food – Page 6 – Salvaged Faith

ham balls

Posted on February 14, 2009Leave a comment

Tomorrow evening we will be having a Ham Ball Dinner & Auction to benefit our youth group. And the Ham Balls we have at our church are AMAZING.

Ham Balls, if you don’t know, are like really big meat balls, made with ham. They tend to have a sweet & sour glaze or sauce to them. They are sooooo good.

When RAGBRAI (the Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa) came through town a year and a half ago, we hosted a Ham Ball Dinner with our “Out of the Park Ham Balls” and it was a really big hit. Since then, we’ve been looking for some opportunity to have another supper with these delicious hunks o ham – and our youth mission trip was the perfect cause.

FF: My Favorite Things

Posted on February 6, 20094 Comments

From Rev Gals:

In a week of wondering how various things in our family life will unfold, I found myself thinking of the way Maria comforted the Von Trapp children in one of my favorite movies. Frightened by a thunder storm, the children descend upon her, and she sings to them about her favorite things, taking their minds off the storm.

So, let’s encourage ourselves. Share with us five of your favorite things. Use words or pictures, whatever expresses it best.

1. A cat curled up in the crook of my knee. There is nothing better in the world than Tiki or Turbo curled up next to me. The warmth of their bodies, the love and affection, that sense that they just want to be close to you – even though there are countless other places to rest. It is amazing.

2. Fire. Doesn’t matter if its a campfire in the summer or a blazing fireplace in the winter or the flicker of a candle in a dark room. Fire is so alive and powerful and passionate and it dances and warms you to the core.

3. Girl’s Night. In Nashville, Girl’s Night was every Tuesday evening. Drinks, dinner, bitching, joys, loves lost, school stresses, family troubles, new opportunities – there is nothing better than sharing that with people who you feel completely safe with over really really good food and drinks. I especially miss the lemon martinis at cabana and their sweet potato sliders.

4. Wi-Fi. It lets you carry the world with you. Free from wires, you can sit with a hazelnut latte at a coffee shop (or McDonald’s these days) and talk with friends around the world, read some of the greatest thoughts of our generation, know what’s going on in our political and economic landscape, and watch the funniest crap in the world on youtube.

5. Sit-Down Meals. We don’t eat this way very often in my house, but I want to do it more. With no distractions, sit down meals are about family and people and relationships and about the food. They are where we talk about our days and catch up and reflect upon it all. When I have kids, it will be where they have a voice, they have the floor and where we all pay attention and listen to one another.

FF: Cabin Fever

Posted on January 23, 20091 Comment

Here in snow country we are settled in to what is a very long stretch of potentially boring days. The holidays are over. It is a very long time till we will get outside on a regular basis. The snow that seemed so beautiful at first is now dirty and the snow banks are piling up. Our vehicles are all the same shade of brownish grey, but if we go to the car wash our doors will freeze shut. People get grumpy. Of course, not everyone lives in a cold climate, but even in warmer places the days till springtime can get long. Help! Please give us five suggestions for combating cabin fever and staying cheerful in our monochromatic world?

1) Lots of movies. I love to catch up on all of the great movies that I missed in the last year, as well as old classics. This week, I’m really looking forward to watching both the Golden Compass and Juno.

2) Cooking and baking. Yesterday I made homemade chicken and dumplings for the first time in my life. And I made homemade chocolate chip cookies the night before.

3) Chopping vegetables. sweet yellow peppers, bright orange carrots, crisp green celery.

4) Playing games. My family’s favorite game right now is “Carcassone” – in which you create your own kingdom and have cities and farms and roads. But we also play a lot of cards. Pinochle, Hearts, 500…

5) I’m thinking of taking knitting back up. If I can remember how to cast on the stitches. I have some friends that are having babies and I’m thinking about making them booties.

FF: Pancakes

Posted on January 9, 20091 Comment

Fridays are my days off, but I got up at a reasonable time to draft a letter of support from our ministerial alliance for a grant the city is trying to recieve. Somehow I became president of our ministerial alliance, even though I’m the youngest one and I’ve only been here for a year. Or rather, because I’m the youngest and I’ve only been here a year. The new kid on the block gets all of the responsibility, because no one else wants it =)

For a little fun, here is the RevGals Friday Five: It’s time for something light and fluffy (literally). Pull up a chair to the kitchen table and tell us all about your pancake preferences.

1. Scratch or mix? Buttermilk or plain?

I almost always use pancake mix. It’s just easier to add water to a complete mix and be done. And they taste just fine. We normally buy buttermilk.

2. Pure and simple, or with additions cooked in?

I love plain and simple pancakes. Just some butter and some maple syrup. That’s all you really need. If I’m going to add something, usually it’s blueberries or chocolate chips, but it is very rare that we do so.

3. For breakfast or for dinner?

Both! We have breakfast for dinner quite often. And don’t forget about brunch!

4. Preferred syrup or other topping? How about the best side dish?

Again, I like to keep them simple. Butter and Maple Syrup. On the side, nothing is better than chewy bacon.

5. Favorite pancake restaurant?

Of course, there is the Pancake Pantry in Nashville… they have Sweet Potato Pancakes that are to DIE for.
Back here in Iowa, our local cafe has pretty decent pancakes – they are my Wednesday morning ritual.

Bonus: Any tasty recipes out there, for pancakes or other special breakfast dishes? Bring ’em on!

I have a friend in college who always added a table spoon of sugar and a dash of lime juice to her pancakes. They made them pretty tasty!

Breakfast.

Posted on January 1, 2009Leave a comment

This morning, we got up and made pancakes and shipwreck (eggs, bacon, diced potatoes and cheese) and used the leftover champagne to make mimosas.

And then we got to watch the Hawkeyes kick butt in the Outback Bowl. It’s been a good morning!

Yesterday, because of the various errands that I had to run (like dropping off recommendation forms for my candidacy review) I didn’t get the church newsletter copied, or the bulletins printed. Even though it’s a holiday, I’ll be heading in to the church later this afternoon to get all of those little tasks done.

Happy New Year!!!

Posted on January 1, 2009Leave a comment

It’s a new year and I have a new focus for my blog this year. After watching a friend post pictures every day for one year, I got inspired to do “one year in the life of a pastor.”

So check in here every day for a picture and a short story from my life as a pastor in a small town church. You will see glimpses into my family, my home, my church, and my work in ministry.

To start off with… a bit of fun.

We are hosting some friends and family over for a New Year’s party that will carry over into a brunch/bowl game watching party in the morning.

On our menu for the evening were homemade egg rolls, hanky panks (meat and cheese toasted on a piece of cocktail rye bread) and these bacon-wrapped little smokies.

The recipe is simple: 1 package little smokies, each wrapped in 1/3 of a strip of bacon (1 package should do), and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. Put all in a dish in the oven at 325 for 40 minutes. We pan cooked them at the end to brown them up a little bit more.

And finally, here are my boys ringing in the New Year:

healthy bodies and christmas candy

Posted on December 21, 20082 Comments

I walked out of church this morning (very briskly, I might add, since it was -1 degrees Farenheit!) with my arms loaded with four gift bags full of christmas goodies. Cookies, chocolate covered pretzels, peppermints, etc, etc, etc. Thank you so much to all of the wonderful church members that have blessed Brandon and I with these sweets =)

As I sit here eating some white chocolate covered pieces of pretzely goodness, I suddenly start thinking about that commercial where the people become donuts and burgers… you know – the “you are what you eat” message. And I pause for half a second… before eating the next chocolate covered pretzel.

All things in moderation is a very good motto. My confirmation kids helped me to eat half of this little baggie full of pretzels this morning – it’s probably not so bad if I finish the rest of this one baggie.

But in thinking of moderation, there is such thing as excess and there is such thing as neglect. As in, none at all, zero, zip, zilch (how come all of those start with z’s?). And in thinking of the counter to all of this sugary goodness, I do have to admit that I have done a big fat nada in regards to exercise lately.

I could blame the cold weather, but that’s just an excuse. I’m making a promise to myself, right here, right now, that I’m going to borrow the unused cardio machine at my parents and start using it! I have to use it at least four hours a week… split up however I manage to do it. That is my promise, and if I can borrow it before then, it will be a pre-new years resolution.

It’s not so much a matter of how much I weigh – although I have been scared to step on a scale since before Thanksgiving. But it’s a matter of feeling healthy. I know that my GERD will be helped by losing even five or ten pounds. I know that I’ll have more energy if I exercise more regularly. I know that my back and my neck will feel better. I know all of these things, I just have to do it.

the kitchen smells WONDERFUL!!!

Posted on November 25, 2008Leave a comment

My husband and I are making our first turkey EVER this week! We have always done the circuit of parent’s and grandparent’s houses, and while we are still doing most of those, his mom’s side is coming over to our place.

And I am WAY excited. I started making a few things already… well, for other purposes as well. I baked two loaves of banana bread (from the bread and honey blog!) and the cranberries are on the stove as we speak. I also made some of Rachel Ray’s stuffin’ muffins for our church potluck tomorrow… my hubby isn’t so keen on all of my crazy recipes for the big T-day.

He’s excited as well… I think. At the very least, he keeps taking dishes away from me =) lol… So far, he is in charge of the turkey and the sweet potatoes and the glazed carrots. I’m doing the rolls and corn and mashed potatoes and cranberries. And then of course, there are others who are each bringing a dish. It is going to be so entirely yummy, that I simply cannot wait.

I think that Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays of the year, but my favorite chuch season is definately Advent, and in my mind it is no coincidence that they are right next to one another =) This morning I planned our worship services for the season and I am really excited about our wreath litany (from the UCC) and the song that is leading us through the season – “I want to walk as a Child of the Light.”

What I have discovered so far in my life as a minister is that it is really hard to plan far enough in advance to truly accomplish all of the things that you want to in a church season. I found that for Lent, I simply did not have enough time from the day I started at the church to get ready properly. And Advent has come up just as fast and I feel just as inadequately prepared – at least to really add all of the smells and bells in that I want to. Not smells and bells per se, but I really did want to work on making worship more multi-sensory and participatory. It’s not quite there yet. But then again, if I tried to do everything I’m dreaming about all at once, then I would’t have anything new to do next year!