It Was a Plum of a Day!

I am sick, I despise being sick. It makes me cranky! So, I had to find something to keep me busy today. I walked next door and picked a large bag of beautiful plums!

Then I made this cobbler. It has plums, nectarines, & blackberries in it.
This is my favorite cobbler recipe because it is healthy, quick, easy, and goes w/ any fruit!

I also made this plum sauce, for my waffles, and ice cream. I replaced the almond extract w/ some cinnamon & ginger, then cooked it down a little to thicken it.

Karlee got the plum bug, and decided to make plum bread. It is awesome good!

She doubled the recipe, and took one next door to thank the neighbors for sharing the plums!

It turned into a nice plummy day!

Snow Ice Cream

We had a big surprise snow on Saturday. It left us without church yesterday which was a bummer. We had a great time with our neighbor's though. We ate lunch together, played some cards, and watched some basketball.

Today, we woke up to sunshine and it is obvious that most of our snow will be gone by dark. The kids always ask to make snow ice cream. Normally, there is not enough "clean" snow but this time there was plenty. Here are the pictures!

Here is where I got the snow, I used the top few inches.

The snow!

First whisk 1 egg very thoroughly
Then add 1 cup whole milk (I used about 3/4 cup milk 1/4 cup heavy cream)
Add 1 tsp. of vanilla and 1/2 cup sugar. Add snow by spoonfuls until it reaches your desired consistency
The finished product
Eli takes a bite
He has sensitive teeth so his reaction was OUCH! (he was able to eat it when it melted a little)Karlee gets her turn

Love!

A Little Something Sweet

I know I promised to write about Monday & Tuesday today BUT I decided to wait and ask the ladies who will be in the post if they mind if I use their names. So, I will wait for those posts on Monday & Tuesday. (ladies feel free to say no)

I have been wanting a stand mixer for several years now. They are very expensive, so I didn't really expect to get one anytime soon. J has been saving his bonus points to buy new living room furniture. Now, with the new job, he will no longer get bonus points, making the furniture out of reach. He used his points to order me a stand mixer for my birthday!!! All the ladies say, "Awww, he's so sweet!" You would be right!!! (he also ordered a much needed vacuum cleaner)

Karlee & I have been wanting to try making homemade marshmallows. This requires a stand mixer and I had promised her if I ever had one, we would make them with it first. Turns out Eli spent the night with Leah Thursday, and it gave us the perfect day yesterday to make our marshmallows. We decided on Peppermint with some dipped in chocolate. Here are the pictures & details.

We used this recipe~the only change we made was using only 1 tsp. vanilla at the time it said and adding 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract & green food coloring w/ about 3 minutes left in the beating time.

Ready to go~notice my apron a bday gift from my sister (she made it)

The Mixer~ Do you hear the chorus of angels singing?

KK measuring the sugar

The syrup & gelatin get started.

Adding Vanilla

Starting to look like marshmallows~see the green swirl?

Mmmmmm!

After they set overnight in the tin foil lined pan, we dumped them onto a powdered sugar covered cookie sheet.

Sifting powdered sugar on top, they would be impossible to cut without all of the powdered sugar

Notice the gloves...I can not stand to touch anything powdery, esp. flour! This was a good idea, it also kept them from sticking to us.

Dipping in chocolate!

The finished product.

This was J's request! I said I would make it Saturday but that just wouldn't do.

Would you like to come over for some hot chocolate with homemade marshmallows and a side of chocolate pie?

It's What's For Breakfast

I mentioned my granny's bologna gravy a couple posts ago. If you like fried bologna sandwiches this is a must try.

Bologna Gravy
1/4 to 1/2 inch CHUNK of DELI bologna diced
1 packet of country style gravy

Fry the bologna in a little oil and remove to a paper towel lined plate. Make up the gravy mix and add the bologna in at the end.

That's all there is to it.

Serve this on a biscuit with an egg.

These are the BEST homemade pancakes! I will never buy a mix again. I do add about 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.

These are both big time husband pleasing breakfasts!

Recipe Swap...Cherry Chocolate Cake

I am joining Gayle at The Grocery Cart Challenge in her Friday recipe swap. This cake is so good! It is fairly cheap and not to bad for you. The cake is kept in the fridge so it is a nice cool treat in the HOT days of summer. It comes from the Taste of Home's, Light & Tasty 2005 cookbook. The only change I make is topping it with light cool whip instead of powdered sugar.

Cherry Chocolate Cake
1 package (18 1/4 oz) chocolate cake mix
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp. almond extract
2 cans (20 oz) cherry pie filling
1 small tub light cool whip or powdered sugar

In a mixing bowl, combine the dry cake mix, eggs and almond extract. Stir in one can of pie filling until blended. Transfer to a 13X9 baking pan coated with nonstick spray. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.

If serving right away top whole cake with 2nd can of cherry pie filling and cool whip or powdered sugar. Or just do individual servings of toppings.

This cake is very moist and delicious. If you go with reduced-sugar cherry pie filling and the powdered sugar, one serving is 187 calories, 6 g fat, 1 g fiber.

Enjoy!
Heather Kay

Linguine with Fresh Tomatoes

I have been on a Linky kick this week, so, I will go ahead and finish strong. Gayle at The Grocery Cart Challenge has a weekly recipe swap and I thought I would enter my favorite pasta side dish. I often make this with some broiled chicken breasts and the whole family loves it.

Linguine with Fresh Tomatoes
adapted from Light & Tasty 2002 Annual Recipes

8 ounces uncooked linguine
1 small box grape tomatoes, sliced in half
6 green onions, sliced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup minced fresh basil or 4 teaspoons dried basil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 tablespoons butter
olive oil to taste

About 30 minutes before I cook the pasta, I slice the tomatoes in half, lightly salt and drizzle some olive oil on them. This brings out their wonderful flavor.
Cook pasta according to package directions. Add onions, Parm. cheese, basil, garlic, salt and pepper to bowl with tomatoes. Drain pasta and toss with butter. (I add a little olive oil) Pour Tomato mixture over top of linguine, toss and serve while warm.

Quick tip: when a recipe calls for sliced green onions use your kitchen scissors and snip them, it is so much easier.

This recipe is soooo delicious!!

Have a great weekend!

Heather Kay

Easy Menu

Along with our friends OCD comes the tendency to be late. Sometimes it is only 30 minutes late, sometimes it is hours. He rarely gets a home cooked meal and really enjoys it, so, I enjoy cooking for him. I plan the menu around not having a specific time he will be there. This was my menu for last Friday. Easy and Delicious!

Brisket from Sam's, the already cooked and sliced one. I put some water in it and our favorite BBQ sauce on top and cover it with tin foil and it can cook as long as you want. Sometimes I will do a pork or beef roast the same way.

Sweet N' Sour Beans
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. cider vinegar
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ground mustard
2 large onions large diced
28 oz. baked beans
16 oz. kidney beans
151/4 oz. lima beans
151/4 oz. great northern beans
bacon bits (I use the packaged one in the salad dressing aisle because I rarely fry bacon)

In a large nonstick skillet, combine the brown sugar, cider vinegar, garlic powder and mustard; bring to a boil. Stir in onion. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes or until onions are tender. Add the drained, rinsed beans and bacon.
Pour into a 2-qt. baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Cover and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes or until heated through.

I have learned that this dish is better the longer it is in the oven. Also I usually have the temp on the oven more like 325. If I need to speed things up I just turn it up. This is my favorite bean recipe! It comes from the Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005 cookbook.

Sweet or Baked Potato's- easy to keep warm and nice on the side.

To this menu I add some kind of rice dish, mainly for my son who does not eat beans. I also serve a salad or coleslaw and homemade bread. I have a great recipe that makes the dough in the bread machine and then you let it rise for 45 minutes and bake in the oven. If you would like the recipe leave me a comment and I'll post it tomorrow.

Our friend always brings the best ingredients for his hot fudge sundae's for dessert. This time I cut up strawberries with a little sugar to add to it. Wonderful!!

Have a Great Tuesday!

I am excited because I am going to buy mulch, flowers, tomato's, green beans, etc. to get my gardens started tomorrow...can't wait!

Blessings,
Heather Kay