Lent is always a good time to not only sacrifice the ease of fixing meals with meat but doing extra thinking in providing meatless meals. I noticed that baking potatoes are going for good prices at the store and it reminded me of twice-baked potatoes. Providing each person in the family with a big potato along side a hearty salad makes you forget there isn't any meat on the plate.
My way of making twice-baked potatoes is pretty basic. You scrub a large, baking potato for each person in the family. Pierce the potato several times to allow the steam to escape during baking. They will explode if you don't and please, let's not ask me how I know this! Bake them at 350 degrees for approximately 40-60 minutes depending on the weight of the potatoes.
When the potatoes are baked through, remove from oven and cup off the lengthwise top of each one. You don't want to cut the potato in half, just sort of provide a 'lid'. Carefully scoop out the potato being sure to leave about a quarter of an inch or so to hold the shell together. Now, you get to be creative!
Mash the potato 'insides' together in a large bowl. Add some warmed milk/cream, butter, salt, and pepper. This is your empty canvas and now you create your entree!
1. We like cheddar potatoes so I add some grated, sharp cheddar, a few chili flakes, and dried dill which seems to enhance the cheddar's tang.
2. You can grill some onions and mix that in with some diced chilies and Monteray Jack cheese. Diced, black olives are a nice touch, too.
3. Add some freshly diced tomato with Provolone cheese, and Italian spices. You can sprinkle some grated Parmesan or Romano over the top of each potato when you bake it.
4. Tuna works with some diced celery which will add some crunch. I like a bit of caraway mixed into the filling.
5. Canned salmon will elevate the lowly potato to new standards! Finely diced, red onion adds a tang to the dish.
Once you have decided on your filling creation, restuff your potatoes with the mixture. You can even top with with some buttered bread crumbs, if you like! Place them on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees until they are piping hot. Serve along side a big, colorful salad with some garlic bread and you have a feast.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
And you wonder why . . .
We met up for breakfast with some friends, years ago. We were talking about our children, sharing stories, and such. We were homeschooling and our friends were adamantly not of the home schooling mind set. In fact, you could see it was all the wife could do to not jump all over us about our arrogance and stupidity in taking this route. No one in our own family approved of our move so I have learned to cope with opposition to home schooling - I change the subject! There are some battles that aren't worth getting up in the morning to fight about. We didn't plan to change our minds and all the shouting and chastisement in the world wasn't going to alter our decided course.
We kept to safe topics and talked about our children. Being of a conservative bent, I mentioned my concerns over the current lack of morality among young people, the lack of modesty, their early sexual awareness, etc. My friend basically stated that she felt she had to let her children evolve as they grew up and make their own choices. She said the 'key' was to let them know that no matter what they did, they could always come to her and there would never be any adverse comments about what they might have done, only help in resolving whatever needed resolution for their actions. She didn't want to mold them with her ideas but rather let them grow and become strong.
I found that rather sad. Yes, my children have been out in the world but, from the time they were born, they were taught right from wrong. Even in our sexualized world, they were informed that purity of heart and soul was important. Yes, mine know they can come to me when they make mistakes but my husband and I have done our best to instill in them that many mistakes can be circumvented if they live moral lives. Yes, we will help them with whatever life throws at them. They know, however, that no matter their age, they will get a reprimand for anything they might do that lands them into trouble. Are we molding them with our ideas and values? You better believe it!
Another friend told me that when her son started realizing there were girls in the world, she sat him down and said that when decides to get married, she and his dad would do everything they could to help with a splendid wedding . . . But, if he has been living an immoral life, he can expect a very private wedding without all the pomp and splendor. A wedding/marriage is a sacrament and a bride dressed in white still has meaning.
As for my first friend, who didn't want to instill values into her children . . . Her daughter joined us at breakfast wearing skin tight jeans and a low-cut crop topped shirt. Her mother just sighed, smiled, and shrugged her shoulders.
We kept to safe topics and talked about our children. Being of a conservative bent, I mentioned my concerns over the current lack of morality among young people, the lack of modesty, their early sexual awareness, etc. My friend basically stated that she felt she had to let her children evolve as they grew up and make their own choices. She said the 'key' was to let them know that no matter what they did, they could always come to her and there would never be any adverse comments about what they might have done, only help in resolving whatever needed resolution for their actions. She didn't want to mold them with her ideas but rather let them grow and become strong.
I found that rather sad. Yes, my children have been out in the world but, from the time they were born, they were taught right from wrong. Even in our sexualized world, they were informed that purity of heart and soul was important. Yes, mine know they can come to me when they make mistakes but my husband and I have done our best to instill in them that many mistakes can be circumvented if they live moral lives. Yes, we will help them with whatever life throws at them. They know, however, that no matter their age, they will get a reprimand for anything they might do that lands them into trouble. Are we molding them with our ideas and values? You better believe it!
Another friend told me that when her son started realizing there were girls in the world, she sat him down and said that when decides to get married, she and his dad would do everything they could to help with a splendid wedding . . . But, if he has been living an immoral life, he can expect a very private wedding without all the pomp and splendor. A wedding/marriage is a sacrament and a bride dressed in white still has meaning.
As for my first friend, who didn't want to instill values into her children . . . Her daughter joined us at breakfast wearing skin tight jeans and a low-cut crop topped shirt. Her mother just sighed, smiled, and shrugged her shoulders.
A great reminder . . .
It's
good to have money and the things that money can buy, but it's good, too, to
check up once in a while and make sure you haven't lost the things money can't
buy.
- George Horace
Lorimer
Monday, March 12, 2012
Cereal Killer Muffins!
Here is a creative way to begin the morning and insure you get your children to eat their cereal! When I read the recipe, my thoughts go to bran cereals, cornflakes, and if I'm being wild, possibly a raisin bran type of cereal. Knowing my children, even at the college age, they would want to try some colorful, sweet cereal just to see how it worked in a muffin. It is a good way to use up that half box of cereal that wasn't popular with milk!
Cereal Killer Muffins
2 1/2 cups dry cereal - your choice!
1 quart buttermilk
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter (that's two sticks)
4 eggs
5 cups all-purpose flour
5 teaspoons baking soda
Raisins, nuts . . . optional
Cream sugar, butter, eggs and 1/4th of the buttermilk in a large mixing bowl. Add flour, baking soda, the rest of the buttermilk and the cereal and mix to just combine. It makes a bunch so how many you get depends on the size muffins you are making.
Fill paper-lined muffin cups 2/3 full and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 15-20 minutes. Mixure will keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator so you can make it the night before.
Ideas to change/improve recipe.
Vanilla extract has yet to hurt most any muffin recipe.
Cinnamon takes muffins to a whole, new level.
Soaking the raisins in juice or brandy does a muffin good.
Grating some lemon or orange zest into the batter puts you on superior baker level.
Cereal Killer Muffins
2 1/2 cups dry cereal - your choice!
1 quart buttermilk
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter (that's two sticks)
4 eggs
5 cups all-purpose flour
5 teaspoons baking soda
Raisins, nuts . . . optional
Cream sugar, butter, eggs and 1/4th of the buttermilk in a large mixing bowl. Add flour, baking soda, the rest of the buttermilk and the cereal and mix to just combine. It makes a bunch so how many you get depends on the size muffins you are making.
Fill paper-lined muffin cups 2/3 full and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 15-20 minutes. Mixure will keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator so you can make it the night before.
Ideas to change/improve recipe.
Vanilla extract has yet to hurt most any muffin recipe.
Cinnamon takes muffins to a whole, new level.
Soaking the raisins in juice or brandy does a muffin good.
Grating some lemon or orange zest into the batter puts you on superior baker level.
True . . .
Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils
- Louis Hector Berlioz
The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone to blame it on.
- Robert Bloch
- Louis Hector Berlioz
The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone to blame it on.
- Robert Bloch
Potato Pancakes
I always forget about this recipe! Whenever I do make Potato Pancakes, however, my family is very happy so I’m officially putting the recipe at the top of my pile of recipes.
Potato Pancakes
2 large eggs
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground caraway seed (use whole seed if you can’t find ground)
1/4 cup grated onion
2 ½ cups grated potatoes
Combine and beat together the flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and caraway seed in a large bowl. Grate the onion and potato together as the juice from the lemon will help keep the potatoes from turning color. You don’t have to be precise with the onion and potatoes. Stir the potato/onion mixture into the egg/spice mixture.
In a preheated frying pan or griddle, add a bit of oil or butter and drop generous spoonfuls of the potato pancake mixture onto it. Cook until golden on one side, turn over and complete cooking.
Serve as a side to a meat dish or just with a dish of chunky applesauce. It is a very versatile recipe and goes with a lot of meals.
Potato Pancakes
2 large eggs
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground caraway seed (use whole seed if you can’t find ground)
1/4 cup grated onion
2 ½ cups grated potatoes
Combine and beat together the flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and caraway seed in a large bowl. Grate the onion and potato together as the juice from the lemon will help keep the potatoes from turning color. You don’t have to be precise with the onion and potatoes. Stir the potato/onion mixture into the egg/spice mixture.
In a preheated frying pan or griddle, add a bit of oil or butter and drop generous spoonfuls of the potato pancake mixture onto it. Cook until golden on one side, turn over and complete cooking.
Serve as a side to a meat dish or just with a dish of chunky applesauce. It is a very versatile recipe and goes with a lot of meals.
An improvement?
I posted earlier in the month about my favorite mustard sauce for corned beef and cabbage. In honor of my daughter's homecoming for Spring Break, I fixed just that dinner last night. In preparing my usual mustard sauce, I got a bit more creative. Turns out I improved on something I already thought was perfect!
Mustard Sauce for Corned Beef and Cabbage
1 cup mayo
1/4 cup of the grainy, stone-ground mustard
2 tablespoons of the regular, yellow mustard
2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon of the hot, dried mustard
Just thoroughly mix it all together, put it in a nice serving dish, and let your family be happily surprised.
This stuff really brings out the best in the corned beef. It makes the boiled cabbage stand out. I have even been caught putting it on the potatoes. And, if you have leftovers of the sauce, it is a good spread for cold, corned beef sandwiches on rye bread the next day.
Oh, and don't worry that we've used our corned beef too far in advance of St. Patrick's Day . . . I purchased two of them when they went on sale!
Mustard Sauce for Corned Beef and Cabbage
1 cup mayo
1/4 cup of the grainy, stone-ground mustard
2 tablespoons of the regular, yellow mustard
2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon of the hot, dried mustard
Just thoroughly mix it all together, put it in a nice serving dish, and let your family be happily surprised.
This stuff really brings out the best in the corned beef. It makes the boiled cabbage stand out. I have even been caught putting it on the potatoes. And, if you have leftovers of the sauce, it is a good spread for cold, corned beef sandwiches on rye bread the next day.
Oh, and don't worry that we've used our corned beef too far in advance of St. Patrick's Day . . . I purchased two of them when they went on sale!
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