Two Easy Dishes

You don’t have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces – just good food from fresh ingredients.
Julia Child (1912 – 2007)

Getting ready for a block party in my brother’s neighborhood. I had to bring two of my favorite dishes. 

The first is:

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 boneless chicken breasts shredded (I just used Purdue Short Cuts and shredded in my food processor)

2 8oz cream cheese

1 cup of ranch or blue cheese dressing

2 cups of Frank’s Hot Sauce

1-2 cups of cheddar cheese

Microwave the cream cheese, salad dressing and hot sauce for 2 minutes, Stir, Microwave another two minutes. Stir.

Dump it all into a crock pot, mix with chicken and cheddar cheese. Heat it up.

Serve with Fritos scoops or a hearty chip and Celery sticks.

The second is:

Hot Kimchi Pickle –  4 servings

1 large cucumber thinly sliced

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 cloves garlic, smashed

½ teaspoon hot pepper flakes

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a bowl, toss the cucumber slices with the salt. Let stand for 15 minutes; drain.

Add the vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, garlic, hot pepper flakes and cayenne.

Toss to combine.

Looking forward to a fun day of good food, good music and good folks!

Teal Ribbon

I can’t sleep tonight. It’s 11:00 pm and I have to work tomorrow. I’m tired but my mind won’t stop. I’m getting over a sinus infection, on an antibiotic and didn’t sleep much last night… and still – I can’t sleep.

I got robbed yesterday – cancer stole another friend. Ovarian cancer. I HATE IT. I can’t scream loud enough how much I hate cancer – how much I hate this cancer. I have another friend that’s had it for two years now. I am worried… very worried.

I promised my friend, Pam, when I took her to the bus station after BettyAnn’s funeral, I promised her I’d visit. DID I?

When I heard Ellie was in the hospital, I wanted to go visit. DID I?

I’ve been meaning to call MaryAnne and  get together with her. Don’t even think I’m going to answer that question again. Not to mention Dol, Cindy and Brenda who have all extended invitations to visit.

The thing is, there’s something worse than cancer in each one of us – it’s laziness, it’s procrastination, it’a  stupidity, it’s ungratefulness. Is that a word? What I’m saying is that our lives are woven together so closely and one thread can unravel us so completely. I’ve let too many of those threads unravel my life lately. I haven’t been grateful for the richness of the people’s lives that have touched mine.

Oh, and I’ve been touched… my church friends, my music friends, my theater friends, my on-line friends, my old friends, my school friends, my work friends,  my family friends, my family period. Friends. God, I’m blessed. And God, forgive me for misusing your gift of friends.

 God, forgive me. Amen.