Air Conditioning in a Bowl

This fruit salad has been a family favorite since we were newlyweds, packing up my non air-conditioned apartment in Indiana in July 1998. In the summer, it always pains me to make something with canned and frozen ingredients instead of fresh ones but it is just SO REFRESHING!

Fruit Salad

2 cans of pineapple chunks, with juice
12 oz frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
12 oz frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
20 oz frozen strawberries, thawed
2 small or 1 large can of sliced peaches, drained and diced
2 small or 1 large can of fruit cocktail, drained
2 bananas, diced (optional)

Mix and freeze. Defrost one hour before serving.

Me?!?

This afternoon I received a VERY exciting email: I had been accepted to be a part of King Arthur Flour's "Consumer Advisory Panel." I had filled out a survey a few months back about our family's baking habits and, I guess, they liked what they saw. This answer did not work for Andy to his question, "Why did they pick YOU?" When he asked again, I answered "Because Mama tells all her family and friends about King Arthur Flour until they are so sick of hearing about it that they go and try it." That answer worked for him but maybe I should have added "Because she buys fifty pound bags of their flour and texts with Aimee back and forth about all their yummy recipes."

I'm one excited mama!

(P.S. There's a scoop and measuring cup in our unbleached AP flour because in our family we have once baker who weighs and one who measures.)

All in a day's work-

Ah, Easter Monday! Time for a clergy family to relax.
This year we took the day off of school and headed to the big city. I was able to pick up the last of the supplies I needed to make two very different homemade recipes.

The first is Chai Tea Concentrate. We love chai tea "lattes" but not the high prices or milk found in most store bought mixes. Mark spied the following recipe a few months ago. It was very easy to make and made the kitchen smell wonderful:
http://yourlife.usatoday.com/fitness-food/recipes/recipe/2012/01/chai-tea-concentrate/610942/1
We'll let you know what we think of it after breakfast tomorrow.

My other recipe is for homemade powdered laundry detergent. I had seen recipes for liquid ones but I have always preferred powder. Pinterest came to the rescue with the following recipe. I've done two loads and love the stuff. (It cost me $25 for the ingredients. And I will let you know how long it lasts in the Laundry Capital of America.)
http://beingcreativetokeepmysanity.blogspot.com/2010/11/homemade-laundry-soap.html?m=1

Fits the Bill

This morning I was looking for a breakfast that was
*vegan
*quick and easy
*warm (my birdbath had ice in it?!?)
*made only of pantry basics.

I found this recipe for Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal. http://vegan.sheknows.com/2011/08/26/pumpkin-pie-oatmeal/
It fit the bill perfectly and was oh-so tasty.
And now I know what to do with all those cans of pumpkin our dog abruptly stopped eating. :-)

Why, why, why?!?

Why have I been feeding my family store-bought hamburger buns when I know how easy and tasty home baked ones can be?
I had a surplus of "high quality" buns in the freezer - a local restaurant supply store sells them laughably cheap so I haven't baked any for months. The stash ran out and I wanted to finally give the new bun pan a try. So this morning I baked up King Arthur Flour's Poultry Burger Buns (The Baking Sheet, Summer 2010, p. 17.) In the past I have substituted the poultry seasoning for various other spices with great success. Today I chose Penzey's Bavarian Seasoning to match the Meatless Ruebens on tonight's menu. I wish blogs had smelling features because my kitchen has a wonderful scent right now. I will return to making our family's rolls.
Thank you, Grammy and Grampy for the bun pan!

Almost Vegan No-Bake Energy Balls

While visiting in New Mexico, my sister introduced these yummy treats to me via Pinterest. The honey makes them not truly vegan. Since it isn't a refined sugar and I haven't seen a Food Inc update on bee factory farms, we eat honey with a clear conscience in our household. Patty has also made them into bars. With my Pampered Chef dough scoop, it is easier for me to make them into balls. They are so tasty and so healthy for you!
Enjoy!
http://gimmesomeoven.com/no-bake-energy-bites/

Major League Baseball Players

have to go through security but train riders don't! It was wonderful - never were we or our baggage screened.