Random Thoughts and Taco Sauce

 Our state has been basically shut down for almost seven weeks now. I know so many people have been negatively affected by this pandemic.  I am not trying to make light of it but to avoid going crazy I need to look for some of the positive changes this has brought.

1. No visitors, furloughed or work from home employees means prime parking spots are available.  I no  longer have to walk so far to get in to work.

2. 90 percent of the routine meetings have been put on hold.  This saves SO much of my time.

3. I'm now allowed to wear jeans to work.

4.The big guy is at home all day so he has been doing laundry, cleaning up the kitchen, etc.  before I get home from work.

5. With him being home in the evenings we spend more time together and have dinner a little earlier. Which is something we rarely get to do during the work week. From what I've seen on social media, a lot of families are back to doing more activities as a family.

6. Air pollution all across the globe has significantly decreased. Animals are out running around in areas typically full of people.

7. Our eating routines haven't changed much but it is so nice to see so many people cooking from home.

8.  The pace of life has just slowed down and it is a very welcome change.

 Home made taco sauce. This stuff is awesome.  I even had some on my scrambled eggs one morning.

                                                      A gift from one of my Doctors.

Stay safe everyone!                                 

Things That Make Me Smile

I couldn't agree more!

Happy Easter and a dessert recipe

Happy Easter!  I hope everyone is doing OK and is able to spend at least a little bit of today doing something fun and or relaxing.  We are going to have a nice dinner of ham, mac and cheese, asparagus, deviled eggs and black bottom cupcakes.  I made these for the first time probably 13 years ago.  They are easy to make a delicious.  Think of them as a nice chocolate cake with cheese cake in the middle.  Oh yeah!

Black Bottom Cupcakes:

Cream cheese filling:
8 ounces of room temperature cream cheese
1 egg room temperature
1/3 Cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Cream all ingredients together. I use a mixer.

Cupcakes:

1 1/2 Cup Flour
1 Cup Sugar
1/3 Cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 Cup water
1/3 cup oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all dry ingredients.  Mix all wet ingredients.  Combine.
Pour into muffin tin lined with papers.  Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon of cream cheese filling onto the cupcakes.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

I have a large stash of cupcake liners.  I thought I would use the bunny ones for today since it is Easter.

Before baking.

Cool and Enjoy!

Update and a new flour

It's been almost a month since I've posted. In 2020 I had full plans on spicing up my blog, posting more regularly and then COVID 19 hit.

Since my last post the big guy has closed his TKD school, temporarily.  Our state is on essential businesses only until April 30th (maybe longer, TBD).  Since he had already planned to move to a new larger building in June we felt it was the right thing to do and hopefully re-open in June instead of paying expenses on a business that is not making any money right now.

We have not been affected by any of the shortages.  Being raised the way I was and having lived in hurricane territory for over 20 years has taught me to be prepared. So we are still eating very well and have plenty of toilet paper.

My position at the hospital has been deemed unable to work from home so I am still going in.  It is a bit unsettling to walk past the quarantine tents into the hospital to have your temperature taken and mini health screening as the beginning of your day. People are stressed, scared and emotions are raw.  It is a bit much some days. There is SO much more I would like to say about all of this but...will  not.

So enough about the pandemic.

A couple of weeks ago I purchased flour online from Janies Mill here in Illinois. https://www.janiesmill.com/  I usually use Bob's Red Mill and will continue to do so for most things but I wanted to try something new.  One of the flours I ordered was their Italian Style.

I used it today for the first time and made a pizza.  It made an amazing dough!  I used the same recipe I always use.

I highly recommend checking out the variety of products on their website and try something new.

Stay safe!

*I have no affiliation with this product or company.

Lock Down

The state of Illinois is on lock down as of 5pm today.  Other than essentials, everything is closing up and everyone is supposed to stay home unless mandatory work, picking up groceries or having health care needs.  I went back and forth to work all week and there was considerably less traffic already so a number of people have begun to stay home.

I was supposed to be able to start working from home Monday but TPTB have yet to get me set up.  Meanwhile positions that have zero contact with the physicians or patients have been home since Wednesday.  I have mixed feelings on it all. I don't want to stay home and be unable to help my doc's during such a difficult time but I'm also afraid of bringing it home to the big guy.  He is very healthy but is older and shouldn't take any chances.  We have a number of suspected cases in our hospital and they will find out today if they are in fact positive. Such a scary time for many.
I believe tomorrow  I'm going to text my leader and tell her that I will be there Monday but would really appreciate being able to work from home ASAP.

We are blessed to be stocked up on all of the necessities to stay home for a few weeks. Life can pretty much go on as normal.  I'm an introvert so I'm fine with staying home as long as possible.  The big guy though is a very social person so I'm not sure how much longer before he gets a little stir crazy.  We do have a large back yard though and the weaher is starting to improve so that will give him somewhere to go besides the house.

Last night I decided to make a little comfort food for dinner.  Beef sausage with peppers and onions, some corn on the cob from last summer that was in the freezer and one of my favorite ways to make potatoes.  You just cube potatoes and boil until they are about 2/3 of the way done.  About 15 minutes.  Drain and spread potatoes out on a cookie sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on Chicken Salt.  Roast in a 350 degree oven until golden brown and crispy.

Chicken Salt:
1 TBS granulated onion
1 TBS granulated garlic
1 TBS paprica
1 TBS turmeric
1 TSP sea salt
*Store in a glass jar at room temperature

Uncertain Times

All schools in our state are closed until the end of March.  Panic buyers have wiped the town clean of sanitizers, paper products and more. Kroger and Walmart are not open 24 hours a day now so they have time to restock and sanitize the stores. Churches are canceling services.  The big guy owns a Tae Kwon Do school so we are thinking heavily of what we need to do.  The closest confirmed case is two and a half hours away from us.  We don't want to panic and suspend services but we don't want to take any chances either so we have to really think about this over the next day or two. 

I'm a level headed woman that doesn't panic. I'm pretty good at just rolling with it.  Whatever it may be. I've never been one to believe or expect our government to take care of me.  I take full responsibility for myself.  However I can't help but wonder how bad is this really going to get.  Is the media making more out of this or are they suppressing just how bad it truly is? Only time will tell I guess.

Jet has enough cat food and litter to get by for a month.  We have enough sanity items to get through a month.  I'm estimating we have enough food to get through at least a couple of weeks or more.  If we have to stay home for a few weeks there is enough books to read and lists to complete that we would not be bored.

On a positive note...the sun is shining, the forsythia is in full bloom and I am excited about getting outside soon to start my garden. I'm also making hummus today. I hope everyone can find a few positives as we move through these very uncertain times.

Hummus from FEAST by Anissa Helou

1 Cup dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in plenty of water with 1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 Cup tahini

Juice of 1 or 2 lemons

2 garlic cloves ( I use 4 or 5 because I LOVE garlic)

Pinch of sea salt

Combine all ingredients in your food processor and combine until smooth. I have a friend from India who told me to include one ice cube to make it even smoother and it  actually really does.

Garnish with EV olive oil

Serve with veggies, flat bread or pretzel crisps

Spring Cleaning

I think I finally got my mojo back.  The week was mostly blah but yesterday I decided to make my spring cleaning list and get busy.  My list is pretty simple.  I list each room with the categories...purge, clean top to bottom and make a fix, get list.  I go through each and every cabinet, closet and drawer.  This year I am giving myself until the end of March to complete.

Saturday we went to the grocery store and were home by noon.  I spent the afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies, splitting and packaging meat and then cleaning out all of our kitchen cabinets and refrigerator, freezer.  We do not have a proper pantry so I have specific cabinets for our food. I am good about rotating stock and I am pretty proud of myself because only one thing was out of date that had to be thrown away.

First is the beverage cabinet.  It holds all of our tea, coffee, hot coco, etc.

The next cabinet holds all of our condiments and sauces.  I've tried to find a lazy susan for the 

sauces on the right side of this cabinet but I can't find one small enough to fit.

I have one lazy susan that holds the salt, pepper and the oils that I use frequently.  It sits on the counter.

I do from time to time use tinned beans and tomatoes.  This cabinet also holds tinned fruit, jelly and peanut butter.

Looking over my photos I can't believe I didn't get one of my baking cabinet.  It is the one I love the most. All of my sprinkles are lined up so nicely. I'll post that next time.

All cabinets have been emptied, cleaned, new liner put down and organized.  That feels so good.  So I can check purge off of the kitchen list.

One of my doctor's brought me my favorite cakes this week.  They are from Nothing Bundt cakes and are just amazing.  The cake is so flavorful and moist.  The cream cheese frosting brings just the right twang to balance the sweet.  They are delicious.

So today I have to do some laundry, pay the bills and continue with my list.  

Have you started your Spring Cleaning yet?

Blah, Blah, Blah

Valentines Day is not really a holiday that the big guy and I celebrate.  I'm of the theory that you shouldn't need a set day of the year to show the person you are with that you love them.  We usually do a Lady and The Tramp spaghetti dinner at home but a month ago I got the wild idea to make a reservation out that night at one of the local places.  Well when Friday arrived I really didn't feel like going out to a super crowded restaurant filled with people professing their love on this 'special day'.  It was freezing cold out and I had worked all week.  Luckily for me, the big guy was actually pretty surprised that I had made the reservation in the first place and I think he was a little happy that I was all too willing to cancel it.  Now that is LOVE.


The weekend went by with us watching more movies than we have watched together in probably the last six months.  Other than bathing, baking him a sweet potato pie, cooking meals and a few loads of laundry I did absolutely nothing else and it was wonderful!


It's already the middle of the second month of the New Year and I just feel like I have accomplished very little so far in this new decade.  I just feel BLAH!  No motivation at all!  But I think I am ok with that.  I mean, don't we all just need to shut down for a little while?  Isn't making it through the day enough sometimes?  I think so.  Maybe I'll start taking Vitamin D again just in case.


A couple of weeks ago I made this dish below on the fly and it was delish so I am making it again tonight.


Sautee your choice of meat in sesame oil or olive oil
(1 Pound Ground Beef or boneless Chicken, cut in strips or favorite steak cut in strips)


When meat is 1/2 way cooked add the ingredients below...
1 Onion, diced
4 large garlic cloves, diced
1 small green pepper, diced
1 inch fresh ginger, diced
1 small jalapeno, diced
Turmeric
Cumin
Coriander
Thai curry powder
Salt
Pepper
Simmer on low, stirring occasionally until meat is cooked through


Serve over basmati rice and garnish with fresh Cilantro, green onions and sliced Avocado.

Can anyone help me think of a name for this dish? 

This past week...

Last Sunday the weather was in the 60's here so I was able to grill without freezing.  We had baby back ribs for the big guy and a chicken breast for myself with a grilled 'baked' potato, corn and deviled eggs.

I also was able to get my hands on Florida Strawberries.  February is picking time for them in Florida which is one reason it was always my favorite month of the year there.  They are so sweet and delicious. 

Friday night was Pizza night.  I used ricotta, chopped garlic, an egg, a little parm., a little mozzarella, salt, pepper and oregano all combined and spread over the dough instead of a red sauce.  I topped with jalapeno spiced chicken sausage, red onions and green peppers and covered with mozzarella.  This pizza was amazing!

Saturday the big guy took me to my favorite Mexican restaurant here in town for lunch.  We hadn't been in a little over a month so I was craving their Chicken Fajita taco salad.  The ingredients are so fresh and perfectly spiced.  All of their food is tasty but this is one that I get more than anything else.

This morning I made popovers to warm the house and my soul up a little.  

I started Bringing It To The Table by Wendell Berry.  So far it is a very interesting read.  I'll post more on it when I finish.

Amazing Waffles

It's Sunday morning and our routine in the winter usually involves a nice breakfast and Scrabble.  This waffle recipe is AMAZING.  I found it a few years ago and now it is the only one I use.

Combine and let sit for 5 minutes:
1/2 Cup warm water
1 Package Yeast
2 tsp. sugar or honey

Combine:
Yeast mixture
3 Cups Flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick melted butter
2 Cups Milk

Cover and refrigerate over night and the batter will look like this, and smell like heaven.

Mix in 2 eggs and 1/2 tsp baking soda and mix well.  The batter will look like this...

Now, cook in your waffle maker and they will look like this...

Enjoy!!

Rough days

So far this New Year has been a bit of a bust.  With the news of my Mother's diagnosis and then being sick for a week myself, I haven't been able to do much of what I had planned.  That is the way life goes I guess, but I still have hopes that things will get on track and I can accomplish some of my goals.

While I was sick I re-watched the Netflix series The Big Family Cooking Showdown. It is a popoff of The Great British Bake Off.  I really like the chemistry of the hosts and the skills and personalities of all of the contestants.  What makes the show really great for me is that each family makes a meal for the judges in their own homes.  I love that part the most.  It is fun to see their kitchens and how they interact with their family in their own homes. It reminded me of being in the kitchen with my Mother and Grandmother cooking a meal.

Season two is not as good.  The hosts have changed, the set is not as welcoming and they omitted the cooking at home part. Netflix, please bring back the original format and hosts.

Well, I'm off to start my day. The Big Guy has caught what I had and I can hear him coughing down the hall.  Poor guy.  I have to catch up on a weeks worth of tasks here at home and be somewhat prepared to go to work Monday and catch up on everything there.  Sometimes being a responsible adult bites.

Bad news soothed by cake

It's hard to believe we are already 13 days into the New Year.

Our New Years Eve was quiet.  We played Scrabble and had a few cocktails and appetizers.  I was in bed by 11pm and said hello to 2020 around 8am on the first.

I meant to post sooner but I've been hit with some news that has taken some serious processing. My Mother has been diagnosed with dementia.  At first I had a really good cry.  Something I haven't done in a very long time. Now I am somewhat numb.  I don't know what to think or how I feel. My Grandmother also suffered from dementia so I am somewhat familiar with how this is going to unravel.  I got the news from my Step Father.  My Mother and I haven't really talked about the diagnosis other than she told me she "has a really bad memory and  there is something wrong with her brain and she can't get a new brain."

My Mother is an amazing baker and cook as well.  One of my favorite cakes that she made for me throughout my entire child hood is Orange Kiss Me cake.  It is a delicious cake that is not too sweet and can be eaten for breakfast as well.  I remember my Dad would always get so upset with my Mom for letting me have cake sometimes for breakfast but she just shooed him away and said "it is no different than a donut."  Thanks for letting me have cake for breakfast Mom.

For the cake:
3/4 Cup Orange Juice ( I used the juice from one orange and the zest )
2 Cups Flour
1 Cup Sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 Cup shortening or butter
1/2 Cup milk
1 tsp Triple Sec
2 Eggs
1 Cup raisins
1 Cup chopped Walnuts

Combine Orange Juice with flour, sugar and salt.  Add butter, milk, eggs and triple sec and mix with an electric mixer on medium for about 2 minutes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease and flour a 9 x 13 cake pan
Bake approximately 40 minutes until a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Nut Topping:
1/3 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup chopped Walnuts
1 tsp. cinnamon

Drizzle warm cake with OJ or the juice and zest of one orange.
Sprinkle on nut topping.

* My Mom originally used 1 can of frozen orange juice concentrate.  She did not mix with water but used half of the can for the cake and half f the can for the topping.