January 1, 2010

Happy New Year 2010!


This is my first venture into the world of blogging, after many years of contemplation. Thank you for reading, I promise it will get better!


How was your evening last night? Mine was spent on the couch with a migraine watching Anderson Cooper on CNN ring in the new year. I really liked seeing him laugh and smile with Kathy Griffin.We don't usually venture out on New Year's Eve. One of these years I will be in Times Square watching the beautiful ball drop from the Marriott Marquis. I'm saving that one for when I have an empty nest.


Last night I made a wheel of Brie cheese toppedwith buttered, sugared walnuts wrapped in crescent roll dough, served with apples and crackers....sinfully delicious, then it made me sick. I will never eat it again. I also made pigs in a blanket and pepperoni bread for the kids, but only S4 was here at home. S1, S2, were at their respective homes, while S3 was spending the New Year at his college girlfriend's home.


Today I will be making pork & sauerkraut. I don't really know why, because it just causes gastric distress and the kids don't like it. I've been told my whole life you have to eat sauerkraut on New Year's Day, or else you will have bad luck the whole year. Actually you should eat it at midnight, but I will take my chances and have it for dinner. In some places, such as the south, the custom is to eat Hoppin' John with black-eyed peas. I made that once when we lived in Virginia, but black-eyed peas taste like dirt to me. I saw on the Today show, somewhere you eat 12 grapes at midnight, one for each month, and they all have to be sweet. Other customs are fried bread balls in Italy and greens (don't know where) are eaten because they will ensure wealth.


If anyone knows why we eat sauerkraut/pork on New Year's Day in the Ohio Valley/Pittsburgh area, feel free to comment. For now, here's my recipe:





Pork & Sauerkraut





2 cans sauerkraut or a bag of sauerkraut found in the refrigerated section


pork ( pork chops, pork roast, ribs, smoked sausage, or even hot dogs (ick) )


1 can of beer (cheap beer is fine, but if you don't have any, don't let your husband see you taking his snobby $9 a six pack stuff!)


1 apple, cored and sliced


1 onion, sliced (optional)


1/4 cup brown sugar





Brown pork in 2 TBSP vegetable oil in a large skillet.


Place in a large roasting pan, add rest of ingredients.


Cover and bake at 350 for 2 or more hours till pork is done.





Serve with mashed potatoes.





Pheww!! I did it, my first post.