Super Quick Swedish Meatballs

I am so tired I haven't cooked anything worth blogging about in a long time..sniff sniff. I wonder if anyone reads this anymore anyway? haha

I have been wanting to make Swedish Meatballs for a long time..and noticing that I had most of the ingredients..(I had to go to the market for only 2 items) I gave it a go.. Here's what I did...

*First beat one egg and add about 1/4 cup milk in a bowl.

*Then dump in about 1/2 or so of bread crumbs..(I used seasoned)

*Add in diced onion..about 1 small onion will do...

*Snip off some fresh parsley..

*Crack in some black pepper

*Now add 1/2 lb of ground pork and a 1/2 lb ground beef..

*Mix it all well..(you may need to add a bit more breadcrumbs if the texture is still too wet)*Now make as many little meatballs as you can.. *Put a large skillet over medium heat with a few pads of butter and cook about half of the meatballs..tossing and coating with the butter..this takes about ten-ish minutes..(make sure to cut one open to see it is no longer pink in the center.

*Continue with the rest of the meatballs.

*Put them on a plate w/ a paper towel to drain.

*Now, in the same skillet....(don't dump out anything..!) add 2 tablespoons of flour to the drippings and a whole cube of beef bouillon..mix this up good, add some more black pepper and then add 2 cups of milk and a dash of nutmeg... and whisk until thick and bubbly.
*Add the meatballs back to the gravy...and cook another 5 ish minutes..

*Serve of hot pasta...

*Enjoy!

this was so good, I love this and I am definitely making this again!

**Mental Note To Self...Do not cook recipes right before going into to work..because you will inevitably end up stinking like onions and meat...Wait to do the new recipes when you are either

A. Off work for the day

or

B. Actually have time to shower and not have clothes stinking like onions..

Amish Brown Sugar Cookies...

This is my latest Amish cookbook:..love it..love them..'nuff said..

Jack and I tried our hand at some super simple Amish cookies..they were pretty good. Simple, not too sweet. Not too many complex flavors going on, just the basics..here's what we did...

*First dump in 2 1/2 cups brown sugar in a bowl..

*Put in 1 cup of shortening or margarine..*Mix well until creamy
*Add 3 eggs*Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of soda.(It said soda and not baking soda, so I assumed maybe a type o and used baking soda..however I saw other recipes where it said soda and some said baking soda..so yeah, whatever..)*Mix in slowly 4 cups of unbleached flour*Beat until well mixed*Put it in the fridge and chill for several hours.

*Next up, roll out the dough..(be prepared to use more flour so it doesn't stick..) Use cookie cutters in whatever shape suits your fancy and throw 'em in the oven for about 7-8 minutes at 350 degrees.

*Let them cool and then dust with some powdered sugar.

*Warning*..this makes like 50,000 cookies, so be a dear and hand them out to your neighbors..

Stay tuned....

Wow, I am having blogging withdrawls...
It totally blows..big time..instead of blogging, I am working at a crafty store..which isn't bad..considering there is way more hellish jobs I could be doing. In general, people are in a good mood, shopping for random crap, like scrap booking accessories and the Be Jeweler..
I work about 22ish hours a week. Not too bad. At first I was sad to leave the kids and hubs..I thought I would be missing out on all this stuff..maybe some milestone for one of the kids or something...(well hell, they are 9 and 4 I think they have reached them already.....scratch that)..
Instead I am counting down the minutes until I can yell "Adios" and get the heck outta dodge...
Yeah, I know I am missing alot...like fights, tantrums..stupid outbursts and complete chaos...
I love my job!!!
Hahaha
And when I get home, my little precious peeps are tucked away for the night, leaving a quiet house..messy nonetheless, but peaceful.
I have started my holiday shopping already..I predict it shall be finished before Thanksgiving.
Lily has been sick..I kept her home today. This cough has been plaguing her for a few days and its constant..and like a seal in sound. It is not croup..it sounds worse..her poor little chest was hurting and her head was pounding due to the constant hacking.
I bought some Black Elderberry for her and we have all been taking it..(since yesterday) and there has been a huge improvement..
Could this be a miracle plant/herb? Perhaps..
Or
Could this stupid cold be over with..
I think its the Elderberry..
Either way..
I am swearing by my Elderberry...(Sambucus)
A friend of mine just let me know Linen's and Thing's is going outta business...which means wicked good sales on all cookery items...
I am still wanting this and this...
Perhaps a bread maker..but I can do that in the oven...
And last but certainly not least is this
Stay tuned for some interesting recipes soon.
As you all know my obsession with the Amish/Mennonite Communities..I have checked out several books at the library on Amish cookery and the like.
I can't wait to get my hands back into business and get cooking'!

BLT Pizza

I haven't made anything lately since I have been working...
However..this was my next experiment that I have been wanting to try so I threw this together after work.

Its pretty quick too..

*Cook up about 6-8 pieces of bacon..set aside

*Get one pre-made refrigerated thin pizza crust and roll it out onto an un greased cookie sheet

*Chop up some turkey and put in a bowl

*Chop up some green onions..maybe about 1/2 cup or so and put into bowl

*Cut up the cooked bacon and mix in with the turkey and chives....

*Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese on the pizza crust..

* sprinkle on the turkey mixture evenly over the cheese

*Slice up tomatoes and cover the whole thing...

*Top with more cheese

*Pop it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes..

*After cooling for about 5ish minutes.*cut up some romaine lettuce and mix in some ranch dressing,and then put this on top of pizza...

*Enjoy....

5 Minute Chocolate Cake!

This was just so cool..and the best part it actually taste so good!

And within 5 minutes you have a wickedly-gooey treat..

Here's what you do..

In a bowl combine the following:

*4 tablespoons of flour

*4 tablespoons of sugar

*2 tablespoons of baking cocoa

*1 egg

*3 tablespoons of milk

*3 tablespoons of oil

*3 tablespoons of chocolate chips

* a dash of vanilla

Mix all this up and pour into a coffee mug...

Pop this in the microwave for 3 minutes. The cake will seem like it is going to explode all over the place as it rises well over the rim of the mug..but no worries..it won't.

Let it cool for a few minutes and enjoy

This was good, Jack and I shared this treat. I think this would be great with some vanilla bean icecream and Khulua!

Onion and Herb Focaccia

Tonight for dinner I am going to make some sorta of Rigatoni Bake..something simple since I won't be here..I have to work.

I didn't have any garlic bread and you simply cannot have a Italian pasta without garlic bread.

I decided to make my own. Actually a focaccia.

*First measure out 1 1/4 cups flour into a bowl..

then add one packet of yeast, pour in about 1 cup of warm water.., teaspoon of salt and some olive oil...

*Mix with an electric mixer for about 3 minutes on low

*Add in 2 more cups of flour.

*Dump out onto a floured surface and get busy..kneading away. For at least 10 minutes. And yes your arms will get totally sore and you'll want to throw in the towel and say the hell with this, but don't! This turned out really good..so keep going!

*After that put into a lightly greased bowl and cover..set somewhere warm for about an hour or until doubled in size.

*Take dough out and punch down.

*Divide dough and set on a cookie sheet and cover for another 10 minutes..

*Meanwhile..slice up a bunch of onion and garlic and put in a saute pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and saute until golden brown.

*Next take dough and press it out in a circle. Then with your index and middle fingers make indention's all over the surface..

*Then brush on some olive oil

*Spread on half of the onion/garlic mixture

*Sprinkle on rosemary

*Add some Parmesan

*Set aside for another 20 minutes until it doubles in size again.

*Pop in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes

*Cool on a cooling rack.

*I sliced mine up into pieces..easier for little hands to soak up some marinara sauce.

*Enjoy