I Love Bread too Oprah! ...

... it's all about the bread, bout the bread, bout the bread!
A few of my recent creations...

 

Look at my JJ!

He loves my "Piggies"!

I saw them on Pinterest but made them my own- they taste like bbq! Sorry not sharing that recipe yet! ;)

Can you believe he is 8 already?!!  Happy Birthday JJ!

I made his crazy birthday cake but cake is another post!

 

Easy Bread Recipe

 In mixing bowl combine:

2 C flour

1 tbsp yeast

2 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

approx. 1 C warm water

( adding more water if necessary to make thick batter)

Stir until well mixed. Cover with plastic and let rise for about 1/2 hour in

warm place.  My tip if it's winter I will put the bowl in a larger bowl of warm water to help  

rise the dough and keep it warm, replacing the water when it's cold.

Scrape dough down with a fork and put on floured board, divide in half.  

Flour gently and work into a shape or put into

greased pan or glass bowl to rise again and then bake.  

Bake at 350 for approx. 30 minutes.

This is a basic recipe - I have added herbs, cheese, lots & lots of garlic...more sugar...

For a softer sweeter dough use milk & add a few more tablespoons of sugar!

As you can see I've tried a few things I've seen on my beloved Pinterest.  I've

got a great Board called "Rollin' In Dough". 

Easy to make it in the morning and bake it for dinner!

Make it a great day!

 

 

Sound the Alarm...

...  My family was spared from the flooding in South Carolina praise be to God!  My sister said that she went to the store to get all the fixin's for a pot of chili to hunker down with during the "deluge"; and the store was void of Kidney Beans! Everyone must have been making chili! Chili is one of my favorite comfort foods, and as I go through my handwritten cookbooks I find more recipes for chili than anything else.  I'm straining my brain to remember if I had a chili I didn't like...hum...nope!

Chili is a personal food don't you think?  Once Hubby & I went to a dinner party toting a pot of my chili, as did everyone else! A Chili Cook Off. We all ate a small bowl each others chili, a blind tasting, only the hostess knew who's was who's.  Our own being obvious to us, we still ate it like it was anonymous. We had planned to pick a winner, but no one could pick the best chili, I know I honestly couldn't. Each was a winner in it's own way!  It was so fun to see & taste how different each pot was and how personal it was.

 We have no rain (please pray) but now I have a hankerin' for chili.

All this hunkering & hankering Cowboy talk is making me want chili!...

5 Alarm Chili!

 

 

 

 

 

Yes those are tortilla chips! About an oz of chips. I have also used 2 corn tortillas. They add great flavor & also thicken up the chili.  I blended them with spices, (chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, 1 tbsp. ketchup & sugar) with large can of tomatoes. My favorite is whole tomatoes but I used a can of diced, so it made the chili thicker. I got lazy and didn't fire roast the peppers but it's so much better if you take the time to do that. The dark chilies are dried, which I soaked in 2 cups of hot water before adding those to the tomatoes in the blender as well.  I use the water from this soak in the chili. (brown liquid in measuring cup) Again I was lazy and just left the skins on to get every bit of pepper.  Normally I make with ground beef but I had this marbled piece of meat that I knew was going to be tasty and tender.  I always get my pot beyond hot before adding my room temperature meat. It should stick where it lands and I don't touch it until I can see that it's good & browned. This adds so much flavor. It's surprisingly not as hot as it would seem but I can eat fire so....

With chili I love warm tortillas or cornbread but for this one...

Pass the thick & chewy & crunchy San Francisco Sourdough Garlic Bread please!

Grab that spoon! Dare to Have A Bite ?

Egg-cellent Idea...

... Why haven't I thought of this before?  We like egg salad on toast for breakfast sometimes.  I switch it up.  Plain, with pickles, with curry,  with turmeric, sometimes olives, horseradish, (gee I guess I have a large egg salad repertoire)... The other day I made some with green olives & fresh rosemary, mayo, salt & pepper.  Hubby wanted more but I only made a little. Boo. Next time I'll make more. The bread made it more delicious.  When I was just picking up a few things at the store,  passing by the bakery, I spy French bread straight out of the oven. Driven that direction by my nose probably. The bag was steaming,  I paused to look at that bag for a second. When I realize I am looking at a bag of bread, contemplating on whether to buy it or not, I snap out of it, hoping no one saw me because I'm sure I had a big thought bubble above my head.  So I pass it by. I looked around like I didn't care, then circled back around. I took it to the bakery lady and had her slice it for me.  Far to dangerous to bring home in a loaf & slice myself. *chunk butter guilt *repeat. :P nom nom nom  We normally don't eat white bread so it's a real treat. I'm not a candy, cake & cookie person, I'm a bread, pasta & chip person. Sugar is sugar. Anyway, I hate chunky egg salad so I usually meticulously chop the eggs one at a time into itty bitty pieces with a fork.  Out of the blue, like a blue light special, the bulb went off! Pastry Cutters! Pow! That worked so great & such a time saver I thought I would post it for you.

Such a long post for a simple tip, but if you like egg salad, you might appreciate this tip just in time for Easter!

 

Did I make the price of eggs go up? hahaha Since I have been eating sorta kinda vegetarian, we have been lots of eggs.  In the past year they have gradually become more & more expensive, almost doubling in price.  My hubby ordered a cobb salad the other day and there was no egg on it, he said he didn't complain & joked it was probably too expensive.  I say sort of vegetarian, because I love McD's Jalapeno Burger - what a surprise right? (pepperfool)  I normally would not pick McD's as my go to place for a great burger and I don't even like cheeseburgers! I never order a cheeseburger coz the cheese is all slimy & makes the meat taste slimy & taste less meaty to me, but I like the Jalapeno Burger. It's all about the peppers. I do get one now & then or have a little tuna, or chicken, but not very much.  If you love a cheeseburger I hope I didn't just ruin it for ya. hahaha 

 

Speaking of veggies.... I have been drowning my sorrows a little with paint.  Hours go whizzing by. My #4 Mom I call her was just hospitalized. Please pray for Mom Freda and her family. She was diagnosed with Sundowners syndrome and her husband has Alzheimer's. It a difficult time her children & family.  I also could use a little extra money with so many things coming up and things breaking.  Don't you find that sometimes happens all at once? I am putting most of my small pieces on Ebay.  Click HERE to see what's there.  My sister,  SandyPetals, who I love so much, has been encouraging me to zendoodle like she does, I've dabbled, but when I make a mistake or a line I don't like...it's over, but she says there are no mistakes, just do it, she said paint some eggplants!  So I did, then radish, then peppers, then cherries, and green beans....

 

 

These turned out to be "happy little paintings" as someone once said.  haha The doodle paintings surprise me when they are finished.  I love eggplants - but that's another post!  I've done 2 eggplant paintings, 2 radishes, cherries...  I started these & can't quit.   I want to paint some for my kitchen or at least make prints for my kitchen.  I'm fond of the radishes. I love to eat radishes now but I didn't use to. I salt them and let them sit for 1/2 hour or so.   Hey they are also good on egg salad!

Create a great day!

Keepin' It Real...

 ...fresh that is! Check out this cilantro that has been in the frig for 4 weeks and going.  I love this new trick and it works for other herbs too.  I used to buy cilantro and within a week it would be bad even though I kept it in water in the frig or washed & wrapped in paper towel like Rachel Ray.  Whichever, I always seemed to toss 1/2 of the bunch out eventually. Now I wash & dry it, put it in a dry clean jar and place it in the frig.  It stays fresh & ready to use!

I first tasted cilantro in salsa at my favorite Mexican restaurant a co-worker introduced me too back in the early 80's. (Louis's in Sacramento) I wasn't sure I liked it. It was not a flavor I was used to, it was weird, with an oily soapy taste, but this was no sissy salsa! They weren't shy with the Serrano peppers and that fire alone kept me coming back for more, so cilantro quickly grew to love it.  Sadly the old mom & pop run Louis's has been moved, he has passed and his son's have taken over & opened their own places with the same recipes.   There are so many ways I use it now besides salsa.  I use it when I make Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, Indian curries, soups, sandwiches, sauces, & dressings. My frig can't be without it.
Now if I could only get it to grow....

4 weeks and going! Still fresh & usable.

You're welcome!

 

No Words Just...

 

Jalapenos!

Dinosaur size peppers!

 

My "Secret" Recipe

*

5 C boiling water

3 TBS salt

3 TBS sugar

5 TBS white vinegar

6 cloves of sliced garlic

*

This brine covers approx. 20 jalapenos, unless they are Epic in size!

 

Create a Great Day!

Blessings

I Like it Hot!...

......

 (I think those are 2 knitting needles. hahaha)

For the past few months I have been making a big pot of veggie soup every week.  I don't care if it's getting hot either! Today I plopped a big yellow hot pepper & special garbanzo beans into the pool. The broth was so good as you can see I already need to add water to this and I made it this morning.  The beans & the pepper really pumped up what may have turned out to be ordinary.  I love how every pot of veggie soup has it's own personality and I think each pot gets better and better until it's gone. I have been reheating the soup on the stove instead of the microwave. Just like Mom used to do. :) I now season each pot with extra virgin olive oil. 

The garbanzo beans (chickpeas) in today's pot were cooked from dried beans. I used a Punjabi recipe whereby you cook them with some olive oil, a big pinch of baking soda (amuses me to watch it foam), a tea bag, 1" piece of cinnamon stick & 2 cardamon pods. I added 2 cloves of garlic & salt.  I think it makes them taste a little like boiled peanuts and I love boiled peanuts, no one else thinks so, but I can dream a bit, nonetheless it makes them good! Try it!  I may try it with some other beans as well just to see what happens. 

Why all the soup? The past few months I have been eating vegetarian mostly. I have eaten a few bites of meat- very few and I do eat eggs and cheese.  I haven't really missed meat - except for chicken. I love chicken like Forrest Gump liked shrimp, however, even that is getting less appealing.  It's an attempt to get a little healthier,  learn how to cook more creatively, and a little bit for my BFF too, who is suffering so much that she can't eat meat. I can share some of the things I cook or can cook for her when I go down.  Sometimes it's easy to get stuck eating the same things all the time when you change your diet. Especially when you are on a diet. Eating vegetarian is way more tasty than I thought it would be.  I saw this show the other night on tv and they said salad is not the healthiest thing to eat when given a choice between a salad and Ham & Cheese Sandwich. People are getting sick from eating unclean salads (bacteria & such) more than any other food. So they compared the risk and for that fact alone the ham & cheese won.  I'll take a cheese & hold the ham :) Grilled cheese :)  I am feeling better and have lost a little weight as well. So yea!  

***

When the waitress in a New York City restaurant brought him the soup du jour, the Englishman was a bit dismayed. 

"Good heavens," he said, "what is this?" 

"Why, it's bean soup," she replied. 

"I don't care what it has been," he sputtered. "What is it now?"

***

If I had some spare time... 

Free Kitchen Vegetable Cross Stitch Pattern 

To Print Click on the Picture to go to link & download.

Make it a great day!

I'm a Dipper...

...but not a Double Dipper! I love dip. All kinds of dips. Dips intrigue me, so do sauces but that's another story. Actually, it's a love/hate relationship. haha I do feel a little less guilty eating this dip because there is some protein in it! I'm a tofu lover too. :) 

Yummy Garlic Ranch Tofu Dip

1/2 Block of Firm Tofu

(could use soft tofu if you prefer)
1/2 C Sour Cream
1 Tbsp Dry Ranch Seasoning Mix
1 green onion
1 clove garlic
2 Tbsp lemon juice ( may add more if too thick)
salt & pepper to taste

Put all in food processor and blend until smooth.
Serve Cold.

Ta Da I Tried It Thursday...

... I tried several things this week.  Having a purple thumb, actually I should say yellow thumb because that's the color all my plants turn before I kill them off. hahaha  Coming home from the grocery with 2 bunches of celery, I remembered seeing this Pin on Pinterest and decided to see if it would really work.  I washed the celery cut the bottom off (cut the rest up & put in water for snacks in the frig) then I removed some stalk pieces then placed in a little water & set it in the window.  Well to my surprise it does look like I'm growing more celery! In just a few days there were new leaves. When it has more roots I'm going to try planting it outside. I placed it a glass on top of a tiny antique hand painted plate. I have a set of these & I love them. I always look for them in antique shops & thrift stores. I am never afraid to use my antiques or vintage items. I use them & enjoy them. 

Another thing I tried this week is Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies,  a No Bake, No Fat, Gluten Free Cookie Recipe. My mother has made these all my life, only this recipe you can make in 5 minutes start to finish in the microwave instead of boiling on the stove.  The recipe says 20 min but that's just crazy talk unless you are walking to the store to get your ingredients! Here is the Pin & Recipe.  It was so quick & simple, & such a small batch that I decided to experiment with it.  I replace 1/2 of the sugar with Stevia In the Raw and they still turned out great.   I also made a batch using 3/4 C of oatmeal instead of 1/2 C, even better!

Ta Da!

Nuts For These...

...Peanut Butter Cookies. I am not a cookie person but Hubby is & he has to eat cookies every night. Makes me mad he stays so thin too.  It used to be HoHo's but that's another story. haha He is a cookie connoisseur and I was surprised he loved these cookies I made today.  For years, I have made my "cake mix cookies" -  Devil's Food Chocolate cookies, not his favorite really, but I will make them because they are quick & easy and it's usually when he is out of store bought cookies, so I throw them together in a hurry. My sons & other people really like them though.  I experimented with other flavors of mixes with the oil & eggs but he never liked them. I never thought of adding peanut butter either.  I stumbled onto this recipe and had to try it since it was my recipe with peanut butter added to it & using a Yellow Mix rather than Devil's Food, which might be good too.  Peanut butter cookies are probably my least favorite cookie, but they were so pretty I had to taste one. I have to say these were pretty good!

1 Yellow Cake Mix

1 C Peanut Butter

1/2 C Oil

2 Eggs

Mix together well.  Bake at 375 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

Super Simple, Quick & Easy! Aren't they pretty?!

Fluffy Fluffy Fluffy...

...were the homemade marshmallows I made for Christmas!

If you haven't made homemade marshmallows, oh let me tell you! You have got to try it!

Heavily dust a baking pan with powdered sugar.

In mixing bowl add 3 packages of unflavored gelatin & 1/2 cup of water. Let sit to bloom while sugar boils.

In sauce pot add -

2 cups granulated sugar

2/3 cup Karo Syrup

1/4 cup water

Cook on medium heat. You can stir to dissolve sugar. Once sugar starts to bubble around the edges, boil without stirring for 8 minutes - soft ball stage.  Remove from heat and slowly pour sugar into gelatin beating on low while pouring. Then beat on high for approx. 4 - 5 minutes until mixture no longer is getting fluffy, then add 1 Tbsp of vanilla.

 Beat on high until marshmallow candy is a little stringy pulling off sides of bowl. 

Pour into dusted pan then heavily dust top of candy with powdered sugar. 

Have a good scraper ready to get all the candy out of the bowl!  Let sit until candy can be handled & cut.  After cutting toss in powdered sugar to coat all sides so that each piece is not sticky.

I think I will make one more batch using all the left over candy canes that are on the tree.

 I am going to crush them up & add them to the boiling sugar.

 

 

Hot off the Griddle...

...Just had to share this! I was craving hot water cornbread & I had a pot of kale and you know I have lots of garlic!...  These were so quick & easy, delicious & a little better for me than regular hot cornbread.  Crunchy & crispy on the outside, soft & creamy on the inside. Yum!

Crunchy Garlic Kale Cornbread Croquette

1 1/3 C boiling water

1 tsp salt

1 C cooked Kale (with all water squeezed out)

1 C Yellow Cornmeal

2 Cloves of Garlic

Oil for frying

*

Add cornmeal to boiling water & stir to remove lumps. Add salt, kale & garlic. Let sit for a few minutes to swell up.  Spoon into lightly oiled pan & fry until firm & golden brown.

Chop Chop Chop...

... I love chopping it's the best thing about cooking. Oh I love to slice & dice too. That's why I was so excited to see the huge bag of garlic my hubby brought home. I chopped & chopped & peeled & peeled! I keep a little bowl of water to dip my fingers in when they become too sticky.  I decided to make him some potato salad which he loves with lots of garlic & black olives, a little reward.  

I chopped until my heart was content!

 

Garlic Olive Potato Salad

6 boiled potatoes cubed

3 large cloves of garlic

1/2 Fresh Parsley - I used curly type

3/4 C Mayo

2 small red Bell Peppers

1 small White Onion

2 Stalks of Celery

I can of Jumbo Black Olives sliced

1 tbsp. dried basil

Salt & Pepper to taste

 

Hubby was happy! He loves garlic.  The whole house smelled like a wonderful garlic garden. 

I input the recipe into SparkPeople's Recipe Calculator and for 1/2 Cup Serving it has 152 calories. 

I put some whole cloves into olive oil & placed in the frig to use later and I will be using that oil when all the cloves are gone.

I decided to keep some unpeeled cloves in my cute garlic holder. It's so full when you lift the top they tumble out.  Doesn't it look like it's smiling? :)

 

So inspired by this gift of delicious stinky garlic; & my love of  chopping, slicing & dicing; I had to go paint this little ACEO...

"Love Stinks"

(To purchase this piece just click on the painting)

 

It may even smell like garlic! hahaha 

 

Rollin' In Dough...

...real dough that is!   This is how my son & I spent the morning....

We even ground our own chicken & pork for the filling, which consisted of carrots, cabbage, bean sprouts, garlic, celery & green onions; then a little soy sauce, salt & pepper.  Some Chinese Five Spice was added to the pork dumplings.  We tested the filling by putting a little of it on a dish in the microwave for a minute.  We had fun!  Clean up was easy too because I laid out brown paper all over the counter tops before we started.  

*Dough Recipe*

2 Cups

1 Cup warm water

Put all in food processor and process until it clumps together & is a smooth ball.  Dust with flour, wrap in plastic and let rest 20 min. while you make your filling.  Divide dough in half, then roll into log about 10" long. Cut log into 1/2 pieces. Then flour & roll into 3" circles. Spoon about a tablespoon of filling into center, fold over, then crimp edges. 

If you love dough, please check out  more great recipes & follow my Pinterest Board "Rollin' In Dough"! Click HERE.

Create A Great Weekend! God Bless!

A Tasty Sweet Surprise

I made Rhubarb jam for one of my dearest friends whom has been near death this past month or so. By the Grace of God he is on the mend and back at home. His doctor is saying his survival is somewhat of a miracle. He has lost a lot of weight and I am sending a care package to fatten him & his wife up. He loves jelly and eats a lot of it, yet remains thin-no fair. We both share the love of orange marmalade which I made for him last time. He mentioned once that another of his favorites is rhubarb. I had never tasted rhubarb jam. Just the name, "rhubarb" makes it sound unappetizing, kind of like "turnip", which is unappetizing to me. Well to my surprise it's delicious! Now it's one of my favorites too and I will definitely make it again. I was going to surprise him but when I talked to him on the phone, that hot stickysweet delicious jam was burning a hole in my pocket. I'm glad I let it out of the bag. It cheered him up and he has something to look forward to in the mail for the next day or so. It was simple too. Here's how I made it... oops I can't give you the exact amount of rhubarb I used but I would guess that it was about 3 - 3 1/2 cups chopped up, maybe 10 good size stalks. I just grabbed a big handful. It looks like red celery. I chopped it fairly fine but wasn't worrying about keeping it the same size, making sure to get all the juice from the cutting board I put all into a large pot, then covered it with 3 cups of sugar and let it sit for a few hours. I brought to boil on medium heat then added a pinch of ginger & 4 frozen chopped strawberries and boiled hard for 10 minutes, then placed in small mason jars fresh out of the dishwasher. I don't care for syrup, I rarely eat it, so this jam was a freshing change from the ordinary jam we buy and on this Eggo Strawberry Waffle it was so tasty!

A Big Shout Out & Thank you goes to KandiceInWonderland, FaeryMoonGoddess, Brixiana, LoopLoft, RobinMariaPedrero, and SwirlingThoughts for including my art in their wonderful Etsy Treasuries!

Is it just me or is anyone else finding that you have to retype things because you are speaking as though you are Tweeting, breaking your sentences down as though you were talking shorthand? hahaha

Butt Of Course!

I saw these cute Valentine treats at Craftster and had to share, if you gonna be naughty why not make it fun right? They are fun, the guys like them. I may make them some for Valentine's day. Would you munch these down or would you think about where the cookie is gonna end up... on your butt? Hey! Good diet idea...make all your favorite foods look like your large body parts thus curbing your appetite & shrinking your real body parts...
Keeping this post short & sweet. I've got lots to share & lots to thank on an upcoming post which will be titled "Crochet Is Comfort Food With Out The Calories" so stop back by & thanks for following!

Prepared To Be Stuffed...

Yesterday I made sausage for our turkey dressing and it came out really good if I say so myself! So in the spirit of the season I am sharing my recipe. You may not have a grinder but you can ask the butcher at the grocery counter to grind you some pork or buy it already ground. I used 4 large fatty country pork ribs. This time I made it I omitted 2 tsp of paprika and like it much better. I omitted it because I didn't want the red color of the paprika. I might add it back in if I was making breakfast sausage. I put all the spices together on a paper plate then added them to course ground pork, mixed it well, then ran the pork through again on smaller grind. There are 3 favorite dressings that we argue over every year. #1 San Francisco Sourdough Stuffing w/ artichoke, Parmesan cheese & mushrooms, *a family favorite from the early 90's or late 80's found in a Sunset Magazine* #2 Oyster Dressing w/ oysters from the Pacific Northwest or #3 Sausage & mushroom, either with wheat bread or cornbread. This year it's homemade sausage & mushroom. Our worse stuffing ever was a few years ago when I decided to add hazel nuts. I know it sounds like it might be good, but it was disappointing. A good portion of it ended up getting lost to decay in the back of the frig. E U. I'd love to hear what your favorite is and what's your worst!

I have all my onions, celery chopped & put into bags, I sauteed the sausage just until done & put in frig too, all ready to use. Today I made sweet potato pudding *it's like bars really* and got my pie shell baked, ready for pineapple filling. My son is making the pumpkin pie. The last few years I have had the privilege to be able to take my time, really enjoy cooking & the holiday. Doing the prep work ahead really helps, so that when Thanksgiving day comes I'm not too exhausted to enjoy the meal.

4 Cup ground pork

3/4 tsp salt

3/4 tsp ground sage

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp ground red pepper

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp fennel seed

1/2 tsp black pepper

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am Very Thankful to all my Faithful Followers & Visitors!

God Bless You this holiday season!

A Big Shout Out & Thank You goes to SassySashadoxie for including my Angel with a Pink Rose in her lovely Etsy Twitter Treasury! Check out her sweet Doxie art!