Works-For-Me-Wednesday

In light of Shannon's bow-capades, I thought I'd share an additional bow pattern that is very easy, and very cute, and very frilly.

Loopy Bows


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WFMW-The Mom, I'm Bored Edition

My kids are pretty young, and I have five of them, so I don't hear this phrase too often thankfully. However, if it's been raining a lot like it has been lately, I do hear it a bit more often.

Some of the things that I have found to work for my oldest, who is 7, are these:

• I give him a picture dictionary. This is a recent one. I had some things to finish before I could start school that day, so I looked through the education books that I have on the school shelf, and saw the dictionary. I told him to look for words he liked, and then asked him about them later on, when I had more time. Now he asks to look at it occasionally on his own.
• I give him a Kids Cookbook, and let him pick something to try. This once resulted in the discovery that the kids liked Eggs in a Hole, although he prefers his scrambled in the hole.
  

For the three oldest, ranging in ages from 4-7, here are some of my ideas:

• I like to keep a box of crayons and colored pencils and a stack of coloring books available for them to work on. I also have some Color Wonder stuff, which is awesome if you ask me. I do have to keep those things up when the youngest are awake, but there is little if any boredom when those two are up, so it works out.

Other things I have tried, are having the kids do themed coloring or activities from Enchanted Learning, which is an amazing resource for parents and home schoolers. I'm planning on joining the site before too long. I've also given them precut construction paper and told them to make some designs. They like the creativity.

Don't forget to visit Rocks In My Dryer for more great Works-For-Me-Wednesday tips.

WFMW - Fruity Cubes

Ever get tired of your juice getting watered down from all that melting ice? You can take your juice (or Kool-Aid or Iced Tea, or just about any liquid) and freeze it into ice cube trays. That way when it melts, it melts right into your drink without any watering down! You can mix and match flavors if you're brave enough, too. Don't forget to visit Rocks In My Dryer for more great WFMW tips! And next week is a themed WFMW, the Mom I'm Bored edition. So check back for more great ideas!

WFMW-Challah

Challah is one of my favorite egg breads. It's a really good, soft, sweet Jewish bread that is such a simple bread both in taste and in making it.

Challah

1 pkg. active dry yeast

½ cup warm water

½ cup all-purpose flour

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 egg yolks, lightly beaten

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

3 tablespoons sugar

1 ¼ teaspoons salt

2 ½ cups bread flour

Cornmeal

1 egg

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon sesame or poppy seeds

In the mixing bowl of a heavy duty mixer, combine the water and the yeast, and let stand about 5 minutes, or until the yeast is completely dissolved. Add the flour, eggs, egg yolks, oil, sugar and salt, and mix on low speed until thoroughly blended. Gradually stir in the bread flour. Knead for about 8 minutes with the dough hook on low to medium speed until the dough is smooth and elastic and no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and turn it over once to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, 1 to 1 ½ hours. Punch down dough, knead briefly, and refrigerate covered, until it has again nearly doubled in volume (a three quarter rise is sufficient), 4 to 12 hours. The dough is now ready to be shaped.

Three-Strand Braided Challah:

Weigh and divide the dough equally into three pieces. On an unfloured work surface, roll into balls and let rest, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for 10 minutes. Grease a baking sheet and sprinkle it with cornmeal. Roll each ball into a 13 to 14 inch long rope, about 1 ½ inches thick and slightly tapered at the ends. Dust the 3 ropes with rye flour so they will be more distinctly separated. Place the 3 dough ropes side by side and pinch the top ends together. Braid. Tuck both ends of the braid underneath the loaf and set it on the baking sheet. Whisk together the remaining egg and salt and brush over the top of the loaf. Loosely cover the braid with lightly oiled plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until not quite doubled, about 45 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°. Brush the loaf again with the egg wash. If desired, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon poppy of sesame seeds. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when tapped, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool completely on a rack.

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WMFW

This week's WFMW is another recipe, since I do love to cook. A lot. I also like to feed other people until they are stuffed, especially my husband. I try to keep it simple, and easy, 'cuz it's not like I have a ton of time, and I really hate cleaning. Don't forget to check out Rocks In My Dryer for more great WFMW tips.

So, here is my recipe today. These are great with mashed potatoes, and my Black Pepper Biscuits from last week's Tasty Thursday, or biscuits made with cheddar cheese. A side of French Cut green beans (my kid's favorite) with a little butter salt and pepper, and you're good to go.

Barbequed Meatballs

1 egg, lightly beaten
1 can (5 oz.) evaporated milk
1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
½ cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 ½ lbs. ground beef, uncooked
Sauce:
1 cup catsup
¼ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup chopped onion
½ teaspoon liquid smoke, optional
¼ teaspoon garlic powder

In a bowl, combine the first eight ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into 1 inch balls and place in a greased 13x9 inch baking pan or dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 25 minutes, or until meat is no longer pink. In the meantime, combine the sauce ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour over meatballs. Bake 15 minutes longer.

Works-For-Me-Wednesday: Product Review

Today's WFMW is a product review. I recently purchased my first sewing machine. I got a Kenmore 16221, and it has been great so far. I haven't had any problems with it yet, and for what I paid, it was well worth it.

My favorite function of course, is the automatic buttonhole function. I was getting very frustrated with having to make buttonholes by hand, so this has really been great. Every so often I run into a few issues with one thing or another, but it's usually my own fault. I am still learning some of the perks, so it's taking some time. But well worth it. And that's my WFMW. Visit Rocks In My Dryer for more great WFMW tips.

WFMW-Organizing Recipes

Wow, I can't believe it's already Wednesday. I really thought I had another day left to do this! Well, here is my WFMW tip of the day.



I have a lot of recipes. More than I can really keep track of most days. So what I have started to do is to organize them on my computer (and soon, into a binder or three). I have organized my files to be very similar to a cookbook. I have a folder for Appetizers, Yeast Breads, Quick Breads, Main Dishes, Sweet Treats, and so on. Within each of those folders, I also have sub-folders. For instance, Sweet Treats has sub-sections for Cakes, Pies, Cookies, and so on. Within each of those sub-folders, I also have a folder for New Recipes To Try. When I have tried that recipe, I decide whether I like it or not, and then either delete it, or transfer it to the appropriate folder. It sounds like a lot of extra steps, but it really helps me to remember what I have and haven't tried, and what worked for us and what didn't. For instance, I recently made a dish that, while I thought it was alright, it wasn't something I wanted to make again. I deleted the dish, and now I don't have to try to remember whether I made it. I also made a cake recently that my husband (who hates cake) absolutely loves. I will definitely keep that one, so I will transfer it to the cake folder.

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WFMW - Organize Your Child's Toys

Right now we are working on organizing the millions of toys that our kids have amassed over the years. Since moving, there are four boxes of toys that we haven't even unpacked yet, and they are not missing whatever is in there one bit. We have toys scattered everywhere.

So todays tip, or tips really, are these:

Get a labeler. Get plastic totes, plastic toy bins, whatever you want, so long as it holds toys, and holds them well. Organize the toys in whatever way you like, and label them. That way, your child knows what toys go in what bin. I have seen some suggestions that said make a tote of toys for each day of the week, and only bring out one tote per day. That way it all stays organized, and there's an even rotation of toys. I don't know if I'll be doing that, but we will be working on one type of toy at a time. Hopefully it will work.

We have been using clear totes with lids, which is also helpful for organization, because you don't have to open the tote to see what's in it.

Don't forget to visit Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer for more great Works-For-Me-Wednesday tips.

Works-For-Me-Wednesday

It's time again for WFMW. Now, I am a fan of the occasional Girl Scout Cookie. But this year, when I discovered their Lemonade cookies, I was ecstatic. I love lemon cookies, and it's hard to find good ones that don't leave an icky after taste in your mouth. I wasn't too pleased when I ran out of the cookies, not looking forward to the year long wait of course. However, my Cooking Pleasures magazine came, and with it a cookie recipe that was almost as good as the Lemonade cookies.

I think the next time I make them I will try to chill the dough for a bit, since it got a little soft and difficult to work with after a while. I also would like to use ground almonds, since I wasn't able to get my almonds chopped quite fine enough for my liking. All in all, they turned out great, and I had a few friends asking for the recipe already.

Lemon Breezies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar plus extra for garnish, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup finely chopped slivered almonds
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Heat oven to 400˚F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Beat butter, 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar, lemon peel and lemon juice in large bowl 3 minutes or until soft and creamy.

2. Combine flour, almonds and salt in medium bowl. Slowly beat into butter mixture.

3. With 1-inch cookie scoop or tablespoon, drop dough onto baking sheets 1 inch apart. Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until light brown on bottom. Cool 5 minutes. Roll in 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar while still warm; cool completely. Sprinkle with additional powdered sugar before serving.

4 dozen cookies

PER COOKIE: 80 calories, 5 g total fat (2.5 g saturated fat), 1 g protein, 8 g carbohydrate, 10 mg cholesterol, 40 mg sodium, .5 g fiber


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Works-For-Me-Wednesday

Today's WFMW is somewhat about myself, and my son. When I was a child, I was diagnosed with ADD (they hadn't come up with ADHD, but that probably would have been closer to what I really was dealing with). After many years of medication, with regular increases in dosage and little result, my mother turned to the Feingold Diet, discovering that my real issue was allergies to preservatives, colors, and basically anything that really had no business being in good food to begin with. She immediately forbade me to eat any of the things I had grown to love, and noticed a drastic improvement in my behavior. The only thing that she did wrong, was to cut me off completely. I essentially went into withdrawl for the things that I liked to eat, especially candy. Because of that, I rebelled and ate candy whenever I could. Unfortunately, she could tell just by the sound of my voice if I'd had candy during the day, and would find me out almost immediately.

Now, I am noticing some of the same things in my son. While I'm not sure he has the major issues that I did as a child, I know for sure that his bad behavior trigger is chocolate. If he gets chocolate, he's nearly certifiable. He's aggressive, can't listen or sit still, and it's very difficult to get him to focus. He's already had trouble with taking chocolate and candy without asking, so I know he has the same desire for the things he shouldn't have that I did.

For him, I came up with this idea. I remembered how difficult it was for me to give up those things that I couldn't eat, so for my son I decided that he could have chocolate one day a week. He could have chocolate one day a week, close to bedtime (so it wouldn't affect his behavior too much). I allowed him to pick the day that he could have chocolate so that he felt like he was involved. I explained why it was so important for him to not have chocolate at any other time, and hopefully his seven year old mind can understand it. This is our first week, and tomorrow is his first Chocolate Day. I will post next week about how this process is going.

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Works-For-Me-Wednesday: Storing Baking Supplies

I use a lot of baking supplies, and usually go through them pretty quickly. I've also lived in a few apartments prone to summer bugs, which has affected my baking supply. I found that I could fit most of my supplies, like flour, sugar and brown sugar, into gallon zip top freezer bags. (The freezer bags are sturdier). It's been great. They stay in their containers, and I'm not trying to stack huge containers that don't fit into my cabinets anyway. I also put things like leftover chocolate chips (of which there are few), and nuts into the smaller sandwich bags.

And that's what Works-For-Me. Visit Rocks in My Dryer for more great Works-For-Me-Wednesday tips.

Works-For-Me-Wednesday

This week's edition of Works-For-Me-Wednesday is a recipe that I recently found, and just have to share. It is so easy. It's called Tangy Chicken Breasts. I even made a double batch and just used all the chicken I had (which was about 8 or 9 pieces). I like to marinate it in plastic zip-top bags overnight and into the evening just until dinner time. I also spray the broiler pan with cooking spray, and that helps with clean-up. Happy Cooking! Don't forget to visint Rocks In My Dryer for more great Works-For-Me-Wednesday tips!

Tangy Chicken Breasts

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Place chicken in a single layer in a bowl or pan. Mix together Worcestershire sauce, oil, lemon juice, and garlic; pour over chicken. Cover. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours.
Take chicken out of marinade, and place on broiler pan or grill. Broil until done, approximately 7 minutes on each side.

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Pizza For One

Last night my mother-in-law and I had an interesting conversation. It went something like this.

MIL: Boy, swimming was great, but I'm hungry now. I have this great little gourmet frozen pizza, but if I make it, I'll probably just undo the good I just did by swimming.
ME: So, don't eat the whole pizza.
MIL: Well, I'm not going to make a whole pizza and just eat one piece.
ME: So, just cook half the pizza.
MIL: (Thinking....gives me a funny look...thinking some more.....) Wow, I never thought of that.
ME: Sure, just break the pizza in half and cook it in the oven or even the toaster oven. Then you don't have to cook and eat the whole thing.
MIL: (Goes on to praise my amazing intelligence, yadda yadda yadda)....

The moral of the story, if you're only planning on eating half a frozen pizza, just cook half a frozen pizza. My favorite way to do this is to take a big butcher knife and just chop the thing in half. If you cook it in the toaster oven, you don't even need to cook it as long. No, it's not brilliant reasoning, it's just the frugal mind of a girl that lived alone for a while before marriage and didn't like reheated pizza. You could probably even cook 1/4 of the pizza if you wanted, but if any of you have kids, you know the vultures will start circling at the prospect of food. :)

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Works-For-Me-Wednesday

Sorry, no pic today, I'm not on my own computer.

Today's tip is, how to keep small crochet projects organized.

I tend to have a lot of crochet projects going at the same time. Right now I have four. I like to do a little on each one, so I don't get bored with the pattern right away.

What I like to do is to put each project into a 1-gallon zip-top bag. I keep the hook in there (if it's not being used for one of the other projects), and I keep the pattern in there. That way I always know what I'm working on. I've done this with small sewing projects as well. I've even re-used gift bags with the handles so that I can carry it around easier. This works great for doctor's office visits.

More recently I purchased one of those Sterilite Showoff cases, and that's been nice. It locks and it has a handle. I have three projects in one case right now.


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Works-For-Me-Wednesday

It's time for another Works-For-Me-Wednesday hosted by Rocks In My Dryer. Please visit Shannon's site for more great Works-For-Me-Wednesday tips.

My tip today is Super-Easy-Any-Time-You-Want-It-Cookie-Dough. This is a great one for the winter, or if you have a good sized freezer.

Make a batch of your favorite drop-cookie dough.
Version 1: Line a baking sheet with waxed paper (or tinfoil or parchment paper works too). Using a cookie scoop, scoop the dough into balls and release them onto the baking sheet, as close as you can place them together. You will not be baking these immediately, so closeness does not matter at this point. Place the entire tray in the freezer, or in your garage in the middle of winter, or somewhere very cold. The fridge works too, but not as well as the freezer. You can also use smaller dishes to place the dough on if you don't have a large freezer.

Freeze the balls until they are at least mostly hard on the outside. The harder the better. Take them off the baking sheet and place them in a resealable plastic bag. You now have homemade frozen cookie dough, and you can make small batches of cookies whenever you want them. I often do this when I really want cookies but I don't have the time to make them all at once. You can bake the frozen dough as directed in the original recipe. Sometimes they might need an extra minute or two, but for the most part they cook up about the same.

Version 2: Roll the dough out into a rectangle that is roughly 1-inch thick. Chill the dough in the fridge until very firm. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 1-inch squares, and freeze in a resealable plastic bag.


Chocolate Chip Cookies (perfect for freezing into balls)

½ cup butter

½ cup shortening

¾ cup white sugar

¾ cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 eggs

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2-¼ cups flour

1 12 oz. package chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts, optional

Preheat oven to 350*. Cream butter, shortening, white and brown sugars until creamy. Add vanilla and eggs. Add baking soda and salt. Stir in flour gradually and mix well. Add chocolate chips and nuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until brown on the edges. Cool on racks.

Works-For-Me-Wednesday

I love giving my kids pancakes and waffles in the morning. They're quick, they're nearly healthy (if you make 'em right), and the kids love them.

My one dilemma, I have 4 kids of pancake lovin' age, and they all want their pancakes cut, by me, ten minutes ago.

My handy little trick? A pizza cutter. Yes, a pizza cutter. Sort of like this one.


Okay, so I don't actually have the Caddy of all pizza cutters, but a mom can dream, can't she? Anyway, all you have to do is stack the pancakes or waffles, two or three at a time, and cut right through them. Right into little bite-sized pieces, perfect for chubby little fingers or for the hopeful fork operator. The older ones like it too because I don't let them use knives yet. If ever. We'll talk about that later though...

Be sure to check out more great Works-For-Me-Wednesday tips at Rocks in My Dryer.