Monday, May 16, 2011

Off to a vacation!

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We will be out of town for the next week and a half. Off to my (Jennie) sisters wedding up north! :)

Friday, May 13, 2011

favorite things...spring

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cold mornings...hot afternoons

starting our garden

not using the heater...or the air conditioner

wearing my ssekos with skirts

drinking a hot cup of tea in the mornings

walking with my son in lower bidwell park

flowers flowers everywhere

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Pasta with polska kielbasa and veggies recipe

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A light summer dish that is quick, healthy and full of favor.

1/2 lb fettuccine or other pasta
1/2 or 7oz polska kielbasa, sliced and cut in thirds
1 bunch asparagus, cut in inch pieces
1 crown broccoli
1 clove garlic, minced
1/8 c parmesan cheese
1/8-1/4 tsp paprika

Cook pasta as directed and steam vegetables slightly. Saute garlic in olive oil until tender; add pasta, vegetables and kielbasa. Sprinkle on parmesan cheese and paprika.

Friday, May 6, 2011

How to make one whole chicken into over 6 meals.

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First, off start by cooking a whole chicken. We usually take out the giblets and rinse everything. Then place it all in a roasting pan with a few potatoes, carrots, an onion cut in half and a head of garlic cut in half. We stuff a few tablespoons of butter under the breast skin, and again baste the skin with butter. Its a good idea to season the skin after basting, we use salt and pepper, but the addition of lemon thyme or sage is great. We also pour water or chicken stock into the cavity to make it more moist. Now you seal the top with tin foil, make it a nice seal around the baking dish, it really helps keep the bird moist. We usually bake it at 350 degrees for 1.5 to 2 hours covered, and then another 15 minutes on broil. Finally, it's time for dinner (this is the first meal). Then the next two nights (meals two and three) we either re-heat it in the oven and have the same thing or cut pieces off to add to other meals.


The next morning we pick off all the rest of the meat and seperate it into meal sized portions in freezer bags. This time I only got three bags (meals four, five, and six). You can skip this step and just move forward to the next if you think its gross. It is gross to pick a chicken but I usually use gloves and I've become used to doing it.


Then you add your mirepoix to a large pot. A mirepoix is a combination of onions, carrots, and celery, I also add three or four bay leaves and ten to twelve whole black pepper kernels. It doesn't need to be chopped perfectly, I just break the celery ribs to fit into the pot along with the carrots (I only had baby carrots on hand this morning, so I used them instead of whole) and cut off the ends of the onion. You are now making chicken stock. :)


Add in the chicken carcass, juices and any other left overs from the roasting pan. Then cover with water and bring to a boil. I really like using my pasta pot to make stock because when your done you can just pull all of the bones, veggies, etc. up and out instead of trying to use a strainer.

Once boiling reduce to a simmer for at least 4-5 hours. I usually cook it all day, the longer it cooks the more rich and healthy it will be. Once it has finished cooking, strain out bones, veggies, etc., cover and place in the fridge over night. In the morning scrap off all fat and taste. I sometimes have to reduce it down even more for a richer stock, which usually means about 2 or more hours of simmering.


We then pressure can or freeze the stock and use it to make more meals, almost every time we make rice we use chicken stock instead of water to cook it in. Voila! You have made one chicken into over 6 healthy home-made meals, now sit back and put your feet up...you deserve it!

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

The little guys first time in the pool!

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He was very unsure at first, basically clinging to me.


So we slowed down and tried putting him in this little frog thingy our wonderful neighbors got for him.


After awhile...he decided it was pretty much the best thing on earth!


I'm so thankful that we didn't push him and let him go at his pace. Tomorrows goal...dunking him under! We are lucky enough to rent a house with a pool. On top of having a pool it has a solar heater that runs hot (110 degree or hotter) water into the pool at a flip of a switch, which means we can swim earlier and longer. I have been swimming since before I can remember and I'm so thankful the little guy loves it. I'm sure we will have many more adventures in the pool, especially since it gets hot here and stays hot!

Our first three yellow crooknecks

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Last year I talked with many people who had problems with blossom drop with their squash plants. So I was so excited to see these little guys on our yellow crookneck squash plants. Yes they have a way to go before we can eat them but at least the blossoms didn't drop! I was tempted to pick the squash blossoms and eat them but I stopped myself. Happy Wednesday! The little guy and I are off to his two year check up.


Monday, May 2, 2011

I hate these little buggers!

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Can you see the difference? I weeded one plot and the other plot is full of these crazy little flowers. Our neighbor told us that he watered them last year thinking they were beans and then realized how big of a mistake that was. They are actually a type of flower that is like a ground cover. They completely take over. We have been pulling hundreds and hundreds every weekend and by the next weekend they are all back! So frustrating but we have to try to keep them at bay and hope that soon we will get them all! Any suggestions on other ways to get rid of them without killing the plants we want would be greatly appreciated!


Here are some of our tomato and bell pepper seedlings. We already have 29 tomatoes and 6 bell peppers planted in the ground but these little guys are still a bit small for the ground. We are planning on planting the corn and soybeans next weekend. Along with more tomatoes and bell peppers. Happy monday to you all!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Baked Bean Lentils- a family recipe from my Mother-in-law

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The little guy loves these! Besides how much time they take to cook and bake they are really really easy. The Doctor makes these at his work and everyone loves them.


1 c dried lentils
2 1/2 c water
1/2 c chopped onion
1 tsp salt
2 Tb brown sugar
2 Tb catsup
2 Tb molasses
1/2 tsp dry mustard
2 slices bacon

Rinse lentils, drain. In saucepan combine: lentils, water, onion and salt, bring to boil. Cover and simmer 45 minutes. Stir in brown sugar, catsup, molasses, mustard, and bacon (uncooked).
Turn into 1 quart bean pot and bake uncovered in 350 degree oven for 1 hour 15 minutes, stir occasionally. Pull out slices of bacon and serve.
Yield: 4-6 servings
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