Heart Shaped Pierogies for Valentines Day

Heart Shaped Pierogies For Valentines Day

Pronounced ‘puh-row-gee', Pierogies are a polish dish, consisting most commonly of a mashed potato mixture inside of a flour based dough.

You could not drag me kicking and screaming into a restaurant on Valentines Day.  WAY too crowded, and usually overpriced, for me.  I would rather stay home and cook.  My favorite menu is prime rib, or steaks, and heart shaped pierogies.

I use a simple heart cookie cutter to cut out the dough, place a spoon of mashed potatoes (Into which I have already mixed some sour cream, cheese, garlic, and sauteed onions ) and top with another heart of dough.  Then I use a fork to crimp the edges.

I usually boil these lightly, then toss in melted butter and more sauteed onions, and serve with sour cream.

For the Dough:

2 cups of flour

2 eggs (room temperature, and lightly beaten with a fork)

1/2 t salt

1/2 cup of room temperature water

Mix until the dough is well mixed and firm.  Let sit in a covered bowl for a few minutes.  (I usually let it sit while I mix up the potatoes)

For the Filling:

half an onion, sliced thin, sauteed in butter

mashed potatoes - you can even use instant

a little sour cream, to thin the potatoes

mix all together. 

Cook in boiling water until they float. Optional, after boiling, pan fry in butter and seasoning [garlic pepper is our favorite]

 For "regular" [not heart shaped] pierogies, cut 3 inch circles, fold in half after adding the filling.

Filling suggestions:

Sauerkraut

Bacon

Sausage

Mushrooms

jalapenos

spinach

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Pavlova - inspired by The Husbands Secret by Liane Moriarity

I recently read The Husbands Secret, by Liane Moriarty.  There are so many reasons why I think this would be the best book club book ever, but among the top was that the pavlova mentioned would make a great book club snack.  (I really want to form a book club now...)

I looked up the recipe and couldn't believe how simple this is.  It is simply a meringue, topped with whipped cream and fruit.  You bake it on parchment paper on top of a baking sheet, no special pan needed, and clean up is a breeze.  

For the meringue:

4 egg whites

1 pinch of salt

1 cup of sugar

1 T cornstarch

1 t lemon juice

Beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form.  Add the sugar gradually, while it continues to mix.  lightly fold in the cornstach and lemon juice.  

Most recipes tell you to draw a circle on the parchment paper - trace a plate, or something to that sort.  I just plop it down in a circle without drawing anything.  You want to form a loose bowl shape, with a slight indentation in the center.

Bake at 300 degrees for one hour.  After one hour, turn off the oven, but let the meringue in there for another 30 minutes or so.  It should be hard on the outside, and slightly moist on the inside.  (Note - the first one I made I overcooked and it was extra crisp, my husband really liked one - so use your own judgement)  The "perfect" pavlova should be completely pale, not browned at all - but all of mine have ended up lightly browned.  I could turn the oven temperature down..  but I haven't.  

For Whipped Cream, you can buy it premade, or mix half a cup of confectioners sugar with 1 1/4 cups of heavy whipping cream and a  dash of vanilla.  Whip until thick, place on top of the meringue, then top with fruit.

You can easily make these in individual serving sizes too.

Topping Ideas:

I use a frozen Three Berry Mix, because I had it on hand

When raspberries and strawberries are on this year, I'll make this with whichever fruit is in season at the moment.  More ideas:

• Strawberries and bananas arranged in an overlapping circular pattern
• Add some melted chocolate to the whipped cream
• Cook apples or pears until soft, in some butter for the fruit topping
• lemon curd, raspberries and whipped cream

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17465450-the-husband-s-secret

What Am I Reading - Jan 20 2014

To see what I have completed in 2014, for the empty shelf challenge, go here:

http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2014/01/empty-shelf-challenge.html

Currently Reading:

For Fun:

This is what I read before bed each night - and during our morning reading time (homeschoolers) when I am caught up on all of my bible studies and family book club reading.  This is NOT my normal "Fun" Selection.  (My last "Fun" Selection was The Husbands Secret) 

this actually started out as something I was reading for our Sunday school class - I thought our class was going to be using this book in a 6 week study, but we only did one week of it, then switched teachers and went to a study in Philippians.  Normally I'd have this under a bible study heading, but now I feel the need to finish it before I start a "for fun" fiction read, so it's here.  (I started the Made To Crave Study, or I'd be reading this in my lunch time devotional time)  :-)  It is REALLY, REALLY good, and I wish our Sunday School class had done the full 6 week study.

For Education:

I typically listen to non-fiction audio books when I walk in the afternoons.  With fiction my mind wanders, but with non fiction I can usually pay attention well.  This time I'm trying fiction - 

I'm having a little trouble keeping up with the audio, but when I get home from my walk I usually google the characters and story line, so I'm probably absorbing more this way  - it's not a bad way to learn.  I wish I had taught my children from this book when they were young, it is well done.

For Bible Study: (With The Proverbs 31 Ministry )

(the picture says dvd - but I'm reading this one.  I'm also doing the companion devotion through YouVersion.)  This is my lunch time devotion.

Our Family Book Club Read For January:

(We have older teenagers, and we homeschool.  Each month we choose one christian living book to read as a family - this is the book our 16 year old son chose for this month)

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These books I will take 52 weeks to read, in 2014:

  

Muffin Pan Fritatta's from the Biggest Loser

I saw these on the Biggest Loser this week, and cannot wait to try them!  I don't know why I never thought to make fritattas in a muffin pan before?  Dolvett made two different kinds on the show.  I'm posting both recipes here for my reference, and will update when I try them..  I'll probably make a less healthy version for my boys too.

Update - mine are not nearly as large as in the photo here, but they are good!

Mexican Turkey Fritatta

Nutritional Information:

Calories 100 Fat 3.5g

Protein 15g Cholesterol 30mg

Carbohydrates 2g Sodium 140mg

Fiber 0g Saturated Fat 1.5g

Sugars 1g

Ingredients

1 (20-ounce) package JENNIE-O® Extra Lean Ground Turkey Breast

¼ teaspoon cumin

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 green pepper, chopped

2 cups sliced small mushrooms

1 tablespoon chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, finely chopped

2 cups egg substitute or 8 eggs

¼ cup milk

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 cup shredded low-fat Mexican blend cheese

⅓ cup green onions

Mexican Turkey Frittata (Continued) 3 of 3

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Mist 12 muffin cups with cooking spray. Cook ground turkey as specified on the package. Always

cook to well-done, 165°F. as measured by a meat thermometer. Sprinkle with cumin; stir to mix.

In large skillet over medium-high heat, add oil, green pepper, mushrooms and chipotle peppers. Cook 5 minutes, stirring

occasionally, until mushrooms are cooked.

In large bowl, whisk eggs, milk and cilantro until well mixed. Stir in turkey, cheese, mushroom mixture and green onions.

Spoon mixture into muffin cups, filling approximately ¾ full. Bake 20 minutes or until set.

Veggie Fritatta with Turkey Bacon

Nutritional Information

Calories 70 Fat 3g

Protein 8g Cholesterol 15mg

Carbohydrates 3g Sodium 190mg

Fiber 1g Saturated Fat 1g

Sugars 2g

Ingredients

1 (8-ounce) package JENNIE-O® Uncured Turkey Bacon

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

½ cup finely chopped red pepper

½ cup finely chopped green pepper

1 cup thinly sliced mushrooms

1 cup finely chopped asparagus

2 cups egg substitute or 8 eggs

¼ cup milk

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 cup shredded low-fat Swiss cheese

⅓ cup thinly sliced green onions

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Mist 12 muffin cups with cooking spray. Cook turkey bacon as specified on the package. Cut into

½-inch pieces and set aside.

In large skillet over medium-high heat, add oil, red and green pepper, mushrooms and asparagus. Cook 5 minutes,

stirring occasionally, until vegetables are cooked.

In large bowl, whisk eggs, milk and parsley until well mixed. Stir in bacon, cheese, mushroom mixture and green onions.

Spoon mixture into muffin cups, filling approximately ¾ full. Bake 20 minutes or until set.

WiiFit Cycling Tips & Cheats

 My fitbit, which works really well any other time, does not record steps when I do the wiifit island cycling.  

Wii Records - See everyone's best scores in different wiifit activities:

http://www.wii-records.com/en-us/records.php?game_id=955

 A really blurry photo of my new bike

The last time I played I got a message congratulating me for unlocking the entire map.

So when I was done, I started a new game, just a basic one, and sure enough, this was the message at the start of the game.

"Secret Bike- The GPS on the bike has a built in grid-map of the island. It displays a map of the island, which is shown as a grid of squares. While all squares are darkened at the start, but if you visit a darkened square, it will be fully brightened. once you have visited a square, it is permanently lit. if you manage to bike to all the accessible squares, then the whole map will be lit up, and you will unlock a new bike. while it is not known whether the new bike handles better, it has a shinier look."

(IThere is nothing telling you how close you are, you have to just keep riding around until you unlock every part, THEN it will tell you.  I've read that some of the sections can be hard to locate)

Press A, and the dog will run ahead and get the flag for you.  (You can't be too far away from the flag though) To have cats appear, not just dogs, add a cat to your mii profiles on your wii menu.  This can shave some distance off and help you get closer to 4 stars.

lift up the wii remote and pop a wheelie to go over curbs.

Press 2 to brake.

Maps of the islands, and if you want, maps with the flags numbered to show you which way to go to get the best score.  (I've been trying different routes on my own for almost 3 years now, and still can't get over 3 stars!)
http://www.gameyum.com/wii-fit/111978-the-plus-island-cycling-map-guide-to-the-different-courses/
*I tried one of these and STILL only got 3 stars! But I did get my shortest distance yet..  so I'm getting closer.

There are "distance reduction techniques" to help get to 4 stars.  They may be too much for my feeble mind to process while actually in the game, this will take some time - http://fitgameforum.com/wiki/index.php/Island_Cycling

For instance, the above site has this entire section on "death plummets".   I'm so confused - I'll need to try them WHILE playing, and with one of my childen reading me the instructions.  :-)

"I call this type of cheat a "Death Plummet Cheat". "Death" for obvious reasons, "Cheat" because everyone knows these are cheating, and "Plummet" for reasons that should be obvious to anyone who saw Gonzo the Great in the parachuting scene behind the credits of The Muppet Movie.

There is a way to predict where they can be found, which is derived from how they appear to me to work. This way of predicting their location also indicates why some of them are easy to execute, and some are not.

Basically, it appears that you can find them on any cliff where there is something non-cyclable far below, nearer to the bottom than the top, although the definition of "nearer" is not 100% clear. Call this thing the "target". If from the top you can plummet so that you free-fall not to the cyclable zone below, but to the target, and you then fall from there to the cyclable zone, you respawn below rather than above."

Where to find them

1. On the Mountain behind the castle above the highest green going counter clockwise jump off to hit the camel rock, it drops to the dry lake bed aiming at the flag,
2. Just before the tunnel going down stay left over the side and stay near the cliff, drops to the road outside the Ruins,
3. across from duck lake at the start of green jump off road toward large rock, it drops to the exit to the plateau from the tunnel with the metal ramp.
4. Across from the Dry Lake Bed tunnel jump off to the right of the fence - drops down to the "s" shaped ledge with ball.
5. In the field across from the ruins that if you go straight over the cliff after hitting the balloon, you reincarnate on the road (same level).

You can jump off the side of the Red Iron bridge - this youtube video shows you how:
http://youtu.be/-MHGB7ak9aQ  (Essentially, just ride through the hole in the side  - be careful not to land in the water.
* the first time I tried this, I couldn't do it, I just bounced off.  The trick is to pop a wheelie.  The second time, I went through too early and landed in the water.  The 3rd time I tried it I landed it.  :-)  


If you bike into the town last, go to the fountain, then up the ramp and there will be a blue ramp that will launch you right to the finish line.

There is a hidden beach you can cycle on - but apparently it's very hard to get to?
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43Ji5-sHVf4
*I've tried a couple of times, I always just land in the water.

In free ride, you do not die - this is a great time to try jumping off of everything.  You can ride on the tops of the buildings - but it's tricky.  Brake as soon as you land on top of the building. There are more tips for riding on top of the buildings here: http://www.fitgameforum.com/wii-fit-plus-island-cycling-easter-egg-spoiler-alert-t520-10.html

if you manage to pop all twenty balloons in free course within 30 minutes, then your time will be put on a secret scoreboard for the fastest time to pop them.

*************************************************************************************
This worked for me!  Even with a few mistakes, and backtracking once, I got 4 stars and my shortest distance yet.

NOT written by me - found in a forum.  How to go through the Expert course and get 4 stars:

From where you start:

#1: Go forward and get the one on the road right in front of you.

#2: Go toward the lighthouse, and it's behind the lighthouse.

#3: Go in among the windmills, one right in the middle of the them.

#4: Take road on the left--the road looks like pavement. There's a flag right under a very small tunnel.

#5: Keep on cycling on that road until you come around to the next flag.

#6: From where you got #5, take a left turn into the mountain peaks--you can go in between the 2 large peaks, keep on cycling around until you get to a ramp that leads upward into what looks like a very old temple. The flag is right in front of you when you go up the ramp. Take the same road back down to where you found flag #5.

#7: When you leave the area, take a left and head down through the man-made cave/tunnel. When you're through, you'll see the resort to your left, and the huge mountain is to your right. Keep on going down until you hit the beach. You can see a flag in front of you when you hit the beach.

#8: Keep on going along the beach, there's another one under a natural cave/tunnel (Camel Rock) that you'll hit.

#9: Go on past the previous flag and around the next plateau-ish rock on the beach is third and final flag on the beach.

#10: Go back along the path you just took and all of the way off the beach. As you are riding on the beach, for a long time, you should see a path leading up the mountain--it's a dirt/tan path. Go up this path, and you'll see one right there in front of you.

#11: From the previous flag, take a immediate right turn into a long cave/tunnel--on your map, you'll see the middle of the huge mountain (MaKa Wuhu) to your left, and it's shaped like a star/pentagon (If I remember correctly). Go into a circular sandy area and the flag in the middle.

#12: Take the same path out of the sandy area and you'll come out to flag #10's spot. From there, take a right, and follow the path. If I remember correctly, there's a flag right before you get onto the bridges.

#13: Go all the way through the bridges, and once you get off, take an immediate right. You should see the stone henge like construction before you take your right turn. There should be a flag on the green terrace. You'll see the road that you took after getting the flag among the windmills to the left. You'll end up there if you fall off the terrace, so don't do that.

#14: Now, there's a red ramp really close to a tunnel if you look to the right. I don't use the ramp to jump, instead I just ride with some decent speed and head right up the slope into the cave. The cave is a man-made cave, with a spiral steel ramp down it's middle. There's a flag at the bottom of the spiral steel ramp.
   Turn left, there is nothing to your right.

#15: From this last flag, keep on going forward and you'll end up in a small clearing really at the same elevation as about where you started. You'll see a flag in front of you. To your right but way above your head should be the bridges, and the flag you actually see is behind the waterfall, or so.

#16: Keep on the path behind the waterfall and continue onward. You'll cross a small stone bridge inside this cave. Keep on going until you see the flag in the middle of this cave.

#17: From this previous flag, you'll see an obvious exit to this cave to the left and a not so obvious exit to the right. Just take the one on the left, as the one the right doesn't lead anywhere. You'll come out, and just keep on cycling until you get to the next flag on the edge of Duckling Lake (the lake that is the source for the waterfall).

#18: Keep on circling around Duckling Lake until you see a castle with purple roofs in front of you. You can either take a path that crosses through the courtyard of the castle or you can take a little bridge to the right of the castle to get to the other side of it. The road that runs behind the castle is a large loop. I don't know which side is closer to the castle--as to minimize distance (I haven't clocked it yet using the Free Ride Course). But there's a flag way on the other side of Maka Wuhu's (the large mountain) peak. You'll see it if you just keep on cycling around. If you go up on the left side behind the castle and come around to the right side as you come back down, there's no way you'll miss it.

I think that if you turn around once you get the flag and come back the way you came, it is shorter distance, but I'm not positive.  I've also read that on the way to the castle you can stay to the left of the rock, following the edge of the lake, instead of on the path, and save a good bit of mileage..  but you have to be VERY careful not to fall into the lake.

#19: Once you're at the castle again, just cycling back along old routes until you're back down the mountain and through it so that you come out through the path under the waterfall. Come out and pass under the massive boulder/gate thing and turn left over that little stone bridge. Now make your way along that road to the large red bridge. There's a flag right on the big red bridge.

#20: Keep on going past the bridge and come into the city, there's a flag right in front of your eyes in the middle of the city.

Back to Start: From the flag in the middle of the city, take an immediate right up a ramp, then you'll be at the upper level of the city--where you'll see a blue ramp that will shoot you right into the circle where you started the whole bicycle ride.

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https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/p/health-fitness.html

Denim Chenille Quilt Made From Old Jeans

I made this about 9 years ago, but accidentally deleted the post from my blog when I was cleaning up and reorganizing.  I found the photos of the process recently, and decided to repost them.  

This is a heavy quilt, great for picnics, and can easily be made in a week-end.

 With three boys, we had plenty of outgrown/worn out jeans.  Even the ones with the knees ripped out and stained worked for this - the backs of the jeans were still good material.

See the t-shirt off to the right in the photo above?  It was our youngest FAVORITE t-shirt when he was 5.  You know the one, the one that you can barely get through the wash before he has it back on...  it had a denim airplane on it that I thought would make a great center design for this quilt.

You can choose the size for your squares - just make sure they are all the same. 

I think these were 6x6

 

The t-shirt design cut out for the center

Next I laid the squares out to find a design that I liked.

The back of the quilt, and what makes the "chenille" for this, is flannel.  You need one flannel square for each denim one.  To start sewing, you layer FOUR pieces.

Layer 1.  one denim piece upside down

Layer 2.  one flannel piece right side up

Layer 3 - A second denim piece right side down

Layer 4 - A second flannel piece right side up

So you are sewing one side, through four pieces of fabric at one time - just one seam.

At least half an inch seem allowance.

If you look at the photo above, you can see the pieces sewn together - first you will have just two squares together, like the bottom row.    

It goes together quickly from here. 

Once I had all the squares sewn into blocks of two, I used the strip quilting method to sew them into 4 rows, as shown above. Then it was simply sewing the 4 rows together.

Once it is all sewn together, you need to snip through the denim & flannel that are standing up, about 1/4 to 1/2 an inch all the way around every seam. 

 I did not measure.  This is not an exact science, just start snipping, being careful not to cut through your seams.

 A closer look at my cuts.

After this is done, through the blanket in the washing machine, wash, and dry.  It will come out similar to this:

It's the washing that gives you that "chenille" look.

A view of the back:

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What To Do Week-ends

Frugal Friday

Brown Paper Lunch Bag Valentines

I made these in 2014, for our children and my husband.  I think they all still have them - I keep finding them in drawers when I clean.  :-) They are really simple to make, with some scrapbooking supplies and brown paper lunch bags.

This site has step by step instructions, with photos, for how to make them..  but it's not difficult.  Lay brown paper lunch bags flat, sideways.  Fold in half.  Punch holes, then run ribbon through all the bags to hold them together.  Decorate. Stick small candy bars in the pockets.

http://undomesticdiva.typepad.com/undomestic_diva/2011/06/brown-paper-lunch-bag-books-end-of-the-year-teacher-gift-idea.html

A couple of the inside pages:

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