Success a Matter of Hanging On

While trying to keep the little monster, ahem George the kitten, from climbing up my leg, I was reading about my favorite drink. Did you guess it correctly? Yep, coffee! Some Swedish scientists at the Karolinska Institute found that women over 50 who are regular coffee drinkers were 57 percent less likely to develop estrogen-receptor negative tumors, an aggressive form of breast cancer that is resistant to a wide range of drugs. They are still baffled and claim further study is needed. Wow, someone was actually saying that coffee is good for you? That’s like saying George is a mild mannered docile little kitty. Now don’t get me wrong, I think this is fabulous. A natural product that can help prevent a form of cancer. I just have trouble believing that it’s my beloved coffee.

Wow, this is like saying that the little destructo-monster, ahem, cute little George, is good for something. I know a lot of people are interested in healthier lifestyles and safer products, but coffee! This makes all the Memorial Day fanfare pale in comparison. And I and many in my family have served our country in all branches of the military. Myself, I was in the United States Marine Corps, so I’m proud of the military history of our country, and all the men and women who have served. I also am proud of the men and women who work in the public safety arena as I am also a retired police officer. Now research is a great thing for products. I work from home with a company that believes in research for its products also. And as a retired police officer you can bet that I researched this company.

The biggest obstacle for people working from home is success. American publisher and author William Feather said’ “Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go.” George figured that out and he’s only about three months old. He keeps attacking Elisha our 8 year old cat until Elisha runs off. So hanging on is a path to success, and to achieving your goals. I’m not talking about a scam or a job, but a real way to succeed at earning income from home. With a good mentor who doesn’t disappear on you, and with a dream of success that we refer to as your ‘Why’, success isn’t that hard. You just can’t give up. How badly do you want your ‘why’? Just remember that your ‘why’ can evolve as you hang on and find success.

Now I hope everyone has enjoyed Memorial Day, and if you want to try a treat, I’ll leave you with a recipe from The Pioneer Woman.

Cherry Cake Pudding

Prep Time: 15 Minutes  

Cook Time: 40 Minutes  

Difficulty: Easy  

Servings: 10

Ingredients

• Cake
• 1 cup Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Butter, Softened
• 1 whole Egg
• 1 cup All-purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• ⅛ teaspoons Salt
• ½ cups Whole Milk
• 1 can (15 Ounces) Cherries In Syrup (NOT Cherry Pie Filling) Drained, Juice Reserved (Oregon Bing cherries is what Pioneer Woman recommends)
• ½ cups Pecans, Finely Chopped
• Sauce:
• 1 cup Juice From Cherries (add Water To Make 1 Cup If Necessary)
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon All-purpose Flour
• 1 Tablespoon Butter
• ½ teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• Unsweetened Freshly Whipped Cream

Preparation Instructions

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Generously butter a square 9 x 9-inch baking dish.

Cream the sugar and butter. Add egg and mix well. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt then add to mixing bowl alternatively with milk. Add cherries and chopped nuts and mix gently. Pour batter into buttered pan and smooth out the surface. Bake for 40 minutes, or until golden brown on the surface and no longer jiggly.

While cake is baking, make the sauce by combining cherry juice, sugar, and flour in a small saucepan. Boil for 8 to 10 minutes, or until thick. Turn off heat and stir in 1 tablespoon butter and vanilla extract.

Drizzle 1/3 of the sauce on the cake as soon as you remove it from the oven. Spread to distribute over the surface and wait ten minutes before serving so the sauce will seep into the top of the cake a bit.

Spoon out pieces of warm, sticky cake and top with unsweetened whipped cream.

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Do Something

So the little creep, ahem, George the little kitty, sucker-punched the Chihuahua and sent her flying. I mean this kitten is a firm believer in the concept, “Do Something”. Actually, more people should take a hint from George and do something. Anything! Now George he likes to live dangerously. I mean he thrives on ambushing the big cat, Elisha and three chihuahuas. The funny thing is, he usually succeeds. Now really, what have George and a bunch of pets have to do with anything important? I mean, who has time to waste watching this silliness?

Well, after many years of working as a police officer, I now work from home and get to observe the things I used to miss by being gone. OMG! You say, it’s one of those work from home scams. Let me reassure you; I work with a company that specializes in helping people earn some extra income on their own schedule. A company that is accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), and has been around and doing business for over twenty-five years. Some people have a bad taste in their mouth over work from home opportunities. And yes, that makes it harder for the legit work from home opportunities. Most people seem to have the umbrella drink syndrome. You know the commercial thing where they sit around on the beach with a drink that has a little umbrella stuck in it, and are supposed to be making money.

Residual income is a great thing. Its money you earn for work you do one time, without having to do the work over and over again. The key is, you must work to get it started. A four letter word that so many people are running from. A word that requires that you follow the words of the thirty-second President, Franklin D. Roosevelt: “Do Something. If it works, do more of it. If it doesn't, do something else.” The same applies to many things in life, including working from home. Just ‘do something’ is the concept of a work from home business. And if what you are doing works, keep on doing the same activities. And if it doesn’t get you the results you want, do something different.

Just remember that a work from home business is not a JOB. You become your own boss, and determine whether you succeed or not. Don’t expect someone else to do the work for you. So like little George, do something! And while you’re thinking of what to do, you might like a little treat. My friend Barbara Burditt shared a recipe with us that she found in the Tulsa World, and the wife said I should share it with you.

Watermelon Salsa

3 cups finely diced seedless watermelon (from a 5-pound watermelon)

2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup minced red onion

Juice of 2 limes

1/4 teaspoon salt

Tortilla chips, to serve

1. In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients except salt.

2. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt, and serve chilled or at room temperature with tortilla chips.

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And the Winner Is

Well…..George hasn’t learned to stay off the table yet. The other day when no one was looking, he attacked a stack of napkins. George one, napkins zero. Tonight he attacked Devin’s Mickey Mouse light that was on the table. George two, Mickey Mouse light zero. Yet in between all of this, it was business as usual. One of the easiest things to do is work our schedule around the chaos of children and pets. Yes, we’re one of those, we work from home.

Now let Better Business Bureau (BBB) reassure you. Our work from home opportunity is accredited by the BBB. We specialize in helping people earn some extra income. The concept is quite simple, and best of all it works. Now as a police officer for over thirty years, and while working as an investigator for a county attorney’s office, I checked out this work from home opportunity to make sure it was legit. The last thing anyone wants is to be taken by a scam. Now when a company has been in business for over twenty-five years, and is accredited by the BBB, this isn’t a scam. It’s a genuine work from home business.

The concept is quite simple, but it’s not one of those get rich quick and do nothing deals. If that what you’re looking for, I have to disappoint you. Are you single and on the go? Or a parent with children and all the scheduling that goes with them? It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, this opportunity specializes in helping people make that extra income they want. This business does require you to work, but yes, you set your own hours. Thomas Edison said it quite well; “The successful person makes a habit of doing what the failing person doesn’t like to do.” Are you one of the successful people? If you are, we’d love to partner up with you and show you how this concept works. 

The great concept of working from home is to have time to do what you want…..like learning to play in the kitchen. Now for a tasty item I found on Rachel Ray’s website by Plan B Mom.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

This is a classic Banana bread, moist and full of chocolate chips! It’s a great way to use overripe bananas, and tightly wrapped in foil it freezes well for up to three months. (Now my kids aren’t crazy about bananas, but this sure disappears fast when I make it).

1 ½ cups flour

¼ cup vegetable oil

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

2 eggs lightly beaten

3 bananas, mashed (about 1 cup of bananas)

1 cup chocolate chips

Preparation

Pre-heat oven to 350 degree

Grease and flour a 8 ½ inch X 4 ½ inch loaf pan (or use baking spray).

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, sugar and baking soda. Mix in the oil, bananas and eggs. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour in the prepared pan. Bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 60 to 70 minutes. Cool the loaf pan for 10 minutes, then turn out and cool completely, right side up.

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Here We Go Again

Here we go again, the little monster, ahem, I mean George the kitten, is terrorizing the household again. It’s like one of those animated movies with the talking pets getting into trouble. He destroyed the stack of paper napkins on the table, leaving claw marks in the table cloth. I’m afraid to look under the table cloth. So I no sooner sit down,  and the little creep, ahem, I mean George the kitty, claws his way up my pant leg into my lap. It’s a good thing I wasn’t wearing shorts. And George, he only wanted to get to another chair where Elisha the adult cat was cowering in the dark under the table. Of course, then three of the children, ages 18, 19, and 29 all get in the act. I think they act worse than George at times.

Now most people are probably wondering what is he talking about? For many years, I missed out on the stupid, yet funny things that go on in a household. You know, the nine to five problem called a J O B. Of course in my case it meant three in the afternoon until eleven at night or eleven at night to seven in the morning. Then while I was going to college after working all night, I really didn’t see anyone, because when I was home, I was sound asleep. Now I’ve found something I wish I had found twenty-some years ago. A real, legit, work from home business. As a police officer for over thirty years, I know a scam when I see one. The first things to look at are, what does the Better Business Bureau (BBB) say? Is this business accredited by the BBB? Ours is. Do they tell you to not quit your day job? This one tells you if you have a job, hang on to it until the money is secure. Yet if you’ve lost your job, this one can help with that too. The real key to success means you do have to work.

Aldous Huxley, and English writer and author stated, “All that happens means something; nothing you do is ever insignificant.” Which means you have to do it, don’t expect someone else to do the work for you. Now here is the best part; you don’t have to work all hours of the day or night. You can set your own hours, because you decide what’s important to you, family, church, school activities. Or just finding a good recipe to try out on the family.

Courtesy of the Pioneer Woman, here’s one I’m gonna try called Pig Cake. Even the Pioneer Woman doesn’t know why it’s called Pig Cake.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/01/pig-cake/

Pig Cake

Prep Time: 10 Minutes  

Cook Time: 30 Minutes

Difficulty: Easy  

Servings: 16

Ingredients

• FOR THE CAKE:
• 1 box (18.25 Oz. Box) Yellow Cake Mix
• 1 stick Margarine (softened)
• 1 can (14 Oz. Can) Mandarin Oranges, Drained, 1/2 Cup Juice Reserved
• 4 whole Eggs
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• _____
• FOR THE TOPPING:
• 1 package (4 Oz. Box) Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix
• 1 can (20 Oz. Can) Crushed Pineapple, Juice Reserved
• ½ cups Powdered Sugar
• 4 ounces, fluid Frozen Whipped Topping (such As Cool Whip)
• Extra Mandarin Orange Slices, For Garnish

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. For the cake, combine cake mix, margarine, 1/2 cup juice from the mandarin oranges, eggs, and vanilla. Beat for four minutes on medium-high. Add drained oranges and beat again until pieces are broken up and small. Pour batter into greased and floured 9 x 13 inch baking pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown and set. Remove from oven and cool completely. If desired, turn out cake onto a large platter.

Once cake is cool, blend juice from drained pineapples with the vanilla pudding mix. Add powdered sugar and mix, then mix in whipped topping. Stir in drained pineapple. Spread on cooled cake and refrigerate.

To serve, cut cake into squares and top each square with a mandarin orange slice.

You’ll need a yellow cake mix, a can of mandarin oranges, a stick of margarine, four eggs, vanilla extract, vanilla pudding mix, powdered sugar, Cool Whip, and crushed pineapple. Throw in a stick of softened margarine. Not butter…margarine. It brings out the flavor of the cake mix. Crack in four eggs and add some vanilla extract. Brings out the flavor of the cake mix. Totally drain the oranges, reserving 1/2 cup of the syrupy juice. Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with baking spray (or just grease and flour it the way our grandmothers always did it.)

Spread the batter evenly in the pan, then bake it for 25 to 30 minutes, or until nice and golden and firm. While the cake is cooling (or once it’s cooled) add the vanilla pudding mix to the (clean, because you made your daughter wash it) mixing bowl. Drain a can of crushed pineapple. Saving all of the juice. (You might need to squish your hands in there and force out some of the liquid. It doesn’t always go willingly.)

Add the pineapple juice to the pudding mix… Then throw in some powdered sugar. Then grab some (softened in the fridge) Cool Whip…And plop in about half the carton. Whip it all together until fluffy, then stir in the drained crushed pineapple. Plop it on top of the cake…

Then spread it all over the top and sides of the cake. You can refrigerate it at this point if you’d like! The cake is great after a few hours of refrigeration. Lay a mandarin orange slice on the top of each square.

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Let the Fight Begin

Let the fight begin. George the brainless kitten is hiding beside Panthea on the couch and jumping up to attack Elisha the adult cat who makes like five of him, and the little dogs are watching like it’s the cartoon channel. Earlier in the evening, our 10 month old grandson, Devin stopped by for dinner. I mean he ate 2 hotdogs, elbow macaroni, stuffing and 2 cookies, not to mention the banana he had before dinner. I have no idea where he put it. By now, most of you are saying, “What’s he babbling about?” The answer: the joys of working from home. You know, those things you miss when you work at one of those nine to five, 40 hours a week things.

Here the nay-sayers go again, “Oh it’s one of those scams!” The problem with the ones screaming “scam” is, they want to get paid for not working. Now if the Better Business Bureau has accredited a business with a very good rating, are you going to believe them? I hope so. After three decades of being a police officer and an investigator for a county attorney’s office, I know the legal definition of a scam. However, the average person doesn’t have the resources available to them that a police officer does. So let the Better Business Bureau do the work for you. Yes, they investigate work from home opportunities as well as traditional businesses. If a business opportunity is legit, the Better Business Bureau will tell you. If it’s a scam, or risky, they’ll tell you that also.

I’ve worked a nine to five type job, also shift work, and I’ve had to work on holidays, and my children’s birthdays. While I could support a family and put food on the table, I missed out on a lot of things. And no, just because it’s always been done that way, doesn’t mean we have to continue that way. We’re supposed to learn from our mistakes, right? Charles F. Ketering, an American Engineer and Inventor (1876-1958) said it this way; “Failures are finger posts on the road to achievement.” I mean, I hope I learn as I get older, don’t you?

So now I earn an income from home and still have time to try new recipes on the family. Sooner or later I have to find the right one to drive the kids out of the house. The trouble I have, is the recipes are too good, and the kids won’t leave. See what you think about this one.

Seejay’s Meatloaf

Over time, I’ve taken some different recipes for meatloaf and combined the parts I like, and found that my family likes also. Now this isn’t that high school meatloaf that tastes like card board and gives meatloaf a bad name, but on the other hand, maybe it’s too good. My family is yelling for more.

Ingredients

• Meatloaf:
• 1 cup Whole Milk
• 1 Vidalia Sweet Onion finely chopped or diced
• 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• ½ Green Bell Pepper finely chopped or diced
• ½ Red Bell Pepper finely chopped or diced
• ½ Yellow Bell Pepper finely chopped or diced
• ½ range Bell Pepper finely chopped or diced
• 3 or 4 Sticks of Celery finely chopped or diced
• 3 or 4 Cloves of Fresh Garlic, minced or finely chopped
• 2 tbsp Dijon Mustard
• 5 or 6 slices of Bread of your choice (Saltine Crackers may be used also)
• 2 pounds Ground Beef
• 1 cup (heaping) Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
• ¼ teaspoons Seasoned Salt
• ¾ teaspoons Kosher Salt
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• ⅓ cups chopped Fresh Flat-leaf Parsley
• 3 whole Eggs Beaten
• 10 slices Thin/regular Bacon

• Sauce:
• 1-½ cup Ketchup
• ⅓ cups Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Dry Mustard

Preparation Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Put the bread in a bowl and pour the milk over the bread and let it soak for a few minutes.

Place the ground beef in a large bowl

Add the chopped onion, chopped bell peppers, chopped celery, Dijon mustard, Parmesan Cheese, Seasoned Salt, Kosher salt, Ground Black Pepper, Fresh Parsley, minced garlic, eggs and bread. You can vary the amount of onion, bell peppers and celery to taste.

Now hopefully your hands are clean. Using your hands, combine all of the ingredients until mixed well. Using a Roasting pan or broiler pan, form the mixture into a loaf shape. Aluminum foil under the loaf helps keep the mess under control, just be careful not to overcook the loaf or it will stick to the foil. Aluminum foil doesn’t taste very good. I found that the traditional loaf pans are not big enough for my family.

Once you have the loaf shaped, make your sauce. Add ketchup, brown sugar and dried mustard into a mixing bowl and give it a good mix.

Add a layer of sauce onto the loaf, and then lay the strips of bacon over the loaf, tucking the ends under the loaf. Now pour another layer of the sauce over the bacon strips. Spread with a knife or spoon.

It takes about an hour to cook, remember oven temperatures vary. After about 45 minutes, you can add another layer of the sauce on the loaf it you like, and then cook for another 15 minutes. Then serve and get out of the way. I made three of these for a family get together, and they ate every bite.

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It’s Not a Scam

Graduation done? Check. Out of state family finally made it home? Check. Nervous breakdown? Check. And now we're starting a new week.

Well, I’m officially in the dog house, if we had one that is. Those Apple Spice cookies I mentioned the other day, are absolutely yummy! I changed it up just a bit by using a can of Luck’s fried apples with cinnamon. These fried apples also work great for strudel. Anyway, Panthea told me I’m in trouble as she likes these cookies tooooo much. A great test for a cookie recipe is, how fast they disappear when you’re done.

We won’t even talk about the painting and cleaning that's been going on before and after the baby of the family graduated high school. And poor George, (the little feline monster) he thinks we all went nuts, but he’s the one climbing the drapes. Yet with all this going on, we can make our schedule work around everything by working from home. Now many people out there will say, “Yah right! All of those work from home deals are scams.” I hate to disappoint the nay sayer’s, but there are legit work from home opportunities. After more than three decades as a police officer, I know what scams are, and I know what the real deal is. Now one major clue is, are they accredited by the Better Business Bureau? Have you ever heard of a scam being accredited by the Better Business Bureau.

With the right work from home business, you can even do it while you’re on the go. Today’s technology with smart phones, net books and lap top computers make it simple to network with your business partners and friends. Not to mention going to your son’s graduation.  The drawback to working from home in Oklahoma, in the spring time, is the wife has more time to find things for me to do. My salvation, I tell her it’s time to bake some more goodies. Now I’ve found some different recipes for apple strudel, and after tweaking them, I created my own. Now don’t all moan and go yuk! The strudel may not be pretty, but it disappears faster than the cookies. Try it and decide.

Apple Strudel

Ingredients:

1 pound sweet apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced, (or 1 or 2 cans of Luck’s Fried Apples with Cinnamon)

¼ Cup raisins, regular or golden

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup white sugar

2 slices of bread, crumbled

½ of 16 ounce package of Phyllo Dough, (or 7 or 8 sheets)

¼ cup butter, melted (Cooking spray may be substituted)

½ cup of nuts, either crushed walnut or pecan work well

For the glaze:

1 ½ cup confectioner’s sugar

1 tablespoon apple cider

1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions:

1.    Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

2.    In a bowl, combine apples, raisins, cinnamon, sugar, bread crumbs, and nuts, and stir well. (If using the glaze, save some of the nuts for the topping).

3.    Spread Phyllo dough sheets generously with melted butter or spray with cooking spray and lay them one on top of the other on a baking sheet. (Use of parchment paper on the baking sheet makes it much easier. Otherwise spray the baking sheet with cooking spray). Spread the mixture from the bowl evenly over the top sheet, then roll up all of the sheets to form a log shape. (Neatness in your log shape really doesn’t effect the taste). Brush the whole thing with melted butter again.

4.    Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until pastry is golden brown and fruit is tender. (A little less time if you are using Luck’s Fried Apples with Cinnamon as these apples are already tender). Remember ovens vary on temperature.

Glaze:

If making the glaze, combine the confectioner’s sugar, apple cider and butter in a small mixing bowl using a whisk. (Apple juice may be substituted).

Using a fork or the whisk, dip it into the glaze, then hold it over the finished strudel and let the glaze drip off the fork or whisk. Drip liberal amount of glaze on the strudel and sprinkle with nuts. Let it cool for 10 to 15 minutes, then serve.

You can use pastry icing if you don’t want to make the glaze.

You may also want to use nuts only for the topping.

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Hectic Week

I apologize that I didn't post yesterday, but our youngest turned 18 and he graduates from high school in two days. Now the advantage of working from home is that I've been able to run all kinds of errands as we get ready for Chas' graduation and for the family coming from out of state. Of course its been raining all day, and rain is in the forecast for the next ten days, and I still have to mow the lawn.

Between running to the store and buying the kid dress pants, I think I'll run out of energy before the week is over. And I can't let that happen because I've got to pick out the recipes I'm going to experiment with on the family. Even the wife is making suggestions. Maybe I should let her cook? Naw, I'd rather not go hungry.

The Little Kitten George Who Could

Here I am watching George the kitten do things that no self respecting cat would ever attempt, but a kitten…. I mean he climbs up on the chair trying to get to the hutch where Elisha is hiding from him, and keeps falling to the floor. But George just gets back up and tries it again. Or watch him sneak up on the cat or one of the dogs, not realizing that he is about the size of a kibble treat. George must have been listening to Bill Cosby, who once said: “In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.”

Now a good friend of mine should pay attention to George. Anna, I’m talking about you girlfriend. Of course, Anna is not the only person afflicted with the ‘scaredy pants’ syndrome. And Anna, I love ya girl! Just don’t tell your husband or my wife, I might get in trouble. For real, Anna is a great friend of ours as well as a business partner.

People with the ‘scaredy pants’ syndrome should pay attention to little George. Their desire to achieve something should be greater than the fear of failure. Especially when you become your own boss by working at home, no matter which state you live in. Another good way to look at things is, would you retain or fire an employee who is acting like you? Granted, it’s easier to bake a cake or some other treat, but if you want to succeed as your own boss, step out of your comfort zone.

Easier said than done you say! Probably! Yet how bad do you want to succeed? Set smaller goals when you do a project, or try something new. Divide it up into those small parts so that you can succeed more often. George would never set himself up for failure. Now a final thought is also from Bill Cosby: “I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.”

Again, a ‘Plan B’ Mom recipe that is really tasty.

Lemon Squares

Makes approximately 16-20 squares

These lemon squares are classic – light, not too sweet and delicious. I have made them many times for bake sales and baby or wedding showers and served them on a platter with homemade brownies. The recipe came from my mom's old Children's Hospital cookbook, which she has had for years. They're perfect with a cup of tea after lunch.

• 1/4 pound softened butter
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting
• 1 cup flour, plus 2 1/2 tablespoons, divided
• 1/2 teaspooon salt
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest

Preparation

Pre-heat the oven to 350ºF.

Butter an 8-inch square pan. Combine the butter, confectioners' sugar, flour and salt and press into the bottom of the prepared pan, making a crust. Combine the eggs, granulated sugar, the remaining 2 1/2 tablespoons flour, lemon juice and lemon zest and beat until light in color. Pour over the crust and bake for 25-30 minutes. Let cool until cool to the touch, then dust the top with confectioners sugar. Cut into uniform squares.

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What’s On Your Floor?

Well, tonight I was watching George the kitten chase whatever he could find on the floor, batting it all over the place. It reminded me of Devin, my ten month old grandson. Now one of the great things about working from home in northeast Oklahoma is that I get to experience things like, Devin crawling around the house when he visits, except that he usually finds something left over from his last meal. No matter how much you sweep, vacuum or mop, there always seems to be something you miss that a baby will find. Which leads to the question, is it safe for babies and children to eat off the floor?

For years we’ve heard of the five second rule, if it is on the floor for less than five seconds it’s okay to eat it, not me! Between the dogs, cats, and children, who knows what lurks on that floor. Yet small children and babies have been doing just that for centuries, without paying attention to the five seconds. That’s when all my police training starts to surface and I think of all the ways one can be poisoned, like Chronic poisoning, Contact or absorption poisoning and Inhaled or ingested poisons. Yet the little ones seem to be immune with all the things they put in their mouths. We still worry, it’s in our nature. The wife and I use green cleaning products throughout the house, which helps.

More of the strange trivia that lurks in my brain is that during the Renaissance the popularity of poison as a method of disposing of people who were in the way surged throughout Europe. You could almost say that poisoning had become fashionable. So what about the floor? Not to mention the children crawling past your feet, who explore the world by tasting everything they find. Yet after having six children and seeing them remain perfectly healthy after doing things like sucking pickle juice out of the carpet, I don’t worry too much anymore.

Of course green cleaning products and disinfectants help ease the worry, I mean it’s not like were serving some exotic poison from the ground level serving tray.

Now as I’ve mentioned before, working from home in northeast Oklahoma has allowed me more time to experiment in the kitchen. No wise cracks, at least I don’t serve off the ground level serving tray that the kids like to use. My computer crashed recently and I lost a couple of the recipes I use a lot, so I went and re-visited Rachel Ray’s website for the recipes. And I found a new one that sounds really good. I went shopping earlier today and picked up some of the ingredients I didn’t have on hand. So, now that Devin and George have semi-cleaned the floor, I’m going to try out some apple spice cookies.

Courtesy of Rachel Ray’s website, and her sister Maria;

Apple Spice Cookies

Makes 4 dozen cookies

INGREDIENTS

2 ¼ cups of all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 1/3 cups brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

¼ cup apple cider

5 medium McIntosh apples, peeled and finely diced

½ cup walnuts, minced

½ cup raisins, minced

For the glaze

1 ½ cups confectioner’s sugar

1 tablespoon apple cider

1 tablespoon butter, melted

PREPARATION

Pre-heat the oven to 250 degrees

In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, cloves and nutmeg and set aside. In a large bowl cream together the butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Add the egg and beat on low speed until incorporated. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat on low speed after each addition until combined.

With a spoon, stir in the apple cider, apples, walnuts and raisins – the cookie dough will be quite chunky. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a parchment lined baking sheet 2 inches apart.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and no longer doughy to the touch – ovens vary with temperature, so pay attention to the first batch and you’ll have your time down for future batches. Cool on a wire rack; glaze when cool (optional).

If making glaze, combine the confectioner’s sugar, apple cider and butter in a small mixing bowl using a whisk.

Take a fork and dip it into the glaze. Hold the fork over each cookie, waving it back and forth and letting the glaze drip off the tines onto the cookies, making a zig-zag effect. Let the glaze completely dry before moving the cookies to a storage container (about 20 minutes).

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Frustrated? Have a Chocolate Chip Cookie

It’s spring and pouring down rain in Northeast Oklahoma, and I’m sitting here laughing as my ten month old grandson gets mad and frustrated, kind of like the rest of us over gas prices. By far the largest rip-off of the decade. The only thing that keeps me from totally loosing it over the gas price fiasco is having legitimate work from home. Now most people get as skeptical about legitimate work from home as they do over politician’s promises. I know I ranked among the skeptics, of course that was a given after being a police officer for thirty-one years. Yet now, I get to enjoy a humorous moment with a grandchild.

I also spend more time in the kitchen than the wife does, and I should be using our green cleaning products to get ready for my next baking project. All joking aside, I get to bake chocolate chip cookies and other goodies because I do work from home, and it beats mowing the grass. Of course the kids eat the cookies as fast as I can make them. After all the years of telling people they have the right to remain silent, and now I let my secret out of the closet. He can cook? Bake? It tastes good?

Come on guys, most of us are not helpless in the kitchen. It’s not that big of a deal. How many men are doing the Mr. Mom thing? Laid off and the wife is the one working. My advantage is that my youngest child graduates from high school in less than two weeks. Yet I still have time to work in between baking some cookies and cooking some barbeque chicken for dinner. Real work from home that is legitimate does require some work, but you can set your own hours, deal with the kids and still play in the kitchen.

Courtesy of Rachel Ray’s website and Plan B Mom for this recipe I found. It’s easy and the cookies are great. Now if the NFL will get their lockout and strike straightened out. So I’m impatient……cookies anyone?

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 4 Dozen Cookies

Ingredients

        2 Cups all purpose flour

        1 teaspoon baking soda

        1 teaspoon kosher salt

        1 cup softened butter (2 sticks)

        1 cup brown sugar

        ½ cup sugar

        1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

        2 large eggs

        2 cups chocolate chip

       

        Preparation

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or spray with baker’s spray, such as Baker’s Joy brand.

Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Beat the butter, sugars and vanilla in a mixing bowl until creamy and light in color. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the bowl as needed. Beat in the flour mixture and stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop by rounded spoonfuls (12 per pan, evenly spaced) and bake for 12 minutes, switching and turning the pans around halfway through the cooking time. DO NOT OVERBAKE – the cookies continue to cook after they come out of the oven. Cool on the sheets for 1-2 minutes, then remove the cookies (carefully – these are thin) to a rack to finish cooling. Store tightly sealed with a slice of bread to keep them soft, (if they last that long).

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Turkey and Gravy or a Cup of Thio Something

Sitting here watching fearless George, my daughter’s kitten run amok as he attacks the mini blinds, and my son’s cat Elisha hiding from him on the antique hutch, I figure there are some interesting moments when working at home in Oklahoma, such as I get to fix the blinds if George breaks them. Having six children also means having pets in the house. How many out there have gone through child proofing or pet proofing your house? It can keep you busy, right?

Looking back over the years, and realizing how many of my children’s school, church and sport activities I missed out on because I had to work. Life as a police officer is a 24-7 type of job doing shift work. How many other professions out there also involve 24-7 shift work? Lots! Four of the kids are grown and out of the house, and three of them have kids of their own, (a total of seven grandkids). Now I just have to survive the last two kids still at home.

Of late, I’m the one doing most of the cooking. It’s a good thing I know how. I use green cleaners to keep the kitchen clean, something the children are still not real good at. Now I do like to cook with onions and garlic, but be careful, they both contain thiosulphate which in high doses is toxic to dogs, cats and some other livestock. Although there are medical uses for humans, including as an antidote for cyanide poisoning and is used during chemotherapy, really!

Now a recipe I found that the family goes nuts over, I got from a Chef Gordon Ramsey Christmas special. Holiday or any day turkey and gravy….Yum! And besides tasting good, it’s not hard to make.

Gordon Ramsey Holiday Turkey and Gravy

Basting Mix:

2 Sticks of butter

Salt

Pepper

Touch of olive oil – keeps the butter from burning

Zest from 2 lemons & their juice

3 cloves of garlic – pureed

Generous handful of chopped parsley

Give it a good mix

Place turkey in large roasting pan

Salt & pepper the cavity of the turkey

Halve 2 onions and put in the cavity

1 whole lemon in the cavity

Add a few bay leaves in the cavity

Loosen skin on top of bird – both ends

Stuff basting mix between skin and meat

Baste outside of turkey

Touch of olive oil on the basting mix – keeps it from burning

Heat oven to 420 degrees

Put turkey in the oven for 10 min uncovered to brown the bird

After 10 min remove turkey and baste it again

Cover top of turkey with 6 or 7 strips of bacon

Baste again over the bacon

(Bacon will be used for the gravy & keeps turkey from drying out)

Turn oven down to about 350 degrees

Cook turkey for 2 to 2 ½ hours or ½ hour per pound

Baste frequently with pan juice

(Stick a knife in the bottom of the thigh. If juice runs clear, its done)

When done, remove turkey from oven and pan

Let the turkey rest on a platter as long as it cooked

(The turkey will re-absorb the juice and give 10 times the flavor)

Turkey doesn’t have to be hot if served with hot gravy

Gravy

Remove juice from pan and place in a bowl

Place pan on stove on medium or high

Chop up onion, lemon and bacon from turkey & add to pan

Add a couple sprigs of rosemary

3 chopped tomatoes – thickens the gravy

Take wings and other bits off the turkey and add for flavor

Add 1 quart of dry cider

Add juice from resting turkey

When the liquid is reduced by half from cooking use a masher to mash all bits and pieces

Add chicken stock and cook until liquid is boiling

Pour liquid through a sieve

Use back of ladel to push all juice out for maximum flavor

Stir a sprig of rosemary in the gravy like a stir stick and serve

You can also add crushed walnuts to the gravy – add last

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