Flower Power

By: Lara Velez

Ah…Spring. After months of cold weather, of course you think of flowers when Spring arrives. I will cover many different angles of the beautiful flowers of Spring, including; edible flowers, toxic flowers, flower recipes, tips on how to care for them, and rose colors…what do they say? Come…join me…

The Best Flowers for Spring

Please note: Not all of the flowers in this article are edible. Please see the list below for which flowers are edible and which ones are poisonous.

• Tulips - (from genus “Tulipa”) From the Turkish for turban, after its rounded form. They are originally from the Middle East and are available November to May (January to April for British tulips).
• Tupli Care Tips: Tulips continue to grow in water and will curve towards the light. Make allowances for this when putting them in a vase or wrap the stems tightly in newspaper and stand them in water directly beneath a light for a few hours.
• Dill – The botanical name is Anethem graveolens. Graveolens means having a strong scent. Dill is available from spring to autumn. It is a cousin of the humble carrot. Dill has a pungent and tangy flavor. It is best used with breads, fish, cheese, salads, and vegetables – especially cucumbers.
• Lily of the Valley – (from genus “Convallaria”, full name “Convallaria majalis”) It was first cultivated in 1420. It is mostly available in the months of April and May. The Lily of the Valley signifies a “return to happiness”. It is also frequently used in bridal arrangements for their sweet perfume. Traditionally associated with May 1st, especially in France where the “muguet” is handed out at special events.
• Lily of the Valley Care Tips: Must not be left out of water too long. Keep cool and shaded.
• Sweet Pea – Botanical name is Lathyrus odoratus – odoratus means scented. They originated in Italy and are available March to November. Sweet peas mean “delicate pleasures”.
• Sweet Pea Care Tips: Keep cool, always in water, and away from ripening fruit. Commercial sweet peas are treated after cutting to prolong their life; garden-cut ones may only last one or two days but florists’ peas can last over a week.
• Roses - (from genus “Rosaceae”) Botanical name Rosa – It is originally from China and is now cultivated from America to Africa and from Eastern Europe to the Far East. It is available all year round and probably the best known and best-loved flower in the world.
• Rose Care Tips: Limp roses can be revived by standing up to their necks in lukewarm water in a cool room. Do not bash the stems as this prevents them taking up water effectively.

ROSE COLOR MEANINGS

Color	Meaning
Red	Love, respect, devotion
Deep Pink	Gratitude, appreciation, thank you
Light Pink	Admiration, respect, sympathy,regard
White	Reverence, humility
Yellow	Joy, gladness, glee
Orange	Enthusiasm, desire
Red and Yellow	Gaiety, joviality, fun-loving, humorous
Yellow	Sociability, friendship, comradeship

POISONOUS FLOWERS

DO NOT EAT: Lily-of-the-Valley, Bleeding Heart, Buttercup, Iris, Calla Lily, Narcissus or Daffodil, Lupine, Petunia, Sweet Pea, Monkshood, Periwinkle, Rhododendron and Azalea, Oleander, Delphinium, Clematis, Foxglove, Hellebore, Wisteria, Crocus, Poinsettias, Mistletoe, Nightshade, and African Violet…just to name a few.

EDIBLE SPRING FLOWERS

APPLE - May – Slightly floral, sour

CHERVIL – May/June – parsley-like with a hint of tarragon, citrus

CHIVE – May/June – onion, strong

CORIANDER – June/Frost – like leaf, but more fragrant

ENGLISH DAISY - April/Sept – mild

DANDELION - May/July – like leaves, bitter

DILL - June/Frost – like leaves, but stronger

ELDERBERRY - May/June – floral, mild

GRAPE HYACINTH - April/May – grapey, bitter after-taste, slight sour

HONEYSUCKLE - May/July – honey sweet, perfumed

LILAC - April/May – perfumed, slightly bitter

MUSTARD - April/May – hot, mustard

GARDEN PEA - May/June – raw peas

PLUM - April/May – mild, like flower nectar

ROSE - May/Sept – perfume, sweet to bitter

GARDEN SAGE – May/July – flowery sage, slightly musky

SCENTED GERANIUM - throughout year – varies, slightly sour or bitter

SWEET WOODRUFF - May - sweet, grassy, vanilla

TULIP - April/May – slightly bitter or sweet

VIOLET (PANSY) - April/July – Mild, leafy green, some varieties sweet

If you plan on entertaining this Spring…you may want to make a beautiful flower ice bowl for presentation of one of your cold dishes or use it as a center piece.

SPRING FLOWERS ICE BOWL

You will need:

• assorted spring flowers…or just one kind
• greenery (optional)
• water
• masking tape
• 2 glass bowls with a size difference of 2 inches

Place a few of your flowers on the bottom of the larger bowl. Place the smaller bowl in the larger bowl, on top of the flowers. Fill the space between the bowls, slowly, with water. Using a skewer to push them down into the water, add the rest of your flowers in the space around the bowl. Secure the smaller bowl in the larger bowl using the masking tape. Wrap the tape tightly across the top of the bowls, making sure that the smaller bowl is centered. Freeze at least 4 hours, or overnight. Remove from freezer and let stand for 5 minutes. Gently pull smaller bowl and remove your ice bowl from larger bowl. Put it in the freezer until you are ready to use it.

You can use these ice bowls to serve; salad, custards, fruit, sherbert, or you may fill it with fresh flowers and use it as a center piece.

Well, I hope you have a great Spring. I have included some recipes I found below. Enjoy the weather and enjoy yourself! HAPPY SPRING!

Copyright © Lara Velez, The Recipe Finder, All Rights Reserved

*The following recipes were taken from The American Rose Society with permission from the author; Jolene Adams.

Making Gumdrop Roses

by Jolene Adams

Rolling gumdrops

Confectioner’s sugar
Colored gumdrops

Flatten gumdrops with a rolling pin on surface or sheet of waxed paper sprinkled with sugar.

Roll each piece until very thin (about 1/16-inch thick), turning frequently to coat with sugar.

Shaping gumdrop roses Holding a flattened gumdrop at the center, overlap edges slightly to give a petal effect, pressing the piece together at base to resemble a rose bud.

For an open blossom, bend gumdrop petals outward from the center. Insert a small piece of gumdrop in the center with a wooden pick, if desired.

Use a wooden pick to attach flowers to a cake if necessary.

Hip! Hip!! Hooray!!!

By Jolene Adams

Ripe rose hips

One of the rose garden’s many bounties occurs each fall as the last roses bloom and succulent rose hips form. These hips are actually seed pods and are edible. Remember — roses and apples are cousins!! So the hip forms like a little “rose apple”. Depending on the type of rose, the hips will differ in shape, size, sweetness, color and time it takes to ripen. As with all fruit, you will know when the hip is ripe because the sides will “give” slightly when you gently squeeze the pod. In my yard I have roses that make big, round hips that start out green and slowly turn bright pumpkin orange. There are two other bushes whose hips are slender and “flask” or “coke bottle” shaped and they tend to turn reddish brown. The best and biggest hips in my yard are on Altissimo (a climber) and Hansa (one of the rugosas).

The hip forms after the bloom has withered, so if you want to harvest hips you must stop deadheading the roses in August.

When I was a little girl, my grandmother taught me to make green apple jelly. She also adapted her recipe to make jelly from the rose hips in the fall. It’s pretty simple, and very tasty. Rose hips have from 10 to100 times more vitamin C than most natural products along with vitamins A, E, B-1, niacin, K and P along with calcium, phosphorous and iron.

PREPARATIONS
If you want to try this winter ritual, here’s how to start.

Be very sure the roses haven’t been sprayed with insecticide or dusted with sulfur. This is very important. You want clean, untainted rose hips for your jelly.

Watch the hips form and when they are the right color (or you are sure they are ripe), pick them off. Most rose hip recipes require a good amount of rose hips.

Have sterilized jelly jars ready.

Wash the hips and chop them (nowadays, I use a food processor). Since this is going to be a jelly (which will be strained any way) you don’t need to remove the skin or pick out the seeds. Just don’t puree the stuff until the seeds break up — if broken, they add bitterness to the jelly.

(Some recipes call for apple pieces to provide extra juiciness, which reduces the quantity of hips needed but not the particular taste and aroma of the hips.)

“NO PECTIN” ROSE HIP JAM

Boil 2 lbs of chopped rose hips in 2 pints of water until good and tender. Rub the pulp through a fine sieve to remove the seeds and basically make a puree.

Peel, quarter and remove seeds from 4 to 5 green apples and boil in water until soft. Rub them through the sieve also.

Combine the apple and rose hip puree with 2 1/2 to 3 cups of sugar and 1/3 of a cup of lemon juice. The solution should be cloudy with minutes bits of the rose and apple pulp.

Bring to a boil and continue boiling for another 15 minutes.

When it has reached the desired consistency, pour into sterilized jars and seal.

SUMMER ROSE HIP JELLY

Place 1 quart of last winter’s dried apple slices into a deep cooking pot, cover with warm water and let stand overnight (or at least 8 hours). The next day add 1 quart of fresh rose hips to the pot and cover with warm water.

Bring the pot to a boil and cook until very soft. Drain off the liquid through a jelly bag into a new pot.

Add 2 cups of sugar for each pint of juice and boil for another 20 minutes or until mixture jells into a thick mass when dropped from a spoon into cold water.

Pour into sterilized jars and seal.

ROSE HIP MARMALADE

Soak one pound of washed rose hips in water for a couple of hours to soften the skins. After soaking, bring to a boil in the same water and cook for 15 minutes.

Strain the liquid into a smaller pot and for each cup of juice, add one cup of granulated sugar. Stir well.
Boil the sweetened juice until it reaches a thick syrup consistency.

Add the boiled rose hips (you can chop them into chunks if you desire). Boil syrup mixture until the hips are very tender.

Pour into sterilized jars and seal.

Copyright © Lara Velez, All Rights Reserved

About the Author: Lara Velez is a homeschooling Mom of two, wife, business owner and published writer. She runs a large website for Christian Mothers, Moms of Faith and an encouraging blog for wives, Becoming a Wife that Pleases the Lord. She enjoys cooking, reading, scrapbooking, and being a wife and mom.

Once a Month Cooking

By Mrs. Crystal Paine

Growing up as one of the oldest children in a family of nine, I know that cooking for a crowd can almost be a full-time job. Once-a-month-cooking has been a lifesaver for our family. When we first heard of cooking 30 meals in one day, it sounded rather impossible. It was not until we had tried it, that we found it is not only possible, but it can even be quite simple and fun!

Blessings

If you are skeptical about taking on what might seem like an overwhelming task to you, let me first share some of the blessings which have resulted for our family from once-a-month-cooking.

• It has saved us many hours of trying to figure out what to have for dinner and answered the infamous question, “What’s for dinner?”
• We have been more readily able to show hospitality to other families when the main dish is already made and in the freezer. (We usually plan ahead for this by doubling or tripling seven to ten of the recipes on cooking day to use as “company meals.”) In like manner, it is much easier to being meals to needy families when you have casseroles in the freezer ready to be pulled out and heated at the drop of a hat. (We also plan for this by preparing many of the dishes in disposable pans.)
• It saves time (You only have to do mountains of dishes one day a month, not every day! You also don’t have to start dinner at 4:30 p.m. or earlier everyday… just pull dinner out to thaw in the morning.) and money (You can usually save quite a bit by buying in bulk).
• We are brought closer together as we spend a special day as a family cooking these meals.
• This is an excellent lesson in Home Economics for your children. Mom always has the oldest girls plan the menu, grocery list, and strategy for the cooking day. She often has us do the grocery shopping, as well.

Planning

Proper planning is essential for a successful cooking day. I usually start planning at least a week in advance. First, pick which day will be your cooking day. Clear your schedule that day. You will want to focus your energies entirely on cooking.

Menu Planning: After you have chosen your cooking day, begin menu planning. Go through your cookbooks and find recipes suitable for freezing. Strive for variety. My list usually includes: one-dish dinners, meatloaf, meatballs, layered casseroles, soups, chili, hamburgers, meatless dishes, and so on. Make sure that you include a number of family favorites, in addition to any new recipes you may be trying out. You do not want to fill your freezer with meals your family won’t find appetizing! When you write down your menu, make sure and write down the cookbook and page number the recipe came from. In addition, mark whether you are planning to double or triple the recipe.

Make Your Grocery List: Using your menu list, write down the quantities of ingredients needed for each recipe. I like to categorize like ingredients on five to seven different lists (meats, vegetables, cheese, pasta, spices, etc.). Take these lists and combine all like ingredients onto a final list. For example, if there are fifteen recipes calling for one pound of ground beef, you will write “15 pounds ground beef” on your final grocery list.

After you have made your final grocery list, make sure and check your cupboards to see what you might already have on hand. You probably have most of the seasonings. But be sure that if you need four teaspoons of garlic powder, you actually have that much in the jar. I have not checked thoroughly before, and it has been real headache.

I have found it most helpful to keep a separate “food preparation list” along with my grocery list which states what is to be done with the items which I need large quantities (Such as, if one the items on your list is “20 pounds of chicken breasts,” note beside that item how many cups need to be cooked and diced, how many chicken breasts need to be cooked and left whole, how many need to be left frozen, etc.).

You will also want to make sure you have plenty of freezer bags and foil on hand. These will be essential on your cooking day.

Cooking Day Strategy: It is wise to develop a basic cooking day strategy of what you will do when. This does not need to be an exhaustive list, but it will save you time and effort if you have planned the basic order of what you will be cooking when. If you are going to be working together as a family on cooking, plan who is responsible for what tasks. Although everyone will need to be flexible, it will definitely save hassle to have most of the schedule worked out ahead of time.

Shopping: The day before you begin cooking, do your grocery shopping. Make sure you do not rush through this. Read your list thoroughly and check to get the best deal.

Cooking

The sooner you can start in the morning, the better. Begin by cooking the meats, grating the cheese, chopping the onions, or whatever bulk preparations your “food preparation list” says you need to do. If you have planned to make soups, you should start these early on, as they usually need to cook for longer.

Cooking the meat is one of the most time-consuming projects and you will probably find you end up browning ground beef and boiling chicken most of the day! As much as is possible, use all of the burners on your stove at the same time.

Keep soapy water in the sink at all times and take turns being on “dish duty.” As soon as a dish is used, wash it. This will save you from having an enormous mess at the end of the day. You might also find it helpful to take a five-minute kitchen cleaning break every hour or so to wipe down the counters and put things away which you are no longer using.

Freezing

What do you do with the completed dishes?

Here are some guidelines for freezing:

• We always designate the kitchen table as our “finished recipe” zone. We often have someone who is specifically just working on labeling things and taking them to the freezer from the kitchen table.
• Proper labeling is a key factor in making sure you know what you have in freezer. Make sure you label the containers with the recipe, the cookbook it came from, the page number, how many it serves, and any additional instructions for the dish. Also write out a list with all of the recipes you make and freeze and how many they serve on the outside of your freezer.
• Transfer soup to a big bowl and cool for about an hour. You can either place the soup in plastic freezer bags or plastic containers with lids (32 oz. cottage cheese and yogurt containers work well for this).
• Most other recipes can be transferred to plastic freezer bags. Do not fill the bags very full, as foods expand when frozen. Do not put anything which is still hot into bags. You will likely split the bag at the seams and have a gigantic mess to deal with!
• Use smaller labeled bags for cheese or anything else to be sprinkled on top once the dish is cooked. Make sure you keep these in a very accessible place in the freezer.
• If the recipe is something like lasagna which cannot be frozen in a plastic bag, freeze it in the size of pan the recipe calls for, cover with foil, and label.

I wholeheartedly encourage you to give once-a-month-cooking a try. If you are like us, you will soon wonder how you ever lived without cooking this way! You could also simplify this plan and just cook for two weeks at a time to start.

For further information, ideas, and recipes, I highly recommend you read Once-A-Month-Cooking by Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg and Dinner’s in the Freezer by Jill Bond.

Happy Cooking!

About the Author: Crystal Paine is a 23-year-old homeschool graduate and the owner of Covenant Wedding Source, LLC (an online retail bridal business specializing in custom-made affordable bridal wear). She writes articles on a variety of topics and recently authored her first book. She lives with her husband in Topeka, KS. For more information on her business and booklet, visit her website: www.covenantweddingsource.com.

15 Time-Saving Kitchen Tips!

By: Cyndi Roberts
1 Frugal Friend 2 Another

It’s always nice to hear about an easier or faster way to do something–especially if that something is in the kitchen, where we spend so much of our time!

Try these time-savers!

1. Mix up your pancake batter in your blender, then pour right out of your container onto the griddle. You’ll have lump-free batter and lots less to clean up.

2. Having a children’s birthday party? The day before, scoop ice cream into a muffin pan lined with paper liners. Keep in the freezer till serving time.

3. For quick frosting on a cake or pan of brownies, sprinkle a 12-oz. bag of chocolate chips on top while cake is still warm. Let it sit for a few minutes, the chips will be soft enough to spread. Try using mint chocolate chips, too!

4. We’ve all made small pizzas using English muffins, but have you tried using flour tortillas? Just top with pizza sauce and your other favorite things, and bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes or so.

5. Your kitchen shears are the best tool for cutting fresh green beans into pieces. You can even cut more than one bean at a time.

6. Instead of making a white sauce for your veggies tonight, mix equal parts of mayo and the water the veggies cooked in. Add salt and pepper to your taste.

7. When you have cooking odors you would like to get rid of, boil a few cinnamon sticks in water for a few minutes.

8. Another way to clean up pots and pans quickly–boil a little vinegar and water in the pan. Then stuck on food is easily cleaned out.

9. Another use for your electric knife: it slices chilled cookie dough very neatly.

10. Don’t fry your bacon, cook it in the oven! Just lay the slices on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees until crisp and done. Easy cleanup, too.

11. An easy, quick way to shred carrots for carrot cake: place pieces of carrot in blender, add eggs the
recipe calls for and blend until of desired consistency.

12. Want to have spaghetti for sauce but no time for making sauce? Just blend a can of Italian diced
tomatoes and heat.

13. If you spill cooking oil on the floor or counter, sprinkle flour over it; wait a few minutes for it to absorb and wipe or sweep up.

14. An easy way to peel a tomato: rub all over with the back of a knife. Then it peels easily.

15. Use a small funnel to easily and quickly separate an egg. The white will go through, while the yolk will stay in the funnel.

How you spend your time is more important than how you spend your money. Money mistakes can be corrected, but time is gone forever. —David Norris

About the Author: Cyndi Roberts is the editor of the “1 Frugal Friend 2 Another” bi-weekly newsletter and founder of the website of the same name. Visit http://www.cynroberts.com to find creative tips, articles, and a free e-cooking book. Subscribe to the newsletter and receive the free e-course “Taming the Monster Grocery Bill”.

A Typical Monday Morning

By: Ginger Hill

BRRRRIIIINNNNGGG……..SNOOZE!
BRRRRIIIINNNNGGG……..SNOOZE!
BRRRRIIIINNNNGGG……..SNOOZE!
BRRRRIIIINNNNGGG……..SNOOZE!

Well, you have just witnessed a customary Monday morning pattern for a number of people! You hear the alarm buzzing in your ears and your brain does recognize the sound, however, your body simply won’t move! And, your eyes?!?! Forget about it! They wouldn’t open if you had a crowbar trying to pry them apart! When your brain, body, and eyes finally catch up to each other, you realize that you are now pouncing out of bed 30 minutes later than you had intended! Now you only have 30 minutes before you have to leave for work and, what’s worse than that…..You have no time to eat breakfast, not to mention a healthy one. To fully re-charge your battery on a classic Monday morning such as this, you need quick and easy with a breakfast that will give you a healthy surge of energy!

The answer is quite simple! Don’t be cruel….to a heart’s that true! Yes, you heard me right! I broke out in song because with Elvis Presley Oatmeal you won’t be treating your body like a hound dog! Elvis Presley’s most favorite food of all time was peanut butter and banana sandwiches, so why not take it a step further? Add peanut butter and bananas to oatmeal!

Elvis definitely had the right idea when it came to combining peanut butter and bananas because peanuts are high in protein (an excellent source of energy) and “healthy fat”. Bananas also serve as a great source of energy to help shake off the Monday morning “lazies”! Bananas contain no fat, sodium, or cholesterol, however they are rich in potassium, which helps to regulate blood pressure and may reduce the risk of high blood pressure and stroke. Oatmeal, a rich source of soluble fiber, has been scientifically proven to reduce cholesterol, according to the Quaker Oats website. Your body does need some cholesterol to make hormones and to breakdown the fats that you consume, however, if not regulated, high levels of cholesterol can cause major problems. As you can see, this combination is just what you need for a busy Monday morning to help get you going.

But, you have no time to cook Elvis Presley Oatmeal on this manic Monday! Well, over half the battle to coping with such a Monday morning as this is preparation the night before. With this simple recipe, you can actually prepare this oatmeal dish the night before, divide it into microwave safe bowls, cover with plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator. Then, on Sunday night, before you go to bed, place a bowl of Elvis Presley Oatmeal into the microwave so when you fly out of bed, be-bop over to the microwave and press the start button. This way, your breakfast can prepare itself while you get yourself ready for the rest of Monday!

Elvis Presley Oatmeal

3 ripe mashed bananas
½ cup peanut butter
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
¼ cup brown sugar
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp allspice
1 tsp salt
2 ½ cups water

Mix all and bring to a boil. When mixture begins to boil, stir in 1 ½ cups old fashioned oatmeal. Cover and slow simmer the mixture for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally

When done let cool. Divide into 6 microwave safe bowls, cover with plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator until ready to heat in the microwave. For an extra rich flavor, add a little milk or cream after heating in the microwave. Stir and ENJOY!

Elvis Presley Oatmeal is sure to smooth out your rough Monday morning routine by providing you with a hot, healthy, tasty breakfast. Not only are you providing your body with the energy it needs but the added health benefits of this breakfast are priceless. So, go ahead! Indulge in this rich, creamy pea-nutty delight sweetened with ripe bananas that will not have you singing about your blue suede shoes!

Copyright © The Recipe Finder, All Rights Reserved

Featured Holiday – Easter

EASTER – is observed on the first Sunday after the full moon that follows the spring equinox…which usually falls between March 22nd and April 25th.

Easter is the most important holiday to the Christian faith. It celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Savior. The entire Christian faith revolves around this; Jesus came from Heaven to earth…lived a sinless life…then chose to die for the sins of mankind. He was crucified and then He resurrected on the third day after His death. Christians believe that by confessing your sins to the Lord and believing that Jesus paid the price for your sins…You will spend eternity in Heaven…

So, where do Easter Bunnies and eggs fit into this Christian holiday? Well, like many religious holidays Easter has become a secular holiday too. The exchanging of eggs has been a spring time custom since before Easter became a “holiday.” Eggs are a symbol of rebirth.

The bunny was originally used in pagan spring celebrations. A rabbit was used to symbolize the goddess Eastre.

Surprisingly enough…Easter was named after the goddess Eastre by early Christians to try and convert pagans to Christianity by celebrating their most important holiday during the pagan’s spring celebration.

HAPPY EASTER!

Below are some delicious recipes to serve this Easter.

Pineapple Glazed Ham

4 cups pineapple juice
1 T. sliced, fresh ginger
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 9-pound, bone-in smoked ham
12 whole cloves
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 20-oz can pineapple slices in juice, drained
10 maraschino cherries, halved

Stir together first 3 ingredients in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 25 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half. Pour mixture through a wire-mesh strainer into a bowl, discarding solids. Remove skin and excess fat from ham. Make 1/4-inch-deep cuts in a diamond design, and insert cloves at 1-inch intervals. Place ham in an aluminum foil-lined roasting pan. Spread Dijon mustard evenly over ham. Pat brown sugar on top of the mustard. Pour pineapple juice mixture into pan. Arrange pineapple and cherries evenly over mustard layer on ham; secure with tooth picks.

Bake at 325° for 1 hour. Cover with heavy duty aluminum foil after 1 hour to prevent excess browning, and bake 1 to 1 1/2 hours , basting every 30 minutes with pan juices. Let stand 15 minutes before slicing.

SCALLOPED POTATOES

1 T.butter
2 cups chopped shallots
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 pounds your favorite potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/8-inch slices
Cooking spray
1 2/3 cups milk
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 T. grated Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic; stir well. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until the shallots are tender. Remove from heat; set aside.

Arrange one-third of potato slices in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray; top with half of shallot mixture. Repeat layers, ending with potato slices.

Combine milk, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and egg in a bowl; stir well with a wire whisk. Pour over potato mixture. Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 30 minutes. Sprinkle cheese over potato mixture, and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until browned.

LEMON BARS

2 cups flour
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 cup butter
1/2 tsp salt
4 eggs, well beaten
1 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons flour
1 tsp. lemon zest

Mix 2 cups flour, confectioners sugar, butter, and 1/2 Tsp. salt with pastry blender. Pat mixture into a 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350F degrees for 20 minutes.

Mix eggs, sugar, lemon juice, zest, salt, baking powder, and 2 Tbsp. flour well. Pour over crust. Bake 15 to 20 minutes.Cut while warm.

Copyright © Lara Velez, All Rights Reserved

About the Author: Lara Velez is a homeschooling Mom of two, wife, business owner and published writer. She runs a large website for Christian Mothers, Moms of Faith and an encouraging blog for wives, Becoming a Wife that Pleases the Lord. She enjoys cooking, reading, scrapbooking, and being a wife and mom.

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