February was an interesting month.
First, we got sick. (Mystery bug.)
Then, we got sick again. (A nasty cold.)
Lastly, we got sick again. (Flu.)
And that about sums it up.
In between all that, we had a lot of fun with various things - Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent, a trip north to visit grandparents, and lots of work finishing up our family projects for Christmas. (Yes, really.) Those included the making of our Christmas eggnog (yes, in February), creating a Christmas wreath (we started this a year ago), and making clove oranges (this one took only ten minutes, phew!), all of which went surprisingly well. (Except for a snag with one of the clove oranges, which disappeared mysteriously when the toddler got into things. We couldn't figure out where the orange had gone, until it occurred to me that I'd been smelling an odd citrusy-clove smell whenever I ran the garbage disposal in the sink. Oops.)
 |
| Clove oranges, plus a spontaneous Christmas project by the 8yo. |
And now, onto this month's books!
Books Lately, February 2023
Three Men in a Boat (Not to Mention the Dog) (Jerome K. Jerome) – I can't believe I've gone this far in life and not read this little gem of a book. So sweet, and so hilariously funny. I highly recommend nabbing a copy.
When Harry Became Sally: Responding to the Transgender Movement (Ryan Anderson) – From one reviewer, "If you are at all concerned about this issue, and feel troubled and needs [sic] some clear insights and answers to your questions, this is the best place to start, and probably the only book you'll need to read." Great book.
The Cheese Trap: How Breaking a Surprising Addiction Will Help You Lose Weight, Gain Energy, and Get Healthy (Neil D. Barnard, MD) - Years ago, I decided to quit dairy cold turkey. Two things surprised me: (1) some unexpected health benefits, such as weight loss and the complete disappearance of my monthly ovulation pain, and (2) even more surprising, the fact that during the first two weeks of getting completely off of dairy, I actually went through what can only be termed withdrawal. (It was weird.) Ever since, I've been fascinated by the topic of dairy. This book is very informative. A couple of issues:
- Nutritionists in the U.S. can basically be divided into two camps - the low-fat vegetarian camp (fruit, vegetables, and grains are good; meat and fats are bad), and the paleo camp (vegetables, good fats, and meat are good; grains and sugars are bad). The author is clearly in the first camp, and that set of assumptions is present throughout the book.
- That being the case, the title of the book is a bit misleading. What the title and cover *say* are "give up cheese!" but what the author actually means is "give up cheese, all dairy products, and all animal products like meat and eggs!" Again, a bit misleading.
- Lastly, while I appreciate the section on the inhumane treatment of dairy cows, I don't think that that material is pertinent to the question of whether or not dairy is healthy for humans. Farming practices can be changed for the better. The issue at hand is not ethics or good/bad farming practices, but whether dairy as a food product is inherently good or bad for human health.
- The author does not mention the A1 vs. A2 milk protein debate, which I found disappointing. (Perhaps, as the author is a vegan, he considers the "are some milk proteins better than others" question to be a moot point.)
My Beloved: The Story of a Carmelite Nun (Catherine Thomas) - I have always been interested in the phenomenon of monastic life. While my favorite autobiographical account of monastic life is and remains The Seven Storey Mountain by Thomas Merton, this one is a close second. The book is an autobiographical account of a woman's youth, her decision, in the 1920s, to be come a nun, and her life as a nun into the 1950s, when the book was penned. It is a fascinating historical account, and a beautiful spiritual memoir as well. Highly recommended.
Current Read-Alouds for Children
The Middle Moffat (Eleanor Estes, book #2 of 4 in the Moffats series) - I love the Moffats series. So slow-paced, so gently funny, so real to everyday life and the experiences of childhood. Also, a great book for giving children (and adults!) insight into American life in the early 1900s - coal stoves, handmade clothing, horsedrawn conveyance (giving way to automobiles, alas). This series - and other books by Estes - are a joy.
The Duchess Bakes a Cake (Virginia Kahl) - I ran across this picture book randomly, and loved it. Superbly funny, skillfully illustrated, and containing - what a change from most modern children's books! - really well-written poetic verse. I will definitely be looking out a copy for our own family library.
American Girl: Kirsten and American Girl: Molly (American Girl) - I enjoyed these series very much as a child, and my 8yo is now loving them. I have heard that some American Girl series are awesome, and some are not - if any readers know which are which, I'd love to know more. Leave me a comment!
 |
| Our Christmas wreath craft! |
And now, a few recipes (maybe more than a few)
My Granny's Cocoa Cream Pie - After our 8yo lost the notebook where I keep my husband's family recipes, I had to come up with an alternate chocolate pie recipe. This one was great! My changes were the following: (1) I scalded the milk before adding to the other ingredients - this massively speeds up the cooking process. To make this work, I liquified the other ingredients with a few tablespoons of water. You could also just use part of the milk before you heat the milk. (2) I folded a few tablespoons of butter (actually, butter-flavored coconut oil, but I digress) into the final pudding for extra richness. My husband's grandmother used a full half cup of butter - you can't beat southerners for butter! - but I can't bring myself to add quite that much.
Old Fashioned Egg Nog - I used a half-teaspoon of cinnamon in place of the cinnamon sticks, and also reduced the sugar by one-third (and added a wee bit of stevia). I also followed one commenter's suggestion to reserve one cup and the cream to whip and then whisk in before serving, for extra body. The entire family loved it.
Sausage and Rice Casserole - Easy! Healthy! Fast! Yum. I doubled this and put it in a 10x15 pan - perfect for a larger family - and served with steamed carrots.
Corn Dip - This is so incredibly good. The jalapenos are optional, and my copy of this recipe didn't have green onions, so those are also optional. Additionally, I could only find larger can sizes for the corn, so I slightly upped the mayo and sour cream to concentrate. Mmmmmm.
Shoofly Pie - TakeThemaMeal.com is my favorite meal sign-up program, and their recipes are awesome too. Sign up for their mailing list, and you'll get lots of great and helpful articles and recipes in your inbox. This recipe was one of them! It turned out well, and the family - surprisingly, for Shoofly Pie is an unusual taste! - loved it.
Fluffy Vegan Banana Pancakes - What do you do when egg prices sky-rocket? You look for vegan pancake recipes! And while I am not a vegan, or a proponent of veganism, I have noticed that vegan baking recipes are often as good - or better! - than regular recipes. This one was delightful.
Chiles Rellenos Casserole - This was a favorite from childhood, the recipe to which I lost about twenty years ago. Then, last week, it suddenly struck me - "To the internet!" Thankfully, the recipe is still out there in cyberspace, and it is now back in my repertoire. Because I don't usually keep ground turkey on hand, I used ground beef. I doubled the recipe and put it in a 10x15 pan. Mmmmm.
Pioneer Woman Fruit Cake - My first fruitcake, and a roaring success it was. The family fought like rabid dogs over the crumbs. Because I don't care for a heavy taste of alcohol, I used a syrup with a hint of brandy (rather than straight brandy) for the moistener at the end. To quote from the review I left: "I soaked my fruit in a mixture of half brandy and half apple cider, and for moistening the cooked fruitcake I made a rich syrup (2/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup water, made with water simmered with orange rind, for flavor) plus a tablespoon of brandy." Next year I will make even more fruitcakes! Many more!
Pies This Month
Week #1 - Chocolate
Week #2 - Shoofly
Week #3 - We blew it. Sick. No pie.
Week #4 - Still sick, still blowing it. No pie.
That's all, folks! I'll see you in April, and have a happy Lent until then! (And Happy St. Patrick's Day!)
