Awww Monday November 1, 2021

Nothing more fun than swimming in the 

warm Sea of Cortez with the pelicans!!!

Especially on the day of Halloween!!

Have a great November !!

Thanks Sandee!

~~~~

Time for Awww Monday! October 31, 2016

If Lolita could talk she would say....

"Have a meowy Happy Halloween!"

 

 

 

 

 

Lolita is one of two resident cats in our hotel...

she and the other cat Manchita are lovely cats.

 

~~~~

Eric Alders MPP October 28, 2013

Halloween House by Eric Alder

Goblins in the gloom

Paper bags rustling

Witches riding brooms

Ghosts are bustling

Shrieks of delight

Heard in the park

Halloween's fun

Being scared on the dark! 

~~~~~

Thanks to Eric Alder

and here's the link for more :

http://bifocalunivision.blogspot.com/2013/10/monday-morning-photo-prompt-102813.html

Eric Alders Monday Photo Prompt 11-5-2012

photo by Eric Alder

 Halloween's over and what do we have?

We're squishy and icky and stink!

We're ignored and we're really quite bored

Would someone please make us a drink?

It's the least you can do

After all we've been handy

Scaring all the kids who came for your candy.

~~~~~~~

Those poor guys- will someone puhleese toss 'em in the can?

For other's takes on Eric Alder's timely photo go here:

http://bifocalunivision.blogspot.com  

Eric Alders Monday Photo Prompt 10-22-2012

photo by Eric Alder of Bifocalunivision

                 

BODACIOUS

        ORANGE

                           OGRES !!!

Every Monday Eric Alder posts one of his fine photos
and invites all of us to write whatever strikes us-
go here for more images and words......
http://bifocalunivision.blogspot.com

Eric Alders Monday Photo Prompt or BOO!

photo by Eric Alder

Bring on the candy

Oh just one more piece

Over indulgence

for more takes on Eric's photo go here:
http://bifocalunivision.blogspot.com/

Happy Halloween!

Here's a little poem I wrote for Halloween...

And for Jingle's Poetry Potluck too...

BOO!

Once upon a dark and gloomy night

I was out for a little tiny bite

Of a tasty neck

Oh what the heck

It's my diet and I'll eat what I like

Magpie 31...When I was small

When I was small

and not so tall

I loved to roam the house

Tip-toe silent as a mouse

Late night was the best

To explore rather than rest

I'd slowly enter each room

Peering into the dusky gloom

Hoping to see what I don't know

Fearing I'd see something glow

My mind full of gory ghostly tales

And Halloween witches with hairy veils

And then one night while being outside

I saw a shape and ran to hide

Watching beyond the french glass door

A ghost floating above the wooden floor

I dashed through the backyard

Scared to death and breathing hard

Ran back into the house

Not quiet as a mouse

Jumped into my parents bed

Screaming "She doesnt have a head"

Gently laughing my parents showed me why

There was hooded coat hanging up to dry

From then on I stayed in bed

No more sneaking at night, instead

I read.

An old photo of me with my mother circa 1943

Thanksgiving Recipes

What the heck you say? What does this

alien in a car have to do with Thanksgiving recipes?

Not a gosh darn thing-but it got your attention....right?

Well- it's only October 30th, but our darling Grace wanted several recipes

for Thanksgiving as she and Radu will be having

their first Thanksgiving in New York City!

So- Grace and Radu this blog is for you!

Love and kisses and bon appetit!

Kathe's Turkey Dressing

(as taught to her by her sweet Mother years and years ago)

One package dry stuffing mix with herbstwo chopped celery stalks, one med onion

one egg, some milk and a blender is handy! Pour bread cubes into a large!!! bowl add herbs

(if you couldn't find stuffing with herbs add some sage, parsley and thyme)

Add the chopped onions/celery and egg to blender. Pour about a cup of milk into the blender. This should then be poured over the dressing and mixed well with your hands.

Now you are ready to stuff the bird! Turn the turkey over and stuff the backfirst and secure it with toothpicks or metal picks. Then turn it over and stuff the front. I kind of compress the stuffing a bit with my hands to make it less messy as you stuff it. It goes in easier. After you have stuffed the front tie the legs together with some string and pop it into the oven following the directions I wrote below! If you have leftover stuffing you couldn't get into the bird- just take a oven safe container and put the stuffing in it with a bit of the stock added for moisture and cover with a lid or foil. Bake for 30 minutes after you take the turkey out.

Keep in the fridge until you bake it.

Roasted Turkey a la Kathe

Allow one pound of turkey per person plus a bit more if you want leftovers. So a 10 pound turkey would be a good size for 6-8 people. ( I don't think they come any smaller)

Buy fresh if at all possible, otherwise you have to thaw the turkey and that sometimes becomes problematic. Remove all the turkey parts from the inside of the turkey-

do this the day before to make sure the turkey isn't frozen inside-and check both ends as sometimes there will be a surprise if you don't!

Put the inside parts in a pot with some roughly cut up onion and celery. Add enough water to cover and some bay leaf and thyme and sage . Bring to a boil and lower to simmer for several hours. This will be your stock for the gravy. Refrigerate this if you are doing this the day before.

Meanwhile, put the turkey on a rack breast side up and place that in a roasting pan.

At this point you will stuff the turkey with the dressing and rub it with

a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper it and pop it into the 325 degree oven on the lowest rack for appx 15 min per pound. However, test doneness with a meat thermometer. The thickest part of the thigh should register 170 degrees and the stuffing 165 degrees. Remove the turkey from the pan to a platter, cover with foil and let rest for 20 minutes befor carving.

This gives you time to make the gravy!

Kathe's Gravy (as taught to her by her dad years ago)

Use the roasting pan that has all the browned bits as your pan to make the gravy.

Carefully tilt the pan and skim out most of the fat. Turn on the burner to med/med-high. Add

3-4 Tablespoons of flour to the pan and stir/scrape to incorporate all the flour into the browned bits and juices to make a roux (just like making a cream sauce for onions). Once allthe flour has been incorporated add at least 3 cups of the stock you made. Stir quickly with a wisk to blend the floury bits with the stock. After a bit it will start to thicken and become gravy. Add more stock if it's too thick. Once done pour into a gravy boat or whatever is handy to use for serving the gravy. An ordinary sauce pan with a lid works just fine!

The Ubiquitous Mashed Potato

Take as many potatoes as you need- figure one - two medium new potatoes per person, cut in quarters, put in pot of cold water to cover, boil/simmer for 20 min or until soft when pricked with fork, drain, put in 1 tablespoon butter per potato, smash with potato masher, add hot milk- just enough to smash and make the right consistency-add a bit til it seems right. That's it! I also like to put in finely chopped fresh parsley or minced green onion tops for added flavor. Surprisingly-parsley is yummy. You can also put in whole cloves of garlic in the pot with the potatoes and it will cook with the potatoes-then carefully drain so they stay in the pot after the potatoes are done and smash in with the rest. FYI I do not peel my potatoes.

Also you can use a mixer/beater to whip the potatos if you prefer. YUM

Kathe's Cranberry Sauce
One 12 oz package cranberries,1 cup sugar, 2/3 cup water,
orange zest from one orange, cinnamon to taste
add berries, sugar and water to sauce pan
cook berries with sugar and water til berries pop
and sauce is slightly thick add orange zest and cinnamon
Let cool and serve or refrigerate for up to one day.


Paul's Requested Dutch Apple Pie
( discovered last year...now will forever be a tradition)


click on the photo to enlarge so you can read it! I use parchment paper on to bottom

and the sides of the springform pan. That way nothing sticks! Very rich and yummy.

It Was a Gorgeous Indian Summer Day

It's a sunny day and hard to believe it's
already the 25th of October. We drove over
to Tualatin for the 5th Annual Pumpkin Regatta....

Children were dancing......

....painting pumpkins......


...while "adults" carved and scooped out
giant pumpkins that became.......
boats to race with!


There were quite a few pumpkins....
Everyone was trying out their boats
before the first race began........

Here's the winner of the first race.....
notethe OSU Beaver gnawing on the
U of O duck...hahahah



Here's this years World Champion pumpkin.
A mere 1528 pounds! Heavier than some cars!

......and finally here's a video of one of the

contestants trying out his squashy craft....

oooopsy.........

Pumpkin Regatta? Happy Halloween!

Just a few days before Halloween in Tualatin Oregon-

the 4th Annual Pumpkin Regatta-

on an absolutely gorgeous Fall day-

what a scream....more pictures on my flickr site!

Happy Halloween everyone!