Homemade Pancakes

 I’m on a roll here with my homemade laundry detergent, clothesline, and now pancakes from scratch.  It’s rather shocking!

Oh yeah, baby.

I started making this pancake endeavor with the help of my brother’s wife, Aunt D.   Aunt D is incredibly gifted in the kitchen and puts up with my often ridiculous questions regarding all things that have to do with cooking.  And let me assure you, I have thrown some wacky questions at her in the past.

The pancake recipe is from The Good Housekeeping Cookbook that belonged to my grandmother:

Old cookbooks really are little treasures!

I loved reading over this one with Aunt D during one of our visits.

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Pancakes:

1 1/4 C all purpose flour (or you could use 1/2 C whole wheat flour and 3/4 C all purpose for added nutrition)

2 1/2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

3 T granulated sugar (I use brown sugar and it makes it taste like butterscotch!)

1 egg, beaten

1 C milk

3 T melted butter

1 t vanilla extract

Sift flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt together.  I whisk them together because my sift has not exactly been cooperating.

Combine egg, milk, butter, and vanilla and add to dry ingredients all at once.  Mix with a spoon just until smooth (don’t over mix).  If you use whole wheat flour, you may need to add more milk.  Sometimes the batter is too thick and adding milk helps with that.  Pour onto griddle and flip when you start to get bubbles.

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I’m telling you, this recipe is delicious.

 My kids love them and they are cheaper and healthier than the frozen ones or the pancake mixes from the store.

Hmmm….What should I make next?

The Adventures of the Non-Cook Named Mandy

Our E-Mealz menu is in full swing.

Considering I am not a cook, nor do I like to cook, things are going well.  I like actually having a plan and all of the ingredients on hand.

The first night we had breakfast for dinner:  Baked French Toast, bacon, scrambled eggs.  Each boy gobbled it up.  Of course, my children think syrup is a food group (think: Buddy the Elf), so of course this one went over big.  I was even named the Queen of Cooking.

Grade:  A+

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The next night was Spicy Tilapia.  Here’s where things got– you guessed it–fishy.  I was excited about cooking and eating this for the first time.  I do not eat seafood.  Bleck.  But if I am trying to get my children to taste new foods, I figured I should hop on that bandwagon.

Everything was going great, until the smoke alarm went off.  Maybe the 500 degree oven was a little too much?   The filets weren’t burned and I considered the alarm to be a fluke.

The tilapia just wasn’t good.  We all pushed it around our plates until BP piped up and said, “I thought this was supposed to be spicy?”

Oh yeah.  That part.  Ummm….  I could not find cayenne in the store and wasn’t about to go to another store with three kids in tow.  When in doubt, leave it out, yes?

But the sauce, even without the cayenne, was very mayonnaise-y and did not really taste great.

Grade:  A for effort (very easy to make), D- for content.

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Saturday night we went out to dinner for Aunt B’s birthday.

Sunday night we ordered pizza with friends while we watched the Steelers make it to the Superbowl.  Sweet!

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Last night I made Turkey Sausage and Potatoes.  This was a big hit with everyone except Frog.  The boys said the “hot dogs” were the best they ever ate.  Ok.  Hot dogs.  Yep.  That’s what they were.  ;)

Grade:  A

So far, only one disaster.  No worries, there will be more.

And you’ll be the first to know all about it.

 

Wordful Wednesday

 

I think of 2 things when I see this…

 

Campbell’s Soup 

and

Maxwell House Coffee

 

Can you guess the slogans?

 

For more Wordful Wednesday, click on this:

 

Help!

First of all, please excuse the theme changes.  BP and I are trying to get this blog spiffy.  We’re not quite there yet.  

I need some advice.

Frick is a picky eater.  He does not eat veggies (which kills me, because I love them), baked chicken, fish, or ground meat.  Anything bad for you is his favorite, which I limit as much as possible.  Frack follows Frick’s lead because he is ever the copy cat.  Both boys will eat yogurt, fruits, and whole wheat breads.  Frick HATES pasta and cheese, Frack LOVES them.  I decided long ago that I will not be a short order cook.  If they don’t eat what is served, I don’t fix them what they want.  The dinner I make is always served with a fruit and yogurt.  If they get hungry later, I let them ‘snack’ on their uneaten dinner. That usually cures a snack attack at night.  

Here are my questions:

When you cook dinner, do your children eat what you make?  

How do you go about getting your children to try what you make and avoid a struggle at the table?

If you have never commented before, I implore you to at least comment on this post.  I feel as if I am at my wits end with this thing called dinner! 

**I wrote a post about that Deceptively Delicious book by that Seinfeld chick.  That was a no go.  I repeat, a NO GO!**

It’s Not Easy Being Green

Being Green is the newest catch phrase since Kermit the Frog sang the aforementioned (title) song. I have read how so many people are concentrating their efforts on eating organic food, using cloth diapers, etc. I have yet to get into those areas of Green Living, however, I am trying to make a conscious effort to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. I have recycled for for years. The Department of Sanitation for my city provides blue bags for all recyclable material. These get used daily in our house. I reuse as much as I can. The plastic bags from the Wal-Marts and grocery stores are reused for dirty diapers, trash cans, etc. We are starting a garden and hopefully a compost pile (not sure how to do that….) Today, I have made my next step into Green Living…I bought these:

They are the reusable totes that most stores are selling now (I shop at Publix) and they held so much! I bought three for only a dollar and they held all of my groceries! I was pleasantly surprised. I also got it all in the house IN ONE TRIP. Major feat ’round these parts. With two little ones, that is a definite perk. I am curious…what other things can one do to live green?

 

The Disaster

Well, I never claimed to be able to cook or bake. I am trying in my old age to become better at this especially since little ones are involved now. My mom knew I turned over this new leaf of being a better homemaker. She picked up Deceptively Delicious, by Jessica Seinfeld. I went to the grocery store, pureed my veggies and fruits, and began baking today. The Disaster, as we are calling it thus far, began with me realizing that it was not cinnamon in my spice rack…it was in fact allspice. I figured, it has cinnamon in it, so what the heck? Then, in TRUE teacher fashion, I did the very thing I gripe at my students about…I DID NOT FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS! By the way, teachers are the worst at doing this. I can say that because I am one. I digress… instead of mixing the dry ingredients first, then the wet, and finally together, Frick and I dumped it straight into the bowl. So far, the only thing that is salvaging this baking endeavor is the fact that Frick and I did it together. The aroma was pleasant as we waited for the timer to chime. I sliced some right after dinner. Frick would not touch it with a 10 foot pole. Frack wouldn’t come around it, so the first taste was left to me. It sure looked pretty. It smelled good. I took a bite…it was pretty tasty. But then the cauliflower taste set in. Then,  a little icky feeling swept over me. The remainder of the slice went into the trash. BP turned into “Mikey” from the Life cereal ads…(give it to Mikey! He’ll eat it!). BP kinda liked it. So, I guess it will stick around. Maybe next time I will make it correctly.

New Years Resolution

This photo reminded me of New Years resolutions. Eating out downtown all the time and driving thru “Chik-a-fila” 3 days per week for breakfast is one way to add some body mass in case you need that kind of thing. If you are on the opposite side of that argument, like I am…now, maybe your new years resolution is about shedding some pounds. Some of you have heard of the toddler diet. This is a variation on that diet. Having toddlers steal cookies so you won’t eat them seems to be a pretty good weight loss plan. The more they grab and run, the more you chase and get no cookies. Think about it.

-Big Papa

Clean Teeth for Frick!

January 4 marked Frick’s first to the dentist. He walked in and wanted to see the dentist right then! When we told him he had to wait, he was not cool with that. A minor fit began, but the receptionist chimed right in to help. She said to Frick, “Your Grandfather was here this morning.” He said, “Who?” I reminded him that his grandfather was Pops. He said, “Pops was here?” They continued to talk to him about Pops’ visit (the benefit of living in a small town where people know everyone).

Once we were called back, the hygienist talked to him about what was going to happen. He loved the way the arms on the chair squeaked and the way the toothbrush tickled his teeth. He let her count his teeth, brush, FLOSS, and get fluoride on them. I was amazed.

Then, the dentist came in to check him out. He let her count and poke as well. She proclaimed he had perfect teeth and that we were doing a great job brushing at home.  I was so proud of him!:)