The Day After! (also called “I survived!”)

Last night was the ‘big event’ for the Detroit Veterans Hospital’s Baby shower donations and the ladies (once again) knocked my socks off! We had a grand total of 133 items! The breakdown: 17 blankets, 47 baby hats, 18 toddler headbands, 24 bibs, 1 sweater & pants, 2 sweater/hat/mittens sets, 2 baby sacks, 19 pr. booties and one (very adorable) knit zebra!  Each year things ‘shake out’ differently – for the most part, we usually have a LOT of blankets and then other items; not this year! I’ve decided I’m going to just stick to headbands & blankets. Here are a few of the photos:

One of our ladies is an expert knitter & she loves to create these hats & booties – there’s a pumpkin set, an eggplant set, a strawberry set & 2 (pink & blue sets) with pea pods attached to the hats. She was having fun this year doing the red/white/blue Star hats.

                Another lady sewed baby bibs using flannel & terry cloth! There’s 14 of them!

                                        my headbands

The VERY adorable zebra is upper left corner (I tried my best to photo him but he’s FLOPPY. She’s another expert knitter & created the sweater sets all ‘out of her head’! WOW!

                    Three of my blankets (not very good lighting)

(There’s a total of 15 photos, so I only included some) I was so proud of all my ladies – there were even a few donated items from OTHER knitters who knew of our project but aren’t in the group!

===============

Spiced Zucchini Bars

2 C. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
3 eggs, beaten
1 C. oil
2 C. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 C. raisins
2 C. zucchini, grated
3/4 C. chopped nuts
1 (16 oz) container cream cheese
frosting
–
Preheat oven 325 degrees F.
Grease & flour a 15 X 10″ jelly roll
pan. In bowl combine flour, baking
soda, salt & cinnamon. In another
bowl whisk eggs, oil, sugar, vanilla &
lemon juice. Gradually add flour
mixture to egg mixture – fold in
remaining ingredients (except
frosting). Pour into prepared pan
& bake 25-35 minutes until lightly
golden. Cool completely then
spread with frosting. Cut into bars.
Makes 3 dozen bars

(recipe: gooseberrypatch.typepad.com)
————————————
Honey Soy Chicken Breasts
(a few hours marinade or overnight)

1/4 C. honey
1/3 c. light soy sauce
1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
4 cloves minced garlic
1 T. finely grated fresh ginger root
4 large chicken breasts, skinless
but not boneless
–
Stir together all ingredients (EXCEPT
chicken) & pour into a large ziplock
bag. Add chicken & marinate in fridge
a few hours or over night.

Preheat oven 375 degrees F.
Place marinated chicken on a foil-
lined cookie sheet & bake, uncovered,
about 45 minutes until chicken is
fully cooked (using a meat thermometer,
internal temp. of chicken should be 170
& 180 degrees F.). DO NOT throw away
the marinade. While chicken is cooking,
simmer it in a saucepan over low heat
& brush on chicken about every 10
minutes as it cooks. Serves 4

(recipe: rockrecipes.com)
———————————-

Grandma’s Sunday Roast

3 C. beef broth
2-3 lb. beef chuck roast, trimmed of
excess fat
1 tsp. Kosher salt
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. crushed rosemary
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
2 lb. red or yellow potatoes, cut
into large chunks
1 lb. fresh green beans, trimmed
1 lb. baby carrots
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 T. cornstarch + 2 T. cold water
–
Press all seasonings (salt/onion powder/
garlic powder/rosemary/paprika) onto all
sides of roast. Pour beef broth into crockpot;
add roast. (You can brown the roast before-
hand – brown each side in 1 T. heated oil
in a skillet for 3 minutes per side).
Cover & cook on Low 4 hours.
Remove lid & add veggies; drizzle with
Worc. sauce – cover & cook 4 hours more
on Low.
Remove lid; scoop meat & veggies onto
large platter & loosely tent with foil.
In small bowl stir cornstarch & cold water
until smooth – stir mixture into juices in
crockpot. Turn heat to High & let thicken;
stirring. (You can also thicken the gravy on
the stove in a pot if you desire).
Serve roast with veggies & gravy.
Serves 6-8

(recipe: 365daysofcrockpot.com)
——————————–

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

1 (12 oz) box tri-colored rotini (or any
color)
1 (3.8 oz) can sliced black olives
1 (5.75 oz) can sliced green olives
6 oz. fresh broccoli, chopped
6 oz. fresh cauliflower, chopped
1/4 C. sunflower seeds
1/4 C. (Hormel) real bacon pieces
1 pkt. dry Ranch salad dressing mix
1/2 C. mayonnaise
1/2 C. sour cream
1 C. milk
–
In medium bowl mix Ranch dressing mix,
sour cream, mayonnaise, milk – whisk
together; cover & let thicken 30 minutes.
Cook pasta; drain & rinse in cold water –
pour into a large bowl. Add olives, broccoli,
cauliflower, sunflower seeds & bacon to
noodles – pour ranch dressing over & toss
to fully coat. Chill 1 hour for flavors to
blend then sprinkle more bacon pieces
on top before serving. Serves 12

(recipe: persniketyplates.com)
———————————-

Last Minute Green Beans

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 (14.5 oz, ea) cans green beans, drained
1 onion, chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
–
Place drained green beans in medium
saucepot; add onion, tomatoes with
juice, salt/pepper -stir. Bring to slight
boil over medium-high heat. Reduce
heat to Low. Cover & simmer 10-15
minutes.

(recipe: southernplate.com)
———————————–

Bacon/Cucumber/Tomato Salad

6 slices bacon
3 C. large cut chopped cucumber
3 C. large cut chopped tomatoes
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/3 C. mayonnaise
1/8 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. Creole or Cajun seasoning
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
–
Cook bacon until crisp; drain on
paper towels – chop when cool
enough to handle, reserve a pinch
for garnish.
Toss cucumber & tomatoes together –
season with salt. Mix together
mayonnaise & seasonings; add to
tomatoes & gently toss. Add remaining
bacon to salad – gently toss, taste &
adjust seasonings. Transfer to a serving
bowl & garnish with a sprinkle of
Creole or Cajun seasoning & reserved
bacon. Serve immediately or refrigerate
1 hour to chill. Serves about 4

NOTE:
Old Fashioned Cracker Salad:

Prepare salad as above omitting
cucumber & adding 1/2 C. chopped
Vidalia onion or 2 large green onions,
sliced. Double mayonnaise amount –
stir in 1 sleeve saltine crackers, coarsely
broken. Mix well, adding additional
mayonnaise if needed to moisten.
Serve immediately or (if refrigerating)
wait to add crackers until just before
serving. Also good with one boiled/
chopped egg added.

(recipe: deepsouthdish.com)
———————————-
Grilled Steak/Potato & Mushroom Kabobs

1 lb. steak cut into 1″ chunks
8 oz. fresh mushrooms
1 lb. small potatoes
1/4 C. olive oil
1/4 C. balsamic vinegar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
–
In a rimmed baking pan add steak chunks &
mushrooms. In a medium bowl whisk oil,
vinegar, garlic, salt/pepper, rosemary &
oregano -pour over steak & mushrooms
in pan. Cover & refrigerate at least 2 hours
=
Meanwhile, boil potatoes in large pot of
salted water until just tender, about 8-10
minutes – drain & cool slightly. Thread
marinated steak chunks, mushrooms &
potatoes, alternating, onto skewers.
Heat grill to medium-high heat. Grill kabobs
10-12 minutes, turning once, until meat is
cooked to desired doneness. Re-season with
salt/pepper & serve immediately.
Serves 6

(recipe: letsdishrecipes.com)
——————————–

Easy Copycat Thin Mint Cookies

1 C. chocolate (dark, semi-sweet or coating/
confectionery wafers)
3/4 tsp. mint extract
15-18 Ritz crackers
–
Place a layer of waxed paper on a cookie
sheet.
Melt chocolate of your choice (in micro-
wave or in a saucepan). Add mint extract
to melted chocolate (this might cause
the chocolate to thicken up a bit, depending
on what type of chocolate you use). Dip
crackers in chocolate (poster says she drops
the cracker into the chocolate & flip it around
using a fork – remove carefully using two forks –
Let excess chocolate drip off & place on
prepared waxed paper. Cool & store cookies
in fridge. These cookies are best eaten straight
from the fridge. Makes 15-18 cookies

(recipe: craftcookingmama.com)

=====================

Our weather has been pretty nice – not too hot;
today it’s hovering around 72 degrees F. & sunny.
Looks like we’ll be having highs from 78 to 82 for
the rest of the week – I LIKE that!

Not much else new; working on another baby blanket
(I know . . . . what ELSE do I knit, right?).

I’m not sure if the ‘other’ grandma is back from their
cabin but (so far) I haven’t been asked to babysit this
week – I’m GOOD with that; can always use the break!
I’ve already texted that the only days I’m free next week
are Wednesday (If needed, otherwise it’s my Library Knit
group 10-12 & my special needs group 6:15-9) and Friday!
We’ll see what shakes out . . .

Have a GREAT day!

Hugs;

Pammie