this week: This Week…Times Up!
- 10/31/25 02:35 PM
This Week…Times Up!
Here we go again…we’re falling back. My body clock will take two weeks to adjust, so when my actual timepiece says it’s 6 am, GET UP, my old body will say…But Wait..I get one more hour!!!
Since we’ll be short on time this weekend, I’m sharing a quick and easy recipe. You can even prep it before dinner and throw it together at the last minute. You can take it to someone’s home and assemble it there!
The recipe is one I received from one of Larry’s Sales Consultants decades ago.
Lorraine’s Salad
Lettuce
Red onions- thinly sliced rings
Roasted pecans(roast lightly on top of … (14 comments)
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this week: This Week…Is It Pasta or a Salad?
- 10/24/25 12:30 PM
This Week…Is It Pasta or a Salad?
It’s time for another Bananatude Weekend Recipe! I tried Nina Hollander’s S’More Than Just Brownies this week. I get stuck in a rut and love trying something new! I hope you’ll share one of your favorites with us.
One of my favorite dishes is from Giada De Laurentiis. The cheese and pasta water make the “dressing.” You can adjust the ingredients to your own taste!
Orecchiette with Mixed Greens and Goat Cheese
1 c. dried orecchiette pasta
2c. Mediterranean-style mixed salad greens
2T. sun-dried tomatoes (packed in olive oil), chopped
3T. goat cheese, crumbled
2 T. grated Parmesan, plus more for the … (16 comments)
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this week: This Week…A Great Hack
- 10/17/25 03:08 PM
This Week…A Great Hack
One of our favorite fast-food chicken places in Florida is Pollo Tropical. It’s hard to call Pollo Tropical fast-food like the Colonel’s because it seems healthier. Our favorite was the chicken with rice and black beans.
What sent it over the top was the cilantro-garlic sauce.
While wandering around Cyberville, I discovered a copycat recipe. It’s easy!! And, the Cilantro-Garlic sauce is good as a dip.
Pollo Tropical Chicken Recipe (hack)
Ingredients
2 pounds Chicken Breast Skinless, Boneless **I used chicken wings, but you can use breasts, drumsticks, or thighs. 1 cup Orange Juice 1 cup Pineapple Juice ⅓ cup Lemon Juice … (16 comments)
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this week: This Week…A Comfort Pie for the Fall
- 10/10/25 05:00 PM
This Week…A Comfort Pie for the Fall
The Streib household does not like waste, especially wasting food. Aside from today’s rising food costs, it goes against our grain.
So, when I roast a chicken, I can make many meals from it. One of our favorites is Chicken Pot Pie. (My roast chicken is really good, so if you want the recipe, contact me!)
And, for someone who shies away from anything to do with a rolling pin, this recipe does not require one!
And…if you don’t want to roast your own chicken, you can use any rotisserie chicken or frozen chicken.
Easy Chicken Pot Pie
Preheat … (14 comments)
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this week: This Week…Corny Comfort
- 10/03/25 02:28 PM
This Week…Corny Comfort
Some of us are continuing to share recipes for Anna "Banana" Kruchten Check out posts from Wanda Kubat-Nerdin, Kat Palmiotti, Will Hamm, Roy Kelley, and Nina Hollander.
If you grew up in the South, you grew up on cornbread. Cornbread (ground maize) existed as a staple for years. It was mixed with water and salt and although not as tasty as the cornbread we know…it was a good source of energy for early settlers and Native Americans.
With soup and chili weather knocking at the door, don’t forget the cornbread! Here’s the recipe and to make it even easier, check … (16 comments)
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this week: This Week…Forgiveness
- 09/26/25 03:38 PM
This Week…Forgiveness
When we were kids and fought with our siblings or others, or when someone broke our toy, our teachers or parents stepped in. Shake hands and forgive each other!
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
When Erika Kirk forgave the despicable being that killed her husband, I believe it made many take stock of the feelings they’ve harbored for years.
When you forgive, you in no way change the past - but you sure do change the future. Bernard Meltzer
Were I in her shoes, I … (19 comments)
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this week: Friday Fun…A Different Pudding
- 09/25/25 04:04 PM
Friday Fun…A Different Pudding
Let’s get the weekend started with a recipe with CHOCOLATE in it!
This dessert recipe has been in my “repertoire” for more years than I can remember. In fact, it was on a small index card (remember those?) until I digitized it several years ago. I have no idea where I found it, but most likely it was in a magazine or the newspaper, back when I still took the paper and they had more than just ads in them.
Joann Carmody-Vasquez’ Hot Fudge Pudding
¾ c cake flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
Pinch salt/
½ cup sugar
1 ½ T. unsweetened … (17 comments)
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this week: This Week…Peace and Gratitude
- 09/19/25 05:14 PM
This Week…Peace and Gratitude
Today is the International Day of Peace and World Gratitude Day.
Peace cannot be kept by force;
it can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein
The idea of World Gratitude Day took hold in 1965 in the Meditation Room of the United Nations during a Thanksgiving Dinner.
International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by the United Nations.
It isn't enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn't enough to believe in it. One must work at it.
Eleanor Roosevelt
The theme for this year’s International Day of Peace is Act Now For a … (15 comments)
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this week: This Week….Ahhhh Chocolate
- 09/12/25 01:47 PM
This Week….Ahhhh Chocolate
It’s been a rough week, so what better way to end it than by focusing on Chocolate? Today is International Chocolate Day!
When life gives you lemons... throw them back and demand chocolate.
Unknown
It is my practice to have at least one piece of dark chocolate every evening…unless there is a chocolate dessert hanging around.
Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands - and then eat just one of the pieces.
Judith Viorst
A few weeks ago, Anna "Banana" Kruchten thought it would be fun to share recipes in the Bananatude Group … (17 comments)
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this week: This Week…Books and Birds
- 09/05/25 04:39 PM
This Week…Books and Birds
Fall is in the air…sort of. Our mornings have been a coolish 75 degrees, rising to the low 90s later.
Books are a uniquely portable magic.
Stephen King
Today is National Hummingbird Day and National Read a Book Day.
Reading and watching Mother Nature’s beautiful creatures bring me more joy than I could ever imagine.
A book is a dream that you hold in your hand.
Neil Gaiman
The first time I put up a hummingbird feeder was in Northern VA. I could not believe how aggressive they were!
Want more information about hummingbirds?
Some books leave us free and some books make us … (21 comments)
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this week: This Week…Kind Words, The Beach, and a Treat
- 08/29/25 02:17 PM
This Week…Kind Words, The Beach, and a Treat
Besides a real start to the college football season this week (YEA!), today is Speak Kind Words Day and National Beach Day.
Kind words not only lift our spirits in the moment they are given, but they can linger with us over the years.
Joseph B. Wirthlin
Sometimes I wonder which is sharper…a kitchen knife or words so cruel, they sting. It reminds me of what we, as children, were taught by our parents…if you can’t say something nice about someone, don’t say anything at all. On the surface, that's simple enough, but in the real … (19 comments)
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this week: This Week…No Poblano!
- 08/22/25 12:16 PM
This Week…No Poblano!
A few weeks ago, Anna "Banana" Kruchten thought it would be fun to share recipes in the Bananatude Group on weekends. No contest or challenge in this…just a chance to share recipes.
Larry found this recipe years ago and adapted it for us. He makes it…I’m just the kitchen fairy for this dish, who preps and cleans.
As in most savory dishes, you can make it your own. Use chicken or turkey…your choice. Use what you happen to have. There is always a jar of marinara sauce in the fridge, so we use that. If you don’t have that, use … (19 comments)
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this week: This Week…Go Fish!
- 08/15/25 04:20 PM
This Week…Go Fish!
A few weeks ago, Anna "Banana" Kruchten thought it would be fun to share recipes in the Bananatude Group on weekends. No contest or challenge in this…just a chance to share recipes.
Larry and I have been trying to eat more fish. Of course, given a choice, I’d much rather have a good old-fashioned hamburger and fries. However, we’re trying!
This is how I prepare my salmon; however, in full disclosure, I use Steelhead Trout. (more later)
Step 1:
Prepare a mixture of mustards. I mix yellow, grainy, and honey mustard in a small bowl. You can use whatever mustard you have.
Step 2:
In … (17 comments)
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this week: This Week…Baking Buddies
- 08/08/25 05:05 PM
This Week…Baking Buddies
Mini-me loves spending time with her Uncle Larry. In addition to checking on the bird boxes, she loves to bake with him.
Mini-me and Uncle Larry made blueberry muffins this week…not from a box but from scratch!!!
Anyone can read a recipe; however, it’s the tips from experienced bakers that can take it to the next level. This week, Mini-me learned how to use a digital scale to measure the ingredients.
Best Blueberry Muffins Ever (Adapted from the Original Jordan Marsh recipe)Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 … (17 comments)
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this week: This Week…Something Easy
- 08/01/25 02:31 PM
This Week…Something Easy
Last week, Anna "Banana" Kruchten encouraged us to share a recipe for our weekend posts, if we wanted.
Nina Hollander, Broker shared her Cowboy Pie Recipe; Anna offered her Cheeseburger Cowboy Pie, Kat Palmiotti shared her Savory Ricotta, Swiss Chard and Pancetta Pie, and I shared my recipe for Blueberry-Peach Cobbler.
And, of course, we can always count on Will Hamm and Roy Kelley for recipes.
(An AI version of Shepherd's Pie)
Here’s my Easy Faux Shepherd’s Pie
Ground … (15 comments)
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this week: This Week…Appreciating Bagpipes
- 07/25/25 04:05 PM
This Week…Appreciating Bagpipes
Years ago, on one of our early morning beach walks, I heard something that has always been music to my ears.
The bagpipes sound exactly the same when you have finished as when you started.
Thomas Beecham
I stopped for a moment and thought…Was HE telling me my time had come??
Tomorrow is Bagpipe Appreciation Day. I could not let this pass without sharing some bagpipe music!
I have always loved the sound of bagpipes. Call me crazy, but I can’t pass up a parade as long as there are pipers!
The Irish gave the bagpipes to the Scots as a joke, but the … (18 comments)
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this week: This Week…Friends, Old and New
- 07/18/25 05:50 PM
This Week…Friends, Old and New
When I was shopping this week at H-E-B (our Texas-sized grocery store chain), I met a new friend while perusing the cleaning supplies aisle. After offering to help her, we had an informative conversation about a hack for Dawn Dish soap. (I’m not kidding!)
There are no strangers here; Only friends you haven't yet met.
William Butler Yeats
As it turns out, we’d “met” a few months earlier in the produce department. I learned that she is 63 and getting her Master's in Communication.
In my post this week, I said that one of my favorite Texas traits is that … (22 comments)
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this week: This Week…Pets Lift Our Spirits
- 07/11/25 01:01 PM
This Week…Pets Lift Our Spirits
There are many pet lovers on this site. We know firsthand how comforting they are. Whether we’re suffering a loss or have had a bad day, our pets know instinctively how to comfort us.
In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this.
Terry Pratchett
It may be as simple as hopping onto our laps or getting as close to us as they can; this simple act lifts our hearts.
Until one has loved an animal a part of one's soul remains unawakened.
Anatole France
This week has been no exception. Yesterday was All American Pet Photo … (20 comments)
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this week: This Week…Back Home to Celebrate a Birthday
- 07/04/25 01:57 PM
This Week…Back Home to Celebrate a Birthday
Larry and I were out of town last week for a visit with friends and family. No matter where we go or who we see…no matter the occasion, or how much fun we had…we love coming home!
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Charity is injurious unless it helps the recipient to become independent of it.
John D. Rockefeller
We drove to Kansas City, which is an 11-hour trip in the car, plus any stops for gas, etc, or construction. It’s not long enough to break it up into two days, but just long enough to make it a pain in the BEHIND! … (16 comments)
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this week: This Week…Time Out in Nature
- 06/23/25 07:05 PM
This Week…Time Out in Nature
This weekend we’re celebrating The Great American Campout. It’s part of the National Wildlife Federation’s effort to encourage us to get outside and commune with nature.
In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.
John Muir
I spent many years as a Brownie and Girl Scout, and through scouting, I had more than my share of camping trips/adventures.
There was the trip that featured 5 or 6 snakes (I lost count.) Imagine if you will, 2 dozen pre-teens screaming at the top of their lungs at the sight of a snake. I came this close to … (17 comments)
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This Week…Times Up!
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