Nigella's Chocolate Cherry Trifle -- Great Downton Abbey Dessert for a Holiday Party or Ice Party

After four days of being ice-bound, we're ready to reembrace our healthy eating.  But, there was one last gasp yesterday as we created a chocolate cherry trifle.  We couldn't find our trifle bowl, so we improvised.  Husband Steve Moffett (@SteveMoffett) put this together twice yesterday -- once for our friend Christine and her family for so generously hosting our son during this ice-mageddon and once for a family dinner last night with Aunt Barbara Anne and Uncle Doug who braved their way through the ice and snow all the way from next door.

We've made this dessert several times for parties and it's always a palate-pleaser and an eye-catcher (especially if you can find the trifle bowl.)  There's about 15 minutes of prep, a half-hour execution -- but the secret is to let it chill for several hours, even overnight, before serving.

As for calories, don't ask.  With apologies to Pamela Foster, whose Twitter account I follow (@Downton Cooks,) this dessert is -- in my American perception, at least - definitely "Downton Abbey Edwardian" in richness and presentation. Plan to eat fruit and Tracy's Tacos for several days afterward in order to compenstate.

Here's a link to Nigella's original recipe.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-feasts/chocolate-cherry-trifle-recipe/index.html

Tracy's Table -- Low-Cal Taco Salad

My sister Tracy -- through healthy eating and sensible exercise -- has improved her health immeasurably in the past year. 

She's also "invented" a number of wonderful recipes that are tasty as well as healthy.  I've been so impressed with her cooking I asked if I could share a few of her recipes.

Here is 

Tracy's Table Taco Salad

You'll need

3-4 cloves fresh garlic
1 large onion
Bell peppers
coconut spray or organic coconut oil
1 lb ground chicken
taco powder seasoning
1 can Rotel tomatoes
Fresh chopped lettuce
Salt and pepper to taste

Chop fresh garlic, onions and bell peppers and saute in skillet, using coconut spray or 1-2 Tb of organic coconut oil (we use Spectrum brand, but there are several fine products.)
As onions become "glassy," add
1 lb ground chicken and cook very well.
Then, add taco powder seasoning -- as much as 1/4 cup -- thoroughly incorporating the powder and making sure all ingredients are "chopped" finely.
Finally, add one can of Rotel tomatoes.
Arrange meat dish over plate of finely-shredded lettuce and serve.

You can store/refrigerate this mixture in one-cup containers and reheat (for approximately 1 minute) in the microwave.

Each serving is approximately 230-245 calories.

Legendary White House correspondent Helen Thomas Dies at 92

Pioneering journalist Helen Thomas has died.  This Associated Press obituary shares the highlights of a persistent nature that tormented presidents -- and delighted the rest of us.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/pioneering-journalist-helen-thomas-dies-was-an-irrepressible-white-house-correspondent/2013/07/20/80f2dce8-f146-11e2-b2e0-0ecd9d3227c0_story_1.html

A and E Series is Just -- Well, Ducky

A few days ago, my family -- after an unexpected trip home to Tennessee - -introduced me to a TV show called "Duck Dynasty." The A and E reality series chronicles the adventures -- and misadventures -- of the Robertsons, a Cajun country family who own a multi-millionaire dollar duck call business. It's all a huge put on but it's great fun as these faux country folk pretend to be the 21st century edition of the Beverly Hillbillies. However, there is nothing even remotely ignorant about these people. The men may sport ZZ Top beards and speak in over-the-top drawls but it's very clear, from the first scene to the last, that they are laughing all the way to the bank. The tipoff is their vocabulary. Their sentences are punctuated with multisyllabic words and they speak in ways carefully cultivated to get the laugh. Another clue is their wives -- all immaculately groomed and standing on the periphery of most scenes, with indulgent half-smiles and hands on hips, as if to say "Hurry up, guys. Finish this TV project and let's get to the country club. We're meeting Thurston and Lovey Howell for bridge." Lastly, and most importantly, it's very clear that the family themselves are in charge. Okay, yeah, we'll do your reality TV series, one imagines them saying to the folks at A and E, but WE will call the shots and y'all can just show up and follow our lead. And, we may make up part of the storyline. In fact, we may make up ALL of the storyline. Though it's clearly a farce, it's also highly addictive. Like the time one of the bubba brothers brought a winery on line. Or when another challenged the town troublemaker to a riding lawnmower race. Or, when the grandpa agreed to put together the newly arrived life-sized playhouse for his female grandchildren ("the yuppie girls," he calls them) but used his chainsaw to turn it into a modified duck blind. By the way, the little girls loved it and Pappaw announced "There's hope for you yuppie girls yet." In an era of Honey Boo-Boo and the Real Wives franchise and even HGTV's Love It or List It, all of which rely heavily on TV producer-induced drama, Duck Dynasty isn't that different --- but it's certainly more entertaining when the subjects themselves seem to be in charge.

A & E Reality Series is Just -- Well, Ducky

A few days ago, my family -- after an unexpected trip home to Tennessee - -introduced me to a TV show called "Duck Dynasty." The A & E reality series chronicles the adventures -- and misadventures -- of a Cajun country family who own a multi-millionaire dollar duck call business. It's all a huge put on but it's great fun as these faux country folk pretend to be the 21st century edition of the Beverly Hillbillies. However, there is nothing even remotely ignorant about these people. The men may sport ZZ Top beards and speak in over-the-top drawls but it's very clear, from the first scene to the last, that they are laughing all the way to the bank.

The tipoff is their vocabulary. Their sentences are punctuated with multisyllabic words and they speak in ways carefully cultivated to get the laugh.

Another clue is their wives -- all immaculately groomed and standing on the periphery of most scenes, with indulgent half-smiles and hands on hips, as if to say "Hurry up, guys. Finish this TV project and let's get to the country club. We're meeting Thurston and Lovey Howell for bridge."

Lastly, and most importantly, it's very clear that the family themselves are in charge. Okay, yeah, we'll do your reality TV series, one imagines them saying to the folks at A & E, but WE will call the shots and y'all can just show up and follow our lead. And, we may make up part of the storyline. In fact, we may make up ALL of the storyline.

Though it's clearly a farce, it's also highly addictive. Like the time one of the bubba brothers brought a winery on line. Or when another challenged the town troublemaker to a riding lawnmower race. Or, when the grandpa agreed to put together the newly arrived life-sized playhouse for his female grandchildren ("the yuppie girls," he calls them) but used his chainsaw to turn it into a modified duck blind. By the way, the little girls loved it and Pappaw announced "There's hope for you yuppie girls yet."

In an era of Honey Boo-Boo and the Real Wives franchise and even HGTV's Love It or List It, all of which rely heavily on TV producer-induced drama, Duck Dynasty isn't that different --- but it's certainly more entertaining when the subjects themselves seem to be in charge.

Texas Gardening and Beans

It's been a while since I've posted but I'm going to try to do better (I wonder how many intermittent bloggers routinely begin their entries this way?)

After what may be the earliest and most temperate spring I've experienced in Texas in years, I am proud to report my garden is doing VERY well.

I've planted tomatoes and bell pepper -- and, for the first time ever, beans.

My Uncle Basil tried to get me to plant beans years ago, but I never wanted to try. I never realized how foolproof they are.

Our beans are growing like you would not believe. I planted them just a week ago and now it's almost like something out of Little Shop of Horrors. We first noticed them popping up a couple of days ago and saw they'd really made progress yesterday.

This morning they had grown in stature overnight and I watered them very early. Then, a few minutes ago Steve checked them again, and said "Oh, my gosh, come look. I think they've grown since this morning!"

And, he was right, they had.

So I flew to Home Depot and bought bamboo and twine and found this instructional video online. Steve and I disagreed over which approach to use. He favors the ridge support method, I like the wigwam. But I think I am going to defer to his engineering genius because I think he is probably much smarter about these things than I.
In the meantime, please watch these videos. I think you will find them as diverting as we did.
http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-build-a-ridge-support-for-runner-beans
http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-build-a-wigwam-support-for-runner-beans
Once we resolve the ridge support v. wigwam decision, we may post our own video, with Steve narrating.

I've also posted photos of my basil (wouldn't Uncle Basil be pleased?) and the tomatoes, as well as the beans (I got the idea for the plant marker from Pinterest.)

Yours for horticulture (and we all know what Dorothy Parker said about horticulture, right?)

Jan Brewer and Dick Nixon

Governor Jan Brewer got a lot of attention for her posturing on the tarmac when the President of the United States visited Arizona.

How Nixon-esque.

There's a well-known story about how Richard Nixon did this to Jack Kennedy during the photo opp before the 1960 debates. Reporters couldn't hear his words as Nixon wagged his finger in JFK's face and looked stern, but they snapped away. It was later revealed Tricky Dick was saying something innocuous like "You take care of that beautiful wife and child of yours, you hear?"

Nixon knew the visual takeaway would be that he looked like he was lecturing Kennedy on the evils of communism.

Memo to Jan Brewer: do you really want to borrow a page from Dick Nixon's playbook?