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Tasty Tuesday Slow Cooked Apples
Can you believe it is almost Thanksgiving? Oh what a wonderful time of year. A time set aside to think about thanks, giving thanks and filling the mind, spirit, belly and arms with fantastic treats! Our treats start arriving on Wednesday and the locals on Thursday. The smell of cleaning is strong in the house today. So strong that I just had to add some cinnamon and spice to the mix. Silver polish is great stuff… but when the trays and forks are shining and sparkling… it is time to dazzle the taste buds.In late September we went apple picking, and bought extras just for Thanksgiving get together. Leanne is…
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Pumpkin Muffins
I love the Thanksgiving Season! The sights, the smells, the colors, the sounds. Through the years I am finding the joys in baking and cooking. I spent some time earlier last week making Pumpkin Rolls with my mother-in-law; I am working with my mom so that I can help with the Thanksgiving meal; and today I made the most DELICIOUS muffins I have ever had in my life. (I had to taste test them after they came out of the oven after all!) This afternoon I had ‘Pumpkin Muffins’ on my list to bake. I called out to my brood, “Who wants to help me bake?!” *E*, 8 years old,…
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Traditions
Autumn has fallen upon us with force. Halloween decorations have been long put away and thoughts of Thanksgiving meals are upon us; followed quickly by Christmas lights, gifts and carols. ‘Tis The Season My family will soon pack up the minivan to drive ‘over the river and through the woods to Grandmother’s house we go!’ A long-weekend with my parents, siblings and nieces and nephews. But that is just a piece of the ‘Thankgiving Tradition’. Some years we do Thanksgiving with my husband’s family which involves his grandmother and all of her siblings and their families. It’s a HUGE gathering! As an Air Force Brat there were years that my…
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Girl Time
I spent this morning with my mother-in-law; mixing,baking,laughing,smiling,rolling,scooping,talking,tasting,just being Who knew making Pumpkin Rolls could be so much fun?! It was an incredible way to break up the monotony of the week for me (Is it really only Tuesday?) Hubs has been working late nights and of the last seven nights he has been home at the boys’ bedtime twice. I have a nursing baby. Plus both boys, E and C, have a pre-Thanksgiving project for school that is extending homework time. On top of it all, I haven’t been as good about getting dinner started early. To say last week was exhausting is an understatement and yesterday just capped…
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A Minute Out of the Norm: Cooking with the kids
It is summer time! School is out and the kids are thinking AHHHH a break from learning. HA! Little do they know that there is learning-opportunities in the every day 🙂 One of the boys ‘Summer Jobs’ options each week is to help Mom make dinner. It is usually one of the first chores chosen but little do they know what I have up my sleeve. They read the recipe to me They measure the ingredients. Just to make it fun sometimes if a recipe calls for a cup of something we figure out how to get up to a cup (without using the actual 1-cup measurer) … 2 half cups,…
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Tasty Tuesday: Pesto Cheesecake
After working in the garden on a perfectly ‘perfect weather’ day, the deck chairs seems to summon us, and the idea of a simple dinner with the neighbors is about as good as it gets. IN preparation for this event… this pesto cheesecake can be made from ordinary items in the back of the refrigerator. I tend to do a commissary shopping trip and load up on essentials…so having 4 packages of cream cheese on hand is not unusual. Understand we do not live close to a commissary, so when I go… I go for carts! I hope you have the occasion to sit outside, enjoy your work and enjoy…
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Happy Mothers’ Day
Happy Mom’s Day to all of the moms out there in the blogging-world! I am the very lucky Mom of 3 boys plus one on the way in August. (Yes, 4 boys! plus hubs who can sometimes act like a boy … makes for 5. I am THE Queen of this castle 🙂 There is *J*, my 16 year old step-son; *E*, my 7 year old; and *C*, my 5 year old. *L* (Surprise!) will arrive around 8/9/2010. Our house is bustling as I trip over legos and balls – Baukegan and Transformers – plastic Army Men and Star Wars Figures – wherever I go! …But tomorrow isn’t all about…
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Tasty Tuesday: Rhubarb / Strawberry Crunch Reduced Sugar
It is getting to be close to Farmer’s Market time, a.k.a. rhubarb time. I am really believe that the snows are behind us. My proof of this is 1 May when the markets open. One can find asparagus and rhubarb. This is living. Both have long stalks that stick up out of the ground that announce “Hey! I made it! Your turn!” So, taking my turn with the rhubarb, I like to pair it with strawberries – totally sweet and sour. And I like my rhubarb to taste a tad sour… not overly sugared. Rhubarb / Strawberry Crunch welcomes the taste buds to do a spring dance right there in…
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Tasty Tuesday: Tarragon Potatoes
Thinking about which spices to plant in your herb garden this year? Stake out a square foot for some French tarragon. You will love the scent, the taste and this recipe. It truly is a favorite and a most requested recipe.Tarragon is a French herb with a horrible second name: “Dragon wort”. Not my first choice of a dinner ingredient. Tarragon is related to wormwood… my goodness it gets worse and worse! 🙂 But… leave the names behind and look at directly at the plant. French tarragon has slender branched stems, similar to rosemary. Because the plant does not have flowers, it cannot be grown from seed, therefore a trip…
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New Year Resolution Resources
The time of year is quickly coming upon us when many of us start to think about how we can better ourselves during the new year. To start thinking about any changes I might want to make in 2010, I pulled this article out of MilitaryAvenue’s archives: “The American Psychiatric Association Offers Tips for Attaining Your New Year’s Resolutions“. Here are some more great articles that might be of interest as we start setting goals: Staying Healthy:Why I take walks for the New YearEat Healthy Your Way From the Commissary: Special recipes for our Veterans – Cooking for 1 or 2 Look for Smart Choices in Your Commissary Mom’s “Li’l…
