Pie Contest

I woke up early this morning to bake a pie for the church picnic we had this afternoon.  As an added plus I decided to enter it into the pie contest.  I've never done anything like that before so it sounded like a fun challenge.  I did not win but I am excited to have baked what I think is a lovely looking and tasting pie! Recipe here

Little man helped me cut out some stars.

It is what I like to call an Independence Pie. 

It has blueberries and cranberries- perfect for July 4th or Thanksgiving.

 We had a great time!  G was a bit tired but hung in there and seemed to have fun!

Dessert Party

Some dear friends of ours, the Kahlden's, are moving to Houston.

To celebrate lots of sweet memories with them we hosted a Sweet Sendoff!
We invited lots of their friends and gathered together to send them off to a new adventure.

For decor, I thought bright colors would be pretty. So, I picked up some cute polka dot napkins and yellow plates at the store and decided to make a polka dot table runner to complement the party wreath I'd made for Gavin's baby dedication. I had some bright dotty scrapbook paper that I used for signs and cones and bright circles wrapping paper that I used for the popcorn box.

Best of all, at least for me, was looking through my assortment of platters and finding silver and glass platters with a rolled ball edge! Silly, yes--but I loved how the polka dots filled the party! (Even the sucker favors were a ball!) I can't say enough about how much fun it is to host a party filled with things you find around your house. I put together our New Year's Eve party the same way, and it was such a thrill to find things that worked well together on the fly! And, with this party- I was giddy about how cute I thought it turned out!

Since this was a Farewell Party I decided to incorporate goodbye words into the names of desserts we served. For instance, I had Bye Bye Brownies and Sayonara Snickerdoodles. And, to prep for a party full of baked goods I made quite a few things ahead of time and froze them to bake later. I will post some details about freezer cooking and party planning in the future.

Welcome Station

Desserts
for recipes, follow the links

Adios Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles
Bon Voyage White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
Sayonara Snickerdoodles
Hasta La Vista Lemon Bars
Arrivederci Peanut Butter Kisses
Parting Pecan Bars
Ciao Caramel Popcorn
Cherrio Cheesecake with fresh fruit topping

Bid Adieu Beverage Station

Farewell Favor Station

I set out some cellophane bags for guests to take home desserts. Then, at the end of the party I plated leftovers for G and I to take to neighbors today.


Kaleb running away with a cookie. I think their little man had more treats than anyone!

Family PictureMy guys in coordinating outfits!!!
We wish the best for our friends, and look forward to visiting them in H-town!

Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent

My project this week was making laundry detergent.

I've had this project on my list of someday to-dos ever since my sister tried it (2 years ago) and raved about it. So, after finally getting fed up with buying pricey detergent I buckled down and conquered this task.

This recipe yields 10 gallons of detergent; enough to last 1 year (or more) and it costs $10 for all of the initial supplies; subsequent years will cost $1 since all you will need to buy is a bar of soap!

I am so pleased with the end result! The recipe is simple, straightforward, smells so fresh and clean, even without adding essential oils.

This recipe comes from the Duggar Family Blog.

Ingredients

4 cups - hot tap water
1 Fels-Naptha soap bar
1 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½ Cup Borax
10 drops of essential oil (optional)

Directions

First I wrote the list of ingredients on top of my bucket
to help me quickly gather them for the next time I make this.

Second, grate bar of soap (or chop it up like I did)

Next, put soap and water in a large pot.

Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.

Then, fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water.
Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax.
Stir well until all powder is dissolved.
Fill bucket to top with more hot water.
Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.

The next morning, stir large bucket.

Then, finally fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser (I'm using an old milk jug) half full with detergent and then the rest of way with water. Shake before each use; mixture will gel.

Notes-

Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.

Yield: Liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons.
* Top Load Machine- 5/8 Cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)
* Front Load Machines- ¼ Cup per load (Approx. 640 loads)

Important:
* You must use “super washing soda” as noted in the ingredients; baking soda will not suffice
* I found all 3 ingredients at Wal-Mart in the laundry detergent aisle and a bucket in the hardware department.

Chocolate Pound Cake and Ganache

My favorite chocolate cake!

We have been married for 3 years now, but I first made this cake for our 6 month wedding anniversary.

CHOCOLATE VELVET POUND CAKE
This recipe is from the Southern Living cookbook.

Ingredients
1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate, melted
½ cup butter, softened
16 ounces light brown sugar
3 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
8 ounces sour cream
1 cup hot water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions
In one bowl, beat butter and brown sugar at medium speed in an electric mixer for 5 minutes, or until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add melted chocolate. Beat just until blended.

In a second bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add flour mixture into chocolate mixture alternatively with sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Gradually add 1 cup hot water in a slow, steady stream, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in vanilla.

Pour batter into a greased tube pan. Pan at 350 degrees for 60 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted in the center and comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Tip
After the pound cake has cooled, drizzle chocolate ganache over it. I also like to serve sliced strawberries and vanilla bean ice cream with this cake. Another option is to skip the ganache and sprinkle powdered sugar over the cake just prior to serving.

Furthermore, in the picture there are white chocolate hearts and the word, love, spelled out in white chocolate. I made this cake for an anniversary party. I will post details on how to create the white chocolate details soon.


CHOCOLATE GANACHE
This recipe is from the Southern Living cookbook.

Ingredients
12 ounces semisweet chocolate morsels
½ cup heavy whipping cream
3 Tablespoons butter

Directions
Microwave chocolate morsels and whipping cream in a glass bowl for 2 ½ minutes or until the morsels melt. Whisk until smooth. Whisk in butter and let stand 30 minutes. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer for 3 to 4 minutes.

Yields 1 ½ cups

Tip
This recipe is great to serve as a chocolate sauce over the cake. But it is also nice when drizzled over the cake, allowed to harden in the refrigerator and then served.

This recipe for ganache is also great to use for making chocolate truffles!

This post was originally published in 2010 on my Flour Girl blog.

Freezer Meals for the Crockpot- Update

A while back I found a couple blogs via pintrest with meals that could be prepped and frozen to later cook in a crock pot. Talk about 2 birds with 1 stone! I've been looking for more freezer meals and more crock pot meals!

This Wednesday I went grocery shopping and Thursday I prepared 5 different crock pot meals. One was for dinner tonight and four were made into double recipes, frozen, and ready for a future date.

I followed the directions on this blog and found them to be very thorough and helpful. It only took 3-4 hours for the food prep and now I have 8 meals in the freezer! I recommend gathering all of your ingredients into groups (veggies, meats, canned goods, spices) prior to starting and having a trashcan near your chopping station for the veggie trash, empty cans, and meat packaging.

Teriyaki Chicken

Healthy BBQ Chicken

*April 2012 update: we were not super fans of this meal. It is not bad but it is also not particularly good. We also did not care for the aroma it filled the house with...

Beef Stew

*April 2012 update: This reminds me of boeuf bourguignon. I liked it.

Savory Vegetable Beef Soup

*April 2012 update: This was my favorite of the bunch and I will certainly make it again. It is a nice and simple beef soup and great with a peanut butter sandwich.