Healthy Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

This delicious and healthy slow cooker split pea soup requires a short prep time and contains 21 grams of fiber and 28 grams of protein in just one bowl! Eating split peas… reduces the risk of heart disease; reduces the risk of chronic illness; reduces the risk of certain types of cancer; and helps in weight loss with only 231 calories per cup

 

Here is a wonderful hug for the whole body! Split pea soup, with natural ingredients that You home make for your loved one. The cooker does the work, you get the loving!

Ingredients

• 16 oz dried split peas (about 2 cups)
• 1½ lb smoked ham hocks
• 6 carrots, diced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 4 stalks celery, diced
• 4 cups low sodium chicken stock
• 2 cup water
• 12 b seasoning ham – smoked not cured
• 1 bag frozen green peas

Directions:
Always start out by wiping out the slow cooker and spraying it with cooking spray. 

 
Chop the carrots, celery, and onion.

Sit down and go through the dried peas. You don't have to obsess on this, just pick out anything that doesn't look go to you. Wet fingers help!

Put the peas into the cooker, then layer with half of the carrots, all of the celery and onions.
 

Pour in 4 cups of broth and 2 cups of water. This blend offers the best taste without overpowering the peas. Stir this around until mixed in. Press in the ham hocks then cover and let cook on low for 8 – 9 hours.

At this point use a slotted spoon to remove the ham hocks to a cutting board.
Test the peas, if they are still crunchy, carefully use an immersion blender to smooth out the majority of the soup.
By now the hocks should have cooled enough for you to strip off the skin and hunks of meat from the bone. Chop the meat and return that to cooker. Add the package of seasoning ham and stir. Also add the second half of the carrots and the whole bag of frozen peas.
Raise the heat to HIGH for the final hour and a half of cooking.

Taste and season with more salt and pepper as needed. 

 

Serve with a crusty bread and possibly a dollop of sour cream or non fat plain Greek style yogurt!
With news of impending snow, this is the perfect dish to keep the inside warm!

Something magical happens when dried split peas break down into a thick, naturally creamy, and delicious soup over several hours in the slow cooker. This soup freezes well, so make a batch and save extra for later.

For our music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtrkZgo00TU

So happy to be serving my Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTMvia @amazon

Undercover Grunter

Tonight's dish is a variation of the “no peek” casserole. Completely simple and easy to clean up after. Pork is roasted in a dish of rice mixed with 2 cans soup. Mixed together, sealed with foil and let it cook itself in secret! This leads an interesting chapter of LGBT history and the governments intelligence agency. Be sure to read the short article after the recipe.

If you like, stand in the soup aisle and pick your favorite soups for this dish. Possibly use chicken breasts if you wish. Pick, seal and bake, it is just that easy.

Ingredients:

2 pork chops (1.5 – 2 lbs.) or pork steaks

Salt & pepper

2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 can Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 can beef broth

1 cup uncooked long-grain rice

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees

Season the chops liberally with salt and pepper. Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown chops on each side (do not cook through – just sear the chops on each side about 3 minutes per side).

Mix the can of soup, a can full of beef broth and rice to a 13x9 baking dish then stir to combine. Arrange browned pork on top of rice in a single layer.

 

Cover dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 375 degrees for one hour.

What is great is the fact you can just about any type of condensed soup if you make sure to use the proper wet vs dry ratio to ensure the rice cooks properly. One cup of rice requires two cans soup. You can also add frozen, canned or sauteed veggies to make them healthier or you can add your favorite blend of spices. You can use just about any meat, chicken, chops or turkey. The MOST important thing to remember is using enough liquid so the rice cooks to a creamy consistency and to COVER it TIGHTLY for at least 1 hour.

Check with instant read thermometer to reach 145 degrees.

Remove from oven and then start microwaving a green vegetable side dish. This resting period is the secret to a fantastic dish.

For our music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUlhygu4ogI&feature=youtube

So happy to be serving my Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon

 

=========================================

Gay in the Government Intelligence Community

In 1953, President Dwight Eisenhower signed an executive order directing federal agencies to investigate employees who might pose security risks. “Sexual perversion,” code for homosexuality, was considered a fireable offense. An estimated 10,000 gay men and women lost their jobs.

To be openly gay or lesbian, according to the twisted official logic, was presumed to be so shameful that employees would do anything to keep their dark secret, including handing over classified information to a foreign adversary. As a matter of policy, the federal government could deny or revoke a security clearance based on someone’s sexual orientation.

Sen. Joseph McCarthy hunted down “sex perverts” in every corner of the national security apparatus. “Homosexuals must not be handling top secret material,” McCarthy declared. Homosexuality was both a moral offense and a gateway to treason.

Much of McCarthy’s political influence at the time came not from his rampage against suspected communists—for which he is most remembered—but from persecuting gays and lesbians, some of whom were driven to suicide.

Over 40 years latter, in August 1995, President Bill Clinton issued a new executive order, effectively reversing Eisenhower’s policy. “No inference concerning the standards” for employment, it said, “may be raised solely on the basis of the sexual orientation of the employee.” A security clearance couldn’t be denied, or revoked, on those grounds.

But it took another decade before those people truly believed they were safe and welcome. Discrimination against gays and lesbians didn’t suddenly cease.

That Executive Order sparked the push for diversity and inclusion inside the CIA and inspired three courageous LGBT officers to found ANGLE in 1996. The officers, two lesbians and a transgender woman within the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology, wanted to establish a working environment that was equitable to all employees regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.
 

At the CIA, the order was treated cautiously. A future administration can rescind Clinton’s order. And the agency can, technically, choose not to follow it. Owing to its national security mission, the CIA is considered an “excepted service,” meaning that it doesn’t have to adhere to the same employment rules and regulations that govern hiring and firing most federal employees. The courts have given the intelligence community permission to do just that.

Then the 9/11 attacks led to a surge in new applications—more than 150,000 in the days following the attacks. A hiring bonanza was on, across the intelligence community. The new recruits were overwhelmingly young, drawn from a generation that had few, if any, of the hangups about sexual orientation as their predecessors.

By 2007, those post-9/11 recruits made up an astonishing 35 percent of the total workforce of all intelligence agencies. The young were taking over.

One openly gay senior officer who joined the CIA in 1985, said that in the early 2000s new recruits were already out of the closet. “That was amazing.”

This year marks the 23nd anniversary of the founding of ANGLE, CIA’s Agency Resource Group for LGBT employees.
Throughout the years, ANGLE collaborated with other Agency employee resource groups and worked with policy offices. They have educated the workforce on LGBT issues and concerns. In addition, ANGLE worked closely with community outreach efforts to LGBT professional groups and organizations outside the CIA to share their experiences.
ANGLE was also instrumental in creating IC Pride, a resource group made up of members from agencies across the Intelligence Community (IC).

ANGLE today has hundreds of members and is one of the longest-standing employee resource groups in the IC.

This last June, the CIA hosted a series of events, panels, and activities celebrating the progress toward equality for members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community.

Major General (MG) Tammy Smith, the highest ranking and first openly gay general in US history gave a key note address. CIA Director Haspel described MG Smith, saying, “She refused to give in to discrimination, stayed riveted on her goals, and proceeded to blaze a trail that will go down in the history books. Today, Major General Smith is widely recognized as a pioneer in helping LGBT men and women to fully contribute—and fully belong—to the Army family.”

This event was one of several CIA activities celebrating Pride Month, including participation in the Capital DC Pride Festival and the 7th annual IC Pride Summit, of which CIA was a founder. Whether you are a Major General in the US Army, an intelligence officer at CIA, or an athlete swimmer at Harvard University, everyone has something unique to contribute and can lead from wherever they may be.

Chicken Kevin

Tonight dish is named in honor of a true, living, hard working Hero, Kevin L. Ard, M.D. You might not have ever heard of him. Please read the very short article on him and his work after the recipe.

Based on the classic Chicken Kiev, this simple meal teaches us to remove the bone from a chicken thigh. Then replace it with ham and cheese, like the well known favorite. A unique and tasty main dish that will give you a 
 feeling of accomplishment! 
 

Ingredients:

4 chicken thighs

½ lbs of thick sliced ham

½ lbs of sliced Gruyere cheese

½ tsp smoky paprika

salt & pepper

½ cup cornstarch

plain cotton string

cooking spray

Directions:

Lay out a sheet of waxed paper on the counter and get out a clean cutting board. Slave likes to use one that can be sterilized because raw poultry can really make you sick. Keep washing your hands!

Now this may look complicated but it is fairly simple once you get used to it. We'll walk through it step by step.

Don't be intimidated by cutting.

Lay the thigh skin side down

Cut down the length of the bone.

Working on the bottom side of the chicken thigh, make the cut from the top end of the thigh down to the bottom, cutting as close to the bone as possible. Work carefully, though, since you do not want to cut straight through to the other side of the thigh.

Cut along both sides of the bone to reveal as much of it as possible. Cut one end loose then lift the bone.

Remove any cartilage or grizzle. Sometimes, bone fragments and gristle can be left behind no matter how careful you have been. Inspect the chicken thigh for any of these types of debris and cut them away.

This is easy, just remember:

You might need to cut using a slightly sawing motion. 

 

Keep the knife as close to the bone as possible to avoid losing more meat than necessary. 

 

Never cut toward your fingers since the knife does not know the difference between chicken and human!

Remember turn the piece of meat around – don't try to walk around the meat!

Check for gristle and bone fragments.

Mix seasonings with ½ cup cornstarch and dust each side of every piece. Let them sit on the wax paper while you pre heat the oven to 400 degrees. The cornstarch will dry out the skin. This gives crunchy skin, so let it do its work.

While you wait for the oven go ahead and cut 8 pieces of string equal length to tie around each piece.

Slice 4 pieces of ham and cheese into ½ inch wide strips slightly shorter than the width of the thighs. Stack each (alternating) into short sticks.

Lay the thighs, powdered skin side down on the wax paper. Replace the bone with a stick of ham & cheese. Fold or roll up the thigh around this.

With string, tie the rolls up, including one tied end to end so the insides don't melt and run out while roasting. 

 

Place in a foil lined baking pan and give the tops a slight spray with cooking spray.

Roast at 400 to an internal temperature of 165°F, about 45-55 minutes. 

 

Check with thermometer! Remove from oven and let sit while you do any green vegetables in the microwave. 

 

Then cut off the string before placing on platter to serve. NEVER serve while it is still has string on it – that would imply your guest needs to floss! How rude!

Serve with rice and a green vegetable.

For our music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF6LJoviRmU

So happy to be serving my Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White 

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTMvia @amazon

 

 

=====================

Kevin L. Ard, M.D. 

 

Dr. Kevin Ard earned his MD from Washington University in Saint Louis and his MPH from Harvard School of Public Health. He is the recipient of the Edward H. Kass award for clinical excellence from the Massachusetts Infectious Disease Society, the Soma Weiss award for excellence in teaching from Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

In 2016 Kevin L. Ard, M.D. was awarded the Men's Health Award of the Massachusetts Medical Society. They cited Dr. Ard’s work on health disparities affecting the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) communities, infectious diseases, and primary care for gay men, as well as his peer-reviewed scholarship focusing on infectious diseases, intimate partner violence, and LGBT issues. 
 
Currently, he is a faculty member in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital and an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Ard’s interests include LGBT health education, sexually-transmitted infections, and the prevention and treatment of HIV.

Last year He addressed the Michigan LGBTQ Health Summit. With interactive workshops on state-of-the art of HIV management in primary care, including selecting an antiretroviral regimen, HIV-related health maintenance and preventive care, patient monitoring, and addressing common comorbidities.

Dr. Ard is a published author and presenter of many topics related to men’s health, LGBT health, and HIV, and he teaches medical students, residents, and fellows at Brigham and Women’s and Massachusetts General Hospitals.
 

Anyone who has worked so long and hard for LGBT issues is a HERO!

Thank you Doctor, you deserve to be recognized as a hero.

Shane McAnally I Like That Soup

Tonight we celebrate a LGBT hero from the world of country music! Read about this great talent in a short article after the recipe.

Tonight's home made beef rice soup develops its rich taste by letting the professionals do the seasonings! Meat from bratwurst and hamburger, stewed tomatoes, prepared beef broth and long grain and wild rice create a soup that is low on salt and fat while warms the whole body with a rich down-home taste.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1 lbs cooked ground beef
• 1/2 lbs cooked sausage (bratwurst)

2 cups reduced sodium beef broth

• 1 can 28oz stewed tomatoes, undrained
• I box long grain & wild rice
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 package beef gravy mix
• 2 tablespoons red wine optional
• salt & pepper to taste
• Hot Sauce to taste

Directions:

Mince the garlic. Cut open the bratwurst and empty into a bowl. 
 

In a dutch oven heat oil, onions and loose sausage. Stir and cook for 4 – 5 minutes or until mostly cooked.

Now add the hamburger for another 8 minutes, stir in the minced garlic and let simmer.

Remove with a slotted spoon and drain off any grease.

Pour in 1 cup of the beef broth and stir to loosen any bits from the bottom of the pan – this is great tasting stuff you want in your soup, not stuck to the pan. Add the rest of the broth and return the meat. Pour in the can of stewed tomatoes, juice and all.

Stir to mix. Bring to a soft boil then reduce heat. 
 

Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, gravy mix and the long grain and wild rice. 
 

Let the dance begin!

Partially cover allowing steam to vent and let simmer for 50 minutes to a full hour. Check and stir occasionally so nothing sticks to bottom. 
 

At this point taste test! Adjust with any salt & pepper, most of the seasoning has already been done by professionals in the broth and the stewed tomatoes. If you wish more kick, this is the time to add small spoons of hot sauce.

Please wait until soup is cooked so you get a feeling of how much is needed. Remember people can add some at the table but no one can take too much away! 

 

Now then, not to belabor the point, but I wish you consider making this soup as if you were hosting an old fashioned barn dance.

You've clean up the place and set up the lights!

You invite good people you believe will get along.

The music and drinks are the heat and gentle stirring.

Every 15 minutes or so, scrap and stir so that bits don't stick to the bottom.

You don't want wall flowers. Get them into the party.

As the fun begins, flavors get to know each other. Their laughter brings out the best of each other as they dance together.

Give them time, sing! Enjoy the evening as this magic develops on your stove top.

Give it time and love, not hard work! You will be singing “I Like That”!

So happy to be able to serve this soul warming soup. It is naturally low fat and low salt if you watch your ingredients!

For our music we turn to a favorite of mine from Shane: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nUmFVg5SEU&list=PLTHSZb9XDNr0tVg676lFWLHVeaWnT4fHM&index=3

Recipe Notes

Soup may thicken upon cooling, add extra broth (or water) to reach desired consistency.

Calories: 149, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 17mg, Sodium: 385mg, Potassium: 623mg, Carbohydrates: 15g, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 1g, Protein: 10g.

Serving my Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTMvia @amazon

 

==============

Shane McAnally

Shane McAnally has been called Nashville's most trusted songwriter. He’s penned dozens of songs for top-tier country artists and won awards for his own hits like ‘Follow Your Arrow’ and ‘Merry Go Round.’

By anyone's definition he is a success. No small achievement for a man who has been an out gay all of his professional life. That took more than talent, that took an amazing amount of hard work!

Shane McAnally was born in 1974, in Mineral Wells, Texas.

Shane has been an active member in the industry since 1999. He began performing at local clubs at age 12. Shane appeared on Star Search when he was 14. Then a year latter he moved to Branson, Missouri to pursue his career as a singer.

In 2001, he settled in Los Angeles and began rising in the field of music. He composed six songs for the soundtrack of 2007 gay cinema film Shelter. (long my personal favorite!)

 

 

Within another 7 years Shane won multiple Grammy Awards and the coveted title of Songwriter of the Year at the 2014 Academy of Country Music Awards. This year at the 2018 CMT artist of the year awards: Shane won Song of the year – “ Body Like a Back Road”!

 

McAnally has been openly gay throughout his long career in the country music industry, and has been married to his partner Michael Baum for five years. The couple are parents to a set of twins named Dylan and Dash.

 

 

 

This year as we celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, lets take a moment to celebrate what 50 years ago would have been impossible!