84 degrees out already.
The heat index today is supposed
to be somewhere between 100 to 110.
My internet and home phone is not working
or runs REALLY slow. Don't know what
the problem is. I don't know if it
is the cable company or the modems.
I think I will work on getting my
one wooden shelf hung in the kitchen
today. With Tony having the pager
on call and them running the guys
at work like crazy working over some,
it has been delayed.
Might get some laundry done also.
It should take no time today to dry
clothes on the line.
But first I have to wait for some
ibuprofen to kick in as my back
is stiff this morning again.
Need to have time to work out the kinks.
I've got the air condition set on
76-77. You would think that wouldn't
feel nice in here but once you step
outside in what feels like 100+,
then step back inside, it feels great!
I might make some zucchini bread sometime
soon in the crock. I still have a lot
leftover of the huge zucchini that my friend
gave me. Don't want to waste it!
Well I'm off here to get the kitchen tidied
up and go tear wires and modems apart
to see if I can figure out why we don't
have internet or phone. I have no clue
when it comes to this stuff so ain't
looking forward to it!!
Kitchen, slowly but surely coming
together.
Remember what it looked like before?
This has got to make my life
easier having more shelves!
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12:00PM
According to the weather channel it
is 90 degrees out and feel like 100!!!
It's only noon so we'll see how hot
it will get this afternoon. Whew!
Tucked inside a darkened house today
to stay cool. Told the kids not to
go outside today and play. Jonathan
thought he would just go outside
and play in the shade. Let's just say
that didn't last too long!
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With my internet being down and
getting behind with posts
I wanted to show pics of the car
coming home yesterday.
This is a project car and is in
no way perfect. I think the first
thing we will work on is getting
a wiring harness and try to rewire
the whole electrical system.
Doesn't that sound like fun???
It looks like someone rewired something
and many wires are running everywhere
under the hood. Some connected and some
not. I'd feel safer if we put in all
new!
Me and Jonathan gave it a bath soon
after it's arrival. Needed to get
the grime off the paint. One step
in helping preserve it. The other
is having a roof over it. Keeps out
most weather and sun which can cause
dry rot.
This car will be a project the whole
family can come together and do.
This teaches the kids how to
work together. They learn to work
on cars in the process and how to take
care of them. Then one day it can
belong to them and is something
they can look forward to if they help
take care of it.
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2:00PM
Just returned from Tony's work.
All I got to say is that it is FREAKIN'
hot out there!! Tony asked if I wanted
to stop at a few yard sales on the way
back home. I said just keep going home!
I don't know why it is, but it seems like
there is more yard sales the hotter it is.
Weather channel says 92 degrees
but the heat index is 102!!!!!
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3:00PM
Pulled some things out of the freezer
to start thawing out. Here's a few
things I will be making in the next
couple of days:
1. Cheeseburger Potato Soup
* I don't have sour cream or onions but
I do have French Onion dip that I will
use in place of those two things.
Here's a tip for picky eaters that I found in
it's reviews:
I use my food process to chop the onions, carrots and celery small to hide them from picky eaters. I don't thicken with the butter and flour, I just use instant potato flakes which uses less fat and is easier. Flavor is the same.
It's a great recipe for freezing
2. Chicken Cordon Bleu
Not sure how I am making this.
I have swiss cheese, bacon
and chicken leg quarters.
3. Maple Crock Pot Salmon
INGREDIENTS
* 4 Fresh Atlantic Salmon portions
* 1/4 cup maple syrup
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1/4 tsp. garlic salt
* 1/8 tsp. ground pepper
DIRECTIONS
1. Mix the maple syrup, garlic, garlic salt, and pepper.
2. Place salmon portions in a shallow dish, and coat with the maple syrup mixture. Cover the dish, and marinate salmon portions in the refrigerator 30 minutes, turning over at 15 minutes.
3. Drain the salmon steaks and discard used marinade.
4. Wrap in tin foil packets
5. Put into crock pot.
See recipe from yesterday for Crock Pot Fish
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4:40PM
Supper in the making for
tomorrow.
Crock #1
Got chicken leg quarters skinned then
wrapped in bacon put in the crock pot.
I used little round tins saved from
pot pies in the bottom of the crock
pot to put the chicken on.
Crock #2
Got a chocolate zucchini bread
in another crock.
____________________________________________
From: Examiner.com
Almost KFC Coleslaw
This is the best coleslaw we have ever had. The flavors blend and intensify with time, so if possible, make this the day before you plan on eating it.
Ingredients:
8 cups very finely chopped green cabbage (1 head)
1/4 cup shredded carrot (1 medium carrot)
1/2 cup mayonnaise OR 1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup granulated white sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup buttermilk*
2-1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1-1/2 Tbsp. white vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
Directions:
Be sure that the cabbage and carrots are chopped up into very fine pieces. Place in a large bowl.
In a mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise or sour cream, sugar, milk, buttermilk, lemon juice, vinegar, salt and pepper; beat until smooth. Pour over cabbage mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.
Rachael's Recipe Notes:
For a buttermilk substitution, mix 1/2 tsp. white vinegar and enough milk to make 1/4 cup. Let stand for 5 minutes before using. I use a commercial slaw mixture instead of cutting up cabbage and carrots myself. It saved me a bit of time, but feel free to start from scratch. Also, I replaced the salt with celery salt.
-------------------------------
Almost KFC chicken
Ingredients:
16 pieces of chicken (4 legs, 4 thighs, 4 wings, 4 breasts), skin on, bone in (I prefer 8 chicken breast halves, boneless & skinless)
2 envelopes Italian Salad Dressing Mix , divided
2 Tbsp. hot pepper sauce (like Frank's)
1-1/2 to 2 cups all-purpose flour
3-1/2 to 4 cups oil, divided
Directions:
Place chicken in shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with 2 Tbsp. of the salad dressing mix and hot pepper sauce; turn to coat. Cover. Refrigerate 1 to 2 hours to marinate. Mix flour and remaining salad dressing mix in plastic bag. Shake 1 chicken piece at a time to coat. Heat 2 cups of oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add 8 pieces of chicken; brown on all sides. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook 20 to 30 minutes, turning occasionally, until cooked through. Drain on paper towels. Repeat from oil step through cooking step with remaining chicken.
YIELD: 16 pieces (depending on appetites 4 to 8 servings)
------------------------------
It's been several months since my family and I have been to KFC (formerly known as Kentucky Fried Chicken). The last time we went we spent close to $50 for 4 people for dinner. OUCH! $50 for chicken, biscuits, mashed potatoes, gravy and coleslaw? $50 is about half my grocery budget for one week. I vowed never again! Not only did it cost us an outrageous amount of money, but none of us felt very well after wards.
If only I had just taken a little extra time in my menu planning that week, we could have had our own version (aka Copycat version) of KFC for about $10, and not felt poorly (or poor!) afterward.
Round out your at home KFC experience with Almost KFC coleslaw and Almost KFC chicken.
Almost KFC Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients:
3 cups self-rising***
2 Tbsp. baking powder
3/4 cup buttermilk****
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup vegetable shortening
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375*F.
In a large bowl blend together the flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in the shortening using two knives or a pastry tool. Add milk and mix well.
Turn out onto a floured surface (mix a bit of baking powder with the flour). Knead a bit to pick up the flour until dough is slightly stiff. Roll or pat out into a 9x5 rectangle and use a 3-inch round cookie cutter (or water glass) to cut biscuits out.
Place in an 8x8-inch round cake pan or 8x8-inch square baking dish (the biscuits will touch) that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for about 12-15 minutes, until lightly golden brown.
Makes about 12
Rachael's Recipe Notes:
***If you don't have self-rising flour, use all-purpose flour with an extra 1 Tbsp. of baking powder and an extra 1 tsp. of baking soda.
****You can use 3/4 cup regular milk with 1 Tbsp. of white vinegar in place of the buttermilk.
_______________________________________
Just got notice that my friends will
be on Wall To Wall Sports tonight
so be sure to check it out!!
This is their second time on there!
Join Dom Tiberi and Dan Fronczak
for Wall to Wall Sports,
Saturdays and Sundays at 11:35 p.m. only on 10TV.
Would you like to sign up to be on
Wall to Wall Sports?
Wall To Wall Sports audience sign-up
___________________________________________
With the temps being so hot out I have
spent my afternoon/evening cleaning
my kitchen top to bottom. Doesn't
look like my same kitchen.
I'm sure you would agree Kendra/Dewaine,
I know you saw what it looked like
when I had it wiped out the other
day weeding and wiping it out, LOL!
You couldn't see the floor or countertops.
But that's how I clean. It gets
messy before it gets a total cleaning.
________________________________________
I tried some of my crock pot chicken,
YUMMY! It does taste a little like
a rotisserie chicken.
To make it Cordon Bleu I melted some
swiss cheese on top then poured
a lil bacon ranch dressing on top.
Everyone loved it! Jonathan said,
Man this stuff is GOOOOD!"
This recipe will be a keeper for sure!
Normally Cordon Bleu is chicken breast
stuffed with swiss cheese and bacon.
Can't afford chicken breast around here
so used chicken leg quarters instead.
Tasted just as good!
And here's my Chocolate Zucchini Bread
I didn't have oil so used some cinnamon
applesauce in it's place. I didn't add
sugar and instead used a large box
of sugar-free pudding. I sprinkled
some brown sugar on top along with some
semi- sweet chocolate chips. I did all
this to reduce sugar and fat.
Both kids ate it and liked it.
I did not dare tell them it
had zucchini in it or they probably
wouldn't have touched it with
a 10 foot pole.
I almost screwed up and asked them
if they tried the zucchini bread.
Christopher was like, IT HAS ZUCCHINI
IN IT! I said, I meant to say
chocolate pudding cake not zucchini bread.
LOL
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I ran across this website for a book
called DINNER IS IN THE JAR.
Of course I don't have money to buy the book
and I cannot locate it at the library.
But it is an idea to think about doing.
I'm sure I could google something
and find some jar mixes.
If I do I'll be sure to keep a list
of recipe that I find :0)
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Side Dish Mixes
MYO Copycat Stove Top Stuffing Mix
Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix
Homemade Hamburger Help
Friendship Soup Mix in a Jar
Potato Soup Mix
Noodle Mixes & Bean Mixes
Texas Two Step Soup
Shake N Bake Mix
Herbed Rice Mix
Tortilla Soup
Chili in a Jar
Chicken Soup With Noodles
Beef Barley Soup
Boston Baked Beans
Almost Hamburger Helper Mix in a Jar
Red Beans and Rice
Rice Pilaf Mix
Onion Soup Mix
