HAPPY ST PATRICK’S DAY

 

                                 

 SO how do you fix your St. Patrick’s day meal.???

Is it a long

drawn out ordeal of brinning the meat or boiling or baking the meat. SPICED OR NOT SPICED?  I used to like the spiced meat..but have gotten used to the un-spiced now.  I was shocked to hear from a neighbor that she no longer makes her dinners that she made for 50 years, because the meat is too tough for them to eat..That was so sad to hear. I told her that there are so many ways to fix the dinner. She could not believe that someone boiled the meat. She never had made it that way.

She was baking the meat in the oven and that made it really tough to chew…My mother was  born in the south and her mother always boiled the meat and made a boiled dinner out of it.That meat falls apart and loses some of the salt in the water and by adding the cabbage and potatoes it loses more salt…. or does it??  THIS IS THE QUESTION…Does it really lose the salt or is it still there? I say it is there… but not as bad as if the whole thing were baked, with some glaze on it.Whatever you make for your holiday meal..I am sure it will be yummy!!

Here is my recipe for what our local store calls IRISH FLUFF, but there are other names for it too. This is a really sweet dessert you might like to try..

INGREDIENTS
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 (3 ounce) package instant pistachio pudding mix
1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1/2 (10.5 ounce) package miniature marshmallows

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine the pineapple and dry pistachio pudding mix. Fold in thawed whipped topping and marshmallows until well mixed. Refrigerate until chilled and serve.

 HOPE YOUR WEEKEND IS FULL OF IRISH GOOD LUCK WISHES..

CAKE OR COOKIE??

Following my last post..if you had ONLY ONE choice..could only have  O N E  ..would you choose cake or a cookie for your sweet treat? Remember you can’t choose candy.  Hands down, I would choose COOKIE..who needs a whole cake? Some choose their favorite cake like Devil’s food or Lemon but why not have Chocolate Chip FOREVER?? Nothing beats that taste I am thinking. I admit in the past I have even eaten raw cookie dough, but not anymore. Don’t exactly know WHY chocolate chip is sooo incredibly good to so many. Who invented them NESTLE? Why did they call them Toll house? HERE is what I found out..

 Ruth Graves Wakefield graduated from the Framingham State Normal School Department of Household Arts in 1924. She worked as a dietitian and lectured on food, until, together with her husband she bought a tourist lodge named the Toll House Inn.

“Ruth Wakefield prepared the recipes for the meals served to the guests at the Toll House Inn and gained local notoriety for her deserts. One of her favorite recipes was for Butter Drop Do cookies. The recipe called for the use of baker’s chocolate and one day Ruth found herself without the needed ingredient. She substituted a semi-sweet chocolate bar cut up into bits. However, unlike the baker’s chocolate the chopped up chocolate bar did not melt completely, the small pieces only softened.”  YUM!!

  Three guesses who gave her the chocolate bar. YEP.. it was none other than Andrew Nestle. When the recipe became famous and the sale of his chocolate chips went up he struck a deal with Ruth to publish the recipe on the bag of his chocolate chips. Poor Ruth is not well known but Nestle is. At least the TOLL HOUSE name is still on every bag of chips and every product. The original recipe calls for NUTS but with so many allergies it is now optional.

The Toll House Inn burned down in 1984 and was not rebuilt, here is Ruth.. a very pretty lady. What did she get from her famous recipe? A lifetime supply of chocolate chips! Ruth passed away in 1977  at the age of 73.

3,2,1 CAKE

 

Wow I was sent this recipe in my e-mail from one of my long time blogging friends CHERYL. It is so simple and I will be trying it very soon.. This is pretty hard to mess up and I can see children even being able to use it too. If you are on a diet or just in a household of one or two people..this will help you greatly. THANKS CHERYL. 

 

These individual little cakes are amazing
and ready to eat in one minute! They are perfect
for whenever you feel like a treat without all the fat
and calories that cake can have. Genius idea!

INGREDIENTS: 1 box Angel Food Cake Mix  (One step method)

 1 box Cake Mix – Any Flavor

 2 Tbsp Water

 Makes 1 serving.

 DIRECTIONS: In a ziploc bag, combine the two cake mixes together
and mix well.

 For each individual cake serving, take
out 3 Tablespoons of the cake mix combination and mix it with 2 Tablespoons of water in a small microwave-safe
container. Microwave on high for 1 minute, and you have
your own instant individual little cake!

KEEP remaining cake mixture stored in the ziploc bag
and use whenever you feel like a treat! You can top
each cake with a dollop of fat free whipped topping
and/or some fresh fruit. Helpful Tips:

This recipe is called 3, 2, 1 Cake because all you need
to remember is “3 tablespoons mix,
2 tablespoons water,
1 minute in the microwave!”

TRY various flavors of cake mix like carrot, red velvet, pineapple,
lemon, orange, etc. Just remember that one of the mixes has
to be the angel food mix; the other is your choice.
The flavor possibilities are endless!

NOTES:
The best thing is, you open both cake mixes into a gallon
storage bag, one that ‘zip locks’ or ‘self-seals’, or a
container that seals tightly, shake the two cake mixes to
blend and then make the recipe. Storage of mix is simple,
put it on a shelf. No need to refrigerate, since the mix is dry.

Always remember, that one of the cake mixes MUST be
Angel Food. The other can be any flavor.
The Angel Food is the cake mix that has the eggs whites
in it. So, if, anyone is allergic to egg whites, you can NOT
serve this recipe.

NEW YEAR’S EVE..

          

There’s a new year’s eve tradition I have of making platters of snacks for us for the holidays, so I have included my fruit dip here and an alternative for a more low cal version you might like too.

 FRUIT DIP…

 

1 jar of marshmallow creme.. (small jar)

1 package of creme cheese (can use low fat kind)

mix those together and use about 1/2 tsp

of nutmeg . (or add it to your taste.)

Use this with all kinds of cut up fruit.

This dip is so rich, but boy does it go fast!!

I bet I get asked “where’s the dip?” too

 

LOW CAL FRUIT DIP

 

1  small carton of Yoplait WHIPPED flavored yogurt (6oz)

1 small carton of whipped topping (thawed 4 oz)

This can be doubled  for a larger batch. Tastes Great!!

 

This year not sure how much cooking I will do but I surely will be snacking some and these two dips really are great. I love making a cheese, meat and cracker platter too. A new chip I found this year is by SUN CHIPS

and it’s a natural grain chip and it’s thin and delicious. They have so many flavors too. I hope you can find these in stores near you.

 

On New Years Eve this year I will be lighting a candle in remembrance of those bloggers we miss.. including  Bob Bowers, Carol Ward, and for  my mom.. They are truly missed.

 

With all the many changes they are making over to Facebook I am hoping to see if this posts there. I am still working on my profile page trying to get the settings the way I want them. Hopefully they won’t be changing it again just when we get used to things.

 

HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY NEW YEAR’S EVE!!     

 

POPCORN BALLS II

Awhile back I posted about how mom made popcorn balls long ago with molasses.I guess it depends on how much time you have or the taste that you like.  Now days we make them so much easier.  Popcorn balls so fast you will want to make many batches. 

Microwave a large size bag of popcorn. Let set while you do the next step.  Sometimes I do several bags so I know I have enough popcorn.

 Microwaving a bag of mini marshmallows in a large bowl with 6 Tablespoons of butter is pretty simple. Anyone who has made rice krispie treats knows this step. Melt them for about 2 minutes or until the mixture can be stirred and all the marshmallows are melted. (This is where I add food color..red and yellow make them orange).  Let it cool a little bit. 

Smear  butter on your hands or spray your hands with cooking spray and proceed to pour the popcorn into the large bowl. Stir it well and make into balls. This recipe will make at least 6 to 8 balls depending on the size. you can add candy corn, M&M’s, sprinkles or any candy you like to the sticky outside. Decorate them if you like. Wrap these in wax or plastic wrap.

In case you are wondering..here is the recipe for the

Molasses popcorn balls..      

 Directions 

  Use large bag of microwave popcorn,( you may need more than one  bag.)

 

1. In 2 quart saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon butter. Stir in 1 cup sugar, 1 cup molasses, and 1/2 tsp salt. Insert a candy thermometer in saucepan and boil sugar mixture on medium heat until the thermometer reads 260 degrees F(126 degrees C).
2. Pour syrup over corn, while stirring  popcorn thoroughly. Butter hands lightly. Shape popcorn into 12 to 14 balls. Wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap.

ENJOY!!!