The A-Okay Breakfast – Frisbee Eggs!

Posted on May 6, 2011March 18, 2015 by Katharine

Don’t you LOVE when an experimental trick turns out?

The first time I tried to make perfectly round fried eggs–the kind you put on an English muffin–I succeeded! My way is, I am sure, NOT how many people do it, but it suits me perfectly, I think.

And it was far more fun to figure it out myself, than to conform, anyway.

I know this breakfast post is supposed to come to you on Monday mornings, but life here is slow to return to normal. Lord willing, I will post another A-Okay Breakfast next Monday. In the meantime, try this:

All you need is butter and eggs and a small tin can, such as tuna comes in, or else a canning ring. I use a canning ring for our Frisbee Eggs. (We call them that because they are slightly domed on top and sometimes have a bubble underneath, close enough in shape to a Frisbee, making little ones laugh.)

Place the ring in a small fry pan.

heating butter and ring — Heating Butter and Ring

Put about 1/2 teaspoon butter in the ring and turn on heat to medium, until butter completely melts.

Break medium egg into ring, holding ring down briefly, to prevent egg liquids from escaping underneath ring. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until it is half-cooked.

Use fork to help lift egg and ring onto spatula, and flip egg and ring together.

Cook briefly on top side. Then flip again, to remove ring.

After removing ring, return to cooking top side until egg is done to your preference.

weekly photo challenge round — Weekly Photo Challenge Round

I had mine with several radish slices and salt. Served with 2 ounces pomegranate juice.

Next Monday, I hope to return to the old schedule with “Good Ol’ Bacon and Eggs”.

See ya’!

Herbs, Homemaking, Womanhood

Weekly Photo Challenge: Round

Posted on May 4, 2011March 18, 2015 by Katharine

Oh, after such a long time of sketchy Internet service, the (round) sun is shining and the air is crisp and wonderful. Such cool breezes as we cherish are blowing over our land and the trees positively glitter from being so clean.

Opportunities to snap photos were also sketchy, since I believe cameras prefer not to be wet. However, catch this:

What I hope is a Viceroy caterpillar is gobbling my rue plant. His little middle is growing round and rounder. At least this one is leaving the dill alone.

We have a set of antique wagon wheels in our herb beds:

cos, burnet, thyme, and wheel — Cos, Burnet, Thyme, and Wagon Wheel

This first one shelters the cos, burnet, and thyme.

rosemary, pineapple sage, cos, and wheel — Rosemary, Pineapple Sage, Cos, and Wagon Wheel

It’s twin decorates the rosemary and the pineapple sage.

I do love all my herbs and hope you have discovered the joy of growing them.

Believe it or not!, Homemaking, Inspiring, Wisdom

Most Popular Post, So Far

Posted on May 2, 2011March 16, 2015 by Katharine

The folks at postaday asked us to list for them our top posts for the year. Since my Internet still has issues with the idea that I am trying to USE it, I thought I would repost this one for those who may have missed it. Hope you like it; it got scads of views!

Reclaiming the Dream

I remember a dream house we moved into, once, that required walking through a nightmare before we could really own it. In a job relocation, we had looked everywhere for anything that would contain us all and that was not affected by the housing bubble. Funny, although it was the only house we could afford, it was clearly the biggest we’d ever seen. I mean, 4000 square feet with 7 acres far exceeded our hopes, in my favorite layout: an A-frame with wings. I thought it was a dream come true.

On closing day, our realtor apologized for having to board an airplane immediately for a business trip. A lie? Maybe, but certainly convenient for the realtor. The sellers skipped town, too. Our sold house was 400 miles away. The new job beckoned.

The promised cleaning had not happened. In fact, the house was far dirtier than at the showing. Everything unwanted from the attic lay strewn all over the game roomfloor—three garbage bags full of it. The kitchen looked like a murder had happened there. Probably someone had just dragged leaky packages of ground beef across the floor to the fridge when someone slipped and nearly fell in it. And had not wiped it up. Of course, the promised professional carpet cleaning existed only in the land of promises-promises. The finale for the day probably was the cat litter and feces on the dining room carpet and the animal barf on the laundry room floor. That is, until I lifted the nasty, old, wet, cleaning rag from the kitchen sink and found inside it a huge dog clunker. I screamed and nearly passed out, grabbed a plastic bag, and hurried the mess out the front door. And bleached absolutely everything while crying.

What followed was a month of the unbelievable. We mastered spot-treating carpet. I would steam clean every night until I could not remember how to turn the machine off, usually around 2 a.m. We learned how to remove vinyl wall-paper glue with a knife. We used five coats of sealer/primer on the purple paint. I list only part. No one believes the rest. Or cares, usually. Let’s say “the dream house became a nightmare.”

BUT—God went before us. Constantly we found signs of His loving approval. The perfect wallpaper in NEUTRAL colors went on sale for $4.00. A wonderful furniture salesman helped us find honest repairmen. We thank God, often, for the fact that of all the things that did not work, the smoke alarms did, since there was a fire, one night.

God blessed, protected, and boosted us as we slipped into this hard place. He gave us joy and strength as we plowed through insurmountable difficulties. One by one, each small space was ours, by right of conquest.

Lately I’ve been thinking about myself when the Lord first moved into my being. I think I know a bit about how He felt.

But He’s been up late, nights.

I am His by right of conquest.

Blessings of Habit, Homemaking, Husbands, Inspiring

Weekly Photo Challenge: Lines

Posted on April 20, 2011 by Katharine

Again!

I only thought I had posted lines for this photo challenge, but after last night’s raging storm, I went out to check for damage, and found the loveliest sight:

: Rank and File

As we can see, the busy hands have been busy, causing all sorts of lovely things to happen for us. In order, from left to right, these lines show:

beets, cabbage, onion

beets, carrots

radish, tomatoes

corn

tomatoes, green beans

You may detect another line in the above photo, a black and orange snake-like thing, slithering through line 3, our drip line. After an inch of rain last night, I doubt we will use it for a long while. We are so thankful, as the tap water just is not the same and costs plenty.

The storms brought with them some cool air from the netherly regions–thanks for sharing, y’all! We went from 80 degrees indoors yesterday (and much warmer outdoors) to fifties outdoors, this morning. What a welcome change!

And what a welcome sight, to me, all these wonderful plants are! They remind me of children–much work, but worth every drop of sweat!

Blessings of Habit, Coffee-ism, Homemaking, Inspiring, Recipes

The A-OK Breakfast—Chocolate/Strawberry Zabaglione!

Posted on April 18, 2011October 28, 2015 by Katharine

I am making this up . . .

. . . I do not like the official recipe for zabaglione because it smacks too much of raw egg to suit me and it is too slow. So although several expert cooks will probably turn over in their gravies, I present you with my own version, decidedly not haute.

But delicious.

Chocolate/Strawberry Zabaglione

4 frozen strawberries
1 T. butter
2 eggs
½ cup cream
1 T. cocoa powder
¼ t. cinnamon
1 or 2 servings stevia
1/8 t. vanilla

Place strawberries in heat-resistant cereal bowl and set aside. Melt butter in 1-quart stainless saucepan.

Meanwhile, whisk remaining ingredients together thoroughly, beginning slowly to prevent scattering cocoa powder. Pour into saucepan over melted butter and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with wire whisk until mixture begins to steam at the edges. At this point it will be ready to thicken. Once mixture thickens some, it will be ready to begin lumping.

(For real zabaglione, cook only until barely thickened and not yet lumpy, then quickly pour into serving dish, omitting strawberries, and allow to cool. The heat in the mixture finishes the cooking process. My way is faster but gives a lumpy result. Since this reminds me of the very breakfast-y oatmeal, I am okay with this.)

Once the A-OK zabaglione becomes somewhat lumpy, the egg is truly done. Pour over strawberries, which will instantly cool it to a good serving temperature, while thawing strawberries enough to eat.

my favorite breakfast — My Favorite Breakfast

Serve immediately with black coffee.

Homemaking, Inspiring, Wisdom

There’s Hope For Me!

Posted on April 13, 2011April 12, 2011 by Katharine

Today let me tell you about one of the loveliest writers I know.

I don’t really know her, I guess, as we have never met in person, and she probably seldom reads my writings, although I read hers. She inspires me through her simple, sweet tales of taming chickens and frosting cupcakes, weeding and traveling, speaking events, and her little deaf and blind pooch, Dixie.

The dog is a profound parable to me. She loves and provides for it although it could hardly fetch slippers or newspaper, or ever protect her from much, and probably is more needy than anything else. Being deaf and blind, it revels in her touch, probably the main way it can feel “all is well”. I can think of only one reason she bothers with this pet: She just wants to, perhaps out of mercy. It reminds me of me and the Lord.

To top it off, her name is Hope. How prophetic for everyone she reaches!

Hope recently wrote a great introduction to her weekly writers’ post. Although it makes a point about writing, at the same time it is an appealing description of everything we should be. My blog is not about writing but I am a writer and I recognize great communication when I see it. I absolutely love this rendering of my exact thoughts and I have received Hope’s permission to copy it here, with her contact information.

Visit her soon!

DO YOU WRITE FROM SCRATCH?

There’s something about a box cake mix that shouts short-cut to me. I was raised by Martha Stewart, Jr. Actually Mom is a few years older than Martha, but she had all the moves before Martha became a household word.

No box cakes in the house. Uh-uh. All from scratch. And if you didn’t have a family recipe, you relied upon a Southern Living Cookbook for no-fail recipes. But you did NOT open a box. And heaven forbid you tried canned frosting.

That kitchen work ethic has stuck in my head. Having grown up on homemade fixins, I can taste the difference. Guess that’s why I garden. If I can cook with the real ingredients instead of freeze-dried, frozen or canned, I just feel more accomplished…healthier…proper.

Writing is a scratch recipe. No excuses and no substitutions for the long haul in developing a good story. If you want it quick and easy, it doesn’t taste nearly as good – to you or to those you serve it to.

There’s something about carefully measuring ingredients to get it right, even if you have to repeat the recipe to make it rise, brown, or bake properly. Nothing beats the look on someone’s face when he tastes an original combination of items married into a perfect recipe. You have to admit, when you savor homemade then taste a box mix, the difference is striking. Simply, one is memorable; the other is not.

It’s like comparing Gordon Ramsey’s gourmet risotto to powdered macaroni-and-cheese.

There may be times where five-minute mac-n-cheese fills the bill. Maybe you throw a cake mix into cupcake molds for a second-grader’s birthday party where all they want is the icing and sprinkles anyway. But memorable? Don’t think so.

It takes time to create anything from scratch. The trial and error aspect of it is what makes the end result so superbly satisfying. The balance is better, the flavor sublime, and the experience is one remembered for a whole lot longer.

After all, who marvels over a mix? Every church bazaar baker understands that made-from-scratch miracles make other cooks jealous . . . leaving them with a craving to duplicate the success.

Thanks, Hope! I’m going to work on my kitchen work ethic . . .

And now, Friends, here is where you can read more of Hope’s writings. What a treasure house she is building!

C. Hope Clark
Editor, FundsforWriters, www.fundsforwriters.com
Writer’s Digest 101 Best Web Sites for Writers – 2001-2010
A decade of recognized excellence
Blog – www.hopeclark.blogspot.com
Twitter – www.twitter.com/hopeclark
Facebook – www.facebook.com/chopeclark

Homemaking, Inspiring, Wisdom

My Favorite Woman

Posted on April 12, 2011April 12, 2011 by Katharine

Today, as I folded old newspapers for the bottom layer of mulch around our front porch, I remembered the news. I hesitated to fold up the miners’ widows and children and place them down there with the earthworms. From an armload of the past year, I folded up wars and rumors of wars, and earthquakes in diverse places. I folded up a presumed leader or two who are all but jumping up and down with whining to rule the world. I put them all, all, all where they would molder and kept on about my business as if nothing were happening, only slightly disturbed, only somewhat concerned. I’ll probably mail more money somewhere, to help.

Yesterday I bought and planted. Tomorrow I hope to sell a few things. Tonight we’re having leftovers from a couple days of entertaining. I jokingly told my husband, “It’s either eat leftovers or else buy another fridge, take your pick.”

My calendar blackens fast. I face deadlines. The socks will not fold themselves.

Annie Herring called this state “earthbound”. That’s what I am—thinking about the dryer buzzer, or worse, the mulch, instead of the pain around me.

Just in this country, how many women lost their husbands to unfair mining practices lately? How many to unfair auto accidents, unfair divorce, unfair medical mistakes, unfair imprisonment? How many women lost children to similar causes, and more, such as school attacks and Ritalin-induced suicide last week, or murder? The toll is breathtaking. They would not all fit into the sanctuary of my church. Each one needs to know the power of God to get them through this. Few do. This, at last, breaks my heart. How will they cope? How will they survive without our wonderful Lord?

The world’s ways will not cut it. Although the world now acknowledges the need for forgiveness, it refuses to acknowledge the gift and the Giver of forgiveness. Only those who know the Lord’s way will truly thrive. Healing is right at hand, but few will take the cure. Most prefer the slow, scarring way with pockets of infection remaining below the surface.

I need to know forgiveness. I need to become closely familiar with her. She is such a true friend and has the balm for my every sore spot. I want to heal, to have only faint scars, not deep pockets of infection. I want to walk straight and with only a slight limp. I never want any wound to disable me permanently. Forgiveness can give me this.

Forgiveness is an often mis-defined, mysterious lady, so seldom sought out, yet totally reachable. There is no reason for the mystery, except our stubborn disinclination to hear her hidden song.

Oh, the glory of shedding misconceptions about forgiveness and taking up her gift!