Kitchen Think Tank

Deer Hunting

2011-11-26T12:39:00.001-06:00

I was over at the daughter's house the other day. It is Fall and the kids are just now starting to have to stay indoors more often. A hard transition from Summer to Winter. Boredom was setting in on the girls and the six year old ran into the room and asked her dad if he could take them deer hunting. Deer hunting?? Here is the explanation:

There is an open field across the street from the daughter's house. Deer have been spotted there. One night my son-in-law loaded up the little girls in his truck and they drove across the street, over the curb and into the field. He shut off the engine and kept the head lights on. They counted fourteen deer in the field eating. The girls were amazed. That was deer hunting.

Grand Daughter and the phone call

2011-08-11T09:50:00.001-05:00

I was talking to my five year old grand daughter on the phone. We were going through the routine of saying our goodbyes: the I love yous and the see you tomorrows and how much we loved each other and who loves whom more. You know the routine! Then, as only a child of the 21st century, on a cell phone, would say, "Okay Nanna, I'm going to push the button now, bye!"

Me and God have this mutual admiration thing going on

2011-06-15T23:28:00.001-05:00

I know, quite a topic. I take a rather simplistic view of God. I always have. I was brought up in the Lutheran church. I have spent most of my life seeking God in all the wrong places. Different churches, different religions and it all boiled down to to one thing....Love. You see, I have found God everywhere I want to be. Everywhere I need to be. Everywhere.

It took all of my life to finally understand that God is really Love and that is pretty much it. No need to not do this or not do that. No need to memorize and quote endlessly. All I need to do is to love every single day of my life. Jesus said it all.

Love the Earth and take care of her. Love the Lord and be so very thankful. Love people. Love to help. Love to love.

I'm pretty sure God does not care about a lot of stuff that people think He cares about. I'm thinking He wants us to take care of each other. Make life easier for each other. To love one another in the process.

I'm also pretty sure he's not real fond of people blaming Him for everything. Come on, seriously, like He made a tornado to wipe out a town? Tornadoes are a result of the laws of nature and physics. So are earthquakes and hurricanes. So are meteorites and comets. How do people get off saying stuff like that?

I think a lot about all the people who have said one must believe "their way" or you will go to hell. Excuse me.....hell???? Hell is sickness and starvation. Hell is war and fighting. Hell is not taking care of each other.

On the other hand, Heaven is getting along. Heaven is tending to the needs of others to make their lives a bit nicer and easier. Love. Get it. Can you imagine if love was the basis behind every decision a leader of a country made? Or if love was the basis of every decision a corporation made? We would have life a whole lot easier than it is right now.

I get a kick out of people who say their God is not the same God I pray to. That's like saying the air I breathe is not the same air they breathe. Same God, different way of going about it. Some people feel comfortable in all the trappings and teachings of a religion. Rote words and actions to be done daily. I myself prefer spontaneous prayer and thanksgiving. I want my heart and soul open to the love around me. That's it.

I like to read a variety of spiritual books. I get something out of each of them. There are many religions because there are many types of people. I would be that free spirited soul who people roll their eyes at. But remember......the same God and it's all about the love.

Pi Day...3.14

2011-03-14T11:02:00.000-05:00

My niece is a high school math teacher. God bless her. Really, like who loved math and all its derivatives? Not many of us. Thus, not many really good math teachers. She loves Pi Day. March 14. Get it????

In honor of Pi Day make a pie for a math lover in your life. Be it a teacher, student, engineer, carpenter, or anyone who can balance a checkbook. Everyone loves pie!

The Three Monkeys

2011-03-08T22:49:00.003-06:00

You know those three monkeys: See, Speak, and Hear no evil. They are rather funny and cute. Anything to do with monkeys is funny. Those three monkey tenets are what we should be doing on a daily basis.

Three things to remember is way better than ten things to remember. Ten Commandments versus the Three Monkeys. A no brainer. Not that there is anything wrong with the Ten Commandments!

See no evil. I like that one. It covers a lot of area. Evil is a broad encompassing term. I'm petty sure evil is stuff that should be off limits to humans. Here is my list of some of the things I find quite evil: murder, cruelty, hate, abuse, neglect, greed, hunger, filth. I'm pretty sure the monkeys think we should always make sure that evil things do not happen, that way we won't have to look at it. According to the monkey, one should have no evil to see.

Speak no evil. Another good one. Evil words have started wars. Evil words destroy. Kind words teach and build. There is power in speaking. We speak with our hearts and with our mouths. I'm thinking we should all probably pay more attention to what we are saying. Speak is a pretty smart monkey.

Hear no evil. This one got me thinking. What does evil sound like? I think it sounds like hate. I think it sounds like lies. I think it sounds like gossip. The monkeys are wanting us to not sit around and listen to evil stuff. Sit, as in to do nothing. We are to stop the sounds of hate.

Without saying a word, those three monkeys have pretty much said it all.

Sayings....

2011-03-01T07:09:00.002-06:00

Mess not with the cook, for she has powers yet to be shown and you have opposing thumbs. See that sink full of dirty dishes?

Life is full of events. Some fortunate, some not so fortunate. So, hold your family near and choose your friends with care.

Love is what makes everything bearable, even if only for a moment. I'll take moments.

The cook don't cook what the cook don't like.

Use your super powers. We all have them.

A messy cook is a happy cook, for she has help.

Act like you really love them, then, you will.

Hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil.

Marriage vows are a good plan. When it gets rough, refer to the plan.

.....and they lived happily ever after.

2011-02-12T06:31:00.002-06:00

Today is the mark of thirty nine years of being married. We laugh about it. Thirty nine years is a heck of a long time, even in dog years. In some cultures, it's a lifetime. In other cultures, it is a career.

Many of my friends have asked to know "the secret" to our marriage. My answer, there is no secret. If there were, there would be no more divorces, no more marriage counselors, and golden anniversaries would be the norm.

I was eighteen and he was barely nineteen when we said "I do". On that day, we had known each other for a total of five months. I thought I would burst with the love I had for him. I could not love him any more than I did that day, or so I thought. I was quite wrong on that one. I do, indeed, love him more today than that yesterday of thirty nine years ago.

Here is how I would describe our marriage. It is kind of like a well run company. Instead of money for capital, we had love. Love is what runs our company called marriage. Sounds rather simple, doesn't it? It really is. When you love someone, that love affects how you treat each other. It also affects decision making. If the love runs low, problems and issues are magnified. If the love runs high, problems and issues are just small bumps in the road. Our wedding vows were our business plan. We stuck to them.

As in a well run, well capitalized business, commitment is key. Total commitment to the plan, to the goal, to each other. When in doubt, go to the plan. One person cannot do it all. Where one is weak, the other is strong. What one can't fix, the other can. Over time, the company grows. A well run company will increase in assets and value. And so it is with our marriage.

It's really hard not to get all maudlin and mushy when thinking about the last four decades. I think of all of our accomplishments. I think of our dreams that have come to fruition. I think of every time zone and country we have made love in. Yes, I think about those things!

At this point in our marriage and our lives, we still have goals. We still look forward to the next adventure. We still have dreams yet to come true. We still have more time zones and countries to........

Reminders of Love

2011-02-05T10:48:00.000-06:00

I was reminded by my dad the other day. Not reminded of, but reminded by. I got into my car and briefly smelled my dad. It brought a smile to my face. It was a smell of cigarettes and whiskey. Not an unpleasant odor by any means, even though it sounds rather icky. It is the way my dad smelled. He smoked Camel cigarettes and loved his whiskey. It's not that same smell of stale smoke, alcohol, and cologne you smell upon walking into an old bar. This was my dad. Fresh tobacco, a light scent of an American whiskey, and a smile. Yep, that was my dad.

My car has never had cigarette smoke in it. I haven't smoked a cigarette in over a decade. And, no opened alcohol of any kind has been in my car. In fact, my dad has never been in my car. You see, he passed on quite some time ago. Before the new VW bugs were ever designed.

I like to think of this event as a visit. Much like the visits I have in my dreams. Sometimes, those people I have loved who have passed on, show up in my dreams. When I wake up after having such a dream, I have such a good feeling. You would think I would have sadness, but I don't. I have been visited by each and every one of those loved ones at one time or another.

These little visits are reminders of love. Love that is not gone because someone dies. Love that is not gone because we cannot see nor touch that person. Just plain and pure love. Kinda makes you think, doesn't it?

Passing of the Baton

2010-09-17T12:34:00.001-05:00

I was in the kitchen, bright and early making pasta salad for the party in the country tonight. My dear friend has a country house and hired a local Kansas City blues band, Levee Town, to play. We all call it Blues-a-Palooza in the Country. I tried to think how much fun it was going to be. I tried to think of bonfires and wine and cigars and food. I tried to keep the tears at bay. My mind kept going to Betty.

We had a death in the family yesterday and I was thinking about all that goes with the event, while chopping vegetables. How much I loved her and how much she loved me and my family, how fun she was and how much laughter she brought to the entire family. She was the cousin of my mom-in-law. That makes her my husband's second cousin, my daughter's third cousin, and my grand children's fourth cousin. Her adult children grew up with my husband. They now have grandchildren. I've lost track of the continuing cousin levels. No need to know. All I know is, we are family and we are all saddened.

We will gather in the country to grieve together, laugh together, eat together, and just hang on to each other. It's what a family does. This may very well be the last country funeral I will ever attend. (By the way, country funerals are very different from city funerals. I will describe in another post) She is the last of the relatives to live in Walnut Grove, population 600. Even the name of the town stirs up images of a small town much like the Walnut Grove in the Laura Ingalls Wilder stories. It is not the same one, however, it shares all of the characteristics of Laura's Walnut Grove.

The family members, on our limb of the family tree, were called last night with the news of the death. They will need to be called again as more information is available. There will be a dinner at the church on Sunday. The ladies of the church need a head count. Flowers will need to be ordered. Family members will need to be called again with all the particulars of the dinner, visitation, and funeral. I will be handling all of this as the representative of our part of the family tree. Thank goodness for email, texting, cell phone, and land line.

I have been handed the baton of the matriarch of the family. I now realize it. It's been coming on for quite some time now. More and more family gatherings at my house. Family members asking me for the latest update of other family members. Holiday central is right here. And, I have become a caregiver for both the mom and dad of my husband. But, today, it's official. My husband's mother asked me to order the flowers for the family. Yep, in this family, that would be the indication of the leadership roll.

My mom-in-law had all sons. No daughters. I have been married to her oldest son for almost thirty nine years. I am now caring for the parents of my husband. They raised the nicest human being I have ever known. They are the grandparents to my daughter. They are the great grandparents to my grandchildren. It is an honor, and a lot of work, to care for them. I am very close to them.

In the past, whenever there was a death of a family friend or relative, she would call with the news and then call again with the particulars. She would make a point to tell us that she had taken care of the flowers for the family. For a long time, I didn't really know what that meant. One time, when they were living almost two hundred miles away, in the height of their busy retirement years, I had taken it upon myself to order some flowers from just us. It was for the funeral of a mutual friend. A few days after that funeral, she informed me that she had ordered flowers....for the family. Not knowing it was the unwritten rule of the family for her to do that, I told her I too had ordered flowers for us. The look on her face was one of shock and disbelief. Uh oh, I had over stepped the boundaries of the funeral rules of the family. From that day on, she always made it a point to tell me that she was doing the flowers. End of funeral flower discussion.

Today was different. I had called to check on her, knowing she had a fretful night. She and her cousin were like the sisters neither of them had. They were around each other as much as possible as they grew up. They lived close to each other when they married and raised their families. They have always remained close, up to the end. She was doing pretty good. She asked about all the family members I called and what their plans were. She wanted to make sure they all knew how to get to Walnut Grove and did they know where the church was. I just said they knew. I didn't have to go into an explanation of Mapquest, Google Maps, cell phones, texting, or GPS. Then, she asked me what kind of flowers to send. Mind you, this is the lady who had been ordering funeral flowers since the baton was passed to her after her own mom had passed! I told her I thought something very sweet and feminine would be nice. She then asked if I would take care of it. At that point, right then and there, I knew I was the official matriarch of the family. The go to person, the confidant, the soother of hurt feelings, information central. The Top Mom. Holy shit! This is for real.

I've noticed what men will do....

2010-09-07T10:46:00.001-05:00

I was at the Royals baseball game over the weekend. Before the game started I was sitting in my seat, drinking a beer, and eating homemade potato chips with blue cheese, green onion, and bacon. Decadent on so many levels. The Kansas City weather had calmed down and decided to act like San Diego. I was in my own personal heaven.

The players on the field were going through their pre-game routines. As I watched a group of guys walk from the dugout, all the way behind right field, to the bull pen, I couldn't help but notice one particular guy. He had on a hot pink Barbie or Hello Kitty backpack. Not one other player had on a backpack.

I came up with two possible reasons why a Major League Baseball player would walk across a ball field wearing a hot pink backpack:

1. He lost a bet with some of the guys. Guys take betting seriously. Including payoff and the big loss. It's what they do.

or

2. His little daughter asked him to use it so she could see him on TV. Dads will do ANYTHING for their daughters. Anything. It's what they do.

Religious Freedom

2010-08-19T12:43:00.001-05:00

I cooked all day today for a sick neighbor. Chicken and dumplings and peach crumble. Lots of time to think and pray. I thought about a lot of things. The one thing I thought about a lot, was the discussion and goings on around our country concerning the Muslim community center to be built in New York.

I am very concerned for our country. This is not a path our country should be taking. No religious group should ever be singled out and shunned. Our country was started because certain religious groups were shunned. Religious freedom started the exodus from England to the New World. It continues today from other countries. Persecution of religious groups is not to be tolerated, period.

A neighbor of mine recently described the allowing of a Muslim built community center to be a "poke in the eye". Really, a poke in the eye? That is pretty drastic. I am thinking a poke in the eye is an action of intent to inflict physical pain and disfigurement. Somehow, I don't think a community center has that intent. But hey, that must be just me. I just kept my mouth shut and filed it under ignorance. One cannot argue peacefully with an ignorant person who is unwilling to listen and reason. No matter how much wine either party has consumed!

I remember how wrong it was to shun Catholics, Jews, and Mormons even as a young girl. People did it all the time. Many of my family members did it. Marrying someone not of your religion was considered a mixed marriage. Some things have changed for the good. But this Muslim thing has me a bit sad and angry. Muslims are being terrorized and shunned because of the actions of a few.

When Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols, and Michael Fortier bombed the Federal Building in Oklahoma City, their religious faith was not shunned. Christian churches were not told they could not build in certain locations. Why? Because they did not embody the Christian religion in their actions. They chose to use terrorist violence to show their disdain for our country. They should not be tolerated.

The way I see it, Muslims were not embodied in the actions of September 11, 2001. It was a political group called Al Quaeda who chose to use terrorist violence to show their disdain for our country and disdain for Jews. They have no affiliation to a country, so they do it in the name of Islam. That does not mean all Muslims are members of Al Quaeda. Just a very, very small group who have tarnished the name of Muslims all over the world, especially here in the United States. They should not be tolerated.

The way I see it, Christians are not embodied in the actions of Skin Heads, the KKK, or Neo Nazis. They are political groups who have no affiliation with a country. They have chosen to show their disdain for non white, non Christians by terrorist violence in the name of Christianity. Just a very, very, small group who have tarnished the name of Christians in the United States. These groups should not be tolerated.

The way I see it, Nazis did the same thing. They had no affiliation with a religious group or country. So, they decided to try and create their own country to justify their disdain for Jews and non white people as they committed horrific acts of terrorism. They tarnished those who were not Jewish and white. This group should not be tolerated.

We cannot allow our country to be overtaken by religious intolerance. If we do, we will be just like others who have terrorized and shunned religious groups. We will fail as a country. Our country was not based on religious intolerance.

Things I like to do..........

2010-08-15T12:58:00.003-05:00

Kiss my husband...Walk on a beach...Taste frosting...Pet the cat...
Swim in a pool all by myself...Watch sunsets...Knead bread dough...
Rock my babies...Laugh with my sisters...Drink champagne...
Listen to blues music...Cook for my family and friends...Read...
Smoke cigars...Road trips...Watch Christmas movies...Paint furniture...
Kiss the heads of my grand children...Take food pictures...
Sit in DFW watching people...Shop for gifts...
Drink coffee...Walk in the woods...Listening as it snows...
Get ice cream at 10pm...Drive a golf cart...Write...
Watch a thunderstorm roll in...Open a gift...Sneeze...
Read cookbooks...Ride the Sea Doo...Road trips...
Digging around in antique stores...Surf the internet...
Make quilts...

Cigars and Citronella

2010-07-17T07:18:00.001-05:00

Last evening was one of the few evenings we have been able to sit out on the deck.

We have had a run of very hot and humid weather. Just watering the flowers, as the sun is going down, results in sweat just dripping everywhere on my body. Very, very miserable.

I would not have made it as a pioneer or old settler in the Midwest during the Summer. Those pioneer women who cooked meals, tended gardens, raised children, had babies, and helped their husbands to tame the country in this sweltering heat, were some of the strongest women in the world. I'm not so sure I would have made it.

Tonight was a respite. A short thunderstorm moved through the area. It provided just enough relief to enjoy the veranda by lowering the humidity and temperature.

We had gone out for dinner later than usual because we were mesmerized by the storm clouds. The clouds were so high and so beautiful we couldn't stop looking at them. Many times in the Summer, here in the Midwest, thunderstorms just form. In one hour it can go from totally cloudless to a thunderstorm billowing 50,000 feet into the sky. Then, after the sun goes down, there is nothing but stars in the sky. Last evening was one of those times.

After the storm had passed, we went to get a bite for dinner. It was about eight o'clock and the crowds were starting to thin out. I enjoyed a delicious white sangria before dinner, sitting there, with my sweetie. We each talked about our day and enjoyed being together. You would think, after thirty eight years of marriage we would have grown tired of each other. Quite the contrary.

By the time we left the restaurant, the temperature had dropped a few degrees and the humidity had dropped many percentage points. When we got home the veranda was calling us. I watered the hanging baskets with flowers, the pots of herbs, and the tropicals. Saw a neighbor walking her dog and chatted a bit. It had turned into a comfortable evening.

As the dark set in, I lit a citronella candle and a couple of little tea lights. The veranda had that welcoming, cozy glow. Jim came out with a cigar and asked if I wanted a little one. When he buys cigars, he also gets these little vanilla cigars not much bigger than my pinkie finger, just for me. Once in a while, a little cigar is just the right thing.

We sat there in the flickering light smoking our cigars and listening to George, the resident bull frog. George has been bellowing for a mate all summer. The chirping birds of the day were replaced by the symphony of tree frogs, crickets, cicadas, and George.

The smell of vanilla cigars and citronella candles finished our day. Summer in the Midwest.

Things I love......

2010-05-29T10:24:00.003-05:00

Classical music...Mount Rushmore...Astronauts...My husband...
Lavender scented sheets...My yellow Bug...Sweatshirts...Thunderstorms...
Onion rings...Black Hills Gold...Art...
Road trips...My brother...Rome...Sea glass...Boots...
The veranda...Thanksgiving...Amaretto on the rocks...KCGC logo...
My daughter...Dangle earrings...Pink polish on my toes...Jeans...Meteorite shower...Rabbits...
Pink and purple flowers...Art Museum...Dishes...Roses...Socks...My sisters...Spandex...Christmas...
Mashed potatoes...Hummingbirds...Fall...Chocolate fondue...Glitter...The ocean...Kindle...Shells...
Niagara Falls...Rosé Wine...Riding the Sea Doo...Eggs over easy...Flip flops...My grandchildren...
Puerto Vallarta...Blues Music...Burning Man...

Have you ever noticed?

2010-03-25T13:22:00.003-05:00

These are a few things I have observed in my kitchen travels:

Many of the older recipes, in older cookbooks and recipes from grandmothers and great grandmothers, contain the 1/3 measurement many more times than the 1/4 or the 1/2.

We must learn the terms of today, years ago, and the terms of different geographic areas in order to make their recipes. Here are just a few examples:

Butter: block, cube, stick, cups, pounds, ounces

Margarine: oleomargarine, oleo, and the brand names. Many times, margarine was used in place of butter and no note was ever given.

Oil: vegetable, canola, olive, virgin olive, extra virgin olive, corn, safflower, cottonseed, sesame, walnut,and many more. Many times in recipes a brand name was used instead of the word oil: Wesson seemed to be the most used back in the day.

Shortening: Lard, Crisco, Fluffo, and vegetable shortening. Fluffo was a yellow colored shortening used most frequently for pie crusts and fried chicken. My mom used to send me the large cans of Fluffo once in a while. It cost more to mail it to me than it did to buy it. She did this because I could not find it in the Kansas City area. I used it ONLY for pie crust. Crisco was the term most commonly used for shortening in my generation.

These were the main terms that I have run across lately. I know there are many more. I'll keep you posted on additional words.