Just my thoughts…

Never would I have expected to see this pandemic happen in my lifetime; not only in the world, but in our country. But it’s just blowing through our homeland and it scares me because nothing can stop it.

Social distancing, I’ll be the first to admit I was one of those that asked why this wasn’t done when the flu was so rampant over the winter months (and still is). But I am keeping my distance, only going out for food and that is to pick up my order.

I also didn’t realize the severity of COVID-19. But after watching the news, I learned fast. And it truly scares me. I heard yesterday that the lungs can be permanently scarred giving a lifetime of issues.

But I am not allowing the fear to take over my life, I am refuse to let it overwhelm me. If I do feel the anxiety creeping up on me, I stop and pray. I will reach out to a friend for some conversation and encouragement. And I try to limit my access to the news and all of the social media posting.

Speaking of social media, I am enjoying all the posts on family bonding. And the distant visiting via skype, zoom, facetime, etc. My girlfriends and I have done some girls nights via zoom and it was so much fun!

I think we need to take this ”reset” not only for us humans, but the earth as well, and realize the lifestyles we have been living. Think of all the cars that are not out on the highways, the planes that are not in the air, the boats in our small local waterways that are docked, our earth is responding by healing itself.

We are healing our families by spending more quality time together and checking in on each other. Maybe some are even turning to God and strengthening their faith. I love seeing the postings of family games, and families cooking together, working in the yard and garden.

We are out taking walks or runs; being confined at home is giving us the time to exercise and rest. Even catching up on projects around the house.

If this quarantine is teaching us anything, I think it’s that we need to spend more time at home together. It is teaching us that we are not STUCK at home but rather safe within our walls that we are so blessed to have.

We are so accustomed to jumping in our cars and driving all over the place all on a whim because we just don’t want to be home, or we are bored.

Home isn’t so bad is it?

I think this time of fear is also teaching us about selfishness vs sharing. I know many are afraid that we will be confined in our homes and not have enough food and that fear has caused unnecessary and awful hoarding. Our pharmacies and food stores are essential and will stay open so we should not worry.

I feel bad for our healthcare professionals that are working long shifts and want to head to the store after their shift, but they are finding empty shelves.

I have been taking advantage of placing my grocery order and just picking it up but the other day my order wouldn’t process so I had to go inside. I was saddened to find so many empty shelves.

We cannot imagine what it must be like to go without because we are so accustomed to having anything we want at the reach of our fingertips. And now those empty shelves are making us realize just how fortunate we are, at least most of us. There are already many families in our country that experience “empty food shelves” on a daily basis. This is another lesson we need to learn, share, because not everyone has enough food. Before COVID-19 hit our land, a lot of our neighbors were already experiencing empty pantries and hunger.

I know everyone has their thoughts and opinions on our current situation, and I certainly didn’t want to feed into any deep winded options and conversations. It doesn’t matter if anyone reads this, it doesn’t matter if anyone agrees or disagrees with me. These are just my feelings that I wanted to jot down and express.

I pray and have hope that everyone will be well and that this virus will soon be over so we can heal and move on. If anything I pray that we have learned our lessons about health, time, family, and gratitude.

Be well my friends and stay healthy.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Taco’s! Yum!  Always a favorite in my house, made a lot of taco’s for my kids back in the day too.

But, those taco seasoning packets are full of sodium and chemicals.  So I started making my own taco seasoning.

You can adjust the measurements as well as add other spices to your preference.  Have fun experimenting with different flavors.

Taco Seasoning

1 Tablespoon each: Cumin, chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder

1/2 T Cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

Salt and pepper

Hamburger Stroganoff

I first learned about stroganoff during my childhood, when my parents made the boxed hamburger stroganoff meal kits.  Loved it!

I am also ashamed to admit that when my kids were active in school, I often made those boxed dinners as well, they were a time saver.  I never had any idea how many chemicals and other additives were in those packaged foods.  But today, we know better.  I figured out how to make this from scratch when my kids were in high school (wow that was a longggggg time ago).  It really couldn’t be any easier!

I always used ground beef for my stroganoff, mostly because that is what I grew up eating.  I know have used small beef cubes at times, but I stick with ground beef.  Just my preference.

I took about 1 pound of ground beef, a small diced onion, cooking over a medium flame until cooked through and crumbly.  Don’t forget to salt and pepper!  When done, I sprinkled the ground beef with about 2 tablespoons of flour, mixing it in well, then I left that cook for another 2 minutes.

You can certainly substitute yummy chunks of beef for this recipe.  You would need to heat some oil in your frypan over medium flame, toss the cubed beef in flour to coat lightly, season well with salt and pepper and add the beef to the hot oil.  Sear and brown the beef on all sides.  Towards the end of cooking the cubed beef, add the diced onion and sauté until translucent.  Then proceed on with the recipe picking up with adding the bouillon and broth.

Next, add a packet of beef bouillon and about 1 to 1-1/2 cups of beef broth, let that simmer for about 5 minutes or so until it thickens.  You will want it to be thick and saucy, is saucy even a word!!

Turn off the heat and add about ¾ cup of sour cream. Stir well so that it is melted into the sauce.

Serve over egg noodles, top with chopped parsley. Done!  And so delish!  Serve with a salad.

Hamburger Stroganoff

Serves 4

1 pound ground beef

1 small onion, diced

1-2 T flour

Salt and pepper to taste

1 packet beef bouillon or 1 cube

1-1/2 cups beef broth

¾ cup sour cream

Egg noodles, cooked to package directions

1. Brown ground beef and onion over medium flame until cooked. Salt and pepper to taste.
2. Sprinkle ground beef with flour and mix in well, cook for another 2 minutes.
3. Add beef bouillon and broth, stir and let simmer until broth reduces and you have a nice gravy like consistency.
4. Turn off heat and add sour cream, stir until well combined and heated through.
5. Serve over cooked egg noodles.

 

Pancetta and Edamame Spaghetti Squash

I love sharing an appetizer of edamame beans when I meet friends for dinner at our local sushi restaurants.  I also enjoy buying the steamer bags at my store so I can enjoy them at home.

Those little steamer bags of beans also inspire me to be able to add these beans to recipes. I am able to get two recipes out of one bean bag.  LOL  Ok, not that funny.

For this recipe, I baked my squash as usual; covering it with a good drizzle of olive oil or avocado oil, salt and pepper, but this time I added a few dashes of ground cayenne pepper and turmeric.

This recipe comes together in just a few minutes (I love recipes like this).  Once the squash was baked, I turned the oven off but left the squash in the oven until I was ready to scrape it out.

To a fry pan I added about 1 T of butter and a touch of oil, melt the butter over medium heat.  Next I added about 10 slices of pancetta and some ground black pepper.  Simmer until cooked, about 5 minutes or so.

Then I added 1 cup of the edamame beans that have been steamed and removed from the shell.  Just cook the beans until they are heated through, about 2-3 minutes.  Add just a little salt to the pan.  You won’t need much because of the salt in the pancetta.  I also did a dash of cayenne and turmeric.

Next, I poured in 1 cup of white wine.  You can substitute vegetable or chicken broth if you prefer. Let that simmer over a medium low heat until the wine/broth reduces a little.

While that simmered, I scrapped out the squash noodles into a pasta serving dish and ladled the sauce over the noodles.  I topped the dish with grated Parmesan cheese.

This was an incredibly light but filling meal.

Pancetta and Edamame Spaghetti Squash

Serves 2

1 half of a baked spaghetti squash, let sit in oven so it stays hot until sauce is cooked

10 slices of pancetta

1 T butter

1 T olive oil

Cayenne pepper and turmeric, season to taste

1 cup edamame beans, cooked and removed from shells

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 cup white wine, or vegetable or chicken stock

Parmesan cheese, finely grated for topping

1. Melt butter and oil over a medium heat, then add the pancetta and some ground black pepper.  Cook for about 5-6 minutes.
2. Add the beans to the pancetta, add a little salt, cayenne pepper and turmeric and cook for about 2-3 minutes until heated through.
3. Add the wine or the broth and let reduce for a few minutes over a medium low heat.
4. While that is simmering, scrape out squash noodles and place in a pasta serving bowl.
5. Immediately ladle sauce over noodles, top with grated parmesan cheese and serve.

Broccoli Mac and Cheese

Do you use a fork or a spoon to eat your mac & cheese?  I use a spoon, no cheesy liquid gold can be left behind!!

I was craving mac & cheese but wanted to try some cheeses that I have not used for this dish.  I didn’t have any luck finding most of the cheese that I wanted.

While I was browsing through all the cheese in the special cheese section at my market, I ran across a shredded “blend for mac & cheese”.

The blend was 2 types of cheddar, swiss, and American.  Not what I wanted but because the picking was slim, that’s what I went with.  Honestly, I am not a huge cheddar fan and I did not want American in this dish. The only cheese that I did find that was on my list was the provolone.

When I got home and started to cook, I realized my pantry shelf was missing flour that I needed to make the rue, I was striking out on this one!  I just made my mac & cheese like I did when my kids were little years ago, just milk and cheese.

I used the small shells for this dish, half of a box.  They hold cheese in their little shell-cups like a champ!

Towards the last few minutes of the shells cooking, I added 1 cup broccoli florets to the cooking pasta.  I let that simmer for about 2-3 minutes only, then leaving the pasta and broccoli in the pot, I drained the water out and put the pot back on the stove over a light to medium flame.  If a little pasta water is in the pot, that is even better.

 (Look at that lonely piece of broccoli laying there!)

To the hot shells I added 1 T of butter, about ½ cup of milk and the 8oz package of the shredded cheese blend, stirring often.

I then added about 7or 8 slices of the provolone cheese.  Add more milk as the cheese melts, using only enough to keep the cheese sauce creamy but not too runny.  I think I used about 1 cup of milk total. You may need more or less depending on the cheeses you are using.

Meanwhile, I made a crumb topping, YUM!

Over medium high heat I melted about 1 T of butter in separate fry pan, I may have added just a tad bit more butter J.  Then I tossed in about 1 cup of panko breadcrumbs, I stirred that around the pan until it was well coated and just started to turn golden.  Remove from the heat immediately and set aside while you finish the cheese sauce.

When all of the cheese was melted, I poured the mac & cheese in a 6×9 inch, 1-quart baking dish, this was only for me, spread it out evenly and then covered the top with the breadcrumbs.

I popped that in a pre-heated 350-degree oven and baked until the crumbs were nice and toasty and the cheese was bubbling, maybe about 20-30 minutes depending on your oven.

Even though the cheese was not what I wanted, I was definitely happy with the end result.  This dish was so delicious and the crumb topping just took it over the top!!

Broccoli Mac & Cheese

Serves 2

½ box of small pasta shells

1 c broccoli florets

1 T butter

1 8oz package of shredded cheddar, American and Swiss (or shredded cheese of your choice)

7 to 8 slices Provolone cheese

1 cup milk, more or less depending on your cheese selection

Topping:

1-2 T butter

1 cup Panko breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350, grease a 6×9 inch baking pan

1. Bring water to a boil for pasta, salt well.
2. Cook shells, when they are almost al dente, add the broccoli florets and simmer for about 2-3 minutes.
3. Drain pasta, leaving a little bit of pasta water in the pan is okay.  Return to stove over a light to medium flame.
4. Add 1 T butter and the 8 oz package of cheese to the pasta.  Also pour in about half of the milk.
5. Stir quite often as the cheese melts.
6. Tear up the slices of Provolone and add to the shells.
7. Add the remaining milk as you are stirring, making sure the sauce is creamy.  You may need may need more or less depending on the cheese you are using.
8. In a separate pan, melt the remaining butter over a medium heat. Then add the breadcrumbs and stir until well blended.
9. When they turn toasty, remove from heat immediately and set aside.
10. Pour the mac & cheese into the baking pan, cover with the breadcrumbs and bake about 20-30 minutes or until the crumbs are golden and the cheese is bubbly.

Spiritual and Faith Journey

The Bible.  Have you read it? Do you understand it? Do you believe?

I just joined a 5-week bible study group at church.  The one thing I was really hoping would NOT happen is that we go around the room and talk about ourselves. Of course, that is the first thing we had to do. I do not like attention drawn to myself, nor do I speak well in front of people; it is all so very uncomfortable for me.

What we needed to do was to give a brief description of our journey and what brought us to the study group.  Thankfully I was about the 10th person so I had a few minutes to try to figure out what the heck I was going to say!  

In all honesty, I’m not sure I HAD a definitive reason for being there.

And what exactly did this leader want to hear about my journey, how much did I really want to share.

When it was my turn, I briefly stated that I was brought up in a strict Catholic religion from my fathers’ side of the family and that in my adult life I always had a strong faith.  But it wasn’t until about 15 years ago that I really dove into my faith and scripture when a Deacon that I knew gave me his Catholic study bible that he used for the bible study groups.  It meant the world to me and it was filled with some of his notes.

Then I mentioned that my faith and belief is now stronger than it ever was, and I had never imagined it could be like this!  I never knew the craving I would have for scripture; I never knew what it meant to give my life over to Him and be reborn in faith.  

The rest of the day I reached deep inside my core, deep inside of my heart to find a better answer.

Some of it I didn’t like.

As I mentioned, I was raised a Catholic.  I attended a private Catholic school for the first 4 years of elementary before switching to a public school.  After that transition, we had weekly Catholic classes through the school week in the evening and then Mass on Sunday.

But there was nothing at home with religion, scripture or faith.  We did say a blessing before our meals, that was it.  

By the time I was a teenager, I protested the weekly classes and even church on Sunday.  I stayed in bed until I got yelled at, and then like a slug I got ready for church.

When I had my kids, I switched churches and I took my kids to Sunday school but no church service right away.  By the time they were old enough to actually sit still for a church service, I was divorced.  For several years I did not attend church, nor did I take my kids to Sunday school.

Eventually I found my way back to church and took my kids every other Sunday when they were with me.  They fought me, just like I did when I was a kid.

I did the same as my parents; church on Sunday and no bible reading or scripture verses through the week.  We even stopped saying the mealtime blessing.

When I was in church, I attempted to read scripture from the bible, but I didn’t understand it and it didn’t make sense to me.  I hoped I was getting enough from what the pastor was saying, and I hoped my kids were getting something too.

Then my kids were grown and on their own.  They had no religion or spirituality in their life, which I blamed myself.  I did manage to get them to attend Christmas Eve service for a few years but then that stopped when they started having kids.

At that point, I was on my second marriage and my husband’s work required us move to Maryland and then Virginia.  I stopped attending church again, but I did my occasional praying and thanking God for my blessings. 

I knew the basics from my upbringing and had my faith, and I always thought was enough.  

By now I had drifted further from the church and I was “open” to the possibility that biblical times were not quite what the bible stated.  

I was satisfied with my faith and spirituality.  And then it all changed.

By the time we moved from Maryland to Virginia, our marriage was in trouble.  And I was realizing that I was in a damaging, selfish and controlling marriage.  

I was working in convalescent center in Virginia and the residents and staff were very “religious”, spiritual, and read the bible daily.  I became good friends with the Deacon there, and a few other coworkers.  And my life was changed.

When I saw how strong everyone was in their faith and the bible, I started asking a lot of questions about Jesus, the bible, heaven, and the path that God had planned for me.  One of my friends suggested listening to Joyce Meyer.  I was hooked. I craved learning from her, she made things easy to understand.  And sometimes, depending on her topic, I swear she was looking through my eyes and into my soul.  What she said just resonated with me and I was finally able to understand.

I had a lot of conversations with the Deacon, I craved those intense and deep conversations. I would challenge him on the bible, whether it was really God’s word or just an interpretation from man what they wanted us to believe.  It didn’t take long for me to change my views on the bible, so I started looking for my own bible.  But there were so many versions, I didn’t know what to choose.  

As my faith became stronger and stronger, I prayed for my marriage and what direction I needed to take.  I had told my husband not long after we moved to Virginia, that we really needed to work on our marriage.  I won’t go into details, but he did nothing to fix us.  I suggested we go to counseling, he told me to go instead.  So I did, unbeknownst to him.

Between the counseling, the praying and talking to the Deacon; I eventually made the difficult choice to ask for a divorce.  And just like that, I was single and living back in my hometown.  As I mentioned earlier, my Deacon friend gave me his personal Catholic study bible to take with me.  For a few years, I picked it up on occasion but never really did any serious reading.  

Now that study bible and another bible are always out; either on my sofa, bed or dining room table.  I crave reading it and learning the scripture, I crave learning the culture.  

After I moved back home, I did go to my old church a few times, but it had changed.  The pastor and choir had changed, the service had changed.  And honestly, I got nothing out of it.  I sat there listening to them “preach” but heard nothing.  I missed my conversations with the Deacon, I learned more about God and the bible from him than I did sitting here in this pew at a church that I once loved.  So I stopped attending.

Last year I discovered we had a Christian rock radio station.  I have been hooked ever since!  I love that station; it is now the only radio station that I listen too.  One Sunday morning I was out running errands and on two separate times within 30 minutes a song came on about going to church.  I got the message loud and clear.  

One of my girlfriends had been talking about making plans for me to attend church with her but we never confirmed a date.  When I told her about the message I had gotten, she said “OK, I’ll pick you up Sunday!”   I have been going ever since, and in September I joined as a member.  I cannot imagine NOT going to church on Sunday.

I have cried during the praise and worship songs; I have been touched by the sermon in such a way that I was brought to tears.  I have also made new friends and found some friends that I had lost touch. 

Now here I am, in this bible study group for the next 5 weeks.  Pondering the question I was asked this morning.  Thinking back over my life and my faith journey.  I am sad that it took me this long to get where I am in my faith journey, but I am so happy to be here and not back where I was.

 

Garlic Shrimp and Broccoli Sauce over Spaghetti Squash

I love pasta.  Seriously, I could eat it every day.  But I don’t want all those carbs. The next best thing is spaghetti squash.

This is amazing to me!  How can I substitute squash for pasta?? I do not have a clear understanding of this but it works and I love it.

I’m also looking for ways to change my diet to a healthier and lean diet so the squash is perfect.

So I am always looking for different sauce ideas for the squash.  Over the weekend I had a lot, and I mean a lot of things in the fridge that needed to be used.  One of them being the spaghetti squash.

I also had broccoli, half of an onion, chicken stock, a little wine, lemons, and a few shrimp in the freezer.  I found dinner in those ingredients.

I pulled the shrimp out to thaw, I only had about 12 large shrimp but it would work.  Would have loved more but I was working with what I had.

Then I baked half the spaghetti squash, I will use the other half this week.

When the squash was ready to come out of the oven, I turned off the heat and left it in the oven while I started the sauce. First thing I did was melt 1 tablespoon butter and drizzle of avocado oil in a large non-stick saucepan. Then I added diced onion and the shrimp.  Season with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and thyme.

Sauté until the shrimp are about halfway done.  Then toss in broccoli florets and sauté until bright green and the shrimp are cooked.  Next, add either 1 cup of white wine or chicken stock.  I decided on the white wine for tonight’s meal and will use the stock for couscous tomorrow.

Simmer on low to reduce but do not overcook.  Only about 1-2 minutes.

Scrape out the squash and place on a plate or pasta bowl and top with the sauce, grated parm cheese and a drizzle of lemon juice.  I got 2 servings out of my squash and the sauce was enough for both servings too.

Garlic Shrimp and Broccoli Sauce

Serves 2

 

Half of prepared spaghetti squash

1 T butter

2 T olive or avocado oil

1 small onion, diced

About 12-15 large shrimps, shell and tail removed, deveined

1-1/2 c broccoli florets

Salt & Pepper to taste

½ tsp Paprika

½ tsp Garlic Powder (adjust to your liking or use 1 clove of minced garlic)

1 sprig of thyme, leaves removed

2 dashes of red pepper flakes

1 cup white wine or chicken stock or broth

Grated Parm Cheese and lemon juice for topping

 

1. Melt butter and oil in large non-stick saucepan.
2. Add shrimp and all the spices, sauté until shrimp are cooked about halfway, then toss in the broccoli florets and cook until bright green and shrimp are cooked.
3. Add the wine or broth and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
4. Scrape out shell of spaghetti squash and place strands in a pasta bowl or plate and top with sauce, grated parm and lemon juice.