Sundy, Sunday, Sunday

ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK GO KU!!!

We had a big birthday last night

The hostess had some cake

I just had more wine

OK, now that I have THAT out of my system, remember this project? Do you want a progress report? Oh let's, shall we? We knew the tile would either pop right off or we'd have to take a sledge hammer to it. Guess what?

It popped right off!

Next to go was the useless window

Then fill the hole with a piece of sheet rock.

Oops, ran out of sheet rock for the other side. Off to Lowe's for sheet rock, mud, bead board and a new TP dispenser and towel bar. Just another walk on the wild side!

Second Saturday

We had a few nights this past week with temperatures down in the 20's, so this morning I figured it was time to get my roses ready for winter. When the girls were little they used to say I was putting my roses to bed. Its hard to do here because we go from warm weather to hard freezes and back several times. The canes don't get much of a chance to harden. I don't fertilize after August 1st and I don't deadhead after Labor Day. Still, with no encouragement from me my "Queen Elizabeth" Grandiflora is taller than I am.

My "Fragrant Delight" Floribunda is putting out new growth like its June instead of November.

Some advocate putting off winterizing until the ground freezes, but I just wait until we have a few good frosts. I have eight roses bushes, so I can generally get this done in a morning. I remove all the summer mulch and fallen leaves back to bare earth. Then I mound up new mulch to cover the crowns of the plants and the ground out to the drip line. It helps to minimize the ground freezing and thawing around the plants over the winter months. In the spring after I prune back; I remove the winter mulch and with it any lingering leaves that might have black spot.

That pretty much wraps up my fall gardening chores. Next I'm heading to the kitchen. Why?

Well folks, its that time of the month already. (No, not THAT time of the month!) The theme is "Breakfast" and the recommended attire is pj's. WooHoo! That's what I'm talking about. Stumble home and you're ready for bed!

I'm bringing the biscuits and gravy. I think this may be a totally midwestern thing because I never experienced sausage gravy until I went to college. But I have to tell you I fell in LOVE with it. I know, totally laden in saturated fats, sodium,etc. but SO GOOD. Here, developed over time and with much trial and error, is my super secret Sausage Gravy recipe:

Crumble 1 lb. Jimmy Dean Sausage (regular) and 1 lb. Jimmy Dean Sausage (hot)in a pan and brown.
DO NOT DRAIN PAN.
Worry there is not enough fat and add 1/2 a stick or so of butter.
Sprinkle in 1/2 cup of flour.
Open a quart of whole milk, pour slowly and stir. Add milk until you get the desired consistency.
Salt and pepper to taste.

Now for the hard part:
Buy frozen Pillsbury biscuits. Throw them on a cookie sheet and bake them for however long it says to on the bag. Shamelessly pass them off as your own.

MMMMMM Good!

Second Saturday

We have a wonderful tradition in our neighborhood called” Second Saturday”. Every month a theme is chosen by the host family and anywhere from five to fifteen families gather for a pot-luck dinner on the second Saturday off the month. There is much laughter, stories, adult beverages and just plain FUN.

Last night’s “Second Saturday” was actually the third Saturday, because of a conflict the prior week. (It happens on occasion, go figure.) Anywhoo, last night’s theme was “Diner Food” and the hosts made chicken fried steak and cream gravy. Here are the rest of the offerings:
Mashed Potatoes
Meat Loaf
Macaroni and Cheese
Creamed Corn
Green Beans (with bacon and onion of course)
Desserts Galore

The Mac and Cheese was mine and I make the best in the world. (I should mention that I LOVE cooking and despise baking. Baking has all that ridiculous direction following and measuring. GAAHH!! If anyone in my family comes into the kitchen and I’m baking? They ask “Who died”, assuming there is a funeral in the near future.) My Mac and Cheese gets sent out with fair frequency because it is such a great comfort food. If you’re sick or had surgery or just had a baby? It is most likely what I will bring to you. (My other specialty for the infirm is chicken soup; I’ll post about that some other time.) It is something that even finicky eaters will consume and so is great to send to families.

Of all the things I make I think my Mac and Cheese might be my most requested recipe. I can never understand why I get asked, it has to be one of the easiest things to make. Oddly enough, it might be the only thing I actually have a recipe for. I LOVE cookbooks and the Food Network, but recipes to me are a jumping off point. Every page in every book, every recipe card in my collection is marked up with changes I’ve made. Even things I invented my own self have suggested improvements. But my Mac and Cheese? Has not changed in twenty plus years.

Fannie's Mac & Cheese
1 ½ C. Elbow Macaroni
¼ C. Butter
¼ C. Flour
1 ¾ C. Milk
¼ C. Diced Onion (Precious Youngest objects to the texture of onions so I do finely grate the onion if she’s going to be eating this)
8 oz. Shredded Cheese (Colby Jack is great, but have used many combination of cheeses here. I almost always have various left over bags in the fridge and have been known to throw three different kinds in, doesn’t seem to matter.)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook macaroni according to package. Melt butter and sauté onion. Add flour and stir. Add milk, whisking until the sauce thickens. Stir in cheese. Season. Combine cooked pasta with cheese sauce. (Can be refrigerated at this point and baked later) Bake uncovered in a greased baking dish at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.

It is cooling off in my part of the world. If it doing the same where you are? I suggest you whip up a batch of M& C. Enjoy!