Pride Go Beforeth the Fall

     Well when my oldest son says that perhaps, I should take a break on the poem writing, he is like E.F.Hutton, I should listen!!  My oldest son is like an old soul, in a young man's body. I trust his opinion above everyone else. Because number one, he delivers criticism in a way, that never hurts any one's feelings. Second, he has written some really good poems. Not every line has to rhyme, sage advice from such an awesome kid.

     It has been real hot here lately, when I got out of church yesterday, it was 93 degrees. Driving home I noticed that the hydrangeas were all wilting, even the ones in the shade. That is an indication of a real hot day. The cicada bugs were already in full concerto. You know the bugs, that usher in the hottest part of the day.

     When it is that hot, your options suddenly slim down. Unfortunately, I have a major open wound on my leg, so I can't go to the pool. Isn't that so apropos? Hottest weather of the year, and Paige gets burned on son's 4 wheeler, so no swimming in the pool.

  Little secret though,  I did make a vow to never swim in the local waters around here anymore for three reasons. One, the horseflies ate me alive once, and two I swam in a beautiful place called Putney Falls, a really gorgeous place to swim but,  I had a leech attach itself to the bottom of my foot. Thirdly, refer to number two, plus I get creeped out by the stuff floating around under the water, that I can't see.

     Amazing as you age, your brain still registers, the young you. Even though , in the morning, your knees creak, you did not sleep well and the new ailment du jour, is the bottom of your heel is giving you trouble. If I had a nickle for every time I got up and diagnosed myself with a rare disease, via the "Internet", I would be a rich woman. Truth is, I am just aging.

     When you get older you love to take shortcuts. Being a chef, I love to take shortcuts in cooking. I do it all the time, here is one that I do: Two cans of  Bush's beans, with 1 pound of  bacon, cooked and crumbled into the beans. Save the bacon grease to saute a chopped onion in, drain the onions and add to the beans. There you have doctored up beans that did not take hours to make. (still love your beans., Mom) But that is not recipe.

This recipe is for my bestie Jasmine a.k.a Princess Buttercream.

Jasmine's Bruschetta with a few Paige Twists (the no hassle way)


1 loaf of Hannaford's Wheat Frnech Bread
1 container of Hannaford's Pesto Pasta Sauce
1 vidalia onion, julienned
3 cloves of garlic,minced
1 bag of Baby Spinach
1 container of Backyard Cocktail tomatoes cut into slices
1 8oz package of Galbani, Fresh Mozzarella, cut into slices
1 package of Perdue Short Cuts Grilled Chicken
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
Fresh basil leaves, I got my from my garden, cut chiffonade (thin strips)
Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste.

In a saute pan heat the olive oil and saute the onion and garlic, until caramelized. Add the spinach and cook until the spinach is wilted and set aside. Cut your french bread in half, and then cut each half lengthwise. Divide the pesto sauce evenly between the four parts and spread. Now that the spinach mixture is cooled, divide it up between the four pieces, add the tomatoes cut into slices and the chicken. Divide up the fresh mozzarella evenly over the four pieces..LOL (it is not an exact science, just do what feels right). Bake until crispy and the mozzarella has melted. Top with the fresh basil and enjoy!

 We are all worms, but I do believe I am a glowworm.  ~Winston Churchill

The Importance of Trying to be Lazy

     Today, I enjoyed a much needed day off, only trouble is that I slept half of it away.  My interpretation of sleeping the day away, is vastly different from say; a teenager or young adult that can literally sleep for sport.  In all actuality, I tried until 8:30am to sleep, after which I gave in to my inner voice that reminded me, I was being lazy.

      So, where is the TV remote? Ever notice, when you need the remote, it is hidden in some far away corner of the couch, along with every sock and pen you ever owned? Twenty minutes later, remote in hand, I settle in. Now, for the love of Pete, where is the volume controller? After 40 minutes of locating everything needed to be a proper couch potato I was ready to get lazy! It was my day "off" after all, minus the 40 minutes of hunting for the remotes and the hour between 7am and 8am to get my two sons off to school,  I think I had cleared my schedule!  

    What to watch? I decided no crying so, Intervention, Heavy, Biggest Loser, and any Lifetime movies, or as my hubby so eloquently puts it "Chick Flicks" were out.  Also, I am only speaking for myself here, when I say, I can only take so much Reality TV. The situations are always the same, just the names and faces change. Proving my theory, that talent is not a factor in hiring anyone for Reality TV. Let's watch a movie!

     Wow, now it is 10am and I have been looking for a good movie to watch for an hour! Pick one already, it not like your picking out a new car? I am trying to adhere to my "no crying" rule, and resisting the urge to watch some person, build the largest cheeseburger in the world and then eat it.

     So I settled on a nice B movie. I concentrated really hard to follow what little story line the movie had, but my inner voice kept nagging  me saying, "Gee, you think the floor might sweep itself?", so I turned up the volume a little. Meanwhile, my fat, not so bright cat Giggle has begun to pass gas further degrading the ambiance I was trying to achieve.

    

 My day had turned into a meatball, and it was time to rebel. First, I did not take a shower, that is what body spray is for, and by cracky, I used it. Second, I went to Hannaford's with no makeup,  by the way, when you skid into your 40's, makeup is the co-pilot. Third  I wanted pasta, taboo for me, but there was no stopping this rebel. Meatballs, pasta, butter and more butter, and if my family did not watch out, I might just stay up after 10pm. 

Mama's Day Off Meatballs

2 packages of Catelli Ground Meatball and Meatloaf mix

1  Vidalia onion

10 cloves of garlic

2 to 2 1/2 fresh white bread crumbs

3 ozs olive oil

1 bunch fresh parsley, rinsed and chopped finely

2 tablespoons dried basil

6 eggs

1 cup heavy cream

1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese

healthy grinding of cracked black pepper (if you have a grinder, only way to go) otherwise use butcher grind.

salt to taste

In a food processor, mill the onions and garlic with the olive oil until fine. In a large bowl, add the ground meat with the onion mixture, add the eggs, heavy cream, dried basil, parsley, black pepper, salt and Parmesan and mix well. Add the bread crumbs, if the meatballs seem a little soft add some more. Roll into balls, slightly smaller than an egg. Cook on a greased cookie sheet in a 350F oven for about 45 minutes and then enjoy.

A nickel will get you on the subway, but garlic will get you a seat. ~Old New York Proverb



      

Will you be my Valentine?

     Today is my youngest child's birthday, he is 9 years old. Amazing how time flies, feels like just yesterday, I was baby proofing the entire house. My children are 6 years apart, and like night and day. My oldest thinks before he acts, and my youngest acts before he thinks. It keeps life interesting, for sure.

     I never had the normal (whatever, that means) pregnancies. In fact, I can admit it now, I hated being pregnant. The only time that was worthwhile, was the small three month window, between the first trimester and the third trimester. Otherwise, I hated it. I had constant morning sickness in the first trimester, and mandatory bed rest in the last trimester. I couldn't see my feet, sleeping was an illusion, and moving around was and even bigger challenge. But the end justified the means, in both cases.

     You can never plan life, sure you can plan meetings, parties and menus, but life never. I "planned" to bring my second child into the world on February 15, 2002 via c-section with Dr. Carrasaquillo's help.After a long discussion with my husband, we decided that it was better to bring him into the world without the confusion of a holiday going on, Kerry thought differently.

    

   My oldest son was in Kindergarten and we were filling out Valentine's for his classmates. I was feeling blimpish, swollen and exhausted. I went to bed early, in the hopes of getting some rest. At 3:30am, I felt what I thought was a braxton hicks (false labor), as 4:30am approached, I was in labor. I never knew what a contraction felt like, because with my oldest son, he was born via emergency c-section. To this day, I still have no idea what it feels like to have a child in the natural way, don't worry though, I got over it.

     I should have known that my youngest would be off and running. But I clung to the idea, that he would be just like his older brother, a cuddler, careful, and calm. That idea was ludicrous. He was the opposite. Kerry takes the world by the horns and leads it around. He is fearless to a point, he is a sensitive soul, and sometimes too smart to the ways of manipulation. I don't remember much of Valentine's Day 2002, due to the Demerol pump, but I can say I have my very own Valentine.

     Birthdays in my house are a pretty big deal, in addition to cake, ice cream, presents, and cards, my boys get to eat their favorite meal. You would think that because their Mom is a chef, that they would use that to their advantage. Kerry will be dining on McDonald's tonight, and sadly alone, 9 year olds love that junk, and medically can still get away with eating it.  Don't get me wrong, I love McDonald's too, but it just doesn't agree with me anymore.

Meatloaf before~



The Valentine's loot!~



Meatloaf after~yum!!!!

     While Kerry is enjoying cheeseburgers, the rest of the us will be having meatloaf, mashed potatoes and asparagus. For dessert, we are having a chocolate peanut butter cake made with love by Jasmine. So I think all in all, it will be a fantastic day.

This is a chocolate cake, peanut butter buttercream, made exclusively for Kerry Gould, by Jasmine Bernier

Meatloaf

1 package meatloaf mix
1 1 pound package ground round
1 oz butter
3 medium carrots, peeling and shredded
2 onions, diced fine
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tsp Tabasco
6 eggs
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar
1 tsp dried thyme
2 tablespoons parsley chopped (fyi~I use dried)
1/2 cup heavy cream
6 to 8 slices or maybe more of white bread, processed in a processor depending on how tight you want the mix to be
salt and pepper to taste

In a saute pan cook the carrots, onions and garlic in butter until soft and cool. In a bowl combine the meat, eggs, cheese, ketchup, hot sauce, cream and vegetables and mix with your hands (God's spatulas) until well combined, add the bread crumbs until the mixture is as tight as you want it to be, and season with the thyme, parsley, salt and pepper. Grease a 9x5in loaf pan and add meat mixture, top with more ketchup and bake in a 350F oven until the internal temperature reaches 150F.

We are all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love. ~Author Unknown



When the Moon Hits your Eye

     What's better than pizza, but bread with pizza stuffed into it. Pizza is one of those foods that is hard to mess up. If you can melt cheese, you can pretty much make pizza. Provided you stay within the parameters of what is appropriate on pizza. You all know what I mean! My friends in Alaska, might put smoked salmon on their pizza, while those from Cali might have avocado, still those from the south will top their pizza with Cajun shrimp. It is a personal conviction.

     I figured why not test the boundaries of what people expect from pizza. The roll-up fashion is Stromboli. The ingredients are rolled up and then baked. I am pizza's biggest fan, and what (if I could let it pass my lips)? should I ever stuff it with.

     No sauce because it would leak out, and then cause a blow-out. Resulting in a soggy dough, and an over-all messy finished product. When selecting ingredients to put into pizza dough, you have to think about the composition of the ingredient. Cheese, but not too much cheese. Meat, but it needed to be cooked and drained. The vegetables had to be small and cooked.

     I have tried many stuffed breads or Stromboli's. Here are some pointers, to what you should or should not wrap in dough. As far as meat goes. Pepperoni is fine, as an enhancement. However don't make it the main ingredient, when cooked it leaches so much oil(which sounds gross) that you'll be blotting 3 minutes before your guests arrive. Deli meat, such as sliced from your local deli, contains lots of water, and when cooked the water leaches, right into your dough. Icky, no one likes wet bread. Ground meat that could be drained after cooking was the best bet.

    When picking vegetables, think about the finished product. Choose vegetables that leach little or no water. Peppers, onions, leeks, green onions, broccoli and cauliflower are among some of them, that I could think of. Those vegetables that leach too water are tomatoes, mushrooms, and spinach. If you use these vegetables that are full of water, drain, squeeze when ever possible and blot with paper towels. Because when you reheat these vegetables, within the dough, they will leach even more water.

     Cheese is not that tricky, if you understand cheese. Brie~bad idea! Parmesan, you are still within the parameters of making it work. American Cheese, not so good, there is some moisture and it seems to rear it's ugly head when melted. Provolone and Mozzarella just like baby Bear's bed in Goldilocks~"just right". Melts beautifully, little moisture to disrupt the finished product.

     The moral to the whole story, is to wait and be patient. Don't cut too early, otherwise the things that mean anything in pizza, leak out. Patience grasshopper!

Sausage Stuffed Bread or Stromboli

1 pound Italian sausage(casing removed)

1 green pepper, diced

1 red pepper, diced

1 medium onion, diced

4 fat cloves of garlic minced

1 egg

1 cup of pepperoni minced

1 1/2 cups mozzarella

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

1 tsp granulated garlic

1 tsp dried oregano

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp sugar

1 tablespoon yeast

1 cup warm water

1/4 cup olive oil

In a mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Add the warm water and oil and mix on 2nd speed with a dough hook until the dough comes together and no longer sticks to the bowl. You might have to add extra flour. My experience is that the dough is still somewhat tacky, so I add more flour slowly, until the dough is no longer sticking to the mixing bowl at all. Remove dough from bowl and knead for five minutes. Grease the same mixing bowl and add the dough back, cover and let rise in a warm place, until doubled. Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, cook the Italian sausage. Add the onions, peppers and garlic after about 5 minutes to the pan. Cook until the sausage is done. Drain well, cool slightly and throw into food processor and mill just a bit finer. Add the minced pepperoni and egg to the Italian sausage mixture, mix well. Add mozzarella, and set aside. Roll the pizza dough in the shape of a large rectangle. Spread the mixture over the dough leaving and inch border all the way around, sprinkle with the granulated garlic, dried oregano and grated Parmesan. Brush the top edge with water, fold up the bottom and the sides, then continue to roll toward the moistened edge, like a burrito. Place on greased parchment, seam side down and brush liberally with olive oil. Bake in a 350F oven until golden brown. Cool and slice.

   

  Great restaurants are, of course, nothing but mouth-brothels. There is no point in going to them if one intends to keep one's belt buckled.~Frederic Raphael

"Always do what you are afraid to do"~RWE

     What are you resolved to do? My resolution is not to sit on the sidelines anymore. I am getting in the game. I am resolved to act more like a kid, because they are blissfully free from the pressures of the world. Kids, in the big picture of things are wise beyond their years, we can learn from them and stress less, because it is counterproductive and have more fun, because you sleep better.

     As silly as it sounds, making New Year's resolutions seems a bit trendy. But have ever wanted to join a group completely outside of your comfort zone. In my case, drive to Keene all by myself and visit a very dear friend of mine. 

     Some might argue that having resolutions sets you up for failure. But I disagree, because you make a conscientious choice to not follow what you have set up for yourself. I have done it myself, you get complacent, you settle. I have settled for at least the last 15 years, listening to that inner voice tell me "your too old", "your a parent", "your too heavy", "don't be silly" and "you don't have time for that". My resolution is to hog tie my inner voice and take control of life once and for all.

     I am resolved to remember how very blessed I am. In love, work, and friendship. To be grateful in all things that I do. To be humble and receptive whenever possible. Always use the "I can..."or "I will.." statements. Only because in the past, I have said "not now", "maybe later", "I'm tired" and "I am busy". I have pissed away wasted so much time. I woke up and I was in my forties, literally.

     Being a chef has been a huge blessing, I have had a love affair with food, but in the process I misplaced the things that made me smile. Like ice skating, sledding, swimming, sliding down a curly slide, playing hide and seek, and catching fireflies on a June night. Ever have those moments in life, when you exhale and regroup. I am regrouping.

     When I was living on my own, single with no kids. I used to make a mexican pizza that I could curl up on my polka-dotted couch with, my kitty, remote and a scary movie was the life for me. Here is my noshings.

Paige's Mexican Pizza

1 package of flour tortillas
1 can refried beans
1 can green chiles
1 16oz jar of salsa
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 package Taco Bell taco seasoning
1# ground chicken
1 16oz sour cream
4 cups of shredded mozzarella and cheddar mixed
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 tomato diced

1 avocado diced

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Cook the chicken and add the taco seasonings and green chiles. Heat the refried beans and set aside. Spray a pizza pan and start with the flour tortilla, spread with refried beans add some chicken, kidney beans, and cheese, top with flour tortilla and spread with salsa, dot with sour cream and cheese. Reserve some ground chicken and salsa for top. Repeat until there is one tortilla left. Spread with remaining salsa, chicken and cheese. Bake in a 350F oven until golden brown and cheese has melted. Garnish with lettuce, tomatoes, cilantro and avocadoes.

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.~Herm Albright, quoted in Reader's Digest, June 1995

If you never try, you'll never know

     So far the Christmas season has been kinda blah. It would be nice if we had a little bit of snow. Not so much that it paralyzes the town, but just enough to get the ball rolling.  Well, I am pleasantly surprised that I lost a pound during Thanksgiving. I started this weight loss journey at the end of June and I have lost 28 pounds so far. Wow, thank heavens for Yor Health meal replacement shakes. They really help to control the overindulging one would do during the holidays. It is the only protein shake, I have found that doesn't taste that bad. I did try Spiru-tein protein shakes, but I couldn't get past the fact that there was microscopic blue-green algae in it. That made me think of pond water, and all the things that float around in ponds, thus ruining the whole protein shake experience.

     Darn weight loss anyway, I am hopeful, but at the same time, a little PT SD about it. I have been down this road before. I have to be serious, because I don't have too many more "do overs" when it comes to weight. At some point my body is gonna say "nope!". This past time around was hard, I quit smoking almost 3 years ago, it will be 3 years March 22, 2011. Well, if you did not know it already, cigarettes keep ya thin! Terrible price to pay to be a supermodel. Anyway, my weight just kept creeping up, even though I  thought I was behaving. Long story short, I gained 50 pounds, and would do just about anything to drop the weight. Enter, Dr. J.R.Bookwalter and his Yor Health MR Plan, he gave me the nudge, I needed to start the process. I am grateful to him because he is teaching me, a Chef, about food. After it enters the body and what happens in the digestion process. Allow me to let you in on a little secret, no more carbohydrates! Or if you are like me, stick to the carbohydrates that do not raise the blood sugar too quickly. You can have that baked potato! ,just not all the crap you put on it, which by the way, sadly, I LOVE. oh well.

     So, if you don't already know, I adore Italian food, and I have developed a recipe for those of us that are fluffy. ;) 

Spinach and Feta Lasagna

1 box Whole wheat lasagna noodles
1oz of butter
1 medium onion diced
4 cloves of garlic minced
1 pound of frozen spinach, thawed
1 cup crumbled feta
1/2 tsp dried basil
salt and pepper to taste
1 small onion, diced
1 1/2 ozs butter
1 1/2 ozs flour
2 1/2 cups 2% milk
2 cups fat free ricotta cheese
1/2 tsp dried basil
salt and pepper to taste
2 cans of your favorite spaghetti sauce mine is Don Pepinos Spaghetti sauce 28oz cans
1 16 oz jar of fire roasted red peppers
1 bag 4 cups reduced fat shredded mozzarella

In a pot, boil 1 gallon water with 2 tsp salt. When boiling, add box of whole wheat pasta and boil 10 minutes. Drain and cool down. In a saute  pan melt the 1 oz of butter and saute 1 diced medium onion and garlic until translucent, add the thawed spinach and cook until warm. Remove from pan and cool. When the spinach is cool, squeeze excess water out. Season with basil, salt and pepper, mix in feta and set aside.  In a sauce pan, melt the 1 1/2 ozs of butter and saute the small diced onion until translucent, add the flour and turn heat to low and cook for a few minutes. Add the milk and simmer until it is thickened. When thickened, whisk in the ricotta , basil, salt and pepper. Now it is time, to put it all together. Grease a 13x9 pan. Lets build! layer some sauce add some noodles, spread some ricotta mixture over the noodles, and add quarter of the spinach mixture. Dust with cheese and sprinkle with sauce. Layer more noodles and add more ricotta sauce and dot with sliced roasted red peppers, sprinkle with cheese and sauce. Repeat until nothing is left, top with sauce and cheese and bake in 350F oven until a golden bubbly brown. I would serve it with yummy artisan bread...but ahem...that is why I am making a skinny recipe..cause I likes the bread. :)

 Fat is not a moral problem. It's an a oral problem.~Jane Thomas Noland

Bibbity Bobbity Boo!!!!

      Halloween has been one of my favorite holidays, for as long as I can remember.  Christmas and Thanksgiving running in close second.   Now I am all grown-up, and I more or less sit on the sidelines living vicariously through my children.  I must hurry up too because my youngest is turning 9, and I am not sure when trick or treating will become stupid, and just hanging "out" will be the norm.
     Remember the days when making your costume was the rule.  Old curtains, tablecloths and bedsheets became gowns, party dresses and ghost costumes.  These were times when we trusted our neighbors, we went inside homes, and no one worried about eating a home baked cookie.  When we become adults, we think that we outgrow Halloween, but really we don't, we just celebrate it differently.  I love looking out into my neighborhood on Halloween night and seeing all the grinning smiles illuminating dark porches. 

     The Jack-O'Lantern has a tangled tale intertwined in origin.  According to Irish myth,  Stingy Jack was an unsavory character.  A blacksmith and a drunkard, Jack had the misfortune of running into the Devil at a pub on Halloween.  Jack invited the Devil to have a drink with him. Jack did not want to pay for the drinks, so he convinced the Devil to turn into a sixpence that Jack could use to pay for the drinks, in exchange for Jack's soul.  The Devil agreed and Jack pocketed the sixpence next to a silver cross he carried preventing the Devil from changing back into his original form. Eventually, Jack freed the Devil but under the condition that the Devil not bother Jack for ten years.  When the ten years had passed Jack ran into the devil on a country road. The Devil was eager to claim his soul, but Jack stalled.  He said "I will go, but before I do, will you retrieve an apple for me from that tree?" Of course, it was the choicest apple at the top of the tree.  The Devil with nothing to lose climbed the tree. Jack with a knife carved a cross in the trunk of the tree, preventing the Devil from getting down. Jack made the Devil promise to never ask for his soul again. Years later, Jack died.  The legend goes that Saint Peter at the pearly gates prohibited Jack from entering in, due to the unsavory life that he led.  The Devil angry that he was tricked by Jack, prohibited him from entering Hell. Jack asked the Devil where he should go.  The Devil replied only "Back where you came from!" wandering in darkness, Jack asked the Devil for a light to find his way.  The Devil tossed a burning ember from the flames of Hell.  Jack shielded this ember in a hollowed out turnip, and from that moment on Jack was destined to roam the earth without a resting place, lighting his way as he went with his Jack-O'Lantern.

     Halloween has very ancient origins and the Celts believed that this day was when the the barrier between the living and the dead could be crossed. The dead could intermingle with the living.  Spirits of the dead could rise up out of their graves and wander the countryside trying to return to their homes. Naturally, those that did not want to be possessed, would extinguish their fires making their homes cold and undesirable, in order to deter spirits from entering in.  Since not all spirits were good, it was custom to leave out treats and gifts, to pacify the evil spirits ensuring that next years harvest would be bountiful.  This evolved into "trick or treating".

     The Irish have deep roots in Halloween and one tradition that my family enjoys is the dish Colcannon.  Traditionally  it is made on All Saints Day or Halloween. It is said that you leave out a dish,with a pat of butter, in the center for fairies and ghosts. Another tradition is to place charms in the dish to signify different things.  If you got the button you would remain a bachelor, the thimble a spinster.  If you received the ring you were to marry, the coin you would come into wealth.  My recipe is a modern twist on the recipe.

1 pound of cabbage, chopped

1 pound of Yukon gold potatoes

1 pound of bacon

1 large onion, julienned

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sour cream

salt and pepper to taste

Place potatoes in enough water to cover and boil until potatoes are tender.

In a saute pan, render the bacon until it is crisp, remove from pan, crumble and set aside. In same pan cook onions and cabbage until very tender and translucent.  Drain potatoes and mash with the butter and sour cream until fluffy.  Fold in the bacon, onions and cabbage.  Season and serve.  We enjoy this dish topped with a couple fried eggs and hearty slices of English toasting bread.

I'll bet living in a nudist colony, takes all the fun out of Halloween.~ Charles Swartz

We got a Situation here!!

     I don't know about you guys, but I am hooked on this Jersey thing!  The hair, the fashion, the insanity presented as fact, and above all the food.  Behind every Guido or Guidette there is a family member that can cook which fixes every smack-down about to go down.

     Well,  one night I was watching Jerseylicious,(yes there is such a show) and the girls wanted to have a sauce cook-off.  My interest was peaked, hmmmm I could learn something beside fist-pumping. The seed was planted..the magic word was SUNDAY GRAVY. Is there such a thing?  Or is it an inside joke that those that cannot fist-pump understand. I watched in fascination as Anthony, the only male on the Jerseylicious cast whipped up a sauce that I would have snuck into his house to steal.  He called it Sunday Gravy, it actually had a title..I was on a mission.  A Jersey mission!!!!

     One thing about America, everything and I mean EVERYTHING is available to you, at anytime, anywhere, quite different from other places on Earth.  Might be hard to get a mango in Greenland, or a snowball in Death Valley.  My point is, immigrants arriving from Italy had opportunity and used it to their advantage. What was costly and unavailable in Italy, became lavish meals dressed in Sunday Gravy in America. We all have had Sunday dinners, where the meals took hours to prepare and less than half the time to eat.  I am Irish, and I can remember boiled dinners that simmered slowly all day while we played outside, and the stuffed uncomfortable slow wind-down after.  We just used potatoes, the Italians used pasta.  

      But all this talk about Sunday Gravy what is it?  It is a big pot of tomato sauce infused with fat from the incredible meats that it includes~ pork butt, chuck roast, meatballs, braciole (which is thin slices of meat rolled with cheese and bread crumbs), Italian sausage, and veal shoulder.  Heaven in a pot. 

     I can appreciate tradition and there is nothing more comforting than waking up to a house full of relatives preparing a feast, laughing and reminiscing of times past.   Those are some of my most favorite moments, sharing ribbon candy with my Grandma Burke and waiting for those delicious kool-aid cookies my Dad's mother used to make.  That is what life is about...FAMILY..when everyone falls to the wayside, they will stand with you, for you and in front of you.  Tradition is so important, whether it is in Sunday Gravy, Thanksgiving, family reunions, or the annual ______(you fill in the blank) . Life can come in a burst, and if our eyes are closed we will miss it.  I am always telling my boys to slow down, relax and wait.  Good things take time, and if you are patient it will happen.  This is so very true, good things are better experienced with others and if you have someone that is patient with you...WOW WHAT A WIDE WONDERFUL WORLD IT IS!!!! :)

Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.~ Ernestine Ulmer