My Fanciful Accounts

ingredients

• (2) 9 ounce packages  (or 1-20 oz package) frozen cheese ravioli
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup fresh breadcrumbs
• Salt and pepper
• (1) 8 ounce package  sliced white mushrooms
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 8 ounces baby spinach (used baby arugula instead)
• EVOO, for drizzling (did not do this; added 1/2 # bulk  Italian sausage, browned and crumbled)

directions

1. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the ravioli according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
2. Meanwhile, in a skillet, melt 1 tbsp. butter over medium heat. Stir in the breadcrumbs and season lightly with salt and pepper. Toast until golden, 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Wipe out the skillet.
3. Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Add 1 tbsp. butter and melt. Add the mushrooms; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the mushrooms are tender and browned, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the spinach in handfuls, tossing to wilt.
4. Add the reserved pasta water and the ravioli to the mushrooms and spinach. Stir in the remaining 1 tbsp. butter; toss.
5. To serve, top the ravioli with the breadcrumbs. Drizzle with EVOO.

Liked it, but not as much as I did the recipe using brussels sprouts.

http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipe/cheese-ravioli-with-mushrooms-and-spinach-1/

Theme: Clouds
Note: This theme leaves itself wide open to introducing nonfiction during storytime. (Thinking common core and big vocabulary;)

The weather isn't the only thing that seems to be roaring in this March. The workload has suddenly peaked as well. I know life is about to get busy at work when the daily to-do list hits ten.
1. Review Dia grant and speak to Linda WC before tomorrow.
2. By Friday have all Dia grant weekly plans drafted. Drafts need to be sent to Marina for input and translation.
3. Ask Linda J. to review and edit Dia grant promotion flyer for Spanish newspaper.
4. Ask Maggie if her flyer can be used to create posters and additional flyers for the library and community outreach.
5. Complete the plans for the last week of May Storytime. Must include promotional info for summer reading club.
6. Review Storytime themes for June and start pulling books.
7. Prepare session plan for next week's teen parents and tots visit.
8. Start outlining specific ideas for 4 week summer reading program, LaRue Across America. May need to collect materials, i.e., gallon jugs.
9. Start outlining ideas for Time Travelers program.
10. Confirm meeting room reservation requests received and okayed.

Read Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson and add actions to some of the phrases; print motivation at its best:

brown the sausage

Ingredients
1 pound cheese ravioli
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
12 ounces Brussels sprouts, cut and thinly sliced
Kosher salt
Pepper
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese, for serving

grate the sprouts

mix it all together

pour over the ravioli and sprinkle with cheese

Cook the ravioli according to package directions.Directions
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until browned, 6 to 7 minutes.
Add the Brussels sprouts, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, tossing, for 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Serve over the ravioli and sprinkle with cheese, if desired.

I used bulk Italian sausage instead of turkey sausage. Therefore, no casings needed to be removed and no olive oil was required. The ravioli was a little over a pound- 1lb. 9 oz bag- but I did not alter any other ingredient amount to accommodate the difference. I used the hand grater for the brussels sprouts. Since I had vegetable stock open, I used that in place of the chicken stock. Lastly, I used grated Parmesan not Romano cheese when served. This recipe is a keeper as I will definitely make again maybe using mushroom ravioli.

Tip: For a twist, try spinach tortellini, mushroom ravioli, or butternut squash agnolotti.

http://www.womansday.com/recipefinder/ravioli-sausage-brussels-sprouts-recipe-wdy0113

The theme this year for Women's History Month is Women Inspiring Innovation Through Imagination: Celebrating Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. I will present my list of ten, but first I'd like to celebrate some of the women in my direct line (the one's I can find pics of!!). We are a tough bunch.

my mom

my sister

my sister

my girl

Mom A.

Sister Sue

Sister Sue 2

Jill

Amber

Myung and her two beautiful daughters, Karol and Debbie (not pictured) Vicki Snow-Atkinson no pic:-(

Grandma Stella and her sister Aunt Dorothy

Great-gram Aleksandra

Great-gram Katherine

Grandma Helen

Great-gram Rosalia

Great-gram Philomena

Aunt Nancy

Aunt Kathy

No school today. Joliet Public Library offered a drop-in craft program- Shark vs Octopus. Thanks to Ms. Laura H. for finding and packaging all those shark and octopus instructions and parts. I was able to contribute ocean diorama kits left over from a previous program several years back. I can't believe that they are an item that SSWW doesn't carry anymore. They were so cool. No worries. The kids and parents had a wonderful time painting and creating. Their joy brought sunshine to an otherwise gloomy day.



Sources
http://www.highlightskids.com/crafts/snapping-shark

http://www.freekidscrafts.com/cardboard_tube_octopus-e1533.html

http://www.ssww.com/item/ocean-class-size-group-dioramas-LR1889/cmc=SRCH/v=b2NlYW4gZGlvcmFtYQ%2C%2C/p=1/

Casimir Pulaski was recruited by Ben Franklin in Paris to be a military leader in the Revolutionary War in America. In Poland Pulaski had fought against three invading powers- Russia, Austria, and Prussia. In Revolutionary documents, there were multiple referrals to the American fear of the Russian expeditionary corps. It was because Pulaski had won all of his laurels fighting the Russians that the Americans were so eager to have them working for them. As Pulaski made his way to his first meeting with George Washington, he created a plan and his future job description. While traveling to his destination, Pulaski saw a countryside full of dispirited men who wondered how much longer they could withstand their defeats. Based on what he saw, he determined that what was needed was a mounted corps of volunteers to act as Washington's eyes on his marches and to protect Washington's retreats. Washington agreed and wrote to John Hancock suggesting Pulaski be put in charge of all the cavalry.
Before he could even be commissioned by Congress, Pulaski found himself in charge of collecting stragglers and horseman from the Battle of Brandywine and using his judgement to cover Washington's retreat. Pulaski was up to the task. Using a series of swift hit-and-run ambushes and an unexpected charge, Pulaski and his stragglers were able to halt the flanking British columns enabling the main body of the American army to escape.
Less than a month later Pulaski was awarded his commission as Brigadier General in command of all American cavalry, about 300 men. Until the end of 1777 much to Pulaski's chagrin, he seldom had more than a quarter of his men with him. It wasn't until late 1777 when the horses needed to be taken somewhere to forage that the 300 came together in Trenton. There Pulaski and his calvary spent the winter drilling and reorganizing. During this time Pulaski supposedly helped fund this endeavor with $16,000 of his own money.
Pulaski's men were said to have "adhered to him as a brother,' but alas, the same cannot be said of his subordinate American officers. Take orders from a foreigner! Not! Pulaski's successes only fueled the prejudices, ultimately demoralizing his men, making his command ineffective, and causing him to submit his letter of resignation. Pulaski asked Washington and was allowed to form, train, and equip a corps of foreign troopers.  On April 13, 1778 recruiting began in Baltimore for the Pulaski Cavalry Legion. There was no shortage of recruits as men were so eager to serve under him that they were leaving the regular Maryland service to join. One general protested resulting in Washington ordering Pulaski to send those men back.
Pulaski lost his life to gangrene that set in from a bullet wound to the thigh that he received while fighting in Savannah. He died aboard the American brig Wasp. He is thought to have been buried at sea. Pulaski died as he lived- a hero.

Fort Pulaski National Park, Georgia

In 2009 Barack Obama signed a joint resolution conferring honorary US citizenship on Pulaski. In Illinois we celebrate Casimir Pulaski Day the first Monday of March- tomorrow. As I celebrate this honored man, I will also be celebrating my ethnicity and the millions of other Polish Americans- famous and ordinary- that have left their imprints on every aspect of American life.

This recipe came from the cookbook, taste of home soups, Reiman Media Group, LLC, Greendale, WI, 2012.

Southwestern Bean Chowder, p139

Ingredients
2 15oz cans cannelli beans
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 c chopped celery
1/4 c chopped green pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves. minced
3 c vegetable broth
1 1/2 c thawed frozen corn
1 medium carrot shredded
1 4oz can chopped green chilies
1 tbsp ground cumin (oops! I forgot to add; explains much;-)
1/2 tsp chili powder
4 1/2 tsp corn starch
2 c 2% milk (I used skim)
1 c shredded cheddar cheese (I used sharp)
Minced cilantro garnish, optional

In a bowl mash 1 can of beans and set aside. In a Dutch oven, saute onion, celery, and pepper in oil until tender. Add garlic and cook a minute longer. Stir in the mashed beans, broth, corn, chilies, cumin, chili powder and remaining beans. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. Combine cornstarch and milk until smooth. Stir into bean mixture. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in cheese until melted. Serve with cilantro and additional cheese if desired.

It seems I jumped ahead a week. Too many irons in the fire, I suppose. This week the focus of our preschool storytimes was counting.

Ten Pennies Puzzle Page
Orange and Gray crayons
If a space has ten dots, color it orange. If it has seven dots, color it gray.