1. Stop spending time with the wrong people.
2. Stop running from your problems.
3. Stop lying to yourself.
4. Stop putting your own needs on the back burner.
5. Stop trying to be someone you’re not.
6. Stop trying to hold onto the past.
7. Stop being scared to make a mistake.
8. Stop berating yourself for old mistakes.
9. Stop trying to buy happiness.
10. Stop exclusively looking to others for happiness.
11. Stop being idle.
12. Stop thinking you’re not ready.
13. Stop getting involved in relationships for the wrong reasons.
14. Stop rejecting new relationships just because old ones didn’t work.
15. Stop trying to compete against everyone else.
16. Stop being jealous of others.
17. Stop complaining & feeling sorry for yourself.
18. Stop holding grudges.
19. Stop letting others bring you down to their level.
20. Stop wasting time explaining yourself to others.
21. Stop doing the same things over and over without taking a break.
22. Stop overlooking the beauty of small moments.
23. Stop trying to make things perfect.
24. Stop following the path of least resistance.
25. Stop acting like everything is fine if it isn’t.
26. Stop blaming others for your troubles.
27. Stop trying to be everything to everyone.
28. Stop worrying so much.
29. Stop focusing on what you don’t want to happen.
30. Stop being ungrateful.

Today is National Indian Pudding Day and, curious cat that I am, I just had to find out what Indian Pudding is. What Indian Pudding IS NOT is Native American cuisine. However, it
DID get its name from a common Native American ingredient – cornmeal. Indian Pudding is a British-style baked pudding served hot or warm and is a classic NEW ENGLAND dessert. (I MUST ask my SIL about this!) It is made primarily of cornmeal, milk, molasses & spices.

The Foodie in me couldn’t stop there though. I HAD to try to find a recipe! SUCCESS! I found one! And it actually looks pretty good! I do believe I would like to try it! Here it is:

INDIAN PUDDING

2 1/2 tbs unsalted butter
3 cups milk
5 tbs yellow cornmeal
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
1 cup cold milk
vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, half and half, OR heavy cream, for topping

preheat oven to 300°.

grease a 1 1/2 qt souffle dish or baking dish with 1 tbs of the butter. set aside.

heat 3 cups of milk in a saucepan until it is close to boiling. add the cornmeal & reduce heat to low. stir until the mixture thickens (about 5 minutes).

remove from the heat & add the remaining butter, the molasses, maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger, salt & egg. pour into the buttered dish.

place in the preheated oven & bake for 30 minutes.

pour the cold milk over the pudding & return to the oven. bake for an additional 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes until the top is brown & crisp. serve hot or warm with topping of choice.

serves 6-8

NOTE: REHEAT LEFTOVERS BEFORE SERVING

So there ya have it. Now you can impress your friends with your knowledge of Indian Pudding! LOL! If any of you DO try this recipe, I would LOVE to hear about it! Have a great day my beautiful friends! Love and Best Dishes from my nest to yours…

…when you wonder if you are losing your mind? Or wonder if there’s any mind left to lose? (Somebody please say YES!) Well, today was one of those days…for me…

It started at breakfast. I decided to partake of a lite english muffin schmeared with cashew butter. Easy, right? I put the english muffin into the toaster & pushed down the lever. Ah the anticipation! A hot & toasty english muffin, so hot that the cashew butter melts into all those wonderful nooks & crannies! But where is the cashew butter? It isn’t on the shelf it’s “supposed” to be on. It isn’t on the shelf above “the” shelf. Or on the shelf above that shelf! In fact, it isn’t in the cupboard at all! (Trust me, I looked!) Did I put it in the other cupboard? Nope. Am I out of it? Nope. I KNOW I have almost a full jar! What time is it? I gotta start getting ready for work! I reckon it’s cream cheese & sugar-free jelly instead. (sigh of frustration. I REALLY want cashew butter!). So I open the refrigerator and get out the…cashew butter. The very cold, very hard, very solid cashew butter. So cold & hard & solid, in fact, that the knife I used to get it out broke! Determined though I was, so I spread the cold, hard cashew butter on my now cold, hard english muffin with the now broken knife.

What time is it? Crap! I REALLY need to get a move on! Rush rush rush! Lunch packed? Check! Shower? Check! Hair? It can air dry. Makeup? Check! Teeth brushed? Check! Purse? Check! Keys? WHERE ARE MY KEYS?!? Aaauuuggghhh!!! OF COURSE they aren’t hooked to my purse (or in my purse). OF COURSE they aren’t on the table. Or the counter. Or my dresser. Or the bathroom sink. (Someone just shoot me NOW!) Now wait! I had my keys last night when I took Emersyn out to pee & decided to get her lead out of my car since I was already outside so my keys HAVE to be…IN MY JACKET POCKET!!! (Yup! They were there!) Phew!

So I make it to work with (literally) one minute to spare. I look at the piles on my desk trying to remember where I left off. Deep breath. Everything’s going to be okay. Nothing else can go wrong today. I remember! Now I can pick up where I left off. I better put my glasses on. My glasses. Where are my glasses? I don’t see them on my desk. I thought I got them out! I guess I didn’t. (Sigh). Ah! There they are (in my purse)! I snap open the case and…no glasses. WHERE ARE MY GLASSES?!? My head itches. Why does my head itch? It’s probably this stupid headband! Scratch, scratch. That’s not a headband! IT’S MY GLASSES!

Luckily, the rest of the day wasn’t so bad. And thankfully, Emersyn knows our walking route (we walk the same route every time) because Lord knows, as bubble-headed as I’ve been of late, I’d probably get lost if left to my own devices!

As frustrated as my forgetfulness makes me, I’ve learned to laugh at it. After all, it’s all my hormones’ fault! Yup! That’s my story & I’m stickin’ to it!

Have a great evening all! I’m going to try to have a good evening as well. That is, of course, if I don’t forget!

Okay. Let’s try this again. For Pamela (and whomever else could not access the link) here is the recipe for Berry Bavarian Cream:

BERRY BAVARIAN CREAM

1 (3 oz) pkg strawberry jello
1 cup hot water
1/2 cup ice water
1 (10 oz) pkgs frozen strawberries in juice
2 cups whipping cream, whipped (cool whip works too)
angel food cake

GLAZE:

1 cup strawberry juice
1 tbs cornstarch
1 tsp soft butter

dissolve jello in hot water. add ice water & whip until slightly congealed. beat until light & fluffy. drain berries & reserve juice for glaze. fold in strawberries & whipped cream. with a fork (actually, I just use my fingers!), tear angel food into pieces. DO NOT USED BROWNED EDGE! alternate cake pieces & jello mixture into mold. (or, you can mix the cake pieces & jello together & just dump it into the mold. that’s what I do!) chill until firm. unmold on plate. drizzle with glaze. chill.

GLAZE: blend cornstarch with juice gradually. put mixture into a saucepan & cook until clear, about 3-5 minutes. remove from heat & add butter. cool & drizzle over mold.

And who doesn’t love Fluffernutter?!? I have this thing (thanks to Jarrod, my now all grown up son) about calling Fluffer “momo”. That’s how he said marshmallow when he was but a wee little lad. And it stuck. (At least with ME it did!) I can’t tell you how many times I’ve printed out a recipe for someone & got a call or an email asking me what momo is! (Oops!)  In honor of National Fluffernutter Day, I thought I would share one of my fave (& often requested) recipes using both peanut butter & marshmallow. It’s quick, it’s easy, & it’s oh so good! I hope you enjoy it! Until next time, Love & Best Dishes from My Nest to Yours! Here’s the recipe:

EVERYTHING-BUT-THE-KITCHEN SINK BAR COOKIES

1 (18 oz) pkg refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
1 (7 oz) jar “momo” creme
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 cups corn chex
1/2 cup plain m&m’s

preheat oven to 350°.

grease a 13″x9″x2″ baking pan.

press dough into prepared pan.

bake 13 minutes.

remove from oven.

drop teaspoonfuls of momo creme & peanut butter over hot cookie base.

bake 1 minute.

carefully spread momo creme & peanut butter over cookie base.

sprinkle with cereal & m&m’s.

bake 7 minutes.

cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

cut into bars.

Bettys & Cobblers & Crisps, Oh My! What is the difference? IS there a difference? The answer is…YES…and I am (hopefully) going to educate you as to what those differences are. Don’t be scared! It’s all rather easy! Here goes…

COBBLERS are an American deep-dish fruit dessert or pie with a thick crust (usually a biscuit crust) & a fruit filling (such as peaches, apples, berries). Some versions are enclosed in crust, while others have a drop-biscuit or crumb topping.

CRISPS & CRUMBLES – CRISPS are baked with the fruit mixture on the bottom with a crumb topping. The crumb topping can be made with flour, nuts, bread crumbs, cookie or graham cracker crumbs, or even breakfast cereal. CRUMBLES are the British version of the American Crisp.

BETTY OR BROWN BETTY consists of a fruit, most commonly apples, baked between layers of buttered crumbs.

Betty, Cobbler, Crisp…whatever you call it, however you prepare it, it’s sure to be YUM-O-LICIOUS!

Love and Best Dishes from My Nest to Yours!

Welcome to Yum-O’s Facebook page! I’m very excited about it! My hope is for Yum-O to get BIG with LOTS of “Likes” and followers. So I am asking YOU what you would like to see here (topics, recipes, questions you may have, ANYTHING)! I welcome the challenge!. Also, I certainly won’t object if you put a bug in someone’s ear about Yum-O (tee hee!). Yum-O is still a work in progress with both Rachel & I working on things, so don’t be alarmed if you see changes. Thank you, my friends, for “Liking” Yum-O! I look forward to your input! MUAH!

CHEETOS BRITTLE

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup light karo syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 (16 oz) bag crunchy cheetos

bring butter, sugars, & karo to a boil, stirring constantly for 5 minutes (while boiling).

remove from heat. add vanilla & baking soda. stir well.

add cheetos.

spread out on an ungreased cookie sheet.

bake at 250° for 45 mins-1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

when cool enough to handle, break into pieces.

8 servings

I don’t love the title of this blog. However, it’s National Zucchini Day and I was trying to come up with a catchy title. Suggestions are welcome for a different title!

So let’s talk zucchini…

What is your opinion of it? If you are a fan, what is your favorite way to eat it? I can’t say that I LOVE it, but I don’t hate it either! It depends on the preparation. I like to use it in lasagna, substituting sliced zucchini for the pasta. I love, love, LOVE zucchini bread! Years ago I developed my own recipe for zucchini bread, which is pretty amazing since I loathe baking. If you wanna check it out here, it’s called ROB’S BANGIN’ ZUCCHINI BREAD and it can be found in the BREADS/MUFFINS category.

It’s also a textural thing for me. I don’t like limp, soggy squash!

For many years I got zucchinis from local farmers and let me tell you, they were HUMUNGOUS!! I was a zucchini bread baking maniac back then! I sure miss those big zucchinis! I have NEVER seen zucchinis even CLOSE to that size in any grocery store!

I’m going to share a zucchini recipe with you that I don’t have posted in the recipe portion of Yum-O.  I hope you enjoy it. Oh yeah, if you come up with a better title, I will change it and give you the credit for it!

CHOCOLATE CHIP ORANGE ZUCCHINI BREAD

3 eggs
1 cup oil
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips*
1 tbs orange zest
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp nutmeg
2 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon

sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt & spices. in a lg bowl, beat eggs until light & fluffy. add sugar & continue beating until well blended. stir in oil, vanilla, zucchini, nuts, chocolate chips & orange zest. blend in sifted ingredients. turn batter into two greased 9″x5″  loaf pans. bake at 350° for 50 minutes, or until bread tests done. Remove loaves from pans & cool before slicing.

makes 2 loaves

*I only use 1/2 cup chocolate chips. 1 cup works fine, I just prefer less chocolate chips.

Today is National Oyster Day. Even though “If ya’ don’t got nothin’ nice to say, don’t say nothin’ at all” has been drilled into my head, I have something to say about oysters, and it ain’t nothin’ nice! They are stinky, they are slimy, they are rubbery, they are gross, and they are UH-GLEE! To simplify it, they are just plain EWWW!!! Out of the gazillions of recipes I have, not one of them has oysters listed in the ingredients! I made them once, in college, and that was because I had no choice! I gagged the whole time I was preparing them and I refused to eat them.

Two days after my 50th birthday, I had dinner with a “friend” (we’ll call him “J”) at a nice restaurant that had some “frou-frou” items on the menu. “J” was perusing the menu and asked if I would like an appetizer (I didn’t). He said, “I believe I am going to have…” Yup. You guessed it. Oysters. Rockefeller, to be exact.

I felt my gag reflex kick in and I guess in trying to hide it (it was our first date after all!) my face got all screwy and discontorted cuz he looked at me, laughed, and said, “I take it you aren’t fond of oysters.” BUSTED!!! After I fessed up, he asked me if it would bother me if he ordered them. How sweet was that?!?

So “J” ordered Oysters Rockefeller. The stinky, gross, ugly things arrived at the table and they weren’t all THAT ugly. In fact, they looked kinda’ nice (but they were still stinky)! The server asked if we would like two plates. I shook my head no and vehemently said, “No thank you. I, guarantee you I will NOT be eating those!” (Both she and “J” got a chuckle out of that.)

So “J” dug in and very politely asked me, “Are you SURE you don’t want to try these?” (Believe me, I was VERY sure!)

It happened at around the same time “J” was consuming Oyster Numero Tres. Some unknown force stuck a fork in my right hand, moved said right hand toward “them”, stuck the fork into one of them, and then STUFFED “IT” INTO MY MOUTH!!! HORRORS!

But guess what? I didn’t shudder. I didn’t freak out. I didn’t even gag! And I lived to tell you about it!

P.S. I even kinda liked it (but shhh! Don’t tell anybody!).