My Real Estate associate and friend Muriel West, each year for our office Christmas party brought a double batch of these delicious baked beans and there would be only a small serving of them left over that I would beg her to let me take home with me to enjoy later!!!!
A portrait of my granddaughter Sarah Christina Drake I painted in 2014.
Did you know that in France you can get a pilots license to fly an airplane when you are sixteen years old but for a license to drive a car you have to be eighteen years old? Of course that makes sense when you realize France is the world’s top builder of aircraft.
So at age seventeen this French exchange student attending Salem High School had a pilots license but no drivers license.
My granddaughter Sarah Drake a Salem High senior was a life guard evenings at the Salem community center and through the year some times gave this French student a ride back to the home of the American family with whom he was living. Then came the PROM. And he ask her for that date. I present to you my beautiful granddaughter Sarah Christina Drake and her handsome French connection Paul Robin.
One thing for sure! You have to start with an excellent marbled chuck roast.
I bake it in my small roaster of which I butter the sides and bottom. Place the chuck roast in.
Add 2 cups of beef broth made from hot water and 2 tsps beef bouillon. I add these seasonings sprinkling lightly on top: meat tenderizer, thyme, dill weed, garlic powder and add 1/2 in thick slices of vadalia or sweet onion across the top of the roast.
Place in 275 degree oven for 3 hours. Remove from oven and add around the side of the roast, several regular carrots and one, or better yet, 2 boxes of the little fresh white whole mushrooms and place back in the 325 degree oven for 2 hours.
An option for the mushrooms: you can slice fresh ones, brown them in a large skillet with lots of hot butter and add them with the butter to the top of the roast when you serve it. My neighbors like that way best!
When this is finished baking I take out the roast and vegetables, place them in a heating pan, cover with foil and sit over the warming area on my range.
Add a can of Campbell’s dark mushroom soup with the drippings from the roast in a small sauce pan to boil and make a gravy.
While my roast is still baking, I boil cut red potatoes with the skin on to make mashed potatoes, I add of course the salt, a lot of butter and sour cream and chives. I save the water I drain from the boiled potatoes to add some back in to get a good consistency to these delicious mashed potatoes.
Here you now have your delicious roast beef with onions, carrots, mushrooms, mashed potatoes and gravy.
Now just add a tossed salad of romaine lettuce, tomato, cucumber slices and a couple red onion rings, choice of dressing and top it off with chocolate pie and coffee and you have every one at your table A VERY HAPPY CAMPER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
These dolls are beautifully made with extra details that make each one very special. These dolls were given to me over a period of years by my brother Bugs, my daughter Pamela and my daughter Meredythe.
This beautiful eighteen inch Alexander doll was a Christmas present from my brother Bugs and his wife Mary. It is called the coca cola doll and is dressed like Scarlet O’Hare as she appeared in the movie GONE WITH THE WIND. So……..I call her Scarlet!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was associated with CENTURY 21 FIRST REALTY OF VENICE, with Ron Morrison as broker owner, for the most part of my 18 years selling real estate in Florida. Note my Century 21 gold coat. Each Real Estate agent had an 8×10 photo, such as this one of me, on the wall of the front office where I worked.
Each Friday morning was realtor open-house held at the Venice Area Board of Realtors building which was headed by Marlene. We realtors who were holding an open house following the meeting, would stand up and pitch the house we were holding open and as I stood up, gave the address and details of the newly listed house I was holding open, I would say I was serving refreshments.
Before going to the 9:00 am meeting I would bake a Duncan Hines butter cake, no icing, to serve at my realtors open house. I called that a breakfast cake. There was a man, who I didn’t know, came to my open house each time, didn’t talk to anyone or do anything but go right for the cake, eat 3 or 4 pieces of that cake and leave. I concidered that a really nice compliment.
Every Wednesday morning we had an office meeting and then went to preview all the new listings from our office. I often took a cake to have with coffee during this meeting.
After eating the German chocolate cake with Coconut caramel icing I had taken, a realtor in my office said ” Flo, that cake is so good, I want your recipe.”
I turned to her and said “OK, get out your paper and pencil to copy it down”. And I waited until she was all set to write and said, ” Walk down the few doors to Winn Dixie and buy a Duncan Hines German chocolate cake mix and a can of German chocolate cake icing.”
I just couldn’t resist the temptation to be mischievous ……then I told her the secret is getting the cake out of the oven a few seconds before it is done so you don’t lose moisture and has more flavor. Cake, cookies, rolls etcetera bake a few second longer after they are removed from the oven.
Since I have had a request for my orange cake recipe……..here it is.