Chocolate  Clusters (Macaroons)

2 cups white sugar

½ cup milk

½ cup margarine or butter

Melt butter.  Add milk and sugar.  Bring to a bubbly boil and let boil for 1 minute.  Remove from heat.

Add

3 cups quick-cooking oatmeal

1 cup medium unsweetened coconut, firmly packed

6 tbsp cocoa

1 tsp. vanilla

Pinch of salt

Mix together.  Drop by teaspoon on waxed paper. Makes 3 dozen

Not my recipe but these cookies are so popular and easy.   With Christmas coming I am whipping up batches of these for our MOPS group.   For church I will make a treat tray of Rice Krispie squares and macaroons to take for coffee time and I will be the 'Sunday Hero'!

Applefest

Today was another great cooking day.  I got up with 2 whiny girls.  I was frustrated that I would spend another 12 hours alone with my kids.  I wasn't feeling very creative.  I never thought I would ever get tired of 'playing' but you can only hide in the same spot for a 2 year old to find you for so long.   My day turned around when we ended up playing MY games and doing some things I enjoy.  It turns out Ashley is old enough to help Mommy do some of house jobs.  We decided to go pick apples in the morning and I thought I could peel, freeze and cook while the girls napped.  The 'U-pick' place was closed so I drove on to the next apple orchid and bought some apple seconds.  A HUGE bag for $15 of the apples that had scabs or had fallen off the tree.
I also got real apple juice.  Ashley has been suffering from a rash. My doctor thinks that it is food related.  we finally got rid of it but I am much more aware of the additives and preservatives in food.  I have been trying over the last week to feed her as close to original foods as possible.  That way if she does have a reaction again it will be easier to figure out which out which food it was.
So when we got home Ashley asked if she could peel the apples.  I got out the apple peeler and she went right to work.  What a treat to have my little girl do all the work (and a little snacking) while I measured and stirred and cooked up all my recipes.  We made 2 batches of applesauce, applesauce muffins, apple crisp for supper tonight. I froze chopped apples and canned 9 jars of apple pie filling.  Tomorrow I will tackle an apple pie and do some freezer apple pie filling.  I also want to make another batch of salsa but I need more jars! 
I just love cooking and canning.  It has been a beautiful, not too -  hot day.  Great day to cook with my kiddo's and do some things I enjoy.  The kitchen is a big mess but  I tired the girls out and filled their bellies.  Also Ashley is feeling very proud of herself.  I would say that was a great day!

Chocochip Banana Muffins

I buy a lot of banana's. They are a healthy snack and they travel well. The banana has it's own ziplock container and I can grab it and go.  My kids like banana's a little on the green side.  Not too ripe. I make these muffins a lot with the ripe bananas.  I also freeze my over ripe bananas which is a little messy and gross when they thaw but I hate wasting food and when the muffins are all baked no one will ever know the difference.  This is my own creation recipe. I love to use up my expired yogurt this way. Sometimes I put in jam and use less sugar.

3 bananas
3/4 cup of white sugar
100gram yogurt any flavor (I use expired)
1/3 cup of margerine
1 egg
beat for 1 minute
add
2 cups of flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
1 cup of chocolate chips
mix by hand well.

12 large muffins - bake 350 for 20 mins

3 blog posts ago the picture of muffins is this recipe. I like these muffins for my kids. They eat them almost everyday. They love the chocolate and I love that I know what is in them. Sometimes if we are out over lunch time it makes a great substitute sandwich. Grab a couple boxes of raisins and cheese sticks and we are out the door. Or if we are in a hurry in the morning they can eat one in the car. This recipe ALWAYS turns out for me.  

This morning I made coldslaw.  SO good.  I don't think i have posted my recipe so here goes.
1 cabbage
2 medium onions
2 stalks of celery
3 large carrots
1 pepper
Run it all thru the food processor slicer. Set aside in a large bowl.

1 cup of vinegar
3/4 cup of veg oil
3/4 cup of sugar
2 tsp of celery seed
1 1/2 tsp salt
Bring to a boil and pour over veggies, then toss.  This will keep in a fridge over a week.

I picked up a cabbage sunday at the local farmers stand. This salad is almost a whole meal at our house.  Today I also picked our first veggies from our garden.  They are small but Ashley and I are proud.

Planning meals

Planning meals saves money, stress and time.  It has been so hot that we have been eating crock pot meals a lot. Chili, roast in the crock pot, then stew with the leftovers in the crock pot. I even picked up a Pizza in town last night.  This morning was cool so I took the opportunity to refill my freezer meals.  Two weeks ago we were suppose to go to a family do but I had a sick kid so I was very thankful when I opened the freezer and found a loaf of bread, a bag of muffins and a lasagna. It sure was nice to have grilled cheese sandwiches and lasagna and muffins for the weekend since I was busy caring for my kiddo.  This morning I baked chocochip banana muffins and blueberry muffins. I will freeze most of the muffins in bags of 6 for a quick snack or even a breakfast at the cottage.  I made spaghetti sauce for supper and split it in half and layered a lasagna for the freezer. I am going to make a pasta salad tonight with the extra noodles from supper.  This weekend will be hamburgers and hotdogs since I will be away and Daddy is cooking. The salad will go good with that.  I also have chicken fingers and fries in the freezer for another quick meal. I have some porkchops for the BBQ next week and some chicken legs for the crockpot. Since it will be another hot week I am glad I have a plan.  Good luck to you all avoiding the heat.

P.S. The pulled pork was so easy and good.  Pork tenderloin and 1 can of root beer. Cook in the crock pot on low for 7 hours.  Drain off rootbeer and shread meat. Put back in crock pot with 2 cups of your favorite BBQ sauce. Mix and eat with buns. It was a hit with the company.

It has been another steady stream of busy adventure here. Summer has been doing it's thing with kid's playdates, swimming at the cottage, berry picking and bbq's.  I have been making a selling quilts which I love but it keeps me away from the kitchen. This week I cooked in one day chili, speghetti sauce, taco salad, 2 quiche and chicken pot pie.  I shared a couple of meals with a friend who is a new mom. Today I clean out the fridge and start again.  Today is a beautiful day so probubly BBQ hamburgers tonight.  I am having dental surgery tomorrow so I am thinking about soft cold foods I will be eating for the next 2 week. Any suggestions? I am also having friends over for Canada day celebrations and I want to try pulled pork in the crockpot. I'll let you know how it goes.  I make one great potato salad.  Here is the recipe. The secret is to pour 2 tbsp of vinegar on the cooked potatoes while they are hot.  The potatoes soak it up and gives the salad a ZIP.
Potato Salad
Hard boil 3 eggs, cool, peel and cut up.
6 med potatoes
2 tbsp of vinegar
peel and cook potatoes, add vinegar and put in fridge for an hour to cool.
Chop finely
1/2 large onion
2 stalks of celery
6 pieces of cooked bacon
 Put all together in with potatoes.  You can cut up the potatoes now while they are cool. I find the potatoes with hold together better this way rather than cutting them up before you cook them.
Add 3 tbsp of mayo
chopped dill pickle
2 tsp of pepper
1 tsp of salt
2 squirts of mustard
I add plain yogurt if i have it to make it creamer without adding more mayo
Also I add 1 tbsp of ranch dressing.
This recipe is a lot of work and many of these ingredients can be optional but this is the full knock out potato salad.  We will be having this with our pulled pork for sure. I wonder if I can talk Gary into making it....

It's a hot day.  I can feel the storm coming that will break this muggy weather.  Hopefully it brings lots of rain.  We need it for the fields but also for our well.  I am on water alert week 2. Less dishes, less laundry, less cooking and cleaning.  With this heat it is a great excuse to enjoy my girls in the shade. Today was a morning visit to the park which was on the Napanee river.  I let them go in up to their knees but once the splashing started they were soaked.  We took a naked drive home and they slept all afternoon. I cooked 1 lb of ground beef in a fry pan during their nap.  At 4pm we went out to play in the shade and we did crafts.  It was a very successful day.

At 5:30 we came in for supper.  I made Taco Salad for the first time.  My own recipe.
I made a layered one so I can keep it for supper tomorrow night too and it won't get soggy.
Bottom of a big bowl I chopped half a head of iceburg lettuce.  When I cooked the ground beef at nap time I sprinkled 1 tbsp of chili powder on the meat and stirred it up before I drained the fat off.  Once it was drained I put it in the fridge to cool and keep til supper.
So I layered the ground beef on top of the lettuce. I chopped a ripe avocado on top of ground beef with 1 green pepper and 1 large tomato. I put 3 tbsp of sour cream and 3 tbsp of salsa in the center on top of the veggies.  Then I grated old cheddar cheese on top. It looked so pretty.  I scooped out half into another bowl and mix it together for the girls and I.  Ashley liked it.  I will try it again when Gary comes in and we all sit down for supper.  I bet if I put ranch dressing on it Emily will like it.  Nice cool supper with little mess and effort.