Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for October, 2012

Welcome to Fall, Y’all!  The temperatures sure have cooled off here in Central Kentucky and we had our first real frost possibility last night.  Cooler temperatures always make me want to cook more if that’s possible.  Before we get to what went on around here over the weekend and this week’s menu plan, I have a little weather predicting to do for you.

A co-worker of C’s uses Edmodo which is an online community for educators.  C uses this, too, and follows this particular co-worker on there.  He found this link to a Louisville television station and its report on the Old Farmer’s Almanac folklore of predicting winter weather using a persimmon seed on her feed.  Since we have an abundances of persimmons behind our house, C & I decided to give it a try.  Here is the premise:  slice a persimmon seed in half (not an easy thing to do…watch those fingers) and look at the membrane inside.  If it is shaped like a spoon there will be a lot of snow this winter.  If it is shaped like a knife, the winter will be very cold and windy.  A fork is what you want because it means a nice and mild winter.  Guess which one we got on all 3 seeds we checked?

IMG_9746

IMG_9752

IMG_9755

IMG_9756

Yep, they are all spoons!  The one on the top right MIGHT be a fork, but I think it is a spoon.  I am not the biggest fan of winter weather so this really was not what I wanted to see.  In a few months, we will see how accurate those seeds are.

Now back to our regular programming.  Not much cooking went on around here this weekend.  Saturday I spent most of the day with my co-workers shopping on the Roller Coaster Yard Sale.  I found a few bargains like a wooden china cabinet/hutch that is in really good shape and only needs sanding and either staining or painting.  It was a steal at only $60 and will look great in our upstairs hallway.  I also found some random 8×10” photo frames that I am going to paint to use upstairs as well.  I bought 8 frames for a total of $7.50.   The design of the frame was not all that important since I will make them cohesive by painting them the same color, white for the green bedroom and black or silver for the purple one. 

The one thing I did not accomplish last week was grocery shopping.  Oh, well.  We are still in good shape so I think I will postpone that until next week.  One more thing, the honey butter pork loin did not get made in favor of shredded pork bbq made with cherry barbecue sauce I got at Huber’s Orchard & Winery.  That story will be coming soon.

Leftover shredded bbq with oven fries

Grilled hamburgers with oven fries

Sausage bake with fresh fruit

Honey Butter Pork Loin Meatloaf (had a change of taste) with fries

Pizza night

Oreo truffle brownies (ran out of time) (new)

Please join me at I’m An Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.

Read Full Post »

Back in the summer, C’s family held a reunion and it was a potluck meal.  Since it was so so hot, I wanted to fix a cake that was moist and refreshing, but not heavy.  When I found this lemonade cake recipe at Feeding My Temple on one of the link parties I participate in, I knew it was the one I wanted to try.

This is a scratch made, super-moist cake infused with lemonade concentrate with the most delicious lemonade butter cream frosting.  I could have eaten the frosting by itself!  In fact, I may have eaten just a little on the side, but you won’t tell, will you?  If you have a potluck to attend, give this recipe a try.  I think it will be a great success.

Lemonade Cake

For the cake:

1/3 cup butter, softened

1 1/3 cup sugar

3  eggs

2 1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/3 cup frozen concentrated lemonade, thawed

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/4 cup buttermilk (I used the dehydrated buttermilk mixed with the dry ingredients and added water where the recipe called for buttermilk.)

For the frosting:

1/3 cup butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup frozen concentrated lemonade, thawed

1 teaspoon vanilla

IMG_6768

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9×13” baking pan with non-stick spray.  Sift the dry ingredients together and set aside.

IMG_6770

Beat the softened butter with the sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well between each.  Then add the lemonade concentrate and vanilla.

IMG_6774

IMG_6778

Add the flour mixture and buttermilk (or water) in portions, starting and ending with the flour mix. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

IMG_6784

IMG_6787

IMG_6799

When the cake has cooled, prepared the frosting by beating the butter and one cup of the powdered sugar together.  Then add the lemonade concentrate and vanilla.  Finish with the final cup of powdered sugar and beat until smooth and creamy.  Spread it on the cooled cake and enjoy!
IMG_6805

IMG_6806

IMG_6808

IMG_6816

IMG_7082

Read Full Post »

It’s Friday so that means it is time for another bookish post.  Please join me over at Rose City Reader for Book Beginnings.  Today’s first lines comes from a genre that I usually don’t read…non-fiction, but I made an exception.  I enjoy watching or reading about Great Britain so when I saw a new biography about Queen Elizabeth II at my local library, I snatched it up.

This has been a very enlightening read about the British monarchy and what it was like growing up in that spotlight.  I know that I never would want to have to endure or my children to endure that kind of scrutiny.

Here are the first lines of “Elizabeth The Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch” by Sarah Bedell Smith:

“At the end of the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton on April 29, 2011, the radiant couple turned before walking down the aisle at Westminster Abbey and stood before his grandparents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. The newlyweds were celebrated for their romantic love match, and for the young prince’s determination to marry his soul mate despite her being a “commoner” – having neither royal nor aristocratic origins. The bride and groom gave a low curtsy and neck bow to the Queen, who looked sturdy and stoic at age eighty-five.  She signaled her approval with an almost imperceptible nod.”

Sturdy and stoic are usually good adjectives to describe the Queen that the public sees, but this book takes you behind the scenes and shows you more of the real woman. 

Read Full Post »

Happy October, everyone! It is Monday again, so please join me and other menu planners over at I’m An Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.  I hope everyone had a wonderful week and is looking forward to another one.  C & I attended my dad’s family reunion yesterday and a good time was had by all.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous and I am very thankful for that since it was an outdoor reunion. 

This Thursday I am planning on taking my Nanny and Aunt Mona to Huber’s Orchard and Joe Huber’s Family Farm and Restaurant in Starlight, Indiana.  It will be the first trip for us there and it was all Nanny’s idea when she saw a commercial on television.  It should be a lot of fun!  Then Saturday, I am planning to go treasure hunting with my co-workers on the Roller Coaster Yard Sale.  There are a few pieces of furniture such as occasional tables and maybe a wooden chair or two that I would like for our house, but I am too cheap to pay retail. I would also LOVE to find an old trunk to use as an end table.  Hopefully there will be a few diamonds in the rough out there that I can refinish on the cheap.

This week is also grocery shopping week.  Yay…not.  Because of that, this week’s menu may be a little short.

Deep Dish Pizza

Grilled pork chops with oven fries

Chili

Honey butter pork tenderloin (new)

Grocery shopping-eat out night

Pizza night

Apple dumplings (if I have time)

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts