Losing A Loved One

Well I have had a very busy summer's end.
What have you been up to ?
I have recently taken on a part time job as well as a volunteer position at the local radio station.
I have also been coping with losing loved ones.
The past 2 years seems that every time I turn around someone is sick and dying!
Last night again I received the news that my Aunt passed away.
I also received news that my son's mother in law is going into the hospital on Monday to have a small tumour removed from her lung.
It seems everywhere you turn these days that is all you hear about is death and dying.
I am saddened to hear this news yet again...

I pray to God to bless and keep us all healthy.
I can't believe that there was ice on the windshield this morning!
I know out west the snow started falling last week and as much as I pleaded for our nice weather to stay, we had to give in last night and fire up the furnace!
Luckily my landlord leaves it up to me as to when the heat / air conditioning comes on.
I somehow don't think that the usual October 15th for the furnace to be fired up is going to apply these days.
I keep chanting "Come on indian summer! We don't want snow for the fall fair on Thanksgiving weekend!"
For those of you reading this that live in another country Canada's Thanksgiving is celebrated usually around the 10th of October, this year it is on the 13th.
Well lets hope that indian summer appears and the snow stays away, for a little while atleast.
Do you have snow where you live this early in the year?

Laurie's Borscht

I love borscht I make a pot each season I get fresh beets and beet tops and vegetables from the farmer's market and make a beautiful canning pot full of  borscht.
Every family has it's own recipe and my recipe I have adapted over the years to what it is now...one of my favourite soups!
I make a canning pot and deliver some to a few friends and the rest I freeze for the fall when I want some nice borscht to warm me up.

12-15 large beets boil half of them with 4 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in the water and remove skins the other half rub with olive oil and spices and roast until almost cooked and skin will pop off  (water from beets to be used for broth)
6 cups beef broth (add to beet water)
Keep beet tops aside and chop finely along with  1 purple cabbage and 1 large bunch of swiss chard,  1 large red onion, 1 large white onion  3-4 parsnips, 3-4 carrots, 6 cloves of garlic 1 small retabaga or turnip
4 potatoes all chopped.
1/2 of the veggies are to be sautee'd in  bacon grease  add to broth and the other half will be added in 1.5 hours after the veggies simmer in the pot  and are mashed up.
Add  a can of diced tomatoes with herbs a large can of tomato paste and 1/2 pound chopped pastrami, some thyme, garlic, cardamon, dill weed and dill paste, 1 cup of dill pickle brine, and a table spoon of butter, a pinch or two of crushed caraway seeds.
After the 1.5 hours of boiling and mashing of the veggies in pot add the other 1/2 of the veggies and cook down until veggies are near done and turn offf pot, adjust seasoning to taste and serve with sour cream on top and a bit of dill and caraway seeds.

This is a large canning pot worth of borscht so adjust to amount you would like to have.
It freezes well but wouldn't keep it in the freezer more than 6 months, most cook books say 3-4 months but have kept and used it for 6 months and it tasted fine and was not frost bitten as I put a layer of waxed paper between the lid and the soup that stops the frost from biting the food.


I hope you and yours  enjoy my borscht recipe

Jack Rabbit!

While I had my granddaughter away for the weekend visiting her uncle we walked out into the backyard and my granddaughter and I got an up close  view of the jack rabbit that lives in my daughter in law's garden!

Chicken,Bacon, Lasagna Roll-ups

Chicken & Bacon Lasagna Roll Ups.

  * this recipe was from  http://chefrecip.es/  The photos are my own.

 Each pasta is filled with an abundance of cheeses; tender, shredded chicken; crispy bacon sauteed with onion and garlic; and finally, topped with Alfredo cream sauce!

Ingredients

8 lasagna pasta, cooked and drained.
1 pound bacon, diced, cooked and drained
1 small red or yellow onion
6 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 cups of Alfredo cream sauce
½ cup mozzarella (to sprinkle on top)
½ cup grated parmesan (to sprinkle on top)
Filling:
1 cup ricotta cheese
½ cup sour cream
6 oz. cream cheese
½ cup grated parmesan
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
salt and pepper (to taste, your preference)

Instructions

1. Add 8 pieces of lasagna pasta to a large pot of boiling water.
2. Cook pasta 2 minutes less than the directions on the package. It will finish cooking in the oven.
3. Drain pasta in strainer and lay pasta onto paper towels to dry off excess water.
4. Shred chicken breasts. Set aside.
5. Cut and fry bacon.
6. Add diced onions and crushed garlic 3 minutes prior to baking being finished.
7. Drain bacon mixture onto a plate with paper towels. (It will catch the excess fat.)
8. In a medium size bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, parmesan and seasonings.
9. Divide and spread the filling onto the cooked pasta evenly.
10. Add the shredded chicken onto each pasta.
11. Sprinkle the bacon mixture on top of the chicken and cheese mixture. (Save some for the top after you roll up the pasta.)
12. Sprinkle some parmesan on top of the bacon and chicken.
13. Spread ½ cup of cream sauce on the bottom of a medium baking dish.
14. Roll the pasta and put seam side facing down into the sauce that is in the baking dish.
15. Cover the roll ups with the rest of the cream sauce.
16. Top with pieces of bacon.
17. Sprinkle mozzarella and parmesan on top
    
    
    
    
    
    
18. 
    
19. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 25 to 35 minutes.
20. Let it rest after taken out of oven for 5 to 10 minutes.

The top photo is the test one I made to see if we liked it and Mom and I shared it for lunch and found it to be delicious so I went ahead and prepared the large one for supper tonight.

Lemonade on Ice

This recipe  and photo are  Paula Deen's  from the Food Network, and it is certainly a great lemonade to serve on these hot summer afternoons




Ingredients


2 cups sugar
1 cup hot water
2 cups fresh lemon juice
1 gallon cold water
1 lemon, sliced
Mint sprigs, for garnish
Directions
In a 1 gallon container, place sugar and hot water, and stir until sugar dissolves. Add lemon juice and cold water to render 1 gallon. Stir until well mixed. Pour lemonade over glasses of ice, squeeze slice of lemon on top of each, and garnish with a sprig of mint.

Summer Holidays

I know most people look forward to summer holidays,  but some would say none more than students.
Well that is not the case here.
I look forward to summer holidays so that it is quiet.
I live beside a high school.

Years ago younger folk were more respectful than they are these days.
The kids here swear like it was their job!
I personally don't swear, that was a personal choice.
I think it makes you sound very vulgar but that is my opinion.
I asked my children not to swear and they as even adults do not in my presence.
I told them there are only a few words that I don't wish you to utter and there is a whole dictionary of words you can use to get your point across without using those few.
I may have mentioned that if they wanted to show how intelligent they were using those words were not the way to accomplish that.

I love kids and living close to the school watching the kids walk past each morning on the way to school but the language is really loud and rude these days.

Anyone else have a pet peeve when it comes to swearing?

Wet and Windy Summer

So far this summer we have seen our share of rain and high winds.
I honestly don't remember the humidity being this high either.
How has the weather been in your little corner of the world this summer?
The days seem to drag on when you are inside due to the weather.
The days that is doesn't rain is so hot and humid you can't wait to get into the air conditioning.