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Showing posts from January, 2019

Meatloaf Recipe

I love Meatloaf the singer, but today let's focus on the recipe... Please remember we have a family of 7 (usually feeding a few extras too), so feel free to reduce this recipe - unless you love leftovers? 2 lbs ground beef 1 lb ground pork 2 C peppers (diced) - any color you like, or a mixture 3 eggs (whisked) 1 onion (chopped) 1 loaf older bread ripped into small pieces 1 C oatmeal or rice a dash of: salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, and garlic powder 2 T mustard 2 C ketchup Preheat oven to 350F In a large bowl, combine all ingredients listed above (save a bit of ketchup for the end) - I use a potato masher to really combine everything, but you can use a mixer, large spoon, or I know folks who enjoy using their hands. Once well combined, place into a greased bread or loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour at 350F then after the hour is done, use the reserved ketchup on the top and heat another few minutes. Allow to cool and bit and serve! When we first got married, Mark asked...

Carmen Otto Reviews "the Secret of the Sacred Scarab" by Fiona Ingram

The Secret of the Sacred Scarab A 5000-year-old mystery comes to life when a scruffy peddler gives Adam and Justin Sinclair an old Egyptian scarab on their very first day in Egypt. Only when the evil Dr. Faisal Khalid shows a particular interest in the cousins and their scarab, do the boys realise they are in terrible danger. Dr. Khalid wants the relic at all costs. Justin and Adam embark upon the adventure of a lifetime, taking them down the Nile and across the harsh desert in their search for the legendary tomb of the Scarab King, an ancient Egyptian ruler. They are plunged into a whirlpool of hazardous and mysterious events when Dr. Khalid kidnaps them. They learn more about the ancient Seven Stones of Power and the mysterious Shemsu-Hor. They must translate the hieroglyphic clues on the underside of the scarab, as well as rescue the missing archaeologist James Kinnaird, and their friend, the Egyptologist Ebrahim Faza, before time runs out! The Secret of the Sacred Scarab is t...

Upcoming WOW! Women on Writing Book Blog Tour - for Michael French's "The Beginner's Guide to Winning an Election" Launching February 25th 2019

It may be 50 below with the wind chill, but I have an exciting book blog tour to keep me warm! WOW! Women on Writing is helping promote another wonderful book for returning author Michael R. French. Please contact me today to reserve your copy and participate in this tour. If you've never participated in a tour, feel free to inquire and I'll be happy to explain how it works - you don't even have to have your own blog! Send an email today to participate - email address: crystal@wow-womenonwriting.com or crystaljotto@gmail.com Be sure to include the following: * The email address you'd like your ebook(s) sent to - or mailing address, but we have a limited number of physical copies. *The name and url for your blog, or a note letting me know you do not have a blog *A date you would prefer as your first choice, as well as a 2nd choice - this will be the date your review will be posted to your blog/this blog and social media. (the tour runs 2/25-3/25) Includ...

Snow Day Recipes!

I just received a text asking if I knew of any delicious recipes for a snowy day here in Wisconsin (its 50 below with the wind chills and schools and businesses are closed). So I figured it's a great day to share a delicious recipe for stuffing and pork chops! Enjoy! Stuffing: 1 lb pork sausage 1 T butter 6 stalks celery (chopped) 1 large onion (chopped) 1 loaf of slightly older bread (ripped into small pieces) 1 C chicken broth and a dash of each of the following to taste: sage thyme salt pepper Fry up the pork sausage on the stove top and drain off any excess grease. Add the onions, celery, and spices and fry them with the pork sausage until celery and onions are tender. While that's cooking, put your bread crumbs into a covered baking dish. Once the pork mixture is done, mix it into the bread crumbs along with the broth. Depending on the type of bread, you may have to adjust the broth accordingly. You want the mixture moist but not soggy. Right before baking, I...

"Loving Neil McKee's Memoir!" - a book review by Crystal Otto

Thank you WOW! Women on Writing for the opportunity to read and review Finding Myself in Borneo and participate in a book blog tour to help promote this fabulous story! About the Book: Finding Myself in Borneo is an honest and buoyant chronicle of a young Canadian man's adventures during 1968-70, while teaching secondary school as a CUSO volunteer in Sabah, Malaysia (North Borneo). Travel with Neill McKee on his unique journey through vibrant Asian cultures as he learns the craft of teaching, the Malay language and local customs, and gains many friends in his small community. He climbs the highest peak in Southeast Asia—Mount Kinabalu, has a love affair, and navigates Borneo's backwaters to make his first of many documentary films. McKee travels by freighter to Indonesia, where he discovers the scars of that country's recent genocide, a contrast to his hilarious motorcycle journeys in Sabah with his American Peace Corps buddy. They make a hallucinogenic discover...

Michelle DelPonte Reviews "You Started WHAT after 60?" by Jane T. Bertrand

Itching for a challenge when she turned 60, Jane Bertrand set out to reach the highest point of each state. Her strategic mistake was to start with the easiest ones, leaving the most strenuous for the end of this decade-long quest. She recruited over 50 family members, colleagues, and childhood friends to join her in this quest. Ostensibly a book about hiking and climbing, it captures the deep sense of friendship, further strengthened by bear sightings, lack of signage, lost GPS connectivity, muddy trails, snowfields, icy run-off, and tent loss encountered along the way. Paperback: 284 pages Publisher: Walnut Park Press (November 16, 2018) Language: English ISBN-10: 1732847703 ISBN-13: 978-1732847705 You Started WHAT after 60? Highpointing across America  is now available to purchase on Amazon , Barnes & Noble , and IndieBound . About the Author: Jane T. Bertrand is a professor at the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, where she splits he...

Book Review - Jane T. Bertrand's "You Started WHAT after 60?"

Itching for a challenge when she turned 60, Jane Bertrand set out to reach the highest point of each state. Her strategic mistake was to start with the easiest ones, leaving the most strenuous for the end of this decade-long quest. She recruited over 50 family members, colleagues, and childhood friends to join her in this quest. Ostensibly a book about hiking and climbing, it captures the deep sense of friendship, further strengthened by bear sightings, lack of signage, lost GPS connectivity, muddy trails, snowfields, icy run-off, and tent loss encountered along the way. Paperback: 284 pages Publisher: Walnut Park Press (November 16, 2018) Language: English ISBN-10: 1732847703 ISBN-13: 978-1732847705 You Started WHAT after 60? Highpointing across America  is now available to purchase on Amazon , Barnes & Noble , and IndieBound . About the Author: Jane T. Bertrand is a professor at the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, where she splits he...