Showing posts with label Miscellaneous. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Miscellaneous. Show all posts

Sunday, December 29, 2013

Some of my favorite Christmas things...

Christmas is over...  All that build up and it's over!  The decorating, the parties, the baking, the gifts and now it's over!  I'm not really ready for this!  I want a few more days to enjoy some of my favorite Christmas things.  It took me years to collect all these prized and cherished possessions, now I want to show some of them to you and maybe you will see why I love them so much.  Please indulge me and forgive me for being so nostalgic.

First I want to show you my front door and the entrance to our home.  This is what people see first so I like it to look warm and inviting.  This was taken on a freaky night that it happened to snow - it almost never snows in our city and for Christmas, how special is that!

Welcome to our home!
Just inside the front door is where Santas can hang their hats!
Then you are greeted by our Mr. Snowman! 
And this is our beautiful Christmas tree.  We needed a skinny one for  the space we have!
The stockings are hung by the chimney, with care!
The guest room is all cheery and ready for guests!
Our Cheery Snowman welcomes anyone who joins him on the back patio!

And now, I guess it's time to say Merry Christmas to All and thank you for sharing some of my favorite things!

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Since You Asked!

Happy Groundhog Day!  I was asked if I had a recipe to celebrate the day.........  My first suggestion is Chili made with pork sausage.  Hubby John quickly dubbed it Road Kill Chili.  Well,  that must come from his long and dark past.  I checked the Internet and here is what I came up with.  Someone else originally had this idea but it's a good one and quite clever.  I sure hope spring comes early this year, I  would like a nice long spring and some warm sunshine, since you asked.


        Groundhog Day Dirt Pie 
1 box of instant chocolate pudding 
4 chocolate graham cracker squares 
Mix pudding according to package directions. Place into four bowls. Crush graham crackers into crumbs (and resembles dirt). Sprinkle crumbs on top of the pudding. On a Popsicle stick, draw the face of a groundhog with a felt pen...stick into the pudding! 

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Heart to Heart

This is our youngest son Joel, his wife Yoko, our grandson Alek, and me.  My husband John is taking the photo.  The adults are eating lobster to celebrate Yoko's birthday and Alek is having a hamburger (his preference) with his twice baked potato.  Someday he will want lobster too!

I was talking with a friend today, about my blog.  She asked me if I was posting 'fancy schmancy' recipes.  I said 'no, just plain and easy food'.  I don't think food has to be fancy all the time but I do say that it should always look good.  I like to use things that are already in my pantry, rather than constantly running to the store to pick up something that I may never use again.  I have favorite foods and ingredients.  I like cilantro and spice, I don't like things too salty and too much sweetness makes my jaws ache.  I don't have a problem with using mixes, as long as they are good.  Who doesn't like a shortcut?

If I was going to give somebody tips on cooking, I would say that you should always remember that recipes are meant to be guides.  If a recipe calls for celery (for instance) and you don't like celery, just leave it out.  If a recipe calls for walnuts and you like pecans - use them.  Baking is a little trickier.  There is a balance that you don't want to upset there.  Cook with your common sense, your heart and your tastebuds.  Smile when things turn out good and just make notes and learn a lesson if it doesn't.  I have had my failures, my 'I'll never cook that agains' and 'yikes, what happened here flops'.  I have made so many mistakes that I can't even  begin to list them here.  Remember, I have been cooking for a really long time.   I hope you will come back and spend some Thyme In Grammy's Kitchen and we will talk......

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Hi

Hi, my name is Pat. You can call me Pat, Honey, Mom, Grammy or whatever you like, as long as it is nice.  I hope you enjoy the thyme (I really like using this herbal word) you spend with me and that you will visit often.

I had hoped to have this site up for all the holidays this year but I am sorry to say that I don't have a huge grasp on how these blogs come together so I am doing a lot of re-dos as I go along.  I will work on getting better with each post so please bear with me.

On this blog I will share recipes that are from my past and new things as they come along.  I have always enjoyed trying new foods and then trying to figure out how to make them in my own kitchen.  Lucky for me, John (my Husband of 50 years), also enjoys new culinary adventures.  Besides being my best friend, he is also my chief cook's helper and bottle washer.  Yes, he chops onions and does dishes and I really do know how lucky I am.   We both like lots of flavor and spice and he is very good at telling me when I have flavors just right.

Today I am busy getting ready for Thanksgiving guests that will arrive tomorrow evening.  I hope to get a couple of recipes up to show you what is cooking in Grammy's Kitchen.