Everyone Do Your Share

Everyone can do their part to help to keep the Earth looking its best. I remember The Little Lulu cartoon show themed "Do Your Share" where the gang goes around town cleaning up, recycling and making the place look better. 

Just like the cartoon did for me the following books can inspire children to want to do their share.

Brother and Sister Bear team up to clean up and help save the world from pollution. This book is great and shows how a child can get others interested enough to do something about the problem of pollution

Clifford helps to clean up in this great book. This book would be a great one to start a recycling project with your child. Our family recycles all that we can and it has become a family project as well. It seems every day that the teens are bringing home a new idea of what to recycle or how to reuse. Together your family could do your part to make the Earth a better place.

strawberry shortcake

1 quart (4 cups) strawberries, sliced
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/3 cups Original Bisquick® mix
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup whipping cream


Heat oven to 425°F. In large bowl, mix strawberries and 1/4 cup sugar; set aside. In medium bowl, stir Bisquick mix, milk, 3 tablespoons sugar and the butter until soft dough forms. On ungreased cookie sheet, drop dough by 6 spoonfuls. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in small bowl, beat whipping cream with electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form. Split warm shortcakes; fill and top with strawberries and whipped cream.

Oven Fried Chicken

Oven fried Chicken

Good for heart and good for tummy too

Vegetable oil spray
4 cups wheat-flake or cornflake cereal, lightly crushed
1 garlic clove, crushed (optional)
1 teaspoon ground ginger, or to taste
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
Pepper to taste
6 pieces skinless chicken with bone (about 2 1/4 pounds), all visible fat discarded
Vegetable oil spray, butter-flavored or original

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a baking sheet with vegetable oil spray.
In a pie pan or on a piece of foil, stir together the cereal and garlic.
In a small bowl, combine the ginger, paprika, salt if using, and pepper. Sprinkle the seasonings on both sides of each piece of chicken.
Roll the chicken in the cereal crumbs to coat. Lightly spray the chicken on all sides with vegetable oil spray and put on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 45 to 60 minutes, or until the chicken is golden brown, tender and no longer pink in the center. (Timing will vary according to the thickness of the chicken pieces.)
Cook’s Tip on Skinning Poultry: You can dramatically reduce the amount of fat and cholesterol in poultry by throwing away the skin. Due to its slippery nature, however, poultry skin can be a challenge to remove. Hold the poultry piece on a flat surface (a plastic cutting board is recommended), grasp the skin with a double thickness of paper towels, and pull firmly. Discard the paper towels. Use a knife or kitchen scissors to trim any remaining visible fat.

Good-Bye to the Prince of the Music World

In honor of tribute to the special musician known as Prince my husbands cousin brad owens created this piece of art work. I think it is simply beautiful. I loved Prince and his music was not aware til recently of all the music others sang of his. Here is one of my favorites

Strawberry Salsa

One of my favorite fruits and one that appears early in the season and often one of the first plants to produce are strawberries. My dad had a strawberry patch that he would add to yearly. It was a sweet surprise when he came in with a few berries and be willing to share.

Strawberry Trivia Facts

1. Strawberries are the first fruit to ripen in the spring.

2. Strawberries are the only fruit with the seeds on the outside.

3. Strawberries are actually a member of the rose family.

4. Strawberries are low fat, low calorie; high in vitamin C, fiber, folic acid and potassium.

5. In medieval times, strawberries were served at important functions to bring peace & prosperity

I love eating strawberries in many different ways. From fresh to desserts they all excite me. I love the yuminess of them all. Here is another great way to fix up strawberries. This recipe for strawberry salsa is great to serve to family and friends and even better to serve on a warm spring evening. Enjoy!!

1 cup finely chopped strawberries
1/4 cup finely chopped peeled avocado
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon lime zest
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons finely chopped jalapeno pepper
1/4 teaspoon sugar

Gently mix all ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Serve immediately.  You can make this a couple of hours before serving, but if you let sit too long, it will develop a liquid base.

Serve with cinnamon tortilla chips, or over top of grilled chicken, pork, or fish for a sweet and savory addition to your meal.

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Inside Out Carrot Cake

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for cookie sheets 

3/4 cup all-purpose flour 

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

Pinch ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon freshly, finely grated nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon freshly, finely ground black pepper

6 tablespoons vegetable oil 

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar 

1 large egg 

1/4 cup sour cream 

3/4 teaspoon vanilla, divided

1 1/2 medium carrots, peeled and shredded on the fine side of a box grater (to yield 1 cup)

1/4 cup unsweetened shredded dried coconut

5 ounces cream cheese, softened 

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon heavy cream or milk 

 Preheat oven to 350°. Put a dab of butter in each corner of 2 large baking sheets and line with parchment.  In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. In a large bowl, whisk together oil, brown sugar, egg, sour cream, and 1/4 tsp. vanilla; stir in dry ingredients with a wooden spoon until well combined. Add carrots and coconut, stirring until just combined.  Drop 1-tbsp. circles of batter onto baking sheets about 1 in. apart. Bake until cooked through and browned slightly, 14 to 18 minutes. Cool on baking sheets.  Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat cream cheese until very soft. Add butter and beat until smooth and well blended. Add powdered sugar a third at a time, beating until smooth after each addition. Beat in cream and remaining 1/2 tsp. vanilla.  Flip cakes over and spread about 1 1/2 tbsp. frosting on half of them. Top each with a remaining cake, flat side down, to sandwich the frosting.

Sunset
APRIL 2008

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Books about bugs

The warmer weather has arrived. Yes!!! It is getting nice and warm here. With all that fun that spring brings to us it also brings along some other pest as well. The pest I speak of is bugs. Yes, I am speaking of bugs. Children are funny as they observe bugs. Some may be a bit scared of them and yet others are fearless in the world of great bugs, worms, etc.... Many children will be able to spend time outside looking for or hiding from bugs. I myself, was not as fearless of bugs but did have great time exploring the many books about bugs. 

Eric Carle helps share the fun of bugs in his book The Very Hungry Caterpillar. The caterpillar seems to gobble up lots of things. It is a great book that child and parent can read together. It is not only a great book about bugs but also helps teach reading concepts as well. Reading concepts such as numbers, days of the week, and the life cycle of a butterfly

Bugs galore , yes there are many out there and about. But do you know the differences between an insect and a true bug??? A bug is an insect belonging to the order of Hemiptera. Aphids, cicadas, assassin bugs and a few other varieties of other insects are all considered a bug. Now, while all bugs are insects, not all insects are bugs. Beetles are not true bugs and neither are butterflies, bees or flies.

The Ladybug Girl and the bug squad is part of a series of books created by David Soman and Jacky Davis. The stories were inspired by their own children and family times. The watercolor helps to bring the young readers right into the story. The stories help young readers to understand what is right and wrong when making friends and when a friend is done wrong that an apology is needed. This series of books is perfect for young readers.

So many books about bugs out there and so many bugs. Whether you read a story about bugs or learn more about them bugs are fun and interesting subject to read about. Enjoy the spring and summer weather as you read about glorious bugs.