A teacher of 30 years penned this:

In the world of hi-tech gadgetry, I’ve noticed that more and more people who send text messages and emails have long forgotten the art of capitalization. For those of you who fall into this category, please take note of the following statement…

“Capitalization is the difference between helping your Uncle Jack off a horse and helping your uncle jack off a horse.”

Is everybody clear on that?

Oh, how this made me laugh. And the best part – my Dad sent it to me.
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Continue reading Slow Cooker Cranberry Chili Mini Meatballs

This tri-tip is another one of my mom’s recipes. I told you I was feeling the family love this month!

As with all my favorite childhood meals like this and this, oh…and this (OMG. Hey, dessert can be a meal, right?), it seems like she only made it a few times a year. Cruel and unusual punishment, if you ask me. Whatever happened to revoking TV or phone time? Oh wait, she did that to me, too.
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Continue reading Teriyaki Barbecue Roasted Tri-Tip

We have two Beagles. Yep. Hounds. Their entire existence revolves around food. They can (and do) finish off a bowl of kibble within seconds.

I’ll admit, that they’ve slowed down a bit, now in their 12th year – not quite as quick when a grape falls to the floor. But there are certain items that lights a fire under them. A fight to the death!

Cheese, almonds, popcorn, and beef.

If I ever gave them a bowl containing these four items, all together, the drool that would immediate follow could fill up a well.
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Continue reading Beef Gyros

My crock pot came out of hibernation last week. Like an old friend, we gave each other a big hug and then started our little dance in the kitchen as if we’d never been apart.

Just like any friendship, though, we’ve had our disagreements. Granted, this was the extreme, but I’ve lost track of how many recipes have resulted in pure disappointment.

Thankfully, my pot roast is never ever one of them.

There are a million different recipes for a basic pot roast out there, I’m sure. And if you grew up in a house where your mom made it, then you’re probably faithful to her recipe. I’m not here to convert anyone.

This is just the way I like mine – in a slow cooker, with a few simple ingredients. The results are so flavorful; sweet from the brown sugar, tangy from the ketchup, and rich from the beef stock. The meat just shreds effortlessly after cooking all day.

Served over mashed potatoes, it’s perfect for a cold winter day. Or when you haven’t seen each other for a while.

Note: I mentioned my frequent mediocre slow cooker results on Facebook, with a plea for help, and my awesome followers came through…as always. To read that thread with links to some other crock pot recipes, go check out my fan page here.

I put the kibosh on meat for approximately ten years. I can’t say that I missed it during that time (although the smell of bacon would always send me into a frenzy), and I certainly learned a lot more about food in general. It was a significant experience for me and I have an enormous amount of respect for others who follow this path (well, except the preachy ones…I sort of want to run them over with my car.)

My life changed quite a bit in 2002, and for various reasons I started incorporating chicken back into my eating habits. I never gave up fish, so what was the big deal about eating chicken again? (At least that’s how I justified it.) Then pig soon followed. Then cow. It wasn’t really a conscience thing, more like a natural progression.

I began to cook a lot when I started a family, and I discovered two things: meat is easy and I had been missing out on a lot of fabulous meals.

Other than the recent Pork with Orange Marmalade, my impression of recipes requiring so few ingredients has not been very favorable. The pork dish was such a nice surprise and I couldn’t imagine having the same success twice in a row. So, I put my expectations in check. Here I am, surprised again. This was not only as good, it was even better.

I haven’t made anything with teriyaki sauce in a long time and was reminded how much I like it. Of course I do – it’s sweet. I also love the shiny glaze it adds to the meat when basted on. This makes sense considering “teri,” the first part of teriyaki, means “luster.” If you’re feeling ambitious, you can make your own basic teriyaki sauce; all you need is soy sauce, mirin, and sugar.

As for the filling, it was so simple. The combination of fresh spinach and crunchy water chestnuts was perfect, and any bitterness you might think spinach has, was completely masked by the sugary sauce. This was absolutely delicious; one of those dishes that your mouth wants more of, even though your belly says “no more vacancy.”

Every now and then I consider saying good-bye to meat again, but then along comes a recipe that jolts me back to reality. Like this one.

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