Toasted Marshmallow Day: August 30

Today is Toasted Marshmallow Day!  Yum, yum, yum.  Marshmallows have to be one of my ALL TIME favorites.  Whether toasted or made into treats makes no never mind to me.  According to yahoo news,

The second-to-last day of August provides a great excuse to have a bonfire and toast up the remaining summer marshmallows. Whip up some Double-Dipped Marshmallow Sticks or classic S'mores. Marshmallows are an abundant and cheap summer treat, but that was not always the case. They were "once so rare that that only pharaohs could eat them" according to Campfire Marshmallows. Ancient Egyptians mixed the sap of the marshmallow plant was mixed with honey to create a sweet treat in 2000 B.C. Today's marshmallows are made from corn syrup, sugar, water, dextrose and air.

"The marshmallow plant is native to salt marshes and shorelines in Asia and Europe and is now grown in the eastern United States "according to Campfire Marshmallows. The plant, specifically the skin of the Althaea officinalis plant, can be used to treat irritated skin.

Make a mini unit to do with your picklets...they will have fun, learn and remember the hands on fun!

Read:

How Stuff Works:  Marshmallows
The History of Marshmallows 
The Marshmallow Story (good for around a campfire)
How Did the Marshmallow Get It's Name?

Make some yummy treats!

Homemade Marshmallows
Toasted Marshmallow Shake
Chocolate, Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, Toasted Marshmallow Cupcakes
Warm Toasted Marshmallow Malted Milk S'mores 
Toasted Marshmallow S'mores Cake

Marshmallow Crafts

Marshmallow Building
Marshmallow Faces
Holiday Marshmallows
Marshmallow Tea Cups
Halloween Marshmallow Heads
Make a Marshmallow Popper
Make a Marshmallow Shooter

Art
Marshmallow Art
How to draw the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man
Art lessons from Mr. Marshmallow

Get Active with Marshmallows

Marshmallow Kick, Throw, and Blow Activity
Tie pillows onto your arms, legs and body.  Race down the sidewalk.  Give s'mores awards.

Watch:
Ghostbusters

Parents:
Test your kids!  We tried this once.  It was a disaster.
Marshmallow Experiment 

Science

Marshmallow Masher
Monster Mallows
The Anatomy of a Marshmallow
Marshmallow Catapult
Marshmallow Tower
The Marshmallow Machine
Marshmallow Lab

Have a fun, stick, gooey day!

Spaghetti Tacos, part 2

The picklets like iCarly.  Carly, Sam, Spencer, Freddy, Gibby and Guppy....the picklets all find a piece of common ground.  That would be spaghetti tacos.  Back in '09, Chip made spaghetti tacos for us.  I reluctantly tried them and found they were pretty darned good.  They were a novelty and I thought they would pass.

I found out nothing passes quickly where there is a popular teen show on...lol.  One night last month I told Sweet I would like her to cook supper for us.  After a long thought process she decided to make spaghetti tacos.  Laughing, I let her have at it. 

The tacos were delicious with the shell adding a delightful crunch you wouldn't normally get while eating spaghetti. 

Though the tacos were good, I have to admit I am a garlic bread fanatic.  So I invented my own little sandwich. 

At spaghetti hot dog!  Now that is good eating!

Tips and Recipes Week

Sausage Burgers and Avocado Creme

A post from June 2, 2009 that I never posted. Better late than never

I made a really good supper tonight, but didn't take a picture of it because I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into it. I can't take full credit for it cause SWMNBN was on the phone with me and told me to jazz it up, so I did! The whole family LOVED, except for the eldest teenager who just said, "It's OK."

Open Faced Sausage Burger with Carmelized Onions

1 lb sausage
1/4 cup spinach flakes
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 - 1/2 tsp celery seed
salt and pepper to taste
onion slices
garlic bread

Mix all together and fry until done. When done, remove and drain the grease. Add a couple TBS butter and onions. Stir around, cover and let carmelize stirring every once in a while. Serve burger on garlic bread smothered with onions.

Avacado Creme

1/2 cup lite sour cream
1 avacado, mashed
onion to taste
minced garlic to taste (I use a lot of garlic)
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all together and serve with baked potato along with your sausage burger.

YUM!

written to be posted in June 2009, posted November 2010

The Happy Diabetic

My mom and I had the chance to go to a cooking demonstration by The Happy Diabetic. This wasn't a pleasure class. Cool was diagnosed with diabetes several years ago and my mom was diagnosed just a month or so ago. Anything I can do to cook good for us foods that are low carb works for me and any help I can get I will take.

The Happy Diabetic is actually a guy named Robert, who currently lives in Iowa and was diagnosed with diabetes about 12 years ago. He has since embraced (if you can) his diabetes and learned to cook the diabetic way. The great thing about his recipes is they taste great and everyone will want to eat them.


I, of course, forgot my camera at home. This shot was snapped on The Happy Diabetic Wife's I-phone. She was kind enough to send it to me. Thank you Mrs. Happy Diabetic!

Regardless of the fact that he had a cold and the beginning of laryngitis, he was funny to listen to, made and served a couple of yummy dishes and really showed people how easy it is to cook healthy. He had two cookbooks for sale, which my mom bought, and I totally plan on making something yummy soon.

The Happy Diabetic has some recipes available on his website. Take a looksy. :-)

Alabama Pecan Logs

We are attempting to study one state a week this school year. So far we have studied one state. We should be on our fourth. I'm not too concerned about it. What will be will be.

While studying Alabama Dill make Alabama Pecan Bars. They were really good. Why wouldn't they be? There was a half pound of butter in them. ;-D They are very close to the Keebler Sandie cookie.

This recipe is from the book It's My State! Alabama by Joyce Hart.

Alabama Pecan Logs

1/2 pound sweet butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 cups chopped pecans
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup flour
1 tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 325. Grease a large cookie sheet. Mix butter until it is smooth. Add sugar, salt, flour and vanilla. Stir in pecans.

Roll a heaping spoonful of batter into a log and place it on the greased cookie sheet.

Bake logs for 15-20 minutes. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn.

The logs didn't stay log form, they were more of a cookie by the time the baking was done. Sweet didn't like the pecans so she wouldn't eat them.

Day 1: Apple Crisp

Day 1: Celebrate red apple day. Make apple crisp together. 1 to eat and 1 to share.

So that is what we did. I didn't have oatmeal so I couldn't make our usual apple crisp recipe but I did find a good one on recipezaar. The picklets all found jobs that suited them. Sweet sliced the apples.

Chip shelled hickory nuts for the topping.

Dill peeled the apples and put the topping on the filling.
We made three apple crisps.

One to deliver with the paper to one of our customers (Note says: "Our assignment was to make 1 apple crisp to share. Ingredients: apples, sugar, cinnamon, flour, holiday cheer. Happy Holidays, The Pickle Kids"),

1 to share with my mom and one for us to eat.

Now. Where is the cinnamon ice cream?

(c) 2009-2009 Wicked Pickles-Homefront Lines

Campfire Pizza

When we camp we usually have the same thing to eat. Brats and hotdogs, hamburgers and chicken grillers. These are usually accomplanied by macaroni salad, potato salad or cole slaw, veggeis and dip, jello salad and beans. Boring but 4 times a year we know exactly what we are eating. Easy schmeasy.

Right before we went camping Cool was cleaning out the garage and found the pizza maker thingamabobs that he used when he was growing up and thus our menu changed. We had campfire pizza for lunch one day. If you want to make campfire pizza just follow these directions.

Place a peice of buttered bread, butter side down, on one side of the pizza maker.


Put pizza sauce on bread.


Place pepperoni on top of sauce.


About 5 peices will do.


Top the pepperoni with mozzerella cheese. We used shredded but any mozzerella will work.


Put two more dots of sauce on top of the cheese. Not sure why, that's just what Cool did.


Top with other peice of buttered bread, this time butter side up.


Put the other peice of the pizza maker on and squeese real tight to get it to shut. Then latch it with the hook.


You then tear the crust and extra bread that is hanging over the side off. Throw it to the eagerly waiting dogs.


Stick the pizza maker right in the coals of the fire.


After a few minutes turn it over.


I cannot tell you how long it takes to cook this. It really depends on the heat produced by the coals. You just kinda know when it is done.

You slowly open it up...


Pick up the fork you find laying on the table and wipe it clean...


And gently lift the pizza out and let it fall on a paper plate.




I let me dad cut it open because pizza is his favorite food and because he has never had campfire pizza before.






And for those of you who don't like pizza (like me) it also makes really good grilled cheese sandwiches.


(c) 2008-2009 Wicked Pickles-Homefront Lines
All Rights Reserved

Unplugged: Thin

The Unplugged theme last week was thin. Now this one was a bit difficult. Thin? OK, I know I need to lose weight but I wasn't about to go there...lol. The picklets and I talked about it and finally decided on homemade potato chips. After all, you have to slice the potatos thin.

First you need to wash your potatos.

Slice them very thin.

Fry them in 350º oil 3-5 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.

Salt and enjoy.

©2008 Wicked Pickles-Homefront Lines

How to Make Brown Sugar

In the process of making apple butter, we found we were completely out of brown sugar. So, we made our own.

1. Start with putting one cup of sugar in a cereal bowl. (I have not tried this with raw sugar or evaporated cane juice but it is on my list of things to try)
2. Then add 2 TBS molasses (the kids found this part particularly fun partly because of the way the molasses balled up on the sugar and partly because of the way molasses is spelled)
3. Mish, mash, stir and incorporate the molasses (hehe) into the sugar. You will know when it is done as it will look like brown sugar.
4. Use as store bought brown sugar. Store in an air tight container or zipper bag.

VOILA! Homemade brown sugar ala the Picklets!

© 2008 Wicked Pickles-Homefront Lines

Ketchup and Apple Butter

Yesterday the picklets and I made use of the pitiful crop of tomatoes and the leftover apples. Homemade ketchup and crock pot apple butter. They both turned out great and taught the picklets that making both is a process, a L-O-N-G process. Best of all: the jars all sealed, about 30 seconds after leaving the boiling bath water. YEAH!

(On a side note: The jars are resting on a Papa John's pizza box, the home of our new love. Hawaiian Chicken Pizza. OMG...that pizza is out of this world. Especially if you like bbq sauce, pineapple, chicken, onion and bacon. YUMMMMM)

I for some reason did not take pictures of the process but here is the final product. I can't tell you how excited the picklets are to have apple butter on their toast this morning. :)

© 2008 Wicked Pickles-Homefront Lines