Quiche with Cornbread Crust

One of my new habits is making a large pan of cornbread whenever we have chili and saving 4-5 small pieces to crumble up for a quiche crust.  Just crumble the cornbread, then press it down into a greased pie plate for an easy crust.  This makes for an extremely quick dish to whip up on a busy night!  Great with a big salad, mashed sweet potatoes, or pumpkin pie pancakes!

 

Mama’s Easy Quiche with  Cornbread Crust

• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups milk (a can of evaporated milk works fine)
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (can buy this on sale and freeze it, just thaw before using)
• 2 T flour
• diced ham (optional)
• rosemary, salt/pepper or other seasoning (optional)
• 4-5 small pieces cornbread (can use regular pie crust instead)

Crumble cornbread into pie plate and press to make crust.  Sprinkle with rosemary.  (Or place unbaked pie crust into plate.)

Filling:  Add milk to the beaten eggs.  Mix cheese with flour (helps prevent clumping!), then add to the above.  Add diced ham.  Pour into pie crust/shell.  Bake at 350 degrees about 45 minutes.  For a browner & firmer crust, bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, then continue baking for 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees.   Check to see that knife inserted near center comes out clean.

Beef & Barley Soup

This is one of my favorite recipes to use with leftover beef.  You know the extra broth & little smidgeons of meat after you make a pot roast that really aren’t enough even for a lunch, but you hate to see them go to waste?  This is a great way to use them up!

Beef and Barley Soup

• 1 can beef broth (or leftover broth)
• small amount of beef (leftovers are fine!  roast, ribs, you name it!)
• 1/4 c celery
• 1/4 c onion
• 1/4 c carrots
• garlic to taste

Bring these ingredients to a boil, then add:

• 1/3 – 1/2 c. barley
• 1 T apple cider vinegar

Cover and simmer for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally.  You can also add in leftover veggies when barley is beginning to cook up.   Before accounting for whatever beef you use, the whole recipe is only 4 WW pts.

I like to keep a bag of chopped celery in the freezer to make it really easy to toss some into soups & stews.  This is a great cold day lunch.  Today’s version is made with leftover ribs.  :)

Saving money at the Amish country store

Today we visited a little Amish country store about 14 miles from here. Amish/Mennonite stores can be great places to stock up on bulk spices, grains, etc. I was about out of yeast, so it was time to make a trip. Ironically enough, right afterwards we had to stop at Walmart to pick up something else, so I compared the prices of what we’d just bought to see what the savings were. Some of the amounts were different, so I converted into equal amounts. The largest yeast for sale at Walmart, for example, is a 4 oz jar for $3.56 – just 1/4^th the size, but almost a dollar more! I also discovered that the tax was less at the Amish store, probably since it isn’t inside city limits.

Even if I add in the cost for my gas ($1.63 per gallon here today), the foods at the Amish store come out nearly $20 less than the equal amounts at Walmart would. I also bought a few items that I didn’t see at Walmart: ABC pasta (like in alphabet soup), couscous, and chicken noodle seasoning (a half pound bag for $1.39). Hopefully over the Thanksgiving weekend I can compare this Amish store to a Mennonite grocery a little further away that has a larger selection.

	Amish store	Price for equal amount at Walmart
Instant dry yeast	$2.75/1 lb	$14.24/ 1 lb
Italian seasoning	$0.39 / 1 oz	$0.57 / 1 oz
Whole wheat flour	$1.99 / 5 lbs	$2.76 / 5 lbs
Dill weed	$0.49 / 1 oz	$2.96 / 1 oz
Dried onion flakes	$0.89 / 4 oz	$1.00 / 4 oz
Instant pudding	$1.19 / 1 lb	$2.00 / 1 lb
Bananas	$0.89 / 2.7 lb	$1.84 / 2.7 lb
Apples, red delicious	$1.84 / 4.7 lb	$3.74 / 4.7 lb
Tax	$0.32 (3.1%)	$1.41 (4.85%)
Total	$10.75	$30.52

 

Construction delays

Nothing gold can stay

This blog is called Life, under construction, after all, so you can expect construction delays!  LOL

It’s funny how priorities change from time to time.  These past few months were about new beginnings, loss, grief, healing, and renewal (in that order). 

But now that we’ve come through that, the itch to begin sharing again is starting.

Financial challenges, new cooking endeavors, neat new discoveries, more insights…..

Stay tuned!  The skies are clearing and construction will be back underway.

Life, being lived

There are some times in life when you’re just so busy living it and getting through the day to day that there’s not much time for the extras.  This is one of those for me.  I’m directing Vacation Bible School at our church, so every spare minute that’s not spent with taking care of my own kiddos needs to be devoted to VBS preparations.

But in August I’ll be back.

Coupon savings

Six weeks ago I decided to try to get some of the good bargains with coupons that I’d been reading about online.  I began with no coupon stash, no gift cards, and just 3 stores to shop at:  Walgreens, HyVee (no coupon doubling), and Walmart.  Initially I was doubtful that I’d be able to get anywhere near the good deals that I’d read about, but I’ve found that it is very do-able to build a stockpile of groceries and household/personal supplies.

Last night was a good example.  I went to all 3 stores, and here’s what I bought:

Trip #1 ~ Walmart:  $25.93

• 104 Size 3 diapers (Parents Choice ~ we’ve found that these work adequately for us, and are much cheaper) @ $.13/diaper = $13.67
• 2 boxes Kashi waffles = $.12 each after coupons
• 6 pkgs Bertolli Premium pasta sauce = $.50 each after coupons & clearance price
• 2 bottles Juicy Juice grape juice = $.58 each after coupons
• 1 bottle Cattleman’s BBQ sauce = $.91 after coupon & will receive $1.66 manufacturer’s rebate
• 3 cans Muir Glen diced tomatoes = $.22 each after coupon
• 1 jar Vlassic pickles = $.58 after coupon
• 1 jar Vlassic relish = $.12 after coupon
• 2 trial size Old Spice bodywash = free + $.06 overage after coupon
• 3 packs Kotex pantiliners = free after coupons
• 1 box 60 Bandaids = $.88 after coupon
• 1 40-ct Snuggle fabric softener = $.87 after coupon
• 2 travel packs of Shout wipes = free + $.06 overage after coupons

Trip #2 ~ Walgreens: $22.10 (paid with rebate gift card)

• Multipurpose lighter = $1.99 after coupons + earns $1 rebate
• Curves cereal = $1.14 after clearance & coupon
• 2 packs Stayfree Maxi pads = $.59 each after clearance & coupon
• 2 Off Powerpad mosquito lamps = $2.99 each after coupons
• Barbasol shaving cream = $.99 after coupon
• 3 Joy dishsoap = .69 each after coupons
• 1 pack string cheese = $1.50
• 2 bags shredded cheddar (8 oz) = $1.50 each

Trip #3 ~ HyVee: $22.09

First off, I found some great sales in the dairy department on yogurt & Egg Beaters close to their expiration dates!  The Egg Beaters will freeze, so I may try to go back and stock up.

• 1 Dannon Activa plain yogurt, 24 oz = $.50 
• 2 4-packs Dannon Lite & Fit vanilla yogurt = $.50 each
• 12 Dannon Fruit on the Bottom yogurts (6 oz) = $.25 each
• 4 Egg Beater Whites 16 oz cartons = $.25 each
• 6 bags Birds Eye frozen veggies = $.55 each after coupon
• 1 bag Birds Eye rice w/veggies = $.88
• 1 bag Corazona chips = free with coupon

The remainder of the items were just stock ups on things we needed, along with baked potato supplies for DH to take to a picnic at work.

• 2 pack margarine = $.88
• 24 oz cottage cheese = $1.68
• 24 oz sour cream = $1.28
• applesauce = $1.99
• potatoes = $2.50
• bread = $1.49
• apples = $1.64

Not too bad for less than $50 out of my bank account!  I’m enjoying a yummy (and healthy!) egg white, cheddar & asparagus omelette for breakfast right now.  Now to get a handle on organizing my stockpiles, and I’ll be set!

Am I ……..a dabbler?

It came up in a discussion last night that a certain someone dear to my heart views my everchanging interests as dabbling, as phases. Should I be looking for a “hobby” that will last for always? I have to admit, it has been a pattern for me to go completely gung-ho into something for a time, then drop it. The dropping usually isn’t planned, and I’m not even sure how it happens. Perhaps it begins with disillusionment that this new venture will turn me into the person that I want to become? Or another one comes up and takes it place?

Over the past years, my “dabbling” has included:

knitting

race walking

anthropology (as a college major)

too many diets to list

gardening (I still hold hopes that this one will continue)

teaching? (DH isn’t sure now if this was just a phase, since I’m at home with kids now)

I’m concerned that I’m just a flavor of the week type of person, but have no idea how to change that.

Who am I?

I often try to fit myself into neat little boxes, only to have to try to stick an unruly limb or inclination back inside. Perhaps more than boxes, all my roles and leanings intertwine to make up the fabric of my life.

The threads include:

• wife, married for almost 10 years to a teacher man
• mom of two wonderful children, Sweet Pea is almost 3 and Scooter is almost 1
• follower of Christ whose life journey has taken her away and back, with stops through four Protestant denominations, Islam, Catholicism, and “head-in-the-sand-ism”
• teacher of middle elementary students (before kids) and math tutor currently
• aspiring amateur gardener and chef
• Flybaby
• voracious researcher

 

Experiencing God

Today I started the
Experiencing God study by Henry T. Blackaby and Claude V. King. As I was sitting on the floor with my 10-month old trying to grab my pen, my workbook, my Bible, I realized how often I separate my faith life from my “real” life, when in all actuality they are one and the same. How I long to be able to say with full confidence that my real life is my faith life and my faith life is my real life! I see this so clearly in the lives of others, but often have assumed that they have something I don’t.

It really does just start with me getting out of the way and letting God work in me, doesn’t it? With setting aside my own notions of how life should go, and tuning in to what God would have me do next, even if I can’t see the whole picture or end result.

I was thinking as I read today’s study that I don’t even follow someone else who is driving without getting directions from them first! Fear of getting lost along the way? Fear of becoming separated? Fear of being out of control? This lesson of not needing to know it all is a deep one, and God has been using many angles to try to get me to really learn it.

Is anyone else doing the Experiencing God study?

So many changes…..

Since I last posted! Baby #2 is on the way in late April/early May (25 weeks, woo-hoo!). DH and I have gone through several up and down swings, currently back on an upswing. I’m becoming much more comfortable with being an at-home mom for this season of life. DD is an immense joy to watch as she learns about the world and becomes her own little person. That’s good, since she’s quickly approaching 2 and the strong will is emerging as well!

I discovered that I really enjoy both gardening and cooking, and have been trying to use both to help stretch our budget as far as it will go. I picked up knitting again last fall after 15+ years without touching yarn and needles ~ it feels good to work creatively again.

I continue to struggle with diligence in my faith life and housekeeping ~ somehow the call of other things beckons. And I struggle with how much of myself to reveal to different audiences ~ those in real life sometimes see different sides of me than those through the keyboard. Searching for authenticity, a way to not categorize myself based on who I’m around.