Friday's Goals~Update and Menu

 

 

 

Friday's Goals

1. raspberries~ freeze the 5 pints I bought on sale for $1 each at Randalls on Wednesday. (I rinse, air dry for a bit on paper towels and then spread out on a parchment or wax paper lined cookie sheet before popping in the freezer for and hour. Then into zip top gallon bags before placing back into the freezer. Some I might use the food saver on for longer storage.

2.  chicken stock~ strain and place chicken stock that I made in the slow cooker from

 carcass of  the baked chicken we had last week. Place into freezer containers and into

freezer. (The one chicken was eaten baked the first night, and then we used some meat in

 a green salad another night. Any bits of chicken that is strained out of the broth will be

a treat for the kitties. OK...and maybe Dollface too.)

3.  vacuum downstairs

4.  oregano, thyme and basil~ cut and prepare for drying. (I just lay herbs out on a flour sack towel lined baking sheet and cover with paper towels so that air circulates but no dust settles on them.)

5. tackle kitchen hotspots~ the table and windowsill by the back door become a catchall for things that need to go out in the garage,garden or recycling bin. ugh...

6.  bathe Dollface~ so `tinky toes can become twinkly toes! (did I hear a puppy "ugh"?)

~bonus (if I can get to it project(s)~

*misc. sewing/mending

Above, I marked through the "to do" items I accomplished. The ones I didn't

complete I will do on Sunday as I set aside Saturdays as a Sabbath/day of

rest/rejuvenation of my mind, body and spirit. My to do lists are by no means the only

things I do for the whole day, they are things that don't fall into my "dailies" category,

such as meal preps, watering plants/lawn/garden, laundry etc.

Speaking of meal preps, I also want to, again, try to remember to keep track of my daily

menus/meal plans here so that when I lose my "what should I cook for dinner" mojo, I

will be able to review menus past for some inspiration. I'll start with today!

Fridays Menu

Breakfast~ scrambled eggs on cinnamon raisin english muffin, coffee (hubby had a slice

 of american cheese on his)

Lunch~ frozen fruit/spinach smoothie (me, hubby didn't want anything)

Dinner~ macaroni & cheese (boxed. We prefer our homemade stovetop version but I had

 a couple of boxes in the pantry and wanted to use them up before they went bad.);

dinner salad, water to drink.

Nothing exciting but nourishing and comforting. And fairly frugal! (Because to be

honest, I was tempted to go pick up burgers for dinner ; D )

Have a great day!~ TJ

 

 

Fridays Goals

gifts from the garden~arranged in a vase saved from a Mother's Day arrangement



 

Friday's Goals

1. raspberries~ freeze the 5 pints I bought on sale for $1 each at Randalls on Wednesday. (I rinse, air dry for a bit on paper towels and then spread out on a parchment or wax paper lined cookie sheet before popping in the freezer for and hour. Then into zip top gallon bags before placing back into the freezer. Some I might use the food saver on for longer storage.

2.  chicken stock~ strain and place chicken stock that I made in the slow cooker from

 carcass of  the baked chicken we had last week. Place into freezer containers and into

freezer. (The one chicken was eaten baked the first night, and then we used some meat in

 a green salad another night. Any bits of chicken that is strained out of the broth will be

a treat for the kitties. OK...and maybe Dollface too.)

3.  vacuum downstairs

4.  oregano, thyme and basil~ cut and prepare for drying. (I just lay herbs out on a flour sack towel lined baking sheet and cover with paper towels so that air circulates but no dust settles on them.)

5. tackle kitchen hotspots~ the table and windowsill by the back door become a catchall for things that need to go out in the garage,garden or recycling bin. ugh...

6.  bathe Dollface~ so `tinky toes can become twinkly toes! (did I hear a puppy "ugh"?)

~bonus (if I can get to it project(s)~

*misc. sewing/mending

    

 

 

Oatmeal Cream Pie Cake



Oatmeal Cream Pie Cake

I mentioned recently that I came up with an oatmeal cream pie cake recipe that my family adores so I wanted to share the recipe. One, so I don't forget it and two, in case anyone else out there would like to give it a go and become a dessert heroine to anyone who happens to have a fondness for a similar factory made delight. Now I'm not claimin' to have the keys to the oatmeal cream pie kingdom with this recipe. No, there are many others out there so individual tastes may vary. Try 'em all!!! I probably will eventually :) 

Here we go...

Oatmeal Cream Pie Cake

For the cake:

2 1/4 cups AP flour
2 cups ground (in my blender) old fashioned oatmeal (or instant oats can be used)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup softened butter (let sit at room temp 'til softened)
2 cups brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

For the cream frosting:
1 1/2 sticks room temperature butter
2 2/3 cups powdered sugar (confectioners)
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
a couple of dashes of sea salt

Now, let the fun begin! Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Spray a 13"x9" baking pan with a baking spray or grease and flour the pan.

Combine first four dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Set aside and in a large bowl, cream the softened butter with electric mixer until smooth. Add brown sugar and mix until well combined. Add in eggs and vanilla, blending until well incorporated. Scrape down sides of bowl occasionally to be sure no ingredients are being left out )': 
Add dry ingredients to the butter/sugar mixture and combine well.

Spread the oatmeal dough mixture into your sprayed/greased/floured baking pan and pop that baby into the preheated oven for approximately 25 minutes (or until you can insert a toothpick about an inch from the edge of the pan and it comes out clean). Let cool completely while you make the creamy, dreamy frosting...

Frosting directions:
with your electric mixer, beat the butter until smooth then add the powdered sugar, combining until well incorporated. Add remaining 3 ingredients and blend until well combined. Frost the cake when completely cooled and enjoy!

If you make this, or have any questions, let me know! I love hearing from you!

Thanks for stopping by!~TJ

Checking In

I wanted to stop in & say "hey" after another loooonnnng absence!

After riding a precarious roller coaster with my hubby's health for so long, I'm hoping we are finally seeing some light at the end of this long, dark tunnel. He has just begun seeing a new pain specialist at the nearby university hospital, she changed his meds and they seem to be working so much better than the others he had been taking that were offering little to no relief for his constant, excruciating pain. Because he is feeling so much more relief, we were able to spend the last couple of days out doing some shopping for things for the garden and other miscellaneous goodies.

Needless to say, since he is feeling better, I am feeling better. Not only for him, but because I know that he isn't suffering as much, it has freed my mind and spirit to become more productive and (obviously) less constantly stressed. Many prayers have been answered!

Anyway, I'm still here and since I have missed my little blog so, I'm hoping to share snippets of my life more often again. One thing I'm so excited about is a delicious oatmeal cream pie cake inspired by a certain cute little hat wearin' girl whose name begins with a "D" that I came up with for the fam recently. It's gotten two thumbs and two big toes ( ;) ) up from hubby so it's definitely a keeper. Oh...DD, DF (Dollface our mini weanie) and I love it too! So if my camera cooperates, I'll be sharing that soon! 

Take care, and if anyone is still out there..."see ya soon!~TJ

No Meals But Exercise

I'm not going to record my meals today because I wasn't very good in making the best choices. I did have a couple of cups of fruit/veggie smoothie and a handful of almonds so all my food choices weren't bad, but too many were, involving sweets & simple carbs. Ugh.

I did ride for twenty minutes on the recumbent bike but didn't go walking in the rain.

Here's to better choices tomorrow!~TJ

Meals, Snacks & Exercise

In an attempt to keep track of what I'm eating so I don't lose focus on my objectives of getting healthier, I'm recording my meals &, snacks as boring as it may be to any poor soul that happens to stumble upon my blog, lol!
I do find it is keeping me more aware of what and how much I'm eating on a daily basis and actually causes me to think through what I eat even when tempted by not so healthy things. Like today...

Upon awakening: 1 reg coffee & 1 decaf coffee both with 1 teaspoon each of heavy cream.

Meal 1:  1/2 egg white veggie omelette, sliced tomatoes

Meal 2: the other half of my egg white veggie omelette & sliced tomatoes

Snack: 7 candy corns (craving sweets BUT used portion control)

Meal 3: brown rice & mushroom recipe I tried. It contained cream of mush soup, butter, brown rice and addition fresh mushrooms.    1 &  1/2 cups. Dessert: I treated myself to 2 rectangles of Hersheys dark chocolate. Again, portion control, which for me is HUGE.

Drinks throughout the day: unsweetened iced green tea, water

I took my dog for a twenty minute walk and then also went for a 45 minute spin on the new recumbent bike we bought yesterday (& hubby put together today!).

Todays Meals & Snacks

I find that the more I incorporate the extra fruits and vegetables into my daily diet, the less I crave the usual junk that I normally am drawn to. Interesting.

Today-

Upon awakening: 1 cup reg. coffee with 1 tsp cream & 1 cup decaf wih 1 tsp. cream

"Meal" 1: 2 1/2 cups fruit & veggie smoothie (leftover from last night)

Snack: 1 oz. natural unsalted almonds

Snack: 5 of those new Burger King lower fat & calorie French fries, "satisfries" is what I think they're called. Out running errands & shopping & wanted a little something before I went into starvation mode (which could equal binge mode if I'm not careful).

"Meal" 2: BK fish sandwich, large lettuce & tomato salad (w/ mung bean sprouts) & lemon vinaigrette

Snack: banana "shake" made with only frozen bananas, rice milk & a bit of Truvia

I did weigh in today so every Thursday will be my weigh in day.

Have a great day!~TJ