Happy Post Thanksgiving!

And how did your Thanksgiving go? Mine was fabulous! The journey to get there and back though was incredibly long. I had slept my normal sleep up to the morning of the 25th and then did not sleep again, until late on the 26th. Didn't sleep on the plane, didn't sleep on the 4 1/2 hour drive to Savannah. Got a 30 minute nap in at my son's. Didn't sleep on the long drive back from Savannah. Finally got to bed/sleep about 10pm. So I was very sleep-deprived for a long time.

As I said before, my son made Thanksgiving dinner and the turkey was spectacular! He pulled a recipe off the Internet and it took him 2 days to complete. He did a wonderful job with the turkey-so moist and tender. Interestedly enough, the recipe said not to go by the timer/pop-out indicator. The recipe said those turkey pop-outs weren't reliable enough. The only time he wanted my help with the turkey, was when he wanted to make sure there wasn't any pink inside. The rest of the dinner was boxed, bagged, canned and pre-baked. He said the turkey was all he could focus on for this menu. So we had boxed instant mashed potatoes, canned cranberries, canned cream corn, package rolls, package stuffing-that you add broth and butter to, jar of gravy and pre-frozen pumpkin pie. He wants to do Christmas this year too. With Ham and a small turkey breast, and real mashed potatoes.

This is from the child I raised, who hated my experimenting with recipes while he was growing up. He pretty much grew up eating just cereal and chicken. Look at him now-all grown up-26 years old and experimenting with his own recipes. I am so proud of him. He has just set up his Christmas tree and he texted me its completion. After congratulating him on the Christmas tree, we discussed his Christmas dinner. Plus he wanted some of my recipes for a Christmas Party, he will be giving. I have at different times in my life-operated a catering business. With my speciality being Appetizers. I have been very successful with this in the past. I just don't have a large enough anything at this point here in Las Vegas to start again. Kitchen isn't big enough, no extra freezer, etc.

My ebay cookbook web site, is dying with very little business-so I'm going back to my listings starting at $.99 and media mail. And then I'm going to let the buyers decide if they don't mind waiting for media mail delivery or do they want to put extra money out for Priority or Express mail. Look for me on EBay at Valerie2901 or under general heading of cookbooks.

Our Lady's Kitchen from the Our Lady of Las Vegas Catholic Church is my book to promote today. Look for it on EBay. It has over 225 pages with 2 or 3 recipes on each page. Must be 500 recipes in it. The uniqueness of this book is that many of the recipes are from the priests and friars of this Church. With very unique recipes, I guess Priests have to eat too and experiment with many unusual foods.

Company coming in town today, so that's all for now.

Cookbook Val

Happy Thanksgiving!

Off to Savannah. Have a nice Thanksgiving everyone!

Cookbook Val

Life on EBay is slow, but there are still sales. Not alot of books listed right now. Come January, I'll switch back to media mail and $.99 listing and then there will be many more books available. So if you are in the need of a cookbook, please look under Valerie2901 on EBay. Actually, there some good books listed.

Two books I'm going to promote are Chili Madness by Jane Butel and The Stew Cookbook by Johnrae Earl & James McCormick. Chili Madness has more than 35 best & tested recipes, plus legendary origins & spiritual beginnings. Also controversies & further craziness, & peppers & powders. Learn about the soup of the devil, the "strictly American" brew. The other book-The Stew Cookbook, because it's wintertime and though stew is good all year round, right now a good stew will keep your stomach, filled and warm. Learn about mulligan stew, basic stews, veal, lamb & mutton stews, fish & seafood stews, vegetarian stews, common'st creature stews, gourmet stews, wild game stews, the strange stews and stews from around the world. Did you know there were so many stews.

More Elvis/Las Vegas trivia: Elvis married Priscilla Beaulieu in a suite at the Aladdin Hotel on May 1, 1967 (Lisa Marie was born exactly nine months later.

Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis' manager, lost more than $1 million per year gambling at the Las Vegas Hilton.

On February 18, 1973, during Elvis' midnight show at the Hilton, four men rushed the stage, apparently intending to do harm. Elvis, employing his long-practiced karate skills, helped fend off the attack.

Ongoing is a recipe contest by California Wild Rice- www.cawildrice.com. The grand prize is $5,000. So what is your speciality using CA Wild Rice? Look on the website for complete rules.

I have come across one problem with all this cooking that I've been doing lately.... I AM GAINING WEIGHT. So the solution seems to be less cooking or cooking less. I am trying to get back to my one big meal a day while I am home-one big meal that I eat for lunch & dinner and some fruit for breakfast. I guess that means no more chicken wings for awhile and I do love chicken wings.

So what are your Thanksgiving Day plans? Mine will be in Savannah, GA with my son at his new home. This is his first Thanksgiving dinner to put together. My sister, Leslie will also be there from Atlanta, as well an assortment of my son's friends. So late tomorrow night, I will take the red-eye flight to Atlanta, my sister will pick-me-up at the airport and then a 3 hour drive to Savannah. Stay for about 6 hours, drive back to Atlanta for the red-eye flight and fly back to Las Vegas. Do I sound like a jet-setter or what?

What can you do with lemons: For Oily Skin, get a gorgeous glow with a lemon facial.

Lemon regulates excess oil, and cornmeal exfoliates skin so it's extra-soft.

Place a warm washcloth over clean face for 5 minutes. Mix 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp. water, 1/2 cup plain yogurt, 1/4 cup cornmeal. Massage onto face for 1-2 minutes, rinse and pat dry.

That's all for now.

Cookbook Val

THE MOVIE 2012

Yesterday, I went to see the movie 2012. The story is weak, but the special effects are tremendous. Plus it was almost 3 hours long-worth the movie theater dollars. Best disaster movie in a long time. Everybody was very quiet after the movie. Makes you really think about global warming and the long term effects it may have on this planet.

I made my pasta with mascarone cheese and walnuts-good, but still not the pasta dish I want. I want a pasta dish that will make me crave it over and over again-a nice vegetarian dish. I am definetly meat eater-I love steak, but some days I am a part-time vegetarian too. Macroni and cheese is probaly the only pasta that I crave so far, but only if it's fresh made. The box kind has too many chemicals in it now.

The Annual National Pie Championships will be held April 23-25, 2010 in Orlando, FL with Professional, Amateur and Commercial Divisions. Applications and more information can be found at www.piecouncil.org/Events/NationalPieChampionships/ . I may just enter myself for next year.

That's all for now. I'm on the plane, in the air.
Cookbook Val

Tonight Pasta Shells with Mascarpone Cheese and Walnuts

I listed a book by Suzanne Somers today on EBay, under Valerie2901 called "The Sexy Years". Women, look for this book. It explains so much about menopause, whether you are in it or not and the menopause that men go through. I have read almost every book Suzanne has written and you have to take some of what she says with a grain of salt. But in every book she does do her homework and the research. This has nothing to do with cooking, but it is a book I recommend.

Again not cooking, but at least something to do with food. Soften your feet with a lime and sea salt scrub. Sea salts smooth out tough calluses, the vitamin C in the lime brightens your skin tone and Epsom salts reduce excess swelling.

Dampen feet. Dip half a lime in sea salts and scrub over calluses. Fill a basin with warm water and 1-2 cups Epsom salts. Soak for 10 minutes. Dry and moisturize with a foot cream.

My chef for today is Brian Boitano. Not that well known, but he is on Food Network. Brian is a Former Olympic Figure Skater. His website is www.brianboitano.com , which will link you to the Food Network and his recipes. He has alot of fun with his cooking and the recipes are easy to produce and very tasteful. This is a chef worth knowing more about.

Last night I made chicken wings again, but I think this is the last time, I will be deep-frying them. Set off the smoke alarm many times-I'm sure my neighbors loved that whiny sound of the smoke detector. This time, I took the time and made my favorite wing sauce.

My wing sauce: 1/4 cup butter, 1/2 bottle Louisiana hot sauce, celery sticks, blue cheese dressing.

Melt butter in a small sauce pan. Add the hot sauce; stir until well-blended. If you like your wings hotter, add the rest of the hot sauce bottle.

After chicken wings are fried & drained, place in a serving bowl. Pour sauce over wings, mix well. Serve with celery and blue cheese dressing on the side.

Does it get any easier than this!!!

Tonight I will be cooking Pasta Shells with Mascarpone cheese and Walnuts. Why don't you make some too and we'll compare notes:

4 tbsp butter, 6 oz mascarpone cheese or double-creme, 1/2 lb pasta shells, cooked and drained, 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, 2 oz shelled walnuts, chopped coarse, salt, freshly ground black pepper.

In a heatproof serving dish, melt the butter and cheese. It must gently heat, not boil.

To this mixture, add the cooked pasta. Turn it round and round adding half the Parmesan cheese. Add the walnuts and and add salt to taste. Sprinkle liberally with pepper. Serve remaining Parmesan cheese separately.

Start planning now for the Whoopie Pie Festival, September 18, 2010 at the Hershey Farm Restaurant & Inn in Lancaster, PA. There will be a Whoopie Pie Treasure Hunt, Whoopie Pie Race, & so much more. www.whoopiepiefestival.com

And last but not least, more trivia on Las Vegas & Elvis Presley:

Many people assume that Elvis lived in Las Vegas between 1969 and 1976. In fact, he performed her just eight weeks (often spilt between January and August).

Elvis helped design the Imperial Suite on the 30th floor of the Hilton, where he stayed during his engagements. The suite no longer exists (it does really, but now it's the Barry Manilow suite).

In 1964's Viva Las Vegas, Elvis marries Ann-Margaret at Little Church of the West. The church, in operation for almost 70 years is the oldest structure still standing on the Strip.

More to come.

That's all for now.

Cookbook Val

Pasta to die for!

You all know I love Pasta. Well, I have the best Alfredo sauce ever for you to try. It came from the book The Joy of Pasta, which is available for sale on my EBay listing-Valerie2901. This book has incredible recipes, that are rich and creamy and oh sooo... easy to make.

Alfredo Sauce

1/4 pound butter, 1 cup heavy cream, salt, 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, fresh ground black pepper, pinch of freshly grated nutmeg, 1 pound fettuccine pasta

In a heavy heatproof casserole, combine the butter and 1/2 cup of the cream. Simmer over low heat until the butter has melted; this should take less than 1 minute. Turn off heat.

Prepare pasta, drain, then transfer to the casserole with the butter and cream. Turn the heat on under the casserole and with 2 wooden spoons or forks, lift the pasta and toss well, coating it completely with the sauce. Add the remaining 1/2 cup cream, Parmesan cheese, some salt and pepper to taste,l and nutmeg. Toss briefly for another minute, correct the seasoning and serve immediately with more Parmesan cheese on the side.

Don't take any shortcuts with this recipe. It changes the flavor alot. This is a very simple, but delicious recipe and will only add about 5 minutes to your cooking time.

Last night I went with a friend to the House of Blues at the Mandalay Bay. They had the best happy hour special. Ever heard of the 1-2-3 deal. $1-beers, $2-well drinks & $3-house wines. Plus all the appetizers were half off. Lots of people, no one famous, but food was good, and there was plenty of music to listen too.

Make your whole body velvety with an oatmeal and shea butter treatment! Oatmeal gently lifts away rough dry skin and rich shea butter makes skin feel extra-supple!

Mix 1 cup ground oatmeal, 1 cup olive oil and 1 tbsp honey. In the shower, massage scrub onto skin. Rinse and pat dry. Massage in a rich shea butter cream or lotion.

Chef of the Day: Rachael Ray-visit her website and blog on www.rachaelray.com. In 2006, Rachael launched a non-profit organization that empowers kids and their families to develop healthy relationships with food and cooking by teaching families to cook, feeding hungry kids and funding cooking education and scholarships.

That's all for now.

Cookbook Val

Pomegranates-what are they?

Today I discovered pomegranates at the 99 America store, that I go here to in Las Vegas. The Mexican produce guy called it Granada (maybe the spelling is wrong), but this is how it sounded. I wasn't sure what to do with pomegranates or much about them at all. I have had pomegranate juice, but that is my total knowledge of the fruit. I have learned that each pomegranate provides about a half cup of juice, but it's the seeds that are the best thing. You don't rinse them or dry them-you just eat the seeds as they come of the pomegranate. They can be frozen, whole as they are for future use. The health benefits seem to be that the juice provides 16% of your daily Vitamin C requirement and is a good source of B5 (pantothenic acid), potassium and antioxidant polyphenols. In addition to that, studies show that pomegranate juice is effective in reducing heart disease, reducing blood pressure and dental plaque. I have found some recipes to try-Sticky Red Wings with pomegranate juice and seeds and a pomegranate yogurt dip, to be served with vegetables. I will let you know how they turn out, after being made.

Have super-silky hair with a mint and lemongrass treatment! Mint boosts circulation so hair grows faster and lemongrass oil leaves hair soft and shiny!

Steep 4-6 mint tea bags for 10 minutes. Let cool, and pour over dry hair and scalp. Blend 1-3 drops of lemongrass oil into a cup of olive or sunflower oil and massage into scalp. Apply shampoo directly to oiled hair (do not rinse first). Lather well, thoroughly rinse and condition as usual.

My recipe of the day is for Blackberry Pie. I used frozen, which worked out wonderful and I would highly recommend vanilla ice cream to be served with this.

3 cups blackberries, fresh or frozen, 1 cup sugar, 3 tbsp flour 1 tbsp grated lemon rind, 4 tbsp butter.

Combine flour, sugar and lemon rind. Add to the berries. Using your favorite crust, line the pie tin. Dot with 2 tbsp butter. Pour in berries. Dot with with remaining 2 tbsp butter. Cover, with a lattice crust. Bake in a hot oven (400F) for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 325F and bake for 20-30 minutes more. Hmm delicious.

The cookbooks on EBay are starting to sell again. Thank you! I have a bunch of really good ones that I'm going to be listing over the next few days, so keep your eyes out for them under my EBay listing of Valerie2901.

Chefs of the day are Mary Sue Milliken & Susan Feniger. They own two restaurants in Los Angeles-Borders Grill Santa Monica & Ciudad and one restaurant in Las Vegas-Border Grill Las Vegas at the Mandalay Hotel. I'm not familiar with these restaurants, but they must be doing something right. So I'm going to give them a try in the next week or so. Keep up with Chef Jeremy Tummel news at www.marysueandsusan.com/newsletter.htm.

New York was lots of fun and I have those Tiffany knock-off necklaces for great Christmas gifts.

More Las Vegas trivia: Valley of Fire is Nevada's oldest and largest state park. The valley derives its name from the red sandstone formations and stark beauty of the Mojave Desert. Ancient remnants of early man can be found throughout the park in 3,000-year-old petroglyphs. The park is located 55 miles northeast of Las Vegas.

That's all for now.

Cookbook Val

2 Days In A Row!

Yes, I'm getting better at this, 2 days in a row. Lots of new information coming along.

The chef of the day is Mario Batali. For those of you with excess time and money on November 16, 2009, Mario will be hosting a dinner with wine tasting with winemaker, Chiara Leonini at the Babbo Restaurant in New York City. $495 per person, includes wines, food, tax & gratuity. For more information, please call 917-715-3599. www.mariobatali.com

Up is a cheese dip recipe that I tried last night. Very, very good-but you have to keep this hot, to keep the flavor going.

Val's Cheese Dip

1/2 cup diced onion, 1 cup regular or non-alcoholic beer, 8 oz shredded Cheddar cheese, 8 oz shredded Pepper Jack cheese, 2 tbsp all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 tbsp taco seasoning, 2 tbsp chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, 1 cup sour cream, tortilla chips for dipping

Place onion and beer in a heavy medium-size saucepan. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer 3 to 4 minutes. In a large bowl, combine cheeses, flour and taco seasoning. Slowly add handfuls to hot beer until melted, stirring constantly. Repeat until all of the cheese is used. Stir in chipotle pepper and sour cream. Serve with tortilla chips.

My recommendations: this takes alot of work, to get this really hot-I would place the finished product in a chafing dish or fondue pot and let it go on its own. I have never worked with chipotle pepper in adobo sauce before, it smells so wonderful. I will have to find more things to use it in.

Extra smooth hands with a butter, sugar and squalene oil treatment:

Stir 3 tbsp sugar into 1 tsp softened butter. Massage sweet scrub onto hands for 1 minute. Soak a kitchen towel in very warm water, squeeze out excess water and wrap around both hands. Leave on for 3 minutes. Wipe away excess scrub and wash hands with moisturizing hand wash. Pat dry and massage squalene oil into cuticles and hands.

Las Vegas Strip Trivia:

Gambling was legalized in Nevada in 1931.

Howard Hughes moved to the Desert Inn in 1966.

The world-famous inexpensive Las Vegas buffet debuted at the original El Rancho in the early 1940's.

March is the busiest month for tourism in Las Vegas. Except for Christmas and New Year's, December is the slowest month.

Visitors arrive by car (41%), air (44%), bus (8%), RV (6%) and train (0.4 %).

Useless, but interesting information about the town I am living in now.

Still working my EBay cookbook listing, but sales are way..... down (almost non-existent). Look for me at Valerie2901 or under the general listing of cookbooks. 117 cookbooks listed , there must be something you need!

That's all for now.

Cookbook Val

No news is good news!

I know it's been awhile, but life happens. Here I am today and let me tell you, I have been cooking up a storm.

Remember the Coconut Pie I made-what a success & so easy. Try this sometime, it tastes like a macaroon cookie.

1 cup sugar-2 eggs-2 tbsp flour-2 cups milk-1 cup grated coconut-3/4 tsp vanilla extract-1/4 tsp almond extract-1 baked deep pie crust

Preheat the oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, flour, milk, coconut, vanilla & almond extract. Pour into a deep, 9-inch pie crust. Bake until golden brown.

I made adjustments to the recipe-like I always do, so now it is mine and yours.

And remember the electric fondue pot, I bought awhile ago. Last night, I christened it, making chicken wings. It would only hold 3 large drummettes at a time, which I defrosted from frozen to cut down on the cooking time. Normal size chicken wings would probably hold 4 or 5 at a time. But I was making this just for me, so it was perfect. The only thing that was disappointing was the chicken wing sauce. Normally, I make my own chicken wing sauce (after all I am from Buffalo, home of the chicken wings), but I decided to use Frank's Chicken Wing Sauce (again home of the original chicken wings, from the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY). Obviously, the economy has hit Frank's Chicken Wing Sauce-you could tell it's now being chemically produced, with very little real butter in the sauce. Sad, how we have to cut out the key ingredients in certain products to make a profit these days.

In keeping with food ingredients (not necessarily cooking, but a cooked up recipe)-try this f0r your dry skin: PINEAPPLE FACIAL!-why it works: Bromelain, an enzyme in pineapples, quickly softens, hydrates and brightens your skin.

Wash your face with a moisturizing cleanser. Wet a washcloth in warm water; squeeze out excess and place over face for 5 minutes. In a blender, puree 3 pineapple slices, 1 tbsp plain yogurt and 3 tbsp honey. Smooth mask onto face, leave on for 10 minutes, rinse and pat dry.

When I can find them, I will now list Chef's newsletters and blogs. To start with I have Emeril Lagasse, who has a new cookbook out "20-40-60", and soon to be promoting it nationwide with a book tour. www.emerils.com

Last week layovers included New York City. We stay near the La Guardia Airport and I was not prepared to go downtown, clothes wise, now that it's getting colder. I have another layover next week and I'm ready this time. Stops planned-1st Canal St-where you used to be able to get the best knock-off's in purses in the US. Now the item to buy if the Tiffany necklace, still in sterling silver, but only $10 each (bargain, baby). I will be buying some for Christmas presents next week. Also, a new store to look out for is Century 21 Department Store. A cross between Ross and TJ Max, located at 22 Cortlandt St (between Church & Broadway), New York, NY 212-227-9092.

That's all for now.
Cookbook Val