Chicken, Pickles, Frogs and GOOBERS!!!

Well, I am back! So many things have happened since my last post. I will be sure to post pictures later this week of vacations and graduations and other happenings around here. For now, I want to share about my awesome trip to Sam's Club. I hit the jackpot of "Reduced For Quick Sale" Meats yesterday! Today, I processed it all. I purchased 12 large chicken leg quarters for about 8 dollars. They were so large, I didn't realize they were leg quarters until I got home. I thought they were breasts. I guess I didn't read the package because I was blinded by the bright sticker that said "REDUCED"! Pardon my fuzzy picture, my camera is dying.

First, I separated the drumsticks from the thighs and packed all 12 drumsticks together for a dinner (with planned leftovers). I will probably either fry them or baste them in BBQ sauce and grill them. YUM! For now, they are in the freezer. I then peeled the skin off the thighs and removed some of the large fat pockets. I put 6 thighs each into 2 gallon sized freezer bags and one went right into the freezer. The other bag was bathed in a marinade using these ingredients below and THIS Robin Miller recipe as a starting point. Of course, I changed it. I don't think that I have ever followed a recipe to the letter.

The original recipe called for orange marmalade which makes me want to gag so, I substituted peach preserves. I doubled the amount of soy sauce and added a teaspoon of ground ginger. I mixed all 4 ingredients in a bowl until smooth and then poured it all over the chicken thighs in the bag. Don't they look happy in their sticky bath? I bet they will be delicious tomorrow after church when we eat them for lunch! Right now, they are marinating in the refrigerator overnight and tomorrow I will bake them for 35 minutes at 400 degrees just like the recipe says to.

On to the next cooking project of the day. These monstrous beauties are supposed to be pickling cucumbers. They are ginormous! They came from my mother's garden and she asked me to make pickles with them. They are far too fat to leave whole so I decided on sandwich slices. You may only need one slice to cover your whole burger with one of these pickles.

Here are the ingredients I use to make some awesome garlic dills very similar to Claussen Pickles. In case you can't read the labels in the picture (have I mentioned that my camera is dying?), there is minced garlic, salt, vinegar, dill seed (not weed), and Mixed peppercorns (pink, green, white and black).

The cucumbers were so big that each one filled its own quart sized Mason Jar. I even had to gently fold the larger rounds to get them in the mouth of the jars. So, I loaded each jar with cucumber slices, 1 Tbsp of dill seed, 1/2 Tbsp of Peppercorns and 1 & 1/2 teaspoons of minced garlic. You could use 3 whole peeled cloves of garlic per jar but, I was out of fresh garlic so I used the jar stuff.

While I was filling the jars, the brine was coming to a boil on the stove top. The brine was 8 cups of water, 4 cups of vinegar and 1/2 cup of salt.

Once it was up to a rolling boil and all the salt had dissolved, I carefully topped each jar off with the brine. I then sealed the jars and let them sit on the counter until they reached room temperature. Then they went into the refrigerator to brine for at least a week but 2 weeks is better. If you can wait that long!!!

In unrelated news, these creatures decided to hang out on the glass sliding door last night. For at least 20 minutes, they didn't move. I thought for sure the frog was going to eat the moth but he never did. We all got bored and walked away.

In other unrelated news . . . this child is a GOOBER!!! He is wearing an undershirt (inside out I might add), goggles, a cowboy hat (backwards), dog tags and he is holding an Indiana Jones whip. He is just as adorable as can be but . . . I am not quite sure what this whole ensemble is all about. He went outside to dig in the red Carolina clay barefooted and dressed like this. Not the backyard . . . the front yard . . . so all the neighbors could see him and wonder what in the world goes on in our house. Strange but I love him!

Stay tuned for picture from our trips to the Creation Museum and the Smokey Mountains. I also have pictures from the above GOOBER'S graduation. I will do my best to get them all posted this coming week.

Homemade Soft Pretzels

I am a salty food person. When I am craving a snack, I usually end up wanting something salty like: beef jerky, nuts, pretzels, Tostitos Hint of Lime . . . you get the picture. Yesterday, I was in the mood for some soft pretzels so I decided to make some but I thought it might be fun to make the dough with beer instead of water and to add some honey for a hint of sweetness. They came out really good. I was impressed. However, I think next time I will cut the yeast by half because the beer made the dough rise much more than it would have with water. They rose so much that all the holes closed up so that they look like knotted rolls instead of pretzels. They were still delicious. Take a look. The recipe follows the picture.

1 cup room temperature beer
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp honey
1 tsp kosher salt
2 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp instant yeast

Mix all the ingredients together in the either the bowl of a stand mixer or in the pan of the bread machine. If you use the stand mixer, knead for about 10 minutes. If you use the bread machine, like I did, set it on the dough setting and walk away. When the bread machine beeps, your dough has already risen. If you use the mixer, cover the bowl with a towel and let the dough rise for 1 hour in a warm place.

Turn the dough out on a floured surface and divide into 16 equal pieces. Grease 2 baking sheets or baking stones and preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll the pieces into 12 inch long ropes and shape into pretzels. Beat 1 egg and brush on the pretzels and sprinkle with kosher or pretzel salt. Bake 8 pretzels per sheet for 10-15 minutes or until golden. Serve warm with cheese sauce. YUM!

SO there you have it! Soft Pretzels!

Today after church, we went out with friends for lunch and I had 1 one of these for dessert. So good!

I have made cannoli cream before many times but, I do not have a frying tube so I cannot make the shells myself. If I ever get one, I will have to have a wider door installed on my house because I will make them ALL THE TIME!!! Probably a good thing that I don't have one.

Strawberry Picking 2010 and a Delicious Meal

Yesterday, we went strawberry picking with a group of our homeschool friends. It was a gorgeous, breezy day and the berries were sweet and perfect.

I just love the little white blossoms on the strawberry plant.

This is a 1 gallon bucket full of lovely ripe strawberries. We took home 4 of these buckets filled to overflowing.

Judah stayed home from Pre-K so he could join us. He did pretty well. I didn't find any under ripened or rotten strawberries in his bucket.

Later that evening, we went out for BBQ for dinner. Judah wanted to ride this ride before dinner and was told that he could ride it after dinner if he behaved and ate all his dinner. He didn't like that answer . . . so he pouted. Isn't he cute? Don't you want to have 12 just like him someday?

The boy knows how to hold a grudge, ladies and gentleman. I apologize for my husband . . . I am still trying to figure out what happened to him.

Judah did get to ride the ride after dinner and then we went home. When we got home, I made Freezer Jam using about 2 gallons of strawberries. We have 8 large jars in the freezer, 1 in the refrigerator and I have given 2 away. I just used the recipe on the back of the packet of Ball Freezer Jam Fruit Pectin (found in the spice/baking isle). It is so delicious!

Tonight, for dinner, I made these yummy buttery dinner rolls and some homemade cinnamon honey butter. The rolls came out so good and were the perfect vehicle for the jam and/or honey butter.

Here is the recipe for the rolls. I made mine using the bread machine but you could certainly mix and knead by hand.

1 cup warm milk (no hotter than 110 degrees F.)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher salt
4 cups bread flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast

Place all the ingredients into the bread machine in the order suggested by the manufacturer. I listed the ingredients in the order that I loaded them into the machine. Most bread machines have a dough only cycle that does all the the mixing, kneading and rising for you. Set the machine on the dough cycle and walk away. Mine takes 1 hour and 30 minutes. When the cycle is completed, turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide the dough into 24 equal portions. Shape the dough into balls and arrange in a greased 13 inch by 9 inch baking pan. I used two 8 inch cake pans. Cover the pans with a clean towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled. I set mine on top of the stove while the oven was on and they doubled in 30 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Mmmmm! So good with the honey butter. You can find the recipe in this post.

Although it was tempting to just have rolls, butter and jam for dinner, I did make this lovely roasted chicken and a baby spinach and carrot salad to round out the meal. Sorry, I didn't take a picture of the salad.

It was all very delicious! The entire chicken breast as well as part of a thigh were leftover. I shredded them meat and out it in the fridge for use later in the week. The bones and some veggies and seasonings are simmering in the crockpot for some homemade chicken stock. We still have a gallon of strawberries to finish off so maybe, we'll have smoothies for breakfast.

A New Treasure

Today, after I dropped the boys off at the Boys and Girls Club for Homeschool field day, my good friend Amy and I went to a new antique and designer mall here in our town. All I can say is WOW!!!

Please forgive my crappy photos . . . I took them with my phone.

This used to be an old textile mill and it is being coverted into this awesome treasure warehouse of all things pretty. I was on a mission to find tea cups for a Mother's Day tea that I am attending on Saturday so I didn't have the time to truly shop but, I will be going back.

This sweet table was one thing that caught my eye. Of course, in my house, those balls would be getting chucked all over the place. I love the blues and browns and that chunky candle holder.

Here is a close up of another sweet planter pot. I know of at least one sweet friend who would love this place. *SIGH!!!* I must go back and really search. They had everything from fabric to furniture and everything in between. Who wants to go with me?

Semi-Freezer Cooking: Bolognese Sauce (or Tacos!!!)

There are some nights when I just need a quick meal but I don't want to serve a less than healthy meal like processed foods. So my solution is to "process" whole foods myself at home and have things in the freezer that can be ready in 20 minutes or less. I am a planner so a lot of times I will plan to use one of my "processed" foods ahead of time. For example, Wednesdays are really busy for us with produce co-op and PE class at the YMCA for the kids and then church in the evenings. I don't want to have to eat out or go through a drive thru so a lot of Wednesdays we will have pasta. Growing up Italian in Brooklyn, NY, it was actually a sin (in my family and the greater neighborhood even) to serve jar sauce unless you had canned it yourself over the summer (which we did). SO, I came up with this recipe which actually makes 7-8 packets of meat sauce base for that slow cooked Bolognese Sauce in 20 minutes. I have served it to my grandmother and I am still alive! LOL! This recipe is also an awesome way to sneak lots of veggie into those picky eaters.

Kristi's Bolognese Base

5 pounds ground meats of choice
4 onions
5 ribs of celery with leaves
5 cloves of garlic (or more . . . we like a lot of garlic)
2 zucchini
16 oz mushrooms
4 carrots
1 large Sam's Club sized can of diced tomatoes
12 oz tomato paste
1/2 cup fresh minced flat leaf parsley
1 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 tsp pepper

Process all of the fresh veggies in the food processor until they are very small bits. Set aside. In a LARGE pot, cook your meat in batches so it browns and doesn't boil and turn gray. Remove the meat to a bowl with a slotted spoon and set aside. Cook the veggies in the meat grease in batches until soft. Remove the veggies to a bowl and discard remaining grease. Using the same pot, return the meat to the pot and add the tomato paste. Cook over high heat and stir until paste is melted and starts to bubble and turn a rusty reddish-brown color. Add your veggies and diced tomatoes with their liquid. Stir well and add your seasonings. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer. Cook uncovered for at least 1 and 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Let it cool and transfer to freezer bags or containers of your choice in 3 cup portions. It will be the consistency of a thick ground beef chili. Freeze until ready to use. This recipe usually yields 7-8 packets of sauce base. Please ignore the 6 inches of snow in my freezer. I need to defrost it. I usually stack the bags like this for maximum storage space. I do the same with dried beans that I have prepared.



When I am ready to make the sauce, I usually set a packet of sauce base on the counter in the morning.



By dinner time it is mostly defrosted and slides right out of the bag and into a medium sauce pan. Then I add a 28oz can of crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce and 2 tsp Italian seasoning. Simmer over low heat while your pasta is cooking. If you want to make it a true Bolognese Sauce, stir 1 cup of milk or cream into the sauce about 2 minutes before removing from the heat. It is fine as a meat sauce but the cream just adds more flavor and richness. Serve your sauce over your favorite pasta (we had penne).

NOTE: You can use just beef in this recipe but, I usually use a mixture of beef, pork, veal, sausage, turkey or whatever I have on hand to add up to 5 pounds of meat. You can also add more or different veggies. This is my basic recipe but I have used bell peppers and eggplant in it before with good results. I try to use whatever is in season.

ANOTHER NOTE: You can use the fully prepared sauce to put together a lasagna or baked ziti or in any recipe you would use a meat sauce.

LAST NOTE (I PROMISE): You can use the packet of sauce as a taco meat by omitting the 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes and Italian seasoning and adding an envelope of taco seasoning (or the equivalent of homemade taco seasoning) and 1/3 cup of water. Simmer together in a pan and serve as you would for tacos, burritos, whatever you like.

I am Linking up with

Jen @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam

Lisa @ Blessed with Grace

Cole @ All the Small Stuff

Gayle @ The Grocery Cart Challenge

Homemade Granola . . . I May Never Buy Commercial Cereal Again!

My family loves granola . . . in any form. Their favorite form is the granola bar which I began making at the end of last year. I researched several different recipes to come up with a mixture my kids would like. Jeremy, the undisputed king of granola bars, loves the recipe that I came up with and lets me know when we are running out so I can make more.

My favorite form of granola is as a cold cereal with milk and it is so expensive in the stores so I decided to make my own. Hey, I am all about making things myself. Here at the Temple house, we make all of our own soaps (body and hand soap, laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, dish washing liquid, shampoo, conditioner, household cleaners) breads, granola bars, sauces, spice mixes, stocks, etc. If I had a juicer . . .

Anyway, back to the granola. After reading several recipes and methods, I concocted my own version of what I thought I would like best and it is fat free (except for the fat the occurs naturally in the nuts). I call it Greatest Hits Granola. I like to make it at night after everyone is in bed so it can cool overnight.

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Mix the following together in a large bowl:
3 cups rolled oats (not quick cooking)
1 cup slivered or sliced almonds
1 cup roughly chopped cashews
1 cup crispy rice cereal

In a small sauce pan, combine the following ingredients and heat over low heat until the brown sugar is dissolved. You do not need to bring this to a boil:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup real maple syrup or honey
1/4 cup applesauce (not chunky, I used homemade apple sauce)
1/4 cup mashed ripe banana
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1tsp vanilla
3/4 tsp salt

Pour the liquid mixture over the ingredients in the bowl and mix to coat evenly. Divide the mixture between 2 sheet pans and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes until evenly browned. Here is a picture of the 2 sheets baking. Every time I took them out to stir them, I rotated which rack they were on just so they would brown evenly.

When it is done baking, turn off the oven and prop the door open and leave the granola in the oven to cool on the sheet pans over night. In the morning, transfer the granola to an airtight storage container. See my new counter tops? I will be posting the whole story complete with pictures soon.

Then you can add in 1 cup or more of whatever you like (raisins, craisins, dried apples, dried apricots, mini chocolate chips, etc.). As you can see here, I added freeze dried apples and dried cranberries. See that lovely jug of milk in the picture? I just started buying our milk directly from the dairy. It is raw, full fat milk with the cream on top. You have to shake it before using unless you want to pour the cream off for another use. It is delicious and I have not had any problems digesting it as I have in the past with dairy products. I am beginning to think that pastuerization kills a nutrient in the milk that aids in digestion. It is illegal for raw milk to be sold in North Carolina for human consumption so, I cross the border to South Carolina to get it straight from the cow at Tucker Adkins Dairy.

Mmmmmmmm!!! Yummy Granola and Creamy Raw Milk!!!


I hope you are inspired to try this granola. I know if you do, you will be hooked!

Grateful For His Sacrifice

This song says all that I feel today as Resurrection Sunday approaches.





May you all enjoy the freedom and peace that His sacrifice gives us.

Happy Easter!