Thank heavens for the bread machine!

I was worried I wouldn't have enough pizza dough for all of the kids at the party so I decided to make some more. That's when I remembered seeing a pizza dough recipe for my bread machine so I decided to try that recipe instead of Lisa's dough. I am so glad I did! It is sooo.... much easier and I actually think I like the taste better.

Bread Machine Pizza Dough

Add the following ingredients to the bread machine pan:
1 1/3C. water, 2t. sugar, 1 1/4t. salt, 2T. olive oil, 3C. flour, 1t. baking powder, 1/4t. garlic powder, 1/4t. onion powder, 1 1/2t. bread machine yeast.


Set to the pizza dough cycle. When the dough cycle is complete, separate the dough into six equal portions and place into 7 in. tin foil pie tins (I got mine at the Dollar store and they came with cardboard lids.) Let the dough rest in the pans for 10-15 minutes. Add the toppings of your choice and bake at 350* for 10-15 minutes. Or you can cook 1 large pizza for 20 minutes.


This recipe makes 6 personal pan size servings or 1 large pizza.

Pizza Party

Tonight I have a bunch of young men and young women coming over to my house to make home made pizzas. I got this recipe from my friend, Lisa. Our families love to get together and have pizza parties. It takes some time to make the dough, but it is pretty easy and everyone has fun making their own pizzas!

California Pizza Dough

Combine 1 1/4 C. warm water, 2 packages of dry yeast, 1T. honey and 3T. olive oil in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add 3C. flour, and 2t. salt and mix. While mixing, add 1 more cup of flour or enough to make a soft dough. Knead the dough on low to medium speed for about 10 minutes until it is smooth, sprinkling with flour if necessary to keep it from sticking to the bowl.

When it is ready, turn it out onto a floured board and knead by hand a dozen times. It should be smooth and elastic. Place the dough in a well-oiled bowl and turn it several times to cover it with oil.

Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Divide the dough into 6 equal portions - (about the size of a tennis ball) and roll each one into a smooth ball. Place the balls on a baking sheet and cover with a damp towel. Allow the dough to rest for another 10 minutes. Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 4 hours.

Preheat oven to 500*.

If you have chilled the dough, take it out of the refrigerator approximately 30 minutes ahead to let it come to room temperature. Roll and stretch each ball into an 8 inch circle and place them on baking sheets sprinkled with corn meal - or put each into individual pie tins. Brush the dough with olive oil and add your favorite toppings and bake for 10 minutes.

This recipe makes twelve seven in. individual pan size pizza's, six pie tin size pizza's

or you can make two 12 inch pizzas which you will need to bake at 400* for 15-20 minutes.

I found this recipe for pizza sauce that I am going to try as well.

Pizza Sauce

Combine one 15 oz. can tomato sauce, 1/4C. water, 1t. sugar, 1/4t. dried oregano, 1/4t. basil, 1/4t. thyme, 1/4t. garlic powder, 1/4t. salt, 1/8t. pepper, 1 whole bay leaf and 1/2t. lemon juice in a small sauce pan. Cook over medium heat until sauce starts to boil. Lower heat and simmer, covered, for 30 to 45 minutes or until it is as thick as you like.

Happy Easter!

Several years ago, we went to Lake Powell with our friends, the Robinson's for Easter. It was so fun to have the kids decorate the eggs on the house boat and then have an egg hunt on the beach. The kids were a little frustrated because they found out the crows had stolen some of the candy and left a few eggs behind! We thought it was hilarious!

Sheree's specialty that she would make us was her Toll House Cookie Pie. It made an awesome Easter treat!

Toll House Cookie Pie

In a large bowl, beat 2 eggs until they are foamy. Add 1/2C. flour, 1/2C. sugar and 1/2C. brown sugar and beat until well blended. Then blend in 1C. melted butter (room temperature.) Stir in 1C. semi sweet chocolate chips (and add in some walnuts if you like them - I'm allergic to them so I leave them out.) Then put the batter into a pie tin and bake at 325* for 1 hour.

April Fools!

I love April Fools Day! It is fun to play little jokes on my family.
One year, I put an elastic band around the kitchen sink sprayer so when
one of them turned on the faucet, they would get sprayed with water.
But guess who forgot and turned on the faucet? Yep - I was the fool!

By far my favorite prank was the year I went and rented a
car and told my husband I had bought a new one.
I had been wanting a new car, but my husband kept telling
me the one I had was a great car. So when he came home
with a new snowmobile on March 31st, I was a little steamed!
While he was out riding his snowmobile on April 1st, I went
and found the ugliest car I could from a rental car place.
Then I borrowed one of his Dad's dealer license plates so he would
think his Dad helped me get the car.
When he got home he was speechless! We went to dinner and a movie and I had him going the whole time because he really thought I had gone out and bought the piece of junk for an outrageous amount of money. He was very relieved when he found out it was all a joke. Needless to say,
a few days later, I got a new car!

In honor of my wonderful husband, I am
going to share his sauteed mushroom recipe.

Sauteed Mushrooms
Wash and remove the stems from a pound of mushrooms. Saute in 3T. of butter over medium heat. After about 5 minutes, add 1/2 bottle of near beer. Let them simmer for about 15 minutes and add some onion salt to taste. The key is not to have too much moisture in the pan at one time. Serve with hamburgers, steaks or on top of a baked potato.

Angels Among Us

I am surrounded by angels. Yesterday, I found my friend Ashley on my door step holding my three favorite things - A large cold, coke, a yellow rose in a cute yellow duckie planter and a couple of cute sugar cookies. Ashley and I are soul sisters when it comes to a love of sugar cookies and an addiction to Coke - (Except she drinks the unleaded kind. My theory is if you are going to go - go BIG and take the calories!)

Anyway - it cheered me up so much and I am so grateful for my wonderful friend. Tomorrow is her birthday so I made her some sugar cookies this morning. I got this recipe from another friend - Meridee Alexander, who got it from another friend - Holly Jones. But I give Meridee the credit because she made them for me and gave me the recipe. I am so thankful for all of these wonderful friends who are angels and take care of me as well as who share their yummy recipes!

Divine Sugar Cookies

Cream together 1 2/3C. sugar, 1C. butter flavored shortening and 2 eggs. Add 2t. baking powder, 1 1/4t. baking soda, 1t. vanilla, 1t. almond extract and 1t. salt. Slowly add 2C. flour and than add 1C. sour cream. Add 3 more cups of flour.

Refrigerate for 1 hour then roll out to 1/4 inch thick and cut out with fun shaped cookies cutters.

Bake at 350* on an ungreased cookie sheet for 7 minutes. Let them sit on the cookie sheet for about 5 minutes after taking them out of the oven. Then frost after they cool.

I got this wonderful frosting recipe from another good friend. Stephanie Merrell. We had a mother daughter Mad Hatter Tea Party for one of our young women's activities. We each brought a plate of cup cakes and had some extras to take home. My family ate all of her cupcakes first and left mine. My husband asked, "Who ate all the good cupcakes?" OUCH!

Stephanies Mad Hatter Frosting

Combine the following ingredients until the frosting reaches the desired consistency:

1 cube of butter, softened. Some canned milk or whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla.

Add some powdered cocoa if you want chocolate frosting.

Use food coloring paste to color and then frost.

My Lucky Stars

Several of my good friends know how bad I have been struggling with my youngest and his anxiety and they have brought me treats to cheer me up. I am so thankful for them. Their kindness offers a little bright spot in my world!

My friend Deidre brought over some rice crispy treats with lucky stars in them. She is so sweet. She added a little note that said, "She hoped these would magically take away my stress." I have never had lucky charms crispy treats - but they were yummy! I thank my Lucky Stars for Deidre.

Lucky Stars Bars

Grease a 9x9 pan.

In a microwave safe bowl, melt 3T. butter and 3 1/2C. mini marshmallows.

Microwave on high for 3 minutes, stirring after each minute until melted and smooth.

Stir in 5C. of Lucky Charms cereal and press in the greased pan.

Let them set up for a few minutes then cut into squares.

Muskrat Love

Yesterday, my husband and I rode our horses along the canal at the bottom of our property. It was the perfect evening riding. The sun was setting and the water was calm and peaceful. We saw ducks and for the first time this season, some fish - which gives me hope that spring really is coming sooner than later. We also saw a family of muskrats. It was fun to watch them gracefully glide through the water and play together. They seemed so happy. It made me think of that song, "Muskrat Love" by Captain and Tenille. So I named them muskrat Suzzy and Muscrat Sam. I felt so much love for my husband just enjoying that special moment together. It was nice to have a little calm in the storm because we had another knock down drag out fight with our youngest about going to school this morning. He was up all night and didn't eat again this morning. It breaks my heart to have to force him to do something that is so scary, but you can't run away from your fears, you have to face them.

He is so funny. Last night he kept coming up and telling us he wasn't tired. So we told him to go read in his bed until he fell asleep. We shut the our bedroom doors so he wouldn't hear the T.V. and after a few minutes, my husband found a paper he had slid under the door which said, "Mom and Dad, I need some tv time." Sponge Bob seems to take away his scary thoughts.

When I was making my little Friendship Stew cookbook for all of my friends, he was looking through it and asked where his recipe was. I asked him what his recipe was and looked at my like, "Duh," and then told me he makes a chocolate banana smoothie. So I typed up the recipe and let him help me design the page and added it to the books. Now whenever I get one of these cookbooks out to give away for a birthday gift, he always opens it up to check and make sure his page is in there.

Chocolate Banana Smoothie

Put 2C. milk (He uses Rice milk), 1 banana, peeled, 2T. chocolate ovaltine, 1C. ice cubes into a blender and mix until well blended. Then drink with a smile and make sure you have a chocolate mustache when you finish so everyone knows how good it was.

Oh Waiter!

We have a fun group of friends that we like to travel to Mexico with. One those friends in that group, Lori Tolbert is a caterer. So she is all about the presentation when it comes to the food we eat. On one of our trips to Cabo San Lucas, I cut up some french bread to go with the dinner she was cooking us and just left it sitting on the counter covered with a dish towel. Not satisfied with my presentation, she riffled through the cupboards at the villa where we were staying and found a little basket to display the bread.

It's always fun to hear her reaction whenever we go out to eat because she totally appreciates the beauty of the dishes that are served. Her husband is relentless giving her a bad time because we have to take pictures of everything before we can eat it.

On our last trip to Cancun with these friends, I suggested we go to a restaurant called Puerto Madero. The food was out of this world and the service was even better! This was the first time any of us had ever been to a restaurant where each person had their own waiter to attend to our needs.We loved it so much we went back the next night. There was a long wait, but the manager recognized Lori because she raved about the dishes so much the night before and he snuck us in. Somehow, Lori ended up back in the kitchen and found out how to make this restaurants specialty - Fries Soufflees Potatoes, (they look like puffy little potato chips) and she was given an apron with the restaurants name on it. Next time you are in Cancun, it is worth it to visit this restaurant!

Fries Soufflees Potatoes

Scrub, peel and cut up 3 potatoes. Cut off 1/4 inch side to square the potato into a rectangle. Using a paring knife, trim the potato into the shape of a football. Using a really sharp knife, slice the potatoes lengthwise into 1/8 inch slices and put into a bowl filled with really cold water.

In one pan, pour 2 inches of canola oil and heat until it is at 320*. Fill a second pan with another 2 inches of oil.
Drain the potatoes and pat dry.

Put a few of the potato slices into the hot oil that is 320*. Flip them occasionally with a slotted spoon until they are blistered and translucent, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the pan with the hotter oil and cook for another 5 minutes, flipping occasionally until they are puffy and browned. Take them out of the hot oil and put on a plate covered with paper towels then season with salt to taste.

Miss Renegade, The Wonder Horse!

When I first moved to Vernal, I kept my horses at a horse breeders barn named Debbie Perrigo. She was one of our employee's mother-in-law. Every time I would go to visit Lakota and Cheyenne, I would watch the baby horses that had just been born that spring playing together. There was one horse in particular that I always loved to watch. She was a little brown and white paint with a cute little white tail that had a dash of black at the end. Over the next few months, I kept watching her and telling my husband what she would do each time I saw her.

To my surprise, for my birthday three years ago, Debbie pulled up with her horse trailer and unloaded Miss Renegade as a present from my sweet husband. She was nine months old and would hardly let me get near her. It was a knock down drag out fight to get a halter on her, but once I did, I worked with her almost every day and we bonded!

She does the funniest things! One morning my husband and I walked into the barn to feed and noticed a puddle of water in the middle of the arena. We had just been dealing with broken water lines outside and we figured the same thing had happened inside. But as I got closer, I noticed the water was coming from inside Renny's stall. We had installed a spicket and put an old short washing machine hose in between her stall and the next one so we could fill up the horses water buckets. Somehow she had turned it on and the hose had been flipping around from the water pressure and filled her stall. Renny was sopping wet as well as all of the walls and there was a foot of water inside her stall that had started to drain out into the arena.

Another day, one of our workers was fixing a water leak outside in one of the pens. He was down inside a hole and Renny came over and grabbed his shovel in her mouth and ran off with it trying to get him to chase her.

I love this horse! She always makes me smile - except the time she bucked me off. She was first trained in Lehi by a great trainer named Noel Skinner. He is very well known and helped get a good foundation on her. I have been taking her to a trainer in Vernal named Richie Anderson. He has done amazing work with her! I can get her to walk sideways, spin and she loves to chase his buffalo!

After we go to riding lessons, I love to come home and make potato wedges.

Potato Wedges

Scrub 3 potatoes and slice them into wedges. Place on a foil lined baking sheet. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle generously with season salt or Cajun spice and Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 30-35 minutes at 450* stirring every 10 minutes.
Add a nice juicy steak and a green salad and it makes a perfect meal!

No More Ham Fried Rice ... PLEASE!

My niece recently came back from a trip to China and my Dad left to go there a few days ago. This got me thinking about when my parents took me on a trip to China when I was younger. I came up with this recipe after going on that trip. The whole tweleve days we were there, this was the only thing I would eat. After watching the Chinese people make it so many times, I came home and proudly made some!

Much to my husbands dismay, this was the only thing I knew how to cook when we got married. After the first month, he asked me if we could eat something besides ham fried rice. So I went and got a bucket of chicken from KFC and put it in a pan so he would think I cooked it. I finally fessed up a few years ago, but he said he already knew. To this day, he still doesn't get too excited when it is Ham Fried Rice night!

Ham Fried Rice

Cook white rice according to the directions on the package. Microwave 1 C. frozen pea's according to the directions. In a pan, scramble 4 eggs then add 1C. chopped ham and the pea's. Cook for about 3 minutes. Then turn the heat up up to medium high and add 3T. butter and the cooked rice. Stir in 2T. Oyster sauce and cook until the rice is a light brown color.

Is it Christmas in March?

Last night we had our monthly bunco night with some of our neighbors. I am proud to say, I won a prize for having the most losses! The Baum's were hosting the party, so they had a prize for me.

They gave me back the neighborhood traveling Santa. On Christmas Eve, a 3 foot tall plastic Santa that lights up appeared on our front porch. It is signed by all the neighbors who have had it over the years with the instructions to pass it on to your neighbor after you sign it. It also says that whoever ends up with old Santa on Christmas Day has to store it for the next year.

Well Christmas morning we snuck up to the Baum's and got busted for leaving the Santa at their house. They have been boo hooing about it ever since. So......I got it back as a prize!

Raelynn McCormick was there last night and she is the one who started the whole traveling Santa several years ago. She was joking that we needed to jazz old Santa up a little and pass him around during the year. SO, guess who got Santa wearing a new fashionable eye patch last night? Yep, McCormicks now have a new porch decoration!

I was assigned to bring the dessert to Bunco. So I made a recipe that I got from my friend Lisa Labrum. It is soooo.... fattening but it is worth the calories!

Best Cake Yet! (Also known as Better Than Sex Cake, but my husband will torment the heck out of me if I call it that, so I came up with a new name.)

Bake a German chocolate cake according to the directions in a 13x9 pan. Cool for 15 minutes then poke the top of the warm cake with the handle of a wooden spoon - about every 1/2 inch. Drizzle a can of sweetened condensed milk evenly over the top of the cake. Then drizzle a jar of carmel topping over the top of that and I added 1/2 a jar of fudge topping over that. Cover and chill about 2 hours then spread one 8 oz. container of whipped topping over the top of the cake. I didn't have any toffee chips, but the recipe calls for you to sprinkle those over the top of the cool whip.

Goin' Banana's

The last few days have been spent trying to get my youngest to go to school. He has had major anxiety and can't sleep, eat or really function. On Monday, I thought we had a bread through because he actually wanted to go out and ride his motorcycle and we could hardly get him to come in when it started getting dark. I was excited because I thought maybe he was starting to engage again. But yesterday morning, after I drug him to school, he got out of the car and threw his backpack down on the ground and proceeded to stand with his back to me as he cried and screamed. I was sooooo... embarrassed so I told him to get back in the car and I took him straight to the barn. I told him since Lakota was gone now he could sleep in her stall. I haven't had the heart to clean it out because I am still a little weepy when I think of her, so he had a big job ahead of him. I left him alone to hopefully calm down and when I came back he told me he was sorry and that he was ready to go to school. Once we got to his first period though, he stood there and cried and broke my heart, but at least he stayed. After spending all morning talking with counselors and his teachers, we came up with a new class schedule to hopefully alleviate some of his stress. In the meantime, I have been going banana's trying to figure out how to help him!

I have some ripe banana's so I am going to try making some of this chocolate banana bread. It smells soooo.... good!

Chocolate Banana Bread

Preheat oven to 350*. Lightly grease two loaf pans.

In a large bowl, cream together 1 C. butter, softened, 2C. sugar and 4 eggs. Then stir in 6 ripe bananas that have been mashed, and 2t. vanilla. Sift in 3C. flour, 2t. baking soda and 1/4C. cocoa powder. Blend in 1C. sour cream and 1C. semisweet chocolate chips. Pour batter into pans and bake for 60 min.

Tip for the Day

Tip for the day:

The best way to clean your stove is to forget and leave the pot filler on! Yep, I did it again. I was filling a pot full of water to boil some veggies to put into my chicken pot pie. I guess I should quit trying to multi task and focus on the activity at hand! Although it sure does make for a clean stove, and floor and counter if you get our your mop and scrub away!

At least I didn't leave it on for an hour an a half like I did when I was filling up the horses water trough earlier today!

Chicken Pot Pie

Cut up and boil 3 chicken breasts, 3 potato's, 1/2 pkg. of the baby carrots and 3 celery sticks.

Put a pie crust from the refrigerator section into a pie tin and add the cooked vegetables.

In a bowl, combine 1 can of cream of chicken soup, 1/2 can of milk and some salt and pepper.

Pour this over the top of the veggies.

Cover this with a second refrigerator pie crust. Cut three small slits in the top and brush with melted butter.

Bake at 350* until the pie crust is light brown - (about 45 minutes.)

Stop Filling Me With Crap!

My son asked me why I like to blog today. The answer was easy, it is a fun way to connect with my family and friends so they know what is going on in my life. Plus, I can share the things I learn so they don't have to make the same mistakes. Like not filling your kids with crap.

A few years ago I started researching about food allergies to see if I could help my youngest son with his developmental delay problems. He was stick thin and he had a little Ethiopian pot belly. After I did lots of reading, I found out he was probably malnourished because he was eating something he was allergic to and his body wasn't absorbing the nutrients. As I read, I also realized that my second son was also suffering from some symptoms of food allergies. He couldn't sleep, we could hardly take him to Lake Powell because after a day or two of being in the water, he developed horrible rashes and eczema. He was normally was a sweet, lovable boy, but other times he would get mad at everything and was hard to deal with. The biggest sign though was he had big dark circles under his eyes and he just didn't look well. So I had them tested and found out they were both allergic to corn, soy and milk. This meant I had to tell my youngest he could no longer eat corn dogs, Frito's, gummy fruit snacks and he couldn't drink chocolate milk. These were pretty much the only things he would eat and I had to explain that they were "mean" foods and made his body mad.

The first time I went to the grocery store after I found out what they were allergic to, I was so overwhelmed because as I read the labels, everything I normally fed these boys were filled with "mean" foods. Corn starch, corn syrup, are in candy, juices and even powdered sugar. I ended up buying a coffee grinder and making my own powder sugar so I could make frosting. Manufacturers use soy as a filler in everything or they sneak it in under a different name. I pretty much had to start cooking from scratch, which I hated to do because I never had cooked before. If it wasn't fast, pre-packaged or instant, I didn't make it. After a lot of adjustments, my boys can now tolerate a little bit of some things they are allergic to and I have started collecting recipes that are easy to make.

My niece sent me a link to the blog of a lady who calls herself, the Pioneer Woman. She lives on a ranch and makes gourmet meals for her ranch hands. I am not a Rachel Ray or Pioneer Woman. If something requires a lot of time, I won't even attempt it.

This recipe is from my friend, Carrie Caldwell - as I have bragged before, she really is an amazing cook and I adore her!

Shredded Pork Taco's with Dirty Sauce

Cook a pork loin in a crock pot or on low in the oven all day with a little bit of water in the bottom of the ban. Drain off the juice and save it in a small sauce pan. Shred the meat with a fork and serve in a warm, tortilla shell - (the kind you have to cook yourself because they don't contain any soy) with dirty sauce over the top.

Dirty Sauce

Combine the pork juice and some bar-b-cue sauce in a small sauce pan and heat.

How Romantic!

Yea! My niece, Tiffany, was proposed to today! They were on the beach in San Diego and Mr. Scott dropped down on one knee and popped the question. How Romantic! Then they left for a cruise with his family this afternoon. I have to say, I'm disappointed he didn't propose while they were scuba diving in Cabo! Now that would have been really amazing! Good job though Scott-

I can't wait to be the flower girl at the wedding (he-he-he)!

This is Tiffany's mom's Zucchini Bread Recipe

Combine 3 beaten eggs, 2C. brown sugar, and 1C. sugar in the mixer. Blend, then add 1C. shredded zucchini, 3t. vanilla, 3C. flour, 3t. cinnamon, 1/2t. baking powder and 1t. baking soda. Mix well. Put into two greased bread pans and bake at 350* for 1 hour.

Watch Out For California Drivers

I just got back from my trip to California with my sister and my niece. It was so fun to sleep in until 10 the first morning and to laugh until I cried. WOW! I really needed this vacation, the last few weeks have been brutal dealing with all kinds of problems at home.

What is going to California without a star sighting? David Archuletta, the American Idol star that attended Murray High school was sitting a few rows behind me. He probably could have gone unnoticed on the flight except he was surrounded by a whole group of high school cheerleaders who were going to a cheer competition in Anaheim. The poor guy didn't have a chance to remain unseen because he was completely surrounded!

For us, the adventure really started out with Alamo giving me the Toyota PRIUS - you know the car that has been causing all the ruckas. When I pulled up to the curb at the airport to pick up my sister - her mouth dropped open as she said, "Do you realize what kind of car you just rented?" Ya, whatever - Alamo wouldn't send us off in a defective car, would they? The whole trip we were a little nervous! It was one of those fancy cars with the keyless start - just try and figure that out! I'm sure the rental guy got a good laugh watching me try to figure it out. I finally just started pushing buttons until the car made a noise and then I had to figure out how to put it into drive.

The first day, I almost rear ended someone on the freeway when the traffic came to a screeching halt for no reason. My niece yelled at me from the back seat and then I started laughing hysterically. Then I couldn't stop laughing because my sister and her daughter continued on with their conversation like nothing had happened - I had tears rolling down my cheeks - it really wasn't very funny, but it was a great stress reliever! That night I almost went through a red light and it happened all over again. Once again, they didn't see what was so funny - but it really was hilarious! It was also funny to see my nieces reaction as I yelled at all of the inconsiderate California drivers - I have never seen so many stupid drivers!

We stayed at the Wyndham hotel near the Costa Mesa Mall. Our hotel room had a new feature that requires you to have your room key in a special slot inside the room or the lights wouldn't turn on. The light switch in the bathroom had been mutilated from someone trying to force the light on - obviously they didn't have their key in the right slot!

My niece was hungry when we first got there so I took her to the vending machine we had passed on the way to our room. It was the fanciest vending machine I have ever seen, it only took your credit card which you could use to buy a camera, headphones, car phone charger or a package of Reece's Pieces for $4.99 and a bottle of water for $3.99. Wanting to be the favorite aunt that I am, I gave and spent $9.00 for junk food!

We shopped until we literally dropped. It was amazing! Costa Mesa is a little intimidating when everyone around you looks like barbie with the perfect waist, hair, make up, nails, tanned skin, and they all drive expensive European sports cars. My sister said, "I always come home from this trip feeling fat. I don't know how with all the walking we do!"

As much fun as we had, it was so nice arrive in Salt Lake and be surrounded by "normal" people who weren't all wearing expensive clothes, high heels and a size 2. It was also a relief to get into my car and use my key to turn it on, not having to worry that it was going to accelerate without any notice. I really appreciated being home when I was able to travel 75 miles an hour the whole way out to Vernal instead of going 9 miles an hour or having to come to a complete stop on the California highway.

I knew I was almost near my home on the range when I saw a herd of "antelope playing" on the side of the road. As much as I don't like some things about living in a small town, I actually like the Mayberriness of it all.

Last night we went to the Cheesecake Factory, which is one of our favorite places to eat! (No I didn't take any silverware - but that's another story!) My sister always orders the Sweet Corn Tamale Cakes from the appetizer's. She says they are divine! I found this recipe on the internet for them. Try it - they are yummy!

Cheesecake Factory Sweet Corn Tamale Cakes

Make the salsa verde, southwestern sauce and tomato salsa before hand and chill.

Salsa Verde-
Combine the following in a food processor on high:

2 tomatillo's, chopped (remove the papery skin)

1 - 4oz. can mild green chilies

1 green onion chopped

1 1/4t. sugar

1/4 t. cumin

1/4t. salt and a pinch of pepper

Cover and chill

Southwestern Sauce:
Combine the following:

1/2C. mayo

1t. white vinegar

1t. water

3/4t. sugar

1/2t. chili powder

1/4t. paprika

a pinch of cayenne pepper

pinch of onion powder

dash of salt

dash of garlic powder

Cover and chill

Tomato Salsa:

Combine:

1 medium tomato

1T. minced onion

1T. cilantro, minced

1/4t. lime juice

1/2 small fresh jalapeno, minced

dash of salt and pepper

Corn Tamale Cakes
Chop 1 C. frozen sweet corn in a food processor until pureed. Combine this with 1 cube of butter, softened,3T. sugar and a pinch of salt in a bowl then blend well with an electric mixer until smooth. Add 1/2C. corn flour and 2T. flour until blended well. Mix 1/2C. frozen sweet corn by hand.

Measure 1/2C. portions out and form into 3" wide patties. Bake on a cookie sheet for 25 min. at 400*. Flip and bake an additional 5-7 min.

While baking these, spoon a portion of the salsa verde on a plate - about 1/4 in. deep. When the corn cakes are done, arrange them by side on top of the salsa verde. Spoon sour cream on top then drizzle with southwestern sauce over the top and then spoon some of the tomato salsa over the top of that. Serve with chopped avacados, and chopped cilantro.

A Wee Bit Of St. Patty's Day

Tomorrow is special for several reasons, first because I get to go to California with my twin sister and my niece! While everyone around has been traveling to warmer places over the past few months, I have been enduring the freezing cold and snow. I am soooo... excited to be able to wear my flip flops! I have a little purse business so we go shopping to the fashion district and bring home a stash to put into salons as well as to sell at purse parties. We have been doing this for six years now and I am still amazed at how the ladies still go crazy over them. The prices have jumped three times what they were when I started, so I don't make much money, but it is still fun to have an excuse to be with my sister and go SHOPPING!

The second reason I am excited about tomorrow is that it is St. Patrick's day! We are celebrating a little early and having corned beef for dinner. I love to use the left over's to make corned beef hash. My family loves it!

Corned Beef Hash

Fry up half of a package of hash browns in 2T. of butter until they are crispy. Cook 6 eggs, scrambled. Shred cooked corned beef and mix this all together and you have hash!

Til The Cows Come Home

This morning I woke up to a rooster call - in the next room. My husband got a new phone and thought it would be great to wake up by setting the alarm on it which sounds like a rooster call. Not a great idea - especially because I had been up all night with my youngest who had worked himself up into a frenzy about taking a science test today to the point where he threw up last night and then couldn't sleep. Poor little guy!

We picked out two cows on Saturday but they didn't come home with us yet. The brand inspector has to come and get us a bill of sale so sometime this week they will come home. I decided on the names, Ruby and Rosie, but yesterday when I came home from a meeting, there was a list of names the boys had come up with. Evidently they didn't like my choices. On the list were cow brains, rib-eye, stew, big hunk, cow pie, pear (why?), and my youngest wanted to use the name Patrick - (he is a big Sponge Bob fan, his cat was named, Patrick Jet Ed.) I tried to compromise and suggested Ruby-eye or Rosie Stew - and then I can still call them what I want. Once the cows get here, I'm sure no one will have any interest in them so I will be able to just name them what I want.

I have a great marinade recipe that would be great for the meat. I got this recipe from a friend in my last neighborhood. We used to have family Sunday's and a bunch of us would get together and the host would cook the meat and everyone else would bring everything else. It was so fun to get together and just sit and talk like they used to do in the olden days. It seems like everyone is to busy now to just sit and talk- except about silly cow names!

Heidi's Marinade

Combine 3/4C. salad oil, 2T. vinegar, 1/4C. soy sauce, 3T. honey, 2 green onions chopped, 1t. garlic powder and 1t. ginger then add chicken or beef and let marinate over night. Tastes great when you grill it!

Holy Cow!

I love driving around this time of year and seeing the new baby cows laying next to their mommies. There is one pasture in particular that I like to drive past just to see how many new babies they have had that day. Next the baby sheep will appear and then the colts. It is such a fun time of the year!

We have been talking about getting a few cows for a while but I think tomorrow we are actually going to do it. It will be nice because the cows eat the stuff in the pasture that the horses won't eat and vice versa. Plus I can feed them high quality grain and have my own angus beef next year. My husband says I can't name them because I will become too attached when it comes time to slaughter them - but I can't wait to meet, Bella, Rosie and Ruby - (assuming they are females.) Even if they aren't, I love these names and the only animals I could ever get away with giving these names to are cows!

Speaking of hamburger, this recipe is one of my families favorites. It's a recipe from my husbands side of the family. Next year when I make it, I will have to call it, "Rosie Soup!"

Hamburger Soup

In a large pot, brown 1 pound of hamburger and add some season salt to flavor

Add: 1 small onion, chopped

1 clove of garlic minced

8 cups of water

1 can of beef boullion or 3 boullion cubes

2C. carrots (I like to use the baby carrots)

4 potatoes washed and diced

Let simmer over medium heat for several hours

Oh Baby!

Yesterday, my friend Lisa called and said she was at the hospital with her daughter Jessie who was having contractions. I ran down to the hospital to take her a treat and as I watched the nurses putting the IV in and watching the monitor with the babies progress, it brought back all the memories of when I had my three boys. I had a hard time delivering each one of them I was so grateful it was her laying there about to deliver and not me. She wasn't dilating so they ended up doing an emergency c - section and Jaycee arrived about nine o'clock last night. I'm excited to go see her this morning!

We have been friends with the Labrums for about sixteen years. It started out with our husbands going snowmobiling together and they are practically family now. It was amazing to think as I watched Jessie lay there about to deliver last night that I knew her when she was so young.

One of the things we like to do with the Labrums is celebrate birthday dinners together. Since Lisa is the better cook, she usually brings the cake. One of my favorites that she makes is her Red Velvet Cake. I can't make it as good as she can, but it is yummy!

Red Velvet Cake

Combine 1 chocolate cake mix with 1C. sour cream, 1/2C. water, 1/4C. oil, 1 (1 ounce) bottle of red food coloring and 3 eggs. Beat on high for 2 minutes. Pour into two 9 inch round pans that have been greased and floured. Bake 25-35 minutes at 350*. Cool for 15 minutes then remove from the pans.

Frosting:

Combine 1 1/2C. milk with 1/2C. flour in a sauce pan, cook until thick - cover with plastic wrap and cool. Beat 1 1/2C. butter and 1 1/2 C. sugar until light and fluffy. Combine the flour mix 2 T. at a time, beating well in between. Beat on high until smooth then add 1T. vanilla. Then frost the cooled cakes.

If the glass slipper fits, wear it!

Last night for mutual, we had a Princess finishing school night. If you have ever seen the Princess Diaries, it was a similar challenge to teach these young girls how to sit properly, (I get tired of seeing their underwear on Sunday's when they wear skirts.) We also taught them how to walk with good posture, how to talk like a princess and wear makeup in moderation like a princess. I had another brilliant idea when I was planning this night - I took my ironing board and a bunch of my ironing and had one of the leaders teach them how to iron so they could wear clothes that weren't wrinkled and look like a princess. By doing this, I eliminated several shirts from my very large pile in my ironing bin - I absolutely HATE ironing!

At the end of the night I gave each of them a little plastic Cinderella slipper with a note that said, "If the glass slipper fits, wear it!"

It was a lot of fun and I hope they all learned something.

I found this recipe which I am excited to try for Baked Ziti. It involves two of my favorite things: Pasta and it is sooooo.... EZ!

Baked Ziti Supreme

Cook 1 pound of ground beef and add 1 medium onion, chopped. Pour off any fat. Stir in 1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce. Add 1C. mozzarella cheese and 5C. medium tube shaped pasta that has been cooked. Spoon this mixture into a shallow baking dish and sprinkle with more mozzarella cheese and 1/4C. of Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350* for 30 minutes.

Seeing my ironing pile a little smaller gave me hope, so today I am going to tackle the rest. It's a Cinderella life I tell ya!

New Way To Pop Your Corn

My mom sent me an email with a video of some people using their cell phones to pop some kernals of popcorn. I was a little skeptical at first but the evidence is alarming! Go to www.dailymotion.com/video/x5odhh_pop-corn-telephone-portable-mocro-o_news. You may never want to use your cell phone again!

My friend, Michele Fitt gave me a recipe for microwave carmel popcorn that I just love! I think I will stick to it instead of using my cell phone!

Michele's Microwave Carmel Popcorn

Pop a bag of pop corn and set aside.

Combine 1C. sugar, 1 cube butter, 1/4C. Karo syrup and 1/4t. salt in a 2 quart bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. Add 1/2t. baking soda.

Put the popped popcorn into a large brown paper bag and pour the syrup over it and shake.

Cook in the microwave for 1 1/2 minutes, shaking the bag every 30 seconds.

Midnight Surprise

Last spring, my husband happened to cut through our pasture and noticed a brand new baby horse in our neighbors, the Binghams, field. He knew the Binghams were out of town so he called Marty and asked him if they got a new colt. Marty was shocked and said he didn't know what my husband was talking about. Evidently, he didn't even know the horse was pregnant! The even funnier things is, my husband kept asking Marty if he needed more hay, but Marty told him his horse was getting to fat and could just eat sticks for a while. The moral of the story is, if your horse starts getting really fat, you might wanna check to see if she is pregnant!

It was cold, rainy and his other horse, (appropriately named Cain,) was upsetting the mother whose name was Midnight. So we caught the mama and brought her and the baby up to the warm barn where she would be safe. We kept him in our corrals for a few months so they could work with him easier. I thought they should call the colt Midnight's Surprise but they named him Bolt. He was so cute! His mom was a wild mustang that was trained and while she was at the trainer, she got pregnant and no one knew. We still laugh about it every time we see him.

About a year ago, Michelle Bingham brought me an Amish Friendship Bread Starter - it was a little work to keep up, but it is soooo.... good! Plus it is fun to share with friends.

Amish Friendship Bread Starter

In a small bowl, dissolve 1 pkg. active dry yeast and let it stand about 10 minutes.

In a 2 qrt. container glass, plastic or ceramic container, combine 1 C. flour and 1 C. sugar. Mis thoroughly. Slowly stir in 1C. milk and the dissoved yeast mixture. Cover loosely and let stand until bubbly. Consider this to be day 1 of the cycle. Put into a ziplock baggie at room temperature.

Day 1 - Do nothing. (Today you received the bag, or go by the date on the bag.)

Day 2 - Mush the bag

Day 3- Mush the bag

Day 4 - Mush the bag

Day 5 - Mush the bag

Day 6 - Add 1C. flour, 1C. sugar and 1C. milk to the bag

Day 7 - Mush the bag

Day 8 - Mush the bag

Day 9 - Mush the bag

Day 10 -

Pour the entire contents of the bag into a non-metal bowl.

Add 1 1/2C. flour, 1 1/2C. sugar and 3/4C. milk.

Measure out 4 separte batters of 1 Cup each into 1 gallon zip lock bags.

Keep one starter for yourself and share the other three with friends along with a copy of

this recipe. Write the date on the bag so everyone will know what day it was started.

Preheat the oven to 325*

To the remaining batter in the bowl, add:

3 eggs

1 1/2C. milk

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 1/2tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1C. oil

1 C. sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. baking soda

2 C. flour

1 lrg. box of instant vanilla pudding

Grease 2 large loaf pans or 4 small loaf pans and mix in a separate bowl:

1/2C. sugar and 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Dust loaf pans with half of this mixture.

Pour the batter evenly nto the bread pans and sprinkle with the remaining

cinnamon mix on top.

Bake 1 hr. or 40 min. if using the small pans

Cool until the bread loosens from the sides of the pans about 10 min.

If you keep a starter for yourself, you will be baking every 10 days. The bread is very good and makes a great gift for a friend!

All Dogs Go To Heaven

Yesterday was a horrible day at my house. My husband ran over my golden retriever puppy, Zoe and she is now in doggie heaven. It was totally an accident and he feels horrible about it. I will miss her tremendously because she was my little ray of sunshine. She followed my middle boy around like a shadow when he was home, so I am really worried about him. But he seems to be taking it as good as can be expected.

Some good things came about as a result of the accident. My oldest son bought me a dozen red roses. He treats me like a queen and kept asking me if I was ok. When I told my youngest what had happened, he didn't say anything. So I asked him if he was sad and he said no. He is developmentally delayed and he stutters, so communicating his feelings is really hard for him to do. It doesn't matter if he has been spit on by a mean boy on the bus, had his tooth knocked out by a kid on the playground or lost his clarinet, he always answers that his day was great...mostly because I think he doesn't want to talk about it. But at the dinner table last night, he was listening to his ipod and when I asked him to please turn it off he got mad. So his Dad took the ipod and threw it. He exploded and told us he was angry because his dad "freakin' threw his ipod!" Now I don't like my boys to use the word, "freakin'" because it is just a replacement for an even worse word, but I was so happy to hear him use it I couldn't get mad. Then he asked me if he could talk to me after dinner. WOW! This never happens. As we talked, he told me school just isn't fun anymore and everything about it is bad. Then I told him I was proud of him for telling me how he felt and that whenever he felt, mad or frustrated he needed to tell me and I would help him. Then he said, "What about sad?" I told him yes, sad too and then he started crying and told me he was sad about Zoe. It really broke my heart when he told me through his sobbs that he knows Zoe is with Jesus. It was truly a huge deal that he was talking to me like this and hopefully I can help him through his problems at school because he knows he can tell me about them.

I got Zoe from my twin sister. She had a litter of ten puppies and she loved this dog as much as I did. She is my idol and I am so glad she is my sister. She and her family are big American Idol fans. Every Tuesday night, they have my mom over for dinner and an American Idol night. This week she made this yummy soup and I can't wait to make it for my family!

Idol Soup

Cook a roast and save the left over juice. Shred the meat and put it into a crock pot with the juice. Add a can of corn - not drained, 3C. salsa and 1 can of chili. Let this simmer all day. A few minutes before serving, add 1 tub of sour cream. Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and crumbled chips.

Green Eggs and Ham

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! To celebrate, it is, "National Read Across America Day!" Grab a good book and enjoy the day.

Only in Vernal can you find a large green dinosaur wearing a Dr. Seuss hat! Every few weeks the city workers dress this dinosaur up to celebrate whatever holiday is coming up. It is hilarious to see bunny ears on top of it's head or even a big sparkler hanging out of it's mouth. Sometimes I go out of my way to drive past, just to see what costume it is decorated with!

To celebrate Dr. Seuss's birthday, we will be eating green eggs and ham. I am anticipating that my youngest will say, "I do not like green eggs and ham," but I know he will like the little Dr. Seuss hats.

Green Eggs and Ham Corn Bread Quiche

Make a package of corn bread muffins according to the directions. Line the muffin tin with paper liners and then fill them 1/4 of the way full with the corn bread mix. Bake at 350* for five minutes. While these are baking, combine 6 eggs, 1C. shredded cheddar cheese, 1C. chopped ham (or you can use crumbled bacon) and whatever else you like in your quiche. Since we are eating green eggs and ham today, add a little green food coloring to the mix. Pour this mixture over the top of the corn bread muffins in the tins and bake for about 8 minutes or until the eggs are set up.

Dr. Seuss Hats

Using a small cookie cutter, cut out round slices of monteray jack cheese and beef stick pieces that are about 1/8 inch thick.

Place a small dab of cream cheese on a round Ritz cracker, then put a slice of the beef stick on top of it, then put another dab of cream cheese and add a slice of monteray jack cheese. Alternate layers of beef stick, and the monteray jack cheese until you have a Dr. Seuss hat.

"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." Dr. Seuss

All Accounted For

Yesterday my golden retriever puppy brought me some presents .... chicken feet and then the wings. This morning she brought in a chicken head. Nervously I called my next door neighbor and asked her how many of her chickens were missing. She called me back after counting and said they were all accounted for. WHEW! Now the big question is where is Zoe getting these pats and pieces from? Around here, if your dog is caught killing chickens, they can be shot because once they have a taste for the birds, they won't leave them alone!

This weekend I spent a lot of time moving the snow banks that were piled all over our property so as the snow melted, the water would run into the pasture instead of down my drive way to make a mud puddle. In two of the piles I found dead chickens. In November, something was killing everything around here....including my favorite cat! The night after the murder, one of my sons saw a coyote so we hoped that was the culprit. But we had also heard rumors of a mountain lion sighting.... hopefully it was the first creature and not the second who was doing the dirty deeds! Anyway, I wonder if whatever the killer animal was, took it's favorite parts of the chicken and left the rest for my puppy. Either way I'm not happy about the gifts!

Speaking of Chicken, here is a great recipe for Crescent Chicken Squares:

In a bowl, combine 1 - 3oz. pkg. of cream cheese, softened with 2T. melted butter until smooth. Add 2C. cubed cooked, chicken, 1/4t. salt, 1/8t. pepper, 2T. milk and 1T. chopped onion.

Separate two 8oz. cans of pop-n-fresh crescent dinner rolls into 8 rectangles. Fill with the cream cheese mixture and seal the edges of the dough.

Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush with melted butter, then sprinkle with crushed saltine crackers.

Bake 350* for 20-25 min.