The Best Stuffing Ever

I thought I would share my FAMOUS stuffing recipe which I have made every year for about seven years now. My friend Natalie and I were put in charge of the stuffing one year. We cracked open an old 1950's cookbook of my grandmother's and searched high and low. We found a recipe for apple stuffing for a duck, and so we took the recipe, quadrupled it and tweaked it until VOILA-a masterpiece was born:

Apple Stuffing with Caramlized Pecans:

1 bag of Pepperidge farm herb stuffing

2 granny smith apples

1 onion

1 clove of garlic

3/4 c Heavy Cream

3 1/2 c water

1Tbs of Thyme

2 tsp of Seasoned Salt

other herbs to taste

1 1/2 c of crushed pecans

1 c brown sugar

2tbs cornstarch

Cut up apples and onion and garlic clove and mix 1 c of the water with the herb stuffing.  Place onion, apples and garlic in a large frying pan with olive oil. Saute until onions are transparent. Add softened herb stuffing and mix well. Add heavy cream stir and cook over low/med heat until cream is absorbed. Add salt, thyme and and herbs to taste. Remove from heat and press into a 9x13 baking dish. Let stand. Put remaining water and brown sugar and pecans in a small sauce pan. Bring to a rolling boil. Boil for 4 minutes. Mix cornstarch with a little bit of water and stir to remove lumps. Add to sauce pan. Boil until thickened. Pour over stuffing and bake for 15 minutes. ENJOY! :)

P.S. This year I added dried cranberries. You can do the same just make sure you soak them in hot water first so that the get nice and soft. 

Revisiting and Reviewing

          I had the opportunity this week to revisit my old occupation. I've been substituting for my mother at the Middle School. Its nice to be reminded of all that I have left behind, and all that I have gained. Sometimes my current occupation wears on me and I become discouraged and overwhelmed. I am glad to be reminded of how the word "overwhelmed" in my current occupation means something entirely different from "overwhelmed" in the public school system. I don't know how I lived with such stress and such turmoil. God surely gave me supernatural strength to get through those two years.
         One thing that this stint has reminded me of is the lack of motivation among the average American student. It is truly amazing how these children really have no affection for this system that the government has bent over backwards to give them. So called "education" is forced down the throat of countless boys and girls who couldn't care less about equations, words, books, and anatomy. Why is it that these children so clearly and openly hate school? I believe it is because they lack the foundations of life that are neccessary to be motivated and successful in any realm of life: love and vision. What is the point of this "education?" If it is really all about getting a good job and having money, then why try? They don't have to have a diploma or a degree to get a job, and even if they don't get a job, the government will take care of them. It is actually very difficult in this country to be literally homeless (and I mean without any sort of shelter, halfway house etc.). If the purpose of school is to improve themselves, well that won't matter much to them either. The reason a person improves themselves is not for their own self-satisfaction, it is for others. It is to be loved and appreciated. If a person has not been shown love, and does not believe they have any real significance on this world (which is the case without Jesus) then improve oneself becomes unimportant.
           It is very sad how little purpose and motivation these children have. I see vast numbers of 11-14 children here with little joy other than socializing and sports. Where is the substance and depth in our society? Encouraging "random acts of kindess" and "positive behavior support" is breeding a generation of empty and purposeless people with little motivation other than self-gratification. May God apprehend the lives of the administration and teachers and reveal to them the emptiness of their system, and the hollow core of their educational vision.

The First of Many

Many years ago I gave up blogging. I was young, impulsive and wasn't sure how to use such a tool. It ended up being a public display of rantings and ravings. Not very demure eh? Well, now I'm back in the blogging world with a desire to share the unfathomable joy of being a housekeeper, caretaker, and daughter. I want to use this to publish short works of prose and poetry, research papers from my studies in Herbal Medicine and also insights or inklings into the literature I am currently consuming. I honestly am not worried about audience, this is just a little something for fun. Toodloo! MLM