Cyndi Allison's Blog
Posted by Cyndi Allison
Lexington, NC will hold their annual Barbecue Festival on October 24, 2009 this year. That just happens to be my birthday. We go every year to celebrate my birthday (or have in the past), but I think this is first time I recall it actually falling on my birthday.
The Barbecue Festival is one of the biggest in the southeast and quite a feat for a small Southern town like Lexington which is close to WInston-Salem and Greensboro.
It's helpful to plan ahead, so see my Barbecue Festival Guide at Yes You Can Grill. I offer tips and mention some of the best things to see and do at the Lexington Festival.
Posted by Cyndi Allison
This is the time to upgrade appliances with Obama's Cash for Clunker appliances rolling out. You save money and go green with Energy Star appliances that use 10% to 30% less energy.
Cash for Clunker Appliances - overview of the Obama rebate program
Update Your Kitchen - kitchen appliances on the federak Cash for Appliances program list
Tax Rebates on Some Appliance Clunkers - get more money back on taxes with the right appliance purchases
Energy Star Products - appliances on the Obama appliance list and qualifications for Energy Star ratings
Energy Star Refrigerators - info on Cash for Appliance fridges
Energy Star Freezer Guide - info on home freezers on the Obama list
Cash for Appliances Water Heaters - overview on Cash for Appliances water heaters
Water Heater Buying Guide - Energy Star water heaters - types in easy-to-understand language
Posted by Cyndi Allison
Yum! Bratswurth. We love grilled brats around here, and my favorite brand is Johnsonville.
Johnsonville don't try to make and sell every meat you can imagine. Johnsville sells sausages, so they focus on brats and on doing them right.
Grilling bratswurth is really easy, but the type of sausage you buy does make a difference. If you're not sure how to grill brats, then check out my Grilled Brats Guide and see how you need to grill the various types of grilling sausages.
It's always nice to look sharp but be comfortable when grilling at home or when on the road tailgating or camping, so start saving your Johnsonville labels. If you collect four Johnsonville sausage proofs of purchase, you can mail those in for a Free Johnsonville T-Shirt. Just downlod the form and start collecting your brats labels.
You'll enjoy for heap good grilling and then have a nice free t-shirt to boot. Gotta love that.
Posted by Cyndi Allison
Pumpkin Puree - Don't toss out your Halloween jack-o-lantern. Cook down the pumpkin and make your own puree for recipes. Great budget saving tip during economic hard times.
Baked Pumpkin Seeds - While you're making the most of your pumpkin, bake the seeds. You will be surprised at how great they taste, and thye are good for you too.
Southern Pumpkin Pie - Would it be the holidays without pumpkin pie? Well, I suppose it would. But it's hard to beat pumpkin pie with other holiday favorites like oven roasted turkey and baked ham.
Pumpkin Drop Cookies - These cookies are easy to make and are packed with flavor. Portable cookie snacks go over well with kids and adults too.
Pumpkin Cake Recipe - Yum. This is a realy moist and yummy cake. Good frosted of plain.
Pumpkin Bread - Along the lines of banana bread, this recipe makes a beautiful fall bread that tastes wonderful served with butter.
Pumpkin Dip - This is a newer recipe now popular with Southerners. This dip is rich and just perfect served with Ginger Snap cookies.
Pumpkin Soup - Yes. You can make soup with pumpkin. It makes a wonderful first course or served with special breads on a cold fall or winter evening.
Posted by Cyndi Allison
I've been following the news about Swine Influenza Virus or SIV. H1N1 caught my attention, because I did a county history research project several years back and worked on the Spanish or Avian Flu of 1918 story. That was a really wicked flu, and very few people are old enough to remember how the Flu of 1918 swept the globe. I was able to get some firsthand information before some of the elderly folks in our town passed on.
I started doing resarch on the Swine Flu at the Center for Disease Control CDC (and at various news outlets) and put together some information and tips about swine flu and also an interview with a swine flu victim including swine flu symptoms, since I teach at a college and the younger population is getting hit hard by the new flu. It seemed like a good idea to be prepared, because I felt sure some of my students would be dealing with this pandemic.
As fate would have it, my son called home from UNC Chapel Hill the day after I posted my flu tips. He'd been to the Health Center on campus and had swine flu. The college gave him a surgical map and him call me to pick him up. I'm glad they did, because I know it's hard to be away from home and sick. Also, sending him home hopefully prevented further cases on campus.
Fortunately, my son only had one bad day with H1N1 flu. The main H1N1 symptoms he had were congestion and fluid on his ears. His fever broke after three days. He was much sicker with seasonal flu a few years back than he has been with swine flu.
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Posted by Cyndi Allison
Celebrate Father's Day with a contest at Barbecue Master blog. Simply share barbecue memories (good or bad) about your Dad (or another dad person in your life) and be entered to win a Mug Root Beer gift pack cooler. Five (5) winners will be pulled on Father's Day 2009.
I have one of the gift packs, and it's really nice. The cooler is soft sided and easy to pack and tote. The recipe is yummy, and you don't even have to go buy the ingredients if you win one of the gift packs.
This would be a fun free gift to give to Dad or to use to make him a nice meal this summer.