52nd Birthday

 

Got a cheesecake, frog, nightgown, 2 movies and dollars. Great 52nd birthday!

 

Wild Plant Identification in Our Yard

 

 

'American Beauty Berry'

  I've identified 4 autumn bloom/berry plants in the yard today; it's their time. 

1 poisonous, 3 edible if done properly. 

 

 'American Beauty Berry' (Edible Berries, cooked, makes a good jelly).

 

'Goldenrod' (edible leaves, edible flowers to eat raw if cooked properly)

 

 'Peppervine' aka 'Cow Itch' aka 'Buckvine' (Poisonous)

 

 'Pokeberry' (Poisonous & Edible) (YOUNG leaves, shoots & stems are edible

 if prepared/cooked properly. COOK berries for pies.).

*Pick plant at the proper time and cook well 

- this plant is highly poisonous if one does not follow the directions correctly.

 

Poke Sallet

Cooking the young leaves, shoots & stems: Boil TWICE for 10 minutes each, then saute like spinach.

 Its flavor will still be a bit bitter so add salt during the saute. For a real treat, saute diced onions in bacon grease, then add in diced in the pokeweed and saute well. Add in 4 beaten eggs and cook the eggs with the pokeweed (as you would make spinach and eggs). Check for seasoning and serve.

*You can add pepper sauce in the cooking process if you like.

 

 I've got to try the edibles after I learn to prepare them properly. 

Baking and Chicken

 

Baking 2 kinds of chicken legs tonight: Forest Strider Drumsticks and Smaug's Fiery Chicken. Easy - season and bake in the oven.

I have some homemade Harry Potter Magic Hot Rolls rising - will be baking them soon. I just felt like my cooking again because my hands feel better. 

 

 Made 3 clover leaf style rolls with the extra dough.

 

 

And my rolls are ready! Just the chicken to pop into the oven and making baked taters to go with it! 

Birthday Prep

 

Done B'day preparing for today and had a blast doing it. Pre-chopped veggies, strawberries hulled, bacon fried, Fiery Broth made, Bilbo's Sauce made, cheese loaf prepared, cheese grated & Herbal Potato Mash made. Vacuumed and did my laundry today as well. 

Tomorrow I will make the crusty white bread and candied apples. Need to dust in my room and clean the bathroom - either tonight or tomorrow. 

For my B'day all I have to do (besides clean my mess between meals - won't take long):

Breakfast: heat bacon, scramble the eggs - easy.

2nd Breakfast: Assemble the Beorn's Toast - easy.

Elevensies: Assemble Dorthy's Toast - easy.

Lunch: Warm the broth - fast and easy.

Afternoon tea: Make finger sandwiches - fast and easy.

Dinner: Make up Kebabs and cook them, heat up the potato mash. 

Supper - Assemble the fruit cup.

 Drinks - made to order.

Really not much to do on the 3rd because all the big/major stuff will be done ahead of time. Should be a pleasant day and able to watch the LotR trilogy extended easily. 

50th Birthday Menu and Cats 9th Birthday Coming Up

 

 In 9 more days left until the big Golden Day.

My kitty girls: Nut and Honey will celebrate their 9th birthday this year! Must find something special for their birthdays. Will get them some kind of special treats!

I've thought about it. I'd decided for my 50th birthday I want foods from different literary fantasy worlds to eat. So LotR/Hobbit, Narnia, Disney, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, Dungeons & Dragons will be represented buy foods. Haha. Oh wait, I do this often - for my Unbirthday Parties. Haha.

Birthday Menu:

Breakfast
Fried Bacon and Cheesy, Chivey Scrambled Eggs  (Harry Potter) (H.P page 113)

2nd Breakfast
Beorn's Toast with Fruit (Hobbit) (Wizards page 31)

Elevensies
Dorothy's Toast (Wizard of Oz) (Wizards page 57)

Lunch
Red Dragon Inn Soup (D&D) (Wizards page 47)

Afternoon Tea
Mrs. Beaver's Ham Sandwiches (Narnia) (Literary Tea Pary page 35)

Dinner
No Man Am I Kebabs (LotR) (Wizards, Warriors, Dragons page 55)
Bilbo's Dipping Sauce (Hobbit) (Lord of Kitchen page 82)
Sam Gamgee's Herbal Potato Mash (Blog Recipe)  
Crusty White Bread (GoT) (GoT page25)

Supper (Dessert)
Meal's End (D&D) (D&D Heroes page 79)

Drinks
Butterbeer (Harry Potter) (Wizards page 157)


*Most foods can be made a day or 2 ahead of time! Not much to cook on the day of my 50th birthday that way!! I can watch Lord of the Ring extended trilogy that day!

Fry Bacon ahead of time.
Make Potato Mash.
Hull Strawberries.
Prepare Cheese and Chives for eggs ahead of time.
Prepare Mock Goat Cheese.
Crusty White Bread for Supper, Beorn's and Dorthy's Toasts - make a day ahead.
Dragon Soup can be made a day ahead and warmed.
Ham Sandwiches made ahead and wrapped in plastic wrap.
Poison Apples - made a day ahead of time.
Bilbo's Sauce - made a day ahead.
Kebabs - ready early to cook that night.
Meal's End the berries sweetened and ready for the cream for dessert ahead of time.
Drinks made to order.

Christmas 2021

 

 

What Mr. & Mrs. Claus gifted me total this year! I'll enjoy all of this... pretty warm winter PJ's (love my PJs), awesome books/magazines, Grumpy Cat movie plus candies and cookies! 

 

Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, The Beatles, Grumpy Cat and chocolates!! 

 

 

More gifts from 2 Mrs. Claus' -- Puppy Chow and Fudge - both homemade - the best!! Thank you Angela and Fran!!

 

 

Christmas Dinner - Pork Roast, Gravy, Creamed Taters and Toast!

*Managed to make something out of that failed pork roast from last night - tastes alright today! That new recipe I tried last night was terrible - but today the roast is worth something. 

Vinegars

Needed vinegars; found some in great reusable bottles. Will keep bottles for other things. Perfect! 

Venison Cutting

 

 

 

I cut up 2 deer hips/thighs today. Haven't done that in years!

Twas a very busy day today.... very productive but tiring. lol

 

 

Got a pack of the stew meat from this ... perfect!!

 

My Latest Cookbook - Fantasy

May Orders Amazon 2020

Time to gear up to buy a trike. Getting the reflectors for it.

May Orders Walmart 2020

They claim I get 2 pairs just like this for the price of one pair. Need house shoes again.

Tolkien Movie Cookbooks

From the Lord of Cooking and The Hobbit Movie Cookbooks I had: 

Lord of the Ribs and Hobbits Herby Mashed Potatoes with Cheese. 

To the side some Bree-land Rosemary Garlic Loaf, blackberries and grapes.

The Hobbits Herby Mashed Potatoes with Cheese are good 

but I prefer this recipe for them: Sam Gamgee's Herbal Potato Mash.

Lord of the Ribs aren't bad but missing a lot for me.

Best ribs I'm torn on are Gimli's BBQ Honey-Beer Ribs, 

Gloin's Rouge Brasied Ribs and Númenórean Red Wine Braised Beef Short Ribs.

Those three recipes are out of this world good.

The 3 cookbooks I got in and trying the recipes from - so far, not bad.

Birthday Dinner 2020

Denethor Meal: Roast Chicken, Cherry Tomatoes, Cheese, Grapes, Homemade Herbal Bread. Homage to the Hobbits: Roasted Mushrooms & Onions, Apples & Strawberry.

Replicated Denethor's meal the best I was able to do so... with a homage to the hobbits.

Quite a wonderful 40 and 8th birthday meal I had this year!

I've been wanting to do this for a long while - waited until my birthday to do this - happy I did.

Burning Wizard's Pipe Weed for this evening.

Birthday Dinner 2020 Plans

Sunday is my birthday -- I'm making myself a "Denethor Feast".

Baked chicken, tomatoes, grapes, cheese. For bread: soda, sourdough or yeast bread 
(not sure which bread I want yet) & wine.

Spices Ordered 2020 May

Wood Dishes Oiled

My wood set is now re-oiled, ready for use again. Wood is beautiful but gotta keep up with it so it won't dry out. Feels good to have that chore tackled. I've been oiling them about 2 times a year - about all I need to do them because I don't use them everyday - only use them on special occasions and when I wanna use them.

Showing one place setting - I've a setting for 4. I also have a wood salad bowl with the large serving fork and spoon -- all oiled again.

This set helps me on my bad days with the MS.. that way I most likely want break things when I get an attack.

Tolkien Marathon Weeked

Friday, Saturday & Sunday is my Hobbit & LotR extended trilogies marathon (again). Want to re-each Born of Hope & Hunt for Gollum too - maybe Tolkien (the movie) and Ringers.

Planning meals now - I know I have muffins and tarts frozen - those will be eaten. Thinking some pork ribs and bacon for meats. Will have to make some bread for this weekend. Got taters and mushrooms .... hummm.... there goes my diet this weekend. Hahaa

Gondorian Meal in Celebration

Happy Gondorian New Year and Tolkien Reading Day!

I've created a Medieval(ish) styled meal: Bread, Cheese, Olives, Raisins and Pork w/Balsamic Honey-Apricot Glaze (seasoned with known Medieval Spices: Cumin, Parsley, Garlic, Mustard, Ginger, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Dill, Sage, Salt & Pepper). Glass of Red Wine to top it off.

Recipe for the Gondorian Pork Chops can be found here. 

Weight Loss Foods

1. Whole Eggs -  New studies show that they do not adversely make any effect in the blood cholesterol and doesn’t even trigger heart attacks. You’ll be surprised that they are included in one of the best foods that you can eat if you want to lose weight.

The reason for this is because they are a good source of healthy fats, protein and even make you feel low in calorie intake. Eggs are rich in high-quality protein, fats and essential nutrients, like vitamin D and choline. It's the protein, and the time of day we tend to eat them, that especially makes them a powerhouse for weight loss. Eating a high-protein breakfast promotes weight loss, because protein increases satiety while regulating hunger and appetite hormones, helping fend off your hunger until lunchtime.

Eggs are very filling and nutrient-dense. Compared to refined carbs like bagels, eggs can suppress appetite later in the day and may even promote weight loss.

 
READ MORE - Click the link below

Coconut Rum - Gifted

Someone gave this bottle to me - they tried a little taste and didn't like it - they knew I loved the stuff so gave it to me - FULL bottle - only a nip out of it.

Y'all promise me not to tell Captain Jack Sparrow -- it was robbed from him. haha

Can make Pina Coladas, Pineapple and Malibu, Coconut Rum Daiquiri, Pineapple Daiquiri or cook with it - Coconut Rum Cake, Coconut Rum Balls, Island Fruit Cake or Coconut Rum Shrimp.