YUMMY DINNER TONIGHT

Those of you who follow my recipes at www.happyhousewivesclub.com get a sneak preview! This will be on an upcoming menu! Sooo good, and pretty easy too! Its all about the wine people!! A little for the stew and a little for you!

SPEZZATEDDU
Sicilian Beef Stew

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 1/2 pounds beef chuck, cut into 2 inch cubes

3/4 cup flour

1/3 cup olive oil

2 medium yellow onions, diced

1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch strips

1 large yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch strips

2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons tomato paste

3 medium Yukon gold potatoes, diced

2 cups chianti or medium-bodied red wine

2 cups beef stock

1 cup fresh Italian parsley, roughly chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Fried capers and parsley sprig for garnish

Method

Heat vegetable oil, on high, in a large stew pot. Season the beef with salt
and pepper then dredge in flour and brown in two batches. Remove beef and drain on paper towel.

Add olive oil to same pot and heat on medium-high. Sauté onions until
slightly soft, about 3 minutes. Add peppers, rosemary and garlic and continue to cook another 3 minutes. Add meat back to pot, along with tomato paste and potatoes. Stir to coat. Turn up the heat to high and add red wine. Reduce by 1/3, about 5 minutes.

Add beef stock and bring back to a boil for 3 minutes. Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 1 hour, or until meat is fork tender. Stir in the fresh parsley. Season with more salt and pepper to taste.

To serve, ladle into large bowls and garnish with the fried capers and parsley sprigs.

The fried capers give this dish its incredible flavor. But of course it may not be for everyone, so feel free to leave it out, its optional. I like to serve this with Italian bread that I've warmed in the oven, and a simple side salad with olive oil and red wine vinegar. So filling and satisfying on a cold night! Leftovers are delicious!

BUSY BUSY BUSY

Goodness where does the time go? Well it is football season here! This year the boys are in different schools so my running around time as just about doubled! But hey I'm a Mom. If anyone can be in two places at once, its a Mom!! The boys are doing fabulous with school and with football. Ricky ran a 60 yard touchdown yesterday!! WHOOO HOOOO! I am such a proud football Mom!
We have been really busy. Right before school started we took the boys to Hershey Park PA. That was a blast! Roller Coaster heaven for the boys! Then in Sept Louie and I went to the San Gennaro Feast in NYC, and last weekend we were in Atlantic City. I don't want to travel again for a few months! Its so nice to be home!
Heres some pictures of our travels!!!

MY CRAZY KIDS WERE ON THIS...MOMMY WAS SCREAMING LOUDER THAN THEY WERE, AND I WAS ONLY ON THE GROUND!

AND NYC AND THE SAN GENNARO FEAST!!!!!!!!!!

AND OUR RIDE TO ATLANTIC CITY...SOOOO PRETTY

The End of Summer, The Beginning Of School Daze

Wow..summer went by fast! I can't believe were already into August. The lazy days are fading fast. Its time to step it up and prepare for the shiny new school year!
Where to start. Goodness. The class supply lists have grown to two pages. Really is it neccesary to have all these specific colored folders, 3 different colored highlighters, index cards, specific binders with exact measurements? Give me a break...I swear the teachers are in cahoots with the stores! And backpacks...how come we never had backpacks growing up? We actually carried our books. Wow what a concept. Of course our class supply list consisted of a notebook and folder for each class. Not this school survivor kit we have to purchase now. So the back pack is a nessesity to carry it all.
Ahhhh, and then there is the new school clothes. New jeans, new shirts, new sneaks, new socks, new underwear, new haircut...I need a loan.

And if your lucky like me your children are involved in sports. This summer we had three different football camps, a wrestling camp, and lifting 3 days a week. And yes the camps cost money. A mere $100 bucks to send your kids for 2 hours a day, for 4 days. All so they can get the skills that apparently they don't possess, to be able to continue playing the sport that they have played for the last eight years. Football is my cross to bear. My boys have played since the football was bigger then them. Practice schedules are insane. 6pm-8:30 pm 5 days a week starting next week. And then when school starts they will graciously cut it down to 3 days a week.
Of course, my oldest is now at the highschool level. Good God, I though pop warner was crazy with all the hype. High School is another game all together. I swear you would think these kids played for the NFL. Too bad the schools and some of these parents don't put as much effort into the educational system. I get emails from one of the 7 committees every day. Yes there is a committee for everything. Fundraiser committee, Team Spirit Committee, Parents Committee, Committee for nothing Committee. And there are Mandatory Meetings for the parents. Mandatory? I hate being told I have to be somewhere. I'm an adult. I don't need to be told I HAVE to be there. And what if I don't go? My son can't play? Spare me. Football parents can really be nuts. I don't like getting drawn into that whole cult like craziness. Its a freaking game. Let the kids have fun. Your little Johnny is not going to get a football scholarship. Hes not going to be drafted into the NFL.
Don't get me wrong, I love watching my boys play. I'm the screaming proud mama and all, but I just can't get wrapped up in committees, commitments and weekly fund raising. I have a life outside of football! And don't get me started on the Football Dads who are living their glory days vicariously through their children. Its sad really. I've also noticed that the big Football Moms are the ones who were the cheerleaders in high school. Yeah, that wasn't me. I was cheering the football team on from the smoking lounge.
Oh well, time to get the schedule up and mark up the calendar in two different colors for each kid. Though this year I may have to get them seperate calendars. The schedules are just insane. I may have to clone myself too. Not quite sure how I'm going to be at two different places at once. How do you do it with more than two kids? Well, time to get ready for the carwash fundraiser...or is it the flipping burgers at the soccer game fundraiser...gotta go check my schedule.

rain kissed

Is there anything sweeter than the morning rain, and the sweet drops that linger on the petals of the spring blooms? This morning, as I watched the rain gently fall and give my flowers the water they craved, I knew that life is good. I want for nothing. Today has been one of those melancholy days. Just a little bitter sweet. I know that all I have is all I need. We really do run ourselves to the ground and for what? With all the money, we can't buy the simple pleasures in life. We miss out on the smell of the rain, the sound of the rain, and really searching the sky for that rainbow when the sun peaks out after the spring shower. Slow down. Take a deep breath, and really stop and count your blessings. Is it really worth worrying about? Is it really worth arguing about? We don't know what tomorrow will bring. We don't know what the next hour, minute or second will bring. We can only cherish this moment, right here right now. Don't waste it, don't let it pass you by. Live. Tell someone you love them. Smile. Laugh. Enjoy. Cherish. Feel the life that is inside you and remember that each day, each moment and each breath is simply, a gift from God. What we choose to do with it, is our gift back to him.

Eulogy to Lou's Dad

This week my husband lost his best friend, his Dad. My father in law was one of a kind. Old school all the way. They just don't make 'em like that today. This is the eulogy that my husband wrote and said in church yesterday. He couldn't make it through the whole thing, and his sister took over, barely making it through herself. Not a dry eye in the house. He really did a good job describing and honoring his Dad.

Salvatore J. Petix April 21, 2008


Over the last few months, as I forced myself to realize that this day was imminent, I knew that it would be important for me to describe the man who provided, protected, and loved unconditionally, his family for his entire life.
My father Sam was a man of great humility. He would never talk about his accomplishments. Yet he always beamed with pride when speaking of his parents, siblings, wife, children and especially his grandchildren. Nothing made him happier than spending time with his family. Either working, cooking on the grill, playing catch, or watching a Yankee game, is how he found pleasure. He fit right in with any age group and was young at heart. Dad never took himself too seriously in a social situation, and even though his hearing loss made conversations a little more difficult, you could always count on him for a witty, interesting, and intelligent conversation.
Dad worked in the family business his entire life. First with his father and siblings, and then with his sons. He started in the bottling business washing pop bottles by hand at 10 years old and gracefully bowing out at the young age of 84. And today my father’s legacy lives on.
During his entire career he was known to be an honest, compassionate and fair man. Qualities that he felt strongly about instilling in my sister, my brother, and me. He taught us through his actions, stories, accomplishments and his unmatched work ethic. One of Dads favorite sayings was “nothing good comes easy”, and when things go wrong, I can always hear my father saying it, and it inspires me to finish the task at hand.
My father enjoyed, believed and lived a simple life. Material things were of little value to him, and expensive things never impressed him. Give my father strawberries for breakfast, spaghetti with burnt breadcrumbs and anchovies, and his banana every day and he was a happy man. He disapproved of arrogance and envy, and taught us to be happy and content with what we have. We learned that family is more important than things, and hard work is a reward in itself.
Dad was a man of tremendous intelligence, common sense and perseverance. But his most admirable qualities were his dedication and love for his wife. Even after fifty years of marriage, my father would still kiss mom goodbye each morning and hello as soon as he walked in the door after work. He flirted with her continuously; he teased her relentlessly and loved her endlessly until his dying breath.
Dad, we know that you’re in heaven with grandpa and grandma. Probably drinking your fresh squeezed orange juice at the kitchen table with Aunt Connie, Uncle Joe, and Uncle Leo. All of you talking about the stock market, laughing at an inside family joke, ½ in English and ½ in Italian. Enjoying your family once again.
But just remember Dad, we will never forget what you have taught us through your words and actions. We’ll never forget the way that you loved us, and inspired us. We miss you so much it hurts, and our hearts are broken. However, God must have needed the best Ginger ale and Gassosa to mix with his wine at his table, and so he called you home. Rest in Peace now Dad, and know that we will make you proud, miss you, remember you and love you until we see you again.

Cherish your family

Being with my family this past Sunday for Easter, I chose that time to talk about our history with them. See, they are all getting older. We don't know what tomorrow will bring. I wanted to know stuff. The kind of stuff you don't hear in a normal conversation. What was great grandpa like? Really like? What did he do for a living? It really got the ball rolling, and then the stories began. Stories I have never heard before, stories I would never have heard, had I not asked. My boys were sitting at the table, listening, learning, and amazed. They didn't know of the hardships, or the suffering their Great Grandparents and Great Great Grandparents endured to give them the life they know today. I wanted them to hear these stories. The good, the bad and the funny. Its their history, our history. Yes, we have the family trees, and the photos. But I didn't have the details. I didn't have ALL the stories. And I still don't, but I have more than I did. I have more now to think about when I look at the photos of my Grandparents, or cook a recipe from my Grandmothers. I want to know the relatives that were here and paved the path for me and my children. Its important not to forget. Its important to ask questions, tell stories, take pictures, and to reminisce. Because, we don't know what tomorrow will bring.

Yes I'm still ALIVE!

Its been crazy around here for the last couple of months. Between wrestling meets and getting ready and going to Vegas and the regular everyday life of a housewife/mom I've sprouted a new garden of grey hairs!

Lets see, where to begin. VEGAS BABY!!! Yes we went to Vegas in Feb to meet up with my fellow Happy House wife Robyn and her adorable hubby Tom! What a blast. We ate, we drank, we gambled, we won, we lost..we had fun! Robyn is a firecracker! And a hot mama! I absolutely love and adore her. Can't wait for her to travel east and meet me in NY!! I love to meet any of the girls in the club! (http://www.happyhousewivesclub.com/) I have also become the contributing editor over there on the domestic page. I'm having a blast with it, and challenging all the girls to get their homes in order. I still have my small corner on Robyn's cooking page, Dawns Italian Corner. So you see I've been busy busy busy!! I am however in the process of fine tuning my schedule to meet all my obligations in a timely manner! So I will be blogging more, promise!!