Toaster Oven Recipes

Boy do we like this little toaster oven! I'm shocked that we've gotten so much use out of it so far. The tube biscuits I made in it the first night we got it were the best ever, even my husband said they were good. This week we made the frozen battered fish fillets in it and they really turned out great. It helped to do them on the rack for even cooking. Last night I made chicken in it. First I made 3 chicken thighs in it, just seasoned with salt and pepper, like my husband likes. At the end, I had to raise the temp to 425 because they weren't browning as quick as I thought they should. As for my chicken tenders, I marinated them in my olive oil, soy sauce and smokehouse maple seasoning for about an hour, then put them in the toaster oven after the thighs were done. I cranked it up to broil at that point and they were perfect - nicely browned but still moist and tender and very flavorful. I still have a couple left that I'll probably use in a salad this week. I have some more ideas I'll be trying so I'll keep you posted.

Media Madness

There was an article in today's paper about the PA State Liquor stores and something on GMA about a child suspended from nursery school that I'd like to comment about. It really isn't about the subject matter of either issue but more about how the media continues to stir the pot. As far as the state stores, the article was about discontinuing certain varieties of booze because of low demand. The article focused on a group that wants privatization of state stores and uses this example as a reason. He said they were making a decision based on statistics and not thinking about the customers. If you read the complete article you'll see that the discontinued items will still be available through special order. The bottom line is that the customer was considered in the decision because no one was buying it. The other news story was about the little girl who had too many potty accidents and was asked to stay home for a month. They came out of the woodwork with this one! In the end it was stated that the parents found another school for their daughter where she was very happy. So why give these stories air and paper time if all is well, if not to stir things up? This happens time and time again and I'm getting sick of it. It only gives fuel to the people who rely too much on the media and don't bother to ask pertinent questions about the issues. I'm seriously thinking of writing to the editorial page about this one.

Buying Power

Yesterday I wrote about the price of tomatoes among other things, then I went out shopping again. This time it was to JoAnn Fabrics, which I've written about before. Once again I found just about everthing I was looking for half off, which was great. It made me think about how I shopped and that sometimes I can shop for the sales and except for milk, I buy when it's on sale and freeze or store for later use. That can really save alot. But then there's the impulse buying or when you need it now and there's only one place to buy it. I guess that's where JoAnn's comes in. I didn't really have a choice of stores and the project I was working on demanded it now. It's nice to know that I can count on that store to always have things half off so as long as I'm a little flexible, I can still save. One thing I had been tracking was a pair of scissors with a spring in the handle. When I looked at Wal-Mart the other day, it was $11.97 which was a good starting point for me. I decided to look elsewhere and possibly use a coupon to get it cheaper. Because I didn't need it immediately, I had that option but when I went to JoAnn's, they had the same scissors for $14.99 and it was half off which brought it down to $7.49. I'm not sure what Michaels and A.C.Moore were selling it for, but I liked that price. Unfortunately, my creamer purchase was a real impulse buying moment. I had already paid more than I usually do at Wal-Mart and after that I vowed to watch for coupons but then I went to Target. I found, wait for the drumroll please, Peppermint Mocha creamer!!!! And yes it was more but it was Peppermint Mocha and I couldn't resist. If my husband wouldn't have been there I'm sure I would have filled my cart up with all they had, but I only bought 2. I pride myself on that restraint but in the back of my mind I'm wondering how I can sneak out of the house and make another trip to Target.

Price of Tomatoes

Have you noticed the price of tomatoes and many other things at the store lately? I'm a penny pincher for sure and proud of it. Everyone feels good about getting a good deal at the store whether they're shopping for food, clothes or whatever. I guess the difference in all of us is that we all have a certain limit we are willing to pay or our estimated value for things. But $4.98 for a pint of grape tomatoes! I realize they are off season and normally I don't even buy stuff like that now but with all these salads I'm eating, I like the variety. So the last time we were at Erie Co. Farms I paid $2.99 for the pint of tomatoes and I did it without a thought, knowing they would last a couple weeks, and they did. Then yesterday when I looked at Wal-Mart, yes, the place that prides itself on the lowest prices, they were $4.98. Bananas were up to 52 cents a lb. and my creamer was well over my $3.00 limit. There's some things we just can't squabble over and that's my creamer. So I bought the cheapest one I could and I'll try and cut back a little. I might find myself doing that more often, especially on staples such as milk and bread, but as long as I'm not wasting anything, I can handle it. This is also a dry spell for our trips to Sharp Shopper in Knox. Once we start traveling again that will be our go-to spot along with Aldi's, Erie Co. Farms and sales at the regular supermarkets. At least at Aldi's, things go up in price but you don't notice it as much. As a side note, there were no coupons in the Sunday paper. Wonder what's up with that!

Pizza Dough

Well, I made a pretty good pizza last night, in fact, I think my search for the best dough I can make is over, for now anyway. Not that it is the greatest but I think for all intents and purposes, it's the best I can do. It's not that I'm settling but, without the equipment and products that a real pizzeria has, it's a good place to stop. It's funny but the recipe is one that I've had for a long time and used it when I was making it in the breadmaker, which has since stopped working. I got it from a Cuisine at Home magazine but the two magazines I had included different recipes. I found the old one tucked away in my recipe box and got it out yesterday. The secret is the flour which is regular all-purpose flour with cake flour added. I didn't have the cake flour so I substituted a little cornstarch. I also added a teaspoon of lemon juice which is supposed to make a better texture and I notice a difference. I'm always looking for new tools to use in pizza making as is my husband so when we were at Gabe's and found a set that included a stone, peel, pizza cutter and server for 10 bucks, we grabbed it. This is the first time I've used the peel and it's kind of cool to slide things on and off. I guess I really shouldn't have said my search is over because I found a recipe yesterday for a Pizza Hut pan recipe that I'd like to try in the cast iron skillet. It sounds awesome and definitely worth a try. That would probably be for me as my husband has an aversion to that sort of crust. I'll keep you posted.

Scrap Afghan

Here's an update on my crocheting projects that were started right after New Year's. I finished my scrap afghan! I had a hard time deciding on the pattern for this and even started it and then almost scrapped it. I never liked traditional Granny afghans and when I found the Granny's Daughter afghan I knew that was the one. It involved making over 800 tiny granny squares (the first row) and then crocheting them together in a vertical pattern with off-white yarn. Of course, I started that in the late 1990's and didn't finish it until 2005 when I was home recovering from my broken knee. I didn't have a specific place for that so when it was done my daughter snatched it up. The only other scrap afghan I made took almost as long to complete and that was my knitted stained glass window afghan. It was done with the black in horizontal rows and I often refer to it as my memory afghan. So this one that I made is more like the stained glass one in that I use the black to border all my squares. It's a vertical pattern but it has granny squares done in singles and doubles. There's definitely nothing subdued in this afghan but I like it. Unfortunately, I still have some scrap yarn leftover and maybe a pillow will come out of it, I'm not sure. I do have a second knitted scrap afghan that is in the works with yarn that is not as conducive to crocheting. There's something I really love about the knitted afghans - it might be that they are lighter in weight. Anyway, progress is being made and my hands are always busy.

Spitting

I know this is a repulsive subject but why doesn't Tiger and all the other spitters out there know that, too. Why do they do it? As far as I know spitting is a male thing, baseball players in particular because of their chewing tobacco habit. If you're not chewing tobacco then why are you spitting? I used to see alot of the kids at school spit and I figured it was like not flushing the toilet - no one ever told them not to do it. What's so different about guy's spit that they need to get rid of it wherever they are? OK, now that I've gotten that out of my system, I'm done talking about it. But the next time, if ever, that I see someone spitting I'm speaking up. P.S. The word spitters doesn't even show up on the spellcheck menu!