Seed Swap Excitement

How excited do you think I was when I opened my mail box and saw this big fat envelope?

To be honest at first I thought it was yarn, because that would just be super great if someone sent me a big bag of yarn(FYI, I prefer natural fibers. ;0p). But then I realized it was from the seed swap Howling Hill started. And I was just as excited about the seeds as I was when I thought it was yarn(are you getting the idea that I have a thing for yarn?) I signed up last year but the seeds never made it to me. This year though everybody was able to take and give and send it on and now it's my turn.

Jenna Z. over at Corgipants sent them to me, funny thing I forgot to mention to Jenna Z. I use to live in her neck of the woods. Kind of ironic isn't it.

I chose these veggies and flowers:

Watermelon-Moon & Stars, Chelsea and Sugar Babies

Squash-Gold Nugget
White Tipped Scarlet Radish

Eggplant-Long Purple

Sweet Fennel

Cucumber-Marketer

Pumpkin- Rouge d'etamps and Blue Moon
Peppers-Pretty In Purple

White Cleome

Swamp Milkweed

False Indigo

Larkspur (Pink)

Yellow 4 O'Clocks

And I put these seeds in:

Veggies:

Rhubarb

Tomatoes-Black Krim and Amish Paste

Parisian Pickling Cucumber

Heat Tolerant Lettuce

NuMex Big Jim Chili Peppers

Green Culinary Sage

Grandma Eink's Dill

Flowers:

Tall Blue Larkspur

Bee Balm

Gian Imperial Larkspur

Black Hollyhocks

Sunflowers-dwarf mix

Red Columbine

Giant White Moonflower

Cabbage Leaf Poppies

Rose of Sharon

I'm mailing them off to Melissa @ Melissa's Ramblings.

Knitting News

Just keep knitting, knitting, knitting........ Pretty much if I'm sitting still somewhere I've been knitting lately. I'm still working on this and today I posted here on the many items that go along with him. As well as, a pair of socks thrown in there for good measure. Cause ya know I can't just do one thing at a time.

Sheldon is not done. In addition to the animal costumes there are a couple of "career" costumes I have to knit yet and I've been toying, ha get it, with the idea of a couple more outfits. Of course I don't have patterns for those outfits so we will see if it happens. If not now maybe later on after I figure out how to make them.

Menu Monday 3/23

Here it is again:

Monday 3/23: Leftovers from weekend

Tuesday 3/24: Superfast Salisbury Steak and Boston Market Dill Potato Wedges

Wednesday 3/25: Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Thursday 3/26: Family Style Shrimp Scampi and Oven Roasted Veggies

Friday 3/27: Homemade Pizza

Saturday 3/28: Sesame Chicken Fingers w/ Peanut Sauce and Sesame Garlic Broccoli

Sunday 3/29: Leftovers

Recipe I

Here's the recipes for Runsas, this is a fav at our house, frugalmom's too!

Runsas (Beef and Cabbage Buns w/ cheese)
( Cook's Country Mag. Apr/May 2007 )

Note: Don't overcook the cabbage--you want it to provide some crunch when you bite into the sandwich.

Dough:

3/4 c. warm water (110 degrees)
1/2 c. sweetened condensed milk
1/4 c. veggie oil
2 Tbls. sugar
1 lg. egg
3 1/2 c. all purp flour, plus extra for rolling out dough
2 pks instant or rapid rise yeast
1 tsp salt

Filling:

3 Tbls unsalted butter, 2 Tbls melted
1 1/2 lbs. 90% lean ground beef
1 lg onion, chopped fine
1/2 sm head cabbage, chopped(about 3 cups)
salt and pepper
8 slices deli American cheese (now some would say this is "cheese food", not real cheese and I would agree, but do not skip this or replace it. The creamyness it provides is soooo worth it.)

1. For the dough: lightly grease lg bowl w/cooking spray. Mix water, sweetened condensed milk, oil, sugar, and egg in lg measuring cup. Mix flour, yeast, and salt in bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook. With mixer on low, add water mixture. After dough comes together, increase speed to medium and mix until shiny and smooth, 4 to 6 minutes. Turn dough out onto heavily floured work surface, shape into ball, and place in greased bowl. (Mixing can also be done by hand)
Cover bowl w/plastic wrap and let rest in warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

2. For the filling: Melt 1 Tbls. butter in lg skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef and cook until just beginning to brown, about 6 minutes, breaking up any lg clumps. Using slotted spoon, transfer beef to paper towel-lined plate.

3. Pour off all but 2 Tbls. fat from pan. Add onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add cabbage and toss until just beginning to wilt, 2 to 4 minutes. Return beef to pan and season with salt and pepper.

4. To assemble and bake: Adjust oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces. Working on lightly floured work surface, roll each piece of dough into 7-inch circle. Place one dough round in deep cereal bowl and top with one slice of cheese. Spoon 3/4 cup filling over cheese and pinch edges of dough together to form bun. Transfer bun, seam side down, to prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, cheese and filling, placing 4 buns on each baking sheet. Cover buns with plastic wrap and let rise until puffed, about 20 minutes.

5. Bake buns until golden brown, about 20 minutes, switching and rotating positions of baking sheets halfway through baking time. Brush buns with melted butter and serve.

*I think frugalmom told me these freeze well, ours never last long enough to get frozen. ;0)

Menu Monday 3/16

Well, since my blogging has been lean I thought I would start posting my menu for the week. We shall see if it lasts. If something sounds good and you want the recipe let me know.

Monday 3/16: Crispy Pan Fried Pork Chops w/ Beer Braised Cabbage

Tuesday 3/17: Egg Sandwiches and Hashbrown Casserole

Wednesday 3/18: Three Meat Calzones and Salad

Thursday 3/19: Sausage Asparagus Skillet and Salad

Friday 3/20: Homemade Pizza

Saturday 3/21: Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, Corn & Green Beans

Sunday 3/22: Runsas and Broccoli Casserole

A Surprise or not

I mentioned a project I would be working on a few posts back. Here is the finished product.

After talking to frugalmom, I'm quite sure lil G will not be surprised as it seems he's mentioned several times that I'm knitting him a turtle. But I'm sure he will be pleased anyway, now his mother may not be as pleased. Getting that lil turtle out of his shell and into his other costumes is a bit finicky. But well worth the hours of playtime in my humble opinion.

Sheldon in progress(this is the pattern name, it is my understanding he will be called Franklin)

Naked Turtle!

Finished turtle in the sun.