ArcaMax

Memorial Day was always a fun holiday at my house. As a kid, I remember the day to be sunny and not too cold. I’m sure that was not the case every year, but my memory holds that weather report on record anyway.

One of the other things I will always remember about Memorial Day is kittens. Spring brought a fresh batch of furry babies into our world and coincidentally, on Memorial Day they’d always be just old enough to take them out and let them play on the lawn. They were about six or seven weeks old. Once the kittens were able to eat without “mom” and use a litter box they were ready to find a new home.

We used to give away the kittens, in those days, to a good home. That’s not highly recommended these days (or even recommended at all), but it was the tradition back in the ’60s in small-town America. Memorial Day brought lots of folks to our neighborhood, so it was a perfect day to find new homes for the kittens. People would walk by and ooh and aaah. We’d have four or five to give away and invariably they’d find very happy families to go to. That part of Memorial Day made me sort of sad, but mostly I remember how proud we were to show off our adorable bundles to the passersby.

Why were so many people passing by our house? ...

Read the full column at PlanZDiet.com

Hillary Burgers

There was a restaurant in the late 70s called Hillary’s. It was located in Water Tower Place in Chicago. I used to get a craving for Hillary burgers so I ate them often. I finally decided I knew the flavors so well I could make my own. 

Servings: Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 pounds of ground sirloin
½ of a green bell pepper cut into small dice. Not quite minced. Baby chunks.
1 tsp of ground cumin
a sprinkle of cayenne or to taste
2 tsp of garlic powder
sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Mix the spices and your diced green bell peppers into the ground meat thoroughly. I do this with my hands. Form into patties and grill them to your liking.

Serve them plain or with tomato and onion slices on top as well as a few raw onion rings. Lettuce on the bottom. These burgers are also fun covered in healthy onion strings. Now you’re talking gourmet burger!

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola