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Rabu, 31 Desember 2008

Frequently Asked "A Year of CrockPotting" Questions

Frequently Asked Questions sections always seem so impersonal to me, but after a year, I can honestly say that most days I answer the following questions. At least once.



Happy New Year!

Thank you for sticking with me throughout my year-long challenge! If you'd like to see all of the recipes from 2008 in order, here they are.

If you'd like the Table of Contents for the entire site (there are over 600 recipes), here you go.

This is the 1st "Frequently Asked Question" post I've written. I've also written Part 2 and a Troubleshooting post.


How do I print out recipes?

At the bottom of each recipe there is a small "print recipe" button. Click on that, then choose your desired font size. You can decide to omit all of the pictures. 



What happened to all the food?
We ate it, and shared with friends and family. We now have a very nicely stocked freezer.

What's up with the gluten free?
My youngest daughter has Celiac, and we have decided as a family to all eat gluten free while at home. If you are gluten free, please check all food labels yourself. Food manufacturers change ingredients often, and without warning. If you do not need to worry about gluten, ignore my notes and use the food brands you are comfortable with. You can read more about our gluten free story, here.

Do you travel with your slow cooker?
Yes. Bringing along a slow cooker when traveling ensures that your food is allergen-free and also saves a ton of money.


Did you save money this year?

No. We spent a lot on groceries this year because of the nature of the challenge. I cooked much more food than our family needed, and tried fancier ingredients/spices than I would have in a normal year. I figured this would happen and budgeted accordingly. Most people save a bunch of money by using the slow cooker, though. Here's an article on how to save money by using the slow cooker.

How much weight did you gain this year?

8 pounds. Thank you for asking.

Was your family annoyed at you?
No, not at all. My family is and always has been incredibly supportive of all my endeavors. This really turned into a family project. My kids, husband, parents, brother, grandparents, father-in-law, and friends have all given recipes or recipe ideas. They've also enjoyed eating the food!

How did you get on the Rachael Ray Show?

I emailed the show.

Why are the comments moderated? Did you get a nasty commenter?
Sort of. A reader got me on a bad day and I didn't like what he wrote (he said that my food looked like slimy green poop and that I should take a photography class). He was right---the photo was horrid, but it still hurt my feelings. I've had the moderation on since, and I'm happy with it because I need to actually read (more carefully than before) comments and respond to questions.

Do you have any resolutions for 2009?
Yes. I'd like to stop biting my nails, complete Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred, get the side yard rocks moved to where they should go (or get Adam to do it), start and maintain a blog for Totally Together: Shortcuts to an Organized Life, begin a garden gnome collection, and not stress out so much.


I'm worried about the not stressing so much.

How do you come up with your recipes?

I have the best readers in the world, and they send me new recipes every day. I've got a ton bookmarked that I haven't been able to test out yet. I also read a bunch of food blogs through BlogHer and watch Food TV. I also make stuff up. Sometimes it doesn't work.

I need to cook something for a group of people and it needs to be super-easy.
Taco Soup. It's always a hit.


Will you keep the site up?

Yes. It will live on in cyberspace, and I'll update about once a week indefinitely.


What kind of slow cooker do you use?
updated 11/12: I now use the Ninja Cooking System full-time. Here is a write-up about the Ninja, and here are the other slow cookers I recommend

Are you going to still use your slow cooker(s) a lot?
Yes. I will continue to use my slow cookers probably daily (maybe almost daily), because that's the only way I really know how to cook! My kids are looking forward to me making some of their favorites again (especially brown sugar chicken, fish chowder, and 5-layer brownies), and I have a bunch of other recipes saved I'm dying to test out.


I also woke up to this last week, and am desperate to crank it up:


The Crock-Pot Trio. Thank you, Santa!

Will there be a book?

Yes. Make it Fast, Cook It Slow: The Big Book of Everyday Slow Cooking will contain over 300 tried-and-true gluten free slow cooker recipes, and will be published by Hyperion. It will hit bookstores everywhere on October 13, 2009.


But that's not my question!

Email me. contact AT stephanieodea DOT com


Thank you. Thank you for helping me to make 2008 one of the best years of my life. I could not have persevered without the daily hand-holding from all of you.
My eyes well with tears when I go through and read the heartfelt comments you've left----you are all truly amazing.

Thank you so much. Happy New Year. 2009 is going to rock. I promise.
xoxoxo
steph

 
Need more? Read Frequently Asked Questions, Part II!

CrockPot Black Eyed Pea Soup


Day 366.
because it's Leap Year.

Happy New Year's Eve! I made the most rockingest black eyed pea soup yesterday, and I take back everything I said last year about black eyed peas. They aren't gross. I just didn't know what I was doing.
And thank you also for all of the emails explaining pig anatomy. I get it now.


Although this is the end of my year-long challenge, the blog will not die, and I will not go hide in a corner in the fetal position. I promise.

Eating black eyed peas on New Years Day is good luck and is said to bring prosperity which can't be a bad thing. Ring in 2009 on the right note. Make this soup.

The Ingredients.

--1 pound dried black eyed peas
--1 pound spicy sausage (I used Aidells chicken habanero and green chile)
--6 cups chicken broth
--1 yellow onion, diced

--1 cup diced carrots
--1 cup diced celery
--4 cloves garlic, diced

--1/2 tsp Italian seasoning (not pictured. I didn't know I needed it at first. But I did.)
--1 tsp kosher salt
--1/2 tsp black pepper
--
Tabasco sauce (to add at the end to taste)

The Directions.

Soak your beans overnight. Drain and pick out the undesirables (broken, discolored beans) in the morning.


Use a 5 to 6 quart crockpot. This will serve about 8 people. Dice the veggies, and dump them into your crockpot with the pre-soaked beans. Add sliced sausage. Pour in broth, and stir in Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or on high for about 6.
Before serving, use a stick blender to smash up about 1 cup of beans. If you don't have a stick blender, scoop out 1 cup of beans, blend them in a traditional blender, and add back to the soup. Don't blend too much---just enough to get the broth thicker and creamy-looking.

Ladle into bowls, and add
Tabasco sauce to taste.

The Verdict.


This tastes amazing. I am so glad that I tried cooking black eyed peas again---they are earthier than other beans and make a fantastic soup base. I've got a few different
tupperwares ready to go for lunches for the next few days. My brother and sister-in-law liked it too. The kids didn't taste it---they had spaghetti for dinner.

Selasa, 30 Desember 2008

Little Dipper Pizza Fondue Recipe


Day 365, take two.

I was annoyed with the white bean soup with fennel and spinach I made for dinner, but had all the stuff in the house to make a pizza fondue.

So I did.

I used the Little Dipper because I puffy heart LOVE it, but you could use an oven-safe dish inside a regular crockpot to create a smaller cooking vessel. Or you could increase the quantities.

The Ingredients.

--1 cup pasta sauce (my sauce had chunked mushrooms, it was perfect)
--1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
--10 pieces pepperoni, diced
--1 cup shredded cheese (I used a combo of mozzarella, cheddar, and swiss)

The Directions.

Count out 10 pieces of pepperoni. Then eat the rest of the package.
Put the pasta sauce into your Little Dipper, and plug it in. Add the Italian seasoning and diced pepperoni. Shove in the cup of shredded cheese. I promise it will fit. Cover and leave plugged in (there are no heat settings on a Little Dipper) for 45 min or so.

Stir well and serve with tortilla chips, bread sticks, or crustini.

I made some crustini with the Food for Life brown rice bread. I cut the pieces in slices, then brushed olive oil on each side. Sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 min, flipping once half-way through.

The Verdict.

This was great. We spread out a blanket in front of the TV and had a carpet picnic with the pizza fondue and watched Redbox dvds. How come I didn't know about redbox earlier?

good stuff.

Having a fondue party?
you really should.

fancy cheese fondue
chocolate fondue
peanut butter fondue
marshmallow fluff fondue
pumpkin pie dip
cream cheese, sausage, and Rotel dip (AKA mommy crack)

CrockPot White Bean with Fennel and Spinach Soup Recipe


Day 365.

It's the 365th day of the year. But I'm going to post tomorrow---I didn't realize it was Leap Year when I started this project, and I have black eyed peas soaking to be turned into soup. When I made black eyed peas a year ago, I wasn't terribly impressed, but the soup recipe I have sounds pretty good.

Unlike this soup.

This soup is boring and bland and a waste of time. I should have known better. It came out of a little pamphlet of recipes. This was in the vegetarian slow cooker section. I thought we'd have a nice light meal so then we could eat a bunch of junk at New Year's without regret.

Instead, we each ate a bite or two and then made nachos. With extra sour cream.
and pizza fondue.

mmm.

The Ingredients.

--4 cups vegetable broth
--1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
--1 can (15-ounces) white kidney beans
--1 yellow onion, diced
--1 small bulb fennel, chopped
--2 cloves garlic, minced
--1/4 tsp black pepper
--1 bag (10 oz) baby spinach (to add later. but don't. don't waste your spinach. you shouldn't make this soup.)

The Directions.

Use a 5 quart or so crockpot. The best part of this whole thing was chopping the fennel. It makes your kitchen smell like a licorice factory, and provides great adult entertainment while the kids search for candy.

Combine everything into the crockpot except for the spinach. Cook on low for 8 hours, high for 6, then add the whole bag of spinach. It will wilt. It will look yummy. But there isn't any flavor.

I'm kind of annoyed at myself because I KNOW this! I know (just from this year. Before this year I was clueless) that if you put a bunch of bland stuff together the result will be bland and tasteless. But I did it anyway. I wanted this to work. I thought the picture was pretty.

The Verdict.

We've been having ants in the house because of the rain. I left the crock out overnight with the lid off. The ants didn't come.

This soup repels ants.

Senin, 29 Desember 2008

CrockPot Borscht Recipe


Day 364.

Good morning! I made borscht yesterday. I found a recipe in the January/February 2008 edition of Cooking Light, and changed it up a bit to work in the crockpot, and I am happy with the results. Since I've never had any other borscht, I don't really have anything to compare it to, but it was mild and tasty. I'd think of it more as a starter than a full meal. Wikipedia says that sometimes people add meat. Adam would have liked that----he dug around a bit trying to find some. Cooking Light didn't tell me I could have added meat...

The Ingredients.

--8 beets, peeled and sliced (wear old clothes! beets stain!)
--1 yellow onion, chopped
--1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
--1 1/2 cups chopped celery
--1/2 cup chopped carrot
--1 cup chopped parsnip
--1 potato, peeled and chopped
--2 1/2 cups shredded red cabbage
--3 cloves garlic, minced
--1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
--2 T apple cider vinegar
--1/2 cup beer (Redbridge is gluten free)
--5 cups water
--2 tsp sugar
--1 tsp kosher salt
--1/4 tsp black pepper
--1 T dill
--sour cream (at least 2 T per family member)

The Directions.

Use a 6 quart or larger crockpot. Coarsely chop vegetables and add to crockpot. You're going to blend the soup, so don't worry too much about how the veggies look.

After everything is chopped and thrown in, add the spices, vinegar, beer, and water.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-6. You want the vegetables fully smooshy so you can blend them easily.

Carefully (and wearing OLD clothes cuz of the beets-staining-thing) use an immersible blender to soupify. Ladle into bowls and top with a generous dollop of sour cream.

The Verdict.

Borscht is good. It's got to be incredibly healthy due to all of the vegetables in there---Cooking Light says it serves 8 with 164 calories a bowl.

It is red. Very, very red. It looked like raspberry jam to me---and that's what I thought of when I while I was eating it (it doesn't taste like raspberry jam. It tastes like vegetable soup made with beets). The kids were asleep by the time the soup was done and didn't taste any. I don't know if I'm going to be able to talk them into it. They're still kind of crabby from getting over colds.

The guinea pigs were thrilled to eat all of the beet stems.

Minggu, 28 Desember 2008

CrockPot Baked Beans with Apples and JalapeƱo



Day 363.





mmmm. beans.

I really like baked beans, and am excited to have a few cups of these left in the refrigerator. I'm going to have some more with my pancakes this morning.



Again. I'm eating pancakes again.



We've had pancakes every. single. day. since school let out, and it doesn't look like that will be stopping. I'm glad I bought the big bags of Pamela's.



this has nothing to do with beans.



or the crockpot.



sorry.



The Ingredients.

--1 lb bacon, divided (I used turkey)

--2 cans white kidney beans, drained and rinsed

--1/2 yellow onion, diced

--2 granny smith apples, cored and diced (no need to peel)

--1 or 2 canned jalapeƱos, diced

--3 cloves garlic, minced

--1 tsp dry mustard

--1/2 tsp kosher salt

--1/4 cup ketchup

--1/3 cup apple juice

--2 T molasses

--1 T brown sugar (I did not add this, see verdict below)







The Directions.



Use a 3-4 quart crockpot. Put 2 pieces of bacon into the bottom of your crockpot. Layer in the

beans, jalapeƱo, onion, and apples. Sprinkle dry spices on the beans. Add the ketchup, molasses, and apple juice. Stir gingerly to combine.

Add 2 more pieces of bacon to the top of the beans. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours, or on low for 6-8. This is finished when the onions and apples are translucent and the flavors have fully melded.



Cook the remaining slices of bacon on the stove top and crumble over the top.



The Verdict.



I really liked these beans, but I missed the sweetness of traditional baked beans. Next time I will add a tablespoon of brown sugar with the dry spices. I needed to add some more chopped jalapeƱo to my bowl, but everyone else ate it plain. It wasn't spicy (to me) and the kids were okay with it. They didn't eat very much, and filled up on cornbread.







Sabtu, 27 Desember 2008

Little Dipper Cranberry Orange Dip


Day 362.

Raise your hand if you got a Little Dipper for the Holidays.

The Little Dipper is so much fun----here are all of the dips and things I've made this year: Little Dipper recipes. Except the chicken and brown rice casserole. I have no idea how that showed up in there. Weird.

Jen T. sent me this recipe, and the kids and I had it for lunch the other day. When it's cooked, it looks like a big pile of fluffy snow.

The Ingredients.

--8 oz cream cheese
--2/3 cup shredded swiss cheese
--2 T apple juice
--1/2 tsp orange zest
--1/2 cup sweetened dried cranberries

The Directions.

Plug in your Little Dipper to get it started warming up. Shove the block of cream cheese down into it. You may need to squish it in with a spoon. I promise it will fit. Shred the swiss, and add it. Grate the orange and add the zest. Add the apple juice. Cover and let it cook for 45 minutes to an hour. When the cream and swiss cheese have fully melted, stir in the dried cranberries.

Serve with your favorite crackers or apple slices. We're really liking the new nut and rice crackers Blue Diamond puts out.

The Verdict.

Delicious. The original recipe called for 1 tsp of orange zest, but we're not big fans of orange zest, so I only added 1/2 tsp. It was still plenty zesty for us, and I probably could have omitted it all together for us. But then I would have needed to change the name.

The swiss and cream cheese melted together beautifully and were a delicious combination.

Thank you, Jen!

Jumat, 26 Desember 2008

Hot Buttered Rum in the CrockPot


Day 361.

Good morning! We are recovering nicely from yesterday's festivities. The kids are still sleeping, Adam's making pancakes, and I'm pretending that it doesn't look like Toys R Us vomited in the living room.

My brother-in-law made/talked-me-into-making Hot Buttered Rum yesterday. I'd never had it before, but when it was brought up, I was happy to have a bookmarked recipe from Karen in Montana. So we went to Safeway on Christmas to buy rum. Which was weird and adventurous all at the same time.

Thank you, Karen! Your buttered rum is amazing.

The Ingredients.
serves 5.

--4 cups warm water
--1 cup dark brown sugar
--1/4 cup butter
--1 pinch salt (even if your butter is salted, go ahead and add it)
--2 sticks cinnamon
--3 whole cloves
--1/4 tsp nutmeg

to add later:
--shot or 2 of rum
--splash of egg nog (Karen likes the pumpkin egg nog, but we couldn't find it)

The Directions.

Use a 2-4 quart crockpot. Add water, brown sugar, butter, salt, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and nutmeg to the crockpot. Cover and cook on high for 1-2 hours, or until the butter has melted and the mixture is quite hot. Ladle into a mug with a shot or 2 of rum, and add a splash of egg nog.

Garnish with a sprinkle of nutmeg and cinnamon if you'd like.

The Verdict.

Delicious. My mother-in-law even liked this, and she doesn't drink. The one thing to keep in mind is that if your egg nog is right from the fridge, it will make the butter harden in the mug if you add too much. It might be best to take a bit out of the fridge and let it get to room temperature while the butter and sugar cook in the crock. My sister-in-law is pregnant, and she enjoyed plain egg nog with the butter and brown sugar. The kids were already so hopped up on chocolate I didn't offer them a virgin one to try.

Kamis, 25 Desember 2008

Komputer Bervirus/Spyware ?


Meskipun masih susana Natal namun saya tidak tega membiarkan sobat kita yang sangat membutuhkan bantuan untuk menyelesaikan permasalahan dengan komputernya. Apalah artinya Natal buat saya apabila saya tidak bisa membantu sesama saya yang sedang membutuhkan bantuan, walaupun bantuan yang saya berikan belum tentu memuaskan bagi yang memerlukan bantuan tapi saya akan mencoba membantu sesuai dengan

CrockPot Lobster Bisque


Day 360.

Merry Christmas! If you are finding your way to the computer today, I figure you should get something good.

So you're getting lobster.

in the crockpot.

Life is so very good.

The Ingredients.
3 cups chicken broth
8 oz clam juice
14.5 oz stewed tomatoes (and juice)

8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 onion, diced

1 large leek, diced (just the white part!)

1 T dried parsley

2 tsp Old Bay seasoning mix

1 tsp dill
1 cup heavy cream (to add later)

2 lobster tails (to add later)

lemon slices as garnish, and to squeeze in at the end


The Directions.


Use a 5 quart or larger crockpot, and combine the broth, clam juice, tomatoes, onion, mushrooms, leek, parsley, Old Bay, dill, and parsley. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, high for 4-5, or until onions are translucent and flavors have melded.

Use an immersible blender to blend into a chowdery broth. Add lobster tails. Cover and cook on high for 30-45 minutes, or until lobster tails have turned pink and the meat is fork tender. Remove lobster tails from crockpot. Stir in heavy cream.

Ladle into dishes, and serve with lemon slices and lobster meat. You can take the meat out of the tail, and mix it in the soup, or leave it intact and pick at it at the table.


The Verdict.


We liked this an awful lot. I'd say it makes enough to feed 4 adults, especially if you distribute the meat from the lobster tails into the soup. We had a lot of fun eating this, and felt quite fancy. My kids both liked the lobster, and thought the soup part was "yummy." But they also thought sucking on the lemon slices was the best part of their dinner.

Rabu, 24 Desember 2008

CrockPot Gingerbread Latte Recipe


Day 359.

Santa doesn't want milk this year with his cookies. He'd like a gingerbread latte.

I think this might be my favorite coffee drink I've made. It really hit the spot yesterday around 3pm when I really, really wanted to climb into bed for a nap, but didn't have the time. After 4 or 5 sugar cookies and a latte, I was wide awake until 1am. With any luck, you too can have the same experience.

The Ingredients.

--4 cups milk (cow's, almond, soy, rice, hemp, etc. is just fine.)
--1/2 cup white sugar (I like Baker's sugar because it dissolves nicely)
--2 teaspoons ground ginger
--2 teaspoons vanilla extract
--1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
--1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
--1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
--cinnamon stick, whipped cream for garnish (optional)

--1/2 cup strong black coffee, or a freshly-brewed shot of espresso

The Directions.

This could serve 4, especially if you are adding the milk on top of coffee. Otherwise it serves 2 with a bit of milk left for kid cups.

I used a 4 quart crockpot, you could get away with going as small as a 1.5 to 2 quart.

Put the milk into your crockpot, and whisk in the dried spices. Don't add the coffee.

Cover and cook on low for 3 hours, or high for 1-2. The milk should be quite hot, but if your crockpot tends to get hot enough to boil, keep an eye on it. Don't let the milk boil.

Pour over hot coffee or espresso.

Garnish with whipped cream, a sprinkle of nutmeg, and a cinnamon stick.

The Verdict.

These are wonderful. Very, very tasty. The kids each had a cup of the warm milk mixture with whipped cream and were delighted. Adam didn't get to try any, but I did save my mug for him to smell.

I'm thoughtful that way.

gingerbread not your thing?
peppermint mocha/hot chocolate
pumpkin spice latte
chai tea latte
mulled wine
wassail
holiday (non-alcoholic) punch

Selasa, 23 Desember 2008

CrockPot Mole Recipe


Day 358.

Mole is pronounced Mol-AY. That did not stop the "holy moly" jokes.


You can use any meat you'd like: chicken, beef, or pork.
I followed this recipe and Jim has even tried tofu.

The Ingredients.
adapted from Jim, who adapted from Sunset Crockery Cookbook 2 pounds meat (I used frozen tri-tip)
1/4 cup raw sesame seeds
(I used sunflower seeds)
1/2 cup raw slivered almonds

1 dry California chili pod

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup raisins

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon anise seeds

1 cinnamon stick

1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes (and juice)

1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste

1/4 cup tequilla (or white wine, or apple juice)

1-2 ounce unsweetened chocolate (I used 2 and liked it, but some commenters found it too bitter)
1 cup water

salt to taste


The Directions.


Use a 5-6 quart crockpot. In a small pan, brown the raw sesame seeds and almonds on the stove. You could also toast them in the toaster oven (we need one of those). Set aside to cool.

Put the meat your going to use into the crockpot. Cover with everything else. I threw the entire dry chili pod into the pot; I didn't soak it in water first. I also just threw in the 2 squares of baking chocolate (after unwrapping!)--no need to melt it first.

Add the toasted nuts and seeds, and cover up.
Cook on low for about 8 hours. Shred meat with forks, and serve over rice and with corn tortillas. Salt to taste.

The meat I had was half-frozen, and it took 6 hours on low, then I cut the meat up and added it back in for another 2 hours on high. It was fully shredded by then.


The Verdict.


This is such a satisfying meal. The kids weren't interested in trying the "chocolate meat" and mostly ate corn tortillas and butter. I will make this again. Soon. I need to serve this to company---the flavor is so rich and full-bodied---you get a bit of a crunch from a nut here, and a sweet burst from a raisin there.


It's incredible.


This is one of the dishes that the slow cooker was invented for ~~ the meat really needs to stew slowly and for a very very long time to soak up all of the flavors, and to allow the spices to break down and mingle. There are a lot of ingredients; I know. Turn on some good music, throw the kids outside or in front of a movie, and just go down the list. I promise you'll really like the end result!

Senin, 22 Desember 2008

CrockPot Spinach and Artichoke Dip


Day 357.

It's the first day of Winter Vacation, and the girls and I are sick. Which means this is a very. normal. year. for us.

We'll be fine. We've got a bunch of books and videos from the library, the good tissue with the built-in Vicks, and 4 quarts of spinach artichoke dip.

This recipe comes from Joey in Minnesota who has a nineteen-month-old and is pregnant. She needs a juggling book for Christmas.

The Ingredients.

1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 (9-ounce) bag baby spinach, chopped
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 T jalapeno slices, chopped

The Directions.

I used a 4-quart crockpot. Drain and chop artichoke hearts, and add to the crockpot. Scrunch the spinach and chop it the best you can---mostly try to get the long stems off if you can. Add to the crockpot. Add mayo, sour cream, and chopped jalapenos. Top with 1/2 cup each shredded mozzarella and Parmesan.

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours, or high for 1. Stir. The spinach should begin to welt. If it hasn't, cook some more. When the spinach is totally wilted, take the lid off and add the other 1/2 cup of each cheese, and let it melt while the lid remains off. The spinach will have created some liquid that doesn't really need to be in there.

Serve with your favorite chips, sliced veggies, or bread cubes.

The Verdict.

I liked this a lot. I couldn't taste the jalapenos at all and whined that it "wasn't working" (I wanted my sinuses to drain. lovely image, sorry. but that's what I was going for) but Adam and the kids could taste them and thought it was plenty spicy. I think though, I'd add many more jalapeno slices next time and maybe switch out the mayo for a half-block of cream cheese.

Minggu, 21 Desember 2008

Belajar Microsoft Office Word Bagian 1


Pengenalan Microsoft Office Word 2003


Microsoft Office Word adalah salah satu dari sekian banyak program pengolah kata yang di keluarkan oleh perusahaan software raksasa Microsoft dalam bentuk paket Microsoft Office yang terdiri dari beberapa program aplikasi.

Yang kita pelajari bersama kali ini adalah Microsoft Office Word.

Seperti biasanya kita harus mengenal terlebih dahulu antar muka (

CrockPot Peanut Clusters



Day 356.

11 days to go until 2009. I'm going to cry.

Today is the first day of Hanukkah, and there are only a few days left until Christmas. If you're entertaining for the holidays, or need any last-minute hostess gifts, these peanut clusters rock. And they make A LOT. You could easily feed the entire neighborhood on one batch, or make yourself very, very sick.

I, um, have eaten too many. Much too many. It's Susan and Amie's fault. I had to change Susan's original recipe because I live in one of the few places in the world without a Walmart, and couldn't find Chocolate Bark. Nor did any of our grocery stores know what chocolate bark is/was. So I improvised, and am quite pleased with the results. My waistband, not so much...

The Ingredients.

3 (16-ounce) jars lightly salted roasted peanuts (lightly salted is important!)
2 (4-ounce) boxes German Baker's Chocolate
1 (8-ounce) box Unsweetened Baker's Chocolate (there are 2 in the picture. that was wrong.)
1 (24-ounce) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla (not pictured because I didn't know I wanted/needed it until after the photo)


The Directions.

Use a large crockpot. This makes about 150 peanut clusters. Spray the inside of your crock with cooking spray, and place the unwrapped baking chocolate, and bars of German chocolate in the bottom. Add all the peanuts. Pour in the chocolate chips, and add vanilla. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours, or high for about 1.5. While the chocolate is melting, lay out a bunch of parchment paper on your counter top or kitchen table. When time has elapsed, stir well, and remove from heat. Use a small ice-cream scoop to plop out bite-sized piles onto the parchment paper.

Let cool before eating---this takes a long time---hours. It'd be best to leave them overnight so you don't pick at them. Unless you have much more will power than I do, then I suppose it would be okay. But I sort of hate you.

Package up and give away as soon as possible.

The Verdict.

These are addictive. The chocolate flavor is quite rich, and tastes dark. If you aren't a fan of dark chocolate, use milk chocolate chips. The salt flavor from the nuts is subtle, but is there, and it makes your tongue itch for more.

and more.

Thank you again to Susan and Amie! Make sure to check out Amie's play-by-play peanut-cluster making video.


I was thinking about nut-allergies during the night. I think you should turn these into pretzel clusters. Definitely.

Sabtu, 20 Desember 2008

CrockPot Horseradish Scalloped Potatoes


Day 355.

This has cream in it. mmm. It's okay, though. You've got 12 days until your diet begins. These potatoes pair wonderfully with roast beef.

and pancakes and coffee.

The Ingredients.

3 pound red potatoes, washed and sliced (no need to peel, yay!)
2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons prepared horseradish (not the cream kind, the regular; I went with extra hot)
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, optional

The Directions.

I used a 4 quart crockpot. Scrub your potatoes well and cut into 1/4-inch slices. Layer into a crockpot you've sprayed with cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, combine the heavy cream, horseradish, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Pour over the top of the potatoes. Stir.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, high for 4 hours, or until potatoes are fork tender. I cooked ours on high for 2 hours, then low for another 4. Garnish with shredded Parmesan.

The Verdict.

Delicious. The kids each had two bowls. The horseradish provides a bit of a fun flavor that is not spicy as much as it is different and interesting. The kids didn't think it was spicy, just tasty. These are heavy---I'd say that this could serve 6 grownups as a side dish, yet Adam and I ate them as a main course.

we're going for a run today.

Jumat, 19 Desember 2008

Benarkah Tanpa Kerja dapat Uang di Internet ?


Untuk menjawab pertanyaan tersebut coba bacalah dengan teliti tips dari Belajar Ilmu Komputer agar dapat digunakan sebagai pijakan untuk mengambil keputusan untuk mencari uang di internet atau tidak, semuanya kembali kepada anda sendiri yang memutuskan, saya hanya mencoba menyampaikan apa yang pernah saya alami selama menelusuri internet untuk mencari rupiah maupun dolar (meskipun sampai

CrockPot Roast Beef Recipe


Day 354.

I can't say Roast Beef without wanting to say "roast beast"----and then my mind wanders to Maggie and the Ferocious Beast and that's just wrong. I like that beast.

We had roast beef for dinner last night, and it was good. I cooked it for 4 hours on high, and there was still a touch of pink in the middle, but you can cook it for a shorter amount of time if you prefer pinker meat. Make sure your meat is thawed, and use a meat thermometer.

The Ingredients.

5 lbs bone-in rib eye (this is the max that will fit in a 6.5 qt crockpot)
1 large yellow onion, sliced in rings
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 T cornstarch
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup beef stock/broth


The Directions.

Slice the onion, and spread around the bottom of your crockpot. Trim excess fat off of meat. Make little slits in the meat with a serrated knife, and insert a garlic clove into each one. Try to space them out equally, if you can.

Add dry ingredients to a plastic zipper bag, and shake and bake the meat. Put it in the crockpot on top of the onion slices. Add Worcestershire sauce and broth. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours, on low for 6-8, or until meat has reached desired temperature with a meat thermometer.

Let the meat stand for 15 minutes before slicing. If you'd like, you can use the juice at the bottom of the crockpot to make a gravy with some more cornstarch. Elise has a tutorial on Simply Recipes---do not put your crockpot on the stove. Pour the drippings into a pot.

The Verdict.

This was great; the meat was tender and had a nice, mild garlicy flavor. You can use a less-expensive cut of meat, but you'll need to cook it longer to get it tender, and you won't be able to slice as nicely. There is nothing wrong with that at all----just a heads up. My kids ate their meat in a cardboard box. Just like Hamilton.



If you are planning a Holiday meal---here is a list that might be of help.

Kamis, 18 Desember 2008

Belajar Microsoft Office Excel Bagian 10


Pada latihan kita sebelumnya dalam memperlajari Microsoft Office Excel, sudah kit abuatkan tabel-tabel dan untuk kali ini Belajar Ilmu Komputer memberikan materi bagaimana membuat sebuah grafik dengan data yang di ambil dari tabel.



Sebagai contoh dalam praktek kita kali ini coba buatkan sebuah tabel seperti terlihat pada gambar di bawah ini.


Tabel di atas menerangkan perkembangan jumlah

How to Make Tamales in the CrockPot


Day 353.

I don't think I've been this excited to share a post since the crockpot falafels.
I was pretty sure when I began this project that tamales would work in the crock, but wanted to wait until closer to the holidays so I could tie them together with one of my favorite children's books, Too Many Tamales, by Gary Soto. They did work, and I brought them to my daughter's class yesterday to share. So these have been kid-tested not only by my own two, but by 18 second-graders.

They liked them.

The Ingredients.
adapted from the master recipe from All Recipes

Filling (quite mild, since I was feeding children):

1 (3.5-pound) store-bought rotisserie chicken
1 tsp cumin
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chilies, mild
1 (15-ounce) can corn, drained
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, optional

Tamale Dough:

4 cups masa harina
2 1/2 cups beef broth
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1 1/3 cup lard or vegetable shortening (I used crisco)
1 (6-ounce) package dried corn husks (I needed to go to a Mexican grocer)

The Directions.

There are a few parts here. I "cheated" and used a fully-cooked chicken as the meat in my tamale filling. If you'd like, you can cook a hunk of beef or pork overnight with spices and chili pods in your crockpot. The meat should shred easily with forks before it is ready to go inside the tamales.

If you're going to use the rotisserie chicken, combine the meat with the onion, garlic, can of green chilies, cumin, salt, and drained corn in a 4 quart (or so) crockpot and cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 6. The onions need to be translucent before going into the tamales. If you don't have time for this step, skip the garlic and onion, and combine the chicken with the chiles, cumin, salt, and drained corn in a mixing bowl. Set aside.

Soften the corn husks by soaking them in very hot water until they are quite pliable.

To make the masa, combine all dough ingredients in a large mixing bowl, and beat on medium-to-high speed until everything is mixed well and the dough is spongy. Check the dough by dropping a little ball of it into a glass of water. It should float. If it doesn't float, this source says to continue to beat the dough.

Take a bit larger than a golf-ball size piece of masa dough, and spread it into a wet corn husk. The dough should be about 1/4 inch thick--you do not want to see the corn husk through the dough. Add a bit of filling, and some cheese. Fold the corn husk over to join the edges of the masa. If you need to add more dough, do so---no filling should peek through. Fold all corn husk edges into the center and place into the bottom of an empty crockpot, seam side down (I used a 6.5 quart, and fit 19 inside).

Repeat. Many, many, many times. It took me about 2 hours to make all of the tamales. If you find that your corn husks are unraveling, you can add another the other way to secure it, and tear off a long piece to tie around. I had to do this a few times. I also needed to add more hot water to the soaking husks to keep them pliable. If you need to step away from the tamale-making-process for a bit, put the lid on your crockpot to keep moisture inside.

When the crockpot is full, put the lid on and cook on high for 4-6 hours, or until a tester tamale looks and tastes done. The tamales on the edges will cook a bit faster. Once your tester looks good (I used the same one, and kept re-wrapping it and adding it back when it wasn't ready), unplug the crockpot and keep the lid off. Don't unwrap any others until they've set for about 15 minutes. My tamales were cooked at 6 hours, but I began checking every 45 minutes at 4 hours.

The Verdict.

I was thrilled that these worked so well! They are definitely labor-intensive, but pack such an impressive presentation. Now that I know how to do them, I'll make them again----but not for a while.

Rabu, 17 Desember 2008

Holiday Punch CrockPot Recipe (non-alcoholic)

Day 352.

This is the easiest hot drink I've ever made, and the kids liked it the most. Tristen, who is going through finals right now (good luck, Tristen!), found it in the Taste of Home magazine.

The Ingredients.

4 cups cranberry juice
4 cups pineapple juice
1/3 cup hot tamales or red hots candy (
hot tamales are on the GF candy list)
1 cinnamon stick

that's it!

The Directions.


This serves 6. Combine juices in your crockpot, and add hot tamales or red hots. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, or on low for 4-5. Stir. The candy will pretty much dissolve, leaving just a hint of cinnamony-flavor.

Ladle into mugs, garnishing with an extra cinnamon stick if desired.


The Verdict.


My kids loved this. They each drank 2 mug-fulls after school, and another after dinner. I really liked it a lot, too, and had 2 mug-fulls while watching Oprah. Adam only got a taste; he should have come home earlier!

more fun beverages:

wassail
peppermint hot chocolate/peppermint mocha
pumpkin spice lattes
mulled wine
chai tea lattes
gingerbread latte