I love a good appetizer. I love nachos, chicken and sweet corn. I also love spending time with Father Bean and the urchins at the Iowa State Fair.
We wrapped up our 2013 State Fair adventure at Bass Pro for some quick shopping. The Mini-Me scored some modest and comfy jeans and the Mini-Farmer Boy found a Bass Pro baseball cap and a t-shirt that looked like it had a hunting vest on it. Both were happy.
They each also found an item to help in the great fishing adventure that is on-going at our house. Mini-Me found those campy red and white bobbers and grabbed several packages of them to replace all the ones that have been lost on our treks to the Iowa River. The Mini-Farmer Boy found a lure that just couldn't be put back on the shelf. I should have looked for Hook Baiting for Dummies or a new set of rubberized gloves to handle the worms with. I can't help it I just can't handle the wiggle of a worm when you impale it on a hook.
There were a few "we don't need that" moments
but I think that eating lunch at Uncle Buck's Fishbowl when we arrived made the adventure go much smoother! We started lunch with a 1/2 order of the chicken nachos and it reminded me that I developed a knock-off recipe for those at home. We just got fresh sweet corn from our local corn stand...Hardin City Sweet Corn located at the gas station on the corner of Rocksylvania and Oak Street in Iowa Falls, Iowa. I think these will be on the menu of Hillcrest Farm's family supper table tonight. It is one of the ways the Farmer Boy will eat yicken!
Hillcrest Yicken Nachos
Groceries:
1 Rotisserie Chicken, boned and roughly chopped, you will use 1 Cup of meat, reserve the rest for Cranberry Yicken Salad
1 bag restaurant style corn chips ( I like the Tostados gold)
1 cup Fine Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/4 C each of Hickory smoked bbq sauce (my favorite is Famous Dave's Sweet and Sassy), sliced black olives, sliced green onions, sliced jalapeno peppers and fresh off the cob sweet corn that has been blanched and sliced from the cob
Salsa and sour cream
The Process:
Layer chips in a circle on an over proof plate with an empty oven proof bowl in the center. Scatter chicken and cheese on top of the chips. Place in a 450 degree oven until the cheese melts and chips are crisped.
Drizzle BBQ sauce around the chips and sprinkle garnishes across the circle. Place a bowl of salsa in the middle and put a dollop of sour cream in the center. Enjoy!
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Apps for that and eating wheat free
“Yah there’s an app for that” is a phrase I have embraced.
My husband and I were hold outs on the smart phone technology craze. On the bell curve depicting the adoption and diffusion of innovation, the Farmer Boy and I are certainly in the Late Adopter and more likely in the Laggard category of consumers of technology. I am proficient on my computer and the Kindle Santa got the Mini-Me for Christmas, but turning on our family laptop gives the Farmer Boy hives.
We only got these smart phones because they were free. Now I don’t know how I will ever go back to a standard phone once this iPhone 4 dies or becomes technologically obsolete. I’ll probably have to get a JitterBug phone… and I will hate it and plot ways to get another smart phone.
I say all of this because recently the Farmer Boy and Mini-Me decided to pursue a wheat free diet in an effort to become healthier and to see if that would cure an almost constant stomach ache they both have. I am in favor of being healthy, and embrace a good cooking challenge whenever I can. This, however, is a challenge that is becoming a tough one to keep up with… Eating out is fraught with issues depending on how sensitive you are to wheat and where you are eating.
I was relieved to see that there was a reasonably priced app that covered a bunch of national resturants when I had the kiddos in DesMoines at the Iowa State Fair. The fair was also kind enough to have a document that told what food stands had wheat free entrees. It made the two days we spent on the fairgrounds much easier, but it was hard to not eat corn dogs and the sandwiches without the oversized buns looked like a ripoff after paying $8 for them.
When we got home, I bought an almost $5 loaf of bread to watch my daughter not eat the BLT I made her on it. The Farmer Boy gave it a good shot, but even he only had one BLT when he would have usually had two or three. The truth of the matter is…wheat free takes reprograming your taste buds and the initial efforts of recipe development are still work. I say work because dishes are involved.
I’m also struggling with this challenge, because my part-time gig turned into a full time gig July 1st. I’m really having a hard time getting the basics done around the house… I should be changing loads in the washer and dryer, sweeping my filthy floors or sorting through the totes that have sprung up in almost every room in my house that are holding random collections of things and papers that haven’t found a home or been tossed in the trash. I should not be blogging about our life… but this is cheap therapy.
I have been thinking of writing a gluten free cookbook for a couple of years, because I’ve been playing with wheat free recipes since we found out the Farmer Boy’s older brother has celiac disease. I love figuring out how to make family favorites work for him, but that’s a Saturday’s playtime, not an everyday life change. I’m also not willing to make two meals everyday…the Mini-Farmer Boy and I aren’t seeing an issue from wheat…other than eating too much of it has made me fat. So I will keep going and I will do what I can. Who knows maybe I'll be able to cross off publishing a wheat free cookbook from my bucket list before I am 40.
Here is a recipe for crockpot cream corn that is gluten free and doesn't require any specialty ingredients. I made it in a smaller crockpot while we were at the State Fair last week. It was pretty tasty and would be a great way to have that creamy love of my life for bigger family gatherings. Enjoy!
Crockpot Cream Corn
The groceries:
1 large bag of frozen corn
½ Cup milk
1 - 8 oz. block of cream cheese,
¼ C butter, melted
1 T Sugar
½ t Salt
¼ t Ground black Pepper
The Process:
Pour frozen corn in crockpot.
Cube the cream cheese and scatter across the top of the corn.
Combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over the corn and cream cheese.
Cook with the lid on, set on High for 3 hours.
Stir very well after cream cheese has softened. This will hold on low for several more hours.
Note: be sure to read the label if you are avoiding wheat, some cream cheeses can have modified food starch in them... curses on those manufacturers! I like to use the crockpot liners for casserole style dishes because I don’t like to scrub browned bits of food out of a crockpot. Just lightly spray the inside of your crock with cooking spray and place the liner in the crock.
You could double and possibly triple this recipe in the 7 qt crock pots for bigger gatherings.
My husband and I were hold outs on the smart phone technology craze. On the bell curve depicting the adoption and diffusion of innovation, the Farmer Boy and I are certainly in the Late Adopter and more likely in the Laggard category of consumers of technology. I am proficient on my computer and the Kindle Santa got the Mini-Me for Christmas, but turning on our family laptop gives the Farmer Boy hives.
We only got these smart phones because they were free. Now I don’t know how I will ever go back to a standard phone once this iPhone 4 dies or becomes technologically obsolete. I’ll probably have to get a JitterBug phone… and I will hate it and plot ways to get another smart phone.
I say all of this because recently the Farmer Boy and Mini-Me decided to pursue a wheat free diet in an effort to become healthier and to see if that would cure an almost constant stomach ache they both have. I am in favor of being healthy, and embrace a good cooking challenge whenever I can. This, however, is a challenge that is becoming a tough one to keep up with… Eating out is fraught with issues depending on how sensitive you are to wheat and where you are eating.
I was relieved to see that there was a reasonably priced app that covered a bunch of national resturants when I had the kiddos in DesMoines at the Iowa State Fair. The fair was also kind enough to have a document that told what food stands had wheat free entrees. It made the two days we spent on the fairgrounds much easier, but it was hard to not eat corn dogs and the sandwiches without the oversized buns looked like a ripoff after paying $8 for them.
When we got home, I bought an almost $5 loaf of bread to watch my daughter not eat the BLT I made her on it. The Farmer Boy gave it a good shot, but even he only had one BLT when he would have usually had two or three. The truth of the matter is…wheat free takes reprograming your taste buds and the initial efforts of recipe development are still work. I say work because dishes are involved.
I’m also struggling with this challenge, because my part-time gig turned into a full time gig July 1st. I’m really having a hard time getting the basics done around the house… I should be changing loads in the washer and dryer, sweeping my filthy floors or sorting through the totes that have sprung up in almost every room in my house that are holding random collections of things and papers that haven’t found a home or been tossed in the trash. I should not be blogging about our life… but this is cheap therapy.
I have been thinking of writing a gluten free cookbook for a couple of years, because I’ve been playing with wheat free recipes since we found out the Farmer Boy’s older brother has celiac disease. I love figuring out how to make family favorites work for him, but that’s a Saturday’s playtime, not an everyday life change. I’m also not willing to make two meals everyday…the Mini-Farmer Boy and I aren’t seeing an issue from wheat…other than eating too much of it has made me fat. So I will keep going and I will do what I can. Who knows maybe I'll be able to cross off publishing a wheat free cookbook from my bucket list before I am 40.
Here is a recipe for crockpot cream corn that is gluten free and doesn't require any specialty ingredients. I made it in a smaller crockpot while we were at the State Fair last week. It was pretty tasty and would be a great way to have that creamy love of my life for bigger family gatherings. Enjoy!
Crockpot Cream Corn
The groceries:
1 large bag of frozen corn
½ Cup milk
1 - 8 oz. block of cream cheese,
¼ C butter, melted
1 T Sugar
½ t Salt
¼ t Ground black Pepper
The Process:
Pour frozen corn in crockpot.
Cube the cream cheese and scatter across the top of the corn.
Combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over the corn and cream cheese.
Cook with the lid on, set on High for 3 hours.
Stir very well after cream cheese has softened. This will hold on low for several more hours.
Note: be sure to read the label if you are avoiding wheat, some cream cheeses can have modified food starch in them... curses on those manufacturers! I like to use the crockpot liners for casserole style dishes because I don’t like to scrub browned bits of food out of a crockpot. Just lightly spray the inside of your crock with cooking spray and place the liner in the crock.
You could double and possibly triple this recipe in the 7 qt crock pots for bigger gatherings.
Sunday, August 11, 2013
A little late to the dance
I've been watching friends and family enter the blogging world and have been more than happy to stay on the sidelines and watch them. I've enjoyed reading some really wonderful authors talk about the things I live daily and love about my life. I've even seen a few folks artfully deal with those issues I really dislike right along with them.
I guess blogging or at least reading other blogs has become a way to quietly be a part of the bigger world's conversation. I'm also realizing this is a technology that will quickly leave me behind if I don't embrace it and jump in. A small part of me thinks that I can add something positive, if not thought provoking, to the world's conversation. Maybe I can change the world, or come to a clearer understanding of what my role in this world is.
So here I am...a little slower than many of my friends but ready to dip my toes in the water.
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