The Missing Ingredient

Good Monday all!

Remember the Chicken & Rice recipe that I shared in my last post??
The one that passed my families taste test but too me lacked a little in flavor when comparing it to the memory of my grandmother's Chicken & Rice.

Well, I talked to my cousin last night and she told me the missing ingredient. (Thanks Amy!)

**Campbell's French Onion Soup**

So I'll be making the recipe again very soon but using the french onion soup in place of the cream of onion.

If this is your first visit here then you are probably wondering what in the world I'm babbling on about.
If so, then go back a post and read about my Chicken & Rice Recipe.

Chicken & Rice Bake

When I was a little girl I remember my Mee-Mee (grandmother) making a chicken & rice dish that was super creamy and flavorful. At the time I was not a fan of rice but in this dish it was tolerable.
Now fast forward some 20 years later...I'm all grown up and actually like rice.
So, the other day I was hoping to make something that resembled hers and to see if my kids would like it.
I checked the Campbell's recipe site but none of the recipes seemed like the "right" one.
I gave up looking and finally just threw a few things together and this is what I got.

Creamy Chicken & Rice Bake

10 3/4 oz. can cream of onion soup
10 3/4 oz. can cream of chicken soup
2 cups chicken broth (or water)
2 cups white rice
2 pinches of saffron (optional)
1/4 tsp. paprika
salt and pepper to taste
2 - 21/2 lbs. chicken tenderloins or breasts

Place chicken in a greased 13X9 pan.
Combine rest of ingredients in a bowl and then pour over top of the chicken.
Lightly sprinkle a little more paprika, salt and pepper  on the top of the dish.
Cover with foil and bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until chicken is done.

My recipe got a thumbs up from my kids but I still think my Mee-Mee's was way better. 
So, I'm gonna keep on searching and asking around to see if anyone knows what all she put in hers.

Yeah for the weekend!
It's been a really long week and I am so looking forward to catching up on some extra zzzzz's tonight and being able to sleep in tomorrow morning.
No big plans for the weekend, just the usual but that's A OK with me. Maybe I'll get some more of my blocks finished and begin on some new ones.

 Hope you enjoy your weekend!

Self-Frosting Oatmeal Cookies & Thundersnow

I was sorting through my overflowing box of recipes the other day when I ran across the directions for this oatmeal cookie.
I love oatmeal anything so I thought I'd give it a try and I'm glad I did.
It's crunchy, yet somewhat chewy and full of flavor with the chocolate chips and the extra powdered sugar.

                 Self-Frosting Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
2 1/2 cups oats
1 (12 oz.) bag miniature chocolate chips
powdered sugar

Cream together the brown and white sugar, oil and vanilla.
Add the eggs and mix well.
In another bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder and then add it to the creamed mixture.
Add oats and chocolate chips.
Cover mixing bowl with waxed paper or plastic wrap and let chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
**You must let this get cold or you will have a big gooey mess as you try to roll them into balls.*
Trust me, I'm speaking from experience!
Once dough is good and cold then remove from refrigerator and roll into balls the size of a walnut.
Roll balls in powdered sugar and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. (or a greased baking sheet if you don't have parchment paper)
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.
YUMMY!

Here's another oatmeal favorite of mine, in case you missed it!
OATMEAL CAKE

Now to the thundersnow!
Did anyone else have, hear or see the thundersnow last night?
I was sitting in the living room watching tv and saw a flash of light out the window. It had been raining most of the evening but at this point it was changing over to an icy/snow mix. I got up and went out onto the porch and as soon as I opened the door I could hear the thunder.
SOO neat!
I'm a "weather girl" so this really excites me as do any and all storms that come our way.

The icy mixture continued to hammer agaisnt the side of the house most of the evening, quitting just before bedtime.
When we got up this morning everything was covered in a thick layer of ice with snow on top of it.
Of course schools were cancelled so that made many kids happy.

Well I'm off to sew a bit before bedtime.

Better than the Kitchen Window

Look what I found this weekend at Jo-Ann's.
It's a small light box.
I've been wanting one of these for a little while now.
In the past I have just used the kitchen window.
I  always taped my project to the window and used the sunlight to create my own light box.

That method works great for tracing stitchery projects onto fabric but not so well when trying to place applique pieces where they need to go.

So I found this and it works super for my applique.
I got it for half off (only paid $8 for it) so that makes it even better!

The above photo is of yet another quilt BOM that I have started. Here I have my block laying on top of the light box as I was getting ready to place my fabric pieces in place. I'll show you more of this project later.
And just in case you are wondering- YES, I am still working on the heart blocks. (Working on block 4 of the hearts)

I am having so much fun with these.

Well, I'm back in the kitchen today and baking up a new cookie plus trying a new recipe for dinner. If they turn out tasty I'll share them with you later.
Hope you all are getting to enjoy another day off on this President's Day.

Soakin' Up the Sun

Oh how I wish spring really was here!

We got our first taste of it today with temps. in the high 60's.

I turned the furnace off and opened the windows...ahh the fresh air!
Lots and lots of laundry all washed and hung out to dry in the warm breeze.

An afternoon walk with the kids followed by a spin on their bicycles.
                          A little bit of Science class

                   and then off to make a quick dinner.

                             (kielbasa packets to put on the grill)
A wonderful day....nothing different about it other than the SUNSHINE! Something that we haven't seen much of this winter.
Hope you all had a great spring-like day too!

Birthdays & Valentines

Anyone have *big* plans for today?
Maybe a dinner date at a nice restaurant, or a sweet card and a box of chocolates?

Nothing fancy planned here.
Actually, you couldn't pay me enough money to go out to a restaurant tonight! Around here they'll all be jam packed with people waiting in long lines that begin way outside the doors.
Been there~ done that and to me it's simply not worth the wait.

So for our Valentine's we'll be enjoying some strip steaks baked in the oven (it's cold & rainy outside and I don't want to stand in the rain to grill them) with some baked potatoes and a veggie.

                        Dessert ~ Chocolate, of course!

This weekend flew right by me!
Friday - Monster Trucks at Wheeling Civic Center

Saturday - Shopping for a new cell phone plan for the whole family. This is something that we have needed to do for a good while since we lose service quite often with our old provider. However, it's just so expensive and confusing to me that I just kept putting it off. I'm not one of those that has to have the latest of everything and so I'm usually one of the last to catch on when it comes to the new tech stuff like fancy phones and IPods.
You know,it's pretty bad when your 11 year old son has to explain how to work all the features on your new cell phone!

Sunday - We celebrated Logan's 15th birthday with pizza, cake and presents. Yikes! I can't believe my baby is old enough to begin driving.

Today it's back to the old grind.
~Schooling
~Laundry (which I did manage to get 3 loads outside to dry on the line before the temperature dropped and the rain began...can't wait for spring!
~Cooking
Hoping to get some time a little later to just sit and sew a bit while watching tv.
Hope you all are having a fabulous Valentine's Day!

Monster Jam 2011 ~ Wheeling, WV

                  **CLICK ON PICTURES TO ENLARGE**

Last night we headed to Wheeling with the kids to see the monster trucks of the Monster Jam 2011.
We got great seats (first row) which would have allowed for some great pictures but because of the fast movement most of my pictures were just a blur.

                                 I had two favorites.
             One for appearance and one for performance. 

 Virginia Giant had my vote for "looks" though he messed some of those "looks" up towards the end of the show as he landed on his side doing doughnuts.

He climbed out safe and sound but ended up parked while he fixed some of the damages.

                 Rap Attack got my vote for performance.

     He put on a good show with lots of noise and smoke.

I took over 60 pictures but as I said many of them blurred due to the fast speed. I did get a neat one that I think I will call Twist and Turn. These two trucks look like they are doing just that. Kinda neat looking!

Lots of smoke and plenty of noise. (thank goodness for ear plugs)
A fun night out for all of us.

Today has been another busy day and I am pooped so I think I'm off to bed.
Catch you all later!

Quilt Blocks & a Snowy Scene

Wow, this week is just flying by!
We've had ice, snow and frigid temperatures this week causing the schools to cancel or delay several days.
This of course makes my oldest happy.
Not the case though for my youngest two that I homeschool.

Schooling must go on!

Here are the quilt blocks that I have made so far. I just finished all of the Block 2's last night. Now I am ready to begin stitching on Block 3 which shouldn't take me too long as there isn't a bunch of stitching to be done.

I found a few more pieces of fabric the other day while out and about and I had to get a thimble too! My poor fingers are so sore from sewing through the double layers of fabric.
I've never used a leather coin thimble before but I think I prefer it over the usual metal ones.

This last picture is of the surrounding hillside blanketed in snow. It was so pretty out when I got up at 5:30 the other morning. The hills glistened in the moonlight. This was taken an hour or so later as the sun was beginning to come up. No where near as pretty as it was when I awoke but still enjoyable.

Stay Warm!

Pork Steaks with a Simple Sauce

Here's a simple meal to toss together and then place in the oven to bake. Come back 15-20 minutes before dinner time to wisk up the sauce and wahla...a tasty dish with lots of flavor.

Pork Steaks with a Simple Sauce

4 pork cubed steaks or chops
salt and pepper
2 small onions, sliced in rings
1 tsp. butter
1 1/2 cups beef broth

Sauce:
1 cup beef broth
6 tbsp. ketchup
1 tbsp. brown sugar

Heat skillet and spray good with cooking spray.
Place pork steaks in skillet, season with salt and pepper.
Brown on both sides and then remove to a greased baking dish.

In same skillet, saute onion in butter until tender.
Place onions on top of pork steaks.
Pour 1 1/2 cups broth over pork and bake uncovered at 375 degrees until done.
Prepare sauce about 10-15 minutes before ready to serve.
Sauce:
In a small saucepan, combine sauce ingredients.
Simmer uncovered 10-15 minutes as it reduces down.
Pour over pork steaks and ENJOY!

I still am not really in the mood to cook.
My days are spent schooling and keeping up on household chores. Any free time that I have I want to spend working on  my quilt blocks ~ which I'll show you more of tomorrow.
I did manage to get 2 big trays of cabbage rolls made yesterday. We had dinner at my parents' house as we celebrated my Dad's birthday. His actual birthday is not until tomorrow but last night was the night that we could all get together. Besides, Dad says that it's not just his birthday...it's his birth week.
Gonna be a long week!
Not much else going on around here. It's been a rainy, muddy mess here for the past week. We got lucky and dodged the big snowstorms.
Though it is snowing as I type this!
Not supposed to get much more than an inch but it may get icy since the roads are wet already from the rain.

I'm getting spring fever as I can't wait to get back outdoors. I'm ready to start walking again but need to wait for better weather. 
Which brings me to this!

Look at these shoes that I picked up over the weekend.
My favorite is a Nike running shoe so that is what I went in search of. I was so surprised. They are so bright and colorful now a days. TOO BRIGHT! ( This pic doesn't even compare to what they actually look like.)
I had to come home and change the shoestrings because they were yellow too!
My kids call them the banana shoes.
I'm sure they are trying to appeal to teenagers with all those wild colors but come on....there are some of us older people that would like a good shoe without all that bling ~ if that's what you want to call it.

Well, since I can't get outdoors to walk I guess I will head to the treadmill before it's bedtime. Something I should be doing daily but doesn't happen very often!

Have a great evening!

Remelt ~ Rescent ~ Reuse

Melted Candle Tarts

Do you know how many of these things I have thrown away over the past few years?

Way too many!

I've never messed with candlemaking before but I thought I might as well try since I've got all this melted wax. It just needs re-scented and it would be good as new.

After talking to Carmen about the flashpoint of wax (the only thing that really concerned me) I decided to give it a try.

I melted small amounts of wax in my double boiler, which consisted of an old stock pot and a coffee can. I placed my candy thermometer on the side of my coffee can so I could carefully watch the temperature.

Once the wax was melted I added the scent and then poured the wax into these silicone ice cube trays that I found marked down at our local grocery store.
They worked perfect!

I'm not so sure that I care for the scent that I used in these ones and the color isn't that great.
There are tons of oils, scents & dyes out there to use so I'll just have to experiment until I find the *one* for me.
But now that I know that I CAN do this I will be able to save tons of money.
I'll just remelt, rescent and reuse.

Now I just gotta find the right smell!
Anyone care to share their favorite candle scent
or even their favorite place to buy candle making supplies?

Stay warm!