Sloppy Joes

I just realized that not only are we buying our very first house...but I start school Wednesday! Kinda freaking out! And I'm unsure what to do about work :( I'm pretty sure Marian hired me because she knows me, which is pretty awesome don't' get me wrong, but I'm have concerns. I took the job because I thought we had four or five months until we moved, not a matter of weeks! Now I feel really guilty that she has put the time and energy into training, as much training as there is at a gas station lol. (ok, that was mean, I'm just saying that it isn't rocket science, and really, come on, if you have used one register, you pretty much know what your doing. There are some odd things with the pumps, but it still isn't rocket science!) Anyway, we should know by tomorrow night if the house is ours or not! Its in Springville, in a great neighborhood, super green lawns, all kept up nicely, kids playing, and Hobble Creek in the back yard! Fishing any old time we want, and a hot tub!! We do have a bit of work in the basement, but I think that can be managed. :) Sorry about the bread recipe Meg, but I've got to mop, and pretend to clean the kitchen before the kids get out of school or it'll never get done. Tonight I think we are having Sloppy Joes.

1 lb browned Hamburger
1/2 onion diced
2 cloves roasted garlic
1 can Diced Tomatoes
1 pkg Sloppy Joe season
1 cup water
Cabela's Roasted Garlic and Beer season
Salt and Pepper
Green Onions (add color!)

Serve on sliced/toasted bread, open, or as a sandwich.

Went to check on the quiet kids and none of them (Talon or Canyon) will fess up...

ENJOY!

I just realized I never came back and finished :) sorry! Neither boy would fess up to the hair cut (which, thanks to his curls, you really can't tell lol) then I had to run off to work. Check above for additions and changes.

So today was house hunting day...and bread day. It seems that Rob took the last of the bread to work (silly man thinking he needs lunch) so when we got home from our house hunting, Bronco was incredibly upset without his daily sandwich! I tried making him some soup, but he didn't go for it, and was upset with me until the bread got finished LOL. Anywho, back to the houses :) We were supposed to see four, but of course as close to the tax credit deadline, two of them were already under contract. :( The one in Payson was HORRIBLE with that horrible cat smell, you know what I'm talking bout! Can you believe that it only got worse from there?? EWWW nuff said. The one in Springville wasn't all I wanted it to be, but it could be! So we (and by we, I mean Rob) is going to put in the offer tomorrow!!! Go us!! With all this house hunting, and starting the bread at 1pm, we had spaghetti for dinner, sauce out of a can, added hamburger with the customary garlic and onions...nothing special. Off to watch NCIS :P

Today was supposed to be bread day, but I had to run Canyon to the Dr., and waited impatiently all day for the real estate agent to call. Impatience means nothing got done...at all. :( Now my house looks horrible, and I have no bread. :( But he did finally call back, and we (by that I mean "I") am going to look at homes tomorrow. They decided that this week would be a good one for Rob to Have to work overtime. What a great Monday :S. So, I had River make Mac & Cheese for dinner. :)

Chicken Spinach Pizza

After dinner last night I got this incredible call from our Real Estate agent, Gary Booth. He has been coaching us financially to help us get into a house too. (Great guy!) Anywho, he said that there is a big possibility that we could still get that $8000 housing tax credit! Wahooo, so besides starting work this weekend, we will be house hunting! Go us! :) So if you have any great houses in your neighborhood, really cheap, and NOT a short sale, let me know! (Execpt you Misty, sorry, can't move to Florida yet :) )

Last night I made up this great dinner!! (Ok, I stole the idea from Papa Murphy's) but I totally made up how to do it lol. Here we go:

16 oz Sour Cream
1 pkg Ranch dressing
4 Cups Bisquick
2 Chicken Breasts
Green Onions
Spinach
Powdered Garlic
Milk
2 kinds of Cheese
Cherry Tomatoes

In a bowl mix the Bisquick with Milk. I didn't measure the Milk, just add a little at a time until it is dough like in consistency. Roll out, and place in cookie sheet. Mix Ranch dressing packet with Sour Cream, and spread on dough. Dice up Green Onions, and Spinach, spread on top of Sauce. I added a small amount of Feta Cheese, and grated a bit of Mozzarella. Add cooked and thinly sliced Chicken. Cut Cherry Tomatoes in half and add to pizza. Cook @ 350 for about 30 minutes.

ENJOY!

Loads of changes!

I have to start off by saying sorry for not posting much lately, the weather has just been way too nice to sit at the computer when I only have one boy to push! So once I get the 3 older boys in school, I put Bronco in the stroller, grab the dog and go! We walk/jog for about a hour and a half, the really dumb part is that I usually end up dragging the dog home! How sad is it that I am in better shape then the dog?!?! I really feel bad for not taking him out as much during the winter, I seriously hate the cold! I would walk him to the school and back picking up the boys and whatnot, but seriously, I have never been able to out run a dog! Although my dear friend Misty says that Beagles aren't the most energetic things out there lol. Which is probably why he fits in so well here! :) Yesterday we jogged down to Macey's to return a movie (I was so MAD when all I had was an empty case, as I had left the movie in the DVD player!) and poor Rocky stuck just behind me, in my shadow all the way home! LOL

Drastic change of subject here, I want you to check out this guys blog http://david-j-west.blogspot.com/ He has titled it Nephite Blood, Spartan Heart. I'm reading his first book now and its really good so seriously, get yours today! I picked mine up @ Borders in Provo, or you can order it, "Heroes of the Fallen" at amazon.com. Or, if your in the area, he will be at the AF library May 3nd @ 7pm.

I am starting work at Harts on Sat, so my schedule will be all messed up again, and it will take me a bit to get back on track, so expect that. Sorry Megan, you'll be on your own for dinner ideas! :D

Ok, for dinners I haven't really done much, a lot of cheating really (we had Mac & Cheese with hot dogs last night!) We did fried Chicken with noodles, and home made Mac & Cheese another night...I'll give you the recipe for the home made Mac & Cheese, the kids just love that, and its really versatile. When I say versatile I mean that this recipe is just the bare bones, if all you do is follow the recipe it will lack flavor. You've got to be creative here and add your own blend of spices and meats.

4 Tbsp Butter
4 Tbsp Flour
2 Cups Milk
Shredded Cheese
Noodles (you can use elbows, swirly ones, colored ones, I've used just about all of them except the spaghetti noodles)
Meat

Cook & drain Noodles. In a sauce pan, melt Butter, then add flour. Cook for a bout 30 sec then whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil so it can thicken, then add salt & pepper. When white sauce thickens, add a handful of Cheese (at least lol) and stir until Cheese is melted. Add noodles, meat (kielbasa, little smokies, ham, hot dogs, chicken any really!) and add your spices. Make it colorful again, use green onions, red peppers ect.

ENJOY!!

Sour Cream Enchiladas

Ok, so I'm more then a little obsessed with this Mormon VS Monster thing, you can find the details here: http://ow.ly/1yTDT So, I still have no idea whats for dinner tonight, but I have some great story line action going on! Found some great research books, "Blood and Thunder" by Hampton Sides is (I think) going to give me a great location, and "Hunt for Skinwalker" by Colm A Kelleher, Ph.D., and George Knapp are providing a foundation for my Skinwalker. :) Now if only I could get a hold of Beaner...

Just thought of something for dinner! Sour Cream Enchiladas :) here it is straight out of my cookbook (ish) lol I melded a few recipes together to make it better.

*1 lb Browned Hamburger
1/2 Onion diced
1-2 cloves Garlic, minced (or if you buy it in the jar
1 4oz can diced Green Chillies
**1 4oz can of Mushrooms
1 can Cream of Chicken
1 can Cream of Mushroom
8 oz Sour Cream
2 handfuls of Shredded Cheese
8-10 Tortilla's

Of course you should add onion and garlic to your hamburger :) Mix all together in a bowl EXCEPT 1 cup of the cheese, save that for later. Heat oven to 350, and grease your 9X13 pan. Spread mixture in tortilla shells, roll, and place in pan. When your pan is full, pour the left over mixture on top of tortillas in the pan and top with extra cheese. Cook for about 30 mins, or until its 'warmed through', that usually means the cheese on top is melted.

*or 2 Chicken Breasts cooked and shredded
**and/or sliced olives

No time to proof read, so deal with it, its after 4 and I haven't started yet! :O

So if you try any of these please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!

Split Pea Soup

What a beautiful spring day!! Yesterday it snowed, today its mid 60s, and its only going to get better as the week goes. I love spring! So why, you might ask, did I choose such a winter dinner for tonight? I have no clue. lol I am going to write in a real recipe style today :) hopefully this will help me remember things. When I go back to proof read, I always remember more ingredients lol.

*1 Ham Roast-thawed
1 lb split peas, prepared per package instruction
1 Onion
1 Red Pepper
4 Carrots
2 tsp Parsley flakes
2 Cloves Garlic
**3 Celery stocks

Put ham and split peas into crock pot, turn on high. Dice Onion, Red Pepper, Celery Stocks, mince the Garlic, and add to pot along with all other ingredients. Mix. Cook for, well, all day.

All measurements are approximate, I don't really measure anything, I just keep adding until it looks, tastes, and smells right. You can add what ever else sounds good to you, just try to keep it colorful.

*Can substitute a beef roast, but it won't have nearly the flavor
**Can substitute diced Celery seeds

Homemade Rolls go perfect with this dinner. Crystal was so right, my kids actually eat their dinner now, they used to look at what was on the plate, and say "ewww Gross" and walk away, I couldn't even get them to sit at the table! Now they are asking for seconds, which, really, is why I started blogging about food, if your lucky one of these days I'll give you my bread recipe.


ENJOY!

Lasagna

So I totally forgot to get that recipe from Rob, so we'll just have to skip that part and go on to last night. Yesterday was bread day, plus I needed to scrub the house, and yet somehow I managed to squeeze out a great lasagna. My lasagna is super easy to make, and you can make it early, throw it into the fridge, and cook when your ready! First off I have to say that I don't really like the noodles that you don't have to cook, they always seem a bit rubbery to me. So I started the noodles, put the baby in his high chair, turned around that the stinking stove was on fire!! I don't know what happened really, but it made me pretty mad. (well, after I put the fire out I was mad :) ) I pulled the pan off, and the fire, of course, got bigger, then I through my pizza pan on top, since your not supposed to use water on kitchen fires. Well, that didn't work out too well for me since the flames came up around the pan. :( I was beginning to get really worried when the flames receded, the smoke turned super black, and soon I was able to take the pan off. RIP Pizza Pan, you served us well. We got that pan for our wedding, over 10 years ago! So I suppose it really has served us well. I cleaned up and started again, albeit on a different burner! Anyhow, cook you noodles (about 6) per box instructions, usually boil for 10 min. then I put the pan in the sink and run cold water, and I never plan far enough in advance to let them cool on their own. Now you need to dice up 1/2 onion, and 1 mince 1 clove of garlic, and saute. Rob says I don't saute things right, so I'll tell you what I do. I drizzle a bit of EVOO in the sauce pan, and just toss in my onions, and garlic. When the onions are clear I put in my hamburger. You can use chicken, or your choice of meat, but I only cook the onions and garlic with hamburger. Anyway, cook and drain your meat, grease the pan (9X13) I use Crisco, its a lot cheaper to buy a big tub of Crisco then the spray on grease's. Pull out a mixing bowl, and toss in your meat, onions, and garlic. Chop up and add 1/4-1/2 red or green pepper (green is prettier, but if you have kids, chop the pepper really fine). Add a hand full (or two) of shredded cheddar, about 1/2 pound cottage cheese, and a bit of any other type of cheese, we like feta, a small can of mushrooms, and finally spaghetti sauce, mix all together. Next I put a 8 oz can of tomato sauce on the bottom of the 9X13 pan, add a layer of noddles (about 3) then a layer of everything else from your bowl, another layer of noodles, and top off with the rest of your mixture. I add another layer of cheddar cheese on top just for Rob. Toss that into the oven, uncovered, for 35ish minutes @ 350.

ENJOY!!

Back home again, I love my bed :D!! Now I just gotta clean the house, do the laundry, go grocery shopping, run kids back and forth to school all day, and be done and home by 4. Not so sure about any sweet new recipes today. :) Ohh, I take that back! On my way out the door from Mom and Dads, Dad helped me grab some more meat, (we use lots of hamburger and roasts) had Rob put it all away when we got home, and he found a few pounds of Elk burger!! YES! Believe it or not I actually called Dad to make sure that's what he meant to do. LOL He didn't even realize they had Elk hehe, so he said to keep it! Rob was sooo excited! Last night he BBQ'd Elk Burgers, and huge mushrooms, he even put a great salad on the side! I don't remember what seasoning he did to the burgers, so I will add to this tonight after I ask him! :)

Cauliflower

At least, I think that's how its spelled...oh well, on to today's recipe. Rob's new favorite side dish is Cauliflower. Now, I'm not such a big fan of it either, but you should really give this one a try before you decide to hate it. Before I get to the recipe, I want to tell you how we got there...It all started with our Best Man, Crystal. Yep, our Best Man was a girl, you'll have to ask in person cause that's not what this post is about. Anyway, she has her own business "Clear Health" in Lindon. She is a RN, and into holistic healing, she actually has a MA in...well, I can't remember exactly what's its called, but it has to do with holistic healing. No, she isn't a crazy anti-medicine person if you need the drugs, then by all means, take them! But, if she can help you naturally, without all the side effects, why not give it a go?? You can follow them on twitter here: http://twitter.com/ClearHealth or on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Lindon-UT/Clear-Health/143128254658?ref=ts Rob went to see her and she talked about how unhealthy we have been eating. Potatoes are full of starch, and carbs, so Crystal told Rob to give Cauliflower a try. She said to make it just like you would make 'real' mashed potatoes. So we got a couple heads, diced them up, and boiled, and boiled until we could stick a fork in it. Then we used a potato masher, and stuck it into the Kitchen Aid and blended it to get it smoother, added some salt, some butter, garlic, and Presto! It was pretty good! I know all that cheese probably wasn't so healthy, but Rob says he will NEVER give up his cheese lol. So go get yourself a head or two and give it a try!


As Crystal says, "Remember to make your plate a rainbow!!" I'm trying! I even bought some broccoli, green pepper, eggplant, jalapeno pepper, and grand bell pepper mix Seeds! Can't wait to get a garden! :D

LOL so I screwed up, don't us milk and cheese, it wasn't as good. I got back home and asked Rob, he just used butter, salt and garlic. So I changed it up above, but just in case...:)

Here we go again...

I've been a slacker when it comes to blogging lately. You see, its this thing call Facebook, perhaps you've heard of it? I caught me, and I had to fight my way out, I still visit, often, but I've let poor sad facebook know that they can not be the only site I visit anymore. I've just got to keep my options open. So if you see my poor weeping facebook, you'll understand, and please try to cheer him up? Speaking of facebook, why O why does facebook spell checker not recognize facebook as a word? I'm just asking, it seems a bit silly to me, and having all the facebooks underlined in red is becoming a bit distracting! See, now I've gotten completely off track, I began by trying to tell you I was attempting another go at blogging. I've been really trying to make as much food "homemade" as I can. I started with the bread, yes, I make homemade bread at least once a week. In-point-of-fact, I have not bought bread for a couple months now. No, wait, that is a lie, I am staying at my parents with the boys for spring break this week, so I bought a couple loaves so Rob could have something for his lunches. Back to the 'homemade' nonsense. It all started because we need to scrimp up every little penny so that we might finally get a house. I'm fed up with renting, living in white trash neighborhoods. OVER IT! I know, I know, I myself may very well be white trash to a lot of folks, but even I have my limits. When they move into a duplex with 5-6 LARGE dogs, and they find it amusing when their dogs spray my little beagle, yea it kinda ticks you off a bit. I think the worst part was that I was right there, in the kitchen making playdough with the kids, and watching the dogs. I was a warm day, all the doors and windows were open, they, the ADULTS are saying "Shhh, don't tell her!" Lady, I'm not stupid, or deaf so....yea, time to get a house, and a wooden fence! Ok, griping done, onto the sweet "new" recipe I tried out today. This one is from my famous, or is it infamous ;) Aunt Gayle!

1 Hour Cinnamon Rolls

Mix:
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 1/4 Cup Warm Water
3 Tbls Yeast
Add:
1/2 Cup Oil
2 Beaten Eggs
1/2 tsp Salt
Let rest for 15 minutes
Add:
5 Cup Flour, 1 Cup at a time
Knead for 5 minutes
Roll out
1/2 Cup Melted Butter
2 Tbls Cinnamon
1/2 Cup Sugar
Raisins, Nuts ect
Roll and Slice, place in buttered pan, let rest 10 min.
Bake 10 minutes @ 425 degrees or until tops are brown.

Mom drizzled a powdered sugar glaze on top, perfection!
How do you make a glaze?? Simple, its just powdered sugar, milk, and whip until you find the constituency you want. (umm, constituency doesn't look right??)

My Dad

So my dad just made up this great game, I'll call it Alien Planet.

Have the kids make a blanket 'hut' send them into a room, like the bathroom, then you hide 12ish items *Dad used large blocks.* They have to find all the blocks. Randomly call out 'meteor shower!' or 'acid rain!' The kids have 7 seconds to get into their 'spaceship' or they die. They have to lay down right where they are when you get to 7, the kids who made it into the 'spaceship' have to drag their fallen comrade back into the spaceship to revive them, then they can rejoin the game. We have an 18 month old baby who the older boys call the 'alien' if the alien touches them they die. (The baby loves this part!)

Any questions?? Then start playing!!