Megan, here. These breakfast burritos were a little bit of an adventure. A few days prior to making these, my hubby was having a hard night and I lovingly promised him I'd get up and make him pancakes the next morning. For those of you that don't know, he gets up at 5:20 and leaves for work by 6:00 every morning. I'm usually up to see him off by 6:00. However, 5:30 rolled around the next morning and I was less than enthused about getting up to make pancakes. My amazing husband patiently said, "It's ok honey, you can keep sleeping." And I did. About 4 days later (on a Sunday morning) I finally fulfilled my promise and made these breakfast burritos! But of course I didn't look at the directions until I started to cook and failed to realize that the potatoes had to bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Needless to say, I didn't allot that much time, so I had to take some shortcuts to get us to church on time.
Here's the yummy breakfast sausage being browned:
Then I combined 5 (!) eggs, a cup of grated cheese and green onions and set that aside.
So here was my trick to getting these done in less time. Instead of baking the potatoes, I microwaved them for about 10 minutes. It worked reasonably well. I felt like the only downside was that the potatoes were a little too mushy to chop up very nicely. But then again, everything just gets mixed together in the end anyway. And here ensues the mixing: The breakfast sausage, red bell pepper, breakfast potatoes and the egg mixture. Can you say unhealthy? But man....it was delicious. Topped with some salsa and washed down with OJ. You could even add some extra cheese on top if you wanted. We also had a little bit left over and I decided that these burritos were just as good (if not better) reheated. So don't be afraid to make a little extra!
Another Wednesday, another Wednesday Hodgepodge. Thanks to Joyce@From This Side of the Pond for another set of questions for this week.
1. April rolls in at the end of this week and in celebration of that infamous date (April 1st) answer this question-What is something foolish you've done?
The first thing that pops into my mind (and by no means the last foolish thing I did), was to join a health club when we were first married. I was suckered into it and we just did not have the money for it. We did manage to get out of it, but it wasn't easy.
2. With April comes Easter and that classic edible treat known as Peeps...so tell me...what's your favorite way to fix/eat chicken? (That wasn't what you were expecting, was it? I 'fooled' you. teehee.)
I can eat chicken every day and I have lots of different ways to fix it. I will admit, I am a sucker for fried chicken. I don't make that myself, though. There is a pizza place in town that makes great fried chicken. (Yes, I said pizza place...)
Probably my favorite way to prepare chicken is to grill it and marinate it with Italian salad dressing. Mmmmm! I am looking forward to the snow melting away so I can drag the grill out from under the back steps and get busy grilling!
3. What's the best museum you've ever visited? Or your favorite? Or the one you'd most like to visit?
I'd love to go back to the Louvre in Paris and this time hit it long before 30 minutes before closing. That just wasn't long enough. We tried to see the Mona Lisa, but were turned away before we got very close. Sad.
4. You know what they say about April showers...what's your preference- a shower or a bath?
Yes! :) This house is the first house we have owned that has a jetted tub. So my favorite thing is to soak in the tub for a long time (basically while the water heater replenishes) and then take a shower to wash my hair. Ahhhh....!
5. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder"...fact or fiction? Why?
My guess is that it depends on where the relationship is to begin with and how much you want to put into it while apart. My hubby came back to work in the US while the kids and I stayed in Singapore so they could finish out the school year. It was tough to be apart for 8 weeks, but we worked hard at communicating and staying connected. I know I learned how much he really contributed to our family and I missed his daily presence.
6. What's your favorite product made/grown in your home state?
I grew up in Iowa. I will say all of my favorite products have to do with food.
My first choice is fresh corn-on-the-cob:
Oooo yummy. The best thing of the summer!
What else is Iowa known for?
Pigs!
I don't like how they smell as you drive down the highway, but I sure do like pork. I can eat that almost as often as chicken.
Aaaannd (I know there's lots of food here) I love these potato chips.
They are made in Burlington, IA. Mmmm. They are gooood!
Okay, I will stop talking about food now. I don't want to make you too hungry.
7. What is going on in the world today that affects you the most?
Honestly? I can't think of anything.
8. Insert your own random thought here.
And now it's time for Silly Songs With Larry (The Cucumber, that is):
It's Megan again!
I made these delicious biscuits for a weekend lunch along with some sausage gravy that my husband whipped up.
I've always loved the biscuits my Mom often made for us when we were growing up so I was anxious to learn how these compare (and I think she is too). This particular recipe included both shortening and butter. I cut the cold butter into smaller pieces to make the blending quicker. In the end, the thing I liked most about the biscuits were the tiny chunks of butter in the final product... really makes for a "melt in your mouth" kind of biscuit.
Helpful hint! If you don't own a circular biscuit/cookie cutter, just use a glass! It worked wonders. Now I just want to save a few bucks and always use a glass. The verdict? My Mom's are better, but that's just my personal taste (or maybe I haven't mastered this recipe quite yet). I like the fluffiness of my Mom's biscuits over the flaky-melt-in-your-mouth-ness of these.
**Another great addition from me for our Cooking Through PW Cooks Adventure.**
Basic Breakfast Potatoes. There is only one problem with me fixing a breakfast food. I am not a morning person.
(Which comes as no shock to anyone who has known me for any length of time or who has read this blog for any length of time.)
(By the way, I heard a news story a few weeks ago about what makes someone a morning person or a night person. They said that it's just the physical make up of a person. That it's largely in the genes. Here's the link to the story.)
Let's see, where was I?
Breakfast Potatoes. Oh yeah.
This is a very simple recipe using just a few ingredients. It's a good way to use a left-over baked potato or two. Dice the baked potato and some onion.
Anyone like how I matched the bowl to the cutting board??
Using olive oil and some bacon fat for flavor, saute the onion, add the potatoes and fry it all up in a pan. They key is to let it sit so the potatoes get nice and crispy.
In case you are wondering, I made these for supper along with some scramble eggs with mushroom and broccoli. It was all very yummy!
If you have any leftover they are great to use in breakfast burritos. (I think there is a post coming sometime about Pioneer Woman's recipe for that.)
Another Wednesday, another Wednesday Hodgepodge. Thanks to Joyce@From This Side of the Pond for another set of questions for this week.
1. Sunday was the first day of spring. So they say. (Ahem.) What is your favorite outdoor springtime activity?
Being warm. Not wearing a coat. Watching the world turn green and the flowers bloom. Spring is by far my favorite season.
2. Who would you want to come into your kitchen to cook dinner for you?
My son-in-law. He used to come over and cook once in a while when he lived in the same town as us and before he was my son-in-law. He is a great cook. I miss having him do that and I miss seeing him at church and going out for lunch with him after worship. The good news is he's married to my daughter so he's in my life from now on.
Our son-in-law and daughter on their wedding day.
3. When did you last fly a kite?
Jeepers, I don't know if I remember. I think we did when the kids were pretty small, but that was a long time ago.
4. What topic puts you to sleep faster than anything?
Basically anything with a bunch of numbers. Before we moved overseas with my hubby's company (about 14 years ago), we met with accounting people and people who would do our taxes and oh boy, it was a snore. I was amazed that someone chose to do that for an actual living.When someone starts throwing too many numbers around I start hearing something akin to Charlie Brown's teacher.
5. Which flowers do you associate with specific people, places, or events?
My daughter-in-law loves sunflowers so whenever I see one I think of her. Orchids remind me of living in Singapore. They were prevalent, cheap, and in so many colors and sizes! Yellow roses remind me of our wedding. I carried them in my bouquet.
Oh, are we cute? And young?
6. What significant historical events took place during your elementary school days?
I remember watching on TV the moon landing and walking on the moon in 1969.
(I just love the astronaut walking and jumping around. He looks like he was having fun!)
7. Do you swear? Do you pseudo-swear? (You know crap, shoot, friggin'?)
I used to. A little. When I was particularly mad, a few not so good words would slip out. I was challenged/convicted several years ago to stop doing that. I will say that I have done quite well with that. And I am thankful. I'm working on the psuedo-swearing as well. Now that I read it, it sounds like I have/had a real potty-mouth. I never did. I remember a job at a fast food restaurant I had one summer during the college years. Some of the people I worked with commented on how they noticed I didn't swear.
8. Insert your own random thought here.
Who doesn't love a laughing baby? (These two kids are actually my great-nieces.) This is sure to make you smile, if not laugh out loud. :)
Today is The Day After The First Day of Spring! Finally. Yippee!
The good news is the snow melting! I may have mentioned that before, but seeing the bare ground brings me such great relief that Spring Is Coming!
The other good news is that I have put my winter coat away for the season! (on the-edge-of-your-seat news, I know...) There is just something in me that cannot wear a winter coat after the first day of spring. yes, I know the highs are only in the mid-thirties this week. It's the principle, people, the principle. (...and yes, I know, Joyce, mid-thirties isn't really warm.) It's the principle of the thing, that, and I am sick and tired of wearing my winter coat.
We had a good weekend together, the hubby and I. Saturday we drove to a northern Iowa lake resort area for lunch and to check out a store that recycles building materials. Not that we are renovating anything, we were just curious. We did see some pretty cool looking really old sinks and doors. But mostly, it was a fun date.
Sunday we went to church where we previously lived. I think we had tried to go three other times over the last several months and every time there was bad weather. We did have to drive back in fog, but it wasn't too terrible.
We enjoyed worshiping with our old church family who we miss so much. We got caught up with a bunch of people. That all was very refreshing for me.
We took our favorite elderly friend out for lunch. She is 84 and we were in a Bible study with her for the better part of 9 years. She's never been married and so cheerful and full of life. Oh, and such a sense of humor! Bible studies were so fun with her jokes and the songs she would sing for us sometimes in Swedish and sometimes in Latin. That she loves Jesus is no secret. Her papa was a pastor and she has some great stories of being a preacher's kid.
Besides today being The Day After The First Day Of Spring, today is my parent's wedding anniversary. They have been married for 58 years! Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!
Here's a picture of them dancing at our daughter's wedding last June. My mom was terribly sick just 7-8 months before this, so is was extra special to see this that day:
I can't decide if I have been busy or if there is nothing going on. My guess is a likely little of both.
We visited my parents a couple of weekends ago. I had great intentions of photographing the highlights so I'd have material for the old blog. But..... somehow I totally forgot. Totally. Did not touch my camera one single time.
We met my parents at our son-in-law's mother's restaurant. (Did you follow that?) Or how about: our daughter's mother-in-law's restaurant? Clearer? Oh, I think you know what I mean.
She has a great little place in a small town in Iowa. She serves really amazing food.
(Insert here pictures of my Quiche Lorraine and Lemon Chess Pie.) (You know, if I would have stopped talking long enough to take a picture.) (Sigh)
Later that night we went to a symphony concert.
All this is riveting news, I know. Try not to fall asleep.
In other news, outside the window I can see most of the ground! WooHoo!! We've had snow on the ground since the beginning of November. It's actually been warmer here and THE SNOW IS MELTING! I walked out to the mailbox yesterday and actually said to myself, "It's a pretty day!" It will take quite a while for that 7 foot drift in the back yard to melt.
Another news-breaking item: Three different times in the last three weeks, the laundry basket has been empty for 2 whole hours each time.
So I guess that means I'm hard up for entertainment.
But then, there is that new dishwasher we bought to watch. It sure is nice and quiet and actually gets the dishes clean!
This week I decided to do something every day. Since the weather is finally getting nicer, I don't mind going out. (No nasty snow on the roads and in the parking lots to schlop through.) This week I decided I would go out for lunch every day. And then to a store. I don't mind going out for lunch by myself. Well, I don't really go out all alone, I take a book. And today the Hubby joined me! Bonus!
After lunch today I wandered into a drug/gift store downtown and saw this:
I think it's the result of an explosion. It was scary. A moment that was definitely not precious. (Get it? Oh, I make myself laugh.)
Okay, I think I will end all this, um, this, er, exciting recap.
**Another great addition from Amanda for our Cooking Through PW Cooks Adventure.**
These cinnamon rolls are fantastic... and that is all that needs to be said.
Ingredients... I decided to make the dough the night before and finish the rolls in the morning. I'm a morning person and my wonderful husband isn't, so I figured I would finish the rolls just in time for him to wake up to the glorious smell of fresh-baked, gooey deliciousness.
The only problem with being a morning person ... I don't always function at my best later at night. Example number one... Making a half-batch doesn't include adding the full amount of the flour. Oops.
I eventually got the proportions right after I made a trip to the store for more flour. The dough aged to perfection (?) overnight, and in the morning this wonderfulness happened. What a delicious sight!!! And a delicious bite!!! (hee hee) I put extra love and goodness vitamins in these rolls, so I'm sure eating 14 of them is healthy.
Warning: This recipe makes a ton of rolls. Sharing is encouraged.
About the same time we moved to Minnesota after our three years overseas, another family moved to the same little town. They had one daughter who was in age, right between our kids. Like us, they were transplants to Minnesota. After they started attending the same church as us, we began to become friends. Like the friends we made when we lived in Singapore, we connected with them in this different "culture" because both our families had lived in completely different parts of the country. They were from the south and we had lived several different places in the Midwest and in Singapore. When you live in a small town, I think you bond more easily with others who also are not from that town.
We did a lot of things with this family. We shared Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. The mom and daughter would pop by our house to get a drink or use the bathroom when they were out on a run. We had lunch together after church on Sundays. We commiserated about sometimes feeling left out in that small town. Our kids even went on a vacation with them to southern California one spring break. Our kids and their daughter felt like siblings. The summer my hubby and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary, the mom, Karen, and the daughter, Rachel, and our kids fixed Hubby and I a fancy meal complete with a tiered chocolate cake and a veil for me to wear.
This family moved to Oklahoma after Rachel graduated from high school. It was a hard good-bye. Rachel was attending the college she always wanted to. Her mom and dad wanted to be near-by. She was their whole world.
When our son, Caleb was in his third year of college, he had a serious crush on a girl named Amanda. He worked for months to get up the nerve to ask her out on a date. A month before he did ask her out, he had a conversation with Rachel. They were talking online about Caleb's crush and Rachel's advice to him was to be "confident in his hotness" and ask Amanda on a date. (That phrase was sooo Rachel, it still makes me smile.)
That was the last conversation they had.
Our daughter reminded me this morning that today is the anniversary of our sweet, sweet friend, Rachel going to eternity. She and a friend were killed in a head-on car accident three years ago today. (I wrote about it here.) She wasn't even quite 20 years old. I sat on the couch this morning and just cried remembering the shock of the news and the grief I hear in her mom's voice whenever I talk to her. It's been hard on all of us and she wasn't even a part of our family by blood.
(I remember the day we heard the news. Our pastor had been trying to get confirmation of the death. I called Caleb who was working at his college newspaper that afternoon. I asked for him to look at Rachel's Facebook page. I will never forget his voice when he barely choked out over the phone, "Oh, Mom. It's true." He told me that he was so upset had to leave the newspaper and went to the only place he could think of. To Amanda's apartment. They had been dating about three weeks at that time. Caleb told me later that Amanda cried with him and prayed with him in his grief that day. That was when I was first endeared to the young woman who was to become my daughter-in-law.) (It was a Sunday afternoon when we heard. Our daughter, Megan, was a senior in high school and a young man named Zach was hanging out at our house that afternoon. It was tough to break the news to Megan. She and Rachel were like sisters. Zach was comforting to Megan that day. Little did we know that Zach would be our son-in-law one day.)
The huge thing, the thing that gives us peace, the thing that gives us hope, is that Rachel was a Christian. She loved Jesus more than anything. When I look at pictures of her, I hear her laugh and imagine her dancing and laughing with Jesus.
This afternoon I was listening to this CD. The hymn that got me deep in my soul?
It Is Well With My Soul. Written by Horatio Spafford written in 1873. Go here to read the story behind the hymn.
How do I express what it means to me to know that Jesus Christ, The Son of God, died on the cross for pay for my sins? This verse sends me to my knees in graditude every single time I hear it.
My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
The response I have to that is a desire to live my life for Christ. To glorify Him with my life. To be obedient because of Christ bearing my sin so I don't have to.
Then one day, my faith shall be sight. With the sound of a trumpet, the sky will be rolled back and Christ will descend to take me and all those who follow Him home with him.
Rachel is there. I can't wait to see her again. And so many family members that are already there.
Another Wednesday, another Wednesday Hodgepodge. Thanks to Joyce@From This Side of the Pond for another set of questions for this week.
1. March 2nd is Dr. Seuss's birthday so I'm wondering...do you like green eggs and ham? Okay-how about this instead...how do you like your eggs? Or don't you?
I like my eggs over-hard, or scrambled, or hard cooked, or omelets. Yep, probably even green.
2. Is March coming in like a lion or something less ferocious where you live?
March 1st started out quite beautiful. It was even up to 37 degrees at one point yesterday and I ran a couple of errands with out a coat on! But as the day wore on, it got windier and colder. Single digits. Sigh. I have hope that spring will come. Someday. I hope.
3. Do you work better or worse under pressure?
Worse. Although, sometimes the deadline of company does make me clean the house. (See Monday's post.)
4. March Madness-are you a fan? It's college basketball in case you're wondering. And if you're outside the USA tell us-is there any sort of 'madness' taking place during March in your part of the world?
It all depends on who is playing. My kids go to the University of Kansas (well, one has graduated and the other is still there). Do you all know how amazing KU is in basketball? And that the inventor of basketball coached there for a very long time? And that my hubby's grandfather knew him? And that KU won the NCAA championship in 2008? We were in town that year when KU won the Final 4 game. We were at our son's place on campus watching the game. When we left right after the game, we could hear the noise all over campus grow and grow and grow. It was pretty awesome to experience. I am hoping that KU does well again this year. Our daughter and son-in-law gave my hubby tickets to a KU game that we went to in February. It was against our Alma Mater Iowa State.
Yeah, Iowa State didn't have a chance.
Look at how packed the place is:
It is a pretty exciting place to see a game. Those students have some amazing traditions.
(That's a quite impressive answer for me, the World's Biggest Non-Sports Fan.)
5. Under what circumstances do you do your best thinking?
Any circumstance that is after 10 a.m.
6. What item of clothing from your wardrobe do you wear most often?
A light-weight gray cardigan sweater I bought for $7 last summer. I like that it's not too bulky and I can wear almost any color under it. I'm kinda into layering since my body temp seems to change on me at a moment's notice. :)
7. Do you use sarcasm? Never. Oh, who am I kidding? All the time!
8. Insert your own random thought here.
Video Time!
I loved, loved, loved watching The Carol Burnett Show when I was a kid. Here's a classic scene: (Warning: kind of a spicy word at the end...)
Megan, here. These breakfast burritos were a little bit of an adventure. A few days prior to making these, my hubby was having a hard night and I lovingly promised him I'd get up and make him pancakes the next morning. For those of you that don't know, he gets up at 5:20 and leaves for work by 6:00 every morning. I'm usually up to see him off by 6:00. However, 5:30 rolled around the next morning and I was less than enthused about getting up to make pancakes. My amazing husband patiently said, "It's ok honey, you can keep sleeping." And I did. About 4 days later (on a Sunday morning) I finally fulfilled my promise and made these breakfast burritos! But of course I didn't look at the directions until I started to cook and failed to realize that the potatoes had to bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Needless to say, I didn't allot that much time, so I had to take some shortcuts to get us to church on time.
So here was my trick to getting these done in less time. Instead of baking the potatoes, I microwaved them for about 10 minutes. It worked reasonably well. I felt like the only downside was that the potatoes were a little too mushy to chop up very nicely. But then again, everything just gets mixed together in the end anyway.
And here ensues the mixing: The breakfast sausage, red bell pepper, breakfast potatoes and the egg mixture. Can you say unhealthy? But man....it was delicious.
Topped with some salsa and washed down with OJ. You could even add some extra cheese on top if you wanted.
We also had a little bit left over and I decided that these burritos were just as good (if not better) reheated. So don't be afraid to make a little extra! 
