lemon cake & Whitney Houston

OH MY GOSH! WHAT IS UP WITH THIS! I don't like it! bring back my regular look!

On another note, what Bobby G said about if life gives you lemons.. make lemon cake! here is the recipe: http://blog.stashtea.com/post/21854229863/recipe-lemon-cake-with-black-tea-frosting

And now onto bigger and better things - a sermon I heard this past Sunday at church, by Isaiah G.

He talked about Whitney Houston's death - and his sister's funeral was the same day as hers, so he didn't get to see the broadcast of her funeral. I could only watch a little of it. I'm not really UP that much on funerals, since my mom passed away in 97.

 He talked about how when you go crabbin', you take a hunk of bacon, or a chicken neck, and tie it on that rope - and that crab sees that bacon come down in front of it, and thinks "here's BACON!" and a feast. The world dangles shiny things (like BACON!) in front of us, and we think we've got it made, here's this great dinner, all for free. Turns out there's a rope with a fisherman attached to that bacon, and where does the crab get put? In the bucket.

Soon as you think you've got it made, you're stuck in the bucket of the world. It closes you in, and traps you. Try to climb out of that bucket, another crab is sure to grab you with its pincers and drag you back in that bucket, not allowing you to escape. And finally, you get dumped in a pot of hot water.

I really enjoy his preaching, and when that clock hit 3:15, and he was still going, he said he had better stop, but I was ready for much longer preaching. How much are you willing to pay for that bacon or chicken neck on a string?

My kids have gone crabbing with chicken necks and rope, and a washed-out 5 gallon bucket from cat litter. Many chicken necks are dangled our way, will we take them, and end up in hot water, or not? Will we be happy just hanging out in the bottom of the water, or will we pinch at that bacon, and get taken for a ride, as Whitney Houston did?

No voter fraud? Really? I mean, c'mon...

It (according to Eric Holder) doesn't happen. HOWEVER, the truth is not what he says it is. This video puts that lie to rest.. using Eric Holders' name to boot!

Spring Recipes

Being it's asparagus season - this is a killer recipe for making asparagus. I don't bother steaming it any more, I just make it this way now:

INGREDIENTS
1 lb asparagus spears (thick spears are best for roasting)
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
Kosher Salt
Freshly grated black pepper
Lemon juice

1 Preheat oven to 400°F. Rinse clean the asparagus. Break the tough ends off of the asparagus and discard.

2 Lay the asparagus spears out in a single layer in a baking dish or a foil-covered roasting pan. Drizzle olive oil over the spears, roll the asparagus back and forth until they are all covered with a thin layer of olive oil. (Alternatively you can put the asparagus and oil in a plastic bag, and rub the bag so that the oil gets evenly distributed.) Sprinkle with minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Rub over the asparagus so that they are evenly distributed.

3 Place pan in oven and cook for approximately 8-10 minutes, depending on how thick your asparagus spears are, until lightly browned and tender when pierced with a fork. Drizzle with a little fresh lemon juice before serving.

I skip the garlic & lemon juice, and just drizzle with olive oil & then thick ground salt and fresh cracked pepper. Use the thicker stalks for this recipe, it turns out a bit better than the thin. Supposed to serve 4. It tastes so good, it only serves 2 in this house!



Salmon-stuffed Snow Peas (appetizer)

1/2 pound fresh snow peas (about 75)
1 package (8 ounces) reduced-fat cream cheese
1 package (3 ounces) smoked salmon or lox, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Place 1 in. of water in a saucepan; add peas. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1-2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and immediately place peas in ice water. Drain and pat dry. With a sharp knife, split each pea pod along the curved edge.

In a bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Stir in the salmon, garlic salt and pepper. Transfer to a pastry bag or heavy-duty resealable bag; cut a hole in corner of bag. Pipe in about 1 teaspoon salmon mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. Yield: 25 servings.


For a boneless leg of lamb, I followed this guy's guideline for roasting > http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/blog/meat-recipes/roast-boneless-leg-of-lamb/ However, I put in lots of slivers of garlic all over the leg of lamb. Turned out really good, and I think I am going to get a leg of lamb for this Sunday. Hopefully they will have them at the store!