My favorite time of the year is fast approaching. I even played Christmas music yesterday, much to the chagrin of my family. At least I kept it limited to the craft room and not the whole house. A little secret: If your family hates Christmas music when it's not December, play it and see how fast they scatter. A great way to get some crafting done! Made a couple of cards yesterday using the Missy B Designs sets. Love these stamps. They come on a sheet of rubber ready to mount, and I finally got around to mounting on the cushiony stuff.

Shake Your Booty!

We figured we'd have a good time at this concert, but you just never know how it's going to be until you are there. Lee Ann and I had gone to will call to get our tickets earlier, and then when we headed back to go into the concert room, I saw a friend I had met through scrapbooking. She does something with the sales of the tickets, and I'm sure I'm not giving her job enough credit here in the description. Anyways, she looks at the tickets we have, does some magic work on the keyboard, and voila! - we now have Section D, which is the center row, 6th row! Aren't we special! Thank you so much, Bev!!!!

Lee Ann and I next to the stage

So now we're in our seats waiting for the show to start, and I am wondering why there are so many "old" people here. We certainly haven't aged, why do all these old people want to see KC and the Sunshine Band?? I don't know about other people, but I think it's so funny that I get so excited over seeing a band now that I used to like decades of years ago. Trying to capture our youth, I suppose. Whatever it was, it was fun! KC had a cold, we felt so sorry for him. Poor guy was coughing, and just didn't look too well. But we still loved the show. Lots of booty shaking going on up there on stage. There were people at the front of the stage shaking his hand as he was singing, but I'm thinking, ummmm, I really don't think I want to go up there to shake a sick person's hand, entertainer or no. He did joke about being sick, had thrown a towel out to the audience and told them to please "wash it in hot water" before using it, or selling it on Ebay. Yep, pretty good time.

The Band

KC and the Sunshine Band, at the Silver Legacy, Reno

September 12, 2008

One of many costume changes

The guy still boogies, just a little slower these days (aren't we all!)

I'm going!

Last night I talked to my friend whom I hadn't talked to in a while, and she mentioned that KC and the Sunshine Band was going to be performing tonight. Spur of the moment we decided to get tickets. So in about an hour and a half I will be driving to her house and we'll be on our way to the Silver Legacy to see KC and the Sunshine Band!!! I'm off to shake my booty.....

A couple of projects I'm working on or have finished. I am working on making a sweater, and it's actually for me. I usually only make socks or scarves for myself. I've told myself not to buy any more yarn until at least the sweater is finished. I've got to finish these UFO's up!

My cousin gave this to me to see if I could duplicate it. So far I've cast on the top and have knit the white cuff.

My "Wicked" sweater. Only have a few more inches of the body left, and then to finish the sleeves.

Dishcloth for a friend of ours who is on a mission. A Christmas present is done!

Socks being knit with our hand-dyed with koolaid yarn.

TVP - What is it?

TVP stands for textured vegetable protein. Here is the Definition: Texture vegetable protein, TVP for short, is a high-fiber, high-protein meat substitute made from soy flour and available in a variety of flavored and unflavored varieties, as well as different sizes, from large chunks to small flakes. Because it is a dehydrated product, TVP needs to be reconstituted in hot water for about ten minutes or in the cooking process before eaten.

I had never heard of TVP until a few years ago when I took cooking classes through my church. I got excited about it, because it could replace ground beef/turkey/chicken in some recipes, but I never really played or cooked with it except in soups. I went grocery shopping yesterday and found TVP in the bulk section of the store and bought some, and used it for last night's dinner. Here is the recipe I used:

SPICY BEEF WITH NOODLES

2 lb. ground beef (I used half ground turkey and 1 cup tvp)

2 T salad oil (I used 1 T)

1 c. chopped onion (I omitted)

1/2 c. minced green pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced
2 c. canned tomatoes, drained (I used one)

1 c. whole kernel corn, drained

1/4 c. tomato paste
2 tsp. sald (I used about 1/2 tsp.)

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. oregano

1/4 tsp. allspice (this gives it a unique flavor)

3/4 c. grated cheddar cheese

1/2 c. pitted black olives, sliced

1 lb. pkg. noodles

Put oil in heavy skillet and saute onion, green pepper and garlic until tender. Add beef and brown slowly (I added the TVP after the ground turkey was cooked). Add tomatoes, corn, and tomato paste to mixture. Season with sale, pepper, oregano and allspice. Simmer about 2 minutes. Stir in olives and cheddar cheese. Cook noodles according to pkg. directions. Place noodles on large heated platter and spoon mixture over all. 6-8 servings.

I used one cup of the TVP and had quite a big left over. My kids didn't even ask what I cooked - they just assumed it was hamburger! And at 1.68 per pound of this stuff, I'm thinking I'll be adding more to my recipes and keep my food budget down.

Do you have any good tvp recipes? If so, comment away and share!