How to make Choco Crispies.....

Hey there everyone,

Today will be a quick little post about a new favorite dessert that I have discovered.  I saw this on Tricia Yearwood's cooking show on the food network.   It seemed easy and the combination of salty and sweet is to die for!  We even gave this to Ashton's Papaw for his birthday.  Let's get started. 

First, lay out saltine crackers on a cookie sheet. 

Next, melt butter and brown sugar on medium low.  I think I used about half a stick of butter to 1/3 cup of brown sugar. You are creating a kind of caramel, so you may need to play with it a bit to get the consistency right.  You don't want it too thick or too runny nor do you want it too sugary or too buttery.   

Once the caramel is ready, spread this alllllll over the saltines..... yummmmm!  Next take a bag of chocolate chips or bakers chocolate and melt them in the microwave.  I start with 1 minute then stir and then microwave for 30 seconds between stirs.  Do this until its nice and melted.  By now the caramel has probably set up nicely on the crackers.  Spread the chocolate on top of this.  Oh yea, now we're talkin'!

Now set this in your freezer (if you have impatient little ones )  or in the fridge for 30 minutes or so.  You want this to set up nice and firm.  Now you can break this up kind of like a brittle or candy bark. 

I hope you try this .... it's crazy good, easy to make and not expensive at all to make! 

Until next time friends!

YouTube Maybe?

Thinking about starting a Homemaker Kim You Tube Channel:

What do you think?  Could you stand watching goofy videos with this mug?

Making a one gallon batch of beer..... enough said.

Hey All, 

Thanks for hanging in there while I took a bit of a break... I had about a week where I was just in a funk trying to find my new normal with not having my DiDi kitty around.... These pictures are from a few weeks back, but it was fun.... so I thought I'd share.....

Beer.  Making Beer.  Now, I have to admit that I'm not a huge beer fan.... but I love the process of making it.... so what did I do when I had some extra time on my hands?  Of course, make beer. 

Here goes.....

Here's a picture of everything I needed to brew.  It includes 1 1/2 - 2 gallons of water, 1 lb of Dry Malt Extract, about 5 oz of steeping grains, hops and 1/4 tsp Irish moss.  I'm waiting for the water to come to a temp at this point.... about 165 degrees Fahrenheit.  Once I was able to get to that temp, I moved the pot to the sink and placed the bag on the plate in the pot and put on the lid.  Those are the steeping grains.  I steeped them for 30 minutes.  Once that was done I took out the bag ( let it drip, but DO NOT squeeze!)  Now it's boil time.  Wait, Wait WAIT for the water to come to a nice rolling boil....  

I think I should mention that brewer's are a lot like gardeners.... ask 10 the same question and you will get 10 different answers.... so, in other words, if you're a brewer and don't like my style... don't hate! 

Once I had a boil going, I added in my first hop (for bittering) and half of my dry malt extract.  It's best to do this off the heat so it doesn't scorch.  Set a timer for 60 minutes... yep, I let this bad boy boil for 60 minutes... At 30 minutes left of my boil I added in the rest of the dry malt extract. 

While I was waiting for the boil to finish, I started sanitizing my fermenter, airlock and anything that will come in contact with the wort once it is finished boiling.  Bacteria/yuckiness is the devil after you have boiled.... and is prime time for infection.  I used Star San to sanitize.  It's a no rinse sanitizer and is easy to use. 

At 10 minutes before the end of the boil I added the Irish moss.  It helps the beer clarify.  I also added a touch more hops at the end of the boil for aroma.  Now it's time to get that thing cooled down as quickly as possible. I guess that I should mention that now that "thing" has a proper name of "wort" now that it has been boiled.  It doesn't become beer until after it is fermented.  I wanted to get it down to around 70 degrees.  I used a cold water bath.  For bigger batches someone could use an ice bath or a wort chiller. 

Once you have it cooled down, it's time to aerate.  Using my sanitized paddle I stirred and swooshed that thing until it had a nice foamy froth going.  I poured my yeast on top and capped it using an airlock. CO2 comes out, but no bad buggers getting in.  Done!  Uh-oh!  I forgot to mention that I took a hydrometer reading to see where it is sitting.  It was good at 1.060.... its going to be a stronger beer...

Now I wait about 7 days for it to finish fermenting.... so fun to watch! 

Until Next Time Friends!

DiDi... the end of a 17+ year friendship

Hi All,

Well, the day has come...... unexpectedly, but it has come.  The day that I had to say goodbye to my dear girl DiDi.  We had found a new routine that was working well both for her and us.  She seemed to be doing well, even went out to the garden with me. 

We came home the other evening and immediately knew that something was wrong.  We call her name when we get home.... "Hi DiDi!"  and we are usually met with an energized meow that means nothing less than get me on the couch! 

But, this time we were met with silence.  I walked over to her and she was just lying there, head up, but very quiet and seemed very out of it.  We continued to call her name, but she never made a sound.  I picked her up and placed her in front of her bowl, but she just laid down, not able to hold herself up.  I noticed that she had dried vomit on the side of her face.

We decided to watch out for her.... we figured that she had had a fainting spell which tires her out, she would be fine.  But she was not.  She became worse as the night went on, so much that we were certain that she wouldn't make it till morning. 

I slept with her on the couch that night, checking her breathing periodically ....

By morning, we knew that we had to help her put an end to her suffering.  She couldn't move her body at all.  I took her in the first available appointment our vet had. 

It's hard to let her go because she has been with us for so long.  We've had her even before we got married, so practically for our entire relationship she has been with us. She has lived in 3 houses with us, she was there when we married, there when our boy was born and has defeated many odds to end up living a long life.

I miss that girl.... and it's been a big adjustment not having her with us.  I spent so much time taking care of her that now, I really don't know what to do with myself.  No more carrying her to her bowl, litter box and couch.  No more cleaning up her play pen area in the morning and evening... no more baths, no more laundry..... I would do it all again though. 

Until Next Time Friends....

First Day Back In The Garden!

Hey All! 

Well, it's that time of year again.... crossing my fingers to grow some good food!  Not only is it healthier for my family, but also helps save some buckeroos! 

So here's some pics of my first days work.....

After doing some weeding and turning the soil, I planted my peas.  I also planted some collard greens.  Both of these crops like cooler weather, but unlike last year, the soil temp is still too cool for them.... they haven't sprouted yet!  Hopefully they will soon.  I chose to plant snap peas this year.  No shelling and more food for the same amount of work.  Win. Win.

I brought a helper out with me.....

My girl DiDi..... she loves being outside.... she is so cute when she sniffs at the air and just enjoys being outside....

Totally unrelated, but here's some just for fun pictures of when my little man and I went to the mall recently.  He keeps saying that these guys look like a creature from one of his video games.....

I however, didn't think they were creepy at all! 

Until Next Time friends!

Pancake Poppers

Hey Everyone! 

Sorry for the junky picture, but I quickly took this pic this morning.  I try to make something a little special on Sunday mornings.  I have more time to cook since we don't go to work until 11:30, so I like to make waffles, pancakes or this week.... pancake poppers!  I used up the last of the 9 cent waffle and pancake mix that I bought at Kohl's one evening to make these.  I needed to do some other chores while these baked, so it was so easy to just pop them in the oven! 

I'm looking forward to doing another batch from my normal homemade pancake recipe.  I baked these in a mini muffin tin at 350 F degrees for about 20 minutes.....

Yummy and great dipped in maple syrup.... even hubby loved them!  It was so cute hearing a grown man say "Are there any more pancake poppers?" 

In other news..... The sun is finally shining, the air is becoming warmer and I will be spending the day planting peas, lettuce and garlic tomorrow!  I will also be preparing a bed for potatoes. 

I am looking forward to a fresh start in the garden! 

Until Next Time Friends!

New Start....

Hey All! 

Just a quick post to say that I can't put my girl to sleep.  I just can't.  There is too much life in that old girl for me to decide to end it.  We are trying some more things to help her stay cleaner and comfortable.  We don't just up and put granny down when she has trouble walking and seeing do we?  Nope and I won't do that to my girl.  It would be different if she was in pain, but she is content, but just needs extra help and things done a little differently to help her thrive. 

Here's a picture of her after her bath this past week.

We feel like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders.  Since hubby and I decided that our gut was telling us not to euthanize her, she believe it or not, has been better.  I don't know if she's feeding off my energy or what, but she seems more with it.  She still can't see very well, but her problem eye has reduced the pupil which was nearly all the way dilated all the time to now you can see the color in her eye.  So we have found a new normal.  If that means a bath a couple times a week, that's OK and I'm more than willing to do it.  I put her outside for a couple minutes in the morning when its not too cold so she can sniff the air and truck around the yard.... I put down a towel for her to sleep on so that if she does wet the bed it pulls the moisture away from her instead of soaking her fur.  Doing these simple things have made it better already. 

Here's to my girl...... I won't give up DiDi.....

Here's to a new start!