Mr. Poops

For the dog owner that has everything...Mr. Poops.

Turkey Loaf

This is a good easy meal, and EXTREMELY cheap (like maybe $3). Turkey Loaf.

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 box of stuffing (I like the "cornbread" variety)
• 3 slices of bread (I like to use a rye or wheat)
• 1/3 cup of chicken stock
• Olive Oil
• Salt and Peppa

Combine the turkey, stuffing, bread (tear it up into quarter sized chunks), and chicken stock. Use your hands and really get in there, it takes some effort to get all the bread absorbed, add more stock if needed. On a well sprayed baking sheet form the turkey mixture into a "loaf" like shape, about 3 inches high and wide. Drizzle the olive oil over it, and sprinkle salt and pepper on top. This makes it all nice and crusty. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes, I always like to use my meat thermometer to make sure it's at least 160 degrees internal temperature. I like bloody meat - but NOT bloody turkey. Use your bread knife to cut, top with a white gravy. (I make mine out of the same chicken stock.)

CheesePANcake

Today in an attempt to bake a cheesecake - I invented something new. I read a recipe in a magazine that I had been wanting to try, I swore it said 4 ounces of cream cheese, but it really said 4 packages of cream cheese. 4 packages of cream cheese equals 32 ounces. So I used only an eighth of what I really needed. It turned out very flat - so I call it cheesePANcake.

Wii Jackets

If you bought a Wii, you can now get FREE "Wiimote Jackets". Here is the web-site:
http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/jacket/jacketrequest.jsp
Mine came, they are awesome...took about 3 weeks.

Frosting

How yummie is this? Red Velvet cake with butter frosting. I know, I live way too north to be eating red velvet cake, but there is something about it I just love.

The secret is the frosting...make it with real butter. Not that low-carb, no sugar, no salt, reduced fat, Atkins friendly crap. But feel free to use the Wal-mart brand. 1 stick of butter to at least 3 cups of powder sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla and a tablespoon of steaming hot water. Stir it till there is no chunks left. Your arm will get tired, but you need the exercise to burn off all the calories you are about to eat.

Shirt Bag

Today I was getting crafty! I hate it when I go shopping at Wal-mart or where ever, and you get all those plastic bags! Some are alright, I use them in my little trash cans, but I always have way too many of them, and you can't recycle them, so they just end up taking up trash space. So I am taking all my old tshirts that I never really wore to start with (you know, the ones you get free like this one for getting a Sprint phone). I turned it inside out and sewed the bottom part closed. Cut off the sleeves and a larger hole where the neck was, and that's all. It took me longer to thread my sewing machine than it did to make!

Shirt bag fits well in my purse and I don't have to deal with all those nasty plastic bags.

*******UPDATE**********

My husband thinks this I am crazy for using these bags, bug I don't care. I used them all last weekend, and got no crazy looks. And I was watching for them!

Spiral Frog

Check out this web-site, Spiral Frog. It offers free music downloads to lots and lots of songs (old and new). The music is free because it's supported by sold ads, and the download time is speedy. It downloads in .wma format, which is not compatible with Ipods or Zunes, but if you are smart you can convert these in to .mp3s. This site definitely gets a "FABULOUS FIND" rating in my book!

Cinnamon Coffee Chocolate Fabulous Bars

Okay, pay attention, cause these are awesome.

Bars

• 2 tablespoons of HOT water
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee crystals
• 1 packet of chocolate chip cookie mix
• 1 tablespoon of cocoa
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 egg

Frosting

• 2 teaspoons instant coffee crystals
• 1/4 cup HOT water
• 1/2 cup soft butter (use the REAL stuff)
• 3 cups powder sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  

Dissolve 1 teaspoon of coffee crystals into the 2 tablespoons of HOT water. Add the rest of the bar ingredients and put into a greased 13 x 9 baking pan. I then sprinkle a little extra cinnamon on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Make up the frosting. Dissolve 2 teaspoons of coffee crystals into the 1/4 cup HOT water. Stir in the remaining frosting ingredients, spread onto the cooled bars. Allow to finish cooling in the fridge for at least a half an hour.

In the name of Safety

One of my friends sent this to me the other day. It makes me smile, because it reminds me of so many people I know. To all my friends that are overprotective and insist on worrying over lead paint and bike helmets - you guilt me into being a more protective mom, and I love you for it.

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.
They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn’t get tested for diabetes.
Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags.
Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.


We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this.


We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank Kool-aid made with sugar, but we weren't overweight because, WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K.


We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.


We did not have PlayStation's, Nintendo 's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD ' s, no surround-sound or CD ' s, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet or chat rooms....... WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.


We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.
We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!


Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!


The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!


These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors
ever!


The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!


If YOU are one of them CONGRATULATIONS!You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good.


While you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave (and lucky) their parents were. Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn't it?!

Teething Baby Biscuits

I know it's been awhile since I've shared a recipe, and believe me I have some good ones. I just always forget to take the pictures! So maybe I'll start posting without pictures.

With that said, I have a new one for babies. I had a lot of extra baby rice cereal. I bought way more that I would ever need, because everyone says that babies are suppose to eat that crap for a month or whatever. My baby didn't eat it for more than a week, and went on to real foods. I'll still mix it in with some solids, but for the most part it's just been sitting around on my shelves. Since he's been teething, I decided to try to make him some biscuits out of what I had around the house. Plus those Gerber pre-made biscuits are expensive!

• 1 cup of flour (I used white, but I think whole-wheat would work better)
• 1 cup of baby cereal (I used banana flavor)
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 1/3 cup ice water (about)

Mix the flour, cereal and oil together. Slowly, tablespoon by tablespoon at the ice water to the mixture. Do it like how you make a pie crust, the colder the water, the better. Once it forms into a nice ball roll it out and cut into strips, about 1 X 3 inch.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes.

Here is my dude looking all crazy eating it!

Egg Bake

Tonight I made my fabulous Egg Bake. My husband is gone for part of the week, and he hates it, but I love it. So it was the perfect time to make it.
3 eggs
1 1/3 cups milk
1 tablespoon Worcester sauce
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup cheese (tonight I used a Colby mix)
4 slices of bread (this is a good way to use the heels up)

Whisk together eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and Worcester sauce. Grease a 2 quart baking dish, tear up the pieces of bread. Layer bread/cheese/bread/cheese, and pour egg mixture over the top, coating all the bread.
Put a little extra cheese on top. Allow the egg mixture to soak into the bread for about 15 minutes. Bake it at 375 degrees for 45 minutes.

Netflix

After multiple issues with our Blockbuster subscription, we've decided to switch back to Netflix. Our "Blockbuster" in Winona never would honor the coupons, and then mysteriously shut down one day. I'll let you know how this turns out. Their web-site is much better.

winkflash

I tried a new photo developing service - winkflash. I ordered 17 prints, and with shipping my total came to $2.31 shipped to my home. This same service would have been $5.54. I am very satisfied by the quality of the prints. It took about 5 days to get to me shipped through the US postal office. The site was a little harder to use then Walmart's, but for the price I have no complaints. They have 6 cent prints right now, if you use this coupon code JC53YR73.

Cheesy Tots

I have found the BEST breakfast food ever. Burger King's Cheesy Tots. Six for ninety-nine cents. They are deep-fried potato tator tots with cheeses in the center. I should have gotten the twelve pack.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made these cookies up yesterday for a party we were having. They were quite the hit, and are all gone today!

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup oatmeal
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 12 ounces chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup peanuts

Mix together all the ingredients, but add the oatmeal, chocolate chips and peanuts last.

Bake at 350 degrees for about ten minutes. Be sure to put them on parchment paper, it's the big baking secret.

Heavenly....

Bow-Tie Alfredo

This is a super quick diner, my Bow-Tie Alfredo. Or whatever type of pasta I have on hand! This recipe calls for:

• 6 ounces of Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1.5 sticks of butter, unsalted, soften
• Pepper and Salt to taste
• 12 ounces (or so) of pasta, shapes make it more fun

Get the pasta cooking, I add salt to my water to help it boil faster and to flavor the pasta more. Cream together the butter and cheese. Add as much salt and pepper as you want. Leave mixture in mixing bowl.
Once pasta is cooked, spoon it out of the pot and into the cheese and butter mixture. Don't rinse it, just kind of drain the water off. You want it to be steaming hot when it goes in the the mixture.

Stir the pasta and sauce together. The heat from the pasta will melt the cheese and butter together, forming the Alfredo sauce.

Serve and done!

I'm Sick

Sorry there have been to recipes! I've been sick, and not cooking much. I did come up with a good one the other night, I'll work on getting it out here soon.

Macaroni and Cheese

Okay, everyone has a recipe for mac and cheese, and this is mine.

• 1.5 cups of uncooked macaroni
• 1.5 cups of milk
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
• 1 teaspoon of mustard
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 2 cups cheese (cheddar, swiss, colby, whatever you have on hand)
• 1/4 cup fine bread crumbs

Cook the macaroni till al dente. While doing that, melt the butter in a nice skillet. Add to the melted butter: flour, salt, pepper and mustard. Use a whisk to mix.

Set a timer for 15 minutes. While on a medium heat, slowly add the milk. About 1/4 cup at a time, making sure it is well mixed. Stir the mixture like you would a béchamel sauce. It takes nearly 15 minutes before it becomes thick.

Once the sauce is thick, add 1.5 cups of cheese and all the sour cream. Mix together until cheese is melted.

Mix the cheese sauce with the macaroni, and put into a greased 2 quart casserole dish. Top with the remaining half cup of cheese, and then the bread crumbs. I then take my cooking spray and gently coat the bread crumbs. This makes it them turn out crispy.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Today we enjoyed it with corn bread muffins.

Lemonade Pie

This is a perfect recipe for those hot summer days.

• 32 graham cracker squares - about 1.5 cups
• 3 tablespoons of sugar
• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 1/2 can of lemonade (I use pink lemonade, makes it a pretty color)
• 4 cups of vanilla ice cream
• 4 ounces of frozen whipped topping Mix together the finely chopped graham crackers, melted butter and sugar. Press the mixture into a pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes.
  

Meanwhile, mix together soften ice cream, whipped topping and lemonade.

Pour mixture into the graham cracker crust.

Put into the freezer for about 5 hours to harden. The top shelf of my freezer is all baby food, except for the pie!

Let it sit out for about five minutes before trying to cut. Enjoy!

Silicone Bakeware

I love using silicone bake ware. I have a really nice set of Kitchenaid Bakeware. When I use it, I always put one of my metal cookie sheets underneath it. That way it isn't floppy. Makes it much easier to use. And clean up with the silicone is a snap.

Toffee Bars

Here is a recipe for toffee bars with a twist.

• 1 pouch of peanut butter cookie mix
• 3 tablespoons of oil
• 1 tablespoon of water
• 1 egg
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1.5 cups crushed potato chips
• 1 cup salted peanuts
• 12 ounces of chocolate chips

Mix together peanut butter cookie mix, oil, water and the egg.

Put in sprayed 9 X 13 Pyrex pan, bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. It will still be soft.

While the batter is baking, melt butter in sauce pan. Add the brown sugar. Bring this to a boil and stir continuously for about a minute.

Remove batter from oven, top with potato chips and peanuts. Then drizzle the butter/brown sugar mix over top. Return to oven for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and put the chocolate chips on top. Bake for two more minutes, until the chocolate chips are melty.

Take the back of a spoon and spread the chocolate chips out. Allow to cool completely before cutting.

Beware, they are super sweet, and you will need a glass of milk.