Field Trip Friday! This week...

The Glad Kitchen!

My friend finally Jennifer finally decided to share her recipes with the rest of you. Until recently they were under lock and key...or at least on a blog that she never gave out and really only used to store them. But she decided to share and for that I say thank you to her and Enjoy to the rest of you.

http://thegladkitchen.blogspot.com/

Strawberry Balsamic Preserves

For my birthday this year my good friend Kathy made me a wonderful dinner, bought me a cool new cheese knife and some schmancy measuring cups and gave me a jar of preserved gold! I can't think of a better summer dessert than fresh strawberries macerated in balsamic vinegar and served as is or over ice cream. We have it quite a bit here and everyone loves it...even the kids.

But Kathy 'kicked it up a notch' and made Strawberry Balsamic Preserves. WOW. What a treat. I've tried it on the classic PB&J, spread on whole wheat toast and even swirled into some Greek Yogurt. Every way has been a treat. I may never go back to plain strawberry preserves again. It just won't be the same.

I asked Kathy if she would share her recipe and she did. She even said I could share it with everyone else. So here it is. Enjoy!

Strawberry Balsamic Preserves

2 quarts strawberries, crushed
1 pkg low/no sugar pectin
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
3.5 cups sugar

1. Bring to a boil strawberries, pectin and balsamic.

2. Add sugar, return to a rolling boil for 1 minute.

3. Put in jars, water bath process for 10 minutes.

Oatmeal Scotchies

It's officially Fall here in MN but with the recent snowfall it's looking a lot more like Christmas. Christmas means cookies to me! Okay...so it's more then cookies but you can't tell me you don't love all the cookies that seem to surround us at Christmastime. The younger of my Taste Testers loves Oatmeal Scotchies. He loves the smell of the cinnamon and says it makes the house smell yummy. He's right. So bake up a batch and enjoy the Fall/Winter Weather. Enjoy!

Oatmeal Scotchies

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 measuring tsp baking soda
1/2 measuring tsp salt
1/2 measuring tsp cinnamon
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 measuring tsp vanilla extract
3 cups oats, uncooked (Quick or Old Fashioned)
1- 12oz pkg. (2 cups) Butterscotch Chips

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; set aside.

3. In large bowl, combine butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract; beat until creamy.

4. Add eggs one at a time, making sure they are well combined before adding next egg.

5. Gradually add flour mixture.

6. Stir in oats and butterscotch chips.

7. Drop by level measuring tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

8. Bake at 375 for 7-8 minutes for chewier cookies or 9-10 minutes for crisper cookies.

Makes about four dozen 3-inch cookies.

Field Trip Friday!

This week I really want everyone to go check out the Eco-Friendly Family Blog. It's run by my good friend Amanda and is contributed to by the core members of the Eco-Friendly Family board on TheBump.com. Amanda does a fabulous job and there is a ton of info on lots of different Eco-Friendly topics. I'm hoping that it will be a great One Stop Shopping place for info on how to "green up" your life. And it's getting there very quickly!

Oh...and did I mention that Amanda is working her butt off to get freebies & give-a-ways? There is a great one now from Bebeology!

And while you are there make sure to click on an ad or two. All the money raised goes to H.E.L.P.

So take a field trip to http://theecofriendlyfamily.blogspot.com/


p.s. Oh...and Amanda is also the wonderful friend who is responsible for RITK's new look. Thanks again Amanda! I love it.

Taco Seasoning

My family loves tacos. It is one meal that I know everyone will eat and I love that it's an easy one to make sure everyone gets lots of veggies!

What I hate is that most of the spice packets/mixes you can buy have lots of additives and extras that I don't want. Especially MSG. I'm one of the lucky ones who happens to be allergic. Not as bad as my allergy to Cilantro...but an allergy all the same.

So I came up with my own spice mix. Easy to make and super easy to use. My family loves it and that had no idea that I made it on my own until I told them. Hope your family loves it too. Enjoy!

Taco Seasoning

3 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
2 tbsp cumin
2 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried minced onion
2 tsp season salt


1. Mix all ingredients together in small bowl.

2. To use in place of a spice packet use 3 tbsp of the mixture.

3. Add spices to pan of browned ground meat or Walnut Wheat Crumbles with 3/4 cup boiling water. Allow the mixture to simmer until the water is gone and the spices are evenly distributed.

4. Store left over spices in covered spice jar for the next time.


Oh! And I totally pulled a fast one on them all last Taco Night! Instead of the gobs of sour cream that they all usually love I tricked them by putting Greek Yogurt into a bowl and I didn't say anything. They all thought it tasted great and the only reason I got busted was because my dad went to refill the bowl. Opps! Supposedly he hates yogurt. LOL. It sure didn't stop him that night. Or the next day when he went back for the leftovers. So give it a try with your family.

RITK got a whole new look!

My very good friend Amanda redid Rumble In The Kitchen for me. I cried real tears because I love it so much. And it's so me. We just moved and our new kitchen is circa 1913. I love it and it's quirks...so when she made these changes I knew I was home.

Check out Amanda's blogs. She's a doll and I don't know how she manages all that she does...especially with 3 kids, one being only a few weeks old. But she does and makes it look effortless. Enjoy!

http://theecofriendlyfamily.blogspot.com/

http://poonicosmom.blogspot.com/

Killer Cornbread

This is a simple and sweet cornbread. It works every time I make it and everyone who tries it loves it. Now...keep in mind I live in Minnesota. Someone from south of the Mason-Dixon line might think that this is Cornbread Sacrilege because this is a sweet cornbread. Sorry. I've tried it your way and we hate it. By we I mean my entire family. If I make it using any less honey then I've listed it goes to waste. So Southerners you've been warned. ;) Everyone else should be good to go. Especially if you like the cornbread from Boston Market. This is a very similar recipe.

And it's super easy to make this cornbread into a full meal and not just a side dish. Top pieces of cornbread with any of 'toppings' you can think of and you are good to go. Leftover chili, taco meat, veggies, canned beans, fresh chopped veggies and cheese are all just starting points. Have fun and enjoy!

Simple and Sweet Cornbread

1 cup flour (any kind will do...I use whatever I have on hand and it always works)
1 cup corn meal
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sour milk, buttermilk or plain milk
1/3 cup oil
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup honey



1. Mix dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. You can also use a sifter to sift the dry ingredients.

2. Add in wet ingredients and mix just until blended.

3. Pour into greased or sprayed baking dish ( I used a 9 inch pie plate) and bake at 400 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

4. Edited to add that we use a 9 inch pie plate. I am sure you could use just about anything you wanted. Cut into wedges and serve. If you happen to use fresh butter and a drizzle of additional honey I am in no way responsible for the number of wedges you eat. ;)

I told you it was easy! :)