KITCHEN TIPS - MARTHA AND MAXINE

Martha says: Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of an ice cream cone to prevent ice cream drips.

Maxine says: Just suck the ice cream out of the bottom of the cone, for god's sake! You are probably lying on the couch with your feet up eating it anyway!



Martha says: To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

Maxine says: Buy Hungry Jack mashed potato mix.
Keeps in the pantry for a decade.



Martha says: Brush some beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.

Maxine says: That kind of unnecessary crap isn't in the Mrs. Smith frozen pie directions.



Martha says: Cure for headaches: take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.

Maxine says: IF the lime is from your third margarita!



Martha says: Don't throw out all that leftover wine. Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.

Maxine says: Leftover Wine, Martha?????? HELLO!!!!!!!

Thanks to Doug.

FAREWELL TO SCOTTY

Scotty and his dear friend Mocha

Lisa at My Manner of Life lost her beloved Scotty, her friend and companion of 19 years. Pray for Lisa and Mocha.

0 God, you created all that is, and you love all that you have made: we come to you this day in grief and with thanksgiving. We grieve the death of Lisa's beloved Scotty, who has been her companion on the way, and we thank you for the gift of his presence with her as an effective sign of the richness of your creation and of the generosity of your love; through Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Prayer from Animal Chaplains.

DOXY BLAMES ME

Doxy in the comments:

Wormwood's Doxy said...

Mimi--I started writing and couldn't stop. So I turned my comment into my first blog post in 3+ months.

You have only yourself to blame... ;-)

Pax,
Doxy

After a long hiatus, Doxy writes on her blog concerning the election of the Rev. Dan Martins as bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Springfield and says that I was her inspiration. But hang on! She disagrees with me! That's not how it's supposed to work.

Nevertheless, Doxy writes an excellent post. Although she doesn't post often, when she does, her blog is always worth reading. Check out her latest at Wormwood's Doxy.

OH NOOO!!! GOP = GAY OLD PARTY?

From Candace Chellew-Hodge at Religious Dispatches:

Republicans really must have believed they had this whole gay issue settled once and for all—then along come voters, and prominent Republicans, showing support for gay rights and even coming out. That’s left some hard-line religiously conservative Republicans confused and angry.

Witness the vehemence of such conservatives as WorldNetDaily founder Joseph Farah who took on Christopher Barron, the co-founder and chairman of the gay Republican group GOProud, at the Take Back America conference over the weekend in Miami. (You’ll remember, this is the conference Ann Coulter was disinvited from because she agreed to speak at GoProud’s “Homocon” event.)


Barron argued that gay people can be true conservatives, listing his organization’s support for conservative causes like “tax cuts, repealing health-care reform, social-security reform, and a neo-conservative defense for the Global War on Terror.” To Barron, one’s sexual orientation has nothing to do with whether one can be conservative or not.

Barron's statement is Republican heresy! Purge, purge, purge!

...the “conservative movement” is filled with gays and lesbians like Ken Mehlman, who led the Republican National Committee, and author and radio host Tammy Bruce. Gay and lesbian people, closeted or not, have long been a part of the “conservative movement.” What Farah does not like is that right now, these people are speaking up. They are no longer being silent about who they are - not just as conservatives, but as human beings.

I believe that the author is correct. I have it on excellent authority, from someone who could get Karl Rove on the phone, that the Bush White House staff was riddled with teh gays.

I confess that I find it difficult to understand how LGTB persons can support the Republican agenda, considering the bigotry which has been and is directed against them, but chacun à son goût. Having said that, I admit that the Democratic Party has not always been, nor is it now, a shining light of inclusivness.

Many have speculated on the death of the religious right—and it always seems to survive predictions of its demise—but a new Associated Press poll released this week echoes an earlier CNN poll showing majority support for same-sex marriage (52 percent to 46 percent). The poll also shows 58 percent say gays and lesbians should “be entitled to the same government benefits as married couples of the opposite sex.” Only 38 percent opposed.

In my territory, the religious right is not moribund, but rather, they rule, far beyond what their numbers warrant. Their voices scream loud and long, and the parties and the politicians not only listen, but, all too often, march to the beat of their drummers, more's the pity.

Thanks to Cathy for the link.

PLEASE PRAY FOR LISA AND SCOTTY

Lisa at My Manner of Life is preparing to say good-bye to Scotty, pictured above, in better days. Scotty went to live with Lisa as a kitten, and they have been together for 19 years, nearly her entire adult life.

Saying Goodbye to Scotty

In the name of God the Father,
who created you and all the animals,
in the name of Jesus the Son,
who spoke of you in parables and stories,
in the name of the Holy Spirit,
in whom every creature lives, moves, and has their being,
go now in peace, dear friend.

May you find rest near refreshing waters,
may you lie in cool, green pastures,
and may you warm yourself under the sun that never sets.

You have been my constant companion,
my shadow and confidante,
my comfort and playmate.
You filled my days with life and brought me endless joy.
For this I give thanks to God who gave you to me.

Now return to your Maker who eagerly waits for you
as you waited for me at the end of each day.

In the Father’s arms, let there be no more pain.
Let there be no more suffering.
Let there be only light as it was on the day God created you.

For our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Blessed be the name of the Lord, now and forever. Amen.

Prayer by Diana Macalintal from San José Diocese.

O God, we ask that you be powerfully present with Lisa during this difficult time as parting with Scotty draws near. Give her comfort, consolation, and your peace that passes understanding to keep her mind and heart in Christ Jesus. Amen.

REPUBLICANS IN MONTANA - MAKE HOMOSEXUALITY ILLEGAL

From Yahoo News:

At a time when gays have been gaining victories across the country, the Republican Party in Montana still wants to make homosexuality illegal.

The party adopted an official platform in June that keeps a long-held position in support of making homosexual acts illegal, a policy adopted after the Montana Supreme Court struck down such laws in 1997.

The fact that it's still the official party policy more than 12 years later, despite a tidal shift in public attitudes since then and the party's own pledge of support for individual freedoms, has exasperated some GOP members.

"I looked at that and said, 'You've got to be kidding me,'" state Sen. John Brueggeman, R-Polson, said last week. "Should it get taken out? Absolutely. Does anybody think we should be arresting homosexual people? If you take that stand, you really probably shouldn't be in the Republican Party."

Sen. Brueggeman, the folks who voted on the Republican Party platform in June are your people. The Party spawned groups like the Tea Partiers, and now the kids are out of control. Good luck with getting the policies out of the Republican Party platform. You may have a fight on your hands. You reap what you sow.

Thanks to Cathy for the link.

DOIN' THE VATICAN SPIN...

...after doin' the Lambeth Walk.

From the AP:

The Vatican declared Pope Benedict XVI's four-day visit to Britain a "great success" Sunday, saying the pontiff was able to reach out to a nation wary of his message and angry at his church's sex abuse scandal.

Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi said the important thing wasn't so much the turnout — crowds were much smaller than when Pope John Paul II visited in 1982 — but that Benedict's warning about the dangers of an increasingly secularized society had been received "with profound interest" from Britons as a whole.

But how does the Rev. Lombardi know that Britons, as a whole, received the pope's message "with profound interest"? What is the evidence?

And if the crowds had broken previous records, I wonder if the turnout would then have taken on greater significance.

Prime Minister David Cameron, in his farewell speech before Benedict's departure ceremony, said the pope had "challenged the whole country to sit up and think, and that can only be a good thing."

At the same time, he seemed to take issue with Benedict's contention that secularization was taking hold more and more in Britain.

Ah, Prime Minister, if people sit up and think, it's possible that their opinions of both you and the pope might go into decline.

"Faith is part of the fabric of our country. It always has been and it always will be," Cameron said shortly before the pope left on a flight from Birmingham Airport. Benedict arrived back in Rome late Sunday night.

That was certainly evident on Sunday, as Benedict beatified Cardinal John Henry Newman before tens of thousands of faithful who paid 25 pounds ($39) to attend. This trip marked the first time pilgrims had been asked by their church to pay to see the pope.

Still a bargain, indeed! Only £25 to witness the pope send a deceased Englishman halfway to sainthood. Only one miracle to go and Blessed John Henry Newman bags the honorific of St. John Henry Newman and is assigned a place in the Roman Catholic Church calendar of saints.

Saturday saw one of the biggest anti-pope protest of Benedict's five-year papacy as some 10,000 people marched against him through central London, opposed to his policies on homosexuality and contraception and disgusted by the clerical sex abuse scandal.

You can't win 'em all.

Sunday marked the first time Benedict celebrated a beatification. Under his own rules, popes don't beatify, only canonize.

You make 'em, you break 'em.

And a good time was had by all, albeit at great cost to the treasury of the United Kingdom.

And the pope is safely ensconced back in his tiny state, the Vatican.

♫ Lambeth you've never seen,
The skies ain't blue, the grass ain't green.
It hasn't got the Mayfair touch,
But that don't matter very much.
We play the Lambeth way,
Not like you but a bit more gay
And when we have a bit of fun
Oh, Boy.

Anytime you're Lambeth way
Any evening, any day,
You'll find us all doin' the Lambeth walk.

Ev'ry little Lambeth gal
With her little Lambeth pal,
You'll find 'em all doin' the Lambeth walk.

Ev'rything's free and easy,
Do as you darn well pleasey,
Why don't you make your way there,
Go there, stay there,

Once you get down Lambeth way,
Ev'ry evening, ev'ry day,
You'll find yourself doin' the Lambeth walk.♫

More lyrics: LyricsFreak

Watch the video here.

H/T to MadPriest at Of Course I Could Be Wrong, who had the link to the article first, for which I give him full credit. He urged us not to argue with the Vatican's conclusions, but I did anyway.

THE REV. DAN MARTINS ELECTED BISHOP OF EPISCOPAL DIOCESE OF SPRINGFIELD

From Nicholas Knisely at The Lead:

The Rev. Dan Martins was elected the 11th Bishop of the Diocese of Springfield this afternoon on the third ballot. Martins led in all three ballots in the clergy, and was nearly elected on the second ballot when lay supporters of Canon Mark Stevenson appear to have shifted their support to Martins. Martins' election, as are all elections, dependent on the successful completion of the consents process.

Ballot results from the diocesan website.


Click on the image for the larger view.

From the State Journal-Register:

“There is a process, which is in our constitution and canon, that he now goes through the consent process,” said the Rev. Christopher Ashmore, rector of Trinity Church in Jacksonville.

The process calls for a majority of U.S. bishops and Standing Committees to consent to the vote during a 120-day period following Martins’ election, Ashmore said.

Martins may have difficulty getting consent if he sticks with his conservative views on same-sex unions and gay clergy.

Ashmore said there was an overarching feeling of doing God’s work within the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, 815 S. Second St., where the election took place.

From Ann Fontaine also at The Lead:

Martins voted with the majority in San Joaquin who left the Episcopal Church when he was Rector in that diocese, says he is not planning to leave the Episcopal Church.
....

Martins has been affiliated with Communion Partners, who support the Covenant.

James at The Three-Legged Stool appears to take a dim view of the result.

The Rev. Martins would not have been my choice, but he is the choice of the representatives of the diocese, and the process now moves on to consents from the bishops and Standing Committees of the Episcopal Church. In my opinion, that the proper number of the delegates in the Diocese of Springfield chose the Rev. Martins as their bishop carries great weight with respect to consideration of consents. That the Rev. Martins voted with the majority to leave the Episcopal Church in San Joachin is cause for concern.

Pray for the bishops and Standing Committees.

UPDATE: Jim Naughton at The Lead comments on a statement by the Rev. Martins at GC09.

UPDATE 2: John Chilton at The Lead posts links to further information on Fr. Dan Martins and consents.

UPDATE 3: Bishop-elect Dan Martins offers a detailed response to his critics at his blog.

"DANCING WITH THE STARS"

Picture and title supplied by Lapin.

WITH CHEF JOHN FOLSE AT THE E. D. WHITE HOUSE

On Friday, Grandpère and I attended the grand opening and ribbon-cutting of the reconstructed plantation kitchen at the historic Edward Douglas White House a few miles up Bayou Lafourche from Thibodaux.

The national Historic Landmark, situated on the banks of scenic Bayou Lafourche near Thibodaux, Louisiana, was the residence of two of Louisiana' s foremost political figures, Edward Douglas White, who was governor from 1835 to 1839, and his son, Edward Douglass White, who was appointed to the United States Supreme Court in 1894 and served as chief justice from 1910 to 1921.

Historians date the construction of the plantation home anywhere from the late eighteenth century to the 1830's due to the evidence of contrasting architectural features found within the house. The house more prominently represents the Creole-style cottage design that was popular in south Louisiana prior to the Civil war, but was transformed into a Greek Revival house in the 1840's, reflecting the impact of Anglo-American culture on the Acadian Bayou landscape in the mid 1800s.

The kitchens of the plantation houses were usually situated in separate buildings to keep the heat of the kitchen out of the house and to protect the house in the event of a kitchen fire. Below is the newly reconstructed kitchen.

 

The hearth of the kitchen where the food was cooked.

 

David, Ray, and Danny Weimer, pictured below, constructed the kitchen. That's Papa Ray with his sons on either side.



Twenty-six years ago, Ray and his two brothers, Mike and Ronnie, built our house. David worked on the house during the summer when he was 15 years old. Danny was only about 8 years old, so he maybe got to help pick up trash, but that's about all. Maybe his dad even gave him a few bucks for his work.

Chef John Folse, pictured below, and his staff cooked our meal in the kitchen hearth as in days of old.

Chef John Folse is the owner and executive chef of his Louisiana based corporations. His Lafitte's Landing Restaurant in Donaldsonville is recognized as one of the finest restaurants in and around New Orleans. White Oak Plantation, in Baton Rouge, houses his catering and events management company, "Voila!" Louisiana's Premier Products, his cook and chill plant in New Orleans, manufactures soups, sauces, entrees and meats for food service and retail establishments across the country. Chef Folse is the author of numerous books and publications available in bookstores nationally.

John is respected around the world as an authority on Cajun and Creole cuisine and culture. He hosts his own national television cooking show on PBS.

Chef Folse again and someone you may recognize standing at the preparation table. No, I did not help prepare the meal, but I was so bold as to ask for a photo with the chef, which I said would be viewed all around the world.

Chef Folse shared with us from his vast knowledge the history of Cajun cooking. The influences on what we know today as Cajun cooking are varied and are derived from seven main groups, which I list from memory: French, Spanish, German, Acadian, Native American, African, and Caribbean.

Our meal is pictured below.

The dishes included:

Grilled Cornish game hen

Jambalaya

A mess of greens

Corn maque choux

Corn bread

Mixed green salad

All of the dishes were delicious - altogether an excellent meal.

We dined in tents set up under the oaks. The weather was warmish, but large fans strategically placed outside the tents circulated air so that we were not uncomfortable.

Grandpère standing next to one of the old oak trees on the property.

 

A large branch of the same oak tree.

 

The recipe for a mess of greens or voodoo greens is below. Back in the olden days, folks had to use everything that was edible, not just carrots, but carrot tops, not just turnips, but turnip tops, etc. The mess of greens prepared with Chef Folse's recipe was quite tasty.



Click on the recipe for the larger view.