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AVOID THE ER WAIT- CHECK IN ONLINE
GLENWOOD INQUICKER • www.grmc.com
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lenwood Regional Medical Center is proud to introduce a new, innovative online service allowing patients to hold their place in line in the emergency room- it’s called InQuicker. By using InQuicker.com, you will arrive at the hospital at your projected treatment time and be seen promptly by a healthcare professional to receive quality care and treatment without the wait in the ER. InQuicker estimates treatment times based on the facility conditions and allows users to wait in line in the comfort of their own home rather than in the emergency waiting room. InQuicker takes our busy lives into account and makes access for minor medical needs fast and efficient. The InQuicker online portal allows you to be assessed by evaluating your medical symptoms online to see if immediate care is necessary. Those who indicate a life or limb – threatening medical condition are prompted to dial 911 or go immediately to the ER. However, if you are in doubt about the severity of your condition, always seek immediate care. As the nature of emergency room visits do not allow for scheduling of medical treatment, InQuicker is not an appointment or reservation. However, InQuicker does allow you to wait for medical care without being present in the emergency room. By using real time notifications via email and phone call, waiting at home proves to be an asset to busy families and individuals.
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InQuicker Users may now choose from 3 locations that are nearest you: Glenwood Regional Medical Center - ER 503 McMillan Road, West Monroe, LA Glenwood Urgent C are Clinic 3995 Sterlington Rd, Monroe, LA Glenwood Family Practice Clinic Dr. Byron Henry 3995 Sterlington Road, Suite C, Monroe, LA
In addition to InQuicker, Glenwood’s Fast Track, located within the Glenwood ER, provides treatment to patients with less critical medical conditions, like cuts, fever, colds and flu; in less time than an average ER visit. Once patients arrive at the ER, they are quickly accessed and moved to Fast Track if their conditions allow. And now 10 new treatment rooms make Fast Track even faster! Following bedside registration, treatment is quickly provided by highly skilled ER professionals in usually less than 1 hour.* Get out of the ER and back to your life faster with Fast Track in the Glenwood ER. Check ER wait times in REAL TIME at www.grmc.com. For more information about InQuicker, visit www.grmc.com or call 877-726-WELL (9355). For minor emergencies, avoid the ER wait by checking in online at www.grmc.com
“joie de jardinage Embracing nature to harmonize the soul.
Brenda Reneé Tres Bella Magazine
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mbracing Nature to harmonize mental, emotional, & physical experiences of the Soul. Although Divine exists in every aspect of life, it is most easily experienced and witnessed in Nature. When you learn to blend the natural world with the civilized world, you create a space for peace and joy in your life. Why? You are no longer resisting the current of life. Also, you regain connection to Source, which then inspires you to flow into peak, uplifting experiences. A ”magical force” picks you up from your mundane existence and drops you into a new world of possibilities and dreams come true! Through this column, we will explore partnering with Nature to create a more fruitful, blissful life. Life is an interweaving of short & long cyclic phases. At any given time, you will find yourself in cycles of birth, growth, or death. Long cyclic phases run parallel to the human life span. However, the shorter cycles represent our daily challenges and peak life moments. If you are engaging a new career path, you are embarking on a beginning, which is always a birthing. As your children enter the school system, you, as a family, are in a cycle of growth. A divorce is an ending, which brings in the cycle of death. Cycles come and go; they are not meant to be permanent. However, when we resist these natural cycles, we stagnate and close off new opportunities. Nature offers us opportunities to explore & accept life cycles through teachers such as insects. Due to their brief lifespans, insects give us the opportunity to understand the natural process of life’s cycles. Butterflies, in their majestic, poetic beauty, are the most widely accepted & observed insects. They create a willowy, whispy, magical confetti of colors as they fly from flower to flower. It is difficult to gaze upon a butterfly and not feel happiness! Butterflies reflect the joyful dance through life. As a butterfly prepares itself for the hardening
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of the chrysalis, it appears to die. It becomes rigid and lifeless. Butterfly teaches that although things appear to die, they really do not. They only change form. Butterfly teaches the continuity of existence. Thus, they are often important symbols used at weddings and funerals. For the wedding rite, a couple dies to their single, individual paths and births a new life as one. Within the funeral rite, the individual changes from human form into the truth of the everlasting Spirit. Butterflies are very potent reminders that Life does not need our assistance to unfold naturally and harmoniously. If a butterfly’s delicate, powdery wings are touched, they are discolored and left with a heavy oily residue. Once a butterfly begins its emergence from the chrysalis, it cannot be assisted. The strength required to “hatch” pushes essential fluids into the butterfly’s wings, enabling them to properly unfold and dry. If a butterfly is “assisted”, it is never able to fly. What a lesson for releasing control! Butterflies live on the wing for about 2 weeks. Thus, they must be in constant movement to find food, mates, and habitat. They don’t worry and fret about their next relationship, or where they will sleep at night. They trust Life and allow. Take some time to reflect on your life. What cycle does butterfly represent to you at present? Are you moving through this cycle with joy & ease? Are you fearful of ensuing changes? The next time you see a butterfly dance by, pause for a moment. Take a deeeep breath… and connect with the essence of joy. Brenda Renee’ is a licensed Horticulturist & Landscape Contractor. She received her Master’s in holistic sciences at the American Institute of Holistic Theology. She weaves her knowledge of plants & nature into her Holistic Life Coaching practice & interiorscaping business, Joie de Jardinage. This article is excerpted from her upcoming book, Joie de Jardinage. Brenda may be reached at 318-243-1343.
y r e t e m e C Saving The
Photos by Jim Stewart, D’ Xavier Studio
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The Old Monroe City Cemetery on DeSiard Street
By Lora D. Peppers Tres Bella Magazine
Take a drive down DeSiard Street towards old downtown Monroe. Just a half mile past 18th Street, to your left you will find one of Monroe’s most picturesque cemeteries. Many people pass by it daily without a thought. Some are familiar with the legend of Sidney Saunders, whose statue stares out from its perch next to the road. That is about the extent of people’s knowledge. However, this little plot of land contains almost two hundred years of Monroe’s history. You will find a senator, a state Supreme Court Justice, eleven mayors, numerous Civil War soldiers, a few scoundrels and some of the best and brightest founding mothers and fathers of the city of Monroe. The oldest section of the city cemetery is known as the McGuire plot. Robert Forbes McGuire came to Monroe in 1816. Robert was a Doctor, a lawyer and a planter, which ingrained him into the upper echelon of Monroe society. He did well for himself and marries the daughter of one of the early French settlers, Louisa Lamy in 1825. He is most remembered for the diary he kept of life in early Monroe, which now can be found at the ULM Special Collections Department. A few years after his marriage, in 1825, he was appointed Monroe’s first known mayor, called “President of the Town Trustees”. It was under his administration that land for the city cemetery was bought from the Filhiol family. After a long and prosperous career, he passed away in 1862 and was laid to rest in the plot he had selected for his family. Nearby were family members whose graves date back all the way to 1815. It is surmised that once the plot was selected, the earlier graves were moved from the family cemetery to the plot. All of Robert and Louisa’s children died young so there are no family members to take care of their graves. They were the founders of the local Masonic and Order of the Eastern Star chapters which now bear their names and so, the responsibility for their care and upkeep has been taken on by the Masons. Robert’s wife Louisa is considered the mother of the public library system in Ouachita Parish. When she died in the 1880’s, she left behind her husband’s law office and books for use as Monroe’s first public library. The latest, and quite arguably the greatest, of Monroe’s mayors to lie sleeping in the cemetery is Dr. Andrew Alexander Forsythe. His massive stone can be seen right at the west entrance to the cemetery. His father and uncle gave Jena, LA its name. He graduated from Tulane University in 1887 Valedictorian of his class with a degree in medicine. In 1898, the citizens of Monroe asked him to run for mayor and he won. Forsythe ended up serving as mayor for sixteen years. When he came into office, Monroe only had thirty dollars in its coffers. When he died in office, Monroe owned 1.5 million dollars in property. 26 26
aging with attitude
Helping seniors fight fraud.
Seniors are too often victimized by telemarketing fraud. Studies from the American Association of Retired Persons have shown that many elderly fraud victims simply don’t suspect the person soliciting money on the phone could be a criminal. The FBI reports that there are as many as 14,000 illegal telemarketing operations going on at any given time. These illegal operations generate as much as $40 billion a year. Relatives of seniors are understandably concerned, particularly if those seniors live alone and no one is around to monitor how many calls they’re receiving from telemarketers. Concerned relatives can share the following information with seniors to reduce their loved ones’ risks of being victimized by telemarketing fraud. * Legitimate marketers are not in a rush to sell products or secure donations. A legitimate marketer or charity will not try to pressure prospective buyers into making a purchase over the phone or prospective donors into making immediate contributions. Explain to seniors that a legitimate marketer will accept a person’s desire for written information about the products or charity and will gladly send such information to a prospective buyer or donor’s home.
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* Payments are typically not picked up by a courier service. Telemarketing fraudsters often employ couriers to pick up payments. This is not the action of a reputable charity or business, and seniors should never agree to buy a product
or donate money to any telemarketer who offers to send a courier to their home to pick up payment. * Sweepstakes cannot legally require payment to win a prize. It is not legal for contests or sweepstakes to require “winners” pay a fee before they can enter a contest or claim a prize. Seniors should be made aware that this is the law and that any contest or sweepstakes demanding payment is bogus. * Be especially wary of companies offering to recover money paid to fraudulent telemarketers in the past. Companies offering to recover past money lost to fraud are often fraudulent themselves. These companies will offer their fraudulent services for a fee. * Money lost to a fraudulent telemarketer is likely lost forever. Men and women concerned about elderly friends or relatives being victimized by telemarketing fraud should explain to their loved ones that money lost in a telemarketing scam is not likely to be recovered. This should help highlight the importance of receiving official documentation from any telemarketers before buying a product or making a donation. If seniors are aware their money isn’t likely to be recovered should it be going to a criminal, they are much less likely to make hasty decisions over the phone. To learn more about fraud, visit the National Consumer League’s Fraud Center at www.fraud. org.
Campbell House Rules By Linda Campbell
When I was a little girl, my sister Diane and I were totally tom-boys. We learned to ride before we walked, and I’m not talking about cute little ponies with ribbons in their manes. We rode horses on saddles with horns, and we knew how to use them. I learned to rope by roping a goat named Hercules. Yes, I was a goat roper; and yes, that goat hated me. We climbed trees, walked fences, rode bikes, and swam during the day and caught baby frogs and fireflies outside at night. For Christmas and birthdays, we wanted guns and bows and arrows to play cowboys and Indians and maybe a doll or two to ride in the stagecoach or be rescued. We even had Red Rider BB guns with which we almost put our little sister’s eye out—no kidding! Because we were generally away from the house and outside my mother’s view, we could do just about anything we wanted to because if we got caught we could always say, “You didn’t tell us not to do that.” As we got a little older, about 10 and 8 respectively, we had enough guns and stuff. I can’t remember what Diane’s lists for Christmas or birthdays were, but I wanted things like microscopes, chemistry sets, and binoculars. One birthday, I got a detective kit. One of the neatest things in it was a magnifying lens. Since my birthday is June 21, first day of summer, the longest day of the year (that info is for those who might be in the mood to give gifts), Diane and I were out looking at everything we could find—up close and personal. While we were out, pretty far from the house, a little summer shower sprang up. We decided that since we were close to the barn, we would go in and wait until the rain stopped. Now, we did have rules at our house: don’t play with matches, knives, or ropes in the trees (you will burn yourself, cut yourself or hang yourself); don’t hang by your knees from the top of the swing set which was about 15 feet high (you will break your neck); don’t play in the barn ( other than the fact that it didn’t belong to my family, we didn’t know the reason for that one). But we weren’t going into the barn to play: we were just going in to get out of the rain. Of course it was boring just to sit there, so we just kept looking at things with the magnifying lens. The rain let up, and the sun came out. We were looking at a small pile of hay to see what was in it, and the sun shone through the lens. A tiny wisp of smoke rose up from the pile of hay—where had that come from? We kept looking, the sun kept shining, and suddenly we had a fire. Cool. Wait, not so cool. The fire kept getting bigger. Now we knew one reason that we weren’t supposed to play in the barn: there was a lot of dry hay around, and it caught fire easily. Since we were barefoot, we couldn’t stomp it out; so we found an old feed sack that had gotten wet and began to beat it out. We didn’t realize we were sending up smoke signals. When people in the country see smoke coming from a barn, they get there as quickly as possible. So we were found in the barn, setting a fire, and just about burning it down. To say my mother was not happy is a vast understatement. Not a good finish to my birthday. The years passed, and I (through the Grace of God) grew up and had children of my own. I learned pretty quickly that you had to have rules, or your children would become savages. When a nice lady comes over to your precious child and says, “you are so cute”, and your precious child says, “you are so fat,”that child is not nearly as cute any more. So you apologize to the nice lady, and when you get home, you tell said child not to say that anymore because it hurts people’s feelings. “How would you feel if someone said that about me”? Since I was about to have another baby in just a week or two, it was really not a fair question. But I watched her eyes as she thought about it and what to say. What she said was, “I love you”. They grow up so fast! Anyway, you try to teach them to be nice to other people, to be kind, to help them, to be polite. You are basically teaching them what it means to be human. If you do a really good job of it, they might not embarrass you too often. When you have a bunch of kids like I do, you learn that they are not created equal. In fact, if you have four kids like I do, they will all be very different. Some
of them basically try to do the right thing; another—well if he had been my first, he would have been my only. So I never tried to treat them all the same. One day my oldest, who was in college, said about my youngest, “How come you tell him you are proud of him for making a “C” in algebra when I got grounded for making a “C” in spelling?” I explained to her that he had worked very hard to make that “C” while she had not tried at all and had made a “C”. That it was not about how it turned out, but about how hard you tried. She said, “I think it is because he’s the baby”. I said that there might be something to that because after four kids, I was just tired. I tried to teach my kids not to do certain things and explain the consequences of said things to them. Don’t run in the house—you will hurt yourself and break something. Don’t jump on the furniture—you will hurt yourself and break something. I told my younger son not to tease his older brother because his brother out-weighed him by 20 pounds and might kill him. Well, they got hurt a lot of times and broke a lot of things including various bones. And the last time I redid my house, I finally got the door to the bathroom fixed that my older son had knocked down, frame and all, trying to get to his younger brother; but he didn’t kill him. When the boys were about 9 and 10, I had some errands to run. They didn’t want to go with me and gave me many reasons that they shouldn’t have to go. I gave in and after telling them to keep the door locked and not to answer the phone and not to go in the kitchen and to behave, I left. I went to the cleaners, filled up the car, and cashed a check. After about 20 minutes, I headed home. As I came around the corner to my house, I saw movement on my roof. I stopped the car and slowly looked up. There—on the roof—were my boys running around like a couple of squirrels. Very calmly, I told them to go back through the window and get off the roof. I was afraid if I just told them to get off the roof, they would jump. When we were all inside, I asked them (in a very not calm voice) what in the world they were thinking? They said, “You didn’t tell us not to go out on the roof ”. When my heart slowed down and I could breathe again, I told them that they could have fallen off and hurt themselves. At this point, I realized that I had been down that road a lot of times and in a lot of different ways. And I had to come up with something that would cover more things—in fact, all things. So I explained to them (once again calmly) that they could have been killed, and to please think before they did anything that could get them killed.
And so the Campbell House Rules had evolved. Be a decent human being. Be nice and polite. Take care of other people who need taking care of. If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all, etc. Do the best you can. Everybody’s best is different, so don’t judge yourself by what other people are doing. If you do your best, I will be very proud of you. Don’t die. Don’t put yourself in dangerous situations. Stay safe. No matter what happens, we can handle it—just don’t die. My youngest said that when he tried to find a way to do something that he basically knew he shouldn’t, he couldn’t find a way to get around these three rules. So if he did it and got caught, he was going to be in trouble—even if I hadn’t told him specifically not to do something. So if they worked for him, I knew they would work for anyone. It has only taken me my whole life to fine-turn the Campbell House Rules, so if you want to borrow them feel free. I hope they work as well for your family as they did for mine.
reigning with hope
Miss Louisiana 2011 prepares to crown her successor.
by Mark Sanders Tres Bella Magazine
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ach June, the Twin Cities await one of the largest events in the state. This year, at the 49th Annual Miss Louisiana Pageant, reigning queen Hope Anderson will crown her successor. This year, 36 young women from across the state will vie for the title of Miss Louisiana and will become a hostess for the State of Louisiana. The contestants will arrive one week prior to the competition and will begin a rigorous routine of rehearsals and interviews, all leading up to the preliminary competition on Thursday and Friday evenings. The Miss Louisiana Pageant is held on Saturday night.
professional platforms through community service and civic involvement. They are a part of the world’s largest competitive scholarship program and the nation’s largest leadership program for young women, the Miss America Organization. In the past year, the Miss America Organization has made available more than forty-five million dollars in scholarships for young women. The Miss Louisiana Organization was able to provide $1.2 million dollars in scholarships to young women competing throughout the State of Louisiana. Not only is the Miss Louisiana Pageant entertaining, it also leaves a notable mark on the economy of the community during the week leading up to and during the week of the pageant. The Monroe-West Monroe Convention and Visitors Bureau has noted that during this time period, retail sales, hotel and restaurant business is increased.
Throughout her reign, Hope has made a name for herself throughout our state for her commitment to supporting the Children’s Miracle Network. Hope, a Top Ten Finalist at the Miss America Pageant, was the winner of the National Miracle Maker Award, raising over $40,000 for CMN--a sum that has exceeded the goals set by any other Miss Louisiana. In great part, her efforts helped to secure another win for Louisiana as the State Miracle Maker, the state raising the most money for CMN. Hope has represented the State of Louisiana proudly and has traveled, spoken, performed and developed lasting contacts for CMN, as well as for the Miss Louisiana Scholarship Organization.
Preliminary competition will be held on Thursday, June 21st and Friday, June 22nd at 7:00 pm in the W.L. “Jack” Howard Theatre in the Monroe Civic Center Complex.
The Miss Louisiana Scholarship Organization exists to provide scholarship assistance for young women, enabling them to further their education while encouraging them to promote personal and
On Saturday evening, the finals, which will be televised statewide, will be held at 8:00. Miss Louisiana Patron tickets are still available, along with general tickets at www. MissLouisiana.org.
This is also an opportunity for people from other areas of the state to see what the community has to offer in the way of hotels, convention and conference facilities and economic development.
the measure of a gift
...this poor widow put in more than all of them...
J by Bill Dye, North Monroe Baptist Church
esus was sitting in front of the temple watching the people give. They had large brass pots and the worshippers would throw in the money as a noisy display. Theologians tell us that the selfrighteous Pharisees would make an ostentatious show of it, often converting the money they gave into the smallest denominations in order to appear to give far more than they did. Why toss in a single silver dollar when you can throw in a hundred pennies? The noise of the coins clanging around on the rim of the brass pot would prove to everyone that you were a large, generous person giving large generous offerings. Most of those watching the charade were impressed with the largess. Not Jesus. He was a heart-reader. A frail widow woman hobbled out of the crowd to the offering spittoons. She was poor. Anybody could see it. Her tiny hand gripped a pair of copper coins. It was really nothing compared to what others presented, but it was all she had and it was more than she could spare. She smiled, tossed them into the pot and moved away. Jesus turned to those around him and said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them” (Luke 21:3). Those around him were scratching their heads. “Wait… what… she only gave a couple of cents! Those others gave great resources. How could her gift be more than theirs?” Jesus was trying to help us understand that the gift isn’t valued by what you offer. The value of the gift is determined by what it cost you to give it. I’ve met the woman in that story. Her name is Mrs. Morris. She lived in a white frame house with her mentally challenged grown son, Jimmy. Mrs. Morris
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was in her late 70’s, about four feet tall, with a sparkling wit and a deep love for the Lord. Our church was doing a fund raising campaign and Mrs. Morris was one of my stops. Amy and I pulled to the curb and my heart sunk. I said, “Amy, I don’t want to go in there. Mrs. Morris doesn’t have any money to give, and if she tried I’d want to give it back to her.” Mrs. Morris met us with a smile. Jimmy was smiling too. She said, “We’ve been waiting for this visit since the campaign started. Jimmy and me couldn’t wait to give our part.” Mrs. Morris ushered us through the tiny living room with old furniture and cat hair, past the various works of hand-made art to her den. She never stopped talking, “Jimmy and me wanted so much to give, but as you know we’re on a fixed income. We just couldn’t figure what we were going to do. Then it dawned on us, we could sacrifice our TV.” Mrs. Morris pointed to an old television sitting on the stand. She said, “Our cable bill is $19 per month. That’s what we’re pledging.” I wanted to say, “Mrs. Morris, let those other people do this, you keep your TV.” But of course she was that widow with the two mites. I believe to this day that hers was largest gift ever given to that church. I left that tiny home convicted. How often do I refuse to give because I believe I don’t have enough to afford it? See a person in need and pass right by. I didn’t have enough time to give some of it to that situation. Feel a need of empathy and turn away because I already have more burdens than I can handle. Face a financial problem and quickly shut it out because the resources are already spread too thin. Like the Pharisees at the copper kettle, I only want to give out of my overflow, never out of my poverty. And yet, if I read this correctly, gifts are measured by sacrifice.
Tyler Thomas
“Mobile Vet, Zoo Vet” by Caroline Files Simply Hers Magazine
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couple of years ago Tyler Thomas attended a national veterinary conference in Las Vegas. One of the displays that caught his attention was a mobile veterinary unit. Tyler talked to several people about the feasibilty of making a living as a mobile veterinarian and decided this would be a way he could easily help clients. March 22nd of this year found Tyler driving his La Boit veterinary unit home from Columbus, Ohio, a sixteen hour trip. He’s now one of about 800 mobile veterinarians in the United States. This particular unit doesn’t have X-Ray capabilities or long term care capabilities. Tyler graduated from LSU Veterinary School in 1997 after attending Neville and NLU. Locals may remember his early office located on Ferrand Street in Monroe. He has done contract work at the Monroe zoo since 1999. Tyler played a part in getting Shirley the elephant ready to transition to the elephant sanctuary in Tennessee. Getting the eighteen wheeler to Shirley’s enclosure was the biggest challenge faced. Solomon James, Shirley’s keeper for twenty plus years, worked with her for several days getting her acclimated to the truck. This cut down on the stress of loading her, which she did easily when that hot July day came. The move went smoothly, even with Shirley’s bad leg. Solomon and other zoo employees stayed in Tennessee a couple of days to help Shirley adjust. Today, Shirley is the oldest elephant at the samctuary. The elephant sanctuary can be ‘googled’ for updates on Shirley. Lafayette, Louisiana was a two day a week work situation for Tyler before he went mobile. There, he and other veterinarians worked together spaying/ neutering pets. He worked in the Monroe area the rest of the week.
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Now Tyler concentrates on building up his mobile practice. His business is appointment driven: his goal, to visit four to seven homes a day. Tyler offers morning, afternoon, and weekend visits. He basically works the Ouachita Parish area with gas mileage factored into the visit. Older pet owners, pet owners with disabilities, or owners with several pets benefit from a house call. Pets who don’t travel well for any number of reasons also benefit fro a home visit. Basic services are offered such as vaccinations, spays/neuters, wellness exams, and dental checks. Parasite control is available. Animal hospice, or euthanasia, is also offered. This is a more comfortable, compassionate method of handling end of life situations for owners as well as pets. Discussion of pet med catalogues or on-line orders came up in the conversation. Tyler doesn’t badmouth these situations. He does point out that a prescription from a veterinarian is still needed for certain medications. These situations do not offer personal relationships that veterinarians provide on a daily basis or in an emergency. Tyler has a practical, compassionate approach to his work. Being a multi-pet owner, I would not hesitate to call Tyler. The cats and dogs at my house would be Tyler’s cup of tea. The goats and horses, not so much. Abbey Cat and Stanley Dog, rescue animals. are part of Tyler’s household. Tyler’s two daughters are Lily and Amelia.
The last person in the world to refer to herself as a “diva” would be my mother, Rebecca Turner Sanders, however, she is the best cook I know. She is known for her spaghetti sauce, and I beg her to make it. We refer to it as “all day” sauce, because it sits on the stove for ages for all of the flavors to marry. It is delicious and it’s a perfect sauce to use in lasagna, too.
Spaghetti Sauce
Pasta Puttanesca 2 tablespoons olive oil
6 garlic cloves, minced 2 tablespoons anchovy fillets, drained and crushed 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 lbs. ground steak
1 ½ cups mixed olives, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups canned whole tomatoes, crushed
6 6-ounce cans tomato paste
3 tablespoons tomato paste
6 to 8 cans water
1 14-ounce can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 large onions, diced
4 tablespoons capers, drained
6 cloves garlic, chopped
3 teaspoons lemon zest
6 stalks celery, diced
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons salt
¼ to ½ teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 pound whole wheat pasta (I like to use penne)
3 tablespoons chili powder
½ cup roughly chopped Italian parsley
2 bay leaves
½ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon oregano 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
B uon
On a lighter note, one of my Mark Cooks Smart recipes is a very healthy alternative for a hearty pasta dish:
1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
Brown onions and meat in olive oil. Add tomato paste and allow it to cook for two to three minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer very slowly for at least four hours. Serve over angel hair.
In a large skillet, heat olive oil slowly. Add garlic, anchovy and crushed red pepper, sautéing garlic and allowing flavors to infuse the oil. Stir until the anchovies disappear and the garlic is softened, about 5 minutes. Add olives, artichokes, capers, tomatoes and tomato paste. Season with lemon zest, salt and pepper. Allow to simmer 10 to 12 minutes. Toss together with cooked pasta, parsley and cheese.
Appetito!
For more heart-friendly recipes, please visit www.MarkCooksSmart.com. If you have a favorite family recipe, please email it to Mark@MarkCooksSmart.com.
Honeysuckle – The Sweet Nectar Of Life Honeysuckle flowers are well known in the southern states for their fragrant, heavy sent that fills the air during Spring & Summer. The name Honeysuckle is misleading because there is no honey at the bottom of their long, narrow flower tubes; it simply refers to the practice of sucking the sweet nectar from the blossoms. The entire flower is edible and is especially delicious in many recipes. To use the surprisingly sweet petals in desserts, cut them away from the bitter white base of the flower. It’s best to pick the flowers in the morning when they are just opened, right before you want to use them, and then carefully wash them in cold water. The Sugared Violet was inspired by the southern charm of honeysuckle to create a cookie with a lovely ethereal flavor that tastes just like honeysuckle nectar.
Honeysuckle Cookies Makes: 2 dozen
1 cup butter, softened ½ cup sugar 1 tablespoon orange blossom water 2 tablespoons good quality honey 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 1/8 teaspoon salt
Beat softened butter at medium speed until creamy, then gradually add sugar and beat well. Stir in orange blossom water & honey. Combine flour and salt. Gradually add to the butter mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Roll dough to ½ inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut with a 2 ½ in round cutter or any shape cutter desired. Prepare honeysuckle flower by cutting the green base off the bottom of the flower and also the anther of the stamen and place flower on the top of each cookie. Sprinkle with sanding sugar. Place 2 inches apart on un-greased baking sheet. Bake at 275°F for 50 minutes, or until the bottoms begin to brown. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove to wire rack to cool completely.
C o m p l e m e nts of T h e S u ga re d V io l et ~ E n joy ! | D o n n a E l l e n M c M a n us ~ O w n e r , Pa st ry C h ef View all the epicurean delights The Sugared Violet has to offer on Facebook. Call to place an order for any occasion at 318-768-2216 or Email @ tsv71227@ gmail.com
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