Hawaiian Haystacks or Chinese Sundaes

Hawaiian Haystacks (Or Chinese Sundaes)

Either way, you call it, this is an easy way to feed a crowd.  Just bump up the amounts listed in the ingredients, if more show up than you were expecting.  To make prep time easier and enjoy time with your company, much of the chopping can be done ahead of time.
Add a couple of side dishes of fruit, and maybe a couple of options on the cheese. With a simple beverage, you will have a buffet table full of color. and a meal that is filling. Bake ahead cookies or sheet cake for desert. 

Ingredients:
8 cups steamed rice
6 -8  boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
2 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
1 bag of crispy chinese noodles
1 1/2  cups thinly sliced celery
1 cup frozen baby peas, rinsed and thawed 
2 -3 chopped tomatoes
2 cups finely grated cheese
2 bunch sliced green onion (greens included)
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained (or pineapple tidbits)
peanuts, (salted, roasted -chopped optional)
flaked coconut (optional)

Directions:

1 -In saucepan, cover chicken with water add a few slices of onion, and boil until done.
2 -Remove chicken, cool and shred.
3 -Put soup in saucepan, stir and add enough chicken broth or skim milk to make a thick gravy
     (do not add too  much, it will thin as it heats).
4-Set out chopped ingredients in small bowls.
5-Serve buffet style, first 1 cup rice, then add whatever chopped ingredients you desire. Top with       chicken gravy mixture.

* an alternate to boiling chicken - adds a bit more fat grams, but maybe worth it in flavor - if you are not pinched for time. (cooks in crock pot for 6-8 hours)

1 family size can cream of chicken soup

1 8oz block of cream cheese

1 packet ranch seasoning

2 Tbsp dehydrated onion

milk, salt and pepper

4-8 chicken breasts
2 cups of water

Conversations Overheard at Airports.

   Airports are interesting places to watch people.  People are coming and going, some are tired, hungry, stressed and emotional about saying goodbye to loved ones.  Parents traveling with small children can be especially  vulnerable when it comes to keeping their cool.  Here are  a couple of conversations overheard by Nana on recent trips.

 The first one was in the Women's restroom.  (*side note - You know how there are times when you wish you had intervened, but did not?  This is one of those times!) 
Mom in the stall right next to me asking her crying toddler in an angry voice  "DO YOU WANT ME TO GIVE YOU A SPAKING?  DO YOU"   
I'm not sure that the child could actually formulate the words to give mom an  answer.  The child just kept crying.
And again the mother asked "DO YOU WANT A SPANKING....STOP IT RIGHT NOW!  DO YOU WANT ME TO SPANK YOU"?  
At which point I wanted to shout over the wall  - "of course not - that is really a dumb question,  what child would say  " sure - spank away" .


Another most unpleasant conversation not at the airport but actually after boarding. I happened to be sitting in the row in front of a couple, near the back of the plane.  I was tired and anxious to get home.  Only 5 minutes after takeoff  they started to go after each other.  The woman began the attack. I suppose she thought it was okay to level anything at the man next to her by masking her hurtful comments in terms of "feelings", and that everyone has a right to share what they feel.  You can share what you feel, but if you don't listen to the words that come out of your mouth, your "feelings" can ruin relationships. By the way,  15 minutes  before the flight landed, the man got up and found a different seat because he was so done with her.  I felt bad for both of them, but especially for that sad, angry woman who didn't have a clue how  to appropriately talk about her frustrations, and where to find positive, common ground on which to build.  

My mama always used to say that you get a free pass if you are hungry or tired or sick.   That may be true if you have previously established those rules, but still,  If you simply think before you speak and try to listen to yourself.  What do you sound like to others ?  What exactly did you say?  Maybe you do owe and apology.

Stuffed Jumbo Pasta Shells

A quick and easy no meat main dish that is faster than stuffing manicotti, and  will make enough to serve your family as well as another.  Serve with green salad, garlic bread, and your favorite fruit for desert. This recipe calls for lowfat cottage cheese instead of ricotta, making it less expensive and just as delicious.  But be sure to press out any extra liquid from the cottage cheese.

 Cook jumbo pasta shells according to package directions
    (I used just over half of a 12 oz. box of American Beauty brand)
Drain and run under cold water.  Set. aside.  Do not over cook - with the baking time in oven they will be perfect if slightly undercooked.

Cook 10 oz. package of chopped spinach according to directions  and drain well.

 2 eggs  - crack into large bowl
      add to eggs:
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
3 cups lowfat cottage cheese  - ( if it is watery press out liquid)
1 2/3 cup shredded Colby & Monterey cheese  (2 cups total)
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tb. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
Stir altogether, adding the spinach last.

In a baking dish pour enough spaghetti sauce to for the shells to sit in.
I use the 26 oz. can of Hunts premium Garlic and Herb Pasta sauce
Stuff the cooked shells with cheese mixture and arrange in the baking dish.
Spoon some of the sauce over the top of each shell and then sprinkle 1/3 cup shredded cheese from the previous 2 cups - and also some extra Parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 min.   

Ukraine is not Russia

    We went to Ukraine last year to do some volunteer work.  Fell in love with the kids and a wonderful city named L'viv.  The city center is a world heritage site and has more of a typical European feel to the architecture than is seen in the eastern cities of Ukraine.  Spring and Fall are a great time to visit. Food and lodging are fairly inexpensive compared to the major cities in the neighboring countries to the west. Through USAID funds, some of the students we met while we were there, had the opportunity to travel to the US and become much better acquainted with the American legal system. We had a great time showing them around our community.  Even a trip to Walmart was an adventure for them.  However 2 of them became lost in the store and decided to go out and sit on the patio furniture to wait for the others, causing some confusion inside the store.  In the process of trying to locate them,  the intern who was not lost overheard one Walmart employee asking another  "Where is Ukraine" ?  A fellow employee replied...  "It's in Russia"!   Ksenia just rolled her eyes!  NOT! The language can be a challenge, but most of the younger students there have a good grasp of English.  Taking the time to learn a few basics with the Ukrainian language will help you have a better experience.

            So -2 things not to miss if you travel to L'viv:

A village which has been painstakingly re-created to portray a typical Ukrainian culture of long ago 

with a wonderful display of hand painted antique Ukrainian Pottery.

   

..and the Cemetery,with it's powerful grieving sculptures created to honor the dead.

                    ..