Yarn Along...

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading and I love sharing my projects and current reads here. I would love for you to join me every Wednesday to share a single photo of what you are knitting (or crocheting) and reading too!~

These banana muffins are some of our favorites here.  Often times I'm not on top of things enough to prepare breakfast ahead of time...like cinnamon rolls or crockpot oatmeal.  But these are quick and tasty.  They can be whipped up in a matter of minutes and please even my picky eaters.  The recipe calls for nuts, but we sub in mini chocolate chips.

Currently on my needles are tiny baby socks and I think they may just do me in.  I originally started with the Perfect-fit Newborn sock, but the closer I get to turning the heel, the more confused I become.  Heaven forbid I look on to the gusset.  From what I can tell, most baby socks are fairly similar in construction so I think I may continue with a pattern I understand a bit better.  Here's one I'm more likely to figure out.  Though I may make the foot a little longer.

The wee chunky hat was a stash buster and it almost didn't become a reality.  I was limited in both the right size dpn's and yarn, but I just kept knitting until I couldn't anymore.  I think it turned out ok.  My baby's have big noggins though, so my only hope is it fits once baby boy arrives.  This is a very basic knit flat hat, no pattern per se, but my Ravelry notes are here.

This week I started reading Hands Free Life and though I'm not very far in, the idea of striving towards a more meaningful existence, apart from ALL distractions (be it electronics, dishes, chores, various responsibilities) is enlightening.  I have such a difficult time separating the fact that I'm not bound by "things".  I have set these self-imposed expectations for myself and I'm the only one keeping tabs.  Of course I can't let my home go to squalor or never get school done with the children.  But none of these things are as pressing as I make them out to be.  Throw in the constant need to be "plugged in" and I suffer greatly from comparison syndrome.  Hopefully this book will lovingly guide me in giving up these ideals because as much as they stress me out, imagine the impact they have on my family.

Also on my reading list are my scripture birth affirmation cards.  I made these three years ago when I had my son (found the idea on Pinterest) and they helped immensely in staying focused on Christ during my labor.  I have no doubt they will be more than beneficial this time around as well.  April can't come soon enough...I'm so looking forward to meeting this little guy.

I'm joining Ginny today over at Small Things for her weekly yarn along.  I so enjoy being a part of a collective project, seeing everyone's handiwork and inspiration.  It brightens my day each Wednesday.  Please check it out!

Easy Turkey and/or Bacon Wraps

We just recently visited my mom and she fixed these little puppies up in a snap!  They were delish and really you can get as creative as you want with it! 

My Cast of Characters

1 Whole Wheat Tortilla (8-10inch)

Deli Turkey

Shredded Cheese

ChowChow and/or Corn Salsa

Light Honey Dijon Mustard Dressing for dipping (or whatever dressing floats your boat)

Optional Ingredients:

Turkey Bacon (I use this a lot in addition to the deli meat)

Roasted Red Peppers

Banana Peppers

Tomatoes

Start with a Tortilla

Load up all your fixin's

Fold in right and left sides first, then top and bottom.

No Pic~ Sorry

Place on your George Forman Grill (or panini maker or griddle or in a pan slightly heated) and heat thouroughly on both sides (appoximately 5-7 min.~ just enough to heat through and get the cheese melted.)

What you get is a deliciously toasted hot wrap!  Serve it up with some dipping dressing and ENJOY!!

Mmmm, Mmmm, Good!!

Note: The more stuff you plan on piling on, the bigger the tortilla you'll need so it'll fold easily and stay together.

Have a great weekend everyone!!

Tasty Tuesday: My New Bread Pan

For this Tasty Tuesday I want to share with ya'll my new obsession...

I'm in Love.

I just purchased a terracotta bread pan.

And it's beautiful.

My inspiration was my friend Amber, who in all of her rustic-ness uses a stoneware bread pan to bake her breads.  We'll talk more about Amber and her bread in a minute.  But all I've ever been used to is the tin metal non-stick loaf pans.  Which work fine, but...

They don't work like terracotta.

I will never go back to those metal pans.

Mine actually comes from Henry Watson's Pottery in England as part of the Original Suffolk Collection.  As if the bread baker (as it's called) isn't enough, there's a whole kit and kaboodle set, from flour canisters to milk pitchers.  Check them all out here.

Here's my little beauty...

So, I buy a bread pan, I need to make bread right?  Well fortunately the pan came with a recipe, one that  I attempted to make three times, all of which ended in disaster.  I don't know if it was me or what, but it seemed I was destined to never put my new pan to use.  I followed the instructions explicitly, but all I got was sludge.  I moved on....

Now, here is where I tell you about Amber and her honey wheat bread.

In one word...It's AMAZING.  I've had it on multiple occasions and the flavor, texture, color, even the smoothness is all DIVINE!  Amber's blushing now!

But Amber, unlike myself, is patient enough to make her bread from scratch.  Like with all the mixing and activating and proofing and such.  She does it all!  It makes me tired just writing about it.  Make sure you read all about her bread here over at ClassiclyAmber if you're the do it from scratch kind of gal.  She's got a great picture tutorial of the whole process.

Me...I'm not that girl!  I love those girls, but it's not me.  So I set out to find an in between.  A recipe that combined all the good ingredients, produced an excellent final product, but without all the elbow grease!  And what I came up with is a combo of various recipes, thrown into the bread machine, then baked (in my beloved bread pan) in the oven.

Here it is:

• 1 package Active Dry Yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
  
• 3 Tablespoons Honey ( I only use local raw honey)
  
• ½ Tablespoons Salt
• 1-½ Tablespoon Crisco or butter ( I prefer butter)
  
• 1-½ cup Whole Wheat Flour ( I use King Arthur's unbleached Whole Wheat)
  
• 2 cups All-purpose Flour (also KA's unbleached All Purpose)
  
• 1 cup Warm Water

First you put all your dry ingredients in the bread machine, then the honey and butter, and lastly the water.  The water should be warm to the touch, but not hot.  Turn the bread machine to the dough setting and let it go.  Mine was about a two hour gig from start to finish.  Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Finally, once it's done in the bread machine, transfer it to your greased loaf pan and bake it for roughly 45 minutes.

Now, I did not knead or shape it out of the bread machine.  Next time I will just so it'll look prettier, but it's not necessary to do so.  Hey~ it's all going straight to your belly right!?!  And watch your time...apparently terracotta pans heat a little better so you don't need to bake it as long.  45 minutes is probably a good judge for metal pans, but the bread will be brown and crusty on the top...it'll look done.  Just eye it.

And that's it!

Delicious homemade bread!

For now, this is the way for my kitchen, but maybe one day I'll graduate to the Amber way of things!  In the meantime, I can enjoy her bread at her house!

For more on Tasty Tuesday, make sure you head on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to get the scoop on a ton of other scrumptious recipes!

Enjoy ya'll!

Tasty Tuesday: PW Cooks and a Giveaway

CONTEST HAS ENDED!  WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED SATURDAY (11/14) MORNING!

Thanks to everyone who commented and shared what you are thankful for.  It was truly a blessing to read them all!

Well, it's been a while since I've done a Tasty Tuesday...oh how I have missed you.  What better to place to gather and bond over luscious culinary creations?  Miss Jen has created the perfect haven for such a thing and I can't wait to see what everyone has come up with this week.  I'm sure Thanksgiving menus are in for a tweaking after today!  So if you like the sounds of it, hop on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to feast on the mother load of recipes!  Welcome to Tasty Tuesday!

However, having said all that, there will be no recipe here today.

Sorry.

Instead I want to go into some detail about what arrived on my doorstep yesterday afternoon.  I had been anxiously awaiting it's arrival, but because I was cheap and chose free standard shipping, it took several days too many to arrive in my opinion.  My heart did somersaults when I saw it on our stoop and I immediately unloaded the baby and briefcase, threw the chicken in the oven and then ripped into the box.

There it sat in all it's colorful wonder.  A gem of all gems.  A staple in any girl's collection of cookbooks.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl
by Ree Drummond

And if you don't know who Ree Drummond is: 1) where have you been living? & 2) stop reading this blog right now and head on over to The Pioneer Woman this second!

I have been reading PW's blog for some time now, so it was never a doubt in my mind that I would own her cookbook.  Seeing as I have already attempted  several of the recipes from her site I was ready for more.  Yet, I wondered how she could take the charm of her site and put it into a book that not only captured the readers attention, but kept it.  Now before you all start booing from that last comment....what I mean is, I've read about Ree and her life on the ranch for a long time.  I felt certain, cookbook or no, I had read all there is to know about this woman, her family and her cooking.  But such was not the case.

PW really delivered in this fun collection of not only mouthwatering creations, but also in the colors, the pictures, and the overall layout of the book.  It was captivating.

I have to admit...I do all my reading in the tub.  This was the first time I took a cookbook to the bath with me.  But really, when you're not examining the extremely detailed picture tutorials accompanying the recipes, you're reading little tid bits here and there, anecdotes and family stories sprinkled all throughout the pages.

Some things I had read before, but even those few stories or recipes I had found on her website once before, were retold and shared with a new spunk in Drummond's book.  This was her baby for the longest time and though I don't know what it takes to produce a book of any kind, I can only imagine it was a labor of love for her.  So new life was breathed into even the familiar things.  Her passion for this project was obvious as I flipped from page to page.

Consider this a picture book.  All photos are from Drummon's own camera (she's a brilliant photographer as well) and though you'll find shots of Charlie and a few Herefords here and there, the real spice of life is the detail Drummond put into literally teaching us to cook this cowboy food.  It almost feels like she's in the kitchen with you...almost.  PW took what she has done on her blog with the step by step pictorial instructions, thrown in some new recipes along with even some funny wine sipping shots and created the cookbook women have been dreaming of since the Betty Crocker Cookbook Binder.  Let's face it girls, it just makes things easier if we have pictures to refer to and there is no shortage of that in this book.  

An by the way, an hour long bath allowed me to go from cover to cover several times, dog-earring pages along the way, re-reading and laughing hysterically.

Ree Drummond is no doubt a Renaissance Woman what will all she manages to accomplish and I hold her in the highest regard, as I'm sure most blogger/fans do.  I don't know her, but I feel like her cookbook is the perfect expression of her personality and were I ever to meet her, I'd feel like we were old friends.  That's pretty special when you as an author have captured the essence of that relationship for your readers.  And though she's been building this relationship for years on her blog, the cookbook, opens up a whole different side of her character.

Bravo, Ree!

If you haven't gotten The Pioneer Woman Cooks, I highly encourage you to do so.  Seriously, why are you still reading!?!  =)

I, of course, recommend it to any and everyone so that more people can enjoy the beauty, wit and sheer genius that is this book and it's author.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks is available at most major book retailers and also on Amazon.

Now....

With that, I'd like to host a giveaway.  And though I'm not giving away a copy of PW Cooks (hey, get your own) I am giving away something that will make the perfect companion.

In light of the upcoming Thanksgiving Holiday I'm giving away one of my handmade aprons.  This one in particular will be just the ticket in cooking to your heart's content over Thanksgiving and everyday as well.

Retailed at $22, all of my aprons feature an attached towel and side pocket for your convenience.  You can find even more in My Etsy Shop or the link on my right sidebar.

TO ENTER: Just tell me in a comment, "What are you Thankful for?"

I'm thankful for God's grace and love most importantly.  I'm thankful for my family and all the many blessings, big and small, that we experience day in and day out.  I'm thankful for PW's cookbook!  I'm thankful for this blog and how it allows me to share freely.  And last but certainly not least, I'm thankful for all my readers be it many or few~ Thank you all for your love and support.

I'll be accepting entries until Friday @ 9:00 pm EST, then a winner will be picked at random and announced on Saturday morning.  Good luck and I look forward to hearing what you're thankful for.

Again, for more on Tasty Tuesday, head over to Jen's and pitch in!!  See you there!

Be blessed friends, be blessed.

 

.

 

A Dream and Homemade Ketchup...

I had a dream last night.  And though I don't remember it in it's entirety, nor the exact details, I do know that I woke up knowing I had to find a recipe for homemade ketchup.

Weird, I know.

I have no idea where it came from.  But it kind of makes sense in that we consume vast quantities of ketchup in this household (I have an 18-month-old...enough said).  Couple that with the recent discussion Hubby and I had on the quality (or lack thereof) in our food and it's production; I guess my subconscious figured on starting with the obvious.

So I turned to Google.

And I found the motherload on articles and blogs about making your own ketchup!  Not just that, I journeyed to our own fridge to look at the ingredients on our brand name ketchup.

In this order:

Tomato CONCENTRATE

High Fructose Corn Syrup

Corn Syrup

Vinegar

Salt

Onion Powder

Spice and "Natural" flavoring

I don't know about you, but seeing the word syrup just makes my stomach turn.  Not just in the case of ketchup, but in general.  I think it's a gross word and I think of thick, nastiness glopping it's way through my intestines.  YUCK.  Also, Dr. Oz says that if High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is in the first five ingredients of anything, you shouldn't be eating it.  Not only is HFCS linked to obesity and type 2 diabetes, but it is highly processed, as are the foods it is usually in.  This means any nutritional value it may have once had, it is almost totally stripped of due to processing and this is never a good thing.

Now, I say all this and there are brands out there that offer organic ketchup that contains cane sugar instead of HFCS, but how fun would it be to make this a family affair in creating a favorite condiment!?!

So after some reading and researching, I came up with several blogs and sites that all recommended the same recipe!  I haven't tried it yet, but plan to do so ASAP!  Have fun in your own adventures and please share your experiences if you try it out!! Here it is as found in Saveur Magazine!

HOMEMADE KETCHUP

Photo: Andre Baranowski

4 whole cloves
1 bay leaf
1 stick cinnamon
1⁄4 tsp. celery seeds
1⁄4 tsp. chile flakes
1⁄4 tsp. whole allspice
2 lbs. tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 1⁄2 tsp. kosher salt
1⁄2 cup white vinegar
5 tbsp. brown sugar
1 onion, chopped
1 anaheim chile, chopped
1 clove garlic

1. Wrap cloves, bay leaf, cinnamon, celery seeds, chile flakes, and allspice in a layer of cheesecloth; tie into a bundle and put into a 4-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat along with tomatoes, salt, vinegar, sugar, onion, and anaheim chiles; smash and add the garlic. Cook, stirring, until onions and chiles are very soft, 40 minutes.

2. Remove spice bundle; purée sauce in a blender until smooth. Strain sauce through a mesh strainer into a 4-qt. saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 30 minutes. Add more salt, sugar, or vinegar, if you like.

3. Transfer ketchup to a glass jar. Set aside; let cool. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate for up to 3 weeks.

MAKES 2 1⁄2 CUPS

This recipe was first published in Saveur in Issue #117

Tasty Tuesday: Chicken Salad- PW Style!

Ladies and gentlemen, for this week's Tasty Tuesday, I introduce you to what is quite possibly the most delicious chicken salad you will ever taste.

Trust me on this one...I just might have quite possibly already eaten this whole bowl before finishing this post. So I know.

No kidding.

I'm pretty particular when it comes to my chicken salad and in fact, until I found this recipe, I only ate one kind. It came from a little place called Midtown Market in Danville, VA. It is that good, but this stuff right here gives it a run for it's money.

It also comes from one of the most brilliant blogging minds out there. Ree Drummond- AKA The Pioneer Woman.

My hero.

I love her.

I sent her an apron. I hope she liked it.

I also own boots like hers.

I read her daily, if not multiple times a day. I read her posts to my daughter (well, not "Black Heels...."- that's her tell all love story) as if she were Jane Austen. Wait, Emma's only one, so as if PW were say....Dr. Seuss. But you get the point.

This women has her poop together let me tell you. She does it all...from cookbooks, to homeschooling. And blogging about ranch life to taking amazing pictures. See why I want to be her? Anyway, while you're checking out this recipe, please peruse around her site a bit and tell her Kelli sent you!

Having memorized this recipe and fixed it now several times, I thought it was high time I share it with you all! However, unlike with most of my Nannie's recipes where I list the ingredients and instructions, I'm not going to do that here. It's not mine, so I'm just going to send you to the place where you can get the goods instead! Hey, I'm just here to tell you how delish it is and to tell you to fix it as soon as is humanly possible.

Click here: PW's Chicken Salad

When you're done there, please check out Jen over at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, too for more foodies blogging about what sets their palate afire!

Tasty Tuesday: Recipe for Beauty

NOTE: These are old recipes for two beauty tonics used by my great-grandmother. PLEASE DO NOT EAT OR DRINK!!

In honor of today's Tasty Tuesday and a recent bout with stubborn adult acne, I'll be posting not about any random culinary creation, but rather about a couple of old recipes passed down for a skin toner and zit cream.

So ladies, put that $200 night cream away, go to your medicine cabinet and take notes (or just print this post- whatever works)!

My Momma's Nannie (not the Nannie of Nannie's Recipes- she's mine) supposedly used these and her skin was smooth as a baby's bottom, even well into old age. My Momma's skin is the same way. Maybe it can be attributed to this stuff I'm about to share with you, maybe it's good skin genes....whatever it is, I want some of it because I was not blessed in the good skin department. Unless of course I'm pregnant, then my skin is AMAZING! I guess it was a nice trade off for the cankles and stretch marks.

I digress.... where was I? Oh yes, Beauty Tonics! Forgive me!

I used (well, and still do) to use the Zit cream as an adolescent for those pesky breakouts and it WORKS let me tell you! In fact, the Zit stuff is my husbands personal favorite! It really sets the mood.....you'll see why...just keep reading. Just don't forget to wash it off and run to WalMart. People will stare.

When you're done here, skooch on over to Balancing Bedlam and Beauty to find maybe something nice and chocolaty to go along with your new complexion armory.

Here's the goods on the goods!

Beauty Toner

Equal parts Rosewater and glycerin.

Fill up a pretty bottle and shake before each use. Dab a little on a cotton ball and swab all over your face and decolletage. Let dry.

ZIT Cream or Paste or whatever you want to call it.

Calamine lotion with just about a teaspoon of Campho Phenique mixed in.

Shake before each use and apply to problem spots (preferably at bedtime), let dry and then wash off. You'll look pretty goofy with this on. In my case, I skip the problem spots and just put it all over my face right before bed. Remember what I said about this being hubby's fave? Need I say more?

Ah, the things we do in the name of beauty!

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday: Salt and Toasted Cheerios

Welcome to Tasty Tuesday, everyone! Veering from the usual Nannie's recipe (gotta hit my Momma up for some more of those) today I'm paying tribute to Cheerios!

As you can see from the picture above Emma loves Cheerios (or in our case Trader Joe's O's- whatever works). They are an absolute staple in any house with toddlers. These things go everywhere with us- Cheerios are our go to food!

For me personally, I like some flavor on my O's. I'm a salt fan so if I'm going to eat them, I like to fix them like my Mom used to fix me as a kid.

Which leads me to the Tasty Tuesday Recipe!!! I would say this isn't the most appropriate snack for younger children just because of the salt content. My Emma hasn't tried these yet because like her Mother, she'd become a sodium junkie! You be the judge, though.

For more of Tasty Tuesday, head on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam and tell them Kelli sent ya!

Salt and Toasted Cheerios

(Make as much or as little as you want)

butter

salt

Cheerios

Throw some butter in a pan to melt it. Then add you some Cheerios. Salt them a bit and shake them around! Voila, you're done!! They might be a little greasy, but they are GOOOOOD!

and if you want a healthier version....

Throw you some Cheerios on a baking sheet. Spray them down with butter spray and salt them. Then pop them in the oven for a few minutes at 350 degrees.

Enjoy!!

PS- Check out my Etsy shop for new aprons that I'm adding daily!

Tasty Tuesday: Nannie's Cherry Yum Yum

Welcome to Tasty Tuesday and to another Nannie's Recipe! With Fourth of July coming up, I figured everyone would need a good ol' fashioned dessert to take to all those cookouts. And Cherry Yum Yum is what I decided on since it is red. To complete the theme, maybe you could top it off with some whip cream and a couple blueberries! There you have it- red, white and blue!!

I think I've written before what a good cook and baker my Nannie was. She could whip stuff up every which-a-way without a recipe or cookbook in sight! It always amazed me the talent that woman possessed in the kitchen. It seems whatever she wanted to fix, nothing was beyond her culinary reach!

I've also talked about many a family gatherings as well...let's see, we've had Nannie's biscuits, her rolls, pea salad, potato salad, and apple pie; all the things that occupied the counter when we had people over. But one thing (dessert in particular) that stands out is her Cherry Yum Yum! And it was just that, YUM YUM!!

Cue total silence except for sound of chewing, grunting and hmmmmm-ing! There's just nothing more to say than that!

Seriously, we sounded like a bunch of neanderthals while eating this stuff. We were completely uncivilized as we scarfed down Nannie's desserts (what am I talking about- ALL her food). And we would proceed just so until all of it was gone. This recipe is just THAT GOOD!

Are you going to fix this? I think you should. If for nothing else....fix it to watch your family act like cavemen!

And when you're done sit upright and use your fingers (get it? hehee) to click (not club- I can't help myself!) on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to see what everyone else is servin' up!

Nannie's Cherry Yum Yum

1.5 stick margarine

2 cups graham crackers crumbs

8 oz cream cheese

1 cup milk

1 cup sugar

2 pkgs. dream whip

2 cans cherry pie filling

Melt butter and add cracker crumbs. Mix well. Beat dream whip, sugar and milk and then add cream cheese; blend thoroughly. Place half crumbs in bottom of pan. Cover with half of cheese mixture. Add cherry filling, spreading over cheese. Spread remaining cheese over cherries and then top with rest of crumbs. Let set for 24 hours in fridge.

Enjoy!!

PS- Fix it in one of my aprons!! You'll feel snazzy and you won't get cherry goop all over your jeans!!

Tasty Tuesday: Bratwurst Stew

Well, for this edition of Tasty Tuesday I'm going to veer from the usual Nannie's recipe and tell you about a recent dish I made out of just a bunch of stuff I found in my cupboard. I love it when that happens! Don't worry....Nannie will be back next week.

So the other day I was milling around trying to figure out what to fix for dinner. I was ready to hit the TacoBell because I was bound and determined to not have to thaw, marinate, steam, grill or toast anything. We hadn't been to the store in FOREVER, so our options were limited anyway, but I wasn't in the mood to cook at all that day so it made the decision making task even more daunting.

That is until I started going through the cabinets. And let me tell you, I just started pulling junk out in hopes I'd figure something out along the way.

By the time I was done I had found some frozen bratwurst (which I did have to thaw, but Hubby loves it...we all have to make sacrifices you know!) and a bunch of canned veggies, herbs and some pasta.

I started looking online for gumbo or goulash recipes, but came up empty handed. How was I ever going to luck into finding a recipe with exactly the ingredients that I happened to have? I'd have to tweak whatever I did find, that was for sure! Then I found it- a recipe for Sweet Italian Sausage Stew. I was missing a coupe of things, namely the sweet Italian sausage, but I still had bratwurst and several other things I needed. The attached recipe is for MY version of this splendid culinary creation!

I hate (I mean absolutely loathe) soupy stuff in the summer, but I was about to create a free (for all intensive purposes anyway) meal, and man was I stoaked! So I put my issues aside and started making the stew! The finished product (as seen above) was DELICIOUS!! It was a little sweet, not that soupy, and just overall GOOOOOOD!

Now, after you try this (and you have to try this) I want you to head on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to see what else is being cooked up. You'll be glad you did!

Bratwurst Stew

1 lb bratwurst, thickly sliced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup diced onion

1 garlic clove, minced

1 cup sliced carrot

1 tsp dried basil

2 zucchini, diced

1 (14.5 oz) can chopped tomatoes

1 (14 oz) can beef broth

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 (15 oz) can great northern beans

1 cup small shell pasta

In a saucepan, cook sausage in oil until browned; add onion, garlic, carrots and basil; cook stirring frequently for about 5 minutes then stir in zucchini, tomatoes, beef broth, salt and pepper. Bring stew to a boil then reduce heat and simmer, covered for about 30 minutes. Lastly, add beans and pasta, then cook an additional 15 minutes or until pasta is tender.

Enjoy!!

OH, and how could I forget!?! You know what else would go great with this??? Cooking it up in a cute little apron!! Visit my etsy store to check out some of my newest creations!!

Tasty Tuesday: Nannie's Apple Pie

Welcome to Tasty Tuesday everyone!! Glad you could join me for yet another Nannie's recipe!! This week it's a cool little variation of your traditional apple pie.

Now with Summer under way, there's nothing that pleases me more then peeling and coring apples, making homemade crust, baking it up then sitting it on the window seal to cool. But that's time consuming and sometimes you have to have a quick dessert for those many a family cookouts!

Nannie's Apple Pie is the perfect solution to though feux bakers out there (like myself) and for those pressed for time. All this without sacrificing the yummy goodness of a "real" apple pie.

I don't particularly remember this dessert from my childhood (because there were so many), but I have fixed this as an adult and it was a huge hit.

I can only imagine Nannie wanting to bake an apple pie, but needing to get things done around the house then making sure we were all fed breakfast, lunch and dinner. It would dawn on her that she could fix this simplified version and still have a happy family! Of course, if I know Nannie, she would have had it all planned out days in advance and Papa would have gone to 14 stores to get all the ingredients if he had to. Of course, any regular store would have done, but he would have hit ALL the sales!

By the way~ this, as do all apple pies, goes great with a scoop (or two) of ice cream!

When you're done, head over to Jen's at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to see what else you could whip up to accompany your easy dessert!

Nannie's Apple Pie

1- 30 oz can of apple pie filling

1 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 stick butter (softened)

1 egg (beaten)

chopped nuts (optional)

Spread the apple pie filling smoothly across an oiled pan (10" deep dish or 9x9). In a seperate bowl stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Blend in the egg and butter to form a thick batter. Then with a spoon, drop batter onto apple filling until covered. Sprinkle with nuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 mins. or until filling is bubbly and batter is nicely browned.

Enjoy!!

Tasty Tuesday: Nannie's Potato Salad

It's Tasty Tuesday time again and this week I'm servin' up some good ol' fashioned Nannie's Potato Salad.

If you've been reading with us, you probably know that this is the fifth week I've featured a Nannie's recipe. It's become somewhat of a trend and now it is my quest to collect and share as many as I can! To check out previous eats click here.

Do you have any favorite recipes you'd like to share as well? If you do, head on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to link up! We'd love to read about what you and yours are feastin' on!!

I think my Nannie made some of the best potato salad. Of course, I think she made the best of everything.

I'll never forget when we had family get-togethers, Nannie would line her counter full of food (kind of like a buffet) starting with the meat, then with the sides, lastly the pickles, olives and relishes. Past the sink we got our drinks and then on the stove were her biscuits or rolls. It was a nice little arrangement. Once we had our plates, the adults all sat in the kitchen (where it would turn into HOURS long conversation) and all the kids would head on into the den to eat~ the older kids got the couch and chair and the youngin's got to eat on the steps.

Anyway, as we trickled through the buffet line, it was always right around the side portion of her spread that there was some congestion. And of course, potato salad was always at the center of those sides. It was also one side that there was rarely any left over! Good thing Nannie always made extra to have on hand after everyone left!

We always said Grace before eating. Papa would bless the food usually before we lined up to get our food, but once everyone had their plates, there was a definite moment of silence while we stuffed our faces. I say silence, except for the sounds of my cousin Brian grunting and hmmm-ing his way through his food. Looking back, we all ate like (and sounded like) we hadn't eaten in ages! But that wasn't the case of course, Nannie's food was just that good!

With that, may this recipe become part of your family gathering line-up as well. I hope you like it!

Nannie's Potato Salad

2 hard boiled eggs- slice then mash in separate bowl- let cool

6-8 potatoes diced- boil until done, but not mushy. Drain good and do not run cool water over them. Let cool before mixing.

2-3 celery stalks diced fine

1 small onion diced fine

diced sweet pickles

mayo (this is dependent on you and what type of texture you like- use your judgement)

In a separate bowl mix mayo and pickle juice (also based on how sweet you want it)

Combine all ingredients and then fold in mayo mixture.

Enjoy!!

Tasty Tuesday: Nannie's Rolls

Well, it's Tasty Tuesday yet again and I not only have another wonderful story to share, but also another of Nannie's recipes!

"Roll" (snicker) on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to share your own food filled memories, too!

This week brings to mind, with Spring and all, those crisp Sunday afternoons after church when we would all meet at Nannie and Papa's house for lunch. Most of the time Nannie had sandwiches or something easy to fix, but sometimes she'd go all out. And on those days we might have her homemade dinner rolls.

Now these rolls weren't just reserved for Sundays (THANK THE LORD!). We could have had them anytime during the week, but the memory that stands out the most is these springy Sundays.

Nannie and Papa lived not even a block from the church so we would walk home after the service. Nannie would immediately hop out of her church attire and into her housecoat (kinda like a little moo-moo only cuter) and her slippers. Now you gotta picture this...Nannie was all of about 100 lbs and maybe 4 ft 5 in. So she was a little itty bitty woman. Her hair and make-up would be to a T! She'd even still be wearing her hose. All this paired with that flowered coverall- it was just too cute for words. And she'd be shooing all of us out of the kitchen so she could get the food done. Only my momma was allowed in there because she could help, but she still had to stay out of Nannie's way.

I'm exactly like that now in my own kitchen and again, my momma is the only one allowed in it with me!

It would come time for us to eat and Nannie would holler, "Come on!" I'd grab Papa's hand and say, "come on, Papa". And his response would always be, " where we goin'?"

This was our routine.

Then we would sit down and Papa would share the blessing with us so we could dig in. On the days we had these rolls, they were the first things on our plates, already buttered and a bite taken before anything else had been touched.

They are that good.

Once again, these recipes that I share have brought joy beyond words to me and my family for years and years. I hope they bring just as much to yours as well.

Nannie's Rolls

2 cups luke warm water

1 pkg. dry yeast

1 tbsp salt

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 sup oil

1 egg beaten

7 cups plain sifted flour

Combine water, yeast, sugar then stir. Then add salt, oil and egg. Slowly add flour to mixture and then work with hands until all is moist. Let rise double- work again and place in fridge overnight (cover w/ wrap). The next morning re-work dough and make into rolls. Let rise double then bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday: Nannie's Biscuits

I see a trend beginning with these Nannie's recipes! But I just can't help myself!! These delightful dishes that I've been serving up for Tasty Tuesday have brought generations of joy to my family, so I figure why not share the love!?!

For this week's Party, I present you with Nannie's Biscuit recipe!

I miss the days of homemade biscuits! There's not a morning in my childhood that I remember Nannie not having fresh, out of the oven, homemade biscuits ready for me and Papa and maybe even my cousin Mike to devour at the breakfast table. Early on mine accompanied the prettiest scrambled eggs you've ever seen and then as I got older, my biscuit came with tomatoes and a dash of salt! And she rarely sat to eat herself. She was a constant wisp of a little lady here and there and everywhere making sure we all had what we needed, if she could get us anything else and also planning what she was going to fix for lunch and then dinner. If she made enough biscuits we might have had them with fried chicken, chicken gravy and tomatoes and cucumbers that night!

What I remember most of all was the love that went into whatever Nannie made~ this was especially evident with her biscuits in the way she handled the dough. Nannie loved cooking and baking. Watching her in the kitchen are some of my fondest memories.

Though this is a simple recipe, I can vouch that these biscuits are some of the lightest and fluffiest you'll ever taste. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!

Now roll on over to Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to share your favorite recipe with the rest of us, too!!

Nannie's Biscuit Recipe

2 cups Virginia's Best Self-Rising flour

1/4 cup shortening

3/4 cup buttermilk

Mix all the ingredients together. Sprinkle flour on pastry sheet (not too much). Roll out dough with rolling pin (flour rolling pin lightly). Cut the biscuits, roll scraps and then cut more until all the dough is used. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.

Enjoy!!

Tasty Tuesday: Nannie's Pea Salad

For this week's Tasty Tuesday party I decided to not only pay tribute to yet another highly disliked vegetable (last week was brussel sprouts), but also to another fantabulous Nannie's recipe.

Let me start off by saying I'm not a pea fan. I'm very picky and snobbish when it comes to peas. I hate them cooked and served up as a side. I will tolerate them in casseroles, but only about once a month maybe. If eaten at all I prefer to eat them in salads (note: not on salads, IN salads). My daughter hates peas as well. They just aren't that popular in the Mayhorn household.

However, having said that, I love pea salad, therefore I think peas (like brussel sprouts) are worthy of a blog. Especially when paired with my Nannie's Pea Salad Recipe. It really is yummy (coming from a pea hater), but who could go wrong with Nannie's recipe afterall? So won't you give peas a chance, please? It would be a great side for that upcoming Easter lunch or dinner! Now hop on over to Forever Wherever and join Kim and the rest of us in sharin' some food!

Nannie's Pea Salad

1 can tiny baby peas "LeSeuer" brand

1 can french style green beans

2 oz. jar pimento

5-6 green onion, sliced thin, use some green

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup cider vinegar

2/3 cup sugar (or Splenda)

Heat oil, vinegar and sugar (or Splenda) to dissolve (on low heat)- Let cool completely. Mix all together and then let it marinade in the fridge for at least 24 hours.

Enjoy!!

Marinated Brussel Sprouts

I'm doing something new this week... In light of one of my weekend purchases, I'm going to participate in Kim's Tasty Tuesday Party over at Forever Wherever!

I'm a big fan of marinated brussel sprouts. In fact, I could probably live off of these things. This most recent trip home to VA saw us going to numerous and sundry country stores where at one I stumbled upon Jake and Amos Sweet Marinated Brussel Sprouts! These things are to die for!! Check them out at Jake and Amos!

However, as good as these are, nothing tops my Nannie's old recipe! More sweet, not as spicy, a great compliment to any Spring/Summer cookout!

Nannie's Marinated Brussel Sprouts

2- 10 oz. Frozen Brussel Sprouts

1 cup Good Seasons Italian Dressing (prepared according to directions)

A Dash of salt

1 tsp. Dill Weed

Cook Brussel Sprouts according to package- do not overcook! Drain and put in plastic container. Add together remaining ingredients, pour over brussel sprouts and chill overnight. Lift from dressing to serving dish when ready.

Enjoy!!

Chicken Squash Bake

We tried this tonight and it was Nummmm Yummy!! Fo' Shizzel, Yo!

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, each cut into about 4 strips (about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds)
Garlic salt
Lemon pepper seasoning
10 cups yellow squash, washed and sliced 1/4-inch thick (cut large slices in half as well)
6 ounces fresh spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons butter
4 ounces sliced Muenster cheese (can also use provolone or baby swiss, or even mozzarella)

Instructions: 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish and place chicken inside. Sprinkle chicken with garlic salt and lemon pepper; turn chicken over and sprinkle other side with seasonings also. Cover dish with foil and bake for 60 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

2. After about 30 minutes of baking time has passed, heat 2 tablespoons butter in a large stock pot. Saute squash in butter until tender.

3. Add remaining tablespoon of butter to the pot, and add spinach leaves. Cook and stir just until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat and toss with just a little salt.

4. Take the dish of chicken from the oven, uncover, and spoon the squash mixture over the chicken. Place slices of cheese on top, enough to make a thin layer over the vegetables.

5. Broil (uncovered) for about 5 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

(note- pictures and recipe are courtesy of www.tammysrecipes.com)

Orecchiette with Roasted Broccoli & Walnuts....Sort of

I decided to glam it up a bit this evening with a recipe from February's issue of Real Simple.   Of course I didn't have all the ingredients so I tweeked it just a bit, but it still turned out super yummy!!

I've attached the original recipe if you'd like to go by that.  But then I've added my changes in Red. 

Bon Appetite!

 Orecchiette with Roasted Broccoli and Walnuts

12 ounces orecchiette or some other short pasta (3 cups) (I used Whole Grain Rotini)
1 bunch broccoli (1 1/2 pounds), cut into small florets
1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped (I used chopped pecans)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Kosher salt and black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup grated Parmesan (1 ounce) (I used shredded)

At the end when I mixed it all together, I also added real bits of bacon (1 small bag) and a couple of handfuls of Craisins!

Heat oven to 400° F. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Reserve 3/4 cup of the cooking water, drain the pasta, and return it to the pot.

Meanwhile, on a rimmed baking sheet, toss the broccoli, walnuts, oil, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Roast, tossing once, until the broccoli is tender, 18 to 20 minutes.

Toss the pasta with the broccoli mixture, butter, and 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta water. (Add more water if the pasta seems dry.) Sprinkle with the Parmesan before serving.