Like An Anchor

Chicken and Rice Soup

11 December, 2013

This has become one of my favorite soups. It is simple and easy to make with few ingredients. Here is the original recipe from Two Peas & Their Pod. It’s a good recipe, and I’ve changed very little to make it perfect for me (basically, I took out the onions because I don’t like them and replaced the fresh thyme with dried because I didn’t have any). It makes a huge pot of soup though, probably enough for 8-10 people, so the version I’m posting here is smaller. It heats up well, so if you want to make a big pot and eat it for several days go right ahead.

In regards to the chicken, you can either boil a chicken breast cut into large pieces for about 7 minutes (until there is no pink left) and then shred it with two forks, or you can use meat left over when making chicken stock from scratch.

One more thing …. I apologize for only have two pictures. I kept for getting to take them while cooking, and then only these two turned out not-blurry and edible-looking.

Chicken and Rice Soup

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Chopped carrots and the celery we froze from our garden

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large carrot, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 teaspoon ground thyme

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 quart (4 cups) chicken broth

½ cup water

½ cup long grain rice

1 cup shredded chicken

½ teaspoon pepper

½ teaspoon salt

Cook chicken ahead of time and prepare broth. Set aside.

Place a soup pan over medium heat and add olive oil. Add carrot, celery, garlic, and thyme. Cook for about 6 minutes, stirring until vegetables are softened but not browned. Add chicken broth, water and rice. Bring to boil and add chicken, salt, and pepper. Simmer over medium-low heat for about 30 minutes or until rice is tender. Serve hot.

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Caramel Apple Cheesecake

4 December, 2013

Caramel Apple Cheesecake

I made this cheesecake for a potluck last week. It is my favorite cheesecake for fall, and also works well as a winter dessert. Since trying it with this oatmeal crust, I’ve stopped using graham crackers at all for this cheesecake. This crust works well for other fruit cheesecakes and can be used with a New York style cheesecake.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake

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Crushing up almonds for the crust

Crust

1-1/2 cups quick oats, uncooked

1/2 cup finely chopped almonds or pecans

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted.

No need to butter the pan — this crust doesn’t stick

Combine, mix well and press into 9-inch spring-form pan.

Filling

2 (8-oz.) packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

Be careful when spreading the batter. It sometimes pulls up the crust if moved around too much.

Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla at medium speed with electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing at low speed after each addition. Pour over crust.

Topping

4 cups peeled apples, thinly sliced

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Sprinkle the topping evenly

Toss apples with combined sugar and cinnamon. Spoon apple mixture over cream cheese layer. Sprinkle with pecans.

Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool before removing rim of pan. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.

Drizzle with caramel ice-cream topping just before serving.
Buying More Books

2 December, 2013

Before I get into the subject of today’s post, I won NaNoWriMo! I hit the 50,000 word mark last Wednesday night. I think that puts me about 2/3 of the way through my plot outline, so I didn’t technically write a novel in a month. Still, 50,000 words is pretty impressive, if I may say so myself.

I have a fairly large library. Just over 1,100 books in total, according to the list I keep on my computer (I’ve been told this is “too many books” but I’m not convinced there’s any such thing). Even so, I’m constantly buying new books. The problem is, I have a limited book budget. That doesn’t mean I have to stop getting new books though. Here are some of my sources for finding more books without spending too much money.

Paper Back Swap

This is an amazing website: PaperBackSwap.com. You post books you want to get rid of (yes, that sometimes happens), and when other members claim them you get a credit that can be used to request posted books. The only cost is shipping out books to other members. Unfortunately, many of the books I want have wait lists, but even so I’ve received enough books that the website estimates I’ve saved $84.17. Not too shabby. And I have 16 credits for whenever my wishlist books become available.

Trading Book Stores

There is a wonderful trading bookstore not half an hour’s drive from here that sells new and used books. My favorite way to approach this store is to turn in books my aunt no longer wants on her shelves, and then bring home books for me 🙂 That’s how I found books like my hardcover edition of Jules Verne’s Mysterious Island, several fairy tale volumes, and where I bought my first Reader’s Digest World’s Best Reading edition (not to be confused with those Reader’s Digest condensed book collections).

Library Book Sales

My local library has a book sale once a month. For a small fee, I’m a Friend of the Library and can get into the member pre-sale. Books sell for between $.025 and $1.00. Some months I buy nothing, sometimes I can hardly carry them all back to the car. If you don’t know when your local book sales are, try checking BookSaleFinder.com.

For Specific Books

For general book shopping, the three resources above are great. But if I’m looking for a specific title or edition. Amazon and Half.com are my go-to sites. If I want the book store experience, there’s three Half Price Books within about an hour’s drive.

Is there anywhere else you’d recommend looking for books to economically increase the size of your library? I’d love to hear your ideas. Also, if you have any ideas about finding more room for books, I’m starting to run out of space on my bookshelves …
When I Am Weak

30 November, 2013

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. My family gathered at my Uncle’s house for turkey, lots of mashed potatoes, euchre playing, and several enthusiastic Apples to Apples games that could probably have been heard by people driving by in their cars.

Today, I have another C.S. Lewis quote to share with you. As I think I mentioned in last week’s post, I’ve been reading The Problem of Pain. In chapter 6, he makes this statement: “tribulations cannot cease until God either sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless.”

Comfortable Dirtiness

To put this statement in context, Lewis was talking about human tendency to only turn our attention to God when things are going badly in our lives. When we are scared or in pain, we rush to God and ask him to take it away and bring us through the trial. But all to often, we try our best to forget the thing that brought us back to God as soon as that prayer is answered.

God has had me for but forty-eight hours and then only by dint of taking everything else away from me. Let Him but sheathe that sword for a moment and I behave like a puppy when the hated bath is over — I shake myself dry as I can and race off to reacquire my comfortable dirtiness, if not in the nearest manure heap, at least in the nearest flower bed. And that is why tribulations cannot cease until God either sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless.

We need our weaknesses and our sufferings to help bring us into God’s family. I did a search for the word “suffer” in the KJV, and found it used more than 50 times to refer to Christ’s suffering and/or the necessity of us following in His footsteps.

For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake (Philippians 1:29)

Importance of Fire

Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. (1 Peter 4:12-13)

The analogy of a refining fire is one that is frequently used in scripture. Gold and silver are purified by fire (Zech. 13:9), pottery needs fired to give it strength (Is. 64:8). We tend often think of fire as a bad thing, perhaps because of the association with fiery punishment. But fire in the context of trials has a positive connotation. Even if the affects are unpleasant, the result should be us moving ever closer to glory.

But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. (1 Peter 5:10)

God Hasn’t Given Up

There are two ways we can take the idea Lewis expresses when he says, “tribulations cannot cease until God either sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless.” We can either get depressed and worn down by the realization that trials will not end until we are perfected, or we can look at trials as proof that God hasn’t given up on making us like Christ.

And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
Blond Brownies

27 November, 2013

There are few baked goods that I feel like I could sit down and eat the entire pan in one setting when it comes out of the oven. This is one of them. They taste good after they cool down, too. I usually bake them on a Friday for church services on Saturday, and there are never any left by Sunday. It’s a quick dessert, so if you need something last-minute for Thanksgiving tomorrow, these blondies would work.

Blond Brownies

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1 cup butter, softened

2 cups brown sugar

2 eggs

1-½ cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

pinch salt

1 cup chopped walnuts

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Cream together the butter and brown sugar. Beat in egg. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in nuts and chocolate chips. Spread batter in a greased and floured 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Bake at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes.

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100th Blog Post

25 November, 2013

Today is less of an article and more of a collection of random ideas that popped into my head while wondering what to write for my 100th post. I actually wasn’t going to commemorate the 100th post, but I needed a topic today other than panic about how I’m going to finish this novel before the end of the month. My deadline is actually 5:00 pm on November 29th, since I don’t write on the Sabbath and I’m spending the evening of November 30th at my cousin’s house for a Sherlock marathon where she intends to win me over to tea-drinking. It started as a “Marissa must drink tea” intervention, and I suggested that such a thing must be accompanied by British television.

I suppose I’ll take this opportunity to announce my plans for my 111th post coming up in mid December. Since it’s right before The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug is released, I thought I’d make my “eleventy-first” post a Lord of the Rings Myers-Briggs chart in the style of that Star Wars MBTI that has been going around Facebook. It harder than I thought it would be. Tolkein seemed to write an unusually high proportion of introverts into his stories.

Also, on a completely unrelated note: HAPPY BIRTHDAY DOCTOR WHO! Saturday was the 50th anniversary, and the airing of a very special episode called “The Day of The Doctor.” If all goes well, I’ll be seeing it tonight at the cinema. I loosely group the TV series I watch into “I like them” and “I’m a fan,” and Doctor Who is one in the later category (along with Sherlock and Star Trek).