Tuesday, September 14, 2010

The Flames! The Flames!

We recently got a little gas grill from Walmart for $25. We've cooked some cheap steaks on it a couple times, and decided that we'd use it to cook something a little different: Chicken. We had some chicken leg quarters in the freezer, which we thought would be yummy grilled, so I got to work. Dale set up the grill, and we warmed it up, then I put the chicken on and turned down the heat. 10 minutes later, I looked out the door onto our porch and saw... flames. Uh-oh!

I thought at first that they wouldn't be too bad, maybe just some small flare-ups. Then I opened the grill. AAAH! As my man rushed to help, I hurriedly turned off the gas, then got the tongs and a pie plate. He carefully removed the charred chicken from the flames into the pie plate, which helped the flames considerably. We then closed the grill and waited. It didn't take long for the flames to go out completely.

While we waited for the grill to be "safe," we thought over this a little. I think it had to do with several things:
  1. Our grill has one burner. There is no such thing as "indirect heat."
  2. The "drip pan" is actually the bottom of the grill, so the fat from our steaks added with the fat of the bone-in, skin-on chicken made a bad combination.
  3. I apparently need to clean out the grill after EVERY use.
Luckily, we didn't have to use the nearby fire extinguisher. The flames died out fairly quickly by themselves, and (other than some peeling paint on the outside) the grill seems fine.

While we let the grill finish cooling, we went to Burger King for dinner. It was nice--no flames.

Monday, September 13, 2010

Cooking Troubles

So, I wanted to make some carrot cupcakes (even though my husband thought it sounded odd). I had a cake mix, I had pre-made cream-cheese frosting (it cost about as much as buying cream cheese), so we decided to do it on Sunday. We borrowed a cupcake pan from my cousins who live down the street, and started getting out the ingredients. Cake mix--check. Vegetable oil--check. Water--check check. 3 eggs-- *facepalm*. We only had 2 eggs.

Well, that put an end to that plan. So, I figured I'd just make them Monday, while my man was in class. I went to the store and bought eggs and milk, then returned home and pulled out the ingredients. Cake mix, oil, water, 3 eggs... all good. Time to line the pans! I pulled out my cupcake papers and... only 15 papers. The cake mix makes 24 cupcakes. *doublefacepalm*

Off to the store again. I hoped I could just walk down to Walgreens and get some... but no luck there. So, I walked back home and got in the car, drove to the grocery store, and got some papers. Drove home, made the cupcakes, and cooked them.

They're now cooling. They better be worth all this trouble!

Jesus Said Love Everyone...

I'd like to tell two stories I saw on the news about different Christian preachers.

Preacher #1:
Wanted to burn several copies of the Koran, the Muslim holy book, in "remembrance of 9/11." He also said "Islam is the devil."

Preacher #2:
Welcomed a Muslim Center in his area with open arms, saying "Jesus said to love our neighbor."

Now, pop quiz: Which one is acting more Christian?