Tag Archives: Thanksgiving

Freshened Green Bean Casserole

From ‘Simply Scratch’

For the past several years, I’ve made green bean casserole for our family’s Thanksgiving dinner.

I’ve always used fresh green beans, and have tried different things like adding carrots and sliced almonds. Last year, I decided to ditch the canned cream soup for homemade.

Though I can’t remember what recipe I used then, I’m thinking of trying the one below this year. Really, you can’t go wrong with onions, mushrooms, butter and whole milk. And I can’t imagine anyone missing the soy and BPA of the can.

So, if you’re looking to freshen up your green bean casserole, use fresh vegetables, homemade cream of mushroom soup and maybe even pan fried onions (a point to which I have not yet gotten).

Happy Thanksgiving!

Leave a Comment

Filed under Recipes, Seasonal

Between Vampires and Snow

Judging by the weather, you’d think we’d gone from Halloween to Christmas in the course of a week.

Me? I’m getting used to shoveling the front steps as our jack-o-lanterns get buried, but am really hoping to see grass at least once more before April.

Please visit rosanevarez at deviantART for more images like the one seen at left. I think he’s just adorable, and reflects exactly how things are over here at the moment.

Thanksgiving,

this year,

is so oddly caught between the vampires and the snow.

Each pushing against the other,

while faux-turkey gets baked…

somewhere in the middle.

And while I love the seasonal cooking,

the wine

and my new ability to bake a pie,

my heart is still in New Orleans.

New Orleans…

Where the immortals drink in 64 degrees

and dine on brass band all weekend.

Leave a Comment

Filed under Local, Seasonal

A Lasting Hint of Citrus

blood orange slice red drink“Do you remember how disgusting it seemed, that first time you drank a glass of blood? And now? It’s just sort of like, ‘Hmm.'”

I looked around at the people gathered in the room. We were all relaxed, and happy. The work day was done, and now we could unwind with a fine beverage.

I was a vampire. And it was such a relief.

Real vampire life is nothing like what’s in the books and movies. Even when we were outed, it wasn’t nearly so dramatic as popular culture would have you expect. In fact, we’re more like you now than we ever were before. Joining society – living by its rules. At 15 years out from the Revolution, we’re working jobs and going to community meetings. We drinkĀ  blood, sure, but it’s from donors, and resisting the urge to kill, for me, is as easy as you not killing a pig just because you crave bacon.

Continue reading

5 Comments

Filed under New Story

Raw Meat is Ga-ROSS!

raw meat with red x

Last weekend, I cooked turkey for the first time in a long time.

I was making a soup for some friends who just had a baby, and as the mother is breastfeeding, I wanted to throw in enough protein and heartiness to give them a real, sustaining meal. That, and with Thanksgiving so close, I thought it would be seasonally appropriate.

All I had to do was brown some ground turkey, and it really wasn’t so bad until I looked down at the mash of pinkish slop that was in my pan. The look and smell of it, while striking a somewhat primal chord, was pretty much repulsive.

Continue reading

Leave a Comment

Filed under Health

The Day After

sleeping kitten

I’m not even touching the fact that it’s Black Friday. I’ll just say that I don’t participate. It’s scary and and commercial out there.

Even though I don’t go to an office, this was a short work week for me. I got to play with friends on Tuesday night, and spent the majority of Wednesday shopping, preparing and cooking.

By the end of Wednesday, I’d pretty much given up on trying to squeeze in every little work detail, had accepted that I’m going to have a cold until March and did some yoga. I also enjoyed a bowl of the corn chowder I made.

Continue reading

Leave a Comment

Filed under I'm a Professional, Seasonal