At Home My Way

Last night was bowling night at my house.  Remember when that meant Girls Night?  When we used to make fun things like Homemade Stirfry or K inda Empanadas ?  Well, since the girls have left the nest, I was home alone for bowling night.  But, I had a plan!  I wanted to get some laundry done, build a fire in the woodstove and kick back with a little TV.  But, what to have for supper?  For one person?  Hmmmm... Since I've been really trying to eat out of the pantry and not go to the store OR eat out, I knew I wanted to find something to make that I already had the ingredients for.  And, since I was the only one eating it could be a recipe that I wanted to try but wasn't sure how safe it would be.   I found a great recipe over at Lynn's Kitchen Adventures .  Lynn ALWAYS makes good stuff! I can always depend on her recipes to be sure fire!   A side note here, I have discovered that I tend to be a "recipe free" cook.  I...

I won!  I won!   I never win anything!  But, I have to say, I never play games much either.  Probably that is why I never win anything, BUT.... I WON SOMETHING!  One of my favorite blogs " Little Homestead in the City " (actually the Freedom Gardens blog by the Dervaes family in Pasadena, California) had a giveway.  I was actually interested enough in the prize for this giveaway that I was going to buy the little book if I didn't win it, but now I don't have to do that because I WON and I cannot believe it really!   This is the book: Its a great book about planting roots, spices (seeds), tubers, that you have in your kitchen.  You know, FREE seeds!  My mom has always planted sweet potatoes in glasses of water with toothpicks (we all did that, right?), avocado seeds, the tops of pineapples, etc. and my husband's grandma actually planted a peach tree with a seed (WOW, did she have the touch or what!). This book really goes into depth ...

Homemade Chicken & Dumplings As strange as it may seem, one of the first comfort meals I learned to cook was Homemade Chicken & Dumplings. (Although this is not how my mom makes chicken & dumplings.  Hers are dropped and are fluffy like a biscuit.)   As a young married couple we spent lots of time with another young couple.  We laughed, cruised many a country road, and had little structure to our lives (those were the days LOL).  A few times we ate dinner with them and one of my friend's specialties was this recipe for Chicken & Dumplings.  My very picky husband must have felt pressure to be nice and taste her dish (he would never have tasted it for me), but he instantly fell in love this creamy comfort dish.  Since learning to make this I have enjoyed many a plate of chicken & dumplings at Cracker Barrel restaurant knowing the entire time that mine is every bit as good as what you get in this restaurant. For years I have cooked...

Over New Year's weekend I did lots of cooking.  In addition to Homemade Lambert's Throwed Rolls , I tried a recipe for Homemade Puff Pastry.  I love anything made with puff pastry from brie with raspberry sauce to guava turnovers (a Florida favorite) but puff pastry can be a little hard to come by in our small town.  I ran across this recipe on the King Arthur Flour blog (which always has wonderful recipes).  It worked like a charm.  I have to confess that it was a little "buttery" for my tastes.  I may try to trade out some of the butter for shortening next time, but it worked beautifully and I will definitely be making this again.  I had some guava paste in the fridge (which my mom brings back from Florida) and also some frozen blackberries and blueberries, so I tucked some of each into these turnovers and they were really something special! Here's how I made Homemade Puff Pastry AT HOME MY WAY: Homemade Puff Pastry 2 cups all purpose f...

I enjoyed a much appreciated few days off for New Years.  Let's suffice it to say that I like to cook A LOT and boy did I ever cook a bunch.  I needed to come back to work to stay away from the kitchen LOL.  I'll blog the recipes for some of the other recipes I tried over the next couple of days.  But, the first is a recipe I had in my "to make" file for hot rolls.  They are supposed to taste like Lambert's famous Throwed Rolls.  Well... I haven't ever been to that restaurant.  I live in Missouri, however  I have never been to Sikeston. But, they have rave reviews and I figured they had to be yummy!  They were light, fluffy, yeasty, and a tad sweet.  Really GOOD! We served them along with BBQ'ed pork chops since we were enjoying super nice weather for New Year's Day.  I had mine with some homemade Baked Apple Butter (recipe to come).  Mmmm - it was a feast!  I especially loved the pull-apart way th...

I'm sure I have told you many times that my husband is a seriously picky eater.  I know you are NOT going to believe this, but this is one of his favorite meals!  I do not remember how I got him to try it.  But, we love it.  I realize there are no VEGETABLES on this plate.  This is my husband's ideal - white plate food (carbs). (My mother would croak.  She liked a colorful plate of food. LOL.)  But, I didn't have any broccoli, peppers, etc. and definitely I wasn't going to the store when I got home.  Also, we had leftover corn in the fridge from Christmas dinner so that was a re-heat. The Hawaiian Chicken is a recipe I got from my sister-in-law.  Its really yummy!  This is how I do Hawaiian Chicken AT HOME MY WAY: Hawaiian Chicken Ingredients You Need to Make This : (6-8) Boneless, Skinless Breast Chicken Tenders (or breasts)  1 to 1 1/2 cup (app) Pancake mix, flour, biscuit mix (I had some waffle mix I was ne...

One of my favorite blogs (Finding Joy in My Kitchen) is having a Countdown to 2012 - Main Dish Favorites .  I'm just catching the tail end of this countdown but I do have a few main dish favorites for 2011.  I made a terrific discovery in 2011.  I discovered that I can BAKE spaghetti sauce.  Yep!  It can be done.  It bakes in the oven like roast & potatoes.  Turns out thick and rich, and the best part?  No toiling at the stove. #1 Baked Spaghetti & Meatballs   #2 Nachos for a Crowd (recipe from Homemaking on the Homestead ) I tried a new recipe which would be a great addition to any potluck. To us, it is very similar to Nachos Bell Grande at Taco Bell. Very yummy! I use my own precooked pinto beans (frozen) but it could be made with canned refried beans or any canned bean you prefer. #3 Best Homemade Pizza Crust Ever!  Homemade Pizza Rocks! I make my pizza crust u...