I have a great recipe for you.  It should be in the front or beginning of every recipe book.

1 cup of good thoughts

1 cup of kind deeds

1 cup of consideration for others

2 cups of sacrifice for others

3 cups of forgiveness

3 cups of unconditional love

Mix the above thoroughly and add:

Tears of joy and sorow and sympathy for others,

Flavor with little gifts of love,

Fold in 4 cups of prayer and faith to lighten others ingredients and raise the texture to a great height of christian living,

Pour all of this into your daily life, bake well with the heat of human kindness,

Serve with a smile.

This recipe has an endless amount of servings and lasts a long time.

Share with all you know.

gogi

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Tonight was a fun night.  We invited our neighbors over for a pizza and salad. It was a spur of the moment idea and turned out great!

First of all my husband and I have decided we like our homemade pizza better than the ones we have delivered or buy at the store.  One night when I was late getting home  my husband had gotten into the cookbook and found a pizza dough from "scratch".   What a surprise!  He raided the refrigerator and found a variety of items.  He found everything from left-over ham, olives, peppers, onions, miscellaneous cheeses from Christmas, and you name it.  He carefully chopped and sliced, made the dough from the recipe book and came up with a deliciious pizza.  He was proud and so was I.

Since then we have made several different kinds of pizza depending on what we have on the shelf or in the refrigerator.  Tonight was one of those nights.  I simply made a phone call right after my neighbors got home from work and asked if they would be iintrested in a pizza for dinner.  They said yes. They were here by about 6:30 and the pizza was ready.  We had not only pizza and salad but for dessert we had oatmeal cookies and peanut brittle that my neighbor brought to share with us.  Now if that wasn’t a great meal I don’t know what you would call it!!  We laughed and had a wonderful evening.  

Actually, the food is important but most of all the time spent with friends is also important.  Sometimes we just don’t get to know our neighbors and  the peace it creates just knowing who is next to you or down the street.  We look out for one another in so many ways and care about our neighborhood.  

Try reaching out to your neighbors with a meal or a gift of food.  It is a way of saying a lot with so little effort.

‘Enjoy,

gogi 

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Marjoram

May be used both dry or green.  Used to flavor fish, poultry, omelets, lamb, stew, stuffing and tomato juice.

Mint

Leaves are aromatic with a cool flavor.  Excellent in beverages, fish, cheese, lamb, soup, peas, carrots. and fruit desserts.

Oregano

Strong aromatic odor.  Use whole or ground to spice tomato juice, fish, eggs,pizza, omelets, chili, stew, gravy, poultry and vegetables.

Paprika

A bright red pepper.  This spice is used in meat, vegetables and soups.  Can be used as a garnish for potatoes, salads or eggs.

Parsley

Best when used fresh but can be used dry.  Use as garnish or seasoning.  Try in fish, omelets, soup, meat, stuffing and mixed greens.

Rosemary

Very aromatic, used fresh or dried.  Season fish, stuffing, beef, lamb, poultry, onions, eggs and bread.

Saffron

Orange yellow in color, this spice is used to flavor or color foods.  Use in soup, chicken, rice and   fancy breads.

Sage

Use fresh or dried.  The flowers are sometimes used in salads.  May be used in tomato juice, fish, fondue, omelets, beef, poultry, stuffing, cheese spreads, cornbread and biscuits.

Tarragon

Leaves have a pungent, hot taste.  Use to flavor sauces, salads, meat, poultry, tomatoes and dressings.

There you have it.  A few more herbs and spices to get acquainted with.  Try them often and enjoy the new flavors in your life!!!

gogi

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Basil 

Sweet warm flavor with an aromatic odor, used whole or ground.  Good with lamb, fish, roast, stews, ground beef, vegetables, dressing and omelets.

Bay leaves

A pungent  flavor , use whole leaf but remove fefore serving.  Good in vegetable dishes, fish and seafood, stew and pickles.

Caraway

Has a spicy smell and aromatic taste.  Use in cakes, breads, soups, cheese and sauerkraut.

Chives

Sweet mild flavor of onion, this herb is excellent in salads, fish, soups and potatoes.

Curry Powder

A number of spices combined to proper proportions to give a distinct flavor to such dishes as meat, poultry, fish and vegetables.

Dill

Both seeds and leaves of dill are flavorful.  Leaves may be used to garnish or cook with fish, soup, dressings, potatoes and beans.  Leaves of the whole plant may be used to spice dill pickles.  

Fennel

Both seeds and leaves are used.  It has a sweet hot flavor.  Use in small quantities in pies and baked goods.  Leaves can be boiled with fish.

Ginger

A pungent root, this aromatic spice is sold fresh, fried, or gound.  Used in pickles, preserves, cakes, cookies, soups and meat dishes.

Try to become more acquainted with the herbs and spices available.  They really do enhance your cooking and baking. 

More info on herbs and spices later.

gogi

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HOW TO STORE FLOUR;

Store in airtight container in cool, dry place for 15 months.  Any longer than that, wrap in plastic bag and refrigerate or freeze.  Bring to room temperature before using.

HOW TO measure FLOUR;

Spoon flour into standard dry ingredient measuring cup and then level with a knife or spatula.

HOW TO SUBSTITUTE FLOUR;

Unbleached all purpose flour can be used in recipes calling for self-rising flour.  For each cup of flour in the recipe, add 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

NUMBER OF CUPS PER POUND;

3 1/3 cups per pound

17 1/2 cups per 5 pounds

gogi

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Aunt Eleanor used to make the best sandwiches when we were kids and we always called them Aunt Eleanor’s sammiches.  They could  be any flavor:

peanut butter and lots of jelly

egg salad with lots of lettuce and mayo

good ole bologna with all the triimmings- sliced onions, garden tomatoes, lettuce, mayo, mustard or you name it

scrambled egg and bacon sandwich…….

Whatever it was we always liked her to conger us up a good one.

You can do that also with whatever it is you have in your refrigerator or cupboard.  Be creative!! You will be surprised what might become a family favorite and memory.

Some of my most favoarite foods are ones grandma uised to make when money was short and things were tough.\

Enjoy.

gogi

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If you like mashed potatoes and are afraid they are going to put extra poounds on you, try this recipe.

5 large potatoes cut into pieces

3 1/2 cups chicken broth

pepper as desired - the more the better

Boil potatoes in broth until done.

Drain and save broth.

Mash potatoes with 1 1/4 cups broth and pepper.

If needed add more or less broth to potatoes (as desired).

Serves about 6 or 8 people.

Indulge,

gogi

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These beans are absolutely wonderful.  Fresh beans with garlic and walnuts give the dish a new twist!!

1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans trimmed

2 T olive oil

1/2 cup chopped walnuts finely chopped

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 clove garlic finely chopped

Bring salted water to boil and add beans. cook until tender- about 8 minutes and drain.  Submerge in ice bath until chilled.  Shake off excess water.  Heat oil in large skillet  and add walnuts.  Stir until lightly browned  Add beans, garlic, salt and pepper.  Heat throuigh and serve. 

I’ve never done this recipe with canned beans. I think they would be mushy!!  You need the fresh beans.

Enjoy,

gogi

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Here are a few more tips for you girls!

To make scrambled eggs or omelets rich, add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream  and then beat well.

Add garlic at the beginning of a recipe if you want a light taste and at the end of the recipe if you want a stronger taste.

Expand frosting that you buy at the store by beating it for a few minutes so it will double in size.  You can get more coverage out of it and eat less sugar and calories.

To reheat refrigerated bread, pancakes, biscuits,or muffins, place them in the microwave with a cup of water.  The increased moisture will keep them softer and they will heat faster.

To keep mosquitoes away, place a dryer sheet in your pocket.  It will keep the mosquitoes away.

To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum.  It can be bent or flattened to get into narrow and hard to reach openings.

Enjoy these little tidbits and see you later.

gogi

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I’m here with some wonderful household hints.  My friend Barbara here in Phoenix sent them to me the other day.  It seems like there are always some new and different ones surfacing all the time.  The following are some really great ones!!

Peel a banana from the bottom and up and you won"t have to pick the little stingy things out of it.  That is how the primates do it.

Take you bananas apart when you come home from the store.  If you leave them together, they will ripen faster.

Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil.  It will stay fresh much longer and not mold!

Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating.

Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottoom are firmer and better for cooking.

Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef.  It helps to pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.

These are just a few tips.  I’ll share more with you later.

Enjoy,

gogi

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