A Story and a Video

Today is a day of “firsts” on my blog, and I couldn’t be more excited!

If you’ve seen any of my recent posts, you’ve probably read that we recently revamped our home in order to house a really large dining room table. But what I haven’t shared with you is the entire story behind our new table, and the reasoning behind this venture. So today, for the first time, I’m going to share my heart with you.

Rather than write out the entire story, I asked my very talented husband to create a video story to share with you. We’re both pretty exited about this…it combines his passion for video editing and storytelling with my passion for cooking and hospitality, and we think they meshed together pretty well. 🙂 I’m so proud of him for all of his hard work over the past few years to teach himself how to film and edit video. What a unique and powerful way to tell a story!

I want to say a HUGE thank you to the gentleman who built this amazing table for us. I hope he’s reading this! 🙂 Your work on this table, and your willingness to do it for us has already impacted lives…and we pray it will continue to do so for many, many years. We can’t thank you enough. Thank you to everyone who helped with this venture…my dad for the use of his van to haul this huge table home, and my brother for his help in strategically getting it in the house. We couldn’t have done it without you!

And the frugal side of me just has to share that when all was said and done, this entire room project cost us under $50. We sold our old table to purchase the materials for the new one, and we sold some of the old decorations from the living room as we no longer needed those in the dining room. This was a HUGE answer to prayer, as some recent financial tightness almost kept us from doing this project. I’m so happy we plowed our way through, and that everything worked out so well! Praise be to God!

Enjoy my very first video blog entry! I pray that my story might encourage your hearts!!

Blessings, friends!!!!

Thrifty Kitchen

I love food. And cooking. And baking. There…I said it.

For years, I’ve loved to cook, bake, and eat the food I make while gathered around the table with friends and family. But I’ve felt weird saying that I love it. You see, I’m not exactly the smallest woman in the world, and I’ve been afraid that admitting I love all things kitchen-related would cause others to think things along the line of, “You may want to avoid that scrumptious muffin you just baked, and opt for an apple instead.” 😉

But you know what? Life is short. Way too short to worry about whether or not I should enjoy a muffin or an apple. (As a side note, I do care about my health, and I do try to keep things in check. But really, who doesn’t love a homemade goodie?!)

I sorta kinda love my kitchen. It’s my domain, and I feel most at home when I’m working away in there. I love to drool over Williams Sonoma and Sur La Table catalogs, and dream of what my kitchen could look like. But then I wake up from that dreamland and realize that unless I win the lottery (which would also mean I’d have to actually purchase a ticket!), I’ll never afford the items in those catalogs.

I was re-arranging some items in my kitchen yesterday, and it occurred to me how thankful I am for stores/venues on the opposite spectrum of the fancy kitchen stores. Goodwill, Salvation Army, garage sales, and SOR (side-of-road)…they’ve proven extremely helpful in outfitting my kitchen. It was fun to do a mental run-through of the items in my kitchen, and how many of them came from unexpected places.

I thought I’d share some photos today of some of my favorite parts of our kitchen. All of these areas were made possible by extremely cheap thrifting and a little creativity. I hope the photos inspire you to look beyond what most people would consider “normal” (catalog/big-box store shopping), and think outside of the box a bit. You may be surprised by what you can come up with!

All of these “goodies” sit atop my refrigerator. I used two old wooden crates (compliments of SOR) to create a fun way to display some vintage kitchen items (from Goodwill) and to hold some of the spices I use on a regular basis. The glass jar on the right holds the protein powder I use in our smoothies, and looks so much more fun than the big plastic bag that it comes in.

There are a handful of spices that I use every.single.day. Because I use them so often, I like to have them on the counter. I found these vintage canning jars at a garage sale last summer for 50 cents each! I washed them well, filled them with spices, and placed them in this adorable blue enameled dish I also scored at a garage sale. They sit right next to the cooking oils I use most every day, and I love that it looks fun while at the same time being extremely useful.

This is hands-down my favorite part of my kitchen. I found this unique solid-wood shelf on the side of the road a few months back, and it works perfectly to house my cookbooks. I have a bit of an obsession with collecting cookbooks! I love that this little corner of the kitchen holds things so near and dear to my heart…the aprons hanging on the door were made by a dear friend from my late-grandfather’s shirts. The wall hanging above the shelf contains my great-grandmother’s handwritten recipes, and the shelf holds some really OLD cookbooks I’ve gathered at antique stores and garage sales.

Coffee….a definite staple in the Archer household. This little cupboard above the coffee-maker holds my favorite coffee mugs/saucers that I eyed at a local consignment shop for MONTHS until they were finally marked down to 70 cents per set. There’s another one of those little canning jars from the garage sale, and it holds the brown sugar I like to sprinkle in my latte in the morning. The honey jar to the left was a gift to me for hosting a party, and I use it every single morning and think of how fun that party was! The little wooden box behind the brown sugar holds some coffee flavorings, and was found in a pile of wood headed toward the garbage. It’s a super old shipping box for a pencil sharpener. It’s adorable, and I love it! Total cost of this cupboard…probably less than $5.

A couple years ago, we ripped the doors off of our pantry and created an open-pantry. I loved the idea of being able to see the pretty things in our kitchen, and hide all of the other not-so-pretty things inside of the closed cupboards. I prefer to use white dishes, and every single white dish you see in this pantry came from a thrift store. They don’t all match, but that’s part of the beauty of it. It took several trips to various thrift stores to complete my dish collection, but for probably less than $20, I have a whole host of white dishes to use for every-day use as well as larger get-togethers.

This little jar sits on that cookbook shelf that I love so much. It’s filled with tiny spools of baker’s twine (I use the twine for tying together fresh herbs in sauces, or for adding pretty little touches to the baked goods I wrap up). The jar was 50 cents at a garage sale, and the baker’s twine came from Dollar Tree. I don’t know why, but I just love this cute little addition to my kitchen!

I hope you enjoyed that little walk-through my thrifted kitchen. 🙂 While someday I really would love to be able to purchase something from one of those beautiful kitchen stores, I’m pretty content with my little thrifted kitchen. Maybe someday I’ll happen upon some items from Williams Sonoma or Sur La Table…you never know what you’ll find when you’re on the hunt! 🙂

Blessings to you today, friends! Enjoy your weekend!

Oh, and stay tuned for a “first” on my blog…Tanner and I have been working on a video story about our new dining room. He’s doing a fantastic job editing this video, and I hope it will explain my heart a little bit more as to why I love to cook, bake, and open our home to anyone who wants to join us around our table. It might be a while yet before it’s finished, but I can’t wait to share it with you!

The Spin Of Life

As a young girl, I’d sometimes reluctantly agree to ride the Silly Silo at our local amusement park. The Silly Silo was a spinning vortex so fast that once it reached top speed, you would stick to the wall…even when the floor beneath dropped away. I remember my youth pastor once taking a photo of me on the Silly Silo. Folks, that was not a pretty picture. Trust me.

The last two weeks in my life have felt like a perpetual ride on the Silly Silo. Various happenings have seemed to spin the vortex of life faster and faster, making me dizzy with each turn. I keep wondering when the floor will fall out from beneath my feet, just like on the ride I enjoyed as a child. And yet, I know that even if the floor does fall from beneath, the strong and loving hand of my Heavenly Father will hold me up. He will never let me fall. And so life continues to spin…sometimes faster than other times, and I’m trying to enjoy the ride with each rotation.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to those of you who showed so much love and support when my grandfather unexpectedly passed away on New Year’s Day. Our family certainly felt the prayers and love that flowed so freely. Thank you! I find myself thinking of Grandpa at the most unusual times. Grief comes in waves, I’ve been told…and I’m now finding that to be so very true. I missed seeing him in his usual spot at church yesterday. Since I was a little girl, Grandpa and Grandma have sat in the same spot most Sunday mornings. I didn’t realize how much I’d miss seeing him there. But I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he is experiencing eternal praise and worship services in Heaven now. And that brings my heart great comfort.

Over the past year or more, my husband has been increasingly involved with the audio/visual/tech department at our church. His main responsibility through this ministry is to film and edit what we call “Saylorville Stories.” Each Sunday evening, an individual within the church shares (via pre-recorded video) their story of how God has changed their lives and hearts. My husband, Tanner, has fallen in love with this ministry, and I have seen his heart beat for the Gospel of Christ louder and stronger than I’ve ever seen it before!

A few months ago, he talked with a friend of ours who is a missionary to Brazil. Tanner wondered if there would ever be a need for an audio/visual ministry on the mission field. In a whirlwind of events, Tanner has been in contact with a local missions agency, filling out preliminary paperwork for what looks to be an amazing opportunity to use his gifts and talents on the mission field. We’re not talking a change of vocation or anything. He’s looking into using his vacation time from work to take short-term missions trips, where he’d be responsible for using visual equipment to capture the heart of the missionaries in whatever country he’d travel. The missions agency currently does not have anyone doing this type of ministry, and they are thrilled that Tanner is interested!

We are so very excited for this opportunity!!! Would you pray with us for all of the details that would have to be worked out? While Tanner has the knowledge of visual equipment and is continually learning more, he does not actually own most of the equipment that would be needed for this type of venture. And, the missions agency would not pay for his travel expenses, either. So while we’re over-the-moon-excited about the opportunity, there are a lot of wrinkles we’ll need to iron out before anything is official. Your prayers for this opportunity would be much appreciated!

For the past six months I’ve enjoyed experimenting with all kinds of homemade breads at our house. A few people who had tried my bread mentioned that there might be a market for it, to which I really thought they were being overly complimentary. I didn’t think there would be a huge interest. This past weekend showed me just how wrong that assumption was!

I’ll spare you the long version of the story. Here’s the short of it. A local gal, who had purchased a loaf of my bread, posted about it on our local swap site. Within minutes, my email inbox was flooded with requests for information about the bread. I’m still not sure that I can see my kitchen counters from beneath all of the flour and yeast that covered them this weekend. To say it was a baking frenzy around here would be putting it lightly! I was able to pass out loaves of bread to many friends, as well as to new people I had the privilege to meet. It was a whirlwind, and still is…I have a 2-page list of people who want to be added to an email list for bread purchasing. Who knew?!?!

I asked my Facebook friends for a possible name for my little endeavor….it was hilarious to hear what they all came up with! I would like to come up with a name, not because I’m planning to open a bakery or anything, but simply because I need to open a new email account for communication purposes. And, I want that email address to reflect my goals/desires behind baking all this bread. That goal is to reach others with what has been on my heart the past year or so. God has been teaching me that there is beauty to behold in everything…from a gorgeous sunset, to the birth of a child, and even to the most simple loaf of bread or bowl of soup. God has bestowed so much grace into my life, both in the big and small of life. And for some reason, I sense that grace very deeply each and every night when we sit down as a family to eat dinner. I feel His love and grace surrounding our table as we offer thanks to Him for the provision of our food. And so, the words “table” and “grace” keep coming to mind for possible naming purposes of home-baked breads. I’m thinking “The Graceful Table” or something along those lines. Maybe “Grace-filled Table,” or “Table of Grace.”

So, cast your vote or give me a new idea. What should I call this new little endeavor?!

I hope this post finds you all doing well! Thanks for reading about the current dizzy spinnings in my life. 🙂 Blessings to you!

 

 

Pie Making and Garage Saling

As of last night, I can now say that I have made a pie crust. From scratch. Call me weird, but that excites me! My sister and I enjoyed our evening together as we learned just how tedious pie making can be. I will never eat a piece of homemade pie again without thoroughly appreciating the love and attention that went into making it.

While ever-so-carefully placing the lattice-work dough onto the top of the pie, Amanda remarked, “You know what? Pillsbury isn’t so bad!” 🙂 But after tasting the three types of pie offered at the class, we both admitted that Pillsbury was no comparison! 

Several of you had asked me to share my thoughts about the class, which was offered through a local small business. I was impressed with the class, and I’d love to take another one! She offers various classes, each with a different theme. She’s very friendly and knowledgable, and the atmosphere was fun and relaxing. I will say that the price of the classes is a bit steep, but I understand the need for that, considering the amount of time and materials provided with the class.

While I am far from an expert on any topic kitchen-related, I did have a short daydream during the class last night. While rolling my pie crust on the expansive table in the classroom, I envisioned what I’ve been dreaming a lot about lately. I keep telling Tanner that I wish we could move the wall of our dining room out a ways…enough to house a gigantic farmhouse-style table where I could seat every person in my extended family, plus more. Enough room to serve a feast to those I love, all sitting at one table. Together. And maybe even enough room to one day (in the LONG future) teach a class or two? It’s a long shot, but a dream nonetheless.

To end the post today, I have a cool story to share with you. Those who know me well know that I like to garage sale. Last year around this time I went to a garage sale, hosted by an amazing woman who had turned 90 years old the week prior. She immigrated from Germany when she was a young married woman, and she had a ball telling me story after story about items in her sale.

For whatever reason, I felt compelled a year ago to send her a thank you note in the mail. I told her that I very much enjoyed our chat, and that the items I bought from her were being put to good use. That’s it…never expected to hear from her again.

Last night, during the pie class, my phone rang. Listening to the voicemail later, I was floored to hear this woman’s aged voice. She wanted to thank me for my kind note (from a year ago!), and tell me that she was holding another garage sale this weekend…and that she wanted me to come.

Titus and I ventured to her sale this afternoon, and the look on her face when she realized I had come was priceless. She shared more with me about her life. Her husband died of brain cancer, and she has been alone for almost 30 years. She thanked me for showing an interest in her beautiful hand-made items (some came all the way from Germany…some hand-made by her mother 100 years ago!) Her voice was downcast as she told me that none of her grandchildren have interest in any of her family heirlooms.  She hugged me as I left, thanking me for coming, and asking if I’d be interested in coming back this winter to look through her German crystal and china. I am not in the market for crystal or china, yet I told her that I’d love to come and take a look. I’d love to hear the stories behind her prized items, and I’d enjoy the conversation. We’ll see if she calls me again. 🙂

I don’t know why God led me to write her that note a year ago. I don’t know what led her to keep that note for a year. But I do know that I learned a valuable lesson today. I learned to follow a prompting in your heart, even if it seems odd. Trust me, it felt weird to send a thank you note in the mail to a woman I’d only met once. But I felt like I was supposed to do it for some reason. And I’m glad I did. I learned, too, that listening to others’ stories means the world to them. She was lonely and needed someone to talk to, and I was blessed along with her as I lent a listening ear.

And so I challenge you, and myself, to look for opportunities to bless someone. It doesn’t have to be anything grandiose…sometimes the greatest blessing comes in the least expected ways.

Have a great weekend, everyone! Blessings to you!

Baking Day

Hey everyone!

Happy Wednesday to all my readers. I hope you’re enjoying your day, and finding the blessings that abound. 

When my alarm screeched at 5AM today, I wished I had one of those lift beds or chairs…you know, the kind that lift you up and out with the push of a button? After alternating two new workouts, my muscles refused to bend properly this morning. My entire body hurts in places I didn’t know could hurt. I have taken five ibuprofen today. Yep, five. And I still hurt. Ugh.  I’m hoping I can actually do my workout tonight without crying! 

Wednesday mornings at my house are fun and busy. The schools have in-service on Wednesdays, so class begins an hour later than normal. That means, theoretically, that my children could receive an extra hour of glorious sleep each week. But in reality, it means they wake up earlier on Wednesday mornings. Every.single.week. Why?! I don’t understand it, but we roll with it. We roll with it with extra kids that hang out here before school while their parents head to work. We party. And we eat. This morning’s menu: a table full of whole wheat pumpkin muffins (with chocolate chips), a bowl full of steaming sausages, and frosty glasses of orange juice. And, an extra cup of coffee for the momma making all the food. I have come to love Wednesday mornings…even if it means we’re all up earlier than we need to be. 

Because it’s too blasted hot around here to do anything outside, I decided today would be baking experimentation day. The Lord has, through some very lovely people in my life, provided me with some wonderful new kitchen tools. I have been learning to make all of our bread, and I recently started grinding the wheat I use to make the bread. I ground thirty-two cups of flour today, and then stirred, mixed, and measured to my hearts’ content. Here is a small portion of what I baked. The rest is in the freezer, still in dough form. I’m experimenting to see if I can freeze the dough so that we can have fresh-baked bread anytime we want by just thawing and baking the loaves.

How cute are the little loaves of bread?! They are perfect for miniature-sized sandwiches in the girls’ lunchboxes.

I am having so much fun trying new bread recipes! I’m hoping to perfect a recipe well enough that I could possibly sell bread someday. Is that a crazy idea? Maybe. But, it’s an idea that’s been rolling around in my head for a while.

I was so thankful to the friends and family on Facebook who posted a link yesterday to a mother/daughter event coming to a local church this winter. It’s called “Secret Keeper Girls.” An odd name, I’ll admit, but an event that speaks to young girls about a topic so near and dear to my heart…I bought tickets for my daughters and I within minutes of watching the promo video. I will not get involved in posting thoughts about the whole Miley Cyrus performance this past week, but if you know anything about what went on there…you know that teaching Biblical truths about modesty and beauty are all the more important in today’s society. Young girls today are surrounded with lies about their worth, beauty, and what true love and acceptance is. This is a topic for another blog post entirely. I’m very much looking forward to this Christian based event in November when my girls and I can have a wonderfully fun time, while learning solid truths at the same time.

That’s it for today. Just a few thoughts and happenings from my computer to yours. As always, thanks for reading. It was so wonderful to get a few comments from you on my last blog post. Your comments were very helpful and much appreciated. I always love to hear from you! 🙂 See you soon!

A Coffee Story

I opened it on my 30th birthday. A gift from my grandparents, so wonderful it brought me to tears. An antique coffee grinder, in pristine condition, passed from my great-grandmother, to my grandfather, and now to me.

I had spent an evening at their house a few weeks prior to my birthday. Grandma and I poured over her tried and true recipes, while Grandpa shared stories and old photos. Like water to quench deep thirst, our time together quenched my soul’s desire to hear family history. Stories. Lots of stories.

That’s when I saw it…the antique coffee grinder atop their kitchen cabinet. How had I never noticed before? As Grandpa retold stories of grinding his mother’s coffee each morning in that very grinder, I couldn’t help but want to know more. Curious by nature, I wanted to know everything about it…how old was it? Was it handmade? What kind of coffee did Great Grandma like? Was it hard to grind the beans? I began to wish that this coffee grinder could speak, telling stories of days past.

You can imagine my great surprise when I opened my birthday gift several weeks later…Grandpa had decided that he’d like for me to have the coffee grinder. Humbled and grateful for the gift, I began to realize that this gift plays into a story that I hold near and dear.

You see, I have this God-given bent toward nostalgia. A way of finding a story or a lesson in the simplest of things. Some might call it silly, or even passé, but I have learned much from my daily cup of coffee. And this gift from Grandpa? It has been a great teacher in my classroom of life and coffee.

And so, if I could bend your ear for a few moments, I’d like to tell you my story. Coffee’s story. Our story together. Why a cup of coffee to me is actually a lot more than just a cup of coffee.

Once upon a time there was a young girl who, desiring to act like a grown-up, forced herself to drink coffee. She hated the taste but loved the idea, and over time she began to look forward to a cup ‘o joe. 

Across the land, in a small town, lived a young man who longed to spend time with the young girl. Upon hearing that she liked coffee, the young man forced himself to acquire a taste for the black liquid. 

As fate would have it, the young girl and the young boy began to frequent coffee shops. As they sampled the various types of coffee, their love for one another grew. Coffee shops across the land could tell stories of the conversations had between the boy and girl. 

Several years passed, and the boy and girl were happily married. Coffee shops were still frequented, and they enjoyed many cups of coffee in their new kitchen, decorated to resemble the coffee shop where they’d first fallen in love. During a particularly stressful and sleepless time, the young boy brought a cup of coffee to the young girl each and every morning. They often ended their evening meal with a steaming cup of decaf while they shared their hopes and dreams with one another. 

Several years into their marriage, the boy and girl enjoyed opening their home to guests, savoring the conversations and friendships that grew across the table, mugs of steaming coffee in hand. Those cups of coffee began, over time, to tell stories. Stories of family. Friendship. Love. Devotion. 

And still today, the boy and girl continue to drink in the goodness that their cups of coffee provide. They’ve learned that the act of sharing something simple, yet special, opens doorways to meaningful conversation. Countless cups of coffee have facilitated relationship-strengthening conversations, both between the boy and girl, as well as their loved ones. 

The boy and girl will continue to share their coffee, as well as their home. They hope and pray that others, both friends and family, will see God’s love shine through them as they share something so simple. That for this generation, and many to come, their loved ones will re-tell the stories and lessons learned over their cups of coffee. That they’ll never forget God’s faithfulness and goodness.

Grandpa and Grandma, if you’re reading this, I hope it gives you a slight glimpse into how very much your birthday gift means to me. I treasure it now, and will certainly treasure it forever.

And to you, my dear readers, maybe this post is silly. Maybe it’s trite. Or, maybe it’s true and meaningful in the simplest of forms. Maybe more joy can be found in the daily mundane. Maybe you’ll look at your cup of coffee differently tomorrow. Or maybe you’ll decide to join me for a cup ‘o joe? My front door is always open, the coffee cupboard is always stocked, and the coffee pot is just the push of a button away from some great conversation. Or, if coffee just isn’t your thing, there’s always other options. Although, I will most likely try to convert you to coffee drinking. After all, have you ever tried a homemade latte!?!?

Whatever your choice, my home is always open.

And you are always welcome. ALWAYS!

Christmas in July

Hello friends! I hope you’re all enjoying your week. This week, which started out just as normal as any other week, quickly turned quite exciting for this stay-at-home-mom of three. Usually things are pretty run-of-the-mill around here…prepare meals, do endless laundry, change diapers, play Candy Land, bathe muddy children, tuck children into bed, and then we start it all over again the next day. Don’t get me wrong…I adore my job and wouldn’t trade it for the world. But what took place on Tuesday afternoon was more excitement than this mommy has seen in a long time.

Opening my front door to retrieve the mail, I saw a package on the bench. I had recently ordered a book from Amazon.com, so I assumed that’s what the box contained. I was absolutely taken aback when the open box revealed a collection of attachments for the Bosch Mixer that I’d been wanting for a long time.

A little background…many months ago, I decided to start saving money for a Bosch Mixer. I’ve always wanted to bake all of our family’s bread from scratch, and this machine is amazing for mixing bread dough. Knowing that we didn’t have an extra $500 to $600 sitting around, I began looking for creative ways to save for it. For months I stowed away birthday money, loose change, and cash from items I had sold on our local Swap Site. The week that I counted to reveal I was only $50 away from my goal is the week that our garage door broke, forcing me to make a decision…do I spend that saved money on the new garage door, or do we charge the new door on a credit card? Although it hurt a bit, I knew the right decision was to use that money for what was needed. And so on Saturday I toted my money jar to the bank, deposited each and every dollar and coin, and then wrote out the check for our new garage door being installed that day. Goodbye Bosch Mixer. 😦

And so out came the money jar again…on Monday I sold a wooden end table (that I’d found curbside) on the local Swap Site for $10. Thus began my second saving adventure for the mixer. This kinda felt like it was going to take forever.

Back to Tuesday afternoon. Why on earth was there a box with my name on it containing various attachments to this mixer?! As I unfolded the paper packing slip, my hands trembled and tears filled my eyes as I realized what was happening. A hand-written note on the slip explained that the attachments were included in the box, and that the mixer and an incredible food processor attachment would be arriving at a later date. And all of this via an anonymous giver. The word “Gift” was written across the top of the packing slip.

I couldn’t believe it! Nothing like this has ever happened to me. I was overwhelmed. I’m still overwhelmed!

While I don’t know if the giver of this gift will read this blog post or not, I hope that he or she knows how deeply my appreciation and thankfulness runs for their act of generosity.

As silly or weird as it sounds, I think I love others through food.
You’re hurt? I’ll bring you some food.
You had a baby? I’ll bring a hot meal.
You had a rough day? How about some silky chocolate and a steaming cup of coffee.
Congratulations on an accomplishment? We need some goodies to celebrate.

I can’t help it…it’s how I’m wired. I truly do love my family and friends through food. I love preparing fresh meals for my family each day, and it’s been a dream of mine for a while to add fresh baked bread to our daily menu. This very generous gift will make that a possibility, and I am giddy with excitement.

So, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you to whomever provided such a wonderful gift. I’m beyond humbled and grateful for such a wonderful surprise. Our family will use it often, and each time we do, we will be reminded of your kindness.

Beyond that, you’ve inspired me to look for needs elsewhere, and to help who I can when I can. I want to someday surprise someone in the wonderful way that you surprised me.

While “thank you” doesn’t seem like enough, I hope that the feelings in my heart are evidenced in that “thank you.” What a blessing. Thank you!

And now, I’m off to research how to make bread in my new mixer. Watch out friends and family…I’ll probably be loving you a lot through bread in the near future! 🙂

Love to you all!

Goat Cheese and Arugula Pizza

Last Friday evening I posted a photo on Facebook of the dinner I was enjoying with my family. Piping hot pizza served straight off the pizza stone on our back deck was a perfect end to the week.

Several of my Facebook friends asked for the recipe…I’ll share the pizza recipe with you today.

Slowly over time, I feel like my taste preferences have changed. Maybe I’ve finally grown up?! I am having a lot of fun experimenting with foods newer to my repertoire. Goat cheese, pesto sauce, olives of all different kinds, feta cheese, ect. I know these things are not new in and of themselves, but they’re newer to my menu rotation, and I’m kinda wondering where they’ve been all my life?!

While my family devoured homemade sausage/pepperoni pizza, I tried to restrain myself from eating this entire Goat Cheese and Arugula pizza. It was so good! Loosely based on a recipe I found online, this one was tweaked to my own tastes, and I wouldn’t change a thing. I loved it.

Start with a good homemade crust. Nothing beats homemade. I promise it’s worth the extra effort. And really, it’s almost no effort at all if you have a bread machine. Here is my mom’s homemade pizza crust recipe, made in the bread machine. It’s the only recipe I use, and I think you’ll love it too.

Pizza Crust
1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons water
2 Tablespoons olive oil
3 cups All Purpose flour (King Arthur flour works THE BEST. Serious.)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons yeast

Place all ingredients into bread machine in the order listed above. Choose dough cycle on machine. When ready, divide dough in half, flatten each half onto a pizza stone, poke holes with a fork to alleviate bubbles while baking, and bake at 425 degrees for 7-12 minutes, until very slightly browned. Top with your favorite toppings, and bake in the oven until toppings are hot and bubbly.

Goat Cheese & Arugula Pizza
heaping 1/3 cup of pesto sauce (I used store-bought, but hope to try homemade soon)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
4 ounces plain goat cheese
3 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 large handful Arugula
olive oil
lemon juice
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Top one of the aforementioned pizza crusts with the pesto sauce. Sprinkle minced garlic on top. Crumble the goat cheese on top of the pesto and garlic, and top with the sliced tomatoes. Sprinkle generously with Parmesan cheese, and bake in 425 degree oven until toppings are heated well, 10-15 minutes.

While the pizza bakes, combine the arugula with a good splash of both olive oil and lemon juice. Add generous pinches of salt and pepper.

Once the pizza is hot and bubbly, cool slightly on the counter (5 minutes), and top with seasoned arugula. Slice, serve, and enjoy!

If you’re anything like me, your family will prefer the “normal” pizza, which leaves you with an entire goat cheese and arugula pizza to yourself. Do you devour the pizza in one sitting, thinking there’s no way it will taste good warmed up the next day? No! Here comes my next favorite pizza trick. 🙂

Cast iron skillets are the knights in shining armor of my kitchen. Used for everything, I love them. I seriously do love them. When used to reheat leftover pizza, they are a game-changer. We now make extra pizza on pizza nights so that we purposefully have leftovers to re-heat in the cast iron. We think it’s almost better prepared this way.

So, hypothetically speaking, you make the goat cheese and arugula pizza on Friday night. You enjoy a couple slices that night, and then on Monday morning you think two pieces might be good for breakfast. Not that I would ever eat pizza for breakfast…just helping you out in case that sounds good to you. Okay, so maybe I would…don’t judge! 😉 Just pull those two slices out of the refrigerator, warm slightly in the microwave (45-60 seconds), and then place in a cast iron skillet that’s been pre-warmed over medium-low heat. Let the slices sit in the warm skillet for a while…10-15 minutes. The crust slowly crisps as the toppings warm. So yummy!

 

I had so much fun creating this recipe. It’s kinda the first recipe I actually came up with on my own, and I’m so glad to share it with you. Hopefully there’ll be more original recipes coming your way. Do me a favor? If you make this, let me know what you think. I really hope you like it as much as I did.

Enjoy your Monday, everyone!!!

Shared Recipes

Amidst the news of yesterday’s bombing in Boston, the reason for my post today is so trivial. So trite.

Yet, at the same time I find it familiar. Comforting. The simple act of creating nourishment for my family and sharing that with others brings joy amidst pain. Offering nourishment to those in need, I fear, is an aging tradition. Something our grandmothers did weekly, yet something I fear my children’s generation will not see.

You see, I desperately want to bake countless loaves of bread today and deliver it to those in Boston. Cut thick slices of English Muffin bread, slather it with butter and jam, pour them a cup of coffee or tea, and listen…listen to their stories of what happened yesterday. Just listen. And eat. And listen some more.

Homemade food, shared with others, brings a sense of unity and togetherness. It speaks a love language all of its own, and I am learning to speak the same language. Several of you have asked for the recipes for the English Muffin Bread and Granola Bars I blogged about yesterday. I am by no means a recipe developer, so these recipes are not original to myself. However, I’ve tweaked them a bit for our tastes, and I’ll share with you those recipes.

I hope to do more posts like this in the future. Blog posts about food, family, and friends, and the ties that bind each together. My hope is that you’ll enjoy experimenting with these recipes, and certainly please share them with those you love. You might be surprised just how much joy one recipe can bring!

ENGLISH MUFFIN BREAD
5 1/2 cups warm water
3 packages RAPID RISE yeast
2 Tablespoons sea salt
3 Tablespoons sugar
6 cups bread flour
5 cups all-purpose flour

Mix the water and yeast together in a large bowl until it becomes a bit foamy. I used my 6-quart mixer and this recipe fills it to the top. Use a big bowl! Add the remaining ingredients and mix until just moist. The dough will be sticky and messy…that’s okay. 🙂

Divide dough into four well-greased loaf pans, cover and let rise until the dough reaches the top of the pan. I usually sprinkle the tops of the loaves with cornmeal, too.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for approximately 35 minutes, then brush the tops with melted butter, and bake an additional 5-10 minutes until golden brown. Don’t forget this step…the added butter is what makes this bread so good!

Cool completely and slice. This bread is meant to be toasted.

DARK CHOCOLATE CHERRY GRANOLA BARS

2 eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup Sucanat or brown sugar
2 Tablespoons coconut oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats, toasted (spread on pan and bake 15 min @ 350)
2/3 cup dried cherries, chopped
1/2 cup cashews, chopped
dark chocolate, chopped…not sure how much I used? Maybe 3 ounces?
4 Tablespoons flour

Melt the butter and coconut oil. Add in the eggs and blend. Blend in the sugar, honey, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla. Mix in the flour to thicken it a bit. Mix in the oats, cherries, cashews, and chocolate.

Spread into a well greased 9×13 pan, and bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Edges should look slightly brown when done.

Immediately cut into squares using a plastic knife…metal will make it too sticky and it will fall apart. Cool completely, and store in an airtight container.

Friday Favorite-EggNog Latte

It’s the most wonderful time of the year for coffee drinkers. Yes, these beauties are available, and can be yours for a small fortune!I love to enjoy an eggnog latte or peppermint latte every now and then, but I get so fed up with how expensive they are! So, today’s Friday Favorite: HOMEMADE eggnog lattes!!

God has blessed me with a WONDERFUL new neighbor and friend. We seem to be kindred spirits in many ways. When they moved in behind us this summer, we both knew we had a friend in one another when we looked each other literally in the eye…at 6’1 and 6’2, we immediately had something rare in common! 🙂 I truly am thankful for her friendship!

She invited me over for coffee one morning, and showed me her ingenious way of making an eggnog latte knock-off. I was hooked! It was a perfect morning of chit-chatting over a perfect cup of coffee!

Here’s her method:

Place eggnog in a glass jar (mason jar, old salsa jar, ect.). I do enough eggnog to make my cup of coffee 1/3 eggnog and 2/3 coffee. Place the jar (with the lid OFF) in the microwave for 30-40 seconds until hot. Screw the lid on TIGHTLY and shake, shake, shake, shake! The eggnog gets nice and frothy. My friend told me this was the fanciest milk steamer I’d ever see! 🙂

Add the frothy eggnog to your coffee, stir, and enjoy!

HyVee now sells Mocha-flavored eggnog, too. That sounds really disgusting to drink cold, but trust me-it’s AMAZING in coffee!!

Happy coffee drinking, fellow coffee drinkers!! Let me know if you try my friend’s recipe, and what you think. I think you’ll love it!