First trip to the Apple Orchard – August 25th, 2012

I love pretty much all things apple. My husband learned this very early on in our marriage. So when I got the email from my favorite apple orchard announcing that the early apples were ready to pick, I got there as soon as I could… like opening day!

My husband & two oldest were at the Bible Bee all day today, so it was a perfect day for me to take my two youngest to pick apples & raspberries. Landon took off with his bucket towards the Zestar apples, while Aaron & I hit the raspberries.

My awesome helper… pay no attention to what his shirt says.

Landon had to drag me away from the raspberries in order to help him pick apples. There were so many! Wait… look at those ones… and those over there! Just a couple more! *drags me by the arm*

Here are the goods.

There must be a good run through the hay at any orchard. You seriously can not come home if you don’t have some in your shoes, hair, or underwear. Just sayin’.

Since I knew that the other half of the family was going to be gone nearly all day, I wanted to have a little surprise for them when they got home. So I ended up making a raspberry/blueberry pie & an apple pie. I had help…

Without these guys it would’ve taken me twice as long to get all those apples cut! (That’s not a sharp knife by the way.)

Here are the 2 pies. Had some issues getting the top crust on, but no one complained about that.

Most of the apples ended up as pre-made pie filling for future pies (to be stored in our freezer).

I did save some for eating. And I made sort of a chunky applesauce/pie filling for our pancakes…

Yummy!

Ever had applejacks? Not the cereal, but flapjacks with apple pie filling? I hadn’t either until I went to this little cute little cafe in Brule, WI. called Twin Gables. Oh my, yum-ness. I will post recipes after breakfast.

Thanks for stopping by,
Antoinette

Recipe Review – August 24th, 2012

Have you ever had Monkey Bread? I haven’t made it in so long because the recipe usually calls for a tube of refrigerated biscuits. That’s not something we eat ’round here. But every once in a while I just want to make it for the kids. And that made me think, “Hey! I bet Laura at Heavenly Homemakers has tried making them!” Sure enough, she has! I took a look at her recipe & decided to tweak it in order to work for us.

But before I get to the recipe, here’s how ours turned out…

Monkey Bread!

A closer look perhaps?

Mmmmmm

RECIPE

Dough for bread machine:
1 1/8 cup luke warm milk
1 1/2 TBSP butter, softened
3 cups whole wheat/spelt four mix (or other whole grain mix)
1/3 cup Sucanat (or other sweetener)
1 TB vital wheat gluten
rounded tsp salt
1 packet active dry yeast

Add all ingredients to bread pan & select dough cycle.

When dough cycle is finished melt half a stick of butter (4 TB).
In a small bowl mix together 1/2 c Sucanat & 1/2 TB of cinnamon.
Pull off little hunks of dough & roll them into balls.
Dip them into the melted butter then into the Sucanat/cinnamon mix.
Drop the balls into a well greased bread pan.
Cover the pan with a light towel & allow the dough to rise about 30 minute or more.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes.

The kids were pretty hungry when I pulled this out of the oven so I decided to turn the bread out onto a plate. It really cooled it off nicely. Then I drizzled it with a simple vanilla glaze (1/2 cup of powdered sugar & 1-2 TB of almond milk). Didn’t get a picture of the bread with the glaze on as it was half gone by the time I set the mixing bowl down. Glad they liked it.

Thanks for stopping by,
Antoinette

Menu Plan Monday – August 20th, 2012

We started school this month. That means that when it gets to be about 4:00 on any given day my thoughts are usually… Doh! I need to make dinner! What helps so much is to have a plan going into the week so that I don’t HAVE to think about it at 4:00.

Menu Plan

Breakfasts:
Pancakes with berries & whipped cream
Pumpkin Oatmeal
Pumpkin Muffins
along with eggs & fruits of all sorts
And I kind of want to try this Cinnamon Apple Toast

Lunches:
Leftovers
Sandwiches
cut veggies with Ranch Dip

Snacks:
pretzels & cheese
crumpets [the kids' new favorite item] with peanut butter, bananas, & mini chocolate chips
smoothies & lots of fruit
ants on a log
Dinners:
Roast Chicken with Rice & steamed Broccoli
Grilled Pork Cutlets with green beans & corn
Grilled burgers, salad & raw veggies
Chicken casserole with rice & peas
(This one takes so much energy, really. Make the rice in chicken broth. While the rice is simmering on the stove, cut up leftover chicken [from Monday night]& thaw peas. When rice is finished stir in the chicken & peas, then cover until heated through. Add some Braggs [soy sauce] or hot pepper sauce if you wish.)
Jimmy Johns (We’ve started biking there as a family to pick up our dinner)
Split Pea Soup with Ham, salad & veggies
Tacos

Got to keep it as simple as I can during the school year. And I still need to train my kids to take over this position. I’m really ok with someone else wearing the Chef’s hat. Have a wonderful day!

Antoinette

More great Menu plans over at Organizing Junkie!

Meal Plan Monday – July 16th, 2012

How about that? It’s been over a year since my last Meal Plan post. I’m chuckling right now.

Any ways, it actually helps me to blog about it so that I can reference it. So here we go…

Monday
Breakfast: Cereal (Heritage Flakes & Heritage O’s are our favorites) & fruit
Lunch: Sandwiches, raw veggies, & fruit
Snack: Smoothies & Fruit
Dinner: Homemade Hamburger Helper & peas

Tuesday
Breakfast: Pancakes & fruit
Lunch: Leftover Hamburger Helper, veggies & fruit
Snack: Smoothies & Crumpets
Dinner: Grilled Teriyaki Chicken, brown rice, & broccoli

Wednesday
Breakfast: Pancakes & fruit
Lunch: Sandwiches, raw veggies, & fruit
Snack: Smoothies & Crumpets
Dinner: Burgers, green beans & salad

Thursday
Breakfast: Pumpkin Oatmeal* & fruit (*recipe to follow)
Lunch: Sandwiches, raw veggies, & fruit (are you sensing a pattern here?)
Snack: Smoothies & Pumpkin muffins
Dinner: Pork Stir Fry (Christopher cooks, so I don’t have a recipe for you)

Friday
Breakfast: French Toast Bake & fruit
Lunch: Sandwiches, raw veggies, & fruit
Snack: Smoothies & Crumpets
Dinner: Split Pea Soup & Salad

Saturday: Leftover French Toast Bake & fruit
Lunch: Sandwiches, raw veggies, & fruit
Snack: Smoothies & Crumpets
Dinner: Usually Perkins

Sunday
Breakfast: Egg Bake
Leftovers the rest of the day

Do you like to meal plan or take it one day at a time (or one meal at a time!)?
For lots more ideas & inspiration check out Meal Plan Monday over at I’m an Organizing Junkie. Hey, she even has a chance to win something!

Thanks for stopping by & have a blessed day,
Antoinette

Pumpkin Oatmeal

I’ll usually open up a can of pumpkin to make this oatmeal & just mix up a batch of Pumpkin Muffins to finish off the can.

1/2 cup Sucanat or dark brown sugar
1/2 cup canned pumpkin or sweet potato puree
2 cups milk (I use almond due to allergies)
1-2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt (optional)
2 cups rolled oats

1. In a saucepan, add pumpkin & Sucanat. Slowly add milk & mix into the pumpkin & Sucanat. Add vanilla (if using), cinnamon, & salt (if using). Bring to gentle boil & stir in the oatmeal. Reduce the heat & simmer for 2-3 minutes, until the oatmeal is soft & creamy.

2. Spoon the oatmeal into bowls & let cool a bit… it’s hot! Serve with dried fruit, maple syrup or maybe even a dollop of whipped cream like pumpkin pie.

Recipe review – peaches!

A friend of mine emailed me & asked me if I’d like to purchase a case of peaches from a local farmer. There was no hesitation… YES please! So yesterday we had peaches for breakfast, snacks, & dinner. There were no complaints.

I ended up making Sauteed Chicken in Spicy Peach Sauce that the family raved about, so I thought I would share my revisions with you. I also cooked some peaches in my crock pot…

… & served with homemade vanilla ice cream for our afternoon snack. Big thumbs up there. I would like to revise that one first though before posting. I thought it came out a bit gloppy.

One thing about me is that I roast 2 chickens every week. Why? Well, buying a whole chicken is a lot cheaper than buying the pieces separately (especially chicken breast). We will eat part of one roast the night I make them & then I’ll take the rest of the chicken off the bones for use throughout the week. Then I can throw together something like this recipe without having to cook the chicken first. And I have chicken on hand for a quick salad or sandwich. Throw together a taco bar by chopping some chicken & heating in the pan with some taco seasoning. It’s a huge time saver & money saver.

Sauteed Chicken in Spicy Peach Sauce
2 TB coconut oil
2-3 cups leftover cooked chicken
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 c cold water
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar/sucanat
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste (optional)
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder, to taste
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons garlic, minced or pressed (or 1/2 tsp garlic granules)
2 cups peeled diced peaches (fresh or frozen)
1/3 cup toasted walnut halves

1. Place 1/3 cup of walnut halves in toaster at a low setting.
2. While walnuts are toasting heat a pan to medium. Add oil & saute onion until limp.
3. Mix together cornstarch & water, add in vinegar, sugar, pepper, chili powder, salt, & garlic. Add to pan along with peaches.
4. Cook sauce until thickened (this barely took a minute).
5. Add chicken & walnuts. Cook until heated through.
6. Serve over hot, cooked rice.

Enjoy!
Antoinette

Recipe Review – Rachel Ray’s Meatloaf Muffins

Well the kids really enjoyed dinner tonight so I thought I would post a review of this recipe with my substitutions.

Meatloaf Muffins with BBQ Sauce

Vegetable oil or extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), for pan
1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin (Used 2 pounds & made 12 muffins)
1 small yellow onion, cut into quarters by a grown-up helper (GH)
1 small green bell pepper
A splash of milk
1 large egg, beaten (used 2 eggs)
1 cup plain bread crumbs (used ground oats)
2 tablespoons grill seasoning, such as McCormick brand Montreal Steak Seasoning
(used 1 TB Wildtree’s Rancher Steak Rub)
1 cup smoky barbecue sauce*
1/2 cup tomato salsa*
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 450°F. Brush a 6-muffin tin with vegetable oil or EVOO.

Put ground beef into a big bowl.

Put onions into a food processor.

Cut the bell pepper in half and rip out the seeds and the white stuff and throw it away.

Cut the pepper into a few pieces (ask your GH for help if you need it) and add to the food processor.

Pulse the food processor to finely chop the onion and bell pepper. Add to the meat bowl.

Whisk the milk into the beaten egg and add to meat. Add breadcrumbs and grill seasoning.

In a small bowl, mix together the barbecue sauce, salsa and Worcestershire sauce. *Didn’t have BBQ sauce & my kids are no crazy about salsa. I subbed 3/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup grape jelly, & 1/2 cup of tomato sauce + the Worcestershire sauce. It was gobbled up.

Pour half the sauce mixture into the bowl with the meatloaf mix. Mix the meatloaf together with your hands. (Totally didn’t see this step & they turned out great.)

Wash your hands well after handling the raw meat.

Use a large ice cream scoop to put the meat into the muffin tin.

Top each “muffin” with a spoonful of reserved sauce. Bake about 15 minutes. Ask your grown-up helper (GH) to cut open one muffin to test if it’s cooked through.

Let me know if you try them.
Antoinette

FlayLady Challenge – Day 14 (& another challenge -ABS Diet?)

Hello again! How are your morning routines going? And your before bed routines? When I remember to do my before bed routine the next day goes so much smoother in the morning! If you haven’t had a chance to get into a routine I’d like to challenge you tonight. Just pick out your clothes for tomorrow. Shine your sink. Those little things can make a huge difference in how your start your day.

Day 14 beholds an essay for us to read. It’s about using a calendar if you don’t already do that. Nowadays there are some really great calendars out there. You can even sync your calendars with other family members through gmail and other sites! There are some really great apps for your phone. Don’t underestimate the old school wall calendar either. FlyLady has great calendar in her shop & this is the calendar that I use.

To go off on a bit of a tangent, I’ve been thinking about starting another challenge since we’re getting our lives organized. Some of you know that I’ve lost a lot of weight this past year. I get a lot of questions about how I’ve done it. I did it all through a group that met at our church called PRISM. I learned a lot about nutrition, but I also learned a lot about why I ate the way that I did. I’m an emotional eater/stress eater & not everyone is the same. Unfortunately the group isn’t meeting any more. However, a friend mentioned a book that I was shocked to find was very similar in its eating plan. The writer is spot on with his approach to weight loss & has such good information to read. It’s called The ABS DIET. I have to admit that when I first heard the title I didn’t like it at all. My goal is not to have well defined abs, a six pack or anything of the sort. The more I read though, the more I realized that his approach is to get rid of the fat in that area of your body, surrounding your organs.

I won’t go on & on about it right now. If you get a chance, go over to this site to read a review of the book. I liked the review because it was very realistic. I was able to check this book out from the library to preview it first before purchasing. However, I found a link to the diet information through Women’s Health Magazine. The goal is not so much to go on a diet, but to work on changing bad eating habits. There’s so much I want to share it that area.

What I need to know is, who’s interested? And if you’re interested when do you want to get started? Monday? That would give you a chance to read through the info & go grocery shopping this weekend. I can’t wait to hear what you think.

Antoinette

Pumpkin Smoothie Recipe

I made a smoothie for my snack today & everyone asked if they could try a sip. Then I ended up making another batch.

The original recipe came from The ABS DIET for Women, but I changed it up enough that I’m able to post it. (I will be doing a review of this book in a couple of weeks & issuing a new challenge!)

Pumpkin Smoothie

1 scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup whole milk
1 scoop of vanilla whey protein powder
1 tsp ground flax seed
1 good pinch of cinnamon
1 TBSP of honey
3-4 ice cubes

Dump into blender on high. Makes about 2 – 8 oz. glasses.

We have some dairy allergies in this family, but I added a powdered enzyme to the mix & that helps so much. I use this brand.

Enjoy! (And you too can have a pumpkin mustache… and beard)
Antoinette

Recipe Review – Hamburger Helper

I can’t remember how I came across the recipe that I made for dinner last night. No doubt I started out on someone’s menu plan for the week, clicked on this link, then that link & found a great recipe that would work for my family. Or maybe one of my friends posted it on facebook? If that was you please let us know so we can thank you! We absolutely loved this!

If you’re reading my blog chances are, you know me. If you don’t know me, then you don’t know that I never follow a recipe exactly. So I thought I would post my version of the recipe. The original recipe is perfect for a family of 4. However, I don’t have a family of 4 & neither do most of my friends. So if you need a bigger sized recipe then keep reading.

Homemade Hamburger Helper – feeds 6-8

2 lbs ground meat ( I use 1 lb gr beef + 1 lb gr turkey)
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, pressed

1 – 6 oz can tomato paste
4 c water
1 – 15 oz can tomato sauce
1/2 lb pasta (I used whole wheat elbow macaroni)
heaping TBS sweetner (I use Sucanat)
1 tsp gr mustard
1 tsp lemon pepper
1 tsp Real Salt

2 c shredded cheddar (I used raw cheddar)

Brown meat in Dutch oven with the onion. Add garlic in at the last minute. Drain beef. (I have a large colander that sits easily in a bowl to do this.)

While the meat is draining, add the tomato paste to the pan & start breaking it up with a spatula or the back of a spoon. Slowly add some water to thin it out. Once it is no longer tomato paste chunks add the rest of the water, tomato sauce, pasta, sweetener, gr mustard, lemon pepper, & salt.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat & simmer 15 minutes stirring occasionally until pasta is cooked. At this point you can stir the cheese in if you desire. We have a baby with dairy allergies, so I just served it in a bowl on the table. Everyone enjoyed topping their serving with cheese & watching it melt. I love how fast the meal came together. Just served it with some baby carrots & cut up veggies. Yum! It has been requested again for next Sunday night.

Last minute thought: Next time I make it I’m going to try using 2 cans of tomato sauce, delete the tomato paste & double the pasta. Maybe then we’ll have leftovers? Wishful thinking. I might even get a picture to post before it’s all gone!

-Antoinette-

Menu Plan Monday – October 25th, 2010

Wow… it’s the last week of October. This year has gone by a bit too fast for me.

Here’s the menu plan for this week…

Breakfast:
Lazy Granola
Baked Peanut Butter Oatmeal
English Muffins
Fruit

Lunch:
Leftovers
Tuna salad Pitas
Egg Salad Pitas
usually complimented by carrots & apples

Dinner:
Monday – Cowboy Spaghetti w/ green beans
Tuesday – Mediterranean Poached Eggs w/ peas & fruit
Wednesday – Sloppy Joes w/ squash, sweet potatoes & broccoli
Thursday – Roast Chicken w/ rice & green beans
Friday – Crustless Crab Quiche w/ fruit, yogurt & granola
Saturday – Spaghetti & Meatballs w/ spaghetti squash & broccoli
Sunday – Chicken Soup w/ Quesadillas (or some type of harvest meal if I’m up for it… we choose not to celebrate Halloween).

Hope you all have a blessed week!
Antoinette
PS – For lots more menu ideas head on over to orgjunkie!