Our Favorite Scones

If cereal bars and toast just aren't cutting it anymore at your house, give these scones a try. My family loves them! This is a good, basic recipe from AllRecipes (I think), and is a great base for different variations.


Stir together:
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup sour cream

In a large bowl, mix:
4 C all-purpose flour
1 C white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon salt

With a pastry cutter,
Cut in 1 Cup butter (unsalted is best; if you use salted, cut salt back to 1/2 tsp.)

Dig out a hole in the middle of the flour, and add:
1 egg
Sour cream mixture

Fold mixture into flour until just moistened. Do not overmix.

Fold 1 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips. Again, do not overmix. (Like biscuits, the more you handle them, the harder they are!)

Turn out dough ball onto floured surface and pat into a circle, about 1/2 in. thick. Cut into 8-12 triangles. Bake at 350 for 13 - 16 minutes.

Variations: I usually divide my dough in half and do choc. chips for the guys, and blueberry Craisins for Addie and me. Other good variations are cinnamon raisin and choc. chip / cherry Craisins. Be sure to use dried fruit so they're not soggy!

Chocolate, of course...

It dawned on me the other day that there is only one recipe on this blog that contains chocolate. That is just wrong. A blog is supposed to represent the writer, present truth, provide a window into real life, blah, blah, blah.

So how could I leave out chocolate???

Please forgive me and enjoy these chocolate-y recipes!

Triple-Decker Brownies

1 box family-size brownies
1 container of cream cheese icing
1 cup chopped, lightly salted peanuts
3 cups rice krispies
1 cup creamy PB
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Prepare the brownies according to package directions (13x9 size).
After they've cooled, spread the icing over the top, and sprinkle the peanuts over the icing.
In a medium saucepan, melt the PB and chocolate chips over medium heat, stirring constantly.
Stir in the Rice Krispies.
Spread this mixture over the brownies. Refrigerate until firm, and then cut into squares.

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars

3 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup coarsely chopped peanuts
1 cup sunflower kernels
1/2 (or more) cups chocolate chips
1/2 (or more) cups butterscotch chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 stick butter, melted (a healthier butter substitute works fine, too)

Line a small (8 x 10 ?) baking pan with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray.
Mix all ingredients together.
Spread granola onto foil and bake at 325 for 25 - 30 minutes, until slightly golden.
Let cool to room temp. and cut into bars.

*** I must warn you that the granola bars are addictive. However, they are a good source of protein and probably a great balance of carbs and proteins (which is why it is necessary that I eat one after getting home from the gym!).

A Thrifty Tradition

Remember that scene in Gone with the Wind when Scarlett digs some kind of vegetable out of the dirt, eats it, throws it up, and then proclaims, "I'll never go hungry again!" Well, I'm pretty sure it was a dirt-covered sweet potato she devoured right then and there. I know, I know. Some of you Gone with the Wind experts know exactly what it was and you're correcting me right now. But what root vegetable could be more southern and carry more tradition than a sweet potato?

And that is exactly why my family (especially my parents), since moving to North Carolina, have developed a tradition of loading up the non-school age grandkids, trekking out to some nice farmer's sweet potato field, and harvesting the leftover sweet potatoes every fall.

Not really. Although it HAS become a tradition, it has nothing to do with some southern nostalgia of the sweet potato. In actuality, we're just really cheap. My husband prefers to call it "frugal." Call it what you will, I like free food. And, yes, I did blog about this last winter, but my mom and I put a new twist on it this year. I talked her into helping me can the sweet potatoes this year.

So, they went from this...
To this...
To this...
...To this. It doesn't get more farm to table than that!

(There really are sweet potatoes under those marshmallows. All I had on hand were campfire marshmallows!)

What surprised my mom and me was how easy canning sweet potatoes is! I baked half my potatoes and boiled the other half (skins on). The skins slipped right off the boiled potatoes. Then all we had to do was quarter them, pack the jars, put a little fresh squeezed orange juice in each jar, pour boiling syrup (2 parts water to 1 part sugar) over them, and then process them. And they're good! Making Daniel's Favorite Sweet Potatoes took no time at all when all I had to do was pour them out of the jar, spice them up, whip them, and then throw some (huge) marshmallows on top! So if you're interested in canning (just about anything), but especially some free sweet potatoes, here's the website to check out.

P.S. I'm not sure why, but my boys will eat vegetables twice as well if they've helped pick them or they even just know that Grandma and I canned them. Whatever the case, it works for me!

*This post is linked to Frugal Fridays

Some Thursday Cookin'

Thursday is probably my favorite day to cook. And when I say "cook," I mean drag out a bunch of ingredients and try something new. Or maybe something new for lunch, for snack, for supper.... Today is one of those days. So I thought I'd share a new salad recipe I had for lunch today. This one came from the Kroger home mailer, but I tweaked it a little to my liking. It includes beans, asparagus, and olive oil - so it'll make you feel healthy while you're eating it. It also includes lots of onions. Red onions. Green onions. I can sense the excitement growing. And the need for a breath mint. So enjoy!

Tuna Salad with White Beans and Asparagus

1 can of water-packed tuna

1 cup of lightly steamed asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces

1 can of white beans, rinsed well and drained

1/4 cup of red onion

2 T olive oil

1-2 T fresh lime juice

1/4 t garlic powder

1 T minced chives

dash of paprika

salt and pepper to taste

Toss all ingredients together.

And for an afternoon snack, you could try these:

Chewy Granola with Butterscotch and Chocolate

It's easy to find a basic recipe on Food Network or All Recipes. Just make sure it includes this:

Health food at its finest.

And now it's time to go pick up the kiddos from school. They're bringing home two of their best buddies so they can look for bugs. That's right. Bugs. Roly-poly's for the buddy's Roly-poly Playground, to be exact. Apparently, we have the house around which you can find lots and lots of bugs. Just what I wanted to be known for. The house with lots of bugs. I think Daniel told the buddy that we have bugs everywhere - or as Daniel would say "EVERYWHERE!" (insert dramatic hand motions). So off I go for an exciting afternoon of bug hunting! :)

Attention Kroger Shoppers

If you shop at Kroger, then there's a good possibility that you have a boneless pork loin in your freezer. Kroger puts them on sale for $1.99 at least once a month it seems. And while I do love a good pork roast (with Aunt Sue's being our very favorite around here - you can find it in the Hilltop cookbook), it's also become necessary to find other ways to serve pork. Especially if you have a pork loin hanging out in your freezer on most days! So please let me introduce you to a good recipe for pulled pork sandwiches. It's easy and my kids clean their plates when we have it!

Ingredients:
2 1/2 T of dark-brown sugar
1 T paprika
1 t chili powder
1 t ground cumin (I love the stuff, so I add more.)
1 t black pepper
1 boneless pork loin, about 2 lbs., trimmed
1 cup chicken broth (or throw a chicken bouillon cube in a cup of water and microwave it)
2 T cider vinegar
2 T ketchup

Stir together 1 T of sugar, the paprika, chili powder, cumin and pepper. Put the spices on a plate and roll the pork around in it. Save the spices that do not "stick."

Pour the chicken stock in a crock pot, put the pork in, and pour the leftover spices in with them.
Cook on low for 8 hrs., or on high for 6 hrs. Remove pork and cut into large chunks. While the pork is cooling, ladle most of the juices into a sm. saucepan. Stir in remaining sugar, ketchup and vinegar. Cook on med. for about 2 minutes. Use your hands to shred the pork, and then mix in the sauce. Use a slotted spoon to place the meat on (sesame) buns.

These sandwiches pair well sweet potato wedges or the Ore Ida sweet potato fries (which are yummy, by the way).

And Another One

Today, I decided to post my second-favorite lunch (at least, lately). Please don't be scared. This blog will not become a chronicle of what I eat every day. I promise. Last "lunch post" for a while, okay?

Ever since Kim H. introduced the chick pea and me, by way of hummus, I am majorly tempted by recipes that contain them. The only problem is that Travis doesn't seem to be as crazy about them as I am. So I have to stick to eating them for lunch. That is why I was SO EXCITED when I saw this recipe on the Picky Palate (you can find it on my sidebar). It's definitely become one of my favorite lunches. So, here is how I fix it! (Wow. If one of my former English students had used the word "fix" in that manner, there would be some red ink on that page! But, fortunately, this is a blog! :D)


Chick Pea Salad

Baby arugula
1 can of chick peas (drained)
roasted red peppers, chopped

Dressing:
1/3 cup olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp. salt
pepper to taste


Mix the dressing ingredients and pour over the chick peas. Spoon roasted red peppers over greens, and then spoon chick peas/dressing over the top.

I store the 3 main parts to the salad separately, and then make a fresh salad each day for a few days.

If you have a good summer lunch idea, feel free to leave a comment!

Good and Cheap

Couponing. Planning the menu around what's on sale. Sound familiar, anyone? Sometimes I'll buy an item because it's such a great deal, but I'm not really sure what to do with it. Like this.


Last month, I bought this product for just cents. I also had a scary amount of pasta. Harris Teeter was practically giving the stuff away, AND Addie's rice pasta had been on sale. So, needless to say, we needed some different ways to eat pasta! So here's what we've eaten twice now, and Travis and I love it. It satisfies that spicy craving. And gets rid of the pasta.

I know the picture is a little quirky, but I was determined to get those flowers in the picture. Anyways, here's the recipe for Santa Fe Penne Pasta:

1 1/2 cups of cubed chicken
vegetables (Last time, I used onion, asparagus, and squash. This time, I used zuchinni and grated carrots. Pretty much, I use what's on sale.)
1 tub of Santa Fe Philadelphia cooking creme
about 1/3 cup of milk
penne pasta, cooked (enough for 4 people)

Slice up the veggies and saute in olive oil.

Add the cubed chicken to the pan of of vegetables.



Add the creme to the pan while the pasta is boiling. (I added about two cups of chicken stock to the pot of water to boil the noodles.) Add 1/3 to maybe 1/2 cup of milk to the creme mixture and stir frequently.


When the pasta is done, do not rinse. Simply drain, divide it into bowls, and spoon the sauce over the top. Since we like ours a little spicy, we sprinkled red pepper flakes on it.

The sauce served my family of two adults and two children. And, honestly, I do not know nor want to know the nutritional value and caloric content. It contained vegetables, carbohydrates, and protein. And in my book, that's a well-balanced meal. We'll worry about the cholesterol another night. So enjoy!

A Cure for Cupcakes

A couple of months ago, I brought home some gourmet-type cupcakes from a new little cupcake shop downtown. One of the flavors we really liked was a spice cake with maple cream cheese frosting. I thought about trying to make my own version of it, but most spice cakes I've had are way too dry. I sometimes put hot milk over a cake; but with cupcakes, doing that can make the bottoms too soggy. WELL, fortunately for me, Kelly T. and I had a cupcake discussion this week, and she told me what she's been doing lately to make a better cupcake.

Are you ready for this? I just love this idea! Seriously, I came home excited about it! (I know. That makes me a baking nerd. But I'm okay with that....)

Here it is......

Yep. That is a medicine syringe, like you get FOR FREE when your child is on meds. (Probably the only thing you got free when they were sick!) Well, here's one more way for you to use it.

After you've made your cupcakes, boil 3/4 cup of milk with 1/2 cup of sugar. Use the syringe to infuse the cupcakes with the hot milk when the cupcakes first come out of the oven. (I used 3/4 of a teaspoon for each cupcake).

I did this with the spice cake cupcakes, and they really did turn out good. (I had a coupon for a free cake mix, so I just used the Duncan Hines Spice Cake mix. I did add 1 T. of cocoa - idea courtesy of Paula Deen. I think it made the cake a little less spicy, a little more rich.)
My family likes maple-flavored things, so the maple cream cheese frosting REALLY topped it off. I omitted the vanilla, and instead added 3/4 teaspoon maple flavoring to my cream cheese icing.

As you can see, the kids really liked them, and it made for a nice Friday treat. Plus, since I had too many for our family to eat (without crossing into the realm of gluttony), I took some over to my favorite neighbors. And I'm so glad I did! It gave us a chance to visit, which we haven't done in too long.

We stuck Addie on the trampoline while the boys were jumping off all that sugar.

It really was a nice way to end the week!

Sweet Potato Heaven

If Virginia is for lovers, then North Carolina is for sweet potato lovers. In the fall, the local farmers leave behind tons of sweet potatoes and let complete strangers wander through the fields and pick them up. My parents have taken Daniel "sweet potato-picking" the last couple of years; so needless to say, we have enough to last the winter! (It kind of reminds me of the story of Boaz and Ruth; except I've never heard of a marriage taking place because of harvesting leftover sweet potatoes.) Anyways, I love them; my husband, not so much. But since we've been married, I'd like to think I've coaxed him into broadening his vegetable horizons. He will now eat asparagus (when its drenched in lemon butter); I even got him to admit that he liked the spinach-stuffed Southwestern eggrolls at Chili's. I considered that a major victory (despite the fact that his excuse was, "I can't taste anything but the Mexican spice!") So getting him to eat sweet potatoes has been a bit of a challenge. When we were first married, he proclaimed that he DID NOT eat sweet potatoes. If I loaded them down with cinnamon and brown sugar, he tolerated them. Now, he will also eat them at Thanksgiving and Christmas in a sweet potato casserole (again, with lots of sugar, spice, and butter). Well, this week, I discovered another way that he'll eat them. And this way (thanks to the suggestion of Valerie M.) can be made healthier than the Paula Deen-like casseroles.

Spiced Sweet Potato Wedges

Peel 5 medium sweet potatoes and cut into wedges. Rinse in water. Dredge them in a mixture of 1 cup flour, 1 tsp. chili powder, and 1 tsp. garlic salt. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Place the wedges in the dish. Unhealthy, but good variation: Drizzle 1/4 cup melted butter over tops and sprinkle a little salt over them. Healthy variation: Drizzle some olive oil over the tops and sprinkle with salt. Bake at 350 for at 1 hr - 1hr. 20 min. You could even broil them the last few minutes to make the outsides a little crispy.

These are also a great side dish because I can easily freeze them to put away as finger foods for Addie.

And because I'm trying to do a better job of building my grocery list around what I already have, the boys and I tried this recipe last night. It's a spin-off of a recipe I saw here. But since I already had the sugar cookie mix, we did this instead.
Sweet Surprise Cookies

Mix Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie mix according to package directions. Then form dough into small balls (no bigger than 1/2 in.). Break hershey bar(s) into individual squares. Sandwich one square between two balls of dough. Seal edges around chocolate. Bake according to package directions (maybe 1-2 minutes longer).

Thomas and Daniel had fun making these last night. The entertaining part was watching Daniel act surprised every time he bit into the "surprise" chocolate middle. It really does not take much to make those kids happy.... :)

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme...

I love rosemary! I think I started loving it when I planted a bush several years ago - mainly for the reason of having a few sprigs here and there for random recipes. But that bush has done far more than offer up a couple of sprigs a few times a year. I credit it with (finally) jump-starting my labor with Thomas (after three weeks of "home rest"; then permission to have the baby, but, of course, no baby; and then walking multiple laps around the backyard close to midnight). I do not recommend chomping on raw rosemary, by the way. Desperation brought me to that point. But since then, I've found better ways to use that bush. Here's a few of them.

1. Southern Living had this suggestion in one its latest issues. Tie up several long sprigs with a pretty bow and - Ta-da! - some pretty greenery to hang on a door, mirror, or whatever else needs a little sprucing up. I hung mine on my front door for a couple of reasons: a.) My home is not large and doesn't require something huge (although something big does look nice). b.) My Christmas wreath has had it, and I needed something to prove to the neighborhood that we do celebrate Christmas. I also cannot bring myself to buy Christmas decorations that are not on clearance. I know I'm a cheapskate, but I'm okay with that. So the rosemary got me by this year!

2. Another idea comes from a sweet lady named Karen that Catherine Pendley and I met at the boys' swimming lessons last summer. Karen is a very interesting lady who has lived many different places and traveled extensively throughout Europe. I loved hearing her TELL me this recipe because she pronounced everything so beautifully. Just be glad I'm typing it.

Make a roux (equal parts butter and flour, mixed over medium heat until smooth) and then add about 1 1/2 cups of milk. Heat until thickened and add salt, pepper, and one or two chicken bouillon cubes. Yes, this is really cream of chicken, but it is sooo much better than what's in the can! Simply pour this mixture over chicken breasts, throw a few sprigs of rosemary on top, cover with foil, and bake for about an hour on 350. So good!

3. Our family's favorite bread to have with an Italian meal is definitely Becky Gunnoe's Rosemary Bread. We think it's famous. It's that good.

Mix 1 T. dry yeast, 1 T sugar, and 1 C. warm water in large bowl and allow mixture to become bubbly. Mix in 2 cups of all-purpose flour and 1 tsp. salt. Add 1 T. fresh rosemary. Knead until it's smooth and elastic (add more flour if necessary). Oil bowl, cover, and let rise in warm place for 1 hr (until doubled). Punch dough down, divide in half, and let it rest for 5 min. Shape into two loaves and place on baking stone or "sprayed" cookie sheet. Melt 2 T. butter and brush on top. Sprinkle 1 T. rosemary on top. Let loaves rise until doubled, about 45 min. Lightly sprinkle course salt over tops. Preheat oven to 425, and bake bread for about 20 min.

I love a good edible evergreen!