Keeping Up

Wow - I just realized that I haven't updated in a while. Not that I feel like I need to update this thing every day or even every week, but there has been so much going on.
We had Spring Break a few weeks ago. It was really an odd break for us. Andrew and I went in one direction and John and Bryan went in another. WHAT? Yes we did! I couldn't believe it, but we did. John and Bryan had a blast fishing in Cherokee North Carolina and I had a really great time in Lexington, KY with my mom and grandma. My grandmother is re-doing her kitchen and so we spend hours of shopping for new stuff to sit around and hang on her wall. After buying tons of stuff, the fun was deciding how to hang it all! It turned out awesome and I was right in my element!
John and Bryan went fishing with John's dad and a couple of grandpa's brothers, so it was a guy's trip for sure. They fished all day everyday and cooked out at night. I would have been completely bored out of my mind if I would have went!!
After spring break we settled back in, just to get into another project - Yard Sale! I have waaayy too much stuff! I like having a yard sale but hate getting it ready and putting it up. One thing this time that consumed so much time was pricing a lot of new clothes. I have been saving Bryan's clothes ever since Andrew has been born. I have finally come to the realization that with there being 6 years difference in them that clothes styles are different now, plus, the size 4T clothes that Andrew doesn't even fit into yet, Bryan wore when he was probably 3y, and that was in 2001. Almost 10 years ago. So.....I went through all of the clothes I have been saving and was able to make myself put out about half of them. Lots sold and I am glad to have that extra money. Andrew does wear some of the hand-me-downs, but he gets lots of new stuff between me and 3 grandmothers!
Spring Break is over, Yard Sale is over and baseball and school year end is in full swing. This week we have 2 games and a practice I think, plus Bryan has a field trip at school that I am going on with him. It's an all day deal too, so that day is gone. It's teacher appreciation week, and there is something going on everyday for that. John has a class one day a week for work and catering is also busy.
I have embarked on a semi-new adventure myself - - Clean Queens. Since I have been out of work with Andrew, I have been cleaning a few houses here and there, but with Andrew pretty much in school full-time I felt like I had the time to devote to more. I really can't go back to work full-time anywhere so, I talked with one of my friends, who is also out of work at the moment, and we decided to start a cleaning business. Its something new and we do not have any regular clients just yet, but we have already cleaned one house! We have our business cards on order and still have lots of things to plan and discuss to get things rolling.
Summer vacation is almost here. The kids have like 18 more days of school and my Bryan is almost a middle-schooler! It's so hard to believe my baby is almost in 6th grade! It really does not seem like he is almost 12 years old. He is such a sweet boy and a great big brothers. Andrew loves and cherishes him so much. He looks up to Bryan and wants to do everything Bryan does, and is in Bryan shadow or stuck to his hip almost always.
We do not have the whole summer planned out just yet, but we do know for sure (God willing) that we are going to Kentucky for a Wells family reunion and then from there we are going to take the camper and camp a couple of different places and end up in Washington DC! Should be an interesting trip with Andrew in tow, but I think it's a good age for Bryan. The one family vacation we still want to take and haven't is Disney. I think we may have waited too long for Bryan, but when we thought Bryan was old enough, Andrew was born, and then it just hasn't been in the cards since. I think we will all have a good time on this vacation though.
Well, that's about it from the Whetstine house! Take care and God Bless!

Beets & Chocolate

Wow - I would have never put those two together!

I went to the Farmer's Market Saturday and picked up my $30 box of organic fruits and veggies, and Oh My - Beets! I really didn't want them, but...I already had oranges in my fridge, so the oranges that were in my box - I swapped for extra zucchini, so I couldn't ask them to swap something else. I thought to myself "What in the world am I going to do with these things?" My husband said he liked them plain and my grandmother said she liked them plain. So since she was coming for a visit, I figured that I would use them some way or another.

I went on a hunt for recipes containing beets. Everything I found or every recipe that folks were giving to me contained vinegar or something of the sorts that totally did not appeal to me. I finally ran across this Beet Bundt Cake recipe on Epicurious. "Hmm - could this really taste good?" I read the recipe, read the reviews and decided that I was going to try it. I had wasted ingredients before on stuff that didn't turn out - why not with this one too?

So I started by trimming off the leaves (washing, drying and saving them for a salad or something) and washing the beets. I had read you could peel them before or after cooking, but that the skin helped them not to bleed so much during cooking. So, I did not peel them, wrapped them in alum. foil with a little EVOO and put them in the oven. Somewhere around 2 hours later they were finally done. (Good grief my gas bill is gonna be high!) So anyway, I put on some plastic food handling gloves and after they had cooled I peeled and diced them. I added them to my blender with a little oil and water and pureed them.

This recipe calls for 2 cups of beets, but I ended up with only a little more then 1 cup. I am not sure if I should have added anything else, like applesauce, to fill it to 2 cups, so I just left it at the 1c.

Another change I made was, per a suggestion on the review, changed out the oil for butter. I also, per review suggestions, added 1T cocoa and an double dose of melted chocolate chips. Oh and also suggested was to add an egg - and I did that too.

After I mixed everything together and poured the batter into the pan, I swirled in some mini chocolate chips for good measure! I mean, com'on - you can never have too much chocolate in/on anything!

I did not make a glaze or icing or sprinkle powdered sugar on top! It was great just plain. My 4 year old and 11 year old LOVED it. And, my 11 year old knew there was beets in it. (Today was his and my first time ever trying beets - a historic day for the two of us!) My husband hasn't had any yet, but I am not telling him there are beets in it, and I will see what he says!

Enjoy!

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Beet-Bundt-Cake-354070

Quinoa...what? What is that? How do you pronounce it? Well, this is one of our new favorite things, so I have done a little research.

First off, so we know how to pronounce it when we are reading this, its "KEEN-wah." I didn't always pronounce it right, I mean, when you look at it, it doesn't look like "KEEN-wah" it looks like "kwuh-NO-uh."

OK, so now we have the pronunciation down...What is it? I would venture to say it's a superfood myself, but I actually haven't seen that word in the articles I've read. How about a nutritional powerhouse? I did read that somewhere. (I have copied and pasted some of this from various websites, referenced below) Quinoa is native to the Andes Mountains of Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. This crop has been called 41 vegetable caviar. Quinua means "mother grain" in the Inca language. Quinoa has become highly appreciated for its nutritional value, as its protein content is very high. Unlike wheat or rice (which are low in lysine), quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans, making it an unusually complete protein source. It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten free and considered easy to digest. There is tons more information on the internet on various sites, but this was just a quick little breakdown.

OK - so.....what do you do with it? Cook it! (ha ha) One of the most common ways to use this grain is to cook it, like rice. It can be eaten by itself or mixed with a variety of foods. One of the products I get is a quick little package that you throw into the microwave for 90 seconds. This is so easy and so good. It is a red quinoa with whole grain brown rice and seasonings. The photo at the top is the package I buy at the store. I buy it at Kroger and honestly haven't looked for it anywhere else. I have also bought a box of quinoa and cooked it in a pot just like rice. There are tons of recipes on the internet for using quinoa and I can not wait to try a few. Last night I used two packages of the quinoa and rice, mixed it with 2 boiled chicken breasts that were cut into bite size pieces and I sauteed some onion and celery in butter, and steamed some broccoli. Mixed it all together, added some salt and pepper and Viola! Adding in the chicken was probably more protein then we needed in one dish, but chicken, broccoli and rice is an old favorite recipe, so I was just redoing it. We also make the packages and eat as a side dish.

So, Just On A Whim...I have decided to blog about this today. I hope that maybe it will prompt you to try something new. I recommend this package of quinoa and brown rice to start with because it is packed with SO MUCH flavor, you can't help buy love it. Then, you can experiment with the plain in your own recipes that you would normally use rice in. I have used this in veggie soup as well. YUM.

Before I close - here is the nutritional value of quinoa. Everything you need all in one little seed.

(if you are watching your carbs - well - I don't know what to tell you. This stuff is so good for you, no matter what)
Quinoa, uncooked
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy
1,539 kJ (368 kcal)
Carbohydrates
64 g
Starch
52 g
Dietary fibre
7 g
Fat
6 g
polyunsaturated
3.3 g
Protein
14 g
Water
13
Thiamine (Vit. B1)
0.36 mg (28%)
Riboflavin (Vit. B2)
0.32 mg (21%)
Vitamin B6
0.5 mg (38%)
Folate (Vit. B9)
184 μg (46%)
Vitamin E
2.4 mg (16%)
Iron
4.6 mg (37%)
Magnesium
197 mg (53%)
Phosphorus
457 mg (65%)
Zinc
3.1 mg (31%)
Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults.Source: USDA Nutrient database

Informational Sources

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/NEWCROP/AFCM/quinoa.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa

Grandmomma's Potato Soup

I was sitting here, looking through the internet at different recipes, trying to find something new that I can use my abundance of fruits and veggies for that I bought at the market this week and at a farmers market this weekend. I found a great pear crisp recipe that I am going to try, a ratatouille recipe that I'm going to try and I made up my mind I wanted my grandmomma's potato soup.

So, I was trying to remember how to make it. I have the recipe in my head, but have never written it down. I looked on the internet to see if I could find something, but all the recipes included ingredients that my grandmomma did not put in her soup. Her soup was plain and simple, but I still can taste the awesomeness in my mouth!

I knew I needed potatoes, onions, butter, salt, and milk. I peeled and cubed my potatoes, chopped my onions and started them on top the stove in a pot with water and salt. I called my grandmomma, just to make sure I had everything right.

Do you know what she told me? I could just cook the potatoes in the microwave, and the onions! What - that's not how she use to make it!! She told me that was quicker and easier now!! (my eyes were rolling) I like my microwave, don't get me wrong, but not for this.

So, here is my version of her potato soup recipe. No measurements really, you know how the older generation cooked - by sight, and strangely enough I am starting to do the same thing (except baking).

3-4 decent size russet potatoes, peeled and cubed into bite size

1/2 of an onion, diced small

Enough water in a pot to cover potatoes and onions

Salt & Pepper to taste

Milk (I use almond original flavor just because we don't do well with cow milk)

Butter (I use at least a half stick)

Boil the potatoes and onions until potatoes are done. (Now here is the problem I encounter - - onions not being quite done enough. This is why my grandmomma said she does them separately, so that she gets them both perfectly done, but she didn't use to do this when I was a kid) I chop my onions pretty small, so they usually get fairly done. Once the onions and potatoes are done, strain off some of the water. I say strain because when I am pouring out the water usually, bits of potatoes or onions will come out too, and, well, you don't want to lose those! Best I can say is that I pour off about of the water, half up the potatoes and onions. At this point, while everything is still hot, melt in your butter, add salt and pepper to taste (I'm horrible and use way too much salt) and then add in milk until it is back over the potatoes, completely covering them, plus some. You may need to put the soup back on low heat if the milk cooled the soup too much.

That's it. I like mine, just like that. Nothing else, no crackers or cheese or anything.

I guess I need to work on my recipe making skills a little better and give accurate measurements. I am learning, so, bare with me.

I just finished making this - - and eating a bowl. It was so good! Maybe not as good as my grandmomma's, but it satisfied my nostalgia.

So now, my next feat. Making a menu for the week. This is what I purchased at the farmers market this weekend: 1 head of green leafy lettuce, 1 eggplant, 4 huge carrots, 3 green peppers, 1 head of garlic, 4 onions, 2 tomatoes, 3 pears, 7 apples, 2 tangerines, 4 bananas, 6 zucchini, a bag of mushrooms, & 11 potatoes. The box did not include the eggplant, that was extra. The box included oranges, but we have a bunch already (5lb bag) and so I got extra zucchini instead. All organic, some of it local, $32.50 for everything. We had not planned on going to the farmers market, so earlier in the week we had purchased a bunch of spinach, celery, tomatoes, a head of cabbage, a bunch of broccoli, a 5lb bag of oranges, some grapefruits, 4-5 plums, kiwi and avocados. We still had some apples from the week before also. ALL this, and we still ended up eating out more times then I care to tell you about.

I plan on sitting down tonight and making a menu for the week, which will include, I think, the ratatouille over penne pasta, the pear crisp, and since my oldest is not fond of potatoes, I have all this yummy soup leftover for myself. I also have plans to slice some of this up and add to the lunch boxes. My oldest doesn't like potatoes, but he does eat a variety of things a lot of 11 year olds don't.

My version of French Toast

I made homemade bread the other day, for the first time. Since it's fresh, and I'm still learning, I don't really know how long it's good for, it will just be a trial and error thing for me. If I open the bag one day and it's moldy, then I will know next time that I can't keep it that long!
So anyway, this morning I decided that I was going to try french toast with my homemade bread. I have a good recipe that I use all the time and thought I would share.
I adapted this from a one I tried once from a cook book I love. It was for oven baked french toast. I mean, come on, who has time to 'bake' toast? But, I will post both recipes, just in case you want to bake your toast.

My version:
4-5 slices of bread (I have used regular bread and thick sliced bread - its just what ever you prefer)
2 eggs juice of 1 orange (pulp is A-Ok in this recipe, but I don't like a lot, just what ever falls in when I'm juicing it)
couple dashes of vanilla (probably about 1/8tsp)
couple dashes of cinnamon (again, all about preference, sometimes I add more)
Beat the eggs, juice, vanilla and cinnamon. Preheat your skillet to medium or so, but not too high or it will just burn on the outside and be soggy inside. Add a little butter to the skillet (to prevent sticking) Dip your bread in the egg mixture (both sides of bread) and place in skillet. Cook on each side until a nice light golden brown.
I love syrup. You can buy the stuff off the shelf if you want, hey, it's your body. I like the 100% pure maple if I am buying syrup, but I have recently been turned on to honey granules. Today I used 1/2c honey granules to 1/4c water. In a pot over med-high heat, heat until boiling, stirring constantly. Keep stirring and let boil for only about a minute. Turn the heat off and Viola! you have syrup. If you like alot of syrup, like I do, you may want to double this recipe. I ran out of syrup this morning!

OK here is the baked french toast. It is from a book I received as a gift at a wedding shower in 1993. I love the book and use a lot of the recipes in it. The book is called Come On In! It is a recipe book from the Junior League of Jackson, Mississippi, copyright 1991. This recipe is called Oven French Toast and is on page 168.
This is a side note in the book: Thick slices of stale French bread can substitute for the white bread in this recipe, but let the French bread soak in the orange zest/egg mixture overnight.
Serves 4
1/4c unsalted butter
1/3c sugar
1/4tsp cinnamon
1tsp orange zest
2/3c orange juice
4 large eggs, well beaten
8 slices white bread
---powdered sugar for garnish
Preheat oven to 325 (degrees). Melt butter in rectangular baking pan. Combine sugar, cinnamon and orange zest and sprinkle evenly over butter. Stir together orange juice and eggs. Dip bread slices in orange zest/egg mixture and arrange in a single layer in baking pan. Bake until browned, 25 minutes, and garnish with powdered sugar.

Chicken Noodle Soup

From the Great American Brand Name Recipes Cookbook Copyright 1989 Page 53
1 (46-fluid ounce) can College Inn Chicken Broth (I use Swanson or an organic version or my own if I have it, but I'm copying the recipe from the book exactly, so you can use the exact recipe if you want)
1/2 pound boneless chicken, cut in bite size pieces (I have to be honest and tell you I do not weigh my chicken. I just usually cook a breast and then cut it up and how ever much that is - then that's what's in the soup)
1 1/2 cups uncooked medium egg noodles (we also like the really skinny ones)
1 cup sliced carrots (John isn't a big cooked carrot fan, so I usually put my chopped carrots in the food processor to make them smaller so he will eat them)
1/2 cup chopped onion (most of the time I chop an onion, but sometimes I use the frozen bagged ones)
1/3 cup sliced celery (You can also buy the frozen bag o' veggies - I've seen them in the store - there is one that has the onions, carrots and celery all chopped and in one bag. Just use your best judgment on how much to put in your soup)
1 teaspoon dried dill weed (Don't Forget This!!)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper (add salt to taste, but only once it's finished cooking)
In large pot over medium-high heat, heat chicken broth, chicken, noodles, carrots, onion, celery, dill and pepper to a boil. (Now why couldn't they just have said Put all ingredients in a large pot over med-high heat and bring to a boil?) Anyway..... Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes or until chicken and noodles are cooked. That's it!!
However....... This is the way I do it, because you know, we all have our versions. I add about 24oz of water to a pot, bring it to a boil with some salt, pepper and red pepper. Don't know how much of each - just throw some in. I trim any fat off my boneless, skinless chicken breast and throw it in the boiling water until it's done. (If you use more then one chicken breast you may need more water) (While the chicken is boiling I usually am cutting my veggies) I take it out, let it cool a bit then cut it up. I strain my broth (sometimes) then add enough broth to make around 46 ounces. Sometimes I add more, 'cause we like it that way! I bring that back to a boil and add in my carrots, onion and celery until they are almost done. (veggie done-ness depends on you - depends whether you like them nice and soggy or a little crunchy - you decide) I add in the dill, some more pepper and add my chicken back in along with the noodles and then just cook until noodles are done.

Just starting out.....

OK - What am I doing? I am so NOT computer savvy! I mean really, I use to know alot about computers, but...use it or lose it!
So anyway, I am a mom, who is married to my high school sweetheart and we have 2 kids. I am a stay at home mom who loves food. I use to cook some, but not very well. Once I started staying home, I was cooking every night. We would have the same thing over and over and over. I started trying new recipes and now we have a little more variety. I say a little more because some of us are picky eaters!
My youngest has Mowat-Wilson Syndrome (www.mowatwilson.org) and when we found out he had GI troubles, I started looking into health and nutrition. The healing powers of food, the life style options of raw food, vegan and vegetarian. My husband and I grew up in the South - come on - vegetarian has never been part of our vocabulary, much less vegan or raw foodist, not even vitamins, etc. If it couldn't be cooked in bacon grease or lard, then we didn't eat it! Ha!
I am not a vegetarian, but over the last couple of years I have been doing research on having a healthier lifestyle. We will do good for a little while, then ball season gets underway and going out to eat is just, easy. We start not feeling well then start eating better again. It's a back and forth thing for us. I use to get flustered, but, it's just our life.
So, with that being said, I still like cooking and baking healthy when I can and I love learning new things about food, nutrition, health, and well, lots of things.
I have created this blog to share and chat and maybe make a new friend or two. Who's to say I couldn't learn a thing or two from you?