All posts by Teri

The G.O.P. Got Trumped

Politics

Trump
I was going to title this blog “Bush Got Trumped,” but let’s be real here, Jeb has pretty much become a bush-league player. Pun intended.

One measly ex-Governor? No—that’s not Trump’s style. In all his trumped up glory, the Donald has taken on the entire Republican Party.

Some say that Trump is running to ensure the presidential win for Hillary. He’s acting as her apprentice so to speak. The theory is it’s a win-win for Trump. He gets the Republican nomination and is a hero. Hillary becomes the first woman President of the United States and the Donald? Well, he’s a hero.

I don’t buy that theory. Because that’s not how Trump rolls. He actually believes he can win this “thing.”

Now, I don’t believe that Trump will become the 45th President of the United States. But I do believe that a Trump nomination could possibly undo many of the gains Republicans have made in the recent State and local elections. And then there goes the Republican majority in the Senate.

According to a Wikipedia page on the 1964 Congressional elections, Lyndon Johnson’s landslide victory over Barry Goldwater allowed his Democratic Party to gain a net of 36 seats from the Republican Party, giving them a two-thirds majority in the House. This was the largest House majority held by either party since 1936.

Many of the highest-ranking and wealthiest Republicans want Trump out. But who needs to publicly bicker and scrap with the insult-spewing Donald?

We all know that Trump loves to belittle and berate his critics 24/7. That’s been his game plan since day one, and it seems to be working well for him.

And let’s be honest, it doesn’t look like Trump is getting fired anytime soon.

I wasn’t a fan of Trump’s reality game show The Apprentice, but this is one reality show I’m not going to miss.

 

My YouTube Book Trailer—Let’s Hope It Works

Teri's Grown-Up Novel - OUR ROMANTIC GETAWAY

 

My Youtube video for my novel Our Romantic Getaway

It wasn’t enough that I spent five years writing my debut novel, Our Romantic Getaway.

Now I have to spend five + years promoting it?

As a marketing and advertising consultant who makes a living advising clients on how to boost their businesses, the last thing I want to do is get up on a soapbox and sell me—or my book.

So I haven’t done all the usual things authors need to do like having a launch party, setting up signings at local bookstores, guest speaking and book spieling to the uninterested masses who attend myriad tours for the free food and drink or paying experts thousands of dollars to hype my novel.  I’d much rather spend any available time I can drum up penning the sequel to Our Romantic Getaway.

And I wasn’t convinced that a YouTube video would help me to sell books either, although I’ve seen a few very well produced trailers that had me wavering. But they were mostly live action and extremely expensive productions.

But the marketing side of me won over and I decided to give it a whirl and finally answer the question I have been asking myself for several months: Can a YouTube book trailer (with music!) do the selling for lazy me?

So here it is folks. I hope you like it. Well, truthfully, it’s okay if you don’t, as long as it sells my book.  https://youtu.be/XZMyJ7DUFn4

America’s Obsession with Green Bean Casserole

Entertaining & Recipes

Green bean casserole
Love it or hate it, the green bean casserole is a Thanksgiving side dish that stands the test of time and has had a place in the collective American heart for the past 60 years.

A Campbell’s spokesperson was recently quoted as saying that a whopping 40 percent of the cream of mushroom soup sold in the U.S. goes to making green bean casserole and that their surveys show that 30 million households serve it up for the holidays.

Del Monte, founded in 1886, and a major U.S. marketer and distributor of green beans recently asked 3,000 Americans whether or not they plan to eat the good ole classic green bean casserole side dish this Thanksgiving.

Del Monte also asked Americans to divulge one secret ingredient they add to the casserole’s iconic green bean, cream of mushroom soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, and crispy French fried onions to make it unique and different.

And last but certainly not least Del Monte ranked its Top 5 most popular green bean casserole recipes (based on frequency on Thanksgiving dinner tables). You’ll find the recipes at the end of this blog.

I know you’re chomping at the veggie bit to know which U.S. States have the highest concentration of Thanksgiving green bean casserole eaters—AND their secret ingredients.

TADA!

RANKING OF ANTICIPATED GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE EATERS THIS THANKSGIVING 

  1. Louisiana:  60%
  2. Oklahoma:  58%
  3. Kentucky:  57%
  4. Florida:  54%
  5. Wisconsin:  52%
  6. Missouri:  51%
  7. Colorado:  50%
  8. Kansas:  49%
  9. New Hampshire:  48%
  10. Maine:  46%
  11. Vermont:  45%
  12. California:  44%
  13. Mississippi:  43%
  14. Idaho:  41%
  15. Utah:  41%
  16. Texas:  40%
  17. Illinois:  39%
  18. Ohio:  38%
  19. New York:  37%
  20. Michigan:  37%
  21. Alabama:  36%
  22. North Carolina:  36%
  23. New Mexico:  35%
  24. Maryland:  34%
  25. Tennessee:  32%
  26. Massachusetts:  32%
  27. New Jersey:  31%
  28. South Carolina:  30%
  29. Pennsylvania:  29%
  30. Virginia:  29%
  31. Arizona:  29%
  32. Minnesota:  28%
  33. Indiana:  27%
  34. Georgia:  26%
  35. Delaware:  25%
  36. Oregon:  23%
  37. Rhode Island:  23%
  38. Connecticut:  22%
  39. Nevada:  22%
  40. Montana:  21%
  41. Iowa:  21%
  42. Washington:  21%
  43. West Virginia:  20%
  44. Alaska:  20%
  45. Arkansas:  20%
  46. Nebraska:  19%
  47. Wyoming:  19%
  48. South Dakota:  19%
  49. North Dakota:  18%
  50. Hawaii:  17%

Secret ingredient drum roll, please…

America’s Top 10 secret ingredients for green bean casserole are:

  1. Bacon (34%)
  2. Mushrooms (17%)
  3. Cheese (11%)
  4. Grilled Onions (8%)
  5. Almonds (7%)
  6. Sausage (6%)
  7. Bread crumbs or crushed crackers (5.6%)
  8. Garlic (5.2%)
  9. Jalapeños or hot sauce (4%)
  10. Sour cream (3%)

Who needs those fancy shmancy roasted root vegetables, gourmet cranberry chutney and all the other sophisticated Thanksgiving side dishes we slave to make? At 60 years old and counting, green bean casserole is here to stay.

DEL MONTE’S 2015 TOP 5 GREEN-BEAN CASSEROLE RECIPES:

#1: Classic Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients:
2 cans (10.5 oz. each) Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons soy sauce
¼ teaspoon black pepper
4 cans (14.5 oz. each) any style Del Monte Green Beans, drained
2-2/3 cups French’s Crispy Fried Onions, divided
Directions:
Stir soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, green beans and 1-1/3 cups onions in a 3-quart casserole. Bake at 350 degrees F, uncovered, 25 minutes or until bean mixture is hot and bubbling. Stir green bean mixture. Sprinkle with remaining onions. Bake 5 minutes longer or until onions are golden brown.

# 2:  Bacon and Cheddar Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients:
8 slices bacon, chopped
½ cup finely chopped onion
1 container (8 oz.) sliced fresh mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tablespoons butter
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ cup chicken broth
1-1/2 cups milk
2 cans (10.5 oz. each) Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
½ cup shredded sharp white Cheddar cheese
4 cans (14.5 oz. each) any style Del Monte Green Beans, drained
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 can (6 oz.) French’s Crispy Fried Onions
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat a Dutch oven over medium-heat. Cook bacon until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove bacon and drain on paper towels. Discard all but 2 Tbsp. bacon drippings. Add onions and cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently, or until soft. Add mushrooms and garlic; cook 5 minutes or until mushrooms are tender. Remove from pan and set aside in a separate bowl. Melt butter in the same pan and whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly, until a light golden brown. Whisk in milk and broth and cook 2 to 3 minutes until mixture is smooth and thickened. Stir in bacon and mushroom mixture and cook 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through. Remove from heat and stir in soup, cheese, green beans and salt and pepper, if desired. Pour into a 9 x 13-inch baking dish (3 quart). Stir well and sprinkle with fried onions and bake, uncovered, 30 minutes until hot and bubbly and onions are golden brown.

# 3: Sautéed Mushroom and Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon butter
½ package (8 oz.) sliced fresh mushrooms (or 4 oz. Sliced Portobello mushrooms)
1 can (10.5 oz.) Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
1/2 cup milk
3 cans (14.5 oz. each) Del Monte Cut Green Beans, drained
1 can (6 oz.) French’s Crispy Fried Onions
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook mushrooms 4 minutes or until tender. Stir soup, milk, green beans and 2/3 cup onions. Pour into a 2-quart casserole. Bake, uncovered, 25 minutes or until heated through and bubble. Stir, sprinkle with remaining onions. Bake 5 minutes longer or until onions are golden brown.

# 4: Creole Sausage and Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients:
1 package (14 oz.) pre-cooked Andouille sausage, sliced
3 cups (12 oz.) grated sharp Cheddar cheese
1 can (10.5 oz.) Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
3/4 cup milk
2 to 2-1/2 teaspoons Cajun or Creole seasoning
4 cans (14.5 oz. each) Del Monte Cut Green Beans, drained
1 can (6 oz.) French’s Crispy Fried Onions
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine sausage, cheese, soup, milk and seasoning in a 13 x 9-inch (3 quart) baking dish. Stir in beans and 1-1/3 cup of the onions. Bake, uncovered, 25 minutes or until hot and bubbling. Stir, sprinkle with remaining onions. Bake 5 minutes longer or until onions are golden brown.

# 5:  Main Dish Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients:
2 cans (10.5 oz.) Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
3 cups chopped chicken or turkey
2 cups uncooked instant white or brown rice
2 cans (3 oz. each) French’s Crispy Fried Onions, 2-2/3 cups total, divided
1-3/4 cups milk
2 teaspoons soy sauce
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon black pepper
4 cans (14.5 oz. each) Del Monte No Salt Added Cut Green Beans, drained
½ cup slivered or sliced almonds, 2 oz.
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 13 x 9-inch glass baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Stir together soup, chicken, rice, 1 can of onions, milk, soy sauce, oregano and black pepper in a large bowl. Add green beans and stir until well blended. Pour into baking dish. Bake 30 minutes or until bubbly. Stir bean mixture. Coarsely crumble remaining onions and sprinkle evenly over beans. Top with almonds and bake 10 to 15 minutes or until almonds are light golden brown.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

AND DON’T FORGET TO MAKE GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE!