Mary Anne Carter
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Monthly Archives: February 2011
Feb 22 2011

McCormick Spices

by Mary Anne

When I was growing up, we would go on class field trips all over Washington DC, Williamsburg, Baltimore, Philadelphia – and even New York City. One of the trips I still remember clearly was a day trip to Baltimore Maryland to tour the McCormick Spices Factory.

McCormick spices have been in my mother’s kitchen and my own kitchen for as long as I can remember. They import spices from all over the world, and I imagine they ship spices all over the world, too.

There is an awesome web site by McCormick that has information on all their different spices and some delicious recipes. Take a look at www.McCormickGourmet.com  if you want to learn about spices or find some new recipes to freshen up your dinner menus.

Categories: Cooking, Life, Memories | Comments Off

Feb 22 2011

Spice It Up!

by Mary Anne

My sister sent me a gift subscription to a fabulous magazine about food and fine wines. Now, I admit I know very little about wines, but I know good food when I taste it! The magazine has several recipes, both as parts of the articles and as parts of the advertisements.

I found a recipe that sounds delicious and realized that my kitchen spice racks were going to be inadequate for my new cooking adventures.

My little counter top spice rack came with 16 pre-filled jars of spices. It was a nice assortment of spices, but not particularly the ones that I would have bought individually while shopping at the grocery store.

Now that i will be trying all these new recipes, I think I should upgrade to a new wall spice rack and flesh it out with more spices that are called for in these recipes. I have to start out with some of these mixtures and roasted flavors. My food is going to start getting spiced up, now!

The first recipe that I want to make is for a chili, but it is different from any chili that I’ve ever made. This recipe calls for pork loin instead of beef, and a new spice called Chile Ancho, along with the regular chili powder and cumin. I can’t wait to buy this new spice and taste the difference it will make.

Categories: Cooking, Life, Shopping | Comments Off

Feb 22 2011

Go west young man

by Mary Anne

Geoff is thinking about checking out the job and real estate options near Santa Cruz California this coming spring.  Several of his friends have moved out there and have been raving about how much fun they’ve been having on The Boardwalk and surfing.  Sounds like the perfect life for a young, fresh out of college guy who has no strings to tie him to one spot.

Normally I’d wonder about whether or not he could land a good job out there, but he tells me that his company has a branch out there and they told him that he could transfer out there if he wants to.  So if he already has friends out there that are willing to put him up for a few weeks (or months) while he looks around for his own place, then I’m all for it.  After all, one of the most important things in any location is friendship, and he already has friends there.  I say go for it!  This is the best time of his life to do these kinds of things.

Categories: At the Office, Family and friends, Life, Tips & Words of Wisdom, Travel | Comments Off

Feb 21 2011

Oh deer

by Mary Anne

Today Matt came into work very upset. He had hit a deer with his car on his way to work. He had been driving 60 mph and hit the deer straight on. He’s never hit any animal with his car before, and never hunted anything. He came to work saying “I’m a murderer, I killed Bambi.” Poor guy, I had to give him a hug and talk with him a few minutes to calm him down.

He kept saying that he hoped it died quickly and didn’t suffer much. I felt so sorry for both him and the deer. I’ve been lucky and have not hit any deer yet in my life. I think I would be just as upset as Matt was if I ever hit a deer!

Categories: At the Office, Life | Comments Off

Feb 21 2011

Several sizes

by Mary Anne

Ever since my hubby got his Harley he seems to be giving everyone and their brother rides on his bike.  I can’t blame him though, I know he loves that bike.  Probably more than he loves me!  But because not everyone that comes over and wants to have a ride has Motorcycle Helmets in their car trunks, I’ve suggested that we pick up several sizes of HJC Helmets to keep here to lend to his riders.

Having a helmet that fits right is really important – if it doesn’t fit right then you won’t get the protection that you really need when riding a motorcycle.  And that could mean the difference between life and death in a motorcycle accident.  I know a lot of people that resent the helmet laws and are very vocal about how they hate wearing helmets, but I, for one, would never feel safe without one on a motorcycle!

Categories: Automotive, Family and friends, Fun, Life, Opinion, Shopping | Comments Off

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