Chocolate Sheet Cake

A couple months ago I went for our long 7 mile at 7 a.m. hike with the gang and overheard Karen say she made chocolate sheet cake so I (naturally) asked for her recipe. I used to make sheet cake all the time as a kid, for some reason tho I haven't made one in years - did sheet cake fall out of fashion or did I just stop making it? Unsure. After Karen gave me her recipe (that she got from her friend Marge Johnson),  I found my old recipe card and see the recipes are identical other than mine calls for 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup shortening, her recipe is 2 sticks of butter.

Al's birthday was Sunday and even tho we are all doing the distancing thing I figured I could leave a surprise on their porch and ding-dong-ditch! I planned to make cupcakes but don't have all the ingredients on hand, and if I can help it I'm avoiding going to the grocery store - so I started looking for recipes using supplies I already have and chocolate sheet cake fits the bill. Sheet cake isn't my normal go-to birthday cake, but with enough sprinkles any cake becomes a happy birthday cake!

Even tho I didn't eat any of his cake, I remember how much I love that melty frosting - it's poured on top of the hot cake, then sets up to have a crunchy coating on top. Delicious.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1/2 cup shortening* (see note)
• 1 cup strong brewed coffee or water (I usually use water)
• 4 T. cocoa
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. vanilla

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and set aside.

In a saucepan, combine butter, shortening, coffee or water, and cocoa. Stir and 

heat to boiling.

Combine the boiling mixture with the dry ingredients, then add buttermilk, eggs, 

and vanilla. Mix well.

Pour batter into a greased and floured 17 x 11" jelly roll pan/rimmed baking

sheet. Bake at 400' for 13-15 minutes until done. 

While the cake is baking, prepare the frosting. In a saucepan combine butter, 

cocoa and milk. Heat to boiling, stirring. Remove from heat, mix in the powdered 

sugar and vanilla until frosting is smooth. Pour warm frosting over cake as soon as

you take it out of the oven. Cool. Cut into bars.

*note: you can use 2 sticks of butter instead of the shortening if you prefer. Also, if
you don't have buttermilk, mix 1 t. vinegar into 1/2 cup milk and let it sit for a few
minutes.

PS: This is the first day of my "April Plan" to be living life to the fullest while also being

careful, responsible, and staying healthy - just because we are isolating ourselves 

doesn't mean we can't find little ways to still connect with our people! In addition to 

leaving a big part of the cake for Al, I also wrapped up a couple other smaller squares 

and ding-dong-dashed them to another friend and a neighbor just to brighten their day.

3.31.19: 🔥
3.31.18: chocolate covered strawberry 'carrots'
3.31.17: Brooke made a candle holder
3.31.16: creative photography class

My Plan for April

Woke up this morning thinking it's April already (!), we have at least 30 days more of social distancing, everyone I know is saying they're bored and stir-crazy, or they're worried about eating too much now that everyone is cooped up (my sis says it's called "the quarantine 15") -  then gave myself a little snap out of it shake and had a better more constructive thought. I'm going to use this time to learn some new things, try new things, make new things, find different ways to connect with my fam and friends - I'm not going to get down and become a lump on the couch binge-watching net flicks all day. I'm going to keep a routine, put my clothes on, and have a plan every day. Anyone with me? You don't have to do the things that I'm going to try - but I'm going to share with you what I do for the next 30 days to keep myself busy, not bored, not gaining weight, hopefully be interesting and interested, and able to converse about things other than how freaking difficult this time in our world is! And of course there will be crafts, recipes, tips, book reviews, etc. along the way - 'cuz that's what I do anyway, regardless of being isolated :)

I saw this little self-help tidbit about setting goals somewhere and am taking it to heart. Set some goals for yourself (or maybe just one goal!) and use this to keep your focus:

I'm writing this not necessarily to inspire you, but to inspire myself. I think when we say it out loud (or write it down for everyone to see) it makes it more real and will help me follow my goals for April!

I'm off to make a list of things I want to make/try/do for April - see you tomorrow! (PS yes I know we still have 2 days til April, but it's Monday so it seems right to start the whole experiment now!)


3.30.19: brown rice risotto
3.30.18: shaving cream dyed Easter eggs
3.30.17: desktop organizing
3.30.16: blueberry crumb cake

Around the Campfire 🔥 (week 13)

Dear Campers ~

A quick recap of our social distancing cross country road trip this past week in case you missed anything:

Posts ~
3/22: 🔥week 12
3/23: road trip #1
3/24: rt #2
3/25: rt #3
3/26: rt #4
3/27: rt #5
3/28: rt #6

Plus Tesha had a couple fun boredom busting ideas to stay connected to her grandkids:

• long distance snowmen
• pen pal coloring

Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy ~

• read 2 different books about building perfect wardrobes, neither gave me any ideas that I didn't already know - in fact, both of these books made me think I should write a book hahaha. Their both fine if you are thinking your closet needs a change ⭐️⭐️ 1/2 each.  'The Capsule Wardrobe' by Wendy Mak, and 'The Curated Closet' by Anuschka Rees. 
• 'Triptych' by Karin Slaughter #1 in her Will Trent series (there are 9 total). Twisted, gruesome, graphic, thriller - it's the first book I've read by this author and while I'm not sure I'm going to love her 'hero' I'll definitely read more. The subject matter is awful tho - did I mention gruesome and graphic? - so read at your own risk (don't blame me if you hate it!)
• 'Cook like a Pro' by Ina Garten (the Barefoot Contessa); book is filled with great tips and recipes that I can't wait to make ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• I downloaded 4 audio books for the road trip but it was too loud in the RV for me to hear them!

Now that I'm back home and have access to my crafts I'm going to get busy and make some stuff! I'll share that and any other things I decide to do this week at MMDC. Have a great week, don't get bored, and stay healthy!

Sincerely ~

Jill

camp counselor who's happy to be off the road!

'Stay at Home' quarantine road trip #6

Day 6: Terre Haute to home ~

Short drive from Terre Haute, uneventful and light traffic. Gas prices steadily going up from the lowest price we saw in Oklahoma, it's 1.75 at home but I hear Costco is 1.45 - haven't been yet so I can't confirm that. Oh, and in case you think whatever state you live in has the worst roads - I can attest to Michigan being the worst we went thru! Arizona wasn't good, but better than Michigan - I can say that I'm a good tester of that, being in the big ol' Nessie RV it's very obvious when the roads are bad! Like can't talk across the cabin we're banging around so much - even my in ear noise reducing headphones didn't work. Long day and now I have a headache!

Anyway, it's good to be home. Unloaded our house on wheels and are now back to 'staying at home' in our actual house. Room to roam, and LOTS of crafting supplies here :)

Just had a TERRIBLE thought that hadn't occurred to me until right now....I bet non-crafty people making the rules think that craft stores are 'non-essential' and have closed them!!! OH NOOoooooo!

Someone posted on FB last week an easy way to get in some exercise while being housebound - every hour for 8 hours do 25 glute bridges, 25 squats, 25 pushups. 8 hours worth proved too much; I managed 6 while still at the condo, and every time we stopped in the RV (which is only 3 or 4 times). Now that I'm at the house I'm going to try again to hit the 8 hour mark! Anyone else want to join me? Obviously there are lots more things we could add like crunches, planks, leg lifts, etc. but if I can manage the bridges, squats, and pushups I'll be happy.

I googled 'how to do a glute bridge' in case you don't know:

Lie face up on the floor, with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground. ... Lift your hips off the ground until your knees, hips and shoulders form a straight line. Squeeze those glutes hard and keep your abs drawn in so you don't overextend your back during the exercise.

3.28.19: silverware pouches
3.28.18: spring flower upside down wreath
3.28.17: DIY mod podge
3.28.16: make a zipper bracelet

'Stay at Home' quarantine road trip #5

Day 5: Springfield to Terre Haute ~

I posted yesterday about being in Springfield the day they issued the 'shelter in place' order and didn't even bother trying to go to a grocery store there...we did stop later in the day and popped into an Aldi, they were out of the usual tp and hand sanitizer but had some canned goods and dry pasta, meat and dairy departments pretty well stocked so we got a few things in case the MI stores were still ransacked. Not hoarding levels of supplies hahahha, but enough to get some meals without having to immediately go the store when we get home!

Trouble once again trying to find fast food for lunch, pretty much everything in Missouri was drive thru only but we came across a Hardee's that let people walk in to get take out. Had a fish sandwich and sorry Hardee's, but it wasn't very good (here's my fast food review for this week - Carl's Jr. had the hottest fries but didn't salt them, McDonald's new baby Big Mac was cold and the bun was hard so overall it was not good, Hardee's fish sandwich was tasteless and dry, the winner is Arby's fish sandwich which is down right delicious - and not just delicious for fast food, it's good!).

Terre Haute campground was much like Springfield in that the office and camp store was open and they were happy to have me come in and buy stuff, and wondered why I'd even ask if it was ok for me to enter the building. I went into a gas station store to get a bottled ice tea and no one working was wearing gloves which was unexpected - but its the first time I went into one on this whole trip so maybe nobody is wearing them.

3.27.19: red, white, and blue berry trifle
3.27.18: Easter nest cake
3.27.17: k-cup bluebirds
3.27.16: Easter flower ideas

'Stay at Home' Quarantine Road Trip #4

Day 4: Elk City, OK to Springfield, MO ~

Went to sleep in Springfield with the plan to stop at a grocery store in the morning because they weren’t under a stay at home order so figured the stores might not be ransacked ... woke up to the announcement that Springfield had issued the order. Ugh, what timing - we were so close!

Dave was able to walk into McDonalds for take out, it was doing a heavy business between inside and drive thru. Springfield campground was the first that had their office and store open - I stuck my head in and asked if we were allowed to enter, I was laughed at and told of course! Um...funny how quickly I’ve become accustomed to having businesses locked!

Before we left the campground this morning I took a couple pics trying to be artsy - this playground is so old school and a little sad sack but I like it:

 And then imagine it at night - kinda creepy!

Sarge-in-Charge has his eye on the campground:

Can you believe how low gas prices are Oklahoma? I read somebody said "gas is finally low and we can't go anywhere"! Funny...and not funny.

Then later that day we saw it even lower!

Since I have all kinds of time on my hands riding in the RV all day, I helped my sister change things around in her living room - I'm calling it 'virtual decorating' hahahah. She sent pictures and I suggested different ways to change things up. I loved it and it was so much fun (there's nothing in the RV for me to rearrange so this was fun for me!) - anyone want help with little decorating questions give me a shout! I do love to give my opinion hahahha ;)

3.26.19: the front tuck

3.26.18: Peep cupcakes

3.26.17: Al's west african peanut soup (oh gosh I love this soup so much!)

Boredom Buster

Another cute idea from Tesha to banish the boredom blues, the kids are going to love this (or do this with friends and other family just as a fun way to keep in touch, tell someone you’re thinking of them, and give them something to do!):

Yesterday I colored each of my grandchildren a picture with an activity for them to do on the back. I enclosed stickers for them to give themselves when they complete the activity. I also asked them to color a pic for me and send back. 

'Stay at Home' Quarantine road trip #3

Day 3: Albuquerque to Elk City, OK ~

Saw this hot air balloon as we were leaving Albuquerque - first thought was "extreme social distancing?" hahahah!!

Now, onto food :) Every day is different on what is and isn't available...from being able to order inside, to having to order online and pick up outside (since we can't drive thru), and today we decided to just pull into this parking area next to the highway and just eat leftovers!

Here's what Sarge normally looks like throughout the day...

 And then how he looks when it's lunchtime...

I don't get out of the RV during the day (hello, isolating!) but Dave pulled over to this rest area in Texas and said I needed to come in and see how cool it is - I said no but there were no other people there and they have an automatic sliding door so I didn't have to touch anything so I went it...it's Route 66 themed and yep, very cool. In addition to photos and historical info, they have tons of old metal signs hanging up that I think are fun:

 However, this sign outside of the museum rest stop gave me pause:

 Passed these fields of pretty purple sage:

At the campground that night we were parked coincidentally next to other Michiganders, they're returning to Grand Rapids from Arizona after cutting their trip short since all the National Parks are closed. We had a long conversation across our spaces, I'm not a good judge of distances but they were many many feet away - it was sort of us yelling across the way to communicate with them but it was nice to actually talk to people while seeing their faces!

Hi from Lucy too!!

3.25.19: 3-strand beaded bracelet

3.25.18: glazed baked ham and pineapple stuffing

3.25.17: frozen smoothies

'Stay At Home' Quarantine Road Trip #2

Day 2: Arizona to Albuquerque ~

Not much happened today, but we did find a different thing happening in AZ - yesterday we could go into a fast food place to order, today it's only drive thru. Which is great that most people can still get lunch if they want it - we however are in a big ol' motorhome (which I've 'affectionately' - or perhaps sarcastically - named "Nessie") and can't do the drive thru. Remember that you can't walk up to the drive up window so what to do if you actually need to grab lunch on the go?
So we parked in front of a Subway that doesn't have a drive thru, with an "open" sign flashing thinking it'd be perfect...but nope - you can only order online or thru their app, then the Subway employees will bring it out front to you. I thought yesterday's 'fast food' waiting for Carl's Jr. to cook our food to order was long but actually it was pretty quick. By the time I created a Subway account, and figured out how to order (which fyi, I didn't figure out and ended up with a footlong turkey cheese that I would not have ordered if I was in Subway in person - I'm an all veggie except peppers girl!!), and got our sandwiches, we easily had 45 minutes into our 'fast food stop'! We saw very few people, lots of truckers, minimal traffic.

Couple pictures: First one is the parking lot where Subway is...ghost town!

How cute is this little dog area at our campground? We should book this site next time for the Sarge:

The RV next to us had a giant dog, it might have been a big German Shepherd but I nicknamed it 'The Wolf'. Like it was huge. Check out Sarge's face when I asked him if the wolf was outside before we went out on a potty break (he's peeking out from behind the seat - idk, it seems very "mom! there's a wolf out there!" to me):

Speaking of Sarge - he's asleep on the table before we even left the campground this morning! Quarantine travel is exhausting...

3.24.19: 🔥week 12

3.24.18: organizing craft paper

3.24.17: B's bubble maker

3.24.16: deviled egg chicks

Social distancing snowmen

From Tesha - I had to share before the snow melts if anyone wants to do this - I LOVE this so much!

Woke up to about 3 inches of snow so called sydney and said lets go build snowman and pretend we are building them together...

'Stay At Home' Quarantine Road Trip

Day 1: Cali to Arizona: Too bad that it takes a pandemic to be able to drive on open freeways in California! I've never seen anything like it here, there was still some traffic - and if we were in Michigan we would still call it rush hour traffic hahah - but nothing like the normal congestion.

I was already on hyper germ awareness/warfare, but doing this cross-country trip has escalated it! Dave is reluctantly wearing gloves any times he leaves the RV, then isn't allowed to touch the outdoor handle to come back inside - he could probably perform surgery with the whole glove removal/hand washing routine he's going thru LOL. I didn't leave the RV once until we got to the campground.

Teri gave me this roller ball of "peace and calming" essential oils - I've been rolling it on  and sniffing it like crazy!! 

We could go into a Carl's Jr to order take-out lunch, the drive-thru's are open but when you're driving a big ol' motorhome you can't go thru drive-thrus! I read that this is a problem right now for truckers - if the dining room/ordering counters are closed, they obviously can't go thru the drive-thru in their trucks, and did you know you cannot walk up to a drive-thru window? So how are they supposed to get food? So Dave was able to walk into Carl's Jr (bathrooms are closed tho - just fyi) and place his order, then waited for them to cook it to order. Nothing like normally ordering fast food - plan on it taking quite a bit longer than "the old days". Hey - after all the years of listening to your parents and grandparents' stories of the good old days are we now entering our own 'good old day's' era??? Hmmmmm....

Back on the Road - more tomorrow and I'll try to remember to take pictures!

3.23.19: herb crusted buttermilk chicken

3.23.18: perler bead Easter eggs

3.23.17: a laugh

3.23.16: Easter side dishes - pineapple stuffing, creamed new potatoes, roasted carrots

Around the Campfire 🔥 (week 12)

Dear Campers ~

A quick recap in case you missed anything last week on MMDC:

Posts ~

3/15: 🔥week 11
3/16: pet poison prevention week 
3/17: marinated artichokes 
3/18: spaghetti squash mac and cheese
3/19: TBT: orange-cranberry ice
3/20: pork with sauerkraut (I know, sauerkraut can be yucky, but try this one!
3/21: Teri's stacked shrimp appetizer


Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy ~

• So I'm still not feeling 100% - and no, I'm fairly certain I just had the plain ol' flu and not the nasty corona virus! It is taking me some time to get over tho. But meanwhile - we decided to leave CA and head back to MI while we still can. I am currently writing this from our RV, which I really feel is still like being quarantined - we are totally self-enclosed and only have to get out to get gas once a day, and possibly some take-out fast food if you're Dave and the idea of eating whatever is already in the RV isn't as interesting as Carl's Jr. hahahaha. Don't even get him started tho on the process I made him go thru today not touching anything when he came back into the RV LOL. Let's just say I'm on super heightened germ alert right now and leave it at that. I will share stories this upcoming week regarding what it's like to drive across country during a "stay at home" order and social distancing. 
• Before leaving the condo I cleaned out (either gave away, threw out old stuff, or packed) anything edible (food, drinks, medicines...) in anticipation of an eventual termite fumigation that got postponed due to the virus concerns. Since we most likely won't be here I at least got the big preparation part out of the way. Dave saw me packing my sprinkles and questioned why I have so many - what, can you ever have too many sprinkles?! Is there such thing as sprinkle hoarding? Keep your tp, apparently I'm interested in collecting much less practical things 😉

• Read 'Dead to the World' #4 in the TrueBlood series. Still bad, but can't not finish reading them. ⭐️⭐️⭐️; "Nine Perfect Strangers" by Liane Moriarty about a 'health resort' run by a team of...let's just call them out-of-the-box thinkers not afraid to experiment. I have mixed feelings about this one, at some points I was bored and others would think to myself 'ok, now we're getting somewhere'. Overall I guess I would not tell you to run right out and read it. ⭐️⭐️⭐️; and 'A Minute to Midnight' by David Baldacci, #2 in the series and I cannot wait for him to write #3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

That's all for me. Hope everyone is staying busy and not too stir-crazy while staying at home. To borrow a phrase from Paul's Photo let's "create while we wait"!! Once I get to MI I'll be creating while waiting for sure!! Love that.

Sincerely ~


Jill
camp counselor and sprinkle lover

Teri's Stacked Shrimp Appetizer

I have no idea what to call this - Teri made it for her dinner one night and sent me the idea, I'm pretty sure tho if I told Dave this is his dinner he'd rebel (not because of what it is, it's just not going to be "dinner" to him hahahah!!) so I'm calling it an appetizer. How 'bout you just eat it whenever you want - I've been known to eat weird breakfasts but I don't think calling it "stacked shrimp breakfast" is going to make anyone else want to eat it LOL. It looks great and I've never seen it, don't know if she made it up or got the inspiration somewhere - I forgot to ask! I just immediately said "oh I'm blogging that, yum!"

She layered gluten free baked crackers, chunky spicy guacamole, cooked shrimp (peeled and deveined of course), and sprinkled citrus seasoning on top. Easy, healthy, and delicious.

Marinated Shrimp Salad with Creamy Dill Dressing

I made this salad without the shrimp as a side for our grilled chicken the other night - I'm not a dill fan normally and I'm not sure why I decided to even make this salad, but I'm so glad I did...it's delicious! Fresh, crunchy, a little tangy, flavorful and colorful - and the dill totally works without being obnoxiously overpowering. It's a winner. Totally stands alone as a side salad, add shrimp or other protein for a complete salad. 

Ingredients ~

for shrimp:

• 12 oz. frozen peeled and deveined cooked tiny shrimp, thawed
• 3 T. lemon juice, divided (that means you don't use it all at once)
• 1 T. chopped fresh dill
• 1 T. olive oil
• salt and pepper

for dressing:

• 1/2 cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh dill
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

for salad:

• 2 heads butterhead, boston, or bibb lettuce, separated into leaves
• 1/2 English cucumber, halved lengthwise and very thinly sliced (1 1/4 cups)
• 1 1/4 cups thinly sliced radishes
• 1 cup yellow grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 avocado, thinly sliced

Directions ~

For shrimp: in a medium bowl toss together shrimp, 1 T. lemon juice, 1 T. dill, and oil. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Cover and marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes.

For dressing: in a small food processor or blender combine 2 T. lemon juice, yogurt, 1/3 cup dill, 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cover and process or blend until smooth.

Place lettuce in a large bowl. Drizzle with half of the dressing, toss to coat. Divide lettuce among plates. In same bowl, combine cucumber, radishes, and tomatoes. Drizzle with remaining dressing, toss to coat. Top lettuce with cucumber mixture, shrimp, and avocado.

Per serving: 206 calories, 10 g. fat

original source of recipe found here

Pork Chops with Sauerkraut

I used to hate sauerkraut. Like really, really hate it. But then I found this recipe that changed my thinking - it's from my good ol' Gourmet on the Run cookbook that I've been using since the 80's. For a long time this is the only way I'd eat sauerkraut, I've since come to like it other ways but this is still my favorite - the addition of a little sugar and caraway really makes a difference.

• 1 T. vegetable oil
• 6 pork loin chops, about 1/2 inch thick
• 1/2 t. caraway seeds
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 T. brown sugar
• 1/2 cup dry vermouth
• 2 lbs. sauerkraut, rinsed and drained

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil until hot. Fry pork chops quickly until browned. Drain off fat. Add caraway seeds, bay leaf, brown sugar and vermouth; heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 7 to 10 minutes. Add sauerkraut and heat through. Makes 6 servings.

Note: I made this the other day a little different then the usual recipe (and it's the picture shown, usually the pork and sauerkraut is served all together on the plate).  Dave grilled the pork chops and I did the sauce and sauerkraut on the stovetop more as a side dish. It's still really good but I think I like the flavor of the pork cooking right in the sauce a little better - try it both ways and tell me which you prefer. 

TBT: Orange-Cranberry Ice

Last week I shared a St. Patrick's Day luncheon menu from my new/old cookbook, click here for that post, and one of the suggestions for "lemon ice" made me want to make it (more like made me want to eat it haha). So loosely following the recipe I made this orange-cranberry flavored version.

The cookbook recipe for lemon ice:

1 quart water

2 cups sugar

3/4 cup lemon-juice

Make a sirup (their spelling) by boiling the water with the sugar for 5 minutes. Add the strained lemon-juice, cool and freeze.

My orange-cranberry lower calorie version:

2 cups water

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup diet cranberry cocktail

1/4 cup orange juice

splash of lemon juice 

I followed the original instructions, and poured it into a plastic container with a lid and froze. The only problem is then how to serve it - it's a solid block! Scraping it with a fork and/or ice cream scoop made great shaved ice, when I tried to break off hunks I broke the container! So shaved ice it is ;)

Next time I'll pour it into small dixie cups or popsicle molds!

It tastes really good by the way - light and fresh, hits the sweet tooth spot.

After I broke the hole in the container I said "oops" which is Sarge's signal that food has probably landed on the floor and he comes running....

Spaghetti Squash Mac and Cheese

In my ever-lovin' quest to eat healthier, I saw this recipe for 'mac and cheese' using spaghetti squash in place of the usual pasta - and I'll tell ya, this is SO good. No, it doesn't taste like mac and cheese, but it is creamy and cheesy and totally hit the spot. I will definitely be making this again! Can't remember where I first saw this idea, but I adapted it enough that it's mine now hahahah! 

• 1 spaghetti squash
• 1 cup spaghetti sauce (or to taste)
• 1/3 cup panko crumbs
• 2 T. olive oil, divided
• 1 3/4 cups 2% milk
• 1 T. butter
• 2 T. flour
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. pepper
• 1 cup shredded Italian cheese blend (or mozzarella)
• 1.5 oz. parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/3 cup)

1. Cut the squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds. Put in a glass dish, cut side down, add a little water and microwave about 10 minutes or until tender. Remove the strands of squash with a fork. 

2. Preheat broiler.

3. Combine panko crumbs and 1 T. olive oil, set aside. 

4. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt 1 T. butter and 1 T. olive oil. Whisk in 2 T. flour, stir for a couple minutes then slowly add the milk whisking continuously until smooth. Bring to a simmer; cook 1 minute or until thickened, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, stir in cheeses.

4. Mix the cheese sauce and spaghetti sauce into the cooked spaghetti squash and place in a small 2 qt. baking dish. Top with panko crumbs. Broil a couple minutes until the crumbs are browned and the squash is heated thru. 

Tip-sy Tuesday: Marinated Artichokes

LeDonna got me hooked on jarred marinated artichokes from Costco, they are so good and I'm a little obsessed with them now. Unfortunately, I ran out and am absolutely not making a trip to the worlds busiest Costco (if not the world, definitely the country - seriously, you have to steel yourself and repeat the mantra 'I can do this, have patience, I can do this, deep breath' over and over while there!) just for marinated artichokes, so I decided to try making them myself. Why didn't I think of this before? It's SO easy - drain a can or two of artichoke hearts, put them in a container and add vinaigrette (homemade or store bought, I did it with Wishbone greek vinaigrette, Italian would be perfect too), cover and refrigerate. Toss them around every now and then to coat, give them 24 hours or so before eating. Delish!

Add them to salads, antipasto platter or pasta salad, or just eat them plain out of the jar! Can't go wrong ;)

It's Pet Poison Prevention Week

March 15-21 is pet poison prevention week. So today I'm sharing some info I got from the AKC regarding potential springtime poisons you might want to keep in mind. Click here to see a list of things you might not realize are dangerous for our furry friends. Among the hazards are:

• mulch, fertilizer, and compost
• insecticides, pesticides, snail bait
• spring flowers including tulips, daffodils, crocus, and shamrocks
• household cleaning products

Good to know! Gotta keep the Sarge safe (and Lucy the bird may be more sensitive to some aerosol cleaners - didn't realize that).

3.16.19: St. Paddy's 2019 Plan
3.16.18: felt shamrocks
3.16.17: green tassel earrings
3.16.16: leprechaun coloring page

Around the Campfire 🔥 (week 11)

Dear Campers ~

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

Posts ~

3/8:  🔥week 10
3/9:   shamrock garland
3/10: hidden bank
3/11: scallops with chili lime cream sauce
3/12: TBT: St. Patrick's Day luncheon
3/13: shamrock shake
3/14: bloody mary rim salt


What's cooking ~ nope, still nothing interesting. But in preparation for St. Patricks, here is my delish no-fail easy crock pot corned beef recipe:

CROCK POT CORNED BEEF

4 lb. corned beef with seasoning

1 cup water

1 cup guinness (enough liquid to fill 1/2 way up or so)

2 bay leaves

1 t. extra cloves

cook on low x10 hours.

add carrots last 4-5 hours

add cabbage last 3 hours (if you're adding to the crock pot)
(Notes: I put some carrots in the crock pot, but also roast some in the oven. Sometimes I add potatoes but this year I think I'll make mashed potatoes instead. Also, I like to steam the cabbage in a big pot on the stovetop instead of adding to the crock pot.) 

Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy ~

I was still sick all week, today is day 14 tho and if 'they'  -  whoever 'they' is - are right, my two weeks is up and I should be 100% any time now. I did spend less time reading books this week and more time sitting at the computer cleaning up photos...which means I found lots and lots of blog post ideas! 

Well, I did read a couple books - just not 6 like last week ~ 

• 'Club Dead' ⭐️⭐️⭐️ another of the 'TrueBlood' books, because I'm a glutton for punishment and can't stop reading them. Even tho they aren't great...and that's on me.
• The Dutch House' by Ann Patchett. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ not my favorite, lots of people talking about it tho and others love it. I found it long, and didn't love the end. I'm a big Ann Patchett fan tho, have you read Bel Canto? Try it if not and tell me what you think. 

I also emptied out our emergency kit (I've posted about it before, click here for more details - in CA it's recommended to keep an emergency kit ready just in case. So we have tools, gloves, flashlights, health stuff, pet stuff, food, etc. in a big locking trash can that is stored in the garage.), all of the food in the kit is past its expiration date so we are eating up what should be fine (canned goods) and ditched the rest (crackers, cereal, etc). Once it's not quite so crazy at the grocery store I will go replenish all the out-dated stuff. Note this is not an emergency kit/survival kit/doomsday kit for being quarantined in the house if it comes to that with this nasty coronavirus situation - it's more for a possible earthquake or other disaster that requires us needing tools, a few days supply of food, and maybe having to leave our house; it's everything in one container that we can grab and go if need be.

Having said that about emergencies - I'm very very thankful that I already had an 18 pack of t.p. on hand 'cause good luck finding any now with the hoarders grabbing it all! I still don't understand why getting the coronavirus means we need a years supply of toilet paper...and I know I'm not the only one wondering hahah.

Oh, and I wanted to show you how to make your own hand sanitizer gel but yeah, they took all the 91% alcohol and aloe vera gel too 🤦‍♀️. If you can find those two things it's 2/3rds rubbing alcohol to 1/3 aloe vera gel (for example - mix together 2/3 cup alcohol and 1/3 cup aloe vera gel, or 1 cup alcohol and 1/2 cup aloe vera gel. I know, I have mad math skills)

Stay healthy my friends! Don't freak about not finding hand sanitizer - just wash your hands, don't stand too close to sickies, and try to not touch your face (harder than it seems, right?!).

Sincerely ~


Jill
camp counselor who's had enough of being sick already!

Bloody Mary Rim Salt

This is the last component of the bloody mary kick I've been on - you've seen how to make bacon vodka, and how to make your own bloody mary mix...all you need now is this rim salt!

Found this recipe at coastal living magazine but had to doctor it for my taste - as written this recipe has too much coriander for me so I'd start with only 1 teaspoon to start, and I added celery seeds because I love them in bloody mary rim salt!

1 T. Old Bay seasoning
1 T. kosher salt
2 t. ground coriander
1 t. celery salt
2 T. fresh lemon or lime juice

Stir together Old Bay, salt, coriander, and celery salt in a small bowl. Sprinkle 3 teaspoons in a shallow saucer. Pour juice into a second shallow saucer. Dip rim of each glass in juice, and roll rim in seasoning mixture until completely coated. Pour drinks into prepared glasses. Store remaining seasoning mixture in an airtight container.