burger buns

Well, friends, sometimes being short on pennies brings on wonderful things.

I know, you're probably thinking I'm a little off my rocker. I might be. But hang on.

It means that I can only purchase basics, and I have to make do with what I have. It means I have to be more creative and more careful.

And tonight, that meant that I made hamburger buns rather than buying them.

Success!!

I used this recipe, and believe it or not, I didn't change any of the ingredients. I did let them rise (raise? Where are the grammar police when I need them?) for 30 minutes instead of 10, though.

My tummy was making the strangest sounds, so I had to eat one to make sure they were okay for dinner consumption. The verdict?

So delicious. Soft, nice texture, not too done on the bottom, and oh! delicious with honey. Yes, I slathered honey on one.

And Brad loved them! He said they looked and tasted a lot like the ones he was used to his mom buying - score. In fact, his words as he walked in the kitchen were something to the effect of "Where did you get those rolls? They look like the ones my mom buys." Oh, that made me smile.

Valentine's Day - just a peek!

Happy belated Valentine’s Day! I hope yours was full of beautiful blessings and reminders of how much you are loved.

heart shaped pizza - yes!

I made a couple of things for my dear husband to celebrate our love:

Ten romantic date night coupons – I cut 3”x3” squares of paperboard (thinner than cardboard, heavier than cardstock or cereal boxes) and covered them on both sides with one of four kinds of scrapbook paper. There had to be music notes, of course, since we’re both musicians. I then cut hearts out of a sheet of handmade art paper given to me by a friend, and glued those onto five of the squares. In my scrapbooking and card-making stash, I have quite a few scrap papers, and the copper metallic paper was just begging to be added in the form of hearts.

I added handwritten verses from Song of Songs to finish off the romantic front of the cards.

Something else was needed, though, so I got out my kraft paper and made envelopes for them, numbering them 1-10 with stickers.

 

Inspiration struck again, and I penned lines from our first dance song onto the front of the envelopes.

 

Finally, I tied them all up with ribbon.

 

He was thrilled, by the way!

Our weekend was filled with togetherness…

 

…snuggling…

 

…more snuggling…

 

…and pizza, of course!

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an hour of super

Last night, I arrived at my house at 5:25pm with a plan: make dinner and go back to school for rehearsal. And the plan actually happened as planned.

This is an account of the hour of super.

I fed the cats and petted them as I walked in. I allowed myself time to actually use the bathroom (it had been a busy day), and then to the kitchen I went. First, I put water on to boil for making rice. I squished a clove of garlic into the water with my garlic press. I preheated my oven to 400 and took the chicken drumsticks out of the fridge. I greased my glass 8"x8" pan and arranged the chicken in it - all to one side. I cut up half an onion and arranged those on top of the chicken. I found the whole carrots and sliced them lengthwise into sticks, and they went on the opposite side. Lesson in quick cooking: use pre-made sauces.

I pulled out the Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce, and smothered the chicken and onions in it. Next, I got out the creamy Caesar dressing and drizzled the carrots with it. I topped those with some Italian bread crumbs and put the whole pan into the oven.

Then, I turned around to my boiling pot of water and added brown rice.

Here comes the most super of parts.

I realized that there were two overripe bananas on the counter, and I was immediately inspired to make banana bread. Well, muffins. Out came the Betty Crocker cookbook, and I began. Oil, reduced amount of milk, eggs - wait, there are no eggs in this house because I'm a grad student who doesn't have time to shop for groceries. Literally. No. Time.

Is there a recipe for banana muffins without eggs? (I wondered this to myself, going over to my laptop.) There is!! I found it here. I'll also post for you what I did, because, as you know, I don't follow directions very well in recipes.

Banana Muffins Without Milk or Eggs (amazing, I know!)
1/2 c. shortening (I used Crisco)
3/4 c. granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp vanilla
2 smashed overripe bananas
1/3 c. chocolate chips (I used Nestle's dark chocolate chips)

First, cream the shortening and sugar. Add the vanilla. Mix in the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. The dough will be rather stiff at this point. Add the smashed bananas - it should look better now! Spoon into prepared muffin tins. Bake at 400 for 18-20 minutes. Watch carefully.

The muffins came out dense, moist, and fabulous. I discovered that parchment paper can be used to sub for paper cupcake liners - effective.

Also, my dinner was done in sufficient time for me to eat it. Win.

And I was on time for rehearsal.

Feeling (momentarily) super.

summer pasta salad

Tonight was one of those "what will I make for dinner? I have nothing in the house!" sort of nights. This wouldn't happen if I bothered to do weekly meal plans, but... that's one area of my life I have yet to schedule. Perhaps I'll try it soon. I do see how it could be beneficial to both our budget and my sanity.

However, this spur-of-the-moment supper planning makes for some creative meals!

Here's my made-up recipe for a summery pasta salad (serving about 4 people):

1 cooked chicken breast
3/4 c. tri-color penne pasta (tri-color pasta is absolutely required, says the hubby)
1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese (or Parmesan cheese)
1 c. frozen peas, uncooked
1 whole carrot, sliced into thin discs

Optional ingredients:
10 black olives, sliced
1/4 c. red onion
1/2 c. chopped green peppers
1/4 c. sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 c. walnuts
1/4 c. raisins
mix it up, friends! Add what you like. The dinner is your oyster. Oooo! add shrimp!

Italian dressing to taste (or basil pesto - that would be good. or any other dressing you like. Or just some olive oil and spices - maybe some red pepper? curry?)

1. Bake/boil/fry/otherwise cook the chicken, or use left overs. This is how I roll. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces.
2. Cook pasta according to the package directions, adding 1/2 tsp. salt to the water.
3. Meanwhile, slice the carrot. Find a large serving bowl, and dump the carrot in.
4. Root through the freezer for the peas. Measure 1 cup of them, and dump them in the bowl with the carrots.
5. Add 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar to the serving bowl.
6. Slice whole black olives and add those to the mix.
7. Test the pasta for doneness, and then put it in a colander. Rinse with cold water until the pasta is no longer warm.
8. Add the pasta and chicken to the serving bowl. Stir to combine.
9. Add Italian dressing - about 2 T, or as much/little as you'd like to the pasta combo.
10. EAT!

This is the after-we-ate-all-we-wanted shot. Lots left over! Yay!

Blubarb pie

As I drove home from church on Sunday, I made up my mind to stop at one of the local farm stands to buy blueberries. 'Tis the season, you know.

I pulled over at the first one I saw, and opened the cooler, which sat atop an old horse-drawn cart. Four soggy quarts of blueberries awaited, but I was not swayed! I bought one and brought it home, rounding corners very carefully so that I wouldn't spill. Success!

There were two rather ripe bananas on the counter, so banana blueberry bread ensued. Next, blueberry rhubarb pie! Delicious.

I love summer.

Southwest Skillet

Super leftover use! Sometimes I masquerade as superwoman, making magical things come out of my kitchen while still having time to sew, clean, do laundry, scrapbook, spend time with hubby, and study.

Ready? This will require kitchen courage and multitasking. Begin on Monday so that you can do all these steps.

1. Shrimp jambalaya night! Use some diced tomatoes, but realize that the 32 oz can is way too much tomatoes.
2. Brown a pound of ground beef earlier in the week. Use something else for dinner instead (namely, cut up the Swedish meatballs from last week and use them in the pasta/creamy basil pesto/broccoli skillet), and refrigerate the cooked beef.
3. Make BBQ chicken drumsticks, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. Leave a drumstick for another night.
4. Have burritos, complete with chicken, diced tomatoes, black beans, and rice. That can of black beans was also huge.
5. Brainstorm. No, I did that for you. Here goes!

6. Make cornbread, using one box mix, one egg, 1/4 c. sour cream and 1/3 c. water. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes. This deviates from the Jiffy box mix recipe, which requires 1/3 c. milk and 1 egg, mixed, and baked at 450 for 20 minutes. Why? I used up the milk on my cereal this morning and had to improvise.

7. Make brownies at the same time (in a different bowl and pan, of course), stirring in 3/4 c. Nestle's peanut butter swirl chocolate morsels. Mmm. Bake for 40 mins at 350 with the cornbread. (This is slightly underbaked. Gooey; as I like it. Do not taste it before dinner. Do snack on the chocolate morsels and then put them out of reach.)


8. Raid the fridge. Dump half the ground beef into the skillet, followed by the black beans and diced tomatoes. Chop up half a green onion and add that to the pan. Unwrap the leftover chicken drumstick and cut the meat into bite-size pieces. Add to the skillet.


9. Secret weapon: taco seasoning. Sprinkle liberally onto the contents of the skillet. I used about half a packet without adding any water.

(Note: chopped onion, diced garlic, fresh cilantro, lime juice, and/or jalepeños would also be delicious additions)

10. Heat up the contents of the skillet until the green pepper is fork-tender. Taste it to make sure there's enough seasoning. Add more, if you want. I did.

11. Slice the cornbread and spoon the deliciousness on top!

Or, leave it on the side. As you prefer.

Enjoy! Serve with salsa and tortilla chips, if the mood strikes.

And finish off with brownies.
And another slice of cornbread.

Celebrate! You used up the leftovers.

happiness is leftovers

Leftovers stored in pretty containers are even happier.

I'm enjoying my new (vintage) Pyrex collection!

hazy summer days.

I need to make these! And in other news...

I'm loving the summer weather - being able to hang out with my hubby, enjoy the freedom to rest, and the time to do the crafts/cooking/baking I've been planning!

This past weekend, we took a trip to a beach on Lake Erie. I wasn't expecting much, since it's a lake beach - you know, stones, cold water, not-so-attractive swimming conditions - but it was great! The sand was mostly soft, and there was a bank of smooth pebbles leading into the lake water. It was a lovely 70 degrees outside, with a breeze, and the water was warm! and shallow! It was so wonderful to just relax all day. Peaceful waves, seagulls, colorful umbrellas, my hubby and family right there, a couple magazines...

I picked up some sea glass (pieces of broken glassware, tumbled smooth by the lake), got slightly burned shoulders, and enjoyed my new swimsuit and coverup. Thankful for a joyful time together! Perhaps we'll make another trip soon!

no bake fail.

Here I was, just thinking that I had nothing very interesting to blog about... and then, poof! I had a baking adventure.

Well, it might be better called a "no bake" adventure.

Things started off well, with two pretty rhubarb pies, made from freshly picked rhubarb from our backyard. Then I thought I might make some no-bake cookies for the hubby to enjoy while I'm teaching again this week.

I pulled out my trusty recipe from Sarah, who shared this with me on a day that I was rather in need of chocolate. Here's her recipe:

1 and 3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. butter
4 T. cocoa (unsweetened)
1/2 c. peanut butter
3 c. quick oats
1 t. vanilla

And here's the way you're supposed to combine the ingredients:
1. sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa go in a saucepan over medium heat.
2. boil 1-2 minutes
3. remove from heat and add vanilla
4. whisk in peanut butter
5. stir in oats
6. drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper or foil. eat all of them. share with a friend. absolutely delicious cookies.

Being the avid recipe reader that I am, I did this instead:
1. dump all ingredients except oats and vanilla into the saucepan, using shortening instead of butter and crunchy peanut butter instead of smooth.
2. realize that you aren't supposed to boil peanut butter, and that you've created a burning cauldron of black lava.
3. add vanilla anyway, and watch it cause a big boiling, splashing mess.
4. dump in the oats, because you don't care anymore
5. drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper or foil. taste.

Hmmm. Despite all the errors, they still taste...not terrible. Well, if you like toasted marshmallow taste. With chocolate. And peanut chunks. And blackened saucepot.

I shall now re-name the recipe that I have (inadvertently) created:

Blackened S'more Cookies!

I washed the pot, but it's a lost cause. It (along with the "cookies") has found a new home in the garbage can. *tears.

There are no pictures of this escapade.

However, I did take pictures of the rhubarb pie and of the centerpiece I put together for last night's movie with friends.


The centerpiece is made of little flowers from my yard and the side of the road (also known as weeds), and of two lilac-scented candles. The china plate belonged to my great-grandma, Alice. Pretty.

homemade mac n' cheese

I needed a side dish to take to our friends' house last night for dinner, and I was totally stumped... until I remembered this deliciousness. I didn't have enough potatoes, though, so I swapped in elbow macaroni. I also had onion this time, so I added that, and topped it with bread crumbs and paprika after it was finished baking. And I used my new vintage Pyrex dish. Love.


There's the ready-to-go dish in my picnic basket!
It was a big hit - I'm surprised we have even a spoonful left!

...and pizza, too

My previously loved pizza crust recipe, which requires the use of the bread machine for rising and mixing and such (not a bad thing, just a time consuming operation), may be replaced by good old Betty Crocker's.

Hers involves the dissolving of one packet of yeast in a cup of warm water, to which is added 2.5 cups of flour, 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and sugar, and 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Mix for only 20 strokes or so. Let it sit for 5 minutes, then spread the very sticky dough out on two generously olive-oiled baking sheets with olive-oiled hands. Add toppings.

Put it in a 400 degrees F oven for about 20 minutes, and it's golden. And crispy...and delicious... and...

gone.

blue-rhu-banana muffins

Two very ripe bananas, one with an Alleluia! pick in it from the Easter butter lamb. Hubby and I find this very funny, and we maintain the (cleaned) pick to put in surprising spots throughout the year. Here is a butter lamb for reference:

Alleluia!

But, there was no milk left.

And a lot of rhubarb - massive 1" across rhubarb (haha - alot of rhubarb)

Frozen blueberries

+ cinnamon

=

Blue-rhu-banana muffins!

Here's what I did:

Preheated the oven to 400 degrees F.
2 medium bananas, very freckly and ripe. Peeled, then smashed with a potato masher.
1 large egg and about 3/8 cup canola oil added to the smashed bananas.
Got concerned that perhaps it would not be liquid-y enough, so I added about a quarter cup of blueberries.
Remembered that I have a ton of rhubarb cut up and waiting in the fridge. Dumped in about 1/2 cup of that.
Re-read the recipe and realized that I was supposed to add the dry ingredients before the extra fruit. Slight panic, but kept calm and carried on. Insert British royal graphic design here.
Make stuff.
More like, forged ahead with abandon.

2 cups of flour, a rounded and packed 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2 teaspoons baking pow-pow-pow-powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt...
And a 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon would be good, too. Yes. Do I diverge from the recipe path often? Yes.

Stirred gently so that most of the dry ingredients got wet. Good.
Still slightly concerned about the thick batter, I dropped large spoonfuls into the paper-lined muffin cups. It made about 21 muffins, some of which were much larger than others. It probably could've made 24.

Baked each batch for 20 minutes, hoping that it would work.

Ate one.

Ta-da! They are delicious.

I had another one...
and another one...
and another one... somebody stop me!

comfort food

Since it is a (broken) furnace-like 40 degrees here in western New York, some comfort food was in order. Enter:

Potatoes Au Gratin, a new family favorite.
(adapted from All Recipes.com)

The cheesy goodness is just too much to contain! See the overflowing dish?

Recipe:
5 or so red potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/4" pieces
buttered 2 quart dish - I used a glass loaf pan
two garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt (and pepper to taste, if you want. I skipped that.)
2 cups milk - skim works just fine
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup parmesan (I used powdered, but shredded would've been yummier yet)
breadcrumbs, if desired

1. Butter the dish. Seriously. I suppose you could use cooking spray or something healthy like that, but who would want to? :o)
2. Peel and slice potatoes, and lay them down in a single layer in the buttered dish.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 F. (The original recipe says 400 F)
In a sauce pan, melt the butter and add the minced garlic. All at once, add the flour and salt, whisking to combine.
4. Continuing to whisk, add the 2 cups of milk. Here comes the waiting game: whisk continuously until the mixture thickens. Not boils, just thickens. Just keep whisking. My wrist got really tired.
5. Once the mixture thickens, add all the cheese and whisk until it all melts. Remove from heat.
6. Pour a layer of cheesy sauce goodness over the first layer of potatoes. Add a second layer and pour on another layer of sauce. Repeat until you're out of potatoes, and make sure every last drop of cheese is slurped up makes it into the dish. I added a topping of Italian seasoned breadcrumbs here, but they disappeared with baking. Ineffective, I guess.
7. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil to prevent the awesomeness of cheese from coating your oven's wire racks. Place the glass dish on the baking sheet and cover with more foil.
8. Bake at 350 F for 2 hours, or at 400 for 1.5 hours. Check partway through to make sure it's not spilling over.
9. EAT!

a culinary success day

It's pretty fabulous what a Crock Pot can do...

This morning's festivities began at 8:31am and included cutting up russet potatoes, carrots, celery, and onion. These were layered in the bottom of my trusty Crock Pot, followed by a quickly de-giblet-ed and rinsed whole chicken. (Thanks my dear husband who got groceries last night!) I sprinkled on salt, pepper, and herbs de Provence...mmm.... and added 3 cups of water and a can of cream of mushroom soup. The soup was probably unnecessary, but I wasn't really thinking about it at that point, since I had to be out the door at 8:50, firm. I set the cooker for eight hours on low, tossed some salad greens into a tupperware, grabbed salad dressing, and took off for school.

The day at school was rather stressful - we've added another destination to our choir tour, and I'm responsible for contacting people and helping to make all the necessary arrangements. There are a lot of details to figure out! I'm working on a very detailed itinerary, getting hotel quotes, and finding activities for our free day in Florida (celebrate! warm weather sounds amazing right now). I also realized that I had done the wrong reading assignment for my Theory class - it's nice to work ahead, but I certainly didn't mean to, and now I'm scrambling to finish for tomorrow's class. My final task of the day was to finish the entrance counseling for the school loan we're planning to take. The loan process is rather detailed and scary. It's frustrating to have to go into an experience where the "helpers" are only interested in making money off of me. I really hope we get to take the education tax credit again this year...

The hubby has been working extra long hours, too. It's a special challenge to be able to relate well when we're both stressed and tired. I hope tonight is a beautiful, relaxing ten minutes together before we fall asleep.

Anyway, I came home to a house that smelled absolutely delicious. Mmm! Good thing I had a granola bar at school, or I would have been ravenous. I love the way that slow-cooked chicken just falls right off the bone! I separated the chicken, veggies, and broth into separate containers so that I could make sure there were no bone pieces in anything. It sure is an oily job, but I'm glad I did it. I'm hoping to make soup with the broth sometime later this week, and there's enough chicken for all sorts of fabulous meals. Ideas, anyone?

I also took out some frozen pumpkin and made a pie (surprise!). I guess I thought the crust I had made would be big enough, but I ended up having to dump some of the filling into my smallest French White dish. Oh, well. No one minds a bit of pumpkin custard, right? It's a souffle! (a yummy souffle...I couldn't resist.)
Both turned out well...

And here's my cute Oscar-cat to finish the post. Have a good night!

cooktop crazies

dear electric cooktop: yes, you heat evenly, without flame or odor. However, I'm completely frustrated with you. You heat up so slowly, and then when you're hot, you're too hot. I have spent hours cleaning up boiled-over food from your smooth glass top. I'm fed up. Why can't you be more like your gas cousin? not-very-in-love, Linnea.