Takin' the Long Way Home

                          Here is the video of our new home Before and Afters....  Please Enjoy!

Broccoli and Cheese Macaroni

Yet another snow day inspired venture, today I give you Broccoli and Cheese Macaroni.  Basically homemade mac and cheese add broccoli (so creative, I know.)  But nothing says "winter day" to me than a hot bowl of Mac-n-Cheese. The broccoli addition is so that I don't feel as guilty about the butter and cream used to make the cheese sauce.  So after a long day of playing in the snow, treat yourself to this yummy favorite!

Broccoli and Cheese Mac

4 tbs. Butter

1 box elbow macaroni

1 block of extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

3tbs flour

11/2 cup of heavy whipping cream

1 onion diced

two large heads of broccoli

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 325, bring 6cups of water to a boil and add noodles.  While the noodles are cooking, sauté the onions and broccoli in 2tbs of butter.  Once the onions have sweat and the broccoli is tender, about ten minutes, remove the veggie mix and place into a large bowl.  Set aside.

Put the remaining 2tbs of butter in the same sauté pan you cooked the veggies in and melt the butter over medium-low heat.  Once the butter has melted, add 3 tbs of flour.  Slowly whisk in the cream and add 1/2 of the shredded cheddar.  Keep stirring until the sauce thickens and remove from heat.

The noodles should be cooked by now, not too firm.  Not too soggy.  Drain the noodles and add to the bowl with the broccoli mix.

Mix all of this together and pour into a large flat pan (cake or lasagna, whatever you have will work.) Sprinkle remaining cheese over the entire casserole and place in the oven for fifteen minutes or until cheese is browned.  Serve to anyone who needs some warming up!

Baby Butt Sweaters... AKA Felted Soakers

Well, with the winter weather upon us and a super sweater sale at the local ARC Stores here in Denver, I got inspired to try a project I've been meaning to get around to...

THE BABY BUTT SWEATER

These little creations are my first attempt at fleeced wool cloth diaper covers.  The cheap, easy and loved part?  They are made from recycled wool sweaters from the thrift store.  Hard to believe, I know!  Super easy and useful.

So for this project you will need wool sweaters of any style and variety you choose.  I have made several different versions (still figuring what works best) but I will give you the basics so you can tweak it to make it your own.  The style in the picture are for newborns but the measurements can be adjusted to fit bigger kiddies too!

So with your sweater, you wash in hot water and dry twice to felt.  Once it is felted, lay the sweater flat and cut two triangles out of the front and back of the sweater, using the bottom of the sweater as the guide.  Each side should measure 13".

This picture shows the left-overs after cutting out your two triangles.

From here you simply fold up the center of the triangle to touch the waistband of the diaper then sew along the two seams.  Be sure to leave enough room for leg holes in each hem. 

Here is the front of the Butt Sweater, where I sewed the two seams to the waistband.

And here is the butt of the final product. 

Very cute!!!! So try it! A felted wool diaper cover will cost you around $35 pre-made.  The total for this soaker... $.50.  That's some serious savings.

Make Room for Baby

Well, like my mother said, "This is the time to focus on the baby."  So that's what I am doing.  Yesterday and today I started in on the baby's room again.  (I know it may be a bit early to be working on the nursery, but I actually started a few months ago.  Don't laugh, we are just VERY excited.) So we have had the room set-up pretty much the way we think it will be when baby arrives, with the exception of some last minute details to really pull the room together.  One of those details is the mobile I just finished this morning.

This mobile was featured in one of my earlier posts as a gift for my best friend. (Sorry, Sam) But since we moved and so much time has passed, and because we are having a baby now, I decided to utilize it for the baby room.  I even added a special touch.  The wish card hanging from the base of the mobile is a wish card from the wish tree at our wedding.  My best friend saved it and sent it to me when she found out I was pregnant.  This small detail makes the whole project that much more special.

Here is the whole room as it stands now:

Gary and I built this full size Daybed out of old doors that I got from a resale shop.  The entire project took about $100, much better than the $1,000+ for anything pre-manafactured.

 Here Elvis is modeling the quilt that covers the changing pad on the table.  He looks pretty cozy. Don't get too comfortable there, Mister!

Day 2: Manager's Special

One of my favorite secrets at the grocery store, though it may not be that much of a secret these days, is the Manager's Special section in the meat department.  Here I find all sorts of goodies from lamb, to elk chops, to discounted ground beef.  Everything in this section is very discounted, more so than in any other department, and thus is perfect for those on a budget.  I usually try to only select meats from this section and have saved quite a bit of money by doing so.

The items in this section are NOT spoiled.  They are about to expire the shelf life allowed by government regulation, but if you scoop them up and put the items in the freezer right away, you extend the life of any product.  Plus a lot of rarities and gems that are not always stocked in the meat coolers can be found here.  New items that the manager has tried, game meats, or other goodies.

Tonight, I'm cooking my Manager's Special Chicken.  This whole roaster was originally marked for 4.59 and I got it for 3.65, that's almost a dollar off! Which doesn't seem like much at face value, but since I once got grounded for throwing away my pennies, I now know that it all adds up.  Plus these food items are wasted if people like me and you don't scoop up these good deals.  What a shame that a chicken should be wasted.

For this manger's special recipe, I'm using all of the manager special items that I have.  That includes canned tomatoes, an eggplant, a green pepper, an onion and some frozen Raviolis.  We'll see how this goes.

Manager's Special Chicken

(It's different every time.)

1 eggplant, peeled and diced

1 green pepper, diced

1 onion, diced

1 can of fire-roasted tomatoes

1 whole fryer chicken (manager's special)

1 package of cheese ravioli

Preheat the oven to 425.  Dice all of the veggies and place into a bowl, mix in the can of tomatoes and stir together.

Stuff the veggie mix in the chicken and rub the outside of the chicken with italian seasoning, salt and pepper.  Place the chicken in a roasting pan and bake until temp reads 165.  Boil the ravioli per the instructions on the package.  Serve sliced with veggie sauce from inside the chicken!

Yummy!!

Day 1

Well, since I have the time and the resources, we're back on baby.  Today was my first day of the reintroduction into domestic bliss.  I suppose that there will be many days of domestic bliss to follow now that I am five months pregnant.  Things have changed a lot of Gary and I, but I still cook cheap, easy and loved recipes.  So with out further ado...

Spinach Stuffed Pork Loin Roast

I like to work with a pork loin roast because there are so many ways that you can cook this cut of meat. Depending on what you're in the mood for, pork can fit any flavor profile.  For tonight's creation, I had to use what was left in the fridge; some wilting spinach, the last of the ricotta from lasagna last week, and some garlic flavored cheese spread.  Hey, if you got it, cook it! For this recipe you'll need:

1 2-3lb Boneless Pork Loin Roast

2/3 cup of ricotta cheese

1 egg

1/2 cup of bread crumbs

1 triangle of garlic flavored cheese spread 

1 bag of fresh spinach, rinsed 

1 onion, diced

4tbs. of veg. oil

2 tbs. of smoked paprika

2 tbs. ground thyme

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350. To begin, I filleted the pork roast by slowly unrolling the meat with my knife to make one flat piece of pork.  This can be tricky, very tricky.  If you just go slow though and try to make the cut as even as possible, you'll do just fine.  Plus if you mess up, just go back and try again, you skewer the piece of meat in the end, so no one can tell!  

After the meat is prepared, I like to salt and pepper the top of the meat, the part now laying flat.  Meanwhile, in a saute pan over medium heat, add 2 tbs of oil and the minced onion, cook until the onion is almost done then add the spinach leaves and remove from heat to cook the spinach. 

Let the spinach rest for ten minutes until cooled, then add egg, and both cheeses.  Mix together and add bread crumbs.  Spread the filling on top of the filleted pork focusing heavily on the center as the filling will spread when you roll the meat.  Finally, roll the meat and skewer the ends to keep the roll together while cooking. (You can also use twine here, in fact, it's easier and I highly recommend it.  I just didn't have any on hand.)

Once the meat is wrapped, add the remaining 2 tbs of oil to the pan and return to med. heat.  Once the pan is hot, brown the roast on all sides.  Once the meat is browned, transfer to a roasting pan and cook the roast until temp is 155 when thermometer is placed in the deepest part of the roast, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  When it's done, let it stand for ten minutes.  Serve sliced thick with what ever you like, I had pine nut couscous with broccoli and cauliflower.  Yummy!

  

Framed!

     I know that we have all seen many versions of this idea floating around on the internet or in various Do-It-Yourself Magazines that are cluttering the stands these days, but after much ado, I decided to make my own.  I have not one, but two jewelry boxes, that have served more as a wasteland for dust and tarnish than a proper storage device. (I have a tendency to throw my necklaces in a drawer or in the bathroom) I am tired of losing the money and the other earring by not taking care of my jewelry, hence 

  the PICTURE FRAME JEWELRY HANGER!

I found this oak frame for $2.99  at the Goodwill with a beautiful deer print, which I quickly discarded.

Then I found this filigree Lattice pieces at Michaels for 3.99 each (I bought 2, but only used 1) And I painted everything white with Glossy Finish Craft Paint.

 Once everything dried, I cut the lattice to the size I needed and attached it with heavy duty staples. Then I screwed in 2 eye-hole screws to the back corners of the frame and strung picture wire so it would hang like a picture.

                      Then I grabbed all of my treasures and hung them from the lattice and now....

TA-DA!!!  A Wonderful Piece of functional art to display my goodies!  I love a functional Saturday!

Just Ducky

So I know that in my original post I knocked the duck, but I stand corrected.  Yet another surprise was delivered to the K house this week via the wonderful surprises the butchers have been leaving for me to find.  This week, Duck Breasts.  Yes, siree, a perfectly paired and priced treat just for me and my honey.
I have never cooked duck before and after a little research and some digging through my fridge and cabinets I pulled off a pretty successful meal for two. He said it was the best duck he has ever had!  Yay Me!

Roast Duck Breast with Currant Champagne Reduction  

Served with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and String Beans

Two Duck Breast

Salt and Pepper for Rub

Sauce:

1/4 cup Peach Preserves

1/2 cup Chicken Broth

3tbs. Champagne Vinagarette

2tbs. Clover Honey

2 Cloves Garlic

2tbs. Herbs de Provance

1/4 cup Currants

Salt and pepper to taste

Whisk together all of the ingredients for the sauce together in a small bowl and set aside. Score the fat of the duck and rub with Salt and Pepper on both sides.  In a large skillet over med-high heat, fry duck fat-side down for 4 minutes, then flip and cook and additional 3 minutes.  Set aside and cover with tinfoil to continue cooking.  Add sauce to the pan.  In a small dish add 1tbs of cornstarch to 1/4 cup of hot water, stir and add to the sauce in the pan.  Continues whisking until the sauce has thickened about 2 minutes then return the duck breasts to the pan to heat through for an additional minute. Thinly slice duck breast and serve with garlic mashed potatoes and string beans. Enjoy!

Left Overs

To truly manage a budget, one must be able to manage the left over situation.  Often when I cook, well almost always when I cook, because of packaging and recipe servings, I have lots of left overs.  This would not normally be an issue, except I HATE leftovers.  now my honey would eat his way through the fridge, no matter its' contents but I don't like anything twice. This however, often can not be helped therefore one must learn how to create something from something else.  Hence Mexican Lasagna.  I had some left over fajita skirt steak which I marinated in green chilies  and just stacked it with the other all too common left overs such as half used cans of re fried beans, some steamed rice, mexi cheese and black beans all between corn tortillas that I pan fried.  It was D-licious!

Mexican Lasagna

Can Re-fried Beans

Bag of SteamAbles Southwestern Rice

Mexican Cheese Blend or Sub

Left Over meat of Choice (I used skirt steak)

Black Beans

Salsa

6 Corn Tortillas (2 tbs.oil for frying optional)

Sour Cream and Lettuce

Preheat all ingredients except cheese. In a skillet add oil and heat over med. high and preheat oven to 350 Add tortillas and fry until golden about two minutes on each side.  For a lighter option omit the frying. Spread re-fried beans on the first tortilla and layer rice and cheese.  Place the second tortilla on top of cheese and spread another layer of re-fried beans.  Add steak and black beans.  Add a spoonful of salsa and cheese.  Then add the third tortilla spread salsa on top and finish with a little cheese.  Then bake until cheese on top is melted. Serve with shredded lettuce and sour cream.

Ain't She Sweet

I would like to introduce everyone to a good friend of mine, Mrs. Kelly Sloat and her "Moptop" Cookies.

She is a wonderful and talented baker and a good friend and last night she introduced me to a fun new cookie idea.  Her peanut butter cookies are excellent stand alone, however, they are about to become all the more famous when paired with a double chocolate chip recipe that makes me Glad All Over.  Afterall, Happiness is a Warm cookie. Tell me what you see?

John, Paul, Ringo & George

  That's right! The Fab Four.  The one and only BEATLES.  What a great gift idea these would be for that Beatles fan in your life.  Kelly is a HUGE Beatles fan herself so it is no surprise that she would discover such a cute idea.  Not only that, but she is willing to share her recipe!

 MOPTOPS

Peanut Butter Cookie Side:

1 Cup peanut butter
1 Cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon Vanilla

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Cover and place in the fridge.


Chocolate Chip Cookie Side:

2 sticks softened butter (1 Cup)
1 Cup granulated sugar
3/4 Cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 Cups flour
1 1/4 Cups cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 Cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cream the butter and sugars. Slowly beat in eggs and vanilla. Place flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl; mix with fork. Add to wet ingredients along with chocolate chips.

2. Take a Tablespoon of Peanut Butter Cookie Dough and a Tablespoon of Chocolate Cookie Dough and gently press together. Place them on a lightly sprayed baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. (I like to pull them out a little early, when the tops are slightly cracking, and let them finish cooking on the baking sheet).

So there you have it!  A very big Thank you to Mrs. Sloat for this amazing idea! You see To Know er is to Love Her.  So put on your favorite Beatles album, do the Hippy Hippy Shake and get your baking on.