Friday, September 18

Rich and Donna Visit

Our oldest son Rich and his wife Donna were here yesterday and we had a great time. Went to the quilt shop, 209 Main, and the casino. 
Picked up a rhubarb custard pie that Keri had made for us.
 Delicious! And we looked over a great many family pictures. Rich surprised us with the news that he will be working in Des Moines. That will be a big change from Moultrie Georgia. We are excited at the prospect of having him so much closer. It was a wonderful day.


This lady is rocking away at the quilt shop. She looked a little bony to me. Donna was quite taken with the shop.

 Donna, on the right in the picture below would very much like to have one of these fancy quilting machines. It does look like it would be fun.
 This was one they had just finished.
 Rhubarb Custard Pie made for us by Keri Brooker and it was one I would like to see again.
Although the next time we get together it will be French Silk. It is Donna's turn!

Tuesday, September 15

This mornings ride

This morning was already windy at 6:30 AM, but I decided to ride as far as I could stand it. To my surprise, it wasn't bad, and once I made it to the area of tree canopy it was downright pleasant. I could hear the wind in the treetops. I was untouched by it. I had not taken my phone because it needed charging. Always a mistake because invariably the photo ops will crop up everywhere and indeed they did. Five wild turkeys crossed the trail in front of me. A lone fluffy cloud in the sky above had the most beautiful long wispy tail. Looked much like a cartoon balloon. There is a name for those things but it is escaping me. You know the things that hold the words in a cartoon strip? At any rate, that is what it looked like.
I rode out to what we call Roger's road. Roger Conant, my deceased cousin Sherry's husband lives there. It is just before you get to Winkleman's Switch and 4.3 miles one way from our house according to the map below.
There is one area past the river that I call the church. It is heavily treed and as quiet as an empty church in the middle of a cornfield. It is a favorite spot of mine. I have several.
So I rode 8 miles this morning, a good distance for a quick morning jaunt before coming home and getting into a productive day. Of course that part remains to be seen. It always makes me feel productive even if I am not.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I came home and made the following recipe. I made it in the pressure cooker. Takes 2 minutes. That isn't fair, because by the time you wait for the pressure to come up and then do its 2 minutes it gets closer to 20 minutes. Worth it though.
CrockPot Recipe for Make-Ahead Apple Pie Oatmeal found on KalynsKitchen.com
CrockPot Recipe for Make-Ahead Apple Pie Oatmeal
(Makes 4-5 servings
(I used my small 2.5 Quart Slow Cooker for this recipe, so if you only have a much larger size you'll need to double the recipe.)
Ingredients:
2 large Granny Smith apples, seeds removed and coarsely chopped (no need to peel them)
2-3 T sugar, Splenda, or Stevia in the Raw(depending on how sweet you like it)
1 T brown sugar (or use 1 more tablespoon of sweetener if you don't want to use sugar)
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
3 - 3 1/2 cups water (depending on how thick you like your oatmeal)
1 1/2 cup rolled oats
milk or soy milk for serving (I used a combination of milk and vanilla soy milk, which is what I always use to eat on cereal.)
Instructions:
Cut apples into pieces and remove the core with the seeds; then chop apples into pieces.  I made the pieces different sizes so some apples would dissolve slightly while others stayed chunky.  (No need to peel them.)  
Spray the CrockPot crockery container with nonstick spray.  Then add the apples, sweetener of your choice, brown sugar (or more sweetener), cinnamon, and salt.  Add from 3 to 3 1/2 cups of water, depending on how thick you want the finished oatmeal to be.  Stir together and cook on high for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Add oatmeal and stir ingredients together, then continue to cook on high for an additional 45 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes, depending on how soft you'd like the finished oatmeal to be.  (I would start checking after 45 minutes.)  
Serve hot, with milk or soy milk.
This oatmeal can be stored in the fridge overnight and reheated in the morning.  You may want to add a little water when you reheat it, then microwave for about 1 minute or heat for a few minutes in a small pan on top of the stove.
( freezes beautifully)

Enjoy your day!!

Monday, September 14

Long Lonely Walk

Today it was too windy to ride so I walked the same path Colleen and I walked all summer. It took forever! Or at least it felt like it. And when we walk together the time flies. So I took pictures to help carry the burden of walking alone and here they are...
 See Mr Flathead on the left? He is waving hello. In case that was too much for you, I outlined him on the right.

Fall asters on the trail.


 Southwind today

These were taken in my kitchen yesterday
shadow on the wall

Out my kitchen window...

And by the way... Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup is every bit as good as leftovers. That is if you have any leftover

Sunday, September 13

Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup

Okay Folks, Here is one I have tried and give 5 stars. I did get Butch to take one small taste and he pronounced it as too green. In other words, it is delicious! I will make it again. No doubt about it!
Emily Berkman's photo.



☀ Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup!! ☀
4 servings
1 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 medium chopped onion
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups half-and-half cream
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 lb fresh broccoli (chopped into bite size pieces)
1 cup carrot, julienned
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese
salt and pepper
crusty bread
Directions:
1 Sauté onion in butter. Set aside.
2 Cook melted butter and flour using a whisk over medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Stir constantly and add the half & half.
3 Add the chicken stock. Simmer for 20 minutes.
4 Add the broccoli, carrots and onions. Cook over low heat 20-25 minutes.
5 Add salt and pepper. Can be puréed in a blender but I don't. Return to heat and add cheese. Stir in nutmeg.
6 Serve with crusty bread and Enjoy smile emoticon
food.com Photo-Photo by HeatherFeather