Well, well, well, after all that fussing, my new monitor has an auto button and it fixed everything all by itself. Ain’t technology wonderful? I must say I am tickled pink with the difference between my old and new monitor. The old one worked fine in one sense, but technology has changed so much, the pictures I was getting just weren’t very good at all. Not only that, I have just realised that I can read the type even when the sun is blazing on it. Thought only Kindle could do that. What do I know? What I find really frustrating is that I cannot use my desktop for any length of time, hurts my shoulder too much. Ah well. Thinking about it, I’m amazed I put up with the old one so long, but I figured it worked OK, so why change? By the way, we had to pay $10 to dispose of the old monitor. Part of the new law apparently.
Something I have been meaning to mention – when we first came to Ontario, one never saw roundabouts on any of the roads, now the Ontarians have gone nuts and roundabouts are appearing all over the place. I figured I should send them pix of the roundabouts in Albufeira, Portugal, I was absolutely fascinated by them when we were there. This is a postcard I bought whilst we were there to show the local roundabouts. There are three shown, one with dolphins, one with watches and one with worms. I think it would be fun to do something similar with the new roundabouts in our part of Ontario. I don’t know if its being done all over the province, but its incredible how many roundabouts we now have which have been built in the last 10 years or less. Not that people really know how to use them. I wonder if that has been added to the driving instruction manuals etc.?
People employed in Canada are not overjoyed to know that their pay cheques will be a bit lighter in the New Year as they now have to pay more towards the Canada Pension Plan. Maybe a pain now, but they will be glad of it when retirement rolls around. Not enough people pay heed to their futures and don’t realise just how important these contributions are. Of course, right now, they are contributing to my pensions at the moment, thanks guys, but their extra contributions will come back to them in the end. Its like some of the benefits we used to get as pensioners which have been bargained away by the current employees who will, I believe, regret that when they in turn become pensioners. One thing comes to mind, out of country medical coverage which we used to have but don’t have any longer.
I am doing another stint on the local radio again on Friday at 11:30 a.m. if you are not local you can go to www.ckwr.com and hear the broadcast there. If you are local, its 98.5 fm.
Still following the New Year’s plan for a possible party, here is another finger food recipe which sounds pretty good.
Mini Mushroom-and-Sausage Quiches
Source: © EatingWell Magazine
1 dozen mini quiches
These crustless mini quiches are like portable omelets. Turkey sausage and sautéed mushrooms keep them light and savory. Small and satisfying, they're also a good finger food for your next cocktail party.
Make Ahead Tip: Individually wrap in plastic and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month. To reheat, remove plastic, wrap in a paper towel and microwave on High for 30 to 60 seconds.
INGREDIENTS
8 ounces turkey breakfast sausage, removed from casing and crumbled into small pieces
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup sliced scallions
1/4 cup shredded Swiss cheese
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
5 eggs
3 egg whites
1 cup 1% milk
Tip: A good-quality nonstick muffin tin works best for this recipe. If you don't have one, line a regular muffin tin with foil baking cups.
DIRECTIONS
Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 325 degrees F.
Coat a nonstick muffin tin generously with cooking spray (see Tip above).
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook until golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool. Add oil to the pan. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to the bowl with the sausage. Let cool for 5 minutes. Stir in scallions, cheese and pepper.
Whisk eggs, egg whites and milk in a medium bowl. Divide the egg mixture evenly among the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle a heaping tablespoon of the sausage mixture into each cup.
Bake until the tops are just beginning to brown, 25 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Place a rack on top of the pan, flip it over and turn the quiches out onto the rack. Turn upright and let cool completely.
Have a great day