In the Kitchen – The Welcome Home

Cake Pops

A little more traveling around… this time, I want to share with you a fun idea: Cake Pops!

You’ve no doubt seen these in shoppes and Starbucks… but you don’t need to pay the high price to try one of these or to share them with your family. You can make them at home — and, just the way your family would like them!

Here you go:

This woman is soooo fun to listen to — I watched a few more of her videos. Then, following the link to her site, I sure think she’s got a great site going there! I think you’ll like the ideas/methods, too. Especially if you’ve slid into a slump in the cooking and serving department! Sometimes all you need is a little nudge, a picture of creativity at work and some new ideas to spark enthusiasm for serving your family! If you’re in a slump, do not — I repeat — do not stay there. It’s homemaker suicide to stay in a slump and wallow there. Believe me, the price is too high – you don’t want to pay that price — wait, you CANNOT afford to do it!

You can view more of her videos *or* you can visit her site, Divas Can Cook for more great cooking tips, recipes and serving ideas. Go!

A Well Stocked Pantry and a PPP List

You might consider taking a good look into your pantry… what you’ve got on hand, what do you use most often and what’s lacking?

Then, if you have them, take a look at your most recent grocery receipts – most stores give enough description for you to cipher what’s on the receipt. This is probably the easiest way to start a food pantry shopping/stock list. A well stocked pantry is invaluable for many reasons — not only does it save you a great deal on so many levels, you also have many more options for mealtimes, unplanned extra dinner guests and a “rainy day” stash. So, stocking a pantry really makes ¢ents bcz good planning really will save you time and money. Now, you may already do this, and if so, you know what I mean. But, on the other hand, but if you haven’t done this, or don’t have much experience or incentive to do so, maybe I can encourage you a little bit, prod you along a little bit — it’s really easy to get started and to build little by little here and there — you’ll be pleasantly surprised how easy this is (and how glad you’ll be to have it underway). It’s sort of like another idea I’ve shared from time to time regarding building a freezer meal reserve (by occasionally doubling or tripling recipes: serving one and freezing one or two). As you’re able, whenever you grocery shop, buy an additional item or a few additional items. With this in mind each time, you’ll be shopping more wisely as you’ll be more apt to shop from a prepared list. Occasionally you might plan to buy two of each item: storing one, using one.

Now, the quantities of the foods in your pantry will be entirely up to you and to your family’s needs. Stored in large glass jars or Food-Saver bags or Seal-a-Meal bags and/or other food storage containers (of course, commercially packaged or canned goods will have a longer shelf life, for the most part). Any or all on the following list (use it as a springboard to make your own!) — depending on your family food preferences and other dietary needs and what you/they really do like and really will eat. It’s foolish to simply stock up on what lasts longest or stores best if you/your family will not actually like or eat it… and you’ll regret it. This is not a TEOTWAWKI (the-end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it) list — it’s a “consider the ant” list, it’s a prepared mother’s prudently planned pantry list. Thus, when you shop, think: PPP :o)

Water
Rice, Quinoa, Couscous, Assorted dry beans (navy, pinto, kidney, black, red, pink, garbanzo), Lentils, Assorted noodles – pasta (think of a variety your family likes)
Tomatoes (sauce, whole, stewed, pureed, diced)
Chicken, Vegetable, Beef, Tomato stock (home canned or purchased)
Canned meat – tuna, salmon, beef, chicken chili, turkey (home canned or purchased)
Canned sauce (home-canned or grocery) Spaghetti, hollandaise, marinara, flavoured oils
Canned vegetables, pumpkin, peas, navy beans, chili beans, black beans, pintos (I don’t store too many canned beans since we have all these in dry form — saves space, etc).
Additional canned items such as olives, water chestnuts, artichoke hearts, capers, peppers, chiles, etc.
Canned fruits (home-canned or grocery) peaches, pears, plums, applesauce, pineapple, etc.
Seasonings, Sea salt, Pepper, Assorted spices — (consider what you most commonly use in your recipes) cinnamon, cayenne, curry, garlic salt, dehydrated onion and garlic, etc., etc.
Sauces, hot sauce, salsa, ketchup, mustard, pickles, mayonnaise
Vanilla, Almond, Peppermint, Lemon, Maple extracts
Honey, Agave nectar
Olive Oil, Vegetable Oil, Coconut oil, Shortening, Balsamic Vinegar, White Vinegar
Powdered milk, buttermilk, evaporated milk
Jelly and Jam — so easy to make
Cereals (package well for freshness) oatmeal, farina, rice
Dried fruits, fruit leather, raisins, chocolate chips, coconut, Jell-o, pudding mix
Baking Cupboard supplies: Wheat berries (if you have a grinder — highly recommended), flour, cornmeal (rotate often), sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch, condensed milk, raw sugar, golden and dark brown sugar, powdered sugar, condensed milk (sweetened and unsweetened), molasses, sorghum, corn syrup, gelatin, tapioca
Peanut butter, Almond butter, Nutella (be sure to rotate these often)
Nuts and seeds — also rotate frequently as these tend to spoil more rapidly due to the oil content.
Coffee, teas, hot-chocolate mix
Paper products, towels, napkins, plastic bags, wraps, foil, etc.

Keep the shelves wiped down, the jars and containers clean so that you don’t attract pests (and this gives you an opportunity to examine your ‘stock’ from time to time.

Then… be sure to have some very basic items on hand:

Well stocked first aid kit: Aspirin, tylenol, Grapefruit-seed extract, Garlic extract, Alcohol, Hydrogen peroxide, swabs, gauze, bandaids, teatree oil, soap, tweezers, cotton, bandages — this list could include many more items, tinctures, etc.
Prescriptions, baking soda, apple-cider vinegar
Personal toiletries, toothpaste, deodorant, etc., toilet paper, fem products as needed, essential oils.
Basic cleaning: Soap, Vinegar, Baking Soda, Ammonia, Bleach, scrub-brush bucket
Matches, Kerosene for Oil Lamps (remember wicks), Flashlights/batteries, candles, lightbulbs
firewood, kettle, water, propane (if you have a campstove)
blankets/tent

Cookies… and more.

Of all the cookbooks I have — and I have many — surely, among my favourites are by Susan Branch — the different “Heart of the Home” cookbooks I began receiving as gifts after Kathryn was born in 1986. They were then, and are now, among my treasured books — not only bcz I have enjoyed the recipes so much, but also bcz the books are simply lovely to read… you’ll see.

This afternoon, I received her email-newsletter — which I will save — as I do each newsletter she sends. They’re far too beautiful not to keep and far too useful to delete! I think you’ll enjoy her site… her books, her ideas, her gifts and fabrics. Browse her site HERE — that’s why I entitled this blog entry “Cookies and more.” The *more* is her site. Yes, I’m a fan.

Click any Cookie name in the picture and a cookie recipe will open or View HERE to see the specific cookie you’re looking for. To see all the different recipes in this and any other category of food. You’ll love any one of these cookie recipes — they’re always just perfect!!

To contact Susan – reply to comments on her BLOG; she reads them all. Susan Branch has a Fan Club on Facebook! Click HERE for the “Friends of Susan Branch (F.O.S.B.)” page. See the Susan Branch channel on YouTube HERE. To sign up to receive her “Willard” Email Newsletter, Click HERE. www.susanbranch.com Copyright ©2011 SusanBranch.com. All rights reserved.

Write It All Down Before You Forget

If you spend time with me… you know it won’t be very long before you notice me writing something down. I write lots of notes — I even write notes about notes.

Well, tonight in this “write it all down before you forget” blog entry, I actually want to encourage you to add more to your kitchen counter journal or your kitchen log. If you don’t have one, may I encourage you do get a notebook — preferably an inexpensive, but thick, “half sheet size” spiral notebook that you can keep in your kitchen to record your daily chores and activities, calls, appointments, lists, etc. I know this might seem archaic to women who think palm-pilots are old relics and who don’t even use a PC anymore — but seriously, there’s something about pen and paper — the visual and tangible.

So, what you might want to do is write down on a few different pages: lists. You might have a “from now till year’s end” list and you might have a garden list and you might have a basic home maintenance and repair list. These lists are sort of running lists that you’ll add to and cross off (you might reserve a section of pages at the beginning of your notebook for such lists). Things might remain on your list for a long time — years even — these aren’t like shopping lists or activity to do lists — these are more permanent/ongoing lists. Don’t fret over what you don’t have — just work to appreciate what you do have and take care of it. If you cannot replace/improve it, learn to appreciate it. Cultivate a thankful heart. Write down “thankfulness” verses from the Bible. That might be a page of your kitchen counter notebook.

Write it down… before you forget.

I’m suggesting this tonight because this is sort of the lull of autumn (at least here in the States) and, like the month of March, is a great time to get some things done… before the next big push. The last big push — around here, anyway, was to get outdoors: gardening, planting, outside repairs, and then the next big push was the food preservation – jams, jellies, canning and freezing – all the “putting up” for winter. Well, now it’s the other side… now it’s time to put everything away outside, get ready for the colder days and longer nights… it’s time to do the indoor repairs, a well stocked pantry, setting in the wood, candles, flashlights & batteries, lamp oil and other preparations and necessities. All the things you might want to do before the next big push… celebrations and family times. You may want to use this time for a really good deep cleaning of your home — every room, top to bottom, inside out. Wash and iron the curtains, wash walls, ceilings, touch up paint and whatever else you might consider needing to do.

Write it down… before you forget.

And, before you forget… maybe one more list:
What were you glad you did this past year? Write down what you’d like to repeat next year.
What were you glad you planted in the garden and yard?
What sort of garden did you envision and what really happened?
Now… write down the plans you want to hold onto for next year’s garden, next spring, next summer…

There’s a phrase and, sadly, I know it to be so true: Fail to plan = plan to fail.
But I like this better: Make a plan… Make a good plan… and follow through. This is my encouragement; again, I know it to be true: Your plans will work if you will work your plans.

Look up and write down verses on industriousness and slothfulness, hard work and laziness… these are great motivators for all of us… as we help our husbands and families.

The cool thing about notebooks is that you can still read and write in them when the power goes out or when the batteries are dead or when the phone lines are down. ;o) ♥

Autumn’s ushering in Winter

It’s sure chilly-chilly here tonight!! The forecast even includes snow! Suddenly it seems to be just fine to give up wishing for warmer days and working in the garden for the year — for now, baking season is here! And around our home it’s time for “special requests.” By this, I mean that it’s time for everyone to submit this year’s favourites for me to bake — or, better said, this year’s update to the list of things “we have to have ________” for Thanksgiving and Christmas!

Confession: I simply cannot keep track of who likes what and who doesn’t like what for the traditional Thanksgiving meal. So, I decided a few years ago to sort of announce the menu (though the menu doesn’t change a whole lot) and that’s when I really find out this or that child doesn’t really like this or that menu item. And then, too, I have a few others who say something like: we have to have_______!

Some recipes never change and some have sort of evolved as children have aged, tastes have matured and new favourites have come into play. Some things I don’t make bcz they just don’t taste the same as they used to taste — for example, my dear mother-in-law always used to make the most delicious layered jello salad for both Thanksgiving and Christmas… she’s living far away now and so that dish is just one of those sweet lingering memories.

Some of the must have’s include turkey — of course, fresh cranberry relish, russian cream, potato rolls, sweet potato casserole and… pies. Lots of pumpkin pies — otherwise, what would they eat for breakfast on Thanksgiving morning?? 😉 Each year I’ve been working at making sure there are lots of things from the garden for the Thanksgiving meal. So, this year from the garden we’ll have carrots, potatoes, pumpkin, pickles, raspberries to top the russian cream, apples & walnuts in the salad and pies. I’ve been making walnut pies using a standard pecan pie recipe.

Since we have walnut trees and a bazillion walnuts, it doesn’t seem all that prudent to buy pecans — though I must say pecans are pretty tasty! So… Monday’s the first “pie day.” Besides those, this year I’ll be adding Swedish Pear and Almond Cream Cake and Hazelnut pie to the dessert menu. We didn’t have much of a blueberry crop this year and though the blackberries were plentiful this year, we were attending to other things and the blackberries didn’t get picked — so, no blueberry pie, no blackberry pie this year.

I’m so looking forward to this week in the kitchen… thankful for so many things… and the beautiful music in the background.

But another confession: I do not – do not – like the smell of turkey cooking in the oven. Or turkey broth simmering on the stove. But I like cold turkey the day after Thanksgiving. And simmering cinnamon, cloves and oranges make the kitchen smell soooo sweet.

My First Pie

My first pie was probably the best pie I’ve ever made — though my mama tells me that a fresh blackberry pie I made something like eight years after that first pie was the best pie I ever made. I don’t know if either one was really the best — but in my fond memories, or the events that have made the greatest impression on me are those events that were ‘first’s’ — those attempts at achieving perfection with no experience — it was the best pie.

Perfection doesn’t necessarily come from doing something hundreds of times — but is something done well hundreds of times — that’s what makes for “perfection.” I’m finally beginning to see that the adage “practice makes perfect” isn’t necessarily correct. For something done wrong — especially done wrong hundreds of times — is still wrong. But something done right over and over and over becomes something done perfectly well.

I’m learning is that nothing is ever perfect. But you know what else? Close is really good enough. In cooking, that is.

My first pie…

Just south of where we were married in San Francisco, my husband and I rented our first home — a small apartment with a very small galley type kitchen. I was attempting to create and make a home for the two of us and Wes’s two cats. Nothing seemed to speak home to me more than pie. I removed the packaging and opened my beautiful new Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook… and saw the photograph of Apple Pie… recipe on page…

I carefully wrote down all I’d need to make that pie (along with Fried Chicken – but that’s another First story for another day). I went to our local market and bought all I needed for that dinner. I recall spending $176. Yes. One-hundred-seventy-six dollars. Two people. Yes, that, too, is another First story for another day.

I carefully put away in the little cabinets and in the little fridge all the different groceries. I opened my cookbook, got out all my new baking stuff… my huge(!) mixing bowl set ;o) and measuring cups and spoons. I got out all the necessary ingredients. I read the recipe again. Hmmm.

I called my husband at work and asked him: When the recipe says to pare and core the apples, does that mean take off the skin and stuff and cut it up? He told me he thought that sounded about right. ;o)

It was the best apple pie I’ve ever made.