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Showing posts from 2014

Almond Cookies

Our trip to the New England states this Fall seems forever ago. Forrrrr-evah! While we were in Vermont, we went to Dartmouth College and King Arthur Flour Company. I'm not really sure which I liked better . . . but if my boy cherub decided to go to Dartmouth, I would NOT be disappointed! Those two amazing institutions are just minutes away from each other. M.I.N.U.T.E.S! As we were shopping, a sweet sales clerk recommended the almond cookies they had just replenished. She said they were her favorite, ever! We bought our one package to take with us. We were sad. We wished we had bought more packages. Because we loved them! One reason we love them is that it's something different. Don't get me wrong, I love chocolate chip cookies. And peanut butter cookies. And oatmeal cookies too. But this one . . . .it's different and I like different! If you're an almond lover, then give this a try. They're wonderful! Almond Cooki

Plum Chicken

Oh my word! How do the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas seem like a never-ending roller coaster that's out of control? Serious! I need to get in control of this! During these holiday weeks, if my family gets dinner, we're lucky. I'm not talking balance. Or even including a vegetable! I'm talking, if there's something that resembles a meal, there's  no complaining! We don't go and grab when it's hectic. It's still easier and far cheaper for me to fix something at home. The other night, I made this for me and the cherubs because the Mr. wasn't at home. It was so good that I made it again, two nights later! It is so forgiving! Since being gluten free, there are some things we miss. Chinese food is one of them! This filled the void! Plum Chicken Chicken breasts, cubed salt pepper garlic powder corn starch 2-3 egg whites, whisked oil plum jelly sriracha sauce For the 4 of us, I used 3 chicken breas

Hot Spiced Cider for One

It's cold outside, and I'm a little chilly. I have a headache, and I have no voice. It's the holiday season . . . My Mr. had me meet him outside of Costco. He bought me 2 gallons of apple juice. T.W.O. whole gallons! That's a lot of apple juice! He thought it would be great for my throat. What can I say -- I have a thoughtful man! I can tell you what would actually be good for my throat . . . about 3 days of nothing to do, locked up in my house! THAT would bring healing, I think! But since that isn't going to happen, I think I'll do something with my two gallons of apple juice, to help soothe me very sore throat. I made a cup of hot spiced cider for one! Single Serve Hot Spiced Cider 1 cup apple juice 4 whole cloves 2 allspice berries 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon OR 1 cinnamon stick* 1 tsp. brown sugar a WEE little , entsy , tensy bit of orange flavoring In a microwave safe mug, add the juice, spices, and sugar. 

Peppered Candied Bacon

The Mr. and I recently took an anniversary trip through some lovely New England states. While traveling, we stayed in some fabulous bed and breakfast inns. We haven't done that a lot, as we have had about a 50/50 experience with B&B's! But taking a risk, we went for it! Each inn was great and I'd return to each of them if given the opportunity. That's a good endorsement, huh? Each breakfast we were served had at least one recipe that I requested! OK -- sometimes 2! One place we stayed, the inn owner served this bacon. She announced, on more than one occasion, that each guest would be limited to 2 pieces, as, "I am full with guests and this is all the bacon I had." Which, after tasting the bacon, I was able to translate to this: "This bacon is amazing and there is no way I could ever cook enough to satisfy the guests." So there! That's the truth! Since being home, the Mr. and I have made this several times fo

Beef and Bean Soup

I hate when I thaw out something for dinner and then we don't need it. That happened to me just the other night! I thawed out ground beef, with no idea of what I was going to do with it. Then the Mr. figured out that he was the only one that would be home for dinner and told me not to cook anything. But I already had the meat thawed, so the rational side of me said, "Self, why not go ahead and make something that can be used for dinner in a night or two." I didn't respond to myself, because there's a point when self-talk becomes strangely . . . strange! While browning the beef, I got out all of the ingredients for sloppy joes. I don't really care for sloppy joes, but the rest of the family likes them. But while grabbing the final ingredient, I decided I didn't want to make that and I would make soup. After looking through the cabinet, I grabbed a few cans of things and made this soup. I had no idea if it would be

A Walk to Wisdom

  When we first arrived in Dallas, there was a fellow pastor who loaded the Mr. into the car and said, "Let's go to Bonton." The Mr. spent the day in this area of far, South Dallas, learning about a ministry called H.I.S. Bridgebuilders. Fast-forward nearly 5 years. At our school, high school students have the week before Spring Break to participate in, "Minimester." Short synopsis:  it's a week to go on a mission trip. As a Freshman baseball player, my boy cherub went to Bonton . . . the place where the Mr. first toured. When the Baseball boys and two mom chaperons arrived in Bonton, a man named Trog met us there. Trog impressed my boy cherub. Trog has his own look, wears a leather knife holder . . . and knife, and gardens as apart of his ministry. In this inner city ministry, Trog cultivates both produce and disciples. This resonated with my boy cherub, who feels his own call to full-time ministry, but doesn't beli

Mom's Easy Apple Crisp

Many years ago, I met a girl from our church and we became great friends. We shared many things in common, but a real thread that bound us was a love for Southern Living cookbooks! Yes! It's been that long ago when we would pour over the magazines  and collect the annual cookbooks and share our love of trying a new recipe! We ate many Sunday lunches at their house. Two reasons for that: They lived close to the church . . . and we didn't They could leave right when church was over . . . and we couldn't By the time we got to their house on Sunday afternoons, she was able to have all the last minute things done and they were standing around waiting on us. That's the life of having a pastor over for lunch . . . you spend a lot of time waiting for them to get there! Anyway; it's been a very long time since we've seen each other, but I still make a lot of our shared recipes. This one, however, was not a Southern Living recipe. I'm

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Many years ago, while living in Arizona, a friend brought dinner to us one night after we had our first cherub. That dinner left such a lasting impression on us that I still make it and it's one of our family favorites. Not only do I make the "main entree" like Lisa made, but I make the VERY dinner she brought to us 16 years ago! Zippy meatballs, cooked carrots, and mashed potatoes. It just goes together! Yesterday, when my girl cherub got new wires, hooks, and smaller rubber bands for her braces, and it made her teeth really sore! Tonight for dinner, we are faced with a dilemma! While we feel sorry for her, we still want to eat. And we don't want "soft food" either! I thought of meatballs! While we do really adore the zippy meatballs, I was wanting something to serve with rice. Sweet and Sour meatballs! Perfect choice! When you google that recipe, normally you find the appetizer option, using frozen meatballs.

New Hampshire Chicken Sandwich

Photo taken by my boy cherub When we rolled into the sleepy New Hampshire town and there were only two restaurants to choose from . . . and one was closed, we know our options might be slightly limited! In the parking lot, the Mr. said, "we might be eating gluten tonight!" We were wrong! Not only did they have gluten free options, but they even had a gluten free menu! Because we had devoured a ton of cheese and apples earlier that day, the Mr. and I decided on something to share for dinner. For a point of information: I am not really one that "likes" to eat out. Oh, I like to . . . but it's for strange reasons. As in, I don't want to order something I can easily make at home. Like a salad. Honestly, unless it's an "over the top" salad, I'm not going to order one as my meal. When I go out, I'm looking for things to try that I can then go home and replicate. That's what happened this night!

Berry and Peach Crisp

The Mr. and I celebrated 20 years of marriage last week. With my mom agreeing to keep watch over the cherubs, we took off to the beautiful New England states for a few days!   It's kind of a sad reality when, at our age, we view going to New England in the Fall as "fun!" At least we didn't make the trip on a charter bus! Although, there is nothing wrong with that . . . and there were p.l.e.n.t.y. of buses that we saw. But I would like to think that we are young enough to still want to travel by ourselves! What I did discover is that we were called "leaf peepers!" That's what the weather people in the New England states would say when giving the weather report for the following day. OK -- and the fact that we watch the news . . . maybe another small sign that age is creeping up on us! We stayed in B & B's most nights, except for one, and that's called a "memory" that will be held over the Mr.&#

Soft Gingerbread Cookies

We really do love gingerbread. When I think of gingerbread cookies, I think of the little people . . . and honestly, I kind of have a hard time eating one of those cookies. I'm not really sure why! But when I think of gingerbread, I'm reminded of a fabulous gingerbread loaf that we used to eat. It was wonderful! Last night I found this recipe in a cookbook by Silvana Nardone and on a whim, I mixed it up. I didn't really know what to expect. But what we pulled from the oven was wonderful! They look like a perfect cookie you might find at a bakery. Round. Pillow-y. Deep brown. I made a variation to the recipe and I'm kind of happy with it! I was out of ginger, so I just substituted cinnamon. Because we love cinnamon and because I had everything mixed together when I realized I had no ginger. There was no turning back, huh! So instead of gingerbread cookies, I guess these are cinnamonbread cookies! My boy cherub liked them tons!

Cinnamon Waffle Sauce

My cherubs love cinnamon. Seriously love it! Anytime I can add cinnamon to a recipe, I always do! When I saw this recipe, I thought it would be great. I actually thought it would be a bit different then how it turned out. But to my surprise, I was very pleased with the outcome. I did make a little change to the original recipe, but that's because of our love of the cinnamon flavor. This is wonderful poured over warm waffles or pancakes. By warm, I mean warmed up! On busy school mornings, we just take the waffles I made from the weekend and reheat in the toaster. Cinnamon Waffle Sauce 1 cup water 1 cup brown sugar 1 1/2 tsp good quality cinnamon (I used siagon cinnamon) Place all of the ingredients in a heavy sauce pan over high heat.  Continue to stir until the cinnamon is dissolved in the mixture and the mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat to medium/medium heat and continue to simmer until the mixture reduces until the it is thick and syrup-like,

Homecoming Mum

I did not grow up doing mums in high school. Honestly, it must be a Texas thing. And as the saying goes, "Everything in Texas is always bigger!" Mums . . . honestly, I don't get it! I'm not sure what the fascination with it is! I'm learning with my boy cherub. This is the second year that I have made a mum for his homecoming date. Now, for the record, I want to do it for him and for her. But that doesn't mean that I understand what it is all about! For those of you who don't do mums at your high school, just google "images of homecoming mums" Seriously!  Go do it!  Open another tab on your computer and look! You will d.r.o.p. y.o.u.r j.a.w !!!  Last year, a friend of mine taught me how to make the mum. I am thankful that she is working with me again. She has made several over the years and, while it isn't hard, I just want to make sure that I remember. Mums require lots of stuff. Ribbon. Mum.

Claude's Marinade

Image from the internet I think this is my very favorite marinade right now! I love it for it's deep flavor that makes the meat taste like it took hours to achieve the taste. I've been using this marinade for several years, but it wasn't until recently that I have become enamored with it. As in, I use it all the time. Lately, every piece of chicken gets dunked in this marinade. Not dunked . . . soaked! I've told you my marinade method: come home from the grocery store and divide my meat into gallon ziplock bags based on what I'm going to be using it for. Those things that need to be marinated, gets the marinade thrown in the bag right away, then off to the freezer it goes. My theory:  it marinates while it's going into a deep freeze and it marinates more while it's thawing out! It's a win-win situation for everyone! Back to this marinade, I've always purchased a small, normal size bottle. I use it on chicken, beef

Cuban Picadillo

 My boy cherub turns 16! I think I'm ok with it. . . the driving part, that is! Is he qualified to be behind the wheel? NO! None of us where . . . but it's a right of passage, huh? Is he walking out to a car, sitting in the driveway, with a big bow tied to the top of it as his present? NO! That's only in the movies, or in other people's lives, but not in ours! It wasn't in mine when I turned 16. It surely wasn't in the Mr.'s, therefore, it is not in my boy cherub's! We are celebrating his 16th birthday though, and have been for a week now! He kind of likes it that way! Tonight, even though it isn't his birthday, we are having his family birthday meal. You know, where you can pick whatever you want for dinner, even if it doesn't go together? This year, he picked Cuban food. I'm a little shocked! Not by the Cuban food, but that it isn&#

Apple Raisin Bake

When the kids went back to school, so did I! What I mean by that is that my subbing schedule picked up right where it left off! I really enjoy being able to sub and particularly love subbing at our school! However, on the days I sub, breakfast is a little less "prepared"  then on the days I do not. I've confessed it before, but I feel the need to confess again: most of the time, the morning breakfast routine is managed by the Mr. There are days, however, that I contribute greatly to the success of it! Last week, on a day I didn't work, was one such experience! This recipe will be great for company, school-morning breakfasts, or Saturday brunch! While I made it gluten free, I believe that all purpose flour would be just as great! Apple Raisin Bake 1 large apple, washed, cored, and sliced thin (I used Granny Smith) 1/3 cup raisins 3 TBSP brown sugar 1 tsp. cinnamon 4 eggs 2/3 cup milk 2/3 cup gluten free flour (or regular, all-pur

Real Instant Mashed Potatoes

Does that even go together? Real and Instant? I'm not sure it does! Here's my dilemma: I almost always have instant potatoes. I use it for different recipes and such. I almost always have potatoes; usually red-skinned. I just do not always have enough to make enough mashed potatoes. I'm not real big on instant mashed potatoes for a side dish. I've been known to make them because of the lack of real potatoes in the house. But they're not my favorite. Probably because I don't know how to make "good instant mashed potatoes." But, we are real big on mashed potatoes! Not because I make them alot. I don't. But we do like them! I especially like red-skinned mashed potatoes. They don't taste any different than other mashed potatoes. I just like them. The other evening, for dinner, I made cubed steak with gravy. http://karen-proverbs31.blogspot.com/2011/08/cube-steak-with-gravy.html I had to modify it to mak

Strawberry Lemonade

Nothing is much better than real lemonade during the hot summer months. I've always liked lemonade. My first memory of lemonade is with my grandpa. He liked the powdered mix,  Country Time Lemonade. I remember buying it with him and mixing it up and having a nice cold glass to drink. That was all I used to drink, because I didn't know any different. Then, I discovered making my own. From scratch. Some lemon juice. Some simple syrup. And just a bit of water to make it right. My girl cherub has always been a lemon fan. I think that's my fault. When I was pregnant with her, I craved lemons. The Mr. would buy a bag of lemons to keep in the refrigerator for me. I'd cut them into wedges and sprinkle a little salt on them and indulge. My entire pregnancy! She can do the very same thing, even now. Matter of fact, the Mr. has to tell her to stop eating lemons! I'm to blame. Put her love of lemons together with her love of cooking a

Red Chili Enchilada Sauce

We love Mexican food. Admittedly. We have a terrible crush on chips, salsa, pulled chicken tacos, and most other Mexican-style food. One thing, though, that nobody in our family really cares for is the red chili enchilada sauce. Give us green. Or sour cream. Or even cheese. But not red. So think me crazy when I thought that I'd make enchiladas for dinner using . . .RED enchilada sauce. If I didn't know better, I'd think I was having pregnancy cravings. Because that's what was happening! I was honestly CRAVING red enchilada sauce. Of course, though, I didn't have any of the canned stuff. I don't buy it. But even if I did buy it, I wouldn't have it anyways. Because that's the law of returning home from being out of town. Whatever you need or want when you return from being out of town, you don't have. Period. You have to go to the store. But I wasn't going to the store, because I didn't want to. Plus

Vanilla Sugar Cookie Chex Mix

I'm really not sure why . . . but I love chex mix. I like different kinds of chex mix. Sure, the standard savory recipe is fine, but I'm talking all the new-fandangled choices! It's kind of crazy what flavor concoctions can be created! Several weeks ago, I whipped this chex mix up and in a matter of hours we had devoured it. But if you do the math, you would realize that's not too hard to do! 6 cups of cereal. 4 people. That equals 1 and 1/2 cups of cereal per person. Over the course of the day, it's easy to consume that little of cereal. Especially when it's covered with white chocolate. And sugar. Here, try it for yourself and see how long it lasts at your house! Vanilla Sugar Cookie Chex Mix (Recipe is from Chex.com) 6 cups Rice Chex™ cereal 1/4 cup butter or margarine 1/4 cup granulated sugar 2 TBSP corn syrup 2 tsp. vanilla 1/4 cup powdered sugar 1 oz white baking chocolate or 1/4 cup vanilla milk chips

Mixed Nut Butter

I've been making almond butter for the Mr. some time now. I used to make it in my (very) old food processor. Matter of fact, my dad bought the food processor for me before I ever got married . . . from a garage sale! So I know it's at least 20 years old, but probably older! I bet when my dad did that he had no idea I'd still be using it! That's money well spent, huh? Recently, thought, the Mr. saw a "suggestion" to make mixed nut butter. There you go; enough said! I've already made him two different kinds recently. Regardless of your preference, I don't think you can go wrong! The first I made was a combination of walnut and pecan Now, I've made a mix of cashew and walnut Next will be pecan and almond I think. It's so easy. Follow the general directions from the post about making almond butter: http://karen-proverbs31.blogspot.com/2012/01/almond-butter.html There's a bit of difference, but on

My Boy Cherub's Journey

It's been a journey this year for my boy cherub. He has handled it well, but together, as a family, we are figuring things out. It all started with his 15 year check up. I received a small reprimand from his pediatrician that the previous year I didn't take him for blood work . . . you know, just to get the base-line established and make sure things were well. Here's the deal -- I need one-stop-shop when it comes to doctors! If there's nothing wrong, then the "go get this done" thing doesn't usually get done. It's not that I try to forget . . . there's just nothing wrong to make me remember to get it done! But this year, when an in-office test came back with out of whack result, I was quick to obey the doctor's request to follow up with blood work. The short version, which included many blood draws and several months; my boy cherub was diagnosed with an auto-immune disease. The blessing:  h