What did you just call me?

Here's another recipe from that old cookbook of my mom's, How I Feed My Family on $16 a Week: brownies without chocolate called, um, "Whiteys." I told Scott that we should probably call them something else, but he insists we keep the original name.

Whiteys

1/3 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup raisins (I leave out the raisins.)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8-inch baking pan. Melt shortening in a saucepan. Remove from heat. Mix in sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, and raisins, if using. Spread batter in pan and bake for 30 minutes. Cool slightly and cut into squares.

I'm sure these would be good with frosting or chocolate chips instead of raisins, but we do like them plain.

Spring cleaning: the freezer

Hey! I can talk about food without gagging!

Because of some combination of Spring cleaning/nesting/guilt over how many Runs for The Border Scott's made for me/worrying about money, I straightened out our top-loading deep freezer on Monday to get an idea of what we have in there that needs to be used up.

We have:
LOTS of blueberries
various cuts of venison
lots of cooked, mashed pumpkin and squash
freezer jam: strawberry, strawberry rhubarb, and that failed batch of raspberry I use to make dairy-free ice cream
three jars of pesto
two jars of roasted tomato sauce
one jar of tomatillo salsa
dairy-free cupcakes and cookies for school and birthday parties
one bag of cranberries
herbs and spices

Last night I used:
two bags of blueberries and the last bag of peaches in a pie with sugar glaze
the last three bags of zucchini in a casserole (adapted to be dairy free, of course)
two pounds of venison chops
and six brown bananas in two loaves of banana bread

I can cook again! I've really missed it.

Gone All Day Stew

Here's what's for dinner:

Gone All Day Stew

1 cup pasta sauce or 1 can tomato soup + 1 T. Italian seasoning
1 cup water mixed with 1/4 c. flour till smooth
1-2 lbs. beef stew meat cubes
1/2 bag baby carrots or same amount of carrot chunks
1 large onion cut into eighths
4 medium potatoes cut into chunks
1/2 c. chopped celery
1 8 oz. container of mushrooms (I'm using canned today because that's what I have.)
2 dairy-free beef bouillon cubes
pepper to taste
1 bay leaf

Cook in a slow cooker on low all day or in a Dutch oven at 275 degrees for 4-5 hours. Five minutes before serving, add 3/4 c. frozen peas. A glug of red wine is good, too, if you have it. In the stew, I mean.

Stop sustaining that note!

Maybe it's because I have a child who watches H.S. Musical AND children who watch Sesame Street, but this gets me every. Single. Time.

The more you know

Tired of hiding food you don't like in your napkin or saying your stomach hurts? Try this excuse:
"Um, Mom? I'm allergic to spicy foods now, I think."

Hey, it works for your sister about dairy.