Keep Guacamole Green

Tip:

To keep guacamole from turning brown, put the avocado pit in the bowl too.

I tried this with the bible sandwich slaw that uses avocado as well. I could never save the extra because it always turned brown so quickly. Not anymore. I added the pit to the Ziploc bag I saved it in and it was still green the next day.

Try it out.

Bible Sandwiches

This is a tasty sandwich from my husband's youth. He used to purchase them from a local health food store that also operated a deli. This has long since closed and the recipe was lost. However, with a little detective work I was able to contact the new owners of the building and learned that they did have the recipe on file in their office. So, as a surprise to my husband, I made him Bible Sandwiches which we continue to enjoy as a family.

Bible Sandwiches

Ingredients:
- Avocado (mashed until smooth)
- Mayonnaise
- Sesame Seeds
- Sunflower Seeds
- Spike*
- Shredded Cabbage
Mix all of these ingredients together to make a slaw.
- Fill wheat pita bread with the slaw
- Add Swiss cheese slices and any vegetables you wish.
We always use tomatoes but you can also add alfalfa sprouts, mushroom, cucumbers, peppers, ...


*Spike is a seasoning you can purchase at a health food store that gives this sandwich its distinct flavor. It is a mix of several spices and is available with or without salt (I do with).

When I was given this recipe no quantities were listed so I do it all to taste.

I use the bagged cole slaw mix available at local grocery stores for my shredded cabbage and I use one avocado per 1/2 bag. (2 avocados per bag, but I usually only make 1/2 bag at a time)

Directions:
- In a large mixing bowl mash the avocado.
- Add about 1/2 cup+ mayonnaise
- Stir in the seeds and the spike (again, this is all to taste)
- Add the shredded cabbage
- Taste, add anything you need more of (if it is too dry I add more mayonnaise or too wet then I add more cabbage or too mild then I add more spike, etc.)
- Fill your pita half with slaw, Swiss cheese and vegetables.

Yummy, trust me.

Check out the Keep Guacamole Green Tip

Low Calorie Carbs

Do you love your pasta?

This tip reminds me of those low calorie candy bars that claim to have 30% less calories than the regular candy bars and also happen to be 30% smaller.

Tip:

Fill your plate with salad and sprinkle it with your pasta noodles. This gives you the taste of mouth fulls of those carbs we love but with the greens we need and without the calories we don't. It works for me and I love it. (I also sprinkle some ranch on top :)

Rewarming Rice

If you hate left over rice because it is always too dry...
I have found a solution.

Tip:

Keep the rice in the ziplock bag you used to store it in while you microwave it.

This keeps the moisture in and you can finally enjoy moist left over rice.

Sweetened Condensed Milk Substitute

The best make-your-own version of sweetened condensed milk is to mix 1 cup of evaporated milk with 1-1/4 cups of sugar in a saucepan, heat and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved, and let cool. If you don't have evaporated milk on hand either, you can make your own by slowly simmering any quantity of milk in a pan until it is reduced by 60%, and then adding the sugar.

Obviously this is a tedious process. Sweetened condensed milk has a shelf life of about a thousand years*, though, so pick up one or two cans on your next trip to the market and you’ll never need a substitute again (it’s a good idea to turn the can over every two months or so, to keep the sugar well dispersed throughout the milk).

*OK, it's more like two years, but it's still a fairly long time....

Peanut Butter Cups

Ok, so I made Peanut Butter Balls today rather than cups. I was in a hurry and it was much faster than using the molds I have. None the less, I like to call them peanut butter cups.
This recipe uses the peanut butter cup filling recipe I posted earlier.

This recipe takes only four ingredients:
- creamy peanut butter
- butter
- powdered sugar
- chocolate chips

Tip:
If you don't have a double boiler (like me) to melt your chocolate in, just use two pans that slightly vary in size. Put your water in the bottom pan, Rest the tip of the smaller on the side(s) of the larger and Shazaam, you have your double boiler.

Tip: Once my chocolate has melted, I throw a few new pieces to the side in the pan to start warming up. They will be ready to use once I am ready for more and I don't need to keep waiting for the chocolate to melt. I only use a small amount of melted chocolate at a time to prevent scalding and drying of the chocolate but with this method I also always have a ready supply.

Peanut Butter Cups:

- Prepare the peanut butter cup filling and let it chill in the fridge for an hour or so to stiffen
- Melt the chocolate pieces (I use chocolate chips) in a double boiler
- Roll the filling into walnut sized balls while you wait for the chocolate to warm
- Drop one ball at a time into the chocolate and roll it with a spoon until covered
- Place it on wax paper to cool
- Repeat until all the balls have a thick coating of chocolate
- You can leave them out to set or place them in the fridge
- Once the chocolate has hardened, your Done!

These are delectable!

The No-Slide Bowl

I learned a new tip!

Tip:
Place a wet towel under your mixing bowl to keep it from sliding while you mix.

I tried it today and it worked perfectly. I was able to free up my other hand to use the spatula. It also helped my little daughter who needs both hands on the beaters in order to control them.

Tip:
When your done, you can use the wet towel to wipe up the counter where you worked.

Tip for draining pasta

It was always a pain for me to use the colander to drain pasta. It was one more huge dish to wash and it takes up a lot of room in the cupboard.

My husband introduced me to this handy little thing. I don't know what it is called but it is a plastic cover in a half moon shape full of holes.

Tip: Just hold it against the top of the pan as you pour out the water.
Your pasta is drained and you have a dish that is much easier to wash and takes up little room

Hash Browns

For a quick snack or meal try these hash browns.

Hash Browns:
- place a little butter in a fry pan
- grate a lg uncooked potato right into the pan, skin and all
- sprinkle with salt and add more butter as needed
- let it fry until golden brown and then flip
- salt this side as well.
- You're Done, when both sides are golden brown

I love them this way. The inside is a little sticky and the outside is crunchy.

Tip:
If you don't like the sticky, simply grate the potato into a colander and rinse with cold water.
Pat it dry and then add to the fry pan.

The Magic of Plastic Wrap

Plastic Wrap Tips:

(I'll start with the obvious)

- Use it to wrap up those left overs, or a plastic bag, rather than a container. If you're like me and rarely get to those left overs but can't stand to throw away good food, it makes clean up a breeze. Just throw it out when you find it shoved deep in the back of the fridge and you won't need to clean any old food out of those dishes you put it in.

- Place it on the surface of cooked pudding or pie filling immediately after pouring to prevent a skin from forming.

- Use a piece of it the length of your pan for ease in pressing down rice crispy treats or crumb crusts and keep your hands mess free.

- Keep ice cream smooth

Ever notice how ice crystals form on ice cream in the freezer once the container has been opened? The ice cream will stay smooth and free of those annoying, yucky crystals if you rewrap the container completely in plastic wrap before you return it to the freezer.

- Keep fridge top forever clean
Make the next time you clean the top of your refrigerator the last time. After you've gotten it all clean and shiny, cover the top with overlapping sheets of plastic wrap. Next time it's due for a cleaning, all you need do is remove the old sheets, toss them in the trash, and replace with new layers of wrap.

- It will improve your grip on those hard to open jar lids.

- If the wrap end gets lost on the roll use a piece of tape to find the end by placing the sticky side of the tape on the plastic wrap and pulling forward.

I came across several household uses, but I chose to include those that were closely related to food and kitchen tips.

Frosting Tip

I just found this frosting tip on line.
I will try it the next time I make frosting.

Tip: If you add a pinch of baking powder to powdered sugar when making frosting, it will stay creamy and not harden or crack.

I am on a quest to find/create the perfect frosting recipes. I am picky when it comes to frosting. I don't like it when it tastes like powdered sugar or like lard. I think the peanut butter recipe I posted is perfect. I have tweaked a butter cream frosting recipe to almost perfect and I am working on a chocolate recipe. I will post them when I think they are just right. This tip may become a regular ingredient in my recipes if it works well.

"Old or Bruised Apples" Tip

So, I tried this recipe posted by my sister earlier:
Old or Bruised Apples
Wow, it is delicious!

Tip:
Instead of going the way of apple sauce, however, I thickened up the juice with some corn starch and left the apple chunks as they were and it made a wonderful pie filling. You could top ice cream with it, cheese cake, cake or eat it as it is. It was wonderful.

- Once you have followed the steps in the previous post linked to above:
- Wait until the apples are as tender as you want them to be first
- mix 1T cornstarch with 1T cold water in a small bowl
- Stir this mix into the crock pot with the apples
- Cook for about 10 or so minutes more until thickened

Your Done!
An easy delicious treat.

FROSTING

I have two wonderful frosting recipes for you!

Peanut Butter Frosting

- 1/2 c softened butter
- 1 c creamy peanut butter
- cream together with beaters until smooth
- 2c powdered sugar, mix in with beaters

Now, this makes a thick mix perfect for filling homemade peanut butter cups.

- blend in 2T milk for a thick yet spreadable peanut butter frosting
OR
- blend in 4 T milk for a thin spreadable peanut butter frosting

If you want a sweeter frosting and greater yield,
- add up to 2c more of powdered sugar and
- enough milk for the desired consistency


Cinnamon Roll Frosting

- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 2T water
- Mix together with beaters

This makes a wonderfully thick and delicious frosting! It reminds me of Cinnabon.
Have Fun!

Spice Up Your French Toast

French Toast can be pretty basic.

- Mix a few eggs with a little milk in a bowl.
(2-4 eggs, about a cup or so of milk for about 12 slices)
- dip thick bread in the mix on both sides
- place in a buttered frying pan
- flip when the first side is browned and cook the other side
- serve with butter and syrup

This is one of my husband's favorite breakfasts and he eats it with a full glass of milk.

I like to Spice it up.
When mixing the eggs and milk I also add
- 1 tsp vanilla
- and a dash or two of nutmeg (or your spice of choice)
- sometimes I add a tablespoon or two of sugar as well

This adds a nice aroma and some extra flavor.
- cinnamon is a great spice to add but my husband doesn't like it.

Experiment with some others too and see how you can add some spice into your family breakfast.

Old or Bruised Apples

I get a bunch of old, bruised or starting to shrivel apples every couple of months. These are the ones that got bumped around in a lunch box and brought home uneaten or have something else wrong with them and no one wants to eat them (not even me).

Just gather them all up and wash them. Chop them up (big dices) including the peels. You do not have to peel them. Throw away any really bad spots and/or save out any really good ones for a snack. Throw the rest in a crock pot with a couple tablespoons of butter and some brown sugar and a little cinnamon. I like to put lemon juice in with it or use granny smith apples to get a sweet tart flavor. How much sugar and cinnamon depends on how many apples and your taste.

Cook in the crockpot on low 6 hrs or until done and it will be ready for snacks when the kids come home or you can pack it as applesauce for kids lunches. But, I like it warm best.

Homemade Yogurt

I looked up a recipe for yogurt on allrecipes.com because I had two gallons of milk starting to turn sour at the same time and I wondered if I could use it for yogurt and not have it taste bad. So, I experimented. All it cost me was like a dollar fifty. I bought a candy thermometer and a small unflavored yogurt with live cultures. With it I made 5 quarts of yogurt! It turned out perfectly. I recommend the recipe that has all the temperatures with it. It is a pain, but it worked perfectly. (I tried it once before without a thermometer and the yogurt came out kind of gooey and slimey--wrong texture) Because of my past experience I was afraid to try. I knew my family would not eat 5 quarts of unflavored yogurt, so I added about a cup and a half of sugar and some vanilla to the batch. It was not according to the recipe, so I was afraid it might ruin it. It didn't. It turned out GREAT! and they downed it all like crazy. We couldn't taste the slightly sour milk at all. It was perfect. I also tried making homemade icecream with the slightly sour milk and it worked out well, too. So, now I have two things to do with millk just starting to sour.

FoodStorage: I canned a ton of milk powder when we were first married and had lots of calcium needing little kids. Now it is all about to expire. So this week I tried it entirely with powdered milk and it WORKED GREAT and TASTES GREAT. It was fun to put blueberry syrup on it, hershey's syrup, and blended strawberries.

TIPS: The recipe calls for keeping it warm on the stove and checking the temperature. I put it in a plastic cooler with hot water (the right temp I think it was 115 degrees) all around it up to the height of the yogurt. Shut the cooler and left it for six hours. I didn't have to babysit it or keep the stove on and the yogurt worked perfectly.

African Rice with Ham

From Diana and Mom:

HAM & AFRICAN RICE

1/2 chopped onion
3 TB oil - I have to tell you, when I cook I don't measure exactly. I'm making a guess at how much oil to put in.
1/3 canned ham diced up - I was using some left overs from another recipe.
Saute the onions until tender. I also added 1 TB real butter.
2 c. rinsed and drained white or brown rice - add to the pan with the oil and onion and cook and stir until the rice starts to brown.
Stir in 4 cups of water and cook until the rice is tender - stirring now and then.
Salt & pepper to taste.
1 egg for each person. I scrambled these eggs up in a seperate pan, added some salt and pepper, and then spooned it on top
of the rice and we stirred it in with our ham and rice and it was YUMMY!

Pasta Sauce

From FeFe:

PASTA SAUCE

Saute 1/2 chopped onion and
2 cloves chopped garlic in
1/4 c oilive oil.
When browned and tender add:
Italian sausage. Faith helped me pick this out. It came in a package with five sausages in tube skins. I used two of them -
sliced the skin and took it off. I also sprinkled a little balsamic vinegar into the pan. Just a tiny sprinkle. Optional.
When the sausage/onion mix is cooked, add
1 can italian diced tomatoes
1 can - regular size tomato sauce - not the small size
1 TB dried basil
Boil this for a while until it reduces some. It's a thick sauce. Very flavorful.

1 lb pasta - we used Rigatoni I think - boil in water with olive oil and salt
When tender, or almost tender if you like it Cody style, rinse it, drain it, and then
pour the sauce into the pasta and stir.

You can top it with Parmesan cheese, but it is so flavorful, that I didn't add anything and it was great!!

Orange Dream Machine Smoothies at Home

The Orange Dream Machine smoothie from Jamba Juice is one of my favorites. Mike brought one home for me on our Anniversary but after all the sharing, I was left wanting more. The next night I decided to make one myself. I found this recipe and it actually worked!

Orange Dream Machine Smoothie:

ingredients- orange juice, soy milk, orange sherbet, frozen yogurt, ice

- Mix 5oz OJ
- 5oz Soy Milk
- 2 scoops Orange Sherbet
- 2 scoops Frozen Yogurt
- 1 scoop ice
- Mix in your blender until smooth

This sounded great! I soon discovered that I was out of orange juice and that I had no frozen yogurt. Rather than go without, I improvised. Know that you can use Sunny Delight in place of OJ, and for the frozen yogurt...I happened to have in my fridge a carton of orange/vanilla sherbet/ice cream mix that came on sale for $1/half gallon. Know that you can use vanilla ice cream in place of the yogurt (obviously, but not as healthful). We do keep soy milk on hand so this was not a problem and I think it adds some richness and creaminess but you can use regular milk. It was amazing. Even with my substitutes and not measuring anything, it was pretty darn close to the real thing.
Try it out!

30 Minute Meal

From Mom:
Here is a dinner you can whip up in 30 minutes, if you have the ingredients.
Normally we have everything for it, except the walnuts - but I had some left over from Christmas as I didn't do as much holiday baking as I thought I would.

Shepherds Pie Grandma Lindeman Style

1 lb. hamburger browned w/ seasoning salt or salt & pepper
1/2 onion chopped - brown with the hamburger
add 1 can drained green beans
add 1 small can tomato soup

While the hamburger is cooking,
boil 2 cups water - when it comes to a boil add
1 cup mil
2 tb butter and turn off heat
2 c. instant mashed potatos - we use our food storage ones

Pour hamburger mixture into small brown pan
top with mashed potatoes and grated cheese
Heat in the oven until cheese is melted and sauce bubbly.

While the Shepherds pie is baking, you can make the salad


Waldorf Salad

1 stalk of celery per adult person - so I used 3
1 apple per person (adult) - so I used 3
wash and dice
1/3 c. chopped wallnuts
1/3 c raisins
combine all these together
1/2 c. miracle whip
1/4 c sugar
1tsp lemon juice
1 tsp vinegar
mix the dressing together and pour over the salad and then stir the salad until coated.

YUM!
All done in 30 minutes