Here are a couple of recipes that got a thumbs up from my husband and me: Ratatouille Soup 1 small eggplant (abt. 1#), left unpeeled and cubed 2 medium zucchini, cubed salt 2 t. olive oil 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1 lg. clove garlic, finely minced 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped 1 c. canned chopped tomatoes, with their juices 4 c. defatted chicken or vegetable broth 1 lg. or 2 small bay leaf 2 T. chopped fresh basil leaves 2 T. chopped fresh parsley freshly ground pepper freshly grated parmesan cheese Combine eggplant and zucchini in a large colander, sprinkle liberally with salt, toss, and allow to stand and drain for 30 minutes. Heat the oil in a heavy 4 or 5 qt. saucepan over medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until the onion begins to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggplant, zucchini, and red pepper and stir well to combine. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini and eggplant begin to lose their raw appearance, 3 to 5 minutes longer. Add the tomatoes, broth, and bay leaf; stir to combine, and increase the heat to high. When the liquid comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium low, partially cover the saucepan, and simmer until the vegetables are completely tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in 2 T. of the basil and parsley and cook 5 minutes longer. Remove bay leaf. Transfer the soup to a food processor or blender or use an immersion blender, and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste and reheat before serving. Garnish each serving with parmesan cheese, as desired. 6 Servings 77 calories, 2.3 grams fat I think the soup would be good cold as well, like gazpacho. Turkey Scaloppine 1 lb. turkey cutlets c. chopped onion 1 clove garlic, minced 1 7.5 oz. can tomatoes, cut up 2 T. dry white wine 2 t. capers, drained 3 oz. slice mushrooms ¼ t. dried oregano, crushed 1/8 t. pepper Nonstick spray coating Place each cutlet between 2 pieces of clear plastic wrap. Using a meat mallet, pound meat to about 1/8 inch thickness. Sprinkle meat lightly with salt and pepper. Set aside. Repeat with each cutlet. For sauce, in a medium saucepan, cook onion and garlic, covered, in 2 T. water till onion is tender but now brown. Stir in undrained tomatoes, wine, capers (if desired), oregano, and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Keep warm. Spray a large skillet with nonstick spray coating. Saute mushrooms 3 to 5 minutes, till slightly browned and softened. Remove mushrooms from pan and keep warm. Spray skillet again with NS coating, if needed. Cook meat, half at a time, over medium-high heat for one to two minutes per side or to desired doneness. Transfer meat to a serving platter; keep warm. Repeat with remaining cutlets. Serves 4 196 calories, 22 g protein, 3 g carbohydrate, 9 g fat To serve, spoon sauce over cutlets. Sautéed Salmon with Zucchini Noodles and Red Bell Pepper Coulis These sautéed, julienne-cut zucchini strips are a lower-calorie alternative to pasta. A coulis is a thick purée or sauce. Red Bell Pepper Coulis (recipe follows) 4 medium zucchini 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon minced shallots 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon cracked pepper 1 garlic clove, minced 6 (6-ounce) salmon fillets 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon butter, divided Chopped fresh parsley (optional) Freshly ground pepper (optional) Prepare Red Bell Pepper Coulis; set aside. Slice zucchini lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick strips, stopping at the inside part of the zucchini containing the seeds; discard middle portions. Cut strips lengthwise into long, thin "noodles"; set aside. Combine lime juice and next 4 ingredients (lime juice through garlic) in a small bowl. Rub salmon with juice mixture. Dredge salmon in flour. Melt 2 teaspoons butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add salmon; sauté 4 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Remove salmon from skillet. Set aside; keep warm. Melt 1 teaspoon butter in skillet. Add zucchini noodles; saute 4 minutes or until wilted, tossing gently. Spoon Red Bell Pepper Coulis onto 6 serving plates. Top with zucchini noodles and salmon. Garnish with chopped parsley and freshly ground pepper, if desired. 6 servings CALORIES 376 (45% from fat); FAT 18.7g (sat 4g, mono 8.7g, poly 3.6g); PROTEIN 38.9g; CARB 12.3g; FIBER 1.8g Red Bell Pepper Coulis This recipe goes with Sauteed Salmon with Zucchini Noodles and Red Bell Pepper Coulis 2 teaspoons olive oil 3 cups coarsely chopped red bell pepper 2 tablespoons minced shallots 1 tablespoon minced jalapeño pepper 2 garlic cloves, minced 3/4 cup low-salt chicken broth 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 1/4 teaspoon salt Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, shallots, jalapeño pepper, and garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until tender. Add broth; simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates. Place pepper mixture in a blender, and process until smooth. Strain purée through a sieve over a bowl; discard solids. Stir in vinegar and salt. Yield: 1 cup (serving size: 2 1/2 tablespoons) CALORIES 40, FAT 2g (sat 0.3g, mono 1.1g, poly 0.3g); PROTEIN 1.1g; CARB 5.4g; FIBER 1.3g I use the zucchini noodle trick a lot. Good luck to all!

I don't think there are all that many people watching the real estate shows. But they are so cheap and easy, that you only need a fraction of the viewers to make it worthwhile financially for the network. And if you've got people watching them because there's nothing else on, it brings up the numbers. Sarah's old shows might be 10 times as popular. But if HH costs 10% to produce, even if you only get 20% as many viewers (10% actually liking it, and 10% indifferent) , you're actually making twice as much money. Plus, they can probably produce 5 HH shows in a week. I have heard that there are hundreds of episodes already filmed, just waiting to be aired. The only hard part of creating one of those episodes is finding people who want to pose as "buyers". And everyone and their dog wants a few minutes of TV time. What we need is a new channel to come along, producing new original shows, stealing the viewers who watch HH only because there's nothing else on.

I don't think the Storks sell to the public unless you go to their store in Nebraska (?). They are florists. Kent is the hybridizer and he has some other colors too but it is true that he is known for his reds. Sylvia Harrison (Silverglades) from Souh Africa is alive although I'm not sure she's still into african violets. I think maybe trying to think of the hybridizer of Jersey Snow Flakes (9820) 12/14/2007 (R. Kurzynski) Single-semidouble white pansy/white sparkle overlay. Variegated medium green and white, plain, quilted. Standard ? Nancy Robitaille says she does not consider herself a hybridizer although she has registered a few plants. I don't think she made crosses and did all that. She grew out seeds and registered someone else's plant and that put it in her name which didn't please her. I don't remember if he'd died or what. Belinda Thibodeux does the Cajun's series, not to be confused with Barbara Sisk's Cajun series except it can be a little confusing :) I believe Barbara sold under Violets c/o Cookie. I do remember their ads in the old magazines. Yes, George McDonald (Mac's) is alive and Ralph Robinson and Olive Ma. Paul Sorano (Lyons) and the Holtkamps are both larger operations, with Holtkamp being the largest, of course. Linda Abplanalp has hybridized a couple of plants, including Carolina Elegant Affair and it would help if we could spell her name. The Brownlies are alive but I don't know if they are still hybridizing. I supposed I've missed someone important. If everyone doesn't know it, the Stork's book is available as an ebook too at a moderate price. Joyce answers questions on Facebook too (kind of a losing battle at times, IMO, but she's trying.) Bloomlovers sells some Stork leaves and so do a number of others vendors (plants and leaves). Some early ones can't be found. I wanted to see a photo of Indian Corn and none to be found. Diana

My Spathiphyllum stays outside for most of the year, and comes in during the winter months. Where it sits on an unlit shelf and gets neglected for most of that time. When I do remember to water it, I place it in a metal bucket and fill it up to the soil line with collected rainwater (& the occasional diluted fertilizer), and let it soak for roughly an hour to rehydrate the soil and let the plant absorb enough water. Then I drain the water and flush it with fresh rainwater until it begins to run clear out of the bottom of the pot. I've used a fast draining soil that never stays saturated and allows the roots to breathe. Despite not getting any natural sunlight and being in very dry air (my gas heat strips out all the moisture from the air), my peace lily has lost only two or three leaves this winter. Even when the soil is pretty much bone dry, my plant never shows any signs of wilt. Now that spring is right around the corner, I've been watering it more often and placing it outside in the shade during the daytime to slowly acclimate it back to being outdoors again full time this summer. I would have to agree that yours is suffering from poorly aerated soil that's not allowing the roots to breathe. Which is vital to the health of your plant as a whole.