Hunt for Bread

When we've gone to a local sandwich shop (Halletts Market) and had their Reuben panini, they've always used a marble rye bread that we have liked. Last time we were there we asked where they got their bread. So the next time I had a week-day off, Audrey and I went on the hunt for the bread at Alpine Bistro and Bakery located at 810 N. Monroe. From the title it sounded like it would also serve lunch, so we planned to do that too. It ended up being more of a coffee and breakfast place that also sold fresh bread, so we bought our loaf of bread and had lunch at Stella's, a place just around the corner at 917 W. Broadway. They have a great menu of soups and sandwiches and are only open during the weekdays. We shared a chicken salad sandwich (with bacon, tarragon, arugula) and soup meal that also came with chips. It was delicious and hit the spot. We went home and made a Reuben panini for dinner using our special rye bread. (Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, pastrami and thousand island dressing).

Super Bowl 48

Super Bowl XLVIII was the first Super Bowl played outdoors in a cold-weather city (New Jersey) and the first game that I watched in its entirety.  The Seattle Seahawks played the Denver Broncos. The game featured the top offense (Denver) against the top defense (Seahawks), something that last occurred in the 2003 Super Bowl.

Here we are ready for the game and decked out in our Seahawks gear! Even the kitty has prepped herself by taking full control of the remote!

On the first play of the game, 12 seconds into the game, the Broncos snapped the ball, it flew past Peyton Manning into the end zone, where Seattle picked up a safety. The quickest score in Super Bowl history (2-0). Scoring results by quarter: Seahawks - 8|14|14|7 and Broncos 0|0|8|0 .  The Seahawks defeated the Broncos 34-8, the third largest point differential in Super Bowl history. This became the first Super Bowl victory for the Seahawks!!

I thought the game was enjoyable to watch, but true football fans felt it was a tad boring. However, it was the most watched television program in US history with 111.5 million viewers! The halftime show featuring Bruno Mars and Red Hot Chili Peppers was entertaining. And of course we had to have our snacks ready. We had chocolate football cupcakes, Ruffles with onion dip, Spinach Dip with French bread, Little Smokies in BBQ sauce, and Hot Cheese Bean Dip with tortilla chips.

Hot Cheese Bean Dip
1 can (16oz) refried beans
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup green onions, diced
2 tablespoons taco seasoning
2/3 cup salsa (extra liquid drained)
1 can (4oz) diced green chilies (drained)
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

Mix everything together. Place in a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees until bubbling on the sides and golden brown on top, about 45-60 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips.

Spinach Dip
1 package (10oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 (16oz) container sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1 package Knorr Vegetable recipe mix (the yellow package)
3 green onions, chopped finely

Make sure spinach is thoroughly dry. Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Optional: can add diced water chestnuts if desired. Serve with French bread.

Free Cafe Rio !

Cafe Rio Mexican Grill finally came to Spokane! Thanks to someone posting on Facebook, I was able to snag a coupon for a pre-opening event held this evening. The coupon entitled 2 people to order free food. Since the 3 of us went, we just ordered two meals - the 2 taco plate and the enchilada style burrito plate, plus an order of Tres Leches cake. Come to find out when we handed her the coupon, we could have ordered anything (and everything) on the menu - it was basically free food to those in the restaurant. But sharing the two meals was plenty of food, since they came with rice and beans and drinks. The restaurant was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, so running into a ton of friends from church was not a surprise! Every time someone headed to Utah, they always had to get their Cafe Rio "fix". It was fun to see the Cleavers, Nelsons, Conrads, and Whalens. Thankfully we got there pretty early - - the line snaked outside the door and into the parking lot!!

Belated Birthday Celebration

December certainly gets busy, so we held off on my birthday movie and lunch until today.  Saw The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (second in the series) at AMC. Loved it! Of course Audrey made me watch the first movie (An Unexpected Journey) before we went so I would be "caught up". I had read the J.R.R. Tolkien story as a youth so was familiar with the plot line. Knew the spiders were going to make an appearance! Audrey laughed when I was squirming in my seat.

Then we went to Clinkerdagger's for a late lunch. They seated us by the window.

Audrey ordered the fettuccine and John ordered the turkey combo sandwich. He started eating before we could snap a picture! Audrey thought hers was too spicy (it was) so John traded with her halfway.

I ordered my favorite, the open-faced crab sandwich with the Broadway pea salad. Yum!

Christmas Day 2013

When we got home on Christmas Eve, we did open the presents Santa left for us. Always thoughtful! John got a Griswold Family Christmas t-shirt, Audrey got Batman pajamas, I got new slippers and PJs, and the cat got lots of paper to swat around the room.

We woke up on Christmas morning and opened presents. Audrey got some Xbox games, some Disney blu-rays, and a Wacom tablet and case. John got the Good Wife series, the Bond series, and a new winter coat. I got a pashmina (if you don't know what that is you must listen to the humorist Jeanne Robertson on Youtube "Men Don't Know the Style in NYC"), an EWU turtleneck, Crock-pot hook-up set, some serving dishes, a french rolling pin and a shortbread baking pan. John wanted to put something in our stockings and got Poo-Pourri for each of us - "Spritz the bowl before you go and no one else will ever know". (Another for you to checkout on Youtube called "Girl's Don't Poop - Poo Pourri ad")

For our Christmas meal we had prime rib, garlic mashed potatoes, cranberry fluff, fruit salad, and more of the pimento cheese stuffed celery. Then we watched Christmas movies for the rest of the day, enjoying time with each other.

Cranberry Fluff
1 cup cranberry juice
16 oz whole berry cranberry sauce
3 oz package raspberry jello
1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped

Heat cranberry juice in a medium saucepan. When boiling, add Jello and stir until dissolved. Stir in cranberry sauce. Chill until thickened. Fold in whipped cream and serve

Creamy Fruit Salad
10 ounce can pineapple chunks, drained
11 ounce can mandarin oranges, drained
1 medium apple, cored and chopped
1 cup grapes, halved
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup sweetened, shredded coconut

Combine the fruit in a large bowl, tossing well so the apple can get coated in the pineapple and orange juice to prevent browning. Stir in the sour cream and coconut, gently tossing to coat. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours prior to serving to allow the flavors to meld together. Serve chilled.

Catch up!

A few things to make note of:

11/12 - The Youth hosted a Single Sister dinner for the older sisters in the ward. John came home and was raving about the food that some of the young women leaders had brought. I was able to get two recipes from Nicole Black. See below - Pumpkin Dump Cake and Buffalo Chicken Chili

11/18 - John came inside before going to work and said he thought his truck had been gone through during the night. I asked him why he thought that? He took me out to his truck where all the contents of his glove box were all over the seat and his garage door opener was in a different spot. They took nothing from the truck, however, we found later that they had used the garage door opener to get into the garage and take one of John's nicer tools. (Did not realize until when he went to go use it). We have now taken to keeping the garage door opener inside the house.

12/3 - Safeway Spokane Distribution Center luncheon at work. The meal was catered again this year. Went down after the crowd had died down and the food was running low, but still had an opportunity to visit with current and retired Safeway employees.

12/5 - Safeway Spokane Store managers luncheon at Twigg's in the valley. New venue for us this year. Brian (District Manager) and the Store Managers were in attendance. Because our HR rep Nancy had just left for another job opportunity, I was the only other one there besides management. Nancy usually had attended in the past. We had a nice lunch (able to order off the menu), a short meeting and then the gift exchange. Doug Ryan and Dan DiCicco had planned a few fun games and a different spin to the gift exchange. Made it more enjoyable as they had said "no alcohol" this year! Meant I could actually have more than one other gift to choose from. No... I did not go home with this bear. Part of the gift exchange was being able to steal from others and one of the managers' young child was the ultimate recipient.

12/6 - Safeway Columbia Store managers luncheon in Moses Lake at Michael's on the Lake. Jodee (HR Rep) and I carpooled to the meeting. Jodee was a little sad (as she was retiring the first of January) so knew this would be one of the last opportunities to see the store managers. Little did we know that it was the last time we'd have Craig as our District Manager. At the meeting he announced his retirement, with last day of 12/10. I was pretty emotional as Craig has been a wonderful boss and great supporter for all in the district. He truly will be missed! What ended up being kind of funny..... the store managers in Columbia also do a gift exchange. Jodee and I were discussing what we had brought for our gift exchange. I (as usual) had something non-alcoholic, but Jodee brought something she thought no one would guess. Well, we started opening the presents. #1, #2, #3, #4, #5..... each gift was Crown Royal. Each one! They were different sizes or gift packs, but all were Crown Royal. When all the presents were open, every single one was Crown Royal except what Jodee and I had brought. After Craig made his retirement announcement, the store managers "gifted" all the Crown Royal gifts to Craig. They had NO idea he was retiring, but kind of thought he would in the next couple years. So without realizing it, we actually had a Going-Away party for Craig. Nice venue if you are ever in Moses Lake - I ended up ordering crab stuffed chicken (delicious). After the meal Jodee and I headed home. I was pretty bummed out, was not a happy day for me.

12/6 - And John had a YM winter camp-out so was already gone by the time I got home, all weepy....

12/9 - Today was the last day that I would get to have Craig as my boss and District Manager since I was on a planned vacation starting 12/10. Very sad day. Below was the official announcement they sent out about his retirement. I'm going to miss him!!!

Craig started his career as a produce clerk with Safeway at store #376 in 1969 and was promoted to Store Manager in 1989. He managed 2 stores and was subsequently promoted to Director Retail Support in March of 1997. He was promoted to District Manager in January 2000 successfully managing the Metro, Everett, Spokane and Columbia Districts. His accomplishments and contributions over his 44 years with Safeway are too many to list! Craig’s positive outlook, along with his commitment and drive for excellence are very much appreciated and he will truly be missed by all who have worked with him. 

Here are the recipes from the 11/12 event.

Buffalo Chicken Chili
2.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken, cut in 1" pieces
1/2 cup diced white onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
28 oz can diced tomatoes, un-drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup chicken broth
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup buffalo wing sauce
Blue cheese

In a 5-6 quart crock pot, mix all ingredients except the buffalo wing sauce and the blue cheese. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Stir in sauce before serving. Sprinkle blue cheese on individual servings if desired.

Pumpkin Dump Cake
1 large can (29 oz) pumpkin
1 can (13 oz) evaporated milk
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1 yellow cake mix (dry)
1 cup melted butter

Mix the first 8 ingredients together and pour in a 13x9 pan. Sprinkle with dry cake mix. Pour melted butter over the cake mix. Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Easter

We started off Easter morning by opening up our baskets.  Nuts, Dove chocolate, marshmallow eggs for Sam and Cook's Country books for Audrey and Sam. The Easter Bunny sure knows what we like!

Then we prepared our Easter meal. Originally I could not figure out how to get everything cooked and ready at the end of church (we go to the 1pm-4pm session). But then I figured out we could eat our Easter meal before we went to church. That worked well! Ham, deviled eggs, potato dish and Sunshine Jello were on the menu. I got the ham and potato recipes from Robin C at work. She is an awesome cook!

BAKED HAM: Place ham in heavy pot and bake for 30-40 minutes. Can use 1 cup broth or water if needed. In a saucepan melt 1/2 cup butter, add 1/2 cup brown sugar and 2-3 tablespoons prepared mustard. Pour over ham and cook another 30 minutes to get a crusty glaze over the ham.

POTATO DISH: Peel and then thinly slice potatoes. Place one layer of potatoes in a greased casserole dish. Cover with salt & pepper, grated sharp cheddar cheese and heavy whipping cream. Repeat potato, cheese and cream layer until dish is filled. Sprinkle last layer with fresh ground nutmeg. Bake in 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes, no cover.

SUNSHINE JELLO
2 cups boiling water
6 ounce package orange jello
6 ounce frozen orange juice concentrate
20 oz can pineapple tidbits, drained, reserving juice
1 small can mandarin oranges, drained, reserving juice
1 cup mandarin orange and pineapple juice, reserved from the canned fruit
3.4 oz instant lemon pudding mix
8 oz carton whipped topping

Mix boiling water and jello together for 2 minutes. Mix in frozen OJ concentrate until dissolved. Mix in reserved 1 cup fruit juices. Add fruit. Put in a 9x13 dish and refrigerate until set. Make pudding according to package directions. Pour over set jello and refrigerate for 5 minutes. Drop whipped topping in several mounds on top of pudding layer and carefully spread.

DEVILED EGGS: Boil eggs, cool and remove shells. Slice in half and scoop out yolk. In a bowl add mayonnaise, mustard, salt & pepper and paprika to taste. Evidently you also need to make sound effects when you scoop the mixture into the egg whites...see below!

Christmas

We were going to make crepes and sugared bacon, but honestly, went for cold cereal, hot cocoa and opening presents instead.  Gave us more time to relax before getting our Christmas Dinner preparations underway. Here are some of my favorite present opening shots:

John received Star Trek cookie cutters from Audrey plus some dress shirts, bungee cords, a power cord and an LED portable work light. Audrey received some Disney blue-rays, a couple CDs, a wireless gaming headset, a Firefly t-shirt and the Bond 50 blue ray set of all the Bond movies. Can you guess what the rest of the Christmas break will look like around here? I received a Mickey umbrella and the Lion House Soup cookbook from Audrey. John got me Mint Melts from Crate & Barrel, an EWU zippered sweatshirt, hot cocoa spoons, a Zumba Wii game, a pressure cooker and the Crockpot Trio Little Triple dippers. Sidney got a tin to store her little soft food cans as well as the ability to chase around balls of wrapper paper.

At the last minute (meaning Christmas Day), we invited Steve & Angela to join us for dinner. We served rolls, Prime Rib with horseradish sauce, steakhouse potatoes, green bean bundles, cranberry jello salad,  olive & pickle tray,  shrimp cocktail, stuffed cheese & pimento celery and cookies & candies for dessert.

We played a dice game after dinner. Here are the basic rules. I think there are a lot of variations out there, but the one we are familiar with is called Ten Thousand.  Each person takes a turn and rolls the six dice and sets aside any dice that are worth points. They can end turn and record points or roll the remaining dice in an attempt to increase the score. Must earn points on each roll. If not, then they loose all points they had "set aside" on that roll. The person who reaches 10,000 points first wins.

Point System
5's are worth 50 points
1/s are worth 100 points
Three 2's rolled at the same time equal 200 points.
Three 3's rolled at the same time equal 300 points.
4's = 400 points; 5's = 500 points; 6's = 600 points; 1's = 1,000 points.
A roll of 1,2,3,4,5 and 6 at the same time equals 1,500 points.

Italian Dinner

Read somewhere that it was a Christmas tradition to make an Italian meal for Christmas or for Christmas Eve. We already had planned meals and events for those days, so we made an Italian dinner on the 23rd of December. It was delicious, but note to self - - too much food to have before multiple large food gatherings. Need to do a week before so you have time to finish leftovers before filling your fridge with food for the holidays. We made lasagna and cannoli cups.

EASY CANNOLI CUPS
Pre-Made Fillo Cups (or can use fillo dough and shape into cups using muffin tin)
Filling:
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 Tbs sugar
1/2 cup ricotta
1 tsp fresh grated orange zest
1 tsp vanilla
1 TB sugar
2 TB mini chocolate chips

Beat the heavy cream and 2 TB of sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer until soft peaks appear. In a separate bowl, beat ricotta, sugar, vanilla and orange zest until smooth. Slowly fold the ricotta mixture into the whipped heavy cream until incorporated.Scoop the cannoli cream into the fillo cups and sprinkle with mini chocolate chips.

Super Cute !

Isn't this adorable? My friend Ann and her kids made it for me and delivered it. A pumpkin shaped cookie with a hidden treat inside!! One with M&M's and one with candy corn. Thanks Ann !!

Diversity Diner - Take #2

As a reminder, I have two districts at work. So the Diversity Diner that was on October 10th was only for Spokane District. Today was our contest for Columbia. However, I was still feeling a little anxious from the last event so asked not to be a judge for Columbia. I found a sub, but was able to run downstairs for the Spokane portion of the contest. (The other areas were Wenatchee and Moses Lake).

The Spokane area one had samples of Pierogies, Nacho stuffed shells, Spanish Gazpacho and Breakfast Cookies. The breakfast cookies were my personal favorite, but all were delicious. Below is the recipe for the Breakfast Cookies.

BREAKFAST COOKIES
2 eggs
2 cubes of butter (room temp)
1 tsp vanilla
1 & 1/2 c. brown sugar
Mix above items in a bowl with an electric beater for a couple minutes.

In another bowl combine the following ingredients.
1 & 1/2 c. wheat flour
1 & 1/4 c. oatmeal (quick oats)
1/3 c. ground wheat germ
1/3 c. wheat bran
1/3 c. flax seed
1 tsp. baking soda

Combine the dry mixture with the liquid mixture. Stir well then add chocolate chips and/or raisins.
Bake 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes.

Grille from Impanema

Met up with the Hartman's at the Grille from Impanema in CDA. John had spent the last few weeks helping Richard re-roof his house, so the Hartman's took us out as a thank you dinner. Larry & his wife were also there as Larry spent a ton of time on the roof too. Had a good time at dinner. This is a Brazilian style restaurant where they just keep bringing meat on a skewer to your table and slicing off portions until you tell them you are done. They also bring grilled veggies and the best - grilled pineapple. In addition, you have access to a very large buffet of main dishes, side dishes, salads, breads and veggies. Lots of good food!!

Thanksgiving at the Lake

We were invited to the Hartman's lake place for Thanksgiving. Since Mom and Shaune's family were also invited, this worked out great to spend time with both family and friends. We were asked to bring a green salad, but then John thought we should bring something more and made his famous Apple Raisin Cream Pie.

We headed out to the lake and ended up parking at the top of the hill since there were lots of people there! Below is a picture of Audrey relaxing at the lake waiting for dinner to be served.

There was NOT enough room on my plate! Pam's homemade rolls, turkey, potatoes, gravy, yams and my green/fruit salad. Had to go back another time for the rest of the food.

GROUP PHOTO:

• Front - Christopher & Richard Hartman; Connor, Jessie, Emma & Dale McLaughlin; Cheyenne Gramlow on Emma's lap; Zach & Tyler Wagner.
• Middle - Mary Hartman; Vern & Carol Lansford; Mary's mom Bonnie; my Mom Jacquie; Opal Adams (Sherry's mom)
• Back - "Kirby" James Curb; Marv & Pam Wagner; Sam, John, Audrey Carter; Shaune & Dakota Gramlow; Gloria & Jay Turkovsky; Sherry & Larry Lansford (Richard's brother)

Recipes below:

FRUIT AND SPINACH SALAD
1 head leaf lettuce (red or green or romaine)
1 bunch spinach
2 Johnny smith apples, chopped
2 cans mandarin oranges (drained)
1/4 red onion, minced
1/2 c sugared almonds (see recipe below)
Feta Cheese to taste
Orange Poppy Seed dressing (bottled or homemade)

Sugared Almonds - 1 c raw sliced almonds & 3 T sugar. Place the nuts in a small skillet and sprinkle with sugar. As the sugar melts, stir the contents of the pan and let the sugar turn brown, being careful to not let it burn. When the sugar has reached the color of a paper sack, place the nuts on a cookie sheet to cool.

Toss all the ingredients together and add the dressing right before serving. I used a bottled Orange Poppy Seed dressing and added a little fresh orange juice before adding it to the salad.

HOLIDAY DINNER ROLLS
2 cups warm water

2 cups flour

1 TB salt

1 TB yeast

1/2 cup sugar

Combine and let sit for 1 hour. Then add:

2 cups warm water

1 TB salt

1 cup oil

1 cup sugar

3-10 cups flour (to make soft, but slightly sticky dough)

Place in oiled bowl. Cover with cloth and let rise 12 hours. Punch as needed (depending on temp, maybe every 2-4 hours0. Make dough into lemon sized rolls, place on greased baking sheet 2" apart. Cover with cloth and let rise 12 hours. Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes.

APPLE RAISIN CREAM PIE

Pastry for a double crust pie

7-8 cups thinly sliced peeled tart apples

1 cup sugar

1/2 c. flour

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 cup raisins

Dash salt (optional)

1-2 tsp grated lemon peel

1 TB butter

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Make favorite pastry; line bottom of pie tin with one crust and set aside. Combine apple slices, sugar, flour, spices, raisins, dash salt and lemon peel; mix together well. Spoon filling into pastry-line pan; dot with butter. Cover with top crust decorated with steam vents; seal edges. Cut a 1-inch circle in dough in center of top crust.

Bake at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Remove pie from oven; slowly pour cream into center hole of top crust. Return to oven; bake 5-10 minutes longer. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 8 servings....maybe!

CDA & Grille from Ipanema

We decided to try out a Brazilian barbecue restaurant that opened recently in Couer d'Alene. It is called Grille From Ipanema and waiters move from table to table bringing different types of meats on skewers, and they slice off portions onto your plate. The meat included 4 types of beef (like top sirloin, garlic steak), 2 types of pork (pork with brown sugar and Brazilian sausage) and 2 types of poultry (marinated chicken and chicken wrapped bacon). There were also grilled vegetables and the best... grilled pineapple! In addition, they have a salad bar that included various cold salads, fresh fruit, warm dishes (like potatoes or pasta) and desserts. Finally, there was this beverage that we ordered, "Brazilian Lemonade". Very tasty & enjoyable time. Below is a recipe I found, but have not tried it yet:

BRAZILIAN LEMONADE
4 juicy limes
1 c. sugar
6 c. cold water
6 Tbsp. sweetened condensed milk
Put ingredients in blender, using 3 & 1/2 of the limes (save the rest for garnish). Blend well. Strain through a fine strainer. Serve immediately over ice.

After lunch we definitely needed to walk off our meal!! We headed toward downtown CDA and checked out a fun game store with retro games, fun selections, and old-style ambiance (had a tin ceiling). Then we went to the candy store we had visited in August to show Audrey what she missed : ) She was able to make up for any lost time by selecting a wide assortment of candy. Had to keep to non-chocolate choices as we were afraid it would melt on the car ride home. Fun Day!!

Rockin B

With Audrey going to intern at the Rockin' B Ranch every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday - it was about time we went! Especially since they will retire forever on October 1st. John and I met up with my mom and Donna McMackin, neither had gone before. We were to meet my friend Jessie also, but they had a last minute change of plans. It was fun for us to watch Audrey in action. Below you can see her in the "Tech Booth". Just like in past years we were treated to a pre-dinner music show by local talent. This group happened to be from West Valley. Then we made our way outside to the fake western Shoot Out show (or western melodrama). I'm sure being related to Audrey had something to do with them pulling both John and I up as audience participants!
After that we headed in for the pre-dinner prayer and National Anthem. Dinner was tasty: corn bread, ribs, chicken, beef, beans, applesauce, spice cake, coleslaw (new this year) and lemonade from the watering trough. Then the main stage show started. We were seated at the second table to the stage so had a great view of the music performed by Scott & Pamela Brownlee, Sam Mazzola, JayDean Ludiker and Gordon Grove. Great music, a Rindercella show for the kids and then more great Cowboy music. (Side note: I knew all the words to Rindercella as it was my talent show in a Junior Miss competition while I was in high school...)

Having the specific table that we did meant that during a very upbeat version of Ghost Rider, Scott jumps on one table (ours) and Sam jumps on another table across from him. Then they drop the lights and JayDean plays her fiddle with glow-in-the dark bow strings!

What a great night! We're so proud of Audrey and her support of this fun musical venue.

Independence Day

We spent the morning making our Beth's Barbecue Beans, Flag Rice Krispie treats and the Flag Cake. Then we headed up to mom's for her 4th of July potluck. And true potluck it was! This year a lot of folks thought desserts sounded good, I guess we were all in a sweet-tooth mode. It was a nice turnout of family and friends. The day was beautiful, the yard looked great and the pool was cool - What more could you ask for? A nice way to celebrate the birth of our country!

BETH'S BEANS
1-2 pounds hamburger, browned & drained
1 green pepper, diced
1/2 onion, minced
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. ketchup
1/4 c. vinegar
1/4 c. maple syrup
1 TB prepared mustard
2 big cans Pork & Beans
1 can Texas BBQ beans

Heat on stove or in crock-pot.

Early Father's Day

Because we would be on our roadtrip on Father's Day, we decided to celebrate early and take John to Texas Roadhouse. First he had to open his presents. He had been catching a few episodes of Burn Notice, so we got him the series DVDs plus a couple shirts for work. Then we headed out to CDA to try out the new restaurant. While waiting for our table, we partook of the full ambiance by grabbing a peanut, shelling it, eating it and tossing the shell on the floor like the rest. Once seated they brought the hot, soft rolls with the honey berry butter to the table. We could have eaten these all night! Audrey and I had steak, John had ribs. I tried the green beans & salad; John tried the loaded mashed potatoes; and Audrey tried the beans (a little too spicy). All of the food was fresh and delicious. Definitely would go again! Especially liked when the wait staff would stop and line dance to a number, all synchronized. Fun place!!

Easter

After spending so much time preparing for the Easter Cantata, we decided to take Easter Sunday a little slower and just enjoy a small meal at home after church. We made Ham Buns, Ambrosia Salad, Deviled Eggs and Texas Roadhouse Green Beans. Since we have not been to a Texas Roadhouse, cannot tell you if these beans taste like theirs, but they were mighty tasty:


TEXAS ROADHOUSE-STYLE GREEN BEANS
2 (16 ounce) cans of green beans, drained
2 cups water
1 TBSP sugar
1/2 tsp pepper
5-6 strips bacon
Onion, diced

Directions:
Place uncooked bacon into a skillet on the stove and cook on medium heat. Once bacon is cooked, add the onions and cook until tender. Add the drained beans, water, sugar and pepper to the pan. Bring mixture to a boil and then return the heat to simmer. Simmer until ready to serve.