25 July 2007
Dllut, dllut, dllut. The sound of me chopping pickling cucumbers at 1/4 inch wide.
I was preparing to perserve these vegetables at my aunt Lou’s house.
Bread and Butter Pickles they were (and are).
This was a completely simple recipe. Fun, yet at times a bit painful to the eyes.
You see, the mixture of sugar, vinegar, and bread and butter pickles mix, made my eyes water profusely.
Being my first time canning pickles, I did forget to do some very vital things, like, getting the air bubbles out from the bottom of the jar, and forgetting to clean the rim. If you’re a canner, you understand how vital these little techniques are. :)
After I had packed the jars with pickling cucumbers, filled with the liquid substance, bubbles evacuated, and the rims clean, I sealed them to their fate.
Placing the jars in the boiling water, I allowed them to sit there for 15 minutes. In the meantime Maggie and I took the cucumber ends out to the chickens.
Clenk, clenk. I was removed the jars from the “big steaming pot” and set them on the counter. They had to sit there for 24 hours before we could do anything to them. And they aren’t to be eaten for another 6 weeks so the flavor can set in.
So that ends the pickling adventure, but I’m sure there are more to come. :)
23 July 2007
Since 1979, Los Barrios restaurant of Tex-Mex cuisine–has been serving up casero, or home-style, cooking that has charmed food critics and earned an impressive following. Founded with a small investment and a lot of spirit, Los Barrios built its reputation on the authenticity of its cuisine.
This recipe is from the Los Barrios Family Cookbook by Diana Barrios Treviño. We had it for the first time this evening along with dinner. It is simply fabulous.
Los Barrios Salsa
THIS SALSA IS GREAT WITH TORTILLA CHIPS. THE ONLY PROBLEM IS THAT IT QUICKLY BECOMES HABIT-FORMING–YOU JUST CAN’T STOP EATING IT. WE SERVE A BOWL OF THIS SALSA AND A BASKET OF WARM TORTILLA CHIPS TO EVERY TABLE IN OUR RESTAURANT, AND PEOPLE ALWAYS ASK FOR MORE. I HAVE EVEN SEEN SOME CUSTOMERS EATING IT WITH A SPOON, LIKE SOUP. IT GOES WITH EVERYTHING, FROM BREAKFAST TO DINNER, AND IT ACCOMPANIES EVERY MEAL AT LOS BARRIOS.
One 16-once can whole tomatoes
One 4-once can jalapeño chiles
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Combine the tomatoes, chiles, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a blender and blend to a chunky puree; do not blend until smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl.
MAKES 4 CUPS.
IT WILL KEEP FOR UP TO 4 DAYS IN THE REFRIGERATOR AND CAN BE FROZEN FOR UP TO 2 MONTHS.
VARIATION: YOU CAN MAKE THIS HOTTER BY INCREASING THE AMOUNT OF CHILES.
18 July 2007
“I was surprised, as a reader, how caught up I got, and how fascinated I was, by how passionate I felt about Molly Gibson. I just sort of loved her in a protective sort of way.” -Andrew Davies, Screenplay Writer for Wives and Daughters
Molly Gibson is the main character in Wives and Daughters. She is feminine, submissive, and respectful toward her father, continually kind, bears so much, and yet keeps a good attitude.
She encourages her father do his duty, to be the head and leader of his family.
The man quoted above had a feeling of love in a protective way. We might ask: Why?
In today’s world, females are not encouraged to do this. It is very common to belittle and disrepect men. When we try to overpower, control, or just be in charge over our fathers, brothers, and husbands–how do we expect them to act or feel masculine and chilvalrous.
“Only when manhood is dead–and it will perish when ravaged femininity no longer sustains it–only then will we know what it is to be free.” -Andrea Dworkin
This makes me burn inside. Never stop being feminine. Do not disrespect your father, brothers, and husband, and their God-given duty to be the leaders of their family.
When we play out our roles as wives and daughters–to be a help-meet and encouragement–the men God has placed in our lives will feel it is there duty to protect and love us.
“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her.” – Ephesians 5:25 -
“Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as him, and the wirfe must see to it that she respects her husband.” – Ephesians 5:33
14 July 2007
Matthew 6:25-34:
“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry them, saying, ‘What will we eat’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘ What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Philippians 4:6-7:
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
11 July 2007
Vlvlvlvlvlump…I scooted my chair away from the table after dinner, so that I could arise in a kindly fashion.
Off to the kitchen I went…to clean.
I arranged the dishes in a way that I could crunch them all in, and say it was full without having dishes still on the counter.
The teeny-wheeny-pelets of “Great Value Automatic Dishwashing Detergent” fell from its little spout into the place where it goes on the door.
Click. I sealed the fate of the soon to be clean dishes.
Ha! I had completed my task…or, so I thought.
“Hey Emily,” I heard Bre call as she was entering the dining room. “You really need to clean out the drains in the sink. I always half to, so I think it’s just right that you have to do it too.”
YUCK! I had tried to avoid the subject–the fateful task of getting rid of the “junk” in the drains of our kitchen sink.
I took a deep breath, preparing myself, thinking, I shall not gag. I shall not gag.
*(I have a very low gag factor)*
Standing in front of the sink looking downward.
I grabbed the drain, and walked over to the trash can.
Thump, thump, thump. I hit the drain on the inside of the trash can.
“Bre, it just won’t come out. What do I do?”
“You take a paper towel and rub it around.”
“Okaaaay,” I said suspiciously.
But, first I wanted to try it my way. So I turned on the faucet and ran the water on the bottom side of the drain to–drain it out. It worked.
So I took the one that had collected the “stuff” from the inside of the other.
Clunk. I found another efficient way cleaning them out. Dropping it.
I picked it up–decided to do it Bre’s way–took a paper towel and wiped the remainder out, cleaning the floor as I did so.
After all that, the kitchen was ship-shape.
10 July 2007
I have found that it is a great blessing to read a book of encouragement along with the Bible during my private time with God.
Currently I am working through Journeys of Faithfulness by Sarah Clarkson. In this book she creatively tells the stories of Mary of Bethany, Esther, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Ruth. At the end of each chapter she shares personal experiences from her own journey, along with references to scripture and questions to ask yourself.
I highly recommend it for all ages of ladies, to encourage them in their walk with God.
9 July 2007
This past weekend my family and I watched Wives and Daughters, a BBC production based on the book by Elizabeth Gaskell. It is approximately 5½ hours, and the plot continually thickens.
I can’t tell you the story, for I do not wish to spoil it for you, but I can say that the story is a mix between a Charles Dickens and a Jane Austen novel. If you are a devotee of either (both of which I am), you should truly enjoy this film.
7 July 2007
Enjoy every moment of life as they come. Do not try to rush through them–you could miss the best memories of your life.
6 July 2007
by Emily Rose
There once was a young boy, who went to visit his grandma in Florida once every year.
He enjoyed getting to see his grandma, but he especially liked going to the dock and watching people bring in their catch of the day.
On one particular visit to the dock he saw something he’d never seen before.
An octopus.
Now, he never got close to the man with the bucket of octopus, but he knew what it contained.
The reason he knew there was an octopus inside, was because some of its legs would flop themselves over the edge and stick to the side of the bucket. Then the rest of the creature appeared, over the top.
The man had to stop, set the bucket down, peal the brute off the side, and stuff it back into the bucket of water.
When the boy got back to his grandma’s house, he had quite fun telling her all about his adventure.
The boy, of course, grew up, but he never forgot about the time he saw the octopus in the bucket.
This story is based on a story that my Daddy told me of when he was a little boy.
