birthday cupcakes

February 6, 2009 – 12:43 pm

Today is DD’s eleventh birthday. We began by making cupcakes this morning before she left for school.

gotta lick the bowl

She wants ice cream cone cupcakes for the sleepover with her friends this evening. I made cake batter using the directions on a white cake box mix, divided the batter into three parts, and colored the batter green, pink, and blue. We filled the cones about 2/3 full. Setting the cones in a mini muffin tin helped hold them upright.

filling the cones

After baking, the cones were top heavy and some of them fell over as I pulled them from the oven. The frosting will cover any flaws. If I make these again, I will try wedging the cones into the muffin tins with aluminum foil.

ice cream cone cupcakes

I used buttercream frosting to ice the cupcakes.

ice cream cone cupcakes

I think she’ll like them. 🙂

her favorite color

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in cooking, party | Tagged , , , | Comments (9)

10 points!

February 6, 2009 – 8:48 am

DD just finished basketball and is now happily playing volleyball. Last night she served for ten points in one game.

10 points!

She’s our most athletically inclined child. Three of our four older children participated in soccer and volleyball, but DD can’t get enough. She would like to be on every team available. 🙂

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in family | Tagged , | Comments (3)

one relaxed cat

February 5, 2009 – 4:41 pm

Buttercup’s favorite winter napping spot is on the heating vent in the kitchen. She was totally asleep when I took the picture.

one relaxed cat

~~Rhonda

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a sight for sore eyes

February 3, 2009 – 4:22 pm

The branches we are forcing are beginning to blossom. They are like a breath of fresh air, especially after a week of snow, sleet, ice, and cold weather.

Forsythia

forcing forsythia

Lilac

spring green

forcing lilac

The lilacs probably won’t do anything more than make pretty green buds. But the forsythia should be a burst of yellow in a day or two.

~~Rhonda

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accordion potatoes

February 3, 2009 – 8:39 am

Supper last night was salmon, accordion potatoes, corn and coleslaw. I added peanuts and apples to the coleslaw, which was tasty. The salmon was baked with honey and dijon mustard brushed on it. Very good! I had planned to make corn pudding, but decided against it, as I was already using the oven to bake the salmon and the potatoes. The accordion potatoes recipe came from the What’s for Dinner? blog.

supper time

I used five medium Yukon Gold potatoes, and, after slicing them, covered them with a paper towel and baked them in the microwave for six minutes.

I didn’t have fresh thyme, so put fresh rosemary on them, along with the olive oil, salt and pepper. I then baked them in the oven with the salmon. They took a few more minutes than the salmon, so were probably in the oven about 20 minutes at 400*. If supper hadn’t been so late (didn’t eat until 7:30) I would have put the potatoes under the broiler until they crisped on top. As it was, everyone was hungry, so supper was on the table as quickly as possible.

baked 'em together

accordion potatoes

They turned out well and DD thought they were “cool.” 🙂 ~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in cooking | Tagged | Comments (4)

oatmeal raisin cookies

February 2, 2009 – 5:33 pm

I’ve been hankering for some homemade Oatmeal Raisin Cookies for some time. Today I made a batch using this recipe. I halved the recipe and added 2 T. of honey. Here’s the recipe, as I tweaked it.

Cream together:
* 1 cup brown sugar
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 cup butter [I used one stick of unsalted butter and one stick of Parkey margarine.]
* 2 eggs
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 2 Tablespoons honey
Add the dry ingredients and mix well:
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 2 cups flour
* 2 1/2 cups rolled oats (regular)
* 1 1/2 cups raisins
* 1 1/2 cups nuts [I omitted these.]

oatmeal raisin cookie dough

Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. I used a small scoop to put the dough on the cookie sheet. Easy and quick.

cookie scoop

so easy

Bake at 375* for 9 minutes. Check you own oven after 8 minutes. Temperatures will vary from oven to oven and the time should be adjusted accordingly. Don’t let the cookies over brown or they will be hard.

don't they smell good!

Let the cookies cool for a minute or two before removing them from the cookie sheet to the cooling rack. They will hold their round shape better, if allowed to cool slightly before moving.

cookie stack

This recipe made 7 dozen cookies.

make room for more

DD thought the house smelled pretty good when she walked in after school. 🙂 ~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Recipes | Tagged , , | Comments (5)

menu plan monday ~ february 2, 2009

February 1, 2009 – 10:16 pm

Another busy week ahead. DD turns 11, so there is a sleepover / birthday party planned. And a birthday cake to bake. She chose her favorite meal for Saturday evening.

Monday
salmon
accordion potatoes
corn pudding
coleslaw

Tuesday
Yummy Honey Chicken Kabobs
rice

Wednesday
hamburgers
buns
chips / veggies / dip

Thursday
BBQ pork steaks
mashed potatoes
green beans
corn
spinach salad

Friday ~ DD’s birthday
quick supper of turkey sandwiches
with pizza later for the sleepover

Saturday
spaghetti / meatballs
rolls
peas
corn
Ceasar salad

Sunday
turkey in the crock pot
rice
carrots and peas
green salad

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

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Tagged | Comments (3)

spring green

January 29, 2009 – 11:09 pm

Last Saturday, DH cut some branches from the yard for forcing. The forsythia will take 10-14 days to bud out. It’s beginning to show signs of life. See that green peeking out?

forsythia

The purple lilac buds are plump and dark…

purple lilac

…while the white lilac are bright green and slender.

white lilac

We like to force branches every January/February. They are a sweet reminder that spring is coming. In about a week, we should have forsythia blossoms brightening the kitchen table. Perhaps DH will brave the snow in the west yard and cut some quince in the next day or two. They bud beautifully, too.

You can try just about any shrub or tree. Some work better than others. Forsythia and quince flower well. Lilacs may make a small green bud of a flower, but won’t make a large blossom. Their bright green leaves are beautiful, though. The star magnolia makes a blossom, but it doesn’t have any scent, which is surprising considering how very heavy the scent is when the shrub blooms in the yard. You can try red bud trees, fruit trees, dogwood, honeysuckle, etc., anything that blooms in the spring.

Smash the ends of the branches, if you like, to make them take up water more easily, though it isn’t necessary. We never bother doing that. Keep the branches in a vase of fresh water and watch them bud. Even if you get only leaves, they will be a welcome splash of spring green, all the more lovely when it’s cold, snowy and dark outside!

~~Rhonda ::waiting for spring::

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in spring | Tagged , | Comments (1)

snow ice cream

January 28, 2009 – 10:51 pm

With all that snow on the ground, we had to make snow ice cream, didn’t we?? Yes! I perused several recipes and decided to give this one a try ~ Snow Ice Cream.

DD measured one cup of heavy whipping cream.

a cup of heavy whipping cream

We whipped it until it held soft peaks, adding two teaspoons of vanilla and 1/4 cup of powdered sugar.

whipped cream

The blue bowl holds one gallon of snow, and we used all of it for this recipe (a lot more than the recipe called for). The snow was folded into the whipped cream, a large spoonful or two at a time.

mix in the snow

Almost done…

almost ready

Ice cream!

ice cream!

Now, doesn’t that look good?

vanilla snow ice cream

And even better with chocolate…

snow ice cream...with chocolate

Then I added coffee crystals to my bowl…instant frozen mocha latte (my favorite Dairy Queen treat)!

frozen mocha latte :)

We don’t get enough snow at one time every winter to make snow ice cream, so seized our opportunity. It was fun to make and was a great end-of-the-snowy-day treat.

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in cooking, winter | Tagged , | Comments (1)

baby baked potatoes

January 28, 2009 – 7:24 pm

Supper was yummy. Tilapia, baby baked potatoes, corn, stir-fried sugar snap peas with tomatoes, and cornbread.

supper

DH loves these baby baked potatoes. To make them, you need:

small red potatoes
olive oil
fresh rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

Wash the potatoes. Slice the top off each one. Place in a saucepan and add enough water to cover. Boil the potatoes until just tender (10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes). Drain.

Place the potatoes on a baking sheet, lined with aluminum foil.

boiled

Pierce each potato with a fork, five or six times.

pierced

The next step is to squeeze the potatoes so the inside is pushed up. You can let them cool until they are comfortable to touch, but I usually bite the bullet and do it in a hurry because I’m wanting to get supper on the table. 🙂

squeezed

Pour a little olive oil on each potato. Sprinkle with freshly grated sea salt and freshly grated black pepper.

Mince about a tablespoon of fresh rosemary and sprinkle over the potatoes. Yes, you can used dried rosemary, but it isn’t going to taste anything like fresh!

rosemary

Bake the potatoes in a 375* oven until the tops are lightly browned, about 20 minutes.

baby baked potatoes

Oh, so good! Give ’em a try. 🙂 ~~Rhonda

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