Inspiration, Under the Bed

A recycled blog is just the thing for a... gulp... Tuesday! First published at One Generation To Another, February 12, 2008.

I’m not a fan of Tuesdays…never have been…never will be. To me Tuesdays are like having something wedged between two teeth. It serves no purpose and is exceedingly annoying. Tuesdays are too far away from the coming weekend to start getting excited, and they’re too far removed from the past weekend to provide comfort. The effects of the “weekend massage” (you know, the restful, change of pace from the work week feeling you get) have worn off and you can feel your muscles tensing. Let’s just say I lack motivation on Tuesdays and no where is that more apparent than when I think about cooking dinner. Frankly, I think the world should go out to dinner on Tuesdays…let someone else worry about this often thankless mundane chore! (BTW…this is usually the only day of the week when you’ll hear me make a comment like that. For the most part I thoroughly enjoy cooking!) But Tuesdays…well, they suck the life right out of me. Even pleasurable tasks can be overwhelming.

Having said all that, let’s make the assumption that logistically speaking, not everyone can go out to dinner on Tuesdays…think of the lines…think of the shortages of chicken fajitas! Then, accept the fact that people still need to eat whether you feel like cooking or not and chances are your family is in the same Tuesday funk you’re in, and could benefit from a plate of comfort food. Let’s also assume you only order pizza on Friday nights…not sure if it’s a local or national ordinance; at the very least I consider it a moral imperative! So, the enigma…how do you get a soothing meal prepared for your family with little effort? Answer…fast foods. I don’t mean burgers ‘n fries from the golden arches, but rather foods that don’t take long to prepare, but are satisfying and become “welcomed friends” to the entire family. These are the foods you can make every week and no one complains!

I think that through divine intervention or sheer happenstance, everyone stumbles upon that one meal they can make with their eyes closed, yet appreciated by the whole family. THESE RECIPES ARE WORTH THEIR WEIGHT IN GOLD! The meals won’t win any prizes for the most creative use of an artichoke or couscous, and they certainly won’t impress anyone with a sophisticated palate, BUT, for the average family, they are delicious, satisfying and comforting. (Okay, they are not JUST Tuesday meals…good is good anytime…but they are life savers when you’re lacking drive and inspiration.)

My mom was, actually still is, a wonderful cook. Her recipes ranged from the painfully simple…like her tuna variation of S.O.S. (A colorful military abbreviation for Sh*t On a Shingle…or for the civilian, chipped beef on toast!) to elaborate gourmet meals. (See my Sweater Flambe blog for her wonderful Beef Bourguignonne recipe.) But, with the exception of Saturday nights, when dinner was usually sandwiches and/or canned soup, she made a warm meal every night. Some dishes took her all day to prepare…like her killer spaghetti sauce…to dinners with prep times of less than half an hour. (BTW…not everyone’s idea of “easy” is the same. But that doesn’t really matter, does it? We’re talking about surviving Tuesdays…so if it works for you and easy means heating up a pot pie…great!) One of my favorite “quick” recipes Mom made was Easy Lasagna. She could throw it together at any time during the day, and pop it in the oven half an hour before dinner. She found the recipe in a magazine around 1956 and it’s been a favorite with our family since then!

MOM’S EASY LASAGNA

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 cans (8 ounces each) tomato sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 cups uncooked medium noodles
1 cup cream style cottage cheese
1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup shredded parmesan or mozzarella cheese

Directions

In a heavy skillet, brown ground beef along with chopped onions. Stir in the tomato sauce, sugar, salt, garlic salt and pepper. Remove from heat. Meanwhile, cook the noodles. Drain. Combine cottage cheese, cream cheese, and sour cream. Spread half the noodles in an 11 x 7 x 1 1/2" baking dish. Top with a little meat sauce, cover with cheese mixture. Add remaining noodles and remaining meat sauce. Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serves 6.

I stumbled upon my “golden recipe” early in my married life. It came from a Betty Crocker cookbook. It was quick, easy and enjoyed by everyone in the family. Like all easy recipes, if time permits, you can muck about with them to enhance them…I know my daughter has made some changes to this “basic” recipe…but left as is, they stand on their own. While my kids were growing up, we usually had this dinner once a week. I never heard, “Oh no, not again!” I would say that makes it rather priceless!

HAMBURGER STROGANOFF

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup butter or margarine
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic salt or 1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 can (8 ounces) mushroom stems and pieces, drained
1 can (10 1/2 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
2 cups hot cooked noodles
Snipped parsley (or dried)

Directions

In large skillet, cook and stir ground beef and onion in butter until onion is tender. Stir in flour, salt, garlic salt, pepper and mushrooms; cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Stir in soup; simmer uncovered 10 minutes. Stir in sour cream; heat through. Serve over noodles. Sprinkle with snipped parsley. Serves 4 - 6.

So, there you have it…my answer to Tuesdays! No, I have no secret formula for abolishing Tuesdays altogether, not sure I’d want that responsibility anyway. Think of the global cost of switching over to a 6 day a week calendar, and I’m sure there would be some serious Biblical implications, too! (Wonder what God actually created on that first Tuesday. I’m guessing it was something simple!) Anyway…Tuesdays are here to stay! So, hunker in, batten down the hatches, circle the wagons, and get ready to take on 52 Tuesdays a year. A tried and true recipe just might make them a little more palatable! (BTW…As Tim was proofing this his comment was, “I thought everyone had trouble with Wednesdays. That’s why they’re referred to as “The hump.” My reply, “One man’s Tuesday is another man’s Wednesday!” Personally, the optimist in me feels good about Wednesdays…they have a round, cheery feeling…and it is permissible, without being delusional, to start thinking about the weekend. But, hey, it doesn’t matter if our challenging day is a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, they’re weekly, and survival is the key!)

How do you “culinaryly” cope with Tuesdays? Do you have a “golden” recipe you'd like to share? Let’s face it, some weeks feel like every night is Tuesday! Best to be prepared with a collection of “simple” meals! Just one more little note on Tuesdays…I seldom make enough food for one meal. Anything that freezes well, I double. So, when even “Easy Lasagna” seems too draining on a Tuesday, just defrost a meal, and, well, everyone is feed, Easy Peasy!

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1

I think God can relate to crafters. I think he can understand our desire to create something beautiful and useful. I think he can also relate to our tendency to jump from craft to craft... a time to knit, a time to sew, a time to cross stitch, a time to macrame, a time to stain glass, a time to paint, a time to needle felt, a time to sketch... you get the idea. Having lived half a century, most of which I've been crafting, I can look back fondly on all the different crafts I've dabbled in, and revel at the list of things I've yet to try. (I have a weaving loom showing up next week... can't wait!) 

Sure, there are some crafts that have been my mainstay... might call them my "meat and potatoes" crafts... I've always knit and sewn without interruption. But there were some crafts I was so totally immersed in, I can't believe I no longer do them. Like cross stitching. I'm not sure when I stopped making samplers and bookmarks. I know it was not a conscience decision to stop cross stitching, but I have. Every once in a while I go through my case of cross stitching supplies, look at the books and the unfinished projects, and think I should get back to it, but I haven't... and truth be told... not sure that I ever will. (I will point out I'm still not ready to pack off the supplies and give them away... you never know!)

Another one of those bygone crafts is basket weaving. There was a time when I constantly had a basket project going. My SIL Jennifer, was also enamored with weaving... she even went so far as to make enough baskets that she was selling them at street fairs... but over time, we both moved on. Michelle and my niece, Bailey, remember us basket weaving... even made a few projects, but they were too young to tackle the craft in earnest. After a fair amount of prodding, Jennifer and I decided to revisit basket weaving.

So, yesterday, we headed over to Jennifer's, with plans to basket weave. She had pulled out all the old supplies... she had become the caretaker of basket weaving paraphernalia... and the kitchen was littered with reeds and buckets, books and tools. Jennifer and I were both engrossed in flipping through our old books, oohing and aahing over the patterns we had made, and those we had not gotten to yet. 

I was trying to decide which basket I would like to make, when Jennifer went to the sink, and started filling a bucket with warm water, to dump into the big barrel that the reed would soak it. THEN, it came to me in a flash why I quit basket weaving... it is a messy, wet, time consuming, wet, skin cracking, wet craft. Did I mention you get wet while basket weaving... at least the way I basket weave! I get cold easily. The thought of working with wet reed held no appeal to me. And, my hands get so dried out in the winter, to the point of cracking, the thought of working with the reed sounded downright painful! I decided I was content to sit around the table, offering advice when advising was called for, drink my coffee, and flip through the books. I will point out, Jennifer made the same decision.

So, Jennifer and I sat at the table, chatting and laughing, while Michelle and Bailey worked on baskets. My mom even stopped by for a cup of coffee and conversation. We all had a great time. I felt like we were handing off the torch. Our time to basket weave was behind us (okay... I'm not saying I'll NEVER basket weave again, but if I do, it will be outside, in 78 degree weather!) and it was now time for our daughters to have a go at it. And, I couldn't help think... a time to teach, a time to learn.   
     

Just about everyone I know knits. If they didn't know how to before meeting me, chances are I'll be teaching them. Although I am a multi-crafter, knitting is often my "go to" craft I use for television watching, chatting with friends, or waiting in doctors' offices. It's neat, easy to pack up, and if you don't have a complex pattern, easy to do while you're doing something else. 

Over the holidays many evenings were spent around an open fire, where you could hear lively conversations and the clicking of knitting needles. On one such evening, Michelle found herself without a knitting project. She disappeared into my attic closet, and she returned with a basket full of yarn remnants and a pair of knitting needles. She informed me that this was now the Community Knitting Basket. She cast on 36 stitches, and started a scarf. She had gotten the idea from the book Weekend Knitting. Now, any guest in our house that finds herself without a knitting project, will be invited to pick up the scarf and continue knitting. It doesn't matter whether you're an experienced knitter, adding fancy stitches, or a beginner, turning out row after row of garter stitch, all knitters are welcome. And, if you don't know how to knit, we'll gladly show you!

Weekend Knitting suggested making a narrow ribbon, which could be used as a "memory ribbon" of sorts, reminding us of past projects and lovely friends. We liked that idea, but decided instead to make scarves. Then, next winter, we will donate our scarves of many colors and talents to a local shelter. I'm loving this idea!

EDIT: I'm thinking it might be fun to pack a Community Knitting Bag when I go somewhere that I know there will be a long wait... like a surgery waiting room. You can't imagine how many people have said to me, "Wish I thought to bring some knitting." Then, I could smile and ask if they'd like to add a bit to our community scarf!

When my youngest was in first grade, I converted our walk-out into a 2 room school house. For the next 10 years I ran a preschool program from our home offering children, and my family, "the best of both worlds". I'll talk more about my preschool, aptly named "Wee Care" at another time. But for today, I want to draw everybody's attention to the ceiling in the school.  

Although rather hard to discern in this picture, each fall we dipped the children's hands in paint and pressed their hand prints on the ceiling. How, you might ask. Without going into detail, think about trying to put pajamas on a ferret! Anyway, each year, each student left his or her mark on our ceiling, not only recording their growth over 3 years, but beautifully reminding me of all the little lives I had come in contact with. When I finally moved out of the house, it was very hard saying goodbye to the ceiling, especially knowing that the next owners would probably promptly paint over it.

Travel forward in time. When I moved in with Tim, one of the very first things I did was to turn the basement into a playroom. (This was accomplished when Michelle was pregnant with our first grandchild.) I had so much enjoyed my preschoolers' hand prints that I knew it was imperative that I found a way to record my grandchildren's. Tim and I came up with a wonderful idea... which I'll share next time!

We would like to wish everyone the Merriest Christmas! We are taking the Holidays off to be with family and friends. We will be back after the Holidays ready to share a New Year of crafty goodness! 

Joy and Peace of the Season!

Fondly,
Kimara and Michelle 

"Glory to the New Born King!"