Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Bacon Chicken Sandwich


This makes a really GOOD sandwich! I did forget to take pictures, so I took this picture of the leftovers.
These sandwiches included:
Cooked, skinless, boneless chicken breast with lemon pepper & colby-jack cheese
Crisp bacon
Tomato
I put mayo & a little bit of dijon mustard on mine, & served them on sesame seed buns.
YUM!

Sunday, October 28, 2007

CHEWY OATMEAL SCOTCHIES

This is one of our favorite cookies. I've been making oatmeal scotchies for years, but I've been using the recipe on the back of the butterscotch chips bag. They were really good, and they came out of the oven looking really good. But as they cooled, they always went flat. They went really flat. They were good, but flat.
Then I found a recipe for Chewy Oatmeal Cookies from an Amish cookbook. I kind of combined the two recipes. The Amish recipe didn't call for the butterscotch chips or cinnamon, & of course we need those! But I like the measurements in the Amish recipe. And I learned something here....the Amish recipe calls for 1 cup of Crisco & the cookies don't fall flat. The recipe on the chips package calls for butter or margarine. I've always used margarine so I am assuming that is what causes them to go flat.
So I have combined the two recipes & this is what I get:
CHEWY OATMEAL SCOTCHIES
1 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. crisco
2 eggs
3 c. quick oatmeal (I've used regular oats before & it was fine)
2 c. sifted flour
1/2 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
1 t. vanilla
1 package (11 oz.) butterscotch chips
1/2 t. cinnamon

Cream sugars thoroughly with crisco until light & fluffy. Beat in eggs. In seperate bowl sift the measured flour with salt, baking soda & powder, & cinnamon. Add the flour mixture to the crisco & sugar mixture & mix well. Add vanilla. Then stir in the 3 c. oatmeal & the butterscotch chips. It will be pretty thick, I use a heavy wooden spoon.
Roll into balls & bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 for 10-12 minutes.
Let set on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes then remove to wire rack (I have never had a wire rack...lol...so I just use paper towels).
These are SO GOOD....especially WARM right out of the oven.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

YAY! IT'S CHILI TIME!

I am so happy that it's finally fall weather. Which means that it's CHILI TIME!

I know there are so many ways of making chili. I've even seen chili cook offs on the Food Network. Some folks say you should never add beans. Some say to never add hamburger. Some say to NEVER add macaroni, like it's a really big sin. lol Some even add cocoa.
It really doesn't matter to us. We like all kinds of chili.
So here's a picture of the chili I made on Thursday. I don't usually add macaroni...but I had some, & our family likes THICK chili, so I did use it this time. I probably use macaroni less than half the time. But we always use beans. :) And I go the easy route & use a 'chili packet'.
Here's what it looked like in my pan...

Here's my basic recipe. And like I said, sometimes I use macaroni, sometimes I don't.
CHILI
1-2 pounds hamburger
1 large onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, diced
1 Brooks chili packet
I large can Brooks Chili mild beans (I think it's quart sized)
1 small can Brooks Chili hot (or medium) beans
1 quart tomato juice (or v8 juice)
1 small can mushrooms (some might think this is weird...lol)
small box of any kind of macaroni (optional)
Brown hamburger in skillet with chopped onion, green peppers, & garlic. Drain off grease.
To the skillet add 1 cup of water & the Brooks chili packet & stir well. Add the hamburger back in, stir well & simmer on low for about 10 minutes.
To a large pot add the tomato juice, both cans of beans, & the mushrooms (of course you can adjust the beans to your liking). Turn on low & stir together. Then add the meat mixture. Stir well, cook on low. If you want macaroni, boil it up, drain, & add to chili. It's done, enjoy!
We always add crushed crackers to our bowls, & also shredded cheese on top.
Also, in our house, we do have one thing that we ALWAYS have with chili. It's not complete without :
A PEANUTBUTTER SANDWICH
It's a MUST!
It has to be in or on your bowl so you can dip it. YUM :)
(I usually add more chese than what you see in the picture, but I had already stirred it in & was about to take my first bite when I realized I should take a picture! Which, by the way, my family thinks is funny. lol We sit down to eat & I say "Wait!", then I jump up & grab the camera...lol)
We think Chili is even better on day 2. It's usually quite a bit thicker, so sometimes I add some more tomato juice. Last night my dh cooked polish sausage on the grill & they made GREAT chili dogs! mmmmmmmmm.........

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Thursday, October 18, 2007

The Nattie Challenge



This is my very first book challenge. I've read about them before-mostly on Think-Pink - but I have never participated in one.
This is called the baby-steps challenge .
I have chosen option B (2 of the books on my list are re-reads).

My books are:
1. Ben-Hur by Lew Wallace
2. A Man Called Peter by Catherine Marshall
3. Christy by Catherine Marshall

A Man Called Peter & Christy I read years ago. They are books my dad gave me. He really loved to read too. He had tons of books. These 2 books are old hardbacks of his & the date on A Man Called Peter says 1951. He has an address label in the front, & it is the address he had before he met & married my mom. My copy of Christy is also a hardback that my mom gave him for Christmas 1970 (she signed the front of it). Actually, all 3 of these books make me think of my dad. I didn't plan it that way.

I just had all 3 in my "Mt. to be read" pile. My dad gave me my copy of Ben-Hur for Christmas one year. It's super tiny print & I've just never gotten around to reading it. lol But I've always meant to. I've been to the Ben-Hur museum near where I live many times....as a child. (click on that link & read Lew's quote...it's pretty cool) We went there for field trips in grade school a lot. But now as an adult, I can't remember much about it. After I finish this book, I'd like to go back & have a look around. :)
Also, & I hope this doesn't sound creepy or weird or anything, but my dad is buried about 50-100 yards from Lew Wallace. Really, I'm not weird. lol It's just that I drive by Lew's grave to get to my dads. I know that must sound odd! lol Maybe I AM weird.....lol

Anyway, there's my 3 books. I didn't mean for them to be 'Dad' books, but that's how it turned out. So I'd like to do this 1st reading challenge in honor of my dad, who loved reading & passed that love on to me. And of course in honor of Nattie. It's a shame that I didn't know her well. I really wish I did. We talked a few times on the message board about our weather & our state starting to go with the rest of the country by observing that stupid (lol)daylight savings time.
Here's a picture of my dad & me. Thanks for my books, Dad. :)


Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Vegetable Soup

Jane's Vegetable Soup

2-3 pounds boneless chuck, tip, or round, (or just buy stew meat) cut into 1 inch pieces
1 T. vegetable oil
2 C. water
2 t. beef bouillon
2-3 cloves garlic
salt & pepper
5 or so carrots
4 or so potatoes
2 stalks celery (opt.)
1 onion
1 quart canned tomatoes (or store bought large can)
2 or 3 quarts of tomato juice (can use v8 too)
bag of frozen corn
bag of frozen peas
1 quart green beans
canned mushrooms

Cook and stir beef in oil in large pan until browned. Stir in 2 cup water, the beef bouillon, salt & pepper, & chopped garlic. Cover and simmer until tender, about 1 hour. (an hour & a half if you need to) Stir in tomato juice. Add sliced carrots, potatoes, celery, onion, & canned tomatoes. Cover & simmer until carrots & potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes or so. Add frozen peas & corn, green beans, & mushrooms. Simmer a few more minutes.I usually make a big batch of this (using 3 or 4 pounds of meat & at least 3 quarts of tomato juice) so we can eat it for two days. It's always even better on day two. If there's any left, it's great to freeze in small single serving containers.
Here it is in the big pot I cook it in. It's not a very good picture, so once I added it & saw that I didn't really like it I tried to delete it. But.....I can't figure out how to get it off of this post. lol
So I guess I'm stuck with leaving it here because I'm too tired to try to figure it out. lol

I wanted to add that what I think is great about this soup is that you can add whatever you like or take out what you don't. You could add lima beans if you want. I personally LOVE cabbage in mine, but nobody else in my family likes cabbage in it.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

ICE CREAM TIME!

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM WITH ANDES CREME DE MENTHE PIECES



She Treads Softly gave me the idea to add creme de menthe pieces to ice cream.
I am not able to come up with any words to aptly describe how wonderful this tastes.
Here's my recipe for this light chocolate ice cream. It is for a gallon & a half ice cream maker.

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM (light chocolate)
4 squares semi-sweet melted chocolate
6 c. half & half (or use some half & half & some cream)
3-3/4 c sugar
7-1/2 T. flour
1-1/2 t. salt
7 eggs
Melt chocolate in microwave or double boiler & heat up the half & half to about the same temperature. Combine & beat with mixer for a while. Set aside to cool.
In large mixing bowl, combine other ingredients and then fold it into the cooled milk & chocolate mixture. Put back onto the heat & cook & stir until spoon is coated. (don't boil)
Let cool & then refrigerate overnight.
When it's time to make the ice cream, pour into the canaster. -This part is probably exclusive to this big old ice cream freezer I have- then pour milk into canister until it is 4 or 5 inches from the top. It usually takes about a quart of milk to do this. I don't understand this, but I do it & it works. lol I would think it would water down the ice cream. But like I said, it works. :)
We crank our freezer for 20 minutes or so. If we eat the ice cream right after cranking, it is soft like soft serve ice cream, kind of like a thick milk shake. So after we enjoyed some ice cream, I brought the can in, added the Andes Creme De Menthe baking chips, stirred, & then poured it into a 1.5 gallon ice cream container (the plastic kind with a handle, that you get ice cream in the store, it's like a bucket), then cover with plastic wrap before puting on the lid.
Once it freezes harder, it looks like the picture.
I think this is my favorite so far. But I may need to make that coffee mint ice cream again & put these mint pieces in that! Then I don't know which would be my favorite!

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Steak & Egg Sandwich

The picture didn't turn out so great, but I had to show one shot of this before slicing. This is a 'left overs' sandwich. The day before we had steak sandwiches that I got from PioneerWoman Cooks. I make a bunch so we will have leftovers. :)
And this is how my dh loves it.
It is on toasted rye bread. (we were out of our deli sub buns)
It has cheese and a nice layer of steak & 1 sunny side up egg.


Just look at that juice from the steak & the egg yolk!
YUM!

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Saturday, October 6, 2007

Porcupines

I used to call these Porcupine Balls.....until I realized what that meant! I just thought that these meatballs resemble porcupines because of the rice, & well, meatballs are shaped like a ball....
then a light bulb came on a few years ago & I realized what I'd been saying! So I now just call them PORCUPINES! :)

1 box Beef Rice a Roni
1-1/2 to 2 pounds hamburger
1 egg
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped

Mix meat, rice, egg, onion, & garlic . Shape into meatballs & brown on all sides. I make these kind of big, a little bigger than golf balls.
Drain off the grease.
Add 2-1/2 C. hot water to the beef flavoring packet that came in the rice a roni. Pour over meatballs. Cover & boil for 15-20 minutes or until rice looks puffy & soft.
Take lid off & cook water down some to make a nice gravy (well, it's more like a sauce).
We LOVE these & I usually serve them with mashed potatoes & corn. And the next day, if there are any leftovers, they make wonderful sandwiches! YUM!

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Crockpot beef stew

We actually call this one "dark brown beef stew", because I have another recipe that we call "light brown beef stew". lol The "light brown" one is really good, it's different. This is the 'regular' kind, or 'usual' beef stew. Don't be fooled by usual or ordinary though, this is so gooooooood. And perfect for cool fall days. (if we'll ever GET any of those!)
Crockpot Beef Stew
1 pkg. stew meat, about 1 1/2 pounds
1 packet Lipton beefy onion soup mix
1 1/2 t. beef bouillon
3-4 potatoes, cubed
4-5 carrons, sliced
1 stalk celery, sliced (optional)
1 can diced tomatoes, with juice (as you know by now, I use the kind with basil, garlic, & oregano)
1-2 cloves crushed garlic
salt & pepper to taste
2 T. cornstarch mixed with about 1/4 cup cold water.

Put all ingredients in a slow cooker (except cornstarch & water) on low for 8-10 hours. Taste & adjust seasonings. Add 2 T. cornstarch mixed with cold wather. Turn to high & stir until thickened.

Oh my.....this is SO good with homemade buttered bread.