Monday, October 31, 2016

Monday, October 31, 2016

Monday, October 31, 2016

What the Beck???

Happy Birthday, Matt
Happy Halloween to you all.

 Fishin' in the Fox

 I do like to fish, but I've never fished in a river in waders.
I don't think this is in my future, or will be on my bucket list.



I was driving home from the vet the other day, 
when I realized that I was very close to the first 
house I ever owned. It originally belonged to my 
Grandmother. It was a cute little saltbox house. 


 I was so surprised to see a brand new two car 
garage in the back, and a paved driveway. Grandma 
had a little Volkswagon that barely fit in her single car 
garage. This one is a palace compared to the 
one that used to be there.


The front porch is now enclosed. I liked the open 
porch a lot more than this one.
Cousins - have you seen it lately???


Saturday, October 29, 2016

Saturday, October 29, 2016

Saturday, October 29, 2016

What the Beck???


Recipe Review           NOT A PIONEER WOMAN RECIPE

Today’s Recipe and Location: No Bake Cheesecake Bites
Obtained from:  The Hodgenville Herald newspaper 
                  Wednesday, 9/28/16         Author:  Candy D. Vincent

Recipe:
Ingredients:         8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
                   4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
                   ½ cup crushed graham cracker crumbs
                     4 cups powdered sugar
                   10 oz. chocolate chips

Directions:        
     Mix cream cheese and butter together until combined. Add cracker crumbs and mix well.
    Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time until mixed well. Cover and chill in fridge for at least an hour, this can sit overnight.
    Scoop into small balls between palms. Place on wax paper. Place in the fridge for 10 – 20 minutes, if too soft to dip. Melt chocolate in microwave, dip balls, place on wax paper, and let them cool until chocolate has hardened. Store in the fridge.

       
I figured out that there are 83 calories per bite, if 44 bites are made. (Please note that the calorie counts vary depending on the specific brands of ingredients that you choose to use.)


These Cheesecake Bites are very rich. I made them using a small scoop, and they were way too big. By using the small scoop, the recipe made 22 balls. Making them half that size would make about 44 bites.


Here are the ingredients that I used to create this recipe.



I began with the cream cheese and butter in my stand mixer.


I then measured the graham cracker crumbs, 
and set them aside.


I melted the chocolate chips in the microwave.



I measured out the powdered sugar.


I mixed the cream cheese and butter with the graham crackers.


In went the powered sugar. I halved this recipe, 
so yours will have more substance than mine did.


The dipping began. I slid them off of the fork that I dipped in the
 chocolate and slid them off with a toothpick. See how giant they are - toooooo much!



Yum!!!


Thursday, October 27, 2016

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Thursday, October 27, 2016

What the Beck???

Cucumber and Onion Salad


Recipe Review   not a Pioneer Woman recipe

Today’s Recipe and Location: Cucumber and Onion Salad
Found in: Candy Vincent’s column in the Hodgenville Herald on 8/17/16


I figured out that there are 134 calories, if 16 servings are made. (Please note that the calorie counts vary depending on the specific brands of ingredients that you choose to use.)

I think I have had this dish before in my childhood. Either my Mom or my Grandma made it in the summer. I absolutely love cucumbers and onions. This is a great side dish.

Recipe:
Ingredients:         4 large cucumbers, sliced
                   1 large onion, slices and separated

Dressing:           1 cup Miracle Whip (I used mayo)
                   4 teasp. vinegar
                   ½ c. sugar
                   ¼ teasp. salt

Mix dressing ingredients together, pour over the cucumbers and onions. DO NOT STIR. Put in refrigerator and stir right before serving. As you take cucumbers and onions out, just add more to the bowl and keep it in the fridge. Keeps refrigerated for a week or two.



 Here are the ingredients that I used to create this recipe.


 I began by THINLY slicing the cucumbers.



 I halved the onion and then cut each half into slices.



 I know this doesn't look like a lot but I made 1/4 of the recipe, 
since I don't need too many servings. 
As it was, 1/4 of the recipe made 4 servings.
If the pile looks like this, you have too many onions
at least I did.

 To make the dressing in a separate bowl, I put in some mayo,

 vinegar,


 granulated sugar,


 and salt.


 I layered in the cucumbers and onions 

 and poured on the dressing. 
I covered the dish with Saran wrap and put
it in the refrigerator overnight.
DO NOT MIX IN THE DRESSING, until you are
ready to eat it. I just left it on top, and by morning
it was great.




Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

What the Beck???

Happy Birthday tomorrow, Rachel and Marisa

Bucket List Update
Academy Award Nominated Movies


1977     Julia
starring:  Jane Fonda, Vanessa Redgrave, Jason Robards, Maximillian                   Schell, Hal Holbrook, Meryl Streep
plot –     Lillian Helman smuggles funds into Nazi Germany.
This was a really good movie. I cannot imagine smuggling anything into anywhere even for my best friend. Yikes!  Extremely well acted and I literally didn’t move until the entire movie was over. 

1978     An Unmarried Woman
starring:  Jill Clayburgh, Alan Bates, Michael Murphy, Cliff Gorman
plot –          A rich woman’s husband has left her for someone               younger. She struggles to make a new life for herself.
This was a yet another typical 70’s movie. Clayburgh’s character has to make a huge adjust in her life ad learn to cope. It was okay.

1978     Midnight Express
starring:  Brad Davis, Irene Miracle, Bo Hopkins, Paolo Bonacelli, Randy                 Quaid, John Hurt
plot –     The story of an American young man who gets caught in                     Turkey smuggling hashish out of the country. He suffers                 in prison but tries to stay alive.
This was the story of a foolish young man whose bad choices had major consequences. At times this movie was hard to watch, but I had to know what he went through to truly understand how bad life could be in prison.

1979     All That Jazz
starring:  Roy Scheider, Jessica Lange, Leland Palmer, Ann Reinking,                     Cliff Gorman, Ben Vereen
plot –     The life story of Bob Fosse. He pushed himself endlessly and                 suffered for his bad choices.
I loved the dancing, but the cigarette constantly hanging out of his mouth really bothered me, but I have no idea why. It is obvious why this was a big success in the 70’s. It did lose the Oscar to Kramer versus Kramer.

1979     Apocalypse Now
starring:  Marlon Brando, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall, Fredric                          Forrest, Sam Bottoms, Laurence Fishburne, Harrison                     Ford, Dennis Hopper, Albert Hall
plot –    Set during the Vietnam War, Capt. Willard is sent to
                Cambodia to kill a colonel who thinks he is the God of                   his tribe.
This was an interesting movie. Martin Sheen was so young and at times I had to remind myself that it was Martin and not his look alike son, Charlie. A great movie.

1980     Tess
starring:  John Collins, Tony Church, Nastassja Kinski, Peter Firth
plot –    Two men fall for a poor peasant girl.
This was a really SLOW movie.  It was okay, I guess.

1981     Atlantic City
starring:  Burt Lancaster, Susan Sarandon, Kate Reid, Michael Piccoli,                   Robert Goulet, Hollis McLaren
plot –    The story of love, money, drugs, and danger in Atlantic City                   between a gangster and a woman who left her pot dealer                 husband.        
This was a good movie. Burt Lancaster was wonderful as the aged gangster. Susan Sarandon was also wonderful.


1983     Terms of Endearment
starring:  Shirley Maclaine, Debra Winger, Jack Nicholson, Danny                       Devito, Jeff Dangers, John Lithgow, Lisa Hart Carroll
plot –    The story of Mom (Aurora) and daughter (Emma). The two                     woman have a strong bond, but drive each other crazy.                   A typical mother-daughter strained relationship.
This was a really good movie. It was a sad one however.  


1984     Amadeus
starring:  F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Elizabeth Berridge, Roy                       Dotrice, Simon Callow
plot –    The life story of Mozart as told by his peers and a rival.
This was a LONG boring movie. The story was interesting because I didn’t know a lot about him, but I would have liked to have learned it MUCH FASTER.

1981     Raiders of the Lost Ark
starring:  Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronald Lacey,                      John Rhys-Davies
plot –      Indiana Jones is an adventurer and archaeologist. He is sent                   by the U.S. to find the Ark of the Covenant before the                   German Nazis find it first.
At times I thought I remembered this movie, but as it went on I realized that I only saw snippets of it.  I really enjoyed this movie. Harrison Ford is wonderful, and I really stayed interested the entire time.

Sunday, October 23, 2016

Sunday, October 23, 2016

Sunday, October 23, 2016

What the Beck???

Willow has been really sick!


    Willow has been sick for a while. I took her to my fabulous vet, Dr. K, at the Sandwich Animal Hospital. We had already been trying medicine, and a change in diet, but she was getting worse. Dr. K took some X-rays and noticed that Willow’s small intestines had a section that was very thick. 
    She suggested we go to the Aurora Animal Hospital on Galena on Friday, and have an abdominal ultrasound. The doctor called me into the room, and showed me the problem area. He said she needed to have this section removed VERY soon.
    Dr. K talked to him and we scheduled Willow’s surgery that afternoon,  Friday, October 14th. She stayed at the vet until Saturday at 1:00 when they close for the weekend. Dr. K allowed me to bring Willow home to recuperate.


Willow came home with an IV port in her leg.
She loves to rest under the table. 

 She feels safest under here.


Look at the cute self adhesive tape the vet uses. 


She was pretty slow moving on Saturday. 


She also came home with a feeding tube.
Dr. K taught me how to feed her through this tube
if she wasn't eating after the surgery.
A BIG THANKS to my Mom, Norma, for
going with me to the vet to pick up Willow.
She is great moral support. 
By, the way, I never had to use this
tube, because she ate the next day.


This is Willow's belly. Her incision was pretty
long, and she is scheduled to get the stitches out 
on Tuesday, October 25th.  Now, we wait for the pathology 
report to find out what is wrong with her intestines.


Sage doesn't know what to think about this whole thing.
She hunted for Willow the day and a half that
she was gone, but checks on her now that she
is home.


   UPDATE:  On Friday, October 21st Dr. K called with the report from the pathologist. Willow has cancer. Her prognosis is not good, and we will hope and pray that she makes it to Christmas. I was calm and composed as she told me the awful news, but I knew it wouldn't last.  I decided to allow myself only this day to be terribly sad and cry all day. Then, on Saturday I would get down to the business of making every day wonderful for my sweet Willow. The girls sensed my sadness and never left my side. The only person I told was my dear friend, Nicole. I didn't want to tell my family, because they were celebrating my Goddaughter, Maddie's birthday. I also didn't tell them on Saturday, because it was my great-nephew, Carden's first birthday. I will tell my Mom on Saturday, after 7 pm or on Sunday. Those events should focus on my niece and great-nephew.  Everyone will know soon enough.

Friday, October 21, 2016

Friday, October 21, 2016

Friday, October 21, 2016

What the Beck???


Recipe Review          NOT A PIONEER WOMAN RECIPE

Today’s Recipe and Location: Pumpkin Chocolate Cheesecake Jars
   Adapted from:  The Hodgenville Herald newspaper 
                  Wednesday, 9/21/16         Author:  Candy D. Vincent

Recipe:
Ingredients:
Crust:  1.5 c. Oreos (chopped in food processor)
            6 Tablespoons melted
Filling:  12 oz. softened cream cheese
             1.5 c. real pumpkin puree (not pie mix)
              ½ c. granulated sugar
              ½ teasp. salt
              ½ teasp. cinnamon
              ¼ teasp. ground nutmeg
              1/8 teasp. ground cloves
              1 teasp. vanilla extract
              ¼ c. bittersweet chocolate chips melted

Directions: 
   Combine the chopped Oreos and melted butter in a bowl. Stir it until the cookies are shiny. Divide the crumbs evenly between six jelly jars and flatten (the original recipe called for 12 jars, but they were only half full so I changed the recipe).
    In a medium bowl blend the cream cheese, pumpkin, sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and vanilla until smooth. I am changing the original recipe and layering the ingredients. First, use half the cookie crumbs, them half the pumpkin mix, then repeat the cookies and pumpkin mix and then top it off with a swirl of melted chocolate (Use a toothpick to swirl).  Chill for two hours before serving.

I figured out that there are 478 calories, if 6 servings are made. (Please note that the calorie counts vary depending on the specific brands of ingredients that you choose to use.)


    I tasted all of the ingredients as I went, and I absolutely love this recipe. I shared this recipe with Maddie and Dave, Mom and Ron, and Susan and Rick. Overall, a giant thumbs up!!!


These are the ingredients that I used to create this recipe.


The cookie crust

I divided the cookies between the jars.  This was a 
mistake because the original recipe called for 12 
jars, but they were only half full. So at the end I 
dumped six on top of the other six to make a full jar.



I began with the softened cream cheese.



I added in the pumpkin puree.



In went the sugar



and the salt


and cinnamon



and nutmeg



and ground cloves


and finally vanilla extract.



I used a stand mixer to mix



until it was as smooth as a baby's butt.
Okay, that may be an exaggeration.



I melted the chocolate in the microwave.

Now comes the fun part - spooning it on top of the cookie crumbs.



I knew at this point that I was going to dump half 
of them on top of the others so I just spooned 
in some chocolate instead of swirling.



Here are the final product - as you can see I have the crust at the bottom and near the top. Yours will not look like this dumped mess. They will be evenly layered twice and the pretty swirl will be on top.