I know nothing about birds i have had a small wooden bird house on my porch for 20 years i have had small sparrows or wrens living there and mating there for years This year i bought a hanging house like feeder which is hung about 4 feet away i never knew that people hate house sparrows i enjoy watching thrm sitting on top of the bird house once or twice i saw them at the feeder not much action I filled the feeder with classic wild bird food i hope i see more birds in the Spring any advice for me about seeds or sparrows i have never had a problem i just wanted to feed thrm thanks for your advice

This is my recipe that I use for chili. I know, in Texas there should be no beans, but I add them anyway and call it: YANKEE CHILI SOUP 1 ½ to 2 pounds ground beef or ground pork or ground veal or a mixture of one, two or all (I like to use about 1 pound of ground beef and 1 pound of ground pork) 1 whole sweet yellow onion coarsely chopped 4 to 6 cloves of garlic finely chopped 2 large cans chopped tomatoes 1 or 2 cans Rotel tomatoes & green chilies 2 cans red kidney beans (drained) 1 large jar of Spicy V-8 juice ¼ cup cumin ¼ cup chili powder 1 whole jalapeno or can use any dried hot pepper 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, either flakes or ground Freshly ground salt and pepper to taste Olive Oil Heat olive oil in a large pot and put in the yellow onion and cook till tender, then add the garlic and cook for just a few minutes so it wont turn brown and burn. Put this onion-garlic mixture aside into a bowl. Then add the ground beef or ground veal to the pot and brown. After it has browned, add the onion-garlic mixture into the ground beef, stir and then add the remainder of the ingredients. Heat over a medium burner until it is hot and then turn down to medium low or low and continue cooking. The longer it cooks, the more flavor it has. In fact it is best if refrigerated overnight, and then reheated the next day either on the stove or in a crock-pot. Serve with crunchy French bread. This will serve about 8 large bowls of chili. LINDAS BEAN SOUP This recipe is my own concoction. I adjust all the spices and ingredients to my taste, so Ill give you the basics, and you have to go with it from there. Be sure to go easy with the spices in the beginning because the flavors intensify as the cooking continues. You can always add more, but you cant remove what is already there. **-Beans, either dry 16 oz. Bag (must soak overnight or follow directions on package) or canned about 4 cans (drain); (I use pinto or black beans, but any beans will work) -Bacon cut up (about ½ to 1 pound for a large pot) -Onions & Garlic (chopped) (I use a large onion and a whole head of garlic) -Chicken broth (about 3 32 oz. cans or cartons of broth) -Sausage (4 or 5 links) -Tomatoes (both chopped and whole) (fresh or canned) about 2 cans chopped and 4 fresh whole tomatoes -Rotel tomatoes (one or two cans) -Peppers fresh (jalapeno, Serrano, habanero) (I use one each-whole) -Beer (one can) -Cilantro (one bunch; the whole bunch including stems) -Fresh Chives and/or green onions (one bunch) -Oregano (fresh or dried) if using fresh herbs always use 3 times that of dried herbs -Cumin (1/4 cup) -Cayenne Pepper (one tablespoon) -Chili Powder (1/4 cup) -Salt & Pepper (freshly ground) to taste -Green Pepper (optional) -Rice (Optional) I fry up the bacon and add the onions and garlic. Be sure not to overcook the garlic or it will get bitter. If this happens, you might as well start over because burned garlic is really bad. Then I add the sausage and brown it. Again make sure you dont overcook the garlic. Then I add the broth, beans, a beer, the tomatoes, Rotel peppers, fresh peppers (I use one of each) and all the spices and then finish with water to cover the beans by about 2". Bring to boil (do not allow it to burn) and then reduce heat to simmer. Depending on whether I use dried beans or fresh beans, the cooking time will vary. With dried beans, it takes about 2 to 3 hours to cook. You can then serve the beans with sour cream, fresh chives, fresh tomatoes, fresh onions, and fresh cilantro. Also if you want, you can add some rice (either cooked or uncooked) directly into the beans towards the end of the cooking period. Or you can just serve the beans over a bed of rice. I use yellow rice, but white rice works just as well. The rice will give you more of a full feeling, if you know what I mean. **When using black beans add 2 to 4 smoked ham hocks for great flavor. Lindas Chuck Roast ½ cup all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon kosher salt 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper 3 to 4 pound chuck roast 3 tablespoons olive oil 6-8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped 1 whole sweet onion 4-6 large carrots diced 3-4 stalks of celery cut into medium dice 3 leeks (white part only), well washed and chopped 2 cups roughly chopped mushrooms 2 cups chopped cabbage 1 head of fennel, chopped 2 plum tomatoes crushed 1 dried bay leaf 2 sprigs fresh thyme 2 springs fresh oregano 3 fresh sage leaves 3 springs fresh flat-leaf parsley (Italian parsley) 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional) ¾ cup dry white wine and/or ½ cup cognac 2 large potatoes, roughly chopped 2-4 cups broth (beef, mushroom, or vegetable or a combination of these) Preheat over to 425 degrees. Combine the flour, salt, and pepper and dredge the roast with mixture. Use a large ovenproof pan over medium-high heat, and when it is hot, add the oil. Then add the roast and cook until it is deeply golden on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Turn over and cook until it is deeply golden on the bottom, about 2 more minutes. Transfer the roast to a plate. Add the olive oil and then to a hot pan add the garlic, onion, carrots, celery, leeks, mushrooms, cabbage, fennel, tomatoes, dried bay leaf, fresh thyme, fresh oregano, sage, flat-leaf parsley, rosemary, and cook or wilt down for about 5 minutes. Then add the wine and/or cognac and broth mixture and continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Return the roast to the pan and place the chopped potatoes around the roast. Cover the roast with the herb-broth mixture. Cover pan and transfer to the oven. Cook at 425 degrees for approximately 30 minutes and then turn the oven down to 325 degrees and continue cooking for another 2 hours. Serve with a loaf of hot, crusty French bread. Lindas Osso Buco of Veal ½ cup all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon kosher salt 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper 1 teaspoon paprika 4 veal shanks, tied to secure meat to bone 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 cups chopped high-quality bacon 6-8 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced 1 whole sweet onion 2 large carrots diced 3 stalks of celery cut into medium dice 2 leeks (white part only), well washed and chopped 2 cups roughly chopped mushrooms 1 fennel bulb, roughly chopped (optional) 2 plum tomatoes crushed ½ lemon zest only 1 dried bay leaf 2 sprigs fresh thyme 3 fresh sage leaves 3 springs fresh flat-leaf parsley (Italian parsley) 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary 1 teaspoon dried fennel seeds ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes ¾ cup dry white wine ½ cup cognac 4 cups broth (chicken, veal, mushroom, or vegetable) Preheat over to 425 degrees. Combine the flour, salt, and pepper and lightly dust shanks with mixture. Use a large ovenproof pan over medium-high heat, and when it is hot, add the oil. Then add the shanks and cook until they are deeply golden on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Turn over and cook until they are deeply golden on the bottom, about 2 more minutes. Transfer the shanks to a plate. Add the bacon to the pan and cook until it starts to render its fat, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic, onion, carrot, celery, leeks, mushrooms, fennel bulb, tomatoes, lemon zest, dried bay leaf, fresh thyme, sage, flat-leaf parsley, rosemary, and fennel seeds and cook for about 10 minutes. Return the shanks to the pan and add the wine and cognac and broth. Be sure to cover the shanks with the herb mixture. Cover pan and transfer to the oven. Cook at 425 degrees for approximately 20 minutes and then turn the oven down to 325 degrees and continue cooking for another 1 hour and 40 minutes. Serve over risotto or basmatic rice. Also serve a loaf of crusty French bread for dipping. King Ranch Casserole By: Nancy H. Rosenberg Most versions of this popular entree involve Ro-Tel tomatoes and canned soup. So what if its not exactly gourmet fare? Its beloved nonetheless. FYI, no one knows where the name originated, but the dish didnt come from the King Ranch. The famed South Texas spread is known instead for its beef and game dishes. Yield: 10 to 12 servings. 1 (3- to 4-lb.) broiler-fryer, cut up 1 tsp. salt 1 (10 3/4-oz.) can cream of chicken soup 1 (10 3/4-oz.) can cream of mushroom soup 1 (10-oz.) can Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies 1 large onion, chopped 1 large green pepper, chopped 1 1/2 tsp. chili powder 12 corn tortillas 2 c. shredded Monterey Jack or "Mexican-style" cheese garlic powder to taste Place chicken pieces in a large Dutch oven, add water to cover and 1 tsp. salt. Simmer, covered, about 1 hour, or until chicken is tender. When cool, remove and bone chicken, reserving broth. Cut or tear meat into small pieces; set aside. In a separate bowl, combine soups with tomatoes, onion, green pepper, and chili powder, and mix well; set aside. Heat reserved chicken broth. Tear tortillas into fourths, dip each piece in warm chicken broth, and place half the tortillas on the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking pan or casserole. Continue layering, using half of chicken, half of soup-tomatoes mixture, and half of cheese. Sprinkle with garlic powder, and repeat layers with remaining ingredients. Bake, covered, at 350° for 30 to 40 minutes, or until cheese has melted and sides of casserole are bubbly.

Scott, There is no smell like ANY peppers roasting! Truly! If I was trying to sell a house, I'd have peppers and tomatoes dehydrating or roasting in the oven just to fill the house with that delicious aroma. I think a house would sell based on how good it smelled! I miss frying! I miss making home-made fried chicken and chicken fried steaks as well as fried pork chops, and fried potatoes, or my dad's summer garden dish where he'd mix together sliced potatoes, okra, onions and peppers (hot or sweet) and fry them in lard or bacon fat, sprinkling a handful or two of cornmeal over them as he fried them. We never had a name for that dish but I loved to make it, and it too has been relegated to the more fattening meals of our past and no longer is included in the healthier meals of the present day. Tim has high cholesterol, though, so frying things in the old southern style is something we dropped almost entirely at least 15 years ago. Homemade fried chicken still is a favorite birthday meal here in this household, and I'll make it if that's what the birthday person wants. I think that on their birthday a person should get to eat what they want. If you're eating healthy most of the time, an occasional old-style fried southern meal won't hurt. Stockergal, Well, I grew up on meat and potatoes, growing up in Fort Worth a few miles from the Stockyards. Beef was always the main thing we had when I was a kid, but we did have lots of chicken and occasionally pork or fish. It is just that when you live in a Wild West sort of town like Ft. Worth (I am sure OKC was very similar in the same decades) where beef and potatoes are the holy grail of meals, that's what you eat. I'd still rather eat meat and potatoes than anything else, but we do try to eat more fish and poultry now and less red meat. My first job was as a waitress in a steakhouse and I would have eaten steak every day if I could. It has been hard to slowly (way too slowly, most likely) learn to eat in a more healthy manner. Carol, As soon as I saw "hobo dinners", I did instantly think "Boy Scouts!" That's some good eating, and I love hobo dinners. I also love cooking anything/everything outdoors in cast iron dutch ovens, also a remnant, I guess, from our Boy Scout days. Andria, Well, you made me hungry! We do cook a lot less in the heat. I love it when cold weather returns in fall or winter and find myself spending a lot more time in the kitchen then (coincidentally at a time when I am spending less time in the garden). I find eating healthy works best for me one day at a time. (grin) If I had to think that I'd only eat perfectly healthy meals for the rest of my life, I'd rebel and go buy and eat the biggest ribeye I could find, and then I'd finish the meal with incredibly rich and delicious homemade (made from scratch) chocolate cake. An occasional cheat day isn't too bad, but we truly are eating healthier than we ever have, most days. We are trying really hard to eat healthier as we get older, and it isn't always easy. The taste buds want what they want, but I do think that once I cut a lot of junk out of my diet, I don't enjoy it as much when I do eat some of it because my taste buds have learned to enjoy things that are less fattening, less processed, less salty, etc. I suppose that's a good thing, but I miss the days when I was younger and had better metabolism and could eat anything and everything I wanted and never gain an ounce. Those days are gone forever. If I ever find a way to grow my own chocolate, I'm in trouble. Dawn

To me, "comfort food" is a misnomer. I find any good food to be comforting, and it doesn't have to be a big Thanksgiving buffet. A good sandwich is comforting to me too. Fall time is a good time for hot foods, long cooked foods, slow roasted foods. Stew, chili, pot roast, meatloaf, turkey breast, ham... Done right, they're all comforting. Add in a pecan or apple pie, spice cake, good cup of coffee or tea and have a feast. Even some good quality bratwurst fit in here too. Never was big on soup. Soup is a side dish, not a meal. I don't drink a meal anymore. I want a thick, hearty stew instead.