Sunday, October 17, 2021

🔥 Around the Campfire (week 42)

Dear Campers ~

Here's a quick recap in case you missed anything at camp last week:

Posts ~

10/10: 🔥week 41

10/11: RV storage: underbed hanging shoes

10/12: tip-sy tuesday: preserving whole pumpkins

10/13: mozzarella stuffed burgers

10/14: spiderweb deviled eggs and 'rotten' filling

10/15: crock pot ribs

10/16: beef and black bean enchiladas

What's Cooking ~

  • grilled chicken breast, orzo salad (orzo, tomatoes, chopped arugula, feta, olive oil, Italian seasoning)
  • maple-mustard topped salmon, herbed rice mix, roasted green beans
  • bbq ribs, kale salad kit
  • burger salad 
  • pork chops, baked acorn squash, roasted broccoli
  • chicken, spinach, mozzarella sausage, pasta with marinara, caesar salad
Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy ~
  • re-read 'A Bad Day for Sunshine' and read 'A Good Day for Chardonnay' #1 and #2 in the series by Darynda Jones; I enjoyed both of them! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
  • round 2 of senior pics for Brooke - we found some cool graffiti walls:


Hope you had a great week - stop by often to see more projects, crafts, recipes, whatever I think of to make at camp! Bye!

Sincerely ~


Jill
camp counselor

10.17.19: MSIH: chicken spaghetti
















10.17.2017: make a candy corn wreath


10.17.2016: paint a Halloween canvas




Saturday, October 16, 2021

Beef and Black Bean Enchiladas

Here's another non-recipe recipe that I just winged for dinner - and because I'm inherently lazy I didn't even take the time to individually roll the enchiladas like usual and turned it into a sort-of enchilada casserole by layering the tortillas with the filling. Side note: sometimes being lazy turns into a great idea, I'm so making them like this from now on hahaha. 

Brown ground beef, season with salt and pepper as desired. Add a can of chopped chilies. Spread a little enchilada sauce in a casserole dish, put down a layer of tortillas, layer of beef, top with more sauce. Make as many layers as you want, finish with sauce on the top and add shredded cheese. I decided after assembling all the layers that black beans would also be good in this dish but it was too late to layer them so just put them around the sides. Bake until heated thru and the cheese is melted. 

Delish!






10.16.20: popsicle stick rainbow by Brooke

10.16.19: german chocolate pie

10.16.18: white chicken chili

10.16.17: Ronda's October display table

10.16.16: burger salad

10.16.15: jack o'lantern gift enclosure

Friday, October 15, 2021

Crockpot Ribs

I don't think I've ever made ribs other than the precooked bbq kind from the grocery store that just need heating up. So when LeDonna was down and bought raw ribs to do in the crockpot for us I was so impressed - doesn't that seem like a lot of work? Well it wasn't, and they are SO good I've asked her to make them at least a couple times since then. I also keep asking her to remind me how she does it, and then I forget and have to ask again and again (I know, that's a familiar story with my poor memory!). This time when she told me I'm immediately blogging the directions so I'll always have the recipe. Trust me, this is a keeper and now you'll also have the recipe at your fingertips - you're welcome!


I'm not a fan of ribs when we are out in public, I'm a mess eating them and licking my fingers is a no-no...at least it should be a no-no hahah (note - Dave eats ribs with a knife and fork, weird right?); at home where no one can witness my messiness I really like them. I usually only eat a couple, but when they are this good I definitely eat more! 

Here's what LeDonna has to say about making the ribs (and thanks L for not rolling your eyes or sending the old lady emoji when I asked for the umpteenth time):

I cut the ribs into sections, maybe three to four ribs each, approximately.  I rub them with a barbecue rub.  Stack in crock pot and add about a cup of water, I check part way through to make sure there is enough moisture.  Cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4, or til meat is falling off.  Yummy!!!






10.15.20: black and blue jilly jam
10.15.19: tip-sy tuesday: layering mascara by Brooke

 


Thursday, October 14, 2021

Spiderweb Deviled Eggs (with 'Rotten' Filling)

How fun and sort of gross are these deviled eggs for Halloween (or any time you want fun and sort of gross deviled eggs)? My mind knows the filling is only green because of the food coloring but even so, green filled eggs makes me think they've gone bad hahaha. But they taste great, and super easy to make.


Make however many hard boiled eggs you want - see below for a couple ways I boil them. After they are boiled and cooled, gently roll them on the counter to cause the shell to crackle, or lightly tap them with a spoon to just crack in specific areas - do not remove the shells. Place water mixed with black food coloring in a large ziplock bag or glass bowl, add the cracked eggs and refrigerate for at least a couple hours up to overnight. Peel the eggs to reveal the cool spiderweb effect. 





Make the deviled egg filling, we make them (my sis makes the best and I copy hers!) like this: mash the cooked egg yolks with light mayo, mustard, and spicy brown mustard until smooth; season with salt and pepper. I usually make it in the food processor so it's super smooth but you can easily do it with a fork.To make the 'rotten' filling add a little green food coloring. Fill the eggs; sprinkle with poppy seeds (or black sesame seeds) if desired. 




A couple ways to boil eggs (posted previously):

I have been making hard boiled eggs for years the same way (put the eggs in a pan, fill with water, bring to a boil for 5 minutes, turn off heat and cover, let rest in hot water for 20 minutes) and they are foolproof, perfectly done everytime. But if the eggs are too fresh then it's always a crap shoot if I could peel them easily (did you know that fresh eggs are the culprit behind difficult-to-peel hard boiled eggs? Yep!) and if I wanted pretty deviled eggs then it was such a pain hoping to get enough nice ones.  I'm making deviled eggs to take to a friends house and of course bought brand new eggs this morning...and then I saw this method with the claim that even fresh eggs will peel perfectly...well of course I'm going to try it!

Bring a pot of water to a boil and then carefully lower the eggs into the pan. Let them boil in a gentle simmer for 15 minutes. Drain; then put the hot eggs into a bowl of ice water and let cool for 5-10 minutes. And sure enough, every one of the eggs peeled super easy - I'm shocked. A couple have a sort of dent on the side (I put them on the top in this picture), not sure what that's about, but when I halve the eggs I'll just make sure to put the dented side on the bottom.


10.14.20: chewy granola bars

10.14.19: paper pumpkin

10.14.18: around the campfire 




















Wednesday, October 13, 2021

Mozzarella-Stuffed Italian Burgers

I got this idea from one of my sis's Hello Fresh recipe cards, I didn't follow it to a T but the idea is great and this is one of my new favorite lunches. Their version has a creamy pesto topping, I didn't do that - and I've made this so many times now I know that you can use different cheeses, I've done small mozzarella balls and shredded cheddar to great success. You just want to make sure the cheese is encased in meat to help keep it from oozing out. Even if it does tho it's still delicious! 

  • 1 lb. lean ground beef
  • 2 t. Italian seasoning
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 large tomato, sliced 1/2" thick
  • 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella, or small mozzarella balls, or the cheese of your choice
Directions:

Combine beef and seasonings, form mixture into 3 patties (you can make 4 smaller burgers, adjust the cooking time).

Divide the cheese among the patties, place in the center and gently fold the meat up around the cheese to totally seal in the cheese, shape back into patty form making sure the cheese stays covered. 

Season the tomato slices with salt and pepper. Heat a nonstick pan over medium-high heat, add a drizzle of olive oil. Add the tomatoes and cook until lightly browned, a couple minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate. Add a little more oil to the pan and add the patties, cook to your preferred doneness (I do 5 minutes per side and check to see if they're done enough). 

I don't eat this with a bun, the tomato and burger together is delicious and I don't need the bun! But you can, obviously, eat it however you want hahaha. 





10.13.20: TT: easy chicken teriyaki
10.13.2017: costume ideas (adults, there's a bunch of them!)
10.13.2016: making babies (baby plants, that is!)
10.13.2015: Sarge's reversible Halloween scarf

Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Tip-sy Tuesday: preserving whole pumpkins

I bought some really big pumpkins and got to thinking how to keep them nice until Thanksgiving - I'm not planning to carve them but still don't want them rotting and getting gross since I'd like to keep them around for outdoor decor for 2 months. So I did what anyone who wants to know anything does - turned to Mr. Google. 


I read a few different techniques but the one I'm going to do is to first clean them with vinegar and water to get rid of any bacteria on the surface, and then wipe them with WD-40 or floor cleaner and buff to a high shine. You can't eat them after doing that, but I'm not planning to be hungry enough to have to eat my big decorative pumpkins! If I decide to carve them the oil or floor cleaner won't hurt, and might actually help - I read that spraying WD or other oil on the cut surfaces will help protect them. Good to know, right? 


10.12.20: pineapple jack o'lantern

Monday, October 11, 2021

RV Storage: underbed hanging shoes

This isn't my idea but it's a good one so I borrowed it, made a couple changes, and it works perfectly.  I had a pile of shoes on the closet floor in our fifth wheel (aka 'the cottage') that's been driving me crazy, I either needed to pare down or figure out a better storage solution - and I'd rather organize stuff than get rid of it hahahah. So when I saw this (can't remember where - probably that time-sucking Pinterest) I immediately wanted to try it - but didn't want to spend a lot of money on it in case it didn't work for some reason - the great Pinterest idea could easily be a Pinterest-fail in my world hahha. 

Ran to our local Walmart and found the cheapest over-the-door shoe holder they have (around 5 bucks)  and some super cheap shower curtain hooks (under $2); cut the rows of the shoe holder apart, bent open the shower rings to fit over the bed frame sides, pierced the shoe holder with the pointy end of the shower ring, hang and fill. Simple and easy. 




Dave was pretty impressed with how this turned out and said I should blog it except no one has a lifting mattress like this - I said yeah, except every other camper you see does, so I'll blog it for my camping friends LOL! 

His shoes are too tall for this to hang under the mattress so I used one row of the shoe holder and put over the door - it's only a couple pairs but he doesn't have nearly as many shoes here as I do!



Sunday, October 10, 2021

🔥 Around the campfire (week 41)

 Dear Campers ~

Here's a quick recap in case you missed anything at camp last week:

Posts ~

10/3: 🔥week 40

10/4: halloween tree

10/5: salami rose

10/6: antipasto skewers

10/7: noodle ring/chicken ala king

10/8: non-gore porch decor

10/9: crockpot pork with cranberry sauce

What's Cooking ~

  • doctored up frozen cheese pizza (added chopped canadian bacon, mushrooms, more cheese), salad
  • chicken potpies, wedge salad (I didn't feel good a couple days this week - hence potpie and pizza)
  • steak, wilted spinach, steak fries
  • chicken, spaghetti squash w/marinara, roasted green beans
  • crockpot pork (see above), mashed cauliflower, steamed broccoli
Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy but not stand-alone post worthy ~
  • read "The Key Trilogy" by Nora Roberts. The romance genre isn't my favorite so I tend to shy away from Nora Roberts, Danielle Steele, etc. but Cathy said she's read a few of Nora's that she's really liked and they have more of a plot than just sex on a deserted island LOL and recommended this trilogy. I actually really enjoyed this series about 3 women looking for the keys to unlock a box of 3 trapped souls - sounds dumb but it was entertaining. There's still romance, but also some mystery so it worked for me. My favorite Nora Roberts series, if you care that I have a favorite Nora Roberts series, is 'Born in Fire/Born in Ice/Born in Shame". ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Gotta run, closing up the fifthwheel on the lake today and tomorrow - hope everyone had a great week! Bye!

Sincerely ~


Jill
camp counselor

Saturday, October 9, 2021

Crock Pot Pork Roast with Cranberry Sauce

This is the perfect easy recipe when you need a fix-it and forget-it meal and didn't get something out of the freezer ahead of time. Wait, I better clarify that - it's perfect if you like pork and cranberries, otherwise, never mind and stop reading. See ya tomorrow. Hahahahah! Otherwise, here's a great recipe that I hope you'll like!

  • 2.5 lb. frozen pork roast (I buy a 4 pack at Costco - you can adjust the size to suit your needs)
  • 1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
  • 3/4 cup Russian dressing
  • 1/4 cup orange juice or water
  • 1 packet dried onion soup mix
Place the roast in a 5 quart crock pot (or whatever size fits your roast); top with remaining ingredients (you can stir them together before adding to the crockpot but I'd save the extra dish to wash, they'll mix together as it cooks). Cook on LOW for 8 hours. 

Great with mashed potatoes, mashed cauliflower, rice, or on it's own. 

notes: you can also do this with pork tenderloin; pork chops are also great but won't need to cook as long. If you don't have Russian dressing, apricot preserves also works and is equally delish. The sauce is so good I eat it with a spoon but it isn''t thick - if you want it thicker/more gravy like just make a slurry* of cornstarch and water and whisk into the sauce until it thickens. 




*a slurry is just mixing a little cornstarch with some water, for this amount of liquid I'd probably do maybe 2 or 3 T. cornstarch and enough water to make it pourable. 






10.9.18: pumpkin pail




10.9.16: baked crab cakes


10.9.15: spider soap