Laurie's Everyday Notions

"festering" on top of the refrigerator for the afternoon My new favorite and EASIEST bread recipe comes from Gwen's Nest and can be found HERE Spinach and feta on my side and plain old cheese for the kids

I was going to go to the grocery store after work last night. I just needed a few supplies to get me through the day as I'm heading to the "big city" tonight to get the bulk of my groceries (some things are cheaper and well worth the drive). But then there was Downton  - yes, we may have three different PBS stations with our antenna but we don't get the "right" PBS station to watch DA when it airs. Thankfully we also have a Roku so we can watch it the next day. I'm also thankful that I didn't see any spoilers on Facebook before I was able to see the episode.  By the time we finished watching Downton and dried our eyes, our little, hometown grocery store was closed. Today I will just work with what I have.  Opening the freezer I found ice cream (my son would be just fine with ice cream for dinner), a bag of frozen California vegetables, two salmon fillets, walnuts, one pie crust, a box of puff pastry, and frozen radishes.  The refrigerator didn...

The other day I stumbled across a recipe at Gwen's Nest for a Thin Mint Chocolate Milkshake . This recipe sounded like just the thing to curb my craving for sweet and was "plan-approved". Except I was out of cottage cheese (I know. Weird. But cottage cheese makes shakes extra creamy delicious. I'm not lying.), I didn't have any peppermint extract or a dark chocolate bar. Time to experiment! I used peppermint essential oil instead (word of warning: when using essential oil you only need a couple of drops!!) and subbed my Special Dark Cocoa for the chocolate bar. I had to double the recipe after I found out that I had made my shake a bit too "minty". This extra would come in later for my mint chocolate ice cream! MINT CHOCOLATE SMOOTHIE 1 c. Almond Milk (unsweetened) 6 ice cubes 1 scoop Vanilla Whey Protein Powder 1 T. Special Dark Cocoa powder Peppermint Essential Oil (to taste) 1/8 t. glucomannan 1/4 t. liquid stevia + 1T. truvia Blend it...

 My new favorite lunch? Chicken Salad! In the past I had a couple of bad habits that I've been trying to break: 1. Feeding the daycare kids crap. Although for the most part I've always been pretty good about making "healthier" choices for the kids (we avoid fruit juices and canned fruits, never have sugared cereal, etc), I was still falling back on kid-friendly (there's nothing friendly about processed foods), inexpensive and easy meals such as hot dogs, mac&cheese and frozen pizza (who doesn't love Pizza Friday?). I don't remember the last time I served the kids any of those three (except today we're having nitrate-free turkey dogs!). 2. My lunch was usually quick, if I "ate" at all. Usually I'd gobbled down a slice of pizza (or other "naughty" foods) while serving the kids and clean the kitchen. When I eat while I'm "on my feet" I have the tendency to overeat. One slice of pizza turns to three slices. I...

As I was preparing dinner the other night, hubs walked through the kitchen and saw this: and said that I needed to take a picture. Being the obedient wife that I am (only by the grace of God as obedience has always been a struggle for me), I did. There is something very satisfying in the act of preparing dishes such as this one. It's like a slow, sweet dance that I perform in my kitchen. A dance that I prefer to dance alone but one which will benefit those that I love. I lined my pan with foil, carefully placed the fish and drizzled it with oil. Next came the cutting board and my favorite knife (does everyone have a favorite knife or is this just another one of my oddities?), herbs and fruits spread across the counter top, each waiting their turn to contribute their delishishness to my dish.  First the pineapple. Top and bottom cut off for my backyard chickens to feast upon. Slicing the pineapple in half and carefully shaving off the skin so that only the sweet, juicy frui...

I was very excited last week when Hubs gave me a juicer for Christmas! I've always wanted one but had decided that I could "make do" with my Ninja blender. Even if it meant that my smoothies were more chunky than smooth. My first juice was apples and carrots. Oh yum! Yesterday my new juicer came to the rescue when I was spent the day in my pajamas as I nursed a headache, flu-like symptoms and a cold. I felt miserable. By afternoon I knew I needed to do something so that I would be ready for work today. I searched for a "feel better" recipe and found this one . In my juicer I threw in a heaping handful of kale, 1 grapefruit, 3 oranges, and 2 kiwis. I added the juice into by Ninja with 1 banana, 1 T. chia seeds, 1 T. ground flax, 4 T. coconut oil (melted), 1 can of coconut milk, 2 t. ground ginger (I had used up my fresh ginger the previous evening in my detox bath), 1/2 t. cayenne pepper, 2 T. lemon juice, 4 T. honey. This made a BIG smoothi...

 Last night I hosted bible study (we rotate houses each week) so yesterday morning I panicked as I looked through the cupboard to see what I had to work with. Hmm......Wildtree Mocha Mousse and Cheesecake Blend? I've made this before and found it a little boring so I began thinking of ways that I could "dress it up". The following recipe is what I came up with. Of course as I was formulating my dessert in my head I realized that the deliciousness of this treat would increase with proper presentation. I think it was a hit. Click HERE for a printable recipe! Mocha Mousse and Berry Parfait Mix together a few hours before “assembly” and place in the refrigerator: 12 oz. cream cheese (or neufchatel cheese - can’t even taste the difference!) 4 T. Wildtree Mocha Mousse and Cheesecake Blend ¼ C. heavy whipping cream Just before the guests arrive whip up in a chilled mixing bowl until cream forms “peaks”: Pint heavy whipping cream sprinkle of Nustevia...

This summer my husband and I will be celebrating five years of marriage.  Five years. In five years time I've passed the "under forty" age category and am now "over forty". In five years my "baby" has gone from being shorter than mama, gained over a foot of height and is now taller than mama. The year we married, my/our eldest graduated from high school and now five years later two more (our/his) children  have graduated high school, one of which just graduated from college. In the past five years I've gained 30 pounds.... THIRTY pounds people! I weigh more now than I did with either of my pregnancies. I've made excuses as the weight began to pile on...... my husband loves me anyway (and for some crazy reason he does love his fat wife) my husband shows me love by shoving food (I'm not even kidding and it's usually donuts, cookies and cake) in my face so it's his fault that I'm fat (I've recently found a way to loving...

the smell of garlic and onion sauteing in butter slow down. savor the delicious scents rolling and chopping of spinach vibrant green. life giving the rhythmic hum of the dishwasher with hands immersed in the warm, lemony scented dishwater calm the spirit. quiet the mind counting my blessings......... everyday gratitude

I haven't been very chatty lately........... so here's a few pictures to show you what I've been up to.  Kombucha............ It looks like fudge. It smells like mint chocolate. Even though I KNEW it was soap I was still beckoned by this delicious looking soap every time I walked into the kitchen. I finally had to find another room to let this soap "cure" in because I was afraid I was going to eventually bite into my chocolate mint soap. I bet it doesn't taste as good as it looks and smells.                                                                                             Remember my wax mess ? Well, I tried all the tricks that I could find to try to get the wax out of my carpet.  Ironing, Goo ...

Monday (Boy Scouts)                  Lunch: Brats, homemade fries (baked in bacon fat...so good!), banana                 Dinner: Pork Roast, potatoes, carrots in the crock pot. Tuesday (Online class for me/Bible Study for my boys)                 Lunch: Leftover brats diced into homemade Macaroni and Cheese, peas, apples                 Dinner: Stuffed Shells with Marinara (homemade spaghetti from the freezer), salad, garlic bread Wednesday (Church Night) ~ this night always seems more rushed so it's been designated as "Soup Night"                 Lunch: Leftover Stuffed Shells, corn and pears                 Dinner: Chicken and Rice Soup Thursday (NIGHT AT HOME!! WAHOO)               ...

Making meals ahead of time saves time, energy and stress as I discussed on   Day 12 . This is another meal that I prepared a few weeks ago when I made ten meals for the freezer. This recipe won my families approval so I can now share it with you! :) In a freezer bag combine: 2 lbs of ground beef (or turkey if you wish), 1/4 cup oatmeal, 2 T. Wildtree* Hearty Spaghetti Blend, 2 T. Wildtree*Rancher Steak Rub, 2 eggs. Now here's the fun part. Squish it all up to distribute the herbs into the meat. Label the bag and store in the freezer. Easy. Gathering supplies (if already on hand) and assembling this meal takes less then 15 minutes. The hard part is remembering ahead of time to take the meatloaf out of the freezer to thaw in the refrigerator overnight. This is where sticky notes on the refrigerator come in handy.  When ready to bake, form into a loaf and bake for 50-55 minutes. Add marinara sauce during last 10-15 minutes of baking.  While baking the meatloaf...

2lb. pork tenderloin (I substituted chops as they were on sale) 3 T. Wildtree Garlic Grapeseed Oil 3 T. Wildree Lemon Rosemary Blend Place all ingredients in a large Ziploc bag, seal and shake to combine. Label bag and place in the freezer.  Remove from freezer a day before serving. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 375 degrees. Served here with skillet potatoes, beets and  sauteed  asparagus with almonds. 

I've always wanted to do "once-a-month" cooking but haven't done it on a large scale. Time and organization were lacking for such a feat. I have, in the past, prepared a week's worth of freezer meals and I do, on occasion, make double, triple and even quadruple batches of meals, serving one and freezing the rest. I love having meals in the freezer for nights when I'm-not-hungry-so-nothing-sounds-good-but my-family-still-wants-to-eat. Last weekend I had the opportunity to join a few other ladies for a Freezer Meal Workshop in which we made 10 meals for the freezer. Making food for the family AND spending time with women....it was a WIN-WIN way to spend my time. When I returned home from the workshop I added nine meals to the freezer and one in the refrigerator for the next night's meal. The Perfect Roast Chicken was the dinner I happened to randomly grab for the frig and  it was a good choice! So yummy and it provided enough left overs to stretch o...

Planning for dinner is an important time saver and helps me to serve my family better. On Day 8 I discussed the fact that sometimes I just don't wanna make meals for my family. Planning takes some of the work out of making meals. I also suggested on Day 10  that family meals together are important. Family meals are only possible in this house if I plan. Monday (Boy Scouts) - Oven Roasted Chicken, Red Potatoes and Carrots  All the prep was done the night before when I attended a 10 Meal Workshop in which we prepared meals for the freezer. I kept this one out so that we could have it Monday night. I put it in the oven at 4:45 pm and it was ready at 5:30. Out the door at 6:20! Tuesday (Bible Study) - Creamy Chicken and Noodles  After lunch clean up I cleaned the meat off of three pieces of chicken that were left over from Monday night's meal and cut up some broccoli. At 5:20 pm, with one daycare kiddo left, I put the broccoli in a pan to steam, put a po...

I was at an Amish produce auction recently and stumbled across ground cherries. Curiosity caused me to bid (and WIN!) on this mysterious fruit. Of course I popped a couple in my mouth on the way home. Not tart, not terribly sweet with a flavor somewhere between a pineapple and a tomato (they are in fact a cousin to tomatoes). Weird but good.  I've heard that they make good jam but I decided to turn mine into pie. I added my ground cherries to a pie shell. Yes, pie crust from the store. Even though I prefer homemade, there is just something about pie crust. I never seem to get the crust just right and I hate rolling it out (I can't seem to be able to roll a perfect circle).  I sprinkled the cherries with 2 T. of flour and 1 heaping cup of sugar (which turned out to be too sweet). Instead of adding pie crust on top, I decided to add a crumble topping. The crumble topping consisted of mixing 1 T. butter, 4 T. oatmeal and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. I baked the...