Wednesday, February 10, 2010

DON'T USE QUICKEN LOANS - THEY LIE

I refinance my house with Quicken Loans and was told that my loan would be at an interest rate of 5% at no cost to me.  At closing, they charged me $946 in fees and then threatened to pull the loan if I had any problems with the fees.

In addition, I told them that flood insurance was required per the deed and they did not include it and the title company made a mistake and overlooked that flood insurance was required and closed the loan.  By the time I received my papers and learned that they did not include flood insurance, the flood map had changed and it cost $2,000 to get what would have cost $250.

Neither Quicken Loans nor the Title Company will take responsibility for their mistake and say that I am SOL.

So, please, DO NOT TRUST QUICKEN LOANS TO PROVIDE YOU WITH A MORTGAGE.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Alfredo Pasta!



Ingredients :
1/4 cup asiago cheese (grated) (can use mozzarella, provolone, swiss, jack any type of cheese that melts)
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter
1 clove of finely chopped garlic

Steps :
in a sauce pan, melt butter and garlic, making sure not to burn garlic, add heavy cream and let thicken, add cheese and mix tagether with fork until thickened.

Boil pasta and pour sauce on top of it... It's that easy, really!

Comments :
You can add veggies, chicken, or shrimp, parseley, or cilantro.

Have Fun!

By DD.

Proper Nutrition for a High Performance Body… Amp Up Your Energy!

Water is amazing!  It's such a simple solution and we all have access to it.  Water does a body good!  Rachel Leslie, a certified holistic health counselor and founder of A Cup of Life, Holistic Health Counseling says, "there are simple steps that will make a world of difference:  reduce the amounts of caffeine, sugar and refined foods you are eating and replace them with lots of water, fruits, vegetables and whole grains."  For more holistic information on how to boost your energy, see Leslie's article for Proper Nutrition at http://www.pr.com/article/1052.

Posted by PAR

Christmas Cookies - Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer

Ingredients
Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Already on this Site
Small Pretzel Twists
M & M's

After placing the cookie dough on the baking sheet, and you must leave more space between the cookies, take two pretzel twists and place them in the dough to make the antlers.  Then add two M & M's, any color but red, for eyes and one red M & M for Rudolph's nose.  Bake as directed.

This is definitely a crowd pleaser and little kids really enjoy them.  They are fun and easy to make.  The mix of the salt from the pretzels with the chocolate is very tasty.
(Picture will be added)
Posted by PAR

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Elite Drink List!!

As a person who just got her state certified bartending diploma yesterday,  I would like to shake some of my famous drinks with you guys. Hope you will enjoy!!!

For Mojito Lovers,




Classic Mojito

Making Mojito is fairly simply. The first step is to grab your empty glass, place about 3 to 4 mint leaves and 2 to 3 limes inside. Using your muddler mash the fruit with the mint for about 5 seconds. Next grab your simple syrup (liquid sugar)and place 2 tablespoons in the glass. Next fill your glass to the top with ice and pour in 1 1/2 oz of rum and fill with soda water. You will need to give your Mojito one hard shake so that everthing settled at the bottom of your glass is now near the top. Add your garnish (sugarcane) and serve to your quest! For Floverored Mojitos, use Flavored Mojitos instead of light rum.

Hopefully, you'll make lots of mojitos for you and your friends if you're going to go through the trouble to get all these ingredients and materials. Here's my recipe for a delicious mojito that will get you plenty of compliments.
Mixing Tins to shake your liquid
Muddler to grind things
Jigger to measure your liquid

1 1/2 oz of Light Rum ( Bacardi Light)
2 to 3 Limes, 3 to 4 Mint leaves Muddled
2 tablespoons sugar
Fill with soda water
Garnish: Sugarcane


White Russian

The White Russian is my other favorite cocktail. To me, it represents grace and simplicity. It seems like an extremely easy cocktail to make.

Ingredients:

Glass: Lowball
1 oz of Vodka(preferably Smirnoff)
1/2 oz of Kahlua
Splash of Milk or Half and Half
Garnish: None

Preparation:

Pour kahlua and vodka directly into glass filled with ice. Float cream on the top and stir in slowly.

Enjoy! Posted by C.A.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Russian Borsch

Here is the recipe of the most classic Russian recipe: borsch.
Every Russian family knows how to make one, but everyone has something different. My recipe has a little more complications than some others do, but everyone, I'm not kidding, everyone always eats it all and asks for more. This meal is the most popular among my friends and family comparing to anything else I cook.

You need:

Beef and/or pork with bones (1-2 lb.)
Beets (1 large or 2 small to medium)
Carrots (2-3 small to medium)

Cabbage (a half of small to medium cabbage-head)
Onion (1 medium to large)
Tomato (1 medium to large)
Red or Yellow bell pepper (1/2 to 1)
Potatoes (3 medium sized)
Spring (green) onions
Dill, parsley
Garlic, Whole black pepper, Cloves, Bay leaves, Paprika, Salt, Pepper, Vegeta (a mixture of spices from Croatia and Poland), Khmeli-suneli (Georgian mixture of spices), vegetable or sautéing bouillon cubes (Knorr).

Fill a half of saucepan with water and bring it to boil. Add bay leaves (3-4), cloves (10-15) and whole black pepper (10-15 peas). Add meat. I like a lot of meat in my borsch, so I used 1.8 lb of beef and about 0.7lb of pork. Both with some bones. Bones make the taste of soup richer.
When water is about to boil, make sure to pick all the foam. It doesn't make soup taste worse, but clear bouillon is simply better and more appetizing. Boil at low to medium power for the next 40-60 minutes. Longer is better, so if you have plenty of time make your broth even richer by boiling it longer.


Cut onion into small pieces. Sauté onions until they are lightly golden.






Dice from half to whole bell pepper (I used a half) and add it to onions.








Peel and shred carrots. Add them to onions and peppers.








Peel and shred beets. One medium to large or tow small to medium beets should be enough. Accidently I had tree quite large beets and used them all. Sautee' vegetables for some time and take care of the broth.






Meanwhile, when meat and broth are ready, take the meat and spices out of the bouillon. I drained the bouillon to another dish and then placed it back in the saucepan.






Shred cabbage (I used a half of one medium-sized cabbage-head) and add it to the bouillon. I like very soft fully cooked cabbage in my borsch, but some people like it a little bit crispy. If you prefer it crispy, add it much later. If it looks like you don't have enough bouillon, add some water.





Dice tomatoes and add them to sautéed  vegetables. Continue cooking until tomatoes are soft. Some people prefer to take the tomatoes' skin off by rapidly placing them in the hot water. I just cook them and then a little bit mash them in the vegetable mixture. After tomatoes are softened, take the vegetable mix off the stove.





Peel potatoes and cut them in the bite-sized pieces. Add them to the broth. Add spices: garlic (fresh or powder), pepper, paprika. I use Vegeta, which is a mixture of spices and dried vegetables that you can find in any Russian grocery store. If you can, give it a chance, try it - you'll love it. It is already salty. I also put one cube of Knorr sautéing bouillon (which is also salty) and khmeli-sunel(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmeli_suneli - see what's in it and use any or all of this spices in your borsch, be creative!), you can also find it at the Russian grocery store - most big cities have these stores. I don't add salt, because my condiments have enough of it.

While your cabbage and potatoes are cooking, take care of the meat. Cut it into bite-size pieces. Then add it to the soup. Most housewives don't do this step. They just leave whole pieces of meat in their soup. I prefer to have even portions of meat in every plate I serve.





Add sautéed vegetables to the soup.








When potatoes are ready add chopped green onions, parsley and/or dill. I love dill in my borsch. Unfortunately, this time I only had green onions. Turn the stove off, cover saucepan with the lid and let it stay for additional 5 minutes - greens (onions, parsley and dill) will be ready.





Serve with sour cream and pumpernickel bread.

Enjoy!

Ala

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Paula Deen Snorting Sugar Off A Stick Of Butter

Great Haloween costume!!!



Cooking: Fun & Easy!   © 2008. Template Recipes by Emporium Digital

TOP