Mom's Glazed Doughnuts

As Christmas time approaches, I look forward to making doughnuts and delivering them to neighbors and friends. This is a tradition that my mother started over 50 years ago. I decided to keep the tradition alive and have done so for the past 30 years of my married life. Thanks, Mom for your example of kindness.

Glazed Doughnuts
1/2 c shortening
6 1/2 c flour
3 tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp baking pwd
1 tsp salt
3 pkg yeast
1/4 cup warm water for each pkg yeast
3 eggs
2 c warm water
1/2 tsp lemon extract
5 tbls sugar
Mix well
Sift flour, salt, b.powder and cream of tartar.In warm water melt sugar and shortening. Proof yeast. Add shortening water to flour mixture, mix well. Add
eggs mix, add yeast and mix till smooth.Let rise for 45 mins or till double. Cut with doughnut cutter. Let rise another 45 mins or till double. Cook in hot grease. While still hot dip in hot glaze.
Glaze
1 box pwd sugar
1/2 c boiling water 1 tsp vanilla Mix well

Fabulous Pumpkin Waffles

I made these waffles this morning and we both loved them!!

1/4 c light brown sugar
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 1/4 Flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 to 2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
2 large eggs separated
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/4 cup pumpkin
1 c chopped pecans
4 Tbsp melted butter
Warm the waffle iron.
Combine brown sugar and cornstarch, whisk together. Add remaining dry ingredients and pecans.
Separate eggs: add pumpkin and milk to yolks. Whisk together, set aside.
Whip egg whites until stiff peaks.
Add milk mixture to dry ingredients mix well. Fold in egg whites gently.

Cook in waffle maker. These will not be real crusty, and take a little extra time to cook.
Serve with syrup and whip cream!!! Makes 6-7 round waffles.
Enjoy :)

Thank You!

I finally have a few minutes to make a post. Dress is done for Prom and Prom is over!! Birthday's have been celebrated!!! Alessandra has graduated and was in the top 5 percent of her class and graduated with honors!!! Thank you to my family for successfully surprising me with a "50th" Bday gathering. They did this against my wishes and they all thought they would be in big trouble. I have softened and decided not to kill them as promised!! Thank you to all of you that came and celebrated with us. It was nice to be able to see those of you that I don't see regularly. Now, on to girl's camp and getting ready to feed 200 people for a week. I'll be busy till then, not a lot of time to blog for a while.

Happy 18th Birthday, Alessandra Anne!!!!!!!!!

How do I start... Eighteen years ago I was very pregnant and ready to give birth. Give birth, I did to a sweet bundle of joy Alessandra. I am not going to write

anymore but just direct you to check out Steve's blog and read his tribute to her. It is absolutly the best,suffice it to say, she has been a joy to have in our home.

I feel greatful that the Lord sent her to our home. I can't compete with Steve's eloquence, but I will post pictures.....
Look out world, here she comes!!!!!!!!!!

28 Beautiful Years!!!! (Not bad out of 30!!!)

Well, who would have thought 30 years would have passed so quickly!!! I am sure that I am not old enough to have been married for this long. Steve & I are headed to San Diego to celebrate this momentous occasion. We certainly have had our fair share of ups and downs, but I can say that the good times out weigh all of them!!!!!!

Thank you, Steve, for 30 wonderful laugh filled years!

Look what we have created!!!

Garlic Fries

Today is opening day for the Mariners at home. I was going to serve spaghetti, but decided to make baseball yummies. What would that be but Garlic Fries!!! I have to say they were delish!

Garlic Fries
2 to 3 tbles minced garlic
2 tbles parsley
2 tbles oil
1 bag frozen french fries
Season salt
2 tbles kosher salt
1/2 tsp sage,thyme& pepper
dash nutmeg
mix together
Heat garlic & oil on med high heat for 2 mins. Drain oil from garlic and set both aside.
Place fries on baking sheet and pour oil over fries and mix, add season salt, toss the fries to coat well. Bake at 450 till golden. Mix garlic and parsley when fries are golden toss with mixture and serve hot. Grab your favorite team and watch the game!!!!!!!!

Happy Easter

I just wanted to wish all of you that find your way to my blog a very Happy Easter!!
I am grateful for the atonement and the blessing it is in my life and the hope that it offers!
Have a wonderful day!!
Love, Melodie

Hot Milk Bar

Hot milk bar is a favorite breakfast food at our house. It basically is a coffee cake. I made it for dinner tonight to go with our "Up Town Dinner" and it was fabulous. I used a new flour mixture for baked goods.

Cake flour mixture
3 cups brown rice
1 cup potato flour
1/2 tapioca starch
1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
Use in any baked good recipe.

Hot Milk Bar
1/2 cup milk
2 Tbsp butter
2 eggs Mix together
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour mixture or 1 cup reg flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder

Topping:
1/2 c brown sugar, 3 Tbsp soft butter,1 Tbsp milk

Heat milk and butter until butter melts. Beat eggs, then add sugar, vanilla and milk. Stir in dry ingredients and mix well. Bake in 8x8 pan at 375 for 25 mins. Spread topping over cake and broil till bubbly. Serve warm.

Salsa Chicken Soup

I made this soup for dinner tonight, it may be spring but it is still in the 40's :( I am a soup lover, but the main man in the house isn't fond of soup for dinner. But, wonders never cease, the man really enjoyed it!!! Sooo, here's the recipe. This is a quick and delicious meal served with salad of your choice.

Salsa Chicken Soup

1/2 pound of boneless chicken breast
2 cups chicken broth
1 3/4 cups water
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
3 garlic cloves minced
1 c frozen corn
1 c salsa
Shredded Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack cheese
Tortilla strips

In large saucepan, combine chicken, broth, & seasonings. Bring to boil , reduce, cover, simmer for 5 mins. Add corn and return to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until chicken is no longer pink and corn is tender about 5 mins. Add salsa and heat through. Top with cheese and Tortilla strips. To make strips just slice tortillas into strips and fry in oil till golden, drain on paper towel and season with garlic salt. Makes 6 cups. Serves 4

Progress for Alessandra

I thought I'd post and let you all know how Ali's feeling. She went to the optimologist and had repeat tests done, and there is a slight improvement in the optic nerve. The diamox seems to be helping, other than the occasional numbness that occurs. She may be better by the time she leaves for BYU in the fall.

Taco Soup

I thought it was time that a posted again. I made Taco Soup for dinner and thought I'd add it the list.

Taco Soup

1 lb of hamburger
3 cans of bean ( pinto, black, white and kind of seasoned beans)
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 can corn
1 can beef broth
1/2 chopped onions
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp cumin
2 - 3 tsp chile powder (or more if you want)
1 tsp salt
sour cream
grated cheese
tortilla chips

Brown the meat with the onions and garlic. Add the other ingreds expect the sour cream, cheese and chips. Simmer till desired thickness. Serves 6 Enjoy!!!

Got to go and get ready for Stake choir practice.

Salisbury Steak

2 lb Hamburger(or 1 lb hamburger & 1 lb gr. turkey)
1/4 c minced onions
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 clove minced garlic
4 tbles sherry or chicken broth
2 tbles butter
1/2 pd mushrooms, sliced
Slurry for thickening: 1 tble cornstarch, 1 tble sweet rice flour 1/2 c of milk & 3/4 c. beef broth.

Mix meat, onion, garlic, salt, pepper & 2 tbles sherry. Mix well then for into patties 3/4 in thick.
Brown patties in butter. Remove patties, add mushrooms and saute till tender, add the remaining sherry and slurry to thicken. This should be the consistancy of gravy. If it's to thick add some broth, to thin make a little more slurry to thicken. Return patties to the gravy and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve over mashed potatoes. Serves 5 to 6

Ali update

Today Ali had her wisdom teeth extracted. She is doing fine, but while she is sleeping I thought I'd take this time to post a recipe and update on her doctor's appt. They are treating her with Acetasolamide, which is a diuretic, to relief some pressure and help with the headaches. She seems to be doing better, but it makes her pee even more than she already does!!!!!!!!!!

Good News!!!!!!!!!!
We receive a call from the doctor today and we know that Ali does not have MS. We are relieved!! She shows a sensitivity to gluten, which doesn't suprise us. She does have a psudeo tumor, (fake), her body thinks that there is something growing. Now we go back to the opthomologist for treatment. Thank you for all of your thoughts, prayers and fasting. We have cerainly been blessed by the Lord. Ali is feeling ok, but is still tired and has the headaches. She has been very strong and has dealt with the possibilities remarkable well.

Green beans

I used to make these green beans for my dad hence the name....

Grandpa Edwards Green Beans

1 can green beans
2 slices of bacon chopped
1/4 c chopped onion
1 glove garlic minced
1/2 tsp salt

Add chopped bacon, onion and garlic to a saucepan, saute till some of the fat from the bacon started to come out. Drain have of the liquid from the beans, add to the mixture and cook the beans till liquid has almost evaporated. Serve and enjoy.

Cooking Advise

I have thought all day as to what to post. I decided to give some advice. To have your food taste delicious you need to use seasoning in cooking. If you use nothing more than salt and pepper, it will make a world of difference in how your meat and veggies taste. I usually season with a season salt, garlic, onion, tabasco. Give it a try and see how your taste buds react!! Good luck!!

Update on Ali

Since many of you know that Ali has been having some health issues, I decided to bring you up to speed.  The long and short of it is that we are still not sure what is going on.  She has had blood tests, an  MRI,  a spinal tap and hours of waiting in Doctor offices.  All this is being done to eliminate whether or not she has Multiple Sclerosis.  The good news is that her MRI showed that she doesn't have any lesions on her brain, this is a good thing!!!!!  Some blood work has come in that shows a vitamin deficiency, and possible... any guesses??? Well, if you guessed Celiac disease you would be right. We already know that she carries the antibody, but the disease might have been triggered when she had her appendix out in October. She has started for the next 3 wks to eat gluten free.  Which in our house really isn't to hard!  There are about 12 more test on her blood and the Spinal tap to come in.  She had the tap on Monday, and did quite well, without to much discomfort or a terrible headache, or it didn't add to the one she's had for about a month!!?!?  There are many of you that have been praying for her and we truly can feel your love and support.   We know that the Lord will guide us through this difficult period and his will, will be done.

Teriyaki Merinade

1/2 C Soy Sauce
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp ginger
2 tbles brown sugar
2 tbles lemon
2 tbles oil
1 tble chopped onion
Mix together and use with flank steak or chicken. Marinade the beef for a least 12 hours. Chicken at least 2 hours. This is a fam fave!!!!!!!!

Beef Stroganoff

1 lb of stew meat or london broil
1 onion chopped
2 ribs celery chopped
1/2 pd of mushrooms sliced
2 beef bouillon cubes
2 cloves chopped garlic
salt & pepper
1 tble oil
1 cup sour cream
Cut meat in chunks, salt and pepper the chunks. Brown chunks in pot with oil. Once the meat is browned add onion, celery, garlic mushrooms, bouillon and water to cover meat. Simmer for 2 hrs or till meat is tender. Thicken to desired thickness with a mixture of 1 tble sweet rice flour, 1 tble cornstarch and 1/4c milk . Add to mixture and cook till thickened. Add sour cream just be for serving. Serve over Rice or Noodle. Serves 4