Food Worth Wearing

Maple-Bacon Breakfast Cookies

2011-10-08T15:35:00.000-05:00

Last weekend I opened up the newest Our Iowa Magazine, flipped through, read some articles and came up on the following recipe in the small recipe section that each magazine contains. This recipe immediately sparked my interest. It had many things in it that sounded delicious, yet not terribly bad for you. "A hearty breakfast in the form of a portable snack", as shared by the submitter who happens to be a pediatric surgeon.

I made these on Saturday night so that I could take them to our "after the Especially for You 5K race" brunch at my in-laws. They were quite tasty and very well received. The recipe was moved into my favorite recipe's binder!

Maple-Bacon Breakfast Cookies

(from Our Iowa Magazine Oct/Nov 2011 - Stephanie Kapfer, VA)

Ingredients

1 cup butter (can substitute a 50/50 butter blend such as Smart Balance)

1 ½ cup packed dark brown sugar

1 egg

½ cup pure maple syrup

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 cups quick-cooking oats

½ cup crumbled cooked thick-sliced bacon

½ cup chopped pecans

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and brown sugar. Add egg and syrup; mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in the oats, bacon and pecans until well blended.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto nonstick cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 14-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to brown paper or wire racks to cool. Makes about 5 dozen.

To make about 2 dozen jumbo cookies: Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls and bake at 325 degrees for 16-18 minutes.

Red White & Blue Trifle

2011-07-09T21:24:00.000-05:00

Is this not a beautiful dessert? This is my own creation and it is as yummy as it is pretty! The berries have been absolutely delicious this year. The blueberries are big and juicy and the strawberries...what can I say! Last year I made this for the first time and did it a little differently. But this year's variation was the clear winner for taste. It has moved into the "must haves" on our 4th of July party menu.

Red, White & Blue Trifle

Ingredients

Angel Food Cake (ready made, boxed and made at home, or made from scratch) - tear into bite size pieces
1 pound of blueberries - cleaned, stems removed
2 pounds of strawberries - cleaned, hulls removed, sliced
Cream cheese mixture - an 8 oz cream cheese, softened; mix with 1 cup powdered sugar, and an 8 oz container of cool whip, thawed

You are going to have to divide everything into thirds. Layer the cake, cream cheese, berries, repeat. I like to save back some of the strawberries for the top and instead of slices I cut them in half. You can get as creative as you want on the top.

To make sure the berries are easily seen be sure to slide some blueberries and strawberries down the sides of the bowl as you layer.

Such a wonderful dessert. Light, refreshing, and full of flavor. Enjoy!!!

Freaky Fast Meal - Hot Roast Beef Sandwiches

2011-01-30T21:07:00.000-06:00

Today we had a super fast, super easy lunch - Hot Roast Beef Sandwiches. These are one of my all time favorite "comfort foods". I had it in my head that I wanted to make these this weekend, so when we went to Sam's Friday night I picked up a package of sliced roast beef. (Which by the way was Angus beef and it was wonderfully tender and tasty.) The only real preparation to be done was making the mashed potatoes and gravy. And to simplify the gravy I used Williams gravy mix. (I use many of the Williams seasoning mixes for chili, white gravy, etc. - all are quite tasty.)
So here is the rundown of what I did:
1) Make mashed potatoes
2) Make gravy
3) Heated sliced roast beef (in the microwave using low power - you don't want to "cook" it, just warm it)
4) Cook side vegetable
5) Put roast beef sandwich together. Slice in half and spread out on plate.
6) Put mashed potatoes in between sandwich slices
7) Pour gravy over the top of everything
8) Put vegetables on plate
9) ENJOY!!!

This meal will be enjoyed at least twice more for lunches this next week. It won't take any time at all to warm it up.

What's up with you? Here is what is up with me!!!

2011-01-23T21:24:00.000-06:00

Okay, I've been very lax in blogging lately. The last one was in November, but things have been crazy busy - with the holidays and all. I'll bring you up to date with what has been going on at our house.

We had our Custom Hose party the first weekend of December and that meant LOTS of cookies had to be baked! Each employee has to make 24 dozen cookies which then go into the cookie buckets that we send out to our out-of-town customers. Those took pretty much a whole weekend.

Another weekend went into baking my sweet breads. I made some as gifts (for our pastor and neighbors) and then made LOTS of mini-loaves to be given away to the guests at our open house. We had our semi-annual Christmas Open House the weekend before Christmas. Suffice it to say that there are lots of preps that go with that. I should mention that we call it "semi-annual", although we hadn't had one since 2007. We were supposed to have it in 2009 but with Jim's cancer diagnosis we opted out last year. We had lots to be thankful for and to celebrate this Christmas so it was all done with great joy in our hearts! We had a great turnout and all went well. (Thanks Vicki, Cathy and Becca for all your help that day!)

Jim had his follow-up visit with Dr. Nabi the day before our Christmas Open House. Everything looked good and he doesn't go back till April. On April 13th he has a CT scan and then on April 15th he sees the doctor. He feels great and is stronger then he has ever been! He is working out doing cardio and strength exercises at least 5 days a week.

We are really busy at work so we have had lots of long days there, occasionally going in on the weekends to play "catch up". We are thankful to have good jobs so we are not complaining.

The Christian women's group I belong too has me busy also. We have our annual seminar coming up on April 16th and due to the Crowne Plaza closing up for remodeling we had to find a new venue for this year. It was finally decided to use The Hotel at Kirkwood. This facility is new and just opened in 2010. Seating will be limited to 500 so we will have to limit our ticket sales for the first time ever. We have Angela Thomas as our speaker and Bebo Norman as our musician. Check out our website (thanks to Rachelle): www.hiswomenseminar.org

Speaking of Rachelle, she has been staying with us the last couple weeks while doing some software work at Custom Hose. The other day we were talking about the many "quick" lunches that I put together each work day. (Jim & I come home for lunch every day.) She suggested that I share some of my quick meal ideas on the blog. I am thinking I may do something on a weekly basis. You'll need to check back to see how this comes along!

Well this enough for tonight. I'll try to be better about getting my posts up. I have been taking lots of pictures of the various foods I've made over the last couple months, I just haven't sat down to type up the recipes. I guess I need to get busy! LOL

Honey Fruit Salad

2010-11-21T19:00:00.000-06:00

Is this not the prettiest bowl of fruit you've ever seen? Absolutely appetizing! The dressing is not overpowering but the subtle honey sauce makes it an especially sweet treat! It only takes about 10 minutes to assemble, so if you have your fruits ready to go you can put it together in no time!

Honey Fruit Salad (Taste of Home, Simple &Delicious Cookbook)

2 medium bananas, chopped
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 cups fresh raspberries (I used blackberries)

2 cups sliced strawberries
5 Tbsp honey
1 tsp lemon juice
3/4 tsp poppy seeds

In a large bowl, combine the bananas and berries. In a small bowl, combine the honey, lemon juice and poppy seeds. Pour over fruit and toss to coat. Yield: 8 servings

Fruit options: depending on the time of year you can change out the fruit - you could use mangoes, peaches or blackberries.

Perfect Pumpkin Pie

2010-11-14T20:31:00.002-06:00

I love pumpkin pie and I really love crustless pumpkin pie. It isn't about the crust for me. It is about the fabulous pumpkin filling. This recipe has great flavor and with a dollop of whipped topping on top, you won't even miss the crust. Great for Thanksgiving or anytime!

Perfect Pumpkin Pie - Crustless

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin (2 cups)

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk)

2 eggs

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. With wire whisk or mixer, beat all ingredients. Pour into a pie pan (that has been sprayed with a no stick spray). Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees F. Continue baking 35-40 minutes or until knife inserted 1 inch from edge comes out clean. Cool. Garnish as desired. Store covered in refrigerator.

Note: To cut more fat, I've made this with fat free sweetened condensed milk and with egg whites. (1/4 cup egg whites = 1 egg)

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

2010-11-10T19:55:00.004-06:00

We had our camping club potluck last weekend. I had already committed to bringing a turkey and crock-pot dressing, but I decided that I needed to take a dessert. A new dessert! I had come across this recipe recently and it sounded really good. One of my favorite cheesecake recipes calls for sweetened condensed milk and no sour cream. This recipe incorporated the same ingredients. The crust is primarily made up of a cake mix. The original recipe called for a pound cake mix - but do you think we could find one at our local grocery? No. So I made it using a yellow cake mix and it turned out great. These bars went over very well and real quite tasty. I would recommend them as a great addition to any Thanksgiving dinner (or anytime)!

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars (from Taste of Home)

Ingredients
1 (16 oz) pkg pound cake mix (or use a yellow cake mix like I did)
3 large eggs, DIVIDED
2 Tbsp butter, melted
4 tsp pumpkin pie spice, DIVIDED
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin (about 2 cups)
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chopped nuts

Directions
1) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine cake mix, 1 egg, butter and 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice in large bowl until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press into bottom of 15 X 10-inch jellyroll pan.
2) Beat cream cheese in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk; beat in remaining 2 eggs, pumpkin, remaining 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice and salt; mix well. Pour over crust; sprinkle with nuts.
3) Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set. Cool. Chill. Cut into bars.
Yield: the recipe said 48 bars, I cut mine into 24 bars

The crust is pressed into the bottom of the jellyroll pan.

Ready to go int the oven.

Just out of the oven.

Plated and ready to eat!!!

Pumpkin Chia-Seed Muffins

2010-10-31T20:09:00.000-05:00

I read an article about Chia Seeds and decided to find a recipe that I could use them in. Since muffins are one of my specialties and since pumpkin is one of my favorite ingredients, this particular recipe caught my eye. It is unbelievably moist and very tasty. But before I share this recipe I want to share some information about Chia seeds. ( http://www.nutsonline.com/cookingbaking/chia-seeds/premium-new2.html )

7 Good Reasons To Start Eating Chia Seeds

1. Help weight loss. Chia seeds are popular for weight loss. They reduce food cravings by preventing some of the food that you eat from getting absorbed into your system. This blockage of calorie absorption makes them a great diet helper.

2. Feel fuller faster: They can also help your diet by making you feel full. This is because they absorb 10 times their weight in water, forming a bulky gel.

3. Hydration for athletes: They are also great for athletes because the "chia gel" can hydrate the body.

4. Reduce your blood pressure: There's evidence to suggest they can reduce blood pressure.

5. Omega-3: They are the richest plant source of Omega-3 (the vital fats that protect against inflammation—such as arthritis—and heart disease). In fact, they contain more Omega-3 than salmon!

6. Benefits for diabetes: Because chia seeds slow down how fast our bodies convert carbohydrates into simple sugars, studies indicate they can control blood sugar. This leads scientists to believe chia seeds may have great benefits for diabetics.

7. They are easier to digest than flax seeds, and don't need to be ground up.

Pumpkin Chia-Seed Muffins (from Hy-Vee Healthy Bites)

Ingredients
1 tbsp chia seeds, ground
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 (16 oz) can pumpkin
2 eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1 cup maple syrup
1 tbsp vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine ground chia seeds, flours, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt.

In a medium bowl, combine pumpkin, eggs, oil, syrup and vanilla. Stir pumpkin mixture into chia-seed mixture until combined; stir in nuts.

Spoon batter into paper-lined or greased muffin tins. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of muffin comes out clean. Remove and place on wire rack to cool.

Nutrition per serving: 200 calories, 32 g carbo., 5 g protein, 6 g fat, 1 g sat. fat, 3 g fiber, 35 mg cholo., 330 mg sodium

Chicken Salad (with grapes and nuts)

2010-10-20T20:28:00.001-05:00

My family loves chicken salad! I oftentimes make it chunky (as in the following recipe) and sometimes I grind it up, depending on how I feel. This chunky chicken salad has grapes and nuts in it. I really like the various textures and flavors mixed together. The original recipe called for walnuts but I like to use slivered almonds. (Mostly because I always have plenty on hand.) One shortcut that can be taken is to buy a rotisserie chicken.

Chicken Salad

4 cups of chicken, cut in bite-sized pieces (a pair of scissors works well), cooked and chilled
1/2 cup (or more) chopped onion or green onion
1/2 cup (or more) chopped celery
1/2 cup (or more) chopped walnuts (or pecans or slivered almonds)
1 cup (or more) seedless grapes, halved (scissors will do this quickly)
1 cup mayonaise
1 tablespoon dillweed
Optional - 1/2 to 1 tsp curry powder (start with lesser amount and add to taste) - I've not tried this

In a mixing bowl stir together the chicken, onion, celery, nuts and grapes.

In a smaller bowl, blend together the mayonaise and seasonings. When you are happy with the combination of flavors, stir gently into the chicken mixture.

Yield: enough filling for about 8 sandwiches

Sloppy Joes

2010-10-17T20:09:00.000-05:00

I've been making this particular recipe for sloppy joes for several years now. After serving it the first time it was apparent that it was very well liked and thereby designated a "keeper" recipe.

Sloppy Joes

(Better Homes & Gardens, Biggest Book of Slow Cooker Recipes)

Ingredients

2-1/2 pounds ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1-1/4 cups catsup

1 medium green sweet pepper, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1/3 cup water

3 tablespoons brown sugar

3 tablespoons prepared mustard

3 tablespoons vinegar

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon chili powder

16 to 20 hamburger buns, split and toasted

In a large skillet cook ground beef, onion and garlic until meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain off fat.

In a 3-1/2- to 4-quart slow cooker combine catsup, sweet pepper, celery, water, brown sugar, mustard, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and chili powder. Stir in meat mixture.

Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 6 to 8 hours or high heat setting for 3 to 4 hours. Spoon onto toasted buns.

Nutrition facts per serving: 298 calories, 12 g total fat (4 g sat. fat), 44 mg chol., 579 mg sodium, 31 g carbo., 2 g fiber, 17 g protein.

Pineapple Strawberry Punch

2010-10-03T21:05:00.001-05:00

This punch is absolutely delicious! Every time I make it people rave! It is easy to make with ingredients that are easy to get.

Pineapple Strawberry Punch

Ready in 15 minutes or less

2 pkgs (10 oz each) frozen sweetened sliced strawberries, thawed
1 can (46 oz) pineapple juice, chilled
4 cups lemon-lime soda, chilled

In a food processor or blender, puree the strawberries. Pour into a large punch bowl. Stir in the pineapple juice and soda. Serve immediately. Yield: 12 servings (3 quarts)

Nutritional Analysis: One 1-cup serving (prepared with sugar free soda) equals 99 calories, trace fat (trace saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 9 mg sodium, 25 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 1 g protein. Diabetic Exchange: 1-1/2 fruit.

Make ahead trick - for each of the events that I made this punch for I had three batches ready to go. That way once the party started it was very easy to make each additional batch. The soda and pineapple juice were already in correct portions, so the sliced strawberries were the only thing I had to have ready. I needed 30 oz of frozen sweetened sliced strawberries - thawed. I put them in the blender and pureed them. I divided the mixture between three containers. Then as each batch was made I simply got one strawberry container, 1 pineapple juice and 1 lemon-lime pop out and mixed together! So easy and so good!

Do you sometimes need applesauce for your recipes?

2010-09-23T19:28:00.000-05:00

We don't go through very much applesauce in our house. Jim likes to eat it with his meals, but it isn't my preference. So I learned quite awhile back to not buy the big containers as it ends up spoiling before we get to the bottom. I buy the smaller containers for Jim and for my baking recipes I get the little 4 oz containers that are meant for individual servings. They usually come in packs of 6 or 8 containers. 4 oz equals 1/2 cup so you have a perfect portioned size. I usually get natural applesauce with no sugar added. Many of the recipes that I'm making these days call for applesauce to replace the oil, so it is very handy to have on hand.

Pistachio Nut Bread

2010-09-11T21:32:00.001-05:00

I cannot believe I haven't blogged about pistachio bread! This is one of our family all-time favorites! It is super moist and delicious. The pretty green color makes it especially popular at our annual St Patrick's Day festivities. My mom made it many times over the years to the delight of her 7 children and many grandchildren. When I make it now I try to always make a loaf to send to my niece Angie that lives in Chicago. I'll send it with her mom (my sister Patty) or try to put a loaf in Angie's hands when she visits. It is just a nice reminder of "grandma".

Pistachio Nut Bread

Cake ingredients
1 box yellow cake mix
1 (4 oz) pkg pistachio pudding
1 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp almond extract
4 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil

Topping ingredients
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup nuts, chopped fine

Instructions
Mix dry cake mix and pudding mix together. Add sour cream, almond extract, eggs and oil. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour half the batter into 2 lightly greased bread pans (4-1/2" X 6-1/2" X 2-1/2").

Mix topping ingredients and sprinkle half of the topping onto the batter in the two pans. Top with remaining batter. Sprinkle with remaining topping mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until it tests done.

Ready to go in the oven!

Ready to eat! Delicious!!!

Croissant Du Jour

2010-09-07T21:07:00.000-05:00

Croissant Du Jour, 3531 Mt Vernon Rd SE, Cedar Rapids

Last weekend my sisters Patty, Cathy and I got together for a little "sister" time. Cathy had suggested that we meet for breakfast at Croissant Du Jour which is blocks from her home. Walking in the door you felt like you were in a French cafe. The music, the decor, everything contributed to a wonderful ambiance! The display case was filled with wonderful, yummy looking pastries. The lady who took our order had a wonderful French accent. We each ordered something different along with lattes. And WOW were they great! Here is what they looked like:

Almond Croissant

Chocolate Croissant

Fruit Tart

So which would I recommend...no doubt in my mind - the fruit tart. The price was $4.00 - very reasonable for what you get. Very filling, very tasty, and isn't it lovely to look at? I had ordered the almond croissant, Patty ordered the chocolate croissant and Cathy the fruit tart. Cathy had offered tastes of her tart to both Patty and I and I was smitten! I got a "to go" bag for my croissant and ordered a fruit tart - which was delicious. I would highly recommend it.

The hours for Croissant Du Jour are Monday to Friday 6:30 to 4:00, and Saturday from 7:00 to 4:00. They also serve lunch Monday thru Saturday from 11:00 to 2:00. Web address is: www.croissantdujour.biz Check them out!

Bruschetta with Tomato-Basil Topping

2010-08-26T21:30:00.004-05:00

In July we went camping at George Wyth State Park. It was our second time there and has become one of our favorite places. It has a wonderful trail system with paved paths perfect for walking, running, biking, or whatever your favorite outside sport is. Anyways, we were there with out camping club, the Rolling Rovers. We had a wonderful time visiting with each other throughout the weekend. On Saturday nights we have a potluck dinner together and this particular weekend we had an Italian theme. I made Italian Potatoes and Bruschetta with Tomato-Basil topping. True confession - I ate four of them before I plated them up for our dinner! Soooo good. Here is the recipe:

Bruschetta

1 thick French baguette cut on the diagonal into 30 - 1/2 inch pieces
8 to 10 cloves garlic, peeled
Olive oil

Preheat oven to broil. Lay slices of bread on a baking sheet. Watching carefully, broil for 1 to 2 minutes on each side until crisp. (Bread will toast very quickly.) Remove from oven. Rub with garlic; lightly brush with olive oil. NOTE: Toasts can be made a day ahead.

Tomato-Basil Topping

Ingredients
3 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/2 cup red onion, finely diced
1/2 cup yellow pepper, seeded, de-ribbed and finely diced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 tsp olive oil
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
4 Tbsp loosely packed basil, cut into thin strips

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Top toasts with a heaping tablespoon of mixture. (Can be assembled 1 hour ahead of time.)

NOTE: Topping can be made a day ahead of time and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Apple Bread (healthier version)

2010-08-23T20:47:00.002-05:00

I was given a bunch of apples from my boss at work last week. The apples were NOT pretty - big green spotty apples. But the way they looked didn't matter. I knew from past experience that these were great baking apples. So my task at hand was to find a new apple bread recipe that wouldn't be so bad for us. In my Taste of Home Healthy Cooking Annual Recipes 2010, I found just what I was looking for. But of course, I had to tweek it a little bit! The end result was delicious. Not too sweet, but very tasty.

Apple Bread (healthier version)

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour (original recipe called for 3 cups white - I substituted 1 of the cups for wheat)
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup sugar (original recipe called for 1-1/2 cups sugar - I substituted 1/2 cup for brown sugar)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups chopped peeled tart apples
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans, but walnuts would be good too)

Topping (the recipe called for this topping but I opted to NOT use it - instead I put the nuts in my bread)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp chopped walnuts
1/3 cup cold butter

Directions
In a large bowl, combine the first 8 ingredients. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, applesauce, oil and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in apples and nuts. Transfer to two 8-in x 4-in loaf pans coated with cooking spray.

If using the topping, combine the flour, sugar and nuts; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over batter.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

My Baking Screw-up

Have you ever wondered what sweet bread would be like without the "sweet"? I can't say that I ever wondered, but I thought I'd share my goof-up. I had made my first batch and it turned out beautifully. The picture above was from that first batch. I had more apples so I made a second batch. Well, it did not do as well. Before I ever put it in the oven, I knew it didn't look right but I put it in the oven anyways. I took it out later and what a disappointment! Here is the comparison:

In case you can't tell, the one on the right looked bad and because I felt compelled to find out if it could be salvaged - I tasted it. YUCK! I went over the recipe in my mind trying to figure out what I left out and suddenly I realized it was the sugar. Well, those two loaves went into the trash. What a waste! But live and learn!

The moral to the story....don't forget the sugar!!!

Update on Jim - 8/22/10

2010-08-22T15:30:00.000-05:00

Great news! Jim had his PET/CT scan this past Monday and blood work on Friday before he saw Dr. Nabi. Everything came back all clear!!! Dr. Nabi was very pleased.

Jim had gotten to know so many people in the oncology office that he was greeted over and over again. People commenting on his hair and how great he looked. He is definitely stronger then he has ever been. He and I get up before work each day and work out for 30-35 minutes. Because of the exposure he got at the St. Luke's Wellness Center he does things he never did before - such as bands and free weights. His energy appears limitless! Thanks for your prayers!

Next visit is December 17th. No scans, only blood work and a doctor visit.

Broccoli Brown Rice Pilaf

2010-08-21T20:41:00.001-05:00

My sister-in-law Vicki gave me the following recipe in 2007. I've made it many times since then. I love cooked broccoli and the mixture with the rice makes this an acceptable vegetable dish in my book! You can't go wrong with this recipe.

Broccoli Brown Rice Pilaf

Ingredients
1 cup uncooked brown rice
2-1/4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 Tbsp minced fresh rosemary or 2 tsp dried rosemary
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups fresh broccoli, chopped
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
1/8 tsp pepper

In large nonstick skilled coated with nonstick cooking spray, saute rice until lightly browned. Add the broth, rosemary, and garlic; bring to boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 40 minutes or until rice is almost tender. Stir in the broccoli, almonds, sunflower kernels, salt and pepper. Cover and cook 3-5 minutes longer or until rice is tender and broccoli is crisp-tender. Fluff with fork. YIELD: 6 servings

Sausage Egg Bake

2010-08-17T20:39:00.000-05:00

I've been making egg casseroles for years. I've tried more recipes then I can count. But this recipe has brought my searching to the end - everyone loves it! I really like the way everything is layered. Hashbrowns are placed on the bottom. Then half the cheese sprinkled over the potatoes. The meats and veggies are then placed on top of the cheese. Other veggies or even mushrooms could be added at this point also. Eggs are poured over everything with another sprinkle of cheese on top. Very easy and very tasty!

Sausage Egg Bake

Ingredients
1 lb pork sausage
1/2 lb bacon
3 cups frozen hashbrowns
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
12 eggs
2 cups milk

Directions
Cook and drain sausage and bacon. Place hashbrowns on bottom of a 9X13 baking dish. Sprinkle on half of the cheese. Add sausage, crushed bacon, chopped green pepper, and onion. Beat eggs and milk. Pour over casserole. Sprinkle remainder of cheese over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Hashbrowns are on the bottom with cheese, sausage, bacon,

green peppers and onion sprinkled on top.

The egg and milk mixture is poured over the casserole.

The remainder of the cheese is sprinkled on top. It is now ready to bake!

Update on Jim - 8/15/10

2010-08-15T21:08:00.003-05:00

For those of you that are following my blog for purposes of keeping up with Jim's health status here is what is coming up:
Monday, 8/16/10 - Pet/CT Scan
Friday, 8/20/10 - 3 month follow-up appt with Dr Nabi (with results of Monday's scans)

I plan on posting the results as quickly as possible but because we are going to be pretty busy this weekend it may not be till next Sunday night. Please pray for good results!!!

You would be interested in knowing that Jim is doing absolutely wonderful. He exercises 4-5 times a week and is stronger then he has ever been before! He feels great and we have every reason to believe that Dr Nabi is going to say he is in tip-top shape!

Zucchini Bread (healthier version)

2010-08-15T20:57:00.000-05:00

One of the guys at work brought in a bunch of very large zucchinis to share with everyone. Looking at it I knew that this would not make just one loaf - but many! I did not peel the zucchini, I just cut it up into chunks, cut the seeds out and then put it through the food processor to shred it up. I got 6 cups of shredded zucchini out of it. Since the recipe calls for 2 cups of shredded zucchini (to make 2 loaves) I ended up with 6 loaves of bread!!!

The recipe I used was from my newest Healthy Cooking magazine (Aug/Sep 2010) - it was called Makeover Zucchini Bread. The recipe reduced the oil to only 1/3 cup and replaced it with applesauce. I made a couple of my own substitutions - instead of 1-1/2 cups of sugar I changed it to 1 cup of white sugar and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. I also changed the 3 cups of white flour to 2 cups of white and 1 cup of whole wheat. The nutritional info is based on the original recipe. I don't think my changes will make any significant difference to it.

Zucchini Bread (healthier version)

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
1/3 cup canola oil
3 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 cups shredded zucchini
3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions
In a large bowl, beat the sugars, applesauce, eggs, oil and vanilla until well blended. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and baking soda; gradually beat into sugar mixture until blended. Stir in zucchini and walnuts.

Transfer to two 8-in X 4-in loaf pans coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Yield: 2 loaves (12 slices each)

Nutritional info: 1 slice equals 168 calories, 6 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 18 mg cholesterol, 165 mg sodium, 26 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 3 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 2 starch 1 fat

Mexican Beef Dip

2010-07-16T20:00:00.002-05:00

This hot dip has been around my family as far back as I can remember. My mother made it regularly and all the family just love it. This is the third and final hot dip that I made on for our Fourth of July party. Enjoy!

This is what it looks like when I mixed everything together in the crock-pot. The cheeses had not yet melted. But in a relatively short amount of time everything melts together and looks yummy!

Mexican Beef Dip

3# ground beef
1 chopped onion
8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
1# Velveeta cheese
1 pkg taco seasoning (or homemade – see below)
1 can picante sauce (or 2 cups salsa)
Garlic salt to taste

If making in oven:
Cook beef and onion until done. Mix cooked beef with taco seasoning. Combine all ingredients into a casserole dish. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Serve with nacho chips.

If making in crock-pot. Cook beef and onion until done. Mix cooked beef with taco seasoning. Combine all ingredients into crock-pot. Cook on low for 3-4 hours, stirring once every hour or so. Serve with nacho chips.

Homemade taco seasoning
2 TBSP chili powder
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp garlic powder

Suggestion - save clean-up time and use the crock-pot liners!

Hot Crab Dip

2010-07-15T20:00:00.002-05:00

Here is the second of the three hot dip recipes that I made for our Fourth of July party:

Hot Crab Dip
(from Taste of Home, Quick Cooking, 2000 Annual)

Ingredients
½ cup milk
1/3 cup salsa
3 pkgs (8 oz each) cream cheese, cubed
2 pkgs (8 oz each) imitation crab meat, flaked (I like a little more)
1 cup thinly sliced green onions
1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilies

Combine milk and salsa. Transfer to a slow cooker coated with nonstick cooking spray. Stir in cream cheese, crab, onions and chilies. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. Serve with crackers.

Yield: about 5 cups.
Nutritional Analysis: One ¼ cup serving (prepared with skim milk and light cream cheese, calculated without crackers) equals 80 calories, 385 mg sodium, 23 mg cholesterol, 5 gm carbohydrate, 7 gm protein, 3 gm fat.
Diabetic Exchanges: 1 lean meat, 1 vegetable

Suggestion - Use a crock-pot liner - it makes clean-up a breeze!

Meatballs in BBQ Sauce

2010-07-13T20:00:00.000-05:00

Almost every Fourth of July we have a party in our yard. Family and friends get together. We eat, visit and then sit back and watch the fireworks display in downtown Cedar Rapids. Because of the flood of 2008, the fireworks were moved out to Kirkwood Community College so we weren't able to have our annual party. But, this year things returned to normal. (I say that but there are many residents who are still not back to normal. There are still many signs of the flood of '08 in many parts of the city.) Anyways, the party was on.
Since we had not had our annual party since 2007 it seemed fitting that I should go back to some of the popular recipes that I had used throughout the years.

The menu included three hot dips that were served in crock pots. They were: Hot Crab Dip, Meatballs in BBQ Sauce and Mexican Beef Dip. They were served with a variety of chips and crackers. Of course we had "sweets" too! The Magic Cookies that I posted July 10th and the Salted Nut Squares that I will be posting in the next few weeks. The Meatballs in BBQ Sauce was completely gone so I have determined it as the most popular item. So, of the three hot dips, that is the one I'm posting first. The fact that it is the easiest makes it even better.

Meatballs in BBQ Sauce

Need:
100-125 frozen Italian meatballs
2-3 bottles of Cookies BBQ sauce (26 oz each)

Put 2 bottles of the BBQ sauce in the crock-pot and set temp on low setting. Bake meatballs according to package directions for 20 minutes. (Just enough to start heating them up. Do not bake the entire time directed on the package.) Put the heated meatballs into the crock-pot with the BBQ sauce and mix well. Add more sauce if needed. Cook in crock-pot for 3-4 hours stirring every hour or so. Serve with toothpicks.

Comments:
Meatballs - I get these from Sam's Club. The bags of Italian meatballs have around 150 meatballs in them which is too many for my crock-pot, so I save some back for future meals.
BBQ sauce - I switched to Cookies BBQ exclusively a few years back because there is no high fructose corn syrup in it. I really try to watch for that on the food I buy and avoid it as much as I can. Plus we really like it!!!

Suggestion - use a crock-pot liner to make clean-up a breeze!

Slow Cooker Liners by Reynolds

2010-07-12T20:00:00.000-05:00

Where have these been hiding all these years? I don't know when these came out but they are the greatest time-saving item for those of us who love to cook in our crock-pot! They fit my tall and deep crock-pot just as well as my shorter oblong one. If you haven't tried them, make sure you do. I still forget periodically to use them and then I get mad at myself for causing extra clean-up. Check them out!!!

Magic Cookies

2010-07-11T20:11:00.003-05:00

You know those Magic Bars that appear every Christmas season? Graham cracker base, sweetened condensed milk, with coconut, nuts and chocolate chips on top? YUM! What a wonderful treat! Well, I have no idea where I got this recipe from, but I've been making them for several years now and they are always well received. If you like Magic Bars, you'll love Magic Cookies....and the good news is...that these are a year-round treat!

Magic Cookies

Ingredients
1-1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
½ cup softened margarine or butter
1-1/3 cup flaked coconut
1 pkg (12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts

In a small bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs, flour and baking powder. In a large mixing bowl, beat sweetened condensed milk and margarine until smooth. Add graham crumb mixture; mix well. Stir in coconut, chocolate chips and nuts. Drop by tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in 375 degree oven for 9 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Yield: 3 dozen.

Fifth Season 5K Race 2010

2010-07-05T21:44:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, July 4th I ran my 4th race of the season. But the significance of it is the fact that since I just started running a year ago, this was my first repeat race. I didn't make any great improvement over last year, but I did do better. My time was 31:27 (10:07 pace); I finished 8th in the W50-54 age group out of 40.

What made this years race a lot of fun was that I did it with three family members. My daughter Rachelle..i.e., the triathlete of the family, a.k.a. the ironman of the family, and the one who got me started running...raced with myself, and my two sisters, Patty and Cathy. Last year, Patty and I ran this race together and it was our very first race ever. Since then we've ran quite a number of races both together and separately. This year my sister Cathy has entered the running arena and this was her second race ever. It is really exciting to be doing this TOGETHER! What a great way for a family to spend time together.

Back to the race - the temperature was pretty good - 75 degrees but the humidity was present. The fortunate thing was that the rain had held off. (We had a potential for showers for the entire day.) Patty, Cathy & I warmed up for about 10 minutes prior to the race, made multiple potty stops and were ready to go when the starting pistol went off. This course is a very good one. There is one hill that is very low grade right at the beginning. I really liked having a downhill run going into the finish line as opposed to my completely opposite experience at the Madison 1/4 Marathon that I just did on Memorial Day! (That hill about did me in.) My pace was pretty steady throughout the course but when I was approaching the finish line, I heard my daughter Becca yell out, "Come on Terri!" and a shot of adrenaline poured through me and I kicked it into high gear and really sprinted the rest of the way in. Mission accomplished.

Going forward I'm going to really work on improving my speed. Short term goal is to do a 5K in under 30 minutes. My next race is 8/14/10 - Hobo Days 5K in Britt Iowa. I know I need to more running in the heat so that I'm more acclimated. (The humidity really wipes me out.) Once a week like I've been doing it isn't enough. So I'm going to try to run one of my weekday runs in the evening when it is warm. I'm also going to get a running watch that will provide me with pace, heart rate and distance. Rachelle has recommended that I get the Garmin Forerunner 110. I'm planning on ordering it this week and I'll post my opinion on it after I get it and have had a chance to use it. Happy running...

Madison Quarter Marathon - 5/30/10

2010-06-13T20:55:00.000-05:00

I'm a little tardy in getting this done but late is better then not at all, right? Two weeks ago I ran in my very first quarter marathon in Madison WI. I've been preparing for this race for quite some time. And this was an instance in which I flew solo. My sister Patty and daughter Becca were both running the half marathon so our start times and locations were different from each other. Rachelle tells me that a race report is important if for no reason other then to document what worked and what didn't. No reason to make the same mistake twice.

First of all, was I ready? Yes, definitely. In the 4-6 weeks prior to the race I had ran distances of 6-7 miles on several occasions. So knowing I could do it was not an issue. I've continued to suffer with plantar fasciitis in my left heel over the last 6 months. The more often I run the more it hurts, so I had cut back to twice a week. That seemed to allow enough down time to recover between runs. Why don't I see a doctor about it you may ask? Because I don't want him to tell me to stop running. It is something that I can deal with. It doesn't get worse, it just continues to be a nagging problem. I don't want to stop running. So anyways, yes I had the distance training in although I may not have logged all the miles that I should have. I was ready for the race.

We got up very early that morning, had our coffee and ate our small breakfast and off to the race site about an hour before it started (6:00). We scoped out the starting lines and restrooms and made several pit stops. The surprise was how warm and muggy it got before the race was over. Patty and Becca's race started at 7:20 and mine didn't start till 7:40.

The quarter marathon race was very scenic and nice for the majority of it. I actually felt like I had a good pace. (I was wearing Rachelle's Garmin watch so I was able to see my paces and my heart rate as I raced.) The water points were well placed and there were plenty of volunteers. So everything was good right? It was....till I hit the sign that said 6 miles. I had another .55 miles to go and a big hill to climb. I resorted to walking up that hill. I felt like I had nothing left! I hated to do it. I hadn't walked a race since my very first one but I knew that if I was going to finish the race running I had to get a quick recovery in. So I walked up that hill, knowing that my time was going to suffer, but oh well! At the top of the hill there was a right turn, another short block, another turn and then the finish line. I started running and ran the rest of the way in. I finished at 1:15 for the 6 miles and 1:33 for the quarter marathon.

Would I do it again? Not sure. If I do, it won't be for quite awhile. At this point in the game, I've determined that I don't like the longer distances. I want to improve my speed on the 5K and start doing better there. The last two weeks I've started running three times a week again and I'm incorporating some sprints into each one. On the alternate days I'm doing strength/stretching exercises. Time will tell....

Pistachio Eclair Dessert

2010-05-25T20:27:00.001-05:00

Pistachio Eclair Dessert (photo by Taste of Home)

This is one of those desserts that goes together very quickly and tastes great!

Pistachio Eclair Dessert (Taste of Home - Simple & Delicious Cookbook)

prep: 20 minutes + chilling

Ingredients

3 cups cold milk

1 pkg (3.4 oz) instant pistachio pudding mix
1 pkg (3.4 oz) instant French vanillla pudding mix
1 carton (8 oz) frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 pkg (14.4 oz) graham crackers
1 can (16 oz) chocolate frosting

In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mixes for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set. Fold in whipped topping. In a 13-in X 9-in X 2-in dish, layer a third of the graham crackers and half of the pudding mixture. Repeat layers. Top with remaining graham crackers. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Spoon the frosting into a microwave-safe bowl. Cover and microwave on high for 15-20 seconds or until softened, stirring once. Spread over graham crackers. Chill at least 20 minutes or until frosting is set. Yield: 15-20 servings

Here are some step by step pictures:

This is a look at all of the ingredients to make this dessert.

The first layer of graham crackers is down and half of the pudding mixture goes on top.

After another layer of crackers, the rest of the pudding the final layer of crackers goes on.

After warming the frosting it is spread on the top of the crackers and refrigerated.

Time to enjoy!!!

Marion Arts Festival 5K - May 15, 2010

2010-05-16T20:17:00.003-05:00

Patty, Cathy and myself just before the race

On May 15, 2010, I joined my sisters in the Marion Arts Festival 5K race. In actuality it was Cathy's race and Patty and I were along for support. Cathy had completed the Couch Potato to 5K training program and was now ready to put it into action. Since the race was at 8:00, I got up at 5:30 to eat breakfast. By 6:30 I was heading over to pick-up Patty and then off to get Cathy. We were at the race site by 7. Packet pick-up was being done prior to the race, so we got our packets and t-shirts and took them back to the car. Then we started our warm-up jog. The morning was sorta cool - temp in the the upper 40's so we needed to get our core warmed up. We jogged around for 10-15 minutes and then went back to the car and shed our jackets. Another stop at the porta-john and then we headed to the starting point for the race. Even in a sleeveless top I was warmed up and ready to go.

There were a couple of hills but nothing seriously challenging. The weather was perfect and the course was run very well by the volunteers. We were all happy with the results as this was not about "time". It was not a "race" for us. This was about Cathy finishing her first 5K without walking any of it. And....MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!! Being together...sisters...doing something that was good for all of us was absolutely awesome. This was just the beginning!!! Congrats Cathy!!!

Update on Jim - 5/3/10 - Cancer free!

2010-05-03T20:09:00.003-05:00

This afternoon went very well. Jim had to be there at 3:30 for lab work. Around 4:00 he was taken back to the room where they do the procedure. Dr. Nabi came in and did her exam and gave Jim the results of his PET/CT Scan from last week. She said that everything looked great. There is "activity" that showed on the scan in the pelvic area but she is confident that the "activity" is in the form of healing that is taking place. She wants to see Jim again in 3-4 months and will have another PET/CT scan done before she sees him. The appointment has not yet been set, the nurse will call with it in the next day or so.

So, anyway Dr Nabi did the spinal infusion procedure and Jim said it was pretty much the same as each of the three times previously done. It was all over pretty quickly and we were on our way home by 5:00. Once home Jim had to once again lay down for 4 hours. At the time I am writing this he has less then 30 minutes left.....and then he is all done!

Now all that is left is for him to regain his leg strength and with the help of the trainer that he is working with that will soon be done. Over the last couple weeks we've been taking walks in the evening. A little bit further each week. If you ask him, Jim will tell you that he feels very good. Isn't that wonderful? Thanks for all your prayers. They have definitely been answered! God is very good!

Please drop him an email on his work account: jim@customhose.com .

If you have been reading my blog for purposes of following Jim's progress then you have reached the end of regular updates. I plan on posting info as Jim has his re-checks which will be every 3-4 months for awhile. So that you don't have to scroll through all my recipes and running info, you can go to the column on the right and find the label that says "Jim" and click on it. That will bring up everything that has been labeled with his name. You can easily find the latest info that has been posted. Thanks again for your continued interest and prayers!

Oriental Salad

2010-05-01T20:28:00.002-05:00

Can you remember where you got your favorite recipes? I can. Its funny how things work that way. But this is one that I fell in love with right away and I cannot even begin to tell you how many times I've made it. Becca was a cheerleader in high school and we had gone to one of those end of the season potlucks. This salad was on the table. After everything was over I went searching for the person who made it and found her! I told her I had to have this recipe, gave her my address and she mailed me a copy. (This was at least 10 years ago, so email wasn't an option.) That was the beginning of a long lasting relationship. Hardly an Easter or Thanksgiving goes by that I don't make it. I take it to many potlucks and I will oftentimes half the recipe and make it for us here at home throughout the year. I get asked for the recipe regularly and am always glad to share it!

Oriental Salad (source unknown)

2 pkgs broccoli slaw
1 cup sunflower seeds
2 pkgs Oriental-flavored Ramen (crushed) - seasoning packets are used in the dressing
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 cup slivered almonds

Dressing:
1 cup peanut or canola oil
1/2 cup sugar (I sometimes use less - 1/4 or 1/3 cup)
1/3 cup cider vinegar
2 seasoning packets from Ramen

Mix all salad ingredients togther in a large bowl. Mix together all dressing ingredients and pour over salad. Refrigerate.

Here are a couple of the step-by-step pictures:

I put the ramen in a ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush it.

Here is a picture of the ingredients and the mixed up dressing in the container on the left.

Here are the dry ingredients in the bowl before the dressing is added.

Enjoy!!!

Sunshine Salad

2010-04-29T20:40:00.002-05:00

How do you feel about jello salads? There are alot of them that I can pass on by without a second look. But for me, it depends on the ingredients. If there are strawberries or pineapple, in it - I'm on it! Jim on the other hand likes all things "jello"! I think his mother made lots of jello dishes for him and his brother growing up and as a result they are sort of a comfort food. This particular recipe was one that I had flagged in one of my cookbooks as one that I'd like to make. In the margin I wrote, "Jim". The ingredient that made me know that Jim would like it was the mandarin oranges. I don't think Jim ever met a "mandarin orange" he didn't like. And this jello salad was no exception. Jim probably ate half of the salad by himself (over a period of days). You know how many jello salads break down and get watery after several days pass? Not so, on this one. I made this salad last Sunday and Jim ate the last of it today. He said it was just as good today. So if you are looking for a salad to take to a family gathering or potluck, try this one out!

Sunshine Salad (from Taste of Home Annual Recipes - 1998)

1 pkg (3 oz) lemon gelatin

1 c boiling water

1 can (8 oz) crushed pineapple

1/3 cup orange juice concentrate

1 can (11 oz) mandarin oranges, drained

In a bowl, dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Drain pineapple, reserving juice. Set pineapple aside. Add enough water to the juice to equal 1 cup; stir into gelatin. Add orange juice concentrate. Chill until partially set. Fold in the pineapple and oranges. Pour into 4-cup mold or glass bowl. Chill until set. Yield: 6 servings

Update on Jim - 4/25/10

2010-04-25T20:01:00.003-05:00

On Thursday (4/22) Jim met with the trainer at the St Lukes Cancer Wellness Center. The appointment went very well. The trainer - Matt, put Jim through various exercises to assess where he currently was at. He showed him some new exercises to do and told him that he should start riding the stationary bike. He is supposed to only make small increases in distances, whether it is the bike or walking outside. No more then a 10% increase from week to week. He doesn't want Jim to return till after his final treatment. His next appointment is 5/6 and then Matt will give him a more detailed exercise plan to start working on.

Jim is feeling very well and his activities are very near normal. On the physical side he has lost almost all of his eye lashes and eye brows. Obviously they are the slowest growing hair since they are the last to be lost. But on the other hand Jim's hair on his head seems to be starting grow back in. It is white and seems to be thick. Kind of like peach fuzz. We hear from other cancer survivors that the hair can oftentimes grow back a different color and oftentimes a different texture. Only time will tell!

Tomorrow (4/26), Jim has his PET/CT Scan. That will take around 3 hours. Then next Monday (5/3), Jim will see Dr. Nabi, get the scan results and have his final spinal infusion. It will be much different then his previous chemo days. Instead of being there all day and getting the chemo by IV, he will go at the end of the day and see the doctor. Then she will do the spinal infusion and home we'll go with Jim having to lay down for 4 hours. Our time in the doctors office will take two hours tops. But then it is all done!!! YEAH!

Please continue your prayers for Jim. Specifically that the scans will be clear and that the final infusion will go smoothly. Also, that he will have no side effects from that last treatment. (He has never had only the spinal infusion so we have no idea how that alone will affect him.) Thank you in advance for your continuing prayers. We continue to pray for all of you and your needs in return!

Running update

2010-04-25T19:32:00.000-05:00

I've hit some major milestones with my running in the last few weeks that I want to share. Two weeks ago I went running with my sisters, Patty & Cathy. We went out to the Cedar Valley Trail. Patty and I ran 5 miles that day. Five miles! That was a first time for me. If you would have told me a year ago that I would be to that point I would have never believed you! So we ran 5 miles two weeks ago, then again last weekened, and then today WE RAN 6 MILES! Because of all the rain and the fact that we had to run early today (7:30 a.m.) we decided to go out to Aegon's fitness center (Patty & Cathy both work there) and run on the treadmills there. The 1/4 marathon that I'm planning on running over Memorial weekend in Madison WI, will be here very soon. But thanks to my training plan (compliments of Rachelle) I will be well prepared. Next week I run 6 miles again and after that it will be 7 miles.

Rachelle had been asking me for some time after running if I "had anything left?" And I was always able to say "yes". Well, I can't say that anymore. I really feel like I'm giving my running everything I have. And it feels good! I'm almost 53 years old and probably in the best shape I've ever been in. There are several races coming up during the next 6 months and I'm looking forward to setting new personal records for myself. It will be challenging and exciting! I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Update on Jim - 4/15/10

2010-04-15T20:10:00.003-05:00

Jim is doing very well - thanks for your continued prayers!!

Typically Jim starts feeling better about 10 days post chemo treatment, and this time was no different. Last night was a real good night's sleep. His appetite is doing very well. And there has been no major fatigue this time! Yeah!!!

Dr. Nabi had suggested that Jim go St. Luke's Cancer Wellness program to see if there is any help that they can offer. We met with the program coordinator yesterday and got the overview. Jim's interest lays in their exercise program. They have a trainer that works with the cancer patients and helps them regain their strength. Jim lost alot of his muscle tone in his legs during the months of hip pain that he experienced last year. And then going into chemo treatment he didn't have the energy (or the desire) to do anything that was very exerting. Jim will meet with the trainer for the first time next week and be assessed. Hopefully the trainer will set up a program that will start rebuilding his leg strength. Jim really wants to get back into walking and bicycling and is hoping that this program will get him back into it without hurting himself.

Keep on praying! We appreciate it more then you'll ever know!!!

Update on Jim - 4/10/10

2010-04-10T19:42:00.002-05:00

Good news everyone! This has been the best "week after chemo" that Jim has had thus far! Can you believe it? Yes you can...cause God is good! He has heard your prayers and answered them! Jim is sleeping well. He is eating well and he is not fatigued. He didn't nap all week. His sense of taste is off just a bit, but that is it! Please keep praying that the side effects will not affect him. Thank you so much!

Update on Jim - 4/7/10

2010-04-06T07:34:00.008-05:00

Jim had his last full chemo day on Monday 4/5. It went very well! The nurses have a little "good-bye" they do in the chemo room. It includes a kazoo and a mini ukulele, plus bubbles and singing! They have a little good bye song that they sang and gave him a certificate of "completion". It was quite cute and made the last full day momentous!

So here is what the doctor told us at the appointment. Jim will have a Pet/CT scan scheduled for the last week of April. Then on May 3rd he sees the doctor again, gets the results of the scans and then has his final spinal infusion. So instead of an all-day appointment, it will take a whopping hour or so and that is it. Of course, he'll still have to follow the spinal infusion with 4 hours of laying prone, but that is okay!

I asked the doc if Jim would be seeing her for annual visits and she responded he would be coming in on a quarterly basis for quite awhile. She wants to monitor him closely for several years. That is okay with us - we don't want any repeat performances!

The day after chemo has usually been a good day and yesterday was no exception. Jim did have some interrupted sleep last night and his stomach is starting to feel a bit off, but other then that he is doing alright. There is no way to guess how he'll feel after chemo since each time is different. I mentioned to him this a.m. that he is going into this chemo week, the strongest he has ever been. He has a solid week of good sleep, good eating and generally feeling good prior to this chemo treatment. Hopefully it won't knock him down to bad this time.

Please continue to pray that the side effects will be minimal this go round. The next 4 or 5 days are usually when he has problems. We need him to have a good appetite and to get good sleep so he doesn't get worn down. Thank you in advance for your prayers! We continue to pray for all of you and your personal concerns.

Update on Jim - 4/1/10

2010-04-01T07:00:00.001-05:00

Not much to report since this last weekend! This is a good thing! Jim is sleeping pretty well and has felt pretty good. Such a drastic difference from a week ago! We went for a short walk last night and he is planning on going to the various Holy Week services at church the next couple nights. Praise the Lord! Thank you for all your ongoing prayers!

Don't forget Jim has his next chemo next Monday 4/5. This will be the last full chemo (IV all day and then spinal infusion at the end of the day). Please pray once again that the side effects will be minimal!

Unless something changes I won't post again till after that chemo treatment. Have a happy and blessed Easter!

Update on Jim- 3/28/10

2010-03-28T20:39:00.003-05:00

This was a good weekend for Jim. After a week of being tired, taking naps each day after lunch, hanging out on the couch in the evening, Jim was like a new man when he woke up Saturday. He was able to take his mom out for her Saturday morning shopping and they even did some driving around, looking at the old house and the like. (She enjoys these drives around town now that she doesn't drive herself anymore.) We went out for lunch, went to church and watched a movie with my sister Cathy and her husband Darrell. (It was Blind Side - I highly recommend it!) And then today we went to Menards, for the first time in months. And tonight we went to the church potluck. So it was a busy weekend, but Jim did very well. Tonight his stomach is a little off, but it may be from something he ate at dinner.

We are hoping that this "good" weekend is an indication of what this coming week will be like! Please raise your prayers in that direction...I know we will be!

Chocolate Trifle

2010-03-28T20:07:00.006-05:00

Our church was having a Palm Sunday potluck tonight and they were providing the meat, potatoes and drinks. Everyone attending was asked to bring a side dish or dessert. I was looking for something easy that I could put together with things I had on hand. I found this Chocolate Trifle dessert in one of my many church cookbooks, specifically Salem Methodist Church. Fortunately it makes two dishes of dessert, which was good news - one for home - one for the potluck! It didn't last anytime at all at church. Others at our table didn't even get to try it since it was gone so fast!

Chocolate Trifle

6 Heath bars (I didn't use these)

2 (8 oz) containers Cool Whip

1 chocolate cake mix

4 (3.5 oz) pkgs instant chocolate pudding

2 large bowls

Bake cake in a 9 X 13-inch pan according to the directions. Cool. Make 4 packages of pudding as directed on packages. Chill. Cut cake in 4 equal parts. Crumble 1 part in the bottom of one bowl. Spread 1/4 of the pudding over the cake. Spread 1/2 of one container of Cool Whip over pudding. Cut up 1-1/2 candy bars and sprinkle over Cool Whip. Repeat all 4 layers again with candy bar crumbled over the top. Repeat with second bowl.

My comments:

1) Instead of using a 9 X 13 pan, I used a 10 X 15 "bar" pan. After the cake cooled completely I used a knife a cut one inch squares.

2) I did not use the Heath bars and we didn't even miss them.

3) I wanted the pudding to be real thick so instead of the 2 cups of milk per box of pudding, I used 1-1/2" cups.

Update on Jim - 3/24/10

2010-03-24T20:24:00.004-05:00

I can finally say Jim is feeling somewhat better then he has for the last week! He has just been exhausted. When at home he was in his PJ's and on the couch 80% of the time. That is what last weekend was like and after we got home from work each weekday. No energy, doesn't want to eat, food doesn't taste good, etc. So yesterday at noon Jim decided to call the doctor's office. Enough was enough. He is afraid that he is coming off as a whiner, but the doctor assures him that he should not "suffer through" the problems. She can help him if she knows what the problems are. So Dr. Nabi told him to come in yesterday and he did. It was decided that he was dehydrated again. He was there for 3 hours while they gave him 1-1/2 bags of fluids. I could tell a difference in him last night. His eyes didn't look glazed over. He didn't look on the verge of exhaustion. Today his appetite is a bit better and he thinks food is tasting better. He is still very tired. He stayed home at lunch today and took an hour nap before returning to work. We got home this evening after running some errands and it was straight into the PJ's and onto the couch. But there is improvement. He is "tired" but not "exhausted". My hope is that he will start seeing some improvement each day. That is what we can continue to pray for!!!

April Fools 5K Race

2010-03-24T20:00:00.000-05:00

My running schedule included a race this Saturday that I'm not going to be participating in. It was to be held at George Wythe Park in Waterloo. Great park and with the current streak of good weather we are having it would have been a great run. Plus it was going to be fun. As the name implies, it was an opportunity to be a little foolish. The racers were encouraged to dress silly. I'm sure it would have been a constant source of entertainment just looking around at the many racers in the their odd attire. But alas, it was not to be. My hope had been to be able to drive up there with Jim but the way things have been going I don't think I can plan on that. A 40 minute drive one way is out of the question. But that is alright as I have a His Women board meeting that has come up for this Saturday. We are having our 25th Annual His Women Seminar on April 17th. That is less then 4 weeks away and there is alot of work done in those final weeks. Everything is on track and ticket sales are going well. If anyone is interested in info about this, check out our web site: www.hiswomenseminar.org . Our speaker is Tammy Trent and our music is being provided by Rhonda Funk. FYI - my daughter Rachelle designed this website for us a couple years ago and we couldn't be more pleased! Each year I give her the new info and she updates it for us. What a great daughter!!!

Update on Jim - 3/20/10

2010-03-20T09:12:00.002-05:00

I have good news and I have bad news:

Good news: Jim felt better on Thursday. All of the "bathroom" related problems have gone away.

Bad news: Jim had the flu. How do I know this? Because I woke up sick early Friday morning and was sick all day! Same symptoms.

Good news: That means Jim's illness was not chemo-related!

Bad news: We had a house full of people here on Wednesday morning for our annual St Patrick's Day "before parade" breakfast. Hopefully none of them will get sick now from being here. Jim didn't spend alot of time visiting with them since he felt so ill, but he was present for awhile.

Good news: I feel 100% better today. It was very weird to have Jim waiting on me yesterday, but I couldn't do anything but lay down. He went to work and I stayed home.

Bad news: Jim is still not feeling very well, although he is functioning. He is struggling to find things to eat that appeal to him. Nothing sounds good, nor does it taste good. Oatmeal is the one thing that he can stomache, so he is eating it with some regularity. Plus he has a new problem - burping. Even during the night he'll burp and wake himself up. What is up with that?

Good news: All of you who continue to pray for Jim - please don't stop! The side effects are the thing that are most concerning to him. He is feeling very frustrated by continually "not feeling well". So pray for his frame of mind also, to hold onto the knowledge that things will get better! Plus we need him to be protected from any other illnesses as he is more susceptible as his immune system has been weakened.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers!

Update on Jim - 3/17/10

2010-03-17T19:35:00.003-05:00

I'm sorry I haven't given any updates during the last week (other then the short one yesterday), but until today there really wasn't a whole lot to say. Here is the rundown...

Last week and weekend were really good. Jim felt good, had energy and a good appetite. We had a full weekend, which included a surprise BD party for a friend Saturday night and a trip to Riverside Casino on Sunday (for Jim's mother's BD). We came home, took a short walk and cleaned the garage floor which was nasty with sand from the long winter. As always Jim felt his best just before his next chemo (which was Monday).

Chemo #5 went very smoothly on Monday. When Dr. Nabi did the spinal infusion at the end of the day it was one insertion and right in. Jim told her she got an A+! Home we went and the next four hours were spent in the prone position. When he got up on Tuesday he felt pretty good. In fact he told a couple people that it was his best "day after chemo" so far. He may have jinxed himself, because it didn't last!

This morning at 4 he was up and in the bathroom. The next several hours were like that. I was very concerned about him becoming dehydrated again. He would take his anti-nausea pill and lose it an hour later. Late morning it finally stopped. At that point he became very good about drinking his liquids (of course I was nagging big time about it). And he finally ate his first solid food around 6 tonight. It wasn't much but it stayed down. We are hoping that he will feel better when he gets up tomorrow.

I wanted to share one of the things that I asked the doctor about at Jim's appointment on Monday. Dr. Nabi had written all these wonderful notes at Jim's first visit so we would have something we could look back on if we had questions about something discussed that day. One of the things she had told Jim was that after the 6 chemo treatments (by IV) that there was a POSSIBILITY that he would have an additional round of chemo - 4 treatments that would be given via spinal infusion. So, what I wanted to know was why the spinal infusion was being done simultaneously with the IV chemo treatments if the original plan was to possibly do it AFTERWARDS. Well, Dr. Nabi said that because Jim was doing so well with his IV chemo treatments, having so few problems, that it made sense to get a start on the spinal infusions and that way shorten the length of time that Jim would be undergoing treatment. The spinal infusions are highly recommended to aggressively treat lymphoma that is in the bone marrow. Dr. Nabi said she does not want Jim to come back a year from now with brain cancer. So even though there is nothing enjoyable about this part of the treatment plan it could make the difference in making sure that his cancer is completely cured. Also, Jim asked for specifics on the last PET/CT scan that was done a few weeks ago. Dr. Nabi said that all the spots that were there before the chemo are all gone. Thank you Lord!

We are very fortunate that our boss is as understanding as she is. Jim missed all of today from work and said for him to take tomorrow too if needed. That has been how she has been all the way through this. We are very blessed to work where we do and to have the type of boss we have. We have good insurance too which is another blessing.

As we go forward please continue to pray for him to have minimal side effects from the chemo. We want him to feel better and to be able to eat and drink as needed. Thanks in advance! We appreciate it so much.

NEXT CHEMO (#6 and final) and spinal infusion (#3) on 4/5/10 (the day after Easter) . The final spinal infusion (#4) will be four weeks later. Dr. Nabi wants another PET/CT scan before the final spinal infusion. We are hopeful that by early June Jim will be ready to some camping!

Update on Jim - 3/16/10

2010-03-16T08:24:00.002-05:00

This will be very short, but in case anyone is checking this a.m. I wanted to let you know that Jim did really well with his chemo (#5) and spinal infusion (#2) yesterday. He knew what to expect and that helped in itself. The days leading up to his chemo were very good. He had some energy and felt really good. He was able to do some normal activities - such as taking a short walk and cleaning the garage floor.

I will share more tonight when I have more time.

Update on Jim 3/7/10

2010-03-07T20:46:00.006-06:00

Jim used an ice pack to help him with his headache earlier in the week.

Jim has officially missed his first full day of work that was not a "chemo" day. On Friday the 6th Jim did not go in to work at all. He just felt like he had no energy. He talked to the doctor's office and they said that it is a side effect of the chemo. The headache issue has been mostly resolved and the stomach issues are under control with the meds that he has, but he is just dragging butt. I've kind of pushed him here and there to do some things and once he gets up and going he feels alright, not great...but okay. If he is up for an extended period of time that is when he seems to feel beat. He seems to need to rest between things. At least that is the way we handled it this weekend.

Not sure what this next week will bring. All through the years we've gotten to work around 6:30 in the morning. Since this whole cancer thing started we started going in around 7 - 7:15. Jim has now decided that we are going to go in around 8. And if he needs to take a long lunch and get a 30-45 minute power nap then that is what he'll do. It might even be necessary to work half days periodically. Whatever it takes! Fortunately for us Margaret is totally supportive and has given Jim free reign to do whatever he needs to do.

Please keep praying that the side effects of the chemo will be minimal. We know that Jim has been very fortunate so far and we hope very much that things won't get any worse than what he has experienced thus far. Thank you for that.

Next chemo (#5) is 3/15 - a week from Monday.

Sugar Cookies

2010-03-07T19:49:00.011-06:00

Do these not look delicious? Well they are! I just L-O-V-E sugar cookies. They are definitely something that calls me. So anyways, I wanted to make something that could be sold at the Hooley today. What is a "Hooley" you ask? Well, it is a money making, food-eating, beer-drinking (by some), dancing, etc., party that is held before the SAPADAPASO Parade. SA (Saint) PA (Patricks) DA (Day) PA (Parade) SO (Society) is the host/sponsor of the party and the parade. My family is deeply involved, from being a volunteer that helps with staging at the parade, to crowd control, to being a part of the organizers. My Dad and bonus Mom, my brothers and sisters, my daughters, my aunt, uncle, cousins, nieces, nephews....and the list goes on and on. Let's just say there is alot of "Davis" blood, sweat and tears involved in each year's parade.

So back to the purpose of this post. I wanted to making something to be sold at the Hooley and it needed to be green and tasty. I decided cookies would fill the need. I had bought shamrock cookie cutters last year so I went with sugar cookie cut-outs. So on Friday night I'm flipping through cookbook after cookbook trying to decide what recipe to use. I found one that I had written in the margins, "Very good, 4/01". And so I decided to go with it. The recipe name just said "sugar cookies", it did not say "cut outs". So I started out trying to roll it with a rolling pin and that did not work at all. The dough just stuck to the roller, regardless of how much flour I put on it. I then noticed the recipe said to roll it into balls, so this was meant to be more of a "drop" cookie. Now I understood. So I tried patting the dough out with my hands and it worked like a charm. I divided the dough into sections and then after I did my cut-outs would re-wad it up and pat it out again. I was able to do that over and over with no problems. (Usually with cut-outs it starts getting difficult as you keep adding more flour.) The important thing was to make sure the dough was cold and sparingly use the flour.

Here is the recipe I used:

Sugar Cookies (St Ludmila Parish Cookbook)

1 cup margarine or butter
1 cup shortening
1 cup powdered sugar (plus more for rolling the balls)
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups flour
1 tsp soda
1 tsp cream of tartar

Cream first 4 ingredients together; add eggs and vanilla. Stir in remaining ingredients. Chill dough 1 hour. Roll dough into balls. Roll balls in powdered sugar. Place on cookie sheet 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Makes 5-6 dozen medium sized cookies.

I did NOT roll the dough into balls. I sectioned off the dough and patted it out on a floured board and used a cookie cutter.

Powdered Sugar Glaze

1 Tbsp water
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar

Mix together and add food coloring if desired. I had to quadruple this recipe to frost all my cookies.

This is the board I used. You can see my shamrock cookie cutter if you look close!

I would pat out the dough with the palms of my hands, doing one section at a time.

Make sure that you don't get it too thin, or leave it too thick.

The cookies puff up nicely so make sure there is plenty of room between them.

I left them on the pan for 1-2 minutes to cool and then put them on a wire rack to finish cooling.

Here are they are - waiting to be frosted!

Make sure you let them dry for a couple hours then storage won't be a problem.

This is a great recipe and now that I've found it (again) I will be using it alot. I have lots of cookie cutters and I like to make cookies that go with special days. These were super easy and I actually liked patting them out rather then rolling them. And did I mention...they are delicious!

Update on Jim - 3/4/10

2010-03-04T07:54:00.005-06:00

Jim’s headaches that started end of last week had continued to worsen. Yesterday he talked to the doctor’s office again, and Dr. Nabi said for him to come in - which we did at 3:30. It was determined that Jim was likely dehydrated due to the spinal puncture that they did at the end of the last chemo session. Seems there can be fluid leakage that happens in the spinal canal, which then results in a spinal headache. The only reprieve is when you lie down. A vicious circle had ensued. He’d get up in the a.m. and feel okay; the headaches would start up and worsen as the day went on. Jim didn’t want to eat or drink anything because the headache was making his stomach not feel good. Each day was getting worse. On Tuesday morning Jim woke up with cramps in the calves of both legs - which should have alerted me to what was going on. I just wasn’t thinking dehydration!

Dr. Nabi decided that Jim needed an IV of fluids. Because of the lateness of the day they couldn’t do it there at the office so he was sent to the hospital on an outpatient basis. We got there, checked in and were sent up to the Infusion Room. Jim got his IV set up and they started the fluids. They also gave him some stronger pain meds and a different anti-nausea medication thru the IV. By the time we left (around 7:45) he was feeling pretty good. (J) So home we went and he got comfortable on the couch, laying comfortably till bed-time. In the meantime I ran to the pharmacy and filled the new meds that Dr. Nabi had prescribed.

This morning we are back at work. He got something in stomach right away and took the new meds. He has a glass of water on his desk and I’ll be pushing fluids like crazy for the next few days! We don’t want any repeat performances.

Jim has two chemo sessions, plus three more of the spinal infusions to go and I have a feeling that he is going to be more susceptible to the side effects as he moves towards these final treatments. We need him to stay healthy and to keep eating and drinking. He needs to continue to be surrounded in prayer so please don’t let up in your prayers! Thanks in advance for that!

Update on Jim - 2/28/10

2010-02-28T20:18:00.002-06:00

This wasn't one of Jim's better weekends. Things didn't start out real good Friday afternoon. I was noticing as the afternoon progressed that Jim wasn't looking so well. He had taken some tylenol after lunch because he felt a headache coming on and his stomach started feeling a bit funny as the afternoon progressed. Jim is not a complainer and he would have most likely just suffered it out. But a little after 4:00 I suggested that he do what he needed to and that we should leave early so he could get home and lay down. He actually agreed quite quickly which caught me by surprise. We got out of there shortly thereafter and we went home and he went straight to the couch. He laid there all evening, no TV, just dozing on and off. We had had plans to go to dinner and a movie with his brother Steve and wife Vicki, but we had to bow out. Around 9 we headed to bed and he slept all night. On Saturday and again today (Sunday) he has had been on the edge of a headache, not ever getting too bad. He has been taking Motrin for it with some relief. We went about normal activities the rest of the weekend although I'd say Jim's appetite hasn't been 100%. I know the headache plays some role in that but part of it is because food hasn't been tasting right. Jim says many things just taste "blah". Hard to get excited about eating when it doesn't taste good!

We are very aware that the side effects have been very minimal up to this point, which we are very greatful for. Please continue your prayers in this regard. Thanks so much!

Next chemo: March 15th

Freezefest 2010 - My first race of the season!

2010-02-28T19:28:00.003-06:00

On Saturday, February 27th, I ran my first race of the season. It was a 5K (3.1 miles) at Squaw Creek Park. The race was on the paved roads and they were all cleared of snow so it was a totally dry run. The temperature was a different issue. The temp was around 27 degrees and then there was the wind chill on top of that. The race didn't start till 11:00 which was a good thing. There were 307 runners so I was not the only person out there freezing my butt off! There was even people in shorts! Not me! I had three layers on my core. When I was running into the wind I had my hood up and was zipped up to my chin. When the wind was to my back, the sun would warm me to the point that I would unzip my jackets, take my hood down and take my gloves off.

Rachelle asked me if I had anything left to give after it was over. Interesting question. Yes, I could have run longer. I had decided to hold steady and keep a constant pace throughout - although I did "push it" during the last stretch of the race. My finish time was 33:30. I checked the final results on the CVRA web site last night and found out I was 6th in my age group (women 50-54). There was 11 of us total. The women who placed 1st thru 3rd all ran in 24 to 26 minutes! WOW! That is really fast (from my perspective). I'd like to think that there will be a day in my future that I might run a 5K in 25 minutes. I think I'll consider that a long-term goal!

I know most of the people reading my blog right now are doing so to keep up with Jim's health status. But in case you decided to read this particular post I'm going to recap on how I came to the point that I'm running races.

Our daughter Rachelle has been competing in triathlons for several years now. I've watched her grow and progress in her athletic ability and have been truly inspired. In 2009, Rachelle and I had conversations about my starting to run. For my birthday in May she said she wanted to give me what I needed to get started. First on the agenda was a good pair of running shoes. We went to Running Wild and I was fitted into a pair of great shoes. Next was some running clothes and we went out to Dick's Sporting Goods and got some things that were practical and looked great. The next step was up to me. Rachelle found a running program called "Couch Potato to 5K". This is a 9 week program. I jumped right in and got started. This program starts things very slow and builds you up week after week. If you are interested in more details you can see my post on July 5th.

I ran three races last year - the Fifth Season 5K Race (7/4), the Indian Summer Distance Classic - 4 mile (9/26) and the Especially for You Race Against Breast Cancer - 5K (10/11). This year I have set a new goal for myself. I have registered to do a quarter marathon in Madison WI on Memorial Day weekend. Rachelle has given me a training schedule and I'm following it quite closely. I run three times a week - Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. On Monday, Wednesday & Friday I cross train. I've been doing various programs, Turbo Jam, Denise Austin, yoga, and medicine ball. I'm switching around all the time and trying to keep things interesting. So I'm sure you are wondering when I do all this...right? Well, it is very early in the morning. I get up 4:45 or 5:00 each day and train for 20-30 minutes depending on the day. The morning is the only time that I can control. When you work till 6 p.m. or later each evening like we do, it doesn't leave much time to do much of anything after you get home and eat.

So how do I stay motivated to get up and exercise each day? First, of all I don't call it exercising. I'm in training. It makes a difference for me...in my head. There is something about knowing that I have a race coming up. By registering for races and having goals set up to accomplish, I am thereby motivated to stay on the training schedule. I'm excited. When I think back to my first race on July 4, 2009 - when I had to walk a couple times because I couldn't run the whole thing...and now...no more walking...mission accomplished! The fun has just begun!

Update on Jim & my dad - 2/23/10

2010-02-23T20:39:00.005-06:00

Thank you, thank you, thank you, all you prayer warriors! Your prayers have surely been heard because things went remarkably well for Jim yesterday!

First let me tell you about Jim's appointment with the doctor. After his lab work he was escorted back to the examining room. Dr. Nabi told Jim his scans from last Wednesday looked very good. She said he is an A plus patient! Then we got the news that she wanted to add another chemo chemical to his treatment plan...and this one is administered by injection into the spinal canal. She explained to us that the brain and spinal column are very protected with very thick membranes. The chemicals that he has been receiving thus far have minimal affect on them. The new chemical would specifically target the brain and spinal column to protect them and kill any cancer cells that might be growing. She compared it to spraying dandelion seeds with weed killer, killing them before they start to grow. Dr. Nabi wants Jim to have 4 treatments. So after he received his IV chemo yesterday he was then taken to a special room for the chemo infusion (into the spinal fluid). Each of the remaining two chemo treatments will be followed by the same thing. And then after all the chemo treatments are done, he'll still have one more infusion that he'll have to go in for.

Jim was a real trooper. Because he didn't know what it was going to be like he was a little nervous about it. Dr. Nabi said it would be no worse then the bone marrow biopsy that she had done previously. And after it was over Jim agreed that it was indeed comparable. It was not an easy process as it took three attempts to find the right spot to put the needle in. She was looking for a space in between two of the vertebrae to slip the needle in. It was finally successful when they had Jim curl up tightly in the fetal position. She used lydocaine to deaden the insertion area so there really wasn't alot of pain. At least now, Jim knows what to expect with the other infusions.

It is funny how you think you know what to expect and then something else gets thrown into the mix. We both remembered that there was a possibility of another chemo treatment but we both thought it was only "possible" after the main ones were over with. We were both surprised with the prospect of them being simultaneous. But Jim is determined to do everything and anything he can to kill this cancer. He does not want to have any repeats later on. So whatever Dr. Nabi recommends he will willingly do.

So how is Jim feeling today? Great! He has a little tenderness at the point on his spine where the infusion was done, but other then that he is great. He got a good night's sleep last night. He commented that this was his best "day after chemo" that he has had thus far. Who could ask for more? Thank you so much for surrounding him in prayer!

As for my dad, he was discharged from the hospital last night They got his heart back in rhythm using meds on Sunday morning. Since he has his port in place, he will be going to the hospital on a daily basis to receive the antibiotics by IV. This will go on for a couple weeks. They really want to get the infection in his leg under control. He too slept well last night and was feeling alot better today. He will continue to need your prayers for quite awhile to come!

Thanks for all your prayers. Please don't stop as they are still very much needed!

Update on Jim and my Dad - 2/21/10

2010-02-21T19:40:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is Jim's #4 chemo plus we get the results of the PET scan from last week. We are optimistic that the chemo will go well and that the results of the scan will be good. I'll post results NLT Tuesday.

Wanted to share...we got together with our camping friends last night and had a delightful time eating and visiting. We joined our camping club a couple years ago - the Rolling Rovers - with the intent of discovering new places to camp. Mission accomplished on that regard. But what we didn't expect was that we would make many new friends. Our camping friends really touched our hearts with their outpouring of concern for Jim. We can't wait for this summer to be able to spend more time with them!

My dad went back into the hospital on Friday. The infectious bursitis that he had problems with a month or so ago in his leg must not have been all gone, because it had come back. The knee was turning red and very painful. They wanted to put him the hospital and give him antibiotics via IV. They put in a port this time right off the bat which is very good because his arms are still a mess from all the IV's that he during his last stay. He had another transfusion today because something in his bloodwork wasn't right. They also determined that his heart was in A-Fib (?) and when the heart doctor came in this afternoon he started a new med to that his supposed to get his heart back in the proper rhythmn. He was told originally that he would be going home Monday but it doesn't look that will be the case. Please pray for his improvement so he can get home.

Whole Wheat Banana Nut Bread

2010-02-21T19:30:00.001-06:00

Get the cup of coffee ready, the bread is ready to eat!

I'm constantly looking for healthier versions of my favorite things to eat. I have been making banana bread for years using my grandmothers recipe. But when I found this recipe which swaps honey for sugar and whole wheat flour for white...PLUS it tastes great....I knew I had found a winner. I have now made this recipe more times then I can count. If I have bananas browning on my counter (which is a regular occurrence) there is banana bread in the offing.

Whole Wheat Banana Nut Bread (from Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients
1/3 cup canola oil
½ cup honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup mashed bananas
1 ¾ cup whole wheat flour
½ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
¼ cup hot water
½ cup chopped nuts

In a large bowl, beat oil and honey together. Add eggs and mix well. Stir in bananas and vanilla. Stir in flour and salt. Add baking soda to hot water, stir to mix, and then add to batter. Blend in chopped nuts. Spread batter into a greased 9X5 loaf pan.

Bake at 325 degrees for 55-60 minutes. Cool on wire rack for ½ hour before slicing.
FYI - I frequently put in more then "1 cup" of mashed bananas. More is better...right???

Mix the honey and oil together.

The bananas are mashed before mixing into batter.

Pour the batter into a 9X5 pan.

The bread should be nicely browned and firm to the touch.

I love bananas and this has become my "go to" recipe when I have browned bananas on my counter. If you love banana bread and are willing to try a "healthier" version I think this will fill the bill! Try it...you'll like it!

Update on Jim - 2/18/10

2010-02-18T10:38:00.003-06:00

Jim had his PET scan yesterday and it went well. He knew what to expect this time so that makes it easier. The technician let Jim look at his scan on the computer afterwards. The tech asked him where the tumor was and Jim told him his left hip pelvic area. The tech pointed to it on the screen and said it doesn't look there is anything there anymore. The tech emphasized that the actual reading would be done by a radiologist and that he wasn't making any interpretation - just stating what he saw. This confirms what we suspected (and hoped) - because Jim's pain is now totally gone, the tumor must be gone. He'll see Dr. Nabi on Monday before Chemo #4 and will get the official report.

Jim is still feeling tired, but that is to be expected. It is not enough to keep him from doing anything. He is working each day, but tired in the evening. Last night after eating supper he laid down on the couch and watched the Olympics. Not something he would do normally but not unexpected due to the chemo. Please keep praying that the side effects continue to be minimal. He is so blessed to have so many people praying for him. When we pray each evening I ask God to look into the hearts of everyone that is praying for Jim and to help you with whatever is heavy on your heart. We all have something we need His help with......

Regarding my Dad - he is getting stronger each day. There are no immediate plans to do anything other then rehab. He had his first rehab at the hospital yesterday and another is scheduled for next week. I'm not sure what all that entails but I'm sure that they want him to continue to build his strength. He has lots of doctor appointments each week. When Jim & I visited him last Sunday evening I was impressed with how good he looked. He too is being lifted up in prayer by many people...and it shows!

Update on Jim - 2/11/10

2010-02-11T10:45:00.003-06:00

Since it has been a few days, thought I'd give you a quick update on Jim. He is feeling really good in regards to his hip/leg pain. He now says is is free of pain in that area! How miraculous is that? He is trying to do more stretches and exercises to start rebuilding the strength/muscle he lost over the last 9 months. That is the good news. The bad news (which isn't really bad, it is just the reality of his situation) is that he is starting to feel tired. He is feeling a little more draggy (is that a word?) every day. Nothing drastic at point. Please continue to pray for the effects to be minimal! We appreciate it so much!

Upcoming appointments:
2/17/10 - PET Scan
2/22/10 - Chemo # 4

Update on Jim - 2/7/10

2010-02-07T20:21:00.003-06:00

I'm glad to report that Jim is continuing to do well. It was a good weekend. He actually took Tito out for a short walk yesterday. Tito is our 7 year old teacup chihuahua. He is Jim's shadow and little buddy. Tito didn't get many walks last summer because of Jim's hip/leg pain. And as a result Tito has put on a little weight. When I say little, it really is little. This little guy should weigh in around 6 pounds, but is pushing 7 pounds. We've cut back on his food, but he really needs more exercise. So we are looking forward to lots of walks this summer since Jim is going to feel so much better.

We call Tito - "burrito boy" since he became a little chubby!

Jim is sleeping pretty well, eating well, feeling well. What a blessing that is! Thanks for your continued prayers...it is making all the difference!

And the winner is....Fruit Filled Oatmeal Bars

2010-02-07T19:48:00.009-06:00

Do you like raisins? I don't, but hubby Jim does...alot! Since I've never hesitated to bake or cook things that I don't like, I made it my mission yesterday to see if I could find a raisin bar that Jim would really like. I found two very different recipes. One is cake like and the other is fruit filled. I made both, plated them and asked him to make his choice. The fruit filled won although Jim said he liked both of them just fine. I'll share the recipes for both in case you want to make your own comparison!

The Fruit Filled Oatmeal Bar is on the left and the Old Fashioned Raisin Bar is on the right.

I told Jim to raise up the plate of the winner! Fruit Filled Oatmeal Bar it is!

Fruit-Filled Oatmeal Bar (from Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook – Pink Edition)

Prep: 20 minutes
Bake: 30 minutes
Oven: 350 deg
Makes: 25 bars

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
¼ tsp baking soda
½ cup butter
1 21-oz can pie filling or 1 ½ cups fruit preserves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9X9X2-inch or 11X7X1 ½-inch baking pan. In a medium bowl combine the flour, rolled oats, brown sugar, and baking soda. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Measure ½ cup of the crumb mixture; set aside.

Press remaining crumb mixture into the bottom of prepared baking pan. If using pie filling, coarsely snip or chop any large pieces of fruit. Spread desired filling over the crust. Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the top is golden. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into bars.

Raisin-Filled Oatmeal Bars: Prepare as above, except substitute raisin filling for canned pie filling. To prepare raisin filing, in a medium saucepan combine ¾ cup water, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Add 1 ¼ cups raisins. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.

Nutrition Info: Per bar fruit or raisin variations: 113 cal, 4 g total fat (2 g sat fat), 10 mg chol., 47 mg sodium, 18 g carbs., 1 g fiber, 1 g protein.

I have a feeling that the Fruit-Filled Oatmeal Bars will become a regular in our house! The recipe itself was very easy and I could easily open some canned pie filling and make something that Jim and I will both eat!

Old Fashioned Raisin Bar (from Variety – The Children’s Charity of Iowa cookbook)

1 cup seedless raisins
1 cup water
1 stick margarine

Combine in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let cool.

1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 ¾ cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp allspice
½ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
½ cup chopped nuts

Combine above and add raisin mixture to it. Mix altogether and spread in a 9X13 pan. Bake at 375 for approximately 20 minutes. When cook, you can dust with powdered sugar or frost with cream frosting.

Update on Jim - 2/5/10

2010-02-05T16:31:00.004-06:00

This is a bit odd...but there isn't much to report on Jim. Which is a very good thing when you consider that he is smack dab in the middle of his chemo treatments! Jim commented yesterday that he feels pretty much pain free now. Only occasionally do you catch a slight limp in his walk, but that may be because he is tired and still trying to rebuild those leg muscles that were pampered for so long. What an absolute miracle! We thank God that so many people have lifted Jim up in prayer! Please don't stop now since we still have a ways to go! But be assured your prayers are being answered!

My dad got home Sunday night as you know. The next two days he spent almost entirely in bed, sleeping. He was just soooo tired! We visited with him Wednesday night and his spirits are good. He saw the doctor yesterday afternoon and got the word as far as his blood platelets. They are now in the normal range. Which is good, but they still aren't doing the job they are supposed to. Why? Because Dad's kidneys are not functioning correctly. They are at 25-30% of normal function. He is in Stage IV renal failure. He has three doctors conversing about what to do next, but it appears that nothing will happen for several weeks. They want him to rest and build his strength. So we wait...and we continue to pray....

Update on Jim - 2/2/10 (& my dad)

2010-02-02T11:01:00.003-06:00

Yesterday Jim had chemo #3 and it went very well. He actually felt and looked great after it was all over. The chemo nurses remarked how very well he is doing, not run down which is pretty normal at this point. (...it is all the prayers...) Jim is at work this morning and feeling good, although he admits to feeling a little tired. We are waiting for a phone call from the oncology office with date and time of the PET scan. It will be a few days before chemo #4, so that the doctor will have to time to get the results before the appointment (2/22/10). Because of the dramatic decrease in Jim's hip pain we are looking for it to show a shrinking tumor!

Don't stop praying for Jim as he is now heading into the period of time in which he is most likely to experience the side effects of the chemo. Fatigue is the most common complaint. And as his immune system continues to be broke down he will be more and more susceptible to illness.

Regarding my dad - he was discharged from the hospital on Sunday evening. We now understand that bypass surgery is not completely ruled out but it is definitely not going to be in the near future. They need his blood to clot where it needs to clot and be thin where it needs to be thin. Finding this perfect balance is the trick. He is taking a ton of meds and is VERY tired. He spent most of the day in bed yesterday and was still there at 9 this morning when I last checked. His blood sugar and blood pressure have both been in normal ranges which is a good thing. Please continue to pray for his recovery.

Thanks to all of you who are praying. Jim feels it. My dad feels it. It is such a blessing!

Update on Dad - 1/30/10

2010-01-30T13:26:00.002-06:00

So...the surgeon says my dad is not a good candidate for surgery at this time. Several weeks from now, a month from now, maybe. His blood is not clotting correctly and they need to work on getting that fixed. For now, they have taken him off all the monitors, he is moving freely and very comfortable. We are thinking (this is not from the doctors) that maybe he'll get to go home next week. For now, he has a constant stream of visitors, children, grandchildren, siblings and some friends. He knows he is loved and has lots of people that want him to keep fighting.

What happens now is in God's hands alone.

Thanks for your prayers....

Update on my dad - 1/29/10

2010-01-29T10:35:00.004-06:00

My dad's surgery was cancelled at 7:15 a.m. The surgeon said he was reviewing my dad's tests and history last night and determined that his blood clotting ability was not where it needed to be to undergo a bypass procedure. I'm not sure whether to cheer or be sad. The prospect of surgery of this magnitude with him in the fragile condition that he is in, had me quite anxious about how it would come out. Also the long road to recovery afterwards was a bit daunting. But, without the surgery...how long can he live? But I must remind myself, that everything is in HIS hands and we must find comfort in that knowledge. And we must trust in the training and expertise of the physicians. So what is the next step? I have no clue. How long will they keep in the hospital? Unknown. Will they decide to do the surgery a week from now? Could be, not sure.

The praying continues. For improved health. For a stronger heart. To go home and have a good quality of life.

In the midst of all this I am SOOOO thankful that Jim is doing well!

Keep praying!!! And we will continue to pray for you too.

Update on Jim 1/28/10 (& my dad)

2010-01-28T07:25:00.004-06:00

I'm so sorry for not posting sooner. I'm getting feedback that my lack of updating caused concern as to whether there was a problem. Well, the problem is definitely not with Jim. He is doing wonderfully! If he wasn't sporting a bald head with some patchy dark hair in the back, you would think there is no way that this guy could have anything wrong with him. He is moving around so well now! He has almost no limp anymore. He has started doing his stretching exercises this week and remarked just this morning that none of them cause any pain! He can tell that he hasn't used his leg muscles correctly in quite awhile. Any discomfort he is feeling is good discomfort, due to working those muscles. Monday 2/1 will be chemo #3. We know that the remaining chemos will each beat him down to some degree, but we are optimistic that the Lord will hear all our prayers and let those side effects continue to be minimal. Thank you for your continued prayers in that regard!

So Jim is doing well, but my dad (Larry) is not. On Monday they did an angiogram and found multiple areas of blockage in his heart. They have determined that they need to do a triple bypass (possibly quadruple) tomorrow (1/29). My dad is very fragile. He has suffered at the hands of his diabetes which he has had for 40 years. His organs have taken a beating over the years with the intense high and lows that he has endured. (He is a "brittle" diabetic.) The doctors have said his kidneys are in the best shape they've been in for awhile...which is amazing considering he was heading towards renal failure a couple months ago. So it looks like all systems are "go" for the surgery. Many of you do not know my dad, but he is a gentle, loving man. So if you would be so kind as to raise a prayer on his behalf I would be most appreciative.

Update on Jim 1/22/10

2010-01-22T09:52:00.003-06:00

Not much to report this week (alleluia!). Jim has been sleeping well, has worked every day, is not overly tired, is eating well and feels pretty good. What a blessing it has been! The Lord has heard all of our prayers. Don't let up though as Jim still has a long way to go!

Thought I'd share some pictures with you. One of our co-workers, Tim, decided to buzz his hair in support of Jim's recent hair changes. He decided to give Jim the honors of doing it himself. So on Monday evening, after we closed shop, Jim played barber and buzzed Tim's hair. Tim's wife even brought their 2 kids down and they got to watch their daddy do a very nice thing.

Can you tell Jim was trying to do a good job?

Here are the two baldies together! Jim & Tim...lookin' good!

If you have any more room on your prayer list, add my Dad (Larry). He was admitted to the hospital this morning. We took him to the ER after he experienced shortness of breath. Seems he had a heart attack sometime in the last 48 hours and didn't know it. Now they need to do some heart tests to determine the damage but due to kidney issues (diabetes related), they have to be very careful or they could throw him into renal failure.

Keep on praying. We in turn our praying for all of you, our prayer warriors. You don't know how much we appreciate it!

Update on Jim 1/17/10

2010-01-17T20:16:00.005-06:00

This is the "new" Jim! Looks pretty good doesn't he? The concensus is that he is a pretty good-looking bald guy!

Everyday last week he was losing big bunches of hair and he was looking a bit "odd". Plus he was tired of cleaning up his pillow each day and cleaning out the shower. The loss had become pretty dramatic. So on Friday he said he was ready to "buzz it". We didn't shave it. We used a razor with a #1 guard on it. I've never used one before but Jim assured me there was nothing to mess up!

Enough with hair. I'm sure you want to know how he is doing 6 days post-chemo #2. The answer is...just fine. He has a couple things going on, none of which are serious. The first thing is difficulty getting a good night's rest. He noticed this after chemo #1 also, so this may be something he needs to expect during that first week after chemo. We think it is because of all the fluids that were put into him during the treatment. We think that they are just working their way out of his body. So...that means getting up several times each night to use the bathroom. We also think the Predisone that he takes for 5 days after each treatment has him "rev'd" up to the point that he doesn't get into a deep sleep. Predisone is a steriod. It tastes awful and Jim is always glad when the fifth day comes and goes and he can quit taking it. One of the other things that he is noticing is heart burn. Not terrible. But enough that it woke him up last night and he took some Tums. Which did help. He is feeling some of the heartburn again tonight. This didn't happen last time, but we have a friend that went thru chemo a few years back and she said that she had lots of heartburn issues. Hopefully that won't be the case for Jim. He has been feeling a little tired and took naps both yesterday and today. But overall he is feeling pretty good. The reduction in pain in his hip has given him more mobility. He took care of his mom's trash and recycling this week which is major. He hated having me do "his" job over the last several weeks, but he just wasn't physically up to it till now. I'm not discounting the possibility that as the chemo treatments continue that I may have to take care of those tasks again. I'm willing...he just better not get used to it!

I'm probably telling you more then you want to know, but my posting has become my journal so to speak. By stating specifics we are able to go back and accurately compare the details from one treatment to the next.

I want to leave you with this thought (author unknown): GOD didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but he did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.

Please continue praying for minimal side effects from the chemo! Thanks so much!!!

NEXT CHEMO (#3) is 2/1/10

Update on Jim 1/14/10

2010-01-14T08:55:00.002-06:00

It is hard to believe that Jim can be four weeks into this chemo thing and how good he feels. The hip pain (where the biggest tumor was) has subsided so much that he has quit using the cane and now moves with a fairly normal gait. When we are walking side by side I'm walking at my normal pace. His stomach has been a bit "wiffy" (a word my deceased mother used to use whenever her stomach felt a little off). That was the word Jim used when I asked him how he felt last night. He knows it brings a smile to my lips when I hear it - because it makes me think of her. Anyways, he took one of the anti-nausea pills and in pretty short order he felt better. He has had multiple people hammer into him that he should not wait to take it. At the first sign of discomfort he needs to take it. He did - and it worked!

Jim is losing his hair in a big way. Every day this week he pulls another big gob of hair out of the shower drain. He is also using a lint roller on his pillow each morning to "clean it up"! It appears that the dark hair is going first as he only has gray left on the top and sides. He still has dark hair in the back but it is starting to get pretty blotchy. He is rapidly approaching the point in which he is going to have it buzzed off. I asked him this a.m. if it was weird looking in the mirror. He said, "Yes, just a little bit". I'm pretty sure I would not even go out in public without having my head covered at this point. But I think that I'm alot more vain then Jim is. I think also that women in general would deal with the whole hair loss thing much harder then men. If you'd like to see a current picture of him (taken yesterday) you can go to Becca's blog where she has posted two shots.

We've heard quite a few hair loss stories lately that have been pretty interesting. One person told us about a gal who had cancer twice, had chemo twice, lost her hair twice, and each time it came back a little different. We also were told about a guy who had no hair on the top of his head before receiving chemo and when it came back in later he had hair on the top again. How weird is that? So now we play the wait and see game. How will it affect Jim...hmmm....???

So for now, all is well. Jim is feeling pretty good. I can't say he is looking pretty good..but that is from a cosmetic perspective. He is smiling because he is so glad about the decreased pain in his hip/leg. He is working and not feeling overly tired at the end of the day. Bottom line - we have alot to be thankful for. We are blessed in SO MANY WAYS! We also know we are blessed to have family and friends who care enough to pray for him and his recovery. Thank you so much for that! Once again, I will share Jim's work email address so if you want to send him any wishes you can do so. It is jim@customhose.com .

Update on Jim 1/11/10

2010-01-11T19:35:00.003-06:00

Chemo # 2 was today and it went very well. We were at the oncology office at 8:15 this a.m. Jim had lab work done and then met with the doctor. Dr. Nabi had lots of questions about how Jim did after the last chemo and was very pleased to hear that he had very little side effects. Dr. Nabi said that Jim has a guage that most chemo patients don't have. She said most chemo patients have to have blind faith that the chemo is doing its job, whereas Jim has physical proof ---- the reduction in pain in his hip. Jim said his hip feels 85-90% normal. The cane may be a thing of the past very soon! YEAH!

Jim feels really good tonight and is planning on being at work tomorrow. The doctor prepared him for the fact that the side effects could be a little harder with each treatment. So please continue the prayers for them to be minimal!

The plan that the doctor has laid out is to have chemo #3 on 2/1 and then just before chemo #4 she will schedule scans to see how everything is progressing. Based on how good Jim's hip is feeling it is a pretty sure thing that the tumor is shrinking. YEAH!!

Thanks to all of you who are praying for Jim! We know they are making all the difference! The supportive emails and cards are also greatly appreciated.

NEXT APPT: Chemo #3 on Monday, 2/1/10

Roasted Vegetables

2010-01-11T19:00:00.001-06:00

I've made this vegetable dish many times since I found it in 2008. Absolutely delicious! Everything can be prepared the day before and the actual roasting on the day you wish to serve it. You also have alot of flexibility on the vegetables used!

Colorful Roasted Veggies
(From Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet Cookbook)

4 medium carrots, julienned
1-1/2 pounds fresh asparagus, trimmed and halved
2 large green pepper, julienned
1 medium sweet red pepper, julienned
1 medium red onion, sliced and separated into rings
5 cups fresh cauliflowerets
5 cups fresh broccoli florets
¼ cup olive oil
3 Tbsp lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp dried rosemary, crushed
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

In a large bowl, combine the vegetables. In a small bowl, whisk the oil, lemon juice, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper until blended. Drizzle over vegetables and toss to coat.

Transfer to two greased 15-in x 10-in x 1-in baking pans. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.

Yield: 12 servings

Nutrition facts: ¾ cup equals 88 calories, 5 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 228 mg sodium, 10 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 3 g protein. Diabetic exchanges: 2 vegetable, 1 fat

It not only tastes great, but looks really good!

Update on Jim 1/7/10

2010-01-07T09:39:00.004-06:00

Jim is dealing with a cold these days. His sore throat is just about gone but the sinuses are still running. The doctor's office told him he can use over the counter cold medicine which he is and it is helping some. His sleep isn't being affected which is a good thing!

Two specific things that Jim has noticed regarding his hip pain. First, he hated sneezing because of the pain that it caused in his hip. With this cold there has been some regular sneezing and it doesn't hurt anymore. The other thing is stretching. He couldn't really do a full body stretch before without pain and now he can. We interpret that to mean that the tumor in his hip is shrinking. Which means the cancer is getting smaller....YEAH!

On the hair issue...it is only a matter of time before it is gone. This morning when he got out of the shower he had hair strands all over his face. Then we checked his pillow and sure enough there was hair all over it. If you looked at him right now you wouldn't notice anything...maybe a little thinner all over. You know how you run your hand through your hair after a new haircut and you have hair all over? That is what is happening. Nothing major, just constant. Plus, he didn't shave this morning. It wasn't worth the effort for the minor growth. We both consider this a minor side affect. He'll gladly take hair loss over nausea any day!

Chemo #2 is rapily approaching! Just a few more days. This one should not take as long as the first one. They really watch the patient closely during the administration of the first one, checking for reactions. Plus they administer it slowly. The process should be a little shorter this next time. Maybe 5 hours instead of 6. The first round was a good experience (as good as chemo can be). Everyone was so nice and Jim enjoyed visiting with the other patients that were sitting near him. He says the time went by very quickly.

Keep praying!!!!

Update on Jim 1/5/10

2010-01-05T08:07:00.003-06:00

Jim is having continued improvement on his hip/leg pain. I've seen him move around more without the cane which is a very good sign. On the flip side, he seems to be coming down with a cold. He started gargling with salt water a couple days ago when he felt the early tickle of a sore throat. Today you can hear it in his voice. Hopefully he can get past it before the chemo in 6 days.

Hair today... gone tomorrow??? He has noticed something else that is a bit odd, his facial hair seems to not be growing as fast. He commented this morning that he could probably get by without shaving as it wasn't much more then a 5:00 shadow. (Although he went ahead and shaved anyway.) Whether this is an indication of changes to come we don't know. Jim has stated repeatedly that losing his hair would be no big deal. Of all the possible side effects this one is the least concerning. Rachelle and Becca went shopping for an assortment of head gear for him a couple weeks ago. With the very cold temperatures we are experiencing he now has a variety of hats that he can wear indoors or outdoors. So if it happens he is ready.

If anyone wants to send Jim any emails directly you can do so at: jim@customhose.com . He would enjoy hearing from you. In the meantime keep those prayers coming....

Update on Jim 1/3/10

2010-01-03T15:07:00.008-06:00

Things are going so well for Jim! Aside from being a little tired he is feeling pretty good. Naps have been pretty common during the days we've been off of work. The pain in his hip (where the biggest area of cancer is located) has been getting better, a little bit more every day. Dr. Nabi had said that he could start feeling relief after the first chemo treatment and she was right! Jim has been sleeping well, getting up only once each night over the last several days.

We are so grateful to all of you who've called, emailed, and/or prayed for Jim. He has a wonderful positive attitude and your "well-wishes" have alot to do with that.

The chemo treatment #2 is in 8 days (1/11/10).

It is cookie making time!

2010-01-03T15:00:00.000-06:00

This was a different Christmas season. With Jim's cancer diagnosis in early December, I did absolutely NO BAKING! That is totally out of character for me as I usually have cookies, candy and other treats coming out of the kitchen almost every evening leading up to Christmas. If it were not for the generous baking gifts of friends and family we would not have had any Christmas goodies to eat this year. Needless to say they are all gone now and I needed to stock up on some treats. I have a couple favorite cookie recipes that I made between yesterday afternoon and today. I made double batches of each cookie, leaving a few out but putting most away in the freezer for consumption at a later time.

The first cookie recipe I'm going to share is one that I've been making for many years. It is the only chocolate chip cookie that I make for the family now.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies
(from www.patrywiz.com)

Yield: 3 dozen cookies (using a medium scoop)

¾ cup granulated sugar
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 cup butter or margarine, softened (I use Smart Balance)
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 cups whole wheat flour
½ cup oatmeal (I added this)
¼ cup wheat germ (I added this)
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 pkg (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups) (I use ¾ cup dark choc chips)
1 cup coarsely chopped nuts (if desired)

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Mix sugars, butter, vanilla and egg in a large bowl. Stir in flour, oatmeal, wheat germ, baking soda and salt. Add in chocolate chips and nuts if desired.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoons about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light brown (centers will be soft). Cool slightly; remove from pan and put on wire rack.

This is the mixed up cookie dough.

I use Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips for most of my chocolate baking needs.

The cookie scoop makes nice rounded balls of dough.

Make sure you smash the dough balls. I use a sandwich bag that I put my hand into.

The finished product! YUM..YUM!

I get three dozen delicious cookies out of this recipe.

I found the following recipe in October of 2009 and have made in several times since. As indicated by the many pumpkin recipes that I routinely make ----I love pumpkin!

Oatmeal-Pumpkin Cookies
(from Iowa State University Extension Office – 10/09 Newsletter)

Yield: 4 doz (med scoop) or 6 doz (small scoop)

1 ¾ cup pumpkin puree (1 - 15 oz can is perfect)
1 ½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1 ½ cup all-purpose flour (I use half white and half whole wheat flours)
2 ½ cup quick oats, dry
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp salt
1 cup raisins or cranraisins
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix pumpkin, brown sugar, eggs and oil thoroughly. Blend dry ingredients and add to pumpkin mixture. Add raisins and nuts, if desired. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes until golden brown.

This is the mixed up dough.

Here is the fnished product!

These cookies are not real sweet but the pumpkin and cranberries compliment each other very nicely.

I frequently freeze cookies. Sometimes I put them into Tupperware containers with waxed paper between the layers. Other times I package them in sandwich bags (3-4 per bag) and then put the sandwich bags into a freezer bag. They keep very nicely for several months.

Update on Jim 12/30/09

2009-12-30T16:46:00.002-06:00

Each day we get up wondering what changes Jim might feel that day. After a rough Monday, the last two days have been pretty good. Jim hasn't taken any more of the anti-nausea meds and hasn't needed to nap mid-day since Monday. He actually feels pretty good and has been working all day. He is still using the cane for support but I've seen him leave it behind when making some short walks around work or at the house. We were told to expect the changes to be like a roller coaster ride. Chemo patients "typically" have a slow decline (feeling the effects of the chemo), then bottoming out and slowing starting to improve, just in time for the next chemo. The ride then starts all over again although the effects happen faster and can hit a little harder with each treatment.

I have no doubt that Jim is surrounded in prayer and we thank you for that! We are very blessed to have family and friends willing to travel this road with us!

Update on Jim 12/28/09

2009-12-28T07:46:00.002-06:00

Today we are 7 days post chemo # 1. Jim is noticing some side effects, mostly minor. His stomach is a little off, but he is still eating. He took his first anti-nausea pills this weekend. Getting a good nights sleep seems to be the biggest obstacle. He is up 4-5 times a night to use the bathroom. Not sure what that is all about as he isn't drinking anything more then normal - I'm guessing he is sleeping lighter. We'll be talking to the doc about that if this continues very long. He got up looking tired this morning and said he felt like he was "dragging butt". When we go home at lunch today I'm going to encourage him to lay down for a cat nap. We've gotten the okay to take long lunches whenever necessary if naps prove to be helpful. Getting up at 5:15 this a.m. may have been a mistake....

Update on Jim 12/23/09

2009-12-23T16:06:00.002-06:00

We are now two days post chemo and Jim is doing very well. He has noticed a couple small things, i.e., food tasting a little funny, some puffiness (from the steroids), but for the most part he is feeling the same as he did before the chemo treatment.

Thank you for your continued prayers!

NEXT SCHEDULED APPT: Chemo #2 on Monday 1/11/10

Update on Jim 12/21/09

2009-12-21T19:57:00.007-06:00

One down and five to go! Chemo #1 was today and all went well!

Jim had to be at Oncology Associates at 8:15. He was originally scheduled for lab work first, followed by a visit with the doctor and then chemo. Because Jim had just been in last week for the biopsy that included lab work they were able to forego that today. One less "stick"! The visit with Dr. Nabi resulted in some very good news....the biopsy on Jim's right hip showed no cancer in the bone marrow! Needless to say Jim went into his first chemo treatment with a very good frame of mind!

The chemo program that Jim is on is called "R-Chop", (Rituxan, Cytoxan, Adriamycin, Vincristine & Prednisone). He received each med separately. The Rituxan was the one that was administered very slowly over a period of hours. The nurse checked Jim's blood pressure and heart rate every 30 minutes. This med was the one they are most concerned about for reactions -- and there were NONE! The administration of the Rituxan and all the other meds went very well. The actual chemo started around 9:30 and was done by 4:00. Jim says that the day went by very fast and was pretty uneventful. Now we wait....

Nausea is the first concern. We are hoping of course that it won't be an issue. But if so, he has meds on hand to take at the first sign of problems. Then in 7-14 days the potential for hair loss and fatigue will present itself. Once again we are hoping that these side effects will also be non-existent. We are optimistic that there will be little if any problems and that the next several months will go by quickly.

Please continue the prayers for Jim not to feel any ill-effects from the chemo. We really appreciate it!!!!

Update on Jim 12/16/09

2009-12-16T13:16:00.005-06:00

Jim had to be to Oncology Assoc this morning at 8:15. They did lab work and we met with Dr Nabi before she did the biopsy on his other hip. Dr Nabi informed us that there were some addditional spots of concern that showed up on his PET/CT scan that was done Monday. He has a spot on his back (thorasic area), one in the pubic area and one in a lymph node deep within his abdomen. These results do not change anything in the recommended course of treatment. These tests will provide a baseline from which they will be able to compare future tests so they will know what his progress is. Dr Nabi then proceeded with the biopsy of the bone marrow on his right hip. We hope to have the results of that when we see her at the next appointment. That will be next Monday 12/21 - which is when Jim will have his first chemo treatment. Dr Nabi gave Jim the option to wait till after Christmas for his first chemo but because he is anxious to get the "healing" started he decided not to wait.

On Monday, 12/21 Jim has to be at the Oncology Assoc at 8:15. They will do lab work, he will meet with the doctor and then proceed with his first round of chemo. It was kind of interesting how they described the process. There are five different ingredients in the "recipe" that will be used on Jim. I believe two of them are oral meds. The rest are given separately via IV- they are not a "cocktail" (meaning they are NOT mixed together), but are given separately, in "courses". For the first treatment they will be watching him closely for allergic reactions. It will be administered very slowly so if there are any problems they can stop it. Subsequent treatments should go faster once they've determined he can handle it. This first chemo treatment will take approximately 6 hours, so we are to plan on being there for the entire day. He is to bring a cold sack lunch. They don't want hot food brought in as the smells can be offensive to others receiving treatment. The chemo room has lots of big comfortable recliners in it, blankets galore, DVD players to watch movies and music that you can listen to with earphones. Patients are encouraged to bring books, or anything else that will help the time go by. Everyone is so kind and compassionate there. We feel really good about the care he will be receiving.

We've been warned about possible side effects and things that we need to be watchful for. They have a doctor on call that is accessible through the answering service 24/7, and we were told not to hesitate to call if we have any concerns. The actual side effects of the chemo may not kick in for 7-14 days, as it will take that long to work its way into his system. (Future treatments won't take that long.) I asked if we needed to be concerned about being around family over the holidays and were assured that there should be no problem. Jim was just warned to use proper hygiene habits (i.e., regular hand washing) and to avoid close proximity with anyone not feeling 100%.

Please pray for Jim to not suffer any side effects from his chemo!

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!
~ Isaiah 26:3, NLT

Update on Jim 12/14/09

2009-12-14T17:20:00.003-06:00

Jim had his PET/CT scan today and it was uneventful. He was there from 12:30 till nearly 3:00. After injecting him with radioactive dye (into his vein) he had to sit still for more then an hour so it could work its way through his system. He admits that he fell asleep for some of that time! They then took him for the scans which were also no big deal. We were back to work by 3:10, with Jim feeling no worse then when we left.

We are hoping to have results of this and Friday's heart test when he sees Doctor Nabi on Wednesday (12/16) for the biopsy. If we hear anything in the meantime I'll be sure to get it posted.

Keep the prayers coming!

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:6-7 (New American Standard Bible)

Jim's Status Past to Present

2009-12-13T21:02:00.006-06:00

Last March we went on a road trip to Kansas City and after we got there Jim started feeling pain in his leg/hip area. We figured he sat wrong or something. He just kind of dealt with it for a couple months.

Jim went to his chiropractor several times over the next few months and there was little if any relief. He asked the doc to order an x-ray just to see if there was anything "wrong in there", and the results showed nothing. That was in June. The chiro gave Jim some exercises to do and he did them, religiously, every day.

In August, Jim went to his family doctor for a physical and talked to him about the discomfort he was experiencing and the doc guessed that it was I.T. Band syndrome since alot of his pain was down the outside of the leg. Routine blood work was done and there was no problems indicated.

Jim called the family doctor in late October and asked to be sent to physical therapy. He went 6 times and followed through with everything the therapist recommended with no relief. The therapist expressed concern that he had made no progress and said she would contact the family doctor with a suggestion that they do an MRI.

The family doctor referred Jim to an orthopedic surgeon for evaluation. Jim saw him on 11/19. The ortho ordered an MRI with the expectation that they would find something torn in his hip.

The MRI was done 12/1 (the day after we returned from Cozumel). On 12/2 Jim was called into the family doctor's office and we were told that a mass had been found. A biopsy was the next step.

A needle biopsy was done Friday 12/4 at St Lukes Hospital. Other then the fact that Jim's hip was extra sore for a few days, it went smoothly.

On Wednesday 12/9 Jim got a call from the family doctor saying that the biopsy had shown cancer. Jim has Diffuse B Cell (non Hodgkins) Lymphoma, stage IV. The doc wanted to get Jim set up with a oncologist right away. He hung up with Jim and then called back 10 minutes later saying that if he could get to Dr Nabi's office by 12:30 that they could get him in. (There was blizzard conditions going on and the office was closing early...as was half the city.) Jim & I rushed out of work and were there with minutes to spare. Dr Nabi was wonderful. She very slowly explained the cancer that Jim has and what to expect in the near future. She also wrote out notes as she explained and then gave us the notes to take home after the appointment. There were three more tests that she wanted done ASAP. A heart scan, a PET/CT scan and another biopsy on the other hip. The one thing she insisted we remember from our visit was that Jim's cancer was CURABLE! He is going to have to work hard to beat it, but it can be beat!

On Friday 12/11 Jim had the heart scan at St Luke's Hospital. It consisted of them taking some blood through an IV, mixing it with some radioactive stuff and then putting it back into his blood. He then was put on a table and had several scans done of his heart from different directions. This test would provide a baseline which they could later use for comparison with future scans to see if there was any changes happening to this heart.

The next test is tomorrow, Monday 12/14 at 12:30. This is the PET/CT scan. Today Jim had to make some modifications to his diet in preparation. For 24 hours prior he was to have no sugar or caffeine. And his meal tonight had to be meat, eggs and/or selected vegetables. High protein, low carb, low sugar. So I chose to make him bacon and eggs. Real bacon, not turkey! He really enjoyed that! He has to have a repeat of this meal tomorrow morning. Normally we just eat something at our desk at work, but tomorrow, if he doesn't eat at home he won't get to eat till after the procedure - which means no food till 4:00 tomorrow afternoon! So we will have breakfast at home prior to going to work. Eggs and bacon, here we come!

Scheduled appointments:
PET/CT scan on Monday, 12/14 at 12:30 p.m. at St Luke's Hospital
Biopsy on Wednesday, 12/16 at 8:30 a.m. at Oncology Associates

Cancer Sucks!

2009-12-13T20:39:00.003-06:00

I've not posted since 11/22! I've never gone that long! But time has stood still as great things and sad things have occurred. The great thing was a wonderful trip to Cozumel to watch daughter Rachelle compete in her first Ironman triathlon. She did it in 13 hours and 35 minutes. The days prior were filled with hanging out around the pool drinking fruity drinks, eating wonderful food and soaking in WARM, I repeat WARM weather. It was a lovely time and I'm so thankful that the timing worked out the way it did. (If you want to see pictures from the trip you need to go to either of the girls websites - Rachelle or Becca.)

Anyways, after we got back an onslought of tests were done on hubby Jim and in a matter of a week we found out that he has cancer. There are more tests to be had and then chemo will be started. So, I've decided that I'm going to use my blog as a means of providing information to family and friends who want to know what is going on and how he is doing. Presuming that I am able to do some cooking I may have some food blogging mixed into the picture. You will have to pick and choose what you want to read! My intent is to update every few days.

Stress Free Dinner

2009-11-22T19:27:00.007-06:00

Today my family celebrated Thanksgiving. We are going to be traveling over the actual holiday so we moved our celebration to today. I actually liked having it on a Sunday. I had all of Saturday to do my preparations and today was very stress-free. I know most people won't have this option for this Thanksgiving but my ideas could be used for other meals. Here are some things that I did this weekend that made things go smoothly:

1) I cut up all my veggies that I needed for my various dishes. I needed celery, onions and parsley for my dressing. I also made a roasted vegetable dish that required red and green peppers, red onions, cauliflower and broccoli. My oriental salad needed chopped green onions, so I got them ready also. And since I was already chopping, I cut up my veggies for the vegetable tray.

2) As previously mentioned I was making a roasted vegetable dish and I went ahead and put all my cut up vegetables into the dressing and let them sit overnight. They were ready to put on a pan and bake the next day.

3) I baked my rolls the night before. Usually the big hold up making the rolls is the time to let them raise. (I use Rhodes.) So I decided this year to put them out in the afternoon to raise and I baked them the evening before. They tasted just great - so I'll be doing this again.

4) I start my mashed potatoes several hours before dinner time. I prepare them as normal but I put them in a crockpot to keep them warm till dinner time.

5) This year for the first time I used crockpot liners. Wow. Talk about saving time during clean-up! I liked these alot!

6) I boiled my eggs for the deviled eggs the afternoon before. Then the evening before I cut them and mixed up the filling. I put the filling into a heavy duty zip lock bag and then didn't fill them till a few hours before dinner. Very easy and then throw the bag away.

7) And the biggest time saver of all - I roasted my turkey the day before. I use a roaster but it could be done in the oven just as easily. I let the turkey cool a bit and then refrigerated it. Then on the morning of the dinner I pulled the turkey out and sliced it and put it into the serving dishes. I covered them with foil and then put them back in the refrigerator till about an hour and a half before dinner. I put the turkey back in the oven at 200 degrees. (FYI - I made a 20 pound turkey and split the meat up into two dishes - white and dark meat.)

In case your interested this was our menu (incuding the items that were brought by family members):

Turkey

Mashed potatoes

Party potatoes (brought by sister-in-law Beth)

Crockpot stuffing (already posted on this blog)

Sweet potato souffle

Herbed corn (to be blogged later)

Green bean casserole (brought by sister Patty)

Vegetable casserole (brought by sister-in-law Beth)

Roasted vegetables (to be blogged later)

Oriental salad

Apple salad (brought by sister Patty)

Grape salad

Deviled eggs (to be blogged later)

Buns (Rhodes)

Veggies, dip, pickles, olives, cranberry sauce, cottage cheese

Apple dumplings (brought by step mom Laurie)

Cherry pie (brought by mom-in-law)

Pecan/chocolate pie (brought by sister-in-law Beth)

Pumpkin pie dessert (to be blogged later)

We had 23 eaters but could have fed many more! Extras mean that food goes home with people and that is a good thing!

I'll be posting some of menu items that I made at a later time. So stay tuned!

Cinnamon Fruit Biscuits

2009-11-14T13:47:00.009-06:00

This past week we had our monthly potluck at work. Since hubby and I work together we have a period of months that we have to take 2 items. This month I was responsible for the breakfast and hubby was responsible for the entree. I didn't get any pics of the meatloaf that I made but I'm going to share that recipe also because it is very much a winner! I made two things for our breakfast, one sweet and one savory. Both were super easy, new recipes that I got out of Taste of Home's 5-Ingredient Cookbook. The first one that I'm going to share is the Cinnamon Fruit Biscuits. If you didn't want to spend alot of money but wanted to take something that will go over big - - this would be the ticket! This recipe definitely goes into the "keeper" recipe file!

Cinnamon Fruit Biscuits
(from Taste of Home's 5-Ingredient Cookbook)

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup ground cinnamon
1 tube (12 oz) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits, separated into 10 biscuits
1/4 cup butter, melted
10 tsp strawberry preserves

In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon. Dip top and sides of biscuits in butter, then in cinnamon-sugar. Place on ungreased baking sheets. With the end of a wooden spoon handle, make a deep indentation in the center of each biscuit; fill with 1 teaspoon of preserves.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes before serving (preserves will be hot). Yield: 10 servings

This is a picture of the biscuits before they went into the oven. Instead of using a wooden spoon handle I used the following kitchen tool. It made the indentation larger. (I used the smaller of the two ends.)

Here is a pic after they came out of the oven. They look like little kolaches don't they? But they definitely don't taste like kolaches. Much sweeter due to the sugar cinnamon coating. Feel free to change up the preserves based on personal taste.

These went over very well. I quadrupled the recipe so the guys at work could have a couple apiece. They taste best the first day, but are still eatable on the day after!

Cheese and Sausage Muffins

2009-11-14T13:30:00.000-06:00

Personally, I don't each cheese so I can't even say that I tried these. But everyone that did said they were good. It probably would add to the flavor to add some grated cheddar cheese just to add to the cheesey taste. This recipe came together very quickly once you have the sausage cooked up. Mine weren't served warm because I made them the night before, but I'm sure they would be at their peak taste if served right out of the oven.

Cheese and Sausage Muffins
(Taste of Home's 5-Ingredient Cookbook)

1 pound bulk hot pork sausage
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed cheddar cheese soup, undiluted
1/2 cup milk
2 to 3 tsp rubbed sage
3 cups biscuit/baking mix

PLUS (my addition) - 1/2 to 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese

In a skilled over medium heat, cook sausage until no longer pink; drain. In a bowl, combine soup, milk, sage and sausage. Stir in the biscuit mix just until moistened.

Fill greased miniature or regular muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Yield: 4 dozen mini-muffins or 2 dozen regular muffins.

TSR version of Boston Market Meatloaf

2009-11-14T13:15:00.000-06:00

I've been making meatloaf for many years. In the early years I relied on the Heinz 57 sauce recipe and was very happy with it. Then in 2001 I found the following recipe. It uses no eggs or fillers (such as crackers or oatmeal). It moved into the family favorite category very quickly and now this is the recipe I use for meatloaf. The recipe came from the Top Secret Recipes (TSR) website. In the early days, this was a free website, which is not true anymore. It still provides "clones" of many popular food items from restaurants that we are all familiar with. This meatloaf recipe is supposed to be a clone of what they serve at Boston Market. I ate at a Boston Market restaurant years ago when my eldest was going to school at Iowa State in Ames. But they are no longer there and I haven't seen one of these restaurants since. I know they still exist just not in our regional area. So how close this recipe is to what they serve I can't tell you. I just know that it is VERY good!

I served this meatloaf at our company's monthly potluck. I mixed it up the night before and then took it to work and baked it there. As a result, no pictures. (Pictures of raw meat didn't sound appetizing.) I was asked to share the recipe which always tells me that it went over well.

TSR version of Boston Market Meatloaf

1 cup tomato sauce
1-1/2 TBSP Kraft original barbeque sauce (I use Cookies - no high fructose)
1 TBSP granulated sugar
1-1/2 pounds ground sirloin (10% fat)
6 TBSP all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
dash garlic powder

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the tomato sauce, barbecue sauce and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat the mixture until it starts to bubble, stirring often, then remove it from the heat.

In a large bowl, add all but 2 TBSP of the tomato sauce to the meat. Use a large wooden spoon or your hands to work the sauce into the meat until it is very well combined.

Combine the remaining ingredients with the ground sirloin--flour, salt, onion powder and ground pepper. Use the wooden spoon or your hands to work the spices and flour into the meat.

Load the meat into a loaf pan (preferably a meatloaf pan with two sections which allows the fat to drain, but if you don't have one of those a regular loaf pan will work). Wrap foil over thepan and place it into the oven for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, take the meatloaf from the oven, remove the foil and, if you aren't using a meatloaf pan, drain the fat.

Using a knife, slice the meatloaf all the way through into 8 slices while it is still in the pan. This will help to cook the center of the meatloaf. Pour the remaining 2 TBSP of sauce over the top of the meatloaf, n a stream down the center. Don't spread the sauce.

Place the meatloaf back into the oven, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes or until it is done. Remove and allow it to cool for a few minutes before serving.

My notes:
I like to use fresh onion (1 small) and garlic (2-3 cloves), minced instead of the powder. I don't have a meatloaf pan, so I normally double the recipe and use a 9X13 pan.

Crockpot Dressing, Crustless Pumpkin Pie, Butter Horn Rolls

2009-11-08T20:34:00.026-06:00

I've been cooking all day! Our camping club had our annual Thanksgiving dinner together and eating was a big part of the agenda. (Although we did conduct a short meeting!). I had signed up to make a turkey (which I did in the roaster) and dressing (which I made in the crockpot). I started both of them this a.m. After an easy lunch (of Subway) I started itching to make some additional food items to take to the dinner. One of our family favorites is crustless pumpkin pie. The majority of the carbs in pumpkin pie is in the crust so if we cut the crust out of the picture then we can enjoy with less guilt! I found this recipe on the Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk can back in 2005 and have made it year round ever since! But that wasn't enough. I figured there might not be many rolls at the potluck, so I started hunting for a yeast recipe that wouldn't take hours and hours. I found one that I was able to throw together very easily - plus they were delicious. I love it when a new recipe works out. I'm going to share recipes for the dressing, pumpkin pie and the rolls.

Crock-Pot Dressing

1 cup butter
12 to 13 cups bread cubes (2 X 14 oz pkgs)
2 cups chopped celery
2 cups chopped onion
¼ cup parsley
2 beaten eggs
4 cups chicken broth
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 ½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp sage
1 tsp thyme
½ tsp pepper
½ tsp marjoram

Mix all ingredients together in crock pot. Cook on high for 45 minutes, then turn to low and cook 4 to 6 hours.

Variation: May add cut-up turkey or chicken, if desired.

Original recipe called for 1 (8 oz) can drained mushrooms.

Perfect “Crustless” Pumpkin Pie

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin (2 cups)
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk (I used no fat)
2 eggs
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. With wire whisk or mixer, beat all ingredients. Pour into a pie pan (greased). Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees F. Continue baking 35-40 minutes or until knife inserted 1 inch from edge comes out clean. Cool. Garnish as desired. Store covered in refrigerator.

The original recipe called for it to be put into an unbaked 9-inch pie crust.

Butter Horn Rolls
(from America’s Best Lost Recipes Cookbook)

Makes 24 rolls

12 tsps (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter – DIVIDED
1 cup warm milk (110 degrees)
½ cup sugar
3 large eggs
4 ½ - 5 cups all-purpose flour (I substituted one cup of regular for whole wheat flour)
1 pkg rapid-rise or instant yeast
1 ½ tsp salt

1. Lightly grease a large bowl with cooking spray. Melt 8 tbsp of the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; let cool. Mix the melted butter, milk, sugar and eggs in a large measuring cup. Mix 4 ½ cups flour, the yeast, and salt together in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook. With the mixer on low, add the milk mixture. After the dough comes together, increase the speed to medium and mix until shiny and smooth, 4 to 6 minutes. (If the dough is sticky after 3 minutes, add the remaining ½ cup flour, 2 tbsp at a time.) Turn the dough out onto a heavily floured work surface, shape into a ball, and place in the greased bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rest in a warm place until the dough is doubled in size, about 1 hour.

2. Spray two baking sheets with cooking spray. Melt the remaining 4 tbsp butter over medium heat; let cool. Divide the dough into three equal pieces. Working on a lightly floured work surface, roll each piece of dough into a 10-inch circle; brush with melted butter. Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut each circle into eight equal wedges. Starting at the wide end, roll up the dough, ending with the pointed tip on the bottom. Place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets and curl in the ends slightly to form a crescent shape. Cover the rolls with plastic wrap coated with cooking spray and let rise until the rolls are doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

3. Adjust two oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Bake the rolls until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes, switching and rotating the baking sheets halfway through baking. Serve hot or warm.

Everything turned out wonderful and tasted just great! The new recipe was the rolls and they will now move into the "keeper" recipe file.

Banana Nut Cake

2009-11-01T19:44:00.005-06:00

I had three very ripe bananas sitting on my counter that were calling me to use them in something...anything! I've been making lots of banana bread this last year so I decided it would be a banana cake this time. I wanted to put it together quickly so I turned to one of my cookbooks that starts with a cake mix. I love these recipes! They come together quickly and I've yet to be disappointed in one. I would have loved to use black walnuts in it as the recipe calls out, but my hubby is not fond of black walnuts - so I went with the English variety. My other change was that I did not make the frosting that was recommended. I was trying to get this together quickly and I had some frosting in my freezer that was leftover from a baking frenzy several months back. It was a brown sugar frosting. I thawed it out, warmed it up and spread it on the warm cake. It was delicious.

Banana Nut Cake

(from Quick Fixes with Mixes)

1 (18.25 oz) yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup milk
3 tbsp sugar (I did not use)
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2 ½ medium bananas)
1 cup chopped black walnuts (I used English walnuts)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, eggs, oil, milk and sugar. Beat on low speed to blend, and then beat on medium for 2 minutes. Add bananas and beat for 1 more minute on medium. Stir in walnuts. Pour batter into greased and floured 9 X 13 baking pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean. Let cake cool until just warm to touch, and spoon Dark Caramel Glaze over.

Dark Caramel Glaze

1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup half-and-half
¼ cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine
1 tsp vanilla

In medium saucepan, melt brown sugar, half-and-half, and butter over medium heat and bring to a boil. Boil for 6 minutes, stirring constantly until mixture is thickened. Remove from heat; beat in vanilla. Spoon over warm cake as evenly as possible. To ensure adequate coverage, poke holes in top of cake with a toothpick or bamboo skewer before spooning glaze over.

The glaze will have the consistency of thick syrup.

Mini Pumpkin Tarts

2009-10-25T21:00:00.002-05:00

"Work in progress" - I used a ziplok gallon storage bag with the end cut off to fill the tarts.

This past weekend I attended the annual Ladies Fall Brunch at our church. The church asked ladies to host and decorate a table. I had decided to go with a new theme on my table this year - Thanksgiving! I found a really cute Thanksgiving tablecloth at a second hand store and built the table decorations around it. It seemed only appropriate that I would take a dish that had pumpkin in it - so I selected Mini Pumpkin Tarts. This is one of the easiest desserts to put together. Because you don't want the tart shells to get soggy with the filling I couldn't make these the night before. It was super easy to throw together just before leaving for the brunch. I have a picture of the table at the end of this post - check it out!

Mini Pumpkin Tarts

3 pkgs (15 tarts each) prebaked frozen mini pastry shells

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin

2 cups (plus extra for garnish) frozen whipped topping, thawed

1 tsp (plus extra for garnish) pumpkin pie spice

1 (3.4 oz) pkg cheesecake-flavor instant pudding and pie filling (I use vanilla flavor)

Mint leaves (for garnish if desired)

First, remove the shells from the freezer and let them thaw at room temperature for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the pumpkin, whipped topping, and pumpkin pie spice in a medium bowl, whisking until smooth. Add the pudding mix and whisk until smooth and thick.

Spoon abut 1 tablespoon of the filling into each of the shells (you can also pipe the filling with a pastry bag or a plastic sandwich bag with one corner snipped off), then top the tarts with whipped topping, a sprinkling of the pumpkin pie spice and a mint leaf, if you like.

Makes 45 tarts.

NOTE: Refrigerate any leftovers - but be prepared, the tart shells will get soft the longer they sit with filling in them!

These are the tart shells that I used.

The mixture becomes very thick once you add in the pudding mixture.

Here are a couple pictures from the brunch that I made these for. Thanks Jennifer for taking the pics and sharing them with me!

Pumpkin Cake

2009-10-25T20:21:00.001-05:00

Can you handle another pumpkin recipe? I can't get enough this time of year. My mother made this recipe many times over the years. She has been gone almost 6 years now but I still think of her everytime I make it. It is so moist, easy to make and tasty. I've shared this recipe with many people. If you are a pumpkin lover like I am, you'll love this recipe.

Pumpkin Cake

Cake Layer
1 spice cake mix
1 can Libby’s pumpkin pie mix (NOT puree)
3 eggs

Mix the above ingredients until combined.

Mix the following and add to the above mixture:
½ cup cold water
2 tsp baking soda

Pour into a 9 X 13 pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes. Allow to cool before putting topping on.

Topping
8 oz whipped topping
½ tsp vanilla
1/3 cup brown sugar

Whip together and spread on cake. Cake must be refrigerated.

Make sure you use the pumpkin pie MIX, not puree! They are NOT the same!

This is everything in the mixing bowl, before beating. Pumpkin, cake mix and beaten eggs.

Here is the "before" baking picture.

...and this is the "after picture!

Then you frost and eat!

Doggie Treats

2009-10-22T20:40:00.007-05:00

This is the "little" man of our house - his name is Tito. I've been making doggie treats for him for several years and he never grows tired of them. You would think they were something new and great everytime he gets one. He gobbles them up. Because of Tito's size, I make them pretty small and even then he only gets a small part as his "treat". So they go a long way.

Tito's Favorite Doggie Treat

Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 Tbsp baking powder

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In bowl, combine flour and baking powder. In another bowl mix peanut butter and milk. Then add dry ingredients to wet ones and mix well. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead. Roll dough to 1/4" thickness and use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Bake for 20 minutes* on a greased baking sheet until lightly brown. Cool on rack. Caution -- these can burn easily!

Note - *if you make treats as small as I do - the time cuts back to around 13 minutes!

This is what the finished treat looks like.

This is the cookie cutter set I use. The littles four sided flower one on the far right is the one I use.

Broccoli Grape Salad

2009-10-21T20:00:00.003-05:00

The finished product!

I have a whole collection of family favorite recipes that I'm slowly trying to include on this blog. This particular recipe could have easily NOT been included in this collection. Broccoli and grapes in the same salad did not appeal to me at all. But one of my co-workers had made it up and insisted that I try one bite. Wow - this was great! The sweet of the grapes, the crunchiness of the broccoli, the savory flavor of the bacon. Mmmmm! I have now made this recipe so many times that I could not even begin to count. I just love it! And when I'm introducing it to anyone new, I now insist they try "one bite"! There have been many converts. If you have a vegetarian in the house, as I do, simply hold off on adding the crumbled bacon until after you scoop some out. This is a great side dish for your family gatherings. It is now a "must have" for our Thanksgiving table.

All the cut up ingredients, awaiting the dressing.

Broccoli Grape Salad

4 C. Broccli cut up
1 1/2 C. Green Grapes cut in half
1 1/2 C. Red Grapes cut in half
8 slices cooked bacon crumbled
1/2 C. Green Onions
1 C. Celery
1 can chopped smoke house smoked almonds (these can be pricey so I've used regular sliced or slivered almonds instead)

Dressing
1 C. Hellmans Mayo (I use light Hellmans)
1/2 C. Sugar (I've used Splenda with no obvious difference)

Can be prepared in advance, but put don't put the dressing on till right before serving.

Especially for You, race against breast cancer

2009-10-11T16:39:00.000-05:00

Becca, Patty & myself

On Sunday 10/11/09, I ran my 4th race EVER! This was my third 5K and the coldest conditions I've ever put myself into, by choice. There were thousands of people there, easily one of the biggest races in our area. There were 852 finishers in the 5K Run, 3947 finishers in the 5K Walk and 1422 finishers in the 1 Mile Walk. There were ALOT of people there! I'm presuming that if the weather had been better the turnout would have been twice as many.

The temp was below freezing. But all of us (sister Patty, daughter Becca and myself) had gotten great advice from my eldest daughter Rachelle about how to dress for the temperatures. She had advised layers, keeping in mind where you primarily get cold, i.e, arms or core. Patty and Becca both dressed with a long sleeve shirt and a vest. I double layered my arms and regretted it. I had a long sports bra on, a long sleeve shirt and a light jacket. We all wore running pants, warm socks and gloves. The best piece advice of all was the warm-up instructions. Rachelle had told us to jog around for 10-15 minutes. Nothing challenging, but man did it do the job! When it was time to get lined up for the start of the race my core was warmed up and I was able to stand there and not shiver as many around us were!

The race went well, it was pretty straight and smooth through city streets. My stamina is definitely improving and I tried to push myself as I wanted a new PR. And I got one! My time was 29:51 and my pace was 9:36. I broke the 10 minute pace! YEAH! I ended up finishing 11th in my age group (out of 26 women 50-54). I looked at the other women in my age group and some of them are VERY fast! The woman who won my age group ran a 24:04 time, 7:45 pace. WOW! That is even faster then Becca. How can that be? Needless to say there is lots of room for improvement. And when I see other women my age (and older) running that fast that tells me that I have capabilities that I can't even fathom at this time. The future will be interesting!

Next race? I'm thinking that I will do the Turkey Trot 4K/10K in Marion on November 21st. That is the Saturday before Thanksgiving. The Saturday before we leave for Cozumel to support Rachelle in her first Ironman event. Could be a busy weekend....I've yet to decide...

Fruity Baked Oatmeal

2009-10-04T18:46:00.002-05:00

I came across this recipe in the following cookbook in November of 2008 and have made it many times ever since. It is one of those recipes that you can change it up very easily with different fruits. It is great warmed up or room temperature. We eat it as a breakfast "on the go" type of meal. Definitely one of our family favorites. I like to mix everything up and put it in the fridge over night and bake it in the morning, so it is warm. This recipe will be used by our family for years to come!

Here is a picture of the cookbook I got it out of. It has become one of my favorites. It has many recipes that I've already made and liked and many more that I'm itching to get started on!

Fruity Baked Oatmeal
source: Taste of Home, simple & delicious cookbook
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup chopped peeled tart apple
1/3c cup fresh or frozen peaches
1/3 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
Additional milk, optional

In a large bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Combine the eggs, milk and butter; add to the dry ingredients. Stir in the apple, peaches and blueberries.
Pour into an 8-in. square baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Cut into squares. Serve with milk if desired. Yield: 9 servings
Editor's note: If using frozen blueberries, do not thaw before adding to batter
My comments: I have added dried cranberries, mashed bananas, chopped nuts, and applesauce (instead of apples). You really have lots of room for variation. You should have approximately 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 cup of add-ins, regardless of what they are.

Blueberry Oat Bars

2009-09-27T14:57:00.001-05:00

If you are looking for an alternative to the store bought breakfast bars this is the recipe for you. When you make it yourself you know exactly what you are getting. This bar recipe is one that has great taste and is nutritious. I've made it many, many times and it has become a family favorite!

Blueberry Oat Bars
Source: Hy-Vee Test Kitchen (Hy-Vee.com)

Ingredients:

2 cups uncooked quick oats

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

1 cup sliced almonds

9 Tbsp wheat germ

1/2 cup honey

2 Tbsp Spenda brown sugar blend for baking

2 Tbsp salted butter

2 tsp vanilla

1 (4 oz) package of dried blueberries

Combine the oats, pumpkin seeds, almonds and wheat germ on a large baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until oats and almonds are light brown.

Meanwhile, combine the honey, Splenda brown sugar blend, butter and vanilla in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until butter is melted. Stir in oat mixture and blueberries. Press mixture firmlly into an 8X8 inch baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.

Bake at 300 degrees F for 25 minutes. Allow bars to cook before removing from pan. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Serves 15 (1 bar each)

Nutrition information (per serving): Calories: 210; Carbs: 29 g; Cholestrol: 5 mg; Dietary Fiber: 5 g; Fat: 8 g; Protein: 6 g; Sat Fat: 1.5 g; Sodum: 15 mg; Sugar: 15 g; Trans Fat: 0 g

My comments:
This is another recipe that you can easily change up by using a variety of dried fruits, cranberries, cherries, you name it! Just do not use any frozen berries! I did it once and it added to much moisture to the bars - they did not hold a shape at all. In fact you practically had to eat them with a spoon they were so crumbly. Tasty...but crumbly!

This picture is the toasting of the oats, pumpkin seeds, almonds and wheat germ.

This picture is of the honey, brown sugar, butter and vanilla being heated in the saucepan.

Enjoy!

Indian Summer Distance Classic - 4 mile run

2009-09-27T11:43:00.001-05:00

My third race of the season was held at Lake MacBride State Park on 9/26/09. It was my first trail run and my first four mile distance. The first two were 5K, so I had set the bar a little higher! And miracle among miracles, I did not only finish, but I placed. First place in my W50-59 age category. When they called me up for the medal I was in a state of disbelief! I turned to all who were spectating and announced, "First 4 miles EVER, first season running!". Can you tell I was a little proud?

FYI - there were four women in my age category. My time was 40:52, my pace was 10:13. The hills were unbelievable! There were several hills and the course was quite challenging. But I finished and I did well!

My running partners, daughter Becca and sister Patty also competed. Each is in different age categories and each is much faster then me. I was the only one that walked away with a medal but each of them had set new best times for themselves.

I find it interesting that as I've trained this year (starting in May) and slowly built myself up into this running machine (NOT), I've learned some things about myself. First, I am capable of doing things that are bigger and greater then when I was younger. I ran when I was in the Air Force, but 2 miles had been my top distance. Here I am 25 years later surpassing that distance. Does this mean I am in better physical shape then I was 25 years ago? Maybe. Secondly, I've learned that my daughters can teach me a few things. They are very smart and very inspiring. They both work so hard at what they do, professionally and athletically. They are unrelenting in their quest for improvement. Wanting to be faster and more efficient... Finally, I have learned to consistently challenge myself. I don't want to become complacent. There is no telling where I will go from here......

The next race is on October 11th, the Especially for You race against breast cancer.

Fresh Apple Brownies

2009-09-20T15:04:00.001-05:00

Apples, apples everywhere! My boss, Margaret has apple trees in her yard. They aren't pretty to look at, but they bake up great. Margaret has been busy making pies and bars and freezing them for future enjoyment. She sent a box of apples home with me so I knew I had to get busy before they go bad. I found this recipe in my collection. It is handwritten and I have no idea where I got it from, so I can't give anyone credit. But it uses a fair amount of apples (2 - 2-1/2 cups, chopped) and it tastes very good. The apple taste shines through! And since I love nuts in everything, I was generous when it came time to add them.

This picture is "before" the batter went in the oven.

This one is when it came out.

Fresh Apple Brownies

(source unknown)

Cream together:

1/3 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1 egg

3 Tbsp cream or milk

Mix dry ingredients together:

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup flour

Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Mix together.

Add:

2 - 2-1/2 cups finely chopped apples

1/4 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Spread in a greased 9X13 pan. Bake @ 375 deg for 30-35 minutes or till lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting.

New find - Kim's Magic Pop

2009-09-15T08:45:00.001-05:00

I love finding new and interesting foods! We were in Dallas Texas for a wedding recently and our friends introduced us to a tasty new treat! They are called Kims Magic Pops. They are a multigrain snack cake and only 15 calories each! They can be topped with almost anything, sweet or savory. We tried them with some syrup drizzled on them and they were delicious! The question will be if we can find them here in Iowa. Our friend Randy found them at Central Market in Dallas. They had the machine set up there in the store, making them fresh right before the customer's eyes. If you see these offered at one of your local stores - be sure to purchase some! You won't be sorry!

New info - my friend Jody in Texas tried them with peanut butter and honey and said it was delicious!

Crock-pot Turkey Breast

2009-09-13T19:33:00.011-05:00

This recipe is one that I go back to over and over again. There is very little prep and the results are always wonderful. I can guarantee that you'll put this recipe in your favorite recipe file after you try it the first time!

Crock-pot Turkey Breast
source: Cedar Rapids Gazette, Desperation Dinners column

1 turkey breast (6 to 6-1/2 pounds), frozen (see note)
2 tsp vegetable oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 medium onion
4 garlic cloves

Rinse the turkey and pat it dry with paper towels. Rub the turkey all over with oil. Sprinkle the breast lightly with salt and pepper to personal preference.

Place the breast, meaty side up, into a 5-quart slow cooker.

Peel the onion, cut it into quarters, and place the pieces around the edges of the pot. Peel the garlic cloves and place them around the sides of the cooker. Cover the cooker and cook the breast on low for 9 hours, or until the meat thermometer registers 170 degrees. Remove the breast from the cooker and let the bird stand at least 10 minutes before slicing. (The internal temperature will continue to rise while the bird is standing.) Discard the vegetables in the cooker. Serve the breast sliced, preferably without skin.

Note: If the turkey breast is not frozen, check for doneness (170 degrees) with a meat thermometer after 7-1/2 to 8 hours of cooking on low. Be sure to wash your hands well with soap and water immediately after handling raw poultry. Wash sink and counter surfaces the meat touches with soap and hot water.

If you do not use the entire turkey in the meal you can refrigerate, covered for 24 hours before chopping the meat and freezing. Place the meat in a freezer-weight plastic bag and freeze for up to 2 weeks.

Nutrition facts per serving (without skin): 326 calories (8 percent from fat), 3 g fat (1 g saturated), 194 mg cholestrol, 70 g protein, 0 g carbohydrates, 0 g dieteary fiber, 122 mfg sodium.

Comments from me:
I like to have this turkey breast for my Sunday dinner, but I don't want to get up at 3:00 a.m. to put it in the crock-pot. What I've done the last several years is cook it overnight. I wait as late as possible (10 - 11:00 p.m.) to start the crock-pot. When I get up the next morning it is done. You then have two choices (I've done both), either keep it warm in the oven (put the whole crock pot in the oven) at 150 degree F; or let it cool, slice it and warm only what you need for the meal.

I don't always have an onion in the house, so I've used celery as my veggie on the bottom and it works. Make sure you use the garlic though - I oftentimes use more then 4 cloves. I also season with garlic pepper (my favorite seasoning).

It always amazes me that you don't need to add any water to the crock-pot if you are cooking the frozen turkey. You will get plenty of broth to make gravy!

Pistachio Brownies

2009-09-12T15:13:00.008-05:00

You look at the pictures and think, "those don't look like pistachios"! You are right! The recipe called for them but with an abundance of pecans in my freezer I'm not going to go out and buy pistachios. So, if you want to make this recipe true to its name, you can go do that! These brownies are very good...very chocolately.

Pistachio Brownies
source: Prevention Magazine, Quick & Healthy Recipes (insert in their 10/09 magazine)

1/2 cup cake flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 large egg
2 large egg whites
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp chopped pistachios (or nuts of choice)

Preheat oven to 350 deg F. Coat 8"X8" baking pan with cooking spray

Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in medium bowl. In large bowl, whisk egg and egg whites till frothy. Whisk in sugar, oil, and vanilla extract until smooth.

Fold flour mixture gradually into liquid mixture until just blended. Pour into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs. Cool in pan on rack, then cut into 12 squares.

Nutritional info per serving: 170 cal, 2 g pro, 18 g carb, 1 g fiber, 2 g sat fat 18 mg chol, 74 mg sodium

Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Chips

2009-09-07T21:10:00.001-05:00

A few years ago I found this recipe for fruit salsa and chips. I will admit that there is a little bit of work involved, but it is soooo worth it! The mixture of fruits is just perfect and everyone who tries it falls in love! The chips are so good that they could be used in other sweet dips. I could see them used with a chocolate chip cheese ball. (I’ll share that another time!) The chips themselves are pretty easy and if you have some tortillas sitting around, needing to be used this would be the perfect recipe. You could probably even use some sort of savory spices and just eat them by themselves. (Sounds like I may need to do some experimenting in the future…)

I had a party to go to, hosted by my good friend Jennifer. The party theme was, “Dippy Blondes”, and we were to all bring a dip to share. Now I’m not blonde, and I’m certainly not “dippy”, but I loved the idea of a themed party bringing a bunch of gals together, to do two of my favorite things: eat and talk! We had a ton of fun and I won’t be surprised if Jennifer finds other interesting themes to bring us together again in the near future! This fruit salsa and chips recipe was my contribution to the party and it was very well received!

Here are some pictures taken while making this recipe. First up was cutting up the fruits, which is really the time intensive part of this whole process. The recipe didn’t say to cut up the strawberries, but I did – into small pieces. And the raspberries I sorta smashed.

Next, mix in the sugars and fruit preserves…and you are done. It just needs to chill!

On to the chips. I used whole wheat tortillas in this recipe. I cut them up into wedges using a pizza cutter and then sprayed them with the butter flavored cooking spray. Then you sprinkle them with the cinnamon /sugar mixture and spray them again. (I do NOT use 2 cups worth like the recipe calls for.)

Put them on a baking sheet (I like to use the pizza pan so they get crispy on both sides) and bake.

After baking them and allowing them to cool completely, you can store them in a plastic ziploc bag or container. They'll stay fresh for several days!

Here is the recipe:

Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Chips
From Allrecipes.com – named for Annie

Ingredients
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Golden Delicious applies – peeled, cored and diced
8 oz raspberries
1 pound strawberries
2 tbsp white sugar
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp fruit preserves, any flavor

10 (10 inch) four tortillas
butter flavored cooking spray
2 cups cinnamon sugar ( I never use this much)

Directions
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Coat one side of each flour tortilla with butter flavored cooking spray. Sprinkle with desired amount of cinnamon sugar. Spray again with cooking spray. Cut into wedges (a pizza cutter works great) and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet.

Bake in preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with additional tortilla wedges till all have been baked. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit and spice mixture.

Refrigerator Kolaches

2009-08-14T17:34:00.029-05:00

(from top right going clockwise: apricot, poppyseed, strawberry, blueberry, cherry and prune)

Kolaches were my first attempt at working with yeast. When my Mother passed away in 2003, it occurred to me that there would be no one left in our family to make kolaches. I wasn't particularly worried about the recipe because I made it a personal mission to find one that would work for me. It was more important that the actual "act" of making kolaches lived on. Well, I tried several different recipes but because of my schedule, I didn't have hours upon hours to make them from start to finish. I happened upon the following recipe which allowed me to make my dough the night before and let them raise overnight in the fridge. The next day I could scoop, raise, fill and bake. This was perfect for me. I've made them MANY times! My hubby says they taste great even a couple days after being baked. So that he can enjoy them over a period of time, I normally will bag them up, with a couple of them in each sandwich bag, put them into a freezer bag and then pull them out as desired for breakfast.

Refrigerator Kolaches
From “Recipes from the Heart" – Salem United Methodist Church, C.R., IA – Pat C.

Ingredients
1 cup warm water (105 – 115 deg)
3 pkgs dry yeast (3 tbsp bulk)
2 eggs (well beaten)
1 cup sugar
½ cup Crisco (melted)
2 tsp salt
7-8 cups flour
1 cup mashed potatoes (nothing added)
1 cup potato water

Directions
Dissolve yeast in warm water. Mix sugar, eggs, Crisco and salt. Add yeast and 4 cups flour. Beat in potatoes and potato water. Beat for 5 minutes. Work in the rest of the flour; knead well and placed in a well-greased bowl. Brush top with melted butter and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, shape the dough in walnut size balls and place on a well greased baking sheet to rise. After double in size, flatten in the center and fill with your favorite filling and let rise again. Bake at 400 deg until brown, 18-20 minutes.

My comments:
1) If I don’t have mashed potatoes handy I’ve used instant potatoes with good results.
2) I’ve used evaporated milk for the potato water.
3) Make sure the warm water is NOT too hot. If it is you will kill the yeast and have to start over.
4) This dough is equally good for cinnamon rolls!

5) Don't use airbake pans with these. They don't brown on the bottom.

6) Using a medium scoop I get 5-6 dozen kolaches per batch.

7) Here is how many I get from each can of fruit: apricot (19), strawberry pie filling (22), poppyseed (19), cherry pie filling (26), blueberry pie filling (30), prune (17).

8) If using pie filling - I always strain the "goo" out of the fruit. You can then add back in what you need to get it to the desired consistency.

My shortcuts
1) Use your electric mixer with the bread hook to do the work. I’ve used my Kitchen Aid mixer ever since I started making these 6 years ago!
2) Use your cookie scoop for scooping the dough. The size is uniform and it is much quicker then rolling each one in your hands.

This is the way the dough looks the night before. You cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. The below picture is what it looks like in the a.m.!

I then use a medium cookie scoop to form the balls. I have three sizes which I've gotten from Pampered Chef. For your info the large scoop is equal to 3 TBSP, the medium scoop is equal to 2 TBSP and the small scoop is equal to 1 TBSP.

Be sure to place the dough on a well greased pan with adequate room between each. They are going to double in size.

This picture shows the before and after of the risen dough balls.

Scoop all your dough balls onto your pans. Normally by the time you have the last ones scooped the first pans will be adequately raised that you can start filling them.

Get all your fillings ready. In this instance I made a double batch which is why I have so many filings laid out. To save money you can use pie filling but you'll have to chop it down with a food processor or food chopper so the fruit will go further.

One pan at a time, start forming your kolaches and add the filling. Once again, by the time you get done with the last pan the first pan should be ready to go into the oven.

Make sure you watch these carefully. The longer I bake the shorter my baking time. Also, different types of pans bake differently.

Alot of kolache bakers brush butter on the dough after they come out of the oven. They also like to put a sugar/flour crumble mixture on top. Both of these make the kolaches look "pretty" but in my book the extra calories aren't "worth wearing"! They taste just great "as is".