Monday, March 29, 2010

Junk Food

I think this must come with the season, but it certainly is a bummer that junk-food season comes right before bathing suit season! This is the perfect time of year, between the rodeo and the scorching summer, when playing in the park & cookouts are best. Friday night I had every intention of cooking dinner, but truly lost track of time at work and got home too late to start cooking. We ended up walking to the neighborhood pizza shop and having my favorite pie, The Mona Lisa A-La-Lisa. Yum-O! It was the perfect way to start the weekend outside. On Saturday we went to a pool-side cookout to celebrate the birthday of one of our Doulos students. Phil also had his Burger Buddies event on Saturday. The women in our Sunday school class do the cookbook club, but the men have “Burger Buddies”. Yes this is a very unpopular group name that I find hilarious..check out the icon they put on their t-shirts; soooooo funny!
They test and rate all the famous burgers around Houston. Phil missed the first one because he was off shore, but he got to go this week to Lankford’s Grocery & Market. Not to be confused, this is not a grocery store, but a small hole-in-the-wall restaurant that was featured on Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives.” Phil got the famous burger featured on the show: a ½ pound burger with mac-n-cheese, jalapenos, a fried egg, cheese, bacon, and I’m not sure if there was anything else on there, but that sounds like enough to me, don’t you think? He said that it was ok, and I said that it sounds like a heart attack waiting to happen. This is Lankford’s: http://www.lankfordgrocery.com/

This is also the time of year that Phil considers, “the best time of the year”….yes he is referring to March Madness. Saturday evening I was a nervous wreck watching WVU play Kentucky. When I heard that we were playing them, I was immediatly nervous, but apparently my cheering (which someone else called “wild animal sounds”) helped the team. I can’t help it if I’m an animated basketball fan! Anyways, we’re going to the final four! Go Mountaineers! In the spirit of basketball, Phil & I played a game of basketball after church on Sunday at the park. I crushed him on the court… ok we all know that is the biggest stretch from reality, but a girl can dream can’t she?!

Back home in Richmond, my dad’s band had a show on Saturday. I wish I could have been there, but I heard they were awesome! Hopefully I can get back to Virginia to hear them play soon.

Yesterday was Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week; a very special week where we remember and meditate on the events leading up to the crucifixion and resurrection. If you’re looking for a special devotion to do this week, our church offers a fantastic (and free) devotion as well as other free webcasts that you can watch: http://www.hfbc.org/HolyWeek

Here are my recipes from last week: Lasagna- To be honest, I was really nervous to make this because my mother-n-law has mastered her lasagna recipe. This one was good, but we still thought Shirley’s is way better so I’m going to have to keep working on it. Delicious Cheddar Puffs- This appetizer is not in the PW’s cookbook but it is on her website. The cheddar puffs were pretty easy to make, but I have to say that I wouldn’t recommend making the puffs. Instead if you like fondue, this is the perfect recipe for cheese fondue. You could dip fruit, bread, or vegetables in this cheese and it’s fantastic. http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/12/cheese-puffs/Savannah Cheesecake Cookies- This is actually another Paula Deen recipe. I got this from the same episode as the fried ravioli from last week’s post. I made this with the cheddar puffs for our Doulos bible study and I think everyone really liked them. The best part is the pecan crust! http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/savannah-cheesecake-cookies-recipe/index.html
Sherried Tomato Soup Minus the Sherry- Since it was a little cooler last weekend, and maybe our last cool weekend for a while, I made this easy tomato soup. I omitted the sherry & only used 4 tablespoons sugar, instead of the 6 she recommended. This soup is a nice creamy bisque. As a testament to the flavor of this soup, as I was writing this blog entry I got an email from Phil at work telling me that he really liked the soup I packed him for lunch. Perfect Pot Roast- I have wanted to try this recipe ever since the PW made it on Good Morning America; however, I seem to be a bit of a rebel and can only follow instructions but so far. I followed the recipe for the carrots, onions, and braising the roast…but after that I was gone and decided to put everything in the crockpot. I had all of the ingredients in the crockpot at about 6pm on Sunday and by 6pm on Monday, after cooking on low for about 24 hours, it was so tender and juicy! The PW’s Perfect Pot Roast + her Mashed Potatoes = one very happy husband. Hope you all have a fantastic week! Happy Easter!
Love, The Hawleys
xoxo Darby
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