I also [...]]]> At a recent family gathering, my sister, sister-in-law, and I got to talking about calico beans, which was a popular casserole dish when we were growing up. After finding my grandmother’s recipe, I was inspired to try a vegetarian variation. Quite good! It makes nearly two quarts, so I froze part of it.

I also made

• Sweet potato/broccoli salad with peanut butter/lemon dressing
  This is a variation of Robin Robertson’s recipe from 1,000 Vegan Recipes. I substitute dried cranberries for the pomegranate seeds, skip the peanut garnish, and reduce the oil in the dressing to one tablespoon. Instead of oil, I thin the dressing with some sherry that I use for preserving my fresh ginger root. This is one of my favorite salads.
• Oranges with dried figs, dried cranberries, coconut, and walnuts
  Also from 1,000 Vegan Recipes
• Waldorf salad with apple, lots of celery, fresh tarragon, toasted walnuts, and a Greek yogurt/mayonnaise dressing
  This is a variation of the salad in Jack Bishop’s Vegetables Every Day. I make this often, usually with tofu mayonnaise.
• Roasted vegetables (carrots, parsnips, red onion, red bell pepper, cauliflower, and shitake mushrooms)
• Steel-cut oatmeal
  This reheats beautifully in the microwave, so I make a full batch and have enough for several breakfasts.

The herring was for tonight (New Year’s Eve). I served it with boiled Yukon Gold potatoes and pan-roasted broccoli with garlic. Simple, but tasty.

I’ll have the Hillbilly Hummus on New Year’s Day. It’s a spread of black-eyed peas, peanut [...]]]> I’m celebrating the New Year with creamed herring (traditional) and Hillbilly Hummus (new to me).

The herring was for tonight (New Year’s Eve). I served it with boiled Yukon Gold potatoes and pan-roasted broccoli with garlic. Simple, but tasty.

I’ll have the Hillbilly Hummus on New Year’s Day. It’s a spread of black-eyed peas, peanut butter, garlic, sage, and cider vinegar. The recipe is from Crescent Dragonwagon’s Passionate Vegetarian, one of my favorite cookbooks. Everything I’ve made from it has been delicious.

More cooking planned for tomorrow, along with plenty of work at the computer.

Gladys Dabbert, Family Friend

Fred H. Kammeyer, Maternal Grandfather

Erwin Plass, Father

Julie Blackwell, Librarian and Colleague

Good Christian friends, rejoice with heart and soul and voice; Now ye need [...]]]> On this joyous yet bittersweet holiday, I remember those who have passed on so close to Christmas.

Gladys Dabbert, Family Friend

Fred H. Kammeyer, Maternal Grandfather

Erwin Plass, Father

Julie Blackwell, Librarian and Colleague

Good Christian friends, rejoice with heart and soul and voice;
Now ye need not fear the grave; Jesus Christ was born to save!

Let’s join their unending hymn from here on earth!

I’m grateful to have spent Thanksgiving with family, both those present in body and those present in spirit and in memory.

Saturday turned into a grand tour of west suburban Chicago. I attended [...]]]> After a cold and wet October, at last a fabulous Indian summer weekend. Sunny and warm both Saturday and Sunday, with less wind on Sunday. I abandoned my plans to spend most of the weekend at my computer and enjoyed the great weather.

Saturday turned into a grand tour of west suburban Chicago. I attended the west suburban networking breakfast of Chicago Women in Publishing for the first time. There were only five of us, but we had a good discussion about using social media for business. Then from Naperville to Winfield (walked in a park) to Glen Ellyn (grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s) to Elmhurst (shopped for tea, visited the library, and walked around downtown) to Hinsdale (dinner and more grocery shopping).

Sunday was a stay-at-home day, with lots of cooking and gardening. I trimmed the irises back and cut down two large bags of saplings that were encroaching on my perennial bed. Still lots more to trim; that could be a full-time job, as could picking up sticks. The next two weeks are supposed to be warmer than average, so I left the chard, arugula, and container lettuce for another day.

I made roasted pumpkin-apple soup from the Dec. 2009 issue of Eating Well. That’s for Souper Monday at work. From November through March, volunteers bring soup on one Monday during the month. I also mixed the dough for Pumpkin Pie Brioche from the new book Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day. The dough smells great, but I didn’t bake it yet, as it needs to chill for several hours. Warning–if you try this recipe, use a big container to store the dough. My first choice wasn’t large enough, and I had a dough explosion! Fortunately, I checked before it completely overran the bowl.