The eat food NOT money cookbook

Brittle

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Wed, 08 Sep 2021 17:52:00 +0000

I make a lot of brittle. Peanut, almond, pecan, cashew (pictured). I've even done pistachio! I was joking with my daughter & told her that I should just go into the brittle business. It always sells & when I haven't made it, I get requests for it so maybe I should! Ha! Not really. I enjoy baking cookies & bread & cakes too. And I'm sure I would get burned out making the same thing all. the. time.

I did have an order for some pecan brittle this morning though and while I was heating up the house, I decided to go ahead and make some peanut brittle too. Now it smells sugary delicious in here!

Oh, and for my local people who purchase from me, I started a rewards program. If you buy 5 products, you get one free! Yum.

Anyway, that's all I'm going to ramble about today. I just wanted to put something down on paper (computer screen). Have a great day y'all!

Having fun

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sun, 05 Sep 2021 23:46:00 +0000

We still have Family Night on Monday's around here. It's always hectic and always wonderful! My middle grown up is allergic to eggs so I made some butter cookies with a fudge base and stripes on top. I can't wait to eat them tomorrow!

Hummingbird Cake

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sun, 05 Sep 2021 18:42:00 +0000

Today I made Hummingbird Cake. It's one of those cakes that you could die for! Coconut, pineapple, banana and pecans combine to make a moist and delicious cake with the consistency of banana bread. It's topped with buttercream frosting and chopped pecans. Simply delicious!

Hello Strangers

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sun, 05 Sep 2021 03:43:00 +0000

It's been right at three years since I was here last. Life has really been crazy during that time. I'm not sure I could tell you everything & survive it again.

So anyway...

I quit coming here. Life just got too busy. My depression is getting pretty bad again and I know in the past my blogs helped me through it. I'm not sure if it will help now, but here I am.

I didn't completely abandon this blog (although I did completely abandon all my other blogs). I've been on Facebook. That's here if you want to check it out. And I've morphed from a collection of recipes (aka a cookbook) to a sales page. I haven't really taken off yet but I have high hopes.

I lost my job due to health problems when Covid 19 hit the world. I was high risk & my doctor advised against me working with bodily fluids (I was doing laundry at a hotel). At first it was ok. I had a little money saved up. I didn't think that a year and a half later things would still be bad (I'm sure you didn't either!).

One day I baked some cookies and a friend asked me if I sold them. I said sure! Then I started having bake sales. I'm still trying to get the hang of that! It's hard to judge what people will buy. And there's the cost of supplies. I barely make it each month. I'm sure that has a lot to do with my depression.

But so far I'm ok. (That's a total and complete lie. I am not ok. I am struggling badly.) I just keep pushing and hoping that people will buy my baked goods. And praying. A lot. I mainly pray for guidance in how to make this work. And patience.

Well, I'll quit rambling now. I just wanted to let y'all know that I was still here & still cooking. I'll add some pictures of some of the latest things I've made. If you want any of the recipes, just let me know! And if you want to help, click here. Thanks y'all! See you soon I hope!

Texas Kolachies aka Sausage Rolls

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sat, 01 Dec 2018 18:50:00 +0000

I made these a few weeks back but only used half the dough for kolachies. I froze the other half and was feeling too lazy to make them into individual kolachies so I filled a square cake pan (8 x 8) with the frozen dough & let it double in size. Then I poked sausages into the dough across the top & covered with cheese. It was just as delicious as the kolachies were!

You'll need:
1 pkg active dry yeast
1/4 cup lukewarm water
1 cup lukewarm milk
4 Tbl butter, melted & cooled
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
4 3/4 - 5 1/2 cups flour
12 fully cooked sausage links
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sliced jalapeno slices (optional)

Combine yeast & water & allow to soften for 5 minutes. Place on stand mixer & on low, add milk, butter, eggs, sugar, and salt until well combined. Add 2 cups of flour & mix until blended. Add 2 more cups of flour & mix until blended. Add 3/4 cup of flour & continue mixing. If the dough sticks to side of bowl, continue adding flour about 2 tablespoons at a time until the dough comes together. Place in a greased bowl, cover & let rise until double (about 90 minutes).

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Punch down the dough & divide into 12 portions. Roll each into rectangles. Sprinkle 1 Tbl cheese in a line down the center of each. Layer on a few jalapeno slices, then the sausage. Wrap in the dough & pinch to seal.

Place on the baking sheet seam side down & let rest for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes before serving.

Turnovers

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Tue, 27 Nov 2018 01:39:00 +0000

It was Family Night around these parts tonight & turnovers were the dessert on the menu! They were soooo good! We had apple, raspberry, and chocolate turnovers.

I made the puff pastry myself but I had some time to kill over the weekend so I was able to keep rolling & folding & chilling the dough. It's actually very simple to make (3 ingredients: butter, flour & water) but it's quite tedious. So if you don't have extra time on your hands, buy already made puff pastry dough at the grocery store!

Make sure when you seal the turnovers that you get a good seal or the filling will sneak out on you like the raspberry ones did to me...

At least only a small amount leaked so it wasn't disastrous at all! My favorite were the chocolate. Lots of flaky layers with rich, melted chocolate in the center.

So, recipes....

For the chocolate, simply put a Tablespoon of room temperature chocolate chips with a dash of cinnamon into each square.

For the apple, in a heavy pot bring 2 apples, peeled & chopped, 1 Tablespoon butter, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg & 1 teaspoon cornstarch to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat & simmer 5 minutes or until apples are tender & sauce has thickened. Cool completely & then put a Tablespoon of mixture into each square.

For the raspberry, mix 3 Tablespoons cornstarch with just enough cold water to dissolve. In a heavy pot, mix together 2 1/4 cup raspberries & 1/2 cup sugar. Stir in 3/4 teaspoon vanilla, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon & cornstarch mixture. Heat over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes until mixture bubbles & thickens. Cool completely & then put a Tablespoon of mixture into each square.

For all: Seal turnovers & bake in preheated 400 degree oven for 20 - 24 minutes until golden & puffy. Top with powdered sugar.

They are super delicious! I also think the apple & raspberry filling recipes above would be delicious in tarts or on top of pancakes or ice cream! I bet they'd even be good mixed with some cream cheese and cooked inside French toast....hmmm, the possibilities are endless it seems!

Lemon Curd

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Mon, 26 Nov 2018 00:09:00 +0000

Do you ever get a crazy craving that won't go away until you have the item you're craving?? Of course you have. Last night I wanted lemon so badly that I got up from my super comfy couch to make something delicious: lemon curd.

What is lemon curd? It is scrumptious. It can be used in tarts, pies, in between layers of cake, to fill donuts, or just to eat. Which I did. No regrets at all!!

Ok, so that's not the best picture ever, but you get the idea....

So here's how you do it....

Get some juice....about two lemons should give you enough. You need 1/2 cup. Before you juice your lemons though, be sure to grate some of the zest into your pan. Zest both the lemons. That should give you enough.

That's a 1/2 cup of sugar in the pan. Oh, side note, don't use a teflon coated pan to make this or you ended up with teflon spotted curd. I've done it. It's not delicious.

Separate 3 eggs and add the yolks to your pan of sugar. Be sure to save the egg whites for another recipe. You can freeze them. Just thaw them out in the refrigerator a couple hours before you want to use them. Cube up 6 Tbl butter.

Mix everything together except the butter. Add the butter & cook, whisking frequently, over medium heat until the curd thickens & the first bubbles appear on the surface. It takes about 6 minutes. Pour it into a bowl & cover with plastic wrap. Be sure to lay the plastic wrap directly on the curd so it doesn't develop a skin. Chill at least 1 hour...although it is good warm & that's how I ate it last night!!

Curd can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 1 week! It would never last that long around here though!

So to recap, you'll need:

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tsp. lemon zest
1/2 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
6 Tbl butter

I'm still here & still cooking

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sat, 24 Nov 2018 21:20:00 +0000

I've looked through this blog which used to be such an every day part of my life that I had dreams about it, and I've realized that a lot (if not most) of my pictures are no longer here. Photobucket.com has moved on without me. I've also realized that a lot of my links have moved on as well. What's a girl to do? Well, start over seems to be my only choice.

So that is what I'm going to do...in a way....

I've gotten back into cooking again. Creating with food. I've dug out my old Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book which was published in 1976. So far I've made a few things...homemade biscuits, turnovers made with puff pastry (which I created myself with hours of folding & rolling & chilling! So exciting!), a pecan pie which we had on Thanksgiving. I am in utter bliss!

All of this has inspired me to get back to this blog. My past attempts to return to this blog in the blaze of glory that I envision in my mind's eye have ended with long periods of time of my not being here at all. So this time I've given myself a goal. I am going to create posts by trying the recipes in my trusty cookbook! And I'm going to take you along with me!

There are over 1500 recipes in the cookbook. I hope to make it through at least 500 of them. I promise to take you step by step through the recipes with me from start to finish, even the ones that are major fails. I don't expect for them all to be successful! They might be though...let's find out together!

I'm still alive

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Fri, 04 May 2018 12:33:00 +0000

I am still alive. I am still cooking. I've just been hanging out on Facebook for the last few years. I hope you'll find me there but I also hope you'll continue to use this cookbook!

What's for Christmas dinner?

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Fri, 25 Dec 2015 16:29:00 +0000

There is always a lot of food on Christmas Day...it's one of my favorite parts. We are going traditional here: Ham, mashed potatoes, corn, green beans, deviled eggs, crescent rolls, banana cream pie & cookies and cream pie plus I have a snack plate of summer sausage, about 5 different cheeses, crackers, divinity, Baklava & white-chocolate coated pretzels out on the table while they are waiting on the main food. What's cooking at your house?

Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Roll Call

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Wed, 09 Apr 2014 22:04:00 +0000

Does anyone visit me here anymore? I miss it here & miss y'all & miss my kitchen. Things just haven't been the same since Tim died. I wonder if it ever will be...

I've been hiding on Facebook

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Wed, 11 Sep 2013 20:02:00 +0000

It's been quite a while since I've posted here...on my actual blog. I am so sorry about that. I've been fighting some personal battles since my husband passed away in 2010 and that's really the only reason I have for being absent. I do apologize though. And I have been sharing some recipes...over on this blog's Facebook page. Oh, you don't know about that? Well, let me show you the way...

Click here!

Maybe one day soon I'll get back to posting here too, but in the meantime, please visit and 'like' me on Facebook! See you there!

Download a free copy of ALL YOU Magazine

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:03:00 +0000

Check out ALLYOU.com today for a FREE SAMPLE of a digital copy of the May issue of ALL YOU – plus a 50 cent coupon on your next issue!

Inside you'll find the perfect menu for a backyard cookout, flattering swimsuits for every body type, family-friendly summer activities and more.

Here's your chance to share a FREE copy of ALL YOU with a friend. The offer will remain on ALLYOU.com for about a week.

While the coupons are not redeemable in the digital edition, your friends will be able to see the many coupons ALL YOU contains.

To view the issue, click here.

Here are more practical, affordable tips found on ALLYOU.com:

· Frosting Cupcakes Like a Pro

· 15 Simple Desserts Under $1

· Easy At-Home Workouts

Southern Living Magazine Announces Second-Annual White Cake Cover Contest

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:59:00 +0000

SOUTHERN LIVING ANNOUNCES SECOND-ANNUAL

WHITE CAKE COVER CONTEST

---

Winning Recipe Will Grace the Cover of the December Issue;

Winner Will Visit the Brand’s Test Kitchen and Receive $1,000

---

Chinet Bakeware^®Sponsors This Year’s Contest

---

Deadline for Entries is June 30^th

To enter, go to: http://www.southernliving.com/white-cake. The Deadline is June 30^th.

For inspiration, peruse the gallery of past cover cakes:
http://www.southernliving.com/food/holidays-occasions/christmas-cake-recipes-00417000070121/

Mother's Day menu

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sun, 13 May 2012 13:52:00 +0000

Want to do something special for mom today? How about giving her a break and you fix dinner? Below is an easy and inexpensive menu for a delicious dinner just for mom. (Just click on the item to get the recipe.)

Lemon Garlic Chicken - $9.17
Rice Pilaf - $2.05
Steamed Broccoli - $1.09
No Bake Cheesecake - $4.73

Total - $17.14

Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there! I hope you have a wonderful day!

Save a little money on ALL YOU magazine

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Fri, 04 May 2012 21:43:00 +0000

Hey guys! I just thought I'd let you know that you can save 50 cents on All You magazine available nationwide at Walmart & through subscriptions by clicking here.

There are also other great money saving coupons there! You know I love to save money! So go ahead and go get your coupon and get tips on easy grilling recipes under $2 and family favorite recipes including biscuit-topped chicken potpie in the May issue of All You!

Five Ways to Save Money with Fun Family Meals (A Guest Post)

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 16:28:00 +0000

I receive quite a few emails requesting the opportunity to submit a guest post. Most of them I don't post because they don't seem to fit into my cookbook. However, if you are talking about saving money...I'm totally there!

Five Ways to Save Money with Fun Family Meals

1. Revamp Leftovers

Children and adults alike get bored warming up the same dinner from the night before. Surprise your family with something different. Who wants reheated baked chicken from the night before? It was great the first night, but boring the second. If it goes uneaten, it goes in the trash, which is a waste of money. Instead, remember that leftover chicken can be sliced for barbeque chicken sandwiches, diced and tossed with pasta and Alfredo sauce, or added to a pie crust with other simple ingredients to create a chicken pot pie. Have a leftover steak with more than one mouth to feed? Shred the steak, make taquitos, add a salad with rice and beans and feed a family of four!

2. Breakfast for Dinner

If you have little ones in the house, you know that trying new exotic dinner creations often equals a lot of uneaten portions. I’m not saying to avoid new foods, but balance out the grocery budget by offering an occasional breakfast for dinner. Kids love it! It is also a quick, easy, and inexpensive meal. Furthermore, breakfast for dinner doesn’t have to mean waffles and pancakes. Try creating a nutritious omelet with ham, fresh veggies and low-fat cheese, or a breakfast burrito loaded with lean steak, diced potatoes,eggs and topped with salsa.

3. Vegetarian Night

Wholesome, filling dinners can easily be created without meat. Offering a night or two a week of meatless meals can shrink your weekly grocery budget too, so try making a bean soup and add a warm bread loaf. Other family favorites are eggplant Parmesan, vegetable stir-fry, or pasta with a simple marinara or Alfredo sauce.

4. Cook Seasonally

Out of season fruits and vegetables can be expensive. Take advantage of lower-priced fruits and vegetables when they are in season and plan your meals around them. For example, buying a large bag of plain brown potatoes in the winter can create a large variety of meals. Potatoes become boring to the family when just mashed or boiled, but add chopped steak, broccoli and cheddar cheese to create loaded baked potatoes! Leftover mashed potatoes can be mixed with shredded cheddar cheese and lightly fried in a taco shell for potato tacos. Little picky-eaters tend to love potato tacos. Homemade french fries are the best, and for health conscious moms, baked fries are a healthy option. Summer desserts are solved with baking in-season berry pies, such as blackberries or raspberries. Offering fruit pies is also a great way to get another dose of fruit into the little ones, though this should obviously only be sporadic.

5. Nights In

In today’s economy, going out to eat has become more of a luxury than routine. So, bring the restaurant home and create some family fun as well. In the mood for Mexican? While the meat is cooking, chop the toppings and lay them out in bowls, so your family can build their own tacos. Offer chips and salsa, rice and beans. This meal is economical and the children get to have fun and be creative! Another meal that offers family fun is to build and create your own pizza. Many ready-made types of dough and sauces are available - just lay out the toppings and build. Insert and light candles into empty Chianti bottles at dinnertime and the mood is set for a special dinner.

Jenny Spellman writes about saving money, personal finance & www.travelinsurance.org

ALL YOU April issue: Easy Veggie Recipes, Stop Losing Money on Daily Deals

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 13:23:00 +0000

Here are some stories from the April issue issue of ALL YOU magazine, plus news on a contest at allyou.com:

Easy Vegetarian Recipes Under $1

From whole-wheat pasta with white beans and spinach to cold sesame noodles with golden garlic, these recipes are sure to please vegetarians and meat-eaters alike!

Cheap Pork Recipes -- Under $1!

These delicious, versatile pork recipes are great as main meals and leftovers.

Easy Chicken Dinner Recipes Under $1

Stay within your grocery budget and put smiles on your family's faces with these easy, tasty and affordable dishes.

Stop Losing Money on Daily Deals:

ALL YOU recommends these handy tips so consumers don't lose money on daily deals.

Frugal Foodie Contest Winner

We asked the public to make over an ALL YOU recipe for less than our cost per serving and the winner of the ALL YOU FRUGAL FOODIE CONTEST is BLOGGER DONNA KELLY of APRON STRINGS BLOG (www.apronstringsblog.com)

Check the ALLYOU.com site later in the week for the next frugal foodie challenge. To see the winning entry, click here.

For the recipe, click here.

Crispy Taco Wings from McCormick® kitchens

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:04:00 +0000

I receive about 30 emails a day from different food related websites. One of those websites is McCormick. This recipe came in yesterday's email and I thought it'd be perfect as a Super Bowl Party recipe.

For easy crisp and spicy chicken wings, start with McCormick® Taco Seasoning Mix.

Makes 6 appetizer servings.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes

What you'll need:

1 cup plain bread crumbs
1 package McCormick® Taco Seasoning Mix or McCormick® Chicken Taco Seasoning Mix
2 pounds chicken wing pieces

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.

2. Mix bread crumbs and Seasoning Mix in large resealable plastic bag. Add chicken wings in batches; shake to coat well. Arrange chicken wings in single layer on large foil-lined shallow baking pan.

3. Bake 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

per serving:

Calories: 279
Fat: 15 g
Carbohydrates: 16 g
Cholesterol: 99 mg
Sodium: 599 mg
Fiber: 2 g
Protein: 20 g

Cost:

bread crumbs - $1.29/lb
taco seasoning - $1.18
chicken wings - $5.14
Total - $6.61

Kat's calzone

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:00:00 +0000

Our friends Hollis and April enjoyed my calzone one night and requested the recipe. Since I'm terrible about writing things down, I thought I'd just post it here where they could get it! This recipe makes two calzones: one regular and one supreme.

Preheat oven to 375°

What you'll need:

For crust:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 cup warm water (110°)

Stir together all dry ingredients. Add oil and water and mix by hand until a ball forms. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead about one minute. Let rest for 10 minutes. Cut in half and form into two balls. Let rest one minute. Keep covered with a damp paper towel until ready to use.

For filling:

1 (1 lb) package mild italian sausage (just the meat, no casing; if you can't find bulk italian sausage, you can use the raw links. Just remove the meat from the casing)
1 cup fresh mushroom slices, washed
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (4 oz) can sliced black olives, drained
1 package sliced pepperoni
4 cups finely shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
ranch salad dressing
parmesan cheese

Brown and drain italian sausage. Mix half of cooked sausage in a large bowl with mushrooms, bell pepper, onion and black olives. Set aside.

Take one half of dough (leaving the other half covered with a damp paper towel) and roll it out to pizza pan size. It will be thin. Place on pizza pan (or cookie sheet) that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. *An easy way to get the dough from where you rolled it out to the pizza pan is to roll the dough around the rolling pin and then unroll it onto the pizza pan.*

Spread ranch dressing onto dough to 1/2" from edge. Don't allow ranch dressing to get on edges or you won't be able to seal the calzone. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top of that. Lay pepperoni onto half of the dough. To me it looks like a big smiley face. Put mixed sausage/veggies on top of pepperoni and spread out. Top that with 2 cups of mozzarella cheese. Fold top half over bottom half and press edges together to seal. Gently press top down to flatten calzone slightly. Brush a little oil mixed with italian seasoning onto top of calzone and cut three slits in top to allow steam to escape.

Bake for 10 - 15 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly. Cut and enjoy!

For regular calzone, follow the above instructions but just add the other half of cooked italian sausage instead of the mixed sausage/veggies.

Cost:

For dough:
all purpose flour - $1.25
yeast - $1.99/3-pack
vegetable oil (regular) - $2.28
sugar - $2.42

Subtotal - $1.24

For filling:
italian sausage - $3.69
pepperoni - $1.29
bell pepper - 79¢
onion - $1.19/lb
mushrooms - $1.88/lb
black olives - 99¢
mozzarella - $2.30/2 cup bag preshredded

Total - $12.08/2 calzones

Corn bake

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:34:00 +0000

I made this at Thanksgiving but it's a good, any-night-of-the-week side dish.

What you'll need:

2 (9 oz) packages frozen corn, cooked & drained
1 (6 oz) can evaporated milk
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbl. finely chopped onion
1/2 tsp salt
dash of pepper
1/2 cup swiss cheese, shredded and divided
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1 Tbl butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350°

Mix together corn, evaporated milk, egg, onion, salt & pepper and 1/4 cup of shredded swiss. Pour into a buttered casserole dish. Top with bread crumbs, melted butter and remaining 1/4 cup of shredded swiss. Bake for 25 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Cost:

corn - $2.49
evaporated milk - $1.16
onion - 99¢/1 lb
swiss - $4.59/lb
Total - $4.33

ALL YOU MAGAZINE: Lightened-up Comfort Foods, Affordable Winter Meals and More

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:56:00 +0000

Y'all know that when I find things that I enjoy, I like to share them! all*you magazine is one of those things I enjoy and I thought I'd share some of the interesting and helpful stories that are in their January issue (click on the section title to view story)...

Lightened-up Comfort Foods

Stay warm this season with healthier versions of winter favorites. These affordable recipes cut back on fat and calories -- not on flavor!

Affordable Winter Meals

Take the chill off this season with these hearty, delicious and cost-effective family dinners, including a printable shopping list to make meal planning easier.

Low-Calorie Desserts

Our lightened-up versions of 11 favorite treats make for dessert that's decadent – and guilt-free.

30 Days of Slow-Cooker

We’ve got 30 ways to make the most of your slow-cooker, so all you’ll have to do to is press start.

You should definitely go buy you a copy today!

Homemade cranberry sauce

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 18:57:00 +0000

I told you in my post yesterday that I made my entire Thanksgiving dinner from scratch this year. Most years I take shortcuts like buying premade pie shells and canned cranberry sauce, but not this year. I decided to go all out! Let me tell you, the extra work was well worth the effort! Everything was simply delicious. I even heard the phrase "this is the best everything ever!" That puts a smile on a cook's face...I promise you that!

Today's recipe is the one I followed to make homemade cranberry sauce. It's so simple & so much better than canned!

What you'll need:

2 cups sugar

2 cups water

1 lb (4 cups) fresh cranberries, rinsed

Combine sugar and water in a large saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often. Boil 5 minutes. (This creates a "simple syrup" and is what sweetens your sauce.) Add cranberries and cook and stir for an additional 5 minutes or until skins pop. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly, stirring occasionally. Serve warm or cold.*

*To mold sauce, cook 10 minutes longer, or until a drop jells on a cold plate. Pour into a 4-cup mold. Chill until firm. To unmold, set mold into a large bowl of hot water to loosen from edge, invert onto serving plate.

Makes 4 cups.

Cost:

sugar - $3.29/lb

cranberries - $2.56/lb

Total - $2.85

June? Really??

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 15:09:00 +0000

I just realized that I told you WAAAAY back on June the 1st that I was going to start posting here again. I am so sorry that that hasn't happened yet but, as of today, I am feeling much more myself and I really, really, really, really will begin posting here again! In my defense, in that last post, I said "don't hold me to it", so at least I warned you that what happened was a possibility!

OK, that's lame, I know. I apologize for not posting since June. There's really no excuse for it. I promise to do better in the future!!

On THAT note, see you soon! I can't wait to tell you how Thanksgiving dinner turned out this year.....yummmmy! I made everything from scratch....even the cranberry sauce! And I did it all for less than $45! Go me :)

Have a great day everyone & Merry, Merry Christmas!

Hello lovelies

noreply@blogger.com (♥ Kathy) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 15:04:00 +0000

Just thought I'd write a quick post to let you know that I plan on starting to post here again....soon. Possibly even tomorrow... Don't hold me to it though (lol) but I'll do my best! Love & miss y'all!