Microwave popcorn in a bag

Hubs eats a lot of popcorn.  It is one of those snacks that is easy on the waistline and diabetic friendly.  We used to buy those ready made popcorn in a bag products that you pop in the microwave until we made the price comparison on regular old popcorn Kernels.  The savings is significant when making your own.  Check out the super simple instructions and have a snack in 3 and 1/2 minutes!

Coffee Cup Food

I have decided, seriously - I need a coffee cup food cook book.  If you're anything like me, I always seem to have a little more than I needed for a recipe of scrambled cooked ground meat, breakfast sausage, 1 or 2 pieces of bacon, or cubed chicken that I stash in a zip lock bag in the freezer.  I always have frozen vegetables too.  Coffee Cup recipes would make a single meal in a few minutes using up those ingredients. Tonight I made french toast in a mug.  I had no idea how much I would like this.  Seriously good.

Coffee Cup French Toast
Ingredients:
2 slices bread
1 egg (I reduced this by using egg substitute =1/2 egg)
1Tablespoon milk
cinnamon
syrup
powdered sugar

1. Cube 2 slices of bread and pile it in the cup.  I used some whole wheat bread I intended to bake croutons out of this week.
2. Crack 1 egg into a separate cup, scramble with a fork or use egg substitue like I did.  I did reduce the egg to 1/2 after the first time I made this and liked it better.  Add 1 tablespoons of milk plus a sprinkle  of cinnamon.  
3. Pour the mixture over the bread cubes. Give it a minute to soak into the bread and gently turn the bread to coat.
4. Microwave one minute, then add ten seconds at a time until it's cooked to your liking. I cooked mine 1 1/2 minutes.
5. Top off with syrup and a dusting of powdered sugar.

Here is the last few bites before I remembered to take a photo!

Here are some other sites I found some great single serve microwave recipes:
fruit muffin:  http://boutthere.com/2011/05/16/the-weekender/

fluffy cake:  http://thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2011/11/aunt-bettys-1-2-3-cake.html

 Cheesecake!  http://www.2stews.com/2009/09/cheesecake-in-mug.html

 

Refried Bean Dip

Some days are nearer to perfect than others.  Today is one.  Blue skies, 80 degrees, no wind, iris's blooming, kids, grand kids, great grand kid visiting.  A favorite Tex-Mex lunch menu of Chicken enchiladas, beef taco's, re fried bean dip, avocado, and for dessert - cheesecake.The bean dip came out especially good.  I started with a can re fried beans to make this recipe extra easy and exceptionally good.

Re fried Bean Dip

by Jeannie

6072497

Ingredients

• 1 can re fried beans or 1 1/2 cups mashed left over pinto beans
• 1/2 cup mild salsa
• 1/4 can green chili's
• 1/4 cup caramelized onions & bell peppers
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Instructions

Heated mashed beans over low heat.

Dice onions and bell peppers.

While the beans heat, caramelize onions and bell pepper in a hot skillet with about a Tablespoon of olive oil.

When they are tender and the onions are slightly translucent add them to the beans.

Add the remaining ingredients except cheese.

Garnish with shredded cheese.

Serve with crisp baked tortilla chips.

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Chalk drawing is fast becoming a favorite activity. My "almost" 5 year old grand drew her self portrait using window chalk on the kitchen window. Here she is:

The big kids like this activity also.  My 17 year old grand and her friends covered the 18 foot spand of patio windows with spectacular graffiti earlier last year at a back to school gathering.  My house & back yard was one stop on their progressive party tour.  It was my job to provide a fun activity that included window art & cupcake decorating before they moved on to another house for burgers.

Frito Pie in a bag

When I was a girl there was a little food shop across the street from the high school I attended called The Wigwam.  Most everyone walked there for lunch on a regular basis.  My favorite food to order was a Frito pie in the individual size bag.  The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond has a recipe that takes me back there.  So credit and a shout out to her! Hooray!  You can go to her site for an excellent tutorial http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/09/frito-chili-pie/ for a great chili recipe.  It's what's for dinner "again"  at my house.  :-)

photo is from the Pioneer Woman page

Make her chili, cut open an individual size Frito bag and layer on top the chips:  chili, finely diced onions, sharp cheddar cheese and a big dollop of sour cream.  If you grew up where I did...you know what I mean!

PS...I "liked" her FB page so I get great updates and recipes all the time.

Leprechauns?

We think a Leprechaun moved into the garden...

Twig ladder tied together w/kite string. Pebble wall border, twig fence and a purchased stepping stone

Green as seen by a 5 year old

Kids see things from a different perspective - literally!  I handed my old Sony Cybershot to my "almost" 5 year old grand daughter and told her to shoot her choice of "green" things on St. Patricks' Day.  We had a lot of fun, and here are some of my favorites from her view.

Green chalk drawing of a Great MeMaw's cat.

Bird house with green grass

Irish/Scottish dolls

John Deer green!

Green mail box

Green road sign

Green apples which she insisted we buy to feed the horses because they make funny faces when they eat them.

Bell peppers at the grocery store

Cute baby calf in green wheat field

Versatile Vinegar

Vinegar and it's many uses:
A collection from the Internet & Pinterest all of which I have tried successfully:

1. 1 cup of vinegar in the microwave 5 minutes makes the messy thing a simple wipe down cleanup!
2. 3 parts vinegar to 1 part water and spray it to prevent frost and ice on your car windows.
3. Vinegar around the edges of the sandbox every couple of months will deter cats.
4. Remove pet odors with a vinegar washing.
5. Use straight vinegar to clean range hoods and greasy appliance surfaces.
6. Cleaner for flooring, including Pergo and laminates: 1/3 part white vinegar, 1/3 part rubbing alcohol (to speed drying), 1/3 part water, several drops of dish washing liquid. Spray and mop.
7. Clean counter tops and make them smell sweet again with a cloth soaked in undiluted white distilled vinegar.
8. Clean and deodorize a drain by pouring in 1 cup baking soda, then one cup hot white distilled vinegar. Let this sit for 5 minutes or so, then run hot water down the drain.
9. Remove mineral deposits from coffee makers by running white distilled vinegar through a cycle.  Follow up with 2 rinses.
10. Clean your mini blinds with equal parts water and vinegar, dip fingertips of a white cotton glove in the mix and use your fingers to wipe both sides of the slats.
11. Discourage ants by spraying undiluted white distilled vinegar where ever they enter.
12. Wipe grease off exhaust fan grids with full strength vinegar.
13. Remove wallpaper by using a paint roller to wet the surface very thoroughly with a solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and hot water.
14. Remove fireplace soot and grime with undiluted white distilled vinegar. Use a brush to scrub and a towel to blot up the wetness and dirt.
15. Before painting old concrete, clean with full-strength white distilled vinegar. Let it air dry. Don't let it drain onto your grass though-it acts like Round-up.
16. Clean the washer - run a gallon of distilled vinegar through your washing machine to clean it.
17. Kill weeds - Spray full strength on weeds, but be careful it kills grass too.
18. Remove perspiration stains from clothing - Apply one part vinegar to four parts water, then rinse.
19. 2 tablespoons of vinegar before a meal—perhaps, as part of a vinaigrette salad dressing—will dramatically reduce the spike in blood concentrations of insulin and glucose that come after a meal.
20. And of course - vinaigrette

Everyday Vinaigrette
4 tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 large shallot, finely chopped
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Combine vinegar, shallot, and Dijon in a bowl.
Slowly whisk in olive oil until combined.
Season with salt and pepper to taste

Saturday Tuna Salad

Tuna salad sandwiches are on the menu today with a little something special.  Almost everyone can throw one together in a couple of minutes making this a quick and easy lunch that is diet friendly. 

Saturday Tuna Salad 

Here is the base plus the options:

Gnome home

This cute little guy moved in over the weekend.  He settled in right next to a welcome mushroom.  I have also seen something that appears to be a fairy door at the base of a tree.  I'm hesitant to take a photo just yet for fear I could frighten away the fairy before it settles in.  I do love fairies and am quite excited that they are finally appearing in my garden.  Just goes to show patience pays off!

It looks like spring is trying to take over the winter woes, as my sage is blooming it's brilliant red blooms and dandelions have been rearing their heads.  I hope this cold front doesn't bite the plants too badly and I also hope I'm able to toss about some wild flower seeds by next week.

Time with your kids-how to

Time is like a rain drop falling into a bucket of water.  It hits, it ripples, it fans out and disappears.

How to spend quality time with your kids

• Set your goal to be a major influence in your child's life.
• Make the time with your child a priority.
• Set regular dates and do not allow anything to "trump" it.
• Don't discuss "work" stuff when you are spending time with your child.
• Do not talk on your cell phone.
• Let your child pick the place and the people for your date.
• While in the car on the date, turn off the radio.
• Oh, and though attending their events is not a date unless they choose it as a date - attend their events. You remember how important it made you feel? It does the same thing for them.

Don't waste those early years with your kids - they'll be grown and gone before you know it.
When they are adults, they still want quality time from you.  Keep doing it.  You'll be gone before they know it.

4 generations

Here is an excellent blog on the same subject: http://innerchildfun.com/2012/03/10-creative-ways-to-make-time-for-your-kids.html

Salsa using an emersion blender and pantry ingredients

42 years of collecting has my cabinets crowded and crammed with stuff I use, stuff I'd like to use and stuff I don't know how to use.

Every year, usually right before and right after New Year's Resolution day... I start thinking about organizing the kitchen stuff. Though I'm a habitual organizer, the kitchen stuff seems to get pushed to the bottom of the list and only surface organized. Beginning today, I am determined to take one item out of the dark recesses and either use it, figure out how to use it, or get rid of it. I already know what is first. That little hand held Braun blender. Fast forward...20 minutes... I did it! In 20 minutes I checked for some salsa recipes, rummaged for ingredients and substitutions, took photo shots, used the Braun blender, taste tested and checked off one more thing in my bucket list.

Apples Dumplings for 1 or 2

There were two apples just sitting in the fruit bin calling out my name as I walked by.  They said "buy us, we'd make a really good baked apple..."  So I picked up the perfectly shaped red fruit and headed to the check out line.  After a light supper (we still just "sup" at our house)  I rummaged through the pantry and freezer to find ingredients that compliment the apple flavor.  I pulled out a Pillsbury ready crust, some chopped pecans, Carmel bits, cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar.  I really wanted raisins or dried cranberries, but there weren't any.  I love the smell of baked apples almost as much as the taste.  So does hubs.  The nice thing about this recipe is that I could make just two for us.

I trimmed the crust from this cicle out of the box to a smaller square.

Pour the last of the brown sugar syrup over the dumpling & serve

Baked Apple Dumpling for 1 or more

Pre-heat oven 375 F.
For each apple, cut a square about 8" from pie crust.
Core the apple and cut a little off the top to make a funnel shape.
Sit the apple in the middle of the crust square.
Sprinkle a little cinnamon and nutmeg in the core opening of the apple.
Push a few Carmel bits into the core opening of the apple and a pinch of chopped nuts.
Pull the crust up and around the apple.  Press the seams tightly closed but leave an opening at the top to allow the apple to vent.
Place the apple(s) in a baking dish.  No need to grease the dish.
Make a basting liquid with 4 or 5 Tablespoons of brown sugar and about the same amount of water. Pour some over the pastry covered apple.  Baste with the brown sugar liquid a couple of times while it bakes.
Bake 375 F 50-60 minutes.  The crust will be golden brown and the smell will be divine.

If you have them, and if there's space, you can alternately add a few raisins or dried cranberries with the Carmel bits, or instead of the Carmel - or try substituting 2 or 3 mini marshmallows instead of the Carmel. 

1 kind act:  make  an extra baked apple for hubs lunch tomorrow. It's the least I could do since he made the supper. :-)

Party linked up at Throw Back Thursday