Yarn & Food, Two of My Favorite Things

This  (bread) bowl of yarn was once.....

....this sweater from Goodwill.

I know, you're thinking it can't be, as they aren't even the same color. Try as I might, I couldn't get the yarn balls to photograph right. It was a bit late in the day when I took pictures of the wound balls of yarn. The partially dismembered sweater above was actually a whole sweater when I bought it. I didn't think to photograph it bfeore I began the long and laborious job of deconstructing it.  I've recycled thrift store sweaters into yarn before, but never one as time-consuming as this. I was disappointed to find many knots in the yarn, too; hence so many varied sizes of balls.  Goodwill's sweaters are $3.49, but they were having a buy-one-get-one-free sale, so this sweater only cost me $1.75. I couldn't find another worthy of recycling, but I found a lovely chocolate brown zip-up cardi in great shape, which I think my daughter might  like.

The sweater's yarn color was much richer than it looks in the picture above. The color of it really jumped out at me in the store. I usually look for size large or extra-large sweaters, so I'll get more yarn. This was sized small, but such a pretty color. I'm thinking of knitting an infinity cowl with the yarn.   I realize winter is nearly over; but knowing me, it may not get  completed before next winter. It took me  a few days to get to this point with the yarn. I still have to wash it, then hang it to dry over the shower stall.  I'll weight the ends  to pull out the kinks in the yarn. I'll then wind it back into balls and be ready to get my knit on!

A little something to tempt your taste buds.

My son saw this dish being cooked on a morning news show earlier this week. He's not one to care about cooking or recipes, but he does know what looks good to him, and apparently this dish did.  I googled and found the recipe here. I'm not one to take someone else's recipe and pass off as my own, but I will type it out here, simply because I made some modifications, which I felt it needed. The original was the idea for it, though.

Crock Pot Soft Chicken Tacos
1)Put 3 or 4 chicken breasts (I used frozen) in your crock pot. Spellchecker reminded me crock pot is two words. I can never remember that. Yea for spellchecker!
2)Add  one can Rotel tomatoes (I use store brand equivalent).
3)You can add in a diced onion, or you can wait & use fresh chopped onion as you're making your tacos, which is what I did.
4)Add one can whole kernel corn, drained.
5)Add one can black beans, drained (I rinsed mine in a colander).

Sheesh, that was hard, huh?  Seriously, for starters, that's all there is to it. That makes the filler for your tacos.  All I did differently was to add seasonings. I did this after cooking it, when I realized it was somewhat bland.

I added about a teaspoon of cumin, and some onion  & garlic powders, all to taste.  You could probably even add a package of taco seasoning to the crock pot as you're cooking the chicken, but I'm trying to get away from using processed foods. I'm not there yet, but I leave them out when I can. Of course, you can also make your own taco seasoning, which I guess is sort of what I did.

To make the soft tacos, I buttered one side of corn tortillas, laid them buttered side down in a nonstick skillet on medium heat for a couple of minutes.
After removing from the skillet, I sprinkled mozzarella cheese on top.  You can use cheddar, but just sos' you know, it's nearly twice the saturated fat grams as the white stuff. Just sayin'.
I spooned the chicken mixture in a strip across the center of the tortilla, sprinkled a little more cheese on top of the meat, then carefully folded over the tortilla and returned it to the pan. You may have to hold it with a spatula to keep it from unfolding.
After a minute or so, gently turn it over to the other side.  This doesn't make the tortillas crispy like a store bought shell, but it gives them a slight crunch, and makes it easier to hold when eating.
Return the taco to a plate, then fill with whatever ingredients you like in a taco. Mine has diced tomatoes, diced onions, sour cream (nonfat), picante sauce, & shredded lettuce.   This meal was a big hit with Mr.Studley & my son. I used 3 chicken breasts in mine, and it made a LOT.

I celebrated a birthday last week. Well, celebrated might be stretching it a bit.  We live in a small town, with a handful or restaurants, and not a lot else. Eating out isn't a big deal since we do it through the year anyway, always at the same old places. We could've driven a couple of hours to big  D, but I just wan't feeling a road trip. Mr. Studley took me to a couple of thrift stores, waiting patiently while I looked to my heart's content, then we went out for some yummo  Chinese food.  Hardly an exciting way to commemorate my 56 years here on this earth, but a fun day for me, nonetheless.  I always have fun hanging out with Mr. Studley.

Our weather has been mild, and I'm starting to see a lot of these. They always make me smile.  Be blessed!

Above all things have intense and unfailing love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins [forgives and disregards the offenses of others].

~1 Peter 4:8 Amplified Bible

Garden Goodies Galore!

These started out as a pair of mittens for a little girl who likes yellow. I ended up frogging them, as they were looking more like a pair of mittens for a big girl, who may or may not like yellow. No, I didn't do a guage swatch, but when I'm knitting something that small, I figure it doesn't take me any longer to knit part way up  the pattern than it would to do the swatch. For my non-knitting friends, frogging means to rip it out. Rip it. Get it?   Okay, well, in other news, look below at the yummy goodies we got today.

Mr.Studley & I have been very blessed by friends this week. On Sunday, a man at church brought us a big bag of turnips, as well as turnip greens.  Today, a woman from church dropped us off two huge bags of yummy goodness  from her & her husband's garden.  I love...no, I LOVE turnips. The greens I can take or leave, but I'd just  as soon eat a bowl of stewed turnips as I would a bowl of ice-cream, and I do like ice-cream.  In case you're from some far away place that's never heard of turnips, or maybe you have, but thought they were some odd thing southerners eat, like fried okra, or fried green tomatoes, I'll tell you how to cook them. I'm sure there's more than one way, but this works for me.

How to prepare turnips:

Slice off the ends, like you would with an onion
Peel
Cut into 1-2 inch cubes
place in a 1 1/2 to 2 quart microwaveable bowl
Add just a little water, maybe a half cup or so
nuke on high for about 5 minutes, then check them by seeing if a fork easily penetrates the cube; this will take longer or less time, depending on the amount of turnips you're cooking
When done, drain the water, or at least most of it
Add a 'sprinkling' of sugar, but not too much. You don't want to sweeten them, you merely want to take away the bitter edge turnips sometimes have
Add butter/margerine, or whatever you use for that, and salt & pepper

That's it. You'll love 'em, or you'll hate 'em, but I'm betting you'll love 'em. If you want a simple meal, whip up a pan of cornbread and bake it in a cast iron skillet.  When you cook your cornbread in a cast iron skillet, put a little oil in the skillet (I use olive oil for just about everything), then put the pan in the oven while the oven is preheating. If you'll let your pan heat  for at leat 10 minutes before adding the cornbread batter, you'll get a nice, crisp bottom crust, and the entire round of cornbread will easily slide out of the pan onto a serving plate; and  assuming you have a well seasoned skillet, all the cleaning  it will need is a quick swipe with a paper towel.  Do all this, and  you've got yourself a nice little southern meal right there, I tell you what (sorry, I have Hank Hill on the brain right now).

I didn't take pictures of everything, but there were turnips, green onions, carrots, turnip greens, kale, collard greens,  cilantro, thyme, and dill, all freshly picked this morning from our friends' garden.  Heaven...I'm in Heaven, and my heart beats so that I can hardly speak.....and that's all I can remember from that song. ;-)

I'm still spending lots of time at Pinterest, mostly at night before I go to bed. A neighbor's birthday was yesterday, so I made her this coffee cake, then topped it with a glaze from this recipe.  The recipe for the cake is enough to make two 8 x 8 coffee cakes.  Whatever was I supposed to do with the second cake??  I could have frozen it, I suppose....but Studley and I had much more fun eating it. Sorry, I didn't think to take  a picture, but I baked one in my one-and-only 8 x 8 pan, and the other in my 9 1/2" cast iron skillet. Just as I do when cooking cornbread, I let the skillet get sizzling hot in the oven before I poured in the cake batter. After it was out of the oven and cooled a bit, I slid a spatula around it to loosen the edges of the cake from the edge of the pan, then placed a plate over the skillet and flipped it over. Of course, this put the top of the cake facing down. I then flipped it over again onto another plate, and voila',  it stayed intact. I poured the cooked glaze over it, and once the glaze had cooled a bit,  I had a very pretty  cake for sending over to my neighbors.  I let Studley take it over, since it was raining cats & dogs at the time. He's so handy at times like that. He even volunteered to do it. All I had to do was lament, "how ever will I get that cake next door in all this rain?", followed by a big sigh. Next thing I knew, he was heading out the front door, a cake in one hand, and an umbrella in the other.  I'm a blessed woman, I am.

Among the greens we received, there was a batch of one kind that I didn't recognize. They looked similar to the turnip greens, but one side of the leaves were green, and the other sides were a sort of burgundy color.  Plus, I think they were a bit more oblong shaped than the turnip greens which were slightly more rounded.   Come to think of it, the leaves were more pointed and narrower than the turnip greens.  While some types of  kale have a purplish color, I do know these aren't kale.  Anyone have a clue what they are?  I forgot to take a picture of them, and have already cleaned them and packed them away. I'll send out two of my handknit dishcloths to the first one to comment (with a continental US address, please) who can correctly identify them for me.  In the unlikely event that two of you comment at the same time on the clock, I'll send you each two dishcloths.  You'll have to give me a day or two to get more knit in the event of their being two winners; and yes, I realize that constitutes about 98% of my readers. ;-)  Meanwhile, I'll give my friend a call this week to see what the greens are, so I'll know who got it right.

You guys have a great week, and remember, try and do something to bless someone today!

I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me.
~Psalm 13:6 Amplified Bible

"We are born helpless....
We need others physically, emotionally, intellectually;

We need them if we are to know anything, even ourselves."

~C.S. Lewis

In The Words of Cookie Monster....

COOKIES!!! UMM-NUM-NUM-NUM-NUM!!!

I had a hankering for homemade cookies today.  I don't need to be eating cookies.  Somehow I manage to convince myself that if the cookies are chock full of oats & raisins, they must be kind of, sort of healthy.  Sounds logical, right?

Can I just say, I love my KitchenAid mixer. I've wanted one for years.  Though I have no recollection of ever mentioning this to my mom, apparently I did, as she surprised me with this one for Christmas, a year ago.

See the red mat lying to the left of the mixer?  My niece sent it to me for Christmas this year, along with several other goodies. It's a dish drying mat, and I've been wanting one for a couple of months (and I did't tell her that, either!). It was a surprise and a delight to find it in my bag from her. I told her she's a "gifted gift giver". She always chooses gifts I really like. She said that when she goes shopping, she just buys things she knows she'd like. How clever. Wonder why I never thought of that.

Ahh, now to eat the fruit (so to speak) of my labor. I knew these cookies were going to be good by how tasty the dough was.  I got this recipe from Pinterest, my third home (Facebook being my second).   This recipe made a lot of cookies.  I couldn't, in good conscience, keep that many cookies on hand, for I know where my hand would constantly be....in the cookie jar!  I took about half out and wrapped them up nicely, and asked my son to take them to work with him tomorrow to share with his co-workers.

Isn't this a lovely picture? It's a place in the UK called Scafell Pike. It's the highest mountain in England. While my daughter, Nikki, was living in England, she went with a group that camped and hiked to the top. I have a few more pictures she sent me at that time which I'll share  later. Isn't the scenery  just gorgeous?  I'm pretty sure Nikki's somewhere on that rock bridge in the distance, but you can't quite make her out.

May you have a wonderful weekend. As Joyce Meyer (teacher of God's Word) is always saying, do something to bless someone every day!

I am not moved by what I see-

I am not moved by what I feel-

I am moved by what I believe!

~Smith Wigglesworth

There's nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another-showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God's way.  Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.

~2 Tmothy 3:16 the Message

~

Autumn, Season of My Heart

Pumpkin Butter
Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree.
~Emily Bronte

Two words describe how I feel about our summer of 2011. We survived.  That word 'survived' says a lot, doesn't it? An online dictionary definition says: to remain or continue in existence or use.  Well, we're here (remaining), we're continuing to exist, and we're still somewhat useful.  I could go on and on about how horrific it was, but truthfully, I think that subject's gone into overkill in most circles in recent weeks, so just suffice it to say, we survived.

Today feels like the first day of fall to me. I know it technically isn't, and we've even had cool days before now (off and on), but it's October 1st, the weather is oh-so-pleasant, the sky is bluer than I've seen it in months, and I am actually wearing capris around the house rather than the cooler shorts I've worn all summer.

 

No-Knead Bread

Now that I can use my oven without causing the house to feel like an inferno, I'm in a baking mood.  I've been meaning to try the above bread recipe for quite some time. Ever the procrastinator, I'm just now getting around to it.  I guess you would call this a ciabatta?  I don't know. I just know it's super simple, and that's my kind of recipe. Flour, yeast, salt, water, and no kneading. The biggest ingredient is time. You let it sit for 12 hours or more.  What could be simpler?  We had this for lunch alongside leftover tortilla soup from last night's dinner. 

We slathered the bread with pumpkin butter I made from a recipe I found at Bev Gibson's blog, Numbering the Days .  I love, love her blog. It's not a cooking blog, but she does share recipes along the way. I find myself to have so much in common with her, having newly retired husbands, grown children, and time to pursue answering the callings on our lives that we didn't have time for when raising children.  She gives great book recommendations for scripturally based 'bettering yourself' literature (my words, not hers). She's a truly lovely person. I really didn't plan on extolling her merits, but mentioning her pumpkin butter, the rest just had to be said.

The recipe is no longer available on her blog, but the following recipe (which I found on one of her boards at Pinterest) appears to be the same one I used.

• PUMPKIN BUTTER
• 1 can (15 ounces) 100% Pure Pumpkin
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions

Combine:

 pumpkin, sugar, honey, lemon juice, cinnamon and cloves in medium, heavy-dutysaucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring frequently, for 20 to 25 minutes or until thickened. Serve with biscuits, breads and corn muffins. Store in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 2 months.

Recipe makes 2 cups. 

I have lots of Christmas knitting to be done, but I seem to have lost my knitting mojo.  I haven't done anything industrious in quite some time. I did knit a bunch of dishcloths, which are always nice to give as gifts.  I can't remember if I've already shown these on here or not. If I have, then we'll blame it on the missing wrinkles from my brain.

Waffle Knit Dishcloth (free pattern)

To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven
~Ecclesiastes 3:1 Amplified Bible

You Might Be A Redneck If...

You might be a redneck if your idea of a Neighborhood Watch program is to park your fanny in a recliner on the front lawn and watch the 'goings on' of your neighbors.


This is Mr.Studley, appearing to do just that. In reality, he's checking one last time to make sure he wants to give away this favored chair before loading it onto his nephew's truck. Mr. Studley really liked this leather chair, but we have another one very similar to it, and it seemed a shame to have our living room overcrowded with too much furniture when Nephew has nothing but broken down furniture (a harsh side-effect of a divorce). So Studley, bless his heart, opted to give the chair to his nephew. Granted, we did have to threaten him with the water hose to get him out of it before loading it onto the back of the truck.

























This is the now felted Hobo bag I showed you last week in it's unfelted stage. As I said before, I really like this pattern. It was an easy and fun knit. I purchased it from Pipp's Purses etsy shop. It's knit on 10.5 circular needles in a worsted weight yarn. I used my Denise Interchangeables for knitting, and Lion Wool for the yarn.

When I am knitting something to felt, I don't generally worry too much about the softness of the yarn. My experience has been that once something is felted, most felted wools feel pretty much the same; and besides, I'm not going to be wearing it next to my body. I have to tell you, though, I was pleasantly surprised by how soft this bag did feel prior to felting. I would be very comfortable wearing a sweater knit from this yarn.

Speaking of rednecks, this is my sun with his recent haul of bass. The boy does love to fish, which makes his mamma happy, as I does do love to eat fish. He doesn't bring them home all smelly with their dead eyes staring up at me, either. When he presents them to me, they've been cleaned, gutted, and filleted. They're neatly packaged in a freezer Zip-Loc bag, and ready for the freezer until I'm in the mood to fry up a mess of 'em, as we say around here. We eat very few fried foods, but fish and green tomatoes are the two exceptions to that rule.

My mom and her husband are visiting during the week of Mother's Day. We're going to surprise her with a fried fish dinner. Nothing says I love you, Mom, like a plate of fried fish, hushpuppies, and bowl of fresh cole slaw. It's a meal that'll make you want to slap your mamma. I'll refrain, considering it will be Mother's Day and all.

I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me.

~Psalm 13:6

Chickens & Dog Spaghetti

Er, that would be dogs, and chicken spaghetti. I'm joining up with the dog lovin' people at Dogs on Thursday this week, which basically means I get to go on and on about my dogs and you can't think any less of me. Well, you can, but I hope you won't.

So, what do you think of Pepper's new 'do'? I tried to get him to stand up on the floor so I could show you the weenie dog in him, but he wouldn't get out of this chair. Pepper pretty much does as Pepper pleases. His body is long and skinny looking, just like a weenie dog, but he has a poodle head. He'd gone so long between groomings that I had them cut him as short as possible, otherwise he'd look even more poodle'ish.

We definitely need to buy him a new collar. What's up with a hot pink collar on a boy? No wonder he's always looking sheepish.

He is a handsome boy, is he not?

Okay, enough about dogs, it's time for The Recipe Swap Box. Once a month, on the first Thursday, Randi, at "i have to say... " hosts a recipe swap on her blog. All who wish to participate post a recipe on their blog, and sign the Mr.Linky at Randi's. We can then visit each others blogs gathering new recipes, and maybe even new friends!

This month's Recipe Box Swap theme is Pasta! Since I procrastinated and didn't get around to typing up one of my recipes, it may appear to some that I'm cheating by linking to a recipe at the Pioneer Woman Cooks blog. Is there such a thing as plaguerizing a recipe? If there is, then P-dub did the plaguerizing, 'cause I've been cooking the same Chicken Spaghetti dish she shares on her site since she was in diapers.

The only thing I do differently than PW when making the Chicken Spaghetti is that I omit the chicken washing step. You read that right. I do not wash my chicken prior to cooking. I read a couple of years or so ago that it's not a necessary step, as the cooking process will destroy any surface bacteria; besides, you run more risk of spreading the salmonella around your kitchen by washing it. Anytime I'm cooking chicken, I wash my hands frequently with hot water and soap, and sanitize all areas where I've had the chicken, in case anything dripped or splashed from it on the counter.

And for the record, no one's ever gotten ill from eating my chicken spaghetti. I was kidding with the plaguerizing remark. I wouldn't want to offend PW, considering I hope to some day win one of her awesome contests. ;-)

I said that was enough about dogs, but I couldn't do a dog post without including Leyna, who is once again, dazed and temporarily blinded by mommy's flash. That's my son's hairy arm in the picture, lest you thought I needed to start shaving.

If you'd like to join in on The Recipe Box Swap, go here; or if you'd just like to read all the recipes that have been posted.

If you'd like to join in the fun with Dogs on Thursday, go here. Or just go around seeing everyone else's blogs... dogs...blogs with dogs!

******************************

A righteous man regards the life of his animal...
~Proverbs 12:10a NKJV

Pie~Birds

Sing a song of sixpence
a pocket full of rye
Four-and-twenty Blackbirds baked in a pie
And when the pie was opened
The birds began to sing
Wasn't this a dainty dish to set before the King

I bet you thought my title today was about pie birds. It isn't, though while we're on the subject, I think I'd like to have a pie bird or two. Why, if I had a pie bird, I might even bake more pies. Lest you're unfamiliar with pie birds, they're the whimsical little ceramic figurines you place in the center of a pie when you bake it. They vent out steam from within the pie to keep it from boiling over and making a dastardly mess. Hmm...I know a few humans who could benefit from a Pie Bird. Moving on, some people collect pie birds, which aren't all in the shape of birds, by the way. I wouldn't mind collecting them. I imagine they'd look quite charming on a shelf in my kitchen.

I photographed these birds while visiting my sis-in-law who has a beautiful home and acreage out in the country. I try not to covet. She and her husband have put in a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to enhance the landscaping. There's a large family room on the backside of the house with windows on three sides which overlook luscious landscaping, an abundance of colorful flowers of all kinds, scads of tall trees, and a small lake. I told her the next time Mr.Studley and I go camping, we'll skip the campgrounds and haul our RV out to their backyard. It's as pretty as a picture out there. My Kodak Easy Share has a 10x optical zoom on it, but it wasn't enough to get a good close-up shot of the woodpecker in the picture above. It's the first woodpecker I've ever captured in a picture. I do occasionally see them in the trees in my own yard, but I've never been able to get their picture. They just won't stay in one place long enough. They're constantly on the move. A lot like Mr.Studley.
Click on pictures to enlarge the viewOoh, aren't you a pretty bird.


Why, thank you for posing for me.


Oops! There goes Woody Woodpecker. Click on the picture for an enlarged view to see him flying off to the left.

Oh, I almost forgot why PIE was in my title today. Remember when I posted a picture of my Bisquick Impossible Buttermilk Pie, along with the recipe? Natalie, my bloggy friend over at Tins & Treasures, left me a comment on that post that she had a recipe for a Bisquick Impossible Pumpkin Pie. She obligingly posted the recipe on her blog, along with pictures of the pies which her students baked yesterday. I am anxious to try it out myself. Thank you, Natalie!


Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
~Psalm 106:1 KJV

A Big Bite of Comfort

It's been all about the comfort foods around here lately. This yellow cake was made from a box mix, and the frosting was storebought as well. I generally prefer to make my cakes from scratch, but I'm not above accepting a little help from Betty Crocker now and then.

I find chicken and dumplings to be the epitome of comfort food. I know I found great comfort from the steaming bowl of them I ate for dinner this evening. I had some pre-cooked chicken breasts in the freezer. I boiled some canned chicken broth, water and Minor's, and quickly made dumpling dough from a storebought baking mix. It was a quick fix, but very satisfying.

Here are a few links to some holiday projects and recipes I thought you might enjoy.

• Embroidered Felt Advent Calender at the Purl Bee
• Luminaries made from recycled Christmas cards at Zakka Life
• Votives made using scales of pine cones, also at Zakka Life
• A Turkey applique for a child's shirt (or adult!) at One More Moore
• Felt Peppermint Star ornaments at ALLSORTS
• Chenille Baby Bibs at happythings (use holiday fabric to make them festive)
• Pumpkin Bars at Farmhouse Blessings (I've made these twice, in a word, delicious!)
• Pumpkin Cheesecake at Your Homebased Mom

But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you.

~John 14:26 Amplified Bible

So Good You'll Slap Your Mama!

Bisquick Impossible Buttermilk Pie

I've been making this custard-like pie for nearly as long as I am old. I can go from start to finish in under 45 minutes, and have a pie on the table. It's easy, it's quick, and it tastes good; that is my kind of recipe. Don't be put off by the fact that it has buttermilk if you don't like buttermilk. You will not taste it. I solemn pinkie promise. Now, go make one and tell me what you think!

Bisquick Impossible Buttermilk Pie

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup Bisquick baking mix, or any other brand baking mix (I used Kroger's brand)
1/3 cup melted butter
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
*1 tsp lemon extract*optional (I like the hint of lemon flavor it gives it)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease a 9" pie plate (I use a nonstick spray)
Put all ingredients into a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds;
or mix in a bowl with a hand mixer for 1 minute
Pour into greased pie plate and bake for 30 minutes, or until sharp knife inserted in center comes out clean
Cool 5 minutes before slicing.
You can eat it warm or chill it in the fridge first, it's great both ways.

Brethren, do not be children in understanding; however, in malice be babes, but in understanding be mature.

~1 Corinthians 14:20 NKJV

From the Kitchen

Banana Smoothie

• 1 sliced frozen banana


• 1/2 cup skim milk


• 1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt


• 1 TBSP honey


• 1 tsp vanilla


• 1 cup crushed ice, or ice cubes

Blend all ingredients together in a blender until smooth & creamy.

Pop in a straw and slurp away. It's good for what ails you!

And now for a bit of comfort food....

Chicken & Dumplings

• stewed chicken, parts & amounts of your choice


• low sodium chicken broth, plus broth created from stewing your chicken


• 1 tsp (or so) poultry seasoning


• 1 large can cream of chicken soup (optional-I used it with a can of water to make my broth go farther)


• Bisquick mix


• milk

Stew the chicken, then remove from the broth and strain out any icky pieces of fat and such left behind in the broth.

Set the chicken aside to cool, remove the meat from the bone, chunk or shred the meat.

Return the meat to the broth, also adding the storebought broth, and poultry seasoning.

If you wish to add the cream soup and soup can of water, do it now. They will taste just as good without it. I just happened to have it on hand and needed more broth.

While broth is coming to a full boil, mix dumplings according to package (2 cups mix, 2/3 cup milk).

If you wish your dumplings to be chewy, hand mix the dough and let it set awhile.

If you wish your dumplings to be light and fluffy, mix lightly with a fork, just until mixed, and put in boiling broth right away.

Make SURE your broth is at a full boil when you add the spoonfuls of dumpling mix to the pan.

Gently drop the dumplings onto the top of the broth.

Keep the heat high and let them boil for ten minutes, then lower the heat, cover the pan, and let them cook an additional ten minutes.

I have made my dumplings the long way, from scratch. These are a fraction of the work, and I like them every bit as much.

It's comfort food at it's finest!

If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land flowing with milk and honey.

~Numbers 14:8 Amplified Bible

It's Blog Fodder, Baby!

Apple Pandowdy

Some time ago, I told Mr.Studley a story I'd heard from my Nanny about a woman who went nuts (Nanny's word for crazy) while going through menopause. The first time he saw me taking pictures of a plate of food, I think he thought the big M really had me by the throat. Trying to explain it was useless as, at that time, he didn't know what a blog even was. He still doesn't, really, but at least he knows my mental status hasn't declined....much.

Hmm....what does it need?

I'd never had Apple Pandowdy before, but it sounded really good. It was good. The problem was that I was craving Apple Crisp, but I made Apple Pandowdy instead. You know what it's like when you're really wanting a particular food like, say, spaghetti, but when you arrive at your favorite Italian restaurant, they're closed. You go somewhere else and eat an equally good meal, but it just doesn't suit you because you're still thinking about that spaghetti.

That's how I was with the Apple Pandowdy. I should've saved it for another day and made the Apple Crisp. My solution? Make both. That's right, I went ahead and made a pan of Apple Crisp, so now we have both. To justify it, I reckoned to myself that I really did need to use up the rest of that markdown bag of Granny Smith apples. Besides, I know my next door neighbors have a sweet tooth.

Ah, yes. Come to Mama!

Apple Crisp

I want to thank you all for the comments on my blog's facelift. I would like to point out that the package of graphics Marilyn purchased from Karla's Korner Shoppe to design my blog came with a LOT more graphics than what we used. Hence, Marilyn could have added a lot more design qualities to my blog's face. As she pointed out in a comment, I stressed I was a 'minimalist'. I did design the blog to my specifications, and she did it exactly as I requested. So, yeah, Marilyn, I guess I did "design" it (using Karla's graphics, of course!), but we both know I could design 'til the cows come home, and my blog would still have it's old face, as I don't know the first thing about the actual hands-on 'doing' of it. I just know I'm pleased, and for that, I thank you, Marilyn (and Karla!).

He who covers and forgives an offense seeks love, but he who repeats or harps on a matter separates even close friends.
~Proverbs 17:9 Amplified Bible