One hundred

A few weeks ago I was asked to make 100 rolls for girls camp. I was really, really surprised. I make bread for my family almost every week, and I give away lots of loaves of bread, but I never make rolls.

I used the same whole wheat recipe I use for bread, and it was nice to finally figure out how much I spend for ingredients. These three-ounce rolls turned out to be about 22 cents each.


After an entire day of mixing, shaping rolls, and baking, I am extremely grateful that I have an electric mixer and an air-conditioned kitchen. I used to think I would like to be a pioneer and travel like Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family. Now I realize that they spent almost all day every day procuring food, preparing food, and cleaning up after eating food.

I hope the girls enjoy their rolls at camp this week!

Mediterranean

Last night I made something for dinner that I love, and that I haven't made in over ten years. I'm a little ashamed to admit that while I learned to make a Spanish tortilla while on my mission in Spain, after a few failed attempts upon returning home, I gave up altogether. So when I received a new cookbook as a gift, I marked the page with the recipe for tortilla española and determined to introduce my family to the most typical Spanish dish I ate as a missionary.

A non-stick pan is helpful, as is lots of olive oil and keeping the heat at medium or lower. Fry a chopped onion in olive oil. Add two chopped potatoes and fry until soft and a little golden. Remove from oil, let cool, beat six eggs, stir into potato and onion, add salt and pepper, return to the oil and cook until golden on the bottom. Here is where it can get a little sketchy. When the bottom is done, cover the pan with a large plate, flip the tortilla onto the plate and slide it back into the pan to cook the other side. This part scares me. A lot. But I did it, and I managed to get most of the tortilla in the pan where it belonged and cooked all the way through. 

The reason I will probably make this again is the same reason I told Jack we needed to install a camera to record our dinner conversations with the kids. Every time I try a new recipe from my cookbook, I tell the kids we're "eating Mediterranean". This often involves several "courses" and gets lots of dishes dirty, but they are generally willing to try what I've made. Our hard and fast dinner table rule is "Mom chooses what goes on your plate. You choose what to eat from your plate."

So back to last night. I explained that I was serving the family a Spanish food from my mission, and we discussed the differences between the Mexican tortillas and a Spanish tortilla. Then I served tiny pieces, told the kids not to worry if they didn't like it, but that they could have as much as they wanted if they did like it. Everyone tried it. Everyone had seconds and thirds, and as they were eating the kids made comments like, "This is delicious! Can you make this every night? I love this Spanish food, Mom. You are the best cook ever. Can I have some more? I didn't think I would even like this, but I love it! This is my new favorite food. I'm going to have this for my birthday dinner instead of [my other favorite food]" I promise, I am not exaggerating.

What's not to love about fried onions, potatoes, and eggs?

Since we've been "eating Mediterranean," we've tried several new things. I may never buy pasta sauce in a jar again. I've experimented for weeks with sourdough. My husband has happily eaten several items he has specifically prohibited me from making in the past (I just ignored him). I'm surprised at how willing my family has been to try it all, and how much they actually like. The biggest changes have been an increase in fruits and vegetables, especially tomatoes and greens, prepared in various ways, and the amount of olive oil I am using at a rapid pace.

Our favorite dishes (the ones the kids and husband ask for) so far have been:
-Broiled fish (fish fillets topped with minced garlic, fresh lemon juice, olive oil, then broiled in the oven)
-Hummus (tonight we had roasted garlic hummus, roasted red pepper hummus, and spinach hummus!) So, this was actually a favorite before, but now I serve it at dinner with some toasty homemade whole wheat bread.
-Homemade pasta sauce (saute carrots, onions, garlic, and parsley in olive oil. And any other vegetables you feel like. Squash, cauliflower, greens :). Add a large can of diced or whole tomatoes and some dried oregano and simmer until the sauce has a "jammy" consistency. I always puree it with my immersion blender at this point, because my kids' patience with my experimentation only goes so far, and this makes it look like the familiar sauce they know and love. Only it tastes so. much. better. Mix with cooked pasta and top with some freshly grated parmesan cheese.)
-Bruschetta (I was floored to learn that it really is just chopped fresh tomatoes, salt, minced fresh garlic, and olive oil. Served with toasted wheat bread.)
-Tabbouleh (not new. I grew up eating this: cooked cracked wheat or bulgar salad with chopped tomatoes, cucumber, green onion, parsley, and lemon/olive oil dressing.)
-Baba ghanouj (roasted eggplant with salt/garlic paste and lemon juice. This is only my favorite. It's a little spicy for the kids' taste.)
-Olives, olives, olives. Black California, Spanish manzanilla, Greek kalamata.

So, seeing as how the closest I've ever been to the Mediterranean is the northern coast of Spain (Cantabrian Sea and Atlantic Ocean, people), and an Italian friend named Massimo during my college days in the Foreign Language Housing Program at BYU, this is far from authentic. However, this little experiment has increased my desire to plant a large section of our yard with lettuce, chard, kale, spinach, onions, garlic, and tomatoes. For now, we'll have to make do with dandelion greens. Ha.

By the way, this is the cookbook, and I never would have bought it for myself, but it has been fun to try new things!

Clean house and healthy body

Lately when I ask Rose to help me with some household chore, especially picking up her toys, she tells me that I should do it because her arms hurt, or she's so tired, or because "you like to clean, Mommy." I usually respond that I do not like to clean, but I like to have a clean house, and there's only one way to get it.

As any visitor to our house will tell you, we don't live in a magazine house, and there's a reason the playroom has a door. So I can close it. But I'm better at doing chores that I used to greatly dislike. I start a load of laundry every morning, wash all the dishes every evening right after dinner, wipe down the bathroom periodically, and sweep the kitchen floor.

Soon after we moved in to this house, looking out the dirty kitchen window was bugging me so much that I decided to clean it, inside and out. Just looking out that window now still makes me feel happy. every. single. time. I like having a clean house.

Recently a friend of mine told another friend, "Lorraine actually likes eating carrots and celery all day." What I really like are Doritos, dark chocolate, lemon squares, and cheesecake. I also like feeling healthy and having the energy to attempt staying one step ahead of my kids, not to mention being able to button my pants. I also want my kids to like good food, so I try to make our meals as clean and simple and unprocessed as possible.

The good news is that healthy habits are also delicious. Fruits and a lot of vegetables are naturally sweet. My kids call frozen corn "candy corn" and they love plain carrots and cucumbers. When I got kale in my food co-op basket a few months back, I googled a few recipes. I decided to try kale chips. All the recipe descriptions and comments went on and one about how much kale chips taste just like potato chips.

That is a lie. Especially if you have just eaten potato chips. I have an unpublished post exposing kale chips, but I kept making them and I have somehow become addicted to kale chips. Elijah likes them, too.

So... clean house, healthy body, there's a spiritual principle here as well, but I think I'll just wrap up with this recipe.

Kale chips
1 bunch fresh kale, washed, dried, thick stems removed, and torn into bite-sized pieces.
Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.
Bake in a 275 degree oven for 15 minutes, turn with a spatula, and bake till crispy.

And a bonus: Pineapple Pomegranate Pistachio Salad
Fresh grapefuit, mandarin oranges, pineapple, pomegranate, pistachios

It's a rainbow in your bowl.


And this story. Today I picked up Elijah who was crying "Mommy, Mommy," and I changed his diaper and said, "you're so tired. Let's take a nap." And without missing a beat his cry changed to "Daddy, Daddy." Ha.

Two days until Christmas!

We've been counting down with our nativity calendar. A friend gave me a foam nativity kit from the Oriental Trading Company the first year I was married, so I put it together and made pockets for all the pieces. We've been using it ever since, and the kids really look forward to putting a new piece up each day.

My mom made a block countdown that displays how many days until Christmas that goes up with the other decorations at the beginning of December, and whoever wakes up first gets to move the numbers. They also get to plug in the Christmas lights on the tree, the mantel over the fireplace, and in the kitchen. I looked for an outside plug to hang some lights on the front door, but I didn't find an outlet so we had to make do with a wreath on the door.

We've been singing Christmas songs and carols and listening to Christmas music on the radio. Current kid favorites are "Jingle Bell Rock," "Feliz Navidad," and "Picture a Christmas." I love, love, love this version of "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and "Angels We Have Heard on High" by the a cappella group Straight No Chaser.

This year when we set up our decorations and nativities, I told the kids about how I got my Mexican nativity, and the tradition they have of starting the wise men far from the scene and moving them closer each day. They were excited to do the same with ours, so I've let them be in charge of that, after telling them to be careful because they break easily. I found one wise man on my vanity countertop a couple of days ago with a severed head. When I asked the kids what happened, Rose told me Elijah played with it. How could Elijah get it? He's not that tall. Rose answered, "Maybe I gave it to him." Okay. Thanks for letting me know, and next time, please tell me if I need to glue something back together.

We've made treats. I'm not that great at English toffee, and I definitely prefer peanut brittle made in a pan on the stove to the "easy" microwave recipe I tried, but we've had some yummy gingerbread cookies, and the Reindeer Treats were a hit at the family Christmas party yesterday. 1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1 package butterscotch chips, melted, remove from heat and stir in 1 plastic canister of dry roasted salted peanuts (make sure they don't have garlic powder on them!) and then stir in 1 package mini marshmallows. Drop spoonfuls onto waxed paper and let cool completely, and then make sure you have someone to share with, because you may just end up eating them all on your own.

The kids and I made a small army of ornaments from green and red fabric circles sewn into yo-yos and stacked to make mini Christmas trees to give school teachers and Primary teachers. We also made and decorating gingerbread houses with friends, which was so much fun. I took Rose and Elijah with me to make special gift deliveries to the ladies from church that I visit teach.

We took a weekend to visit cousins in Houston, and then spent the next weekend having cousins visit us in Waco for the first annual Jackson family Christmas party. Oh, and I spent some time organizing said party. It was really neat to have 39 of us at Dad's house to act out the nativity. Since most of the kids wanted to be angels, we had no problem assembling a heavenly host to visit the shepherds. We plan to make the nativity and dinner a standing family tradition, so let us know if you'll be in Waco around the holidays and want to participate!

We have been generally enjoying the season (and not blogging about it). As I told the kids today, they get two weeks out of school and we haven't even started counting that down yet, so there's lots of fun and family time to go.

I did write a guest post for my friend Sheila over at Pennies of Time, so check it out if you're interested in her amazing project to teach children about serving others and providing children of any age meaningful opportunities to serve others. Perfect for the Christmas season and always.

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

1. That song came on the Christmas music radio station while I was driving somewhere with the kids, and Ellen said, "Oh, Mom! I love this song!"

2. We decorated gingerbread houses for Family Home Evening on Monday. We did this every year when I was growing up, but I had never actually made my mom's recipe for gingerbread until now. I made it ahead, and it was almost a mess foaming out of the pan, but it turned out to be a success.

3. Now I want to try to make ginger-caramel popcorn. Right now.

4. This was also the first time I've tasted that gingerbread straight out of the oven, and it is amazing! Who knew? We were never supposed to nibble on the gingerbread houses until the family New Year's Eve party. Definitely not great week(s) later.

5. On a whim I wrote questions on paper strips and set them on a plate on the table. Tonight we got around to letting the kids each pick one and have everyone answer. It was a hit. What is your favorite Christmas song? What is your favorite Christmas activity? What is your favorite Christmas memory? What is your favorite Christmas symbol? Who is your favorite character in the Christmas story?

6. I've been listening to a station on Pandora named "Straight No Chaser Holiday." Apparently I cannot get enough of male a cappella groups singing Christmas songs. Love it.

Company chicken salad

I used to just make chicken salad for girls' nights, book club, baby showers, and lunches with friends over. Then Jack asked why I never make it for him, because he likes it. So I started making it for dinner, too, with homemade bread and lettuce leaves so you can have a sandwich or a wrap or both.

My favorite secret ingredient for chicken salad is leftover fried chicken. You know, Bush's, KFC, grocery store deli: the crispy, salty, deep-fried, fatty chicken that is not good for you at all. It makes really, really awesome chicken salad.

We went to a family gathering last weekend and ended up coming home with a bunch of fried chicken, which we ate for dinner once, and then I deboned the rest, including removing most of the crispy fried skin (awww, but that's the good part!), and made a gigantic chicken salad. Yum.

So, sorry the recipe has no measurements. It depends on how much chicken you have and how much sweet and crunch you like, but ratio-wise I probably make mine with equal amounts of grapes and celery, a fourth as much onion and parsley, and twice as much chicken. Then I start with a scoop of mayo and stir. If it sticks together, it's good; if it's too dry, I add more.

Fried Chicken Salad

several deep fried chicken legs, thighs, and breasts, bones and skin removed
red grapes, quartered
celery, diced
green onions, sliced
fresh parsley, minced
a scoop of mayonnaise
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Mix well, serve with fresh baked bread and lettuce leaves.

Pumpkin Pie and Mini Pies!

Monday afternoon when I asked Jack Jack what he wanted to make for Family Home Evening treats, I offered him several options and he picked pumpkin. I actually had everything I needed to make pumpkin pie filling in the cupboard, including a can of evaporated milk that has been there for who knows how long. I did not have the ingredients or the desire to make a regular pie crust, but I found an unopened bag of gingersnap cookies and threw together something.

The pie itself was just okay, but I still had half a bowl of pie filling. The gingersnaps fit almost perfectly into the circles of my muffin pan, and there was just enough pie filling to make a dozen mini pumpkin pies with gingersnap "crust." Jack and I may have eaten them all for lunch straight out of the refrigerator the next day. The only thing lacking was a dollop of whipped cream on top.

Mini Pumpkin Pies

Filling (from the can of pumpkin)
Mix ingredients in the following order:
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 can (12 fl. oz.) evaporated milk

Grease muffin tin, place 1 gingersnap (I used Stouffer's, I think) in the bottom of each circle and fill mostly full with pie filling. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 15-20 minutes, or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean. Let cool and top with whipped cream. Cover and refrigerate leftovers. Eat for lunch the next day.

Filling makes 1 nine-inch pie and 12 mini pies, or 2 dozen mini pies.

Can we make pretzels?

Breadmaking day brings great joy at my house. I always save a little dough for masterpieces like these.

A pizza roll, I think.


Pretzels, mini cinnamon rolls, pizza roll ups


Cinnamon rolls


One of each, please.


Sandwiches and toast!

Recipe here.

Baking bread

I sometimes go several months without buying a loaf of bread from the store. I've made loaves of bread, rolls, pizza dough, buns, pretzels, corn tortillas, and pita bread at home with varying levels of success. My kids get really excited when I'm making bread and beg for dough to make pretzels out of or to just eat out of the bowl. I love baking bread because it makes my house smell so good. I also like knowing exactly what goes in my food, and I like being able to make things "from scratch,"  or at least from basic ingredients I keep on hand.

It wasn't until my husband got me a Kitchen Aid Mixer that I ever had consistent success with baking sandwich-type bread. It takes a lot longer to knead by hand, but I hear it can be done.

I regularly make whole wheat bread with a recipe that I've tweaked so it makes sandwiches without being crumbly. It originally came from the side of a bag of King Arthur Flour. I always double the recipe to make two loaves, or one loaf to give away, or one loaf and pretzels, or one loaf and rolls, or. . . (you get the idea). I like to call it my food storage bread recipe, because all of the ingredients can be stored long term.

100% Whole Wheat Bread
1 1/3 cups warm water
1 pkg instant or active dry yeast (1 tablespoon) dissolved in 2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup powdered milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
vital wheat gluten (follow instructions on gluten package, usually add a certain amount per loaf or per cup of flour)
3 - 3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

I am a wheat flour snob, and I like King Arthur flour best. I've tried lots of different kinds, with lots of different results. You can use white wheat flour for a softer bread, but red wheat works great, too, and has more protein.

Mix all the wet ingredients in the bowl of your mixer and let stand until the yeast starts to get bubbly. Add all the dry ingredients and mix using the dough hook for 8-10 minutes. The dough can be a little sticky, but it should come away from the sides of the bowl and form a ball, so add more flour as needed.

Transfer dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise til double or for about 1 hour.
Transfer dough to a lightly oiled work surface (or grease your hands), shape into a 8-inch log, place in a lightly greased 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan, cover loosely with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow bread to rise for about 1 hour, or until it's crowned about 1 inch above the edge of the pan. A finger pressed into the dough should leave a mark that rebounds slowly.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 40 minutes, tenting it lightly with aluminum foil after 20 minutes. (I usually bake for 15 minutes and tent and bake for 15 more minutes.) Remove bread from oven, cool on a wire rack before slicing.

If you happen to have any bread left after cutting thick slices and slathering it with butter and honey, serving it to your kids and calling it a meal, store it completely cooled in a plastic bag at room temperature. Wal-mart has these great gallon sized storage bags that come with twist-ties that just barely fit a whole loaf. The gallon zip top kind aren't big enough.

Mmmmm. Typing this up has made me hungry for bread.

Two mixes

I have recently discovered the beauty of muffins for breakfast. The variations are endless, the kids love them, and they are quick. I have also recently discovered the beauty of getting up and taking a shower before my kids get up. Mornings go a little smoother, and I am more motivated to get to bed at a decent hour.

A friend gave me a homemade oatmeal muffin mix with a recipe recipe over a year ago, and I recently found the recipe again and tried it out on my kids. They love it, and I love that I can add things like raisins, blueberries, and banana. I want to try pumpkin, applesauce, cranberries, and nuts.

Oatmeal Muffins (makes 2 batches)
3 cups whole wheat flour
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups oats (I used quick cooking oats)
1 cup brown sugar

To make 1 dozen muffins:
Mix 3 heaping cups of mix, 1 egg, 1 cup milk, and 1/2 cup oil until moistened and spoon into muffin tins. Bake at 400 degrees F. 15-20 minutes

**********

I recently needed a can of cream of mushroom soup for a recipe, and I don't usually use cream soups or keep them on hand, but I did have a recipe for making a mix from scratch, and I had all the ingredients. So now I have a mix in my pantry in the event that I make another casserole soon. Not likely, but now I know what's in my soup.

Condensed Cream of Soup Mix
2 cups nonfat dry milk powder
3/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup instant reduced sodium chicken or beef bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon dried crushed thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried crushed basil
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper (I used black)

Combine all ingredients and mix well with wire whisk until blended. Store mix in an airtight container.

To prepare as a substitute for one can of condensed cream soup in recipes, stir together 1/3 cup dry mix and 1 1/4 cup water in a saucepan. cook and stir until thickened.

Mix makes a total of nine cans condensed soup substitute. Use instead of condensed canned cream soups in recipes. Just add the ingredient that forms the basis of the soup. Chop mushrooms, saute in a bit of olive oil and add for cream of mushroom soup. Add chicken for cream of chicken soup. You get the idea!

Peanut Butter Playdough, Again

1 cup wheat germ

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup honey

Mix well and add seven children, cookie cutters, rolling pins, and imagination.

Comfort food

I read this book last summer and loved it. I kept it so long I had to pay a fine at the library. I copied several pages of recipes to try. One soup recipe sounded delicious, and I have made it several times since then. There is something about the combination of flavors in a warm broth that I could just keep eating and eating.

So after spending a couple of hours this morning at the dentist's office having several teeth filled and a root canal done, the dentist said I could eat anything I wanted. That's right. No "eat soft foods for 24 hours" or anything. I was really, really surprised. I had already planned for chicken soup knowing I had an appointment, and it was a cold, cloudy, drizzly day anyway, but when I got all my regular chicken soup ingredients out, I realized I could make pho soup instead. Yum.

Vietnamese Soup in a Teapot

For the Pho Broth:

8 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1 whole onion, peeled and cut in half

4 cloves garlic, smashed

2-inch chunk ginger, peeled

2 whole star anise

1 cinnamon stick

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed

2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce, or to taste

Juice of 1/2 lime

Salt and pepper to taste

For the Garnishes

1 package flat rice noodles soaked in hot water for 15 minutes and drained (or angelhair pasta cooked according to the package)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

a bunch of fresh leafy herbs, washed (for example: mint, basil, Thai basil, and cilantro)

1 cup fresh bean sprouts, rinsed and drained

2 tablespoons sliced scallions

2 medium carrots, peeled and grated

1 fresh red or green chile, sliced very thin.

Lime wedges

2 thinly sliced shallots or 1 small red onion, sliced (optional)

Asian chili sauce, more fish sauce, hoisin sauce

To make 6 servings:

In a large pot, bring the chicken broth, onion, garlic, ginger, star anise, cinnamon stick, and brown sugar to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the chicken and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until it is done. Skim the scum off of the surface of the soup. Take out the chicken and shred or cut it into bite-size pieces.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil for the rice noodles. Cook them in the boiling water, stirring, for 45 seconds. Drain the noodles in a colander, and rinse under cold water. Toss with the vegetable oil and put in a serving bowl.

Arrange the herbs in a glass of water as if they were a flower arrangement, and put them on the dinner table.

Put the chicken and remaining garnishes into individual serving bowls.

Bring the broth back to a simmer. Stir in the fish sauce and lime juice; add salt and pepper if needed. Strain the broth into a teapot. keep the remaining broth hot on the stove.

To serve, give each person a bowl, a spoon, and chopsticks. Let everyone fill their bowl with the noodles, adding chicken, squeezing lime, tearing off bits of herbs, then passing the teapot to pour the hot broth over.

Finally, adjust the flavors of your own soup to taste with the sauces and fresh chiles.

I've used both fresh ginger and ground, and replaced star anise with anise seed. I use a pitcher instead of a teapot. My kids love to put the noodles (any kind of pasta or rice), chicken, herbs, shredded carrots, and lime wedges in their bowls before I pour some broth over. Today I used leftover cilantro lime rice from last night, and leftover whole wheat macaroni from Sunday, straight from the refrigerator. The cold cooled off the boiling broth perfectly for my kids. They all asked for seconds, and Elijah liked it, too.

The recipe says that in Vietnam this soup is traditionally eaten for breakfast. I probably will. Yum.

White chili soup

I couldn't have been more shocked when I asked Ellen what she wanted to eat for her birthday dinner and she enthusiastically replied, "PINTO BEANS!!" I make pinto beans and cornbread for dinner about once a week, and I knew she liked them, but I had no idea they were her favorite.

Pinto beans are not my favorite, and in an effort to branch out to other varieties of beans I tried a white chili recipe a couple of months ago and then completely forgot about it until a few days ago. I searched my favorite food blogs to find the recipe again. No success. Then I thought to look in my cookbook.

Sure enough, that's where I originally found it. The recipe calls for canned beans and pre-cooked chicken, but I'm way to lazy to add any extra steps where crock pots are concerned, and I only had dry beans. I usually start crock pot dinners right after breakfast and don't think about them again until it's almost time to eat.

White chili soup (lazy style)

1 lb. dry white beans (I used navy), sorted and rinsed (no soaking necessary)
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (mine were frozen)
1 large chopped onion

1-2 chopped red bell pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. crushed dried oregano

6 c. chicken broth

2 c. water

Place all ingredients in crock pot and cook on high for 6 hours. When the chicken shreds easily, turn the heat to low until ready to serve. Ladle into bowls with shredded Monterey Jack cheese and tortilla chips.

This recipe makes enough for my family of 6 plus some leftover for lunch the next day. Yum.

Cranberry orange muffins

Soon after I returned home from my mission I became friends with the mother of a seven-year-old and two-year-old triplets. She invited me to stop by whenever I wanted and I often went by their house on my way home from teaching school and stayed most of the evening to visit and help with the kids.

One day she was just finishing up with a batch of cranberry orange muffins with real cranberries and mandarin oranges in them. Delicious. To this day, they are the best muffins I've ever had.

A couple of years ago I was craving orange cranberry muffins and thought it would be no problem to Google a recipe. I discovered that there are hundreds of orange cranberry muffin recipes made with orange juice and orange zest, but it took a while to find one with both cranberries and oranges.

I made them again Sunday afternoon (while fighting off my kids who would eat nothing but mandarin oranges all day long if they could). The recipe made 36 mini muffins and they were the first to go. You might like them, too!

Cranberry Orange Muffins (from here on the Internets)

Yield: 1 dozen regular muffins or 3 dozen mini muffins

Ingredients:

2 c. flour

2/3 c. sugar

2 1/4 tsp. baking powder

scant 1/2 tsp. salt

5 T. butter, melted

3 eggs

2/3 c. orange juice

1 T. grated orange peel
1/3 c. dried cranberries or 6 oz. fresh, quartered, cranberries
1 11 oz. can mandarin oranges

Instructions:

If using dried cranberries, soak overnight in juice from mandarin oranges.

Combine dry ingredients. Melt butter and whisk in eggs. Stir in orange juice and orange peel and beat well. Stir liquid into dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Add drained cranberries and halved mandarin oranges. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 min (large muffins) or 15 minutes (mini muffins).

Yum!

Because it's getting to be that time of year

... and because my sister in law asked for this recipe a while ago and I completely forgot. Here it is:

Pumpkin Cookies

2 cups brown sugar

2 cups canned pumpkin

1 cup oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1 cup nuts

2 cups raisins

Beat sugar, pumpkin, oil and vanilla together. Mix dry ingredients, add to pumpkin mixture and stir. Add raisins and nuts.

Drop by spoon onto a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes.

Makes 6 dozen.

Feel free to use healthier substitutes, such as applesauce or yogurt instead of oil, and whole wheat flour instead of white. You can use chocolate chips instead of raisins and these cookies are still delicious.

I made these when I was in high school and took them to share with a class. They're not much to look at, so some kids took convincing that it wasn't some kind of joke. But once they got a taste, all six dozen were gone in minutes. Yum. I love pumpkin.

Popcorn

I am addicted to this recipe for popcorn. It is so yummy I can eat an entire batch by myself.

Our air popper died, but I have since been popping my popcorn in a brown paper bag in the microwave. It's fast and requires no butter or oil, except what you put on after it's popped.

Homemade Microwave Popcorn

1/4 cup popcorn

1 brown paper lunch sack

Put popcorn in sack and fold down the top of the bag several times. It's okay if it doesn't stay completely shut. Pop in the microwave using the popcorn setting or for a couple of minutes, listening for the popping to slow down.

Season to taste.

Holiday cheer

Since the first of December, it seems like life at our house has exploded. We have had activity after activity, mostly due to my poor planning and inability to say no, but also because it's the end of a school semester for Jack, the end of the year in Primary, and the holiday season.

If it were any other month, I would probably be crawling into a ball in a corner crying about how overwhelming my life is. I have, in fact, had moments of panic. But since our crazy schedule has also been filled with a mothering group meeting, a Christmas nativity open house, the First Presidency Christmas Devotional, a game night, crocheting/crafting, babysitting friends' kids, book group, bilingual story time, decorating gingerbread houses, and parties, it has actually been fun. Not to mention the fact that my house is generally more clean because I'm often expecting people over, and that's a good enough reason for me to clean up.

I can also see just by looking at my calendar that things are going to "calm down" a little. By that I mean that we're about to leave town and spend some more fun time with family for Christmas and New Year's.

Some things that I feel have also kept us a little more centered are some regular (as regular as possible) evening activities. They only take a few minutes, but Ellen and Jack look forward to them and it makes taking baths and putting on pajamas so much easier. We have a felt nativity calendar that we add a piece to every evening. I also clipped the advent calendar from the December issue of the Friend magazine this year. Adding a Christmas carol and those two things to our nightly routine of a few scripture verses and family prayer has helped me enjoy our busy days and remember the purpose of it all.

Now if you, like me, have realized that the "Christmas music radio station" plays any song that mentions the word Christmas and that most of them actually have nothing to do with traditional carols or even fun kids' Christmas songs, and that bothers you, even though you keep listening and hoping that the next song will be some pop star singing a horrible version of "O Holy Night" because even that would be better than the rest, here are a couple of songs I rediscovered this year.
Little Baby
Joy to Everyone

Finally, if you happen to be hosting or attending a holiday event involving food, (!) let me share these two recipes that were surprise hits at a potluck dinner we had with friends and our combined bazillion kids, who were so excited to be playing together that they spontaneously burst into a chant of "we need one more! We need one more!" Like you need one more treat recipe, but here it is:

Reindeer Treats

These are not attractive, as suggested by the name. But they are delicious, even to my normally sweet-averse taste.

1 bag chocolate chips
1 bag butterscotch chips
1 bag mini marshmallows
1 can roasted peanuts

SLOWLY melt chocolate chips and butterscotch chips. (In the microwave or a double boiler is ideal, but you can just use a regular pot and the stove, too.) Add marshmallows and peanuts and stir until coated with chocolate. Drop onto waxed paper and let cool. Enjoy.

One batch we made adding about a cup of Rice Krispies cereal. We loved the extra crunch.

The second recipe is a little involved, but definitely worth the effort.
Chile Verde

Yogurt again!

I made yogurt and was trying to decide what to do with it all, when a friend suggested I use it for our preschool Spanish class snack.

Perfect. Each child got a bowl of plain yogurt, and then we discussed flavor options, which they could choose from. I had sugar, vanilla, sprinkles, frozen raspberries and blueberries, cinnamon, and nutmeg on the sweet side; salt and pepper grinders, taco seasoning, dill, and chips for dipping on the savory side.

All of the kids seemed really happy with their choices, and the moms were especially loving the yogurt chip dip made from taco seasoning. You could also use onion soup mix here.

If you missed it last summer, here's the recipe again for homemade yogurt, with some tips I have learned along the way.

Yogurt
8 cups milk (whole is recommended until you get the hang of yogurt making, but you can use skim, 1%, 2%, or reconstituted powdered milk)
1 packet unflavored gelatin
1 cup plain yogurt (must have active cultures)

Turn your EMPTY crock pot on low.

In a saucepan, heat milk and gelatin to 190 F. Place pan in a cool water bath until milk reaches 110 F, stirring occasionally. Pour mixture into crock pot and stir in plain yogurt. Turn off crock pot and let sit for 8-12 hours. Refrigerate finished yogurt. You can use your homemade yogurt to start your next batch.

Tips:

1. I only used whole milk the first time I tried this. I have always made it since then with powdered milk. To make a quart of powdered milk, run your tap water until it's hot, then pour a quart of hot water in the blender. With the blender on low, slowly add 1 cup of powdered milk. Repeat to make 2 quarts. Add one packet of plain gelatin to one of the quarts of milk and blend until smooth. Scoop off the foam (or let sit until foam disappears). Then strain and heat.

2. After turning off your crock pot, place a towel over the lid to slow the cooling process.

3. I always check after 8 hours, and it's always done and ready to go in the fridge. I transfer the yogurt to clean yogurt containers I've saved.

Hello, Cupcake!

After my cousin posted this recipe and instructions for making butterfly cupcakes, I saw the same book at my mom's house last month. Mom helped Ellen decide these would be perfect for her birthday.


I made the cupcakes and butterfly wings the night before the party. Then I assembled everything the next morning. When Jack saw them all sitting on the counter in the kitchen, he asked me where I had gotten the butterflies. I told him that's what I had been working on the night before.


To which he replied, "Oh. . . you're one of those moms."


???

Preschool with the boys

We've been having "boy" preschool with some friends twice a week. On my day to host, we made peanut butter play dough. Then we played!

Okay, so Ellen's not one of the boys, but she loves having school.

Hard to get anything but an action shot of Mr. T.

Mr. B, what is that face?

Jack Jack worked with his heart cookie cutters and the rolling pin for probably 30 minutes. Wow.

Peanut butter play dough:
1 3/4 cup peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 3/4 cup honey
2 cups powdered milk

Mix all ingredients well. I used my Kitchen Aid mixer and the dough hook. It took several minutes, but it really beats trying to get everything well incorporated by hand. I found the recipe I used on allrecipes.com and halved it.

In addition to rolling pins and cookie cutters, I made a leaf pattern and let the kids make leaf shapes. Just to experiment, I baked one shape for each of the kids to take home and gave them each a bag of play dough to take home.

Of course it's completely edible. My kids really, really, really like when we get to make peanut butter play dough!