Easter Bruch Recipe!

I got this recipe from Paula Deen's website and tried it last Easter.  Sooooo delish.  I highly recommend.
Asparagus with Lemon Pecan Brown Butter

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds asparagus, trimmed and tough ends peeled
Salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits
1/2 cup pecans
1 lemon, zest removed in fine julienne with a bar zester, cut in half

Directions

Put 1 inch of water in a skillet or other wide, shallow pan that will hold the asparagus flat in no more than 2 layers. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Add a small handful of salt and, as soon as the water is boiling again, add the asparagus. Cover, bring it quickly back to a boil, and remove the lid. Cook briskly, uncovered, until the asparagus is barely tender but still bright green, about 3-4 minutes. Turn off the heat, immediately drain, using the lid to hold the asparagus. Turn it out onto a warm platter and keep warm.
Put 4 tablespoons of butter in 9-or-10-inch skillet over medium high heat. When melted, add the pecans and sauté, tossing frequently, until the butter and pecans are a uniform golden-brown. Add the lemon zest and the juice from half the lemon. Cook for half a minute longer and remove the pan from the heat.
Swirl in the remaining butter, refresh with another squeeze of lemon juice, taste and add salt if needed. Pour it evenly over the asparagus and serve at once.

Happy Easter!

The Easter season is both an important religious celebration and a time of family fun. Whether your celebration is centered around the altar or around the Easter basket, here are some facts about the holiday you may have missed.

The Easter bonnet came about as a way for ladies to show off their finest clothes. It was tradition for believers to deny themselves fine garments during the Lenten period.
When the first Easter baskets came on the scene they were often designed to replicate bird nests.
The history of the egg as a symbol of renewal goes back farther than Easter itself. The ancient Egyptians held the egg as a token of renewal and rebirth. There is a longstanding tradition of churchgoers wearing at least one new item of clothing to Easter services. Doing so is considered good luck.
Like the egg, the rabbit is a symbol of new life and rebirth, and it is probably this association that gave rise to the famous Easter Bunny. Rabbits have long been associated with fertility and birth. The actual Easter Bunny legend is rooted in German tradition. The legend holds that a poor woman living in Germany decorated colorful eggs for her children to find. As soon as the hidden eggs were found by the children, a large bunny was seen hopping away. This ancient legend is thought to be the root of the Easter Bunny we know and love today.

April Birthdays

Byron Clayton April 11th
Angie Panos April 16th
Curtis Hooker April 27th

April Employee Spotlight!

This month I thought it would be great to introduce our newest support staff member by spotlighting her.  Her name is Lisa Brown & she's the new Administrative Secretary for the St. George office.  Here are some fun questions she answered for us.
1. What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas & Easter, sorry I can choose one.  Celebrating the birth and death of my Savior are the most valuable assets of my life and they are both equally important to me.
2. What was your most unusual job?  I was a heavy equipment operator/grade setter apprentice for on eyear and a concrete construction laborer the next.  I am 5'2" and weigh about 130 lbs.  This was very physical work and I learned that I can use my math skills to set the grade of a road, I lost 15 pounds in a hurry and can spit and lift things just like a man!
3. What are some of your hobbies?  Cooking new meals, love Food Network...great ideas have been born to my dinner table and dinner guests seem to love and appreciate.  Ride my bicycle, raquetball, family Sunday dinner is probably the best part of every week for me!  I have an amazing family.
4. What's your hidden talent?  Nothing about me is hidden, I am pretty much visible & very open.  I find it easy to love what others would call unlovable people.  I just love people...
5. What super poer would you choose if you could have one?  The ability to clean my house in the blink of an eye, like a Genie!  This takes too much time away from being with friends & family.

March Employee Spotlight

This months spotlight is on Elaine Hill.

1.       What is something nobody knows about you?

I was an exchange student to Southern California during the late 70’s.  I lived in Capistrano Beach and attended San Clemente High School.  I have two high school diplomas…one from my South African High School graduation, and one from my Californian High School graduation.

2.       What 3 things in nature do you find most beautiful?

Only 3!  Wild African animals, particularly leopards and Giraffe, scuba diving in the Indian Ocean, and the red rock of southern Utah, particularly The Arches and Canyonlands.

3.       What is your favorite smell?

Banana Bread baking in the oven

4.       What is your favorite sound?

The waves of the Indian Ocean breaking on the shores of Mozambique

5.       What is your full name?

Elaine Elizabeth Bibb Brummer-Hill

6.       What is your hidden talent?

I love to draw…big bold drawings with charcoals and pastels

7.       What super power would you choose?

A spiritual one

8.       What do you miss the most about being a child?

The carefree existence I had…never worrying about anything other than whether my friend Helen was going to be able to play with me after school

More St. Patricks Day Fun!!!

Way yummy recipe for St. Patrick's Day....a little different than the traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage.
Corned Beef & Potato Dinner:

Ingredients

• 1 pound red potatoes, cut into small wedges
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced, separated into rings
• 4 cups coleslaw mix
• 8 ounces thinly sliced deli corned beef, cut into 1/4-inch strips
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar or cider vinegar
• 4 teaspoons spicy brown or horseradish mustard
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. Place potatoes and water in a 3-qt. microwave-safe bowl. Cover; microwave on high for 6-8 minutes. Add the onion; cover and cook for 4 minutes. Stir in the coleslaw mix. Cover and cook for 3-4 minutes or until potatoes are tender; drain.
2. In a large skillet, saute the corned beef in oil for 3-4 minutes; stir in the remaining ingredients. Cook and stir for 1 minute or until heated through. Add to the potato mixture; toss to combine. Cover and microwave for 2-3 minutes or until heated through. Serve immediately.

Saint Patrick's Day Fun Facts

Facts about St. Patrick's Day Holiday

• St. Patrick’s Day is observed on March 17 because that is the feast day of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. It is believed that he died on March 17 in the year 461 AD. It is also a worldwide celebration of Irish culture and history. St. Patrick’s Day is a national holiday in Ireland, and a provincial holiday in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
   
• In Ireland on St. Patrick’s Day, people traditionally wear a small bunch of shamrocks on their jackets or caps. Children wear orange, white and green badges, and women and girls wear green ribbons in their hair. 

Facts about Saint Patrick

• St. Patrick was born in 385 AD somewhere along the west coast of Britain, possibly in the Welsh town of Banwen. At age 16, he was captured and sold into slavery to a sheep farmer. He escaped when he was 22 and spent the next 12 years in a monastery. In his 30s he returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary. He died at Saul in 461 AD and is buried at Downpatrick.

          Facts about the Irish

• 34 million Americans have Irish ancestry, according to the 2003 US Census. That’s almost nine times the population of Ireland, which has 4.1 million people.
• Some American towns have “Irish” names. You could visit: Mount Gay-Shamrock, West Virginia; Shamrock Lakes, Indiana; Shamrock, Oklahoma; Shamrock, Texas; Dublin, California and Dublin, Ohio.
      
• The Irish flag is green, white and orange. The green symbolizes the people of the south, and orange, the people of the north. White represents the peace that brings them together as a nation.
   
• The name “lephrechaun” has several origins. It could be from the Irish Gaelic word “leipreachan,” which means “a kind of aqueous sprite.” Or, it could be from “leath bhrogan,” which means “shoemaker.”

          Facts about Clovers

• According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the highest number of leaves found on a clover is 14!
   
• One estimate suggests that there are about 10 000 regular three-leaf clovers for every lucky four-leaf clover.
       
• Legend says that each leaf of the clover means something: the first is for hope, the second for faith, the third for love and the fourth for luck.

March Birthdays!

Happy Birthday to our one and only March birthday girl, Anna MacLean, whose birthday is March 25th.  Happy Birthday!!!