GOOD TO KNOWS!

SO many cool ideas I found! I have not tried them all so I can not vouch for all of them! 

• Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster. 
• Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh much longer and not mold. 
• Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating. Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.
• Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef. It will help pull the grease away from the meat. 
• To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.
• For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a minty frosting.
• Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic, and at the end of the recipe if you want a stronger taste of garlic. 
• Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simply chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place them in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream.
• Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. 
• Easy Deviled Eggs: Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up. 
• Expanding Frosting: When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving. 
• Reheating refrigerated bread: To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster. 
• Newspaper weeds away: Plant your plants in the ground, work the nutrients in your soil. Then wet newspapers, put layers around the plants overlapping as you go, cover with mulch, and forget about weeds. 
• Broken Glass: Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small shards of glass you can't see easily. 
• No More Mosquitoes: Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away. 
• To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it. 
• Flexible vacuum: To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings. 
• Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip to eliminate static cling. It works; you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks. 
• Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out. 
• De-fog your windshield: Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car When the windows fog, rub with the eraser. 
• Re-opening envelopes: If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. It unseals easily. 
• Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair. 
• Goodbye Fruit Flies: To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2' with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. flies are drawn to the cup and gone forever. 
• Wash your dryer filter: dryer sheets cause a film over filter that will burn out the heating unit. You can't SEE the film, but it's there. It builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen. The best way to keep your dryer working for a long time (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take the filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush at least every six months.

Tortilla Soup

Okay I LOVE this soup! It is snowing out my window at the moment so soup sounds good to me! It is also a great way to use zucchini and banana squash which around here is quite handy! If you cook and cube your chicken in advance then this is an easy dump, dump recipe which I also love! ALSO, this would work for meatless Monday, just drop out the chicken, the black beans are full of protein!

3 C. chicken broth (from the can or from cooking your chicken)

2 chicken breasts, cubed

2 cloves garlic, diced (I usually just use 1 tsp garlic powder cause I don't always have garlic on hand)

Salt (to taste- I am pretty sure I have never salted it)

1 15 oz can diced tomatoes

1 14 oz can whole corn, drained

1 can black beans (optional but makes it more hardy)

1 TBL chili powder

zucchini and squash if you have it

Serve with *Avocado sliced

*grated cheese

*lime juice

*tortilla chips

*sour cream

*when I first had this soup it had none of these toppers with it and I LOVED it!

(If you are using fresh garlic then saute in oil for 30 seconds. Add chicken and cook until completely done.)

Put in large pot with chicken broth. Add all ingredients except toppers. Simmer for 20-30 minutes. If you have added the vegetables cook until they are soft.

Totally optional, to serve in individual bowl, place a layer of broken tortilla chips and top with sliced avocado, squeeze lime juice over avocados and sprinkle with grated cheese. Spoon the hot chicken soup into each bowl and garnish with anything else you want. (sour cream, salsa, cheese).

SOUPER Yummy! Would go great with Loretta's biscuits! :) (obviously not necessary though. :))

Becca :)

Granny's Biscuits

A while ago, I made some homemade chicken noodle soup (for the first time!) in the crock pot and while perusing online for a good recipe, everyone said that you have to have biscuits with chicken noodle soup.  I’m pretty decent at rolls, but I’ve never made a biscuit in my life. 

I researched and compared and researched some more and found, what I think, is an amazing recipe.  And easy!  Which we all know I’m a big fan of.  :)

Granny’s Homemade Biscuits

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder (aluminum free if you have it)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine
3/4 cup milk

Combine all dry ingredients and blend well with a whisk. Cut in butter (if you don’t know how to do this, click here) until resembles coarse bread crumbs. Stir in milk until all comes together to form a dough ball. Turn out dough ball onto a well floured surface. Let set for a couple of minutes and pat out to about 1/2″ thick. Cut biscuits with floured biscuit cutter and place into ungreased baking pan. Form remaining dough into ball and repeat until all dough made into biscuits. This recipe will make approximately 12 biscuits. Bake in 425-450 degree oven for 12-15 minutes. 

Note: This recipe freeze well too. Just place your cut biscuits onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper and place cookie sheet into freeze making sure to keep level. Once frozen remove and place into a freezer bag and place into freezer. When ready to use just follow baking directions and bake only the amount that you need, you do not have to bake all of them at one time. 

Some personal notes from experience:
It says to use a floured biscuit cutter-I didn't.  I used a metal, fondant cutter I have and I never floured it.  Worked like a charm.  You could also use a metal canning lid or anything you have laying around!  Also, a lot of different women said that, with biscuits, the less you handle the dough the better.  Just FYI.  A few sites said to use aluminum free baking powder, others didn't specify.  I happened to have it on hand so that's what I have been using the last couple of months that I've been making these.  And lastly, it really does only make about 12-14 biscuits.  You will think that sounds like plenty...until you taste them.  If you have a big family (meaning more than two people) you'll want to double the recipe.  Just know that it does take a lot longer to cut the biscuits out with double the dough.





Oh!  And one more thing - another blogger said that the biscuits should always have their sides touching while baking.  She said that it helps them rise better...don't ask me why.  This pic is from the first time I made the recipe and since then I have tried it with ALL of the sides touching and it works great.  So, make sure they're all connected.  :)  Enjoy!

3 dinners for under $10 total

Okay, so I didn't add up the amounts, but I think I made all three of these dinners for under $10 total. My family does not eat leftovers, so I do not save leftovers. They just go moldy, so I would rather throw them away when they smell good, than when they smell horrible. (I know, not very frugal of me---but that's the way it is.) But, if I can make it into something else, then it works. I haven't done the following plan before, but it worked out quite nicely.

10-12 medium potatoes

Toppings for baked potatoes

1 tube jimmy dean hot sausage

1 yellow onion

1/2 bottle BBQ sauce

9 eggs

S & P

Beef boullion cubes

Biscuits or biscuit ingredients

The first night we had baked potatoes. Mine were red potatoes, but it doesn't matter. Make extra for the following meals... (I think I made 10-12 medium sized potatoes for my family of 5 eaters).

Then a night or two later we had Rancho's Juevos. (My Dad always said it meant "Ranch Eggs" in spanish, but who knows?) Here is how to do it...

After the baked potatoes cool (you can just leave them in the foil and put them in the fridge) or let them cool on the counter for a few hours. Remove the foil and cube. Put them in the fridge in a ziploc until ready to use. In a large non-stick skillet put the potatoes in and brown edges and heat through. Salt and Pepper. In a separate pan cook 1 chopped yellow onion and 1 tube of jimmy dean hot sausage (by the ham and hot dogs at the grocery store). Add cooked sausage to potatoes. In a separate bowl beat some eggs. (I did 9, but it just depends on how many potatoes you have and how much egg you like). Add eggs to potatoes and cook through. Add half a bottle of any brand/flavor BBQ sauce and serve. You can also top with cheese if desired.

For the third meal I made a beef broth with water and beef boullion cubes. I did 5 bouillion cubes to half a big pan of water. (The normal recipe is 1 cube to 1 C. water...and I estimated that it was about 5 cups of water). Then I added the left over Rancho's Juevos to make a sausage and potato soup. The egg looked a little weird, but it didn't taste bad at all. In fact the soup was really really good. (I figured there is egg in egg drop soup). I also made biscuits to go with the soup. I am still looking for the perfect biscuit recipe so I will not post the recipe I used. (Anyone have any suggestions.)

And there you have it...3 cheap, easy, fast, yummy meals!

Simple and yummy California Chicken!

This recipe is from Tammy Stapp but I love it because it's so simple yet a little gourmet like. Take as many chicken breasts as you need and put it in a 9x13 dish. Cover each breast with your favorite cheese. She recommended colby jack but I love Swiss and think of it as more California like. Then add tomatoes to each breast. Bake in the oven at 350 for 30 min or until your chicken breast is cooked through. Add sliced avocado over the top of each breast and enjoy. So YUMMY!!

What to make?!?!?!

What to make...What to make?!?!?! (For dinner)

Chicken Fajitas

This is the way I always make chicken fajitas.  It sounds weird having italian dressing in a mexican dish but it's not.  It's really yummy.

Abt. 2-4 Chicken Breasts, diced or cut in strips
1 pkg. dry Italian seasoning mix (like you would make italian salad dressing out of)

Whatever toppings you like:

sour cream
cheese
lettuce
salsa

tomatoes, chopped
Tortilla 

Green Peppers and onion, sauteed

Mushrooms, sauteed

Cook chicken in frying pan sprayed with pam. Once cooked through (do not overcook), add seasoning pkt and some water (like you're making taco meat). Once liquid has evaporated, make your fajitas with whatever toppings you want.

Maddox rolls

If you live in Northern Utah and haven't been to Maddox Ranch House in Brigham, you are missing out.  I would honestly make the drive JUST for their rolls.  Since that's not always an option (especially in the winter!), I found a recipe online for copycat Maddox rolls.  I made them for the first time last night.  :)

Maddox Ranch Rolls

2 TBSP yeast dissolved in 1/2 C warm water

Scald 2 C milk

To scald milk: pour the milk in a saucepan and heat over medium-high heat.  When it gets frothy and the bubbles stick to the sides of the pan, it's done!

 When that is done, pour it over 1/2 C softened butter and 1 tsp salt.  Mix it up and let cool until warm.

When it's warm, combine it with your yeast mixture, 1/2 C sugar, 3 eggs, and 5 1/2 C flour.

Bonus points to you if you can pour and take a picture at the same time.  ;)

Stir thoroughly.  

(I used a beater-made it way easier and no one told me not to.)

GOOPY!

 At this point in the recipe, it said, "Dough will be sticky.  Very goopy."  They weren't kidding!!!  I tried to take a pic, but it's hard to tell just how goopy it was.  It was a big bowl of goop!  Don't panic and DON'T try to knead it.

Let rise for 90 minutes.

I put a warm, damp towel over the top (like I always do with breads) and at the end of 90 minutes, the towel was COVERED in goop and hard to pull off the top.  SO, I would suggest covering it with saran wrap that is HEAVILY sprayed with Pam (or Great Value).  ;)

Spoon into well greased muffin tins.  Allow to rise until slightly rounded.  

(I only waited about 10-15 minutes and it was fine.)

Bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

ALL DONE!

Maddox's rolls are perfectly shaped, and mine were kinda funky looking:

 

 But they tasted great!!!
It was seriously the easiest roll recipe I have EVER made.  This is going to be my "go-to" roll recipe from now on.

It's been a while since I've been to Maddox, so I can't remember exactly what their rolls taste like, but I don't think these are a perfect copycat, y'know?  However, they were delicious and no one was complaining.  :)

And you can't have Maddox rolls without...

RASPBERRY BUTTER!!

WOO!

Raspberry butter

1/2 C butter-softened

1/3 C fresh or frozen raspberries (I used frozen)

2 TBSP confectioner's sugar

Dash lemon juice

Combine all ingredients.  Serve immediately.  Refrigerate leftovers.

The roll recipe made 36 rolls (it says it only makes 24, but maybe if they were all HUGE that would be right), so I doubled the butter recipe.

 

 I thought it looked weird, but was brave enough to try it anyway.

OH. MY. GOSH. it was DELICIOUS!!!!

And I'm SO glad I doubled it.  With that many rolls, this was perfect!

Serve with turkey steaks, mashed potatoes, and you're all set!  Enjoy!

P.S. If you buy Maddox Turkey Steaks at the store, the package will say that it takes 25 minutes to cook them.  IT LIES!!  Ours took about 45 minutes (and, yes, I followed the directions correctly).  Just a head's up.  :)

P.P.P.P.P.S.S. If you're NOT going to make the raspberry butter with these, then add another 1/2 C sugar to the recipe.  The rolls will taste better plain that way.

Laundry Soap (not edible) lol

I have been thinking about posting this for a long time, I keep forgetting!
I make homemade laundry soap and I think it works like a charm!

Homemade Laundry Soap

1 bar Fels Naptha soap

1 cup washing soda

1 cup borax powder 

~You will also need a 5 gallon size bucket~

Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan.  Add 9 cups water and heat it until the soap melts.  Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved.  Remove from heat.  Pour 6 cups hot water into the bucket.   Now add your soap mixture and stir.  Now add 2 gallons plus 1 cup of water and stir.  Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel.  You use ½ - 1 cup per load.

(You’ll want to stir the soap before each use)

Optional:  If you want your soap to have some sort of scent you can scent this with  1½ to 2 oz. of essential oil or fragrance oil of your choice. (You should put the scented oil in after it is completely cooled.)

~The finished soap may or may not be a solid gel.  If it is solid, stir it up really well.  It will be more of a watery gel that has been accurately described as an "egg noodle soup" look.

~The soap is a low sudsing soap.  So if you don’t see suds, that is ok.  Suds are not what does the cleaning, it is the ingredients in the soap.

(Recipe taken from www.thefamilyhomestead.com and modified by me!)

Cookie Bowls

Derrick had this great idea of using the bottom of a muffin tin to make cookie bowls for our ice cream. I know it looks like a mess but they worked perfect. I did put a little more cookie batter on the pan then I should have, but I still think the idea was AWESOME! Ok and I might have cooked them a few minutes too long! 

Post

Please post something...as you can see...my recipes are just normal recipes...nothing chef-worthy!  We want your recipes.  No-one wants All Mikael Recipes All The Time.   Please please please share.  You don't have to put pictures...just put something!!!!

Bean and Bacon on Toast

This is one of those "I usually have all of the ingredients on hand that is good, cheap and filling...but I really wouldn't serve it to company".  You can have the whole dinner on the table in less than 5 minutes.

Toast your bread.  Top with Campbell's Bean with Bacon soup.  On top of that add grated cheese, sour cream salsa and lettuce (I didn't have any lettuce last night for the picture).

Notes:  I like Campbells a lot better than generic bean n bacon.

I only add 1/2 can of water to the soup instead of a full can.

I add a T or 2 of brown sugar to the bean and bacon

It is also really good wrapped in a tortilla.

Store-bought Lasagna

My MIL brought us a store-bought lasagna tonight. It was a crazy day and I was so grateful for the help. I am not normally a big fan of store-bought lasagna's (stouffers and what-not). This one was really good. I would even serve it to company. It was a bit spicy, which I liked! But if your kids don't like spicy they might not be a fan. It was Kirkland All Natural Italian Sausage and Beef Lasagna. We cooked it in the oven, but it says that it is microwavable. Kirkland is the Costco brand (if I remember right). This was a smaller one. It said it had 6 servings and I would say that's about right. Try it! You'll like it!