Smokend Info Blog

Sweet potato casserole is often a favorite addition to a special Thanksgiving meal, but it doesn’t have to be merely a holiday dish. You can present this delicious casserole as the perfect side dish to almost any meal. This recipe serves ten people and can be doubled.

Ingredients You Will Need

8 medium sweet potatoes, cleaned 1/4 cup orange juice 1 cup brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup butter 2 cups mini marshmallows

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit or 175 degrees Celsius. Peel the potatoes, and cut them in cubes. Boil them in salted water for approximately 30 minutes. They should be tender when poked with a fork. Drain the potatoes in a strainer, and place them into a large mixing bowl.

Add the orange juice, brown sugar, three spices, and vanilla flavoring. Cut the butter into small cubes and add to the mix. Beat the ingredients until you have a smooth, creamy, and slightly dense texture.

Evenly spread the potato mixture into a large casserole dish. Place marshmallows in a single layer on top the mix.

Bake the casserole uncovered for 15 minutes. The marshmallows should be slightly brown and soft. Using the middle rack in your oven will ensure even cooking for the casserole and topping.

Tips And Tricks

– To avoid the time-consuming task of peeling your potatoes, cut them in half and boil them with the skins on. After draining, let them cool enough for easy handling. You will be able to squeeze them out of the skins and then cube them.

– You can substitute the orange juice with the zest of an orange.

– Use butter that is room temperature, so it will be easier to combine with the potatoes.

– Butter the casserole dish, or use a cooking spray, to prevent the mixed ingredients from sticking.

– If you don’t want a marshmallow topping, mix together 1 & 1/2 cups brown sugar, 1/3 cup flour, and1/2 cup melted butter. Add in 1 cup of chopped pecans. Spread this on top of the sweet potatoes. Bake as directed.

You can make this simple sweet potato casserole for any event. Separate it into individual dishes that represent whichever occasion you choose. It will complement any meal, and people of all ages will enjoy the sweet and savory combination.

Find more sweet potato casserole recipes here.

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Time to give congrats to law student Jeffrey Papola, who defeated poker legend Men “the Master” Ngyen to take down the $5,000 buy-in Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em championship at the 2010 World Series of Poker.It was his first career gold bracelet victory and came three days after he finished second in the $2,500 buy-in Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em championship.

Papola, a resident of White Plains, N.Y., who is in his third year of law school at Pace University, earned $667,433 for winning the event.

He topped Nguyen in heads-up play. The online poker superstar from Bell Gardens, Calif., was shooting for gold bracelet No. 8, which would have put him in a tie with Johnny Moss and Erik Seidel. Nguyen settled $360,906.

Nguyen won his seventh bracelet earlier this month when he took the Seven Card Stud championship.

Papola topped a field of 568 players to win his first title.

Papola earned his undergraduate degree from Rutgers University, with a double major in economics and political science. He began playing poker at the age of 18, when he was a student at Rutgers.

This was the fourth year Papola has attended the World Series of Poker and his first win or cash.

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Theme parties are a good time because the entertainment is all in the theme! Think Discos, Fiestas, Casino Nights, Pirates, Mobsters, Hollywood and Murder Mystery Parties. Theyre not just for children. Grownup party theme ideas can make guests feel young as they wear a fun costume and enjoy a unique party atmosphere. Whether your guest of honor is 3 or thirty-three, there is a perfectly themed party out there waiting for you to design.

Produce a party music mix based around the theme party you are having.The music should match the theme party ideas you have come up with. If it’s an 80’s theme party stick with those definitive 80’s songs. Use the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack for a pirate theme party, and set up a “Wild Thing” karaoke for adults at a jungle or safari theme party. If you seem nervous or are concerned things will not go well, your guests will pick up on it as soon as they walk in the house. If you are laid back and have a good time, everyone else will be.

Invites will connect your theme together nicely, and here is why. They are likely the best way to integrate your theme in the party and will create fervor for and introduce friends to what your theme will be. There are a lot of themed invites out there to choose from, whether you’re planning a kid’s birthday party, couple’s engagement party, or just a fun summertime theme party. So choose the one that makes the most sense for your function, and invitee list.

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In poker tournament news, poker pro David Williams has won the Season VIII World Poker Tour World Championship, taking home $1.5 million. Williams, 29, rocketed to poker fame in 2004 at the World Series in Las Vegas. He made it to the final table of the Main Event and finished in second place against pro Greg “Fossilman” Raymer. In 2006, David finally won his first WSOP bracelet in the $1,500 7-Card Stud event. It is the first WPT win overall in Williams’ career. He has been runner-up at the Borgata Poker Open in Season III and finished in 4th place finishes at Bay 101 in Season IV and the Mirage Poker Showdown in Season V. Williams won the tourney with pocket deuces, beating Eric Baldwin’s pair of aces by getting a third two on the turn. As we now get into the heart of WSOP season, there will be poker tournament news coming fast and furious over the next month. To any readers out there who may be venturing to Las Vegas to play in the legendary WSOP, good luck to you. Winning one of those shiny gold bracelets, and not to mention the money that comes with it, is the dream of every poker player out there.

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Montreal is a lovely city, one of my favorites, and I wish I could have been there recently for the first ever first Poker Pro Canada Classic poker tournament.

The tournament, held at the Four Aces Card Club in Montreal was a huge success, drawing about 250 players from all over Canada and the U.S. – even Europe – to compete for a prize pool of $369,000.

It was the largest poker event ever held in Quebec with a buy-in of more than $1,500, much larger than any of their online poker tournaments.

When the smoke cleared, local player Oliver “O.B.” Baksic took home $96,400 for first place. He defeated another local player, Maxime Villemure, on the final hand when he flopped a flush and slow-played it. Villemure hit a straight on the turn, all the chips went in, and Baksic’s flush held up. The final day of the four-day, deep-stack event lasted until 5 a.m. Villemure cashed for $75,000.

Canadian Heads-Up Champion Benjamin LeBlond finished third for $50,000. Buy-in was $1,500+$150.

Congratulations to all who cashed in this tournament. Had I known about it beforehand, I might have been tempted to go and play. Maybe next year after I practice playing poker online.

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Well, it’s the graduation final exams and many students are on the verge of completing their graduation. This is the right time when you can start planning for the graduation day. Keep in mind that you need to plan and execute things properly for your graduation day if you really want to make such a function really good. At the same time you will have to look for your budget! You need to look for few ways through which you can save more for your graduation day and then spend it at the right time.
For this day grad gowns are a must. These are the educational attires that were announced for graduates studying in the ancient universities. The clergy group in the society initiated wearing grad gowns as a trend. They have exactly adopted such trend in order to show the level of study. In ancient universities students use to wear these gowns on a regular basis.
But now things have changed a lot. Now students wear these gowns only during their graduation day at college or university. Most importantly, the trend is still alive and offering great results for students across the globe. Now students prefer to buy graduation gowns from the online stores instead of the local market. With the online stores you can get wide range of graduation gowns colors and you will always have a good chance to find out the right one for your special day. This might mean nothing revealing and tight, however something that will fit in most important occasions. Hair: Whereas this might not be addressed, a few schools might prohibit the outrageous hairstyles that will be deemed distracting. Furthermore colored Mohawks and neon orange hair may fall in this category. Tassel is used often as the graduation memento; and it is very easy to display than the full cap & gown. A few students may purchase the extra tassel & hang that from the rearview mirror, and tack it up on the bulletin board, and hang it in locker, or display that during senior year. The smaller tassels are as well available in the key chain form. Stoles are the strips of fabric that is worn over shoulders so that they hang down in a front of graduation gown.
Now day’s you can also get graduation gowns from the rental store of your college and university. There are many colleges and universities that have announced rental stores in order to equip their students with the right kind of grad gowns. You can either rent or you can buy grad gowns from these rental stores conveniently. Cords are the thick ropes that are worn over shoulders of a graduation gown & left to hang it down in a front of ceremonial outfit. Just like stoles, the cords are also used to recognize the honor students. Also, they are chosen to coordinate with graduation cap & gown, and often using the school colors.

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When the spiritual time of the school holidays approaches parents perpetually begin concerned, kids get anchored home for the whole time unless they reserved a family retreat and they frequently do not know what to do and still maintain their expences down, bacause as we all know virtually everything we do with them demands spending not a little amount of cash.They enjoy the theme parks, the travels to the sea, trips to the movie house and there’s only so many picture shows you may take them to and only so many trips to the common before you all start becoming a little crazy (and your wallet starts to thin).Here’s an thought, why not advance them to dig into and find their constructive face? Try to begin with some white and later some coloured sky lanterns ( often refered as wish lanterns).Then tell your youngsters paint, draw and ornament them as much as they put up with, you may use all the materials you can find around the house like featherings, shine, and so along. After decorating sky lanterns you can either display them or dry them (if wet), then release them on birthday party or any other occasion, the children will love them cause its them who decorated them and they know they managed to do a outstanding job making so.The minors will be pleased to show their originative drives to their family and admirers and will please in seeing them up in the sky with everybody following in unity. It’s a tremendous mode to spend a special moment with your household.

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I remember when the World Poker Tour started earlier this decade and first watching all the events on TV. They featured great poker action, from casinos in exotic locales around the world, and got a high amount of viewership. At that time, it would have been hard to believe that the WPT would ever see financial losses. But then again, the so-called “poker online boom” of earlier this decade has subsided and there’s not much interest in the game as there once was. In a sign of the times, World Poker Tour Enterprises reported reported a net loss of $3.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2008, contributing to a loss of $12.5 million for the full year, according to pokernews.com. The company reported $2.5 million less in revenues for the quarter compared to the same period a year ago, primarily driven by a change in the release pattern of its television broadcasts and lower international television license fees. While casino online poker is certainly as popular worldwide nowadays as it was in 2004, it is still way more popular than it was in, say, 1997. I’m sure the WPT and other poker operators and tournament organizers will stabilize and continue to make money. While poker may never be as popular as it was five years ago, it is always going to be a very popular and successful worldwide game.

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Setting Up for live wedding music is just one of about a hundredprojects facing couples and wedding planners. Between flowers, photographers, locales, gowns, showers, rings, video, and more, even a moderate and subdued wedding makes for a large amount of preparation. It can be a nerve-wracking time because if even one of these areas falls through the cracks, your big day can end up being a tremendous disappointment.

Here are five tips to hiring live wedding music players for your wedding and reception:

1. you rent a band with a established track record of professionalism. Does the manager return your telephone calls promptly? Does the band have a web site? Business cards? Other promotional materials? Or do you get the feeling you’re speaking to a guy rehearsing in his garage with his pals? The way the band exhibits itself as you begin talking with them is a honest indicator of how they’ll come out (or not!) on your special day.

2. Promptness is essential. When you set an appointment to connect face to face or on the telephone, it’s like a mini-contract. If the band handler is tardy to meet with you, it’s a discouraging sign that they don’t take their agreements seriously. If they can’t come through on time in the planning phase, what other arrangements will they abandon with you on your wedding day? This carries on to you, likewise – being timely is just one way you can live a life that shows that you honor your promises.

3. Make sure the band is easy-going rather than being a bunch of prima donnas. By now you’ve likely heard a million Bridezilla jokes, even if you’re not hard to please or outrageous. Imagine employing the equivalent in craziness for your wedding band. The last thing you need on your wedding day is to have to wait on your musicians hand and foot, delivering them food and beverage, having the thermostat set for them, or catering to other hard to please needs. The greatest band for you is one that can take care of itself, one that’s easy to get along with, and one that does all it can to make sure your day is fabulous and fun for you.

4. Charter a wedding band that’s fun. Getting married is one of the biggest choices you’ll ever make. It’s important business. The music on your wedding day should be beautiful and fun. You don’t want to see your invitees oblivious, lethargic, and wishing the party was through. You want them up, dancing, singing, and grinning. If you pick out a live wedding music band well, your choice will do a great deal to make your wedding day unforgettable in a great way. This is the big day you’ve been waiting for, and music is such a essential part of it. Be sure you book a band that makes the day idyllic – pleasurable for you and your guests.

George Pollis is the handler and a musician with Reel Ting Steel Drum Band. For a professional, timely, easy-going, talented, and fun live wedding music band, see Reel Ting at http://www.reelting.com.

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I’m an aggressive online poker player, especially when I get a few chips. When I’ve got a bigger stack than the majority of my online poker table, I’m a bit of a bully-I tend to go after people smaller than me. It’s nothing personal, you just have a bit of an advantage over players who have to worry about getting raised all-in. It generally makes it easier to steal a blind or two when an opponent has to consider putting their entire stack at risk. Problems can arise, however, when you try to steal blinds from the small stack. When the small stack gets small enough, he’ll start making some desperate all-in calls, and those plays can end up doubling them up at the cost of your stack. Raise a small stack with substandard poker online hands and you might get reraised, since they think that they’re pot committed, and you might find yourself funding that player’s comeback rally. Unless the small stack is an especially timid player, it’s probably not worth it to try to bluff him out of his blinds because he just might come back at you with what’s left of his stack. And even if it wouldn’t cost you much, you really don’t want to start doubling up the little guys.

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