The Wingham Advance-Times, 1984-11-21, Page 23MICROWAVE MAGIC
Italian delights
from your microwave
By Desiree Vivea
From the "Big Boot", that
sunny peninsula of Southern
Europe, comes one of the
world's most popular cui-
sines.
Italian cookery was, in
fact, the first fully developed
cuisine in all of Europe. The
wealthy of ancient Rome
were noted for serving and
consuming vast orgies of
food — some spent their en-
tire fortunes on. elegant
edibles and ended up
bankrupt.
Apicius, author of Italy's
first cookbook, took his own
life when he realized that he
could no longer go on dining
"in the manner to which he
had become accustomed."
Things settled "down dur-
ing the Renaissance' and
more sensible eating habits
became the norm. Pasta,
cheeses, fish, abundant fresh
vegetables and fruits
characterized the dining of
this period.
While there have been
periods of luxurious overin-
dulgence since then, Italian
cookery is now much as it
was during the Renaissance:
hearty, nutritious and
flavorful. Italians still love
to dine, but cases of
bankruptcy over food are,
rare.
Your own budget will ap-
preciate today's inexpensive
Italian delights. Serve Hear-
ty Minestrone, Italian Stuff-
ed Eggplant or Spaghetti
Sauce Supreme with a sim-
ple tossed salad, hot crusty
bread and a robust red wine.
Say "Ciao" to the dinner-
time doldruihs and micro-
wave yourself a spicy dish
that will bring the sunny
flavor of Italy into your kit-
chen.
SPAGHETTI SAUCE
SUPREME
1 lb. lean ground beef
2 small onions, finely
chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tbsp. fresh parsley,
minced
1/2 cup celery, finely
chopped
/ cup ripe olives, sliced
1 (1 ib.) can whole
tomatoes, with liquid
1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
/ tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
lir tsp. oregano'
1/2 tsp. dried leaf basil
1/4 tsp. thyme
Water, as needed to thin
Brown beef in 2 -quart
glass casserole 2 to 3
minutes, stirring to crumble.
Add onions, garlic, parsley,
celery and olives. Cover and
cook 5 minutes, stirring
halfway through cooking
time. Add tomatoes, tomato
paste, salt, pepper, oregano,
basil and thyme and cook,
covered, 20 minutes, stirring
several times. Let stand,
covered, for 5 minutes
before serving. Serve over
cooked spaghetti and
sprinkle with grated
Parmesan. Serves 4.
HEARTY MINESTRONE
2 small potatoes
2 tbsps. butter, margarine.
or. oil
1 medium-size onion, finely
chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 large stalks celery with
tops, chopped
2 large carrots, shredded.
1 (16 oz.) can tomatoes,
with liquid
1 (15 oz.) can kidney beans,
with liquid
1 cup cooked, drained
and crumbled ground beef
6 beef bouillon cubes
3 cups hot water
1 cup frozen green beans,
thawed
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 medium-size zucchini,
thinly sliced
14 cup fresh parsley,
chopped
2 tsps. dried leaf basil
1 tsp. oregano
Scrub potatoes and pierce
in several places with fork.
Microwave 6 minutes, turn-
ing once after 3 minutes. Set
aside. Place butter, mar-
garine or oil in a 4 -quart
glass casserole. Add onion,
garlic, celery and carrots.
Cover and microwave.,.�8
minutes, until vegetables
are almost soft. Peel
potatoes and cut into small
cubes. Add potatoes,
tomatoes, beans and ground
beef to vegetable mixture.
Dissolve bouillon cubes in
hot water and stir into
casserole.
Cover and microwave 12
minutes, or until soup boils,
stirring every 4 minutes.
Add green beans, cabbage,
zucchini, parsley, basil and
oregano. Cover and
microwave 10 minutes
longer, then stir, replace
cover, and let stand 5
minutes before serving.
Top individual bowls with
freshly ground black pepper
and grated Parmesan to
taste. Serves 6 to 8.
See and be seen, the
Ontario Safety League in-
structs motorists. Before
each trip always completely
clear your car of snow and
ice. Snow left on the hood or
roof can blow back onto
windows. Dirty slush and
snow can completely hide
your signals and brake
lights, making them in-
effectual.
raft Talk
By Louisa Rush
Dear Louisa:
I am a little on the tall side,
and find that the ordinary
knitting patterns do not fit
me. Can you recotnmend a
shop where I- can have some-
one alter a knitted pattern
for me? Or can you suggest a
simple way I can do this for
myself? Also, why do
knitting books not have a
date on them, the month and
the year?
--Mrs. E.J., Montreal, P.Q.
Producing knitting books
is very, very costly. First,
there are the original mod -
then photography, then
tin: instructions have to be
written and checked, long
before they are printed. So
naturally yarn manufactur-
ers hesitate to "date" their
books; they like to have
them on the market for at
least a year or two.
Unfortunately I cannot
recommend a specific'wool
shop, as my column appears
in many newspapers across
Canada. However, I suggest
you visit the wool shop where
you are accustomed to
buying your patterns and
wools and have a chat with
the owner or saleslady.
Usually they are helpful and
knowledgeable and may
alter the pattern for you.
Altering a knitted pattern
for someone who is a little
taller than average is
relatively simple to do. On a
skirt, more rows are knitted
between the decreases, that
is if you are knitting•from the
bottom to the top, and bet-
ween the increases if you are
knitting from the waistband
down. You will have to work
this out mathematically, or
have someone do this for you
before you begin the actual
knitting. Don't do it by guess
work.
On a sweater or jacket, the
length will have to be added
between the lower edge and
the underarm shaping, again
working extra rows between
any increases or decreases
for the shaping. If, as in
many cases the sides are
straight — well there is no
problem, just add the
required extra inches in
straight knitting.
If you have an
attic, garage, or
closet full of things
you don't use—and
probably never will
— the classified
can turn those
things into
instant cash.
The classifieds are full of
merchandise and items
that you can save a lot of
money on. So, next time
you have a need for
anything, check the
classifieds first!
...help you
Whether buying or
selling, you can
do all your shopping
conveniently at home!
TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD
IN CROSSROADS, PHONE
The Listowel Banner 291.1660
The Mount Forest Confederate
3231550
he Winghom Advance'Times
357®2320
With Christmas just
around the corner, why not
make one or two of these
jolly little fellows for the
tables, mantelpiece or hall-
way. They're fun to do and -
will be much admired, and
the crochet takes so little
time.
To order Leaflet No. 7246
send 75 cents plus a stamped
self-addressed envelope. If
you do not have a stamp or
envelope, please enclose an
extra 50 centsto cover the
cost of handling and print
your name and address.
Send to Louisa Rush, "Craft
Talk", 486 Montford Drive,
Dollard des Ormeaux, P.Q.,
H9G 1M6. Please be sure to
state pattern numbers
correctly when ordering and
to enclose your stamped
return envelope for faster
service.
Elmira play
well done
If you have time this week
be sure to catch Barefoot in
the Park which is being
staged by the Elmira &
Woolwich Community The-
atre Workshop.
The play is being staged at
the Elmira Raceway lounge
as a dinner theatre produc-
tion, with the Stone Crock
catering for the dinner.
The Workshop players
have done a fine job of bring-
ing Neil Simon's well-known
comedy to life. The five
member cast is directed by
George Joyce and Chris.
Kingston and is produced by
special arrangement with
Samuel French Inc.
The cast includes Rita
Sprague, Gary Amos, Harold
Ruppel, Tony Martin, Deb
Deckert and Ken Gardner,
all of whom have acted in a
number of productions by
the Workshop.
Crossroads—Nov. 21, 1984—Page 9
ackyard
Gardner
Houseplcints
need humidity
By Patrick Denton require little or no fertiliz-
Diminishing natural light ing. You may wish to give
and increasingly dry air are them a light feeding or two
two difficulties that plague before winter, then resume
our houseplant collection as fertilizing at the first signs of
the fall season advances and new growth at the end of ,the
our central heating systems winter.
are cranked up. Keeping your houseplants
Most of our popular house- of tropical origin in as humid
plants are tropical in origin. an atmosphere as possible
In their native habitats, most will also help ward off spider
reveled in bright but filtered mite, a common problem
light and the damp air of a among plants grown in hot,
tropical rain forest — not dry locations. Spider mites
much like the environment are too tiny to be detectable
inside most of our homes. themselves, but reveal their
Two notable exceptions presence with fine webbing
are cactus and ' geraniums, between the leaves. They
which don't mind dry con- rest on the undersides of the
ditions. The others required leaves and suck plant juices,
some measures to boost- the giving the leaves a yellow -
humidity of the air around '-ish speckled appearance.
them .
It's a good idea to watch
your houseplants for signs
that they may be suffering a
lack of humidity in the air.
Leaves drying and crumb-
ling, beginning at the edges,
leaves and flower buds
dropping are signals that a
plant may need more fre-
quent mistings. Setting pots
above water on pebble trays
and grouping them with
other plants will also help
add humidity to the air
around your plants.
Probably the biggest in-
door plant -killer though is
the overhurturing, over -pro-
tective plant mother — the
hovering waterer who
lovingly administers fre-
quent dribbles of water to his
or her potted charges.
Plants during late fall and
winter just don't need the
same amount of water they
did during spring and sum-
mer. It's important to cut
down on the watering now.
Let your finger be your
guide, and don't give any
water unless the top layer of
soil feels dry. Plants in the
lowest -light areas of the
house or apartment will iise,
and need, the least amount of
water.
But when you do water, do
it thoroughly, to reach all the
roots. Watering to the point
of runoff from the pot's
drainage holes is a reliable
rule, provided you dump out
the runoff and don't let the
pot sit in it afterwards.
Again, because this is not
an active growing period for
your houseplants, they will
A weekly news commentary from
one of Canada's
outstanding news personalities
THE
BEST.OP
PETEREMMA'
,y
AN'OEORMAN TOS GLOBAL NEWS M
It's an odd sensation,
covering Ottawa these days.
You might say novel.
I think i,t's because we're
all familiar with federal
Conservatives saying things.
But now they're doing things
as well. And for the most
part, doing things they said
they would.
The Clark government
didn't really have time to
leave any lasting impression
of how Conservatives behave
in office.
The Diefenbaker govern-
ment was conservative
about the old flag and the
Queen, perhaps, but any-
thing but conservative when
it came to foreign policy,
Canada's unique blend of
public and private enter-
prise, the military, and our
closest ally, the United
States.
So unless we have vivid
memories of R.B. Bennett —
who for all his conservatism
founded the CBC — most of
us don't really know what a
Canadian Conservative
government is like.
Many Canadians, I sus-
pect, are small 'I' liberals
under the skin, who became
totally disillusioned with the
large `L' Liberal party. And
during the last couple of
years they were in power, it
was the Tories who best ar-
ticulated the average
Canadian's anger and frus-
tration about the Liberals'
contempt for our money.
The middle-aged among
us, despite our essential
liberalism, have strong con-
servative tendencies when it
comes to budgets, free enter-
prise, social standards, and
the rest of the moss -backed
inventory.
As one who more or less
fits the profile I've just
described, I've been watch -
The end result of a severe in-
festation is that affected
leaves turn brown and fall
off.
At the first sign of this
pest, bathe the plant
thoroughly with tepid water,
and repeat at frequent inter-
vals. Try increasing the
humidity around the plant.
Aphids are probably the
other most common house-
plant pest. These are more
easily visible as they cluster
in colonies on succulent
stems and on new shoots.
They are most ofter light
green, but there are black
ones too. When I spot a group
of these soft -bodied sap
suckers, I just gently rub
them from the plant . and
squish them between my
fingers — yucky, but effec-
tive.
Both aphids and spider
mites multiply with amazing
rapidity, so it's a good idea to
keep up a bug watch to catch
a problem at its earliest
stages. There are a number
of houseplant sprays for
these insects, but the only
one I would use in the house
is Safer's Insecticidal Soap.
Even with this product, I
place the plant in a large
plastic bag or a box in -some
out-of-the-way spot in the
house before spraying it. It's
just common sense to treat
any mixture that can kill life
in any form with caution and
respect. Always read labels
carefully befor spraying
too, for differensecticides
can damage certa n kinds of
houseplants.
ing the Conservatives
operate here these last few
weeks with admiration and
mild shock.
The new trend in foreign
policy worries me some, not
because it's conservative,
which it is, but 'because it's
radical.
The idea of deregulating
oil prices appeals to one part
of me and disturbs another.
The same goes for the sale of
Crown corporations. Pity me
my uncertainty, but I was
born a Canadian. I don't
mind the ideal of cutting the
CBC budget, as long as the
people who cut it eliminate
the right CBC functions.
Beefing up the armed
forces and restoring them to
the uniforms that the Lord
intended comforts me, as
long as they don't steal the
money from the foreign aid
budget.
And Perrin Beatty can do
whatever he likes to improve
Revenue Canada's manners.
Politeness will help when
taxes go up.
Pistachios Armenians'
Pistachio nuts were
brought to the United States
in the late 1890s by an immi-
grant who had traveled
through Turkey and his na-
tive Syria ton camelback as
a nut salesman. Armenians
planted the first pistachio
trees, in California's Central
Valley.
.,C
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