I am so excited that my blog has just started on GRANDPARENTS.COM and encourage you to visit their site. Its the BEST destination for insights and fun for you and your little ones. Below are my youngest grandsons Noah and Gabriel ( I think Noah is on the left but am not completely sure – isn’t being a grandparent the best thing in the world?)
Here is the link to Grandparents.com and my blog!
http://www.grandparents.com/family-and-relationships/inspiring-stories-and-wisdoms/new-you-after-55
Our grandkids are already getting excited. Can you believe it? Only 4 weeks to go? Sigh…it seems like Halloween is the topic of discussion for 5 and 3 year old children for months… here are my oldest grandsons trying out their ‘looks’. What about some spooky music? Have you heard ‘MONSTERS IN MY ROOM’? It works for us!
Here is a really easy recipe for Sugar Cookies – and you can buy great Halloween sprinkles ( Michaels is my favorite store for these!)
2 cups flour, plus more for rolling out cookies
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
Making cheesy bread is fun, easy and delicious
It’s hard to get enough cheese in your baked goods. Grated cheese, unless it is very sharp, just doesn’t deliver enough flavor after it’s baked. When you add more cheese, you upset the balance in the recipe. If you add enough cheese to yeasted breads, the sodium upsets the yeast.
Dry cheese powder is so concentrated that you can deliver a load of flavor. There are also cheese booster products that add punch without continuing to load your baked goods with cheese.
We’ve experimented a lot with cheese in breads and biscuits. My affiliate partner Prepared Pantry have developed and sell a New England Cheddar Biscuit Mix that makes biscuits very close to those at Red Lobster and several bread mixes with cheese.
Cheese powder is dry and fine, much like flour. You can substitute cheese powder for part of the flour in many recipes. The following guidelines will give you directions.
| GUIDELINES FOR YOU TO CHANGE YOUR FAVORITE RECIPE: |
Cheesy bread, biscuits, and crusts are terrific but unless you can find some very sharp cheddar, you just can’t get there with grated cheese. Using cheese powder and cheese booster, you can make very cheesy goods without upsetting your recipe.
Below we will tell you how to do it including how to substitute cheese powder for flour.
Guidelines for using cheddar powder:
Cheese powder can also be used in casseroles, gravies, and soups. (Many packaged macaroni and cheese products have a dry cheese packet made of dry cheese, booster, and flour.) 
It’s worth keeping dry cheese powder and cheese booster on hand for when you want to make cheese biscuits or bread. The product comes in a zippered Mylar package and will keep unopened for at least six months. Once opened, zip it up again. If you are not going to use it right away, store it in the refrigerator or freezer where it will last a long time.
Why is this a breakthrough?
Cheesy bread, biscuits, and crusts are terrific but unless you can find some very sharp cheddar, you just cannot get there with grated cheese. Using cheese powder and cheese booster, you can make very cheesy goods without upsetting your recipe. This article tells you how to do it including how to substitute cheese powder for flour.
I love to read to my grandchildren. Above are Noah and Gabriel listening while I am reading to their big brothers.
Jack taught himself to read at 4. He is reading at 2nd grade level now – at 5. I am sure it has to do with the fact that all his grandparents and parents read to him and his brothers all the time – at least two or three times a day. I do download a LOT of books onto my IPAD – its so easy. And the children LOVE my IPAD so this way they can point to the book and feel like its a game. SO much fun for us all. Of course listening to music – classical music – is what we do ALL the time – so its on all day long. This time we were listening to Handel’s Water Music. Give it a try yourself!
Of course there was a great meal cooking while all this was happening – a crock pot meal that is easy and fast!
| 1 chicken, cut up and skinned 1/3 cup hoisin sauce* 1/4 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup plum sauce* 2 tablespoons lime juice 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 3 tablespoons cornstarch |
Put all the ingredients into the crockpot – cook on low for 6 hours. Serve with rice or noodles. YUM! Could that be any easier? Here I am reading to Jack ( right) and Jonah ( left) while our yummy dinner is cooking.
Any good dessert should evolve over time. A year or so ago, I tried cinnamon bun sundaes—little bite-sized cinnamon buns topped with a caramel sauce, ice cream, and whipped cream. They’re terrific but now they’ve evolved. We’re topping them with butterscotch sauce and caramel whipped cream. Both additions are very good and take a great dessert and make it even better.
Caramel whipped cream is easy to make. Make it like everyday whipped cream but substitute caramel flavor for vanilla extract and brown sugar for white. Use it on any dessert. You’ll never go back to everyday whipped cream. You can buy the caramel whipped cream at The Prepared Pantry. You can also buy a caramel whipped cream mix—you add only the whipping cream. The mix is quick and easy, has the caramel in it, and has a stabilizer added so that it won’t melt so quickly.
Of course, you can still make them with caramel sauce but buttermilk sauce is even better. Buttermilk sauce does not taste like buttermilk. The buttermilk is neutralized so the tang is gone and the syrup is rich and smooth, maybe with some butterscotch tones. It works on both pancakes and desserts. We have a buttermilk sauce and syrup mix that is quick and easy and makes about three cups of syrup. We have included a recipe for caramel sauce and buttermilk sauce.
So here’s how to make them:
Step 1: Make the little cinnamon bun balls either with a monkey bread mix according to package instructions or with a monkey bread recipe.
Step 2: Place bite-sized pieces of monkey bread in a wide-mouthed glass or in a bowl. Don’t make the pieces larger than what you would eat with a spoon. You may need to snip larger pieces into smaller pieces with kitchen scissors.
Step 3: Pour buttermilk sauce or caramel sauce over the pieces. Sprinkle with chopped nuts. (We used pecan pieces.) Heat the monkey bread, nuts, and syrup combination until warm in the microwave.
Step 4: Add a scoop of ice cream. Top with caramel whipped cream and a cherry.
2 tablespoons cornstarch 1 1/2 cups milk 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup corn syrup 1 cup granulated sugar 2 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 3/4 cup buttermilk 1/2 cup butter 3 tablespoons corn syrup 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoons caramel flavor
Cooking with kids – so much fun whenver we do it. Last week we made sugar cookies and I misread the recipe so had to make it up and it turned out fine! Here is the recipe
that worked out fine even though it was a rescue project! And Jack and Jonah our oldest grandkids helped a lot – of course there was a big mess – to be expected when cooking with kids – and as we heat our swimming pool and the weather was fine – we had a swim before ( and while we were waiting for the cookies to bake!)
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour milk ( add white vinegar to regular or 2% milk to make it sour)
5 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Of course we have music going all the time – this time it was one of our favorite classical composers -Johann Sebastian Bach and the Brandenburg Concerto’s.
http://www.youtube.com/embed/f_gBWPs4r3U
This is from a game reserve in South Africa – one that I used to visit often with my family when I lived there. Some Dutch Tourists came across this amazing scene and enjoyed it – as I did when I watched it. I know you will too.
The Secrets of the Pros: How to Transform Your Baking with Cinnamon
“Nothing makes such a magical difference in your baking as really good cinnamon. And teaching children the value of aromatic smells and tastes -cooking with kids will do that – even if they don’t want to eat it afterward – at least try it once! That’s our rule. It doesn’t always work but we try!
Cinnamon is America’s favorite spice. It seems to be in almost everything from cookies to cakes to pies. But few recipes really reach the potential cinnamon has to offer. Cinnamon can make a magical difference—with the right cinnamon and use.
Secret #1 Use really good cinnamon. Professional chefs use really good cinnamon . . . and there is a world of difference between the good stuff and what you find in many stores.
How do you get the good stuff? Buy it on the internet or from a specialty store. Smell it. Taste it. It should not taste nor smell like a drug store. Put a little on your finger and taste it. It should have some punch and won’t be sweet but it should not be bitter or astringent. If it tastes nasty on your finger, don’t put it in your cookies.
Secret #2 Learn the different flavors of the cinnamons. There are three major varieties of cinnamon: Korintje cassia, Ceylon or Sri Lankan, and Vietnamese or Saigon. They have very different flavors.
Cassia is the cinnamon we are most familiar with and what you’ll buy in the grocery store. And the problematic, poor quality cinnamons are almost always cassia cinnamons. Really good cassia is wonderful.
Ceylon cinnamon is very mild, almost fruity. Vietnamese cinnamon packs a punch and is much more flavorful than cassis with tones of cinnamon oil. It is delightfully fragrant and very distinctive. Vietnamese cinnamon has a very different flavor.
We recommend having all three for your pantry. Choose the cinnamon to fit your taste and the recipe. Ceylon is a delicate flavor and gets lost with a lot of competing flavors but is perfect for a buttery pastry or cinnamon roll. We love Vietnamese in apple pies and other fruit pies and cobblers. It is essential with chocolate.
Secret #3 Don’t be afraid to double-up. If it’s good cinnamon and you want the taste to come through, double or triple the amount of cinnamon that the recipe calls for. In apple pies, we have used as much as four times the cinnamon. In most recipes, when you only use what the recipe calls for, the cinnamon disappears and you can barely taste it. If it’s a poor cinnamon, you don’t want it in your recipe at all but if it’s good, showcase it.
Learn more about each cinnamon Here are some of our favorite recipes that are really set apart by their cinnamon flavor. But don’t take our word for it—try them yourself!
Cinnamon Crème Brulee is one of our favorites. Not only does the cinnamon add a wonderful flavor to the custard, the cinnamon flecks are very attractive. Be sure that you use a top quality cinnamon.
Ingredients 9 large egg yolks 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon of salt 1/2 cup granulated sugar 3 cups heavy cream 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup brown sugar
Directions
Baker’s Notes: Baking times for the custard vary substantially and depend on the pans used, how hot the water is, and how deep it is. You should bake until the custard is gently set. You want to heat the brown sugar quickly so that it does not heat the custard. Of course, you can use a blow torch. Serve the same day or the caramel topping will become soft. We sometimes place the ramekins in the freezer to chill more quickly. Do not let the custards freeze.
This is a multi-purpose syrup. It works on your pancakes and it works very well on desserts and ice cream as well.
This syrup is made with Cinnamon Vanilla Sugar. Cinnamon vanilla sugar is made with a mixture of cinnamon, granulated sugar, and dry vanilla.
We use a 50/50 mixture of cinnamon vanilla sugar and sugar in other recipes—just substitute the mixture for the sugar in the recipe.
Ingredients 2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup cinnamon vanilla sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1 cup cream
1 tablespoon corn syrup 4 tablespoons butter
Directions Mix the cornstarch with the two sugars in a saucepan with a whisk until the cornstarch is well dispersed. Add the cream and corn syrup and heat until bubbly and thick, stirring often. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter.
This beautiful bread is an attention getter. It is like cinnamon rolls in a loaf. You’ll find this a great snacking bread that will attract kids and neighbors—but try to save several slices for your morning toast.
Ingredients 2 cups water at 105 to 110 degrees 5 cups good quality bread flour 1 7-gram packet instant yeast 4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled 3 tablespoons granulated sugar 2 teaspoons salt 1/3 cup dry milk powder, preferably high heat treated dry milk 1/4 cup good quality cinnamon 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 4 tablespoons butter 1 cup raisins 3/4 cups walnut pieces, optional For the frosting: 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar 1 tablespoon meringue powder or one egg white 1/2 teaspoon lemon, vanilla, or almond extract milk
Directions Prepare two 9 x 5-inch pans by greasing the inside of the pans, including the rims.
Chicken chicken chicken – yes it can get boring. But this recipe is truly inspirational and easy to make – low cal too and makes me think of summer. Plus when COOKING WITH KIDS, the kids LOVE to make it since tasting is permitted! So you may ask – how come you have peaches and its the fall? Well I FREEZE them in the summer and have them all year around – especially for recipes such as this one. All you need to do is slice peaches, put into ziploc bags and freeze!
What is also very special about this is that it’s QUICK and yummy and you can make it by buying all the ingredients in advance – and its done in 10 minutes! You will have time to listen to grandma music – try the TICKLE ME SONG!
Here are some free range chickens – organic and raised free!
It is a little known fact that I have a graduate degree in Latin and Classics. Yes – I spent the early part of my education in college studying these subjects and my first job was as a high school teacher, educating boys and girls in 6th -12th grade in Latin, and also in English. I loved teaching and that has been a constant theme throughout my life.
So when someone sent me the following, reminding me of the words of Cicero – the amazing philosopher, teacher, orator and seer, I thought you would enjoy it. It is amazing that the human condition has not changed – nor have we learned from history. Perhaps you would agree with me, then, that every child ( and all members of congress, the executive branch and the judiciary as well as state legislators and local politicians) should read and learn this lesson:
“The budget should be balanced.
The Treasury should be refilled.
Public debt should be reduced.
The arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled.
The assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome becomes bankrupt.
People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance.”
Cicero – 55 BC
Wikipedia summarizes Cicero’s background as follows:
Marcus Tullius Cicero (
/ˈsɪsɨroʊ/; Classical Latin: [ˈkɪkɛroː]; January 3, 106 BC – December 7, 43 BC; sometimes anglicized as Tully[1]) was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, orator, political theorist, Roman consul and constitutionalist. He is widely considered one of Rome’s greatest orators and prose stylists.[2][3]
He introduced the Romans to the chief schools of Greek philosophy and created a Latin philosophical vocabulary (with neologisms such as humanitas, qualitas, quantitas, and essentia)[4] distinguishing himself as a linguist, translator, and philosopher.
Petrarch‘s rediscovery of Cicero’s letters is often credited for initiating the 14th-century Renaissance.[5] According to Polish historian Tadeusz Zieliński, “Renaissance was above all things a revival of Cicero, and only after him and through him of the rest of Classical antiquity.”[6] The peak of Cicero’s authority and prestige came during the eighteenth-century Enlightenment,[7] and his impact on leading Enlightenment thinkers such as John Locke, David Hume, and Montesquieu was substantial.[8] His works rank among the most influential in European culture, and today still constitute one of the most important bodies of primary material for the writing and revision of Roman history, especially the last days of the Roman Republic.[9]
The modest little coffee filter – who knew how many uses it could have! This was sent to me anonymously on the internet and I thought I would share it with you. Some of these uses really make a lot of sense…..
1. Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in the microwave. Coffee filters make excellent covers.
2. Clean windows, mirrors, and chrome… Coffee filters are lint-free so they’ll leave windows sparkling.
3. Protect China by separating your good dishes with a coffee filter between each dish.
4. Filter broken cork from wine. If you break the cork when opening a wine bottle, filter the wine through a coffee filter.
5. Protect a cast-iron skillet. Place a coffee filter in the skillet to absorb moisture and prevent rust.
6. Apply shoe polish. Ball up a lint-free coffee filter.
7. Recycle frying oil. After frying, strain oil through a sieve lined with a coffee filter.
8. Weigh chopped foods. Place chopped ingredients in a coffee filter on a kitchen scale.
9. Hold tacos. Coffee filters make convenient wrappers for messy foods.
10. Stop the soil from leaking out of a plant pot. Line a plant pot with a coffee filter to prevent the soil from going through the drainage holes.
11. Prevent a Popsicle from dripping. Poke one or two holes as needed in a coffee filter.
12. Do you think we used expensive strips to wax eyebrows? Use strips of coffee filters..
13. Put a few in a plate and put your fried bacon, French fries, chicken fingers, etc on them.. It soaks out all the grease.
14. Keep in the bathroom. They make great “razor nick fixers..”
15. As a sewing backing. Use a filter as an easy-to-tear backing for embroidering or appliquéing soft fabrics.
16. Put baking soda into a coffee filter and insert into shoes or a closet to absorb or prevent odors.
17. Use them to strain soup stock and to tie fresh herbs in to put in soups and stews.
18 Use a coffee filter to prevent spilling when you add fluids to your car..
19. Use them as a spoon rest while cooking and clean up small counter spills.
20. Can use to hold dry ingredients when baking or when cutting a piece of fruit or veggies. Saves on having extra bowls to wash.
21. Use them to wrap Christmas ornaments for storage.
22. Use them to remove fingernail polish when out of cotton balls.
23. Use them to sprout seeds. Simply dampen the coffee filter, place seeds inside, fold it and place it into a zip-lock plastic bag until they sprout.
24. Use coffee filters as blotting paper for pressed flowers. Place the flowers between two coffee filters and put the coffee filters in phone book.
25. Use as a disposable “snack bowl” for popcorn, chips, etc.
26. Great in the tool room when separating nails and screws then use in to bottom of containers to remove moisture and prevent rust.
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Cook the pie crust for half the time that the package says, after pricking the raw crust with a fork to allow steam to escape while cooking.
3. Sprinkle with fontina, olives, and shallots. Arrange half of tomato slices over shallots Combine flour, cornmeal, and thyme; sprinkle over tomatoes. Top with remaining tomato slices; sprinkle with 3/4 teaspoon salt and pepper.
3. Combine milk, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and eggs; pour into pan. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until set; let stand 10 minutes. Top with basil.
4. Combine 1/4 teaspoon salt and cherry tomatoes. Slice tart; serve with cherry tomatoes.
I love peaches and make our own feta from our goats milk. What could be better than this combination! Make the salad with your kids – its easy and healthy.
Here is a super recipe for a summer lunch or starter dinner salad. Of course you need some fun music to cook with – try “Monsters in my room”.
1. Peel and chop 1 peach. Cut remaining 4 peaches into 8 equal pieces each and discard pits. Your kids can do this if you hold the knife and they hold your hand!
2. Process chopped peach, green onions, next 5 ingredients, in a food processor 10 to 15 seconds or until smooth. Add oil, and pulse 3 to 4 times or until thoroughly combined. Kids love to press the on and off buttons on the food processor. Be sure the top is on tight!
5. Arrange romaine leaves evenly on 4 plates. Lay the sliced peaches on the lettuce and then sprinkle the chopped feta over it. Sprinkle with the baby arugula so that the peach/feta mixture peaks out and is not completely covered. Drizzle with peach dressing and add chopped cilantro for garnish. Kids love to do this. You do one plate and they can copy you.
Enjoy on its own as a light lunch – or serve as a starter dish with a meat or chicken heavier dish to follow.
Here is the next in the amazing photos sent to me anonymously on the internet. Takes my breath away – how about yours? If you know the names of the photographers or artists do let me know.
My inspirational song “Start the world all over again” is truly the best to listen to while viewing these amazing perspectives.
How inspirational is the strength of an ant? If you ever doubted the human spirit, know that we have the ability to do amazing things – and are reminded of such when we see the glory of creation below in these photos.
The size of a whale can only be appreciated when compared to the size of a person. This photo tells it all.
And finally – what could be better than the love of a seal?
I wish I knew who took the photos that I will feature in a couple of future posts along with this one, so that I could praise and attribute them. But alas they were sent to me via the internet as the best photos of 2012. If you can help me attribute them to the amazing photographers who took them please email me and I will do so. In the meantime put on my inspirational song “Start the World All Over Again’ and view the below.
This is a picture made up by people standing in different places which, when viewed from above creates the stunning image below. There seems to be a signature in the bottom right corner but even expanded I could not read it. If you can, let me know! Quite amazing isn’t it? I showed my grandkids this photo and asked them what they saw. Then I explained to them that people have different talents (our little Jonah already at 3 calls himself an ‘artist’) and that everything should be viewed from multiple perspectives – this could be seen as people walking around in different directions, or art. They were fascinated.
These tips are just fabulous – inexpensive and great. I received this on the internet – anonymous. So if anyone knows who I should attribute this too please let me know.
Humans aren’t the only ones that can enjoy the many uses for white distilled vinegar-even our four-legged friends can benefit.
Give your dog a gleaming coat by spraying or rubbing with a solution of 1 cup white distilled vinegar to 1 quart water. As a bonus, you save the cost of an expensive shine product used on show animals. (Works even on a horse!) Here is our dog Sunny, the Rottweiler – definitely a part of the family – he works out with my husband.
Keep a dog from scratching its ears by wiping them out regularly with a soft cloth dipped in undiluted white distilled vinegar.
Remove skunk odors by wiping down the animal with a 50-50 solution of white distilled vinegar and water, followed by a plain-water rinse. Repeat if necessary.
Discourage a cat from sitting on a certain windowsill or other surface, or from scratching upholstery, by spraying white distilled vinegar on the item. Test first on an unnoticeable area to be sure there won’t be a discoloration.
Keep a cat out of a garden area by placing paper, a cloth, or sponge there that has been soaked in white distilled vinegar.
Get rid of the deposits and water lines that form in aquariums and fish bowls by wiping them down with white distilled vinegar and following with a good rinse. For stubborn deposits, soak for several hours or overnight.
Keep the birdbath clean by scrubbing it often with undiluted white distilled vinegar. Rinse well.
Keep flies away from horses or other outdoor pets by spraying a mixture of water and white distilled vinegar around the area where the animals are. We use it around our goats. Here is my grandson Jack with a baby goat 2 days old.
Remove cat litter odor by pouring ½ inch of white distilled vinegar in the empty litter box. Let it stand for 20 minutes, swish it around, then rinse with cold water.
Kill fleas by adding a little white distilled vinegar to your dog or cat’s drinking water.
Stop a dog from barking with a spray bottle filled with equal amounts of water and white distilled vinegar. When the dog barks, spray the vinegar water in its direction but not in the face.
Remove pet odors. After cleaning, cover the area with baking soda. Let it stand overnight. The next day vacuum up the baking soda and wash the area with white distilled vinegar. Rinse and let dry.
Cats hate the smell of vinegar. If you have a cat that is marking its territory around your house, spray the area with white distilled vinegar then rinse with a hose.
Stop cats from fighting with each other with a spritz of a white distilled vinegar and water solution.
Prevent cats from eating your plants by spraying the leaves with a solution of white distilled vinegar and water.
1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add steak, turning to coat; seal and marinate at room temperature for a minimum of one hour, but overnight works too, turning a couple of times. Remove steak from bag; discard marinade but keep the onions for cooking on the grill next to the steaks.
2. Heat a large grill pan over medium-high heat or your bbq. Coat pan with cooking spray.
3. Put the onions on first – they take a bit longer than the steaks if you like your meat rare or medium rare.
4. Sprinkle both sides of steak with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add steak to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove steak from pan; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Tent with foil; let stand 5 minutes. Cut steak diagonally across the grain into thin slices or serve one steak per person.
5. Serve with fresh corn and a side dish of vine ripened sliced tomatoes drizzled with olive oil! YUM!
MARINADE
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