Food updates

      Today is a mixed topic post.  Not surprising since my mind is being pulled into all sorts of different directions.  Besides waking up to the pilot light being out on my gas heater, today hasn't been too bad.  Let's talk about food first.  

     Dan took me to Commodities today and that will probably be the last time I go there for quite awhile.  They have changed (?) their rules for it.  Now, I'm not one to normally grip and complain but perhaps this time I'll just say I am disgruntled.  I know this is "extra" for for me to supplement.  That is good.  When your food budget after bills are paid is around $40 for the month, you have a tendency to look forward to Commodity day (government quarterly) and Food Pantry day.  What did I get in the Commodity box today?  1 bag of rice, 1 jar of peanut butter, 2 cans of tomato sauce, 1 can of kidney beans, and 1 can of vegetable soup.  Now that will go a long way if one is careful.  That is ok.  The part that has me thinking that I might not do Commodity for 2024 is this.  Now they have a rule that says if you go to your local pantry in the same month you go to Commodity, you can't duplicate what you get.  In other words, if you get peanut butter from Commodity, you can't get it from the Food Pantry.  So I'll just go to Food Pantry once a month and see how that works out.  

     Anyway, I made some Cool Whip Cookies and gave Dan a sample.  He likes them and said I could make them again.  So nice of him, right?  LOL.  So since he came in (he always carries in my groceries and unpacks them for me), I gave him a container of the 4 ingredient cheeseball.  I don't make them into balls since it is just him and me so they also fit into my Rubbermaid containers quite nicely.  Did I give you this recipe?  If not here it is:

2 blocks cream cheese (softened)

1 packet ranch seasoning

1 drained can of chicken (or cut up chicken...see the next paragraph for what I did)

- mix all together and let sit in fridge for a couple of hours or overnight.  If doing for company or in a ball shape, you can also roll it in chopped pecans.

     I changed it up just a little bit.  I didn't use a can of chicken since I had some rotisserie chicken I had deboned. I chopped up what I had left of that and used it.  I would say it was probably 1 1/2 cups.  that's just a guess.  I just added enough cut up chicken until it looked right.  I ate mine with crackers.  I gave Dan some and he says it is great and I can totally make it again.  We were also talking about how I think it would be good if it had a little bit of a kick.  If nothing else some black pepper.  Another idea might be a little bit of hot sauce mixed in or just serve on the side if you didn't want to turn your cream cheese a pink color?  

     Now for the Cool Whip Cookies.  Dan didn't go into the stores with me.  He opted to sit in the car and eat the Cool Whip Cookies.  Needless t say they are on the Dan approval  list.  Can't complain though.  It only had three ingredients.

1 box of cake mix (whatever flavor you want - I used Devil's food)

8 oz. of Cool Whip - thawed

1 egg (lightly beaten)

Powdered sugar to roll them in - optional

- Mix all together and drop on parchment lined cookie sheet.  I used an ice cream scoop  so the cookies turned out kind of large and only made a dozen.  Nobody was complaining though.  I didn't roll them in sugar but after they came out (and cooled off for a bit so I could move them), I sprinkled some powdered sugar on them.  

- Bake for 10-12 minutes in an 350F oven.

     I put them in a zip lock bag after they cooled down, and they stayed nice and moist that way.  I have around 6 in the freezer for Dan's snack box and I will probably make him more before Christmas.

     Another recipe that I made this week was Barn Raising Soup.  This came from my friend Connie so thank you Connie.  Instead of making this in the slow cooker, I made it stovetop since I had some chicken already cooked up that I could use.  Here is the recipe:

1 TBSP olive oil

1 cup diced onion

3 cups chicken broth

2 tsp garlic powder

1 TBSP chili powder

1 TBSP cumin

1 can (14.5) stewed tomatoes (I used petite diced)

3/4 cup Pace picante sauce (I use Great Value Salsa)

1 can (15 oz) pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 1/2 - 1 3/4 pound boneless, skinless chicken - cooked and deboned (I used what I had left of deli rotisserie chicken)

- sauté onions in olive oil

- add broth, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, tomatoes, picante sauce, pinto beans, and chicken.

- cover on low for 4-6 hours (in crock pot)

     I let it simmer on the stove for around 3 hours.   I was busy doing something else but it turned out ok since it gave everything a nice time to meet each other.  I had a couple of bowls of it before putting the rest in bags and put in the freezer.  It has a little bit of a kick so adjust spices to your level of heat.

     I hope everybody has a great day and try to stay warm.