Beerific Sweet & Sour Red Cabbage and Sausage

This is real comfort food for me and brings back warm, cozy childhood memories.  

This is very much like the recipe Gramma used to make except I've upped the flavor factor by replacing the water with beer and using Tony Chachere creole spice in place of the salt and pepper.  

Use whatever kind of beer you like.  I think this recipe is especially good with a lager or a brown, but you can experiment with your favorite style.

This makes for yummy leftovers.  Mmmmm . . . good stuff!





Beerific Sweet & Sour Red Cabbage & Sausage

4 Tablespoons Rendered Bacon Fat
2 Tablespoons Sugar
1 Small Yellow Onion, Chopped
4 Cups Shredded Red Cabbage
2 Granny Smith Apples - Unpeeled, Cored & Sliced Thin
2 Tablespoons Cider Vinegar
1/2 Teaspoon Caraway Seeds
1 To 1-1/2 Pounds German or Polish-Style Smoked Sausages
1 Pound Potatoes, Halved or Quartered
Salt And Fresh-Ground Black Pepper To Taste
1 Bottle Cup Beer

Melt the bacon fat in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sugar and cook, stirring often, until the sugar browns, about 4 minutes. 

Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the onion, and saute it until it is golden, about 5 minutes. Add the cabbage, apples, vinegar, and caraway seeds, and stir to blend.

Place the sausage links and the potatoes on top of the cabbage mixture. Season with salt and pepper and pour the beer over all. 

Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat, and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes. 

Taste, adjust the seasonings, and serve hot.

Note:  I use raw sugar in place of granulated sugar.  I replace Tony Chachere Creole Seasoning for the salt and pepper.  

Slovak Stuffed Cabbage

One of many comfort foods from my youth is stuffed cabbage . . . such warm good memories of family dinner with saucy cabbages stuffed with meat and rice and served with a big pile of mashed potatoes.  Mmmm  . . . so good!

There are, of course, many ways to make this dish depending on the culture where the recipe originates.  Due to my Slovak heritage, I am inclined to make halupki . . . Slovak Stuffed Cabbage.

You can cook the stuffed cabbage leaves using a stove top or slow cooker method . . . I do both . . . it depends on what you prefer.

Slovak Stuffed Cabbage




1 (4-Pound) Whole Head Of Cabbage
1/2 Cup Raw Rice
1/2 Cup Water
1 Finely Chopped Medium Onion 
1 1/2 Pounds Ground Beef Chuck
1/2 Pound Lean Ground Pork
Salt And Pepper
1 Large Egg
1 Clove Minced Garlic
1 Teaspoon Sweet Or Hot Paprika
1 Pound Drained (Reserve Juices) Sauerkraut (Rinsing Optional)
1 (26-Ounce) Can Tomato Soup (Or Two Small Cans)
1 (14-Ounce) Can Tomato Sauce
1 (14-Ounce) Can Crushed Tomatoes
8 Ounces Sour Cream

Remove core from cabbage. Place whole head in a large pot filled with boiling, salted water. Cover and cook 3 minutes, or until softened enough to pull off individual leaves. You will need about 18 leaves.

When leaves are cool enough to handle, use a paring knife to cut away the thick center stem from each leaf.

Chop the remaining cabbage and mix with the can of tomato sauce.  Place it in the bottom of a large greased pot or slow cooker.

Rinse rice and cook it in 1/2 cup water until water is abosrbed. Remove from heat and let cool. 

In a large bowl, mix cooled rice, onions, beef, pork, salt and pepper to taste, egg, garlic, paprika, reserved sauerkraut juices and 1/4 cup of the tomato soup, and blend thoroughly.  

Place about 1/2 cup of meat on each cabbage leaf. Wrap the leaf around the meat mixture to make a neat little package.

Place the cabbage rolls on top of the chopped cabbage in a large pot or slow cooker. If you have any meat left over, form into meatballs and place on top of rolls.

Top with all the crushed tomatoes, remaining sauerkraut and tomato soup. 

If cooking on the stove top, bring to a boil, reduce heat to very low, cover and simmer 3 to 4 hours.  If cooking in a slow cooker cook on high for 3 or 4 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours.

When cabbages are cooked, remove from pot.  Remove about a cup of the pan juices and allow to cool.  Once cool enough to comfortable touch with finger stir in the sour cream.  When completely combined stir mixture in with the rest of the pan juices and server over the cabbages.  Excellent with mashed potatoes!

Print Recipe

The sound of my voice

Have you ever noticed that the way your voice sounds to you when you speak as opposed to the way it sounds in a recording is so different?  I mean, when anyone else talks it sounds the same whether I hear it live or via a recording or over the phone.  What's up with that?

The reason for this is because when you hear your own voice when your talking you're hearing it a combination of two ways . . . your hearing the sound as it travels directly through your head and also as it travels through the air into your ear.





When you hear a recording of your voice you're only hearing it via airwaves . . . just like everyone else's voice you hear.    





This is why your own voice sounds strange when played back from a recording.  By the way . . . I like my voice much better in my head.

Sausage Cabbage Soup

1 Can of Chicken Broth

1 Lb. Bulk Sausage, Browned

3 Strips Bacon, Cooked

1/2 Head of Cabbage - Chopped

3 Large Carrots - Chopped

8 Stalks of Celery

1 Can Chopped Tomatoes

1 Can of Sliced Mushrooms

1 Pkg of Lipton Onion Soup Mix

12 Oz Can of V-8 Juice

 

Chop all veggies into bite size pieces. Drain and rinse canned mushrooms. 


Brown sausage in a large pot.  Add all remaining ingredients to the pot - bring to a boil then cook on low for an hour then on low for 3 hours. Low calorie and very filling.

Rabbit Rabbit Rabbit

Rabbits hot and rabbits cold,

Rabbits new and rabbits old,

Rabbits tender, rabbits tough,

Never can we have enough!

Rabbit

Rabbit

Rabbit

 Saying Rabbit three times (only heathens say it twice) upon waking . . . before you utter any other word . . . on the first day of a month is supposed to bring good luck the whole month long.  Some people believe saying it the first day of the year is good enough to bring luck all year long.

Holy bun bun . . . what if you forget?  Will you have a month filled with disasters, drama and other horrible things?  I can’t vouch for the effectiveness of this, but if you say "tibbar tibbar tibbar" . . . psssst that's rabbit x3 backwards . . . as you’re falling asleep that should reverse the curse.

The "rabbit, rabbit, rabbit" phrase originated in England.  It’s difficult to determine when people started rabbitting on the first day of the month but it can be found in print from as far back as 600 years ago. 

Like the black cat her in America, in England bunnies are considered to be a symbol of bad luck.  Woe to the person who has a bunny hop across their path!

According to English tradition, to ensure good luck one should say ‘Rabbits' three times just before going to sleep on the last day of the month, and then ‘Hares' three times on waking the next morning"

The custom continues here in North America . . . especially on the east coast.  Documentation of the shouting out rabbit can be found in American literature from 1800’s. 

There are many variations . . . some say ‘black rabbit’, some say ‘white rabbit’, some say ‘bunny bunny’ and so on and so forth.  Does the actual phraseology matter?  I can’t say . . . take your chances.

The ritual continues into the digital age . . . good fortune can be had to those who Tweet or Facebook ‘rabbit rabbit rabbit” on the first day of every month!  

Lotsa luck with that!

Haluski (Pan-Fried Cabbage and Noodles)

Haluski is a pan fried dish that my grandmother used to make of butter, onion, cabbage and noodles. To me its comfort food . . . mmm, mmm, good.

4 Cups Wide Egg Noodles

1/2 Cup Butter

2 Cups Sliced Sweet Onions, About 1/8 Inch Thick

6 Cups Cabbage, Sliced Thin

1 Teaspoon Caraway Seeds (Optional)

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

Pepper

2 Cups Cottage Cheese

Cook egg noodles according to package directions, then drizzle with a bit of oil to prevent the noodles from sticking together and set aside.

While noodles are cooking, melt butter in large deep skillet over medium-low heat.

Add onion and sauté, stirring occasionally for about 5 to 10 minutes, or until softened and just beginning to turn golden.

Add cabbage to skillet, stirring well to incorporate with onion, and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in caraway seeds if using, then cover, reduce heat to low, and let simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.

Turn heat back to medium, add cooked noodles, salt and pepper, and stir well until noodles are heated though.

Remove from heat and stir in cottage cheese.

Adjust seasoning if necessary and serve hot.

We'll leave the light on for you . . . or not

When I was kid we didn't travel much.  Our vacations were either camping trips or staying with family members.


So, when the rare occasion arose where we would be staying at a motel/hotel it was a really REALLY big deal . . . an adventure, a luxury.

Mind you, we didn't stay a 4 or 5 star hotels.  Holiday Inn was as top of the line as we went and Comfort Inn was the norm.  It didn't matter . . . Cable television! Game room!  Swimming Pool! HOT TUB!  It doesn't sound like it should be that exciting, I know.  But trust me it was.  


Come to think of it, coming across the scrambled adult television channel may  have been my first experience with pornography . . . oh joy.

Anyhoo . . . as fun and wonderful as it all was it didn't make us (the kids) angelic guests.  For the most part we behaved ourselves but all that excitement seemed to have brought some prankishness to the surface.

Besides the typical swiping of the towels, soaps and whatnot . . . we dare not touch the minibar or Mom would open a can of whoop-ass on us . . . we had fun roaming the hallways and making a general nuisance of ourselves.  

Of course, there was the ever popular knock-and-run game.  But, that wears a little thin after a while . . . especially, as we got older.  One thing that never seemed to grow old no matter how often we did it was when we found the mini-moos and condiment packets left outside of random doors for room service to retrieve.  


What's so fun about that?  Well, what we did was stomp on them.  The contents . . . whether it was milk, ketchup, mustard or mayo . . . would squirt all over the walls and carpeting.  

;;

The bigger the spatter, the higher splat the more points.  We didn't have and actually scoring structure established and we didn't keep tally . . . it was more on a case by case basis . . . or smoosh but smoosh, as it were.


Yeah . . . we were hicks, we were lame but we had fun.

Ukrainian Red Borscht Soup

1 (16 Ounce) Package Pork Sausage

3 Medium Beets, Peeled And Shredded

3 Carrots, Peeled And Shredded

3 Medium Baking Potatoes, Peeled And Cubed

1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil

1 Medium Onion, Chopped

1 (6 Ounce) Can Tomato Paste

3/4 Cup Water

1/2 Medium Head Cabbage, Cored And Shredded

1 (8 Ounce) Can Diced Tomatoes, Drained

3 Cloves Garlic, Minced

Salt And Pepper To Taste

1 Teaspoon White Sugar, Or To Taste

1/2 Cup Sour Cream, For Topping

Crumble the sausage into a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir until no longer pink. Remove from the heat and put in large soup pot.

Fill the pot halfway with water (about 2 quarts), and bring to a boil.

Add the beets, carrots and potatoes, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Add the cabbage, and the can of diced tomatoes.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook until tender. Stir in the tomato paste and water until well blended. Transfer to the pot.

Add the raw garlic to the soup, cover and turn off the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Taste, and season with salt, pepper and sugar.

Ladle into serving bowls, and garnish with sour cream and fresh parsley.

You are a sad strange little man . . . and you have my pity

When my son was a wee one he had a love affair with Buzz Lightyear.  He wasn't in love with Buzz per se . . . he was Buzz.

He would sit and watch Toy Story movies over and over again . . . getting the moves down and getting his inner Buzz on.

It was really cute . . . for a while.

He was in preschool at the time and they didn’t do anything to dissuade his alter ego.   In fact, they encouraged it . . . for a while.

It got to the point where you couldn’t tell him he wasn’t his super hero . . . er . . . hero.  He was Buzz Lightyear . . . “I’m not Eddie,” he would say.  “I am Buzz Lightyear.  To infinity and beyond!.”  

Like I said, it was cute . . . for a while.

During that time period Halloween came and wonder of wonders . . . he was Buzz Lightyear.  And this time he had the costume to prove it.

So, not only did he have the Buzz persona down pat but he had the look. 

Months, maybe even a year or more, this went on.  By now it’s getting old.

His preschool teachers told me it had to stop because it was disrupting the class and riling up the other kids.  I thought to myself, “you nutters encouraged the kid and now that it becomes a problem and I’m the one to have to put a stop to it.”

So the arguments began . . . you’d think it would be easy . . . you know how gullible kids can be.  Yeah right . . . the kid inherited his mother’s and his father’s stubbornness.  It wasn’t easy.

The deprogramming went something like this.  First off . . . no more Toy Story movies . . . .period.  Second . . . the costume mysteriously disappeared.  Then the sit down conversations . .  .

Me, “You’re not Buzz Lightyear.”

Him, “I am Buzz Lightyear.”

Me, “You’re not Buzz Lightyear.”

Him, “I am Buzz Lightyear.”

Me, “You’re not Buzz Lightyear.”

Him, “I AM Buzz Lightyear.”

You get the point.  One day he was Buzz and the next day he wasn’t.  Personally, I don’t think I did or said anything to convince him he wasn’t weird shaped spaceman.  I think he just grew out of it.

And, then suddenly he was Luke Skywalker.

Ah  . . . the joys of parenthood.

Quick Fried Cabbage With Egg


1/2 Small Cabbage
1 Medium Onion
1 Tablespoon Butter
3 Slices Bacon, Crumbled
2 Eggs
2 Tablespoons
Salt, Pepper or Seasoned Salt

Finely slice the cabbage and onion. Heat the butter in a pan and fry the onion until soft. Add the cabbage.  Cover and reduce heat to low and fry for a further 10 minutes. Remove cover add bacon and fry for 3 minutes. Beat the eggs pour them over the cabbage. Stir until the eggs have set.  Stir in the cream cheese and serve.

Plop, plop, fizz, fizz; oh what a relief it is!

Oh, Alka-Seltzer . . . how do I love thee?  Let me count the ways.  It's good for what ails you . . . aches and pains?  headache?  upset stomach?  and at one time its ads even suggested taking it for "the blahs."  I'm jiggy wit dat!


The lemon-lime variation has a salty-sweet thing going on.  I'd drink it all day long if it wasn't for the whole overdosing-on-medication thing.


Seriously,  it's the best invention since cheesy-poofs.








Alka-Seltzer has been around since 1931 and is simply a combination of aspirin, sodium bicarbonate, and citric acid all compacted into a fizzy tablet.  drop into a glass of water and watch it go.  It's like magic!  But watch out because if you have the glass on top of a pile of papers the effervescence will effervesce all over your papers and make a mess.  Don't ask how I know this . . . but there's a reason that Speedy uses an umbrella in the commercial.

It's not only good at curing the icks, but it also can be used as an effective cleaner for your coffee pot, glassware and jewelry  . . . all those bubbles cut through grease and grime.  Don't mock me before you try it . . . it works!




Anyhoo . . . I'm not suggesting that anyone run out and buy this wonder of all wonders, because it's not necessarily good for everyone, I'm just saying that *I* like it.  


Ploppity, ploppity . . . fizzity, fizzity . . . 

Creamy Cabbage with Apples and Bacon

1 Teaspoon Olive Oil
6 Slices Bacon, Chopped
1 Large Onion, Chopped
Salt And Pepper To Taste
1 Tablespoon White Sugar 
2 Tablespoons Cider Vinegar
1 Head Green Cabbage, Cored And Chopped
2 Large Granny Smith Apples - Peeled, Cored and Thickly Sliced
1/2 Cup Chicken Stock, Or As Needed
1/2 Teaspoon Coriander Seeds
1 Pinch Nutmeg
1/2 Cup Sour Cream


Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook and stir until most of the fat is rendered, and the bacon is lightly browned but still slightly limp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a small bowl; do not drain. Pour off any excess bacon fat in the pan, according to your taste.


Stir the onion into the pot, season with salt and pepper, and cook and stir over medium-high heat until onion is translucent. Sprinkle in the sugar, then stir in the vinegar-stand back or you'll get a nose full! Scrape up the delicious brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the cabbage, stirring well to combine.





Cook, uncovered, until cabbage is reduced and starts to soften, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in apples, stock, and coriander seeds. Cover, reduce heat to medium low, and cook for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more stock as needed, and continue cooking until the cabbage is soft, but not falling apart.


Just before serving, remove the cover and stir in the bacon with its juices. Cook over medium-high heat until any remaining liquid is reduced to a syrup and the mixture is piping hot, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in nutmeg, and fold in the sour cream.

Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!

If your old like me then you may recall that little chant from the opening sequence of the Laverne and Shirley show . . . actually I’m not dating myself all that much since I only caught the show in syndication.  So, nuts to you!

The little ditty is a Yiddish-American hopscotch chant.  Okay, that clears that up but what is a schlemiel and, for the love of Pete, what in the heck is a Schlimazel??

A schlimazel is the guy who walks past a second floor window-ledge and knocks the flower pot off . . . a schlemiel is the guy walking underneath.

A schlemiel is a klutz . . . an awkward person.  A schlimazel is a born loser.   It’s kind of a commentary of the type of people that Laverne and Shirley were I guess because they were always finding themselves in sticky situations and pretty much always down on their luck.  Like Lavern and Shirly . . . you can’t have a schlemiel without a schlimazel . . . they go together. 

Kind of like  ramma lamma lamma ka dinga da dinga dong.  Something like that, anyway.