pants!) complete with a layout board that Dad built in the basement completely without us knowing!
-getting a brand new Schwinn StingRay bike with ape hangers and a rear slick tire one year (an old man had won the bike at the local credit union Christmas meeting...Dad went and bought the bike from him)
-opening up a box under the tree and finding inside a beautiful green SK Wayne toolbox with my name printed on the top, and inside finding a couple of SK Wayne screwdrivers
-always going out the week or 2 after Thanksgiving and picking out a real Christmas tree(no one had artificial trees) and the tedious job of putting on the tinsel( and taking it off afterward)
-going to all the obscure Christmas gatherings of people i had no idea of who they were(Funk, Reimer, Duerksen sides of the family), eating fabulous carry-in food, and making the best of the aftenoon trying to play with kids i didn't know!
-going Christmas caroling with all the 3 local church youth groups (Goessel, Alexanderwohl, and Tabor) just because it was the thing to do (and you got to cuddle up real close to the girl you'd asked to go along...i had several, one of which ended up being my wife!)
-finishing up my freshman finals at K-State, then driving home in the snow for a wonderfully long Christmas break (of which i spent most of the time with my sexy, delicious girlfriend-Nancy)
-the hassle of making 3 gatherings on Nancy's side and 3 on my side while trying to keep our sanity intact while dragging along 2 little kids
-the fun we had shopping for toys for our kids...always had a hard time figuring out what to buy a girl, especially as Gina got older!!!
-the wonderfully LARGE bonuses that we gave us/our employees at Mid Kansas Propane...I always made sure to buy something very nice with the $$$ and not pay bills/buy food with it
-learning to wrap Christmas presents expertly when I worked at Grabers (there we days that i'll bet i wrapped 20-25 presents, some of very weird shapes).
-the time that I was unemployed for a year and received a Christmas box from the Salvation Army...what a humbling experience. This year I resolved to NEVER pass a Salvation Army bucket without dropping in a buck, or at least some change...and have rang the bell for several years.
which brings me to this year...I am the happiest that I have been in many years this Christmas. Maybe because for the first time in many years I have a job I enjoy, maybe 'cause I have had the $ and the inspiration to buy gifts this year, maybe 'cause I have been so blessed this year...don't know exactly why. I do know we are going to make some new memories this year...the first year with a grandchild. So...Merry Christmas!
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Thanks, Mom & Dad
Thanks, Mom & Dad, for the early Christmas present...a new stainless steel sink & garbage disposal. After suffering for 20+ years with an ugly white cast iron sink, we finally took the plunge and got a stainless steel sink...way better than the old p.o.s.! and the disposal hadn't been working correctly for a long time, so it went too.We spent the day vacuuming, dusting, washing floors, etc getting ready for the Colorado kids to come home...man are we bushed! Cocktail time!
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