A birthday gift, Blokus has proven to be lots of fun. It is easy to play, at any skill level, and can be used by 2-4 players. We broke it out this afternoon and gave it a try. Fun!
~~Rhonda
Yesterday, as I drove to school to pick up DD, the air smelled like spring. It’s on its way! We went out to do some yard work today, but, even though the thermometer said 50, the 16 mph wind said 40. Too chilly for me.
We put down one load of mulch and picked up quite a few bundled Christmas tree lights that were still sitting under the red bud trees. DH is cutting up the apple tree that fell over last summer. I took a few pictures and then came in to warm up. I’ll wait for a sunnier and warmer day to be outside.
The first crocus of the year popped up today.
The daffodils are working their way skyward, as well.
There are a few buds showing. A promising sign of spring!
The garden sorrel is poking its way through the winter debris.
Can’t stop spring when the time is right. ~~Rhonda 🙂
Recently I posted a cheesy potato soup recipe, which was pretty good, but I have a better one now. 🙂 I have a tried and true recipe for a potato sausage casserole that I often take to church dinners. I modified that to make soup for a church dinner and made it again last weekend for an easy lunch that could sit and wait till we were ready.
2 1/2 pounds white potatoes, diced (can be peeled or not)
1 pound Kielbasa sausage, diced and browned
8 oz. jar Cheez Whiz [I used half a 16 oz. jar, as that’s what I had on hand]
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 envelope Ranch dressing mix
1 T. dried parsley flakes
salt and pepper to taste
milk, cream, and/or half and half
Dice the potatoes, cover with water and boil until just tender.
As the potatoes boil, dice the sausage and brown it in a skillet. Drain well.
[Update…I now broil the sausage on a foil-lined cookie sheet instead of browning it in a pan. Much easier clean up.]
When the potatoes are fork tender, drain and return to the pot. Add the sausage and other ingredients, except for the milk. Stir to blend well.
Pour enough milk (may use half ‘n half and/or cream, as well) to cover the contents of the pan. Heat to simmer and serve.
To make the original recipe as a casserole, follow above, but leave out the milk. Pour into a greased casserole dish and bake, covered, in a 350* oven for an hour. Remove the lid/cover and bake 10 minutes longer.
I like to double the recipe (leaving out the milk) and put it into a greased crock pot. Cook on high for 3-4 hours and you have a great take-along dish for a potluck dinner or even a wiener roast. It always gets rave reviews.
~~Rhonda 🙂
Time for a confession…I have never made enchiladas before. I was looking for a recipe to use a pound of ground beef for supper and came across this enchilada recipe.
Another confession…I improvised quite a bit. Is that fair when you’ve never tried a particular kind of recipe before??
These are the ingredients for the original recipe:
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
1 diced fresh jalapeno pepper, or to taste
1/4 cup water
1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 cup plain yogurt
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
6 (6 inch) corn tortillas
I used a pound of ground round, instead of one and a half pounds, as that’s what I had. I had 8 oz. of left over Cheez Whiz in the fridge, so I added that to the meat after it had browned.
I didn’t have a packet of taco seasoning mix, so I added (without measuring) a little dry onion flakes, garlic powder, oregano, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper, dash of hot sauce, and some parsley.
Instead of adding water, I added the juice from a can of corn I used for a black bean and corn salad. I could have left this out, as I wasn’t using the taco seasoning packet.
Instead of yogurt, I used 1/2 c. sour cream. I *did* use cream of chicken soup and the mozzarella cheese, though I plan to use cheddar cheese next time I make the recipe.
Instead of corn tortillas, I used whole wheat ones as that is what I had on hand.
And I added enchilada sauce to the recipe.
Hmmm…doesn’t sound like the same recipe, does it? To make it the way I did, begin by preheating your oven to 350*. Pour a little enchilada sauce into the bottom of a greased casserole dish.
Brown the meat, and add the seasonings and the Cheez Whiz.
In a separate bowl, stir together the sour cream, the soup, and the mozzarella cheese.
Warm a stack of six tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds to soften them, so they are easy to roll.
Spread 1/6th of the meat mixture over half the tortilla, and spoon about 3 Tablespoons of cheese mixture over the the meat. Don’t bother to measure, just put a big dollop on top the meat.
Roll the tortillas and place on top the enchilada sauce in the greased pan.
Spread any remaining cheese mixture over the enchiladas and top with enchilada sauce.
My glass dish is a bit smaller than a 9×13 pan. Six enchiladas fit perfectly.
Bake 30 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Let set about ten minutes prior to serving.
I served black beans and corn salad with it. It would be good with cornbread or tortilla chips, too.
DH liked it and would like to see it on the menu again. Several of the reviews I read regarding the original recipe said it was even better as leftovers. DD wasn’t home for supper but sampled a forkful when she came home. She liked it, too, so this will definitely find its way to our supper table again.
Layered, instead of rolled, it would probably make a good enchilada casserole for a potluck dinner.
~~Rhonda
It takes no more than a bit of ribbon to put the kitties in a playful mood.
Zilli wanted a turn with the ribbon…
…but it doesn’t take much to set Zak and Zilli off when they are playing together. Before long they were flying around the room…
Happy peeked in to see what was going on, but refused to participate. She’s not a party animal.
The birthday balloon was particularly intriguing to Niko.
Even when it was tied to the upper cabinets, he considered going for it. We had to put it away before he gave up.
After play time, some lap time. Niko won’t jump into just anyone’s lap, either. You have to be special.
~~Rhonda
Yesterday, DH came home from the grocery store with some strawberries that smelled SO good! …like *real* strawberries. 🙂 I was inspired to make some spur of the moment strawberry shortcake. I used this recipe from Southern Living.
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
1 stick butter, chilled
2/3 to 3/4 cup half and half, milk, or cream [I used half and half]
1 quart strawberries
1/3 cup sugar [I used 1/4 c. Splenda]
1 c. heavy whipping cream
2 T. powdered sugar
Stir the dry ingredients together. Dice the butter into small pieces and cut into the dry mixture until crumbly. Add the milk and stir until the flour is incorporated.
After mixing, the dough will look like this. BTW, the kitchen tool shown in the picture is great for cutting butter into the flour. If you have a food processor, that works, too. I don’t. Yet.
Turn the crumbly dough onto a lightly floured board and knead it 5-10 times.
When done, it will look like this. It doesn’t take much kneading to turn it into a smooth ball of dough.
Shape the dough into a rough rectangle as you roll it to about 3/4 of an inch thick. Cut into six pieces. Or cut it into circles with a biscuit cutter or a glass.
As the dough bakes, wash, hull and slice some lovely strawberries. I used a quart carton of berries and sprinkled them with 1/4 c. of Splenda to sweeten them a bit.
Whip the heavy whipping cream and two tablespoons powdered sugar until peaks form.
Perfect biscuits.
And beautiful strawberry shortcake. The biscuits were flaky, crispy on the edges, just the right sweetness, perfect.
Dessert was delicious. And all the more fun for being spontaneous. 🙂
~~Rhonda
I found a bread recipe on recipezaar.com that I modified it a little. It makes wonderful soft bread and is so easy my 11 year old daughter can make it by herself. The recipe, as originally given, had a lot of yeast in it so the bread would rise quickly to be ready in a hurry. It does work and makes good bread quickly, but it has a very yeasty flavor and the texture is not as nice as bread that has a longer rising time. I prefer to use less yeast and let the dough rise longer than called for in the original recipe.
You need:
I also like to add:
I heat the water in the microwave in a four-cup glass measuring cup for 99 seconds. I use a Thermopen (an instant read thermometer) to check the temperature of the water. I like it to be just above 115*. It will cool down a bit when put into the mixing bowl. BTW, I can’t say enough good things about the Thermapen. It is a great kitchen tool! DH loves it for making homemade fudge, too. He gave it to me for Christmas a few years ago, but he seems to think it’s his…as in “where’s my Thermapen?”
I use a KitchenAid with a dough hook to mix the ingredients, but you can mix by hand or use a hand held mixer for the first part, then mix by hand as you add more flour. I do all the kneading in the mixer, but you can certainly knead it by hand if you prefer. I have never used a bread machine and can’t say how this recipe would work in one. Better to stick with recipes specifically tailored to the machine, I’m sure.
When the water is warm, pour it into a mixing bowl. Add the the rest of the ingredients except the flour, mixing all together well. Add the flour, one cup at a time, until well mixed. The amount of flour varies. I don’t measure it, just dumping in a cup at a time until it looks right. It will be soft and a bit sticky, but not wet. Trial and error, experience…it all works out. Give it a try. If you can’t handle the dough easily, it needs more flour. Read this page for some basic bread information.
I put a clean dishtowel over it and leave the bread in the mixing bowl to rise. Don’t get caught up in all the “rules” of bread making. You don’t need to make it into a ball, put it in an oiled pan, etc., unless you want to. 🙂 Leave it in a warm place to rise until doubled in size. Timing depends on the temperature of the room. If it’s cold, you can set the oven for “warm” and put the dough on top the stove. This takes 40 minutes to an hour or so.
After it has risen, stick your (clean) fist into the dough to punch it down. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. We have some thin plastic cutting mats that I like to use. Sprinkle a little flour over the dough if it’s sticky.
Divide and conquer. Use a sharp knife to cut the dough in half. Cut each half into halves again. And again. Then divide each of those chunks into four pieces. You should be able to make 32 rolls from this recipe.
If you want to make some hamburger buns, instead of cutting the last chunks into four pieces, cut them into thirds and roll them into a ball. Then push the ball down into a flat round shape. These make great hamburger buns. The pan on the right has four hamburger buns at the top of the picture.
Place the rolls on a cookie sheet, lined with parchment paper. No need to spray or grease the pan. Let them rise in a warm place, covered with a clean cloth, until doubled in size. Again, 40-60 minutes.
Bake in a 375* oven for about 15 minutes. They should be golden brown on top when done.
If you want rolls with a soft top, place the clean cloth over the rolls as soon as they are removed from the oven. Let them cool with the cloth on them. If you want a crunchier top, let them cool without a cloth.
The hamburgers were delicious with the homemade buns. Of course, this is the one DD dropped on the ground on her way to the car as we were leaving for volleyball practice. Had to go back inside, get another one and then head out. Made it to practice on time. And Pippin the cat enjoyed this one immensely.
Let me know if you try the recipe. And don’t be afraid to add some whole wheat flour, a little cornmeal, or wheat germ…whatever floats your boat. Also, the next day, you can pop a couple of these in the microwave for about 20 seconds and they are like fresh from the oven. 🙂
~~Rhonda
Niko prefers running water to the water dish. We bought a kitty fountain for him and all the cats love it. He hasn’t asked for water from the sink for a long time. I guess he thought it was a nice change of pace.
~~Rhonda 🙂
Several people asked about the crock pot turkey we had on our menu for last Sunday’s dinner. Using the crock pot makes it a great meal for after church on Sunday. Easy and delicious.
I use a boneless turkey breast (or a boneless “whole” turkey with dark and light meat) which can be found in the frozen section of the grocery store. If I want to cook it on Sunday, I take it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge on Thursday so it has time to thaw. A frozen bone-in turkey breast can be cooked in the same way. A whole chicken would work fine, too.
DH put this is in the large crock pot where it looks rather lost. When I make it, I use the smaller one. The roast comes with a gravy packet which I wash and store in the fridge until needed. The turkey also comes with a net around it, which is supposed to be left on while it cooks. I always remove it because it’s much harder to remove after the turkey has cooked. I add a can of cream of chicken soup to the turkey and cook it on high for four hours. It can be cooked on low for eight hours, if that suits your timing better.
Sliced and ready for the table. This is moist and delicious. I served it with mashed potatoes (DD’s absolute favorite), stuffing (*my* favorite), corn, peas, and Ceasar salad.
This is not a great picture of the finished product…doesn’t do it justice. But, if you like turkey, you’ll love this easy recipe. 🙂
~~Rhonda