The Bathroom Redo

I did manage to get the new shower curtain hung up in the upstairs bathroom...

And the words I chose are:  IT IS WHAT IT IS...

Along with the cans of leftover wall paint -- I'm mixing in some of those cheap tulip paints (to match the circles of the shower curtain).

The white mulsin insert began life as chicken feed sacks, and then some enterprising farmwife made these 8 beautiful scalloped edge curtains...which I bought at an auction.  After living in my basement for many years, they found their new purpose.  These scallops go perfectly with the new circle theme...

For the window treatment -- oh, yes, also hidden in the basement -- plastic circles that are just the right colors!!

Oh, yeah...this is all coming together...

Ramp-Up for Mary

When Ross moved back to Iowa to attend nursing school, he took over our upstairs bedroom and bathroom. I never went into his room. Not even once. Yikes. Since he moved out, the upstairs has become kind of an excavation project...

(Kathy -- here's a picture of Ross's house)

Many years ago, I bought a chenille shower curtain that had a snazzy teal flower...so, of course, I painted flowers on that bathroom wall. I LOVED IT...

However -- that was then. And this is now. The upstairs bathroom needs a little refresh...and I'm ready to let go of the flower.  (besides, I can't find the original shower curtain.)

As you know, my goal is always to USE WHAT I HAVE.  So, I went to the basement to see what I could find in the leftover paint department...

The first thing I found was this terrific BRAND NEW SHOWER CURTAIN...(which I paid $2 for, several years ago...and it was dumb luck that I found it, because it was buried pretty deep.)

I had some beige paint -- so I used that as a primer coat.  Bye-bye teal flower...

Hummm...maybe another coat, eh?

Oh, the hell with it. I'm just gonna start to paint circles...

It's a small bathroom...so this shouldn't take long. Now, if only I could find a rug with circles on it...that's right...wait for it...

Also in the basement! Yep -- that'll work...

I can't wait for Mary to see her new/old digs!!

Mary is here until Tuesday -- so it's just possible we'll be TOO BUSY for me to do much blogging...

Mary's Visit, Part Two

I don't know exactly when we'll fit it in -- but I would love to take Mary to see the new Current Hotel.  IT IS STUNNING...

Saturday:

• Oatmeal, yogurt breakfast
• Cinderella’s Cellar 
• Brady St. thrift (9-1)
• Winnie’s
• Salvation Army/DAV/tour
• 5:00 supper with Kim and Lilly
• 7:00 ShowChoir Competition at North High School (shusshhh....this is a surprise for Mary)

Also, I don't know when we'll be able to fit it in -- but the kids would LOVE to take Mary to the pool

Sunday:

• Oatmeal
• Swim at the Y 
• STUFF store/Goodwill 
• See Ross’s house
• Eat at Wapsi Willy’s
• Lead Farm tour

Monday:

• 8:30 Harlan’s breakfast with Val
• Coal Valley
• Dillard’s at Southpark
• Goodwill
• Discovery Shop
• Current Hotel for supper
• Mary will PACK.

Mary leaves Tuesday morning at 6:00...I go home to get back in bed...

Oh, yeah...this is gonna be fun...!!

Mary's 2018 Visit Itinerary!!

From the outside, looking in, my life looks spontaneous.  AND IT IS. I like to think I am open to all-new-things, and I love it when something unexpected and wonderful comes along. I am a girl who can "go with the flow"...

BUT, a big part of ENJOYING EACH AND EVERY DAY is that I enjoy planning things...and I'm good at it. For any event or occasion, it's good to know who's going to be there, what we're going to do, what we'll eat, where we'll go, see and do...

A Good time doesn't just happen, people!!  And when you have very limited time (Mary's visits to Iowa, for example) -- it's good to know, in advance, if people are available, who's gonna do what, etc. That way -- it can all look spontaneous and effortless!!(yes, that was blog sarcasm)...

Here is the tentative schedule for Mary's 2018 Iowa Visit:

Thursday: Mary gets in at 4:30...she'll be hungry -- we'll go out and start our catch-up visit...

Friday: TMBC Day Trip to Clinton.

• Breakfast @ Mama and Bubba's
• Deja Vous
• Bargain Bonanza
• Thompson Antique store
• Fulton, Krumpets for sew and tell lunch
• John will make spaghetti and meatballs, and the E team will come over for supper. We'll play games with kids.

Mary Mulari's 2018 VISIT to Iowa

I LOVE MY LIFE. The secret is that I am ALWAYS PLANNING something exciting just around the corner...something I can look forward to.

And, every year, after the holidays -- there is the Mary Mulari Iowa Visit...

Oh, yes....I am a lucky, lucky girl...and we are about to KICK IT, people!!

Leftover French Onion Soup

During the time Ross was living here (attending Nursing School),  he introduced me to a WHOLE NEW WORLD OF TELEVISION.  Thanks to him, I binge watched:  Mad Men, Sons of Anarchy, the Soprano's and Entourage. All series with GREAT writing, wonderful characters.

On the other hand, he also brought an obsession with The Bachelor -- and In The Kitchen with David Venable on QVC...

I NEVER would have thought I'd learn anything about cooking from a shopping channel??!!

In The Kitchen with David Venable, taught me about a Panade. AND I REALLY MUST SHARE THIS TREASURE!!

An internet picture of a Panade!!

Because I made such a big pot of French Onion Soup -- I had a lot left.  So -- it was the PERFECT time to revisit a Panade!

OMG...OMG...OMG...

Here's a link to the recipe I used: Panade Recipe I love any excuse to get out my Dutch Oven...and I made some modifications. I left out the Swiss Chard (I used Spinach), and I added a lot more cheese. Also, I added about 8 oz. of cooked spicy hot sausage to the beef broth...which gave it a nice kick.

We ate it so fast, I didn't get a chance to take a picture. But it really did look kinda like this...

The bread absorbs the broth, and really puffs up. I wanted it to serve like a casserole rather than a stew...and IT WAS PERFECT.

I called Ronda and Dean and said, COME ON OVER for a delicious Panade.  They'd never heard of such a thing...

Imagine that...

BEST SOUP YET

For the last two weeks, we've been having bitter cold weather, and I was suffering from my post-Holiday-Hamilton Funk.

At some point, I decided to just hunker down and make soup....

AND I'VE BEEN GOING STIR-SOUP-CRAZY. Holy Cow...

I've made Chicken Tortilla soup, Italian Wedding Soup, Chicken Noodle soup, Chili, Sausage and cabbage soup, and yesterday -- a gigantic pot of French Onion Soup. Which was, quite possibly, the BEST SOUP YET...

Here's the thing...my brother-in-law (Dean, married to my sister Ronda) is an avid gardener. Every summer, he has a big truck garden.  Selling produce at the summer Farmer Markets is his retirement hobby. (one of his many)

The other day, Ronda and Dean invited us over for lunch (venison burgers)...and, as we were leaving, Dean gave us a huge bag of his onions...which have been carefully wrapped and stored since harvest -- but they are starting to sprout.

Given my current soupy state of mind -- the minute I got home, I started to peel and slice the onions...

French Onion Soup is never going to be the quickest soup to make...but, if you get it right, it really is a SPECTACULAR, elegant dish...

French Onion Soup

Peel and slice 12 onions (I'm not kidding -- it takes a LOT of onions). Put 2 tbl butter and 1 tbl. veg oil in a heavy pan...and start to saute the onions. After they get going, turn the heat down to medium low...and just let them cook...you will pay attention, and stir and turn the onions...until they cook down to 1/3 their original volume, and have turned a beautiful, sweet, caramelized golden brown...

Yes, that takes some time. But it's not HARD to do, y'know? You just have to stay in the kitchen area and pay attention...but cooking down the onions is the step that cannot be rushed. There is no shortcut to caramelized onions...and that's what gives the soup the deep sweet flavor...

But, now -- hey -- YOUR WORK IS DONE...

I had about two cups of caramelized onions...so I added 5 cups of beef stock (I used soup base), and let the soup simmer and get hot.

Meanwhile -- prepare your cheesy toppers!! I had some stale Italian bread in the freezer...so I sliced four thick slices, and buttered both sides of the bread. Then, I GRILLED the bread (you can use your iron skillet to do this)...I wanted a brown crust on both sides of the bread.

Here's the thing I JUST FIGURED OUT...

Heat the soup in it's pan, on top of the stove...
Put ONLY THE BREAD into the oven, topped with loads of shredded cheese (I used Gouda, Pepper Jack and Mozzarella)...broil until the cheese is melted and gooey...

THEN...to serve, you simply ladle the soup into the bowls, and float the cheesy toast on top!!

OH MY GOD...

Really?? Really, Rita? That's news to you? Heating the soup and the bread separately? That took you 30 years to figure out??

Yep. And that's the truth. Every other time I tried to make this dish, I put the soup into the bowls, then the bread on top, then the cheese -- and put the bowls on a cookie sheet, and stuck the whole pan into my oven...

WHAT A MESS...and before the cheese got melted, the bread was soggy...

Yep. I have figured this thing out...and it was SO DELICIOUS, I DIDN'T TAKE A SINGLE PICTURE..

John said it was the best French Onion Soup he ever ate!

This internet photo is pretty close...but my dish had WAY MORE CHEESE....

Frozen Soup

When I'm making soup, I make a HUGE batch...and freeze some.

Frozen soup has been a lifesaver on many occasions...soup might hit the spot, or it can turn into chicken and dumplings...or chicken pot pie...

But freezing soup is tricky. For one thing, if you find a container big enough, you have to set it in the freezer so it's level -- otherwise the soup will leak and make a big mess.

I hate Tupperware, and Rubbermaid, and all those plastic containers that take up so much room in the cupboards, and they always get separated from their matching lids.

The other problem is that when you decide to eat your freezer soup, you must deal with a gigantic ice cube that doesn't fit into your pot, and isn't that easy to thaw....

Here's how I freeze soup:

Find a bowl that fits inside your soup pot.

Place a freezer bag into that bowl.

Label the bag -- then FREEZE. The soup will, of course, take on the shape of the bowl it's sitting in...

The next day, I remove the bowl (or, two weeks later...whenever I realize all my bowls are sitting in the freezer)...

To  reheat the frozen soup -- you just get the bag out of the freezer, place the whole thing it in the pot (with some hot water)...the bag will melt right off.  THEN, you just put the lid on your pot, turn the heat on low and let the ice-cube-that-will-be-soup melt down...

Sometimes, I freeze soup in individual bowls.

Same procedure...label...freeze in bowl...

At a later date -- just nuke it -- and YOU'VE GOT SOUP...!!

Italian Wedding Soup

In the winter -- I love to make soups. It just feels like home to me...I love the process, the warmth...the soup spoons...well, you get the idea. And EVERYBODY should have at least one soup they're really confident about making...

One of my "go to" soups is an Italian Wedding Soup. It starts like ALL MY SOUPS...I chop onions, celery and carrots... saute them...

Then add 10 c. of chicken stock (I usually use soup base).

My meatballs are very simple...

1/2 lb. hamburger
1/2 lb. hot sausage
1 small diced onion
1/2 c. instant rice

Drop the meatballs into the simmering soup. They poach in about 15 minutes...but, of course, if your soup is on low, or in a crockpot, they just get better and better.

The LAST thing you add to the soup before serving is a box of chopped frozen spinach. The spinach cooks in just 10 minutes -- and if you put it in sooner -- it disintegrates...

The meatballs are soft and yummy...


If I'm putting noodles, or in the case of this soup, a small Orzo pasta, I always cook it separately..and add it to the bowl as I'm serving it.

John also likes to add Parmesan cheese to this soup -- or a few drops of Tobasco -- and some crusty garlic bread is always a good idea...

And a REALLY SPECIAL MUG!!

THANKS, RHONDA!!
I LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT...It has become my favorite new thing...and it is almost big enough to be a soup mug!!

Soup, and the spoons we love...

I collect many things. One of my FAVORITE THINGS is soup spoons. The first time I actually bought soup spoons was during our sisters trip to Ireland. Since then, I have been a sucker for soup spoons.

I look for them at antique malls and flea markets, bid on them at auctions, I buy spooners to put them in -- and I get a strange thrill out of polishing old silver-plated soup spoons...here's a picture of my beautiful soup spoons -- in a classy spooner -- my holiday fabric napkins -- AND DEENA'S HOMEMADE CREAM PUFFS. oH mY gOD...THEY ARE every bit as delicious as they look, people!!


My family and friends use these soup spoons to eat soup, stew, chicken & dumplings, cereal....

After we decided soup would be the main menu for Kelcy's baby shower -- there was NO QUESTION I'd provide the soup spoons...and, well -- the cloth napkins!! And the broccoli-cheese soup, the bean soup, the veggie pizza...

Anyway -- the day before the shower, as I was polishing my very best, most beautiful 35 soup spoons -- I said to John, "there are not many people who could deliver 35 beautiful silver-plated soup spoons."

With his usual enthusiasm, he said, "yes, Rita. you are changing lives..."

Hummm?? I think that calls for a sarcasm penalty....

Here's a picture of some of the young Mom's in our family -- Becky (sans her two girls, Maddie and Avery -- our Emily and Lillian -- Kelcy and Mason and Brenda and Clayton. (these young Moms have had SIX more babies since this picture was taken!)

Lilly is going to be 9 years old...and those tiny baby boys just turned 8!!

Me and Lilly, 2009

And -- here we are -- two weeks ago -- at Hamilton!!

TWO Good WINTER Things!!

When I think about WINTER (and it's hard NOT to nowadays) -- I think about soup. 

For me,  making soup is more of an art than a science.  When I stopped to think about it, I realized I'd made five different kinds of soup since  Christmas.  Chili, Bean Soup, Chicken tortilla soup, Sausage and cabbage soup and Italian Wedding soup...

So -- this week -- IT'S ALL ABOUT THE SOUP, PEOPLE..!!

**************

Two years ago....it was the weekend after Thanksgiving.  My cousin Linda brought her crew out for a visit.  We enjoyed TWO of my favorite winter things.  Soup and Puzzles...!! 

Ross took a picture...

Linda (LK) and her Mom -- my Aunt Ada.

Linda's son, Danny, visiting from California -- and his daughter Ally, from Atlanta.

John and Karl always share their "I-was-in-the-Navy-on-submarines-stories"...

The ladies adjourned to the puzzle table...

Aunt Ada putting in THE LAST PIECE!! (she was bizarrely thrilled)

Frankie thought they did a great job!

I got a bag of bean soup out of the freezer -- and extended it with some extra ham, a can of beans and a jar of salsa. Then, I made a big pot of Italian Wedding soup. Along with some crusty Italian Garlic bread...it was a cold day, and soup was the perfect thing.

Everybody doctor's up soup to their own taste -- WHICH IS REALLY THE BEST THING ABOUT SOUP....here's a link to a great Italian Wedding soup recipe to start with: Italian Wedding Soup From The Food Network

But I always start the soup by sauteing some onions and celery, which is not part of this recipe...feel free to put your own spin on it!!  Giada stirs in some egg, right at the end...and that can be good, too.

I LOVE this soup because when the little meatballs are poached, they are very soft...and the spinach and orzo are the perfect combination.

 Don't forget to have Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top!!