Tim's Blueberry Muffins

I found this recipe in The Joy of Cooking Cookbook and have used it for over 10 years.  I think this was one of the first things I made for Tim and it's always been his favorite.  I was thinking about making a dessert tonight but decided to make these muffins instead.  The three of us sat and played Dora The Explorer Matching while we ate our muffins.  Don't let the picture fool you.  They are very moist already but Tim can't resist them with melted butter.  YUM!!


1 3/4 C Flour
3/4 tsp Salt
1/3 C Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
2 Eggs, Lightly Beaten
4 T Melted Butter
3/4 C Milk
1 C Fresh or Frozen Blueberries.  If using frozen, rinse them first and drain to get rid of the ice crystals


Preheat oven to 400 degrees


In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients.  In another bowl, combine the milk and the eggs.  Make a small well in the dry ingredients and add the milk and the eggs AND the melted butter.  Combine well with a few quick strokes then fold in the blueberries.  Pour into well greased muffin pans then sprinkle with additional granulated sugar before baking.


Bake 20-25 minutes


The cookbook says this makes 2 dozen 2 in. muffins.  I don't know what a 2 in muffin looks like.  The recipe has always yielded 1/2 dozen good sized muffins for me.

Pulled Pork

This is the easiest thing to do with a pork roast.  Today we had plans for the day and I knew that we'd be home late and I wouldn't have time to make dinner.  So I take out my 6.5 qt CrockPot.  This is a favorite of my husbands and I love it because it's so easy.


1 Large Onion
1 4-5Lb Pork or Beef Roast
1 Large Jar of Your favorite BBQ Sauce
Fresh Kaiser Rolls or Hamburger Buns


Cut the onion into thin slices and cover the bottom of the crock.  Lay the roast on top of the sliced onion cover and cook on Low for at least 8 hours.  The meat should just fall apart when it's done.  There will be a lot of juice in the bottom of the crock so just shred the meat with a fork and mix it into the juice and onion.  Then add your favorite BBQ sauce.  You may not need the entire jar of sauce.  Use as much as you like.  Spoon onto a nice roll or hamburger bun.

Basic Pizza Crust

I've been meaning to make my own pizza crust for a long time.  I remembered I friend of mine, Emily, saying a while ago that she had a great and easy recipe for her own dough so I asked her for it and finally tried it.  All I can say is WOW!  It was easy to make and came out great.  This was my first time making my own crust so you will notice that our edge was really thick.  But honestly we like it that way.  When I lived in Colorado there was a restaurant called Beau Joe's that served what they called Mountain Pie.  My pizza turned out just like their Mountain Pie.  The crust was not greasy like most delivery pizza and it was so crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.  So I was able to eat my crust like Mountain Pie and dip the remaining doughy crust in honey.  YUMMY!  I know it sounds goofy but it's delish!  After this, I doubt I'll ever go back to delivery.  Our pizza tasted better and I had so much fun making this with my 5 year old Elizabeth.  Notice that we had one side with only pepperoni for her!  
Family Pizza night now has a new twist that I love!


2 1/2 - 3 C Flour
1 T Sugar
1 tsp Salt
2 1/4 tsp Yeast
3 T Olive Oil
1 C Very Warm Water (120-130 degrees)


I used my KitchenAid Stand mixer for this recipe but you can also use a hand mixer and knead by hand.


Combine in a large bowl 1 C flour, salt, sugar and yeast.  Add olive oil and warm water.  Beat with mixer for 3 minutes scraping bowl frequently.
Stir in by hand enough of the remaining flour until the dough is no longer sticky and leaves the sides of the bowl.
I switched to my dough hook here or you can turn the dough onto a lightly flowered surface and knead for 8 minutes.  Place in a large bowl that's been coated with non-stick cooking spray, cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place for at least 30 minutes to an hour.  When doubled in size, pour dough onto a pizza stone and form into a ball.  Let rest for 5 minutes then shape on the stone.
Add the toppings of your choice and cook in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes or until crust is brown and cheese is bubbly.

Very Wheaty Bread

I am still searching for that perfect bread recipe.  This bread is actually close but it's very dense and "wheaty"  if you like that kind of thing than this recipe is for you.  I actually liked how the loaves came out and I like the flavor and texture too.  It was Tim and Elizabeth that weren't crazy about it.  Wait!  I take that back.  Elizabeth had 3 pieces of it toasted the other morning.  I think she poo poo'd it before because she heard Tim say something.  I'm not sure.  Anyway, I will make this again but I think I will make some adjustments so it's not as wheaty and dense.  I hope I can get it right soon.  Wouldn't it be great to be able to stop buying flavorless bread from the store?


1 1/4 C Warm Milk
1 Egg, Beaten
2 T Butter, Softened
1/4 C Honey
3/4 tsp Salt
1 C Bread Flour
3 C Whole Wheat Flour
1/4 C Milled Flax Seed
1 1/2 tsp Yeast


Combine milk, honey and yeast and allow to proof 10 minutes.  Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients.
Add egg and butter to the yeast mixture then add dry ingredients 1 cup at a time until combined well.  With my dough hook attached, I used my KitchenAid stand mixer to knead the dough 10 minutes.  I kept extra bread flour handy in case the dough was still to sticky.
When smooth and elastic, I turned the dough into a large bowl that had been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.  I covered it with a towel and allowed to rise in a warm place for a little more than an hour.
The dough should have doubled in size.  Then I punched it down and divided into to loaves and placed them in loaf pans coated with non-stick cooking spray.  I covered them and let them rise in a warm place 40 minutes (next time I'll do an hour).
I baked them in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes.  They were golden brown and sounded hollow when I thumped them on the bottom.




I think the next time I make these I will omit the flax seed and see how that works.
Enjoy!

Happy Mother's Day

What a fabulous day I had.  Not only did I get to sleep in but I was awakened by Elizabeth screaming at the side of my bed "SURPRISE!!!  HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!"  Then my Tim arrives with a tray filled with ham and cheese scrambled eggs, toast and orange juice.  We all sat in bed and ate breakfast together!  Fabulous!


We all kind of vegged out after that but we managed to get ourselves together and took a drive through the Susquehanna State Park.  We went to the Stepping Stone Museum and had so much fun.  It's a farm that dates back to the 1700's and there is an old farm house and barns to explore.  The volunteers were so nice and really took the time to explain what it was really like to live back then.  We walked through the blacksmith shop and the wood shop and a great cannery exhibit.  I just had so much fun being with Tim and Elizabeth and really enjoying the park on such a lovely day.


We had an easy evening and I'm not looking forward to another week to start.  Back to housework I go!  Oh how I hope I can get it together this week.


I did take a moment to think back about my mom though.  She died the day before Mother's Day a few years ago so it's difficult not to think about her over Mother's Day weekend. We didn't have the best relationship when I was growing up.  It wasn't until I was 30 years or so that we finally became friends.  I am so thankful for that, it's all I've ever wanted, really.  She unknowingly taught me the best and the worst of a Mother/Daughter relationship.  I hope that I can take these lessons and give my daughter much better than I had.  I want a close relationship with my daughter throughout her life and not just toward the end of mine.  

I know that motherhood is a gift.  Five years ago my daughter was born and all my prayers were answered.  I thank God everyday for his gift.  I make sure that Tim and Elizabeth know how much they are loved and cherished sometimes sickeningly so EVERYDAY!  I am truly blessed

Happy Mother’s Day to Me!!

Spaghetti Pie

I made this a few months ago for the first time and it was a huge hit.  Tim asked that it be put on the regular rotation.  There are a lot of similar recipes out there, but this is the way we like it here.   I like it because it's a nice variation of the classic spaghetti dinner.  


1 lb Lean Hamburger
1 Small Onion, Diced
1 (14.5oz) Can Diced Tomatoes
1-2 tsp Italian Seasoning
1/2 C Mushrooms
1 (28oz) Jar of your favorite Spaghetti Sauce
1 (16oz) Box of Spaghetti
2 C Mozzarella Cheese, Shredded and Divided
1 C Parmasen Cheese
3 Eggs, Beaten
1 T Olive Oil
2 tsp Garlic Powder


In a large sauce pan, brown hamburger with the onions until the hamburger is browned and the onions clear.  Add, diced tomatoes, mushrooms, spaghetti sauce and Italian seasoning.  Simmer 10 minutes


Meanwhile, in large pot cook spaghetti until done and drain.  In a large bowl combine eggs, olive oil, garlic powder, 1 cup mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese.  Pour spaghetti into mixture and combine well.  Coat a 13X9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and line the bottom of the pan with the spaghetti mixture.  Pull some of the pasta up the sides of the pan to make an edge and a well in the center of the pan.  Then pour in the sauce mixture and spread evenly over the spaghetti.  Top with remaining mozzarella cheese then place into a 350 degree oven and bake 20 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned and the sides are bubbling.


Let sit a few minutes before cutting.




Family Rating: 10
It always seems like Tim enjoys the easiest meals the best.  We love this one!  Try it, you'll like it!

Chicken Pot Pie

It was a chilly rainy day and I wanted comfort food.  I wracked my brain trying to think of something I hadn’t had in a while and my eyes went wide with excitement at the thought of Chicken Pot Pie.  I didn’t have store bought crust so I had to make my own.  It’s been a while since I’ve made crust from scratch and it did take me a little longer to get it all together but it was worth it.  But by all means, don’t feel like you have to bust yourself like I did.  Store bought crust is just fine!  This just tasted so good to me.  It'd been a long time since I'd had it homemade.  It was well worth the effort.

1 lb Cubed Chicken Breasts

1 C Carrots, Sliced

1C Frozen Peas

1/2 C Celery, Sliced

1 Small Onion, Chopped

1/3 C Butter

1/3 C Flour

1/2 tsp Salt  (I omitted )

1/2 tsp Black Pepper

1 tsp Poultry Seasoning

1/2 tsp Garlic Powder

2 C Chicken Stock  (I used bouillon cube and omitted salt)

2/3-1 C milk

In large skillet, add chicken, carrots and celery.  Add enough water to cover and put the lid on the skillet and cook 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, sauté onion in melted butter until they are clear.  Add flour and combine well.  Add milk and stock and stir until thickened.  Add poultry seasoning, salt and pepper, frozen peas and the prepared chicken, carrots and celery.  Combine well and simmer 10 minutes.

Place bottom crust in pie plate, trim edges to the side of the pie plate.  Pre-cook for 5-6 minutes.  Add the filling and cover with top crust.  Trim the crust to 1 inch larger than the pie plate edge then fold it under the bottom crust.  Crimp the sedges to seal.  Cut 4-5 1inch slits in the top crust.  If you like, brush the crust with an egg wash.  I didn't this time but I think I will the next.

Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

Family Rating: 9

I LOVED this but my husband gave it 9.  He’s not the biggest fan of Pot Pie but he liked this well enough to add it to the rotation.  Elizabeth picked at the carrots and chicken but didn’t like the pie crust.  It was new to her and she didn’t want to try it.  She was missing out.  We had a few leftovers but we had it for lunch the next day.  YUMMY!

CrockPot Chicken Wings

This is a recipe that has taken a little time to get right.  I make these with either BBQ sauce or Teriyaki sauce.  The trick is to cook the wings in the oven first and not to drown them in too much sauce.  I like cooking them this way since they are not fried and I'm able to drain some fat away first.  I'm not sure how many calories I'm saving but it's something!


1.5-2lb Chicken Wings
1-1.5 C BBQ or Teriyaki Sauce  (may need a little more for more wings)


Preheat oven to 375 degrees


Place a wire cooling rack in a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan, as long as it has a raised edge.
Place the wings on the rack, skin side up.  Place in the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes.  The objective is to cook off some of the fat and to let the skins crisp up a little bit.  This prevents them from getting too mooshy in the CrockPot.


Place the wings in the CrockPot and pour sauce over the wings and toss to coat.


Cook on low 3-4 hours




Family Rating: 10!!  This is a favorite for my gang and it's on the regular rotation.  There are never any leftovers.  Try them!!!

My Thoughts

Tonight I sit here in bed as I learn about the mission that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden.  I have so many mixed emotions about it.  I remember 9/11 like is was yesterday.  I will never forget it.  My Tim was still in school and getting ready to commission.  I knew then our lives would be taking a turn.
Tonight I see so many people celebrating in NYC and D.C and wonder how many are thinking our fight is over, mission complete.  It is a very happy thought but a naive one at that.  Bin Laden is dead but unfortunately there is another one ready to pick up where he left off.  We clipped off one domino but still need to take on the next one.
Everyone is celebrating and elated because we finally got our man.  One less evil is out there.  The one we feared the most is gone.  Hallelujah  His death almost 10 years after 9/11.  I still can't believe it took that long.  I hate that I've become such a cynic.  10 YEARS to get him.  I think that is a testament at how ill equipped our intelligence was.  It makes me think and distrust our previous administration.  I hate thinking they let him go just to extend the war and make a buck.  I hate thinking this way but I can't help it.
That being said, I am so proud of our troops and so happy for this success.  We've been waiting for this for a long time.  God Bless Us All