Pumpkin mini chocolate chip muffin

Making muffins is a big part of our lives! It makes an easy breakfast or after school snack. Sometimes we make 1 batch, but mostly a double batch. Sometimes we make 6 batches of muffins. I got the base recipe from muffins from America's test kitchen. We have recently been doubling this recipe and pour it out onto a greased half sheet and we call it muffin cake. Easy clean up! (Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.)

Banana Muffins

2 C all-purpose flour (1 C mixed grain flour, ½ C wheat flour, and ½ C a-p flour)

½ C sugar (I use ¼ C raw sugar and ¼ C honey)

¾ tsp baking soda

¾ tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt (I use sea salt)

3 very ripe bananas mashed well (appx 1 ½ C)

6 T butter, melted and cooled (I use 6 T olive oil or half butter/olive oil)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

¼ C plain yogurt (I use buttermilk)

1 tsp vanilla

1 C chopped nuts, optional (I use walnuts)

½ C chocolate chips, optional

Whisk the dry ingredients together.  Mix bananas, eggs, yogurt, butter, and vanilla together in a separate bowl.  Gently fold the banana mixture with the flour mixture.  Then fold in nuts and chocolate chips.  Do not over mix.

Bake in a greased muffin pan at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until tooth pick comes out clean or with only a few crumbs on it.

Pumpkin Muffins (apply to recipe above)

Instead of bananas, use 1 ½ C cooked pureed pumpkin.  Then add:

2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp all spice

1/8 tsp cloves

Increase the sugar to 2/3 C sugar (1/3 C raw sugar and 1/3 C honey)

1/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Blueberry Muffins

Instead of bananas, use

1 C defrosted or fresh blueberries

1 C applesauce

Apple Muffins                                       Crumb topping (24 muffins)

Instead of bananas:                                    1/8 tsp nutmeg         1 C rolled oats          

¾ C bottled apples or sautéed        1/8 tsp ginger           3 T raw or brown sugar

¾ C applesauce                                  1/8 tsp all spice        3 T mixed grain flour

2 tsp cinnamon                                  1/8 tsp cloves                        ¼ C melted butter

Fill muffin tin with batter ¾ full.  Add crumb topping on top of each muffin batter before baking.

Burrito Stuffing Mix

This is a fast yummy dinner and it makes a lot. We double it last night because we had guests over for dinner.

Burrito stuffing mix

Prepare 1 cup uncooked white rice or ¾ C brown rice according packaged directions.

To cook the chicken:  place 2-3 chicken breasts depending on their size and how many you are feeding in a pot and cover with about 2 cups of water.  Season water with 1 cube of chicken bouillon, 1-2 T minced dried onions, and 1/8 tsp garlic powder.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 30-45 minutes until chicken reaches 165 degrees.  Take chicken out to cool and then dice or shred.  Strain broth water and reserve for adding later.

While chicken and rice are cooking, sauté together:

1 small onion, diced

½ medium bell pepper, diced (optional)

1 T cooking oil

Season with a little salt and pepper to taste.

Add:

1 can (14.5 oz.) of diced tomatoes 

1 can (15oz.) black beans, drained

2-3 cups shredded/diced cooked chicken

¼ water or chicken broth from the cooked chicken

1 pkg. taco seasoning (I use my homemade taco seasoning mix)

Stir and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 3 minutes.

Add: 

2 cups of cooked rice and stir.  Cook until heated through.

Put desired amount of mixture into a warm flour tortilla.  Top with your choice of toppings:  cheese, sour cream, shredded lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, salsa etc.

Roll up into a burrito and serve.  This stuffing can be used for burritos, chimichangas, quesadillas, tacos, or taco salad bowls.

Taco seasoning mix (for 1 pound of ground beef)

2 tsp onion powder or 1 tsp powder and 1 T dehydrated onions

1 tsp sea salt

¼-½ tsp garlic powder (I use ¼ tsp)

¼ tsp dry oregano

½ tsp ground cumin

½-1 t chili powder (I use ½ tsp)

½-1 tsp cornstarch (I use 1 tsp)

Flour tortillas

2 C all-purpose flour

¼ C butter (I use half butter and half olive oil)

½ tsp sea salt

½ tsp baking powder

½ C hot water

Combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a Kitchen Aid mixer bowl. Cut in butter. With the mixer on, drizzle in the hot water just until it turns into a dough. Each cup of flour makes 3 or 4 tortillas so with 2 cups, cut the dough up into 6-8 equalish portions. Roll into balls. Roll out each ball into a roundish tortilla. Cook on a hot dry cast iron skillet, with the burner on medium, until tortilla is turning white and golden brown spots are starting.  Place on a cooling rack and start with the next one. After they are all cooked and cooled, store in a gallon zipper bag in the refrigerator.

Easy chicken enchilada casserole

Easy Chicken Enchiladas 

3 blsl chicken breasts

1 pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 can diced green chilies

8-oz shredded cheese, cheddar or Monterey Jack

1/2 cup sour cream (optional: I add this to make it more saucy)

1 28 oz can green enchilada sauce

3 T milk

1 pkg flour tortillas (about 8-9)

Optional toppings: sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, etc.

Boil chicken breasts for about 40 minutes or until 165 degrees. When cool, dice chicken into small pieces. (Or use two 14.4-oz cans chicken, drained.)

Or... dice the chicken up raw, season with sea salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic power, chili powder, and ground cumin. This is how I prefer the chicken for this.

In a smaller bowl, combine milk and cream cheese. Beat this mixture until smooth. Then add the cooked chicken and green chilies.

In a 9 x 13 or 10 x 14 baking dish, pour about a fourth the enchilada sauce.

Layer tortillas, then ½ the chicken mixture,

Then sprinkle 1/3 of the shredded cheese,

then ¼ of the enchilada sauce.

Then layer again Tortillas,

½ the chicken mixture,

then sprinkle shredded cheese,

then ¼ the enchilada sauce.

Then layer again the tortillas,

the rest of the enchilada sauce,

and the rest of the shredded cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

My famous fabulous delicious Bread

Feel privileged that I am sharing this. I never buy bread from the store anymore. I make bread at least once a week if not twice. I also use this dough to make hoagies, buns, and rolls.

Amy’s Homemade Bread (4 loaves)

Measure out 6 level cups of hard white wheat, and finely grind it. (Appx. 10 cups wheat flour)

In your Bosch:

Freshly ground wheat flour

2 heaping T Saf instant yeast (has to be Saf brand)

5 C luke warm water (105-108 degrees)

½ C honey

½ C olive oil, not extra virgin

Mix for about 20 seconds until it is mixed through and then let sponge until it doubles in size, 20 minutes.

In a mixing bowl combine:

4 tsp sea salt

 ¼ C vital gluten powder

4 C white bread flour (baker’s high gluten flour unbleached)

Mix together and add to the dough.

Beat the dough for 10 minutes then pour it out onto a clean oiled counter.

Divide into 4 equal portions, appx. 1.8 pounds each.  Knead dough to get out all the bubbles and form into loaves.  Place into greased loaf pans, cover with oiled plastic wrap or damp bread cloth, and let them rise. (Dough is up to the edge on all 4 sides and top is nicely rounded on top).

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  When all the sides of the loaves have reached the top of the sides of the pan, put the loaves in the oven.

Bake at 425 degrees for 13 minutes.  Do not open the oven.

Reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake for another 22 minutes or until dough easily reaches 180 degrees or more.

Remove loaves from the oven and take them out of the pans.  Place them on cooling racks.  Just for fun, lightly butter the tops of the loaves.  It makes them pretty!

Let the bread cool for about 10 minutes before cutting into it.

Let the bread completely cool before placing in bags. Store in a cool place.

 (Convection oven: Conv. Bake, 425, Conv. Convert, Timer 12 min., then Conv. Bake, 350, Conv. Convert, Timer 22 min.)

Cream Tuna on Toast

This is an easy last minute dinner idea we did this week. We received some real home canned tuna from some friends and it's really good tuna. This is what we made with it. We actually tripled this recipe to feed our family and have some leftovers for lunch the next day.

Creamed Tuna on Toast

3 T butter

3 T all-purpose Flour

3 C whole milk

Melt butter and mix in flour to make a roux.  Add milk and whisk until there are no more lumps.  Stir until thick.

Add:

1 Can of tuna drained

1 T Worcestershire sauce

Season to taste with onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

Spoon over dry toast and top with heated frozen peas.

Cream of chicken and vegetable soup

My hubby made this one!

Sometimes when I have a busy day and haven't decided on dinner yet and I am absolutely exhausted, my dear hubby will step in and make dinner. This is his go-to concoction on a cold winter day!

Cream of Chicken and Vegetable Soup

3 chicken breasts

3 celery stalks, diced w/some celery leaves

1 medium onion diced

6-8 carrots cut in ½ to ¾” pieces

¼ head of cauliflower cut small

1 medium head of broccoli cut to small florets

2 small zucchinis (about 6”) cut in ¾” pieces

1 small yellow squash cut in ¾” pieces

1 lb frozen (or fresh) cut green beans

5-6 small red potatoes cut into ½ to ¾” cubes

6-8 oz sliced fresh mushrooms

3-4 cups water

2 tsp “Better Than Bullion” chicken bouillon (water and bullion can be substituted for with 2-3 cans of chicken stock)

¾ stick of butter

¾ C. AP flour

4 C. whole milk

½ lb. ham, diced in about 3/8” cubes

½-1 tsp granulated garlic powder

Sea Salt, Pepper, “Mrs. Dash” chicken seasoning, Les Herbes De Provence, Olive oil

Season chicken breasts with Mrs. Dash chicken seasoning, salt, and light amount of Les Herbes de Provence.  Brown lightly in olive oil.  Add celery, onion, and carrot, salt lightly and sautee covered 5-10 minutes stirring occasionally. Add rest of veggies, potatoes, water, a little more salt, and bullion.  When chicken reaches 175-180° remove it and continue to simmer the rest.  Dice chicken into whatever size you like.  In separate saucepan heat ham through until it releases its juice.  Remove from saucepan and put in bowl with chicken breast.  When veggies appear nearly ready make a roux in saucepan with ham juices, melted butter, garlic and flour.  Add milk and heat whisking often until it thickens.  Add to soup along with chicken and ham.  Stir slowly and occasionally until combined and soup boils lightly for a minute or two.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and more garlic if you like. 

Daily Morning Breakfast - Kefir / yogurt made from raw milk

Every morning right after I get up, I talk a couple of acidophilus pills. I also give one to each of my older children who will tolerate it. Then after I get kids off to school, I pour me a cup of homemade 24 hour kefir and a cup of homemade 24 hour plain yogurt. I mix them together and I have a fabulous probiotic drink that I love! Others may have their coffee, I have my kefir and yogurt. I don't always have the yogurt in it if I don't have any at the time, but I always have kefir. When they have been cultured for 24 hours, all the lactose (milk sugar) has been eaten away by the beneficial good bacteria.

How to make Kefir

RULE: Do not let the kefir grains touch anything metal or chlorinated water.

1.  In a clean dry quart jar, gently pour in the kefir grains with the resting milk. (If the grains have sat in the resting milk for more than two weeks and smells pretty strong, you can strain out the resting milk and just put the grains in the jar.)

2. Fill the quart jar with fresh raw milk with a 1 inch head space.  Cover the jar with a cotton cloth or a paper towel and hold it down with a rubber band.

3. Set it in a cupboard for 24 hours. Ideally it should be between 65 and 75 degrees.

4. For the first couple of times, use a plastic or wooden spoon to check the milk under the cream and grains to see if it cultured like yoghurt. (If it is not, put it back in the cupboard of another 8-12 hours. Check it again. Only once has it taken mine 48 hours for kefir to culture.) If it is cultured, then put it in a plastic colander that is set in a plastic or glass bowl. (I use plastic.) Strain out the grains. (I lightly pound the strainer down on the bowl to get the milk of the grains.)

5. Put the grains in a small glass jar and cover with ¾ cup of milk. Cover with a plastic lid or plastic wrap and then a metal lid and put it in the fridge until next time. 

6. Pour the freshly made kefir back into the quart jar and cover with a plastic lid or plastic wrap.  Store it in the fridge.

7. My suggestions of how to choke down, I mean, drink down the kefir drink

          A.  1 cup kefir with 1 cup fresh raw milk- blend in a blender and drink

          B.  1 cup kefir with 1 cup orange juice – blend in a blender and drink

          C.  1 cup kefir with 1 cup OJ, 2-3 frozen strawberries and 1 frozen banana,                      blend in a blender and drink.

          D. Just drink 1 cup of it straight, pureed.

Kefir is combination of 20 probiotics including acidophilus. It is high in Calcium and vitamin Bs. I am sure you can Google it and find all sorts of information.

Caution: It is a detoxifier. Start out with only ¼ cup for a couple of days, then ½ cup for a couple of days, and then move up to a whole cup. Drink first thing in the morning on an empty stomach and then let it digest for about an hour. Organic milk can also be used if you can’t get raw milk.

Homemade yogurt from raw cow’s milk

Needed:

7/8ths quart of raw cow’s milk

¼ C plain yogurt 

Digital thermometer

Method of keeping yoghurt warm

1. Fill up a clean quart jar 7/8^th full of fresh raw cow’s milk.

2. Pour it into a pot.

3. Heat the milk stirring frequently until milk is 105-109 degrees.

          Do Not let it get over 110 degrees.

4. Stir in ¼ C plain, full fat yogurt.

          (I like to use Greek Yoghurt because it has 5 strains of beneficial bacteria.)

5. Pour it all back into the quart jar and put a seal and lid on it.

6. Keep this jar in appx. 90-95 degrees F for 24 hours. Never higher.

7. Save ¼ c yogurt for the next batch.

          I make 2-3 quarts at a time, so I will save ½ C to ¾ C of yoghurt.

A. I have a box dehydrator that the screens come out. I place my yogurt in it to keep to temp. Once in a while I will check the air with my digital thermometer for the first hour. Then I put it on my calendar what time I need to take it out. If it's really hot outside, I will just set it in my enclosed garage. It's plenty warm in there.

B. In the winter, I will place the jar by the fireplace in a warm, but not too hot of a place.

I will repeat this about 2 times with the same batch, but then I will buy some new plain yogurt at the store. It just goes funny/yucky by the third batch.

Information on the benefits of Kefir

Kefir, which means 'feel good" in Turkish, is an ancient cultured, enzyme-rich food filled with friendly micro-organisms that help balance your "inner ecosystem" to maintain optimal health and strengthen immunity.

Kefir's tart and refreshing flavor is similar to a drinking-style yogurt, and it contains beneficial yeast as well as the friendly 'probiotic' bacteria found in yogurt. When used regularly, the naturally occurring bacteria and yeast in Kefir combine symbiotically to help balance your intestinal flora and boost your immunity.

Among its many beneficial powers, Kefir:

·         Provides supplemental nourishment for pregnant and nursing women*

·         Contributes to your healthy immune system

·         Promotes a relaxing effect on the nervous system and benefit many who seek a restful night's sleep

·         Helps support your normal intestinal tract function, promote bowel movements and your healthy digestive system -- and is beneficial after the use of antibiotics to restore balance to the digestive tract

·         Curbs unhealthy food cravings by making your body more nourished and balanced

·         While both Kefir and yogurt are cultured milk products, they contain different types of beneficial bacteria. Yogurt contains transient beneficial bacteria that keep your digestive system clean and provide food for the friendly bacteria that already are present. Kefir actually helps to colonize your intestinal tract -- a feat that yogurt cannot match.

·         Additionally, Kefir contains several major strains of friendly bacteria not commonly found in yogurt: Lactobacillus Caucasus, Leuconostoc, Acetobacter species, and Streptococcus species. It also contains beneficial yeasts which help balance the intestinal flora, including promotion of beneficial yeast in the body by penetrating the mucosal lining. They form a virtual SWAT team that housecleans and helps strengthen the intestines.

·         Kefir's active yeast and bacteria may provide more nutritive value than yogurt by helping digest the foods that you eat and by keeping the colon environment clean and healthy. The curd size of Kefir is smaller than yogurt, so it's also easier to digest, making it an ideal food for anyone with digestive health concerns.

10 grain flour

We have come up with a white flour replacement that we like and feel good about using. So in my recipes when I refer to mix grain flour or 10 grain flour, this is what it is:

10 grain flour mix
soft white wheat
spelt
corn
millet
brown rice
hulled pearled barley
oat groats
hulled buckwheat groats
rye
kamut

We take a cup of each, mix it all together and run it through my Ktec kitchen grain mill. Then we put it in a Ziploc Freezer bag and store it in the freezer.

We also grind up about that much of Hard white wheat and store it another freezer bag.

When we do a recipe we usually do half the flour the mixed grains, a fourth of the flour the hard white wheat, and the other fourth unbleached all purpose flour. We feel pretty good about that ratio. They have good flavor and good texture.

La Piece de La Resistance - Peanut Butter/Chocolate swirl “Healthitized” Cookies

Healthitized cookies - the whole chocolate one don't have peanut butter in them for my sensitive son.

My husband loves cookies! Well, who doesn't! I prefer not to eat cookies from the store because I don't know what ingredients they are using and I probably don't want them in my body. So over time we have managed ways to change up recipes, substitue ingredients, and reduce the sugar amounts. These we can eat a couple of and not feel like we are getting too much sugar or bad fats or too much white flour.

Peanut Butter/Chocolate swirl “Healthitized” Cookies

Oven at 375°

Chocolate Drop Cookie dough

¼ C. coconut oil (virgin, expeller pressed, either flavorless or reg. flavor)

¼ C. butter

½ C. evaporated cane juice crystals (raw sugar)

¼ C. honey

1 egg, from our backyard chickens

1 tsp vanilla

½ C. 10-grain flour

½ C. unbleached, AP flour

1/3 C. cocoa powder

1/8 tsp baking soda

Optional: ¼ to ½ C. semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips, ½ to 1 C. chopped pecans

Cream sugar, honey, butter, coconut oil.  Then add vanilla and egg, mix well.  Combine dry ingredients and add.  Mix until well combined, scraping sides of bowl as necessary.  Add optional ingredients, if any.  You may need to add a little more flour until dough is dry enough to roll into balls.  The dough can also be refrigerated to make it easier to roll. Roll into balls individually or with Peanut butter cookie dough.  To combine the two doughs, I take a chunk of each dough and push them together with the thumb and forefingers of each hand offset 90° from each other so that they combine to look like a baseball, then I roll them together.  Flatten with fork to about ½” thick.  Bake at 375° for 11 minutes on unheated round stone, then subsequent batches on warmed stone only take about 9 minutes.  Cookies should have cracks and be puffy, but just starting to fall.

Peanut Butter Cookie dough

½ C. butter

½ C. peanut butter, Planters Natural

½ C. raw sugar

¼ C. honey

1 egg

½ tsp vanilla

½ C. 10-grain flour

¾ C. unbleached, AP flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

Cream sugar, honey, butter, and peanut butter.  Add egg and vanilla and mix.  Add combined dry and mix thoroughly, scraping sides of bowl as needed.  Roll into 1 – 1 ¼” balls with or without chocolate drop cookie dough.  Flatten with fork and bake same as chocolate drop cookies.

Oven roasted vegetables

Butternut squash diced up before it's cooked

After cooked

I made this tonight. Since we have a large afternoon lunch, usually a breakfast meal, I serve them a vegetable in the evening so they don't go to be hungry and so that they've had a vegetable that day.

We have enjoyed getting our kids to eat veggies by oven roasting them: potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, and today butternut squash.

I dice up the veggies, put them in a half sheet or casserole dish, use a ketchup sqirter filled with olive oil and sqirt it generously over the veggies. Then I sprinkle on hymalayan crystal salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. On this butternut squash, I also sprinkled on les herb de Provence. Then I bake them in a 425 degree oven for 30-45 minutes until tender. Each veggie is different, so I have had to play with the times. The kids go for the oven roasted vegetable first and they always eat them all up!

Sausage Gravy over Biscuits and scrambled eggs

Sunday dinner we always have breakfast. It's fast, easy, and filling. Today we had Sausage gravy over biscuits and scrambled eggs. We have to do a pan of 20 eggs to fill our family. We have backyard chickens so they are a nice brilliant yellow scrambled eggs with shredded cheddar cheese on top.

Cream Biscuits (from Americas Test Kitchen)

Bake the biscuits immediately after cutting them; letting them stand for any length of time can decrease the leavening powder and thereby prevent the biscuits from rising properly in the oven. (Bolded amounts for 2 C cream.)

2 cups (10 ounces) flour (2 2/3 Cups) 

        (1 C 10-grain flour, 1/2 C unbleached all-purpose flour and 1/2 C wheat flour)

2 tsp evaporated cane juice sugar (2 2/3 tsp)

2 tsp baking powder (2 2/3 tsp)

½ tsp sea salt (2/3 tsp)

1 ½ C heavy cream (2 Cups) If we have some from the local cow, we will use it.

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.  (I just use my round stone.)

2. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in medium bowl.  Add cream and stir with wooden spoon until dough forms, about 30 seconds.  Transfer dough from bowl to countertop. 

3. Cut biscuits into rounds.  Place rounds on parchment-lined baking sheet or stone and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.  Serve immediately.

Sausage Gravy

1 lb Jimmy Dean natural sausage
4 T butter
1/2 C all-purpose flour
4 C whole milk
Seasonings:
Salt
Pepper
onion powder
garlic powder

Brown the sausage, do not drain. Jimmy Dean only puts off a little bit of fat and it is needed to flavor the gravy and help in making the roux.
Push the sausage to the edges and melt the butter in the center of the pan and then sprinkle on the flour.
Stir it around and then pour in the milk.
Keep mixing it until it comes to a boil and thickens.
Turn it to low and add seasoning to taste. I can't really give measurements on this because my hubby makes the gravy and he doesn't measure them. He just sprinkles it on and then tastes it.

Homemade Pizza

My sister is the ultimate pizza maker and I can't even compete with her fabulous pizza, but I like mine too. She makes a white flour thick fluffy crust and I make a thinner half white / half wheat crust. 

This is my recipe for 1 pizza dough, but I never made just one crust:

Pizza Dough

In your grain mill:

1 cup of wheat

In your Kitchen Aid mixer or Bosch,

Ground wheat flour

1 Level Tbls. Saf instant yeast

1 C warm water (105 degrees F)

2 T honey

2 T olive oil

Stir and let sponge until it doubles in size, about 20 minutes.

Add 1 C high gluten unbleached white flour mixed with

1 tsp salt (sea salt)

1 T Vital Wheat Gluten

Beat for about 1-2 minutes until thoroughly mix.  Pour out into an oiled bowl and cover with wet thin cloth or oiled plastic wrap.

Let raise until it doubles in size, about 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees with baking stone in it.

If you are using a Pampered Chef stone, preheating it may break it.

Roll out onto counter to desired size and thickness, a little smaller than your stone.  Transfer dough onto a sheet of parchment paper a little bigger than  your stone. Coat dough thinly with olive oil and let it rise.

Put desired sauce and toppings on.  Slide onto cookie sheet (or directly on Pampered Chef baking stone) and slide it onto your preheated baking stone.

Bake for 8-12minutes.  Check after 8 minutes and continue for addition 2 minutes at a time if needed.  Should be golden brown on the bottom and sides.

Pull it out onto cookie sheet and let cool for a couple of mins. before cutting.

Pizza Options  (toppings are listed in order to go on pizza round)

BBQ Beef or pork

6-8 fl oz of your favorite BBQ sauce (I prefer Bill Johnson’s original)

1 pound of cooked and shredded roast beef (or pork roast)

½ onion and ½ bell pepper, sliced and sautéed in a cast iron pan

½ lb mozzarella cheese or more to taste

Chicken Alfredo

About ½ a jar of Alfred sauce (preferably Bertollis) or Ranch salad dressing

Baby spinach leaves

1 zucchini sliced thinly

About 4 oz sliced mushrooms, lightly sautéed

1 chicken breast diced and sautéed in bacon grease

1 onion diced and sautéed

1 tomato seeded and diced

½ lb shrimp fillet sliced or baby shrimp, cooked (optional)

½ lb mozzarella cheese or more to taste

About 6 slices of bacon cooked and chopped

Hawaiian

1 can of tomato sauce mixed with pizza seasoning according to pkg directions

4-5 slices of ham diced or Canadian bacon slices

1 can of pineapple tidbits or sliced and cut them smaller yourself

1 onion sliced and sautéed

About 4 oz mushrooms sliced and sautéed

½ mozzarella cheese or more to taste

Pepperoni

1 can of tomato sauce with pizza seasonings or pizza sauce

Pepperoni slices (desired amount)

½ lb mozzarella cheese or more to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Roll out pizza dough to desired thickness and diameter on parchment paper.  Brush with olive oil and let rise for about 5-10 minutes.  Put desired toppings on the crust.  Once pizza is prepared, bake in oven on a pizza stone for 8-12 minutes.  Check after 8 minutes and every two minutes thereafter until the bottom of the crust is golden brown or desired doneness.

My Homemade Toothpaste

Coconut oil, tooth powder, and essential oil

Homemade Toothpaste

2 Tbsp. coconut oil

2 Tbsp. baking soda

2 Tbsp. bentonite clay

2 Tbsp. calcium magnesium powder

4 Tbps. xylitol

1 tsp. real sea salt powdered (must be powdered)

I doubled all this and put it in my vitamix to make sure it was in a fine powder so as to not be too abrasive and then store it in a glass jar. 

I give each container a couple of tablespoon of the powder and then pour in the desired amount of virgin coconut oil. I like the taste of it. I start with 1 T and then add more if I need to. 

Then I add to each container:

4 drops on guard oil, 2 drops melaluca oil and 2 drops peppermint oil (doTerra brand)

10 drops trace minerals (optional)

Most of my kids will use this and I use it too.

From: http://www.keeperofthehome.org/2012/04/rethinking-oral-health-care-a-homemade-toothpaste-recipe-for-tooth-remineralization.html

With a  little twist on my part.

Homemade mascara

This recipe came from: http://thankyourbody.com/all-natural-homemade-mascara/

Beeswax melting in coconut oil

3 filled mascara tubes

Today I tried a recipe that I've been wanting to try for a while. It just took a while to get all the right ingredents.

Homemade mascara

2 tsp coconut oil 
4 tsp aloe vera gel
1/2 tsp grated bees wax (grate then measure)
2 capsules of activated charcoal

a clean mascara container, from Amazon.com

Directions:

1. Put coconut oil, aloe vera gel, and grated bees wax in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until beeswax is completely melted.

2. Open 1 – 2 capsules of activated charcoal (depending on desired color, about 1/4 – 1/2 tsp) and pour into oil mixture. Stir until completely incorporated. Remove from heat.

3. Pour into a small plastic bag, pushing the mixture down to one corner. Then cut a very small hole in the corner of the bag.

4. Fold the corner with the cut whole until you have a small tip that you can push into the empty mascara tube. (It’s much easier if you have an extra set of hands nearby to hold the tube in place!) Make sure the tip goes far enough into the tube or you’ll have a big mess on your hands!

5. Keep the small-hole-end securely in the tube (or get your helper to hold it in place). Begin pressing the mascara mixture toward the tube. Don’t move too quickly or it will come out and you’ll have mess to deal with. (I highly recommend doing this with a paper towel or napkin underneath.) Keep moving the mixture into the tube until it’s all in.

6. Place the inner cap in place and then twist the wand on tightly. Viola! Homemade mascara!

RESULTS:
So I can't say this was a success. I tried this today, Sunday, and I can't seem to get the substance to stick onto my eyelashes. What a bummer. I am going to have to comment on the blog I got it from and see if we can figure out why it worked for her and not me.

Egg rolls

Tonight we made egg rolls. So so yummy! We ate them all up so fast I didn't even get a piture of them. Sorry! 

Egg rolls (I have to double this recipe to feed my family)

1 C shredded/diced cooked chicken breast (boil it and save the broth)

5 C shredded cabbage

1 C shredded celery

½ C shredded carrot

Cook in stockpot for about 5 minutes with 1 C chicken broth.  Drain.

Add the meat and the following and mix:

1 T sugar

1 tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

1 tsp sesame oil (vegetable or olive oil will do)

This should make 14-16 portions.

2 T flour

2 T water

Mix for using as a flour paste

1 Pkg egg roll wraps

To wrap the egg rolls, place the egg roll skin of working surface.  Place a portion of filling in the middle of the egg roll skin.  Fold lower third of the egg roll skin over the filling.  Fold in the two ends and wrap the filling.  Moisten the top edge of the egg roll skin with the flour paste.  Continue to wrap the egg roll skin.  Rolls should be about 4 inches long.

Heat a pan of oil for deep-frying.  Deep-fry the egg rolls over medium heat for 4 minutes or until they are golden brown.  Remove and drain.  

I now fry them in expeller-pressed (non-flavored) coconut oil. It's great for frying because it doesn't change into a hydrogenated oil. I drain the oil and store it in the frig for future frying.

Sweet and Sour Sauce for Egg Roll dipping sauce

½ C evaporated cane juice sugar

2 T cornstarch

1/2 C chicken broth (I get this from the chicken I boiled.)

1/3 C red wine vinegar (this cannot be substituted for another vinegar)

1/3 C unsweetened pineapple juice, (I just take it out of the can)

¼ C finely chopped green bell pepper

1/4 C finely chopped pineapple

1 T soy sauce

¼ tsp garlic pd

¼ tsp ground ginger

In a small saucepan, combine brown sugar and cornstarch.  Stir in vinegar, pineapple juice, bell pepper, pimiento, soy sauce, garlic pd, and ginger (and broth).  Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.  Cook and stir 2 minutes more.  Serve warm.

Beef Enchilada casserole

Beef enchilada casserole

homemade tortillas in an electic tortilla maker

6 out of 8 exploded!

This is one of our family favorites! We probably make it every month. I normally make it with store bought white flour tortillas and it's great! I am trying to experiment with making my own tortillas. Above I tried to make some with half white and half multigrain. Not a success! At all! We still ate it all gone, but I'm afraid I am going to have to stick with white tortillas. I want to try to make them again with just white flour.

Beef Enchilada Casserole

Sauce
5T Butter
1/2 C all-purpose flour
2 cans tomato sauce
2 cans (tomato sauce cans) water
1 tsp chili pd
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp onion pd
1/4 tsp garlic pd
1/2 tsp Beef Better than buillon
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp sugar (evaporated cane juice sugar)

Melt butter and add chili pd, cumin pd, onion pd, and garlic pd.
Mix and cook for one minute.
Add flour and make a roux.
Add tomato sauce and cans of water and whisk together to make the sauce.
Bring the sauce to a boil to thicken.
Add the rest of the seasonings/ingredients.

Meat
1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion minced
1 garlic clove minced
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can green chilies, diced

Brown the ground beef, then add the onion. Cook until onions are tender then add the garlic and saute it in the center for about one minutes. Then mix it all together. Then add the cream of mushrooms soup and chilies. Heat through. Divide this in the pan into two portions.

Other ingredients
8 oz shredded cheddar or colby jack cheese
6-8 burrito-sized flour tortillas quartered

Layer a little sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 or 10 x 14 casserole dish. (We use the larger.)
Layer 2 - 2 1/2 tortillas broken up into quarters.
Layer the meat mixture, cheese, and sauce.
Then layer 2 - 2 1/2 more tortillas, meat, cheese, and sauce.
Then layer the last 2 - 2 1/2 tortillas, sauce and then top with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbling.

Serve with sour cream and shredded/diced iceburg lettuce.