Buffolo Plaid Birthday Party

We had a great time celebrating our grandson's first birthday yesterday! It's such a blessing to have him close by and to watch him grow. I just thought I'd share some of the decorations we used to celebrate.

I went to my favorite butcher and picked up some yummy garlic beef sticks to build a cabin. I used food coloring to tint my dill dip blue for the sky and green for the dip behind my "grass". I cut pieces of  green pepper and celery for the grass. As you can see, pea pods make great pine trees and cauliflower are perfect for clouds.

 I copied this idea from a banner found on Etsy. I was able to find the paper backed burlap at Joann Fabrics. I printed the lumber jack plaid patterns onto card stock using a link I found online and then cut the letters out with my Cricut machine. https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Lumber+Jack+Pattern&FORM=IRIBIP

 Marek as a lumber jack!

 Not the clearest picture, but the banner I made for his high chair, also using the lumber jack plaid I printed onto card stock and the paper backed burlap.

 The sign thanking all those who attended the party. I used a link to print the free sign. https://amylanham.com/lumberjack-birthday-party-decor/

 And finally a picture of us with the birthday boy! Happy birthday Marek!!!

Easy Mexican Lasagna

I recently needed to bring a dish to a church potluck and decided to go to my favorite cookbook, Southern Livings All-Time Favorites, and pick out a new recipe. The dish was a hit and super easy to make, especially if you use a rotisserie chicken. I've decided to make it again for a family that is dealing with cancer treatments to help out with the grind of chemo. Since I'm making one for them I might as well make one for us! 😊

Ingredients

3 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2/3 cup canned diced tomatoes and green chilies (or 10-ounce can of Rotel)
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of chicken soup 
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk
1 (10-ounce) can enchilada sauce
cooking spray
10 (6-inch) corn tortillas (it's important that they are corn so the top layer crisps up)
1 cup (4-ounces) shredded cheddar cheese (I'm sure I use more)
1 cup (4-ounces or more 🙂) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

 Toppings: shredded lettuce, tomatoes with green onions and cilantro, sour cream, guacamole, basically anything you enjoy on a taco...

Directions

1. Cook first 6 ingredients in a sauce pan over medium heat for about 10 mins. or until heated through.
2. Stir together chicken and mushroom soups, 1/2 cup milk, and can of enchilada sauce in a sauce pan and heat over medium heat for about 10 mins. or until heated through.
3. Spoon 1/3 of the sauce into the bottom of a 13x9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray, top with 3 tortilla shells. Spoon 1/2 of the chicken mixture and 1/3 of the sauce over the tortillas then top with half the Cheddar cheese. Top with 3 tortillas; repeat layers once with remaining chicken, sauce and remaining Cheddar cheese and tortillas, ending with tortillas. *Look at pictures below to see how I place the tortillas in the layers. Top with Monterey Jack cheese.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes of until lasagna is bubbly. If you assemble the lasagna ahead of time and bake the next day, leave in for 40 to 50 minutes.

I cut one of the 3 shells in half and alternated the side I put the half shells in the next layers.

The first time I made this I really liked the way the corn tortillas crisped up on the top so I decided to quarter a fourth tortilla and added 3 quarters of it to the last layer.

Mother's Day Craft

 For Story Hour this week we made a flower pot with some dessert cups and straws I picked up at Tuesday Morning, and I also made use of my Cricut to make the flowers and leaves for the kids to use on their project. If you don't have a Cricut it would be simple to make a flower template using free clip art from online. Since I'm working with a large group of young kids (most who are unable to handle a scissors as of yet), it just makes it easier for me and the moms.

I simply turned the dessert cups upside down and punched a hole in the center of the cup using a sharp tool. I printed up labels for the kids to apply to their flower pots.
It works best to glue the two sides of the flower together with the straw in the middle. You can cut the straw to the height you'd like. After the flower is glued the kids can add their thumb prints to the flower and then add the leaf and put the flower in the pot to dry. Adding candy to the top is optional. They can also color the top of the cup as shown below.

 

Cream of Asparagus Soup

We are big asparagus fans in our family, and I love to cook up some asparagus soup when the weather gets cooler. I've adapted this recipe from one I used from my mother's 1943 edition of, The Boston Cooking School Cook Book, that she used when she was a live in maid and cook.

Ingredients

About 2 lbs. of asparagus (After woody ends are removed and asparagus is cooked, it will come to about 3 cups. ) 
3 cups chicken broth
2 cups asparagus water (Reserve water after cooking asparagus. If it doesn't come to 2 cups, add  
                                       enough water to bring it to the 2 cup level.)
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
4 Tbs butter
4 Tbs flour
1 cup half n half or heavy whipping cream
kosher salt and course ground pepper to taste

Cook asparagus just until tender. After cooking asparagus, reserve asparagus water and asparagus tips.  Return 2 cups of asparagus water back into the soup pot along with *3 cups of chicken broth. ( I hold out 5 cups of asparagus water and use 3 of those cups to make the broth for added flavor.) Add stalk portion of asparagus along with the thinly sliced onion into the pot and simmer until tender, about 25 mins. While asparagus is cooking, make roux from butter and flour and set aside.



Once asparagus is tender, I like to use a potato masher to mash the onion and asparagus, and then use a hand held blender sparingly to get just the right consistency. Add roux to pot until soup is thickened. Then add whipping cream, asparagus tips, and salt and pepper to taste.

Happy Birthday Jesus Cupcakes and Manger Food Tray

 I was looking for some ideas for a dessert and food tray for our Birthday Party for Jesus. I wasn't able to find anything on Pinterest, so it forced me to come up with something. It was pretty fun!

What You Need For Cupcakes
Cupcakes of any kind with white frosting. Here is the recipe that I used, http://www.annies-eats.com/2010/09/17/red-velvet-cupcakes/ .

Circus Peanuts (I got mine from The Dollar Store)
Shoestring Potatoes
Butterscotch Chips
Black Food Decorating Pen
Waxed Paper

To assemble the baby Jesus start by melting the butterscotch chips in a mini crockpot or in a small pot on the stove. Be sure to spray the crockpot with Pam before melting the chips. Put a dab of butterscotch on waxed paper and start laying the potato sticks out as the bed of hay.

Add the circus peanut and more of the potato sticks while the butterscotch is still warm, then add the little eyes and mouth.

Place "baby Jesus" on top of frosted cupcake and add the frosting swaddling clothes  .

 

I wasn't able to make my cupcakes the day of the party and found that the shoestring potatoes lost their crispness after sitting for a day and a half. So in the future I would make them the day of.

I added an updated version of the tray now that I have a star cookie cutter. I stacked the cheese angels and star 4 slices deep so they were even with the blueberries.

Celebrating Spring with Flower Pot Ice Cream Dessert

 I am Story Hour Coordinator at a Christian gift and book store and love my time with the kids! I decided to put together a spring story hour to celebrate the season. Our typical story hour consists of a bible story along with two other stories, songs with actions, and a craft to coincide with the bible story. There really is no spring bible story, but I wanted to celebrate the season with the kids and show them how we are like God's plants and need to be fed by God's word. I picked up packages with 6 gladiola bulbs per pack from the Dollar Store and made up these little packets with this simple poem. 

I couldn't find a Christian kid's song to go with our celebration of spring, so I decided to come up with my own. What kid doesn't know the song,"Let it Go", from Frozen! I put these words to the refrain from the song.




                  

                         Let us grow, let us grow                        
                         Let us grow in God's holy word.
                         Let us grow, let us grow
                         Grow to love him more and more!

                         I want to share what God has to say,
                         His Son died for me
                         So I can live in heav'n one day!

Our craft was inspired by something I saw on the Food Network by the Pioneer Woman. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/ice-cream-flower-pot-desserts-recipe.html  I have a limited budget so I used paper cups instead of clay pots and Dollar Store flowers instead of fresh flowers.

Breakfast Enchiladas

Here is another great recipe from my favorite recipe book, "Southern Living All-Time Favorites". This is a great recipe to make the night ahead and serve the next day. This has been a hit with family as well as my eighth grade class (a tough crowd). I love it!

Cheese Sauce Ingredients
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
3 cups milk
8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
1 (4-oz.) can chopped green chilies
3/4 tsp. salt
Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly, 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk; cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, about 6 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat, and whisk in remaining ingredients until cheese is melted.

Egg Filling Ingredients
1 lb. package pork sausage
2 Tbs. butter
4 green onions thinly sliced
14 large eggs, beaten
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Cook sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat stirring frequently for 6 to 8 minutes or until sausage crumbles and is no longer pink. Remove from skillet and drain. (Use some of the grease from sausage to to saute onions and cilantro, or melt 2 Tbs. butter called for in recipe.) Add eggs, salt, and pepper, and cook without stirring, 2 minutes or until eggs begin to set on bottom. Gently draw cooked edges away from sides of pan to form large pieces. Cook, stirring occasionally, 4 to 5  minutes or until eggs are thickened but still moist. (Do not over-stir.) Remove from heat, and gently fold in 1-1/2 cups cheese sauce and sausage.
8 to 10 (8 inch) soft taco flour tortillas (recipe calls for 8 tortillas, but I've found that it makes more)

4-oz. of Mexican style cheese...I love my cheese, so I just top with as much cheese as I think looks good.  (Recipe calls for shredded Monterey Jack cheese with peppers, but I've never had any luck finding it.)

Toppings
Grape tomatoes (or any other tomatoes you like) , sliced green onions, chopped fresh cilantro