Alfredo

Yummy and oh so cheesy! We love us some pasta. You can use homemade noodles or boxed either works great. I love homemade noodles but sometimes you need something quick or just tired. lol I understand. We do chicken, shrimp and steak sometimes even a combo of each lol

Ingredients

-2cupa half and half (whole milk even lactose free works)

-1cup cheese little more until desired thickness

-Block of cream cheese

-Choose of noodles

-1tb garlic

-1tb parsley

-salt and pepper to taste

-nutmeg

Instructions:

I cook the meat of choice in some butter and garlic then I add the half and half until desired amount of sauce. . Stir in the cream cheese and shredded cheese until desired thickness. I prefer parmesan but a good Italian cheese would be delicious! For this dinner I used homemade ravioli but any noodle would be perfect!

Homemade wine

Now who does like a good wine? I got a wine making kit about a year ago. I was so excited and still an it is such a fun hobby and best yet get to enjoy my labor. Yum! I love the berry wine. I have made about 12 bathes so far. It’s really fun to experiment. I will post links to supplies below. I am a Amazon affiliate so when you buy from links I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for your support. It always me to keep blogging ❤️

Wine making is really not hard you need fruit (frozen is best or freeze fresh it breaks down the cells), yeast, sugar, pectin enzymes, yeast nutrients, a hydrometer (reads alcohol percent, and a bucket with lid. You will need a carbon and a airlock.

The best part is just have fun!

Here is link to the kit I got and highly suggest it

Has a great book too!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003XDGWT4/?tag=simplyus0d-20

Tamales for the first time

I so love tamales so I wanted to try to make them. They are so yum but was a little bit concerned they would be hard but after much research found it’s like making pasta, easy! What? So I read many post and embarked on the journey. I put my own twist and turned out so finger licking good!

Step one: meat of choice in instant pot( I did carna sada) for 2 hours

Step two: take green Chili’s and roast then garlic and onions

Put them in pot with a cup of water and simmer 30 minutes then cool and blend

Soak corn husk for two hours in pot with hot water

Take the juice from the meat to make the mesas follow directions on bag but use juice instead of water. Makes a world of difference in taste.

Fill tamales and keep water near by to get them to stick to husk.

I put them in the instant pot on the steam rack with just enough water to cover bottom but not touch tamales. I then pressure cook for 120 minutes!

They are to die for and will keep in fridge nicely or even freeze. If you decide to warm in microwave add water in a cup so they do not dry out.

Fresh sushi

Now I love myself some yummy sushi! From California rolls to ninja rolls but what the mess are they expensive! I will splurge once and a while and sometimes at happy hour. Sssshhhh!

I love cooking and learning new recipes or even come up with some new creation.

Why not make it myself it be much cheaper and more fun to learn. Researching needed to be done so I was aware of safe raw fish consuming so I started there and learned fish have to be put right into freezer or ice box within a couple hours of being caught. Next I found out tuna is the safest than salmon.

I told my brother I was researching about making sushi and he offered to show me how he did it. I was excited to get the demonstration! He used lobsters instead of raw tuna but it was fun.

I went on a mission to find supplies but unfortunately I couldn’t find a sushi roll mat so I looked up ideas and found parchment paper could work the same.

I got my supplies! I was so excited to make it!

My daughter got me a sushi making kit for Mother’s Day! It’s been so fun and yummy

Mushroom soup

Oh yummy! What’s better than homemade soups? Rich mushroom sautéed in homemade chicken broth to eat just as is or to add to meals. This recipe is simple and delicious. I took my mushrooms about two pounds and sautéed in rich, deep homemade chicken broth until soft. Then added four more cups of broth. This recipe is safe for canning because no thicker or oils used. Now I have fresh mushroom soup for later. I love it in stroganoff and even add to spaghetti sauce.

I use my instant pot to make and my pressure cooker.

You can click on the links below to access these wonderful products. I am a Amazon affiliate so I do earn a small commission with no extra cost you.

Thank you for your support anything helps me keep blogging☺️❤️

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FLYWNYQ/?tag=simplyus0d-20.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000BYCFU/?tag=simplyus0d-20

Simply exploring

Started the adventure of raising chickens and ducks. After lots of reading decided to start with getting eggs to incubate. Looking around for chickens and was offered ducks. So ended up with 7 chicken eggs and 6 duck eggs. Out of the 7 chicken eggs 6 of them were fertile and the best part was candling them and seeing them grow. Out of the 6 ducks 2 were fertile so got 3 more and all are fertile. It’s beyond exciting. When I picked up the eggs I felt a little girl on Christmas morning. After 21 days the 6 chicks hatched in March 20. Yay! We got spring chicks. It was amazing to get to watch them pip and then emerge from the eggs. So far all six are healthy and adorable. We have another week for the ducklings to hatch and then three more weeks for the other three ducklings to come. Hunter and Ava have been so excited watching. Hunter helps me clean the cage, the brooder. He talks to them and says good night. Hunter named a couple of them. So far we have Smiley, lucky, pizza and blackout. Lol, it’s amazing. We are are all learning so much through this experience and it makes us so happy. Goes to show you learning is life and life is learning!

Ranch style potatoes casserole

Who doesnt love a easy casserole? Had some left over ham that needs to be used so was thinking, “What can I do with this yummy ham?” My friend came to visit and made these easy to die for ranch potatoes. I figured let’s turn it into a whole meal. Now I’m all about mixing up the store bought seasoning packets from scratch so I did that. You cut your potatoes into chucks and line the dish in aluminum for easy clean up. I mixed in the yummy seasoning cooked for 30 minutes. Then I mixed in the ham and green beans(you could use any vegetable or several if you like) then topped with lots of butter about 1/4 to 1/2 cup. I know it’s a little rich so I will be putting this recipe into my sometimes recipes. 🤣 Cover with aluminum foil and cook for 45 minutes to an hour. Bam!! Dinners done!

Warm soup on a fall day

Who doesn’t like some tummy warm soup to warm you up and fill your tummy? We sure do and homemade is the best. Nothing like soup made with love. Hunter loves to help so he definitely gets to participate. Why not. We have lots of laughs, smiles and learning going on.On today’s menu is tomato brown rice soup paired with grilled ham cheese sandwiches. So perfect.We started with minced garlic and diced onions sauted in butter. I just ate ball it. I’m not really known for measuring😂🤷‍♀️Then I add about 12oz of my homemade chicken broth, can of diced tomatoes and about 1/4 cup tomato paste. Then simmer and stir until well mixed. I add 1 cup brown rice and cover cook 40mins. I add salt, pepper and basil to taste.Was so delicious paired with our sour dough grilled ham cheese sandwiches😊

Pressure cooking-Momma’s little helper

Last night Hunter and I made a whole chicken in the pressure cooker. Was so much fun to have him mix up the spices and pour/rub into the chicken. He was so focused. Then he cleaned the potatoes and by his request made home fries. Yum! Soaking the cut fries and water and rising really helped with the crispiness. Plus I learned that preheating the pan with a little oil rubbed into it made a huge difference on how they turned out. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Perfect! Our veggie was broccoli. It was fun to have a little helper. I love watching the light bulb go on as he learns something new and oh how excited he gets to help.

Sourdough starter

Who doesnt love sourdough? My littles do for sure. I have been experimenting with starter. Made a commercial start that uses yeast and a wild starter that uses natural yeast from the air. So much fun having my little guy help me weigh flour and feed the starters weekly.

I have finally made a fluffy bread. Not so dence. The last one was full of flavor but heavy. My fodmap sweet girl still loved it. Yay!

I still wanted a fluffier version for sandwiches. Who doesnt love fresh bread straight out of oven?