Archives for April 2007

Evil Pollen Worms

2 April 2007 by

D. used the blower to clean off our deck Saturday.

This is what one side of our deck looks like this afternoon.

img_1816.JPG

The other side looks worse.

And I am certain that I will NEVER BE ABLE TO GO OUTSIDE AGAIN.

Without the aid of an Allegra / Clarinex / Zyrtec drip, of course.

But that’s okay because Alex and I can just sit inside and eat chocolate ice cream.

img_1805.JPG

Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that, y’all.

(Edited to add: I do love everything pollen does to nature – I just don’t love what it does to my sinuses. And my eyes. But the end is near…and in the end, it’s a small price to pay for a glorious spring and summer. THINKING. HAPPY. THOUGHTS. See?)

Filed Under: Rambling

Serving The Internets One Clogged Artery At A Time

1 April 2007 by

Today after church we ran by Walmart, a habit we developed shortly after Alex was born because it always seemed like a good time to buy diapers.

Now that Alex is no longer wearing diapers we still feel compelled to make a post-church Walmart trip, and my only explanation is that perhaps we subconsciously think that the first Sunday we don’t run in and purchase a container of Softsoap or a 12 pack of diet Coke or some Hanes Her Way yoga pants, the entire Walton family will fall into financial ruin and I don’t know about you people but I can’t live with that kind of guilt.

I actually was armed with a list today because I’m taking supper to some friends of ours this week and needed to pick up all my ingredients. And somewhere along aisle four I realized that I have never shared my favorite green bean recipe with y’all, and oh my word how could I possibly have been so negligent?

I found this recipe in a Memphis cookbook called Heart and Soul. Whether you’re serving six or sixty, these green beans are delicious no matter how many times you double or triple the recipe.

The version you’ll see below will serve around 12 people, and while I use canned green beans because I am lazy, you could certainly use frozen or fresh with equally tasty results.

Green Beans Y’all Won’t Believe

1/2 lb. bacon, chopped into bite-size pieces and fried, reserving 3 Tbs. grease
6 cans whole green beans, drained (I actually use the Sam’s brand)
6 Tbs. sugar
6 Tbs. white vinegar
2 packages slivered almonds

Place drained green beans in a casserole dish.

While bacon is draining on paper towels, mix 3 Tbs. bacon grease with sugar and vinegar over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture is heated through.

Sprinkle bacon on top of green beans, then pour liquid mixture on top and garnish with slivered almonds.

Bake at 325 for 25-30 minutes.

And they’re even better the second day.

Also: that whole draining the bacon on paper towels step is pretty much irrelevant since you are in fact stirring bacon grease into a mixture of vinegar and sugar, but maybe it’ll make you feel better to think you’re escaping a few fat grams.

I like to serve these green beans with my very favorite pork tenderloin recipe – and that’s exactly what I’ll be taking our friends this week:

Asian Pork Tenderloin

from Southern Living:

1/3 cup lite soy sauce
1/4 cup sesame oil
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper
1 1/2 to 2 pounds pork tenderloin (I use Tyson tenderloins from Walmart – each package has two tenderloins and weighs about this amount)

Whisk together first 8 ingredients. Place pork in a shallow dish or Ziploc bag; add marinade, turning pork to coat. Cover and chill 8 hours (just FYI – I marinate meat for at least 24 hours in a gallon Ziploc bag).

Remove pork from marinade, discarding marinade. Place in a foil-lined roasting pan or foil-lined baking dish.

Bake at 425° for 40 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 160°. Let pork stand 5 minutes before slicing.

And then, to finish out the meal, I make the easiest casserole in the free world and pick up some rolls.

The best thing is that I can make everything in the quantities that these recipes indicate and have plenty for our little family and plenty for our friends, too. I’ll take them one of the pork tenderloins, half of the green beans and half of the casserole, and everybody will have enough for at least two meals.

Bon appetit, y’all!

Filed Under: Cooking, The South

We Have Winners!

1 April 2007 by

So I realized around the one hundredth comment that the whole putting-names-in-a-hat / child-pulling-names-out-of-a-hat thing was an ill-fated plan if there ever was one.

And by comment two hundred eighty one, I knew there was no way in the world it was gonna happen.

Because 281 slips of paper + 1 four year old = infinite opportunities for a mama to lose her mind.

But for some reason the phrase “random number generator” popped in my mind yesterday afternoon, so I Googled it, and lo and behold, I found one.

Then I told the random number generator that I needed 12 random numbers between 1 and 281, and two seconds later, it was all done.

Look!

picture-4.jpg

Y’all, I’m telling you: this internet has everything.

It does!

Anyway, I matched the random numbers against the comment numbers from the Glory Revealed post, and within a matter of minutes I had a list-o-winners.

I’ll be emailing all of you tomorrow to get your mailing address, but just in case you’re reading right now, here are the soon-to-be owners of a brand-spankin’ new Glory Revealed CD:

42 – Laurie
43 – Heather L.
51 – Wendi
90 – npbradshaw
109 – Corinne
141 – Erica
165 – peach
166 – Babystepper
184 – s
192 – T with Honey
238 – Sarah
250 – Devera

Congratulations, everybody!

And remember, if you didn’t win, you can still click here and get a free song download AND a coupon for $5 off the purchase price of a CD.

Thanks, y’all, for such a great response – I’d love to be able to do something like this again.

(Which reminds me: hey, nice Christian music label people! We have enjoyed this CD thing very much. And should you ever wish to send more music my way, you should probably know that I will only accept such kind generosity under one circumstance: if I am breathing. Thank you and have a lovely Sunday.)

Filed Under: There's More!
« Previous Page