Cold Day Equals Spicy Soup!

Well maybe not that Spicy!

So I was down a few days with a bug which rarely happens.  All I could think of was some great spicy chicken soup with a southwestern flair.

Several years ago I made the perfect soup.  Of course, I did not realize how perfect till about four days into it when it kept getting better and better.

It had various beans, roasted chicken, I used several jars of my home canned tomatoes and juice and more like a cumin ( now that I think about it) flavoring.  I remember it was in a Southern Living Magazine and I recall having flipped over the mag so it would stay.  There must how been 20 ingredients.

But none of that matters now, since I can't find the recipe ANYWHERE.

Hence, any recipe I find is just not quite right and this one-well I should have started out easy-it called for 3 Tablespoons of chili powder.  Turned my white chicken meat so dark.

So have you ever had a recipe that you lost? 

Meanwhile I will suffer with my bowl of hot hot soup-maybe some homemade bread would be good.  I will spare you the recipe unless I can find the orginal one!

Red Ranch Potato Salad

Red Ranch Potato Salad

I whipped up a quick version of red potato salad for those of us who dislike the egg and yellow mustard versions!

5lbs of red potatoes  (chopped as shown with skin)
2 cups of salad dressing ( Not mayo!)
1 packet of dry ranch dressing mix

Boil the potatoes till they fall off a fork when poked and allow to cool.

In a separate bowl, mix the dressing mix with the salad dressing.

In a large plastic bowl (that will have a snug lid), add 1/3 of the potatoes and 1/3 of the salad dressing mix.  Stir and continue with more layers until all potatoes have been tossed in the dressing.  Cover and the next day you should stir again and again and again several times when you think about it.

You should at least let this sit in the refrigerator overnight but the best flavor is achieved on day 3!

Better than store bought!

Have a yummy day!

Bread Pudding

Bread Pudding

It is cold and snowy here on the East coast and tonight seemed like the right time to try my hand at bread pudding!  I went over to  my favorite recipe site...Allrecipes and found this one which was highly rated Bread Pudding II.

My Father-in-Law loved it and even my husband had a little bowl.  I am not much on eggs so it looked a bit much for me.  This recipe is a keeper and the house smells so good!  I doubled the recipe for this oval pottery dish and used 8 eggs with 4 cups of milk!  I am told it is really good though and maybe worth the calories!

Do you have a favorite recipe site? 

Cupcake Cake Pan

Cupcake Cake Pan

Guess what I got for Christmas??????  I ended up making six of these for the New Year's Eve party in town.  I was told by many in the cake walke that they kept going in order to win a cupcake cake!

Thanks to my mom for this wonderful gift that made me popular for a few hours.

Homemade Pizza!

Homemade Pizza!

I know...even my husband mentioned it.  If you watch your sales and special deals you can go pick up a pizza for about $5 for a cheese or $10 for several toppings.  So what is the point of making your own pizza?

Well we did have some fun and it was just the two of us. You can fix the toppings and the quantity of servings to your size.  We had ham an onion on about 3/4 of the pizza and the rest was pepperoni.  Typically when ordering you have to do the toppings in 1/2 this or 1/2 that.

Sometime it is snowing....and you don't want to go out.  Other times you might be lazy or not have a real good dinner idea.  This is cheap and if you always reember to have pizza sauce on the pantry shelf and some shredded mozzarella in the freezer...you and make one in minutes.

Dough Recipe

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon brown sugar

1 1/2 cups warm water

Mix these first three ingredients together and lightly cover with a lid or put another bowl over it making a cap.  This should start to foam and "proof" and will be ready in 15  minutes.

Add

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons oil

3 cups all-purpose flour

Stir with a wooden spoon by hand.  Dump onto a floured dough board and roll in another bit of flour.  Let the dough stand for a few moment with a bowl over the top to help it rise for a second while you get your toppings.

All of us have onions, you might have leftover ham, canned black olives, canned tomatoes, canned mushrooms.  Add the mozzarella last and baked in a heated 400 degree over for just a few moments.  maybe 15 max.  Enjoy!

The gift of abundance! Homemade stuffing/dressing...

Have you ever noticed that some of us call it "stuffing" and the rest of the world calls it "dressing?"

 I once heard that it depends on which part of the country you are from.  So does that mean I err on the Southern side or the Northern?

Well I started making my near famous (with the family anyway) stuffing and I nearly lost it when it grew into two stock pots full!

Friends asked me how many people I was having over and when I responded..."about eight over at mom and dad's house," I realized how odd that sounded.

You see, I freeze this stuff.  It is great stuff that after partially baked, lasts for months in the freezer.

I chatted with a good friend last night about a benefit that I would be out of town during.  I felt bad, but even worse when I learned the little man the benfit for has a twin.  I have been thinking all day about what I should do and how I could do it since I will be out of the country but arriving late by plane the day of the event.  Too late to obligate myself- with the way delays happen and all.

Here I was plating this stuffing and then all of the sudden it hit me.  Someone once said to do whatever you are best at.

I am great at stuffing- so silent auction here I come.  Folks will have a chance to win three pans of my near famous stuffing!  I will bring it to them forzen and you simply bake for 30 minutes.

Now as for the rest of it, family, friends and neighbors will get dleiveries this week.

So the moral of this day might be that we often overlook the little ways we can help.  Think about what you are good at, what sets you apart even a little bit from the next Mrs.?  I bet some are crafty and can share that with someone who is lonely or just needs a smile.  Some are great teachers of anything.....some are greta moms and don't might one more.  Some love dinner parties and might invite those who think their family of one is oh so small.

I am so inspired...I think auctioning off my acclaimed cheeseballs  might be next.  How much do you think someone might bid on my stuffing?  $5 for three?

Rice and Salad Lunch

Ever feel like your lunch is odd?  You know, a combo that is not so typical?

Today I whipped up some saffron rice and a salad.  I paired that with some of my sweet tea and that is not such a bad lunch after all!

Stay tuned today as I am fixing twice baked potato soup and then later grilled steak sandwiches.  Stay tuned for more