Apples + Huckleberries = Delicious!

I don't think dessert gets any yummier 
than a homemade pie, 

fresh out of the oven and 
topped with homemade ice cream!

We absolutely LOVE homemade Apple Pie 

AND

we absolutely LOVE Huckleberries. 

Who would have known that you could combine them together to create something so delicious! 

It's just a basic apple pie recipe
that you substitute one of the cups of apples for 1 cup of huckleberries...

Here's how you do it...

Huckleberry Apple Pie 

Pie Crust recipe here 

4 cups thinly sliced apples

1 cup huckleberries

1 cup of sugar

1/2 cup flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

(heat oven to 375 degrees)

Mix all together and coat well.

Put into pie pan lined with pie crust

Dot of the top of it with 1 Tbsp. butter

Put top crust on and pinch edges.

Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 25 degrees.  
Remove foil and bake another 30-35 minutes until crust is golden. 

 Served with ice cream, this is perfect!

Enjoy!  

Seven Layers of Goodie Deliciousness!

Oh, the wonderful memories I have 

of my mom making these Goodie Bars.  

They smell SO good when they are baking 
and they taste amazing.

To me when my mom would make these up they were magic, delicious, and there was never a family outing, baby blessing, Baptism dinner, Christmas Party, or any other special occasion even that we attended that these yummy bars didn't grace the dessert table.  These were what she was famous for.
Everyone was so excited to come to an event, just because they knew these would be there to enjoy.
These were even on the dessert trays for our wedding reception. 

For years, I thought these were her own creation, because I never had them anywhere else, but as you grow up, you realize there are many people that have the same or similar recipes as you do.  

Before I started making Cinnamon Roasted Almonds and Caramels for our Christmas goodie boxes, these
Seven Layer Goodie Bars along with Gumdrop Bread and other yummy things were what I would give our neighbors each year at Christmas Time.

If you want something that is SO easy and quick to throw together
that is out of this world delicious,
try making some of these today...they are  
Seven Layers of Goodie Deliciousness!

Seven Layer Goodie Bars

1 cube of REAL butter
1 cup crushed graham crackers
1 cup coconut
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk 

Heat oven to 350 degrees.   

Place butter in a 9x13 pan and put in the oven until the butter is melted. 

Remove pan and sprinkle with crushed graham crackers, coconut, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, walnuts and last of all, pour 1 can of condensed milk to completely cover the top of bars.  

Place back in oven and cook for 25 minutes.  

Remove from oven and let cool over night.  

Cut into bars and enjoy!  

(photo circa 2002 at Ethan's baby blessing & Jade's Baptism luncheon...mom is unwrapping her tray of treats...Goodie Bars and Rice Krispie treats)

 So happy to have such a great mom

that shared so many yummy recipes and 
taught me so many wonderful things!

Kimmie in Real Life! (week 13)

 This week I enjoyed SO much time and fun with my family.

I got to be there to send them out the door with a yummy breakfast and a big hug and kiss for the first three days of school.

These are the moments that I so hold on to so dearly and they are cherished as priceless memories...

time with my family, truly is my most prized possession!!

Here are the food highlights 

from our week!

These photos just make me melt!!
I have to admit that my kids have the greatest dad in the world!  

He always takes time for them and is never in too big of a hurry to let them help him out. 

Ethan had to miss out on the monthly scout camp-out and so Tracy told him he could help him fix Skillet Breakfast in the Dutch Oven for our Sunday morning breakfast. 

This is SO easy, SO yummy... 

I don't know why we don't think to make this more often. 

The sun was shining so wonderfully, 
 it was warm and so we loaded our plates and headed to our
lovely back yard picnic table and enjoyed our yummy breakfast!
I'm going to miss these moments
when winter comes and we are no longer able to enjoy eating our meals outside.

I made a batch of tortillas on Monday afternoon 
 and I took the leftover skillet breakfast and heated it up and
made breakfast burritos for dinner to enjoy with our smoothie.

We had an abundance of cherries,

Ethan wanted pudding cups

SO, I decided to make a batch of cherry pie filling, 

made a batch of pudding cups

made a batch of cupcakes,

I cut each cupcake in half,

took a pudding cup and covered the cupcake in pudding 

and we spooned pie filling on the top.

Can you say, yummy!!

Tracy and the boys had a hike to go on
and so I took leftover tortillas, cooked up a chicken breast and we made chicken wraps....

spread tortilla with cream cheese and mustard,
top with chicken, tomatoes, bell pepper slices and chives,  
roll it up and TA-DA!  Delicious lunch to enjoy on the trail.

String cheese, granola bars, 
dried and fresh fruit were enjoyed for trail snacks.

I had purchased some shirts on sale
around Easter-time for Ethan to wear this fall to school ($1.99 each shirt) and when I opened the bag to get the shirts, I noticed a loan bag of Easter ROLO's  that I had purchased for our Easter Egg Hunt that had gotten lost in the bag of shirts...

SO, I took the ROLO's, unwrapped them, and made up my 

Double Chocolate cookies...

only I left out the chocolate chips and just wrapped the dough around the ROLO,
put the cookie dough balls on a cookie sheet,  
baked at 350 degrees for 14 minutes and we had  
decadent chocolate/caramel cookies 
to enjoy in our lunches for the first day of school!

I asked the kids what kind of bread they wanted for the first day of school sandwiches and they both said "Honey Whole Wheat". 

I must have been inspired to bake this bread, because I froze 2 loaves and they ended up coming in handy for the weekend sandwiches on our Huckleberry picking adventure!

Pineapples were on sale for $2.36 a pineapple
and so I purchased 3 of them, cut them into chunks, bagged them up and now I have pineapple for us to enjoy during the winter months as we add it to our weekly smoothies.

Tracy had been asking if we could make this up,
however, they were hiking all day and I didn't feel confident with my Dutch Oven skills
and so I made this up and cooked it in my oven.

I had some random broccoli, mushrooms and celery that I added to the recipe and made it with 1/2 brown and 1/2 white rice.  

I have to say, it was SO good!!  

The leftovers we enjoyed later in the week with some steamed broccoli and cantaloupe.

I was craving something made with Huckleberries 
 and I wanted to make something yummy for the kids for breakfast  
(since it is a celebration to have all of us home together in the morning in the middle of the week)
SO, I pulled out a bag of Huckleberries from our freezer and made a batch of muffins.

LOVE my muffin recipe with my new addition...
 I added in 1 heaping Tablespoon of ground flax seed,
1/2 cup fresh ground whole wheat flour and 1-1/2 cups unbleached white flour.

That combination gives the PERFECT texture and makes the muffins hearty!

I made some mini muffins with the extra batter and the kids enjoyed the mini muffins in their lunches for a snack.

Such a great recipe for blueberries or huckleberries.

LOVED being there to send my kids off to school!! 
Priceless moments...sad that they are growing up so fast.

Jade is 17 and is a Junior in High School

Ethan is 9 and is in 4th grade (last year of elementary)

Our back to school meal was an absolute FLOP!!  

Kids heading to activities, none of us were home at the same time, so needless to say, the VEGGIE pizza, was good, but not the usual WOW!!   (when I get time to make this up again, I will post the recipe)

For now, I'll share what I did.

Made up pizza dough and let it rise for 2-3 hours in the afternoon.

Took zucchini, bell peppers, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes and sauteed them until tender.

Mixed one (8 oz) can of tomato sauce with some basil, oregano and garlic powder

Cooked the crust for 10 minutes

topped with sauce and veggies and chopped olives,

Topped with cheese and let it cook until the cheese was nice and melted (another 10-15 minutes)

Jade REALLY loved it
and was glad there was leftovers for him to enjoy in his lunch the next day.

 Our last week of daily smoothies!!
We savored and enjoyed each and every one of these glass fulls of nutrition and yummyness!

We went to a luncheon this weekend and they had made this salad.

I have always made mine with chopped cabbage and had never thought to use broccoli slaw, but seeing how much my family loved it , I decided I had better make some up for us to enjoy.

However, I didn't completely follow the recipe as I added in cooked chicken and grapes and only a sprinkling of the seasoning packet and this was such a YUMMY lunch. 

Jade has begged me to make more of this next week for another one of his lunches.

 I know people have debated back and forth on which recipe tastes best...homemade OREOS made from a box of cake mix, 
OR, made completely from scratch...

Hands down there is no competition...my family votes  
from scratch OREOS truly are the tastiest!    
(Tracy made me promise to make another batch the following week for him to take to work so his co-workers could enjoy them!)

 I knew we would probably heading out 
to pick huckleberries on Saturday morning
and so Friday afternoon, I pulled a roast out of the freezer, defrosted it and put it in the crock pot on low for about 15 hours until it was tender and fell apart. 
I then shredded it all up and put some in a container to take in our cooler to make roast beef sandwiches and then I froze the broth and rest of the roast to make future sandwiches and I'll use the broth to make some kind of soup.

I pulled bread out of the freezer before we headed out 

and put it in our cooler and by the time it was lunch time it was unthawed and I sliced it up, spread it with mustard and mayo and we had such a tasty lunch to enjoy in the mountains.  

We also enjoyed some SunChips, apple slices and OREO's for dessert.

Week of August 21st to 27th
Sunday
Cantaloupe, Skillet Breakfast that Tracy and the kids cooked in the Dutch Oven...enjoyed eating breakfast out on our picnic table enjoying the wonderful morning sunshine
(had a luncheon at Shae and Sheldon's house after they had their baby blessing) 
Enjoyed Cantaloupe and donut peaches for an evening snack before bed

Monday
Steel Cut Oats
(Tracy) Leftover Lentil Stew, cherries, banana and apple
(kids and I) Green Smoothie
(snack) plain white cupcakes
Breakfast burritos with rest of leftover Skillet Breakfast, green smoothie
FHE treat of homemade cupcakes, topped with homemade vanilla pudding and cherry pie filling
(Made tortillas for burritos for dinner and wraps for Tuesdays lunches) also made cupcakes, vanilla pudding and cherry pie filling)

Tuesday
Steel Cut Oats
(Tracy, Jade & Ethan Went on hike with our local young men’s group...took chicken/veggie tortilla wrap, homemade granola bars, string cheese and apple
(me) Chicken Wrap, Pluot and apple
Chicken and Rice in Dutch Oven, Double Chocolate Cookies with ROLOS in the middle) 
(made Honey Whole Wheat Bread)

Wednesday (First day of school for my kids)
Smoothie, boiled eggs on whole wheat toast
Tuna Sandwiches on whole wheat bread, chips, apples, Double Chocolate Cookies
Homemade Vegetarian Pizza with garden veggies

Thursday
Green Smoothie, Whole Wheat Huckleberry muffins
Tuna sandwiches on whole wheat bread, apple, mini muffins, chips
Cantaloupe, Steamed up some broccoli and mixed it with the rest of our Chicken and Rice

Friday
Green Smoothie, Whole Wheat Huckleberry muffins
(Tracy and Jade) Broccoli Salad, apple, string cheese, mini muffins
(Ethan) Tuna Sandwich on whole wheat bread, chips, string cheese, apple, mini muffins
(put roast in crock pot so we would have some sandwich fixins' for our trip to the mountains on Saturday)
(Made homemade OREO cookies)
Dinner...steamed artichokes

Saturday
Smoothie
(headed out to pick huckleberries)
Lunch break...Roast Beef sandwiches on whole wheat bread, chips, homemade OREO's
Dinner...stopped and got Pizza at Heise Hot Springs after a long day of working hard picking huckleberries

Links to Recipes used this week:
Honey Whole Wheat Bread
Homemade Tortillas
Blueberry OR Huckleberry Muffins
Skillet Breakfast
Lentil Stew 

Broccoli Slaw Salad 
Dutch Oven Chicken and Rice
Granola Bars
Double Chocolate ROLO cookies
Homemade OREO cookies
Vanilla Pudding Cups
White Cupcakes
Cherry Pie Filling

As I sat on a hillside in the mountains this week with my family around me and alone to my thoughts, I reflected on the simple message of this quote:

"Abundance is not a number or acquisition.

It is the simple recognition of enough-ness".

Alan Cohen

Food Storage makes tasty pudding cups!

It's funny how you send your kids to school and they come home begging to have things like the other kids have, such is the case with pudding cups. 

I have been making pudding cups for lunches for the past 2 years, when one spring afternoon in 2009 when Ethan got off the bus and came running into the house to tell me about something yummy that he shared with one of his friends at lunch!

The thing that I love about these recipes is that they use Evaporated Milk and Powdered Milk and so once again, you can take your basic food storage ingredients and make
yummy, tasty treats for your family. 

I purchased 4oz. containers (Glad brand) these are sturdy and work really well. 

I love that you can keep reusing the containers for future pudding so you don’t throw away containers.

SO, I make the pudding up,
let it cool a little
and then put the pudding in these containers
and chill them in the fridge.

The kids feel special having their own
homemade pudding cups
to pull out of their lunches at school!!
*****************
Really easy,
Really yummy
and really FUN for kids
that is for sure to put a
SMILE :-)
on their faces!!

(these are also great to make up and take on a summer picnic...as it is a way to have a treat and not have to heat up your house) 

Vanilla Pudding
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. flour
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 can evaporated milk
1-1/3 cup water
4 Tbsp powdered milk
1 egg yolk
1 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine dry ingredients in a saucepan. Gradually stir in evaporated milk and water. Over medium heat, bring to boil, stirring constantly. Let boil one minute. Beat egg yolk in a small bowl and stir in a small amount of hot mixture. Pour into pan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Let cool slightly, fill containers and chill.  

This tastes great warm or cold. (makes six (4 oz) containers of pudding)

Dark Chocolate Pudding
1 egg
2/3 cup cocoa powder
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 can evaporated milk
1-1/3 c. warm water
4 Tbsp. powdered milk
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla

In a small bowl, beat egg and set aside. Combine cocoa, powdered milk, and cornstarch in a separate bowl. Whisk 1 cup evaporated milk into cocoa mixture until completely smooth. In a large saucepan, combine remaining milk, sugar, water, and salt. Mix well. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, whisking constantly. Remove pan from heat. Whisk cocoa mixture into hot milk mixture. Bring to a boil over medium heat; boil for 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Remove pan from heat. Gradually whisk 1 c. of hot cocoa mixture into the egg. Pour mixture back into pan. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Do not boil. Remove pan from heat. Add butter and vanilla, blend well. Cool slightly, fill containers and chill at least an hour. 

Makes six (4 oz) containers of pudding.  

Homemade treats make HAPPY kids!
Try making some today and see the faces of your kids and family light up with a smile!

Broccoli never tasted so good!

We are very much a salad loving family...

we love everything from green salads with garden veggies, to potato and pasta salads.  

This Broccoli Slaw salad  

is one of those yummy salads that is quick to throw together and it can be 

a complete meal, since it has veggies, fruit, nuts and chicken in it. 

(BTW...broccoli slaw is made from the stem of the broccoli that they have sliced really thin)

Just serve with a slice of bread, muffin, or bread sticks 

and you have a great, quick and easy meal.

Broccoli Slaw Salad 

1 (12 oz) package of broccoli slaw
1/2 an onion finely chopped
1/2 cup toasted sunflower seeds

1/2 to 1 cup sliced grapes (green, OR, purple)

1 cooked chicken breast cut into thin slices
1 package of Ramen Noodles
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup vinegar (I use red wine vinegar, but any vinegar will do)
1/4 cup olive oil

First take sunflower seeds, put on a small baking sheet and toast in the oven at 350 degrees for 5 minutes
In a large bowl mix together broccoli slaw, chopped onion, cooked chicken and sunflower seeds
Make dressing with sugar, vinegar, olive oil and the seasoning packet from the Ramen Noodles  
(albeit, I just sprinkled on the tiniest little bit of seasoning and didn't use the whole packet)
Crumble dry Ramen noodles and pour over the top of the salad.
Pour dressing over the top and mix well.
(let sit a few hours in the fridge before serving so the flavors blend well)

Enjoy! 

My kids really like taking a bowl of this salad with a homemade muffin, string cheese and an apple for their lunch to school!   

In their words... 

"It's absolutely delicious"!

Stained fingers bring joy!

Where have I been you might ask?
It's been one crazy, hectic, but enjoyable month, FULL of lots of family fun!!  

While working my daily job from 7-12 on  Monday-Friday and dealing with normal everyday life, I have had to squeeze into my life, planning a 50th wedding anniversary party, going to Cross-Country meets and other school activities, dealing with an abundance of produce, dealing with church callings and also having family from out of town and having events going on every evening with them as we try to experience the most fun that we can before they leave to head back to their home in Tennessee  
AND the weather has been amazing and so many an afternoon and evening has been spent outside enjoying the last of our wonderful, perfect and warm summer weather.

Thus, is the reason for my lack of posting and as I sit and type and wonder where to begin with posting again,  I am doing what I always do when confronted with a dilemma, 

just START at the easiest place there is and move forward...

So,  

I share with you, two wonderful moments that stained my fingers 

 and filled my life with such JOY and wonderful memories! 

Last week of summer vacation FUN!  
The kids and I tie-dyed shirts for us the last few days before school started and we had a ball…AND better than ever, they turned out awesome… 
so awesome in fact,
that the kids decided they wanted to wear them on the first day of school.
I had the tune “Feelin' Groovy” going through my head all day long.

We headed out on an afternoon adventure to Jenny Lake and Jackson Hole, Wyoming with some of Tracy's family and I made us all wear our matching tie-dye shirts...
LOVE this photo of us standing in front of the Tetons on the Wyoming Side of the mountains.

We were swimming in projects to be done with putting together things for a 50th wedding anniversary for Tracy’s parents,  LOTS of home improvement projects to get done before company came from out of town, but, believe it or not, 

"The mountains were calling me 

to come and pick their bounty" 

I would so much rather be out in mountains 

enjoying this time that only comes around once a year, 

picking berries, relaxing on a hillside 

enjoying great, stimulating conversation with my family and  

filling our buckets with handfuls of "purple gold". 

Projects can be done anytime of the year, but picking Huckleberries only has a small window of time...so we enjoyed two wonderful days! 

wow, Wow, WOW, 

is all I can say, the bushes were SO loaded with berries and the berries were as big as blueberries and some as big as cranberries...my hands couldn't pick them fast enough.

Truly an amazing huckleberry picking year!

 Adventure on Day One

YES, if you want to have buckets of huckleberries to enjoy, you encounter these friendly little guys, around many a bush. I was AMAZED at how many cat face spiders and webs we came across!

Adventure on day two!

We enjoyed huckleberry pancakes for dinner
and made Apple Huckleberry Pie with homemade ice cream for dessert the next night.
After sorting berries, spreading them on cookie sheets lined in wax paper, putting them in the freezer and freezing them and then bagging them,
we ended up with 51 cups of huckleberries (just a little over 3 gallons)

 Happiness is...being a little "wild, crazy and bold" from time to time
Happiness is...being spontaneous and enjoying whatever the moment has to offer.

Happiness is...enjoying the gorgeous beauty of the mountains with my hubby and kids.

Happiness is...enjoying muffins, pancakes, pie and smoothies, using berries that were picked by the hands of my family!

 I learn on a weekly basis, that you have to get your hands a little dirty from time to time to truly enjoy and experience life at its fullest!

  Happiness is...my wonderful, happy life!