To blog or not to blog.....

.....for some it depends on the kitchen of the house you buy!!!!  Yes...the kitchen!!!!!! I just finished watching an episode of House Hunters with a VERY young woman searching for her "Dream" house with her equally young husband. This young woman based her search for that special house on whether or not it had a kitchen that would look good on her blog!!!!!!  Can you just imagine my reaction to that one???? Cost, size, layout, location took bottom place on the NEED list. If you watch the show you know that they are presented 3 homes to view....all three were straight from heaven but on one the white of the kitchen counter tops were not the same shade as the cabinets, it had to have a double oven but the main priority was if her blog photos would be as she desired in the kitchen!!!!  If a spiffy kitchen is needed for a successful blog then guess I'll be using commercial photos of my recipes, crafts etc. Ok...off my soap box but I just had to share. I would have felt like I had died and gone to heaven with ANY of the kitchens I saw!!!

School starts tomorrow for our county and Gabriel is excited to be going back to school. He met his new teacher this past Friday and tells me she is really nice. I will be picking him up at his bus stop in the afternoons now that Mommy has a new job. I'm going to miss my little man. Going to take me a few days to adjust to him not being here during the day.   I can't wait to see what he has ahead of him in 2nd grade.

Having some free time means I can get back to reading. Just finished the newest Iris Johansen book "Hunting Eve" and got to the end of the last chapter to find that it really didn't end....it's continued in the next book "Silencing Eve" not due to be out until October this year!!!!  The first in the trilogy is "Taking Eve" and if you've never read of any of Iris Johansen then you're missing some good reads.....that's if you like suspense/thrillers.  Eve Duncan is a forensic sculpture, lost her only child when she was 7 and lives with her ex-FBI current Atalanta PD  officer boyfriend and has an adopted daughter who is an artist. Johansen is a fantastic author and once you read one of her books you won't stop till you reach the end of the list.

Another author I read voraciously is Catherine Coulter....just her FBI series. She also write what is often referred to as "bodice rippers" but it's the FBI series starring a husband/wife team of FBI agents. Excellent reading if you're into mysteries, suspense, or thrillers. Most libraries have most or all of her books. I'm now awaiting my name to reach the top of reserve list for her newest in the FBI series "Bombshell".

Well....my friends, it's time to go into that kitchen of mine that will probably never be seen on this blog and fix a bite to eat.  Have a grand week ahead! And if you're living where you are getting a lot of that wet stuff as we are here then be safe and stay dry.

Until the next time.......

God bless
Rosemary

Schooldays, school days, dear old golden rule days.....

.......reading and writing and 'rithmetic, talk to the tune of the hickory stick.  It's that time of the year again when we send our children and grandchildren off to yet another year of preparation for their little futures!  Now I already know that Gabriel will spend most afternoons here with Steve and me while Stephanie works and I know he hits the front door complaining about being hungry. How easy it would be to keep a slew of cookies....either home baked or bought....but I don't know about your youngun's but Gabriel would be bouncing off the walls if I gave him a lot of sweets.  So I have been making a list of things that he might like but aren't wall bouncers!!!! He loves carrots and celery so that's a good thing to have on hand with some ranch dressing for dipping. Of course fresh fruits are good....only problem there is he wants his apples with caramel dip!!! So I started searching for snacks with less sugar content. My next favorite thing beside the Dollar Tree is Pinterest and there is a truck load of ideas.  Zuchinni chips, a cereal snack mix, Garlic Bagel Chips with a bacon cream cheese dip.....recipes will be added below.

Baked Zuchinni Chips

 

Ingredients

¼ cup dry whole wheat breadcrumbs

¼ cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

¼ teaspoon seasoned salt

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup unsweetened almond milk (you could also use skim milk)

2½ cups (1/4-inch-thick) slices zucchini

Cooking spray

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl stirring with a whisk.
3. Place milk in a shallow bowl. Dip zucchini slices in milk and dredge in breadcrumb mixture.
4. Place coated slices on an oven proof wire rack coated with cooking spray; place rack on a baking sheet.
5. Bake for 30 minutes or until browned and crisped.

Roasted Garlic Bagel Crisps with a Bacon Cheddar Cream Cheese Dip

 
 

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temp
• 5 strips bacon, chopped
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• ¼ cup light mayo
• ¼ teaspoon dill weed
• 1 package New York Style Roasted Garlic Bagel Crisps

     Mix first 5 ingredients and chill.

 Mini Muffin Corn Dogs

(I used Jiffy cornbread mix in a box....was delicious)

1/2 cup melted butter (or 1/4 cup butter + 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce)
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
8-10 all-beef hot dogs, cut into 1″ bites

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine butter and sugar in a bowl, and whisk to combine. Add eggs and whisk to incorporate. Add buttermilk and whisk to incorporate.

2. In a separate bowl, combine baking soda, cornmeal, flour, and salt, and stir to combine. Whisk into wet ingredients in two batches.

3. Spray a mini muffin tin with non-stick spray, and spoon 1 Tablespoon of batter into each mini muffin cup. Place one hot dog bite into the middle of each cup.

4. Bake for 8-12 minutes (oven temperatures vary), or until cornbread is golden brown. Cool in mini muffin tin for 5 minutes before serving. Store leftovers in the refrigerator, and re-heat for 20-30 seconds before serving.   Makes48.

After School Cereal Snack Mix

                                                                   

1 cup corn flakes cereal

3/4 cup oat bran "O"s cereal (like Cheerios)

1/2 cup almonds, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup Reese's Pieces

1/2 cup raisins

Place all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix together. Serve or store in Ziplock bags or an airtight container.

You can add or delete or change ingredients except for the cereals. Use your imagination!!!

I will be keeping fruit juices, Koolade etc to go with his snacks. And in the colder months he always want hot chocolate!!!! Ever try making hot chocolate with Nutella?  GOOD!!!!!

As for after school entertainment....I think his teacher will be providing that in the form of homework. I think we are very lucky that he's a good student and isn't far enough along in school to have developed a taste of disliking homework!!!!

Hope this post will come in handy for all of you. And these snacks are NOTjust for the younger set.....think I may have to do a few for this grandma!!!!!

Enjoy and God bless. And here's to an excellent school year for us all!

Rosemary