Double-Double Week!

It's Double-Double Week here at Bitterroot Mama. In honor of the double-double burger (2 patties and 2 slices of cheese on a bun) at the iconic In-N-Out restaurant back home, I am doubling my blogging efforts this week. For this week only, enjoy 2 wonderful book reviews on Tuesday, 2 how-to/help me tips on Wednesday, 2 contemplations on Thursday (one on gardening), and 2 great recipes (one cheeseburger-related) on Friday. I hope it brings as much joy to you as the restaurant does to me. Until tomorrow, tata!

P.S. The guy in the picture is my dad (aka the Gentleman Gardener).

Frosted Brownies

I'm trying to limit our dessert consumption to the weekends, but this frosted brownie recipe from Allrecipes.com made such a large batch, I still have half a pan left (and that was after sharing some with family). It makes a dense, cake-like brownie with a sweet, ganache-ish frosting. Beware: they are very rich! But really good. They would do well at a bake sale. Or for a weekend dessert.

The Checklist Manifesto Review

Perhaps you've seen advertisements for The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande. That's what led me to the book, anyway. My husband recently called me a "living, breathing to-do list," so I thought that this book was right up my alley.

The book is actually not about how to create a dynamo everyday to-do list. It's more about how to develop a checklist for complex situations involving life-or-death scenarios. For example, the author is a surgeon and worked with a team to create a checklist for the WHO to distribute to hospitals to improve surgery results around the world. Gawande also interviewed airplane pilots (notorious for their use of checklists), skyscraper builders, and financial analysts to see how checklists benefit these industries.

While my normal tasks are not complex enough to warrant the use of these types of checklists, I did think that the concept was simple, but profound. After implementing the checklists at hospitals, the WHO noted a reduction in complications and patient deaths! I liked that the checklists increase communication. You'd be amazed how many surgery teams don't even know each other's names. You'd also be amazed at the things that surgeons (and others) forget when they rely solely on their memory. I recommend that anyone who performs complicated tasks read this book and develop checklists.

First thing on my checklist:

• Forgive my husband for such a thoughtless accusation!

Grandma's Zesty Snack Mix

Some of you may not think that Grandma and zesty belong in the same sentence, much less the same blog title. But for my grandma, it's totally appropriate. She's a spunky kind of gal, who wears Airwalks with skulls and crossbones. (She thought they were turtles.) She also makes a huge batch of this snack mix before Christmas. I was able to make it this year before I was bedridden with food poisoning (not from snack mix though). If you're not feeding a crowd, half the recipe. Store it in large, airtight containers or give everyone their own plastic zipping bags. This will reduce arguments.

Zesty Snack Mix

(Yields 12 quarts)

In a large bowl (or in 2 big, greased aluminum baking pans), mix:
11 c. Cheerios
8 c. Chex (rice, corn, wheat, or a mix)
6 c. Shredded Wheat (or more Chex)
10 oz. Fritos
8 oz. salted peanuts
8 oz. pretzels
7 oz. sesame snack sticks*
7 oz. shoestring potato sticks
In a saucepan over low heat, melt 1 pound butter.
Add:
3 Tbsp. garlic powder
2 Tbsp. onion powder
2 Tbsp. hot pepper sauce
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. garlic salt
Stir until dissolved. Pour over the cereal mixture and stir to coat. Place in large, greased roasting pans. Bake, uncovered, at 250° for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

*These are getting harder to find. Store-bought breadsticks are a nice substitute.

Copious Amounts of Sugar

This is how much sugar is in each can of non-diet soda you drink.

Just kidding! It's my reward for vacuuming the floor

and leaving my 18-month-old unattended for 3 minutes.

And it's why I'm finally going to transform my house

into a maximum lockdown facility.

Thank goodness I took that trip to Alcatraz a few years back.

Desk Planner Giveaway Winner!

And the winner of the oh-so-cute Sandra Boynton desk planner is ElleBee. I'll send you an email soon to get your address. Thanks to all who entered!

Southern Plate Cookbook Review

After doing a little math in my head (and counting on my fingers), I realized that I've spent more time in the South than any other region during my life. I lived in the suburbs outside of Atlanta from 2 weeks old until I turned 11, then returned for 3 years of college in Tennessee and one year of teaching in Virginia.

That means I was raised on good Southern cooking (and explains my undying love for Chick-fil-A and sweet tea and not the avocados of California). In my case, my preferences for food formed while I lived in the South. That's why I was excited to see Christy Jordan's Southern Plate at our library. She started a website in 2008 with the same name, southernplate.com, that's filled with many of the same Southern recipes and folksy stories.

I liked that the cookbook had a wide array of Southern food, including BBQ sauces, coleslaw, hoecake, corn chowder, caramel corn, and sweet tea. (The secret to keeping tea sweet is to pour the hot water into a pitcher filled with the sugar and some cool water. If you pour hot water right on the sugar, it scorches it and turns the tea bitter.) The recipes make normal-people food created from easy-to-purchase supplies that deliver true comfort. Jordan also includes memories from her childhood in Alabama and a somewhat sugar-coated view of the South.

I was disappointed that she used shortening so much, since I'm trying to cut that completely out of our diet. Her cake recipes are also typically doctored cake mixes. Overall, I enjoyed the cookbook and will be trying out lots of the recipes in the future. If you're looking for some easy southern recipes, this would be a good bet.

Ailey II Rocked!

A full house of rain-soaked Bitterrooters enjoyed a phenomenal performance from the Ailey II group last night. If you ever have the opportunity to see anything by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, I highly recommend attending. The dancers put on a professional show that got me in the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr, Day. Even in the slower pieces, the energy of the dancers was contagious. I wanted to get up and start dancing in the aisles. (After the encore, one lady did.) I was so into the performance that I didn't want it to end. But it did. :(

Speaking of ending, don't forget to enter my day planner giveaway by midnight tonight!

Rosemary Pork Chops

Rosemary Pork Chops
(from an Autumn Gooseberry Patch cookbook)
Serves 4

Combine:
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. water
3 Tbsp. brown sugar, packed
1 Tbsp. dried rosemary
in a large plastic zipping bag.
Add 4 boneless pork chops to the bag and coat well. Marinate for 3 hours. [If not using right away, freeze the chops and marinade right in the bag. To use, thaw in the refrigerator.] Remove chops from marinade and discard the marinade. Put pork chops in a 11" x 7" baking pan and bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30-35 minutes, until the juices run clear or a meat thermometer tells you they're done.

Desk Planner Giveaway

I love Sandra Boynton. She's incredibly hilarious and comes up with the cutest characters. I asked for her wall calendar this year, and it came with this spiffy Mom's Family Desk Planner, which I don't really need. See, I have these massive to-do lists that I print from the computer. But, I would love to give the planner away to one of my readers!




I know it says it's for Mom, but anyone can use it with pride.



Here is a sample week. There's a column for mom's activities, and a column for the rest of the family.
Oh, and a clever cartoon.



And of course, there's room for all kinds of notes, including the musical kinds.

You ready? You want it? Just leave a comment saying how you organize your family's activities. Also, please leave your email if I don't know you well so I can contact you to get your mailing address. One entry allowed per person. Contest ends Monday, January 17 at 11:59 p.m. MST. Announcement of winner will be Wednesday, January 19.

Finding out how others are organized and giving away a planner Works for Me!

[Disclosure: I have no ties to Sandra Boynton or her marketing people. I just have this nice, new planner I wanted to give away to someone who can use it.]

2010 Final Book Count: 111



My religion section continues to
grow due to my participation
in blogging for books programs.

My final tally of books I read in entirety in 2010: 111. I didn't quite make my goal of 120 books, but 111 isn't a shabby number. It's a book about every 3 days, which for some reason, ended up doable even with a baby. My goal this year is to read fewer books!

Here are a few of my favorites from 2010 and links to my original reviews:
Biography/Memoir: Girl Meets God by Lauren Winner
Christian Living: Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
Homemaking: Queen of the Castle by Lynn Bowen Walker
Cookbook: Family Feasts for $75 a Week by Mary Owlhaven
Food/Health: In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
Fiction: My Antonia by Willa Cather

What was the best book you read in 2010? What are you looking forward to reading this year?

The Dancing Bug

Let's just say that western Montana isn't known as being a hub of fine culture. It's certainly got culture, including some very fine rodeos, but it tends to be light on classical musical performances, ballet dancing, theatre, etc. That said, the Bitterroot Performing Arts Council has been doing a great job of bringing in top-notch performers to our very own little Hamilton. I've never been to a performance, but I want to see...
Ailey II this coming Sunday. We watched a video from the library about the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre about a year ago. My husband doesn't really like all that foo-foo classical or modern dancing, but he had to admit that the dancing in this movie rocked. To be able to see that on stage would be worth spending that Christmas money I got, or every last penny of our Sweet Date Moolah, which I didn't find until tonight.

Speaking of not finding things, my daughter hid my cell phone in an unused cabinet sometime on Sunday, which I only discovered after we searched the whole house for an hour, and took apart a garbage bag full of trash that was already outside in the bin because we thought she may have thrown it away. We couldn't call it because my husband had turned it off, before giving it back to the baby as a toy.

So, have any of you ever gone to the BPAC performances or seen Alvin Ailey anywhere? Is anyone planning on seeing the show this coming weekend? Anyone else have a secret stash of Sweet Date Moolah?

Oliebollen

Nothing says "Happy New Year" like watching my mother-in-law frying oliebollen for hours. Unless, I'm frying them instead.

My in-laws are Dutch and celebrate the new year by making this special fried bread dough that is rolled in sugar. They're kind of like funnel cakes. Even wikipedia has a little article about it.

I helped out so my mother-in-law could take pictures outside and I finally got the recipe (and to borrow her Paula Deen apron). I can't make it at home because I don't have a deep fryer (and probably won't). My husband heard I was helping to fry the dough. His response: "Good. I want her to learn how to make it." 

Oliebollen

(serves a lot of hungry Dutch people)

3 1/2 c. warm milk (110° - 115°F)

7 c. all-purpose flour

5 eggs, beaten

1/2 c. sugar

1 pkg. active dry yeast

2 tsp. salt

raisins, opt.

cut apples, opt.

sugar, cinnamon sugar, or powdered sugar for rolling

In a large bowl add all ingredients from milk to salt and beat well. Add the raisins or apples last. (This year, she divided the dough into three medium bowls to have raisin, apple, and a plain version.) Cover and let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled, 2 1/2 hours or so. Drop small spoons full of dough in a deep fryer with canola oil. (Her heat was around 340°.) Make sure they are golden brown before removing. When cool enough to touch, roll in your desired sugar coating. [If you don't have a lot of Dutch people around, you may want to halve the recipe.]


Raisin and apple doughs.
The raisins plump up when they're fried.

Sabbath by Dan Allender

Part of The Ancient Practices Series, Dan Allender's Sabbath explores how he celebrates the day and some broad guidelines for keeping it. He refutes the normal idea of a boring Sabbath and asserts that it's a day to play and delight in the Lord, to practice the kingdom of heaven here and now. He states that we should use it to pursue peace, abundance, and joy.



I have been studying the Sabbath and looking for ways to celebrate it with my family without becoming legalistic, so I was excited to receive this book. Unfortunately, it went in the opposite direction, as I found his ideas both idealistic and vague. The "lyrical" style was sometimes beautiful and profound. Other times I was frustrated because I just wanted to read one clear sentence. He does have many good thoughts about the Sabbath and obviously has a heart for the day, but the style and format were difficult to get past and it was not the historically-rich, authoritative word on the Sabbath I expected. (PG, wishy-washy recommended)


[I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson Publishing in exchange for an honest review.]

Radical by David Platt

David Platt thinks something's missing in the American dream, namely a passion for the spiritually lost and the poor. His bestselling book Radical uncovers some serious flaws in today's church culture and challenges the church to life-altering change, even when it could cost our money, security, and very lives. Instead of leaving Jesus' call to make disciples to church programs, Platt encourages individuals to live out the Great Commission both in America and around the world.


This is the best book on Christian living that I have read. Not only does he address the theological reasons for spreading the gospel, but he suggests practical ways to live out this God-life, starting with a year-long challenge. Other books pale in comparison to the gravity of the call that he outlines here. It'll make you want to stop reading and start doing. If you read nothing else this year, read this book.

[I received a complimentary copy of this book from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review.]

12 Days of Christmas Vacation

My jaunt to (sometimes) sunny Southern California is over. It's back to sub-zero temperatures and a nice, icy covering of snow. I had a lovely visit with my family. Here are a few highlights.

During the 12 days of Christmas vacation, my family gave to me:



Assorted fish



 12 garibaldi (at the John Birch aquarium)

11 filled stockings

10 episodes of retching

9 people in the same house
8 Cloud 9s (chocolate-coconut candies which Grandma already ate)


My sister with her
awful avocado gift

7 remote-controlled helicopters

6 awful gag gifts (Mine was a red potato wrapped in aluminum foil. Thanks, Dad!)

5 go kart racers

4 Boche ball players

3 trips to the ER (don't worry, everyone's OK now)

2 adorable cousins

and a homemade cheeseball with crackers.