Doubletree hotel cookies (or as the kids call them: One Tree Hill cookies)

when our family goes on vacation, it is an ordeal fun way to spend great time preparing and planning and enjoying our time and each other. over the years, due to family size, money constrains and now just plain tradition, we have several things we do each and every time.

with exception of taking the family on a cruise last year for christmas, we typically go to the beach.

now that we have chuck in our lives (have you read before that he hates--i mean HATES sand?) we go to the mountains when we can as well.

this year will be both!

i used to cook ahead as much as i could to save on work at the beach. one year--don't remember why, i just couldn't.

the place we stayed had a grill and we planned our meals around that.

it was divine...and a divine inspiration, i might say

every meal was cooked on it....outside, on the sand, overlooking the beach, which typically coincided with sunset time.

i never knew what i was missing...boy, now i know. and i won't be missing a sunset due to being in the kitchen again.....if i have anything to say about it.

one of our traditions became these cookies. i wanted something that we could fix there, eat fresh and not spend a lot of time making.

so.

i made the dough for these cookies, froze the balls, put them in a ziplock and voila. fresh, hot out of the oven cookies each night for dessert (ok..except for the nights we had key lime pie, and homemade ice-cream and roasted marshmallows.).....

um...i think we may have had all of the above on our last night of cleaning the frig out.

these cookies are so so good. my friend, alicia, is a great baker. she found this recipe on top-secret recipes website. these are the cookies that the Doubletree Hotel used to leave in your room at the bed turn down. not sure if they still do, but it doesn't matter to me now ;)

Doubletree Hotel Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2. Grind oats in a food processor or blender until fine. Combine the ground oats with the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. 3. Cream together the butter, sugars, vanilla, and lemon juice in another medium bowl with an electric mixer. Add the eggs and mix until smooth. 4. Stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture and blend well. Add the chocolate chips and nuts to the dough and mix by hand until ingredients are well incorporated. 5. Spoon rounded 1/4-cup portions onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Place the scoops about 2 inches apart. You don't need to press the dough flat. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes or until cookies are light brown and soft in the middle. Store in a sealed container when cool to keep soft. For the best results, chill the dough overnight in the refrigerator before baking the cookies.

9 little kittens who lost their mittens........

i have held on to these mittens for 30 years now....or at least 1 of each set :) i am not much on sentimentality.  i am pretty much a suck it up and move on kind of person.  i toss things that aren't needed.

except these mittens...for some reason.  and they always came out when it got cold and we would sort through them and put the unmatched ones and the ones that didn't fit any longer back in the box.

until 8 years ago.

in our kitchen, we have a huge window....ok...in the nook/dining area.  i love the light it lets in!  but it is a big, bare window.

during our first christmas season in this house, it turned cold.  we pulled out the mittens and gloves.  there was this huge stack of mismatched and too littles.....and i had a lightbulb moment.

why not use them for decorations?  I hung a string from end to end of the window and hung the mittens like a clothesline.

it has become one of my most favorite decorations.  and it's always is the topic of conversation...whether with friends or family....who's is who's and who wore that one and remember when's........

to fill in the empty spaces on the line, we even put our current, matching sets up there....its kinda funny when it snows and they are hanging up, to have the kids go get their gloves from the line :)  they'll even wear them mis-matched, which makes for great pictures!

i went to go find them last night.  they weren't in their regular spot.  my heart skipped a little.  remembering back on last year, i remember pulling them out of our ever growing box (that couldn't close any longer) and deciding they just needed to go with the regular decorations. we bagged them up and put them with the decorations.

they aren't there.

this brings tears now, as i type....i am going miss all those itty bitty mittens....one pair was from my oldest when she was 6 months old.  they all held lots of memories

i am thankful for the tears...it means there is a part of my heart that is healing...a part that holds on to things that mean a LOT....a part that is sentimental :)

i am praying they are just misplaced.  i have this feeling they ended up in a 'let's clean the garage and anything that doesn't belong needs to go' spree.....

whatever the cause for the missing mittens....i am so thankful god prompted me to take pictures of them....just last year.

and i am thankful for the memories these little mittens hold.

warm meal on a COLD day!

Well, its cooooooold here in north Texas!  we have wind chills into the below's :)  .  The kids are out of school and it is crazy around here.  We have done our traditional making donuts out of canned biscuits and home made hot chocolate for breakfast.  We have not been able to make it to Starbucks (our other fun tradition for the first snow of the season) because the roads are too bad.  Everyone is still in pjs and we are looking forward to having a warm dinner, sitting by the fire and watching the school closings in hopes of another day tomorrow (ok...they are...not necessarily me--just being honest :)).

One of my favorite cold weather meals is beef stew.  I have made it for years, and it was *ok*, but when we lived in McKinney, we frequented the pantry, a homestyle cooking restaurant.  The food served was, again, *ok*, but the desserts were to die for  good and I loved going in the afternoons during nap time, when the older ones were finishing school work.  I could just escape for a bit and breathe.  They have a cookbook that I honestly got for some of those yummy desserts, but after looking through it, decided to try some of the other recipes...oh, so glad I did....this one is one of our favorites out of the book.  Once we tried it, my old way of making beef stew became a forgotten memory...this is how it is done from here on out....enjoy!  oh, one of the main tricks to this recipe (and any like this using potatoes) is to cook the potatoes ahead of time...what I do is have a baked potato dinner the night or two before, making enough for this meal...once cooled, they are a cinch to peel and cut up and they don't dissolve in the cooking process....makes it really, really yummy!!!

beef stew

• 1 1/2 lbs stew meat
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 onions, diced coursely (if you have read earlier posts, you know I blend these up in the liquid that is used--much more accepted by the kids)
• 3 Tablespoons beef base or beef broth ( I ALWAYS keep chicken, beef and veggie base on hand)
• 2 Cups celery, sliced
• 4 potatoes, baked and cooled overnight--then on cooking day, peeled and diced
• 4-6 carrots, sliced (depending on how much you like)
• 1 can peas ( I never use these, since if I did not one person would TOUCH the whole meal--I put in corn, either canned or frozen--I like frozen better)
• black pepper
• kitchen bouquet (i don't use this--I add a couple of tablespoons of worcestershire sauce instead
• 6 Tablespoons flour
• 1/2 Cup butter, melted

In a large pot, cook beef in oil until browed on the outside.  Add onions, beef base and about 4-5 cups of water.  Cook on low heat for about 1 hour. Add celery, carrots, potatoes and corn, if desired.  Continue cooking until vegetables are tender (about 30 minutes).  Stir flour into butter.  Slowly whisk into stew, until desired thickness is achieved.   Add peas.  Season with pepper, kitchen bouquet and /or worcestershire sauce.

I always make these yeast rolls with this stew...it is a given now...to be able to sop up the juices and gravy with these rolls and then to eat them for dessert with butter and honey.....ewwww weeeeee!

I actually think I got this recipe in Home Ec in High School....YAY, Mrs. Clark.  Thank you!  I think they are the little angle biscuits we made first year, but no matter...they are so good!  We have them now at most Holiday meals because you can make the dough ahead and pull it out when you are ready.  SOOOO good!!!!

refrigerator yeast rolls

• 1 package dry yeast (I use bulk and use 1 Tablespoon)
• 1/2 Cup warm water
• 1/2 Cup shortening, melted ( I use butter)
• 4 1/2 Cups flour
• 1/2 Cups sugar
• 1 Tablespoon + 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 Cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400*.  Dissolve yeast in water and let stand for 5 minutes.  Stir in butter.  Combine dry ingredients in another bowl.  Add to yeast mixture.  Mix and turn dough.  Knead on a floured board until a good texture (don't ya love detail--its from high school...sorry)....I just knead until its easy to handle and not too gooey.  Shape dough into ball, place in a greased bowl and cover till ready for use.  When ready, make small balls (size depends on your need and desire--we have had them the size of golf balls and the size of softballs :) ).  Put on a 'pammed' cookie sheet ( I put them just barely touching to make them rise up and be soft on the sides).  Bake for 8-10 minutes in 400* oven.   Sometimes, I will brush them with butter as they get out of the oven.

my {not hair} roots are showing.....

its new years day and how i grew up that means one thing--well, two--black eyed peas and football...not necessarily in that order.  my children LOATHE the idea of peas for ANY meal, but we do have them offered :)  I eat them, my hubby eats them and anyone who joins us that day usually does, too.  I have found a great recipe to make them a bit different that the usual--mexican black eyed peas.

I also grew up on turnip greens.  LOVE them :) .  get them any time i can at a home cooking kind of place.  i have never cooked them and they have always intimidated me, but yesterday at the grocery store, there was one bag left....and that was too much of a challenge to pass up.  i brought them (and the peas) home and the kids all went bonkers.....'what are those?  do we have to eat them?  when are you fixing them?  what else can we have with them (meaning what can we cover the flavor with)'...

today, i cooked the greens, peas and cornbread....YUMMMMMMMM!  here are the recipes.....

black eyed peas--mexican style

• 1/2 C chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 3 slices bacon
• 16 oz diced tomatoes
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 Tbl chili powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 cups black eyed peas--today i used the frozen bags of them and put it all in together at the same time...

This is what I do: (because I rarely follow the directions given, nor do I remember them or keep them)

Cook black eyed peas til almost done. Fry bacon til crispy. Add onion and garlic and cook til tender. Add to the black eyed peas and stir in tomatoes and spices. Finish cooking until peas are tender.

turnip greens

I got this recipe from a southern cooking google search....

• Thoroughly wash 2 pounds of greens. Two or more washings may be necessary. ( I bought already cleaned and torn greens)
• Trim tough stalks and tear or cut large greens in pieces. Cut thick veins out of collard greens. (I like some of the stalks, it gives more fiber :))
• In a large pot, bring 6 to 7 quarts of water to a boil. ( i put the greens in at the same time as the water and used 9 cups and a table spoon of chicken base)
• Add a ham hock or a 4-ounce piece of salt pork to the pot. ( i put in a lb of cooked bacon with some of the renderings)
• Add a tablespoon of salt. ( also added 1/2 a chopped onion, a Tbl of vinegar and 2 cloves of garlic)
• Continue boiling for 10 or 15 minutes.
• Add the washed greens to the pot.
• Cover and simmer until greens are tender. Depending on the type of greens used, this might take an hour.
• Makes enough for 4 people.

Tips:

1. Crushed red pepper, a few tablespoons of bacon grease, chopped onion, or other seasonings can be added to the pot for more flavorful greens.
2. Serve with cornbread and pepper sauce or cider vinegar.
3. If desired, serve with chopped hard boiled eggs, bacon pieces, or sliced green onion for garnish.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

here comes Santa!!!

one thing we {try to} do each year is get the kids picture made with Santa.  this has taken a life of its own now :)  When my 1st was born, i was allllll into the santa thing.  after my second was born, i had come into the belief that to believe in santa was a sin and to tell you kids a lie about santa was an unpardonable sin :(  so, i began telling my kids there was no such thing as santa from birth, pretty much. well, the kids have decided their own path with santa.  Some totally don't want to believe in him and some, no matter how much they are told he is not 'real' still want to make cookies for him and want to talk to him every year.

My {ex} mother-in-law LOVES to have Santa pictures of the children,so we started out getting santa pictures done for her--but of course, I had to have one, too :) .  On a trip to a friends house during the holidays one year, i noticed that she had all her kids' santa pictures in a basket as part of her Christmas decorations.  I LOVED that idea.  I hate to have pictures that aren't useful or don't document a passage of time or a moment.  so.  I decided i wanted them displayed.  I started hanging them on a big red ribbon and hang them on the wall.  we are now up to 4 ribbons about 4 feet long.  we have had santa pictures made every year but two.  i have no idea why that didn't happen, but it was during a very hard time as a young, homeschooling, wife of a pastor, mom.  this has become the highlight of our decorations with our family and guests.  the only thing that comes close at our house is the fact that each child receives an ornament each year and our tree is heavy laden with ornaments.

the oldest picture is 26 years old, made with a polaroid camera and are beginning to lose their color and sharpness.  I decided this was the year to digitalize them....here is a slide show of the pictures.  the last few years, though, we have found a santa that camps in his front yard each and every night for pictures.  we LOVE it :).  no lines, no crowds.  we have a tradition of going out to eat dinner--at a nice place :) (which for a large family is a huge deal...financially and practically) and then go get our pictures made.  it is one time when all the kids are committed on being here!  We do have one picture where the 2 oldest just could not make it home from school/work.  each picture has its own story with it and there are some that are my absolute favorite pictures.  the kids LOVE to gather round them and talk about all the special memories--most funny, some not....one of my most favorite things of the christmas season.....

Holiday Turkey

ok...this has to be one of the best turkey recipes I have Ever found....and the story behind it is pretty good too :) I had a friend (i say had because I haven't seen her in YEARS)...who was single. cooking and the kitchen were not really her specialty.  one year, she came home from visiting family boasting about this magnificent turkey recipe....she cooked it for us on New Year's day...I asked for the recipe...she said no, it was a family secret and I could not have it....ok...I don't know about you, but when someone tells me that, I am determined to find it or figure it out :D.   She would not tell me ANYthing...I remember it tasting almost cajun, and it was soooo yummy.  I tried to  let it go.   Fast forward a year or two down the road.  She was moving.  Needed help with packing.  She put me in charge of packing up the kitchen, 'since I was a natural in the kitchen and all'.  well, I was packing away, just minding my own business, and went to the top of the refrigerator.  ALLLLL these papers came pouring down...and wouldn't ya know it?  that recipe for the turkey was RIGHT on the top of the stack....ah, my luck.....well, I knew she did not want me to have this recipe, so copying it was out of the question...so I wrote the main parts on my hand...yep...I was determined to get it....but what i didn't count on was the sweat washing some of it off.....when I realized that had happened, I read it and re-read it and repeated it to myself so much I memorized it.  I went home and quickly wrote it out.  I didn't make it until the next Holiday season, so I was going off a pregnant and nursing mama's memory...not much there--so it became my own rendition...

I did change the original recipe a tad bit...it called for 2 bottles of squeeze margarine....YUK!!!!! (in my humble opinion)....so I used butter instead....and when we had it, it was not as cajun tasting as I remember, but it was a HIT...and we have it EVERY Thanksgiving and EVERY Christmas....almost without fail....we are not even turkey eaters and my kids BEG for this turkey.  the leftovers are not your typical make-a-soup kind.  BUT, we hardly have any left overs after one meal after Thanksgiving.

Holiday Turkey

• 1 turkey, thawed (we use a HUGE one)
• 4 heads of garlic
• Lawry's seasoned salt--must be Lawry's
• 1 lb. butter
• 2 bottles of white cooking wine (you could use just 1, but it makes more gravy and we never have enough--or you could use regular wine--I don't know how to buy that, so I get this)

Peel all the cloves of garlic.  Take a knife and pierce the meat of  turkey and put cloves, one at a time into the meat.  Cover the turkey with the inserts of cloves of garlic.  It will look like it has mumps or something.  Rub the  inside of the turkey with some of the seasoned salt and put into roaster.  Pour the wine in the bottom of the roaster and place all the butter in bottom of pan.  Cook at 325, basting every 15 minutes with  wine, butter, and drippings,  and then sprinkle with seasoned salt, until  tested done.

Gravy

Pour all juices from pan into sauce pan.  Blend 1/4 c. cornstarch and  water together and blend with juices.  Cook over medium heat until thickened. I slice turkey and put some of the gravy over meat and leave extra on  table for potatoes and biscuits.  YUM!!!!!!!

linked up today with chatting at the sky and sweet shot tuesday