DISHWASHER Soap Gel

Ingredients:

16 cups of water

1 1/2 cups WASHING Soda (this is NOT baking soda)

1 cup Borax

1/2 cup Dr. Brenner's Pure Liquid Castile Soap (fragrance of your choice)

¼ cup TSP  (A powdered cleaner found in the paint department, it is generally used to clean wood before painting.)

Directions:

1) Bring the water to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in washing soda, borax, TSP and liquid castile soap until dissolved.

2) Allow to cool.

3) Pour cooled dishwasher soap into containers of your choice. It will "gel" up over next 24 - 48 hours. Be sure to leave headspace in your containers to allow shaking before using.

To use:

Give dishwasher soap a good shake to make sure everything is mixed well and to make it easy to pour out.

Use 1 rounded tablespoon in the closed soap dispenser. This batch will last a long time! –There are 256 tablespoons in a gallon!

**Both Washing Soda and Borax are available in the laundry aisle at the grocery store. I couldn’t find Dr. Brenner's Pure Liquid Castile Soap locally, so ordered from Amazon.  It comes in many fragrance choices.

Tomato Basil Soup

I  I found this delicious recipe on the “How Does She” blog.  Everyone at our house thinks it is divine!

2 (28 oz) cans of whole tomatoes (reserve juice)
 OR use diced

2 TB brown sugar


4 TB butter


1 small onion chopped


2 TB tomato paste


2-3 TB flour


2 (15 oz) cans or one carton of chicken stock/broth


2 fresh red peppers roasted*


1 cup prepared pesto


1 1/2 cups half and half (low fat or fat free substitutes fine)

*Note: to roast peppers, cut them in half, clean out the seeds, and place them skin side up on a broiler pan. Broil them for about 20-25 minutes or until you notice the majority of the skin turning black. Don’t be alarmed, they’re not burned! Remove from oven and let cool in a bowl lined with a damp dishcloth and the dishcloth folded over the peppers. When cool enough to handle, peel off the black skins, and cut in large chunks. DO NOT skip the red peppers, they’re the secret ingredient!

Directions:
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Line baking sheet with foil. Squeeze the seeds out of tomatoes and discard.  Arrange the tomatoes on a baking sheet and sprinkle them with brown sugar. Bake until liquid is evaporated and tomatoes caramelize (about 30 min).

Heat butter, onion, and tomato paste in large pot. Saute until onions soften.   Add flour and cook for 1 minute.  Gradually add chicken stock and reserved tomato juice.  Bring to a boil. Add tomatoes and peppers and puree until smooth with an immersion blender, or remove from pot in small batches and puree in a food processor or blender. Return to pot, simmer 15 minutes. Five minutes before serving, add pesto and half and half.

Stabilized Whipped Cream

This version of whipped cream lasts for several days without losing its shape or getting soupy.  I really like the stiffer texture on (and in) desserts.

Stabilized Whipped Cream

2 tsp unflavored gelatin


8 tsp cold water


2 c heavy whipping cream (very cold)


1/2 c confectioners' sugar


1 tsp clear vanilla extract

Combine gelatin and cold water in small saucepan. Let stand until thick. Place over low heat, stirring constantly just until gelatin dissolves.


Remove from heat and cool slightly. Whip cream, sugar and vanilla until slightly thickened. While beating slowly, gradually add gelatin to whipped cream mixture. Whip at high speed until stiff. Yield: 4 cups

Cakes iced with whipped cream must be kept refrigerated. 
(This is the commercial recipe used by bakeries).

Drunken Noodles

This is a Thai dish that derives it's name from the hot and spicy sauce that makes one so very thirsty while eating this dish.  This version does not drive one to drink, but a tall glass of water is a good addition to this meal. :)

1 16 oz. pkg fettucine noodles

(rice noodles)

2 cups finely cubed chicken breast

(I have the butcher cut it up for me, a little smaller than half inch cubes.)

2 T. vegetable or olive oil

1 well rounded T. minced garlic

1 Anaheim pepper seeded and chopped

½  red bell pepper diced

1 cup matchstick carrots

1 cup bean sprouts

1 cup mushroom slices

4 T  hoisin sauce

3 T fish sauce

2 T low sodium soy sauce

1 T chili garlic sauce

4 t. sugar

¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves

fresh squeezed juice of one lime

Cook noodle according to package directions.  Drain when cooked.

While pasta boils, sauté chicken in oil over high heat until chicken is very nearly done and beginning to brown. Remove from pan.

Add garlic and begin to sauté. After 30 seconds add remaining vegetables.

Stir fry to desired doneness.

In the meanwhile, mix/stir hoisin sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, and sugar in a small bowl.

When vegetables are nearly done add chicken back in and pour sauce over all. Continue to stir for about one or two minutes till sauce is hot and sugar is dissolved.

Pour chicken and vegetables in sauce over the cooked noodles.

Top with fresh basil and lime juice.

Toss and serve.

About 4-6 servings

Pineapple-Citrus Salsa

1 8oz can pineapple tidbits            2 green onions, diced

1 T. brown sugar                     1 T. lemon juice

1 11oz can mandarin oranges        1 jalapeno pepper, diced

2 T. chopped fresh cilantro           salt and pepper to taste

1 T. pineapple juice (reserved from above)

Drain pineapple and mandarin oranges. Combine with remaining ingredients. Serve with chips, fish, or meat.

Deb's Mac & Cheese

My friend Deb is a FABULOUS cook.  This easy Mac & Cheese is absolutely wonderful and EASY!

1 package (1lb) macaroni, cooked
1 pound (or more) shredded cheese
1 can evaporated milk
salt & pepper to taste

Put 1/2 of cooked macaroni in a casserole dish.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and shredded cheese to your liking. Repeat one more time. Pour 1 can of evaporated milk over all. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes.
Let stand for about 10 minutes and serve.

*If you use mixed cheeses use and additional 1/2 can of milk.

Blueberry Scones

Ingredients

2 cups flour

¼ cup brown sugar

1 Tablespoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

Zest of ½ lemon

½ cup cold butter chopped into small cubes

1 egg, lightly beaten

½ cup milk

½ cup blueberries fresh or frozen

Topping

Zest of ½ lemon

Fresh Lemon Juice – just a little

Sugar to make a paste/crumbly topping

Recipe

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C and mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest and salt.

2. Rub the butter in with your fingertips until you have a mixture of small and medium-sized balls of butter. Having medium-sized balls of butter in your dough is what will make the scones flaky – very important!

3. Pour the milk, egg and blueberries into the bowl and mix until just combined, we don’t want to destroy the balls of butter.

4. Separate your dough into 8 pieces and form each piece into a ball. Place each ball onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper and slightly flatten with the palm of your hand. Make sure your scones are well spaced  – they will bake outwards.

5. For the sugar topping, rub together the lemon zest, juice and sugar. Brush a little milk over the tops of the scones then pat on the sugar topping. Press it down with your fingers or the back of a spoon to make sure it sticks.

6. Bake for around 20 minutes or until the scones are golden brown. Leave to cool slightly on a wire rack and serve warm.

**  I can’t stand to put my hands in flour.  I reminds me of the way I feel when I hear scratching on a chalkboard.  YIKES!!  I have found that a pair of disposable kitchen gloves allows me to “rub” the flour and butter the way it needs to happen for perfect scones.  A machine just doesn’t do the trick.