Graduation Cap Cups from Bakerella

A very sweet friend of ours is graduating from high school today.  We've been invited to join a celebratory dinner with her family and other friends after the commencement. My girls and I made her some graduation cap cups from Bakerella's sight to bring to the dinner. We had tons of fun making them and honestly, the girls did almost everything themselves. I arranged some of them in a vase for decoration and the extras are in some plain floral foam. That surplus can be used to replace the ones in the "bouquet" as people take them.

I can't wait for her to see them!

Recipe: Chicken and Corn Chowder with Sweet Potatoes

Let me begin this post by saying that I don't like sweet potatoes. Baked sweet potato fries are okay, but anything else made with a sweet potato just doesn't appeal. So, when I saw this recipe I was hesitant to make it. But I decided to plunge ahead with it, mainly because I have probably 20lbs. of sweet potatoes in my pantry. And I figured if it turned out we didn't like it we could always have ice cream for dinner. Let's see what we've got.

Chicken and Corn Chowder with Sweet Potatoes
from Cook's Country
Serves 8 to 10

3 cups whole milk
1 cup yellow corn muffin mix (Jiffy)
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped fine
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 quarts low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
3 cups frozen corn (not thawed)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper

1. Mix milk and muffin mix in bowl until well combined. Meanwhile, heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium heat until foaming. Add onion and cook until softened, about 8 minutes. Stir in garlic, cumin, and oregano and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add broth, chicken, and sweet potatoes. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer until sweet potatoes are just tender, about 8 minutes.
2. Stir in milk and muffin mixture and simmer until soup thickens, about 10 minutes. Add cheese and corn and cook until cheese begins to melt, about 2 minutes. Stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper. Serve. (Soup can be refrigerated in airtight container for up to 3 days.)

Verdict: Delish! The sweet potatoes actually made this chowder. Their texture and (now) subtle sweetness was just right! This is a recipe I'll be reaching for again come fall and winter.

Printable Recipe

The Perfect Pork Chop

Happy Homemaker Monday

Thanks to Sandra for hosting!


The weather in my neck of the woods:
Foggy and cold.


One of my simple pleasures:
Snuggling down in my favorite chair with a peppermint mocha and a good book.


On my bedside table:
Two books that I'll be reviewing here soon.


On my TV:
No TV here.



On the menu for tonight:
Cheesy corn chowder



On my To Do List:
Chores and work.



New Recipe I tried last week:
Didn't try anything new last week.


In the craft basket:
Nothing, but it's time to start getting creative again.



Looking forward to:
Winter break! Two more weeks of school and work, then two glorious weeks off!


Homemaking Tip for this week:
I am tapped out on tips.



Favorite Blog Post of the week (mine or other):
I can't seriously pick just one!


Favorite photo from last week:

Lesson learned the past few days:

Prayer really is the answer.



On my Prayer List:
Friends
Family
Fellow bloggers
Our military, always, but especially during the upcoming holidays



Devotionals, Scripture Reading, Key Verses:
2 Peter 1:2-3 May God bless you with his special favor and wonderful peace as you come to know Jesus, our God and Lord, better and better. As we know Jesus better, his divine power gives us everything we need for living a godly life. He has called us to receive his own glory and goodness!

It's a bird! It's a plane!

It's Super...Oh, ok. So it is a just a bird and a plane. Nothing superhuman about our Thanksgiving. Just lots of turkey eating and plane flying.

Did I go up in the plane, you ask. Are you kidding me?? You won't get me up in one of those flying death machines. That's what kids are for. So I can experience these things vicariously. (I kid, I kid. The plane was perfectly safe. I'm just a big, fat chicken. Or was it a turkey?)

This is the point that I had to go back inside. I couldn't watch knowing I had kids up there. Not to mention the fact that it was cold and windy and I'm a wimp.

Look at that cotton field! Can we say major allergies?

Despite the fact that I don't like to fly in little puddle jumpers, the view is pretty awesome.

I think that might be a lake. Let's just say if that's a pond, they were flying way too close to the ground.

And here they are back safely. And aren't they cute? The two girls had just met the day before, but by the end of the flight, they were BFFs. Near death experiences are funny that way.

Did y'all do anything out of the ordinary for Thanksgiving?

This is not a diet post

Is there anyone left in the blogging universe that has not heard of Pioneer Woman? I'm sure the three of you that read my blog regularly have, so I know you'll understand my title as soon as you see these:

Simply scrumptious!

Slow Cooking Thursday: Pinto Beans

Be sure to join in with Sandra for her Slow Cooking Thursday. Thanks for hosting Sandra!

Pinto Beans

There's really not a recipe involved to cook pinto beans in the crock pot. I soaked my beans overnight, then put them in the crockpot on high for an hour. Then I turned it to low and I'll let the beans cook until later this evening when I get home from work.

Tonight's dinner will be beans and fried potatoes. The leftover beans we will use for tostados, burritos, or maybe red beans and rice. Dried beans are such an economical food that can be used in so many different recipes. I try to keep some on hand all the time.

Slow Cooking Thursday: Pulled Pork

Be sure to join in with Sandra for her Slow Cooking Thursday. Thanks for hosting Sandra!

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

This is so simple it's almost embarrassing to post it! LOL

1 Boneless Pork Roast
6-7 cups barbeque sauce (bottled or homemade)
white or cider vinegar
hot sauce (Tabasco or equivalent)

Salt and pepper roast. Depending on it's size and the size of your crockpot, you might want to cut it up into a few large pieces to make it fit. Pour bbq sauce over meat. Cook on low for 10-12 hours or high 5-6 hours.
When roast is done, remove it from the crockpot, leaving the juices, and shred it. Taste sauce, adding vinegar if it's too sweet. Another good way to deal with sauce that's too sweet is to add a little hot sauce.

Serve on hamburger buns with the sauce on the side. This is a great weekend meal that can be rounded out with sauerkraut, chips, fruit salad, pickles, etc...

Cheesy Corn Chowder

or...Potato Corn Chowder...or...Cheesy Potato Chowder...or...Cheesy Potato Soup...I could go on, but I don't think you really want me to. I don't care what you decide to call this deliciousness, I just want you to make it on some cool autumn evening. And don't forget the warm, buttery rolls to dip into it's goodness.

My good friend Connie gave me this recipe years ago after I had the soup at her house. Thanks Connie!

We like to have this on the first day of fall, and this year the weather cooperated splendidly.

Cheesy Potato and Corn Chowder
Serves: a bunch

5 potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
5 cups milk (raw milk with the cream stirred in is divine)
4 chicken bouillon cubes
5 T flour
frozen corn (however much you like)
ham, cubed or bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 lb velveeta cheese, cubed (I know, it's not good for you, but it just really works here)

Boil potatoes in some water and drain. Dissolve bouillon in milk and then whisk in the flour. Add milk mixture to pot with potatoes. Start heating milk, making sure to not let it curdle. When milk is almost boiling, add in the corn and ham to heat them up. When the soup is very hot, (you really have to watch it, just a minute too long and the milk will begin to stick to the bottom and burn) add the cubed velveeta and stir constantly until it's melted and heated through. Serve immediately.

Slow Cooking Thursday: Cheesy Shredded Pork Tacos

Be sure to join in with Sandra for her Slow Cooking Thursday. Thanks for hosting Sandra!

Cheesy Shredded Pork Tacos

This is one of my family's favorite recipes of all time.

1 Boneless Pork Roast
1 cup salsa
1 small can green chiles
1 tsp cumin
2 cups shredded cheese
4-8 oz cream cheese, softened and cut up

Salt and pepper roast. Depending on it's size and the size of your crockpot, you might want to cut it up into a few large pieces to make it fit. Add salsa, chiles, and cumin. Turn crockpot on low and let cook for at least 8 hours.
When roast is done, remove it from the crockpot, leaving the juices, and shred it. Return roast to crockpot and add 2 cups of your favorite shredded cheese along with 4-8 oz of cream cheese. Turn crockpot on high and let cheese melt, stirring occasionally.

Serve with warm corn tortillas and all your favorite mexican condiments. Mmm...I'm getting hungry!

Butter...it's the beginning of everything good

I was making some butter this afternoon and realized that I'd never written a post about how I do it. I've had some requests to do just that, so this is as good time as any, right?

Making butter always makes me smile because it brings to mind an I Love Lucy episode where Lucy, Ethel, Fred, and Ricky take a trip back to the "gay 90's". This meant that they couldn't use any inventions that came after 1900. I don't know about the historical accuracy of the episode, but the results, as usual, are hilarious. The girls bet the guys that they could stick it out longer, and one of the things they have do to is make their own butter and bread. At one point, Ethel comes into Lucy's kitchen and asks how long you have to churn milk to get butter. LOL Well, that gets straightened out and Ethel comes in later with a good size amount of butter that she finally churned with Lucy's help. Her best line is, "All this butter and it only cost $23.10." Oh no!

Well, Lucy's bread baking escapades didn't go much better. She uses way too much yeast and ends up with the biggest loaf of bread I've ever seen. (Some interesting trivia: the loaf of bread in the episode was real and the cast and crew ate it after the show was taped.)

I'm glad I can make butter quickly and easily at home without churning by hand and without spending a lot of money.

Our family buys raw milk from a local dairy that still has the cream in it. I let the milk set and after the cream has risen, I skim it off. You can definitely use store-bought cream though.

I put the (very) cold cream in my food processor and turn it on. Then, I listen. Making butter is all about listening and learning what the different stages sound like.

First, it's just sloshy, like you would expect. Then the cream starts to thicken as it gets whipped. It even sounds thicker.

After several minutes, it starts to sound sloshy, and this is when I know the butter curds are separating from the cream.

After the curds have separated, I pour them into a strainer to strain off the buttermilk.

This is not thick, cultured buttermilk. This is a very mild milk with lots of whey. I've used it place of milk and buttermilk in baking with great results.

Lastly, I wash the butter to remove the excess buttermilk. I do this by pressing the butter against the inside of a bowl while running water over it and letting the milky water run off. This water can be given to your pets to drink or just put down the drain. The more buttermilk that's left in your butter, the faster it will spoil. Now I salt it very slightly and refrigerate it.

And that's it! Don't forget to make pancakes or waffles or biscuits with the buttermilk you strained off so you can try that yummy butter!

Slow Cooking Thursday

This is my first time to join in with Sandra for her Slow Cooking Thursday. Thanks for hosting Sandra!

I have not tried this recipe yet, but we are doing so tonight. Sounds yummy! And the best part? It will be ready when I get home from work. YAY!

Crockpot Enchiladas
Menus4Moms

1 lb. ground beef, cooked
1 med. onion, sauteed
1/2 t. Adobo seasoning
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
4 flour tortillas
1 can corn, drained
1 10-oz. can enchilada sauce
1 can Rotel tomatoes and green chiles, undrained
2 c. shredded cheddar or Mexican cheese blend
sour cream, cilantro, lime, etc...for serving

In a bowl, combine ground beef, onion, Adobo, salt, and pepper. In another bowl, mix the rotel and enchilada sauce. Place 2 tortillas in the bottom of the slow cooker. Place half of the following in layers over the tortillas: meat, corn, sauce mixture, and cheese. Repeat layers. Cook on low 5-6 hours.

I'll report in tomorrow on how this turned out!

UPDATE: Well it turns out that I didn't make this until Friday night, but no matter...it was still delicious! I used homemade enchilada sauce and I think next time I'll just put in a can of green chiles versus the Rotel. My family's not crazy about chunky tomatoes. Did anyone else make this? How did yours turn out?

Squash are people too

People that comfort...

Happy people...

People with neuroses...

They're a family...

And they need our love.