Barn Insulation, Anyone?

Les and I were discussing candy this morning.  M&Ms has a lot more flavors than they use to.  I picked up a bag of coffee flavored the other day.  They also come in White Chocolate Candy Corn flavor.  Talk of candy corn led to other Halloween candy, which led us to Circus Peanuts.

Mom's mom, Grandma Luella, always had Circus peanuts on hand in the Fall.  I have no idea why.  I remember eating them just because I was a kid and they were the only candy she had in the house! According to Spangler Candy, "Spangler Circus Peanuts have been a long-time favorite fat-free candy. This banana-flavored, peanut-shaped marshmallow treat is free of major allergens." While Les and I were talking about them, I got curious so I went to Wikipedia:

The first circus peanuts are long rumored to have originated in Omaha, Nebraska as the brainchild of chemical engineer Richard Dye. After fashioning a foam, peanut-shaped insulation for use in preventing drafts in his livestock barn, Knapp was said to have been so pleased with the texture and shape of the insulation that he was inspired to recreate it as a confection in his kitchen using edible ingredients. The treat delighted his family and friends, and he was encouraged to distribute small bags of the candy “peanuts” each year when the circus passed through town.

Banana-flavored, peanut-shaped, marshmallow treat with barn insulation texture, anyone?

There's Something Vicious In Our Backyard

We had Santa Ana wind conditions for several nights last week.  The winds finally died and we were able to sleep with our windows open last night.  At about 4:30 this morning I started hearing some loud noises - water splashing, growling and high pitched squealing.  In my more than half asleep state I said to Les, "there's something vicious in our backyard."

I looked out our bedroom windows, but it was too dark to see.  My sleepy brain was trying to process it and I imagined a mountain lion with some innocent prey.  I decided to go downstairs to investigate further.  I'm not sure what I planned to do once I got there, but down I went...

I flipped a switch and the pool was flooded with light.  Much to my surprise, on the top step of our pool were about eight raccoons!  Not nearly as vicious as a mountain lion!

It was not a mama and babies, but a bunch of full grown raccoons.  They quickly fled the premises and I wandered back to my bed, with Les still chuckling about "something vicious in our backyard."

Friday Foodie

I tried another new recipe this week.  It was on the Pioneer Woman's website.  I've never made baked oatmeal before, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but this was really good!  The original recipe is here (with much better pictures!)

Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 1 can (15 Oz. Size) Pumpkin Puree
• 3 cups Old Fashioned Oats
• 3/4 cups Packed Light Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 3/4 teaspoons Fine Sea Salt
• 1-1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoons Ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon Cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon Allspice
• 1-1/4 cup Milk
• 2 Eggs
• 4 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Melted And Cooled
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• Greek Yogurt And Cinnamon Sugar, To Serve

 

Instructions:

At least 30 minutes before making the oatmeal (and up to the day before), line a mesh sieve with cheesecloth. Place pumpkin puree inside and let drain. Press the pumpkin occasionally with a spoon as it drains.  ** I did not do this step.  I'm pretty sure my baked oatmeal was a little softer than it would have been if I had. **

Grease an 11x7-inch pan. Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Stir oats, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices. Squeeze cheesecloth to remove excess pumpkin water and place 3/4 cup strained pumpkin in another bowl (I just added the full can.) Add milk, eggs, butter, and vanilla to the pumpkin and whisk until smooth.

Stir both mixtures together until combined. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 35 minutes or until oatmeal is firm and resembles a snack cake.

Cut into pieces and serve warm with a dollop of Greek yogurt and sprinkle of cinnamon-sugar.

Leftovers may be covered and rewarmed in the microwave. For one piece, 40 seconds at 80% power is sufficient. Try it cold or room temperature on day two as well!  

 

The original recipe said 8 servings - an eighth of the recipe seemed huge to me so I ended up cutting mine into 16 servings.   I was completely out of cinnamon, so the flavor for this wasn't very strong.  Les also suggested adding nuts next time - I think sliced almonds would add a nice crunch.  I'm pretty sure baked oatmeal is going to become a regular in our house this winter.  

Friday Foodie

We all know the saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade."  Well this week life gave me overripe bananas, so I made banana bread!  This was a recipe I had in an old recipe book.  It was labeled "Banana Nut Bread" but there were no nuts in the ingredients list.  Since my oven tends to run too hot, I decided to use my brownie pan and make miniature loaves (full sized loaves end up too gooey on the inside.)  These did not disappoint!  And I added some nuts...

Mini Chocolate Chip Banana Nut Loaves

1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
3 ripe bananas
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 cups flour
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

1.  Preheat oven to 350, grease brownie pan (a muffin pan will work, too)
2.  Cream together butter and eggs.  Add bananas.
3.  Stir in sugar, salt, baking soda, and flour.
4.  Add nuts and chocolate chips.
5.  Fill squares with approximately 1/2 cup of batter.
6.  Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown.  Makes 1 dozen mini loaves.

If you would rather make a full size loaf, you'll need to bake it for 45-55 minutes.

Twenty Years

I have been blogging for over ten years.  One of the greatest inspirations for this blog is Mom's Bible.  I have used it many, many times.  A fitting quote for today is:

Only those who are assured of an Eternal life can be happy here and now.
- Mom's Bible

It was 20 years ago today that Mom escaped the pain and sorrows of this world.  For more than eight years she battled cancer with grace, dignity, and humor.  She loved God and looked forward to the day she would meet Him face to face, but many times during her battle with cancer she would say, "I don't want to leave my family."  She loved us so much, we were what kept her fighting.

She was an excellent example of someone who wrote her hurts in the sand and engraved her blessings in stone...

Two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything,wrote in the sand:

"Today my best friend slapped me in the face."

They kept on walking until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one, who had been slapped, got stuck in the mire and started drowning, but the friend saved him. After the friend recovered from the near drowning, he wrote on a stone:

"Today my best friend saved my life."

The friend who had slapped and saved his best friend asked him, "After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you write on a stone, why?"

The other friend replied: "When someone hurts us, we should write it down in sand where winds of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone where no wind can ever erase it."

Learn to write your hurts in the sand, and to carve your benefits in stone.
~ Author Unknown

I can only imagine how much she would have enjoyed blogging.  Her "Friday Foodie" posts would have been 90% chocolate recipes.  She would have shared her "diet hymns" such as "Slimming Down, Down, Down." She would have had stories about the many children she babysat and taught through the years.  She would have shared her love for her family.  And I'm sure she would have shared the many quotes from her Bible that I have been privileged to share.

Twenty years later, I still believe the Final Score:

Mom - 1, Cancer - O

Friday Foodie

I bought some apple slices a few days ago and they are starting to turn brown.  Last night I decided they needed to get used up before it was too late.  I Googled "biscuit monkey bread with apples."  Have you ever made quick monkey bread with canned biscuits?  It's super easy and doesn't make a huge batch.  It's really good, but this recipe took it to a whole new level!

Apple Fritter Monkey Bread

Photo source

Ingredients

1 (12-oz.) can refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

6 tbsp. butter, melted

2 c. cinnamon sugar

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped

2 tbsp. brown sugar

2 tbsp. granulated sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 c. powdered sugar

3 tbsp. milk

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x5” loaf pan with cooking spray or butter.
On a cutting board, separate biscuits and cut each biscuit into quarters. Roll each piece into a ball. Dunk each ball in the melted butter than toss in cinnamon-sugar until evenly coated. Lay about half of the biscuit balls in an even layer, touching on both sides, in the bottom of the loaf pan.
Toss apples with brown sugar, granulated sugar and cinnamon. Scatter a very thin layer of apples on top of the biscuit balls. (You want the second layer of biscuits to touch the base layer.) Lay the second and final layer of biscuit balls over the apples, and top with remaining apples. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until the biscuits are a deep golden and the apple mixture is bubbling. Let cool for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, make glaze. Whisk together powdered sugar and milk until smooth.
Run a knife around the edges of the pan, and transfer the monkey bread onto a serving platter. Drizzle glaze on top of the loaf. Serve warm.

This was quick, easy and delicious!

 

October 3, 1958

Sixty years ago this young couple was married on a Friday evening in Visalia, California:

Ten years ago I wrote this:

They did not always agree, but they didn't fight in front of us kids. Any time two people marry, there will be disagreements, but how those disagreements are handled makes all the difference. I never heard my parents yell at each other. Dad once said, "Marriage is a lot of work" - and they kept working at it.

They did the best they could for all four of their children. We weren't wealthy, but we always had enough. I never went to bed hungry - even if Mom fixed something I didn't like, she would fix something else to make sure I ate something. I always had a roof over my head, clean clothes on my back, and shoes on my feet.

Mom stayed home with us kids so the majority of the discipline fell on her shoulders. Dad never tried to change whatever punishment was handed out.  "Go ask your mother," was a common reply when we were trying to get away with something - Dad definitely had us figured out! Whether they agreed or not, they supported each other in those decisions. None of us kids have spent time in jail, so I guess it worked!

They took time for each other. I remember Grandma Luella (Mom's mom) staying with us on more than one occasion when we were young, so Mom and Dad could go away for their anniversary.

Dad was completely in tune with Mom during her last months. I was in their home the night before she passed away. Mom was in bed in their bedroom. More times than I can remember, Dad would jump up, go down the hall, and back to their room. HE heard Mom calling him, while Kim and I didn't hear a thing. His care for her was amazing until her last breath.

If they were both still alive today, I have no doubt that they would have still been married.  I'm so thankful for these two and miss them so much!