4H Projects are done :)

We finished up the last of the 4H projects Saturday night (granola bars...yum!) and we are headed off today to put them into the fair. Yip and Yap graciously (yeah right) agreed to let me take photos of them with their projects. 


Without further ado.....

Dang, they did so well in the kitchen that I'll have to put them to work cooking more often! Granola bars...mmmm, chocolate and s'more! 

We have two art projects to put in this year. The boys made paper mache masks. Yap's is a knight's helmet and Yip's is Batman which is just the beginning of Halloween costumes. 

Clay piranhas they made at school. 

I was sooo proud of their sewing projects! First they painted some fabric and then sewed it up. Yap's is a simple pillow and he's holding a knitted belt over it that he also made. While Yip, well, he went all out and made a Captain America stuffed doll! He was super patient with sewing around every little corner and curve! 

Finally their circuit boards, thanks Grandma for sending the kits. 

4H Fair here we come! 

Chuck Wagon Gathering in Pictures.

 Last weekend at the Chuck Wagon Gathering opened at 10 a.m. and lasted to about 4 p.m. Both mornings most of us rope makers arrived about 8:30 but by then all the chuck wagon crews had been up and working for quite a while cooking up authentic trail food.

There were probably about 12-15 chuck wagons working.

Doesn't this brisket look fabulous? I didn't get any, darn it, but my brother bragged that it was amazing!

Three Dutch ovens baking...hmmm, what could they hold?

Cornbread? Biscuits? If we are lucky they'll be full of peach cobbler!!!

Ahhh!! Fresh cornbread. I snagged the first piece, warm and drizzled with honey. Add a cup of coffee and I was ready to go for the day.

All of the cooks didn't stop all day long. They shared samples of their food with anyone who stopped by.

Beans here and others had beef stew that melted in your mouth.

How to stir a huge pot of stew?

With a shovel of course....a clean one...I hope!

Coffee over a fire. I especially enjoyed this crew's method of cooking over a pit. This crew was right behind our rope making tent and they were nice enough to share their coffee in the mornings. Thanks, we needed it!

Most of my photo ops came in the mornings before the crowds and late afternoons when the demonstrators were cleaning up and relaxing.

And how do a bunch of cowboys relax? By playing with ropes of course!

Jake, one of our rope making bunch, got to playing with his bullwhip one afternoon and my goodness was it ever loud! Some of the other guys tried it out and quickly learned that Jake made it look much easier than it was. I'm pretty sure Mountain Man accidentally whipped himself playing with one.

This chuck wagon cook took a few minutes from washing his dishes to show Little Charlie just how to break in his new rope.

But the most impressive, I would say, was Sue Cunningham. Sue has got to be in her 70's..maybe 80's! And she was right there sharing her roping skills too!

Sue Cunningham and her sister Jean Cates are champion chuck wagon cooks who learned chuck wagon cooking from their father, Dick Sheperd.

And boy do these women know how to cook!! They didn't just cook it and dish it out to the crowds like the rest of the chuck wagon crews. They gave demonstrations for two days making steaks, biscuits, cobblers, stews, pies while telling stories the whole time. But the best, oh the BEST were their cinnamon rolls! They brought some over to our tent while I was in the middle of making a rope and I just about died. They were the best cinnamon rolls I had ever had. Yes, better than Pioneer Woman's. (Sorry Ree, but I believe these ladies could out cook you any day!)

These women have published three Chuck Wagon Cookbooks which also includes their stories and memories of life and cooking out West. Check out the website for their cookbooks and you'll find a list of their awards...wow!

I took so many pictures (about 200) last weekend but still didn't come close to documenting it all. If I hadn't been making about a thousand ropes (yep, we definitely well over 1000) I would have taken more photos. The Chuck Wagon Gathering is one of the neatest festivals I've ever been to. If you are ever in Oklahoma City during Memorial Day weekend you should definitely check it out!



Marker Monday - Chocolate Play Dough

The leader in Yahoo's playgroup shared this Chocolate Play Dough recipe with us last week. It has a wonderful smell and since it's homemade I don't freak out when Yahoo decides to eat it.

Chocolate Play Dough

2 cups water

1/2 cup salt

2T + 1t vegetable oil

2T cream of tartar

1/3 cup cocoa

3 cups flour

Bring water and salt to a boil. Stir in remaining ingredients. Allow to cool slightly. Knead until smooth.

www.makinglearningfun.com

This is similar to another cooked play dough recipe I've used before and really like. What's your favorite play dough recipe?

Foody Friday - Cornmeal Pie and Cornmeal Brownies.

Hey, I know what you are thinking...cornmeal pie??? Cornmeal brownies?? That just doesn't sound right at all. Trust me!! This. Was. Awesome.

Doesn't that look just wonderful? Mmmmm...you are lucky I got a picture taken. This cornmeal pie went quick! I found the recipe here and was intrigued and knew I had to try it out.

Cornmeal Pie

2 unbaked pie shells

1 c. butter

2 c. sugar

3 eggs

1 t vanilla

8 T cornmeal

3 T flour

1 c. milk

chopped nuts (optional)

Mix all ingredients (except nuts) in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a slow boil, stirring constantly. Boil for 3 minutes. Mix will thicken. Add nuts if desired. Pour into pie shells an bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes until insterted toothpick comes out clean.

Good thing my kids liked this pie because I came seriously close to eating the whole thing myself! I love how thick and solid this pie was. It was almost like a cake or brownie... hmmm....a cornmeal brownie? Interesting concept.

Cornmeal Brownies with Peanut Butter Frosting

Follow recipe above for filling and pour into a cake pan. Bake at 375 degrees til toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.

Frosting

4 ounces cream cheese (room temp)

1/8 c. butter (room temp)

1/2 t vanilla

2 c. powered sugar

1/4 c. peanut butter (I used chunky)

splash of milk

Mix all ingredients with electric mixture. Add more milk or powdered sugar to obtain correct consistency.

It may seem like a strange combination but these are so good! It has a subtle nutty flavor. Try it, you won't be disappointed! Okay, you might be disappointed, like me, and you eat the whole pan yourself and can't zip up your jeans. Sorry...I warned you!

Foody Friday - Pizza Toast

Before we moved out here to Kansas, I was trying to use up as much food in the cupboards as possible without buying too much that would just end up being thrown out. We had some pizza sauce left over one night that we used to make Pizza Toast the next morning.

Spread the pizza sauce on pita bread, regular bread would probably work too, and top with Parmesan cheese. Pop into the broiler for a few minutes and voila....

...Pizza Toast! Sometimes we put a fried egg on top too. The boys loved them! They would eat two or three pieces for breakfast. Thank goodness too because this got rid of lots of tomato sauce I didn't want to move.

Do you have any creative recipes with leftovers to share?

Foody Saturday - Avocado Bread

Finally, the recipe you've all been waiting for! Well, okay...you probably haven't been waiting for this one but you'll sure be happy I gave it to you!

Avocado Bread! No, it isn't green but it is by far the moistest quick bread I've ever made. A perfect treat by itself, no condiments needed!



Avocado Bread

1 1/2 c. sugar
1 c. butter
2 eggs
1 c. mashed avocado (about 2 avocados will do)
1 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 t. baking soda
1/3 c. buttermilk (substitute 1/3 c. milk add 1 t. vinegar. Let sit 5 minutes before using)
Optional (I left these out)
1/4 c. nuts
1/2 c. raisins

Blend sugar, margarine, eggs and avocado well. Sift the dry ingredients together and add to mix alternately with buttermilk. Add nuts and raisins if desired. Batter will be stiff. Place into gresed loaf. (Leave some batter in the bowl to lick...trust me!) Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Enjoy!!

Cannonballs...yum! (AKA - Date Balls with Nuts!)

For our pirate party over the weekend I made these about a week ahead of time. Then I had to make a second batch because I ate the first batch! These are addicting!

Pirate Cannonballs! (Makes 8-10 balls)

1 cup of pitted and chopped dates

1/4 to 1/2 cup water

1 t. cinnamon

1 1/2 cups of chopped peanuts (or any nut you prefer)

honey

           

I ended up buying diced and sugared dates by accident. I would have preferred to use whole pitted dates but these ended up working just fine.

Throw your dates into a food processor with the water to form a paste.

Add your cinnamon and 1 cup of nuts.

Combine well. It helps at this point to chill the date paste in a freezer for a couple of hours. Being cold, the paste won't stick to your hands as easily when you shape them into balls.

When the paste is cold enough place some honey in a small dish and the rest of the chopped nuts in another small dish.

Roll the paste into a small ball, dip into the honey and then roll in the remaining nuts. I placed them in little paper nut cups. Then put them back into the freezer until you are ready to serve!

I left some of the Cannonballs without nuts to be more authentic for the little pirates!

Enjoy!!

More Pirate Stuff...

My sister and I had the best time planning stuff for the pirate party! My sister are cheapskates frugal, so we didn't get too fancy but thought we'd share some of the fun stuff we made for the boys' pirate party. We were greeted on the front porch by a big, and scary, pirate flag Pirate Batman drew.

We did buy a few things; pirate hats and swords and pirate plates and cups. A pitcher of Baracuda Blood (cranberry juice and Sprite) on the table quenched our thirst.

For lunch we had slimy seaweed with fish eyes and gold...

...and cannonballs for dessert.

We bought boxes of animal crackers and painted them brown for treasure chests. We added details with a sharpie marker then hid them outside for the boys to find.

My sister made this pinata from a pizza box and construction paper...isn't she awesome?!

Here's Yip with the winning hit!! And yes he's using a broom to hit the pinata. Why you ask?

Because we adults couldn't find the baseball bat. We found it later in the bathroom...of course. Isn't that where you store your sporting equipment??

1886 Graham Bread on Foody Friday

A couple years ago I received this cookbook for Christmas from my wonderful brother in law.

The author had compiled and refined recipes from Prairie Farmer magazines from 1841 to 1900. This cookbook is so fun to read because it also includes poems and stories from Prairie Farmer magazine as well as a bit of history of cooking and day to day living during the time period. The first chapter, of course, is bread since bread was the mainstay of the frontier diet.

I was intrigued to find the recipe for Graham Bread dated January 10, 1886 with the editor's note;

"This bread tastes very much like a yeast whole wheat loaf, but is made in a fraction of the time. We are used to having quick breads be sweet; this is heartier. The light nutty flavor of this bread makes it perfect for toasting, or serving with a cheese spread."

I love to bake bread! I just don't have the time so I just had to try out this recipe. Here it is:

GRAHAM BREAD 1886
2 c light cream
2 t. vinegar
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 c. graham (whole wheat) flour
1 c. regular flour (not bread flour)
1 t. baking soda

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Make sour cream by combining the cream and vinegar in a medium size mixing bowl. Let it stand about 5 minutes til curdled. Add the sugar, flours and soda. Mix well with a spoon. Pour batter into lightly greased bread pans. Bake until the loaves are lightly browned, pulling away from the side of the pan and firm in the center, about 45-55 minutes. Cool in pans about 5 minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack.


This was really quick and easy. I used whole milk instead because I didn't have cream. My only complaint was the batter was too much for one loaf pan but not enough for two. Plus it was much sweeter than I expected, 1/2 c. brown sugar is a lot! So I changed it just a bit to make larger loaves of bread.

Here is my revised recipe;

Revised Graham Bread Recipe 2010

3 c. whole milk
3 t. vinegar
1/2 c. brown sugar
3 c. whole wheat flour
1 1/2 c. all purpose flour
1 1/2 t. baking soda

Follow instructions as in above recipe.

And here is the results!

My boys really like this bread. We have been eating it all the time even with bratwurst sandwiches! Even cutting down the sugar it is sweeter than regular whole wheat bread but still very yummy.

Toast Cups with Peanut Butter and Jelly

I first saw this idea from Souffle Bombay using salad as a filler in the cups. Yeah...the salad idea didn't fly with Yip and Yap. So we pulled out this.


That's apple butter between the peanut butter and jelly. They also pulled out apples which we diced and peanuts.


First, Yip flattened bread with a rolling pin.


Then, he "painted" melted butter on both sides of each slice.


I tucked them into a muffin tin, because they just got smashed when the boys tried.


We baked them at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. It may actually take you less time. I kept checking every few minutes because I didn't want them to burn. That's a skill of mine...burning things.


The boys filled the cups with whatever combination of fillings they wanted and munched away! Two pretty satisfied customers and the beginning of two great cooks!