Humanitarian Projects Delivered!!

   We finally delivered 100 baby dolls and their blankets to the Humanitarian Center.  We hope we make some little girls happy!  We also dropped off 20 quilts. With all of the recent disasters, the quilts will be very useful to someone who has probably lost everything.  Good Work Sisters!! 

Marilyn's Bookshelf

du Maurier, Daphne, Rebecca

If you’ve never read any of du Mauier’s novels, of course the one you should start with is Rebecca, a great summer read.  The great stone house of Manderley on the Cornish coast of England sets the scene for the novel, as the second Mrs. DeWinter enters the scene with her new husband, Maxim.  Unfortunately, Housekeeper Mrs. Danvers, who has served the first Mrs. DeWinter is not at all happy with the arrival of the new wife.  As this tale unfolds, we are swept into phantoms of the past which wind a spell around the reader.  Du Maurier is a master of her craft as she takes us into the past with the life of Rebecca – truths and untruths.  You may just get hooked and decide to read others of the author, like Jamaica Inn, Frenchman’s Creek,or My Cousin Rachel.

Blogging and Brunch

Frances taught us how to blog today! Thanks Frances!!
Jill made us a fabulous Quiche today! Thanks Jill!!
Thanks to everyone else who came to learn how to blog
and for the yummy food.

QUICHE
1- 9" unbakes pie crust
1 cup 4 oz. shredded swiss cheese
6 slices bacon- cooked and crumbled
3/4 cup ham- minced
2 green onions chopped
1/2 green pepper diced
3 eggs- beaten
1 cup light cream
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. dry mustard
Bake crust for 5 minutes at 425 degrees. Remove. Set oven to 325 degrees.
Put cheese, bacon, ham,in crust.  Sprinkle onion and pepper on top.
Mix eggs, cream, salt, mustard in blender or beater.
Pour mix over other ingredients in crust.
Bake at 325 for 45 minutes (Knofe clean test)
Stand 10 minutes before cutting

Manti...A turkish Style Ravioli

Ingredients:
1 Qt. Middle East Yogurt
5 Lg. garlic cloves
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 Lb. lamb (lean, ground)
1 small shallot finely chopped
1 tsp. Italian parsley finely chopped
2 pkg. wonton wrappers (3x3 square)
2 large eggs lightly beaten
1/4  lb. butter
1 tsp. paprika (fresh, fresh!)
1/2 cup Italian parsley chopped

Method:
Crush the garlic with the salt into a paste, mix it into the yogurt and set the mixture aside.

Gring the lamb, chopped shallots, chopped parsley, a pinch of salt and fresh cracked pepper together and keep cold.  Get a large pot of water boiling on the stove at this point.

On a lightly floured surface lay out about a dozen wonton skins.  Place "about" 1/2 teaspoon of the ground lamb in the middle of each wonton skins.  Dipping your finger (or a small brush) in the beaten egg, coat the perimeter of the skins.  Next you just fold corner to corner forming a triangle, pressing the edges firmly to seal.  Place the completed assemblies on a lightly floured cookie sheet and cover with wax paper.  Repeat the process with another twelve wonton skins until you get to the end of the second package.

Drop about two dozen Monty into the boiling water immediately reducing the heat to acheive a very light boil.  Cook for about four minutes.  Generally, the Monty will float to the surface when they are done.  Carefully scoop them out of the hot water and drain in a colander for a few minutes.  Meanwhile, cook your butter to a nice golden brown.

Place about a dozen Monty on a nine inch plate, spoon a generous amount of the garlic yogurt over the top, drizzle some hot browned butter over the top of that, give it a pinch of paprika and a generous pinch of chopped parsley. Top with a warm marinara sauce.

Cheers! From my family to yours, Chef Rick Raile

Marilyn's Bookshelf

Here’s one last book from the Canyon Readers’ selections from last year.

Enger, Leif, Peace Like a River

Jeremiah Land, a school janitor who harks back to the biblical Jeremiah in his absolute faith and trust in the Lord, is the midwestern father of three children.  After provocation, his 16-year-old son, Davy, shoots two intruders.  Reuben (Rube), the 11-year-old and narrator, a la Huck Finn, who also suffers from asthma, sees the unfolding of the events of this story through amazingly mature eyes.  His father, who claims no great powers, obviously is responsible for "miracles."  Precocious little sister, Swede, who writes western poetry, is the fourth of this strong, if unusual family.  The family "inherits" an Airstream trailer and hits off to search for brother Davy who has escaped from jail.  Their propitious meeting and extended stay with Roxanna turns out to feel like home.  The strength and integrity of Jeremiah dominates this novel.  He is torn between his love for Davy and his sense of right and wrong.  A great first novel from the author. 

Improving Relationships

April Sorbonne taught us an incredible class about relationship skills.  We learned how to determine whether others might see us as prickly and how we might react to other peoples quills.   Through the atonement we are able to "sharpen" our relationship skills and become a better person.

Take the test by Dr. John Lund and see how many quills you might have.



Am I A Porcupine? 
How Many Quills Do I Have?
(Have others said of you? 
Do they think this of you?)
T or F 1. You're a perfectionist!
T or F 2. You're a controlling person!
T or F 3. You're a highly critical person.
T or F 4. No one is ever good enough for you!
T or F 5. You hold grudges a long time.
T or F 6. You are stingy on compliments.
T or F 7. You're often blaming others.
T or F 8. You're impossible to please!
T or F 9. You withhold love as a punishment.
T or F 10. You can seldom give a compliment with out a "but.." following.
T or F 11. You are judgmental.
T or F 12. You are easily offended.
T or F 13. You often contradict others.
T or F 14. You frequently complain about what isn't being done.
T or F 15. You frequently interrupt and correct others.
T or F 16. You parent equals by telling them what they "should, need, and ought" to do.
T or F 17. You are mad, upset, mad or angry much of the time.
T or F 18. You react to others not doing what you want them to do by yelling, screaming, swearing, or name calling.
T or F 19. You make threats of divorce or abandonment.
T or F 20. You are rude, insensitive, curt, abrupt, and do not respect the opinions of others.
T or F 21. You see yourself as more hard working, or more responsible, or more capable, or more intelligent than others.
Total "True" Answers:______
Explanation for number of true answers:
0-3 Normal, but not necessarily healthy.
4-7 Critical and hard to live with.
8-12 Highly critical and non-accepting of others.
13-16 Definitely toxic and dangerous to the self-worth of all.
17-19 I foresee divorce, rebellion, rejection, and conflicted relationships.
20-21 You are suited for living alone on an island.

Chewy Macaroons
Ingredients:
3 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Combine coconut, flour and salt.
3. Stir in vanilla and milk.
4. Drop from a tablespoon onto a greased cookie sheet.
5. Bake for 13 minutes or until golden brown.

*We made these delicious cookies for our treat after April's class.  A few tips when making these cookies:
1. They cook great on Parchment paper- no sticking!
2. You may need to add a little more coconut if the dough is too runny.
3. We made the cookies to be about 2 inches round- they took 25-30 minutes to cook.
4. For an extra treat- we melted chocolate chips them spread them on the bottom of the cookie! They can then be refrigerated to let the chocolate cool and harden.
ENJOY!!

Slow Cooker Recipes

Zesty Italian Crockpot Chicken

• 6-8 chicken breasts
• 4 tsp butter
• 2 cans cream of chicken soup
• 1 - 8 oz pkg cream cheese
• 1 pkg dry Italian seasoning mix

Place chicken in slow cooker with butter.  Sprinkle Italian dressing over chicken.  When chicken is cooked, add the cream of chicken soup.  An hour prior to serving, stir and add cream cheese in cubes on top.  Cook on high, 4-6 hours.  Stir before serving.  Serve over rice.

Nutty Apple Streusel Dessert

• 6 cups sliced peeled tart apples
• 1 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 2 Tbsp butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup biscuit/baking mix

Topping:

• 1 cup biscuit/baking mix
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 Tbsp cold butter
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

In a large bowl, toss apples with cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg.  Place in a greased slow cooker.  In a mixing bowl, combine milk, butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and baking mix; mix well.  Spoon over apples.
For topping, combine the biscuit mix and brown sugar in a bowl; cut in butter until crumbly.  Add almonds; sprinkle over the apples.
Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hrs or until the apples are tender.
Serve w/ Ice Cream or Whipping Cream.

Slow Cooker Tips and Tricks

1. If you lift the lid to peek, add 30 min to cooking time
2. Fresh herbs will lose flavor over cooking time = add during last hour of cooking (dried herb flavors intensify)
3. Fill slow cooker only 1/2 - 2/3 full, not to the top
4. Foods on bottom cook faster & will be more moist = place root veggies in first/at bottom
5. 2 hrs on low in slow cooker = 1 hr on high
6. Converting an oven recipe for the slow cooker:

• Slow cooker low = 200* in oven
• Slow cooker high = 300* in oven
• Use 1/3 to 1/2 the liquid called for in oven recipe (liquid will not boil away in slow cooker)