Foodie Friday – Chocolate and Whiskey Liqueur

Chocolate Liqueur 7
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With holiday parties coming up, here’s a neat idea for either bringing along to share, or giving as a hostess gift. It is delightfully easy to make, and it is decadently delicious.

If you don’t like alcoholic drinks, you can always leave out the booze and just have a really yummy chocolate sauce. This is great straight, over ice, or over ice cream:
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Chocolate & Whiskey Liqueur

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1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup Irish whiskey (or vodka, for a more neutral flavor)

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A Thanksgiving Classic

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From 1978, these classic clips from the sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati” never fail to leave me in stitches:

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Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
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Thanksgiving Music: “Come Ye Thankful People”

Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving

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Whenever I think of Thanksgiving, this is the song that comes to mind – and this is a beautiful arrangement sung by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir:
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Tuesday Tunes: “Simple Gifts”

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There are plenty of videos with this beautiful song out there, but I absolutely LOVE the photography used in this one – it’s full of the people and things that make America such a great country:
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(“Simple Gifts” from “Appalachian Spring” by Aaron Copland, performed by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, and conducted by Leonard Bernstein, is available in CD and MP3 formats)
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“Of the People, By the People, For the People”

Gettysburg Memorial.

Today marks the 155th anniversary of a most solemn occasion:

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Foodie Friday – Gluten Free Parker House Rolls

Many of you who know our family know that Paul, Rebecca, and I have to eat gluten-free.  Rebecca was diagnosed with Celiac Disease in April, 2008, and after we converted our kitchen to accommodate her condition we discovered that we felt a whole lot better as well.

Now, in most cases GF cooking isn’t that much different from regular cooking; I’ve found different GF ingredients and products that our family really likes (and some we’d rather not talk about) and it’s been pretty easy to adapt most things.

However, gluten-free baking is another story altogether.

Wheat gluten has a wonderful property of stretchiness that non-wheat products simply can’t match.  When it comes to baking bread/rolls/etc., it can be a real challenge to figure out how to do things right; most gluten-free bread dough is really more like cake batter, which makes it impossible to knead/mold into shapes.

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On Jonathan’s Birthday – “Autumn Leaves”

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Today would have been my friend Becky’s oldest son’s 39th birthday.  Jonathan left us much too soon (a car accident in 2001), but he left lots of great memories behind for those who loved him best.

One of the things that his family ran across while looking for things to include in his memorial service was a poem that he had written in one of his classes about a leaf falling to the ground.  It gave them great comfort, and ever since then whenever Autumn rolls around I like to think that Jonathan is surrounding everyone who knew and loved him with his presence.

Every time I hear this song, I think about Jonathan and his family:

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(“Autumn Leaves” sung by Eva Cassidy is available in CD and MP3 formats)
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“A Republic, If You Can Keep It”

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The story goes that as Benjamin Franklin emerged from Independence Hall at the close of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia on September 18, 1787, a woman asked him, “Well Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”.

Mr. Franklin replied, “A republic, madam – if you can keep it.

Ladies and Gentlemen, in looking over the events of the past few months, I would submit to you that Mr. Franklin’s Republic is still intact.

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“When October Goes”

October Leaves.
Just ask my family – I’m one of the original “Fanilows“, and I’m not ashamed to admit it.  I’ve been hooked ever since I heard “Mandy” on the radio in 1974 (what can I say?  Other girls my age went gaga for Donny Osmond – Barry’s always been “my” guy).

When October Goes” is one of my absolute favorite Barry Manilow songs.  I first heard  this song on his amazing “2:00 A.M. Paradise Cafe” album*** – I managed to wear out the cassette tape from rewinding it to hear this song over and over and over…..

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Have a great day –
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***”When October Goes” is available in CD and MP3 formats – there are lots of good songs on the album (including duets with Sarah Vaughan and the “Velvet Fog”, Mel Torme).

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Happy Halloween!

I love Halloween – it’s the only night of the year when you are allowed to wear a costume without being in a play:

I’ll be rocking this “Maleficent” costume tonight…

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