Beautiful, Gold And Diamond, Rose Ring Giveaway, Through Wexford Jewelers!

How would you like to own this beautiful, hand crafted, 10k gold and diamond ring?
No, this isn't a joke, Wexford Jewelers is giving away this gorgeous piece of wearable art. You may choose either a yellow gold, rose gold, or white gold ring to suit your style.
All you have to do is find us ( Wexford Jewelers ) on Facebook, add us as a friend, and you can enter to win!
Pretty easy for something so unique.


Good luck!

Apple Cinnamon Raisin Bread

I just can't get enough of baking this fall!
I made this bread last week, and just thought I'd share the recipe.

Made with apples, raisins, cinnamon and brown sugar, it is a delicious treat.
Almost like a cinnamon roll, but a bread.

If there is any left the next day, ( I made 3 loaves and was planning to give 2 away, but never got around to it) it makes great French toast!

Recipe

Bread dough:

1 1/4 cups warm water
3 Tbs. softened butter
4 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 cups bread flour
1 cup wheat flour
1 Tbs. + 1/2 tsp. yeast

Filling:

1 large apple, diced
1 cup raisins
3/4 cup chopped pecans
cinnamon ( sorry, I didn't measure! Just use your judgment)
1 cup brown sugar
a few Tbs. softened butter

Method:

Add bread dough ingredients to bread maker pan, in the order given above.
Set bread maker to dough setting. Mine takes an hour and 20 minutes.
When the dough is ready, remove from pan and set on floured surface. Roll into a large rectangle.( sorry, didn't measure it! I really need to get better at this! :) Maybe a 30"X 12")
Spread dough with softened butter. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon, and other filling ingredients. Roll into a long ( 30" ? ) log. moisten seam with water and pinch together. Cut into 3 loaves. Put into greased bread pans. Cover and let rise in warm area for 1 hour. Brush tops lightly with beaten eggs, if desired. ( makes them nice and shiny!) Bake at 420. for 30 minutes, or until nicely browned.

Enjoy!

My First "Official" Taste of Fall

In my opinion, Fall cannot officially kick off until I have my first pumpkin pie. So today was the day! I made my first pumpkin pie (recipe below) of the season.
One regular pie, one small pie, and 24 mini pumpkin tarts.
The first taste was pure and utter bliss. Blueberry and pumpkin pies are my absolute favorites.
But this time of year, it has to be pumpkin!
This year I tried adding mace along with the usual cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. It really added a wonderful, extra dimension to the flavor.

Maybe now I can start decorating for Fall.

Pumpkin Pie:
1- 29oz can of pumpkin
2- 12 oz cans of evaporated milk
2 eggs lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 Tbs flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp mace
2 unbaked pie crusts

Whisk all ingredients (except pie crusts) together and pour into unbaked pie crusts.
Bake at 450 for 45-60 minutes, or until no longer jiggly in center.
Enjoy!

That's it??

Today I have come to the conclusion that it is only worth it to can your own applesauce if you either get your apples for free, or very, very cheap. Or if you use your apples right away and don't let them sit rotting on the counter for 3-4 weeks. (you end up throwing some away) My latest experience:
Paid- $8. for bushel of apples ( the kids ate a couple, I used a few for my apple/cranberry bread and rolls)
Time spent prepping (peeling, coring, chopping)- roughly 40 minutes
Amount of time stove was on- 40 min. for cooking, 30 minutes heating big pot of water and water bathing the jars.
Then all of the other things in between, stirring, mashing, pouring into jars, washing all of the big bowls and pots. (by hand because they're too big to fit in the dishwasher)
All in all I probably spent a good 3 1/2 or more hours on this and I only got 3 1/2 measly quarts of sauce.

The last time I did this it seemed much more profitable.
So needless to say, the next time I do this, I will have gotten a lot of free apples, Jason will help me, the kids will be in bed, and I will be buzzing on a couple cups of coffee.
Now I'm going to go take a nap.

My New kitchen Toys!

Ouch! That is sharp.

Put it on your pan, add cookies, barely any cleanup! No spraying greasy sprays.
Costs the same amount as 4 boxes of parchment paper, so if you bake as much as I do, it will really save money!

Please don't notice the store bought cookie dough.
Hey I got it very cheap! I can't bake cookies from scratch all the time!

Notice the difference? These two cookies were in the oven for the same exact amount of time. The browned one on the left was in a pan without Silpat, the scrumptious looking one on the right was baked on the Silpat. Which one would you rather have? Same here, the kids can have the other ones. :) They won't notice. Hey, I hear you judging me, don't tell me you haven't done the same.

I just LOVE getting new gadgets for my kitchen! And Jason knows that if I get something new, I want to use it. A lot. And that usually means lots of new yummy things. So he is always very obliging when I ask him if I can get something new. ( I try not to go overboard though :) )
The other day I was up in Traverse City and "just happen" to have a coupon for Bed Bath & Beyond, so I thought I would go in and "just see" if they had a micro plane zester, so I could throw my 8 year old, dull, dollar store mini shredder away. ( I have been struggling with that thing way too long!) They did have a very nice one, AND they had Silpat pads! I have been wanting one ever since Jason bought me the Martha Stewart Cookies book. There are a few recipes that I need one for and, they are just awesome all around, so I walked out (clutching them close) with one of those too.

It's The Little Things

Last year my friend Stephanie told me about a wonderful, little Amish store in Mc Bain. It is a grocery salvage store, and every few months I make the trip (such a long 15 minute drive) to see what goodies I can find.
Sometimes I'm pleasantly surprised, sometimes a little let down, it depends on the month.
My last trip was a good one. I love when I can get a $6. bottle of vinegar for .80!! Or the Better than Bullion jars for .60-.80!! Are you kidding me? Those things are normally, almost $4! The name truly says it all. Way better than the wrapped cubes of fat and salt ( that my kids always think must be candy since it's wrapped in such a pretty wrapper). They give such rich, meaty ( or veggie ) flavor to soups, stews, chilies, or gravies. If you don't have time to make your own stock, this stuff is wonderful! So you can imagine how I felt when I saw the prices on them. I bought them all and put them in my stock pile! Granted you have to check the expiration date on everything they sell, but usually the items are ok.
It's the little things that make me happy.

My All Time Favorite Food

Rice

Pure. Simple. Humble. Dirt cheap. Rice.
You can do anything with rice. You can fix it savory or sweet.
I seriously could eat rice 3 times a week or more. Maybe I live in the wrong country?
Here is a list of my favorite ways to eat rice.
I will eventually post recipes, as I get some good, drool worthy pictures.
But for now, I just had to get it off my chest. I love rice!

Spanish rice
lemon-herb rice
rice with stir fry
fried rice
brown rice
wild rice
white and wild rice soup
rice pudding
pumpkin rice pudding
baked rice (sweet or savory)
rice n' beans
Rice a Roni
confetti rice
rice crispy treats
milk and sugar over rice
rice w/ chicken and broccoli
rice cakes


Well, you get the idea. My absolute favorite way to eat rice is staeming hot, with butter and soy sauce.
I could eat bowls and bowls of it. I dream about rice at night.
Ok Emily, snap out of it! Sorry. Sometimes I just get carried away. Remember how Pee Wee Herman used to marry his fruit salad? Well It's kind of like that.
Did I mention I love rice?
What is your favorite way to eat rice?

Raise your hands to the Lord

Jason and my favorite song right now is Revelation song, done by Kari Jobe, and also by Phillips Craig and Dean. Whenever we play it Madeline raises her pudgy, little hand out. Our hearts melt every time she does it. Here are some pictures.



Oh by the way, today we played Toby Mac's "Whoopsie Daisey", and she did the same thing. :)

Ham & Veggie Quiche

Our good friend Toni gives us delicious, farm fresh eggs every couple weeks, and between her giving them to us and me buying them, sometimes we have an over abundance of them. That's when I know I have (get :)) to make a quiche. I rarely make quiche with the traditional crust. It's too greasy for me. I make a potato crust instead. Here is my favorite recipe.
Well, from what I can remember. When I cook, I usually just throw various things together without measuring, hoping that they will turn out okay, and surprisingly enough they usually do.
So for the recipes I'll be blogging, I will make an effort to measure the ingredients.

Crust:
3 med-large potatoes
2 Tbs. oil
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
season salt & pepper

Pierce and microwave potatoes for 5-7 minutes ( till soft on outside but not cooked inside ).
Dice and mix with oil, cheese and season. Press into a greased 13X9 baking dish.
Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes.
While crust is baking, prepare egg mixture.

Egg mixture:
7 eggs whisked ( beat them suckers into submission! )
1 cup diced ham
1 small zucchini
1 small summer squash ( yellow zucchini )
1/2 cup frozen spinach
1/4 cup diced onion ( this is optional, I'm not allowed to cook
with onion, seeing as how Jason doesn't like it. But if you don't use onion, please at least use
some onion powder. I can usually get away with powder. :) You need that flavor!)
2 Tbs. oil I ( I like olive oil )
salt & pepper to taste. (Well you know what I mean. Don't mix it all up and taste the raw egg!)
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella

Saute ham, zucchini, squash, spinach, and onion ( if you dare ) in the oil, till half cooked. Season with salt and pepper while sauteing. Remove from heat and add eggs. Pour over hot potato crust, top with cheeses, and put back into oven (uncovered). Bake for about 1/2 hour or until cooked in center.
The quiche is SO good topped with fresh diced tomatoes!

Am I crazy??

Don't ask me why I started another blog, especially since I couldn't keep up with my last one.
I guess I just feel like I have more to say now. More time? No! But maybe I'll get up earlier. Haha yeah right.
Well, join me on my latest adventure. I hope to post lots of recipes, photos, coupon and frugal shopping tips, thoughts, organizing tips, cute kid stories, basically things that excite me so much that I can't keep them to myself. :)
Maybe this blog will last longer than the last! We'll see...