Food Friday: Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Bars

We have a dear friend who needs to have treats made with almond flour.  I have found several in the past and finally have made one.

Almond Flour Chocolate Chip and White Chocolate Chip Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 3/4 cup almond flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 cup chopped pecans and walnuts (1 cup total)

Extra mini chocolate chips for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with a little butter
 (other greasy things do NOT add a pleasant flavor to the bottom of your bars. 

In a good-sized bowl, cream together butter and the sugars. Add the eggs and
 vanilla and beat well.  I used a wooden spoon for both processes.  If you have
 a mixer, you might want to use it....

In a small bowl, blend almond flour, baking powder and salt. Add to wet mixture
and mix well. Stir in the semi-sweet and white chocolate chips and nuts.  

Spread dough evenly into the prepared baking dish.  Sprinkle lots and lots
of mini semisweet chocolate chips on top if you are trying to use them up...
 and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden, to start.  If the batter still jiggles
after 25 minutes, put it back in the oven for another 10 minutes.  Keep
 checking for jiggle then add ten more minutes of baking.  Mine took a REALLY long
time to cook, but when they came out, Mister, they were good.

 Cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting into bars.

Final Mission Paper Crafting Project

One week left and I have finished, except for delivery,  the final paper crafting project here in the mission.

This is a combination of Gelli Printing, double-sided card stock, envelope punch board, and The Crafty Owl's Box Buster web tool.  

First I ordered the Gelli Arts 5" by 5" gelli plate kit which came with a brayer, three paints, etc.  We had some 32-pound paper at the apartment which I cut in half into two 5.5 by 8.5 pieces.  I used only two colors of acrylic paint to make each print.  Also, I lifted three prints from each application of paint.  I really like the third (ghost print) the best.

After letting the prints dry, I cut the prints down to about 3.75" by 5" or a little less then used some two-inch-wide heavy duty double-sided tape to tape them to the card stock.

Next I made envelopes with the envelope punch board--A2 size.

Finally I made boxes for each packet of 4 note cards and 4 envelopes.  I folded the leftover piece of paper that matched the envelopes and put inside the note card for writing the note on, or discarding, however the recipient chooses.  I usually write my notes on that paper then fold it and attach it to the inside of the note card.

The boxes were made using The Crafty Owl's Box Buster online tool.  It worked perfectly!!

Some of the prints I really like.  Others are just okay.  I LOVE the boxes.  Such a fun project and it makes me happy to share something with our Senior Sisters before we leave.

The Goose Family!

This spring, try as I might, I have not been outside to see this year's batch of ducklings and goslings. 

Today Dear One, who walks out there around the  ponds and the complex's perimeter every day, saw these little cuties again and took a picture for me!

Geese are good people!  You will note that the mom (or the dad) is keeping a vigilant eye on the the little guys while the spouse enjoys a nice meal.  They will trade places later on.

Last week Dear One saw the family walking very fast, one right after the other, down the sidewalk but no picture was taken at that time.

It makes me smile to see these beauties, even though the babies have mostly lost their fluff and are well into half-grown.  I certainly appreciate Dear One sharing the photo with me and allowing me to share it with others.

Painting On Metal Boxes, Third Step

After the steps of spraying on the primer on the Christmas boxes, then painting them with acrylic paint, the boxes needed to dry.  Because of life, they got three days of drying!

Finally I got back to them, sanded them down to remove drips and to give a distressed look, and sprayed on the glitter sealer out on the patio.  No way could I do any of this in the apartment.  Overspray would be a disaster!

Well,  they are done now.  At least the time left to improve upon them has been used up.  They are more than distressed looking, they are actually distressing, but, having no shame, I will give them away anyway!

My grandmother McIntosh was a wonderful tole painter.  I must say that now I admire her more than ever.  I do not believe I will take up this craft myself...!

Munchie Monday: Dr. Greger's Breakfast Smoothie

In the past I have mentioned Dr. Michael Greger.  He is the man behind nutritionfacts.org.    That is a wonderful website with videos and podcasts on all kinds of nutritional information.  I highly recommend it.  He has a monthly Question and Answer show on Facebook (while walking on his treadmill!!) that is always interesting.

Anyway.

Here is his breakfast smoothie recipe;

Makes 2 Servings

2 medium

• Fresh mint. 2 tsps
• Lemon. 1/2
• Rolled oats. 1 cup
• Frozen blackberries. 1/2 cup
• Frozen mango. 2 cups
• Flax meal. 2 tbsps
• Ground ginger. 1/2 tsp
• Spinach. 1 cup
• Water. 1 1/2 cups 

1. Rinse the fresh mint leaves. Peel the lemon, cut it in half and remove the seeds.
2. Combine the fresh mint leaves, half of the lemon, rolled oats, frozen blackberries, frozen mango, flax meal, ground ginger, spinach and water in a blender. Add additional lemon to taste, and additional water if needed. Blend until smooth and creamy.

This is the nearly empty breakfast smoothie container!
OR maybe not.  Maybe it was a strawberry smoothie....

What I did:

Trader Joe's had a fresh mint plant when I walked by after going to Fedex last week. I picked up the mint plant then went inside and picked up a lemon, a bag of spinach, and a bag of frozen mango.

In the bottom of our blender jar I put 6 large mint leaves, half a peeled and seeded lemon, 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats,1/2 teaspoon ginger, a lot of flax meal (since I am trying to use it up), a pint of frozen blackberries that Dear One picked last fall and that have been languishing in the freezer ever since waiting for a good recipe, and finally I put the 1 1/2 cups of water and blended for 60 seconds.

It was good.  It was not delicious/fabulous/or any other superlative because:  it was very thick.  Very very thick, in fact.  Putting in all the flax meal in addition to the oatmeal (remember this is a breakfast smoothie) sort of shot us in the foot, thickness-wise.  Dear One does not appear to like such thick smoothies, even though they did taste good.  ALSO,  there were a LOT of blackberry seeds. I am wondering if I had blended longer if they would have broken down...

Still, even with the issues, I will make it again...though I might go to frozen peaches and frozen blueberries instead of mangos and blackberries.  Sounds better, anyway.

Next Project...

Being down to the wire and going through "stuff", I found some wonderful hinged boxes I purchased two Christmases ago for gifting full of candies and cookies.  I love those hinged boxes and only seem able to find them around Christmas time.  With five large boxes, one small box, and a Snickers tin, many possibilities were open to me.

This is step one of a fun project that I HOPE to have finished in good season.

Step One:  Sister T and I went to Blick's Art Store and talked with a probably knowledgeable person...fortunately not the one with facial piercings...those creep me out.  Why do people wreck their beautiful faces and bodies with that stuff?  I suppose "they" look at me and wonder why I wreck my body with food...same thing, I guess.

Step Two:  Don old, but favorite blue "work" shirt.

Step Three:  Move boxes to patio.

Step Four:  Shake shake SHAKE the can of primer,  The girl said 2-5 minutes. I managed 3 minutes before I got sick of shaking.

Step Five:  Spray on the primer.

Step Six:  Wash hands.

This is one of the "clean" hands.  I guess they were right when they said to wear protective gear.  I could have worn a pair of soft gloves that I have, but did not think of it in the heat of the moment.

Today I go for an annual physical. I am sure the doctor will be very impressed with my colorful hands...!

Munchie Monday: Quick and Easy Sixty Minute Rolls

Munchie Monday: Sixty Minute Rolls, Quick and Easy

This weekend we ran out of bread. I was thinking of making egg salad sandwiches for lunch on Sunday so this was a problem. To the rescue came the Sixty Minute Roll recipe from The Country Wife Cookbook that I wrote many years ago when our children were old enough to help with the cooking.  (Since then I have been preparing a book called The Country Wife Cookbook, A Culinary Memoir which I had hoped to get ready for publication while here on our mission.  Did. Not. Happen. And since we have less than three weeks left on our mission here in Oregon, it will not happen now...maybe during our next adventure...)

Anyway, here is the recipe just as I wrote it many years ago, with admonitions and all.

SIXTY MINUTE ROLLS

4-5 cups flour

2 packages (scant 2 Tablespoons) dry yeast

4 Tablespoons sugar

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup butter or margarine

Combine 3 1/2 cups flour, sugar, salt and un-dissolved yeast in bowl of mixer.
Attach bowl and dough hook and mix for one minute.
Combine milk, water and butter in a saucepan and heat over low heat until very
warm-120-130 degrees-but no hotter. Butter need not melt. Turn mixer on to medium
speed and slowly add the liquid to the flour mixture, taking about 30 seconds. Mix one
minute longer.
Add remaining flour as needed for dough and knead 5-7 minutes until dough is
smooth and elastic.

Place in greased bowl and cover. Place in a sink full of warm water. Let rise 15 minutes.
Turn dough out onto floured surface and shape as desired and place in greased pans.
Cover and let rise again for 15 minutes or until doubled in bulk. Bake in 425 oven for 12 minutes.
 Remove from tins and cool on wire racks.

This is the recipe from the Kitchenaid mixer ancient cookbook. I increased the sugar from
3 Tablespoons to 4 Tablespoons and sometimes add even more.

To make rolls without a heavy-duty mixer, put water, yeast and 1 teaspoon of the sugar
in a bowl and stir well and allow the yeast to rise a little. Mix the yeast and the milk/butter
mixture together and pour into a well in the flour mixture and stir all together until smooth
then beat in the remaining flour. When most of the flour is incorporated put the remaining flour
on the clean counter (I mention the clean counter because my young children will see these 
instructions and I want it clearly  in mind that we wash off the counter BEFORE putting the 
dough onto said counter! Clean hands are also critically important to healthy cooking.) and
knead until smooth and elastic about 5-7 minutes.
When you can't knead any more, look at the clock and knead two more minutes.
 Then proceed with the above recipe as directed.

Yields 2 dozen rolls, depending on the size you shape them.

This is what they looked like:

As you can see, I have a high tolerance for funky
shaped rolls.
In this case, I just rolled them out and
cut them with a butcher knife into more or less squares...

It was a good thing I had  included the "handmade" option
since I do not have our stand mixer with us
on our mission.  When we serve another mission, if it is in
the USA, I will not fail to bring that mixer!

Food Friday: Rosemary Chili Chicken!

It is not often that I cook meat.  Recently I have had better sleep after having a little "meat-y" evening snack.  Last night I was at Safeway and found chicken thighs on sale for 88 cents a pound.  What is not to like about that?!!  So I purchased a package.

This morning I was up early and threw together a recipe from the top of my head.

This rosemary chili chicken was easy to make and delicious to taste!

Rosemary Chili Chicken

In a glass baking dish place your bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs in a single layer.

Sprinkle on rosemary, chili powder, granulated garlic, granulated onion, coarse black pepper and a little seasoned salt if you cannot find your pink Himalayan salt in time.

Bake in a pre-heated 350 degrees F. oven for one hour.

Remove from oven to cool.

Pour the juice into a jar and set in refrigerator so the fat will solidify for disposal...unless you are making some delicious Jewish chicken soup where you will want the fat.

This tasted really good when I had a microwaved russet potato, one Roma tomato, and one chicken thigh for breakfast.  It is 12:30 as I write. I am still not hungry but my mind says it is lunch time...Since I want to continue eating meat sparingly, I did not bring a thigh for lunch.  These were honking big chickens so...one a day is probably enough.

Knitting Project Finished

For several months I have been working on a very simple garter stitch blanket.  It only took this much time because 1.  I started over 3 times to get the size right and 2.  I have been worn down enough that many nights I just come home from the office and sit in the chair or go to bed very early.  But the job is now finished.  It makes me happy. I think it looks great.

The pattern is called Garter Squish.  It is very easy.  A rank beginner can make a beautiful blanket like this.

The beauty of this blanket is that you hold two strands of worsted weight yarn together. I used a US size 11 circular needle instead of the size 15 suggested in the pattern.  It worked great.  You can make it all one color or, if you have lots of one color of yarn, you can used up partial skeins held together with the one color and have a beautiful cohesive blanket.  OR you can make it totally random.

On top you can see a couple of wash cloths I made.  I love Grandma's Favorite Wash Cloth pattern.

As you can see, I had quite a bit of blue.  This picture is of the blanket folded in fourths.  It will be a wonderful lush lap blanket.  If I hadn't made it for a dear friend, I would enjoy it myself. 

When we get home to Vermont, and I go through the yarn storage, I know what I will be making second.  The first thing I want to make is a cabled cardigan for myself.  I have wanted to do this forever.  I almost got the fever out of me when I made a cabled pullover for a granddaughter many years ago, but not quite.  Maybe even a cabled vest would do the trick.  I need to go through our Barbara Walker Stitch Dictionaries to see what appeals to me.  Since I have a lot of ground to cover, I should be able to use a lot of great cables!

Wednesday Wonders: Italian Heather

The other day I went to Fedex to ship some boxes home.  Right next door at Trader Joe's was a wonderful display of a gorgeous pink plant.  On looking at it further, it turned out to be Italian Heather.  I have never heard of that before.  So pretty and it has a lovely light fragrance. 

A woman who was standing beside me taking in the beauty told me that she knew of a man who had days or weeks left to live according to his doctors.  He asked to be placed in a verdant flower garden.  He stayed there and stayed there and eventually he was cured.  Nice story.  Nice lady to talk with me.

What. A. Start. To. The. Day!

This morning!  My goodness.  I cannot believe it. I woke up after a full eight hours of sleep!  Score on that one.  Something that rarely happens but has now happened two nights in a row.  When I got to the kitchen I decided I wanted to boil up some eggs in the Instant Pot so we could have sandwiches and eggs goldenrod soon.

Well!!  To start the story...

After making the yogurt yesterday and having the rest of the day totally full, the liner bowl was still soaking in the sink when I came out this morning.  Somewhere in the back of my mind I noted that.

Taking two boxes of eggs from the refrigerator I put six eggs in each of the three stainless steel steamer inserts in the Instant Pot (they were already sitting happily in the IP...), got a glass measuring cup out of the cupboard above the Instant Pot, went to the sink and filled the measuring up with 1 1/2 cups of water, poured the water into the IP, put the cover on and pressed Steam and was about to change the time on the Steam to 5 minutes when I saw some water on the counter. And more water.  AND EVEN MORE WATER!!!  Yikes!  I had poured water into the Instant Pot without having the inner bowl in place.  Oh. No.

Immediately I yanked the three steamer baskets out of the Instant Pot and set them on the counter.  However, the third one immediately fell on the floor and six eggs smashed all over the place.

I left the eggs, unplugged the IP, and turned it upside down, then thought better of it and turned it right side up again so the water could continue going back through the electrical works for a third time.  I yanked a kitchen towel out of the drawer to start sopping up the water on the counter then realized the Vitamix was sitting in a puddle of water now!  I moved that out of the way, hoping for the best.

At this point I went to my comfy chair to calm down, leaving the broken eggs on the floor and the equipment as it was.  Passing the sink I glared at the IP liner bowl what was happily sitting there smirking because I had forgotten to clean it and insert it into the machine.

When I got to my chair I started listening to 3 Nephi Chapter 1 in Spanish.  About the third or fourth verse the screen when white.  What else!  I just sat there sort of shell-shocked from the start of the day.  This is a new phone so I was a bit wrought up about the possibility that it might have bitten the dust.  On the same day that I might have lost the Instant Pot and even the Vitamix.

As I was sitting there listening, my mind went to the place were I heard the words "not good to get your heart set on things of the world..." and I thought it would serve me right to lose all three "treasures".

Well, when we get home from the office I will check out the Instant Pot and Vitamix and see if they survived the day and dried out.  I sincerely hope the price I have to pay for not being mindful first thing this morning will not be too high, i.e. I hope I have not lost my two favorite kitchen appliances.  Fortunately the cell phone jerked itself back to life.

Munchie Monday: Instant Pot Cold Start Yogurt

Yogurt has been a part of our lives since early in our marriage.  With family cows in the barn we had PLENTY of milk to use up every day.  Since they were Holsteins, we had six gallons of milk a day to use up or waste.  Waste not, want not has been one of our mantras, even if the waste was spelled waist and the food eaten up and ending up on the waist of moi...which turns out to have been a bad idea overall.

Anyway,  I saw a note somewhere on the internet that you could make no-fail yogurt in the Instant Pot.  I had made yogurt a few months ago and it really was not that great. Well, it was okay but not ideal.  This new no-fail yogurt was cold start.  What could go wrong with that?!!

This is what I did.

In the scrupulously clean Instant Pot liner I put one-half gallon of  "ultra pasteurized" milk of any fat content.  I used whole milk. I figure Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he made cows and their milk so I drink it whole, just not a lot of it.

After putting the milk in the stainless steel liner bowl I stirred in 3 tablespoons of plain non-fat Greek yogurt.

When I pressed the "Yogurt" button on the front of the Instant Pot the display read "8:00" for eight hours.  I walked away.

In the morning I noted that the milk looked like yogurt so I put plastic wrap on top and set the bowl in the refrigerator for 8 more hours to complete the solidification process.

After those eight hours cooling I moved the nice thick mild yogurt into glass jars.  There was just enough left over from the three jars to make a bowl of eating yogurt.

This recipe is a keeper, at least for me.

1 cup yogurt, 1/4 raspberries, 1 Tablespoon maple syrup

Same as above but I added one small banana and a lot of cinnamon

When I eat more yogurt with banana and cinnamon I will use honey for the sweetener instead of maple syrup...which is what we gave our children many times back in the long ago days when we had the family cows.

Family Photo Friday

This is what I believe to be the graduation photograph of my mother when she graduated from the University of Vermont.  She went on to teach school for a few months in northern Vermont.

Birthday Bouquet!

On Monday I was working further back in the office when I heard the door open.  Sister T was out there so I continued what I was up to.  When I came back to the front of the office, there was a gorgeous bouquet from my sister and her husband.  What a joy to receive!  So fragrant and beautiful.

Today the Stargazers have more fully opened and are more beautiful still!

Thank you so much, J and J, for making my day even more special.  Also thank you to all who sent birthday greetings. It is so sweet to hear from you.  XOX to all.