Sweet Dumplings for Fruit Cobbler

I or members of my family have been sick for the past 3+ weeks.  I'm worn out honestly.  The weather is nice, I have lots of activities I'd like to attend, just not really the energy to do it yet.  I've been on the mend for over a week now.  I'm hoping everyone else is on the upswing too.

We had dinner guests tonight and I made a Peach Blueberry Cobbler for dessert.   Summer desserts are some of my favorite.   I Love chocolate.  Especially good chocolate where you only want a bite or three.  Cakes and Pies are delicious as well.  However, there is something unmatched about baking with delicious fruit, fresh in season!  These are the desserts I contemplate making two of, and hiding on in the corner cupboard just for me.  The types of desserts that if there is a bit left in the pan after dishing everyone up,  I WILL devour it without thought of sharing!

This is my go to dumpling recipe no matter what fruit i'm cooking with.  I feel it goes with most everything, and can still yield a good result when I do it quick and dirty (meaning, I'm not measuring much).  I have used so many liquids, and they've all worked well with slight flavor variations.  I prefer the buttermilk so far.  Though I am tempted to make this with coconut cream the next time I have some on hand,  I'm willing to bet, it would be delicious too!

Sweet Dumplings

Instructions:

• 1 cup flour
• 2 T sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 tsp grated lemon peel
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup cream, half and half, buttermilk, evaporated milk, or even, plain ole milk

Directions:

1. Combine Flour, Sugar, Powder, Salt and the lemon peel in your mixing bowl.  
2. Using a pastry blender cut in your butter till you have a mixture that resembles corn meal.
3. Pour in your choice of liquid.  Combine only until all dough is moistened and evenly mixed.
4. Drop spoonfuls over your prepared filling.  Sprinkle with nutmeg if you wish.  I usually do!
5. Bake at 400 Degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

I am tempted to make this with coconut cream the next time I have some on hand,  I'm willing to bet, it would be delicious too!

Switching Fires

A slight change of plans today.

I am told, perhaps only by friends to help me feel better, that even professional builders have that one measurement that in the end just isn't right.  Here is mine.  Last week, I measured out my coop and build the base in position.  Then, my darling husband helped me dig through the rocks mixed with dirt and debris we lovingly refer to as the ground around here to not only even the ground out for the legs, but also to be able to bury and flay out hardware cloth.  The coop is very near being finished and we asked a few friends to help us move from the backyard where I've been building it on top of a little tykes toy, to the side yard where the chickens will be kept.  This move was a bit complicated as there was a tree in the way that required lifting the coop over the fence and into the neighbors yard to bypass.  With three grunting men, and two buff women helping, we got the coop to the base!  Score!
Oh Wait.
There is an overhang on the roof.  Of course there is an overhang on the roof.  They are supposed to be built that way to ensure that the rain will run off the edge of the roof and not straight down the outer wall of your building.  
However, I didn't take that into consideration when burying the base and it's accompanying wire. So, the coop won't sit on it's base.  We're off by a measly inch.  AN INCH I SAY!
So, command decisions needed to be made while we had the man power to help us.  We took off a lower roof and switched the direction the coop is oriented on the base.  This messes will all sorts of little details.  Like, the egg boxes not being located at the end of the coop adjacent to the side door for easy collecting, the feeding tubes not being in the same local, the muck doors being only feet away from the compost bin, and the trap door built into the bottom of the coop so the chickens can go into Fort Knox (their small but very secure) run when we are going to be gone all day no longer lines up with the supports underneath.

I feel the need to scream.  Just a little bit.

Tonight I had the idea in my head I was going to relax with a friend a little bit and do some crafting.  My friend came over, we played a game with our husbands before they headed off together, and we got out supplies.  Only, I never got around to any of it.

I did reclaim my kitchen.  Kinda embarrassed that I loaded a full dishwasher, and then hand washed 6 baking dishes, 3 pots, and 4 large bowls.   It's been a long weekend of doing many other things....
I also mopped the floor after Abigail tried to clean it for me with baby oil.  I must admit, it was very shiny!
I also scrubbed the backdoor and adjacent molding after Abigail drew on them with pen, right in front of me!

So, after taking my friend home, I realized there is a potluck tomorrow after church that I needed to make salads for.  Lucky thing I just cleaned my kitchen eh?
So, I made my families Blueberry Salad, that I actually have changed into a Fresh Blackberry Salad since I live in Washington and have access to them.  Then I wanted to make the Pink Jello Salad, but tried to take it up a notch by cooking my jello with pineapple juice and a cup of marshmallows until it thickens, then once it cooled whipped it to a bright fluffy mess and then mixed it in with the other ingredients.  From tasting the spoon once I got it into its bowl, I am willing to say I'm positive it was worth the extra effort.
Since I'd started with a clean kitchen I was inspired to clean along the way.  I was also inspired to make muffins for the morning since I had blackberries from the freezer out on the counter.  It felt great to be in the kitchen for the night.  It felt productive.  I don't even mind that its after midnight and I'm not done yet, because everything is working out.

I had a tendency to burn out on projects when things get rough.  I can't tell you how many unfinished projecst I have.  The chicken coop has definitely started to get much harder recently!  Two days ago, I had to change the position of the roosting poles three times, which means there are 6 un-used holes to putty. Just last night I got stuck trying to figure out the angles and lengths to cut to make the foux chimney.  I asked Kolton to figure out the Geometry of it all for me and the geek came through and got me all my measurements and angles.
Tonight, I made a list of everything that needed to be done to finish the coop.  I came up with 10 things.  I am praying I have everything on the list.  I am getting tired of this project.  The chickens are getting tired of living in their box in the garage.  I will finish this.  I will push through.  I have not worked so hard for so many hours to quit now!  But for tonight,  I am going to go to bed.  Maybe I will be able to find a few positives in all the changes that had to be made in the morning light.

Canning Chicken from Zaycon Foods

I have been buying food in bulk from a company called  Zaycon Foods  for over a year.  I have purchased 40lb boxes of chicken, 20lb boxes of bacon, 10lb boxes of steak dogs, 20lb boxes of ground steak hamburgers as well as many bushels of fruit.  The prices are lower because you are both buying in bulk, and skipping the middle man of the grocery store.  For example, the chicken is $1.49 a pound.  I have never been disappointing in the high quality, and absolutely love their system for picking up your food.  If only all grocery stores let you order online, drive-up to the truck, check you off on the order list, and then load your food into the car for you.  Heaven!
Tonight was the pick up date for my chicken order.  I had the kitchen prepared for processing before I left the house.  One entire counter was cleared of anything, the cutting board and knives were ready, and all of my jars were pre-measured with salt.  I have discovered the joy of cooking with canned chicken and decided to can all of this box since we still have many chicken breasts in the freezer from our last order.
To my surprise though,  after I carried the box into the house, my husband appeared donning his chef's jacket and went right to work cleaning the chicken breasts, cutting them and packing them into the jars.  It was great to see him make such quick work of the job with his knife skills.  I generally plan for 2 hours to prepare 40lbs of chicken, but he did it in less than an hour!

If you're interested in buying in bulk, check Zaycon out,  they have been expanding quickly and are covering the majority of the US now!

Homemade Bagel Chips

When you make the Original Chex Mix, do you buy bagel chips to put in? Or, are you like me and refuse to pay $5.00 for a 7oz bag?  Sadly, bagel chips have always been one of my favorite ingredients in the mix!  So, this fall, when I started making Chex Mix recipes, I thought to myself, "I make croutons at home.  Why not Bagel Chips?"   Well, guess what.  I tried it.  It's super easy and cheap to boot.  Score!

• First, you slice your bagels.  For future reference, I'm using 3 bagels in this batch.

Depending on what I want the chips for, I slice them differently.  For any snack mix, I prefer the coins.

For soup or salad, I go with the faster method of plank slices.  Why?  Because, I'm lazy like that.  

• Second, combine 2 Tablespoons melted butter or olive oil with your choice of seasonings mixed in.  I'm a garlic lover, so I added 3 large garlic cloves, minced.   You could do onion and garlic, parmesan and garlic, herb and garlic (Told you, I love garlic.)  Then placing all your bagel pieces in a large plastic bag, pour in the melted butter/olive oil and shake.  This will help with equal distribution.

• Third, Empty contents of your bag onto a cookie sheet, spreading them out evenly.  Pop into a hot oven at 325 for 15-20 minutes until they are turning brown.  (YMMV, so watch carefully!)

• Fourth,  Enjoy!  Once they are cooled you can put them in a container for storage for the week, or use them immediately in your soup.  

Cheesy Ham and Potato Soup

We are busily cleaning up the leftover ham from Christmas. Sound familiar to anyone else?  I have a few meals that I'm hungry for, but I'm trying to clean up this ham before it goes to waste.  I have enough for 2-3 meals, but I don't feel like I have enough to bottle like I'd wanted.  I thought a few half pints put away for future ham sandwiches and soups would be wonderful, but it's not going to happen this time around.  

I love this creamy comfort soup.  It starts very simply with softened onions, large chopped veggies and stock.
The roux is made separate and then combined once the veggies are cooked through.

We served this with homemade toasted garlic bagel chips.  YUM!


Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups potatoes,  peeled and roughly chopped.
2 stocks celery, roughly chopped

1 large carrots, roughly chopped1 onion, finely chopped

3-5 cloves garlic, minced1 -2 cup ham , diced and cooked
3 1/2 cups stock
1 teaspoon pepper

5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons flour
2 cups  milk
2 cups cheddar cheese , shredded


Directions:

1.    Bring you're soup pot up to cooking temperature.  Then saute the onions in a bit of olive oil.  Once the onions are translucent, combine celery, carrots, and garlic into your soup pot.  Cook for 3-5 minutes.  

2.  Add potatoes, stock and pepper.  Cook over Medium heat till potatoes are soft, 20-30 minutes.

3.  In separate saucepan, melt butter over low heat.  Whisk in flour and cook stirring constantly until thick.

4.  Slowly stir in milk making sure to beat out any lumps that form.  Continue to cook until you're roux thickens.

5.  Add cheese and stir until melted.

6.  Stir the cheese mixture into you're soup pot and cook until heated through. 

Enjoy!

Creamy Tomato Pancetta pasta with Feta

Sometimes, when you try to make dinner with whatever you find in the fridge and pantry, you find a masterpiece.
This time I'll contribute it to the wonderful ingredients.   After all, with cream and pancetta, how can you really go wrong?   Add in simple prep, and 20 minutes of cook time, and it's a keeper for us.

Pancetta and Feta Pasta

Ingredients:
½ lb Pancetta, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
14 oz diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
¼ cup cream
Fresh Basil
Feta

Directions

1. Fry the pancetta in a saucepan until crispy, about 5 minutes
2. Drain some of the fat according to diet/taste
3. Add the onions, fry until caramelised
4. Add the garlic and diced tomatoes, gently fry around 5 minutes
5. Add the tomato sauce and leave on low heat for 15 minute
6. Turn off heat, stir in ¼ cup cream. Add more if you're feeling indulgent!

    Top with Fresh Basil and Feta to serve over Pasta. Enjoy!

Such a Yummy Day

Mixed in with a huge day of homeschooling, many loads of laundry, and all the other normal every day things today I canned.  Again.

This morning I did a load of Black Beans.  I did the same thing as with the Kidney Beans the other day.  I soaked them overnight, rinsed them a few times, and then filled the jars about 3/4s full with beans (for pints that is about 1 1/2 cups).  I topped the jars off with water and a tsp of salt for flavor.  They then processed in the pressure cooker for 75 minutes.
     Beans - $3.00
     Lids - $1.16
     Each Pint = $0.57 cents
     The bottles contain a bit more than a traditional can of beans you'd buy from the store.

This afternoon, once I got the chickens roasting in the oven (important for later!), I started working on the 20 lbs of grapes I bought for $0.99/lb.  I used my Victorio Food Strainer again with the shorter spiral.  I couldn't find any information on which grate to use though.  I started out using the apple/tomato grate, and then later moved to using the pumpkin grate as I wanted the pulp for jam.  I only had enough sugar and pectin on hand to make 2 batches of Grape Jam.  Thankfully though, we did all the mashing/juicing today and there is another 10 cups of grape juice sitting in the fridge to make two more batches of jam tomorrow. The grapes were BY FAR the messiest thing I have canned this year!
      Grapes - $20.00
      Sugar - $4.00
      Lids - $2.33
      Each Pint - $1.88
      This stuff is Delicious!  Even with the ability to buy cheaper, I'm glad I did the work to make this.

Once we ate dinner, my dear darling pulled all the remaining chicken off the carcasses for me.  We tossed the bones into the stock pot with carrots, celery, onions and bay leafs, covered in water and let it simmer away while I tried to clean up everything else for a few hours.  I was able to get 7 pint jars of delicious Chicken Stock from the 2 roasted chickens!   I have always frozen chicken stock before, but now that I have a pressure canner of course I had to can it!   It has a very short processing time of only 25 minutes, so I figured.... Why Not!?
     Chicken Bones - Free
     Onion, Celery, Carrots, Bay Leaf - Negligible
     Lids - $1.16
     Each Pint - $0.17 cents a bottle!
     Definitely worth you time!

I was also taken out to a delicious lunch at Saffron Grill in North-gate.  It is one of my favorite Indian Restaurants.  We won't break that down.... I'd have a harder time justifying it!

Such a delicious, yummy, disastrously messy day!

Autumn Beef Stew

   Tonight I made a delicious stew.  Partially because the weather has started to turn cooler and partially because when I got home from a very long day at 5:30, I needed to figure out something to make for dinner; and many of these ingredients were already in my fridge.  Isn't that one of the best things about soups and stews?  They allow you to dump things in a pot and still taste fabulous?  

   When I started this stew, the tomato flavor was overbearing.  It was at that point that I added in the leftover roasted acorn squash that was sitting in the fridge from earlier this week.  It was just the flavor that was needed.  This was going to be just a one off dish of whatever I could put together out of the fridge in a hurry, but the kids all asked if I would make it again, so I thought I better write it down!

  
   Enjoy!

Autumn Beef Stew

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons margarine
• 1 small white/yellow onion, chopped
• 1 small red onion
• 4 carrots, sliced
• 3 stalks celery, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 cups water
• 1 potato, chopped
• 1 sweet potato, chopped
• 2 pounds cubed leftover beef roast
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Soy sauce
• 1 bottle tomatoes
• 1 acorn squash, mashed

Directions

1. Melt butter in a skillet, and saute onions, carrots, celery and garlic until they are tender.
2. Sprinkle Flour over veggies and stir well.  Let brown for 1-2 minutes.
3. Pour water into pot and bring to boil.
4. Add Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes, then let cook for a few minutes.
5. Add Tomatoes , Roast, Acorn Squash and seasonings.
6. Bring to a simmer, and cook over medium-low heat till flavors meld.
7. Serve hot with Crusty Bread!

A Little Sweetness

I am the proud new owner of a Victorio Food Strainer/ Sauce Maker.   Let me tell you.  It Rocks.
Weeks ago I spent many an hour cruising the net trying to figure out what tool would be the best choice for working with blackberries.  I have frozen my entire harvest the past two years, but this year I really wanted to make some Jams and Syrups.  I made my first batch of Blackberry Jam over a month ago, and while it all got devoured in the first two weeks, the seed content was undesirable.  Honestly, it was just plain annoying.  The seeds made the jam very chewy and got stuck in your gums all the time!
Unfortunately, I waited too long in the season to make the decision to buy the Victorio, and I only had one bucket of blackberries left.  I took my bucket of blackberries, washed them a bit, then dumped them in a large stock pot with about half a cup of water.  I boiled them for a few minutes, till the point where they started to soften, then poured them into the strainer's hopper.  It took only a few minutes to process the seeds from juice and pulp!   (I tried to reprocess the seeds/skins but would not recommend this for blackberries.  There was not enough fruit left to separate and I ended up jamming the tool with solid seeds.)  I then poured the juice and fruit pulp back into the stock pot to boil with some sugar and some lemon zest till it started to thicken and then poured it into small jars.  Thankfully we had a little too much for 8 jars, and I had to use some up, right away.  This syrup is amazing on ice-cream and looks beautiful to boot!  I can't wait to try it on waffles!  I am sad I don't have any more blackberries to work with as I'd love to make a batch of syrup with a bit of Almond flavoring added...  Just the thought makes my mouth water.

Along with the syrup, I was able to can a few apple sauce variations.  I cut apples in half and roasted multiple huge pans in the oven, then used the Victorio to mash all of the ingredients together.  While this took a very long time to make so much applesauce, it was really light work.  Both Khali and Porter loved to crank the handle and smoosh the fruit down the hopper.  I was able to reprocess the discarded skins and seeds a second time on the apples to reclaim more sauce.  I was amazed how dry the seeds and skins where when we were done.  I felt there was very little fruit wasted.

• I combined some with Pears and a little bit of vanilla and nutmeg for an Apple-Pear sauce.
• I mixed some with Poached Peaches and Ginger for Apple-Peach sauce.
• I also left a few jars straight Roasted Apple sauce, which is delicious on its own.

At this point, I ran out of large quart bottles, and only had pint, and jelly jars left on hand.  With no desire to run to the store to pick up another case, I was inspired to cook down the rest of the apples further to make a delicious Apple Butter.  I followed the recipe found here http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/apple_butter/.  I snuck a bit before canning it and think its a definite keeper.

Amazingly, after canning for four days straight, the only wound I received was a burn from that darn apple butter.  Watch out when you're cooking it down, you're working with such a thick sauce the air bubbles pop pretty high!  

There is a beauty involved with canning.  I am enjoying looking at all of the bottles filled with beautiful food.  Part of me just wants to keep canning and putting food away.  It is the same part of me that sheds a tear whenever I drive past a blackberry bush that is now succumbing to fall.   But at the same time, I am very excited to be putting away the canning supplies tomorrow and reclaiming the kitchen and dining rooms.  Now if only I could figure out where to put all this food!

 

September is for Preserving

I have been very busy this month working on putting away produce for the rest of the year.  Blackberry season seemed to be a bit late this year, not really coming on until the second week of September, but the kids and I have managed to put away about 4 gallons of berries, and make one batch of blackberry jam (not to mention several batches of muffins, pie bars, and any other baked good that sounded delicious at the time).  I think the season is just about over, but I am trying to get another gallon or two to make into Syrup.  We will have to see if the bushes have enough left to support this en devour.

Saturday a friend called me and asked if I was interested in some boxes of tomatoes as she was at a fruit stand in Bellevue picking some up already.  She kindly brought me home 4 boxes of tomatoes.  When trying to figure out how much of any food you will need, it's a bit of an iffy proposition with multiple variables.   I have never tracked how much of anything we've used before in a winter, so this was my best guess.  I knew that we needed to make a batch of Chili Sauce, and that we were out of all canned tomatoes.  Turns out that 80 lbs of tomatoes turns into 46 quarts of tomatoes, and 9 pints of Chili Sauce. (In case you are wondering, Chili Sauce is what we serve on our roasts every Sunday and is a staple in our home.  I believe the original recipe, that my family still uses today, came from my husbands great-grandmother.)

I feel lucky that only 2 of the quarts did not seal.  They are sitting in the fridge for use this week.  Now I just need to figure out where I am going to store all of these!

It has been a busy weekend.  I never want to see another produce box of tomatoes, unless it looks like this. Zander was a pretty good little guy while I slaved over the steaming stove for hours at a time.  He thought playing in this box was a great thing, especially when I added Goldfish crackers into the equation.   

He is pretty Select, don't ya think?

Khali helped me in the kitchen canning the first two batches of tomatoes on Saturday and was an invaluable addition.  She is growing up so quickly!  Today she helped take care of the little two by making them a box train and pulling them around, and around, and around the house.   She had a good time in the creation of her idea, and the little kids had a good time snacking and riding around.  

I am all done with Tomatoes for this season.  Now I just have to deal with the boxes of apples.... but that is for another day.  I ordered a Victorio Food Strainer to help me with this project that will be here soon!  I'm actually a little excited about this next canning activity!  

Thai Cashew Chicken

Because Kolton works by the International District of Seattle, when he eats out, its often Oriental food. When he did the grocery shopping last, he came home with a large bag of delicious cashews and the veggies the dish require with the idea in mind that we could recreate one of his favorite dishes. I Googled up many recipes to try to get an idea of how to approach the dish, since I had never before seen or eaten it.  That night,  I worked beside Kolton in the kitchen as we put together the dish and tweeked things here and there till we were happy with the outcome.  Since the original creation we've continued to modify and are now happy with the dish as a keeper. 

2 Tbs. canola oil
1 Tbs. sesame oil
2 T Chili Paste
1 clove garlic
1 tsp shredded ginger
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
1 large green pepper

1 large red pepper

1/2 large onion, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2 carrots
1/4 cup oyster sauce

1 Tbs. sugar
1 cup Cashews


Heat oils in a pan over medium heat on the stove top.  Stir in Chili paste, Garlic and Ginger letting the spices warm for a few minutes, being careful to not burn.
Take these minutes to coarsely peel and chop all of your veggies.  
Once the spices have had time to infuse the oil, stir in the chicken broth and allow to warm for a moment before proceeding.
Carefully put all chicken pieces into the pan turning and stirring to allow all chicken to be coated in the sauce before you continue to cook for a few minutes until chicken is no longer pink.   At this point stir in your Oyster sauce and Sugar.   Next place large vegetables into pan, turn down to medium low heat, cover with a lid, and continue to cook until vegetables are lightly cooked.  I think this dish is best when the vegetables have a bite to them and are not mushy, but you can cook them for as long as you'd like.
While the main portion of your meal is cooking, I like to toast my cashews for just a moment in a cast iron pan.  I have skipped the toasting step before and no one seems to complain though. 
Serve topped with Basmati Rice topped with almonds and you have a finished dish!  

*You can add other veggies as well.  The time pictures above I tossed in a sliced zucchini. 

Foodies - Great Resources!

I go through phases in my kitchen leaning on one method of preparation more than the rest for periods of time, depending on what life has on my plate.  I am aware that going into the rainy season soon on top of being returned to baby momma status, that I will be soon turning to my Crockpot to avoid the evening dinner woes that are inevitably on the horizon.  

Today I came across another local North West transplant.  Whom like me, is enjoying a summer of moderate temperatures, unlike the ones we left back home further South.  If you're looking for some recipes to add to your  menus, check Jessie out over on her blog Bites.  I have a few recipes bookmarked to start with including the Slow Cooker Chocolate Mess.  With a name like that, and a picture of it served with Ice Cream.... I just can't wait!  She also has beautiful red dish ware that serves as the backdrop to most of her food pictures that I'm in love with.  

Tonight for dinner, I made her Crockpot Chicken with Black Beans  for dinner knowing that I would be coming home from shoe shopping with the kids and we would all be hungry.  With only 5 ingredients, I had the time to put it together in the Crockpot while telling the kids to get their shoes on and get themselves  into the car.  The recipe also works using frozen chicken, which I tend to always have in the freezer and keeping preparation simple.   We served this over rice, but I would like to try it wrapped up in a tortilla next time.  The kids all asked for seconds, so despite its lack in appearance, this recipe is a keeper for us!

Crockpot Chicken with Black Beans

1 lb frozen boneless chicken 

1 (15 1/2 ounce) can black beans -drained

1 (15 ounce) can corn - drained

1 (15 ounce) jar salsa, any kind

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese

Directions

Combine frozen chicken, black beans, corn and salsa into Crockpot.  

Keep in crock pot on low for about 5 hours or until chicken is cooked and easy to shred.

Add 1 package of cream cheese (just throw it on top!) and let sit for about 1/2 hour.

Break your chicken into pieces, or shred and serve over a bed of rice.

Yummy Banana Bread

I have a lovely friend that shared some Banana Bread with me, and after devouring it at her home, I knew I had to have the recipe! Her grandmother had created this recipe and passed it down through her family, and now you can make it too! Be warned though, the first time I made this Banana Bread, the entire 9x13 pan was gone in a few hours, and then we made a second batch which lasted the rest of the day.

Banana Bread

1 1/2 cups Sugar, I prefer a mixture of white and brown.
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Oil

1 1/4 cup Mashed banana
1/4 cup Buttermilk or Soured Milk

1 tsp. Vanilla

2 1/2 cups Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 tsp. Baking powder
3/4 tsp. Salt

Set up your mixing bowl and cream together the first three ingredients. Then combine the next three ingredients into the bowl. Measure and mix the last 4 ingredients together before pouring those into the wet ingredients and lightly mix together. Don't let your mixer go for too long on this step!

Pour into a greased 9x13 cake pan and pop into a hot oven at 350 for about 30-40 minutes. The Banana bread should be a lovely golden brown on top and pulling away from the edges of your pan. Test the center with toothpicks before taking out of the oven as there is nothing worse than gooey banana bread!

Dry Mixes in the Kitchen

Today , despite the extremely warm temperature, the little two girls ate the rest of the oatmeal packets that I had bought on a killer sale this past winter. All of my girls love oatmeal whether its for breakfast or a snack, and the older kids are also able to make their own, which at this season in life, is a big plus for Mommy! I have made up an oatmeal mix before hand and kept it in a larger container to measure out individual bowls, but really wanted to keep the 'single serving' idea going to reduce both disaster and waste. The girls all really enjoy being able to choose different types as well. Many websites tout being able to use snack size bags for this, but I really dislike storing food in plastic bags. I may be the only person with this problem, but without a doubt, one or two bags of some substance gets pushed to the bag of the cupboard. Undoubtedly, I only find it way after its prime and it often will have bugs of some sort. That means all my efforts to be frugal and healthier are blown to bits because I end up throwing away the food from that cupboard! I have learned to keep all food in very tightly sealed containers, it just works out better for me. Luckily I have kept all the baby food jars Abi has eaten in the past year and they are a perfect size to store a single serving of a flavored oatmeal!

I let the girls help with the entire project, from the blender, to the measuring, to the snacking on the raisins the entire time, which created a huge disaster, but proved to be a lot of fun as well. (I would have taken pictures of them being all cute, but my camera was upstairs and I was too lazy to go and get it, sorry!)

Here is what we did:

• 1/4 Cup quick oats
• 2 Tablespoons ground quick oats (like a coarse flour)
• 1 Tablespoon non-dairy creamer (think coffee)
• 1 Teaspoon -1 Tablespoon sugar (sometimes brown, sometimes white)
• 2 Tablespoons dried fruit bits of your choice (or however much more you can git into the jar)

We mixed up three kinds of oatmeal this time around, Blueberries and Cream (which contains dried blueberries and extra creamer), Raisin Spice (which contains raisins, 1 heaped tsp cinnamon and a healthy sprinkling of nutmeg) and Apples and Cinnamon (which contains dried apple and 1 heaped tsp of cinnamon). The sugar amount is really going to vary depending on what your families tolerance is currently set to. Since my kids have been eating the Quaker oatmeal packages, they like it very sweet. I am planning to make each batch with a bit less sugar until we taper down to 1tsp of sugar, unfortunately, right now, to make it palatable for them, we are closer to 3/4 Tablespoon.

The best parts of this kitchen endeavor are the ingredients are of much higher quality, each serving seems to be much more filling and they are much less expensive than the store bought counterpart!

Since the kitchen was already a dusty disaster, I figured we should just keep on rolling and put together some muffin mix in larger quart mason jars as well. I followed the "Universal Muffin Mix" the is found all over the net. I have made this mix before and rarely change a thing on it. I often cut in 2.5 cups of Crisco, reducing the amount of oils/fats that are necessary later. This makes the mix much more time consuming to make, but I prefer it to the regular recipe. Make sure you have a very large bowl if you are going to attempt this! This mix fills my large 'Thatsa Bowl" from Tupperware that is a 42 cup capacity. Once mixed, I measured 3 cups of the dry mix into my quart jars and labeled them for the pantry. With this size dry mix, I use 1 cup water/liquid, 2 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1/4 cup of oil/butters. This results in roughly 12 large muffins. This is very akin to the Better Crocker Muffin Mix's that are so simple to make, but offers so many more possibilities. One of our favorite variations that is not listed on RecipeZaar is Strawberry Banana Muffins. Mix in a big heaping spoon of strawberry jam with a few over rip bananas. And, if you're wondering; Yes, heaping spoon, sprinkle, pinch, handful... those are all very useful words in my cooking vocabulary. Cooking is about living a little!

Once the muffin mixes were done, I really wanted to forge ahead and make up a half dozen bread mixes as well, but alas, my ankles were barely differentiable from my calves, so my time in the kitchen was over. Hopefully another day in the near future will yield more dry mixes for my pantry.

Buttermilk Syrup

I had a wonderful Mothers Day. My Loving Husband made me an omelet and a strawberry smoothie, complete with ice cream to start out the day! At church we had a wonderful talk about the value of mothering in sacrament and the primary children sang a few songs for all the mothers. To top it all off my Darling took the baby to his classes and I sat all by myself in Relief Society. Honestly, I didn't know what to do with myself! No one was pulling on my shirt, begging for snacks, or otherwise distracting me. It was fabulous.
After a little nap, I woke up hungry (of course) and began thinking of desserts. I wanted to make a cookie bar, so after sifting through a few recipes I settled on a Blondie. To make it extra special I topped it with Buttermilk Syrup. Sooo Yummy! Trust me, you'll want to try this. You'll also want to make this is your large pot even though the ingredients will initially measure into the bottom inch of the pan. We substitute this for maple syrup on our breakfasts from time to time. It has a wonderful butter flavor that is a welcome change from the maple every now and again.

Buttermilk Syrup

1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup butter
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1/3 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a saucepan, stir together the sugar, buttermilk, butter, corn syrup, and baking soda. Bring to a boil, and cook for 7 minutes over a medium heat. Stir occasionally. Remove from the heat, and stir in the vanilla.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

The absolute worst part about making muffins is cleaning the tins after-wards, right? These little gems are worth the effort though.
I understand they sell paper liners but I never seem to have any the morning I want to make muffins. To make quick work of clean up this is what I do. I take a paper towel and wad up a corner to be about the size of the inside of the mini muffin tin. I then pour a dab of oil onto the towel and wipe the inside of each tin. You may have to get more oil on your towel after half a dozen or so. What about a cooking spray? Well, like I said above. The worst part is cleaning the tins, and I really think the cooking sprays are harder to clean off than the food! When I was using the spray's I would have to use steel wool to clean the pans! If I used just dish soap, they would darken with a sticky goop on them the next time they were put in the oven. I'm sure there are studies done, but I don't want to think about what that does inside my body.
With the clouds looming outside the windows and the kids all happily distracted with Saturday Cartoons, I whipped up a batch of Lemon Poppy Seed Mini-Muffins to be devoured through the morning hours. The advantage of a large batch is they can snack on them and give you more time to do other things without children whining at 11:30 that they will starve if they do not eat lunch right away.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
makes 96 mini muffins or 24 medium muffins
1 1/3 cup sugar
Grated zest 2 lemons
Juice of 2 lemon
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup combination of sour cream and plain yogurt
4 large eggs
3 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 splash of almond extract
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/2 cup oil
4 tablespoons poppy seeds

For the Icing:

1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large bowl, rub the sugar and lemon zest together with your fingertips until the sugar is moist and the fragrance of lemon strong. Inhale deeply and think of wonderful spring weather then whisk in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and poppy seeds.
In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk the sour cream, yogurt, eggs, vanilla and almond extracts, lemon juice, melted butter and oil together until well blended. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and, with a rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend.
Muffin batter should be treated much the same as pancakes. Do not over work, a few lumps are actually preferred.

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups. Bake mini muffins for 15 minutes and medium muffins for 18 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a thin knife inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin from its mold. Cool the muffins completely on the rack before icing them.

To make the icing:

Put the confectioners' sugar in a small bowl and add about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the lemon juice. Stir with a spoon to moisten the sugar, then add enough lemon juice, a dribble at a time, to get an icing that is thin enough to drizzle from the tip of the spoon. Then drizzle lines of icing over the tops of the muffins.

Enjoy!

Leftover Roll Dough?

Last night I attempted to make a new recipe for rolls to go with our soup. The recipe took over an hour to rise the first time, and over two to rise the second! Needless to say, dinner was quite late last night. After dinner I put in the second batch of rolls to bake and threw the rest of the dough in the fridge. Now it also happens that we made homemade fries over the weekend and I have a large pan of oil sitting on the stove. Combine those two and you get? Dough Nuts!

This was such a fast treat for the morning. The biggest key, other than yummy dough, is HOT oil. Make sure the oil temperature is over 375 with your thermometer before dropping in the dough. I did not have a donut cutter, so I used a small juice glass and made large donut-holes instead. Donuts fry up very quickly so don't walk away! I turned the donuts over after a minute, and pulled them out of the oil after two. Let them drain for a minute before topping them with a simple glaze or sugar-cinnamon combo. Simply Delicious! Now i'm only wishing I had saved more dough and made less rolls!

Tonight's Pizza was absolutely Delicious!

Every other Wednesday when Khali goes to Liberty Girls we stop in at the Magna Reams. They knows how to make pizza crust and their bread sticks are not bad either! You get two large, partially cooked crusts for $3.18! We only eat one pizza for dinner when we make these and there is even an extra piece or two left over! In contrast, we can demolish at least 1.5 pizza's from most of the delivery chains. Together with a side salad and you have a $5.00 dinner. Talk about savings!


Bacon Pizza
Prep Time: 25 minutes Cook Time: 13 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pre-baked crust
• 1 Tbsp. oil
• 2 onions, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp. paprika
• 1 Tbsp. flour
• 1/8 tsp. pepper
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1/2 lb. bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Chopped Tomatoes (optional)
  

Preparation:

Heat oven to 425 degrees.
Heat oil in large skillet and saute onions and garlic until crisp tender, 4-5 minutes. Add paprika and flour and cook and stir for 3 minutes. Add sour cream and thyme and cook until thickened, 1-2 minutes longer. Spread over prebaked crust and top with bacon and cheeses. Bake at 425 degrees for 8-13 minutes until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted. 6 servings

Seeing our Trials as Blessings

Last weekend I woke up Saturday morning only to find that the kitchen sinks would not drain. I started to try to clean them out first with baking soda and vinegar, then boiling water flushes, and finally resorted to asking my darling for help using plungers. Working on the drains for well over an hour, we had gotten some water to go down the drain, but they were far from clear. I finally caved and called a plumber. Thankfully many plumbers work weekends for the same rates at weekdays, and we had a nice gentleman playing under the sink in the grime by afternoon. Unfortunately, plumbers, are not cheap. For 2 hours of snaking the drains, the drain made a lovely sucking noise as the water quickly drained, and I owed him $150.00. Ouch!
Now here is where a choice comes in. I could either use my allotted bi-monthly budget, or put this bill on a credit card. Trying to be a responsible consumer, I wrote him a check realizing it would cut my grocery funding in half for the next ten days. Yikes!?
After searching around on the web for some frugal meals, and flipping through my home storage cookbook, I went to my fridge and cupboards with a fresh sheet of paper and pen. I made a list of meals that I could make with things that I had on hand, and also a few that I could make with only one or two things from the grocery store. With a bit of planning I was able to make nutritious meals for our family all week long, and amazingly my freezer and cupboards are not empty. This was not the easiest week to cook dinners, yet it was very gratifying. I could have easily made a different choice and put this on a CC to worry about later, however I am now very happy to have gone through this learning experience and to come out triumphant.
We have all been told to not go to the grocery store when you are hungry, and to always make a list, but how about we add one more to this list? Do not go to the grocery store, until you have made your meal plans for the week and gone grocery shopping through your cupboards and freezer.