To get my programming credential from Oxford :) Several years ago, I could not imagine what it'd be like or that I'd get in :) There were other career goals and children, but my back situation has made me have to be more flexible about some ideas :( I may be miffed at the time it's taking but there is no doubt that I'll walk at the Sheldonian with my dad there and my mom in spirit. [At very least, he and I already visited the Sheldonian and told the guard that I'll get to see the inside some day as a graduate!] I'd like to visit so many places. I'd like to see where my Irishman grew up, a land that was the backdrop of great Irish mythology and archeologically rich. Even if my hair frizzes so much in the drizzle ;> I'd love my garden to be all that I dream, but it is sad that there are so few people around who would spend a while and enjoy it. I'm glad to see so many dreams here [and with my classmates too] :) I'm bombarded too often with folks whose dream seems to be to complain at least half the day from here until eternity and nothing else!! Whatever floats your boat, I guess but that just seems such a grueling outlook...

Mexican lasagna I found this recipe on pinterest and it sounds like one I need to try. This amazing lasagna recipe with Tex-Mex flair is fantastic. The beef mixture includes refried beans and chilies. The recipe is layered with noodles and cheese and has a salsa layer before adding sour cream, cheese, green onions, olives and tomatoes for the topping. Author: Teresa Ambra inspired from Taste of Home Recipe type: Beef Main Dish/Pasta Cuisine: Tex-Mex Serves: 10 Ingredients 2 lbs. 93% lean ground beef 16-oz. can refried beans 4-oz. can chopped green chilies 1 pkg. taco seasoning or Homemade Taco Seasoning 2 8-oz. bags shredded Colby-Jack cheese, divided 16-oz. uncooked lasagna noodles 24-oz. jar Pace mild or medium chunky salsa, divided use 2 cups water (see note below) 16-oz. sour cream 2 ¼-oz. can sliced ripe olives, drained 3 green onions, chopped 3 small roma tomatoes, chopped Instructions In a skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add the beans, chilies, taco seasoning and 2 heaping tablespoonfuls salsa; mix well. Heat through over medium heat about 5 minutes. In a well greased 9x13” baking dish, spread at least a cup of the meat mixture on the bottom to prevent noodles from sticking. Layer a row of four noodles and spread with one-third of the remaining beef mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese. Repeat layers twice. Combine remaining salsa and water; pour over top. Cover and bake at 350° for 1 hour and a half, or until noodles test fork tender. Uncover; top with sour cream, then cheese, then olives, then onions, and finally tomatoes. Bake 5-15 minutes longer—until cheese melts. Let stand 10-15 minutes before cutting. Notes When pouring salsa/water mixture over top it is imperative that you cover the noodles as much as possible so they don’t get dried out while baking. You must spread at least a cup of beef mixture on the bottom of the baking dish or the noodles will stick to the bottom of the pan. You can use enchilada sauce with the salsa to pour over top, if desired. Since the noodles aren't pre-cooked you cannot add additional layers or there is not enough moisture in the casserole to bake them through sufficiently. Baking time is approximate. Your oven may take 1 hour or 2 hours depending on if it runs fast or slow. Check for doneness by pricking noodles with a fork. If the noodles are tender, the casserole is cooked enough. If you wish to precook your lasagna noodles, cook only to al dente. Then spread the salsa over top of the casserole WITHOUT mixing it with water. Bake about 30-40 minutes or until casserole is bubbly. Then spread with sour cream, add cheese, green onions, olives and tomatoes. Bake an additional 5-10 minutes or until cheese melts. Recipe by Can't Stay Out of the Kitchen at http://cantstayoutofthekitchen.com/2012/06/28/mexican-lasagna/

This is from Cookalong #18 -- Mushrooms: Posted by doucanoe (My Page) on Mon, Dec 28, 09 at 21:45 I love, love, love fungus! LOL Some of my favorites.... This one makes a really nice light lunch or is great for breakfast, too! Croutes Aux Champignons 4 slices bread 1/2 c butter, divided 12oz fresh mushrooms, sliced 1 small onion, chopped 1T flour 1/2c stock (I use beef) 1/2c dry white wine 1/4c heavy cream parsley Saute onion in half the butter until tender. Add mushrooms and cook until liquid has evaporated. Stir in flour, gradually add stock and wine. Stir in cream and simmer until thickened. Meanwhile, butter both sides of bread, and toast on griddle until golden brown on both sides. Spoon mushroom sauce over bread slices, serve warm sprinkled with chopped parsley. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sherried Brie and Mushroom Soup Makes 8 cups 1 lb. Brie cheese 2 cups dry sherry 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 pound crimini mushrooms, sliced 1/2 cup minced shallots 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 tablespoons flour 4 cups low-sodium beef broth 1 3/4 cups half and half 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh chives, for garnish Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste Trim the rind from the brie and then roughly tear it into 2-inch pieces. (It is easy to trim if you first place the cheese in the freezer for 30 minutes or until it is sufficiently hard.) Set aside. In a small saucepan, reduce the sherry over medium-high heat to 1 cup. Set aside. In a medium stockpot over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Add the mushrooms, shallots, and lemon juice and cook for 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat, add the flour, and stir until the flour is fully incorporated. Return the mixture to heat and add the beef broth and reserved sherry. Raise the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the trimmed Brie, stirring until the cheese has melted. Add the half and half and pepper and continue to simmer without boiling for 5 minutes. Taste for salt and pepper. To serve, ladle the soup into separate bowls and garnish each with 1 to 2 tablespoons of the chives. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Crockpot Beef Stroganoff 1-1/2 lb stew meat cut into cubes 1T cooking oil 1 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced 1/4c minced onion 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 tsp dried oregano 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 1/8 tsp dried thyme, crushed 1 bay leaf 1-1/2c beef broth 1/3c dry red wine 1 c sour cream 1/2c flour 1/4c water 4c hot cooked noodles or rice In large skillet brown the beef in hot oil, drain. In crockpot combine beef, mushrooms, onions, garlic, oregano, salt, pepper thyme and bay leaf. Pour in broth and wine. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours or on high 4-5 hours. Discard bay leaf, and turn crockpot to high heat. Mix together sour cream, flour and water. Stir about 1 cup of the hot liquid into the sour cream mixture, return all to crockpot and stir to combine. Cover and cook on high heat for 30 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Serve over noodles or rice. Serves 6 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ INA GARTEN’S PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM LASAGNA • Kosher salt • Good olive oil • 3/4 pound dried lasagna noodles • 4 cups whole milk • 12 tablespoons (11/2 sticks) unsalted butter, divided • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg • 1 1/2 pounds portobello mushrooms • 1 cup freshly ground Parmesan Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil with 1 tablespoon salt and a splash of oil. Add the lasagna noodles and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain and set aside. For the white sauce, bring the milk to a simmer in a saucepan. Set aside. Melt 8 tablespoons (1 stick) of the butter in a large saucepan. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Pour the hot milk into the butter-flour mixture all at once. Add 1 tablespoon salt, the pepper, and nutmeg, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring first with the wooden spoon and then with a whisk, for 3 to 5 minutes, until thick. Set aside off the heat. Separate the mushroom stems from the caps and discard the stems. Slice the caps 1/4-inch thick. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large (12-inch) saute pan. When the butter melts, add half the mushrooms, sprinkle with salt, and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender and they release some of their juices. If they become too dry, add a little more oil. Toss occasionally to make sure the mushrooms cook evenly. Repeat with the remaining mushrooms and set all the mushrooms aside. To assemble the lasagna, spread some of the sauce in the bottom of an 8 by 12 by 2-inch baking dish. Arrange a layer of noodles on top, then more sauce, then 1/3 of the mushrooms, and 1/4 cup grated Parmesan. Repeat 2 more times, layering noodles, sauce, mushrooms, and Parmesan. Top with a final layer of noodles and sauce, and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. Bake the lasagna for 45 minutes, or until the top is browned the sauce is bubbly and hot. Allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes and serve hot. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ And a super simple appetizer... Balsamic Mushrooms 1/4 c olive oil 12 oz button mushrooms 3 T balsamic vinegar 1 tsp coarse salt 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes fresh ground pepper Heat oil in skillet over medium high heat. Add mushrooms and cook until golden brown, about 7 minutes. Stir in vinegar, salt and red pepper flakes, season with pepper. Cook one minute more. Transfer to serving dish, serve hot or at room temperature. Linda

Ingrid--I think Autumn Damask will always be my favorite not only fro its beauty and fragrance but because of its place in rose history. The disappointment for me is that mine do not do as well as I had hoped or repeat as often. Spring bloom is good, but summers here are hot and humid here, so summer bloom quality is not good and I never get fall bloom. I have three seedlings this year, one of which I hope is a Damask, but the pot in which it grew was left over from the year before and lost its tag so the only thing I can say about it at this point is that the leaves look European. One of the others has European leaves and the third may be Musk or possibly a Noisette. I see you are in Zone 10--it must be quite hot where you are. We have been fortunate in central Virginia--daily temperatures in the low 90s for most of the month. Yesterday, was mid-80s, high 80s forecast for today and 80s again for tomorrow, followed by a four day heat wave in the mid to high 90s for the end of the week. Lindsey