Wheat Bread Update

Well, it has been over a month since my last post.  I have been faithfully making my Homemade Wheat Bread twice a week (sometimes three, if I give bread away as a gift) and I wanted to update you all on how it has been going.

It has been WONDERFUL!!

As I was looking for a "wonderful" image to put here, I found this image. It hit me . . . it isn't just my bread that is wonderfully made but each of us as people as well.  Take a moment and ponder this!  Heavenly Father does NOT make mistakes.  He designed us ALL to be individually wonderful.

Now, to be honest, no two batches have been the same.  I figure that accounts for the weather we have been having this March and April.  Warm days, HOT days, humid days, rainy days, snowy days, windy days, etc.  Boy has that effected how the bread rises or just looks in general.

Another issue I have been facing are DISTRACTIONS!!!  I will set my sweet, little bread machine to make my bread dough and even set myself a timer on my phone to remind me the bread dough will be ready. But no matter how hard I try NOT to get distracted . . . I do!!!  A child calls from school, the door bell rings and I visit a bit too long at the door, a friend stops by to help me with a crazy / insane church assignment, or I have my phone on silent.  No matter the distraction, the bread over rises into a huge balloon and then I desperately form it into loaves and set it to rise a second time.

And then the DISTRACTIONS come again!!!  My poor bread has been risen too much for weeks.  But . . . it ALWAYS tastes just fine and turns out looking much better than the teeny, tiny loaves ever did. 

Remember the Dry, Teeny, Tiny Bread I made for weeks?  Not even on a third rise does my bread look like this.   I figure my new bread recipe is pretty much fool proof.   And boy am I thankful for that!!

The last detail I would like to share with you is on the vital wheat gluten. 

This is the gluten I use.  I have purchased it at Macy's (along with my Saf yeast).

I know there is a HUGE kick right now against gluten.  I respect that.  I know people who personally can not have gluten.  But I will be honest with you, my body prefers a gluten diet.  I have tried non-gluten foods and my body gets sick.  I have also tried making this bread without adding the gluten and the gluten makes a HUGE difference. Non-gluten bread is crackly, crumbly, dry and a bit flavorless; which makes for a tough time getting ANYONE in my family to eat the bread all gone. 

Bottom line, if your bread recipe has great flavor but is looking a bit less than desirable, try adding some gluten to it.  I wouldn't skimp on the gluten you buy either.  I think you want a high quality gluten - as to cut out any side-effects a lower gluten could give to your family.  But this is just from my experience.  

I also know there are other ways to make homemade bread without even using yeast.  A friend of our family has offered to share with me her Potato Starch Bread Recipe.  It is kind of like a sour dough starter - so I think it will be alot lot of fun to learn about and try.  This friend of our is going to give me a start and calls it the "Working Woman's Bread".  Why?  It is due to how long you can just leave it lying around until you can get to it.  Sounds like it might just be what I need ???  I am also excited to see if this bread could be something I can add to our bread rotation (sometimes I get sick of eating the SAME bread every week).  But this won't be for a few more weeks.  To be continued . . . 

In closing, after almost 8 weeks, I have decided that my current bread recipe is a KEEPER and my family agrees!

Happy Baking!

Homemade Honey Wheat Bread ~

**  Spoiler Alert - I was a bit overwhelmed by the idea to publish this recipe.  In order to make it happen, I had to create a post as well.  If you don't wish to read the post or the MANY tips I put into it, just scroll to the bottom of the post and there you will find the recipe.  Of course, the recipe is detailed - step by step - because that is how I best learn/teach.  Could luck and happy baking!  ~ Wendi

Remember this?

This is the kind of bread my family has been eating, more times than not, over the past month (bye, bye bread store).  It has been dry at times, flavorless, flat ("tiny" as my kids call it) and pretty much gross.  But then a few times I have tasted something I only hoped I could recreate each time I made bread.

So . . . I practiced.  Every Monday and Friday I would make a "new" batch of bread.  I would add a little of this, substitute this for that, or even try different kids of grains and flours. 

I was getting so used to seeing THIS kind of bread, I was starting to think that THIS was the best I could do.

Well ~ I WAS WRONG!

TA - DAH!!!!

I made this exact loaf of bread by "accident"  last week.  I was making a HUGE pot of soup and felt prompted I should share it with my wonderful Young Women's President.  She has been up to her eyeballs in responsibility since our new callings in December.  I felt a night off from cooking would do her good.  But what to serve with the soup?
Of course . . . A homemade loaf of bread!

I decided to just make a "plain loaf" of bread, instead of adding all the fancy stuff I had been experimenting with for weeks.  To my surprise, the most delicious, fluffy, high loaf of bread appeared right before my eyes.  I was blown away!  It reminded me of my oldest son's favorite book: "The Seven Silly Eaters" by Mary Ann Hoberman.  I don't just love this book, I ADORE this book!  I don't want to spoil it for you . . . so you need to go to your local library and read it for yourself.  That way you can find out why this bread reminds me so much of this book. (I promise, it is worth the trip to the library.  Go!)




Needless to say, here I had been working hard for WEEKS to make this very loaf of bread for my family, but not until I chose to serve someone out of love and concern, did this loaf appear.  I fortunately made two loaves of bread that day (that is what one recipe makes), so my little ones were able to enjoy the bread along with the Young Women's President.  

That was when my children cried, "We want THIS bread!  We don't want the tiny bread anymore!"

What was a mother to do?



So I got to work, trying to remember exactly what I had done to make this amazing bread.  Fortunately, I think I nailed it!?!  But I am concerned that the second batch I made today wasn't as high, smooth or pretty as my first batch (but that might have something to do with the fact that I kept opening the bread machine lid during the 1st rise because I was just too excited to see if I really nailed this recipe).  I guess practice does make perfect.

So, at the request of so many of you on Facebook, I have decided to share my 1st rough draft of my Homemade Honey Wheat Bread.  Mind you . . . I make the dough in the bread machine, take it out, knead it by hand and then place it in bread pans to rise a 2nd time.  Then I bake them in my oven.  I don't like the crust the bread machine creates - it's dry, thick and not very flavorful.  I also feel there is nothing better than baking bread in a loaf pan.  The pans leave the perfect crispness to the crust yet tenderness to the bread.  It also allows the bread to bake in the shape bread is known to be in . . . instead of a massive brick!


(What bread machine bread looks like)
Not my favorite bread at all!



(Bread baked in bread pans in my oven)
Much better!!  Don't you think?

So I will continue to practice this recipe each Monday and Friday.  If anything changes to make the bread better . . . I will let you know!  If you have any questions . . . you know where to find me.

Now, I don't want to stress you out or overwhelm you with too much information; but one of my BIGGEST PET PEEVES about Pinterest, or any recipe book/blog, is when you take the time, effort and money to make something and it just doesn't turn out like the picture or how the author said it would.  (Major run-on sentence I know, but it had to be done!)

After much pondering on this matter, I have come to the conclusion it must be the ingredients they are using, as well as how they tweak the recipe to fit their appliances, their humidity levels and the altitude they live at.  I know about all of this because when we lived in Costa Rica for a month MANY of my recipes struggled and it was due to all of these factors.  So please, don't shoot the messenger if your first few times of making this bread don't turn out the way my picture did.  The point to this whole story is to NEVER give up and to keep trying.  If you have a desire to make something, give it your all and eventually you will find what you are looking for!

So, here are a few suggestions as to why I think this bread recipe is so successful.  I believe it has to do with the brand of: yeast, all purpose flour, wheat and honey that I use.



First of all, I am using home ground white wheat flour.  We have an electric wheat grinder and we are doing what we do best - rotating our wheat by actually using it.  We purchased the white wheat from the LDS Cannery a few years ago.  We also have red wheat to use but it tends to be a bit rough on our stomachs.  I would eventually like to start making the bread with both types of wheat that we own . . . but that won't be for a few weeks.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

The all-purpose flour that we use is AMAZING!  My sweet friend Maria told me about it.  It is unbleached, non-GMO and chemical free.  It tastes like flour should taste.  You can purchase it at Walmart (which is cheaper than getting it directly from the company) in 5# and 10# bags.  We go through a 10# bag  (just under $7.00) once a month.  It is SO WORTH IT!  Our cookies, waffles, pancakes and muffins taste so much better too!



Next is the yeast that I use.  Saf-instant yeast is the best yeast I have ever used.  Unfortunately, Walmart, Smith's or Fresh Market do not seem to carry this product.  I have only found it at Macey's (by Outback Steakhouse and the Movie Theaters), but it is worth the drive.  If you have yeast that you have on hand, use it.  But . . . if you find your bread isn't rising like you want it to or that the flavor is off, I would consider trying these ingredients.  The right ingredients honestly do make all the difference.

Last, but never least, is the honey that you use.  My suggestion . . . find a honey that your family LOVES and use it in the bread.  Don't go for the cheap, yucky honey.  If you know of a honey supplier, buy their honey.  Local honey is the BEST for you and has so many health benefits.  If my supplier makes another order, I can let you know about it, but her honey comes from down south.  I wonder what local honey would taste like to my family?  Hum . . . something to think about this summer!

(This is my bread machine - Zojirushi)

Now, onto the details of the recipe.  I honestly just took my bread machine's Whole Wheat Bread recipe and made a few simple changes.  Instead of using only Whole Wheat - I did 4 cups wheat and 1 cup all purpose flour.  I also changed the sugar it called for to honey - thus making my recipe a Honey Whole Wheat bread.  Lastly, I increased my yeast from 2 teaspoons to 3 teaspoons (or 1 Tablespoon).  I feel in the winter that the air is drier and it is colder all together in my home.  The extra yeast is good for rising and it gives us the fluffiness we prefer in our wheat bread.

The bread machine recipe also called for a few unique ingredients: dry milk, butter and wheat gluten.  Now . . . I have made MANY batches of bread without the gluten and my bread turns out crumbly, tough/chewy and goes dry quickly.  So I moderate the gluten and use a bit less than what the recipe calls for.  You can add it or not, but that will make a huge difference in the loaf you get.  And yes, I was worried about gluten allergies too but to be honest, we feel fine and I believe that if you are using the best ingredients you can for your family, it all works out in the end.  Moderation in all things!

As for the butter - I THINK IT MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE to the loaf . . . SERIOUSLY!  Don't leave it out!  One last tip . . . don't put the salt anywhere near the yeast.  I haven't tried adding the salt into the water first - I wonder how that would work out?  I'll let you know in a few weeks.  For now, I make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients BEFORE I add the salt.  Then I just sprinkle the salt along the left and right sides of the pan away from the well.   Then I carefully add the yeast to the well.  Salt will kill your yeast!  So keep them away from each other!
     

          

Lastly . . . be careful with your measuring.  Many times we are adding TOO MUCH FLOUR to our recipes.  Flour should be measured carefully.  You can scoop the flour with a spoon and ladle it into the measuring cup or you can use a smaller measuring cup and do the same thing.  Level off the top and pour that into the bread machine pan.  If you just scoop your flour up with your measuring cup, you are packing down the flour and increasing the density of your loaf.

The point to all of this???  These tips might just help you understand why making bread in the past didn't turn out like you hoped it would.  Also, take a look at YOUR bread machine's recipe book.  Those recipes have been tested and proven for your machine (especially the size of the dough it will make) and you can tweek the recipe to work for you.  Just make the changes I made above to the ratios that you need for your recipe.  If you need any help, you know where to find me.

Well, I hope this post has helped one of you in some way.  I know it helped me!  

I got to see HOW Heavenly Father works in our lives, giving us blessings for serving others.  I also realized how important it is to not only serve others but to also let others serve you - because you are allowing them to be blessed if you do!

Good Luck & Happy Baking!

Honey Wheat Bread

• 1 7/8 cups water
• 3 T. honey
• 2 T. butter (I use dehydrated butter + 2 T. water)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour 
• 4 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 T. dry (powdered) milk
• 3 - 4 T. Vital Wheat Gluten (depending on your preference - I use 3 1/2 T.)
• 2 tsp. salt (sprinkled along left & right edges of pan)
• 1 T. yeast

Directions:  Gather all ingredients around your bread machine.  Gather all cups & spoons.  Pour water in first, then honey & butter.  Add flours, milk, gluten.  Make a well in the middle of the ingredients.  Sprinkle the salt around left and right sides of pan - be sure to stay away from the well.  Pour the yeast carefully into the well.  Close lid and start your bread machine on the dough cycle.

While the dough is being made, grease your bread pans with shortening.  Set aside pans until dough cycle is finished.  After dough cycle is complete, sprinkle a bit of flour onto your counter and scoop out the dough onto the floured counter top.  Cut the dough in half.  Knead the dough to push out the gas that has collected.  You do this by folding the dough onto itself and pushing it away from you, turning it counter clockwise 1/4th turn and repeating the process.  Be careful not to tear the dough.  Continue this process for a few minutes until the dough is smooth and has a slight shimmer to it.  Take dough and tuck the bottoms underneath to form a ball.  Then shape the dough into a loaf, by pushing in the sides and making it rectangular.  Turn the dough over and pinch the seams together (seams will cause the bread to have splits in it, which causes sliced bread to break apart). Place that loaf into the pan.  Do the same steps to the other loaf.  (Here is a great video that shows you about kneading and how to put the dough into the pans.  It also shows you how to make the bread without the bread machine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Rjd1NZfG4Y&safe=active)

Now, this is the tricky part!  You need to raise your bread in a semi-warm room.  That can be hard in our cold homes during the winter.  I tend to use my dishwasher on the mornings I make bread, so I will place my pans on the counter top above the dishwasher (it is nice and warm there).  I will also cover my two loaf pans with a thin tea towel that has been soaked in warm/hot water and rung out completely; that helps trap the gases in the bread and allows it to rise.

 If you don't have that option, you can use your oven.  Preheat your oven to 250 degrees.  If you have two racks in your oven, place one rack on the lowest shelf and the other rack just high enough to get a 9x13 pan in between the two racks (you don't want the top rack to be to high, to allow the bread to rise and touch the top of the oven).  Next, heat up hot water in a kettle.  When boiling, fill the 9x13 pan half way with the hot water.  Place your loaf pans on the top rack and shut the oven - NO tea towel on top of the loaf pans.  

Allow your bread to rise until double in size.  This can be anywhere from 20 - 40 minutes, depending on the warmth of the kitchen and humidity in the air.  If the loaves are rising on the counter, you may begin to heat your oven to 375 degrees.  If your loaves are in the oven, GENTLY take them out of the oven (this is how my ugly loaf occured - above picture) and preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Also, take out the pan of water.  You don't want to cook the bread with the water still in the oven.  Return the loaves and bake them for 20 - 25 minutes, until lightly brown on the top.  

Remove bread from oven and immediately remove the loaves from the pans.  I put an oven mit on the top of the loaf and use another oven mit to pull the pan away from the bread.  Allow the bread to cool on a cooling rack for at least 20 minutes to 30 minutes before cutting.  But . . . if you MUST break the cardinal rule . . . go ahead and cut yourself a slice.  There is NOTHING better than a HOT SLICE of bread with butter and honey on it!!  Or just butter!  But, your bread will squish if you continue to cut into it.  Just cut a slice, or two (wink), and then allow the rest of the loaf to cool.  

I like to pre-slice my loaf for my kids.  If I let them do it, my bread looks horrible and the serving sizes/slices of bread are a disaster.  Pre-slice your bread at least 1 hour after cooling. Then store that loaf in a ziploc gallon sized bag - making sure to squeeze out any air before sealing.  

If you want to freeze your loaf, just pre-slice the cooled bread (must be cooled completely before freezing!).  Then wrap it in plastic wrap completely.  Next, wrap in aluminum foil.  Then place in a gallon sized ziploc bag.  These steps will insure no freezer burn or dry bread occurs.  Use bread within 3 months for best results.   

Good luck and Happy Baking! ~ Wendi Whitchurch

Homemade Instant Oatmeal

      
 

 I LOVE to make food from scratch.  I still remember the first time I heard the term "from scratch."  I was a newlywed and was visiting with my mother-in-law in her kitchen one afternoon.  Her two youngest daughters were also in the kitchen, making a cake.  I was so excited to be there because I thought I could help. (I was still trying to prove to my in-laws that their son had married a good catch.  And making cakes was my thing!)  I was watching the girls, waiting for them to grab a box of cake mix from the cupboard, but they never did.  Instead it looked as if they were making cookies?  

I asked, "Aren't you making a cake?"  My mother-in-law said, "Yes, but they are making it from scratch."  WHAT?!?  I honestly didn't know what that meant.  I was 19 years old and had never heard that term.  Fortunately my new and very cute husband came into the room just in time to tell me what "from scratch" meant.  I was honestly SHOCKED that I could actually make something myself, that I normally bought at the store.  And all I needed was a basic stock of ingredients and wala, you can make almost anything!

Since that day, almost 17 years ago, I have had a passion to learn HOW to cook and FROM SCRATCH.  I have enjoyed making all sorts of food.  First desserts, then casseroles, then sweet breads, then yeast breads, then onto well balanced meals, stews, soups, food storage meal planning and now onto replacing processed foods for my own homemade foods.  Who knew you could learn to make SO MANY DIFFERENT things and all from the convenience of your own home?

 I also LOVE that I have control over what my family is eating.  I KNOW what is in everything we eat.  We love eating whole foods and storing foods that can be used to make things we eat every day.  What a fun way to live!

So today, I decided to share my latest creation . . . Instant Oatmeal Jars.

 

 Why jars?  Well, last week I made homemade granola and put it in a jar as a gift.  It was so well received and so easy to store (plus I have a MILLION jars in my basement just sitting around, doing nothing) that I thought this would be a fun and easy way to store oatmeal.  Besides . . . I can't stand using plastic baggies.  We use them WAY TO OFTEN and I don't like that they just end up in the recycling bin.  

By using a cute jar and an easy to use lid, you can make oatmeal just ask quickly as tearing into a paper packet from the store.  This recipe is SO EASY to create and it makes enough to fill two mason jars.  That is 24 individual servings = about 5 - 6 weeks worth of oatmeal in my home!  

I got the basic recipe from this website One Good Thing by Jillee.  She was the one who shared with me the secret to making the creamy oatmeal you are used to in instant packets.  

Do you want to know what the secret is . . . 

blend a portion of the the oatmeal in your blender.  

Yep!  That's right.  And it is SO EASY to do!

 

 I also LOVE the powdered milk added to this recipe.  You can substitute the powdered milk for creamer or just omit it and use milk from your fridge instead of water.  But it is up to you!  You can make this as easy or as complex as you want.  I just happened to have powdered milk on hand, so it was a great use of my food storage.  I also love how easy this breakfast is for my older children to make for themselves. 

We don't like our oatmeal as sweet as the stores make it and when I tasted Jillee's recipe I found it too sweet and too salty as well.  So I changed our recipe to 3/4 cup sugar instead of 1 cup and I also lowered the salt to 3/4 teaspoon. After you have a few dishes of this creamy oatmeal, you can decide what your family would like more or less of as well.  Cooking is so much fun!

Another change I made was to half her recipe.  First of all it was all the oatmeal I had on hand but I also felt that a smaller batch would be a great trial run for my family.  I really don't like wasting food.  I can't tell you how many recipes I have made and made too much of, only to have my family dislike it for some reason or another.  If it turns out that my family doesn't like this recipe, at least I can alter it to their taste for the time being and then make adjustments with the next batch. (Add sprinkle of salt if too sweet.  Add sugar if too salty or not sweet enough.  If still too sweet or salty, I am going to add more plain oats to mild it down.)  

The last change I made came when I made a 1/2 cup oatmeal for my littlest one.  She only ate half of it.  So I decided to just half the serving size all together.  If the kids want more, they can always double the serving size.  (A great mommy trick to encouraging the development of their math skills!!)

 

As you can see, the recipe is VERY simple and all it takes is a mixing bowl, spoon and your blender.  I made this mix and heated up a bowl of it, all before my littlest asked where her breakfast was. 

(Yes, she is that bossy!)  So there you go, instant oatmeal in a jar.  And it looks SO CUTE on your pantry shelf too!

(of course I took that huge bow off, let's be practical now - wink, wink.)

Soft, Fluffy, Creamy Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Yesterday, for dessert we had . . . chocolate chip cookies!  

We haven't had them in a LONG TIME!  The kids loved them and begged for thirds.

This is what we had left of the first cookie sheet.

All but 2 eaten - and that is because I STOPPED THEM!

(sorry, picture is glaring.  I am working on it!)

My "sweetest" friend, Cassi, gave me this recipe for the softest, fluffiest, creamiest chocolate chip cookies and gave me permission to share the recipe with you!

The recipe makes a ton, I usually half the recipe for my family.  I DO NOT recommend you freeze this dough.  It breaks down the cookie and it doesn't turn out very good if frozen before baked.  Another tip, keep the cookies spread apart with enough room.  Otherwise, they turn out like this.

(This picture makes the cookies look yellow.  They aren't, it is the lighting in my kitchen.  Sorry!)

They still taste the same but don't look so pretty when you serve them.  Sorry I don't have a fun tutorial with pictures.  I will work on that in the future.  But tonight, due to exhaustion (still), I am just sharing one of the tastiest cookies I have ever had and is now a family favorite.  Enjoy!

Cassi's AMAZING Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 C. sugar
2 C. brown sugar
1 C. shortening
1 C. margarine or butter
4 eggs, beaten
2/3 C. milk

2 tsp. vanilla

6 C. flour
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
1 pkg. 12 oz. milk choc. chips

1 pkg 12 oz. semi sweet choc. chips

(note:  I just eye ball the choc. chips I never do the full two packages,

I try to put in equal amounts of milk and semi.)

Cream sugars, shortening and margarine/butter together in large mixing bowl.
Add beaten eggs, milk and vanilla and mix well.
Add dry ingredients and chocolate chips.
back in 350 deg. oven for 10-11 min.

DO NOT OVER BAKE.

(note: my oven is 14 min. and I’ve found that silicone cookie sheet is best if you have them.

These cookies will set up a little more after coming out of the oven so  

I pull them out when the top of cookie starts to go golden.

If you wait until they are not doughy on top they will be over cooked and kind of hard. 

I store them in Tupperware after cooled and they stay soft for a long time.)

Makes 5 doz. cookies.

(Note: I like my cookies big so it only makes about 2-3 doz. for me)

Cassi Huffaker

I Create by . . . COOKING

Question of the day:  HOW DO YOU CREATE?

Do you know?  Did it take you a moment to think about?  Or did you think instantly of many ways that you create?  For me, it honestly took a moment.

I wanted to share something about cooking today and I started a post about it.  But I wasn't "feeling it," until I saw something on facebook, of all places!

Do you have 1:53 minutes for me?  You won't regret it.  No matter who you are or what you believe, I BELIEVE this can help you today!

So, do you? GREAT!  Watch this! (click on picture below)  The BEST PART is at the end! 

So, how do YOU feel? 

I hope you feel as great as I do!  Here I am, wanting to "create a post" on cooking, it isn't going very well, and then it hits me, "HOLY COW . . . I CREATE!  And I CREATE EVERYDAY!"  

One of the MANY ways that I create, besides blogging, is by cooking.  I LOVE to cook!  I haven't always loved cooking, but I do now.  And like the video mentioned, it didn't just come together in one day.  It took one small step at a time.  Each step was one that I dared to take and they weren't all successes.  They still aren't, most nights, because at least 1 member of my family COMPLAINS about what I have made, or "created", for dinner that night.  

To be honest, it hurts!  It really has, until lately. What changed?  Paul.

I believe he was inspired to make this small but HUGE change at our dinner table.  Each night, that he GETS to eat with us, he makes one comment and it sounds something like this . . . "Isn't this meal wonderful?  Do you know how blessed/lucky we are to have your mom cook for us?  Did you know that she is a gourmet cook/chef?  I love eating her meals!  You kids don't know how lucky you are to eat such wonderful meals every night.  People pay a lot of money to eat like this in restaurants."

Wow!  I am blushing now, re-reading this.  But that's it.  That is all he does. 

I can't believe that such a simple, heart-felt recognition of what I am "creating" has changed dinner time from 2-3 complaints to only 1-2 a night.  And it is getting better each week.  What Paul started has been a blessing to me. . .

But I had to let it be a blessing and this is how I did it.  

I first ALLOWED those comments to enter into my heart.  I accepted them as truth, then just left them there.  THAT'S IT!  As I have done this, love for myself has started to grow.  I first FELT that what I was doing was:  good, important, something special that I was creating and sharing in the world.  Then I started to SEE that it not only blessed my family but neighbors, friends and extended family.  I was able to RECOGNIZE the JOY on their faces for the meals I was sharing with them.  Then I felt GRATITUDE for having this gift in my life.

It is all so overwhelming to think that these gifts come from somewhere.  So start simple!  Just think, "What do I create?" and accept it.  Share it.  Allow it to bless your life and I promise you, it will!

Give it a try and TELL ME what you think!  If my blog won't let you post, then facebook your comment to me and I will share it for you.

Before I go, here is one of my favorite, EASY, pinterest recipes that I tweeked a bit.  My family LOVES it!  I know it has been 100 degrees here in Utah, but this soup tastes so comforting, so nurturing, so fulfilling, that it makes a perfect meal, anytime of year!  And think, doesn't all your food come to the table hot in some form?  Soup is a light meal, affordable and quick to throw together.  I hope you enjoy it!

Lion House Creamy Chicken Soup

2 chicken breasts
6 cups chicken broth  (I used chicken base from Costco/Sam's.  Easy, NO MSG, stores in fridge)
1 C chopped carrots
1 C minced celery (chop rest of celery, put in freezer bag and store in freezer for next meal.)

1 C peas

½ C chopped onion  (chop rest of onion, put in freezer bag and store in freezer for next meal.)
2 cans cream of chicken soup (I make my own - do you want to know how?  EASY!  No MSG!)
1/4 C evaporated milk or ½ C whole milk
8-12 oz uncooked egg noodles (homestyle)
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, place chicken and broth and bring to a boil over high heat.  Decrease the heat, cover pot and simmer for 20 minutes, or until chicken is tender.  Remove chicken to cool.

Add carrots, celery, onions, and noodles. Simmer until veggies and noodles are tender. Shred chicken or cut into small, bite-size pieces.  

Add cream of chicken soup, peas, milk, salt, pepper and shredded chicken. Simmer until heated through and ready to serve.

Makes 6 servings (enough for my family plus leftovers for Paul's lunch)

Serve with crackers/rolls, green salad and fruit.

Wendi's Tips:

• Instead of putting onion/celery in a bag back in your fridge, to possibly dry out or mold - chop all of the onion/celery, use what you need for your recipe and then place the rest it into a freezer bag.  Store the bag in a "ready to use" section of your freezer.  Next time need onion/celery, just throw the frozen amount you need into your recipe.  It will cook up just fine!  
• Cooked Chicken = why not cook all your chicken at once?  The cooking time is the same no matter how much chicken you use.  And it only takes 10 more minutes to: cut up all the leftover chicken, let it cool and bag the leftovers for the freezer.  It will save you 30 minutes per meal.
  
  • I use leftover chicken for:  chicken caesar salads, pasta dishes, mexican dishes, oven sandwiches with ranch dressing, tomato (sprinkled with white pepper and season all), chicken and cheese (broil until cheese is melted.)  YUM!
  • How do you re-heat the chicken?  If I need it hot, I place the frozen chicken in a microwave-safe bowl, add a tablespoon or two of water (depending on how much chicken in bowl) and microwave until heated through (about 2.5 minutes on my microwave).  
  • If adding to soups or casseroles that call for cooked chicken, just add to meal and cook until chicken is heated through (about 10 more minutes).