Hodgepodge
Linking up with Joyce for the Hodgepodge
1. What do you love most about March?
A change in season. Planting vegetables (albeit just peas- the others have to wait until May) and watching perennials emerge. Lovely days to enjoy spending time outside in and rainy days to enjoy spending time indoors.
2. Hey! Did you know March is National Celery Month? Do you like celery? What's something you make (or like to order out) that calls for celery?
I didn't know it was NCM and I do not care for celery much on its own. I do use it quite a bit in soups that I make over the winter. So I almost always have celery in the fridge from September through March
3. _______________ is the soundtrack to my life right now.
Fly Like an Eagle by The Steve Miller Band-
"Time keeps on slippin' slippin' slippin' into the future..."
4. Share a favorite motivational quote for overcoming challenges.
I found a quote I like from Ayn Rand. It's been years and years since I read Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead (I was in my twenties, I'm pretty sure). I don't agree with everything she stood for and believed/didn't believe (eg she was an atheist and I'm not) but the themes in her writing expose some common sense principles that stand the test of time.
Anyway, here is the quote:
You can ignore reality, but you can't ignore the consequences of ignoring reality.
Adhering to this isn't going to magically result in challenges being overcome. But, I think that reality must be the lens through which any solution to challenges are viewed as a starting point. And, adhering to it can stave off potential problems or challenges that may arise.
For example, news outlets have reported that some school children identify as cats and want schools to accommodate them as such.
This article discusses the issue as it pertains in Great Britain right now.
What is a school supposed to do about the challenge of having "cats" as students? Well, a realization that one can't be trans species and that believing one is a cat does not make one a cat is a decent start!
Ok, well, that quote wasn't super motivational- it's more like how one should oreint one's life (on the truth!) in which case certain challenges are much less likely to arise.
Here's another one by Ayn Rand that is a little more- you got this, girl:
"The question isn't who is going to let me; it's who is going to stop me."
5. The Hodgepodge lands on Ash Wednesday this year. Do you participate in Lent in some way? If so tell us more.
I don't participate in Lent. I believe in the resurrection of Christ, but I don't adhere to a Lent based observation of the forty days leading to the Resurrection. I try to always live in a way that honors and reflects the sacrifice that Jesus made when he died for my sins. I can imagine that participating in Lent is meaningful for (hopefully!) everyone who participates in it. I didn't grow up observing it and have not done so as an adult.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
I think it was in this spot two or three weeks ago where I mentioned that I had purchased a brisket to make and then failed to realize how long it was going to take to bake and had to change dining plans for the evening.
I got around to making it last evening. I think it's gonna be a one and done! It was pretty good but since it's a fairly fatty cut of beef and since we didn't love it, I doubt I'll make it again.
I found so many recipes for how to prepare brisket. I ended up going with one from allrecipes that called for beer and chili sauce- odd, huh? Especially odd since Donnie and I both don't care for beer at all... However, I had a bottle of beer on hand from a pack that Donnie bought for when a beer drinking loved one came to visit us. The people who reviewed the recipe raved about how good the brisket tasted and remarked that they couldn't taste the beer. So, since I had the ingredients on hand and wanted to use up that bottle of beer, I gave 'er the old college try.
I found the recipe here.
The sauce ended up tasting good- it's not something I'd go out of my way to make again unless I had a spare bottle of beer lying around. Then I'd consider it.
Mashed potatoes sounded good to go with the brisket but I wanted to atone for the extra fat and calories of the meat so I roasted sweet potatoes instead (I forgot how good sweet potatoes are!) and also made honey glazed carrots. Orange was the color theme but it was all tasty :).
I am excited about the change in season, it has been warmer here over the last few days and it's got me excited for spring.
ReplyDeleteThat is a really interesting motivational quote. I have heard of young people identifying as various animals and I think it's ridiculous and attention seeking.
That's a shame that after the wait the brisket wasn't amazing. The sweet potatoes and carrots do sound good though.
I am excited, too! We've had some nice days as well here though we are not out of the woods! It is such a shame that ideas that were once thought preposterous are now treated as normal by some people. It's harmful and that's why I think truth is so important!
DeleteI've never made a brisket either; that was an industrious thought you had to give it a try! My mom used to make a brisket that was to die for, but I have no idea how she did that. She is such a great cook, when she cooks these days (which isn't often).
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jennifer! I had never so much as heard of brisket when I was younger. It was not a cut of meat that my mom ever prepared (and we even had cows on our property that became our... dinner at some point so I don't know why we didn't have it). I think of it as more of a southern thing but maybe not?
DeleteI once made a really good brisket - maybe it was Pioneer Woman's recipe?
ReplyDeleteI remember it being super tender so that is how I like my red meat.
Yeah, the cat thing... we have not had furries at our school, but other local schools have had this. It's time for me to retire and let others deal with the furries.
It does seem like the inmates are running the asylums with regard to a number of issues that science has decided once and for all about! I think my brisket got a little too done and was not super tender. The taste was good though.
DeleteHi, thank you for sharing your quote by Ayn Rand. I read some of her works.
ReplyDeleteI also like your song... and I have it stuck in my head now. ;-) Hee Hee!
We woke to 10 inches of snow and wind, a true blizzard.
Carla
Ten inches of snow!! That is nuts. Though it is still winter, man, that's a lot of snow. That song is so easy to get stuck in one's head!!
DeleteThrough trial and error here we feel like the larger the brisket the better. The larger size somehow becomes much more tender, and you have to cook it low and slow. The one my son-in--law made recently was around 13 pounds and it was like butter, so good. Course you need a crowd to eat it! I have zero patience for the cat (and associated) nonsense. I guess that sounds harsh but as you say, we must live in reality. When did we as a society start giving in to these sorts of things? It's troubling. Do you start your garden from seed? I haven't read Ayn Rand in decades either. I am trying to re-read a classic each month so maybe will revisit one of hers. Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking about re-reading Rand as well, but goodness her books are long! There may be one book or treatise that I haven't read yet of hers. Yes, if everyone adhered to reality it seems like there would be way fewer problems and less heartache in the world today. My garden is about half from seeds and half from purchased seedlings. A tender brisket sounds divine- the brisket that I made was not that large and it was definitely not super tender.
DeleteI am excited for spring too :) I can understand why the brisket would be one and done- I have never made it but it sounds so complicated that I don't think I will now
ReplyDeleteThe timing was definitely hard for me. I could tell that it was done but it wasn't tender and then I think maybe I cooked it for too long? Who knows, except that it was not tender!!
DeleteDave cooks our brisket with beer and chili sauce too.
ReplyDeleteThat's cool- it looked like there were tons of recipes out there. The sauce tasted almost better than I thought it would! I definitely did not taste the beer.
DeleteThat's cool- it looked like there were tons of recipes out there. The sauce tasted almost better than I thought it would! I definitely did not taste the beer.
DeleteOh I love eating brisket, but I have never made one. Thanks for sharing those quotes. Remind me to tell you about my story relating to The Fountainhed. Have a good day!
ReplyDeleteI will! I have ordered brisket from restaurants before, too, and will from now on when I want brisket :).
DeleteLove your quote; gave me something to think about! We always have a friend of ours smoke brisket in his Big Green Egg but I am thinking about trying to oven it soon. We'll see!
ReplyDeleteI'll bet it's really good in a slow cooker or smoker. I think you would like Ayn Rand's writing (based on what I know of you which granted isn't much, lol).
DeleteI'm not a big fan of celery on it's own either but I do use it each week in our salad and I too put it in most soups. We (and by we I mean my husband!) have only made really large briskets on our smoker for family parties in the summer and while I am not usually a meat fan I do love his brisket. It's so tender and usually quite flavorful but I would never be bothered to make it myself. LOL
ReplyDeleteI would love to taste it when well made :). The flavor was good but it was not tender enough.
DeleteI thought so, too, Lisa! Yes, definitely a bit like barbecue sauce in flavor but there was no thickening agent so it was quite runny.
ReplyDeleteI have just about decided that meats like brisket and pulled pork are better when I let a restaurant do it for me. I have made a couple of these cuts of meat, preparing them for hours and then they were just so-so. The beef at our local Bucee's is so good!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about brisket and pork! I will still make pork sometimes because I do have a recipe that I like that isn't too complicated but making brisket at home is a hard no for me after this experience. However, I do like the taste of it so will let a restaurant prepare it for me the next time that I want it! Still hoping to make it to a Bucee's- the nearest one is in KY- I will have to check the route as it may be on the way to Lexington in which case I'll be able to check it out soon and try their beef!
DeleteI love making roasts but I don't make them often. They are definitely more fatty but boy do I like them. I keep them pretty simple. I enjoyed your other answers.
ReplyDelete