Holiday Happenings

We have been trying to learn how to use the invisible fence.

 Watching squirrels and waiting for Santa Paws to arrive with a sack full of bones.

 Dance parties in the kitchen with new sisters.

 Christmas wishes

Christmas trees (plural- it was snowing and we couldn't resist).

Playing in the flurries with our little Buddy.

This weekend is chock-ful of parties of all sorts- I am bouncing with excitement.  What has been going on with y'all?  Waiting on Santa Paws? Decorating trees?

Lazy Soufflés

So the other night, Daddy came over with some steaks for Hubs to grill for us.  I scrambled out of the office around six thirty, warned Daddy (a notoriously early eater) that we would be eating "Continental" style, and careened my buggy through the grocery.  Flinging off my lady lawyer heels and slinging on an apron, I got to work. Halved some Brussel sprouts and chopped an onion, tossed with some olive oil salt and pepper- into the 400 oven for about half an hour and done.

That's when I decided to get ambitious. 

"Hmmm."  I thought, staring into the depths of my fridge.  "I'm feeling rather culinary genius-like.  What shall I create?"  Seeing a bag of angel hair shredded cabbage, I thought that a soufflé with the cabbage would be a perfect addition to my fall menu. 

I started with a bechamel sauce- butter, flour, and milk.  Then let cool and added a couple of egg yolks.

 It was thick as hell. 

That's not how it's how it's supposed to be.  But, I said "expletive-it", and soldiered on, whipping my egg whites.

 I was getting a touch frantic at this point, as Hubs was wandering about the kitchen asking me random questions, and my Dad arrived, asking when we were going to eat. A touch of yolk went into my whites, but I scooped it out, and decided to move on. 

 Hmmmmph.

I whipped my egg whites further.  They stiffened to  certain point, then decided to stiffen no more.  "Well", I thought, "I'm sure that's good enough." I folded the whites into my cabbage bechamel mess, then spooned them into my buttered and Parmesaned ramekins.

Optimistically, I stuck them in the oven and did not even peek for 25  minutes, dreaming of pouffy mini-souffles. Well, I wasn't missing much by not peeking, because those soufflés had not risen a whit.  I closed the oven back up, and decided to eat the rest of out meal.  Thank goodness I had bread on hand, because Brother came by too, and I had barely enough Brussel sprouts as it was. 

A good hour of cooking later I realized that my soufflés were bound and determined not to rise.  I pulled them out of the oven anyway, poured a brown butter sauce on top, and served them to the hungry boys at my table.

Who loved them. 

Dense cabbage not-soufflés.  Just goes to show a little butter goes a long way.



Halloweenie

Our first fire was lit, a scrumptious assortment of candy was purchased and ready to be gifted to small children adorably costumed, and chili was made.  The chili was about the only positive aspect of this first Halloween in our new house.  Adapted from Jenna's recipe, this white chicken chili was delish.

White Chicken Chili
1 head cauliflower
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 rotisserie chicken (or cook your own fryer)
1 inion
3-4 cloves garlic
2 cans great northern beans
14.5 ounces chicken broth (plus an additional 1/2 cup)

2 7-ounce cans chopped green chilies
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 cup half & half
8 ounce reduced fat sour cream

Heat the oven to 400.  Break apart the cauliflower and toss with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Roast on a baking sheet until browned- about 25 minutes.
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add chopped onion and sauté for about six minutes, or until the the onion is translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another three minutes. Add chicken and stir.

Add the beans, spices, chicken broth and green chilies and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for thirty minutes.

Meanwhile, remove the cauliflower from  the oven and put in a large bowl.  Add a 1/2 cup of chicken broth, and puree with an immersion blender (or put in a blender).  Add to the chili and cook another 10-15 minutes.
Turn off the heat and add the sour cream and half & half. Serve with cheddar cheese and additional sour cream to top.


I also made Seven Layer Brownie Bars, so great was my excitement.  This is not for the faint of heart or the watcher of the waist.  But it's good!

1 box brownie mix
1 stick of butter
1 heaping cup of coconut
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 heaping cup pecans
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat the oven to 350
Melt the stick of butter and spread it along the bottom of a 13x9 pan
Sprinkle the brownie mix on top
Sprinkle coconut, then butterscotch, then chocolate chips, then pecans on top.
drizzle the milk all over the pecans.
Bake for 45 minutes.
let cool completely.

Sounds awful rich!

I know, that’s why I serve it over ice cream to cut the sweetness.*

So I got all cozy in the living room, wearing my slippers and rabbit ears, reading my new magazine and anxiously anticipating my first trick or treaters, ever!  Growing up, our house is down a long windy then-country road, so we had to go to our friends' neighborhoods, and never had trick or treaters.  But now was the time!

Or not.

This is about 9 O'Clock when I got teary-eyed realizing we were not going to have a single child knock on our door.  Not even a lackadaisically dressed teenager. Laughing, Hubs comforted me (I was laughing too, as my reaction was ridiculous).  But I was SO disappointed! 
Our new neighborhood is connected to two major trick or treating hoods, so I think you just toddle over to those if you live in our area.  Boo.

Does anyone need any candy?  Lord knows, we've got plenty leftover.  Sob.

*What movie ladies?

This is How We Do It (in the mountains)

Oh, y'all this was one of those fall weekends that define your memory of fall.  Clear blue sky, crisp air, and a backdrop of orange, gold, and red.  And a full harvest moon. And the possibility of a big, red, furry dog (more on that later).

And moonshine. 

A few of those cherries, and my cold that I've been battling all week had magically disappeared! Temporarily at least.  If it was good enough for my grandparents, and their parents, well, it's good enough for me.  Obviously, moonshine has a very strong presence in the East Tennessee area.  Hubs and I  received some as a wedding present in fact. 

Hubs approved.

We attended a fundraiser Harvest Moonshine Party for Knoxville's oldest home- where the Tennessee constitution was signed, and great amounts of moonshine was consumed.  We're nothing but historically accurate.

And ba da dum, we got to go see a dog!  If you have been reading for a whole, you know that I have been positively aching for a buddy.  We met with a potential new member of the family, and I am over the moon!  Fingers crossed!  We are meeting one more of golden retriever rescue's pups this week.  Deep breathing and patience have been my go-to tactics to not scream and dance around every five seconds.  "I'M GETTING A DOG!!"

Has anyone adopted a dog from a rescue organization?  Give me the scoop- good or bad!

Oh, and if y'all have any moonshine stories I'd love to hear them- I could tell quite a few, but don't want to get myself in hot water!!

House Plans and ET Love

Do y'all see that?  Yep, it's a big ole SOLD sign on the front of my new house!  We closed Friday, and celebrated with wine and friends over before a birthday party we had that night.  I, of course, am already plotting all my new projects for the house to totally charm it up.

Like this-

A new front door like this one, and little gabled porch would make a huge difference.  (In case, Hubs is reading, not any time soon shug!  Like maybe my birthday?  In August?  Oh okay, fine, Christmas.)  I know that actually construction like above will be later.  My main goal of the summer is to paint the built in-

White to match the trim (please don't be alarmed, those are the previous occupants' furnishings NOT mine).
And replace the fluorescent light fixtures (shudder) in the kitchen and mudroom with track lighting.  Please don't be alarmed- it's a nice neutral in there- my camera and the lighting made it look sunshine yellow.

Now, to get back to some of your questions.

Blue Eyed Bride asked-

do you want to live in your current town forever? what do you love about it? if you could live somewhere else where would you live?

Yes.  I love my town.  This is one of the reasons why-

We all grew up lake rats and spent every summer weekend on the lake, skiing and tubing, or like Saturday, celebrating America, Budweiser and sunshine. Six boats all tied up together, drinking beer and eating fried chicken- pretty much heaven, right?

Please enjoy the awesomeness of Tuck's mullet wig and "gold" chain.  That is what a true East Tennessean looks like, my friends.

We started going on the boat when were Miss MC's age here.  It's one of the reasons why my town is such a good place to grow up- lakes everywhere (we're actually on Ft. Loudon here, which is actually the Tennessee River), and the Great Smoky Mountains right out your back door.  It's makes for a pretty idyllic childhood with a lot of time spent outdoors.

It's also wonderful living in a city with a major university- football games are a plus obviously, but more importantly there is a far greater amount of cultural diversity and diversions, such as the opera, which would not be possible without UT.  And finally, it's big enough that you can hide if you want to, but it's pretty hard to go to the grocery store without seeing someone you know (which sometimes is a huge pain, but comforting at the same time).  Here's an ode to East Tennessee written back when I first started the blog.

Goodness, I have rambled.  Have y'all made it through to the end?  Why do you love your town?  If I had to live somewhere else, I would love to live in Charleston (duh), or. . . I'm really drawing a blank right now.  Wherever I live has to be on a navigable body of water.  Kinger has a theory that people who are raised on navigable bodies of water are a little nuts.  This is a pretty valid theory I believe.

So what are your suggestions?  Where should I live in hypothetical world?

Eggs and Basketball

I had a delightful Saturday and Easter Sunday in Western NC with Hubs' family.  We left on Saturday, because I had a ton of obligations Friday.  It was a gorgeous day to drive over the mountain, especially in my convertible.  Unfortunately, I forgot my camera in my mad rush about town on Friday, but I found an old disposable buried under one of my seats- I guess cleaning out your car on a rarely to never basis does have some benefits!

Hubs' family is far more sporty than mine.  My father-in-law, Coach, was a football coach at a boarding school in North Carolina, where Hubs and his siblings played every sport imaginable.  On the other hand, I suffered through a couple years of softball where I either struck out or was walked every pitch (I was really short for my age).  I can run along, bounce around in an aerobics class, and lift weights, but when it comes to actually throwing or catching things. . .not gonna happen.  I politely demurred when asked to join in boys versus girls (quaking with fear and middle school gym flashbacks), quickly making my escape inside to set up a project that is a little more my speed, as it involves two of my strengths- cooking and crafting!
(Please excuse the horrible photo quality- remember disposable camera!)

My niece and nephew did such an awesome job with dying eggs- I was just giddy about having some smalls to give me the excuse to participate in one of my favorite activities.

I took beautiful pictures of my nieces intricate polka dot eggs, and my nephews final-four themed eggs (sans Duke, as this is a Carolina household).  He also made a Thanksgiving egg, as well as a Christmas themed egg.  However, none of the pictures turned out, but we all know what Easter eggs look like :)

Sunday morning, we got ready for church and headed to about an hour and a half west to go to church and Easter lunch with Morgan's aunt and uncle.  His uncle sings in the choir at First Presbyterian, where they finish each Easter service with an incredible Hallelujah chorus.

Here's my Easter dress- I also wore this Friday night.  Love traveling and its outfit repeating possibilities.  If any of ya'll are 5'4" (like myself) or under, go buy this dress!  I couldn't figure out why it was half off everywhere until I wore it.  It is short! (whoohoo!).  However, when something is short on me, that means even at 5'5" you are stretching it.  I think it will be perfect for the TWELVE weddings Hubs and I have to go to this summer-eek!

How was everyone's weekend?  Did you have the good weather that the South enjoyed? Did you shoot some hoops (hee)?  Most talk around our Easter table centered around basketball, so I munched quietly (lapsing into daydreams here and there).  Growing up in Knoxville, and going to Georgia, I am a football girl (clarification- teaching it, wearing cute outfits and drinking bourbon on a cold day type, not actually playing it, flag or no flag).  What about you- sporty, or artsy, like my in-laws think of me? 

Odds and Ends

1.  I don't care about watching stuff in HD at all.  I find the channels confusing, and like to stick with my normal order.  However, this drives Hubs nuts, so whenever I hear him coming I quickly switch the channel to HD, reminiscent of when I used to be on alert for parentals while watching Salt and Pepa's "Let's Talk About Sex" video in 5th grade.  Last night, though, I made no attempt to switch to HD while watching th Biggest Loser.  Hubs started to complain, then took one look at the jiggling as the weigh-ins commenced.  Yep, no HD for BL necessary.  Some things should be a little blurry in my book.

2.  What is up with Brad and Angie?  There was such a hullabaloo then crickets.  I guess that is an excellent PR machine at work.  Remember during last year's awards season, when Ryan Secrest had to chase after them?  I think that was kind of dick of Brad and Angie- the man is just doing his job!  It's not like they are strangers to the PR machine- remember those pics of them on an isolated Kenyan beach that a paparazzi magically was there to capture? Yeah right.

3.  I really detest people talking about politics in social situations.  I find it so distasteful and tend to shut down when it happens.

4.  This teen pregnancy moment that is happening is very entertaining to me.  Our high school had a daycare and a teen parenting class.  Abby Dids took it a few times (or was it just once?- correct me girl!), although obviously while a teen, she was not a parent.  Maybe that is why she is such a good mama now!

And that's pretty much what I have been contemplating.  Any deep thoughts going on with y'all?

Double Digit Run and Wedding Season Begins

MOH and Surrat the blushing bride.

So while TMZ was at our local dive investigating Lane Kiffin's troublesome behavior (booze! coeds! drunk driving oh my!), most of the regulars had relocated to Nashville for DG's and Surrat's beautiful wedding at Belle Meade Plantation.

The wedding was a blast- as you can see.

Jules and I were ladies in red.

We all thought the sign on the outside of the church was a bit ironic.  Just like the rain on Surrat's wedding day.  Hence my hair not looking very hot.

Hubs was a bit discomfited with me as we had to make an emergency undie stop on the way to Nashville.  I originally going to wear this dress-

Tins, MOH and me.

However, that dress requires very specific undergarments, as it is a matte silk and short.  Underwear which I forgot to bring. Yeah, I forgot any undies at all, which I remembered about halfway through our drive.  Oops.  Luckily I brought the red number as well, but I still had no undies. Rain plus my clumsiness and the amount of wine I was planning on consuming equals a possibility of me falling. In a short dress.  With no undies.  Horrifying. 

So I began scanning exits for a drugstore where I could run in and grab some emergency undies.  Thankfully, we passed a J.C.Penney in Cookeville, and the emergency was solved.  Who does that?  I have a feeling Hubs will not let this one die for a long time.

I do have a bit of an excuse though- I was exhausted form my first double digit run!  Ten Miles!  I rocked it, much to my surprise.  Much more confident about my half-marathon chances now.  It's amazing what you can train your body to do- ten years ago I was about 15 lbs smaller than I am now, but I could not run a mile. 

I will announce the giveaway winner tomorrow by the way!

Weekend Gallimaufy*

So the Elvis Birthday Celebration was fun- although I was disappointed not to rock my leopard print wrap dress- Hubs took one look at me, stated that it was 18 degrees, icy and I need to wear shoes with traction, and clothing with warmth properties.  Common sense triumphed over my desire to emulate Priscilla Presley.  Just this once though.

Ak managed to combine both Elvis style and warmth by sporting her fur (which I will definitely be doing for the wedding we are attending in Nashville this weekend- apparently you have to walk outside to reach the bathrooms).

Saturday, I decided to enjoy the cold weather and gathered my mom and the pups for a little excursion to a local wildlife refuge with seven miles of trails.  Look at all the snow!

Mama, Dixie and Henry. 

Here's the old homestead of the farm originally on the property before it was donated for a refuge. 

The rest of the weekend was spent curled up with a book and my snuggie, until Hubs appropriated it.  Then it was time for some blackmail pictures of my UT die hard fan husband cuddling up in Georgia apparel.  See the look of fear?  Maybe not.

Also, I want to introduce y'all to a blog two of my best friends from Georgia have recently created- http://affordablefoodie.blogspot.com/  If you need excellent recipes and Atlanta recs and reviews please check them out!

*hodgepodge