New Years Day! 2010 - wow what does that mean to you? I know - anothe year has past - a new one to make resolutions and accomplish all the things we've promised and dreamed about! True -- but today - January 1, 2010 meant something totally different to me! I am dead tired beause it meant - all the fun I had putting up 8 trees - one very large and beautiful with about a hundred ornaments to some very simple ones, dressing the mantle and tables - had to be reversed! That is not fun - just pure work! I wanted everything boxed and labeled - so right after (or maybe just before) Thanksgiving I can enjoy the thrill of opening everything back up and displaying it again! So forgive me if I am not very cleaver tonight!
Amid the mess and packing and labeling and sweeping up remains of trees -- I did do some cooking! First I made a Ham and Corn Chowder - and according to the raves of my family (yes - I also shared with my Mom and Sister) - was delicious. I started looking at recipes in about six different books and choose one to get me started -- but oh my - how boring. So - first off - I peeled and diced four potatoes and diced one onion. I put them on to boil with two cloves of garlic (pressed with my wonderful garlic press). While that was coming to a boil, I cut up two cups of left over ham (making sure to trim away all of the fat), and then heated it up in a little Olive Oil. When the potatoes/onions were tender to fork I added the ham, 2 cups frozen whole kernel corn, fresh sliced mushsrooms ( that I also placed in skillet and allowed to heat) - 1 can (97% fat free) Crean of mushroom soup, and 2 cups chicken broth. At this point it was pretty bland and close to the recipe - except for the garlic and mushrooms I had added!) Then I added generous dashes of black pepper, salt to taste just right (only the cook know when it is right), 1 tsp. of Fox Point (remind me to tell you about this wonderful spice), 3/4 tsp. CAYENNE pepper (there is one of my secret ingredients )- and 1 tsp. French Thyme. Then I added 1 can condensed evaporated milk - wow - it was delicious!
I also cooked dried black eye peas - of course we had to have those for luck -- but yuk - not just plain - add onion, garlic, and Rotel Tomatoes and Green Chiles to make them even luckier - and if not - at least better to taste! Then we had Red Cabbage cooked with Granny Smith Apples, brown sugar, onions -- any way - a great recipe I was first introduced to at Escondita - Texas Country Reporter's hacienta in the Hill county! By this time I was really tired but my husband said - "and Banana Pudding." Since I never make a dessert "just for him" (according to him) - by the time he had walked the dogs - I had the old fashion Banana Pudding about done! It is so easy and most men love them: Just take a sauce pan - add 1 cup Sugar, 3 Tablespooons flour, 1/2 tsp. salt - stir. Break 3 egg yolks into 2 cup measuring cup and fill with milk to 2 cups (use 1 cup half and half to make it really good!) Beat eggs and milk really well with fork and slowly add to sugar mixture. Add 3 tablespoons butter, and stir over medium high heat until starts turning thick. Add 1-1/2 tsp. to 1 Tablespoon vanilla. Place some vanilla wafers into bottom of one quart bowl, slice one banana, pour about half of the pudding over wafers and banana, repeat with vanilla wafers, bananas, and top with rest of pudding. Crush a few wafers on top. Easy - and that is the way to a man's heart!
Hope your first day of 2010 was great - and not so much work as mine! Seize the year - make it count - do some things you've wanted to - some things (like cooking) that you didn't think you could - and do something good for someone less fortunate! God Bless - and tune in tomorrow for another tip on how to catch the adventure of the kitchen!
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