a picture says a thousand words..

i haven't blogged in a while because quite frankly i haven't felt like it.
i feel like this gal...

it's probably because i made 4 delicious Pecan Pies.

here's the recipe......

3 eggs

1cup sugar

3Tbs butter, melted

1/2 cup dark corn syrup

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1tsp. vanilla

1Tbs flour

1- 1/2 cup chopped (not fine) pecans

here's whatcha do.....

wisk 3 eggs

mix in sugar

mix in butter

mix in dark corn syrup

mix in light corn syrup

mix in vanilla

mix in flour

add nuts and mix with a blender on low for just a few seconds

pour into a pie shell

make our own or use a premade......

here's what you get.....

*note* you have to chop up your pecans (NOT FINE) so that when you cut the pie, it will cut better!  If you leave the pecans whole you CAN NOT cut a pretty piece of pie!

Dinner Club....

this week has been a crazy week.  the week of "Dinner Club" is always a crazy week and then you add on all the extra activities of our busy life and we've got ourselves a CRAZY WEEK.

extra activities of the week include:
rearranging my book shelves and redecorating the living room.
cleaning out closets. why?  nobody is going to look in the closets you say?  so...
work...early morning inservives.
cleaning up the yard.
cleaning out the garage.
Thanksgiving Dinner with My Girl at her school.
ordering My Man some well deserved custom Elephant Boots for his cute lil tootsies.
making dinner menu.
shopping.
cooking.
working.....oh yay, i do have a JOB!
and just plain "Gittin Ready" for a house full of hungry friends.

why all that work for dinner club?  what's dinner club?

well, for the last 7 years 7 fabulous couples have joined every other month to eat, socialize and knock back a few spirits! 14 wonderful people make up a group known as "The Tasteful Two's Dinner Club."

it's our turn, so on Saturday night we will feast on Grilled Pork Tenderloin, Holiday Stuffing, Mixed Green Salad with Cranberries, Carmelized Pecans and Asiago Cheese, Green Beans, Homemade Pecan and Apple Pie.....

a Thanksgiving Dinner with our friends whom we are so very THANKFUL to have in our life.

ps...i am also thankful that every 14 months we have a serious motivation to clean up, clean out, and redecorate.....even if it does make for one seriously CRAZY week.

book signing!

went to see PW at her book signing.  it was lots of fun.  Lainie and i got in line about 5:15 (even though we were in DESPERATE need of a glass of wine) because it started at 6:30 and there were lots of people already there and we weren't sure how many people would be there.  anyway we chose to just stand there and wait it out.  THANK GOD WE DIDN'T GET OUT OF THE LINE.  the line lasted 5 hours!!!!

in line we met a couple of gals (Lynette and Karen) and had fun visiting with them.  Lynette has a blog and you should check it out!  she too lives in the country and she homeschools her cute 8 1/2 year old son.  check out her blog here.  she was very sweet to take pictures and send them to me so that i could have pics for my blog.

we waited one hour for our turn but PW sat there for 5 hours and so graciously spoke to everyone for a bit and signed the cookbooks with a personal message.  i had 7!  she even asked who each person was and then she personalized each signature.  LUV HER!!

so, here's how my second meeting with PW went down:

Lainie and i walked up to the table.
i pushed Lainie in front of me and peeked around her!
then PW said, "hey, I know you!"
i died.
then i said something like, "well we have met before." and she said, "where?"  i told her that we had met her at the Range Round Up Rodeo.  she said she never forgets a face!!

**note.....i had my eye liner permanently done 2 hours before this picture and my hair was not dirty!

then Lainie asked all sorts of brilliant questions and i just smiled and bobbed my head all goofy like...again.

Lainie asked why MM took so long to call. he had a girlfriend.  he waited to call until after they broke up. she then asked PW when she was finishing their love story and she said...soon.  but we'll have to buy the book.  i'm buyin!

i told her that MY MAN is sure she has a crush on him and she said it was true.  she signed MY BOOK and it said, "To MY MAN, Thinking of you every day!"  then there were lots of hearts and her signature!  the good news is that later in the evening MM signed my book too.

right above the picture of his...tail in chaps!!  it say's. "the end."

the cookbook is fabulous!

so far i have had the Olive Cheese Bread, Rosemary Garlic Potatoes, and the Flat Apple Pie.  all yummy and last night i made the Potato - Leek Pizza!!

make it soooooon!  what?  you don't have the book yet...for shame!!

there will be another book signing on Tuesday, December 15th at the Barnes and Noble on May Ave.

sadly, i can't go BECAUSE she might call the law on me for stalking her since she already remembered me!  hmmmmmm......i wonder what i would look like as a brunette? 

just a thought!

me and ree....like peas and carrots!

a brief history of me and ree....i mean PW, i mean PDiddy,  i mean PDub, i mean http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/

cousin renee (from TN) told me about her.

i ignored her.

she told me about her again and i was like, "whatever renee....i don't have time to read a stinkin blog about a girl who lives in the country."

''hello, i live in the country!  i know all about it.  what could i possibly find interesting about a girl in Oklahoma who lives in the country?''

anywho, i am easily peer pressured so i began reading it and i fell in love.  i fell in love with her humor, her retarded brother (again, her words not mine) and her dog Charlie.

i read (From Black Heels to Tractor Wheels) how this city girl, ex-ballerina, orthopedic surgeon's daughter, country club member, USC graduate came back to Oklahoma for a pit stop at her parents while she planned and began to execute her plan to move to Chicago to attend Law School.  Then one fateful night she walked into a bar and met her future husband.  a cowboy.

*note....many great loves stories come from couples who met in a bar.  i too walked into a bar in OKC and met my future husband.  (seee....me and ree...like peas and carrots)

who doesn't love a good love story?  i do!  and if you do....you should take the time to go read the love story of Ree (she and me are on a first name basis...in my world) and her Marlboro Man.

you'll enjoy the story if you take the time to read it. i read the story to My Man on a long trip to TX and he fell in love with her and he's pretty certain that she has a serious crush on him since we met her not long ago at the Range Round-Up Rodeo. Marlboro Man better watch out!!

here's how that went down:

i was looking around all wide eyed! 

i was in full on stalker mode!
 
i couldn't concentrate on what My Man was saying and i couldn't be bothered by My Girl's need for food.

i was on a mission to get a glimpse of my new "friend." 

then all of the sudden, coming down the ramp with two of her punks, there she was! 
(i was singing in my head, "isn't she lovely, isn't she wonderful.  all stevie wonder like)

i was like uhhhhhhhgh GASP and then for NO REASON AT ALL...i turned my head and covered my face! 

yah, i know i was actin crazy.  she didn't and couldn't recognize me so no need for the crazy histronics but i just got a case of the nerves or something. AND i was thinking, "just don't turn around and stare, she's right behind you!"  then i heard My Man say, "Ree, you better be careful!  you are just about to be stalked!"  i couldn't believe my earlobes!  i couldn't believe my quiet, reserved, vanilla lovin guy was talkin to her and about me.  he told her WE (i love this man) were fans of her blog and we chatted for a bit.  ACTUALLY they chatted and i just bobbed my head up and down and smiled a bunch like a big goof!!!!! 

for the rest of the night i stared at her from across the arena and took a few pictures of her Ranch Crew, Kids, Marlboro Man and her.  i was in full on stalker mode again and i couldn't believe that meeting some gal from OK that writes a blog would make me feel so silly! 

anyway....she's starting her book tour today in Tulsa and then she's headed to The Full Circle Bookstore in OKC on Thursday at 6:30 to sign her brand new cookbooks.

i'll be there with Laini (my sister-n-law's sister-n-law).  i told her about PW and she too has the need to get a cookbook with a signature.  we are going to meet for dinner and plan the best way to stalk Ree at her book signing.

i will let you know how it goes.  in the meantime, go check out her website.

success and failures

remember i said i was gonna get serious and get in shape?

i said it.

i meant it.

i have lost 6 lbs in one week.

.....but now i am sick and i want brownies. 

i mean it.

i want them so very bad and i think i am gonna be bad.

i need soup but i think i am making brownies.

i thought that if i blogged about it i may see the light and resist.

nope.

going to make brownies...its just one of those days!!

pics and recipe to follow!

recipe update........Duncan Hines Chewy Brownies....why mess with a tried and true recipe!!!
picture.......a little blurry....all the sugar had my lil girl amped up......

make this today!

it has rained all weekend long.  i thank the Lord that it has rained all weekend long.  we need rain.  we need lots of rain and we are thankful for every drop.  i like rain.  i like to be indoors with the windows open so that i can hear the sweet sound of rain and smell the musty smell of the earth being drenched by rain.

i did lots of laundry this weekend and i made my NEW favorite chili.

a few weeks back i was at the grocery store, after work, and i was starving to death.  i bought enough food to feed two families for two weeks.  it took me forever to get out of there and when i realized i wasn't going to have much time to cook dinner (is it Dinner or Supper?)  i ran down the isle to grab some taco seasoning so that i could throw together some tacos.  as i grabbed for the seasoning i noticed a package i had never seen.  it was this package........

McCormick's White Chicken Chili Mix

it's my new favorite packaged dinner helper!  it's delcious!  i cant believe i waited so long to try this recipe!  it has a definite mexican flavor, so i went with the package suggestion and added cilantro and for white beans i used Garbonza beans.  i added one can of corn, fresh garlic, salt and pepper.   i garnished with avacado slices and grated cheedar cheese. 

next time i may throw in a can of blackbeans.

serve it with Jiffy cornbread.  try it today.  serve it at a party or take a big pot of this to work to get on the good side of your boss and those pesky co-wokers!!  shhhhh.......don't tell them you cheated..........just a little.

blackberry pickin party!

MY MY..........Blackberry Pie!!

last month i held my first Blackberry Pickin Party.  it was a fun way to spend a HOT August, Monday evening!!  we met up at the house and had a some yummy appetizers and some refreshing wine....all in the name of preperation (for the squelching heat, humidity and swarming bugs) !!  we had lots of yummy food but there was one appetizer that was simply delicious!!  i feel it is my duty as a fellow American to pass this recipe on so that everyone in the world can be happy!

Pepperoni Pizza Dip

2 8oz pkg. cream cheese
1 12oz pkg. sliced Pepperoni (chopped fine)
1 1/2 cup grated Mozarella Cheese
1/4 cup Mayo
3/4 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
garlic
salt
pepper
jalepeno pepper chopped (optional)
chopped black olives (optional)

*mix everything together and place in a shallow pan.  cover with foil.  bake 30 mins at 350 degrees.  uncover and sprinkle with dried oregano and bake until lightly browned on top.  serve with crackers and/or celery sticks.

delicious.....take this to your next party or eat the whole thing by yourself with a spoon.

ok...back to the blackberry picking.  next year i will send out a dress code in the invitation.  it will include jeans, long sleeve shirt, and boots.  it will not include long beautiful skirts or high heel boots!  neither of those worked too well in the tangled thorns of our blackberry patch.

we had lots of fun.  everyone picked enough berries to make a pie.  my pie.  my, MY MY.....Blackberry Pie!  (SEE PICTURE ABOVE) i am not sure how many did make my pie, but here is the recipe in the event you find yourself with some blackberies and a "hankerin" for yummo delicious pie!!


My My.........Blackberry Pie

3 cups blackberries
2 cups sugar
3 tbs. corn starch
1/2 stick of butter
2 pre-made  8" pie crusts (bought or homemade)
lemon juice (fresh squeezed from 1/2 a lemon)
sprinke of cinniamon

sugar, cinnamon , and cornstarch.  sprinkle over berries, squeeze lemon and mix well.  let sit.  place one crust in 8" pie pan and add fruit mixture.  cut the stick of butter into little pads and place all around pie.  sprinkle with a tiny bit more cinnamon.  place second crust over the top.  pinch edges and cut a pattern into the top of the pie for venting. lightly brush the crust with water and sprinkle sugar on the crust.  cover with foil. bake 45 mins at 350 and remove foil.  bake until golden brown and fruit is bubbling.

mmm, mmm good!