February - 2017

Rules Of Thumb | Home

Family Favorite Corn Chowders, Basic, Or Made More Interesting!!

Family Favorite Corn Chowders, Basic, Or Made More Interesting!!

Corn chowder has been around in our family for years..It was my father's fav soup and is my husbands, and several kids growing up, and some not....I have made simple basic corn chowder, and my favorite has always been if possible, made with fresh cooked cut off the cob sweet summer corn... it is simple and makes a big difference in flavor...I cook the corn for 8 minutes, cut off the cob and scrape down the cob with my knife for the corn milk, use immediately, or put in contai

Pizza, Portobello Mushrooms, Diets, Grandmothers!!

Pizza, Portobello Mushrooms, Diets, Grandmothers!!

Several years ago while spending a summer at the ocean, I decided for the umpteenth time I needed to lose some weight. Pizza being one of my downfalls, I decided I needed to do something different for the crust, the most fattening part, so started thinking of ways I could still get that pizza flavor I loved, without all the calories...my favorite toppings are mushrooms, spinach, chopped tomatoes, and cheese, all kinds of cheese, and any kind of cheese...so this Portobello mu

Cupboards, Forgotten Items, Instant Hits, Coconut Creations!!

Cupboards, Forgotten Items, Instant Hits, Coconut Creations!!

Many months ago I ran across an interesting recipe that used coconut milk..I have never cooked with coconut milk for some reason, but am obsessed with coconut anything.....So I purchased a can of coconut milk, stuck it in my cupboard and forgot about it...the other day as I was checking for lunch ideas, lo and behold there was the can of coconut milk....I immediately thought "oh great I will make that recipe that sounded so good". Not so fast. I could not for the life of me r

Fishing With My Dad, Fish Recipes, Ice Fishing In Maine, Pier Fishing In Florida!!

Fishing With My Dad, Fish Recipes, Ice Fishing In Maine, Pier Fishing In Florida!!

When I was 9 years old, my 5 year old brother passed away from cerebral palsy...This was devastating to my family, and all our lives changed in different ways...I was the oldest of 3 children, and he was the youngest, a boy/son and of course, my father was over the moon having a son after 2 daughters...we were poor in those days, my parents had no insurance and most of my brothers life was spent in and out of Boston Children's Hospital....seeing my parents sad was a new conce

The Real Truth About Spaghetti Squash, In My Opinion!!

The Real Truth About Spaghetti Squash, In My Opinion!!

My real "truths" about spaghetti squash, and mine alone. How many times have you read and heard, "spaghetti squash can be used in any pasta dish and no one will even notice". Are you kidding me?? maybe it might look like spaghetti, but that is where the story ends. Don't get me wrong, I eat it fixed all different ways, the main reason being it is extremely low in calories and healthy, two things that it does have in its favor..But here lies the problem, or not. It has to be d

To Stuff Or Not To Stuff It? Twice Baked Potatoes!

To Stuff Or Not To Stuff It? Twice Baked Potatoes!

I am a hugh fan of stuffing things, quite often when I am asked what to do with a certain item, my fav tip is "just stuff it." I admit I might have stuffed a few things I prob should not have tried, but then again, how would I have known whether to "stuff or not to stuff it". One of our favorite family functions buffet items through the years has been my twice baked potatoes. I have made them all shapes and sizes, small, medium, large, and misshaped....few ingredients can be

Can We Talk Shrimp? Shrimp And Apple Salad Tomato Fan!

Can We Talk Shrimp? Shrimp And Apple Salad Tomato Fan!

Yes, we do eat other proteins in our family, but when your husband likes basic foods, blogging a piece of steak, burger, piece of chicken or a basic pork chop is a tad boring, everyone should know how to cook those items, so I compromise, we have his basic cooked protein, and I have my crazy, interesting and creative sides, after 51 years it has worked well for us.... On to shrimp, the subject of this post....Shrimp ranks high on my list of favorite proteins, not so much his.

Miss Madilyn's Mac And Cheese, Memories And Comfort Go Together!!

Miss Madilyn's Mac And Cheese, Memories And Comfort Go Together!!

When my granddaughter was old enough to make her food preferences known, she had 3 favorite things that were always requested when she visited, "Grammy mac and cheese, ham, and applesauce", so of course when I knew she was coming I would be sure I had all 3 for her, isn't that what grandmothers do? She, like all little children had her little food quirks and one of hers was everything be cut up really small, this unusual request from a 4 year old was interesting to me...many

Deviled Eggs, Happy Dance, Egg Salad?

Deviled Eggs, Happy Dance, Egg Salad?

Have had a lot of requests for my deviled eggs, and also for me to post them on this blog so am happy to do so....also how to peel them easily! First of all, the best way I have found to cook the eggs is bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover tightly and let sit: 12 minutes for small 13 minutes for med 14 minutes for large 15 minutes for extra large...I find the extra large work best for deviled eggs, hole size mainly. Have read all kinds of tips on peeling through the year

Senior Moments, Maple Syrup Rescue, So Good Pork!!

Senior Moments, Maple Syrup Rescue, So Good Pork!!

In our family Vt. Maple Syrup is right up there with bacon in determining whether a recipe will be a favorite or not.....This is how you adapt on a fly and fix a senior moment...as I was chatting with my friend in the super market, yes, Lori, it was you, I grabbed a pork loin end roast, meaning to grab a center cut rib roast...My plans were to cut my own chops, which I try to do, cheaper that way, and can get the thickness you want, etc...when I pulled it out of the fridge fo

Recent Posts