Havoc or Haven: Monthly Poetry Group

 

 

 

 

Last Friday of the month is for Monthly Poetry Group to rhyme.

Diane, Mimi, and I take turns,

"Invisible for One Day," the theme this time.

 

As usual, today I'll try,

a poem to write . . . or fudge.

Whether I'm successful or not,

you get to be the judge.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Havoc or Haven

If you were invisible

for just one day,

what would you do?

Wreak havoc? Play?

 

Dance like no one's looking,

twirl, swing and sway?

Maybe jump onstage,

at the local ballet?

 

In your neighbor's garden, 

make yourself a bouquet?  

Eavesdrop on your kids,

see what they really say?

Go to the pharmacy,

make a condoms window display?
Or take to their bathroom, 

and get rid of that grey?

Visit a restaurant,

switch keys on the valet?

Then sneak inside, 

and eat at their buffet?

 

Ricotta Bread

 

 

If I were invisible

for just one day,

I'd pick a comfortable,

cozy place to lay,

disappear into a book,

imagination, take me away.

Sometimes peace and quiet,

is much more than okay.

 

 

Before you go, stop by these blogs for more poetry:

 

On the Border

Messymimi's Meanderings

 

Ricotta Bread

                                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 (1#) frozen bread dough loaf

1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

1 TBSP parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella

3 TBSP butter

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Directions:
*Grease a piece of plastic wrap, wrap the frozen dough in it and refrigerate for 6 hours (I do this overnight).

*Defrost the spinach, squeeze as much of the liquid out of it as possible, and refrigerate.

*Once the dough is defrosted, flour a rolling area and grease a 9 X 5 loaf pan.

*Roll the dough out to about a 9 X 16 rectangle.

*Mix the spinach, ricotta, parmesan, salt, pepper, and mozzarella. Carefully spread onto the dough. Using the long side, roll the dough up into a long tube, then cut into 18 slices.

*Place the slices into the bottom of the loaf pan. Gently press down.

*Melt the butter and mix in the garlic powder. Using a pastry brush, brush half of the butter mixture onto the dough in the pan.
*Gently flatten the remaining dough slices, then place into the pan and brush with the remaining butter mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 4 hours to rise.

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake the bread for 30 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edges to remove from the pan, slice and serve.

 

Not So Mysterious

 

 

I've written the beginning of my first mystery novel. 

 

Before you get too excited for me though, perhaps I should explain that it's only the first 16 words. And I wrote them years ago.

 

I even made a graphic to go along with the it. Not that, of course, novels have graphics in them {{sigh}}. 

Two things come into play here, both of which I've talked about many times on this blog before. One of them, I greatly enjoy. The other? Not so much.

I love mysteries. I always have. From TV shows to movies to books, mystery is my thing. Suspense, thrillers, intrigue, whodunits, especially those with a twist ending. I love trying to figure it all out, and am equally happy when I do (unless it's too overly obvious), and when they take me totally by surprise.

I've mentioned, many times on here, both my love of mysteries, and my favorite writers. I even wrote a blog post called From A to Y, A Tribute, about how much I'd miss Kinsey Milhone after Sue Grafton died. I wrote a very (very) short mystery, not a whodunit but a who-is-she blog post called Speculation, which became interactive. So much fun to see all the guesses in the comments of that post. 

 

I even, on one rare occasion, wrote a book review, despite the fact that we all knew the whodunit of that story: Book Review, The Mueller Report.

The spoiler that comes into play here, and the reason I may have to abandon my masterpiece permanently (good thing I've only got 16 words . . . well, and a useless graphic . . . invested), is something else I've written about here on the blog, aging. There was a birthday post called Bah Humbug, and a seniors comparison when my son was a senior in high school and I was getting AARP solicitations. And that was years ago. 

 

Maybe you can see some of what I'm talking about in this FB decade challenge I participated in a few years ago.

 

 

 

Or maybe not . . .  

Truth is, aging has added a lot to my life. I now have some new color in my hair (and it's free), music (OK, creaks) coming from my knees, contacts, glasses, AND readers (in multiple rooms . . . and my purse, no less), you know, all that good stuff. 

It's taken a lot too. Not my love of reading, or the joy I get from baking (phew). But it has kinda taken the fun out of the whole who-done-it mystery thing.

 

 

Raspberry Speculoos Cookies

 

The collision of these two formerly unrelated pieces of my life now has me, instead of writing mysteries, living them. Figuring out who done it in my everyday life? Not so much fun.

For instance (and SPOILER ALERT: since they're certainly not going to be the topic of any book I may write, I'm giving away the endings). You've been warned . . .

 

Who kept the envelope and shredded the bill?

     It was me.

 

Who didn't save the post before leaving the site?

     It was me.

 

Who put the pick-up pizza order in the cart but never placed the order?

     It was me.

 

Who's almost sure she put all of the cake ingredients in the mixer?
     It was me.

Who started preparing a family celebration meal and realized she bought everything but the lasagna noodles?

     It was me.

Who put the sponge in the refrigerator?
     It was me.

 

Who charged her laptop when it was her cell phone that was dying?

     It was me.

Who baked the Summer Citrus Cake, then went to the cook out without it?

     It was me.

Who drove to the gynecologist's office for an appointment with the opthamologist?

     You know who.

As I said, I'm still an avid reader, I'll never stop (contacts, glasses and/or readers notwithstanding). But there's a pretty good chance I'm going to need to find a new genre to delve into. 

 

And I'm thinking, just in case what I'm reading continues to spill over in my life, I'd best not go with horror.

Raspberry Speculoos Cookies       

                                                                              ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 stick butter, room temperature

1/2 stick margarine, room temperature

1/3 cup speculoos (cookie butter)

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup raspberries, quartered

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Directions (makes about 32 cookies):
*Preheat oven to 357 degrees. Cover baking sheets with parchment paper.

*Beat the butter, margarine, cookie butter, and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg. Slowly and carefully beat in the flour, baking soda, and salt.

*Mix in the raspberries and white chocolate chips.

*Roll the dough into balls, about 3/4 in round. With wet hands, fatten the cookies slightly. Bake for 14 minutes, until they are set and the bottoms are brown.

*Cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before removing to cool completely.

Entertainment Comfort Zone: Secret Subject Swap

 

 

Welcome to  a Secret Subject Swap. This month 5 brave bloggers picked a secret subject for someone else and were assigned a secret subject to interpret in their own style. Today we are all simultaneously divulging our topics and submitting our posts. Read through mine and at the bottom you’ll find links to all of today’s other Secret Subject participants.

 

 

My subject is: Do you like rereading books or watching shows/films over and over or are you usually a one and done kind of person? Why or why not?
It was submitted by: Jenniy of Climaxed.

I'm mostly a one and done kind of girl. Both because of my genre of choice, and because of my motivation. Books, movies, and TV shows are all lumped under one umbrella, entertainment. And I take that title very seriously, I want to be entertained. I want light, don't really want to be provoked, don't want emotional turmoil. It's an escape for me and I want to enjoy, be amused.   

 

I've talked many times about loving mysteries (including my recent post, It's a Mystery). It's fun to try to figure out whodunit. And I don't read any of those supernatural mysteries, having an invisible all-knowing partner giving the protagonist answers is nothing short of cheating in my book (pun intended). So I watch and read a lot of mysteries and true crime shows, which don't really lend themselves to a second look. After all, if the fun is in figuring out the ending, knowing how it ends sort of takes away all the mystery (this pun also intended), n'est-ce pas?

My other love is, and always has been, dance, specifically ballet, but that doesn't really lend itself to reading . . .

 

In keeping with my goal of escapism, comedy is something else I'm drawn to. Comedic mysteries (Janet Evanovich, Carl Hiaasen) are among my favorites, they're light and fun and funny and I still get to guess the ending. Although I'll watch and read other genres, mystery is overwhelmingly my go-to.

 

I think because of my aversion to movies requiring emotional investment, I limit myself, and I miss out. There are movies I know I should open myself up to, ones everyone's seen and thinks are among the best, but I just can't because of the subject matter. If I have a pit of the stomach reaction to the topic, I just can't force myself to engage. The Shawshank Redemption, Schindler's List, never saw them. And there are also movies that I don't have that harsh reaction to, but that just don't particularly appeal to me. Many of these my older son has repeatedly encouraged me to watch and when I do, I've really enjoyed them (and my conversations with him afterwards). Wouldn't see them again, but am glad that I saw them once.

But not Saw. My older son has very esoteric tastes in both movies and books (and especially music, it's he who, years ago, turned me on to A Tribe Called Quest). He's open to anything and everything, which I respect immensely. His current favorite author is Phillip K. Dick, who wrote science fiction. His current favorite movie is Tumbbad, an Indian film. And a movie series he loves is Saw. I did make him a Billy the Puppet cake one Halloween, but I will not watch that movie. Although he continues to insist that I will watch it one day.

 

Just like with movies I am persuaded to see, I have the same experience when I step out of my book comfort zone. I read Philippa Gregory's British historical novel The Other Boleyn Girl and loved it, even read more of her books. 

 

I also fully admit, when discussing re-reading, that there are books that benefit from reading more than once, especially some of the classics. These are the peel-back-the-onion books that reveal more to you, both about the book and about yourself, when you read them at different times in your life. 

But, in general, nothing much changes in terms of my choices when I pick up my Kindle or turn on the TV, I'm usually looking for something new to get lost in.

That said, you know how, when you have a piece of Black Cherry Pie, and when you're done you know that it the spot? 

 

 

Black Cherry Pie 

(no bake)

For me, there are movies like that too. Ones that I've seen before that are like old friends, hit something inside me that is satisfying.

There's a social media game that goes around on a regular basis, it asks people to name their 10 all-time favorite movies that they watch over and over again. 

Here are mine (yes, I know how to count and yes, there are 11). Given all I've said, I bet some will surprise you, there are a few on here that require emotional investment, but I love them all the same. There are some I'd watch any time they're on, but others (I bet you can guess which ones) I admit I have to be in the mood for:

Dirty Dancing

Coyote Ugly 

Black Swan

The Sound of Music

Mary Poppins

The Wizard of Oz

Fried Green Tomatoes

Steel Magnolias

The Shining

Fargo

Seven

What are yours?

 

Here are links to all the sites now featuring Secret Subject Swap posts. Sit back, grab a cup, and check them all out. See you there:

Wandering Web Designer

Climaxed

What TF Sarah  

Part-time Working Hockey Mom

Black Cherry Pie (no bake)        

                                                             ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients: 

5 oz frozen pitted dark sweet cherries

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 TBSP brown sugar

4 TBSP butter, melted

1/2 cup cranberry juice

1 box (.3 oz) black cherry gelatin

6 oz cream cheese, room temperature

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup powdered sugar

Directions:
*Defrost the cherries and gently pat dry. Cut 6 of them in half and set aside for garnish. Coarsely chop the rest for the filling.

*Mix together the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter. Grease a 9 inch pie plate and press the crumbs into the bottom and partially up the sides. Refrigerate.

*In a pan or in the microwave, heat the cranberry juice until it just starts to boil. Whisk in the jello mix and set aside.

*Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and whip until stiff peaks hold.

*In a separate bowl, beat jello with the cream cheese until smooth. Mix in one cup of the cherries. refrigerate the rest for garnish.

*Remove about 1/3 cup of the whipped cream and refrigerate in a piping bag or plastic bag for garnish. Fold the rest of the whipped cream into the cream cheese and spread evenly into the prepared crust. Refrigerate for one hour, then garnish with the reserved whipped cream and cherries.

*Store, covered, in the refrigerator.

From A to Y, a Tribute

This is something new for me. I don't do tributes to people I don't know. Part of it is just simply because I don't know them. Famous people die all the time, many of whom through their words or their art or their politics have touched my life in a personal way. But I acknowledge that I only knew them through their public professional persona. There are those with a personal connection who are much more qualified to do them justice.

This instance is a little different. Author Sue Grafton recently died of cancer. I was saddened to hear it, not only because I have loved her books for 35 years, but because the way her daughter announced the news was so touching. 

    
Sue left her family too soon. And Sue's main character and alter ego Kinsey Millhone left my reading world all too soon. From "A is for Alibi" in 1982 through "Y is for Yesterday" published just a few months ago, I've followed Kinsey's life, both personal and professional. I've waited with anticipation the release of each new book, for the chance to jump back into Kinsey's world and follow her route to solving mystery after mystery.

There are other authors I view the same way as Sue, writers whose latest books I look forward to and enjoy every bit as much. Jonathan Kellerman, Janet Evanovich, Kathy Reichs, Harlan Coben, Sandra Brown . . . and how could I not love those mysteries where the chefs or bakers solve the crime and even share recipes in the book?

There have been losses before too, Philip R. Craig, who died in 2007 wrote mysteries based on Martha's Vineyard. I was invested in those characters as well, felt sad at the loss of that series of books too.

Taco Shrimp

Sue's daughter Jamie states that Sue "was adamant that her books would never be turned into movies or TV shows, and in that same vein, she would never allow a ghost writer to write in her name." Although I will miss these books, this character, and though I feel that this series ends abruptly, in an unsatisfactory, unsettling way, I also see the parallel. I hear that Sue had wanted to get that "Z" book written, had even named it "Z is for Zero." But Sue's life ended suddenly. And with her goes Kinsey. that is as it should be.

In a poignant end to her announcement Jamie says "Because of all of those things, and out of the deep abiding love and respect for our dear sweet Sue, as far as we in the family are concerned, the alphabet now ends at Y." Me too, Jamie, me too.

I didn't know Sue of course, but I feel as though I knew Kinsey. And I will miss her. 

When it comes to authors, I think that's a pretty great tribute.

Taco Shrimp       
                                    ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

3 TBSP taco seasoning
1 1/2 # large raw shrimp
2 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP butter
1 tsp minced garlic
4 - 6 tortillas
3 cups rice
1 lime
1 cup Pico de Gallo, my homemade recipe HERE
1 TBSP chopped cilantro
1 ripe avocado, sliced

Directions:
*Peel and devein shrimp, leaving the tail on. Pat dry, place in a bowl, sprinkle with the taco seasoning and mix well so all the shrimp is coated. Cover and refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours.
*Cook the rice.
*Heat the olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and the shrimp. Cook shrimp for about 2 minutes, turn over and cook the other side until the shrimp is fully cooked.
*Place a tortilla on each plate and divide the rice onto the center of each one. Add the shrimp, drizzle with lime juice, top with Pico de Gallo and sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with the avocado slices.

Read This

I love to read.  Escape seems to be a recurring theme in my chosen activities.  I can read two books a week.  Mysteries are a favorite not just for books but also movies and TV shows.  I grew up with Perry Mason, knew all the episodes by heart.  My close friend, Mark, actually called me with condolences when Raymond Burr died. 

picture posted with permission: http://www.funnysigns.net/

Reading allows us to fully focus on a story someone has taken the time to tell us,get lost in that story and stay as long as we like.  It requires us to be present, not like TV where you can be doing something else while watching.  I read to be entertained but I‘ll step out of my comfort zone if someone recommends a different genre.  Frequently I’ll be glad that I did, but I always return to my first love, mysteries.  Evanovich, Grafton, Coben, Brown, Kellerman, love them all.

The thing about this genre is that it’s engaging on another level.  The reader gets to take the information given, in the order it’s offered, and try to figure out who-done-it.  The author cunningly leads us down the wrong path, but that’s OK, we can change our minds as often as we want.  There’s nothing to lose, we’re engrossed in a story and trying to solve a puzzle.

I think my love for mysteries is why I’ve taken to baking.  A new recipe is not just any story, it’s a mystery.  I take the information given, in the order it’s offered and try to figure out who-done-it (or if-I-can-do-it).  I’m engaged and involved.  It can take a lot of twists and turns and sometimes I’ll go down a wrong path.  In the end, whether I’m satisfied with the results or I throw the recipe in the trash, the trip has served his purpose. 

There are all kinds of mysteries playing out in my home every day as well.  Who ate all the Oreos?  Mystery.  Why did I have to get the boys cell ph0nes, yet they never answer when I call?  Mystery.  Who left the garage door up all night long (resulting in the GPS being missing from Husband’s car)?  Mystery.  Why does the main floor bathroom never have any toilet paper?  Mystery.  Who changed the channel when I got up to get a drink?  Mystery.  With all this real life mystery it’s surprising I have time to read.


But the biggest mystery is this: one of my kids is in his last year of High School and the other is a Junior.  Like it or not, ready or not, this pivotal chapter is nearing its end.  When raising young adults, you can guess at where they’re going, but they can completely change direction without so much as signaling their turn.  With all the twists and turns, information and misinformation, open road and wrong paths, these authors have got the best of me.  I really haven’t a clue who-done-it.  I'm just hoping I don't get killed off in the last chapter. 

"Jr." and "Sr." Star cut-out Cookies

Cut-out Cookies
                                ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients, Cookie:                                                          

1 stick butter, softened                            
1 stick margarine, softened                      
1 cup sugar                                                 
1 egg                                                       

1 tsp vanilla                                                

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

Ingredients, Icing: 
3 cups powdered sugar 
3 Tbsp milk (may need more)
3 Tbsp corn syrup  
1 tsp of flavoring (almond, vanilla, or lemon)
food coloring  
 

Directions, Cookie:

*Cream the butter, margarine and sugar.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Mix in the flour and baking powder until it forms a dough.  Pour onto counter and knead a few times.

*Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour and a half (I have left overnight).

*When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cover baking sheet with parchment paper.

* Roll out the dough, half at a time, to desired thickness and cut with cookie cutters.

*Bake approx. 10 minutes.  Cool for 2 minutes on pan before removing to cool completely.

Directions, Icing:

*Mix all ingredients.  Add more milk, 1 tsp at a time until the icing reaches the consistency you need.

*Separate out and add food coloring.

*Dip, brush on, or pipe the icing onto your cookie.  Icing should be thinner for flooding the cookie, thicker for writing or doing more intricate decorating. 

*If decorating with one color on top of  another, let the first set before applying the next, or they’ll blend together.



Adapted from Rolled Sugar Cookies by glorioustreats.blogspot.com