Eggs for my friends - Yay for bloom!

I took this picture last night as I was washing eggs for a friend at church.  She caught sight of the blue and green eggs I gave someone recently and came straight to me to ask for some.   My friend bragged to her girlfriends about them and they didn't believe her.  So, I promised to bring her proof.

I really like my colorful egg basket.  They range from brown with dark flecks, light brown, cream, white, olive to blue.  All from different chickens.  I can tell which girl laid which egg.

I don't usually wash eggs.  Why?  They're covered in a "bloom" that protects them from bacteria.  Egg shells are porous, and the bloom keeps the bad stuff from getting into those pores.  Eggs you buy in the store have been washed so they don't have the bloom any longer.  They go bad much faster than my farm fresh eggs.  Mine may last 6, 7, 8 weeks or longer.

There you have it, that's why the eggs from the farmers market have a little mud on them.  Be grateful for it.

Yay for bloom!


I linked this to... 

Deborah Jean's Dandelion house

The Self Sufficient Home Acre

The Homestead Barn Hop

A Recipe: Chocolate Covered Potato Chips

My mom grew up in Florida and every so often we like to go back down, stay in her childhood home and hit the beach.  We just did that a couple of weeks ago and took the girls to visit the chocolate factory one afternoon.  They were making a line full of these babies - and selling them for about $9 per 1/4 pound!  I sure couldn't afford that, so I decided to make them on my own.

They are so simple, I didn't even take pics of the process.

Ghiradelli make a new product they call a "Candy Making and Dipping Bar".  I found mine at Sam's Club.  They make it in dark and white.

Get a box of the dark.
Get a bag of ridged potato chips.

Melt the chocolate per the instructions.  Basically, chop it up, put it in a microwave safe dish and microwave it in increments of 30 seconds, stirring after each time, until it's smooth.

Select whole chips and dip each one at a time into the chocolate.  Using a fork, lift them and tap them until you can see the ridges nicely.

Place them onto wax paper to cool.

Try not to eat them all in one day.  Sharing is always good, your friends will love you even more than before if you do.

(sorry the picture is so bad.  I snapped it with my phone and didn't plan to share it, but they were so yummy!)

Chocolate Chip Creme Pies

I made these the other day to take to our friend's bonfire.  I had seen a couple of ideas on Pinterest and combined a few to come up with these.  Actually, I made one I found but my husband didn't like it and asked me to change it.  He has an exceptional palate, so I did.

Please, try these.  They're simple.  You'll be glad you did.

Chocolate Chip Creme Pies

Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup of butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
2-1/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup toffee bits

Directions:
Heat the oven to 375*F.

Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.  Set it aside.

In your mixer, combine the butter and sugars.  Mix them until they're fluffy.  Add the eggs, 1 at a time, mixing them well after each one.  Add the vanilla.  Add the dry ingredients, just mixing until they're combined.
Add the chocolate chips and toffee bits and mix them in well.

Scoop them into scant teaspoon sizes onto a cookie sheet covered with a silpat or parchment paper.  Bake them for about 8 minutes or until they're brown on the edges.

Remove them from the oven, let them sit on the cookie sheet for about a minute, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Creme Filling

Ingredients:
1 cup of butter, softened
2 cups of powdered sugar
1 jar of marshmallow creme
2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:
Combine the butter and powdered sugar in your mixer.  Beat them until combined.  Add the marshmallow creme and vanilla.  Taste it, adding more sugar or vanilla if you need to.

Take one of your cookies, spread it with the creme and top it with another cookie.

They store best in the refrigerator, but taste best at room temperature.

Seriously, make these.  Take them somewhere to share.  Prepare to be loved for your yummy treats.

Pumpkin Sweet Potato Chili

I'm still here - don't worry.  I'm just enjoying my life.


I don't have a lot of time.  Especially on Wednesdays.  I teach at my girls' school all day, then we have soccer practice.  We usually get home around 6pm.

I love cooking healthy for my family.  I don't have time when we get home on Wednesdays to cook a meal.  I hate having to pick up pizza on the way home.

I decided to start using my crock pot again.

But, what to make in it?

I am well known for my regular chili.  Although it's never the same way twice, it's still good each time.

I recently came across a couple of recipes that convinced me to try to change my recipe.  And, it turned out so good that I decided it was time to blow the dust off the old blog and share it.

Pumpkin Sweet Potato Chili
1/2 Sweet Yellow Onion, chopped
2 Tbs. Coconut Oil, (or you can use Olive Oil)
1 Green Pepper, chopped
2 Stalks of Celery, chopped
2 Carrots, diced
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Sweet Potato, peeled and diced
4 cups of Chicken Broth
2 Large cans of Black Beans, rinsed and drained
2 cooked and cubed Chicken Breasts
1 15oz can Pumpkin Puree, (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 large can of Diced Tomatoes, (I LOVE fire roasted ones)
1 pkg. Chili Seasoning mix, (yes, I cheat)
1 Tbs. Dried Oregano

In a skillet, melt the coconut oil, add the onions, green pepper, celery and carrots and cook them over low heat until soft.  Add the garlic and cook another minute.  Add this mixture to your crock pot.
Cook the sweet potatoes in a small pot of boiling water for 8-10 minutes until slightly soft.  Drain and add to the crock pot.
Add the chicken broth, black beans, chicken breast, pumpkin puree, diced tomatoes, chili seasoning and dried oregano to the crock pot.  Cook on low for at least 6 hours.

Check seasoning and see if it needs more spices or salt.  You can season it with chili powder or cumin, those are common ingredients in a pkt of chili seasoning.  Red pepper flakes and more oregano are also nice.

Serve with your choice of toppings.  We like an assortment of plain greek yogurt, shredded cheddar cheese, minced onion, oyster crackers or corn chips.

Unidentified Chicks

Is anyone a chicken expert?

I ordered 38 chicks this spring.  12 Ameraucana, 8 Blue Laced Red Wyandottes and 8 Seramas.

Of the 38, only 20 were shipped.  Of the 20, only 15 made it alive.  Of the 15, only 13 made it past the first day.

Of the 13, only 2 are the breed I ordered.
2 Seramas.

I mostly wanted the Ameraucanas.  They're the breed I want to build my flock with.  But, sadly, their Ameraucanas went broody, (that means they want to sit on eggs and hatch them), when it came time for them to collect for my order.

They substituted the Ameraucanas with Olive Egger chicks.  That means they bred either their Ameraucana rooster or hen with a dark egg layer, probably a Maran.

I received one Wyandotte, but it's black laced red.  This is the second time I've tried to raise BLRW and failed.  boo.

So, I have 13 chicks.  I know for sure what the Seramas are.  I know what they Wyandotte is.

What are the other 10?

5 of them look similar, and of those 5, 3 are roos and 2 pullets.

The others, I can't figure out.

One has a mohawk.  I call him Rod Stewart.

You can't really see him, he's hiding in the back.

I guess it will be interesting to see what these chicks grow into.  In the meantime, I think I'll get an incubator and purchase some Ameraucana eggs and hatch them on my own...

I shared this post at Barnyard Hop

of seeds and chickens

I've been away.  Far, far away.  From an easy life.

There have been a ton of things go wrong in my life lately.  My best friend's mother passed away.  She was way too young.  We are way to young to experience this.

But, it gave her an excuse to come back home for a week.  She and her family stayed with us.  Her boys are just older than my girls, and they had a blast together.  I wish it were easier to travel long distances faster.

My inlaws are getting ready to be between jobs soon, and they came for a week to work on their house.  They brought my sister in law and her family.  It was wonderful to have them here to visit, they haven't been here since our wedding.

After those two weeks, we needed a vacation.  So, we packed the girls up, drove to Williamsburg, and got the stomach bug.  For the whole time.  Plus, 2 ear infections, 1 sinus infection and another unknown infection.  Came back home and uncovered a UTI also.  Ugh.

But, today, it was a beautiful day.  The sun was out.  The weather was warm.

I started a flat of seeds today.  I plan to hold back on my planting this year, only a couple of each variety.  So, that means only 9 tomatoes, 9 peppers, 3 lavenders, etc.  I am being much more intentional about my garden.  Yay!

The chickens were happy today.  Brady is getting ready to move out - the upcoming Spring is making him very mean.  And, I discovered 2 cracked eggs in the nest boxes.  I hope it's because of the curious new leghorn who laid her first egg today getting nosy, not because I have an egg eater.

Sorry I've been gone.  I promise a few recipes soon, I'm working on some now.

linked to: & Simple Lives Thursday & Homestead Barn Hop

30 Minute Yeast Rolls

Today was a beautiful day.  65*.  In January.  What?

So, I didn't spend much time in the kitchen.  I spent it outside.  I cleaned out the front garden, pruned the lavendar, pulled out the old flower stems, swept the mulch back into the beds that the chickens had scratched out.

We went to the science fair at school.  The children had the most creative experiments.  I was really impressed.  I mean, who comes up with the idea to see which color m&m melts fastest in the microwave?

When it came time to plan dinner, I wanted something fast.  We picked up some tilapia, planned it with rice, asparagus and corn.  I wanted bread, but didn't decide this until after 4pm.  Even my fastest breads take a couple of hours to rise.  I didn't want to settle for cornbread or biscuits, so I hit Google and found a recipe for 30 minute rolls.  I couldn't believe it was true.  but, was it???

Yep, it was.  Here they are.  So yummy.  I will adjust the recipe next time, and I've adjusted for my adjustments below.  I'm considering adding some honey, too, but that's an experiment for another day.

30 Minute Yeast Rolls

ingredients:

1 cup + 2 T. warm water

1/3 cup vegetable oil (I may try coconut oil next time)

2 T yeast

1/4 cup sugar (I'm going to add 1/4 c honey, too, next time)

3/4 tsp. salt (this I adjusted.  It may even need more.)

1 egg, slightly beaten

3 1/2 cups flour

Mix the first 4 ingredients and let them sit for a few minutes, until the yeast begins to bubble.

Add the salt and egg, begin beating.  A stand mixer is best, of course, but you can do this by hand with a wooden spoon.

Add the flour and mix it until the gluten makes it smooth.  Form it into 12 balls and put them on a silpat or parchment paper on a cookie sheet.  Let them raise for about 15 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 400* oven for about 15 minutes.  Brush the tops with butter as soon as you take them out of the oven.

Serve with butter and your favorite roll topping.

Tomorrow promises to be an even nicer day.  I can't wait!

Artisan Bread - Detailed Instructions

I have been making bread made famous by some New York bakers called 5-Minute a day bread. Their recipe, although beautiful and seemingly simple for so many people to make, had very complex, (and messy), steps. I have simplified it over my years, worked out some kinks, and got it nearly down pat. I say nearly, because there are so many variables, you never know what's golf to happen. Just today, both of my loaves managed to stick to the pot. I think I know why, but that doesn't change the fact that I managed to make this mistake. Frustrating. But, that's how bread making goes in my world.

There is one thing you can do that I don't. I don't have room in my itsy bitsy fridge to do this, but I used to when I had a second fridge. If you want to triple my recipe, you can keep half of it in your fridge and always be ankle to pull some out for a loaf in minutes. That's how the NY boys do it. The dough seems to develop a really good sourdough flavor this way.

Okay. I'll stop rambling. Here, to honor PW, is the cast:

1 1/2 cups warm water. I use the hottest that comes from my faucet. I think the industry's standard is around 120*F
3/4 T kosher salt
3/4 T yeast
3 1/4 c all purpose flour. If you want to make your bread whole wheat, sub no more than half wheat flour. I use 1 part wheat to 2 parts all purpose.

Directions:
Pour the hot water into a medium size bowl.

Add the salt and mix it until its dissolved.

Add the yeast onto the top. Sprinkle it on and let it sit. As it sits, it should begin to bubble and grow. If not, either your yeast is dead or your water is too hot or cold.

Add the flour. You may need to add less or more, depending on how exact your water measurement was and what your weather is like. Do you know how to measure flour? Fluff it, scoop it into your measuring cup, level it off. Don't dig into the bag. You'll get a really heavy mix that won't work. I usually use 3 cups of flour in the winter.

See how tacky the dough is? This is what you want. You can't knead this bread. Remember, it's called "no knead bread"?

Cover the bread. Just a damp towel will work. Set it on the counter and walk away. Let it rise. It happens fast, there is a lot of yeast in this stuff.
Let it raise for about 2.5 hours.

After its done raising, turn your oven on as high as you feel comfortable. I usually set mine at 450*F.

As its heating, put a heavy pot into it. I use a Le Crueset pot. It's cast iron coated in porcelain.

You could use a cast iron uncoated pot, or a stone pot. If you don't have one and want to buy one, there are a few options. Mine is a fairly expensive brand, but I found it at a discount store for half price. Cuisinart also makes some really nice ones, and I've seen Martha Stewart brand ones at Macy's. It's an investment that I believe is well worth it.

Once your oven is nice and hot, (usually about half an hour), get your dough ready. This is honestly the hardest part of the whole process. Here's what to do:

Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour.  Scrape the edges down to round the dough into a loaf shape.  Scrape all the edges, then begin scraping towards the bottom.  Continue until you have the whole ball of dough shaped into a - ball.

Pull the hot pan out of the oven and dump the dough into it.  Cover it and put it back into the oven for 25 minutes.

After 25 minutes, take the lid off, lower the heat to 200*F and continue cooking for another 10 minutes.

This is really just to brown the top and dry out the loaf, the rest of the loaf should have been cooked through at the higher heat.

After the 10 minutes, take the pan out, take the bread out of the pan, slice and enjoy.  It's best straight from the oven, as soon as it's cool enough to handle, but it will keep for a few hours to overnight.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

I posted this in 2009 on my old blog, but thought I would re-post it, cause it's so good.  The topping is the absolute best!


I tried it this week, and it makes a delicious, simple cheesecake.  It’s best refrigerated, keeps the cinnamon/sugar topping crunchy!

SOPAPILLA CHEESECAKE

1 1/2c Sugar

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1 stick butter

1 tsp. vanilla

3 (8 oz pkgs) softened cream cheese

2 cans crescent rolls

Mix sugar and cinnamon together. Set aside 1/2 cup for topping. Mix cream cheese, vanilla and remaining sugar mixture together. Place one can of crescent rolls on bottom of large pan. Spread cream cheese mixture over top. Then place the second can of crescent rolls on top. Melt the butter and pour on top of the rolls. Sprinkle the rest of the sugar mixture on top.
Bake at 350*F for 30 minutes. For variation, layer can of apple pie filling over bottom crust before spreading on cream cheese.

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

I've been making this for years, and now cringe when I have to use canned pasta sauce.  I usually make a big batch and either freeze half or use the leftovers for a baked pasta dish the next day.
I manage to cram a ton of veggies in, even my veggie hating husband can't complain, though.
Please, give this recipe a try.

(I am not a measurer, so my ingredients list may be a bit vague.  Edit it to fit your tastes.)

Ingredients:
1 lb. Ground Deer, or Beef
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Medium Sweet Yellow Onion, chopped
3-4 Carrots, minced
1 Green Pepper, chopped
2-3 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
2 Cans of Crushed Tomatoes
1 Tbsp. Dried Oregano
1 Tbsp. Dried Basil, or 2 Tbsp Fresh
A Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes
1 Tsp. Salt


*Brown the ground deer/beef in a medium size saucepan.  Drain and set aside.
*Heat the olive oil in the same pan.  Slowly cook the onions, carrots and peppers until they're soft.  Add the garlic, stirring it so it doesn't burn.  Add the oregano, basil and red pepper, stirring for a minute.  Then add the tomatoes.  Add salt to taste.
*Simmer until the flavors meld, at least 45 minutes.  Up to a few hours.  The longer it cooks, the thicker the sauce will get.  You can thin it with more crushed or chopped tomatoes.
*Serve over whole wheat noodles with parmesan cheese.

I would show you a picture of the sauce over noodles, but it didn't last long enough on anyone's plate to take one.  So, here's one in the pan, simmering.

I know you are all going to try this soon - let me know what you think of it.

An Eco-Friendly Sink Cleaner

I was watching HGTV the other day and Sabrina Soto taught me a new way to clean my sink.

I have a white, porcelain sink.  I really wanted stainless steel, but my husband insisted on a white, farmhouse sink.  It's beautiful, and large, really fun to use, but awful to keep clean.
I usually use Barkeeper's friend.  I'm a fan.

But, I decided to give this new way a try.
We're always trying to do things healthier, safer for the family.

Here are the ingredients:

3 parts Baking Soda
1 Part Hydrogen Peroxide
1 Lemon

Mix the Baking Soda and Hydrogen Peroxide to make a paste.  Drop a spoonful into your sink and rub it around with a soft, wet cloth.  After you've scrubbed the stains off, rub half a lemon over it.  Enjoy the yummy smelling fizz.  Rinse with hot water.

It worked so good!  And, although it did leave my hands a touch slimy, it was way better than the gritty, sharp stuff BKF leaves behind.

Here are the pics of it's beautifulness

After and Before

(I had a REALLY dirty sink, I know)

The whole sink the next day, in the sunlight

2011 Christmas Cake Pops

Every year, I make goodies to send to my husband's office.  This year, I sent out 7 boxes to his office and other people he works with.  I think I made 5 cakes with of pops.  I also sent peppermint bark, but that's not picture-worthy.

I made Red Velvet Santa Hat pops.  I used a mini marshmallow for the top.  The Christmas Pudding balls were also red velvet.

The trees were yellow cake.

I used chocolate for the blue, with blue sanding sugar.

I also made white with white sanding sugar, but didn't get pics of them.  It was 1:30 am when I was finishing them and all I wanted to do was go to sleep, not take pictures.

The peppermint topped balls were also white cake.  They were our favorite.

This is what can happen if you aren't paying attention.  I think these were hard to do right because I added too much frosting.  The recipe says to use 3/4 of a can, but I never even use 1/2 a can.  I usually use about 2 rounded serving spoons full.

(yes, it was tasty.)

Here they are all boxed up and ready to pack.  I am getting good at packing them to ship.  I pack each pop surrounded by tissue paper and bubble wrap, then place them in a bakery box.  I put a couple of layers of large bubble wrap on the bottom of the shipping box, then some tissue paper or shredded craft paper.  Next the box of cake pops, then bubble wrap around and over it all.  Tape it up good, label and ship.

This time, the boxes I got to ship in were HUGE and ended up being so expensive.  Oh well, everyone loved them.

If you're reading this and don't know how to make Cake Pops, here is my tutorial on them:
Cake Pop Tutorial

Hope you enjoyed my pictures!

Linked to A Well-Seasoned Life, Sweet Indulgences Sunday

Pumpkin Cake Pops - A more detailed Pop Tutorial

I'm not so good at making cupcakes.  I'm pretty good at making them taste yummy, but not so good at decorating.  I don't think I'm patient enough nor artsy enough to create something so intricate.  Guess I could make them and stick Oreos or peanut butter cups on them.  I've stuck strawberries on them before.  Or mint.  I'm real earthy like that.

Cakes, those I'm even worse at.  I used to live near a friend who is wonderful at cake art.  She and I would create masterpieces.  Beautiful towers of fondant and buttercream.  Then, she moved away and suddenly, those towers didn't look so nice.  I've pretty much retired my tips and bags, shhh, don't tell on me.

Now, when I make cupcakes, I end up with a nice, moist cake, something yummy shoved inside, and delishiousness slopped on top.  And they're gobbled up.

I don't know how these pastry shops do it.  Make those beautiful smoothly swirled icing hats.  Someone want to tell me how?

In the meantime, I make cake pops.  They're just as much work, maybe more.  But, they're such tiny bites of sweet mush, no one can resist.

This week, I made pumpkin cake pops.  They were supposed to be Jack-O-Lanterns, but I can't seem to figure out how to make those really expensive edible markers work on the chocolate.  I get frustrated and throw them out.  Yep, there went $8 in the garbage last night.  Ugh.

Do you remember how to make cake balls?  I'll tell you again, maybe with a few more good tips than the last time.

1.  Bake a boxed cake mix in a 9x13" pan.  I used a Spice cake this time.  Let it cool.
2.  Take it from the pan.  Break off any hard edges, and crumble the rest into a large bowl.
3.  Add some canned frosting.  About 1/3 cup worth.  I like to use cream cheese flavored frosting.  Some recipes say to use more frosting.  I've found that if I do, or if I use homemade frosting, the balls are too soft and fall off the sticks.
4.  Shape the mix into balls.  I make them small enough to fit into my cupped hands easily.  Smash the mix a lot until it's not crumbly any more, then form it into a ball.  Or whatever shape you're going to make.
5.  Refrigerate said balls overnight.
6.  Melt some candy disks.  I use the microwave.  You can use the microwave, too.  Or a double boiler.  My double boiler's in the attic.
7.  Dip your sticks into the chocolate, then insert them half-way into a ball.  Let it set up for about an hour, preferably in the fridge.

8.  Melt more candy disks.  You want this portion to be a bit thinner than the previous.  You can achieve this by adding some shortening to the disks.  I usually add about 1-2 teaspoons per bag of melts.  If you add too much, your chocolate won't harden.  Trust me, I am speaking from experience.

9.  Take a few of the balls on sticks out of the fridge.  3-4 at a time.  Dip your cake ball into the chocolate.  Lift it up and tap it gently on the side of the bowl to shake off excess.  Turn it a little as you go so you evenly distribute the chocolate.  Be careful, if you haven't inserted your stick far enough, or if your chocolate is too thick, this could happen...

Yep, the ball falls off the stick.  Then, you've got trouble.  Yummy trouble!
So, back to the right way, dip, tap.

10.  Insert the stick into a chunk of styrofoam until the candy is dry.  Then, once it's dry, you can decorate it or just wrap it up.  I like to wrap mine in nice cello bags.

I used spice flavored cake, orange candy melts and green tic tacs for these.  If you can figure out how to make those pens work, let me know?
(I also tried a squeeze bottle of black icing.  That was a really gross disaster.)

I sold these at my daughter's soccer game as a donation to the program.  I've had requests for more before the season's over.  I've got a red velvet plan in the works...

I linked this recipe to
Sweets for a Saturday by Sweet as Sugar
Sugar Bananas Sweets This Week
A Well Seasoned Life Sweet Indulgences Sunday