These baked beans are TO DIE FOR. They are almost more of a casserole, but still go good as a side. (Even though Sean and I did have them as leftovers for dinner Monday!) My grandma made them this Thanksgiving, then I just made them on Sunday for a potluck. You gotta try them... ! I've put my notes/opinions in color, just for some tips and my opinions.
Hog Apple Baked Beans
3 or 4 slices bacon, diced (I put about 5 slices of bacon in mine- hey, I like bacon!)
2 (16 oz) cans pork and beans, mostly drained (some people use 2 28-oz cans Bush's Baked Beans)
1/2 c. BBQ Sauce (Some kind of sweet-spicy favorite)
1 lb. smoked leftover smoked pork or beef, more or less, or 1 lb crumbled cooked pork sausage (I used a roll of pork sausage and crumbled it up as I cooked... and the serving was a little less than a pound- 12 oz I believe)
1 can apple pie filling (chop up the chunks to be little)
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp. Mustard (prepared)
1 tsp chipotle or cayenne powder (optional, to taste*)(I put just a few dashes and it still has a little kick)
1 tsp barbecue rub (don't panic- any kind of BBQ or steak rub seasoning will do)
Brown bacon, and saute onion and green pepper in bacon grease.
Mix in remaining ingredients. (I dumped everything in a big mixing bowl as it was ready. That way it all gets mixed up and stuff!)
Bake at 325º for 1 hour, or simmer on stovetop in large pot for 30 minutes if you don't have time to do them in the oven. Serves 12.
Just thought I'd share of few of my favorite things, as of late. Its very random, I promise, but lots of good stuff. So, for you time-wasting, website-puddle-jumping joy.... here ya go!
Rachel Ray's Stuffed Steak with Proscuitto and Spinach
The entire menu is just outstanding... stuffed steak with proscuitto and spinach, sauteed crimini mushrooms, warm cherry tomato salad. Delish!
Design*Sponge's DIY section
You can find all sorts of fabulously simpl
e DIY crafts and decor ideas, such as these awesome cedar silhouettes.... If you know me well enough to get a present from me at some point during the year, you just might see one of these......
Rachel Ray's Stuffed Steak with Proscuitto and SpinachThe entire menu is just outstanding... stuffed steak with proscuitto and spinach, sauteed crimini mushrooms, warm cherry tomato salad. Delish!
A photography website with tons of adorable, beautiful pictures from all kinds of lay and professional photographers!
I am madly in love with this London-based print company. Brilliant! Beautiful! Personal! I can't wait to find something to print in one or all of their beautiful formats. Business cards, note cards, post cards, and my personal faves, the mini cards... go see for yourself!
Full of information on all of the unreached people groups in the world. This is just one of thousands on their website... you could spend hours here. There are lots of nations who need Jesus, people!
My grandma first made these at thanksgiving this year, and I just made them for a potluck this past Sunday... they are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO good. You can't go wrong with them... you can substitute all kinds of things and put a lot of what you have on hand in them and they are sooooo good. I'm going to make a separate post with the recipe and pics. I'm telling you... home run!
Our decision to move to California was not an easy one. But one of the things that made it easier (though NOT a factor in our decision-making process) was the fact that several of our dear friends from college already lived out here and worked at the same church. Even though we may not hang out as much now as we thought we would, it has been such a huge blessing to have great friends here. While we loved our NC friends that were new to us in NC, there is a certain comfort and familiarity with people who know you from an additional time in life. In this case, it is friends who knew us from college, and now who know us out in "the real world." We work together, we live in the same town, and we just do life together. I have been reminded how sweet that fellowship is this past week by our dear friends, Tommy & Shiny. Tommy & Sean are both in the missions department, so they work together closely every day, but Sean and I are also in the same small group with Tommy & SHiny and one other couple. This past weekend, after church on Saturday (which have I mentioned how much I LOVE going to church on Saturday night?!), Shiny invited Sean and I over for a home-cooked, made-from-scratch Indian dinner. Two words for you: YUM MEEEEEEEE! Delicious! Here's a pic of our fantastic fare:
Yum... it was great. Shiny is an excellent cook and especially fantastic when it comes to cooking in her native cuisine.
Tuesdays are our small group nights. We are currently going thru a study on finances (more on this later) and it has been so great! I think it is the best study our small group has ever done! I really look forward to Tuesday nights now. This past Tuesday (yesterday) it was just us Wilsons and the Corraos.... we did our study then had an awesome evening of conversation (and slightly weird tasting cookies made by yours truly- still don't know what was off) and sharing and praying together. At the end of the night, as we were heading home (at 9:45!) I thought to myself, "Now this is community. This is what a small group is supposed to be like." It was so great and I am so thankful for our friends here! :-)
My husband is so wonderful... I came home last Friday and he had these beautiful sterling roses waiting for me for absolutely no reason....
Beautiful, arent they?!
I was really off on some of my nomination predictions! See for yourself:
Richard Jenkins
Melissa Leo
Kate Winslet
Milk
Richard JenkinsThe Visitor
Frank Langella
Frank LangellaFrost/Nixon
Sean Penn
Sean PennMilk
Brad Pitt
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke
The Wrestler
Josh Brolin
Milk
Robert Downey Jr
Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Doubt
Heath Ledger
The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon
Revolutionary Road
Anne Hathaway
Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie
Changeling
Frozen River
Meryl Streep
Doubt
Kate WinsletThe Reader
Amy Adams
Doubt
Penelope Cruz
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis
Doubt
Taraji P Henson
The Curious Case...
Marissa Tomei
The Wrestler
The Curious Case of
Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
MilkThe Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
Yes, yes, i know what you're thinking... Christmas has already come and gone... isn't that the most wonderful time of the year? While Christmas is wonderful and I enjoy the good tidings as much as anyone, the most wonderful time of the year will be upon us in just about 6 hours... that's right friends... that is when the nominations for the 81st annual Academy Awards will be announced! I will no doubt have to crank up my date nights at the movies in order to fit in all of the noms for the top ranked categories.... best actor/actress, supporting actor/actress, and of course, best picture. I've tried in the past to watch ALL the nominations, and well, between my tight pocketbook and the boring foreign films, I fell slightly short of that goal. So I'm sticking to the most important ones. Some flicks I definitely anticipate being on the list are as follows:-Dark Knight: This one's a shoe-in for Best Actor, but is it possible that it could become the first superhero flick to snag a golden man? Heath was legendary in that movie, but I'm not sure the movie itself is worthy to be named amongst titles such as The Godfather, Lawrence of Arabia, Casablanca, Gone with the Wind, Titanic, Gladiator, Schindler's List, Braveheart and Crash (which IS my all-time favorite movie EVer)? I'm not sure... but it is a good one. It will all depend on who the fellow nominees in this category are.
-Gran Torino: If this makes the list for best picture, it will hands down win, in my opinion. Though the movie is rough and wordy (read: not for grandma, unless grandma was once a tobacco chewing sailor with the vocabulary to match) the theme of redemptive sacrifice that echoes throughout it is astounding.
There are several that will surely be nominated, I just haven't seen yet... they are:
-Revolutionary Road: Who doesn't love Kate & Leo back together again? Its surely a more grown up film, but then again, I am more grown up. (I saw Titanic in theatres 7 times when it debuted during my high school days)
-Doubt: I'm not really looking forward to seeing this one... its one of those weird ones that the academy always chooses because of its laden, underlying political and/or social injustice-type themes. THat said, however, Philip Seymour Hoffman is spectacular in anything he does. I'm guessing a nom for him in this.
-Milk: Again, NO desire to see this. Will only see it if I must.
-Ben Button: I've herd mixed reviews, but am excited to see this one for sure. Hello= Brad Pit!
-The Reader: A holocaust movie, once again starring the lovely Ms. Winslet. I love her and everything she does, and I love WW2 history so I am VERY excited for this one.
-The Changling: one word-- Angelina.
-And finally, last but definitely not least, Slumdog Millionaire: I am predicting an utter and total land slide for this film. I take back what I said about Gran Torino.... this one could take best pic and stand its own beside the Hepburns and Hestons of the Great Picture realm.
Here's another review on Mad Church Disease... I'm getting more and more excited to read it! I'll let you know my thoughts as soon as I read it... Release date: 01 Feb. I want some of you to read it too so we can actually talk about it! Its super cheap on Amazon pre-order (<---- That's even a direct link to order it... so no excuses~!) right now... less than $12. :-)
