Potato Soup, Potato Chips, Julie Powell and Practical Jokes

Once a month I love to make a homemade soup of of some kind, this month I made two. A few days ago I looked into the fridge and saw a good deal of salt ham left over...i didn't want it to go to waste. I started scrounging around in my cabinets trying to figure out what to make with it. Yams? Canned Peas? Black Eyed peas? None sounded appetizing at all. I have a whole bottom shelf in one cabinet with nothing but dried beans. I have several packets of black beans, black eyes peas, 15 bean soup mix, and there is was in the very back...1 lonely package of split peas! Yes what goes better with salt ham in a soup then split peas! My dad would be proud! As a kid I hated peas, I mean literally abhorred them! I would hide them, spit them out, refuse to eat them, try to give them to the dog...anything to not eat them at all. While one of my older sisters would sit down with an opened can of them and spoon feed herself the entire can!

I cut the ham up in chunks and had made a lovely split pea soup. It was decidedly delicious to all three of us. I even mentioned it on my Facebook page and tagged my younger brother in it hoping he would show it to my father. Haven't heard about it yet so I guess not...lol.

Yesterday I set about making Julia Child's Potage Parmentier Potato...in English Potato Leek Soup. After gathering most of the ingredients needed, to my horror I realized I had no Leeks. I had to ask Ray exactly what the difference between Leeks and Green Onions were. So I decided to modify it and make it my own.

Potato Masher
Slotted Spoon
Measuring Cups
Measuring Spoons
8 Qt Cooking Pot with Lid

10 Large Baking Potatoes
8 Cups water
2 Sticks REAL Butter
1/2 Cup Minced Onions ( I chopped mine very fine...I used Yellow Onion)
1/4 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1 Cup Whole Milk
1/4 Minced Chives (once again very finely chopped)
1 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Pepper


Scrub and wash the potatoes, leave the skin on the potatoes. Make sure they have no buds on them. Cut into 1/2 thick slices, then cut into chunks.

Add 10 cups room temp or cold water to your pot.

Add potatoes and turn heat up to high to bring water and potatoes to a boil. Once they begin to boil let them boil at high for about 5 minutes, then turn heat down to medium while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Cut butter into 1 teaspoon chunks (unwrap butter and lay wrapper face up under the butter on cutting board and just follow the markings on the wrapper for measuring your cuts)

Mince your onion into very fine pieces and set aside

Mince you chives into very fine pieces and set aside

Once your potatoes have boiled enough to feel soft enough to squish between thumb and fingers (please let the piece cool down before doing this! You will burn your fingers if you don't!) start using a potato masher to mash them into the water they were boiled in. Try not to make it too soupy, leave some chunks.

Measure out your cream and milk. Add Cream, Milk, and Butter to your potato mixture. use a slotted spoon for this. It keeps you from breaking any chunks into fine pieces. Once mixed in add your Salt, Pepper, Onions and Chives. You may add more or less Salt & Pepper, use to your liking. Stirring slowly to mix everything together.

Reduce heat to simmer and cover. Let the soup simmer for about 20 minutes to absorb all the ingredients.

While the soup is simmering you can make easy crescents, or dinner rolls in a toaster oven to go with the soup.

Serve hot! My version makes about 15 cups maybe less maybe more. I always make a large pot of it. It makes a great meal in the middle of winter.

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I finally went and bought the book Julie & Julia....I am about halfway done with it after 2 days. What do I think of the book? I think "in my opinion" that Julie Powell has a dirty mouth, she is selfish, self centered, arrogant, rude, childish, greedy, insensitive...all she talks about in the book for the most part is how she hates Republicans, drinking, sex, drinking, her friends, sex, drinking, cooking, drinking, her problems being married, her cats, drinking, sex, and how much the relatives of the September 11th attacks are whiners. That about covers it so far...not so sure I want to finish the book. "In my opinion" if I were a person who lost someone on that horrible day in September, I would find Julie and slap her for her insensitive remarks about the survivors. 

I have been doing some research on Julie since seeing the movie and now reading the book...apparently she is nothing like the sweet character portrayed in the movie by Amy Adams. She decided after her J&J Project that made her famous to cheat on her husband, become a butcher, become a writer, wrote another book about cheating on her husband and becoming a butcher, then quitting being a butcher. She now self proclaims herself as a pajama writer. A person who stays home and writes while wearing pajamas. Her poor mistreated husband stayed with her. I am not sure if I think him brave or just plain pity him. What do I mean by mistreated? In her J&J book she writes how he is sick and throwing up and how she has to go to the grocer to get the items she needs for that nights dinner from the cookbook and swears and yells at him for not helping her while he is in bed sick as hell. She whines about everything, including her friends, her family, her job, her cooking, republicans, people on the subways, people at her job....ugh. Not sure I want to finish this book at all. To think I just gave her more money to write more crap like that by buying her book! I had an "OMG I'm an idiot" moment the second I bought that book. 

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This morning I was feeling a bit better than I have in weeks. I was cuddling with Ray on the couch this morning. He wasn't feeling to well. He called in sick...we went back to bed for another 2 hours. I took him to IHOP for breakfast...well he took me I can't drive because of my spine and legs. He was expecting to pay...apparently the bank screwed up his card...glad I had cash in my purse! We came back home and spent the day pretty much just lounging around the house.

I tried making homemade potato chips today. I am getting good at slicing potatoes thin. :). I used corn oil in a frying pan...not to bright...it's the old way...my house was filled with smoke about an hour later. I think in part because I couldn't stand up all that time, I had to keep sitting down to rest my back and legs. The chips came out okay, some where to soft while others were over fried. Will try again soon, but next time will bake them!

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Ray went to the store tonight to get bread so our son can have sandwiches for his school lunches this week. I didn't make another fresh loaf from scratch today like I said I was going to. When he came back he handed me an electric fruit juicer (for lemons, oranges and the likes). I was tickled. He also handed me a bag full of lemons. I was going about trying it out for the first time. I LOVE it! I have a hand one that works just as good but this one is electric and is better. lol. I went to add sugar to my now fresh squeezed glass of lemonade...the sugar was having a hard time coming out...I held up the pouring container and looked inside the side of it (it's a clear plastic container with a spout lid like in restaurants) I thought "wow, that's a big sugar chunk". I moved the container around a bit, looked again, then realized my husband had played a practical joke on me...when I was not in the kitchen at some point this week, he had placed a giant marshmallow in the sugar container. Once I realized what it was I cracked up laughing! The keys to a successful marriage for us is we...talk to each other, laugh with each other, play together, snuggle together, read to each other, hold hands, make time for each other and most of all we "LISTEN" to each other! 

Well that's it for tonight, my coffee cup is empty and my eyes are heavy. Until then, see you next time for more coffee and conversation!

Long Time No See

Sorry for the delay in returning to the blog. With all the new medical issues that popped up it made it very difficult to do much at all.


You just never know what side effects some meds can do to you...I guess the Vicadon is taking it's toll on my liver and my scalp! Yuck...I never had this much trouble with my scalp before, it either itches or (mostly) burns and now has this scaly crap on it that I have to scrub off. Time to contact a dermatologist now. sigh. Just what I need more medical bills. The liver? It's enlarged...sigh. 


Got an adorable animated Giraffe plush toy that plays music and it's neck goes up and down for Valentines day. I hope everyone had a good Valentines day.


The whole world is abuzz with the news of Whitney Houston's death. They want to fly the flags at half mast for her. Really? It's not right. The half mast should be reserved for hero's not drug addicts that relay a bad message to our nations youth. I liked her music, her sound and some of her movies...but she is not worthy of a half mast flag. The soldiers returning home from war get boo'd, harassed, and nagged about killing women and children. They fought to keep this country free! They deserve the half mast! 


Okay I'm done ranting...for now.

I finally got my new crutches. They are called "Smart Crutch" They are a bit odd looking, but very adjustable. Still cannot go up and down stairs on them. 

Mine are just the plain gray ones, it costs extra to get the color ones with the stickers on them...lol.


Was just web surfin this morning and found this site...

Collectible Android Figures


I thought they were very cute. They need Star Wars and Star Trek versions now. 


Got our taxes done...man I swear Ray makes it so stressful on himself every year. Surprised he isn't the one with kidney stones and stomach issues! We got it done and are getting a small refund back. Seems to get smaller every year. 


Not enough to get my teeth fixed...sigh. Why do docs charge so much! 350 bucks to pull one tooth! That's insane! Total cost for teeth extractions, new top dentures and bottom implants...$6,350.00. Yeah like I have that in my pocket! Why do I need all that done? The meds I have been on for the last 2 years have ruined my teeth, harmed my kidneys, and now my liver too. I need a miracle!


Spartacus Vengeance is finally airing on Starz channel. Lucy Lawless rocks! Loved her as Xena and now as Lucretia. I am hoping to find a way to go to the final convention for Xena Con next year in California. I probably won't go. There is no way I can raise enough for the convention tickets, the hotel, the meals, the transportation.  :(


Yeah I know my blog is all over the place this morning...I have been gone for two weeks or more...now trying to catch every one up on what's going on makes for a messy blog...lol.


Lets see what else is going on...a few family emergencies that scared the hell out of me, but those are private and everyone is okay now. 


Got my drivers license renewed, they messed it up again and forgot to put I wanted to register to vote...again...grrrr. 


Went and seen the movie "Red Tails" about the Tuskegee Airmen. Was a very good movie. If you haven't seen it yet, you should! The visuals alone are intense and well filmed. The story was well told. Terrence Howard, Cuba Gooding Jr., Nate Parker, Tristan Wilds, Elijah Kelley, Leslie Odom Jr., Kevin Phillips, Method Man, Lee Tergesen, Daniele Ruah, David Oyelowo, Ne-Yo, Marcus T. Paulk, Andre Royo, all gave outstanding performances. There are a couple of short scenes with veteran actor Gerald McRaney.


Made homemade scones with chocolate chips, split pea soup (with chunks of salt ham) and home made bread both from scratch this week.....Julia Child's would be proud! :)

All three came out good, but next time I make bread going to split the dough into two bread pans instead of one...it came out tight. No I don't mean "tight" as in the stupid slang word, which is well just stupid. I mean the bread dough was too compact and compressed not enough air in it to spring back up when pushed down slightly. 


Well I guess that's about it for now. Time for me to get another cup of coffee and sit and relax for a bit. So see you next time for more coffee and conversation!

Julia Child, Julie Powell and Me

In the 80's I remember sitting in front of the TV watching Julia Child's cook on her TV show. Her sense of humor was great. Her food always looked so good. I took Home Economics in Junior High and High School because of her. 

When I found out there was a movie about someone who blogged about her I had to see it.

I finally watched Julia & Julie. Funny great movie. Was disappointed to learn that Julie Powell no longer does her blog site. I would loved to have read the whole thing from her experiences of learning to cook Julia's way. Was very disappointed to read that she also had an affair, but her and her husband worked it out. Very happy about that. But still.... was hard to picture her doing that after watching the cute little Ami portray her in the movie. I wish her the best of luck in what ever she does in life!

So after after watching the movie for a second time...a few days later I was browsing the cooking section when I happened to think, "I wonder if they have any Julia Child cookbooks!" After searching for about ten minutes, my husband wondered over and asked what I was looking for. I told him, he actually laughed at me, well not "at me, at me" he chuckled. He started to look as well and found a book almost right in front of me. Julia Child's How To Cook Cookbook, Hard bound and fairly thick. I couldn't wait to get it home and start pouring over it.

I love to cook, but I have a fairly small kitchen. I always seemed to be limited in my first marriage on really good kitchen supplies. So this time around I am blessed with a husband who indulges me when he can.

He showed up after work with a few new kitchen toys for me! I black ceramic holder for stainless steel kitchen utensils! A stainless steel food processor and a wooden roll cart with lift out shelf, drawer and cabinet! It took him and my son almost an hour to put it together. There are small bits of Styrofoam all over the living room. Glad I don't own a cat!

I had sent him a text requesting spices...I was trying one of the recipes in the cook book. He brought them home with the new kitchen toys. :)
 
The dinner came out wonderful! I was very surprised at myself at how wonderful it came out!

THE COOK BOOK

 The original price for that book was $50.00!

THE RECIPE

I was thrilled at how well it came out! (shameless plug for Half Price Books, where I bought the book)

KITCHEN CART

I already put the new food processor inside the cart :). As you can see by the pans drying on the stove Julia always seemed to use a lot of pans in her recipes so you can cook everything all at once.

THE FOOD PROCESSOR

I was so flustered trying to put that thing together! I figured it out though! (Ignore the piece of Styrofoam behind it...lol) (did you know spell check does not like the Styrofoam unless it is capitalized...ugh)

After putting that together and finishing up the pots and pans from dinner I was pretty much wiped out.

I use a chair when cooking so I don't hurt too much from my back problems. I do most of the prep work sitting at the kitchen table, getting up every 5 minutes or so so I don't get stiff. Tonight it sort of helped, because there was a lot of prep work, my son helped grind spices too.

I think I ruined my blender because I missed a footnote in her book about grinding your own spices. I forgot I had a small coffee grinder in the corner of the kitchen (probably why I forgot I had it, it's tucked away in a corner!) Anyway....I used my blender to grind CLOVES. Ugh, my plastic blender seems to be coated with a gritty substance that no matter how hard I scrub it won't come off. :( Off to wal-mart I go this weekend in search of a new blender. Sorry babe!

Well I guess I should head off to bed...it as after all after midnight.

See you next time for more Coffee and Conversation!