All Episodes Talk

[peacheslatour]

You're a tough lady Lura. You're going to be just fine.

[Lura]

51 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

You're a tough lady Lura. You're going to be just fine.

Think so, huh?  lol   In the words of my all-time favorite actress, Katharine Hepburn, "Old age ain't for sissies." She was almost my grandma's age, but we struck up a long correspondence for several years which all began with my request for her famous brownie recipe, a story best reserved for some later date when I'm not pecking the puter keys with one finger.

[peacheslatour]

33 minutes ago, Lura said:

Think so, huh?  lol   In the words of my all-time favorite actress, Katharine Hepburn, "Old age ain't for sissies." She was almost my grandma's age, but we struck up a long correspondence for several years which all began with my request for her famous brownie recipe, a story best reserved for some later date when I'm not pecking the puter keys with one finger.

You corresponded with KATHERINE HEPBURN?!? OMG! Whenever I'm in a tough spot, I always ask myself "What would Katherine Hepburn do?"

[Lura]

22 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

You corresponded with KATHERINE HEPBURN?!? OMG! Whenever I'm in a tough spot, I always ask myself "What would Katherine Hepburn do?"

Me too, Peaches!  I wasn't exceptional; I was just lucky.  Hit her on the right day probably, and it didn't last for very long.  TAKE NOTE, THOUGH: She refused to open any mail that had her first name misspelled. KATHARINE. 

Edited April 6, 2018 by Lura

[peacheslatour]

13 minutes ago, Lura said:

Me too, Peaches!  I wasn't exceptional; I was just lucky.  Hit her on the right day probably, and it didn't last for very long.  TAKE NOTE, THOUGH: She refused to open any mail that had her first name misspelled. KATHARINE. 

I wondered about that so I googled it. The googles said "Katherine". Shows you what they know. 

[Kohola3]

3 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

Shows you what they know. 

But if it's on the internet it must be true!  ;-)

At least IMDB has in correct.  Katharine with an "A".

[Lura]

I wrote Miss H. for her brownie recipe, which was a big secret at the time.  I googled it today and found it if anyone wants it.  It was in the NYTimes.  Even if you don't want the recipe but were a Hepburn fan, there's a fun article to read about her.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/10782-katharine-hepburns-brownies

I was a little disappointed in the recipe after all the hoopla about it, but everybody likes their brownies their own way.  I think maybe this was her mother's recipe that KH grew up with.  She adored her parents and did almost everything her mother's way.  Some bakers rave about this brownie, so it's all a matter of taste, I guess.  My husband liked them a lot.
 

Edited April 7, 2018 by Lura
typo

[Kohola3]

6 minutes ago, Lura said:

I was a little disappointed in the recipe after all the hoopla about it, but everybody likes their brownies their own way

What didn't you like?  Too chocolatey?  Too dry?  Too wet?  Just curious!

[Lura]

A little too dark chocolate for me as I recall.  Haven't made them for many years.  I'm a milk choc. fan.

[Kohola3]

2 minutes ago, Lura said:

A little too dark chocolate for me as I recall.

I was a little surprised at how little flour is in there for the amount of chocolate.  Sounds a little more fudgy than anything else. I adore dark chocolate so I might try them at some point.  I can see why a milk chocolate fan might not like them.

Hope you are on the mend!

[Lura]

Thanks, Kohola.  Had a brace put on today at the doctor's.  Good Lord!  I am trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey. Can't move a muscle!  The doc said if I were a football player, this would be a career-ending injury.  I'm too small for football anyway.  Funny (?) thing -- the brace has to be fit to you next to the skin, so you can't wear clothes on top.  I am not a pretty sight in shorts and nothing on top, believe me.  Gonna have to figure out something -- like a paper bag with a hole cut in top for my head.  Bruising has me with a white body, one purple breast and one black one.  If I answered the door, I'd scare someone to death.  All I need is Ree's hair!

Edited April 7, 2018 by Lura

[Kohola3]

No clothes on top?  Even one of Ree's billowing grandma tops? 

That seems just, well, bizarre.  I have been a nurse for eons and have never heard of such a thing. I understand no clothes underneath but on top?  Odd!

And no dying your hair like Ree's, you'll end up with some sort of poisoning that makes you crave meals with 5000 calories per plate and a whole buncha toppings.

[Lura]

19 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

No clothes on top?

LOL  I'm ALLOWED to wear clothing! The problem lies with the large brace and the position of it.  Nothing fits over it very far.  You can get something over the head and the shoulder of the free arm  ... this is embarrassing, like nothing else is happening in the world.  I'll work on trying to find a poncho or something.  The doctor said this is a new kind of brace.  That is all I know.  I appreciate your concern, though.  Nurses are special people.

[Kohola3]

19 minutes ago, Lura said:

I'm ALLOWED to wear clothing!

Phew, had me worried there for a minute.  Thought maybe you hit your head as well and didn't quite get the instructions correct!  

So some of those granny tops of Ree's really might work!

[tabloidlover]

I’m confused.   I love the idea of a lemon raspberry pound cake, however the idea of using lemonade as an ingredient sounds terrible.   Anyone ever heard of that before?  There’s got to be a better way

[peacheslatour]

How about some of your husband's button downs? God, I hope you get better soon, just thinking about what happened to you makes my legs ache.

[Kohola3]

2 hours ago, tabloidlover said:

There’s got to be a better way.

There usually is with her recipes.

There are so many varieties of lemonade that no two taste the same.  What's wrong with using real lemons?

[Marathonrunner]

Remember a few weeks ago (maybe longer) when Ree made those giant food products? Well - I just saw a commercial for Olive Garden - they have new extra large size food choices - one of them is a pasta entrée with an enormous meatball sitting on top - I guess that shows us what Ree knows & we don't!!

Of course, I still think it looks ridiculous & not the least bit appetizing

[Kohola3]

4 minutes ago, Marathonrunner said:

Well - I just saw a commercial for Olive Garden - they have new extra large size food choices - one of them is a pasta entrée with an enormous meatball sitting on top - I guess that shows us what Ree knows & we don't!!

And I bet the people that order these are having a diet coke because they are watching calories....

[Lura]

8 hours ago, tabloidlover said:

I love the idea of a lemon raspberry pound cake, however the idea of using lemonade as an ingredient sounds terrible.   Anyone ever heard of that before?  There’s got to be a better way

tabloidlover, Ina has a fantastic recipe for Lemon Pound Cake.  We love it.  You could add your own fruit.  Just a suggestion.  Lemonade doesn't excite me either.  Hers is so lemony and good.

7 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

How about some of your husband's button downs?

Not big enough to get over this contraption.  Nice try, though.  Appreciate your help.

[Kohola3]

Just caught the end of the Care Package episode where she packaged stuff to send to the daughter. That was the worst packing job I have ever seen.  I guarantee that the glass inside (which cannot be sent by the PO by the way) arrived in pieces.  I pack boxes for the military and a little bit of fluffy stuff and a couple of balloons are not the least bit helpful in cushioning things. 

[Lura]

I watched the same episode yesterday and can say without reservation that I thought it was one of Ree's best and most enjoyable.  For starters, Ree wasn't her usual "put-on" actress.  Maybe the subject matter (a food box for Alex) put her into "ordinary mom" mode.  The recipes were good choices -- a lemon pound cake with instructions on how to keep it moist in transit, snickerdoodles, strawberry fruit leather, etc.  The box was filled with shredded, pro-grade packing.  I doubt that any glass broke because Ree only used mini Mason jars for individual, lightweight servings of dry cocoa mix.

The other show I saw was also good and also featured a little bit of the two boys boxing.  The boys were smaller then, and they were cute/funny in their seriousness.  Good recipes, also.  I could get to liking Ree real fast if all of her shows were as unaffected and straightforward as these two were.  Her Italian Sloppy Joes actually looked good.  Has anyone made them?

Oh -- and Ree made Chuck a lemon meringue pie and jokingly admitted that she butters up her father-in-law.  I remember that we talked about that one day.

[peacheslatour]

I will admit I liked the show when I first watched it circa 2011. But then as I continued she got phonier and phonier and then her cooking looked less and less appetizing. And don't even get me started on her "look".

[Sweedish Fish]

I've had stomach problems, and can't bear to watch even the re runs for snark.

The zombie frozen face/eyes with chiseled in dimples.  The speak.  (say glorious one more time), The hair.  The girls sleep overs everything  pink and frothy,  the cowboy boys need meat.  I know it's all been said before.   But Jesus God.    

[Kohola3]

40 minutes ago, Sweedish Fish said:

The zombie frozen face/eyes with chiseled in dimples.  The speak.  (say glorious one more time), The hair.  The girls sleep overs everything  pink and frothy,  the cowboy boys need meat.  I know it's all been said before.   But Jesus God.   

The constant Crazy Clown smile.  The hideous Walmart tops.

[Sweedish Fish]

18 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

The constant Crazy Clown smile.  The hideous Walmart tops.

I don't think her neck moves.  The clown zombie body rotates - think the eyes light up when plugged in.  And they put it back in the closet after.

Edited April 8, 2018 by Sweedish Fish
punctuation.

[Fairlily26]

I just came to say, Ladd is hot!

 Lol but no really some of her meals seem pretty good. The only thing that really made me gag was that brownie with all that sugary chocolate candy inside...

*shudders*

[Fairlily26]

On 2/25/2018 at 5:30 PM, peacheslatour said:

I would never add raw bacon to anything but a frying pan or a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Oh honey no parchment paper! Use a non stick cookie sheet. Save the bacon fat for later. Raw unpeeled shrimp fried in bacon fat is the best!

Nothing beats that charred flavor!

[ariel]

2 hours ago, Fairlily26 said:

 Save the bacon fat for later. Raw unpeeled shrimp fried in bacon fat is the best!

Nothing beats that charred flavor!

That sounds like a Paula Deen recipe. 

[Fairlily26]

14 minutes ago, ariel said:

That sounds like a Paula Deen recipe. 

I don't know if it is. But let my husband tell it, he came up with it. 

[LillyB]

She added heavy cream to hamburger meat for sliders. Why? And then goes on to say if a little bit is good  more is better.

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, LillyB said:

She added heavy cream to hamburger meat for sliders.

Whhhhhaaaaa????

[Lura]

Kohola, if you google "addition of heavy cream to hamburgers," you'll see many articles praising burgers with heavy cream added.  None other than James Beard added 1 Tbl. of heavy cream to his burgers.  The idea is to add a little more fat to the meat.  It's also said by at least one food critic to make a "smoother" burger.  If Ree knew that, she should have explained instead of coming out with her cutesie "because I can!" IMHO.   

[Kohola3]

Well, color me uneducated.  Aren't burgers fat enough without adding a few more grams to clog the arteries?

2 hours ago, Lura said:

If Ree knew that, she should have explained instead of coming out with her cutesie "because I can!"

Definitely.  At least it wouldn't have made her look so foolish as if she had cream leftover from some frothy dessert concoction so decided to throw it in. I swear that's how some of her "recipes" evolve - grab a random can or jar or spice can from the pantry and throw it in even it if doesn't go with any of the rest of the ingredients.

[Lura]

With one arm out of commission for a while, I've had a lot of time to watch old episodes while my husband cooks.  Yesterday I watched "All in One," the epi on sheet pan suppers.  Ree's Chicken and Stuffing with Root Vegetables didn't sound or look half bad to me.  (I was starving at the time, so maybe that was why!  LOL)  Anyway, I'm wondering how many of you have made a sheet pan meal and what you made.  I need ideas.  I could look them up online, but I'd really like to hear from some people I trust.  Thanks!

[peacheslatour]

I've made roasted vegetables but that's about it. Have you ever made a meal on a sheet pan? What did you make?

[Kohola3]

Ditto, just roasted vegetables from the American's Test Kitchen episode with roasting a chicken.

[IOU Payne]

Jamie Oliver did a lot of sheet pan meals.  I got the idea from him.  I used chicken breasts, potatoes cut into wedges, and a ton of veggies.  A little olive oil, some seasonings, and I was good to go. 

[Lura]

I've only done veggies, too.  Your chicken meal sounds good, IOU.  Ree did root vegetables with her chicken and dressing, but I wasn't raised on turnips or parsnips, so I never learned to like them.  I could just about eat potatoes for every meal, tho!  I finally did a search on Google and saw that "Taste of Home" magazine did a special edition on sheet pan meals.  I copied a couple of the recipes and might try them sometime.

[maggiemae]

I haven't but also interested. Pinterest has lots of  fabulous ideas!

Edited April 14, 2018 by maggiemae

[Lura]

I've seen some good recipes on Pinterest but never noticed sheet pan recipes there.  Thanks a lot, Maggiemae!

Edited April 14, 2018 by Lura
typo

[grisgris]

I have pretty much stopped watching the show because they are actual repeated episodes or the recipes are repeats so it doesn't make them new to me.

However, I watched yesterday's show about meals for two.

The sheet pan supper* (make note of this in a moment) of spatchcocked chicken to share with Paige seemed OK but I thought it was weird that Ree kept referring to her marinade as "dressing." It bugs me right up there with insisting on calling measuring cups "pitchers." ... and "buncha" and vanilla bean "caviar." Ina was scraping out a vanilla bean on her show the other day and called the black specks, "black specks" and "seeds." Paige is now playing the role of Bryce, who probably has learned by now that the best way to avoid walk-on parts on the show is to STAY BUSY and AWAY. She always lumbers in like a teenaged boy and grouses, "I'm starving," when Ree inevitably asks her if she's hungry. However, Paige has an innate sweetness about her that I've noticed in the episodes where she's entertaining kids or playing barista at "The Merc," so I will give her a pass. She also can't help it that she's like 6'3." My wish for her is that she'd chosen some place far far away for college. Arkansas is a bit too within arm's reach of more of Ree's dorm dinner disasters. If I were her, I'd be eyeing some type of exchange program in Scandanavia.

One to loaf pan lasagna.* (What's with all of the alliteration with the recipes?"  There was nothing wrong with that recipe. I thought I saw a graphic flash by that said each loaf pan made six servings. Anyway, during the demo of how to heat up (seriously?) and serve the lasagna, Ree just divided the entire contents of one loaf pan between two plates. Then she does something else that always bugs me, too (yes, there is more!) Serving tomato salad with an entree that's loaded with canned tomatoes and tomato paste.

The last act didn't disappoint. Ladd and Ree were having "Steak Night" (aka "Date Night.") Ree kept referring to the entire meal as "steak frites." No, you moron. "Frites" are the potatoes only and what you made were big honkin' wedges and there was no way they were going to be done in 20 minutes. Anyway, I digress. The hilarity ensued when Ree talked Ladd into trying to make their own version of lemon-pepper seasoning that Ladd explained he'd been using on steaks, "forever."  The purpose was to "make everything from scratch." To Ladd's crushed peppercorns, Ree added dried lemon zest. Do you think she stopped there? Next was dried parsley, onion powder, garlic powder and dried mustard. TF? You could tell Ladd was not happy with this at all. But he went ahead and cooked the steaks, while Ree yammered on and on. Contrary to what she said about keeping things "reel," she decided to just to hell with it and used Lawry's seasoned salt on her "frites."

Those two have zero chemistry and I am surprised that they stayed married as long as they have. Ree is so snide and thirsty for compliments. When Ladd agreed that he'd miss the boys when they finally left for college, Ree indignantly turned on him with, "What? Are you saying you don't like my company?" To which Ladd sputtered, "Well, I'll miss the girls, too."   I won't get into Ree's "one flesh," remark as it made me want to throw something at the TV.

The best was last when Ree made hollandaise sauce to pour over her steak. Yes, that's right. Hollandaise sauce. Why? This is one time where I am on Ladd's side for being picky about his food when he declined. There was no reason to add that. The steak was already ruined by the copious amount of crap seasoning they dumped all over the fillets before drowning them in melted butter. Oh, and she also served an anemic wedge of iceberg lettuce drowned in ranch dressing. Thankfully, she didn't haul out the "fry sauce" to dump over the "frites." The competing flavors just ruined what could have been a nice simple dinner.

Maybe Ladd can put the "Cowboy Room," in the new hotel on permanent hold for when the nest finally empties ...

 

[Lura]

16 hours ago, grisgris said:

Those two have zero chemistry and I am surprised that they stayed married as long as they have. Ree is so snide and thirsty for compliments. When Ladd agreed that he'd miss the boys when they finally left for college, Ree indignantly turned on him with, "What? Are you saying you don't like my company?" To which Ladd sputtered, "Well, I'll miss the girls, too."   I won't get into Ree's "one flesh," remark as it made me want to throw something at the TV.

For what it's worth, I have always felt that Ree's appearances with Ladd on the show were very contrived and entirely different from the way they are together when the cameras aren't aimed at them.  I feel that Ladd is quiet by nature, and he seems to have few, if any, outside interests or hobbies that would take him away from riding a horse every day, thus making him rather dull in the conversation department.  I think that Ree, who sees herself as a worldly woman, is uptight and is constantly trying to tease him or say something rather dumb to get a reaction out of him for the sake of the show.  I think it would help if she could try to think of ways to bring him out without making herself look and sound so addle-brained.  Her teasing remarks always seem to make me roll my eyes.  She allows his limitations to bring herself down.  Maybe the answer is to eliminate one-on-one scenes with Ladd and save Ladd for ranching or family situations where he is more comfortable and talkative.  She wants to show him off as the "handsome hunk" she married, but it isn't working.

Edited April 16, 2018 by Lura

[roughing it]

Ree and her family members are all very awkward in their segments.  Unlike Trisha, whose sister and family and friends just seem to roll so easily.

[Lura]

My show of choice today was the episode in which Ree's mother and sister Betsy and Betsy's young son visited the ranch for the first time together.  Actually, it's hardly my favorite show by a long shot, but with this broken arm and shoulder in this huge brace and swelling all over my body, I've seen a few too many shows lately, and this one was still left available.  What are you going to do?  You can either cry about your miserable lot in life or be quiet and watch the Smith clan.

Is it a Southern custom / social rule that you have to take flowers to the hostess?  Before the two proceeded to the ranch, they stopped in Tulsa to buy seafood, and then Betsy remarked that they had to stop for flowers.  I wondered whether this was something their mother taught them or a custom of the region.  The way Betsy said it made me wonder whether it was obligatory.  Maybe some Southerners in here have the answer.  Either way, I think it's a thoughtful thing to do.

Edited April 17, 2018 by Lura
another typo

[peacheslatour]

I was raised to always bring a "hostess gift" to any gathering and I live in Seattle. So I don't think it's just a Southern thing.

[Kohola3]

3 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

I was raised to always bring a "hostess gift" to any gathering...

As was I.  Not sure if it's a regional thing or a generational thing.

[chessiegal]

I was raised in Pennsylvania and was taught to bring a hostess gift.

[Jeanne222]

Can you imagine how much wealth this family has amassed?  Makes my head swim.

Ree has certainly put their little Pawhuska on the map.  She has created lots of jobs for the locals and has lines around the corner at her restaurant and now hotel. 

I think I read that Ladd is one of the best at ranching.

What a winning combination.  BTW I love the four kids.  I'm sure none of the five..four kids and Ladd..want to be on camera.  They do that to please Ree and because it's part of the show.  I think they do alright with their roles. 

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, Jeanne222 said:

I think I read that Ladd is one of the best at ranching.

The massive government subsidies must certainly be part of the equation.