Challenge yourself!

I decided each month I am going to challenge myself and make, bake, cook and or do something I have never done before.

I should have started this in January to be all official 2013 but whatever. April will do.

This month my cooking challenge was QUICHE. Crust less quiche to be exact because nobody needs more carbs in their life. Well maybe someone does but not in my house we don't. Yummy delicious warm golden crusty carbs! OK I'm done! My wonder twin in St. Louis also joined my challenge and made the quiche and what's weird is she sent me a pic of her quiche and I thought why is Jan sending me my quiche pic back. WONDER QUICHE POWERS! Ahaha!

My do something challenge is to run as much of a 5k as possible on the street and beat my walking time. My husband and I will be doing that this Saturday 4/27/13 on Belle Isle for this 5k. http://detroitsynergy.org/register-7th-annual-belle-isle-5k-runwalk/
I have my music all ready to go to keep me going. I'll be the one working her inner Beyonce while she's running. WORK IT!! You have to make it fun so why not do a little booty shaking. Still time to sign up and join in on the fun!

The site I found the quiche recipe is fantastic! Here is the link:
http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2011/11/spinach-mushroom-feta-crustless-quiche.html

For the same meal I made a 7 layer salad with the normal salad fixings, but instead of the gross mayo topping I just gave different light options. It was delish! Look at the pic of my table, those peas were so fresh and green!

Then it was topped off with Chocolate Lasagna! Yes I said it! Chocolate Lasagna! Make it, eat it, love it, threaten to slap anyone's hand who touches it without your permission! Ahaha! I omitted the chips from the top. I mean c'mon I've already packed enough cals into this dish. Let's be someone realistic ahaha!
http://centercutcook.com/chocolate-lasagna/

My husband and I along with my Mommie Dearest and her new hubby Steve enjoyed this feast!!

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!!

xoxox
Barbie

Crockin' some lasagna!

SO lately I have been using the Blogger app to update my blog. The options are limited but it works for doing entries on the fly. I cannot chose picture placement or anything fancy, or maybe I can and just haven't figured it out. Anyway that's why my recent entries have been a bit wonky.

Moving on!

I love my crock pot(s). I have 2. What a great invention!! I decided why not try lasagna in the crock. It's the same concept as the oven pretty much.

Enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!

Crock Pot Turkey Lasagna

Ingredients (amounts will vary on the size of your crock)

2 pounds ground turkey or beef
1 can of diced tomatoes
3-4 cups of tomato sauce
2 small white onions
2 cups of chopped mushrooms
1 box of lasagna noodles
3-4 cups of ricotta or cottage cheese
3 cups of shredded mozzarella
Minced garlic (as much as you like)
Random seasoning (I'm a spice a season kind of gal so I m always tossing in random stuff into my food)

*note* if you don't have just plain old tomato sauce use your fav spaghetti sauce that will work just fine.

Directions
Rough chop the onions and mushrooms. Sautee in a large pan. (large because you'll be added the meat and sauce to it)
Add the turkey or meat of choice in the pan with the onions and mushrooms and brown. (if you used beef be sure to drain off the excess grease)
Add diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, garlic, and seasoning to the meat mixture, give it a good stir.

I sprayed the inside of my crock with a little olive oil to help prevent sticking.

The next part I just eyeballed there was no real measuring going on. Sorry.

Scoop enough of your sauce to cover the bottom of the crock. Not thick but just enough.
Add a couple scoops of ricotta on top of that. Don't worry if it doesn't spread, it will as it cooks.
Sprinkle a little mozzarella on the ricotta
Grab a couple lasagna noodles. I had to break mine in different sizes to get coverage. See pictures below. Cover your sauce cheese layers with the noodles and give it a little press.
Repeat the above steps until your crock is about full or you have used all your ingredients.

I cooked mine on high for 2 hours and then put it on warm and let it cook for another 4. This part will depend on your crock and the time you have.

Once it was done I sprinkled a little more mozzarella on top and let it get melty. OH YEAH!!

SUPER DUPER EASY and it was so good. Even better the next day as it usually goes with pasta and sauce.

I did not follow a recipe for this I pretty much winged it. So add or subtract what you like. Have fun that's what cooking is about. Oh and happy bellies!!

Potato...Potatoe

I really really cannot stand food that is 100% prepared in the microwave. It's never hot or heated through properly. It's just gross. Take the time and use the oven.

BUTTTTTT.......

In my countless hours pinning things on Pinterest I came upon this receipt several times for homemade potato chips cooked in the microwave. The reviews for the recipe were all great.

I have potatoes, I have a mandolin, I have a microwave! Let's give it a whirl.

First of all if you don't have a mandolin or something to get your taters sliced thin don't try this recipe. You need those slices thin people!

Let's get right down to business!
Here is a link right to the recipe
http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-crispy-potato-chips-in-the-microwave-166718

The chips I made were super crispy and toasty tasting. My husband and I could not stop eating them.
If I had kids around this would be something fun for them to do. Make their own personal little bowl of chips! HECK YES!!

Enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!

How To Make Microwave Potato Chips

What You Need
Ingredients
1 or more potatoes or other root vegetable, scrubbed clean
Salt and other seasonings, optional
Olive oil, optional

Equipment
Mandoline
Bowl of cold water
Microwave-safe plate
Paper towels

Instructions
1. Thinly Slice the Potato - Cut the potato in half. Slice one half on a mandoline, aiming for slices 1/8 to 1/16-inch thick. Immediately put the slices in cold water. Repeat with the other half of the potato and any other potatoes you are preparing.

2. Soak and Rinse the Slices - Rinse the slices in cold water until the water stays clear. If you have time, let them soak for a few extra minutes before rinsing.

3. Dry the Slices - Dry the slices between two clean dish cloths or spin them in a salad spinner.

4. Season the Slices - Arrange as many slices as will fit in a single layer on a dinner plate lines with a few paper towels. Make sure the slices do not touch or else they stick together. If desired, sprinkle with salt or other spices. For richer-tasting chips, brush the slices with olive oil first.

5. Microwave the Slices - Microwave the slices at 100% power for 3 minutes. Flip them over and microwave at 50% power for another 3 minutes. Remove any chips that are starting to crisp and brown. Continue cooking the remaining chips at 50% power in 1 minute intervals until they are all crispy and golden.

6. Repeat with Remaining Batches - Transfer cooked chips to a bowl and repeat microwaving with the remaining slices of potato.

Just loafing around

You know I've always been sort of scared of baking bread. Not the easy stuff like banana bread or pumpkin bread. The hard stuff with yeast that has to bubble then the dough needs to rise several times and then its rolled out.

That bread has always taunted me. I have no idea why.

I finally just did it. I have had this easy to make French bread recipe for awhile now. It kept coming up in my to make shuffle and I would just add it back to the bottom of the pile.

Sadly I do not know where I found the recipe. You guys know I always give proper credit. So if I got this from your blog I will edit this entry to reflect that if I ever find you! Ahaha!

Anyway I put on my big girl apron and got my mixer ready and took a deep breath! Guess what happened??? AMAZINGLY EASY BREAD HAPPENED!!! EASY AND HOLY SMOKES DELISCIOUS!!!

So here is it the mystery recipe I had saved in a word doc on my computer for about 2 years.

Go make yourself some bread people!!! Don't be scared!! It's not as bad as I psyched myself into thinking!!

We may or may not have eaten a entire loaf on our own while it was still warm. I mean it was warm and soft what's a girl supposed to do! Ahahaha!

Enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!!

French Bread recipe (this amount makes 3 small loaves or 2 large):
2 1/2 c. warm water
2 Tbls. yeast
3 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls. white vinegar
Add the above ingredients together and let sit until bubbly (about 3-5 minutes). Then add:
1 Tbls. salt
1/3 c. oil (I use Canola)
6-7 c. flour (or a little more if it's too soft), one cup at a time--add enough until the dough is soft, but firm enough to mold into dough loaves

Knead for 2-5 minutes and then put in the oven with a small pot of boiling water. The water will keep the dough moist. Watch the dough and punch it down when it gets to the top of the mixing bowl. Do this every time it gets to the top of the bowl, as long as you have time to babysit it (2-5 times). Put the dough on a greased countertop and divide into 3 sections. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and sprinkle a thin layer of cornmeal on the bottom of the sheet. Roll the dough balls into rectangle/long French bread shapes. Slash tops of bread diagonally 3-5 times and cover with a beaten egg. Let rise 30 minutes (or until doubled)on the counter, or you can put them in your oven at 170 and wait until they are the size you want to cook them at. Once they are to the right size, turn up your stove to 375 (without opening the door!) and let them bake until done. Or, just raise on the counter and bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Enjoy! Dough--can be a little soft, if too sticky, add a little more flour. Put the boiling water in the oven with your bowl of dough to help it rise faster. Cut the dough into two equal parts (or three if you are making smaller loaves). --pictures are of a doubled batch. Slice the dough diagonally and white wash with 1 beaten egg. Bake and serve warm out of the oven!

I've got a little itty bitty secret

Let’s go back to early 2008 shall we….

 

I was sick and tired of being sick and tired!

I was extremely overweight with a list of health problems, ashort list but still a list. I mean who wants a list of health issues. You wantlists for things like what I will spend my lotto winnings on, or a list ofplaces you will visit while traveling the world. Not a list of things like, myknees always hurt, my back hurts, I have sleep apnea, I’m always tired, and I’malways getting sick. Blah blah!

Oh I was also on meds for a very under active Thyroid.

I never let being overweight be who I was. If you know mepersonally you know this!

Inside I felt like I was dying most of the time. I had awfuleating habits. By awful I mean double whopper with cheese king size meal everyday, sometimes more than once. I fully admit to having a problem.

So let me skip to the heavy part of this entry….

My doc basically said keep this up and you will die young,probably of a heart attack from one or several things.  What person at 32 wants to hear they aregoing to die when they really truly do love life? No really I did feel like Iwas dying inside because of my habits and weight, but on the other hand I lovedlife. I loved being social and dancing until my legs felt like noodles at thebar with my friends. I loved laughing and being silly, shopping and doinggirlie things.

I would lie in bed and dream about being healthy and notfeel trapped in this giant shell that I lived in.

I argued with myself about this for a very long time and Ieven said out loud to friends that I would never consider this because I wastough and didn’t need anyone or anything to help me.

But I needed help. I need someone or something or both tohelp me. I tried lots of things and honestly Weight Watchers was a step in theright direction. I lost nearly 100 pounds following their program and I ameternally grateful for the lessons I learned and the good habits I picked up.

BUT I needed more. I needed a tool that would really put mein my place. Something that would stick with me for a lifetime and help merealize my dreams!

So I did it. After a year of research and seminars andmeeting many doctors I made my choice.

On May 20, 2008 I got the call at work that I had beenapproved by my insurance company to receive a Lap Band and I could call thesurgeons office to schedule my surgery anytime and it would be fully covered.HOLY CRAP!! I sat in the conference room in my office and cried for about 20mins.  I don’t know who I told first someof that is a blur.

Skipping to the good stuff…

I called Dr. Hawasli’s office and scheduled my surgery. June11, 2008. That would be my new birthday so to speak. A new me would leave thathospital!

Dr. Hawasli saved my life. At the seminar he stood there andtold me/us it wasn’t going to be easy. We had a journey ahead of us and itwould require work on our part. He made me feel safe choosing him. He looked mein the eye at the end of the seminar when I shook his hand and said it was apleasure to meet me and I knew he was my guy. Little did I know he wouldsilently become my hero over the next 4.5 years.

 

Look having weight loss surgery was the best personal choiceI have ever made. I would never change it and I DO NOT regret one singlemoment.

Let me get this out of the way ….

I eat right
I exercise
I take vitamins
I have to follow rules
having surgery was not and is not an easy way out.

You can fail. You can gain weight and eat poorly and notexercise.

The only thing I have is something that keeps me on track.There are many types of weight loss surgery. I am happy to explain thedifference between what I have and the others. A tiny bit of education the labband does not cut the stomach. I did not have anything like that done. What Ihave is a device that can be adjusted through a port under my skin to increasethe size or decrease the size of my stomach. It’s pretty freaking cool.  I’m kind of bionic!! NEAT!!!

For those of you who know me personally know I haveliterally worked my butt off and have never ever taken the easy road. This crapisn’t easy!!! WHAT THE HECK!!

I know many of you reading this will judge me and I knowmany of you will support me or commend me for sharing this.

Ultimately what I’m doing this for is to help. To be asupport for those of you who need it. To be a friend on hard days. To educateyou on my choice and maybe see if it’s the right choice for you. Either way Iam going to support your journey, surgery or not!!

At this point it’s been somewhat of a secret I had surgeryto those who do not know me. HA! Actually nobody in my family knew except mymom. So HI FAMILY I HAD WEIGHT LOSS SURGERY ALMOST 5 YEARS AGO.  

So you can judge me, hate me, love me, congratulate me. I’lltake it. Sock it to me.

Here’s what I know….

My knees don’t hurt. My back doesn’t hurt. I haven’t beensick in 5 years. I don’t take thyroid meds anymore. I don’t have sleep apnea.

I’m not 400+ pounds. I’m healthy. I work at it every day. I’m not perfect. I make mistakes.

I’M NOT DEAD!!!!

So at the end of the day I’m happy,  and healthy as can be and very much alive!!!

Dill Pickle Soup Will Cure All Your Woes

I make soup. I make soup ALL the time. I love soup. I could eat soup every day of my life.

I have been seriously neglecting my blog and that's a fact Jack! But now here is a little update....

Some friends and I took a little adult field trip to the Detroit Institute of Art to see the Faberge exhibit then to a late lunch at the Polish Village Café in Hamtramck. Where we proceeded to eat until our bellies reached max capacity!!

I'm not sure what part of my meal was my fav, but I can tell you the cup of DILL PICKLE SOUP I had and that I have had there many times got me jonsing to make some on my own. So as soon as I got home I got online and did a little searching for a recipe that seemed to match PVC! GUESS WHAT!! This recipe says it's from there! OH HAPPY DAY!!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/dill-pickle-soup-recipe/index.html

I know dill pickle soup sounds weird but it's not like drinking hot pickle juice. It's a mild soup and slightly creamy. Depending on how you make it depends on the depth of the broth.

I've made 2 huge pots of this soup not only because I love it but because I think my husband is addicted to it. He had a fight with the flu so he was loving having fresh hot homemade soup to eat while he caught up on his episodes of Judge Judy! Ahahaa! Sorry honey but you know you love watching Judge Judy!

I followed this recipe as is. Its obviously very easy to double if you want more.

Sorry for the delay in entries. I was busy this summer doing the wedding planning thing and then getting married. So I'm all old and married now doing married folks stuff and loving it. We wear pajamas all day on Sundays sometimes and watch bad movies and eat soup and snacks. It's a very exciting life here in the winter ahaha!

So enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!!

Dill Pickle Soup
Recipe via Food Network/Polish Village Café

Ingredients
5 tablespoons butter or margarine
5 medium carrots, shredded
2 large potatoes, cubed (about 2 cups)
3 large dill pickles, shredded
1 cup flour
1 cup sour cream
Salt
Pickle juice


Directions
Combine 5 cups water, the butter, the carrots and potatoes in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are tender. Add the pickles and continue to boil.


Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, sour cream and salt in a separate bowl. Add enough water to make a paste, then slowly, to avoid curdling, add the mixture to the soup to thicken. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Add pickle juice, to taste.

Yo! Let's make some Fro Yo!!

What do you do when one of your beautiful friends gives you and handsome fiancé a fro yo/ice cream maker for your wedding shower???

You go to the grocery store and immediately buy everything you need and get that bad boy cranking!!

Seriously that's exactly what you do!

I did a little Internet searching and sort of kind of winged this recipe and it came out perfect!!

Not too sweet, not to tart! Fro Yo perfection!!

Go get yourself a fro yo/ice cream maker and make batches of happiness!!

Enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!

Vanilla Fro Yo

2 cups plain Greek yogurt
2 cups low fat vanilla yogurt
1/8 cup of sugar
1 cup of fresh fruit if you want fruit.

Mix yogurts and sugar. Then add to your machine per the directions.
I added a cup of fresh sliced strawberries. You could add anything your little fro yo eating heart desires!

Here I am bare faced and pony tailed excited about my first ever batch!!!

Best Macaroni Salad Ever!!

I had this crazy craving for macaroni salad. But not the goopy mayo-ie kind. I wanted something different, something with new ingredients in it.

And also something that did not involve elbow macaroni. There are only 2 things in this world elbow macaroni should be used for...1 of them is Macaroni and Cheese and the other is crafting. I mean who doesn't love a well made macaroni necklace!

So I did a little poking around the internet and found this recipe. Of course it's from Pioneer Woman. I kinda sorta like her stuff! Her recipes never ever fail me!

This here fancy pants macaroni salad has olives and roasted red peppers and I really gave it a fancy spin by using BOW TIE PASTA!! That’s right I am as fancy as you thought!

Oh man is this pasta salad good. We ate it with every meal for 3 days then sadly it was gone. :( I will for sure be making this again. For my friends who invite me to their next BBQ don't be surprised if I show up with a yummy bowl full of bow ties!!

One more thing...I kind of made the sauce to taste. I'm a add as I mix kind of gal. I'm certain I used more of everything than what the recipe calls for because that’s just what I do!

Sooooo because I was too busy stuffing my face with this salad I forgot about a pretty pic. So serve yourself up some in your fancy "china" and go about your day! My macaroni salad really helped me get through some brutal expense reports. Hehe!

Enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!!

The Best Macaroni Salad Ever

Ingredients

4 cups Elbow Macaroni
3 whole Roasted Red Peppers, Chopped (more To Taste, Can Also Use Pimentos)
½ cups Black Olives, Chopped Fine
6 whole Sweet/spicy Pickle Slices, Diced (about 1/2 Cup Diced)
3 whole Green Onions, Sliced (white And Dark Green Parts)
½ cups Mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon Red Wine Or Distilled Vinegar
3 teaspoons Sugar, More Or Less To Taste
¼ teaspoons Salt, More To Taste
Plenty Of Black Pepper
¼ cups Milk (more If Needed)
Splash Of Pickle Juice (spicy Sweet Pickles)
Extra Pickle Juice To Taste
Preparation Instructions

Cook the macaroni in lightly salted water according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool. Set aside.

Mix together mayo, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Splash in enough milk to make it pourable. Splash in pickle juice for extra flavor. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Set aside.

Place cooled macaroni in a large bowl and pour 3/4 of the dressing. Toss and add more dressing if you’d like. (Dressing will seem a little thin, but it will thicken up as salad chills.)

Stir in olives, roasted red peppers (or pimentos), pickles, and green onions. Add more of any ingredient if you’d like more stuff going on! At the end, splash in a little more pickle juice and stir.

Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. Sprinkle with sliced green onion to serve!

Did you know...

I have all these weird and somewhat use facts and tips stored in the junk drawer of my brain.
Yes my brain totally has a junk drawer. You know like one in the kitchen that's full of totally useful things but when you see it you have no idea what it's for.

Anywho so I'm going to randomly share them with you!

Here we go!

Did you know if you place a wooden spoon over a boiling pot of let's say pasta it won't overflow?
Me either!! But guess what!!! It works!!
Try it!! Store this fact in your junk drawer and I bet you will use it again!!

I'd love to hear what tips, tricks, and tools you have in your junk drawer. Leave me a comment and I'll gladly try yours out!!

Enjoy and Keep on Making Stuff!!

Honeybun Cake vs. Whopper with Cheese

Over the recent months I have noticed something...

I've become a stress cooker and baker as opposed to a stress eater.

When I'm stressed out or really wound up I always find myself in the kitchen looking to make something.

Last night while I was baking this Honeybun Cake it came to me. The feeling of satisfaction I used to get from gulping down a double whopper with cheese combo is the same feeling I get now after I cook or bake something and it turns out delicious.

WEIRD RIGHT!

What happens is I get the urge to be in the kitchen then I have to find the perfect recipe that suits the moment. That in itself is a process! Once I am in the zone there is no stopping me. I have baked 3 batches of cookies for no reason other than I was having a horrible week and for some reason the thought of baking made me happy.

You see the process is this...
Stress
Cook/bake
Have food or baked good I shouldn't eat or don't want
Find someone who will love it and see how happy home cooked food makes them
Stress gone

Before I would eat everything I made. Now if I have a bite or two that's a lot.

I don't know what happened to me but I don't think I mind the change. My waistline certainly doesn't.

So I had a bad week and I saw this recipe and said... I HAVE TO MAKE THIS!!

Tastykitchen.com is a great recipe resource!

So here's here to hoping your week is stress free and if you do get a little frazzled just remember tomorrow is another day.

ENJOY and Keep on Making Stuff!

HONEYBUN CAKE
Tasty Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 box (18.25 Oz. Box) Yellow Cake Mix
4 whole Eggs
1 cup Sour Cream
¾ cups Vegetable Oil
1 cup Light Brown Sugar
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
2 cups Powdered Sugar
6 Tablespoons Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract


Preparation Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

By hand, blend the cake mix, eggs, sour cream, and oil until well-incorporated. The mixture will be pale yellow; it's okay if it has some lumps! Then set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon until well-blended; set aside.

Pour half of the cake batter into a greased 13×9 pan, spreading the batter out into a thin layer. Add half of the swirl mixture to the top, covering the entire layer of batter. Don't be alarmed if it looks like you're over-saturating the cake-it'll taste great! Pour the rest of the batter on top, and spread the batter until the cake is even. Top the cake off with the rest of the swirl mixture. With a knife, swirl the batter until you create a beautiful masterpiece (I always pretend I'm a barista pouring cream into a cappuccino because I'm really nerdy like that).

Place the cake into the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

While the cake is baking, make the glaze. In a bowl, mix the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until glaze is of desired consistency. When the cake comes out of the oven, immediately pour glaze onto the hot cake. You might have to pick up the cake and tilt it to spread the glaze evenly. Let the cake sit for a few minutes so the glaze can set and serve warm or at room temperature.