My Ose is back!

This is a picture of Paul in Prague! He was on business in Germany and zipped over to Prague for the day. I'd be more jealous if he hadn't brought me a really great present - an amber necklace! I love amber. He was gone for 10 days, I just picked him up from the airport last night at midnight. We're all happy to have him back, and I'm extra glad because now I'll sleep better.

I finally just gave up on sleeping yesterday morning after my third nightmare. Now both Paul and I have dreamed that our car has gone into the water. That's a scary one! I'm hoping that it is just a dream metaphor (drowning in work? driving to distraction?) and not a prophetic dream. Paul had a dream several years ago that we were fishing and Nick fell into a fast-running river and was swept away. He woke up in a cold sweat. Soon after, we went fishing on such a river. Thinking we'd rather be silly than sorry, he tied himself to Nick with rope. Sure enough, Nick fell in! (This is more likely than you'd think, Nick has fallen into just about every body of water in Minnesota and several in Wisconsin.) We just reeled him in with the rope and he was fine. Maybe we'd better keep life jackets and scuba gear in the truck just in case.

Update on my mom: The doctor is pleased with her x-rays and she is now allowed to walk on both feet. Yay, it's almost dancing time!

Update on my much longed for library book: It came, I read it far too quickly, and now I want the author to WRITE FASTER! (It was really good!)

Here is a nice German recipe in honor of Paul's trip. This comes from the book "Tender at the Bone" by Ruth Reichl. She is a food writer (and Editor of Gourmet). She has written a number of books about her life that include recipes. I love books that include recipes!

Sauerbraten

4lb chuck or rump roast 5 whole cloves
1 1/2 Tbls salt 1 1/2 cups red wine vinegar
2 onions, chopped 1 cup red wine
10 black peppercorns, crushed 2 whole allspice
2 bay leaves

1/4 cup plus 2 Tbls flour , divided 1/4 cup oil
2 Tbls brown sugar 1/2 cup crushed ginger snaps

Place meat in glass bowl. Mix salt, onions, pepper, allspice, bay leaves, cloves, vinegar and red wine. Pour over meat. Let stand in refrigerator 3 to 4 days, turning meat twice a day
Remove from marinade, reserving marinade. Dry meat and roll in 1/4 cup flour. Heat oil in heavy frying pan and brown on all sides. Put meat in heavy casserole, add marinade, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 2 1/2 hours. Remove meat from liquid and set aside. skim off the fat and drain the drippings. Add water to make 3 1/2 cups.
Mix brown sugar with 2 Tbls flour. Whisk in 1/4 cup water and blend well. Add little by little to cooking liquid, stirring constantly until smooth. Add gingersnaps, stir again, and put roast into gravy to simmer 15 more minutes. Slice meat and serve with sauce. Serves 6-8

This recipe is also good with venison, but don't cook it as long, venison is so lean that it dries out quicker.