Banana Cake with Butter Cream sauce

Cake:

• 6 ripe bananas mashed
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1.5 cups flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1.5 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup wheat germ
• 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice 

Whisk ingredients together in large bowl, pour into greased 9 by 13 inch baking pan, bake at 350 degrees until knife can be inserted into the middle and and it comes out clean.   Serve warm and topped with Butter Cream sauce.

Sauce:

• 1cup milk
• 1cup butter
• 1.5 cups confectioners sugar
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract 

- Heat in sauce pan on low heat  while stirring until mixture thickens.

Egg Muffins

It's really that easy.....make 12 at a time...you'll need one beaten egg for each muffin cup...add season salt or salt and pepper if you like....they reheat and freeze well...perfect for busy weekday mornings ....just reheat and eat or squash one in a toasted English muffin if you need to have those carbs :)

Keep Them On Track? What Planet Are You on?

  We've entered our third year of cyber home school and our attitudes have changed quit a bit as far as what we expect from ourselves and our student.  "Roll with it" is the new mantra around here......We had been pretty determined to do things by the book when we started this.....but life knows nothing of this book I speak of........ so that was kinda silly.   The bottom line is that she can only be as "on track" as we are .....and keeping all the balls in the air while simultaneously coping with the guilt over the one ball we dropped last month is challenging to say the least.  I knew balancing homemaking, school and work wasn't supposed to be easy,  but when we added baby three to the mix I really wasn't sure how a "normal" school day would play out around here.

  It turned out that our trifecta functions pretty well.......they have their moments of course (as do I) ...but over all it works.  Learning to "pick up the slack" is an important part of a young adults development.....and by picking up the slack... I mean taking responsibility for one self, being helpful to others, and not being dependent on others to ensure your success.  All children are born self motivated learners.... and after a few years of this, we've come to the conclusion that encouraging personal accountability is the way to go........ :)

Stove Top Poor Man's Chicken Parmesan

What you'll need:

• a big pan with a lid
• 20 minutes
• olive oil
• as many boneless skinless chicken thighs as you can fit in your pan
• Italian seasoned bread crumbs (store bought or made at home :)
• shredded Parmesan cheese
•  shredded mozzarella cheese
•  dried basil and oregano
•  two big tomatoes (sliced)

Directions:

In case your not familiar with boneless skinless chicken thighs, they are the "poor man's chicken breast"...... they are by far the most versatile cut of chicken available, and when you find them in the meat case....buy them all and stock your freezer :) 

Put your pan on the burner and add enough oil to completely coat the bottom.  Then "open" each chicken thigh, flatten it out on a big plate of bread crumbs and thoroughly coat both sides. Wait until the oil is hot then add each piece one at a time.  After all are nicely browned on the bottom, turn them, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, then top with sliced tomatoes, mozzarella, dried basil and oregano.....put the lid on, turn the burner off, and leave it sit for 10 minutes......serve and enjoy :)

Simple Bread :)

This is a great everyday sandwich style bread

You'll need:

• 2 cups warm water
• 2 packs of yeast
• 2/3 cup of sugar
• 1.5 teaspoons of salt
• 6 cups of flour (any combination of whole grains or white)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 bread pans
• corn meal
• cooking spray
• large bowl
• rubber spatula
• a dish towel

Mix the warm water, yeast and sugar together in a large bowl.  Let stand for 15 minutes or until it becomes foamy.  Stir in salt & oil, then work the flour in one cup at a time with a rubber spatula.  Pick the dough out of the bowl and knead into a ball, add a little more flour if it feels to sticky.  Spray bowl with cooking spray and put the dough back in....cover the bowl with a dish towel and leave it alone for an hour so it can double in size.  Spray the bread pans and sprinkle some cornmeal in the bottoms, then divide the bread dough into two equal sized pieces, hand knead a few times and place in pans..... cover with a towel and let it rise again for about 40 minutes or until the dough has risen about two inches above the lip of the pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.   Cool completely before slicing.

Turkey Pot Pie

You'll need:

• a double pie crust (those pre-mades from the store are ok too :)
• a can of cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup of turkey gravy (canned gravy is fine if you don't make your own)
• 3 cups of chopped left over roasted turkey
• 2 cups of chopped mixed veggies of your choice (again.....frozen is ok)
• salt & pepper

Mix the cream of chicken soup, gravy, turkey, veggies and salt & pepper in a bowl.  Pour into a baked pie crust, cover with un-baked pie crust, pinch down the edges, poke some vent holes and bake at 375 degrees until its golden brown :)

Whole Grain Pie Crust

I use this recipe for any variety of meat pies I might be making.   It's also great for quiche, fruit pies and apple dumplings.  This is a rich crisp crust so it's not ideal for meringue desserts though.  This recipe makes two crusts.







You'll need:

• A flat surface and a rolling pin (I love my baking mat)
• 1 & 1/4 cups of flour (an equal parts blend of white, wheat & oat works best)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 Tablespoons ice water
• 1/4 cup fat free plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup buttery spread (we use Smart Balance)

Put flours, salt, yogurt and buttery spread in a bowl.  Mash with a fork until it become crumbly.  Then mix in water one Tablespoon at a time until a nice dough forms.  Split the dough into two equal sized sections and knead each by hand a few seconds.  The dough should feel smooth and soft but not sticky, if it does feel sticky put some flour on your hands and work it in.  Turn your dough out onto a floured surface and roll it flat into circles big enough to hang over the sides of your pie plate. Spray your pie plate with cooking spray and put the bottom crust in the pan (the dough should hang over the sides) gently push the dough down into place so it is covering the entire interior surface of the plate, then pinch the remainder of the dough around the lip of the plate.  Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees.  Remove the crust from oven and fill with whatever filling your using.  Then you can put your second piece of dough on top and pinch it over the already baked edges.  Poke a few vent holes in the top and bake until its golden brown.