>>CHRISTMAS COCOA

Do you like hot chocolate?

Maybe you're looking for something to give your neighbor for Christmas?

Here is a delicious hot chocolate recipe that Martha Stewart shared with me.  We're pretty tight, her and I.

HOMEMADE HOT CHOCOLATE

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups cocoa

1/2 Tbsp salt

milk for serving

In a large bowl, combine sugar, cocoa and salt.  Whisk to mix well.

Store cocoa mix in an air tight container.

And that's it!  

Seriously.  

And it taste great to boot!

Serving Instructions:

Pour 1 cup of milk into a microwave-safe mug and microwave on high for 1-2 minutes

or until just hot.  Add 2 Tbsp of cocoa mix and stir until dissolved.  

Top with whipped cream or marshmallows.

Enjoy! 

Add some ribbon and a cute label and you are good to go!!

 

Makes 3 cups dry mix (24 servings). 

Easily double or triple recipe to make several batches at once.
 

>>SOUP, IT'S WHAT'S FOR DINNER

A big THANK YOU to those who sent me soup recipes!  You guys are awesome!  I think we are set with enough recipes to have soup everyday 'til summer.

Bring on the cold weather!

Thanks again!  


[If you sent me a recipe and didn't get an email from me, please let me know.]

>>"NO SOUP FOR YOU!"

...couldn't resist the Seinfeld reference.

I LOVE soup!  Especially in the fall and winter months.  You too?  Who doesn't love a nice hearty soup on a snowy winter day followed by cuddling and watching Love Actually.

Here's the deal.  I am in need of soup recipes.  If you are willing to email me 1 or 2 (or more if you so desire) soup recipes, I will compile them all and email them back to you.

You might remember when I did this last year with easy dinner recipes.   If you didn't get a copy of this but want one, just let me know and I will email it to you.

I personally thought it turned out splendidly.  I am always going back through my little booklet of recipes for dinner ideas.  So hopefully we will have a good turn out this time too and have a nice little collection of soup recipes.

So...what do you say?  Are you in?  If so (and I hope you are), email your soup recipes to jennycheney[at]gmail[dot]com.  How about we set a deadline for next Monday (the 17th).  That will give you a week to get the recipes to me.  After that, I will compile the recipes and email them back out to everyone.

Sound like a plan?

 

>>WONDERING WHAT TO MAKE FOR DINNER?

This meal is a staple at our house...

THE BREAKFAST BURRITO

Brown some sausage.  Throw in some onions and peppers if you so desire.  Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't.

Scramble some eggs. I usually add a splash of milk to up the fluffiness factor.

Grab some tortillas.  My favorite are sun dried tomato.

Grab some cheese (if you so desire....again, sometimes I use it and sometimes I don't)

Top your warmed tortilla with the goods...roll it up....and there you go...dinner is served.

Nom nom nom.

Don't be jealous of our nice bowls.  We like to be super fancy when it comes to dinner....if you haven't already guessed...you know, with the gourmet burritos and all.

a few things . . .

The other day I was sifting through my new issue of Better Homes and Gardens when I came across a smoothie recipe I had to try. I'm a sucker for a new smoothie recipe.  What, you are too?  Ok, I'll share it with you then.  It's really quite delicious!! 

 Ingredients:

2 cups fresh baby spinach

1 cup frozen blueberries

1 banana

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt (I used fat free frozen vanilla yogurt)

1/4 cup chopped fresh pineapple (I used canned pineapple)

1/4 cup frozen dark sweet cherries

1/4 cup orange juice (I used 1% milk and I used about 1/2-1 cup)

Blend everything in a blender.  Top with blueberries and/or pineapple if desired.

Yum, yum!  You really should give this a try.  Spinach and blueberries...can't beat that!

Earlier this summer while garage selling (a favorite summer pastime), I found a scrabble game for super cheap (pennies, really).  I had been needing a new scrabble set since I raided ours and used all the scrabble tiles to make necklaces.  I may have done the same thing with this set.

Aren't they purdy though?  This is my favorite batch I've made.  This reminds me, Jana Banana, I owe you one of these from way back when.  Will you comment on the blog or email me which one you would like.

I'm willing to trade one of these scrabble necklace tiles for something in return...like say...a mixed CD perhaps...a yummy treat....one of your homemade craft items, etc.  Let me know if you are interested. :-)


Lastly, I present to you a recent sighting made during one of our drives around town. 

recipes

Thank you to everyone who emailed me your recipes. I received a total of 46 recipes, so I'm pretty darn happy about that. They have all been compiled and have been emailed back to you. If for some reason you didn't get the email, let me know and I'll resend it.

I'm happy to share the recipes with others, even if you didn't email me any (who's really keeping track anyway?). Leave your email address in the comments section or email me at jennycheney(at)gmail(dot)com and I will send them your way.

I will also try to post some of the recipes on the bon appetit recipe blog. If any of you are interested in being able to post recipes on this blog, let me know and I will add you as an author to the blog. Just send me your email address.
I'm hoping all these recipes will help me in the kitchen. Cooking doesn't come naturally to me...at all. I never cooked while growing up...I didn't really help in the kitchen...I didn't learn how to make this or how to make that....and I was never really interested in doing so.

Then I got married.

Turns out, Curtis didn't cook either.

I think we probably had a lot of top ramen our first year of marriage...and second... and third... and fourth...

Time for some good home cooked meals at the Cheney house.

This week: clam chowder, tacos, chicken/broccoli casserole. I need you guys to hold me to this...otherwise, it will turn into Taco Johns, cereal, and frozen pizza.

>>SMOOTHIE-LISCIOUS

You can't really mess up a home-made smoothie.

Toss into your blender...

fresh or frozen fruit - any kind (I like a variety of fruits best - strawberries, blackberries, banana, peaches, etc)
yogurt - any kind (I usually use strawberry)
a couple ice cubes
milk

blend and wah-lah...a delicious smoothie.

Sometimes I throw in a tidbit of honey and other times maybe a handful of spinach.

It's delicious and nutritious and your taste buds will thank you for it.

>>FEELING DOMESTIC

I have been so busy I haven't had time to show off my abilities in the kitchen. :) A couple of Saturdays ago, I was feeling domestic and decided to whip up some fresh homemade bread along with some homemade strawberry jam. Yummy! So how did I do all this with my schedule that pretty much allows for no free time, you ask. Simple, throw some flour, yeast and water in my bread machine...then follow the simple instructions on the back of a pectin box..and voila!! In no time at all we were enjoying fresh warm bread topped with delicious fresh jam.