Last week I made up my mind to turn over a new leaf...I was sick of my own attitude, the feeling of malaise I had allowed to take over. Frankly, all I wanted to do was eat a bunch of foods that would do me no earthly good, lay in bed overly long each morning and do nothing all day but stroll through You tube. This won't do! I have plenty of tasks to do just staring me in the face! There are loads of things extra I can think of to do that are fun. Yes, I'm turning over a new leaf!
I'm taking extra care just now to look hard at foodstuffs and insure we use them ALL in one form or another. So the water I boiled eggs in yesterday went over the tomato plants and bee balm to give them a little extra boost. I've put in a request for a couple of big bags of really good potting soil so I can get those tomatoes potted up...
Friday was a very productive day in the kitchen. Today naturally was a quiet day, as we took our Sabbath time. Was pleased as punch to get a call from Katie saying that Taylor was with her this weekend so we went over to visit with the little girl and that chunky laughing boy. Katie's boyfriend had cleared out the back yard and it was amazing to see it looking so much better. It had gotten very overgrown in the past few years even before Mama moved out of the house. It was a bit of shock really to see how large it looked.
John and I are definitely having a metamorphosis of some sort...We found ourselves looking at a tractor this afternoon! A tractor...and he's talking more and more about a garden and has mentioned bees and chickens. He's only been living here in the country for 24 years now and he's finally coming around. This might be his new leaf!
Work this week:
Homeschool Josh...Two days and there's honestly not much to it. He's that smart that he really doesn't need help just a little encouragement. I told him we'd study about bugs this week but he didn't seem so keen. He's not crazy about bugs overall. I guess I'll have to talk to him to see what interests him the most. In the meantime, we've plenty of worksheets and I'll figure out some fresh ways to interest him in his lessons.
I did everything on last week's list except start cleaning the kitchen cupboard doors. That's on the list for this week.
Make Bagels and ask Bess if she wants to come join me for that process. I also want to make yogurt this week. I won't do that with Bess because she already makes her own. I will also make a new loaf of bread. I am ready now to experiment with a new recipe since I've finally got my oatmeal bread recipe down...Oops! I forgot to share that in last week's post. I'll include that at the end of this post...
We've had some quite cool nights of late but we are now past our 'last frost' date so I am going to chance it and start planting flower and vegetable seeds. I only have bush beans and zucchini seeds at present and my three tomato plants but I will start with what I have.
I have a few houseplants that desperately need to be repotted. I can scratch up enough soil to tend to those I think.
If we've dry enough weather, I'm going to gather some of my old plastic pots and give them fresh coats of paint. I just want to do what I can to make the yard/garden pretty and I've a good bit of paint on hand.
John is working one day this week. I think I'm going to have to go see about Mama on that day. I've kept my distance from her but I know she's going to need a few things. It's been over 2 weeks since I last went out to do any shopping for her.
Meals:
I was seeking inspiration last week and then I decided to write down all the meals I keep thinking of making but don't or haven't made in a good while or that are just favorite meals of mine or John's.
Mac n Cheese, Italian Roasted Vegetables I never made this one last week...
BBQ Beef Cups, French Fries I prepped this on Friday and then we missed lunch I'd planned which was something John had wanted. So this became Saturday evening's meal. This was awfully good and a scant half pound of beef made 6 muffin sized portions. We had two leftover.
Teriyaki Chicken, Rice, Steamed Broccoli, Sliced Oranges
Cubed Steaks, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans, Tomatoes Au Gratin
Taco Pizza, Salad
Chicken Pot Pie, Pear Salad
Red Beans and Rice, Corn Muffins, Coleslaw, Baked Apple
Bread Machine Oatmeal Bread
1 1/4 cups room temperature buttermilk
1/2 cup oatmeal (I use old fashioned)
3 tbsps. sugar
1 tsp salt
3 tbsps. Oil
2 1/2 cup flour
1 3/4 tsp. Yeast
I use the setting for a 1.5 pound loaf. Last time I added 1/2 cup raisins and a teaspoon of cinnamon and it was super yummy.
I have adjusted my yeast to suit the brand I'm using. My loaves were 'sinking' after rising so that the top was not domed over. I had a perfectly flat top this time with no sinking at all.
I did have to add an extra 1/4 of water due to the low humidity we had this last time.
9 comments:
Terri, In the last part in the bread recipe...1/4 tsp/ tab or cup ?? of water. :-) Sarah
We are over the moon happy that our little lake park is back open! Time for a picnic! Some other retail stores will open back up in our state this week also. I ordered some grow lights from Walmart using a Swagbucks giftcard and will pick those up on Monday. Then I am going to get my seeds going inside. It is so up and down in temps that I am not sure they will get going outside since it is not warm enough. I was surprised to find that I have all the seeds I need for veggies. Hubby took a ham out of the freezer so I have that to deal with this week and it will influence our meals. I will take all the slices off and cube them and freeze on baking sheets. Then what is left will be baked with veggies. We also plan to have a tailgate breakfast in the parking lot of Bojangles with our small group. That should be fun! And so needed to see and pray with our prayer warriors.
Bread recipe question-is that real buttermilk or vinegar/milk type? I think it makes a big difference in how wet it makes the dough.
Do you use bread flour or regular all purpose? I typically don’t buy bread flour but it sometimes makes a difference in texture. Your recipe sounds wonderful! Thanks!
Sarah, Cup water...I didn't have to add this the second time through but as said we were very low humidity the day I last made it.
Lana, Nice on the breakfast tailgate! I just came across a yummy sounding recipe in a 1954 cookbook that was made with Spam but I kept thinking it would be pretty good with ham. It's a potato and spam in cheese sauce in a pie shell...
I used REAL buttermilk in my bread recipe.
Carolyn, I typically use bread flour but have only had all purpose the last three months because it's all I could find...Yes even before the virus thing I couldn't find a source for bread flour though I know full well it's often on the shelves of at least two of the stores where I typically would shop. So I've only experimented with the all purpose on this particular recipe.
It’s my husbands DREAM to have a riding mower\ tractor....except we have only a 40x100 suburban plot of land which is mostly paved over!
Liz, And yet some men would not be in the least stopped by the facts, lol...John's watching lawn service videos and he keeps talking about needing all this equipment. I keep saying "But you only mow one yard..."
Terri, that is so interesting that John is interested in all of the gardening, keeping chickens, etc. I’m sure you were quite surprised! Maybe now that he has more time and energy he is considering new things that he hasn’t before. My husband became interested in bees and gardening more the last 5 years since he stopped working long hours and traveling so heavily.
Thank you so much for the revised bread recipe. I need to get my hands on buttermilk. My last grocery order yesterday only netted me half of what I ordered. Hopefully the local natural foods store will be better stocked tomorrow.
Hi Terri, things are pretty much the same over here in so cal. Most of the parks and beaches are closed still, although a few beaches in some cities have been opened...just not the ones near us. Like you, my lifestyle has been quarantine-like for the past several years anyway so not much has changed for me. I had to smile when I read that John is thinking about chickens and the like. Mike has gotten the bug to work in the back and has it looking very tidy and nice. I've planted a few herbs but not many. I'm hoping to try lettuce and chard this year for easy access to greens but he has more plans back there and wants me to wait until he's finished. I guess there must be something in the air! His grandparents were farmers from the Midwest so I used to tease him that it's in his genes when he wasn't in the mood for outdoor work. Haha. We've been having a much cooler than normal spring with highs in the low sixties for the most part. That said, it looks as if that's about to change as tomorrow's forecast is well into the eighties and is supposed to last for several days.
We went grocery shopping in the early morning last Sunday and there was no line (yay!). We found almost everything we needed except fresh garlic. We picked up some groceries for Rosie and her husband while there and dropped them off. It was nice to visit for a short bit, not long enough but a joy to see them. We are even more grateful for that get-together we had in mid March, right before the shut down. They often host family meals and we are missing all of that. I am thinking about talking to Mike about bringing in a meal or two this weekend as I'm getting tired of my own cooking...something to look forward along with the 'slow opening' up of our country. I am still strangely optimistic about things. I heard Georgia is opening...you have my congratulations and (friendly) envy!
Much love,
Tracey
Xox
P.S. I sent this once but it doesn't appear to have gone through so please forgive if this is a double-post.
Tracey it's a 'soft' opening of salons, possibly some churches, gyms. The pest control man was here today and his wife's salon is in town. They've been unable to collect unemployment since she was self-employed but that is supposed to have now been cleared. She can open her shop tomorrow but Mark said getting her hands on the cleaning supplies required is the problem and is a problem for other salon owners. A few restaurants will start serving meals in their dining rooms again too. We've been very blessed in our county with low numbers.
I'm awfully glad that our family is mostly loners and we all stay in our own homes anyway, so we've all been able to visit once a week without worries. The pest control man was the first 'stranger' so to speak we've been in contact with for two and a half months.
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