Tangy Meatloaf

Im back... And I have an amazing recipe for meatloaf to share! Don't let the sound of the title fool you. This has got to be the BEST meatloaf I have EVER eaten. That being said.... the secret is in the sauce! Please note that if you have big eaters, you are going to have to double this recipe!

Here is the recipe which I actually found on AllRecipes.com (LOVE this site and LOVE the iPhone app too)

              Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• garlic powder to taste
• 1 dash Worcestershire sauce
  Sauce
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup pineapple preserves

             Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, bread crumbs, egg, garlic powder and Worcestershire sauce. Mix well, and place into a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 50 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, in a separate medium bowl, stir together the ketchup, brown sugar and pineapple preserves. Pour over the meatloaf about 20 minutes before removing from oven.
   
   
   
   

Menu Planner - School Lunch AND Dinner

I got so tired of trying to find exactly what I wanted in a menu planner. I finally just broke down and MADE one. I only needed a School Lunch Planner and a Dinner Planner for the week. Let me know what you think! If you would like a PDF, let me know and I will email it to you. Click here to reach me!!!!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

And I have made it here twice today!!!! This time it is for my recipe for stuffed bell peppers.

Ingredients:
4 Large Green Bell Peppers
1.5 ground beef
1c cooked couscous
2-3 Tbls Worcestershire Sauce (Lea & Perrins in the best)
1/2 - 3/4c ketchup
1/8tsp black pepper
2 cans Tomato Sauce
Mixed Shredded cheese

Prep:
Brown the ground beef
Cook couscous according to package directions
Add Worchestershire Sauce
Add 1/2 c Ketchup
Mix in cooked couscous
**if more Ketchup is needed, add the remained 1/4 cup**

Hollow out the bell peppers and use a spoon to scoop out the remaining veins and seeds.

Fill the bell pepper about half way and put a layer of cheese. Fill the bell pepper the rest of the way with meat mixture. Continue with the other 3 bell peppers. Place in the crockpot. Pour both cans of sauce over the peppers. Cook 3 hrs on high or 6-7 hours on low. Top with more cheese when serving!

Most amazing cake ever - if you can call it cake!

Ok... it has been awhile since I have been on here. I found a new recipe that I have been itching to try and share. It is for Chess Bars or Gooey Butter Cake. They are one in the same. If you are a Paula Dean fan you may very well recognize this recipe. It is amazingly simple :) And it is in the oven right now!!!!!

1 Box yellow cake mix
1 8 oz bar of cream cheese (softened)
3 eggs
1/2 cup butter melted
1 lb (4 cups) of powdered sugar

Sounds amazing right?? Keep reading....
Prep:
Preheat oven to 300
Spray 9x11 baking dish with cooking spray

Combine:
Mix the cake mix, 1 egg, and 1/2 cup butter together. This will form a very soft dough. Press into prepped baking dish till even.


Next:
Mix your powdered sugar, 2 eggs, and cream cheese together till it is smooth and creamy. (try not to taste!)
Pour over dough mixture and spread evenly.

Bake:
Pop into oven for 40-50 minutes or until top is browning.

For pictures and a step by step tutorial see this blog!!! http://www.kevinandamanda.com/recipes/dessert/chess-squares.html

Thanks for stopping by and I sure hope to be back soon!!!!!

Homemade Maple Syrup

Well, I have to wonder (NOW) why I never found this recipe before. Thanks to Jillee for sharing this recipe to those of us who have NO clue! It is SO simple and easy to make. And it tastes so much better to boot.


Make sure you check out One Good Thing by Jillee's page out if you have any questions. But the recipe is as follows:

1 cup water
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon Mapeline **

** Mapeline can be found in the extracts section of the spices at your local grocery store. I got mine at walmart at it was 4.35 for the bottle.**

Bring 1c water to boil
Add 1 c sugar
Add 1 c brown sugar
Add 1/2 t Mapeline
Stir till everything is combined
Remove from heat & cool.
Transfer to storage jar!

How Simple?!?!?!?!

See One Good Thing By Jillee's instructions here if you still have questions!!!!!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Man oh Man oh Man ........ Savings abound!!!!! I decided to start this blog to show off some of my homemade goodies as times goes on through the year. I absolutely LOVE home made stuff and I LOVE making it. All of my projects I'm doing through out the year will be on here. Everything from my Garden to Laundry Detergent.

So now on with the laundry detergent. I actually found this on Pinterest. http://www.howdoesshe.com/cheaper-and-better-diy-laundry-detergent is the actual site. This is her recipe and it is WONDERFUL. Thank you for posting. All of the instructions are on the website to actually make it.

1 (4 lb 12 oz) Box of Borax- Found in the detergent aisle

1 (3 lb 7 oz) Box of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda- Found in the detergent aisle

1 (3 lb) Container of OxyClean- Found in the detergent aisle. (This is optional but I highly recommend adding it)

2 (14.1 oz) Bars of Zote Soap- Found in the detergent aisle (we chose to do pink for the scent but the white would be just fine. You can also use Fels Naptha)

2 (2 lb) Boxes of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda- Found in the cooking aisle (You could also get 1 4 lb box, we just couldn’t find it when we went)

1-2 (55 oz) Bottle of Purex Crystals Fabric Softener- Found in the detergent aisle (This is 100% optional. Like I said, my laundry detergent must smell good and I really like soft towels)

I have to say the hardest part of this whole thing is actually grating the soap. Use a fine grater and you can grate the soap in about 10 minutes. I only used 1 Purex Crystals but I think I am going to put the 2nd one in.

This whole recipe made a HUGE bucket of detergent. 326.2 Oz  (20.3 lbs) to be exact!!!!! Now here is the REALLY interesting part. You only use 1-2 Tablespoons of detergent to wash clothes. 2T = 1oz. :-) That is 326 loads of laundry...... WOW. Now Im going to make it even MORE awesome for you......

Quantity	Ingredients	Weight	Ounces	Total Price
1	Box of Borax	4 lb 12 oz	76	$3.52
1	Arm and Hammer Washing Soda	3 lb 7 oz	55	$3.74
1	OxyClean	3 lb	48	$1.99
2	Fels Naptha	14.1 oz	28.2	$1.97
1	Purex Crystals	55 oz	55	$4.50
2	Arm and Hammer Baking Soda	4 lbs	64	$2.07
			326.2	$17.79
		Total/Load	0.05

Yep... you read that right. It cost 17.79 for all the ingredients that I used. (Thanks Costco!) It made 326.2 oz of detergent. 17.76 / 326.2oz = 0.05 cents per oz. Remember what I said above? It takes 1-2T to wash clothes? 2T=1oz ...... 1 oz = 0.05 :-)

Now ..... Im going to show you what I WAS Spending!!!! This really hurts.....

					# of Loads	oz /load	Amt / OZ
1	Gain Liquid Detergent	170 oz	170	$15.00	110.00	1.55	$0.09	$0.14
1	Downy Fabric Softner	170	170	$13.00	197.00	0.86	$0.08	$0.07
1	OxyClean Tab	19	19	$6.99	18.00	1.06	$0.37	$0.39
								$0.59
				$34.99

Yep.... .59 cents per load. We do about 10 loads of laundry per week. That is almost 6.00 per WEEK!!!!! Doesn't sound like much till you look at it like this.....
5.90 * 52 = 306.8 / year - Holy Cow!!!!!!!!

Home made detergent = .50 * 52 = 26.00 / year. I truly think I can live with those savings :-)