asparagus casserole

salt & pepper
2 pounds asparagus
6 tbsp butter
4 tbsp all purpose flour
1 cup heavy creaam
1-2 pinches paprika
salt & pepper
4 hard boiled eggs, sliced
2 cup fresh bread cubes
1 cup coarsely chopped Cabaret or Ritz crackers
1/2 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Bring a large pot of salt water to a boil. Trim woody ends of asparagus & cut them into 1" pieces. Add to boiling water for 4-6 minutes until just soft. Drain & keep 1 cup of the water.

Melt 4 tbsp of the butterin a sauce pan over medium heat.Add the flour, cook
stirring for 2 minutes. Whisk in the reserved water, then cream, stirring until smooth &thick, about 8 min. Add the paprika, then season with salt & pepper.

Layer the asparagus,egg & sauce alternately in a med. size baking dish, ending with the sauce. Sprinkle with the bread cubes, cracker crumbs & cheese. Dot with the remaining butter. Bake until bubbly & lightely golden, 25-30 minutes. Serve warm.

This is to Aunt Sue from Barbara & you can cook it too !!

Spinach artichoke dip

1 stick of butter
1 small yellow onion
1 box chopped frozen spinach drained
1 can chopped artichoke hearts drained
1 cup parmesan cheese
1 24 oz. sour cream
2 packages cream cheese

Melt butter in sauce pan & add chopped onion. Saute until onions are clear.
Cook spinach & drain.
Mix all ingredients together in saucepan.
Serve warm.

You can add Monterey jack if you want.

Gusts of Gustav at the end of August

Just a note to let everyone know that we're keeping y'all in our prayers through the preparations this weekend. Travel wisely and safely...and don't take your stress out on your loved ones :)

Hopefully we can all keep track of each other and stay connected through email and this blog. I'm happy to set up headquarters here in Chattanooga if an extended vacation becomes necessary.

Love,

Andree, David and Charlotte

Father Coco

For those interested in a nice article about Fr. Coco, follow this link :

http://www.ntcsites.com/acadianhouse/nss-folder/publicfolder/AP/acadianaprofilemagazine.htm

It makes reference to Mama & Papa Gravy twice !!

more excitement

I think you can figure out why Charolette is excited in this picture !

Signs of Summer

Can you guess why she's so excited???

(This is multiple, multiple choice)

A.) All FIVE Disney Princesses just stopped by for dinner

B.) She just celebrated her half birthday, which means she'll be five tomorrow

C.) She just caught her very first firefly

D.) She knows we're coming to New Orleans next week!!

Plié...sauté!

Charlotte had her very first ballet class today. Let's just say that her coordination appears to come from the Barron side of the family :)

Connect the Dots

Just a quick note to let you all know that Matthew and I have started a blog/website where we're putting up recordings of our radio show, "Connect the Dots", plus show notes and playlist information. So, if you want to listen to any back episodes, check out www.connectthedotsradio.com.

You can also listen/subscribe to them on iTunes via this link: http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=278285050

Of course, you can always catch all of the live broadcasts online at www.wnur.org on Sundays from 5-6pm, Central time.

Thanks!!

A Cautionary Tale

Chicago winters are brutal. Photographic evidence from my street: