Zucchini Bread, Courtesy of Paula Deen

It's that time of year again. People who have ambitiously planted and cared for their gardens have zucchini coming out of their ears.

This one of the best zucchini bread recipes EVER. I love the combo of tastes from the lemon juice and the nutmeg. I have a recipe for chocolate zucchini bread that I will post soon too. But to make this awesome bread CLICK HERE. For some reason this link is not going through. So, I am just going to post the recipe here, but know that it is all from Paula Deen. (To find it on foodnetwork.com I entered "Zucchini Bread and Paula Deen".)

Sorry, still no camera. I think my husband took it on the trip. There is a pic on Foodnetwork.com

Ingredients:
3 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon (I usually don't add this, but it is good with it too)
3 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (I use apple sauce instead if I have it)
4 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup water
2 cups grated zucchini
1 teaspoon lemon juice (I usually double this)
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. In large bowl combine flour, salt, nutmeg, baking soda, cinnamon, and sugar. in a separate bowl combine eggs, water, oil, zucchini, and lemon juice. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Add nuts. Bake in 2 greased normal sized loaf pans for 1 hour or until a tester comes out clean. Or use 5 mini loaf pans and bake for about 45 minutes. Enjoy!!

Chocolate Lover's Dream Cheesecake

This recipe is from my sister Laura. She made this and I had to have the recipe. It is so easy to make and seriously, one of the best cheesecakes I have ever had. Prepare to indulge.

Cake:
1 8 oz package of cream cheese, softened (I use the 1/3 less fat kind)
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon flour
1 9 inch chocolate pie shell (or you can make one out of Oreos. I didn't have Oreos, or a chocolate crust, so I just improvised).

Topping:
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of heavy cream (I didn't have cream, so I used butter and it worked well)
1/4 cup white chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350. Beat cream cheese until fluffy. Slowly add condensed milk and beat until smooth. Add egg and vanilla, mix well. Toss 1 cup of chocolate chips with the flour and add it to the cheesecake mixture. Mix well. Pour mixture carefully into pie shell. Bake for 35 min, or until center springs back when lightly touched (I think I had to bake mine for 40 min). Let cheesecake cool. While it is cooling prepare the glaze. Combine 1/2 cup of choc chips with 1/4 cup of the cream in a saucepan, melt over low heat until smooth and glossy. Pour over cheesecake. Put in fridge for an hour and let glaze cool. Melt white choc chips with remaining 2 Tablespoons of cream. Drop in 3 places over chocolate glaze. Swirl lightly with a fork or knife. Store in fridge until you are ready to serve. This is seriously the easiest and best cheesecake I have ever made.

One of My "Pet Peaves"

I have a few "Pet Peaves" and will probably blog more about others later. But this one is seriously at the top of my list.

You sit down to relieve yourself in peace and quiet (or with little people banging on the door that is locked and you laugh to yourself thinking, "I could seriously stay in here for hours, but I would probably get hungry. I need to hide some chocolate and bottled water in here somewhere, and bring in the phone next time. Maybe a book, the DVD player and season 1 of 24 that I have been promising Mike I would watch, a 72 hour survival kit...")

You look over to the TP holder to finish off, and.... IT IS EMPTY!!!! All that is left is a scrap of TP clinging to the cardboard roll. I HATE THAT!!!

So, this happened to me in the morning at home. Then I had a doctor appointment, the pee in a cup kind, so I HAD to use to potty at the doctor's office (which is something I try to avoid, if possible.) After I have carefully peed in the cup and place my sample where it is suppossed to go, I look over at the TP and IT IS EMPTY!!!!!!! SERIOUSLY!!!! I HAVE TO DO THIS AT THE DOCTOR OFFICE TOO?????????????

It is an OB's office, so many of the women going there are mom's, who I am sure have the same pet peave. What was this last person thinking? I didn't let it ruin my day, but for a minute I was pretty ticked. At least it wasn't like the Sienfeld episode where Elaine asks the person in the stall next to her if she can "spare a square." There were more squares in there, I just had to put them on the cylinder.

What crazy things set you off???

Sloppy Joes

This is my favorite Sloppy Joe recipe. When we lived in WI, there were a few stores that always had ground sirloin on sale, so I would make this often. I have tried different things with this recipe if I have been out of some of the ingredients and it has always turned out great. I cannot claim credit for it, it came from the kitchens of Food Network. That is a great website if you are ever looking for ideas for a creative and quick dinner.

Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons oil (I use EVOO)
1 large onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced (I prefer to roast the onion and pepper in the oven at 400 for about 25 to 30 minutes and then puree them because then they actually get eaten and not picked out of the meat)
4 large cloves of garlic, minced (I use the bottled kind, 2 tsp.)
1 teaspoon marjoram (I have made it without this and it is still good. But better with it. If you want to get some, purchase a very small container, unless you use it a lot. I think I only use it in this and one other recipe)
2 pounds of ground beef (I prefer ground chuck or ground sirloin)
3 8 oz. cans of tomato sauce (I have pureed a 28 oz can of drained tomatoes and it worked fine)
3 Tablespoons sugar (I use brown sugar)
3 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (What is in that stuff? Whatever it is, I like it.)
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar (I have used regular vinegar too if I am out of RWV)
1 1/2 Tablespoons yellow mustard (I use the spicy brown kind and use more like 3 Tablespoons)
1/2 to 3/4 cup water to add if the SJ's seem too thick. (I never have had to add this much)

Heat oil in large pot. Add onions. Cook for a few minutes and then add red pepper. Cook until onions are clear. Add garlic, stir well (Do not let garlic turn brown or else it becomes bitter). Add marjoram. Set aside. Cook beef and drain (I also rinse it to remove excess fat). Add beef to veggies. Add all other ingredients except water. Stir and mix well. I usually simmer mine for about 30 minutes to let flavors blend. Add water as needed so that it is saucy enough, but not too runny. I like to top my SJ's with a slice of cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. Enjoy!!

If you want to make this in your crock pot, just add all ingredients except water. Add that as needed.

This is really easy to make if you have cooked the meat ahead of time (Click here to see how having a prep day makes meal prep SOOOOOOOOOOO much easier).

Fresh Fruit Pie

Fresh fruit is one of my favorite things about summer. This is another recipe from my sister in law, Jayna. She used it to make peach pie. I used it with strawberries and blueberries and it was also really good. This picture is with blueberries. I use a 9 by 13 pan, but you can use 2 pie pans as well. The recipe for the crust is actually from a guy I dated a long, long time ago. It is super easy and really good.

Crust: (You could also use store bought pie crust. I just never have that on hand)
2 Cups flour
1 Cup butter
2/3 Cup brown sugar
1 Cup oatmeal

Combine ingredients in food processor or use a fork or pastry blender to cut the butter into the mixture. It is ready when it is crumbly. Press it into the pan or pie pans and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes. Allow it to cool.

Mix:
8 oz. cream cheese (the lite kind)
1 Cup cool whip
4 Tablespoons of powdered sugar
Mix this together with mixer.

Spread cream cheese mixture onto cooled pie crust.

Top with fresh, uncooked fruit:
3 cups of fresh blueberries (or sliced strawberries or peaches)

Top with this mixture when cooled.
In heavy saucepan combine:
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
dash of salt
about 2 cups of blueberries (or if using strawberries or peaches, 2 cups of pureed strawberries or peaches. I didn't puree the blueberries because for some reason they don't puree well in my magic bullet.)
2 Tablespoons of cornstarch
2 Tablespoons of lemon juice

Cook and stir until bubbly and color changes slightly. The mixture will darken and become more glossy as fruit and sugar gel. Set aside to cool. (I usually make the crust while this is cooling)

I usually top the pieces with fresh whipped cream or cool whip. This is a great summer treat that is always a hit.

Jayna's Junior League Salad - Salad with Substance!!!

Looking for a salad that the men in your family will love? This is the one. My sister in law, Jayna, gave me this recipe awhile ago. We have had this salad probably 4 or 5 times in the past month. Everyone love it because it has substance to it and tastes AWESOME!!! I changed the recipe she gave me a little bit. Here it is:

1 head romaine lettuce, torn and rinsed
1 bag of baby spinach
1/2 pound of bacon (cooked and crumbled) (I usually cook the whole pound and then save the other part to make the salad again, or use it to make the bacon and pasta dish I have)
1 cup shredded swiss cheese
1/3 cup shredded parmesan cheese (I use Italian cheese blend if I can't find shredded parm)
2/3 cup toasted slivered almonds
1 cup croutons (optional)
2 cups tomatoes, diced (grape tomatoes work very well)
I also added chicken to this one. I marinated it in the dressing for the salad. Soooo good.

Dressing:
3/4 cup Olive oil
1/4 cup Lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon Pepper
3 cloves minced garlic (I used the chopped kind in the jar)
1 Tablespoon sugar

Combine ingredients for dressing in blender, let sit for 3 hours (the flavors mix well if it sits for that long). For this salad I added some fresh parsley that a friend had given me and it was good in the dressing. I used about half the dressing and marinated about 1 lb. of chicken tenders. Cooked the chicken. Combine salad greens and then add cheeses, bacon, almonds, tomatoes, chicken, croutons, toss with dressing just before serving. This is great to serve with grilled meat. I think when we get a real grill I will top it with grilled steak, doesn't that sound good?

3 Months Worth of Activity in 1 Month

I feel like I have lived 3 months in this last month. We have been super busy, which is why I have not blogged for awhile. In the month of June we were scheduled to attend 16 baseball/softball games (due to some cancellation, it ended up being 12, thank goodness), about 12 doctor/dentist appointments, deep cleaned 2 houses, packed, moved, and unpacked a house (we closed on a house mid June and moved before baby came) worth of stuff, and had a baby. We were blessed to have the strength to do it all. Now I just want to sit back and relax for the rest of the summer.

The highlight of it all was the birth of Madison, she is a sweet baby and is surviving the love from the rest of the crew. She is a "cookie cutter" of the rest of our babies. I am recovering from the c-section well and am ready to get back to normal life. The first question I hear when I get up in the morning is no longer, "What's for breakfast?" or "Can I watch TV?" or "Can I play the Wii?" Now it is, "Can I hold Maddie first?" Life has slowed down a bit, and I am okay with that. The kids love our new yard and have had a blast outside in the water and sun. They have been super helpful with everything and I am adjusting to having 6 little ones. What's 1 more, right? Here is a pic of the baby. For more details you can go to our family web page. If you need an invite to that email me at knelson422@hotmail.com I will be blogging more this next week. More new recipes and antidotes to make you laugh.