#Juneteenth

I do a little bit of volunteer work, trying to help out a few groups in ways where I am actually useful. Mostly I do social media and crafting, LOL! This year I had the idea that I would research and promote a small series of #juneteenth celebration recipes. My hopes were that nothing brings people together like food, if I could share some recipes from black chefs/bloggers, and those recipes had roots in the celebration of freedom for black Americans, then maybe just one person would make a dish and share it with their friends and family and explain its importance.

So I am going to try and hit the highlights and share with you what I found.

There is a lot of information about why red is an important color for celebrating Juneteenth. I’m not a historian or an expert on African American heritage but I do believe that there is some truth to all of the explanations I read.

One article reads “Red drinks are central to Juneteenth celebrations, as the color red represents the blood shed by enslaved people.” Another “Because many of the more common foods of the day were white, green, or brown, there was an excitement that came with the rarity of eating red-colored treats.” Further in that article they talk about where slaves brought to that area would have originated from, “Both people—the Yoruba of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo; and the Kongo of Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of Congo, and Gabon—placed great philosophical and spiritual value in the color red. Twitty explains the hue took on many meanings. It could symbolize sacrifice, transition, and power.”Either way, many articles talk about food choice and the importance of red. No matter if it’s red velvet cake, red bbq sauce, or a red beverage there are many options to include in your next cookout. Shaunda Necole’s Southern Red Velvet Cake.

Amanda Mack of Crust by Mack, says the glaze isn’t just delicious — it’s meaningful, too. “The color red is really significant for a Juneteenth cake,” representing the red stripe of the pan-African flag, the blood that was shed in the slave trade, and, most of all, according to Mack, “the power and strength we have as African Americans.” Amanda’s recipe for Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake with red fruit glaze.

Foods that represent prosperity (think New Year’s Traditions) are also very popular for #Juneteeth like this collard greens salad. This looks like a fresh new take on greens. Chef JJ Johnson is a James Beard Award recipient and this is his recipe for Collard Greens Salad with Coconut Dressing.

Finally, the recipe that I dove into; Baked Chicken with Hibiscus Barbecue Sauce. I’ll be honest, I am not a huge fan of BBQ sauce because I really want the meat to stand on its own, and always felt like sauces drown out good grill work. But Millie Peartree‘s recipe came in my NYTimes Cooking email and I just had to try it. I am never able to follow a recipe, sorry not sorry. I omitted the ingredients that would add heat to this sauce; cayenne, habanero chili, and only 1/2 of the red pepper flakes. I know my limits! This was also grilled and not baked. We did use a whole chicken, but we left the sauce off of half for salads.

One reason I picked this recipe to make is that I already had the ingredients available. I have to say this was REALLY good and I hope to share it with friends and family.

Summary. Having watched High on the Hog it is easy to see that American cuisine is deeply rooted in Southern Soul Food and that black Americans should take a lot of credit for teaching us all the things that they have had handed down over centuries within their families. With each recipe, I learned about a new chef, and a new tradition, and gained even more respect for food and its representation over time.

I want to celebrate #Juneteenth out of respect, I want to rejoice with them, I want to acknowledge the wrong, I want to share, I want to help others learn and I just want the new normal to be that Juneteenth is the kick-off holiday for Freedom and that we just celebrate on through to the 4th.

T-SQL Tuesday #134: Give Me a Break

This month’s edition is hosted by James McGillivray (b|t), who asks us to write a post about How do you take a break?

I’m looking back over the last nearly 11 months and trying to wrap my brain around it all. For starters, I feel like it has always been my job to keep it together. Never has there been a time when I could let someone else take the wheel nor could I ever just fall apart.

Finding a Cause

As soon as this started there was a need for cloth masks, medical supplies were low and masks were in high demand. I spent the better part . . . → Read More: T-SQL Tuesday #134: Give Me a Break

CHEESE!

I get milk from some local Amish farms and sometimes when I can snag a little extra I like to make cheese. Today I decided to document one of my all-time favorites, Burrata and Mozzarella.

The first step is to collect the required items. A small dish to mix ingredients, heatproof rubber spatula, knife for cutting curds, stockpot with lid, thermometer, strainer lined with cheesecloth, ladel/spider/slotted spoon to remove curds from the liquid.

I put 1/4 cup of water in a small dish and add 1 1/2 teaspoons of citric acid and stir until it’s dissolved. Pour this into your stockpot with the milk.

Now you wait until the . . . → Read More: CHEESE!

T-SQL Tuesday #129 – Time Capsule wrap-up

Let’s Build a Time Capsule – The wrap-up

Well, I don’t even know what to say, such great ideas and creativeness. The last couple of days I have internally struggled with, as Glenn wrote this ” human malware situation”. Reading all of these posts has made me smile.

Rob Farley gave us some reminiscing of dressing up for conferences like SQLBits, and how even saved a doughnut for later. But the thing he really wants to place in the capsule is a “creative collection of badge ribbons”. He’s certain that he needs help in making this collection. I am however convinced that his double OUTER APPLY . . . → Read More: T-SQL Tuesday #129 – Time Capsule wrap-up

T-SQL Tuesday #129

tsql2sday

Let’s Build a Time Capsule

So here we are finishing up summer. Last fall when Steve asked me to host I had this great idea…now with all of the current affairs my idea seems less than ideal. So here comes my new good idea, thanks Arlene for the help.

I want to build a time capsule, maybe we all escape to a new planet, maybe the earth just withers and dies, or maybe this is just an exercise in being positive. Tell me what few items or bits of information you’d like me to put into the #SQLCommunity time capsule. What do you want others to know about . . . → Read More: T-SQL Tuesday #129

All about that Ace, that Ace

Well, after taking the month of July off from travel you’d think I would be well rested and ready to roll again. Rested yes! Ready to roll is debatable. I just love summer and I love being at home with my pups and my very busy garden. This has been a crazy bountiful growing season. But enough about that.

So where I am off to this month? Indianapolis! Indiana is home to us and we enjoy going back for a quick visit and supporting the local community. Indy was our first user group experience. So on 8/11 if you want to get some free #SQLLearning join us at #SQLSatIndy

SSRS; . . . → Read More: All about that Ace, that Ace

Houston, this ACE is clear to land.

So excited to be heading to Houston once again! In 2014 I was in Houston for both SQLSaturday and TechEd. It’s really about time I make it back there for their awesome event. I’m looking forward to hanging out with this guy and hopefully learn a bit more about island time.

So what am I presenting on this time? 45 Min to build your first SSRS report. This session has gained popularity again, I am attributing that to the fact that no one really presents SSRS anymore it’s all about the new shiny (Power BI).  If you’ve never used SSRS this session is for you. I try to give . . . → Read More: Houston, this ACE is clear to land.

An ACE in Pensacola

I am super excited to be heading to Pensacola for #SQLSat734.  It’s approximately a 6 hour drive, so we hope make it into town mid-afternoon on Thursday. While we are staying at this same hotel, I’m positive my view will not be as great. 😉

Last year I surprised everyone who knows me. You see I’ve never been a big fan of seafood.  But I arrived on like Wednesday and ate seafood at every opportunity. There were so many fun places I can’t wait to revisit some of them.

I will be presenting “Introduction to Business Intelligence” with my husband Kerry Tyler [   B   |   T   ]. This session . . . → Read More: An ACE in Pensacola

Out and Acing again

Quick Update

Well if you haven’t heard I had to have surgery on my knee. It appears that I had a pretty messy meniscus and on 3/19 I had it cleaned up. The first week wasn’t fun and finding out that it might take 4-6 months before I’m back to 100% normal didn’t make this process any easier. It looks like I’ll do a few more PT sessions next week before heading out of town. But I am feeling pretty confident in my abilities and have come to terms with the things that I can’t. On the left is one of the before photos, those threads and rough edges are . . . → Read More: Out and Acing again

Adventures of being an Idera Ace

Well I’m not sure I can tell you how excited I am about this next adventure as an Idera Ace. This #SQLSaturday is one I’ve wanted to be at for some time but could never get it into our schedule. For this trip I will be heading close to home but not quite home.

Hopefully you can join me in CHICAGO! While I have made several visits to Chicago, I’m pleased as punch to finally making it to #SQLSatChicago. This event always waitlist early and has a great turnout. I feel very honored to be selected to be apart of this wonderful event. If you are a speaker . . . → Read More: Adventures of being an Idera Ace