Thursday, September 24, 2009

What to Do When You Want Some Tacos

but don't have any tortilla shells, and don't want to drive to Taco Bell (or any other restaurant.)


Make your own! I have always wanted to try to make my own tortillas, but I always thought it would be too involved and not really cost effective. But Monday night I really wanted to make some chicken tacos for supper, and didn't want to run to the store to buy any. So I looked online and found a simple recipe, and they turned out great!!

INGREDIENTS

* 4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 2 tablespoons lard (I used shortening)
* 1 1/2 cups water

DIRECTIONS


1. Whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a mixing bowl. Mix in the lard with your fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal. Add the water and mix until the dough comes together; place on a lightly floured surface and knead a few minutes until smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.






2. Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Use a well-floured rolling pin to roll a dough ball into a thin, round tortilla. Place into the hot skillet, and cook until bubbly and golden; flip and continue cooking until golden on the other side. Place the cooked tortilla in a tortilla warmer; continue rolling and cooking the remaining dough.

Recipe retrieved here, on Allrecipes.com.

You do have to be careful not to burn the flour and tortillas, because they really don't taste good if they are burnt. I really like this recipe and will use it again. I actually halved the recipe and just made 12, I've been using the extras for my lunch time turkey wraps. So far they are keeping really nice in the fridge. And really I think they only cost pennies to make, so really you don't save all that much money, but it was alot of fun to make them myself. :)

Sauerkraut update: I do tend to forget to go scrape the scum, but there doesn't seem to be that much yet. I hope it is all fermenting nicely, it appears to be.

Monday, September 21, 2009

Fall

Tomorrow it will officially be Fall, my favorite season. Well at least I think it is. It runs in a very close race with winter and spring. I think it wins because it kicks out summer, which is my least favorite season when looking at weather only. I guess to clarify, if summer around here was 65-75 and not humid the whole time - then it would be my favorite. I have a very deep hatred of humidity and very hot weather. I love sweatshirt weather. Curl up with a hot beverage and a good book (or good hand held video game like this one I am almost done with.) Which leads to a quick lament.
My poor coffee pot bit the dust. Some how the hose that takes the water from the tank to the pot wasn't connected properly, so the carafe got really hot with no liquid in it, so when I picked it up there was a loud CRACK, then a scream from me, and a large chunk of glass hit the floor. It was a very sad day for coffee at the Troyer house. (I still got my coffee after reconnecting the hose and some creative use of a spoon and a large measuring glass.) And while we are on the subject of coffee, I found this recipe on a different blog I read, The Kitchn. I can't wait to try this one out.

Pumpkin Spice Latte
makes 1-2 servings

Ingredients:
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons canned pumpkin OR 1 teaspoon of Torani Pumpkin Spice Syrup (your choice)
2 tablespoons sugar or sugar substitute - you can halve this amount
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1-2 shots espresso (about 1/4 cup of espresso or 1/2 cup of strong brewed coffee if you don't have an espresso machine.)

Directions:
In a saucepan combine milk, pumpkin and sugar and cook on medium heat, stirring, until steaming. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and spice, transfer to a blender and process for 15 seconds until foamy. If you don't have a blender, don't worry about it - just whisk the mixture really well with a wire whisk.

Pour into a large mug or two mugs. Add the espresso on top.

Optional: Top with whipped cream and sprinkle pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg, or cinnamon on top.

A little more about The Kitchn blog. They put out quite a few things each day, so I don't read everything in depth, but I enjoy checking out most of the content. It ranges from kitchen layouts, kitchen tools, recipes, canning tips, etc. Definitely worth a peek.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

The Things We Do For Love + Domestic Improvements

So there are a few things that my husband really enjoys eating. Two of them are Beef and Noodles like his grandma's and sauerkraut (but not together, at least I don't think). So I decided to tackle both of those things. The beef and noodles are made with canned beef - which I think is the secret behind them. So earlier this week I canned roast for the first time. I got a recipe from my husband's aunt. Basically you get some roast, cut it into chunks, put it in jars, put lids and seals on jars, and process them in a pressure cooker. I think it all came out good. I haven't checked the seals yet, but I'm hoping they all sealed. I personally think the meat looks kind of freaky in there, but I know that that is how it is supposed to look. :)

Now for the other thing, sauerkraut. I was in our local grocery store and they had huge locally grown cabbage, so I bought one. Found out once I got home the sucker weighs 8lbs. That's a whole lot of cabbage. I bought it with the mind set that I was going to be making sauerkraut, but I had never actually read up on how it is done... So after I get home I read and find out that it is going to take about 6 weeks to fermet - um, ew! I never have liked sauerkraut, and the thought of fermenting cabbage just does not appeal to me in the slightest, but hey it's all for love. :) I have yet to start this adventure. I will let you know in about a month and a half if it was successful. Meanwhile any handy sauerkraut tips would be great. Oh and I've already heard the - just buy a jar when you need it. I've already bought the cabbage and darn it I won't let it go to waste!!

Now on to the Domestic Improvements. Don't really know why I am posting this stuff except that I am extremely excited about them both, and once you hear what they are you are free to roll your eyes at my "oldness" and so totally uncoolness.

First off I won the bid on a chest freezer at an auction last Saturday. I love it!!! I have enough room in my regular freezer for 4 or more ice cube trays!! And when I open it random frozen foods don't fall on my toes; it's amazing. And it was a pretty good deal at $75, I think.



Secondly, I've been trying to figure out a way to have a semi permanent place to sew and do other things like that. I finally figured out a solution that was mostly acceptable to my husband and me. We'll see how long it lasts. :) I just hope it helps me get things done.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Blog Hop - Art

This week's Blog Hop is all about art. I don't really draw or paint, but I like to make things with fabric. This is the first (and only - so far) bed size quilt I've done. It was a gift for my brother and his wife for their wedding. I love piecing. The quilting part was fun too, but it took me quite awhile. Although, I had lots of wonderful help to get the quilting done. I love quilting with others, it's a very calming activity.













MckLinky Blog Hop

Thursday, September 10, 2009

The Beatles

Yesterday was the release date for The Beatles Rock Band. Because Best Buy rocks at preorders, I received our copy in the mail yesterday afternoon. As I was singing through some of the songs I was taken back ten years...

Ten years ago I was just starting out my senior year of high school. The year was full of ups and downs, but on the whole it was the best year of high school. Our class was more united, I loved all my classes (except for maybe government.). Band was amazing. And towards the end of this month I was introduced to Jonathan, and he in turn introduced me to The Beatles. I fell in love. I can't listen to Dear Prudence, Norwegian Wood, Honey Pie, or most others without being taken back to those first days of us dating. More specifically the first time I rode with him to hang out on his "turf" for the day. Driving in his red truck, listening to The Beatles. I can't believe it has been 10 years already.

Here are a few of my favorites. :)

Two of Us


Dear Prudence


Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey

Sunday, September 6, 2009

3 years ago

3 years ago today my life changed forever.
3 years ago today I experienced the most physical pain I had ever felt.
3 years ago today I felt the most joy and amazement I had ever felt.
3 years ago today I was part of a miracle.
3 years ago today I became a mother.

Newborn


1 Year


2 Years


3 Years

Happy Birthday Ohlen!!

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Amazon.com is such a Tease

So I love love Amazon.com. Especially the part where if I order more than $25 I can get free shipping, and most of the time I am getting stuff for cheaper than in a regular store. But recently I preordered a game for the DS. Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (logic puzzles and brain teasers - My favorite) I have been trying to wait patiently for it to arrive. The game came out August 24th and for whatever reason they didn't ship it for a few days after that. So I've been anxiously watching the Track Your Packages page. And this is what I found this morning....

Track your package
Date Time Location Event Details
August 31, 2009 03:24:00 PM --- Arrival Scan
August 29, 2009 12:52:32 AM Campbellsville KY US Shipment has left seller facility and is in transit

Soooo it was in KY the 29th, and yesterday it arrived... SOMEWHERE. Was it in OH? My town? Just over the border? In a different state? I'm hoping this means that it will be here today, but I'm not holding my breath... It does make going to the mailbox all that more exciting.

There's a time to be silly, and a time to be serious