Happy Brain-Boosting Wednesday!!! #Italian Facts

Here's your middle-of-the-week brain booster!!!
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Soooooooooo growing up a family favorite dish of ours was my mom's Shepherd's pie!!! It's just sooooooooooooooo good!!! It doesn't sound like anything amazing, but to me it just sounds like HOME!!! So it's basically a casserole, on the bottom is a mixture of ground beef, seasoned with onion soup mix and corn, then on top is mashed potatoes and on top of that is melted cheddar cheese. Then you make it in the oven at 350 til everything is warmed and the cheese is slightly browned... then you... and this is strictly a GINTY THING buuuuuut I highly recommend for everyone...THEN you drizzle Catalina/French dressing on top of your piece...Mmmmmmm....I''m literally drooling just thinking about it....don't let that mess get on you...;) Ahahahaahaa!!!

So there's all kinds of crazy variations of this dish and some of them are just really NASTY! I'll never forget eating it at these people from England's house....NO CHEESE on top and gravy in the meat and weird veggies and they would put like a mint jelly on it....I was soooooooo appalled but did manage to eat mine.

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Well my mom explained to us that the reason why Shepherd's Pie is called what it is, is because the shepherd's were always so poor, and they would just make do with whatever they had and would use scraps of whatever leftover meat there was to make their pie!!! I assumed that the shepherd's were Irish and that the potatoes were of high abundance, so this was something they could do with them in Ireland!!!! Not to sure HOW ACCURATE this is, buuuuuuuuuuut, according to my mom, IT WAS!!!!

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With all that being said...

 lets talk about LASAGNA!!!

I know, I know, abrupt, random

 subject change right?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

WRONG!!!

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Soooooooooo my mom, who was very Italian, thought lasagna was to be made a certain way. Red sauce, beef, mozzarella, parm, and of course RICOTTA CHEESE...NOT COTTAGE CHEESE...EVERRRR!!!!
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Annnnnnnnd she would get into it with this "white" lady that thought she was such a good cook and thought her lasagna was better than my mom's. Her lasagna involved a white gravy type sauce, NOT alfredo though and chicken and veggies and I think maybe even BEANS...let me tell you...MY MOM WAS APPALLED!!! .

She knows how to make a lota food, and she can make it look good, BUUUUUUT she can't make it taste good!!!

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 Anyways, I was researching about IF all Italians use ricotta cheese in their lasagna and I found a whole article about how in Italy, there are many variations of lasagna depending the location due to what is available most to the people there. Which makes sense, think about how even here in the US, what is popular in one state of our country is not known of in other parts depending what is cultivated and grown there. And every Italian thinks THERE WAY is THE BEST WAY!!! That's just the way Italians are, every Italian cook thinks THEY ARE THE BEST!!!! And to be honest, THEY ARE!!! ;)

(Buuuuuuuut by the way, NONE of the variations involved white gravy, corn, beans!!!)

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The article went on to ALSO SAY that basically, as far as what meat Italians chose to put in their lasagna, depended on what was leftover from that weeks cooking...meatballs, sausage, chicken, etc...

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When I read that I was like, OMW

"Did you know???..."

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Lasagna is the ITALIAN'S
SHEPHERD'S PIE!!!!

Because, Italians are just COOL like that! Most people, ugh, I'm sick of this food, just throw it out, buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut Italians???? Nah!!!!

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I imagine the first time lasagna was being created went something like this...

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Uh Joe-a, whata we-a gonna do with all these-a leftover meatballs from Little Joe's birthday party-a? Eh I don't-a know-a Maria, why don't we do-a something amazing with a them that will change the world Maria? Like what-a Joe? Donate-a them to the homeless shelter down-a the street??? DONATE THEM???? Yells Joe in horror!!! You-a gotta be-a kidding me babe!!!! I said do something AMAZING WITH THEM-A that willa chang-a the world-a!!!!

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 Let me think, ah yes-a, I know what-a we'll-a do-a with-a them-a, we'll make a whole new entrée. It will be like a layered pie with noodles and-a, we'll throw on some-a marinara between, parm on top of the marinara, mozzarella on the very top and THEN +we'll-a cutta up the-a leftover meatballs from-a Little Joe's birthday and putta them in between-a the layers of cheese and noodles!!! What do-a you-a think-a about-a that Maria???

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 Oh yes-a Joe, that seems like a great idea, Oh and-a JOE, I know, we'll put RICOTTA cheese in between-a all the layers as wella!! Ah yes, MARIA, ricotta cheese, oh my sweet shmoocums, YES-A, RICOTTA CHEESE!!! The perfect finishing touch!!! See Maria, THAT IS WHY I MARRIED YOU...because, I am-a good-a already...buuuuuuuuut-a TOGETHER, together YOU MAKE ME AMAZING-A!!! *SMOOCH♥ Oh-a Joe, I love you too and DONATE THEM-A???? FUGGETTABOUTIT!!!! *Smooch♥smooch♥SMOOOOOOCH!!!!♥

 EH LITTLE JOE, go-a getta the big pot, it's-a COOKING TIME!!!!

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Annnnnnnnnnd there you have it folks, LASAGNA,

the ITALIAN'S VERSION OF SHEPHERD'S PIE!!!

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"...Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelllll NOW YOU DO, annnnnnnnnd don't you FORGET IT!!!" (AIO BTV quote;)
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"WHEN LIFE THROWS YOU LEFTOVER MEATBALLS...

MAKE LASAGNA!!! ;)"
(Mary Ginty quote)

♥Mary Frances :)

4th of July 2022!!!

Weeeeeeeeeeeeelllllllll it all started on the weekend....

I pretty much got THE WHOLE church to dress up patriotic last Sunday...EVEN MY PASTOR!!!

Annnnnnnnnnd of course the CUUUUUUUUUTEST one of us all!!!

CAMILLE MORELAND!!!!

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I'm pretty sure an eagle would DIE and not fly if I ever tried to sit on it,

 buuuuuuuuuuuut HAPPY 4th anyHOW!!!

Made fried chicken BETTER THAN JOHN'S!!!!

   

Odin said, OH WOW AUNT MARY!!! Your chicken is gooooooooood...

..soooooooooooooo much better than LAST TIME!!!!! I was liiiiiike DUUUUUUDE, you wouldn't even TOUCH IT the last time I made it!!!!

Jus sayin HEE, hee!!!

For little Manny!!!!!!

The MAN with THE GOODS!!!!

Had to OUT DO me with his outfit and cake...it's ONLY cuz he's got my DNA now!!!! I was liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiike John, I've noticed since last August such and Improvment in your cooking!!! He's liiiiike, I didn't get the transplant from you till SEPTEMBER, soooooooooo if your gonna say stuff AT LEAST get the date right...oooops...ahahahahahahaaaaa!!!!

POOL TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!

 FIREWORKS TIME!!!!

BOOM!!!

BOOM!!!

BOOM!!!

I'm VERY PROUD of this picture I took!!!! 

! Cooking, eating, swimming and illegal fireworks....Can't complain!!!!

All in all it was a good 4th of July!!

♥Mary Frances :)

Foodie Friday! (Macy's Coffee House Review!)

Macy's Coffee House

Flagstaff, AZ

Do you like animals Mary??? Ummmmm...well i'm NOT really a pet person, buuuuuuuut...I love stuffed animals and juicy burgers!!! (Okay, ok, nobody throw anything at me...I would NEVER hurt a dog or cat...I'm just NOT a pet person! The hair, the drool, the smell, THE POOP...it's just NOT my thing! I'm a people person! A baby person! I value humanity so don't judge me until you have changed as many diapers,-old and young...as ME! Jus sayin;)

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Sooooooooo what's a meat-lovin-girl like me doing 5-staring a vegetarian coffee shop???? Weeeeeeeelllll, that alone, the fact that a meat-loverrrr is floored by the taste and quality of the food at this shop, speaks for itself!!!

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When i realized that this was a vegetarian coffee shop, despite the high ratings, i really hesitated to try it!!! However, the to-go line going all the way down the street lured me in!!!

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The good news is that although they are vegetarian and vegan friendly, they do not competely disregard all dairy! It seems that they do use products that animals produce, they just don't use anything that kills a animal! Soooooooo REAL Cheese and REAL eggs !!!

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All the baked products here were amazing!!! You have to get the biscuit with their homemade jam and butter!!! You have to get the grilled

 cheese with pepper jack, cheddar, provolone, spinach, and onions!!! 

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Don't even get me started on all their epic desserts!!! WOW!!!

You must and i do absolutely mean, MUST,  get the Macy's Special house signature coffee drink!!! Omw it is soooooooo astoundingly, amazingly, deliciously good!!! It's like a Espresso, steamed hot chocolate- topped with a marshmalllowy-whipped-cream!!! and they have all homemade sauces and flavors!!! Annnnnnnd personally, I think it's one of those drinks thats just better hot!!!

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The main downside to this place is that I've neverrrrr been in line for less than 45 minutes!!! Also, I would recommend that WHEN they use a meat substitute, that they say on the menu that it is a meat substitution. I read a lot of complaints about that in reviews. Not everyone realizes that it is a vegetarian coffee shop! If you say bacon, bacon lovers are expecting REAL BACON! For people like me that are willing to try something new, buuuuuut still wanna know what I'm putting inside of me! When you say, "Vegan" biscuits and gravy, I wanna know what is used in it instead of sausage!!! Jus sayin!!! 

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Can't wait for another break to head up to flagstaff!!! I hear a Macy's Special calling me for a sip of deliciousness!!! The 2.5 hour drive is worth every sip and every calorie!!!!! How amaaaaaazing will this drink be in COLD COOLER weather!?!?!?!

♥Mary Frances :)

Macy's European Coffeehouse and bakery

Arise Conference and ABQ Vaycay 2019!!!!

ARISE 2019
"Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee." (Isaiah 60:1)

Sooooooooo we went to the Arise Conference and one year anniversary service with the Fosters in  Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was such a fun trip!!! In case you all didn't already know this, I'm super into Yelp!!! Researching places to go, things to do and food to try! I love adventure with a capital L! HAHAHAAA!!! So I could pretty much, probably give the Fosters a tour of their own city at this point!!!!

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 Two things I learned on this trip: 1. New Mexicans don't really YELP, which pretty much rocked my world upside down...they use Trip Advisor OR Google reviews...come on guys GET ON YELP...its waaaaaay better!!! 2. CHILI EVERYTHING!!! I just realized, and I've been to New Mexico many times before, buuuuuuuuuut I just now realized how much they are into chilies!!! The famous question: do you want green or red chili? And of course ME, I say, I want it CHRISTMAS STYLE!!! 

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Thursday Noon/Night

When we started the trip, I noticed a beautiful rainbow in our destination ahead of us...

It made me think of something that one of the preachers said at Heritage a few years ago, he said, "If you want God's will for your life, it's easy, JUST STAY IN HIS WILL!!!" It's one of the simplest, but most profound statements I've heard, it's stuck with me! All we gotta do you guys, is STAY IN HIS WILL!!! 

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Weeeeeeeeeeeeellll that was for free...stay in his will my friends!!!
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First break!!!

Our whole crew in front of Auto Zone in Payson AZ...what is it about trips, it seems like we're always stopping to get new wind shield wipers!!! I gotta say that Auto Zone had THE CLEANEST bathrooms everrrrrrr!!!! LOL  

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LPC Thanksgiving Feast 2018!!!

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeelllllllll I started the day off at about 5:20 am, so by the time it was time to start waking up kids, I figured COFFEE #2 was in order!!!

Annnnnnnnnnd then THE WAKING UP BEGAN!!! Thankfully most of the children were awake and getting ready when I knocked at 8 and told them I'd be back in another 30 minutes. Only One child had to be completely woken up and ONLY one person had to take a shower...MAAAAAAAAAAANNN I remember the good O day when NO ONE was late from taking a shower...NOW here we are 12 or 13 years later and everyone is all AMERICANIZED...Thankful YES, buuuuuuuuut NOT for the waiting!!! LOL It's like a mixed feeling...JUST HURRY UP AND GET OUT HERE!!!! AHAHAHAHAAAA!!!

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Annnnnnnnd this lil cutie-patootie that will be joining us in a few years...as soon as she's potty trained!!! I learned to make that rule...Ummmmm I love babies buuuuuuuut, I can't watch and change them all in one service and still actually get something and be a part of the service!! 

 My lil Deedee!!! I've known her since she was born!!! Always my baby!!! 

That annoying healthy-eating moment when...

Soooooooo the other day, I'm over at Coffee Bean, my new favorite spot for writing, and I'm sitting there writing when I felt I was getting a little hungry. It was that time between lunch and and dinner, to early, not hungry enough for dinner, buuuuuut IF I didn't eat something, by dinner time I'd probably be making an unwise eating decision. BUUUUUUT I had planned for this...I had a HEALTHY SNACK packed and waiting in my car!!! (I don't take it in with me cuz then I'll eat it even if I'm NOT hungry cuz it's just sitting there...I know, I should have more self control...BUUUUT I don't! So I have to prepare make precautions to help myself) 

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SOOOOOOOO I'm sitting there, writing and munching my HEALTHY snack of a whole grain, brown rice, rice cake with dark chocolate almond butter...YUMMMM...Nom, nom, nom...I'm just sitting there ENJOYING MY HEALTHY SNACK...or so I THOUGHT it was a healthy snack...

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT...

THAT MOMENT WHEN YOU THINK YOU'RE ALL HEALTHY, 

Snacking on your whole grain, while rice cake with almond butter, and you look over and the chick next to you is snacking on DRIED SEAWEED!!! 

Liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiike REALLY???

REEEEEEEEALLLLYYY???

You just HAD to OUThealth me????

Pssssssh!!!✋

♥Mary Frances :)
P.S. I bet my snack had MORE nutritional value anyway!!! ;)