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Camp NaNoWriMo — July 2024

Today’s stats: 3 pages, 924 words

Camp totals: 3 pages, 924 words

For July 2024’s Camp NaNoWriMo, I will continue to work on a project that I first conceived back in January of this year, and as I told my April 2024’s NaNoWriMo postcard swap recipients: “I might be working on this project in both July and November — and probably every month between then and now.” My word-count goal for this month’s Camp is going to be 25,000 words, which gives me a bit of a cushion to allow for days of not writing and/or coming up against a block.

As I did in November 2023, I will be participating in the GWIC (Global Write-in Crawl) event during the first full weekend in July, which will take place 5-7 July 2024 — with a “Packing Day” on 2 July 2024, a special event on 8 July 2024, and “Baggage Claim” event (in which awards will be presented) on 9 July 2024. I love GWIC because focus on my writing for an entire weekend — cranking out as many words as I can during as many of the GWIC’s TWENTY-ONE stops around the world that I can possibly fit into my schedule that weekend. This event definitely helps build the afore-mentioned “cushion” needed for “winning” Camp NaNoWriMo this month.

Please check back as I WILL be posting regular NaNoWriMo progress updates this month (something I wasn’t able to do back in November 2023 when I only managed to post a a mere two posts with updates). In addition to these NaNoWriMo progress updates, I’m going to be publishing other non-NaNo posts as well, including new “7th of the month” and “Tasty Tuesdays” posts. So, yeah… Please check back often, so you don’t miss anything! Oh, and don’t forget to comment, too!

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Following up on last week’s “Tasty Tuesdays” post — Fruited Coleslaw

Two days after publishing last week’s “Tasty Tuesdays” post (which featured a recipe called “Old-Fashioned Cabbage Salad”), I attended June’s “Cooking Through the Calendar” class offered by my local county cooperative extension office, and I was surprised to discover that they were featuring a recipe called “Fruited Coleslaw”! Because my most recent “Tasty Tuesdays” post featured a cabbage recipe (AND the coleslaw dish that they made for us was quite tasty), I decided to follow up last week’s post by featuring their coleslaw recipe in this week’s “Tasty Tuesdays” post. So… Without further ado, here is this week’s recipe!

Fruited Coleslaw

2 Tablespoons mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (or any type of vinegar)

2 teaspoons sugar

3 Tablespoons crushed pineapple canned in 100% juice, including juice

2 cups shredded or finely chopped cabbage

1/2 cup chopped apples (or fruit of choice: orange, mandarin oranges, pear)

1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries

  1. Wash hands with warm water and soap, scrubbing for at least 20 seconds.
  2. Wash fresh produce under cool running water, using a vegetable brush to scrub veggies with a firm surface. Dry and cut to prepare for this recipe.
  3. Combine mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, and pineapple in a small bowl. Stir to mix well.
  4. In another bowl, combine cabbage and other fruit.
  5. Pour dressing over cabbage and fruit. Stir to mix.
  6. Serve right away.
  7. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.

Makes 6 servings

Serving size: 1/2 cup

Cost per recipe: $1.57

Cost per serving: $0.26 [A very economical side dish for a summer cook-out!]

Although I don’t normally include the “Nutrition facts per serving” for the recipes I feature in these “Tasty Tuesdays” posts, their recipe for “Fruited Coleslaw” included them, so I figured that I’d do the same by including them, too. [NOTE: If you would like me to include nutritional information for these posts, please let me know, and I’ll try to accommodate your request.] Here’s the nutritional information for “Fruited Coleslaw”:

Nutrition facts per serving:

100 calories; 3.5g total fat; 0.5g saturated fat; 0g transfat; 0mg cholesterol; 40mg sodium; 16g total carbohydrate; 2g dietary fiber; 14g total sugars; 1g added sugars; 1g protein; 0% Daily Value of vitamin D; 2% Daily Value of calcium; 6% Daily Value of iron; 2% Daily Value of potassium.

This recipe also included several other tidbits of information, so I thought I’d share them with you, too. Here goes…

Make it a Meal

  • Fruited Coleslaw
  • Southern Fish in Foil
  • Broccoli Cornbread [I’ve never heard of this kind of cornbread before, but I do like broccoli.]
  • Yogurt Parfait
  • Glass of water or hot herbal tea

Ingredient Spotlight — CABBAGE

Cabbage is high in vitamin C. Vitamin C helps in healing wounds and in forming bones, ligaments, and tendons.

Source: FDA’s Interactive Nutrition Facts label — Vitamins and Minerals Chart.

Substitutions: This dish would be delicious with many different fruits. Mandarin oranges and blueberries would be a nice complement to this dish.

Although I was a bit skeptical of the addition of raisins or dried cranberries, I was happy that they (the two county cooperative extension office “chefs) decided to go with dried cranberries instead of the raisins (since I don’t like raisins — except in raisin bread), and I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I actually enjoyed the addition of the dried cranberries in this recipe — so much that I might even purchase my own bag of dried cranberries along with the crushed pineapple from my local grocery store. I think I’m going to be making “Fruited Coleslaw” again — if for no other reason than to satisfy my “sweet tooth” at our next family cook-out — though I’ll probably have to limit myself to a single serving to keep my glucose levels under control.

Should you decide to make a batch of “Fruited Coleslaw” for yourself, I’d love to hear what you thought of the recipe. I’m sure the cooperative extension “chefs” would get a kick out of hearing from my readers. So… Please take a moment to let me know your thoughts about this week’s “Tasty Tuesdays” recipe. Looking forward to hearing from you!

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Summer Solstice 2024

Summer Solstice 2024

Today’s “Journal” entry is going to be something a bit different than usual. Instead of being either a “Tasty Tuesdays” post OR a “7th of the month” post, it’s going to be a “slice of life” post in that I’m going to be sharing a slice of my life with you – specifically about how I celebrated this year’s Summer Solstice. I hope you enjoy hearing about what I did on this first day of summer.

The day began with this month’s “Cooking through the Calendar” class at my local county extension office, which is based on a calendar filled with recipes that they publish every year. During the class, a couple of the extension office employees (two very nice young ladies) spend some time showing us how to make each month’s recipe, which was “Fruited Coleslaw”. Once they’ve made the recipe, we get to sample the dish. Because I’ve been in the mood for coleslaw (see my most recent “Tasty Tuesdays” post), I was looking forward to trying it – even though it contained a few ingredients I wasn’t sure I would like. As it turned out, I enjoyed the taste sensations from those ingredients I didn’t think I would like, so I’m going to try to make the recipe at home – with a variation on the fruit used. Apparently, “Fruited Coleslaw” is one of those recipes that you can make to suit your own individual tastes. In other words, if you don’t like a particular fruit in the recipe (raisins, for example), you can change it to some other kind of fruit that you do like (dried cranberries, for example). They served the “Fruited Coleslaw” they made with something I had never tried before (Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels), and boy, was I hooked! The cinnamon sugar pretzels went so well with the fruited coleslaw, and they were deliciously addicting! I know where they did their grocery shopping, so I’m going to go there and buy my own bag of those cinnamon sugar pretzels! Here’s a photo of a bowl of “Fruited Coleslaw” and a plate of the cinnamon sugar pretzels in front of the calendar – with “First Day of Summer” visible between the two – something I didn’t notice until I was looking at today’s photos at home!

Anyway, addition aside… After that class finished (a few minutes early, fortunately), I immediately headed across town for the second part of my Summer solstice celebration: a Summer Solstice Hike. When I first heard about this hike, I wanted to do it, especially after I had participated in a Spring Equinox Hike on the first day of spring since I think getting out and enjoying nature is an excellent way to celebrate the changing of the seasons. However, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to do both the “Cooking Through the Calendar” class AND the Summer Solstice Hike since the latter began right when the former ended. My solution to this was to attend the cooking class as usual and then head over to the location of the hike, figuring that if I got there too late to join the hike, I would just spend a couple of hours hiking by myself, something I felt comfortable doing since I’d already hike the trails once this year and the risk of getting lost was pretty low. Either way, I would be enjoying the first day of summer enjoying a local natural attraction.
Fortuitously, the cooking class ended early (since “Fruited Coleslaw” is really easy to make – just chopping up the ingredients, making the dressing, and mixing ‘em all together), so I was able to get over to the trailhead – just as the hike was about to begin! After I signed the obligatory waiver form, Camilla, our trail guide, led us out and began pointing out some of the flora this area of the state has to offer. With her handy-dandy walking stick, she pointed out some of the various plants she spotted and shared their common names with us. Some of these plants included: Christmas Fern, Ground Cedar, Crane Fly Orchid, Pip Sissal (sp?), and lots of Rhododendruns.

When I first saw the rhododendruns, my first thought was that they were azaleas because they looked familiar to me. When I was attending my first university, there was an azalea preserve nearby that I’d frequent – often on the way to/from the home of a dear friend. I was immediately corrected – by one of my hiking buddies. I later found a sign that explained my confusion. Apparently, azaleas and rhododendrums are from the same family, so they have similarities and differences. Here’s a sign that tells visitors about the specific kind of rhododendrum that is prevalent in this area:

In addition to the above-mentioned plants/flowers that we saw on the hike (which was cut short due to the HOT temperatures that we’ve been having all week: in the upper 90s with heat index temps into the low 100s), there were also some beautiful flowers near the “visitors center” and where I parked my “little white roadster”. Here are photos of one of the more “photogenic” ones and the ones near my car:

Orange Flower

As an aside, I found a little book that proved to be quite useful today when I went to one of the two local libraries recently. Near the main entrance, the librarians park a “Free Books” cart, that I absolutely can NOT resist, and on said cart that day was a book called . As soon as I saw it, I immediately thought of Camilla, the hike guide, who first introduced me to the local flora during our “First Day of Spring” hike, and I knew that I had to bring it with me to show her, which I did, indeed, do. Because my attention was focused on her during the hike, I didn’t really have much time to compare the book’s images with the real flowers. So… I flipped through the book when I got back home, and I’m happy to report that I found several of the plants/flowers that Camilla pointed out during the hike. These include: Christmas Fern, Crane Fly Orchid, and, of course, Rhododendruns.

Since I hadn’t expected to get to the trailhead before the hike started, I had planned to have a picnic somewhere along the trail, so I’d packed myself a picnic lunch – of mostly non-perishables since I had the cooking class before the hike. During the hike, I’d picked out the spot where I wanted to have my SOLO picnic, so after the hike ended, I bid adieu to Camilla and my hiking buddies and then headed back down the trail – in search of that spot, which was so difficult to see that I missed it on the way back to the visitors center. Thankfully, I was able to find it again! After taking a few photos to document this part of my Summer Solstice celebration, I sat down to eat. Unfortunately, my picnic was cut short by two factors: the heat (which cut our hike short) and something that dared land on one of my Honey Barbeque potato chips – a mosquito! Because I don’t handle either of these things very well, I ate a bit of my packed picnic lunch, shooing away anything that moved and scratching the bite I got just after I found “my” picnic table (a place that’s sure to become a tradition after these “beginning of the season” hikes).

After this, I headed back to my little white roadster, where I took some pictures of the bridge towering above the visitors center’s parking lot while letting some of the heat that had built up in the car escape. All in all, I had a very enjoyable Summer Solstice celebration, and I’m looking forward to the next season-changing hike – though I might return to the trail to see how many plants I remember and/or can identify using that handy-dandy little “booklet” of mine!

I’d love to hear whether you’d like to try making the “Fruited Coleslaw” recipe from my “Cooking Through the Calendar” class as well as whether there’s anything similar to this class in your area as well as what, if anything, you did to celebrate the coming of the Summer Solstice this year – or in years past. In addition, I’d also like to hear your thoughts about this “Journal” entry – my first “slice of life” kind of entry. What did you think about its length and/or the number of photos included in this post? Would you like to see more of these kinds of posts in the future? Please take a moment to comment…

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My first “Tasty Tuesdays” post in quite some time — Old-Fashioned Cabbage Salad

The other day, I went to a fast-food restaurant (something I haven’t done in quite some time), and I ordered a “chicken strips platter” that came with a side of coleslaw. Because it had been a while since I’d had any coleslaw, I was looking forward to eating my little cup of coleslaw. Unfortunately, I spotted something (rather disgusting) in it: a long piece of LETTUCE that looked like it had seen better days! That was the first thing that turned me off about their “version” of coleslaw, and the second was its texture. It didn’t look (or really taste) like the coleslaw I remembered. I know “the times they are a’changing”, but really? Lettuce in coleslaw? Come on, people! Lettuce belongs in salads… NOT coleslaw!

Anyway… Rant aside. This made me want to make a batch of coleslaw when I got home from town. So… I snatched my tried and true cookbook (“Betty Crocker’s Cookbook: New and Revised Edition, Including Microwave Recipes” Second Printing ©1979) off its shelf and went straight to the index, looking for a coleslaw recipe. I found one on page 139, so I flipped to that page and started reading the recipe — and its FOUR variations. Just as I got to the last variation, two words caught my eye: “old-fashioned”. I suppose that’s just a single word, but still… It captured my attention. Since I tend to write historical romance most of the time, I like anything that could be considered to be “old-fashioned”, and that, as it turned out, included “Old-fashioned Cabbage Salad”. Since I had virtually all of the ingredients (except one: chopped pimientos, which, to be honest, I don’t remember seeing anywhere but stuffed into the green olives that I love so much), I decided to forego the coleslaw, figuring what I was going to make was close enough to coleslaw to satisfy my desire. I’m REALLY glad I took a risk and tried this recipe — for the first time ever! And now, without further ado, here is the recipe that is featured in this week’s (long-awaited) “Tasty Tuesdays” post:

Old-Fashioned Cabbage Salad

1/2 medium head green cabbage, finely shredded or chopped (about 4 cups)
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/2 small green pepper, chopped (about 1/4 cup)
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 Tablespoon chopped pimiento
1 teaspoon instant minced onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Mix all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate 3 hours. Just before serving,, drain salad.

6 (1/2 cup) servings

I enjoyed my old-fashioned cabbage salad a day after making it, and I’m REALLY glad that I took a chance to make it for the first time. I ate it with a grilled cheese san’ich, and it gave me the crunch that I seem to crave. For me, this recipe is definitely “a keeper”, one that I’m sure I’ll be making frequently, especially during the summer! I think it’s a perfect “cook out” side dish!

As always, I’d love to get your thoughts about this recipe, especially if you take a chance to make it yourself. What are come of your favorite “cook out” side dishes? Looking forward to hearing from you.

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NaNoWriMo 2023 — Day #2

Today’s stats: 4 pages, 914 words
NaNo Totals: 12 pages, 3134 words

Today was a frustrating day, which left me unable to really focus on my writing. One of my motivators during NaNoWriMo is a bit of “friendly competition”. In other words, I track the progress of other writers — as a way of telling myself: “If they can write so many words, then so can I!” I can’t remember when I began this “friendly competition” habit or how many years I’ve been doing it, but I’ve found over the years that it definitely keeps me writing and (most days) “meeting my quota”.

Well… Due to “real life” distractions, I wasn’t able to “meet my quota” today — writing a measly 912 words. Yesterday, my total word count of 2222 put me in 2nd place (out of 15 other “competitors”). Today, my rather dismal word count dropped me down to 5th place.

So, yeah… I’m a bit bummed, but something Mark Oshiro said in a pep talk that I read after updating my official word count gave me hope. Here’s what Mark said:

“You don’t have to write every single day in November to accomplish your goals. I did not have consistent word counts each day, but I remained consistently engaged throughout the process by reminding myself of what I loved: the story and the joy.“

I think I’m going to turn this quote into a poster that I keep within sight while writing — to remind myself that I don’t have to write every day OR have consistent word counts each day. Thanks, Mark!

Anyway… Please keep checking back to see more updates. Oh! If you’re a “WriMo”, I’d love to hear about your experiences, progress, and/or progress, so please post a comment!

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NaNoWriMo 2023 — Day #1

Today’s stats: 8 pages, 2222 words
NaNo Totals: 8 pages, 2222 words

For NaNoWriMo this year, I decided to be a REBEL by working on “Curaçao Eyes”, the historical romance novel that I began at the beginning of this year. It’s a story that I am bound and determined to FINISH — and SUBMIT for publication eventually. However, I won’t think about that part of the process until after I’ve written “The End” on the first draft of the manuscript for this novel! One thing at a time, and right now, that “one thing” is NaNoWriMo — 50,000 words of the first draft!

My original goal for NaNoWriMo 2023 was to use a “reverse word count chart” — in which I write the most words at the beginning of the month (i.e. 3,000+ words during the first week) and then slowly decreasing until I’d only have to write 1 word on November 30th. I’ve been trying (off and on) to approach NaNoWriMo in this manner, but it’s never worked out for me. Now that I’ve discovered GWIC (Global Write-in Crawl), an international event that features days and days of sprints designed to help writers crank out the words in 15- to 30-minute intervals, I’m hoping to make easy work of those initial days of 3,000+ words. Once I’m able to get past that word-count hurdle, the rest of the month SHOULD be fairly easy since each day’s quota will go down every day.

Anyway… Please check back as I will be posting regular NaNoWriMo progress updates — which I’m hoping will lead to other non-NaNo posts as well (i.e. my “7th of the Month” and “Tasty Tuesdays” posts), especially after this year’s “competition” becomes history.

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A “twofer” in honor of my son’s birthday!

With this “Tasty Tuesdays” post coming out on my son’s birthday, I though I’d share with you a couple of the recipes he shared with me during my earlier conference call with him. Knowing that I wanted to feature one of his favorite recipes in this post, I asked him for a favorite recipe. Being the typical chef, he told me that he doesn’t really cook by using recipes, preferring instead to figure out what he can make using the ingredients on hand. When I pressed him for a recipe, he then proceeded to give me directions for a dish he referred to as “Shit on a Shingle”. After he explained how to make it, I told him that I’d never heard that term for the dish that I refer to as “Chipped Beef”. His immediate response was,,,, “I grew up with that name,, so I don’t know where else I might have gotten it.” Oh,, well… I’m going to share his directions for “Shit on a Shingle” — or “Chipped Beef”, if you’d prefer not to be so crude when it comes to food.

Later in our conversation, we were talking about foods that we either like or dislike and that our tastes may change over time. At this point, he mentioned that he’d read some kind of study which stated that our taste buds change about every seven years, so you may like things you hated before. I mentioned hating Brussels sprouts, so he shared with me a way to cook this kind of vegetable. I’m thinking about trying it to see if my taste buds have changed enough for me to actually start liking Brussels sprouts. Only time will tell… In the meantime, though, I’m going to share his directions for a tasty way to prepare Brussels sprouts with you.

Before I get into the directions for these two dishes, I have to warn you that they don’t contain any measurements since my son is one of those “cookers” (as my daughter used to say to refer to those who cook food, me included) who doesn’t usually measure anything — unlike myself, who has to have specific quantities listed. Because of this, I’ll probably include notes for recipes that I found online — for my own personal use as well as for those of you who prefer to have ingredients listed. So… Without further ado, here are the directions my son gave me for “Shit on a Shingle” and for cooking Brussels sprouts…

“Shit on a Shingle” ((OR “Chipped Beef Over Toast”, if you prefer)

Brown ground beef; add flour to grease to make a roux; add milk to make a white gravy; serve with a side of eggs and maybe one or two veggies.

Here’s how I make “Chipped Beef”: I melt some butter in a skillet, and then I tear up a package of Buddig Beef and add it to the skillet, cooking it until most of the bits are fairly crisp. While the beef is cooking, I’ll mix a bit of flour and some milk together to make the basis of the “white gravy” my son mentioned in his description. Once that’s made, I’ll put the bread (aka “shingle”) into the toaster and then return to the chipped beef by pouring some milk into the skillet with the beef — just enough to make all of the bits of beef float. After that, I’ll add the basis for the “white gravy” that I’d made earlier. At that point, I’ll add some seasonings (mostly just salt and pepper) and then stir the mixture until it starts to thicken. Once it has thickened and the bread is toasted, it’s time to combine the two: place the toast on the plate and smother it with the chipped beef gravy. I usually serve it with fruit, but I do like my son’s idea of serving it with a side of eggs.

Brussels Sprouts

Clean and dry ’em; cut each in half (or quarters, if you prefer); line a baking sheet with foil, parchment paper (or just use cooking spray); season with your favorite seasonings like salt, pepper, and garlic; bake (on the rack closest to the top of the oven) at 350-375 degrees F for 15-20 minutes; sprinkle with gorgonzola/bleu cheese and pistachios; drizzle with sirachia sauce.

NOTES:

Here are links to a couple of recipes that I found during a quick online search for “Shit on a Shingle”. The first uses hamburger as per my son’s directions, and the second is more similar to how I make it — although the chipped beef the second recipe uses is different than the Buddig I use.

S.O.S. (Shit on a Shingle) – A Reimagined Comfort Food Classic

Creamed Chipped Beef on Toast (A.K.A. Shit on a Shingle ): classic comfort food

I’ve heard that the proper preparation of vegetables (Brussels sprouts included) can make the difference between loving or hating them. Guess it’s time for me to try my hand at cooking Brussels sprouts myself. Here are a couple of recipes (found during yet another quick online search) that I might try since I don’t like the taste of sirachia sauce:

https://www.wellplated.com/sauteed-brussels-sprouts/

https://www.wellplated.com/air-fryer-brussels-sprouts/

Because these recipes bring out mixed feelings in me (love the first one and (used to) hate the second one), I’d love to get your thoughts about ’em. Were you familiar with “Shit on a Shingle” (or, to be more polite, “Chipped Beef”) before you read this post? Do you love or hate Brussels sprouts? Since my son told me that taste buds change every seven years, I guess it’s time (past time, actually) to give Brussels sprouts another try. Right now, I’m leaning towards the recipe that utilizes the air fryer. I’ll let you know where I stand on my “hate or love” relationship with this vegetable — once I find some since I haven’t gone looking for ’em in quite a while!

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A Sweet “Tasty Tuesdays” Treat — In Honor of St. Patrick’s Day

Hello, and welcome to yet another “Tasty Tuesdays” journal post. With St. Patrick’s Day just around the corner, I’ve been trying to decide what to serve for the holiday. I don’t know about you, but one of the first things that comes to mind whenever I think of St. Patrick’s Day (other than corned beef and cabbage, of course) is getting a “Shamrock Shake” from good ol’ McDonald’s. For many years, St. Patrick’s Day wasn’t complete without a quick stop at the local McDonald’s restaurant for one of their “limited time only” Shamrock Shakes. It still doesn’t feel like the holiday will be complete without a Shamrock Shake, BUT (and it’s a big “but”), my nearest McDonald’s is MILES away from home. So… I did what many people these days do: I went onto the Internet and did a quick search for “Shamrock Shake”. I wasn’t disappointed! I found several recipes for “Copycat Shamrock Shakes”!

With the hope of making both of our St. Patrick’s Day holidays complete, I am going to share one of the recipes that I found (one from the “spend with pennies” Web site). So… Without further ado, here’s the recipe for making our own “Shamrock Shakes”:

“Copycat “Shamrock Shakes”

  • 4 cups vanilla ice cream
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure peppermint extract (or more to taste)
  • green food coloring
  • Toppings (whipped cream, maraschino cherries or sprinkles for garnish), optional

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Garnish as desired and then serve immediately.

Servings: 2 milkshakes

NOTES:

For a healthy-ish version, use vanilla frozen yogurt and swap the liquid for fat-free milk, and omit the whipped cream.

Spike this favorite with a splash of créme de menthe, Baileys, or vodka for a boozy treat!

May the “luck o’ the Irish” be with you as you enjoy a homemade “Shamrock Shake” from your own kitchen. Who needs to go to McDonald’s anymore?

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Another “Tasty Tuesdays” Recipe — Easy Beef Sandwiches

There were not one, but two things that led to the recipe I selected for today’s “Tasty Tuesdays” post. The first of these was going through “my” freezer and creating an inventory of everything in it. In doing so, I noticed that I had several packages of beef that were quickly reaching their “use by” dates. The second was an advertisement for Hardee’s (or Carl’s Junior, as the restaurant chain is better known to me) that I found in a “package” of junk mail I receive in my P.O. Box far too often. While perusing the various ads for fast food restaurants, I spotted Hardee’s “New Philly Cheesesteak Menu”, which had a picture of something that reminded me of the “original Philly Cheesesteak — a sandwich (or san’ich, as I like to say) with shredded beef, sauteed green peppers and onions, slices of cheese all on a French roll. This reminded me that I had some beef in the freezer that could be cooked and shredded for this purpose. In addition, I already had the cheese, green peppers, and onions on hand since they’re two of the most-often-used ingredients in my kitchen. The only thing I needed was the French rolls.

Other than not having the French rolls, the only other problem that remained was I wasn’t quite sure how to cook the beef I had in the freezer, so I started thumbing through some of my cookbooks (in search of another recipe, actually). Fortuitously, I came across a recipe for “Easy Beef Sandwiches”, which was basically what I had in mind when I was thinking about my Philly Cheesesteak san’iches. This recipe includes the beef, cheese, and rolls, but not the main thing that I think makes it a “Philly Cheesesteak” — the green peppers and onions! So, I used this recipe as a starting point (i.e. the directions for cooking the meat I have in the freezer) and then added the grilled green peppers and onions when assembling the Philly Cheesesteak san’ich.

Without further ado, here’s the original recipe for “Easy Beef Sandwiches”:

Easy Beef Sandwiches

  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 1 boneless beef bottom round roast (about 3 to 5 pounds)
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 package (about 1 ounce) au jus gravy mix
  • French rolls, sliced lengthwise
  • Provolone cheese (optional)

  • Place onion slices in bottom of CROCK-POT slow cooker, top with beef. Stir water into gravy mix in a small bowl; pour over beef. Cover; cook on LOW 7 to 9 hours.
  • Remove beef from CROCK-POT slow cooker; shred meat using two forks. Serve on French rolls, topped with cheese, if desired. Serve cooking liquid on the side for dipping.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

To turn this recipe into one for Philly Cheesesteak san’iches, simply saute some green peppers and onion slices in your preferred fat. I tend to use olive oil, but you can use “regular” oil (canola, etc.) or even butter. Once the veggies are done, add some of the shredded beef and the Provolone cheese. While the cheese is melting, take a moment to toast the buttered rolls (3 to 5 minutes in a 400 degree F oven). At this point, mix the melted cheese into the mixture and then transfer onto the toasted rolls. Serve with the cooking liquid from the CROCK-POT as a dipping sauce.

By the way, serving the cooking liquid (the “au jus”) with the san’ich reminded me of some fond childhood memories of mine: On special occasions, my family and I went to a restaurant called “Sam’s Hof Brau” in Sacramento. The san’iches that I remember most from there were the “French Dip” san’iches that were served with “au jus” for dipping — though it was usually Dad and my sister who got those san’iches. I can’t really remember what Mom and I would order, but I do remember standing — plate in hand — in front of a man wearing the tallest white hat I’d ever seen and holding two knives in his hands. After I told him what kind of meat I wanted (probably either corned beef, ham, roast beef or turkey), he got to work slicing up the big chunk of meat in front of him, his knives moving so fast I didn’t see ’em again until he had plunked some juicy slices of meat on my plate. After thanking him (as my parents taught my sister and I to do), the man with the tall hat and knives would smile and wink at me before I left the head of the line — probably nudged forward by either Mom or my sister. So many wonderful memories were made at Sam’s Hof Brau — a restaurant that is STILL in business AND back in the hands of the family of Sam Gordon, the man who founded the restaurant back in 1959, who is determined to maintain its authenticity. The next time I’m in the Sacramento area, I’ll have to make a point to stop in, so I can recreate those childhood memories.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got another Philly Cheesesteak san’ich to make!

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Third “7th of the month” Journal Post

Welcome to my third “7th of the month” journal post. I will be following the same pattern that I started in January’s “7th of the month” post by discussing events that fell into the following three categories:

  • Holler,
  • Personal, and, of course,
  • Writing.

Holler

Another major purchase I made this year (2023) was that of a Food Saver vacuum sealer. I’m hoping that the new vacuum sealer will prevent food waste by keeping the food I purchase lasting longer — both in the refrigerator AND in the freezer. No more freezer burn for me! Only time will tell… Now, I’ve got to figure out where to store it as well as how to use it. I’m thinking about either on one of the two baker’s racks that I have in the kitchen OR on a shelf in the kitchen island. In any case, I’ll have to clear out both potential locations since A LOT of clutter has accumulated in these two spaces! (It never ceases to amaze me just how fast clutter accumulates, especially on horizontal surfaces.

As far as learning how to use my new Food Saver vacuum sealer is concerned, I’ve noticed something that I hadn’t expected: I am afraid to start learning how to use it! After thinking back on this fear for a few minutes, I realized that it is nothing new. I think I’ve had it for a very long time. No, I haven’t been afraid of vacuum sealers! What I do seem to be afraid of is trying new things! I think I’ve always been afraid of trying new things… mostly because I have trouble getting started on whatever new thing I’m trying to do/learn. I tend to procrastinate and come up with excuses for not getting started, but once I finally do, I often end up kicking myself for not getting started earlier. This Food Saver purchase is no different! I’ve had “clear off the baker’s racks” and “learn how to use my new vacuum sealer” on my list of things to do for an ENTIRE week, but I STILL haven’t gotten started on either of these tasks! I’ve waited so long that some of the first things I wanted to vacuum seal are now only fit for the compost bin. 🙁 So, yeah… I’ve got to just open the box and start playing around with it, so I won’t feel as intimidated by the darned thing (which, I suspect, is also part of the fear factor. I’ve got a ten-pound box of bacon that I need to process for freezing (before it all goes bad, too), so that’s going to be the first use of my new Food Saver vacuum sealer, something I’ve been wanting for quite some time — ever since I discovered that the features of such appliances have changed over the years, resolving one of the problems I had with a similar purchase years ago. Anyway… I’ll give you an update about the curve involved in learning how to use my new Food Saver vacuum sealer in next month’s “7th of the month” post!

Making plans for my 2023 garden continued this month. So far, I have made a list of the materials needed to build more SFG frames, AND I’ve been batting around ideas for covering all of them. At this point, I think I’m just going to go with a “hoop house” design that’s just bent PVC pipe covered with plastic. Of course, finding plastic could be a problem. We’ll see… In addition, I’ve created a planting schedule — something that tells me:

  • when I need to start seeds indoors;
  • when I’ll need to transplant them out into those new SFG frames that I’ll be making; and
  • when I’ll be able to direct sow seeds out in the garden.

As far as my new “grow tent” is concerned, I’m going to have to find better places to put my current “seed babies”, which have really taken off since they’ve been in their “new digs”. I’m looking forward to getting the next batch of “seed babies” started in the new “grow tent”. Just have to figure out something to prevent ’em from getting “leggy” like my first batch of “seed babies” are, especially “Dilly”, my dill plant. I recently discovered an article about creating a DIY seed-starting system, so I’m going to add the things needed to make it to my ever-growing list of things to get from my local building supply store.

Personal

  • spent LOTS of time cuddling with “my boys” — my two “originals” (the first two kittens adopted from one of the many “side porch litters” that enjoyed the shelter of the side porch and my “hospitality” (read: food and water) while they were being weaned from their mother’s milk) AND a VERY persistent kitten from the following year’s “side porch litter”, who returned to the porch after a couple weeks of “freedom” and then made it VERY clear that he wanted inside. After not having any cats for years after “my girls” (Tigger and Gar-Baby) passed away, I was ready for more “fur babies” — hence the initial adoption of Apache and Shawnee, my “wild Indians” (the “originals”) and later, Kasha-san, the persistent one.
  • the “checking on you” phone calls from my darlin’ daughter continued — still when I’ve just sat down to eat. I think this is quickly becoming the family joke since she usually just laughs when I mention her timing. Oh, well… At least she keeps in touch with me, and that’s a good thing.
  • created a list of menus for the month (well… from 2/7 to 3/6, anyway) as well as a list of “Daily Themes for Meals”, which, I’m hoping will help make meal planning easier.
  • listened to the remaining UK games of their 2022/2023 season AND geared up for the first real SEC (Southeastern Conference) Tournament at Bridgestone Arena (in Nashville, TN) since 2019! Go, CATS!!
  • started getting more physical — by exercising on my treadmill and going for “8 1/2 to 10-stone” walks outside (which are basically the same length as a typical treadmill session). Once the weather starts warming up, I’ll be getting outside more, but when it starts getting TOO HOT outside, you can bet I’ll be back on the treadmill since I don’t handle the heat, and especially, the HUMIDITY, very well!
  • continued watching NCIS (and other shows) on Netflix AND started watching movies courtesy of Amazon Prime.
  • had an appointment midway through the month with somebody from a local tax preparation office since the person who had been preparing my income tax return for years recently passed away. Although I was a bit nervous about having someone new prepare my 2022 income tax returns, I’m happy to report that the appointment went very well.

Writing

As far as my writing is concerned, I continued researching Curaçao in preparation for writing a trilogy of historical romance stories set on the island as well as at least one short story set there! (Still trying to write a SHORT story that doesn’t morph into a novel… or trilogy!)

In addition, I transcribed my hand-written planning/plotting notes for “Curaçao Eyes”, so I can use them to come up with a “List of Remaining Scenes Left to Write” (a tactic/strategy that helped me finish my very first completed manuscript!

I also continued working on my author Web site (this one) — to get it up-to-date. In addition to my “7th of the month” posts and my “Tasty Tuesdays” posts, I’m contemplating the addition of a couple more series of posts, which are as follows:

  • “Manuscript Mondays” — in which I’ll share parts of my current “works-in-progress” with y’all;
  • “Tips on Thursdays” — in which I’ll share a variety of tips that are related to the holler (i.e. homesteading), personal (possibly organizing), and, of course, writing;
  • “Saturday Sayings” — in which I’ll share some of my favorite quotes (from a variety of people about a variety of topics, including writing!)

Since none of these series of posts is set in stone yet, I’d love to hear what you think of these ideas. If you have an idea for something else you’d like to see on this Web site, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment to let me know. I’m more than happy to consider (and possibly incorporate) your suggestions!

Lastly, I received a surprise Valentine’s Day card (and “catch up” letter) from one of my NaNoWriMo penpals, AND I started gearing up for April’s CampNaNoWriMo postcard swap by thinking about which photos I want to use for these postcards as well as giving some thought to what I want to say on them. As always, I’m looking forward to keeping in touch with my NaNoWriMo penpals (as well as friends and family, of course) the “old-fashioned way” AND adding more postcards to my ever-growing collection, which I really need to start organizing better. If you’ve got any ideas for organizing my postcard collection, I’d love to hear from you!

Well… I think this sums up the month quite well. I’d love to hear what y’all did during the month, so please leave a comment! Looking forward hearing from you! In the meantime… Take care.