Millet porridge in the crock pot

When we went to Telkwa, BC, at the end of August with our church for a building and fellowship project, our hostess made millet porridge in the crock pot for us the first morning, when only half of our group was there. It was a tasty alternative to oatmeal (which I want to try in the crock pot), and I wanted to make it once we got home. However, I only had a huge 5.5qt crock pot, which is nice for potlucks, but not for cooking for two. Last month, I finally got a 2.5qt crock pot that is more appropriate for cooking for two.

The next problem was finding whole millet, which, it turns out, is not something most stores carry. I found millet flour once. I finally remembered to go to the Food Coop, which is our local version of Whole Foods. And lo and behold, they had millet.

It is a very simple recipe:

8 cups water
2 cans coconut milk
4 cups millet

Mix and cook on low overnight.

I halved the recipe, since I was cooking for two, not 21 like in Telkwa (we had another 17 or so arrive over the next couple days). We will still have some left overs.

It was yummy, and easy, and didn't require me to be fully functional. We end up missing some weekend breakfasts due to that :) The coconut flavor was not noticeable, so if you want to add flavors, I don't think you would need to make other adjustments. I topped mine with a little milk and maple syrup, and M had milk and Smuckers strawberry syrup, which she uses on lots of things.

My issues were that it stuck to the crock, and was cooked unevenly. The parts around the outside were almost mushy, while the middle was more grainy. Once I stirred it up, it seemed to even out. But I am afraid I may still have to soak out the stuck on parts.

I may try that oatmeal in the crock pot for tomorrow before church...but that is a post for another day :)

Show ribbon invites

M's birthday party is this weekend. After much discussion, it was decided to have it at a local coffee shop in their loft (our apartment is too small for more than two or three kids) and play horse riding/jumping games. For invites, we made show ribbons. On the front is a stamp of a horse, and on the back is a bigger circle with all the party info. We may make thank you cards that are similar. Haven't decided yet :)

I will post more about the party next week after the event. Wish me luck!

Crochet turtle

My girl asked me for a crocheted turtle. After looking on yarn websites, and finally biting the bullet and joining Pinterest (I ::knew:: it was a time suck!), I have finally found a cute, free pattern thru Pinterest at www.bethsco.blogspot.com for her jingle turtle. It is made to be a baby toy. I just omitted the bells, and have a cute turtle for my almost 11 year old baby :) And I finished it just in time...my girl is coming home early from her dad's so he can take papa to the airport. Perfect timing :)

Oktoberfest stew

This was dinner tonight. I know it isn't October anymore, but I just found it this week on pinterest. I am still figuring this bloggy thing out, so I don't know how to track back, but here's the link to the original site where the recipe is http://thecozyapron.com/oktoberfest-stew-and-shiny-happy-people/

The only changes I made were I only used a quarter of a small cabbage, and I used while caraway seeds, as I missed that part of the recipe, I doubt I could've found ground caraway at the local store anyway, and my grinder doesn't grind well :P

Also, because it is after thanksgiving, the only seasonal beer I could find were winter ales. So I found a local amber lager to use...Red Hook No Equal lager, made for Seattle Sounders fans. In general, I prefer ale, but it isn't bad, so I am able to finish the bottle after using some in the stew ;)

With the minor changes that I made, it is very yummy. I will probably put the full amount of cabbage next time, but wasn't sure how it would go over with M. But it got a thumbs up from her :) Can't ask for more than that!

First crock pot of the season

I bought a new crock pot. Not because there was anything wrong with the one I already had. It was just too big. For a family of two (me and my girl M), 5.5qts was more food than we needed, or didn't cook properly when not full enough. So when I saw a 2.5qt on sale, it was a go. It is a cute, seasonal one with owls on it :)

So today I cooked my beef and Guinness stew. Since we were home all day, and I didn't get my mojo moving early enough, I cooked it on high for about 3 hours. The recipe is my mental amalgamation of several different recipes I've gotten out of books and online. Here is what it was tonight:

1 3lb boneless beef chuck roast, cut into 1-2 in cubes
1/2 bottle Guinness (dispose of the other half as you see fit ;) )
Salt, pepper, dry thyme
Chopped onion, celery and carrot (I used half of a carton of pre-prepped mirepoix)
A big handful prunes, cut in half

Put everything in the pot, put on the lid, turn it on, and walk away. As I said, on high it was about 3 hours. Low maybe 6-8.

When it was done, I then added 1/2 to 3/4 cup instant potato flakes to thicken all the yummy stuff up. I was going to put in chopped red potatoes, but one was bad, and there wasn't room in my new little pot. Maybe I should get a smaller roast next time :)

Current projects

This are my recent lunch break projects. A pumpkin for my classroom (from lionbrand.com), and a rolly poly for my daughter (it is a modified roll up armadillo pattern from ravelry.com). I am thinking of making a crocheted cornucopia (with fillers) found on lionbrand.com. We will see how that goes :)

I made a crustless quiche for dinner tonight. I found the recipe on my epicurious.com app on my phone. It is a basic quiche Lorraine/Alsace (from what I remember from years ago, both have bacon and gruyere/swiss cheese, but alsatian has onions too, but many are just called lorraine). Since it didn't have a crust, I made it in my smaller Le Creuset baking dish. Butter it, and cover in bread crumbs. Prep fillings you want to use, place in the bottom of dish, and pour custard over. Bake until done. The recipe called for baking it 25 min at 425*. But I baked it 40 min at 375*. I have had weepy quiches in the past, and read that longer, slower cooking is better. I had minimal weeping this time.

It was yummy, served with a salad made of fresh lettuces and arugula from our garden. Hope i picked all the caterpillars out! ;)