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Puttering around my world

1/19/16

Low Carb Blueberry Cobbler

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Blueberry Cobbler ­

Low Carb and Gluten Free

Filling:
3 c. blueberries
¼ t. xanthan gum (to thicken)
2 T. Splenda (or other sweetener)
1 t. lemon juice 

Topping:
2 T. butter
? c. almond flour
2 T. Splenda (or other sweetener)
½ t. lemon zest 

Instructions:

Spray or grease a 9 inch square baking dish. In a medium bowl, combine the blueberries, xanthan gum, sweetener, and lemon juice and mix well until the blueberries are coated.  Add the blueberry mixture to prepared pan (or smaller ramekins.)

Melt the butter in the microwave in an average sized coffee mug or bowl. Stir in the almond flour, sweetener, and lemon zest until a crumbly dough forms. Crumble the dough over the blueberries in pea (or larger) sized clumps.

Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the blueberries are bubbling.

Serve warm or cold. I whipped some heavy cream with Splenda for a topping.


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Comments (1)

1/14/16

Mushroom Chicken and Sausage Casserole

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Mushroom Chicken and Sausage Casserole

3-4 c. diced cooked chicken 
1 lb. pork sausage 
1 stalk celery, chopped fine 
1 T. onion, chopped 
½ lb. mushrooms, sliced 
8 oz. cream cheese, softened 
16 oz. bag frozen cauliflower, cooked well and drained 
8 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded 
Salt 
½ t. pepper 
Paprika, optional

Brown the sausage with the celery, onion and mushrooms. Stir the softened cream cheese into the sausage mixture until well blended. Coarsely chop the cooked cauliflower. Mix all of the ingredients and spread in a greased 9x13" baking dish. If desired, dust the top with paprika.

Bake at 350º for about 40 minutes until the top is nicely browned.

Makes 8-12 servings. 

Can be frozen.

Per 1/8 Recipe: 550 Calories; 40g Fat; 42g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 4g Net Carbs 
Per 1/10 Recipe: 440 Calories; 32g Fat; 34g Protein; 5g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 4g Net Carbs
 
Per 1/12 Recipe: 367 Calories; 27g Fat; 28g Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 3g Net Carbs

 


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1/13/16

Low Carb Cheesy Garlic Bread

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Cheesy Garlic Bread 

Ingredients (for bread base):

Bread:

3 egg whites, beaten until fluffy
1 ¼ c. almond flour
1 T. coconut flour
¼ t. salt
2 t. baking powder
¼ t. garlic powder
½  t. xanthan or guar gum (optional)l
¼ c. warm water
1 t. live yeast granules
1 t. coconut sugar (or honey or molasses– will be eaten by yeast)
2 T. olive oil or avocado oi
½ c. shredded mozzarella cheese

 Topping: 

2 T. butter, melted
¼ t. garlic powder
¼ t. salt
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
½ t. Italian seasoning 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Beat egg white.

2. In a large bowl, combine almond and coconut flour, salt, baking powder, garlic powder and xanthan gum. Stir well.

3. In a small cup or bowl, combine warm water and sugar and stir until dissolved, then add yeast. Set aside for a few moments.

4. To the flour mixture, add olive oil and yeast-water mixture and stir well with a rubber spatula. Add in beaten eggs and continue to mix.

5. Add in the ½ c. mozzarella shreds and mix gently with your spatula until a nice dough is formed and cheese is mixed well throughout.

6. Grease a 9×9 square cake pan or large cookie sheet. Put batter into cake pan or cookie sheet. If you’re free-forming on a cookie sheet, loosely form the dough into a rectangle or square.

7. Bake at 400 degrees for approx. 15-17 minutes or until the sides of the crust turn golden brown. Remove and top.

8. In a small bowl, combine butter, garlic powder and salt. Mix well, then brush over the top of the garlic bread base. Be sure to get the butter over every inch!

9. Top the bread with shredded mozzarella cheese, and then sprinkle that with Italian seasoning.

10. Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. For final 3 minutes, turn broiler on to brown the cheese.

11. Remove from oven and let bread stand for 5-10 minutes before serving (if you can wait that long).

 


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Comments (3)

6/27/15

Today

These babies are safe from all the rain...

I check them to make sure I haven't killed them yet. 

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Comments (6)

6/3/15

The deck

It's finally warm enough and not raining...so we're moving plants up to the deck, slowly, to give them a chance yo get used to the sun. 

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Comments (5)

5/30/15

Today

Mother's Day present from my daughter.
Phantom petunias and garden art
Lady's Mantle after rain showers
Salvia and irises
Garden photos. Playing around to learn what this looks like. Click on any photo you may want to enlarge. 
 

Comments (2)

4/19/15

Really Easy Clay Pot Lighthouse


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     These are so easy and adaptable that even I can make them, and I'm not creative. I went to Lowe's and experimented with the different sized clay pots until I'd found four pots and two saucers that worked well together.

     I spray painted the largest saucer with Stone spray paint. It could also have been painted black or red and turned upside down to sit the largest pot on top. I spray painted all the pots white. 
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     I used aluminum foil and painter's tape to cover everything but the rims of the pots. 
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     Painter's tape is so wonderfully forgiving. It can be positioned easily, and if a mistake is made, it can be repositioned with no trouble. 
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     And it's easy to fill in the gaps. 
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     Voila! 
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     I used Rustoleum paints, but any good outdoor paint will work. 
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     First, I sprayed the undersides of the rims, 
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then I turned the pots over and finished. [I also sprayed some extras for something else. ]
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     After 24 hours, I removed the tape and foil, used a stencil to draw the doors and windows [I said I'm challenged. I can't even draw a straight line.], and painted them with black gloss acrylic Patio Paint. An inexpensive lantern with a flickering LED candle inside finished it off. I plan to place the pebbles from that bag all around the base to give it the look of a lighthouse on a rocky cliff. 
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Comments (6)

4/10/15

Clay Pot Garden Doll

     These dolls are inexpensive and easy to make.  

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     The shoes are made for 18" Madame Alexander dolls. I found these on ebay.  

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     7/8ths inch dowel rods cut in 3" sections and painted pink.  

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     I made good use of the glue gun today. 

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     There are many ways to do this. I glued beads on the parachute cord to space the pots for the arms and legs. Working with the hot glue gun on Non-Stick aluminum foil helped. 

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    I also glued each bead in place as I worked. 

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     I measured an inch from the previous pot and marked the cord to glue the next bead. 

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     My plan to run the cords through the opening in the pot went awry when I discovered I had oh so efficiently glued the saucer to the bottom of the pot. Dave helped me drill holes in the side of the pot instead. 

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     I positioned the cords to have the arms and legs hang like I wanted...

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     Then I glued and positioned and glued everything within an inch of its life. 

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     Before I think about leaving her out in the weather, I'll seal her well with polyurethane spray...if I put her out in all sorts of weather. 

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Comments (2)

12/19/14

Baked Ziti

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Baked Ziti

Ingredients:
2 lbs. ground chuck
1 lb. Italian sausage, mild or hot
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, diced
8 oz. can tomato paste [See note.*]
2 28-oz. cans tomato sauce
1 T. brown sugar 
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 t. Italian seasoning
2 Bay leaves
1 t. Sriracha or Tabasco sauce
1 t. prepared mustard
1 t. salt 
1/2 t. pepper
1 c. beef broth
1 lb. ziti or other pasta, cooked to al dente 
2 c. grated mozzarella cheese
1 c. grated Parmesan cheese 

Brown the meat and drain; add the onion and garlic. Cook until vegetables are soft. 

Add the tomato paste and stir for 5 minutes to bloom the paste. Add the tomato sauce, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, Bay leaves, Sriracha sauce, prepared mustard, salt, pepper, and beef broth. 

Cover, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally and add more broth, if necessary. Remove Bay leaves.  [*Or use 2 quarts of your favorite commercial spaghetti sauce.]

Combine with cooked pasta and pour into a large greased casserole dish. Cover and bake at 350 degrees. Remove cover and sprinkle evenly with cheeses. Bake an additional 15 minutes, uncovered, until cheeses are melted and casserole is bubbling. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Tips: 
This can be made up to two days ahead of time and refrigerated. Bake for 45-60 minutes the first time, until the casserole is heated through and bubbling.  

This is a great opportunity to get flavor into to the pasta. I add 2 packets Knorr Beef or Chicken Stock Concentrate to the water used to cook the pasta. Use a few bouillon cubes or flavor paste or whatever floats your boat. You won't be sorry. 
 

Comments (6)

12/17/14

Butterscotch Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

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Butterscotch Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

1 c. plus 2 T. Crisco Butter Shortening
1 c. granulated sugar
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
3 eggs, slightly beaten
2 drops Butterscotch Flavor LorAnn Essence Oil, optional
1 t. vanilla extract
2 c. AP flour
1 T. ground cinnamon
1 t. salt
¼ t. baking soda
3 c. oats , quick or old fashioned
1 ½ c. pecans
11 oz. pkg. butterscotch chips
8 oz. pkg. Bit O’Brickle chips

 Whisk together flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda and set aside.

 Cream shortening and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl. Add eggs, butterscotch oil, and vanilla and mix well. Gradually add flour, salt and baking soda mixture. Add pecans and chips and mix just until combined.

Drop by heaping tablespoon, three inches apart, onto greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F for 11-13 minutes until light brown around the edges. Cool 2 minutes on the cookie sheet and then place on rack to continue cooling.

 For chewier cookies, store overnight in a sealed container with a fresh slice of bread. 

     These REALLY are good! Butterscotch and toffee chips with pecans in a cinnamon oatmeal cookie. 

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Comments (3)

About the Author
Linda (LRuthers)

 

 





     I'm convinced that there are many more bad recipes than there are bad cooks. The problem is that sometimes decent cooks use bad recipes and then believe that the poor results are their fault.


     When people print recipes in cookbooks, magazines, etc. or when they post them online, they seldom tell the pitfalls or the little tips needed to make the recipe turn out well. And, too, quite a few printed recipes contain typos!


     I search for recipes that are good. Dependable. I'm not a chef. I'm a mother and grandmother who's been cooking for >45 years.


     I believe that any recipe posted for the general public should be one that I can master. If not, there's something wrong with the recipe.


     I post my successes and my failures, and tell what I learned when following each new recipe. I learn more from my mistakes. I don't know what that says about me.


     The very best recipes are the ones that are inexpensive, delicious AND easy. And there are a lot of those.


     Sometimes, I spend a little more and work a little harder for a recipe that seems to be one that will make people really happy.


Thanks, Linda


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