Name Three Things - 2018

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Winchester

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Apples, apples, apples! Heading down to the orchard and farm stand in about an hour or so. I'm excited (it's the little things). Of course, it's just pouring down rain, but that's to be expected at this point.
  • Breakfast for the kids
  • Fed Simone (sourdough starter) and also made the overnight sponge for our sourdough waffles tomorrow morning. Sausage and waffles for breakfast Sunday morning!
  • Apples, apples, apples! I'll probably start in on the applesauce as soon as we get home today.
  • If it (ever) stops raining today, Rick wants to get outside to start cutting down the summer flowers.
 

micknsnicks2mom

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Winchester Winchester -- and now you'll be really busy with apples! :D

this was the first time i've made/frozen apple pies, so i'll see how they turn out. i did read to add a little minute tapioca to the pie, if you're freezing it -- the tapioca insures that the filling is properly thick (/not watery) after being frozen and then baked.

thank you for mentioning par-baking pies that are going to be frozen -- baking them halfway and cooling, then freezing them. i'll try that next year! :agree:

i'll likely be buying more apples, in small quantities, through the rest of the apple season. i really don't buy apples if they aren't in season -- you're right, they're definitely not as good coming from the grocery store.

thank you! :blush: i'm very careful to set a 'max bid' for items at the auction, and it's always lower than what i'd be able to buy the same for in a store. there are many items that i bid on, that others bid higher, so i don't end up buying any.

i'm so sorry to hear that you've been sick, but glad you're feeling better now!! :yess:



today i've washed the dishes, scooped the litter boxes, and moved a vacuum sealed bag of sweet & sour meatballs to the fridge to thaw. i've also done some printing.

this afternoon, i'll continue with some planning.

after that, i'll watch something on tv.

yesterday, the new light fixture was installed in our living room. it looks great, like it belongs there! :D it's really nice to have light when i need it, after it gets dark in the evening.

and our Punky seems to have calmed down a bit from her bird obsession. we had a bird go down the wood stove chimney pipe (wood stove wasn't going), make it's way through the 'workings' of the stove, and into the burn chamber last week. :jawdrop: it stayed there for a few hours, while i figured out how best to assist it to freedom outdoors again. both DeeDee and Punky were in the kitchen, on the other side of the screen door, watching while i encouraged the bird flying loose in the living room to locate the open window. they both thought that was just the coolest thing ever! :dancingblackcat: and for days our Punky has spent almost all of her time intently watching the birds that land on our forsythia bush, her interest in watching them became a complete obsession. she didn't even want to eat more than a few bites of her meals, and then she'd run back to one of the two windows looking out on the bush again. :headshake: she's doing better now, but it'll take a while for her to move past that bird obsession!
 
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Winchester

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We came home with about 90 pounds of apples of all kinds: Gala, Banana, Winesap, Stayman, Cortland, Nittany, anything that was good for pie or sauce. (The nice thing about using such a good assortment of apples is that I never have to add sugar to the sauce. Just a bit of cinnamon and we're good to go.) And a large 30-pound bag of Grannies....for me and The Beast.

When we got home yesterday and after things/Beast were calmed down and she was napping, I got out a Granny, washed it down, and sliced it. I gently placed a slice of apple by her nose. She didn't really even wake up; she nosed over to it, picked it up, and started chomping. Never even raised her head from the floor! Then it hit her--"Hey! That's apple!"--and she jumped up and came over to the couch with her tail wagging a mile a minute. I think she ate a good half of my apple. Such a greedy Beast she is. :)
  • Breakfast for the kids, emptied the dishwasher, sorted laundry, Rick scooped boxes
  • The second load is in the washer and the first load is in the dryer
  • As soon as I finish my coffee, I'm going out to the kitchen to start on dumplings
  • Rick never did get outside yesterday; we had pouring rain in the morning and when we got home, it was almost time for PennState to play, so he ended up on the couch. He needs to get some work done today. While he's outside, I will continue with applesauce.
  • We're going to visit with Rick's mom tonight and will take up a couple dumplings for her and her roommate.
 

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Winchester Winchester -- 90 pounds of assorted varieties of apples, and 30 pounds of grannies for you and The Beast to enjoy -- that sounds wonderful! :cloud9: i would guess (based on the recipes i used for applesauce and apple pie filling) that i had 90 pounds of apples, too. i'd already bought two small approximately 6 pound bags, to make sauce with, prior to buying the 90 lbs. now i'll buy small amounts, just to eat...until the apple season ends here. :agree:

may i ask if you might share your apple fritters recipe, and any tips you may have for freezing them? i'd love to make some.


today i've washed the dishes, scooped the litter boxes, and have the wood stove going. it got down into the 30's (F) last night here...:cold:

i've got a phone call to make, shortly. after that, i plan to have a quiet rest of the day with my cats! :catlove:
 
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Winchester

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Well, so far we have 12 apple dumplings (gave some to my sister and BIL and to Rick's mom), 3 apple pies, and 11 quarts of smooth apple sauce. Rick has been scarfing dumplings; I managed to get four dumplings into the freezer and that was it. One pie is apple, butterscotch, and raisin; it's a two-crust pie. The other two are apple crumb and they're one-crust pies. I still have two nice-sized bags of apples in the basement and I'll work on them as the week progresses.

micknsnicks2mom micknsnicks2mom I don't have a recipe for apple fritters yet. I've been looking around online and also in my cookbooks, but haven't really seen much. They say that you can easily freeze them. I think I'd separate the layers with parchment paper or wax paper so they don't freeze together. Maybe in a Lock & Lock container? Maybe freeze them unglazed and then glaze after they're thawed and warmed up a bit?

This one looks good: Apple Fritters made with Yeast | Seasons and Suppers
I'm considering this one: Amish Apple Fritters by Brynne F - Key Ingredient

While I was working yesterday (Sunday), Rick worked outside, cutting down flowers and cleaning up the beds. When it got a bit warmer, he mowed the front yard. Honestly, I was so busy in the kitchen, I didn't get much of anything else done, other than laundry and the grocery list.
  • Breakfast for the kids, did a walk, and got ready for work. On the way into work, Clarence and I stopped for gas.
  • Rick will stop off after work to pay for Clarence's tire rotation and oil change; the guy wasn't there when we picked the car up on Friday, so we brought the car home and Rick will pay him today.
  • Must go for a few groceries; we really didn't get much in the way of groceries last week because I wasn't feeling well. We've been managing groceries only about every 2 or 3 weeks lately and it shows in my pantry.
  • Scoop the boxes and do a quick vacuum
  • Order food for The Beast from Chewy
 

micknsnicks2mom

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Winchester Winchester -- Wow! dumplngs, pies, and sauce so far! :yess:

thanks for the links, to fritters recipes! :D i like the Amish Apple Fritter recipe. that's what i'd do, i think -- freeze the fritters unglazed and then thaw and heat up a bit before adding the glaze, and i'd put a piece of wax paper between them when freezing 'em too. i did that, wax paper between, when i froze my (fried) ground chicken taco burgers -- and was glad i did, when i've pulled them out to reheat and eat.

in my mind i was actually picturing more along the lines of apple latkes, rather than fritters. i mean, the only apple fritters i've ever had were Mrs Paul's frozen ones. those were so good!! :cloud9: i did come across an apple latkes recipe, from Smitten Kitchen -- apple latkes those look really good, too! :yummy: and she used up the juice from the apples, to make a sauce for the latkes too!

i may try making some of those Amish Apple Fritters this fall. :think:

today i've got the wood stove going, and made a phone call. i'll wash the dishes, scoop the litter boxes, and keep the wood stove going 'low and slow'. i'll move a container of sloppy joes, and a pint or two of milk to the fridge to thaw.

after that, i'll play computer games for a while, then watch something on tv.
 

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I went for a walk in downtown Minneapolis today. I walked across the Stone Arch Bridge and then across another bridge to get to Nicollet Island. I was going to go to another island but it looked like one of the bridges was closed, so I just decided to walk back to my car. It was nearly 3 miles although I was aiming to go for 5 miles. I took a few pictures and they look nice only because Mother Nature was doing all the work. I came home and showered and just now cleaned the litter boxes.
 
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I love Smitten Kitchen! I keep saying that I need to buy her book....she has some seriously good recipes. I'm probably going to go with the Amish fritter recipe, too. I have some Mennonite cookbooks that I want to go through before I decide.

MonaLyssa33 MonaLyssa33 I would have loved to have joined you on your walk; it sounds lovely.
  • Breakfast for the kids, did a walk, and got ready for work
  • I have a Planning Commission meeting tonight, so will get home later on
  • Scoop the boxes
  • Must call the cable company and call the vet
 
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My meeting went until 6:00 last night, so it was around 6:30 til I got home. I got home just in time to help Rick plug the jets up in the pool, so the pool is now officially closed for the winter.
  • Breakfast for the kids, walked 4 miles, sorted laundry, and got ready for work
  • Trash night
  • Laundry night
  • A quick vacuum in the living room
 
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Not too much going on today. Rick is bowling tonight, so I'm on my own.
  • Breakfast for the kids, walked 4 miles, and got ready for work
  • Scoop the boxes
  • I have one more load of laundry to do; it's basically jeans and pants
  • Nintendo Night at my house! (Unless I decide to work on apples....but I doubt that will happen)
 
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Dear Richard threw his back out. It's bad; he came home early from work yesterday and finally called for a doctor's appt, which is this morning. He's been having back problems and I keep telling him to call the blasted doctor. Finally! So it must really be bad this time around.
  • Breakfast for the kids, emptied the dishwasher, some general clean-up in the kitchen, walked 2 miles
  • I have a hair appt tonight after work
  • Scoop the boxes
  • I'd like to make apple butter in the crock pot overnight tonight, but don't know if I'll get it done or not
 

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today i've made a phone call, and got the wood stove going to take the chill off the house.

i've got the second spaghetti squash to bake, prep, and freeze. and i'll slice the loaf of bread i made yesterday.

i'll find a spanish rice recipe that looks good today, and print that out, too. and i'll spend some time with the budget, and on some planning.

i'll wash the dishes, scoop the litter boxes, and likely take the trash out at some point.



i went to the local produce auction earlier this week, and brought home: two 1/2 bushel boxes of Crispin apples for $6 each, one 10 pound piece of honey ham (the kind in a long roll, deli meat) at $3 (yes, for the whole piece), two large spaghetti squash for 25 cents per, a 5 lb bag of white potatoes at $1.25, and a case of twenty-four 15 ounce cans of applesauce for 35 cents a can/$8.40 for the case. and i was gifted two buttercup squash! :D

i've been enjoying eating the medium sized Crispins raw, and have made one batch of extra chunky cinnamon applesauce (so far) -- which i've got in the fridge, will be eating/not freezing. i'll be making more applesauce (not to 'put up'), eating more apples raw, and will be baking some apple bread pudding. the deli ham is in the freezer, and i'll use a heavy chef knife to cut thin small pieces off of it over time -- to use in sandwiches, likely a batch or two of homemade deviled ham, as well as casseroles and a batch of green split pea soup. my plans for the spaghetti squash are to use it with sloppy joes, sweet & sour meatballs, and spaghetti sauce with meat -- instead of pasta. the potatoes will be microwaved for late evening snacks, to warm me up a bit before i go to bed -- it's quite chilly at night here, now! the canned applesauce is to be used mainly in baking, as a substitute for oil in recipes. and i'll bake the two buttercup squash, mash, then freeze in smallish portions -- easy to thaw, then heat up with a pat of butter and salt/pepper, for snacks.


Winchester Winchester -- i hope your DH's back feels better soon! :crossfingers: and very good, for him to be seeing a doctor about it.
 

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1-Made a huge pot of my roasted veggie & meat chili

2-Tagged 3 male monarch butterflies I raised from caterpillars and released them outside (have raised/tagged/released 55 this season so far)


3-Posted a lot here so I could get my post count high enough to edit a post. :flail:
 

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today i've got the wood stove going, have made another loaf of bread (will be used in making apple bread pudding, in a few days), and have moved two pints of milk to the fridge to thaw.

i'll be making the spanish rice today, and cooking the ground turkey to add to the spanish rice too. that will go into a container and in the fridge to cool overnight. tomorrow will be filling bell pepper halves with the mixture, putting together the sauce, and then baking a batch of spanish rice stuffed peppers. i should have enough spanish rice to fill more bell pepper halves than i want to bake tomorrow, and will wrap the extra ones and freeze them -- easy to pull out, make more sauce, then bake.

i'll also wash the dishes, scoop the litter boxes, and take out the trash at some point.

i'll watch something on tv after that.
 
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m3rma1d m3rma1d Wow, that's really neat that you've released so many butterflies! Kudos to you!

Thanks for the well-wishes micknsnicks2mom micknsnicks2mom Saturday was a laid-back kind of day. I couldn't mow because it had rained and the grass was soaked. I had about half a headache and didn't feel like dealing with apples. Rick is down on the couch with his back. He had an x-ray, but we don't have the results yet. He's on a really strong NSAID. He's simply not doing well. So he ended up on the couch watching football. The girls and I spent the afternoon in bed; they napped the afternoon away and I had my nose in my Kindle and my iPad. Sometimes, esp on crappy days, just lounging works.
  • Breakfast for the kids, emptied the dishwasher, stripped the bed, scooped the boxes, sorted laundry and I have the second load of laundry in the washer
  • After I'm done with my coffee, I'm going to start working on chunky apple sauce. Followed by some apple fritters.
  • Do a quick vacuum, wipe down the kitchen and bathroom, wipe out the fridge
  • Take some apple fritters to Rick's mom tonight
While I agree with Rick taking it easy to a certain extent, I don't want him on the couch all day again today. I suggested that, later on this afternoon, he might want to hit the treadmill (slowly!) and try 1/4 mile with no incline. He needs to keep his back loose. Being on the couch all the time is not good either.
 
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Out of the 90 pounds, we have 27 Grannies left for The Beast and me to share. I finished with 18 quarts of apple sauce (11 quarts of smooth and 7 quarts of chunky sauce), 12 apple dumplings, 3 apple pies, 12 apple fritters, and a huge pan of apple crisp. I'll also use some Grannies to make an apple coffee cake (made with coffee) to bring into work later on this week. No apple butter; I thought about it and figured I'd just make more sauce because Rick just loves applesauce.

micknsnicks2mom micknsnicks2mom I used the Amish recipe for the apple fritters yesterday. They were good, not overly sweet, and you can taste the apple. It calls for 2-1/2 cups of chopped apple and I wouldn't use more than that. I doubled the recipe, so I needed 5 cups of chopped apple; doubling the recipe gave me 12 fritters. I didn't glaze them. I have non-melting white sugar from King Arthur, so I shook them into a bag of that sugar. Don't make more than you'll eat in one or two days, unless you do freeze them. They don't hold up well; it's something that is best eaten the day you make them, IMO. By last night, they seemed a little soft. I'm going to keep looking around for another recipe.

I used Mom's old West Bend electric skillet to fry the fritters. It doesn't heat evenly, so there are some darker spots on some of the fritters. That happens when I make English muffins in that skillet, too.

So today:
  • Breakfast for the kids, walked 4 miles, made the bed, general clean-up, and got ready for work
  • Grab a few groceries tonight when I get home from work
  • Scoop the boxes and do a quick vacuum
 

micknsnicks2mom

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Winchester Winchester -- that's a great group of apple stuff that you 'put up' !! :cloud9: wow, those 30 pounds of grannies sure go fast, between you and The Beast! :D and thank you for sharing how the apple fritters came out. :agree:


today i've added more wood to the wood stove, moved the two buttercup squash to the kitchen, and weighed some apples for the next batch of applesauce (not to put up, just to eat) as well as set two medium sized apples out for the apple bread pudding that i'll make tomorrow.

this afternoon, i'll fold and put away the load of laundry i ran yesterday, wash the dishes, scoop the litter boxes, and bake those two buttercup squash. i'll portion the squash into small (one cup) containers, label, then put in the fridge to thoroughly cool overnight -- will move them to the freezer tomorrow.

after that, i'm thinking i'll have a nice hot cup of tea, and watch something on tv.
 
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  • Breakfast for the kids, walked 4 miles, general straightening-up, made the bed, and got ready for work
  • I put gas in the Tucson on my way into work
  • We're taking Rick's truck into the garage tonight on the way home from work; it needs some brake work
  • Scoop the boxes
 
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In my office early this morning. Rick brought me into work; on the way home, we'll stop to pick up the truck from the garage. It's just easier that way, since we're already in town.
  • Breakfast for the kids, emptied the dishwasher, separated laundry, and got ready to come into work
  • Must call the cable company at some point this morning: to order STARZ, starting in November (Outlander is coming back) and to delete an email account. Call the vet to order The Beast's heartworm meds.
  • Pick up the truck at the garage
  • Laundry night
  • Trash night
 
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It's Thursday....I only have to get through one more day til the weekend. And tomorrow, the Eagle poops (I get my paycheck), so that's good, too. But I'm more interested in the weekend at this point.

Rick has a follow-up dr appt this morning for his back. He's working on the last two loads of laundry that I didn't get done last night. He'll also scoop the boxes some time today.
  • Breakfast for the kids, walked 4 miles, made the bed, and got ready for work
  • I started walking outside over lunch today. Only 2 miles, nothing major, but it helps with some steps and floors. I'm still doing the Active Hours for my FitBit, too. And my 4 miles in the morning.
  • If Rick bowls tonight (his back will decide), it will be Nintendo Night tonight
  • And that might be pretty much it. I want to watch Supernatural tonight and then Murphy Brown. And then bed....and, hopefully, sleep. I'm pooped. In fact, I may bag the tv; that's what OnDemand is for, anyway.
 
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