OK, I can't help it. Lately I've been in a cooking sort of mood. I'm taking advantage of it, especially since a woman is supposed to lose energy in the third trimester. Other rumors are the "nesting syndrome" a woman can get... but considering I'm 29 weeks, and I haven't had the urge to clean or do laundry, I'm thinking I'm just lucky with the fact that I've wanted to cook so much lately and have had the energy to do it.

Once again, a new muffin recipe. I have three VERY ripe bananas and wanted to do something with them. Having made Banana Blueberry Muffins within the past three weeks, I decided it was time to try another banana muffin recipe. So, here are Banana Oatmeal Muffins!

SUPPLIES:

- 1 C Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 C Oats
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 tsp Salt

- 1/2 C Oil
- 1/4 C Sugar
- 1 Egg
- 3 Mashed (as ripe as possible) Bananas

--> Optional: 1 C Blueberries OR 1/2 C to 1 C Chocolate Chips OR any other fruit or nut you can think of adding!

DIRECTIONS:

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

- Mix together the Flour, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, and Salt in a smaller bowl. Set aside.

- In a larger bowl, mix together the Oil, beaten Egg, Sugar, and mashed Bananas. Add the flour mixture after this has been well combined. Last, but not least, add the oats, followed by any of the "extras" you're in the mood for, if any at all. (I added 1/2 C chocolate chips this time around!)
- Scoop the mixture into a prepared muffin pan, either sprayed or lined; each hole should be about 2/3rds of the way full.
- Cook the muffins for 15-25 minutes, completely depending on your oven. After 15 minutes has passed, check every two to five minutes by sticking a tooth pick (or utensil of some kind) into the middle of the muffin to make sure it has cooked all the way through. If you have added extras, make sure you are judging the cooked-muffins by gooey-bread-like-substance sticking to the toothpick/utensil, not melted chocolate or blueberry juice!

This recipe makes one dozen muffins, so if you're having company you may want to double up or so! Make sure to let the muffins cool for at least five to ten minutes on a cooling rack. Enjoy with some hot tea, coffee, milk... or drink of your choice!

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

I have always been a lover of the Fourth of July. It intensified when my dad was activated with the Army, and even more when my husband joined the Marine Corps. I am so proud of my country and countrymen.

So, every year I try to make it special. Even if there isn't an opportunity for us to have the "typical" celebration, I always make goodies and make sure we see a few fireworks. Two years ago Clark was home for his ten days in between his boot camp days and MCT (Marine Combat Training, I believe). We had this huge picnic where we cooked out and then went and parked the car at Tweetsie (a theme park in Blowing Rock, NC) and watched fireworks. It was amazing. Last year Clark's newlywed cousins came and visited us where we had a wonderful cookout and drove to Tweetsie once again. It became a sort of tradition.

Now that we're in a new town, we have to start new traditions! Our friends Jessica and Zach are coming to visit us to have a cookout and then walk downtown to experience the small-town celebration of Independence Day.

To add to our new traditions, I wanted to try a new recipe. I've never made a yellow cake from scratch, and what better way to do it then fix it up in a new and improved way to make it a Red, White, & Blue (yellow) Cake! This recipe includes: Three Layered Yellow Cake from scratch, and a Cream Cheese frosting, topped with some blueberries and strawberries! I'm so excited for this one!

YELLOW CAKE

SUPPLIES for the CAKE:

- 2 1/4 C All-Purpose, Unbleached Flour
- 1 1/4 C Sugar
- 3 1/2 TSP Baking Powder
- 1 TSP Salt
- 1 C Milk
- 1/4 C Vegetable Oil
- 1/2 C (1 Stick) of Butter or Margarine, softened
- 1 TBLSP + 1 TSP Vanilla
- 3 Eggs
- Wax Paper

DIRECTIONS for CAKE:

- Preheat Oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut wax paper to fit the bottom of three 9" round pans. Spray the pans with cooking spray with the wax paper in the pans.
- Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- Add the milk, vegetable oil, butter, and vanilla. Mix for approximately two minutes.
- Add the eggs and beat for an additional two minutes.

- Pour the batter into the pans lined with the wax paper. About two cups of batter into each pan. Do not worry if this doesn't look like enough. These are three thin layers of cake, but three layers just the same!
- Cook the cakes for 20 to 25 minutes. Make sure to check the middle of the cake with a tooth pick or knife, knowing that it has cooked all the way through.
- Cook the cakes on cooling racks for 10 to 20 minutes.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

SUPPLIES for FROSTING:

- 8 oz Cream Cheese (Low Fat, if you can!), softened
- 1 to 2 C Powdered Sugar
- 5 TBLSP Butter or Margarine, softened
- 1 TBLSP Vanilla

DIRECTIONS for FROSTING:

- While the cake is cooling or cooking, whichever makes you happier, start the frosting! Beat the Cream Cheese with the butter and vanilla until nicely whipped and soft.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar to the mixture. You can add more than two cups of powdered sugar if you need it. Mix until you reach a consistency/taste that makes you happy! I used about 1 1/2 C of the powdered sugar, but you may decide you want it sweeter, or not quite as sweet!


TO PUT THE WHOLE CAKE TOGETHER!!:

Supplies:

- Three layers of Yellow Cake
- Finished Cream cheese Frosting
- Fresh, Slivered Strawberries
- Fresh Blueberries

Directions:

- Put one layer of the cake on a plate or cake stand. Frost only the top of it. Spread Strawberries evenly over the frosted top.
- Put another layer of cake on top of the strawberries. Frost only the top of this layer. Spread blueberries evenly over the frosted area.
- Put the last layer of cake on top of the blueberries. Frost only the top, once again. Make it look pretty with strawberries and blueberries, designed as you wish!

If you want to frost the sides of the cake you may, but I chose not to. I wanted the layers to be seen, and I also think too much cream cheese frosting can be a little over-kill. This could always work for cupcakes! Make a variety with blueberries and strawberries and some with both!

I LOVE pasta.

There it is. The awful truth.

Pasta is definitely not something that should be cooked on a regular basis. To be sure, it should really only be enjoyed on special occasions.

My husband's favorite pasta is bow-tie pasta, or Farfalle. I've never really cooked it, to be perfectly honest, because I am partial to Penne (see Lucky Penne if you haven't before) or the typical spaghetti. Beyond that, my pasta love is minimal... at least when it comes to cooking.

So, since Clark has been a dear and hung pictures, worked, and is working at getting back into shape... not to mention starts school in August and has a baby due in September... and has been working on furniture for said baby... I decided it was about time I tried to make a pasta just for him.

SUPPLIES: (Forgot the Sea Salt in the picture... oops!)

- 1 lb Chicken Breasts, cut into strips
- 1/3 C Chopped White Onion
- 4 Chopped Garlic Cloves
- 8 oz of Quartered Cherry Tomatoes
- 1/2 C Chopped Red Bell Pepper
- 12 oz box or bag of Farfalle (aka Bow-Tie Pasta)
- 2-3 TBLSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or whatever level of Olive Oil you wish)
- 2 TBLSP + 1 TSP Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 TBLSP + 1 TSP Basil
- 1 TSP Red Pepper Flakes (this is optional... I just always like to spice things up a bit!)
- 1 TSP Sea Salt

DIRECTIONS:

- Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box or bag. Do this while you are cooking everything else. More than likely, the pasta will be ready first. Set aside for the moment while you finish preparing the other yummies!
- Saute the Cherry Tomatoes,Bell Pepper, Onion, and Garlic together with 1 TBLSP of the Olive Oil and 1 TBLSP of the Vinegar. Do this until the onion has softened and is starting to brown along with the garlic.
- Remove the veggies to a larger pan. I am using my Wok, only because I do not have a large, deep frying pan. If you do, use that!

- Saute the already cut up chicken in the pan once used for the veggies with 1 TBLSP of the Olive Oil and 1 TSP of the Vinegar. It is important to use the same pan so the chicken can soak up the flavors of the veggies, BUT you do not want the veggies and the chicken together just yet. That comes when you put everything together! Cook the chicken until it's completely cooked through... you can cut into the strips to make sure there's no more red, pink, or any coloring that doesn't seem normal!
- Now, combine the pasta and chicken into your larger pan with the veggies. Add the spices and the last TBLSP of the Vinegar. Toss everything together every two minutes or so for about 10 to 15 minutes, allowing everything to come together to make a delicious Bow-Tie Affair!

When visiting Clark's family, I was accused of bringing healthy recipes into the house. While his little sister was overjoyed at the prospect of taking in better substance, his mom, little brother, and eventually father, were not as thrilled.

This morning was the first morning since we've been in our new apartment that Clark and I were able to sit down to a breakfast together. So, I decided to make it special.

We have a debate in our household: pancakes vs. waffles. I am more of a pancakes person myself. Clark prefers waffles. Since this was his first morning to a sit down breakfast, I caved and made his preference... but not without a price! Now that we're home, healthy is officially taking over. Not to mention it's important for baby to be getting the right nutrients.

While these waffles are healthy, they still taste amazing. Odds are you could get away with making them, not tell your guests or partakers what they're made with, and nobody would guess that they are healthy... other than the blueberries found within them!

SUPPLIES:


- 1 C Unbleached, All Purpose Flour
- 3/4 C Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 TBSP Baking Powder
- 2 TSP Wheat Germ
- 1 TSP Sugar
- 1/2 TSP Salt
- 1 3/4 C Skim Milk
- 3 TBSP Vegetable or Canola Oil
- 1 Egg
- 2 Egg Whites
- 1 1/4 C Blueberries (frozen or fresh, but I always prefer to use fresh!)

Directions:

- In a large bowl sift or mix together the flours and baking powder. Add the wheat germ,sugar, and salt and mix in following these supplies if you are sifting.
- In a smaller bowl, combine the milk, oil, egg and egg whites. Whisk together passionately. Then add the wet ingredients to the larger bowl with the dry ingredients. Whisk all of this together.
- Add the blueberries. I use 1 1/4 C because I thoroughly LOVE blueberries overpowering my waffles. If this is not the case for you, use 1/2 C to 1 C.
- Follow the directions for a lovely waffle maker that you have!

This recipe should make around 5-8 standard sized waffles with the waffle maker. Bon Appetit!

It's amazing how when you move you have no idea how you've collected so much stuff. You have your childhood memories crammed into a box next to your kitchen linens. However, when you get to the new place, whether it be from an apartment to a house, house to house, house to an apartment... you have no idea how there's so much that you need.

When we were moving we tried to downsize. We realized we were moving from a two-story condo to a one-story apartment. We knew all of our stuff wouldn't fit. Also, we realized how many things we had been holding onto that probably should have been replaced years (meaning at least two years) ago, or things that just really didn't matter anymore. For example, we got rid of a cutting board that should have been replaced because it was wooden and after awhile the lovely juices of everything you cut up seeps into the wood. You know what I'm talking about. Then, there were some things within our childhood keepsake boxes that we had no earthly idea why we had held onto them.

Now, moving into our new apartment, it's amazing how much I think we need. A lot of it is to deal with the quirks of the new place. For example, the bathroom is a lot smaller so we want one of those metal or wooden stands to go over the toilet to hold towels and such. Our kitchen pantry has no shelves whatsoever, so we need a "baker's rack" sort of deal so all of our food doesn't have to sit on the floor. Not to mention it'd be nice to use one of the shelves, or part of one of the shelves, for my pots and some of my pans. Needless to say my cabinet space is limited.

Thinking about all these improvements we want to do, or rather necessary evils we need to spend money on so I don't go insane, it makes me feel a little glum. I never realized that this new place would be as much work to put together as our last place was to pull apart.

Then I thought of something else.

This happens to everyone.

Everyone at some point goes through a move in their life where they just want to lay down the credit card and go to town with fixing up the new house. It's hard not to, after all. The society we live in puts so much pressure on your home appearing perfect, along with your nice car and fancy accessories. While most of the things I feel I need really are things that would help my sanity, there are many that I can deal without and come up with a sort of system and it won't drive me crazy.

So, I'm coming to terms with the move. There's a pathway cleared through all of our stuff so I can get around easily and hopefully unpack a lot today while the hubby is at work. He has, after all, been more interested in figuring out what we need to make the apartment work, rather than unpacking what we have, first. Today I really hope I can get a lot done. I'll just have to ignore the presence of the heavy stuff and hope that most things can be lifted/unpacked/organized without needing assistance.

If you're at a point where you're getting ready to move, and perhaps you're upgrading or downsizing, just remember that everything takes time. My mom likes to remind me that she, just now, has gotten this and that for her house and she's ___, (I'm assuming I'm not allowed to share her age here). I just have to keep in mind I have years to go before everything comes together... and even then it may not be precisely what I want... but it will, hopefully, be precisely what I need.

I know, I know. This is probably one of the oldest tricks in the book. Because I am missing my other arm that is my camera at the moment, I'm just posting on this simple dish and hoping that you do not need photographs to help. If you do, I promise to update it the next time I make it so you can see. Even if you don't need them for help, you can judge if it looks appetizing at all!

SUPPLIES:

- 1 lb of chicken breasts
- 1 cup of brown rice
- 1 bag (your choice on the size) of frozen broccoli
- 2 small cans (or 1 large can) of cream of mushroom soup
- 1 1/2 C of water
- breadcrumbs

DIRECTIONS:

- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
- Mix together, in a 9 x 13" baking dish, the rice, water, and one can (or half of the large can) of the cream of mushroom soup.
- Place the broccoli in the mixture in the baking dish.
- Coat the chicken in breadcrumbs of your choosing. I like to use Italian breadcrumbs because it gives it an extra kick. OR you can make homemade breadcrumbs by using a food processor and chopping up bread of your choice (whole wheat if you wish to be healthy!)
- Place the chicken in the baking dish on top of the rice mixture and broccoli. Top the chicken with the rest of the cream of mushroom soup to give the chicken extra flavor! You can mix all of the soup into the rice, but I prefer to top off the chicken.
- Cover this with tin foil and cook it for 45 minutes to an hour. I usually check on it after 30 minutes because it depends on the oven. For the last fifteen minutes or so of it cooking, uncover it. This will help the rice absorb the extra water!

ENJOY! It's super easy and a wonderful dish to whip up for company if you are short on time or supplies!

I have never been a fan of yard sales. I always found them to be annoying to go to. After all, there are a bunch of people looking for specific things... or not... walking around bargaining and, in my opinion, just wasting time and money. Who wants to walk around and look at used stuff that you could easily buy when there was a sale?

My mind has been altered.

After feeling rather down about a few things, my husband decided that we were going to go yard-sale-hopping yesterday morning. I wasn't very excited, assuming that we wouldn't find anything worth our while, but I decided to go along because I knew it was important to him.

I definitely deserved a big, "I TOLD YOU SO," after our day.

After a couple of no-success yard sales, we came upon one that had something we desperately need: a crib. Now, it wasn't in the best of shape. It's got scratches from the way it was stored or carried around or whatever, but when it was put together we found that it was completely sturdy, no parts were missing, and the only work it needed was to be refinished or spruced up. Did I mention this was a Graco sleigh crib and they were selling it for $20?! It was probably sold originally around $200, and was probably still worth at least $100 or so considering it really just needed some TLC.

I tried to keep my jaw from dropping.

We walked away with a crib that we knew we could easily work on. It's nice to have a handyman husband who does some fine wood working. Have I mentioned he's building the dresser for the baby's nursery? Here's a sneak peak at that!


And here's some work we did on the crib today. We have to sand it down before we can refinish it. I decided I didn't want it the darker color, which is rather unfortunate because if I did all we'd have to do was fix the specific spots that were a little dinged up. Now we have to sand the whole thing down before we can paint it. Yes, I said paint. I'm somewhat of a traditionalist, I guess, and I want white baby furniture. Call me old fashioned if you like!


(Clark got the easy way out because he got to use the orbital sander...)

(Whereas I did everything by hand. Don't I look lovely?! ;) )

(This is what I accomplished in an hour)

So, I've learned my lesson on yard sales. Another lesson I learned is don't say you'll go back to a yard sale you pass once. The first one we passed there weren't any signs or anything so we weren't sure, but there were three couches amongst other things sitting in someones driveway. At the end of our escapade (around 12:30pm) we drove back and they were still there. We got out. It was a couch/love seat set in good condition (not perfect, but could have easily been fixed up a bit just to get us through a little longer without nice furniture) for $40! However, we missed out. Someone who had already seen the set had left to get money and pulled up right as we were inquiring. So, the lesson? Don't wait. If you see something you may be interested in, stop immediately. Otherwise, chances are, you'll miss the opportunity.

Maybe we should have known that lesson ANYWAY, as it tends to apply to life most of the time...

So, now I'm all about yard sales.

We have a wedding this coming Saturday, but chances are the next one I'll be up and ready to go (day/weather permitting, of course) to set out to find some more things we need!