Pin it & Do it #10

Easy Cinnamon rolls from scratch  EASY PEASY! they went perfectly w/the chili in the crockpot last Tuesday night for supper & the leftovers were great for breakfast. Adding it to my arsenal! WIN

Homemade Beer Bread 
I am a big fan of Tastefully Simple beer bread mix & this tasted the same.  I made it for Tim to take on his hunting trip with the guys back in March. He couldn't tell it was homemade. WIN

Tuscan Lemon Chicken   

Found on musingsofahousewife.com  

This was so good! I used this for my half of the chicken breast for Saturday's grilled supper. Its my new go to.  the only changes I made were that I used dried Rosemary & omitted the salt & lemon zest. I used it for shredded chicken for homemade chimichangas & have enough leftover for salad topping today! WIN

Pin it & Do it #8

Swedish Meatballs   pure yumminess! I use my 'regular' meatball recipe & use this sauce. Tim AND the kids like it too. Win!!

Boil eggs in the oven   I have done 3-4 dozen like this now & had no complaints until the last back, for some reason the inner skin of the shell didn't peel off w/the shell so I had to spend extra time rubbing it off. Nothing major but inconvenient. Boiling some in water -you know, the old fashioned way-from the same dozen eggs now so we will see if they are with or without the inner skin issue.  

Infant report sheet   Starting a new infant in care this week I needed a report card to send home daily.  I lost the old one I used to use on an old computer so Pinterest to the rescue! I saved this file, opened it in Picasa, leveled, cropped & printed them 4 to a sheet. FANTASTIC WIN!!! 

Pin it & Do it #9

Greek Yogurt Coffee Cake -OH my GOODNESS! I had high hopes for this one & it exceeded them. If you EVER need a sweet, moist brunch or afternoon contribution for a small group, I highly recommend this little gem! It bakes in a bread loaf pan so it makes it the perfect size for my group for after school snack or 2 breakfasts. WIN!

Chunky Monkey Protein Smoothies -SO good  & healthy!! next time I would add a bit of honey for sweetness as the ones w/the extra sweet tooth weren't huge fans but I loved them & the majority did too. I even froze the leftovers to thaw a few days later & had myself one for breakfast! Win!

Honey Mustard Pork Chops - YUMMMMMMM!! I don't know what I was thinking ordering pork chops from the food coop the week before Tim's hog hunt but I did & with the call coming in yesterday that his pork is ready at the locker, I wanted to get the ones from the coop eaten before they got lost in the shuffle. Please tell me that happens in your freezer too, the stock doesn't always get rotated & eventually you find a 'treasure' in the back or bottom that is wayyyyyyyyyy past its prime? :) I have gotten much better about it with my desire to get the most out of everything we have but it still does happen.  ANYWAY, recipe, Kim! I cooked last night (which is odd-I am blessed w/a husband that has discovered the joy of cooking)+I wanted to use the pork chops+pinterest rocks. This was SUPER EASY! I cannot believe how easy! the only thing I did differently was that I didn't measure the onion salt or black pepper. Yes, I actually used onion salt. I usually don't but I realized we have an almost new jar in the cupboard & needed to use it, I just won't be replacing it. I also had to lengthen the final cook time by 5 minutes to get them up to 165 but I might instead lengthen the first section of cook time from 3 minutes per side to 5 or 6 minutes per side.  Tim even liked this & said to hold on to that recipe! That is a definite WIN!!

Go Pin it & Do it!

Poor Man's Steak-recipe

Remember my post about this little cookbook? Well, I did one of the recipes in it last week.  The one from my  late Grandma Riemenschneider.  This makes me chuckle because being an 'old farm wife moved to town' she rarely cooked anything for us kids homemade. Stove Top stuffing, angel food cake from a mix, shake & bake chicken, canned green beans. LOL I assume she cooked this way when we were around for a couple of reasons.  1. having 3 grandkids around does not leave a lot of time for made from scratch meals, as she was always very attentive, active & overall present when we were with them. I never had to 'go looking for her' as she was always with in close range. 2. coming from the farm, where they did everything from scratch due to necessity, having the box options was probably pretty appealing (which I have seen & heard from many in that generation) & I find it amusing that now, with all the box options, we are choosing to make time & take the effort to go back to making more homemade :)  Okay, all that said, lets get on with the goodies!

Poor Man's Steak

3# ground beef (I used 2)
1 c milk
1 c bread or cracker crumbs (I used bread)
1/4 c grated onion (optional) (I used 1tbs onion onion seasoning from Tastefully Simple)
1 can mushroom or celery soup (I used homemade cream soup mix + water)
1 can water

mix together meat, milk, crumbs &  onion. At this point I also added 2 tsp black pepper & 1 tbs garlic garlic (also from Tastefully Simple-using up what I have in the cupboards). Spread on cookie sheet or 9x13 (I used a 9x13 so I could reuse it later), cover & chill 3 hours to overnight.  (I ended up leaving it for 48 hours) When ready to cook, pull out & cut into squares, flour & brown in a skillet (I thought at the time that this was a huge waste of time but in the end it was TOTALLY worth it + I had to add oil to my skillet b/c my beef is pretty lean) before placing in the baking dish (this is where I reused my 9x13). Cover with soup & water, bake @ 350 for an hour.

This reminded me of my salisbury steak recipe with a longer process but ended up being totally worth it & will be repeated as it was even approved by Tim (the critic) :)  The leftovers were served to the kids & they LOVED it! Win-Win!

Popovers-recipe

Have you ever had popovers?  I love their eggy-ness, that they are best warm from the oven but still yummy the next day, they are sugar free & that they are filling.  They can be eaten plain, w/honey, butter, jelly or jam or applesauce (our current dip of choice around here).  I have been making popovers & mini popovers for the kiddos for about 10 years & didn't even know until Sunday that there was such a thing as a popover pan. Yesterday I was racking my brain looking for something quick to throw in the oven for afternoon snack & realized I hadn't served them in ages, so popovers it was.  Then I realized I have never blogged the recipe to share, so here you go!

Popovers

preheat oven AND muffin pan(s) to 425

mix together:
1 c flour
1/4 t salt
1 c milk
2 eggs

pour into hot greased muffin tins
bake 30 minutes for full size muffins (8-12 for minis)
mine yesterday did NOT get puffy, the kids said they didn't pop over, they popped under (they all had divots in the top ;)) but still tasted yummy!

I could see baking them n custard cups like this recipe on allrecipes.com suggests for other occasions.

Pin it & do it #7

oops, better late than never... Early out last Thursday, No School Friday & Monday with a surprise overnight away on Saturday=nothing blogged, nothing even cooked to blog about. Then we have had stew meat cooked in the crockpot using my roast recipe the past 2 nights for supper as hot beef sandwiches, I made donut muffins yesterday & a friend's meatball recipe I love, so just one recipe pinned & done to report.


First try- Bisquick Cornbread- Ick, that was my first thought when I tried it warm out of the pan.  Upon further investigation I have found another recipe with less butter, sugar (that I plan to sub in honey for) & baking powder to try next time. this one- FAIL! unless smothered in honey :)

the burger I had at Zombie Burger on my scrapping weekend last month. going to in search of copycat recipes!

Roast

How do you make a roast?

Growing up Mom always had a roast in the crock pot first thing in the morning, then on her lunch hour (or mine when I was old enough to get to leave school for lunch) one of us would put cut up carrots, onions & potatoes in around the meat & it would cook all day & be hot & ready when we got home for supper.  We were probably married about 3 years before I decided to finally try one. (if I tried one before that, it must not have turned out because I don't remember it)  finding it an easy meal, I started to make it way too often & we both tired of it.  One day I happened upon a 'new' way to cook a roast, you put a can of pop & onion soup mix in with it, & you could either put the veggies in at the beginning or mid-way through.  So I did that method for a few years.  Until I started focusing on eating healthier. I attended a training sponsored by my childcare food program & learned JUST how much sodium is in those little bitty packets. (I had already cut pop out of my diet but would use one of Tim's pops just for roast)  At this training, she had several things made up ahead for us to try, a couple we made on site & others we just talked about.  Thankfully, we each got THIS cookbook w/14 recipes inside.  Some recipes for homemade mixes & some for dishes.  Each dish recipe has 3 sets of directions: East NOW, Freeze for LATER, & to serve LATER.

My version of Bold Beef from the cookbook:

1. 1 1/4 c water w/1/3 c cream soup mix in the microwave 2 minutes(yes I do use my mic for this as I am usually throwing it together last minute upstairs before my first kiddos arrive or I have remembered it & run up to throw it in quickly while they are otherwise being entertained)
2. 1/2c water w/1/3 c onion soup mix w/1tsp Worcestershire sauce
3. mix 2 together & pour over roast, chuck steak or stew beef chunks in crock pot
4. cook on low 8-10 hours will fall apart when done

the recipe says you can also put onion slices & mushrooms in with it but we don't do 'shrooms & there is plenty of onion in the mixes that I felt it was a waste to add fresh.

Today I was at a loss for what to do with the chuck steak I had thawed out, its a bit too much work to grill right now, we have had pan seared, oven baked steaks once a week for almost a month & realized I hadn't done a 'normal' roast in a while -remember I tried the Mississippi pot roast from pinterest a couple of weeks ago & it wasn't a hit, so I went with this, which really is my go-to when we are at a loss for a meal. 

the cream soup mix & the onion soup mix recipes are both included in the book & include side by side nutrition facts comparisons that are mind boggling to me! the sodium in the onion soup mix comparison especially:  homemade - 5.7 mg, store bought - 3560 mg!!!!!!!!!! that is NOT a typo!  NO WONDER we no longer go through a gallon of water or milk with our supper when we have roast. holy toledo batman. So I checked the sodium in the other 2 mixes for you:

taco seasoning homemade - 30.6  mg vs store bought -  2328.7 mg 

cream soup mix homemade - 111 mg vs store bought - 2110 mg 

Seriously. crazy. I am going to mix some of these up for my grandparents to have on hand & take all of their store bought versions out of their home. back story: My grandma just had a stroke last fall that may or may not have been caused by high sodium levels & I don't want a repeat. (haha-if you know my grandparents, you know, I could bring in my mixes but I am not going to be allowed to take out & 'waste' their store bought items :) but it was a good plan in my head... )  These recipes can be used in anything that calls for the store bought versions; onion soup mix + hamburger = savory hamburger patties on the grill, I have been known to sprinkle it in hamburger I am browning to serve the kiddos for lunch, or in french onion soup.  The cream soup is a little more tricky as it has to be mixed with water, then 'cooked' before using but still healthier than the canned version.  

so, now after my little sodium rant, are you watching yours?

How do you make a roast?

Pin it & Do it #6

Pioneer Woman's spicy shredded pork-- well, I used a pork loin that was in the freezer, not a shoulder & think I may have put too much water for the roasting pan I used as this wasn't all that flavorful & definitely not spicy. :( Keeping to try again next month so calling this one a DO OVER.

Plain Chicken's White Bean Chicken Chili {slow cooker} -- I don't know about you but I am a sucker for a Thankful Thursday post? This is THAT recipe)
slow cooker recipe!  Since I was just finishing up making some Chicken bone broth, I had both fresh shredded chicken & broth on hand & instead of freezing both to thaw out later to make this, I just bumped this up in my pile.  Since it was a last minute decision, I did have to do some edits but it worked. (remember my recent

•    12 oz cooked chicken chopped--fresh cooked in the crock pot 
•  3 (15oz) cans white beans, drained--2 cups (ish) dryed/soaked from the local Amish thanks to Grandpa
•  1 (4oz) can green chiles--peppers from summer farmer's market that were chopped then frozen
•  24 oz salsa-- Tim's homemade salsa
• ·         3 cups chicken broth--fresh cooked in the crock pot
• ·         1 Tbsp cumin-- end of the bottle of Mexican chili powder from an Arizona uncle
• ·         16 oz monterey jack cheese, grated--mozarella-its just what I had

*I* loved it. Tim, anti-chicken that he is-took one bite & said it tasted too much like chicken.. chicken was the last thing I tasted, I detected the jalapenos & mexican chili pepper. SO, I have 3 meals for myself in the freezer & one to share w/a friend. HALF WIN

Only 2  new recipes week to report. 

Pin it & Do it #5

Old El Paso Deep Dish Taco Squares -

• doubled the bisquick, water & ground beef, 
• used homemade bisquick & homemade taco seasoning
• since the seasoning was homemade I think it was stronger than the pkg-use half next time
• left out the tomatoes & peppers, next time I will use homemade salsa

other than tasting salty (I assume it was just too much seasoning) it was a WIN.

Haggy Housewife's Homemade Bisquick mix - used items I had on hand (YAY for knowing everything that's in it!) & mixed up in a jiffy! worked just fine in the above taco squares recipe. trying it for quick biscuits next week. WIN!

Iowa Girl Eats' Cheesy Potato Soup - Tim was immediately turned off by the name (potato soup) & its too spicy for the childcare kiddos but I loved it!  I even froze the leftovers in single meal size portions for myself.  Thawed & ate one this week-just as good as fresh!  Edits: I used real potatoes shredded in my processor instead of frozen & may have used more than 4 cups, used a whole quart of homemade chicken bone broth, skipped the shallot, red pepper flakes(didn't have any) & green onions, used 1/2 white onion instead, shredded a whole (8oz) block of cheese to use.  HALF A WIN ;) 

are you doing anything you pin? are you enjoying these posts? 

Pin it & Do it #4

crockpot french toast http://www.pinterest.com/pin/262827328227938472/-- YUM!! we will be doing this
again! I followed the recipe & easily could have doubled it for my little 4 quarter! I forgot to turn the crockpot on when I went to bed, so started it in the morning & we ate it for lunch. WIN

Mississippi pot roast http://www.pinterest.com/pin/262827328227944725/-- not sure, calls for a re-do. I used a 7 bone roast, it wouldn't lay down in my 6 quart crockpot so the butter all ran off & burnt to the bottom so the roast wasn't incredibly tender. I shredded it that night & Tim smothered it in BBQ & ate it on hamburger buns for his lunch at work the next day, so not a total loss. I am going to try it on a smaller roast that will fit in the bottom & report again.  RE-DO

homemade ranch mix  http://www.pinterest.com/pin/262827328227982703/ -- I have been making a similar recipe for over a year now, but lost the print out & couldn't find it on my blog so switching to this one which is really, REALLY close.  used it in the Mississippi pot roast & it was fine.  going to mix it w/some cream cheese for a weekend snack w/veggies or crackers. WIN

Pin it & Do it #3

1. donut muffins  oh  my goodness these are so good we've had them twice this week! good for after school snack & breakfast as well. a couple of them even liked to dip them in their hot cocoa :) WIN
2. New Nostalgia's Ooey Gooey Popcorn - I can't believe I haven't posted this yet! I made it perfectly the first time, the next 2 not so much, then again perfectly one day last week & it is going on our weekly-after-school-snacks list! YUMMMMM  WIN
3. So clever! Car trash can   I loved this so much that as soon as I saw it, I got up & fixed one ready to go out! I even tucked 2 more grocery sacks in the bottom so that when the full one is pulled out, I will have no excuse to not re-line it!
1. contained trash in the van- not to get kicked or blown all over
2. easy to empty -no excuses for overflowing trash
3. something I already had in the cupboard - since we have almost quit buying cereal & almost everything in the pantry is stored in glass, I have several of these taking up valuable space in the cupboards. WIN

Better late than never this week, right? 

pin it & do it #2

Super quick post today so no photos, my apology!!

Keeper of the Home's Homemade Cheeseburger Helper
I have actually had this printed & hanging on my fridge for a while & finally tried it over Christmas break.  The kids loved it! So much so that I made it again this week & have leftovers for a supper & another lunch (since I fed less & smaller tummies today) WIN!

Spice Girl's Bacon & Egg Breakfast Cups
these were an incredible mess for me. I used sausage instead of bacon, real shredded potatoes instead of frozen & GENEROUSLY sprayed mini muffin pans instead of sprayed, lined regular size.  They stuck & I ended up having to use the skinny end of a Tupperware orange peeler to scrape/pry them out & then they still had to soak & still needed hand washing after the dishwasher! UGH! NEVER EVER AGAIN. win some lose some :) FAIL!


From Facebook: Banana Oatmeal bars
I had no raisins so just sprinkled the top w/mini m&m's. the kids liked them okay but I Thought they were dry. Not one I will repeat.  FAIL!

I have a few more recipes on tap for this week & weekend, Hamburger Soup & a Spicy potato soup to name a couple.

Pin it & Do it.

for the first time ever I can report that I DID something I pinned!

several somethings actually, all food related :)

Swedish Pastry
the girls & I did this one in a 2 day spread.  crust, center & bake day one, frost on day 2.


Chocolate cupcakes with peppermint frosting

These I did on my own as the girls were all 'baked out' by Friday @4pm :)  they were way easier than the recipe looks, it just might be my go to chocolate cupcake recipe when I have the extra time & energy. 

 Chocolate dipped Chocolate chip cookie dough bites

 The kids & I did these in a 2 day spread as well: mixed & formed into balls one day, chilled overnight & dipped the next day.

YUMMMMMMMMMM on all counts!
did you try anything new from pinterest this holiday season?

lemon-cucumber-basil water

I have to admit, I was not sure about this, but I do love my water & I love a little naturally flavored water all the more so I was willing to try it!

I picked up a cucumber at the grocery store Friday night, fresh basil at the the farmer's market Saturday & had a lemon in the fridge just waiting for me to do something fun with it.  I started slicing & chopping before I remembered I didn't have facebook to check the recipe :) then it took me a couple of clicks to find a blog that had it.  here is the one I 'used'.  now looking again I find one of my favorite bloggers has other variations of it here.  Now that I Know I like this one, I will be trying more for sure!

I did 1/3 of a medium sized cucumber (in my experience, smaller cucumbers have smaller seeds & I dislike anything w/big seed ~BLECK!) sliced, a whole lemon cut in to 1x1.5" chunks & then I get really scientific on you.. 5 or 6 basil leaves w/stems, whole, just rinsed.  I put all of that into a 2 qt. Tupperware pitcher (I was working in my childcare when I made it so Tupperware almost all the way down here!) , topped it off w/cold water from our water jug (I have a water cooler w/a gallon water jug perched on top for instant cold water for drinking), sealed the lid & shook it pretty vigerously on the way to the fridge.  I let it set about 3-4 hours before I tried a spash in a small glass.. I was VERY pleased to find I like it!  as did the 2 childcare girls that tried it at snack time! YAY!!!!!!! homemade vitamin water!

At the end of the day, I topped off the pitcher w/more drinking water & put it back in the fridge for the next day.  I plan to just keep adding water for a few days & maybe until the end of the week as I have to go to the store for another lemon & cucumber :)



Have you tried any new recipes lately?

Yum!

I am so ready for fresh(=farmer's market or garden) summer  food!!  Facebook has become alive w/recipes here lately, So I am going to post these 2 here to keep in a safe place & maybe inspire some of you too.

This one I can see me sitting on the deck in the afternoon w/a book(wow can't remember the last time I read a book) in the sun munching on this.

Crisp Cucumber Salsa:
Note: 1/4 cup is only 16 calories!

2 cups finely chopped seeded peeled cucumber
1/2 cup finely chopped seeded tomato
... ... 1/4 cup chopped red onion
... 2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
1 jalepeno pepper, seeded and chopped
4-1/2 tsp minced fresh cilantro
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
1/4 c reduced-fat sour cream
1-1/2 tsp lemon juice
1-1/2 tsp lime juice
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp seasoned salt
Tortilla chips

In a small bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. In another bowl, combine the sour cream, lemon juice, lime juice, cumin and seasoned salt. Pour over cucumber mixture and toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.

 

& this one I can see being a dessert after supper:

 

for the fruit salsa:
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Golden Delicious apples – peeled, cored and diced
... 8 oz raspberries
1 (16 oz) carton of strawberries, diced
2 tbsp white sugar
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp fruit preserves, any flavor (I used strawberry; would only use 2 tbsp next time)

for the cinnamon chips:
10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
melted butter or butter flavored cooking spray

cinnamon sugar:
1 cup white sugar
2 tbsp cinnamon

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar, and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes while the oven preheats to 350 degrees.
2. Coat one side of each flour tortilla with melted butter or butter flavored cooking spray. Sprinkle tortillas with desired amount of cinnamon sugar, cut into wedges, and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Spray again with cooking spray (not necessary if using melted butter).
3. Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture. This salsa can also be served with cinnamon graham crackers or cinnamon pita chips. Best when made and eaten the same day otherwise the fruit gives off so too much juice and it gets runny.

 

for now, I am limping by on what's in season in the grocery store.. the pears are really good right now & we are stocking up on them this weekend! YUMMMMMMM

to do

feeling pretty ambitious today.. so making a list of goals for next month:

•  at the top is this no sew ruffle scarf out of a tshirt- I can totally handle that!
• thinking of these for Christmas gifts
• make this recipe
• keep eating from the pantry (& freezers) as much as possible
• keep decluttering the childcare
• finish my December Daily album

and love every minute of it all!! :)

Banana Bread

This is one of my go to homemade bread recipes mostly because I always have bananas in the freezer.

Banana Bread
8TBS (1 stick) of butter, at room temp.
3/4 c sugar (I usually sub applesauce here but occassionally do use the whole measure of sugar)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 large ripe bananas, mashed
1tsp vanilla (I usually omit)
1/2 c shelled walnuts, coarsely chopped (optional)

preheat oven 350, grease 9x5x3" bread pan or muffin tin of choice.  Cream butter & sugar until light & fluffy (won't get fluffy if applesauce is used).  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Sift all-purpose flour, baking soda & salt together , stir in whole wheat flour & add to creamed mixture, mixing well.  I rarely do this, I usually just add things one at a time in order listed :)   Fold in bananas, vanilla & nuts.  Pour mixture into pan, bake 50-60 minutes for big loaf, I usually set the timer for 10 then check every 3 for muffins of any size, or until a cake tester (or toothpick in my case) comes out clean - cool in pan 10 minutes then transfer to rack. 

sorry no photos today...

Dandelion Jelly

So I have some A.MAZING friends that do some A.MAZING things that I sit & dream about!  One of those A.MAZING friends started out as a childcare mom & has turned into someone I know I can trust for/with anything.  Sporatically, I get to care for her children.  The older of the 2 is homeschooling so usually its like having a helper on days she's here.  AWESOME.  This week when she came she had 70some dandelions picked already & added 20 some more from my yard & we started discussing making jelly w/them.  Determined not to let her down I searched on swagbucks.com for 'homemade dandelion jelly', low & behold whose site pops up? one of the above mentioned A.MAZING friends!  SAWEEET, a recipe I can rely on!

so she set to work after all the others were settled for quiet time, snipping & snipping the flower petals off all of the dandelions, making 2 cups worth.  I then poured boiling water over the top & let that steep for 2 hours (which was KILLING HER to watch it sit there doing 'nothing'.  :)  then I realized I didn't have the liquid pectin it called for, so said A.MAZING friend linked me to a page that subbed the powder for the liquid & told me the measurements.  We proceeded in stirring, boiling, heating jars, pouring into jars & letting set to pop.  Here she is the next day w/one of our little jars.

& here she is showing that it didn't gel.  yup, that's right, instead of Jelly, we have dandelion SYRUP.  ice cream topping, toast & oatmeal topping, sun tea flavoring.  it tastes remarkably like honey so I think I will also try it in some recipes as the sweetener!

Lesson learned, should have used the whole packet of pectin insteadof 3/4.  Live & learn! it was a fun project & I loved that we took a WEED & made it into something useful!!

Granola recipe-Wednesday

Loose granola

4c old fashioned oats
1c chopped almonds/sunflower nuts/walnuts
1/4c brown sugar
1/4tsp salt
1/4tsp ground cinnamon
1/3c olive oil
1/4c honey

preheat oven to 300. may line large rimmed baking sheet w/foil. (I don't)
Mix oats, nuts, sugar, salt & cinnamon into a large bowl. in a sauce pan combine oil & honey. bring to a simmer on stove over medium heat. Remove from heat & stir into the oat mix-stirring well.

Spread mixture onto baking sheet. stirring occassionally , bake for30 minutes. let granola cool COMPLETELY & enjoy. I store this in a tightly sealed glass canister. can be eaten w/milk as cereal or over top of yogurt, ice cream or peanut buttered apples/celery.
 

Chicken Tenders-Recipe

I received this recipe on a card from one of my food program sponsors & tried it out to help me do away w/over processed foods.  Remember when I shared this naaaaasty video?? eeeeeewwwww!!!  so no more store bought chicken nuggets for us!! This is my go to recipe for chicken nuggets, mostly made in the summer.

Chicken Tenders
1 1/2 tsp vinegar
1/2 c milk
COMBINE , stir & let set 10 minutes to thicken.
4 medium boneless skinless chicken breast halves  (about a pound) CUT how you chose
2 TBS prepared mustard (I use honey mustard)
2TBS vinegar
1 TBS honey or jelly (I use honey)
black pepper to taste
COMBINE IN A large bowl, stir in milk mixture & stir.  Add chicken & stir to coat, cover & let set 20 minutes.
Preheat oven @ this point  to 400*
lightly spray or grease baking pan (I use a stone)
1 cup crushed pretzels or cereal (I use bread crumbs, cracker crumbs, whatever is handy)
One at a time, dip chicken pieces from milk to crumbs & place on baking sheet.
bake 18-20 minutes or until thoroughly cooked.

More recipes are available @ www.extension.iastate.edu/foodsavings/