Stranger in A Foreign Land

A stranger in a foreign land, that’s who I am this month. I don’t know the language, the transit system, the dishwasher, or even the toilet.  The last time I had to make this many adjustments, I was a ten-year-old child in the Philippines.  Nothing is remotely the same as my home in Texas. A quick trip to the grocery store this afternoon involved a brisk four-block walk in the snow to buy and sack our groceries in bags we supplied. On the return trip I learned to walk as far away from the road as possible. That lesson was reinforced by a total dousing by a passing bus.

I’m not the only one making adjustments. My daughter, Megan and her husband Ben had their first child in Budapest last week. My airline ticket had been purchased for months, but the little guy came a week early. I missed his birth by four days, but I'm here now and making up for lost time.

Ben never changed a diaper before Grant was born.
He figured it out with common sense and some pointers from the internet. He pretty much takes care of all diaper changing duties and considers it a great source of father/son bonding time. Who am I to disagree?

Megan takes care of all nutritional needs

and likes to dress her new doll.

We equally share the opportunity
to adore this sweet baby boy!

Ben and Megan chose to have a home birth assisted by two midwives. A pediatrician made a house call to evaluate the baby and gave him a clean bill of health. The lactation consultant also made two house calls so the family didn't have to leave the house. However, when a little jaundice showed up, everybody bundled up for a trip to the pediatrician for a blood test.

Ben and Megan don't own a car and utilize public transportation.
Little bear got his first trip in a taxi. Bless his heart,
we stuffed him in his snowsuit and buckled him in.

His bilirubin was high, but not so dangerous that it required treatment, still it did require another visit to the pediatrician and blood test the next day.

Once again, he was wrapped up tight. This time in his stroller.

and took his first tram ride.

This week has been full of firsts or all of us. My children’s language teacher generously provided a crash course in Hungarian, just enough for me to be polite. My name, “Lace” translates in Hungarian to “Csipke”. It’s exciting to be able to introduce myself in Hungarian, however that is the extent of my interaction in a musical, but difficult language.
I'll let you know how it is going -- Sziasztok! Csipke.

Life of the Party or Christ-like?

Happy New Year! Have you made your New Year Resolutions? Mine always seem to be connected with my mouth. I have difficulty not just with what goes into my mouth, but what comes out of it. I came across this journal entry from April 2009, which describes my struggle:

"I love to be the life of the party. I want to be the person everyone wants to sit next. I try never to be boring. I may be naughty, but never boring. Being Christ-like is most difficult for me in the midst of Sweetheart’s business associates. As a corporate wife I feel a social responsibility to be entertaining hopefully, in a charming and funny way. Unfortunately, I’ve been known to succumb to caustic quips on face and fashion, or the cheap tricks of sexual innuendo and flirtation to obtain this goal.  While it may be entertaining, it is not Christ-like.

God promises to do a work in my heart, but I know I make His job easier by avoiding alcohol.   I love a glass of wine. It relaxes me. My body flows to the rhythm of the music, my stories are livelier, and the world looks a little rosier. Regrettably, consumption of two or more glasses of wine turns my dancing into booty-shaking, my foot invariably finds my mouth in conversation, and by the end of the evening I am morose. Sleep eludes me as I replay each poor choice with regret and condemnation. I commit to change these behaviors and ask God to put a watch on my tongue that I might not sin against Him.

My first test came quickly. Sweetheart and I flew to Eden Roc Resort & Spa in Miami Beach for a convention where the best in the company were rewarded with four days of free food, booze, and swag.

From the moment we checked into our well-appointed hotel, free alcohol was available. Mojitos were offered at registration. A lunch buffet arranged around a pool included three open bars and stations to make your choice of fresh fruit smoothies (with or without vodka) or frozen coffee drinks (with or without a liquor).  I dodged the first bullet by asking for water.

After a nap and in-room movie, it was time for four hours of uninterrupted temptation. The opening reception consisted of buffets and bars set up around four pools. Again I dodged a bullet by drinking water with my meal. I savored a delicious frozen strawberry daiquiri Popsicle for dessert, but it didn’t cause me to join in the synchronized swimming. Likewise, the salsa dancing instructors carried on without my assistance. Instead, by the end of the evening I was deep in conversation about God’s unconditional love with a woman I had never met before. Within fifteen minutes of our introduction, she was confiding things in me she had only told her husband.  It was exhilarating to be able to reassure her of God’s love and mercy. I had no trouble going to sleep that night. I owed no one an apology.

• All things are legitimate [permissible—and we are free to do anything we please], but not all things are helpful (expedient, profitable, and wholesome). All things are legitimate, but not all things are constructive [to character] and edifying [to spiritual life]. Let no one then seek his own good and advantage and profit, but [rather] each one of the other [let him seek the welfare of his neighbor]. I Corinthians 10:23-24.
 
• Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious-the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies. Philippians 4:8-9.

“Father, put your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth.”

Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie

We took our kids on a Caribbean cruise two weeks before Christmas so we had no Christmas celebration planned. Just another quiet evening at home. However, a chance encounter at the grocery store ended with an invitation to join our neighbors for Lobster Bisque and Salmon Quesadillas on Christmas Eve.  We were looking forward to an evening of good food and fun until a nasty cold knocked us out of commission. Our friends sent us a generous basket with all the anticipated delicacies.

No southern lady ever returns a dish or basket empty, so I made a chocolate chip pecan pie as my thank you gift. Honestly, it is one of the easiest pies to make and takes very little time. It freezes well, so I made two in case I have unexpected company later in the week. 

CHOCOLATE CHIP PECAN PIE

9-inch Unbaked Pastry Shell

3 eggs

1 cup light corn syrup

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped pecans

½ cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces

Oven 375°

In large mixer bowl, combine eggs, corn syrup, sugar, salt and vanilla.  Blend well at medium speed. Stir in pecans and chocolate pieces. Pour into unbaked pastry shell.  Bake at 375° for 40 to 45 minutes until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool. Serve plain or with whipped cream.

Gather ingredients. I've measured out enough for 2-9" pies.

Beat eggs, blend in sugar, syrup, salt, and vanilla

I can make my own pie crust, but it's hardly worth the effort.
 I use a pre-made Pillsbury crust and pinch the edges using my thumb and forefinger.

I sprinkle the pecan and chocolate pieces in the unbaked
shell so they will be evenly distributed.
 

Pour egg mixture over pecans and chocolate pieces

I cover with an edge protector (which you can find at a kitchen store or use
strips of aluminum foil). This allows the crust to brown without
burning the edges.

Now kick your feet up for 45 minutes while the pies bake.

 The directions say to serve with whipped cream. I think that's gilding the lily, but you do as you like. Personally, this is my favorite pecan pie because it isn't as sweet as the one my mom makes (don't worry, she won't ever read this since she doesn't own a computer). In fact, I like to eat it straight from the freezer, like a frozen candy bar. Hope the holidays continue to treat you well!

Date Nut Loaf

This is the only recipe I have which has been handed down for generations. My great-grandmother, Sarah Elizabeth Brannan, handed it down to her daughter, Ida Mae Keel, who gave it to my mother, Priscella Lee Thetford. Mom gave it to me as a young bride in 1977. I have been making it at Christmas ever since. I just make one batch and save it for friends and family who treasure its rich nuttiness. 

Candy is easy to make if you invest in a inexpensive candy thermometer. Once upon a time I made at least twenty baskets of goodies for my Sweetheart's co-workers every Christmas. I found candy so quick to make, package, and store, my baskets contained the standard fudge, but also peanut brittle, chocolate cherry fudge, white chocolate pretzels and this Date Loaf Candy.

DATE LOAF CANDY

2 cups sugar

2/3 cups sweet milk

1 Tablespoon butter

Cook together until mixture forms hard ball in cold water or (260° on candy thermometer)

Add two cups of chopped dates and beat until evenly distributed.

Add cup chopped pecans.

Use spatula to place hot mixture on waxed paper.

Roll into a loaf, being careful not to burn your hand.

Let stand until hard enough to slice.

Gather and measure your ingredients.
Sweet milk is listed to differentiate it from buttermilk.
I use evaporated milk for richness. Any milk will work

 Combine sugar, milk and butter together

Cook together until mixture reaches 260° on candy thermometer 

Add 2 cups of chopped dates, mix until blended.

Add 1 cup chopped pecans

Pour onto waxed paper and shape into loaf.

When cool enough to handle, slice into circles
 and serve, or package for gifts. 

Make-Ahead Scrambled Egg Casserole

This past weekend fourteen people spent the night. Some wake up early and are ready to eat. Others move more slowly and like to have their coffee before entertaining the thought of food. I like to make them all happy. With this recipe I can. It's easy to throw together and can be kept warm in your slow cooker for up to four hours.
I usually make a double recipe since I have some hearty eaters (read "men"). Leftovers can be turned into breakfast burritos for a quick on-the-run breakfast during the week.

Make – Ahead Scrambled Eggs

8 slices bacon (or 1 package of real bacon bits)

3 T. margarine or butter

16 eggs

1 C. half-and-half or milk

½ t. salt

¼ t. pepper

1 (10 3/4 oz.) can condensed cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup

2 T. chopped fresh chives (opt.)

4 Italian plum tomatoes, quartered, sliced (opt.)

1 (8 pkg.) pkg. (3 cups) sliced fresh mushrooms (opt.)
8 oz. (2 cups) shredded Cheddar cheese

·        Cook and crumble bacon

·        Cook mushrooms until tender (if using)

·        Melt margarine or butter in skillet

·        Beat eggs in large bowl

·        Add half-and-half and salt and pepper to eggs

·        Cook eggs in skillet until firm but still moist

·        Stir in soup and chives (if using)

·        Place half of egg mixture in 3 ½ or 4 quart slow cooker (crock pot)

·        Top with half each of the cooked mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese and crumbled bacon

·        Repeat layers

·        Serve immediately, or cover and keep warm on low setting for up to 4 hours

• Makes 12 3/4 cup servings.

Never be afraid to ask for help! My husband usually cracks all
the eggs for me. Sometimes we prepare the egg mixture the night
before so all we have to do is scramble the eggs in the morning.

While he is cracking the eggs, I assemble the rest of
the ingredients and measure out the milk.
NOTE: I buy shredded cheese and bacon bits.

Once you have scrambled the egg/milk mixture, stir in the
condensed soup. My kids don't like mushroom, so I've been
known to use cream of chicken, onion or cheddar cheese soup.

To make clean-up easy I use a slow-cooker liner.
Place your egg mixture in the bottom.

Top with bacon bits.

Finish with shredded cheese. Repeat.
Cover and set cooker on warm.
Let the cheese melt before serving.

Because there are always a few selective eaters I make this recipe as plain as possible--no chives, mushrooms or tomatoes. For those of us who like a little kick in the morning, I serve salsa on the side. A little toast, fresh fruit and a hot beverage rounds out an easy brunch. Let me know how you like it.

Pumpkin Pancakes with Toasted Pecan Syrup

My husband is not a fan of pumpkin, so I wait until I have a houseful of people who will share these Pumpkin Pancakes with me. The recipe came from Martha Hall of the Arcadian Inn in Edmond, Oklahoma. Ms. Martha served our pancakes with fresh fruit and crispy bacon. I've been a fan of this luscious treat since the first rich bite went into my mouth. It couldn't be any easier to make, unless you can get someone else to do it for you. 

NOTE: This time you are using PIE MIX, not
canned pumpkin

PUMPKIN PANCAKES:

1 can pumpkin pie mix

1 egg

3 cups pancake mix (Aunt Jemima)

1/2 cup oil

Combine all ingredients and add water to desired consistency.

TOASTED PECAN SYRUP

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1 Tablespoon vanilla

1/3 cup butter

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 cup pecans, toasted

In a 2-quart saucepan combine sugar, syrup, butter, egg, and vanilla. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until mixture comes to a full boil. Stir in pecans before serving. Store leftovers in refrigerator. 

Combine all pancake ingredients

Mix until smooth

Add water (I like to use Sprite to keep the pancakes fluffy) until you have the
 desired consistency. These pancakes are little thick, I added more water to the next batch.
You can add chopped pecans at this point, if you like.
Cook on low heat until bubbles begin to appear on top.

Flip and continue cooking on low heat until brown on both sides.

While the pancakes are cooking, make your syrup in a separate pan.

Gather your ingredients. 1/3 cup of butter is 5 1/3 tablespoons.

To avoid having strings of cooked egg white in your syrup, combine your
 beaten egg with the sugar before turning on the heat.

Add syrup and vanilla.

Add butter and cook over medium heat.

 Stir constantly until mixture comes to a full boil.
 Stir in pecans before serving.

or sprinkle on top of your pancakes before serving.

I keep leftovers in a container in the refrigerator
to use when the grandkids come. Just warm it up
in the microwave and serve over any pancake.
(I've been told it's pretty good on fingers too!)

Next week I'll give you the other component to my traditional holiday brunch, Make-Ahead Scrambled Egg Casserole. It keeps in a Crockpot for up to four hours!

Turkey Gravy & Merry Ho Ho

"I'm going to post my Scrambled Egg Casserole and Pumpkin Pancake recipes this week," I told my daughter.
"Mom, what I really need is a Giblet Gravy recipe. Please pray for me, I'm making my first Thanksgiving turkey. Ben is going to try to order a turkey from the butcher. They don't carry them in the grocery store. Pray his Hungarian translates into what we need. We need a cranberry sauce recipe too. You can't buy the canned stuff, but we can buy fresh cranberries at the specialty store," Megan explained.
"But what about my brunch recipes?" I asked.
"I already have those, so they can wait," she laughed. So for my kids in Hungary here are those recipes. 

GIBLET GRAVY

1/4 cup fat from turkey drippings

Vegetable oil

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups liquid (turkey juices, canned chicken broth or water)

Browning sauce, if desired

Salt and pepper, as needed

1. Pan and drippings will be hot, so be careful when handling. Pour drippings (turkey juices and fat) from roasting pan into a glass measuring cup, leaving the brown particles in the pan. With a spoon, skim fat from drippings. Return 1/4 cup of the fat to the roasting pan. (If there isn't enough fat, add oil to measure 1/4 cup.) Measuring accurately is important because too little fat makes the gravy lumpy and too much fat makes the gravy greasy.

2. Stir the flour into the fat in the pan, using a wire whisk. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth and bubbly. Remove the pan from the heat.

3. Add enough chicken broth or water to remaining drippings to measure 2 cups. Stir into pan. Heat to boiling over high heat, stirring constantly, Continue boiling 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in a few drops of browning sauce for a richer deeper color. Taste the gravy, and add salt and pepper, if desired.

It is difficult to find canned chicken stock in Hungary, so I started with a rotisserie chicken.
I left plenty of meat on the carcass when I de-boned it. Place in a pot and covered it with water.

This is a great time to clean out the vegetable drawer. Cut up celery and onion
 (and any other vegetable that needs a new zip code) and throw it in with the chicken.
This chicken already had some lovely spices on it, but I did add about a teaspoon of
poultry seasoning. Cover and simmer until the meat falls off the bone.

I let the broth cool overnight and then skimmed the fat off the top.

I didn't have quite enough fat, so I added a coconut oil.
(any vegetable oil will do)

I strained the broth until I had 2 cups.
The rest I used in chicken and dumplings.

Stir flour into heated oil to make a roux.

Stir constantly until it browns.

Browning gives it additional flavor.

I heat my broth in the microwave and add it slowly
to the roux so my gravy is smooth and not lumpy.

Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Add salt and pepper if needed.

So where are the giblets (heart, gizzard, liver & neck)? You can make your stock using giblets. Strain the stock for the gravy. Chop the giblets up and add them back to the gravy at the end. I never put liver in my gravy because so few people like it. I do use the gizzards, heart, and neck meat, but you can serve it without any of those pieces and call it Turkey Gravy. I like to make my gravy the day before and warm it up before serving. It's just one less thing to stress about on an already busy day.

For Ben my favorite son-in-love in Hungary, my cranberry relish. We call it Merry HoHo! I make a double batch at Thanksgiving, seal it in jars and eat it with Christmas Ham too!

MERRY HO HO!

2 cups cranberries (fresh or frozen, 1 12oz bag is enough)

2 fresh oranges, (ends & seeds removed)

2 apples, cored (I like the tartness of Granny Smiths)

1/2 to 1 cup sugar

1 cup chopped pecans (opt.)

Directions

1. Slice unpeeled oranges and apples into eighths. Place half of the fruit in food processor or blender. Pulse until evenly chopped. Transfer to a bowl and repeat with remaining fruit. Stir in sugar to taste. Add pecans. Store in refrigerator or freezer.

Gather your ingredients. Toast your pecans, if desired
Three minutes in the microwave will be sufficient for 1 cup of pecans.

Pulse in food processor or blender.

My blender broke so I ended up using my
mini-chopper.

I just cut the fruit a little smaller and did them in batches.

Place all the fruit in a bowl. Add sugar and pecans.

Mix together and you have Merry Ho Ho!

I like to put plan-overs in small jars and use it through out the
holiday season. Sometimes we fry turkeys for neighbors and friends.
 I like to send a little Merry Ho Ho when we deliver their turkey.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING, YA'LL!