Daily Thoughts

Visiting Goofyville

Why do I continue to do this? Why do I set myself up for the disappointment by having these grandiose images of what I feel should happen while visiting 3 of our grandchildren? Last Monday I flew to Phoenix to see Jodi, Eric and Caleb-3, Jaden-11 and Noah-1, for the week. I had told Jodi to just pick me up at baggage claim outside instead of coming in. After all, I didn’t want to make all the other grandparents who were in the airport flying to see their grandkids jealous. I already had imagined the 3 and 11 year old, running up to me, throwing their arms around me and fighting over who would get to sit by me in the minivan. Visions of Caleb sitting on my feet, wrapping his precious little arms around my legs, not wanting to let me go was filling my head while walking to baggage claim. I could imagine, Jaden, having learned to be a little gentleman, insisting that he get my suitcase. Yep, these were the visions I had racing through my head, when I texted Jodi to tell her which door I would be coming out. She apologized that she was not parking to come in but that she would explain when she picked me up. After I got in the van, I understood, she didn’t have to say a word.

I went out to the curb and waiting among the smokers which now, made me smell like a giant cigarette factory by the time I climbed into the van. All I could hear was crying.  Jodi was trying to talk to me about Noah having a awful cold and possibly an ear infection, all the while wishing I had a hearing aid so I could turn it off. Caleb was in the back car seat beside Noah crying that his tummy hurt. Well, that was only 2 grandkids, I still had Jaden to welcome me and confess his undying love for his grandmother, but where was he? When I was able to turn around, there he was sprawled out over the 3rd back seat covered up with a huge blanket. He peeked out of the blanket and said, “hi Nana”. Yep, that’s the welcome I got, “hi Nana, my stomach hurts and I feel like I’m going to throw up” Realizing that as I looked behind me, snot was running out of the 1 and 3 yr old’s and the 11 year old looked like he was about to throw up. Was this going to be a fun week or what? As we pull out of the airport, I began to ask Caleb some questions about the week ahead of us and what he might want to do if he got well. No response. Jodi explained to me that I had to understand that this week, Caleb announced that he had his own vocabulary and would only be using the words he wanted to use. As he smiled at me, he told me that my name was now Sprinkles and his mom’s name was Cookie and his was Ice Cream. Oh yes, and his dad was not Eric this week, his name was Nuts. He would not answer unless I used his new name. When I asked him a question that I thought I would get “yes” as the answer, that didn’t happen. Anytime he wanted to answer “yes” we would only get, “I don’t see why not” If you didn’t understand what he was telling you or he didn’t like the answer we were giving him, he would announce, “let’s try this one more time”. So now I was having to learn a new vocabulary, but being the perfect grandmother I am, I decided that I could do that. A few minutes down the road, Caleb begins to cry saying that he needed me to climb over the seat and “rub the gas bubbles out of his tummy to make it quite hurting” so here I go, while Jodi is driving down the highway, with my big rear end, trying to climb over into the back. When I get there, I realize that, “where will I sit” there are only 2 seats and both of them have baby seats in them; I go to the third seat, scoot Jaden over so I can reach my arm over to rub Caleb’s “gas bubbles out”. Jaden starts to laugh seeing me do this and announces that he to has gas bubbles and “maybe I should hold my nose because it might get awful smelly in a minute”. Really….did I come to Gilbert to rub gas bubbles out of tummies. All this time, Noah is screaming because 1. he is in the season that he doesn’t like sitting in the car seat 2. his ears are hurting and 3. snot is running down  his face. So I get kleenix and wipe his nose with my right hand, rubbing Caleb’s tummy with my left. Jodi looks in the rear view mirror and we both just howl with laughter. “welcome to “Gilbert Mom”. This was just not what I had pictured.

In 4 1/2 short days, we have gone through 8 fast food drive thru’s. I have sat on a potty seat where Caleb is trying to learn to stand up to pee, which tells you what I sat in. I have memorized every character on Micky Mouse Playhouse, I have listened to Caleb sing Twinkle Twinkle Little star over 100 times (and that was all in one day).

On my second day of the visit, we decide we will venture out and take Caleb & Noah to Target. Jodi was needing to get Easter basket stuff, so I told her that I would try to keep precious little Caleb occupied while she went through the $1 bin. Well, the minute we walk in, Caleb declares that he always gets a slushy and popcorn, which I think is so cute. So we walk over to the snack area and he tells me that he orders it all by himself, which again, I think is so cute. He orders, takes the cup the lady gives him and heads over to fill it up. He likes to layer all the different colors of slush, which was 5 layers. We sit down with his popcorn and slushy and I think, now this is what I am talking about. Enjoying the little moments of sweetness, listening to his precious little baby talk and watching him enjoy his snacks. We had been sitting there for almost 30 seconds when he announces that, “I have to go pooh pooh, Nana” . Of course, Jodi is long gone, not to be found anywhere, so I pick up the popcorn, his drink, my drink and purse and we head to the bathroom. Caleb informs me that I need to pick him up and set him on the seat. How do mom’s do this with their arms full? I looked for a halfway clean spot to set down the food and place Caleb on the potty. Of course, there are no potty liners. After a minute in his loudest precious little voice, he announces, “Nana, I have to push the big one out, but my eyeballs might fall out if I push too hard.” I hear laughter coming from the next stall. We finish, wash our hands, pick up our drinks and popcorn and head out to find Jodi. We find her. There she is waiting on the isle by the $1 bins. When Noah see us, he starts waving his little arms and hits her giant Dr Pepper, which we had just gone through McDonalds to get, out of the cup holder onto the floor. We now hear, “clean up on isle 2, clean up on isle 2”. We just look at each other and start to giggling. We look behind us to see that Caleb has retrieved the cookies out of my purse that I had brought with us to bribe him into doing something he might not want to do, only to see cookie crumbs training behind us. We decide we need to leave as soon as we can. This is only day 2. Our dream of getting away from the kids and going to do something just by ourselves is quickly vanishing. By the time day 3 approaches, we have recovered from the dr.’s office, the Target visit and the grocery store.

This week found me sitting in the pediatrician’s office with Noah, yep, double ear infection. Dropping off Jaden at school, picking up Jaden at school, asking him if he had remembered his planner that he is suppose to bring home everyday. When he says , “oops, I forgot” I send him back in the school, pull out of line to park to wait for him. When he comes out, there are so many cars in line behind me we have to wait for about 15 min before we can back out of the parking space. Yes, this week brought back many many memories.

By Friday, the day to return home, all the little incidents that wore us out at the time they were happening, have turned into funny precious memories. Why then, when you are exhausted from getting kids in and out of car seats, sitting in pee on the potty seat, washing at least 50 plastic glasses every day and eating more fast food than you have eaten in a year, do I cry when I have to leave? It’s because no matter the situation, no matter the effort or energy it takes, these are the memories and the people that make life  special. They are a way of looking back into the past and remembering our kids, growing up and trying to figure out, “did I learn anything from the first go around”. Sometimes the answer is yes and sometimes it is no, but no matter what, visits will always be  special memories in Goofyville. Next stop, Dallas to keep our 8 year old grandson, Sevy for a week, while his parents go out of town. Already my mind is envisioning how Sevy will be so excited when he sees Nana at the airport. STOP IT NANA!!! Slow it down, remember,  he is now 8, not 3…I need to prepare myself for “hi Nana, want to take me to Game Stop”? Ah…another precious?? memory..

This summer we will be making the trip to visit our daughter in Orlando where there is a sweet little almost 3 year old feminine girl just waiting to be spoiled. I bet I won’t have to sit in pee or listen for the “big one to drop”, that week. That week there will be tea parties, buying pink dresses and nail painting to be done. There I go again….STOP IT, Nana…..

Cakes · Fruit

Strawberries & Cream Cake

Taken straight from the new Southern Living, this cake will absolutely “WOW” your guests as it should be the centerpiece of your Easter table.

2 cups sifted cake flour

2 1/2 teas baking powder

1/2 teas table salt

1 1/4 cups sugar, divided

1/2 cup oil

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

4 large egg yolks

8 large egg whites

1 teas cream of tartar

Strawberry jam filling (use either Smuckers strawberry jam) or use the recipe given from SL which is:

4 cups mashed fresh strawberries

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 (3 oz) package strawverry-flavored gelatin

Stir together strawberries and sugar in a large saucepan; let stand 30 min. Bring strawberry mixture to a boil over medium heat; boil 5 min. Remove from heat, and stir in gelatin until dissolved; cool completely. Cover and chill 8 hours

StraPreheat oven to 350.  Stir together first 3 ingredients and 1 cup sugar in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of mixture and add oil and next 2 ingredients, and 1/4 cup water. Beat at medium high speed with mixer 3-4 min or until smooth.

Beat egg whits and cream of tartar at medium high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tables at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. Gently stir 1/4 of egg white mixture into flour mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Spoon batter into 6 greased and floured 8″ round cake pans.  (you can buy disposable aluminum 8″ cake pans)

Bake at 350 for 2-15 min or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 min; remove from pans to wire racks and cool completely.

Place 1st cake layer on a pretty serving plate. Spread filling between cake layers leaving a 1/4″ border around edges. (this is about 2/3 cup jam on each layer. Do not put jam on top layer. If you use the cooked SL recipe, you will need to cover the cake and place in fridge at least 8 hours.

Strawberry Frosting:

1 tables strawberry-flavored gelatin

2 tables boiling water

1 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 (8 oz) container sour cream

Stir together first 2 ingredients in a small bowl. Cool completely for about 20 min. Beat whipping cream and geletin together at high speed with mixer until foamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until soft peaks form. Stir in sour cream, 1/4 cup at a time, stirring just until blended after each addition. Cover sides and top of cake with Frosting. Decorate with colored sugar or edible flowers or any garnish that you desire.

Casseroles · Starches · Vegetables

Potato, Artichoke & Mushroom Saute

Please, if you picked up the momma or daddy artichokes, put them down and back away, this recipe is only good with “baby artichokes”. If you will notice, this is now 3, count them, 3 days in a row I am posting a recipe that does not include sugar. What is wrong with me???? Maybe it is the new different color I had put on my nails yesterday.

As I am writing this with blue fingernail polish, yes, you heard me correctly, blue, actually Easter Egg blue, it has dawned on me that both you and I need to get out of our comfort zones and have something on the Easter Table next week besides, ham, baked beans, potato salad, deviled eggs and coconut cake for dessert. Let’s surprise our friends and family with some new dishes, served with love, with fingernails that have blue, green or yellow polish, which goes lovely with the dyed Easter eggs. This again, comes from the Food & Wine book. Randy told me that since he had to pay $29.99 for this recipe book, I had better use it quite a bit. So get ready, you are going to see some new fancy recipes for awhile, or at least until he forgets about me insisting on keeping it. I only have 30 days to try it for free, and since I cannot cook all the ones that sound amazing in 30 days, I told him I just had to keep it. This truly does sound delis and I am making it for Easter.

Since it won’t be Easter dinner without deviled eggs, go ahead and serve them alongside this dish and tell them that the Devil Egged You Do It!

3 medium red potatoes (about 1/2 pound) Sliced about 1/4″ thick

Salt

1 large can artichoke hearts, drained

1/2 lemon

4 tables unsalted butter

1/4 cup white dry wine

1/2 pound shitake mushrooms, stems discarded and caps quartered

1 medium shallot, minced (or white onion, if you cannot make yourself buy a shallot)

1 oz aged hard goat cheese, such as Gouda or Etude (I am going to be honest here, I have never heard of Etude, so will be using Gouda)

In a small saucepan, cover the potatoes with water. Add a large pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Simmer the potatoes until they are tender. Drain and cool.

Take the drained artichoke hearts and squeeze the lemon over them.

In a small skillet, melt 1 tables of the butter. Add artichokes to the skillet and cook a few minutes, stirring a few times. About 2 minutes. Add the white wine and bring to a boil.

Set aside. In a large skillet, melt 1 tables butter and add the mushrooms and season with salt. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms are browned and tender, about 4 min. Push the mushrooms to one side of the skillet and add the remaining 2 tables butter. Add the minced shallot (or onion) and cook until softened. Add potatoes, season with salt and turn to coat them with the butter. Cook until the potatoes are golden brown, (about 2 min per side) Gently fold in the mushrooms along with the artichokes and season with salt and pepper. Garnish with shaved cheese and serve.

Casseroles · Chicken · Meats · Soups

Chicken & Biscuits in a Pot

The last few days it has been such a delight and look through several new cookbooks that have come in the mail. One recipe that has caught my eye and sounds just like such a comfort food, yet, it comes from Food & Wine, which normally, I wouldn’t think of when I am thinking “comfort food”, but it just goes to show you that once again, you “cannot judge a book by it’s cover” Also, don’t know if you have noticed, but this is actually 2 days in a row that I am posting recipes that don’t have sugar in them. Am I getting healthy or what?

6 tables unsalted butter

2 shallots, thinly sliced (or 1/2 cup chopped onion)

1/2 pound shitake mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced

1 large carrot, cut into 1/2″ chunks

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 1/4 cup plus 1 table self rising flour

2 1/2 cups chicken broth

salt & pepper to taste

3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken

1/2 cup frozen baby peas, (because we don’t like peas, we will be using green beans)

1 tables each: chopped sage and thyme

1/2 cup plus 2 tables whole milk

Preheat oven to 425. In a large dutch oven or cast iron casserole pan, melt 2 tables of the butter. Add the shallots, (you can use onions in place of shallots if you wish, I won’t send the shallot police looking for you.) mushrooms and carrot chunks and cook over medium heat, stirring until the shallots (onions) and mushrooms are softened, about 8 min.

Add wine and cook until completely evaporated, about 1 min. Stir in 1 tables of the flour and the broth and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer until thick, about 3 min. Stir in the chicken and peas (or green beans).

In a food processor, combine the remaining 1 1/4 cups of flour with the remaining 4 tables of butter and the chopped thyme and sage. Pulse 5 times. Add the whole milk just until a shot dough forms.

Using a small ice cream scoop (hurry and clean the ice cream scoop so you can have some ice cream while this is in the oven) or a tablespoon, scoop 20 balls of biscuit dough oven the chicken stew. Bake in the center of the oven for 25 min. Turn on the broiler and broil the stew for 1-2 min until the biscuits are golden. Let rest for 5 min before serving.  

Baking this dish takes the guessing out of how long you have to actually boil dumplings to get them just right. 

 

 

Salads

Summer Slaw

Springtime has sprung! Get those capris and pretty sandals out and plan a backyard feast! What better time to eat outdoors before the sun is out in full force making us take our plates inside. You might have noticed that I hardly ever post a salad. It’s not that I don’t like salad, I truly do and order them quite frequently. I just have never been a good salad maker. Also, with there being so little tummy room, I just have always chose to fill up the tummy space with other things, like chicken fried steak, meatloaf, chocolate pie, mashed potatoes. You get the idea. But…every once in a while, I come across a salad that catches my eye and looks so simple, that I even try to skip over the baking isle at the grocery store and head over to the fresh veggies. Knowing that Easter is just a week and a half away, this recipe will go great with the potato salad I know you must be having alongside the ham or barbecue. This one will even please any vegan that happens to be there.

2 (12 oz) bags broccoli slaw mix

1 large red bell pepper, finely chopped

1 large yellow bell pepper, finely chopped

1/2 cup chopped grean onion

1 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

2 teas Dijon mustard

1 teas celery seed

1 teas salt

1 teas black pepper

1/2 cup extra-light olive oil

In medium bowl, combine slaw mix, red and yellow peppers and green onion. In a separate bowl, combine vinegar, sugar, mustard, celery seed, salt and pepper. Whisk until sugar dissolves. Gradually whisk in oil until well blended.

Pour vinegar mixture over slaw mixture and toss until combined. Cover and place in fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.

Now, there, I have posted a healthy salad, so tomorrow I can go back to my regular sugary, starchy, buttery recipes.

Daily Thoughts · Desserts

Paula Deen Bread Pudding

I did it!!!!! I got out of my comfort zone and made bread pudding. I don’t know why it has taken me so long to do this, but the time was just right. The french loaf was just staring at me at the grocery store and not being able to pass by the hot fresh bread, it somehow ended up in my basket. At home, it dawned on me that this one be the perfect time to make an old fashioned bread pudding and who else would I think about having just the best recipe for this….Dear Sweet Paula. Well, here it is folks and even Randy, who is not a “bread pudding” guy because he says he doesn’t like warm desserts, ate 3 helpings yesterday. It was so simple and the sauce is amazing. I did change a couple of things, adding cinnamon to the pudding and a little whipping cream to the sauce. I know Paula would be proud.

2 cups sugar

5 large beaten eggs

2 cups milk

2 teas vanilla

3 cups cubed French bread, (allow to stale overnight in a bowl, I didn’t do this and it was still so yummyImage)

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 teas cinnamon

1/4 cup (1/2 stick of cold butter)

1 cup chopped pecans

Sauce:

1 cup granulated sugar

1 stick butter

1 egg, beaten

2 teas vanilla

2 tables whipping cream

1/4 cup brandy

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 13×9″ pan. Mix together the sugar, eggs and milk in a bowl; add vanilla. Place bread cubes in greased 13×9 and pour egg mixture over cubed bread and let sit for 10 min. (I used about 4 cups of the cubed bread, as 3 cups didn’t quite cover the bottom of the pan)

While mixture is sitting and resting, in another bowl, cut in cold butter with the brown sugar, cinnamon until it resembles crumbs. Stir in pecans. Sprinkle evenly over bread mixture and then place in oven for about 35-40 min or until top is slightly browned and mixture is set. Remove from oven and let sit for about 15 min. Serve with sauce.

Sauce:

Mix together the sugar, butter, egg, vanilla and whipping cream in a saucepan. Stirring continually, bring mixture to where it is just beginning to boil, but take off heat before it does boil. Add the brandy and stir until combined. Drizzle sauce over squares of pudding on individual plates.

Daily Thoughts

A Trip Down Memory Lane, (Oops, I mean to CVS)

Yesterday was a turning point in both of our lives. Randy had taken off work because of some back problems and we had an appt with a doctor, hoping to see if he had an answer as to why RC’s back is hurting so much. We survived the “new patient” ordeal quite well and then drove to Walmart to get his new prescription filled. Because he was still not feeling well, he  said he would stay in the car while I went inside to get the meds, all the while feeling so proud of how I was taking care of “my man” when he was enduring really bad back pain. From inside the store,  I called his cell phone to let him know that it was going to take 30 min for them to fill the prescriptions and that I would just stay in the store and wait until I heard my name being called that the meds were ready. He didn’t answer. I thought, “poor thing, he must have fallen asleep in the car and doesn’t even hear the phone ringing,” so I went merrily on my way down the isles at Walmart, picking up a few necessary items, we would need for the weekend, such as cocoa, butter, chocolate Easter candy to nibble on, ice cream, you know, the necessities of life. When I hear my name called, I rush over to the pharmacy to get the medicine that my poor hubby is needing and rush out to the car. I find him, drinking McDonalds coffee and emailing his office. When I ask him about the coffee, he reminds me that he can get a Senior Coffee at McDonalds inside Walmart so he had gone inside to get himself a cup of coffee. It took me a minute to grasp the idea that he was too sick to go inside to get the medicine, but he wasn’t too sick to go inside to get a cup of cheap coffee. I will not be sharing my Easter candy with Mr. Down In the Back. We then head over to CVS to pick up the other things that the Dr suggested might help Randy and the pain he is having that Walmart didn’t have (which I found out after going up and down each isle while Mr. Sicko was “waiting in the car drinking his coffee”) Sorry, a little hostility escaping my thoughts. Anyway, we drive into CVS and I tell him I will be right back and will go in to get the necessary items needed for his “comfort”. He tells me that he needs to get out of the car to try to loosen his back and walk a bit hoping that the shot they had given him is starting to take effect. So now we “hobble” into CVS and as we are looking for the items, we come across a “pill caddy”. Neither one of us has ever seen this. It is a little metal caddy that attaches to your key ring that carries pills. We are standing there looking at it and I remark, “how cute is this” when all of a sudden it dawns on us. We are standing in a medicine isle at a pharmacy, gawking at a “pill caddy” and actually commenting on “how cute” and “how cool” this is and we just look at each other and it dawns on us. Are we now old? Where did the days of looking at cute little “flasks” that carries your favorite wine go? When did standing in a CVS while waiting for a prescription to be filled, looking at pill caddies, start to be fun? OMGosh! We slowly backed away (actually right now, that is his only choice, slowly doing everything, poor guy) and  I hobbled quickly over to the makeup isle and he over to the magazine isle to look through Road and Track. We just pray that no one saw us holding the pill caddy in our hands. That is just not cool and hip. In case they did see us, I loudly yelled over to Randy, “honey, did you want to go ahead and buy that pill caddy for your older brother as a stocking stuffer for next Christmas, I will meet you at the check out counter as soon as I decide on which Sun Tan Lotion to buy” Whew….we knew then that we had entered a season that we are not ready to enter. So we came home, reorganized  and refilled our plastic pill cases with the new meds and turned on our recorded Wheel of Fortune from the night before because we fell asleep before we could watch it,  to remind ourselves that we certainly are not ready to be “old”.

Uncategorized

Chocolate Castles

Got your attention now, who ever thought of having enchiladas at Easter? After you see this recipe, you might be inclined to push the ham away and get to the store to buy tortillas and cilantro. These are delicious and the cream cheese in them make them extra special for that pretty Easter buffet.

1 cup diced sweet onion (or if you are in a sour mood, I guess you could use a mean onion)

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups fresh chopped baby spinach

2 (4.5 oz) cans chopped green chiles, drained

3 cups shredded cooked chicken

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened *You can use the low fat cream cheese if you really really want, but just don’t get to skinny to fit into that new Easter outfit.

2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese (I used cheddar just because I like the flavor better than the jack…

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Cakes · Fruit

Robert E Lee Bundt Cake

My neighbor, Nancy and her twin sister, Sally (if you read An Era Gone By a few months ago on the blog, you will remember they are 80 year old twin sisters, who are just the cutest and dearest things, ever, and love cooking magazines.) I come home quite frequently to find the magazines they have finished going through on the table outside my front door. It is such a favorite thing of mine to just sit and look through different recipes. One that they buy and share with me is called, Southern Living Comfort Food, which is a take off from Southern Living Magazine that comes out with special issues. This cake intrigued me. Is it called REL Bundt cake because he made up the recipe?, or because it was one of his fav’s? or just because someone in the south made up this wonderful pound cake, or someone whose dream was to be REL?  Which ever the reason, it is a great cake for our Easter season with it’s fruity theme and gorgeous garnishes.

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup shortening (Crisco)

3 cups granulated sugar

6 large eggs

3 cups flour

1/2 teas baking powder

1/8 teas salt

1 cup milk

4 teas orange zest, divided

2 teas lemon zest, divided

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

2 cups powdered sugar

2-3 tables fresh orange juice

Garnishes: fresh raspberries, strawberries, gooseberries (I always want to type goosebumps), fresh mint sprigs

Preheat oven to 325. Beat butter and shortening with mixer until creamy. Gradually add granulated sugar beating at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.

Stir together: flour, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in 2 teas orange zest, 1 teas lemon zest and 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice. Pour batter into a greased and floured 10″ bundt pan.

Bake at 325 for 1 hour and 5 min to 1 hour and 15 min or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Do not over bake. Watch closely the last few minutes of baking. Cool in pan on a wire rack about 10 min and then remove from pan. Cool completely. Whisk together the powdered sugar and rest of lemon and orange zest and orange juice. Spoon over cake, Garnish with fresh fruit on platter to serve.