A Common Shepherdess

I'm a sucker for a good deal. This past week I was able to purchase four cans of Pillsbury Grands! Biscuits for only $0.70 total! My kids aren't that fond of them plain however. I managed to come up with an easy recipe that guarantees the biscuits will be eaten in a flash. My kids love these for breakfast with strawberry smoothies. Apple Sticky Buns Topping: 4 Tbsp butter 1/2 cup brown sugar 2 Tbsp light corn syrup or honey 1 small apple, peeled and diced Combine ingredients in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Pour into a buttered 9" round pan. Place one biscuit in the center and place six more around the edges. (There will be one biscuit left over. I'll coat that with butter and cinnamon sugar and bake that on a small baking sheet.) Spread some softened butter over the tops of the biscuits and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake at 350*F, until biscuits are golden brown. Remove from oven. Place a large pla...

Grate: 1 small zucchini (or 1 small yellow summer squash) 1/4 small onion Mix together in a bowl: 1 cup gluten-free oat flour (I grind my own from Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Oats.) 3/4 tsp dried parsley 1/4 tsp garlic powder 1/2 tsp salt Stir in: 3/4 c club soda Add: grated vegetables Drop by the teaspoonful into hot oil. Deep-fry 2 to 3 minutes until golden brown. Remove with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with salt. Serve immediately. Sprinkle with lemon juice or serve with sour cream for dipping or just enjoy plain.

I love shortbread. I have Scottish ancestors. How can I not like it?! I came up with this tasty, gluten-free recipe. 10 Tbsp softened butter (1 1/4 sticks) 1/3 cup sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 cup tapioca flour 1/4 cup brown rice flour 1 cup oat flour Beat the butter, sugar and salt on medium speed until very fluffy. Stir in the tapioca, rice and oat flours. Knead until well blended and smooth. Firmly press the dough into a 8 x 8-inch baking pan. Bake at 300 degrees for approximately 45 minutes, until pale gold. Remove pan and cut almost through the dough to form bars. If desired, sprinkle with 1 to 2 tsps sugar. Let stand until completely cool. Gently retrace cuts and separate into bars.

We like to play with our food. This is what my 5-year-old daughter and I made to eat on April 1. For lunch we had hot dogs and fries. For supper we had cake and berry soda. Can you guess what the foods really are? The hot dogs were mini-bananas coated with peanut butter and topped with some strawberry jam. The fries were really apple slices coated with cinnamon sugar and baked for about 10 minutes. The cake is meatloaf and the frosting is mashed potatoes, tinted with some pureed beets, and topped with celery leaves and grape tomato roses. The berry soda is strawberry Jell-o with berries added. The kids loved it!

My new favorite way to eat cucumbers. 2 English cucumbers (or regular), sliced thinly 1/4 onion, sliced thinly (or use dried onion) 1/2 cup warm water 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup white vinegar Layer the cucumbers and onion and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Dissolve the sugar in the warm water. Combine with vinegar and pour over cucumbers. Allow to marinate overnight.

Breakfast: Pumpkin pancakes and Scary Eggmen (I used sausage in the middle with a tomato tongue and drew eyes with a marker with edible ink.) Lunch: Spiderwiches , Goblin Eyeballs (melon balls) and Goblin Fingers (baby pickles) Supper: Batwings (apricot glazed chicken wings), Ghosts (mounded mashed potatoes with olive eyes)

Most days I try to fix a hot breakfast. Pancakes are a staple in our menu. I'm always fooling around with the recipe and trying new things. Here was my creation this morning. Sweet Potato Pancakes In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups flour 1 1/2 tsp baking powder Pinch of salt 1 Tbsp sugar Generous sprinkling of pumpkin pie spice (or even just cinnamon) In medium bowl, mix together 1 oz. softened cream cheese 3 Tbsp leftover sweet potato casserole (complete with melted marshmallows!--or use canned sweet potatoes or pumpkin, then use 3 Tbsp sugar above) 1/2 tsp vanilla 2 eggs 1 1/4 cups milk Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. Stir in 3 Tbsp melted butter. Cook on a hot griddle. The kids seemed to enjoy them!

I'm hesitant to buy certain fresh vegetables at the grocery store. I'm used to eating green beans fresh from the garden. Green beans from the store are usually tough. And peaches from the store? Forget it! I came across a recipe that sounded so good I had to buy some fresh beans. I'm glad I did! The beans were nice and tender and they tasted wonderful! Here is the recipe I found at Meals Matter : Green Beans and Pan-Roasted Red Onions 5 cups water 1 lb green beans, trimmed 1 Tbsp olive oil 3 red onions, each cut into 8 wedges (I used 3 very small onions) 1/2 cup chicken broth 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar 2 tsp brown sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp black pepper Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan; add beans. Cook 6 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain; keep warm. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions; saute 8 minutes or until browned. Add broth; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in vinegar and remaining ingredients. Stir in bean...

I'm totally addicted to Ree's pico de gallo. I wake up in the morning wondering if it's okay to have chips and pico de gallo for breakfast. Check out her very cool blog and delicious recipe ! I'm off to the store for more tomatoes.

The great ice cream experiment was a bust. The idea seems so cool. Put ingredients into a 1 lb. coffee can. Seal it duct tape. Put the sealed can into a 3 lb. coffee can. Add ice and rock salt. Secure the lid with duct tape. Have the kids kick the can around the yard for about 20 minutes, adding more ice and salt when needed. I must have gotten the recipe wrong because after 45 minutes all we still had was cold, thick sweet milk. I suppose it didn't help that it was 102 degrees outside. even after a few hours in the freezer, the ice cream looked like it had been sitting on the counter too long. Very yummy, but still soft. Here is the recipe I used: 1/2 pint light cream 1 small tin condensed milk 1-2 tsp vanilla extract I used a standard size can of sweetened condensed milk (which is 14 oz.). Maybe I should have used only half that amount of condensed milk. How much is a "small tin" anyway? I don't think the kids are anxious to try again anytime soon!

On the menu tonight: Bayou Red Beans and Rice Chicken Etouffee from The Joy of Cooking Rinse and pat dry: 4-5 lbs chicken parts Mix together: 1 tsp paprika 1 tsp dried thyme 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp ground black pepper 1/2 tsp dried basil 1/4 tsp ground red pepper Rub all over the chicken pieces. Pour into a brown paper bag: 1 cup flour Shake 4 pieces of chicken at a time to coat with flour; remove and shake off excess. Repeat until all the chicken is coated. Reserve the flour. Heat in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat: 3 Tbsp vetegtable oil Brown chicken pieces on both sides, about 5 minutes each side. Remove chicken from skillet and leave about 3 Tbsp of fat in the skillet. Reduce heat to medium. Using a wooden spoon, stir in 3 Tbsp of reserved flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until roux is almost as dark as milk chocolate. This may take as long as...