Gifts to Buy or Make for a Male Teacher

My middle child is a spirited one. And as well as he did in kindergarten with two, lovely ladies, I felt that he needed a male teacher to reign him in. Lucky me, the only other male teacher left in the school was a 1st grade teacher. So I made petition to get No. 2 into that class, and HE MADE IT IN! 

No. 2 had a wonderful year with lots of growing and learning on all our parts. Then Christmas came along...and then Teacher Appreciation Week...and, finally, End of the Year. Those are all typical times students bring in gifts to their teachers showing them the love and appreciation they so much deserve. 

The problem is when you have a male teacher, getting a gift card to Target or buying a potted plant may not necessarily be something a male teacher would want. And not all male teachers are in to gardening or tools, either. 

So if you have been or are going to be in the same boat that I was in the past year, let me share a few things I did for No. 2's teacher this year. 

First thing, find out what the teacher likes. 

One thing I really love to do at the beginning of each year is have the teachers, male or female, fill out a little survey. I give this at the end of the first week with a "You Made It Through the First Week" care package {complete with sticky notes, pens, tissues, tylenol, glue sticks, tape, and a small gift card to Starbucks or Sonics}. I use this information all year long for ideas on gifts for the teachers. And, if I happen to have the emails or contact information of the other parents in the class, I share that information with them as well. 

This is one of my favorites to use for teachers. Find it HERE

For the male teacher, I actually gave him a longer list, since I was sure I was going to need more information to pull from through the year. Here are the questions I sent him. I used the survey above to get me started on this list. It's not in any cute format, but you get the gist. 

When is your birthday? 

Where do you like to get a quick lunch? 

What is your favorite restaurant? 

Where are your favorite shopping spots? 

What is your favorite soda? 

What is your favorite candy? 

What is your favorite color? 

What is your favorite place to get a gift card from? 

What is your favorite meal? 

What is your favorite Starbucks, DD, or hot drink? 

What is your favorite sport and team? 

What is your favorite music? 
Who is your favorite musician? 
What is your favorite scent?
Do you collect anything? 
Name one place you would like to visit. 
Breakfast, lunch, or dinner? 
What is your favorite type of book? 
Who is your favorite author? 
What are your hobbies? 
If you could choose 3 gifts at or under $25 each, what would they be?

Second, Share with Others and Enlist Help 

At this point, you should have a decent amount of information to choose from. I would recommend smaller gifts for holidays such as Christmas and Valentines, and larger gifts for Teacher Appreciation and End of the Year. For the larger gifts, join in with a couple of parents. OR, if you have access to all/most of the parents' emails in the class, share the list above and make a large gift basket {or bag or bucket or cooler} for your teacher. This does two things: 

1. Helps cut down the cost for YOU on getting a large gift for the teacher

2. Can make everyone in the class feel like they can contribute to a gift. 

As a former teacher, I know that there are so many students that can't afford to buy cute little gifts for the teachers. I normally ask if parents can send in 1.00 to go to a gift from the class. If you have 30 kids, you can get all kinds of things to fill up a bag for the teacher. 

Third, Choose When You Want to Give a Large/Small Gift 

During the school year, there are quite a few times when your child may want to bring a gift for his/her teacher. It is important for you to know ahead of time when you are going to give a gift. I like to check out the survey at the beginning of the year and start planning immediately so we can budget AND so I don't have duplicates. It can get expensive if you get a large gift for each event during the year. Here are some days you may want to give a gift to a teacher: 

1. The first day of school

2. Christmas

3. The 100th day of school

4.Valentine's Day

5. Teacher Appreciation Week

6. End of the Year

Gift Ideas for Male Teachers

Here are some of gifts I got for my son's teacher this year and some ideas that I picked up from other parents along the way: 

1. Classroom Supplies
2. Basic supplies for teacher-use only {sticky notes, bathroom passes, etc}
3. Books, books, books {OR a gift card to a bookstore}. If your teacher sends home those Scholastic book order forms, see if your teacher is registered on the Scholastic website. You can actually buy books for teachers there as well. If he makes a wish list, you can actually purchase books, many times at a discounted rate, any time of the year. 
4. Snacks. 
1. Teachers need snacks through the day. For my son's teacher, I gave "manly" snacks, such as beef jerky or cans of nuts {check for allergies first}. 
2. Many times teachers may have snacks for students who forget to bring snacks {if their class has one}. A teacher would definitely love if you got one of those LARGE containers of snacks for the class, such as animal crackers or pretzels. 
5. "Handy" tools, such as flashlights or a small "fix it" box that has small screwdrivers in it. I actually used those in my classroom quite a bit...you would be surprised at what suddenly needs to be unscrewed or tightened up. 
6. Gift cards
1. Food
2. Entertainment, such as movies
3. Sports gift card. I got a NFL.com gift card one year for a male teacher who LOVES Green Bay. 
4. Retail stores such as Outdoor stores {REI} or Sports stores {Dicks} 
5. Education stores 
6. Book stores 
7. Meat Rubs. This is my most popular gift to get a guy, ANY guy, for ANY special events. Here's a great website to find some meat rubs. Get those really small {4 oz} mason jars, fill 3 or 4 of them, wrap some twine around them, and give those in a "rustic" looking bag or container. 
8. "Themed" Gifts {these may depend on what your teacher likes...refer to the survey} These are GREAT GIFTS for the class to chip in together:
1. Fishing Weekend: Small tackle box, tackle, fishing line
2. Beach/Lake: Cooler, sunscreen, sodas, bug spray, and snacks 
3. Movies: Fandango Gift Card, bags of kettle corn, sodas, a popcorn bowl 
4. Ice Cream: Ice Cream bowls, ice cream scoop, sprinkles, hot fudge, and a gift card to Publix to get ice cream {thanks, Betsy, for such a great idea} 
9. Coffee
1. Gift Cards
2. Coffee cups
3. Coffee cup that is actually a single serving French press 
4. Coffee {if you have a local brewer, this is a GREAT way to support local businesses} 
5. Coffee accessories {sugar, cream, InBru, etc} 
10. Board Games 
1. Educational board games he can use in his classroom
2. Games for his family

Here are some pictures of gifts I got for my sons' teachers: 

Homemade strawberry jam with homemade biscuits 

Flashlight 

Found this printable HERE. I have paired this with sticky notes that are shaped like apples AND I attached one of these to an apple pie. 

This goes great with a coffee cup filled with those single serving instant coffee packages. Go HERE for the printable. 

Here are some websites that have printables that can be paired with gifts: 

1. Crazy for Crust 
2. How Does She 
3. Moms By Heart

I sure hope this helps. Supporting teachers and getting gifts to show our appreciation is so very, very important. Teachers are overworked and underpaid, but they love your kids. They need reminders of why they are there: for the kids. Whether your child's teacher is male or female, I pray this helped you when you are looking to purchase gifts for your child's teacher in the years to come. 

Recipe REVIEW: Paleo Pizza

As I continue to work on changing my eating habits to include less carbs and more protein, one of my favorite Facebook Pages to follow is "Just Eat Real Food". This page posts two-three recipes for each meal each day, and this is where I found a link to Humble Foodie's No Scrubs: Paleo Pizza. The picture that was posted with the recipe was so beautiful, full of bright colors and yummy, yummy veggies. I instantly put it in my meal planner on Ziplist.com for Monday night.

Below I will be posting the recipe as I did it as I had to triple the recipe to feed my family of 5, and then check the bottom of my "Official Review". Please go HERE for the original recipe.

Paleo Pizza
Ingredients: 
* 1 1/2 cup almond meal {You can make your own by grinding raw, unsalted almonds into a powder...but don't grind too much; You'll get almond butter.}
* 3/4 tsp salt
* 1 1/2 tsp EACH of dried basil and oregano
* 3/4 tsp dried thyme
* 3 tsp olive oil + extra for oiling pan or stone
* 3 large eggs
* 1 cup tomato sauce
* pizza toppings {See note below for my preference}
* Optional: parmesean cheese

Note: My pizza toppings included: 
* 1 cup fresh baby spinach
* 1 green and 1 red bell pepper
* 1/2 cup mushrooms
* garlic powder
* pepperoni slices
* 1/4 cup feta cheese 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325. Oil parchment paper or a baking stone {my preference}
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine almond meal, salt, seasoning, olive oil, and eggs. 
3. Spread the dough onto the parchment paper or on the stone until it is very thin. 
4. Bake for 10 minutes
5. While baking, saute any toppings you desire. I sauteed half of the peppers and all of the mushrooms in  1 Tbsp of olive oil, 1 tsp of oregano, 1/2 tsp of rosemary, garlic powder, and thyme. 
6. Remove crust from oven, add sauce and then toppings. Bake for 15 minutes or until pizza is crisp. 

Note: Here is how I layered my pizza after crust was precooked: 

* 1/4 tsp garlic powder

* sprinkle with parmesean cheese and feta cheese

* tomato sauce

* 1/2 tsp oregano and rosemary 

* baby spinach

* sauteed veggies 

* pepperoni

* rest of raw veggies 

* sprinkle with parmesean and feta cheese, oregano, and rosemary 

Because I LOADED up my pizza, the cooking time was 20 minutes. 

My "Official" Review

Was it Easy to Make? Yes. It was very easy to make. I would almost dare to say it was easier to make than regular pizza dough. I started making it at 5pm and we were ready to eat by 545. I'm sure that time would be shorter if I hadn't piled on 10 layers on my pizza. 

How Did It Taste? Very, very good. I warned my husband ahead of time that it wasn't the normal pizza I make. When I do that, he normally politely eats a small amount and then about 30 minutes after dinner gets himself a bowl of cereal or something. Not only did he eat his share, but he got seconds. All but one of my children got seconds. I also got seconds, but I put my seconds on top of about 1/2 cup of fresh spinach. The only reason I did this was so I could save some pizza for the rest of the family. When I came back to see how much I needed to put away, it was all gone. So, yeah, this went over well with my family. 

Did it make me feel full? Yes, but not the "pop the top button of my shorts" full. It was sufficient. I could have added a salad with it, and I sort of did with my seconds, but it wasn't necessary. 

If you are looking for a good pizza recipe that is not going blow your carbs out of the water, I would suggest this recipe. Very good and very easy to make. 

Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Biscuits

Yummy Ready-To-Go Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Biscuits for those busy mornings. 

 There are just some mornings when getting up before the rest of the family to cook a well-balanced meal isn't exactly going to happen. And on Sunday mornings, when my family has to be leaving the house at 8am for church, many times I found myself tossing a granola bar to my kids as we sprint out the door. I made a "Spring-Time Resolution" not too long ago that I was going to be more proactive about having breakfast ready for the family that didn't involve them rummaging through the snack box for something to hold them over.

So when I saw a post on Pinterest about a great idea for egg biscuits, I smacked my forehead and realized I could make a delicious meal for my family ahead of time that would be easy to grab and go on those mornings I just can't be a perfect mom. {Quick note here, before writing this post, I tried to go back to the website I found to give credit for the idea. I couldn't find it. I then looked at Pinterest and found similar websites, but not the one that sparked the idea. So, just letting you know, this was not my brain child}.

The biggest problem I have had in the past with making egg biscuits is that the eggs are normally too big for the biscuits, and making scrambled eggs is really just out of the question. I have 3 kids. I'm not going to attempt that. The key to this entire recipe is to use mason jar lids. That's right, the lids. Once upon a time, I tried a biscuit cutter, but it just didn't work out. When I saw that lids might actually work, I was beyond excited. I have an entire shelf of mason jar lids, so I could really do an entire batch of biscuits all at once. So. Stinkin'. Excited. And it worked like a charm.

Here is what I did:

Step 1: I made some biscuits. I used my recipe for Homemade Biscuits Like Grandma Made. Instead of rolling them out 1/2 inch thick, I did 1/4 inch so I would have enough to have a top and bottom for each biscuit. 

Step 2: I sprayed the inside of each lid with cooking spray {important} and placed it on a griddle on medium heat. Gently crack an egg into each lid. The lids where the egg is running out from underneath are the ones where I just cracked and dumped. After the eggs are in, add a small bit of butter, salt, and pepper. Let cook until the egg is almost completely settled. 

Step 3: When the egg has almost completely set, it's time to flip them. Very carefully, and with mittens on, if you don't have cumbersome ones like I do, remove the lids from the eggs, and gently flip. Now, if the lid does not remove easily, then you have some egg that has cooked to the bottom of the lid. There are TWO ways to solve this problem. 1. Take the back side of a spoon and gently try to push the edges of the egg off the lid. If that doesn't work, then 2. Flip the egg and lid over. Gently scrape the egg off the lid. Flip the egg and lid back over and remove lid. Then flip the egg so the other side can cook. All three methods were used on the eggs above.

Step 4: Once the eggs are cooked all the way through, remove from griddle and begin cooking your sausage. Try to make your sausage as round as possible, unless you are using those little sausages that are already formed into patties. Also, remember that the patties will shrink a little once cooked. Try to make your patties a little larger than the biscuit so when it's fully cooked, it will fit just right. 

Step 5: Assemble your biscuit. I used those little snack cheeses as our cheese, but you could most certainly use a slice of cheese here as well. If you use a slice, you may be able to split the slice in half and layer differently or use one slice of cheese for two biscuits. This is actually how I am leaving the biscuit until the morning. When we are ready for breakfast, I will heat up the biscuit, and the cheese will melt slightly at that time. 

Step 6: [Optional] If you made these ahead of time, wrap them in foil and place in a freezer zip bag. You can freeze these and pull out what you need when you need it. Or you can wrap them and put them in the fridge for the morning. When you reheat these {and melt the cheese in the process}, leave the foil ON and place in a toaster oven. 

                 

These sausage, egg, and cheese biscuits are not only delicious but also incredibly easy to make. I set aside an entire evening to make these, and really, it didn't take long at all. These would also make a great gifts to give to someone who just had a baby, who experienced a death in the family, or even for someone who has family in the hospital. Make a dozen, wrap and put in a freezer bag, and pass on to those you are trying to serve. Either way, families are going to be blessed and good food will be had by all. 

Happy eating, everyone.        

Making My Own Coconut Flour

If you are looking for a low carb recipe or something for your Paleo diet, you are almost always going to run across the ingredients almond flour and coconut flour. At first, you look frantically everywhere thinking for sure grocery stores carry such items. Then you realize, not always, and if they do, it's normally really pricey. The only thing I found close to me was Bob's Red Mill Flour I can purchase at Big Lots or, if I have a sharp eye, at Publix or Bi-Lo. I decided, although it is nice to have a back up bag, I really should just make my own. 

This week I experimented with making my own coconut flour. The process itself is really not all that hard. It can be a bit time consuming,  but other than that, it's really easy. The hardest step I found was trying to find unsweetened coconut flakes, dried or not dried. I looked e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e, well, everywhere within a 30  mile radius. I'm sorry. I'm not driving 45 minutes to an hour away just to pick up a bag of unsweetened coconut. You can find sweetened coconut flakes everywhere. And you can still use it, but it adds carbs to your meals and unnecessary sugar that causes your body to crave more and more...and, yes, even more. I actually found some unsweetened coconut by accident. I was checking out prices on frozen berries at my favorite grocery store, Piggly Wiggly {"I'm Stickin' with The Pig"..."Local Since Forever"...yada yada}, when I saw small bags of unsweetened coconut, two bags for $3. I was so stinkin' excited!   So I figured it was a small enough amount that I could experiment on and NOT break the bank. And it worked out swimmingly. 

I made coconut flour two ways. Depending on what you have in your kitchen or what kind of time you are working on, you can make your own coconut flour for your meals. And as my daughter says, "Easy peasy, lemon squeezy". 

Homemade Coconut Flour

What's on the bottom is all but 1 cup of Bob's Red Mill Coconut Flour
that I paid around 10 BUCKS for. The top half is all but 1 cup
 of my homemade coconut flour that cost me only 3 to make. 

 Step 1: Drying the flakes 

Method 1: Dehydrator 

1. Line your dehydrator with parchment paper. If your dehydrator doesn't have hundreds of little slats your coconut can fall through, then lucky you! 
2. Spread out the coconut in as much of a single layer as possible. 
3. Turn on your dehydrator and go about your day. 

This is a small batch and got me a little less than half a cup,
which is fine since most of the recipes I use are right around 1/2 cup of coconut flour. 

When I did this method, I did only one sheet, and it took about 8-10 hours for the flakes to dry. Honestly, if you are going to do it this way, I would prep it, turn it on, and go to bed. When you wake up in the morning, you can quickly grind the flour and make some pancakes or muffins or something delicious. 

Method 2: Cookie Sheet

1. Turn your oven on LOW, between 170-200. I started mine at 170, but about an hour later, bumped it up to 200, and there it stayed until the end. 
2. Spread the coconut in a single layer on a cookie sheet. 
3. Bake for 2-3 hours. After the first 1 1/2 hours, I started checking every 15-20 minutes. You don't want to BAKE the coconut, you just want to dry it. And my experience with coconut is once it starts baking, it can cook FAST. 

This method is ideal if you are going to be home working around the house anyway. I worked in the yard, gardening, while my coconut was drying. I had the windows open so I could hear the timer go off every 20 minutes. It forced me to come inside, check the coconut, and drink some water before heading back outside. 

Step 2: Grinding the Dried Coconut

Now that your unsweetened coconut is dried, the rest of the process takes only about 2 minutes. 

1. Dump your dried coconut into your blender, Vitamix {if you are lucky enough to have one...which makes me super duper jealous}, or your Magic Bullet. 
2. Pulse the coconut. I pulse and then shook the container, then pulsed again. Coconut has oils in it that can cause all your hard work to clump together. So I just shake it a little between pulses to make sure everything stays separated. 
3. Keep blending until the coconut flakes become a fine powder and then STOP. If you keep going, you can make coconut butter, which I'm sure is delicious, and something I plan on trying next time, but it's not going to help you make your pancakes. 

That's it! Just dry and grind. "Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy!" 

I have kicked around the idea of purchasing some dried unsweetened coconut flakes in bulk online. I can use the coconut flakes, not ground up as a flour, to make all kinds of things, such as these Coconut Nested Eggs {see picture below}. I'm just not sure if it will save me money or if it all comes out the same. 

This is really just 1 egg, 1/4 cup of unsweetened dried coconut flakes,
and about 15 minutes of your time. I love, love, love this recipe.
 I made 12 in my large muffin tin. Each family member got two with a slice of bacon,
and the kids fought over who was going to get an additional egg. Win-Win.  

And if you are looking for a recipe using coconut flour, here's one I made this morning for breakfast: Lemon Coconut Flour Pancakes

I didn't have any lemon extract, so these were more "Cinnamon Coconut Flour Pancakes", but after making the batter I realized I could have used lemon zest. So next time....

I served these pancakes with frozen berries, a little LOCAL bee pollen,
and some powdered sugar. On my pancakes, I omitted the powdered sugar
and added about a Tablespoon of homemade whipped cream. Super yummy. 

My Musings on Knitting; Epiphanies that Come from Hours of Creating

"Through the knot, in the back, loop over, pull through, pull off...through the knot, in the back, loop over, pull through, pull off..."

I literally had dreams of this last night after my first attempt at knitting. My desire to begin knitting came from seeing some beautiful balls of yarn at Big Lots. I know there are all kinds of crafts I can do with yarn, but each time I saw those beautiful threads, I was pulled back in my memories of a time where I remember my grandma sitting on the couch creating all kinds of things. Before I knew it, I had a little spur in my tush to buy some yarn and get to teaching myself how to knit.

After about 2 hours of a frustrating start, I finally got it. Well, let me back up a minute and explain how I got to that point. I started to buy a book at AC Moore on beginning knitting, but decided that the Internet was full of people who know what they are doing, and are willing to show me for free, so on to Pinterest and YouTube I went {see below for the sites I found helpful}. I stood in front of my computer with my supplies and tried, and tried, and tried, and tried again to get started. I had 3 Tabs with knitting techniques opened, and I flipped back and forth with them. Suddenly I found myself in a rhythm, and I had about 3 rows of something started. So I carried my supplies to the living, sat cross-legged on my couch, and knitted away while watching Big Bang Theory.

And I stayed up waaayyyy later than I normally do looping and pulling that beautiful yarn.

And I dreamed about it all night.

And I read my Bible Study while working on the next few rows.

This is what I learned while knitting:

1. My hands are gaining new muscles. I'm not sure if I was doing it right, or if I was just holding on to the yarn too tight, but I went to bed with sore hands. It made me think of my grandma and all her older lady friends who would spend hours knitting. Either they had strong hands, they were doing it right, or they suffered because of arthritis. But I never heard her complain. Which gave me a more respect for her. 
2. My eyes hurt. This happened this morning. I was just-a whirling away with the yarn when my eyes started to hurt. At one point I looked up from my knots and loops, and my eyes were shocked that the sun had come up. I realized that I was holding the wanna-be scarf about 6 inches from my face. Whoa, baby. I now have to stop every few minutes to make sure I pull my masterpiece in the making away from my sore eyes. And again, it made me think of my grandma. 
3. I have a new addiction. Not sure why knitting is so addictive, but I found myself wanting to bring my  yarn and needles to car line. I wanted to knit instead of eat breakfast. I was willing to stay up LATE just so I could add a few more rows. Every time I would finish a row, thinking "this is the last one", I would go, "okay, one more." And I repeated that process over and over again. No wonder why my grandma was constantly giving me new knit socks every time I turned around. I think she was addicted, too. 
4. I had a sudden urge to use my rocking chair. There's something about getting into a rhythm that made me desire being in my rocking chair. Having the yarn in my lap is not cumbersome, and I knew the rhythm of the rocking would help me with the rhythm of the knitting. 
5. Apparently, I had a lot to think about. While looping and pulling, my mind ran crazy. I was thinking of all kinds things, great and small. Even this list came up as I was knitting. I thought about my kids. I thought about my grocery shopping list. I thought about updating my blog. I thought about music {I have Christmas piano music playing}. I thought about books I like to read, and how maybe I need to get another audio book to listen to while knitting. I thought about all the things my grandma used to make while knitting. I examined a blanket my great-grandmother made me with awe. I had a LOT to think about, apparently, and knitting brought it out in me. Which, again, made me think of my grandma. She was very child-like in her later years, and I always just thought she was losing her mind. But she knitted. All the time she knitted. And if she was knitting, she was thinking. So all that time I thought she was just being an old lady, she was probably solving world problems in her head, and quietly praying for all her grandkids as well. 
6. I love small victories. I was seriously getting frustrated when I started. I almost came to tears quite a few times as I struggled to understand exactly how I was supposed to loop and when I was supposed to pull. But when I got it, I was filled with relief. And then this morning, as I got frustrated over one particular loop that I had messed up a few rows back, I was thinking I was going to have to be happy with a slight gap in the scarf. BUT, after studying the yarn, I saw exactly what I needed to do to fix the gap, and I was back in the game. My chest swelled with pride. It's the small victories that can be the sweetest. 
7. I can sit still. If you know me, you know my schedule is c-ray-zy. I am constantly doing something. But knitting made me sit back and relax. There is just something calming about creating something warm and fuzzy. 
8. Most importantly: I should have appreciated my grandma more. Each row made me think of Ruby. I think of how ungrateful I was for all the things she made me. I think of how I spoke to her. I think of how I treated her. No, I wasn't cruel or anything, but I was immature. I had a special treasure in my grandma. I told my children this. And they probably thought the same thing I did, "Yeah, ok, mom." But I now have a desire to teach at least my daughter how to knit. It would be a shame if another generation went by without learning how to do it. My grandma tried to teach me how to knit quite a few times, but I brushed her {and the knitting} off as being something only old ladies did. More times than I can count, I said out loud, "Oh, grandma, if only you could see me now." I gained a new respect for my grandma through this. 

So that's it for now. If you have been knitting for a while, please share some of the things you have learned while knitting. If you haven't been knitting, you really should give it a shot. You might be surprised at what you learn...about yourself, and about those around you. 

Here's what I've done so far: 

Sources I used to learn how to knit: 

1. Queen of DIY
2. All Free Knitting  I'm thinking this is the sister site of Allfreesewing and Allfreecrafting that I follow. 
3. YouTube video: Beginner Knitter

If you have another source, please comment below so others can learn as well. 

Happy Knitting, everyone. :}  

Recipe: Homemade Crescent Rolls

'Tis the Season for baking, and a cook's best friend this time of year can easily be a can of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls {see this link for recipe ideas...and no, they do not pay me for suggesting them}. Since I've gotten pretty handy at making most of my own bread products, and since my husband loves a good crescent roll, I figured I would give that flaky, buttery bread a shot.

So...on to Pinterest. I found a recipe that liked the finished product, but the process was NOT fun. NONE of my dough was looking anything like the pictures. AND I was practically dropping globs of dough onto my stone and hoping they came out right. And they did taste yummy, but it was not a recipe I was going to pass on...yet. {I'll be posting the original recipe link below in a minute in hopes that one of my cooking friends will try it and maybe tell me what I did wrong}.
I then adjusted the recipe. The second batch was much easier to work with. I added another cup of flour to the original recipe, changed when I added the ingredients, and floured my surface A LOT more, and ended up with some yummy biscuits. That's right, I said biscuits. They were good, but were not flaky like those crescent rolls I love so much.

And then I adjusted the recipe again. This is the recipe I'll be sharing with you. These were still messy. They weren't as flaky as the first batch, but not biscuits. I almost overcooked them as well because they were just so fluffy when I pulled them out, that I thought they weren't done on the inside.So after three tries, I'm going to give  you my best effort. Enjoy...and I got the original recipe from The Big Red Pot.

Homemade Crescent Rolls
Ingredients: 

• 2 1/4 tsp yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 Tbsp, plus 1 tsp sugar
• 3 1/2 cups flour, divided
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp salted butter, room temperature
• 1 Tbsp butter, frozen
• 1 Tbsp butter, melted 

Directions: 

1. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in the warm water. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy. 
2. Add 2 1/2 cups flour, salt, and room temperature butter. Mix on low speed, until well blended. Cover with a clean towel, and let sit for 45 minutes. 
3. YOU ARE GOING TO NEED AT LEAST THE REST OF THE FLOUR FOR THE NEXT STEP. Be prepared for a mess. 
4. After 45 minutes, pour the dough onto a WELL-FLOURED surface. Make sure your hands and any utensils you use have flour on them as well. The dough is super sticky. Roll into a large circle {the recommended size in the original recipe was a circle with a 12 inch diameter. This was too thick for me}. Using a floured pizza roller, cut your triangles {again, the recommended number was 12, but I'm pretty sure all of mine yielded more than that}. 
5. GRATE your frozen butter over the triangles. 
6. Roll the crescents, starting at the large base {opposite of the point of the triangle}. I used a very flat floured spatula to help me flip the dough over and over until I reached the tip of the triangle. This seemed to work best. Place the rolls onto a stone or a well-oiled baking sheet. Cover with a clean towel. 
7. Keep the rolls covered while heating the oven to 400 degrees. 
8. Uncover the rolls and bake for 18 minutes. 
9. When they remove, brush with melted butter. 

Here's my beautiful daughter helping me out. 

SO MESSY. See how the well-floured ones turned out like crescents [top] and some were more globs [bottom]?
And my fingers were well covered and super sticky. NOT fun. 

This was my counter afterwards. SO much flour. 

This was the first batch. I stuffed them with leftover ham from Thanksgiving and some cheese. YUM

So you see here that once you figure out how to make them, you can go crazy with what you put in them. I made one batch that I filled with cinnamon sugar and served for breakfast with a powdered sugar icing. The kids loved them. 

Give them a try and let me know what you think. 

100 Calorie Brownie with Coconut Whipped Topping {a review}

Chocolate....mmm....comfort food for my woman's soul. As much as I love chocolate, I know that more than just a piece of dark chocolate a day is not necessarily going to help me lose/maintain my weight. But because I have such a sweet tooth, and I'm normally craving chocolate like it's my life support, I have been trying to find acceptable, healthier options that meet my sweet tooth craving, but won't sabotage my efforts to live a healthier life.

My secret to success? Coconut. Yeah, yeah. I know I'm pretty sure I jumped on this band wagon, but experimenting with coconut the past few weeks has been interesting. I started adding coconut water to my smoothies. I bought up a bunch of cans of coconut milk at Big Lots and have been using the milk in my coffee, oatmeal, and other desserts. Here's the kicker: I don't really like coconut. Well, "imitation" coconut. It always smells like suntan lotion, and it's normally a turn off for me. I do know, though, that I'm coming to like this stuff, adding it here and there. Check the links below for other recipes where coconut is a factor. 

NOW back to chocolate {and really the reason why so many of you are reading this}. 

I found a recipe for 200 Calorie Hot Fudge Brownie Sundae on Pinterest {as I was looking for a way to make coconut whipped topping}, and since it was one of my favorite librarian's birthday, what better way to celebrate than to make brownies that won't make you feel like you have to hit the treadmill for 2 hours? 

We didn't make the hot fudge, the banana soft serve ice cream, or add the cherries, but check the link above for all those recipes. 

Here's the recipe for the brownie and the whipped topping: 

The brownie was in the shape of a rose. I have this nifty muffin tin from Williams-Sonoma...but I don't think they sell them anymore. :{ 

100 Calorie Brownie with Coconut Whipped Topping {all credit is due to Back to Her Roots}

Ingredients: 

Brownie: 

• 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce {I made my own since I didn't have any at the house}
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup egg whites {about 4}
• 1/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• pinch of salt
• 2/3 cups sugar

Whipped Topping: 

• *1 can whipped topping, not lite {see NOTE below}
• 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar 

Directions: 

Brownie: 

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray. 
2. In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together applesauce, vanilla, and egg whites until well combined. 
3. Add flour, cocoa, salt, and sugar until just combined. 
4. Pour in muffin tin and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool for 15-20 minutes. 

Whipped Topping: 

1. Carefully open the cold can of coconut milk {say that 3x fast} without shaking or stirring. Spoon out the top white portion, leaving the coconut water on the bottom. 
2. Whip coconut cream on high in an electric mixer until stiff peaks form, about 10 minutes
3. Add in confectioner's sugar and mix for another 2 minutes. 

Assembly: {Uh...duh? But I'll add this anyway}

Once the muffins have cooled, add the coconut whipped topping on top. Eat. Each brownie is roughly 100 calories. 

NOTE: 

The recipe called for a closed can of cold coconut milk which you open when you are ready to mix. After trying out a few "whipped coconut" recipes, I have found the best way to utilize this is to gently open the can of coconut milk the night before and then place in the fridge. For some reason, this helps solidify the milk faster. The can I used for this recipe didn't have the milk and water separate, but I whipped it up anyway. I had to add a little more powdered sugar to thicken the topping enough that it would actually stay on the brownie. 

Other "Coconut" recipes I have tried: 

1. Chocolate Frosting Shots
2. Make Ahead Oatmeal Smoothies
3. Overnight Refrigerator Oatmeal {I must say I have made this with and without coconut milk. The coconut milk made this SUPER thick, and I'm not sure I really like it too much.}
4. Crockpot Pumpkin Oatmeal {I had to actually add a little more honey to it, and then it tasted like pumpkin pie oatmeal. These were super thick and froze well for smaller individual servings}
5. Muffin Tin Smoothies
6. Avocado Chocolate Pudding

White Bean and Collards Soup

Collards. I love them. Really, really love them. Anytime I make a batch of collards, whether I buy the leaves from the store {which is almost never} or I get them fresh from my garden or my dad's, I normally end up eating the leftovers in a bowl. By themselves. For real. I love collards. 

So this past Sunday, I made a roast with vegetables for Sunday lunch, and I had to have collards with it. I had an extra ham hock in the freezer as well as a few bags of collards from last year's garden. Saturday afternoon, I covered the collards with water and let them soak on low, with the ham hock, until Sunday afternoon lunch. YUM-O! 

But...

I had a ton of collards leftover. And as much as I love them, it was really almost too much for me to finish off on my own. So I Googled and Pinterested around, looking for some ideas. I could have made my Twice Baked Stuffed Potatoes, but we already had stuffed potatoes earlier in the week. I was looking for something different, something I had never tried before. What I found was quite a few variations of a collards soup. So I picked a little here and there, and came up with my own Meatless Monday {that could easily have meat in it} soup. Check below for my family's reviews. 

This is really with what to do with leftover collards. So if you don't already have some made, do it. Then come back. You are going to need those collards soaking in ham hock juice for a while. {I guess that doesn't necessarily make it vegetarian, but whatever} 

White Bean and Collards Soup  {If you see *, please see below for further details or information}

Ingredients: 

• About 4 cups of cooked collards, in juices it was cooked in. 
• *1 pound of white, dried, beans 
• 1 medium onion, chopped 
• 1 Tbsp of dried Thyme or 2-3 sprigs of fresh Thyme
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• {OPTIONAL} 1.5-2 cups cooked country ham, chopped
• Parmesan and Feta Cheese 

Directions: 

1. **Prepare the dried white beans in the "fast soak" style.
2. Pour soaked white beans into a large crockpot. Add leftover collards, onion, thyme, and seasonings. If needed, add some more water. We like our soup chunky, so I didn't add but maybe a half a cup more of water.
3. Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or HIGH for 4-6 hours, or until beans are soft. 
4. If you choose to add the ham, add in the last 30 minutes. Also, at this point, taste. Add more seasoning, if needed. 
5. Serve with Parmesan and Feta cheese on top. 

I served mine with some Homemade Biscuits Like Grandma Made, but I'm willing to bet the soup would go just as well with some Made from "Scratch" Cornbread Muffins. 

NOTES: 

* You could use canned beans, if you like, but make sure you rinse them off first. Adjust cooking time. You want the beans soft, not mushy. 

** "Fast Soak" basically is boil 1 pound of dried beans in 6-8 cups of water for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cover for 1 hour. 

REVIEWS: 

Okay, so my oldest child is my best food critic. He will honestly tell me if something is good or not. He gave this soup a 6. He said, "I would eat it again, if you made it, but it's not something I would ask you to make." 

My husband, after hearing this response said, "No. It was good. I would say it was better than what he said. More like an 8." 

When made this, I did not add the country ham. I just didn't have any. But we all talked about what was good or not so good about the soup, and the response was overwhelmingly in favor of adding country ham to the soup. It was almost like getting a Sunday Dinner Soup {hmmm....new name? Maybe.} without the meat. So next time I'm for real putting the ham in it. 

Food: 1 Hour Bread Recipe in 4 Ways

One of my friends who knows I make a lot of bread sent me a link about a year ago about a loaf of bread you can make in 1 hour. So the other day I was looking for that recipe and couldn't find it, so on to Pinterest I went. I thought for sure I saved it to one of my boards, but, alas, I couldn't find it. But what I did find, though, was another recipe for 1 hour bread that makes TWO LARGE loaves in an hour and requires only a few ingredients. Not only did I love, love, love this new recipe, but I tried a few variations of it, and they all turned out great. It's all I can do to keep this bread in my house. Lucky for me, and now for you, these recipes are available for you, and you can have fresh bread ready before dinner is finished tonight.

Here's the basic recipe that I found on La Fuji Mama [link for original recipe here]. I adjusted it slightly only because she called for specific stuff, and even gives reasons why you should use those ingredients, but I found that my variations were just fine.

1 Hour Bread...or as we call it in our house Jed Bread [since he helps me make it]
Ingredients: 
5 1/4 cup all purpose flour
4 Tbsp Turbinado [or white, if you want] sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 Tbsp yeast [I use the rapid rising yeast that comes in a jar]
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cups hot water

Directions:

1. Mix together the dry ingredients. Slowly add the oil and water until well combined. 
2. Spray the counter with cooking spray and knead the bread until smooth. 
3. Split the dough in half and form into loaves. 
4. Place on a baking sheet or stone, cover with a clean, dry towel, and let rise for 25 minutes. 
5. While the bread is rising, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
6. After 25 minutes, put the bread in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. 
7. When it comes out, I always take about a Tbsp of melted butter and brush the top. Let cool before slicing. 

Oh yeah. We are some bread loving fools here. 

NOTE: I generally do steps 1 and 2 in the mixer. Using a dough hook, I mix the ingredients on low speed. Once they are all combined, I turn it up to about medium speed for about 3 minutes until smooth. I kind of test it by how "clean" my bowl looks. All the dough should form a ball and pull away from the sides of the bowl. 

So it's THAT EASY. I did those four loaves in the above picture in a TOTAL of an hour and a half. I gave one to the new neighbors, we ate one for dinner and breakfast, I served one at home group, and the other was put into the freezer for another day. Not bad for under two hours of work. 

Then I thought, "I wonder if it would still work and taste good if I changed the ingredients." And they do. I tried changing it up 3 different ways. 

Variation 1: Honey Wheat Bread

Ingredients

3 cups wheat flour

2.5 cups all purpose flour

4 Tbsp local, raw honey 

1.5 tsp salt
1.5 Tbsp yeast 

1.5 Tbsp olive oil

2 cups HOT water

Directions: [pretty much the same as above]

1. Mix the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl. In a smaller bowl, mix together the wet ingredients [I like how this helps melt the honey and spread out the honey]
2. Continue the rest of the directions as in the original. 
3. To add a little extra honey taste, when I melt the butter to brush on top, I add about a Tbsp of honey to the melted butter and brush on top. 

Variation 2: Braided Loaf

So, I'm not going to give the ingredients because it's all the same [of either variation above]. 

As for directions, before letting the bread sit to rise, separate each loaf into 3 parts. Roll into long ropes. Pinch the ends of the ropes and then braid. Then pinch the other end of the ropes. Tuck both ends under, cover, and let rise. 

This bread would be super pretty for the holidays or for a shower. 

Variation 3: Cinnamon Roll Bread [both my husband and my oldest son...and most honest critic...said it tastes just like the kind you get at the restaurants...so it is most definitely a hit in my house, and they never last more than a day]

Ingredients: 

Same 6 ingredients in the original recipe, plus....

3 Tbsp butter, melted

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 Tbsp ground cinnamon 

Directions: 

1. Follow original steps 1-3. 
2. On a clean surface, lightly sprayed with cooking oil, roll out one of the loaves into a 12 x 15 inch rectangle. 
3. In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. It should be kind of a paste. If it's not, you can add more brown sugar or more cinnamon. I tend to add more cinnamon because the sugar will melt, and we REALLY like cinnamon. 
4. Spread the cinnamon/sugar mixture over the entire rolled out dough, leaving about a 1/8 inch on all the edges. 
5. Tightly roll the dough into a tube. Pinch all the edges closed. The first time I made this, I didn't do this, and the melted butter came out in every opening, making a mess of my oven. 
6. Set on a baking sheet or stone, cover, let rise, and then follow the rest of the directions. 

This is something GOOD. The only thing I would say is that it doesn't rise as much as the other bread and is a little more delicate. It's still so stinkin' good, though. 

See all that goop coming out? That was because I didn't seal the edges. 

If you are interested in some more breads I have done, check out these links below: 

• Made from "Scratch" Cornbread Muffins
• French Toast Lasagna
• Pretzel Bites 
• Waffled Crepes with Tropical Sauce

I have created a "Bread" label as well that includes many of the other breads I have made and shared. 

Happy Baking, everyone.