“All the leaves are brown and the sky is gray.” California Dreaming
It is a gray day outside. We are expecting snow showers. It is not one of those brilliant blue sky uplifting of spirit days. It is a day where you need to make your own kind of joy. It is a day that reminds you that you have a part to play in your life and in the lives of others. It is a day when you sometimes get a giggle over silly things. I read the phrase “you are what you eat” and in that case decided I’m a piece of chocolate.
My diaries lately have been touching on the subject of being a caregiver with all of its pain. It is hard to see a loved one suffer. At the same time there is joy there in knowing that you are doing what you can to help another person through their suffering and pain. As hard as it is to watch my mother’s health deteriorate and knowing that I won’t have her much longer I also have a peace in my heart knowing that I have been here for her. It will make the coming loss easier to bear.
Today I am also reminded of the diversity that there is in life and in people. Every year I design my own calendar featuring my art work from the previous year. I have a group of family and friends who look forward to this calendar. In addition to art work I have found sites that give the major holidays, religious and secular, as well as some of the sillier holidays. I also put family birthdays and anniversaries on it. You can find the flower and jewel for the month as well as which zodiac signs fall in that month. It goes to Chinese friends so you know when Chinese New Year is and that it will be the Year of the Tiger and when the Dragon Boat Festival is and other Chinese holidays. It goes to Jewish friends and you will find when Shavout and Purim is and other Jewish religious holidays. It goes to Christian friends and you will find the Ascension and Pentecost and the other Christian holidays. You will find the phases of the moon and when the Equinoxes are. Geek Pride Day is there along with J.R.R. Tolkien and Hobbit Day after all we geeks need to celebrate something other then being made fun of all the time. The calendar is the work on months of preparation. I start the next year’s calendar shortly after I print up the batch for the current year’s Christmas presents. It is a work of love and a sense of pride for me. I love the pleasure it gives to other people. I am printing my first one now and can hardly wait to show it to my Mom. She loves the calendar.
I was reminded the other day at Wal-Mart that giving of ourselves is a rewarding experience. I was stopped by a man in his, I would say, maybe early thirties. He was very polite and asked if I could help him. He was making Beef Stroganoff and wanted to know if he had the ingredients he needed. We were in the section by the movies and books so I’m not sure why he approached me. Maybe I looked like someone who knew how to cook, however that person may look. Maybe I looked approachable. Maybe I reminded him of his mother. Maybe it is because when I’m out I try to smile. It is difficult times for everyone and smiles don’t cost anything to give out. It so happens that I am a cook and have a recipe that I developed for Beef Stroganoff and was glad to share that knowledge with him.
This gray day also reminds me of my personal commitments to causes I believe in. Having been a victim of an abusive marriage it reminds me of my fight to help other women get out of that situation and to try and give them the support and strength to escape. It reminds me of my commitment to health care reform. Working at a hospital I know first hand that this is a crisis and not a political game as some of our elected officials are treating this. I know that lives are being lost daily because of the lack of health care benefits. I know that the only way my mother is getting health care now is because of Medicare. I know the struggle that the elderly are going through. I keep on my elected officials and let them know that my vote and the votes of anyone I can convince rest on their doing something to solve these crises.
So today may be gray but it isn’t gloomy. I am working on something I love doing, my calendar. I will experience the joy of watching my mother’s face as she looks at the calendar and discovers the holidays for the upcoming year although I may not be able to explain what a Hobbit is. I had the joy of helping someone with a cooking problem. I love to cook and passing the knowledge on to someone else made me happy. I have a new picture that show that gray can be beautiful as the “Moon Princess” is. And oh yes if you want a great beef Stroganoff recipe here is how I do it.
Beef Stroganoff
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Serving Size : 4
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 pound beef fajitas meat -- fat removed
3 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/3 cup red onion -- thinly sliced
1/2 pound mushrooms -- thinly sliced
8 ounces fettucine -- uncooked
2 teaspoons low sodium Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1 tablespoon no salt added tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 cup white wine
3/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Slice beef into bite-size pieces around 1/8 inch thick. Heat 1 teaspoon of the oil in a wide frying pan over medium-high heat. Add half the steak. Cook, stirring, just until strips are browned on all sides; remove from pan. Repeat with one more teaspoon of the oil and the rest of the steak.
Add red onion and mushrooms to the pan with the remaining teaspoon of oil, if needed. Cook, stirring, until most of the liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are browned.
Meanwhile, in a 5 to 6 quart pan, cook the fettucini in 3 quarts of boiling water just until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes.
To the mushroom mixture add Worcestershire sauce, paprika, pepper, thyme, mustard, tomato paste, salt and white wine. Blend the cornstarch and sugar into the yogurt and add to sauce mixture. Cook, stirring, until sauce is bubbling and has thickened.
Return meat to pan, stirring to coat, and cook just until heated through, about 1 minute.
Drain pasta and place on platter and top with meat mixture.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 515 Calories; 17g Fat (30.9% calories from fat); 33g Protein; 53g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 61mg Cholesterol; 399mg Sodium. Exchanges: 3 Grain(Starch); 3 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
It is a gray day outside. We are expecting snow showers. It is not one of those brilliant blue sky uplifting of spirit days. It is a day where you need to make your own kind of joy. It is a day that reminds you that you have a part to play in your life and in the lives of others. It is a day when you sometimes get a giggle over silly things. I read the phrase “you are what you eat” and in that case decided I’m a piece of chocolate.
My diaries lately have been touching on the subject of being a caregiver with all of its pain. It is hard to see a loved one suffer. At the same time there is joy there in knowing that you are doing what you can to help another person through their suffering and pain. As hard as it is to watch my mother’s health deteriorate and knowing that I won’t have her much longer I also have a peace in my heart knowing that I have been here for her. It will make the coming loss easier to bear.
Today I am also reminded of the diversity that there is in life and in people. Every year I design my own calendar featuring my art work from the previous year. I have a group of family and friends who look forward to this calendar. In addition to art work I have found sites that give the major holidays, religious and secular, as well as some of the sillier holidays. I also put family birthdays and anniversaries on it. You can find the flower and jewel for the month as well as which zodiac signs fall in that month. It goes to Chinese friends so you know when Chinese New Year is and that it will be the Year of the Tiger and when the Dragon Boat Festival is and other Chinese holidays. It goes to Jewish friends and you will find when Shavout and Purim is and other Jewish religious holidays. It goes to Christian friends and you will find the Ascension and Pentecost and the other Christian holidays. You will find the phases of the moon and when the Equinoxes are. Geek Pride Day is there along with J.R.R. Tolkien and Hobbit Day after all we geeks need to celebrate something other then being made fun of all the time. The calendar is the work on months of preparation. I start the next year’s calendar shortly after I print up the batch for the current year’s Christmas presents. It is a work of love and a sense of pride for me. I love the pleasure it gives to other people. I am printing my first one now and can hardly wait to show it to my Mom. She loves the calendar.
I was reminded the other day at Wal-Mart that giving of ourselves is a rewarding experience. I was stopped by a man in his, I would say, maybe early thirties. He was very polite and asked if I could help him. He was making Beef Stroganoff and wanted to know if he had the ingredients he needed. We were in the section by the movies and books so I’m not sure why he approached me. Maybe I looked like someone who knew how to cook, however that person may look. Maybe I looked approachable. Maybe I reminded him of his mother. Maybe it is because when I’m out I try to smile. It is difficult times for everyone and smiles don’t cost anything to give out. It so happens that I am a cook and have a recipe that I developed for Beef Stroganoff and was glad to share that knowledge with him.
This gray day also reminds me of my personal commitments to causes I believe in. Having been a victim of an abusive marriage it reminds me of my fight to help other women get out of that situation and to try and give them the support and strength to escape. It reminds me of my commitment to health care reform. Working at a hospital I know first hand that this is a crisis and not a political game as some of our elected officials are treating this. I know that lives are being lost daily because of the lack of health care benefits. I know that the only way my mother is getting health care now is because of Medicare. I know the struggle that the elderly are going through. I keep on my elected officials and let them know that my vote and the votes of anyone I can convince rest on their doing something to solve these crises.
So today may be gray but it isn’t gloomy. I am working on something I love doing, my calendar. I will experience the joy of watching my mother’s face as she looks at the calendar and discovers the holidays for the upcoming year although I may not be able to explain what a Hobbit is. I had the joy of helping someone with a cooking problem. I love to cook and passing the knowledge on to someone else made me happy. I have a new picture that show that gray can be beautiful as the “Moon Princess” is. And oh yes if you want a great beef Stroganoff recipe here is how I do it.
Beef Stroganoff
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Serving Size : 4
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 pound beef fajitas meat -- fat removed
3 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/3 cup red onion -- thinly sliced
1/2 pound mushrooms -- thinly sliced
8 ounces fettucine -- uncooked
2 teaspoons low sodium Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1 tablespoon no salt added tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 cup white wine
3/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Slice beef into bite-size pieces around 1/8 inch thick. Heat 1 teaspoon of the oil in a wide frying pan over medium-high heat. Add half the steak. Cook, stirring, just until strips are browned on all sides; remove from pan. Repeat with one more teaspoon of the oil and the rest of the steak.
Add red onion and mushrooms to the pan with the remaining teaspoon of oil, if needed. Cook, stirring, until most of the liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are browned.
Meanwhile, in a 5 to 6 quart pan, cook the fettucini in 3 quarts of boiling water just until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes.
To the mushroom mixture add Worcestershire sauce, paprika, pepper, thyme, mustard, tomato paste, salt and white wine. Blend the cornstarch and sugar into the yogurt and add to sauce mixture. Cook, stirring, until sauce is bubbling and has thickened.
Return meat to pan, stirring to coat, and cook just until heated through, about 1 minute.
Drain pasta and place on platter and top with meat mixture.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 515 Calories; 17g Fat (30.9% calories from fat); 33g Protein; 53g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 61mg Cholesterol; 399mg Sodium. Exchanges: 3 Grain(Starch); 3 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
NOTES : Vermouth can be substituted for the white wine. Shallots can be substituted for the red onion.
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