Tasty Tuesdays--Frozen Yogurt and Fruishi

We are already back to our normal school schedule, but we didn't get to make all of our recipes for cooking class, so we spent part of our day making the last two.

Frozen Yogurt
30 oz fudge
2 oz honeycomb, optional
3 oz chocolate chip cookies
2/3 c. heavy cream
1/4 c. confectioners' sugar
2 1/2 c. natural yogurt (we used half plain and half vanilla)
1/ 14 c. mini marshmallows

(That is what the recipe called for, but there was also a side not saying we could experiment with other ingredients.  We used brownies instead of fudge and cookies.  We didn't use the honeycomb.  We used the marshmallows and added a banana.  Next time we make it we want to do only fruit.)

1. Carefully chop the fudge and honeycomb and cookies (or brownies in our case) into tiny pieces.
2. Pour the cream into a mixing bowl and sift in the sugar.  Lightly whip the cream into soft peaks.
3. Gently fold the yogurt and other treats in to the cream mixture using a plastic spatula or metal spoon.
4. Spoon the mixture into a Tupperware, cover and freeze.  After 2 hours, stir to prevent ice crystals from forming (it should probably be done every hour instead) and then freeze again for a total of 4 hours.  If it thaws, do not refreeze. 

Super Yummy!

Frushi
1 1/4 c. water
1 c. uncooked sushi rice
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. coconut milk
dash of salt

orange sections
raspberries
other fruit toppings
vanilla yogurt for dipping

1. Bring water and rice to a boil in a medium saucepan.  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until water is almost absorbed.  Remove from heat; let stand, covered 15 minutes.
2. Place rice in a large bowl.  Add sugar, coconut milk, and salt, stirring gently until well combined.  Cover and let stand 20 minutes.
3.  Line a baking sheet with waxed paper.  Lightly coat hands with cooking spray.  Divide rice mixture into 20 equal portions, shaping each into a ball (about 1 rounded tablespoon each). Lightly press each rice ball into an oval between palms; place ovals on lined baking sheet.  If your hands become sticky, you may have to wash your hands and coat them again. 
4. Top rice ovals with fruit, pressing gently so that it sticks.  If the fruit won't stick to the rice use a dab of honey to "glue" it. 
5. Cover and chill frushi until ready to serve.  Serve with yogurt for dipping. 

We had to use forks to eat it because most of the balls didn't stick together (maybe because our rice was only medium grain instead of short).  We weren't able to dip into the yogurt either.  It was a fun treat, but I'm not sure if we'll make it again. 

Tasty Tuesday--Homemade Healthy Fruit Snacks

I found this recipe a long time ago and have been waiting to try it.  Tasty Tuesday seemed like the perfect opportunity (mostly because I didn't have the ingredients for what the kids had chosen to make).  They were super easy to make, but were kind of sour.  We want to experiment with some other types of juices and fruits.  Ephram and Faythe liked juicing the lemons, but Braedi was the only one who helped make these. 

Homemade Yogurt

We have a new favorite snack at our house--homemade yogurt.  A few months back we tried making yogurt from cultures, but no one liked it.  Then a mom from our homeschool group taught be how to make it a different way and we all love it.  It tastes good and it's good for you.

First poor a gallon of milk into the crock pot.  We use whole milk, but the next time I'm going to try 1%.  Heat it to 180 degrees (you'll need a candy thermometer.  If you do it on high it takes 3-4 hours on low it takes 7-8.  I've done both and prefer the faster temperature.  Every hour or so I stir it with the thermometer and check the temperature at the same time. 

When it has reaches the correct temperature, take the crock out of the heater part (I don't know the correct terms) and cool to 110 degrees.  I usually cool it by stirring the milk with a frozen water bottle.  This process takes about 20 minutes. 

Then add 1/2 cup of plain greek yogurt.  You can use the individual servings or scoop some from a bigger container. 

Next put the lid back on and wrap the whole thing in a blanket and leave it over night.  When you check on it in the morning it will be think and they whey will be separating. 

Then you can eat it or strain off the whey.  We like it thick so I strain the whey with cheesecloth.  I've been told you can use birds eye cloth and I am going to try that next.  Place a large colander in a large bowl.  Layer the cloth and pour the yogurt.  Keep in the fridge.  This scan take as long as you want depending on how thick/thin you want it. 

The last step is to eat it.  It makes about a pound of yogurt and I store it in a Tupperware container.  We use it plain as sour cream or sweeten it with jam, sugar, fruit, or honey.  I use the left over whey in protein shakes, as the liquid in my bread and in my garden. 

Canning Week

Last Saturday, I huge truck pulled into the parking lot across the street and unloaded boxes and boxes of produce.  They were selling 60 pounds for $10.  Most of the produce was stuff for salsa.  So, I bought a mixed box, then went back and bought a box of just tomatoes and then another box of apples.  I spent the week canning. 

First I made salsa

Ephram and Faythe were big helps with the tomato peeling. 

Then I canned diced tomatoes

I also got 40 pounds of chicken that I pressure canned

There wasn't enough apples to can so I made a small batch of applesauce and I"m saving the rest of snacking.  What a deal, but a super busy week!

Millions of Peaches

Jennie and I ordered 3 boxes of peaches and spent all day Saturday canning.  The kitchen was a huge, sticky mess by the time we were done, but we canned 42 jars and still had enough to make peach cobbler and keep some for eating.  I had 4 jars that didn't can so I'm looking for recipes that use canned peaches. 

 The recipe we used to make the cobbler was super yummy so I wanted to share.  I found it at allrecipes.com

Southern Peach Cobbler
8 fresh peaches--peeled, pitted and sliced into thin wedges (we left the skin on)
1/4 c. white sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 c. flour
1/4 c. white sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
6 tbl. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1/4 c. boiling water

3 tbl white sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine first 7 ingredients.  Toss to coat evenly, and pour into a 2 quart baking dish.  Bake for 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine next 5 ingredients.  Blend in butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Stir in water until just combined.
4. Remove peaches from oven and drop spoonfuls of topping over them.  Sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon mixture.  Bake until topping is golden--about 30 minutes. 

Homemade Vinyl Letters

My friend and I tried to make our own vinyl letters.  We took scrapbook paper and cut out the letters with her cricket.  Next I mod-podged them to clear contact paper.  Then I had to cut them out with scissors.  Finally the letters were ready to attach to any surface.  I took of the backing on the contact paper and stuck them to our school drawers and over our art wall.  Too bad that I didn't take the time to measure and make things centered. 

Apricots

I ordered a box of apricots from Bountiful Baskets last weekend with the intention of dehydrating them. 2 things made me decided to can them instead: 1. no dehydrator and 2. too much work to put them in the sulfur solution. I got the apricots on Saturday and didn't have time to can them until Tuesday and it was a little too late. They were too ripe and mushy. I hope they will still taste good even though they aren't pretty. As usual the kids were a big help. They help peel the apricots and some even helped cut them open and take out the pits. We were all a gushy mess.
For some reason all this canning and jam making has made me want to spend the summer with my grandma so I can learn from her how to do it right.

Millions of Peaches

There was an hour until I had to fix dinner. What should I do? I know, make peach jam. What was I thinking!?!

Our peach tree out front had peaches that were ready to pick and we had a huge bowl full. I didn't think we'd be able to eat them fast enough so we made a small batch of jam. My history with jam hasn't been a good one. Usually they don't jell. This batch can join the unsuccessful group. It is probably because I halved the recipe. Jonathan laughs when I do stuff like that with recipes--"Just follow the recipe!" Oh, well! We like it as syrup.

The kids are good helpers whenever it's time to can stuff. I am thankful for their help but today was a bit stressful. The peaches were really juicy and we had a sticky, juicy mess all over the kitchen and over half the kids. Plus I was in a hurry and that rarely makes for a peaceful cooking experience. But they did good and will enjoy the "jam" with their breakfast tomorrow.



The jam is really dark becuase the peaches are pretty red.

Defrosting the Freezer

Several years ago we inherited an old freezer from my parents. I love it because I can store so much food in it, but because it is an older model it needs to be defrosted manually. This is a long process and should be done more often that it is. The kids love to help me. This morning we emptied the freezer and put pots of hot water in to melt the ice.
Then we'd go in and bang of the ice chunks. This is the part that the kids like to help with.
We had to do this several times. The ice chunks and melted ice helped water my flowers out front. Then I wiped everything down and loaded the food back into the freezer. It's amazing how much more I can fit in the freezer when I don't have 2 extra inches of ice in the way.

It's Magic!

I've discovered a new and wonderful cleaning product! I don't like to clean my shower because it never looks clean afterward--nothing cuts through the soap scum. A friend told me about Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Bath Scrubber and I decided to try it. Here's what my tub looked like before: (it's sideways--I can't figure out how to make it stay right side up)And here's a picture of after:I'm not if the picture does it justice, but the difference was AMAZING! It took a little effort, but that is because my shower was BAD. I'll have buy more and clean more often. I love how nice a clean shower looks.

Girls' Bedroom

I recently bought new bedspreads for the girls' room. I shouldn't say recently--it's been more like 7 months. It takes a long time for me to finish a project. I don't really like to do projects like this. I don't have a lot of decorating sense and I always have to ask other for help.

After buying the bedspreads I was concerned that they didn't go together. Braedi's is striped and Dyllan's and Faythe's are flowery. They contain the same colors, but I have issues with mixing patterns. I started asking around to get a second opinion and see if there was something I could do to tie them together. Christy suggested pictures of the bedspreads mounted on wood and curtains. She did the pictures and another friend helped with the curtain.

Before I could hang up the curtain rod and the pictures I wanted to paint. I wanted to do the same neutral color through out the house--no special colors for the bedrooms. But after painting the kids' rooms I wish that I would have picked a different color for them.

The girls have a chair rail and I left it white. Above it I painted a light brown and a darker brown below. I like the colors I just don't think it's right for a bedroom. Oh well! I'm not going to repaint. I'd forgotten how much I don't like painting. It's too much work and paint is expensive.

Now I need to find some other embellishments/accessories. Any ideas?

Strawberry Jam

Remember last year's experiences making jam? They didn't set up and we just used them for syrup. I decided to give it another try. I measured exactly and followed the directions to a T. AND. . .it worked!

The kids helped cut up the strawberries. I told them they could eat 1 for every 5 they cut. Faythe couldn't wait that long. "Can I eat this one?" Ephram took it very serious. "I've cut 5 now I can eat one." I love my kid helpers!
I got to use my Christmas present (a Bosch food processor attachment) to puree the strawberries.
I decided to try it without doing a water bath, but the jars didn't seal by just turning them upside down so I put them in my canner and all but 2 sealed. Homemade jam makes me want to make bread, but I think we'll just have pancakes instead.

Photo Gallery

I promised that when we got our family pictures that I would actually print them and hang them up. Well, I finally got the last picture up. I decided to do a photo gallery. I bought lots of frames and Christy taught me an easy way to hang the pictures. I did the work all by myself. This is a first for me. Jonathan is so good at hanging pictures (a perfectionist) that I always let him do it. But he's been so busy with school lately that I didn't want to wait. I took pictures of the process. . .

I put the pictures in the frames, then laid them out how I wanted. A lot of the frames I bought were tabletop frames so I had to remove the stand and add hangers. This was a hard step for me and the frames might be a little lopsided because of it. I then traced each frame onto butcher paper (paper grocery bags work, too). I marked where the hole for the nail would go and used tape to put them on the wall. I was then able to visualize the finished product and move the papers around without putting tons of holes in my wall. Then I hung up the pictures. This part was so easy. I hammered a nail where the hole was marked, took off the paper and hung the frame.

I'm so proud of myself, so no negative comments. :)

More Dinner Ideas

Thursday's dinner wasn't very good. It was supposed to be BBQ pork sandwiches, but I wasn't in the mood for a sandwich. I already had the shredded pork defrosting so I had to find something to make with it. I kind of improvised and that is probably why it didn't taste good. I found a recipe for Mexican Style Shredded Pork that was served with a yummy sounding rice dish. So, I made the rice, added the pork and topped it with some left over enchilada sauce. I think the rice was the bad part. If someone has a better way to make this kind of rice, please share.

1 1/2 c. rice
1/4 c. lime juice
1/4 c. cilantro
2 3/4 c. water

Bring rice and water to a boil. Add lime juice and cilantro. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.

For dinner on Friday we had Chili-Beef Tacos. These were much yummier than meal the day before.

2 T. chili powder or Mexican seasoning
1/2 t. cumin seed
1 t. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz uncooked lean ground beef
8 oz canned tomato sauce
8 oz canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained (I used pinto)
8 small store-bought taco shells
4 T. reduced-fat sour cream
4 t. cilantro, chopped

Toast chili powder and cumin in a medium skillet over medium heat until fragrant. Add oil to skillet and heat; add onion and cook until tender,. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add beef and cook until cooked through. Add tomato sauce and beans, cook until heated through.

To assemble: fill each taco shell with 1/4 c. beef mixture; top each with 1/2 T of sour cream and 1/2 t. of cilantro.

Yield: 2 tacos per serving.
Points Plus 7 (more with cheese)

I made mine into a salad. I added lettuce and tomatoes and a little bit of shredded cheese and some salsa. Instead of taco shells I baked a tortilla that I cut into strips until crispy.

Sorry, no picture.

Tonight's dinner was even a hit with the kids--Ravioli Primavera.

4 c. frozen cheese ravioli
1 package frozen Italian vegetables, thawed (I used a fiesta package--I'm sure almost any type of frozen veggie will work)
1/4 c. olive oil (I omitted--I just sprayed the pan with Pam)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 c. vegetable of chicken broth
2 T. fresh minced parsley
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper

--Prepare ravioli according to package directions.
--Meanwhile, in a skillet, saute vegetables in oil for 3 minutes or until tender. Add garlic, saute for 1 minute or until tender.
--Stir in broth. Simmer, uncovered, for 2 minutes.
--Stir in the parsley, salt and pepper; cook 2 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender.
--Drain pasta. Add to vegetable mixture; toss to coat.

Yield: 4 servings
Points Plus: 10 with oil, 7 without

When Life Gives You Lemons. . .

. . .make lemonade! A few weeks ago, my friend's grandma needed to get rid of some lemons. We were happy to take a bunch off her hands. Today we finally got around to juicing them. We like to make a concentrate and freeze it so we can have "fresh" squeezed lemonade through out the year.

To make concentrate:
1. Squeeze the lemons
2. Add 1 cup sugar to 1 cup warm water and dissolve.
3. Stir in 1 cup lemon juice.
4. Pour into a ziploc bag, lay flat on a cookie sheet and freeze.

To make lemonade:
1. Defrost bag in fridge.
2. Dump contents into a 1/2 gallon picture.
3. Fill picture with water and/or ice until full.
Opt. Add strawberries or raspberries.

Dyllan and Ephram were my helpers with this project.

Wednesday Dinner

This recipe is for individual servings. Just increase it for how many people you want to serve.

Oriental Beef (or Chicken) and Broccoli

3 1/2 oz beef (or chicken) in chunks
1 Tbl. soy sauce
1 Tbl. vinegar
1 Tbl. brown sugar
1 clove minced garlic
1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper

1 Tbl. water
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch

1/4 med. carrot, sliced
1 c. broccoli

--Stir together first 5 ingredients (after meat) then add meat. Cover and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
--Cook meat and sauce in a skillet until meat is no longer pink.
--Add veggies and cook until tender
--Stir cornstarch and water. Add to skillet and stir until thickened.

Option: Serve over rice.
Points Plus: 5 (with out rice)

Tuesday Night Dinner

We had a spin on the traditional sloppy joes for dinner tonight.

Southwestern Sloppy Joes
1 T. oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded, chopped (I omitted)
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano
3/4 pounds uncooked ground turkey breast
7 oz canned corn with red and green peppers (mexicorn), rinsed and drained
1 1/2 c. salsa
1 T. brown sugar, packed
4 light hamburger rolls, split

--Heat a large skillet over med-high heat. Swirl in the oil, then add the onion, garlic and jalapeno. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes.
--Add the chili powder and oregano, and cook 1 minute more.
--Add the turkey and corn, and cook until the mixture is nearly dry, about 4 minutes.
--Stir in the salsa and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened and the turkey is cook through, 4-5 minutes longer.
--Spoon over the opened rolls and serve.
Servings: 4
Points Plus: 8

I forgot to take a picture of it on the bun and the leftovers don't look too appealing, but it was really good and easy.
On Monday we just had hamburgers and veggie burgers. They were from a package so I don't have a recipe to share. I like the Morning Star brand the best. A few months ago when hamburger was on sale, I borrowed one of those cool hamburger patty masher things from a friend a made a bunch of hamburger patties to freeze.

Menu Idea

Yesterday I was complaining on Facebook about how I hate to plan menus, but having a plan makes cooking dinner so much easier. I'm always complaining about this and it doesn't seem to get any easier. I don't really like to cook, so simple recipes are the best. My kids are picky and Jonathan doesn't like to eat the same thing over and over. I've tried to have a plan of certain types of foods on certain days--Monday is chicken, Tuesday is pasta, etc. That helps a little. Anyway, my Facebook friends agreed with my plight, saying that they are in the same boat, and asked that I post some of my menu plans to help them. So here is my plan for the week. I'll try to post recipes daily with pictures (a recipe always sounds better when there is a picture to go with it). I will usually include a veggie and/or salad with dinner, but you will be on your own for that part.

Sunday--Turkey (chicken) tetrazinni
Monday--Veggieburger with cheese
Tuesday--Southwest Sloppy Joes
Wednesday--Chicken and Broccoli Stir-fry with Rice
Thursday--BBQ Pork sandwich
Friday--Chili Beef Tacos
Saturday--Ravioli Primavera

Turkey Tetrazzini
8 oz uncooked spaghetti, broken into pieces
3 c. turkey, cubed (I used canned chicken)
20 oz (2 cans) reduced fat cream of mushroom soup
1 c. low-fat milk
2 2/3 romano cheese, grated
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 c. bread crumbs (I used cornflakes because I was out of bread crumbs)
2 Tbl. butter, melted

--Cook spaghetti according to package directios. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine turkey, soup, milk, cheese, and spices. Add cooked spaghetti and toss well.
--In a seperate bowl combine melted butter with bread crumbs .
--Transfer to a greased 8-in. square baking dish. Sprinkle with bread crumb mixture.
--Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
Yield: 8 sevings at 1 cup each
Power Points: 9 each serving

PS It was yummy!

Emergency Preparedness Challenge Days 5, 6, and 7

I hardly participated in the last 3 days of the challenge--mostly because it didn't fit into my schedule and a little because I couldn't.

Day 5 was a natural disaster. We were to pretend that a disaster that matched where we lived just occurred. The only thing I could think of for Phoenix was HEAT, but I again refused to turn of the AC. And I wondered how that would affect electricity. I could see how it would keep you indoors, though.

The Tasks:
1. Prepare all of your meals INDOORS without using electricity.
2. Entertain your family without using any electronics
3. Do not leave your house.
4. Do not use food from your fridge
5. Do not use anything requiring natural gas.

I couldn't use my gas stove, I couldn't go outside to grill or try my solar oven again and I had nothing else to cook with so I skipped that one. We almost always entertain without electricity. I HAD to go outside because I had work to do in my garden AND I had a family activity at my parent's house. I think I even used food from my fridge. I think I'm going to look into ways to cook indoors, though I don't think I'll have this problem while living here.

On Day 6 I was supposed to take a drive and pretend that a tire blew on my van. Also, the battery died and we were out of cell phone range. So, I was supposed to change a tire. I was wearing Sunday clothes and didn't want to try it that day, but I think it would be a good idea to see if I can change a tire on our HUGE van. Another thing that we were supposed to be able to do was entertain and feed our families while waiting for someone to come help. I don't have a car kit, but know I will add that to my list of things to fix. I'll be sure to post about my adventure when I get around to changing a tire.

Today was day 7 and the last day of the challenge. THANK GOODNESS! 3 or 4 days was enough for me and I didn't even do it fully. We were basically supposed to organize and inventory all of our food storage. This included organizing your pantry, moving some long-term storage into the kitchen to encourage it's use, check supplies and refill containers, and check disaster kits and replace/exchange items. This is something that I need to do, but I didn't do it today. When am I going to do it, though? This week. I have a list and I'm sure there is stuff that I need to add to it. I've got to get busy!

Emergancy Prepardness Challenge Days 3 and 4

Yesterday's challenge was pretty tough. It was a worst case scenario. We had to pretend that our country had just suffered a terrorist attack--a series of bombs were fired off causing an EMP that rendered all electricity and electrical devices useless (no lights, cell phones, generators, water pumps).

Our tasks:
1. cook and clean up all of your meals without power or water. we also had to pretend that all the food in our fridge had gone bad, but the stuff in the freezer was OK.
2. walk or ride a bike anywhere you need to go today. we could only drive if the car has a non-electric ignition.
3. entertain yourself and family without electricity the entire day
4. keep your family warm (or cool)
5. hold a pretend evacuation (on foot to a nearby park for 2 hours)--you have 15 minutes to collect your grab list items.

We didn't do so good on this challenge. I already knew that I failed with my water storage, so I didn't even try that task. I have a gas stove so I pretended that I lit it with a lighter--it didn't say anything about the gas lines being out. I did try to cook something in my solar oven, but it didn't cook--the rice was still crunchy. (PS I want to sell my oven so if you or anyone you know wants to buy one, let me know.) I felt like I ate poorly. Most of my produce was in my fridge and we didn't eat anything that was in the fridge.

We pulled out the flashlights and when it got dark the kids and I read by flashlight. But, I gave up on the no electricity after the kids went to bed. I used a flashlight to get a movie started then sat down to enjoy the power of electricity.

There was NO WAY that I was going to turn off the AC--it's still 100 degrees. But, we turned off the ceiling fans in the bedrooms and didn't use the little fan in the kitchen. We also used the van to go to our PE activity and didn't do a true evacuation. I need to work on my grab list and alternative cooking sources. I also want to look into how people stored foods with out refrigeration.

Today's challenge was a lot easier. We had to pretend that a family of 6 was going through financially hard times and was coming to live with us. Were we prepared to provide for us and them--food, toiletries, bedding, cleaning supplies. Also they were vegetarians so all the food had to be meatless.

Our tasks:
1. cook lunch for your family plus two adults and four kids. plus you've run out of raw milk and eggs.
2. provide sleeping arrangements for two adults and four children in your home.
3. The family did not bring any hygiene items, provide them with toothbrushes, shampoo, soap, etc.
4.evaluate your tp, paper towel, laundry detergent, and dish detergent stores … do you have enough to last with this many extra people for a few days?

Cooking for more is hard for me. I made a vegetarian meal, but only enough for my family. I knew that I had enough food if I really needed to, but I would sure go through it faster. Without being able to go shopping I would run out of fresh stuff quickly. Sleeping would be tight, but we could find the space and there would be enough sleeping bags and blankets. The thing we lack is pillows. As for hygiene items, I wouldn't have had enough toothbrushes, but fingers are OK for short amounts of time. We would have had enough paper products. I probably would have run out of laundry detergent, but I have stuff to make more. This challenge made me think of when we visit my sister and how much bread we go through to make sandwiches for all of the kids. It also made me think about when my kids will be teenagers--they will probably eat that much food just amongst themselves.