Last Day of August

I had gone to lay down and rest one evening early. That lasted about two minutes before I had company.

I thought August would drag by, but I am sitting here amazed that it is the last day of the month already.

We've kept busy trying to see friends, run errands, start homepreschool and generally get ready for the new family member. I've been cooking up a storm so that we have food to eat after the baby arrives. Sweetheart really doesn't cook unless fire is involved. So I've made up a bunch of stuff that just needs to be baked/reheated and bought a bunch of meat for him to grill.

I've been doing some of the work over several days unlike last time when I had my Mom over and we did a cooking frenzy all in one day. I just don't have the energy for that right now. Plus, this house isn't as conducive to that sort of thing. Making dinner for the eight of us in my Bunco group that met here last week was enough for one day! This week my focus is on trying to bake as much as I can to freeze. I want to have enough bread and other stuff like muffins and banana bread to make meals easy.

I am planning on making and freezing a bunch of my easy quiches, but am struggling to find eggs. All the local ladies that sell them are swamped because of the salmonella scare. Even the stores around here are out. I am on three waiting lists, so I will probably have more eggs than I can cook at the end of the week!

In other news: I am excited to announce that my cousin had her baby yesterday- a little girl--Eleanor Grace, named for our Grandmother. I am so happy for her and glad to hear all is well! (Must admit to wishing I had had our baby yesterday. I would really like to have this baby.)

I am also asking for prayer for two friends. Bonnie, a virtual friend and loooong time reader, is due soon , but the baby is footling breech. I am praying that baby will turn asap. Also, I have mentioned before my friend Wendy who has been battling breast cancer. She finished her chemo two weeks ago and is scheduled for a double mastectomy today. Please pray for her and her family.

BTW-The baby's due date is September 11th so we are down to the final weeks. Here's to hoping this one is closer to being born on time.

Cold Days

The snow is lightly falling today. We are staying inside where it is warm. Dumpling is such a big help with the baking. ;)

I made seven quarts of granola this morning. Don't know what I was thinking. We all like it, but I am thinking I will need to be sharing or freezing some of this bounty. I usually make just half the recipe, but it sounded good so I just made the full batch. Guess I won't have to make it again until the baby is born. In September.

We were planning to head out and pick up some more wheat and grains to have on hand, but have moved that plan out until Thursday. We get our serious bulk (50 lb. bags) from Nadine at Family Baker.

I have discovered Quinoa and been making a ton of it these last few months. While paying so much at once seems crazy, it lasts well and cost only half of what it would buying in in smaller bulk amounts at the store. I love Quinoa in a variety of dishes. For breakfast, I love this recipe for Warm & Nutty Quinoa. It is so flavorful and keeps me feeling full a lot longer than oatmeal because it has so much protein. For a savory salad option, there is this recipe.

I have also just made a big batch of it plain early in the week and then had some for breakfast with the berries and pecans and other meals adding it to my own salads. In the salads, it is sort of like couscous.

One thing---you MUST rinse it a ton!!! If you do not rinse it enough before cooking it, it will be bitter and gross. Ask me how I know. I know soak it and rinse it a bunch before cooking it. Keeping rinsing/soaking until the water is clear and there are no bubbles.

Quinoa is great because it is a huge protein source. It is rather flavorless on its own, so it is very adaptable. It is also gluten-free which is helpful as I have several friends now not eating gluten. It is like a grain, but technically isn't.

Wow. I wasn't planning on an entire post on Quinoa. I am just happy to be awake while the boys nap to get a chance to write at all!

What else...flax seeds. I added them to the granola and had them on my oatmeal this morning. I've been adding them to all sorts of things and even just munching on a spoonful plain. They have a nice, nutty taste and lots of goodness in them.

I will be making up some yogurt cheese/quark as soon as I can pry myself off of this chair. I basically strain plain yogurt for a long time and then use it in place of cream cheese and sour cream and as a spread base. I had only made it with herbs and spices for flavor, but may dish out a bit and add some fruit juice for a sweeter spread.

There are sprouts soaking on the windowsill today as well. Those will get added to the next Quinoa Salad. :) We also like to just eat them plain out of the jar! We being Pumpkin and I. Sweetheart & Dumpling don't care for them.

Gee, I must be hungry. I haven't written this much on food in quite some time!

I also worked ahead on menu planning as per Rachel Anne's challenge today. I did this for the first time when she posted it in January and did it again for February. Since I am trying to be a good Company Girl I figured I needed to forged ahead on March. So, we are all planned through April 1 at which time I will probably collapse and order take-out pizza for a week. Just kidding.

It went pretty well as far as the planning as I took out my new cookbook, Tosca Roma's Eat Clean, opened up to the entree section and just starting plugging recipes that sounded good into my weekly plan. I was able to full up most of March. I skipped a few recipes that just didn't seem to be anything we'd eat, but overall really like the book.

No, I am not dieting while pregnant. And yes, the first recipe I made from it was her brownie recipe. I just needed some help cleaning up our meals a bit. I am a great Comfort Food Cook. I love cooking and baking from scratch. It means virtually no preservatives, which is good, but a lot of butter and other yumminess that might not be as good for us. Balance is good.

Well, I need to clean up the disaster that is my kitchen after cooking away today. And I think I need a snack. Hmmm....granola anyone?

Zippy!

That's the best way to describe the Curried Apple Chutney I made yesterday. It's the most amazing recipe of apples, raisin, brown sugar, curry and other spices. But to keep it from being basically a baked apple, it also has vinegar, onion, and sweet peppers. Oh my! I am so looking forward to trying more than just a sample spoon.

The original recipe called for hot pepper and garlic which I omitted due to personal preferences here. Oddly enough the yield should have been five pints, but I barely had two and a half pints. Canning recipes and yields can be so odd. I also put up another five and a half quarts of pickles from the garden cucumbers. Cause we needed more pickles. If they was ever an emergency situation, my family would be surviving on bread and jam and pickles. Of course, we'd be able to eat these for weeks on end!

I got a pot of applesauce simmering on the stove waiting to be finishing and put into the jars. I kept all the cores and peels I've been making and am planning on running them all through the press I have. It'll all probably only amount to one cup of juice and a big mess, but since I have everything on hand I might as well try and it will mean they'll be almost no waste. I suppose I could keep the leftovers from making cider for cider vinegar. Maybe next year.

I did try to run the peels and cores through the mill I was given so as to make apple butter from the leftovers. That was just an exercise in frustration and mess just like the peach experiment. Glad it was free. I'll probably try it again with tomatoes since they are soft, but if that doesn't work it will need to find a new home. Grumble.

It certainly feels like autumn around here! The spice applesauce simmering on the stove, the pumpkin spice waffles cooking in the waffles iron, & the pumpkin candle burning. Even my coffee tastes like autumn as I mixed together brown sugar, cinnamon and cloves and tucked them into a jar on the counter for oatmeal mornings.

I discovered the mix is delightful in my coffee as well. Much cheaper than a Pumpkin Spice Latte and easier to get around here. Though I do love those lattes! It must be a family thing as my sister in California mentioned having one the other day--over ice. By mixing the spices in the sugar I am able to stir it all evenly into the coffee without the spices just floating on the top as they do when I just sprinkle them in.

I've still got another twenty pounds of apples on hand. I'll probably make more of everything and some apple butter as well. So yummy! I do love all the foods that are in season this time of year, don't you?

I used up the rest of the pureed squash I had frozen last fall for the waffles this morning and I'm down to one Hubbard squash from last year's garden. It's a big one, but I think I'll need to try and find some more. They are such good keepers and I use them in any recipe that calls for pumpkins or squashes. I didn't get any planted this year, but will make it a priority for next year's garden.

Well, I need to go and stir the applesauce and scrub down the cider press as I've not used it before. I'll let you know how it goes!

Making Dinner Easier

I've always thought the Once a Month Cooking idea was great. I've just not seemed to do it. My family likes new recipes occasionally, but prefers tried and try meals. Sweetheart is rather, um, particular about food.

After that mild understatement, let me just ramble on an idea that works for us. The first time I thought I'd try OAMC I searched online for ideas and recipes. There are a lot of them out there! But since we eat the way we do, I realized it would do me no good to make a freezer full of food we won't eat.

The first time I did this, I carefully thought out meals that would freeze well and be easy to reheat. I made massive lists for shopping and for planning out the cooking. It was a lot of time up front, but worked great. My mom also came over to help she babysat and washed a lot of dishes. It was great!

Lately, I've not been too good about meal planning. There are just days I forget to defrost meat, or plan ahead. This has led to a lot of hassle at 5 pm and meals that weren't so great. It's even meant a few calls to Sweetheart to pick something up on the way home. I don't like that. I mean, I like eating something I don't have to cook, but it is expensive and often not as healthy.

I decided last week I needed to do something. So, I made my grocery list of the things we needed and what was on sale at the grocery. Then, after the boys went to bed I went shopping. I got all our needed things and loaded up in the meat department. All natural chicken breasts were $1.49 a pound in the family pack. I got a lot of packs! Several other meats we usually eat were on sale as well.

I put everything in the fridge when I got home and crashed since it was after 10 pm. The next morning while the boys were eating breakfast I got cooking! I cooked several batches of bacon first. I hate cooking bacon, especially because I tend to burn it. This is why I did several pounds at once. I only burned one batch. Once it cooled I put it small batches in bags for the freezer. Now I can just take out a small amount as needed.

Once I got the bacon burning/cooking I started the next rounds. I baked a huge turkey breast and a giant pan of chicken. I just seasoned them with salt and pepper and baked them until they were done. I also put a pot of white beans on the stove and filled the Crockpot with spareribs.

Once the bacon was done, I cooked up bratwurst. While that was going I started cleaning and prepping the produce I'd bought the night before. I always use more fruits and veggies when they are all cleaned and prepped. That led to making up a couple of jars of salsa-one for the fridge and one for the freezer.

Did you know washing, peeling, and cutting five pounds of carrots will turn your hands positively orange? Several pounds of those went into the pot for Carrot Ginger Soup. Some were sliced for the Cassoulet and the rest into sticks that were packed in jars of water for the fridge.

When everything was ready, I made the Cassoulet--beans, bratwurst and chicken, tomatoes chopped (pre-salsa) carrots, and spices. That went into the oven for a bit with the turkey that was still baking. A second pot of beans, red this time, simmered behind the Carrot Ginger Soup.

The turkey was sliced thin for sandwiches and put into small bags for a few days worth and tucked into a bigger freezer bags to keep it all together. Even the ribs were divided into several freezer tubs for several nights of dinners.

Calzones were planned for dinner so I needed to make ricotta cheese. Once that was going, I started the dough. Pumpkin asked if we could have lasagna. Since I was already needing ricotta, mozzarella, tomato sauce and basil for the calzones, I figured I might as well assemble lasagna. I browned the ground buffalo and added the tomato sauce to it. Once the ricotta was drained, I took part out for the calzones and set it aside. It was then quick work to assemble the lasagnas. Those went into some glass loaf pans I have and were tucked right into the freezer.

In the middle of it all, the boys played and I took frequent breaks to read to them and build train tracks and dispense kisses. I love having a kitchen that's so open they are always in sight!

I was able to get so much done. I was exhausted by the time we sat down to calzones for dinner, but was thrilled to have so much done. I didn't get everything done I'd planned, but that was ok. The next day I grilled several more packs of chicken, the rest of the buffalo in patties, and a steak that was on sale. Once they all cooled, they were packed into the freezer in smaller portions as well.

By the end of that, I had the main parts of at least 30 dinners in the freezer and all of it stuff we like. Yes, washing all the dishes took f.o.r.e.v.e.r. ! This week has been a breeze though. I've just pulled whatever we want out of the freezer in the morning (or afternoon!). Then it's been so easy to make salads and veggie plates because everything already ready to go. I've also been able to send Sweetheart off with a variety of things he can keep in the fridge or freezer for his lunch at work. Also, I plan to cook dinner most nights and just use the freezer dinners as needed.

It made a giant mess and I was worn out by the end, but it will pay off with all the time and money saved at the end. I like doing this my way because I am able to just use simple, easy dishes my family loves and not have to try and figure out a bunch of new recipes, or buy new things we might not use again.

I am writing this post just to encourage others of you out there to try it yourself with the things YOU like. I didn't include specific recipes, because I don't really follow them anyway. But I'll pass on what I can if anyone is interested. This is something anyone can do.

If cooking is not your thing, you can start smaller of course. One change I made awhile back was simple, but saves a lot of time and money. Any time I grill chicken, I grill several packages of chicken. I use the boneless skinless pieces and just salt and pepper them. Once they are done and cool, I pack them loosely into freezer bags. This is great because we can still have grilled chicken even when it's snowing~like today.

I can then just take out what I need, occasionally banging on the bag with the meat hammer, and put the pieces I need in the fridge or defrost them in the microwave. I toss them on pita bread with bbq sauce and cheese and veggies for quick pizzas. Yesterday I chopped up pieces and served them with a big salad when I had a neighbor over for lunch.

Last night, I tossed the leftover pieces of chicken with my sesame ginger salad dressing I'd mixed for the lunch. I cooked some rice noodles and added them and some of the cooking water to make a quick Asian Noodle Soup. The boys had their chicken with bbq sauce and salad and everyone was happy.

There's no need to buy the bags of frozen grilled chicken if you have a grill. Besides, am I the only one who thinks the chicken always tastes funky from the "solutions" they inject in them? Finally, preservatives aside, I believe it's a lot less expensive by the pound.

The best tips I can give are to take a few minutes to plan out what you what to do and see where you can do double duty. For example--chopping the tomatoes all up in the food processor and removing a cup for the Cassoulet, then adding the rest of the ingredients to the processor to make the salsa meant I only needed to wash everything once. Also, plan on baking things together like the chicken and turkey that need the same temperature. It saves time and energy.

Finally, make sure you label everything!!! It may also help to put an inventory list on the freezer door to keep track of what you have on hand. And make your life easier by starting with a clean kitchen and an empty dishwasher. It'll fill up fast!

Does anyone else have any ideas or suggestions for ways to make making dinner easier? What works for you?

What I've Been Whipping Up This Week in the Kitchen

Truffles:

This is a recipe from "Bon Appetit" Magazine/January 1987. Um, yes, I start receiving a subscription to "Bon Appetit" when I was in 8th or 9th grade. No, I've not kept them all. I have a book that has all my random recipes cut out and glued into it. It's just a binder stuffed with recipes in plastic pages, but it's a big binder!

Anyhow...

"Rich Dark Truffles"
Makes 8
(I double it when I make them. If I'm going to the trouble, I want it to be worth it!)
1/4 c whipping cream
2 TBL butter
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (I just use chocolate chips.)
1/4 tsp vanilla
sifted unsweetened cocoa powder

Bring the butter and cream to simmer in a small pan over medium heat. Then add the chocolate, melt and whisk on low heat until the mix is smooth. Pour into a small bowl and whisk in the vanilla. (You can add other extracts like orange or mint instead of the vanilla for flavored truffles. I thought about adding instant espresso powder for Mocha Truffles, but didn't.) Put the bowl in the freezer until it can hold its shape, but NOT frozen solid. The recipe says 20 minutes, but mine took more like 35 minutes and was still really soft in the center of the bowl. Just set a timer and keep checking on it.

Line a baking sheet with wax paper and dust it with the cocoa powder. Spoon 8 mounds onto the prepared sheet, using about 2 tablespoons chocolate mixture for each. (I used my mini scooper and it was sooo easy! It must be less than 2 tablespoons as I ended up with more mounds, but it was easy and a lot less messy.) Freeze until centers are almost firm, about 8 minutes.

(Ok, I didn't set the timer here and got distracted making lunch. When I took mine out, they were too firm to roll. So now they're just sitting on the counter hopefully softening up.)

Roll each mound in the cocoa powder on the sheet, then roll between palms of hands into smooth round. Set on another waxed paper-lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap. Freeze until ready to dip, up to one month. (**Be sure to put them back in the freezer. I left mine out after rolling them because I was typing. I moved onto dipping, but had to stop as they were too warm and just melting in the dipping chocolate.)

Melt 1 pound of chocolate in the double boiler. Remove from heat. Let chocolate stand until melted, stirring occasionally, and candy thermometer registers between 115 and 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Meanwhile, remove truffles from the freezer, rerolling them to remove excess cocoa. (By the way-you could roll them in instant espresso powder if you like.)

For a simple assembly line, set the tray of truffles to your left. Set the dipping chocolate in front of you. Place the empty waxed paper-lined baking sheet immediately to your right.

Submerge one truffle in melted chocolate, tilting pan. Lifting truffle up with index finger and thumb, remove from chocolate. Move had side to side, shaking excess chocolate back into pan. Turn hand over and drop truffle onto prepared sheet. Dip index finger into chocolate to dab truffle where not completely coated. Truffles may also be dipped with a fork or toothpick.

Repeat with remaining truffles. Check the melted chocolate's temperature half way through dipping. If it has fallen below 115 degrees, reheat it by setting it back over the hot water of the double boiler. Refrigerate until chocolate is set, 30 minutes to an hour.

After the truffles are set, peel from waxed paper using gloves or plastic wrap if you like to prevent fingerprints. You may place them in paper candy cups (little muffin papers) if you want. Arrange cups in an airtight container and transfer to the refrigerator. They are best eaten within four days, but remain fresh up to two weeks. You may freeze them for up to one month. Let truffles stand at room temperature for one hour before serving.

I rolled some in cocoa, some in powdered sugar, and dipped some in chocolate. Pumpkin suggested I dip the heart cookies in chocolate and so I did. This is a chocolate box Joanne brought with her last weekend to the little Cupid's Tea I did. We all had our tea and then made valentines, if we wished. Six bloggers, and no one managed to get pictures, including me! This was one of the boxes she brought in case anyone wanted to decorate one. I did. Sweetheart did the gold foiling on the ribbon. Isn't he the best?!

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Butter

Kate--- I'll do a post on butter-making this weekend. The whipping cream needs to sit out for 24 hours before I churn it. It's on the counter now.

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As Sweetheart and I are using more natural products and foods, we are discovering all sorts of things you can make yourself. On the list to start making, hopefully Sunday after the boys go to bed, is soap. Sweetheart is more into the chemistry of everything than I am. (Understatement!!)

While we've been gathering up the various ingredients and waiting for everything to be ready, I've started making a few cosmetic type things myself that are simple and ready to go the same day. (Homemade soaps need weeks to set up, so it will be awhile before I have any posts on that.)

On Tuesday I made Lip Balm. Using this recipe, I made a lovely Burt's Bees-type lip balm. I added a bit more beeswax as it suggested to make it firmer and I added three drops of lavender oil in with the peppermint oil. I love the Burt's Bees stuff, but three dollars a tube is ridiculous!

Sweetheart bought a bag of 50 (!) empty tubes and this recipe filled six regular Chapstick sized tubes. I love it! I used a plastic syringe (no needle) to fill the tubes. The only change I'll make is to add even more beeswax, probably another whole teaspoon, because I like it to be firm. I'll also need to work faster filling the tubes, or wait for a warmer day, as the solution began setting up while still in the syringe, making the final product not quite as smooth all over in the tube as I would have liked. It totally usable and probably fine for gifts, but I'd like to keep improving it in the hopes that I might be able to sell some later with the soaps and other things I'm making.

On Wednesday, I made Lavender Body Butter with this recipe. On Thursday, I used the same recipe creating a Peppermint Body Butter using peppermint oil instead of the lavender, as I had used up all the lavender oil I had! This stuff is soooo wonderful! It goes on so smooth and lasts a lot longer than regular lotion. Like most of you, I'm washing my hands all day long. I put the Peppermint Body Butter on this morning. It's midafternoon now, and my hands still feel soft. In our dry Colorado climate and with how much I wash my hands, it's amazing that my skin still feels smooth. (The boys love it, too!)

I think I'll be using the Lavender at night and the Pepermint in the day. Lavender is so relaxing while the Peppermint is energizing to me. Both smell so clean, even Sweetheart is using them, and we don't have to worry about him going to work smelling like a girl. ;) I also like this recipe because it is neither sticky, or greasy.

Since these were my first attempts, I was concentrating hard on just doing it all right, so I didn't take any pictures of the processes. Is anyone interested that I should do a step-by-step blog on lipbalm or body butters, or are the links enough?

Company's Coming!

The salad is in the refrigerator, the iced tea is cooling, the salad dressing is made, the brownies are cooling and waiting to be cut--except for the one I had to try for quality control purposes, of course.

The table is set. The candles are waiting to be lit. I tried to think of the last time we used candles. Then I remembered, it was before Pumpkin started eating at the regular table. Coincidence? I think not! We used to use them all the time. Tonight's are just tealights in some low mother of pearl candle holders and set out of a certain red-headed boy's reach.

I am off to get ready with an hour to spare. Everything is clean and ready. By the time I finished curling my hair the boys should be ready to get up. I am calm. This is so nice.

Sweetheart once declared I wasn't allowed to invite anyone over anymore because I would be such a stress case and drive him nuts. I was. Now, things are ready to go early and I am happy. Why? I'm no longer trying to impress anyone. Learning that hospitality is to bless, not impress, helps a lot. So does keeping it easy and letting others help. Our guests are bringing the main dish. It feels weird, but honestly, right now, I'm glad we planned it this way. I also decided to skip a bunch of extras we don't really need and to just do a tried and true dessert that I know we'll all like since I served it the last time they were here!

Tonight, I will just enjoy--our home, our friends and the blessing of sharing a meal together. It's a nice change. Thank you, Lord, for changing my heart.

In The Kitchen

I was drinking my coffee the other morning when I thought of my Grandmother's percolator in my cupboard. I had tried using it a few times over the years, but had no idea how to really use the thing. I think I just boiled the grounds to death. It always seemed to be boiling away at all hours of the day when I was a kid.

Then I started reading a book set in the South, Wrapped in Rain, coffee percolating on the stove appeared several times. So imagine my delight when I popped over to Cherry Hill Cottage where she had the coffee on! I pulled my out of the cupboard and washed it. Following her directions, I have it ready to go in the morning. Mine (Grandma's) is just like the one in her picture. Hope this works.

Right now on the stove I have the last batch of pickles processing. Thank goodness. That half-bushel basket made 12 quarts and 9 and a 1/2 pints of pickles. That's a lot of pickles! Now we just have to wait the 4-6 weeks before testing them. Maybe I'll enter some in the country fair this fall. Hah!

This officially ends my canning for the month. Although I want to do more as other things become ripe, I am tired of it all right now. I would like to try Miss Bonnie's corn and black bean salsa she wrote about. It sure sounds good. However, I am looking forward to seeing the top of my counters again!

Having now been pregnant three times in three years like Arlene, I am visiting her site, Losing Weight After Baby. Arlene was a friend back in college and just about the neatest God-loving person I know. I found her again after a mention of her in the Biola University Alumni magazine I received recently.

Knowing me, I need more than just encouragement and suggestions, I need a specific plan. Therefore, I am starting the Body for Life program on Monday. This helped me after Pumpkin was born. I was able to lose all the pregnancy weight plus some. I also loved how strong I got. I thought I'd stick with it, but when I became pregnant with Dumpling, I just had to eat what I could keep down. I did continue to exercise through my pregnancy with him, but once he was born I stopped. Now I'm still carrying around the weight from being pregnant with Dumpling and simply added on the weight of being pregnant with Jimmy. It's time to make a change.

Sweetheart is back from Hawaii and we are all sooooooooooo glad. We missed him so much. He's busy downstairs cleaning up the exercise area so that I can start using it. It had just become the dumping ground for things, especially baby things, so it needs a lot of help. We had just put things we thought we need in a few months for Jimmy down there, but we've decided to just store everything baby for awhile. We'll see where we're at in a few months.

My Mom did stay with us for two nights and we were able to help her out. I took her to the doctor yesterday. They said she'd probably need a month to fully heal. Ouch. Her knee and leg are so bruised and swollen. It hurts to just look at it. Please keep praying for her. She decided she'd rather be at home. I think she'll be able to rest better there, but we miss having her here and would have kept her as long a she needed.

Shannon has been doing a series entitled What I'd Like You to Know having guest posters on a variety of subjects. This post on mourning the loss of a baby is really good. It had me in tears, of course, but was well worth the read.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend. I am off to clean up the pickle mess and hang out with Sweetheart who just came upstairs. Thanks for stopping by!

Updated Later:

My sweet boy is back! I guess the Timeout worked. He apologized and was the sweetest boy, quick to obey and cheerful. He's napping now as is Dumpling, so I'm off to the garden for some zucchini, thyme, basil and chives for dinner. This recipe, Farfalle with Zucchini, sounded good to me.

Think I'll boil a few extra noodles and melt some cheddar on them for Pumpkin. Don't think he'll be too keen on the Pioneer Woman's dinner idea, but we'll try it. Dumpling eats anything--and everything!

The Gentle Joys of Summer

Our rose bushes are simply bursting with blossoms. These are my particular favorites. It is called, I believe, an Elizabeth Rose. Their scent isn't as strong as some of the others, but the color is extraordinary.

I learned a few years ago to wait to prune back the roses until spring, not in the fall as they die back even more than is cut. It has made an incredible difference in the size of the bushes these last two years. I am keeping our home, and several others, filled with roses. It's so wonderful!

I love having a garden. Some years have been more successful than others. We have a lot of weeds this year, but our herbs and veggies are going strong. Now, to just get to gather some strawberries before the birds do!

I've been livening up our meals with little touches from the garden already. I made up a quick batch of pesto with the basil and a few other things I had on hand substituting raw cashews for the pine nuts as I did not want to take the time to peel all the pine nuts. It's so good spread on fresh bread and adding a touch of cream cheese and fresh tomatoes makes it truly delightful.

Speaking of cream cheese, I love mixing it with just fresh chives, dill, and thyme and serving it on crackers or bread. Even Pumpkin loves it! It's such a lighter and delicious version of something like a Boursin cheese. It tastes so wonderfully fresh.

Dinner tonight will be Greek Chicken, if I get on the ball and get that pita bread rising. I love to serve it with Tajiki and have fresh dill and cucumbers just waiting to be mixed into the plain yogurt. Sprinkled with a bit of feta for some zing-yum! It helps that I grilled a ton of chicken and other meat the other night all at once so that I have meat ready to go in the fridge and freezer.

Boy, I seem to be really focused on food right now! Must be from skipping eating most of yesterday. I seemed to have caught a 24 hour buggy thing, but am feeling great now.

It's been a bit of a roller coaster month for us. It started off with me dashing off to see my Dad when he had his pacemaker installed, to a scare with Pumpkin last week. The poor little guy fell while we were at a friend's house. We spent the afternoon at the doctor's where the x-rays turned out fine. Pumpkin was in a splint for a few days, and refused to walk for a few more, but is now running around just fine. Thank you, Lord! The stress of it all about did this Mommy and Daddy in.

Now, I'm bouncing back from not feeling well and trying to get ready for a visit from my Dad and Stepmom this weekend. They just decided on Monday to come on up. They haven't seen the boys since Christmas, so we are excited to have them coming. Now, to just try and get done all the things I'd like to have done before they arrive. (Yes, Carey and Mom, I know...I know. You really don't need to say anything.)

We are having such a fun time around here, though, in between little jobs to do. The boys are learning to play together so well. It's not without its tears, but is such a joy to see. They really do love one another. Well, I hear little voices up from naps, so I'll sign off now. Hope you are having a lovely week as well.

Doing Better

We are all feeling a lot better this week. The only down side is that Sweetheart had to return to the office to work. He worked last week from home while he was sick. The little guys are both doing well with just an occasional sniffle or cough. I weathered through it all with probably the slightest case of it. Even so, we need to go get more Kleenex!

The boys and I went grocery shopping this morning. We went to the Sunflower Farmers Market. What a wonderful grocery store! It's across town so we usually only go once a month. The main part of the whole store is the produce department. They also have a wonderful meat department with really helpful workers. Their bulk section is varied and well-stocked, though I did clean them out of all their wheat.

Besides the wheat, I was able to get everything from nuts to cocoa powder in bulk. I even picked up some different types of beans to sprout. I've got mung beans sprouting on the counter right now and thought it would be fun to try a few other kinds. I ended up with so many things in bulk that I'll have those sprawling bags all over the cupboards. I've got more bags than jars. I reuse almost all my glass and plastic jars, but it won't be enough. Oh well, maybe I can find some more jars in with the canning supplies I got off Craig's List awhile back.

How blessed we are! We live in a country of plenty. Amazing isn't it that we can find tomatoes in February, and not just one kind. I saw at least four different types of tomatoes there. We don't always think about this as most of us are just used to having it all available, but think if all we had was what we could grow ourselves. Wouldn't we appreciate everything more?

We are planning a large garden this year and I am learning how to can, but until then I just remain extremely grateful for the abundance He has blessed us with.

Update on Prayer Requests:

Molly's lump is benign. Thank you, Lord!

Kaylee received her pacemaker and appears to be doing well.

I haven't heard on the other things, but will post as I do.

Well, I need to sign off and get busy. I have ten pounds of ground turkey to turn into meatballs while the boys nap, and a ton of produce to wash and prep. I'm having a group of ladies over tomorrow night for supper and decided spaghetti and meatballs would be the easiest to make for the fourteen of us that will need dinner.

I baked six loaves of bread yesterday in preparation. They are waiting in the freezer until tomorrow when I'll defrost them and warm them on up. I'll get all the veggies ready today so that it will be easy to make the salad tomorrow. I'm making the meatballs all today as well. Tomorrow afternoon I'll just need to put them in the crockpot with the sauce. Then, I'll just need to boil the noodles just before everyone arrives.

Dessert, however, won't be assembled until tomorrow: Earl Grey Molten Chocolate Cakes. Wow. Sweetheart wanted a dessert the other night so I flipped through my recipes and found this treasure. It is pretty easy, but the taste is amazing. I'll assemble them tomorrow afternoon and refrigerate them. Then, while we're eating dinner I'll put them in the oven. They only bake for sixteen minutes and puff up like little souffles. Yum.

Well, I'm hungry. Guess I'll go peel some carrots and munch of those. Not the same, is it? I'll try to get some recipes up soon.

At the End of the Day

Note to Joanna--Go get a snack before reading this!

Well, we did it! My Mom came over this morning and Sweetheart took Pumpkin out to Home Depot for awhile so we could get cooking. Oh my. We chopped, sauted, boiled, baked and barbecued. And the dishes...oh the dishes. I started off with everything clean and Mom washed as we went. There are some clean dishes to put away, but to be honest, I don't even want to stand in the kitchen for even a moment longer. Except for some ice cream. I may go down there for that...But I digress. :)

The good news is that I can now have the baby. I'd prefer it didn't happen tonight, as I am wiped out, plus I want to wash the floors and clean the bathrooms tomorrow, but at least we have food.

Here's what we got made:

*2 Spinach Mushroom Bacon Quiche
*6 servings of Barbecue Chicken
*3 Chicken Pot Pies
*3 Cheeseburger Pies
*2 Chicken Enchilada Casseroles
*Huge Batches of Carrot Ginger Soup, Tortilla Soup and Chicken Soup all in nice little meal-sized containers.
*Steamed Brown Rice to add to the Chicken Soup and to make Fried Rice, all bagged and frozen in individual portions.
*Hamburger Patties made and frozen.
*Deli Meats packaged and frozen for lunches and dinners.
*Ground Beef all browned and bagged and frozen for tacos, spaghetti, whatever...
*3 Loaves of Banana Bread
*3 Loaves of Pumpkin Bread
*A Dozen Rolls
*A Dozen Whole-Wheat Pitas
*Chocolate Chip Cookies Bars
*5 Pounds of Leftover Carrots---Guess I misjudged that one! The good news is that they are all washed, peeled and cut to eat.
*All my produce washed and prepped.

Thank you, Mom. I couldn't have done it without you. Well, maybe I could have, but I'd still be cooking for a long time and then have all those dishes to do...Besides, it made the time go faster with a friend to help and visit with. Thanks Sweetheart, as well for keeping Pumpkin out from underfoot.

Well, I am going to go now and probably go to sleep soon.

Tomorrow I'll make cards with defrost/reheat instructions as well as side dish directions to put with all the things in the freezer. Not tonight. Tonight it's ice cream and a good book and a pillow...Sweet Dreams everyone!

Now We're Cooking!

Thank you ladies for the wonderful tips and ideas you left yesterday! I love the idea for lining the dishes with plastic and making casserolicles. I visited the organized home site that was suggested and decided to do my version of once-a-month-cooking. Reading everyone's tips helped me to focus and not feel so overwhelmed.

I made a plan last night and went to the store today with my very detailed list after inventorying my freezer and cupboards. I recruited my Mom to come over tomorrow and help/watch Pumpkin while I cook. She stopped in today to take the big turkey I was defrosting to her house so I had room for the groceries I bough,t and she stayed and washed produce. What a big help!

I've listed all the dishes I'm planning to make and separated out all the jobs by categories: saute, boil, bake, bbq, etc. For example: I'll boil all the chicken for enchiladas, tortilla soup, pot pie and chicken soup together. Then I'll make patties out of the ground beef to put in the freezer, then cook the rest of the ground beef and divide it up for things like hamburger pie and tacos. I'll saute the mushroom and spinach together for the quiches, then bake, slice and freeze the individual slices of quiche so that I have some easy breakfasts with protein on hand.

So far today I've peeled about 12 pounds of carrots for the carrot ginger soup, pot pies, carrot sticks for munching and more. I baked whole wheat pitas for mini pizzas and Greek chicken pitas. I made chocolate chip cookies bars for Sweetheart for now and later and three loaves of pumpkin bread. When I'm done here I'll go clean everything up and set stuff out by recipes for tomorrow. Not exactly a restful Sabbath, but I am so excited to feel like I'm getting ahead!

Tomorrow I'll grill all the chicken breasts and steaks to be frozen for quick meals. It's so nice to just defrost a few pieces of bbq chicken and make the pizzas or pitas, or just serve it along a salad and side dish.

I'll throw all the onions into the food processor and saute them all at once. From there I can just put a tablespoon or two into each recipe as needed. I'll make all the soups and assemble those casseroles. I'm planning to steam a few pot of rice, then bag up 1 cup portions to freeze. They can then be added to the chicken soup, Chinese chicken and mixed with stuff for fried rice. I'll also try to bake a few more things like banana bread, and cornbread muffins to just have on hand.

When it's all done, probably on Monday, I'll make a master list for the freezer door of our inventory. I'm planning to do cards to go with each dish to list defrosting and reheating requirements, as well as side dish items, so that Sweetheart can know what all goes together easily. I'm planning to keep all my lists and plans so that next time, I am not starting from scratch.

While I was in line at the checkout, I looked at the cart behind me. It was filled with frozen dinners and packaged foods. For a moment, I wondered what I was thinking trying to do all of this. But just for a moment. I know that all the work this weekend will pay off for the weeks ahead, plus all of us will benefit by having recipes I know we like that are healthy and delicious. Plus, I imagine that the cost of a month's already frozen dinners must be pretty outrageous compared to all that I bought and spent today. Besides, when I mentioned it to Sweetheart when I got home he said that the day I try to feed him Banquet frozen dinners is the day he will eat mud. :)

Well, it's time to go wrap up what I've done today and get ready for tomorrow. I'm hoping to clean everything up quickly and go soak in a nice warm bubble bath. Too much standing really wears me out these days. (I did several jobs today sitting down for that reason.) So long as I don't go into labor tonight, we should be all set. LOL!

Meal Planning

Help! I am trying to plan out meals for the next week or so to make and freeze for after the baby arrives. However, my pregnant mind is a complete...blank. I really want to help Sweetheart out and have some things ready to go as he'll be in charge of the home those first two weeks. We don't usually eat a lot of onions or garlic or Italian food. I'd love any recipes, or links to recipes that you think freeze well.

Photo from Allposters.com

Orange Cinnamon Swirl Bread

I received this cookbook the Christmas before last. It is one of my absolute favorites! Every recipe I've made has been delicious. The recipes are so flavorful and usually pretty healthy. I love there bread recipes and have made several different kinds. This particular recipe takes a lot of time to make, but it's worth it.

A few weeks ago I made the Orange Cinnamon Swirl Bread for the first time. It is so good! I've already made a several batches since the first one. I bake the bread, let it cool and then slice it up and put it in the freezer. This lets me enjoy it fresh over the week as it does not last long at room temperature. (It gets hard, plus I'll just eat it all up!) The cookbook suggests using it in French toast. I've done that and think it's the best French toast ever.

My dad and stepmom gave me the cookbook. She had apparently stayed at the Garland's Lodge several times a few years ago, so when the cookbook came out she bought it. The book is full of the history of Garland's Lodge, beautiful pictures and wonderful recipes. I wish we could spend the weekend down there. The Sedona area is so beautiful.