Menus 11/8/10 - 11/14/10

 Monday: Mr. and Mrs. Mamie go out with friends visiting from out of town. Leftovers of last night's Ruby Tuesday Potato-Cheese Soup for GrandmaT.

Tuesday: Oven-baked Chicken Fried Steak (I don't have a source listed on the recipe so I can't link it, boo me!), Italian Rice Pilaf (made with organic brown rice),  green salad.

Wednesday: Chicken and White Bean Chili, green salad, corn chips (the organic ones from Costco).

Thursday: Slow-Cooker Beef Stew, green salad, Oatmeal Rolls (from the freezer).

Friday: Beef and Bean Enchiladas (made with this homemade enchilada sauce), Spanish Rice (made with organic brown rice).

Saturday: CrochetMom's Chicken Tetrazini (got bumped from a preceding week), green salad.

Sunday: Mrs. Chili's BBQ Beef, as sandwiches (got bumped from a preceding week).

See LOTS more meal plans and recipe links at www.orgjunkie.com. Happy eating!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Announcing...

The RECIPES tab, now live on the blog! I finally gathered up "all" (like, all 30) recipes I have published on the blog, and made a separate page for them. Wheeeeee! Check it out!

Now I want to make other pages... probably one dedicated to Wombat (mom), maybe one with first grade resources...? Hmmmmm, we'll see where creativity (such as it is) takes me.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Chicken (or Turkey) Tetrazini

On my recipe it says that I got this from CrochetMom in December 1991 when they (she and Travellin'Dad) lived in Eugene, OR. It can be made with either chicken or turkey, which makes this a good post-Thanksgiving-leftovers meal.

 

Chicken (or Turkey) Tetrazini

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces frozen egg noodles (dry noodles that have been pre-boiled also work)
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1-1/2 cups cooked, cubed/shredded chicken/turkey
• 1-1/2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (thawed)
• 2 Tbl diced pimentos
• 1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
• 2 Tbl shredded Parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbl dried parsley

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375. Grease an 11 x 7 (approximately) baking dish.
2.   Prepare noodles according to package directions, to al dente.
3. Combine soup, milk, water, and shredded cheddar cheese in a large saucepan. Cook on medium heat until sheese is melted and mixture is hot.
4. Stir the noodles, chicken/turkey, vegetables, and pimento into the cheese sauce in the saucepan until combined.
5. Transfer sauce/noodle/chicken mixture to baking dish.
6. Combine the breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and parsley in a small bowl; sprinkle over top of contents of baking dish.
7. Bake uncovered 30 minutes.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Turkey Tacos

We rocked the tacos last night! I didn't make a meal plan for this week, which sometimes happens. It wasn't too much of a fail though, because at least I was conscientious about planning the night before and defrosting/prepping as needed.

On Thursday evening I got out a pound of ground turkey, with a couple of different things in mind for Friday's dinner.  By the time I got home yesterday, exhausted and cranky after three days of "professional development" at school (and three days of being away from my classroom while it was descending into chaos), motivation was at low ebb. Add to that the need to drive Niece to a slumber party 5 miles down the highway right at dinnertime, and enthusiasm for cooking really hit bottom.

I consulted Mr. Mamie with three options: turkey tacos, stuffed bell peppers (my mom's recipe), or Easy Cheeseburger Casserole from Tammy's Recipes (which we have had and loved before).  He was fairly neutral. My lack of motivation continued.

Finally I peeled myself out of the purple leather recliner and browned the turkey... and cooked up some GREAT tacos!

Turkey Tacos

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 small can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
• Water
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup taco seasoning - this homemade blend from Annie's Eats is AWESOME and made these tacos PERFECT!
• Shells - corn tortillas, flour tortillas, or store-bought taco shells
• Toppings - salsa, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, sour cream, green onions, olives, whatever you want

Directions:

1. Brown the ground turkey in a good-sized skillet; drain off the accumulated liquid (it's mostly water)
2. Add the taco seasoning to the browned turkey. I used nearly 1/2 cup of the homemade blend. Stir.
3. Add the 8 ounce can of tomato sauce to the turkey and seasoning; stir well.
4. Fill the tomato sauce can with water and then add water to the turkey mixture until you have a saucy consistency that pleases you. I added the full can because I knew that my sauce would be simmering for a bit (while I drove Niece to her party).
5. Simmer at least 10 - 15 minutes to allow the seasonings to absorb into the sauce and for everything to come together.
6. While the taco meat is simmering, prepare your shells. Tortillas heated on an electric griddle are GREAT. Just spray the hot griddle lightly with olive oil, place the tortillas on it, and flip when they start to get very lightly brown on the griddle side. Spray the griddle in between batches of tortillas. If you use store-bought crunchy taco shells, your tacos will be 1000 times better if you heat the shells on a cookie sheet in a 325 degree oven for 6 - 7 minutes. TRUST ME on this - the difference is like night and day!
7. Top tacos with your choice of goodies and enjoy!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Six Word Saturday 11/6/20

Long, difficult week - missed my classroom!

For more Six Word Saturday, visit Show My Face.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

The Post-It Post

http://www.3m.com/us/office/postit/promos/201010_sm/thank_you.html

I know, this is a weak excuse for a NaBloPoMo post! But, I do love office/school supplies, and I want EVERYONE to have some! So click on the link for a sample and coupon from 3M, the Post-It people.

~Mamie"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!"(Hunter S. Thompson)

Image credit

Kitchen Gadget Questions

Saw this at Budget Bytes and though it would be fun to post!


1. What is your most prized appliance/gadget or what item do you get the most use out of?

Definitely my KitchenAid mixer, which was passed on to me by Wombat and GolfDad when they downsized to an RV for some long-term traveling. GolfDad has been trying to get it back ever since! Close second is the CrockPot.

2. What common appliance or gadget do you NOT own and how have you managed without it?

Hmmmmmm, perhaps a mandolin? That seems to be a popular cutting tool these days. I don't have an electric can opener, either.

3. What gadget or appliance have you bought and never ended up using nearly as much as you had hoped?

That would probably have to be the George Forman Grill. Fortunately, I didn't actually buy it - it was passed on from Travellin'Dad and CrochetMom.

4. a) What would you buy for your kitchen if you had a million dollars and b) what is on your "to buy" list right now?

Million bucks? Double oven, walk-in cooler (as my fridge), prep sink, indoor grill. To buy list: Perhaps an immersion blender, though it's not a necessity - just sounds like fun!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Nearly Wordless Wednesday 11/3/10

Mom and me, camping, circa 1980.

(GolfDad is in the background)

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Ten Things Tuesday 11/2/10

 Mom giving GolfDad some kinda "look!"

My house, summer 2008

Ten cool things about my mom:

1. The paper she gave me to draw on as a young child was the backs of old, mimeographed high school English worksheets left over from her teaching days. I liked doing the grammar exercises on the back more than I liked drawing!

2.  We had the same car - RAV-4s. Mine is "Titanium," hers was "Emerald Mist."

3.  Most of my holiday decorations were made by her - pillow covers, Christmas tree ornaments, Kleenex cozies, and more.

4.  I could always call her to find out where things were located in stores, which was often easier than finding an employee.

5.  She made sure softball, soccer, swimming, water polo, drama camp, piano lessons, and many more things were a part of my life.

6.  She knew how to laugh! Humor was always a big part of our lives.

7.  She knew how to cook and sew, and made sure I  could do at least 50% of that. We were finally getting around to the sewing part in her last months before getting sick again.

8.  She liked camping, so we liked camping. The last family camping trip of my (relative) youth was in about 1988, at Carlsbad State Beach... now THAT is a trip that will never be forgotten! Just ask Igor.

9. BOOKS... READING... my mom was ALL OVER IT!

10. She was just. dang. cool.

Miss you, Squatty Wombat....

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

One Year...

... feels like an eternity, feels like just a second ago. Miss you so much, Mom.

Vote for my hometown zoo ~ 10/31/10

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

So I wrote this book...: Expert Interview: Chief Warrant Officer Al Dupre

My sister (former Army soldier and about as far-from "right wing" as a person can get, a fascinating dichotomy!) is doing a series on her blog, and it's fascinating. Go check it out!

So I wrote this book...: Expert Interview: Chief Warrant Officer Al Dupre: "

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Weekend

 The Igor Family's Pumpkins

It has been a nice weekend here - the fall weather is beautiful!

Halloween at school on Friday was... tolerable. I've experienced worse, though having my most challenging little boy toss a full, fortunately-closed carton of milk at some older kids and thus REALLY pissing off the head custodian did NOT add to the joy of the day. I'll post some pictures later - not of the milk projectile, but rather, of cute kids in costumes.

Being that Friday was the last business day of the month, it was also payday. That afternoon/evening we took GrandmaT out on a little adventure, beginning with Red Robin for dinner where we all ate entirely too much. We were planning to go to a movie, but as it was rather early, had some time to fill beforehand. First we hit up Albertsons where we scored 10 bags of assorted baking chips (semi-sweet and milk chocolate, white chocolate, and butterscotch) for a mere $1.50/bag - an excellent deal. We purchased some other sale items, including two MASSIVE bags of Halloween candy. The irony is that we don't actually turn the light on for trick-or-treaters, as it stresses the dogs out, among other reasons. But we have candy for Niece and Nephew and the cute family across the street, and most importantly, FOR MR. MAMIE. He keeps marveling at the "perfect combo" of Heath, KitKat, Reese's cups, Almond Joy, Hershey bars, and Whoppers. After Albertsons there was still some time before the movie, so we went to Barnsie (of course) where Mr. Mamie polished off a gift card a lovely friend sent us by buying a THRILLING tome on HTML-5 (from which he reads tidbits aloud approximately every 5 minutes). GrandmaT and I both picked up some light reading for cash. I guess I should mention that I had used slightly over half the gift card the day before on... yes, books for the classroom. Touche.

Finally it was time to go to the movie, which was Red starring Bruce Willis, John Malkovich, and Helen Mirren. Hilarious! Definitely worth a couple hours and a few bucks. GrandmaT had seen the ads and expressed interest, so we thought it would be fun to take her. She liked it, though her first comment was that it was "awfully damn loud!" Too true! But that's an ongoing issue at that particular cinema.

Saturday it was time to bite the bullet and do a MAJOR shop. We've been eating down our pantry and freezers for the last couple months, so we had to hit up the Village grocery store, Costco, and The Walmartz. Add in haircuts for both of us, new wiper blades for both vehicles, and a fairly icky lunch at Del Taco and it's no wonder we came home exhausted, nauseated, and about $500 poorer. Sigh.

We did have a really nice evening though. Where we live Halloween activities took place on Saturday. GrandmaT went over to the Igors' to make Halloween Casserole (still gotta post that recipe!) and man the front door while Mrs. Igor took Niece and Nephew to "trunk or treat" events at the Village grocery store and the local church.  They then hit up our neighborhood and their own for some door-to-door action. Meanwhile, Mr. Mamie and I enjoyed a nice evening at home eating a Costco take-and-bake pizza (and Halloween candy) and watching streaming Netflix - first Lady Jane, one of my favorites, and then The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.   I really wanted to see the Swedish scenery and hear the Swedish language, and was not disappointed in this regard. I did have to explain a lot to Mr. Mamie in terms of back-story and that seemingly-random events will connect to things in future books. Once he resigned himself to the subtitles, he got into the mystery. We didn't actually quite finish, as sugar-comas overtook us. Perhaps tonight.

Sunday has been pleasant. Did our Maverik run for morning caffeine and newspapers, then pondered how to accommodate Mr. Mamie's desire to have chili for dinner (yes, deviating from menu plan!) when the enormous quantities of ground beast and ground gobble purchased at Costco yesterday are already in the freezer. However, the 5 pounds of stew meat was still in the fridge, as the butchers at Costco apparently think we have mouths the size of a T-Rex, and the stew chunks needed to be cut down to human size. So, we came up with a chunky beef chili and the house currently smells fabulous! Can't wait to eat it.

Amazingly, I created another recipe today as well: Peanut Butter-Oatmeal-Chip Bars.   Usually I am a follower of recipes, not a creator of them. I am really happy with both my efforts today!

And now I must stop procrastinating and return to lesson planning.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Peanut Butter-Oatmeal-Chip Bars

The basis for the recipe came from the bag of the bag of sugar we purchased yesterday at the grocery store in the Village. It's an Intermountain West regional brand of sugar, so don't know if the recipe is published anywhere. I modified it somewhat to suit our tastes.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup brown sugar 
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter (I used Kirkland [Costco] organic all-natural)
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup unbleached white flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats (I used Coach's Oats, our fave!)
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup peanut butter chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Cream butter and sugars.
3. Add egg and peanut butter; mix well.
4. Stir in baking soda, salt, flours, and oatmeal until combined. 
5. Press dough into a greased (ideally with butter - use the wrapper from the stick you used to make the dough!) 13"x9" cake pan.
6. Sprinkle chocolate and peanut butter chips on top; make sure they are intermingled.
7. Bake 20 - 25 minutes until light golden brown.
8. Cool; cut into squares to serve.

Not too sweet, and you get to sneak a few whole grains in there! I completely omitted the icing that the original recipe included - seemed unnecessary.

This post is linked to Eat at Home's Ingredient Spotlight: Brown Sugar post.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Crockpot Chunky Chili

Mr. Mamie and I created our own chunky chili recipe today, and the house is smelling sooooooo good! It is based on my "standard" chili, which in turn is derived from GolfDad's "old" chili recipe (which he has modified a number of times over the years). Photo will be added later!

Anyway, here's what we came up with:

Ingredients:

• 1 small onion, or 1/2 of a medium/large onion, chopped.
• 4 cloves garlic, minced.
• 1-1/2 pounds stew meat, cut into fairly small chunk-lets
• 6 oz. beef stock or broth
• 2 cans (14-1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes (undrained)
• 8 oz. hot salsa
• 1 (4-oz) can diced green chilies (undrained)
• 1 can beans, rinsed and drained. You could use pinto, kidney, whatever... I am not a fan of kidney beans, so we used pinto. You can add a second can if you want your chili to be more beany.
• 1-1/2 T. chili powder
• 1 t. ground cumin
• 1/2 t. paprika
• 1/4 t. dried basil
• 1/4 t. dried oregano
• 1/4 t. dried thyme
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1/8 t. ground cayenne pepper
• olive oil

Directions:

1. Combine beef stock, tomatoes, salsa, green chilies, beans, chili powder, cumin, paprika,  basil, oregano, thyme, salt, and cayenne pepper in Crockpot; stir well. Turn Crockpot on to low.
2. Saute onion and garlic in pan with olive oil until just softened.
3. Add stew meat to pan and cook with onion and garlic until lightly browned. 
4. Transfer stew meat/onions/garlic to Crockpot with other ingredients; stir well.
5. Cook until "done" - which varies greatly from Crockpot to Crockpot! We cooked ours for about 6 hours. Our "low" is pretty hot/fast though, so you may need more time.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)