Choc. Chip or M+M Cookies

   To be honest (which IS what I try hard to be on this blog) I had been fighting the desire for chocolate chip cookies too (like I had been fighting the desire for Peanut Butter Choc. Bars). Fight the urges I did. For quite awhile. But then last week I ever so innocently went to link my posting about the " "Mexican Style" Bar" up to Alli N Son's "Sweet Tooth Friday" blog party. The recipe she had posted was for 'Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies'.  AND, she went and included pictures of them. How was I suppose to keep up my resistance against my desires for some? You don't know either, do you?  o:-p
     This is the comment I left to Alli. "Well Allison, I had been having hankerings for chocolate chip cookies, but had thus far been successful in resisting said wanting's. Now however, you've gone and made me visualize them ..... so much for resisting. Cookie baking coming up soon!!!! o;-p"
     This is the oh so compassionate reply she sent back. "So glad I could help break your resistance! LOL!"   ;-p!!!
      As I had mentioned in an earlier posting, I did give in and bake choc. chip cookies. I did so for Brandon's birthday. Double Bulls Eye that!  o;->

     W-a-y back in the early days of our marriage (and NO, 30 plus years ago does NOT qualify as ancient history! ! ! Gee-sh!) I had baked choc. chip cookies for my new husband, using a recipe out of a Betty Crocker's (R) Bisquick(TM) Cookbook. Here is a picture of the little cookbook.

    For awhile after the cookbook was published (1975), Bisquick(TM) would release new sections to the binder, inside box's of Bisquick(TM). I still have a lot of those.

   I think that you too will enjoy the quote they put on the back side of the inside page of the cook book.
   "For the woman who's practical enough to take a shortcut
    and creative enough to make the most of it."
   Isn't that great?!!!

   The recipe for chocolate chip cookies was featured on page 47.

    And a much beloved recipe it has become around here!
   Over the years, I did try a whole bunch of 'totally from scratch' chocolate chip cookie recipes. But my dear husband always compared them to my original type, and they always fell short in comparison. I was practical enough to declare "okay then" and stop trying any other recipes. He loved these. I love these. The boys... well... one for each hand and one for the mouth, per raid of the cookie 'jar'.... yeah, they loved them too. ;-p
     Your welcome to make up your own mind whether these are a "keeper" recipe or not.

     Usually I only post a picture or two of the finished product. This time I took a whole lot of pictures and shall show you step by step the process of making them. PLEASE leave a comment letting us know which type of posting you prefer!!!

      First you measure the brown sugar into a mixing bowl. Place the butter on top of it and stick it in the microwave for about a minute. (I was making a tripe batch in these pictures.)

           It comes out looking something like this.

               Then you blend it all together .

           Add the eggs. Bonus tip here --> After you crack an egg into a bowl, use the broken shell to crack the yolk of the egg. This makes mixing everything together ever so much easier! (Especially when your doing a few dozen eggs towards making french toast for over a hundred people!). Another Bonus Tip here --> IF when you crack your eggs a small bit of the egg shell breaks free and falls down into your bowl, use the rest of the shell to scoop it back out. Somehow this is the easiest method to do so.

      After mixing the eggs in real good, add the Bisquick(TM). Blend thourally. Yes, it is impossible to blend it to the point that absolutely none of the little white clumps remain. Don't worry. It's not just you. And no, they won't show up in the baked product. Don't know how they don't. Just glad they don't! :->

     It is then time to add your chocolate chips. The recipe calls for one (1) cup of chocolate chips per recipe. But I'm the type that likes to have a chocolate chip in every single bite of my cookie, so I add more. How much more?  I can't say for sure. I eyeball it.

        It is now time to pan the cookie dough. Using a sprayed cookie sheet, and the wonderful little cookie dough scoop that I just re-found (and can not remember if I bought it for myself, or if it was gifted to me - SORRY!) I got the pans of cookies ready for the oven.

          After baking, they come out looking like this.

   LET  THEM  COOL ON  THE  PANS!!! They sort of finish baking while they do so. The end result is a oh so soft cookie!

   One time back before the boys had yet hit their teens, I wanted to make M + M(TM) cookies, but didn't have a specific recipe to use. I thought about it and figured, why not use my chocolate chip cookie recipe and just substitute the M + M's(TM) for the chocolate chips. It worked! They too were a hit!


   Like I said, I had hit the double bulls eye (o;->) by making the choc. chip ones for Brandon's birthday. Then Benson got a phone call saying it was his turn to bring a snack for the guys at the Wed. night Bible study he attends. I was out of choc. chips. And 'Ms. Vertigo Girl' here can't just run to the store. But wait... there is that big bag of M+M's still sitting ....
    So I can now show you pictures of how this recipe looks when you use M + M's (TM) instead of chocolate chips. And yes, these too are delicious!!!

   The mixed together dough. I was THRILLED with how that picture turned out! :-> !

          The panned / ready for the oven dough.

        The baked cookies. :-D 
        REMEMBER TO LET THEM COOL ON THEIR PANS!

    And now for the much anticipated recipe ;-]

    Chocolate Chip (or M + M(TM) ) Cookies
      Recipe from Bisquick(TM)
      directions adapted by Cheryl B.
   1 cup Brown Sugar
   1/2 cup (1 stick) Butter
   1 egg
   2 cups Bisquick
   1 cup chocolate chips (I use Nestle(TM) Semi-sweet ones)
     -OR- 1 cup M+M's (TM)

   Measure brown sugar into mixing bowl. Place butter on top and microwave to melt the butter. Blend thourally. Add the egg and blend again. Add the Bisquick (TM) and blend as thourally as you can (but don't spend a long time on it!). Mix in the choc. chips OR the M+M's(TM).
   Scoop dough onto sprayed pans.
   Bake in pre-heated oven at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.
   LET COOKIES COOL ON THEIR PANS!
   A single batch makes 2 dozen cookies.

    Fix yourself a tall glass of white milk (CALCIUM! ;-p), grab a couple of cookies, and e-n-j-o-y!! ;-)

:-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~ :-) ~

You might also enjoy these recipes using Bisquick(TM) or Jiffy(TM) -
~ Wonderful Plain Muffins

~ Chocolate Pudding [good served hot or cold!]


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
~ "This Week's Craving's" (every week it's a different category), hosted by Tina, from 'Mom's Crazy Cooking' (http://momscrazycooking.blogspot.com) with the help of two blogging friends.
 
and then Next Week,  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:
~ "Melt in Your Mouth Monday('s)", hosted by Jane Doiron, at 'Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms .. and other delicious recipes!' (http://www.makeaheadmealsforbusymoms.com)
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Delectable Tuesday('s)", hosted by Stephani, at 'Home Sweet Farm' (http://www.ourjourneytoasimplerlife.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits", hosted by Susan, at 'Permanent Posies - Creative Chaos' (http://permanentposies.com/) 
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)
~ "Foodie Wednesday('s)", hosted by Bibi, at 'Daily Organized Chaos' (there is nothing wrong with living with chaos as long as it's organized)  (http://www.dailyorganizedchaos.com) 
~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s), hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts' (http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)
~ "Recipe Swap Thursday('s)", hosted by Alison, at 'Prairie Story' (http://www.prairiestory.com/) 
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "Sweet Tooth Friday('s)", hosted by Alli, at 'Alli 'n Son' (Parenting and Life with a side of Chocolate) (http://alli-n-son.com/) 
~ "Foodie Friday('s)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)

Larry's Pizza

   From the start, I should let everybody know that this email is primarily aimed at people whom live near me, or who live in the state of Arkansas.

   Both Chris and Amy (our neighbors and friends) had told me about and recommended Larry's Pizza to me.
   They told me where it's located here in G.R. - the corner of Plainfield and Fuller (some of you will locate it faster in your minds, when I say it's in the old Bill Knapp's building. ;->)
   They told about lots of the different varieties of pizza the place offers. From a Regular Supreme, to a Cheeseburger (which has diced pickles amongst other items on it), to a Loaded Baked Potato one (the potatoes are cut scalloped potato style), to a Chicken Alfredo, to... . Then there's their dessert pizza's. Oh golly! I thought Kayla was going to swoon over the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip one, which by the way is served warm. And Cyndi was so thrilled with their Bavarian Cream one (with chocolate swirled on top) that Byron bought another one for them to take home with them. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
   They told about how there is both a pizza and a salad bar buffets that you go through after being shown a table. Then, if they don't currently have something on their buffet which is featured on their menu, you can request to have it made, and they are happy to do so. But then, they don't just go put it on the buffet. No, they bring it right to your table and allow you to have as much of it as you want, before they start going table to table offering it to other patrons. Larry's refers to themselves as "The Lazy Man's Buffet". Cute!
  And Chris and Amy both also told me about how realistically priced the place was.
  As I've shared, our out-of-state kids arrived for a visit early last Fri. evening. I had already suggested to everybody that we try Larry's out that night, and they had all voted yes for it. So that's where we headed. The sad part was that Brandon had the wrong starting work time in mind, and ended up not being able to join us due to needing to be to work in twenty five minutes. But we still had nine adults and one "infant" total, since Adam was coming along as well.
  Was it realistically priced? The total (before tip) for the nine adults (Analyse is young enough we didn't need to pay for her) was $79.84.
  Was the food good? The local guys are biting at the bit wanting to go back, and we ARE going back when Byron and Cyndi are here again in a few weeks. So the answer is YES!
  Did everybody really get full? The serving size of the pieces are quite small. It looked like they bake them on maybe a 10" pan, and then slice it up small. But it's an 'all you can eat' type of place. And even after you've decided your full, they still come around tempting you with more. Benson, Brent and Adam even declared themselves stuffed, and that takes a bit to accomplish!
   
    It turns out that the local Larry's, is actually part of a chain of Larry's Pizza Restaurants. It's just that all of the other 'stores' are located through out the state of Arkansas. Twenty one of them there. One so far here.

   While we didn't have to pay for Analyse, they did have high chairs and kids cups available (free).
   You can order any of their pizza's to go.
   And Brian was impressed with their salad bar. It had sliced cucumbers (which I'm not sure who ate more of, Brian or Analyse), and even peas.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars

     I do not always succeed at resisting temptation. I try. But it's hard. Especially when the temptation involves chocolate. And baking something. And all of my friends DO seem to be doing it. I'd been fighting the temptation. Honest. But then some of my blogging friends posted their recipes for chocolate and peanut-butter some-thing-or-others ...
    First it was Michelle, from 'Big Black Dogs' and 'Spend-A-Buck Farm'. On Feb. 25th she had posted about these "Chocolate Brownie Peanut Butter Cups" .
    Then it was Jenn, from 'Lipstick and Laundry Ca'.. On March 7th she posted about these "Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies".
    And then Nan, from 'Mom's The Word ... I Love to Hear', who went and wrote her version of how "The Marriage of Chocolate And Peanut Butter" came to be. (Quite the comical, oh so probable tale! ;-p).
    Let alone all of those other bloggers whom keep posting Chocolate Peanut-butter recipes. They are everywhere I tell you! Or so it seems every single time I scroll through one of the "link ups" I often participate in. Goodness!
     So I kept trying to resist. Honest I did. But a girl (or at least this 'girl') can only resist such tempting and prompting for so-o long and then tis best to give in. Why? Just trust me on that, okay? o;-p

    Therefore about a week ago, I gave in and baked up a batch of these oh so scrumptious Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars.

   See-e, I knew you would 'get' why I kept wanting them.
   (Oops, sorry that your now tempted too.  o;-b!)

    This recipe came from a camp that our church used to hold snow camp at one year, back when I was in high school. (N-O, that does NOT mean this recipe qualifies as an "antique" one! Gee-sh!!!).  They had made these for us the first night. We devoured them, singing their (both the bars and the cooks) praises the whole time. So they made them  again the next day. And then another batch. And another. And then even a batch for us to take with us. But I knew even that would not be good enough. So while everybody else was loading and boarding the bus, I was back in the kitchen pleading for them to write the recipe down for me. They DID :-D!! 

     Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars:
    Bars:
   1/2 cup Butter
   1/2 cup White Sugar
   1/2 cup Brown Sugar
    1 Egg
    1/3 cup smooth Peanut Butter
    1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
    1/4 teaspoon Salt
    1/2 teaspoon Vanilla
     1 cup Flour
     1 cup Oats
     1 cup (6 oz.) Chocolate Chips

    Cream butter, gradually add sugars; cream well. Add egg, peanut butter and vanilla. Add flour, oats, baking soda and salt; mix well.
     Spread in bottom of sprayed 9 x 13 pan. 
    Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 min. - until LIGHTLY browned.
    
    Sprinkle immediately with the chocolate chips. Let stand 5 minutes, then spread.

    Drizzle with mixture below:
      (or wait until the pan cools and then spread this mixture on top)
    1/2 cup Confectioners Sugar
    1/4 cup smooth Peanut Butter
     2 - 4 Tablespoons milk
    mix till smooth.

    Let set up. Cut into either bars or brownies. ENJOY!!!!! (I sure did ;-p)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:
~ "Recipe Swap Thursday('s)", hosted by Alison, at 'Prairie Story' (http://www.prairiestory.com/) 
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "Sweet Tooth Friday('s)", hosted by Alli, at 'Alli 'n Son' (Parenting and Life with a side of Chocolate) (http://alli-n-son.com/) 
~ "Foodie Friday('s)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)


and then next week, linking it up to:
~ "Sweet Sunday('s)", at "My Sweet Creations" (http://tastingmysweetcreations.blogspot.com/)
~ "Melt in Your Mouth Monday('s)", hosted by Jane Doiron, at 'Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms .. and other delicious recipes!' (http://www.makeaheadmealsforbusymoms.com)
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Delectable Tuesday('s)", hosted by Stephani, at 'Home Sweet Farm' (http://www.ourjourneytoasimplerlife.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits", hosted by Susan, at 'Permanent Posies - Creative Chaos' (http://permanentposies.com/)
 ~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)
~ "Foodie Wednesday('s)", hosted by Bibi, at 'Daily Organized Chaos' (there is nothing wrong with living with chaos as long as it's organized)  (http://www.dailyorganizedchaos.com) 
~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s)", hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts' (http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)


LATE ADD ON:
~ "This Week's Craving's" (every week it's a different category), hosted by Tina, from 'Mom's Crazy Cooking' (http://momscrazycooking.blogspot.com) with the help of two blogging friends.

Two Analyse Stories ;->

# 1 -  When Byron answered my phone call last week Thursday, he had said that he could only talk for a couple of minutes, because the episode was almost done and then he had to put her down for her nap. While Ms. Analyse still enjoys 'Yo Gabba Gabba', she has switched her number one fan choice to 'Elmo'. Big time! Oh my goodness! To help themselves survive her wild fan craze (;-p), they have set things so that she gets to watch one episode of him before nap time, and another before she goes to bed at night.
    I had no problems with a quick conversation.
    As Byron was saying, "o-kay, I gotta go, there's the credits" he is suddenly declaring "OH MY GOSH!" and then "Cyn-di....you won't believe what your daughter just did!!!" And then "Little girl, you are too smart for your age!".
     I was ever so curious, as I'm sure you are now. What in the world had Analyse done this time?
     Immediately upon the ending of the running of the credits, she had walked over, pushed the "OK" button on the remote, which had then restarted the episode. What an imp!!! o;-p!  Mind you folks, she'll not be two (2) till June.
     I decided I had best let him go. Don't know if they allowed her to watch it again or not. But the fact that she's figured out how to, is crazy funny!

# 2 - On Tuesday of this week, Byron had called to tell me about another thing she had just done. She was standing pointing up at the freezer, telling them she wanted a popsicle. Cyndi had said "no, you can't have popsicles with out a bib". She had whined, then turned and walked into her room. She came back out trying to put her bib on. She got her popsicle. ;-p

Oh Ms. Analyse, you do keep us on our toes, and make us smile, sometimes all in the same moment.

   Playing with "Pappy's" (grandpa's) hat when we were at their house a couple of weeks ago. :->

"Pasta and Salad Type Bar"

    I have shared all of the 'details' for 'The Hot Dog Bar' we had done for our son Benson's high school graduation party.
    Then I shared all about the " "Mexican Style" Bar" we did for Brandon's Open House.
    Next down my list of such buffets to share about, comes the "Pasta and Salad Type of Bar" we did for our son Brent's Open House. (Brent graduated in 2008). But instead of only having ingredients available which attendee's could build their own concoction from, we had cooked up pasta dishes and made pasta salads which they could pick and choose from (or have some of each if they so desired). So I've debated, do I wait to post this particular "bar" until after I have posted all of my recipes for it, or do I go ahead and post it and then later, after I have posted said recipes, go back to the "bar" posting and add links to the recipes?
    I debated it for awhile. Then I remembered this paragraph from the previously posted "bars".
    " Seeings how we will soon be entering the season of such open houses, I figured now was a good time to share the other such 'bars' we had done for our son's graduation open houses as well."
   Therefore I decided to go ahead and post about the bar. Many of you would be using your own recipes for the various dishes anyways. For those of you whom are interested in my recipes for them, keep checking back (or sign up to get our postings via email ;->). Within the next couple of weeks I shall be cooking up said recipes, so that I can have good pictures of the dishes to post with their recipes. o:-) Aw-w the sacrifices I make for my blog. ;-p!
   You are more than welcome to use this idea. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with.

    Here is how things were lined up, down the length (two 6 or 8 (?) foot folding tables) of our:
                      "Pasta and Salad Type Bar"

~ Plates - a couple of tips here concerning the type and size of disposable plates to buy.
     - First, about the type.
       - Setting out plain ole paper plates is like asking for trouble. While they are less expensive than other varieties, they are also far more problem-matic!!! I'm not going to go into details, I KNOW you know what all I'm referring to.
       - We are not much fonder of styrofoam plates. Those things have such a tendency to crack. And way to often if you try to cut something on them, you unknowingly end up slicing all the way through the plate. Annoying!
       - Then there are the thin plastic plates. Avoid them! They too are very problem-matic!
       - Our disposable plate of choice, is actually the card board type of paper plate. They hold up better when being carried. They are less likely to be sliced through when your cutting. And they are still far more 'budget friendly' than some of the other available options.
     - Secondly, about the size. If space is available, they will fill it. Period. (Or at least 98% of the time they will!)
       - So, if you put out the large 14" plates, they will fill them. Even though half of the people in attendance will not eat that much food and thus end up throwing lots away.
       - And while you don't want to spend your money on providing food that's only going to end up in the trash bins, you don't want to look like a 'cheapo' either. So avoid the 7" plates. Those are good for the cake or dessert table, but not the main buffet.
      - Our preferred size is the 9" plate. It holds a good amount of food. And if when it's empty somebody (or somebodies) want more, they usually aren't afraid to go up for seconds. Some will even go for thirds.
~ Chicken Tetrazini. Pre-made. Pre-baked. Again heated through to be served. If you don't have access to the style of Chaffers like caterers use, you can often rent them. HOWEVER, a much more budget friendly option, is to borrow electric roasters from friends and use them to do the trick. Go HERE if you don't know what methodology I am referring to. (Use that method, only set the roaster on a low temp.)
~ Spaghetti. Mix your spaghetti sauce right in with your cooked spaghetti noodles. This to can be pre-made and then heated again to be served. Just make sure you don't cook your noodles one hundred percent through before mixing them with your sauce, or you'll end up with mushy ones. :-[   This too needs to be kept hot on your buffet.
~ Parmesan Cheese. It's up to you. You can use the green canned variety. Or, you can buy big bags of the real stuff at GFS or some similar place and serve it. You can either serve it by putting out a bowl of it with a large spoon in it, or pick up glass shaker jars for it. (I come across them all of the time at mission type stores!)
~ Alfredo Noodles. You can make your own yummy Alfredo sauce and mix it with mostly pre-cooked noodles, or you can buy a tasty bottle or jar of the sauce at the store and use it. This too needs to be kept hot on your buffet.
~ French Bread. Believe it or not, the most cost efficient way to provide this is not the make it yourself method. Go to Sam's Club and buy the big bags of two loafs for under $2.50 a package. Cut the loafs up into about 3" pieces and put them in a linen lined basket on your buffet.
    If you want, you can put butter next to it, but we didn't.
~ Bowls. Again, type and size rules apply. The only difference being that often it is okay to use the styrofoam bowls for tossed salads.
~ Lettuce. Unless it's really on sale, or you have grown your own, it's more cost effective (and time efficient) to go to GFS, Sam's Club, or some such place and buy the huge bags of it. HOWEVER, we recommend that you do not do so until the day before your going to use them! That's the best way to avoid having it go soggy on ya.
    For a good looking bowl of salad greens, we have been mixing two bags of plain shredded lettuce (NOT the kind with the shredded carrots, etc. in it) with one bag of 'spring mix' (it has spinach leafs, etc. in it).
~ Shredded Cheese. We bought the 5 pound bags of shredded cheddar.
~ Bacon Bits. We offered a bowl of 'Real Bacon Pieces' (TM) (they come in a bag) instead of the imitation bacon bits. Ever so much tastier! And not much of a price difference either.
~ Chopped Tomatoes. Go HERE for a tip about doing them up ahead of time.
~ Chopped Eggs. Two to three days ahead of time, hard boil, rinse twice with cold water and then let your eggs sit in cold water for 8 minutes. Use a paper towel to hold your eggs while you peel them. Place all of the peeled eggs on a tray or paper towel lined cookie sheet and set in your frig to cool for about twenty (20) minutes or so. Remove from fridge and chop eggs (some people use their food processors to do so, I just use a good knife). Store in an air tight container in your refrigerator, until about a half hour before serving time. WARNING - the smell that comes out when you open the container can be very strong! Thus you might want to walk outside to do so, and even stand out there holding the bowl for a couple of minutes, before putting it on the buffet.
~ Croutons. You will be amazed with how thrilled people get, when you serve the large sized, mixed type of breads croutons. So fun!
~ Ranch Dressing. This is the type of dressing that you will go through the most of, so go ahead and buy the big gallon jug of it. If there's any left over, you can put it in a smaller container in your fridge. You know you'll use it up. With chicken nuggets. On baked potatoes. Your kids will dip their pizza in it. Etc.
~ Thousand Island Dressing. While this type is far less popular, there will be somebody in attendance whom will be ever so thankful that you had it available.
~ Italian Dressing. Some people will take some of this, sprinkle the parmesan cheese on it, and then dip their french bread in the mixture. Others will only use it for their salads.
~ Red Dressing. My current favorite is Western(TM). It use to be Catalina(TM). Just please make it's a red dressing, not that orangie kind of stuff. Thank-you. ;-p
~ Cold Pasta Salads. We served three different kinds. One had crab in it. Another had small cheddar cubes. You can make your own or pick them up at a deli counter or GFS cooler.
~ Napkins.  NOT the store brand, literally fall apart after three uses, type. Goodness! Most cost effcetive and usage efficient, are the 'dinner style' ones at GFS.
~ Forks.   Also Knives if you expect lots of young children (their parents will want to cut the spaghetti and such noodles into teeny bits). Or, if you put butter next to the french bread.   
   Personally, I HATE plastic silverware, so I borrow the real kind from our church's kitchen. After the event, I either hand wash it, or put it in a plastic bag lined box to take home and run through our dishwasher, then return it. No harm done. (Make sure you get permission from the kitchen chair person ahead of time!)
~ Wet Wipes. Buy a big bulk box of individually wrapped ones and put them in a basket at the end of the buffet. Many a person will be glad you did!

   We offered Pink Lemonade,  Ice Tea and Water to drink ( in the large orange colored Igloo(R) coolers). We had black markers sitting next to the 9 oz. plastic cups so people could write their names on their cups. (<-- Bonus tip there)

    We didn't serve a dessert because Brent didn't want any. We did however set out baskets of two types of mints. The red and white stripped kind, and the little chocolate covered, individually wrapped kind. Both kinds went over well. Especially since some of the dishes were a bit garlicky. ;-p

    Go HERE for bonus tips about keeping cold foods cold, etc.

    When I went through our pictures from this graduation open house, the only good picture I found of the food, was one of one of our nieces holding her plate of food. I didn't have prior permission to use her picture, therefore I had Benson take this picture to use for link-ups.

    Like I said, You are more than welcome to use this idea yourself. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with. However, if you do, we'd really like to hear what you and others thought about yours!!!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:
~ "Foodie Wednesday('s)", hosted by Bibi, at 'Daily Organized Chaos' (there is nothing wrong with living with chaos as long as it's organized)  (http://www.dailyorganizedchaos.com) 
~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s), hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts' (http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)
~ "Recipe Swap Thursday('s)", hosted by Alison, at 'Prairie Story' (http://www.prairiestory.com/) 
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "Sweet Tooth Friday('s)", hosted by Alli, at 'Alli 'n Son' (Parenting and Life with a side of Chocolate) (http://alli-n-son.com/) 
~ "Foodie Friday('s)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)

and then next week, linking up to:
~ "Melt in Your Mouth Monday('s)", hosted by Jane Doiron, at 'Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms .. and other delicious recipes!' (http://www.makeaheadmealsforbusymoms.com)
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Delectable Tuesday('s)", hosted by Stephani, at 'Home Sweet Farm' (http://www.ourjourneytoasimplerlife.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits", hosted by Susan, at 'Permanent Posies - Creative Chaos' (http://permanentposies.com/) 
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)

Spring ???

     I got rather a chuckle while watching the weather report section of our local 10:00 news last evening. There were all kinds of weather advisories for different sections of the state of Michigan. The section we live in, was in a strip which most likely would only see "trace amounts of snow", but definitely get freezing rain, etc.. But up near camp, they could be getting a foot of new snow fall. Then there was the fact that while our current temperature was 34 degrees, my relatives whom live in the state underneath us, had a temp of 74 degrees. Just a mite different.
    Aw-w well. That is A-typical spring time here in the beautiful state of Michigan. Just because the calender says it's "Spring Time", doesn't mean that you can tell it by looking out your window. Or by the temps when you walk out the door.
    On the other hand, the trees are budding. Both Robins and Blue Jays have been spotted. And there were even little bugs flying around the back porch light late the other evening when I was letting Boo back in. So there is hope.
    There is an old spring related saying about the weather here in Michigan, which has been proven true ever so many times. It has to do with the month of March.
    "In like a Lion,   Out like a Lamb."
     IF the month of March arrives like a roaring lion, then it shall go out like a calm lamb. It's then like it's gotten all of the winter stuff out of it's system. However, that's a very big "IF"!  Very big indeed!!  Because "IF" it doesn't come in like a roaring lion, then it doesn't settle down and let spring really begin. Oh, it tempts us with signs of it, that's for sure. But it has this thing for just getting our hopes up and then letting us know that it still has some winter left in it's system that it needs to let go of, before spring can stay for good.
     But that is also why we "Michiganders" get oh so excited over spring and enjoy it immensely, once it really does arrive and settle in!!!
     While the neighbors kids don't have school today due to the icy conditions, the calender still states that it is Spring. Therefore, I went ahead and re-decorated our blog for spring. Soft spring colors. (aka: no white and browns!). And the rain in the "Seasonal Smiles" pictures, is the soft spring type of rain. You know, the kind that's okay to let your kids play in, as long as there's no lightning going on. NOT the bone chillin kind we're currently experiencing. The kind in the pictures does encourage the flowers to grow. And ...
     Go to our blog and think warmer, springy type thoughts. ;-)
           The Bz House That Love Built

Brandon and Analyse

     Yes, I have been off line for a couple of days. Literally. I did not even touch the computer from about 10:30 Fri. a.m. till 9:00 this morning. And yes, I am o-kay. ;-p

     S-e-e, in honor of it being Brandon's birthday this weekend, we had out of state visitors for the weekend. Maybe 'visitors' isn't the correct word. It was our 'kids' whom live out of state. And they aren't really visitors seeings how this is their second home. But they were here from early Fri. evening till this morning, and I chose to focus on them!!!

     It was crazy at times, but fun overall. All of the adult 'kids' hung together and went and did things late every evening, while grandpa and I babysat. It was fun to see our now grown children wanting to do things together! There were points in time during their growing up years, where I feared that when they were full grown, they'd never want to have another thing to do with one another. But they do. And I consider that a blessing!  It was also fun to hear about their antics later. They are all still crazy!

     Ms. Analyse continues to keep all of us on our toes.
     This weekend we learned that just shutting our bathroom door all of the way closed is not enough. The loose style knob on it is easily open-able in her determined hands. Before they are here for 'our Easter', we're gonna need to install a hook and eye latch up high inside the bathroom on that door!
     At one point Sun. evening, I was sitting on one small couch with Boo beside me with his head on my lap sleeping. Brian was on the other small couch, dividing his attention between handing Analyse (who was sitting in her high chair) pieces of a banana and watching Star Wars on the TV.  I questioned Brian about the name of one of the characters/critters in the movie. Ms. Analyse turns around and says "Sheheheh" with her cute little finger on the side of her nose. And then "Boo-oo-oo". The little imp was telling me to be quiet because Boo was sleeping!!!  ;-p!   She doesn't get that people are actually putting their finger over their mouth when they say "shhhh" and it just happens to also touch their nose. So she just touches her nose and says her version of "Shhhh", which sounds way more like a hiss with out any "s's". Very cute! Except when she's putting grandma in her place. Actually, it was cute then too. She's such an imp!!!!! :-D
      Byron and Cyndi have done a good job of teaching Analyse that "hot" is to be avoided. "HOT!HOT!HOT!" is heard when there is anything around that she thinks qualifies as hot. And yes, it MUST always be said in three's. Or at least, that's how she always says it!  While the silly girl will dip her hand into extremely cold water in order to retrieve an ice cube to chew on, or cover her face with snow and laugh in delight, etc., she wants absolutely nothing to do with anything any where's near hot. And blowing on it does not suffice. So sometimes you cook up her food, put it on a plate in the freezer for four or five minutes, and then she eats it with delight. Crazy!  I had made choc. chip cookies as Brandon's birthday dessert. I made then Sun. evening. Monday she still refused to take one we offered off of the pan. It was on a pan so therefore it must be hot. If you visit them and the TV remote, etc. are sitting on baking pans, you'll know why. o;-p

       Here are a couple of pictures I took of the birthday guy and his adorable niece. They were watching Elmo(TM) on his phone.  I was sitting across the room and just kept snapping shots.  I was thrilled with how a couple of them turned out!!!!!  Hope you enjoy them too!

Baby News :->

    Byron called yesterday afternoon, according to the ultra sound, they are certain that our second grandchild is going to be a boy. Yes, certain. To the point that they won't be posting these ultrasound pictures on face-book like they had the earlier ones. 
    They have chosen the name Toby James.
    
    Byron had picked out Analyse's first name. Her middle name is the same as Cyndi's. Now Cyndi has picked out Toby's first name and his middle name will be the same as Byron's.

    His birth date will be July 17th. That's a Sunday. We better get this grandpa's vacation request form in for that Monday!!

" "Mexican Style" Bar"

    The other day I shared all of the 'details' for 'The Hot Dog Bar' we had done for our son Benson's high school graduation party.
    Seeings how we will soon be entering the season of such open houses, I figured now was a good time to share the other such 'bars' we had done for our son's graduation open houses as well.
    So today I am posting about the 'bar' we did for Brandon's. (Brandon is going to turn 24 this coming Sunday. Wow!  Brandon, I am ever so thankful God blessed us with you!!!)
   
    Mexican style food has become quite a booming business here in America. Notice that I said Mexican "style". Most of what we Americans consume under the title of 'Mexican', is far from authentic Mexican food. But consume it we do. In several popular ways.
    Lots of people had begun serving tacos for their open houses around the time Brandon graduated (2007). Us, being us, wanted to take it a step further. Seeings how we were still getting frequent ravings over our "Hot Dog Bar", we got to wondering if maybe we shouldn't come up with some sort of a " "Mexican Style" Bar".
    So we did. And it too got high reviews. People enjoyed the fact that they could create what they wanted out of the ingredients we had provided. Some, it turned out, knew that they liked certain dishes, but didn't have a clue as to what all of the ingredients in it actually were. Some even went so far as to write them down, so they could make it for themselves at home. ;-]

    We had typed the following out on our computer and then run off copies of it. Those we then inserted into page protectors, which we hung numerous copies of from twine over the buffet. We had also laid a protected page of it on each of the eating tables.
    You are more than welcome to do the same. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with.

       First, I am going to give you a listing of what the page looked like. Then I will list out all of the various ingredients needed. Yup, the list is a rather long one. But when totaled up, it's not all that expensive after all {so many of the ingredients are used in multiple dishes). I will also list what else we offered to eat.
 

                "Build Your Own "Mexican Style" Entree' ":
                     (aka: "Mexican Style" Bar)

[we had listed the name of the dish on the left hand side of the page, then it's ingredients underneath. In a wider column on the right hand side of the page, we had written out instructions on how to assemble the ingredients. I don't know how to do that in a posting. So I'm listing the ingredients and then the paragraph underneath them is the assembly instructions.  Feel free to make your own pages which ever way you prefer.]

   Wet Burrito:
~ soft shell
~ refried beans
~ meat
~ chopped onions
~ shredded cheese
~ shredded lettuce
~ chopped tomatoes
~ enchilada sauce
~ cheese sauce
~ sour cream

    Take a soft shell and on one side of it, place a spoonful of the beans and the meat. Add smaller amounts of onions, shredded cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. Cover with small scoop of enchilada sauce. Roll tightly together, folding in sides. Place fold side down on your plate. Top with a large ladle of cheese sauce and a scoop of sour cream.

   Beef Enchilada:
~ soft shell
~ meat
~ chopped onion
~ shredded cheese
~ cheese sauce
~ enchilada sauce

Variations:
~ top with black olives
~ top with sour cream

   In a soft shell, place a spoonful of meat, small spoonful of chopped onions and a spoonful of the shredded cheese. Tightly roll up shell and place seam side down on your plate. Top with scoop of cheese sauce and small scoop of enchilada sauce. On top of those toppings, pick one of the variations listed.

   Taco Salad:
~ meat
~ shredded cheese
~ tortilla cheese
~ shredded lettuce
~ chopped tomatoes
~ red salad dressing

   On your plate, place a spoonful of the meat and shredded cheese. Take a handful of the tortilla chips and lightly crush them on top (of the mixture, not just the top of the chips :-b). top with lettuce and tomatoes. Mix it all together and then top with a ladle of red salad dressing.

   Taco's:
~ soft shell
~ meat
~ shredded cheese
~ chopped tomatoes
~ shredded lettuce
~ taco sauce

Variations:
~ also add chopped onions
~ also top with sour cream

   Take your shell. Add a spoonful of the meat. Top with cheese, tomatoes and lettuce. (also add the onions if you want to). Top with sauce. (then add the sour cream is you'd like to).

   Deluxe Chips and Cheese:
~ nacho chips
~ meat
~ cheese sauce
~ chopped tomatoes
~ chopped onions
~ black olives
~ sour cream

   Place nacho (yes, your) chips (;-p) on your plate. Top with a spoonful of meat and then a ladle of the cheese sauce. Top that with tomatoes, onions, black olives and sour cream.

   Chips and Dips:
~ Nacho chips with:
   ~ cheese sauce
   ~ Pico de Gallo' dip
   ~ Bean dip
   ~ Salsa
   ~ Build your own dip:
      ~ a spoon of refried beans
      ~ a spoon of sour cream
      ~ a spoon of meat
      ~ a spoon of cheese
      ~ top that with tomatoes, onions, olives, ...

    Now for the list of all of the various ingredients needed: 
~ soft shells. Yes, some people prefer hard shells. But you deal with breakage issues, etc. with those. So we stuck to only offering the soft shells. [To keep them somewhat warm and thus more pliable, we had 'stacked them out' in rows (laying them out one on top of the other, but leaving a 1/4 inch of each one showing) on pieces of parchment paper. We then stacked several of those on top of one another in one of the warmers we had borrowed from the caterer. It would also work just fine to layer them in a sprayed electric roaster, put about 1/2 inch of water in the roaster base before putting in the liner, and then only setting the roaster on the lowest temp. available.]
[We recommend using the 8" shells, and planning on two (2) per expected person in attendance]
~ refried beans. Your best bargain comes by buying the bags of dried ones at some place such as GFS, add the moisture to them according to package directions, and then heating and serving them in a SPRAYED crock-pot.
~ meat. The economical way we chose to make enough of this, was to buy up big packages of clearance sticker ground beef ahead of time and immediately upon arrival home, stick it in our freezer. Then the Wed. before the open house, I chopped up lots of onions, and browned up all of the meat and onions. (I did larger batches at a time by using my large electric skillet). Once the meat was done, I added the taco seasoning (which I had bought in the bulk size spice containers at GFS) and the directed amounts of water. You can store your somewhat cooled cooked meat, in large (sprayed) Tupperware (R) containers.
[we recommend planning on 1/2 cup of meat per expected person in attendance.]
~ chopped onions. If your not a fan of chopping large quantities of onions yourself, GFS does sell packages of already chopped ones in one of their coolers.
~ shredded cheese. We bought the 5 pound bags of shredded cheddar.
~ shredded lettuce. Unless lettuce is really on sale, buy the bags of shredded lettuce. HOWEVER, we recommend that you do not do so until the day before your going to use them! That's the best way to avoid having it go soggy on ya.
~ chopped tomatoes. GFS also carries containers of chopped tomatoes in their coolers, for those of you who don't want to spend time chopping lots of them yourself. We HIGHLY recommend that you do NOT try chopping them via your food processor. Talk about runny! A bonus tip here --> you can chop tomatoes a day or two ahead and still have them serve-able, via chopping them to your desired size, placing them in a PLASTIC (NOT metal !!!) strainer, placing the strainer some what in a large bowl, and then wrapping all of it tightly in plastic wrap before refrigerating.
~ enchilada sauce. (This is a much better bargain when bought in the larger sized jar at GFS, Sam's Club, or some such place!)
~ cheese sauce. (This is also easier on the budget when bought in the larger size can!) Or, you can make your own using one of the Velveeta (R) recipes out there.
~ sour cream. (Rule of thumb - often the larger the container, the less price per ounce.)
~ black olives. (ditto)
~ red salad dressing. Some say that the preferred bottled dressing for taco salad is Catalina (TM). However, if you can't find that in more of a bulk size container, then just go with a dark red dressing.
~ tortilla chips. Best price is found by the case at GFS.
~ taco sauce. remember the rule of thumb.
~ Pico de Gallo' dip. If you don't make your own, you can find this in most deli sections, as well as at GFS, Sam's Club, etc.. (Make sure you attach a note to your serving bowl of it, as to whether it is the mild or the extra spicy version).
~ Bean dip. Make it or buy it, your choice.
~ Salsa. MUCH more cost efficient in the large jugs!!! (Make sure you attach a note to your serving bowl of it, as to whether it is the mild or the extra spicy version).

    And now for the list of what else we offered:
~ Tang, Pink Lemonade and Water to drink (in the large orange colored Igloo(R) coolers) 
~ Brandon's favorite kind of cake.

   (go see the Bonus Tips listed at the bottom of 'The Hot Dog Bar' posting).

    Like I said, You are more than welcome to use this idea yourself. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with. However, if you do, we'd really like to hear what you and others thought about yours!!!

   While I was unable to find a good picture of our food buffet when looking through our saved pictures, I did find this picture of three of "our" daughters, which made me smile a-l-l the way through!!! :-> !!!

           Hey Jeannie, have you shared your thrilling news with these 'sisters' yet?  ;-]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:
~ "Foodie Wednesday('s)", hosted by Bibi, at 'Daily Organized Chaos' (there is nothing wrong with living with chaos as long as it's organized)  (http://www.dailyorganizedchaos.com) 
~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s), hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts' (http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)
~ "Recipe Swap Thursday('s)", hosted by Alison, at 'Prairie Story' (http://www.prairiestory.com/) 
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "Sweet Tooth Friday('s)", hosted by Alli, at 'Alli 'n Son' (Parenting and Life with a side of Chocolate) (http://alli-n-son.com/) 
~ "Foodie Friday('s)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)

and then next week, linking up to:
~ "Melt in Your Mouth Monday('s)", hosted by Jane Doiron, at 'Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms .. and other delicious recipes!' (http://www.makeaheadmealsforbusymoms.com)
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Delectable Tuesday('s)", hosted by Stephani, at 'Home Sweet Farm' (http://www.ourjourneytoasimplerlife.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits", hosted by Susan, at 'Permanent Posies - Creative Chaos' (http://permanentposies.com/) 
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)