Got APPLES?

If so, you should make this......

APPLE CAKE

3 T butter, softened

1 c sugar

1 egg

1 t vanilla extract

1 c flour (I used whole wheat flour, so it is darker than it would be if you used white flour....just fyi...)

1 t baking soda

1\2 t salt

1\2 t cinnamon

1\2 t nutmeg

3 cups diced, peeled apples

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg; add to creamed mixture (batter will be thick). Stir in apples.
2. Spread into greased 8-in. square baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with a few crumbs.  Serve warm or col with whipped cream or ice cream.

I made this for the first time for our ward party this weekend.  I ended up bringing quite a bit of it home since there were tons of desserts there and let's be honest, it doesn't have chocolate in it so it got passed up!  I usually only go for the chocolate desserts, myself!  LOL!  But I wanted to try this recipe since I had all the ingredients right in my pantry.  I doubled it and put it in a 9 x 13 pan and baked it for an hour.  We really like it!!  I like that I used the apples from our tree!  

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

I tried my good friend Jennie's recipe today and it was gooood. I love food. I love cooking yummy things to eat! It is a hobby for me, I am thinking. I love making things from scratch. So much cheaper, and better for you. I know what every ingredient is! LOVE that. Anyways, I posted a picture of it on facebook and got some request for the recipe. So, here ya go!

• Chicken Pot Pie


• 1 1\3 cup frozen peas and carrots


• 1 c diced potatoes (if using fresh, raw ones, dice and cook a bit first. I put them in my trusty pampered chef microwave cooker bowl for 5 minutes with a bit of water and it was perfect.)


• 2\3 butter ( I didn't use quite that much)


• 2\3 c chopped onion


• 1 t salt


• 1\2 t pepper


• 3 1\2 cups chicken broth


• 1 1\3 c milk


• 6 cups cooked, diced chicken (I just cooked 2 chicken breasts and chopped them up. Probably wasn't 6 cups, but it was enough for us!)


• 2 pie crusts


• Rinse frozen peas and carrots. Melt butter, stir in onions, flour, salt and pepper. Cook stirring contantly until bubbly. I used a whisk. Remove from heat. Stir in broth and milk. Heat to a boil, stirring constantly with whisk. Boil and stir for 1 minute. Stir in chicken and veggies. Pour into a 9 x 13 pan.


• Place 2 pie crusts over the top. Bake at 425 for about 30-35 minutes until the crust is golden brown. You will want to put pan on a cookie sheet to catch the sauce that will bubble over.


• If you don't want to buy the pie crusts, make them! I got this recipe a few years ago from Sister Taylor who is an amazing cook! It is yummers!




• No Fail Pie Crust (I have included the entire direcitions for the pie crust in case you want to use it for dessert pies, not just for this pot pie recipe. Hope it is not too confusing.)


• Sift together:


• 3 1\2 cups flour


• 1 T sugar


• 2 scant t salt


• Then cut in 1 1\2 cups shortening with a pastry blender. Keep going until the shortening pieces are about the size of peas.


• Beat together and stir into the above mixture to moisten: 1 egg 1 T vinegar 4 T cold water Knead lightly and form into 5 equal portions. (For the pot pie recipe, I just used enough to cover the pan. I put the rest into the fridge and will probably make an apple pie from the leftovers.)


• Roll out between two sheets of Saran wrap; this makes it so easy! Rolling pie crust can be a pain and doing this way works perfectly! Remove top sheet of saran wrap and fit tightly into pie pan (if you are making a pie).


• Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes if you want to use it for a pudding pie. If using it for an apple pie, follow directions for the kind you are making.

Crockpots RULE!!

Yes, it's true, I have found another hobby: using my crockpot! Have you looked at the blog, http://www.crockpot365.blogspot.com/?? You need to. Right now! I have used my crockpot a lot this week and I love it! I tried her recipe for Cranberry Pork Roast, but I used a turkey roast because that is what I had on hand. Pretty good! Today I am using her Apricot Chicken recipe! It is similar to my recipe for Russian Chicken, only you plop it in the crockpot! Hooray!! Oh, and I tried her recipe for Split Pea and Barley Soup with Ham. Super dooper! We all love split pea soup, so I was excited to try her version with barley added! It was really good!! It is a great website!

Here is a great recipe I got from a magazine that I made this week. My kids gobbled it up and I thought they would hate it since it looked like mud. Black bean soup looks like mud but tastes divine! Can you say "cheap meal"??? I had most of the ingredients in my food storage, so I bet it cost me pennies to make. Yippee! Here ya go:

No soak Black Bean Soup
(Yes, NO SOAK!! It is hard for me to plan the night before when I want to use dry beans, since you need to soak them overnight. So this recipe was a dream come true for me!!)

1 T olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, cut into strips
1 T garlic or more if you want
1 pound dried black beans, rinsed and drained (about 2 cups)
5 cups water (I had to add more water throughout the day since my crockpot tends to cook fast and the water gets used up quick)
3 cups chicken broth
2 (4 oz) cans of green chilies, undrained
1 T ground cumin
1 t dried thyme leaves
1 t salt
1\2 t black pepper
2 dried bay leaves (remove before serving)

1. Add olive oil to crock pot and saute onion on highest setting for 5 minutes. Add all other ingredients to crock pot. Cover and cook on high for at least 8 hours.

2. Before serving, mash soup a little with a potato masher to break up some of the beans and to make the soup a little thicker.

3. Top with sour cream, cilantro, chopped bell pepper, onions, or our favorite: crushed tortilla chips.

This is seriously yummy! It works great as filling for a burrito the next day, if the soup is thick enough. Or as a dip for your chips or veggies!! YAY!

"That made you.....um...grouchy!"

That is what my dear sweet, and totally RIGHT hubby said to me last night after I had just spend the better part of two days making freezer meals. It is hard to cook a bunch of meals and take care of 4 kids and one dog. UGH! I hope it was worth it cuz I wore myself OUT. And wanna know what? I didn't even make enough to last a whole month like the book told me to do. I shudder to think what I would be like if I had. I kinda did a two week supply, or close to it! I made a few of the same meals but don't plan on eating them every week. But, since I was making one pan, I thought I should just make two, KWIM? The book did say I could try that instead of going all out and doing the whole month. Here is what I made:

• Two batches of split pea and ham soup. Just used my own recipe and froze it in freezer bags. We probably won't eat this until the weather cools off a bit. I don't like eating soup when it's hot outside, but that's just me.....


• Two pans of lasagna. Don't tell the kids I put chopped up zucchini in there.


• Two pans of chicken enchiladas. Again my own recipe.


• Two meals worth of Chicken Curry to be served over rice. New recipe. It called for cup up apples. Hmmmmm, it did smell good. I hope we like it!


• Enough pancakes to last at least several weeks or maybe a month. I made a bunch, put them on cookie sheets, froze them and then put them in freezer bags. You just pop them into your toaster, NOT the microwave. That way they will be crunchy not soggy.


• Cooked up 5 pounds of hamburger to be used for whatever I want. Tacos, spaghetti and so on.


• Cooked so much chicken I lost count of the pounds! I cubed it and put it in the freezer to be used for whatever! I also saved the water I boiled the chicken in to be used as stock or chicken broth. Good idea I found in my trusty "$3 a meal" cookbook I got from the library.

I think that is all. I wanted to make a bunch of beef and bean burritos and freeze them individually but I ran out of time and steam. Plus I didn't have my pinto beans soak overnight, so I was not prepared. Maybe next week. I ended up buying some disposable 9 by 12 pans at Sam's for just under $7 and it came with like 20. I also bought a HUGE can of tomato sauce and diced tomatoes at Sam's for under $3 each and just froze what I didn't use this time in quart sized freezer bags. Way cheaper than using the smaller cans. I also bought my tortillas at Sam's for under $4 and it had 30 of the bigger sized ones in it. I think buying in bulk for this type of cooking is the way to go. So, I hope this helps me at dinnertime. :) I will let you know.

p.s.

I finally tried Bountiful Baskets and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. I can't wait for next week!

p.p.s

I forgot to mention that I also borrowed the canner and canned ALL our powdered milk (53 cans) and ALL our noodles (24 cans) over the last few days. (I was planning on doing my potato flakes, and oatmeal as well, but they didn't calculate how many cans I needed to buy from them and I didn't get enough or else I woulda done that too!!) Good grief, no wonder I am grouchy! LOL!

Cooking up a storm....

Anyone ever done the whole "cook for a day, eat for a month" thingy? I was at a homeschoolers play group this week and some gals there do this and I so wanna try it. I am feeling like I need to simplify my day since #1 I am adding a new student this year (Addie, the kindergartener) and #2 Our class mascot (Audrey Anne, the pink bundle) might make school time a little more challenging than last year or the year before. Soooooo, I am thinking about doing this. I ordered the book Frozen Assets and am anxiously awaiting it's arrival! It was recommended by a friend who tried it and is a "frozen-meal believer". Ah, another adventure for me to try......wanna come make dinners with me?

Pizza Rolls

YUMMY! I found this recipe and made some over the weekend for our little Father's Day celebration. They were a big hit. Sasha made them for dinner tonight.

Pizza Rolls:
Pizza or spaghetti sauce
whatever toppings you want: meats, veggies, or just cheese.
Pizza dough, purchased or homemade.

I used this recipe and it was great:
Homemade Pizza Dough
3 c flour
1 pkt. yeast
1 tsp salt
1 c warm water
2 T. oil

Dissolve yeast in water. Add salt, oil and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Cover; let rise on floured surface for 10 minutes.

To make the pizza rolls, you basically do what you would do for cinnamon rolls. Roll out bread dough to large rectangle size. Brush with sauce. Put on your "toppings". Now roll up like cinnamon rolls. Slice with a piece of dental floss or string, just like you would with cinnamon rolls. Place on greased baking sheet. Top with more cheese and let rise until double in size. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

YUMMY and very cheap. Right up my alley.

Baked Oatmeal....

Mmmmmm, smells goooood! I found this recipe on http://www.prudenthousemaker.com/, which is a great site for finding great, cheap recipes and just lots of other things. I tried it this morning and it was a hit! It does take some preparation; not quite as quick as a bowl of cereal. But, lately I have not been buying cereal much; shocking I know for those of you that know I used to buy boxes and boxes of cereal on sale and with a coupon. Anyway I am trying to make breakfast a better meal and am always on the lookout for something new to try. It tasted like I was eating dessert for breakfast, so I was thrilled! Ha ha. Give it a try....

2 eggs

1\2 cup applesauce

3\4 cup sugar (I used brown sugar)

1 cup milk ( I used powdered from my food storage)

3 cup oats

1t salt

1 T baking powder

1 t cinnamon (I used more but I like a lot of flavor)

2 cups chopped fresh fruit (I used fresh nectarines because that is what I had and it was yum)

1. whisk the eggs, applesauce, sugar and milk. Once creamy add oats, salt and baking powder. Mix well. Add 1 cup of fresh fruit.
2. Pour batter into 9x13 dish. Sprinkle top with a little brown sugar and cinnamon. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Top with rest of fresh fruit, pour on some milk and enjoy.

Slow cooker beans and rice

I found a new website that I {heart}. It is called http://www.5dollardinners.com/. Right up my alley. I have a bunch of beans in my food storage and needed some new ideas on how to serve them to my family. Good, eadible recipes, KWIM? I made this for dinner and just sampled a small bowl. Hey, I was hungry. Anyway, it is yummy and super cheap to make. Here ya go.....

1 cup black beans (.40) or you can use 2 15 oz cans of black beans.
1 T olive oil (.10)
1 cup brown or white rice (.40)
2 garlic cloves, crushed (.10)
1 15 oz. diced tomatoes (.59) (I had some tomatoes from my garden I wanted to use in today's meal, so I diced them up along with a can of tomato sauce. So, that is an option.)
1 tsp ground cumin (.05)
salt and pepper.

Total cost for this meal is $2.10

1. Soak your beans overnight. Then in the morning drain and rinse them. Cook soaked beans for an hour in a saucepan with at least 2 inches of water over the beans.
2. Place olive oil in slow cooker. Stir rice around in the oil. Add cooked beans, diced tomatoes, garlic cloves, ground cumin, salt and pepper and 2 cups of water. Set on high for 4 hours. If you use brown rice, set for 6 hours. Top with cheese, sour cream, a little bit of ranch salad dressing, or whatever you like. I plan on serving this on top of some shredded lettuce, and with tortilla chips and salsa on the side. YUMMY!

Cinnamon Doughnut Muffins

We have been making something from scratch for breakfast lately, (I am about out of cereal, and have not seen a good cereal sale recently), so we have been trying different kinds of muffins. I found this beauty in my Taste of Home Baking Book that Will got me several Christmas' ago. I read the word "doughnut" in the title and that was that. We made them today.

Cinnamon Doughnut Muffins

1 3\4 cups all-purpost flour (I used mostly whole wheat flour)
1 1\2 t baking powder
1\2 t salt
1\2 t ground nutmeg
1\4 t ground cinnamon
3\4 c sugar
1\3 c oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
3\4 c milk
Jam (I used raspberry, but any kind would do. But maybe not grape. Ewww.)

TOPPING:
1\4 c butter, melted
1\3 c sugar
1 t ground cinnamon.

1. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients. Mix together. Set aside. In a small bowl, mix wet ingredients and stir into dry ingredients. Mix just until moistened.
2. Fill greased muffing tins half full; place 1 tsp of jam on top. Cover jam with enough batter to fill cups 3\4's full. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
3. Place melted butter in a small bowl; combine the sugar and cinnamon in another bowl. Immediately after removing muffins from the oven, dip tops in butter, then in cinnamon-sugar. Serve warm.
**I actually did not dip them in butter at all. I just skipped that part and dipped them right into the cinnamon-sugar. It seemed to work just fine and saved us some fat grams!!

Soap udate...

Ok, so the laundry soap cleans just fine and so far I have not noticed my clothes fading quicker, but that will take some time to notice, most likely. It is not very fragrant, so I am using some liquid fabric softener since I LUV my clothes smelling clean.

The dishwasher soap recipe is wonderful and super cheap, so I will be using my homemade version a long time. (Although, I do have quite a stash of Electrol boxes that I paid .09 for after finding it on sale and using "the save $2.25 off one" coupon. Remember shopping at Target that night, Misti??!!) The homemade version does not smell like anything, but I don't think you want your dishes to smell anyway, do you?!

Times are tough all over right now and I am thrilled when I find yet another way to save my family money. I have been also saving a lot of my plastic containers and finding uses for them instead of just tossing them out like I used to do. I saved an empty spray bottle of 409 and I jokingly told Will, "I am saving this for something, not sure what. We are in a Depression, you know." Well, we are. Pretty much.

If you have anything you do to recycle, or save your family money, LMK. :)

Homemade laundry soap and dishwasher soap..

Me and my weird projects. Ok, so I was watching TLC channel several months ago and saw the show about the Duggar family that have like 17 kids. They make their own laundry soap and showed them making some. I was intriged. So I googled it and found a video on U-Tube that demonstrates how to do it. I bought the stuff and finally made some yesterday. I have used it 3 times so far, yes I have already done 3 loads of laundry today. It seems to work well. This would be great to put in your food storage.

Homemade Laundry Soap
1\2 c Borax (found in the laundry soap aisle). Cost: around $3.00
1\2 c Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (Also found in the laundry soap aisle). Cost: around $3.00
One bar of mild soap, grated. Can use Fels-Naptha, Ivory or anything else mild.
1-2 grated orange peels (optional. Next time, I'd like to try grapefruit.)

Mix well. Use 1 T per load. Yes, that is all you need. If you add up your cost of the materials, it would be around $8.00. So it works out to be like .05 per load. Um, that is super cheap. I can't even get laundry soap that cheap with all my couponing. My only concern is how well it will clean your clothes, and if it is harsh on them. I guess we shall see.

Homemade Dishwashing Soap
While I was looking for the laundry soap recipe, I came across this one. I have used it once so far and it did a good job.

1 1\2 Borax
1 1\2 Baking Soda
1 c table salt

Use 1\4 cup per load.

I am kinda getting into making stuff from scratch and have had fun finding stuff like this that I can make. It feels good to make your own stuff and not have to run to the store for every little thing. Don't get me wrong, I still love fast food, ding dongs and Diet Pepsi. I wonder if you can make those yourself? I bet the won't taste anything like the real thing, will they?!

I ran out of Karo Syrup!!

Ever say that? I have many times and wondered if you can make it from scratch. Yes, you can. Oh, yay! It is super easy and waaaay cheaper than buying it at the store. (You knew I was gonna say that, didn't you?)

Homemade light corn syrup

2 c white sugar
3\4 c water
1\4 t cream of tartar
dash of salt

Combine all ingredients in a large sauce pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover and cook until it reaches soft ball stage. Stir often. Cool and store in a covered container at room temperature. Will keep for about 2 months. Makes almost 2 cups.

Use that wheat, girls!!

Whole Wheat Gravy Mix

1 c whole wheat flour
2 1\2 c nonfat dry milk
1 tsp salt
Mix these together and store in a ziploc baggie until you are ready to make some up.

Sauce:
use 1\3 of the mix
1 c milk
1\2 T butter

Mix and simmer until thick. Add seasonings to taste.



Pancake or Waffle Mix
10 cups whole wheat flour
2 1\2 cups instant nonfat milk
1\2 c sugar
1\4 c baking powder
2 T salt

Combine all above ingredients in a large bowl. Blend well. Store in an airtight containter. Keep cool and dry. Will keep for 6-8 months.

Perfect pancakes:
1 1\2 c mix
1 egg
1 1\4 c water
3 t oil
Mix ingredients and let stand for 5 minutes. Cook as you would any other pancake or waffle mix!

I love doing this and it has saved me tons of money! Pancake mix is pricey! Especially if you buy 100% whole wheat! I have both mixes in my cupboard at all times and love it! Very easy, and from scratch! YUM!

French Toast Topping....

You GOTTA try this! We use it for pancakes and waffles, too.

1 1\2 c sugar
3\4 c butter ( I use less than this and it turns out just fine)
1\2 c buttermilk (or plain milk is fine)
2 T corn syrup
1 t soda

(Use a large sauce pan since it will bubble up) Bring to a boil on medium heat. Boil for 5-7 minutes until it starts to turn light brown. Stir constantly. Take off heat and add 2 t vanilla.

It is dreamy! Enjoy!

Asian Pot Roast

I found this recipe in a magazine recently and we tried it last night! It was yummy!

Asian Pot Roast

1 3-pound roast
1 chopped onion
3 carrots, sliced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
6 oz shiitake mushrooms (no mushroom lovers here, so I made it without)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 piece fresh ginger, minced
2 (28 ounce) cans whole tomated, undrained
1 cup water
2 T oyster sauce (found in the Asian food aisle)
1\2 t salt
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 1\2 t Chinese five-spice powder (found this at Smith's in their Asian food aisle. WM did not have it.)

In a skillet or frying pan, cook meat in oil until both sides are brown. Put in slow cooker. Add all ingredients, mixing to cover meat. Cook on high 3-4 hours or on low for 6-7 hours. I served it with rice and it was delicious.

Lasagna Soup...

I came across this recipe over the weekend and tweaked it a bit. I made it tonight and it was very good.

1 1\2 pounds sausage (I don't like sausage, so I used hamburger)
2 onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic
2 tsp oregano
1 can tomato paste
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
6 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
8 oz pasta of your choice
8 oz ricotta cheese
1\2 grated parmesan cheese (didn't have any, but still was good)
1\4 t salt
pinch of pepper
2 cups shredded mozzarella (didn't have any, but still turned out yummy)

Cook hamburger with onions and garlic. Add tomato paste, diced tomatoes, broth, bay leaves and oregano. Bring to boil and simmer. Add pasta and cook until tender. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, parmesan, salt and the pepper. To serve, place about 1 1\2 ricotta mixture in each bowl, sprinkle with some mozzarella, and ladle the soup on top. Makes about 13 cups.

Yummy soup!

What's for dinner???

Annie, I like your idea about asking for recipes for dinner on your blog. So, those of you that read my blog, please share your favorite recipes! Here is one I tried tonight and it was a big hit! Yay! That makes me happy when my family likes what I made!

Creamy Tortilla Soup
2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cans chicken broth
1 can refried beans
2 c shredded, cooked chicken
1 can corn
1 can mild green chiles
Combine and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve topped with shredded cheese and tortilla chips.

(Did you know you can make your own refried beans from pinto beans? I have been doing this and I love it! They taste so much better than canned and way cheaper. I know there are complicated recipes, but I just boil them until they are soft, ad some cumin, minced garlic and some salt to taste. Super easy and a good way to use all those beans in my food storage. I just make a batch and stick it in my freezer, but I think I would like to make some and can it so I can add it to my food storage. Anyone ever done this?)

Ok, now it it your turn! Share, share, share!

Homemade applesauce......

A big fat, "Thank you" to my friend Leah, who let us pick some apples off her parent's tree so I could make some yummy homemade applesauce. They are on a mission to the Philippines, and she had already picked what she wanted. I got 8 Walmart bags FULL of apples. I made applesause and canned them for 8 hours total this weekend! It was fun, actually and the kids really enjoyed using this gadget here to peel and core them.

Then, they wanted to bob for apples, and I told them it was too cold to do it outside. So, they did it inside. Sasha actually went first and got her shirt very wet, so she put her swimming suit on. Seth and Addie thought that was a great idea, so they put theirs on, too. No, I did not put mine on. They are so funny and make a game of everything!

I canned like 30 pints and 10 or so quarts. My hands got so stained by the apples it looked like I hadn't washed them in a really long time. This is what we did this weekend! I love free produce!