Extreme Bubbles

2 cups Joy dish detergent
6 cups water
3/4 cup light corn syrup

In a 1-gallon milk jug, combine the soap, water and corn syrup; shake well. Let stand for 4 hours. Cover and store in the refrigerator. Bring solution to room temperature before using. Pour the solution into a cake pan and let the kids dip away using bent wire coat hangers or large wands.

Strawberry Limies

2 cups crushed ice (crush in blender)
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
4 tsp. powdered sugar
1/2 cup ginger ale or 7-Up
1 small lime, squeezed

Blend all ingredients in blender and pour in glass! Drink immediately!

No Drip Popsicles

1 (6oz) pkg. jello
1 pkg. Kool-Aid
1 cup sugar
2 cups hot water
2 cups cold water

Buy the same flavored Kool-Aid and Jello (or two that mix well!) Combine first four ingredients and stir until dissolved. Add and mix the cold water. Pour into containers. Freeze one hour, then add sticks. Freeze overnight.

Indoor S'mores

8 c. Golden Grahams cereal
6 c. miniature marshmallows
1 1/2 c. chocolate chips
1/4 c. light corn syrup
5 Tbs. butter or margarine
1 tsp. vanilla

1. Butter a 13x9-inch pan. Measure cereal into large bowl.
2. Microwave 5 cups of the marshmallows, the chocolate chips, corn syrup and butter in large microwavable bowl uncovered on high 2 minutes to 3 minutes 30 seconds, stirring after every minute, until mixture can be stirred smoothly.
3. Stir in vanilla. Pour over cereal in bowl; quickly toss until evenly coated. Stir in remaining 1 cup marshmallows.
4. Press mixture in pan, using buttered back of spoon. Let stand uncovered for at least 1 hour, or refrigerate for a firmer bar. For bars, cut into 6 rows by 6 rows. Store loosely covered at room temperature up to 2 days.

Cranberry Cream Cheese

1/3 cup whole cranberry sauce
1 (8oz.) pkg. cream cheese

Mix ingredients together in medium bowl until smooth. Makes 1 cup. Delicious served with many types of "sweet" breads like pumpkin, banana, etc. It is also tasty on bagels and toast!

Homemade Enchilada Red Sauce

1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small white onion, grated
1 can (28 oz.) pureed tomatoes
1 Tbsp. dark chili powder
Pinch of cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cumin
salt

Heat garlic in oil over medium heat. When it sizzles, add onion by grating it directly into the pot. Cook 2 min. Add tomatoes and seasonings. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and keep warm until enchiladas are ready to top.

Warm Salsa Verde--Green Enchilada Sauce

12 Tomatillos, husked and halved
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, minced or grated
1 (14 oz.) can chicken broth
1 tsp. cumin
salt
1 ripe avacado
fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

Place tomatillos in food processor (or blender) and pulse into a coarsely ground paste. Heat garlic in oil--medium heat. When it sizzles add onion. Add jalapeno. Hat through. Add tomatillos. Simmer 5 min. Add chicken broth and seasonings. Halve the avadacos and spoon out fruit. Use fork to mush into chunks. Add to sauce to thicken it. Return sauce to a boil. Reduce and keep warm until enchiladas are ready.

Lunch Kebabs for Kiddos

1/2 oz. cubed roasted deli turkey
1/2 oz. cubed cheese
1/4 cup grapes
6 dried apricots

Thread onto pretzel sticks or skewers for kids. Yum!

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 (8oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
4-4 1/2 cups powdered sugar (about 1 pound)

Beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla in bowl on medium. Add sugar gradually, beating until smooth.

Buttercream Frosting

3 Tbsp. butter, softened
2 cups sifted powdered sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Cream together butter and sugar. Add vanilla. Stir in milk under desired consistency.

Mom's Cheeseball

Jared's Moms recipe...

1 lb mild cheddar, grated
1 lb cream cheese (2 boxes)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 TB grated onion
1 TB worchestershire sauce
about ½ cup finely chopped nuts

1. Mix all well and roll all into a ball (except nuts).
2. Roll ball in nuts.
3. Let flavors blend in fridge so make it the day before you want to serve it.

Whole Wheat Cereal

2 cups boiling water
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup whole wheat

Thermos Method: Place wheat in 1 or 2 quart bottle. Add salt and boiling water. Screw on lid. Let sit overnight (10-12 hours) Reheat in microwave just before serving. Cover unused portion and store in fridge.

Conventional Method: Bring water and salt to a boil in small saucepan. Stir in wheat. Reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook 45-60 minutes until kernals are tender and chewy.

I usually eat a big bowlful with a little milk and honey. I'm weird, I love it.

Goop and Gruel

I don't know if any of you remember that stuff they used to sell when we were kids called "slime"? But it is sort of like "springy" play-doh. It reminds me of that stuff flubber from the movie, only not see-through or gelatinously green! =)

Ingredients Needed:
Borax (laundry aisle of your local Wal-Mart)
White Glue
Water
Food Coloring (optional)
Ziploc Bag

1. Take 1 cup water and add to it 1 Tbsp. of Borax. Stir until completely dissolved.

2. Take 1/4 cup water and 1/4 cup white glue and mix together thoroughly.

3. In ziploc gag, add equal parts of the Borax solution to equal parts of the glue solution. 1/2 cup of each will make 1 cup of slime.

4. Add a couple of drops of food coloring.

5. Seal bag and knead mixture

6. Dig in and have fun. Remember to wash your hands after you play with it.

7. Keep your slime in the sealed bag in the fridge when not playing wit it to keep it longer.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

1 quart strawberries
4 cups sugar
1 box sure-jell fruit pectin
3/4 cup water

1. Use 1-2 cup plastic containers with tight fitting lids
2. Discard stems and crush strawberries (1 cup at a time, with a potato masher) Do not puree, jam should have bits of fruit in it.
3. Measure exact amount of prepared fruit into a large bowl.
4. Measure exact amount of sugar into separate bowl (do not reduce sugar and don't use sugar substitutes)
5. Stir sugar into prepared fruit and let stand 10 minutes, stir occasionally.
6. Stir pectin and 3/4 cup water in small saucepan. Pectin may start out lumpy. Bring to boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute, sitring constantly. Remove from heat.
7. Stir pectin mixture into fruit mixture. Stir constantly until sugar is completely dissolved and no longer grainy (about 3 minutes)
8. Pour into prepared containers, leaving 1/2 inch space at top for expansion during freezing; cover.
9. Let stand at room temperature (about 24 hours) until set. If not set after 24 hours, refrigerate for up to 3 weeks until set. Otherwise, store in freezer for up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator.
7.

Baked Garlic

When Jared and I were dating, he always took me to this quaint little Italian restaurant in Austin called "Romeo's" They always served whole heads of baked garlic on crusty slices of bread as an appetizer. As soon as I found this "recipe" I had to do it! So yummy! Don't be scared if you've never had it, the flavor is really mellow. You can also stir the baked garlic up with butter and spread it on your bread that way! Um, YUM!

1 head of garlic per serving
olive oil
fresh thyme

Preheat oven to 350. Slice off the tops of the garlic heads, exposing the cluster of cloves. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with thyme. Place in baking pan and bake 45min. until golden brown and bubbly. Great spread on chicken, grilled veggies, toast/butter/cheese!

Cookie Mix in a Jar

I think Cristian is the one who gave this to me one Christmas!

1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup M&M's or Chocolate Chips

Layer those ingredients in a cute little mason jar...tie up with some cloth and rafia and a little tag with the following instructions:

Makes 18 large cookies. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl combine 1/2 cup of butter, 1 egg , 1/2 tsp. of vanilla and the contents of the cookie mix jar. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

Perfect Turkey Gravy

5 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup flour
1 pkg. (32 oz.) chicken broth

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over med-low heat. Add flour; cook 3 minutes, stirring. Whisk in broth.

2. Increase heat to med.-high; bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low; let simmer 15 minutes, stirring.

3. At this stage you can either serve it (skip to last line of recipe) or let it cool completely and transfer it to a covered container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

4. When ready to serve, reheat gravy, add pan juices from turkey, and heat to boiling. Thin gravy with more broth or water if it's too thick. Makes 5 cups.

Amazing Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

1 tsp. white sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water (110*F)
1 Tbsp. active dry yeast
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1. In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over the top, and let stand for about 10 minutes, until foamy.

2. Stir the olive oil and salt into the yeast mixture, then mix in the whole wheat flour and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour until dough starts to come together. Tip dough oout onto a survace floured with the remaining all-purpose flour, and knead until all of the flour has been absorbed, and the ball of dough becomes smooth (about 10 minutes!) Place dough in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover loosely with a towel, and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, (about 1 hour)

3. When the dough is doubled, tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and divide into 2 pieces for 2 thin crust, or leave whole to make one thick crust. Form into a tight ball. Let rise about 45 minutes, until doubled.

4. Preheat the oven to 425*. Roll a ball of dough with a rolling pin until it will not stretch any further. Then, drape it over both of your fists and gently pull the edges outward, while rotating the crust. When the circle has reached the desired size, place on a well-oiled pizza pan. Top with your favorite toppings. (P.S. I just stretch the dough out onto a cookie sheet and roll the edges over to make a thicker edge crust!)

5. Bake for 16 to 20 minutes (depending on thickness) in the preheated oven, until the crust is crisp and golden on the edges, and the cheese is melted on top.

Cinnamon Ornaments

3/4 cup applesauce
1 bottle (4.12 oz) ground cinnamon

Mix applesauce with cinnamon to form a stiff dough. Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters. Make hole in top of ornament with skewer or straw. Carefully lay ornaments on rack to dry. Let dry 1-2 days or until thoroughly dry, turning occasionally. Hang with decorative thread or ribbon. May be decorated with decorator paste. Makes 12-15 ornaments.