cowboy sandwiches and guacamole and weird toddler creations

The Marlboro Mans Favorite sandwich was an instant hit. Eric moaned when he took his first bite and told me that it too has become his favorite sandwich. SCORE! Now, this sandwich may be delish, but it is not for those concerned about cholesterol or weight loss. This might as well be called the butter beef sandwich, or jsut the butter sandwich with beef and onions on the side. However, it is wonderful, great flavor, make sure when you make it that you season the beef LIBERALLY with season salt, lemon pepper and freshly ground black pepper... that really makes a difference.

Then on to the sides - guacamole I know should be served with chips, but I made it into a salad since I left it chunky. I didn't think ahead and used my limes in the lime granita that I made ahead for dessert (fabulous, I will tell you) and the rest needed to be left for the beer to be drank with dinner, so instead I was generous with the lime cilantro from my garden and it worked, but gualcamole is always better with lime. the real thing.

Now the twice baked potato, was labor intensive, but so worth it. crispy fried bacon, milk, sour cream, green onions, butter and pepper, mix it all together, oh and sharp cheddar is the secret behind it all. wonderful. I made 16 halves and froze them, already made... saves time for another dinner. *NOTE: the ones I froze I left out the green onion as green onion tastes really weird when froze and reheated.

Your husband will love you forever and be ready to have another baby when this dinner is concluded. Or be ready to have your first baby if you don't yet have one.

 My dear son below would rather eat weird toddler food.. creations he makes then my yummy food. Here he is eating milk soaked goldfish. Gorss I know. However, he eats it, he likes it and currently he is into soaking everything in milk. including pepperoni, which he ate for lunch.

P.S. - I noticed nearly every picture he is wearing this shirt. it happens to be his favorite and he is into picking out his own clothes right now.

flying high

McNew Family reunion 2010

Justa  few snapshots to share the memories!

Case enjoyed eating some watermelon

and hanging out with Gramma

swinging in the hammock with Ila was a favored pastime

us ladies did some flower pounding and it was fun...

Uncle Rob and Kylee stole a snooze...

Tyler and Christie enjoyed the flower pounding as well

Ila brought Christie and myself the flowers

Gramma Vergie hung out and enjoyed the family

so did my dad

Mom and Granpa visited on the porch

it was nice to see all the family, hopefully we can do it again soon! those who didn't come, please come next time!

swimming is the best

I believe Case wishes he was a fish. or a turtle. or a frog. he loves the water and could easily spend all day in it. that is, if I would let him.

chicken spagetti, chili, cornbread muffins, marmalade muffins and cowboy sandwiches....

so my menu hasn't been exactly as planned, meaning that the meals I have prepared are not in the correct order, but they have all be superb so far!

Saturday night after I returned from SLC, everyone was starving so I prepared the chicken spagetti. It was delicious! super easy and the addition of the pimentos really added some great flavor, definitely something I will make again and its freezable! So, what we didn't eat, I put into single serving portions, labeled and put into the freezer for the days i don't want to cook dinner.

Sunday I made chili and sweet cornbread jumbo muffins. Since I went to the red velvet cupcakery in Tucson during SLC I have become obsessed with jumbo sized muffins (FYI). Also delicious, I left out the cayenne pepper from the chili as I am married to a man who doesn't like it all hot. The cornbread muffins I made with agave nectar which I have come to the firm understanding is decidely better for you that sugar. Now understand that there are some things that set up well with agave nectar while others do not. For example, you must use sugar when making granitas. Agave nectar will not work. 

Below you can see the scrumptious chili and perfectly browned cornbread muffin. I noticed that to get the beef to be super flavorful you need to leat the beef and spices simmer in tomato sauce for about 20 minutes. this really adds the word savory to every bite you take. Also, because I used agave nectar in the cornbread muffins, it omits the need to add an additional sweetness to the top of the muffin (Eric usually needs honey and butter).

Today, Monday, I made marmalade muffins for breakfast, they were an instant hit with with my boys who both have incredible sweet tooths, I however thought they were too sweet. When I make them again I will only glaze half of them and leave the other unglazed. Eric ate 3 of them, which he never does in one sitting and Case actually finished his, which in this day and age is a miracle all in itself!

This picture was taken directly after I had glazed the muffins with fresh squeezed orange juice mixed with brown sugar. I could easily lick the bowl clean of the glaze, it was divine.

In between breakfast and lunch I made fresh lime granita and grape-cranberry granita for dessert after lunch.

Lunch is currently being prepared, I have the oven dinging at me telling me to remove the baked potatoes so I can prepare to make twice baked potatoes, we also are having onion strings and marlboro man sandwiches. I will let you know how they go.

Also, if you are interested in recipes, the pioneer woman is who I got the majority of these ideas from, actually all but the sweet cornbread muffins, Betty Crocker gave me that one.

next weeks menu...

so my PW cookbook came and it is wonderful. I picked it up yesterday a the post office and read it cover to cover like a regular book in the 6 hours before I went to bed. Yes, that is how wonderful it is. Really and truly, Ree Drummond could be my neighbor and i think she is a cousin once removed. She and my mom could be best friends and I am sure that if I accidentally happened upon her place in Oklahoma, she would probably invite me in for dinner and would soon know this as a mistake because I would never leave.

Just to let you all know, its been a secret goal of mine this summer to loose the rest of the baby weight that I gained while preggo from Case, and since school has been out I have done a good job, I've lost 5 pounds in two weeks! its been excellent. However, as I read this great cookbook last night, I decided I might never return to a size four, especially if I begin cooking all of the wonderful recipes out of this book. I suppose eating delicious food might just be the death of me and I could live like that without being my stick-self that I used to be. Some however might contest that I still am a stick, although they don't ever see my muffin top. I am sorry if this is too much information.

Now on to the real reason of this post, I just wanted to share with you the menu I will be making next week, starting on Sunday, the day after my return from SLC - I need a night to recuperate.

Please, if you read this and decide it sounds delectable, I would be honored to have you over for a meal, or two - just remember we are in the midst of remodeling so you'll feel like a real cowboy when you walk into the downstairs bathroom and and notice there is only a toilet, you'll need to do your hand washing in the sink in the kitchen. But please, just give me a heads up and I will welcome you into my home for dinner.

Oh yea, the dicotamous key:  B - breakfast L - Lunch  LD - late dinner/lunch S - Supper D- dessert (pretty easy for simple minds like mine)

Ok, menu a la mcspaddens via the PW Cooks Cookbook and the healthy beef cookbook:

Sunday June 13

B - cinnamon rolls with maple coffee sauce
LD - rib eye with whiskey cream sauce and onion strings
D - blackberry cobbler

usually on Sundays we have a late lunch/dinner because its after church before we eat

Monday June 14

B - buttermilk biscuits with eggs and sausage
L - chili
S - grilled steak with mango salsa
D - lemon granita

June 15  Tuesday

B - french breakfast puffs
L - cowboy calzones
S - grilled beef tri-tip with carmalized 3 onion sauce

no dessert today, I don't think I can handle dessert everday, it would be an overload

June 16 Wednesday

B - sour cream pancakes
L - left overs from the previous 3 days (sorry, Im not good enough to be a gourmet cook yet)
S - chicken fried steak with PW mashed potatoes

same reason as Tuesday on the dessert. I need to loose some calories, not gain them!

June 17 Thursday

B - marmalade muffins
L - mac and cheese (homemade thank you very much!)
S - Tenderloin Cranberry and Pear Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

If Eric wants dessert today, he can have ice cream. or blackberry cobbler or granita. or all of the above. needless to say, I'm really not much of a dessert eater, but he loves the sweets.

June 18 Friday

B - maple pecan scones - truthfully, I'm really looking forward to these. Although I don't like sweets much at all, these sound delectable and I really don't like coffee either, but I think I will have a cup on this day because I really love scones. really. I do.

L - scones. I think today is a day for scones all day long.
S- chicken spagetti

June 19 Saturday

B - bacon, eggs and toast
L - I think I will save room for dinner and we will have an LD
LD - Cowboy sandwiches with potato skins and mocha brownies
D- mocha brownies

Ok. If I can manage to survive the week becoming a cooking extrodinaire, I will continue with the yummy menus throughout the rest of the summer. If not, I will admire all of the great cooks out there and possibly consider hiring one for my house.

what begins with S?

Summer

Smiling

Sun (and sun burns! ouch!)

Swimming

Soaring (mostly just Case... okay, only Case)

Sleeping (all of us.. I have forgotten how wonderful afternoon naps are, now I make it a mandatory staple in our afternoon. Oh! another S!)

Sharing

all of the above is what we have been doing, and its been fabulous.

Some pictures below to share...

swimming at the river with Duke

wet boots happen when you let little boys wear them near the pool, just saying, its not really  a good idea

squinting!

smiling!

soaring!