Meals for next week

I know, it's still Friday, but I'm planning for next week.  We have to get lots of groceries this weekend b/c we slacked off last weekend.  Here's what I have lined up so far, but I'm going to have to add a few more main dishes. I'm at a complete loss... I'm so not enjoying being the one in charge of food for the family :(

Sweet Potato Soup
BBQ Chicken
Malfoof (wrapped cabbage leaves)
Shakrieh (cooked yogurt dish) with rice
*something in crockpot but what can it beeeeee??* help me!!

Might make this cabbage salad. Cabbage is nicely priced right now, especially at Sprouts, and I've loved this salad since Mom made it for me after I had delivered Aisha (cough, three years ago).

Recipe for Cabbage Salad:

Coarsely chop about half a head of cabbage

Add a handful of coarsely chopped almonds

Add a handful of craisins (dried cranberries)

Add a chopped apple

Dressing:

(amounts vary to taste)

Plain yogurt (about half a cup)

Orange Juice (couple of tbsps)

Maple Syrup (1 Tbsp if you like)

edited to add: for next week:  leg of lamb seared then slow cooked in crock pot, sides of rice and veggies

 green salad (Sunday night's dinner) with options of cheese, tuna, Stacy's pita chips

mexican type chicken in crockpot on Monday since hubby won't be joining us for dinner

Simple White Cake

Assalamu alaikom

This recipe is specifically for a friend of mine who called me the other day needing a quick cake recipe for some guests.  I cannot believe I forgot about this one.  I use it to make cupcakes, but it can make a square 9*9 cake if you want.  It is delicious thanks to the butter and to, what I consider, a little too much sugar.  It seriously has a slight crunch on the crust when you first bite into it! 

So if you're ever in a pinch (and hopefully have butter, eggs, and milk) this is GREAT to make and decorate or frost as you like.  Today I made 6 batches of it for a Girl Scout function this Saturday.

No pictures today, but maybe after Saturday's event I'll come back and add one!

Ingredients:
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350*F.  Grease and flour a 9*9 cake pan or line a muffin pan with liners.
2.  In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.  Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well.  Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth.  Pour or spoon batter in the pan.
3.  Bake 30-40 minutes for the cake or 22-25 minutes for cupcakes. 

I'm going to link to the website here at allrecipes.com.  You have to read some of the reviews to get a feel for how successfull this cake really is!  Some people add an extra 1/4 cup of milk which I haven't done.  I do recommend beating the heck out of each step as you go.  Beat the butter and sugar a LOT before you even start adding the eggs (one by one).   One lady said she dropped a spoonful of raspberry jam in the batter before baking ... I have to try that!!

Enjoy y'all.

Apple Whole Wheat Muffins

Apple Whole Wheat Muffins

taken from Rebel Recipes, University of Mississippi

Oven: 375 degrees
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 cup lowfat milk
1/4 oil
1/4 cup molasses
1 cup finely chopped apples (peeled)

Mix flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and sugar together.  Mix egg, milk, oil, and molasses together.  Add apples to dry mixture and mix well; then add liquid mixture and stir until well mixed.  Brush muffin tins with oil and bake until slightly brown, around 20 minutes. 

I had a guest over this morning and was able to whip these up in no time.  The house smelled delicious and it was an appreciated alternative to the more commonly found pound cake, donuts, bagels, or cookies!

Fossil Rim Wildlife Center

Our family visited Fossil Rim Wildlife Center the other day for the first time.  It was a really neat experience that I know we'll all remember for a long time!  It's not everyday you get zebras and deer poking their faces in your car!

It took us almost 2 1/2 hours to get there, so we were ready for our picnic lunch upon arrival :D  The sandwiches turned out great; the chips we bought specifically for this trip sadly stayed at home in the pantry.  Oh well!

This is an outdoor wildlife area where you drive along one road (one-way) and observe animals roaming in their environment.  You do not get out of your car, and the animals love coming up to the cars hoping for a little snack from visitors who've bought the food from the front desk.

We chose not to buy the feed bag, so we started on the path with windows down ready to observe.  We didn't need any food to attract these guys over!  They're so friendly and are probably expecting some food to drop out of ever car that passes, so they are happy to mosey over to check it out.  The ostriches and emu's were pretty funny to look at, and I'm sad to say that I only took video of them and not any still photos.  One guy in front of us was brave enough to feed the ostrich out of his hand; and it did eat from his hand; and you could hear him screeching all over the park from the pain!  (they advised to feed only giraffes and to merely drop the food for the other animals rather than have them eat from your hand)

There was no shortage of deer and zebras.  There were deer of all sizes and with different antlers.  There were the little Bambi-like ones:

 

Then there were some slightly bigger ones with fancier antlers:

Now here you can see how friendly these guys were... this one comes to see if we have any food

 then he decides to head on over to the folks behind us.... lol

 He's telling these guys how we didn't have any food for him!!!

And scattered around were tons of beautiful zebras.  I got pretty startled when four of them wandered over and acted like they wanted to sit in my lap!  Here are a few great shots of them:

 This one below is when I turned around and found them coming over unexpectedly.  I did panic a little, although they were perfectly nice and tame. Masha'Allah, just gorgeous animals.

Also, we saw a pretty giraffe family.  They had a new baby this year.  Here are two shots of them:

Masha'Allah, seeing the beautiful natural views all around me put a big smile on my face.  There were some nice rolling hills in that area, and the evergreen trees and rocky slopes reminded me of the terrain in parts of Jordan.  Seeing animals lounging, walking, playing, and resting out in the sunshine in vast acres of land was so neat.  Its' nothing like a visit to the zoo.  My kids reached out and touched the zebras and deer on their muzzles.  We brushed and petted a lot of goats, too.  It was a fabulous learning experience and a nice way to spend the day, alhamdulillah.  All praise is due to God alone who created the heavens and the earth and all that is within.  Seeing the prefect stripes on the zebras and the artistic symmetry of deer antlers made me remember our Creator even more.  It is absolutely amazing. 

Here are a few verses from the Quran where Allah reminds us of His power:

Surah: 40, Ayah: 62

ذَلِكُمُ اللَّهُ رَبُّكُمْ خَالِقُ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ لَّا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ فَأَنَّى تُؤْفَكُونَ

Such is Allah, your Lord, the Creator of all things. There is no god except He. How then can you turn away from Him?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Surah: 6, Ayah: 102

ذَلِكُمُ اللّهُ رَبُّكُمْ لا إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ خَالِقُ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ فَاعْبُدُوهُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَكِيلٌ

That is Allah, your Lord. There is no god except He, the Creator of all things. Therefore, worship Him. He is the Guardian of all things.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Surah: 35, Ayah: 3

يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اذْكُرُوا نِعْمَتَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ هَلْ مِنْ خَالِقٍ غَيْرُ اللَّهِ يَرْزُقُكُم مِّنَ السَّمَاء وَالْأَرْضِ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ فَأَنَّى تُؤْفَكُونَ

People, remember the blessings of Allah to you. Except for Allah, is there any other creator who provides for you out of heaven and earth? There is no god except He. Where then do you turn?

menu

Hey Everyone, I've been redecorating my blog; hope you like it!

I've had a tremendously busy and fun week.  My mom's been in town which means more help with cooking, more things to eat, and also more out-of-the-house things to do.  So it's been nonstop.  I'll back post our meals since Sunday since I can't remember as far back in time as Saturday :P


Sunday: Chicken Tikka; Rice
Monday: Fried Chicken, Brussels Sprouts, French Fries
Tuesday:  Meatballs baked with turnips, carrots, roasted eggplant, tomatoes, and potatoes; Rice
Wednesday:  leftovers for some plus dinner at my dad's house
Thursday: Green Salad, Spaghetti and Sauce
Friday:  Tenderloin, salad, veggies
Saturday: Picnic lunch

Lunches: 
frozen pizza
broccoli/potato/cheese soup
leftovers
tuna sandwiches

What Brownies Taste Like at My House

My sweet dreamer, my oldest daughter, has really been finding her way around the kitchen these past couple of weeks.  Bless her heart, she's not very attuned to details, so I was rightfully worried when she asked to make her first batch of brownies.  She did great, and it was a little more work than when my son started to bake cookies, but she is over the moon with her accomplishments, masha'Allah, and I'm so proud of her.  Here is the recipe we've been making brownies with for some time.  It's a toss up between this one and some other one I can't find, but we do like these a lot.  They just don't taste so good after the second or third day, but they're not given that many hours to sit around in this house.

1 1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
4 oz unsweetened baking chocolate
2 eggs
2 Tbsp water
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup nuts, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease 8*8 baking pan although 9*13 will work.  Combine flour, salt, and baking soda in a small bown and set aside.  In a saucepan, melt butter and chocolate squares over low heat, stirring occasionally.  Once melted, remove from heat and add sugar, eggs, water, and vanilla.  Stir vigorously until well mixed.  Stir in dry ingredients.  Fold in nuts if desired.  Bake 18-22 minutes.  Cool and serve!

White Chili Recipe

Assalamu alaikom

I tried something new this week in food.  I'm the type who will eat just about anything and don't turn my nose at anything, but when I heard the words "white" and "chili" in the same sentence it made me turn "green".  That was about two years ago. 

Last week I read a recipe online for white chili, and I guess I had a change of heart or something because I felt like giving it a shot.  I just had to make sure not to mentally categorize it with "real" chili which is red, not white, and is made with BEEF, and not with chicken.

I thoroughly enjoyed it and will make it again!  One tip: it calls for a quart of cream.  Since I knew I'd be eating from it over 3 days or so, I didn't add the cream on the day I made the soup.  It wouldn't taste good getting heated, chilled, and reheated, so I just added a little bit of cream daily each time I took a portion out to reheat for lunch.  Also, I used much less than a quart of cream... and that's a good thing, no matter how good cream is!

White Chili
1 large jar white northern beans (or 2 regular sized cans)
1 quart chicken stock
2 cups cooked, diced chicken
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celergy
1 4oz jar diced green chilies ( I didn't use these)
1 1/3 Tbsp. minced garlic ( I used about 5 cloves... who needs to count in TBSPs!)
1 1/2 Tbsp. cumin
1/2 - 1 tsp. cayenne pepper depending on how hot you like it
1 quart cream
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion, celery, and garlic in 2 Tbsp oil.  Add beans, stock, and spices. Simmer 1/2 hour- 1 hour.  Add chicken.  Add cream and heat through just before serving.  Serve with shredded cheese on top if desired.

Sorry, no picture... maybe another time!

Menu's up

I have a tentative idea of what we'll be eating this week:

Lunches:
~I'm making a couple of extra loaves of bread, slicing them, and putting them in the freezer so that we can get back into having peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch!  I know, that's not very exciting, but we haven't eaten those in months and months, so I hope they'll be a happy change. 
~ Baked macaroni and cheese (new recipe I'm waiting to try)
~ leftovers or something from the freezer
~ tacos if necessary

Dinner:
Sunday: Tenderloin steak, roasted veggies
Monday: Making a pot of White Chili for the first time, some leftover steak for the skeptics
Tuesday: Probably more white chili for me, feel like frying some chicken thighs, more roasted veggies
Wednesday: Taco soup, steamed broccoli
Thursday: Soup, not sure.. I have a lot of broccoli and potatoes, so probably that.
Friday: Meatballs in a tray with veggies and tomato sauce, side of rice

Insha'Allah, that's the plan.

Home activites for your kids

Does the thought of having your kids home for two weeks without school give you a little stress?  Do you wonder what you'll do with them, or more specifically, what they'll do with you?? Just kidding, hopefully they'll do nothing with you but fill your heart with love :D

My philosophy is that you as a parent don't need to resort to song and dance to entertain your children, rather you just want to provide a few things to jump start their imaginations and love for play that is already there.  They're kids after all!  (and by song and dance I'm talking about going to places where you have to pay and pay and pay out the nose for a few hours of 'entertainment')

Here are a few ideas that have worked for me that I hope might be useful for you or might give you an idea for something else you have handy. 

1.  Have some art supplies handy and structure the time they can use it if the mess stresses you out.  There are washable finger paints that are easy to wipe off of any table surface.  I've bought some inexpensive newsprint tablets of paper that the little ones can use as much as they want.  No fancy thick art paper, just a thinner type called newsprint.  There is a little plastic tub (with lid) hidden in one of my kitchen cabinets full of paint brushes, washable finger paints, a couple of trays of watercolors, and reused cans that I've saved from cooking to act as water cans.  Older kids know that they have to leave NO TRACE of their activity if I'm going to let them do it again, so they make sure to clean up really well.

2. Homemade Playdo (or the store bought type)  We set up at the kitchen table and use rolling pins, wooden utensils (like salad mixers, wooden fork), plastic characters from other toys (we some old Dora and Diego figures), and plastic toys like trees, animals, and other things you might have already.  You could make a jungle theme or any theme you want and set out the accessories that will give them a spark to work with.
Recipe for Homemade Playdo
5 cups flour
1 cup salt
2 T Alum (white spice you can find in grocery store)
1/4 cup oil
4 cups boiling water

Stir all together in a large mixing bowl.  You can separate the dough into smaller bowl and add food coloring.  Store in sealed plastic bags to keep fresh and moist.

3.  Have a sensory box.  The idea is to fill a container with dry materials that the little ones can sink their hands into and play in.  At preschools I've seen them at the kids' waist level so that they can walk up to the long table that is filled with sand or pebbles, rice, or soapy water at times.  Kids love to touch and move these things between their fingers.  At home, I found a tub that I could reuse and filled it with dry rice and green lentils.  Just yesterday I switched it out and filled it with different types of dry beans.  I used large white beans, black beans, red beans, pinto beans, and black-eyed peas.  Again, the big kids know to clean up completely, but for the toddler, well, I just brace myself and have the vacuum cleaner handy for when she's done.  I have used a beach blanket before for them so play on so that I could more easily shake out or throw away what got scattered out of the box.

Here is the updated box I just set up today and like more:

4.  Make fruit popsicles.  Ok, I know it's cold enough outside, but this is a quick and easy kitchen activity if you have anyone who is itching to make his/her own treat.  We poured our blend into these little containers that Nana gave us, but you can use ice cube trays if you want, too.

Recipe for fruit popsicles
1 cup frozen sliced bananas (it's ok if they're not frozen)

1 cup frozen strawberries, raspberries, sliced peaches or other fruit (we used the frozen tropical mix from Costco)

½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract (i'd use a little less)

¼ to ½ cup milk (dairy, soy, rice, almond, or coconut)
In a food processor, pulse fruit until coarsely chopped. I used my blender, not food processor.
Add milk a little at a time through top of processor, and puree until creamy.
Serve immediately, or freeze in individual-size containers for later.
Yield: 4 servings
Recipe is courtesy of: http://www.mothering.com/recipes/better-ice-cream

5.  Free up the garage.  Ours has tools and toys around the perimeter b/c my husband parks his car inside.  When it's too cold or wet to play outside we just move his car out and play in there.  Sure, it's not huge, but for most kids it is plenty of room to play ball, ride scooters/trikes, jump on a small trampoline, or just to run and play.  I've even taken one of the space heaters to warm it up a little more in there on the really cold days.

6.   Have some quiet activities on hand. 
a) The most obvious one is books from the library.  Why don't all of you sit on the couch with a few piles of books and just sit down and relax for an hour?  Make some hot tea or hot chocolate and enjoy reading together.
b) Remember playing Mad Libs as a kid?  I just ordered two books and they're a HIT!!
http://www.amazon.com/Super-Silly-Mad-Libs-Junior/dp/0843107588/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1324133457&sr=8-4
c) Latch hook kits.  Definitely for ages 8 and up.  Maybe even 9 or 10 and up.  Don't tell anyone, but my son is really into the one I got him.  It's a picture of a pirate ship.  He's loving it.  What a great quiet, focusing, and productive activity!
http://www.amazon.com/Caron-Wonderart-Latch-Hook-Kit/dp/B0017WEDA8/ref=sr_1_10?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1324133546&sr=1-10

I left out some big things like arts and crafts (glue, construction paper, etc..), scrapbooking, and bead activites b/c I figured those were obvious enough if you already have them at home. 

Alrighty, that's about all I have for now!

something *I* have learned from homeschooling

I've had the opportunity twice this past week to talk about why I chose to homeschool the children.  (it just so happens that two people asked me why/how I do it)  Now that I've been doing it a little over a year I've almost forgotton about those initial feelings that lead me to explore it in the first place!  When I think back to those few weeks in the spring of 2010 when I started this journey, the initial reasons are still there and valid, but I've gained dozens more reasons to keept it going.

I couldn't believe how things were changing for the better during those first few weeks.  I mean, all the little extra perks were piling up, and I was just all giddy with our new lifestyle.  I'm talking about the bonus of the kids seeing their dad an extra few minutes a day b/c they're not being rushed out the door.  The bonus of them occasionally eating a hot meal for lunch rather than their packed lunches.  The opportunity for them to do some simple chores in the morning their not being totally exhausted by the time they get done with school for the day.  We slowly shifted from our old routine to a new one that was much more laid back and kind of with a natural flow. 

I get the opportunity to be there to shape their views on key character issues.  I am providing them with quality literature that is well written and with good characters/stories.  When tough situations arise, we are all there to talk about how we would respond. 

To get to do all of this, though, it does take effort of course.  Nothing can be successful without putting your all into it.  You can't do something like this halfway.  And that brings me to one of the more significant replies I've come to give those who question me, because they inevitabley tell me they couldn't possibly do it and that they don't have the patience that I must have.   I often stop them and tell them that I, too, used to think that of others who homeschooled.  I tell them that not only has it built character in the children, but that it built character in me.  This change in lifestlyle has positively affected me.  I wasn't expecting it, really, and it took me answering questions of curious friends to realize that I did change.  I had to.  I had to change in my heart how I saw my children.  I prayed about it, asked for help, and put my best foot forward.  Now, months later, I can say that I have changed, and I think I am a better mom for it.  Alhamdulilaah, Allah is capable of all things, and He can provide for us from places we cannot imagine.  And that's the other thing I like to share with moms who consider homeschooling.  Make your intentions for seeking the pleasure of Allah, and He will provide for you and make you a way.  (and I'm not saying that homeschooling is the only way for Allah to make a way for you to be a good mom!!! just saying how with my intentions for homeschooling along with prayer, I've come a long way)

The struggles haven't been too hard.  I've managed my schedule so that I do some outings on my own once my husband is home.  It's when he's travelling out of town that I feel the full force of not having any time to run errands alone.  I don't even mind being home with the kids, it's when I need something from out of the house that I run into trouble.  I'm used to taking my kids with me everywhere, but the older ones don't have as much patience as they used to, and that's where I'm running into the most trouble!  In a year or two, though I'll be able to leave more of them home alone, insha'Allah.  I'm so thankful that I'm with them while they grow up.  I hope and pray that this will benefit them as they grow.