Last week I pulled my last jar of Strawberry Freezer Jam out of the freezer, so I knew I had to find some fresh strawberries soon so I could make another batch. I never thought I would be someone who would make homemade jam, but once I tasted it several years ago, I was hooked.
If you have never eaten Strawberry Freezer Jam, then you are in for a great treat. And if you have never made it, you will be amazed at how easy it is.
Strawberry Freezer Jam – This recipe comes straight from the Sure.Jell box!
2 cups crushed strawberries (buy 1 qt. fully ripe strawberries)
4 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl
¾ cup water
1 box SURE.JELL Fruit Pectin
1. Rinse 5 (1-cup) plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly.
2. Stem and crush strawberries thoroughly, 1 cup at a time. Measure EXACTLY 2 cups prepared fruit into large bowl. Stir in sugar. Let stand 10 min., stirring occasionally.
3. Mix water and pectin in small saucepan. Bring to boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Continue boiling and stirring 1 min. Add to fruit mixture; stir 3 min. or until sugar is dissolved and no longer grainy. (A few sugar crystals may remain.)
4. Fill all containers immediately to within ½ inch of tops. Wipe off top edges of containers; immediately cover with lids. Let stand at room temperature 24 hours. Jam is now ready to use. Store in refrigerator up to 3 weeks or in freezer up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator before using.
I rinse and remove the all the stems and then quarter the strawberries and place them in a 9x13 glass dish. I use a potato masher to crush them. You want there to be tiny piece of crushed fruit in your jam. It is very important that you measure out the crushed strawberries to be exactly 2 cups. If you use too much fruit, the jam may not set properly.
I use a heatproof whisk when heating the water and pectin. You have to stir it constantly so that it doesn’t stick to the pan. It will bubbly and get foamy when it is boiling, cook it for another minute when it’s at that point. Then immediately pour it into the strawberry mixture. Use a heatproof spatula to scrape all the pectin into the fruit. Mix for 3 minutes and then fill your containers.
Depending on how often you use jam, you may want to use smaller jars. I use ½ cup containers because it’s only good in the refrigerator for 3 weeks, and I don’t want to take any chances of wasting it!
The jars must sit at room temperature for 24 hours, and then they are ready to go in the freezer! Of course, make sure you put one in the refrigerator so you can enjoy it immediately!!!
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Gingerbread Muffins
I know...a lot of posts today. But it's all good stuff! I promise!
I just saw this muffin recipe on my friend Megan O.'s Facebook page yesterday. I needed a quick, easy recipe this morning to take to a friend's house, and I had all the ingredients for these muffins. They are very quick and easy to throw together, and quite yummy. I have noticed that Gingerbread from a box tends to have a lot more of a "ginger" flavor than these do, but because of that, I like these better. They are much milder, if that makes sense.
Gingerbread Muffins
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup butter (half a stick)
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup flour, aerated before measuring
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Dashes of: nutmeg, cloves and ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Place water and butter in small microwave dish. Heat in microwave until water boils and butter melts.
3. Meanwhile, whisk the egg well, in a medium bowl. Add sugar and molasses and mix well. Add water and butter mixture and stir well.
4. Mix the dry ingredients together BEFORE adding them to the wet ingredients.
5. Add the dry to the wet, and whisk together, just until combined. Don't over mix as that produces holes in the muffins when baking.
5. Measure about 1/4 cup of mixture into lined muffin cups (my friend got 11 muffins, I spread it to 12 but shouldn't have). Bake for 20 minutes. If doing mini muffins, bake for 10 minutes.
6. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from pan!
I think this would make 10 or 11 regular size muffins. I got 12 rather small ones. But they were a big hit! Instead of using a dash of nutmeg, cloves and ginger, I used a few dashes of Cinnamon Plus from Pampered Chef. It's a mixture of a bunch a different spices.
That is the only thing I did differently! Hope you enjoy them!
I just saw this muffin recipe on my friend Megan O.'s Facebook page yesterday. I needed a quick, easy recipe this morning to take to a friend's house, and I had all the ingredients for these muffins. They are very quick and easy to throw together, and quite yummy. I have noticed that Gingerbread from a box tends to have a lot more of a "ginger" flavor than these do, but because of that, I like these better. They are much milder, if that makes sense.
Gingerbread Muffins
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup butter (half a stick)
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup flour, aerated before measuring
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Dashes of: nutmeg, cloves and ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Place water and butter in small microwave dish. Heat in microwave until water boils and butter melts.
3. Meanwhile, whisk the egg well, in a medium bowl. Add sugar and molasses and mix well. Add water and butter mixture and stir well.
4. Mix the dry ingredients together BEFORE adding them to the wet ingredients.
5. Add the dry to the wet, and whisk together, just until combined. Don't over mix as that produces holes in the muffins when baking.
5. Measure about 1/4 cup of mixture into lined muffin cups (my friend got 11 muffins, I spread it to 12 but shouldn't have). Bake for 20 minutes. If doing mini muffins, bake for 10 minutes.
6. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from pan!
I think this would make 10 or 11 regular size muffins. I got 12 rather small ones. But they were a big hit! Instead of using a dash of nutmeg, cloves and ginger, I used a few dashes of Cinnamon Plus from Pampered Chef. It's a mixture of a bunch a different spices.
That is the only thing I did differently! Hope you enjoy them!
Chicken Crunch
Once again, I am late getting this posted because of being exhausted from staying up too late and watching the Olympics! But, at least I am not using the Olympics as an excuse for not feeding my family!
I got this recipe from my friend Tricia L. in Ohio. It is very easy, and I had it all ready in advance except for the cheese and chip topping. I doubled this recipe so that we would have leftovers for the weekend. I did bake it for about 45 minutes since it was cold when I put it in the oven, and doubled. So adjust the time depending on what you do.
Chicken Crunch
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/3 cup toasted slivered almonds
½ cup mayonnaise
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup celery
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 teaspoon dry onion
½ cup shredded cheddar
1 cup crushed potato chips
1. Combine all ingredients except cheese and potato chips. Place in a small baking dish. Top with cheddar and chips.
2. Bake @ 375 degrees for 25 minutes.
Note: To make ahead of time, leave chips and cheese off until ready to bake. Cover and refrigerate. Bake at the same temp but add 10 –15 minutes to bake time.
Frankie and Frank loved it and told me it was one of their favorite things. Faith did not love it, ok, she hated it. But she told me she doesn’t like “cheesy” things and didn’t like the celery in it because “it didn’t seem like it should be in there”. She likes chicken. She likes cheese. She likes celery. I could have put all of that separately on her plate and she would have eaten it. I am starting to figure out that she just doesn’t like her food all mixed up. She is just one of those people (who I don’t get!), but I just have to accept it and be ok with it! So, now I am struggling about how to cook for my family!
New challenge for me I guess!!
I got this recipe from my friend Tricia L. in Ohio. It is very easy, and I had it all ready in advance except for the cheese and chip topping. I doubled this recipe so that we would have leftovers for the weekend. I did bake it for about 45 minutes since it was cold when I put it in the oven, and doubled. So adjust the time depending on what you do.
Chicken Crunch
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/3 cup toasted slivered almonds
½ cup mayonnaise
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup celery
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 teaspoon dry onion
½ cup shredded cheddar
1 cup crushed potato chips
1. Combine all ingredients except cheese and potato chips. Place in a small baking dish. Top with cheddar and chips.
2. Bake @ 375 degrees for 25 minutes.
Note: To make ahead of time, leave chips and cheese off until ready to bake. Cover and refrigerate. Bake at the same temp but add 10 –15 minutes to bake time.
Frankie and Frank loved it and told me it was one of their favorite things. Faith did not love it, ok, she hated it. But she told me she doesn’t like “cheesy” things and didn’t like the celery in it because “it didn’t seem like it should be in there”. She likes chicken. She likes cheese. She likes celery. I could have put all of that separately on her plate and she would have eaten it. I am starting to figure out that she just doesn’t like her food all mixed up. She is just one of those people (who I don’t get!), but I just have to accept it and be ok with it! So, now I am struggling about how to cook for my family!
New challenge for me I guess!!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Parmesan Chicken
The Olympics have all my attention right now, so I did not get a chance to post this last night! So, for the next couple of weeks, bear with me!!
We had crock pot night a couple nights early this week. Normally it is Wednesday, piano lesson night. But this week is Ash Wednesday and we have church that night after piano, so there won’t be time to come home and eat first. So it’s going to be a quick (meatless) dinner somewhere before church!
Here’s what we had Monday night:
Parmesan Chicken – I think I got this recipe from allrecipes.com years ago
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup converted long grain white rice (I use Uncle Ben’s)
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 ½ cups milk
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper
1. Mix together rice, onion soup mix, mushroom soup and milk in medium bowl.
2. Lay chicken breasts in the bottom of a lightly greased slow cooker. Place ½ tablespoon of butter on each breast and pour soup mixture over all.
3. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and cheese.
4. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.
This is another ultimate comfort food dish. A couple of notes, I use Campbell’s Healthy Request Cream of Mushroom soup to lighten up the sodium in this dish. The onion soup mix already has a lot, so you don’t really need it. I also don’t add any extra salt, just pepper and parmesan cheese.
When this dish is done cooking, the chicken will basically fall apart. You can just scoop up a bowlful of it and serve it alongside a hot vegetable dish or a tossed salad.
We had crock pot night a couple nights early this week. Normally it is Wednesday, piano lesson night. But this week is Ash Wednesday and we have church that night after piano, so there won’t be time to come home and eat first. So it’s going to be a quick (meatless) dinner somewhere before church!
Here’s what we had Monday night:
Parmesan Chicken – I think I got this recipe from allrecipes.com years ago
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup converted long grain white rice (I use Uncle Ben’s)
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 ½ cups milk
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper
1. Mix together rice, onion soup mix, mushroom soup and milk in medium bowl.
2. Lay chicken breasts in the bottom of a lightly greased slow cooker. Place ½ tablespoon of butter on each breast and pour soup mixture over all.
3. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and cheese.
4. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.
This is another ultimate comfort food dish. A couple of notes, I use Campbell’s Healthy Request Cream of Mushroom soup to lighten up the sodium in this dish. The onion soup mix already has a lot, so you don’t really need it. I also don’t add any extra salt, just pepper and parmesan cheese.
When this dish is done cooking, the chicken will basically fall apart. You can just scoop up a bowlful of it and serve it alongside a hot vegetable dish or a tossed salad.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Slow-Cooker Tex-Mex Chicken and Broccoli Cornbread
When I got up this morning, I had a plan for dinner tonight, but I wasn’t happy with it. I don’t know why, but it just didn’t feel right. I hadn’t even bought the items yet (I was going grocery shopping later in the morning). So, I checked out one of my e-mails from Kraft Kitchens and checked out the slow-cooker recipes and I found this recipe, Slow-Cooker Tex-Mex Chicken. It sounded perfect. I always like to read some of the reviews people write and by doing that, I can make modifications where necessary. Once I made up my mind to make this, I knew immediately that I wanted to make the Broccoli Cornbread recipe I got from my friend Jodi a few months back. I added all those items to the list and went to the store!
Slow-Cooker Tex-Mex Chicken adapted from a Kraft Kitchens recipe
1 lb. chicken breast tenderloins
1 to 2 packages of taco seasoning
2 Tbsp. flour
1 each green and red pepper, cut into thin, fajita-style strips
1 cup frozen corn
1-1/2 cups Salsa
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can Rotel original
Mexican Style Finely Shredded Cheese
Sour Cream
1. Toss chicken with taco seasoning and flour in slow cooker. Stir in vegetables, beans, Rotel and salsa; cover with lid.
2. Cook on Low 6 to 8 hours.
3. Serve over Spanish Rice (I made a package of Knorr Fiesta Sides Spanish Rice).
4. Top with cheese and sour cream.
Broccoli Cheese Cornbread (I got this recipe from my friend Jodi M. here in Alabama)
10 oz. Chopped Broccoli, cooked and drained
2 boxes Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
4 eggs
3/4 cup Sour Cream
1/2 stick butter, melted
Cheddar Cheese
1. Pour butter in 9x13 pan.
2. Mix other ingredients and pour on top of butter.
3. Cook for 25 min @ 350°F.
4. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top and cook 5 more min.
When I got back from the store I got busy getting everything in the slow-cooker. I cooked it for a little over an hour on high, then switched it to low for another 4 ½ hours. Normally, I would have put it in earlier and cooked it on low all day.
The kids and I got back from Faith’s piano lesson and it smelled soooo yummy in our house! I got started right away on the Cornbread, and once that was in the oven, made the rice. At this point, I was hoping the chicken dish was going to be everything I had hoped for. I just couldn’t imagine how it could be bad. But, you know, those thoughts of doubt start to creep in!
I let the Cornbread cool for a few minutes after it came out of the oven. I put rice on the dishes and placed a scoop of chicken and veggies on top of it. Then I sprinkled on some of the cheese, and put a dollop (I love that word) of sour cream on top. After making sure everyone had a piece of Cornbread, we said prayers and started eating!! My kids went straight for the Cornbread and they loved it! Frankie’s words were, “Mom, you HAVE to try the cornbread, it’s so buttery and cheesy. It’s AWESOME!”. I love him. Faith loved it, too, I knew that by the way she kept saying, “Yum” between bites! I love her, too! Neither of them were big on the red and green peppers (they like them raw, but not cooked), but they really liked the chicken, rice and other veggies. I thought all of it was delicious. Frank didn’t get home from work until late, so he got his reheated, but he liked it, too. And we all agreed it was going to be on our “make-again” list!
It’s so nice when new recipes work out…I hope you and your family enjoy this as much as we did!
Slow-Cooker Tex-Mex Chicken adapted from a Kraft Kitchens recipe
1 lb. chicken breast tenderloins
1 to 2 packages of taco seasoning
2 Tbsp. flour
1 each green and red pepper, cut into thin, fajita-style strips
1 cup frozen corn
1-1/2 cups Salsa
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can Rotel original
Mexican Style Finely Shredded Cheese
Sour Cream
1. Toss chicken with taco seasoning and flour in slow cooker. Stir in vegetables, beans, Rotel and salsa; cover with lid.
2. Cook on Low 6 to 8 hours.
3. Serve over Spanish Rice (I made a package of Knorr Fiesta Sides Spanish Rice).
4. Top with cheese and sour cream.
Broccoli Cheese Cornbread (I got this recipe from my friend Jodi M. here in Alabama)
10 oz. Chopped Broccoli, cooked and drained
2 boxes Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
4 eggs
3/4 cup Sour Cream
1/2 stick butter, melted
Cheddar Cheese
1. Pour butter in 9x13 pan.
2. Mix other ingredients and pour on top of butter.
3. Cook for 25 min @ 350°F.
4. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top and cook 5 more min.
When I got back from the store I got busy getting everything in the slow-cooker. I cooked it for a little over an hour on high, then switched it to low for another 4 ½ hours. Normally, I would have put it in earlier and cooked it on low all day.
The kids and I got back from Faith’s piano lesson and it smelled soooo yummy in our house! I got started right away on the Cornbread, and once that was in the oven, made the rice. At this point, I was hoping the chicken dish was going to be everything I had hoped for. I just couldn’t imagine how it could be bad. But, you know, those thoughts of doubt start to creep in!
I let the Cornbread cool for a few minutes after it came out of the oven. I put rice on the dishes and placed a scoop of chicken and veggies on top of it. Then I sprinkled on some of the cheese, and put a dollop (I love that word) of sour cream on top. After making sure everyone had a piece of Cornbread, we said prayers and started eating!! My kids went straight for the Cornbread and they loved it! Frankie’s words were, “Mom, you HAVE to try the cornbread, it’s so buttery and cheesy. It’s AWESOME!”. I love him. Faith loved it, too, I knew that by the way she kept saying, “Yum” between bites! I love her, too! Neither of them were big on the red and green peppers (they like them raw, but not cooked), but they really liked the chicken, rice and other veggies. I thought all of it was delicious. Frank didn’t get home from work until late, so he got his reheated, but he liked it, too. And we all agreed it was going to be on our “make-again” list!
It’s so nice when new recipes work out…I hope you and your family enjoy this as much as we did!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Valentine Cookies - 2 different kinds!!!
Most of you know I love to bake cookies! And of course, it’s Valentine’s Day this weekend, so I wanted to make some Valentine cookies with the kids. We made 2 different kinds tonight, heart shaped Cut-Outs and heart shaped Spritz. How did we do all that?? By prepping in advance, of course! Well, I did the prepping while the kids were at school, so that we could get right to cookie making after homework!
First, the recipes…
Grandma F.’s Cut-Out Cookies – (my Grandma used to make these for my dad and his brothers when they were kids, and they have become a staple in our family!)
Cookies
3 Cups sifted flour
½ tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
½ cup sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup butter
Frosting
2 tbsp. water to 1 cup powdered sugar (adjust water/sugar to get desired consistency)
Food coloring
1. Combine first three ingredients and set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla and egg and mix until well blended.
3. Add dry ingredients ½ cup at a time until all mixed together.
4. Roll out on floured surface, cut out, place on ungreased cookie sheet.
5. Bake at 350°F for approx. 11 to 13 minutes or until lightly browned. Frost as desired.
Spritz
1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1 tsp. almond flavoring
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
Food coloring
1. Heat oven to 400° F.
2. Add butter, sugar, egg yolks, flavoring to a large bowl, and mix well. (If you are planning to tint the dough, I recommend adding the food coloring now. It’s much easier to work it in at this point, then after you have mixed in all the flour)
3. Mix in flour.
4. Place dough in cookie press and press onto ungreased baking sheet in desired shape. Bake 7 – 10 minutes or until set, but not brown.
Ok, here’s how I prepped:
This afternoon, I went ahead and made the dough for the cutout cookies. After it was made, I pressed it into about an 8x4 inch rectangle and wrapped it in saran wrap. It has to be brought back to about room temp before you can roll it out, so the thinner you make it, the faster it will warm up.
I didn’t want to make the Spritz dough in the afternoon, so I measured out the sugar and flour into small bowls and covered them. I separated the egg yolks and whites (saving the whites for breakfast tomorrow, of course!) and placed the yolks into a small covered bowl in the refrigerator. I pulled out the almond flavoring and food coloring and set them by my mixer.
As the kids were started their homework, I took the cut-out cookie dough out of the fridge to warm up. I gathered up the rolling pin, mat, flour shaker, cookie cutters and spatula that I would need and got them to the table. By the time the kids were done, the dough was ready to roll out. My kids have been helping me do this for years, but tonight I let them do most of the rolling and cutting. I helped a little to make sure the dough wasn’t too thick or thin. But while they were prepping those cookies, I started the dough for the Spritz.
We got the Cut-Outs all baked, got the Spritz in the oven, and started frosting the Cut-Outs. The frosting is the key to these cookies. They are not all that sweet when they are plain, but after adding the frosting, they have just the right amount of sweetness!
Faith was done helping by this point, she wanted to read. Frankie frosted a few cookies, but was having a hard time and said his arm hurt. So, I basically finished it up. But it was worth it! I got to spend some good quality time with my kids, got some yummy cookies out of it, and didn’t feel totally wiped out….thanks to the prepping!
First, the recipes…
Grandma F.’s Cut-Out Cookies – (my Grandma used to make these for my dad and his brothers when they were kids, and they have become a staple in our family!)
Cookies
3 Cups sifted flour
½ tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
½ cup sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup butter
Frosting
2 tbsp. water to 1 cup powdered sugar (adjust water/sugar to get desired consistency)
Food coloring
1. Combine first three ingredients and set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla and egg and mix until well blended.
3. Add dry ingredients ½ cup at a time until all mixed together.
4. Roll out on floured surface, cut out, place on ungreased cookie sheet.
5. Bake at 350°F for approx. 11 to 13 minutes or until lightly browned. Frost as desired.
Spritz
1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1 tsp. almond flavoring
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
Food coloring
1. Heat oven to 400° F.
2. Add butter, sugar, egg yolks, flavoring to a large bowl, and mix well. (If you are planning to tint the dough, I recommend adding the food coloring now. It’s much easier to work it in at this point, then after you have mixed in all the flour)
3. Mix in flour.
4. Place dough in cookie press and press onto ungreased baking sheet in desired shape. Bake 7 – 10 minutes or until set, but not brown.
Ok, here’s how I prepped:
This afternoon, I went ahead and made the dough for the cutout cookies. After it was made, I pressed it into about an 8x4 inch rectangle and wrapped it in saran wrap. It has to be brought back to about room temp before you can roll it out, so the thinner you make it, the faster it will warm up.
I didn’t want to make the Spritz dough in the afternoon, so I measured out the sugar and flour into small bowls and covered them. I separated the egg yolks and whites (saving the whites for breakfast tomorrow, of course!) and placed the yolks into a small covered bowl in the refrigerator. I pulled out the almond flavoring and food coloring and set them by my mixer.
As the kids were started their homework, I took the cut-out cookie dough out of the fridge to warm up. I gathered up the rolling pin, mat, flour shaker, cookie cutters and spatula that I would need and got them to the table. By the time the kids were done, the dough was ready to roll out. My kids have been helping me do this for years, but tonight I let them do most of the rolling and cutting. I helped a little to make sure the dough wasn’t too thick or thin. But while they were prepping those cookies, I started the dough for the Spritz.
We got the Cut-Outs all baked, got the Spritz in the oven, and started frosting the Cut-Outs. The frosting is the key to these cookies. They are not all that sweet when they are plain, but after adding the frosting, they have just the right amount of sweetness!
Faith was done helping by this point, she wanted to read. Frankie frosted a few cookies, but was having a hard time and said his arm hurt. So, I basically finished it up. But it was worth it! I got to spend some good quality time with my kids, got some yummy cookies out of it, and didn’t feel totally wiped out….thanks to the prepping!
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