Playing Catch Up

Today's post is a hodge-podge of information because it's been so long since my last post.

My nephew got married in St. Louis on November 7th. The day was unseasonably warm so the trip and the day was a pleasure. My Aunt Bettye wanted to make the trip with my sister, my niece and me so we drove from Lexington to Owensboro to pick her up, first, and then we drove from there to St. Louis. It was a fun trip because anytime you get my sister and Aunt Bettye in the same room, it becomes a segment of "The Queens of Comedy." We even entertained at the rehearsal dinner and reception. We were the talk of the wedding. Here are a few pictures from the event.


My sister-in-law(mother of my nephew) and friend of the family.


From left, my niece Becky (sister of the groom), me, the bride's mother and Aunt Bettye. It's pictures like this that reveal to me how badly I need to lose a few.



My sister and the bride.

Another niece with her back to my camera, taking pictures.

The groom and his nephew.

Lena, aunt of the groom along with the bride and groom.

Proud mother and groom.


The wedding site. I think the hall was a tribute to American Indians. It resembled the structure of domed meeting lodge and there were artifacts in few places within the hall.


Then there was Thanksgiving Day. I cooked homestyle green beans, roasted brussel sprouts, cranberry mold and caramel apple layer cake. The cake is a Rachel Ray recipe and it is to die for. There is applesauce in the cake but the middle layer is sauteed sliced apples, brown sugar and cream. Yum, yum.


Our office decided to have grazing on Thursday, December 17th, to celebrate Christmas. I made cheese and salami loaf. This stuff is just plain ol' lip-smacking, finger-licking good. Guys particularly love it and it's pretty easy to make. Here are pictures and the recipe.




Cheese and Salami Loaf

1/2 lb. Swiss cheese
1/2 lb. Genoa salami
1 pkg. yeast (not fast-acting)
1 cup warm water
1 t. sugar
1 t. salt
3 cups flour

Dissolve yeast in water. Add sugar, salt and flour ( 1 cup at a time) using an egg beater. Knead dough until it is no longer sticky. Let rise 1 hour.
Divide in 2. Knead again. Roll out with a rolling pin. Brush with beaten egg. Spread salami and cheese. Roll up and tuck ends. Let rise 15 minutes.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes on a cookie sheet.

Note: I rarely make the bread anymore. Just buy frozen loaf dough, let it thaw and proceed from there. What could be easier?