Chokecherry Syrup

Chokecherries are so fun to gather from the mountains unless you happen to be allergic to the leaves! I have no problem consuming the stuff, but the leaves do NOT like me!

My dear Grandma gave me a bucket of already picked chokecherries last week! I still have some chokecherry jelly so I juiced them and made syrup of course!

I tried a new way to make it because last time I used pectin and it set up too solidly.

If you have never tried chokecherry syrup, you need to make it a priority! This stuff is so delicious and worth every minute it takes to make!!

Wash and remove stems and leaves from the cherries. I use a steam juicer to extract the juice.

In a large saucepan, combine 3 cups chokecherry juice and 6 cups granulated sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat while stirring. Boil one minute. Remove from heat and add 1/4 to 1/2 tsp. almond extract. Pour in hot sterilized jars. Adjust two piece caps and process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes.

Pour any leftover generously over pancakes, waffles, or french toast!

Zucchini Bread

I have another zucchini bread recipe on this blog and I am undecided which one is my favorite. This is a fun one and so good! It is just hot out of the oven...I am going to go slather it with butter and some fresh raspberry jam!

Zucchini Bread

5 eggs

2 C. grated zucchini

1 C. vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla

2-1/2 C. flour

1-1/4 C. sugar

2 packages instant vanilla pudding mix (3.4 oz)

1-1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Beat eggs, zucchini, oil and vanilla.  Stir into dry ingredients until moistened.  Stir in nuts if desired.

Bake in four small loaf pans for 45 minutes at 350*. 

Can you see the steam rising?!

Waterfall Braid with a Twist!

Look up how to do a waterfall braid on youtube. It is fairly easy and fun! Then take the "waterfall" parts and braid or twist them. Place them in the lower part of the braid in sequence. You could do this to both sides and pull the back up as well for a fun night out! 

This is several four strand braids that I pinned and twisted under to create a different waterfall look.

Macadamia and White Chocolate Cookies

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

2 C. butter

1&1/2 C. sugar

1&1/2 C. brown sugar

3 eggs

3 tsp. vanilla

5&1/4 C. flour

1&1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 small box instant white chocolate pudding 

1 pkg. white chocolate chips

1 C. macadamia nuts

Cream butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients. Stir in chips and nuts.

Bake at 350* for 13 minutes.

Freezer Burritos

Need a quick easy something to feed the famished! This is the ticket. On those days when you find yourself being the taxi driver to and from soccer, piano, basketball, choir, and guitar lessons you can pop one of these babies in the microwave for 2 minutes add some lettuce, sour cream, and whatever else your heart desires; and voila! Dinner is served. 

EASY FREEZER BURRITOS

(I hope I can remember all I put in these; you see, that is the best part, you can customize them to be as mild or spicy as your taste buds crave!)

3 cans chili

3 cans ranch style beans

1 can re-fried beans

1 can black beans

1 can tomatoes with diced green chilies

1 pint of home bottled salsa (or any other kind you like)

2 pkg taco, burrito, or enchilada seasoning mix

1 large onion, chopped

2 lbs ground beef (or a mixture of sausage and beef)

Brown beef and onion. Drain off grease. Add all other ingredients. Mix in a large pot. Simmer for an hour or two. Remove from heat. Add 1 & 1/2 lbs grated cheese. Stir. Heat tortillas in microwave and place a heaping 1/2 C. bean mixture in the center. Roll them up and wrap in plastic wrap. Wait for them to cool. Place in the freezer. Pull them out as desired and heat in microwave for about 2 minutes. Makes about 36 depending on the size of tortilla and how much filling used in each one.

Fresh Apricot Pie

Abundant apricots cause one to think of creative tasty ways to utilize them. I tried this new recipe tweaked to my own liking of course and LOVED it. So..here I am making certain I know where I can find it in the future! Blogs are the best way to keep track of favorite recipes.

AwEsOmE ApRiCoT PiE

Place a heaping cup of sweetened shredded coconut in a food processor and give it a whirl. Add one stick of butter and 1/4 C. plus 3 Tbsp. brown sugar. Blend well. Add 3/4 C. plus 3 Tbsp. flour. Combine till it sticks together. Set aside this crumb topping.

Combine 6 C. quartered apricots, 1/2 C. sugar, 1/2 C. brown sugar, and 3 Tbsp. cornstarch, 1 tsp. nutmeg, and 2 Tbsp. dry tapioca.

Pour the apricot mixture into your favorite unbaked pie shell and top with the crumb topping.

Bake at 350* for 1 and 1/2 hours.

The above is a picture of the pie before it was placed in the oven.

To the right is a picture of the pie baking. I lined a jelly roll pan with tinfoil to catch any spills.

Above is a picture of the pie right out of the oven.

To the right is a picture of the pie prior to being consumed! And it was supreme!! 

Apricot Syrup

I bottled some apricot syrup late last night and thought I had better post the recipe here lest I lose it! :)

Apricot Syrup

2 lbs of fresh apricots

puree them with 2 Tbsp. of fresh lemon juice

Add 1 C. water and 1 Tbsp. corn syrup

Pour into a saucepan and add 4 C. sugar

Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes

Pour into hot sterilized jars and seal with hot lids

Process in a boiling water canner for 5 minutes

Remove from canner and allow to cool for 24 hours

There is little that compares to the sound the lid makes when the jars are cooling and they seal; it is one of my favorite sounds in the whole world! 

Tried and tested. It is Yummy in my tummy!

Luscious Lemon Cake

Summertime is fun! Being invited to go up the canyon to a potluck BBQ is refreshing! I decided to beat the heat with something lemony and created this cake.

It turned out to be delicious and just the right thing for a hot summer night.

Lemon Cake

1 boxed lemon cake mix

1 small box instant lemon pudding

4 eggs

I C. sour cream

1/2 C. oil

3/4 C. water

Combine all ingredients and mix well. I poured it into a greased 9X13 pan and baked it for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees (you could use two round pans or whatever suits your fancy). Let it cool. I cut my cake in half and poked it full of holes. Pour the juice and zest of one lemon mixed with 1 C. powdered sugar over the top of the cake and allow it to absorb. 

I then spread some lemon creme on one half of the cake and stack the other half on top. 

Frost with a light lemon frosting. 

I used 1/2 C. butter, 4 cups powdered sugar, several tablespoons of lemon juice, 1/2 tsp. vanilla and some milk.

More photos from the BBQ...

Twist on Tinfoil

HAPPY FATHERS DAY!!!

Here is a great idea for a quick and easy meal! We just came home from a soccer competition where we stayed in some university dorms. I had to be creative in what I took for dinner as the kitchen was completely bare. I decided it would be easy to make some tinfoil dinners in the oven. I only had to pack the ingredients, a knife, and some heavy duty aluminum foil.

Sweet n' Sour tinfoil dinner

Place 1/2 C. minute rice in a large piece of foil that has been shaped like a bowl. Add diced raw chicken, chunks of fresh pineapple, slices of green pepper, shredded carrots, snow peas in the pod, and 3 Tblsp. of sweet n' sour sauce (homemade or bottled). Pour 1/4 C. of liquid (you can use water, sprite, orange juice....I used sparkling mineral water) over the ingredients and crimp the edges of the foil. I wrapped mine again for good measure and cooked it in the oven at 350* for 35 minutes. You can cook them over the coals or on a barbecue grill too. 

I am not a fan of minute rice, but this was delicious! 

Fabulous Fudge!

This fudge is really to die for! 
I got the recipe from a friend and tweaked it to my liking.

Fudge

4 C. chocolate chips (I used half milk chocolate and half semi-sweet)

14 oz. Hershey's chocolate bar

4 1/2 C. sugar

1 cube butter (use a good brand)

1 can evaporated milk (use a good brand)

7 oz. marshmallow creme

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Bring to a boil: sugar, milk, and butter while stirring constantly. Boil 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add all other ingredients at once. Stir vigorously till mixed. Pour into a buttered pan. It makes more than a 9X13 size pan; you could make a 9X13 without nuts and a 8X8 with nuts. I toasted some chopped almonds and sprinkled them in my pan after I buttered it. You could use walnuts or whatever suits your fancy. Allow the fudge to cool before cutting.

Homemade English Muffins

Oh my gosh! If you have never made your own English muffins, you need to put it on your bucket list. Yummy! Mmmmm...mmmm...good! Way better than store purchased!

English Muffins

1 Tbsp. package active dry yeast

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. Warm water

1/2 cup scalded milk

2 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt 

3 Tbsp soft butter

3 cups all-purpose flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Add sugar, salt, and milk.

Beat in 2 cups flour. Knead, cover and let rise till double. Add butter and rest of flour.

Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut rounds with English Muffin rings. Cover and let rise 1/2 hour.

Remove from ring and cook muffins on griddle about 10 minutes on each side on medium heat. Allow to cool and place in plastic bags for storage.

Guess Who Hatched

I had some crazy birds decide my wreath hanging on my front door was a suitable place to raise a family. They have been fun to watch. She laid one egg a day until there were a total of five eggs the size of peanut M&Ms.

They hatched today! I will post a picture of the babies as soon as I dare sneak one.

Here are the eggs if you look closely.

Here is the mama sitting on her eggs.

Here are the sweet babies!

Perfect Pie Crust

I love making pies and getting the crust just right can be a bit tricky. I love this pie crust recipe that you can throw together in your food processor and freeze until you are ready to use it. It only takes a few minutes to throw a pie together if you pull the crust and the filling out of the freezer like I did for this peach pie. See how flaky the crust is! 

1-1/2 cup Shortening

3 cups All-purpose Flour

1 whole Egg

5 Tablespoons Cold Water

1 Tablespoon White Vinegar

1 teaspoon Salt

Put the flour and the shortening in your food processor and pulse until it resembles a coarse meal. Add the egg, cold water, vinegar and salt. Pulse until all of the ingredients are incorporated.

Separate the dough into 3 evenly sized balls of dough and place each dough into a large Ziploc bag. Using a rolling pin, slightly flatten each ball of dough (about ½ inch thick) to make rolling easier later. Seal the bags and place them in the freezer until you need them. 

When you are ready to use the dough to make a crust, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw for 15 minutes. 

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I have had this recipe for years. I got it from an oriental friend of mine. It is scrumptious!

Sweet and Sour Chicken
Dice 4 chicken breasts and soak for at least 20 minutes in: 1 egg, 1 tsp. soy sauce, 1 tsp. salt and a little bit of cornstarch. 
Cook chicken in hot oil until done.
Dice 1 onion, 3 peppers, 2 carrots and saute them in a small amount of olive oil. When they are cooked to desired tenderness, add the chicken and a can of pineapple chunks. Add 1 Tblsp. vinegar, 3 T. sugar, 1/3 C. ketcup, 5 Tblsp. pineapple juice mixed with 3 tsp. cornstarch.
Heat for a few minutes and serve over rice.

Budding Artist

My 16 year old son is an artist. He hasn't had any formal training aside from a few school art classes. He has a natural ability for drawing, painting, and even photography.

Here are a few pictures of his latest work.

This one is a marker drawing.

This one is done with pastels.