Twilighters Anonymous

I just had to take this little quiz and see which heroine in the Cullen clan I would be most like. Adam took the quiz too and he was Carlisle. How cute that we'd belong together even if we were vampires! By the way, LOVED the movie! (...so did Adam... :) )


Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

Another Culinary Quest

While I was growing up, I remember eating the best-ever homemade "chicken noodle" soup at my Grandma's house. I also remember her taking home the turkey carcass in a grocery sack after Thanksgiving Dinner every year. I thought it was so silly that she'd never let any one throw it away. Come to find out, she was taking it home to cook it - yikes! Why?! Turns out that "chicken noodle" soup was actually "Turkey noodle" soup...and it was delicious!
We had a pretend Thanksgiving Dinner this past Sunday (Thanks Munchie!) since we won't be with family on the actual day this year. Afterwards, I decided it was time to try another something new and use the whole turkey. I called up my dear Grandma and she told me just what to do and I made some pretty tasty homemade turkey noodle soup. So don't throw away your turkey carcass this year. Toss it in a pot, cover it with water and add a few ingredients to flavor the turkey stock/ soup broth. (You can also do this in your crock pot, if your turkey will fit, and cook on low 12 to 24 hours.)I added a few stalks of celery, a couple carrots, an onion, salt and pepper, and a few beef bullion cubes. (Other recipes I've seen included, fresh parsley and bay leaves.) Cover and simmer on low heat for 3-4 hours. Strain the broth into a bowl and refrigerate to cool then skim the fat from the top of broth. Pick off remaining turkey from the bones and save for the soup. When broth is ready, pour into large pot and add turkey and whatever other ingredients you like. I added carrots, celery, corn and peas. Add noodles and cook 15 minutes or until noodles and veggies are tender. Since I was already being a little adventurous this year, when I came across a recipe for homemade noodles, I thought "why not!" Here's the recipe. They are SUPER easy.

Homemade Noodles

1 Cup Flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoon milk
1 egg, beaten

Mix flour and salt in a medium bowl, making a well in the center. Mix together milk and egg in a small bowl. Pour into flour well. Stir until mixture forms a dough. Knead on a floured board 8 to 10 times. Roll very thin. Let stand 20 minutes. (Can let dry up to 2 hours before cooking.) Cut into 1-inch strips, as wide as desired. (***Remember that they expand when you cook them so they don't need to be very big.**) Drop into boiling broth.

How awesome is that! I hope to hear back from at least one person who attempts making Grandma's Homemade Turkey Soup this year!

More Turkey Day!

I decided I have to share my two-hour roll recipe to go with the two-hour turkey recipe. These rolls are delicious and are quite easy to make.

Two-Hour Rolls

4 to 5 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon instant yeast
1/4 Cup sugar
3 Tablespoons oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 Cups warm water

Mix half the flour with yeast then add sugar, oil, egg, salt, and water. Blend well with mixer or dough hook. Add enough flour to make a soft dough that leaves the sides of the bowl. Let rise 15 minutes. Punch down and let rise another 15 minutes. Knead 1 to 2 minutes on a lightly floured board. Roll out into a large circle. Cut out into wedges using a pizza cutter and roll into crescent shapes. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and cover with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray. Let rise 1 hour.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake about 15 minutes, until lightly browned. Brush with melted butter while still hot. (***Mine have never taken the full 15 minutes to brown. I always set my timer for 12 minutes and start checking then so I don't over-cook them.***)

Makes about 3 dozen rolls (unless you make them big like I do! :)

***Alternate idea: Instead or rolling them into a crescent shape, make them into Turkeys! So fun! My mom always did this when I was growing up. I'll try my best to explain without a picture. Roll out dough and cut into wedges then place them in a muffin tin, where the middle of the wedge of dough touches the bottom of the muffin tin and the point of the wedge pokes up on one edge (you can pinch it at the tip to make a beak) and the wide end of the wedge hangs out the other edge. Clip the wide end three or four times to form "feathers". When the rolls bake, they will plump up and form a "turkey roll" -hope that makes sense because it's oh, so fun!

Turkey Day!

I have told many of you about this awesome two-hour turkey recipe I have. I've posted it below for you and just discovered that the entire recipe, as well as a quick video on how to prepare the turkey, can be found at www.vons.vom -click on the Thanksgiving Tab and then select either the recipe from the side bar or click to watch the video. This is a very easy way to prepare a turkey and it turned out fantastically for us. I hope the same for all of you and wish you all a Happy Gobble Day next week!
(The turkey in the picture is the one we cooked last year. See what a pretty brown color it turns out with!)

2-hour Turkey™ Recipe

CLEAN YOUR OVEN 1-2 days before cooking to prevent smoking of burned-on grease when cooking at high heat. DO NOT USE A CONVECTION OVEN.

* 1 10-24 lb. frozen Safeway/Manor House Turkey, thawed
* 1-2 tbsp. O Organics™ Extra Virgin Olive Oil
* Kosher Salt
* Pepper

1.
Remove and discard truss that holds turkey legs together. Pull or trim off and discard any excess fat in neck or body cavity. Remove giblets and neck.

2.
Rinse turkey inside and out with warm water. Pat dry with paper towels.

3.
Place the adjustable V-shaped rack in a 13 x 16 x 3-inch roasting pan (set rack sides so the bird is a minimum of 2 inches from pan bottom). ***We used a disposable roasting pan from the store and it worked out just fine. ***

4.
Rub turkey skin generously all over with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set bird breast-side-up on rack. Pull wings away from body, then firmly twist them to push the wing tips under the bird.

5.
Using aluminum foil, form caps over the tips of the end of each drumstick. If any parts of the turkey extend beyond pan rim, fashion a foil collar underneath to make sure drippings flow back into pan. Do not tie legs together, add stuffing, or close body cavity.

6.
Insert an oven-safe meat thermometer near the center of the breast through thickest part until the tip touches bone, which is most accurate spot to check doneness.

7.
Verify oven temperature and set pan on the lowest rack in a 475° oven. Roast according to time chart, checking as directed during cooking, until thermometer reaches 160°. Halfway through roasting time, rotate pan in oven to assure even cooking and browning. If areas on turkey breast start to get browner than you like, lay a piece of foil over the dark areas.

8.
Remove pan from oven, set in a warm spot, and loosely cover pan with foil to keep it warm. Let turkey rest 30 to 60 minutes. The resting period will allow the internal temperature to reach 165°, the USDA safe cooking temperature for poultry.

9.
Drain juices from body cavity (often plentiful in unstuffed birds) into roasting pan. Transfer turkey to a platter or rimmed cutting board. Set aside juices for gravy.

10.
Cut off turkey legs at thigh joint. If joint is red or pink, return legs to the oven for 3 to 5 minutes (at 300° to 475°) or heat in a microwave oven for 3 to 4 minutes.

11.
Carve the rest of the turkey. Carving juices may be clear to pink or rosy; both are fine. Save juices to pour into gravy if desired.


Time Chart
10-13 lbs -50 mins to 1 1/4 hrs
13-16 lbs -1 1/4 hrs to 1 hr 50 mins
16-19 lbs -1 1/4 hrs to 2 hrs
19-22 lbs -1 1/2 hrs to 2 hrs
22-24 lbs -1 1/2 hrs to 2 1/2 hrs

*Start checking turkey after 40 min of cooking time. When temp reaches 140 degrees, start checking every 10 min until thermometer reaches 160 degrees.

FREE at last!!!

(On the cleaning products above, I made .60 cents on the deal after rebates.)


(This was my "not a penny out of pocket" purchase.)

You HAVE to try this!

I have been learning to play the "coupon game" now for several months thanks to the guidance and tips from my amazing cousin Meredith. She led me to "moneysavingmom.com" where I am amazed to see the possibilities to save money shopping. I have been learning to shop and save and save and shop and budget in an effort to contribute to our financial needs and still be a stay-at-home mom, which I absolutely LOVE doing. I have saved hundreds and hundreds of dollars since summer began and this past week had the opportunity of having my first ever completely "FREE" shopping experience. I saved $25 off the products I was "receiving" and paid for the remaining $10 due with a gift card loaded with money from previous rebates. I left the store with three bags of groceries and not a single penny from my pocket! Now that's what I call a deal!

Look online for some great tips and subscribe to the Sunday paper to get those coupons rolling in.

A kiss for Grandma

Thanks for coming to spend time with us and for all the many things you do for us. We love you!

TRIP TO HANFORD

A Happy Birthday!

This past Saturday was my birthday and it was absolutely wonderful. From the moment I woke up to the moment I went to bed, it was filled with happy things. My mom flew into town and we enjoyed a little "cake and presents" party orchestrated by Alexis and then a night out on the town with Adam while Grandma stayed home with the little girls. Adam took me to P.F. Changs for my first dining experience there and it was delicious! I fell in love with the lettuce wraps and those who know me would know it was a stretch that I even tried them. What a great birthday! Thank you for all the cards, calls, and messages! You made the day extra special for me!

P.S. Did you see I am the proud new owner of some pretty, stylish "super power" gloves?! Thanks mom!

VICTORY!

Proposition 8 wins! Marriage in California will return to it's traditional definition ...between only a man and a woman! It was a great experience to be part of this fight for such an important cause ...and to feel the victory when our labors were through.