Grandkids...& Pizza Crust

Proverbs 17:6 Grandchildren are a crown of the aged.

My friend Hank told me his 9 year old grandson was having a pizza party for his birthday.  Hank asked John Curtis what kind of pizza he was having at this celebration.  The child replied, “Pepperoni for the kids and…. vegetable pizza for the old people.”

I use my trusty bread machine for a pizza crust that’s ready in about 80 minutes start to finish.  You don’t have to have a bread machine.  It can also be done by hand. 

Set your machine on the dough cycle.  This will mix, knead, and allow your dough to rise. Layer in this order for the bread machine:

I cup warm water
2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 c. all purpose flour
2 T. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. instant yeast

Toss in a T. of parmesan, a sprinkle of Italian seasoning, or some garlic opposite the place where you put the yeast if you wish. These ingredients can inhibit the yeast.

When the machine finishes its cycle, grease a 9x13 pan with olive oil and spread the pizza crust to the edges. 

Top with pizza sauce, pepperoni for the kids or vegetables for the old people and some mozzarella, of course.  :-)

Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 min. until the crust is golden brown. 

Confectionately  Yours,

Sue

Cookie Mix in a Jar

I have a friend that shares my love of cookies.  His slender wife, one of my dearest friends, appreciates sweets, but not like her husband.  He consistently exercises and keeps his weight to a healthy level, but definitely looks forward to a warm cookie on occasion.

Carolyn, his wife, recently shared with me a Sunday afternoon habit.  They are both busy people and empty nesters.  Ken, her husband, has driven a church bus for years.  As a result, he doesn’t get home from his route on Sundays until mid afternoon. 

After lunch, they settle in for a quiet afternoon together, sometimes alone, sometimes with a rambunctious grandson.  Part of their Sunday routine is for Ken to get one of those rolls of packaged cookie dough and bake cookies for them to enjoy together.

Doesn’t this give you a sense of a cozy family time?  It does for me. 

Ken has decided to forgo cookies for a time to get back to his pre-Christmas weight.  I had planned to give them cookie dough as a Christmas gift so they could bypass the packaged kind for a time, but I decided to take a different route. I made up cookie mixes in canning jars layering the ingredients so that they look attractive.  I add the recipe for making them up using fresh ingredients like butter, vanilla and an egg.  

The mixes make anywhere from 18 to 24 cookies depending on the size.  This is perfect for a small group of people without having a lot of leftovers to tempt the sweet tooth later.

I actually used my CC cookie recipe that I have shared on a previous segment, cutting the ingredients in half.  As long as you keep your dry ingredients under 4 cups total, they will fit in a 1 qt canning jar.  You can take your own favorite recipes and transform them into mixes that are shelf stable for 6 months. They can be made up in minutes.

I love to decorate the jars with fabric & paper labels that coordinate to the season.

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE

MIX IN A JAR

1/4 c. sugar                                                 1/2 tsp. baking powder and baking soda

3/4 c. brown sugar                                      6 oz. chocolate chips

1-1/4 c. all purpose flour                             nuts(opt.)

Layer ingredients in 1 quart jar as follows: sugar, brown sugar, flour, baking powder

and soda, chocolate chips, nuts.

To make cookies

1/4 c. butter                             1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 c. margarine                      1 egg

Melt butter and margarine. Add contents of jar, the egg and vanilla. Mix well. Preheat

oven to 350°. Form dough into balls about the size of walnuts. Bake 9-11 minutes

until lightly browned. Yield:1-1/2 to 2 dozen.

Note: Make a cute jar garter by tearing a strip of cotton fabric into 4" strips. Cut

length to 16 ". Sew ends together. Fold in half, press, then sew a casing in fold edge a

little wider than 1/4", leaving an opening to thread 1/4" elastic through. Cut a 9" piece

elastic, thread through casing, then pull to gather and make double knot to secure.

Covering Your Sins

I’m currently in a rearranging frenzy at my home.  This tendency seems to have a domino effect.  One project leads to another, with my mind focused on the finished goal.  I get rid of things I do not need, put things I DO need where I can find them, & simply enjoy an organized usable space when it is all said & done.

Sometimes when I am knee deep in a reorganizing project, packing up the house for what seems like the hundredth time, & simply poop out in the middle of it all, I throw a sheet or blanket over the whole mess & walk away for a time.  If I throw a BLACK sheet over the mess, it is surprising how that pile of stuff seems to fade into the background.

While this might temporarily prevent me from becoming distracted by the clutter, it is NOT a permanent solution.  Clutter must be dealt with sooner rather than later, or the house would be overtaken by black cloth covered lumpy piles of stuff every which way.

The bible tells us if we cover our sins we will not prosper.  It seems the Enemy uses our personal “stuff” against us bringing it to mind to steal our joy in serving the Lord & paralyzing our service to our Redeemer.

I have to remind myself that as a believer in Christ, I am forgiven of my sin, past, present, & future.  I must confess my daily sin of course, so that it does not hinder the work Jesus wants to do in me.  As I enjoy my quiet moments early in the morning with a cup of coffee & my Lord, & Savior, the “black cloth” I have thrown over my “stuff” is uncovered to reveal the clutter of my life.  His Word helps me sift through the mess I have made, allowing the Lord to restore order & peace in my troubled heart.

I'm sharing a recipe for Cranberry Coffeecake.  It uses up that bit of leftover cranberry sauce from a meal, & goes perfectly with that cup of coffee I mentioned earlier in this post. 

CRANBERRY SWIRL COFFEE
CAKE
1/4 c. butter                                  1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar                                      1 c. sour cream
2 eggs, well beaten                      1 tsp. almond extract
2 c. all purpose flour                    8 oz. whole berry cranberry sauce
1 tsp. baking soda                        1/2 c. walnuts, chopped

Cream butter and sugar together. Add the eggs, beat well. Mix together the dry
ingredients and add alternately with sour cream. Add almond extract.

Place 1/2 of the batter on the bottom of a well greased and floured tube pan. Spoon 1/2 of the
cranberry sauce over batter, keeping it away from the inner and outer edges. Sprinkle
with 1/2 of the nuts. Spoon 1/2 of the remaining batter on top of the fruit; then spoon
the rest of the cranberry sauce and nuts on top. Finish by spooning the rest of the
batter over the fruit.

Bake in a 350° oven for 45-60 minutes. Test for doneness at the 45 minutes point by sticking a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean, it's done.

Allow to sit for 10 minutes in pan, then gently shake pan to loosen cake. Remove to a
rack and cool completely. Drizzle with glaze.

Glaze
1-2 T. milk                                    1 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. butter                                  1/2 T. almond extract

Heat milk and butter briefly in microwave. Stir in powdered sugar and extracts. If too

thick to drizzle, add enough milk to reach desire consistency.

                                      Confectionately  Yours,

Sue

"Judi Bread"

I met Judi Tittle at the WEEC Share in  March. We were both volunteering in various capacities. I noticed several mini loaves of a cinnamon-sugar bread in the kitchen. Turned out, they were gifts for the volunteers working the event, made by Judi.

I discovered later when visiting with her in the kitchen as we worked, that she got her first batch of starter from a friend at church. The friend had been giving them to everyone. It had even gotten to the point where she would leave them on the doorstep, ring the bell, and run for the car!! LOL Not everyone was glad to see that starter!!!

But Judi's starter was like that parable Jesus talked about where the seeds fell on good ground. A ministry opportunity took root the day Judi got hers. She has perfected the recipe to make the bread over the years, trying out several different ones, then sticking to the one she liked best.

I was one of the fortunate to get a BIG loaf to take home. I shared it...but I admit, I savored a bigger portion, and enjoyed it immensely over several days.

Judi tells me that she has sent starter to several states even!! Another fun story is one in which a little 3 year old girl tasted the delicious loaf and nicknamed it "Judi Bread." I love that!!

I will never think of it again as Amish Friendship Bread...Judi Bread has a warmer homier feel to it.

Amish Friendship Bread (Judi Bread)
The Initial Starter
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
Combine the ingredients in a large, deep glass or plastic container. Cover lightly. If the container has a lid, leave it slightly ajar.

Stir every day for 17 days, using a plastic or wooden spoon.
On day 18, do nothing.
On day 19, 20, 21, stir.
On day 22, stir and add 1 cup milk, 1 cup flour, and 1 cup milk. Stir again.
On days 23, 24, 25, and 26, stir.
On day 27, add 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk, and 1 cup sugar. Stir, you should have about 4 cups of starter.

Give one cup to 2 friends, and keep the 2 remaining. Use one to make the bread, and use the other to keep the starter going.

Feeding the Starter
On the day you receive your starter, do nothing
Day 2-3-4-5: Stir with a wooden spoon once each of these days.
Day 6: Add one cup of flour, 1 cup sugar, and 1 cup of milk. Stir well.
Day 7-8-9: Stir with a wooden spoon once each day.
Day 10: Add 1 cup flour, 1 cup, sugar, 1 cup milk. Stir and pour into separate containers (1 cup per contaner) Keep one for yourself, and give 2 away. Make the bread with the remaining one.

(finally!! :-) Making the bread

To your starter add:
1 cup oil
1/2 cup milk
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Mix well.

In a separate bowl combine:
2 c. flour
1 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 heaping tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup nuts (opt.)
1 large box of instant vanilla pudding

Add dry ingredients to wet mixture. Stir well. 

Mix together 1/2 c. sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon. Grease loaf pans and coat them with a portion of the cinnamon sugar. Fill the loaves 2/3 full. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top.

Bake at 325 for 1 hour or until the loaves test done. Check large loaves at the 45 minute point. Mini loaves will bake in about 20-25 mins. (Inserting a tooth pick into the loaf with it coming out clean indicates doneness.)

Cool 10 minutes in the pan before turning out to cool completely

Recipe yields: 2 large loaves