Mayonnaise Cake
Mix
1 c sugar
1 c mayo
4 tbsp cocoa
1 c water - lukewarm
2 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
Pour in a 13 x 9 x 2" pan and bake for 30 minutes in oven set at 350 degrees.
Perfect Pie Crust
4 c unsifted, all purpose flour, lightly spooned into cup
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
1 3/4 c solid vegetable shortening (not refrigerated, do not use oil, lard, margarine or butter)
1 tbsp white or cider vinegar
1 large egg
Put first 3 ingredients in lg bowl and mix well with table fork.
Add shortening and mix with fork until crumbly
In small bowl beat together with fork, 1/2 c water, vinegar and egg.
Combine the two mixtures, stirring with fork until all ingredients are moistened.
Divide dough in 5 portions and with hands, shape each portion in a flat round patty ready for rolling.
Wrap each in plastic or waxed paper and chill at least 1/2 hour.
When ready to roll piecrust, lightly flour both sides of patty, put on lightly floured board or pastry cloth. Cover rolling pin with stockinet and rub in a little flour. Keep pastry round, roll from center to 1/8" thickness and 2 larger than inverted piepan
Fold in haves or quarters; transfer to pie pan. Press with fingers to remove air pockets makes 2 9" double crust pies and 1 pie shell (for single crusted pie)
No matter how much you handle this dough and you can beat it with your rolling pin if you like) it will ALWAYS be flaky, tneder and delicious. Scraps can be rerolled if necessary and crust will never be tough. Dough can be left in the fridge for up to 3 days. It remains soft and can be taken out and rolled at once. Or it can be frozen until ready to use. Thaw until soft enough to roll. Use standard mesuring cups and spoons for measuring ingredients. Leveling off top with edge of spatula. give recipe your undivided attention.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Helpful tips
DID YOU KNOW?
No strings on your bananas
Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to
pick the little "stringy things" off of it. That's how the primates do it.
Ripen Bananas faster (without a paper bag)
Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store.
If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster
Avoid Moldy Cheese
Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil.
It will stay fresh much longer and not mold!
Interpreting Peppers
Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating.
Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.
Reduce Grease in beef
Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef.
It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.
Scrambled Eggs
To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of
spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up. For PERFECT
Mint Brownies
For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints
in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful minty frosting.
When to add garlic
Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste
of garlic and at the end of the recipe if your want a stronger taste of garlic.
Leftover Halloween Candy
Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simply
chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place them
in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350
for 15 minutes!!! Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream. Yummm!
Reheat Pizza
Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low
and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza. I saw this on
the cooking channel and it really works.
Easy Deviled Eggs
Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.
Expanding Frosting
When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer
for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes
with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.
Reheating refrigerated bread
To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in
a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food
moist and help it reheat faster.
Newspaper weeds away
Start putting in your plants, work the nutrients in your soil. Wet newspapers,
put layers around the plants overlapping as you go cover with mulch and for-
get about weeds. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic they will not
get through wet newspapers.
Broken Glass
Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small shards of glass you can't see easily.
No More Mosquitoes
Place a dryer sheet in your pocket.
It will keep the mosquitoes away.
Squirrel Away!
To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper.
The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.
Flexible vacuum
To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel
roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.
Reducing Static Cling
Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt
or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose.
Place pin in seam of slacks and ... ta da! ... static is gone.
Measuring Cups
Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water.
Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such
as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.
Foggy Windshield?
Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of
your car . When the window s fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!
Reopening envelope
If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside,
just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. Viola! It unseals
easily.
Conditioner
Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's cheaper than shaving cream and
leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you
bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair.
Goodbye Fruit Flies
To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2" with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!
Get Rid of Ants
Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it "home," can't
digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!
INFO ABOUT CLOTHES DRYERS
The heating unit went out on my dryer! The gentleman that fixes things around the
house for us told us that he wanted to show us something and he went over to the
dryer and pulled out the lint filter. It was clean. (I always clean the lint from the filter after every load clothes.) He told us that he wanted to show us something; he took the filter over to the sink and ran hot water over it. The lint filter is made of a mesh material ... I'm sure you know what your dryer's lint filter looks like. Well ...the hot water just sat on top of the mesh! It didn't go through it at all! He told us that dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh that's what burns out the heating unit. You can't SEE the film, but it's there. It's what is in the dryer sheets to make your clothes soft and static free ... that nice fragrance too. You know how they can feel waxy when you take them out of the box ... well this stuff builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen. This is also what causes dryer units to potentially burn your house down with it! He said the best way to keep your dryer working for a very long time (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months.He said that makes the life of the dryer at least twice as long! How about that!?! Learn something new everyday! I certainly didn't know dryer sheets would do that. So, I thought I'd share!
Note: I went to my dryer and tested my screen by running water on it. The water ran
through a little bit but mostly collected all the water in the mesh screen. I washed it with warm soapy water and a nylon brush and I had it done in 30 seconds. Then when I rinsed it .... the water ran right thru the screen! There wasn't any puddling at all! That repairman knew what he was talking about!
No strings on your bananas
Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to
pick the little "stringy things" off of it. That's how the primates do it.
Ripen Bananas faster (without a paper bag)
Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store.
If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster
Avoid Moldy Cheese
Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil.
It will stay fresh much longer and not mold!
Interpreting Peppers
Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating.
Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.
Reduce Grease in beef
Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef.
It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.
Scrambled Eggs
To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of
spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up. For PERFECT
Mint Brownies
For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints
in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful minty frosting.
When to add garlic
Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste
of garlic and at the end of the recipe if your want a stronger taste of garlic.
Leftover Halloween Candy
Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simply
chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place them
in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350
for 15 minutes!!! Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream. Yummm!
Reheat Pizza
Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low
and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza. I saw this on
the cooking channel and it really works.
Easy Deviled Eggs
Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.
Expanding Frosting
When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer
for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes
with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.
Reheating refrigerated bread
To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in
a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food
moist and help it reheat faster.
Newspaper weeds away
Start putting in your plants, work the nutrients in your soil. Wet newspapers,
put layers around the plants overlapping as you go cover with mulch and for-
get about weeds. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic they will not
get through wet newspapers.
Broken Glass
Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small shards of glass you can't see easily.
No More Mosquitoes
Place a dryer sheet in your pocket.
It will keep the mosquitoes away.
Squirrel Away!
To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper.
The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.
Flexible vacuum
To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel
roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.
Reducing Static Cling
Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt
or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose.
Place pin in seam of slacks and ... ta da! ... static is gone.
Measuring Cups
Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water.
Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such
as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.
Foggy Windshield?
Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of
your car . When the window s fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!
Reopening envelope
If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside,
just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. Viola! It unseals
easily.
Conditioner
Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's cheaper than shaving cream and
leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you
bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair.
Goodbye Fruit Flies
To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2" with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!
Get Rid of Ants
Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it "home," can't
digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!
INFO ABOUT CLOTHES DRYERS
The heating unit went out on my dryer! The gentleman that fixes things around the
house for us told us that he wanted to show us something and he went over to the
dryer and pulled out the lint filter. It was clean. (I always clean the lint from the filter after every load clothes.) He told us that he wanted to show us something; he took the filter over to the sink and ran hot water over it. The lint filter is made of a mesh material ... I'm sure you know what your dryer's lint filter looks like. Well ...the hot water just sat on top of the mesh! It didn't go through it at all! He told us that dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh that's what burns out the heating unit. You can't SEE the film, but it's there. It's what is in the dryer sheets to make your clothes soft and static free ... that nice fragrance too. You know how they can feel waxy when you take them out of the box ... well this stuff builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen. This is also what causes dryer units to potentially burn your house down with it! He said the best way to keep your dryer working for a very long time (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months.He said that makes the life of the dryer at least twice as long! How about that!?! Learn something new everyday! I certainly didn't know dryer sheets would do that. So, I thought I'd share!
Note: I went to my dryer and tested my screen by running water on it. The water ran
through a little bit but mostly collected all the water in the mesh screen. I washed it with warm soapy water and a nylon brush and I had it done in 30 seconds. Then when I rinsed it .... the water ran right thru the screen! There wasn't any puddling at all! That repairman knew what he was talking about!
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Halloween brings the Cook Fall Festival... A time when we get ALL of the kids together and do fun things. It used to be the pumpkin patch, but that gets expensive and if everyone brought a fun thing to do and some food, it's cheaper and more fun to do it ourselves!!
Here are this year's pics.
link to full size. http://picasaweb.google.com/greatmommaeli/CookFallFestival1008#
Here are this year's pics.
link to full size. http://picasaweb.google.com/greatmommaeli/CookFallFestival1008#
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
More think nuggets..
Homework helper:http://www.mark-my-time.com/ A bookmark WITH a TIMER!! AND another version which is a timer, a bookmark AND a metronome!
Bookmark these safe search sites for your online children..
http://www.kidskonnect.com for a directory of smart and fun websites created by educators
http://www.infoplease.com is on anline almanac, encyclopedia and dictionary that also includes daily breaking news
http://www.thinkquest.org/library yields a collection of more than 6,000 websites created by students FOR students
Shopping:
Farmers markets... Enter your zipcode here to find a local food source: http://www.localharvest.org
Lunchbox Help For tips on packing green lunches.. http://www.wastefreelunches.org
Sightseeing Sites from Family Friendly websources
Http://www.roadsideamerica.com Weird and wonderful tourist attractions
America's Byways http://www.byways.org Government site with photos, maps and details of the most scenic and legendary drives in the country
We just got back... http://www.wejustgotback.com Top roadtrip destinations from families that just got back from!
Service Projects Our girl scout troop has been looking for a big service project for our bronze award. Here are some ideas..
My Stuff Bags - http://www.mystuffbags.org Children rescued from their homes due to neglect and abuse, or who arrive in shelters often have nothing of their own. This bag is full of things that give them something to hold on to, for hope and comfort.
Shape & Weight motivator http://www.weightview.com lets you view yourself up to 20 pounds lighter. Upload an image indicate how many pounds to take off then they email you the "new you".
Money Diet
Price Police http://www.priceprotectr.com watches more than 50 retailers and sends you an email when a price plunges. Many retailers will refund the difference if it goes down in a certain amount of time
Bookmark these safe search sites for your online children..
http://www.kidskonnect.com for a directory of smart and fun websites created by educators
http://www.infoplease.com is on anline almanac, encyclopedia and dictionary that also includes daily breaking news
http://www.thinkquest.org/library yields a collection of more than 6,000 websites created by students FOR students
Shopping:
Farmers markets... Enter your zipcode here to find a local food source: http://www.localharvest.org
Lunchbox Help For tips on packing green lunches.. http://www.wastefreelunches.org
Sightseeing Sites from Family Friendly websources
Http://www.roadsideamerica.com Weird and wonderful tourist attractions
America's Byways http://www.byways.org Government site with photos, maps and details of the most scenic and legendary drives in the country
We just got back... http://www.wejustgotback.com Top roadtrip destinations from families that just got back from!
Service Projects Our girl scout troop has been looking for a big service project for our bronze award. Here are some ideas..
My Stuff Bags - http://www.mystuffbags.org Children rescued from their homes due to neglect and abuse, or who arrive in shelters often have nothing of their own. This bag is full of things that give them something to hold on to, for hope and comfort.
Shape & Weight motivator http://www.weightview.com lets you view yourself up to 20 pounds lighter. Upload an image indicate how many pounds to take off then they email you the "new you".
Money Diet
Price Police http://www.priceprotectr.com watches more than 50 retailers and sends you an email when a price plunges. Many retailers will refund the difference if it goes down in a certain amount of time
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Keira 8-22-08
Keira has finally hit her word explosion. It's SO dear and I wish I could just bottle it up.
She waves hello, goodbye, and come on. It always looks the same, like she's grabbing something, except the angle of her hand changes.
She can now say, Gaagaa (Diego) Kiikeee (Cookie Monster) Melmo (Elmo) mama, dada, papa, nana, BenBen, DEeeeee (Dora) WUH! (Woof - dog) Moe (Moo - cow) Boooo (Blue from Blue's Clues, or Boots from Dora) PAH (Pacifier) EAT (hungry or thirsty) OP (Hop) CAAAH CAAAH CAAAH (Climb climb climb!) Huuuuuuh (Hugs)
Most of the other things she said are just sounds. They're consistant, but mostly no consonents. A LOT of ups and downs in her tones, but mostly vowels.
She's getting territorial with her toys. If Ben has one, she'll get it from him, and he gets a different one, and she then takes that.
We watched Barney for about 10 minutes yesterday. She liked the songs, but soon tired and requested Blue's Clues
Currently she's playing alot with thing called Learn Through Music. It's VERY loud.
We went to the zoo recently and her fascination with cows, is only with cows. She saw the donkeys, the horses, the goats, the pigs. They were all fine, but when we visited the cows, she FLIPPED OUT! Running up to them, mooing to them, her eyes were big as saucers. It was adorable to watch.
We did the Little Hands on the Farm where you do little chores like gather an egg from a chicken, and pick an apple. She would do it, but wanted LOTS of them in her basket. Then at the end where you put them in the market bins to earn your money, she did the reverse and started raiding the bins lol.
The fresh water exhibit was a big hit with her. She ran and put her head in the fountain first thing! Got soaking wet, which was fine because I had extra clothes and well it was dag gone HOT!
These days, the kids are back in school. She sleeps in til about 8:30, then amuses herself playing with her toys. Then we eat and get her dressed. She'll play a little more, allowing me to do chores or work on the pc, but then she gets me MY shoes, and puts on her own shoes and drags me to the door.
I try to give her little things to do to stall, like turn the tv off, or pick up your toys, or take your cup to the sink. She runs and does these chores with no back talk or stalling (how refreshing!!) and then we go to Nana's. She usually falls asleep as we get there, but LOVES to play with the kids.
She is such a dear heart, and I can't imagine her not being here.
She waves hello, goodbye, and come on. It always looks the same, like she's grabbing something, except the angle of her hand changes.
She can now say, Gaagaa (Diego) Kiikeee (Cookie Monster) Melmo (Elmo) mama, dada, papa, nana, BenBen, DEeeeee (Dora) WUH! (Woof - dog) Moe (Moo - cow) Boooo (Blue from Blue's Clues, or Boots from Dora) PAH (Pacifier) EAT (hungry or thirsty) OP (Hop) CAAAH CAAAH CAAAH (Climb climb climb!) Huuuuuuh (Hugs)
Most of the other things she said are just sounds. They're consistant, but mostly no consonents. A LOT of ups and downs in her tones, but mostly vowels.
She's getting territorial with her toys. If Ben has one, she'll get it from him, and he gets a different one, and she then takes that.
We watched Barney for about 10 minutes yesterday. She liked the songs, but soon tired and requested Blue's Clues
Currently she's playing alot with thing called Learn Through Music. It's VERY loud.
We went to the zoo recently and her fascination with cows, is only with cows. She saw the donkeys, the horses, the goats, the pigs. They were all fine, but when we visited the cows, she FLIPPED OUT! Running up to them, mooing to them, her eyes were big as saucers. It was adorable to watch.
We did the Little Hands on the Farm where you do little chores like gather an egg from a chicken, and pick an apple. She would do it, but wanted LOTS of them in her basket. Then at the end where you put them in the market bins to earn your money, she did the reverse and started raiding the bins lol.
The fresh water exhibit was a big hit with her. She ran and put her head in the fountain first thing! Got soaking wet, which was fine because I had extra clothes and well it was dag gone HOT!
These days, the kids are back in school. She sleeps in til about 8:30, then amuses herself playing with her toys. Then we eat and get her dressed. She'll play a little more, allowing me to do chores or work on the pc, but then she gets me MY shoes, and puts on her own shoes and drags me to the door.
I try to give her little things to do to stall, like turn the tv off, or pick up your toys, or take your cup to the sink. She runs and does these chores with no back talk or stalling (how refreshing!!) and then we go to Nana's. She usually falls asleep as we get there, but LOVES to play with the kids.
She is such a dear heart, and I can't imagine her not being here.
August 20, 2008
Got up today and did laundry, dishes, made hummingbird food, and vanilla flavoring (for my creamer)
I'm sad, I just found out that the hummingbirds will be leaving soon. I welcome them each morning.
This week dh trimmed a tree in front, so I cut it up and put it in a bag so the garbage guy would take it. Also gave the finches the last of the thistle seed...
Looking for something to sell at the school bazaar. What seems to work nicely is things that kids can MAKE or DO there, that cost up to $20. They always have a pottery wheel, and ceramics that you can paint. I was thinking pillow cases and fabric markers, or cooking aprons. Maybe even tote bags. Something that doesn't come in sizes. Also thought about marshmallow shooters as I've heard they do very well at bazaars, but they're pretty hard to get them to work.. They were a fun day though lol.
Also... looking for a handout here. My sister who makes it on just about NO money is asking me to give my niece, maybe 2 nieces piano lessons. I'd LOVE to. I've looked and can't really find any piano lesson books. Does anyone have any beginner books hanging around not being used? They can be written in and it doesn't matter how old they are. I have a 2nd book, but really need a beginner book. My book is probably 40 years old lol. I just want to show her the basics. She plays ALL of the time (sort of like I did) sounding stuff out and repeating endlessly..
Ben's got a pb&j, tortilla chips, and graham crackers for lunch :eyeroll:
Today I'm going to get a quote on windows at my mom's. Looks like it will be around $500. HAS to be done.
Anyone putting out Mums?
I'm sad, I just found out that the hummingbirds will be leaving soon. I welcome them each morning.
This week dh trimmed a tree in front, so I cut it up and put it in a bag so the garbage guy would take it. Also gave the finches the last of the thistle seed...
Looking for something to sell at the school bazaar. What seems to work nicely is things that kids can MAKE or DO there, that cost up to $20. They always have a pottery wheel, and ceramics that you can paint. I was thinking pillow cases and fabric markers, or cooking aprons. Maybe even tote bags. Something that doesn't come in sizes. Also thought about marshmallow shooters as I've heard they do very well at bazaars, but they're pretty hard to get them to work.. They were a fun day though lol.
Also... looking for a handout here. My sister who makes it on just about NO money is asking me to give my niece, maybe 2 nieces piano lessons. I'd LOVE to. I've looked and can't really find any piano lesson books. Does anyone have any beginner books hanging around not being used? They can be written in and it doesn't matter how old they are. I have a 2nd book, but really need a beginner book. My book is probably 40 years old lol. I just want to show her the basics. She plays ALL of the time (sort of like I did) sounding stuff out and repeating endlessly..
Ben's got a pb&j, tortilla chips, and graham crackers for lunch :eyeroll:
Today I'm going to get a quote on windows at my mom's. Looks like it will be around $500. HAS to be done.
Anyone putting out Mums?
Monday, May 26, 2008
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