Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies

The boys (big & little) have been asking for cookies again, so I grabbed out my stuff & decided to make some. This recipe is a family favorite. It is one from Jeremy's mom, and I think it is Jeremy favorite cookie. At least anytime I make a different recipe he usually bites into looks a little confused & says "This isn't my moms, is it?" So I thought I might as well share it with everyone else:  

My Favorite part of cookies, Cookie dough. 

Golden Deliciousness 

Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies

  2 1/2 c. White Sugar           2 1/2 c. Brown Sugar

 2 1/2 c.  Shortening              5 eggs

 2 Tbs.   Vanilla                     1/4 c. Milk

 Stir & Mix it in all together.  Then add:

  5 c. flour                            2 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

 2 1/2 tsp. Salt                      2 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

Beat until it is all mixed well. Then add:

  5 c. of oatmeal   &

  2 c. (or More) of Chocolate & Butterscotch  Chips.

Bake at 350 degrees for 11-13 minutes or until golden brown.

This recipe makes a lot (like 7 dozen or so) So I would cut it in half unless you want to have cookies galore. Usually I make a full batch & freeze most of . For some reason when I make them they are almost softer after  I freeze them & then thaw them. So I don't know what I am doing wrong, but either way they are delicious. So enjoy. 

Filling the Freezer: Homemade Hashbrowns

  I love the look of a freezer full of food. There is something satisfying about knowing you have food to eat in the coming months. Our freezer seems to fluctuate on being full & then needing to fill it up again.  I also love to fill it up with  stretching my budget as much as I can. Here is one quick ways you can help fill up your freezer without killing your budget.

Hashbrowns. 

My boys love hashbrowns, but to buy a bag of them at my local store is an average price of $2.50-3.50. That usually only makes it through one meal. Scary I know, I can only imagine how much food I am going to go through when my growing boys are actual teenagers. At the price of $3.00 average for a bag, I can't get very far. On the other hand, I can buy a 50 lbs box at my local Potato plant for $12 a box. That means I can buy 4 bags of hashbrowns or 50 lbs on potatoes. Its not rocket science.

 So what? Now, whenever I bake a potato for dinner I always add an extra 10 or so in the oven too. I might as well fill the oven up. You want them to cook until they are almost done. They will grate easier if they are slightly under done than overdone.  After they cook, I throw them into the fridge so they get cold. Once they cool I get out my handy Food Processor. (If you don't have one, you can either cut up the potatoes in a square (Southern style) or just use your cheese grater). 

 
                            I set mine to the largest size it can grate, for our family, this is our favorite. 

         Then I grate up all the potatoes & spread them out on a cookie sheet with a little wax or freezer paper.

           Then go down & set your cookie sheet in the freezer. I usually just let them freeze over night. Or if  I put them in first thing in the morning, usually before bedtime & can take them out. 

Take your frozen cookie sheet of hash browns & begin to break them into pieces and chunks. I put them into gallon freezer bags & mark them. This allows me to get into each bag & only take out what I will need.  

Take out the amount you need for your breakfast, as you need them. Fry them up, or use them in casseroles.

Either way they are delicious. I figured a bag of hashbrowns now only cost me .50 cents instead of $3.00 and a little of my time. I make 3 or so bags at a time & fill my freezer for pennies. 

Do you have any other ideas to help fill your freezer for pennies? If so I would love to hear about them. 

Homemade Granola

We don't eat a lot of cold cereal at the house. I think it overly priced & there is no nutritional value in it. Besides if I do buy it on a rare occasion that is all my kids want to eat. Breakfast, lunch & dinner. So to make me life simpler, I just don't buy it. However, we love homemade granola. I make it occasionally & it is a favorite snack for everybody. It is simple to make. I usually double the recipe if I have enough nuts on hand.

Homemade Granola

6 cups Oatmeal
1/2 c. Brown Sugar
1 c.  Coconut
1/4 c. Sunflower seeds
1 c. Chopped Nuts (we usually do almonds, but whatever nut your family enjoys).

Stir this together & place either on a cookie sheet or cake pan and Bake at 350  for 10 Minutes
just to start to warm everything through.

Add:
  1/2 c. Oil
   1/2  c. honey (We like it a little sweeter & add 3/4 c.)
  1 tsp. Vanilla.

 Mix all of these together & then once your oats are warm, drizzle over the top of the pan & mix through.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Stirring every 10.

At the last 5 minutes add Craisins, or dried fruit if desired.

Let sit & cool. The longer you let it sit & cool before breaking it up the bigger chunks you will have. If you don't want large chunks, mix sooner.

Enjoy.
 

Homemade Wheat Bread

 I love homemade bread.

I grew up on homemade bread.

So today I thought I would share with you the recipe that we use constantly.

  I usually make a batch a bread once a week.

Sometimes more.

Before I start, let me tell you right now a few things. I use freshly ground wheat. I always grind a fresh batch right before I make bread. Any extra wheat goes into the freezer for things like pancakes, but I never use old ground wheat in my bread.  Here you go:

 Homemade Wheat Bread

1 can evaporated milk
2 Tablespoons Salt
1/2-2/3 cup Shortening
3/4 cup honey or sugar
3 1/4 cup, hot water
8 cups whole wheat flour.

Let this mix. While mixing put 2 Tablespoons sugar, 3 Tablespoons yeast & 1 cup warm water in a cup & mix together. Once it rises a little bit, dump it into the the mixture above. Mix until yeast mixture is all mixed in. Then shut off & let sit for 15 minutes.

Then add 5-6 cups flour. (3 of these are wheat & the rest is white flour).
Knead for 9 minutes.

Take out & put in a bowl.

Let it raise.

Then roll out into bread pans. I get 5 loaves out of this batch. (I only have 5 bread pans too, so that is the main reason.)

Once they have risen. Bake at 350 for 25-28 minutes  Or until the are golden done. I then dump mine out & let cool outside the pan & baste a little butter on the top of the loaves to keep them soft.

Cut & enjoy!!

Once everything is cool, I usually pre-cut everything up & freeze 3-4 loaves depending how much the first loaf got devoured in the first hour because nothing is better than hot bread & fresh strawberry freezer jam.

Enjoy!

Pasta Primavera

Here is a quick dish, that is yummy & requires only 5 ingredients.

Pasta Primavera

 1/2 box of thin Spaghetti
 1 bunch of Asparagus
 1 zucchini
  1 cup diced ham or prosciutto (or more or less according to your desires).
  Parmesan cheese.

 Boil your noodles until they reach your desired tenderness.

In a separate pan pour a little extra virgin olive oil & break up your asparagus. (If you snap asparagus, like you would a green bean, it will snap easily until you reach the woody part of the stem. Once it gets difficult to snap, throw that section away & your asparagus will always be delicious & you will never be stuck with the woody section again.).  Cut up your zucchini in small pieces & saute these vegetables until done.

Drain your pasta, & add to the pan on vegetables  Take 1-2 teaspoons of a Chicken Base or Bouillon & add just a 1/2 cup of water. Mix it up & then pour over your noodles & veggies. Mix up & let this cook into your noodles for a little extra flavor. Add ham & mix up. Once everything is hot & mixed. Put on plates & sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.

Its a light, delicious
 meal. That would yummy with hot garlic bread or even just a lone.

It is quick, easy & very kid friendly.

Bon Appetite!

Cooking with Kids

I have always tried hard to let my kids do things when the ask. It has been a struggle at times. I have an awesome husband,who when I am tempted to say no usually asks "Why can't they?"
 
 This can be a blessing & a curse.

"Mom, can I help you cook?"  is one question I hear a lot.

Sometimes I just want to say no. It gets messy enough when I cook. When I add my kids into the mix, it  looks like bomb exploded. However, I try really hard to say yes. Now keep in mind my kids are 8, 6 & 5.

Here are something my kids help with when cooking:

Washing the vegetables/fruit

Adding the flour.

Cracking the eggs. Initially I made them crack the eggs into a bowl. We could pick out any shells. Then we would add the eggs into the recipe & then do it again. Now they are proficient enough (even my 5 year old) to crack & dump the egg directly into the bowl.

Stir the meat or whatever is cooking on the stove.

Roll out their own bread loaves.

Make the cookie dough into balls, and place on the cookie sheet.

Cut up vegetables. (Yes, with a sharp knife).

This is one I initially said no to when they kids asked.

 "Mom, can I use the knife & cut up the vegetables?" Then would ask. I said no.

 My husband replied, "Why can't they?"

"They might cut themselves." I responded.

 "So what? You have been cooking for years & still cut yourself. If they cut themselves they will live & know to be more careful next time." He replied.

He was right. There have been a few cuts over the years, but for the most part they are great.

So yes, cutting up things with sharp knives.

Peel boiled eggs.

Put things in & take them out of the oven.

You get the idea. My kids can do a lot if things to help cook. They are getting pretty good & I am starting to see the benefits.

Take yesterday for example. I was feeding my baby & almost had him asleep. My 5 year old came in & said he wants to make a treat.  I inform him I can't help right now.

He informed me, "I've got it."

I hear him find a bowl, open some boxes, find the eggs.

He comes in once to double check on the right measuring cup for water & oil.

He leaves. I hear him mix it.  I finally get up & double check to make sure he gets it all mixed.

We have this cute conversation while I double check his work.

Me: "Your good at cooking, do you enjoy it."

My little dude: "Yes. Mom, sometimes I can't find the remote to watch PBS kids, so I watch cooking shows instead." He pauses, "I kind of like them."



He pours it in the pan.




He adds it in the oven. I do watch the clock & make sure they don't burn.




The end result?

We all were able to enjoy delicious brownies & I had to almost nothing.

So yes, some days is hard to let your kids help & some days it is just sweet!

Hot Fudge Sauce

The boys earned a treat the other day, so we made hot fudge sundaes. It was delicious. The recipe for the sauce is quick, simple & most importantly delicious.





Hot Fudge Sauce

1/2 c. Butter
1 can of evaporated milk
1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 c. Powdered sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla

Mix everything together. Bring to a boil on the stove. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat & let cool a little & serve warm over ice cream. Gain 5 lbs. (Well that's usually what happens next.) Enjoy!

Homemade Tortilla Strips

Last night I was making dinner & on the menu was  Santa Fe chicken. After sampling it, I wanted some tortilla chips to go with it. We normally we have some on hand, but last night we were out. I remembered months ago I tried making some & they were good, so I quickly made some.





 Homemade tortilla chips
Ingredients:
Corn tortilla shells
Oil (I used canola, because that is what I had on hand)
Salt.

Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

Take your corn shell & brush oil on both sides of them. I stack mine one on top of another. Once all the oil is brushed on, I cut mine into strips.






Once you have cut them to the size & shape you want. Lay them out on a cookie sheet & salt them.





Then put then into the oven to bake. I bake mine 15-20 minutes depending on how hot it is. I turn them over with a spatula about halfway through the time they need to cook.
When they are as golden as you want pull them out & let them cool. I taste one ( and usually burn my tongue :0). sometimes I add a little more salt. Or any other seasonings you enjoy.





Once they are cooled eat & enjoy.

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

  The other day I was  craving a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. I didn't want to run to the store, when I remembered I have an homemade version of  Reese's Peanut Butter Cups from my Aunt Sheryl. So we dug it out & made them.  I usually make a 1/2 batch, instead of a full batch, because it makes a lot. I forgot that & made a whole batch, it was tons. Either way they are delicious. 


Here is what you need.:

Home Made Peanut Butter Cups

   1 c. butter

   1 tsp. Vanilla

   2  Cups peanut butter

   A Dash of Milk &  3 cups powdered Sugar

 Melt & mix the butter, vanilla, peanut butter & dash of milk.  Until it looks about like this: 

Then add your 3 cups of Powdered sugar. Mix well. 

It looks kind of like this. I then let it cool, so I can handle it better. 

Roll into balls, or whatever shaped desired. Place on Wax paper & Let cool completely. 

Melt some chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet) or you could used dipping chocolate. If you use chocolate chips add a Tablespoon or so of Shortening. I melted mine over  a double boiler on the stove. But you could use your microwave. I just don't own one. Then dip & roll your peanut butter in your chocolate. Place back on the wax paper & let cool & the chocolate harden. 

Now eat & enjoy!!

Spinach Salad

I made this for Thanksgiving & it was a hit. When you first hear the ingredients that go into it you can't help but wonder. Your first bite. Your hooked. Now, I can't claim this as my own, because I got it from my friend Jodie & I am not quite sure where she got it. But it is a keeper. After tasting it, my sister asked for the recipe, so I thought I would share with everyone. 

                           

  

           (Not my greatest picture, I cropped it out of the Thanksgiving one. Next time I make it, I will try to take a picture that is more appealing).



Spinach Salad


½ C. Slivered Almonds & 3T. Sugar
1 Head Lettuce
1 bag Spinach
¾ lb. Grated Swiss Cheese
1 red onion
1 can mandarin oranges, drained
½ lb. Bacon, cooked & crumbled
¾ lb. Fresh sliced mushrooms


*Cook sugar and almonds with some butter all together until light brown. Mix together lettuce, spinach, cheese, and
chopped onion. Add oranges and almonds before serving. Add bacon and mushrooms and toss.


Poppy Seed Dressing:
1T. poppy seeds
1/3 Cup Vinegar
¾ Cup Oil
1/3 Cup Sugar
1/8 Cup finely chopped onion
1 tsp. dry mustard
¾ tsp. salt


*Shake well in quart jar. Let chill in fridge.


Don't mix the dressing & salad, just put it on as you eat. Just as you would with most green salad. It doesn't take a lot of dressing.  


It is delicious. Enjoy!