A Little Bit of Cooking to Take off the Chill

We decided that it is late enough in the year that we don't need the furnace on anymore, that decision may be altered before the end of the day if the snows continue, but so far, it isn't too bad. However, there is a bit of a chill so.... we begin a baking spree. Here's a few of the things we're working on...

Berry Cream Muffins

4 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
3 c. fresh or frozen raspberries or blueberries
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 c. (16 ounces) sour cream
1 c. vegetable oil
1 t. vanilla extract

            In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add berries and toss gently. Combine eggs, sour cream, oil and vanilla; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.  Bake at 400 º for 20-25 minutes or until muffins test done.
Yield: about 36 standard-size muffins.

I decided to try a new recipe for dinner rolls too...


Pan Rolls

¾ cup sugar
¾ cup shortening
1 cup boiling water
2 pkgs. dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2 eggs, slightly beaten
6 to 7 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda

Cream the sugar and shortening together; add the boiling water; mix well and set aside to cool. Dissolve the yeast in warm water. Add eggs to cooled shortening mixture; stir in yeast mixture.

Combine 5 cups flour with salt, baking powder, baking soda; mix well into yeast mixture. Pour out onto a floured board. Knead in the remaining flour until dough is no longer sticky.

Roll out about 1 ½ inch balls by hand; place in greased baking pans. Put pans of dough in warm place; cover lightly; let rise for about 3 hours or over night.

Bake at 400 degrees F. for about 20 minutes.

One of my new favorite recipes that we tried a few weeks back is Chocolate Eclair Cake. It was scrumptious!

Chocolate Eclair Cake

Crust:

1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1 cup flour
4 large eggs
Filling:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 large box (5.1 ounces) vanilla instant pudding
3 cups milk
Topping:
1 8 oz. container cool whip (just enough for a thin layer. I don't use the whole container) or one batch of homemade whipped cream
chocolate syrup or homemade chocolate sauce
Instructions

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400. Lightly grease a 9"X13" glass baking pan.

For the Eclair Crust: In a medium saucepan, melt butter in water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Stir in flour. Mix in one egg at a time, mixing completely before adding another egg. Spread mixture into pan, covering the bottom and sides evenly. Mixture will be very wet. *If the sides of your pan are too greased you won't be able to get the mixture to stay up the sides so make sure to just lightly grease. No big deal but I like the crust to go up the sides a bit.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown (Mine only took 25 minutes.) You may want to check it occasionally-you don't want to overcook the crust, it will ruin the cake! Remove from oven and let cool (don't touch or push bubbles down).

For the Filling: Whip cream cheese in a medium bowl. In separate bowl make vanilla pudding by beating the pudding mix and the milk for 3 minutes and put in the fridge until set. Make sure pudding is thick before mixing in with cream cheese. Slowly add pudding to cream cheese, mixing until there are no lumps. Let cool in fridge.When the crust is completely cooled, pour filling in. Top with layer of cool whip however thick you want it and serve with a drizzle chocolate syrup. *If you want to make this even better use homemade whipped cream.

And an old favorite that I make whenever I have over ripe bananas is...


Banana Bread Bars:

1-1/2 c. sugar
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. butter, softened
2 eggs
1-3/4 (3 or 4) ripe bananas, mashed
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. chopped walnuts (optional)

Brown Butter Frosting:
1/2 c. butter
4 c. powdered sugar
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tbsp. milk

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375F. Grease and flour 15x10-inch jelly roll pan. For the bars, in a large bowl, beat together sugar, sour cream, butter, and eggs until creamy. Blend in bananas and vanilla extract. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and blend for 1 minute. Stir in walnuts.

2. Spread batter evenly into pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

3. Meanwhile, for frosting, heat butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until boiling. Let the butter turn a delicate brown and remove from heat immediately.
4. Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk. Whisk together until smooth (it should be thicker than a glaze but thinner than frosting). Using a spatula, spread the brown butter frosting over the warm bars (the frosting will be easier to spread while the bars are still warm).


I love to bake - and I especially enjoy trying new recipes. It is always a delight when we discover a new recipe that is easy to make and tasty besides. Not only that, but there is a great deal of satisfaction in providing home baked goods for my family to consume.

Spring Days and Outdoor Fun

Spring is greatly welcomed at our house! I love it when I am finally able to tell the kids that it is warm enough for them to do the things they love outside! That includes bike riding! With the weather turning warmer and the snow melting away, that time of year has finally arrived!!! That means that a trip to the park is in order!!!

The photographer

There is nothing like riding a bike on a warm sunny day, the breeze blowing in your hair! Not only does it feel good but it is invigorating as well.

Sometimes life is like riding a bike. There are parts of each day that require a little more exertion than others, and sometimes they are downright difficult (like climbing a hill) BUT there is always a period of carefree coasting that seemingly doesn't require a great deal of effort, it comes from being consistent and enjoying life - even when it is hard. Those moments of ease are made all the more delightful as we look back to see the hill we miraculously crested, or the sand we made it through. There is such joy to be had in the small things of every day. What a blessing all the little things are!

Eggs and Chocolate!

Easter is a fabulous holiday where we get to enjoy having our kids home for a whole week! This year everyone was home and that made it that much better!!! Easter at our house this year consisted of coloring Easter Eggs, having a turkey dinner, inviting guests and of course the traditional Easter Egg hunt.

We started out with egg painting...

The kids made wonderful Easter eggs filled with bright colors! I loved how this one turned out with the colors swirling together. The dye we used this year dried shiny and was a lot of fun to use.

Besides swirling the colors together there were lots of other egg coloring techniques employed. Wax, sponges, paint brushes and even a candle were used. Each egg was beautiful and unique. Unfortunately I didn't get the camera out in time to capture the fun the kids had painting those eggs.

This year was unique because I usually cook the whole meal, however, this year I was suffering from a fairly recent injury to my ankle. So this year my good husband and willing children were a great blessing to me in the kitchen. They peeled and cooked the potatoes, cooked vegetables and basically prepared the whole meal. I came in to help with the gravy and I even helped slice a bit of the meat. I didn't do much as I was trying to prevent too much swelling from the days activities. Chad served my plate for me and brought it to me. He is so good to me. The kids brought me a drink and were quietly willing to refill my cup as needed. 

What a blessing to see and enjoy the love of my family for me during this special holiday season. Especially since this is the time of year that we celebrate the greatest act of love in the history of the earth - the Atonement performed by our Savior Jesus Christ. Selfless service in our homes reflects a great degree of that love that Christ has for us. What a blessing it is to give and feel love.

So with the meal cooked and on we enjoyed good company and good food followed by an Easter egg hunt! I asked for volunteers for an Easter bunny and was rewarded with a couple of willing hands who took the sweet Easter treats and the Easter eggs outside where they were deftly hidden. They did a really good job of it too. When we had everyone gather outside to begin the hunt, it took a rewardingly long time to find everything, and this year we were still short one little egg that seemingly had disappeared (the kids combed the yard the next day and found it though). I kept my camera busy snapping shots of not just the kids but some of the prizes in their hiding places as well.

As the hunt wound down everyone just enjoyed the companionship and joy of being together as a family. What a joy it was to all be together for the celebration.

I am so thankful for my beautiful family. They are a joy and a delight every day. I am SO thankful for the power of the atonement which allows us, through Christ, to work toward becoming more like Him so that we can have a hope of living together eternally, and enjoy together the gift of eternal life.

The Tortoise Vs the Hare

My kids have a flare for acting - as for me, I never enjoyed being on stage, but I certainly do enjoy watching a good play! This year my elementary kids got to participate in the Missoula children's theater. They put on the story of the tortoise and the hare and as is usual there was a moral to the story. 

The story opened up with a division between the reptiles and the mammals. As the story progressed the two groups learned to appreciate one another's differences and actually began to associate one with another. I had four little actors in the play. A reporter, an artist, and two reptiles.

Here is the cast making silly faces. They put the whole play together in 4-5 days and did a fabulous job!

I love the moral to this story. Through theatrical expression everyone who participated learned that there is good in everyone, we just have to be willing to look for and find it. Once we do that our lives are richer and our associations are more diversified. It is never fun living as though enemies, particularly when in close proximity to one another, it is always better to look past faults, disagreements and preconceived notions to the goodness that others possess. Acceptance is always preferable to rejection, and when we actively reject others we lose something too. 

I believe that the moral of this play came from the teachings of the Savior, who gave what we often call the golden rule.

In the Tortoise verses the Hare it came down to something like "Accept others the way you would like to be accepted by them." I have found that acceptance is so much easier to give because we cannot change anyone but ourselves, and dwelling on the imperfections of others makes us critical and, simply put, not fun to be around. Giving acceptance allows others to be who they are, make the choices they feel are best for them and keeps the lines of communications open and free of baggage. What a blessing acceptance is, both on the giving and on the receiving ends!