pumpkin pancakes w/spiced syrup

 

yup.  it's the easy way out!

3-1/2 C bisquick
2/3 C pumpkin (if you use pie mix, omit the spices)
1-3/4 C milk
2T lemon juice
3 eggs
3T sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
 
1 T butter
1-1/2 - 2 C syrup (to taste)
1/4 C chopped pecans (
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
 
1. combine bisquick & spices.
2. combine remaining wet ingredients & stir into dry.
3. make pancakes.
4. melt butter & syrup. stir in pecans & pie spice; keep warm.
5. enjoy being hailed as the best cook on the planet.

confetti meatloaf

 

i don't know where i got this recipe, we have had it for so long.  ;o)  never been a huge meatloaf fan.  might be because my mom's was just so bland and plain.  we use ground turkey instead of beef, for cholesterol reasons.  sometimes i like to shake it up a little more by adding 1/2# ground sausage.  i bake my meatloaf in a ring in a glass pie pan because it seems to cook quicker and more evenly than the deeper loaf shape.  if you want the bottom crispy, preheat a cookie sheet and place the meatloaf pan on top.

 the 'confetti' refers to the shredded veggies and the soup mix.  it is very um, colorful.  the veggies aren't well hidden, but my kids wolf this down with nary a complaint about the vegetables.  served up currently with oven roasted butternut squash, potatoes, and carrots.

1 pkg ground turkey
1 egg
1/2 C shredded carrots
1/2 C shredded zucchini
1/2 C finely chopped broccoli
1 envelope knorr/lipton vegetable soup mix
1/3 C plain oatmeal (to absorb juices)
1-2 handfulls bread crumbs
 
1. saute the shredded veggies in 2T butter until some juices evaporate (if your veggies are fresh).  or make sure you squeeze most of the juice out of the zucchini (if your veggies are frozen). 
2. combine all ingredients and mix thoroughly with hands.  pat into greased loaf pan or form a ring in glass pie pan.
3. bake @ 350 x 40-60 minutes.  Raise temp to 450 for last 10 min to crisp crust.

pretzel shortbread

 

from martha stewart living, october 2011

~3-1/4 C mini pretzels, divided
1/2 C flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 stick unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 C sugar
1 large egg yolk
**my extra: 2-3 T nutella

1. preheat oven to 325. coat a 4-/14 x 13-1/2 inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom with cooking spray.  line bottom with parchment.  (ok, so i have never heard of such a specific pan.  i used a 10 inch glass tart pan and it was just fine. seriously martha.)
2. pulse 1-3/4 C pretzels in a food processor until powdery.  combine 1/2 C with flour and baking powder.  toss any left over. coarsely chop remaining 1-1/2 C pretzels.
3. beat butter & sugar on med speed until pale & fluffy.  reduce speed to low, adding egg yolk until combined.  add 1/2 C of remaining pretzels.
4. press dough evenly into prepared pan.  top dough with remaining 1/4 C pretzels.  toss any left (or save them for a few minutes...)
5. bake shortbread until pale brown and firm in the center ~25-30 min.
**6. place nutella in pastry bag or freezer ziplock bag.  snip teeeeeny corner and pipe warmed nutella on hot shortbread in whatever pattern you choose.  ;o)
7. cool pan on wire rack X 1 hr, then remove shortbread from pan.  if using the glass tart pan, use an offset spatula to loosen the edges before sliding it out of the pan.  cut with serrated knife.

dip extra pretzels in nutella.  no need to thank me.

driveway? parkway?

 
the employee parking lot at work is under construction.  they are resurfacing, re-painting and it looks like they are making the lot bigger.  i know this because of personal observations in the parking lot itself - oh, and it was briefed fully at the end of september/beginning
of october.  so while they resurface and re-paint, all vehicles need to be moved.  away from the place they are fixing.  which is likely the place where they set up those huge orange barrels.  and then tied them together.  every day.  and then re-tie them together.  every day.
because somehow they keep coming untied and those big barrels keep moving so that vehicles have access to the roped off area.  somehow. *scratches head in wonderment*
 
yesterday i watched someone drive into the parking lot, park their car and get out to untie the caution tape, drive through the roped off area, park again and untie the caution tape in another location and drive into the parking garage.  for those in the know, yup, they had the white hangtag.  so in other words, they can drive anywhere they effing please and road construction will not get in the way of their commute.  did it really take less time to do all that than following the driving lanes through the parking lot into the garage??  (and yes, i saw which assigned space they parked their red dodge avenger in the garage...)
 
as a result of the weird parking arrangements, assigned parking has been suspended until the project is complete.  apparently that means that handicapped spaces are at a premium.  so, yesterday, five cars with handicap placards simply created their own parking spaces in the middle of the driving lane.  i had to "austin powers" my SUV out of the legal driving lane and back into the parking lot because five cars were blocking the exit.  and i only drove that direction because it *IS* the legal driving lane and all.  so, even if i don't have a handicapped placard, can i invent my own parking spot as well?  because the sidewalk right next to the shuttle shelter, right ON the curb is looking pretty inviting. and i wouldn't even be blocking the driving lane.
 
i realize that this is going to be an adjustment. but for the love of mother mary's dirty sock basket, can we please put our heads on??? there are still eight cars parked in the roped off area.  and i know for a fact that one of them was NOT there when i left yesterday at 2:30pm.
so they purposely drove in there to park.  the other cars haven't moved for quite a while, so i have to assume that the owners are away... which means that the resurfacing won't start until they return and MOVE... which likely means that in the meantime someone else is going to park in the roped off area....
 
aaaah, the sweet smell of entitlement.  reminds me of nebraska farmland.

secret's in the sauce

the ignorance of the american public is astounding.  to witness buffoonery of this caliber... it was difficult to just stand there and not knock that man into his place. 
 
there are many foreign nationals employed in this 'land of opportunity.' to walk up to someone of a different skin color than yours and ask of their lineage is rude, to say the least.  now, if you were having a friendly conversation, and said something along the line of, "your
accent intrigues me; where did your family originate?"  that is one thing.  to start the conversation by asking, "where are you from?" smacks of confrontation.
 
but that is just what this man did. 
 
"where are you from?" he asked the subway sandwich-maker.
 
"would you like creamer?" asked the sandwich-maker.
 
"you are from canada?!" asked mister rude, who apparently has listening skills as awesome as his people skills.
 
"no, i live here. would you like creamer?"
 
"you are from baltimore?"
 
"i live in glen burnie."
 
"yes, but where are you from?"
 
my mouth was already open in disbelief before he asked, "are you from iran?"
 
i barked out that nervous laugh that people make when they can't bring themselves to say, "ARE YOU EFFING SERIOUS?"
 
the sandwich-maker paused, looked mister rude in the eye and said, "no. i am not from iran."
 
i wondered if we were going to play name-every-country-on-the-planet when mister rude asked, "then are you from india?"
 
I spoke at that time.  i said, "really?  you're just going to demand that from the guy making your food?  did you need a resume with your footlong?"  mister rude did not hear me because sandwich-maker was telling him about all the different countries in that part of the world, and in fact that he was from pakistan. 
 
double whammy.   
 
so, not only did this twatwaffle demand lineage of his sandwich-maker, he also insulted him by asking if he hailed from two countries which he would NOT claim as home.  ever.  sandwich-maker handled the situation well.  better than i did, or would have if i were in his shoes.
 
one question for mister rude:  did you want douchesauce on your footlong or do you have enough on you to last the rest of the day?

tortilla meatball soup

 

by request, from cooking light's october 2011 issue

 i'mma tell you right now, this girl doesn't eat spicy food.  so i completely eliminated jalepenos, chipotles, waaaay less onion and half the garlic.  to give the necessary kick, we added a few drops of Frank's Red Hot per bowl at the table, to taste.  the idea of the tortilla strips and pam made me gag, so we simply added a handful of our fave store-bought organic corn tortilla strips.  and i had 5 cups of homemade chicken stock defrosting, so i just used all of that.  lotta work, but the kids loved it.  we served them up with cheese quesadillas and had homemade apple empanandas for dessert.

2 jalepeno peppers
1 red bell pepper
2 ears corn on cob
4 (6") tortillas cut into 1/2- inch strips
cooking spray
3/4 tsp salt, divided
6 minced garlic cloves, divided
1/3 C bread crumbs
1 pound ground beef
1 large beaten egg
1 minced chipotle chile
1 T olive oil
2 C chopped onion
2  cubed red potatoes
1 C (1/2" sliced) carrots
3 C lower sodium chicken broth
2 C water
1/2 C shredded monterey jack cheese
1/4 C shredded extra sharp cheddar
1/2 C chopped fresh cilantro

 

1. Cut lengthwise & seed jalepenos & peppers.  Place skin-up on a foil lined sheet.  Arrange corn alongside.  Broil 4-15 minutes or until blackened, turning the corn.  Place peppers in a paper bag & fold.  Let stand 15 min; peel.  Mince jalepenos and chop peppers.  Cut kernels from cob.  set aside.
2. Place tortilla strips in a single layer on a baking sheet.  spray with cooking spray.  broil for 3 min or until golden brown.  Set aside.
3. Combine 1/4 tsp salt, 1 garlic clove, bread crumbs, beef, egg and chipotle chile.  Skoosh and shape into ~24 ~2" meatballs.
4. Heat olive oil in dutch oven (this will save dishes later.  i didn't follow instructions.  :oP).  saute meatballs ~8 min, browning on all sides.  Remove from pan.  Add onion, potatoes & carrots to pan; saute 5 min. Add remaining garlic cloves cook % stir X 1 min.  Add peppers, broth and 2 C water; bring to boil.  Reduce heat & simmer for 20 min or until veggies are tender. Return meatballs to pan, Add reamining 1/2 tsp salt & corn; return to simmer for 10 min or until meatballs are done.
5.  Top each serving of soup with both kinds of cheese and cilantro.  Top evenly with tortilla strips.

cheap eats under $15: smothered chicken casserole

 

1 box Zatarain's black beans & rice mix ~$3
1 can cream of chicken soup ~$1.50
3 chopped cooked chicken breasts  ~$2.50
(i usually add another 1/2 C boil-in-bag brown rice and 1/2 c water to make the meal go just a bit further)

1. Heat oven to 350.  Spray 9x13 pan with pam.
2. Combine 2-1/4 C water and soup in the 9x13 pan.  pour in zatarain's and chicken.  stir to mix.
3. Bake 35 minutes.  Stir and let sit for about 10 minutes.

As a side, I sauteed garlic and canary peppers in olive oil, added 1 plum tomato and 1 can of corn (~$1.50) , along with corn muffins ($3).  Serves six plus seconds.