Publisher's Desk...
Good morning and welcome to your Friday edition of A to Z Recipes Newsletter. It's been quite a week here, with chilly temperatures, and more work than we can do. My kids have had a cold but are doing better now. If I can keep from getting it, I will be one happy camper, lol.
Tomorrow is Jim D.'s birthday and we wish him a great day. Jim sends me some funny stuff to share with you and I am happy he is a part of this a2z family. Just one more candle isn't gonna make ya'll have to call the fire department, is it, Jim???
We are announcing the newest monthly theme topic in today's issue. Make sure to go to the Next Monthly Theme section for the scoop on it. I hope it is something in which you'll participate. Themes with a slew of recipes are always great fun. Don't forget! Our theme issue for February will be posted this Sunday. I know you will enjoy it.
I hope you have a great weekend. Please take time today to do a little something nice for someone else. The look on their face is always so rewarding. Sort of like yours when you saw the issue in your inbox. Yep! This is something nice I do. For you!
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Ramblings...
Making Every Day Count
???I have one life and one chance to make it count for something.???
-Jimmy Carter
Life is a nonstop parade of minutes, hours and days ??” a steady string of magical moments that we can choose to use as we see fit. And the manner in which we use or abuse these irreplaceable moments shape the lives we get to enjoy.
Making the most of our time on earth requires that we make the most of our God given gifts, constantly striving to bring out our very best each and every day. Since life is a one shot deal, a once in a lifetime chance to make our mark and make a difference, doesn??™t it make sense to make it count for something truly special?
???Don??™t count the days, make the days count.???
-Muhammad Ali
Rather than wishing it was Friday, the weekend or sometime out in the distance, where the times look better or the grass seems greener, why not choose to make the most of the moment at hand? Instead of counting the days, needlessly squandering away one golden opportunity after another waiting for this or that to happen, why not start happening yourself?
The moment you decide once and for all to stop wishing your life away and begin living life in the here and now, your here and now will all of a sudden take on new meaning and extra excitement while becoming much more fulfilling almost overnight. Instead of wishing it was Friday afternoon on Monday morning, why not find ways to make the days in between the best days you??™ve ever lived?
Hey, don??™t start making excuses or moaning and complaining that you never get a break. That type of negative, down in the dumps thinking has never taken you anywhere you??™ve really wanted to go, has it? A winner makes his or her breaks and the big break you??™ve been waiting for is out there waiting for you to discover it. But in order to uncover your very best, you must begin making every moment count.
???We should certainly count our blessings, but we should also make our blessings count.???
-Neil A. Maxwell
There can be no greater waste than the frittering away of a lifetime of possibilities, allowing the best of times to slip right through our fingertips because we never made our blessings count. Instead of permitting our promising futures to slowly rust away from months and even years of neglect, we need to begin cherishing each and every moment we are granted on earth, making certain that we not only bring out our best but also bring out the best in those around us.
We need to take our cue from the best of the best, those unique individuals who consistently squeeze more fun, more enjoyment and more happiness out of each and every day. These prime time players have come to realize that each day is a priceless gift from God and that once it is gone ??” it is gone for good.
If we constantly allow one day after another to come and then go without even making a dent in what we could have been, where do you suppose our lives will eventually end up? In all likelihood, no place we really want to go, wouldn??™t you agree?
???The purpose of life is to matter, to count, to stand for something; to have it make some difference that we lived at all.???
-Leo Rosten
If the only way to make life worth living is to make every day count for something truly special, why do so many people allow so many days to slip slide away, inadvertently permitting the best of times to pass them by as well? Good question; yet the answers are never so easy.
More likely than not, they don??™t see themselves as a person who comes out on top; a winner who deserves to live life to its fullest. Yet that is precisely what our Creator made each and every one of us to be. A winner worthy of enjoying the greatest treasures life offers up daily. None of us, not even one of us, is incapable of coming out on top.
But we need to face the music here; the only way we??™re going to make our lives everything we have ever imagined they could be and should be is to stop counting those days as they pass us by and instead start making the days count ??” right here and right now. We need them to count for something super extraordinary, something super sensational and something that words alone can never express.
Time after time, the only difference between living your life the way it was meant to be lived and living a life that consistently comes up short is whether or not you really made a difference. So why not make that big difference by making a difference in the way you utilize your days, starting right now?
The Bottom Line: When you start making your days count, you??™ll never again have to worry about counting the days.
Source: http://www.motivational-inspirational-corner.com
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Did You Know?...
Homemade Bread--Easy
Shared by Jean, Syracuse, NY
There's nothing more tempting than the aroma of hot, fresh homemade bread, straight from the oven! Spread it with butter, jam, jelly or whatever takes your fancy, and you'll be coming back for more-so will everyone else-make plenty!
Nearly 12,000 years ago, in Neolithic times, coarsely crushed grain mixed with water was laid on heated stones, and baked in hot ashes- the birth of flat breads; still part of everyday fare in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Discovery of naturally fermenting wheat dough's by the Egyptians produced a light, airy loaf similar to those of today. Egyptians are credited with developing the first baking ovens.
The following recipe has been a favorite of my family since my 26 year-old son, was a toddler. I've sold bread to earn extra cash when times were hard-this recipe in particular, was a hot seller!
If you've never made bread before-please try this recipe; it's virtually foolproof. My ten year-old daughter made this bread recipe for the first time; it was absolutely delicious! So don't be put off - if a child can make it; so can you!
You will need:
UTENSILS
1 large mixing bowl
1 large spoon
1 tablespoon measure
1 large mug or glass for proving the yeast
Greased baking pans
INGREDIENTS
5-lb bag of all purpose or bread flour
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable shortening; lard or bacon grease
1 cup of cold milk
3 cups of boiling water
1 package of dry yeast
METHOD
In a large mug or glass, pour about four fluid ounces of almost hot water-not too hot; it will kill the yeast. Add a small pinch of sugar and the package of yeast; stir and set aside to "work."
In a large mixing bowl place the salt, sugar and shortening. Add three cups of boiling water and stir until dissolved. Add the milk; stir.
Check the yeast; it should be bubbly and almost to the top of the glass. Add to the milk mixture in the large mixing bowl and stir well to distribute the yeast evenly.
Add flour a cup at a time, and stir well after each addition. When dough becomes too difficult to stir with the spoon, start balling it up with your hands. Add enough flour to keep your hands from sticking to the dough-don't over flour-it will make the bread hard! Keep the dough the consistency of a marshmallow. You won't need to use the whole bag of flour!
Then I knead this dough within the bowl (it will still come out perfectly!). Knead the dough until it is smooth and soft-about seven minutes. The sides of the bowl should be clean. You will know the dough is ready for the first raising, when you can poke your finger into it, and the hole springs back at you.
Grease the dough all over with a used margarine wrapper; place in original bowl and cover with a paper towel. Set in a warm place near the woodstove or in an airing cupboard-a temperature of 85 degrees is ideal.
When the dough has doubled its bulk-punch down and knead again but don't add more flour. Divide dough into balls, for rolls; long "sausages," for a braid and place in greased baking pans or place formed dough into loaf pans. You can even roll some out to make a pizza, at this stage!
Cover again with paper towels and set in a warm place for the second raising.
When raised, bake in a 400-degree oven for about twenty minutes, until golden brown. The bread will be done, when it makes a, "hollow" sound, when tapped on the bottom of the loaf with your knuckles.
On removing from the oven, grease all sides of the bread crust with butter, margarine or shortening. Leave to cool on a rack-if you can wait that long!
Bon Appetit!
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HELPFUL TOOLS
These are helpful tools; sites (not downloads) that you could add to your desk top.
Cooking Measurements
Here is a great site for help with cooking measurements:
http://www.baking911.com/howto_measure.htm
Cooking Units Converter
Converts metric, imperial, etc. units:
http://www.unitsconverter.net/
Recipe Quantity Calculator
This is a WONDERFUL tool, especially for those who cook for one or two:
http://www.fruitfromwashington.com/Recipes/scale/recipeconversions.asp
Great conversion tools on one website
Convert measurements, calculator, you name it FREE:
ConvertIt.com
Internet Acronym Finder
Ever see folks using abbreviations in emails and messaging and wonder what the heck they
are saying? This site will let you search for them by the actual acronym or definition:
http://www.acronymfinder.com/
Here is a huge list of internet acronyms (some are naughty!) on our web site:
http://www.a2zrecipes.net/Acronyms.html
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Discussion Forum
Our discussion forum at QuickTopic is where a2z??™ers go to meet others, swap recipes and give feedback about what is going on in A to Z Recipes. It is expected that opinions, suggestions, etc. posted there be done with kindness and respect for all involved*. To join in at QT (or just to read) use your web browser to go to:
A to Z Recipes Discussion Forum
You may click here for the
A to Z Recipes Family
Reunion Page. You??™ll see photos from our last A to Z Family Reunion.
You may click here for Leslie and Rusty's pics from the
A to Z Recipes Family
Reunion. You'll see photos from our December A to Z Family Reunion.
You don't have to register or sign in, and you can choose to receive email for newly posted messages -- just click the
Subscribe button when you get there.
NOTE:
Maybe once you get to the site using the above link, you could add it to favorites. Links that are easy to find are more likely to be used again.
*Offensive postings will be deleted by the publisher.
Next Monthly Theme...
Favorite Ground Meat Recipes
Here's the scoop on the current theme:
Just about everyone has a favorite recipe for using that extremely convenient ingredient "ground meat". What is your favorite way to prepare it? Do you have a special chili, meatloaf or casserole recipe you would like to share with the group here? We would love to make this theme topic as huge a success as possible. It can start with you sharing the recipes your family enjoys using ground meat. For us in the Blackwell household, we enjoy hamburger steaks, smothered in pan gravy. My personal favorite, Mish-Mash, is a special recipe that I will share with you in this theme for March.
Please use this link: Favorite Ground Meat Recipes
A to Z Recipes continues with its popular Theme Issues. We will share theme recipes and post them on the first Sunday of each month. Send your recipes no later than the last Friday of each month to have them posted in the next monthly theme issue. You may send in your favorite theme recipes in ONE email. If the number of recipes exceeds those needed in the issue, the publisher will post as many from every submitter as possible and save the remaining recipes for the following Sundays of that month. The rules for recipe submissions for the monthly theme issues are the same as ALL recipes submitted for posting.
The rules are as follows:
As a service to your fellow readers, please send only recipes that are in a form that others could easily copy and save for their own use. Recipes that would require a lot of editing or cleaning up or use non-standard measurements should not be submitted. Recipes without a name and location of sender may NOT be posted or posted without any credit given. There will be NO recipes posted that are from other recipe-zines. A to Z Recipes protects the privacy of its readers and does NOT publish email addresses. There will be no exceptions.
See the A to Z Recipes Theme Issues collection here:
A to Z Recipes Theme Issues
The theme issue for Favorite Ground Meat Recipes has a deadline of February 25, 2005, and will be posted on March 6, 2005.
Please use this link: Favorite Ground Meat Recipes
As usual, only recipes are to be sent to: A to Z Recipes Inbox.
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Crazy Corner...
Andy Rooney On Older Women...
Shared by Jean, Syracuse, NY
Andy Rooney says, "As I grow in age, I value older women most of all. Here are just a few reasons why." An older woman will never wake you in the middle of the night to ask, "What are you thinking?" She doesn't care what you think.
An older woman knows herself well enough to be assured in who she is, what she is, what she wants and from whom. Few women past the age of 50 give a damn what you might think about her.
An older single woman usually has had her fill of "meaningful relationships and "commitment." The last thing she needs in her life is another
dopey, clingy, whiny, dependent lover!
Older women are dignified. They seldom have a screaming match with you at the opera or in the middle of an expensive restaurant. Of course, if you deserve it, they won't hesitate to shoot you if they think they can get away with it.
Most older women cook well. They care about cleanliness and are generous with praise, often undeserved.
An older woman has the self-assurance to introduce you to her women friends. A younger woman with a man will often ignore even her best friend because she doesn't trust the guy with other women. Older women couldn't care less.
Women get psychic as they age. You never have to confess your sins to an older woman. They always know.
An older woman looks good wearing bright red lipstick. This is not true of younger women or drag queens.
Once you get past a wrinkle or two, an older woman is far sexier than her younger counterpart. Her libido's stronger, her fear of pregnancy gone. Her experience of lovemaking is honed and reciprocal and she's lived long enough to know how to please a man in ways her daughter could never dream of. (Young men, you have something to look forward to.)
Older women are forthright and honest. They'll tell you right off you are a jerk if you are acting like one.
Yes, we praise older women for a multitude of reasons. Unfortunately, it's not reciprocal. For every stunning, smart, well-coifed babe of 70 there is a bald, paunchy relic in yellow pants making a fool of himself with some 22 year old waitress.
Ladies, I apologize for all of us. That men are genetically inferior is no secret. Count your blessings that we die off at a far younger age, leaving you the best part of your lives to appreciate the exquisite woman you've become, without the distraction of some demanding old man clinging and whining his way into your serenity.
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Your Favorites...
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HAM & CHEESE CHOWDER
3 c. water
4 med. size potatoes, diced
1 c. sliced carrots
1 med. onion, diced
2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 c. butter or margarine
1/2 c. flour
1 qt. milk
1 lb. sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
2 c. cubed chopped ham
Hot pepper sauce to taste
Bring water to boiling. Add potatoes, celery, carrots, onion, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer 10 minutes until vegetables are tender. Melt margarine in large saucepan. Blend in flour. Stir in milk gradually. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to boiling. Boil one minute. Stir in cheese until melted. Add to vegetables. Add ham. Heat but do not boil. Add pepper sauce.
Makes 12 servings.
EASY BROWN RICE
1 can Campbell's French onion soup
1 sm. jar sliced mushrooms
3 tbsp. butter or margarine
1 can Campbell's beef consomm?© soup
3 c. Minute Rice
Measure soups and make sure you have at least 3 cups of liquid (you may have to add a little water). Bring soup to boil; add butter and stir until melted; add Minute Rice. Cover and remove from heat. Wait 5 minutes, fluff, and then serve.
CORN PUDDING
1 pt. corn (frozen or canned white shoe peg)
1/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
3 eggs, beaten separately
1 pt. milk
2 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. melted butter
Beat egg yolks and add corn, sugar, flour, butter and salt. Add milk. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold in corn mixture. Bake in buttered Corning Ware dish for 1 hour or until middle is set.
SAUSAGE 'N CHEESE BRUNCH TARTS
1/2 lb. bulk pork sausage
1 1/4 c. Bisquick
1/4 c. margarine or oleo, softened
2 tbsp. boiling water
1/2 c. half and half
1 egg
2 tbsp. thinly sliced green onions
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. shredded Swiss cheese
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Generously grease cups of a 12-muffin tin, 2 1/2 x 1 1/4 inches. Cook sausage and drain. Mix Bisquick and margarine. Add boiling water; stir vigorously until soft dough forms. Press 1 tablespoon of dough on bottom and up side of each cup. Divide sausage evenly among cups. Beat half and half and egg; stir in onions and salt. Spoon about 1 tablespoon into each cup; sprinkle cheese over tops. Bake until edges are golden brown and centers are set, about 25 minutes. If any leftover, refrigerate.
SILLY PIE
Call it silly but delicious. I first had this at Luby's Cafeteria ages ago. A great pie recipe.
23 Ritz crackers
1 c. sugar
1 c. pecans, chopped
3 egg whites
Cool Whip
Beat egg whites until stiff. Add sugar. Crush crackers. Add crackers and pecans to egg mixture. Place in prepared pie plate. Bake at 375 degrees until top is crusty. Top with Cool Whip when served.
MO BETTA PORK CHOPS
6 pork chops
Vegetable oil
Seasoned salt
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of celery soup
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. sour cream
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 (24 oz.) pkg. frozen hash browns (thawed)
1 c. (4 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese
1 (2.8 oz.) can French fried onion rings
Brown pork chops in a lightly greased skillet. Combine soup, milk, sour cream, pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt. Stir in potatoes, 1/2 cup cheese and 1/2 can
French fried onions. Spoon mixture into 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Arrange pork chops over potatoes. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Top with remaining cheese and onions. Bake uncovered 5 minutes longer.
Serves 6.
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Heart Healthy...
CHICKEN ITALIANO
3 whole chicken breasts, halved and skinned
2 (6 oz.) cans tomato sauce
2 med. carrots, sliced thin
1/4 c. diced onions
1/2 c. green peppers, diced
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. salt
Pepper to taste
4 oz. can mushrooms
1 pkt. Sweet and low
Brown chicken in non stick pan. Add remaining ingredients, except mushrooms and sweet and low. Cover and simmer 30 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook
uncovered 10 to 15 minutes or until tender. Stir in sweet and low. Serve.
6 servings.
215 calories each serving.
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For Two...
MUSHROOM MEADOWS
2 potatoes, baked
1/2 to 1 lb. mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp. butter
1 garlic clove
Parsley, chopped
Chives, chopped
1/2 c. sour cream
Lettuce leaves
Dash of salt
Dash of pepper
While potatoes are baking, saut?© the sliced mushrooms in butter and garlic. Add parsley. When potatoes are done, arrange lettuce leaves on plate. Lay the potatoes on the leaves and split them open. Pour half of the mushrooms over each potato. Mix the chives with the sour cream. Top the potatoes with the sour cream mixture and season to taste.
Serves 2.
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Publisher's Choice...
CHOCOLATE PECAN CAKE
1 stick butter
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. shredded coconut
2/3 c. chopped pecans
1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate morsels
2 tbsp. milk
1 c. flour
1/2 c. dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 c. water
1 egg
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt 1/2 stick of the butter in a small saucepan. Remove from heat, stir in brown sugar, coconut, pecans, chocolate morsels and milk; blend well. Spread the mixture in the bottom of a 9 inch round cake pan. Set aside. Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the remaining 1/2 stick of butter, the vanilla, water and egg; beat until the batter is thoroughly blended and smooth. Pour over the coconut pecan mixture, bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn onto a serving plate, coconut pecan mixture on top. Serve the cake warm or cold with vanilla ice cream.
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