The Ugly Years and a Bowl of Soup

Wednesday I perused Allrecipes.com for some new recipes.  We are having trouble getting to eat at home, as some child decided to play school ball, and they have close to 50 games in a 7 week period.  Our dining budget is blown, I've learned that if you skip the "A" game, knowing your child is not playing before the "B" game, you can get in free, and poor Bookworm has probably eaten more Taco Mayo and Sonic in the last five weeks than her whole life combined.

The coaches have them walk the half mile to these two establishments after checking in at the locker rooms.  And just when did my child get old enough to walk with her friends to these places and buy herself some food?

Probably about the time she started looking like this:

She's on the right.  And she has makeup on.  And I think she's really pretty, in a completely unbiased sort of way.  Dang it.

Not "dang it" because she's pretty.  But "dang it" she's in 7th grade, and that is just down right annoying and somehow impossible, but obviously totally possible, considering this is her back to school picture for this year.  And yes, that's 7th grade.  

Raise your hand if 7th grade was your "ugliest year ever."

Pfpfpfpf

Anyway, I found several recipes to try, but this one is a real keeper.  I put all of the ingredients in the crock pot this morning at about 6:30 and Brent simply added the cream cheese about 5:30 and then served it up to the kids about 6pm.  You see, Bookworm had a friend come home from school with her to get ready for the dance.  They were here by 3:30 and were still not ready when I got home at 6:20.  Popcorn was in charge of hair.  However, the waver took so much time with Bookworm, that Grace's friend decided to forgo any wild new styles and went with her simple normal 'do.

Anyway, OF COURSE I was cleaning up the kitchen before I realized I should photograph this recipe and blog it.

Because I've been so short of blog material lately...Well, more lacking any real desire to sit down and look at the computer, much less write a blog.

I thought about putting it in a pretty bowl and sprinkling some shredded cheese on it, and perhaps a dollop of sour cream. Then I got bored and impatient just thinking about it, so I shrugged and decided to just snap a picture of it in the Tupperware bowl , and call it good.  And while my photography skills leave something to be desired, this dish will in no way disappoint.  In fact, Bookworm's friend cleaned her bowl (other than a few tomato chunks) and her parents keep claiming she's a finicky eater...

Spicy Latin Chicken Soup

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I actually used 3, because mine were so huge)
3 cans diced tomatoes (I actually used 1 can diced, 1 can Mexican style, and 1 can of tomatoes with chipotle peppers)
16oz jar salsa verde
1 can pinto beans rinsed and drained
1 can black beans rinsed and drained
frozen corn (it called for one can, but I used probably 2 cups frozen)
2 tsp chili powder
1 packet taco seasoning
1 tsp cumin
cilantro, if desired (and believe me, I don't) 
1/2 c of cream cheese


Place chicken (whole, they will fall apart when you go to scoop it out) in bottom of crock pot.  Add remaining ingredients, except cream cheese and stir.  Cook on low 8-10 hours, or until chicken is very tender.  About 15 minutes before dinner time, soften cream cheese, scoop out a bit of liquid from your soup and then stir in to cream cheese to create a creamy mixture, then pour this into your soup.

Top with shredded cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips as desired.

This soup was a huge hit, and my family was quite pleased to have a real home cooked meal, and not something that was thrown together in 5 minutes or less.  Give it a try and let me know what you think!

That is Just so Granola

I remember when I was in a clinical rotation at a Columbia Hospital in Arlington.  I don't remember the entire gist of the conversation, but I do remember one of the nurses looked at me and said with a look of utter disdain "Your school is just so granola."

I was young and idealistic and had no idea what she was talking about...

As I got out of the ivory tower of nursing school and in to the real world, I realized what she meant.  However, I also remember how jaded and bitter every single nurse that I encountered at that hospital was.  Seriously, they all hated their jobs.  How sad.  That is the only hospital where I had nurses tell me, "Change your major while you still can."

 I think perhaps if they had a puppy napping on their kitchen floor while they provided nourishing food for their family, their cranky factor may have decreased...


If you know anything about me, this post began as expected...Completely unrelated to the point of the post...Just random thoughts that were circling my brain as I was involved in the endeavor this post truly relates to:

GRANOLA!!

Color me excited!

I have a friend at work who occasionally brings oatmeal bars to work.  His mother makes them, and they make him think of the Oatmeal to Go bars by Quaker.  I love those bars.  I do not love the price involved with them, since they never last more than a day.

I asked him for the recipe, and he brought it to me.  I joyfully tackled it last week.  I have tweaked the recipe to suit our family's tastes, but the bare bones of the original are still there.

The beauty of this recipe is that it assembles in mere minutes, requires only two bowls and a spatula to assemble, and it is good for you!

So, without further ado, here it is!

Molasses Oatmeal Bars

In a large bowl combine:

2 c old fashioned oats
3/4 c flour
3/4 tsp soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/4 c brown sugar
1/2 c chopped pecans
1/4 c sunflower seeds
1/3 c toasted wheat germ
1/2 c golden raisins





In a small bowl combine:
1/2 c vegetable oil
1/2 c honey
3 Tbsp molasses (spray your spoon with vegetable spray to make it slide off easily)
1 large egg









Add the molasses/honey mixture to your oat mixture.  Simply stir this with your favorite red spatula.  I promise, red spatulas work best!  I am so convinced of  this fact that I own three red spatulas and one lime green...The lime green, while it is visibly appealing, just does not seem to do the job properly.  Therefore all reliable research indicates that red spatulas work best!

Use the back of your red spatula to spread and press firmly the granola mix into a greased 9x13 pan.  Will you hold it against me if I tell you that I used my 9x11 pan because I still had a few bars left in my 9x13 from a previous batch?  I just couldn't be bothered to take out the last three bars and then wash and dry the pan...

Place in preheated 350 degree oven and bake 18-22 minutes.  Remove when edges are starting to brown.  Let cool on wire rack about 90 minutes before cutting...

Enjoy!

Oh!  Are you wondering what that little peek of blue orb is on the right side?  Well, that just happens to be Popcorn's solar system model.  That will be a post for another day.  I tried to take a clever photo of the granola bars with her solar system in the background...

However in that same background you could see my three bags of recyclables lying on the dining room floor so I would not neglect to drop them off in the morning...And you could see the piles of crafty stuff on my dining room table...Not to mention the piles of junk I "need to sort through" on our hutch.

That was just clearly too much clutter to include in one post...

I mean I'm all about being real, but even I have limits!

So, when I deem the background tidy enough to show you pictures of the solar system I will post photos of her masterpiece...Granted the background will be tidy while everything outside of it may very well be chaos.

But I'm totally okay with that!

So I Needed a Quick Recipe for Eggless Muffins.

Tomorrow we have an old/new doctor coming.  Old because he was at our hospital before...New because now he's working there full time so we won't be sharing doctors with 3 other hospitals...

So, as a "Welcome to Saints" gesture my supervisor and I discussed bagels and fruit.  And coffee.  He is a coffee freak, much like me only he consumes way more than I do.  And he is a vegetarian, so that limited what we were bringing.

I had been thinking about this fact (the food issue) off and on all weekend.  Not enough to actually DO something about it, but still it was in my brain, bubbling to my attention once in a while, but I would swat it back down and cuddle the puppy.  Or take a two hour nap.  Or spend three hours getting groceries.  For the record, other than several gallons of milk I had not bought one grocery item in 15 days.  We were a little low on a few things...

And completely out of some things like conditioner, soap, lotion, and deodorant for myself.  So, considering I didn't want to be a smelly frizzy haired person (more so than usual, that is) I decided to drag myself to Walmart and Crest on Saturday evening.  I had not planned enough to coupon like normal, so there are no tales of glory for me to share with you today.

Anyhoo, back to subject matter:  I was helping at children's choir Sunday evening, and my supervisor sent me a text that she was going to Panera to buy bagels and should she buy a fruit tray...Well, my sixth sense of frugality jumped to the fore and I texted her right back that I would make blueberry muffins (I had bought a big batch of fresh blueberries from the reduced for quick sale bin) and she could bring some fruit...

Then I got home and remembered the whole vegetarian thing.  I texted to ask about eggs.  I knew he drank milk and ate cheese, but was uncertain of the egg status.  Of course he doesn't eat eggs.  And while I was tempted to say "Oops, sorry you made a bad decision to not eat meat, even though you wear leather shoes" I decided that was not the nicest decision.  So I googled "eggless muffin recipes" and "how to substitute for eggs in baking."   I perused several recipes, and settled on the two I'm about to share, with some alterations.  I am giving you the altered recipe of course. 


I think they are both going to turn out well.  They are lovely in their pans.  I was a tad concerned that the muffins call for no salt, but the batter tasted great, so I hope the muffins do too!

Eggless Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour ( I’ve been trying to use more whole wheat flour so I use 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup regular)
• 1 cup sugar, plus 2 tsp. more
• 4 tsp. baking powder
• 1 cup milk
• 3 Tbs. melted butter
• 1 cup fresh blueberries

Heat oven to 350. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. Combine flour, sugar and baking powder in a medium-size bowl. Stir in milk by hand and melted butter. Fold in blueberries. Fill each cup 2/3 full. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.

Eggless Blueberry Coffee Cake

INGREDIENTS:

• All Purpose Flour - 1 cup
• Baking Powder - 1/2 tsp
• Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - 1/8 tsp
• Unsalted Butter - 3 tbsp
• Sugar - 1/4 cup + 1/8 cup
• Mashed Ripe Banana - 1/4 cup
• Vanilla Extract - 3/4 tsp
• Milk 2% - 1/2 cup
• Vinegar - 1/2 tsp
• Fresh Blueberries - 1/2 cup

TOPPING:

• Brown Sugar - 2 tbsp
  
• Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp
• Pecans - 1/4 cup

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a square pan.

2. In a bowl combine all the dry ingredients... flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. In a small bowl combine the topping ingredients... brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans.

4. If you do not have buttermilk on hand, then combine the milk and vinegar and set aside for 5 minutes.  This is a substitute for buttermilk.

5. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until well blended.

6. Add the bananas and vanilla extract and blend.

7. Add the dry ingredients and milk to the butter/sugar mixture in 3 parts, starting with the dry and ending with the dry.  DO NOT OVERMIX!

8. Fold in the blueberries.   

9. Pour the batter into the baking dish.  

10. Top with the cinnamon-pecan topping.

11. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  I baked these 25 minutes exactly.

12. Cool before cutting into squares.  Be careful, this cake is extremely soft.

So there you have it.  Tomorrow I'm on call, and I plan to make Brent a fabulous cheese cake.  I bake him one every year for his birthday.  I'm sort of kicking myself for that two hour nap when I could have been working on his cake.  A cheese cake is not something you can assemble and have completed in an hour like I did the two above recipes...

Oh well.  Who needs sleep?  It's not like we're getting much anyway considering somebody's puppy is awake every two hours to go potty!


P.S.  It is now Monday morning.  I had made a few extra muffins for the girls.  They are good, but I find them a little sweet.  I will let you know about the coffee cake tonight.

Fall of Energy

Sunday my back was feeling much better...

As in not aching at all!

Of course, that made me spring into action.  It's the end of the month, and we are low on food stuff.  My girls eat waffles every single morning for breakfast.  I usually take the easy way out and buy Nutrigrain Whole Wheat Blueberry waffles.  But, they are expensive, hardly ever go on sale, and they are stingy with coupons!

I had all of the ingredients to make whole wheat pancake/waffle mix, so I decided to make up a big stock pile.  I confess my girls love this mix fresh, but never go for it when it's frozen.  However, since it will be their only choice for a few weeks, they will get over it.

So, this is what my kitchen looked like Sunday afternoon:

Go ahead, be wowed at what a tidy cook I am....

Originally I was going to just do waffles, but that takes enormous amounts of patience from me, as you must stand over the iron, and there was nothing to do while I waited.  I pulled out my griddle and decided to make up pancakes at the same time.  I did a total of three and a half batches, because that's how much wheat flour I had!  I understand that most of you, Gentle Readers do not suffer from impatience, evidenced by the fact that you read this rambling blog, but please understand that it is a trial to be me, and to live with me.  My husband would appreciate your prayers. 

And please disregard the sauce pan on the stove that I had neglected to throw in the dishwasher after lunch.  Perhaps washing up might have been an advisable activity while I waited on the waffle iron?

Oh, let's just pause a moment while I give a big "THANK YOU" to my sister, Paula.  She had sent us home with some of her homemade bierox a few weeks ago, and we enjoyed them for lunch Sunday.  My only complaint is that now my husband does not understand why I won't make them.  I said he's more than welcome to call her and find out how to make them.

Alright.  Let's return to our original topic.  Here's a recipe for you!

Whole Wheat Pancake/Waffle Mix

3 c unbleached all purpose flour
3 c whole wheat flour
4 T baking powder
3 T sugar
1 tsp salt

As you can see this makes a big batch of mix.  Simply store it in an airtight container, and measure out desired amount for your waffles/pancakes/biscuits or whatever you want!

Now, here's the recipe for the pancakes/waffles. 

2 c mix
2 eggs
1 3/4 c milk
3 T melted butter/2 T oil (I use oil for waffles and butter for pancakes usually, but since I was feeling impatient this past Sunday I used oil in all of it.)
2 eggs
1-2 tsp vanilla.

This makes a big batch, so feel free to cut it in half.  Just use a short cup of milk as it taxes my brain to measure out 7/8 cup.  How much difference can 1/8 cup make?  If it turns out too thin, I just throw in a dab more mix, and everyone but me is none the wiser.


I stirred in some fresh blue berries in about half of the batches last Sunday.  That is always a special treat.  However, be aware that the blueberries will stick to your waffle iron, so I ended up spraying it with cooking spray.  I don't usually have to do that as my iron is nonstick.

Great stir in ideas
-cinnamon
-maple syrup/extract
-chocolate chips
-just have fun with it, and surprise your family with a wholesome breakfast that you know how to pronounce every single ingredient in!


So that's my Sunday afternoon!  Hope you make use of this delicious and nutritious recipe!  Oh, and I must give to credit to my beautiful friend Tara for originally giving me this recipe several years ago.  When my girls would go stay with her, they always told me her waffles were better than mine.  Since I was using her recipe, I consider that just messed up.  Perhaps she threw in a little more sugar?


What great time saving/money saving tips do you have for me?

So Andi, What the Heck Do I Do With That 5 Pounds of ChickenYou Nagged Me Into Cooking?

I'm glad you asked!

After you cook your chicken in the crock pot, divide it up into quart freezer bags.  You don't even have to chop it, because it just totally falls apart.  LABELING them is very important.  Otherwise you will wonder when you cooked this, what exactly it is, and what is in it!

Now, what on earth does one do with all of this precooked chicken?  

How about chicken pot pie or chicken quesadillas?  Those are two easy peasy recipes that my family loves!

However, this post would be even more pointless than you already suspect if I didn't give you something new and exciting to try!

How about chicken tacos?  How simple and easy!  Just add shredded chicken to your skillet, shake on a little taco seasoning with some water and heat through.  I know, that is a total "duh" recipe, but sometimes I think we all get stuck in a rut and the simplest ideas help us break out!

Do you have any "go to" dishes that you take to people when they have a baby?  Or an unexpected surgery?  Here's a new one to add to your arsenal.

Poppy Seed Chicken
4 diced, fully cooked chicken breasts
8oz sour cream
can cream of chicken
1 T poppy seeds
1 sleeve Ritz crackers
1/2 stick butter (4 tablespoons for any Aussies out there)

Stir first 4 ingredients together in a 9x9 greased casserole dish.  Crush crackers and spread over the top.  Drizzle with melted butter.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until heated through.  Want to make this heartier?  Put some cooked rice in the bottom of the pan!

I fear this is not a heart healthy/low fat recipe...It's for new moms and stressed, exhausted people.  That's comfort food people!

Speaking of comfort food, here's a healthy choice:

Comforting Chicken
1 T vegetable oil
1 T butter (let's be real, I'm just using butter, but the recipe calls for oil too)
4 cubed chicken breasts (one pound)
1/2 c finely chopped onion
1/2 c finely chopped green pepper
1 can cream of mushroom (reduced fat/sodium works fine for this recipe)
3/4 c uncooked long grain rice (I actually substitute wild rice in this)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp paprika

Heat oil and butter in skillet.  Add chicken, pepper and onion (except our chicken is already cooked, so you can actually just cook these in a bowl in the microwave, but sauteed on the stove smells divine!!)  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Bake in a greased dish for 55-60 minutes or until rice is tender.

FABULOUS!!!

Let's see, I need to give you one more recipe so you can justify cooking up five pounds of chicken all at once.

How about making a nice chicken and vegetable soup?  Simply place your chicken in some stock in a large pot.  Add whatever veggies you have on hand and season it up nice with some fresh oregano and parsley.  Or maybe some basil!  Heck, I don't know I'm flying by the seat of my pants here!  Just have fun with it!  Cook it up until veggies are tender and serve with some nice cheddar garlic biscuits.

Wasn't that fun?  Now rejoice that you have just made five wholesome meals for your family!  Yay you!

Now it's your turn.  What is a quick fix dinner that you rely on in a pinch?  Do share!

Cook This

Do you want a delicious meal that is ready in 30 minutes or less?

Grab these ingredients:
Savory Garlic Philadelphia Cooking Creme
Pasta
Chicken Breast

Here's the deal:

Take that whole bag of chicken breasts and throw it in your crock pot in the morning (I put mine in at about 7:30 this morning) along with some cloves of garlic and some oregano.  Cook this on low all day.

Have you seen the new Philadelphia cooking creams?  If you're like me, you found a dollar off coupon for it, and realized it would double at Homeland and you walked away with a new ingredient you had no concrete plans for....

But it was only 19 cents, so what the heck!

You will also need a box of pasta (that there is a good chance you got for free if you follow Coupon Closet.)  If you don't follow Coupon Closet and you live in the OKC metro area, you should.  I have $150 left in this month's grocery budget and I have everything I need aside from a few gallons of milk to see us through the end of the month.

Cook your pasta according to package directions.  While it's cooking, pour about 2T of EVOO in the bottom of a skillet.  Why?   I have no idea, but it really seemed like the thing to do, and it makes me feel like a fancy cook to drizzle it around in a circle.  Empty your container of Savory Garlic Philadelphia Cooking Creme, and add that chicken, chopped or shredded, that is lovely and delicious after cooking in the crockpot all day.  I eyeballed enough to serve the four of us with leftovers (maybe three breasts?)  It was falling apart as I grabbed it out, so my amount is guestimated.  Heat it through, then toss with your pasta.  Serve with Rhodes Warm N Serve Rolls, that again you'd get for free nearly every week if you followed Coupon Closet, as she would tell you where to get coupons and where they are on sale...

Try to hold back your frustration as you wait for that husband to get home from buying fencing supplies.  If you are wise you will plant a big smacker right on his face the minute he walks in, as you might POSSIBLY have been nagging him to put up a new one...

Not that I know anything about nagging, or the skill with which to yield it...I prefer to just start projects that I have no idea how to complete, and do them in a slapdash shoddy fashion...Before you know it my hero has stepped in and saved the day!

And no nagging was necessary!

Feel free to use this tip to your own advantage. 

Go type a blog and tell everyone about the fabulous dinner you made in no time flat.

Serve it up to your family with some tossed salad (topped with dressing that you found for a measly 67 cents a bottle, again thanks to Carrie over at Coupon Closet) and bask in the adoration they pour out on you...

The Best Meal is the One You Didn't Cook!

Bookworm cooked Mexican Casserole for dinner tonight. She was so proud.

And she ate 3 helpings.

Just to be sure I understood how much she truly loves Mexican Casserole and how deprived she is that I don't prepare it more often. I'm now off the hook.

Guess what? I don't think any Mexicans eat Mexican Casserole. My sister Paula changed the name to green chili casserole. I'm just not politically correct that way.

Do you want the recipe?

Here ya go:

1 lb hamburger, browned.
cream of chicken
cream of mushroom
tomato sauce
green chilies

Combine all of the above, or substitute the last 2 ingredients with tomatoes with green chilies. Pour over a casserole dish lined with crushed corn chips or tortillas. Sprinkle generously with cheese. Bake at 350 until it bubbles. Let set about 10 minutes to set up.

Serve with corn, a tossed salad and salsa for garnish. My kids like to scoop the casserole onto chips.


Umm...Of course there is no picture. Why would I have a picture?

I actually ate lunch today, so I was able to come home and do a 30 Day Shred workout then eat some supper. Did I mention my lunch was at 2:45? I wasn't too hungry come supper time! Of course I ate. Hate to disappoint the little chef!

I am such a giver...