Week 46 Sunday (11/30/14)

Recipe Review       

Today’s Recipe and Location:           Giblet Gravy        

Found in: The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays

                  Pages:  251 - 253     Copyright:  2013  Harper Collins         OR

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2013/11/giblet-gravy/

I figured out that there are about 150 calories per serving, if ¼ cup servings are made. (Please note that the calorie counts vary depending on the specific brands of ingredients that you choose to use.)

Here is the nasty looking neckbone,
 and the goodies I peeled off of it.
The rest was already cut up
and in a bowl.

This is the leftover liquid that is also used in the gravy

OMG, you can see all of the flavors and goodness.
I wish I had a big spoon!

         I absolutely love this gravy. This gravy is so rich and decadent that I could eat it at every meal. I like all of the giblets, because they gave the gravy texture and a rich taste. The directions were similar to how I have made it in the past, but they add some fat and then what was left in the pan was slightly different. All I know it that it is one of the best gravies I have ever eaten.

      

Trivial Triffles

         The other day I was thinking about the cartoons we had on the TV when I was a kid. I was never a cartoon or animated fan. I was reading a wonderful book called Wonder by R.J. Palacio when it made a reference to Auggie Doggie and Doggie Daddy. That reference just made me sit there and smile. I also started remembering characters like Quick Draw McGraw, Foghorn Leghorn and Wiley Coyote. I also liked Pepe le Pew, Boris and Natasha, Huckleberry Hound, Yosemite Sam, and an oldie but goodie – Top Cat. 

         I am quite shocked that the names came flooding back into my head. Who sticks out in your mind?

Memory Musings      

         I was fortunate enough to share my home for a short time with my niece, Rachel. One of my favorite memories is when Rachel received a stuffed animal, she named Zeke, from a friend of mine named Jenny Felt. Zeke was a sheltie stuffed animal and strongly resembled my dog Zoe. Rachel wanted a "Z" name and came up with Zeke. This stuffed animal was pretty large and somewhere in between Zoe and Zeffe’s size.

This is Rachel a few years ago at a Christmas Party

I had to cover my bed with a sheet
so Willow and Sage don't destroy my comforter.
Here is our beloved Zeke who looks nothing like Willow,
because Zoe was redder, like Zeke

Doesn't Willow look thrilled?

         One day I was walking down the hall and spotted two of the dogs against the wall. I thought it was Zoe and Zeffe, but discovered one was Zeke. Rachel came around the corner and said, “There you are Zeke.”  I burst out laughing because it was amazing how much he looked like Zoe.

         Zeke still lives here in my sewing room, and I plan to give him to Rachel as a gift when she has her first child. He is a little roughed up, and his fur is no longer beautiful, due to washings, but he was once the love of her life thus making him a wonderful keepsake for my fabulous niece.