part 2 pursuit of happiness

     Everyone's hungry at Many Branches                                                                          

This is part two of the things that make me happy although not in any particular order of preciousness.

Winter cooking makes me happy and it follows the first of the series which was the home.             Cooking for loved ones in Hilton Head one Thanksgiving at the beach.

            

                                             
Easter roast (I want this now, please.)

he beginning of the set up~he beginning of the set up

                    Love beef stew,  perfect for this kind of weather.

Worth showing twice...beef stew

Be prepared for a crowd, always.

Afternoon tea

                                   From Andy's garden...it will come again soon. Sigh.

                                             

                                                     

                   

Using my 30 year old cake pans which I will keep on using since Nordic pans STICK.



I once loved my series of Nordic pans, now...not so much, they stick!


As you can see, I love to cook and I love the people who eat my cooking.

                                                  

WANT TO MAKE LIZZIE D's RED VELVET CHEESECAKE BROWNIES



                             
Skillet lasagna with noodles you don't have to boil and then bake.

Honey bun cake. I've made this a dozen times at least.

                                                                              

Pursuit of happiness~

   I just discovered Susan Branch this morning
and she reminds me so much of Tasha Tudor
whom you all remember I am sure.  Susan has
a really interesting and cozy blog, and, she has
several books one of which is about to come out
in a few days.
    I thought to share of few ideas of what makes
me happy in the pursuit of pleasure and happiness...
just for fun.  (This will be on going due to the trouble of getting so many pictures on this blog at one time.)

Our home makes us very happy.

                       
Many Branches


                      

A French baker's rack and wire servers...

Twin pantry cupboards with hand painted still life art
                                             



                                                                             
          
We liked spending the last four Januarys at the beach house with Joe (Andy's brother and his wife, Glenda.  A full month together without a spat.






                                   Having Mike and Beth and Nate with us makes us happy.

Loving vintage glass ware and china for entertaining~

                 

      I place these little felt baskets on the adult Easter tables so guest can select an after dinner drink from the basket choices.                                                                          

An early Haviland fresh strawberry server with a sugar basket for dipping.  Each person would get their own little handled scoop filled with beautiful spring berries.  They knew how to entertain back then.Below that, in an awkward posting, is a collection of trios, all different which consists of a tea cup and saucer and a matching cookie plate.

An early server for fresh strawberries; note the sugar basket for dipping.                                    

Antique tea cups, saucers and matching dessert plate. Everyone gets a different trio.

A place setting of beautiful dishes that Monet used from the book Monet's Table. Haviland makes them available now.                                                        

Each person gets a different dessert trio: cup, saucer and dessert plate. Also pictured, cake plates and other serving pieces.     The yellow is Monet's table ware shown in Monet's Tabl


                                                                 

                                                   
                                                               

                                                                          

Antique trios: tea cup, saucer and dessert plate.  Everyone gets a different set.

I'm in 'the corner'

Cook's Corner will celebrate its 60th birthday Tuesday, marking six decades as a recipe exchange for home cooks throughout central Ohio.

The forum, published weekly in the Food &Life section of the Dispatch regularly features recipes for reader favorites and advice about all things food such as how to cook bear.  I bet that one isn't used very often, but a request appeared and Lisa Abraham answered.  She is the food editor now and is bringing the section back to greatness.  Sue Dawson served as Dispatch food editor from 1979 to 2000.  She supervised the column in its heyday, but cook's corner was first presented February 16, 1956 and was well received from the beginning.   It had a bumpy time a few years ago because on- line recipes are an easy find, but to me nothing beats a cup of coffee and a sit down with Wednesday's inspiration from the Cook's Corner.  May she thrive for another 60 years.



Spiced bacon pecans
makes 2 1/2 cups
4 strips bacon, diced
2 cups pecan halves
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 tablespoons brown sugar

Line a rimmed baking sheet with kitchen parchment.
In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until almost crispy. Add the pecans and toss to coat thoroughly, then cook, stirring frequently, until evenly toasted 2-3 minutes.
In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, cayenne, salt, pepper, and brown sugar.  Toss with the bacon and pecans and cook for another minute. Spread out on the prepared baking sheet and allow to cool fully. Store, if there are any left, in an airtight container at room temperature.

If you do not get the Dispatch, you can get on line and read Cook's Corner ever Wednesday and view the recipes from the past as well as today's.

Lechler kennel and B&B

I had forgotten how much work a new puppy is, but oh the joy.  Alyssa flew in from New Orleans and she and Beth drove four hours (there and back) to pick up this little jewel who is peeking out the plane window checking out Southwest safety features. Bella and Fergie do not miss her at all, but Winston and Posy thought she was the berries.

These Lechler ladies and Pam Taylor will be going to Paris and Italy in June. What an adventure they will have. Kathy isn't pictured but she and her daughter Alex are going making a total of six. So it is: Our Beth, Kathy, Alex, Pam Taylor, Pam, and Mary Susan.  Mary Alice is in the picture, but she is not going.

Nate has selected Hawaii for his yearly trip.  He will go to his brother in Colorado to ski and snowboard at the beginning of his trip, then fly to Hawaii and return to Colorado for another stay.  All in twenty days of adventure.

What a week end.  I feel like I am running a kennel and a B&B.  It was so much fun having Alyssa and her new puppy to visit.  She and Beth had to drive four hours (there and back) to pick her up, but she was worth it,  I had forgotten how much work a new puppy is, see, that is forgotten too.  Bella and Fergie (dogs) wanted nothing to do with this interloper, but Winston and Posy were very good hosts. Alyssa will be a good dog owner and a thoughtful, caring mother to her new puppy.  She is one lucky dog.  

Chicken soup with rice~it's nice

                                 

           
The most popular and easiest dishes at the beach house this January were the crockpot soups.  Today I have a couple of rotisserie chickens and a bag of basmati rice and loads of vegetables, so chicken soup with rice will be the dinner tonight. I have taken the meat from the bones and now the bones, vegetables, seasoning and water are bubbling away making a delicious broth for the finished product.  If it does not taste right I will add an envelop of Gourmet Crockpot seasoning that I buy by the dozen to keep on hand to enhance different broths. It is spring like here in Columbus, but soups are still on the minds of the family because it is February.

Alyssa is coming home Saturday.  Her graduation puppy is waiting to be picked up and she is totally ready for her to be carried on the plane to New Orleans where Alyssa has a darling apartment which has all the accouterments for a special dog. I don't know what our four dogs are going to think of the little ball of all white fur, but...someone is going to have to adjust.  I have a nice Falter's ham ready for the Sunday table and plans for the juicy bone to make different kinds of bean soup.  Easter is near at hand and the freezers have the room, so why not?

I have been making chicken meatballs with a touch of red pepper flakes from Carfagna's chicken meatball mix.  The meatballs are delicious and I put them in any number of soups.I cannot stand those frozen meatballs that can be bought by the bag in the markets. They taste strange, so I make my own from the meat counter at the Italian speciality store named Carfagna's.

Making broth for chicken soup/rice.

Chicken meatballs for the soup.
                                  
                         

Egg roll stir fry

                                                 

Trying this today!! (And, it was delicious.)

1 pound ground beef or pork (crumple and fry with 1 large diced onion in a very large skillet.)

1 small head of cabbage sliced in julienne form.  Add to meat mixture

3 diced carrots add to meat and cabbage mixture

Stir the following together in a bowl: 4-5 cloves of garlic minced, 1 tablespoon grated ginger, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/4 cup soy sauce

Add the bowl contents to the skillet and mix, stir over medium to high heat for 4 minutes.

Reduce to medium and cook until cabbage is tender as you would any stir fry.

I am using this minced chicken, carrot, onion,celery mix instead of pork or beef because I had a nice rotisserie chicken on hand.

4 to 6 servings   

Snickerdoodle Bread

             

I have been on a loaf pan frenzy for the last two months...don't know why, but if it fit in a loaf pan, then that was the food's vehicle for the day.  This is my second post after being away for a month and not writing for Sundays with the Lechlers, so as I was searching for inspiration  snickerdoodle bread showed up everywhere I looked all of a sudden.  I could post several recipes, but what is the point when you can google snickerdoodle bread and take your choice of dozens of recipes.  I am going to select one and if it is really good, I will tell you where to find it. If you find one, please let me know what you've tried.  The snickerdoodle cookies are so good and so old fashion, I just don't know why I never heard of snickerdoodle bread until today.  (Maybe it was the loaf pan that caught my attention.)

Mennonite Girls Can Cook's (blog) featured individual beef wellington today.  I have always wanted to try that, but if you don't get it right, think of the cost of that mistake.  Beef is so expensive now and we are paying steak prices for ground chuck now days unless it happens to be on sale, so the cut that costs in the puff pastry wrap is a treasure to be uncovered for sure if it is done right.    

  Another thing I didn't realize until this Florida trip, stores' prices are not fixed and depend on the area in which you are shopping at the time.  I thought if Kroger had a price for ground chuck, one could get that price in any Kroger store no matter which one you happened to drive to. Not so, if you are in a high toned area, those prices will reflect that.  Publix is a really nice grocery store in Florida but you can pay one price and then drive 20 miles and find a different price.  (Andy does a lot of our shopping, so I am constantly surprised and always interested in the way things play out.)