On the Grill: 4th of July Edition

Original recipe posted at the link below...

I'm entering one of my recipes here at Gathering Manna at Robyn's On the Grill Link Up to win a 50$ gift card. She has inspired me to get back to adding great recipes to my food blog that I neglect so often. Did you know that I've had this blog almost as long as I have had my Sprittibee one? I'm just too hungry when I sit down to eat to stop and take photos of all the great food most of the time... and it takes me forever to finally get a picture to post here with the recipe.

Anyway, here's the link to the recipe I'm entering (and it's a nice reminder - since this is a summer dish that is nice and easy - and red cabbage and pears have so many health benefits!)...

BBQ Chicken, Red Cabbage and Pear Slaw, and a Baked Potato with all the fixin's.




What's on your grill? Or at your picnic? Robyn wants to know!

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No Shame in Storebought Cake

Cake seems to be my theme today. Only, I never shared the photos from the baby's ACTUAL birthday. It was on a Wednesday, smack dab in the middle of our school week... so I wasn't about to do the whole birthday party thing and ruin our homeschool momentum. I purchased a pre-made cake at the local grocery store and had her pop a little shamrock and leprechaun on it.

My baby was born on St. Patty's Day, so we tried to go for green, but they didn't have anything that color with buttercream icing. Buttercream is a must. So we opted for the primary colors instead. I'm sure he didn't mind. He probably thought that it tasted like heaven since he doesn't get a lot of sweets. I couldn't resist sharing this little collage of him digging in the cake like a steam shovel, and then we bathed him in the sink.

Isn't that how all first birthdays that are in the middle of the week play out?

This weekend we gave him a party so the family could join us and he could open presents and see his baby buddies. I posted all of the photos for that (including the owl cupcakes I made and pictures of the decorations) over at my 'real' blog today. Hop over and check them out!

- Heather

The Cake I Didn't Have to Bake

Last week, my oldest turned 13. I asked him what he wanted to eat for his birthday. He told me he wanted my Sesame Chicken Fingers and Asian Fried Rice. I was happy to make it for him - despite the substitutions I had to make (crackers that had nuts and seeds in them instead of sesame seeds - because we were out). It came out great.

So did Morgan's cake she baked him. It was delicious - a boxed yellow cake with chocolate icing, sprinkles and dark chocolate chips. Yumm!

I'm never one to turn my nose up at boxed cakes. Or any cake, for that matter.

I was too tired after our long day and cooking dinner to make a cake. He had said he really didn't want one. He wanted chocolate chip cookies (like mama, like son), so his sister promised to make him those the next day - but she insisted he have a cake for his birthday.

She baked it at 8pm and we had cake after 10pm - with milk (of course); a bedtime snack for a birthday boy.

He got some spending money and gift certificates from his grandparents. As a surprise treat, I gave him a little dogtag necklace I had made with his original drawing for my blog... and promised to take him to Fuddruckers the next night. Fuddruckers is his favorite burger place besides Stax in the Gaylord Opryland Hotel in TN... and Mighty Fine here in Austin (like mama, like son).

My little homemaker 11 year old has turned out to be a great help in the kitchen and she certainly has talent with baking. She makes us cookies all the time, too. I love it when she cooks and bakes.

If only I could stop time so they could be young and baking with mom at home forever. I can't imagine a kitchen without them.


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God Speaks Through Fountain Drinks

We had to skip school most of the day yesterday. Only got a few things done. Why? Because we've had a major disaster with the insurance company over claims on little Bee. Seems they don't want to pay his doctor because we weren't using the one on his medical card they assigned him - but we only just got the medical card 15 days ago and had no idea we weren't using the right one. Not to mention my husband's company needed proof of his birth (other than the hospital bills and his social security card) or they were going to retro-actively drop him from coverage entirely. That would put a whole lot of financial stress on us, so we figured it was priority to skip school and get it handled. I was on a mission to get hospital documents to prove the existence of baby Bee and thus have a stack of medical bills paid and off my desk.

After loosing a school day and feeling a bit frazzled with all the paperwork and laundry piling up (and make-up work for my lesson planner)... and after paying bills (which always gets me in a bad mood), I had another one of those "man, I stink at homeschooling" and "we're never going to get stuff accomplished" moods brewing. Ever have one of those?

So we ate at Chipotle with grandma and tried to enjoy the 103 degree sunshine. Nothing like a good dose of Chipotleness to cheer me up.

Despite the fact that I'm nursing (a baby that naps in short doses), I decided on a Coke with my meal. They had one of their funny signs on the fountain drink machine. I chuckled after reading it: "Not a Winner". Then, out of my spirit, I heard the still small voice of truth:

"You know, I'm sure glad God still thinks we're worth saving even when we aren't winners."

Wow.

I'd hate to be labeled as a looser like that spigot up there. Wouldn't you? Aren't you glad that God meets you where you are and lifts you up, dusts you off, and smiles at you? He keeps blessing you even if you aren't perfect and don't pull everything off with ease.

That's even better than Chipotle at correcting a bad mood.

So we enjoyed our refills on soft drinks and the rest of our day - even though we didn't get everything we had planned on our lesson planner done.

I Promise 2 Bee More Domestic

My good friend Domestic Chicky the Apronista had a contest for a free apron last week and I won! I won a 56$ apron!

This will be my very first apron. I kid you not. I'm nearly ... well... let's just say I'm not 20 any more, and I've never owned an apron. Of any sort.

I'm so excited!

I had my husband help me pick one out. He and I didn't agree on apron design. But then again, he thinks aprons are dumb. And he thinks I'll never wear it. BOY IS HE WRONG! I told him, "I'll show you! I'll get all domestic and stuff."

He rolled his eyes. "Heather, we've been together for 18 years. I think I know you by now. You probably won't even wear that thing. Why don't you just ask her to let you buy a tote bag."

Humph. What a killjoy. OK, I'll admit that a tote bag is probably more my style with all the homeschool books I lug around. He calls me the 'bag lady'.

I'm going to show him, though! I'll learn to sew and start cooking lots of new stuff. You watch. Just as soon as my paper cut heals... and the bookshelves are finished being sorted... and the house is spotless... and the closets are cleaned out... and the school assignments are finished being entered in to my planner... and the kids have all their chores done without me nagging...

Eventually.

Oh, well. At least I managed to learn to cook without an apron on all these years. Now I'll look cute in the kitchen making dinner. So there. I'm going to wear that apron every day! I'll show him.

Who knows? Maybe I will become more domestic. Maybe the apron will give me domestic super-powers. Wouldn't that be cool to instantly learn how to sew and quilt? A girl can dream big apron dreams...

The Kitchen Challenge Refrigerator Chart... and My Frugal Failures

You probably are wondering what happened to the kitchen challenge. You know, the one that I was supposed to put up last Monday. Just like I'm wondering what happened to the linky that disappeared from the original post. Hmmmm. I can't speak for Mr. Linky, but I can tell you what my part in this dismal plot was: falling off the thrifty bandwagon.

It wasn't a little skid, folks. It was a leap. All that talk about saving money and not eating fast food? I plugged my ears and sang nanny-nanny-boo-boo. I had Jack in the Box, Red Robin, and Chick-Fil-A. I even had Mediterranean food, pizza and burgers from a place near my house that my mom brought over. I spent 150$ at Costco on the finest fruit you've ever tasted (granted that a large sum went to pay for the Reverse Osmosis water filter for the kitchen that now graces our sink). But, oh, those greasy burgers and cokes! Oh, that Mango! It was heavenly - nearly 8$ gone in less than 24 hours.

Then, last night, I actually refused to cook and pulled a frozen casserole out of the freezer. Used it right up! How thrifty was that? Wasting my stockpiles that I've been so carefully trying to store up. Well... at least I didn't go out to eat again. Heaven knows we can't afford it.

The only things I can really give myself credit for on the Kitchen Challenge last week:

1. Eating stale Christmas popcorn instead of chips with our sandwiches
2. Cereal for dinner one night the week before last
3. Making a chart for the refrigerator to track our meals at home/money spent on groceries

The first two aren't something I would recommend. Unless you really like cereal, of course. However, the third item on the list - the Kitchen Challenge Refrigerator Chart - has been a real eye-opener. Even if it socked me in the eye this week because of all the money we lost not being thrifty. It's great for all of us (even the kids) to SEE where our food-money is going and watch ourselves stretch the budget when we place each star on the chart for a meal eaten at home.

It's simple, really. All you need is a blank calendar and a pen. We mark a star for every meal we eat at home and we put a dollar sign and amount for every food-related purchase we spend. The object is to have three stars a day. Snacks don't count. We put an 'S' on the days that we do school, too - just for fun. I'm still thinking of what kind of rewards I'll give to us if we actually get a week with almost all stars - all the way across.

Like maybe a cruise to the Bahamas. Or a flat screen TV. Or not. Maybe something more in line with the budget would be: Ice Cream after church... or dinner at a favorite restaurant.

I don't think my failure to be thrifty this week deserves a linky, but if you have some encouragement or tips from your week as a frugal homemaker, please do drop them in to my comment box to cheer me up.

On another relevant note, frugality also requires you to do a lot more dishes. Another area that I seem to be needing help this week!

So how is your Thrifty Kitchen Challenge coming along?

The Thrifty Kitchen Challenge

I'm giving myself a challenge. You see... in times like these, when money is tight, eating at home is a real way to stretch the family dollar. Gone are the days when we can eat out on a whim (usually because mom hasn't gotten her grocery list and menu together for the week). I'm learning to be a bit more domestic and the discipline is doing me good. I'm going to turn my kitchen in to a budget-saver, an educational tool, and a family blessing!

How is cooking at home good for you? Let me count the ways:

* The wallet. You save money eating at home.

* The pantry. You'll always have snacks if you plan to stay home and eat!

* The kids. Not only are they eating healthier, but they are learning home economics!

* The husband. The way to a man's heart is his stomach, I hear.

* Your local grocer and farmer. Buy local and you're helping your local economy as well.

* Your waist. Fast food is full of grease, and assuming you are cooking healthy, you'll be excited to see that eating MORE at home will end up LESS on the scale.

* Your skills. Keeping organized with your menu and pantry stocking, learning new and exciting recipes, and involving the children is not only fun - it's an educational experience for all.

So what is the "Thrifty Kitchen Challenge"? It's just a personal goal that I'm trying to meet ... one that I'm sharing with you all since I know that so many are tightening their belts financially with the state of our economy these days. Here are ways I'm trying to make changes for the better:

I'm just trying to use up what we have at home before hitting the store. Yeah, those dry beans and strange marinades are going to finally see the light of day. No more hiding in the recesses of the freezer or the back of the pantry shelves. Make an inventory of what you have and see if you can marry the ingredients you have with a recipe.

I'm trying to make home-made things more often. Store bought cookies are great in a pinch (like when you promised to bring something to your church meeting and don't have time to bake it after that long Sunday nap); however, baking cookies at home is cheaper and WAY better on the taste buds. You can even find copy-cat recipes for favorite dishes at restaurants. We learned to make fried rice and enchiladas because we ate them out so often. Now we prefer home-made to the stuff we get at restaurants.

I'm trying to lay off the cokes and sugar. It's much easier to diet when you control what comes in and out of your pantry and fridge. Eating at fast food or restaurants, the temptation to splurge on carbs, sugars, and carbonated beverages is overwhelming. I always find that eating healthier is easier at home. I'm saving my hips and my wallet some unwanted overages.

I'm teaching my kids to cook. I don't make them help with every meal, but for a good number of our dishes, my kids are in the kitchen helping. I don't want to turn out young adults who are dependent on others to cook for them - no matter their gender. Nor do I want my kids to feel as if they have to frequent fast food to survive because mom never taught them how to fend for themselves at home. I could hardly boil water when I got married and it has been a long road learning on my own how to cook well. Sixteen plus years after I said "I do", my husband finally admits that my cooking is as good as granny's and mom's. That's my A+ in Homeschool Home-Ec. Now it's my turn to pass the grade on to the progeny.

I'm learning to be organized and saving time. Just recently I started cooking and freezing meals. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to pop something out that is home-made and QUICK for us to eat. Time is as precious to me as money - so this is a GREAT way to kill 2 birds with one stone.

I'm saving money. Less gas spent on multiple trips in to town to eat out after dad gets home from work. Less trips to the grocery store for stuff we need since a menu wasn't planned out and no-one is keeping track of what we have in the fridge. Less chance of getting sick eating fast food that someone else is cooking - with less than par ingredients. Less of our hard earned green paying for foods that make us fat, make us feel bad, and make us BROKE.

So... are you with me? Want to join the "Thrifty Kitchen Challenge"?

All you have to do is post about what you did to save money, cook at home, teach the kids to cook, eat healthy, prep/cook & freeze meals, or make something from scratch. It doesn't matter what day you do it. Just stop in here after you make your menu on Mondays and maybe I'll have a linky up where you can share your kitchen-related posts and tips. I'm going to try and add them to all my menus for Monday each week. That aught to help me be more accountable for staying on top of my goal.

You can use my image as long as you link back to this blog. Right click on my graphic above and you can use it in your post if you save it to your own images and upload it to your own blog. Please don't hotlink. If you don't know what that means, shoot me an email and I'll explain.

Sign up here on the "Thrifty Kitchen Challenge" linky if you plan to participate:


Love in Him,
Heather

Menu Plan Monday: Beginnings

So it has been a while since I've been really active in this blog. Pregnancy and bed rest usually cut in to a girl's kitchen-time. Getting casseroles brought over by friends during your postpartum days is enough to spoil you away from the kitchen for quite some time, too. We got in the habit of eating out fast food when the casseroles stopped. It wasn't until a month after the baby was born that I actually cooked a meal. I heart my homeschool and church friends!

Now that I'm back in the cooking mode, I figured I would start posting menu plans on Mondays to keep myself accountable. It wouldn't hurt to have them typed up so I can post them on the fridge.

Not only is cooking at home a healthier choice, it is a financially wise choice, too! These days when the banks are failing, the economy is diving and jobs are shaky... it is always good to save money in areas where you CAN. Eating at home is WAY cheaper than eating out. If you do the math, it will astound you. Even fast food like McDonald's, if it doesn't send you to the ER with cardiac arrest over those delicious fries, it will be the hole in your wallet. My mom says she went to a seminar where the lady told the audience they didn't deserve to eat out if they had outstanding debt. Eating out is a luxury (never thought of Chick-Fil-A as a luxury, but I'm listening...). Since I'm BENT on getting out of debt in the next year or so, I have decided that eating out is going to have to go away for a while.

I pulled out the paper and pencil and began my pantry inventory Saturday night. By Sunday after church the kids and I had a two week plan written down. I'm not one of those domestic types that was born kitchen-organized. I have to work at these things. Having been spoiled to eating out most of my life (Houston is the restaurant capitol of the USA and I lived there many years), I don't like a one-week menu that stays the same. We have to have some variety... and casseroles only go so far to making my man happy. There has to be some TLC in our menu to make our picky eaters happy - or we'll all end up going out again. That being said, my menu is not a fix-it-and-forget it type of list. Truth be known, I don't even know how to work my crock pot (shhhh!). I burned some oatmeal-thing in it and then put it back in the pantry to collect dust and mason-jar lids.

I can throw one or two casseroles a month in to our menu; there's nothing wrong with them... IF (big IF) I can pass them by my husband! Me and the kids are not as picky and we aren't above consuming beef franks or fish sticks on a weekday for a quick lunch. We eat cheap frozen foods to save time too often (*blush*). You'll be amused at the differences in lunch verses dinners at our house. Lunch is when Daddy is NOT here. He won't eat 'junk' foods. He has granola bars and bottled waters for lunch most days at work so he can work through and get more done. We kid him that he eats bird food.

Have a look at what we came up with for our first week back to menu planning after the baby. Amazingly we stuck to it on day one! That's nice. At least something went as-planned today!

* The slashes ( / ) indicate that someone had different items than someone else (mom has tea, kids have water - etc.)

MONDAY
Breakfast: Cereal
Lunch: Soup, crackers, fruit cocktail, soda/tea
Snack: Trail mix, chocolate, cheese stick, water
Dinner: Rotisserie Chicken, green beans, Rice-a-Roni, buttered bread, water
Dessert: Cookies/Apple Tarts

TUESDAY
Breakfast: Kashi instant oatmeal, juice, water, kiwi slices
Lunch: Breaded chicken, mac&cheese, peas, tea/soda
Snack: Trail mix, sherbet, cheese stick, water
Dinner: Roasted chicken, stuffing, sweet potato casserole, broccoli-rice casserole, tea
Dessert: Ice cream or cookies

WEDNESDAY
Breakfast: Shakes (Isogenix), waffles, eggs, turkey bacon
Lunch: PBJ sandwiches, pickles, chips, soda
Snack: Crackers & cheese, chocolate, water
Dinner: Lasagna, salad, tea
Dessert: Home made cookies

THURSDAY
Breakfast: Cheese toast, chocolate milk
Lunch: Frozen dinners, yogurt and frozen berries (oat topping)
Snack: Trail mix, chocolate, cheese stick, water
Dinner: Enchiladas, beans, rice, tea
Dessert: Cookies

FRIDAY
Breakfast: Shakes (Isogenix), cereal, banana, water
Lunch: Sack Lunch (sandwiches/chips/pickles/cookies)
Snack: Trail mix, chocolate, chips, crackers, water
Dinner: Fried rice, sesame-chicken-fingers
Dessert: ?

SATURDAY
Breakfast: Cereal, water
Lunch: Sack Lunch (see Friday)
Snack: Finish up Friday's car snacks
Dinner: Out (affordable restaurant)
Dessert: ?

SUNDAY
Breakfast: Cereal, water, coffee
Lunch: Sack Lunch (see Friday)
Snack: Finish up Friday's car snacks
Dinner: Fast food on the way home
Dessert: N/A

Hope we can stick to the plan for the rest of the week (and for the rest of this YEAR). If we cancel our weekend trip, we might be adding in a few meals on the "Sack Lunch" days. I think we have enough food in the pantry and freezer to wing-it for a few days.

Stay tuned for our menus each week if you are a menu-loving kind of mom. I enjoy seeing what others are eating. It gives me ideas to put on our upcoming weeks. Just recently I saw a friend make a bagel and cream cheese for lunch and it sounded really good! Then I got a "bagelini" at Jason's Deli last week with guacamole and pico on it. What a great way to use up turkey lunch meat! I had never really thought about using bagels for lunch. Now I have some in my freezer!

Leave me your links in my comments box and I'll come see your menus!


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Technorati Tags: menu, meal, eating out, food, saving money, recipes, homemaking, kitchen, cooking, menu+planning, eat

Owl Baby Shower and Bee's Berry Punch

"Whoooo doesn't love a baby?" That was my baby shower theme. These are the photos from yesterday's festivities - and YES, I got my cupcake... but was not impressed with the fact that it didn't start my labor like I had hoped. See that little finger indentation on the icing? That's my friend Ammie's little girl's mark. Party tip: make sure you watch the little ones if the cake is out on the counter!



Morgan was wearing her 'inspiration' shirt - complete with the little bird and branch that is very similar to what we'll be painting on her wall. I tried in the last two weeks to get the energy up to go paint the murals in the baby room, but it wasn't meant to be. There will be plenty of time for that later, I hope.



Decorating with owls was quite fun. The theme was expanded on with birds nests, ribbons and eggs. I used some older owls I have collected over the years - including this Avon owl that I've had since I was a wee little girl. We gave him a pretty new collar and he stood watch over the perfectly colored jelly bellies.



By far the biggest hit was the cake my friend Ammie ordered. We got the cupcake idea off of Flickr and altered it to be a buttercream icing creation. My downfall is buttercream icing. It wasn't as pretty as fondant, but it was EXTRA yummy.



We also had chili dip, artichoke dip, chips, crackers, cheeses, fruit, candy, and an incredible punch to go with our cupcakes and cake. The punch was my own creation. Here's the recipe:

BEE'S BERRY PUNCH

Adjust the amounts of each ingredient to fit your taste and the size of your punch bowl.

chilled ginger ale
frozen piña colada mix (run hot water over it to soften before putting in the punch)
bag of frozen mixed berries
raspberry sherbet
chilled berry/cranberry juice
crushed ice

Everyone enjoyed the punch. We got a lot of compliments on it. I wanted more myself, but by the time people started leaving and I had a chance to make it back over to the punch bowl, there wasn't any left.



Aside the punch bowl was the "diaper cake". Another baby-shower Flickr idea. I told you that Flickr was the bomb. So many creative people out there! We used wadded up grocery sacks as the center of each layer and rolled diapers to go around the edge before tying them off. It just so happened that I had a package with light green and white - which went perfect for our nursery-color schemed party. The tip top has a nesting stuffed owl. I had planned on tying off some pacifiers with ribbon and letting them dangle from the nest - but time got away from me and I forgot to add them.



Ammie found this cute white cupcake stand at Target. I glued a tiny orange bow at the top. We added ribbon to all the white table-top accessories. I thought her flowers she got half price at Lowe's were a nice touch to the table-top, too. You don't have to break the bank to have a nice looking party spread (well, if you know how to decorate cakes yourself, that is!).



Interestingly, I found out that Ammie had planned to do her two year old daughter's room in an owl theme, too. Not quite the same colors (she was adding in pinks), but her Pottery Barn owls were a cute touch as party decorations. Great minds think alike. I was glad little A let us borrow her owls (even if she did pull them down a few times to tell us which one was her favorite).



This was our artistic contribution to the party. I made an owl out of card-stock, scrapbook paper, and ribbon - colored with crayons and markers - to hang on the wall over a row of chairs. The little ones enjoyed coloring a few of them that I drew on paper, too. It kept the tiny hands busy while the grown-ups scurried to prepare for the guests.

During the party we played a few games - the guys got to identify the chocolate 'poo' in newborn diapers and the girls had a relay race to see who could dress and diaper a doll. More of the younger girls played than the grown-ups during the women's race. The doll owner finally got tired of sharing and took our prop, so we ended that contest early. We gave away two Starbucks gift cards to the winners of each.

All in all, the party was a lot of fun. I had to enlist my husband at the end to help open gifts because I started having some contractions and was unable to bend forward to look in the bags. I feel like I swallowed an exercise ball, I'm soooo big.

It's nearly 11pm on Sunday night and I'm having contractions as I write. All our bags are packed and now that we've had the shower, the carseat is ready and installed in our vehicle. We're as ready as we can be for the little 'hoot' to get here. If he comes tonight, we'll know for sure he's a night-owl.

I'll try to 'tweet' when I can if we head to the hospital. Until then, I may be hard to find online.



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Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from our kitchen to yours. We hope that your plates are full of delightful foods, your tables are set with lovely Christmas cheer, and the people you dine with are beloved friends and family.

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Weekly Menu and a Grocery Store Recipe

Man... what a sad state this is. I almost missed posting in September over here! Part of my problem was pregnancy (I only just recently was able to start cooking and eating again after the nausea went away). The other problem is that school and extra curricular activities have taken over my life. Blogging has been pretty busy, too. We have done a redesign on the Homeschool Post and are gearing up for the Homeschool Blog Awards over there - which is very taxing on my free time!

So I thought I would stop in today with a token September post here at Gathering Manna. I remembered the blog yesterday when I posted my lunch meme over at Sprittibee. I'm calling all homeschool moms to share photos of their lunches on my linky there. Head over and play if you have a digital camera and a homeschool blog.

For today, I'm just sharing the menu for the rest of the week (and possibly beyond). Last night I flaked out and we ate at Chick-Fil-A. I had a colossal headache and needed a Dr. Pepper. We really can't afford to eat out. I got a tiny check in the mail and we had to go deposit it (Thank you Jesus!) - just in the nick of time. It is always like this before payday... white knuckles and edge of the seat wondering how God will pull us through until the direct deposit goes through. And He always does. Somehow.

So what is on the menu?

Tuesday lunch: McDonald's (right before we go to Choir, Keepers & Art today)
Tuesday dinner: Greek Lentil and Orzo Pasta, Hummus, Pita, Tea

Wednesday breakfast: Bacon, eggs, toast, juice
Wednesday lunch: Turkey sausage, sour kraut, peas, rice
Wednesday dinner: Tacos, Spanish rice, refried beans

Thursday breakfast: cereal, juice
Thursday lunch: tuna sandwiches (soup for kids - they won't eat tuna)
Thursday dinner: Bada-bing chicken, salad, pasta with white sauce

Friday breakfast: cream of wheat, toast, juice
Friday lunch: tomato soup and grilled cheese, water
Friday dinner: lasagna, Greek salad, tea

Saturday breakfast: pancakes, bacon, eggs, juice, Italian hazelnut latte
Saturday lunch: skip
Saturday dinner: Sesame chicken fingers, Thai fried rice

Sunday breakfast: breakfast bars, chocolate milk
Sunday lunch: OUT after church
Sunday dinner: Baked potatoes in small group (my job is to take the sour cream)


So that's the menu for the week. I'll probably need to pick up feta cheese, a head of lettuce, some buttermilk for the pancakes, Asian sesame seeds and pita bread. Thankfully, we have the rest of the groceries at home, I think. Things have gotten so expensive.

Next week I need to remember to include a roasted chicken (which I have frozen and got on sale), soup for lunch, and that Mexican casserole that I got a recipe for at the grocery store. OH! And the sweet potato leek soup recipe that I scratched on the back of my grocery list in the check-out-aisle. Man that sounded really good, and there was no way I was paying 5$ for the magazine!

Here's that fat-burning, healthy, fall recipe (which I borrowed and altered slightly):

Sweet Potato Leek Soup

1-2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2-1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup diced celery
2 minced garlic cloves
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
8 cups of chicken broth
2 cups water
1/2 tsp dried oregano
4 cups chopped sweet potatoes
3 cups thin chopped leeks (stalks - not leaves)
1 heaping cup brussel sprouts (frozen or fresh)
1-2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

1) heat oil, stir fry onion, celery, garlic, half of the salt and half of the pepper for 6 minutes or until browned

2) in another pot, heat broth, water, oregano, sweet potatoes. cover and boil.

3) once boiling, add sauteed veggies, leeks, brussels, parsley, rest of the salt and pepper. cover and simmer 25-30 minutes. remove from heat & partially mash the potatoes.

I'm always on the look-out for a good soup for the cooler weather. Home made soup is food for the soul.



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Morgan's First Cake

She's nine years old and has helped in the kitchen for a long time now... but this time she wanted to do it HERSELF. She baked a yellow cake with chocolate icing and broke out the entire army of sprinkles and icing tubes for a topping. After all, a cake isn't a cake without sprinkles if you are a kid, right? The only thing I did was help her take the pans OUT of the oven and show her how to ice the cake briefly before she took over the spatula. She really did it HERSELF.

I think she did a fine job for her first time baking alone. We have yet to dig in to the cake (so I don't know what it tastes like), but unless it is horrible and I have to come back in to edit this post, I'll let you believe it tastes as good as it looks.

My favorite part of this experience was:

1. I didn't have to bake the cake myself. As my cousin said to me today, she can't wait until she can tell her daughter, "Cook for me, my minion!" Today the cake, tomorrow DINNER! I'm seeing many a night off from dinner duty in the future and it looks extra real good, baby.

2. I'm thrilled that the kids are wanting to cook (even if Kaden's only contribution to this particular project was sprinkles) - maybe they won't be as useless as I was when I got married and only knew how to boil water, pour cereal, make cheese-toast and cook hamburger helper. Already I think both of them have far surpassed my skills at 20. In fact, on occasion they will take turns making me breakfast - cheese toast and chocolate milk. That's multi-tasking, folks. When you are under 11 you should get allowance for stuff like that.

3. She decorated the cake for ME and her dad. Always a brown-nosing plus... especially when done on any form of chocolate.

4. She made me a card to go with it. And everyone knows I'm a greeting card junkie. Home made is even better. Maybe she needs an Etsy shoppe?

I'm sure she'll post about her cake on her blog, too. But not today. Because I'm all blogged out. Four blog posts in one day is enough to make anyone NEED cake. In case you wanted to check out those other blog posts, you can do so at these sites:

Sprittibee
Heart of the Matter (today's article won't be up until the 8th)
and
Homeschool Blog Awards

Oh, and I'll be hosting the Homesteading Carnival soon... next Monday, I think. I'm anxious to get my garden update added to that. The watermelon is going crazy! However, this Texas heat is really hard on the plants without rainy days in the mix. We had one day of rain recently, but 95% of the state is in a drought. Pray for us Texans to get rain if you think of it.

See ya, round.


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Technorati Tags: Cake, Dessert, Baking, Kids, Cooking, Food, Life, Chocolate, Family, Parenting, Motherhood

Freezing Meals, Enjoying Life, ... Loosing Weight

A friend of mine on an email list I was on told me about this neat software that helps you freeze meals ahead and only spend one day in the kitchen per month (or so) cooking. I haven't tried it yet, but it looks really promising. They also have books you can buy with recipes that freeze well.

The soup book looks interesting since I have been on a soup kick recently. A friend of mine made a potato and bacon soup for us when we ate at her house the other night and it was so filling and delicious! I hope I can get her to remember the recipe so I can keep it in here.

I also have the Carrot Cake recipe finally. If only I could find time to sit down and post it, eh? Oh, well - you don't really need a carrot cake. At least if you are like me and have about 15 pounds to loose, right?

Speaking of loosing weight... I'm on a CHOICE diet. No, it isn't a low carb, high protien, raw foods diet. It didn't come from a book or website. It is just a personal quest to "make better choices while eating". Eating to live rather than living to eat. So here it is in a nut shell:

THE RULE: Make 3 good choices per meal.

"I'll have salad instead of fries"
"I'll drink tea instead of coke"
"I'll use agave nectar instead of sugar"
"I won't salt the beans"
"I'll only have one taco instead of three"
"I won't go back for seconds"
"I won't have dessert after dinner"
"I'll eat two cookies instead of four"
"I'll get that on whole wheat"
"I'll half the meat in the recipe"
"I won't add extra cheese to my potato"
"I'll drink a glass of water 30 minutes before I eat so I won't be so hungry"
"I'm not going to skip breakfast because it jump-starts my metabolism"
"I'll eat some protein to prevent a carb crash"
"I'm going to eat turkey bacon so I won't have as much fat intake"
"I'll have unsweetened tea"

Whatever your "choice" is that is positive, just try to make wiser choices at meal time... and you can make small "deposits" in your health bank while loosing tiny bits of weight each time you sit at the table to eat. I already lost 4 pounds since starting this a week ago.

If you are doing something similar, I'd love to hear about it!

Carrot Cake recipe to come sooner or later!


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Technorati Tags: Diet, Soup, Meals, Planning Ahead, Weight, Food, Life, Recipes, Choices

Redneck Seafood Dinner

I had to post this. How funny is that?!

The photo isn't mine - it came over email.

We are studying about whaling, seafood, sea animals and the New England coast right now. I'm not real big on cooking a lot of seafood at home. I have NEVER eaten REAL clam chowder, either... but we may have to get experimental to do this unit study right. I can see myself pulling a red-neck meal instead of eating shellfish...

... too bad my kids are older and they know when I'm faking it!

I have the Andrews Sisters "Hold Tight" in my head and I sure wish I had that song so I could listen to it right now! "Shrimpers and rice! They're very nice! Talkin' 'bout SEAFOOD, mama!"

I sure won't be boiling the 20 lb. lobster at our local grocery store, that's for sure. I can't stand killing those things. Crabs and shrimp are one thing - but somehow I always feel sorry for the lobsters. I always just want to buy them all and set them free.


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Technorati Tags: New England, Seafood, Humor, Lobster, Education, Food, Redneck, Dinner, Joke

A Healthier '08

Bocca Burger and BlogHer want to know how we are making a difference in our health this year. One of their essay requirements is keeping it to 250 words or less, too… which effectively excludes me from winning contest right off the bat (I am a tad on the wordy side - which you would know if you read my OTHER blog)… not to mention that I’m pretty sure they won’t allow my WHOLE 4 person family to come to San Francisco for BlogHer ‘08 anyway… and I’m not going without them… so here’s my essay regardless of winnability.

Honestly, HEALTHY LIVING is one of the resolutions that usually slip past my self control and end up on subsequent year’s lists. Up until recently, I didn’t think I could really pull off “living healthier” for any length of time. It wasn’t until I heard about my friend Amy nearly dying in her late 20’s from her allergy to wheat that I started thinking about making some REAL changes to my own diet. I share some of Amy’s milder symptoms that she had before she got involved with her new diet. Hearing about them made me wonder if eating more responsibly might help my own wellbeing… and in turn the health of my family (including my mom who lives with us part of the week and shares some of Amy’s symptoms, too).

I don’t do diets. Any change of mine will have to be a lifestyle change. My first goal is to stop eating so much bread and try and replace much of the wheat we eat with gluten-free or wheat-free products. My husband has already been using the bread machine and I have another buddy who’s son has a wheat allergy that has been giving me tips here and there on what grocery items taste edible that don’t include wheat. Amy is planning to email me a list of approved foods that her doctor has shared with her. She is feeling much better and has lost quite a bit of weight getting off of wheat. It was literally killing her!

Aside from less gluten, decreasing sugars, eliminating cokes and working to rule out any foods that contain wheat or artificial, refined or hydrogenated additives; my other big resolution is to REALLY, TRULY, FOR-REAL-THIS-TIME get outside and be more active. Notice how I didn’t bring up the word ‘e-x-e-r-c-i-s-e’. Sounds too much like exorcism to me and frankly, I hate exercising just to exercise. I'll never be one of those gym-people. Meat market is not my style. What I don’t mind is having fun. Fun includes walking (especially nature walks with my homeschooled kids), playing basketball with our co-op, playing laser tag when we can afford it, and going on field trips that require us to be up and about most of the day. We have already committed to “Green Hour” – ‘No Child Left Inside’ and are starting a nature blog for accountability. We plan to walk and explore each day killing many birds with one stone (figuratively, of course)… our nature walks are PE, science, photography, research (computer), typing and writing skills rolled in to one adventure… and let’s not forget vitamin D if it is sunny outside!

Sorry to disappoint you if you thought I was going to show you how to get thighs or abs of steel in as little as 10 minutes a day while watching Oprah. That just isn't realistic (especially not for me - since I don't do steroids, daytime talk shows, speed... nor do I have a death wish). If I do get out the Denise Austin or Pilates, I will effectively give myself extra credit for sweating in the living room… but I’m certainly not going to REQUIRE it of myself. After all these years (and the seven total times I have done video exercise tapes in my entire life), I know myself better than to resolve about something I have NO passion for what-so-ever. I DO have a desire to be fit… and to enjoy the outdoors with my kids. Finally I have gotten smart enough to channel my resolution for fitness through our Homeschool schedule. It won’t just be mom who is staying healthy, either.

... And I just might find out that NEXT year, I don’t hate exercise so much after all. Ya think? Maybe I’ll even be feeling good enough to fit in those size 6 pants that are stacked up in a pile in the corner of my closet? Nah – I’m not getting my hopes up!

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Technorati Tags: Bread, Gluten, Diet, Health, Resolution, Weight, Healthy Living, Exercise, Family

8 Things from the Kitchen

All Things Hold Together tagged me a long, long, time ago... and I'm just now getting around to posting. Sorry, Charity! I'll try to be more prompt next time. If you want to go read her post about this... just follow the link on her blog's name.

8 Things From My Kitchen

1. Meat scissors. We eat a lot of chicken around here... well, when I'm cooking, that is. I absolutely love my meat scissors that I got at IKEA. I can easily cube, cut fat off of, or thinly slice chicken breasts for all sorts of yummy recipes in seconds without a slow, dull, dangerous knife. Speaking of knives... I really do need some new ones.

2. My pink Bialetti Dama. I've already talked about how we do coffee here at the Bee house. I threw out my coffee maker and we ONLY brew our Italian coffee on the stovetop. I love my little pink Dama (a gift from my husband... who uses it more than me, as a matter of fact). Mmmmm! I can just smell the lovely aroma of a fresh-brewed tiny pot of espresso! To make a great 888, you will also need a PRODUKT Milk Frother from IKEA - which you can pick up for less than 2$. Trust me. You need it. Say goodbye to Starbucks prices forever. Truth be known, my husband is the one who usually makes the coffee. He's such a sweetie.

3. Cookbooks galore. I love cookbooks. I have a bunch of them. Right now they are all on my kitchen counter taking up space... but I'm hoping my mother-in-law will give me an old buffet for the holidays that she has in her garage (she already said she would). Once I get it, I'm going to move my cookbooks to the drawers in the buffet. I always save recipes from the favorite things in all my cookbooks right here in this blog... so when I want to make something again, I don't have to search for hours in all the books (there are at least 50 of them). I can just look up the recipe online from where-ever I am. I also have a binder with a printed copy of my favorite recipes sectioned with tabs. That one will stay on the counter!

4. Home-Ec Classes. Each week the kids get to learn how to cook. I really had to learn everything I knew on my own - somehow I missed the in-home training that a lot of kids get before they get married! I don't want my kids to serve their spouses "hamburger helper" the first year they are married, so we try and always have one kid in the kitchen as we cook. They get to see what is happening, help gather up ingredients, and learn to cook for themselves. Sometimes they even cook without mom - fancy that!

5. Spices. I am known in my family as the spice lady. I have a ton of spices. I use them every time I cook. I love to use fresh herbs, but I probably have a bunch of things that are old and need to be thrown out. We like to cook international dishes a lot, so I require a lot of spices that aren't very usual to most kitchens: palm sugar, cardamom pods, sumac, Hungarian hot paprika, ginger and garlic paste, saffron... are just a few. I have a HUGE container of chili powder. We use a lot of that since I make home-made enchiladas at least twice a month.

6. Stacking Bee-Hive Measuring Cups. I found them in Fredericksburg at a womens' retreat one year while we were shopping. They are so cute... and so handy on the counter when you are in a hurry. I think I'll cry if they ever get broken.

7. Scripture Verses on the fridge. My kids do their Bible Memory verses every week or every other week on index cards and we keep them on the refrigerator so that they have them handy to memorize. When they come down, they put them in a little index card storage box. It is fun to browse back through them and see how many we can remember later in the school year. I like to let them draw a little on each card, too. I love to have their artwork on display.

8. Grossamole. This is the gross Dean's Guacamole Dip my mom just bought. She gets the nastiest processed, fakie groceries sometimes. She stays with us a few days each week and while she is here there are usually strange items (that we would not eat) taking up residence in my fridge. Aside from the "Grossamole", we have leftover nasty ribs, runny mayo-potato salad from a grocery store, a small bag of fried chicken from some greasy spoon chicken place, and a bottle each of Fanta Strawberry, Diet Dr. Pepper, and Caffeine Free Diet Coke. Yuck. Yuck and more Yuck!

So there's my kitcheny 8. How about you?

According to Charity, this meme has no rules. So let us know what's living inside your fridge and behind your cabinet doors. Got "slime in the ice machine"? Any magic kitchen tools you want to showcase? Elves in your cupboard? We want to know.

Now, to tag some people (feel free to play along if you aren't tagged here... and feel free to not play along if you are tagged here):

Sheri of Shades of Pink (because I know she loves to cook)
Mrs. Happy Housewife (because her site is cooler than mine)
Elise at Simply Recipes (because "I love her, man!")
Toni at Wifely Steps (cuz she's really sweet)
Farmgirl Fare (because it would give me an excuse to go see her awesome photos)

Shoot me an email if you DO play along. I'd like to rummage through your kitchen with you.


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Technorati Tags: Links, Meme, Cooking, Home, Eat, Food, Personal, Homemaking, Domestic, Household, Food and Drink, Kitchen

Menu and Stuff

I'm sorry for neglecting this blog. That's probably how I start every discussion post in here... but I do have a few other blog projects that I work on out here in cyber-land, so I stay pretty busy. Blogs and homeschooling are enough to keep a mom on her toes. If you want to visit me elsewhere on the net, you can stop by my busy personal blog (updated daily) or my group blog (updated daily by 15 great homeschool moms).

I have a stack of recipes on my desk waiting to be typed up to go in here... but I just haven't had the time to sit down and play secretary. In the mean time, I figured I would make a little more effort in keeping this blog updated at least on a weekly basis.

So here is my menu plan for this week at our house:

Wednesday last:
Breakfast: sausage, egg, toast with jelly
Snack: apple slices & peanut butter
Lunch: tuna sandwich (mom), kid tub meals (beans & weenies, abc 123 pasta w/ meat) & crackers with water
Dinner: eat out Mexican

Thursday last:
Breakfast: breakfast tacos at restaurant, water
Lunch: picnic lunch (PBJ sandwiches, bananas, pickles, cookie dough, chips, water)
Dinner: Chicken Chilaquiles casserole (with roasted pablano peppers), Mexican corn, black beans, coke

Friday last:
Breakfast: cereal, orange juice
Lunch: eat out with grandma at Whataburger
Dinner: Parmesan Chicken w/ red sauce, Medieval Vermicelli, Asparagus w/ Eggs Mornay

Saturday (today):
Breakfast: home-made buttermilk biscuits, bacon, jelly, eggs, coffee, juice
Lunch: Company BBQ
Dinner: skip it, or cereal, or dessert (we ate late for breakfast and lunch)

Sunday:
Breakfast: cereal
Lunch: Chicken Enchilada Soup for potluck at church
Dinner: Greek Salad and oatmeal cookies for potluck at small group

Monday:
Breakfast: oatmeal, toast, juice
Lunch: Sweet Potato soup, chinese biscuits, tea
Dinner: Lentil Salad, Chicken Diane, Roll or bread, water

Tuesday:
Breakfast: fruit, sausage, sweet potato muffins
Lunch: Grilled cheese and tomato soup
Dinner: Welfare Burgers, boxed noodle pasta, baked green beans, apricot spritzer

Wednesday:
Breakfast: cereal, water
Lunch: baked potatoes, tea, fruit
Dinner: Lasagna, salad, tea, Florentine cookies

Thursday:
Breakfast: cream of wheat, toast, grape juice
Lunch: Out - fast food or sack lunch (field trip), leftover cookies
Dinner: Fried rice, Sesame Chicken Fingers, Thai Tea

Friday:
Breakfast: cheese toast, chocolate milk
Lunch: canned soups, crackers, sweet tea
Dinner: OUT (payday!)


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Technorati Tags: menu, meals, planning, food, cooking

Unlocking the Transfat Mysteries of Fast Food

Do you want to know how clogged your arteries are going to get after you eat that burger? Are you watching calories (or your waist line)? Here's a handy little book that is sure to make you wish you hadn't gone through the drive-through!

[I found this link courtesy of Natalie Jost who designed Franklin Publishing's website; as well as my other blog site.]

I sure could have used this little booklet back when I was sticking to my diet in January. Maybe I'll get back on the band-wagon in July at the mid-way point of the year (for those of us who are trying to keep resolutions, that is). Happy calorie counting! What you don't know could kill you!

I type this as I sip down the last of my McDonald's coke. Yes, I had fries with that.

For some more McDonald's humor, check out our McDonald's song that goes with the lyrics to "The Badger Song". Laughing may be a good way to work the grease off? Hope so.


Technorati Tags: fast food, food, eating, grease, eating out, health, habits, medical, calories, wellness, diet, America, trans fats, advice, information, nutrition

Cooking Funk and Other Petty Blabberings

I haven't been in a cooking mood lately. Cereal for dinner, anyone?

I have been busy with school, co-op, and life... so we have eaten out quite a bit in the past week. Hopefully you will not let my silence in here run you off. Funny thing is; I really have no idea how many people really read this blog.... so I could be talking to myself in here. Who knows? I check my site meter regularly on my other blog, but this one gets neglected quite a bit. This is more of a personal blog to me... my own private digital recipe binder... without the hassle of storage problems (I move a lot, so packing all my cook-books is really back-breaking). This blog allows me to go anywhere that has internet access and be able to pull up my recipes and cook. I can also share my recipes with a simple link, rather than typing them over and over. I hope that someone out there is enjoying my favorite recipes and silly tips in here; but if not, I'm not going to cry about it.

This month I am also working as a team member at The Old Schoolhouse Magazine's Company Porch Blog (another reason I'm neglecting this blog). I'm the "Tip of the Day" tipster. Today's tip was from RIGHT HERE at Gathering Manna. I didn't take my own advice today, however.... I drank mostly carbonated beverages today (which is totally OUT of character for me).

I won't promise to get a recipe in here by Friday, but I HOPE that I can. Be sure to stop by at Sprittibee Friday for the lovely change of the seasons on my template in honor of the first day of autumn (Sept. 22nd) here in America. I just love the cooler weather. I actually saw people with light jackets on today! I am so excited for the leaves to turn... and they already have started!

Happy autumn and Happy Monday! God bless!


Technorati Tags: Food, talk, life, foodie blog, tips, advice, health, recipes, homeschooling, funk, cooking, rambling, personal

Dummy

I feel pretty silly after cracking open that Hazelnut Paste. Yep. It was sweeter than candy. Tastes great on toast. Not even a thought of cooking it to put on some pasta! HAHAHA!

So, where's my sign? You Southern country-music gals might know what I'm talking about when I ask that question.