Random Thoughts

Fruitcake Cookies

2011-10-30T03:48:00.000-04:00

1/2 pound pitted dates
1/4 pound golden raisins
2 ounces candied cherries, coarsely chopped
2 ounces dried apricots, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons dry sherry
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
6 ounces chopped pecans
1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup superfine sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 extra-large egg
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
kosher salt

Coarsely chop the dates. In a medium bowl, combine the dates, raisins, cherries, apricots, honey, sherry, lemon juice, pecans, and a pinch of salt. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit overnight at room temperature.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, cloves, superfine sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the egg and mix until incorporated. With the mixer still on low, slowly add the flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt just until combined. Don't overmix! Add the fruits and nuts, including any liquid in the bowl. Divide the dough in half and place each half on the long edge of a 12 by 18-inch piece of parchment or waxed paper. Roll each half into a log, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4-inch thick, making an 18-inch-long roll. Refrigerate the dough for several hours, or until firm.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
With a small, sharp knife, cut the logs into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Place the slices 1/2-inch apart on ungreased sheet pans and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly golden.

Olive Garden-Type Soup

2011-10-12T04:28:00.000-04:00

Since it was cool and rainy yesterday, I made this soup for supper.

Ditalini Soup
Ingredients:
1 pound Hamburger or sausage, cooked and crumbled
1 cup Ditalini, uncooked
1/2 cup Celery, sauteed
1 package Lipton Onion Soup Mix
1 28 oz. can Tomatoes
1 15 oz. can Red Beans
1 15 oz. can Pinto beans
1 15 oz. can Black beans
1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
garlic or garlic salt to taste
Water or Tomato Juice to thin
Directions:
Cook and crumble meat. Sometimes I use 1/2 pound only. Cook ditalini macaroni and drain. Saute' celery a little so it won't be so crunchy. In a large pot, make the onion soup as directed for a base to the soup. I squeeze the tomatoes into the onion soup after it has simmered for a while. Then I add the undrained canned beans, celery, garlic, pasta, meat, and Italian seasoning. If it looks too thick add some tomato juice or water to thin. Simmer for a little while longer and serve.

Notes:
Servings: 12
Preparation Time: 1 hour
Notes: This soup is best when its just made. I keep it in the refrigerator or freeze it and it's OK, but better the first day. The beans I listed are just a suggestion. Use any combination of two or three beans that have a good color contrast.
I now use Hunts Diced Tomatoes with Basil and Garlic instead of regular tomatoes.
Serving Ideas: Serve with homemade cheese bread.
Categories: Soups And Stews

Happy Birthday Owen

2011-10-09T03:02:00.000-04:00

Cobbled Together Soup

2011-09-18T03:45:00.000-04:00

I went to the market yesterday (it was a cool morning, I had to wear a jacket). I bought some kale, the first appearence of 'greens' there. I had been looking for several weeks. So I decided to make soup.
I took the 1/2 pound of kale I bought and sauteed it with 1/2 a frenched onion in my small dutch oven. When the kale was limp I added 2 cups beef broth, a can of white cannellini beans, and 1/4 section of a kielbasa I had in the freezer. I ate some for supper with a slice of toasted ciabatta. Good.

Pesto

2011-09-10T04:13:00.000-04:00

I trimmed my basil plants and made pesto yesterday. For supper, I had cheese raviolis tossed with pesto and a slice of crusty cheese bread.

PESTO RECIPE:
by Beth Ann Fennelly
Open House: Poems 'Why I Can't Cook for Your Self-Centered Architect Cousin"

2 cups Basil
3 cloves Garlic
1/4 cup Pine Nuts
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon Salt

Whirl in blender until smooth.

Note: I found I had to add more olive oil to get the consistency I desired.

September 9, 2011

2011-09-09T08:16:00.000-04:00

September 9, 1961

Saturday Morning

2011-08-28T03:54:00.001-04:00

As I started to leave the front porch, I noticed I was trapped by a spider web. Have to be careful this time of year. Carry a stick up front to strike down webs. I was on my way to the community market where I bought wax beans, peaches, bluberries and tomatoes.
Made an old favorite recipe from my Aunt Polly:

4 Bean Salad

1 can Green Beans, drained
1 can Kidney Beans, drained
1 can Wax Beans, drained
1 package Frozen Lima Beans, cooked, cooled, drained
1 medium Onion, sliced
1 medium Green Pepper, thinly sliced
2 stalks Celery, sliced

Dressing

1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Vinegar
1/2 cup Salad Oil
2 tablespoons Parsley
1 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Dry Mustard
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
1/4 teaspoon Celery Seed

Toss together lightly, beans, onion, peppers & celery. Combine dressing ingredients and pour over bean mixture. Chill 3 - 4 hours or overnight. Pour off marinade before serving.

Note: I used fresh green beans and wax beans from the market.

Black Cherry Waffles

2011-08-14T06:10:00.001-04:00

3/4 cup Flour
1/4 cup Cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
3/4 cup Black Cherry flavored Soda Water
1/4 cup Milk
6 tablespoons Vegetable Oil
1 Egg
1 tablespoon Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla

Heat oven to 200F degrees. Mix flour, cornstarch, salt, baking powder and sugar in a medium bowl. Measure milk and vegetable oil in a 2-cup measuring cup; mix in egg, vanilla and set aside. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and whisk until just mixed. Add Black Cherry soda. Fold in with a sparula until just incorporated. Add batter to hot waffle iron, and cook until crisp and nutty brown. Set waffle directly on rack in preheated oven to keep it warm and crisp, at least 5 and up to 20 minutes. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve immediately with syrup.

Notes:
Servings: 4
Notes: Do not stack waffles in oven, they will become limp.
Modified from Bob Pastorio Comment on FOODWINE:
From: Bob Pastorio Pastorio@RICA.net

I was playing with the Kid the other night and she said she wanted pancakes. Fine.
I did the Bisquick thing but added a fair slug of cornstarch. Wet it with a carbonated
flavored water (black cherry from Wal-Mart).
Did them fast on a hot skillet and she was shocked and loved them.
They were crispy on the outside and crunched when she ate
them. Sweet and cherry-flavored. Thought they were the
funniest thing going.

Pastorio

Vegetable Couscous with Harissa

2011-08-09T04:20:00.000-04:00

From Glamour Magazine, July 1992

Vegetable Couscous
2 small onions, coarsely chopped-- (about 1 cup)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 small eggplant, cubed-- (about 1 cup)
3 large carrots, diagonally sliced
2 cups chicken broth
1 can whole tomatos (8-oz can)
1 stick cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large zucchini, halved lengthwise-- and sliced
1 cup whole green beans, trimmed-- about 1/4 lb.
1 16 oz can chick-peas, drained
1/2 cup raisins
Coucous for 6 servings
Chopped cilantro (optional)

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook onions in oil until tender but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add eggplant, carrots, broth, tomatoes and their liquid, cinnamon and salt. Over high heat, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Add zucchini and remaining ingredients, except couscous and cilantro, and cook 5 to 7 munutes longer or until all begetables are tender.

Meanwhile, prepare couscous as label directs. To serve, spoon some couscous into each of 6 shallow bowls. Ladle some vegetables and broth on top of couscous. Garnish with chopped cilantro, if desited. Add a bit of Harissa (see recipes) to spice up the dish.

Harissa
4 teaspoons red pepper flakes, crushed
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed

In a small bowl combine red pepper flakes, garlic and cumin. Using a fork, blend in oil, then tomato paste and lemon juice. Makes about 1/4 cup.

Egg Nests

2011-05-21T04:28:00.000-04:00

http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/egg_nests/

Portuguese White Cornmeal Bread

2011-04-10T12:36:00.002-04:00

Fron One Perfect Bite blog. I made this recipe and it turned out beautifully!

Carol's Tomato Soup

2011-04-09T05:18:00.001-04:00

1 14.5 ounce can diced tomato with basil, garlic & oregano
1 can full chicken broth
2 slices white bread, cubed
crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

Simmer all ingredients in a saucepan. Puree in food processor. Serve with dollop of sour cream.

German Chocolate Layered Brownies

2011-04-05T15:52:00.006-04:00

1 1/4 pounds Unsalted butter
1/2 fluid ounce Vanilla extract
12 Eggs
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 pounds Granulated sugar
2 ounces Cocoa powder
14 ounces All-purpose flour
1 pound Pecans, chopped
Topping:
12 ounces Unsalted butter
12 ounces Shredded coconut
4 teaspoons Coconut flavoring
4 teaspoons Vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds Powdered sugar
1 1/2 pounds Cream cheese, softened

1. Melt chocolate and butter together and set aside. Stir in the vanilla extract.

2. Beat eggs, salt and sugar together in another bowl.

3. In a large bowl stir together the cocoa powder, flour, and pecans. Add the egg mixture to the

flour, then stir in the melted chocolate.

4. Pour into a greased and floured sheet pan, spreading evenly.

5. To make the topping, melt the butter in a large saucepan, and then stir in the remaining

ingredients, except for the cream cheese. Cook over low heat until the sugar has dissolved and the

mixture is creamy.

6. Cream the cream cheese in a mixer or food processor. Add the hot butter/sugar mixture and blend

until no lumps of cheese remain.

7. Immediately spoon the topping over the unbaked chocolate brownie batter. Spread the topping into

a thin layer using an offset spatula.

8. Bake at 300°F (149°C) until the center has set and the surface is golden brown, approximately 1

hour. Cool, then wrap and chill completely overnight before cutting into 2 × 2-inch (5 × 5-centimeter)

squares.

Jasper

2011-03-30T05:09:00.000-04:00

One of Our Thursdays Is Missing by Jasper Fforde My rating: 4 of 5 stars Humorous, silly. You have to have a high tolerance for really bad puns, usually of a literary nature. He seems obsessed with 'remaindering' (grin). Lots of 'Jasperisms' (invented words). I've always loved his ThursdayNext books. This one seems a kinder gentler Thursday. If you haven't read this author, you should at least start with the first book - 'The Eyre Affair'. View all my reviews

The Food Librarian: Meyer Lemon Ginger Scones - Lemon Week 2011

2011-02-25T04:05:00.000-05:00

The Food Librarian: Meyer Lemon Ginger Scones - Lemon Week 2011: "Meyer Lemon Ginger Scones Happy Friday! It's the last day of Lemon Week 2011 for justJenn and me. And my friend Mary is going crazy with her..."

Canned Tuna

2011-02-17T05:10:00.002-05:00

Recipes:

Tuna Casserole (as in the 'Dreaded')

calls for a 7-oz. can of tuna

Tasty Tuna Casserole

calls for 6 1/2 or 7-ounce can of tuna

Tuna Croquettes

calls for 6 1/2-oz can tof tuna

Tasty Tuna Burgers

calls for a 6-oz. can of tuna.

On my shelf: a 5-oz. can of tuna

The dreaded Tuna casserole recipe is about 50-years old. It was one of my mainstays when first married.

Creamy Chicken Vegetable Chowder

2011-02-13T06:28:00.003-05:00

1 1/2 cups Milk
1 cup Chicken broth
1 can cream of potato soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cups chicken or turkey, cooked, cubed
1/3 cup green onion, chopped
1 11-oz can Green Giant Mexicorn, drained
1 4.5 -oz can Mushroom, sliced
1 4.5 -oz can Green Chiles, chopped
1 1/2 cups Cheddar cheese (6 oz), shredded

In 4-quart saucepan combine milk, broth, potato soup, and chicken soup; blend well. Add all remaining chowder ingredients except cheese; mix well. Cook over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes or until onions are tender stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Add cheese; stir until melted.

Recipe from Ann Kostal when we worked at CVCC. I think it might be from one of those 'Taste of Home' cookbook magazines.

I never follow the recipe exactly. This time I made 1/2 recipe (sort of). Used a can of cream of chicken soup, then filled the empty can with half milk half chicken stock. I had a lot of left-over cheese cubes, so I used handful of those. I added a whole can of chopped green chiles, regular corn, some frozen mushrooms, chicken and no green onions.

Dad

2011-01-23T03:47:00.002-05:00

Dad, originally uploaded by lynnmwillis.

January 2011. At the end of the New Years weekend visit with Lynn, Erik and Owen

Saturns Rings

2011-01-16T06:56:00.002-05:00

http://www.ciclops.org/index/6222/A_Story_of_Saturns_Rings

Christmas Scone

2010-12-25T04:39:00.003-05:00

3 cups all purpose flour (400 g)
3/4 cup sugar (160 g)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup candied ginger (chopped into 1/4-inch pieces or smaller) (3 1/2 ounces or 110 g)
1 Tbsp lemon zest
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
3/4 cup buttermilk* (200 ml)
10 Tbsp (5 ounces, 140 g) unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp coarse sugar for sprinkling on top (optional)

1 Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2 In a large bowl vigorously whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the candied ginger, lemon zest, and fresh ginger until evenly mixed.
3 Create a well in the center of the flour, pour in the melted butter and the buttermilk. Gently mix with a wooden spoon until the flour mixture is just moistened. Don't over-mix! The mixture should look very shaggy.
4 Divide the mixture into two balls, and flatten each onto a floured surface into a 1-inch thick, 6-inch wide circle. Slice each round into 6 wedges. Transfer to the parchment paper-lined baking sheet, spacing at least an inch apart. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.
5 Bake at 400°F for 18-20 minutes. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes before eating.
To store, allow first to cool to room temperature, then seal in a freezer bag.

* If you don't have buttermilk you can substitute with a Tbsp of lemon juice and 3/4 cup minus one tablespoon of regular milk.

Serengeti Sunset Photo – Tanzania Wallpaper – National Geographic Photo of the Day

2010-12-18T03:53:00.000-05:00

Serengeti Sunset Photo – Tanzania Wallpaper – National Geographic Photo of the Day

Charles Shield on Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee

2010-12-16T12:30:00.003-05:00

Notes from yesterday's meeting.
Charles Shields talk at the December 15, 2010 meeting of the Lynchburg Public Library
Charles Shields lives in Barboursville, VA . He and his wife attended the meeting.

Alice (Harper Lee's sister) was born 1911. Still living as of 12/15/2010. She is a lawyer and quite protective of Nelle Harper Lee. Shields was unable to interview Harper Lee, But did have correspondence with Alice. In fact when Harper Lee discovered Shields was going to write the book, she not only refused to be interviewed, she told all her friends not to talk to him either.

Shields found a windfall in the papers that Truman Capote (Lee's next door neighbor as a child) left after his death. Harper Lee had accompanied Capote on his initial visits to interview for the 'Clutter Murders' which he eventually wrote as 'In Cold Blood'. Harper Lee's copious notes (including drawings of the Clutter farm) were part of Capote's papers.

According to Shields, Harper Lee is very wealthy. Her sister Alice, as a lawyer handled her buisness dealings. Sheilds remarked that Harper Lee gets 12% every time the movie 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is run. She has stipulated that no movie can be made of the book without Gregory Peck as Atticus. There is a play of the book, but it can only be given by amateur productions. She donates a lot of her money anonymously.

Harper Lee lives very simply and rather reclusively in Monroeville. Although because of a recent 'stroke' is in assisted living. Alice still lives in the old family home in Monroeville.

Sheilds says that the rumor is that Harper Lee has written another book, and it cannot be published until after her death.

Charles Shields has been working on a biography of Kurt Vonnegut for the past four years. The relationship with Vonnegut being the opposite of that with Lee.

Mastercook 11

2010-12-06T06:54:00.002-05:00

I got MC11 up and running with all my previous cookbooks included! This version works with Vista OS, as the old MC 5 I've had forever did not always. Big relief that ValueSoft picked up the software.

Had to get help finding the files. But did, finally, from the mastercook Yahoo Group. They are a godsend.

C:\Users\Public\Public Documents\Mastercook\My Collection.

Wild Rice Dressing

2010-11-26T03:33:00.003-05:00

If you can't find dried cranberries, use fresh ones and add 2-3 tablespoons of sugar to the mix. It's just as good. Instead of wild rice, I used leftover Uncle Ben's Seasoned Rice & Wild Rice box mix.

Ingredients
2 cups wild rice
Salt
3/4 pound mushrooms, sliced
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 medium yellow or white onion, chopped
5 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup walnuts
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
1-2 Tbsp fresh sage, minced
4 cups bread croutons
2 cups chicken, vegetable or turkey stock
Method
1 Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, then add the wild rice. Cover, turn the heat to low and simmer until the rice is tender, about 25 minutes or so.

2 Preheat the oven to 350°F.

3 As the rice is cooking, heat a large sauté pan on high for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and shake the pan a little so they don't stick. Dry sauté the mushrooms, stirring often, until the release their water. When most of the water has burned off, sprinkle salt over the mushrooms, add 3 Tbsp of the butter, onion and celery and toss to combine. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, stirring often.

4 Drain the rice when it is tender (most of the grains will have split by then) and add the rice to the sauté pan. Turn off the heat and add the sage, croutons, dried cranberries and walnuts. Sprinkle a little more salt over everything. Stir to combine.

5 Put the dressing into a large, oven-proof pot with a lid and dot with the remaining butter. Add the chicken stock, cover and bake for 45 minutes. If you want, take the cover off for the last 15 minutes to brown the top.

Serves 6-8 as a side dish.

Cape Cod

2010-11-21T03:30:00.001-05:00

Lots of memories there.

Lego Space Center

2010-11-20T03:12:00.000-05:00

Students used LEGOs to 'Build the Future' at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. on Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2010. The 'Build the Future' event was part of pre-launch activities for the STS-133 mission.

Kingston Trio

2010-11-17T07:32:00.000-05:00

They're Rioting in Africa (The Merry Minuet)
(Sheldon Harnick)

Intro:
There are days in my life when everything is dreary
I grow pessimistic, sad and world weary.
But when I'm tearful and fearfully upset
I always sing this merry little minuet:

They're rioting in Africa
They're starving in Spain
There's hurricanes in Florida
And Texas needs rain.

The whole world is festering
With unhappy souls
The French hate the Germans,
The Germans hate the Poles

Italians hate Yugoslavs
South Africans hate the Dutch
And I don't like anybody very much

But we can be grateful
And thankful and proud
That man's been endowed
With a mushroom shaped cloud

And we know for certain
That some happy day
Someone will set the spark off
And we will all be blown away

They're rioting in Africa
There's strife in Iran
What nature doesn't do to us
Will be done by our fellow man.

Animators of Life

2010-11-16T05:44:00.001-05:00

Brussels Sprouts

2010-11-10T03:39:00.004-05:00

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Chestnuts

or this:

Crispy Brussels Sprouts
Recipe courtesy Claire Robinson
Serves: 2 servings
Ingredients
4 ounces thick slab applewood smoked bacon, cut in 1/4-inch pieces
1 pound Brussels sprouts, washed, trimmed, and halved lengthwise
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup toasted chopped walnuts
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and sliced
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a sheet pan, lay out bacon slices. Bake for 10 minutes, until lightly browned and the fat has rendered. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, and transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Carefully toss Brussels sprouts in the hot pan, and season with salt and pepper. Return the pan to the oven, and roast, turning once, until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven, the walnuts and apples and toss to combine. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving platter, top with the bacon, and serve warm.

or this:

1 1/2 pounds Brussels Sprouts
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
2 cloves Garlic, peeled and sliced
1 medium Onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 cup Balsamic Vinegar
2 tablespoons Butter
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Trim sprouts, blanch for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water to stop cooking.

Heat a large frying pan and add the garlic, olive oil and onion. Saute until the onion becomes tender. Add the brussels sprouts. Saute a few minutes more. Add the vinegar and toss to cover sprouts. Add butter, salt & pepper. Toss until butter melts.

Source: The Frugal Gourmet Celebrates Christmas

Swiss Chard

2010-11-08T04:56:00.002-05:00

Yum! I'd never fixed Swiss Chard before. I like it better than Kale, I think. When I cook greens, I usually use the Mollie Katzen method as in the Pasta with Greens and Feta from her 'Still Life with Menu' cookbook. I just leave out the pasta and feta (which is delicious, but more calories!).

6 tablespoons Olive Oil
4 cups Onion, chopped
8 cups Kale, packed
Salt, to taste
1 pound Penne Rigate
1 pound Feta Cheese, crumbled
Parmesan Cheese, freshly grated
Black Pepper, freshly ground

1. Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet. Add the onions and cook for about 10 minutes over medium heat. Put pasta water up to boil.

2. Add chopped greens to the skillet, as it lightly, and stir until the greens begin to wilt. Cover and cook 10 to 15 minutes over medium-low heat.

3. Cook the pasta until al dente. Just as it becomes ready, add the crumbled feta cheese to the sauce. (keep the heat on low as you add the cheese.)

4. When the pasta is done, scoop it out with a strainer and add directly to the greens and cheese. Mix thoroughly.

5. Cook the completed dish just slightly over low heat for a few minutes. Add a small amount of parmesan and a generous amount of black pepper. Serve immediately, on warmed plates.

Lego Minifig Pinata

2010-10-29T14:46:00.001-04:00

Lego Minifig Pinata, originally uploaded by cvwillc.

October 9, 2010. Birthday Pinata

Anniversary - 49

2010-09-09T03:22:00.002-04:00

September 9, 1961

Leftover Chocolate Chips - Cookie

2010-09-05T13:06:00.003-04:00

1 bag Semisweet Chocolate Chips
1 bag Semisweet Chocolate Chunks
1/2 bag M&Ms® Minis chocolate candy
1/4 cup Butter
3/4 cup Vegetable Shortening
1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
1 cup Light Brown Sugar
2 large Eggs
2 teaspoons Vanilla
2 cups AP Flour
1/2 cup Cocoa Powder
2 teaspoons Baking Soda

Preheat oven to 350F. In a double boiler, melt the M&M Minis with 1/4 cup butter. Stir to break up candy coating. Cool some. in a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugars about 1 minute. Mix in melted chocolate. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix 2 minutes. Add flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Mix in the chips and chunks.
Bake cookies for 10 -15 minutes. Let cool for about 5 minutes before removing from cookie sheet. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Sixty Days

2010-09-02T09:09:00.000-04:00

Sixty Days and Counting by Kim Stanley Robinson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

View all my reviews

What I do is mix soy sauce and a dry white wine about half and half, and then add a big dash of tarragon vinegar, and some heaping spoonfuls of brown sugar, and a tablespoon of olive oil and about a teaspoon each of ginger and mustard powder, and a dash of garlic powder Mix that up and the longer you marinate things in it the better, but just dipping it in will do to.. Best on veggies, chicken, and flank steak. Sear the meat and then cook at a lower heat.

from Section X.

Music CDs

2010-08-30T13:11:00.001-04:00

A Baroque Festival
Chamber Orchestra
1
Classical
A Delightful Recreation
Colonial Williamsburg
1
Classical
A Merry Christmas with Brass
Dallas Brass
1
Holiday
Across the Universe
Various (cast)
2
Soundtrack
American Child
Phil Vasser
1
Easy Listening
Beethoven Five Piano Concertos
Gustavo Romero
3
Classical
Beethoven Piano Concerto #5
Alfred Brendel
1
Classical
Beethoven Sonatas
Gustavo Romero
1
Classical
Big Band Special (War Years)
Various
3
Instrumental
Black Angels
Kronos Quartet
1
Classical
Blade Runner
Vangelis
1
Soundtrack
Blues Lounge
Various
1
Blues
Born to be Wild
Hampton String Quartet
1
Instrumental
Brahams String Sextets
Academy of SMF Chamber
1
Classical
Brahms Violinkonzert
Itzhak Perlman
1
Classical
Brazilian Dreams
Various
1
Easy Listening
Breakfast in Bed
Various
1
Easy Listening
Carmen Burana
Robert Shaw ASO
1
Classical
Carmina Burana
Seiji Ozawa//BP
1
Classical
Carnaval des Animaux
Andre Previn/PSO
1
Classical
Chopin by the Sea
Paul Posnak
1
Classical
Christmas at Home
Various
1
Holiday
Christmas Meditation
Various
5
Holiday
Christmas Wishes
Various
1
Holiday
Christmas with the SF Sax Quar.
San Francisco Sax Quartet
1
Holiday
Cinema Serenade
Itzhak Perlman/ J Williams
1
Soundtrack
Coffeehouse Classics
Various
4
Easy Listening
Dallas Brass II
Dallas Brass
1
Unknown
De-Lovely
Movie Soundtrack
1
Soundtrack
Dinner for Two
Various
1
Easy Listening
Diva
Lesley Garrett
1
Easy Listening
Dvorak
Overtures
1
Classical
Dvorak String Q#12/Piano Quintet
Rudolf Firkusny/JQ
1
Classical
Dvorak Symphony No 9
Kurt Masur/NYP
1
Classical
Echoes of Nature
Nature Sounds
1
New Age
Fairytale Pictures
Erich Korngold
1
Unknown
Fandango Nights
Willie and Lobo
1
Jazz
Fresh Aire Eight
Mannheim Steamroller
1
New Age
Fresh Aire II
Mannheim Steamroller
1
New Age
Giant Hits
Johnny Cash
1
Country
Giovanni Bottesini
RSO Berlin
1
Classical
Gloria/Magnificat
Robert Shaw-ASO
1
Classical
Greatest Hits
Queen
1
Rock
Halloween
Mannheim Steamroller
2
Holiday
Herta's Garden
Rafael Scarfullery
1
Easy Listening
Janos Starker Celebration
Various
1
Unknown
Jealous of the Moon
Scott Ainslie
1
Easy Listening
License to Chill
Jimmy Buffett
1
Easy Listening
live by request
k.d. lang
1
Easy Listening
Mad about Bach
Various
1
Classical
Mad About Cartoons
Various
1
Soundtrack
Manhattan Nights
Joe Ercole
1
Jazz
Mass
Various
1
Classical
Merry Christmas
Vienna Boys Choir
1
Holiday
Mozart Symphonies No 36/38
Bruno Walter/CSO
1
Classical
Night Drive
Garnet Rogers
1
Unknown
Nutcracker
Dallas Brass
1
Holiday
Poems & Prayers & Promises
John Denver
1
Easy Listening
Roll Over Beethoven
Hampton String Quartet
1
Instrumental
Romantic Adagio
H. vonKarafan-Berliner Phil.
1
Classical
Romantic Piano Music
Various
1
Easy Listening
Rossini Overatures
Fritz Reiner/CSO
1
Classical
Schubert - Sonata in A, Fantasie
L Mordkovitch/G Oppitz
1
Classical
Schumann Symphonies 3&4
Sir Georg Solti/Wiener Phil
1
Classical
Sedgefield
Robbie Wells
1
Folk
Short Stories
Kronos Quartet
1
Classical
Shostakovich Symphony 4
M. Rostropovich/NSO
1
Classical
Silent Night
Thomanerchor Leipzig
1
Holiday
Songs of the Pogo
Walt Kelly
1
Humor
Spotlight on Violin
Various
1
Classical
String Tribute to Nirvana
Various
1
Instrumental
Take the A Train
Canadian Brass
1
Instrumental
Tangerine Dream
Goblins Club
1
Rock
Tap Root Manuscript
Neil Diamond
1
Easy Listening
Tchaikovsky Sym 5/Marche Slave
Pavel Urbanek/PSO
1
Classical
Tchaikovsky Sym No5 Romeo &J
Eugene Ormandy/PSO
1
Classical
Techno X-mas
Various
1
Holiday
The Piano
Michael Nyman
1
Classical
The Pilgrim (Kristofferson)
Various
1
Country
The Riddle
Riddle on the Harp
1
Irish folk
This Time It's Love
Kurt Elling
1
Easy Listening
Two by Four
Marc Johnson
1
Instrumental
Vivaldi Concerti for Strings
Pieter Wispalway/Florilegium
1
Classical
Vivian
J.J. Johnson
1
Jazz
Voice of an Angel
Charlotte Church
1
Easy Listening
Windborne
Dallas Brass
1
Unknown
Yellowstone
Mannheim Steamroller
1
New Age
Yellowstone
Mannheim Steamroller
1
New Age
Zydeco's Greatest Hits
Buckwheat Zydeco
1
Jazz

floorplan

2010-08-17T06:09:00.001-04:00

floorplan, originally uploaded by cvwillc.

Summertime

2010-08-11T18:03:00.001-04:00

In winter I get up at night,
And dress by yellow candle light.
In summer quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day,
I have to go to bed and see
The birds still hopping on the tree,
Or hear the grown up people's feet
Still going past me in the street,
And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play,
To have to go to bed by day?
by Robert Louis Stevenson

HOT!!

2010-07-24T03:58:00.003-04:00

"On this day (July 24th) in 1936, the Dust Bowl heat wave was so intense that Kansas and Nebraska experienced their all-time hottest temperatures, unbroken to this day. In Alton, Kansas, the temperature was 121 degrees, and in Minden, Nebraska, it was 118." - The writers Almanac.

It's supposed to get to 101F here today.

Growing up in Topeka, KS in the late 1940's I remember an afternoon that got to 114F at the house. We had an outdoor thermometer outside the dining room window.

Happy Birthday to me!

2010-07-18T04:15:00.001-04:00

Southern Farmers Market Cookbook by Holly Herrick

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Birthday present from my Husband! Pretty pictures. Some recipes I might try. Cantaloupe balls with prosciutto, lime, and basil recipe looks good. Especially now that my basil crop is going great guns, and I need to use as much as I can. Pesto recipes anyone?

View all my reviews >>

LSO 2010-2011 SEASON

2010-07-17T09:31:00.004-04:00

2010-2011 Season

Halloween
Sun., Oct. 31, 2:00 p.m.
E.C. Glass Auditorium

Chamber Concert
Sun., Nov 21, 2:00 p.m.
Houston Chapel, Randolph College

Schumann Concert
Sun, March 6, 3:00 p.m.
St. Thomas More Church
with pianist Noemi Otto

Choral Concert
Sun., May 1, 4:00 p.m.
E.C. Glass Auditorium
with Jefferson Choral Society

Heath Toffee Cookies

2010-06-26T14:37:00.002-04:00

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter flavor Crisco
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 bag Heath Bits O' Brickle Toffee Bits
1 4 oz bar Ghiradelli 60% Cacao bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a separate bowl, combine Heath pieces, chopped chocolate and chopped walnuts. Set aside.
2 Cream the shortening and sugar and continue to beat until light and fluffy (a couple minutes). Beat in eggs one at a time, and vanilla.
3 Alternatively mix in the Heath Bar mixture and the flour mixture, a third at a time, until well blended.
4 Preheat oven to 350°F. On cookie sheets lined with parchment paper or Silpat, spoon out the cookie dough in small 1-1½ inch diameter balls. Place dough balls 3 inches away from each other on the cookie sheets.
5 Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are just starting to brown. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

Notes: If you use butter instead of shortening, chill dough for a couple of hours. The cookies still may spread a good deal.

Art

2010-06-22T04:19:00.000-04:00

Great Masters of Western Art by Jordi Vigue

I know I have a copy somewhere here in the house. I can't find it!

View all my reviews >>

Dad

2010-06-21T04:51:00.000-04:00

Love it!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Mars Rover Spirit Finds Clue to Planet's Past and Environment for Life

2010-06-05T04:23:00.000-04:00

Librarians Do Gaga

2010-06-01T03:17:00.001-04:00

Instructions

2010-05-27T05:44:00.000-04:00

Emily Dickenson

2010-05-15T04:06:00.003-04:00

The Writer's Almanac for May 15, 2010.

It was on this day in 1886 that poet Emily Dickinson died at the age of 55.

Emily Dickinson wrote:

Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me;
The carriage held but just ourselves
And Immortality.

"Paparazzi"

2010-05-13T03:20:00.001-04:00

'I'll have to get out my Lady Gaga CD and play it in the car!

Favorite Recipe

2010-05-08T12:12:00.003-04:00

Found the most beautiful young Kale leaves at the Community Market this morning. Our first trip to that market since last Fall.

So I made Molly Katzen's 'Pasta with Greens and Feta' for lunch.

....

6 tablespoons Olive Oil
4 cups Onion, chopped
8 cups Kale, packed
Salt, to taste
1 pound Penne Rigate
1 pound Feta Cheese, crumbled
Parmesan Cheese, freshly grated
Black Pepper, freshly ground

1. Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet. Add the onions and cook for about 10 minutes over medium heat. Put pasta water up to boil.
2. Add chopped greens to the skillet, as it lightly, and stir until the greens begin to wilt. Cover and cook 10 to 15 minutes over medium-low heat.
3. Cook the pasta until al dente. Just as it becomes ready, add the crumbled feta cheese to the sauce. (keep the heat on low as you add the cheese.)
4. When the pasta is done, scoop it out with a strainer and add directly to the greens and cheese. Mix thoroughly.
5. Cook the completed dish just slightly over low heat for a few minutes. Add a small amount of parmesan and a generous amount of black pepper. Serve immediately, on warmed plates.

from 'Still Life With Menu'

Outrageous Brownies

2010-04-29T04:14:00.003-04:00

I made Ina Garten's outrageous Brownie recipe yesderday.

Ingredients
1 pound unsalted butter
1 pound plus 12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate
6 extra-large eggs
3 tablespoons instant coffee granules
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups chopped walnuts
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter and flour a 12 x 18 x 1-inch baking sheet.
Melt together the butter, 1 pound of chocolate chips, and the unsweetened chocolate in a medium bowl over simmering water. Allow to cool slightly. In a large bowl, stir (do not beat) together the eggs, coffee granules, vanilla, and sugar. Stir the warm chocolate mixture into the egg mixture and allow to cool to room temperature.
In a medium bowl, sift together 1 cup of flour, the baking powder, and salt. Add to the cooled chocolate mixture. Toss the walnuts and 12 ounces of chocolate chips in a medium bowl with 1/4 cup of flour, then add them to the chocolate batter. Pour into the baking sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes, then rap the baking sheet against the oven shelf to force the air to escape from between the pan and the brownie dough. Bake for about 15 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Do not overbake! Allow to cool thoroughly, refrigerate, and cut into 20 large squares.

Grandma Owen

2010-04-27T03:55:00.002-04:00

My father's Mother, Mary Owen. Picture taken in 1955.

Big New Kroger in Forest

2010-04-17T04:17:00.003-04:00

A new Kroger opened in Forest on April 15, 2010. We went out to look it over yesterday. It's very nice and has some added attractions:

There's a "Seattle’s Best Coffee" in the new store, the first in Kroger's Mid-Atlantic region. There's also a Deli Bistro staffed with two chefs, a Gourmet Cheese Shop, and a Wine Shoppe with a wine steward to help customers. (The Boonesboro Kroger also has a wine steward, part-time).

Otherwise it is stocked like most of the Krogers in the area. I was particularly interested to see if they carried certain items I have trouble finding here. They had none of them.

My List:

Superfine sugar

King Syrup

Fairbanks Sherry 1.5L

Colavita Fettucini Nests

Instant Espresso

Marshmallow Fluff

At KU

2010-03-31T05:39:00.002-04:00

In front of Jollife Hall.

Nature by Numbers

2010-03-31T05:04:00.001-04:00

The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag

2010-03-28T07:27:00.004-04:00

By Alan Bradley ( A Flavia de Luce Mystery)

The title from a poem by Sir Walter Raleigh
http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/tohisson.htm

I loved this quote!

"Althought he was a very great musician, and a wizard composer of symphonies, Beethoven was quite often a dismal failure when it came to ending them. The Fifth was a perfect case in point... It (the ending) was like a bit of flypaper stuck to your finger that you couldn't shake off.The bloody thing clung to life like a limpet. I remembered that Beethoven's symphonies had sometimes been given names: the Eroica, the Pastoral, and so forth. They should have called this one the Vampire, because it simply refused to lie down and die."

A Taste for Dutch

2010-03-25T04:35:00.014-04:00

Rembrandt's 'Night Watch'. The painting may be more properly titled The Company of Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch. It is on prominent display in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and is its most famous painting.

Rembrandt belonged to the Saint Luke's Guild. The guild of Saint Luke was the most common name for a city guild for painters and other artists in early modern Europe, especially in the Low Countries. They were named in honor of the Evangelist Luke, the patron saint of artists, who was identified by John of Damascus as having painted the Virgin's portrait.

'The Art of Painting' Jan Vermeer.
The Art of Painting, also known as The Allegory of Painting, and or Painter in his Studio, is a famous 17th century oil on canvas painting by Dutch painter, Johannes Vermeer. Many art historians believe that it is an allegory of painting, hence the alternative title of the painting. It is the largest and most complex of all of Vermeer's works.

The Laughing Cavalier
Frans Hals (c. 1580 – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter especially famous for portraiture. He is notable for his loose painterly brushwork, and helped introduce this lively style of painting into Dutch art. Hals was also instrumental in the evolution of 17th century group portraiture.

Spring, March 2010

2010-03-23T04:18:00.002-04:00

The tree across the street in the Cook's yard is in full blossom.

Living Sculpture

2010-03-16T03:43:00.010-04:00

The stories behind the art:

The proportions are not quite true to the human form; the head and upper body are somewhat larger than the proportions of the lower body. The hands are also larger than would be in regular proportions. One explanation is that the statue was originally intended to be placed on a church façade or high pedestal, and that the proportions would appear correct when the statue was viewed from some distance below.

This is a copy of the statue standing in the original location of David, in front of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.

La Petite Danseuse de Quatorze Ans

Little Dancer of fourtten years:

The original wax model was acquired by Paul Mellon in 1956. Beginning in 1985, Mr and Mrs Mellon gave the US National Gallery of Art 49 Degas waxes, 10 bronzes and 2 plasters, the largest group of original Degas sculptures, among them this sculpture.

Degas' heirs (wife and daughter) made the decision to have 27 of them cast in bronze. The casting went on at the Hébrard foundry in Paris from 1920 until the mid-20th Century, producing the posthumous Degas bronzes that can be seen in many museums.

Like many of Rodin's best-known individual sculptures, including The Thinker, the embracing couple depicted in The Kiss sculpture appeared originally as part of a group of reliefs decorating Rodin's monumental bronze portal The Gates of Hell, commissioned for a planned museum of art in Paris. The museum was never built.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

2010-03-14T17:16:00.002-04:00

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Stunning! I will defer to ny Cyber Friend's review, since I agree with her wonderful review. This is one of the best non-fiction books I have ever read.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

I read a review of this book last weekend,
downloaded it from Audible, have spent the last few days glued to my iPod until its battery ran down (twice), and finished it late last night.

This is, without a doubt, one of the most compelling books I have ever
read. It's not just that it's well-written, but that the subject matter
is so unbelievable and staggering and has such implications from our
medical past, and for the future of medicine.

Henrietta Lacks was a black woman living in rural Virginia in the 1940s and 50s. A wife and mother of five, she died at the age of 31 at Johns Hopkins medical center, in the black ward, of cervical cancer. A few months before she died, her doctor retrieved a tissue sample from her cervix and gave it to one of his assistants --something they did routinely at this teaching and research
center-- to place the cells into a culture and see if they could grow and replicate. Such cells usually died in a matter of hours, but if they could be kept alive, were increasingly useful in the new field of virology.

Henrietta’s cells lived.

As was the practice then, they named this new cell line HeLa, using first letters from both of her names. HeLa cells were so robust, and replicated so fast, that their use has revolutionized medicine. From the moment the doctors at Johns Hopkins started using them, and giving them out to other researchers to use, they began to spread exponentially, and the infant arm of research known as virology—the
use of human cells to study medical conditions, treatments, cures, and now genetics-- grew with them. HeLa cells are now so prevalent and common in medicine that nearly every researcher in the world has touched them, and they’ve gone up in space. They have been bought and sold, replicated and shipped worldwide. They have unfortunately also contaminated other cell lines, causing uncounted millions of dollars in damage to vital research.

And for over 40 years, her family never knew. Science writer Rebecca Skloot heard snippets of information which got her interested in the HeLa cells, realized the significance of their story, and spent more than 10 years researching and composing this book, interviewing Nobel laureates, pharmaceutical techs and CEOs, lawyers and medical ethicists, and most importantly, the family of Henrietta Lacks. She’s done a brilliant job weaving Henrietta’s story, those of her children, and the progress of science and the HeLa cells, into a moving, iveting, personal narrative. Her access to and eventual closeness with Henrietta’s children was a dangerous course for a journalist needing objectivity to tell this story, but she handled it well. I may even forgive her for making me cry.

Skloot is particularly good about the clarity of her scientific explanations for the layman, and the timeline of important scientific events and discoveries made by the use of HeLa cells. And in a strong Afterword, her even-handed examination of the legal and moral ramifications of human tissue handling, and the desperate need of science to have access to human tissue to serve the needs of
us all, is thought-provoking in the extreme. I can’t get it out of my mind, in fact, and will probably be thinking about it and discussing it for the rest of my life.
It’s that important.

View all my reviews >>

The Secret Lives of Paintings

2010-03-09T13:29:00.008-05:00

Simonetta Vespucci painted by Sandro Botticelli. He was reported to be in love with her, and when she died at a young age (24?) he was devastated. Subsequently he used her image on Primavera (Venus on the half-shell)

In Freer Gallery of Art in Washington D.C.:

The Peacock Room was once the dining room in the London home of Frederick R. Leyland, a shipping magnate from Liverpool, England. Originally designed by the interior architect Thomas Jeckyll to display Leyland's extensive collection of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain, the room was radically redecorated in 1876 and 1877 by the American-born artist James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903), whose painting The Princess from the Land of Porcelain hung over the mantel. Although he was at first merely asked for advice about what color to paint the shutters and doors, Whistler took over and eventually transformed the entire room into a "harmony in blue and gold," adorning its shutters with gorgeous golden peacocks and painting every inch of the ceiling and leather-covered walls with a pattern of peacock feathers. Leyland was shocked by the unauthorized redecoration and refused to pay the full amount that Whistler demanded for his efforts. In response to the contentious lawsuit that ensued, Whistler painted two peacocks squabbling over a bag of coins at the far end of the room--and he never saw his masterpiece again.

Artistic Endeavors

2010-03-02T04:46:00.008-05:00

Yesterday's Art Talk was about 'Scandals, Schemes and Scalawags. By Mary Ellet Sweeney.

Georges De La Tour: The Fortune Teller

Young fop, having his fortune told and being robbed by the Gypsies at the same time.

Edward Manet: Luncheon on the Grass

Public was appalled, in part because they knew exactly who the three people in the forground were. Mary compared it to seeing Joan Foster naked, and two city councilmen clothed.

John Singer Sargent: Madame X

Madam X (Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau) was originally painted with one strap hanging down over her shoulder. Public was so upset at the first showing, that he re-painted the strap as above. Mary said that she was famous for being famous, like Paris Hilton. I recently read a novel of the incident: 'Strapless: John Singer Sargent and the fall of Madame X' by Deborah Davis.

ArTalks

2010-02-23T03:58:00.005-05:00

The title of yesterday's talk was 'Masters of Deception'. Surrealism was the subject. We were treated to slides of pictures by Rene Magritte, M. C. Escher, Salvador Dali, etc. The final artwork was Meret Oppenheim's Object, fondly known as 'Cup of Fur'. (see alternate version http://randomobservations512.blogspot.com/2008/10/cup-of-fur-revisited.html )

Also discussed works of Giuseppe Arcimboldo, Rob Gonsalves ('Imagine A Night')

Year of the Tiger - Chinese Almond Cakes

2010-02-17T03:38:00.003-05:00

I made these yesterday:

Chinese Almond Cakes
1 cup Butter, softened
2/3 cup Powdered sugar, sifted
1 Egg yolk
1 teaspoon Almond extract
2 cups All-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon Baking powder
1 Egg white
1 tablespoon Water
3 tablespoons Sesame seeds
40 Blanched almonds

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and blended. Beat in the egg yolk and almond extract.
Stir and toss together the flour, salt and baking powder. Add to the butter mixture and beat until smooth and blended.
Preheat the oven to 375F and set out cookie sheets; do not grease them.
Roll spoon-size bits of the dough between your palms into small balls; set aside.
In a small bowl, beat the egg white and water together. Dip half of each ball of dough into the egg white, then into the sesame seeds. Place, seed-side up, about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets. Use the bottom of a glass to flatten each cookie into a disk about 1 1/2 inches across. Push a whole almond into the center of each cookie. Bake for 8 -10 minuter or until the cookies are pale golden; they should not brown too much. Remove from the sheets and cool on racks.

New Speakers

2010-01-20T04:50:00.001-05:00

Acoustimass 3 Series IV speaker system

The Project Completed

2010-01-19T05:44:00.001-05:00

USS Torsk Pinewood Derby Car.

Four Generations

2010-01-07T17:19:00.001-05:00

Four Generations, originally uploaded by cvwillc.

The original four generations, circa 1938.

Four Generations

2010-01-07T16:57:00.001-05:00

Four Generations, originally uploaded by cvwillc.

Copy from Flickr

Hello Dolly Cookie Bars

2009-12-18T15:50:00.002-05:00

2 tablespoons Butter
1 cup Graham cracker crumbs
1 cup Flaked coconut
1 cup Semisweet chocolate chips, 6 oz. sized
1 cup Nuts, chopped
1 can Eagle Brand condensed milk

Melt butter in 9 X 9 inch pan. Arrange in layers in pan; graham cracker crumbs, flaked coconut chocolate bits and chopped nuts. Pour condensed milk evenly over the top
Bake @ 325F for 30 minutes. Cool thoroughly before cutting.

Servings: 36
Notes: Must not be less than 9X9 pan or graham crackers won't get moistened by milk.
Do not try to cut these unless thoroughly cooled!!

Self-Check @ Your Library

2009-12-04T03:58:00.004-05:00

The Friends of the Library will purchase a self check station that will be installed in the main library in January. Users will be able to check out their own materials simply by scanning each item’s library bar code; a date due receipt prints automatically. Staff anticipates about 125 users (25%) a day will use the self-checkstation. The Library Friends are donating the sophisticated equipment to help staff cope with record high use and a freeze on hiring that has left the library short 3 fulltime equivalent employees. Circulation Deskstaff will continue to check out materials and collect fines for those who prefer. At the Board’s Strategic Planning meeting in September, a self check station was identified as the #1 need. In voting to take the entire $17,000 cost from the Endowment Fund, the Board noted this extraordinary encroachment on the Endowment Fund principal was appropriate to meet the library’scritical staffing needs. The Board also decided to use the December Endowment Fund appeal letter to request donations to help defray the self-check station’s cost.The library staff greatly appreciates the Board’s support during this stressful period. Empowering users to use self-check will reduce the increasing workload on a shrinking staff.

Raingutter Regatta

2009-11-17T06:05:00.002-05:00

Raingutter Regatta! Owen won one heat, lost one heat, and tied on the third. An awesome showing for the snake ship Anaconda!

Pepper Cheese Biscuits

2009-11-16T11:24:00.003-05:00

Here's a cheese biscuit recipe I use a lot. I use a cup of flour and 2 Tablespoons shortnening, but more or less of the rest of the ingredients, depending. Have you ever tried using lard for the shortening in biscuits - really bad for you, but makes tender biscuits.

1 cup Soft White Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon Cayenne or Chile pepper
2 tablespoons Cold Butter, unsalted
1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 cup Buttermilk

Bake at 425F for 15 minutes.

From: 'ButterBeans to Blackberries' by Ronni Lundy

Granpa's Boy

2009-10-24T04:52:00.001-04:00

Granpa's Boy, originally uploaded by cvwillc.

Taken during 'Reunion Weekend'.

Willis & family

2009-10-23T06:00:00.001-04:00

Willis, originally uploaded by lynnmwillis.

I love this picture! Owen kept trying to hide his face in his pillow and I kept trying to push the pillow down from in front of his face.

Tehee

2009-10-17T05:37:00.001-04:00

see more Epic Fails

Fawns

2009-09-19T08:00:00.003-04:00

**see below

cvwillc: A Doe and her two speckled baby fawns just wandered thu the front yard. 12:11 PM Aug 11th from web

cvwillc: The mama deer and her two babies just crossed our yard again and went down behind the Cook's house. 6:20 PM Aug 30th from web

Sept 11th ( aprox) Mama and one baby crossed the yard. Waited and waited, no second baby. Sniff.

Sept 19th 6:30am On our way to the Community market. Just starting to get light. We were on Cranehill just by the elementary school and the mama and baby (now without spots) crossed infront of us. We were just starting to go again when the other baby came scampering along (still has a few spots and is smaller the the first one). YAY!

**picture of baby Sitka fawn from Lynn's flickr site:

Four

2009-09-13T04:31:00.001-04:00

Finished project!

Anniversary #48

2009-09-09T05:48:00.000-04:00

September 9, 1961. Forty-eight years and counting!

Cookies

2009-09-07T09:26:00.004-04:00

Robin and I made Oatmeal Toffee Cookies yestderday. Yum! She's taking the leftovers back with her, I hope. Too much temptation here.

1 cup Butter, softened
2 Eggs
2 cups Light Brown Sugar, packed
2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Salt
3 cups Quick-cooking oats
1 10 oz pkg Heath Toffee Bits
1 cup Flaked Coconut

Heat oven to 375F. Lightly grease cookie sheet. Beat butter, eggs, brown sugar and vanilla until well blended. Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; beat until blended. Stir in oats, toffee bits and coconut. Drop by rounded teaspoons about 2 inches apart onto prepared sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool 1 minute;remove to wire rack. About 4 dozen cookies.

Happy Birthday, Honey

2009-08-13T04:57:00.001-04:00

A Civil Contract

2009-08-10T15:09:00.000-04:00

A Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I am rating this as a subset of all books by Heyer, instead of all the books I've read. I've read almost all of her books except the detective stories. I just can't get into them.
'A Civil Contract' was a little more down to earth, realistic. I enjoyed this book immensely.

View all my reviews >>

Fancy Green Beans

2009-08-06T03:40:00.002-04:00

I got this off the FoodWine discussion list some time ago, but had never tried it. Not bad, but I did make some changes. No bell peppers or onions. Almonds instead of cashews. I made it for 2 people, but used 1 slice of bacon (yum).
Reminds me of people that request one of your recipes, and complain that it didn't turn out like yours, when come to find out they had made a lot of substitutions (grin).

Fancy Green Beans - 8 servings
2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans
2 slices bacon
1/2 cup red bell pepper strips
1/2 cup thin onion wedges
1/2 cup whole cashews

Instructions
In a small bowl, stir together the teriyaki sauce, honey, and butter.
Fill a bowl with cold water and ice cubes.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the lemon juice. Drop in
the beans and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until beans are bright
green. Drain the beans in a colander and then plunge them into the
iced water. Drain again and set aside.
In a skillet, cook the bacon until very crispy, crumble and set
aside. Saute the bell pepper and onion in the hot bacon fat for 2
minutes. Add the beans, cashews, and bacon to the skillet. Add the
teriyaki-honey sauce and toss gently.

Zucchini Casserole

2009-08-01T07:58:00.002-04:00

We got yellow zucchinis at the market this morning. They don't taste any different that the green ones, but I love the color!

Veggie Casserole: (Mom's from the 1950's)

Cut up into separate piles: Zucchini, Vidalia onions, tomaotes, bell peppers (green and red). Layer veggies with slices of Velveeta. Bake at 350F until the veggies are done to your liking.

Endeavor Lands July 31, 2009

2009-08-01T04:46:00.002-04:00

Endeavour kicked up dust as it touches down on Runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to complete the 16-day, 6.5-million mile journey on the STS-127 mission to the International Space Station. Endeavour landed on orbit 248. Main gear touchdown was at 10:48:08 a.m. EDT. Nose gear touchdown was at 10:48:21 a.m. and wheels stop was at 10:49:13 a.m. July 31, 2009

Zucchini

2009-07-25T10:03:00.002-04:00

I found Roly Poly Zucchini at the Market this morning!

4 medium Roly Poly Squash (the size of an apple)
1 cup corn
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 Tablespoon olive oil
4 scallions, chopped fine
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
salt and pepper, to taste

Place squash is boiling water for 5-10 minutes, until a sharp knife pierces to center easily. Remove from pot and plunge in ice water to cool. Cut off top and scoop out centers with a melon baller, being careful to leave a sturdy shell. Chop scooped out squash and reserve. Saute' onion in oil until transparent. Add chopped squash and cook until liquid is cooked off. Cool filling. Blend filling with ricotta, corn, scallions and half of parmesan. Season with salt and pepper. Mound filling in squash shells and top with grated cheese. Bake on cookie sheet in 350 oven for 35-45 minutes, until heated through.

Library

2009-07-18T15:34:00.003-04:00

After we went to the Community Market this morning, while it was still cool, I took some books back to the library. It was so nice in front of the Library - cool breeze blowing, music flowing from the outdoor speakers (Marriage of Figaro, I believe). I thought, how nice to draw up a chair, open a good book and relax - right there.
The library has just recently started playing 'classical' music from loud speakers on the roof of the building. According to the newspaper the Library is trying to discourage the teens from gathering in front of the Library and acting up. Shoving, yelling etc. Someone actually got shot in front of the Library a couple of months ago - and it was at 4:00pm. They now have police cruisers come by regularly. Sigh.

Summer 1938

2009-07-11T14:02:00.001-04:00

Summer 1938, originally uploaded by cvwillc.

My Dad, my Mom, and me.

Owen's Drawings

2009-06-22T05:22:00.006-04:00

The right side drawings are a Toucan and a Three-Headed Dragon. I need help labeling the left-hand drawing!

Wine Book

2009-06-21T13:52:00.001-04:00

Judgement of Paris by George Taber

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
You have to read this book in Sips not Gulps! Also helps if you are interested in wine, wineries, and wine making. The book came out in 2005, but is mostly about the revolution of wine making in the mid 1970's. We visited my husband's brother in Napa California in 1978(?) and visted the Mondavi, Sterling, Beringer and Christian Brothers wineries (amongst others). This really makes the book interesting to me.

Some interesting (to me) asides:

(circa 1968), Dr. Gerald Ivancie, a Denver peridontal surgeon who loved wine and had come up with the idea of buyng Napa Valley grapes and fermenting them in Denver, bought Gamay and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes in the valley and had them shipped them to Denver, where they were made into wines that were sold as Ivancie Beajolais or Ivancie Cabernet Sauvignon.

In 2002, Foster's a leading Australian beer company, took over Napa Valley's Beringer Wine Estates.

Two different Stag's Leap wineries. Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, the winery that triumphed in the Paris competition, and Stag's Leap Winery, now owned by Australia's Foster's Group.

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I want a 'Free Spirit' T-Shirt

2009-06-18T05:20:00.001-04:00

http://twitpic.com/7njtf

Re-reading 'The Namesake'

2009-06-15T05:11:00.001-04:00

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

My review

I knew I had read this before, and I remember buying it after I enjoyed 'Interpreter of Maladies' so much. I finally found it in one of my book shelves, so I returned the library copy I had out. I've also watched the DVD movie of 'The Namesake'. I thought they did a good job of representing the book.

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Camero - Progress!

2009-05-29T04:32:00.002-04:00

Warren was able to get in and out of the Camero yesterday, and start the engine! We're getting there.

Warren

2009-05-04T14:01:00.002-04:00

I took Warren in to the hospital on Friday with chest pains. He is in Intensive care in the Cardiac Care Unit at Lynchburg General. He had trouble breathing so much that they put in a breathing tube Friday night. Later that night he had a mild heart attack. Saturday was not good for him, but by yesterday he was improving considerably. They took out the breathing tube Sunday (yesterday), much to his relief! He continues to improve today. Lynn left for home today to catch up on things and will probably be back later in the week. Robin will go home tomorrow, to hug her pussy cats. She made dinner last night, Yummy!
Needless to say, I am quite relieved!

Stories

2009-05-01T05:00:00.001-04:00

Listening Is an Act of Love: A Celebration of American Life from the StoryCorps Project by Dave Isay

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
The StoryCorps collects and archives interviews of everyday people. The book has edited versions of some of these interviews. Good reading, interesting, poignant. Made me think of the tape my cousin made, talking to our Grandmother who was born in 1893. We are blessed to still have her voice.

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Tea Time

2009-04-22T04:44:00.000-04:00

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars

'We are born to talk to other people, ....we are born to be sociable and to sit together with others in the shade of an acacia tree and talk about things that happened the day before. We were not born to sit in kitchens by ourselves, with nobbody to chat to.' --Precious Ramotswe

I love this series!

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Dogwood

2009-04-21T13:22:00.002-04:00

This is a picture of our front yard, taken towards the house from the street. The whole neighborhood is awash in blossoms.

Current Read

2009-04-20T04:27:00.001-04:00

Murder on a Midsummer Night by Kerry Greenwood

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
Another good read from Kerry Greenwood. Dealing with archeaological artifacts, amongst other things. Phryne has moved into 1929.

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Spring!

2009-04-14T09:21:00.002-04:00

The Dogwood trees have blossomed! It's the most beautiful time in the neighborhood. However, it is overcast and lightly raining, so not as good as brilliant sunshine. I'll take it though, because we need the rain.

My hopeful Hostas are peeking through the ground. They usually get fully grown before the deer chew them down to the nubs.

We had a deer wander actoss the front yard early this morning, looking curiously (longingly ?) at my potted Pansies. They were too close to the house for her, I guess. The pansies are probably going to get get chewed up eventually too.

Don Giovanni - revisited

2009-04-06T04:24:00.003-04:00

From the Opera on the James web site:

Opera on the James presents a season of grand opera blazing with passion and conflict. Two highly controversial masterworks from the annals of operatic history—Verdi’s La Traviata and Mozarts’ Don Giovanni—come to life as Opera on the James explores the intensely emotional, tragic cost of human exploitation.

http://www.operaonthejames.org/

Me:

Don Giovani was spectacular. But LONG. 3 1/2 hours! I was going to leave at intermission but I'm glad I didn't. The final scenes where he goes to Hell were magnificent. They had a good size pit orchestra too. Only a couple of Lynchburg musicians, the rest out-of towners.

Bass player from Washington, DC - I didn't know. I'm sure getting out of the loop, as they say.

4/7/2009..........

I got home so late from the performance on Sunday that we got Chinese take-out from Kings Island for supper. I just wanted to remember our fortunes out of the fortune cookies:

Mine was: 'You will always get what you want throught your charm and personality' (Ha!)

Dad's was : 'You are the master of every situation' (pretty much).

Christmas Cactus

2009-04-05T05:36:00.003-04:00

Our Christmas Cactus started blooming again around St. Patrick's Day. Here are the blooms for April Fool's Day. LOL

Blueberry Girl

2009-03-10T04:44:00.000-04:00

Blueberry Girl by Neil Gaiman

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
A beautiful poem / prayer by Neil Gaiman. I love the illustrations by Charles Vess.

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