Macaroni Casserole

Ok, almost done for tonight and I haven't even gotten to my chair redo. I am posting an Allan family classic. I don't eat the celery, but I couldn't make it without it. It would seem wrong.



Ingredients: I don't think I used a recipe so I will give the approximates

16 oz. cooked, drained and cooled macaroni noodles
1 can tuna
3-4 celery stalks
8 oz. grated cheddar

The sauce is made by mixing equal parts mayo and mustard. It should be heavier on the mustard flavor so add more mustard as needed. It should also be on the dry side. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Delicious salad to accompany any BBQ.

Crepes!

Seriously, how many food posts in a row do I have to do before I get to a craft I worked on? I guess it's good I have my appetite back. I think we made these on Christmas, but Chris has no idea and I don't feel like researching any further. They turned out really well, the first ones we made were a little on the thin side so we had to experiment to get them just the right thickness for our tastes. We ate them with leftover huckleberries from summertime in Wyoming. I don't remember what else we found....bananas, chocolate, strawberry jam, etc. Just check out the rim of the plate to see.

Tortilla Soup

This soup turned out to be a very large recipe. My large pot was almost overflowing. The nice thing was we didn't have to feel bad about loading up our bowls with lots of the bulk of the soup rather than lots of broth. Mmmm....all of these food posts are making me hungry.

3 Tbsps olive oil
4-6 corn tortillas, diced
1 Tbsp of cumin
2 Tbsps of chili powder
1 Tbsp of minced garlic
1 large onion
a large handful of cilantro leaves
2 14 oz. cans diced tomatoes
1 Tbsp of cumin
2 Tbsps of chili powder
8 cups chicken broth or stock

OPTIONAL ADD INS:
2 cups frozen corn
1 (14 ounce) can black, pinto, or
Kidney beans
leftover shredded chicken

In a large pot, heat oil over medium high heat. Add tortillas and saute until beginning to brown. Add cumin and chili powder and saute for one minute. Meanwhile, combine in the blender the garlic, onion, cilantro, and tomatoes. Puree until smooth. Add tomato mixture and chicken broth to pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for at least 20 minutes and up to one hour. Add any optional add ins for last few minutes of simmering. Serve soup with tortilla chips, cheese, avocado, cilantro, sour cream and lime wedges.

Inari Sushi

While on a visit to my family in WA I went to a local Asian Market to pick up some seasoning for my sister. I also took advantage of the opportunity to look for Inari Sushi wraps, sushi rice, and sweet rice. I found the Inari wraps in the refrigerated section of the store. They even had some seasoning to add to the rice. I discovered Inari while I was in Hawaii 6 years ago and whenever I see sushi for sale I look for it. It is very difficult to come by. Now you can look for it when you are out. It turned out great! I was also happy to find some Chinese BBQ Pork to make it a full meal. So good, and another item I can hardly ever find. What's up Texas?! So as you can see, they are orange pouches made from soy. You stuff them with rice and sometimes they have sesame seeds. The soy pouches are wet and sticky, but oh so yummy! The sushi is best dipped in soy sauce and wasabi with a little pickled ginger on top. The BBQ Pork can be dipped in hot chinese mustard, ketchup and sesame seeds. I know, probably not so authentic, but good.

Indian Fry Bread

Watch out! There may be quite a few updates coming. I don't know if you've noticed, but it's been a while since I posted anything here.



Indian Fry Bread:
3 cups flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 1/3 cup warm water
Vegetable oil for frying

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together. Add the water and knead the dough until soft. Roll the dough into ¼ inch thick, then cut the rounds 4 inches in diameter. Fry the bread in 2-3 inches of hot oil until puffed and browned on both sides. Drain on paper towels. (Can put powdered sugar in a paper bag and add hot fry bread to be coated.)

Guacamole

After years of eating restaurant/store/packet prepared guacamole I finally discovered that my favorite guacamole is homemade by me. It's perfect! You add what you like and leave out what you don't like. I leave out onions for me and tomatoes for Chris. The ingredients for my guacamole are as follows:

2-3 avocados
1 serrano chile pepper, (chopped, remove seeds and ribs)
1 clove garlic (pressed or chopped)
1/2 lime (juice)
a pinch of kosher salt
cilantro (chopped)

Spaghetti Squash Tossed with Olive Oil, Avocado and Parmesan

Ok, just a couple more posts for today to catch up. I found this recipe here. It was very delicious. Not terribly filling, but so so good.

Green Onions

This summer I watched The Next Food Network Star and learned some handy tips from Melissa D'Arabian. One tip was that after cutting green onions you can put the roots in a glass of water to regrow them. I gave it a try and it worked great. It isn't something you can do forever, but I used them several times so I really felt like I got my money's worth.

A Summer Hat

I made this hat for Fiona in anticipation of a trip to Wyoming. Although the weather would be much cooler there than summer in Texas, I knew we would be spending much more time outside as a result of the lovely weather. I used one of Fiona's other hats as a pattern and chose some fun colors to create a reversible sun hat.




It ended up being a little small for her head, but we made it work.

Magnets

I made these magnets at a Super Saturday activity a couple of weeks ago. That inspired me to create many more magnets, but I don't have pictures of those yet. These were created using images from a Hancock's of Paducah catalog I got in the mail recently.


To make the magnets, we used clear glass stones, Modge Podge, magnets and Gorilla Glue. You can use paper, fabric, pictures, etc. for the images inside.
I'm not sure why I put the stone with the crack in the front.

Yummy sandwich

I wanted to post this sandwich so we don't forget about it. It was pretty delicious. Being inspired by a recipe here I was shopping and found salami on sale so I picked some up, got a nice loaf of bread, some provolone, baby spinach, and kalamata olive spread. When I got home, we put the ingredients (minus the spinach) on both sides and broiled them until the cheese browned. The leftovers were great cold as well.

A simple makeover

Lincoln's little table was starting to look pretty bad and I finally got around to covering it. I found a great green and white contact paper to match the kitchen. I took the table and chairs apart and covered the white then put everything back together. It was a nice hour project while Fiona slept and Lincoln "helped" with the tools. I may paint the wood someday. I don't see that happening for a long time.

Home again

I don't suppose I'll be posting any recipes or projects for quite some time. Our new little baby will be keeping me very busy for the next few months. I'm really just here to remove the growing baby on the sidebar. I wouldn't want anyone to think I was getting more and more overdue.

Lincoln's dresser redo

Here's the best before shot I could find.



Here's the after.



The white paint is what I'm using for trim in our rooms. The blue paint is a small can I bought a long time ago on the mistake shelf at the hardware store. I wasn't sure how it would turn out and whether I would like it with the two colors, but I really love it. I like how the details show more in the after. I never really paid attention to them until I painted them. I love putting new hardware on things. I had to haggle to get them for a good price, but it all worked out. I still can't pay $40 for hardware when I paid $5 for the dresser. I managed to get all 10 drawer pulls for $10. I got to use the drill quite a bit since I couldn't find hardware that fit the existing holes. I used 1 of the 2 existing holes and filled the other with a mixture of elmer's glue and toilet paper. I found that recipe online and it seemed like the perfect filler.

A few more nesting projects

I've been busy nesting away and it's been a while since I posted something so I figured I'd show you what I've been up to lately. First off, we have Lincoln's (and eventually Fiona's) bedroom. I finished painting the walls, but I still need to paint the trim white. I hung the curtain rod and made a red curtain to block out more light when we want Lincoln to sleep. I really like the red even though it was chosen based on the limited fabric selection I had in that amount of yardage.



Next, we have the storage and changing table we will be keeping in our bedroom when Fiona first comes. I showed you the little dresser earlier. The changing table was purchased on Craigslist. I made a cover for the changing pad and covered some boxes with fabric.



I love this fabric.



I love this fabric too.