The folks at CNN clearly have not seen the parody SNL did of their map fetish. Its about a minute into the clip.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
A love affair with my slow cooker
For Christmas my mom got us a slow cooker. Admittedly, I never bought one or put it on our wedding registry because I could never imagine using it often.
With a perfect storm of a left-over ham bone from our New Year's Fest weekend at the beach and a brand new slow cooker, I christened it by making split pea soup. It was the easiest thing I have ever done. 1 bag split peas, 1 Ham bone with lots of delicious ham still on it, 1 clove minced garlic, 2 quarts chicken broth, 2 bay leaves, some celery. Put it all in the pot for 8 hours on low. And Voila! liquid gold! It was so so yummy!
The next week I decided to try my hand at another dish, corned beef. Again some potatoes and onions on the bottom of the pot, a bay leaf, a juicy corned beef brisket on top of the veggies and a little water. 8 hours later we had a wonderful meal.
Well, I was on a roll so when I offered to make dinner for Michelle and Mark I decided the slow cooker was the best bet. I Googled the ingredients we had on hand - chicken and sweet potatoes and came up with this wonderful dish:
There is no end to what the slow cooker can do!
With a perfect storm of a left-over ham bone from our New Year's Fest weekend at the beach and a brand new slow cooker, I christened it by making split pea soup. It was the easiest thing I have ever done. 1 bag split peas, 1 Ham bone with lots of delicious ham still on it, 1 clove minced garlic, 2 quarts chicken broth, 2 bay leaves, some celery. Put it all in the pot for 8 hours on low. And Voila! liquid gold! It was so so yummy!
The next week I decided to try my hand at another dish, corned beef. Again some potatoes and onions on the bottom of the pot, a bay leaf, a juicy corned beef brisket on top of the veggies and a little water. 8 hours later we had a wonderful meal.
Well, I was on a roll so when I offered to make dinner for Michelle and Mark I decided the slow cooker was the best bet. I Googled the ingredients we had on hand - chicken and sweet potatoes and came up with this wonderful dish:
Slow Cooker Latin Chicken with Sweet Potatoes and Black Beans
Ingredients
- 3 lbs bone-in skinless chicken thighs
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- salt
- pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup salsa
- 3 large garlic cloves, pressed
- 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed
- 2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
- 1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
- lime wedge
Directions
Sprinkle chicken thighs with 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper.
Heat 12-inch skillet over med-high heat until hot;add chicken and cook until browned on all sides.
While chicken is cooking put beans and sweet potatoes in slow-cooker.
Place chicken on bean mix in slow-cooker.
In skillet, mix paprika, allspice, broth, remaining cumin, salsa, and garlic.
Pour this over chicken in crock pot.
Cover with lid and cook on low 8 hrs or 4 hrs on high.
Sprinkle with cilantro and serve with lime wedges.
There is no end to what the slow cooker can do!
Yes, we did.
Wow! it is almost here...
...Future generations of Americans will look back at this moment of crisis and opportunity and they will judge us -- but not by our words. They will measure us -- but not by the promises we make. For language has the power to move us to action, but it is never a substitute for it.
Our children's children will ask only this: What did they DO, back then? Did they rise to the challenges providence had set before them? Did they unite as one people, with a common destiny? Did they set aside the old partisan rancor in order to protect our great nation, to strengthen democracy and human rights at home and abroad and to safeguard the blessings of the natural world for all time? Did they live up to the great promise cradled in that name: America? What will these future generations say?
They will say, "Yes, they did."
Because, my fellow Americans, yes, we will. We embrace these challenges, all of them. Because that is where we find meaning in our lives...
This is an excerpt taken from the collaboratively written inauguration speech done on our friend's site: MixInk. This site allows large groups to democratically create a single collaborative document. This speech was created by 454 members of Slate using the democratic, collaborative writing tools at MixedInk.com.
...Future generations of Americans will look back at this moment of crisis and opportunity and they will judge us -- but not by our words. They will measure us -- but not by the promises we make. For language has the power to move us to action, but it is never a substitute for it.
Our children's children will ask only this: What did they DO, back then? Did they rise to the challenges providence had set before them? Did they unite as one people, with a common destiny? Did they set aside the old partisan rancor in order to protect our great nation, to strengthen democracy and human rights at home and abroad and to safeguard the blessings of the natural world for all time? Did they live up to the great promise cradled in that name: America? What will these future generations say?
They will say, "Yes, they did."
Because, my fellow Americans, yes, we will. We embrace these challenges, all of them. Because that is where we find meaning in our lives...
This is an excerpt taken from the collaboratively written inauguration speech done on our friend's site: MixInk. This site allows large groups to democratically create a single collaborative document. This speech was created by 454 members of Slate using the democratic, collaborative writing tools at MixedInk.com.
Monday, January 12, 2009
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