the sultry scribe – Dahlia DeWinters

Recipe Wednesday – Stewed Chicken with Andouille

My favorite is cold weather cooking – you can turn on the oven, the stove and warm up the kitchen with spicy aroma. This recipe is taken from the Food Network site. Ingredients 6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 1 3/4 pounds), trimmed Kosher salt 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 link andouille sausage (about 3 ounces), chopped 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour 1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth 3 medium red potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces 1 10-ounce package frozen whole baby okra, thawed Juice of 1 lime 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro Directions Cut each chicken thigh into quarters (or 1 1/2-inch pieces, if large). Pat dry and season with 1 teaspoon salt. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook undisturbed until browned, about 4 minutes. Continue to cook,… Continued

Uncategorized

5 Fandom Friday – My Five Gateway Fandoms

Color me super excited! I am so pleased to throw my blog in the link-up with The Nerdy Girlie and Super Space Chick for this Friday’s topic – Five Gateway Fandoms. Now, if you’ve read my blog, you know that I like a looooot of stuff. But, even little Dahlia had her predilections (I love that word) and exquisite tastes. Which of course, were the gateway to even more predilections and super exquisite tastes. So sit back, dear reader, and find out what made me what I am today! 1. Girl Rockers – Joan Jett and Pat Benatar Back when I was a wee impressionable one, they didn’t have a lot of ladies to identify with. Sure there was Babs and a folk singer or two, but the roof was really raised when Joan Jett and the Blackhearts hit the scene with “I Love Rock and Roll” and “I Hate

Uncategorized

Train Your Brain

Train your brain and live longer.* “A body at rest tends to remain at rest”,the old saying goes. The same can be said for the brain. When you do the same thing over and over again, it affects you. Falling in to a disliked or boring routine can render you brain-dead, an automaton who lives for Fridays and hates Mondays. What kind of existence is that? I don’t buy into that psychology. Every day is a gift, to be heralded, valued and used. I keep my brain active by being on the lookout for learning something new. “Oh, Dahlia,” you might say, “as a woman of a certain age, with children and a husband, you’re much too old and busy to learn something new.” Oh, but dear reader, how I disagree. It’s a pleasure to wake up in the morning with a new skill under your belt. Knitting, crocheting, bracelet-making,

Uncategorized

Summer Fun Tips and Tactics

It’s the end of June, school’s out and summer is in full swing. Because of the storm in October that resulted in power outages of over a week, area schools didn’t release for summer until this week. Rejoice! As Alice Cooper sang, “School’s out for summer!” Picnics, games, hanging out on the back deck or in the back yard, and summer camp. It’s a great season for the outdoors and for one, I do enjoy it. It’s lot less pressure in the kitchen, and the children aren’t inside as much. However, with increased outdoor activities comes other hazards. Sunburn, mosquito bites and heat exhaustion can make even the most fun summer outing miserable. Here are some summer tips that may keep you problem free so that you can snuggle up with a loved one and watch the fireflies at night. Mosquitoes These little buggers love, love, love, standing water. To