Today we are trying THIS recipe for Tortilla Soup, only instead of chicken we are using left over turkey.  I put the turkey in my food processor to shred it.  I figured the smaller the pieces, the less we would notice it wasn't chicken.  Actually, since I am in an I hate chicken kick, this might work better for me.  We are also going to have some cheesy fiesta rice.  I will just add some cheese, spices, and I think sour cream to cooked brown rice.  And since I was in the kitchen feeling good, I decided I should use some of the cranberries I had bought when they were on sale.  So, I tried THIS cranberry bread.  I hope I like everything.  My tastebuds are off and everything tastes bland to me.  I am really excited about the cranberry bread.  My MIL likes to make the quick mix in a bag cranberry bread and it is always so good.  I will be happy if I have a new quick bread to make.  Right now I have banana, and banana with frozen fruit added.  Yeah, I'm creative....

Yesterday, we finished up our Thanksgiving lapbooks.  Yeah, I know, a little late.  Story of my life.  We didn't do everything I had planned, but it was time to move on to Christmas.  Thanksgiving comes around every year.  We can always do next year, what we didn't do this year. 

Today, we brought out the math books.  I didn't plan on doing math with N, but he asked me to.  Who can refuse a sweet voice saying, "Mama?  Can I have a math page?" 

I need to get my act together and really plan out our Christmas lapbooks so we finish them before Christmas.  Yeah, that was funny.  One can dream.  I have stuff printed out for a Jesse Tree, hopefully we will do that.  I also wanted to make an Advent Chain.  We have a Christmas chain every year, and when I saw THIS (scroll down a little to see Advent Chain links), I thought what a perfect way to improve the plain, simple rings. 

The timer for my hard boiled eggs is going off.  Gotta go make deviled eggs.... mmmm..... my current pregnancy kick....

I got my Large Family Logistics newsletter yesterday with a recipe for "The "Bestest" Oatmeal Cookies Ever."  They sounded so good, I immediatly made some.  Of course, I had to modify the recipe because I didn't have cane juice sugar or spelt flour.  I also had to cut by 2/3.  So here is the recipe I used:

1 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 eggs

1/3 16 oz jar of peanut butter

Cream together in mixer.

Add in order:

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 c white flour

1/3 c wheat flour (or another 1/3 white, I just feel better about eating cookies if they are a little healthy)

3 c oatmeal (I used a little less)

Stir in a half bag of chocolate chips (or more if you like).  Drop by heaping tablespoons onto cookie sheet; bake for approx 10 min at 350 degrees until done.

My favorite omelet has:

velveeta cheese, onions, tomatoes, hot peppers, and cilantro.  How about you?

Gena Suerez was speaking near me tonight, but I was unable to go.  I was pretty bummed, but I had received an email about a phone conference that urban homemaker was having.  Sue Gregg was going to be the guest.  She was discussing the two step baking process.  I was pretty confused almost the whole time, but by the end, I started understanding.  I didn't have any backround knowledge, and the way they were talking, you had to know at least what the two steps were.  It is basically soaking your grains before you bake.  It lets out more nutrients... or something... I still am not quite sure, I just know that it is better for you if you do that.  So, I printed out some instructions and some recipes, and we shall see how it turns out.  I also ordered the breakfast cookbook.  I have been wanting breakfast recipes for a couple of months now.  They recommened it to be the best book for beginning two steppers, and they offered free shipping and a free book.  I tried to tell myself not to spend the money, but then I thought, my goal is to someday grind my own flour, I need to start small.  The breakfast cookbook has you putting whole grains in your blender.  I already know my blender works good for that since I make my own baby food (by the way I bought the blender at a garage sale for $3! Woohoo!)  So, I cannot wait to begin my journey to freshly ground grains. 

I made homemade yogurt yesterday.  I have been wanting to try it for awhile, but have been to scared.  Letting milk sit out, unrefrigerated, for 6 hours?  I didn't have faith that it would come out.

Here is what I did.  I took 1/2 liter of organic whole milk and scalded it - stirring constantly.  My mom said I probably didn't need to scald it, but that is what the recipe said to do, so I followed.  Any one know for sure?  Then I cooled the pan in a sink full of cool water - still stirring - until it was luke warm.  I stirred in a 1/2 tsp plain organic yogurt with a spoon.  I poured the mixture into a mason jar and put it in the oven, with the light on only.  It sat there for 6 hours, then I put it in the fridge over night.  When I pulled it out this morning, it looked and smelled like yogurt!  I was so shocked!  I got this recipe from a blog, but now I have no idea whose. 

My mom and the littles loved it.  I had a few tastes, but I was still scared to have a lot.  It just seems weird.  I will make more tomorrow, hopefully, and I will try more, hopefully.....

I found this recipe in the Once a Month cookbook.  It is soooo yummy.  My oldest said he wanted to eat it everyday, and my hubby even asked me to make it again. 

Teriyaki Chicken

Marinade

1/2 c soy sauce

1/2 c sugar

1 1/2 tbls red wine vinegar

2 tsp vegetable oil (I use canola)

1 small minced garlic clove

3/4 tsp ground ginger

1 pound chicken breasts

1 c uncooked rice

Mix soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, oil, garlic, and ginger to make the marinade.  Freeze chicken in marinade in a 1 gallon bag. 

When preparing to serve, thaw chicken.  Pour chicken and marinade into a baking dish.  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 35 minutes.  Prepare rice according to package directions.  Serve chicken over rice. 

Makes 4 servings.

I skipped the freezing part, and doubled the recipe because I serve 7 people.  I used brown rice instead of white, and hubby didn't say anything.  The marinade is so good, I guess he couldn't tell.  I also served potstickers with it.  Next time I make it, I will definitly make some to put in the freezer also.  SO YUMMY!

Last year I made my own spagetti sauce.  I chopped up tomatoes and added some olive oil and spices and called it a day.  I loved it.  My hubby, of course, did not.  He doesn't like tomatoes.  He wouldn't touch the stuff with a ten foot pole.  So this year, I decided to try to make "real" spagetti sauce.  I looked up recipes, printed out two, and made it fit me.  I steamed the tomatoes first, then I had to run them through the food mill to get rid of the skins and the seeds.  One recipe said it was not necessary to remove the seeds, but if I didn't, then I knew my hubby wouldn't eat it.  That was so time consuming.  Batch after batch, turn after turn, round and round, squish, squish, squish.  Finally I finished after making a huge mess.  Then I sauted some onions, galic and basil in olive oil, added a little honey (because I didn't want to use sugar) and then put the tomato juice in.  I let it cook for awhile over low heat.  I was trying to thicken it up some.  I kept tasting it, and adding more spices, but in the end, I added Italian sausage to give it a good flavor.  It ended up being good.  And my hubby ate it, AND he said he liked it.  WOW.  All that work to disguise tomatoes.  My kitchen was such a mess.  I am glad I did it, but I doubt I will do it that way again.  I hate that food mill.  What a pain. 

I have been getting pretty bored with salad's.  I have been longing for a new dressing.  Unfortunatly, I have not been able to find one... until now.  My hubby's grandmother had a garlic dressing that she would make for my hubby when he was a kid.  He loved it.  I have had the recipe for a year or so now, and have not made it... until the other day.  I was flipping through my recipe book, trying to find something to make for dinner, and the garlic dressing was about the only thing that I had all the ingredients for.  Let me just say, THIS IS THE BEST DRESSING IN THE WORLD!  I am going to live on garlic dressing for the rest of my life.  I don't even care if I have anthing to put it on.  I'll drink it through a straw.  It is so good, that this is what my carrots were doing in my salad:    So I bet you want the recipe, huh?  It's your lucky day:

Grandma's Garlic Dressing

1 c. mayo

2 tbls. cider vinegar

1 clove minced garlic

1/2 tsp oregano

3 tbls milk

1/2 tsp sugar

1/8 tsp pepper

Mix together and let set.

I don't think I added the sugar.  Actually, I'm pretty sure I didn't.  But that can be up to you.  Don't let another second go by without making this.  GO! GO NOW! 

I got my meaty manicotti recipe from Southern Living 30 Years of Our Best Recipes.  I love this cook book.  It has many good recipes in it. 

The recipe has you make a sauce, but I am going to skip that part because I always make my own.  You can use your own sauce, or just a jar.

1/2 lb Italian link sausage

1 lb ground chuck

1 (15 oz) carton ricotta cheese

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened

1/2 (8 oz) tub cream cheese with chives, softened

1/2 C grated parmasan cheese

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried oregano

4 C (16 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

1 (8 oz) package dried manicotti shells, cooked

a jar or two of your favorite sauce

Remove sausage from casings.  Cook sausage and beef in a large [enough] Dutch oven until beef is browned, stirring until meats crumble; drain well.  Return meats to Dutch oven.  Add a jar of tomato sauce.  Heat.

Combine ricotta cheese and next 7 ingredients in a large bowl; stir in 3 cups mozzarella.  Stuff mixture evenly into manicotti shells.

Spoon half of meat sauce into a lightly greased lasagna pan or two lightly greased 2 1/2 quart shallow casseroles.  Arrange stuffed shells over sauce.  Spoon remaining sauce over shells.  You can add more sauce if you would like.  We like alot.

Cover and bake at 350* for 35 min or until thoroughly heated.  Sprinkle with remaining 1 c mozzarella cheese.  Let stand 5 min before serving. 

Yeild: 7 servings

I don't think I have ever had all the ingredients.  Sometimes I make it without the meat.  One time I didn't have chive cream cheese, so I used plain, and threw in some chives from the garden.  I use 1/3 fat cream cheese, and low fat ricotta.  I don't always have garlic cloves, so I use jarred garlic, or just powder.  This is the best recipe ever.  I served it when my friend came over with her extreamly picky son, and he ate it.  She was shocked. 

I have also doubled the recipe and stuck one in the freezer.  I did that yesterday, but I forgot I only had one box of manicotti!  Oops. 

I had a request for the recipe for the meatloaf I ruined.  So, here it is:

Pepper Jack Meat Loaf

      1 egg

      1 cup seasoned bread crumbs

   1/4 cup chopped onions

   1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt

   1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef

      1 cup (4 oz) shredded pepper jack cheese, divided

In a large bowl, combine the egg, bread crumbs, onion, salt and pepper.  Crumble beef over mixture and mix well.  Press half of the beef mixture onto the bottom and halfway up the sides of a greased 8-in x 2-in loaf pan.  Sprinkle 3/4 cup cheese over meat to within 1/2 in. of sides.  Pat remaining beef mixture over cheese.

Bake, uncovered, at 350* for 50-55 minutes or until meat is no longer pink and a meat thermometer reads 160*.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese.  Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.  Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing. 

Yield: 6 servings

 

Now, if you want to make it just like me, you will have to remember to drop it as you take it out of the oven... hehehe...