Thursday, December 5, 2019
It's all about family today...
Friday, May 10, 2019
A May Morning in Paradise
The child always lives inside us. I was born a country girl and I will always be one. There is nothing I love more than nature and that’s the most difficult part of growing older for me. I would move to the country in a heartbeat if the circumstances were different. The time for that has passed, but the yearning is there. Hubby is really good about taking me for long drives on Tennessee backroads, he realizes how vital it is for me to connect with my roots.
Earlier this week there was a stream with cows in it, and more cows lying beside it. Oh, it was amazing. We often drive by this farm on a hilltop with a pond, where ducks are swimming, goats and cows are in the field surrounding it. It’s pure magic.
That’s all it takes for me to be happy, nature...
Wednesday, April 3, 2019
If you're in your 60's you will love this...
Oh Mary Ellen, you just made my day. If you want a walk down memory lane, just give her video a watch. So many memories came rushing back as I watched this. Enjoy… ~ Jan
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer & Volumizer Review
You will look like you’ve had a salon blowout after you use this. I read about it online and reviewers compared it very favorably to the new Dyson pricey $500 brush dryer. I read over and over how good it was, I bought it and I was just amazed from day one. Even long hair doesn’t tangle in the brushes, it gives your hair volume and shine, it’s a time saver, it just works.
I usually let my hair partially air dry, usually to about 80%, or if I’m in a hurry, I’ll blow dry it part of the way, then use this to finish. I turn my head upside down and blow from the back starting at the nape of the neck first, then I blow dry it in sections. Most people start at the back bottom and work up, for me it’s easiest to do the crown first, then flip the hair that I’ve dried forward and continue downward. It’s just what works for you. I loved this dryer so much I bought it for both daughters-in-law, they too think it’s wonderful.
So, if you want to give yourself a great gift for $60, the link is below.
Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer & Volumizer Review
This thing is holy grail, trust me on this. ~ Jan
Below is the video I watched that convinced me I needed to buy this.
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
The year was 1978, I was in my late twenties, a foodie even back in those days and Cuisinart had recently introduced their line of food processors. Of course, I was all over that like a hot potato, just the thought of a food processor was so exciting, the ease of preparation, the endless possibilities, but oh, the price. I wanted the top of the line, the DLC-7 and it was $175.
Hubby and I had a young family, that was a lot of money to spend on a piece of kitchen equipment, but I just had to have that food processor. We went to a department store in Cincinnati shopping one winter weekend with our friends, Charlie and Nisha, and there it was, front and center in a display. I was drooling, and LC who had heard me talk constantly about wanting one bought it for me.
And here I am, forty years later, I still have the same food processor, I still use it weekly, and even though he’s asked over the years if I wanted to update it, I’ve always declined. I bought all the attachments for it, I bought Abby Mandel’s Cuisinart Classroom Cookbook, I was off to the races and never looked back.
I’ve used it for countless meals over the years, I had to replace the work bowl twice, and once it locked up, we couldn’t get the bowl to release, so we mailed it to Cuisinart to repair, but it was one of the best investments I’ve ever made. Of course I used it more when the boys were growing up, but it still has a special place in my kitchen, I’ll never get rid of it.
Thanks to that purchase, I’ve always been a strong believer that you don’t go cheap on workhorse kitchen equipment. Even though it can be hard to pull the plug on expensive equipment, it will stand the test of time.
Which brings me to this afternoon. It’s a cold winter day in Nashville, well not as cold as other parts of the country, but a good afternoon to just sit by the fireplace with my laptop browsing websites. For some reason I thought about one of the staples I always made with my Cuisinart, their recipe for cornbread which was included in a recipe booklet that came with my food processor. I haven’t made it for years, but thanks to the powers of Google, I found it easily and saved it, maybe I’ll try it again someday, just for old times sake when the boys and their families are visiting, even though it does use a lot of butter. I always made it my 9" Le Creuset cast iron orange skillet, another one of those items that will never wear out, it’s still my go-to skillet for cornbread after all those years.
Here it is, the original recipe from 1978, oh it does make yummy cornbread. ~ Jan
Cuisinart Cornbread
1½ cups yellow cornmeal
1½ cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
Steps
Preheat oven to 425°F. Grease a 9-inch round or square baking pan with the softened butter or nonstick cooking spray; reserve.
Put the butter, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in the workbowl. Mix on Speed 4 until creamy, about 10 seconds.
Add buttermilk and eggs and pulse on Speed 4 to just incorporate, about 5 pulses. Scrape down and pulse a few more times, if necessary.
Add the dry ingredients and pulse until in short bursts, just until combined – it is important not to overmix or the cornbread will be tough and dry.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.
Tuesday, January 8, 2019
Love My Pillow Revisited
It’s been a year now since I purchased MY PILLOWS from Zuilly. Hubby loved them from the start, I wasn’t onboard because I like flat, soft pillows, and these were not only lofty, but they were also too firm for me. I will say they’ve maintained their loft, instead of most pillows that deflate in a few month, but because they were firmer I felt like I was sleeping at an angle which resulted in waking up with a stiff neck. I think I ordered medium soft or medium firm, I can’t remember which, but I was never a fan like the hubs. He kept telling me to order two more to replace the other pillows we have on the bed, we have king size bed, and always have four pillows on it, so last month they had a really good sale and they were available in SOFT, so I bought them. They were really cheap, I think I paid $60 for them shipped to my door.
They came in a little box, flat as a flitter like they always are, I tumbled them in the dryer, they looked flatter, felt softer, and I’ve slept on them for a couple of weeks now and I have to say I’m a big fan. The soft ones are such an improvement over the firmer ones, you can scrunch them, they’re aren’t so lofty that your neck is at a odd angle, I really like these.
So, if you have any interest, it looks like they are in stock right now, if not, sign up and they will send you a reminder when they come available. They’re a little pricier than what I paid, I had never seen them that cheap before, it was probably a holiday thing, but they are still worth paying more for, I would definitely do it again.