Dear Reader

Disappearing Chocolate Cake Recipe

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If you're looking for my Disappearing Chocolate Cake recipe go to:

http://www.emailbookclub.com/photo/cake2.htmlThanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Crock Pot Dressing

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Dear Suzanne,

Last year you shared your turkey stuffing recipe with us and it was wonderful! However, I can't seem to find my copy from last year. As Thanksgiving is only a few weeks off, I'm starting to panic. Could I please have that recipe again?

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends!!
--Kim Vander Wyst

(Suzanne responds:) Kim, here you go. This recipe works great for me because there's never any room left in my oven and I can't ever fit all of the stuffing in the turkey.

CROCK POT DRESSING

1 cup butter or margarine melted
2 cups chopped onion
2 cups chopped celery
1/2 Cups parsley (fresh or dried)
2 cups mushrooms (canned is fine--but drain them)
2 eggs, beaten
3 1/2 or 4 1/2 cups chicken broth, or enough to moisten well
13 cups cubed dry bread
1 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon sage
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon marjoram, optional

Melt butter or margarine in large fry pan and sauté onion and celery until soft. Mix with remaining ingredients and toss well. Pack in large crock pot. cover. Cook on high for 45 minutes, then turn to low and continue cooking for 6-8 hours.

Thanks for reading with me. It's a treat knowing that I'm reading with a friend like you.

Warm regards,
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 11-18-04

Join my email book club. Over 250,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

Call me stupid. Say I'm naive. It's fine with me. I was thinking about this the other day when I offered a suggestion to someone, and they rolled their eyes and gave me the look: "You're not the brightest bulb in the chandelier are you?"

Let's study this. Maybe there's a real advantage in being a bit dim sometimes. Everyone's clamoring for more info, more data, crunch the numbers, search the Internet, gather as much knowledge as you can--dazzle them with your intelligence.

Me, myself, being labeled as "simpleminded" once in a while is fine with me. It takes the pressure off. If the people around me think I'm not too bright, no one interrupts me during the day. Nobody wants my advice because they don't value it. Fine with me. Pestering me with questions when I'm trying desperately to get my work done--it can be a real nuisance.

When something breaks down in the office and my coworkers say, "Hey, don't even bother asking her to help troubleshoot that computer problem, she doesn't know a thing." It works for me. Get the idea? Think of all the free time you'd have on your hands. Sounds inviting, doesn't it?

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 11-17-04

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Dear Reader,

A sale isn't really a sale in Florida if the "Buy-one-get-one-free" is for flour or cereal. Not unless you're going to use a lot of it soon--real soon. I never had this pantry pest problem when I lived in Wisconsin, but if wheat products sit around in Florida for too long--even if they're in a Ziplock bag or a plastic container sealed tightly with a lid--little itty, bitty, black bugs hitchhike their way in and set up housekeeping.

Bran flakes with raisins seem to be one of their favorites--at least at my house. (I suppose even bugs have heard about the benefits of eating bran and staying "regular.")

Bran flakes is a staple in my husband's diet, too. He eats at least four bowls every day, and he doesn't like the idea of sharing them with insects--so we only buy small quantities. It had been months since I'd seen a flour weevil, but guess who showed up the other day when I was mixing up my muffin recipe?

I measured the sugar, eggs, cinnamon, flour, buttermilk and then stirred in the rest of the ingredients--including the bran flake cereal. A couple of final swirls with the spoon, and then I saw it--a bug--scurrying along the counter beside my mixing bowl. Oh no!
There was another one, and another one, and when I looked down to survey the situation, there were bugs crawling up out of my muffin batter. Gross!

The bugs were frantic--running for their lives. It was a flour weevil 911 alert! The black critters were panicked, desperately trying to scale the inside wall of my mixing bowl, stopping periodically to shake the muffin batter off of their legs. (That buttermilk is sticky stuff.)

The batter was like quicksand, but the weevils were organizing, linking their little legs like a chain to safety from deep in the middle of the bowl. Some of them had even broken out the emergency landing equipment, their nose plugs and swim caps keeping them dry, while they backstroked to safety. Surely I was in the middle of a horror novel.

Obviously I had to throw the batter out, but I must admit that for a split second a couple of options ran through my frazzled mind: They're going to get baked at 350 degrees, so couldn't I just consider them protein? And don't people regularly eat things like this on reality television shows?

But I quickly came back to the real world, tossed the batter and the bowl--by now it had too many memories--and headed for the grocery store.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 11-16-04

Join my email book club. Over 250,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

I've been one good woman for the past two weeks, because I've been wearing my pedometer and walking at least 10,000 steps a day--just like the doctor ordered. But he's still whining at me. Can you believe it?

Now he says I need to pound the pavement--even harder. So his latest prescription for my daily walk includes weights. That means I'm carrying an extra two pounds on each leg, and a two-pound weight in each hand.

Those numbers may not impress you much. But if you want a little taste of my world, duct-tape a can of Corned Beef Hash, together with a can of Tuscan-Style Tomato Soup on your right leg, and then strap a can of Pork & Beans and a can of Libby's Select Pumpkin Pie Filling on the other. Pick up a dumb bell in each hand and start walking.

I think his words were, "No pressure, Suzanne. Just go for a leisurely two-mile stroll every day." Yeah, well, the first couple of days were more of a balancing act, because I nearly tipped over backwards from all the extra weight.

But it's been a couple of weeks now, and I must admit that the extra weight did grow on me. In fact, I noticed yesterday that a little muscle had popped up on each one of my arms. And I was so impressed, that all day long, I kept asking people, "Do you want to see the new muscles in my arms?" (Well, you have to admit, it's easier on the eyes than when someone wants to show you a recent surgery scar.)

Okay, I may be acting like a little kid, but I can't resist show-and-tell. If you want to see the new "pumped up" me, go to: http://www.emailbookclub.com/photo/walker.html

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 11-15-04

Join my email book club. Over 250,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

A reader told me the other day that sometimes if she just can't find the time to read, she saves the daily emails in a folder. I told her it was fine to merely hit the "delete" key. But she said she was afraid that she might miss something good. She's right--the book might be a good one. But there's another "good one" every Monday. Keep it fun. Read guilt-free.

From my Email Bag:

"Hi Suzanne, every day I look forward to opening my email to see what is happening in your life (have the squirrels surrendered yet? what recipe have you tried this week?). Funny how reading something, you probably think is so normal, can make readers like me, feel like I know you well. And that I'm reading something from a friend. It is a very nice feeling, and I am so glad I found the link to the daily book club on my local library web site! Thank you for doing what you do!"--Sincerely, Robin Gregg

"Hi Suzanne, It is an art to be able to create a story and write it. But to be able to look at one's own life as a story and write that is more than just an art. Very few people have the gift to view their lives as a story and I think you are one of them too. Your 'Dear Reader' columns are proof of that."
--Arun Kumar

"Suzanne, I have to be at work at 7 in the morning. I like to stay in bed until the last possible moment, getting up at 6:10, jumping in the shower and looking over my email quickly with my morning OJ before running out the door. Even if I don't read the exerpt right away, I have to read your 'Dear Reader'. I know I'll leave for work with a smile on my face! Thanks for all the smiles you bring to my days!"--Jeanne B.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Warm regards,

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 11-12-04

Join my email book club. Over 250,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

I get myself into some bizarre situations, and yesterday was a doozey. I'd eaten a chicken salad sandwich right before I left for an appointment. Thank heavens I decided to do a vanity check in my rear view mirror, because there was a hunk of chicken salad stuck between my front teeth.

The light changed and I had to flow with the traffic, but my mind was on that chicken salad. It's not as if anyone could see it, but I knew it was there, and I'm the best person to drive myself crazy. And I did. I usually have floss in the glove compartment, but there wasn't any. I checked.

So--being the ingenious troubleshooter that I am--I started taking an inventory. What did I have close at hand that could flush out this piece of chicken salad?

A pearl, chandelier, pierced earring....now that would do the trick. And I just happened to be wearing a pair. I know it's not recommended, but I can drive and do other tasks--like putting on lipstick--so taking off one earring and sticking the end of it between my teeth was an easy assignment. The chicken salad problem was quickly remedied. But now I had a different problem. For the life of me, I couldn't get that earring out from between my teeth.

The traffic was getting heavier. I had to keep both hands on the wheel, and now I was driving down the road with an earring hanging between my front teeth.

I knew I wouldn't be able to do anything about it until I hit the next long red light. The best I could hope for was that the person in the car next to me would be a teenager--with their own piercings--who'd merely think I was starting a new trend.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

P.S. You could WIN a book..."Tell me a story," is still one of best reasons to write a book. And author Walt Larimore, M.D., told me one mighty fine story last week when I read his book, "Bryson City Tales."

Read the sample at: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/bryson1.htmlI have 15 copies of his book to give away. Read the sample, send me an email, tell me what you think--and you're automatically entered in the drawing. I'll pass your comments on to the author, too.

Dear Reader Column 11-11-04

Join my email book club. Over 250,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

"There's a crack in everything and that's how the light gets in."
--Leonard Cohen

I keep that quote handy in my mailbox. It gives me a sense of contentment and always makes me smile. And I feel proud of myself every time I read it. Proud--because I'm a little bit strange and I run with it.

There are a lot of little wacky, off-balance things in my personality, and sometimes I consider chasing them away. I get concerned that someone else might think they're a little too strange. But then Leonard Cohen's words remind me that, even though some people might consider them "cracks" in my personality, the cracks are how the light gets in. And in my case, that light makes me creative, and (I think) a pretty interesting person.

So, if you think you're different--if you worry about whether there are too many "cracks" in your behavior--don't change. That's how the "good stuff" gets in.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher

Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

P.S. You could WIN a book..."Tell me a story," is still one of best reasons to write a book. And author Walt Larimore, M.D., told me one mighty fine story last week when I read his book, "Bryson City Tales."

It's a true story about the first year of his medical practice in the Smoky Mountains. What could happen in a small town of 8,000 people, you might think? Well, a murder for one thing. And the new doctor had only been in town for thirty days.

I have 15 copies of his book to give away. Read the sample, send me an email, tell me what you think--and you're automatically entered in the drawing. I'll pass your comments on to the author, too.

Read the sample at: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/bryson1.html

Dear Reader Column 11-10-04

Join my email book club. Over 250,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

This Daylight Savings Time thing, it ain't working for me.

Every year, same time, same thing, same complaint. You'd think I'd be used to the "change" by now. But the problem is that I'm usually up at five or five-thirty in the morning, so the extra hour is no treat for me. My inner time clock thinks it's five, when it's really four, and when I drink coffee at four in the morning, I'm ready to nap around noon. And then by 2 p.m., I'm wondering why my work day isn't wrapping up, because it seems like I've been working for hours...well I have...10 hours to be exact.

Personally I think if we're going to "celebrate" an extra hour of sleep, every year (something I never get), that we ought to give each other presents. So if you're in the gift-giving mood and you need some suggestions; gift wrap any box of an over-the-counter sleep aid promising to give me at-least-one-full-night's-sleep, a sleeping mask, a CD of lullabies, or round up a bunch of sheep, ship them my way, and I'll start counting. And please--hurry. I'm so tired.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

P.S. You could WIN a book..."Tell me a story," is still one of best reasons to write a book. And author Walt Larimore, M.D., told me one mighty fine story last week when I read his book, "Bryson City Tales."

Read the sample go to: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/bryson1.html

I have 15 copies of his book to give away. Read the sample, send me an email, tell me what you think--and you're automatically entered in the drawing. I'll pass your comments on to the author, too.

Dear Reader Column 11-09-04

Join my email book club. Over 250,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

Recipe requests from my Reader Email Bag:

"Suzanne, you sent us a recipe a couple of months ago, a cake, a chocolate cake. You said normally you didn't think about eating much, but the cake was extraordinary. Well, I printed it out and seemed to have lost it. I have a very special friend about to have a birthday and I would love to make that very cake for her. Could you resend it to me PLEASE?! Thanks for all you do. It's great having friends like you."--Janet

"Suzanne, last year you shared your turkey stuffing recipe with us and it was wonderful! However, I can't seem to find my copy. Thanksgiving is only a few weeks off, and I'm starting to panic. Could I please have that recipe again? Thanks for reading with 'me'. It's so good to read with friends!"--Kim V.

(Suzanne responds:) Janet and Kim, you'll find the recipes for the Disappearing Chocolate Cake and the Crock Pot Stuffing at my blog. Look for them under Recent Posts.

Go to: http://dearreader.typepad.com/dear/

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

P.S. You could WIN a book..."Tell me a story," is still one of best reasons to write a book. And author Walt Larimore, M.D., told me one mighty fine story last week when I read his book, "Bryson City Tales."

It's a true story about the first year of his medical practice in the Smoky Mountains. What could happen in a small town of 8,000 people, you might think? Well, a murder for one thing. And the new doctor had only been in town for thirty days.

I have 15 copies of his book to give away. Read the sample, send me an email, tell me what you think--and you're automatically entered in the drawing. I'll pass your comments on to the author, too.

Read the sample at: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/bryson1.html