What We Be Eatin' Exclusive: Thanksgiving!

Happy Turkey Day everyone!

As many of you know already, Turduckin was the star for Roby's first Thanksgiving. It seems to me that we should start our run down of the What We Be Eatin' Thanksgiving Day Exclusive with an interview of the star.
I have to admit, Turducken seemed like a mythical beast, like a unicorn or a Liger, before I began my journey to create one. I had heard of people making them, but only audacious fools with thick creole accents and funny white golf hats. Even the portmanteau "Turducken" summons images of something unsightly--as is the common result of forcing some unlikely combination together.


BLOG FAIL: I forgot to post this at last year's Thanksgiving. Wow, I suck.

Slacker: Life with a baby, grad school, work, volunteerism and tooth decay!

Hey Everyone,

I want to convey a rather hollow apology for my absence here on House of Thurmond. I have been pretty busy but, I know what you are thinking, that is no excuse. Maybe I am kinda mean in this department but my sympathy runs about a deep as a kiddie pool for the "I am so busy, I ran out of time" excuse. So on that hypocritical note, here are a few pictures from Roby's first Halloween (that I am posting while writing a term paper, changing a diaper and learning how to make a goat out of a napkin for Thanksgiving):

(Here is Sylvia dressed as Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds and Roby dressed as a pumpkin that just pooped it's pants)

(Here are Roby's buddies, Conner and Avery, pre and post Purell. I'm pretty sure copious amounts of hand sanitizer is part of the new health care reform bill. Sorry for the fuzzy picture--these monsters would not sit still.)

(Not quite big enough to knock on doors)

(Avery as a Lady Bug--she may have pooped her pants right then too)
(One final shot for her Halloween lay-out)

Everyone had a good time walking around the neighborhood looking at the costumes and avoiding H1N1.

Roby Fix Coming Up!

More Roby can be found here!

What We Be Eatin'!

Chef's Log: November Six this year of our loins 2009.

Tonight we be eatin' salad. But this was no extraordinary salad but a perfectly mundane salad. You see, I didn't have a lot of prep time for a magnificent mixture of greens and things. This evening I went for my the first workout at the Denver Athletic Club (DAC). I was to be both Lewis and Clark and my task was to chart locker rooms and scout out smoothies bars. Sylvia and I joined the for the child care but stayed for the iron pumpin'. Anyway back to the salad. We had mixed greens with steak (the rib-eyes were on sale), green onions (scallions for all of you macaronis), Monterey Jack cheese and Blue Cheese dressing. I know it seems sinful to combine Jack and Blue Cheese dressing but we are in America--where all cheeses are free to intermingle. In fact, I encourage you to mix your cheeses when they are as ordinary as Jack (that is cheap Jack not like fancy Sonoma Jack). Anyway, be sure to put everything in bowl and toss it really good. Try to get some dressin' on every leaf. Also, it is very import to season your salad. Make sure to add a little salt and pepper so that your salad pops!

(here is a salad of mixed family) Very Hop on POP!

What We Be Eatin'!--Rad Rib-eye

(No plate wiping here)

Ok, tonight we had a nice rib-eye (we shared a single steak) with roasted yams and acorn squash and green beans.
It was a simple prep. For the squash, I didn't bother to peel it. I cut it into wedges, took out the seeds and guts and put in a bowl. I also didn't skin the yams. I quartered them potatos and threw themin the bowl too. I added some melted butter, cinnamon, ginger, brown sugar, black pepper and salt and tossed everything together. I roasted the potatoes and squash separately so I could take them out when they were ready (they cook at different speeds due to their density and the size of the cut).

(Notice the differing sizes--my teacher chefs would be tres costerne!)

We also had green beans that were blanched and sauteed with butter, salt and pepper. Easy Peasey!

For the Rib-eye, I rubbed it with salt, white pepper, smoked paprika and garlic. I seared it in a cast iron and finished it in the oven. Most importantly, I rested it for about 10 minutes.

(Go Meat!)

Then it was time to eat!

Addition to the Blog: Get ready to Drool!

(Aebleskivers with salted caramel and pear chutney)

Attention! Attention!

I've decided to add a blue-plate special segment to the House of Thurmond blog called: What We Be Eatin'!

People are always asking me about the food I make each night for Sylvia so I thought would include in the blog. To tell a little secret, for the first year of living with Sylvia I did not cook her the same thing twice. We were still in the romantic stages of our relationship and my wooing stemmed directly from my cooking. I think I did alright, she married me didn't she?!?

There were, however, a few misses. Sylvia often retells the evening when I prepared a dish of Ramen noodles and sauteed Moose meat--not her favorite. We won't dwell on the past but focus on the future. I hope I will inspire you to push your culinary boundaries or at least know what to make for tomorrow night!

As always, thanks for reading and Bon Appetite!

(Lobsters on the Grill al fresco!)

Snowy Day!

(Roby's First Big Snow Day!)

Hi Everybody!! I'm sure you are all speculating about our snow situation. For those of you who are realists, you have probably surmised that we received just a few inches and are readying ourselves for a Snickers-filled Halloween. For those alarmist who always call me and ask, "are you buried under ten feet of the white stuff?!?," today is your day Chicken Littles! We are indeed getting covered with fluffy, white, wonderful snow. (Our house receiving a feather-hammer double knock )

Of Course, this mere 8 to 12 inches of snow did not stop us from commencing with our usual business. I needed to remove the snow from our renter's driveway and sidewalk. I got into our new Snow Machine (the big police truck) and drove over. The snow was great to plow through. Generally, the city ignores our streets due to the glut of family toting SUVs here in Stapleton. So, I was cutting "first tracks." It kinda looked like this.
I got over there by about 6:30AM and found that my renters were ready to shovel. I guess it slipped my mind that they were from Canada. We shoveled the drive and I headed home.
Next, I had a dentist appointment at 9am. I elected to cross-country ski there rather than drive. I had a beautiful 2 mile ski over to the dentist. The snow had drifted in places that were waist deep and I enjoyed a few tele turns on our small hills in Central Park. After meeting with my minister of pain( that's what I call the dentist), I started towards home. On the way, I met with our friend, Patricia out enjoying the snow with her boys, Ronin and Aidan. After pulling them on their sled, I dropped them off at their house and continued on.
When I got home I found a surprise! Our street, and only our street, had been cleared!

(The clearest street in the land!)

Turns out that nothing will stop the construction workers from finishing their projects! They got out their Backhoe and pushed all of the snow outta the way! This was pretty awesome for most. For Kim, this may not have been the best thing. They created a big berm next to her car, "the Tan Can (that's what I call it)." It is seen here with a big snow puff on its head:

I decided to check out the backyard after seeing the condition of the Tan Can.



The door to my garden wonderland had gone from welcoming to foreboding! I was very impressed by Old Man Winters fury! Here is what the patio area looks like normally:

Here is what it looks right now:

Wow!, Right? Lots of snow! Here is a picture of a huge drift hanging off the house:

Here is a picture of Gov'na enjoying the wintery atmosphere:

But not everybody is outside enjoying the day--there are happenings inside the house as well. Roby is trying on her Halloween outfit courtesy of MiMi :


You didn't think I would write a blog entry without showing Roby did you? Mama and baby are staying in today and resting. Roby was very vocal last night and kept Papa and Mama up all night, but she looked pretty cute in her pumpkin hat so all was forgiven.

Anyway, we are all doing fine in the snow! I am headed to get a mumps shot--I never got one or it never "took" or something and then we can settle in for the night. Tata for now!