Rants and Recipes by Rick “Reddly” Redd

The Rant

As I've mentioned in past "rants" my wife and I have four boys, two in college, one in high school and one in middle school. Maybe it’s my age, or the fact that our oldest is finishing up college but recently I found myself reflecting on how the years have flown by.

In those reflections I realized several varied observations. One such observation is that it has been a very "busy" 20 plus years! I'm sure we all as parents can look back and say, "Ah, I wish I had done this or that differently."

Thus I do have one major regret. First, with 4 boys and me being a "sports-aholic" (ESPN is the only channel I need) we have been a VERY sports oriented family. From over 20 years ago when our youngest was in a professional baseball clubhouse at the tender age of one week old to today with 2 sons working for college football teams (Toledo & BGSU) we have eaten & slept sports.

I will never forget one spring when the 3 oldest boys played on baseball and soccer teams all at the same time, that's 6 teams! Six different practices- not to mention the games. To this day, not sure how two working parents pulled that one off, but somehow we did. So, back to that one regret. Somehow in those fast-paced often crazy days "music & art" got lost in our world. Not one boy ever took an instrument lesson, sang in a choir (other than the required middle school choir) or came home and got out the easel and practiced their painting techniques on canvas.

Sports have been a great bonding, no, an irreplaceable bonding tool for our entire family, but would it have hurt to throw in a guitar or lesson? Possibly upon these reflections I needed to find the "inner art" in my sole, thus the only thing I asked for and received for Christmas was an easel and paint supplies. I recently finished up my first "master piece". I titled it "the United States of Baseball." Hey, no one said I couldn't mix art with sports!


The United States of Baseball

THE RECIPE...this one’s a "keeper" for sure.....Tom Young (Birch Run) recently passed this one along to me...I made it for Christmas Eve dinner...big hit!

Home Made Chicken Pot Pie1/3 cup butter

1/3 cup onion

1/3 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

one 14oz can chicken broth

1/2 cup milk2 ½ to 3 cups cooked chicken, cut up

2 cups of your favorite frozen veggies (thawed)1 cup of red skin potatoes (diced up into small pieces)2 refrigerated pie crusts

**Melt butter in sauce pan, add onion cook until tender, stir in flour, salt & pepper, stir in broth & milk, cook until thickens and bubbly.**Either buy a roasted cooked chicken at the grocery & pick off the meat (recommended), or buy a large can of Brinkman or Keystone chicken, or use leftovers...but need 2 1/2 to 3 cups of cut up chicken.**Stir in the chicken, veggies & potatoes with the thickened mixture just until mixed all together**Spoon into a large pie pan that is lined with a Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust (you do not have to prebake it at all)...once crust is filled top with the second crust (there are 2 in a box) and seal the two together, cut a few slits in the top crust...**Bake at 425 for approx. 35-40 minutes.



**Turkey can also be used instead of chicken, or a beef version can be made by using beef and beef broth instead of chicken & chicken broth.