Nutella Quesadillas

Ummm... so... I like totally love Nutella and stuff.  My favorite method of Nutella-indulging is straight out of the jar with a spoon!  I also like Nutella on brownies, on toast or just about any way possible... yummy!

I concocted these delightful Nutella quesadillas during one of my Nutella craving moments. 

Nutella Quesadilla

flour tortilla
Nutella
marshmallow cream
butter
thinly slice bananas or strawberries or both (optional)

Butter one side of the flour tortilla and place butter side down in a frying pan.  Spread half the tortilla with Nutella and the other half with marshmallow cream.  Add fruit to the Nutella side, if desired.  Fold the other half of the tortilla over to cover the fruit/Nutella.  Cook on both sides until golden.

Chicken Caesar Salad & Fun Container Gardening

We LOVE salads!  I'm especially trying to add more fresh veggies into our diets right now because of how dang stressed out I am... I'm tired all the time and not feeling amazingly well so I'm trying to balance the stress with healthier eating.  Hey, it makes sense in my head *grin*

Leftover grilled chicken paired with romaine lettuce, corn, boiled eggs, croutons and light caesar dressing makes for a delightful dinner or lunch!  I teamed our salad up with bread and hummus... delish!  Most leftover meats taste great on a salad for a quick, light and cool summer dinner!

Last summer I spend my yard-working days trying to clean things up from years of neglect and only got to spend a little time on prettying up the yard... Speaking of which, awkwardly the guy I bought my house from came in to pay his storage unit bill while I was working.  I so wanted to make a snide remark about the mess he left me with, but instead I put a smile on my face and didn't even let him know that I remembered him and the hours/days/weeks of work he left me with on the house.... Grrrr

This summer I get to focus on making the yard awesome!  Eric loves yard work too and he's been helping me out a ton so we can create a yard to be proud of.  We've got a long ways to go, but it's looking better already!

I love using random things to plant flowers in!  The trick with container gardening is to keep them watered every day (twice a day in extremely hot weather).  They don't have the cool ground to protect their roots, so flowers need extra water in pots.  If you top the soil with rocks or bark it will help keep the soil from drying out as quickly. 

This blue bowl was a thrift store wooden salad bowl.  I painted it with craft paint and placed it on a $3 thrift store wooden box.  They look nicely together.  The bowl decided to crack this year, so this may be its last season... Good thing wooden bowls are easy to come by!  I've also used metal mixing bowls (spray painted of course!), tea pots, baskets, water pitchers and just about everything else you can think of to plant flowers in over the years!

This bucket was found on a farm and given to me by a friend.  I spray painted it red and placed it on a $1 plant stand that also got a coat of paint.

Another farm bucket made happy with spray paint!  I love summer flowers!

Crockpot Mushroom Beef Gravy

I love using my crockpot on busy days!  Summer is a great time to slow cook your food so you don't heat up your house using your oven or stove!  This gravy is delightful on toast, pasta, rice or potatoes!  I like doing toast because it's fast and doesn't require messing up more dishes or using the stove.

Crockpot Mushroom Beef Gravy

beef roast finely chopped (you can buy it chopped or chop it yourself)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can milk
mushrooms
worcestershire sauce

Cook in the crockpot all day on low.  Before serving stir in:
8 oz sour cream
8 oz cream cheese

Serve over toast, rice, pasta or potatoes.

I promise you they DID like the dinner... they just didn't want the camera in their faces... *smile*

Brunch!

I guess I forgot to blog all last week... between work, kids, step-kids, Eric, housekeeping, errands, wedding planning, meetings, business task lists and everything else I haven't even thought about posting.  Dang!

I was in charge of a mother-daughter brunch for the Activity Days girls on Saturday (Mother's Day weekend).  Being an Activity Days leader is one of my church callings.  I really enjoy it, but it's different now that both of my girls are no longer in my group since it's for 8-11 year old girls.

We kept the brunch really simple with food, a small talent show and mingling.  The whole event lasted under an hour.  I love short events, especially on busy Saturdays!

I picked up this basket for .75 at a thrift store recently.  I'm going to use it for the wedding holding napkins as well.

I had the girls make flowers from newspapers to use as centerpieces.  They were fast and easy, plus there was no cost other than pipe cleaners which I already had on hand.  I saw a really fun wedding bouquet in a book where they made flowers similar to these out of old pattern piece tissue paper... *brainstorming*

All of the tablecloths I used at the brunch will be incorporated into the wedding as well.

The food was really delightful!  Everyone ate their fill!

I made two kinds of breakfast casserole.  One used chunk hashbrowns, sausage and colby jack cheese.  The other used shredded hashbrowns, bacon and cheddar cheese.  They cooked a lot quicker than I expected and both were done in about an hour so I just let them stay warm in the oven.  Afterward I realized why they cooked so fast... I forgot to stir everything together!   Good thing they were still yummy even though the cheese was pretty crunchy on top instead of mixed throughout...  *sigh*

Dusty or Empolvados

A very old and traditional pastry in Chile, usually bake at home for the Sunday tea. Always serve fresh.
Like the beignets, you must be careful when biting because the powdered sugar flies everywhere, hence the name of this pastry.
Very easy to make is usually one of the first thing mothers teach their daughters to bake.

Dusty or Empolvados
35 medium side
Ingredients:

• 6 eggs
• 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons all purpose flour 
• 3 tablespoons potato starch 
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• powdered sugar
• 1 can of Dulce de Leche (on Latin markets)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 180C or 350F.
2. Separate the whites from the yolks, it is always much easier when the eggs are cold. After, let it warm up to room temperature, so the meringue will rise more.
3. With the mixer in a large bowl beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form, add the sugar by the spoonful like a rain while beating at low speed. Continue beating on high speed until  shiny and silky, about 4-5 minutes more.
4. In a medium bowl beat the yolks with a fork about 30 seconds. Add to the egg whites,while beating on medium speed.
5. Place the sieve over the batter and sift the flour, baking powder and potato starch together.
6. Incorporate to the batter using a spatula slowly and gentle.
7. With a spoon make mounds on the baking sheet covered with silicone paper or Silpat.
8. Bake for 12-13 minutes until golden.
9. Take out of the oven.
10. Sprinkle immediately with plenty of powdered sugar, I use the sieve to do this. Cool on a wire rack.  Remove off or peel using a knife and stick together with dulce de leche and serve.

A Wedding Blog

I have SO much wedding planning to do over the next two months and I don't want to clog up this blog with WEDDING-WEDDING-WEDDING so I started a wedding blog.  Check out The American Homemaker Wedding for wedding updates, pictures, ideas and craziness!

Italian Soup and more!

The other day I was talking about canning tomatoes and I started to crave the tomatoes I had in lovely jars from last year.  I whipped together a delightful soup using Italian-seasoned turkey burger, Italian tomatoes, tomato soup, water, chicken bouillon, whole wheat pasta and green beans.  We topped it with mozzarella cheese and served it with flat garlic bread and sparkling apple cider!

As I was cooking, Eric and Caleb worked on getting Caleb's pinewood derby tank painted!

It came out so great!  I have to brag about the dowel/gun... Eric whittled it from a stick he found in the yard!  He has some old school talent!

While I'm bragging, look how beautiful Nina looked for her 9th grade formal dinner at a fancy restaurant!  She got to eat at La Caille and loved every minute of it!

Macaroni & Cheese Casserole

The place was Eric's house, the day was busy with meetings, my tummy was hungry, his fridge was empty... I whipped up this yummy casserole for lunch with items from the cupboard!

Macaroni & Cheese Casserole  


1 box mac & cheese (off brands work great!) & butter to make
1 can diced tomatoes (not drained)
1 can tuna fish, drained
1 can cream of mushroom soup

Make the mac & cheese as directed on the package leaving out the milk (the tomatoes have enough liquid).  Add remaining ingredients and heat until hot.  Serve.

 After shoveling in the food it was back to business!  We have several businesses in the works and it's GO GO GO all the time.

I'm excited, but so tired and overwhelmed.  My website will be ready to launch soon... finally.  How many times have I said that in the last 4+ years?  I'm sure at least three...  This time is for real.

Ice Cream Sandwich Sundaes

I love easy summer desserts!  No one wants to turn on the oven or stand over a hot stove in the heat!  Ice cream sandwich sundaes are easy and delightful!   Simply place an ice cream sandwich on a plate, top with whatever you like (sliced strawberries, ice cream toppings, blueberries, etc), add whipped cream and sprinkles and you're done!  Yummy!!!

I also wanted to share the cake my sister made me for my birthday:

Isn't it pretty?  I loved it!  So totally vintage and feminine!

Swiss chard Pascualina pie

A classic Argentinian dish, in her most famous version is with spinach, but it can be made with what it is at hand. My favorite is the version with artichokes, other popular ones are with broccoli.


Swiss chard Pascualina tart
8 people
Ingredients:

• 2 bunches of swiss chard
• 1 onion
• 50 grams of butter
• 100 grams of all purpose flour 
• 2 cups of milk, I used skim
• salt and pepper
• 4 hard boiled eggs
• 2 pie crust dough thawed at room temperature 

Preparation:

1. Wash and drain the swiss chard, cut and discard the tips of the stems. Cut the stems and leaves into thin strips. Chop the onion into small squares.
2. In a large skillet heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and let brown, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add the swiss chard and cook covered over medium heat for 5 minutes or until the greens are tender. Remove to a bowl. Clean the pan with a paper towel and add the butter, let melt over medium heat. Add the flour and stir with a fork, let it cook about 2 minutes. Add warm milk in a thin thread and incorporate slowly. Let it boil and thicken, stirring always. Boil gently for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Add the chard and stir, it should be the consistency of paste. Adjust the seasoning.
3. Preheat oven to 180C or 350F.
4. Butter a mold that can go in the oven. Place one of the pie crust and compressed against the bottom and sides. Placing the filling in a layer of 1 cm (half an inch),more or less. Cut eggs into 4 and evenly distributed like a flower. Place the remaining filling and cover with the other pie crust and compress the edges to seal.
5. Cut a small circle in the middle and with aluminum foil make a chimney for the steam to escape.
6. Bake on a baking sheet, for 45-60 minutes until crust is golden brown.
7. Let stand 20-30 minutes so the filling does not leak when cut, cut and serve.
8. Keep refrigerated. Can be reheated in a microwave, if desired.

Somebody's Getting Married...

I said yes!

It's me! It's me!  My weekend was pretty eventful!  I had a hot birthday date (Cafe Rio & shopping at Rue 21), a birthday party with lots of family (Happy 33rd Birthday to Me!) AND I got engaged to the most incredible man I've ever met!

2012 has been filled with some pretty crazy ups and downs, but all in all it's been amazing!  The rest of the year is going to be harder and better at the same time!  I can't wait!

birthday date!

 All seven kids are excited for the upcoming wedding!  I found out Nina and her best friend had already been planning out the reception!  My kids' friends love Eric as much as we do...  I've had comments coming in from all over the place that I should marry Eric from the first day we met.  It's happening!

We've set the date for Saturday, June 30th in Provo, Utah.  It's coming up quickly!  My kids leave for the month of July and August always gets crazy with back to school stuff, so June it is!

We really want this to be a big old fashioned event for everyone to enjoy, so please let me know if you'd like to be invited!  We'd love to have you be a part of it!

being silly at the party!

I have so much planning to do!  Dress, cake, decorations, music, food, getting my house ready for five more people to move in, etc, etc... YIKES! 

I'm going to have to get REALLY organized!  Menus, budgets, calendars and filing systems are all going to become a part of my life very quickly!  But right now I get to happy dance!  ERIC & I ARE GETTING MARRIED!  Did I mention that we're in love? *wink*

Eric, a cookie and me :)

Vintage Mexican Recipes

These recipes came from a stash that were my grandma's.  They would have been from the '60s or early '70s most likely since that's when they lived in Mexico.  I thought it would be fun to share them for Cinco de Mayo! 

Click on the picture to enlarge it!

click to enlarge