Bread and Gravy

Now those are a couple of my favorite things.  As I kid I preferred that store bought stuff they called bread.  I prefer more grown up breads now.

And gravy?  Surefire way to make nearly any meal 1000 times better.

When I was a little girl my grandparents often joined us for Sunday dinner.  Nana played organ for a church downtown so we'd drive down and leave a note on their car inviting them to dinner.  We didn't always get a chance to talk to them.  We just left a note and waited dinner until they could get there.

My papa loved bread and gravy as much as I did.  My mom made some amazing tomato soup gravy.  sounds icky but it wasn't.  Whatever meat she was cooking (usually a swiss steak) would go in the pressure cooker with a can of Campbell's tomato soup and a can of water.  When the meat was done, she used that tomato soup/water/juice from the meat as the base for the gravy--just add the four/water mixture and whip into gravy.

My paper would start the meal with meat, potatoes, vegetables and gravy.  Toward the end of the meal he'd look up and say, "Looks like I have a problem.  Can I get some bread to sop up the gravy?"  And from there the (potentially endless) cycle began.  He needed bread for the gravy but then dry bread wasn't as good as bread with gravy so pour a little more gravy in the plate and then oops, not enough bread so repeat cycle.

Those were the days.

For those of you more interested in the gravy recipe, it went roughly like this:
1 can tomato soup
1 can of water
cook with meat (pressure cooker, crock pot or dutch oven)

Remove the meat to a platter.  Keep the soup/water/juice in the pan over low heat.  

In a measuring cup mix 1-2 Tablespoons of flour and 1/2-3/4 cup of water.  Mix thoroughly so you do not have lumps.  Add this mixture to the soup/water/meat juice, stirring constantly so lumps do not form.  Stirring with a wire whisk helps keep the gravy smooth.  It will take a few minutes for the gravy to thicken.

Blast from the past! Mississippi Mud Cake!

The recipe below is the one my mom made when we were kids.  I scoured the internet looking for it but none of them seemed quite right so finally I just called my mama up and asked for it. 

One of my girlfriends asked me what was in it (poor deprived girl has never had this dessert!)  I laughed and told her it had sugar, a little more sugar, cocoa, still more sugar and marshmallow topping.

Cake Ingredients:
2 c sugar
4 eggs
 2 sticks margarine
1 1/2 c flour
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c cocoa
1 c nuts

Cream the sugar, eggs, and margarine then add flour, coconut, vanilla, cocoa and nuts.  Spread into a lightly greased rectangular glass baking dish. 

Bake at 350 until done.


Topping Ingredients:
2 1/4 c sugar
1/2 c evaporated milk
1/3 c cocoa
1 stick margarine
10 oz jar marshmallow creme topping

Let cake cook for 30 minutes or so then spread  10 oz of  marshmallow creme on top of the cake 

Bring milk, cocoa and margarine to a boil.  Pour it over the 2 1/4 c sugar  and stir until smooth.  Top the cake with this mixture.

Don't even bother to see how many calories are in this baby.  Just know that a small piece, say 2 inches square will be plenty.  For real.  Any cake that calls for 1 lb of sugar in the topping, well, it has to be good. 

Moderation is the key.

July 31, always a tough day

This is the day that I have to really face the fact that soon we will be back in school and freedom will be nothing more than a memory.

Summers go so fast!

On to something more productive though. . .today I have a little cookie recipe for you because, well, cookies are good.  Who needs another reason?

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chip Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 ½ cups quick-cooking oats
1 2/3 cups (10 oz pkg) HERSHEY’S Cinnamon Chips
3/4 cup raisins

Heat oven to 350.  Beat butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in bowl until creamy.   Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.  Combine flour and baking soda; add to butter mixture, beating well.  Stir in oats, cinnamon chips and raisins (batter will be stiff).  Drop by heaping teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. 

Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.  Makes about 4 dozen.

Lightened up Fettuccine Alfredo

A few nights ago we were scrounging around for a meal.  Some members of the family were happy to eat a breaded chicken patty. I was not.

So I started boiling some water to throw some pasta in.  Then I dug around in the fridge to find that jar of pesto that I just knew was in there somewhere.

But I wanted  more.  I saw a recipe somewhere for a pesto fettuccine alfredo.  But it called for heavy cream. . .which of course I didn't have.  So looked online to see if I could substitute Greek yogurt, which I usually do have in the fridge.

Bingo.

Rocco DiSpirito's Lightened Fettuccine Alfredo.   It makes 4 servings (funny, that's how much fettuccine I put on to boil before I even knew I was making his recipe.

I had attempted regular fettuccine before and was not thrilled with my results.  Since I was the only one intending to eat it this go around, I figured I had nothing to lose.  So I followed the recipe as it was given on the ABC news website.

8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
1 tablespoon butter
3 garlic cloves, minced (I cheated and used minced garlic from a jar in the fridge)
2 teaspoons cornstarch
a pinch of ground nutmeg
3/4 c low-fat, low-sodium chicken broth
3/4 c grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
3/4 cup 5% Greek yogurt
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Cook fettuccine according to package directions.

While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 2 minutes.

In a small bowl (or glass measuring cup) combine the cornstarch and nutmeg.  Add the chicken broth and whisk until smooth.  Pour this mixture into the skillet; raise the heat and bring to a simmer, whisking as needed.

Add 1/2 cup of the cheese and stir in as it melts.  Then, remove the  skillet from the heat and whisk in the yogurt. (Removing the skillet from heat is very important so that the yogurt does not separate)  The sauce should be smooth.

By this time the fettuccine should be ready to drain and then toss with the lightened alfredo sauce.  You may choose to salt and pepper to taste and top the pasta with the remaining cheese.

Serves 4.

According to the source cookbook Now Eat This this dish contains:
336 calories
10.4 g fat
Protein: 18 g
Carbohydrates: 47 g
Cholesterol: 27 mg
Fiber: 5 g
Sodium: 745 mg

Polynesian Chicken

This is a recipe that my aunt created when she spent the day with me after baby #3 arrived. My aunt had six kids and whenever I had a baby, she was ready and willing to help me get through the first few weeks at home.  She knew rest was important and she knew the older kids needed entertainment.

One day I told her I had this idea of a meal for us but I didn't have a real recipe.  So she looked at a few I printed out and looked in the pantry then produced this:

Polynesian Chicken

1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
½ cup flour
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
½ cup shortening
1 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 can peaches

Combine salt, paprika and flour. Lightly coat chicken

Heat shortening in a large skillet. Saute chicken until golden brown on all sides.

Mix the orange juice, brown sugar, and vinegar in a bowl.

Add to chicken. Cover and simmer 35-40 minutes until chicken is tender.

Add peaches and simmer 5 more minutes. Serve with hot cooked rice.

Cinnamon Chicken

This is another one that popped into the roundup of family meals.  We haven't had it in a while so I figured it was time to pull it out and slip it into the rotation.

Thusly, you get a new recipe too

Cinnamon Chicken

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons Italian-style seasoning
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
3 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Lightly spray a 9x13 cooking dish with non-stick cooking spray.  Put chicken in the dish and sprinkle evenly with ground cinnamon, seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper. (Note: You can be liberal with the seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper; however, the cinnamon should only be a dusting and not clumped.)

3 Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and juices run clear.

(If you are using frozen chicken it will take closer to 75 minutes)

Cheeseburger Pie

I have no idea how I stumbled across this recipe.  It's one of those things that people look at you like you are crazy when you tell them it's what you are serving the family tonight.  But around my house, it was a sure-fire hit with the kids for a number of years.  Sooo, who argues with success?

BBQ Cheeseburger Pie
1 lb ground beef
some onion (a couple of slices chopped up)
1 cup minute rice
1 cup water
1/2 bottle of BBQ sauce (0r more--depends on how much you like)
shredded cheddar cheese
pickles, chopped

Brown the ground beef with onion in a large skillet; salt and pepper to taste. You can also get fancy and add garlic if you like. Add rice, water and BBQ sauce. Let simmer until rice is cooked stirring occasionally. Put cheese on top and let melt. Serve with chopped pickles.

Lemme share a little secret

You can make banana bread with just 4 ingredients.

I love banana bread.  But it always seems like it's "bad" for you and it makes such a mess for so little reward.

But I stumbled across this little book 4 Ingredients One Pot, One Bowl at the library and this little recipe was in it. . .and the author has this little recipe on her website as well.  So I simply must share. 

Because you cannot have a secret like this and keep it forever.

My middle gal mixed this up for us on Father's Day. . .because yes, it's that ridiculously simple. We started with this recipe. . . .

4 Ingredients Banana Bread

However, true to form, I didn't have the required ingredients.  So I had to make due with what I had. . .mostly waaaay too many overripe bananas that I couldn't bear to throw away.

So we followed the gist of this recipe and came up with this:

5 very ripe bananas
1 tightly packed cup of brown sugar (OK, so ours was really a blend of brown sugar, cinnamon and a touch of butter, it was leftover from a mass kuchen making session)
1 cup of mayonaisse
pinch of salt
4 cups of all purpose flour

Mash bananas then add brown sugar, mayo and salt.  Mix well.  Slowly add the flour to the mixture. 

Split batter evenly between 2 loaf pans (mine are non-stick pans so I didn't line with parchment or use a no-stick spray).

Bake at 350ºF for 45-50 minutes.  To see if they are done, stick a toothpick or cake tester into the middle of a loaf; if it comes out clean, it's done!   Let rest for 10 minutes then loosen the edges and remove from the pan.

Super Easy Manicotti!

My family loves manicotti.  You'd think we were Italian or something.

But no.  German heritage here.

And still huge pasta-cheese dish lovers all around.

Last fall I shared my favorite manicotti recipe.

This summer I figured out an easier way to make it.

I've used no-boil lasagna before to speed up my one pot lasagna dish.  I hadn't ever seen no-boil manicotti.  But still, I figured this must be possible.  It has to be.

My biggest challenge with manicotti is filling the boiled and drained shells.  They always split open and looked awful.  Plus they were just so hard to work with.

So I got smart.  I googled.  I found this:  No Boil Spinach and Cheese Manicotti and decided to try it with my own recipe.

The technique is beyond simple.  Don't bother to boil the manicotti.  Just put the tomato sauce in the dish and fill the raw manicotti with the cheese mixture.  I don't have a pastry bag so I used a ziploc bag with a small hole cut in the corner to pipe the mixture in.  When I was done filling them I made sure they were covered nicely with tomato sauce then covered it with aluminum foil and put it in the fridge.

Sooooo much better than dealing with hot slippery manicotti!

So my new and improved recipe is below:

2 boxes of manicotti
1 lb of ricotta
1 c grated parmesan cheese
a couple of handfuls of spinach, finely chopped (optional, but even my mom eats spinach mixed into her manicotti!)
1 egg
1/2 tsp basil
1/4-1/2 tsp crushed garlic (or onion powder)
1 tsp onion powder
2 tbsp chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste
2 large jars/cans of your favorite pasta sauce
up to 2 cups of shredded cheese--mozzarella or a mix like colby jack

Mix the ricotta, egg and spices together.  










Pour about 1/2 can of pasta sauce into a 9x13 baking dish.  (Actually I also used a small baking dish for the "overflow" manicotti--it's in the freezer for a quick lunch prep for another day)

Stuff the manicotti by piping the cheese mixture into the shells with a pastry bag or the very low tech ziploc bag with a hole cut in one corner..  
   
Place stuffed shells in the baking dish.  Cover with the rest of the pasta sauce.  You might choose to add a bit of water to help soften the pasta.

Cover the baking pan with aluminum foil and place in the fridge until you are ready to bake.  Bake at 350 F for 35-40 minutes.  Then remove the aluminum foil and add 1-2 cups of shredded cheese. (I prefer to stay closer to 1 cup because we just don't need all that cheese.)  Bake for another 10-15 minutes.  Let rest for another 10 minutes before serving.

Speedy Mexican Meal

Once upon a time there was a girl with a family who needed fast food.  But not that kind of fast food. She really just wanted speedy food to feed a crowd. 

And thus was born this speedy little dinner.

Speedy Mexican

3/4-1 lb ground beef
1 jar Newman's Peach Salsa
1/2-1 c frozen corn (as your family likes it)
Shredded Cheese
Tortillas (any size will work)

Brown meat then add salsa and corn.

Put tortilla on a baking pan. Spread meat/salsa corn mixture on and top with cheese. Layer another tortilla on top with the same mixture; repeat layers.  Add another tortilla and top with cheese.. I make mine 3-4 tortillas deep with the last tortilla getting cheese only.

(Generally I use 3/4 lb ground beef and make 2 of this "tortilla pie/lasagna like" things which is enough for us.)

Bake at 425 until the cheese on top is melted or if you are really in a hurry throw in the broiler for a couple of minutes to melt the cheese

Cut like a pizza and serve with more salsa, lettuce and jalapenos.

Also, sometimes I fry onions in butter/sugar to top the tortilla stacks.  But not all family members love onions. 

 Enjoy!

TAH-kee-toes! Taquitos!!

Oh my goodness.  These were quite a find.

I am a fan of cooking up a bunch of chicken in the crock pot on Sunday so that we have fewer decisions to make during the week.  Plus, I am a fan of decreasing my family's dependence on convenience foods (because a little planning means you can be convenient and healthy on your own).  Plus I am a big fan of cutting my family's meat consumption, not because I am some crazy granola vegan (not that there is anything at all wrong with that--I'm talking stereotypes here people--remember I am not the sarcastic blogger) but because there are a wide variety of foods out there and we should expand our palates.  And on top of all that, meat can be expensive so I like to stretch meat as far as it will go.

Soooo, with that in mind, I went looking for some recipes to use shredded chicken.  I found several great looking recipes over at Mel's Kitchen Cafe which of course I highly recommend.  When she posts recipes, she gives a source for her recipe and then tells how she altered it.  I have great respect for someone who gives credit to a source.  Thumbs up Mel!

OK, so the great find. . .an older recipe on the site:  Baked Chicken Taquitos. 

I have to be honest.  I am terrible at following directions.  In the process of making this I discovered that no, I did not in fact have any garlic powder.  So I substituted a little minced garlic from the fridge.  And then I was concerned that I didn't have enough for my always starving hubby.  Thusly, I added more green salsa, cream cheese, chili powder and cumin so that the spices were the same.  And we aren't huge fans of corn tortillas so we used flour tortillas.

But other than that. . .LOL.

And they were fantastic.  I credit the original recipe as being absolutely idiot proof!  I placed a link to Mel's recipe at the bottom of this post.  What follows is how we did it:

Baked Chicken Taquitos

8 ounces cream cheese, softened (can do this in the microwave if needed)
1/2 cup green salsa
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
3/4 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
flour tortillas (we used 12 large)

Cooking spray

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Combine cream cheese, green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and garlic powder.  Add chicken and mix well.

Put a few tablespoons of the mixture on the lower third of a soft tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges. Roll the tortilla up tightly.

Put the wrapped taquito seam side down on the baking sheet.  Ideally, they won't touch each other (but mine did) When you have them all filled and rolled, spray the tops lightly with cooking spray.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown. Serve immediately.

We dipped ours in green salsa, regular salsa, ranch dressing, and even barbeque sauce.

Our family quickly decided that we are in fact making these part of the regular supper rotation!

 Baked Chicken Taquitos from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Japanese Chicken Salad

This is a recipe I picked up from a friend many years ago.  Sometimes we make it without the chicken too, just because it tastes so good.  I love the dressing with this salad!  It's a great little meal on a hot summer day! 

1 head lettuce
6 green onions
1 cup cooked chicken, diced
1 pkg Top Ramen noodles (break in bag, don’t use spices)
2 T sesame seeds
½ cup slivered almonds

Brown top ramen, sesame seeds and almonds in 2-3 tablespoons of butter.  Mix with other ingredients

Dressing (add just before serving)
2 T sugar
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup salad oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sesame oil
½ tsp white pepper

Fresh Peach Ice Cream

When I was a little girl we went to Lloyd's Ice Cream (no longer exists, sadly).  My parents either got butter pecan ice cream or chocolate almond.  I got fresh strawberry.  My sister always got fresh peach.

For our Race Day party I decided that we needed a little bit of my sister present.  So on a whim I mixed up peach ice cream.  The recipe originally came from Rival, the manufacturer of my ice cream maker.  But I had to modify it a bit so here's what we did:

1 cup of milk
7/8 cup of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of half and half
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
1 cup of milk
1 tsp vanilla
3+ cups of chopped peaches

Scald 1 cup of milk.  Remove from heat and add the sugar and salt.  Pour into the ice cream maker bucket then add the half and half, whipping cream, milk, vanilla and peaches.  Refrigerate for an hour or two then follow the instructions for freezing.

Delicious.  A little piece of summer time heaven.  

The Recipe for a Cookout (includes German potato salad and American potato salad)

Our family tradition is to have our first summer cookout on Race Day (aka, Indy 500 day).  Other people wait until Memorial Day but we always had ours on Sunday.  We spent Memorial Day focused on the sacrifices made by our soldiers for our nation. (Check the internet/paper/news stations to see where Memorial Day services will be held in your own community)

For us, it's always a busy week right before Memorial Day.  This year we got out of school on Tues/Wed/Thurs (staggered schedules--yay!)  Friday was all about graduation practice, room cleanup and then graduation.   Saturday we had a vocal recital, Mass and another graduation.

So planning was the key to success.  We fit grocery shopping in between events on Friday afternoon.  Then on Friday evening the girls worked together to clean the house.  We cleaned the kitchen then watched a movie.  Then we cleaned the dining room and living room before watching another movie.

Saturday morning was food prep.  Ten pounds of potatoes had to be washed and boiled.  A ton of broccoli needed cleaned and cut up.  Onion had to be sliced and diced.   Grapes had to be rolled in jello and then put in the freezer.

The menu?  German potato salad, American potato salad, Broccoli raisin salad, Watergate Salad and Jello coated grapes. That was the Saturday prep list. All of which needed to be done by 1:00 so we could get ready for the recital. Sunday called for deviled eggs, then BBQ chicken breasts, hamburgers, hotdogs and brats.

I've shared True German potato salad before which is the recipe from my cousins.  Today I'll share my mom's recipe.  This one is tougher to type because mom never measured.  She just poured until it looked right, smelled right and tasted right.  I measured best I could to get a good idea for you.

Boil 5 lbs of potatoes until they are soft but not mushy. (Sorry, I didn't time this step.  Some potatoes were huge and others small so I just stuck a knife in them occasionally to get an idea when they were ready.)  Remove from water and let cool to touch.

In the meantime, take 2 slices of onion and dice them.

Fry 1/2 pound of bacon.  Save the drippings because this becomes the base for the sauce of the potato salad.  Let the bacon cool then crumble it to add to the potatoes later.

Add 3/4 cup of vinegar, 1/2 cup of water and 3/4 cup of sugar to a few tablespoons (3-4 tablespoons should be enough) of bacon grease.  Stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves. 

Then get another 1/2 cup of water and whisk in 3-4 tablespoons of flour.  Once this is mixed well, slowly add it to the vinegar/sugar mixture.  Whisk so there are no lumps in the sauce.  This will thicken to a smooth gravy.

The final step for the sauce is to add about 2 tablespoons of mustard.  Again, whisk it into the mixture so that it blends.  This can stay over a very low flame or you can turn the burner off while you peel and dice the potatoes.

Carefully peel the potatoes and dice.  Add the diced onion then salt and pepper to taste.  Finally, pour the sauce over the potato mixture and stir.  Finally, add the bacon crumbles.

This potato salad is best served warm--not hot.  I don't usually serve it from a crock pot but I did once; I simply undercooked the potatoes during the initial cooking phase so that they would still be a bit crunchy when they went into the crock pot the next day (for a pot luck at work).  I turned it on low a few hours before we were set to eat and it worked out really well.

American Potato Salad is even easier.

Boil 5 pounds of potatoes as above.  Dice up 2 slices of onion as above.

Peel the potatoes and dice them.  Add the onions.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Then add approximately 1 1/2 cups of Miracle Whip Light and 1/4 c mustard.  Mix well.  The potatoes should be coated but not drowning in Miracle Whip.  (Mom used to reserve a potato or two, just in case we put too much Miracle Whip in--remember we never measured at home)

Sprinkle with paprika--it looks festive!

Hope you and yours have a wonderful day!

They call it "Melt in your mouth chicken"

I don't know about the melting but it was pretty much a hit with the whole family.

I think next time I make it I'll actually measure all the ingredients.

Yeah, I cook like that.  Try out a recipe and don't actually measure stuff.  It's how I roll.  Living dangerously and all.

So here are the basics as shared by a friend:

4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts
1 c mayonnaise (or yogurt)  I used mayo; she used yogurt.  We both said Yum!
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese. (I suspect she used the good stuff.  I used "shake" cheese like Kraft, only it wasn't even Kraft.)
1 1/2 tsp season salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder

Put the chicken breasts in a casserole dish.  Mix the rest of the ingredients in a small bowl then smooth it over the chicken.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.  Do not cover--if you cover this, it won't get all browned and yummy

My friend's recommendation was to serve it over rice.  Instead we had some Italian vegetables (from the frozen veggies case at my favorite supermarket).

Truly a delightful meal.  And we have leftovers for lunch.  Even better!

I do not have my friend's original source for this recipe but a quick search brings up this page which is awesome because it has nutrition information for those who like to have that info.  (Like me!)

Hope your week is off to a great start.  Internet issues kept me away from you on Monday.  Hopefully we get that resolved soon!

Taco Soup!

I know it's getting to be spring so soup doesn't sound quite as good as it does in December.  But this one hits the spot pretty much year round.

I have to give credit to a girl friend who doesn't cook but she managed to make taco soup for a department luncheon one day.  After eating hers I went in search of a recipe for us.  I didn't find one I liked so I pulled parts of different recipes to create my own.

1 lb ground chuck, browned
1 small onion, diced
2 cans petite diced tomatoes (do not drain!)
2 small cans green chiles
1 small can of sliced black olives
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained (this step helps cut down on gas--sorry if that's tmi)
1 packet taco seasoning
1 packet ranch dressing mix

Brown meat and onion then add the rest of the ingredients.  If it seems too thick, add a cup of water.  Let simmer together.

We garnish with shredded cheese and sour cream and serve with tortilla chips.

Hopefully you enjoy this one as much as we do!

Super Easy French Bread

We love bread in this house.  My family has been known to wander into the kitchen and see me working away then ask the silly question "What are you making Mom?"  And when I say bread they ask me why.  As if you need a reason to make bread.  It is bread.  What else can I say?

Thanks to the wonders of pinterest I came across a recipe for making French bread--fast and easy as well as cheap!  Original recipe source here:  http://www.dealstomeals.blogspot.com/2009/03/blog-post_09.html

I tried it.  The recipe says it takes 90 minutes to make.  It always takes me a little longer than that if I let it rise properly.  Maybe that's due to wonky weather around here affecting the rising stage.  Anyway, I am sharing her recipe with some re-wording on the process because I adapted things to suit my time frame.

French Bread recipe (this amount makes 3 small loaves or 2 large):

2 1/2 c. warm water
2 Tbls. yeast
3 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls. white vinegar

Add the above ingredients together and let sit until bubbly (about 3-5 minutes).

Then add:
1 Tbls. salt
1/3 c. oil (she uses Canola; I usually do but sometimes I use olive oil and it's all good)
6-7 c. flour (or a little more if it's too soft), add one cup at a time until the dough is soft, but firm enough to make into loaves

Knead for 2-5 minutes and then put in the oven with a small pot of boiling water (keeps the dough moist). Watch the dough and punch it down when it gets to the top of the mixing bowl. Do this several times.  She recommends 2-5 times.

Take the dough out of the oven and divide into 2 or 3  sections. It might well be a little sticky.  If it's really sticking to your hands, you can add a bit more flour at this point. . .maybe 1/4 c at a time

Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and sprinkle a thin layer of cornmeal on the bottom of the sheet. Roll the dough balls into rectangle/long French bread shapes. (I use baking stones so I skip the cooking spray step)

Slash tops of bread diagonally 3-5 times

Let rise 30 minutes (or until doubled) on the counter.

(Alternate idea:  you can put them in your oven at 170 wait until they are the size you want to cook them at. Once they are to the right size, turn up your stove to 375--without opening the door--and let them bake until done)

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Coming down from a sugar rush. . .

Oh my goodness!  Back to back birthdays are rough on the waistline for sure! And when it's also an extra long weekend so you throw a little sleepover for the kids into the mix, all bets are off on the diet being followed at all!

So as we head back this week, we are going to be focused on some healthier eating--the kind of meals that have vegetables served with them, as an essential component of the meal.

Tonight we are having meatloaf. . .which may or may not be considered healthy eating but at least it's a meal that gets veggies on the plate too and the family will eat the whole meal instead of picking bits and pieces to eat and call a meal.

Our meatloaf goes a little something like this:

1 1/2-2 lbs of ground chuck
1 egg
1/4 c ketchup
1/4 c brown sugar (yeah, I know but it makes it soooo good!)
a few shakes of onion powder
a shake of garlic powder
1/2 to 3/4 c bread crumbs
1/2 c oats (if needed)
salt/pepper to taste

Ha!  See, I have a hard time even telling you what I do for meatloaf because it changes almost every time I make it.  Tonight's meatloaf needed oats added to it because I failed to measure the ketchup and I think I got more than 1/4 cup. . .I was trying to finish up a bottle and it looked like the right amount. Oops.

I like to mix mine up in a ziploc bag.  Read that as "I put it in a ziploc bag so I can get a mini-me to mix it for me while I work on another project in the kitchen"  Yup, that's what I do.  Then we take it out and shape the loaf to put in a glass Pyrex pan that we sprayed lightly with Pam.  It goes in the fridge so the flavors come together. 

It bakes at 375 for 45-60 minutes.  During the last 15 minutes we put ketchup on the top.  I know this step isn't for everyone but I live among ketchup-holics so it's necessary to us.

Sides? 
Well a simple salad is always good. 

Mashed potatoes never hurt either (moderation people, all things in moderation). 

Peas would be an excellent choice to get another green on the table.

Some in my family love green beans (prepared with onion powder, white pepper, salt and a cube of beef bouillon). 

And corn is always a favorite--especially if I fry it.  Oh heck it's easy.  Just melt a tablespoon of butter in the pan and slowly add a pound of frozen corn.  It will sizzle and taste extra yummy. 

Carrots, steamed with lemon butter sprinkled on them and then lightly buttered are always a hit too.

See--healthy food.  Particularly if you eat in moderation.

Breakfast!

A friend suggested this one for us a few days ago.  I know it's meant to make school mornings easier but I'm happy to use it for the weekend too.  We adapted it to fit what we had in the pantry. 

Crockpot oatmeal that the kids will eat
1 can of peaches, drained
1/4 c brown sugar (we had some that was already blended with butter and cinnamon)
a pinch of salt
2 c oatmeal
2 c milk
2 c water

Layer ingredients in the crockpot in the order listed.   No need to stir. . .just turn on low and let cook for 8-9 hours.

Absolutely delish.

Sleepovers and cookies

Midway through spring break so it was time to do a sleepover.  I'm a fan of having them on Saturday nights but since we were out of town for the first Saturday of break and the second Saturday turns into Easter, we settled on the Wednesday night sleepover.

We like to start the sleepover with supper.  Sometimes we make homemade pizza or maybe grill burgers or just whatever kid-friendly meal sounds good to the majority.  Last night we settled on taco night.  Definite good idea.

And for our special treat for the kids, a giant chocolate chip cooke!  This one is so easy.  I swear I wonder where it was all my life.  A friend shared a link one night and the next night we decided it was our new family favorite cookie.

I have read several versions online but this one is the tried and true favorite in our home.  It comes from The $5 Dinner Mom's One Dish Dinners.  Click on that and head straight over to the blog.  It has pictures that look so yummy you will see why we had to make one right away.

(Yes, the kids loved it.  No, they couldn't finish it all off in one sitting.  Yuuuuum!)