Snowed in with my tv, crock pot, and bottle of vodka

The kids are off school again because of the weather.  Around these parts, that means that we got an inch or two of snow.  Since they have basically no equipment to deal with snow removal, sanding, etc the standing strategy is to wait it out (i.e. wait for it to melt).  Sigh.  Even a small snow storm can cause the kids to be out of school for a week - sounds fun until they have to extend the school year into June.  Grrr.

Ok... the good news is that the olympics start tomorrow and all the preview hype is already available On Demand (yay!).  More good news?  I had some goodies prepped in my freezer, so dinner is already in the crock pot and it's only 9am.  So...  if I fold a little laundry and watch a bit of tv I'll be sure to have earned a cocktail by noon?  Right?

Have you ever finished an entire bunch of celery before it gets rubbery?  Neither have I.  So here's a little piece of genius that made my morning productivity possible.  Once it gets questionable, dice it up, bag it, and put it in the freezer for soups, stews, etc!  DUH!!!  My former neighbor Tracey Y. gave me this little piece of genius-ness.  You can do it with any veggie that you would cook later.  I now have a basket in my freezer full of diced up onions, carrots, tomatoes, and celery.

When you are ready to use them - they go straight into the pot!

All I had to do this morning was open baggies and dump them into the crock pot this morning - whew!  Oh yeah, and put the lid on.  I'm such a hard worker.

Thanks for stopping by.

Pumpkin Bread... and the betrayal of a family secret

I'm letting you in on a family secret.  One passed down to me by my mother.  She probably heard it from her mother.  It involves butter.  'Cause that's how I roll.

Drum roll please...

Whenever I make quick bread (banana, pumpkin, whatever) I top it with melted butter, cinnamon and sugar.  The secret is you actually pull your bread out of the oven 5 minutes before it's done.  Baste the top with melted butter and sprinkle LIBERALLY (go nuts, we're building a crust here, people!) with cinnamon and sugar.  Put it back in the oven to finish.  When you pull it back out, the top of your bread will have the most delicious, decadent, yummy, wonderful, sugary crust on the top.  I have yet to meet anyone that isn't a fan.  Try it - even skinny people can't help but love it.

Today I made pumpkin bread... in January.  I know that's weird.  But its tasty, so who cares?

Apparently, I bought a can of pumpkin each time I went to the store in November and December.  I'm trying to work through the backlog in my pantry.  The extra large cans will make two loaves, which works great for me.  I love to make double recipes - I'm a big fan of the freezer!  And what the heck... if you are going to get busy, why not get a lot of bang for the buck, right???  I used the recipe in the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook.  Did you get this as a wedding gift?  I did.  I think its mandatory.

Thanks for stopping by.