HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

And this little pumpkin says it all!!

Two Roads Diverged In A Yellow Woods...

And I took the one less traveled! :) A very pretty road and I watched turkeys, deer, and all kinds of birds and squirrels. Sometimes you just have to stop and enjoy nature!

Before too long this road will be snow-covered...brrrr, hate to think of that though!! :)

Got Milk?

Streusel-Topped Banana Bread

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsps. baking powder

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 cup mashed bananas (3 small overripe)

2 eggs

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup (one half stick) butter, melted

Streusel

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease three 5 3/4 x 2 inch mini loaf pans. Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon in medium size bowl. Beat bananas, eggs, sugar and butter in large bowl until smooth. On low speed, gradually beat in flour mixture. Divide batter among prepared pans. For streusel, mix flour, sugar, butter, nutmeg and cinnamon in bowl with fork until crumbly. Sprinkle over batter. Bake for 30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean. If browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove.

Today was such a rainy cool day and the aroma of chicken and squash baking seemed to make the day so much brighter!
For this chicken recipe use:

4 to 6 bonless, skinless, chicken breasts
16 oz. can whole cranberry sauce
6 oz. can frozen orange juice, thawed
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tbs. prepared mustard

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken in a lightly greased 9x9 pan. Mix the remaining ingredients and pour over the chicken. Bake for 1 hour, covered. Increase heat to 500 degrees and bake 10 minutes longer, uncovered.


I love squash cooked in so many ways, and with this, I just baked it with butter and maple syrup. I miss having a garden but the farmer's market has so much to offer...and much less work! lol!

Dilled Egg Salad Platter

Try this delicious platter in place of a conventional egg salad sandwich. This is another recipe from my 'Flat Belly Diet Cookbook'. So far, what recipes I have tried, have been very good. I had some veggie dip for the tomatoes and also had some baby carrots for dipping. 6 large eggs, hard boiled and peeled (discard 3 yolks)
3 ribs celery, chopped
1/2 cup peeled and chopped hothouse cucumber
3 radishes, chopped
2 scallions, thinly sliced, or 1/2 cup chopped sweet white onion
1/4 cup canola mayonnaise
2 tbs. snipped fresh dill
1/2 tsp. grainy mustard
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. salt
Leaf lettuce for serving
2 large tomatoes, cut into wedges
8 Wasa crisp breads

Coarsely chop the eggs and egg whites and place in medium bowl. Add the celery, cucumber, radishes, scallions, mayonnaise, dill, mustard, pepper, and salt and mix well. Arrange the lettuce on a platter or plate. Mound the salad on top and surround with the tomato wedges. Serve with crisp breads. I think I would rather have a nice roll, etc. instead of the crisp bread but thought I would try them.
Enjoy!

Mother Nature At Work

It has been so hot lately and cooking or baking just doesn't appeal to me so no new pictures of food, but last night the sky was so pretty that I just had to try and capture it. These pictures just don't do it justice though!

The sky was such a pretty pink! It looked like rain was coming, but no such luck, as we need it badly.

I do need to experiment more with the camera settings , so just picture the sky as 'twice' as picturesque as this! :)

Rhubarb Conserve

My sister-in-law gave me the recipe for this and I finally made it tonight. It is as good as she said it would be and I can't wait to try it with my morning toast! Bagels or english muffins would also be very good. I picked enough rhubarb for this recipe, then that got me motivated enough to pick more so I could make a pie tomorrow..... :)

3 cups sliced fresh or frozen rhubarb(do not thaw frozen rhubarb)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup golden raisins or regular raisins

2 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tsp. finely shredded orange peel

1/4 cup orange juice

2 tbs. water- omit water if using frozen rhubarb

1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Enjoy!

Here's Trouble! And It Looks So Innocent!

The last thing I wanted was trouble, but since I like sweets, trouble always finds me. I was in the kitchen looking for something to snack on and spied the bananas in their 'spotted' glory and I had just bought a can of the whipped topping soooo, what better to have than a banana split! Folks.... I would like to introduce you to trouble with a capital T. :) I like the canned whipped topping but find that it doesn't keep it's shape for very long. Maybe different brands have different results but I had to work fast in order to get the picture before it got really runny!! At one point the cherries slid off so had to stop and put them back where they belonged! :) Then of course after getting the picture, it had to be eaten right away before it turned into a pool with floating cherries! It was good but think I over-ate so it is rightfully named "Trouble" !

Our weather is still cool and we are getting a lot of rain here in Michigan, but nothing compared to some other states. Can't help feel bad for all of those folks dealing with floods and tornado's.

APRIL 16, 1977..... 34 yrs. ago

Those we love don't go away,

They walk beside us every day

Unseen, unheard, but always near

Still loved, still missed and very dear.

Favorite Cheesecake

Quite a few years ago when I had stopped in to visit my mother, she gave me a cookbook that she had ordered called "Light Cooking". Hmmm, wonder if that is where I get the 'cookbook' obsession, although I have a lot more cookbooks than she had, but she had a ton of recipes "to try" that she had torn out of magazines. Does that sound familiar to anyone? LOL! Well, when I seen the cover of this book, I was quite happy to take it off her hands!! This cheesecake was one of the pictures that was on the cover....and I can't resist a yummy looking dessert!! Every recipe so far that I have tried has been very good and I am so happy that she offered me the book..so thanks again Mom, I have put it to good use! I made this over the weekend for guests and they could not believe that there was cottage cheese in it. Of course you can drizzle as much of the toppings on it as you want to but I went a little light on them......have to cut back somewhere and since you will be having TWO slices, it works out for the best!! :)

TURTLE CHEESECAKE

6 tbs. reduced-calorie margarine

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin

2 pkgs. (8 ozs. each) fat-free cream cheese

2 cups 1 percent low-fat cottage cheese

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsps. vanilla

1 container (8 zs.) thawed reduced-fat nondairy whipped topping

1/4 cup prepared fat-free caramel topping

1/4 cup prepared fat-free hot fudge topping

1/4 cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bottom and side of 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Melt margarine in small pan over medium heat. Stir in graham cracker crumbs. Press firmly onto bottom and side of prepared pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Cool.

2. Place 1/2 cup cold water in small saucepan; sprinkle gelatin over water. Let stand 3 minutes to soften. Heat gelatin mixture over low heat until completely dissolved, stirring constantly.

3. Combine cream cheese, cottage cheese, sugar and vanilla in food processor or blender and process until smooth. Add gelatin mixture; process until well blended. Fold in whipped topping. Pour into prepared crust. Refrigerate 4 hours or until set.

4. Loosen cake from side of pan. Remove side of pan from cake. Drizzle caramel and hot fudge toppings over cake. Sprinkle pecans evenly over top. Makes 16 servings.

And I just have to say.........VERY GOOD!!! :)

Coffee Time

When I had a coffee break today I decided to get out my french press or another name is bodum. For those of you who have never used one, they make really great coffee and I like them as they are so handy if you want to make a different flavored coffee other than what is being served in the drip coffeemaker. My husband liked "regular" coffee and wasn't much for the flavored ones...which I liked to try from time to time. I have three of them and I use the small one quite often, especially when I want just a cup or two of either my regular coffee or one of the flavored ones that I have on hand.....such as a chocolate flavored one...Yummy!! The small one holds close to two cups and the other two hold about a quart. They are very easy to use, just put the ground coffee in them, pour in the boiling water and stir with a plastic utensil(comes with the press)....put the lid on with the plunger pulled up, let set for 4 minutes for the coffee to steep, then slowly press the plunger down.....and presto...you have delicious coffee! The silver one came with an electric warmer which is nice. Honestly..you can't tell the difference between using a press or drip coffee, and they are fun and a nice way to impress your guests too! I first seen one on Martha Stewart and from that time on I couldn't rest until I had one! After all, if it was good enough for Martha, then hey, it was good enough for me!! :)

SPRING?

OMG! What happened to our spring weather? After seeing the bare grass for several weeks we are now back to 7 inches of snow as of today!! It finally has quit snowing and now I am hoping for warm weather that will once again melt this snow. It was so nice last week that I was going to put the porch furniture out for the summer (now, that's a nice sounding word!), but it looks like it will be kept in storage for a while yet. Hopefully soon though it can come out! I did hear some birds singing last week and I had never heard that all winter so that gives me hope. That was what prompted me to get out my birds! Not too many more days left in March though...Hurray!

AN IRISH BLESSING

"May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day. May songbirds serenade you every step along the way. May a rainbow run beside you in a sky that's always blue. And may happiness fill your heart, each day your whole life through."




Since I am going out to dinner for corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day, I decided to have my Irish dinner tonight. First on the menu was Irish bread.......yum!
I made "Irish Chicken with Noodles", served with a fresh green salad.

3 large whole chicken breasts, salt and pepper, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup butter or margarine, 1/4 cup vegetable oil, 1/2 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced, 1 cup canned chicken broth, 1/2 cup Irish cream liqueur. Skin and bone chicken. Place each breast between two sheets of wax paper. With flat side of wooden mallet, pound breast to an even 1/4 inch thickness. Sprinkle each breast with salt and pepper. Then dust both sides with some flour. Reserve 2 tbs. of flour for the sauce. In large skillet over medium heat, melt 1 tbs. butter with 1 tbs. oil. Saute chicken breasts until golden brown, adding more butter and oil as needed. Remove to serving plate as they brown. When all breasts are browned, add mushrooms to skillet. Cook until just tender. Stir in 2 tbs. flour until well mixed. Gradually stir in chicken broth. Cook until sauce thickens. Stir in Irish cream liqueur and heat until sauce bubbles. Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary. Arrange chicken over noodles; spoon some sauce on top. Pass remaining sauce separately. Garnish with watercress, if desired. Makes 6 servings.

For dessert..... St. Patrick's Day cupcakes.

Hope you all have a great St. Patrick's Day!!

HONEY, YOU HAVE A WAY WITH CHICKEN

This honey, that is.... Chicken Honey Nut Stir Fry

1 lb. boneless chicken breasts
3/4 cup orange juice
1/3 cup honey
3 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
2 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
2 large carrots, diagonally cut
2 stalks celery, diagonally cut
1/2 cup cashews or peanuts
Hot rice
Cut chicken into thin strips and set aside. In a small bowl, combine orange juice, honey, soy sauce, cornstarch, and ginger. Mix well. Heat 1 tbsp. oil in skillet over medium heat. Add carrots and celery, stir-fry about 3 minutes or until crisp tender. Remove vegetables and set aside. Pour remaining oil into skillet. Add chicken, stir-fry about 4 minutes. Return vegetables to skillet; add sauce mixture and nuts. Cook and stir over medium heat until sauce is thickened. Serve over hot rice.

I received this box of tea bags from a friend and it is very good tea. Isn't that little leaf the cutest thing?!

When I found out that the small trays to use with the bags could be ordered, I just had to have some! I think they are really neat....I love to use them!

Oh, and my fortune was "You will soon be honored by someone you respect" :)

Soup's On

DUMPLING SOUP

This was one of the recipes in my "to try" folder. It doesn't have a lot for vegetables but I liked it. I couldn't find any other dumplings other than the TAI PEI chicken dumplings pictured below. They were good and something I have never tried before. I used vegetable broth instead of mushroom broth also. 32 oz. box mushroom or vegetable broth

1 cup water

2 tsp. grated fresh ginger

10 oz. pkg frozen pork potstickers or dumplings with sauce

2 medium carrots, peeled and cut in thin 2-inch strips, or 1 cup shredded carrots

1 small bunch green onions, trimmed and diagonally sliced

In a Dutch oven combine the broth, water, ginger, and seasoning packet from one pkg. of pot stickers. Bring to boiling over high heat. Add potstickers, carrots, and most of the green onions. Return to simmering. Reduce heat and cook for 8-10 minutes or until potstickers are heated through and carrots are tender. Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with remaining green onion slices. Makes 4 servings. If no seasoning packet is provided, add 2 tsps. soy sauce and 1 tsp. toasted sesame oil. Apple Cake with Hot Buttered Rum Topping

2 cups peeled grated apples

2 cups sugar (I used 1 c. white and 1 c. brown)

1/2 cup oil

2 cups flour

2 eggs

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 cup chopped nuts

Cream oil and sugar, add eggs and gradually beat in remaining ingredients. Pour into a Pam sprayed 9x13 pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until tests done. Cool

Topping

1 cup sugar (I used brown)

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. rum extract or 1 tbs. rum

Heat first 3 ingredients until sugar dissolves, and add flavorings. Serve cake with warm topping and ice cream or cool whip, if desired.

I don't recall where I got this recipe but have made it before and knew it would be good.

Pepsi Refresh

I have just put the Pepsi Refresh widget on the sidebar. This is to try and save the Calumet Theatre in the UP of Michigan. The theatre is badly in need of a new roof and hopefully by voting for that project, money will be available through the Pepsi Refresh program.

I have only seen pictures of this theatre from the refresheverything.com website, but from the pictures, it looks beautiful and well worth saving. I would love to have a theatre like that in my town!

Thanks so much everyone! I think this is such a worthy cause and don't mind using my blog so hopefully the theatre will win some of the pepsi money.