Nutmeg Notes

Pumpkin Frozen Yogurt

2012-01-27T13:36:00.000-08:00

My daughter made some homemade pumpkin frozen yogurt last night and I will share this before I try it because it looks really good! I was at the hospital with my mother (explain more later if time allows) so I will try it later if there is any left. Wanted to start sharing as I go again!

Hamburger Buns

2012-01-22T18:35:00.001-08:00

I made these with some homemade crockpot sloppy joes a few weeks ago. If I remember, everyone liked them.

These were in the files to share!

Tasty Buns

Rated:

Submitted By: Charlene Kaunert

Photo By: pomplemousse

Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Cook Time: 15 Minutes

Ready In: 1 Hour 20 Minutes

Servings: 12

"Homemade hamburger buns will certainly make your next cookout more special! And it is easy to do with this quick yeast dough that takes you about an hour, including rise time. You will want to use this great recipe for dinner rolls, too."

Ingredients:

5 cups all-purpose flour

2 (.25 ounce) packages dry yeast

1 cup milk

3/4 cup water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1.	Stir together 2 cups flour and the yeast. In a separate bowl, heat milk, water, oil, sugar and salt to lukewarm in microwave. Add all at once to the flour mixture, and beat until smooth, about 3 minutes.
2.	Mix in enough flour to make a soft dough, 2 to 3 cups. Mix well. Dust a flat surface with flour, turn dough out onto floured surface, and let rest under bowl for about 10 minutes.
3.	Shape dough into 12 slightly flat balls, and place on greased baking sheet to rise until doubled in size.
4.	Bake in a preheated 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) oven for 12 to 15 minutes.

Printed from Allrecipes.com 1/22/2012

Hot Cocoa Mix

2012-01-13T06:44:00.000-08:00

My mom told me about this hot cocoa mix and when we ran out of the packets
my husband bought awhile back, I made a few cups and filled a quart sized
mason jar with the rest. I did whirl the first three ingredients together in
my food processor to make it more creamy and it might have changed the
amount needed or strength of taste. My 16 year old daughter loved it exactly
like it was but we both added powdered creamer and half n half.
I haven't used powdered creamer in literal years but my sister left a whole
container of it here so we have been using it here and there.
Anyway, here is our recent hot chocolate and I will share more on how we are
using this after Christmas. Smile.
A teeny note: Right before serving and after all stirring is done, I
sprinkle cinnamon on the top of all the hot cocoa cups!
Love,
Sandy
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"The superiority of chocolate (hot chocolate), both for health and
nourishment, will soon give it the same preference over tea and coffee in
America which it has in Spain..."
Thomas Jefferson (1785) in a Letter to John Adams
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Hot Cocoa
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown
Serves:
5 1/2 cups dry mix
Ingredients
* 2 cups powdered sugar
* 1 cup cocoa (Dutch-process preferred)
* 2 1/2 cups powdered milk
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons cornstarch
* 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or more to taste
* Hot water
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and incorporate evenly. In a small
pot, heat 4 to 6 cups of water.
Fill your mug half full with the mixture and pour in hot water. Stir to
combine. Seal the rest in an airtight container, keeps indefinitely in the
pantry. This also works great with warm milk.
C 2010 Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Wednesday Night Dinner

2012-01-13T06:43:00.000-08:00

*This was in my drafts folder. I have no idea why but I'm sending out and/or deleting all of these as I tidy things up and prepare to write more regularly!

Wednesday Night Dinner

It has been raining here for two days and it is gloriously windy outside. I’ve been thrilling over the display outside my writing windows. My heirloom roses are all greenery right now but they seem to dance in the wind and continually tap the wide window in front of me as if to get my attention. “Look out here,” they seem to say… and I do. Cardinals are everywhere!

Nestled in the branches of this ever growing rose bush… a gift from my FIL so many years ago… are males and females. They sing to each other and are happier than I’ve seen them all year. They fly right through the thorns without grazing their feathers and flit from one plant to another.

Tonight, they were decorating my now all brown and branches Confederate Rose like ornaments on a Christmas tree. The heavy rains had turned into a soft piddle paddle and water was pooling up from here to our vehicles. These startling red birds (males) and those with a watercolor red (females) were pecking all over the ground and playing in the water. It was the nicest gift from my faithful Father. He knew how dearly I could appreciate such a special sight this day.

Venison is browning slowly on the stove top for our venison chili tonight. We’ll top our steaming bowls with chopped onions and shredded cheddar and maybe even add a wee scoop of sour cream. Smiles.

A dear friend once told me (and for those of you who read the other time I shared this, forgive the repeat) to always keep the supplies on hand for making chocolate chip cookies. She said that no matter how tight the finances got… it offered a bit of comfort. I’ve found her to be very wise. I haven’t always managed to keep the supplies up with grocery prices rising but I try. I find if I have enough flour, sugar, butter, and other basics to make up something to bake…it serves us well. Just a note for those who must keep a watchful eye on the grocery budget!

My daughter adores brownies. I would say she loves them but adore sounds more emphatic somehow and this girl is very fond of chocolate-y rich brownies. With all the rain and wind going on and since we missed going to church as planned, I knew we needed something warm from the oven.

These brownies were easy, made the entire kitchen fill with a bakery like fragrance, they were very pretty and delicious! We ate our squares hot from the oven with a cold glass of milk.

Peanut Butter Brownies2 cups sugar
1 cup flour
½ cup cocoa
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup butter
½ cup peanut butter
4 eggs
¼ cup sweet milk
Mix all ingredients together and pour in 11 X 17-inch pan. Cook until toothpick comes clean.

Recipe used from:
“Sharing Our Best”
A Second Helping
A Collection of Recipes by: Trinity United Methodist Church

The cookbook was a gift from my mom since I always picked it up when visiting her to flip through the recipes. I found out it was very special to her because my oldest sister gave it to her in 1999 so it meant even more to me when I realized she parted with something close to her heart. I tried to not take it but she insisted I did so I think of her goodness and beautiful spirit every time I open it. I also think of my sister because she shares our mother’s giving heart.

Thermo Mix

2012-01-13T06:40:00.000-08:00

Pretty amazing. I know most of what I already have in my kitchen will do what the demo shows and then some but.... this is sooooo neat.

http://www.thermomixcanada.ca/thermomix-tm31-2.html

The cost will probably be so prohibitive that it won't end up on my counter but it is a cool concept.

Goodness!

2011-12-09T05:10:00.001-08:00

I am just lost with the new blogspot format!
Being tech savvy is obviously not my strong point when it comes to online things. I finally had a grip on how to manage posting, adding html codes to put badges and such on and it is back to square one. Bear with me? Perhaps the simplicity, plainness and overall less than catching view here will hide behind the light of Christ! Him shining through ... isn't that what I should be striving for anyway?!

It is the busiest baking time of the entire year for me as soon as the summer heats starts fading and any cool winds beging blowing. Of all times, my oven has been acting up and working perfectly well at times while not reaching the set temps at other times. I will just keep baking breads and other baked goods and see how it goes. Aren't you blessed to have me share all that? Smiles, sisters and saints ... I'm just sharing from the world the way it is or can be around here.

I wanted to share the homemade apple pie recipe (using one recipe for the crust in my food processer and another for the filling using dried apples!) along with a deLICIous chicken and dumplings recipe with herb flavored dumplings. My printer hasn't been working so I just scribbled the recipes down on different papers and took them to the kitchen. I didn't save them on here so I now have to locate the papers to share but I hopefully and prayerfully will find them soon. There were other recipes done the same way I haven't shared yet but would like to so be looking for those at some point....

Smallest note...

2011-12-04T12:51:00.001-08:00

I am having the hardest time with blogger's new format. There are lots of neat and new things, I know but I am not very good with things like this. Everything is all over the place on at least one of the blogs and I wish I had been better at keeping with a main topic so I could have more easily written everything in one place!

I am so tired that I want to cozy up under some covers and read and write until I fall asleep for hours. There is still a lot to be done so I have to keep the idea of comfort on the backburner for awhile longer.

If and when I gather all the recipes I've been making lately, I will have to send them all at once or a few at a time.
Until then, I'll s hare from where -ever...

Cranberry Corn Bread

2011-11-28T12:47:00.001-08:00

Cranberry Corn Bread

Recipe Details

Cranberry Corn Bread

9 Servings, Prep Time: 15 Minutes, Cook Time: 40 Minutes

Description

During the holidays, I make several pans of this sweet cake-like corn bread for family and friends. Whole blueberries--coated in flour--can be used in place of the cranberries.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 cup cranberries, halved

Directions

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs; mix well. Combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk. Fold in cranberries.
Transfer to a greased 9-in. square baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees F for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm.

Nutritional Information

Servings Per Recipe: 9
Amount Per Serving
Calories: N/A

Nutrition information is not available for Personal Recipes and for a small number of Kitchen Approved recipes

Sent from Allrecipescom Your Kitchen Inspiration™ for the iPad

Sent from my iPad

A scribbled list...

2011-11-05T20:09:00.001-07:00

One of my busy kitchen days...
This draft was the start of something I had planned to write but didn't finish. I guess I got too busy doing more of the same or similar. Smiles!

Two whole chickens
Three skillets of ground beef
Two big pans of chicken tenderloins
Kefir
Cleaned and washed dishes
Did laundry
Swept
Delegated trash take out
Checked kids' chores
Worked on menu

Do you write down what you need to do in your kitchen and/or what you've done in a given day?

Potato -Salmon Chowder

2011-10-20T02:33:00.000-07:00

It was cold here yesterday! All day long, we had chilly weather and I planned to make homemade bread and soup. It was so busy moving around our bedroom remodel project and tending to an under the weather grandbaby that I didn't get to the bread. I did manage a dutch oven full of potato/salmon chowder and served it with turkey sandwiches.

I started this post weeks ago and never finished it! The potato/salmon chowder was similar to the ones I've made (and maybe posted?) in the past.

You can make this kind of thing your own as easy as just about anything. I just peel, quarter and boil some potatoes and boil them until tender. For an added boost of nutrition, I usually throw a peeled clove or few of garlic in the potato water. Speaking of the water potatoes are boiled in --- it works for a great liquid for bread making, to stir into your soup or chowder and more. I drain my potatoes and keep the potato "broth" in a liquid measuring cup so I can easily grab it and pour for the rest of my cooking.

Just saute some chopped onions in olive oil and maybe a pat of butter and towards the end, add some chopped garlic. When the onions and garlic look the way you want them (sometimes we like them with more of a bite and other times, caramelized so it is up to your personal tastes) ... add some sea salt and freshly ground pepper and any seasonings you like. I add whatever strikes me at the moment and for this one, I used garlic salt, and parsley.
Add more olive oil and/or butter if needed to make a good roux (white sauce) and sprinkle some white or whole grain flour over the pan of onions, garlic, oils and seasonings. Whisk it until it is smooth and blended and then add some potato broth, some chicken broth (I use broth I've made and frozen/thawed) and stir well. Add milk or cream, potatoes and any extra seasonings to taste. When the chowder tastes and looks like you want it, add a can of salmon with or without the juice. I usually take the bones out of mine and add to the dog food but my husband's beloved grandmother used a spoon to smash hers all in the meat because she said it was more nutritious and less wasteful.

Many recipes call for a lot of cheese to be stirred into things like this but I don't like the mess or the loss of cheese flavor. I opt to serve it with a generous amount of shredded Parmesan, aged white cheddar, or any other cheese we might have on hand. Sometimes we have a small bowl of sour cream to add a spoon or two of and it looks beautiful with a small sprinkling of parsley, freshly ground pepper or something like that to the top.

We have eaten our chowder with whole grain crackers, homemade bread, or crispy toast from the oven rubbed with garlic cloves.

Toppings are according to preference. Crumbled, cooked bacon and chives are delicious!
Have a blessed day/evening, dear reader.

Honey Cough Syrup

2011-09-17T06:58:00.000-07:00

Shared with my cleanandcozyhome email discussion list this morning:

Good day, beautiful homemakers!

I have been fighting off something for over a week nowand a part of it the past few days has been coughing. It has gotten worse bythe hour, I think and reached a point where my ribs and back are aching fromit! I have been taking my vitamins, making sure to get enough zinc, drinking myorganic apple cider vinegar “tonics” and getting fresh garlic and ginger in asmuch as I can. I have consumed hot, herbal teas, very spicy foods and sipped onchicken broth, chicken soup and spicy tomato soup. The head congestion andcough have persisted relentlessly.

Last night, in exhaustion and with a heart of mercy formy husband --- who has been working almost without stopping and I am surehasn’t missed the few hours of sleep he does get --- I tried to think ofanything that could help.

I remembered that years ago, I stopped using as many nonnatural medicines as I could unless they were definitely needed [still go bythat after and during prayer over whatever it is] and found a recipe for coughsyrup. It had worked so well for our son that we used little else for cough andcold.

I had forgotten all about it but I knew it had honey as abase. I googled honey cough syrup or something along those lines and found afew. I settled with the one that looked as close to what I remembered aspossible and that I could make quickly.

Here is what I found at ehow.com: * Shared the way I madeit in my kitchenJ*

1 cup of honey

3 T. lemon juice (I used the juice of one lemon and anadditional T. of lemon juice)

¼ cup warm water

Warm the honey in a sauce pan and then add the lemon juiceand stir until blended. Add warm water and let simmer for a few minutes,stirring frequently. Mine had seeds and little pieces of lemon so I strained itthrough a little tea cup insert when pouring in a pint Mason jar and put a lidon it. I let it cool for a bit and then took 2 or 3 teaspoons (was so tired , Ido not remember which!) and guess what?! It was immediate… literally immediaterelief AND I slept from around 11:00 pm to 5:00 am and then went BACK to sleepuntil after 9! So, praising GOD this morning. . .

smiles.

Here is the link for the actual recipe:

http://www.ehow.com/way_5285298_honey-lemon-cough-remedies.html

Sandy :)

Blog writer note -

2011-08-23T02:17:00.000-07:00

My kitchen has been as busy as ever but with that and the many other activities going on... posting my recipes has become almost non-existent. Can you tell?!

:)

Anyway, there are easier and easier ways of posting things on these blogs so maybe I'll get it going and keep it flowing at some point. I have four notebooks full of recipes (culinary scrapbooks ... all unfinished!) and I really need to gather all of them, the reviews, pictures, and more and organize them so I can keep a running file of what we make and eat around here!

Just a note to share one of the bits I'm working on right now.

We are making a lot of salads, sandwiches, and quickly prepared stove top dishes to keep the kitchen from getting unbearably hot. No central heat or air so we have to be creative with fans, a couple of air units and baking/cooking schedules.

Until the next recipe or food share . . .

Spinach Lasagna... on our menu!

2011-08-23T02:12:00.000-07:00

LASAGNA

serves 8

2 extra-large eggs (lightly beaten)
15 ounces of ricotta cheese
10 ounces of frozen spinach - defrost and squeeze dry
3/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese - divided
1 teaspoon of salt
1/3 teaspoon of ground pepper
1 teaspoon of oregano
26 ounces of spaghetti sauce
10 sheets of no-boil lasagna noodles
1 pound of shredded mozzarella cheese - divided

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Ricotta Mixture:
In a medium bowl combine eggs, ricotta cheese, spinach, 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese, oregano, salt and pepper.
Layer the ingredients in a 9 x 13 x 1 inch pan, in the following order:
Layer one
3/4 cup of the Sauce
3 Sheets of pasta
3/4 cup of the Sauce
1/2 of Ricotta Mixture
1 and 1/3 cups of the Mozzarella
Layer two
3 sheets of Pasta
3/4 cup of the Sauce
1/2 of Ricotta Mixture
1 and 1/3 cups of the Mozzarella
Layer three
4 Sheets of pasta
3/4 cup of the Sauce
1 and 1/3 cups of the Mozzarella
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
Bake for 30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling.
Let sit for 10-15 minutes before cutting.

Recipe using yellow squash & zucchini

2011-07-31T19:55:00.000-07:00

I am sharing this just as I got it from a blog I subscribe to (links to it are "recipe" and Kayln) and it was such a hit that I have made four dishes of it so far! My husband and teenage daughter loved it and so did my D-I-Love. WONDERFUL recipe.

EasyCheesy Zucchini Bake

(Makes 4-6 servings; recipe adapted from a recipe by KarenNiessing in Penzeys Back to School 2011 Catalog, with suggestions from mysister Pam.)

Ingredients:
2 medium-sized zucchin, cut in slices or half-moon slices
2 medium-sized yellow squash, cut in slices or half-moon slices
2-4 T chopped fresh basil (or even less, depending on how much you like theflavor of basil)
2 T thinly sliced green onion
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 cup + 1/2 cup low-fat white cheese (I used Pizza Cheese, which is a low-fatblend of Mozzarella, Provolone, Romano, and Parmesan)
1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan (I would use a little less if you only havethe very finely grated Parmesan from a can)
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Spray an 8" x 8" baking dish with oliveoil or non-stick spray. Wash the squash and cut in slices or half-moon slices.Wash basil, spin dry or dry with paper towels and finely chop. Slice greenonions.

Combine the sliced squash, chopped basil, sliced green onions, dried thyme,garlic powder, and both kinds of cheese and stir together until the veggies arecoated with cheese and the herbs are well-distributed. Season with salt andfresh ground black pepper. Put the mixture in the baking dish and bakeuncovered for about 25-30 minutes.

When the zucchini is nearly cooked through, take the casserole dish out of theoven and sprinkle over the remaining 1/2 cup of grated cheese. Put the dishback in the oven and bake 10-15 minutes longer, or until the cheese is meltedand nicely browned and zucchini is fully cooked. Serve hot.

This kept well in the fridge overnight, but mine was gone the next day so Idon't know if it would last longer than that!

This printable recipe from KalynsKitchen.com .

Posted by Kalyn at 5:05 PM

My favorite, new, THIN pizza crust

2011-07-24T13:27:00.001-07:00

I have honestly made this so many times now that I cannotbegin to guess a number. I will tell you this: when I am baking ANYthing nowthat resembles dough ... my kids will say: "You aren't making pizza AGAIN,are you?!"

They loved it but after a few weeks... they started tiring.I did not. I have made these with thinly sliced yellow squash and zucchinistraight from the garden, with portabello mushrooms, with sun dried tomatoes, broccoli,chicken, baby spinach leaves, red onion, Vidalia onion, and the list keepsgoing on and on and on and on.

Amazing!

I shared the link at the bottom of the site I got itfrom. No surprise ... another one from The Kitchn!

1-Ingredient Ice Cream ... Made it!

2011-07-24T13:18:00.000-07:00

I tried this one ingredient ice cream recipe and wowed everyone in the room! At first, the kids, teens and adults looking on had skeptical glances at the food processer and joked about it possibly not working so well. Within minutes... it all changed to incredulous stares and the tapping of metal spoons flying out of the drawer and into the bowls. This cold treat has a beautiful texture and I drizzled a tiny bit of honey on mine and made a second batch with peanut butter. Very good!

Classic Southern Pralines

2011-07-24T13:10:00.000-07:00

One of my FAVORITE blogs is:

http://www.thekitchn.com/

... and I've developed quite an addiction to it. When the following recipe was shared there for praline pecans posted... I couldn't wait to try these. I've made them two times and they were devoured all too quickly. A lady at church tried some and asked to buy some from me! I followed the directions to the letter.

Sweet No-Bake Recipe: Classic Southern Pralines

It was 95° in my apartment and not a day to be anywhere near the kitchen. But my sweet tooth, well, it had other plans. Luckily, our Southern neighbors are used to facing such demands in the hottest and stickiest of weathers, which is why they had the good sense to invent the praline.

You can call the praline a cookie, because it's shaped like one, but it's rightfully a type of candy. You make them entirely on the stove top by boiling a mixture of chopped pecans, sugars (two kinds!), butter, milk, and vanilla until it becomes creamy and caramelized. But if the sight of a candy thermometer makes your head hurt, don't worry. These cookies (er...candies) are different.
Counter-intuitively for those of us who do much candy-making, the key to a good batch of pralines is stirring the pot constantly. This is the one time when that annoying habit sugar has of crystallizing at the least provocation is actually something that you want. You stir as the sugar syrup comes up to a boil, stir while it's boiling, and keep stirring as it cools down into something manageable.
The moment when you feel the syrup turn grainy with sugar crystals, that's when you start dropping them onto your parchment paper like it's going out of style. Don't worry about being neat or forming perfectly uniform candies; just scoop, drop, and let them form whatever shape they may. (Incidentally the praline pros down in Louisiana call the accidental drippings between scoops "praline turds." Poetic, right?!)
I took a class in making pralines at The New Orleans School of Cooking during my trip to New Orleans. They're the perfect warm-weather treat because they require minimal effort, minimal time in front of a hot stove, and no baking. Plus they're ready in about fifteen minutes. And trust me, you want to try them while they're still warm. They practically dissolve on your tongue and that, right there, is heaven.
Classic Southern Pralines
Adapted from The New Orleans School of Cooking
Makes 20-50 pralines, depending on how large or small you drop them
1 1/2 cups (12 oz) granulated white sugar
3/4 cup (6 oz) light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup (4 oz) milk - whole is preferred but 2% is fine
6 tablespoons (3 oz) salted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup (12 oz) pecans - I like them roughly chopped, but you can leave them whole or chop them more finely. You can also toast the pecans, if desired.
Before starting to cook, lay out a piece of parchment, aluminum foil, or a silpat for the pralines. Set a second spoon nearby in case you need to scrape the candy off the first spoon.
Combine all the ingredients in a medium sauce pan, at least 4 quarts. Do not use a smaller pan as the syrup will bubble up during cooking. It's also harder to stir in a smaller pan.
Cook the syrup over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. When it comes to a boil, start stirring constantly. Let it boil for about 3 minutes, until the syrup registers 238°f - 240°F on a candy thermometer.
Remove the pan from heat immediately and keep stirring. Stir, stir, stir! It will become creamy, cloudy, and start to thicken. When you feel it starting to get grainy, the pralines are ready. You can also hear it if you listen closely; the crystals will make a scraping noise against the side of the pan.
Drop spoonfuls of the praline syrup onto your waiting parchment. Work quickly, as the syrup starts to set as it gets cool. Let the pralines cool and harden for at least ten minutes before eating. They will keep in an airtight container for several days, but they're at their very best within the first 24 hours of making them!
One last thing: don't forget the pan scrapings! Whatever is left in the pan is the cook's treat. Scrape those up and eat them with a spoon.
Praline Variations:
• Chocolate Pralines - Add 1/2 cup of chocolate with all the ingredients
• Peanut Butter Pralines - Add 1/3 cup of peanut butter in the last 30 seconds of boiling the syrup
• Nut-Free Pralines - Add 1 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal right before you start dropping the candies
Related: Sweet Desserts Without Heat: 25 No-Bake Summer Desserts
(Information for this post was gathered during a press trip to New Orleans sponsored by the Louisiana Seafood Board. All views and opinions expressed in this post are the personal views of the author.)
(Images: Emma Christensen)

Honey Baked Chicken

2011-07-24T12:38:00.001-07:00

Honey Baked Chicken II

By: Gretchen Ramey

"Baked chicken with a sweet and spicy glaze."

Rate/Review | Read Reviews (1,239)
49,728 people have saved this | 57 custom versions

What to Drink?
	Chardonnay

Prep Time:
15 Min

Cook Time:
1 Hr 15 Min

Ready In:
1 Hr 30 Min

Servings (Help)

US Metric Calculate
Original Recipe Yield 6 servings

Ingredients

1 (3 pound) whole chicken, cut into pieces
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup prepared mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon curry powder

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Place chicken pieces in a shallow baking pan, skin side up. Combine the melted butter or margarine, honey, mustard, salt and curry powder and pour the mixture over the chicken. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/4 hours (75 minutes), basting every 15 minutes with pan drippings, until the chicken is nicely browned and tender and the juices run clear.

Two Food Processer Recipes

2011-07-20T16:50:00.001-07:00

Hello!

If this is a repeat, please forgive me. I don't know if Iever finished and sent it or not and found it while clearing my drafts folderjust now.

I love my kitchen appliances and gadgetsl

I think I might have already shared this recipe from ourlunch here with Nana, Papa, & The Twins but I’m not sure. Papa and Summer could not get enough of theseand we all loved them! The adults ate them along with steaming cups of coffee.

Oatmeal Buttermilk Muffins

Makes 1 dozen

1 cup (250 mL) uncooked quick oats

1 cup (250 mL) buttermilk

1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour

½ cup (125 mL) packed light brown sugar

1 ½ teaspoons (7 mL) baking powder

½ teaspoon (2 mL) baking soda

½ teaspoon (2 mL) salt

½ cup (125 mL) butter or margarine, melted and cooled toroom temperature, or vegetable oil

1 egg

1. Combine oats and buttermilk in large mixing bowl; letstand 30 minutes.

2. Heat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C)

3. Insert steel blade. Measure flour, brown sugar, bakingpowder, soda and salt into work bowl; process, using on/off technique, untilmixed.

4. Combine butter, egg, reserved oats and buttermilk; addto flour mixture in work bowl. Process, using on/off technique 5 or 6 times,just until flour is moistened; do not overprocess (batter should be lumpy).

5. Spoon into 12 greased muffin cups (cups should have1/3 cup or 80 mL capacity), filling each cup about 2/3 full. Bake until goldenand wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Servehot.

Marbled Brownies

Makes 18 large brownies

1 package (8 ounces or 225g) cream cheese, at roomtemperature, cut into 4 pieces.

2 1/3 cups (580 mL) sugar

5 eggs

½ teaspoon (2 mL) vanilla

1 cup (250 mL) butter, at room temperature

1 cup (250 mL) unsweetened cocoa

1 ½ cups (375 mL) shelled walnuts (I used pecans)

1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).

2. Using steel blade, process cheese, 1/3 cup (80 mL) ofthe sugar, 1 of the eggs and the vanilla until smooth; remove from work bowland reserve.

3. Using steel blade, process butter and remaining 2 cups(500 mL) sugar until light and fluffy. Add remaining 4 eggs to butter mixture;process until smooth. Add cocoa and nuts to butter mixture; process until nutsare coarsely chopped. Add flour to chocolate mixture ; process, using on/offtechnique, just until flour is moistened.

4. Spread half of the chocolate batter evenly in greased13 X 9 X 2-inch (33 X 23 X 5 cm) baking pan. Spoon cream cheese mixture overchocolate layer; top with remaining chocolate batter. Swirl slightly with spoonor spatula. Bake until center is fork to the touch, 35 to 45 minutes. Coolbrownies in pain on wire rack; cut into bars.

Pecan Lace Cookies

2011-07-08T08:33:00.000-07:00

It was an emotional night for our teenage daughter and one of her friends came over. I wanted to make something just for a sweet comfort (I know what all the diet things say about using food for comfort but sometimes, I just have to show my care with something baked!) and thought of cookies or a snack cake but had no eggs.

I have been hovering over a bag of pecans because I've wanted some for months but couldn't justify the raised prices for them. Found a decent size bag for a good price at Sam's and have been trying to make the most of every single one!

These did turn out just as described ... lacy and crunchy. I thought they were okay but they are picky --- if cooked a minute too long, they tend to start burning. If they aren't cooked well enough, they stick to the aluminum foil.

I made two separate batches in two days (last weekend) of praline pecans and they keep getting eaten up before I can photograph them! I have a request from a lady at church to make more and every place we went... people loved them. So, I will try to post that recipe next or soon.

Pecan Lace Cookies I

30 Servings, Prep Time: , Cook Time:

Description

These cookies should be very brittle. Test one or two toget the correct baking time before baking the entire batch.

Ingredients

• 1 cupwhole wheat flour

• 1/2 cupchopped pecans

• 1/2 cupquick cooking oats

• 1/2 cuplight corn syrup

• 1/2 cuppacked brown sugar

• 1/2 cupunsalted butter

• 1teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheatoven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line 2 cookie sheets with aluminum foil.In small mixing bowl, sift the flour. Add the pecans and oats. Mix well.

2. Insaucepan over medium heat, combine the corn syrup, brown sugar, and butter.Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in the vanilla andflour mixture. Stir until well blended. Mixture will turn opaque. Drop byteaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets about 3 inches apart.

3. Bake for9 minutes or until set and golden. When done, slide foil onto wire racks andallow cookies to cool. Re-line cookie sheets with new foil for next batch. Peelcookies off of foil when cool.

Allrecipes.com

Plain, wholesome, well cooked food

2011-07-08T08:27:00.000-07:00

“The keynote to happiness within the four walls that make any home is plain, wholesome, well cooked food, attractively served.”
Louis P. De Gouy, ‘The Soup Book’ (1949)

I have been waiting to post here until I could finish up the mini series on our sweet visit with Bruce and Kim and to share Kim's recipes. If you wonder why that hasn't happened, it is because I lost the spiral notebook I jotted notes in while she was working.

Until I find that, I will share some things going on in my summer kitchen. One thing is finding ways to keep the heat level down. We have no central heat and air and the two window units for the whole house aren't holding out very well. We are making full use of our two ceiling fans and the stove vent hood and I am figuring out that timing can be everything!
Dinner made in the morning (or mostly made) makes for a much more comfortable meal time and alleviates some of the stress.

Here are some of the meals, snacks and so ons we've had lately:

* Roast in the crock pot. I have not been very skilled at producing tender or tasty roasts over the years. I'm learning from others. One thing I learned from my friend turned family, Debby. Even her venison roast turns out unbelievably tender. She puts her roast in with no water or very little water and lets it cook overnight. I have always added way too much water!
My MIL suggested I throw a garlic clove in and told me to drizzle some Worcestershire sauce and Dales low sodium seasoning over the roast. She also said she prefers adding her potatoes, carrots, onion and celery about an hour or two before the roast is done. The entire crockpot of roast and vegetables was GONE before I got home and got one bite! I will try options other than Dales seasoning because even the low sodium is HIGH in sodium.

* Healthy Spaghetti sauce using my WOK! I heated up the WOK and quick cooked bite sized pieces of chicken breasts with sliced, dried yellow squash and put that in a dutch oven. Next, I did separate batches, each going from WOK to dutch oven and included a large, chopped Vidalia onion, three portabello mushrooms cut into bite sized pieces, three diced green peppers and yellow squash. I added two jars of the healthiest commercial sauce I could afford and topped it with garlic infused spaghetti. The latter is just spaghetti cooked with a few cloves of garlic in the water.

* Turkey burgers and yellow squash and onions on the side.

* Homemade pizza after homemade pizza after homemade pizza. I have made pizza in so many ways and with so many different crusts that our 8-year old asks what we are having with this tagline: "PLEASE tell me you are not fixing another veggie pizza?!" Ha, Ha. I have a new favorite thin crust recipe that I have made so many times, I've quit counting. I have it scribbled on a getting-worn-out piece of paper bec/ I got it from the internet and have no ink to print with!
I have used bbq sauce mixed with pizza sauce, regular pizza sauce with basil sprinkled over, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, thick salad dressing and anything I thought of for sauces. Also, toppings have been so varied - organic, baby spinach leaves, chopped red onions, thinly sliced zucchini and yellow squash, steamed broccoli heads, carrot ribbons (sliced) and on the list goes.

That is all for now. I've realized that it would take a lot of time to share everything I've been making so I will just stop trying to catch up and try to do better from here on out.

My husband is now working a full time job AND running his business and our 21 year old son is staying with us until he marries in March. He is working a full time job and doing several side jobs after work so I make sure they have coffee in the morning and thermoses as well as healthy and filling lunches. This has been far more difficult to keep food for than I remembered so I have started doubling and tripling dinner recipes so the divider plates I use can be filled, sealed and placed in the refrigerator for easy grabbing. I am writing down all sorts of past lunches and new ideas to try. Do you have any lunch ideas to share?

Repost: Creating link for Rebecca's lovely letter!

2011-06-07T17:27:00.000-07:00

This is going in Rebecca's Hearth and Home and I had to repost here to have a link. Long story but here it is!

"We are all pencils in the hand of a writing God, who is sending
love letters to the world."
Mother Teresa

Dear Creative Ones by God's grace and gifts,

Have you ever been in awe over what goes on in a kitchen and/or dining room?
There are so many things that transform from one fairly plain and simple
"something" to a dish that feeds a family, a soup that soothes a weary soul,
or a beverage that comforts with the warmth it gives.

Over the years, the Lord has just given me... as I've heard the same of with
others...recipe after recipe thrown together that became instant favorites.
He has shown me grand meals from a needy pantry, given me grace to offer a
chair to a tired friend, relative, and stranger, and provided what I've
needed to serve not only beverages and meals but hospitality and hope.

In an effort to preserve some of these recipes, sentimental moments, ideas,
and creative gifts from God over the years, I have started many little
kitchen notebooks. There have been notes jotted in spiral notebooks, papers
punched and placed in three ring binders, folders filled until they became
so stuffed I couldn't keep up with them, and more.

I finally think I know the best way to preserve these! I can make a Nutmeg
Notes Scrapbook! I had already decided to change my Home Notes Journal into
a scrap book and realized that one specifically for the kitchen and dining
would be a great addition:)

It has dawned on me that not only would these books be a wonderful way to
hand our family blessings down the line and for enjoyment by us as the years
go by... but this might serve many a need in the long run. When someone
asked: "Whatever happened to that recipe for.... ?" maybe it will be in one
of those pages! If we are trying to remember the circumstances around a time
God sent someone to our table over coffee that served like an angel... maybe
they'll have been journaled right in our little (or huge) book!

Phm 1:6 and I pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective
through the knowledge of every good thing which is in you for Christ's sake.

Unlike many of our photo pages where it is somewhat important to make sure
things look a certain way or are preserved in a special manner... this book
of kitchen notes can be fun! What creativity can abound!

Just one of my prayers is that I won't let my usual strong need for
perfectionism to come anywhere near the pages of this book bec/ I know it
will die unfinished somewhere gathering dust.
Finances won't allow for me to go out and buy a special memory book for this
so I am going to use a three ring binder and this will mean my book will be
the 8 1/2 by 11 or whatever that is size. I have some page protectors so
I'll start it off by adding some of those for the pages I really need
covered.

The notebook I found here has the clear plastic cover that you can slide
pictures or whatever in so the plan I'm building is to use a Scripture and
print it out along with what picture/s I want (probably art I'll down load
from the computer relating to the theme) and I'm ready to start!

If you want to do any version of this... and it will be one of those ideas
where each book will serve as totally unique for each family... here are
some add-ins that I am looking forward to filling mine up with:

*Hand written anything. I want to write down Scriptures that come to mind
during cooking and/or cleaning, when guests leave, as I'm sipping coffee at
a gleaming polished table :) and so on. Things the children say, culinary
and kitchen quotes, grandmother's advice and more.

"Give me a stout heart to bear my own burdens. Give me a willing
heart to bear the burdens of others. Give me a believing heart
to cast all burdens upon Thee, O Lord."
John Baillie

*Hand written notes, letters, recipes, and so on from others. Won't these be
a treasure?

*Absolutely favorite recipes for our family and those recipes handed down
the generations...

*Menus we loved, grocery lists we frequently have, and/or lists of product
prices to add receipts to. These could be full sized or scaled down to fit a
few per page can be included and for mine, I want our breakfast schedule,
lunch plans, and dinner menu samples added.

*A directory of Stores we frequently shop from for groceries and cooking
supplies along with numbers and latest "finds".

*Photos of food we fix, times we have in the kitchen baking cookies,
laughing over cocoa, and/or the millions of other opportunities for pictures
in and around this part of our home. I also want pictures of my cabinets,
drawers, kitchen nooks and crannies bec/ I would have loved to have these of
every kitchen we ever had if I only had thought to do it!

*Labels. I simply adore labels of just about any kind! I love labels on
canned and boxed goods, fresh fruits and vegetables, wacky ones on various
rarely bought items, and more. These would provide free tags and other
embellishments to my book and a wealth of them! Pages can be done using the
colors in these labels as inspiration or they could be scanned into the
computer and printed black and white, sepia, or any color scheme needed to
match any page wanted.

*Paper clips can be added to hold little fragments and slips of paper,
receipts, and other little pieces along the edge of the papers or in hand
made pockets. Another pocket idea would be making full use of the incoming
mail and using the envelopes we usually throw away. We could cut the top
off, wipe some ink or acrylic paint on the edges and dry brush a distressing
color/texture on the front to match what we are doing. These can be filled
with all sorts of food/dining/kitchen related items!

*A list of each person's favorite foods, not liked foods, and staples we
keep for each of us. In our home, some examples are:
My husband loves sweet potatoes so much that even though his allergy test
revealed a reaction to them ... he still eats them. I love coffee but drink
too much of it so I'm bringing my teapots back out... our oldest son loves
the fried chicken fingers my husband makes with his honey mustard sauce, our
next to oldest son loves carbs of any kind and always fills his plates (when
we dine out) with French fries and any other carbs he can fit on the plate
and our other teen son thinks peanut butter is a gift from God. Our daughter
loves deserts and our little one loves strawberries and little yogurts we
get at the grocery store.

*Recipes are a given and they can be hand written, printed from a computer
directly onto the paper in the book or on another piece of cardstock and
adhered to another page making its own border/frame/mat.

*Herbs! Notes on herbal care, varieties planted and used, ways used, herbal
remedies, and more. I have been trying to keep up with the many natural
remedies we employ around here for YEARS and haven't managed it. Maybe with
this it won't be so hard to keep up with!

*Essential oils and how we use them in washing dishes, mopping the floor, to
aid in disinfecting, and more!

The reality to a book like this is that the possibilities are vast and
expanding ever still as another of this or that gets added. God's abundant
blessings, provisions, guidance, inspiration, and gifts of all kinds can
dance from these pages and we can share them with our children's children if
it is His will...

May your kitchen, dining area, and heart all be filled to overflowing. It
matters not so much as where you store your memories and how you keep them
as it does that they live in your heart. Capturing them is just part of the
fun:)

I wanted you to know, each and every one of you, that I prayed for you this
morning. I don't always remember to do this but it blesses my soul when I
do!

Love,
Sandy

© Sandy Willoughby, 2005

For those of you on the Home Notes letter... I'm working on a letter
focusing on a Homemaking Scrapbook!

Gardening Tip: Keeping Cats Out of Your Vegetable Beds | Apartment Therapy The Kitchn

2011-05-17T09:38:00.000-07:00

Gardening Tip: Keeping Cats Out of Your Vegetable Beds Apartment Therapy The Kitchn

Just had to share this! It was a post on one of my favorite blogs:

www.thekitchn.com

Love,
Sandy

Meals with Missionaries! Casual sandwiches & such

2011-05-12T06:52:00.000-07:00

Kim and I were really looking forward to baking and cooking together in my kitchen and we got the opportunity for almost the entire visit! We ended up being blessed with Bruce's amazing amount of work in literally rebuilding our bedroom so the contents of the room were moved out and stacked around the rest of the house and I lost exactly half of my kitchen ... to include my baking center. So, sadly enough there was no breads or baking but I am praying for a future visit... smile. Speaking of the home remodeling done, I will share pictures and more on that story on the Home Notes blog.

Coffee and cooking... we got those in! The coffeepot was steadily perking out coffee and mugs were filled and refilled as the hours passed by from morning to evening. We also had to keep snacks and meals readily available for easy grabbing or quick sit downs to keep the guys going as they worked for hours and hours at a time some of the days on the bedroom project.

I made the guys tuna melts (I split some bread loaves and topped with all white tuna in olive oil with some shredded cheese and broiled it until melted and slightly browned) and these were served with sweet and kosher pickles and unsweetened ice tea.

One evening, we got deli roast beef and turkey, deli cheese slices and sandwich rolls along with whole wheat bread. We placed pickled okra, pickles, pickled vegetables, Romaine lettuce, condiments and a few other things in the center of the table. Each person made their sandwich right where they sat! It was easy serving, eating and clean up!

Another meal was pizza we picked up from Papa John's and we just propped our feet up and gathered in the living room to eat. We watched some TV, talked, discussed work with the men and the kids had a chance to talk to Kim. It was needed let down time and we all cherished every moment of it.

Look next for the really good food because Kim was cooking!

Meals with Missionaries! Meeting and first meal. . .

2011-05-12T06:11:00.000-07:00

We had some dreams and prayers come true in the month of April! We got to meet in person a missionary couple from Latvia ... face to face!

I have corresponded with Kim in Latvia (many readers and email list members will instantly recognize her:) for around eight years now. In that time, we have prayed, shared, connected, concerned, ministered to and received encouragement from and the list could go on for eight more years.

One thing we haven't done is to meet in person and one of the times we discussed it online, Kim mentioned that we might not meet this side of heaven but one day we would. What she said stuck with me and I honestly felt that meeting face to face would be nothing short of a GOD thing.

The glory and honor and praise are HIS and HIS alone and HE got them here during thier six months in the United States! The itinerary for them is almost non-stop (quite literally) and they are traveling for entire days at a time between destinations so it is a big gift to have them make good on the plans they made to make it here.

They left here on May 1rst but the presence of Christ pouring through this beautiful couple still touches our hearts.

The first time I saw them ... I was instantly struck with how it did not seem I was meeting them for the first time AT ALL! They looked, sounded, spoke, and just WERE everything I felt I already knew they were. I guess our communications through the years were genuine enough to warrant that kind of first meeting.

Our soon to be D-I-L and teenage daughter planned, shopped, prepared, served and cleaned Bruce and Kim's first meal in our home. It was so nice!

Mexican Lasagna
Tossed salad
Desserts in stemware glasses (Bottom layer: broken up pieces of sugar free angel food cake. Next layer: ice cream sweetened with Splenda. Next layer: sliced strawberries and bananas and all was topped with whipped cream.)
Ice tea

I wish I had pictures of how pretty everything looked and to capture all the smiling, talking and laughing that went on but we were too in the moment to think of it, I guess!

Our family unit was here - my husband, self, teen daughter and eight year old son - and our college age son and his fiance. Our next to oldest son and his wife stopped by and we all enjoyed getting the visit started.
I will share our meals and some of the memories we made in a series of sorts so the blog posts aren't overly long and easier to digest. Still smiling as I type . . .

*The spelling check doesn't seem to be functioning on this site right now and I can't figure out how to add the right grammar mark on fiance ... so please forgive that and any other errors!*

Sourdough Starter

2011-04-02T18:53:00.000-07:00

Yes, I abandoned my sourdough starters.
It was a bit sad since they looked really good and I was getting some good photos to share but I kind of felt it would be better to start over.

You see, our ROOF got replaced and some know what a tremendous and fantastic answer to prayer this is. Well, with the new roof came a pretty substantial loss of ceiling in my kitchen. So much so that we joked about walking through the kitchen and seeing the moon and stars since we literally did. . . see them.
We had a skylight in there and it has always been a bit of a disaster and it had to come out and this has meant a LOT of working around things and all sorts of things flying in the air. I didn't trust my sourdough starters ... covered or not ... in that environment so I baked a bunch of bread and some other baked goods and didn't save any to use later. I take that back, I did save some in the fridge but go so busy in house work and repair that I forgot it was there.

In my goal to be real as I've mentioned so many times before ... a lot of things like this get shared. Projects get started just to be stopped mid way and plans get changed before they can gain ground but it is okay. If it is God's will ... things will be in great order soon and I will be much more set up for the baking, sourdough making, and make it from scratch work will commence!

2011-04-02T08:41:00.000-07:00

Being at peace with yourself is a direct result of finding peace with God.

Olin Miller

Love that quote! I just added it as a little gift after opening it from an email this morning.

We have been making lots of pizza because we are trying to eat NO fast food (with a few exceptions for my husband and 8-year old son... it has been weeks turning into months since we have eaten fast food) and pizza had not been included in our goal. We didn't consider pizza fast food for some reason but as I've shared before - just about anything we make at home will be healthier in one way or another than whatever we can buy processed or prepared to go and grab.

Sometimes, I still make crust but lately, we've been buying two packs of large, thin crust (whole wheat) and a three pack of smaller crusts for the kids. In a matter of minutes, we've topped them with sauce, toppings, seasonings and cheese and they are in the oven.

Here are some of the main ingredients and a few basic instructions:

Crust - already mentioned or English muffins or flour tortillas.

Preferably, whole grain versions.

Sauce: Low sugar/low sodium spaghetti sauce is our main used sauce. It is surprisingly good! We also use homemade or purchased pizza sauce, bbq sauce, or homemade white, garlic sauce.

Toppings: on the sauce, we've been adding finely chopped red onion. SUCH a great addition for flavor and crunch! Broccoli that I steam or dip in boiling water and then in ice water and cut or break in small pieces, and sauteed mushrooms that I add 1-2 pressed garlic cloves to at the last 30-60 seconds of cooking.

Seasonings: onion powder or onion salt or parsley or sweet basil.

Cheese: Parmesan around the edges of sauce and mozarella generously sprinkled over all.

I've been baking ours at high temps on cookie sheets and stoneware pans. 420 or so degrees and as soon as the crust isn't soft or shows light browning, I change it to broil and broil until bubbly and golden or lightly browned on top. If a crunchier crust is desired (my daughter and I like at least one this way) ... longer cooking times do well before switching to broil.

If I had pictures, I'd post but we are making 2 to 6 pizzas at a time and they are gone before I can get photos!

Love,
Sandy

Pantry Provisions

2011-03-16T05:37:00.000-07:00

In a big hurry and no photos but I am trying to share what is going on in my flurry of a kitchen as I go again!

We have been making anything I can come up with from the pantry shelves, freezer and fridge. We really enjoyed a different kind of pizza the past two days. Two versions:

1. Getting too dry to eat bread. I drizzled bbq sauce on the bread, found some mozzarella in the freezer and sprinkled it all over the bread -used it still frozen- and topped with a chopped red onion I discovered in one of my produce bowls! I added a sprinkle of onion salt and some pepper and cooked it on 425 degrees for about 5 minutes and switched to broil until it was brown and sticking to the pan! It was delicious!

2. My daughter made a version yesterday equally delicious! She found a different bread (some whole wheat rolls) getting too dry to eat and she sprinkled some mozzarella cheese right over, added sliced Roma tomatoes, sprinkled some Mrs. Dash over all and after baking and broiling, drizzled bbq sauce over.

Both "pizzas" were cut in smaller pieces for easier grabbing and eating like a quick finger food. Must make these more often and can use any sauce on hand, different cheeses, meats and vegetables. Great for bits and pieces of leftovers!

I made a batch of whole grain, brown rice in my rice cooker and put it in bowls for the freezer and fridge. These will be good for rice bowls (sauce, meat and/or vegetables and so on) or to wrap up in tortillas with cheese and salsa, casseroles or whatever else we decide as we go!

More later ---

Love,
Sandy

Hurried post: Notes on Sourdough Starters

2011-03-07T06:13:00.000-08:00

I just read something I read before and forgot. You apparently are not supposed to keep different starters close together. I will separate my little party of starters in a bit.

Secondly, I read from this well loved blog that it can be wise to use smaller starters and build them up rather than keeping big starters. The first time around, I kept the starters small and they had more success than this time so far. I transferred the starters into bigger corningware dishes (except the white flour little crock) and this can make for too much yeast and a weaker starter or one that dies.

I will use what I can today and create four pint sized jars to work with to see how they do. I'll just maintain a small amount in each jar and build them up as I bake and go. It takes a bit of foresight to regularly use sourdough, I'm learning.

You have to take into account how much starter you will need and I have read that you don't ever add more flour/water feeding than you have of starter. In other words, if you have 1 cup of starter, you wouldn't want to feed it 2 cups of flour and water at once. Instead, you would keep adding anywhere from a Tablespoon or two of flour and water at a time or every few to several hours until it is built up or any measurement up to the 1 cup. I am typing my thoughts here and I have books (volume upon volume) of thoughts going on all the time so... just bear with me?

I'll share as I learn and we'll see how it goes. As we go along, I will try to share the books I have here that I will be reading from along with blogs, sites and so on's. One site I have visited countless times for sourdough and more is The Fresh Loaf. PACKED with info, blogs, forums and more!

Love,
Sandy

Kefir and another BLOG Share!

2011-03-07T05:54:00.000-08:00

Things are busy and busy can be good. It can be not so good if the balance gets out of whack!
I have decided to reign in my priorities and tighten my time to make sure I am fitting in more kitchen work than flying through meal preparations as quickly as possible and eating it even more fast than it takes to make it!
I will try to keep my posting up with my newfound, going back to my homemaking heart determinations because there are SO MANY wonderful things I have hoped to share and haven't. Instead of trying to go back and do that ... I will attempt to just share as I go as I did at first.

All that rambling aside, I will share a blog as I had planned and suggested I would start doing but haven't and my next post will be a few notes on my started again sourdough adventure!

I made almost five quarts of kefir (poured them this morning after breakfast and before the kids left for school) and I am curious about keeping up with the grains. I will start a thread of sorts on here as I am doing with the sourdough and will share as I go. It might be more messy than waiting to do tutorials and such once I am already established and better learned in these areas but it might be the only way I keep up with things here!

I ordered grains so long ago that I don't remember when and froze them. I made one batch but my nephew was diagnosed with cancer. I ended up between here and the children's hospital 1 1/2 hours away and just used it to soak some rice, beans and baked goods. I hope to be much more wise and productive this time around.

I'm not sure if the grains are very good since you are supposed to use them up soon and I have had them for a long, long time. At the same time, they appear to be working perfectly fine and I have heard of others who revived grains they didn't know would work so we will see.

I've been reading on making kefir and about the "grains" used to make it for so long and one day... decided to just see what it would take to make it. I have been amazed ... completely amazed at all the information I have found on this!

Instead of explaining all the details myself, I will share from some of the sources I learned from because they were so helpful and still are!

One of my favorite blogs on kitchen and homemaking topics shared the easiest instructions for kefir making and shared a link of where to order kefir grains. I ordered my kefir grains from the place Crystal (dear, beautiful friend:) shared and used her instructions for making my kefir. I have known this lovely lady since 1998 or 1999 and have been blessed by her knowledge and much, much more. I have made so many of her recipes that I could have a notebook just of them and have so many printed, they would probably fill one quickly!

Girls Sleepover & Pantry Provisions!

2011-03-06T19:06:00.000-08:00

Teenage girls sleepover... eating from the pantry... what in the world do I fix them to eat?!
Pantry? A couple of cans of white beans, a small can of green chilis, a few boxes of pasta and a few jars of dried beans. A can of cream soup, a can of tomato paste ... and that is it in there.

I had a bucket of 5-Minute a day Artisan dough or whatever it is called (got recipe from Christina on the GNOWFLINS ecourse) in the fridge along with a small bowl of butter, some half n half and some condiments.
Just one of those between checks times but we still have to eat, right?

The LORD has taught me so much through this. There are times when I am a good student and times when I am very much not but He knows me and loves me anyway. Thankfully.
I wanted to not figure it out. I wanted to not pull anything together. . . I wanted to just hope everyone wasn't hungry.
That isn't the way of mamahood, is it?!

I knew I could make round loaves of bread quickly but remembered how long it took me the last time to get the center cooked. I made two round loaves but sliced them (about four or five across) in pieces ...they almost looked like biscotti.

I cooked them at close to 400 degrees F. and remembered reading of or hearing about white bean dips.

Thus, this:

White Bean Dip

2 cans of drained white beans
Two splashes of lemon juice
4 cloves of garlic
salt & pepper to taste
oregano
dried onion/seasoning mixture

I mixed it all together in the food processor until it looked like a dip and then poured in a glass bowl. It was a big hit with the girls!

I also found two stray hamburger buns so I buttered them and put them on a cast iron skillet and put a cast iron bacon press on them. I let cook on medium and then low until they were crispy and then cut them in triangles. The girls really loved these! The bread sticks of sorts were having a hard time cooking through so I cut them again and made them the same as the hamburger buns.

We found three family sized tea bags (need 4 for a gallon) and we made 3/4 of a gallon of tea for them to have ice tea.
They can have hot chocolate next from packets my mom left here today!

Remember that no matter how little you see in the cupboard... God didn't share the fish and loaves stories for nothing!

¹⁷ “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. ¹⁸ “Bring them here to me,” he said. ¹⁹ And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. ²⁰ They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. ²¹ The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children. Matthew 14:17-21

4th of July --- Yes, from 2010!

2011-03-06T19:05:00.000-08:00

This was in my drafts folder! It is old but I am sending it on!

I am sharing as I find my slips of paper with recipes written, come across notes on what we've been doing and so on. Eventually, no matter how busy things are around here, I hope to be organized and write on a more regular basis.

Until then, here goes my "as goes" sharing:

For the 4th of July, my DIL, Brandy and I made the most delicious strawberries! I saw them on a blog I am subscribed to and they were so pretty in the picture that I immediately planned to make them. White chocolate is used and I don't actaully eat white chocolate but these were so delicious that EVERY ONE of the four packs of strawberries was eaten and not with a great deal of lingering between servings!

I also don't care for the taste of colored sugar but I adore the look of it. In the case of these red, white & blue strawberries though? MADE them. Added just the right little confectionary crunch.

The photo and blog I found these on will be edited into this post as soon as I find them again! I saved the post but somehow misplaced it but I know I have it so look for that soon;)

We just bought Baker's white chocolate squares and melted four squares at a time in the microwave (I know, I don't usually use this appliance but there are times . . . . ) and dipped the washed and patted dry strawberries in little batches. Immediately, while the half dipped berries were still freshly "dunked" ... we sprinkled light blue sugar on some and a brighter blue on others. We made even rows on disposable (I know, I don't usually buy or use disposables but there are times . . . . ) cookie sheets and put them in the fridge. I had one half tray we didn't have room for so I cut it in half and slid it onto a freezer shelf. They freezer BEAUTIFULLY! We actually put them in a freezer and kept until serving.

My MIL served the most amazing meal outside under some trees in her yard. She has a freezer in the garage so we put the strawberries there while we ate. It is hot here so this ended being a wise decision.

We had blue enameled pots of ribs, big, white porcelain bowls of potato salad, and various containers of corn salad, rolls, and some sort of deviled egg dish. Gallons were at the end of the long tables of sweet and/or unsweetened tea and ice was in buckets for easy cup filling.

Our Pastor blessed us by joining us (his family is in Romania for the summer to visit their homeland and have time with family) and we had a nice group. Everyone missed our boys and it was a little quiet without them there. One was working at the police department 30 minutes or so away, one was at a fire department a few minutes away (we sent them some food:)) and one was four hours away at college.

It was still so nice with Mamaw and her caregiver, Dovey --- my husband's childhood Nanny and our Daughters-in-Love, grandkids and kids still at home.

Blueberry Muffins

2011-03-06T19:02:00.000-08:00

Our guys all went camping & hunting so the little women (smiles) got together here.

With a house full of kids, we don't watch movies much, sew, scrapbook, or go many places but we always have an enjoyable time. Last night, we missed our monthly scrapbook crop but we had three women, four teenage girls and four kidlings. The kids played computer games, watched movies, and hung over the teens' shoulders while they made finishing touches on art pieces for a fall festival today.

Frozen Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients:
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs 1 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups frozen blueberries, unthawed
TOPPING:
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, milk and vanilla; mix well. Stir in dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in frozen blueberries. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Combine sugar and nutmeg; sprinkle over muffins. Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until muffins test done. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2009 Allrecipes.com Printed from Allrecipes.com 10/16/2009

Sourdough Starters - Daily Notes

2011-03-06T18:56:00.000-08:00

You can be BUSY and still keep up with sourdough starter. I have four going at one time and if I wrote down everything I have kept up with for months on end, it would take a small notebook to get it all down!
A few minutes a day is all it takes.

I will share pictures when I get them off my ipod. I have taken them almost every day but I didn't today. I was going to but the battery was dead.
One photo should have a note near it with this info:

3/2/11 8:00 pm 24+3 hours

Notes:

Second Feeding
3.2.11

Qt. jar - 1/2 cup of whole grain flour and 1/2 cup of warm well water

Pt. jar - 1/4 cup of whole grain flour and 1/4 cup of warm well water

3/4/11

Changed to clean jars and fed the same amounts as previous days.

Poured off some strong alcohol smelling liquid/foam.

Qt. jar not doing as well. Not as much action and h arder to stir. Mixed flours and now Kamut. Switch to hard white. Consider starting a jar with only hard white wheat. Or only hard red wheat?

Pt. jar - doing very well. Very good bubble action before this morning's feeding.

3/4/11
Yesterday, I poured about half of each Mason jar into a pint sized Mason jar and it was full. I put that in the fridge and covered with plastic wrap. Looks very good this morning. Didn't feed. Plan to feed once a week as I've read you can do when starter is in the refrigerator. Only established starters!

The small crocks:
Kamut flour one smelled very strong and there is very little action.
The white flour is doing well. Bubbly and looking good.

3/5/11
Fed all four starters. Changed all containers except white flour.

Sunday 3/6/11
Fed each starter.

The white flour starter is doing fantastic.
The rest are doing so, so. The quart jar that is now in a Corninware baking dish isn't doing well compared to the others.

Mold showed up in the top of the fridge jar so I threw it out.
Will keep trying. That is the first time I've had that happen!

Love,
Sandy

Second Feeding

Whole Grain Sourdough/ Day One!

2011-03-04T07:30:00.000-08:00

Please forgive my sideways pictures. They were not side ways when I took, saved or shared them but pasted here that way. I tried and tried to figure out how to fix them but nothing has worked!

Sandy's Sourdough

2011-03-04T07:00:00.000-08:00

Sourdough Step by Step: Follow Along!

I have very little experience with sourdough at this point. Years ago, I was given an Amish Friendship Starter and I followed the directions and when the first batch was done, I didn't think to keep it up. It might have been that I had three small boys and no desire to add another step of work to my day, who knows? Two more kids later along with two Daughters-in-Law and four grandbabies and I decided to try again a few months ago. This time, I opted for whole grain sourdough starter in order to make whole grain breads. I had success with my starters but had some things come up and got so busy that I didn't take the five minutes or so a day to care for my starters and ended up eventually throwing them out.
Now? Now, I hope to keep it up so I can have a continual and healthy supply of breads and baked goods to serve my family and anyone else in need of a nutritious gift.

I have been asked about helping others with this and some other kitchen, cooking, baking and breadmaking tasks. I figured I should start now since it is as good a time as any and I'll push my perfectionist side regularly over an inch or few to make room for a more creative pursuit ... never done it everything has to be perfect.

Here it is... my first steps. I will be sharing more on sourdough as we go and I hope you will toss any intimidation into the closest trash can and hit this adventure with me! It will be fun and oh, the things we can make!

Whole Grain Banana Bread

2011-03-02T22:02:00.001-08:00

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2011
Whole Grain Banana Bread
Our Sunday's are usually quite busy. In a sense, they start with the night
before. I usually have my four year old grandgirl on Saturday night (or she
is forced to tolerate her three year old brother tagging along:) and it is
the time I get things ready for the kids' Sunday School I teach and
Children's church. Sometimes, we visit family or friends or we just hang
around the house and prepare for the week ahead.
Yesterday, I didn't have my grandlittles the night before or for church so
after we talked to some of the church members and rounded everyone up, we
stopped by our oldest son's house to visit their family. They live between
our house and the church so a quick visit is easy to fit in.
We were blessed with an unplanned lunch and a very enjoyable time of
sharing. We ate deli turkey and cheese sandwiches and salt and vinegar
chips. When we got back home, the teen girls --- our 14 year old niece was
here --- watched a movie and our youngest son played games on his dad's
computer. My husband rested and went to work and I got some laundry done,
did some dishes and tidied up the kitchen a bit. Before we knew it, dinner
time was upon us. We ended up having turkey burgers from ground breast meat
and topped them with jalapenos and extra sharp cheddar cheese. Our daughter
made a big and delicious salad and she and her cousin ate veggie burgers.
Right before dinner, I made a whole grain banana walnut bread and put it in
the oven. It filled the entire kitchen with such a wonderful fragrance! I
made two loaves and wrapped one in wax paper and took as a gift for Nana,
Papa, the twins and anyone else there. They loved it (especially Papa!) and
everyone here loved it so I thought I would break from my posting freeze
from the frenzy and share it:
A quick note about the site I found this on - there is an email newsletter
available and I think maybe an RSS feed. I signed up for the email, I think
it was. Anyway, here is the recipe:
Whole Grain Banana Bread
Ingredients:
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup packed natural brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cup mashed over-ripe bananas
• 1 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips, preferably 60% cocoa
Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with butter.
3. Combine flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Whisk and set aside.
4. In another large bowl, combine butter, honey, and sugar and beat for two
minutes. Add the eggs and lightly beat until just combined. Mix in bananas
and vanilla -- do not over mix. Gradually beat in the flour mixture in
thirds.
5. Dilute baking soda in ¼ cup hot (not boiling) water, then beat into
batter.
6. Stir in, by hand, the chocolate chips and chopped nuts.
7. Pour the batter into the pan and bake at 325 for 52 minutes. (test for
doneness being careful not to over bake as it may dry out the bread)
8. Remove from pan and place on a wire rack to cool. If you plan to serve
this to guests and want clean slices, then allow it to cool for 30 minutes.
If you want to enjoy some melt-in-your-mouth, out-of-this-world, warm banana
bread, then dig in after 5 minutes.
http://www.wholegraingourmet.com/recipes/40-bread/32-whole-grain-banana-brea
d.html

In & From my Kitchen

2011-03-02T22:02:00.000-08:00

In & from my Kitchen:
1. Black bean salsa: Another recipe first shared by Ms. Debby ;) She got a
jar of this for a Christmas gift and started making it herself. She served
Lauren and I a bowl of it with tortilla chips one of the nights during the
ice storm. Her son, Timmy ... some of you may feel you know them by now ...
called and declared that day a great day for a "Gathering" and that is
precisely what we did! The guys hung out here watching television, playing
games, and sliding down hills and the ladies ate soup, jalepeno corn
fritters, this salsa and MORE and watched movies! Temple Grandin was one and
we LOVED it. What an amazing true story!
Okay, here is the recipe and it is easy as can be. If you want, you can just
buy a can of Busch's black beans because it is on the sleeve of cans here.
1 can Bush's Best Black Beans, drained (can also use blackeye peas)
1 can white shoepeg corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes (basil, garlic, oregano flavored)
1 can Rotel® tomatoes
8 oz. Italian Dressing (we used light)
Chopped onion to taste
Chopped jalapeno to taste
Mix all ingredients together and marinate in refrigerator for at least 1 ½
hours. Serve with tortilla chips (lime flavored are the best).

2.) Vegetarian lasagna: Lauren made this here one night and we just loved
it. So delicious. When we heard Mickey (Debby's MIL and Timmy's grandmother)
passed away, she made another pan and we took it over there. It was served
to a large crowd right after the funeral and one man from Italy said to tell
her that it was wonderful!
Recipe coming. I thought I had the magazine page out here but she has used
it again so I will get it and edit it in!
3.) Vickilynn's bread. I have made this for years and the recipe is probably
on here tons of times but I'll share it again just in case. I making all of
our bread and baked goods again so it is nice to have reliable, tested, and
big batch recipes to use!
VICKILYNN'S AWARD-WINNING BREAD - 6 loaf
Recipe By :Vickilynn Haycraft © 2000
Serving Size : 72 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories :
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
6 1/2 cups water -- warmed to 100-110
3 tablespoons yeast -- SAF
6 cups whole wheat flour
2/3 cup olive oil
2/3 cup honey
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup gluten, wheat
9 cups whole wheat flour -- more or less as needed
In a large mixing bowl (I use a Bosch) place warm water, SAF yeast and
4 cups flour. Stir to mix well, then cover and let sponge 30 minutes.
Stir to punch down; add oil, honey, gluten and salt. Mix to blend; add
2 cups flour and turn mixer on low. Add flour by 1/2 cupfuls until dough
cleans the sides of the bowl and is no longer sticky. Knead on low speed 6-
8 minutes. The flour amount is approximate, use only enough flour to cause
the dough to pull away from the sides of the mixer bowl. Do not add more
flour.
Let dough rise in covered bowl 30 minutes until doubled. Punch down dough
place on oiled counter and divide into six pieces. Form loaves and place in
greased loaf pans. Let rise in warm oven (turned off) until 1 1/2" above the
rim of the pans.
With loaves still in oven, turn oven on and bake at 350 degrees for about 30
minutes or more, until done.
Remove from oven and cover with clean towel to soften crust.
Description:
"Makes 6 loaves, each 12 slices. Each slice is 2 points"
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 127 Calories; 3g Fat (18.3% calories
from fat); 6g Protein; 21g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol;
66mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Fat; 0 Other
Carbohydrates.

4.) Meat/cheese/pizza roll: My son's favorite and he was here from college.
We make this all kinds of ways but this time, I made four loaves of dough
and put two into bread pans. The other two were rolled out in rectangle
sheets and I made them similar to how I do our cinnamon rolls. I spread
pizza sauce over the entire area and covered in cheese. These were rolled
back up and baked. Big hit!
5.) Cinnamon rolls: I have made these in a variety of ways. This time, I
made a six loaf batch of Vickilynn's bread and rolled two rectangles out of
two of the loaves. I generously spread butter across each and sprinkled lots
of cinnamon and brown sugar on top. I rolled them up and cut them in 1-2
inch segments and then baked until no longer doughy on the inside.
I topped with a cream cheese frosting I adapted from the Cinnabon's you find
in some malls.
A block or two of cream cheese is blended and softened first. Then a stick
or so of room temperature butter is added and blended up .When creamy, I add
powdered sugar to taste, vanilla, and freshly ground nutmeg. I spread this
on hot cinnamon buns and then give another grate or two of fresh nutmeg on
top.

6.) Oatmeal peach bread: Another one I thought the recipe was on hand for. I
will edit it in! It was whole grain and really delicious. Debby left some
peaches from a local orchard (same place I got ours before I used them all
up ) and they were already peeled and the seeds removed. I chose this bread
out of the whole grain cookbook my mom gave me and it was just right with a
cup of coffee.
7.) Broccoli chowder. I make this up often. I have shared it before --- I
just sautee onions in a small amount of butter and olive oil. I add chopped
garlic and sprinkle flour over the pan of sizzling goodness. I whisk it
around a few times and then add a couple of cups of chicken broth and let
it simmer for a few minutes before adding milk ... enough to stir everyting
smoothly.I let it cook long enough to get creamy and then add steamed
broccoli and shredded cheese. Just about any cheese will work. Sometimes, I
top with shredded parmesan.
8.) Chicken alfredo style spaghetti. This was a throw together dish! My DIL,
Brandy and three of our grandlittles were here for one of our Wednesday's. I
wanted something quick so we could watch a movie (we didn't end up having
time!) ---
I just sauteed butter, olive oil, and chopped onions for a few minutes
before adding some pressed garlic. I added a few shakes of flour and used a
whisk to make and keep everything smooth. Next was a guessed amount of milk
and I kept whisking. I added onion salt, pepper, and dill. Added lots of
parmesan cheese and did all of this while spaghetti pasta cooked on the
stove. I also cooked chicken breasts I had cut into bite sized pieces in a
skillet with some seasoning and butter with olive oil. The drained pasta was
stirred into the creamy and cheesy mixture with a squirt of lemon juice.
This was all topped with the cooked chicken bites. More lemon juice went
over the plate right before eating. Amazingly good!

Stevia Cookies, Jalapeño Cornbread & Crockpot Soup

2011-03-02T22:01:00.000-08:00

A beloved friend gifted us with a bag of Stevia sweetener and I wanted to
make something using it when she came by today. She was bringing some things
to help me on my next trip to the children's hospital with my sister and
nephew and I wanted to have things here to serve. She brought supplies for
jalapeño corncakes and I had ready to eat soup for us to eat them with.
Anyway, the cookies were okay but not my favorite. They were a bit crumbly
but similar to shortbread. I'm sharing the recipe anyway even though I
usually don't share those I don't like much. The reason for this time is
because I was out of ingredients and made so many substitutions that I think
it contributed to the end results and maybe following it exactly will fare
better.
The stevia I have is a Stevia in the Raw so it would need more than the 1/2
t. listed here for stevia powder.
I used 1/4 cup of Splenda and 1/4 cup of Stevia.

Stevia Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 4 dozen cookies
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon white stevia powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
• 1 cup salted butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a cookie sheet and set aside.*
2. In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking
powder, and set aside.
3. Place the egg, stevia, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl, and beat well
with a wooden spoon or an electric hand-held mixer. Slowly add the butter,
continuing to beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
4. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring
well with a wooden spoon after each addition. Fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Drop heaping teaspoons of batter on the cookie sheet, about 2 inches
apart. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown.
* Instead of greasing a cookie sheet, you can cover it with parchment paper,
which makes for quick and easy cleanup.

Debby's Jalapeño Cornbread Skillet Cakes in Memory of Mickey
Mickey was Debby's Mother-in-Love and they have been together four to five
days a week for over a year now and on the phone daily the few times in
between. Debby drove over an hour to and from Mickey's to care for her
through chemotherapy, for doctor's appointments, to cook, clean, and care
for every need. The two women were in almost constant contact in the fifteen
or so years we've known them and by what I could tell, the same was true for
the many years before that.
One of the countless things Mickey taught Debby over the years was corn
fritters. She learned the basic version but loves spicy things and started
adding 2-4 diced jalapenos and packed them along with thermoses of homemade
soup on hospital trips. We have eaten these so many times since she first
shared some with us and I took two Ziploc bags on my last hospital trip for
my nephew. They were devoured by all of us!
The tricky part will be measurements because there aren't any!
I remember Mickey making these once when I went with Debby to her house for
an overnight visit and I will probably always think of her and now Debby
when I make these. The "amounts" I'm sharing here make about 8 (few inches
each) round fritters.

Corn flour or corn meal is shaken into a mixing bowl. One egg is added and
enough buttermilk to make a thick batter. 2-4 jalapenos are stirred in (2
for mild to medium and 4 for HOT) and a griddle is heated and greased. We
used olive oil on some and coconut oil on the others and both had great
results. The batter is spooned in circles (about the size of small to medium
pancakes) and cooked a few minutes per side.
I made another batch that I added my touches on and will make both versions
from now on depending on what we will be eating them with.
I shook some corn flour into my mixing bowl and sprinkled a small amount of
all-purpose flour on top. I added two eggs and buttermilk and then added 2
jalapenos I chopped in the small bowl of food processer. I added two eggs
because I used more corn meal and other ingredients in order to make more
than 8. I don't recall the quantity but I filled two quart size Ziploc bags.

These were eaten with a bean soup I made in the crockpot the night before
and I transferred it directly to a stainless steel thermos. It was still
steaming many hours later! Three adults enjoyed small bowl after bowl of
this!

Crockpot White Chili
--16 oz bag of frozen white corn
--2 cans of White Beans
--1 4 oz can of green chilies
--1/2 chopped white onion
--2 minced cloves garlic
--1 cup vegetable broth
--juice from one lemon
--1 1/2 t cumin
--1/2 t Italian seasoning
--salt and pepper to taste
--mozzarella cheese (optional)
The Directions. (Notes are from recipe author, not me.)
--Pour everything into crockpot.
You don't need to drain and rinse the beans, or drain the chilies.
Cook on low for 8-9 hours, or high for 4-6. I cooked this for 6 hours on
low, and the onions were still too crunchy, so I flipped it to high for
another hour.
Serve with shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/

Whole Grain Banana Bread

2011-02-01T11:06:00.000-08:00

Our Sunday's are usually quite busy. In a sense, they start with the night
before. I usually have my four year old grandgirl on Saturday night (or she
is forced to tolerate her three year old brother tagging along:) and it is
the time I get things ready for the kids' Sunday School I teach and
Children's church. Sometimes, we visit family or friends or we just hang
around the house and prepare for the week ahead.
Yesterday, I didn't have my grandlittles the night before or for church so
after we talked to some of the church members and rounded everyone up, we
stopped by our oldest son's house to visit their family. They live between
our house and the church so a quick visit is easy to fit in.
We were blessed with an unplanned lunch and a very enjoyable time of
sharing. We ate deli turkey and cheese sandwiches and salt and vinegar
chips. When we got back home, the teen girls --- our 14 year old niece was
here --- watched a movie and our youngest son played games on his dad's
computer. My husband rested and went to work and I got some laundry done,
did some dishes and tidied up the kitchen a bit. Before we knew it, dinner
time was upon us. We ended up having turkey burgers from ground breast meat
and topped them with jalapenos and extra sharp cheddar cheese. Our daughter
made a big and delicious salad and she and her cousin ate veggie burgers.
Right before dinner, I made a whole grain banana walnut bread and put it in
the oven. It filled the entire kitchen with such a wonderful fragrance! I
made two loaves and wrapped one in wax paper and took as a gift for Nana,
Papa, the twins and anyone else there. They loved it (especially Papa!) and
everyone here loved it so I thought I would break from my posting freeze
from the frenzy and share it:
A quick note about the site I found this on - there is an email newsletter
available and I think maybe an RSS feed. I signed up for the email, I think
it was. Anyway, here is the recipe:

Whole Grain Banana Bread
Ingredients:
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup packed natural brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cup mashed over-ripe bananas
• 1 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips, preferably 60% cocoa
Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with butter.
3. Combine flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Whisk and set aside.
4. In another large bowl, combine butter, honey, and sugar and beat for two
minutes. Add the eggs and lightly beat until just combined. Mix in bananas
and vanilla -- do not over mix. Gradually beat in the flour mixture in
thirds.
5. Dilute baking soda in ¼ cup hot (not boiling) water, then beat into
batter.
6. Stir in, by hand, the chocolate chips and chopped nuts.
7. Pour the batter into the pan and bake at 325 for 52 minutes. (test for
doneness being careful not to over bake as it may dry out the bread)
8. Remove from pan and place on a wire rack to cool. If you plan to serve
this to guests and want clean slices, then allow it to cool for 30 minutes.
If you want to enjoy some melt-in-your-mouth, out-of-this-world, warm banana
bread, then dig in after 5 minutes.
http://www.wholegraingourmet.com/recipes/40-bread/32-whole-grain-banana-brea
d.html

2011-02-01T11:05:00.000-08:00

In & from my Kitchen:

1. Black bean salsa: Another recipe first shared by Ms. Debby ;) She got a jar of this for a Christmas gift and started making it herself. She served Lauren and I a bowl of it with tortilla chips one of the nights during the ice storm. Her son, Timmy ... some of you may feel you know them by now ... called and declared that day a great day for a "Gathering" and that is precisely what we did! The guys hung out here watching television, playing games, and sliding down hills and the ladies ate soup, jalepeno corn fritters, this salsa and MORE and watched movies! Temple Grandin was one and we LOVED it. What an amazing true story!
Okay, here is the recipe and it is easy as can be. If you want, you can just buy a can of Busch's black beans because it is on the sleeve of cans here.

1 can Bush's Best Black Beans, drained (can also use blackeye peas)

1 can white shoepeg corn, drained

1 can diced tomatoes (basil, garlic, oregano flavored)

1 can Rotel® tomatoes

8 oz. Italian Dressing (we used light)

Chopped onion to taste

Chopped jalapeno to taste

Mix all ingredients together and marinate in refrigerator for at least 1 ½ hours. Serve with tortilla chips (lime flavored are the best).

2.) Vegetarian lasagna: Lauren made this here one night and we just loved it. So delicious. When we heard Mickey (Debby's MIL and Timmy's grandmother) passed away, she made another pan and we took it over there. It was served to a large crowd right after the funeral and one man from Italy said to tell her that it was wonderful!

Recipe coming. I thought I had the magazine page out here but she has used it again so I will get it and edit it in!

3.) Vickilynn's bread. I have made this for years and the recipe is probably on here tons of times but I'll share it again just in case. I making all of our bread and baked goods again so it is nice to have reliable, tested, and big batch recipes to use!

VICKILYNN'S AWARD-WINNING BREAD - 6 loaf

Recipe By :Vickilynn Haycraft © 2000

Serving Size : 72 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

6 1/2 cups water -- warmed to 100-110

3 tablespoons yeast -- SAF

6 cups whole wheat flour

2/3 cup olive oil

2/3 cup honey

2 teaspoons salt

1 cup gluten, wheat

9 cups whole wheat flour -- more or less as needed

In a large mixing bowl (I use a Bosch) place warm water, SAF yeast and

4 cups flour. Stir to mix well, then cover and let sponge 30 minutes.

Stir to punch down; add oil, honey, gluten and salt. Mix to blend; add

2 cups flour and turn mixer on low. Add flour by 1/2 cupfuls until dough cleans the sides of the bowl and is no longer sticky. Knead on low speed 6- 8 minutes. The flour amount is approximate, use only enough flour to cause the dough to pull away from the sides of the mixer bowl. Do not add more flour.

Let dough rise in covered bowl 30 minutes until doubled. Punch down dough place on oiled counter and divide into six pieces. Form loaves and place in greased loaf pans. Let rise in warm oven (turned off) until 1 1/2" above the rim of the pans.

With loaves still in oven, turn oven on and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or more, until done.

Remove from oven and cover with clean towel to soften crust.

Description:

"Makes 6 loaves, each 12 slices. Each slice is 2 points"

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 127 Calories; 3g Fat (18.3% calories from fat); 6g Protein; 21g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 66mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

4.) Meat/cheese/pizza roll: My son's favorite and he was here from college. We make this all kinds of ways but this time, I made four loaves of dough and put two into bread pans. The other two were rolled out in rectangle sheets and I made them similar to how I do our cinnamon rolls. I spread pizza sauce over the entire area and covered in cheese. These were rolled back up and baked. Big hit!

5.) Cinnamon rolls: I have made these in a variety of ways. This time, I made a six loaf batch of Vickilynn's bread and rolled two rectangles out of two of the loaves. I generously spread butter across each and sprinkled lots of cinnamon and brown sugar on top. I rolled them up and cut them in 1-2 inch segments and then baked until no longer doughy on the inside.
I topped with a cream cheese frosting I adapted from the Cinnabon's you find in some malls.
A block or two of cream cheese is blended and softened first. Then a stick or so of room temperature butter is added and blended up .When creamy, I add powdered sugar to taste, vanilla, and freshly ground nutmeg. I spread this on hot cinnamon buns and then give another grate or two of fresh nutmeg on top.

6.) Oatmeal peach bread: Another one I thought the recipe was on hand for. I will edit it in! It was whole grain and really delicious. Debby left some peaches from a local orchard (same place I got ours before I used them all up ) and they were already peeled and the seeds removed. I chose this bread out of the whole grain cookbook my mom gave me and it was just right with a cup of coffee.

7.) Broccoli chowder. I make this up often. I have shared it before --- I just sautee onions in a small amount of butter and olive oil. I add chopped garlic and sprinkle flour over the pan of sizzling goodness. I whisk it around a few times and then add a couple of cups of chicken broth and let it simmer for a few minutes before adding milk ... enough to stir everyting smoothly.I let it cook long enough to get creamy and then add steamed broccoli and shredded cheese. Just about any cheese will work. Sometimes, I top with shredded parmesan.

8.) Chicken alfredo style spaghetti. This was a throw together dish! My DIL, Brandy and three of our grandlittles were here for one of our Wednesday's. I wanted something quick so we could watch a movie (we didn't end up having time!) ---
I just sauteed butter, olive oil, and chopped onions for a few minutes before adding some pressed garlic. I added a few shakes of flour and used a whisk to make and keep everything smooth. Next was a guessed amount of milk and I kept whisking. I added onion salt, pepper, and dill. Added lots of parmesan cheese and did all of this while spaghetti pasta cooked on the stove. I also cooked chicken breasts I had cut into bite sized pieces in a skillet with some seasoning and butter with olive oil. The drained pasta was stirred into the creamy and cheesy mixture with a squirt of lemon juice. This was all topped with the cooked chicken bites. More lemon juice went over the plate right before eating. Amazingly good!

January Kitchen Notes

2011-01-12T07:00:00.000-08:00

Cinnamon rolls with cream cheese icing, loaves of bread hot from the oven, soups simmering on the stove, and baked dishes radiating heat from the oven to cover the kitchen; glimpses from my kitchen!

Since I last wrote, we have been our regular flurry of activity. Kids home from school, college kid home for a few more days (sugar sweet:) and visiting with our grown and on their own. Grandbabies weaved in and out of all this busyness and shared meals at the table... these are a few of our favorite (and recent) things!

A quick additional list of what we've eaten and prepared since my last posts:

* Lauren's first homemade peach pie using purchased, rolled out crust with a lattice top.
* Egg sandwiches with a variety of breads, cheeses and seasonings and with fresh garlic rubbed on the pan seared bread slices.
* Spaghetti and garlic bread.
* Warm vanilla milk (a pot or cup at a time).
* Hot chocolate with cream and peppermint or cream and topped with cinnamon and nutmeg.
* Broccoli soup.

Goodness, there were so many things I had hoped to add but they have all scattered themselves into quiet corners. Recalling them might take some time so I will just scoot them out to you as I drag them out.

Hoping all is well in your kitchens and that the Lord's provisions are beautiful meals and nourishment to offer loved ones and any God sends your way!

Fluffy Pancakes

2010-12-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

We needed a quick dinner made from what we had here and these turned out to be very nice.

Our son on a home visit from college enjoyed these with us and that was nice.

We just filled small plates with little stacks and ate them with real butter and maple syrup. We haven't had real maple syrup in a long, long time so it was like dessert and dinner all in one.

Fluffy Pancakes

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

3/4 cup milk

2 tablespoons white vinegar

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

2 tablespoons butter, melted

cooking spray

Directions:

1. Combine milk with vinegar in a medium bowl and set aside for 5 minutes to "sour".

2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk egg and butter into "soured" milk. Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and whisk until lumps are gone.

3. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto the skillet, and cook until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side.

Sometime during the Summer Post

2010-12-19T11:00:00.000-08:00

"Food is not about impressing people.
It's about making them feel comfortable."
Ina Garten,
The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

Lots of from scratch baking and cooking have been keeping me busy in the kitchen. So busy a homemaker have I been, as to not have been very diligent in keeping notes on it all!

The kitchen is being prepped (cleaning, organizing, stocking and so on) for canning --- my first real season of it. I shan't pretend to not have a level of intimidation at even starting but start, I must.

The lovely harvest is graduating from a first cucumber and growing zucchini to hands full and finally, shirts are being filled and we will next need a basket. Each morning, we are amazed and delighted (yes, delighted) over a new gift and God's goodness astounds us without fail.

Hopefully, I will be a wise manager of time and some journaling will be accomplished of the canning process. I am starting out with cucumber pickles, zucchini pickles and maybe a relish or two. My goal is to have no waste from the bounty heaven blesses this humble spot of earth with.

This morning, I got up at 5:00 am ---praise God for my recent return for early risings --- and got a few things done in the quiet glow of getting up before everyone. It even afforded me time to stir together some luscious muffins to make for my family to wake with. Smiles. . . they were a welcomed gift and so 'just right' for a before church eat.

Here they are and I will try to share more from my wrick wrack work as I go!

I just love what the man wrote with this recipe:

Buttermilk Oatmeal Muffins

Submitted By: Robert Luebke
Servings: 8

"These delicious muffins were a significant part of the first dinner I had with my wife when we were courting. She's an excellent cook, and that first meal was truly a gourmet's delight. Now whenever she plans a menu and asks for my suggestions, I make sure these muffins are on it."
-Robert Luebke, Appleton, Wisconsin

Ingredients:
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil 1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1. In a bowl, soak oats in buttermilk for 15 minutes. Stir in egg, sugar and oil. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir into oat mixture just until moistened. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 400 degrees F for 16-18 minutes or until muffins test done. Cool in pan 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2010 Allrecipes.com Printed from Allrecipes.com 6/27/2010

A Whisk and a Prayer

2010-12-19T08:00:00.000-08:00

I don't recall how I came across the blog I'm sharing today but it is SO one of my favorites! I just love it so far. I haven't been subscribed to the RSS feed for long but I really have liked what I've seen so far.

Recents I just saw after being a week or so away from the computer include candy cane shortbread cookies and butter pecan shortbread! Yum-a-licious!

Visit A Whisk and a Prayer yourself to see some lovely recipes and pretty blog.

Amazon.com: D.I.Y. Delicious: Recipes and Ideas for Simple Food from Scratch (9780811873468): Vanessa Barrington: Books: Reviews, Prices & more

2010-12-17T08:00:00.000-08:00

Amazon.com: D.I.Y. Delicious: Recipes and Ideas for Simple Food from Scratch (9780811873468): Vanessa Barrington: Books: Reviews, Prices & more: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

A Veggie Venture

2010-12-16T08:00:00.000-08:00

Another blog share... smiles.

I found this one day while searching the internet for Weight Watchers recipes that didn't include processed foods and were on the healthier side. I don't know if all this blog's recipes are whole foods verses packaged or processed but the recipes I've viewed so far have been pretty nutritious in content.

These aren't all WW but there is a section just for them. I eat whatever I want recipe wise because when I follow my points for the day (need to do that more) ... I just add the recipe to this online thing that will tell me how many points mine is. I just explained all that to let you know how I GOT to the Veggie Venture site in the first place.
It actually serves our family's needs well because there are easy to find WW recipes, vegetarian, and other healthy choices all in one place.

Garlic Soup - 56866 - Recipezaar

2010-12-15T13:02:00.000-08:00

Garlic Soup - 56866 - Recipezaar

This is something I had saved in my drafts folder for some reason. I probably wanted to try it and then post the recipe link, a photo and a small sharing on it. As you see, those things haven't happened but with all the cold weather chilling some of us and cold and flu season being in full swing... some garlic soup might be just what we need!

Girls Sleepover: Pantry Provisions!

2010-11-20T20:45:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Honey...

2010-11-16T17:41:00.000-08:00

My DIL and I took the grandkids to the store this morning and got ingredients for a Butterfinger Cake. Pops LOVES Butterfingers (his favorite candy bar and favorite blizzard) so the cake my DIL makes is a sure win for him.

She bought all the ingredients and we came back here. She started the cake and I heated up lunch (she brought that, too! Tilapia and brocolli... yum)

We had coffee and kept up with the kids until it was time to pick up our youngest. The same time I was walking out the door, a family friend turned family member, Timmy came over. I've mentioned him in several Home Notes but don't know if I have done so here. We met his family when he was only four years old and our boys were five, seven and nine. They live one house away from us and our land runs into theirs and all four boys ended up spending entire summers together, hung out at his parents' drive in movie theater and more. We all became like family. Anyway, he drove me to get Braxton and visited for awhile after with Blake (DH) and us. I found out the store he is working in now has a huge assortment of spices and seasonings to include a selection of exotic varieties!

I wasn't sure what we would have for dinner but the LORD provided beautifully. My mom gifted us with a bag of frozen chicken tenderloins and a generous amount of panko bread crumbs recently. She also gave us a bag of potatoes and two bags of unbleached flour! I made oven friend chicken tenders, homemade mashed potatoes, oven fried potato slices, and planned to make peas but forgot!
My DIL made sweet tea, cheddar biscuits and the cake.
My four year old granddaughter and three year old grandson helped any chance they could!

I am in a hurry and have so little time on here I almost didn't post but if I don't find a way to share as I make things --- I will have NO record of any of it. The whole point of this blog was to journal all we ate/made each day and share it with anyone who wanted to read it.

The butterfinger cake was a prepared German chocolate cake that she poked holes all over when it was cooling on the counter. She then poured almost two cans of sweetened condensed milk over the whole thing. When that cooled down, she topped it with 16 ounces of cool whip and topped that with a few bags of broken and crumbled miniature butterfinger bars.

Cheesy Onion Biscuits

Ingredients:

1/4 cup chopped onion (we had no onion so just didn't add it)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon shortening

1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

1/3 cup 1% buttermilk

Directions:

1. Place onion in a small microwave-safe bowl; cover and microwave on high for 1-2 minutes or until tender. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cheese and onion. Stir in buttermilk just until moistened.

2. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead 8-10 times. Pat or roll out into a 4-in. circle; cut into four wedges. Place 2 in. apart on a baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 450 degrees F for 8-12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

Last Minute Finish on 4th of July post!

2010-10-16T04:16:00.000-07:00

I am sharing as I find my slips of paper with recipes written, come across notes on what we've been doing and so on. Eventually, no matter how busy things are around here, I hope to be organized and write on a more regular basis.

Until then, here goes my "as goes" sharing:

For the 4th of July, my DIL, Brandy and I made the most delicious strawberries! I saw them on a blog I am subscribed to and they were so pretty in the picture that I immediately planned to make them. White chocolate is used and I don't actaully eat white chocolate but these were so delicious that EVERY ONE of the four packs of strawberries was eaten and not with a great deal of lingering between servings!

I also don't care for the taste of colored sugar but I adore the look of it. In the case of these red, white & blue strawberries though? MADE them. Added just the right little confectionary crunch.

The photo and blog I found these on will be edited into this post as soon as I find them again! I saved the post but somehow misplaced it but I know I have it so look for that soon;)

We just bought Baker's white chocolate squares and melted four squares at a time in the microwave (I know, I don't usually use this appliance but there are times . . . . ) and dipped the washed and patted dry strawberries in little batches. Immediately, while the half dipped berries were still freshly "dunked" ... we sprinkled light blue sugar on some and a brighter blue on others. We made even rows on disposable (I know, I don't usually buy or use disposables but there are times . . . . ) cookie sheets and put them in the fridge. I had one half tray we didn't have room for so I cut it in half and slid it onto a freezer shelf. They freezer BEAUTIFULLY! We actually put them in a freezer and kept until serving.

My MIL served the most amazing meal outside under some trees in her yard. She has a freezer in the garage so we put the strawberries there while we ate. It is hot here so this ended being a wise decision.

We had blue enameled pots of ribs, big, white porcelain bowls of potato salad, and various containers of corn salad, rolls, and some sort of deviled egg dish. Gallons were at the end of the long tables of sweet and/or unsweetened tea and ice was in buckets for easy cup filling.

Our Pastor blessed us by joining us (his family is in Romania for the summer to visit their homeland and have time with family) and we had a nice group. Everyone missed our boys and it was a little quiet without them there. One was working at the police department 30 minutes or so away, one was at a fire department a few minutes away (we sent them some food:)) and one was four hours away at college.

It was still so nice with Mamaw and her caregiver, Dovey and more.

I just found this posts not finished in my drafts folder (probably planned to add pictures) but I am sending it on to have a record of at least some of it! All the way from July 4^th! Granna had ribs, potato salad, corn, rolls and more catered by a caregiver’s son and I know there are pictures somewhere of our granddaughter, Hailey Hope clearing her first rib fest J

Some of my family's FAVORITE bread!

2010-10-16T04:15:00.001-07:00

Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread

Servings: 24
INGREDIENTS:
3 eggs
2 cups white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon orange zest
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
DIRECTIONS:
1.
Sift together flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices.
2.
In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and fluffy. Add sugar, and continue
beating until well blended. Stir in oil, vanilla, zucchini, nuts, chocolate
chips, and orange rind. Blend in sifted ingredients. Turn batter into two
greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans.
3.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 50 minutes, or until bread tests
done. Remove loaves from pans, and cool. Chill before slicing.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2010 Allrecipes.com
Printed from Allrecipes.com 7/10/2010

Testing/Dessert Recipe

2010-10-16T04:15:00.000-07:00

My 16-year old daughter made this tonight

Blueberry Crumble

Ready In: 35 Minutes

Servings: 15

Ingredients:

1 (21 ounce) can blueberry pie filling

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. Spread pie filling into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with lemon juice.

3. In a large bowl, stir together cake mix, nuts, and melted butter until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over pie filling.

4. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until top is light brown.

Nana Hood

2010-10-16T04:13:00.000-07:00

Nana Hood

Past few days . . .

2010-07-16T17:27:00.000-07:00

"The strands of spaghetti were vital, almost alive in my mouth, and the olive oil was singing with flavor. It was hard to imagine that four simple ingredients [olive oil, pasta, garlic and cheese] could marry so perfectly."
Ruth Reichl

I decided to not share the cauliflower soup recipe I made the day before yesterday. I wasted an entire head of cauliflower, a few potatoes, and more. Lots of time out the window. Tasteless and I don't think any amount of additions could have done much to remedy it!

My daughter made homemade hash browns and they were so delicious! We ate plates of them for lunch...
She just grated some peeled potatoes and added eggs, flour and salt and then pan friend them on a butter greased cast iron skillet. Oh, yeah. She also added chopped onions!

Yesterday, we had four pizzas using crust from mixes bec/ we were in a big hurry. I made a pepperoni and one with a sun dried tomato sauce, mozzarella, extra sharp cheddar, green peppers, onions and garlic. Brandy made one with green peppers and then topped after it was cooling with fresh basil leaves. Lauren made a "peace pizza" rectangle a different sauce on each side and a peace symbol in the middle made up of chopped green peppers. It was cool and I might be able to get the picture from her cell phone somehow and share it.

Today, we had vegetarian spaghetti and I was surprised by how well loved it was by all ages. I made angel hair pasta and while it boiled .... I sauteed chopped vidalia onions in some olive oil and about a tablespoon of butter. I removed that from the skillet and added zucchini triangles and salted them. As soon as they were partially cooked, I added a few cloves of finely chopped garlic and let it saute for a few minutes before adding to the pot the pasta had been in. I added the onions and some commercial sauce along with a can of chopped portabello mushrooms. We ate with shredded extra sharp cheddar, garlic whole wheat bread (Lauren made) and iced tea (Brandy made) and I added several slices of lemon to mine.

Emily (4 year old grandgirl) went wild for a lemon slice and her 2-year old brother (grandboy:) asked over and over for an apple. . . that is what he called the lemon. Smile.

Braxton ended up wanting lemon in his lemonade so the kids should have a citrus splash of nutrition for the day:)

We flopped two pans of brownies (don't try adding caramel bits thinking they will melt ... they don't!) but savored some hot, fresh coffee while we talked and the children played.

Summer in the South: A Dinner Idea from my Childhood

2010-07-13T18:16:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up, there were times when food had a real impact on me. Things someone might have thought nothing of but meant a lot to me and stored in my heart. Also, I was influenced and my family has been blessed from that as well.

Just a small scattering of these memories:

* A doctor giving me a tootsie pop and being nice enough to give me more for my sisters when I asked him. I remember Mom and I walking up to the door of our home and opening the door to my sisters and being able to hand them my sweet "gifts" ... it made my entire day and I was only around three years old but still cling to that moment.

* A less warm memory I've used to make sure I always try to make sure no one at any age has to feel bad in any way when eating at my table. My mother was working a full time job and paying good money (so it was skimmed from other areas ... like extras, entertainment, and so on even) to a woman who lived a few homes down from us. She had a school aged child and she worked it out with mom to allow us to come there in the mornings to eat breakfast with her son and then we'd all walk to the school bus together. Mom had to leave a full hour before we caught the bus to get to work on time and it was the first time we had stayed with someone in the mornings so it was already an adjustment.
Anyway, the woman was very nice to mom but as soon as she left... she would stop smiling and she would give us like 1/2 of a piece of bacon and a tiny portion of eggs and maybe 1/2 of a piece of toast but would give her son a full plate and allow him to have seconds or thirds if he wanted them. I remember how bad I felt... my 10 year old heart didn't understand why someone would act that way. My seven year old sister and I just thanked her and eventually we moved. Even if we are very low on food to this day, I will offer any portion we have on our plates to those eating with us... or more. It was a sad time for me but good came of it!

* My grandaddy used to fry apple fritters in a skillet. Nothing compared to them... nothing. They were comfort at it's finest. To this very day, I've never tasted one that came anywhere close to his. He made those or fried eggs with toast or canned biscuits and a few other things in his little kitchen. It was in that little kitchen that my uncle showed me how to hold my fork properly when I was very young and it was there my aunt showed me I could definitely like the white part of the egg along with the yellow if it was cooked this way and cut that . . . and she was right!

* An older woman who was the best homemaker I had seen other than my own dear, mom --- cooked like no one I had EVER been around. The best of the best baking and everything was always served so well. We had blueberry or strawberry pancakes (or plain pancakes) with blueberry and strawberry syrup and I could not EVER get enough of these! We had homemade pound cake served with heated milk and vanilla extract poured over it in a bowl (my most comforting food memory ever, perhaps) and so many things welcomed me in a culinary and homey way from her kitchen and breakfast room nook.

* One meal we had growing up that I was weary of when I first saw it but fell immediately in love with was fried potatoes, crowder peas with ketchup and mustard zig zagged on top, and homemade biscuits with butter. All of that and sweet, iced tea.

The latter was the inspiration for our meal last night!
We had a skillet of fried potatoes and Vidalia onions (DIL request) and a skillet of fried potatoes without onions . We also had a skillet of fried potato peelings bec my son started eating them in Italy or Afghanistan and loved them and we have fallen for them here now! Very delicious.

We also had field peas (crowder peas) from a can and cheddar bay biscuits ... kind of like the copycat Red Lobster biscuits but a world and more better!

This was served with our canned pickles and iced, sweet tea with lots and lots of lemon slices for those of us who LOVE lemon in our tea!

Our changes? LOTS more shredded cheese, buttermilk in place of milk and then a splash or two of milk to make it easier to stir and scoop. Small cookie scoops and less cooking time.

The topping: We added a few cloves of pressed garlic and a lot more butter! ALL ages loved these and after three cookie sheets were slid onto plates --- four tiny biscuits were left.

Todd Wilbur Reveals the Secrets to Great Restaurant Dishes
Order an entrée from America's largest seafood restaurant chain and you get a basket of some of the planet's tastiest garlic cheese biscuits served up on the side. For many years this recipe has been the most-searched-for clone recipe on the Internet, according to Red Lobster. As a result, several versions are floating around, including one that was at one time printed right in the box of a baking mix.
The problem with making biscuits using a baking mix is that if you follow the directions from the box you don't end up with a very fluffy or flakey finished product, since most of the fat in the recipe comes from the shortening that's included in the mix.

On its own, room temperature shortening does a poor job creating the light, airy texture you want from good biscuits, and it contributes little in the way of flavor. So, we'll invite some cold butter along on the trip-with grated cheddar cheese and a little garlic powder. Now you'll be well on your way to delicious Cheddar Bay. Wherever that is.

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups Bisquick baking mix
¾ cup cold whole milk

4 tablespoons cold butter (1/2 stick)

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

1 heaping cup grated cheddar cheese

Bush on Top:

2 tablespoons butter, melted

¼ teaspoon dried parsley flakes

½ teaspoon garlic powder

pinch salt

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. Combine Bisquick with cold butter in a medium bowl using a pastry cutter or a large fork. You don't want to mix too thoroughly. There should be small chunks of butter in there that are about the size of peas. Add cheddar cheese, milk, and ¼ teaspoon garlic. Mix by hand until combined, but don't over mix.

3. Drop approximately ¼-cup portions of the dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet using an ice cream scoop.

4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until the tops of the biscuits begin to turn light brown.

5. When you take the biscuits out of the oven, melt 2 tablespoons butter is a small bowl in your microwave. Stir in ½ teaspoon garlic powder and the dried parsley flakes. Use a brush to spread this garlic butter over the tops of all the biscuits. Use up all of the butter. Makes one dozen biscuits.

Recipe courtesy of Todd Wilbur, "Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2," Plume Books.
Copyright © 2010 ABC News Internet Ventures

Canning Pickles: Two Batches Down and A Blue Ball Canning Book To Go!

2010-07-11T17:54:00.000-07:00

"On a hot day in Virginia, I know nothing more comforting than a fine spiced pickle, brought up trout-like from the sparkling depths of the aromatic jar below the stairs of Aunt Sally's cellar." Thomas Jefferson

Bread and Butter Pickles

Canning has always intimidated me but I've heard it is quite necessary when growing a garden and I am starting to see why. Cucumbers are arriving by the arm load full almost every morning and zucchinis are becoming more and more our morning garden greetings.

Time and again, I read or was told to start with the Ball Blue Book Guide To Home Canning, Freezing & Dehydration. I got one many years ago and never used it and don't know what I did with it and then bought another somewhere around 1998. The info is apparently timeless so I am making this a worn out cookbook already!

I've been reading on boiling water methods, pressure canning, packing, pickling, and putting up foods in all kinds of ways! I'm learning what foods are high acid and which are low acid and why it is so important to pay attention to processing plans between the two. Highly recommend this book!

VERY first canning batch done by myself: (from the above mentioned book) -

Bread and Butter Pickles

4 pounds 4- to 6- inch cucumbers, cut into slices (we don't have a kitchen scale right now so we are using our regular weight scale!

2 pounds of onions, thinly sliced (about 8 small) --- I used Vidalia!

1/3 cup canning salt

2 cups of sugar

2 T. mustard seed

2 t. turmeric

2 t. celery seed

1 t. ginger

1 t. peppercorns (I used a peppercorn blend I had on hand)

3 cups vinegar

Combine cucumber and onion slices in a large bowl. Layer vegetables with salt; cover with ice cubes. Let stand 1 1/2 hours. Drain; rinse; drain again. Combine remaining ingredients in a large saucepot; bring to a boil. Add drained cucumbers and onions and return to a boil. Pack hot pickles and liquid into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner. Yield: about 7 pints.

2nd batch of canning was today:

Cucumber Chips

6 pounds 4-inch to 5-inch cucumbers, cut into 1/4 inch slices

1/2 cup canning salt

1 T. turmeric

1 quart plus 3 cups vinegar, divided

1 quart plus 1 cup water, divided

2 cups white sugar

2 sticks cinnamon

1 1/4-x1-inch piece of gingerroot

1 T. mustard seed

1 t. whole cloves

2 cups brown sugar

Put cucumber slices in a large bowl; sprinkle salt over cucumber slices; mix thoroughly. Let stand 3 hours. Drain; rinse and drain thoroughly. Combine turmeric, 3 cups vinegar and 1 quart water; bring to a boil; pour over cucumbers. Let stand until cold; drain. Taste cucumbers; if too salty, rinse thoroughly; drain. Combine white sugar, 1 quart vinegar and 1 cup water. Tie spices in a spice bag; add to pickling liquid . Simmer 15 minutes; pour pickling liquid over cucumbers. Let stand 12-24 hours in a cool place. Remove spice bag and pickles. Combine pickling liquid and brown sugar; bring to a boil. Pack cucumber slices into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Ladle hot liquid over cucumbers, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner. Yield: about 3 pints. I got 8 pint sized canning jars! I can't imagine six pounds of cucumbers filling only 3 pints!

Moosewood Fudge (and Peanut Butter) Brownies

2010-07-10T20:31:00.000-07:00

We have been baking so much lately!
Lots going on and we do this for serving in hospitality, to comfort others or ourselves, and just for the fragrance swirling through the house!

When Nana and the twins were here last, I wanted to make something sweet and special since we hadn't visited in a long while.
I also needed something quick, easy and not requiring a lot of ingredients.

The well used Moosewood Vegetarian Cookbook my mom gave me years ago came to the rescue!

We made one pan of Moosewood Fudge Brownies as directed on the box (except we used Ghiradelli dark chocolate squares instead of 3 (1 oz) unsweetened squares.
We made another pan and when it was ready to slide onto an oven shelf, I quickly swirled a large spoon of peanut butter in it and added a few "spears" of broken chocolate squares to the top. Both were adored but the second one was the favorite for many of us.

So much so --- that we made it again a couple of days later!
Here it is:

Moosewood Fudge Brownies
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 16 brownies

1/2 cup butter
3 squares (1 ounce each) unsweetened chocolate
1 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup unbleached, white flour

Preheat the oven to 350.
Butter an 8 or 9 inch square baking pan.
In a heavy large pot, melt the butter and chocolate together, stirring occasionally. While they melt, assemble the rest of the ingredients (if mixing by hand, beat the eggs with a fork in a separate bowl).
When the butter and chocolate have melted, remove the pot from the heat. Add the brown sugar and vanilla and beat by and or with an electric mixer. Add the eggs *just crack them directly into the pot if using an electric mixer). Stir in the four, and mix until the batter is thoroughly blended and smooth.
Pour the batter into the pan and bake for about 20 minutes, until the brownies are just beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan and are fudgey in the center. For more cakelike brownies, bake an additional 5 minutes.
Per 2-inch brownie: 153 calories

Note: Any leftover brownies can be crumbled for a sundae topping. These crumbs freeze very well and can be eaten without defrosting.

Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread

2010-07-10T20:18:00.001-07:00

Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread

This is a family and friends FAVORITE and has been for years. All ages love this and especially with a couple of delicious changes I've made along the way:)

Changes? I used lots and lots of orange zest and I get creative with the kind of chocolate I use. This time, Ghiradelli chocolate squares were on sale for $1.00 with a regular price of nearly $4. We bought a few bags and put them in the freezer for baking. They were the dark chocolate with 60% cacao and I cut them it pieces. I used a whole bag plus two and I think the bags were around 5 or 6 ounces.

Guess what?! The zucchini came from our garden!

This breads chills SO well. It is beyond excellent cold! Goes well with coffee or cold milk!

Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread

INGREDIENTS:

3 eggs

2 cups white sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups grated zucchini

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips 1 tablespoon orange zest

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg DIRECTIONS:

1. Sift together flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices. 2. In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and fluffy. Add sugar, and continue beating until well blended. Stir in oil, vanilla, zucchini, nuts, chocolate chips, and orange rind. Blend in sifted ingredients. Turn batter into two greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans. 3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 50 minutes, or until bread tests done. Remove loaves from pans, and cool. Chill before slicing.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2010 Allrecipes.com Printed from Allrecipes.com 7/10/2010

Culinary Activities in our Kitchen

2010-07-07T20:56:00.000-07:00

"The kitchen is a country in which there are always discoveries to be made."

Grimod de la Reynière (1758-1838)

My daughter, Lauren made some wonderful Kale chips. She actually got the kale (when we finally found some at a whole foods market) for green smoothies but we were out of fruit. I had been planning on trying this recipe so she made all of it that way. The first batch was cooked a bit too long so it was a little TOO crispy but the second was delicious. All of us here loved it and so did my DIL and grandbabies!

While my daughter and I were watching our youngest grandbaby, Elijah recently, we made a topping for vanilla ice cream. No, I don't always raid the homes of my kids and eat all their food! ;) Our second to oldest son and his wife were taking mentioned grandboy to the beach and they needed to eat the things that would go bad anyway. Hence, the reason we ate their ice cream.
ANYway, I melted some chocolate chips with a bit of butter and when it was glossy, stirred in peanut butter and marshmallow cream. It was different... kind of like a rich, hot fudge.

I made four loaves of whole grain bread and gifted some of the loaves. I prefer making these (or most usually six at a time) until I have filled a shelf in the freezer with dough logs and/or buns so we always have homemade bread on hand. This time, we ate two loaves in no time and gave away some.

There are three main recipes I use for a great deal of my bread making. This one and Vickilynn's from RealFoodLiving site so I'll share both.

Nita's Whole Wheat Bread--4 loaf recipe

Recipe By : Nita Crabb

Serving Size : 32

Categories : Yeast Breads

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

4 cups water -- 110 degrees

2 tablespoons yeast

1/2 cup honey

1/4 to 1/2 cup gluten, wheat

5 cups whole wheat flour -- freshly ground

4 teaspoons sea salt

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup olive oil (which is about 5 1/2 Tbsp.)

3 cups whole wheat flour -- freshly ground

2-5 cups additional whole wheat flour for kneading

Dissolve yeast in water and stir in 1/2 cup honey. Add gluten flour and

5 cups whole wheat flour and stir. Let sit about 30 minutes or until

big

and bubbly (mine comes nearly to the top of the Bosch bowl). Stir; add

salt, 1/2 cup more honey, and oil. Mix; add 3 cups flour. Add flour by

1/2 cupfuls until dough cleans the sides of the bowl. Let mixer knead

on

low speed 10 minutes. Remove dough from bowl and place in large,

lightly-greased bowl, turning once to coat top. Let rise until double.

Punch down, divide into four equal pieces. Form loaves and place in

greased loaf pans. Let rise until 1 1/2 inches above the rim of the

pans. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes (do not overbake). Remove from oven

and brush tops with butter to prevent crust from getting hard.

Yield:

"4 loaves"

* Exported from MasterCook *

VICKILYNN'S AWARD-WINNING BREAD - 6 loaf

Recipe By :Vickilynn Haycraft C 2000

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

6 1/2 cups water -- warmed to 100-110

3 tablespoons yeast -- SAF

6 cups whole wheat flour

2/3 cup olive oil

2/3 cup honey

2 teaspoons salt

1 cup vital gluten

9 cups whole wheat flour -- more or less as needed

In a large mixing bowl (I use a Bosch) place warm water, SAF yeast and 4

cups flour. Stir to mix well, then cover and let sponge 30 minutes.

Stir to punch down; add oil, honey, gluten and salt. Mix to blend; add 2

cups flour and turn mixer on low. Add flour by 1/2 cupfuls until dough

cleans the sides of the bowl and is no longer sticky. Knead on low speed

6- 8 minutes. The flour amount is approximate, use only enough flour to

cause the dough to pull away from the sides of the mixer bowl. Do not

add more flour.

Let dough rise in covered bowl 30 minutes until doubled. Punch down

dough place on oiled counter and divide into six pieces. Form loaves and

place in greasedloaf pans. Let rise in warm oven (turned off) until 1

1/2" above the rim of the pans.

With loaves still in oven, turn oven on and bake at 350 degrees for

about 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and cover with clean towel to soften crust.

Description:

"Makes 6 loaves, each 12 slices. Each slice is 2 points"

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 121 Calories; 3g Fat (17.8%

calories from fat); 4g Protein; 22g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg

Cholesterol; 62mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1/2

Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

PIZZAS!

I might have already shared the pizza crust recipes I used but I can't remember!

This time around, I grabbed the two quickest recipes I could find. One was topped with basic pizza sauce and two pizzas were made. One had pepperoni and cheese and the other just had cheese.

Easy Pizza dough recipe

From All recipes.com

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast (sometimes I use a smidge more)

2 cups warm water (110 degrees to 115 degrees)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

4 cups all-purpose flour

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add oil, salt and 2 cups flour. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. (I use my food processor) Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rest in a warm place for 10 minutes.

Divide dough in half. On a floured surface, roll each portion into a 13-in. circle. Transfer to two greased 12-in. pizza pans; build up edges slightly. Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

I make this dough in my food processor. I let the machine knead so skip that step because I don't want the dough to be tough. I let mine stand up to 30 minutes. Then roll out and top and bake. You can back the crust alone first if you like a crunchy crust. I like mine more soft and tender, so don't prebake.

I have lost the Focaccia crust recipe I used but will hopefully find it so I can post it soon. I topped it with homemade garlic, white sauce, two cheeses and sliced Vidalia onions. It was loved by three teenagers and two adults (my DIL and I along with my daughter and two of her friends!) and we gave the other pizza to the kids so we don't know if they liked it or not. Smiles:)

Garlic White Sauce

Butter (a few tablespoons)
Garlic cloves (a few to several, depending on how strong you want it) ... put through a garlic press
White flour (about as much as the amount of butter you use)
salt & pepper
milk or cream (just enough to make the sauce as thick or thin as you want it

Melt butter in skillet and add pressed garlic cloves OR chopped garlic. Sautee until fragrant and sprinkle flour in ... stir with whisk until blended and smooth. Add milk or cream until desired thickness and immediately take off stove. Salt and pepper and top pizza. I cooked my crust for a few minutes before adding and then add toppings. Cook at a high heat (400 degrees F. or more) until crust is cooked and toppings are starting to brown.

There have been lots more cooked up in our kitchen but this is getting longer and longer and it is getting late. I started it early this morning!

I will try sharing the rest in other posts!

Sunday Morning

2010-06-27T06:43:00.000-07:00

H.O.H. Tomato Sauce

2010-06-20T13:24:00.000-07:00

If I have already shared this recipe, forgive me!
I have been too busy to get posts written but along the way have still saved recipes and meals here and there to share. This was in my drafts folder so I thought I would go ahead and post it in case I haven't.

It is still important for me to keep a record of what we make and to make those things available for those who have been interested in getting them, too.

Sandy’s H.O.H. Tomato Sauce

H.O.H. Have on Hand --- Using the ingredients I have on hand to make the sauce we were going to buy. The store version is sun dried tomato sauce and I don’t remember the brand but it comes in a glass jar next to the alfredo sauce. We don’t use such high sodium, high fat, and high sugar processed foods usually but Lauren had a friend over and she wanted some to go over tortellini. We got that on sale today but no sauce so I made something similar.

We really liked it!

Garlic
Butter
Olive Oil
Flour
Heavy cream
Cheese
Garlic powder
Parsley
Salt & Pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg

Drizzle some olive oil and a few pats of butter in a skillet until butter is melted. Add fresh, chopped or pressed garlic and stir frequently to keep the garlic from burning. Keep on low to medium heat.
Sprinkle a small spoon or two of flour over the oil/butter mixture in the skillet and stir with a whisk. When it is smooth and blended well, add heavy cream. Just add approximately how much you’ll need for how many are eating (it is easy to make too much so keep that in mind) and keep stirring and heating up until heated thoroughly but not boiling.

Add just about any shredded cheese (If I had ANY parmesan, it would have been amazing for this) … I used sharp cheddar.

When cheese is melted t hrough, stir in some garlic powder , parsley, and the rest of the ingredients.

Pour this over hot, cooked tortellini!

Gnome Fairy Faerie Elf window by NothinButWood on Etsy

2010-04-24T17:29:00.000-07:00

Gnome Fairy Faerie Elf window by NothinButWood on Etsy

There is no end to how these little doors could be used. I like this rounded one with a little, window flower box. I might set up a tiny log for it in my herb garden this summer:)

The same etsy store (one of my favorite shopping spots!) has little wheel barrels, a small wood and more holder and a itty bridge.

Now, to keep the neighbor's cats away . . .

What We've Made Recently

2010-04-23T13:13:00.000-07:00

Here are the goods I've been baking and making in my kitchen for the past few weeks:
My husband brought some containers of strawberries home and I had planned to make strawberry bread for the longest time. I finally did and it was a lot darker than I knew it would be (maybe the extra vanilla and strawberry extract I added?) but it was so delicious!
I sliced some for us and it was devoured by our seven year old and the two oldest grandlittles, Emily and Caden. The recipe made two loaves so I sent slices for my niece's best friend and her mother and sent some home with my DIL for her husband:)

Strawberry Bread

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh strawberries
3 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
1 1/4 cups chopped pecans

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter and flour two 9 x 5 inch loaf pans.
2. Slice strawberries, and place in medium-sized bowl. Sprinkle lightly with sugar, and set aside while preparing bread mixture.
3. Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and baking soda in large bowl: mix well. Blend oil and eggs into strawberries. Add strawberry mixture to flour mixture, blending until dry ingredients are just moistened. Stir in pecans. Divide batter into pans.
4. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until tester inserted comes out clean. Let cool in pans on wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn loaves out, and cool completely.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2010 Allrecipes.com

Vegetarian-if-you-eat-eggs- Tortillas

My DIL and I were getting all kinds of help in the kitchen from Emily (4) and Caden (2) while we held Hailey (8 months) and with all our help. . . managed a great lunch.
We heated tortillas on a griddle and topped them with sharp cheddar cheese, caramelized onions and garlic, topped that with a fried egg, added some butterhead lettuce leaves and shook some hot sauce on the top. We wrapped them burrito style and they were so good!
We also had Brandy's (DIL) sloppy joe's from the night before and they were WONDerful.

Today, Nana & Papa surprised us with bags full of produce and a darling visit. We talked at the table and emptied a whole pot of coffee. I fried some potatoes with Vidalia onions and cooked cabbage in the WOK and put them all together for lunch. I added garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, salt and pepper to the potatoes and sprinkled parmesan cheese shavings over at the last.

Summer days are setting in so I will share from what I make as we carry along. . . smiles.

Food Finds and "Fixings"

2010-04-06T20:34:00.001-07:00

I pulled out cookbooks the other day to "dream plan" for when the food budget is more luxurious than of late:)

I just grabbed the quickest to reach from my cookbook shelves and ended up flipping through,
Saving Dinner and Crazy for Casseroles. What delicous ideas lined and landed in those books.

Meanwhile, I did another inventory of my pantry shelves, refrigerator and freezer, and kitchen supplies. I will share any creativity I am blessed to receive!

Here are some of the nutrititous basics I will be preparing:

Jars of dried beans {black beans, kidney beans, navy beans, white beans, lima beans and pinto beans}

A jar of potato flakes ... gift for my daughter from her Nana.

Jar of brown rice
spiral pasta
elbow pasta
angel hair pasta
frozen strawberries
frozen brocolli
cucumbers,
Romaine lettuce
tomatoes
bread

I also have some basic baking ingredients so I'm looking forward to seeing what we come up with. I will try to take pictures before it is eaten... not easy to do around this filled with people little house!

Celestial Seasonings Wellness Kit Giveaway!

2010-03-17T04:45:00.000-07:00

Celestial Seasonings Wellness Kit Giveaway!

Steak & Salad

2010-03-11T07:27:00.000-08:00

“Salad is never more appetizing than when served in a large wooden bowl.”
Dorothy Draper, 'Entertaining is Fun’ (1941)

Steak & Salad

My MIL was craving a good steak and huge, tossed salad. She gave us the money so my husband got the meat and I got the produce . . . funny how much that reflects us. I love fruits and vegetables and healthy, wholesome foods. Blake? He loves meat. If our freezer and refrigerator were full of beef, chicken, turkey, fish, and on and on the list goes --- he would be fine with little else.

Anyway, our DIL and grandbits came over and our 6-year-old went with Granna to see Grandpa in the VA hospital. While they did that and my husband grilled steak and chicken breasts, the rest of worked on the salad. It turned out better than any, ever before!

My DIL, 15- year- old daughter, and our 3-year-old granddaughter all helped! We washed and spun dry two heads of lettuce and filled a large drainer with a bounty of produce. We washed it well and peeled, cut, and grated everything into one, large, bowl.

My MIL came in mid way through and suggested I use the salad shooter for all of it since that is what it is for. I’m in such a habit of using a knife or food processor that I only shred the carrots and cheese most of the time, using the shooter.

I grated a bag of washed, peeled, carrots with the ends cut off and filled a bowl with them. Emily, my granddaughter asked me what the salad shooter was and I told her. She replied: “You mean, carrot shooter, Nandy?”

It was cute because she looked up from her little cutting board with little cutting knife (a small butter knife with a blue handle) and her small, yellow drainer full of vegetables to cut up. She paused with knife mid air and then went right back to cutting.

Caden, her younger brother (2 years old) took her spot using the old, wooden stool from Mamaw’s house. He added flair to his work by chewing some of the vegetables up and spitting them on the work table. Yes, I stopped him. Just thought the difference in Emily’s precise job and his stark contrast set smiles up in my heart.

Hailey talked and jabbered with a soft lid to one of our storage containers from a pallet on the floor. One of our Christmas Eve kittens was fascinated with her and kept watching her every move. The beagle tried to plop down with her since she loves pallets but we didn’t allow it and she sauntered off to the living room to sneak up on the couch.

Onto the salad!

This was it:

Bite sized lettuce
Sliced cucumbers
Sliced zucchini
Slice yellow squash
Sliced (half wise) vine ripe tomatoes
Shredded carrots
Sliced radishes
Sliced green peppers
Fresh broccoli heads
Dried cranberries
Sliced Pears
Sliced Kiwi (peeled, too)
Sliced Mangoes
Sliced red onions
Walnuts

It sounds like a strange combination, I know. It was beyond words and everyone raved on and on and on over it.

The next day, we ate it topped with shredded, sharp cheddar cheese.

We made up bottles of the Italian dressing you buy in packets and mix in cruets. When it is first made, we add honey and shake well before serving --- a tip from one of my sisters that we have fallen in love with.

We also had Raspberry Vinaigrette with walnuts and light Ranch for those who wanted it.

The salad was enjoyed at least as much as the steaks and this included my husband! He has always joked about me eating rabbit food but now he loves it. Laugh . . .

Wednesday: 3/10/10

2010-03-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

God has given us two hands:- one to receive with and the other to give with. We are not cisterns made for hoarding; we are channels made for giving.|

Billy Graham

Oatmeal Cake
1 ¼ cups boiling water
1 cup rolled oats
½ cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon of cinnamon
½ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon of nutmeg (we used this and then freshly grated some to go with it.)
Combine water and oats in a small bowl; set aside.

Place butter, brown sugar, and sugar in bowl. Attach bowl and flat beater. Turn to speed 4 and beat 1 minute. Stop and scrape bowl.

Add vanilla. Turn to speed 4 and add eggs, one at a time, beating 15 seconds after each addition. Stop and scrape bowl. Add oat mixture, flour, soda, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Turn to speed 4 and beat 30 seconds.

Pour batter into greased and floured 9 x 9 x 2-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 50-55 minutes. Cool cake in pan. When cool, top with Broiled Coco-Walnut Topping

Yield: One 9-inch cake

*My notes* We doubled the ingredients (started with the Kitchenaid but I made a mistake with the oatmeal so we needed to double it so I transferred everything to the Bosch mixer) and I added more nutmeg and chocolate chips --- ideas from my creative DIL!
I also put the topping on the cakes while the cake was hot and it was delicious!

Broiled Coco-Walnut Topping
¾ cup shredded coconut
½ cup chopped walnuts
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup butter or margarine, melted
3 Tablespoons heavy cream

Combine all ingredients thoroughly. Spread on top of cake. Place under broiler until topping is bubbly. Cool before serving.
From: The KitchenAid Cookbook

Wednesday with my DIL and three of my grandlittles was today and what a day it was! The first part of the morning consisted of me doing laundry, mopping the kitchen floor and doing some basic tidying and my DIL taking three kids in the rain on errands without an umbrella!

I wanted to bake something so the warmth created by the oven and the comfort of home baked goods would make things inside more welcoming.

We had salads for lunch (left overs from last night and I’ll share that in another post) and ended up adding French bread and roasted garlic hummus. So good!

We bounced babies on our knees while going through cookbooks and Brandy found the Oatmeal cake recipe. Great idea!

This was well loved by us and the three teen girls who came talking and laughing in from school later this afternoon.

We watched a movie (“Murder In Coweta County” --- a true story and had Andy Griffith and Johnny Cash in it) and visited until this evening. We were both so tired and longed for naps but those are pretty non-existent. {Smile}

My Dad & Notes on Now

2010-03-03T20:31:00.000-08:00

My Dad & Notes on Now (I sent this to the wrong blog the first time!)
Dear Readers,

For any of you who don't know, my dad passed away on February 8th at 11:30 pm.
I am hoping to write more soon and to share the recipes again now because I know he would encourage me to do just that.

I miss him.
Tonight, I was doing yet another cozying of my kitchen (have been working on it for days) and moved a picture of him with his name at the top. I felt like sitting down and crying in my hands until the tears were all gone but closed my eyes and kept moving.
The latter was much more comforting this time.

I hope each one reading this will cherish every single moment with your parents. Grandparents, kids, grandkids and on it goes. They are such SOUL GIFTS.

Onto the blog focus on food so I don't overwhelm you with too much of my own world and thoughts:

Today in my kitchen, I made four loaves of homemade bread, a delicious roast with carrots and potatoes in the oven, a very large chicken breast "oven fried", a pot of two pieces of chicken simmered in water with carrots and seasonings, a pan of homemade style noodles in the chicken broth (once the meat and carrots were removed) and a cast iron skillet full of fried chicken with a pan of gravy on the side.

This served us for lunch, dinner and some snacking through the day!

I planned to make a Cocoa and Banana bar dessert but didn't have bananas! If I end up liking it when I do try it, I'll share the recipe here.

The roast was put in a greased cast iron deep skillet and I cut it in four pieces, rubbed with oil, salt, pepper, minced garlic, and onion flakes. I added lots of carrots and some small potatoes.

The fried chicken was just a cut up chicken, washed and dredged in a flour, salt, pepper, and all purpose seasoning mixture. Once fully coated, I put it in a skillet with some peanut oil already getting hot and then sprinkled a bit more all purpose seasoning over all. The chicken didn't get turned until it was lightly browned on the side nearest the heat.

We really enjoyed these foods and all the ovens and stovetops created some darling heat all through the main rooms!

Our son was here from college (he came to see his brother and his new baby) so it provided a nice lunch and snack for him.

Our DIL took our oldest son back to the Police Academy so she stopped by and we had coffee and fixed plates of chicken, noodles, gravy and bread. God made that time cooking today overflow to comfort and feed all of us!

Kitchen Stuff

2010-01-15T10:01:00.001-08:00

http://www.mytoque.com/brands/cookware/la_chamba_soup_stock_pots.html

Chamba pots --- cool.

Nutmeg Notes

Pumpkin Frozen Yogurt

Hamburger Buns

Hot Cocoa Mix

Wednesday Night Dinner

Thermo Mix

Goodness!

Smallest note...

Cranberry Corn Bread

Recipe Details

Cranberry Corn Bread

Description

Ingredients

Directions

Nutritional Information

A scribbled list...

Potato -Salmon Chowder

Honey Cough Syrup

Blog writer note -

Spinach Lasagna... on our menu!

LASAGNA

Recipe using yellow squash & zucchini

EasyCheesy Zucchini Bake

My favorite, new, THIN pizza crust

1-Ingredient Ice Cream ... Made it!

Classic Southern Pralines

Sweet No-Bake Recipe: Classic Southern Pralines

Honey Baked Chicken

Honey Baked Chicken II

What to Drink?

Prep Time: 15 Min

Cook Time: 1 Hr 15 Min

Ready In: 1 Hr 30 Min

Servings (Help)

Ingredients

Directions

Two Food Processer Recipes

Pecan Lace Cookies

Plain, wholesome, well cooked food

Repost: Creating link for Rebecca's lovely letter!

Gardening Tip: Keeping Cats Out of Your Vegetable Beds | Apartment Therapy The Kitchn

Meals with Missionaries! Casual sandwiches & such

Meals with Missionaries! Meeting and first meal. . .

Sourdough Starter

Pantry Provisions

Hurried post: Notes on Sourdough Starters

Kefir and another BLOG Share!

Girls Sleepover & Pantry Provisions!

4th of July --- Yes, from 2010!

Blueberry Muffins

Sourdough Starters - Daily Notes

Whole Grain Sourdough/ Day One!

Sandy's Sourdough

Whole Grain Banana Bread

In & From my Kitchen

Stevia Cookies, Jalapeño Cornbread & Crockpot Soup

Whole Grain Banana Bread

January Kitchen Notes

Fluffy Pancakes

Sometime during the Summer Post

A Whisk and a Prayer

Amazon.com: D.I.Y. Delicious: Recipes and Ideas for Simple Food from Scratch (9780811873468): Vanessa Barrington: Books: Reviews, Prices & more

A Veggie Venture

Garlic Soup - 56866 - Recipezaar

Girls Sleepover: Pantry Provisions!

Happy Birthday, Honey...

Last Minute Finish on 4th of July post!

Some of my family's FAVORITE bread!

Testing/Dessert Recipe

Nana Hood

Past few days . . .

Summer in the South: A Dinner Idea from my Childhood

Canning Pickles: Two Batches Down and A Blue Ball Canning Book To Go!

Moosewood Fudge (and Peanut Butter) Brownies

Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread

Culinary Activities in our Kitchen

Sunday Morning

H.O.H. Tomato Sauce

Gnome Fairy Faerie Elf window by NothinButWood on Etsy

What We've Made Recently

Prep Time:
15 Min

Cook Time:
1 Hr 15 Min

Ready In:
1 Hr 30 Min