My Oven Broke Part 2

So the repair guy couldn't come until this afternoon. Which is actually pretty quick, since I called him yesterday afternoon. Daniel was napping, and Jacob and I were just hanging out. Jacob says suddenly "Mommy, can we make happy cookies?" To which I answer "Yes. Absolutely." You may be wondering what a "happy cookie" is... My answer to that is "I have no idea." Jacob was so excited and I was left wondering if I had momentarily gone insane. I just promised to make cookies with my kid, without an oven, having no clue what a happy cookie is. So what do I do... Google No Bake Cookies. I then asked Jacob what a happy cookie is and he said "It has eyes." I asked him if it was okay if these cookies didn't have eyes, and he was okay with that plan. Partway through making these I was reminded of my mom's mud pies... Only I am sure that those were coconut and not oatmeal, so I added a bunch of coconut for fun. And seriously, I am officially naming these "Jacob's Happy Cookies" because they are so tasty, they definitely made me, and the kids, happy.

JACOB'S HAPPY COOKIES

3 tbsp cocoa powder
2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup margarine
1/2 cup milk

Bring to a boil really really slow, and boil only 90 seconds.

Meanwhile... Mix together
3 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tbsp vanilla
Random amount coconut (maybe 1/4 cup)

Pour hot mix into oat mix. Stir and let sit for just a couple minutes. Drop onto wax paper whatever size cookies you want and let sit until firm, or put in freezer for a couple minutes if you want to eat them right away.

Hmmm... these look different (plus they were a little frozen)

Now if Jacob's face doesn't say "yummy!" I don't know what does.

Delicious!

Watching a movie after, so Mama could clean up

My Oven Broke Part 1

So my oven broke... And this is how I found out:
Yesterday morning I got the boys all excited about helping me make cookies. They were a very random recipe that was a basic whole grain/oatmeal recipe which I really like because it has orange juice in it. But I added some honey and peanut butter and the crumbs left at the end of a box of shreddies and a box of mini-wheats. I remembered to pre-heat the oven, which was a bonus. I put the dough in a 9x13 pan to make cookie bars and save myself some hassle. Realized at this point that I forgot the orange juice, but the boys had already licked all the spoons so I figured it wasn't worth it. I opened the oven and... NO HEAT. At all. Well I called the oven repair guy and he had me take off the back to look for a reset switch. My oven doesn't have one of course, and both Jeff and I got minor flesh wounds taking the thing apart.

How to Get Kids to Eat Myths

Myth #1: Kids will eat anything with dip (eg: ketchup, ranch dressing, tomato sauce)
Reality: If I give my kids dip, they dip their FINGERS in it and that is all they eat. Tonight we had perogies, sausages, and corn for supper. Jacob ate a pile of mustard that he squirted on the table instead.

Myth #2: Kids will eat anything if they are involved in the cooking process.
Reality: First of all, it is way more work to cook or bake with the kids involved. But I truly wouldn't mind that if this trick worked. When I bake my boys like to help take everything I need out of the cupboard, lick it and poke it, then they lose interest in the making part unless there is something else to lick. Of course, they always eat cookies or cupcakes, so this is a fun exercise. But for real healthy meal food it doesn't work the same. They don't usually ever eat soup, so last week I tested this theory. Jacob helped me get all the spices and seasonings into the crockpot, he dumped the frozen veggies in, and picked what shape of noodle he wanted. It was fun. But would he eat it. Nope. Not a chance.

Myth #3: Kids will eat anything "fun."
Reality: I posted THIS before but here is a true story: One of the big cheese companies make little snack cheese shaped like fish and dinosaurs. Seriously it is the worst tasting cheese on the planet, and the kids won't eat them just because they are fun.

No Mess Finger Painting

At playgroup this week, there was "sticky finger painting" with syrup coloured red for valentine's day. And would you be surprised if neither of my boys were interested in this? I was a little, but they just aren't into messy art, even if it is edible apparently. So this project was suggested to me by the co-ordinator:

Ziplock bags with a couple blobs of paint. Taped to the table with a piece of paper underneath.

Jacob was intrigued right away when I said his hands wouldn't get messy.

Mixing colours... notice Daniel having a fit on the floor in the background...

Big brother shows little brother how to paint. So cute.

Masterpieces!

We hung the bags up it the window after and they were so pretty with the sun shining through. I had hoped they might dry, but not so. It has been a few days and you can still finger paint with them! All in all a successful creative afternoon.

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream For...

CUPCAKES!! Seriously this was the easiest cupcake recipe ever and it tasted yummy:

3/4 cup flour

7 tbsp soft margarine

1/2 cup sugar

2 extra large eggs, lightly beaten

generous 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Using an electric mixer, beat until smooth. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes. Makes 12.

Now here is where it gets Deanna-interesting.... First, here are the boys helping me make icing, which was just cocoa powder, icing sugar, and milk, totally random amounts until I was happy with the consistency and the chocolateyness. 

Now, I had heard of baking cupcakes in ice cream cones and I REALLY wanted to try it and I finally did. Here is the finished product:

I mixed the batter as per the instructions, filled the cones 3/4 full and baked at 350 for about 15 minutes. Then I stuck them in the fridge to cool quickly so I could ice them. I took them to playgroup as a treat for the kids.

They were really yummy but I didn't get anymore pictures because Daniel dumped his drink all over the table right after I took this shot. Good thing he is cute.

Who Needs Toys?

When Things Go Right in the Kitchen

Don't you just LOVE those days?? Today I tried 4 new recipes- and they ALL ROCKED!!

First, another bread attempt. This time another friend's recipe. I was pleased with the results, but due to a lack of yeast, I had to change the amounts, so I look forward to trying it again. We ate nearly the whole loaf for lunch.

Second, DESSERT! There is a potluck at church tomorrow so I had to get baking. Even though I bought everything at the grocery store yesterday to make a no-bake cheesecake, I didn't feel like making it. Out comes my trusty Canadian Lutheran Ladies Cookbook. I made up Raspberry Dream Bars... With a Twist! It called for a cup of walnuts but I substituted chocolate chips. So good!! I don't think they would be near as dreamy without the chocolate.

Third, what to make for supper? We bought a package of local, organic pork chops to try. We haven't had pork chops in forever, because it is hard to get tasty ones. Anyways, I used the internet to find a recipe this time. Made a few changes because I didn't have the right ingredients, but how can you go wrong with soya sauce, sugar, ketchup and lemon juice? They were delicious. Can't wait to try the marinade on the barbecue.

Fourth, I really really want to succeed at making home-fries. I have a friend who makes amazing ones, but mine are always terrible. But sometimes I just can't give up... Turns out I hadn't tried my Betty Crocker recipe, and she is usually reliable. Anyways, they were amazing! I just love it when a recipe turns out perfect without any tweaking!

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Raspberry Dream Bars - Deanna Version
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Ingredients:

BASE
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4  cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
1 tbsp milk
1/2 cup raspberry jam, maybe a little more


TOPPING
1/8 cup butter
2 egg, separated
1 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Mix dry base ingredients in large bowl. Cut in butter. Beat egg with milk then add to bowl. Press dough greased 9x13 and bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes.

2. Spread with Jam.

3. For Topping, cream butter and sugars. Beat in egg yolks. Add salt and vanilla. Add chocolate chips. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into mixture. Spread over jam layer and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.
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Bread-Tastic

Before Christmas, I replaced my breadmachine with a stand mixer. Since I never used my breadmachine to actually bake the bread in, it made more sense to me to have a kitchen appliance that did more than just knead bread. Well, I have had SO MUCH trouble trying to get my recipe to work out. I remember that it took me quite awhile to get that recipe right, and now I am back at square one. It won't rise, if it does it sinks, too much flour, too much water... dead yeast?? I don't know. Anyways,  a friend gave me a recipe that works for her, so I thought I would try it out. I was so excited... the yeast bubbled... it rose in the bowl.... I divided it into two regular loaf pans, two small round communion loaves, and a half dozen mini buns with the rest... they rose in the oven for an hour... I pulled them out to preheat the oven, they didn't collapse... I told Jeff my life was amazing... they baked, looked delicious, and then disaster struck:

That's right, I tried to shake it out of the pan and it broke in half! What does this mean? For the record, the other one came out in one piece, but Jacob saw me picking and eating at the broken one so when I wasn't watching he picked chunks off the good loaf to eat.... But WAIT! The disaster isn't over yet. But I have to backtrack again. While the bread was baking I was making soft fajita shells. I did burn one really well, I was busy being excited about my bread rising, so my house was full of smoke already. Anyways, I had put the buns on a wooden cutting board to cool. I looked over and wondered "Why are my buns smoking?" and went back to dealing with my stupid bread. I looked over again and wondered "That is so weird, why are my buns still smoking?" Back to the stupid bread... "Why does it smell like campfire in here???" That's when I realized I had put the wooden cutting board right on top of the just vacated burner. I seriously looked at those smoking buns 3 times before I realized it was the cutting board smoking and not the buns. I was right on time too, because the charred cutting board was just starting to spark.  

In conclusion, I don't know if this was an epic failure or not, because we got one good loaf of bread out of it, but it came pretty close. 

Indian Chapati Bread (Tortillas)
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I triple this recipe and actually prefer it with all white flour, but I use the brown anyways.
Serving Size: 8

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup hot water or as needed

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, stir together the whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour and salt. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the olive oil and enough water to make a soft dough that is elastic but not sticky. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until it is smooth. Divide into 8 parts, or less if you want bigger breads. Roll each piece into a ball.  Let rest for a few minutes.

2. Heat a skillet over medium heat until hot. On a lightly floured surface, use a floured rolling pin to roll out the balls of dough until very thin like a tortilla. When the pan starts smoking, put a chapati on it. Cook until the underside has brown spots, and top starts to puff up, less than 30 seconds, then flip and cook on the other side. Continue with remaining dough.

It's Raining in the Kitchen!

And the living room... and the basement... That sounds a lot scarier than it actually is. We just made rainmakers today! I wish I had pictures of the boys helping, but I couldn't find the camera and I couldn't leave them alone because they each had a hammer and a pile of nails. HERE is where I found how to make one. Basically we hammered a whole whack-load of various sized nails into a poster-mailing-tube and dumped a bag of dried pinto beans in. Random nails because that is what I had and pinto beans because they were the cheapest at the grocery store. Well, when we finished testing it out, it was so cool, but it was too heavy for Daniel. Well, being me, I grabbed an empty diaper liner roll (the same size as a toilet paper roll, but way thicker) and pounded a bunch of little nails in it and filled it with rice. Fun, right? We sang some Disney songs and rocked it out with our new rainmakers. After the boys went to bed I did this:

I hope they love them even more when they wake up tomorrow!

This Is My Island in the Sun

I bought a pineapple to make Hawaiian pizza, my favourite. And today I wanted to do some baking with the boys. We decided to go for Tropical Pineapple Cupcakes. Why not double the pineapple fun?

You need

6 tablespoons soft margarine
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
2/3 cup flour
2 pineapple rings, finely chopped (plus one tbsp juice if using canned)

Cream butter and sugar. And egg. Add flour. Add pineapple.
Makes 12 small cupcakes.
Bake at 350 for 22 minutes.

Cool and Ice...

1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon lime juice

Beat together until smooth.

Top with finely grated coconut.

Enjoy!!

When The Weather is Nice...

We have had a beautiful winter so far this year. And when it is this nice, I just have to get the boys outside to enjoy it. I was inspired by some snow-play they did at playgroup. They had a big bucket of snow and spray bottles full of kool-aid. It was fun to "paint" the snow. Well, I had neither spray bottles nor kool-aid, but a couple of pop bottles with a hole punched in the lid and water mixed with a little acrylic paint worked pretty well for us. Though it didn't smell delicious like the kool-aid!