Soup's up!

My uncorked bottle of bouncy sunshine (aka Chloie) has not been feeling well the last couple days. She's been, well... still. It's so unlike her, that her teacher sent her home. That and she had a fever of 102.4. Now she can't go back to school until she has been 24 hours fever and medicine free and all because of the H1N1 thing last year. Personally, I think they might be over reacting, but that is a discussion for a later time.

So, we went to my parents' house so that she could spend the night and today with Mom, and I made my chicken noodle soup. Yes, a soup the kiddos and Tim will actually eat. For my sister who wanted the recipe...

2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cans hot water
1 'box' of Swanson chicken broth (not the cans)
1 12oz package of egg noodles
1 16oz bag frozen veg (I used the pea/carrot mix)
1/4 cup minced onions
various herbs to taste (I used 1/2 tsp pepper, 1 tsp salt, 1 Tbsp oregano, 2 Tbsp parsley, 1 tsp garlic salt)

Mix the water, condensed soup, and broth together over medium heat until completely dissolved. Add herbs, veg, and onions and stir until almost boiling. Add the egg noodles, stir gently until everything is under the fluid level. Cover and let cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

You can also add chunks of cooked chicken, but I didn't this time. This is a little thicker because of the condensed soup, so it works really well in bread bowls.

Honey Chicken (again)

You know, since I first tried the Chinese honey chicken recipe a few months ago, I wasn't expecting the reaction I got from it. Yowsa! At least every other day, my kids ask me to make it for dinner. Mom and I tried making it with breaded/baked chicken pieces instead of battered and fried. I liked it, but apparently it just wasn't the same. So, if we make it, it has to be according to the original recipe. I think this one has earned a place in my recipe keeper book...

you know, the one with all of the cake recipes and desserts.

Yea, that one.

I'm not sure my little book will know what to do with itself. :)

It's more like elderberry spread...

For our FHE last night, we talked about how following directions will lead to a desired end result like following the commandments and keeping our covenants will lead to living again with our Heavenly Father.

So we prepared jars, lids, boiling water, sugar, berry puree, vinegar, etc. and went to work. The "jam" took forever to cook, so at 9pm we sent the kiddos to bed while I continued to stir, and stir, and stir...

After the mix had reduced enough to be about an inch from its original levels, I thought that it had cooked enough. It wasn't thick like the recipe said (found here), but maybe it was supposed to thicken more while it cooled. I got good seals on all my jars and let them cool over night.

Shows what I know. We woke up this morning to spread. It tastes good, and everyone that tried it thought it was great (except Dougie, he wouldn't touch it). Now the questions is: who to give the jars to?

Twice baked cheesy 'taters

On the way home from the Coles wedding on Saturday, Tim and I were talking about the recent increase in cake activity. He told me that he was happy that I was busy doing something I like doing, that I really enjoy, but that it was putting more pressure on him because he had to help with laundry, dishes, cooking, etc. His biggest gripe (I think) was that he hadn't had a good home cooked meal in a couple weeks because we had to settle for something quick and easy most nights. Hmmm...

We had power problems at church on Sunday (something about a blown fuse and a three-phase something that had 1/3 of the building's power down). We finished Sacrament, but they cancelled the remaining meetings for the rest of the day. No Relief Society, no Primary, nothing. I went home feeling a little bummed because I had really practiced the hymns for RS. Any way, Tim had stayed home instead of going with us because he had worked the night before and was working that evening. We got home and put the kids down for a nap as well, and then I got to work. Most of the laundry was done, the dishes were done, and Audie helped me make bread and rolls for dinner. Our menu consisted of pan-fried chicken, rolls, mixed veggies, and twice baked cheesy 'taters. Audie helped me with those, too.So here's what we did for the 'taters:

First, we scrubbed one 'tater for each person at dinner and baked them in the oven until they were soft all the way through. Then, we cut the tops off of them (save these for later) and scooped out the inside, leaving no more than 1/4" on the skin. We added (for 5 'taters) 1 cup of sour cream, salt and pepper to taste, 1/2 tsp. each garlic and onion powder, and 1 cup of cheddar cheese. We then mashed everything together until it resembled slightly lumpy mashed 'taters. Last, we filled the empty skins and a little more so it mounded over the top with the cheesy innards and sprinkled with oregano, salt, pepper, cheese, and paprika. Then we baked it in the oven at 350 for about 20 minutes or until the cheese on top was melted and slightly browned.

The lids we cut off of the 'taters we spread with butter and seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, onion and garlic powder, and cheese and baked on the same pan as the 'taters until they were melty and brown as well. Mmmm, tasty!

If you're wondering about the plate... I picked that pattern out at the outlet store when I was very young. 2 or 3 maybe? My parents had been using that set for over 20 years before they decided to get a blank white set from the same company/store. Guess who got the old ones? :-) I still like the flowers and butterflies!

February's Enrichment

Ever wonder what happens when a bunch of women gather around chocolate?

So what started out as 2 or 3 interested sisters turned into 12-15 signing the sheet, and ended up as 25 Sisters in all!!! I had enough cake, barely enough caramel and hot fudge, and almost enough icing. Wow. It was definitely an interesting experience for me, and hopefully a fun experience for them!

This is our hostess, Sister Gilbert, who graciously allowed the event at her house. We had to set up 2 extra tables for all who attended.This is Christie (works with me at my day job). She does professional catering and cakes also so we have a lot to talk about. She provided the munchies. Let me tell you, that little cucumber sandwich was to die for! Here are pictures of the Sisters with their cakes. No two are alike, cakes or Sisters, and they were all a lot of fun. Everyone got a 2-layer 6" cake to practice on and take home, while I did the full size 4-layer 8" cake.

If you're interested in the recipe, check it our here on my cake blog!

Shrimp Dip Recipe

For all who asked for it at the wedding:

a few dashes of hot sauce
a few dashes of Worcester [sic] sauce
old bay through sprinkled through out and on top when done
8 oz fat free cream cheese
1/2 cup fat free mayo
1 can of baby shrimp
Chill and serve.

I will say that I prefer the more fattening method using real mayo and real cream cheese and we ended up using more than a sprinkle of old bay because we like it with a little warmth.

This dip is best with a mild cracker like a town house that doesn't overpower the shrimp.

The Cookie Exchange

Now that I've started, I don't know if I can stop...

Last night I went to enrichment at the church. Fun activities included learning to make ribbon bow for gifts, how to make cream cheese mints, and a craft session on making a "12 Days of Christmas" calendar.

The cream cheese mints... now there is a recipe. After trying one of each flavor, I've decided I like the cinnamon and the vanilla flavors best, though you can make them in any flavor/color. Curses to JaNae, now I'm making them for the wedding (if I can find a good snowflake candy mold before it's time). A word of warning - do NOT double the recipe if you are making it in your food processor or in a mixer any less powerful than a KitchenAid... it will burn up the motor!

In your food processor (or with a mixer) combine:
3 oz. cream cheese (preferably softened)
3 cups confectioners sugar
1 Tbsp. butter
a few drops of desired color
a few drops of desired flavor (to taste)

Blend until the consistency of modeling clay. Refrigerate as necessary to keep the mix from making a mess. Roll into balls, then roll in granulated sugar. You can leave in balls, flatten with a fork, decorate the top, whatever you want to do, just make sure you let them sit to harden for two hours before eating. They can also be molded using candy molds (the sugar keeps them from sticking to the mold). The mints may be stored on your counter top for 2 weeks or frozen for up to 2 months.


Now this little calendar... let me tell you that it took a little bit to do, and I ended up finishing it at home, but it was well worth it! Let me preface this by saying that I am not a scrapbooker. I have never scrapbooked. I still might never scrapbook, but this was a lot of fun; and to see the variation as each sister did her own was wonderful. There were so many ideas, colors, wow. Each little "door" on the calendar has it's own raised ornament over a frame, and inside it has a scripture and song for each day of Christmas (or a service for each day). This is a sweet idea that I might take to make for Christmas gifts next year (so if you're reading this next year, don't be surprised).


Each sister this evening brought 6 dozen of her favorite cookie for the cookie exchange. I ended up bringing home a full platter of cookies. My kids will be on a sugar rush for a week. My only regret is that I didn't get the recipes for some of these fabulous cookies.

Our next enrichment is in February, and I'm teaching cake decorating. The sisters in Relief Society are checking to see which of my Top Secret cake recipes they would like to learn. I'm hoping they will have as much fun learning as I do decorating!