Such a beautiful weekend. We were outside as much as possible, just soaking in the fresh air. I did a very small bit of yardwork, but found my interest waning rather quickly. My yard isn’t very inspiring. We’d like to plant a garden this year. Something we can feast off of through the summer. Suggestions welcome. Just a note, though: I have blackthumb and plants tend to wither under my care. Even mint, which is supposed to just “overwhelm your yard/garden” has succumbed to the murderous touch of my hand. My pride and glory is chives. For some reason I didn’t kill my chives and they come back every year. I use them, too. They’re a yummy addition to an omelette. Mmm.

Frank planted some garlic last fall; hoping those sprout up. I’d like to grow some tomatoes, maybe some lettuce and peppers. Pumpkins would be cool. Maybe beans? I need a Gardening for Blackthumbs book. Sigh. I so very much love veggies and the idea of growing some delicious foods right in our backyard. Everything is getting so expensive; especially good fruits and vegetables.

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A recipe worth trying:

Ol’ Settler’s Beans
(from Large Family Logistics)

Brown together and drain the fat off:
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. chopped bacon
1 onion

Add:
1/2 c catsup
1/2 c honey
1/2 c BBQ sauce
3 t dry mustard
1/2 t chili powder
1 t salt
1/4 t pepper
4 quarts of cooked beans (red, butter, navy, pinto, black, etc.)

Bake at 350 for 1 hour or in crockpot on low for 4 hours.

Looks simple and would be right up my families ally. Mmm.

Yesterday we went shopping and I loaded up on some Mom’s Best Naturals cereals. They don’t do a lot of advertising, which is why I’d like to give them props, getting the word out as cheaply as possible, so they don’t suddenly disappear from our store shelves or raise their prices.

Mom’s Best Cereals are cheaper and have better ingredients (no preservatives, hydrogenated oils, high-fructose corn syrup, artificial colors or flavors) than most of their popular counterparts. And if you haven’t noticed –  cereal is getting expensive, yo. With 5 kids eating cereal in the house, we spend a lot on cereal. Sometimes one of our local chain grocers will have decent deals on cereal, but it is usually the high-sugared kinds and we try to refrain from buying those.  You can read more about Mom’s Best Cereal’s here; and if you see them in the store, give ‘em a try. For the first time I saw they made instant oatmeal, too. We generally make it the old-fashioned way, but instant is nice when you need the convenience of something fast.

Money saving coupon here, although I couldn’t get mine to print out.

Two of our kids went to a lock-in at church, one went to a friend’s house to sleepover and the twins stayed with Frank at I. After dropping the one off at his friend’s house, we headed to a Good Friday service. The boys were well behaved during the quiet, candlelit service. After the service,  we made our way out through the snow (snow, yes I said snow — it was almost all GONE and now it is back again — 100 inches this year) to our car. In the car, Sal reminded us that he wants chicken wings.

“Chicken wings, mom. Dad. Chicken wings.” Slurping sound.

As nonchalant as telling me it is cold out on a early Spring evening. But what do you expect, he’s been dropping desirous chicken wing hints for two weeks now. Frank (or I, don’t remember), thought maybe we could stop somewhere for a bite to eat. Satisfy Sal, and have dinner out with the twins - something we haven’t done in a long time, just the four of us.

Somehow we ended up at Red Robin. The boys both ordered 1/2 orders of wings, Frank a burger and me… I ordered the Whisky River turkey burger (I think that’s the name — it’s got onion straws on it, very yummy). Frank also put an order in for some onion rings. I got a Capitol Brewery Maibock and Frank a Sam Adams. The waitress asked for my ID, which I didn’t have. I told her I had a 16 year old daughter at home and that I was 34. It feels awkward to get ID’d. On one hand it is flattering and on the other irritating because my wallet hugs my ID too tightly, making it cumbersome to remove on request.

We played a game on the paper place-mat while we waited for our food, Frank with Sal and I with Franny. Connect the squares, where you take turns drawing a line to connect the dots, making squares, seeing who gets the most. I won.

The onion rings were delicious, a large tower of onions, stacked on a thin rod and happily dipped in the ranch-y dill or barbecue flavored dips. Our food came soon after the onion tower. I took my bottom bun off (I always eat my burgers with a knife and fork), and the bottom of my turkey burger was… black. Hmm. I took a bite, hoping that it wouldn’t taste as burnt as it looked. It did. Frank concurred after being force-fed a bite.

Everything was so nice I didn’t want to complain. I, nearly apologetically, showed our waitress. Her nose crinkled up, “I’ll get you a new one right away.”

I thanked her and munched on onion rings while I waited. Frank ate slow, apparently feeling badly that I was sans burger as he had his hot in his hands. My new burger arrived in another person’s hands who apologized more than once. She was very nice. I returned her kindness; the burger was perfectly cooked, juicy and delicious. She came back soon after with “Bird Bucks” - ten of them, apologizing again. I had not expected that at all and laughed a bit confirming what I heard was correct, “Bird Bucks” back to her. She rolled her eyes with a good natured smile.

Can’t tell you how many times in the past I would have demanded some Bird Bucks for a charred burger. Last night the thought didn’t cross my mind, though until she brought them out to me. It was a nice gesture. Props to the birds over at Red Robin.

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Today, we dye eggs. Eggs aren’t as cheap as they used to be. Not many Easter seasons ago I remember buying eggs for much less than a dollar. This time of year they’d dip down and sometimes on sale you’d get them for dirt cheap. It was nice because if you bought a few cartons just to dye, it wasn’t a huge waste. Not anymore, not around here at least. Since the sale price ($2 a carton) of the Eggland’s Best eggs wasn’t much different from the sale price of the regular eggs, I bought the Eggland’s Best anticipating some egg salad sandwiches for lunch this week. And now I’m off to see if the twins want to go to the egg hunt. Hunting for eggs in the snow… yay!!

I’ve been on a quest for some delicious cornbread for… well, years. Today’s dinner menu was chili and cornbread (home made). I bought some stone ground cornmeal for the cornbread (my husband said it was Hodgson’s, but I don’t see it on their site), and thought I’d try one of the recipes on the back. I found this one for Old Fashioned Cornbread, but got a bit scared since the recipe called only for the cornmeal and NO flour. I guess I wasn’t ready for old fashioned just yet. Instead I fell back on my ol’ reliable Aunt Jemima Cornbread recipe.

Golden Cornbread

* 1 cup Quaker or Aunt Jemima Enriched Yellow Corn Meal
* 1 cup all-purpose flour (I use whole wheat flour)
* 2 to 4 tablespoons sugar
* 4 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup milk
* 1 egg
* 1/4 cup vegetable oil

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. In large bowl, combine corn meal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
3. Add milk, egg and oil. Beat until fairly smooth, about 1 minute.
4. Bake in greased or sprayed 8-inch square baking pan 20 to 23 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Yield: About 9 servings

I double this puppy and put it in a hot skillet (oven warmed with some shortening melted and smeared all over the inside). It’s good and the family likes it. But it is crumbly and chunks off when I butter it. Frank and I got to talking, as he thinks the cornbread is very delicious. He said my idea of cornbread is the cake-like corn cakes purchased from Whole Foods and certain restaurants in town. That those kinds of corn breads is not authentic cornbread. Which made sense to me and calmed my feelings of cornbread failure. I’m not sure if he is correct or not about “authentic” cornbread. And I still like the moist, sticky corn…cake, the way it breaks off in a dense chunk of sweet bread. I’ve yet to master that recipe, though.

What do you do with a bag of ‘Tots? Why casserole, of coarse.

I had some ground beef, browned, bagged and frozen. Tater Tots. Hmm. My family loves casseroles. Here’s what I did (didn’t measure).

Sauteed about a cup of onion in some butter/olive oil, added about 1T. of chopped garlic to the mix. Sprinkled about 1/4 cup of flour on top, then added 5 cups of milk, slowly, while stirring the whole time. Heat and stir, added a few shakes of Tabasco, some salt and pepper. Heat until thick and bubbly, stir in about 3 cups of shredded cheddar cheese. Turn off heat and stir until melted. Mix in the ground beef.

In large baking dish empty 1 bag of frozen mixed veggies to cover bottom of dish. Oh, I sprayed the dish with some non-stick spray before I did this. I digress, back to the veggies, sprinkle some salt and pepper on them, and a handful of shredded cheddar cheese. Pour cheesy beefy mixture on top. Take your bag of frozen Tater Tots and spread them evenly over the top of the dish. Bake at 375 for about 40 minutes, take it out and top with a cup of cheese (I sprinkled some garlic on top) then return to oven until tots are browned and it is bubbly. Serve with a simple salad. Yum.

Everyone loved it. You can add in some other veggies, too, if you have them. We ate it for a late lunch and then the kids heated more up for a snack later on. I had one kid who claimed he wouldn’t like it and ended up eating those words.

Monday, my work-at-home day. Most of my “home” work is computer related, so often after straining my eyes and body, I take a break by throwing in some laundry, washing dishes, or some other household chore. Today dish washing was in order. We went to bed last night without doing the dishes and the stack was staring me down the second I entered the kitchen. After getting the kids off to school, I threw the dishes in a sink full of water, letting the soaking time take a bite out of my scraping and scrubbing time. I also cleaned out our coffee maker (a percolator) and made a fresh batch of coffee, in the manner I earlier explained. The picture below features 8 O’Clock Columbian beans, which I am pretty certain I won’t be buying again (unless I forget that I detest them and throw them in my cart like, apparently, I did this last time). They just don’t brew the kind of tasty, rich cup that I enjoy.

Anyway. 12 cup portion of beans + 1 cinnamon stick + a healthy pinch of cardamom.

Grind.

Mmmmm. There are healthy properties in cinnamon, too, don’cha know?

Cinnamon’s essential oils also qualify it as an “anti-microbial” food, and cinnamon has been studied for its ability to help stop the growth of bacteria as well as fungi, including the commonly problematic yeast Candida. - link

Cinnamon and blood sugar control:

Cinnamon may also significantly help people with type 2 diabetes improve their ability to respond to insulin, thus normalizing their blood sugar levels. - link

More information on the health benefits of cinnamon.

Good stuff.

I also did some meal planning and have dinners set through next Wednesday. Shyuh.
Balanced the checkbook.
Got my “home” work done.
Purchased a skateboard magazine subscription for Dants as part of his birthday present.
Ordered a Peyton Manning jersey for Lootie for Christmas

When the kids got home from school I popped up some popcorn in the iron pot.

Stove-popped popcorn, popped in coconut oil, drizzled with melted butter and sea salt. Lootie and I sat on the couch with the bowl between us, reading enjoying salty, buttery bites.

Baked some bread (recipe from hilbilly housewife):

Gotta say the smell of baking bread warms a home nicely.

But the bread was for dinner, even though our household managed to eat an entire loaf before we made it to dinner. We had meatloaf, corn, salad and homemade bread — Franny said, I LOVE this dinner!!!.

I even managed to go grocery shopping with my thought-out list (applause). I spent $204 dollars, with a savings of $40 (store sales and a couple coupons).Though I got a lot accomplished, there is always much, much more to do and I find myself having increased difficulty getting everything done. I used to keep notes and lists in a spiral-bound notebook, but got too busy and lazy for that (self-defeating, I know I know). I think, for my own sanity, I need to start one up again. Organization helps me to get more things accomplished and be a better manager of my time and money.

Tomorrow I go to work, but Wednesday I’m taking off since Frank has off. We need to shop. Together. Yay. I feel like we haven’t seen each other in a while. I’m looking forward to spending the day together. We need that.

Sausage (chorizo) and eggs - Picasa

Saturday night dinner. Here’s what I did.

The twins had a 7am indoor soccer game (totally NOT a responsible time on a Saturday, I say), and then Lootie had a game at 2pm. After that, we came home, settled in on the snowy evening, and had tacos. Watched a movie.

First day of December, first day of Holidalies blogging. For the past week or so, each morning when I awake I glance outside to see if there is snow on the ground. Not because it is in the forecast — just because it feels like it should be snowing. Today, was the day. The kids, up before Frank and I, were the ones to tip us off. The awestruck screech, “Snoooooooow!!!” jolted us. So much for Sleeping In Saturday. You’d think after a lifetime of Wisconsin winters, snow would not be a big deal. But every year, it surely is. Not just for the kids, but for adults as well… including me.

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Happy Thanksgiving.

Ours went well, not without a hitch but hey — I never expected things to go smoothly. Earlier this week I couldn’t find sweet potatoes. Finally found some yesterday (at Wal-mart). I put them in the oven to bake, telling the two oldest that when the buzzer goes off to turn the oven off, and went to a friend’s house. Naturally, they forgot (D said, “Oh turn the oven off? I thought you meant turn the buzzer off.”) and my potatoes turned into hollow shells reminiscent of a sweet potato. I placed them cool outside overnight hoping that some of them could be salvaged. Today Franny and I were able to scrape out only a few cups worth of potatoes, so Frank had to make a trip back to Wal-mart (naturally open on Thanksgiving, of coarse).

Power blew out in the kitchen. Mini crisis/heart attack for that ordeal.

But it all worked out. Food was cooked, company came, we ate and were merry. I was hoping to play some board games, but everyone is just tuckered out.

Snagged this from Robyn:

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I’m always on the lookout for simple ideas the kid’s can make for Christmas gifts. A gift in a jar has become pretty popular. Just get your recipe(s), grab a case of 1-quart canning jars, your ingredients and voila. You can find free recipes all over the internet. Here’s one that looks tasty:

SMORE BARS
Ingredients:
1 C. chocolate chips
1 1/2 C. miniature marshmallows
1 sleeve of graham cracker (ground into crumbs)
1/3 C. brown sugar (packed)

Recipe:
Pour SMORE BAR mix in large bowl. Melt 1/2 cup butter, pour over mix. Add 1 tsp. vanilla; mix. Place in greased 9×9 baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes at 350.

Here’s a good list of some great free resources:
geocities.com/giftsinajar - tons of recipes and wonderful tips.
handmadegifsinajarrecipes.com
familycrafts.about.com
organizedchristmas.com
recipezaar.com - Butterfinger cookie mix (yum!!)
momof9splace.com

I have to admit, though, when I get a gift in a jar I rarely eat them. OK, I don’t eat them.. anymore. See, a couple times I’ve opened it up and the stuff tasted like crap. The way the ingrediants are packed in like sardines kind of grouses me out. When you attempt to empty the jar, each layer resembles a hockey puck, clanking against the rim, screaming for Sharon Stone and her ice pick. Turned me off of eating them. So if anyone has some recipes that are actually GOOD to make and consume, I’m all ears. Maybe you can convince me.

If YOU get a gift in a jar, do you actually consume it or do you toss it?