The trail looped around a wooded area, along grassy fields and Browns River - very scenic!
There were benches and picnic tables along the way.
It's been a cool spring. Today is May 31 and this afternoon I needed a jacket. I'm looking forward to warmer temperatures.
Paging through an old cookbook, I came across a recipe too simple not to try: 3 Ingredient Biscuits. I have all three ingredients.
I had expected a dozen biscuits, but ended up with eight. I used a 12 cup muffin tin, so - before baking - I put a little water in each of the four unused cups.
Ingredients:
1 cup self-rising flour
1/2 cup milk
3 Tbsp. Hellman's mayonnaise
Directions:
Grease the cups of a medium sized muffin tin. Mix ingredients by hand in a bowl until the batter is smooth. Spoon into the cups, about 1/2 full. Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 10 - 12 minutes.
Here's how they turned out.
Tasty with jam or as an quick accompaniment to a meal.
On his farm, my grandfather grew green beans. Long rows of beans. In summer everyone would be out picking beans into pails and putting them into gunny sacks to be taken for sale at the market in town.
There were a lot of beans. This may be one reason why we sometimes had green bean soup in summer. I thought of this today when I looked at the cooked leftover fresh green beans in the fridge. I'll make soup!
No recipe; I began by making a roux with flour and butter. I slowly added about a cup of milk - maybe more, and about a cup or so of vegetable broth. Then I added the beans. I seasoned the soup with salt and pepper and added a generous sprinkle of Penzey's Mural of Flavor. Perfect!
It's a frigid day - five degrees F. at midday. So it's hot and nourishing cream of green bean soup for lunch. So very good, so very satisfying.
I have been relying on pre-packaged meals and take-out more than I'd like to really admit. My daughter gave me a cookbook for Christmas, and since then I have been cooking again! I cleaned out my outdated spices and other staples and restocked the pantry. Ready to go.
I decided to make cheesecake. I had all the ingredients. When I assembled everything together, I saw I did not have enough cream cheese or graham crackers for the recipe. So it was cheesecake pudding that I made.
My recipe:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1 large egg
2 Tbsp cornstarch
6 oz cream cheese at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
3 Tbsp Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
4 crushed graham crackers
1/4 cup crushed pecans
2 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp melted butter
Pour 1 3/4 cup of the milk with sugar and salt into a medium pot. Whisk together and cook until it simmers. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, cornstarch, and the remaining milk. Add some of the the hot milk mixture from the pot and whisk. Pour that mixture into the pot and simmer while whisking until it becomes thickened. Remove from heat and add the cream cheese and vanilla. Mix until smooth, then stir in the yogurt. Pour into a large serving bowl or into serving dishes.
Mix the rest of the ingredients and spread on a baking pan lined with parchment paper. Bake at 325 degrees for about 8 minutes, stirring the mixture about 1/2 way through. After it cools, sprinkle it on the pudding.
Serve with your favorite fruit topping. (I have a few blueberries under the topping.)
The result is a creamy pudding with a tasty crunch topping. (I like adding pecans to replace some of the graham crackers for added flavor.)
So good, and so much easier to make than a baked cheesecake. I'll be making this again.
We've adopted Milo! He is a rescue dog who came to us from South Carolina. Here he is arriving on the transport.
It's been a blue sky sunny day. I was driving home from an appointment and passed by a sculpture garden. There were open parking spaces nearby. Why not pull over and stop for a short walk? I had been here before, but never during this time of year.
It was easy to spot the sculptures, especially since the trees are still bare of leaves.
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It's a day when I don't feel motivated to do very much. What I need is a simple, fun, creative project. So I decided to try baking Cloud Bread.
Four ingredients - simple enough. I had all that was called for, even cream of tartar (unopened).
I softened the cream cheese in the microwave for about 15 seconds. I then separated the eggs. I pulled out a baking pan, covered it with parchment paper, and set the oven for 350 degrees F.
I whipped the egg whites until they were very stiff and beat in the cream of tarter.
With a separate hand mixer, I blended the yolks with the softened cream cheese and sugar until the batter was smooth.
Next came the gentle folding of the yolk mixture into the whites.
I mounded the batter into six rounds on the parchment paper and put the pan into the oven.
The recipe said to bake until firm and golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Good thing I stayed in the kitchen, because I began to smell the aroma after 15 minutes. I checked, and they were already done!
Perfect, warm from the oven with a little jam and a cup of tea!
Cloud Bread
My cousin sent us a Valentine card. In that card was a recipe for Raspberry Fluff. It looked easy enough and a good dessert that requires no cooking.
Today I'm expecting a friend for lunch. The Raspberry Fluff seems like a fun dessert to serve. I tweaked the ingredients a little and it came out great!
Raspberry Fluff
Mix together until well blended:
2 Cups reduced fat Greek yogurt
1 Sixteen ounce container of lowfat whipped topping
1 Four ounce package of sugar-free raspberry jello
Add:
4 cups of mini-marshmallows
Fold in:
3 Cups fresh or frozen organic raspberries
Prepare the night before, so the marshmallows soften.
That recipe would make a lot of fluff! So I reduced the recipe by 1/2. I'm serving it with additional raspberries and a chocolate brownie on the side. (Who doesn't like chocolate with raspberries?)
I'm thinking this would be an easy, tasty, crowd-pleasing recipe for the next potluck.
Thank you, cousin!
I was looking through old photos. This brought to mind and heart many memories: Christmas trees and snow, weddings and birthdays, roses and sunsets, autumn leaves and holiday meals - thoughts of distant friends and those who are near, my husband and my family.
Precious moments. Precious people. Much love.
Our daughter gave me a CD to listen to in the car. (Yes, I still occasionally use the disc drive.) I was on the road and began listening to the first song. To my amazement, it was a favorite of mine when I was young.
Along the roads I was driving, the fields and trees were white with light fluffy snow. The song really seemed to fit the scenery. Perfect.
Enjoy, and imagine light white fluffy snow.
It's been a long time since I've baked anything. I need to ease back into it. So when I came across a 5 ingredient recipe, I decided to go for it. Cheesecake cake.
