Category: MEMES & LINK PARTIES

BLOG 365.41 ~ FLASHBACK FRIDAY ~ COLLEGE HAIR STYLE

This was originall post December 28, 2012 while playing along with FLASHBACK FRIDAY @ SEASIDE SIMPLICITY where I was playing along with Martha at Seaside Simplicity with her then new meme Flashback Friday

She has since deleted much, if not most of her content, but I wish you could see the great old war photo she had used and I wish I had one like it, but on hand today is the one I dug up when I needed to get a hatchet haircut turned into something manageable to start growing it out again. This one was from my college days – fortunately the style had come back around. 

This is the style I went in to get trimmed before I ended up with the one below.
Originally posted December 28, 2012

These days I wear it much longer and have it grown back out again!

THURSDAY 13 ~ BLOG 365.40

 

 

THURSDAY 13
13 fun signs from a recent email:
Sign over a Gynecologist’s Office:
“Dr. Jones, at your cervix.”
 
In a Podiatrist’s office:
“Time wounds all heels.”
 
On a Septic Tank Truck:
Yesterday’s Meals on Wheels
 
At a Proctologist’s door:
“To expedite your visit, please back in.”

At an Optometrist’s Office:
“If you don’t see what you’re looking for,
you’ve come to the right place.”
 
On a Plumber’s truck:
“We repair what your husband fixed.”
 
On another Plumber’s truck:
“Don’t sleep with a drip. Call your plumber.”
 
On a Church’s Billboard:
“7 days without God makes one weak.”
 
At a Tire Shop in Milwaukee:
“Invite us to your next blowout.”

At a Towing company:
“We don’t charge an arm and a leg. We want tows.”
 
On an Electrician’s truck:
“Let us remove your shorts.”

In a Non-smoking Area:
“If we see smoke, we will assume you are on fire and take appropriate action.”
 
On a Maternity Room door:
“Push. Push. Push.”
 
On a Taxidermist’s window:
“We really know our stuff.”
 
On a Fence:
“Salesmen welcome! Dog food is expensive!”
 
  At a Car Dealership:
“The best way to get back on your feet –
 miss a car payment.”
 
Outside a Muffler Shop:
“No appointment necessary. We hear you coming.”
 
In a Veterinarian’s waiting room:
“Be back in 5 minutes. Sit! Stay!”
 
At the Electric Company
“We would be delighted if you send in your payment
However, if you don’t, you will be.”
 
In a Restaurant window:
“Don’t stand there and be hungry;
 come on in and get fed up.”
 
In the front yard of a Funeral Home:
“Drive carefully. We’ll wait.”
 
At a Propane Filling Station:
“Thank heaven for little grills.”

And don’t forget the sign at a
CHICAGO RADIATOR SHOP:
“Best place in town to take a leak.”
 

Sign on the back of another Septic Tank Truck:

“Caution – This Truck is full of Political Promises”

LASAGNA SOUP ~ BLOG 365.38

LASAGNA SOUP

2 tablespoons avocado oil
1 pound lean ground beef
1 LARGE onion, diced
4-5 garlic cloves, to taste, minced
4 1/2 cups homemade beef broth
14.5 ounce can petite diced tomatoes
14.5 ounce can crushed tomatoes
2-3 tablespoons tomato paste
2-3 teaspoons Italian seasoning, to taste
FRESH ground salt and pepper, to taste
8 lasagna noodles, broken into bite size pieces
shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup (2 oz) finely shredded Parmesan cheese
8 ounces ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons chopped FRESH parsley, plus more for garnish, OPTIONAL

  • Heat one tablespoon oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.
  • Crumble beef into pot, season with salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring occasionally until browned.
  • Drain fat from beef and set beef aside. 
  • 
Heat remaining oil in pot, add chopped onion and saute 2-3 minutes until it begins to soften.
  • Add in garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. 
  • Add in broth, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, browned ground beef and season with salt and pepper to taste. 
  • Bring JUST to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 20 minutes.
  • While sauce is simmering prepare lasagna noodles according to package directions.
  • 
In a mixing bowl, using a fork, stir together mozzarella, Parmesan and ricotta.
    Fold cooked pasta into soup along with parsley, then thin soup with a little more broth if desired.

  • Ladle soup into bowls, dollop with a large scoop of the cheese mixture and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

NOTE: 

  • Cheese dollop will melt well once stirred into soup.
  • Adapts well to slow cooker also

HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY with MENU PLANS week 6 of 2023 BLOG 365.37

Be sure to join us for Happy Homemaker Monday and link up with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

It’s February, what can I say? It’s cold, wet, foggy and rainy. 😀 So layers, layers and more layers with comfy UGGs

Our first house was a TINY 1 bedroom place. Our next house wasn’t much bigger, but was twice the size with 2 bedrooms and a larger kitchen so we accumulated yet a few more things.

Around that same time my dad passed away and we ended up with quite a few “extra” things when my mom downsized from the 4 bedroom house to a 2 bedroom condo as well as the “leftovers” from closing our family antiques and collectables store.

Then our next house was a move across the country and was a HUGE 3 story plus a BARN so we accumulated yet even more things to fill it “appropriately”!

From there, several years later we began care taking for multiple family members around the country and almost everything ended up in storage while we traveled until we went back to Texas to rehab my grandparent’s house (which was half the size) after my cousin passed away, but most of you remember what a mess that was! It was such an involved project that we never really got to deal with our own things (let alone unpack them) because ALL our time was spent on dealing with the hoarding mess my cousin left behind plus the repairs and updates required to bring the house up to date for sale.

So, now that we’re finally dealing with our own needs, we are down sizing BIG TIME and I’m absolutely exhausted making it happen! We’ve been working long and hard sorting, condensing and repacking as we go through EVERYTHING for the upcoming garage sale. I’M HAPPY TO SAY that the donation pile and the sell pile are both QUITE LARGE!

BUT, trying to schedule my time between the winter cold which eliminates working outside in the early morning and late afternoons, all the rain, helping a friend organize an estate sale, my duties at the Eagles and ALL the other things that fill my schedule has been time consuming and like I said, COMPLETELY EXHAUSTING!

You guessed it – hot water and yogurt! 😀

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS & APPOINTMENTS
  • LAUNDRY & CLEANING I’m up to date on the laundry, but have some serious cleaning and vacuuming to do from the mess of preparing for the garage sale 😀
  • GROCERIES & ERRANDS, APPOINTMENTS, PAPERWORK, PHONE CALLS, PROJECTS & TRAVELS I have an out of town oncology check up for my 7 year remission 🙂 later this morning, haircut and pedicure tomorrow, shopping for the Eagles post on Wednesday which will be a BIG one because of the Valentine’s dinner and party on Saturday and helping a friend with an estate sale on Thursday and Friday. Sunday I’ll be back to working on our own garage sale items.
  • RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING My menu is planned through this week, but I’m still leafing through a bunch of magazines from the estate sale looking for new ideas.

WHAT’S ON THE DVR/TV
  • AMAZON PRIME Last night we watched SHOTGUN WEDDING and LOST CITY which was cute and funny!
  • CABLE Got caught up on all the prime time shows and cooking shows and watched MR. LUCKY on TCM

I’ll finish The Last Summer at Chelsea Beach by Pam Jenoff tonight and am ready to start something new, but still have not decided what. I’m hoping to get through the rest of the cooking magazines first.

2/6 MONDAY
2/7 TUESDAY
2/8 WEDNESDAY
2/9 THURSDAY
2/10 FRIDAY
2/11 SATURDAY
2/12 SUNDAY
DINNER
 UNSTUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS & COWBOY BREAD
 STAMPEDE RIBS & POTATO SALAD
 PEASANT SKILLET
 SLOW COOKER CHEESY WHITE LASAGNA
 CHEESEBURGER SOUP
 C.O.R.N. CLEAN OUT
 ORANGE GLAZED MEATBALLS
DESSERT
 CHOCOLATE MALT BARS
 
HINT OF CHOCOLATE CHERRY COOKIES
 FUDGY OAT BROWNIES
CHOCOLATE FRITO BARS

BLOG 365.36 ~ SILENT SUNDAY

Many years ago when hubby and I were care taking for my aunt and uncle, things often became a bit much many times with so many others trying to pull me in all sorts of different directions, usually at the same time.

Hubby instituted what he called the “Sunday Rule”. Sundays became my day to relax, rejuvenate and do just and only what “I” wanted. To this day, Sunday’s are predominantly mine to do with what I please. 😀

COPY CAT KFC COLESLAW ~ BLOG 365.35

Hubby and I both agree on one thing. No matter how many coleslaw recipes I try, KFC is still on of the ALL time best. BUT, we don’t have a nearby KFC that’s any good at all so this copy cat recipe will have to do. It is also not about the cabbage ratio, but the dressing itself!!!

COPY CAT KFC COLESLAW
DRESSING
1/2 cup FULL fat buttermilk (or half WHOLE milk and half buttermilk)
1/2 cup Duke’s mayonnaise
1 1/2 tablespoons white vinegar
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper (1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper)
1/3 cup sugar
Juice of 1 LARGE lemon

  • Whisk ALL together and set aside.

SLAW
8 cups FINELY chopped cabbage (I like to use both green and red) (see note)
2 cups FINELY chopped carrots (see note)
3 tablespoons grated onions

  • Toss cabbage, carrots and onions together in a LARGE bowl.
  • Pour dressing over, tossing to coat well.
  • Refrigerate covered 2-4 hours before serving. Best next day.

NOTE:

  • If you have the time SHRED or GRATE the cabbage and carrots on the large side of the grater to get the perfect size.
  • I often use 6-7 cups green cabbage to 1-2 cups red cabbage.

This version Originally posted 2-4-2023 ADAPTED yet again 10-6-2024

ITALIAN CORN CHOWDER ~ BLOG 365.33

January was NATIONAL SOUP MONTH so what better time for comfort food like this warm and comforting super creamy corn and potato chowder that includes sweet Italian sausage to oomph the flavor. This sausage and corn chowder is the perfect comfort food year round, but especially in the winter. In the summer use fresh corn and in the winter, frozen corn works well!

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 35 minutes Total Time: 50 minutes Servings: 6

ITALIAN CORN CHOWDER adapted from CLOSET COOKING

1 pound Sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup sweet Vidalia onion, diced
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced celery
1 cup red pepper, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pinch red pepper flakes
3-4 tablespoons WONDRA flour
4 cups homemade chicken broth
2 LARGE potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 cups corn (fresh, frozen, or canned depending on season)
1 teaspoon FRESH chopped oregano
1 teaspoon FRESH thyme leaves
FRESH ground salt and pepper to taste
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons FRESH chopped Italian flat leaf parsley
2 green onions, thinly sliced

  • Cook the sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking it into small pieces, until cooked through. Set aside.
  • Add the butter to the pan and let it melt.
  • Add the onion, carrots, celery and peppers cooking 7-10 minutes until tender.
  • Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, stirring well.
  • Sprinkle with the flour and cook 2-3 minutes until golden.
  • Add the broth, sausage, potatoes, corn, oregano, and thyme.
  • Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
  • Turn off the flame.
  • Lightly whisk together the heavy cream and Parmesan until the cheese melts in.
  • Adjust seasoning to taste with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Mix in the parsley and green onions.

GARLIC CHEESE BREAD ~ SMOKEHOUSE STYLE ~ BLOG 365.31

When I was a kid we went to The Smoke House restaurant in Toluca Lake, California for all the special celebration occasions – graduations, Easter, birthdays, anniversaries for their Prime Rib. As a young adult in college my friends and I would go for the bands and the bar. BUT, always we went for the garlic bread! It was THE most unbelievable garlic bread. To this day it makes my mouth water just thinking about it. I’ve been experimenting for years with a copycat recipe. I have finally perfected it (at least according to my memory of it since we have long since moved away) and then my brother sends me a link order it directly from them.

It had this distinctive neon orange color (which in hindsight probably wasn’t all that good for us). I used to be able to buy the cheese powder in a loose package at a mom and pop grocery store years later in Michigan, but then we moved yet again. The closet I’ve come to finding it recently is ordering it from NUTS.com

I now prefer the non-orange powder from King Arthur that is a sharp Vermont cheddar so there is a healthier alternative 🙂

GARLIC CHEESE BREAD

1 Loaf French Sourdough bread
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 cloves garlic, FINELY minced
1/4 cup Cheese Powder (your choice of color)
1 teaspoon paprika
1/3 cup FINELY grated Parmesan cheese

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • In a small saucepan, slowly melt butter with minced garlic.
  • Once melted, remove from heat and rest several hours to infuse the garlic into the butter.
  • Slice bread in half lengthwise.
  • Brush all the garlic butter over both halves of bread.
  • Mix together the Parmesan cheese, paprika and cheese powder.
  • Sprinkle all over both halves of bread.
  • Bake 8 minutes.
  • Increase heat to broil.
  • Broil 30 seconds at a time until you get your desired doneness. Watch it closely to prevent burning!
  • ENJOY!