Chewy Chocolate-Cherry Cookies

Last night, I made the "Chewy Chocolate-Cherry Cookies", using the recipe I found at "My Recipes". Site references "Cooking Light" magazine as the source of this recipe. I do like "Cooking Light" and over the years, have discovered a lot of favorites.

I overbaked the first batch by a few minutes - I forgot about them!. But, they did not burn. They are just a little crunchier than I usually like. They still taste wonderful. The second batch, I baked for the prescribed 12 minutes and they were better, although I like them softer still. I can try baking for 10 minutes next time. It may also be because as a lighter version of cookie, there is just not enough butter in the dough to make a chewier cookie. No matter, I do like the taste.

The only modification I made was to substitute dried cherries with "Craisins" - dried cranberries (orange flavor). Wonderful! Oh, yeah, I indulged in an extra tablespoon of chocolate chips because I simply cannot resist being a little bad...

Just to illustrate my baking adventure and my continuing practice of learning to photograph food:

Spice Soup and Homemade Bread

Cooler weather also makes me think of soups and making bread to go with them. One of my favorite cool weather soups is "Spice Soup". The recipe was created by the author of one of my favorite series "The Sword of Truth" - Terry Goodkind. "Spice Soup" is first mentioned in the first book of the series "Wizard's First Rule". It is something the main characters Richard and Kahlan have in common. I had wondered what kind of soup it was and if it was based on a real recipe. I was delighted to find it was real and that Mr. Goodkind had published the recipe.

As Mr. Goodkind tells you, this recipe can be customized to your taste. The defining ingredient is the chili pepper oil you create first. I cheat a little. I have some chili oil that I bought at my favorite Chinese Market in Austin. The first time I made the soup, I followed the recipe as written. This time, I added some browned kielbasa sausages. Yum.

I also made some bread to go with this warming soup. I love making bread. It is really not as hard as I once thought it would be. My ex-mother-in-law once told me she used to make bread when she was angry with her husband. She told me that the more you knead the dough the better the bread, which is true. Her anger ensured she would knead the dickens out of that dough! She got her anger out and the family got some great bread.

For my bread this week, I used a recipe for "French Bread" from my favorite cookbook "Betty Crocker's International Cookbook" as a starting point. I substituted whole wheat flour for some of the white flour and added some flax seed meal for extra fiber and those all important omega 3 fatty acids. It was delicious and we ate nearly the whole loaf when it came out of the oven.

KnotGypsy's French Bread

Ingredients:

1 package active dry yeast
1 1/4 cups warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 to 2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup flax seed meal
1 tablespoon cornmeal
cold water

Steps:

1. Mix both the white and the whole wheat flour together with the flax seed meal.

2. Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl. Stir in sugar, salt, and 2 cups of the flour mixture. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle.

3. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in greased bowl; turn greased side up. Cover with damp cloth; let rise in warm place until double, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. (Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.)

4. Punch down dough; cover and let rest 15 minutes. Grease cookie sheet; sprinkle with cornmeal. Roll dough into rectangle, 15 x 10 inches. Roll up tightly; seal edge. Roll gently back and forth to taper the ends if you wish. Place on cookie sheet. Make 1/4-inch slashes in loaf at 2-inch intervals. Brush top of loaf with cold water. Let rise uncovered until double, 1 1/2 hours.

5. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Brush loaf with cold water (Yes, again. This is what will give you a crusty crust). But, do it gently to prevent causing the dough to fall. I think I will try a spray bottle of water next time. Bake 20 minutes. Brush (or spray) again. Bake until loaf is deep golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped, about 25 minutes.

Crockpot Cabbage Rolls

Awhile back, I made cabbage rolls in my crockpot. I made a double batch of the meat mixture and used half for the cabbage rolls and half for meatballs. It did not take a lot of extra work to do it this way and saved me time yesterday when I used the meatballs.

Please remember, I don't measure much, so amounts are approximate. Feel free to adjust amounts as you deem appropriate.

Cabbage Rolls for the Crockpot

Ingredients

2 lbs. ground beef
2 cups bread crumbs
1 tablespoon oregano
1 small onion, chopped
3 eggs
1-2 tsp. salt
1/2-1 tsp. pepper
1 head of cabbage
1 pkg Lipton's Onion -Mushroom Soup mix
1 cup water
1-2 tablespoons flour
1-3 tablespoons water

Steps:

1. Mix all ingredients except the cabbage. Or, use your favorite meatloaf recipe for the filling (don't forget to double it if you are going to make meatballs).

2. Remove core from cabbage. Bring a large pot of water to boiling. Stick a large fork into cabbage where you removed the core. Dip cabbage into boiling water for a moment. Carefully loosen the outer leaf. (Be careful with the leaves and be careful with your hands over the boiling water!) Let the loosened leaves stay in the boiling water for about a minute more - just blanch, don't cook all the way. Repeat until you have the number of leaves you want.

3. When the leaves have cooled, place about a "golf-ball" sized amount of meat mixture on a leaf and roll up "envelope style". Repeat until you have used up about half of your meat mixture. Place cabbage rolls in greased crockpot.

4. Mix soup mix and 1 cup water together and pour over cabbage rolls. Cook on HIGH for about 3-4 hours (depending on your crockpot, time may vary).

5. With the rest of the meat mixture, make meatballs and place on cookie sheet. Bake in 350 degree oven about 20 minutes or until done and slightly browned. Let them cool and then you can freeze them.

6. When cabbage rolls are done, remove them to a warm dish. Leave the juices in crockpot. Mix flour and 1-3 tablespoons water to make a slurry. Stir into juices left in crockpot, cover and cook an additional 10-15 minutes until thickened.

Notes:

I served these cabbage rolls with mashed potatoes. I added an extra potato in order to have leftovers. I saved the leftover mashed potatoes in the refrigerator for use in "Cheesy Cream of Broccoli Soup" (recipe coming soon).

Done this way, I now have dinner, and starters for two more meals!

Shopping for Holiday Recipes

Wow, December is getting away from me! I realized today that I need to plan my menus right now. I also need to bake cookies this week.

Due to recent vehicle repairs, we are now on a tighter budget. We want to replace that "emergency" stash of money. I also want to indulge and have a festive Christmas. After all, that is what the holiday season is about - Festivity and a little indulgence.

I went recipe shopping at "My recipes" with all of this in mind. There were so many delicious looking recipes, I am kind of grateful that I had an extra criteria in order to narrow down my choices! I didn't restrict myself to that site however...

Here is my Christmas Eve Dinner Menu:

Olive and Onion Tapenade with crusty bread
Simple Baked Ham
Scalloped Potatoes
Corn
Spinach and Cheese-Stuffed Portobello Caps
Swirled Cranberry Cheesecake

I originally planned on some little pastries with blue cheese and walnuts, but This "Olive and Onion Tapendade" looked so inviting. It has the added plus of being a little more in line with my budget. An elegant solution, I think. I hope my Sweetie forgives me for this, he loves blue cheese. Oh well, I will make it up to him with the rest of the menu.

Once a year I buy a ham. I will used the leftovers in various recipes later on. In fact, I found several while I was looking for these recipes.

We both love scalloped potatoes and this dish goes great with ham. The recipe I use (with my own modifications) is from another great cookbook "1000 Recipes From Around The World". (See photo above) I found it at my local book store "on sale". It is a very heavy tome and on every single page is a recipe with a full color photo. It was printed in China, but for a British audience I think. It does give measurements in cups, though. I have tried several recipes from it and many of those have become favorites.

For him, per his request, I will heat up some corn. He keeps thinking it is a vegetable no matter how many times I tell him it is a grain.

For a little something different, I am trying out "Spinach and Cheese-Stuffed Portobello Caps". We agreed we wanted spinach. I was not satisfied with simply heating some up. So I found this recipe. I am going to modify it, though. Of course. I can't just leave things alone sometimes. Big Grin.

And for dessert, I wanted something elegant, festive, and hopefully with cranberries. Cranberries go very well with Christmas and ham, don't you think? I found what looks like a promising candidate. It appears easy to make, within budget, and meets all the other criteria.

In addition to Christmas Eve Dinner, I will be baking cookies and per Sweetie's request, some fudge.

He brought home a recipe clipped from the newspaper! I searched and found the exact recipe online. "Egg Nog Fudge" He loves eggnog and really wants this fudge. I will indulge him.

The cookies I have chosen are "Chewy Chocolate-Cherry" for me and "Lime Zingers" for him. I am a chocoholic and he loves lemon and lime. Somehow we manage to get along.

Note: I will post recipes not linked to as I make them, so I can document the measurements. You know me, I rarely measure, but, for you, I will.

All right, I need to go make my shopping list now. Talk to you later...

Cinnamon Lemon Cookies

I rarely use my oven in the summer. I don't have central heat or central air conditioning. Once Fall arrived and finally brought us some cooler weather, I have been in the mood to use my oven. One of the first things I made was cookies! I love them, but my finicky husband says he does not like cookies. The exception is "Cinnamon Lemon Cookies". He does like lemon...

I got this recipe from McCall's "Great American Recipes" (recipe card collection). I believe they have long since discontinued publishing this collection, but I have seen a few up for auction on Ebay.

Here then is the recipe:

Cinnamon Lemon Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine (I always use butter, never margarine)
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. grated lemon peel
1/4 tsp. salt
Cinnamon sugar*

Steps:

1. In a mixer bowl, cream together sugar and butter. Beat in egg and vanilla.

2. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder, lemon peel and salt. Add to butter mixture. Blend well.

3. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or until firm.

4. Shape dough into small balls, about 3/4-inch in diameter. Roll in cinnamon sugar to coat.

5. Set cookies, 1 inch apart, on lightly greased cookie sheets.

6. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

7. Cool slightly on pans, then remove to racks to cool completely.

*To make cinnamon sugar, stir together 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp. ground cinnamon. Use any leftovers in your coffee!

Green Chile Chicken and Rice Casserole

This casserole is quick and easy to make. My finicky husband loved it!

Taking the leftover chicken from "Lemon Oregano Roast Chicken" and some rice I had in the freezer; I made the following casserole. I had some carmelized onions left over from making "Onion Pizza with Olives and Feta" a few days ago, so I threw them in as well. We liked what they did to the dish so much that I am now including carmelized onions as a standard ingredient for this recipe.

Green Chile Chicken and Rice Casserole

Ingredients:

1-2 cups diced cooked chicken
2 cups cooked rice
1 can diced green chiles
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup carmelized onion*
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup french fried onions**

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large mixing bowl, add chicken, rice, green chiles, eggs, carmelized onion, half of the cheese, salt, and pepper. Mix well.

3. Lightly grease casserole dish. Spoon mixture into dish and spread evenly. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese and the french fried onions all over the top.

4. Place in center of oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and golden brown.

*To carmelize onions: Cut onion in half, then slice. Place in skillet with a tablespoon olive oil. Saute over medium heat until golden brown, stirring frequently.

**French fried onions can be found in the canned vegetable aisle at your grocery store.

Notes:

Since there are only two of us, I made two small casseroles and put one in the freezer before baking. It freezes well. If you use Corning Ware, you can just take it out of the freezer and put it straight into the oven! (Check out "Some of My Favorite Cookware" in sidebar to find a wide selection of Corning Ware) Bake at slightly lower temperature - about 325 degrees, and for a little longer - about 35-40 minutes.

Onion Pizza with Olives and Feta

Some years ago, I found a recipe for an onion pizza in one of my favorite cooking magazines - "Cooking Light". It has become one of my husband's favorite foods. For convenience, I use prepared pizza crust. (Find it in the refrigerated section of your supermarket.) Because my husband loves them, I also include anchovies. You may, of course, leave them out.

Onion Pizza with Olives and Feta

Ingredients:

pizza crust dough
about 1-2 tablespoons cornmeal
6 onions, cut in half and sliced
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
8 oz. feta cheese
8 oz. pitted calamata olives
1 tin of anchovies (optional)

Steps:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

1. Saute onions with olive oil in large skillet until golden brown. Stir frequently to prevent burning and crisping.

2. Sprinkle cornmeal onto pizza or cookie sheet. Roll out pizza crust dough and place over cornmeal. (The cornmeal helps prevent crust sticking to baking sheet).

3. Spread onions evenly over crust. If you have some left over, refrigerate for a future use. They will keep for about 3-4 days. They go well in soups and in "Green Chile Chicken and Rice Casserole".

4. Crumble feta cheese and sprinkle evenly over pizza. Add calamata olives (again, evenly arranged). Finally, if using, place anchovies where you want them.

5. Place in center of oven and bake about 20-30 minutes or until crust is browned.

Lemon-Oregano Roasted Chicken

Most of the time when I roast a chicken, I use rosemary, sage, thyme, and garlic to flavor it. The other day, I thought of doing something different. I took inspiration from "Zesty Chicken Oregano" in Betty Crocker's International Cookbook.

Rather than cut up the chicken, I decided to roast it whole. Instead of mixing all the herbs and spices with olive oil, I omitted the oil and used the rest of the flavorings as follows:

Lemon-Oregano Roast Chicken

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 teaspoons oregano
1-3 tablespoons lemon juice
salt
pepper

Cooking Steps:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

1. Trim excess fat from chicken. Remove giblets, and rinse chicken thoroughly. You may remove skin if you wish, but you will then need a couple of tablespoons olive oil to prevent chicken from being dry.

2. Place chicken in roasting pan. I always include the giblets to the side - I love giblets.

3. Sprinkle lemon juice all over chicken. If you have removed the skin, sprinkle olive oil as well.

4. Place about half of your garlic and some of the oregano into cavity of chicken. Sprinkle the remainder of both the garlic and oregano onto outside of chicken. Sometimes, I take a knife and poke little holes in the chicken and insert some garlic pieces.

5. Place in oven. Here is where I go astray from traditional roasting technique. I cover the chicken for the first 15 -20 minutes to seal in the juices. Then I uncover and continue to roast for about another 30 minutes. I like to baste the chicken a few times while roasting so as to have a nice moist chicken. (Cook's treat: the giblets get done before the rest of the chicken, so I remove them and eat them as my little treat for cooking - hey, I need to taste how it's coming along, don't I?)

To test for doneness, insert knife into thickest parts of chicken. Remove knife and press chicken so as to make juices run. They should be clear, not pink.

During Clean-up:

I debone any leftover chicken and freeze for a later use. Or, I put it in the fridge for sandwiches, etc.

Notes:

Remove skin before or after roasting...

Many roasting recipes for low fat cooking advise roasting chicken with skin on and removing it after the chicken is done. My husband does not really need to watch his fat intake but, he does not like the skin. So, I have tried removing the skin after roasting. My husband complains that this removes all the nice crust of herbs and spices that have been browned by the roasting. He wants that, but not the skin. I like the skin. So, I remove the skin on one half of the breast before roasting...okay, I know I spoil him.

2 Tricks for Using Leftovers

Originally posted on another blog (on 7 Aug 07), I have slightly rewritten it and moved it here.

I am a thrifty sort, yet I insist my meals not get boring. Leftovers need to get eaten, but often don't unless I do something creative with them.

Here are a couple of my tricks:

1. Leftover Basic Beans turn into Bean Patties with Cheese Sauce.

I mash them up together, adding an egg to bind them and bread or cracker crumbs as needed to thicken the mixture up enough to handle. Usually they are already seasoned enough the first time so they don't need more. I form them into patties, coat them with more crumbs, and fry them. Then I make a cheese sauce and serve them with the sauce poured over them.

2. Leftover cheese sauce turns into Cheesy Corn Chowder.

I make a soup base by sauteeing onions and celery (maybe some garlic) in a little olive oil. Add about 2-3 cups chicken stock (or water with bouillion), a cup or two of corn, and a pinch or three of cumin (and maybe a pinch of coriander). Simmer about 10 to 15 minutes. Place in blender and pulse just a little to break up the vegetables without completely pureeing them. Return to soup pot and gradually stir in leftover cheese sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper if needed.

Cat Food Part II

I originally posted this second part on another blog on April 7, 2007 and am moving it over here as well. Again, I am transferring it verbatim, changing only the title. (Above photo is of "Rorshak", my pity kitty. He follows me to the kitchen every time I go in there...seems to be saying "Feed Me".)

Yesterday was errands day. I went grocery shopping, etc. One of my errands was to go to the feed store and buy catfood. While I was there, I picked up a brochure on Precise Brand petfood. (I lost the first one I had). I wanted to share some of the information with you.

First, it is made here in Texas, and Precise is a family owned business.

Here are some excerpts from the brochure:

-"The protein in Precise comes from real chicken meat. It is dehydrated and appears on the labels as "chicken meal". Many other brands use "chicken by-product" protein. This lower quality protein, which can include chicken feet or heads, is harder for your cat to digest."

I have read some articles saying that various meals used by some manufacturers can include by-products from other animals as well. Some very nasty by-products like tumors. I am happy to see Precise does not do it this way.

-"Precise is naturally preserved with vitamin C and vitamin E. These natural antioxidant vitamin preservatives are good for your cat! We've never used artificial chemical preservatives in any of our products, and we never will. So if you're feeding your cat Precise, you'll always be assured that artificial preservatives like ethoxyquin, BHA, and BHT won't be in your cat food."

Impressive.

-"We strictly monitor the magnesium levels in our formulas, keeping the ash content low to ensure a correct urine pH balance and significantly reduce the threat of Feline Urological Syndrome (stones blocking the urinary passage)."

Very important, especially with dry catfood. They have a long list of important points, including their claim that they use Ester-C brand supplements in their catfood. I have heard very nice things about this brand. The list is too long to include everything here, but I wanted to give you an idea of what Precise is about.

They have a complete line of dry and canned food for cats. They also have a complete line of food for dogs. Since I do not have any dogs, I am not familiar with their nutritional needs, so I cannot write with any authority about them. I would venture to guess that the quality of their dogfood rivals that of their catfood.

I have found that their prices are very reasonable, on par with other premium commercial brands.

A few tips on making your own catfood.

First, I reiterate, get a good book on cat nutrition.

For convenience sake, I freeze the fresh raw meat in smaller portions. That way, I can take out just what I need. (As you know, raw meat will only last in the fridge a couple of days before going sour. I find that beef goes off faster than turkey for some reason.) I make up the veggie-grain mixture, and freeze it in portions needed to mix with the meat. For 8 cats, this translates into freezing the meat in 1 lb portions, and the veggie-grain mixture in 1 cup portions. Then when needed I can thaw meat, veggie-grain mix, put it all together with the supplements and serve.

Alternatively, I sometimes mix up a huge batch of catfood with all the supplements, etc, and freeze that in daily portions. Then all I have to do is thaw and serve. I have also seen fresh raw catfood for sale online and sometimes available through pet stores. I have never tried any of these, but I hear they are good if a bit expensive.

Healthy powders (made up of bonemeal powder, kelp powder, vitamin C powder, nutritional yeast, lecithin granules) gets made up and kept in a jar in the fridge. Oils (consisting of cod liver oil, vitamin E, olive oil) also gets mixed and kept in fridge.

If you don't have a local source for the supplements, as I don't, I have found that there are many online sources. The one I have tried successfully is iHerb.com. They have very reasonable prices, major brands, and good customer service. I will add this link to my sidebar.

All in all, making your own catfood is a little extra work, and costs a little more (not as much as you would think); but I feel it is worth it. The biggest cost is in the meat. The initial outlay for supplements is a bit much, but they last for quite awhile. For example, a jar of bonemeal powder may cost $6.00 to $10.00 (depending on source), but it lasts for months, because you only use a Tablespoon or so per pound of meat. Remember, once opened, some supplements like cod liver oil should be refrigerated.

So I suppose that if you are considering this course, but don't have the money to lay out all at once, you could start buying the supplements one at a time until you have them all, then begin the new regimen.

There are other things to consider like how to get your cat used to the new food. There are various techniques, and I have found most books on the subject go into all this. Get a book.

I have also found that sometimes I need to fall back on commercial catfood. Maybe I am out of fresh meat, like when I have been too sick to get to the store; or we have a power outage and the meat spoiled, etc. This is one of the reasons that I routinely feed my cats Precise Brand catfood in addition to the fresh raw diet. Cats are finicky creatures as we all know. They don't like major changes to their diet. But if they are used to getting both kinds of food, it is not a major change to rely on the canned/dry food for a meal or two. It is just another day to them.

Another point to mention. Tuna is not very good for cats. Canned mackerel is much better. So for a treat, or an emergency meal, canned mackerel makes a good item to have on hand.

It is recommended to give your cats raw meaty bones like chicken wings. My cats won't touch them for some reason. The same cats that will bring in a bird and consume it (leaving the feathers for me to clean up) won't touch a raw chicken wing. Go figure.

I know I have probably missed some things to consider, so please get a book if you want to make your own catfood.

I hope you find this information helpful. Yes, this is normally a blog about my jewelry, but in considering the recent pet food recall, I felt this was important.

Cat Food Part I

This post was originally posted on another of my blogs on March 30, 2007. I have moved it here as I think this is a more appropriate place for it.

I transferred article verbatim, changing only the title...

I was horrified to hear of the deaths of dogs and cats related to eating canned pet food. I know how those pet owners must feel. My most sincere and heartfelt sympathies to those who lost a dear friend.

I have since been reading articles encouraging people to make their own pet food. I have been feeding my cats a fresh raw diet for many years now.

IMPORTANT: If you decide to make your own cat food, please do not cook the meat. Cats are obligate carnivores and as such do not produce their own taurine. The only natural source of taurine is raw meat. Without taurine, they will go blind. I highly recommend you find a good book on cat nutrition featuring fresh raw meat. There are several out there as this is a growing trend. And just in case you did not know, do not give cooked bones to dogs and cats. Raw bones are fine and in fact encouraged. Cooked bones become brittle and will splinter causing a choking hazard. Also very important is the calcium to phosphorus ratio. Too much phosphorus combined with not enough calcium cause serious bone damage.

I have been using "Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats" and Celeste Yarnall's "Natural Cat Care" for about 7-8 years. I have had much success with them both. My cats rarely get sick. When injured, they heal fairly quickly. My veterinarian has no complaints. Of course, my cats do get to go outside, and they hunt. They usually eat what they hunt. So perhaps this is also part of their success.

Yarnell uses good reasoning when explaining that we are trying to reproduce the nutrition of a mouse as this is a natural part of a cat's diet. I think her proportions of meat to other ingredients make a lot of sense. However, I'm not so sure about Yarnell's thinking on how often to feed. She recommends once or twice. I think that our domestic (small) cats are used to eating several small meals a day.

I like Dr. Pitcairn's information on natural remedies, and his recipe on healthy powder. I think he calls for too much grain in his recipes for cats, however.

YOU MUST DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH. I recently have been reading some articles that report that Dr. Pitcairn's book mentioned above does indeed call for too much grain, that this book is now obsolete. I think he even has a new book out now. I have not yet had a chance to read it. I am still researching this.

I also supplement with Precise Brand Cat food - both canned and dry. According to what I have read, I am relieved to learn that Precise Brand Pet Food is NOT affected by this recall.

I originally began buying this brand as the literature on it was impressive. It is made here in Texas. I buy mine at a local feed store. I placed a link to Precise Pet Food website in "Related Links" (to the left).

I do not know about dogs. They are omnivores much like us, but that is all I know of dog nutrition.

Of course, one meal of cooked meat in an emergency probably will do no harm. Still I encourage you to do some research.

Again, my heartfelt sympathies with those who lost a dear friend.

Comments left on this post from the other blog:

MoonStumpp of Mixed Media Jewelry said:

"Thank you for all the wonderful information!!!!!! I have 2 cats and 2 dogs that are apart of our family. This has really opened my eyes!!!"

ivychiew263 of It's Just Me Myself & I said:

"Hi Knotgypsy. Yeah, I read about such deaths of dogs & cats too but online. I may be more of a dog lover (with 5 dogs @ home) but I still find the blog quite informative. Will inform my kitty-lover friends about this blog of yours. Thanks for sharing. =) Happy weekend."

I replied:

Thank you both for leaving comments. I am happy to know I could provide some useful information. Although I do not have any dogs at this time, I do love them as well. Sorry, since I do not own any dogs, I do not know much of their nutritional needs. I do know that good information is out there. I will be posting a little more on this topic later.

Crockpot Coq Au Vin with Balsamic Vinegar

This is a recipe from another of my favorite cookbooks "Reader's Digest Live Longer Cookbook". I adapted it to the crockpot and took some liberties with it.

(Since I forgot to photograph this dish before we ate it, I had to photograph the photo in the cookbook.)

Crockpot Coq Au Vin with Balsamic Vinegar

Ingredients:

• 1-2 slices bacon
• 4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (original recipe called for whole chicken, cut up and skinned)
• 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper
• 1 medium onion, quartered and sliced (original recipe called for package frozen pearl onions)
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup red wine (or stock)
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1teaspoon each dried rosemary and thyme
• 1 tablespoon conrstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water
• 2-4 tablespoons dried parsley
• cooked egg noodles or rice

Steps:

1. In a skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Place on paper towels to drain. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon bacon fat.

2. Sprinkle salt and pepper on chicken breasts. Brown chicken in bacon fat. Transfer to crockpot.

3. Saute onions and mushrooms in same skillet until onions are translucent. Add to crockpot.

4. Add vinegar and wine to skillet and simmer a few moments, stirring to get up any bits. Remove from heat. Mix with bacon (crumbled), tomatoes, stock, rosemary, and thyme. Pour over chicken and vegetables in crockpot.

5. Cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours. Remove just the chicken and set aside in a bowl. Add cornstarch mixture to crockpot, stir and simmer until thickened. Stir in the parsley.

6. Serve chicken over egg noodles (or rice), ladle some sauce and vegetables over the top. Yum.

I Was Surfing for Wallpaper...

So beautiful, I had to share it. A warming sight for the kitchen during the holidays. I will be back to GetWallPaper.com (click on image for link)...

Bean with Bacon Soup

I am sure I have mentioned that I like beans. Well, one day I had some white northern beans in my freezer. (I buy dry beans and cook them without seasoning in my crockpot until just tender. Then I freeze them in 2 cup batches.) I wanted some "Bean with Bacon Soup". I had never made it before, but decided to try. I asked myself "What belongs in this soup". You will find my answer in the recipe that follows. It was delicious.

I remind you that I don't measure much, so amounts are approximations. Feel free to adjust to your taste.

• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• 1 tablespoon bacon fat (or olive oil)
• 1-2 teaspoons thyme
• 4 cups stock (sometimes I use water with bouillion)
• couple of strips bacon, fried to taste (you can also use imitation bacon bits)
• 2 cups white northern beans, cooked (or canned, drained)
• salt
• pepper

1. In large soup pot, saute onion, celery, carrots, in bacon fat. Just as onions are becoming translucent, add thyme. Saute a few moments longer.

2. Add stock and bacon. Simmer until vegetable are tender (but not mushy).

3. Add beans. Add salt (you won't need much if any) and pepper to taste. Return to simmer. Serve.

Smoothies - Nutrition You can Drink

All my life, I have heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. My problem? I just can't bring myself to eat for the first few hours I am up. Just the thought of food makes me nauseous. My solution? Smoothies! Whereas I cannot bring myself to eat, I don't mind drinking something. Smoothies are also a great way to get those extra servings of fruit in your diet.

You can make them with pretty much any fruit, juice and one or more of several add-ins. Here is my basic recipe for two tall smoothies:

Smoothies

• 1 banana - great source of potassium.
• 1/2 bag frozen fruit
• 1 cup juice (Our favorites are pineapple, orange, and apple. I look for juice with no added high-fructose corn syrup.)
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt (extra protein and preferably with live cultures for your digestive system)
• 1/4 cup flax seed meal (adds fiber and those all important omega 3's)

Blend it all in your blender. Adjust amounts to your taste. Sometimes, I add a tablespoon honey and/or a pinch of cinnamon or cloves. (There are some sources tell me that cinnamon helps regulate blood sugar.)

Be creative and enjoy.