crock pot apples

April 3, 2009 – 5:19 pm

My dear friend Mary posted this recipe and I’ve used it before. Delicious apples for an accompaniment to pork dishes, as a dessert or snack, and delicious on ice cream. Like apple pie without the crust or added calories.

2-6 apples, depending on how many you want. I used 5 today; a combination of Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and Jonathan.
cinnamon
grated nutmeg, optional but adds a delicious extra flavor
sugar
pat of butter

I like to peel the apples, but you don’t have to. Wash them well. Cut into wedges and remove the core.

Place the apple slices in a greased crock pot. I have a small one that works perfectly for this.

Put half the apples in, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, add the additional apples, and sprinkle on more cinnamon and sugar. The amount is up to you. I use about 1 teaspoon of cinnamon altogether and about 3 T. sugar. I add a small amount of freshly grated nutmeg over the apples, too. Just a few slides up and down the microplane grater. Top with a pat of butter.

crock pot apples

Cook on high for two hours or low for four hours. After two hours on high, the apples were perfect. After I had lifted the crock pot lid and stirred the apples to check them, DD hollered from the other room, “I smell deliciousness!”

crock pot apples over ice cream

They were wonderful on vanilla ice cream, BTW.

~~Rhonda

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dogwood blossoms

April 3, 2009 – 3:34 pm

The dogwood trees are beginning to open their buds. We have three dogwoods ready to bloom. One is still in a tight bud, one has blossoms still cupped and and one has blossoms that have opened but haven’t turned white yet. Last year, they had no more than a few flowers. I guess the hard freeze we had so late the year before interrupted the bloom cycle. But this year, they are loaded with blossoms.

dogwood blossom

~~Rhonda

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pretty spring day

April 1, 2009 – 7:26 pm

This afternoon, DH and did a little yard work. That means DH shoveled a lot of mulch and I got to drive the mower, pulling the wagon.

mulchin'

The redbud trees are at their peak of perfection right now.

redbud tree

The Virginia bluebells look so pretty in the evening sunlight.

Virginia bluebells

This was taken from the back yard, looking down the slope toward the trees. We need to plant daffodils along the edge of the woods. This morning, at dawn, DH was looking out the kitchen window, which has this same view, and saw four deer chasing a fox away from our little woods. The fox tried to go back several times and the deer chased it away each time.

back yard

I wondered if the deer were protecting a fawn. We’ve scared them up in the back yard before. So, after finishing the yard work, DD and I took a ride on the mower to see if we could find any deer. Nope, none to be seen. At least, not this time. But I did get a nice picture of the back of the house from the bottom of the slope.

the back of the house

Around the base of the oak, there are a lot of spring flowers blooming. Bleeding hearts and violets…

bleeding hearts

bleeding hearts

Sweet William, which we dug years ago from the woods near the farm where DH grew up.

Sweet William

This morning I found a cabbage butterfly on a daffodil. The air was chilly enough that the butterfly wasn’t warm enough to fly away, so I was able to get some nice closeup shots.

butterfly

The beauty of God’s creation never ceases to amaze me.

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” Romans 1:20

~~Rhonda

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menu plan monday on tuesday ~ march 31, 2009

March 31, 2009 – 1:13 pm

Forgot to post this yesterday and don’t have much time today, so am posting quickly. I hope you have your own menu planned for the week!

Monday
salmon
baby baked potatoes
asparagus

Tuesday
cheesy potato / sausage soup
rosemary crackers

Wednesday
enchiladas

Thursday
crock pot pork chops [with a can of cream of mushroom soup and half an envelope of onion soup mix]
rice
corn
Caesar salad
crock pot apples

Friday
tilapia
accordion potatoes
stir-fried sugar snap peas
corn

Saturday
fridge food

Sunday ~ church dinner
potato / sausage casserole in the crock pot
steamed green beans
apple upside down cake / ice cream

Sunday evening
pizzookies

You will find more menu and recipe ideas at Menu Plan Monday.

~~Rhonda

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sugar cookie bars

March 30, 2009 – 10:06 pm

DD had a sports awards night to attend at school, and we were to take a dozen cookies. I saw Sugar Cookie Bars at Anissa’s Kitchen and decided to give them a try. They are also posted on My Baking Addiction. Click on her link to see how cute hers are! A little more trouble than simply frosting the entire sheet of cookies as a whole, but don’t they look yummy?

Sugar Cookie Bars

1 cup butter; room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
5 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each egg. Add vanilla and mix well.

In a separate bowl combine flour, salt and baking soda. Stir with a whisk to combine. Add to wet mixture and mix just until combined. Spread on a greased 13 x 18 baking sheet.

The dough was stiff. I added two tablespoons of water to the dough as it was mixing, as it seemed too dry to me. I sprinkled flour over the top of the dough after placing it on the greased cookie sheet, so it was easier to spread with my fingers. I patted it out to fit the pan.

sugar cookie dough

Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until light golden brown or until a toothpick comes out clean. I baked it for 13 minutes. That was perfect. It passed the taste test, by the way…DD and I both checked…just to be on the safe side…

passed the taste test...

Cool completely and frost. I used a piping bag and a star tip to squiggle a line of frosting on each bar.

frosted sugar cookie bars

Frosting

1/2 cup butter; room temperature
1/2 cup shortening
1 tsp clear vanilla [I used almond extract.]
pinch of salt
4 cups powdered sugar
5 Tbsp milk
food coloring (if desired)

Combine butter and shortening until smooth and creamy. Add vanilla and salt. Add powdered sugar, a cup at a time, until combined. Add milk and mix until smooth and spreading consistency. Spread over cooled cookie. Top with sprinkles.

This is an easy treat to make and one that travels well to a potluck or, as in our case, a sports awards night at school. 🙂

~~Rhonda

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rosemary crackers

March 30, 2009 – 1:05 pm

I found a recipe for Crisp Rosemary Flatbread at Smitten Kitchen and decided to try it as crackers. The recipe is from the July 2008 issue of Gourmet magazine. I made a few small changes to the original.

crisp rosemary crackers

Rosemary Crackers

1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary (preferably fresh)
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup olive oil (plus more for brushing the top)
Flaky sea salt or Kosher salt for sprinkling on top

Preheat oven to 450°F. Preheat a heavy baking sheet on the bottom or middle rack. I used the bottom rack.

Fresh rosemary really does make a big difference over dried. Pull the leaves off a stem of rosemary, starting at the top and pulling down. Discard the stem. Finely chop the leaves. A few larger pieces are fine. Makes for a more distinctive cracker, don’t you think?

rosemary rosemary

Stir together flour, chopped rosemary, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Make a well in center, then add water and oil and gradually stir into flour with a wooden spoon until a dough forms a ball. Knead dough gently on a work surface 4 or 5 times. Pull the dough apart, making three pieces.

crisp rosemary crackers

crisp rosemary crackers

Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll the dough so it is evenly thin. Thicker parts will take longer to cook and you’ll end up with thin dark crackers and thicker not-completely-baked crackers. A particular thickness isn’t so important, just so it’s even. I rolled the dough on the parchment paper, so it was easy to transfer the whole thing to the cookie sheet when ready to bake. Remember: that preheated cookie sheet will be HOT!

crisp rosemary crackers

Lightly brush top with additional oil. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Cut the dough into the size crackers you want. Slide dough, still on the parchment paper, onto preheated baking sheet and bake until pale golden and browned in spots, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer crackers (discard parchment) to a rack to cool, then make 2 more sheets of crackers (1 at a time) on fresh parchment (do not oil or salt until just before baking).

crisp rosemary crackers

The first batch was a little too crisp. I was doing something else at the time and let it go an extra minute. Check it early and take it out before it begins to turn dark. The dark ones were still delicious, and we ate them, but the lighter ones were nicer. The second batch was better.

a tad too done

crisp rosemary crackers

This batch was salted a bit too heavily. Less is better.

crisp rosemary crackers

Store in an airtight container.

Delicious as a snack, but this evening I plan to serve them with my cheesy potato / sausage soup.

Check out Smitten Kitchen for more delicious recipe inspiration.

~~Rhonda

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just a dusting

March 29, 2009 – 8:54 pm

We woke up to a little bit of snow this morning. DH took all the photos, except the last one, just before 8:00 a.m. I took the last one just before 10:00 a.m.

Front yard…

redbuds and snow along the driveway

East yard…

east yard

Fenced garden…

fenced garden...dusted

The daffodils started the day bowed to the ground. By afternoon, you would never have known they had been snowed on.

snowy daffs

Back yard…

just a sprinkle of snow

By the time we arrived home from church, there was no hint that we’d had any snow at all. We’re back to spring.

~~Rhonda

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earth hour

March 28, 2009 – 10:19 pm

DD was excited about joining in Earth Hour this evening, so we turned the lights out at 8:30 p.m., and played a game of Star Wars Trivia by candle light.

Earth Hour

I won. 🙂 ~~Rhonda

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“be careful driving home in the rain”…

March 28, 2009 – 11:46 am

…said my 11 year old when I dropped her off at a friend’s house this morning. 🙂 Practicing her mommy skills, I guess.

Dogwood branches in the rain…if it weren’t so chilly out, I’d use my tripod to get a prettier picture. Took this one as I stood under the carport, before dashing into the house. I always take a camera when I go somewhere, even if it’s just dropping DD at a friend’s house for a play day. 🙂

dogwood blossoms in the rain

The rain pours off the corner of the carport. The poor little hosta needs to sit a bit higher.

rainy day

It’s a good day to stay inside and bake. I think I’m going to try a cracker recipe or two. Years ago, when we had less than no money, I made crackers from scratch. So tasty! Maybe some rosemary flatbread and something with garlic and freshly grated Parmesan cheese…I’ll let you know.

~~Rhonda

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spring with a chance of snow

March 27, 2009 – 10:54 pm

Today was beautiful. Sunny with flowers. I even mowed the back yard for the first time this season. But…Tomorrow is supposed to be rainy with snow in the evening. St. Louis is predicting 3″ with more to the west and north. Thankfully we are in the opposite direction. Perhaps it will miss us.

Here are more pictures of spring taken in our yard this afternoon.

The redbud flowers are beginning to open.

redbud tree

This magnolia was planted last spring and bloomed off and on all summer.

magnolia 'Jane'

The lawn looked so fresh and green after mowing.

looking out the kitchen door

daffs and henbit

fenced garden

The red tulips can be seen all the way across the yard. We’ll have to get more of those. I’d like to put some by the mailbox and around the back door.

brightness in the garden

The bleeding hearts are suddenly tall enough for Zak to hide behind.

Zak posing behind the bleeding hearts

bleeding hearts

Happy loves the warmer weather and all the fresh green growth. Just minutes before this picture was taken, she had been pouncing on pieces of moss she had torn off the ground. Now she looks so demure. “Play with moss? Moi? I don’t think so.”

Happy cat

~~Rhonda

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