Posted on 04/15/2018 1:38:21 PM PDT by Jamestown1630
Dear Cooking Friends;
Since I changed my weekly cooking thread to a monthly one, I've received several private emails from folks who are disappointed at this change.
It's very gratifying to me that the thread has been so popular and that so many have enjoyed engaging it. As I mentioned in March, my life is going to be rather consumed with a couple of unusual projects over the coming Summer. I have felt that my free time wouldn't be predictable enough to give the thread the care that I tried to give it over the past several years.
However, if anyone would like to access the ping list on my home page, and post more frequent threads, that would be great. Yaelle and Cottonball have done a wonderful job of this in the past.
-JT
How neat that he can make your cabinets. Thatll save a ton. We ended up spending a small fortune on ours and the quality is lacking even with the upgrade. They look nice right now, but I dont think they will hold up.
Actually I really like the idea of the pulldown fire alarms, the sprinkler system, and exit signs :-) actually sprinkler systems like that are now mandatory in California homes. They dont care that an accidental trigger will ruin your entire house and furnishings. I suppose pull down fire alarms with children just arent a good idea!
Mudrooms are really nice, I wish we had room for one. It sounds like youve got a great buy, if the foundation and bones are intact, the cosmetic stuff is the cheapest and easiest part to fix. Although it doesnt seem like it when youre in the middle of it.
I dont know, we could probably have an ugly house contest. We cant figure out what to do to make ours look better on the outside without spending a small fortune. And we just assume the neighbors think we are keeping it the way it is. Although word got out about all the remodeling inside :-(. I always thought that I loved brick, but somehow these people found the ugliest brick to put on this house. And its just a rectangular box, looks like a mobile home shape. With itty bitty windows. Boring boring boring!
COCONUT ICED TEA
Add 8 jasmine tea bags to 6 c boiling water; steep offheat 5 min. Add/dissolve 1/4 c sugar.
Add 1/4 c ea h/cream, plain coconut milk, lime slices. Cover/fridge til cold.
SERVE in tall frosted glasses.
Your place sounds amazing! 16 years ago my sister bought an old church retreatin the western NC mountains outside of Black Mountain. Has an amazing porch & windows. She truly got a steal. Haven’t seen it in 15 years as she has cut our family out of her & my nephew’s life.
Good luck on your place!
mmmmm Sounds good! Sounds great actually. Ive never had jasmine tea. Just jasmine rice. And that smells divine.
Thanks for your encouraging words:)
We looked at buying a church-when I walked up to the door I was sold. It was lovely, like an old church out of a Jane Austin novel. Then I went inside. The owner had ruined it. Its hard to describe, but we figured it would have cost a minimum of $20,000 just to get it gutted and back to square one. Plus, the basement was floor to ceiling mold. Our oldest has asthma and allergies-it would have killed him to spend any time there.
While less exciting, our home was a better project. Slowly its transforming from a grungy utilitarian box to something with some beauty and character (I hope!).
Sorry to hear about your sister-sadly its not uncommon.
That tea sounds good. I love coconut. I like the idea of a themed thread, weekly or monthly. I wish I could help but right now just don’t have the time.
I’ve been using a pressure cooker regularly for 30 years and I do not need another kitchen gadget. Still I’m fighting the urge to get an Instant Pot!
“Every summer I spend weeks w/ my mom outside of Asheville.”
My mom is outside Asheville too. The farmer’s markets out there are fantastic.
Newly picked potatoes are phenomenal!!!! The recipe blends I found were amazing.
If Asheville had a few Repubs, I might consider retiring there.
Come June, I can help. I think this is a great thread. Cooking threads are the best.
Carlo’s did one years ago. Anyone remember that?
That looks like heavens!
Discovered the Appalachians when I was in 3rd grade and just totally fell in love. Someday I will end up there.
thanks! This whole area, Northeast Tennessee, looks like that. I am amazed when I drive to the airport, drive to Walmart, stand in the food city parking lot. There are views everywhere.
I hope you do end up near here. It is magical. And the fireflies, I feel like Ive died and gone to heaven when they come out!
That looks great! Simple, and yet also upscale at the same time. And totally unexpected.
I just love your description of the dish.....you missed your calling....you oughta be a food writer.
LOL, maybe I’m watching too much foodTV these days :-)
The worst part is when I ask my husband how he likes something I made, he tries to come up with something like the judges would. And of course that always includes something that could have been done better. Oh well...
When he was working out of the house and I would text to ask what he wanted for dinner, he would say he would stop on the way home and randomly pick up four items at the grocery store, LOL. Luckily he never did it.
Asheville is only about 45 minutes from Johnson City. I go to a dentist in Asheville. The reason I say that is that there’s lots of beautiful and fun places to go to from the Tri-Cities area in Tennessee. I also bop over to Virginia for shopping quite a bit, since the sales tax there’s quite low compared to here.
I wouldn’t live in Asheville either, it is too yuppie for me. I prefer the rustic country life. But it is beautiful to visit. And the drive is spectacular from the Tri-Cities, you go through Sam’s Gap at 5000 feet. I just love the names of things around Here, Sam’s Gap, how cute!
Property taxes are quite a bit lower in Tennessee compared to Virginia and North Carolina. We knew we wanted to come to this area, so those three states were an option. Plus looking at voting records, Tennessee’s trend is actually very stable, especially in this area. Whereas North Carolina and Virginia appear to be turning purple. We didn’t want to get stuck with what we had in California, which was the big cities out voting us.
Our sales tax is high. That’s about the only complaint I have. Oh and the governor, our senators, and the representative we have here are all RINOs :(
Cute.......nice sense of humor.
Nice coincidence! I always have said that if I won the lottery I I would buy a house on the beach. I love hearing the waves & the beach smell. But spending time in the mountains is also wonderful. So absolutely beautiful & the mist.......like a painting.
Asheville is hipster ville. There are places we enjoy going.....Mast General store (if you’ve never been, you must go!!), City Bakery downtown & the main art gallery. Years ago the panhandling was so aggressive that I told my brother we needed to go somewhere else. Around the little homeless park they have untold homeless & really sketchy characters. The famous bookstore Malaprops had to take in their outdoor tables & chairs & their bathroom has been utterly trashed multiple times. I blame that on the leadership.
How often do you see your mom?
I guess I shouldve mentioned that had to do with chopped but I think you figured that out :-)
Coconut Creme Dessert
CRUST Press into 9×12" oblong pan combined cup flour, 1/2 c ea butter, nuts. Bake 15 min 350 deg; cool.
METHOD Layer in baked crust: 1/2 cr/cheese mixture, coconut cream pudding, rest cr/cheese, toasted coconut. Chill.
SERVE in squares.
TOPPING Mix 8 oz softened cream cheese, cup conf, cup Cool Whip.
LAYER Mix/thicken 2 pkg instant coconut pudding, 2 cups milk.
VARY Make w/ instant chocolate pudding.
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