Quick Recipes

So I did something yesterday that I never, ever, ever do:  I watched a TV show in the middle of the day.  Did your eyes just pop out of your head?  No?  Then you obviously don't realize what a big deal this is!  I have sat down to watch TV in the middle of the day before and quickly realized that I didn't understand a single thing the people were saying because my girls were talking incessantly the whole time.  Or, oh! what just happened?  Big girl was standing right in front of the TV.  She saw it, but I didn't.  Even with DVR, constantly pausing and rewinding pretty much kills the relaxation effect that I'm looking for.  So, I gave up trying a long time ago.

But, yesterday, for whatever reason, I sat down while baby girl was napping, found Paula Deen, and, wonder of wonders, big girl crawled up next to me and watched somewhat quietly.  We were oohing and ahhhing over all the yummy goodness, until I couldn't take it anymore.  I was shy of several ingredients for every recipe she made, but we improvised.  Here's what we came up with:

Potato Skins
Wrap small potatoes in aluminum foil.
Bake at 375 for an hour.
Cool until you can handle them.
Cut in half.
Use ice cream scooper or melon baller to scoop out most of the middle, leaving about a 1/4 inch or less white part--whatever it's called--attached to the peel, save white part for something yummy later, like smashed potatoes.
Place on baking sheet.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Fill with desired amounts of cheddar cheese and bacon crumbles.
Bake at 350 for about 15 mins.
Top with sour cream, barbeque sauce, and chopped green onions.

Vegetable Beef-less Soup
4 cups beef broth
canned or frozen:
-whole kernel corn
-green beans
-carrots
a can of stewed tomatoes, diced, with juice
one potato, cut in small cubes
one onion, chopped
celery or celery flakes
salt
pepper
Bring all to boil then simmer til flavors are incorporated.

Pear Cobbler
1 c. Bisquick
1 c. sugar
1 1/4 c. milk, or half and half
Mix together and set aside.
2 pears, cored, peeled, and cut in small wedges
Heat about 1 Tbs. butter in an iron skillet.
Fry pear wedges, just a couple of mins on each side.
Melt about 2 Tbs. butter in an 8x8 pan.
Lay pear wedges in pan.  Pour Bisquick mixture over pears.
Top all with:  1/4 c. apple juice mixed with 1/8 c. sugar.
Bake at 350 for about 30 mins or until golden brown.
Serve with ice cream.

Supper served!  I could barely make myself stop eating that cobbler.  And this from a girl who claims no affection to pears.

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Oh!  And, after I wrote that post last night about memorizing Scripture I found this article by John Piper.  Amen and amen.

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Attitude of Gratitude:

211.  a letter from little Samuel in Egotsia Kokodo
212.  a morning to play animals with two beautiful, happy, loving little girls
213.  successful surgeries
214.  tissues with lotion in them
215.  a man who loves to work
216.  prayer--the ability to be standing at my kitchen sink and and kneeling in the throne room of my Father-King at the same time
217.  the motivation I receive from some unsuspecting 5th and 6th graders--they'll never know this side of heaven what they do to me and for me
218.  friends who come alongside of me in prayer when I hardly know how to pray myself
219.  children's praise songs that were ringing out from my girls' bedroom this morning
220.  the sound of my modern-day servants hard at work (that would be my washer, dryer, and dishwasher)  =)