When all else fails..."SUGAR COAT IT!"

Friday, December 31, 2010

5 Items or LESS: Cheesy Tortilla Dogs

Like all truly great creations, the ice cream cone, the potato chip, the microwave, I stumbled upon this 5 Item or Less recipe by accident.  I couldn't make up my mind (a regular occurrence food wise) between a cheese tortilla and a hot dog, when I was hit w/ a stroke of brilliance, COMBINE THEM!!! This makes a virtually mess free cheesy hot dog good for on the go or just for a quick, protein rich, snack.    

What you will need:

A tortilla (I used whole wheat)
Cheese of your choice
A hot dog


1.) Lay out the tortilla and right in the center place a line of cheese. On top of the cheese place the hot dog.

2.) Microwave on a microwave safe plate for 1-1and 1/2 minutes or until cheese is melted and hot dog is hot.



 



3.) Wrap the tortilla around the hot dog. Start by folding the bottom of the tortilla up to form a closed bottom.

4.) ENJOY!!

Thursday, December 30, 2010

All Tied Up

I love the opportunity to bring new life to old items and while exploring www.freekidscrafts.com (See my "sites I cannot live without" section and click on "Lots of Simple Kids Crafts" to link there straight from this blog.) I found a tie t-shirt.  Ever seen the no-sew tie blankets? It's those only with a t-shirt! So much fun!! I had just finished making 6 tie blankets for Christmas presents and was a little tired of the process, but this looked too intriguing and I am always up for a new item in my wardrobe.  I won't bore you w/ the entire process. If you are interested you can check out this link: Recycled Knotted Tee Shirt


The one thing I will say is make sure the t-shirt you use is really big on you.  I used a t-shirt that was 1-2 sizes too big and it's almost a little too snug for my taste, but it's still unique and something I will use.  I am interested to try this on a woman's size shirt and use it as a swimsuit cover up for my girls this upcoming summer.  I'm also going to scan the thrift store racks for an XXXXXXXL sized men's tee to turn into a swimsuit cover for me. Okay maybe not that many X's but you get the idea.  Here are the pictures of the finished product. My prototype if you will. I have some things I want to tweak for my next one. :)

Sunday, December 26, 2010

5 Items or LESS: Sugar and Spice Tasteeos

WELCOME!! To a new segment I am going to try called 5 Items or LESS
We've all been there, those days when all we need to do is run in and run out of the grocery store and what we treasure more than the few minutes w/o the kids to make the mad dash is the beckoning sign under register #1 "10 items or less." Just as our trips in and out of the store need to be quick, often times our trips in and out of the kitchen need to be just as time efficient.  I don't know about your family, but mine is running as short on cash as it is on time making drive-thrus a luxury not a necessity. So once a week I would like to share with you a quick and simple meal or snack that was a big hit and only required 5 ingredients for me to make. 

This week I stumbled upon a recipe on the back of our off-brand Cheerio box.  I scanned it over and thought, "huh, that sounds quick, simple, and yummy."  Well tonight I was having an attack of pre-road trip insanity as the list of things to do before we leave for my mom and dad's house in the morning filled my mind.  I ran to the bathroom w/ my cell phone and sent my husband this text:  "WARNING: this is not a test of the emergency my wife is going crazy system. This is the real thing. Had this been only a test your wife wouldn't have locked herself in the bathroom to text you." With my S.O.S. sent and my deep breath taken I decided to "sugar coat it." What is better than a little baking therapy? 

I opened up the cabinet and pulled out the cereal box to return to the recipe I sighted earlier in the week. 


3Tbs margarine or butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 cups Tasteeos

You can do this in either a skillet on the stove or in the microwave w/ a large microwave safe bowl. 

1.) Melt the butter
2.) Stir in Sugar and Cinnamon. Mix Well
3.) Add cereal, stirring until all pieces are evenly coated
4.) Spread on waxed paper to cool
5.) Store in an airtight container (i.e. ziplock bag)
6.) ENJOY!!!!

These really taste like a honey nut cheerio to me.  Katie even asked if there was honey in them. I calmed down after my "therapy session" and now the girls have a snack for the car ride tomorrow. If my husband and I don't eat them all tonight after they have gone to bed!

*Just a little disclaimer, Cheerios, Tasteeos and Ziplock are all registered trademarks of companies. In case  you weren't aware. :P

Saturday, December 25, 2010

I have a MUM and a MOM

Sarah and I in High School
It's Christmas day and my husband is at work. (He works at a treatment center for troubled youth.) My girls are sitting at the table counting their new tubs of Play-doh and I am sitting on the couch w/ a Diet Coke counting my blessings.  I was privileged enough growing up to have one of those friends who is so much more than a friend, she is my sister. She is the second of seven children and her parents lovingly and willingly brought me into the fold calling me "the fifth daughter."

Sarah was born in Hemel Hempstead United Kingdom, and somehow no matter where her dad's job transfers the family, mum makes stepping into their house at Christmastime filled w/ the warmth of a true English Christmas.  There is always Yorkshire pudding with Roast Beef and traditional English Chocolates.  Mum makes the aged fruitcake and if you have the privilege of being at their house at Thanksgiving time also you will often times see the fruitcake making it's first appearance. :) There is warm tea and enriching conversation by the fire that lasts long into the night and often early into the morning.

Last August I was honored to be Sarah's Matron of Honor as she married the most fantastic man in the world for her, Terrance!! Right after the wedding the two of them moved to Arizona where she and Terrance are both pursuing degrees in Psychology. Sarah and I see each other once a year during the holidays when they come back to Missouri to visit Terrance's family and it's a taste of old times, cruising in the car and listening to music and laughing.  The week after Sarah's wedding her family moved to California for her dad's work.  I haven't had the opportunity to see them in person since, though skype and the phone are wonderful things!!

This year Sarah's Family is blessed to have ALL of the kids back in the states for Christmas.  They have all scattered to various corners of the earth and it is rare for them to be in one spot at the same time.  She was telling me of Mum's cooking and I felt quite homesick for my mummy, so I decided if I couldn't go to her, I would bring a taste of mum to me.  I found a recipe for Yorkshire Pudding on www.allrecipes.com. (As I often do. If you haven't checked it out you should it is ADDICTING.) As they popped out of the oven it was if the proper English Christmas came out with them. I took a bite of the first one and.......THERE IT WAS!!!  Thank you God for Christmas Blessings folded in to a few simple ingredients.

I got to share the Yorkshire pudding not only with my husband and children but also with Jake and Becky.  We are extending our English family just a bit further! Love you Mum and Dad!!! Merry Christmas!!!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Quick-and-Easy-Yorkshire-Pudding/Detail.aspx

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

A Stitch in time

My husband grew up in small town Missouri as an accident prone child.  On one occasion he felt the need to climb up a bookshelf to attain an object that had been placed on the top shelf.  Needless to say he fell, and so did the bookshelf.  Right on top of him!

He was in second grade at the time and the ER doctor had a son in the same grade as my husband. (The two boys eventually graduated high school together.)  I'm not exactly sure how many stitches he wound up with, but he was a small kid and it was a BIG bookshelf.  The doctor and nurses presented him with a teddy bear that he got to take home w/ him because of the whole event.  The teddy was aptly named Stitches.

I was first introduced to stitches the first time I met my husband's parents.  I was spending the night in the guest bedroom and at the age of 18 I was still afraid of the dark.  (Yes that's right afraid of the dark, don't make fun.) He was trying so hard to make me feel comfortable. I was far away from home, in a small town as a city girl, in the house of the parents of the man I wanted to marry. He was unsure what to do when all of the sudden his eyes lit up.  He left the guest bedroom and returned w/ a soft little brown bear, "Stitches."

 I have been working on a wreath the past week and it has been sitting several days as I have hit "crafting block"  Last night Becky suggested setting a doll in it.  It sounded kinda like something my Grandma would hang in her house, but I went out to a box of jon's and my childhood memories.  In the box lay Stitches the bear.  The wreath below was the final result and is proudly displayed in our living room.


Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Cupcakes for Christopher

I woke up to a pile of dishes that seemed insurmountable.  I washed until the dish drainer was full and the dishes on top were doing more balancing than drying.  I then began to wash more and fill up the second sink with drying dishes.  The second sink was full and there was still a pile of dishes to be done.
"Oh girls!" I exclaimed, "What is mama going to do w/ these dishes? I have no more room for them."
Katie, in all of her 4 (almost 5) year old wisdom said , "Save 'em for next time I want to make Lightning McQueen cookies!!!"

THAT'S MY GIRL!!! I gathered the remaining dirty dishes into a neat pile next to the sink and began the preparations for race car cookies.  I had a rough idea of what we would do and figured we would also improvise along the way. As I got ready to begin the sugar cookie recipe Katie looked at me with concern and said, "Is there wheat in these cookies mama?"

Christopher, Becky's Son and the only boy of the group, has a wheat allergy. Katie and him have already begun plans for their wedding. They are convinced they will be getting hitched very soon.  So convinced that Christopher invites everyone he comes in contact with to come to the event and the other evening when they were over for dinner he stood up, very grownup like, and announced, "UNCLE JONATHAN I have a very important question... Can I marry Katie?!"

When I informed Katie that there was wheat in the sugar cookies she was very concerned and I told her that I didn't have cookies but I did have a cake mix that we could make for him. (By the way, if you are into the gluten/wheat free diet Becky and I are big supporters of Bob's Red Mill products.)   Cupcakes were a very suitable alternative and we substituted our cookie sheet for muffin tin.  The next thing that hit my mind was the fact that I was out of red food dye.  Oh well, surrounded by two sisters and two girl "cousins" Christopher would be able to handle dark pink instead of red as long as I could convince Katie that it was Red. 
I turned half of my white icing "red" w/ raspberry extract flavoring and the other half "Dinoco" Blue. 

We baked a dozen cupcakes and I poured the remainder of the mix into a heart shaped silicone cake dish my mom had given me a few Valentine's Days ago. The cake was going to be the girls' to decorate any way they wanted.  I covered the cake in the raspberry icing straight out of the oven giving it a bit of a poke cake effect and then let it cool.  After the cupcakes cooled I iced them in the blue and did the designs in our red creation.  Katie decided on the words "Ka-chow, the number 95, a lightning bolt, a checkered flag, and my sad line drawing of Lightning McQueen himself. I drizzled the icing that was left in the piping tube onto the now cooled cake and gave the girls sprinkles to decorate.  I am not sure I am going to be able to find the cake under the sprinkles.

Katie and Abby in their aprons from Great Aunt Judy. Waiting for the cupcakes to bake.

Burying the cake in sprinkles!!!!!


Sprinkle Cake


Lightning McQueen Cupcakes
Libby after enjoying the cupcakes
Tonight Jake and Jonathan (Becky's and My husbands) are replacing the clutch in our car.  So we will be having dinner and dessert. WHEAT FREE!!!

Monday, December 20, 2010

Chocolate Spoons: Fun for the whole family!!

One of the biggest payoffs for me is seeing my kids wanting to join in on the fun.  I am a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to my projects so I have begun giving them their own projects as they request to "help." I think one of the most wonderful projects that takes very little time, effort, and money is making Chocolate Spoons.  They are so much fun for the kids to make and they make great gifts, or just to keep around the house.  My girls eat their morning cereal with them. It makes whole grain cereal a little more fun when the spoon is coated in chocolate :) and recently I took a cupful of them to church to set next to the coffee station.  I like to keep a package of almond bark around the house, you never know when you may need it, and you can pick up a package of plastic spoons at the dollar store.

All you have to do is melt a chunk or two of almond bark according to the package. (There are even microwave directions.) Then give the kids several plastic spoons and tell them to stir the chocolate until the spoon is covered.  I did one example spoon to show them how mommy does it, but after that it was up to them all I had to do was smile and supervise.  Once the spoons are coated to their liking there are a couple ways to let them dry. You can lie them flat on a piece of wax paper or, if you have it around don't make an extra trip for it, you can stick the handles of the spoons into a piece of foam and the spoons dry "standing up."  That is all it really takes. The chocolate will harden and then you can either eat the chocolate off of the spoons or melt the chocolate into warm milk or coffee.  If you are feeling extra adventurous, after the spoons are dipped but before the chocolate has cooled, you can sprinkle them with sprinkles, mini m&ms, or crushed nuts.  This just adds extra dimension both flavor and texture wise. 

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Just a Spoonful of Sugar Makes the Medicine Go Down.

Well, here it goes. I have tried blogging before and it has died off quickly, but I LOVE baking, crafting and photography. I have pictures and crafts filling up my house w/ no purpose other than to say to people..."HEY!! Look at what I did today!!!" Not trying to toot my own horn, just love putting stuff together. I get intense pleasure out of taking the odds and ends I have lying around and making a wreath, or taking a pound of ground beef and a cup of rice and coming up with a unique dining creation to feed 14 people. (Me and my family (4) My best friends and their families (10)) 
I have been known to put my kids in the car and run over to my best friend Becky's house for some much needed "Crafting Therapy." As our kids join together in their bedlam we sit around a large box of ribbon or felt creating/finishing a project and taking deep breaths as we join together in our mommy mantra. "We love our kids, We love our kids." 
Me and Becky and ALL our kids!!
Wreath that I showed up at Becky's house w/ half finished  for Crafting Therapy.


 A cake I decorated for my December Mothers of Preschoolers meeting
 Chocolate covered strawberry cake for my friend Jamie's Surprise party. Even the cake was chocolate strawberry, and I was extra proud because this was my first attempt at Chocolate covered Strawberries. I thought they looked exquisite!
Chocolate Cupcakes filled w/ strawberry mousse. The cup of plain mousse in the middle was for my husband. He is allergic to chocolate. Poor guy!! :P





Nothing brings a smile to  my face more than giving someone one of my creations. Whether it is a craft or a dinner or a baked good.  The fact that making it gave me joy and receiving it gives them joy, makes the process wonderful. Sometimes literally, sometimes figuratively it is the sugar of my life. I see most of the responsibilities of my adult life like taking my medicine.  We never really want to. We most of the time fight it and put it off, knowing the whole while it is in our best interest. But what I have learned is that Mary Poppins had it right. A spoonful of sugar does help the medicine of my life go down a little smoother.