Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Tuesday, My pig was starving, easy meal


 Well December 7th is my pig day.  It was my grandmother's birthday which always made her sad as it was Pearl Harbor day also.  That would be a hard day to have a birthday. Anyway I digress. Miss Piggy only had $48.97 cents this year.  I knew it would be light as things have just not been normal at all.

  We have been locked down, have not shopped, have not traveled, have not eaten out. We moved and our careful financing went out the window for a while.  I started to pull back about 6 weeks ago, but will really get myself into a new way of thinking January 1st.

Hubs and I both  have been throwing our loose change which all used to go into Miss piggy into our cars change cup to help pay for our diet cokes so we don't have to break a bill. When we seriously locked down here and everything was closed, Hubs and I would go out once a day and get a soda at Mc D's.  It was our treat, it got us out of the house, we looked forward to it and my saving all my change went out the window. This will stop.  If we want a soda we will have to break a bill and I will put the money in the bank.

Our resources are seriously down this year with covid.  My shop is very, very slow and the revenue is almost 1/2 of what it was in previous years.  This is due to people not shopping and buying new clothes as they either can't afford to, or  don't need to when they are working from home. Hubs High school job is down by about $ 5,000 this year due to no concerts, recitals, or banquets. But we are truly blessed as we are getting by just fine. So it is no surprise that Miss Piggy's revenue shrunk.

I use Miss Piggy for Christmas fun money.  So I will buy some edible stocking treats with this.  I am so happy that the rest of Christmas is taken care of for the most part. I will do better next year.  Who knew that this was going to happen?

I was able to get my car quilt tied, and I hope to get it bound today after I get my quota done in the shop.

Tonight we are going to have German sausage soup. This is a recipe that I got when I worked at a cafe when I was in college.  We had a soup everyday and this cafe was famous for its soups.  I worked there for 3 years until I became pregnant with Franka.  We only had one car, which Hubs had most of the time. I rode a bike to campus for a 8 and 9 o'clock class then rode the bike over a huge bridge to downtown and worked from 10:30 to 2:00 then back to campus for a 3:00 class then rode home to meet Hubs who would pick up our oldest from his mom's place. I remember the doctor having a fit becasue I was under 100 pounds and he said I either had to stop running, or taking a ballet class everyday, or stop riding my bike. Well I loved to run to clear my head, and the dance class was a credit I needed and I had to get to class and to work. Funny how you remember things.  Okay soup....

1lb of sausage (I use brats that I get on sale when they are $2.00 a package or you can use any sausage)

2 whole onions sliced thin

6 large potatoes sliced thin

chicken broth

milk

butter 

flour

salt/pepper

Peel and slice your potatoes and boil in salted water

While they are cooking peel your sausage if necessary and brown in skillet, now transfer to a soup pot

after sausage browns remove and brown onions in sausage grease when they are translucent set them aside with sausage.  Drain almost all fat left, add 1/4 cup of butter to skillet.

You will now make a thick white sauce, by this time your potatoes should be almost cooked and you need to drain, and put them in pot with meat and onions.

salt and pepper your white sauce after you brown your flour (1/4 cup )in your butter, add milk until you have a thick gravy.  Now add to you meat/onion/ potato pot.  You can thin out this soup with chicken broth or milk. It is very good with a salad.  This makes enough for 6 good servings.  I like the spicy sausage as it gives the soup a pep. Or you can add a pinch of hot pepper flakes while browning sausage.

I can usually have this on the table in less than 1/2 an hour. It was a favorite at this cafe, usually served with a side salad and a roll.

Well I am off to get some work done.  What are you going to accomplish today? Is your revenue down this year due to covid?

Kim


22 comments:

  1. That soup sounds delicious! I'm planning ahead for 2021 goals, but so far coming up empty. I have a bunch of work I need to get to, and managed to do a pickup at Michael's at lunch.

    My side hustle is up, mostly because I'm not traveling & have had a chance to list & sell things on eBay. Otherwise, we're salaried, and have been paid consistently during COVID, for which we are incredibly grateful

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    1. It really is more of a chowder, but so good. We too have had a steady income so we are so lucky. The extra we bring in with the shop and Hubs side job just pays off debt and is for extras. But we really don't need any extras.

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  2. Kim, your German sausage soup sounds delicious! Thank you for the recipe, my husband will love it!

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  3. The soup sounds delightful.
    It is a testimony to how you have lived for so long that all is good and you are doing fine, in spite of losing some revenue. That is wonderful and you should be proud. Quite the accomplishment.

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    1. You know Cheryl you are right, I can't imagine living through this with the bills we had 5 years ago.

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  4. I love homemade soup and a good soup in a restaurant is sure to be a winner. Your story reminds me that I had no car the three week sleadin gup to our wedding after on e of my student parents backed into my car. I had to walk the nearly four miles to work every day and I was in some of th ebest shape of my life.

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    1. Yeah back in the good old days, before we got old and lazy..... well I am lazy.

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  5. Our change jars are lower than usual this year as well. I need to start getting those built up to help pay for our family reunion this summer. That is if we can still have it.

    God bless.

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    1. I know you have to get out and spend money to have change.

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  6. My income is the same but I have spent so much this year stocking myself up, as well as my children. I have ordered on Walmart.com and sent a years supply of beans to my daughter, since she likes them, and a two month supply each to my three sons of canned tuna. I stocked up to 120 lbs of dried red beans, my fav. I have 40 cans of collard greens, mustard greens, and turnip greens, and a supply of hot sauce. I sent coats to my sons, and thermals to daughter’s family. I stocked up in various other things, but in much smaller amounts than the beans and greens....lol. I also bought odd stuff like lifestraws for my sons.

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    1. Your soup sounds so good. I make a greens soup that is just canned greens, various beans and spices, a can of rotel tomatoes and add Conecuh sausages. That is a brand of sausages made in a local county near here. Sometimes I add a package of Knorr dried vegetable soup/dip, maybe a little rice.

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    2. Our eldest stocks pretty well but the other two would starve to death in a month. At least they are close enough to get to mom and dad. The thing that does keep me sane is that they are all essential workers and have a very small chance of ever losing their jobs.

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  7. The soup sounds great!
    I gave all my change to Son3 and DIl3 when they were here during the summer. I had a couple of hundred dollars in it then from about 2 years worth of filling it. Now with 202o being such a fun time, I am not spending cash because I am not going to lunch or to meet friends for coffee. My bank may have 5 bucks in it now.

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    1. You area a good mommy, and I do think we have saved money in the long run as we are not out shopping or eating out or traveling.

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  8. The soup sounds really good. I love a bowl of hearty soup in the fall and winter.

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  9. Glad to hear you're pulling through this difficult time.

    I'm sorry to hear your shop is slow, although I'm sure it's also nice to have some actual leisure. If you'd be interested in some remote work, please let me know.

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  10. My Daddy's birthday was Dec 7 too. He has been gone 12 years now, and Mom died suddenly on Dec 11. Feeling a bit sad this week.
    Anyway your soup sounds good. I need to get some brats and make it.
    Sorry about work being slow and losing income. Glad you are still doing ok though. You inspire me. Next year will be better

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  11. Yes it will, but really not much different for a while. I don't expect any recall changes until next Fall. But we can do it. We don't have to like it, but we can do it. I am sorry you are feeling sad. If you were close I would have you come over and bake with me. We would laugh a lot trust me.

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