Bern's Eye View
by Bernadine Hildebrant
Now that the holiday season is close to an end, I'm wishing all of my readers a most happy and joyous couple of weeks! How much weight did each of you accumulate? I know my clothes fit a bit tighter!
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A couple of interesting things happened to me during the holidays. First, I fell on my kitchen floor, breaking a bone in my left elbow, so off to the hospital I go. My son Mike escorted me. The doctor did a super job of wrapping my elbow so that I can barely type. That's why my column is short this month. Then, to add to that misfortune, the water pipe under my house broke, and water covered over the whole crawlway. Knish Plumbing is here right now fixing the mess. I don't know how many times I opened the water faucets to get some water and there was none! I’ll bet some of my readers have done the same thing when the water was shut off for some reason.
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Somehow, not only for Christmas
but all the long year through
The joy that you give to others
Is the joy that comes back to you.
And the more you spend in blessing
The poor and lonely and sad,
The more of your heart's possessing
Returns to make you glad.
(John Greenleaf Whittier)
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I like to look back over the year and silently give thanks for the friends I have known, and to give thanks for the inspiration they have been to me; and to know that without them I could have accomplished so very little.
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I'm sure many of you have, or did have, many holiday leftovers. I found a couple of good recipes which I think you'll like. I haven't tried them, but I'm going to pretty soon.
Stuffin' Muffins
2 cups cooked stuffing
1 cup cooked green beans
1 cup cooked turkey
1 cup mashed potatoes
1/2 cup shredded cheese
1 cup turkey gravy, optional
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Press stuffing onto bottom of eight greased muffin cups. Layer with beans and turkey. In a small bowl, combine the mashed potatoes and cheese. Spoon over turkey. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven setting to 350 degrees. Bake about 15 minutes longer or until the potatoes begin to brown. Let stand 10 minutes. Run a knife around sides of muffin cups to remove muffins. (Sounds good.)
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Great Pumpkin Dessert
1 can pumpkin
1 can evaporated milk
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 package yellow cake mix
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup chopped walnuts
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream
In a large bowl beat the first five ingredients until smooth. Transfer to a greased 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Sprinkle with cake and drizzle with butter. Top with walnuts. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.
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P.S. My hometown was so small we didn't have gossip because it would have had to be either about the person who was telling or the one who was listening!
