Salmon Patties

I have been wanting to make these for a long time, but I finally did make them today.  I had bought some chunks of salmon from the Mexican market a couple months ago.  I made some salmon chowder with them, but nobody liked it.  So I still had several pounds in the freezer and decided to take some out and try these salmon patties.  They turned out SO delicious and were quite easy to make.

I chopped up about 1 lb of salmon into little chunks and mixed with 1 1/2 cups of bread crumbs (Italian seasoned), 2 eggs, 1/2 finely chopped onion, 1 T of Worcestershire Sauce, 1 teaspoon Chalula hot sauce, 1 teaspoon dried parsley, salt and pepper.  I mixed that all up and made into patties which I then coated in more bread crumbs on a little plate.

I fried these in about 1/4 inch of oil in a large skillet - several minutes on each side until golden brown.

They are very yummy!!!

A Great Use for Pillsbury Refrigerator Biscuits

As you should know by now, I try to make everything from scratch as much as possible.  There are some things I just can't keep up with to make from scratch.  One of those things is biscuits.  I am not a great baker (except for bread and I never mess with the recipe:-), so things like biscuits take me too much time and hassle to make from scratch.  I have done it several times, but the results just aren't worth the effort.  Perhaps if I had someone who could come and show me how to do it, I might have better success than just reading a recipe.

So I watch for sales on Pillsbury Grands Biscuits and use coupons to get them for $1 or less each.  However, I just found out that you can make donuts, like the ones at the Chinese buffets, with these biscuits.  All you do is heat up about 1 to 1 1/2 inches of oil in a saucepan to 350 degrees and then drop the biscuits whole or cut into 4 pieces (cook more quickly this way) into the oil.  Turn them over when you see them begin to brown and wait a few more moments.  Remove from oil, drain on paper towel and then toss in a  paper bag with some sugar in it.  Oh my, these are SOOOOOO good!

We decided they were WAY too easy to make - might become a problem for our waistlines!!  And there are none left to take pictures of since they were eaten so rapidly.  I like to use the Grands Jr. biscuits for this and just cut them in half. 

Have you come across any novel uses for Pillsbury Grands Biscuits?  I would love to hear your ideas!

Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta....Yummmmm!

Now that summer is officially here:-), I am doing some things that have been put off for far too long.  I still have to run my kids to things almost every day, but since we are down to just a little Geometry and History for school (have to finish some things that we got behind on), I have several hours of time that I am not used to having each day.  So one of the things that I really wanted to do for a long time is to make pasta.

Several years ago, I bought an Italian pasta machine (hand crank variety) with spaghetti and fettuccine cutters at a thrift store for about $4.  I have wanted to use it many times, but I have never had a large enough time slot to get it all done (takes 3-4 hours).  So today I pulled out my pasta machine and looked up a good whole wheat pasta recipe and began.  It took me a few tries to get the hang of the pasta machine, but I figured it out and made a huge batch of pasta!!  For lunch, I just boiled some of the noodles and tossed with some spaghetti sauce.  And for dinner, I cooked some more of the pasta and tossed with some Chipotle Chicken Sausage, broccoli, onions and olive oil.  It was very yummy - even my kiddos said it was awesome!

Here is the recipe that I used for the pasta:

3 cups whole wheat flour (freshly ground, of course)
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
8 eggs
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon of olive oil
water (I used about 1/2 cup)

Since I have an awesome Bosch mixer, I just threw all the ingredients (except water) into the mixer and turned it on.  Then I added water about a tablespoon at a time until it came together as a stiff dough.  I wrapped it in a damp towel and just took off about a fist full for each batch of pasta (more than that got too long to handle).

I ran the dough through my pasta machine once on each setting 1 through 6 and then sent it through the cutters.  Then I laid it all over my table to dry, turning it as the top got dry so that the other side would dry, too.  I need one of those clothes drying racks to set on my table to hang the pasta on.  Note to Self:  watch for one at yard sales and thrift stores:-)

I still have enough for about one more portion of pasta and it is thoroughly dried now, so I can just throw it in a ziploc and keep until ready to use.

All in all, I would say it was a great success!  I will definitely do it again sometime soon!  And I want to make gnocchi again soon, too.

Simply Homemade: Yogurt in a Crock Pot

I first posted this several years ago and wanted to share the recipe again because this homemade yogurt is SO wonderful!  I have since bought a yogurt maker at a yard sale for $3 and it makes the yogurt in little cups.  Almost the exact same process, just in the small cups and the yogurt maker heats it at a very low heat for exactly the amount of time needed.  But for you who don't have a yogurt maker, here is a really simple and wonderful way to make homemade yogurt!

Well, I finally did it!! I made yogurt in a crockpot. I have been wanting to do this ever since I first read about it on a blog (can't remember whose, so if it was yours, please remind me so I can give you credit!!) It is SO yummy and inexpensive and wholesome! I am very excited at how simple it was and that it worked on the FIRST try:-) and is nice and thick and creamy!

Here is what I did:
I put 2 quarts of milk into my crockpot (you can do 1 quart, but I wanted to make alot) and heated it on low setting for three (3) hours (the directions I read said this time was very important). Then I turned the crockpot off and let it sit for 2 hours (you can leave it set for longer, but it was midnight and I didn't want to stay up any later). Then I put about 1 cup of natural plain yogurt (from the store or from a previous batch) into a jar and added an equal amount of the warm milk. I mixed this very well, then began adding it, a little at a time, to the crockpot milk, stirring well after each addition. When it was all mixed together, I wrapped my crockpot in a big towel and left sit overnight. This morning when I opened it and checked it, it was nice and thick. I chilled it in the fridge for a couple hours and then had it with homemade granola cereal and blackberry jam for breakfast. YUMMMMMMY!!!

Sorry for the bad photo - don't know what happened and I only took one (it was very early this morning:-).

Simply Homemade: Yummy Granola Cereal and Hot Cocoa Mix

These are a couple of staples that I have been making for a little while and now my kids get upset when we run out. So I thought I would share the recipes in case anyone would like to try them, too.

Healthy Homemade Granola Cereal
4 cups old fashioned oats
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup slivered almonds (or chopped pecans)
1/2 cup Sucanat (or brown sugar)
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil
4 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups whole grain flakes
In a large bowl, combine the oats, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, almonds, sucanat and salt. Mix well and then toss in the whole grain flakes. In another bowl, mix the oil, honey, water and vanilla. Pour the liquid mixture over the dry ingredients and mix well. Spread over a jelly-roll pan sprayed with nonstick spray. Bake at 300 degrees for 50-60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. If you desire, you can add raisins for the last 15 minutes. You can also add banana chips or dried cranberries. The granola will brown as it cooks. Cool and store in an airtight container.

Hot Cocoa Mix
2 3/4 cups powdered milk
1 cup cocoa
1 1/2 cups sugar
dash of salt

Whirl in blender and store in airtight container. Use 3 Tablespoons per cup of hot water.

Yummy Chicken and Dumplings

I think I have only made chicken and dumplings 2 or 3 times in my life and I have probably followed a different recipe each time (I can't remember.)  However, this time I read a few different recipes and decided to "wing it" myself.  I have cooked for almost 35 years (yes, I started when I was 2:-) and figured I have a good feel for what will taste good.  So here is how I made these delicious Chicken and Dumplings the easy way.

I put about 4 quarts of chicken broth into a big pot and brought it to a boil.  You can use water with the powdered chicken broth, or used homemade or canned/boxed.  Check the seasoning and add whatever you think makes it taste the best (I used Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute).  While waiting for that to come to a boil, I chopped up some onion (about 1/2 of one), carrots (4), celery (2 or 3) and I had some broccoli I wanted to use up, so I chopped it up, too.  When the broth was boiling, I added all these ingredients.  I also chopped up 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts that I had (I got these from Zaycon Foods - 40 lb. for $1.49/lb and they are HUGE!!!) and added them to the broth.  I let that boil/simmer for about 30-40 minutes.

Then I took out a can of Pillsbury Grands Biscuits.  I flattened each biscuit a little and then just cut them up into strips about 1 1/2 inches long and dropped them into the pot a little at a time.  Stir occasionally just to make sure they don't stick together.  After letting that cook for about 15 minutes, I took a little of the broth plus a little milk (total about 1/2 cup) and mixed in about 1 1/2 Tablespoons of flour.  I have one of those Tupperware shakers, so it is really easy to prevent clumps.  Then I poured that into the big pot and watched it thicken a little into a nice gravy for the chicken and dumplings.  And that is it - it was ready to eat!!! 

It got rave reviews from my kiddos and I will DEFINITELY do a repeat on this one!!

Soup In A Pumpkin Recipe

Today, after 5 months of waiting, I finally used my pumpkin to make Soup in a Pumpkin! I really love it and have only made it a couple of times, usually for Thanksgiving. But this year, for some reason, I just never got around to it. So today, finally, I made it. I use the basic recipe from CDKitchen here, but I used a larger pumpkin and for my bread crumbs, I used pumpkin rolls left over in the freezer from Christmas. It is a very rich and creamy soup, but oh, so yummy! And on this cold day, it hits the spot.

Yummy Baked Apple Pancakes for Breakfast

I tried a new recipe this morning and it was scrumptious! Baked Apple Pancakes! It wasn't very hard, took about 20 minutes to prepare and then 10 minutes to bake. Everyone loved it and said I needed to double the recipe! This is definitely a keeper and one that I will make often. I had some Gala apples I wanted to use, so I just went searching and found this recipe over at Recipezaar. Since this is the season for cheap apples, try it for your family!! And sorry, no pics, we ate it too fast for me to even think about photos.

Our Favorite Teriyaki Chicken!! Yummmmmmm!

I first made this Baked Teriyaki Chicken recipe several months ago and we all LOVED it! And it is very easy to make since you bake the chicken with the sauce on it.

Last weekend, I made this recipe for 100 people for our church lunch and everyone seemed to love it as well. So, since many have asked for the recipe, I thought I would share it.

It is from Allrecipes.com (if you haven't looked at their recipes yet, you really need to check it out!). I really like baking this with the chicken thighs because they are cheap (I usually get them for $0.67-$0.79/lb) and stay very moist. You can also use chicken breasts, even boneless, if you prefer.

While the chicken is baking, I saute some veggies (carrots, broccoli, squash, whatever) and cook my rice so that as soon as the chicken is done, the whole meal is ready to go. I like to debone the meat, shred it a little and toss it with the veggies, adding any leftover sauce at this point (make extra, you will love it!). Then just serve over rice and your meal is complete.

Homemade Sloppy Joes

Quite a number of years ago, I wanted to make sloppy joes but didn't have a can of sauce. I posted a question on a board somewhere (can't remember where) asking for a recipe to make from scratch and someone replied very quickly. And I haven't bought the canned sauce again since!

Every time I make it, I change it a little depending on what I have on hand and what I feel like (spicy, mild, etc.), but here is a general idea of my recipe:
2 lbs. ground turkey or lean beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
Optional: chopped green or red pepper, jalapeno
1 can tomato sauce
2 T worcestershire sauce
2 T dijon mustard
2 T honey
2 T cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Brown the ground meat and onion. Mix in all the other ingredients. Allow to simmer for at least 15 minutes to thicken sauce. Serve on homemade whole grain buns with a slice of cheese.
My family just loves these! And they are healthy and wholesome, too!

If you would like more kitchen tips, check out Kitchen Tip Tuesdays over at Tammy's Recipes.
For more great ideas, check out Make It From Scratch where creativity and frugality meet!

We All Scream for Ice Cream...Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter!

Yesterday, I was reading Passionate Homemaking and saw her recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream. It looked so easy (and my kids are always begging me to make ice cream - that ice cream maker sits around doing nothing most of the time) and I knew my family would love it. So I decided to try it. Yummmmmmmm! And I don't normally like chocolate, but this uses cocoa powder and tastes just like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup!Here is her recipe, but I made a few changes. First, I don't have access to raw milk, so I just used whole milk and heavy cream (cheap here in Mexico). Also, I just ground up some fresh peanut butter and used honey and sucanat in the ice cream. So all in all, it is pretty healthy - as long as you don't eat a quart in one sitting:-) It is also pretty inexpensive, considering that a 1/2 gallon of good ice cream costs about $5.00! This probably was less than $3.00 total.I can't wait to try her Coconut Ice Cream recipe - that is my FAVORITE flavor!

Homemade Bagels - Frugal and Delicious!

Last night, a friend came over and we made bagels together. They came out great and I really enjoyed one this morning with cream cheese for breakfast.

Here is the Honey Wholewheat Bagels recipe I used:

3 cups warm water
1/3 cup honey
1 tsp. salt
5 tsp. instant yeast
8 cups fresh ground whole wheat flour

I put the water, honey, salt and half the flour in my mixer, then added the yeast. I mixed this for about a minute and then let it sit for 15 minutes to sponge. I then added the rest of the flour, a little at a time until the dough was pulling away from the sides and not sticky. Then I let my machine knead the dough for 5 minutes.

I moved the dough to a greased bowl, covered with a towel and let it rise. It said to rise for an hour or until doubled - well, in this heat it only took 30 minutes! Then I divided it into balls (about 25, but recipe says 18 so you can make them bigger than I did), then using my thumbs, I poked a hole into the middle of each one and worked it out until the sides were about 1" and the hole in the center was about 2". Then I set them on a greased cookie sheet, covered with a towel, to rest and rise for about 15 minutes. In the meantime, I got my pot of water with 2 Tbl. of sugar on to boiling and turned my oven on to 450 degrees.

I dropped the bagels into the boiling water 3 at a time, cooked for 2 minutes on each side, then drained on a towel. As soon as they came out of the water, I sprinkled them with different toppings - parmesan and garlic, rosemary and garlic, sun-dried tomato and basil, kosher salt. Then I baked the bagels in the oven for 10 minutes, turned them over and baked for another 10 minutes.

My friend mixed the seasonings into her dough before forming the bagels. She even made some with cinnamon and raisins. They all turned out great! I put a bunch in the freezer to save for next week, but we did eat some even though it was after 10pm at night! Who can resist freshly baked bagels (or bread, or whatever!!).

I figure that the 25 bagels I made cost me about $2.50 total and about 2 1/2 hours of my time (however, when you bake with a friend, your time is never lost:-). I know at WalMart, 4 bagels usually cost about $2.00, so this was a very frugal endeavor.

Cool and Refreshing...Ahhhh!

It is so hot and humid here (and we hardly ever have humidity!), that I made up a cool and refreshing icy fruit drink yesterday to enjoy. First I made some sun tea using Honey Vanilla Chamomile Tea. Then, into the blender, I put 3 kiwis, 1 T Agave Nectar, 1tsp. vanilla, 1 cup frozen blackberries (that I picked fresh in May), a tray of ice cubes and one cup of that sun tea. Then I blended it up and it was cool, tangy, refreshing and very purple! I don't have a photo because I let my kids take my camera on their missions trip - sorry! But trust me when I say it hit the spot!

Do you have any cool, refreshing drink recipes you could share with me? It seems about the only thing I am hungry for most days and I just don't have much experience in this category:-). Please share your ideas with me.

For more great ideas, check out The Homesteading Carnival: Southern Sunsets Edition over at Walking Therein.
Also, you can find lots of things at Make It From Scratch hosted by Country Magpie.

Ground Beef Recipe - Chili Beef Stack

I have been very busy, so I have not been blogging as much as I would like to. But next week, I should be able to make up for it - my kids will be away for about 10 days on a missions trip to the Apache Indians in the White Mountains of Arizona. I know, it seems a little silly that missionary kids are going on a missionary trip to another place, but it is good for them to reach out to another different culture on occasion. (In case you are new here, we are missionaries serving in Mexico.)

The other day, I was reading through a ground beef cookbook (Sunset from 1965) that I got from my great aunt Rachel who is moving to PA. We went up to help her with her yard sale last weekend and she let me have as many cookbooks as I wanted! I was in cookbook heaven - I just LOVE cookbooks! I will share more about some of the really old, really fantastic ones I got on another post.

I came across this recipe and it sounded so unique and different that I just had to try it. And it was really good! My family voted that I make it any time! That is high praise here!

Chili Beef Stack

1/2 medium onion, chopped
1/2 medium green pepper, chopped
1 1/2 lbs of ground beef (I used ground turkey, though:-)
1 small can sliced mushrooms, drained
2 Tbl. butter or oil ( I used coconut oil)
2 cans (8 oz.) tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon of chili powder (I make my own mixture)
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic salt

Pancakes:
1 egg
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup cornmeal
3/4 cups whole wheat flour (I used a little more because it seemed thin)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbl. baking powder
1 Tbl. olive oil
Grated parmesan cheese (I used mozzarella cheese)

Saute' onion, green pepper, ground beef, and mushrooms in melted butter, stirring occasionally with a fork until meat is browned. Stir in tomato sauce, chili powder, mustard, salt, pepper, and garlic salt, and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, make pancakes as follows: Beat egg lightly and beat in milk. Gradually, stir in cornmeal, whole wheat flour, salt, and baking powder, and beat until batter is smooth. Blend in oil. Cook pancakes on both sides on a hot, greased griddle until golden brown. Makes about 12 pancakes, 4-5 inches in diameter.

For each serving, spoon meat sauce between and on top of a stack of three pancakes. Sprinkle with grated cheese. Makes 4 servings.

For more ground beef recipes, go on over to Frugal Upstate: Frugal Food - Part Four! She is featuring recipes with a different ingredient each week.

Recipes for Eggs

I just found a new blog Frugal Upstate that is running a Frugal Food Series with Part One being Eggs! So I thought I would share about our Chilaquiles breakfast that we enjoy every so often. It is frugal, yummy and uses eggs. So go on over and add your own egg recipes to the Frugal Food - Part One: Eggs!

A Nostalgic Recipe for Me - Stuffed Grape Leaves

We were picking blackberries again yesterday and when I came around a corner I saw grape vines. I got very excited because there are very few places around here (in the desert) that have grape vines and I have not been able to make this family dish since we have lived here - over 5 years! I asked the owners if I could snip some of their leaves and they said sure. So I snipped about 65 or so leaves and last night made a very nostalgic recipe for me - stuffed grape leaves.
This recipe brings back so many memories - my grandmother was from Germany and we had a grape harbor. So every summer, we would make this recipe together, as long as there were young leaves on the grape vines. Most recipes for stuffed grape leaves are Greek in origin and do not include the tomatoes. I truly don't know the ethnic origins of this meal, but it is very different tasting from the Greek ones.

To begin with, I washed the leaves in a big bowl with some baking soda and patted them dry with a towel. Then I made a meat and rice mixture for the filling and rolled a portion of meat into each leaf. I found a step by step photo tutorial online for filling and rolling, so I didn't take pictures of those steps. However, I don't blanch the leaves first, but that would make it easier:-) Now, my grandmother cooked hers in a pressure cooker for about 20 minutes. I don't have a pressure cooker, so I decided to try my roasting pan in the oven and it worked great! Here is my recipe, slightly modified from my grandmothers:

2 lbs. ground turkey
1 cup white rice
2 Tbl. 21 Seasoning Salute (from Trader Joes) or any mixture of spices you would like
1/2 tsp. allspice

Mix this all together for the filling. Put about a Tablespoon of mixture in each leaf (depending on size of leaves) and roll up. Cover bottom of pan with flat grape leaves and then place the rolled ones on top of that, layering as you go. Then pour canned tomatoes over them (I used 4 cans - around 15 oz. each - of whole tomatoes and just broke them up with my fingers). Cover with another layer of flat grape leaves. Add a little water to ensure no burning and enough sauce. Cover pot and place in 350 degree oven for one hour. When they are ready, serve over mashed potatoes. Mmmm...delicious! You can also cook in a pot on the stove top (that is how I have done it in the past). Cook until rice is tender.

For more great recipes and ideas, visit Grandma Rosie's Texas Home for the 51st Homesteading Carnival and don't miss Make It From Scratch being hosted over at The Miller Way.

Salad Dressing Recipes Galore!

I was searching for a recipe for a salad dressing similar to the Romano Dressing that Pizza Hut used to have when I was a kid, and I found this wonderful booklet of salad dressing recipes (www.creativehomemaking.com) over at Creative Homemaking.

It is 10 pages in pdf format that you can download and print out for future reference. I made a jar of the Buttermilk Ranch Dressing and it is very good. Just click on the link above in the brackets and you can download the booklet.

You can find more tips over at Tammy's Recipes and the Festival of Frugality today! And don't forget to check out Make It From Scratch, too!

Homemade Granola Bar Recipe

I have been looking for awhile for a really good granola bar recipe - we like it crunchy! Well, I finally found - and tried - one that I really like. It is from Alton Brown (I just LOVE to watch him on Good Eats) and does not use corn syrup - yeah! Try it and see if you like it, too!


8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats, approximately 2 cups
1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds, approximately 1/2 cup
3 ounces sliced almonds, approximately 1 cup
1 1/2 ounces wheat germ, approximately 1/2 cup
6 ounces honey, approximately 1/2 cup
1 3/4 ounces dark brown sugar, approximately 1/4 cup packed (I used Sucanat)
1-ounce unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
6 1/2 ounces chopped dried fruit, any combination of apricots, cherries or blueberries
Butter a 9 by 9-inch glass baking dish and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, and wheat germ onto a half-sheet pan. Place in the oven and toast for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, combine the honey, brown sugar, butter, extract and salt in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook until the brown sugar has completely dissolved.

Once the oat mixture is done, remove it from the oven and reduce the heat to 300 degrees F. Immediately add the oat mixture to the liquid mixture, add the dried fruit, and stir to combine. Turn mixture out into the prepared baking dish and press down, evenly distributing the mixture in the dish and place in the oven to bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container for up to a week.
By the way, I have learned SO much about food and cooking from watch Alton Brown on Good Eats, so if you get a chance, check it out on the Food Network!

Make Your Own Cinnamon Vanilla Creamer

I only drink one cup of DECAF coffee per day (helps me wake up), but I like flavored creamer in my coffee. Since I have been making my husband's half and half with much success, HE suggested that I ought to be able to make my flavored creamer in a similar manner. Since we live in Mexico, we can only purchase this when we go across into the states, so it is a matter of convenience even more than frugality.

Well, guess what I found over at The Motherload? She had experimented and figured out a way to make flavored creamer using sweetened condensed milk (she even has a recipe for making that from scratch). So I decided to experiment myself and try it with Lechera (the Mexican version of sweetened condensed milk). I put one can of Lechera, 2 cups of milk (1 1/2 like she called for was still too thick), 2 teaspoons of vanilla (the real kind from Mexico) and about 1 Tablespoon of ground cinnamon (I am sure a liquid would be better, but that is what I had). I mixed that all up in my blender and it came out really great! I had a tiny bit left from my previous purchase to taste test it against and it is awfully close. And, just for the frugal side of me, it only cost HALF of what I have been paying for creamer. So it is a big savings, too!! Don't you just love that?

I am sure you could make all different kinds of flavors with a little experimenting and some of those liquid flavorings like they use at Starbucks. I like mine simple - vanilla and cinnamon.

Frugal Meal with Baked BBQ Beef Ribs

A store near us had beef ribs on sale for $0.49/lb! So I bought two big packages for less than $5.00 total. I found this recipe online for Baked BBQ Beef Ribs and we sure did enjoy it! I made creamy mashed potatoes and broccoli as side dishes and we all tremendously enjoyed this meal. I will be returning to stock up on $0.49/lb ribs before they are all gone!

Ok, I fed them more than just bones! But look at all the great bones we now have for our dogs!!