If you are one in search of home remedies for what ails you, we have our resident Go-To Gal here at b5. She is actually more than just a “Gal”. She is a mother, teacher, artist, baker, writer….and much, much more.
Marye Audet has started writing for Simply Home Remedies. Take a look and see if she has the answers for what ails you.
Hope that all of you are having a great 4th of July. These are the types of Holidays that conjures up memories of childhood. Growing up we usually spent our 4th of July taking a road trip to my grandparents, eating out at my aunt’s and shaking around those little sparklers in the backyard.
Now we are looking at making some of our own family memories. Do you have any Blasts that put the spark in your 4th of July?
A lot of writers here at the LifeStyles Channel shared some of their memories and thoughts about the past. Read more from Gayla at Suppernanny Rules/Guerrilla Parenting.
If you are looking for some interesting reads, food ideas or activities for this 4th of July weekend, look no further than the Life-Styles Channel at b5 Media.
Baking Delights has a Blast from the Past with a link to a vintage 4th of July Menu as well as wondering what food items bring warm memories of your childhood 4th of July celebrations?
Read about America’s Top Patriotic Attractions at the All Holiday Cafe.
How about grilling Flank Steak for the 4th? Try Chipotle Marinade from Busy Family Meals.
Try Chocolate Bytes easy Red, White and Blue Chocolate Treat for your 4th of July party.
How about Favorite Coloring Pages Sites to keep your little ones busy from Inside Motherhood?
Look for Quick Barbecue Tips at Keeping the Castle.
For the scrapbooker, the Mad Cropper is holding a contest, Fireworks Lay-out Challenge.
Get your teens reading with 4th of July Books for Teens from One Book, Two Book.
Are you a Weary Parent? How about trying their Star Spangle Science Project: Film Canister Rockets.
Quilting and Patchwork has a few links for 4th of July Activities for the Youngsters in the Quilters Home.
Check-out these Healthy Snack for the Fourth of July from Robust Cooking.
She Knows Parties shares some 4th of July Decorations: Red, White and Blue Garland.
Let FREEdom Ring at Simply Thrifty with links to sites with free stuff.
At Tangled Thread she has links to Free Festive Fireworks Craft & Needlework Patterns.
image: www.amazon.com
I have been finding projects for my boys to do in the kitchen, so Nana bought us a Look’n'Cook recipe book. This is actually a book set-up for teachers of pre-school and Kindergarten, but it has some great, easy projects for the little ones in your house. There are a bunch of different recipes set-up for a variety of holidays and times of the year.
Tomorrow, the 4th of July, I am getting my two little chefs in the kitchen to make some Sweet Sparklers. This is easy, fun and sounds tasty:
Sweet Sparklers
from the Look ‘n’ Cook recipe book
Ingredients:
Refrigerated Cookie Dough
Vanilla Frosting
Red, White and Blue Candy Spinkles
Preparation:
Freeze the cookie dough for about 15 minutes, then cut it into half-inch slices. Roll out the slices to make “cookie sparklers” just make sure that they are not too thin. Bake using the directions on the sugar cookie package. Let them completely cool. Place sprinkles in a shallow bowl. Using a plastic knife for the little guys, spread frosting on one end, roll in the sprinkles and enjoy!
If you are suddenly deciding that you want to have people over to celebrate the 4th of July, or if you are having people over and have yet to figure out what your food plans will be Food and Wine has a lot of help. From fast desserts, to easy menus, quick-grilling recipes and easy party punches they have you covered.
Check-out their Quick Grilling Recipes, including a Scallion and Brie Stuffed Burger. They have Quick Desserts such as a reader favorite, Mini-Black Bottom Cheesecakes (recipe below). If you have some real time constraint try one of the 7 Superfast Desserts. If you want to make sure to keep the red, white and blue theme during your 4th of July celebration Food and Wine has you covered with Red, White and Blue Desserts.
Don’t forget your Party Punches, Cocktails for Grilling or Terrific Iced Teas….some are kicked-up a few notches or if you want to save the alcohol for your punch try the Black Cherry Iced Tea.
They also have some great ideas for Summer Sides and Wine Pairings for your cook-out and No-Fuss Grilling Recipes.
FAST
MAKE-AHEAD
STAFF FAVORITE
ACTIVE TIME: 20 MIN
TOTAL TIME: 45 MIN
MAKES 12 TARTSingredients
- Vegetable oil spray
- 24 plain chocolate wafer cookies, preferably Nabisco
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2/3 cup fromage blanc (6 ounces), at room temperature
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup seedless raspberry preserves, warmed
directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with foil baking cups and spray the cups with vegetable oil spray. In a food processor, crush the chocolate wafer cookies. Add the butter and process until fine crumbs form. Spoon the chocolate cookie crumbs into the prepared baking cups and press with the bottom of a glass to compact. Bake for 5 minutes, or until almost set. Leave the oven on.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar at medium speed until smooth. Beat in the fromage blanc, then add the eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth.
- Pour the cheesecake batter into the baking cups, filling them three-quarters full.
- Bake the cheesecakes for 15 minutes, or until slightly jiggly in the center. Remove from the oven and spread 1 teaspoon of the warmed raspberry preserves on top of each cheesecake. Transfer the muffin tin to the freezer and chill the cheesecakes until set, about 15 minutes.
- Remove the cheesecakes from the pan and peel off the foil baking cups. Transfer the cheesecakes to a platter and serve.
MAKE AHEAD The mini black-bottom cheesecakes can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.
NOTES INSTEAD OF FROMAGE BLANC Crème fraîche, goat cheese, lebneh or quark.
I recently climbed-up on my soap box and ranted about the Green Movement. The pressure to just try and find ways to save money at our house has started to become a reality and it looks like there will be no relief in sight for not only Americans, but for many countries around the globe. The talk of oil raising to $170 a barrel by the end of the year is a harsh reality and until we are provided with true leadership there will be no answers to our current energy crisis. It could be worse and it will be worse. In Europe, customers are already paying $9-11 a gallon.
With this comes the reality that the majority of people can’t afford to pay the extra to purchase organic food. We have started a garden, first for fun, now to help us with our food bill. One way to watch prices and feel good about the food your purchase it to check-out your local farmer’s market. Most communities have them and this is a great way to buy locally and what is in season. We have one at our city hall and I am taking my kids on a field trip this week to check-out what is available.
Cooking seasonal ingredients is important for a variety of reasons. One is that your food is fresher and you will end-up saving money by purchasing what is close to you. The trick for me has been deciphering what is seasonally viable. I live in Florida, so during certain times of the year, the pickings will be thin. Epicurious has a great guide and support on their site.
The Peak Season Map goes through each month of the year and each state to not only highlight what is is season, basic information about the ingredient including nutritional information, but most importantly recipes.
Once a show like the Next Food Network Star starts dwindling down its number of contestants, you begin to see quickly who really knows what they are doing. These last couple of weeks we have finally gotten a good handle on who knows their food, who has the culinary chops and who has the personality to make us all care.
In my eyes it was pretty easy to see that Nipa’s days were numbered, as well as Jennifer’s. Last week was a great challenge. The on-camera challenge was perfect to not only see their on-air personas, but also to see who knew their stuff. I will stick-up for Nipa here, though. Being handed the squids to prepare was just a bit more difficult then trussing a chicken. I wonder how many of their Food Network Stars know exactly how to handle raw squid. The only two chefs who have probably prepared any dishes with Squid are Emeril and Mario…who’s contracts have not been renewed. Nipa’s failure is that she didn’t just take the bull by the horns and go for it.
The main challenge gave them an Iron Chef twist. They each had to choose from a fish and some odd ingredient. I was amazed that Nipa had no idea on how to fillet a fish. These past couple of weeks led me to the age-old question, “Do any of these people watch this show?” The show has been around long enough that you can’t necessarily predict the challenges, but these contestants should know to come prepared. As for myself, my culinary skills are very week. I chop like a caveman and most of my dishes lack presentation. I know this…so, if this is an opportunity I would want to attempt then I would maybe take a few classes and most importantly, practice, practice, practice. Move out of my comfort zone and practice, practice, practice. I think that sometimes the contestants’ egos may get the better of them. I think that a lot of people don’t really understand how hard these challenges can be. In the end, Nipa said good-bye….no surprise….and Kelsey stepped-up her game and won. She has managed to win two great challenges recently. Last week, she became fortunate enough to win her way onto the Red Lobster menu and this week, with some help from Shane, she is heading for the cover of Bon Appetit.
This week was, again, filled with challenges for those who know their food and their skills. Cat Cora was a guest judge. With this came a little bit of pressure, but also the opportunity to get their recipe in the August issue of Bon Appetit. Cat Cora is the Executive Chef for the magazine. The scary part of the challenge though was the added pressure of not only cooking for the judges, but also the staff from the magazine. These are people who know what they are talking about and it would be the ultimate embarrassment not to be on your game for this one.
Before that though, they had to do an on-camera challenge. They were given a basket of ingredients and 30 minutes to create a dish to taste and describe on camera. The twist…..there is always a twist….when they were finished they were told that they had to exchange dishes with another contestant then taste and describe that dish on-camera. This is waaay harder. I at first scoffed at this challenge, because really, what Food Network chef will every have to do this. But as the challenge progressed, I realized that this is what separates the big dogs. None of the network chefs will ever have to do this, but the point is that they could. They know their food, flavors and how to appeal to the masses. It was obvious that Adam and Jennifer didn’t know what they were doing, their knowledge was limited and in Jennifer’s case, very very wrong. Lisa and Kelsey know their stuff, they just did an extremely bad job relaying the message. They were thrown a curve ball in the challenge and ended up striking-out. Shane did a great job won the challenge and has made me wonder if this 20 year-old is emerging into the guy to beat.
Then there was Aaron…poor, poor Aaron. Last week we learned that his son had run-away from home. The news is that his son is home and getting the help he needs. Aaron’s food is great. Every week there is something he cooks that I would love to try. His problem is that camera. He just freezes up. What bums me out is that he has a great personality which is being lost during the on-camera challenges. My heart sunk for him during this challenge and during the second challenge.
The next part, they were teamed up and had to take a difficult, classic dish and make it approachable to the home cook. Their choices…Beef Wellington, Coq a Vin and Turducken. Shane and Kelsey were teamed up and I was going to be shocked if they didn’t win this challenge. The reason is because of their skills and because they didn’t have a week link. Lisa was teamed with Jennifer. Lisa’s skills far surpass those of Jennifer and Aaron’s those of Adam.
Aaron made the mistake of not sticking his foot down with Adam and was lucky to get by. I really fell sorry for Lisa during this challenge, because Jennifer just crashed and burned during this challenge. Out of the three they had the Turducken, which I think would be the hardest to pull-off. Jennifer really caused their demise by deciding to open a glass jar by banging it in front of the counter where the food was cooking. I knew that was going to happen and didn’t understand why she made such a juvenile choice. I was impressed with how well Lisa handled it. I don’t know if I could have been that forgiving. I watched her FN Dish interview and I am glad she is out. She seemed to not take any real ownership of her downfall and in a passive-aggressive way spoke bad about Lisa. She thinks that the FN have had her pegged from the beginning that she would be the winner. She would say some “mildly” negative thing about Lisa and then say, “Oh, but she is a great cook, I wish her the best”. That interview made me really not like her and made Lisa that more appealing. Lisa just needs to drop the designer outfits and high-heels. She can look put together, but just not so la-de-da. It gives people ammo and reasons not to like her. Yes, they are stupid reasons, but Lisa won’t win, because in the end, voters won’t vote for her, unless she strips herself of what people think is a fake, beauty queen image. Lisa has what it takes and I like her, but I don’t think she has mass-appeal. My money is currently on Shane.
In the end it was Shane and Kelsey’s day. No one’s food was picture perfect, but they were being time challenged and I think that can be forgiven.
Next week, the contestants hit the Rachael Ray Show and see if they have what it takes to actually have a cooking segment. If you want to watch the Rachael Ray episode, it is airing this Thursday, July 3. Check your local listings for time.
So, has anyone been to Red Lobster to try Kelsey’s dish?
image: www.freeimages.co.uk
If you are looking for some great dip recipes I have three that I always run to. They are REALLY easy and REALLY good. I always get compliments when I serve them.
The first dip is Paula Deen’s Artichoke Dip. It calls for mayonaise, but I subistiuted the mayo for plain yogurt. One time, I even used a low-fat plain yogurt and Neufchatel cream cheese. It tasted just as good. Cheese Straws as well as veggies go great with this dip. It says that it makes 3-4 servings, which is a little odd. I had a party recently with 10 people and I had about a half of a cup left. I would say that it makes about 2 cups.
The other two are from Ina Garten and work with chips and veggies, Sun-Dried Tomato Dip and Pan-Fried Onion Dip. You could modify them a little if you wish. These two recipes from Ina each makes 2 cups.
Three Cheese Hot Artichoke Dip
from Paula Deen
Ingredients:
1 (8 ounces) block cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonnaise
1 (14 ounces) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 green onions, sliced thin
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup shredded mozzarella
Dash hot sauce
Dash Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepperPreparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand held electric mixer until smooth. Then beat in the mayonnaise until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and stir together until combined. Transfer the dip to a pie plate or shallow gratin dish. Bake in a preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes until the top is golden brown and the dip is bubbling. Serve hot with crackers, tortilla chips, crostini or veggies.
Sun-Dried Tomato Dipfrom Ina Garten
Ingredients: 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped (8 tomatoes)
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup good mayonnaise
10 dashes, hot red pepper sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)Preparation:Puree the tomatoes, cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, red pepper sauce, salt and pepper in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the scallions and pulse twice. Serve at room temperaturefrom Ina Garten
Ingredients:
2 large yellow onions
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup good mayonnaisePreparation:
Cut the onions in half and then slice them into 1/8-inch thick half-rounds. (You will have about 3 cups of onions.) Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until the onions are browned and caramelized. Allow the onions to cool. Place the cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Add the onions and mix well. Taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature.
I was watching a Paula Deen episode and she made some Cheese Straws. I was reading the reviews and there were some mixed opinions. Some people said that they turned out a little to gritty. I have heard of Cheese Straws, but had never tried them. I checked-out more recipes from the Food Network (Paula Deen actually has a couple) as well as other places around the Internet. Some recipes use Puff Pastry and that is a common technique.
I discovered many variations and methods, but the one I ended up using was from Epicurious. I chose this one because it seemed easy and just about everyone who tried the recipe said they would use it again. I tried it and I have to agree. I have made these three times in the last couple of weeks. It makes for a great kid snack and I have had a couple of parties and they were devoured quickly and everyone asked for the recipe. The recipe is almost identical to a Cheese Straw recipe in the kids Ratatouille Cookbook.
If you keep them in an airtight container at room temperature, you can make them up to 3 days ahead. You can attempt to twist the dough to give it a little more elegant look, but the dough is pretty fragile. When my kids and I made them, we just sliced the dough up into bit size squares.
The better the cheese the better the cheese straw. I used an Extra Sharp Vermont Cheddar. By the way, as one of the reviewers said, if someone comments that they taste like Cheez-Its…this is a compliment. When you make these once, you will end-up placing these as a staple snack at home and all your parties.
Makes about 2 dozen
Ingredients
1/4 pound coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar (1 1/2 cups)
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon salt
Rounded 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 1/2 tablespoons milkPreparation
Preheat oven to 350°F with racks in upper and lower thirds.
Pulse cheese, flour, butter, salt, and cayenne in a food processor until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add milk and pulse until dough forms a ball.
Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 12- by 10-inch rectangle (1/8 inch thick). Cut dough with a lightly floured pizza wheel or lightly floured sharp knife into 1/3-inch-wide strips. Carefully transfer to 2 ungreased baking sheets, arranging strips 1/4 inch apart. (If strips tear, pinch back together.)
Bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until pale golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool completely on baking sheets on racks, about 15 minutes.
Planet Green was recently released to the TV airwaves and by all accounts has had very little to offer. It has a few shows with very few episodes that sadly seem to be airing on a loop and some how Little People, Big World (a show I happen to love, but is oddly placed on Planet Green) has ended up running episodes on the fledgling network.
Now, Planet Green is basically a part of a chain. They are owned by the Discovery network of stations, including the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Discovery Health, TLC , Military Channel and the Science Channel.
I thought the idea was going to be worthwhile, interesting and timely but has ended up being filled with rich celebrities telling me how I have got it wrong and what I need to do to fix it. Probably two of the worst offenders of this is Hollywood Green hosted by THE annoying and over-rated host Maria Menounos (just how does she book these gigs?). She “delivers the latest in news regarding Hollywood stars and starlets who are going green while making headlines in movies, TV shows, and music.” So basically, whoever has an album out or a show to promote decides they are going “green”.
The other offender, Supper Club with Tom Bergeron. I guess both these Dancing with the Stars notables need something to occupy their time between Tango seasons. In fairness, I actually really like Bergeron…HE is actually good at what he does. The concept of the show is supposed to be a Real Time with Bill Maher at the dinner table. A guest chef cooks a “green” dinner for Tom and four lucky celebrity guests. The chef discusses the “green” products and dinner they are making and how you too can replicate this high-priced meal at home while the celebrities talk about a variety of environmental issues.
Beyond being boring it is annoying. I am sick and tired the wealthy discussing how we as a society need to just scale back our consumption and our lives while they live in 5 Million-Dollar homes with 300,000 square-feet. I am sick of wealthy people talking about “green” architecture that is out of the price range of middle-class Americans. I am sick of people like Marilu Henner discussing how eating organic may be a little more expensive, but in the long run you “can’t afford not to”.
Our family IS working, middle-class America. Generic regular 2% milk is $4.25 a gallon. If we were to shop organic we would have to add another $1.70. Food prices have gone up across the board. Staples like milk have risen 26%, eggs 40%. I would love to purchase those organic vegetables, but I am running into choices. The wealthy have no clue. They have lost base with reality. The reality of most hard-working Americans is that I want to do what is right, but sadly, we are forced into looking at the short run—putting food on the table, filling the car with gas so we can get to work, paying our health insurance, mortgage and still try and put something aside for our children’s future. College might be nice.
From Rober Gavin of the Boston Globe:
Rising food prices can be particularly corrosive to consumer confidence because people are so frequently exposed to the cost increases. “It’s the biggest risk we face economically, and it might be the thing that does us in,” said Rich Yamarone, director of economic research at Argus Research Corp. in New York. “There’s nothing really worse than having a job, making money, and forking most of it over just so you can have the same amount of food. You’re running in place, and it really weighs on you.”
As with energy, higher food costs cut into discretionary income that buys everything from cars to computers to movie tickets and drives the consumer-based US economy. Falling home values and a faltering stock market have battered consumer confidence, spurring a retrenchment in spending that is contributing to recent job losses and pulling the economy toward recession…..
….Amy Brnger, 43, of Portsmouth, N.H., just needs to look at her grocery receipts. For a long time, feeding her family of three used to cost around $125 a week. Suddenly this winter, her bill leaped to about $200.
Quickly, Brnger, a school counselor and mother of a 9-year-old daughter, looked for ways to save. She buys fewer organic products, which can cost twice as much as conventional goods. Instead of buying chicken breasts, she buys whole chickens and cuts them into parts, saving about $2 a pound. She buys dried beans, instead of canned. And she is baking her own bread.
What these camera-hugging, wealthy Americans have lost site of is that the have-nots have even less and until the basics are fixed and people’s day-to-day lives see a little relief, the Green Movement will suffer and our planet along with it.
Read more.
A Child Chosen
A Creative Journal
All Holiday Cafe
Babylune
Baking Delights
Behind The Vines
Blog Fabulous
Brew Ha-Ha
Busy Family Meals
Career and Kids
Chocolate Bytes
Cooking Gadgets
Dating Dames
Declutter It
Drinks after Dark
Foodie Obsessed
GenBetween
Hankering for Yarn
Inside Fatherhood
Inside Motherhood
Jewelry and Beading
Junk Creation
Keeping the Castle
Kettle and Cup
Layers Upon Layers
Macro Cats
Mad Cropper
Marriage Actually
Mom Gadget
Mother Earth's Garden
MyCrimeSpace
Noodles and Rice
Offbeat Homes
One Book Two Book
Our One Heart
Parenting Tweens & Teens
Parents Behaving Badly
Play Library
Psycho for Love
Quilting and Patchwork
Robust Cooking
She Knows Parties
Simply Home Remedies
Simply Thrifty
Solo Mother
StampingMad
Supernanny Rules
Tangled Thread
The Food Bowl
Thrifty Mommy
Toolbelt Tips
Tree Hugging Family
Unplugged Living
Widows Quest
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