My Grandma's Hot Chocolate Recipe Made by the Cup, Delicious, Easy, Inexpensive, and Versitle

I will admit to getting old insomuch as it would be quite impossible to deny at this point with children in their mid 40;s!  But further I do not mind it.  No, not at all really.  I think it is because I had such wonderful Grandparents and thought them the most wonderful and amazing people in the whole world! So they were beautiful to me.  I loved the snow white hair and the big smiles on softly wrinkles faces.

One of my favorite memories of my Mother's Mother was the hot chocolate she made us.  It makes me wonder why today people are buying mixes? They just must not know about this? The other beauty of this is that it is actually "warm" chocolate and not all that hot which works quite well for little ones who really do not like "hot" anything, but generally have to wait for things to cool before they can enjoy them fully.  Here is her pure and simple recipe.  You may tweak it for flavor intensity and sweetness. Heat in the microwave to warm it more and just generally enjoy!

Ingredients for Grandma's Hot Chocolate:

1 t. unsweetened cocoa powder (Grandma used Hershey's Cocoa Powder)
1 T. sugar
pinch of salt
1/3 C. very hot tap water or boiling water (Grandma used hot tap water)
1 1/2 C. whole milk ( Grandma used right from the refrigerator but you can warm it if desired)
marshmallows, optional

Place the first 3 ingredients in a 2 cup glass measuring cup or other large mug. Stir together and add the very hot water and stir until the dry ingredients are dissolved.  Stir in the milk and serve.
Garnish with marshmallows if desired.  Yield 2 cups.  Yummy!  May you never buy mix again!

Quilting Inspiration and More Helpful Hints

This is a square quilted by Grandma Powell.

This morning I spent time becoming quite inspired!  I was fortunate to be able to see first hand the beautiful quilts and super organized quilting and sewing room of my best friend's Mother!  I was so inspired by her color combinations.  They were all so sunny and happy yet unlike many I have seen!  She also used blocks of quilting fabric remnants sewn together for the backings to make almost what looks to be reversible quilts!  Awesome ideas.  She showed me how she makes her quilts in three sections and then how she joins them together.  It was a lovely and fun morning that I so appreciated!
Thank you Diane and Mrs. B.!

I have also invited a neighborhood friend who quilts using a quilting frame next week to see if we can get one of my frames put together.  Perhaps she will share some of her ways and I will be even more inspired! Excited to have you Cindy F.!

I also have come across some really, in my opinion helpful Household Hints.  I am only sharing the ones I really like and will use.  If you would like to read more I have not included they are found at     quiltingboard.com/general-chit-chat-non-quilting-talk-f7/some-helpful-household-hints-t251852.html

Here are my favorite NEW HELPFUL HINTS:

Keep brown sugar soft by storing with a couple of marshmallows. (I like this idea way better than stale bread!)

Create a thrifty watering can by punching holes in the top of a used plastic milk jug. (Thrifty idea.)

Cover paint trays with aluminium foil for faster clean up.(I have done this and it is well worth the effort.)

Use a large muffin pan to bake stuffed peppers in the oven--it will keep them upright. (I will try this very soon!)

To keep potatoes from budding place an apple in the bag. (I am doing this today.)

Add a half teaspoon of baking soda to the water when boiling eggs to make the shells incredibly easy to peel off.  (Love this one.)

Use cooking spray in votive candle holders to pevent the wax from sticking to the sides.

WD40 can be used to remove crayon marks from any surface. (I must remember to tell son Chris about this one.)

When hanging a picture frame, put a dab of toothpaste on the frame where you want the nails to be.  Then press against the wall to leave marks which can late be wiped after being guides for the nails! (GREAT IDEA.)

Sprinkle salt in the spaces between patio slabs and at the bottom of walls to get rid of weeds.  Be careful NOT to get the salt near what you want to keep as it will kill your flowers too. (Love this one.)

Easiest Way I Know to Cut Corn From the Cob, Another Helpful Hint!

This is a super handy way to cut corn from the cob.  First you need a medium to large size bowl, depending on how much corn you are cutting.  Next place a flat bottomed coffee mug upside down in the center of the bowl.  This acts as a platform to rest the end of an ear of corn upon.  Using a large sharp knife slice down the cob stopping just prior to touching the end of the coffee mug. Rotate the cob slicing away until all of the kernels have been removed.  Continue with each ear of corn.

This can be done before or after cooking.  I often do this with leftover corn and make fried corn the next day.  Sometimes I freeze in one cup portions for use later in soups.  At any rate it is the easiest way I have found to do the job.

Easy clean up just rinse the items and dry and you are done.

Scalloped Potato and Hamburger Casserole

Layers of potatoes, ground beef, sauce, and cheese! WOW, sooo good!

OH MY GOSH!  This is so good!  Sooooo very easy! And it takes nothing special!  I call that a big win.  It comes from a cookbook, published from the church I grew up in, Christ Lutheran Church in Noblesville, Indiana in 1978 called "Cooking with Big Love." Mother gave all of us one of these for Christmas one year.  Linda my middle sister made this and told me about it.  When I looked it up and say the recipe came from the late Sally Schlensker I knew it would be good.  I did adapt it a bit but only to make it even better!  I made the "gravy" in the same pan the meat and veggies were browned in to capture those flavors and I added the cheese the last 20 minutes of the baking time, neither of which is in the recipe.  NOTE:  This would be delicious using sausage, ground ham as in ham loaf or any other ground meat, just adjust the seasonings.

My husband LOVED it and asked for it to be warmed over for the next evenings meal.  Now that is good.

Ingredients for Scalloped Potato and Hamburger Casserole:

1 pound ground chuck (beef)
1 large diced onion
1 C. diced celery
1 t. kosher salt
1/2 t. ground black pepper
4-5 large peeled and sliced potatoes

Ingredients for the Sauce or Gravy:

1/2 C. butter (a stick)
1/4 C. flour
2 C. whole milk
kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 C. grated cheese, optional  (cheddar, Colby, Jack, or whatever you prefer)

Butter a large baking dish and set aside, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  

Smells delicious.

Cook the beef, onions,  seasonings, and celery together until the meat has browned and is no longer pink.   Slice the potatoes into the prepared baking dish and season, then toss them together a bit. 

Makes a very full casserole and I only used 4 potatoes.

Layer the beef and vegetables on top of the potatoes.

Here's the "magic gravy."

Melt the butter into the skillet you browned the meat in and stir in the flour.   Cook a minute or so stirring to give the flour better flavor.  Add the milk all at once stirring continuously until thickened. Season to taste.  Pour and spread across the top of the meat mixture. 

We LOVE black pepper, if you don't leave it out or use less.

Sprinkle with black pepper.

I used  Colby Jack cheese because it was what I had on hand.

Bake in preheated oven for about and hour to an hour and 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with the cheese and bake another 20 minutes.  My casserole did not run over but I HIGHLY RECOMMEND placing the casserole dish on a baking tray (cookie sheet) just in case as this really filled my dish to the top!  I think I was just lucky.  (I even lined the baking sheet with parchment paper so there would be no clean up.)

As you can see it was a BIG HIT.

Serve and enjoy.  Yield 4-6 servings.
 

Pork Loin Under $2.00 @ Pound is a GREAT Buy. Here is how I will package, freeze, and use it!

Eight and a half pounds at $1.98 a pound.  I am happy to package and tuck into my freezer!

Last Friday at the local SAM'S Club I found a deal too good to pass up.  As you know, I seldom buy meat except from our local butcher, I made an exception for this terrific buy.  Today I am removing it from the packers wrapping and breaking it down for freezing.  Currently with gas, meat, produce, and everything I can think of soaring I am all for saving!

Big hunk of meat, it hung across one side of my sink!

This is a big delicious piece of meat with NO waste! It hung across one side of the sink on my meat board!

Tonight is the first time in a week my poor husband can eat regular food due to some issues between he and our dentist.  (Read between the lines please!)

I use a sharp butcher knife and slice in my preferred sizes and stack up on a paper plate.

So I am planning on one of his favorites, tenderloin sandwiches which I make by cutting thin slices,  1/4" to 5/8" thick and pounding out thin between two pieces of plastic wrap.  Next I season, bread, and fry them.  Delicious served on a toasted and buttered bun with all of the fixing's.

I will pound these thin slices between 2 pieces of plastic wrap then bread and fry them for tenderloin sandwiches.

I will slice off several packages of 2 for tenderloins and package between layers of waxed paper and freeze in quart size freezer bags.

These you can fix any way you would a good pork chop!

Next I will thicken the slices to 3/4" and package as previously described for boneless pork cutlets.  These are good BBQ ed, grilled, or breaded and fried like a country pork chops.  The dripping make delicious country milk gravy that is hard to beat with a side of freshly mashed potatoes!

The very end of the leanest end has a tiny bit of waste so I trim it off and slice the lean pork for stir fry of chop suey.

Partially freezing a chunk of the loin will make quick work of cutting for stir fry meals.  By partially freezing I mean placing in the freezer just until partially firmed up.  Then you can easily thin slice and package for freezing in one quart freezer bags.

The two large roasts can be roasted or smoked or BBQ ed for Sunday dinners of thawed and cut down further.

Last but far from least I will make a couple of lovely roasts, say 3-4 pounds each that will just melt in your mouth when roasted and they are seriously EASY to make and are good for a crowd size meal.
these I package in one gallon freezer bags.

YIELD:  2 large loin roasts, 1 stir fry, 3 chop packages, 3 tenderloin sandwiches= 9 meals for under $17.00

I always label the freezer bags with contents and the date.  Hope my thrifty ideas give you a few ideas of your own!

Ease a Zipper that Sticks......or Ease Thread that Knots....More "Cheap Tips"

There is always a zipper that sticks or wants to kink at our house.  Somewhere along the line I learned this handy trick and have used it so many times.....on children's coats, little boy's pant zippers, long robe zippers, and many more.  Just rub a bar of soap down either side of the teeth of a zipper and work it a few times repeating until it works with ease.

To ease hand sewing with an old needle just poke it a few times in a bar of soap or if you are fortunate enough to have bees wax that works even better.  When hand sewing if you find your thread wants to knot just run the length of thread through bees wax then thread the needle and sew away.

Cheap Tips, Steel Wool Pads

Cut soap pads in half to stretch your $'s!

Steel wool pads come in quite handy when scrubbing a pot or dish with stuck on goo!  But seldom do I use it all up the first time out only to find a rusted and disintegrating mess when I grab it again.  My money saving and very helpful hint is to cut all of the soap pads in half the day you buy them and store them until needed.  At that time they are ready to go and I seldom if ever have needed more than the half pad at a time.  You now have stretched your purchase 2x's your investment.

Further if you store the previously used half soap pad that still has a bit of life left in your kitchen's FREEZER section it will not rust and disintegrate when you grab it to use again!  It is a little cold but will serve you well.