cookin'!!!!!

Chicken in Creamy Mushroom Sauce



4 chicken breasts
1/3 c. flour
6 T butter
¼ t. salt
½ lb. sliced mushrooms
1/8 t. pepper
1 ¾ c. chicken broth
2 T half & half


In a large skillet, brown chicken in oil. Set chicken aside. Add 6 T butter to drippings and cook mushrooms about 5 minutes until golden. Remove mushrooms and set aside. Stir flour, salt, and pepper into skillet drippings. Pour chicken broth and half & half gradually into skillet, stirring constantly until sauce is thickened. Return chicken and mushrooms to skillet with sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 25 to 30 minutes until chicken is cooked through and tender.

Serves 4

Serve over warm noodles.

**I would double the sauce and mushrooms. This recipe is delici-o-so!!!!!  My husband thinks the sauce should be tripled or quadrupled--it's that yummy!!!!!!!!

I also have lots of zucchini recipes that should be posted, but that's for another day!  A parent of one of my husband's summer school students has a tremendous garden and has been sending tons of squash and zucchini our way.  One squash weighs at least 7 lbs.  No joke!  I plan to make Ratatouille and cheddar zucchini puffs and something else with zucchini, bacon, and cheddar cheese. . .does that make your mouth water?

Gotta run. . .sitting at Panera Bread while waiting for tires to be fixed. . .back tire was absolutely flat this morning. . .not complaining though. . .have you tried the Fugi Apple Salad?  so, so, so, yummy!!!

floored!

literally!  On Saturday we had company coming and I had some cleaning things to finish and all the food to make.  I finished blogging about the Spring Fling, played with the little ones, tossed baby up in the air a few times,noticed that my back which had been sore was a little more sore, went to start the cooking, unloaded N loaded the dishwasher, noticed that my back was sore, and I was having a hard time with the cooking--dropping things, spilling things, cut my hand--battling black dog day thoughts, and as I was putting something on the closet floor suddenly found myself crying.  "What is wrong with me?" I thought.  "I'm not a cry-er.  Things are not that bad.  Get yourself together and get busy!"  "I can't!  I can't do it!" I told myself.  "Why?"  "My back hurts!"  "Oh, well, take some of that 800 mg ibuprofen, rest a minute, and get busy!" 

Welp, when I laid down for a few minutes that was the end of it all.  My focus had been on all the things that needed to get done and when my mind let that go for a second, the pain finally screamed through.  And when I laid down, the muscles relaxed a little and that was it!  I was lying on the floor--with no intention of ever moving again!

Ever have one of those times?  I finally managed to drag myself off the floor to call our friends and cancel and crash on the couch.  We were so disappointed to miss visiting with our friends but  there will be another time.

The casserole for the day and cake were partly started so hubby finished them up and we had them at scattered times throughout the day.  The salad he put together yesterday and it was so yummy with the leftovers.

Here is the salad recipe:

Spring Mix salad sprinkled with:

dried cranberries

smashed candied walnuts

(you know, put them in a baggie and smash them to bits with a glass)

Feta cheese

Newman's Own Lite Raspberry Walnut Dressing

Delicious-E-O-so!

Served with Chicken Curry Bake, French bread, and Pig Cake from the Pioneer Woman.

Today I am sporking by blogging while resting with my feet up and a Tiger Balm patch on my back.  You can spork too--check it out here at Home Sanctuary. . .



Company Girls Coffee

Can it possibly be Friday again?!?!?!



Where has this week gone?  Monday--recoup from weekend company & church, Tuesday--homeschool, Wednesday--teach at school, Thursday--take daughter to Fairfield, cancel Fairfield trip, rush home so baby can nap, go pick everyone up again, Friday--here we are! 

Well, the house looked so nice for our company this past Saturday that hubby said, "Let's have company every week so the house will stay clean!"  So we're having company tomorrow--lots of yummy food planned!!!! 



picture by the Provident Woman



This past weekend we had The Pioneer Woman's Red Velvet Cake for dessert.  (I used her recipe from her wonderful cookbook but don't find the recipe at her Tasty Kitchen site.  Here's a similar recipe from the site by the Provident Woman.)  My hubby who doesn't like said dessert even had some.  Everyone liked it and one of the husband's has already requested it for himself again.  He said, "Not today, but soon. . ."  He is a very funny man and kept us well entertained.  He and his wife are from India.  He is a well educated man with a job that allows him to travel so he's been everywhere.  He is also very on top of political things.  He told us story after story.  Did you know that in the world abroad they don't have a very high opinion of Americans?  They think we are arrogant bullies who always want something for nothing.  I was shocked!  He also said that America's political thinking is "Our enemy's enemy is our friend."  Thus way back when we were not so friendly with Iran we were friends with a certain bad guy and helped to train him to fight the Iranians but then when we were finished with him we stopped being his friend and that is when he went looking for new friends and found those really BAD guys.  He said, "America doesn't want this man caught and put on trial for the things he would say.  So we keep a very close eye on him.  Really!  Yeah, with all their satellites and tracking devices that can pinpoint you at your dining room table--they know where he is!  It's either that or kill him.  And we can't do that because we're America!"  And he laughed and laughed. 

Guess it's a good thing I'm not a politician because I don't understand that type of thinking at all.  If someone is your friend, he is your friend!  Where is loyalty?  And I am very sad that people don't think so very highly of my country.  I guess I can see it though--all around us.  People are out for themselves and what they can get and it is very rare that we see RANDOM acts of kindness let alone constant, steady kindness.  Those type of people are few and far between and their friendships should be treasured if we are so blessed as to cross their paths. 

It was so nice out last week that many of our trees think it is spring and are blossoming beautifully!  As much as I was out and about this week, I forgot my camera every time but these pictures show what the trees look like.  Yesterday we had such hard rains that I thought all the blooms would be destroyed but they are still hanging on--yea!!!!!!!

With being gone so much, there's lots to do here.  We're going to some friends' house for dinner so I'm making a cherry chip cake--from a box.  Have you tried it?  Delicious!  When I was a girl, they even had pink cherry frosting to go on top.  Now I just make do with vanilla.  All my little maids are working:  washer, dryer, dishwasher, swing for sleeping baby. . .and I am off to take a shower.  I'm so excited. . .going to use a scrub during and lotion after--wonderful points for today.  Thank you, Rachel Anne!

. . .a hostess.

Friends are coming!!!  What shall we have for lunch?  Chili!

I know it doesn't sound very elegant or fabulous BUT

everything can be made ahead of time and simmering in the crockpot, throw in some yummy sweet cornbread, salad all prepared, dessert ready to go and I, as hostess, can visit with my guests rather than run around like a chicken with my head cut off while everyone else sits and visits.  There are times for something fancier but my thinking is KISS~Keep It Simple, Sheri~did you think I was going to say something else;-)

Here is our tried and true chili recipe:

Brown:
2 lbs. ground beef
with:
1 1/2 c. chopped onion
2 garlic cloves
add:
2- 28 oz. stewed tomatoes, undrained
2- 16 oz. cans kidney beans, undrained
2- 16 oz. cans chili beans, undrained
1 t. pepper
2 t. salt
2 T chili powder
1 t. cumin

Simmer in crockpot on low for 6 - 7 hours.

makes 8 - 10 servings

Some of our guests were Hindu and did not eat beef.  At first I panicked because this realization hit me only hours before their arrival.  BUT then a friend said, "Just make two pots of chili--one with beef, one without."  Brilliant!  And since I was behind in the normal recipe time schedule, I put the meat in the crockpot chili for 4 hours on high and the meatless chili in a pot on the stove to simmer about 2 hours--it's the simmering that brings the flavors together.

Everyone loved both types of chili and afterwards we "married" the leftovers and had a big batch of chili still.  We're finishing it off for lunch today!

Come join Soup-a-Palooza with TidyMom and Dine and Dish sponsored by Bush’s Beans, Hip Hostess, Pillsbury and Westminster Crackers

Happy Soup Day to all of you!  I'm off to see everyone else's soup recipes. . .

souper!

They're having a Soup-a-Poolza over with Tidy Mom on February 15th.  We just blog about our favorite soup, stew, chili, or chowder and share about it over with Tidy Mom or Dine and Dish.  There are some amazing prizes. . .go check them out. . .


so. . .“Come join Soup-a-Palooza at TidyMom and Dine and Dish sponsored by Bush’s Beans, Hip Hostess, Pillsbury and Westminster Crackers”. 

Company Girls Coffee

Reading about all the ice storms there in Texas with Rachel Anne and seeing these pictures that my aunt sent:










makes the fact that the ice cream truck came through our neighborhood last night seem a little extra odd.  It's weird enough that it was too hot in the summer for him to come through each day but that he comes through in the twilight evening of winter with such storms going on across the country--someone's a little confused. . .and it's not me this time!

We are a family of thinkers and philosophers and last night an interesting question came up.  Eddy was getting ready for bed and Heidi stole his jammie pants.  We couldn't find the pants.  And then it hit me:  why are they called pants?  It's not like socks or shoes--which obviously have two parts.  Or glasses which come as one but have two pieces of glass.  And if pants are pants why isn't a shirt shirts?  That last statement brings another point--pants are referred to as plural--always:  I say pants are pants,  go get the black pair of pants.  Why?  My husband says it's because we have two legs.  I reminded him that we also have two arms but that a shirt was still a shirt not a pair of shirts--because that would mean 2 shirts.  Then he thought of some other clothing items that were singular but could be plural and the conversation deteriorated rapidly after that.  So anyway, that was the highly intelligent conversation that you missed at our house last night!

This past week we had some delectable foods at our house:

This first one was originally intended to be dessert for Thanksgiving--yes, Thanksgiving!  But we ended up having so many other desserts that we never got around to putting this one together.  The inspiration for this dessert from Tidy Mom.  I forgot where I found the recipe and eventually ended up making the recipe from memory:  crumbled shortbread cookies, pumpkin spice pudding, cool whip, and caramel topping.  I found the pumpkin spice pudding at Walmart during Thanksgiving.  My mom who was buying ingredients couldn't find the pudding at her Walmart.  But now in February I can still buy the pudding at my Walmart--so I did and we had the real thing rather than mixing vanilla pudding and pumpkin from a can--our way to improvise the pumpkin spice pudding;-)   What we did not have was the caramel topping--what was bought during the Thanksgiving season has been eaten along with several desserts along the way!

So I got out the handy dandy Seasons of Refreshing cookbook and found a Caramel Sauce recipe:

Mix all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.  Serve over puddings, crisps and fruitcake.

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. whipping cream OR half-and-half

1/2 c. butter

1 t. vanilla

In true me fashion, I didn't have whipping cream OR half-and-half but found a recipe substitution:  1 c. Cool Whip = 1/2 c. half-and-half!  Believe me, this caramel sauce recipe is so yummy!!!!!

I wasn't sure if the kids would like the pumpkin spice pudding so we had a chocolate option available.  Everyone LoVeD both!  And now that I've re-found the actual recipe, we are going to have this dessert again in the near future because the pecan topping looks out of this world!

Last night for dinner we had meat and cheese burritos, Mexican rice, and pinto beans. 

Here's a super easy recipe for the Taco Seasoned meat:

*brown 1 lb. hamburger with 1/4 c. chopped onion and 1 clove garlic

*drain meat

add and mix well 2 T. chili powder and several dashes hot sauce

*enjoy

and the Mexican rice recipe a friend gave me:

*saute 1/4 c. onion in olive oil over medium heat till translucent
*add 1 c. long grain rice and cook till browned
*add 2 c. water, 1 Mexican chicken bouillon cube, and 1/4 c. tomato sauce and simmer over low heat 20 minutes.

So that's it for yumminess, high falutin'-ness, and weirdness.  Now on to this huge project I'm working on for my husband.  It's taken up every morning for the past week and looks like this afternoon will be occupied as well.  All I can say is please pray for us and then pray some more and some more and some more. . .

Hope you all have a great weekend--'specially those of you with snow!  Wish we could come sledding with you!

Day 18

Today was organizing keepsakes for the children's papers & artwork.  I started a binder for Eddy when he was in pre-K for all those cute art projects and then started a binder for all the K papers but that soon became overwhelming and I stopped.  I liked Toni's idea of using the binder for special keepsakes because there are those and I have some sitting in a box with no where to go.  I got that pre-K binder back out and am going to copy Toni and put in dividers for different years.  My system simplified and those special things still have a special spot!  Thanks, Toni!

keepsakes binder all messy:

 tidied up and waiting for new treasures:

 meatloaf for dinner last night--and like all GOOD meatloaves, it is even tastier as leftovers!

 I found the main part of the recipe in this cookbook:

 A friend of my mom's passed this along to me.  Yes, we just purged our cookbook shelves and I sent pounds and pounds of cookbooks & recipe magazines off to Goodwill but look at the cover on this cookbook and tell me that you would've let it slip through your fingers!

 This isn't just a book with recipes.  There's history, stories, and pictures.  Those old fashioned-y pictures always draw my eye!  In the forward the author, Margaret Rudkin, says, "Some of these recipes are amusing, some elaborate and some just plain and easy.  That's a good pattern for eating and living--something for fun, something super for special times and something plain for the quiet days with just the family to say "Golly, that's a good egg!" and you sort of feel they mean you're a "good egg" too.  Few things are more rewarding to a woman than that happy feeling she has when she knows that the food she has prepared with love and interest brings pleasure to her family, served in a setting more important than any glamorous restaurant--dinner at home!"

So here's the recipe for last night's meatloaf--base of the recipe coming from said cookbook. 
** by things I changed.

**2 lbs. hamburger
**1 lb. mild breakfast sausage
**3 eggs
**3/4 c. bread crumbs
**3/4 medium onion, finely chopped
**2/3 c. milk
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 T. chopped parsley

**Place all ingredients in large bowl and mix thoroughly with hands. Shape into loaf and place in 13 x 9" baking pan. Bake at 375 for 1 hour. Remove and spread topping over meatloaf. Return to oven for 15 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.


**Topping: (this was my Grammer's special addition)
1 c. ketchup
1 c. packed brown sugar

mix well

hmmmm. . .looks like I changed a lot on this recipe. . .well, anyway I got the oven temp and spices from this recipe;-)

The Small Thing today was to clean dispensers.  So I cleaned the dish soap bottle, kitchen & bathroom handsoaps, 2 lotion spouts, & brushed and flossed my teeth since my mouth's favorite job is dispensing kisses & raspberries to this little one;-)

day 5

Today will be a work in progress. . .

ha, ha!  one task is completed already:

9:15  to do list is in progress and baby girl is down for nap.  Now to eat my breakfast and keep on!  One big task for the day can be found here:



It is 1:15 and my to do list is almost completed.  Top priority for the day was:

 getting the gate installed.

 Oh, the sadness!

 Momma, I promise to stop stealing things out of the full trash can!  No more dumping out the last remaining cereal pieces and powdery dusty stuff all over the floor!  I will stop trying to sneak into the laundry room where the fun box with poo-poo sticks is--promise!

Here's our former blockade:

--oops that picture is on the big computer whose internet is not working today.  Picture to be added later.

So, for Bean Day we will have Pasta Fagoli Soup, homemade French bread, and salad.  I didn't have canned Cannellini beans but did have dried navy beans.  So the beans are doin' a quick soak and then they need to be cooked and then the soup can be made.  This soup will be made with a lot of time and love;-)  I was talking with a friend from Indonesia one time and asked him what they were going to have for dinner that night.  He said he didn't know.  I asked when he would know.  He said that when he got home he would look in the fridge and see what meat they had and what veggies and then he would throw the meat in the Wok and then the veggies, make a pot of rice, and dinner would be ready.  I told him how easy he had it!  How some of "our" meals take all day to simmer, bake, rise, etc.  He thought that was crazy talk!  Yes, but he isn't going to be enjoying a delicious soup and homemade bread for dinner either;-))))))) 

Quick soak for dried beans:

Sort and wash beans; place in big pot.
Cover with water 2 inches above beans.
Boil for 2 minutes.
Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour.

**note:  If you are using your beans in a recipe that calls for already cooked beans or canned beans, you must cook your beans at this point!  Trust me--I learned this one the hard way and when we should have been eating a yummy, delicious smelling soup, we were chomping on hard beans saying, "What can we dig out of the freezer?"

Gotta get the baby down for another nap. . .

4:15 and another organizational challenge completed--my Small Thing:  the cookbooks

before:

 after:

There is a during picture but it won't load--grrr!--so I'm movin' on!

**edit**with pic

Here are the before pictures for a bowl full of lemons task:  the linen closet

These won't load either--double grrrr!!!!!!!  There's dinner to finish, laundry to fold & put away, dishwasher to empty, counter to clear, linen closet to actually organize--too much to do to mess with pictures. . .see ya!  **edit:  here are the pics**

 You can see that little ones play back here!

 and here's the drawer situation--the bottom fell out of the top drawer.

 Found lots of pictures of the girls when they were little in here.  Can't wait to go through them!

Here's the after pics:

bottom drawer

 my helper

 and her toys

 organized linen closet!

here's the broken drawer. . .will repair it somehow tomorrow. . .

Guess what else was found in that bottom drawer?  My husband's day planner from 2001 when we got married!!!!!  It's so funny!!!!! He must have bought the planner just to keep track of things for the wedding because it is totally blank until May 18th and then the pages are filled with things to do;-)  A few weeks after the honeymoon are filled in and after that just a few sporadic school holidays;-)  Guess the whirlwind engagement / wedding freaked him out a little bit!  11 weeks from first date to marriage--truly!

Here's the best page:

7/6/01--wedding!!!!!!!!

The End and Good Night. . .at a fairly decent time tonight--yea!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Bean Day!

Who knew I had so many beans?  I have some beans, obviously, hamburger, cheese, and potatoes, hmmm, what will dinner be tonight?

I could go look through my Pioneer Woman cookbook and find something--better do that with a cup of coffee!  or there's a black-eyed peas recipe at the Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen but peas are not beans!  I'm off to find a wonderful recipe or two. . .

a baker!

Today many things were accomplished: 5 loads of laundry because we've been out of detergent and the mountains were climbing!, cleaning out of toys for a toy swap next weekend, decluttering of entryway--I am determinded to see carpet again!, and baking for Tuesday Treats. I teach Bible classes on Tuesday at my husband's school and bring in treats to make the time more enjoyable. Well, Heidi has been sick so we are going in tomorrow instead.


Pictured above: Pumpkin Flop, Banana Bread, Layers of Love Chocolate Brownies, and Gingerbread.

Pumpkin Flop was my first choice for treats. The recipe looked so yummy BUT it tastes like some kind of hockey puck. The recipe called for 4 cups all-purpose baking mix. Well, I didn't have baking mix and figured flour would do. NOPE! Hence the hockey puckishness yuckiness.

Gingerbread came to the rescue! Banana Bread was in the plans since we just happened to have over ripe bananas on hand and I am in possession of a fabulous recipe--mostly fabulous because I have always doubled the butter on accident. My husband doesn't understand why I just can't follow a recipe. Sometimes it's on purpose and sometimes not. Mostly things turn out well as in the case of the banana bread but sometimes there is a major flop as in the case of the pumpkin tragedy--sigh!

With all the goodies on hand tonight I knew that something else needed to be made for the family or they would dig into Tuesday treats out of desperation. I found this recipe on the back of the Nestle Toll House bag on Monday and have been dying to try it out.

Layers of Love Chocolate Brownies

combine in small bowl:
3/4 c. flour
3/4 c. baking cocoa
1/4 t. salt

beat till smooth:
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar

add 2 eggs, beating well.

add vanilla and mix well.

gradually beat in flour mix. reserve 3/4 c. batter.

spread remaining batter into prepared 8x8 pan.

sprinkle over batter:
1 c. chopped pecans
3/4 c. white chocolate morsels

drizzle 1/2 c. carmel topping over top.

beat remaining egg and reserved batter until light in color.

stir in 3/4 c. semi-sweet morsels and spread evenly over carmel topping.

bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. cool completely.

I thought the name came from all the layers involved in putting the brownies together but after tasting this incredibly decadent delight I am convinced that the eating of said brownies add layers to one's already existing love handles, thus, adding more Layers to Love on one's person. So be warned--your family will love you for making this delicious recipe but there will also be more of YOU to love afterward!

**an aside: The ingredients for this recipe were already in the cupboard. I had little bits of this and that from other recipes and didn't want anything to go to waste so just tucked it away--pecans, white choco chips, choco chips, carmel topping. So this recipe is a good one to have on hand to help use all those things that just seem to collect in the cupboard with no where to go. You could probably switch the nuts around, add coconut, choco or butterscotch syrup instead of carmel. . .see, this is a very handy and verstile recipe to have on hand!

***my eyes are crossing and spell check isn't working so hopefully everything looks right--ugh!

****Have you heard of Bakerella? Look her up! She makes these amazing cake balls and pops. And she just had a book published! Go Bakerella!!!!!