I love onion rings. This is probably expected, what with my onion love posted previously elsewhere on this site. What I don't love is frying things. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part if a recipe calls for frying, it doesn't usually get made. I've modified recipes, like chicken nuggets and french fries, so that I can bake them instead, but onion rings have always failed in this department, even with recipes intended for baking. They never had the same taste, the breading would fall off, it was a disaster. Thus I resigned myself to only getting onion rings on the rare occasion we could get them at a restaurant.
Read moreMaking Crayons.
Jonathan loves to color. He also keeps anything he can, from rocks and pinecones he finds outside to the crayons given to him at restaurants. When the majority of said crayons ended up broken and therefore untouched at his coloring desk, and we found some lovely (read: nearly unbreakable!) crayons at a bookstore a few weekends back, I was faced with the question of what to do with all those extra crayons. Thankfully, I have a wonderful mom who taught my siblings and I how to make "homemade" crayons with broken crayon bits, a cupcake liner, and the microwave. Remembering this, I sat down one morning and whipped these up for my son.
Normally, when making crayons, you simply toss your spare bits into the cupcake liner, microwave for short intervals, say 30 seconds, and stir with a toothpick every so often to make sure everything melts together. Because I wanted to be difficult, or rather, because I didn't want to make four brownish gray crayons, I chose to shred the old crayons finely and layer by color. I WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN. The crayons turned out relatively cool, but the rainbow layering didn't hold completely as the cheap crayons I was working with were more wax than coloring and that extra wax floated to the top when they melted, mixing the rainbow layering as it went. I do think it would be fun to try this with mini cupcake liners and make really thick single or double color crayons.
I also chose to bake these, again, so I wouldn't have to stir and mess up the layering. However. If you choose only a few colors, and especially colors that go well together, that BLEND well together, swirling your crayon in the microwave can have really cool effects. I know, I became an expert at this as a kid. :)
As it is, next time I could go either way on baking vs. microwaving, but I will never shred the crayons again. Chop them to little bits, perhaps, but I never want to have to clean wax off my shredder again.
If you'll forgive the close-up of my fingers, here's a better shot of the rainbow layering that did survive the baking process.
A final word of advice: double line your cupcake liners. Some wax can seep through, especially if you bake, so it makes for easier clean-up. Enjoy!
Onion Pan Bread.
Here's another recipe for you onion lovers out there. This bread is impeccably moist, somewhere in texture between a very light biscuit and a somewhat heavier pancake. The onions are deceptively sweet, especially if you find yourself using all vidalia onions. I'd actually recommend reducing the brown sugar that mixes with the onions and caramelizes them if you do use vidalias; too much sweet can, in fact, be too much of a very good thing.(Or so I'm told...) Regardless, this is delicious served warm to accompany a lighter meal, such as grilled chicken or a quick salad. It is best served warm.
Read moreCheddar Chive Biscuits.
I love these biscuits. My husband asked me to make these this week, and, as my chive plant was getting out of control, and I do love to make yummy food for my husband, I happily obliged.
Read moreScones.
I love making scones. I used to buy this bag of 'just add water' scones mix, which was decent, but after having one expire on me, let's just say, never again.
Read morePioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls.
These are, hands down, the best cinnamon rolls I've ever had or made. This post exists simply to point you to the recipe, if you've never heard of these. PLEASE make these. You won't regret it. Enjoy!
Read moreCrock Pot Pulled Chicken & Honey Whole Wheat Buns.
I LOVE this chicken recipe. It is so delicious, so simple, so quick (for a crock pot recipe), and did I mention, SO DELICIOUS!! I didn't modify the recipe at all, (well, other than halve it, as I don't need to feed 8-10 people...) so I'm going to send you to the original site for the recipe. Stay tuned for the buns recipe though!!
Read moreChicken Noodle Soup.
I love making this soup. It's delicious, simple, and extremely comforting on a cold day, or when you're feeling a bit under the weather. My method takes a bit of time, but it's not extremely labor intensive, and you can take shortcuts at any point to make it even easier. Due to the nature of this recipe, there are no exact proportions. You can make a large batch, as I usually do, or simply use less and make enough for a single meal. The amounts I do list will be for a rather large batch intended to have extra for freezing. Adjust as needed, and enjoy!
Read moreNutella Fudge.
I love fudge. I don't make it too often, mind you, or I'd be terribly rotund, but every once in awhile it's a nice treat. I love this recipe in particular, because it's simple. No candy thermometer required, only five ingredients (with an optional sixth). Rather quick to pull together as well, if you don't count the cooling time, (you don't have to if you don't mind rather warm fudge, but it is a lot easier to eat when it's cool). What's more, you can change the flavor to suit your tastes. The original recipe calls for peanut butter rather than Nutella, and you can change the baking chips used to any flavor you like. You could actually make chocolate-free fudge if you so desired. (Not that you should, as, well, chocolate is amazing.) Whatever your tastes, you'll find this fudge will suit them. Enjoy!
Read moreOnion Sandwich.
This is not for the faint of heart. This is not a pretty dish, nor does it smell like, well, anything other than onions. No, this is not a sandwich for everyone.
However. If you are one of those people, the people whose steaks are incomplete without sautéed onions, whose burgers are sadly lacking when not topped with this versatile vegetable, whose salads must have a bit of oniony crunch to them, well, let me say you and I are kindred spirits. And so, dear friends, I would like to share this with you.
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