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Instead Which Is Better

2011-04-15T02:35:00Z

It's not that I haven't been trying to write a post on a new shopping routine based on sound financial practices, like buying stuff on sale. I have so been trying! However all I end up with is a nasty rant based on the five minutes I watched of Extreme Couponing on the tv.

Oh. My. God.

Ironically it comes on right after Hoarders.

So. Instead I can tell you what else I've been doing:

Re-organized the hall closet so the cleaning products are handy and the indoor plant supplies are together.
Walked around my gardens in my mud boots and filled up the bird baths.
Was amazed by a lady cardinal zipping through my yard.
Learned about cake balls.
Fell down. Ouch. It hurt.
Gave up on the walking at the gym for the exercise part of my resolutions. Not happening.

You can see this is all much better than ranting about coupons.

Have a good weekend my dears!

That Granola I Was Telling You About?

2011-04-09T15:22:00Z

It is so awesome.

Occasionally an effort at good health will be made at our house. Recently we've started eating yogurt for breakfast, which is awesome I suppose. At a friends suggestion I added granola to my yogurt. It wasn't great, but ok.

It was in the back of my mind that I could easily make my own granola, so I did a little research with my pal Google. There were interesting recipes, but nothing that propelled me out of my chair. Then I picked up the Aprill 2011 issue of Everyday Food and struck granola gold, a recipe that looked easy AND I had the ingredients for it.

Have I ever mentioned that I often don't have good luck with Ms. Stewart's recipes? It's true, I often have messy, expensive failures when following Martha Stewart's lead. This time however, I scored.

There were liberties taken with this recipe. To the credit of the staff of Everyday Food, the recipe was designed to be tinkered with and that's just awesome.

Here's what I came up with:

Ducks Granola

3 C. rolled oats, not quick cooking
1 C. raw almonds coarsely chopped

1/4 C. butter
1/3 C. honey
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees and line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper.

Combine the oats and nuts in a bowl.

Put remaining ingredients in a microwave safe container and heat on high for 1.5 minutes, stir, heat for an additional 30 seconds or until butter is melted. Pour mixture over oats and nuts, stir to thoroughly combine.

Spread the granola in the rimmed sheet and bake for a total of 35 minutes. Stir the granola with a spatula and respread every 10 minutes. Let it cool in the pan on a cooling rack. Store in a tightly covered container.

As to how long it lasts? I don't know, we eat it pretty fast. It's a great snack if you throw in some dark chocolate chips, or coconut, or chopped dried fruit. Or all of that.

That jar is looking pretty empty. Time to make the granola.

Couponing. Or Not.

2011-04-02T21:50:00Z

I do not coupon.

Years ago I tried, I really tried. But my coupons seemed to be for stuff that, even with the coupon, was more expensive than store brands, or stuff I'd never really use. Or the coupon was expired. So I threw them all away and declared myself a non-couponer.

There's a lot of interest in couponing now, it seemed wise to check it out and re-evaluate my position. Man, have things changed.

First, I signed up for a couponing website, they send me coupons via email. Looking them over I can sure see how someone could save a lot of money using these coupons, but that someone wouldn't be me. As in days of yore, I don't use any of the stuff the coupons are for.

Second, I got a Sunday newspaper. It's where I used to find all my coupons, however, I found next to none.

Third, I could really dig into the couponing websites. Armed with my shopping list I could potentially find coupons on the site for the products I'm looking for. Not happening, that kind of attention is not being paid to my shopping list.

I guess I'm still a non-couponer. However, in light of todays economic realities I will be re-evaluating my shopping routine. While coupons aren't going to work real well for me, I'll bet I can come up with a simple way to keep my pantry stocked, but not cluttered, and take advantage of my favorite grocery stores sales.

Hmm. That's a challenge.

Aside from all that I now make granola and will share the recipe. Because it rocks.

That is all.

Waiting...

2011-04-02T20:55:00Z

Fargo is less than springlike with snow covering my gardens. Still.

Except there is a spring flood that's lurking as soon as the snow melts.

Regardless of which comes first, gardening or flood, I'm ready.

And waiting.

Resolutions?

2011-02-23T13:16:00Z

What resolutions? Oh yeah, those. Well, it's not all bad news...

As a refresher:

Begin every day right. Before I even get out of bed remind myself how lucky I am and what a great day I'm going to have.
Eat more fruits and vegetables.
Lose 5 pounds.
Keep better track of my money.
Learn new things.

Status is!

This is a totally cool thing to do, and I do it every day. LOVE IT!
This is a yes. Currently I am digging clementines in a big way and snarf up red grapes when they're on sale. I've also started to cook a lot more carrots.
Three pounds down, two more to go! I haven't been walking at the track due to the cold from hell, but I will.
Yes! I'm doing this!
This isn't going as well as I would like, mostly I think because I've been sick, like, FOREVER. My mojo will come back. I'm sure of it.

How are your resolutions coming along?

Making Me Happy

2011-02-21T13:15:00Z

You may remember that I refreshed our upstairs bath last summer, it was like this.

This is the before picture, I direct your attention to the rug. I liked it because it was big and blue. However I desired a change. There is a church bazaar that happens in one of our malls every November. Several of the churches sell flat woven rugs that I truly love. So in November I hied myself off to the sale and searched high and low for a rug I deemed long enough for this room. No go. Then a delightful little lady offered to have her son make one to my specifications.
Wonderful!
Didn't hear from her and figured I'd check them out again next November.

Then. She called! Her son had woven not one, but three, so I could have a choice! My choice was all three. A dear friend picked them up, she kept one, I kept two.

Ta freakin da. I'm happy. Every time I see this rug I'm happy. Every time I set foot on this rug I'm happy.

What made you happy today?

How You Doin'?

2011-01-26T14:07:00Z

I'm just fine, thanks. I have a little cold, well, actually, a monster cold, but it's fine.

How about those resolutions? How you doin'? I'm pleased to report, that while I'm not perfect in my resolutions, I'm making a solid effort and can say I'm fairly successful. I do need to walk more, the cold is slowing me down considerably, and come up with a new vegetable recipe for this week. Then I'm golden. At least for now.

The other day I had the opportunty to talk to a reporter from our local paper, the subject was mudrooms. Or rather, the lack of a mudroom in most of our houses. I totally relate. We have a tiny entry inside our back door that doesn't even come close to serving the purposes of today's mega mudrooms.

How to cope?

If you're drowning in stuff by your door, the first thing is to declutter mercilessly. Anything that doesn't absolutely have to be there right now needs to go. Either store it somewhere else or get rid of it entirely.

Use your space as wisely as possible. Use hooks instead of hangers, go vertical and take advantage of wall space. Add shelving and boot trays to corral shoes that have to stay. Take advantage of baskets and plastic dishpans to house mittens, hats, scarves, etc.

To keep it looking good, edit brutally, every day. That's right, every day. Why? Because you want it to look good, you want to be able to find your things, you want to cut down on the morning frenzy. Add this area to your daily routine, supervise your kids as they pick up and put away their things. Sure it's hard, it's hard for me and I'm only picking up after myself. But I really, really like what I get out of the effort. Keys I always find, shoes where they belong and my choice of cute scarves.

That's how you live with a tiny entry.

Even one this tiny.

Yeah. I know. Small.

Don't forget the swell mirror, nothing like checking yourself as you go out the door and giving yourself a great big smile. You go!

Resolutions circa 2011

2011-01-17T02:28:00Z

Aah, resolution time! Love it, love it, love it!

Here we go:

Begin every day right. Before I even get out of bed remind myself how lucky I am and what a great day I'm going to have.
Eat more fruits and vegetables.
Lose 5 pounds.
Keep better track of my money.
Learn new things.

These are resolutions I've been mulling for a while, the first of the year is the perfect time to implement some small changes in my life that will result in keeping these resolutions.

To wit:

Just do it. Lay in bed before you get up and think happy thoughts.
My grocery list will include seasonal fruit, preferable ones that can be eaten out of hand, like apples. I will eat a piece of fruit with breakfast and lunch, vegetables with dinner. I will try a new vegetable recipe every 2nd week.
Start walking at the track in the evenings.
Configure my Daytimer calendar into tabbed sections that contain forms to keep track of my hours worked and payments collected.
Take at least one class every quarter. Say "yes" more.

Here's what I really want:

I'll feel happy.
I'll feel healthier.
I'll feel stronger.
I'll feel in control of my finances.
I'll feel excitement and curiosity.

What about you? Do you have resolutions? More importantly, do you have plans for keeping your resolutions? If you're getting discouraged, sit down and think the resolution through. Give some thought to what you really want to feel, then make a plan to make those feelings happen. It's not hard, but you will probably learn something.

Seeing as how it's January in Fargo, ND, the wind is howling around my house and my personal snowbanks are about 4 feet deep, I'm thinking of this:

That's right. Spring! Because it's going to happen. I promise. Pinky swear.

PS. I love my smart phone. I feel smart using it.

Are You Happy?

2010-12-31T16:22:00Z

Have the holidays given you the joy you wished for? I sure hope so. We should probably talk about making room for all the gifts you and your family received, and maybe we will, just not now.

Instead I want you to know that I wish you well in 2011, really, really, well. I hope it's the best year EVER! That all your goals are reached and your resolutions met.

It's New Year's Eve, I'm not going anywhere thanks to a winter storm, how about you? Why don't you join me in taking one more day to relax and enjoy. You deserve it. We'll talk about the rest of it later.

Thanks for hanging with me in 2010, I'll still be here in 2011.

Peace.

Being a Good Gift Giver and Getter

2010-12-16T18:26:00Z

It doesn't seem to be enough that we have to worry about social obligations, food and less than lovely relatives during this fabulous season, we have the dilemmas of gifting.

Oh, and they are rampant.

There's lots you can do to be a better gift giver, and getter. Here's one simple thing that can save you a lot of angst: Give everyone, including yourself, permission to be wrong.

That's it. All you need to know.

Imagine if you gave your spouse permission to be wrong when he gifted you something horrific. It really is the thought that counts, if the gift was bought with loving attention, can you really ask for more? If it wasn't, well perhaps your problem is of a different nature. Just sayin'.

Imagine giving yourself permission to be wrong. If you're simply wrong, the gift you slaved over and isn't appreciated, well, you tried. Give the giftee permission to regift or return the item, then move on. What more can you do than try? You are not a mind reader. Are you?

If you want to give yourself permission to be wrong, try this. Give your gifts merrily. Graciously let the giftee know that it's ok if you have made an error. Be happy, be joyful, because you've tried. And if you are on the receiving end of an unwelcome gift, remember the gift came from love and thank that person. Take it home and let it sit for a few days before deciding the best course before letting the gift leave your life. If the gifter asks the fate of the item they gave you? Simply letting them know it didn't work for you so you were able to pass it on to someone who could really use it should suffice.

Do you recognize what this is? It's a step toward removing yourself from the emotional land mines of an over commercialized holiday.

Now. Isn't that better?

Number of organizing and gift giving rules I've broken this week: Too many. Today I'll be back on track.

It Was Thanksgiving

2010-11-29T14:40:00Z

and it was awesome! A few days ago I started a post about how I think I'm a bone deep Thanksgiving traditionalist while the other half of my brain is busy coming up with "improvements" on the day/feast. It was boring. I will tell you that I stuck to my vow and delegated cooking chores to my interested guests and we had a blast in the kitchen.

Next on the list - Christmas. Are you already freaked out? Stressed? Frazzled?

Not me man. Here's a tip for slimming down your holiday horror:

Gifts In Bulk

Sit yourself down with a pen, paper and hot beverage.
Create a list of all the folks you buy gifts for.
Group them in similar categories, ie, siblings, nieces & nephews, service providers, etc.
(Of course some are a category in their own right, like spouses, kids and parents. That's cool.)
Determine a gift for each category, ie, a batch of caramel corn for service providers.
Purchase/make, wrap, give.

Much easier, no? Buying gifts in bulk like this leaves you more time to focus on the most important people.

Now I have to go because I'm motivated to hang up the garland. Just the garland, I don't want to get out of hand over here.

Here's a shot of our Thanksgiving desserts, the mini pies in the ramekins are new this year, and a keeper. Portion control people, portion control.

Fresh As a Dang Daisy

2010-11-16T20:52:00Z

That's right good people, I finished my back entry way and it is FRESH!

If you're living in an old house this small, and you've got a bunch of people storing year round outdoor gear in a little space like this, well, that's hard. My good fortune involves only me using this space, so I've spread out some.

The mirror is for my current jackets and purse. Very nice.

On the steps is my outbasket, it's where I throw my keys, and other things that are going outside with me. What you see sticking out of the outbasket is a reusable grocery bag. My husband disagrees with my use of the steps for storage, he's wrong. I win. Because I can find my keys.

My husband made this little coat rack and I use it for my work totes and a hanging basket for gloves, hats, etc. The basket used to have a wicker handle but it broke. It's not an easy size to find so I used a wire coat hanger and made a new handle. Hey, I'm a farmer's granddaughter. I can fix stuff.

Do you see the collage of photos above this rack? I love collages. In the past I cut the photos from Christmas cards and hung them on our fridge. My husband didn't enjoy this effort so I picked up a couple pieces of sheet metal and hung them in this awkward little spot with removable adhesive. The pictures are hung with magnets, and it's been fun to fool around with photos of friends, family, the garden and other little bits of ephemera. When painting I realized I haven't done anything with it for a while so will spend a happy hour or so updating the photos.

Now let's go back to you. If your back entry is also small, but you're sharing with others, here's a suggestion to keep the chaos to a minimum:

Keep only what's been worn that day in the space. Designate room somewhere else for all the rest of it. One pair of footwear, one jacket, one bag per person. Then police the space ruthlessly. Part of your nighttime routine will involve everyone putting their extra stuff away. It actually only takes everyone a few minutes and the calm created for the next morning will be well worth the effort.

With just me using this little space it can very quickly get overwhelmed with shoes and boots, especially once the weather is wet or snowy, so I can totally empathize with your pain. We remodeled the space at the bottom of the basement stairs to serve as a mudroom, it's been a great solution for overflow.

Number of days it took me to get over the floor being blotchy. About seven. Don't look. Really.

Where Was I Again?

2010-11-10T19:54:00Z

Oh. Yeah. Doing stuff and not blogging about it. Sorry about that.

So anyway, I've got the holidays on my mind. This morning I was chatting with some friends and threw out what I thought were pretty good holiday tips.

Number One Thanksgiving Tip: Make your mashed potatoes a couple of hours ahead and hold them in a crockpot on low. Awesome.

Number Two Thanksgiving Tip: DELEGATE!! I know, for some of us it's hard to give up being the culinary star of this magnificent feast. I'm with you. But here's my story. A few years ago I hosted my family, a relatively small group, I suppose 10 people. Offers to bring something were accepted, but I insisted on making the bird, stuffing, gravy, potatoes, green beans and pies myself. Because I'm so good at it. And I LOVE to cook this meal! But as I stood in my kitchen in a stupor and my sister-in-law asked me if I was all right, in that "are you going to pass out right now?" tone, I realized I was doing this Thanksgiving thing all wrong. Sure I'm good, but I need to get a grip, this is not healthy behavior. This year my guests will be participating in the kitchen. It will take some organizing on my part, my kitchen is beautifully set up for one cook, 2 or 3 is going to take some thought. But I'm up for it. Because it will be totally fun and still taste fabulous. I will, after all, still be in charge.

Smart Phone Update. I still haven't found a calendar app, but I'm getting email on my phone! Now I realize how much junk email I'm getting, time to declators that list.

On another note I've nearly got my back entry done, the only thing left is painting the trim. Which will commence shortly. I have been sidetracked multiple times during this little project by other little projects. Such is the way of adult ADHD. Oh well, I'm focusing now...

Here is one of my projects I sidetracked to:

I heart windowboxes.

Worth it!

As I Was Saying...

2010-10-27T19:56:00Z

So. The Smart Phone, I'm seriously afraid it's smarter than I am. Over the last few days I've spoken to a number of people who are curious as to how I like the phone. My response, "I've only had it for a few days and there's quite a learning curve." Anyone who has an android phone totally gets that. Learning curve indeed. So far I've learned how to answer it (I made a special trip to the store for that lesson), text and Facebook. I'm committed to using it as a calendar but have abandoned the idea of using it for email. My back up plan is to give up and pass the phone to my husband. He's looking forward to it. We'll see. When I find the perfect calendar app and learn how to use it, I will share. Could be a while....

With quite a lot of smugness I can tell you we have settled on a furniture arrangement for our dining room. Here you go, two views:

Yes, it still looks like a bunch of furniture lined up against the wall. Because that's what it is. It's what it's like to live with a furniture collector. And yes again, I like it.

See how I cleverly mirrored these two pieces? We can enjoy this view if we contort ourselves into the opposite corner of the dining room. This is what I go through.

The organizing challenge this week has been meal planning. In my haste to switch to the electronic calendar I gave short shrift to planning our meals and now am paying the price. What price? The "it's 4:00 what's for dinner" angst. To avoid further drama, I reverted back to my Daytimer for meal planning and the world smoothed right out.

Awesome.

There was also a little backsliding on the "No More Pumpkins" edict.

Whoops. Well, they're little and cheap, easy to store. That's justification enough, isn't it?

Number of things left on my Fall To Do List: One. And it isn't check out Carol Widman's Candy for caramel apples, because I did, and it was awesome!

It's No Fun

2010-10-21T15:24:56Z

You will recall, on the infamous Fall To Do List, a seemingly minor task, "refinish the landing at the back door". Easy peasy. Yeah. No.

Look at this! How hard could it be?

Turns out an average size woman with an electric sander and 60 grit sandpaper isn't enough to get what's left of this finish off. Oh no. It takes an average size man with a belt sander. Crap. I hate that.

Bottom line it's taken longer than expected. This is my landing space and coat closet. I'm starting to miss it quite a bit, because instead of my organized, contained space I have this:

You're darn right that's my kitchen table, not looking very good, is it?

One organizing rule is "Contain everything". My little back landing is my container for the stuff that goes out the door with me. I miss it. I'll be working pretty hard to get it back, because I really, really need my container.

In other organizing news I'm getting a smart phone. I think I'm going to make the ginormous transition from a paper organizer to electronic. I use Outlook in the office but have been reluctant to give up the paper calendar I lug around. You see, it's more than a calendar. It's the home for my lists, like Christmas lists, menus, favorite dishes, websites to look at, books to read, etc. With all the apps available on smart phones it's starting to feel like I can capture my lists in an easy to use format. We'll see. It's just an experiment at this point, no promises yet.

Number of years it's taken me to try to go from a paper organizer to electronic: Five.

One Room Down

2010-10-05T15:51:00Z

What I didn't tell you is what we bought at the antique show. Because that's what it's really all about, buying. Here it is:

I refer to the log holder, I thought it would make a great cat bed if I put a pillow in it.

Otis disdains this idea, he prefers to spend his office time here:

And really, who wouldn't?

Here's a bad picture of where the bed used to be in our office. I like this much, much better.

I'm calling it done.

Number of recipes that are soon to be blog posts: Four.

So Far...

2010-09-29T20:11:00Z

We're home from the antiques show and every single thing we took out of our house didn't sell. Darn. However, now that they're out of the house they're not coming back in. Furniture arranging and fluffing has commenced and I will share when the dust settles. It will be soon...

The garden project I blogged about a few weeks ago? Done! FYI, Roundup doesn't seem to hurt well established ditch daylilies. Just in case you might need to know that. We're having a fabulous run of Indian Summer days here in Fargo, the light is so amazing this time of year. To celebrate all the loveliness I've spent the last two afternoons in the backyard making a horrific mess. No pictures, it won't be pretty until next year. I will tell you I planted:

Dark purple bee balm
Ornamental thistles
Five different hostas (two more to go)
Iris
Three different heuchera
Ladies mantle

It's going to be amazing! In spite of the daylilies that I'll be pulling and spraying for the rest of my life.

The Fall To Do List is getting knocked out pretty well! Next project? Refinishing that darn landing. With a sander, an electric sander. Girls and power tools, it's a magical combination.

Number of pounds I want to lose in the next week - three. I won't be doing this anytime soon. Boo.

Unreasonable Desire

2010-09-23T15:27:00Z

Today I'm practicing restraint.

I. Will. Not. Shop.

The object of my desire is a plastic tray, oval shaped. That's right, oval. Which is frankly sort of worthless. The reason I want it? It's a Fiesta tray. There is something seriously awry here. Oh, you didn't know I collect Fiesta? Hmm. Maybe another day.

On the other hand, trays are fabulous organizing tools, they can corral just a ton of stuff, as in:

By the stove;

In the bathroom;

On the pantry shelves;

They also work great for serving food and drinks, who would have thought it?

Here's a question dear readers, what could you, or do you, use a tray for?

As for me? No, I'm not buying another tray. Even if it is Fiesta and cuter than heck.

Three things I'm grateful for today:

Rain outside my window.
A sleepy cat.
My cheerful husband.

Disarray and Distress

2010-09-22T00:18:00Z

Sooo, did y'all know my husband is an antiques dealer? Yup. He's the kind of antique dealer that collects for years then goes into business. His initial, and ongoing, passion is Arts & Crafts furniture. In order to avoid the "living in a warehouse" look we instituted the rule "one in, one out". It works pretty good, especially when you're talking big and very heavy pieces of furniture.

Which brings me to my current state of disarray. We're getting ready for the one antique show we sell at (antique shows are limited in our life because I hate packing, hauling, re-packing, hauling back and putting away. Yuck. We have a store for crying out loud.) We are selling three pieces out of our house, which could be good. Three out, three in. Maybe.

This bed is going:

It's a twin bed we've had for, oh, maybe 18 years? It's been slept in once. Really. It sits in our office. There's a great story about how my husband acquired the bed, but honestly? We could use this space better.

Also going is this wicker chair and ottomon in the corner, it's my porch reading chair:

There is at least a plan for the porch

And then there's this teacart:

This is the one giving me fits, I cannot figure out what to do next here. Everything I try looks like a bunch of furniture lined up against the wall. In fact, it's looked like that ever since we juggled things around on Memorial Day.

So where was I going with all this? The house is kind of turned upside down and I'm not sure when it's going to be right again. It's an unsettling feeling, I don't like it. Frankly, it's why I organize to the point that I do, when things are settled I'm comfortable. It's why anyone should organize, to simply feel good. I'll be plugging away for the next couple of weeks, or more, trying to get things back to comfortable again. There's my motivation for organization in a nutshell, comfort. For me. It's all about me.

PS, remember how I said I got rid of my marbleized wallpaper because Jenny at MFAMB doesn't like marbleized? She doesn't like Arts and Crafts either. We won't be following her down that merry trail.

Number of things I've knocked off my Fall To Do List: Errm, well, ok. One, two if you consider I haven't purchased one single fall decor item.

A Pot Roast In Every Crock Pot

2010-09-15T18:48:27Z

Today I'm checking off one thing on my Fall To Do LIst, we're having pot roast for dinner tonight, yahoo! Pot roast is one of those things that can be made big for a crowd, or little for one. Tonight there's just the two of us, we'll have the roast with gravy and smashed potatoes.

No, we're not having jarred gravy. Gravy is E.A.S.Y., but first the roast. I mean first a couple of organizing tips:

It's all about convenience. Beef base (look at the ingredient list, is beef first? Buy it. Not first? Keep looking.) can be mixed up in any amount and keeps great in the fridge.
Tomato paste in a tube. That's right people! I have an open tube in the fridge, keeps great, and a brand new one in the pantry. I don't ever want to be without.
Crock pot is the way to go, I have two and absolutely no regrets.
Kosher salt is preferred in my kitchen because I think it tastes better. I keep it in a totally cute custard cup and either grab it with my fingers or dig in with a measuring spoon. It lives right next to the stove.
Make a lot, the leftovers freeze great.

All right then, here we go:

Roast

Your choice of beef cut in a size that accommodates your needs. We really like cross cut chuck roast.
1 C hot water
1 tsp. beef base
1 Tbls. tomato paste
1 medium onion, thickly sliced

In your crock pot whisk together water, beef base and tomato paste. Spread onion in the crock pot. Salt and pepper your roast to taste, put in the crock pot on top of the onions. Cook on low 6-8 hours, or high 4-5 hours. When your roast is done remove from the crock pot and tent with tinfoil on your serving platter.

Onion Gravy

Dump the onions and juice from the crock pot into one of these:

(This is a brand new gravy separator/measuring cup/strainer - the top is the strainer. It seemed like a super cool thing, but I had to be careful pouring into my saucepan, it tended to spill. A lot.)

If you don't have one of these you can remove the onions with a slotted spoon and dump the juice in a measuring cup.

For every 1 cup of liquid you will need:

1 Tbls butter
1 Tbls flour

If you get an uneven amount of juice, just add milk to get the amount of liquid you want. Or wine, wine would be good. Or the cooking water from potatoes. Or any combination of the three. Are you seeing possibilities here? Just go ahead and pour your additional liquid into your measure with the roast drippings.

Melt butter in a saucepan on the stove. When the butter is foaming whisk in the flour. You've made roux! Let the roux cook for a least a minute, but you can cook it longer and get the roux nice and brown. Add your measured liquid and whisk. Let the gravy cook for a while on medium high heat, whisking occasionally. When it starts to boil keep a close eye on it, it's done after it's boiled for a minute.

TIP: If your gravy looks a little thin, just boil it down a bit until you get to the desired consistency.

Roughly chop the onions you cooked in the crock pot, add to the gravy. Serve in a gravy boat, because that is really cool.

Smashed Potatoes

We were served potatoes like this at the Purple Onion in St. Paul, MN. I thought it was a smashing idea!

1 - 2 potatoes for each person
4 - 8 mini carrots for each person or
1 handful frozen vegetable for each person
2-6 Tbls butter, your preference
1/4 - 1/3 C milk

Scrub and quarter the potatoes. If you are using the carrots, cut each in thirds. Put potatoes and carrots in a decently sized saucepan, cover with water. Salt liberally, if you like. Cover the pan and heat on high until the water starts to boil. Reduce heat to medium and start checking with a fork for doneness after 10 minutes. Heat milk in the microwave about 30 seconds. You can use any kind of milk, even cream. When potatoes are done drain and put back on heat for about a minute so excess moisture can cook off. If you are using frozen vegetables heat them to done in the microwave.

Take potatoes off the heat and mash lightly with a good old fashioned potato masher, only give this a minute or two, you want the potatoes chunky.

Mix in butter and milk. Go easy on the milk, they can get soupy fast. Mix in cooked vegetables, if using.

Voila! Slice up your roast and you are going to be a star!

This roast didn't take well to a knife, it fell apart. Just the way I LOVE it.

Number of minutes it took to get this on the table - 30. No joke.