***UPDATE: See this post about our new eating habits. (7/10/11) I now use Sucanat in place of the sugar. Every fall, at the end of the apple season, I buy at least a bushel of apples…..usually more. I eat and bake with a lot of apples. Usually my downstairs refrigerator (yes, I have two) is full of apples during the winter. I knew I wanted to make some apple butter for Christmas gifts, so I was saving some of my bounty for that. Then, someone asked me if I had a good recipe for apple butter, so I decided to do a tutorial and show you how easy it is to make your own. I’m not usually a big fan of apple butter – I think the spices are too strong. So, when I make my own I can adjust that flavor. This is more like spicy apple sauce for us, and the taste is just right. You can adjust the spices to your liking. It’s like Burger King, your way, right away. Oh, and this recipe is for a crock pot! So, you fix it and forget it…..I like giving you all easy recipes. It makes your life just a tad easier. Let’s do it! [Read more…] |
How to Make Snow Cream
I have to admit, I’m sorta miffed at the Farmer’s Almanac this year. Last year it was spot on……even to the point that it stated when we’d get large snows. So, of course I, in my naivety, believed that it would be spot on this year. Um, no. When I saw the almanac this fall, it said that we’d have a mild winter, with a few snows. Well guess what?! The Farmer’s Almanac AND Global Warming are both wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. My friend Lora said she’s thinking about filing lawsuit against the Almanac. Go Lora! You have my support! Big bunch of liars. Anyway, since it’s cold and snowy I thought I’d show you all how to make a nice snowy treat. It’s really easy and quite exciting. I’m sure that after I write this, we’ll have a heat wave with no snow…….at least I’m hoping so. |
First, we need some snow. Don’t eat yellow snow. We want white snow…….and try to avoid the dirty patches. I thought I would get snow off the back deck, but it melted. Sure, it only got up to 24 degrees, but snow can still melt if it’s freezing outside – funny how that happens. So, realize that it’s only currently 11 degrees outside and wuss out. Tell your husband to go out and get it for you…..and give him the sad, pathetic look and tell him you don’t have any shoes on. If he wants to eat some of your delicious snow cream, he’ll probably go. If your kids are older, you can send them outside…..if you trust them to get clean, non-yellow snow. [Read more…] |
Black Bean Burgers
I repeat myself a lot…….so you probably already know that Mondays are Meatless at our house. Meatless Monday. I LOVE alliteration. We used to also have Fishy Friday, but my tastes have changed since having Annie. I used to love just about any fish, but now just about any fish makes me want to puke. Especially shrimp. I loved shrimp before I was pregnant. Now, I think they should just stay in the ocean. I can still handle tuna and those frozen fish patties……and fish sticks. But anyone can eat fish sticks because that’s why they make ketchup. Ketchup covers a multitude of sins. I love veggie burgers. If we visit a restaurant that has Gardenburgers on the menu, you can bet that’s what I’m going to order every time. Red Robin’s Gardenburger makes me want to sing! YUMMO! So, I thought I’d show you guys how to make homemade veggie burgers. The base for this burger is black beans. There are tons of different ways to make them, so you might see other various recipes down the road. [Read more…] |
Stacy’s Baked Apples
Man cannot live by bread alone………….but Annie can live by only eating apples. Seriously, this child will eat me out of house and apple. If I’m feeding her apples, I can’t do it fast enough. I ate a lot while I was pregnant, so I guess this is what I get. At least it’s not marshmallows or Snickers. Our house goes through a lot of apples – I usually buy in bulk at the produce market. So, I bake with them a lot. We love baked apples around here, and they are so easy to make! You’ll wonder why you’ve never done it after I show you. They make a great side dish for the Christmas table. And, they make your house smell divine. [Read more…] |
Fruity Pebbles Stockings
***UPDATE – See this post about our new eating habits. (7/10/11) I made these several years ago, so I decided to do a tutorial on them. They’d be really easy to make with your kids……if you don’t mind sticky, buttery hands……or sticky, buttery hands for your kids either. I got the idea out of magazine. I’m not sure which magazine it was, but I’ve seen it several times since in several other ones. I wish I could tell you I’m the genius that came up with them, but I’m really just good at following directions. Barry would say differently, but who’s asking him? |
To make these, we need marshmallows, Fruity Pebbles, and butter. That’s all! I love simple things, but you’ve heard me say that a million times. See the frosting? Initially I thought I would decorate them using icing……but then I changed my mind. I hate canned icing, so I couldn’t bring myself to use it. I’m still not even sure why I bought this tub. Someone will eat it! I’ll take it to some potluck event and make another poor soul eat it. I didn’t want to mar the beauty of these “treats” by using it. I was going to include these during candy week, but was informed that they are not candy – they are treats. Details, details. [Read more…] |
Hot Cocoa
I’m just gonna lay it out there…….I like powdered cocoa packets you buy at the store. They’re delicious. I like hot cocoa from restaurants too – I know it’s not homemade. That’s okay! It tastes good, so that’s what matters. However, I don’t always have the packets sitting around at home. AND at Christmas when it’s really cold, it’s nice to make a little treat. AND think about how impressed people will be when they know you made the cocoa from scratch. AND it really does taste better. The packets are just convenient. At night when I put Annie to bed, sometimes I don’t have the energy to move my little pinky finger, much less energy to make hot cocoa. This recipe is fast though, so you can make it even if you’re in a state of delirium. [Read more…] |
My Favorite Things – 2010
These are a few of my favorite things!” I love that song…….girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes, snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes. Yeah, you’re gonna sing that all day now. I’m not sorry. I decided that since it was the Christmas season, I’d talk about my current five favorite things in the kitchen. I’ll also tell you how you can get them cheaper than retail. Yeah, you knew that was coming. If you know someone who loves kitchen things and you can’t think of what to get them for Christmas, then today you’re going to get five options to choose from. Your shopping just can’t really get any easier than this. I should go into business being a personal bargain shopper. |
This is the most expensive of my five things……unless you run into one at a yard sale. I got one this summer for my friend Kim for a grand total of $1.00. Yep. Don’t be a hater. Anyway, I am in love with my food processor. I use it a LOT. It will puree soup….okay, it purees whatever you put in there, but I just wanted to say soup. It does a ton of other stuff too, but I didn’t read the manual. I’ve got a weird relationship with instruction manuals……I don’t read them. I just really enjoy mine. It makes a lot of the things I do in the kitchen a lot quicker. Sometimes if I have a lot of veggies to chop, I’ll just throw them in there and give it a whirl for a few seconds. Done! It can also be used to make pie crust, but we’ll explore that later. So, how do you get this baby cheaper? Mine was a gift from my Mama. Thanks Mama! That’s a good way to get it cheaper. Of course, I already said you could look for them at yard sales. However, if you want one NOW you’re in luck. ‘Tis the season! This time of year tons of electronic things are on sale. This is really the time of year to buy anything electronic. I just saw today that they have tons of options on Overstock.com and they are also offering $1 shipping! [Read more…] |
Christmas Candy – Puppy Chow
***UPDATE: See this post about our new eating habits. (7/10/11) I was in Sam’s yesterday and I saw a bag of this. It’s called Chex Muddy Buddy. Now, we’ve always called it Puppy Chow. Why? Well, because it looks like dog food. But let me tell ya, it does NOT taste like dog food. It tastes like manna from heaven. This is one of those foods that I try not to make, because I end up eating so much that I wish I could get my stomach pumped. You don’t need to run to Sam’s to buy it. You can make your own and it is SO easy. You don’t even have to turn on the oven. I had you at “easy” didn’t I? But, I am warning you. Make this at your own risk. If you cannot say no to the chocolate/peanut butter combination, then you need to stop reading this right now and go look on eBay. Thank you. |
I always keep Chex in the house. Now, it’s not always name brand……but who cares. I buy what’s cheap. It’s a disease. Anyway, you need Chex, semi-sweet chocolate chips, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Can you tell we’re about to have some fun here? Even if all you did was throw it all in a bowl and eat it with a spoon, it would be delicious. If that’s what you need or want to do, then I am not here to judge you. [Read more…] |
Christmas Candy – Haystacks
***UPDATE: See this post about our new eating habits. (7/10/11)These are my favorite Christmas candy, hands down. They’re probably Barry’s favorite too. You’ll see them at almost every Christmas gathering…..and I bet most of you already know how to make them. So, why am I doing a tutorial? Well, because we have to eat the stuff that I make for tutorials…….following me? So, even if you already make these then just act dumb and play along. Thanks. Oh, and this is a real haystack……sorta makes you see why they call this candy “haystack.” Genius, right? |
Three things are all you need: butterscotch morsels, chow mein noodles, and M&Ms. If you want to mix it up, you can use just about any type of morsel they make. I’ve made this with milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, white chocolate, and peanut butter chips. Our favorite is butterscotch though. I wasn’t a fan of the white chocolate version, but it was very pretty. You need about 11 ounces of morsels, four cups of chow mein noodles, and 1 cup of M&Ms……and extra of all of the above for snacking. Admit it, you know you do it. [Read more…] |
Christmas Candy – Turtles
***UPDATE: See this post about our new eating habits. (7/10/11)
Today we’re making Christmas Turtle candy – no turtle meat involved. Ew. Some things just aren’t meant to be eaten. This is just about the easiest candy you can make. Seriously. If you guys are looking for something that is more simple than this, I really don’t know what to do for you. Anyone can make these……even those of you who state you cannot boil water. There is no water included in this one! I hope Rebecca and Tracie are reading this – you can now both make Christmas candy! It’s another Christmas miracle! |
These are pretty cheap to make. You’ll need mini pretzel twists, Kisses, and peanut M&Ms. These two candies are always on sale at Christmastime…..and let’s face it – pretzels are cheap. They’re tasty and cheap. My favorite!!!! You could also use pretzels in the shape of waffles, but I couldn’t find those this year. Go ahead and unwrap your Kisses…..it’s a good exercise in restraint. I didn’t eat any, but I was chewing a piece of gum. Tropical Fruit Kisses didn’t really appeal to me. [Read more…] |
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