Vote for Me

UPDATE: You no longer have to write my vote in. I'm now on the ballot for both my novel and as an author. I would appreciate your vote. Thanks.

I need a favor. There's a poll going on right now on the Preditors and Editors web site to vote for your favorite book, etc. I'm not listed, but there is a write-in field at the bottom of the list. I'm asking for your write-in vote for my book under the Romance category. You'll need to put my book's name, my name, link to my book, and my publishers name. I've listed the info below that you'll need. Just copy and paste the url, it's so long.

Love, Lies & Deceit
Carol Preflatish
Red Rose Publishing
http://redrosepublishing.com/books/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=254&products_id=399

Once you enter it, you'll get an email with a link in it to click to confirm your vote. It might take a bit to get the email, I just did mine and haven't got the confirmation email yet.

If you feel the spirit, you can write-in my name on the Author's Page, too.

Carol Preflatish
http://CarolPre.webs.com

Thank you for your vote. I appreciate it.

Carol

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

We have about five or six inches of snow on the ground and this is day two of me missing work due to the snow. While cabin fever hasn't set in yet, I am really hoping the Road Dept. gets my road cleaned today so I can get to my day job tomorrow. I just hate using my vacation days because of snow.

Since it is so cold out and most of the U.S. is covered with snow, I thought that Pot Roast sounded good for supper. Even better is to fix it in your slow cooker. Mmmm, my mouth is watering already.

Slow Cooker Beef Pot Roast

1 3 - 3 1/2 pound boneless chuck roast, cut into pieces
1 rib of celery, chopped
1 large onion, peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces
2-3 carrots, cut into bite-size pieces
4 potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 C. beef broth
salt and pepper, to taste

Put the beef pieces and vegetables in the slow cooker and add broth. Season to taste. Cover and cook on low for about 8-9 hours. As with any slow cooker recipe, adjust the amounts according to the size of your crock. I have a large slow cooker.

Carol

Paula Deen

You either hate her, or you love her. I happen to be one of the people who loves Paula Deen. Okay, so she cooks with tons of butter, but wow are her recipes great. I recently started following Paula Deen on Facebook and it has been a real treat to read the posts from her page.

Today, one of the posts was about Kitchen Basics, Setting Up Your First Kitchen. She lists the basic items needed for a kitchen. Wonderful article.

And, did you see her on Craig Ferguson show last night? I was going to record it and completely forgot. Luckily, it was posted on YouTube and I watched it there. Hillarious. Click on the link above to view.

The casino where I live recently revamped their buffet turning it into a The Paula Deen Buffet, using her recipes. I haven't had a chance to eat there yet, but I am really hoping to soon.

I am also reading Paula's biography and it's very interesting. There was so much going on with her life and she survived it. Fascinating.

Finally, I highly recommend visit Paula Deen's Official Web Site. She has some great recipes on there.

Carol

Julie & Julia

My husband gave me the DVD of "Julie & Julia" for Christmas and I watched it today. It wasn't a bad movie, but probably not one that just anyone would like. I have always been a fan of Julia Child and still watch reruns of her cooking show when PBS has them on. Between being a fan and loving to cook, I figured this would be my kind of movie.

I wasn't aware that besides chronicling Julia Child's life, it also told the true story of Julie Powell, who in 365 days prepared every recipe in Julia Child's cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. While doing this, she wrote on her blog each day about her cooking experiences. Due to the blog, she earned notoriety and became a published author.

I felt a connection with Ms. Powell since I have a food blog. Wow, don't I wish I could have her success with this blog? I also think that Meryl Streep did a pretty good job portraying Julia Child. She known for her ability to do different accents and she hit Julia's perfect. The movie also told the story of Julia's love for her husband. I had always heard that she and her husband had a very deep love for each other and it came through in this movie.

I think my husband did a pretty good job getting this movie for me. I'll have to cook him a special dinner to thank him, maybe even something from Julia Child's cookbook.

Carol

Merry Christmas

I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. It looks like I will be snowed in for Christmas this year with 1-3 inches of snow predicted. Normally, I have a 4-wheel drive truck and can get out from my country home, but this year all I have is a front-wheel drive car that belongs to my mother. I won't take a chance on getting her car in a ditch.

I'll be baking a ham for us this year. We've already had three turkey dinners in November and, as much as we love turkey, we wanted something else. I haven't decided what to fix with it yet, but it will come to me. It better come to me because I will be doing the grocery shopping tonight.

Anyway, enjoy your holiday, hug your family, and stay warm. For my southern California followers, stay dry.

Carol

Chocolate Lava Cake

I'm cheating today. I don't have one of my own recipes, but instead am going to direct you to one that I can't wait to try myself. I love chocolate and who doesn't, so when I saw this recipe my mouth started watering. If you're hosting a small dinner party soon, this would be the perfect dessert. The recipe doesn't say it, but I read other recipes that say that once baked, you can freeze the cakes and thaw in the oven later when you're ready to serve. My problem is that I don't have that many custard cups or small quiche dishes. Oh goody, I may have to go shopping.

Anyway, you can find the recipe for Chocolate Lava Cake here. This is one of my favorite sites to find new recipes.

Enjoy,
Carol

Substituting an Ingredient

In October, I posted a recipe for Hot Apple Cider. I'm planning on making this next week for a Christmas party, so I've been shopping for the ingredients. What I wanted to tell you is that if you make this, you may have a hard time finding the Apricot Nectar. I had to go to four stores, including Walmart and Kroger, before I finally found it in a local grocery chain store.

What I would suggest, if you cannot find it, is to substitute Peach Nectar or Juice, if you can find it. When I thought I wasn't going to be able to find the Apricot Nectar, I bought V-8 Fusion Mango-Peach flavor. I think it would worked fine, but luckily I found the original ingredient. As I said in the original post, this drink is so good, it's addicting. If you need to supply a holiday beverage, I highly recommend making this one.

Carol