Chop Suey in Progress

Chop Suey

1 1/2 pounds Chop Suey meat (chunks of pork)
1 can chop suey vegetables, undrained
1 can sliced water chestnuts, undrained, if desired
1 4-oz can mushrooms, undrained
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped.
3 tablespoons corn starch
1 tsp salt, if desired
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons brown gravy sauce OR 1 tablespoon regular molasses

Brown the meat. Add chop suey vegetables, water chestnuts, mushrooms, chopped onions and chopped green peppers. Simmer for 20 minutes, uncovered. (celery added later)

While that simmers, mix the corn starch, salt, if wanted, soy sauce, water and brown gravy sauce or molasses thoroughly. Add chopped celery. Pour gradually into meat and vegetable mixture. Cover and cook on low for 15 minutes. Serve with rice.

Serves 6

Someone on twitter asked us about childhood memories of food.  Chop Suey was the first thing that popped into my head.  So, then I wanted to make it and even thought I thought I had a recipe, I couldn’t find it.  So, I called my mom.  She hadn’t made it in a long time, either and didn’t think she had a recipe.  Lo, and behold, I got an email from her today, that she’d found the recipe.  Yay.  So, supper plans were set in stone yet, so I made Chop Suey.  It was good and brought back a lot of memories of making it as a teenager and eating it as a kid.

Also, that 81 degree day in March was a fluke.  It got cold again the next day and has been cold since.  Days in the 40′s and 50′s happening pretty regularly.

Here’s an updated picture of the lilac bush.

Buds getting bigger 4-18-12

Daffodil sprouts

Emily and I cleaned out leaves from the main flower garden today. It was time to uncover the daffodil and tulip sprouts that were already growing under the leaves. At 1pm today, it was 65 degrees. It felt so nice! The flower garden looks better, too. I can’t wait until the flowers bloom!

Cardinal in the tree

When I went out in the yard, I heard a cardinal. He was in the tree at the end of the yard. Since the trees don’t have leaves yet, he was easy to find and didn’t seem to be disturbed as I crept closer and closer!

We did have a wussy winter. It never got very cold and we hardly got any snow, but I’m still happy that spring is coming, anyway. I was getting very tired of my winter jacket and it was nice to be outside without it, today.

Tonight it’s supposed to rain. That doesn’t bode well for the dog messes I didn’t bother to pick up today! Shoot! Should have just done it!

We are hoping that the flu passes us by. So far we””””ve been lucky, although Emily and I recently had colds.  Mine is still here, but getting better everyday.  So far, Gary has still been healthy.  Emily is hoping they DON”T have a “flu-cation” from school.  She thinks it””””s bad enough that we have to make up the wintry days on June 12th and June 15th.

Today, the sun is shining and the temperature is in the high 50””””s, which is a huge improvement over last week””””s rain. A few blocks from us, a sewer collapsed, so a major intersection is going to closed off for a month.  Ugh. I hope the time goes fast.

It’s so cold out today. We did reach the 40′s, but that chilly northeast wind took away any semblance of warmth, that that temp might have had. Brrr. DH had to shoot pictures at a soccer game and was just complaining how cold he was. Standing out at recess was no fun, either. I wonder when spring will actually come.

The tulips keep getting bigger and the grape hyacinths are getting more purple by the day. Just imagine the leaves and the green grass we could have, if it would only warm up. Emily and I have planted a whole slew of things to go outside, in May: Zinnias, Cosmos, Coleus, Fennel, Parsley, Oregano, Basil, Lettuce, Poppies, and some others. We also bought some dahlias (pinkish/purple and white) and some Centerfold Lilies, also to go outside, when it’s a bit warmer. I can’t wait!

Casting their lot in the worm-poop business

So, he went out later and bought me some.  Today, I planted the geraniums, vincas and spikes, with the worm castings added to the soil!  We’ll see if it makes a difference!  I can’t wait.  I do have starter pictures taken and will post later.  I have to be somewhere right now.