Author: Ang Anderson

Hiatus

Posted on by Ang Anderson

Apparently I have been on a blogging hiatus. It is self-imposed. I am not happy about it. Life has been a bit messier than usual around here lately and so the special things I get to do (as infrequent as that already seems to be) were put on pause. That is what I like to think anyway. I pushed pause. Now, I am pushing play. The hiatus has ended. (Yippee!)

What is the main cause of such a pause, you ask?

Well, we moved. We were extremely fortunate to sell our house in this economy and so quickly. We are still thanking God and our lucky stars for that! If you have ever moved, you understand the process. In my single days, I moved around a fair amount and became quite the expert. A roommate would move out of town or out of state, life simply bringing the unending change it inevitably brings. But I definitely got the hang of it – what with just me and my measly possessions. But to move as a wife and mother of two wee ones, it was a whole different experience. My husband and I moved belongings we have held, some since our own birth and most certainly since our marriage. We also moved the possessions of our children. I can tell you with a fair amount of certainty that there has been just a wee bit of accumulation over the last five years. A lot of bits for the wee ones, if you catch my drift. Also, there is the hanging on of stuff we have not used in two years (or twenty). Apparently, I have not traditionally been good at purging in any capacity. You do not realize how much stuff you actually have until you are forced to move it. Truly. There was so much that was garbage. There was so much given to charity. And there was so much left. Baby swings and bouncy seats, papers from my childhood days when I pretended I was a high-class executive named Samantha Taylor and grade school essays. It takes time to go through these things and to sort and recollect and reminisce…

In the meantime, during the hiatus, we were also working on the new place. This mostly involved hours and days of cleaning and painting. For me, these activities stole time away from writing and photography and other joy-filled hobbies that I would prefer to be indulging in. Now, you can understand why the pause happened. I guess it wasn’t as much self-imposed as circumstance-imposed. I have come to terms with the pause. I have decided it is okay to pause. Sometimes it is the very best thing we can do, to regroup and to regain our bearings.

And so, I am back. Decidedly. Triumphant. And happy to be!

 

 

 

 

 

Pot Roast

Posted on by Ang Anderson

I am a little embarrassed to admit that I have never made a pot roast.  Yes, that’s right.  I am (almost) 37 years old.  I have a husband.  I have been married for six years.  I have two children and one oven.  I have never, ever made a pot roast.   Until my favorite blogger and woman extraordinaire, Ree Drummond (also known as The Pioneer Woman) posted a recipe for the Perfect Pot Roast last week.  For some reason, Ree always manages to give me the courage I need to perform what seem to be extraordinary tasks.

First things first.  I needed a roasting pan.  I headed to our local store and grabbed a roasting pan.  (Now, this would also be your clue that I have never really roasted any meat.  Please don’t tell anyone.  I fear the culinary police may arrest me for negligence.)  I also hit up the local grocery store for a few of the necessary recipe items.  As luck would have it, I salvaged rosemary and thyme out of my herb garden just last week.  They are growing happily in the window sill above my kitchen sink.  I hope to keep them alive through the winter.  (Insert prayers for green-thumb-window-sill-magic here, please.)  This is a picture pre-roasting…

Wonderful smells wafted from my oven while the the inaugural roasting event took place.  I followed Ree’s instructions and just let it be.  I didn’t peek once.  I also followed her lead and made mashed pototaoes to accompany the roast.  Meat and potatoes man in the house?  Yes, ma’am.  Happy husband?  Yes, ma’am.

I am delighted to report that the meat was tender, juicy, and succulent.  Everything I would hope for my pot roast to be.

Who knew?  I can actually make pot roast.  Good pot roast.  (I don’t fear the culinary police quite as much now.)

I encourage you to give it a whirl.  It makes a perfect Sunday family dinner.

Click Here for Ree’s post which contains a lot more detail, with gorgeous step-by-step photos.  Enjoy!

Perfect Pot Roast

Ingredients

  • 1 whole (4 To 5 Pounds) Chuck Roast
  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 2 whole Onions
  • 6 whole Carrots (Up To 8 Carrots)
  • Salt To Taste
  • Pepper To Taste
  • 1 cup Red Wine (optional, You Can Use Beef Broth Instead)
  • 2 cups To 3 Cups Beef Stock
  • 3 sprigs Fresh Thyme, or more to taste
  • 3 sprigs Fresh Rosemary, or more to taste

Preparation Instructions

First and foremost, choose a nicely marbled piece of meat.  This will enhance the flavor of your pot roast like nothing else.  Generously salt and pepper your chuck roast.

Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Then add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil (or you can do a butter/olive oil split).

Cut two onions in half and cut 6 to 8 carrots into 2-inch slices (you can peel them, but you don’t have to). When the oil in the pot is very hot (but not smoking), add in the halved onions, browning them on one side and then the other. Remove the onions to a plate.

Throw the carrots into the same very hot pan and toss them around a bit until slightly browned, about a minute or so.

If needed, add a bit more olive oil to the very hot pan. Place the meat in the pan and sear it for about a minute on all sides until it is nice and brown all over. Remove the roast to a plate.

With the burner still on high, use either red wine or beef broth (about 1 cup) to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom with a whisk to get all of that wonderful flavor up.

When the bottom of the pan is sufficiently deglazed, place the roast back into the pan and add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway (about 2 to 3 cups).  Add in the onion and the carrots, as well as 3 or 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary and about 3 sprigs of fresh thyme.

Put the lid on, then roast in a 275F oven for 3 hours (for a 3-pound roast).  For a 4 to 5-pound roast, plan on 4 hours.

Banana Bread

Posted on by Ang Anderson

Our family is a bit into bananas. My husband enjoys eating the heck out of them. My children enjoy them now and again. I, myself, do not enjoy eating them. I find the texture a bit off putting. Due to the husband factor, finding two overly ripe bananas in my kitchen is truly a rare encounter. But it happened just last week. You may be thinking ‘if she doesn’t like bananas, why would she be interested in brown bananas?’. Well, dear friends, this means I get to bake. I don’t always bake. Only when the mood strikes and the conditions are right. In this case, the two ripe bananas and the autumn weather got the best of me.

Here she is in all her golden glory. Isn’t she gorgeous? I think one of her best assets is the smell she evokes while baking in the oven. My whole house smelled amazing. Banana bread in the oven and a gorgeous fall day. Just what nature intended.

I am pretty sure we all have recipes for the ever-delightful banana bread but this one is worth a try, if you are willing to deviate from your usual recipe. I skip the nuts because to be honest, my kids are not nutty about nuts. (That was a test to see how maybe times I could make reference to nuts in one sentence.) If I am feeling particularly naughty, I replace the aforementioned nuts with chocolate chips. I must have been feeling nice because I just baked a straight up plain version with no additions whatsoever.

Here is the Banana Bread recipe.

Bake for the love of bananas, the love of bread, or the love of amazing baking smells. Or all three. 😉