Broccoli Rice Casserole

As promised, I am posting the broccoli rice casserole that I mad. I found this easy to make especially with a couple of short cuts. I normally keep cooked rice in the freezer that I portion out into 1 cup servings. I normally make the rice in the broth when I boil chicken. Then it is seasoned also. I also usually portion out shredded cheese and some vegetables. It does speed up the cooking process. Now on to the recipe.

Broccoli Rice Casserole

Preheat oven to 350F

- 3 cups cooked rice

- 16 oz. frozen broccoli florets (I used fresh broccoli that I got from Pantry, I just cooked it before using it in the casserole)

- 1 small onion, finely chopped

- 1 can of cream of mushroom soup

- 1/2 cup milk

- 1 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 teaspoon pepper

- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

- 1/4 teaspoon paprika

- 2 cups shredded cheese, divided

Thaw broccoli and microwave for 5 minutes and drain very well.  Cut broccoli into small bite size pieces.

In a large bowl combine:

   rice

   onion

   mushroom soup

   milk

   salt

   pepper

   paprika

   1 cup of shredded cheese

Stir all together to mix well and then fold in the broccoli.

Spray with non-stick cooking spray a 9 x 13 pan.  This is a bulky casserole so a pan with high sides works best.

Put broccoli and veggie mix into the pan and then top it with the remaining 1 cup of cheese (more or less depending on your preference).

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned on top.

NOTE:  I decided to add some left-over chicken to the casserole also so it could be used up.  It worked well.  I almost added some sausage to it instead of the chicken, but I might wait for that until next time.

If you make this, left me know how you liked it.

English Paper Piecing

Today’s topic: English Paper Piecing (EPP)

Today's topic was inspired by the Our Time To Quilt video from Sunday. I didn't catch all of it but I did manage to come in towards the end ands Deb was talking about English Paper Piecing. Then I remembered that I had started to work on an EPP project but never finished. That makes it an UFO so it qualified to be able to work on it this month.

Do you know how to do EPP? If not, then this link might help you out.

https://mypoppet.com.au/makes/how-to-paper-pieced-hexies-template/

There are many ways to do your templates. One way is to trace your shape on cardboard, heavy paper, or posterboard. You can make multiple images on one page and cut out when you need them. A simple Google search will give you plenty to choose from.

Another option is to buy a template. I have done all of those options but finally settled on the quilt as you go template as my favorite. I got mine from Missouri Star Quilt Company and it is a quilt as you go template.  This one is for 2 1/2" hexagons.  When you try to buy a template like this, the 2 1/2" measure is the sides of the inner template.  In the picture, that would be the sides of the inside piece which has the writing on it.  I chose that size for a couple of reasons.  First is was a quilt as you go; second was the fact that the inner template fits a 5" square so I could use a charm pack.

Here are some of my hexies that I have made.

I do my hexies by hand but you can do yours by machine if you want.  My batch has both machine sewn and hand sewn hexies.  That reason is because I have been working on them for a bit. s I no longer have a sewing machine that makes decorative stitches.  I like to do hand stitching so it doesn't both me.  I cut out my hexies and have them layered and then hand baste them until I  am ready to do the final stitching.

How do I store them?  In my hexie box of course.  

I picked up this box from Hobby Lobby before I moved.   I don't know if they still have that particular design but the box works out very well.  It is called a spring box and the dimensions are 9.49 in x 7.0 in  by 4.02 inches.  The spring boxes come in various sizes.  Of course almost anything  can be used but these were made for archiving things so I thought that would be good.

What will I eventually make with them?  Believe it or not, I do have plans.  Basically  I need to search for some specialty fabric.  The fabric will be cotton of course.  I just need to find some with water, tiny stones or rocks, trees or shrubs , etc.  The hardest part will be with fountains or statuaries.  First of all I will search my stash.  The rough idea is in my brain and I just have to figure it out more.  IF the large garden project doesn't pan out, I can go back to one of the other versions which would have flowers and butterflies in it.  I never know until the end how it will work out or if I can keep my enthusiasm throughout the whole thing.  Wish me luck!

What else do I have to report on?  Ahhh, my blackwork and my applique swap.

I finished my applique block and it was sent to Garnet.  I also finished up my small blackwork project.

 

My block from 
Garnet

        My block to Garnet and a small blackwork piece

The writing on the blackwork is  "Have the  courage to follow your heart and intuition."

Current free Blackwork Project - first 5 weeks

The last thing to talk about is food.  As you know it is always on my mind.  LOL.  I made a broccoli and rice casseroled which turned out yummy.  I also added in some chicken that I had leftover.  

 I also saw a picture of a yummy casserole which I think I will make for Easter.  I'm sure I won't mind any leftovers.  What do you think?

That is it for this report.  Everybody have a great day.

What a Day!

 Today is a Hurkle-Durkle day.  It is raining on and off and the kind of damp that puts a chill in your bones.  Still not sure what it is?  Maybe this will help.

Isn't that such a great phrase?  Besides that, I was pretty busy the other day.  I was busy enough that I had to write it down to remind me of everything.  So here goes.

   - Did dishes.  Ok.  Not that great of an accomplishment but it was a start.  I do dishes in the morning or when my hands gets cold because the hot water warms them up.  Of course it isn't too bad right now since our temperatures are in the mid 50s.

- Printed up this weeks pattern for Free Peppermint Purple Stitch a Long.  That is my blackwork Stitch a long.  I did finish this weeks pattern which is the fourth for the new one. Where did the time go?  It has been four weeks already?

I have my second one that I am doing but unfortunately it is the third time I am having to unstitch it.  I will get it eventually straightened out.  I just need to sit down and concentrate on it.

- With all of that, it was time to drink coffee with my vanilla caramel coffee creamer in it.  YUMMMM!  That might not seem like something to celebrate (besides getting caffeine in the system) but sometimes we have to remind ourselves to sit and take a break sometimes.

- Looked at new/old recipes.  That is something I am always happy to do and it was good to look for while drinking coffee.  This is the recipe that I decided to make.

Ham and Cheese Pasta Casserole

 

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package elbow macaroni

• 1 (8 ounce) package Cheddar cheese, cubed

• 1 cup cubed, cooked ham

• ½ cup mayonnaise

• 1 cup dry bread crumbs

 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until cooked through but firm to the bite, 8 minutes; drain.

3. Combine macaroni, Cheddar cheese, ham, and mayonnaise in a 9x13 baking dish until well mixed.

4. Sprinkle bread crumbs over the macaroni casserole.

5. Bake casserole in the preheated oven until bread crumbs are lightly browned, about 25 minutes.

- Stitched on February 2014 Block Swap.  I now only have the green leaves and vines to do and it will be done with.  I will probably finish it by Monday.

- Brought back garbage container to porch in between rain – so far no leaks (shhh.  You didn’t hear me say that – don’t want to tempt fate).  Another thing that isn't a big deal but it did take up time.  Have you realized that sometimes it is the multiple little things that take up your time.

- Made out two shopping lists – what I want to get and what I NEED to get – and go back to planning meals.  Dan will take me to Walmart for some cat food and caffeine in the next day or two. I need to get my list ready.

- Worked on Words of Wisdom redwork.  I have one of the birds stitched and about 75% of the second bird done.  After that it will go quickly.  This is one of the UFOs that was drawn to work on in January.  I won't get it all finished but it will have at least 2 of the blocks done.  PROGRESS!

- Try to work on Battle HAED Cross stitch.  Ok.  Progress on this means that I too it out and looked at it.  That counts doesn't it?  I will get to it again soon.  It is very bulky and  think that is what is putting me off on it.  I will work on it again.

- Stitched up socks (not darned).  I just hand stitched some small holes in them.  That will hold them for quite awhile.

- Get my YouTube list set up – I always set up my YouTube playlist (all free vids, etc.) before stitching so that it is playing in the background and that I can watch what I want to, save the ones I want to rewatch, etc.  I cannot do stitching in quiet.  All the years of noise from the office, noise at home, etc. says I need it even if it is only in the background.  Sometimes (more than I would normally admit) I have my favorite movies or vids on because when they get to a part I like, I look up and watch it and know exactly where they are at in it.

   

That was all yesterday.  Today hasn't been as productive BUT I did manage to start the day off in a good place.  My milestone today was getting into a pair of jeans that I was wearing when I first moved to Arkansas.  THEN I gained weight.  I am still overweight, and probably will always be overweight, but today I decided to try on the smaller size pair and they fit.  Not only did they fit...but they fit while I was wearing my thermals.  That made my day.   So remember...

What a day!

 Ever had one of those days which was sort of productive but you couldn't way what you really did?  That was the kind of day that I had.  Now that I'm typing it down, I guess I was somewhat productive.

It started out this morning with me making breakfast eggs to freeze.  I did a dozen the other day but only 9 made it as far as the freezer.  That batch I did in a 9 x 9 baking dish and just cut them into 9 squares.  They were a bit uneven since my oven is not level.  I just ate the most uneven first and managed to put 6 in the freezer for when I want them.  Today, however I used my muffin tin and made 12.  They turned out better.  I only used my seasoned salt garlic powder and onion powder.  Once again I kept three out and put the rest in the freezer.  That will keep me stocked up for a bit.

Later in the day I made left over taco mash up.  Ok so it is not an original name.  It is basically a layered tortilla wrap casserole made with leftovers.  This one had a layer of pizza sauce on the bottom, then a large tortilla, some salsa/pizza sauce mixture, some cooked ground turkey, and cheese.  Put another layer of the same on top and the final layer was a tortilla, sauce, cheese, garlic powder, and onion powder (since I left it out in the other layers.  Baked for around 10-12 minutes and all done.  It turned pretty good.  I have half of it left.

I pulled out Pop of Poinsettia table runner which was one of my UFO projects to work on.,  Does it count as working on it if I pulled everything out, read the directions and put it back in its bag?  I think it should.  I didn't work on it because I wasn't in the mood to make bias vines and I can't decide on what fabric to fuse everything on.  I'm trying not to buy more fabric so this might be saved for 2025.  

I was productive enough to <cough> need <cough> to take a couple of naps.  I was in my second hour of napping when Shalom called and said he was headed to Walmart if I wanted a ride.  So, obviously, I went.  WOW!  There were a lot of empty shelves.  I managed to get a 3 pound bag of cat food, and feel lucky I got that.  I could only get 2 two liters of soda because they were all out.  I wasn't going to spend the money on the cans and even then they were low.  They were low on margarine/butter and eggs.  Fumingly enough the milk was stocked.  The creamers and iced coffee were almost out.  Shredded cheese was ok but Buddig meats and that type was almost non existent.  No evaporated milk.  They only had sweetened condensed milk.  Bread was low and tortillas were getting low.  No bags of onions nor did they have bags of  potatoes.  Oops. T hat isn't totally true.  They had 2 bags of potatoes.  Almost all of the fresh produce was gone although the organic produce was still stocked but starting to run low.  I can see that my menu will be changed with this news.

With that news, I will mix in my 3 pounds of cat food with what I have left in the bucket and hope that they will have more when I get more money.

That is what I did today.  What did you do?  Keeping warm?  Baking anything?  Sewing anything?  Curious minds would like to know.

Oops. Forgot something

 Actually I forgot to post some things.  The first is what a newspaper article thought a 2 week food emergency supply of food should be.  This was put out by an unknown person on Pinterest.  It is from the Mid 60s and the author was stationed at Wurtsmith AFB with Strategic Air Command.

The other thing that I wanted to share came from a YouTube video that I was watching.  It was a statement that I had to write down and share.    It is:

It does not do to swell on dreams and forget to live.

Isn't that a great statement?  Here are a couple more.

Also remember:

Have a great evening/morning everybody.  Now I have to get back to some stitching.  :)

Happy New Year and Progress Report

 Happy New Year?  Yeah I know...I'm a little late.  Better late than never?  At least that is my story this time and I'm sort of sticking to it.  

You might have wondered...or not...what I've been up to.  Good question.  I'm not sure.  I get through each day and still wonder what I've done that day.  I thought that retirement was supposed to be a time when I got to relax and take it easy.  I guess that I sort of am relaxing and taking it easy?  January, at least how I experience it and have experienced it, is a time for stress.  Many think that December is stressful and so do I, to a certain extent.  For me, January is more stressful.

I try not to think I am so predictable or fall into the same pattern all the time.  I am human so of course I am just deluding myself.  Every January everybody is expected to make New Years Resolutions.  What they expect to accomplish or change in the upcoming year.  I usually say the same things.  The same things haven't changed.  What am I going to do THIS year?  Good question.  I made my list but only recently although it has been rattling around in the empty space I call my head.  So this year I am going to make a list, probably multiple ones, and then try to knock off at least one thing on the list.  THAT will be breaking the cycle of giving up on the list.  How am I going to do that?

 I think that I am starting off in the same way.  Make a list and I'll be checking it twice.  Oh wait.  Wrong season.  That's Christmas.  I will still make a list or 10 but this time the list will be more reasonable.  My list so far is:

Work on UFOs

Work on not collecting too many more new projects

Try to keep my sanity.

See?  Nice and simple.  First up is working on UFOs.  In my Our Time To Quilt group we are doing a UFO challenge.  How doe it work?  You pick 12 UFOs that you want to work on.  It would be great if you could finish it but it is more about the progress.  So this month I am working on a table runner called Pop of Poinsettia.  I have my applique pieces cut out but need to put it together.  I'm not stopping there though.  A couple of friends of mine are joining me and I am doing something similar with them.  So what I am working on with them is Words to Live By.  That is a wall hanging.  I won't finish it this month but I at least I am working on it.  That isn't all I am working on though.

I am still doing my blackwork.  In fact I will be doing at least two blackwork pieces this year.  One is the Peppermint Purple SAL.  The other one is another one of their patterns.  I also want to work on a couple more things but I will tell you about them later.

Now for some pictures.

I have been receiving some blocks from my block swaps and here they are.

Then we have my blackwork.  This is actually two weeks from the SAL.

And this is the first block from Words to Live By.

I hope you have enjoyed what I plan to work on.  What are your plans for 2024?

Am I a glutton for punishment?

      Maybe.  Why do I say this?  Because I've decided to work again on a HAED (Heaven and Earth Designs) .  I have so many and I know I won't be able to finish them all before I die but I can at least start on one.   The owl that I was working on pissed me off.  I made a mistake and didn't realize it until I was well past it and couldn't, or didn't want to, go back and unstitch 90% of what I had done.  That turned me off of cross stitch, except for the blackwork, and now it is time to back into it.  I still didn't feel like I wanted to go back to the Owl or other charts that I had started but only stitched around 100 stitches into it.  I will pull out those stitches and packed the fabric and chart away for another time.  THEN I ran across the pattern that called to me.  It is called Battle.  Here it is.

     It will be quite awhile before I finish it but that is ok.  I've seldom finished projects on time.  I supposed I will have to change my thinking since I ended up finished my 2023 Blackwork SAL.  Well I finished the stitching but not anything else.  It will take me a bit to figure out what I want to do with it.  I'm not in a hurry.

     This week, after Christmas, I dug out a lot of UFOs and wrote them down so I can work on them a little at a time.  I'm not sure if I will work a full month on a particular UFO or just a couple of weeks and then change it up?  We'll see how it goes.  I'll let you know.

     It's time for me to sign off and get to bed.  I hope you all have a good wee and a Hapyy New Year.

     Until next time...relax.

Getting to the end of 2023

      Can you believe it?  2023 is almost ended and 2024 is right around the corner.  So what do I have to report?  Not everything I probably should but my mind is a little chaotic right now so let's see what I DO remember.

     I've been busy making up Dan's snack box.  It is finally finished and I will probably give it to him on Saturday.  That is only one day early but since he is picking me up to go with him to Tennessee on Saturday to meet up with some friends, I think I will give it to him then. He will have leftovers to handle on Sunday so this will be a better plan...I think.

     The snack box consists of:

A pint of homemade cocoa mix

A 2 liter of butterscotch steamer

1 quart of egg nog

1 chicken cream cheese ball

     The recipe for the chicken cream cheese ball:

 2 blocks cream cheese

1 packet ranch seasoning

1 drained can of chicken ( or leftover chicken chopped up – however much you want to add)

Combine all into a ball (or be lazy like me and just put it in a bowl) You can also top the cheese ball with chopped nuts if you wish.

Chocolate cake mix cookies

peanut butter cookies

fruit cake (the size they sell that is like a rectangle

2 cans of oysters - he loves these and then lets the cats lick out the cans when he is done.  LOL

Some thin mints

1 small tine of chocolate hazelnut pirollin

a box of crackers

A 3 musketeers bar

and oreos.

     I also have some finishes craft wise.  I finished my 2023 black work and am collecting the materials to start the 2024 stitch a long.

    I put a picture of it on my last not that long ago so just scroll down and you'll see it.      I received n the mail a box from Ann L. the other day and it was fun to go through.  She had a craft box which had a lot of doodads in it.  Everything from buttons to hooks and other things I'm not sure what they are but I'll have fun figuring it out.  

    The white circles you see are smaller containers that have beads in them.  I pulled them out from another area and eventually will open them up and put in the box so I can recycle those small containers. 

     That's about it.  I feel like Santa.  I'm making a list and checking it twice to keep on schedule.  The biggest challenge I have today  is going to be how to finish an in the hoop cross stitch ornament.  The stitching is done but I've never made anything like an ornament.  So now I "have" to watch YouTube videos to see how it is done...or find one I can understand.  I'll post a picture after I know the recipient has received it.  Hehehe.

   I'm off to do my research.  I hope you all have a great day and an even better holiday.

A finish and other things...

 Ok.  This will be a short post since it is my busy time of year.  I'm sure it is your busy time also.  I am happy to report that I have finished my 2023 Blackwork SAL!  Yes, you read that right.  I finished the stitching.  It's not put together or anything because I'm not sure if it will be a pillow or wall hanging or whatever. 

Because you are all so supportive of me, I'll even show you the back.  It's not pretty but in actuality, it is better than most I've done.  Nobody else should see it so that is fine also.  :)

Since this seems to be a picture day, let me include some more.  I have been so blessed this month by friends who have sent me goodies.  Let me share some of the pictures with you.

First up is a gift from my friend Susan.  See those two new needle minders I get to add to my collection?  I just LOVE the idea of a needle minder in the shape of embroidery floss.  She knows me so well!

Speaking of knowing me, another friend sent me a box full of goodies.  What I am showing you is not all of it!  I can't believe Ann took the time to wrap everything up.  She made one mistake though.  She didn't put a note that says do not open until Xmas so I went ahead and opened up all those small packages.

Ann drew this herself and I think she picked out the perfect frame for it.  Her artwork is improving each day.

Also in the bx was a cute sewing kit.  I really liked that it had a hard case to it so it should be good to carry around.

Isn't this a cute candle?  I just love candles and it has been a pain not to light it up yet.  I know I could but I'm trying to save it until Christmas day.

And no stocking is complete without a selection of goodies.  I might be able to resist lighting up the candle right now, but I couldn't resist eating the cookies and most of the bag of marshmallows.  LOL.

There was some fabric and other things in the box but I might share them with you another day.  Speaking of sharing, did I show you the block I sent for the December exchange?  If so, then sorry to posting it twice.  I'm sure you'll forgive me.  :)   

I thought this was a good block for December.  I have to now sign off and get back to work on the things that I still need to mail out.  I hope everybody has a great day!

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.

Welcome to December!

 Wow, December is already here.  I've been busy with projects and will post some of them later in the month.  In the meantime, I hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving.  Are you thinking already about what to make for Christmas?  I've had a habit of giving homemade things at Christmas and that usually means quilt, cross stitch, or food related.  Do you have all your food figured out?  Food was on my mind today since it was Food Pantry day.  I was given some meat which was totally great but I was surprised at how little canned food was in the box.  One can of sliced carrots.  I know that there were a couple of other cans of things but no green beans or corn which was surprising.  Also no rice and only a small box of macaroni noodles.  Not much, right?  Still that will be put to good use.  

One of the meats that I got was a small rotisserie chicken. I took off the meat from the bones and put the carcass in a pan with some onions and celery tops (after cutting up the ribbed celery).  Some spices and before I knew it, I had some nicely flavored chicken broth.  Tomorrow I will go through the bones and separate the chicken from the bones.  

I also made some Taco Spaghetti.  I made it a little spicier than normal but some sour cream on top put it into a nice spice level.  I will put it in some freezer bags tomorrow.  It is in the fridge tonight to finish cooling off.

Speaking of cooking.  Here are some recipes and tips for you.

This was a typical cream cheese, mayo, bacon, and ranch dressing dip.

Just some recipes I found on Facebook.

It's soup season.  This sounded good.

Do you know that Flour can go bad?  Do you know how long it lasts?

This recipe had me at Peppermint and Oreo. 

But after all of that, I think we need a little something to wash it all down with.

I will be making a new recipe this weekend or next week.  It is only two ingredients and if it turns out ok, it will be part of Dan's Christmas snack box.  Can you guess the ingredients?  I will give you a hint that it is a cookie.

Anyway, that's it for this report.  Have fun!