Left Over Potatoes

One evening for dinner we made boiled potatoes and carrots--the next day it became potato salad--I just added fresh onion, celery, Miracle whip, and salt and black pepper to taste 

Excellent Fall/Winter Meal

This is one of my most favorite meal so far this winter--it reminded me of my Gram and Mom.

Great comfort food!!

Potatoes, carrots, and all natural sausage.

 These are the potatoes--they're really pretty purple and pink--kind of looks like a tie-dye---when you cut them they are white inside---these potatoes are Purple Vikings

We bought these at the end of the summer from a local farmer--they are so tasty!!! 

Cut up the potatoes and carrots into bite size. Place in a pot with sausage--cover with water and boil until you smell the sausage---oh my this was so good smelling!!

  I'm not sure if this is the steam fogging up my lens or me drooling

Once you smell the sausage than take it out of the water and place it on a grill or frying pan--I used my Grilling Machine

Allow the potatoes and carrots to cook (boil) until tender

 The finished product---boiled veggies with butter, salt and black pepper, grilled sausage, and lettuce salad

 Close up on the veggies  

Does it just make your mouth water? Oh my heck!!!

Thanksgiving and Memories

This post was inspired by a contest that's going on, on another blog. The contest is to see who has the best Thanksgiving memories of cooking with their Grandmother.

I call my Grandmother, Gram. Neither Gram or my Mother really taught me how to cook. But I remember my Gram had already cooked something, or was in the middle of cooking whenever I came to her home. Oh what funny things memories can do to a person...crying right now envisioning Gram in the kitchen.

I am 41 years old living with my husband and our dog in a country foreign to my birth. My Mom, Gram and family are back in Western New York. Gram is in a nursing home and has been there for some time now. She is slipping away from us mentally and physically.

My Mom called the other night and told me that Gram had been taken to the hospital and when weighed she was only weighed 97lbs--my Mom cried when she saw the number on the scale.

Mom has been a good daughter to Gram, she has taken her to doctor appointments, had her move in with her when Gram was scared to live by herself, loved her, cared for her as best as she could until she no longer could. Finally, reluctantly, she placed Gram in an assisted living place, for her safety and well being. After Gram had fallen too many times in assisted living, they would no longer allow her to stay - Gram had to move to a nursing home.

So as I write this, I am remembering both happy and sad times. This year is one of the very few that I will not have been home for the holidays.

Thanksgiving Memories:

When I was a little girl I remember going to Grams and being put to work with my cousin. Gram would have us rip up bread for the stuffing. That was done the day before so the bread could dry out. The day of the feast Gram would get up early. I remember the aroma of sauteed onions, celery, and sausage. The sausage had a strong sage smell. The bread my cousin and I had ripped up the day before was sitting in a metal bowl on the counter. Gram took the sauteed veggies and sausage (with all the drippings) and put it in the metal bowl with the bread and carefully mixed it by hand---we weren't allowed to help with this because it was much too hot for little fingers---than she would add eggs to the mixture until it was just the right texture---no measurements, by site, smell and feel - every time was a scientific experiment. When the stuffing was just right she put it all in a baking pan/s---Gram always made tons of stuffing in preparation for all the guests that would come over to eat with us.

Our family was small - there was Gram, Mom, Cousin Lisa, and Aunt Liz - but at the holidays the house would  fill with friends and tons of chairs and plates and food. Gram would make sure everyone she knew had someplace for the holidays. Anyone who didn't, was invited and expected to be at her home to enjoy Thanksgiving. When I got older I knew it was acceptable to invite people, one year I invited a Russian and an East Indian friend, every year it was different.

On top of having many guests at dinner, Gram would make every ones favorite pie what ever it was--she usually made them herself. If she found out that you didn't like pie, she would find out what you liked instead and make it. I remember seeing 8 or more pies at some of those holidays. Some of the pies had been made weeks before and frozen, taken out and baked that day or the day before. There was pumpkin, apple, mince meat, rhubarb, custard....etc.

Boy do I miss Gram, but I pray that she has peace as her body and mind diminish.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Attack (Healthier version)

 Okay so I really wanted some cookies the other day, but there were things that stood in my way of getting some 1)I'm trying to lose weight, 2) sugar/white flour...So I made some by my standards---in the end I had about 48 cookies that only were 2 points a piece (if you know any thing about weight watchers) 

I made these cookies 2 times within 2 weeks to get my final product that tasted pretty darn good--even Dan liked them and he seems to have a bit of a picker taste than I do some times. My first product I brought to a coupon trading get together--my sister-in-laws seemed to like them--but I wasn't quite satisfied with the first try so I went back to the drawing board and created this last recipe which will stay in the cook book

I again used Betty Crocker as the idea but I changed the recipe quite a bit to make it mine

Betty's Recipe                                                                    My Recipe

3/4c sugar                                                                            1/2c honey
3/4c brown sugar
1c butter                                                                               3/4c butter
1tsp vanilla                                                                            same
1 egg                                                                                    2 egg
2 1/4 c white flour                                                                 1 3/4c wheat flour and 1/2c oat flour
1 tsp baking soda                                                                  same
1/2 tsp salt                                                                            same
1c coarsely chopped nuts                                                    
1 bag (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (2 c)                      1/2 bag (1c) semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Cream first 4 ingredients (honey, butter, vanilla, and eggs). Add to mix every thing except chips and mix well. Fold chips into mix. Bake cookies about 7min or until brown

Best Ever Carrot Muffins

No surprise but I was experimenting in my kitchen the other day on a Carrot Cake recipe by Betty Crocker---I have the nice Betty Crocker Red Cook Book

I no longer cook with white flour nor do I cook with store bought wheat flour. The only flours that I cook with now are ground by myself----wheat, oat.....

When my husband or I get a craving for a baked good it becomes challenging to make the baked good as moist and fluffy as it normally would be in the store. But these Carrot Muffins were so delish!!!

These muffins actually were from a carrot cake recipe with a lot of changes to the ingredients to make them healthier. 

Original Recipe                                                                My Substitute Recipe                   

1 1/2 c sugar                                                                      1c honey

1c cooking oil                                                                    3/4c coconut oil 

3 eggs                                                                               same

2c white flour                                                                    1 1/2c wheat flour and 1/2c oat flour    

2 teaspoons cinnamon                                                       3 teaspoons cinnamon

                                                                                         1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

                                                                                         1/2 teaspoon clove

1 teaspoon baking soda                                                     same

1 teaspoon vanilla                                                              same

1/2  teaspoon                                                                    same

3c shredded carrots                                                          4c shredded carrots

1c coarsely ground nuts                                                     1c sliced apples

Preheat oven to 350 degree. Mix all ingredients. Place mix in muffins pan. Bake for 40-45 min. or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool muffins in pans for 10 min and than take out of pans to cont to cool

Chicken/Rice Casserole with veggies

This was such an easy one and tasty!! 

What a great recipe for using food storage too

Ingredients:

Freeze Dried Chicken

Rice

Gravy mix

Mix gravy mix with water and allow to boil and get to a nice thickness--less than 5 min

 

Place Freeze Dried Chicken in a small amount of water and allow to re-hydrate for about 15 min and than heat on top of stove 

I cut up some celery and carrots and threw them in with the rice so every thing would get cooked at the same time 

Finished Product

Side cucumber and tomato salad

Snack Attack

As many of you know, I'm trying to lose weight and so when I snack I try to make my snack calorie savvy and of course tasty 

This day I was craving tacos, I made a snack that I didn't need the fried tacos for, but gave my taste buds what they wanted and I felt nice and full----I of course shared this with my hubby---we snacked on it for a while

In the bowls on the side are pinto beans heated up and mashed with garlic and salsa---this was for dipping the veggies---yummy yummy!!!