Easy Risotto

Disclaimer #1: The Blog Universe ate my original post of this recipe. I had already dragged and dropped all the photos and had super witty text to go along with it. Then it was gone. Such a sad story! So I got in a fight with Blog Universe, crossed my arms, huffed and sighed, then stomped away. And we wonder where Homey gets it. I am just now over it, and ready to talk risotto.

Risotto sounds so fancy and elite. I mean, it does to someone with a 4 year old who would gladly live on hot dogs and tomato slices if I let her. But my good eater also loves grilled salmon and lamb chops...so ya know...don't be afraid to venture from hot dogs and dino nuggets. They just might love it! They will love this risotto!

I actually started making this recipe because Tracy found it on the website of our local specialty grocery store. Here it is in it's original form, since I've made a few changes here and there. The great thing is once you get the hang of it, you can substitute all sorts of ingredients. Instead of the bacon and corn in this version, you could easily use peas, chopped asparagus, or mushrooms...it's one of those creative dishes like pizza or quiche. Put anything you want into it!

And here's my other disclaimer: This is another stirring recipe. I'm so sorry. I'm not sure why this keeps happening! The mac and cheese, the custard, and now risotto. Contrary to popular belief, I do not love to stir. It just seems like the best results come from putting a little wrist-grease (as opposed to elbow grease, of course) into it. Trust me. This is soooo worth it. And I have a laptop, so I can still function virtually while I stir. I think that's key.

To make it you need:

1 cup of white rice (I don't mess with Arborio. Regular rice works just fine!)
1 quart of chicken broth
1 cup of white wine (not pictured because I forgot it)
1/2 stick of butter
1 1/2 cups corn (frozen or canned...I prefer frozen, but that's just me)
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
2 cloves of garlic minced
4 slices of bacon




I start deviating from the recipe rather immediately. It calls for 6 slices of bacon. I do 4 slices. Don't get me wrong. I heart bacon. I'm big on the pig. I think I'm a fan of bacon on Facebook. But 4 is plenty and it's easier for me just to nuke the bacon on my Baconizer. I, for some reason, have trouble fixin' bacon in a skillet. It's a problem, I know. But I have this contraption that just makes my life easier. Like I said, I've named it the Baconizer:


Remember the rule for my version is one minute a slice, plus a minute. Four slices=Five minutes. It keeps me from making a giant mess and burning myself somehow. It's worth it.



So once your bacon is cooked, however you're best at it, drain it on paper towels and throw your garlic in the grease. (If you baconize it, just pour the drippings in your saucepan and heat it up.) Um...YUM! Oh yeah, I skip any kind of onion in this dish. I like onion, but unless I have a scallion on hand (which I didn't. And don't on any kind of regular basis.), I just don't want any other kind of onion overpowering this dish. That's just me. If you love an onion, throw it in there with the garlic and saute until tender. I'm certainly not trying to tell you what to do here. Use the onion if you want!
Then once the stuff of your choosing is in there workin', throw in your uncooked rice. Start knocking it around, as per the original recipe, for about 3 minutes. Oh, you're going to want you heat around medium, by the way. Maybe a tad less, depending on your stove.

Then the fun starts! Grab a neighbor, a beverage of your choice, and your laptop. Get everything you need within arms reach, put on a TV show for Homey. Tell her it's "special". It works.

Pour in the wine. This is what it'll look like:
A big giant soupy mess. But stir on, brothers and sisters! Because in a few minutes it's going to look like this:

It's magic. It really is. So when you get to this point, add the broth 1 cup at a time. You'll start out soupy, then it will look like this again. Keep going until the broth is gone. I'm gonna say that's going to take about 20-30 minutes. (Oh, and this isn't quite as delicate as the white sauces for mac and cheese or custard. If you absolutely have to refill some apple juice, change the channel because Homey doesn't "love this show", or load the dishwasher in an OCD manner, it won't kill the dish...you just don't want to leave it so long that it'll start burning to the bottom. Because it will eventually. Small multitasking, people...don't vacuum or clean out your car. Just refill the juice.)

Anyway, in the meantime, if you're using frozen corn, just throw it in some simmering water to warm it up. Let it go for a few minutes. Then....
Add that corn! Then add in the butter and parmesan! Here's a good example of why you should have your ingredients within arms reach. In my kitchen anyway. It's tiny. My dog is not. He likes to be in the same square foot that I'm in. Get out of the kitchen, Jake.



Mix all that goodness up, then crumble the bacon you cooked way back before you started stirring. Throw that in there too. Plate it up, folks.

It goes well with everything. So make it. Tonight. Or tomorrow if you already have something else on your meal plan. Do you have a meal plan? I have a meal plan 3 weeks in advance. Is that weird? I prefer the term endearing if you think meal plans are weird. But anyway, it's totally worth it to make this recipe. Let me know what else you find to stir in. I think I need to use mushrooms next time. Yum.

Thankful To Be A Mother

I remember making the decision to have a child. It was one month and 3 days after we got married. That was the day Baby Walt was born. We went to the hospital to see him and hold him...he was just hours old! Then we went to grab a bite, shoot some pool, and have a few adult beverages. Throw that all in a cauldron and you get "Let's have a baby!". Three months and 5 days later...guess what. I was carrying a gift bag with a tiny newborn outfit and What To Expect When You're Expecting in the house to give Mr. B. (Not a fan of that book by the way. They don't let pregnant women do or have anything! Scared the crap out of me!)

Anyway...then I started crying about everything, became surly, and slowly but surely gained 65 pounds. Yep. That's right. Sixty-five pounds. At the moment, Homeslice entered the world, I asked proudly, "How much does she weigh?!" We were pushing 42 weeks gestation, so surely I had just delivered a 47 lb baby, right? Leaving the other 18 lbs to all that other water weight type stuff chicks have. I'd be able to walk out in my size 6 jeans...I was just sure!

Doc yells back, "Seven pounds, one ounce!". WHAT?! Sheesh. So having a Hardee's biscuit every morning and a milkshake every afternoon will catch up with you. Pregnant or not. Crap.

Then motherhood really begins. It's nothing you can explain. It's nothing you can make somebody else understand. It's being completely responsible for another human...and how they turn out in this world! For cryin' out loud...I was freaked out just naming her. It's a fun game in high school: "I've always loved this name. That's what I'm going to name my baby." But when that baby is hiccuping in your abdomen, it's a little more daunting: "This name may make her or break her." It took us a long time to decide on her name (I'm so glad we went with Homey.) But she was born with a name, and she thrives to this day. Full of sass, surliness, and sweetness.

So, in the spirit of Mother's Day, I'd like to mention how grateful I am to have so many mothers as my friends. Some are family members, some are old friends, some are neighbors, and some are buddies from a very close knit online group. Mothers can get nutty. Especially these days with all the debates about how to keep your child the safest and the healthiest. But I love all my gals because it's left at this: you know your child, you know what's best for your child. It's so nice to have people to go to for advice, to give advice, to vent, to rejoice...all without having to worry about judgment and lectures. In this respect, a lot of moms have it tough by feeling like they're not doing quite enough...or that they're bragging instead of reporting happy thoughts.

So I am very grateful to all my Mommy Friends that support me daily. I'm grateful to Homey for eating like a freakin' champ, sleeping all of the time, and only being surly part of the time. I'm grateful to my husband who helps me keep that maniac in check. And most of all I'm grateful to be a mom. Along with being a wife, it's the only job I ever wanted. And I love it.

What Mommies Do--by Homey

My Mommy:

Loves kids.

Cooks my dinner.

Makes my lunch.

Loves my daddy.

Reads books to kids, and turns on a light if it's too dark in my room.

Paints with me.

Gives me water when it's hot outside.

Makes sure I don't play with things that are glass since they might break.

Drinks coffee.

Makes clothes for their kids.

Cleans everything.

Keeps me away from the sewing machine when she is sewing.

**This exercise was concluded with the following:

"Can we go back to Zorja now? I need to see Lynne, Sally, and Becky. Where's Connally and Walt? I never ever see them. They're my cousins ya know...and I never see them."


So to all the Mommies out there...thank you for all you do every day. Thank you for gaining obscene amounts of weight during pregnancy. Thank you for remembering and reminding, deciding and praying, comforting and worrying, playing and loving. Thank you for being the person that will be in your child's corner always.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

CPF--Part 2

So, we've talked biscuits, hats, art, and Bouncy Houses...now I'm going to show you the rest of Fair Weekend.

There are a lot of ways to just chill the old fashioned way when you're in the magical land of Zorja.

You can chill in the Radio Flyer and watch the entertainment:You can kick your daddy out of the Radio Flyer, so he can take you from point A to point B:



You can hop on a golf cart and go on a leisurely ride down the dirt roads. By leisurely ride, I mean hanging on for dear life while your husband goes careening down these roads. But I don't mind it so much because riding through country like this makes me say things like "Dang it, Luke!" and "If we cut through Old Man Miller's farm we can head 'em off at the pass!"

I'm not sure if Mr. B finds this humourous or annoying, but I honestly understand life in Hazzard County a little better since I've been going to the Fair.

You can eat the delicious food everyone has brought...Here Homey shows off the barbecue chicken, slaw, and Brunswick stew. I just want everyone to realize that 2 seconds after I took this picture, that chicken bone was clean. She gnawed on it while we got her a refill on the chicken legs.
Saturday night dinner is awesome because about 40 people are there to hang out and eat good Southern food. Lynne does an amazing job coordinating all this...everyone contributes (I brought bowls...that is so lame!). Somehow she makes feeding that many people comes across as completely effortless. As I say this Lynne is still recuperating from all her hard work!

After dinner, even though all I did was bring the bowls, I'm thoroughly exhausted. But the childen must run around like maniacs for a bit. Some maniacal highlights:
(Can anyone explain to me why my girl looks about 25 in this picture?)

These children are honestly the sweetest bunch of maniacs I've ever encountered. I love watching them:But wait there's more! After a sound sleep due to lots of fresh country air, we're up and at 'em for church at the Fair. We arrive all together as a force to be reckoned with...it's a necessity.

Aren't we a motley bunch?

This is the last day of the Fair, so it's time to get things done, people:

Pull up a bale of hay and take in a magic show.Goof off with your cousin.



Make your mother scramble for the camera by being too sweet with said cousin. I just can't stand it!
Oooh, and look what Homey did this time. She's stood in line for it ever since she could walk, but she always backs out. Not this year! Watch out Pepper the Pony, Homey's in town...she's tough and brave now! (Unlike her mother who is scared of falling out of golf carts and had anxiety issues watching whatever Little House on the Prairie was playing at Lynne's. Mr. Edwards and Pa almost died, for cryin' out loud!) Oh, the pony:Ok, at this point, it's time to wind it up...time for lunch at Lynne's! More good food. CPF food is good. Really good. But Lynne's food is better. Really better!
Then why not harass various aunts with the pop guns Grammy bought at the fair:

As I sit and go through these photos, I realize that the second half of my Fair coverage was very Homey-heavy. But that's what it's all about. This is Homey's chance to hang around her past, present, and future all at one time. It's an invaluable experience to be able to spend this kind of time (twice a year!) with family, in the town that her great great grandparents lived in. Where her great grandmother grew up, where great uncle climbed the water tower, where her daddy drove his cousin's jeep into a ditch (that's why I'm scared on dirt roads! He points it out every time.), under the same trees where cousins have always run like maniacs, and hopefully always will. That's why the Fair is important. Only 151 days left until the next one!

Cotton Pickin' Fair--Part 1

As always, the Fair weekend is a great time spent with family and friends. I honestly am not sure how I'm going to get it all into one post. I took 118 pictures from noon Saturday to mid afternoon Sunday. Let's see how far I can get with this post...there may have to be multiple posts to cover everything!

Let's start at the very beginning...first of all, the child that I have to wake every Christmas morning was up with my 6:00 alarm asking "Y'all ready to go to Zorja?" So we packed everybody up and hit the road!

The journey ends here...where the fun begins!
The cutest little cottage evah. This is Lynne's house, and this is the hub of Fair weekend activities. Just take your shoes off before you go trapesin' through, and make sure to admire the Fiestaware in the built-ins in the dining room. Now let's go to the Fair!
Make a beeline for a sausage biscuit, but stop and listen to the entertainment for a bit on your way through:

I do love a bluegrass trio!!

Now...for real. It's time for a biscuit. You have nevah had a biscuit this good (and I think my accent thickens when I go to Georgia...).
You don't have to get a sausage biscuit I suppose, but they are my favorite thing!













I had planned to leisurely enjoy my biscuit, but Homey had other plans. Plans that had to happen immediately:










Once the "Bouncy House" was out of the way, we could get our Fair on...a gazillion vendors, I never know which way to go first! Well, ok, yes I do...the antique barn. Or am I supposed to call it a Seed House. Whatever it is, it's where I have to go. I have to scan for Jadeite and dig for vintage tablecloths. Here's a few glimpses at the great finds...I wish I could have bought them all!
Awesome aqua cabinet! I hope it finds a happy home and makes some dark corner a little cheerier (and more organized!)
Gasp. Luncheon plates. If I could buy them, I would have three people over to lunch every single day. We could be Ladies That Lunch, and we would rock.
Vintage linens...man, I could dig through these forever. I did dig through the for quite a while! Pillowcases, aprons, tablecloths, towels...I didn't see any that I didn't love!

Now onto some other sights of the Fair:

Produce!
Porch swings! Swings with cup holders. I need to write a testimonial for these peeps because we sure have used the heck out of our porch swing!

Kids' clothes...this is my favorite booth every year. Such cute things for little Homeys.


Jewelry...here's just one example, since you can pretty much find almost any kind of jewelry at the Fair:Art! All sorts of art...childrens art, painted window panes, landscapes, etc and so on. But this one booth stuck out to me this time. I just loved these pieces:
































And it's tradition at the Fair to check out the Bear Man at work. Homey loves watchin' this cat carve the bears with a chainsaw!




























And wouldn't you know it...I didn't even take pictures of my two favorite booths from this year! But I did grab their cards. Check out their sites:

I got an early Mother's Day gift from this booth. Everything was so charming, I couldn't even decide (but finally did...). Here's the etsy shop link:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/thehatpeddler

And this chick rocked. I know I do a lot of stuff for kids rooms, too, but this booth was full of new ideas that I just loved. Her multimedia 3D effect just set her aside from everyone else out there doing art for kid's rooms. Check out Poshin' Kids. Just know that the pictures don't do her work justice.

This concludes part one of the Cotton Pickin' Fair...just 'cause I need to take a break from dragging and dropping pictures! More to come...asap!