At Home My Way

Does Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal sound like a strange combination to you?  I'm sure the title sounds a little odd.  But this version of Baked Oatmeal is really luscious.  "Luscious?"  "Oatmeal?" you might ask.  Yep!  It was warm and gooey and tasted just like a hot oatmeal/chocolate chip cookie fresh from the oven!  This breakfast would be a great way to introduce oatmeal to your children.  If they like chocolate chip granola bars (specifically the chewy ones) or oatmeal cookies, they are going to love this!  This recipe is also very cheap to make and uses ingredients found in your pantry!  I love that about it.  I also love that I usually have a handful of chocolate chips that didn't make it into cookies and I can throw this together for a hot, delicious, and pretty healthy breakfast.  This really tastes nothing like the kind of oatmeal you get in the packets.  This is more like a warm, gooey granola bar.  YUM! Th...

This little blogging hobby that I started has really evolved into something wonderful.  I started following blogs mostly to get good housekeeping and recipe ideas.  But, boy did I find a whole new world of wonderful people!  Sometimes I feel like I'm the odd person in my world.  I think you could suffice it to say that most of the people I know don't cook from scratch.  They don't make stuff!  I'm sure even my own children think I'm a little bit "out there" for making some of the homemade stuff I make (like homemade sandwich bread , chocolate syrup, chocolate pudding , homemade pancakes , homemade cornbread , and even homemade glass cleaner). Like I say, I like doing things "At Home - My Way!"  But, the best thing about blogging so far has been that I have "met" some wonderful folks.  Folks just like me!  I love that I can read about someone who made a beautiful scratch birthday cake or even made homemade chocolate chips.  I love that s...

I realize this picture is sideways - can't seem to get it rotated!  Shucks! I'm sure everyone and their brother (well... maybe their sister) have made this recipe.  Everyone but me, I guess.  I had heard of it but really hadn't even ever eaten it before.  Crazy! My pickier daughter came home from her new corporate job and told me ALL ABOUT this delicious dish she had eaten at a carry-in lunch.  As she was describing it to me, I said "Rebecca!  That's just tator tot casserole.  Like the Duggars make."  The dish Rebecca had at work was everything this dish is except it had mashed potatoes and cheese on top instead of tator tots and cheese.  She thought it was the best thing she'd eaten lately so I had to try it at home. I don't usually use a lot of convenience foods (canned soup), but cooking at home always trumps eating out - even if it does include a can of soup and frozen tator tots.   Keeping up with my pantry cooking, I...

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...